H e a r d n e w s

D’Tigress on Tuesday night beat Algeria 79-49 in their fifth and last Group B game at the 2015 AfroBasket Women holding in Yaounde, Cameroon, to reach the quarterfinals. The Nigerian team started the tournament with a 57-51 defeat to Angola but went on to win the rest of their group matches, beating Egypt 97-68, Guinea 100-47 and Senegal 75-64. Nigeria dominated the encounter taking the lead from the first quarter, which ended 15-13. D’Tigress also outscored Algeria in the second quarter 15-8. They won the third quarter 24-8. Although the opponents fought back in the fourth quarter, Nigeria won 25-20. D’Tigress’ top performer in the game was Adaora Elonu, who scored 15 points, had three rebounds, seven steals and +16 efficiency, while Algeria’s top performer was Lylia Tlemsani, who scored seven points, had four rebounds two assists, two steals and +12 efficiency. Nigeria scored 25 two-point field goals from 58 attempts; four three-point field goals out of 11 attempts...

Cristiano Ronaldo Cristiano Ronaldo will aim to end an uncharacteristically long goal drought at three games when Real Madrid travel to face Malmo in the Champions League on Wednesday, AFP reports. Ronaldo is just two goals shy of matching Raul’s 323-goal record as Madrid’s top goalscorer of all time. However, the Portuguese has been made to wait for his historic moment after failing to find the net in La Liga meetings against Granada, Athletic Bilbao and Malaga in the past 10 days. Ronaldo was especially frustrated as Real failed to score at home for the first time in 56 matches in a 0-0 draw against Malaga on Saturday despite 31 attempts on goal, 14 of which came from the World Player of the Year. Yet, Ronaldo often saves his best for European nights as he netted a hat-trick in Madrid’s 4-0 win over Shakhtar Donetsk in their Group A opener to move out on his own as the top scorer in Champions League history with 80. “Everyone knows what he is like. He is not obses...

Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi The Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi, has pardoned all the political appointees, whose October salaries, he placed on hold as a result of their coming late to a state function on Monday. The political appointees included his deputy chief of staff, commissioners, special advisers and council chairmen. Dave, who announced the suspension of the salaries on the occasion of a school debate organised to mark the 55th independence anniversary of the country, said it was wrong of the appointees to come late to the event. The event also marked the 19th anniversary of the creation of Ebonyi State. Apart from the forfeiture of their October salaries, the governor also stopped the September allowances of the appointees. A mild drama ensued outside the venue of the event as the Secretary to the State Government, Prof. Bernard Odoh, was locked out – a few minutes after the governor came in. A statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the governo...

 Baleta, Captain of the seized vessel   THE Eastern Naval Command of the Nigerian Navy has seized a vessel on illegal activity along the Calabar Fairway Board in Cross River State. The impounded vessel had 14 Nigerians and one Ghanaian on board. The Flag Officer Commanding, ENC, Rear Admiral Atiku Abdulkadir, disclosed this at the Nigerian Navy Ship Victory jetty in Calabar shortly after interrogating the crew members of the apprehended vessel. Abdulkadir said the vessel was arrested for operating on the waterways without valid Navy and fisheries permit from the Federal Ministry of Agriculture. “The vessel was arrested for violating the regulations of the Navy and that of fishing authorities. The vessel was operating without permit from any relevant quarters. This vessel is not fit to be on the sea. “It has one foreigner on board and we are not sure if he has a valid working permit. We are still going on with the investigations and I can assure you that w...

The Oamens’ apartment Nelson Oamen, the 34-year-old accused of stabbing his father, Ehiremen, to death in the Ipaja area of Lagos, has turned himself in to the police. Our correspondent learnt that Nelson, who had earlier escaped from the house, reported at the Ipaja Police Division on Thursday. He had been reportedly transferred to the State Department of Criminal Investigation, Yaba, for further investigation. PUNCH Metro had reported on Monday, September 21, 2015, that the suspect, said to be a drug addict, allegedly stabbed his 74-year-old father, an indigene of Edo State, to death in their apartment in Block 272, Abesan Estate, in the Ipaja area. The suspect, who was said to have fled the apartment after the killing, allegedly removed the septuagenarian’s heart and escaped with it. Ehiremen, who was a retired worker in a company in Apapa, and had lived in the estate for about 15 years, had been battling with stroke before his son reportedly stabbed him to deat...

