Author: damazah@gmail.com

By Ikechukwu Nnochiri, Abuja The Federal High Court in Abuja has okayed hearing a suit seeking to compel President Bola Tinubu to provide maximum security to the presidential candidate of the Nigerian Democratic Party (NDP), Mr Peter Obi, ahead of the 2027 general elections. The suit, marked FHC/ABJ/CS/1648/2026, is, among other reliefs, praying the court to declare that Obi has the fundamental right to life and the right to live without fear, discrimination, threat of assassination, intimidation, or any form of harassment whatsoever, as guaranteed in Section 33(1) of the 1999 Constitution of Nigeria. The suit also seeks a declaration…

Stakeholders have called for stronger public education, compulsory genotype awareness and better support for people living with sickle cell disease, warning that Nigeria will continue to record thousands of preventable cases unless more people make informed decisions before marriage. The call was made on Wednesday in Abuja at the launch of ‘Sickle Cell Anaemia: The Audacity of Hope’, a new book by Funmilayo Braithwaite, with medical contributions from Abayomi Adegbite and Moji Aiyemo. The publication, Mrs Braithwaite’s 11th book, combines storytelling, medical explanations and advocacy to raise awareness about sickle cell disease, combat stigma and encourage informed reproductive decisions. The…

A group, Resource Centre for Human Rights and Civic Education (CHRICED), has called for the immediate suspension of the Chief of Staff (CoS) to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, over his alleged links to the controversial Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council (PFIPC). The group also dismissed the ongoing House of Representatives investigation into the matter, describing it as a distraction unlikely to yield any meaningful outcome. Addressing a press conference on the state of the nation in Abuja on Tuesday, the Executive Director of CHRICED, Ibrahim Zikirullahi, said no credible investigation can be conducted while Mr Gbajabiamila remains in office. An…

Teenage dart sensation Luke Littler has left the darts world questioning if anyone will ever get near him again after winning the World Matchplay Darts on Sunday.’The Nuke’ stormed to victory in Blackpool, winning the competition for the second year in a row and seeing off final opponent Gerwyn Price 18-9. Littler being in total control at a darts competition is nothing new. He’s won every PDC major title in 2026 so far, and his World Matchplay performance has made it very difficult to argue he’s not head and shoulders above his competitors. His mind-blowing performances have sparked debate over…

For all the drugs and punch-ups, this is an unexpectedly sentimental coming-of-age story – or maybe origin myth – about the formative youthful kitchen experiences of legendary badass chef Anthony Bourdain. It is taken from the opening chapters in his bestselling memoir Kitchen Confidential; Canadian film-maker Matt Johnson directs and Dominic Sessa (the callow kid from Alexander Payne’s The Holdovers) plays the conceited, smug yet lonely and vulnerable young college student Tony. “Anthony” is in the future.It is the mid-1970s and Tony effectively runs away from home after failing to get a residential summer writing scholarship that he had assured…

Nigerian singer Peter “Mr P” Okoye, one half of the defunct music duo Psquare, has apologised over his comments questioning the value of Nigerian languages, while accusing his twin brother, Paul, known as Rudeboy, of consistently trying to pull him down. Mr P came under fire on social media after he posted on his X page on Monday that he was considering buying a house in Paris, the French capital, following his children speaking French fluently. An X user, Don Buddy, asked whether his children could speak Igbo. Mr P questioned what Nigerian languages had helped, a reply that drew…

The Federal Government, on Wednesday, arraigned two commanders of the Ansaru terrorist organisation captured by the Department of State Services (DSS), alongside three of their cohorts, on charges of terrorism, kidnapping and the beheading of two teachers of schools in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State. The five suspects were arraigned before Justice Salim Ibrahim of the Federal High Court, Abuja. The court adjourned the matter until September 24 for the commencement of trial and ordered that the five men remain in the custody of the DSS. According to the Federal Government, DSS operatives in August 2025 captured top…

Nigeria’s remarkable run at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow continued on Wednesday as Goodness Nwachukwu claimed the country’s seventh gold medal with a new world record in the women’s para discus F42-44/61-64 event. Nwachukwu threw 39.66 metres to secure the gold medal, setting a new world record and further strengthening Nigeria’s reputation as a leading force in para sports. The latest feat adds another golden chapter to Team Nigeria’s impressive campaign, which has already produced several record-breaking performances across para powerlifting, weightlifting and athletics. The victory also marks a successful title defence for Nwachukwu, who first announced herself on…

The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) and the Lagos State Consumer Protection Agency (LASCOPA) have stepped up efforts to address unfair practices in marketplaces, with a renewed focus on price tagging, product labelling and businesses’ obligations to honour returns and refunds where applicable. The initiative was unveiled on Wednesday during a stakeholders’ engagement organised by both agencies in Ikeja, Lagos, as regulators sought greater compliance with consumer protection laws through dialogue with businesses. Speaking at the event, the Executive Vice Chairman of the FCCPC, Tunji Bello, said consumer confidence remains central to a healthy marketplace, particularly in Lagos,…

In September 2024, a handful of patients showed up at the emergency room in the coastal city of Fano, Italy, with mysterious symptoms: a rash on their hands and feet, fever, nausea, and diarrhea. Doctors sent for various tests until one came back with a positive result for dengue, a viral infection spread by mosquitoes, usually in tropical regions of the world. They tested the other patients, and, sure enough, they had dengue too. The strange thing? None of the patients had recently traveled to a country where they might expect to pick up a dengue infection. The only thing…