Author: Chief Editor

Barcelona president Joan Laporta repeated on Tuesday that negotiations with Lionel Messi “are going well”, less than a month before the Argentine star’s club contract expires. “We are in talks with Leo’s representatives,” Laporta said at the official presentation of centre-back Eric Garcia, who has joined from Manchester City, as a Barcelona player. “I said it the other day, it’s going well and we hope they continue to make progress.” “We want to agree on a new contract with Leo. It’s going well, but it’s not done.” Messi’s contract with Barcelona expires on June 30. Laporta said signing Messi to…

President of the Senate, Ahmad Lawan, says a national public hearing on the review of the 1999 Constitution will hold from Thursday, June 3 to Friday, June 4 in Abuja. Lawan made the announcement on Tuesday, during plenary in a letter addressed to him by the Chairman of the Constitution Review Committee, Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege. According to the Senate President, the two-day National Public Hearing on proposals to alter the provisions of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 is scheduled hold at the African Hall of the International Conference Centre (ICC), Abuja. He described the zonal public…

Members of the Senate on Tuesday observed a minute’s silence to mourn ex-presidential aide, Ahmed Gulak, who was murdered in Owerri, the Imo State capital, on Sunday. Gulak was callously murdered by gunmen while he was on his way to catch a flight at Sam Mbakwe International Cargo Airport, Owerri. At plenary on Tuesday, Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, cited Order 43 to notify the Senate of the gruesome murder of Gulak. According to him, Gulak was on a national assignment on behalf of the Senate Committee on Constitution Review when he was killed. Also, Senate President, Ahmad Lawan said,…

President Muhammadu Buhari has written formally to the Senate seeking its confirmation of the appointment of Major General Farouk Yahaya as the new Chief of Army Staff (COAS). The president’s request letter, which was addressed to the President of the Senate, Dr Ahmad Lawan, was read at the resumption of Senate plenary on Tuesday. President Buhari had last week named Major General Yahaya as COAS to replace Lt General Ibrahim Attahiru who died alongside 10 other military officers and men in an air crash in Kaduna last month. [ThisDay]

A former deputy governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Kingsley Moghalu has declared his intention to contest for president in 2023. Moghalu said his decision to contest again for president is driven by concern for suffering Nigerians who seek an alternative to the status quo. The former CBN deputy governor contested the presidential candidate of the Young Progressive Party (YPP) in 2019 and lost to incumbent President Muhammadu Buhari. Moghalu finished 14th on the election log with just 26,039 to Buhari’s 15.1 million votes. Two years after the election, Moghalu said he will recontest the presidential election. “If elected,…

Governor Bello Matawalle of Zamfara has sacked the Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Alhaji Bala Bello and all 23 commissioners with immediate effect. This is contained in a statement signed by the special adviser Public Enlightenment, media and Communications, Malam Zailani Bappa. The governor also approved the sack of his Chief of Staff Bala Mande and the Deputy Chief of Staff, Dr Bashir Maru. The governor also approved the removal of all chairmen and members of the state commissions and boards of various agencies. Matawalle ordered the sacked commissioners to hand over affairs of their ministries to their respective…

In office since the military-led ouster of Robert Mugabe three-and-a-half years ago, Zimbabwe’s President Emmerson Mnangagwa is consolidating his grip on power with moves reminiscent of his predecessor’s style, analysts say. Tweaks to the constitution and criminalising anti-government speech mark a change from Mugabe’s street-fighting and abductions, but observers see the same motives at work — making political opposition all but impossible. The president — who arrived in office promising a “new and unfolding democracy” and a departure from Mugabe’s authoritarian rule — is in fact developing “an imperial executive whose power is not adequately checked and balanced,” said Kucaca…

After almost nine months of exciting action, the 2020-21 season has drawn to a close. It was a season that was played almost entirely behind closed doors. While the absence of fans did take away a lot of the sheen, there was still no shortage of excitement across the top European leagues. The 2020-21 campaign officially ended this past Saturday as Chelsea beat Manchester City to win the UEFA Champions League. We’ve seen the emergence of a lot of young and exciting players this term. We’ve also seen some of the very best in the business continue to dominate. As…

Manchester City have set their sights on signing Real Madrid defender Sergio Ramos this summer. The Spaniard is set to become a free agent once his Real Madrid contract expires. As per ESPN, multiple sources have confirmed Manchester City’s interest in Ramos, with the club reportedly willing to offer him a two-year deal this summer. Real Madrid have not reached an agreement with Sergio Ramos regarding a new deal, and the club captain is set to walk away for free. The Spaniard has not featured a lot this season due to injuries, and reports suggest Los Blancos are not willing to meet his wage demands. https://twitter.com/ESPNFC/status/1399320521641283584…

Zinedine Zidane resigned as Real Madrid manager because he felt the Spanish club no longer had any confidence in him, he wrote in an open letter on Monday. “I’m leaving because I feel the club no longer has the faith in me I need, and doesn’t offer me the support to build something in the medium or long term,” the Frenchman wrote in the letter published in the sports daily AS. “I am a born winner and I was here to win trophies, but beyond this there are human beings, emotions, life and I have the feeling that these things…