Avocado Oatmeal Start your day with a steaming bowl of oats, which are full of omega-3 fatty acids, folate, and potassium. This fibre-rich superfood can lower levels of LDL (or bad) cholesterol and help keep arteries clear. Opt for coarse or steel-cut oats over instant varieties—which contain more fiber—and top your bowl off with a banana for another four grammes of fibre. Salmon Super-rich in omega-3 fatty acids, salmon can effectively reduce blood pressure and keep clotting at bay. Aim for two servings per week, which may reduce your risk of dying of a heart attack by up to one-third. “Salmon contains the carotenoid astaxanthin, which is a very powerful antioxidant,” says cardiologist Stephen T. Sinatra, MD, the author of Lower Your Blood Pressure In Eight Weeks. But be sure to choose wild salmon over farm-raised fish, which can be packed with insecticides, pesticides, and heavy metals. Not a fan of salmon? Other oily fish like mackerel, tuna, herring, and sard...

The suspects Five suspected members of a human trafficking ring, paraded by the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, NAPTIP, have confessed to taking two Nigerian girls to Dubai, the United Arab Emirates, to become commercial sex workers. They also admitted that they recorded the girls’ nude videos while they were taking oaths. PUNCH Metro learnt that the suspects ─ Blessing Gabriel, 25; Precious Ejiro-Owoh, 29; Rose Gabriel, 25; Priscilla Bassey, 33; and 38-year-old Terry Smooth ─ were apprehended by the agency on September 8, 2015, while one of their victims, identified only as Ann, had been rescued. Our correspondent gathered that while Ann was being rehabilitated at the NAPTIP office, the suspects were assisting the officials with information to arrest the fleeing members of the syndicate. It was learnt that two of the victims of the syndicate, Ann and Chisom, had fled from Dubai in August, making the gang to put their nude visuals on ...

One of the areas affected by erosion THE people of Ndi Uduma Awoke autonomous community in Ohafia Local Government Area of Abia State, have asked the federal and Abia State governments to tackle the erosion menace threatening their community. The erosion, it was gathered, had swept away at least 10 houses in the community, making residents of the community to live in fear. The President General of the community development union, Mr. Eme Uche, who conducted journalists round the erosion site, said residents had been subjected to hardship caused by the erosion. He regretted that efforts by the people to draw the attention of governments to their plight had not got the expected response. “We have reported this menace in writing to the ecological fund office at the Presidency in Abuja and to the Abia State Government for years. Yet there has not been any action,” he lamented. Uche said unless quick action was taken to save the situation, the entire...

Cross Rivers State Police Commissioner, Henry Fadairo The Cross River State command of the Nigeria Police on Tuesday raided Peace Garden Hotel popularly called `Flower Mills Joint’ and arrested 54 prostitutes and 56 men who had gone to patronise them. The operation was led by the Cross River State Security Adviser, Mr. Jude Ngaji. Addressing journalists after the raid which lasted for about four hours, Ngaji said the hotel had been turned into a brothel for commercial sex workers in Calabar. He added that the brothel had been used for criminal activities, selling of drugs and a hideout for criminals in the area. “Given the tourism status of Cross River, Gov. Ayade frowns on this despicable act where under aged girls are engaged in prostitution. “He has therefore vowed to take drastic and decisive measures to stem the ugly trend. He has directed that the place be raided and shut down forthwith. “Consequently, the governor has warned that other persons or groups inv...

Consumers queuing for kerosene. A petroleum products dealer and operator of the Nipco Filling Station, Fadeyi, Lagos State, Mr. Kayode Adepoju, has said eliminating middlemen in the kerosene supply value chain is the best thing that can happen to the market. He said the activities of middlemen, who used to issue pro- forma invoices to marketers before now, were the reasons for the high price of the product. Adepoju said this in Lagos on Tuesday when his filling Station commenced the sale of kerosene to consumers at N50 per litre. Adepoju, who has been a dealer with Nipco for three years and has over 20 years’ experience in the oil sector, said, “We are using the station as a pilot to know how the crowd will be controlled and the overall reaction from the people. “All Nipco filling stations should be selling kerosene at N50 per litre going forward.” He said before now, the major oil marketers could not sell kerosene at their stations because they could not cope with ...

