Rivers defends amnesty programme for cultists, criminals

 
Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike

The Rivers Government says it has no regrets initiating the ongoing amnesty programme for repentant cultists and criminals in the state.

The Deputy Governor, Dr Ipalibo Banigo, told newsmen in Port Harcourt on Wednesday that the programme was in line with the peace initiative of the state government.

The amnesty programme came under

Riot police patrol Zimbabwe cities

Zimbabwe opposition supporters clash with police during a protest march for electoral reforms on August 26, 2016 in Harare.
Riots erupted in Zimbabwe’s capital Harare after police fired tear gas and beat protesters who responded by throwing stones in the latest of a string of tense demonstrations. The violence came a day after a High Court judge had ordered police “not to interfere (with), obstruct or stop the march”. Dozens of police blocked off the site of an opposition rally to demand electoral reforms before 2018 when 92-year-old President Robert Mugabe, who has ruled the southern African country for decades, will seek re-election. / AFP PHOTO / WILFRED KAJESE

Riot police patrolled Zimbabwe’s capital Harare and other cities Wednesday after authorities vowed to prevent further protests against President Robert Mugabe’s government.

Organisers of recent demonstrations had planned

Pastor in court for allegedly marrying mother, daughter

Pastor, Timothy Ngwu, was yesterday docked at an Enugu North Magistrates’ Court for allegedly marrying another man’s wife, daughter as well as another woman.The pastor’s wife, Veronica Ngwu petitioned the court over the development.

The victims, whom Mr. Ngwu converted to his “wives” were said to be members of his church, God’s Favour Ministry, Nsukka.One of the victims, Calista Omeye, however, told

Djokovic beats scare, Nadal eases at revamped US Open

Novak Djokovic of Serbia returns against Jerzy Janowicz of Poland during their 2016 US Open 2016 Men’s Singles match at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on August 29, 2016 in New York. / AFP PHOTO / Don EMMERT


Defending champion Novak Djokovic overcame an arm injury scare and long-time rival Rafael Nadal shone in 33-degree heat as the US Open showcased its $650 million upgrade on Monday.

World number one Djokovic, also the 2011 winner in New York and chasing his third major of the year, defeated Jerzy Janowicz of Poland 6-3, 5-7, 6-2, 6-1.

Brazil police fire tear gas at impeachment protesters

Police fired tear gas late Monday to disperse demonstrators who lit fires in the street of Sao Paulo to protest the looming impeachment of suspended president Dilma Rousseff.

Riot police and trucks dispersed several thousand protesters on the main Paulista avenue in the center of the country's economic capital.

In Pictures: Huma Abedin and Anthony Weiner

Huma Abedin, a top aide to Hillary Clinton, announced Monday she will be separating from her husband, former congressman Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., following another sexting scandal.

Huma Abedin says she's leaving Anthony Weiner after new sexting scandal

Huma Abedin, a top aide to Hillary Clinton, announced Monday she will be separating from her husband, former congressman Anthony Weiner, D-N.Y., following another sexting scandal.

"After long and painful consideration and work on my marriage, I have made the decision to separate from my husband. Anthony and I remain devoted to doing what is best for our son, who is the light of our life. During this difficult time, I ask for

2 elected officials own firm involved in fatal bus crash

NEW ORLEANS — A company owned by a parish constable and an Arkansas state representative hired a bus full of illegal workers that caused a fatal accident on Interstate 10, and one of the workers with a particularly bad driving record was at the wheel.

WRS, an Arkansas company registered to three men — including Eddie Schmidt, the elected Ward 4 constable for St. Tammany Parish; and David Wallace, a state legislator from Leachville, Ark. — had a man round up potential workers. Wallace told The New Orleans Advocate that WRS hired a bus to take the work crew to a commercial job site in the Baton Rouge, La., area.

S.Korean newspaper : North Korea publicly executes two officials

North Korea publicly executed two officials in early August for disobeying leader Kim Jong Un, a South Korean newspaper reported on Tuesday, in what would be the latest in a series of high-level purges under the young leader's rule, if

Government urges unemployed Nigerians to register before August 31

                                      Minister of Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige.

Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, has called on unemployed Nigerians to register at the online job portal: Npower.ng.org of the Social Intervention Scheme.

Ngige’s call was contained in a statement issued by the Deputy Director, Press, Samuel Olowookere, in the ministry on Sunday in Abuja.

Okogie writes Buhari, says Nigerians are hungry

Nation in search of peace, security, cleric affirms
Nigerians are hungry and they urgently need succour from President Muhammadu Buhari. They want him to fulfill his campaign promises by providing good leadership that will check hunger and poverty in the land. This was the

He married his love but is expected to die within weeks

 NASHVILLE — With just weeks to live, a terminally ill cancer patient got his dying wish: He married the love of his life.

Chris Ford and Nicole Wismer, 22, planned to wed in October, but doctors told the couple that Ford, 26, might not live that long.

