Thursday
Rivers APC crisis: Appeal Court rules in suit against Igo Aguma
The Appeal Court on Thursday stayed proceedings in the appeal filed before it by Abott Ogbobula, the former Rivers State Caretaker Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) Ogbobula is challenging the judgment of the High Court of Rivers State which affirmed Igo Aguma’s appointment as the party’s Caretaker Committee Chairman in Rivers state. A three-member panel of the appellate Court chaired by Justice Steven Adah in a ruling held that the Court can’t continue in the hearing of the case, as the first respondent has proved to the Court that an appeal has been entered. Ada said: “An affidavit is evidence of proof. The affidavit is showing that an appeal is before the Supreme Court. “The notice of appeal and other processes have been brought to our notice in respect of the ruling of t...
Leeds owner beg fans to celebrate promotion to Premier League at home
Leeds United are on the verge of ending a 16-year absence from the Premier League and club owner Andrea Radrizzani wants fans to be weary of the novel Covid-19 while celebrating. Radrizzani is fearful that the fight against coronavirus could be compromised if supporters gather in their droves over the final games of the season. Victory over Barnsley on Thursday afternoon will see Leeds move within one point from securing a place in next season’s Premier League. There are concerns that there could be a repeat of similar scenes from when Liverpool ended a 30 years wait for the Premier League title. Radrizzani penned an open letter to fans in the Yorkshire Evening Post, writing: ‘The love you have shown the club, the players, my family and I and all the staff who work at Thorp Arch and Elland...
Chelsea midfielder facing four months out after knee surgery
Chelsea midfielder Billy Gilmour is facing up to four months after undergoing knee surgery, head coach Frank Lampard has confirmed. Gilmour limped off during Tuesday’s 3-2 win over Crystal Palace following an innocuous collision with Luka Milivojević. The injury comes as a huge blow to the 19-year-old who was just beginning to establish himself, but Lampard is opting to stay positive. “Billy had an operation on his knee, unfortunately, so he’ll be out for somewhere between three and four months,” he told reporters. “I’m obviously very disappointed, we all are and Billy is himself. I spoke with him on Thursday and just offered him some support, really. “He’s a tough boy. It hit him hard – particularly as a young player who’s just made his breakthrough – but it’s part of football and I tried...
US envoy inaugurates emergency health operation facility in Bayelsa
The US Ambassador to Nigeria, Mary Beth Leonard, has inaugurated a state-of-the-art public health Emergency Operation Centre (EOC) in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State. Leonard said during the virtual event on Thursday that the facility, which was upgraded by the US, would enable “centralised real-time monitoring and predictive modelling for enhanced coordination of activities.” She commended the federal and state governments as well as other stakeholders for their efforts toward curtailing the coronavirus, stressing that the EOC would also help in making informed decisions about the pandemic and similar public health emergencies. The Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri, described the establishment of the EOC as a welcome development that would improve healthcare delivery in the state. He said the cen...
Ondo doctors withdraw services from infectious disease centre
The National Association of Government General Medical and Dental Practitioners (NAGGMDP) in Ondo State has directed its members to withdraw their services from the state’s Infectious Disease Centre with immediate effect. The association said the directive became imperative due to government’s failure to meet their demands. The union had last month withdrawn the services of its members working in the employ of the state government following government failure to accede to their demands. The NAGGMDP Secretary in the state, Dr Olasakinju TJ, said government’s intervention has so far lacked a ‘human face’. ‘We had through the congress directed that our members who are the COVID-19 specialists in the Infectious Disease Hospital, Akure, to continue to work till Thursday morning, 2nd July 2020 i...
Jose Mourinho claims Arsenal are ‘in trouble’ ahead of upcoming derby
Jose Mourinho has hit back at Arsenal after their social media account taunted his side after they failed to beat Sheffield United on Thursday evening. The Gunners moved to taunt our rivals with a post of our side beating Sheffield United the morning after Spurs were beaten 3-1 by the same side below. The Spurs boss moved to react to the post, claiming that we wouldn’t be enjoying their misfortune in such a way if they had more to celebrate themselves. “I think if they were top of the league or fighting for top four in a really good moment they wouldn’t enjoy the problems of others,” he said ahead of his side’s game with Everton on Monday night. “You only enjoy the problems of others when you are also in trouble. “In the end it says more about them, they don’t have much to celebrate, they ...