Alex Ferguson Sir Alex Ferguson has revealed that David Moyes the man chosen as his managerial successor at Manchester United, was sixth on a list of ideal replacements headed by Pep Guardiola and four others, who were all “unavailable” at the time, Reuters reports. In his new book “Leading”, United’s longest-serving manager outlines the selection process behind Moyes’ ill-fated appointment at Old Trafford, which lasted less than a year after he replaced the retired Ferguson in 2013. “I asked Pep to phone me before he accepted an offer from another club but he didn’t and wound up joining Bayern Munich in July 2013,” Ferguson wrote. “When we started the process of looking for my replacement, we established that several very desirable candidates were unavailable. “It became apparent that Jose Mourinho had given his word to Roman Abramovich that he would return to Chelsea, and that Carlo Ancelotti would succeed him at Real Madrid. “We also knew that Jurgen Klopp was ...

Former Jigawa State Governor, Alh. Sule Lamido A former governor of Jigawa State, Alhaji Sule Lamido, and his two sons – Aminu Sule Lamido and Mustapha Sule Lamido, were on Tuesday arraigned before Justice Ademola Adeniyi of a Federal High Court in Abuja, on a 27-count amended charge bordering on corruption and money laundering. Also arraigned with them by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission were Aminu Wada Abubakar, Batholomew Darlington Agoha and companies through which they perpetrated the alleged fraud. The companies are Bamaina Holdings Limited, Bamaina Company Nigeria Limited, Bamaina Aluminium Limited and Speeds International Limited. Lamido and others accused had on July 9, 2015, been arraigned before Justice Evelyn Anyadike of a Federal High Court in Kano, over misappropriation of funds belonging to Jigawa State. Their case was later transferred to the FHC, Abuja, where a vacation judge, Justice Gabriel Kolawole, granted them bail and adjourned th...

Many people were killed on Sunday in multiple bomb attacks in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital. A member of the youth vigilance group, Kaka Mustapha, told our correspondent on the telephone that their group had been called up to assist in evacuating the corpses of the victims of explosions at Ajilari cross. Mustapha said the area was attacked by multiple bombs on Sunday evening at about 7.30pm. According to him, the first two explosions were targeted at a mosque in Ajilari cross. He said the bombs were planted in a mosque in the area and perhaps timed to coincide with the time of the late evening prayers. He also revealed that another bomb exploded at a mini business district where people were shopping for dinner. Mustapha said the third site where the explosion occurred was a game centre in the area where young people pay to play computer games and get their mobile phones charged. He however said the number of casualties could not yet be ascertained at the time of...

The Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Tukur Buratai, has said the Army has approved the promotion of 5,000 soldiers deployed against the Boko Haram sect in the North-East. Buratai said the step was taken to boost the morale of the soldiers involved in the fight against the insurgency in the North- East. The Army Chief made the comment while speaking at the opening ceremony of  the Chief of Army Staff Third Quarter Conference in Abuja on Monday. He also said the 3,032 soldiers who were recalled from dismissal had been deployed back to the ongoing operation against the insurgents in the North-East. Details later

Chief of Army Staff, Maj. Gen. Tukur Buratai The Nigerian Army has deployed 3,032 pardoned soldiers in the North-East to fight Boko Haram insurgents. The affected soldiers had been summarily dismissed from the military in 2014 over offences allegedly committed as part of the troops involved in counter insurgency operations in the North- East. The soldiers were dismissed by their unit commanders at the peak of the Boko Haram attacks in the North-East in 2014. Many soldiers had at the peak of the battle against Boko Haram last year allegedly disobeyed their commanders and reportedly declined confronting the insurgents with inadequate weapons. The 3,032 soldiers were among 5,000 dismissed soldiers whose cases were reviewed by a military panel led by the General Officer Commanding, 1 Division, Maj. Gen. Adeniyi Oyebade. The panel had been set up by the army authorities to revisit the cases of the soldiers in August 2015. The PUNCH learnt on Thursday that the soldiers ha...

