Author: Opalim Lifted

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has expressed its readiness to work closely with the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) in order to tackle the scourge of money laundering more fiercely, saying that human trafficking and money laundering often work together. Ola Olukoyede, the Chairman of the EFCC, emphasized the strong connection between human trafficking and money laundering, highlighting the need to jointly confront and combat these two crimes. Olukoyede indicated this on Thursday in Abuja when the Director-General of NAPTIP, Binta Bello Adamu, led the management team of the agency on a courtesy…

The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has thrown its weight behind the House of Representatives’ call for the Federal Government of Nigeria to reverse the recent hike in petrol pump prices and stabilize cooking gas prices. CNPP urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to “immediately reverse the removal of fuel subsidy in totality and end the legislative process of increasing Value Added Tax (VAT) until the Nigerian economy recovers, in a statement by its spokesman, Comrade James Ezema. According to the CNPP, the removal of fuel subsidies has “exacerbated the financial burden on ordinary Nigerians, with petrol and cooking gas…

An unidentified commercial motorcyclist has been pronounced dead by the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) after sustaining fatal injuries while riding against traffic on the Cater Bridge in Lagos, Nigeria. The deceased commercial motorcyclist, popularly called Okada rider, was said to be riding from Ebute Ero when he collided with a fast-moving vehicle on the bridge. The impact of the collision, as gathered, led to the immediate death of the motorcyclist while the vehicle driver ran away. Personnel from LASTMA promptly arrived at the scene of the accident and swiftly alerted officers from the Central Police Station at Adeniji…

The National Security Adviser (NSA), Nuhu Ribadu, condemned corrupt policemen and soldiers for trading government-owned arms used for criminal activities in the nation. Ribadu said this on Thursday during the arms destruction exercise organized by the National Centre for the Control of Small Arms and Light Weapons (NCCSALW) and the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) at Muhammadu Buhari Cantonment Giri, Abuja. He explained that the weapons ended up in the hands of non-state actors due to corrupt elements within the security agencies. The NSA condemned and rained curses on the security personnel who facilitate the movement of weapons…

Referees’ chief Howard Webb says there has been an 80% reduction in the number of video assistant referee (VAR) errors this season. It has now been five years since VAR was introduced in the Premier League, but the system and the way it is used continues to attract plenty of debate. According to the independent Key Match Incidents panel (KMI), there were 31 incorrect uses of VAR during the 2023-24 season. In June Premier League clubs voted 19-1 in favour of keeping VAR after Wolverhampton Wanderers triggered a vote to scrap it. An independent survey commissioned by the Premier League…

Nigeria has received its first shipment of 846,000 doses of the R21 malaria vaccine from Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance. Muhammad Pate, the coordinating minister of heath and social welfare launched the vaccines in Abuja on Thursday. An additional 140,000 doses of malaria vaccines are expected in the coming months, as the aim is to secure one million doses in this initial phase. Pate while expressing his excitement for the shipment of the vaccines, emphasised its importance in preventing malaria that claims hundreds of thousands of lives in the country every year, with children bearing the most burden. The World Health…

Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Sweden for a two-day work visit aimed at boosting trade and bilateral relations between both nations. In a statement late Wednesday, Stanley Nkwocha said the Vice President arrived in the European country alongside Plateau State Governor, Caleb Mutfwang; Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar; Communications Minister and Digital Economy Minister, Bosun Tijani; and some heads of government agencies and parastatals. Nkwocha said the visit, which was at the behest of President Bola Tinubu, would see the Vice President engage in high-level talks with key government officials. He is also slated to meet with…

More than one billion people are living in acute poverty across the globe, a UN Development Programme report said Thursday, with children accounting for over half of those affected. The paper published with the Oxford Poverty and Human Development Initiative (OPHI) highlighted that poverty rates were three times higher in countries at war, as 2023 saw the most conflicts around the world since the Second World War. The UNDP and the OPHI have published their Multidimensional Poverty Index annually since 2010, harvesting data from 112 countries with a combined population of 6.3 billion people. It uses indicators such as a…

Former One Direction singer Liam Payne was found dead outside a hotel in Buenos Aires after the 31-year-old fell from his third-floor room balcony, Argentine police said on Wednesday. In a statement, the capital police said they were called to the hotel in the capital’s leafy Palermo neighborhood where they were notified of an “aggressive man who could be under the effects of drugs and alcohol.” The hotel manager said he heard a loud noise at the back of the hotel, and when police arrived they found that a man had fallen over the balcony in his room, the statement…

Amid concerns raised regarding the absence of both President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima from Nigeria, the Presidency has assured the public that there was no leadership vacuum. In a statement by presidency aide, Bayo Onanuga, on Wednesday, he clarified that both leaders remained actively engaged in the country’s governance, despite their travel commitments. According to him, President Tinubu, who departed on October 3 for a two-week working vacation, has been fully involved in state affairs. “He continues to issue directives and take important calls while abroad, and will return shortly before the vacation concludes,” Onanuga said. Vice…