Author: damazah@gmail.com

The campaign has raised more than £50,000 but is aiming for £200,000.Sarah Dawson, chief operating officer for Space for the Wild, said the flights for the bears were expected to be expensive.”It’s a long way here from South Korea and they’ve had a very difficult life. We want to make sure they’re as comfortable as possible on the flight here,” she said.”Plus the crates, plus people to look after them on the flights, veterinary care, even the forklift trucks to lift the crates up on to the plane are expensive, so it all adds up.”Do you have a story suggestion…

Argentina finished top of Group J after beating Jordan 3-1, while Algeria and Austria played out an entertaining 3-3 draw in their final group-stage matches at the 2026 FIFA World Cup. As the defending champions, Argentina won Group J but will face Cape Verde (the Group H runners-up in the Round of 32. Argentina advanced as Group J winners and are expected to face the runners-up of Group I in the Round of 32, while Austria, which finished second in Group J, is projected to face the winner of Group H. Austria took the lead against Algeria in the 28th…

Nigerian socialite and businessman Pascal Okechukwu, famously known as Cubana Chief Priest, recently offered followers a rare glimpse into his formative years by sharing a throwback photo from his days as a junior seminarian. The image, posted to his Instagram page, was accompanied by a reflective caption where the nightlife and hospitality entrepreneur opened up about his childhood dream of joining the Catholic priesthood. Reflecting on his spiritual roots and how his life path shifted, he wrote, “CP as a junior seminarian. I really tried to become a catholic priest.” The unexpected revelation has sparked widespread nostalgia and surprise among…

Former Nigerian Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo, has emphasised the urgency of rethinking healthcare funding, noting that “government spending alone can never address the scale of the challenge.” Mr Osinbajo, a professor, added that “most Nigerians continue to rely on out-of-pocket payments.” He stressed that the goal of the roundtable was to identify “practical ways to finance healthcare through innovative and sustainable mechanisms.” Mr Osinbajo made the disclosure at a high-level roundtable on Innovative Financing Models for Africa’s Healthcare Systems in Lagos on 10 June, organised by Future Perspectives, founded by the former Vice President. The hybrid roundtable brought together senior…

The Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to issue an access code to the leadership of the All Democratic Alliance (ADA), paving the way for the association to continue its registration as a political party. In a judgement delivered on Monday, Judge Peter Lifu directed INEC to generate and release the access code within 72 hours to the party’s protem secretary under the leadership of Akin Ricketts. The judge held that the electoral commission acted unlawfully when it issued the access code to Umar Ardo, whom the court found was neither the protem…

Fresh violence erupted in Biseni Kingdom in Yenagoa Local Government Area of Bayelsa State after the arrest of four youths over allegations of vandalism and other crimes. The protesters, mainly women, clashed with security personnel, resulting in a gas pipeline being vandalised and a house belonging to a community leader being set ablaze, and several people were injured. Videos obtained by PREMIUM TIMES on Sunday showed elderly women blocking the only access road into the oil-producing community while singing solidarity songs before armed security personnel moved in to clear the blockade. In one of the videos reviewed by this newspaper, a uniformed military…

The Federal Government is set to intensify efforts to drive industrial growth, expand trade, mobilise investment and boost non-oil exports in 2026 as part of its economic diversification agenda. Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Jumoke Oduwole, stated this at a management retreat for directors-general, directors and chief executives of agencies under the ministry. She said the focus is to translate policy into measurable economic outcomes through stronger implementation, collaboration and performance monitoring. The retreat themed, “From Policy to Performance: Driving Industrial Growth, Trade Expansion and Investment Outcomes,” was convened to review the implementation of the Nigeria Industrial Policy (NIP),…

Just eight months after launching its commercial service, AI leaderboard provider Arena, which originated as a research project at UC Berkeley in 2023, has reached $100 million in annualized run-rate revenue. Arena is best known for its popular crowdsourced AI model performance leaderboard, generated from over 10 million user evaluations. Its consumer website lets a user type a prompt it sends to two models; afterwards, the user chooses which model did a better job. While Arena’s popular AI model leaderboard is free for public use, the company began generating revenue from its platform in September when it introduced AI Evaluations,…

Former Conservative MP Craig Williams has pleaded guilty to cheating at gambling by placing bets on the date of the 2024 general election.The 41-year-old was the MP for Montgomeryshire and an aide to then-Prime Minister Rishi Sunak before the election was called.The prosecution said Williams bet £250, £100, and £22.50 on the election date, telling the court he “used highly sensitive and confidential information”.Sunak’s decision to call the poll was a surprise to many, including many Conservative MPs, who were expecting an autumn date.When details of the scandal first emerged in June 2024, Williams admitted making a “huge error of…

The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Enoch Adeboye, has revealed what God told him about the abducted pupils and teachers from Oyo State. PREMIUM TIMES earlier reported that gunmen kidnapped about 32 people from Community High School, Ahoro-Esiele; Primary School, Esiele; and Yawota Baptist Nursery and Primary School, all in Oriire Local Government Area of the state. It occurred on 15 May. The newspaper further reported that captors beheaded one of the victims, a mathematics teacher identified as Michael Oyedokun, in captivity. Speaking in a viral video captured during the US-Nigeria Faith Heroes Award Gala…