Author: News Room

Tension rose a June 12 protest on Friday under the Ikeja Bridge as supporters and counter-protesters occupied the same venue, forcing police intervention to prevent a breakdown of order during Democracy Day commemorations. The protest was part of a nationwide mobilisation declared by a coalition of civil society organisations, trade unions, youth groups, faith-based organisations and social movements, which had earlier announced June 12 as a day of mass action over insecurity and worsening economic hardship in Nigeria. The coalition, which includes human rights lawyer Femi Falana, activist Hassan ‘Soweto’ Taiwo, labour representatives and other civic leaders, said the protest…

Nigeria’s biggest lender, Access Holdings, is stepping up efforts to meet the regulatory conditions for the resumption of dividend payment, after pausing cash rewards to shareholders for the 2025 financial year, its chairman said on Wednesday. The financial institution’s inability to declare a dividend for 2025 was not a profitability issue, as it posted record N743 billion in net profit for the year, but rather resulted from regulatory constraints, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, the chair of the board of directors, stated at its annual general meeting in Lagos.   “I did not say inability to pay, I said to share,” he told shareholders, noting that Access Holdings recorded earnings of…

Today is June 12. As we celebrate, maybe I should say mourn, the great events that followed the annulled election of 12th June 1993, let us not forget that the event was a very long time ago. 33 years is ancient history for a majority of Nigerians, with a population whose median age is 18 years. For those of us of a certain age and a tradition of democratic struggles, June 12 was Nigeria’s rite of passage to becoming a true and enduring democratic society. The big issue is that the June 12 narrative is a story of great heroes and…

The Benue State Chairman of the All Progressives Congress, Benjamin Omale, has reaffirmed the support of the people of the state and the party for the administrations of President Bola Tinubu and Governor Hyacinth Alia. Omale also expressed the commitment of the party to work with all well-meaning Nigerians and stakeholders to deepen democracy, strengthen good governance, and ensure the continued delivery of democratic dividends to citizens. The state chairman stated this in a statement issued on Friday and made available to journalists in Makurdi to commemorate Democracy Day. Describing democracy as the best form of government, Omale called on…

A fire outbreak on Thursday night destroyed several properties, including offices and shops, along Murtala Mohammed Way in the Fagge Local Government Area of Kano State. The incident, which occurred near First City Monument Bank, was said to have started from a salvage yard popularly known as the Takumbo Market before spreading to adjoining structures. This was contained in a statement issued on Friday by the Public Relations Officer of the Kano State Fire Service, ACFO Saminu Yusif Abdullahi. According to the statement, the Fire Service received a distress call at about 10:54 p.m. from one of its personnel, HFS…

Ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup in the United States, Canada and Mexico, several long-standing records could be broken by some of football’s biggest stars and nations. According to data compiled by ActionNetwork.com, the tournament could see new milestones set by Lionel Messi, Cristiano Ronaldo, Kylian Mbappe, Argentina, Brazil, Germany, France and other leading football nations. Here are 20 records that could fall at the 2026 World Cup. 1 Messi or Mbappe could challenge Klose’s goal record Argentina captain Lionel Messi and France forward Kylian Mbappe could tie or surpass the World Cup goals record currently held by Germany’s…

The Avalanche Treasury Company saw a rocky start as it debuted on Nasdaq under the ticker AVAT on Thursday, with shares dropping 16% by the end of the day. The new company gained access to the Nasdaq after merging with special-purpose acquisition company (SPAC) Mountain Lake Acquisition in a $675 million deal first announced in October. The company, with support from institutional backers including Dragonfly, Pantera, ParaFi Capital, VanEck, Galaxy Digital and Kraken, aims to give investors exposure to the Avalanche blockchain ecosystem without holding the cryptocurrency. Bart Smith, Avalanche Treasury CEO and former Susquehanna executive, said Thursday that it wasn’t a…

Helen Mirren is throwing her support behind Tom Hardy after rumors swirled that he was fired from their show MobLand. In an interview with Variety published on Thursday, June 11, Mirren, 80, was asked whether she would continue to work with Hardy, 48, following the drama. “Absolutely. In a f***ing heartbeat,” the Oscar-winning actress responded. Mirren continued to rave about the Inception star, praising his acting skills and claiming that she was fine with an actor going through their own methods to achieve great results on camera. “I love Tom, I think he’s the most amazing actor,” she told the…

President Bola Tinubu has renamed the Institute of Petroleum Studies in Kaduna as the “General Shehu Musa Yar’Adua University of Geological Sciences and Engineering.” The Nigerian leader announced this during his Friday morning broadcast to mark this year’s Democracy Day. “Among the architects of modern democratic Nigeria, we honour General Shehu Musa Yar’Adua for his vision of national partnership. In recognition of his contributions, the Federal Government has approved the revitalisation and renaming of the completed Institute of Petroleum Studies, Kaduna, as the General Shehu Musa Yar’Adua University of Geological Sciences and Engineering Technology,” Mr Tinubu said. READ ALSO: June 12:…

The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has agreed on a five-year partnership with the Development Agenda for Western Nigeria (DAWN) Commission to accelerate digital skills development and strengthen local innovation hubs in South-western Nigeria. NITDA said in a statement on Thursday that it signed a new pact with the commission, with the partnership expected to run from 2025 through 2030, covering Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun, and Oyo states. It also entails building innovation hubs and technology development centres for startup ecosystem support and regulatory frameworks for the digital economy. The synergy expects to improve digital literacy and create a cohesive roadmap for…