President Muhammadu Buhari has assured Nigerians that his administration will ensure the release of the remaining Chibok girls. Buhari gave the assurance via a statement released by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina in commemoration of the 1,000th day of the girls’ abduction. The statement reads: “We are grateful to God that on this landmark day, we are not completely in the depths of despair, but buoyed with hope that our daughters will yet rejoin their families and loved ones.” “Three of them have been recovered by our diligent military, while the freedom of 21 others was…
Author: David Folami
French police arrested 16 people in raids early Monday over the robbery of US reality TV star Kim Kardashian in Paris last year, police sources said. Police swooped in the Paris region and the south of France following the discovery of DNA at the luxury Paris residence where Kardashian was tied up and robbed of jewellery worth around nine million euros ($9.5 million) in October, one source said. “One of the DNA samples matched an individual known to police for robbery and criminal offences, who is considered a major thug,” the source said. Money and documents were also seized in…
Stand-up comedian, Basketmouth has attributed his success outside the shores of Nigeria to his reinvention and creativity. The comic, who spoke to the BBC’s Peter Okocha in an interview revealed that he often tweaks his jokes to represent the society where he is performing. This has been the obvious reason for his sustained excellence as a jokester. “I try as much as possible to make my materials universal. So that way, I don’t goof. “When I come the UK to do my gigs or even in America, I try as much as possible to avoid saying anything about Nigeria. “These…
JJC Skillz was quite the open type after admitting in an interview that he fell in love with actress, Funke Akindele, at his first meeting with her. This happened at the time when the actress was trying to commence the production of her “Jenifa’s Diary” television series. That meeting was the catalyst for a now blossoming marriage between the pair who got hitched in July 2016 at a secret wedding in London. The movie director expressed some of his feelings about the actress in a chat with Punch News’ Sunday Scoop. Responding to a question regarding how fast their romance…
Oluwanishola Ogudu, the baby mama of Nigerian pop singer, Wizkid, has debunked engagement rumours. Instablog9ja produced an image displaying an engagement ring on the finger of Ogudu with the caption “Yes!!!”. But the entrepreneur has denied getting a ring. According to her, “Shola is not engaged. She would be eventually at the right time to the right man (Amen). But don’t chase him away with false news please.” Meanwhile, an Instagram user, Zaynab, then referred to Wizkid’s second Babymama, Binta Diamond Diallo, as a prostitute. The comment reads, “Tell dem @soji4440 d other baby mama is a PROSTITUTE @bluediamond224.” Diallo,…
Estranged husband of music star, Tiwa Savage, Tee Billz, says he wants his family happy. The manager in a post shared on Instagram on January 7, 2016, wrote, “I’m at a point in my life where I want my family happy, my faith strong, my health good, my mind right, my dollars tight and no unnecessary drama.” This comes after the troubled couple were spotted together for the first time after their April saga. The duo were seen together at TV presenter, Stephanie Coker’s traditional wedding over the holidays making it their first public sighting since April 2016. Meanwhile, reports…
Veteran Nollywood actor Jide Kosoko lost his third wife, Henrietta Kosoko last year, June 2016 after a brief battle with diabetes. In an interview with The Point, Kosoko narrates what actually led to her death saying, “Forget all those things you heard. She was ill. She died of complications that arose from diabetes.” He also disclosed friends and colleagues stood by him during the ordeal. “Honestly, my family, friends and colleagues stood by me and I appreciate that.” Talking about Kemi Olunloyo’s ritualistic allegations, “Of course, you will always have one or two persons, who would say one or two…
Tottenham’s outstanding victory over Chelsea put them firmly back into the title conversation, and they won for a sixth game running. Their 2-0 win over Aston Villa at White Hart Lane sealed a place in the FA Cup fourth round. Spurs finished the game in cruise control after Ben Davies’ first goal for the club and a second from Son Heung-Min, but for long periods their second string looked short of pep and ideas, and the performance raised more questions about the quality of Spurs’ squad and their ability to compete in the Premier League, the FA Cup and the…
On Saturday against Reading, Wayne Rooney scored his 249th goal for Manchester United. He kneed Juan Mata’s cross into the net, whereupon TV cameras immediately focused on Sir Bobby Charlton, whose record the current club captain now shares. (This is, of course, if we don’t count — as United do not — the two goals Charlton scored against Verona in the Anglo-Italian Cup; the record really stands at 251 goals.) Regardless, the reaction to Rooney’s goal was mixed. There are many United fans, who believe that records are there to be broken, that the 31-year-old has spent the best years…
Arsenal midfielder Mesut Ozil says he wants to know whether Arsene Wenger is staying on as manager before deciding whether to sign a contract extension. Ozil told German magazine kicker on Sunday that he is happy at Arsenal and willing to commit his future to the Gunners, but wants “clarity” over Wenger’s future first. Wenger’s contract expires this summer, while Ozil and Alexis Sanchez both have 18 months left on their deals but have yet to agree to extensions. Wenger has been adamant he will not make a decision about his own future until the end of the season. “I…
