House of Reps resolved that late Abiola be conferred with posthumous Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (GCFR), in recognition of his sacrifice and contributions to the unity and development of Nigeria and Africa. This emanated from the adoption of a motion under matters of urgent public importance, sponsored by Rep. Sanni Zoro (Jigawa-APC). Moving the motion, Zoro said that a vacuum was created following the death of Abiola. “It is worthy to remember him always as a Nigerian who touched lives more than any other person in his life time. “Abiola also contributed in ensuring religious…
Author: David Folami
Chelsea expect to complete the signing of former Manchester City goalkeeper Willy Caballero to replace Asmir Begovic as their number 2. The Premier League champions have managed to hold on to first-string gloveman Thibaut Courtois this summer, despite interest from Real Madrid in the spring, but sold Begovic to Bournemouth in recent weeks to fulfil the Bosnian’s desire for game time. It has left them needing a reliable back-up option for Belgian international Courtois, and Caballero was identified as a veteran who could come to Stamford Bridge and sit on the bench without complaints after serving as relief to City…
IT is great to hear Marcus Rashford come out and say he wants to be England’s main striker. But this is Harry Kane’s time to shine. He deserves his chance to lead the line for England due to the sheer volume of Premier League goals he has scored in the last three years Kane has netted 20-plus times in the top flight in three straight seasons and is still yet to have a sustained run as our No 1 striker, largely due to injury. In fact, he has been missing for all six of Gareth Southgate’s games in charge. But now…
They are two of European football’s biggest rivals, with France taking on England in Paris on Tuesday night. Between them they’ve won the World Cup twice, while France are two-time European Championships winners. Each side is packed with talent — but what if we combined the two XIs? Who would feature and who misses out? Here’s our France-England combined XI in a 4-2-3-1 formation. Have we missed anyone? Let us know your side in the comments below … Goalkeeper Hugo Lloris — While the Tottenham keeper’s distribution is patchy, exemplified by his horror show in last week’s 2-1 defeat to…
The Nigeria Football Federation have finally paid the first batch of back wages owed to coaches in its employ after receiving a first tranche of payments from its new sponsor Aiteo Group. The NFF’s Second Vice President Shehu Dikko, who is also Chairman of the NFF Sponsorship, Marketing and Television Advisory Committee, said on Tuesday that about N100million of that first tranche has been used to offset all outstanding salaries of 27 coaches. That number also includes coaches who had been owed for services rendered during the tenure of previous administrations. The salaries of the Super Eagles’ Technical Adviser Gernot…
From an Arsenal perspective, if there is one good thing to come from Bayern Munich’s strong interest in Alexis Sanchez, it is that it offers the club a chance to sell their star man to a side not competing in the Premier League. Manchester City also want Sanchez and appear willing to outbid Bayern to sign him; Chelsea, too, would be prepared to break their own transfer record by paying more than the £50m they invested in Liverpool’s Fernando Torres in 2011. With just one year left to run on his contract at the Emirates, Sanchez has shown little desire…
Barcelona star Lionel Messi has been vacationing with his famous friends Cesc Fabregas and teammate Luis Suarez. Messi and Fabregas have been friends since they meet as teenagers at Barcelona La Masia while the Argentine and Suarez have been inseparable since the former joined in 2014. After a hectic season of football, the trio are in Ibiza letting their hairs down with their respective families. Messi’s partner, ntonella Roccuzzo, Suarez’s wife Sofia Balbi and Fabregas’ partner Daniella Semaan also joined the footballers for the getaway. The party will be getting ready for Messi’s wedding this summer. According to reports, the…
Kano State Police Commissioner, Mr Rabiu Yusuf, has promised Igbo residents in the state protection against last week’s eviction threat. He made the promise after he met with the leadership of the Igbo community in his state to discuss a threatening eviction notice issued last week. The threat was issued on Tuesday, June 6, 2017 by the Coalition of Northern Youths (CNY), advising Igbos living in the northern region of the country to leave before October 1, 2017. The coalition of 16 different groups which includes Arewa Citizens Action for Change, Arewa Youth Consultative Forum, Arewa Youth Development Foundation, Arewa…
SERGIO ROMERO is set to step up to be Manchester United’s number one next season – should David De Gea move to Real Madrid. The Argentine international has impressed manager Jose Mourinho this season as a more than able deputy to De Gea – so much so that he is set to earn a new contract in the coming weeks. Now with De Gea maybe edging towards a move to Real Madrid the boss has confidence that Romero can fill his gloves. Romero, 30, has next season plus the option for a further year on his current contract. But that…
Mercy Johnson and Juliet Ibrahim are our latest celebrity bffs. It’s not surprising as they are currently hosting shows together for telecommunication company, Globacom. The duo have been sharing adorable videos and photos of themselves on social media for a while now. They have even taken their budding friendship to defending each other from social media trolls. The two actresses who have been close in the last few weeks were complimenting each other Instagram when a troll barged into their friendly conversation. The troll told Juliet Ibrahim to focus on getting married. Mercy Johnson was having none of it and…
Many Nigerian celebrities are joining Nathaniel Bassey’s #HallelujahChallenge, which has been running on social media, for nearly two weeks. Some of the Celebrities are Toke Makinwa, Waje, Kemi Adetiba, Adekunle Gold, Woli Arole, and Ubi Franklin. On June 1, Nathaniel Bassey, started the #HallelujahChallenge, which was billed to run through June 30, from 12 midnight to 1am. The revival, which has been eliciting testimonies from different parts of the country, runs with the hashtag #HallelujahChallenge and #Olowogbogboro.
