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An Abuja High Court has granted bail to the former Secretary-General of the Federation,  Babachir  Lawal and two others. The court on Wednesday granted them bail in the sum of N50m each with one surety. The sureties must be residents within the jurisdiction of the court; they must possess titles to lands within the jurisdiction of the court, show evidence of payment of tax for the past three years. The court further noted that each of the defendants is to deposit their international passport with the court pending the fulfilment of the bail conditions and are to remain in the custody of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Mr Babachir is being accused of diverting funds meant for the clearing of evasive plants in the troubled northeast. Next trial has been fixed for March 18, 2019.

INEC has said that from the initial assessment of today’s fire incident in Anambra, a total of 4695 smart card readers were destroyed.  Spokesman for the commission, Festus Okoye who disclosed the information, assured that immediate measures to ameliorate the situation including the mopping up of some spare card readers from other states are already in progress. He added that with the steps taken so far, the commission remains confident that elections in the state will proceed as scheduled. Below is a full statement by the electoral umpire.

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, and candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), President Muhammadu Buhari, have arrived at the International Conference Center in Abuja for the second signing of the National Peace Accord. Also in attendance is the Secretary-General of the Commonwealth, Patricia Scotland; former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar (rtd); Bishop Mathew Kukah, as well as other members of the National Peace Committee (NPC). Shortly after the arrival of the presidential candidates and others, General Abubakar called on political parties to function as effective actors for peace before, during, and after the elections. He also appealed to them to adopt a code of conduct that would promote a peaceful process devoid of rigging. The former Head of State, who is also the Chairman of the NPC, asked the candidates to use the remaining days left to speak directly to voters and supporters, pleading with...

Justice Umar Danladi Justice Walter Onnoghen The Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT) has issued a bench warrant ordering arrest and subsequent arraignment of the suspended Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Walter Onnoghen. CCT Chairman, Justice Danladi Umar, issued the warrant to the Inspector General of Police (IGP) to arrest Justice Onnoghen and bring him to the Tribunal unfailingly on Friday. He gave the order on Wednesday and directed the Director of the Department of State Services (DSS) to join in arresting the suspended CJN and compel him to be at the Tribunal.

The Nigerian Air Force has commenced the airlift of electoral materials for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) across the country ahead of the general elections. The exercise which started on Monday, February 11, 2019, is to be carried out both day and night with NAF C-130 Hercules aircraft from the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja to various airports across the country. In a statement issued on Tuesday, the spokesperson of the Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, explained that both sensitive and non-sensitive electoral materials were being conveyed in batches. “The materials were duly delivered by the C-130H aircraft crew to teams of INEC and Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) officials together with security personnel waiting at the various airports,” he explained in the statement. According to Daramola, this was in keeping with the promise by the Chief of the Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, during his me...

The Supreme Court on Monday, struck out three appeals filed by the two Rivers APC factions challenging a High Court ruling that barred INEC from recognising APC candidates for Rivers elections. A five-man panel led by Justice Bode Rhodes-Vivour on Tuesday,  struck out the three remaining appeals filed by the APC, Ojukaye Flag-Amachree and Tonye Patrick Cole, challenging the court’s decision. According to the court, the appeals were filed outside the time allowed under Section 285(9) and (12) of the Constitution as amended by the 4th Alteration Act. Justice Amina Augie who read the ruling of the court, said the appellants were not parties to the original suit and were not allowed by the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt to appeal the October 10, 2018 judgment, because they filed their appeal out of the required time. Augie noted that the appeals are statute-barred. The ruling comes as a major setback to Tonye Cole, who had expected the court to get INEC to offi...

President Muhammadu Buhari speaks during a meeting at the State House in Abuja. The Arewa Consultative Forum (ACF) has endorsed President Muhammadu Buhari for second term ahead of the presidential election scheduled to hold on Saturday. The forum announced its support for the President in a statement by its acting Chairman, Musa Kwande, on Tuesday. It noted that it carefully studied the antecedents of major presidential candidates, the manifestoes and policy documents of their parties, alongside the need for social, political and economic stability in the country. The ACF explained that this made it come to the conclusion that President Buhari deserved a second term to consolidate on his achievements. It added that its stand was informed by the strides taken by the Buhari administration to improve and reposition the nation economically. Some of the steps highlighted by the forum include the multi-billion Dollar Mambilla hydropower project, the exploration of oil in Gon...

