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 Malawi defence minister sacked after backlash over VP fatal crash Malawi’s President Lazarus Chakwera sacked Defence Minister Harry Mkandawire in a mini Cabinet reshuffle. Chakwera also fired Deputy Education Minister Nancy Mdooko and reassigned other ministers to new portfolios in a move he said in his New Year’s message to the nation was aimed at “offering the best service to the country in 2025.” Chakwera had come under intense pressure from various sectors of society to fire Mkandawire over the manner in which the death of Vice-President Saulosi Chilima on June 10 last year in a military plane crash was handled. Chilima and eight others died in the crash in a forest in the northern part of Malawi in dense fog and the military has been accused of “negligence” in terms of organizing search and rescue efforts.

 Tragedy hits Nwabali's family again as mother dies suddenly on New Year’s Day Super Eagles goalkeeper, Stanley Nwabali has lost his mother to the cold hands of death barely two month after losing his father. Nwabali took to his X handle on New Year Day to announce the death of his mother. In a deeply emotional moment, he shared that this has been “the worst year” of his life, a heart-wrenching statement that captures the weight of his grief. Nwabali‘s words convey the raw pain of navigating through such a devastating period, with a message that resonates deeply with anyone who has experienced profound loss. His final post describes the world as “crazy,” encapsulating the bewilderment and despair that often follows such an overwhelming tragedy. However, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) extended heartfelt condolences to Nwabali following the devastating loss of his mother. In a message shared on social media, the NFF expressed solidarity with Nwabali during this extremely diffi...

 We attempted to stop 2Face from womanising – Kenny Ogungbe Ace music executive and CEO of Kennis Music, enny Ogungbe, has revealed that the record label made efforts to prevent iconic singer, 2Face, aka 2Baba, from womanising while he was signed to the label. Speaking in a recent episode of The Honest Bunch podcast, Baba Keke said women were seeking the young 2Face’s attention but the label denied him access to them. He said after 2Face exited Kennis Music, the label couldn’t do much to prevent him from womanising. Ogungbe said, “When 2face was with us [at Kennis Music], we prevented him from seeing girls. Girls come to look for him all the time but we didn’t allow him see any of them but when he left our record label, there was nothing we could do about the situation anymore. “Even when he was becoming the butt of the jokes of some comedian [for being a womaniser], I didn’t call him to question him because he’s a matured man. Every man has his cross.”  2Baba made numerous he...

 2025 Prophecy: Days of murmuring over for believers – Bishop Oyedepo declares Founder of Living Faith Church worldwide, Bishop David Oyedepo has declared that 2025 will be a new era for believers. Reeling out prophecies for the new year, Oyedepo, who spoke at the annual crossover night service at Canaan Land, Ogun State said the days of murmuring and complaining are over. According to Oyedepo, amazing things will start unfolding in the lives of believers in the year 2025. He said, “By the signal of the Holy Ghost, 2025 shall be your year of new beginning. Your year of new dawn, great chapters opening to your lives. “Welcome to 2025, a new era. You will be wondering “have I been a Christian all along?” Amazing things shall start taking place in your lives. “You are moving to your new realm in all areas of your lives, a new era in your health, family, your spiritual life and in your business and career. “It will never be like before anymore. Your days of murmuring and complaining ar...

 Wizkid, Ayra Starr ranked among ‘world’s top artistes of 2024’ The duo of Nigerian singers, Wizkid and Ayra Starr, have been ranked among the world’s top artistes of 2024 by Chart Data. The music monitoring platform released its list of top artistes of 2024 on New Year’s Eve, with Wizkid and Ayra Starr occupying the 11th and 18th positions, respectively. Another African singer, Tyla from South Africa, also made the list at number 12. In the top 10 are South Korean singer Jimin, and American songbirds Taylor Swift, Ariana Grande, Sabrina Carpenter, Beyoncé, and rapper Kendrick Lamar. British sensation Charli XCX, Lady Gaga, Billie Eilish, and Nicki Minaj complete the top 10. Meanwhile, Davido, Wizkid, and Burna Boy have been listed in Active World’s “Top 20 Music Global Icons Shaping The Future.” Davido appeared at number 3, while Wizkid and Burna Boy took the 6th and 8th spots on the list.

 Autonomy: No plan to hijack LGs from you, Tinubu tells govs President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has denied speculations making the rounds that he is at war with state governors over his push for local government autonomy across the country. In July 2024, the Supreme Court delivered a landmark judgement affirming financial autonomy for the 774 local government areas in the country. Even though many of the governors rushed to conduct local government elections in their states, their body language has shown that many are not comfortable with the move initiated by the federal government. But addressing state governors who paid him New Year homage led by Vice President Kashim Shettima and members of the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), Tinubu emphasised the critical role of state governors in driving Nigeria’s development and prosperity, saying their leadership at the subnational level is central to achieving food security, economic prosperity and rapid national growth. “You are the most importa...

 Political competition should define new Nigeria in 2027 – Lukman A former National Vice Chairman (North West) of the  ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Salihu Mohammed Lukman, has said genuine political competition should define a new Nigeria in the 2027 general elections.  Lukman in a statement yesterday expressed concerns that Nigerian political parties had disappointed Nigerians on the same scale, adding that as the country moves towards 2027, politicians and political parties were likely to  disappoint Nigerians on a bigger scale.  He also warned leaders against imposition of candidates ahead of the 2027 elections, saying “Opposition leaders must be reminded that so long as they also approach process of leadership selection in the country based on strategy to impose themselves, they are also part of Nigeria’s problem.” Lukman, a former member of the APC National Working Committee (NWC) said, “As Nigerians, we must rise to this challenge and make the d...