GIST OF THE DAY

Delta State Polytechnic, Otefe-Oghara in the Ethiope East Local Government Area has embarked on moves to generate renewable energy for the institution. The Rector of the Polytechnic, Professor Emmanuel Ufuophu-Biri, disclosed this during the 21st matriculation ceremony of the institution on Friday. He noted that the polytechnic was committed to building a new generation of inventors, innovators and entrepreneurs that the state and country would be proud of. In this direction, he said the polytechnic had already set up a very powerful team of experts to generate renewable energy for the institution. According to him, the team of experts drawn from within the polytechnic had been mandated “to commence the process of generating a good proportion of our energy through renewable energy sources. “We will be working on solar and wind energy alternative and results promise to be rewarding. We will also be exploring the hydro advantage of the River Ethiope, which is just some feet beside the po...

Newcastle paid an emotional tribute to Christian Atsu as his tearful wife and children joined a minute’s applause for the former Ghana midfielder after his death in the earthquake that rocked Turkey and Syria. Ex-Newcastle star Atsu was caught in the 7.8-magnitude quake which killed more than 43,000 people on February 6. There were initial reports the 31-year-old had been rescued a day after the quake. But Atsu’s manager in Turkey, Murat Uzunmehmet, said on Saturday the player’s body had been found under the rubble of luxury flats that crumbled in the Turkish southern province of Hatay. Atsu’s wife Marie-Claire Rupio and his three children were in the stands at St James’ Park on Saturday to join the tribute to the Ghanian before Newcastle’s Premier League match against Liverpool. With Atsu’s face displayed on the video scoreboard and fans chanting “you’ll never walk alone,” Rupio wiped away tears during a moving minute’s applause from the 52,000 capacity crowd as one fan held up a Newc...

Ten states have asked the supreme court to declare the new directive of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), reintroducing the old N200 notes and declaring old N500 and N1,000 notes as unconstitutional. On Thursday, Buhari said he directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to recirculate only the old N200 notes. This is after the apex court did not vacate the order that the old N200, N500, and N1000 notes are still legal tender. This is after the apex court did not vacate the order that the old N200, N500, and N1000 notes are still legal tender. The plaintiffs, which comprise the 10 states in the ongoing suit, are Kaduna, Kogi, Zamfara, Ekiti, Ondo, Katsina, Ogun, Cross-river, Lagos and Sokoto states. They stated that by varying the order of the supreme court, the president has caused an “embarrassing dilemma as to which directives and order should be complied with between the order of the Supreme Court and the counter-directive of the first defendant, which was issued late...

Osun State Governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke, has assured residents of the state on the completion of the ongoing Osogbo-Ikirun-Kwara Boundary road. Adeleke gave the assurance on Saturday, while inspecting the road project, initiated the Rauf Aregbesola administration. The governor, who told the contractor handling the project to adhere to the specifications, further said, “I am happy that work has resumed on this road which was abandoned for over three years. “We want the road to be motorable for our people from Osogbo to Ikirun in the first phase which we intend to complete within our first 100 days in office.” He hinted that work would continue on other sections of the road towards Ila-Odo as resources were available to the government. Addressing many residents that received him at Alamisi junction in Ikirun, during the inspection, Adeleke said, “the road project to Ikirun end, will be completed within my administration’s first 100 days in office. “But please ensure that you drive c...

Ahead of the 2023 general elections, the people of troubled Birnin-Gwari in Birnin-Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State said they have started reaching out to various terrorist groups for the successful conduct of the poll in the area. The Chairman of the Birnin-Gwari Emirate Progressive Union, Ishaq Kasai, in a statement on Saturday, said the development became necessary in view of the prevailing security challenges where about 100 communities were sacked while no fewer than 50,000 were internally displaced by terrorists in the LG. The statement was titled, ‘2023 general elections: only reaching out to terrorist groups will allow successful elections in Birnin-Gwari.’ According to him, reaching out to the various terror groups in the area for a truce will enable the locals in 10 out of the 11 political wards in the area to exercise their franchise to elect their leaders in next week’s elections. The BEPU boss noted that only local arrangements with the terrorists could facilita...

