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 WHO Monitoring New COVID-19 Variant World Health Organisation (WHO) is monitoring a new COVID-19 variant (BA.2.86) due to the multiple mutations it presents. The WHO is however uncertain about the potential impact of the BA.2.86 mutations. Announcing the recent development on Friday, the organization said it is currently tracking three variants of interest while seven others are under monitor. According to WHO, few sequences of the variant have been reported across Israel, Denmark, and the United States.

Twitter, Now X, To Remove Blocking Feature The blocking feature will be removed for users of X, formerly Twitter, Elon Musk has announced, claiming the feature "makes no sense". The X boss said users will still be able to block people from directly messaging them, however. But many people on social media said it will make it hard for people to remove abusive posts from their timeline. It is the latest in a series of changes Mr Musk has made since taking over the site in a $44bn deal last year. Currently, when users "block" an account, it stops that account's posts from appearing in the blocker's timeline, and vice versa. BBC  

Man r@pes and k!lls 8-year-old girl in Katsina Katsina State Police Command has arrested a 25-year-old man, Jibrin Yusuf, who allegedly r@ped and k!lled an eight-year-old girl at Kanon-Haki village in Faskari Local Government Area of the state. Parading the suspect on Thursday, August 17, 2023, the spokesperson of the command, ASP Abubakar Sadiq Aliyu, said the incident took place on August 2. “The fact of the case is, on that fateful day, one Hassan Jibrin, the father of the late victim, employed the services of the suspect to convey fertilizer from one of his farms to the other situated on the outskirt of the village, while the victim was assigned to guard the fertilizer at one of the farm as her father attended to some labourers,” the PPRO stated. "The suspect took advantage of, and forcefully dragged the little girl to a nearby farm where he r@ped her and used a sharp kn!fe to sl@ughter her. He further moved the corpse to another farmland, covered it with leaves and made away ...

 The 35-year-old man identified as Samaila Ilu, has committed su!c!de over hardship in Jigawa State. Spokesperson of the State Police Command, DSP Lawan Shiisu Adam, said the incident happened on Thursday, August 17, 2023.  “On 17/08/2023 at about 1100hrs, police received a report that a 35-year-old man Samaila Ilu of Dungun Tantama village, Hausa local government, left his house on 16/08/2023 to an unknown destination,” the PPRO stated.  Shiisu stated that Samaila's body was discovered h@nging from a tree with a rope.  A team of police officers took the c0rpse and transported it to the hospital for autopsy. The body was later released to his relatives for burial, the spokesperson added.

Wizkid loses mom Renowned Nigerian musician, Ayodeji Balogun popularly known as Wizkid, has lost his mother. The entertainment industry and fans alike have now been thrown into a state of mourning. Reports from a close associate of the Grammy award-winning singer, songwriter, and performer confirmed that the singer lost his mother in the early hours of today, Friday, August 18, 2023.” Wizkid’s mum, Jane Morayo Balogun, a formidable cornerstone of strength, lent unwavering backing to her son’s meteoric rise in the industry. Her steadfast support was a familiar sight on the periphery of concerts and events.  

Khadijah Haqq announced break up from Bobby McCray after 13 years of marriage, 16 years together…Khadijah Haqq and Bobby McCray have parted ways. The pair announced their separation on August 18 after spending 16 years together overall and 13 years as husband and wife. "Now more than ever I have been relying on prayer," Khadijah announced on Instagram. "Family is so important to me. Unfortunately, life has brought me to a tremendous transition." "I have come to the intensely difficult conclusion that while Bobby & I have a great deal of love for one another, it's best we move forward separately," she added. "I did not come to the decision lightly." The actress and the former NFL player have three children together, and Bobby is also the father of a son from a prior relationship. And as Khadijah, who over the years has been on The Kardashians and Keeping Up With the Kardashians with BFF Khloe Kardashian and sister Malika Haqq, explained in...

