Author: Vincent Osuwo

Bauchi State Governor Bala Mohammed has stated that he and Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde would make a “perfect match” on a single ticket if the People’s Democratic Party fields them in the 2027 presidential election. Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Thursday, Mohammed refuted claims that he had already been named Makinde’s running partner, although he insisted that the PDP still has the option. He claimed that to reflect Nigeria’s variety and avoid the controversy of a Muslim-Muslim ticket, the party should propose a Christian from the South as its presidential candidate, with a Muslim from the North…

Sokoto State was plunged into sadness on Thursday evening following another boat tragedy in Shagari Local Government Area, in which hundreds of passengers were believed to have died. This is the third boat disaster in Sokoto in one month. Aminu Liman Bodinga, Special Adviser to Governor Ahmed Aliyu on the State Emergency Management Agency, confirmed the development in a statement on Friday, saying officials from SEMA, the National Emergency Management Agency, and the National Inland Waterways Authority had begun search and rescue operations. According to eyewitnesses, the boat, which was carrying numerous passengers, collapsed in the middle of the river,…

The Nigerian Postal Service (NIPOST) has announced that, with effect from August 29, 2025, all postal shipments from Nigeria to the US, except letters and documents, will attract a mandatory prepaid customs duty of $80 or its naira equivalent. NIPOST noted in a public message to its customers on Friday that the increased charges are the result of a recent Executive Order signed by the United States Government that suspends de minimis exemptions for all postal shipments worldwide. It stated the instruction was made under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act. “The Nigerian Postal Service wishes to inform our esteemed…

Kenechukwu Oluwanifemi Uba, a Nigerian student, has been named the “Top in World” candidate for the November 2024 Cambridge IGCSE English as a Second Language (Speaking Endorsement). Uba, a Caleb British International School student in Magodo, Lagos, got the Outstanding Cambridge Learners Award from Cambridge University Press & Assessment for her outstanding performance. This was said in a statement signed by the spokesperson for the proprietor and founder of the Caleb Group of Schools and University, Prof. Elvis Otobo, and made accessible to PUNCH Online on Friday. The certificate, signed by Rod Smith, Group Managing Director of International Education at…

Manchester United forward Alejandro Garnacho has arrived at Chelsea’s training ground ahead of his expected £40 million ($54 million) signing from the Red Devils, Blues manager Enzo Maresca confirmed on Friday. On Thursday, the two Premier League teams reportedly reached an agreement, with Ruben Amorim no longer requiring the 21-year-old at Old Trafford. Garnacho arrived at Chelsea’s training facility in Cobham, southwest of London, on Friday to undergo a medical and settle conditions. “I know he is around here,” Chelsea manager Maresca told reporters. “I don’t know exactly where.” When asked how Garnacho will fit into his team, Maresca said,…

Moscow criticised Emmanuel Macron on Friday for what it called “vulgar insults” after the French president referred to Russian President Vladimir Putin as a “predator” and “ogre”. In an interview with LCI last week, Macron advised European leaders not to trust Putin. “For his own survival, (he) needs to keep eating … That means he is a predator, an ogre at our gates,” Macron said. He made the statements during a momentous meeting with US President Donald Trump along with Ukrainian leader Volodymyr Zelensky and European allies in Washington. Russia’s foreign ministry berated the remarks, saying, “They cross the line…

The US President Donald Trump administration has withdrawn former Vice President Kamala Harris’s Secret Service security protection, a White House official said Friday. The government terminated an extension approved by then-President Joe Biden for the lost Democratic presidential candidate, Harris, whose six-month tenure of protection as ex-VP ended on July 21, according to CNN. A senior aide to the former Vice President expressed gratitude to the US Secret Service for their professionalism, dedication, and commitment to safety. Harris, who has kept a low profile since losing the election, will go on tour this autumn to promote a book about her…

Two children killed in an attack on a Catholic school in Minneapolis have been identified by their parents as Harper Moyski, a “joyful” big sister, and Fletcher Merkel, who liked “any sport that he was allowed to play”. Harper, 10, and Fletcher, 8, were slain in a gun attack on Wednesday while attending Mass at Annunciation Catholic Church, injuring 18 others. “Yesterday, a coward decided to take our eight-year-old son Fletcher away from us,” his father, Jesse Merkel, said in a news conference on Thursday, adding, “Please remember Fletcher for the person he was and not the act that ended…

The gunman who opened fire on students worshipping at a Minneapolis church was “obsessed with the idea of killing children”, investigators reveal. Robin Westman, who killed two children and injured 18 others, did not appear to have a clear motivation, according to Minneapolis Police Chief Brian O’Hara. The attacker “appeared to hate all of us,” the chief stated on Thursday, adding, “More than anything, the shooter wanted to kill children.” The deceased children have been named by family members as Fletcher Merkel, eight, and Harper Moyski, ten. “Yesterday, a coward decided to take our eight-year-old son Fletcher away from us,” his…

A shooting at a Catholic school in Minneapolis, US on Wednesday, has left two children dead and 17 others injured, the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) confirms. The FBI stated that the shooting is being investigated as an anti-Catholic hate crime. “The FBI is investigating this shooting as an act of domestic terrorism and a hate crime targeting Catholics,” FBI Director Kash Patel said in a post on X. The two children, aged eight and 10, were murdered when an attacker opened fire through the windows of the city’s Annunciation Church on Wednesday morning as children were celebrating Mass. The…