As Nigerians approach the 2023 general election, no fewer than 24,254 permanent voter cards are uncollected in Sokoto State. The state Resident Electoral Commissioner of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Dr Nura Ali, disclosed this while addressing journalists at the Nigerian Union of Journalists Press Centre in Sokoto. The REC said Nigerians, especially people of the state, should rest assured of a free, fair, credible and acceptable exercise in the forthcoming general election. Nura who spoke on Saturday at a Congress organised by the Sokoto State chapter of the NUJ also said a total of 241,091 PVCs had been collected in the state. The REC who was represented by the Commission’s HOD, Voters Education and Publicity, Muhammed Takai, disclosed this. While noting that unbiased media is very important to having credible elections in every clime, Nura confirmed that INEC was ready for the polls hence they had gotten all the 3991 BVAS machines for the 3,991 polling units in Sok...

Junior Messias made sure AC Milan continued their recovery from an awful start to the year by netting the only goal in Saturday’s 1-0 at Monza which moved the champions up to third in Serie A. Milan’s season is creaking back into gear and Brazilian Messias lashed in a powerful strike from the edge of the area in the 31st minute to claim the points at the U-Power Stadium. A third league win since the new year has Stefano Pioli’s side level on 44 points with local rivals Inter Milan, who sit second and face off-form Udinese in Saturday’s late match. Both Milan giants are a whopping 18 points behind rampant league leaders Napoli after their 2-0 win at Sassuolo on Friday. Saturday’s win against their Lombardy rivals was Milan’s third in a row in all competitions and came after Tuesday’s 1-0 Champions League win over Tottenham Hotspur. Monza, whose unbeaten record ends at eight matches, dropped down a place to 11th thanks also to Bologna’s late 2-1 win at struggling Sampdoria earlier on Sat...

The Atiku-Okowa Presidential Campaign Council for People Living With Disabilities has said that the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar, has promised to appoint 5% of PWDs in his government if given the mandate come February 25. The PDP PWD campaign also said that a substantial number out of the 32 million members across Nigeria were solidly behind Atiku. The national coordinator of the Atiku-Okowa campaign council for the PWDs, Hayatu Gwarzo, disclosed this on Saturday during the North-Central Town Hall meeting in Abuja. Gwarzo said, “Atiku made a promise that he would carry us along in his government, in fact, he promised us 5% in his government, which is a lot. And it is better to start (with something) than none and when we start, as time goes on, he may increase the number to 10% or even 15%. The former federal lawmaker further remarked that, “We have over 32 million people living with disabilities, so with that population, they (other candidates...

Ace Nigerian singer, Peter Okoye has ignored a diamond chain tester who approached him at an event to check the authenticity of his jewellery. Chain testers are known for exposing both celebrities and average individuals who go about with fake diamond pieces of jewellery. A video making the rounds on social media captured the moment a content creator approached Peter Okoye for permission to test his blings. The singer, however, was not having it, as he shunned the diamond tester for disrespecting his personality to own a fake diamond piece. “Do I look like somebody who wears fake,” he said as he walks away. Watch Video Below; View this post on Instagram A post shared by gistoftheday.com (@gistoftheday) The interaction, however, stirred mixed reactions from netizens who applauded Peter Okoye while others ridiculed his unwillingness. A social media user @aderin_aisha_xo wrote, “It’s content and if he wasn’t cool with it then maybe he was wearing fake a chain because ...

Nigerian actress/producer, Ini Edo, has given her opinion on the issue of women undergoing body enhancement surgery to look good. In a recent interview with Pulse Nigeria, the star of the Shanty Town series, who is rumoured to have undergone cosmetic surgery to alter her physique, delved into the subject of cosmetic enhancements and addressed the issue of body shaming women who opt for such procedures. Ini Edo insisted that everyone has the right to choose as long as they are willing to live with the consequences. In her words; “I mean, I just feel like anybody who sits around judging people, nobody has a right to tell anybody how to live their lives or who to be or who not to be. It’s not your place. You don’t have that right. “And so for me, I say to people who do that, I’m like, you, first of all, have to be able to dictate the pace of your life to be able to dictate somebody else’s pace. It makes no sense that you have no control over your own life and you’re trying to think that i...