NPF TO STRENGTHEN TIES WITH PUBLIC COMPLAINTS COMMISSION  As IGP Reorganizes Police Complaint Unit, Orders Establishment of CRU in States, Appoints New CRU Head Ag. IGP Egbetokun Harps on Protection of People’s Rights The Inspector-General of Police, Ag. IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, Ph.D., NPM, in line with his commitment to fortify the complaints response mechanisms of the Force, has expressed the resolve of the Nigeria Police to strengthen ties with the Public Complaints Commission (PCC), particularly in the areas of training and knowledge sharing. This is coming on the heels of the recent visit of the Honourable Chief Commissioner, Public Complaints Commission, Hon. Abimbola Ayo-Yusuf and team to the Force Headquarters recently. The IGP and the delegation discussed extensively on issues of mutual interest and areas of collaboration. Further to the IGP’s zeal to sanitize and standardize the Police system for accountability and transparency and the recent reinforcement of the Moni...

28 Suspected Internet Fraudsters Nabbed in Enugu Operatives of the Enugu Zonal Command of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, on Wednesday, August 16, 2023 arrested 28 suspected internet fraudsters in a sting operation in Enugu.      The suspects are: Godwin Ogbonna, Bright Chidozie, Chukwuebuka Ugwu, Ifesi Isaac, Collins Nnachi, Micheal Nnamdi, Ikechukwu Derrick Anya, Nneji Onyebuchi, Nwali Chukwujekwu Chukwudi, Kenechukwu Barry, Ibe Chisom, and Godwin Okwuchi Promise Others include Chijioke Eze Henry, Chinwetalu Eze Harrison, Somadina James, Ejike Ezeoha, Seth Onodika, Akuh Stanley, Emmanuel Opara, Nonso Egwu Martin, Ugochukwu Kingsley Ibeh, Ikenna Okonkwo, Felix Nwaeze, Daniel John, Somtochukwu Zadok, Ugochukwu Amoke and  Chukwudi Charles. Items recovered from them include nine exotic cars, 44 mobile phones, seven personal computers and one international passport. The suspects have made useful statements and will be charged to court as soon as the ...

NIGERIA MISSING IN TOP 11 AFRICAN COUNTRIES WITH HIGHEST MINIMUM WAGE PER MONTH. SEE LIST 2023/08/17  Nigeria‘s minimum wage of N30,000 ($39.04) was approved in 2019 following the passage of the Minimum Wage Bill by the National Assembly. President Tinubu during a meeting with the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), promised that the upward review of the minimum wage would be reflected in the next budget once the agreement is reached. Here is the list of Africa’s highest minimum wages per month 1. Seychelles Minimum wage: $426 Seychelles has the highest minimum wage in Africa at $426 per month. Seychelles is an island nation off the coast of east Africa. The country is a tourist haven on the African continent and is made up of less than 500,000 people. Seychelles doubles as Africa’s most developed country and the richest country from the GDP per capita. 2. Morocco Minimum wage: $360 Morocco has the second highest minimum wage in Africa at $426 per mont...

Grieving Bobrisky glams up, says lover now new Dad Alleged transgender woman, Idris Okuneye has glammed up despite being in a state of grief as a result of ‘her’ father’s demise. After the recent loss of ‘her’ father on Monday, Bobrisky decided to present ‘herself’ elegantly and shared the look on Snapchat. The controversial figure stated that the decision to dress up was influenced by ‘her’ lover, who advised ‘her’ to do so, as ‘she’ had been inconsolable since the unfortunate event. Bob implored critics to get off ‘her’ back because individuals mourn differently. More so, ‘she’ merely dressed nicely to maintain ‘her’ sanity and not to party. Bobrisky called on critics to refrain from judgment, emphasizing that people have different ways of mourning as ‘she’ clarified that the intention behind the stylish appearance was to maintain ‘her’ sanity and not to party. The self-styled ‘Mummy of Lagos’ said: “The only reason I did makeup and glammed up today was because I was already losing i...