Eric Bailly said he’d relish the chance to play alongside of Victor Lindelof at Manchester United should the club make a move to bring the defender in from Benfica during the winter window. Lindelof, 22, was linked with a move to Old Trafford in December, with sources at the club saying they hoped to fast-track a move for the Sweden international. However, Jose Mourinho said he isn’t panicking to make a January purchase to offset the loss of Bailly while he’s away on international duty with the Ivory Coast at the African Nations Cup. “I hope to play with him.…
Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi and Antoine Griezmann are hoping to be crowned The Best in Monday’s rebranded FIFA awards. On the 25th anniversary of honouring football’s top performers — and having split with France Football magazine — the governing body introduced its The Best FIFA Football Awards. The inaugural edition of the awards will be held in Zurich’s TPC studios on Monday, when Ronaldo will be hoping to add to last month’s Ballon d’Or triumph in recognition of his fine 2016. The attacker helped Real Madrid to Champions League glory and Portugal to the European Championship, seeing him edge out…
Former Chelsea manager Carlo Ancelotti has paid tribute to current Stamford Bridge boss Antonio Conte, while also admitting he is slightly envious of Arsene Wenger’s longevity at Arsenal and tipping Paul Clement to succeed in management. In an exclusive interview, Bayern Munich manager Ancelotti told ESPN FC’s Gab Marcotti that Conte “is doing a fantastic job” with a team that disappointed in 2015-16. “They’d had a bad season,” Ancelotti said. “The players are motivated. The manager put a new idea of football and good chemistry and they were able to have a really good result. [They have] a lot of…
A typically attritional display from Atletico Madrid saw them avoid a potential banana skin and come away from Eibar with a comfortable 2-0 victory on Saturday. In a turgid encounter on a wet, windy afternoon in the Basque Country, a moment of quality from Saul Niguez and a first La Liga goal in 10 games for Antoine Griezmann were enough to seal the points for Los Rojiblancos, who appear to be reaping the benefits of the winter break. Atleti showed none of the lethargy that had plagued their displays pre-Christmas. Los Colchoneros made light work of going from the sweltering…
Under manager Jurgen Klopp’s instructions, Liverpool have been fielding a strong side in the Under-23 Premier League, as opposed to sending the majority of their promising starlets out to loan. There is a belief in Liverpool’s Kirkby academy that, on occasions, the club’s U-23s would have been able to beat Football League teams this season. The theory was put to the test on Sunday for the encounter with Plymouth, as seven reserves started at Anfield. The verdict? These young professionals have a long way to go. In all, Klopp made 10 changes to field Liverpool’s youngest-ever team, with the likes…
Timaya has opened himself up for some criticism for his alleged insult on journalists following his uncourteous decline of an interview request. His rude boy personality had been intriguing and attractive to the fans until his recent insult of a Punch News reporter. A news report published by Punch on Sunday, January 8, 2016, described the singer as someone with an undesirable attitude, who needs some anger management lessons. The singer’s harsh response to the interview request was so shocking even for one of his aides, who had to tender an apology on his behalf. “Sunday Scoop recently ran into…
Governor Ayo Fayose has been accused of diverting the N8.877b Paris Club refund given to Ekiti state by the Federal Government. President Buhari had earlier advised the Governors to use the funds to settle the outstanding salaries of civil servants. A source in the presidency revealed that Governor Fayose only paid one month out of the seven months owed workers. The source said “The agreement between the Federal Government and the state governors was very clear. “While 50 per cent of the amount released was to be used to offset outstanding salary and pension arrears, the remaining 50 per cent…
Kerosene scarcity has hit Calabar and its environs as the price of the commodity now ranges between N350 and N400 per litre, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports. NAN survey on Sunday showed that the product was not available in any filling station in the Cross River capital and its suburbs. However, the product was available only in surface tanks in parts of the city, where dealers sold it at N350 per litre. The survey revealed also that the itinerant retailers sold the commodity between N380 and N400 per litre, depending on the area. Mrs Grace Nja, who resides…
Alhaji Olanrewaju Okanlawon, a factional Chairman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), in Kwara has ascribed the recurring hike in the price of kerosene to the unstable foreign exchange occasioned by the lingering economic recession. Okanlawon told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Ilorin on Saturday that the association should not be blamed for the series of complaints emanating from members of the public particularly from the domestic users of the cooking substance. He cleared the association of any deliberate move to inflict hardship on the masses, who he noted, were already facing hardship due to…
The Federal Government has paid two out of four months outstanding stipends owed former Niger Delta militants under the Presidential Amnesty Programme. Mr Ramsey Mukoro, leader of the 3rd phase of the amnesty programme, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Saturday that some former agitators had received two out of four months’ salary backlog. “The Amnesty Office has started paying but my third phase people have yet to get alerts, we are hoping that we in the third phase will benefit as well. “It has really been difficult for us and we spend Christmas and New Year on…