Author: damazah@gmail.com

* Says it compromises public health Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja  The Nigeria Tobacco Control Community has called on President Bola Tinubu to withhold assent to the National Tobacco Control Act (Amendment) Bill 2025, saying it compromised the public health of Nigerians.  It also called on the National Assembly to immediately recall the consolidated Bill and subject it to a transparent, public health-led review.  It further called on the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to publicly clarify its position and demand the recall of the Bill if it was not properly consulted.  The group made the call on Monday…

Nigerian stocks are yet to witness a significant rally from the largely positive half-year corporate results as equities only appreciated by 0.1 per cent last week, driven by increased demand for bank stocks. Only the banking index advanced among the five sector indices tracked by the exchange amid broad profit-taking. The market is currently awaiting the earnings reports of four of the Big 5 lenders, which could be out any moment soon. PREMIUM TIMES has assembled some stocks with sound fundamentals, adopting rigorous approaches to save you the risk of picking equities at random for investment. The pick, a product…

Many blogs are written by industry leaders, but some academics are also jumping on the bandwagon. Helen Qu, an AI researcher from the Flatiron Institute, came to hate the unrewarding grind of conference submissions so much that she has decided to publish her research only on her new blog (she’s currently working on using game theory to prevent AI from acting subversively). One long-running blog, called the AI Alignment Forum, is written by a wide community of researchers, including many academics, who are concerned with how to make AI safe and beneficial to humanity. Instead of peer review, the AI…

ABUJA: The G100, a coalition of concerned Nigerians, says it has concluded a first round of consultations with leaders of six opposition political parties, including Atiku Abubakar of the African Democratic Congress ADC; Peter Obi and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the Nigeria Democratic Congress NDC; Seyi Makinde’s Allied Peoples Movement APM and others, as part of efforts to build a united opposition front ahead of the 2027 general election. In a statement on Monday signed by Salihu Moh. Lukman on behalf of the G100, the group said it had also engaged the leadership of the Peoples Democratic Party PDP, the Peoples…

For more than a decade, atomically thin semiconductors have stood out as a promising route beyond conventional silicon. These materials can be just a single atom thick while still offering impressive electrical properties. In principle, they could enable transistors that are smaller, faster, and more energy efficient than today’s devices. Yet even as researchers have discovered increasingly capable two-dimensional semiconductor materials, one stubborn engineering problem has remained. A working transistor requires an extremely thin insulating layer known as the gate dielectric. This layer sits above the semiconductor and helps control the movement of electrons. As transistors shrink, making this insulating…

The Giants have spent the better part of a decade looking for Eli Manning’s replacement. The Saints have taken nearly as long trying to find life after Hall of Famer Drew Brees. Different cities, different organizations, same question: did they finally get their guy?New York cycled through names like Daniel Jones, Tommy DeVito and Russell Wilson before handing the offense to Jaxson Dart. In New Orleans, the list included Teddy Bridgewater, Jameis Winston, Derek Carr and Spencer Rattler before turning to Tyler Shough. Every move started with guarded optimism and ended with the search continuing.This time feels different. Not because Dart…

The Pearl Jam frontman performed in Hansard’s usual spot on Grafton Street alongside Murdo Mitchell and several other musicians Eddie Vedder paid tribute to Glen Hansard by busking on Dublin’s Grafton Street, where the late musician got his start. Following Hansard’s funeral last week, Vedder showcased Pearl Jam‘s “Black” and Bruce Springsteen‘s “Drive All Night” on guitar alongside a group of fellow musicians on the local thoroughfare. The clips were shared by Scottish musician Murdo Mitchell alongside photos taken by music photographer Danny Clinch. Mitchell and Hansard had a long friendship after Hansard spotted him busking at age 14 and…

Besides providing technical expertise, the DICON Institute of Technology will significantly reduce Nigeria’s reliance on foreign sources for critical defence capabilities, argues  JACK OKUDE The Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, is passionately pushing a President Tinubu agenda on national security. On Wednesday, July 29, 2026, Matawalle, was in Kaduna to inaugurate the Defence Industries Corporation of Nigeria (DICON) Institute of Technology. The trip was without fanfare but it was loud on implications for President Tinubu’s iron-cast resolve to fight and overawe insecurity in the country. It bears restating that Matawalle, a ardent ally of President Tinubu, has been…

The AIDS Healthcare Foundation Nigeria has opened applications for journalists to participate in a two-month project aimed at promoting ethical and solutions-focused reporting on HIV and tuberculosis in communities most affected by the diseases. In a statement issued on Monday in Lokoja, the Senior Advocacy and Marketing Manager, Steve Aborisade, said the HIV and TB Media Reporting Project: Amplify the Response would run from September to October 2026. According to the statement, the project will support journalists in Abuja, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Benue, Cross River, Kogi and Nasarawa states to produce human-centred stories aimed at promoting testing, treatment uptake and…

* Says Hague-based court has become a tool for caging African states A Pan-African youth advocacy organisation, the Pan-African Youth Development Network (PAYDN), has thrown its weight behind the call by the member representing Ado/Okpokwu/Ogbadibo Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Philip Agbese, urging Nigeria to consider withdrawing from the International Criminal Court (ICC). The group described the Labour Party lawmaker’s position, expressed last week during a television interview as “timely, courageous and reflective of the growing frustrations of many African nations over the selective application of international justice”. In a statement issued on Monday and signed by…