Nollywood actress, Tonto Dikeh has taken to social media to drag her estranged husband, Olakunle Churchill, to filth. The drama started on Friday when Olakune Churchill celebrated his son with Tonto, King André, on his Instagram page, proudly declaring him his flesh and blood. In his birthday message to King, he added that he misses him greatly and longs to see him soon. Churchill’s post elicited mixed reactions from netizens, the majority of whom berated him and accused him of only acknowledging King as his son on his birthdays. Tonto Dikeh’s best friend, Doris Ogala, also blasted Churchill for his birthday message to King. She tagged him an attention seeker and told him to let his son be and focus on his family with Rosy. Well, Tonto Dilkeh, who previously reacted by just liking Doris’ post, has now taken to her Instagram page to properly address Churchill. In a lengthy write-up, she accused Churchill of being a deadbeat who has never bothered checking up on his son for seven years. ...

Nigerian actress, Uche Ogbodo has voiced concern over her male friends’ choice to stop communicating with her after she married. She wondered whether the guys decided to desert her because they were jealous because she had chosen to be permanently committed to another man. Taking to her Instagram page, Uche shared a long video with her concerns and queried other women if the men wanted her to live as a spinster for the rest of her life so that they could be there as a shoulder to cry on. Ogbodo threatened to reveal some of her male friends who abandoned her and claimed that they did not send celebratory messages or well wishes when she married. The actress claimed there was never any relationship between her and any of them, but even those she would have considered friends with her have stopped communicating with her. She revealed that she does not care about their reasons because what she presently does is better. See her post below, View this post on Instagram A p...

Former minister of Aviation and spokesperson for the Tinubu/Shettima campaign, Femi Fani-Kayode has hailed the Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai for defying President Buhari’s stance on the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN’s Naira policy. Recall that following the redesigning of the Naira notes, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN had fixed February 10 as the deadline for the notes to remain in circulation. But some governors elected under the platform of the All Progressives Congress, APC, dragged the Federal Government to the Supreme Court in a move to stop the execution of the stipulated deadline. Responding to an ex parte application filed by the Kaduna, Kogi and Zamfara State governments, the Supreme Court on February 8, stopped the CBN from effecting its ban on the old notes pending the hearing and determination of the case on Wednesday, February 15. Addressing the situation in a national broadcast on Thursday, President Muhammadu Buhari directed the CBN to release the old N200...

Nigerian disc jockey, Florence Otedola aka Cuppy has taken to Instagram to celebrate her puppies, DuDu and FuFu as they turn two. The billionaire daughter who likes to think of the little Pomeranian dogs as her kids expressed that time flies when one becomes a mother. She shared an adorable photo of herself and her puppies with a cake she had made for them. She also decorated her puppies to look the part of the ideal birthday celebrants. She captioned the photo: “How time flies as a mother! Happy 2nd birthday to Dudu & FunFun Otedola. I love you ”

Ex-BBNaija Level Up housemate, Hermes has denied being in a romantic relationship with his love interest in the house, Allysyn. In an interview with Saturday Beats, he said, “We are great. I check up on her, and she checks up on me. She is doing amazingly well with her brand, and I wish her all the best to be honest. “However, we are not in a (romantic) relationship; we are great friends though, just navigating life. It has been beautiful, to say the least.” Asked how much his life has changed after being part of BBNaija, he said, “My life changed drastically after BBN. So much has changed, both positively and negatively. Before BBN, there were so many things I wanted to do, but I did not have the resources. Right now, there is a lot that I can do; but I don’t even have the time to do them.” Iyele also noted that he had faced a lot of condemnations over the years. He said, “I have faced a lot of condemnation in my life. Before BBN, being from a slum, market women, children and other pe...