What’s the funniest thing about these NBA Final? “Nothing,’’ comedian Chris Rock said, straight-faced. The celebrity turnout for Game 5 was no joke, either. In fact, Rock seemed taken aback before the game when he ran into Snoop Dogg and rapper E-40. Snoop created the biggest stir when he entered the arena, stopping to take photos with fans and greet TV analysts like Jeff Van Gundy and Mark Jackson. The star-studded crowd also included Sean Combs (a.k.a. P. Diddy), Green Bay Packers quarterback Aaron Rodgers, retired soccer star Thierry Henry, and actors Jamie Foxx and James Franco. Retired and current…
One of Nigeria’s upcoming entertainers, Simisola Ogunleye, popularly known as “Simi’’, says that criticism from fans made her improve on her career as a musician. Simi, who made her mark with hit tracks like “Love don’t care’’ and “JAMB Question’’ told the News Agency of Nigeria on Thursday in Lagos that she even thrived under negative criticisms. “Some people go out of their way to be cruel, they don’t even know you; they just feel the need to be mean because it’s their constitutional right. “I’ve been feeling quite grumpy and a bit moody all evening. But I just saw…
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has invited Abdulmumin Jibrin to shed more light on the budget padding allegations which he levelled against The House Speaker, Yakubu Dogara. This was contained in a letter to Jibrin, signed by the acting Head, Extractive Industry and Fraud Section, Michael Wetkas. Jibrin, the former chairman of the House appropriation committee, alleged that Dogara had inflated the budget. According to Punch, the latter dated June 9, 2017, reads: “The commission has commenced investigation into the petition of corruption and corrupt practices and abuse of office reported on August 1, 2016 by Hammart &…
Attahiru Jega has called for reform to the process of appointing the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). While speaking in Kano on Monday, June 13, 2017, the former Chairman of the electoral body advocated for a more independent process where the country’s president has no say in who gets appointed as chairman. Jega said, “Still the president nominates INEC’s chairman. “It is important to legislate the appointment of the INEC chairman. Despite the fact that Nigeria had achieved a lot, there was need for more reforms. “Ghana that we celebrate has the worst process of appointing chairman…
Jose Mourinho has ruled out a move for Fabinho this summer. The Manchester United manager has identified holding midfield as a key area in need of address, with Nemanja Matic and Eric Dier two of the players earmarked to fulfil the role. But it is understood he will not pursue a deal for Fabinho, who has emerged as one of the most sought-after players in Europe. The Brazilian international was outstanding for French champions Monaco last season. He is expected to be one of a host of stars to exit Leonardo Jardim’s side, along with Bernardo Silva, Benjamin Mendy, Tiemoue…
Alvaro Morata’s proposed transfer to Manchester United awaits a decision from Real Madrid, the striker’s agent has told calciomercato.com. United have been linked with the 24-year-old after cooling their interest in Atletico Madrid’s Antoine Griezmann. And just days after saying Morata would leave Madrid if his demands for more playing time are not met, agent Juanma Lopez confirmed that he has seen an offer from Old Trafford. Asked about United’s reported interest in his client, Lopez was quoted as saying: “They are a club with great glamour, a very interesting option. “I can say that their proposal is a very,…
In many ways, it’s refreshing to see Arsenal go after Monaco starlet Kylian Mbappe in the transfer market. At around £100 million for an 18-year-old striker, it’s the kind of bold move that the club have often been accused of shying away from in the past. But there’s a big risk that comes with shooting for the biggest young star in Europe — especially if manager Arsene Wenger allows himself to be blinded by the promise of the teenage starlet and misses out on more realistic targets in the process. Going all in for Mbappe will be seen as a…
As one of the few people who actually listens to the lyrics of a song, I really struggle with the latest crop of Nigerian artistes on the afropop/dancehall bandwagon who constantly sing in an alien JamAustralian accent in an attempt to prove their afro-dancehall songs are authentic. One of such artistes is Kiss Daniel on his latest track “Sofa” who legit forced me to google his lyrics to fully understand what the hell he is saying. “Sofa” which samples dancehall artiste, Gyptian’s hit single, “Hold Yuh” is Kiss Daniel’s attempt at reinventing himself – as “Sofa” is very different from…
John Legend won a Tony Award on Sunday night (June 11) as co-producer of Jitney, which won the award for best play revival, per Broadway.com. After winning multiple Grammys and a 2015 Oscar for best original song for Selma’s “Glory,” scoring a Tony means Legend is one award away from achieving EGOT status, a.k.a. winning all four major American entertainment awards. August Wilson’s Jitney follows a group of men who try to earn a living by driving unlicensed cabs, or jitneys, in the 1970s. The limited engagement ran from January 19 to March 12 (previews were held in December) at…