Why I attempted suicide on third mainland bridge – Lagos socialite Farida Sobowale Apopular Lagos socialite, Farida Sobowale, has explained why she attempted jumping into the lagoon at Third Mainland Bridge on Thursday evening.  Sobowale, who is the owner of House of Phreedah, cited frustrations, failed marriage and others as responsible for her action.  In a viral voice note on social media, Sobowale said her N100 million marriage with another Lagos socialite, Demola Okulaja, crashed after two months. As a fallout of her crashed marriage, Sobowale who could not endure depression, said she decided to end her life. A video seen by the Nation shows the moment she was being held by people who rescued her from jumping into the Lagoon. The socialite, who was in a black dress, reportedly drove her Lexus SUV to the Third Mainland Bridge, disembarked and was about to jump into the Lagoon when she was rescued by those around.  Sobowale said after Okulaja walked out of the matrimon...

2Baba celebrates baby mama Pero on birthday Award-winning singer, songwriter and producer, Innocent ‘2baba’ Idibia has celebrated his first baby mama, Pero Adeniyi, on her birthday. Pero, the dark-skinned beauty who has three children with the famous singer, shared an Instagram post thanking God and wishing herself a happy birthday. Her Instagram post featured a series of captivating photos and was accompanied by the uplifting soundtrack of “See What the Lord Has Done” by the celebrated gospel singer, Nathaniel Bassey. Its caption read: “It has been you, Lord, and it will forever be you! THANK YOU, LORD! Happy birthday to ME! #iyaawonomoolorire #Billiondollarbaby.” The father of seven in the comment section of the post sent his warm wishes to his kids’ mom on her natal day celebration. “Birthday blessings to u. LLNP”, he wrote. As expected, his comment attracted reactions from ‘passer-bys’ among the online community. Independent Essy said: “@official2baba maturity at its peak baba.” en...

Herder arrested for chopping farmer's hand off in Plateau, claims self-defence Men of the Plateau state police command have arrested a 24-year-old Fulani herder, one Abdulrahama Kaila, for chopping off the hand of a farmer in Shendam local government area of Southern Plateau State. A video of the victim holding his chopped left hand went viral few days ago.   Parading the the suspect before newsmen in Jos on Thursday, August 17, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) DSP Alfred Alabo, said the suspect was apprehended on Tuesday, August 15, by the Shendam Divisional Police Office. According to the spokesman, the state Commissioner of police CP Okoro Julius, had directed a man hunt for the said suspect. While speaking to newsmen, the suspect admitted to committing the crime. He however claimed he acted in self defense. According to Kaila, the victim chased him out of his farm, even when none of the farmer’s crop was touched by his cows. He claimed the farmer attempted to inj...

Blessed Wisdom Model School Apologises to Anambra State Government  The Management of Blessed Wisdom Model School, Onitsha has tendered an apology to the state government and parents of the two years old female child that sustained a cut tongue and broken arm under mysterious circumstances at the school.  The school management also stated its readiness to assist with the welfare of the child till she gets back on her feet.  The apology was tendered by the school proprietress, Mrs Ifeyinwa Nkamigbo during a meeting with the Commissioner of Education, Prof Ngozi Chuma-Udeh, directors of the Ministry of Education, and parents of the injured child at the Conference Hall, Ministry of Education, Jerome Udorji Secretariat Awka.  The Commissioner, while accepting the apology on behalf of the state government, charged the school management to make the safety of every pupil a top priority as the lives of six hundred pupils are in their care during school hours.  She calle...

Chelsea Sign Teenage Southampton Midfielder Lavia Chelsea have signed Romeo Lavia on a seven-year contract from Southampton it was announced Friday in the latest addition to their squad after the teenage midfielder rejected a move to Premier League rivals Liverpool. No fee has been disclosed but British media reports estimated the worth of the deal at £53 million ($67.5 million, 62 million euros), possibly rising to £58 million. Lavia, 19, is the eighth player to join Chelsea in the current transfer window, with the London club, now owned by a consortium led by American businessman Todd Boehly, having spent more than £350 million — although they have sold several high-value footballers as well. Belgium international Lavia has made 29 Premier League appearances and has arrived at Stamford Bridge following south coast side Southampton’s relegation from English football’s top-flight last season. “I can’t wait to meet all my new team-mates and build a chemistry together to achieve great th...