Flavour with two fans at the event Music freaks in Port Harcourt had a taste of real live action last weekend, when Globacom let loose some of its ambassadors in the Rivers State capital. Top on the list were Ayo Balogun, popularly called Wizkid, and Chinedu Okoli, also known as Flavour, who went beyond miming as they headlined the Glo Slide ‘n’ Bounce concert. Apart from the fact that both artistes showed that they are still very much in form, they stormed the Garden City with their bands, a trait that has become a rarity at many events in Nigeria. The two, along with Bez and Burna Boy, thus gave the residents’ who gathered at the Aztech Arcum Event Centre, venue of the show, a memorable experience. According to the organisers, Wizkid performed his popular tunes that include Ojuelegba ,   which sent his fans wild excitement. “Flavour also put up a command performance, dishing out his very popular beats such as Ada Ada and Baby Oku and wriggling his waist to ...

Super Eagles Nigeria’s U-23 team will play Burkina Faso in the semi-final of the men’s football event at the 2015 All Africa Games in Congo, after the West Africans emerged the lucky side, during a drawing of lots with Sudan on Monday. Hosts Congo and Senegal will tussle in the other semi-final pairing. The U-23 team defeated bitter rivals Ghana 2-0 in their opening Group B match but held Senegal 1-1 in their last group game. Ibrahima Keita had put the Senegalese in front in the 82nd minute but Mustapha Abdullahi scored for the Nigerians seven minutes later to secure the draw. The result left the U-23 team as group leaders, which also meant they avoided a clash with hosts Congo in the semi-final. The Burkinabe and Sudan had scored two and conceded same number of goals in their first two Group A outings before playing a 0-0 draw in their final game on Sunday. Both sides were level on four points apiece, two behind leaders Congo. Officials had to resort to the drawin...

The Nigerian Army said on Tuesday that scores of women and children held captive by Boko Haram insurgents have been rescued by troops along Banki, Kumashe and Bama axis in Borno State. The acting Director of Army Public Relations, Col. Sani Usman, confirmed the development in a statement issued in Abuja. He said the advancing troops cleared four camps along the axis, while several others were cleared in Bolungu 1 and 2, Bula Doye and Cheehi Dare areas also in Borno. “Nigerian troops advancing to clear all known Boko Haram terrorists camps towards Banki, Kumshe axis and Bama axis have cleared four more camps earlier on Tuesday. “They were able to clear the terrorists’ camps at Bolungu 1 and 2, Bula Doye and Cheehi Dare and secured a very important bridge linking the towns of Miyanti and Banki in Borno State. “The gallant troops also rescued dozen of kidnapped women and children held captive by Boko Haram terrorists,” he said. It said more enclaves of the insurgents woul...

Agboyi River Officials of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency have been accused of drowning a 32-year-old graduate of Law, Dapo Olasore, in the Agboyi, Alapere area of Lagos State. PUNCH Metro learnt that the incident happened on Sunday after the officials, who came in two vans without number plates, raided the area. Our correspondent gathered that Olasore, aka Omopo , was about boarding a canoe to a neighbouring community to see a relative, when the officials stormed the community. They were said to have shot sporadically into the air, sending frightened residents fleeing in different directions. However, Olasore, who was by the riverside, was said to have been held by the trousers by the NDLEA men; and in a bid to free himself, fell into the water. A boatman, who attempted to save him, was said to have been threatened with guns, leading to the death of the victim. When our correspondent visited the community, he observed a crowd of residents and motorcy...

Policemen attached to Ago-Iwoye Division, Ogun State have arrested three suspected cultists. The cult members were arrested on Saturday at different locations within Ago-Iwoye. The suspects were, 23-year-old Tobi Richard, 200 level Political Science student of Olabisi Onabanjo University, Ago Iwoye, 25- year-old Babatunde Abiodun, a 400-level Geography Education student of the same institution and an HND 1 student of the Lagos State Polytechnic, Ifeanyi Ubamwa. The state Police Public Relations Officer, Muyiwa Adejobi, said Richard and Abiodun were members the Buccaneer confraternity while Ubamwa belonged to the Eye confraternity. He said, “The suspects have confessed to being members of the cult groups. “The Commissioner of Police, Abdulmajid Ali has directed the Department of Criminal Investigation and Intelligence, Eleweran, Abeokuta to take over the case for proper investigations and that the suspects be charged to court immediately after investigations.” He said...

