Author: damazah@gmail.com

The creator economy met the affordability squeeze this week in New York when TikTok darling and Brandy Melville SoHo staffer Allegra Pinkowitz was unceremoniously fired from her position with the controversial fast-fashion retailer after nearly two and a half years. While one may not think the part-time retail gig of a high school junior is notable news, Pinkowitz is also an up-and-coming TikToker with a following of 162K-plus. Last year, she was the subject of a New York magazine article titled “The Most Popular Girl in SoHo is a Brandy Melville Employee,” about the flocks of girls who have been…

At the 19th Security Watch Africa Conference and Awards held in Banjul, The Gambia, Governor  Umo Eno of Akwa Ibom State was named African Leader in People-Centric Governance in 2025 while CP Baba Mohammed Azare received the Best Anti-Crime Bursting Police Chief in West & Central Africa in 2025; CSP Besta Sini John was honoured as the Best Close Protection Police Officer in West & Central Africa in 2025, and the Akwa Ibom State Police Command was recognised as the Most Proactive Police Command in Nigeria in 2025. Chiemelie Ezeobi writes that having emerged as the biggest winners of the night with four…

Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has set up a Judicial Commission of Inquiry to investigate the abduction of pupils and teachers from Esinele and Yawota communities in Oriire Local Government Area in May this year. The Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Dotun Oyelade, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. Governor Makinde has publicly expressed uncertainties about the circumstances of the abduction, and, at a time, read political undertone into the incident. Hours after the victims were freed on 10 July, Mr Mkinde said the abduction of pupils and teachers occurred just…

Africa Prudential Plc, a leading provider of share registration services and capital market solutions, successfully hosted its H1 2026 Investor Call in Lagos, convening institutional investors, shareholders, investment analysts, regulators, and members of the investment community to discuss the company’s financial performance, strategic priorities, and outlook. Africa Prudential reported another strong half-year performance, demonstrating strong corporate governance and resilience, and the effectiveness of its growth strategy despite an evolving macroeconomic environment. During the call, management presented the company’s robust financial performance for H1, 2026, highlighting gross earnings of N4.28 billion, representing a 27% YoY growth from N3.34 billion the previous…

•Slams N1.69bn penalties on banks’ breaches By Babajide Komolafe Bank customers lodged 23,129 complaints against financial institutions in 2025, representing 11 per cent increase over the previous year, prompting the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, to order refunds totaling N19.12 billion and $329.3 million to affected consumers. The apex bank also imposed N1.69 billion in penalties on financial institutions for regulatory breaches, poor complaint handling and failure to comply with its directives, according to its 2025 Annual Report. The CBN attributed the increase in complaints  to  growing public confidence in its consumer protection framework rather than a deterioration in banking services.…

Lloyds Banking Group will cut another £2bn of costs as part of a four-year plan under which its chief executive will use new tech and AI to drive growth.Charlie Nunn said the strategy, which the UK’s largest high street lender will launch in January, would involve investing £13bn into the business by 2030, including for “pioneering technology” to lure new business, improve efficiency and increase payouts for shareholders.That will involve rolling out “AI-powered advice” for wealth and workplace pensions, and using it to offer personalised offers based on customer behaviour, and give “support and guidance” to relationship managers, who are…

The spokesman for Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Ladipo Johnson, has disclosed that the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, is unhappy over the leadership dispute currently affecting the OK Movement. Johnson made the revelation during an interview on Arise Television, where he acknowledged the existence of tensions within the movement but maintained that the disagreement would not derail its political objectives ahead of the 2027 general election. According to him, the crisis is a temporary distraction that should not be allowed to create divisions among supporters of the proposed Obi-Kwankwaso alliance. “Yes, we have, may I call…

Romania, Bulgaria and Serbia are also grappling with the effects of a series of prolonged heatwaves and low rainfall.

World record holder Tobi Amusan on Thursday settle for bronze in the women’s 100m hurdles at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow. Despite being widely tipped as the firm favourite, Amusan crossed the finish line in 12.60 seconds to place third behind the Bahamas’ Devynne Charlton, who claimed gold in 12.33 seconds, and Jamaica’s Megan Tapper, who secured silver in 12.41 seconds. While the Nigerian would have hoped to retain the Commonwealth title, the bronze medal still marked another significant contribution to Team Nigeria’s growing medal haul at the Games. The result came just hours after Amusan had sent a…

Netflix is being sued for $105m over the theft of a hard drive including an unreleased Nicolas Cage war movie.The streamer’s Los Angeles office was the target of a theft involving a number of hard drives, one of which contained a copy of second world war spy thriller Fortitude.The makers of the $45m-budgeted film are now suing Netflix over the loss.“Netflix disputes any claim that it bears the risk of loss for a film delivered without the proper industry-standard safeguards,” a spokesperson said in a statement shared with the Hollywood Reporter. “While we do not own the rights to Fortitude,…