Staff members of the National Assembly are currently protesting over unpaid wages and lack of due promotion. Some of the workers claim they are being owed wages from as far back as 2010. They also alleged that funds meant for training had been diverted. Carrying banners and placards, some of the workers were heard chanting “no pay, no sitting”. The workers also alleged the diversion of training funds by the Clerk of the National Assembly, Muhammed Sani Omolori.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) again says it is on a mission to rescue Nigerians from the All Progressives Congress (APC) led government come 2019. This is according to the PDP National Chairman, Mr Uche Secondus, and former President Goodluck Jonathan who spoke on Monday at the flag off of the party’s presidential campaign in Sokoto State. “It is important as we are here to let you know that the PDP is on a rescue mission,” Secondus told a large crowd of party supporters at the rally. “We are on a rescue mission with the best candidate in the next election. We present to you by the grace of God, the man that will come and wipe your tears; the man that will provide food for all of you, the man that will provide security in our nation.” The PDP chairman alleged that the Muhammadu Buhari administration has failed the people, stressing that their presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar, was a better alternative for the people. A cross-section of PDP leaders at...

Some of the defectors Twenty-six aspiring members of the Ogun State House of Assembly have announced their defection from the All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Allied People’s Movement (APM). They claimed to have won the party’s ticket after the primary held on October 7 but were denied by the National Working Committee of the APC. Despite efforts by the party’s national leadership to resolve the issue, the aggrieved members announced their defection during a press briefing on Monday. According to them, their action became imperative as a result of the injustice meted out to them by the national office of the APC. They, however, reaffirmed their resolve to work for the re-election of president Muhammadu Buhari in the 2019 general elections. ChannelsTv

File Photo Sierra Leone have been disqualified from the 2019 African Cup of Nations qualifying competition, the Confederation of African Football (CAF) said on Monday. Football’s world governing body FIFA had suspended the Sierra Leone Football Association (SLFA) in October due to “government interference”. CAF’s decision means Kenya and Ghana are assured of first and second place in Sierra Leone’s Group F and have therefore booked their place in next year’s finals. “Sierra Leone is disqualified from the qualifiers and all its matches are annulled,” CAF said in a statement. The row stems from the decision of Sierra Leone’s anti-corruption commission to sack SLFA president Isha Johansen and general secretary Christopher Kamara during an ongoing probe into corruption and mismanagement. In October, CAF cancelled two matches pitting Sierra Leone against Ghana due to the dispute between Freetown and FIFA. The 2019 finals have been plunged into uncertainty chaos after CAF l...

 FC Barcelona president Josep Lluis Nunez stands during a religious ceremony at Barcelona Cathedral for late former FC Barcelona’s coach Tito Vilanova on April 28, 2014. Former FC Barcelona president Josep Lluis Nunez, 87, died on December 3, 2018. Josep LAGO / AFP Former Barcelona president Josep Lluis Nunez, the club’s head for 22 years and during the success of their iconic 1992 team, has died aged 87, the Catalan club announced on Monday. “FC Barcelona expresses its pain after the death of Josep Lluis Nunez (1931-2018), president of the club between 1978 and 2000,” Barca wrote in a statement. Nunez recruited several star players over his tenure, from Argentina’s Diego Maradona to Brazilian duo Rivaldo and Ronaldo. But it was in 1988 that he made one of his most influential signings, by appointing Holland´s Johan Cruyff as coach, prompting a radical overhaul of Barcelona’s playing identity. Under Cruyff, the Catalan club won four La Liga titles in a row, from 1991 ...

In this file photo taken on November 11, 2018 Rennes’ French coach Sabri Lamouchi looks on during the French L1 Football match between Rennes (Stade Rennais FC) and Nantes (FC), at the Roazhon Park, in Rennes, northwestern France. JEAN-FRANCOIS MONIER / AFP Rennes have effectively sacked their coach Sabri Lamouchi after he was suspended in the wake of poor recent form, the French Ligue 1 club announced on Monday. In a statement, Rennes said Lamouchi had been “suspended” and reserve team coach Julian Stephan been put in temporary charge of the first team. Lamouchi is unlikely to return, meaning Sunday’s chastening 4-1 home defeat against Strasbourg will be the last of his year-long spell in charge in Brittany. Rennes are currently 14th in Ligue 1, four points clear of the relegation zone before Wednesday’s trip to Lyon. The 47-year-old former French international midfielder — who has previously coached the Ivory Coast national team and in Qatar — took over in November last...

