Author: Opalim Lifted

The House of Representatives has directed its Committee on Power to investigate the frequent national grid collapses and provide a report within three weeks. This decision followed a motion of urgent national importance raised by Hon. Mansur Manu Soro (Bauchi, PDP) during the plenary session. In his motion, Hon. Soro expressed deep concern over the persistent grid failures, which have plunged the entire country into blackout, worsening the economic challenges already faced by Nigerians. He stressed that a stable power supply is essential for driving economic growth and development in any nation. Soro noted that the national grid had collapsed…

President Bola Tinubu-led Federal Executive Council (FEC) have scrapped the Niger Delta Ministry, and the Ministry of Sports Development. The decisions were taken on Wednesday at the meeting of the FEC in Abuja, as seen on the X handle of the Special Adviser Information and Strategy to President Tinubu, Bayo Onanuga on Wednesday. There will now be a Ministry of Regional Development to oversee all the Regional Development Commissions, such as the Niger Delta Development Commission, North West Development Commission, South West Development Commission, and the North East Development Commission. The National Sports Commission will take over the role of…

British actor Idris Elba has revealed plans to relocate to Africa within the next decade. The actor’s aim is to play a key role in supporting the continent’s film industry. The 52-year-old star who was born in London, Elba, whose mother is from Ghana and father from Sierra Leone, has a strong attachment to Africa. Speaking on the sidelines of a film industry meeting in Accra, Idris noted that he is already involved in projects to build film studios in Zanzibar, Tanzania and Accra, Ghana as part of his vision to bolster local filmmaking. Elba highlighted the importance of Africans…

Nigeria’s government has stopped the export of locally produced Liquefied Petroleum Gas, also known as cooking gas, to prioritise domestic supply. The measure announced by the Minister of State Petroleum Resources (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, on Tuesday, will begin November 1, 2024, and is to tackle the high gas price in Nigeria. This was contained in a statement by the spokesman of minister, Louis Ibah, in Abuja. Ibah said the decision was reached after the minister convened a high-level meeting in Abuja with stakeholders to address the skyrocketing price and its attendant hardship on Nigerians. The price of cooking gas skyrocketed…

Nigeria’s government has dropped all charges against an executive at Binance Holdings, Tigran Gambaryan on health grounds. Gambaryan has been facing money laundering trial from detention since April. A Counsel for the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), announced the withdrawal of the charges at the Federal High Court Abuja, before Justice Emeka Nwite. The hearing is coming two days before the 25 October earlier scheduled as the return date by the trial judge in the open court last Friday. Announcing the withdrawal of the charges, the EFCC lawyer said Gambaryan, a United States citizen, was merely an employee of…

Kamala Harris said Tuesday that America is “absolutely” ready to elect its first woman president but downplayed her historic bid, saying she simply wants to turn the page for a nation “exhausted” by Donald Trump. With two weeks to Election Day, Harris and Trump are saturating swing states with rallies and taking to the airwaves and podcasts on the hunt for an advantage in a race that polls suggest is effectively tied. Speaking on the national NBC network, Harris responded “absolutely” when asked if America was ready to elect its first woman — but also noted her candidacy was about…

President Bola Tinubu has told Nigerian motorists to either buy petrol at N1000 or the compressed Natural Gas (CNG) at N200. Tinubu said this during a meeting with the company’s executive on Tuesday at the State House, Abuja. He also praised NIPCO’s contributions to the nation’s energy transition efforts, particularly its support for the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative (PCNGI). During the meeting, Tinubu acknowledged NIPCO’s role as a critical player in enhancing the adoption of CNG as an alternative fuel. He noted that such investments aligned with his administration’s energy security and economic diversification strategy. The President emphasised the…

Minutes after Real Madrid fans were singing for Vinicius Jr to win the Ballon d’Or, the Brazil forward insisted he wanted to “stay at the club forever”. The Brazilian scored a sensational hat-trick against Borussia Dortmund in the Champions League on Tuesday to help his side come from 2-0 down to win 5-2 at the Santiago Bernabeu. He could not have timed his treble better with the Ballon d’Or, widely regarded as football’s most prestigious individual trophy, awarded on Monday, 28 October. After the match, Real manager Carlo Ancelotti called Vinicius Jr “an extraordinary character” and insisted he “will win…

The Lagos State government has said the toxicologist report conducted in the United States on the late singer Mohbad is out. The state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Lawal Pedro SAN, made the disclosure on Monday, October 21 2024, while answering questions from journalists at a press conference held at the Ministry of Justice Conference Room in Ikeja, to commemorate his first year in office. While revealing the government’s plan to commence trial to unravel the persons behind Mohbad’s death, Pedro attributed the delay of the case to a prolonged investigation. He said, “On Mohbad case, I agree there…

Monaco midfielder Takumi Minamino scored twice as his side continued their bright start to this season’s Champions League league phase with a big victory over winless Red Star Belgrade. Ex-Liverpool midfielder Minamino beat the offside trap to put his side ahead after 20 minutes. Red Star’s Cherif Ndiaye levelled things from the spot seven minutes later, after he was fouled by Thilo Kehrer. Breel Embolo restored Monaco’s lead deep into first-half stoppage time, then defender Wilfried Singo made it 3-1 after the restart with a brilliant strike finding the top corner from 30 yards out. Monaco continued their dominance as…