Author: News Room

Not fewer than 95 aspirants, comprising 94 princes and one princess from the Fusengbuwa ruling house of Ijebu Ode, have emerged as contenders for the vacant Awujale stool, the paramount ruler of Ijebu land, Ogun State. The aspirants emerged on Monday during a nomination meeting of the ruling house held at Bisrod Hall, GRA, Ijebu Ode. The meeting was presided over by the Chairman of the Fusengbuwa ruling house, Otunba Abdulateef Owoyemi, alongside his deputy, Prince Adedokun Ajidagba, and the Vice Chairman, Prof. Fassy Yusuf.  Officials of the Ijebu Ode Local Government, including the Secretary, Mr Abiodun Oke, attended as…

Officers of the Zone 2 Command of the Nigeria Police Force on Monday arraigned a man, Israel Onen, before the Federal High Court in Lagos over an alleged visa racketeering scheme involving N60m. Onen was docked before Justice Ibrahim Kala on four counts bordering on conspiracy, obtaining money by false pretence, money laundering, fraud, and stealing, preferred against him by the police in the charge marked FHC/L/1203C/2025. During the arraignment, the prosecutor told the court that the defendant conspired with others, now at large, between 2024 and 2025 to defraud the complainant, Akinola Ayodele Emmanuel. He alleged that Onen “fraudulently…

A persistent fear in Nigerian politics is the emergence of a single-party system or a sole presidential candidate. Despite recurring anxieties, this outcome has never materialised. While recent party defections might suggest an invincible ruling party, Nigeria’s political history is defined by unexpected twists. Shattered dreams and surprise elements are inherent to our national life. The surprise element is unavoidable. Unexpected events are an inescapable part of life and strategy. I will cite three examples in relation to three former leaders—Alhaji Shehu Shagari (25 February 1925 – 28 December 2018), General Ibrahim Badamosi Babangida (84) and General Sani Abacha (20…

Super Eagles coach Eric Chelle has attributed Nigeria’s impressive form at the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations to the players’ improved understanding of his tactical demands, dismissing suggestions of major changes since the failed World Cup qualifying campaign, PUNCH Sports Extra reports. Nigeria were runners-up at the last AFCON in 2024 and have been this tournament’s top scorers with 14 goals, winning all five matches to reach the semi-finals. Asked what has changed from the disappointing World Cup qualifiers that saw Nigeria fail to qualify for the 2026 tournament, Chelle insisted it was simply a matter of development. “Nothing,” said…

The immediate past president of the Nigerian Academy of Letters, Prof. Sola Akinrinade, has demanded that no university professor in Nigeria should earn less than N2.5 million monthly. Speaking with The PUNCH on Monday, Akinrinade said lecturers were currently receiving “slave wages, noting that salaries of Nigerian lecturers, particularly professors, were far below their contemporaries on the African continent and among the worst in the world. He said, “I became a full professor on October 1, 1999. What we earn is a net salary of N584,000, with gross pay around N700,000. “It is one of the lowest-paid in the world.…

US President Donald Trump has pledged to make major tech companies “pick up the tab” for their power usage to prevent everyday Americans from paying more for electricity. “I never want Americans to pay higher electricity bills because of data centers,” Trump said on his social media platform Truth Social on Tuesday.He blamed the Democrats for surging household electricity bills and vowed to work with major American tech giants to “secure their commitment to the American People,” with an announcement in the coming weeks.The average price of electricity per kilowatt-hour in the average US city has increased around 40% over…

After their recent arrests for trespassing, a pair of OnlyFans models decided to start selling merchandise featuring their mugshots. Sania Blanchard, 34, and Jordan Danne Lantry, 31, were captured on video on Friday, January 9, inside Miami International Airport being escorted off of an airplane in handcuffs. Blanchard is known on OnlyFans as Sania Mallory. She is using her mugshot as the main profile image for her social media accounts. She has been engaged to American Instagram star CJ Linde since 2021, and the couple have a son together, who was born in March 2025. Lantry uses the OnlyFans handle…

The Pan Niger Delta Forum (PANDEF) on Monday inaugurated a seven-member ad hoc committee to intervene in the renewed political crisis between Governor Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State and his predecessor, Nyesom Wike, with a view to restoring peace in the oil-rich state. PANDEF, the apex socio-political body of Nigeria’s South-south geopolitical zone, mandated the reconciliation committee to resolve the crisis and restore political confidence in the governance of the state within two weeks. The committee, chaired by a former Attorney-General of the Federation, Kanu Agabi, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), was inaugurated in Abuja. A former senator who…

Nigeria head coach, Eric Chelle, has attracted strong interest from several African nations following the Super Eagles’ impressive run at the ongoing Africa Cup of Nations in Morocco, with Tunisia, Mali and Guinea all linked with moves for the Frenchman, PUNCH Sports Extra reports. Chelle’s stock has risen sharply after guiding Nigeria to the semi-finals with a flawless record so far, winning all five matches, scoring 14 goals and conceding just four, including a dominant 2–0 quarter-final victory over Algeria in which the North Africans failed to register a single shot on target. Reports emerging from across the continent suggest…

The Jigawa State Police Command has arrested 10 suspects in a series of operations targeting armed robbery, drug trafficking, and other crimes across the state. PUNCH Metro learnt from a statement made available to journalists on Monday by spokesperson for the command, Shi’isu Adam, that the operation, which was carried out simultaneously across the state, resulted in the arrest of one wanted armed robbery suspect and nine other suspects, as well as the seizure of 7,028 illicit drugs, including rubber solution, “suck and die,” and dry leaves suspected to be Indian hemp. Adam added that seven suspected drug dealers and…