Author: News Room

Algeria captain, Riyad Mahrez has predicted that his side’s AFCON quarter-final clash with Nigeria won’t be easy. According to Mahrez, anything is possible when Algeria tackles Nigeria in Saturday’s quarterfinal tie. Recall that the last time Nigeria and Algeria met at the AFCON was in the 2019 edition, where Mahrez’s semi-final dramatic last-minute free-kick knocked the Super Eagles out of the tournament. Speaking after Algeria defeated DR Congo in the Round of 16 yesterday, Mahrez told reporters that the North Africans know Nigeria well. “Nigeria? We know them well, the match won’t be easy,” Mahrez, a former Leicester City player,…

A viral video has captured the moment an aide to the Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III, gently stopped a woman from shaking the monarch’s hand in line with palace protocol. In the 47-second clip that began trending on Tuesday, the Olu is seen walking through a lounge with members of his entourage dressed in traditional red and white Itsekiri attire when the woman stepped forward and stretched out her hand in greeting. An aide promptly but politely intervened, preventing the gesture. Under long-standing Itsekiri palace customs, subjects are not permitted to initiate physical contact with the Olu; any handshake…

The Nigeria Police Force has foiled an attempted attack and planned kidnapping of children in the Kasuwan Magani area of Kaduna State, rescuing 76 boys and girls unharmed. In a statement on Wednesday, Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Benjamin Hundeyin, said the Kaduna State Police Command received credible intelligence on 5 January 2026 that suspected bandits were planning to attack and kidnap motorists conveying children through the area. “Upon receipt of the intelligence, the Divisional Police Officer, Kasuwan Magani Division, was promptly mobilised with a team of police personnel to the area. “On arrival, the police team engaged and successfully…

The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria has revealed a widening imbalance in the nation’s aviation sector, as domestic air travel continues to decline while international passenger traffic records sustained growth. According to the figures, released by FAAN on Tuesday, passenger movements within Nigeria have fallen to their lowest level in three years, underscoring the mounting challenges facing local airlines. For local operators, multiple taxes led the list of their complaints throughout 2024 and 2025, a development that has led to an astronomical increase in domestic flight costs. While local operators continue to lament, international operators are witnessing rising throughput, buoyed…

Referees and other match officials in the Nigeria Premier Football League have not been paid their indemnities for officiating in the topflight for about 11 matchdays, leading to growing discontent ahead of the second stanza of the 2025/26 season, The PUNCH reports. The NPFL is currently on a mid-season break, and The PUNCH gathered that payments to match referees, referee assessors and match commissioners have stalled since matchday eight. Some of the affected officials, who pleaded anonymity, disclosed that their basic allowances per matchday range from N60,000 to N90,000, aside from hotel and transport allowances. “This is not just about…

Nollywood actress Regina Daniels has broken her silence on recent controversies surrounding her life by undergoing a drug test, a decision she disclosed in an emotional post on her Instagram page on Wednesday. The actress said the move followed months of intense personal struggles and public scrutiny, describing the period as one that nearly overwhelmed her. She wrote, “The past few months of my life have been nothing short of heavy. one of those seasons that tries to sit on your chest and ask, “So, what are we doing next?” It has been a major turning point, one that shook…

At CES 2026, Lenovo is announcing a new ThinkBook Plus Gen 7 Auto Twist laptop. Once a concept, the 14-inch thin-and-light sports a motorized pivoting hinge, allowing it to twist and angle its screen toward you. It can be manually controlled, but the real trick is tracking your head and automatically adjusting to your position or posture. It can follow you around a portion of a room while giving a presentation, and you can knock on its closed lid to have it automatically open.The Auto Twist will also have an emoji-like AI companion software that reminds me of GERTY from…

Barclays, one of the world’s biggest banks and a systemically important global financial institution, has made its first investment in a stablecoin-related company.The United Kingdom-based bank said Wednesday it had invested in Ubyx, a US stablecoin clearing platform that aims to connect regulated issuers with banks and fintech companies. Barclays did not disclose the size of the investment.“As the landscape of tokens, blockchains and wallets evolves, specialist technology will play a pivotal role in delivering connectivity and infrastructure to enable regulated financial institutions to interact seamlessly,” said Ryan Hayward, head of digital assets and strategic investments at Barclays.The investment follows…

Hilary Duff’s husband, Matthew Koma, has weighed in on the drama sparked by Ashley Tisdale French’s recent “toxic mom group” essay. Taking to his Instagram Stories on Tuesday, January 6, Koma, 38, shared a tongue-in-cheek “promotion” of his own (fictional) The Cut article. “A mom group tell-all through a father’s eyes,” Koma’s faux-post read. “When you’re the most self-obsessed tone-deaf person on earth, other moms tend to shift focus to their actual toddlers.” The text was written atop a photo of Koma, who has been married to Duff, 38, since 2019, posing seriously on a couch for the camera while…

The Cross River Internal Revenue Service (CRIRS) has announced the implementation of the Tax Reform Act, effective January 1, aimed at improving tax administration and service delivery. Its Executive Chairperson, Edwin Okon, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday in Calabar. Mr Okon said the reforms will harmonise taxes and levies, reduce multiple taxation, strengthen accountability, and end cash collections for government revenues in the state. He urged taxpayers to make payments only through approved digital platforms or bank deposits into designated government revenue accounts. “Taxpayers are warned against paying cash or transferring funds into personal or corporate accounts of…