The military says scores of terrorists in the North-East have continued to surrender to troops in the frontline due to sustained offensive by ground troops and pre-emptive air strikes by Nigerian Air Force. A statement issued on Sunday in Abuja by the acting Army Director of Public Relations, Col. Sani Usman, said more terrorists had also indicated willingness to lay down arms. The statement said the ground troops had also adopted routes blocking strategy in a bid to “constrict and snuff out the Boko Haram terrorists from their hideouts.” “Many of the terrorists that willingly surrendered painted images of mass panic and hysteria among their erstwhile colleagues. “They said their colleagues are feeling the noose tightening on their necks with the relentless efforts of troops and renewed vigour in the operations inspired by the personal leadership of the Chief of Army Staff. “Terrorists also seem to have an inkling of what happens to surrendered suspects as regards scre...

Kunle shonaike The school bus is an important sociological and logistical phenomenon in any society. Sociological because it connects (and “connects” is the logistical verb here) the safety of a child’s home, through the public space, with the parentally presumed safety of that child’s school. Somebody once opined that, “there’s no greater collective futuristic asset of a country other than the net-worth of the value of the lives of its schoolchildren.” This letter (because of the invaluable net-worth [emotional and material] of daily users of the school bus and their seeming helplessness in the decision making process on the matter) is directed to the persons who are naturally (parents) and contractually (school proprietors) bound to watch out for the kids on the subject. I have, in recent years, noticed that most proprietors (and/or the logistical companies to which some of them outsource the school bus’ contract) make sure that most of the vehicles committed to t...

Super Eagles goalkeeper, Carl Ikeme New Super Eagles goalkeeper, Carl Ikeme, has been hailed for his amazing displays against Tanzania in a 2017 AFCON qualifier. But the big keeper had to overcome some nervy moments to produce a world-class performance on his Nigeria debut, reports ’TANA AIYEJINA Destiny they say cannot be denied. This saying best describes the story of Carl Ikeme’s sudden rise to prominence in Nigerian football. The Wolverhampton Wanderers goalkeeper first considered his invitation to the Super Eagles for the 2017 Africa Cup of Nations qualifier against Tanzania on September 5 as a joke. Of course at 29, which footballer wouldn’t? But for a goalkeeper, he still has a handful of years left in the game. New Eagles coach Sunday Oliseh, on being handed the job, ruled out players in second tier leagues from his programme, which meant a player like Ikeme, who plays in the English Championship, would have been barred from representing Nig...

Victoria Kimani Hate her or love her Kenyan singer, Victoria Kimani, has come to Nigerian music industry to stay. With her current single, Show, rocking Nigerian airwaves, the singer has said she is unapologetic about being a sex symbol. In a chat with Saturday Beats, she said that her style is an expression of herself. “I don’t think it is a bad thing to be a sex symbol. My feminist side is very proud of being a sex symbol. I should not apologise for being sexy. I try my best to be myself, I express myself in the best way I can so if people see me and say that I am selling sex or the idea of sex, I think it is the person’s problem and not mine,” she said. Unknown to many, the singer is the daughter of a missionary. She shared some experiences she had while growing up as missionary’s daughter. “My parents are pastors and they have an orphanage that houses about 15 kids in Nigeria. We came here in 1999 and stayed in Benin City. They have had the or...

A burnt vehicle at the scene of an explosion The National Emergency Management Agency on Friday confirmed a bomb explosion at a school at the Malkohi Camp of the internally displaced persons in Yola, Adamawa State. The agency said seven persons were killed while 20 were injured as a result of the explosion that occurred around 10.50am. It added that seven of the injured had been treated and discharged at the Federal Medical Centre in Yola while the remaining 13 persons, including four NEMA officials, were still on admission at the hospital. The explosion would be the first of such attack on an IDP camp in the North-East. Though no information had been made available about the perpetrators of the act, there are indications it might have been carried out by the Boko Haram insurgent group. Boko Haram has in a six-year period displaced thousands of people in the North-East, while killing other thousands as a result of its activities. Former Vice-Presi...

Leave a Comment The National Youth Service Corps on Friday said it had secured the release of two out of three corps members detained by police in Niger over alleged armed robbery. The management of the corps said in a statement in Abuja that its findings revealed that the accusation levelled against the trio was based only on circumstantial evidence. It explained that the attention of the management was drawn to newspaper publications reporting that three corps members were held by police in Niger over alleged armed robbery. It said that the publications had reported that the corps members were in police custody following allegations of robbing a shop owner in Suleja. According to the statement, two of the accused corps members have since been released while the process of securing the release of the third is on-going. It said that the office of the Secretary to the Government and the Ministry of Youth Development had lent its support to the matter. It assured the p...