President Muhammadu Buhari will meet with elders from the Niger Delta region on October 29, 2016 in Abuja. This is in-line with calls by some militant groups for a dialogue between representatives from the oil rich region and government. According to Vanguard, Chief Edwin Clark might head the group which is known as, the Pan Niger Delta Forum (PNDF). The Secretary of PNDF, Ledum Mitee, also confirmed that the President will be meeting with them. A source also revealed that the Minister for state, Petroleum, Ibe Kachikwu, has been working with the Niger Delta elders to ensure the meeting comes…
Author: David Folami
The 21 freed Chibok Girls say on Sunday in Abuja that for “one month and 10 days’’ of their abduction by the Boko Haram insurgents they stayed without food in the bush. Ms Gloria Dame, one of the rescued girls, narrated this while giving testimony on behalf of her colleagues at a thanks giving service organised for them at a DSS health facility in Abuja. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, and Minister of Women Affairs, Hajiya Jummai Alhassan, attended the service. The girl, who spoke in Hausa language, said…
Gov. Rochas Okorocha of Imo on Sunday dismissed the assertion that President Muhammadu Buhari’s three-day visit to Germany was more of a medical trip than official engagements. Okorocha, who was part of the president’s entourage to Berlin, Germany, was reacting to media interview granted by a Kano-based social commentator, Dr Junaid Muhamed. Muhammed had alleged that Buhari visited Germany on Friday to seek medical attention over an undisclosed illness. Okorocha, who spoke to State House correspondents in Abuja, however, debunked the allegation, saying that the official engagements of Buhari in Germany, had no connection, whatsoever, with medication. He said the…
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, says the release of the 21 Chibok girls “is only a first step in what we believe will be a total liberation of all the girls’’. The minister made the statement on Sunday at a thanksgiving service organised for the freed girls at the premises of the Department of State Security (DSS) medical centre in Abuja. Mohammed, who was with the Minister of Women Affairs, Hajia Jumai Alhassan, at the service, said negotiation was on-going for the release of the others in captivity. “This is just the beginning and we are…
The Federal Government is set to officially launch the Nigeria Youth Chamber of Commerce (NYCC) to support the promotion of youth entrepreneurship, create jobs, generate wealth and grow the economy. This is contained in a statement by the Chairman of NYCC, Mr Pius Ayim, made available to the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Sunday. According to the statement, the endorsement is made in a letter from the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, signed by the Director, Growth and Employment, Mr Sani Labaran, on behalf of the Minister. The Nigerian Youth Chamber Of Commerce is the voice…
Bayern Munich’s chairman Karl-Heinz Rummenigge described as ‘unacceptable’ their 2-2 draw at ten-man Eintracht Frankfurt which leaves the German league leaders winless in their last three games. Bayern host PSV Eindhoven in a key European match on Wednesday needing a win following last month’s 1-0 Champions League defeat at Atletico Madrid and their 1-1 draw with Cologne a fortnight ago in the Bundesliga. Having won the German league title for each of the last four seasons, Bayern have set themselves high standards and Rummenigge was unimpressed with the lacklustre first-half display at Eintracht on Saturday. Bayern had 62 percent possession…
Barcelona boss Luis Enrique hailed Lionel Messi’s goalscoring return in a 4-0 rout of Deportivo la Coruna as the perfect preparation for Barca’s Champions League showdown with former coach Pep Guardiola’s Manchester City on Wednesday. Messi netted with just his third touch after nearly a month out with a groin injury having come on just before the hour mark with Barca already 3-0 in front. “It is the perfect way to go into the game against City on Wednesday for the result and for the way in which we got the result in a tricky week for us with the…
Wayne Rooney will get the “respect he deserves” when the 30-year-old forward returns to Manchester United, manager Jose Mourinho has insisted. The dropped England captain returned to Old Trafford earlier in the week following an international break when he was booed by home fans during a 2-0 World Cup qualifying win over Malta at Wembley. Days later Rooney, England’s all-time record scorer, was left out of the subsequent goalless draw away to Slovenia by interim national manager Gareth Southgate. Rooney could well be left on the bench again by Portuguese boss Mourinho when United face bitter rivals Liverpool at Anfield…
Despite goals from the returning Arjen Robben and rising star Joshua Kimmich, Bayern Munich let slip a lead for the second straight Bundesliga game, drawing 2-2 away at 10-man Eintracht Frankfurt. Positives Kimmich’s rich vein of goal-scoring form continues, Robben crowned his return from injury with a goal and Renato Sanches turned in a slightly improved display from recent weeks. Negatives Carlo Ancelotti admitted his side “were asleep for the first 45 minutes,” looking slow and ponderous for long periods. Bayern also looked vulnerable in defence throughout, their fragility was summed up by Eintracht’s untidy equaliser against just 10 men.…
Juventus ground out a 2-1 win against Udinese on Saturday, needing to rely upon some star veterans to deliver the victory. Deployed in a 4-4-2 formation, Juve looked both confused and unclear of the new strategy, resulting in plenty of errors and an open game. Taking advantage of the Old Lady’s tactical perplexity, an organised and hungry Udinese side opted to attack, looking for their opportunities to make darting runs forward to exploit the gaps and apply pressure on the back line. The second half saw a more capable and united Juve side. Forced to suffer for the result, Patrice…