Russia's Airspace, Airports Closed After Ukraine Drone Hit City Building  Air-traffic has been reopened at four major airports around the capital - Vnukovo, Domodedovo, Sheremetyevo and Zhukovsky. Moscow's airspace has been closed after a Ukrainian drone attack on Friday hit a building causing a blast that was heard across the city’s business district, Russian state media agency TASS said. Russian air defense in a statement said the drone changed it path after it was targeted by air defense weapon and fell on a non-residential building in the Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment area of Moscow on Friday morning.  The statement reads: "The UAV (unmanned aerial vehicle), after being targeted by air defence weapons, changed its flight path and fell on a non-residential building in the Krasnopresnenskaya Embankment area of Moscow. "At about 4 am Moscow time, the Kyiv regime launched another terrorist attack using an unmanned aerial vehicle on objects located in Moscow and the Mo...

Kwara: Popular Isese Activist, Talolorun, Remanded In Prison For Defamning Emir Of Ilorin, Others    A popular Ilorin Isese devotee and activist Adegbola Abdulazeez, a.k.a. Talọlọrun (Who is God), has been arrested and remanded in jail for defamation, in Kwara State.   Talolorun, was reportedly arrested for insulting the Emir of Ilorin among other offences.   According to a post on his Facebook page Thursday, the popular Isese activist was arrested on August 16 in Ibadan and taken to a police station in Ilorin.   "Taniolorun was arrested in Ibadan this evening (August 16) and taken to a police station in Ilorin," the post simply read.   Another post on August 17, disclosed that the activist had been charged to court and called on support from other Isese practioners.   The post read: "All Isese practitioners, meet Taniolohun in court in Ilorin. Very urgent."   A Youtube video released Thursday, also showed Taniolorun discussing the outcome of a pr...

Legendary Nollywood Actor, Nkem Owoh, Popularly Known As Osuofia Set To Bury His 24-Year-Old Daughter, Kosisochukwu, Who D!ed After A Brief Illness   According to another source: Veteran Nollywood Actor Nkem Owoh Loses Daughter. Criticized For Abandoning His Family Leading To The Death Of His Daughter. Legendary Nollywood actor Nkem Owoh AKA Osuofiason lost his second daughter to cancer on June 28th. A distraught family member revealed that the daughter miss Kosiso Nkem Owoh allegedly begged her father repeatedly on the phone from her sickbed to fly her abroad for treatment, but he did nothing until she eventually lost the fight to cancer. Even when she dead, it was reported that the veteran actor refused to take his responsibility until the mortuary where the daughters corpse was kept issued a deadline to the family to come and evacuate the corpse else they allow it to detiorarate due to lack of funding. According to a viral video that went viral on social media last month, an ang...

FG To Partner African Countries For Development Of Mineral Resources  The Federal Government has reiterated its commitment to partner with African countries for sustainable development of the continent. Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development, Dr. Mary Ogbe stated this during the briefing of the Diplomatic Community on the upcoming Africa Natural Resources and Energy Investment Summit AFNIS-2023, in Abuja. She explained that the collaboration would showcase the vast mineral deposits thereby attracting investment to the region. “This forum was initiated to strategize on how Africa can continue to receive investment from its vast mineral resource deposits while also protecting its environment” Dr. Ogbe stated. The Permanent Secretary emphasized that the Summit will provide a global platform for Africa to encourage investment in its Power, Energy (Oil and Gas), and Mining sectors. She said the AFNIS Summit will create an opportunity for governments on the...