"When the doctor told us, it was Nicole and I sitting in there, and Nicole just looked at Chris and said, 'You still want to marry me, don't you?' " recalled Amy Ford, Chris' mother.

Swinging general slipped past security screeners

Capt. John Landry, U.S. Army

U.S. Army Brig. Gen. David Haight of the 10th Mountain Division.

WASHINGTON — The Pentagon’s failure to detect the extramarital affair and “swinger lifestyle” of a top general despite background checks that likely included polygraph tests exposes flaws in vetting those entrusted with the nation’s most sensitive national security secrets, according to experts and

Mikel, Musa, Ighalo, Moses arrive today, as Super Eagles’ camp opens in Uyo

The Super Eagles will begin their campaign for a ticket to Russia 2018 World Cup away to Zambia in October.
Super Eagles’ Captain, John Mikel Obi, Odion Ighalo, Ahmed Musa, Victor Moses and other invited players for the 2018 Africa Nations Cup qualifier against Tanzania are expected to

We’ll deal with Niger Delta militants like Boko Haram -Buhari insists

PRESIDENT Muhammadu Buhari has reiterated his vow that his administration will deal with Niger Delta militants like it has done to Boko Haram terrorists, unless they

What you need to know about Zika and pregnancy

partners have traveled recently. That conversation can determine whether women should be tested for Zika.

Q. If a girl or woman is infected with Zika today, will the virus harm a future pregnancy?

Anxiety as Lagos records over 17-hour downpour

There were palpable fears among residents in Lagos, on Sunday, as the city witnessed more than 17 hours of rainfall, that almost marred social and economic activities.

The rain, which started as drizzles around

Trump to Clinton: Show me your medical records and I'll show you mine

Tax returns? Nope. Health records? Sure.

Donald Trump called on Hillary Clinton to release "detailed medical records" in a tweet Sunday. The Republican nominee for president said he was willing to

FG ready to swap Boko Haram detainees with Chibok girls -Buhari

THE Federal Government is willing to swap Boko Haram detainees with Chibok girls abducted by the terrorist group as long as it was convinced that it was dealing with the right leaders of the group which has custody of the girls.

What Clinton's small-business plan says about her: She understands

 Hillary Clinton rolled out a plan for small businesses on Tuesday that seemed to say: I get your pain, and if you elect me, I'll make your life easier.

Her initiative shows she does her homework. Clinton's proposals aren’t going to make anyone swing from the rafters in

Angst as Nigerians feel pains of increasing hard times

These are not the best of times in Nigeria. Long before July 21, 2016, when the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, officially confirmed that the country was ‘technically in recession,’ it had been an arduous battle for survival for citizens, organizations and governments at all tiers.

The first half of the year was

Federal Government ready to negotiate release of Chibok girls, says Buhari

• Warns N’Delta militants risk being crushed
• Clark, Diette-Spiff divide agitators
• FG enlists 823 ex-fighters for amnesty in Imo
President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday restated the readiness of his administration to dialogue with the Boko Haram sect for the release of the Chibok schoolgirls who are

Unable to afford a car, grieving Indian man carries wife's body for miles

Manjhi's 12-year-old daughter cries as her father lifts the body of his wife.

New Delhi, India (CNN) A grieving man in India carried his wife's body for miles after the hospital where she died allegedly failed to provide a way to transport her body back to

5 things you need to know this weekend

Italian Towns Begin Burying Their Dead

Since this week's earthquake left no structures intact large enough to

Team Nigeria was programmed to fail in Rio

Nigeria’s Efe Ajagba (R) is punched by Kazakhstan’s Ivan Dychko during the Men’s Light Welter (64kg) Quarterfinal 4 match at the Rio 2016 Olympic Games at the Riocentro – Pavilion 6 in Rio de Janeiro on August 16, 2016. 

After Nigeria’s defeat by Germany in the semifinal of the football event of the just concluded Rio 2016 Olympics and it became obvious that the country might not win more than a bronze medal at the competition, Sports Minister, Solomon Dalung, proclaimed that

Rousseff allies fight impeachment in Brazil turmoil

Angry quarrels erupted at suspended Brazilian president Dilma Rousseff’s impeachment trial Friday, while her key ally, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, faced corruption charges on a day of turmoil for

North Korea submarine missiles not ready until 2018

North Korea is making progress on a submarine-launched ballistic missile system but any deployment of the technology is years away, a US

Pictures of Lagos State Maryland Mall (Inside View)

First and second floor view of maryland mall ...

