Month: January 2025

‘Monthly Routine,’ Mysterious Banana Sacrifice Appears On UK Street Again

ADEOLA YUSUF

  Residents of Nottinghamshire, England have been left puzzled by the mysterious appearance of plates filled with peeled bananas left by the side of a road every month for over a year. FULL LIST: Japa, Agbero, Eba, 17 Other Nigerian Words Added To Oxford Dictionary ’24 Hours After Swearing In,’ Governor’s Special Adviser Dies 10 Facts About Éric Chelle, Super Eagles’ New Coach The phenomenon occurs on the second day of each month in 2024, when a plate of bananas is found on a street corner in Beeston, across from…

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‘No Bribery, No Extortion,’ AIG Reads Riot Act To Newly Promoted Officers

ADEOLA YUSUF

The Assistant Inspector General of Police in-charge of Zone 2 Command, AIG Adegoke Fayoade, yesterday, charged newly promoted Assistant Commissioners of Police, Chief Superintendent of Police, and Superintendents of Police, to shun disgraceful acts and refrain from extorting members of the public. He reminded the officers that their promotion was a call to duty, urging them to work harder in ensuring that lives and properties of Nigerians within their jurisdictions were saved. AIG Fayoade gave the charge at the decoration of 33 newly promoted officers drawn from the Lagos and…

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Troops Eliminate 34 Boko Haram/ISWAP Terrorists In Borno, Six Soldiers killed

ADEOLA YUSUF

The Defence Headquarters on Wednesday confirmed that over 34 Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists were neutralised in a fierce battle at Sabon Gari Community, Damboa Local Government Area, Borno State. The attack also resulted in the loss of six soldiers. The Director of Defence Media Operations, Major General Edward Buba, disclosed this in a statement titled “Terrorists Killed in Attack on Sabon Gari in Damboa LGA of Borno State.” He revealed that the terrorists, riding on motorcycles and gun trucks, attempted to retaliate the recent killing of their commanders but were overwhelmed…

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Stampede: Why Ooni Ex-Wife, Oriyomi Hamzat Will Be In Agodi Prison Till January 13

ADEOLA YUSUF

A high court in Ibadan has fixed Tuesday, January 13, 2025, to rule on the bail applications filed by Naomi Silekunola, ex-wife of Ooni of Ife, Oriyomi Hamzat, CEO Of Agidigbo FM, and Fasasi Abdullahi. Abdullahi serves as the principal of Islamic High School, the site of the stampede incident in Ibadan. The trio are standing trial over their alleged roles in a stampede at a funfair in December, which claimed the lives of over 40 people, most of them children. The defendants were remanded at Agodi correctional centre on December 24 after…

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FULL LIST: Japa, Agbero, Eba, 17 Other Nigerian Words Added To Oxford Dictionary

ADEOLA YUSUF

The Oxford English Dictionary has expanded its lexicon with 20 Nigerian words and expressions in its latest update. The newly added entries include popular terms like “japa,” “agbero,” “eba,” “419,” and “abi,” among others. These words, deeply rooted in the everyday lives of Nigerians, highlight the influence of Pidgin English, street slang, and cultural expressions that are increasingly gaining global recognition. Notably, some of the words, such as “japa” and “jand,” appear as both nouns and verbs in the dictionary. ’24 Hours After Swearing In,’ Governor’s Special Adviser Dies 10…

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’24 Hours After Swearing In,’ Governor’s Special Adviser Dies

ADEOLA YUSUF

Kano State Governor Abba Yusuf has expressed deep sorrow over the passing of Engr. Ahmad Ishaq Bunkure, the newly appointed Special Adviser on Works, who died Wednesday in Egypt. This was disclosed in a statement by the governor’s spokesperson, Sunusi Bature Dawakin Tofa, on Wednesday. In his condolence message, Governor Yusuf described the death of Engr. Bunkure as a tragic and irreplaceable loss to Kano State, his family, and the wider political community. He prayed for Allah’s mercy on the deceased and strength for his family to bear the painful…

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10 Facts About Éric Chelle, Super Eagles’ New Coach

ADEOLA YUSUF

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Executive Committee has approved the appointment of Éric Sékou Chelle as the new Head Coach of Nigeria’s senior men’s national football team, the Super Eagles. Platforms Africa reports that the decision followed the recommendation of the NFF’s Technical and Development Sub-Committee during its meeting held in Abuja on January 2, 2025. The appointment was formally endorsed by the NFF Executive Committee on January 7, 2025. The Super Eagles’ head coach position became vacant following Finidi George’s resignation after disappointing results in the 2026 FIFA World…

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Court Rejects Emefiele’s Jurisdiction Challenge In $4.5bn, N2.8bn Fraud Case

ADEOLA YUSUF

An Ikeja Special Offences Court has dismissed the plea application filed by the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele, challenging its jurisdiction to hear the $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion fraud case brought by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. Delivering the ruling on Wednesday, Justice Rahman Oshodi held that the court had jurisdiction over counts eight to 26, citing relevant legal authorities and evidence presented in the case file. However, the court struck out counts one to four, which centred on abuse of office through…

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Rooting For Hajj With Excellence In 2025, By Tunde Akanni, PhD

ADEOLA YUSUF

Hajj administrators all over the world are often quick to assert that the preparations for the next hajj begins as soon as the just concluded one is over. Breathing life into this claim may however assume a different coloration depending on the faithfulness of the claim maker. For the current leadership at NAHCON there appears to be some commitment to some exciting vision. Beyond being heavily credentialed, the Prof Saleh Usman leadership keeps signaling strong re-engineering for a the commission that deserves the best NAHCON’s recent activities have underscored its…

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Éric Chelle Named Super Eagles Head Coach

ADEOLA YUSUF

The Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Executive Committee has approved the appointment of Éric Sékou Chelle as the new Head Coach of Nigeria’s senior men’s national football team, the Super Eagles. The decision followed the recommendation of the NFF’s Technical and Development Sub-Committee during its meeting held in Abuja on January 2, 2025. The appointment was formally endorsed by the NFF Executive Committee on January 7, 2025. Chelle, 47, is a former head coach of Mali’s senior national team and brings a wealth of experience, having managed clubs such as GS…

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