Kwara college speaks on discovery of 2,000 fake certificates
The Kwara College of Education, Ilorin, says the college is yet to uncover how more than 2,000 fake certificates of the school were used to secure employment with various government agencies in the state. Prof. Abdulraheem Yusuf, the Provost of the college, said in a statement made available to newsmen on Thursday in Ilorin that recent reports had twisted his response in the interview he granted. The statement asserted that he never made mention of fake Nigerian Certificate in Education (NCE) in the interview, but statement of results. NAN recalls that there was a media report recently disclosing that the college had so far uncovered about 2,000 fake certificates of the institution used to secure teaching jobs with the state. “The attention of the management of Kwara State College of Educa...
PTF: Schools to reopen only for graduating pupils
The Federal Government on Thursday insisted that schools have not reopened in the country. The Chairman of the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha, stated this in Abuja during a briefing. He maintained that President Muhammadu Buhari only approved the resumption of schools for graduating pupils to take revision classes and write their examinations. Mustapha, who is also the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, explained, “The Presidential Task Force similarly announced some limited measures for the educational sector. Specifically, we pointed out that it was still not safe to reopen schools. “However, in order not to truncate the progression of pupils and students not in critical classes, the President approved that arrangement be made for those who need revision b...
Ayo Fayose: Senators Ojudu, Adeyeye not welcome to PDP
A former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, on Thursday said the Special Adviser to the President on Political Matters, Senator Babafemi Ojudu, and a former Minister of Works, Senator Adedayo Adeyeye, have no electoral value and they were not welcome into the Peoples Democratic Party. Fayose said although the two All Progressives Congress chieftains had problems with Governor Kayode Fayemi, the PDP was not ready to accommodate people that would not add any value to it. The two APC chieftains and others are locked in a battle of wits with Fayemi, who they alleged was dictatorial. They also accused him of victimising perceived critics of his government. The former governor, who spoke through his media aide, Lere Olayinka, in a statement, said, “Apart from not having electoral value, they ...
Nigerian government activates all FCT public hospitals for coronavirus sample collection
The Federal Ministry of Health (FMOH), has said that all government hospitals in FCT would become COVID-19 sample collection sites so that walk-in cases could have samples taken for testing. The Minister of Health, Mr Osagie Ehanire, who announced this during the PTF briefing on Thursday in Abuja, said that the move was geared towards scaling up the number of daily tests conducted in the country daily. “This assures users and caregivers of reduced bottlenecks and improved efficiency in our response. We intend to scale this up to other states of the federation,” he said. Ehanire said that all health workers would be trained and retrained on Infection Prevention and Control (IPC) and issued PPEs and materials required for discharge of their duties. The minister also directed the deployment a...
Christians, Muslims declare fasting, prayer against coronavirus
File Photo President of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Rev. Samson Ayokunle, in conjunction with the Sultan of Sokoto, Sa’ad Abubakar Mohammadu III, have called for a three-day fasting and prayer (tagged NINEVEH) from July 3 to 5 throughout the country. The prayer is to seek total defeat of COVID-19 in Nigeria and all over the world. The Nigerian Inter-Religious Council (NIREC) has been calling on all Christians and Muslims to take part in the national weekly prayer conducted online every Thursday in collaboration with the Office of the Secretary to Government of the Federation (OSGF) and other stakeholders. According to a statement issued by the General Secretary of CAN, Mr. Joseph Daramola: “The NIREC leadership appreciates the efforts of the Presidential Task Force on COVID...
10 Customs officers contracted coronavirus at Lagos ports – comptroller
File Photo The Controller of the Apapa Customs Command of the Nigerian Customs Service, Comptroller Mohammed Abba-Kura, on Thursday, said ten of his officers contracted the COVID-19 disease and were treated at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH). This is even as the Controller stated that any vessel Red-Flagged for issues with health or safety concern will not be boarded by his officers until cleared by relevant government agencies. Addressing maritime journalists in his office, on Thursday, Comptroller Mohammed Abba-Kura explained that there is no way the Command can stop physical examination of cargoes for now because of the fear of COVID-19, that rather, it is important for individuals to observe physical hygiene while carrying out port activities. According to Abba-Kura, “Whe...
