Author: News Room
The leadership crisis rocking the Social Democratic Party worsened on Wednesday after the faction loyal to the reinstated National Chairman, Shehu Gabam announced the expulsion of 13 key party figures, including the party’s sole presidential candidate, Adewole Adebayo. FILE: Prince Adewole Adebayo The development unfolded during the party’s National Convention and Presidential Primary held in Abuja, where delegates loyal to Gabam also adopted Lagos businessman, Abimbola Atanda, as the party’s new sole presidential candidate through a voice vote. Those expelled alongside Adebayo include factional National Chairman, Sadiq Gombe; National Secretary, Olu Agunloye; National Publicity Secretary, Rufus Aiyenigba; Joseph Abu, Maggie…
Top players in men’s and women’s tennis have intensified pressure on the sport’s governing structures, raising the possibility of collective action over prize money and scheduling disputes at Grand Slam tournaments. As reported by BBC Sport on Wednesday, speaking at the Italian Open, women’s world number one, Aryna Sabalenka, said she believes players could “at some point” boycott one of tennis’s four majors if long-standing concerns are not addressed. The comments add to growing frustration among leading professionals about how the sport is run at its highest level. Her remarks were met with differing reactions across the tour. World number…
Microsoft has recruited game industry analyst Matthew Ball as Xbox chief strategy officer. Ball publishes an annual state of video gaming report, which is a popular read across the game industry, and he’s “widely respected across gaming, media, and technology,” according to Xbox CEO Asha Sharma.Sharma announced Ball is joining Microsoft in a memo to Xbox employees this morning, seen by The Verge. She described Ball as a “longtime gamer,” who has held strategy and leadership roles at Illumination, Amazon Studios, Otter Media, and Accenture Strategy. “Matthew has been partnering with us on strategy since day 10 and will officially…
Tether has acquired SoftBank Group’s stake in Twenty One Capital, the Bitcoin treasury company that is expanding into lending, mining and capital markets services, in a move that gives the stablecoin issuer greater control over one of the largest publicly traded Bitcoin holders. In an announcement on Wednesday, Tether said it purchased SoftBank’s roughly 26% stake for an undisclosed amount. SoftBank was one of the earliest backers of Twenty One Capital, which launched in 2025 as a Bitcoin (BTC) treasury company backed by Cantor Fitzgerald and led by Jack Mallers.Neither controlling shareholder Tether nor Twenty One Capital disclosed the size of…
John Travolta and Kelly Preston’s daughter, Ella Bleu Travolta, has made a name for herself in Hollywood. Ella made her acting debut in the 2009 movie Old Dogs alongside her dad. After a 10-year break, she returned to the screen in 2019’s The Poison Rose and hasn’t stopped since. The father-daughter duo collaborated once again in the 2026 movie Propeller One-Way Night Coach, which debuted at the Cannes Film Festival. Ella starred as a flight attendant in the movie, which her father narrated and directed. “I had this plan of introducing Ella to the world as an adult in this…
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has demanded urgent government action over the abduction of pupils and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State. NLC president, Joe Ajaero, made the demand in a statement issued on Wednesday in Abuja. Mr Ajaero described the incident as another painful reminder of worsening security situation across communities nationwide. He said the abduction of school children from Community High School, LEA Basic School, Ahoro Esinele, and First Baptist School, Yawota, had shocked Nigerians and attracted widespread concern. “The tragedy of Ahoro Esinele and Yawota demonstrates that no community is safe anymore, while innocent…
Femi Otedola, the chairman and biggest shareholder of financial services group First HoldCo Plc, hopes to invest $100 million in the proposed private placement of Dangote Petroleum Refinery. The billionaire tycoon made this known to journalists during a tour by the management team of First HoldCo to the refinery in Lagos on Wednesday. “On a personal note, I have approved him. I’ve been here with him five times, so my compensation is that he’s going to allocate to me shares of $100 million in the private placement,” Mr Otedola said of Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man and owner of the…
At the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) policy meeting last week, the Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa said Nigerian universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education are admitting thousands of students without checking whether they have anywhere to sleep. He gave an example of a polytechnic with a population of over 36,000 students and just about a 1,000-bed hostel accommodation. He therefore warned higher institutions to go by JAMB’s criteria, as set out in CAPS (Central Admissions Processing System), and not admit more than their quotas, in order to “protect the integrity of the system.” Though that disturbing revelation should…
The federal government has reassured Nigerians that there is no confirmed case of Ebola Virus Disease in the country, while intensifying preparedness and surveillance measures nationwide. The Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Muhammad Pate, gave the assurance in a statement issued on Wednesday. Mr Pate said the government had activated precautionary measures following recent Ebola outbreaks in parts of the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Uganda to strengthen national health security. He said surveillance systems had been strengthened nationwide, while relevant agencies such as the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) and Port Health Services…
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has asked President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Nigeria’s security chiefs to address insecurity immediately following the recent abduction of school pupils and teachers in Oyo State. NLC President, Joe Ajaero, made the demand known in a statement on Wednesday. Recall that at least 30 pupils and seven teachers were abducted by bandits from Community High School and L.A. Basic School, Ahoro Esinele, and First Baptist School (Nursery and Primary), Yawota, all in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State. Thereafter, one of the teachers was reportedly decapitated by the bandits. The development has stirred reactions from…