Exclusive: U.S. pilots provide first account of tense Syrian jet encounter

A MILITARY BASE IN SOUTHWEST ASIA — Two American fighter pilots who intercepted Syrian combat jets over northern Syria last week said they came within 2,000 feet of the planes without

Rescue Chibok girls or resign, parents tell Buhari

Ezekwesili wants poor welfare of troops fighting B’Haram probed

Parents of abducted Chibok girls yesterday asked President Muhammadu Buhari to

Nigeria loses 560,000 barrels to vandals in five months

The activities of pipeline vandals and oil thieves are taking a toll on the operations of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), as it lost 

Trump responds to Clinton attacks: 'Shame on you'

Donald Trump tried to flip the narrative on Thursday, saying Hillary Clinton's attempt to associate him with the alt-right is shameful, and by doing so she is calling

Report: EKiti Assembly passes bill to ban free grazing

Ekiti State House of Assembly on Thursday passed the bill to ban free grazing in the state.

The bill also prescribed six months imprisonment without an option of fine for any offender of the bill that also ban movement of cattle after 6pm in the state.

The passage of the bill followed the submission of

Report: Rio police summon Ryan Lochte to hearing

Lochte and three U.S. swimmers said they were robbed at gunpoint early Sunday, with Lochte saying their cab was pulled over by men impersonating police officers.    

Ryan Lochte is expected to be summoned to

Fact check: Trump on Clinton’s emails

Donald Trump distorted the facts about former secretary of State Hillary Clinton’s emails when he said in Texas that “the FBI found thousands [of emails] she never turned over, and now just recently found another

Clinton links Trump to white nationalist 'alt-right' movement

Hillary Clinton will argue that Donald Trump is helping to spawn a new ideology in America embraced by white nationalists, neo-Nazis and other extremist groups as she takes aim at a movement dubbed the “alt-right.”

Brother: Deaf man killed by cop over misunderstanding

CHARLOTTE, N.C. — As the family of a deaf man shot by a state trooper prepares for the 29-year-old's funeral Tuesday, state officials say they are conducting a criminal investigation into the man's death.

Trooper Jermaine Saunders had

Why the Clinton email story keeps drip-drip-dripping

Monday brought another round of stories about Hillary Clinton's private email server, with a new batch of emails suddenly made public.

Some of us were left scratching our heads, thinking "Hold it — there are more emails?"

We thought it might be useful to offer a little primer on what we've already seen and what is still to come.

At least three dead as Italy hit by powerful quake

Central Italy was struck by a powerful, 6.2-magnitude earthquake in the early hours of Wednesday, leaving at least three people dead and devastating dozens of mountain villages.

Numerous buildings had collapsed in communities close to the

Reports: North Korea test fires missile toward Japan

North Korea fired a submarine-based missile toward Japan Wednesday, CNN, Reuters and other news organizations are reporting, attributing the word to South Korea's Joint Chiefs of Staff and its Defense Ministry.

The missile was fired at around 5:30 a.m. local time from

the city of Sinpo on North Korea's east coast, Reuters

Ryan Lochte, U.S. swimmers never questioned about alleged Rio vandalism

RIO DE JANEIRO — Police in Rio never questioned four U.S. swimmers about their alleged vandalism of a gas station restroom, further evidence that a poster was the only

property damaged by Ryan Lochte during a stop that ended in a heated exchange with security guards and set off an

Central Italy struck by magnitude 6.1 earthquake

Central Italy was rocked by a magnitude 6.1 earthquake in the early hours of the morning Wednesday, according to

the European-Mediterranean Seismological Centre.

The earthquake struck just after

Jumia to launch mobile money wallet

PAN African ecommerce Jumia announced yesterday the launch of Jumia Pay, a third party online payment solution aimed at providing

Kidnapped’ Ejigbo scavenger found in Kano

Police investigate mystery behind disappearance

The scavenger, who was allegedly kidnapped at No. 31, Kayode Adebanji Street, off Unity Road, Ashamu Estate in Oke-Afa, Ejigbo last week, has been

Shallow graves found in home of suspect who chained 28 persons

Following last weekend’s raid of the Ojodu home of a self-acclaimed prophet, Emmanuel Adeyemi, where the police rescued 28 people, including children, who were chained, detectives have also discovered shallow graves in the

Rio 2016 and other incredible Nigerian miracles

I will be upfront with you. I was very much pessimistic about Nigeria’s prospects of winning a medal at Rio 2016. My reasons for such down feeling are not alien to many who

The 10 strangest stories of the Rio Olympics

WHEN we think back on these Rio Olympic Games, we’ll remember the blinding speed of Usain Bolt, the domination of Simone Biles and Katie Ledecky, the ageless brilliance of Michael Phelps, the peculiar storytelling of

U-17 AFCON: NFF protests Eaglets’ ouster

Following alleged under-hand tactics by Niger Republic football officials in the U-17 African Cup of Nations qualifier in Niamey, Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) will officially protest to the continental soccer ruling body CAF.

FG uncovers fresh 5000 ghost workers

Vice President Yemi Osibajo has disclosed that an additional 5,000 ghost workers have been uncovered in the on-going daily audit of workers in the Federal

Hollande voices ‘concern’ to Putin over Ukraine tension

French President Francois Hollande voiced his “concern” over a spike in tensions in Ukraine, in a telephone call with Russian leader Vladimir Putin, his office said