Author: Safiu Kehinde

A boy accused of killing four people at his high school in Georgia was interviewed last year by police about anonymous online threats, the FBI has said. Colt Gray, 14, denied to police in May 2023 he was behind internet posts that contained images of guns, warning of a school shooting. The suspect opened fire on Wednesday at Apalachee High School in the city of Winder, killing two teachers and two pupils, investigators say. Eight students and one teacher were injured. He was arrested on campus and will be prosecuted as an adult. Police have identified the victims as teachers…

French President Emmanuel Macron has named Michel Barnier as prime minister almost two months after France’s snap elections ended in political deadlock. Mr Barnier, 73, is the EU’s former chief Brexit negotiator and led talks with the UK government between 2016 and 2019. A veteran of the right-wing Republicans (LR) party, he has had a long political career and filled various senior posts, both in France and within the EU. He will now have to form a government that will need to survive a National Assembly divided into three big political blocs, with none able to form a clear majority.…

Safiu Kehinde Suspected Bandits have, again, abducted an Islamic cleric, Bashir Ahmad, and his family in Sokoto. This was disclosed in a post on X earlier today. Ahmad was, according to the post, ambush by the bandits while on transit with his family at a yet-to-be disclosed area of Sokoto state. The bandits reportedly killled his driver while abducting the cleric, his wife, two children, stepmother, and sister. “Bandits have abducted Sheikh Dr. Bashir Ahmad Sokoto family including his wife, two children, stepmother and sister. The driver transporting them was killed. “Dr. Bashir Ahmad Sokoto is a renowned Islamic scholar…

Safiu Kehinde Dangote Refinery has debunked claims that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has commenced the lifting of the refinery’s petroleum product. This was contained in a statement issued by Dangote Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Anthony Chiejina, in reaction to a news report on BusinessDay Newspapers of Wednesday, 4 September 2024. According to the group, they are yet to finalize contract with NNPC with the selling price of the petrol still remain undecided. The statement read in part; “Our attention has been drawn to a headline “NNPC lifts Dangote Petrol, sells at N897 per litre” published…

Safiu Kehinde The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has suspended the supply of petrol, also known as Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to Independent Marketers amidst surging price. This was disclosed by the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria’s (IPMAN) National Vice President, Hammed Fashola, in an interview yesterday. Fashola said that the NNPC stopped selling fuel to independent marketers on Tuesday, following the increase in price of a litre of the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) to N855 and above. The decision, according to the IPMAN Vice President, was made by the NNPC without notifying the marketers. He expressed concern…

Safiu Kehinde  Popular Nigerian Nollywood actress, Ireti Doyle, will be starring in Showmax’s latest original series, “Princess on a Hill”, which is set to premiere in November. This was disclosed in a statement on Wednesday by the Executive Head, Content and Channels, West Africa at MultiChoice, Dr Busola Tejumola. According to her, the series, which was co-created by famous director, Abiola Sobo and Africa Magic Viewers Choice Awards (AMVCA) winning filmmaker, Tolu Ajayi, will be starring Efa Iwara, Ireti Doyle, Femi Jacobs, Andrew Bunting, Mimi Chaka and Norbert Young. Tejumola noted that the series has Chuka Ejorh and Shayo Oke-Sobo…

Agency Report  Bill Gates, co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, has tasked the federal and state governments to prioritize funding the health sector to secure the future of Nigerians. Gates said this in his presentation to the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting on Wednesday, presided over by Vice-President Kashim Shettima at the State House, Abuja. He said President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda, though ambitious, would need to deploy limited funds judiciously. “Without health, there can be no opportunity. After all, priorities without funding are only words. And I know that right now, it’s impossible to give every…

Safiu Kehinde  The Director General (DG), of the Bulgarian News Agency (BTA), Kiril Valchev, has asserted that it was unimaginable for Artificial Intelligent (AI), to replace God’s creation – the human being. The DG made this assertion at the conference of the Association of Balkan News Agencies – Southeast Europe (ABNA-SE), in Istanbul. Themed: “Navigating the AI and Media”, the conference was held ahead of the ABNA-SE 32nd General Assembly. The AI, according to Valchev, will never replace the natural communication between people. “Imagine having computers at a future ABNA-SE General Assembly trying to calculate what the heads of news…

Safiu Kehinde  The Nigeria Customs Service(NCS), Area 2 Command, Onne, Rivers has confiscated 12 containers loaded with military/paramilitary equipment and illicit drugs worth N31 billion. This was disclosed by Comptroller-General, Mr Bashir Adeniyi, while briefing newsmen on Wednesday at Onne, Rivers. Items found in the containers include 4,800 pairs of military/paramilitary camouflage, rain boots, various rubber footwear, chilly cutters and cough syrup with codeine. Others are Tramadol and other illicit drugs, all with a total duty value of N31,200,688,142. Adeniyi condemned the continued violation of import guidelines by some individuals who were engaging the route for illicit businesses. He declared…

Safiu Kehinde  Nigeria’s under-20 women football team, the Falconets, were, on Thursday humbled by Germany as they lost 1-3 in Group D match at the ongoing 2024 FIFA Under 20 Women’s World Cup in Colombia. The match which was played at the Estadio Metropolitano de Techo in Bogota, Colombia, saw the Nigerian girls failing to keep up with the pace of the German side in the encounter. The win propelled the Germans to the top of the group with six points from two games, while Nigeria sits in second place with three points following their matchday one win over South…