Author: News Room
Former Jersey Football Association president Ricky Weir has set his sights on deepening grassroots football development in Nigeria, returning to the country this month on a visit that combined the promotion of his award-winning memoir with continued support for Walking Football and youth league programmes, The PUNCH reports. Weir, who now holds a Nigerian passport, told reporters in Lagos that his latest trip was driven by three personal missions namely promoting his book, “Illegitimately Blessed”, supporting grassroots football, and strengthening the growth of Walking Football, a discipline he helped introduce to Nigeria in 2020. “The biggest thing is that I…
Grace Joseph, the widow of the commercial bus driver, Joseph Okpe, who was allegedly beaten to death by the Nigerian Air Force officers along the Oshodi–Apapa Expressway in Lagos, has accused the military of abandoning her family, saying she has not heard from its representatives since they paid a condolence visit and promised support. PUNCH Metro reports that the driver died a few hours after he was allegedly assaulted by a group of officers following a minor traffic incident involving their vehicle. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the spokesperson for the Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame, confirmed…
Nigeria today is a country learning to live with fear—and that is the most dangerous development of all. This was brought into clear relief by the recent kidnapping of retired Major General Rabe Abubakar and his wife and his subsequent demise at the hands of his kidnappers. People now travel earlier, close shops sooner, and avoid intercity or interstate trips altogether. Parents worry when their children leave for school. The recent kidnappings of students and teachers in Oyo, Borno, and parts of Kogi illustrate the point. Communities brace for attacks as if they were seasonal events. What should still shock…
The Federal Government on Wednesday disclosed that Nigeria’s solid minerals sector has attracted about $3bn in investments within the last three years, describing the inflow as one of the most significant achievements recorded in the industry’s history. The government said the investments, spanning lithium, gold and other strategic minerals, reflected growing investor confidence in reforms introduced by the administration of President Bola Tinubu and signalled stronger prospects for the sector in the coming years. The disclosure was made at a press briefing ahead of the 5th African Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit scheduled to hold from June 23 to…
The Democratic Republic of Congo ended their half-century wait to return to the FIFA World Cup in some style on Wednesday, as Yoane Wissa scored a fine equaliser as the Leopards came from behind to deny Portugal and Cristiano Ronaldo a win. The 1-1 draw saw the DRC hold steady against the European favourites, with Wissa cancelling out João Neves’ first-half header. The result saw the Leopards record their first-ever point at a World Cup. Pitted against one of the tournament favourites in Portugal upon their return, Congo were up against it against Ronaldo and Co., but held their nerve…
France’s national cybersecurity agency ANSSI said Tuesday that it will stop certifying security products that lack quantum-resistant encryption, reflecting growing concern among governments about quantum threats to cryptography. ANSSI chief of staff Samih Souissi said at the France Quantum 2026 Summit that it would halt such certifications in 2027 and that businesses should buy only quantum-safe products by 2030, Reuters reported.“ANSSI has been telegraphing this move for years,” Marin Ivezic, the founder of consulting firm Applied Quantum, said in a post on LinkedIn. “What changed yesterday is that ANSSI’s chief of staff said it publicly at a major conference, in front…
John F. Kennedy’s grandson Jack Schlossberg is opening up about the last time he had a conversation with cousin Robert F. Kennedy Jr. “I had a dream about him the other night but before that it was when I was about 16,” Schlossberg, 33, said in a preview of his conversation with Politico’s Dasha Burns shared via TikTok on Tuesday, June 16. Schlossberg, who is currently running for congress to represent New York’s 12th district, shared that RFK Jr. recently visited him in a dream. Schlossberg claimed that the dream version of his cousin told him, “Good job, you’re gonna…
Saudi Arabia has completed the annual replacement of the Holy Kaaba’s Kiswa, the ornate black silk covering that adorns Islam’s most sacred site in Makkah in a centuries-old tradition that the Kingdom describes as a symbol of its custodianship of the Two Holy Mosques. The exercise, coordinated by the General Authority for the Care of the Affairs of the Grand Mosque and the Prophet’s Mosque through the King Abdulaziz Complex for the Holy Kaaba Kiswa, involves a meticulous multi-stage process combining traditional Islamic craftsmanship with modern manufacturing technology. Preparatory work included the removal of gold-embroidered ornaments, decorative lamps, and other…
Civil society stakeholders in the South-South region under the auspices of the Niger Delta Civil Society Forum has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to “revisit the calls for reforms in the administration of the constitutional 13 per cent Derivation Fund by establishing a Presidential Board to strengthen accountability, transparency and ensure direct developmental impact in oil-producing communities”. According to the Forum, the “derivation principle is constitutional, while the Petroleum Industry Act is a separate legislation enacted for entirely different objectives”. This was contained in a statement signed by its Coordinator, Mr. Ezekiel Kagbala, on Monday. The Forum while reacting to…
Residents of Agbado, Abule Ijoko, Itoki, Ope-Ilu and other adjoining communities in the Ifo Local Government Area of Ogun State have lamented the untold hardship caused by dilapidated roads in the area. The residents told PUNCH Metro during a visit to the communities on Tuesday that the situation has persisted for over 15 years with little or no attention from the government. During the visit, our correspondent observed that the stretch of road connecting the communities from Agbado Oja to Abule Ijoko, spanning about 13 kilometres, has collapsed. While some parts were barely motorable, others remained completely impassable and overgrown…