Video Assistant Referees will be used in the Champions League from the knockout stages of this season’s competition and in the Nations League finals in June, UEFA confirmed on Monday. European football’s governing body had previously stated its intention to introduce VAR only from the start of the 2019/2020 season. “If we can do it before, why wait? We cannot afford any mistakes if we can do it earlier,” said UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin after a meeting of the European football body’s Executive Committee. “We are ready to use VAR earlier than initially planned and we are convinced that it will be beneficial for our competitions as it will provide valuable help to match officials and will allow to reduce incorrect decisions.” VAR is already used in a number of Europe’s top leagues, including Spain’s La Liga, Germany’s Bundesliga and Serie A in Italy and was widely seen as a success at this summer’s World Cup. The Europa League final and the under-21 Eur...

In this file photo taken on September 17, 2018, Southampton Welsh manager Mark Hughes has been sacked as manager of Southampton, the struggling Premier League club announced on December 3, 2018. Glyn KIRK / AFP Mark Hughes has been sacked as manager of Southampton, the struggling Premier League club announced on Monday, despite an improved performance in a 2-2 draw with Manchester United. “We would like to express our thanks to Mark and his staff for all of their efforts during their time at St Mary’s,” the club said in a statement. “The search for a new manager to take the club forward is already underway.” Assistant first team manager Mark Bowen and assistant first team coach Eddie Niedzwiecki have also left the club. Southampton, who were 2-0 up against Jose Mourinho’s United at home on Saturday at one stage, are 18th in the Premier League, just one point ahead of bottom club Fulham. AFP

The coach of Mexican second division football team Dorados, Argentine Diego Armando Maradona, arrives for the second leg match of the final against Atletico San Luis, at the Alfonso Lastras Ramirez stadium in San Luis Potosi, Mexico, on December 2, 2018. Ulises Ruiz / AFP Diego Maradona’s new club, Dorados, fell just short of winning the Mexican second-division final and a shot at promotion on Sunday, abruptly ending the Cinderella story of the Argentine legend’s latest foray into coaching. Dorados, from the western state of Sinaloa, lost their second-leg final to Atletico San Luis, who pulled off a 4-2 victory in extra time at home to win the title series 4-3 on aggregate. Maradona raised eyebrows when it was announced in September he was taking the managing job at struggling Dorados, who was then in 13th place in their 15-team league. Skeptics questioned what interest the 1986 World Cup champion from Argentina, who has publicly battled drug addiction and alcoholism...

Olympique Lyonnais’ Norwegian forward Ada Hegerberg brandishes her trophy after receiving the 2018 FIFA Women’s Ballon d’Or award for best player of the year during the 2018 FIFA Ballon d’Or award ceremony at the Grand Palais in Paris on December 3, 2018. FRANCK FIFE / AFP Norwegian striker Ada Hegerberg was rewarded for her prolific form with Champions League winners Lyon as she took the first ever women’s Ballon d’Or prize at a ceremony in Paris on Monday. The 23-year-old saw off competition from the likes of Danish star Pernille Harder, of German club VfL Wolfsburg, and Brazil’s Marta — winner of FIFA’s best player prize — to take the prize organised by France Football magazine following a vote by journalists from around the world. Hegerberg was one of seven players from the all-conquering Lyon side to feature among the 15 nominees, but she won out thanks to her prolific form in front of goal. She was the top scorer with 15 goals as the French side won the Ch...

Paris Saint-Germain’s French forward Kylian Mbappe (R) reacts after receiving the Koppa Trophy from past former French footballer and host David Ginola during the 2018 FIFA Ballon d’Or award ceremony at the Grand Palais in Paris on December 3, 2018. FRANCK FIFE / AFP Kylian Mbappe was named winner of the Kopa Trophy for young player of the year at the Ballon d’Or ceremony in Paris on Monday. The Paris Saint-Germain forward, who does not turn 20 until later this month, starred as France won the World Cup and also won the best young player award in Russia. The new award — named after French former Ballond’Or winner Raymond Kopa — was voted for by 33 living former winners of the main Ballon d’Or prize. Mbappe was also among the 30 nominees to win that award. Mbappe — who was accompanied at the ceremony by his father and his younger brother Ethan — scored four goals at the World Cup, including one in the final as France beat Croat...