Author: Opalim Lifted

Laolu Akande, former Vice President Yemi Osinbajo’s, says the Independent National Electoral Commission’s (INEC) inability to electronically transmit presidential and National Assembly election results has eroded Nigerians’ trust in the agency. While INEC consistently said in the run-up to the February 2023 election that polling unit results would be transmitted to the INEC Result Viewing Portal (IReV), this did not occur during the presidential and National Assembly elections. Despite criticism from Nigerians, the Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal (PEPT) concluded that the electoral umpire is free to decide how election results are transmitted. Following the development, Akande stated that INEC’s inability…

An al Qaeda-linked group claimed responsibility on Friday for a suicide attack on a military base in northeastern Mali, a day after authorities blamed the group for carrying out a dual assault on another military camp and a boat that killed over 60. At least 49 civilians and 15 soldiers were killed when assailants opened fire on a boat on a waterway that connects the northern regions of Gao and Mopti and raided a camp in the Bourem Circle in the Gao region, a hotbed of Islamist activity over the past decade. Mali’s interim government said insurgents from a West…

A US federal judge ruled that Meta Platforms must defend itself against claims that it violated the medical privacy of patients who received care from hospitals and other healthcare facilities using its Facebook Pixel tracking tool. US District Judge William Orrick in San Francisco said the plaintiffs could pursue claims that Facebook violated a federal wiretap law and a California privacy law and violated its own contractual promises governing user privacy on Facebook. In a 26-page decision on Thursday, the judge said the case, based on the evidence so far, “does not negate the plausible allegations that sensitive healthcare information…

The door to Liverpool forward Mohamed Salah joining the Saudi Pro League is not closed, says SPL director of football Michael Emenalo. Al-Ittihad had a £150 million offer for the 31-year-old rejected last week, with the Reds insisting he was not for sale. A move for Salah did not materialize before the SPL transfer window closed on September 7. “First and foremost, Mohamed Salah is one of the best players on the planet,” Emenalo told Sky Sports. The bid for Salah, who signed a new three-year contract with Liverpool last summer, was in excess of £100m, with add-ons taking it…

Barcelona teenager Lamine Yamal became the youngest player and goalscorer for the Spanish national team in a thumping Euro 2024 qualifying win against Georgia. Lamine, aged 16 years and 57 days, came on for Dani Olmo just before halftime. He got Spain’s seventh in the 74th minute when he fired in a cross. Alvaro Morata scored a hat-trick, while Solomon Kvirkvelia’s own goal and strikes from Olmo and Nico Williams completed the win. Winger Yamal took the youngest-player record from Gavi, who was 17 years and 62 days old when he made his Spain debut in 2021. Yamal inspires Barcelona…

Aston Villa’s Philippe Coutinho has joined Qatari side Al-Duhail on loan for the rest of the season. The Brazilian midfielder, 31, has made just two substitute appearances for Villa this term after scoring one goal in 22 matches in the previous campaign. His current contract at the Premier League club runs out in June 2026. Coutinho completed a permanent move to Villa from Barcelona in July 2022, six months after initially signing on loan. Villa’s manager at the time, Steven Gerrard, described Coutinho as a “brilliant signing for the club” after tempting the man he once captained at Liverpool to…

King Charles III and Queen Camilla held a prayer service near Balmoral to commemorate the first anniversary of Elizabeth II’s death. They were at Crathie Kirk, while the Duke of Sussex went to St. George’s Chapel in Windsor, where the late Queen Elizabeth II is buried. The Prince and Princess of Wales attended a private ceremony at Pembrokeshire’s St. David’s Cathedral. King Charles III also issued a message and a portrait of the late Queen. The King chose an image of the Queen at an official portrait sitting in 1968, when she was 42 years old. Elizabeth II died on…

A Turkish cryptocurrency CEO and his two brothers were sentenced to 11,196 years in prison each for cheating investors out of millions of dollars. Faruk Fatih Ozer, 29, fled to Albania with investor assets in 2021 after his Thodex exchange abruptly failed. In June, he was extradited to Turkey and found guilty of money laundering, fraud, and organized crime. State media disclosed that Ozer told the court he would “not have acted so amateurishly” if his goal was unlawful. “I am smart enough to lead any institution on Earth,” he said, according to Anadolu. “That is clear in this company…

The Federal High Court sitting in Ikoyi, Lagos, under Justice Nicholas Oweibo, has convicted and sentenced one Hakeem Ayotunde Olanrewaju, who was arraigned on a one-count charge bordering on identity theft and impersonation, to two years imprisonment. During his arraignment recently, he pleaded “guilty” to the offence, which is contrary to and punishable under Section 22(2)(b) of the Cybercrimes (Prohibition and Prevention) Act, 2015. In view of his guilty plea, the prosecution counsel, Babatunde Sonoiki, reviewed the facts of the case, called a witness, and also tendered documents to prove the defendant’s guilt. Delivering judgment on August 15, 2023, Justice…

The Commander 6 Division Garrison, Nigerian Army/Commander Sector 3 Joint Task Force, South South, Operation Delta State, Brigadier General Edet Effiong, has assured the Department of State Services (DSS) of his maximum support and cooperation during joint and combined operations. Chronicle NG reports that Major Danjuma J. Danjuma, 6 Division PRO, said this on Friday in a statement. The Commander 6 Division Garrison, Nigerian Army/Commander Sector 3 Joint Task Force, South South, Operation Delta State, Brigadier General Edet Effiong, has assured the Department of State Services (DSS) of his maximum support and cooperation during joint and combined operations. He gave…