Author: Vincent Osuwo

Former Barcelona coach Xavi Hernandez said that club president Joan Laporta sabotaged the return of all-time great Lionel Messi in 2023 to avoid a power conflict. The eight-time Ballon d’Or winner left Barcelona for Paris Saint-Germain in 2021 and, two years later, joined MLS club Inter Miami. “Leo was signed in January 2023. After winning the World Cup, we got in touch, and he told me he wanted to come back,” Xavi told Spanish newspaper La Vanguardia late on Sunday. “We had the green light from La Liga (financially), but it was the president who threw it away… “Laporta told…

China stated on Monday that Iran’s decision to appoint Mojtaba Khamenei as its new supreme leader following his father’s assassination was an internal matter, and it opposed any attempt to harm him. Israel’s military has promised to assassinate any successor to former supreme leader Ali Khamenei, who was murdered over a week ago in the first round of US-Israeli strikes on Iran. China’s foreign ministry spokesperson, Guo Jiakun, told reporters on Monday that Iran’s decision to appoint the younger Khamenei was “based on its constitution.” “China opposes interference in other countries’ internal affairs under any pretext, and Iran’s sovereignty, security,…

Former presidential candidate Peter Obi has berated Nigeria’s political leadership for focusing on the next election while insecurity continues unabated across the country. Obi raised this concern in a statement released on Monday via his official social media account. The former Anambra State governor expressed concern over recent attacks in several parts of the country and the impact on civilians and security personnel. According to Obi, the country is “clearly under siege,” with the scale of insecurity becoming increasingly unbearable. “Our nation is clearly under siege, and the scale of insecurity is becoming unbearable, spreading widely all over the country,”…

Land-grabbing thugs popularly called “Omo Onile” have demolished over 50 buildings in the Surulere community of Lagos State. It was gathered that many homeowners in the Surulere community, Amikanle, near the Command area of the Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos State, are counting their losses after several houses were demolished in the area. Chronicle NG also gathered that the thugs invaded the community on Tuesday, 27 January 2026, and started demanding between N15m and N25m from house owners. The thugs, according to some residents, have demolished the houses of those who were unable to pay. The founder and Chief Executive…

The Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JED) has launched a new structure to help clients reduce outstanding electricity debts across its franchise territories. In a notification issued on Sunday, the business stated that the action is part of efforts to increase billing transparency, strengthen revenue recovery, and safeguard the sustainability of the electrical supply. Customers who are metered under current and prior national and company-led metering programs, according to management, will have their verified overdue electricity arrears moved to newly installed or previously placed meters. “The framework is designed to ensure transparency in electricity billing and to provide customers with a…

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) factions loyal to the party’s governors and those supporting the minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, have voiced confidence ahead of today’s Appeal Court judgment today that the ruling will favor them, asserting that legal precedents and statutory regulations back their claims. The Court of Appeal has set Monday for the judgment on the consolidated cases related to the PDP, as confirmed by Ini Ememobong, the National Publicity Secretary of the National Working Committee led by Tanimu Turaki (SAN) and supported by Governors Seyi Makinde of Oyo State and Bala Mohammed of Bauchi…

The Abia State branch of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) has requested that Enyinnaya Abaribe and Alex Mascot Ikwechegh resign their seats in the National Assembly following their recent defections to other political parties. APGA stated that both lawmakers were elected on its platform and should vacate their seats after defecting to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and the Labour Party (LP), respectively. Barr Chukwuemeka Nwokoro, the APGA Publicity Secretary in Abia State, while addressing a press conference in Aba, stated that the exit of the two federal lawmakers did not surprise the party. He believes their departure has…

US President Donald Trump threatened on Sunday that Iran’s next supreme leader would not last long without his approval, as Tehran prepared to unveil the replacement to the assassinated Ayatollah Ali Khamenei. Nine days after US-Israeli strikes on Khamenei’s compound killed him and drove the Middle East into war, Iran’s Assembly of Experts convened quietly to choose their future leader, according to members of the body. The clerics did not reveal who had been chosen, just stating that a name would be announced shortly. Some predicted that Khamenei’s 56-year-old son Mojtaba Khamenei would succeed his father. Trump had earlier requested…

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory Nyesom Wike has authorized the confirmation of appointment for 1,659 Federal Capital Territory Administration officials. On February 28, 2026, the FCT Civil Service Commission conducted a confirmation test for 2,281 candidates, including the confirmed staff. In a statement released on Sunday, Lere Olayinka, Senior Special Assistant to the Minister on Public Communications and Social Media, quoted Emeka Ezeh, Chairman of the FCT Civil Service Commission, as saying that some of the workers who took the exam were employed as early as 2016 and 2019. “2,512 candidates were invited to present themselves for the…

Peter Obi, the Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 election, has vowed to challenge the 2026 Electoral Act in court. Obi, who finished his registration in his birthplace of Agulu in the Aniocha Local Government Area of Anambra State on Saturday, said he will challenge the newly approved Electoral Act 2026 in court over what he called attempts to alter the outcome of the 2027 general elections. He claimed that aspects of the new electoral legislation were intended to encourage electoral manipulation and destroy the credibility of future elections. The former governor of Anambra State accused the Independent National…