Author: News Room

No fewer than 4,000 retirees in Enugu State have enrolled in the state government’s free State Universal Health Insurance programme. The exercise, held on Thursday at the International Conference Centre, Enugu, attracted pensioners from the 17 local government areas of the state. Speaking at the event, Edith Okolo, the chief executive officer of the Enugu State Agency for Universal Health Coverage (ESA-UHC), said the initiative was part of the state government’s effort to ensure that every resident had access to health insurance. Ms Okolo said pensioners were being prioritised because they were considered vulnerable members of society and should not…

President Bola Tinubu has directed a comprehensive reform of Nigerian football to overcome repeated failures to qualify for major regional, continental and world tournaments. Tinubu directed the Chairman of the National Sports Commission to work with the Nigeria Football Federation Secretariat and relevant football stakeholders to ensure continuity in essential football administration while facilitating a broad, consultative reform process. Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, revealed this in a statement he signed Thursday titled ‘President Tinubu Directs Comprehensive Football Reform.’ He cited deep structural deficits despite the sport’s enormous public support and national attention. “The…

Kylie Jenner wants to be even curvier. Jenner, 29, opened up about her famous figure while chatting with her friends Stassie Karanikolaou and Victoria Villarroel during a Wednesday, August 26, episode of their “Better Half” podcast, sharing that she actually wants to go under the knife again. “I do want them bigger,” she said of her breast augmentation, noting she currently has 445 cc implants. She added, “I say it every day. I’m like, ‘They need to be bigger and more out there.’” Jenner quipped, “I want my tits to walk in before I do.” Courtesy of Kylie Jenner/Instagram Karanikolaou,…

Nine countries have so far endorsed the Borrowers’ Platform, a new initiative intended to give developing countries a stronger collective voice in negotiations over sovereign debts, a senior United Nations official said on Thursday. The are comprised of five African countries and four others from the rest part of the world. Those from Africa are the Central African Republic, Egypt, Ghana, Madagascar and Sudan. The rest from other parts of the world are Colombia, Honduras, Nepal and Pakistan. Egypt is serving as the platform’s interim chair and Pakistan its vice-chair. The Officer-in-Charge of the Debt and Development Finance Branch of…

The Personal Pension Plan recorded a total of 219,316 registrations from inception to the first quarter of 2026, with only 18,811 accounts funded. This is according to the first-quarter pension industry data released by the National Pension Commission. The data showed that funded Retirement Savings Accounts accounted for 8.6 per cent of total PPP registrations, while 200,505 accounts, representing 91.4 per cent, remained unfunded. The figures highlighted the significant challenge facing the PPP, particularly the need to convert registrations into active accounts with sustained pension contributions. The data further showed that total contributions under the PPP stood at N1.66 billion…

Today on Decoder, I’m talking to Verge senior AI reporter Hayden Field about some pure Decoder bait: the seemingly-endless org chart changes at OpenAI, and how all of them seem to consolidate power under cofounder Greg Brockman, the company’s president.While Sam Altman is the CEO and still OpenAI’s most public face, Brockman has amassed enormous power and influence within the top ranks of the company as other senior leaders have left in rapid succession these past few months.Verge subscribers, don’t forget you get exclusive access to ad-free Decoder wherever you get your podcasts. Head here. Not a subscriber? You can…

Zcash could emerge as a meaningful challenger to Bitcoin’s dominance among digital assets as the rapid adoption of artificial intelligence puts a premium on financial privacy and fuels concerns over AI-powered surveillance, according to Grayscale. In a new research report, Grayscale head of research Zach Pandl said Zcash (ZEC) has “second mover advantages” that could help it challenge Bitcoin’s (BTC) entrenched network effects, something previous alternatives such as Litecoin (LTC) have failed to achieve.Central to Pandl’s argument is financial privacy. Zcash can shield transaction information, which Grayscale argues could become increasingly valuable as AI systems become better at analyzing financial activity…

Kylie Jenner thinks she “absolutely” grew up quickly and missed out on some things by having children at a young age. “COVID was my college experience — when everything was shut down and no one was really working,” Jenner, 29, said during an interview with WhoWhatWear published on Thursday, August 27. “It was the first time that I slowed down, and the world started to feel safe again. For the first time in my life, there wasn’t a schedule. Sometimes, I feel like a robot, where everything is planned out for me. Khy meetings on Wednesday, blah, blah, blah.” She…

American Olympic champion Masai Russell has shattered Tobi Amusan’s women’s 100m hurdles world record, clocking a stunning 12.09 seconds at the Zurich Diamond League on Thursday. Russell lowered Amusan’s previous world record of 12.12 seconds, set by the Nigerian at the 2022 World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, by three hundredths of a second. Amusan was on the track to witness her record fall but responded with an impressive performance of her own, running a season-best 12.23 seconds to finish second. The Nigerian, who had held the world record for four years, produced her fastest time of the season as…

Peter Cullen, the voice actor best known for voicing Optimus Prime in the Transformers franchise, has died at the age of 85. Cullen died on Wednesday at his home in Los Angeles, his agent, Kevin Motley, confirmed to the Los Angeles Times on Thursday. His cause of death was not disclosed. His family said he “passed away peacefully, surrounded by his loving family — and held in the hearts of his many friends and countless fans worldwide.” “Honour his remarkable legacy by serving your communities and leading others with compassion, integrity, and loyalty and always remember ‘be strong enough to…