Kano Gov't Constructs Dam at Minjibir. Kano state government (KNSG),has reiterated its commitment, to the provision of potable drinking water and other facilities that would bring succour to the lives of it's citizens.   Member representing Minjibir constituency, Alhaji Abdulhamid Abdul Minjibir made the knomn, during a visit to the proposed site of Rafin Kanye Dam, Kantama ward, minjibir local government area, Kano.  According to him, they were at minjibir to  inspect the site, and discuss with the residence of the area on upcoming  construction of Dam,mini water treatment plant. Alhaji Abdulhamid pointed out that, he was  deeply concerned with  plight of his constituency ,on lack of potable drinking water, hence the need for construction of the Dam. He maitained that the Dam and water treatment plant would  provide drinking water,boost agricultural production, through dry season farming, as well as provide job opportunities. In a remark, Kano state c...

The Murtala Muhammed Airport Command of the Nigeria Customs Service has intercepted male donkey genitals and dried shark fins worth N1.23bn at the Lagos Airport en route to China and Hong Kong respectively. The Customs Area Controller in charge of the command, Muhammed Yusuf, disclosed this while showing some of the seized contraband to journalists at the commandon Thursday, August 17. Yusuf explained that the male donkey genitals were harvested from Abakaliki, Ebonyi State, by a Chinese. “Donkeys are under endangered species and they came from Abakaliki and we begin to wonder why it came from that side. “We have a lot of donkeys in Abakaliki and now that they are endangered species, if these things continue to go out like this, you can imagine the roles they play in the ecosystem. As it is, the Chinese man has been arrested and the investigation is ongoing.” On the shark fins, Yusuf said investigations were ongoing to know the source of the contrabands stressing that there are not eno...

Ag. CGC Harps on Dangers of Drugs Abuse, As FOU 'A' Intercepts 299 Cartons of Codeine Syrup The Nigeria Customs Service has drawn attention to the danger posed by unrestricted access to the use of dangerous drugs. The Ag. Comptroller General of Customs, Bashir Adewale Adeniyi MFR, made the declaration on Wednesday,16th August 2023, while showcasing seizures, which include 299 cartons of codeine syrup intercepted along Lagos/Ibadan Expressway by officers and men of the Federal Operations Unit Zone 'A'. He said, "The misuse and illicit distribution of codeine-containing medications have given rise to grave security and public health concerns, contributing to a surge in addiction, adverse health effects, and societal challenges". "It is pertinent to note that the damaging effects of drugs have led to preventable deaths for consumers taking them outside doctors' prescriptions". He reiterated the dedication of the Nigeria Customs Service to eradicatin...

Jigawa State Government Pays Over 18.6m Naira Study Allowances To LG Staff Jigawa State Local Government Service commission says it has paid over Eighteen point Six Million naira as a study allowance to Local Government staff studying at various tertiary Institutions in the country. The Chairman of the Commission, Alhaji Uba Bala Ringim stated this while presenting the cheques to some of the students in his office. He explained that, the gesture is part of the state government effort towards encouraging local government staff to further their studies. Alhaji Uba Bala Ringim said, the State governmentT will continue to pay the study allowance in order to encourage the local government staff to further their education in different fields from various institute of higher learning in Nigeria. In his address, the Permanent Commissioner in the Commission , Alhaji Salisu Mu’azu Kanya urged the beneficiaries to contribute their quota towards the development of the state. He also called on them...

Anambra State Government wades into Nteje Igweship Tussle.  Nneka Anoliefo  Stakeholders in  Nteje have been charged to embrace dialogue in resolving their Igweship tussle.    The state Commissioner for Local Government Chieftaincy  and Community Affairs, Mr Tony Collins Nwabunwanne  gave the charge  when some stakeholders from the community visited him at the government house Awka. The Commissioner promised to find a lasting solution to the crisis. Mr. Nwabunwanne urged them to look critically into the issue which is in the supreme court with a view to understanding what the law says. The commissioner assured them that the present administration will not impose traditional rulers on any Community, sressing that the choice of the people must be obeyed. In their different speeches ,some of the stakeholders namely chief Sir Paul Nnedi, Chief Benjamin Moufuanya,Mr. Williams Igboanua, Chief jideofor Okuh,Chief Paulinus Obichukwu , Chief Benneth Chinwe...