Author: damazah@gmail.com

Torrential rainfall and a windstorm destroyed farmland and shops in Abakaliki and Akpoha Communities in Afikpo North LGA of Ebonyi State on Saturday night. The over-four-hour rainfall caused severe flooding along the Abakaliki–Afikpo Expressway, submerging farmlands and destroying crops worth millions of naira. Some of the affected farmers told the News Agency of Nigeria in Abakaliki on Sunday that the flood washed away yams, cassava, maize, rice, melons, and other crops on their farms. Cletus Idam said the disaster wiped out all his investment this planting season. “We invested huge sums of money in our farms, but everything has been…

The detonation of the atomic bomb nicknamed “Smokey,” as part of Operation PLUMBBOB in the Nevada desert. 1957. (Photo by © CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)Corbis via Getty ImagesAs AI drives rising energy demand, the Trump Administration is exploring an unconventional energy source: surplus nuclear-weapons-grade plutonium from the Cold War. In May 2026, the Department of Energy, under its Surplus Plutonium Utilization Program, selected five companies—Oklo, Flibe Energy, Exodys Energy, SHINE Technologies, and Standard Nuclear— to examine whether the excess plutonium can be converted into fuel for advanced nuclear reactors. The initiative provides an opportunity for the country to turn what…

Just three months ago, Lucid Motors showed off a new midsize electric vehicle platform that it said would give rise to a number of new vehicles in the coming years. The Saudi-backed startup is now selling its Gravity SUV alongside the ever-improved Air sedan and plans to reach profitability with smaller and cheaper models sold in higher volumes. But things are far from rosy at Lucid; today, the automaker is laying off approximately 1,500 workers—18 percent of its workforce. These aren’t the first layoffs of the year, either; In February, Lucid let go of 12 percent of its workforce. In…

This is not the first time Burnham has tried to become Labour leader, so what else do we know?

The Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) has conferred its prestigious Man of the Year Award on the Director General of the State Security Service (SSS), Oluwatosin Ajayi, in recognition of his contributions to strengthening collaboration between the media and security agencies in Nigeria. The award was announced on Friday at the conclusion of the two-day NUJ National Security Summit held at Abuja Continental Hotel. The summit, which started on 18 June, was organised by the union in partnership with the SSS under the theme, ‘Media and Security Agencies as Partners in Nation Building.’ This is not the first time a…

Kansas • Fr • 6’5″ / 200 lbs Projected Team Washington PROSPECT RNK 2nd POSITION RNK 1st PPG 20.2 RPG 4.2 APG 1.6 3P% 38.2% This pick should come down to Peterson or Dybantsa. The Wizards can’t go wrong with either prospect. Like I’ve said for the last calendar year, I strongly believe that Peterson is the best player in the class. It might be a shocker to some if Peterson goes here, but I personally think he is a better fit in Washington than Utah. BYU • Fr • 6’9″ / 217 lbs Projected Team Utah PROSPECT RNK 1st…

A24 and Google have struck an AI research partnership that will see the independent studio work with Google’s DeepMind unit to develop new AI-powered technologies for filmmakers. Google’s roughly $75 million investment is tied to the partnership and is in line with what Thrive Capital invested during the studio’s last funding round, according to the Wall Street Journal. The partnership will give A24 access to DeepMind’s research and infrastructure, while DeepMind researchers will work with the studio to build out new workflows. The deal does not give Google access to A24’s content library or its data. This is a developing…

Golden Penny Foods, the iconic brand of Flour Mills of Nigeria (FMN),  recently convened its nationwide dealer network in Lagos  for the brand’s annual Dealers Conference. The event, themed Reset, Rebound, Win Big,   delivered on three fronts: celebrating dealer excellence, launching a new product, and laying out a sharp commercial agenda for the year ahead.  Itbrought together leading dealers, key organisation’s spokes persons, management and leadership from across Nigeria for a day of strategy, recognition, and renewed partnership with the brand. The conference came  at a defining moment for Nigeria’s FMCG sector, shaped by shifting consumer demand, evolving distribution realities, and rising operating costs. Against…

Heavily armed jihadists on Sunday rode into Zugurma, a community in Niger State on the fringe of Kainji Lake National Park, where they assembled residents and delivered a sermon that included threats against thieves, smokers and Fulani herders, according to residents. Sources, including witnesses, told PREMIUM TIMES that the armed men, dressed in military camouflage and turbans, arrived in the community on about 30 motorcycles at around 3 p.m. This newspaper spoke with five residents of Zugurma, whose identities have been withheld for security reasons. Although the group’s identity has not been independently verified, local residents and security analysts believe…

…NCDC flags growing concern over infections, delayed treatmentBy Chioma Obinna The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention, (NCDC) on Monday disclosed that the country’s Lassa fever outbreak has claimed 214 lives so far in 2026, with the fatality rate rising to 25 per cent. The report for Epidemiological Week 23, covering June 1 to 7, showed that 13 new confirmed cases and four fresh deaths were recorded across Edo, Ondo, Bauchi and Ebonyi states, keeping the weekly infection figure at the same level as the previous week but with a higher death toll. Cumulatively, the NCDC said Nigeria has…