Former National Chairman of the All Progressive Congress, Adams Oshiomhole has slammed Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, stating that he has no right to order his arrest. The two political gladiators have been at odds for years, a feud that led to Obaseki, elected in 2016 on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in his first term, forced to defect to the Peoples Demcoratic Party where his re-election bid was achieved in 2020. On Wednesday, violent protests in the state over a controversial naira swap policy by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the ensuing scarcity of new currency prompted a response by the state government in which it accused Oshiomhole of masterminding the demonstrations. Obaseki was quoted as alleging that the former governor mobilised thugs to vandalise banks and disrupt the peace of the state over the naira scarcity. “At this stage, we call on security agencies to arrest Adams Oshiomhole for questioning and to account for his movement, especiall...

Gov Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano state has issued a warning to commercial banks operating in the state that they would be destroyed if they refuse to accept the old N500 and N1,000 notes. He made this known Friday, Feb. 17, during his inspection of palliatives meant for distribution to the citizens to cushion the effects of the hardship caused by the cashless policy, Channels TV reports. “Any bank that refuses to accept old five hundred and one thousand Naira notes will be destroyed. We will not tolerate such disobedience from any financial institution operating within our jurisdiction,” he stated. Governor Ganduje further disclosed that the space of the destroyed banks would be used for building schools. “We will convert the space of the destroyed banks into schools that will provide quality education for our children,” he said according to the publication. Governor Ganduje’s spokesperson, Abba Anwar, defended the governor’s statement, stating that the state government has the power to t...

Dr John Abebe, the brother-in-law of former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, has been sentenced to seven years for offences bordering on forgery and money laundering. Abebe was sentenced after it was established that the prosecution proved its case beyond reasonable doubt. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arraigned Abebe, who is a younger brother to the late former First Lady, Stella Obasanjo for forgery. Abebe was first arraigned on July 26, 2018 on a four-count charge of forgery, fabricating evidence, using fabricated evidence and attempt to pervert the course of justice before the Special Offences Court in Ikeja. An oil company, Statoil Nigeria Limited had on June 22, 2010, accused Dr Abebe of forgery. Statoil Nigeria Limited had alleged that the defendant forged parts of a Net Profit Interest Agreement (NPIA) dated November 30, 1995, which was drafted by British Petroleum (BP). It was alleged that he “knowingly forged” a November 30, 1995 letter written by BP Explor...

President Buhari’s aide, Bashir Ahmad has told Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje to take his old naira notes to the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, if they are legitimate. The Special Adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on Digital Communication said this after Ganduje faulted the naira redesign policy and described it as a move to scuttle democracy and sabotage the forthcoming general elections. Ganduje also accused Buhari of introducing the policy on the eve of the elections, saying he should have done it in the past seven years or after the election. However, in response to Ganduje and others, Ahmad said they should stop the agitation and take their old naira notes to the CBN. “Baba Dan Audu, President Baba Buhari has ordered you to take your money to CBN. You will receive an alert if the Economic and Financial Crime Commission, EFCC and Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit, NFIU certify that they are legitimate.”

Former Ekiti State Governor, Segun Oni has dismissed reports of working for the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Bola Tinubu. The clarification is contained in a statement at the weekend by his spokesperson, Jackson Adebayo. Oni, a Social Democratic Party, SDP candidate in the last election replied to comments by Oyetunde Ojo and South West Agenda, SWAGA. He debunked the claim of collaboration with ex-Governor Ayo Fayose to actualise Tinubu’s ambition. Calling it “a very dishonest statement and a cheap lie”, Oni declared that he could not work for the former Lagos governor. Tinubu’s footprints “were so evident in the rigged last Ekiti governorship election”, the statement alleged. Governor Biodun Oyebanji of the ruling APC won the June 18 2022 election. Oni said unlike Osun, his lawyers were not granted access to inspect Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) machines in spite of the Tribunal’s orders on INEC twice. The former governor said he suffere...