Barcelona cruised to a 4-0 victory over Deportivo La Coruna on Saturday at an uncharacteristically bouncing Camp Nou, which is reaping the benefits of expanding the singing section. Barca killed the game off before half time with a brace from Rafinha and a strike from Luis Suarez. The second half was all about the return of Lionel Messi, who quickly found the net after coming on. Barca missed chances to heap further misery on their opponents, who were reduced to 10 men when Laure was sent off for elbowing Neymar, and can now focus their attention on Wednesday’s Champions League…
Three points from Chelsea 3-0 Leicester in the Premier League on Saturday. In Saturday’s battle of the last two English title-winners, only one side lived up to the billing as a resurgent Chelsea destroyed Leicester City 3-0. Chelsea boss Antonio Conte has drastically changed his formation to a 3-4-3 and that has completely changed the mood at the club. Where they had recently been dysfunctional, they were rampant here, regularly ripping the champions apart. Defeat at Stamford Bridge represented a continuation of Leicester’s season so far; this their third heavy defeat to one of the big clubs in the opening…
It was a frustrating afternoon for Manchester City. Pep Guardiola’s team didn’t play particularly badly, but they weren’t at their most cutting edge and it allowed a very organised and stubborn Everton side to battle out a hard-earned draw. The home team were probably the more deserving of the victory, though having missed two penalties they can’t grumble at the outcome. Positives There were few positives to be taken from the match, though Kevin De Bruyne made it through 90 minutes on his return from injury earlier than expected. At times, City’s forward play looked back to its best, but…
Tottenham endured a frustrating outing against West Brom on Saturday, drawing 1-1 with them for the third time in a row. In fact, they very nearly lost at The Hawthorns. Former Spurs man Nacer Chadli struck against his old club in the 82nd minute, and it took an 89th minute reply from Dele Alli to earn Mauricio Pochettino’s visitors a point from a game they had dominated. Positives Spurs showed their character to come from behind and grab a draw — as they had done against Everton and Liverpool earlier in the season — and maintain their record of being…
Are Liverpool the real deal this season? Monday’s Anfield clash against bitter foes Manchester United promises to provide definitive evidence. Jurgen Klopp’s team are within two points of the top, despite playing only two of their seven games at home so far because of stadium improvements. They’ve often looked dynamic and exciting, and away wins at Arsenal and Chelsea already suggest that Klopp might do for Liverpool what he did for Borussia Dortmund: win trophies. But now comes another confrontation with Jose Mourinho, who has plenty of experience managing against Liverpool at Anfield going back to those thunderous Champions League…
Gareth Bale will ask to be paid a gross wage of £750,000 a week, the same amount as Cristiano Ronaldo, in order to sign a new six-year contract with Real Madrid, the Times reports. Bale currently takes home £525,000 a week before tax but wants a significant increase to reflect his level standing in the squad with Ronaldo, who is also negotiating an extension to his current deal. That will net the Wales international £20 million a year after tax.
Manchester United are ready to break the world transfer record again next summer in their pursuit of Atletico Madrid striker Antoine Griezmann, the Mirror claims. United spent £89.3 million on Paul Pogba in August but are already laying the groundwork for another massive move knowing that others could attempt to rival their interest in Griezmann. The 25-year-old France international, who won the Golden Boot at Euro 2016, is aware of United’s interest and Atletico’s status as a selling club if big enough offers are tabled.
Manchester City manager Pep Guardiola has dismissed the theory that the Premier League is the most intense league in the world. Many in England have often claimed that when it comes to intensity, the Premier League outrivals La Liga and the Bundesliga. However, having worked in both Spain and Germany with Barcelona and Bayern Munich respectively, Guardiola believes there is little truth in that idea. “I hear a lot of times about the intensity of the Premier League when none of you have been in La Liga or the Bundesliga to know how it is,” Guardiola said. “The problem here…
Sadio Mane has said it was his decision, not Southampton’s, to reject the opportunity to join Manchester United in 2015. Mane, 24, could have moved to United under Louis van Gaal but instead chose to continue his development under Ronald Koeman at St. Mary’s, but when Jurgen Klopp and Liverpool approached him 12 months later he took the chance to move on. “In honesty, there were some clubs interested at that time [in 2015] but I never made any choices then,” he told the Sunday Telegraph. “I did not say I thought of any club and I wanted to play…
Paul Pogba has said he needs more time to adapt to Manchester United and that he responds to criticism by dancing. The United midfielder, who has made an unconvincing start to the season since a world record £89.3 million move, also said in the interview with Telefoot that fellow summer signing Zlatan Ibrahimovic is like a “big brother.” Pogba was quoted by the Independent as saying: “I will need a little time to adapt in Manchester, time for the machine to start working. I am adapting. “People like to talk about Paul Pogba. The critics, they stay for a day,…