Author: Kelvin Funkeye

  The Edo State Government of Nigeria said on Wednesday nine persons were killed by yellow fever in the state. The Commissioner for Health, Dr David Osifo, disclosed this during an audience participatory programme on a Benin radio station. He also confirmed that 10 local government areas had been affected by the disease so far. He said, “Already, nine persons have been reported dead so far since the epidemic was first reported.” According to Osifo,…

A former Group Managing Director, Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Andrew Yakubu, is seeking to quash money laundering charges brought against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, as he files a “no-case” submission before Justice A.R. Mohammed of the Federal High Court, Abuja.   In the no-case submission dated November 6th 2018, and filed through his counsel, Anone Usman, Yakubu aked the court to strike out the charges against him, and discharge…

The Grassroots Development Party of Nigeria, GDPN, has pulled out of Coalition of United Political Parties, CUPP, that picked the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar as its flag bearer on Wednesday. This is coming few hours after the CUPP announced the endorsement of Atiku as its consensus candidate, GDPN distanced itself from such an arrangement. GDPN’s position was conveyed in a statement signed by the Presidential Candidate of GDPN, Dr….

Kenya said on Tuesday it has hired a foreign attorney to prosecute high-profile state corruption cases in an apparent bid by the government of President Uhuru Kenyatta to make its effort to fight graft more credible. The government has appointed Khawar Qureshi, a British attorney and legal scholar, said a statement from the public prosecutor’s office. “The stakes in such cases are very high and therefore, it is necessary that the proceedings are insulated from…

Parliament has approved the $2 billion bauxite-for-infrastructure barter arrangement between the government of Ghana and China’s Sinohydro Corporation. This arrangement seeks to leverage a fraction of Ghana’s bauxite resources to address the country’s infrastructure challenges and will provide a wide variety of projects including hospitals, bridges, interchanges, roads, affordable housing, rural electrification, and many other projects in line with government’s development agenda. After heated exchanges on Wednesday, 5 December 2018, the deal was finally approved…

Nigeria’s main anti corruption body has issued an international arrest warrant for its former Oil Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke. The authorities accuse her of misappropriating public funds worth several millions of US dollars. Alison-Madueke is currently being investigated in the United Kingdom but Nigeria wants her to face trial in her country for an alleged act of illegal acceptance and giving gratifications. The former Nigerian Minister in charge of oil is currently in London. She is…

Eddie Murphy is a dad again – his fiancee, Paige Butcher, gave birth to his 10th child on Friday (30Nov18). Max Charles Murphy was born in Los Angeles and both mother and son are “doing well”, according to a representative. Murphy, 57, announced Butcher, 39, was pregnant with their second child together in August (18) after she showed off a baby bump while running errands in Beverly Hills. The couple, which met on the set…

Gabon President Ali Bongo on Monday made his first appearance since falling ill nearly six weeks ago, in a video shared by the presidency from his medical leave in Morocco. Bongo suffered a stroke while at a conference in Saudi Arabia on Oct. 24, sources told Reuters. The presidency initially said he was struggling with severe fatigue and later said he had some “bleeding” that required medical attention. Bongo’s wife last week said he was…

The Son-in-law of Imo State Governor, Rochas Okorocha, Uche Nwosu has formally announced his defection from the All Progressives Congress, APC to the Action Alliance, AA. Uche Nwosu said he would emerge the next Governor of the state in 2019. Nwosu, who lost out of the All Progressives Congress, APC’s governorship race to Senator Hope Uzodinma, announced his defection at Sam the Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri. This was shortly after his arrival from Abuja…

Former Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Comrade Timi Frank, has described as shameful, the re-arrest of a popular human rights activist, Prince Deji Adeyanju, on the purported order of the presidency. Frank fingered the Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo and the the Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai, as major actors on whose orders the police are allegedly plotting to silence Adeyanju for his involvement in Shi’a protest. Disclosing this in…