The body of former Ghana international Christian Atsu has been found after a devastating earthquake in Turkey, local media reported Saturday, quoting his manager. Atsu, 31, was caught up in a 7.8-magnitude quake that rocked Turkey and Syria on February 6, killing more than 43,000 people in both countries. There were initial reports the former Chelsea and Newcastle player had been rescued a day after the quake, but these turned out to be false. His manager in Turkey, Murat Uzunmehmet, told DHA news agency on Saturday that his body had been found under the rubble in the Turkish southern province of Hatay. “We have reached his lifeless body. His belongings are still being removed. His phone was also found,” Uzunmehmet told DHA. Ghana’s ministry of foreign affairs said it had “received the unfortunate news”. “The elder brother and twin sister of Christian Atsu and an officer of the (Ghanaian) embassy were present at the site when the body was recovered,” the ministry said in a statement. G...

Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has appealed to Lagosians to remain calm amidst the fuel and naira scarcity crises resulting in chaos in the state. Sanwo-Olu made the appeal in a live conference on Saturday. Speaking, the governor noted that it was necessary to address residents in the state in view of the ongoing situation in the country, regarding the change of currency notes and the fuel scarcity and its attendant hardship. He said, “First, let me thank you the good people of Lagos for your patience and unwavering perseverance even in these challenging times. “This is a heartfelt call to you, as your Governor, to please remain calm at this time, and avoid all forms of violence, arson and rioting. Even in the face of the difficulties and frustrations being faced by all, violence and destruction should not and will never be the answer. Reacting to the extortion from Point of Sales agents and operators, Sanwo-Olu stressed, “We have noticed with dismay the rampant incidents su...

A man, Ebenezer Alaro, said to be a member of the All Progressives Congress in Ilesa town, Osun State, has been killed by some yet-to-be identified assailants. A statement by the press secretary to the Speaker of the Osun State House of Assembly, Kunle Alabi, obtained in Osogbo on Saturday, confirmed the incident. Alabi, who said the Speaker, Timothy Owoeye, was saddened by the development, condemned the killing of Alaro, which according to him took place at about 1pm on Friday in front of his father’s house on Aromire Street, Ilesa. “It is quite unfortunate that one of our devoted party members was murdered after our rally on Friday. Politics shouldn’t be a do-or-die affair. The young man who was actively involved in the rally was shot in front of his father’s house. “The police and other relevant security agencies must be seen to be alive to their constitutional responsibility of protecting lives of citizens. A quick investigation into the murder will serve as deterrent to people who...

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party in Oyo State, Chief Jumoke Akinjide, has berated the presidential candidate of the All Peoples Congress, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, accusing the 70-year-old of being selfish and insensitive to the plight of Nigerians. The former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory said Tinubu is only interested in his mandate and not the suffering of Nigerians. Akinjide said this on Saturday when she was featured on a Lagelu FM 96.7 programme, ‘Bose n lo’, anchored by Temitayo Oyeladun and monitored online by the PUNCH. While commenting on Tinubu’s visit to Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo, Akinjide said the visit is a sign that the APC presidential candidate has abandoned the governorship candidate of his party in the state, Sen. Teslim Folarin. She said, “Tinubu is a National leader of the APC but didn’t complain about the suffering of Nigerians in almost eight years (of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.)’s regime) but he’s only complai...

A former governor of Ekiti State, Segun Oni, has denied working to actualise the presidential bid of the All Progressives Congress candidate, Bola Tinubu. This is contained in a statement issued by the Director of Media and Publicity, Segun Oni Campaign Organisation, Jackson Adebayo, on Friday in Ado-Ekiti. Oni, who was the candidate of the Social Democratic Party in the last governorship election in Ekiti described a statement credited to Mr Oyetunde Ojo and the South West Agenda of working with ex-governor Ayo Fayose to actualise Tinubu’s Presidential bid as “a very dishonest statement and a cheap lie.” He said that there was nothing that could make him work for Tinubu, alleging that Tinubu’s footprints were so evident in the rigged last Ekiti Governorship election. The SWAGA convener Ojo had on Thursday claimed that Ekiti state former governors, Fayose and Segun Oni, as well as some South-West heavyweights across political divides, believed in the cause of Tinubu. Ojo claimed many o...

