The chairman of the Lagos State Athletics Association, Solomon Alao, has charged the Nigeria Relay teams to go all out and get the required qualification standard for the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games. Alao, the member of the newly constituted Athletics Federation of Nigeria (AFN) board, said the athletes have what it takes to qualify and should give it their all on Thursday at the Lagos Open Athletics Meet billed for the Teslim Balogun Stadium. “They should all go out and get the needed times because we are all looking forward to them getting the time for the Olympics,” the Lagos State Athletics boss told journalists. “I want to appreciate the Lagos State Government led by his Excellency, Babajide Sanwoolu, for supporting the AFN in hosting the countries in Nigeria for the relays. “The most im...
Gov. Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has urged local government chairmen in the state to upscale intelligence gathering in their respective council areas. A statement issued on Wednesday in Ibadan by Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr Taiwo Adisa, quoted Makinde as stating this while closing a two-day retreat for local government chairmen, vice-chairmen and heads of local government administrations (HLAs), on Tuesday evening. Newsmen report that the retreat was held at Ilaji Hotel and Sports Complex, Akanran, Ibadan. The governor said that the local government chairmen needed step up their game on the issue of security and take responsibility for the security of their areas. Although he stated that security was the responsibility of everyone in the society, the governor, however, said tha...
A group of Russians detained by the police in a part of northern Chad where the army has been battling a rebel invasion from Libya said on Wednesday that they were tourists who had come to sightsee in the Sahara Desert. The roughly 10 Russians were picked up last week by the police near the town of Faya Largeau because they were in a military operational zone, according to national police spokesperson Amane Issac Azina. Azina said they had not broken any laws and had not been arrested, but rather evacuated to the capital N’Djamena for their own safety. “We decided this time to visit the Republic of Chad because it is very interesting,” one of the Russians, Alexey Kamerzanov, told Reuters at an N’Djamena hotel. “Usually world travellers do not visit the Republic of Chad because it’s not the...
Three suspected armed robbers on Saturday were involved a ghastly motor accident at Ode-Remo, Ogun State, while escaping with a car they allegedly snatched at gunpoint. Abimbola Oyeyemi, the Ogun police spokesperson, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday. Oyeyemi said the suspects were escaping with a Toyota Camry car which they snatched at gunpoint in Ondo state. One of the suspects died while receiving treatment at the hospital, the police said. “The suspects were coming from Ondo state, heading towards Lagos, but on getting to a point at Ode-Remo, due to dangerous driving, the vehicle hit a culvert and somersaulted. “The three occupants, sustained varying degrees of injuries and they were rushed to hospital by the policemen from Ode Remo divisional headquarters,” Mr Oyeyemi said. T...
Global pop hits dominated the inaugural chart, with BTS’s “Butter” topping the list, followed by Dua Lipa’s “Levitating” (No. 2), Lil Nas X’s “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” (No. 3), Justin Bieber, Daniel Caesar and Giveon’s “Peaches” (No. 4) and Olivia Rodrigo’s “Good 4 U” (No. 5). BTS and Rodrigo tie for the most entries with three songs each in the top 20. The K-Pop group’s enduring hits “Dynamite” and “Life Goes On” sit at No. 8 and No. 20, respectively, while the fast-rising Disney star’s “Deja Vu” and “Drivers License” occupy the No. 18 and No. 19 positions. Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group jointly lead all labels with seven hits on the chart. Warner Music Group has five. The only independent label on the list is Canada’s Namah Music Group whose “Jalebi Baby” by Ca...
Ayodeji Ibrahim Balogun, Nigerian superstar popularly known as Wizkid, has finally received his Grammy award plaque. The famous Singer won the best Music video award at the 63rd Grammy award for his collaboration with Beyoncé and her daughter, Blue Ivy, in “Brown skin girl”. Wizkid had his first Nomination in 2015, when he collaborated with Drake in his Album Views. He also brought the trophy home back then. Critics of Star boy as he is fondly called have argued that he is not worthy to be called a Grammy winner because he got both plaques through collaboration but his fans rose in his defence. The Starboy became the only contemporary Nigerian musician besides Burna Boy to shine at the 2020 Grammys. Wizkid took to his Insta story to showcase his trophy. Get more stories like this on Twitte...
Paul Rusesabagina, the ex-hotelier immortalised in the film “Hotel Rwanda”, never belonged to a rebel group that sought to overthrow President Paul Kagame, one of the former rebels accused with him of terrorism told a court on Wednesday. “Rusesabagina was never a member of the National Liberation Front (FLN), he was a civilian … He is not a soldier,” former FLN spokesman Callixte Sankara told the court in Kigali. He said the prosecution had presented no evidence to substantiate its claim that Rusesabagina had given orders to the FLN, which has claimed responsibility for attacks in past years that it said were aimed at ousting the president. Sankara is one of 20 Rwandans being tried alongside Rusesabagina, who is 67. Prosecutors describe them as fighters for the FLN. Most were captured in s...
The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Usman Alkali Baba, has charged officers of the Nigeria Police Force to keep themselves abreast of techniques and strategies of modern policing. Baba gave the advice Wednesday while addressing officers and men of the Nigeria Police at the Bompai Police headquarters in Kano. The Inspector General, who was on his first official visit to the Command since he assumed office, charged the officers to improve their knowledge on issues of democratic policing, human rights and other aspects of modern policing. Baba enjoined them never to be overwhelmed by challenges. Challenges are welcome and challenges are surmountable, he stated in respect to the plea for additional manpower to be deployed to Kano. He noted that even an additional 7,000 policemen were added ...
In the letter below, agents and music artists ask that the government act without any further delay and engage with its EU counterparts to ensure visa-free touring for artists. RT Hon Boris Johnson MPPrime Minister10 Downing StreetLondon, SW1A 2AA Dear Prime Minister: The UK music industry, which sustains over 197,000 full-time jobs, is amongst the most affected by COVID-19’s devastating impacts, and thousands of musicians whose livelihoods depend on touring are keen to get back to work. However, due to the changes brought about by Brexit, we are facing a crisis that may prevent that from happening, and we need your help. Over the past several decades, the UK has experienced a consistent upward trajectory in live touring, bringing with it a significant and positive economic impact. Much of...