The Confederation of African Football has appointed Moroccan Jalal Jayed as referee for Sunday’s Africa Under-20 Cup of Nations Group A battle between seven-time champions Nigeria and Senegal. In the match scheduled for the Cairo International Stadium, Jayed will be assisted by Tunisian Mohamed Bakir (assistant referee 1), Algerian Hamza Bouzit (assistant referee 2) and Ivorian Clement Kpan. The match will kick off at 7 p.m Egypt time (6 p.m Nigeria time), three hours after the tournament’s opening game between hosts Egypt and Mozambique at the same venue. While Hussein Jenayah from Tunisia will be the match commissioner, Burundian Jean Birumushahu will serve as referee assessor and Imade El Fahouss from Morocco will be the general coordinator. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the Nigerian team, the Flying Eagles, meanwhile had their first official training session in Cairo on Friday. According to Ademola Olajire, Director of Communications of Nigeria Football Federation, the tr...

The acting Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service, Isah Idris, has said that the new passport reforms introduced by his administration have eased passport application and issuance for Nigerians. Therefore, he said Nigerians should expect more reforms that would reflect in easier processing of the travel document. Isah revealed this in Abuja at the decoration ceremony of the service’s newly promoted senior officers to the ranks of Assistant Comptroller Generals and Comptrollers of Immigration. “While the Service under my watch is gradually but consistently migrating our passport issuing centres both locally and in the diaspora to the enhanced e-Passport, we have also been able to transform the process of passport application and issuance. “This was made possible by the introduction of a queuing system that enables passport applicants to choose an interview date immediately payment is made on the application portal. “This is helping management to regulate the passport pro...

Turkish rescuers on Saturday pulled three people, including a child, alive from the rubble 13 days after a massive quake claimed tens of thousands of lives, but one later died, a Turkey media platform reported. The channel did not provide any further details. A journalist for Turkish television channel NTV later reported that one of those found had died after being taken to hospital. NTV broadcast images of rescuers placing the rescued people onto stretchers after they had spent 296 hours trapped in the rubble. A 7.8-magnitude tremor on February 6 rocked southeastern Turkey and Syria, killing more than 43,000 people and leaving millions without proper shelter. Teams have been finding survivors all week despite them being stuck for so long under the rubble in freezing weather, but their numbers have dropped to just a handful in the past few days. Turkish rescuers on Friday pulled a 45-year-old man from rubble, several hours after others discovered three people including a 14-year-old bo...

The Abia State Police Command has confirmed the killing of three employees of the Abia State Environmental Protection Agency in Aba, the commercial hub of the state, on Friday. The Police Public Relations Officer in the state, SP Geoffrey Ogbonna, said the deceased persons were on duty in the area. Ogbonna added that they were identified as ASEPA staffers who were on duty in the area. He said, “They were attacked by men suspected to be cultists, but the name of their cult group is not yet known. “The people who dressed in black outfits inflicted multiple injuries on the victims with machetes, daggers and axes which left Stanley Ejike and two others whose identities were yet-to-be identified dead. “It was the identity card found on the body of one of them that disclosed that they were ASEPA staff. “Before police got to the scene, the suspects had escaped, leaving the dead body of their victims which had been deposited in the morgue. “Investigation into the matter has commenced. People w...

NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg is, on Saturday, expected to tell the Munich Security Conference that allies must provide Ukraine what it needs to defeat Russia, as Kyiv pleads for more weapons. NATO Secretary General Jens Stoltenberg “We must give Ukraine what they need to win and prevail as a sovereign, independent nation in Europe,” he will tell the gathering of world leaders, according to excerpts of his speech seen by AFP.