Author: Chief Editor

Henry Boyo It is now common for thousands of families across Nigeria to be regularly blessed with foreign exchange remittances from their children or relations, who have abandoned the country in search of greener pastures abroad. Notably, such remittances to Nigeria now reportedly exceed $25bn annually. This value exceeds 50 percent of Nigeria’s reserves of $40bn and also more than the Federal Government’s annual aggregate revenue in recent years. Instructively, therefore, if the Diaspora remittances are sensibly infused into the economy, the considerable additional forex inflow would strengthen the naira exchange rate to bolster consumer demand and stimulate expansion in…

Tunde Odesola The Amadi Amuda family house was a little hut built on poverty. That was the period when poverty was the oxygen available to the family with a runny nose and a prostrate kwashiorkor belly rising and falling, and rising and falling like a billow obeying the dexterity of the ironsmith. But time, life’s most precious resource, had chained down the family’s abject poverty, providing for their lack and feeding their needs. In the absence of money, poverty, however, resurrects quickly. Today, the family’s poverty is resurging, threatening to break loose because the fund used to keep it at…

• Al-Farouk Is Man Of The Match Nigeria’s male basketball team, D’Tigers, made another impressive performance yesterday, as they defeated their fierce West African rivals, Cote D’Ivoire, 83-66 points in their first classification game at the ongoing 2019 FIBA World Cup in China. The team was inspired by Al-Farouq Aminu with 13 points, seven rebounds and four assists to emerge the top performer.D’Tigers, who have since set their target on an automatic Olympic Games qualification, started in a fierce fashion to win the first quarter, 24-18 points. Not to be outdone and inspired by Deon Thompson, the Ivorians stepped up…

By Dele Momodu Fellow Nigerians, let me confess that I was a big fan of South Africa until lately. I have travelled to South Africa countless times in the last 15 years for business and pleasure. Sometimes I have routed my journey through that country only to seek to experience the air of freedom brought about by what I believed was the death of apartheid. I suspect that I was also trying to make up for those terrible years of apartheid when we thought we will never travel in that direction in our lifetime. As it turned out, Nigeria was…

What’s the story? Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu has confirmed that a clause in Lionel Messi’s contract will allow him to leave the club at the end of any given season. In case you didn’t know… A recent report published in El Pais on Thursday had claimed that Messi’s contract terms allow him to leave the Catalan giants at the end of any season if he wishes to. Gerard Pique confirmed the existence of the clause when he admitted that he already knew about it and insisted that he is not worried about his teammate’s departure. Messi, who has a €700m release clause in…

Former Barcelona and Inter star Samuel Eto’o has seemingly called time on his illustrious career in a message via social media. Eto’o – a three-time Champions League winner among other honours – last played for Qatari outfit Qatar SC in 2018-19. And the 38-year-old ex-Cameroon striker appears set for life after football following Friday’s Instagram post. “THE END, TOWARDS A NEW CHALLENGE,” Eto’o wrote. “Thank you all big love… adrenaline.” Eto’o enjoyed a trophy-laden career after emerging from Real Madrid’s youth team in 1997 – making three appearances for the Spanish giants. He won the Champions League twice with Barcelona…

What’s the story? Former Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger believes that while Mohamed Salah shares a number of similarities with Barcelona maestro Lionel Messi, the Liverpool forward is a little too “obsessed with finishing himself.” In case you didn’t know… Salah has been quite the revelation since joining Liverpool from Roma in 2017, having transformed himself from a mere outcast at Chelsea to a trophy-winning world-class forward under Jurgen Klopp. The Egyptian lifted his second Premier League Golden Boot at the end of the previous season, a prize which he shared with teammate Sadio Mane and Arsenal striker Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang. The 27-year-old forward has lately been accused of…

Serena Williams cruised into a 10th US Open final Thursday as she brushed aside fifth seed Elina Svitolina 6-3, 6-1 to claim a record-equaling 101st win at Flushing Meadows. Williams is seeking a 24th Grand Slam singles title to match Margaret Court’s all-time record and will face either Belinda Bencic or Bianca Andreescu on Saturday in her bid for a record seventh US Open triumph. The 37-year-old American, who made her US Open debut in 1998, drew level with Chris Evert for the most wins in tournament history after advancing to a 33rd major final. “To be in yet another…

Ayo Olukotun  “Bi aiye se n koja lori eniyan, a ki gbo iro nla re.” (A loud bang does not announce the passage of time)  –Yoruba proverb Picture the scenario. The commissioner for information shows up in the governor’s office, in one of the states, manifesting a bubble about the first 100 days of their administration, exuding ideas on how to mark the milestone. As he unfolded his template for celebration, the governor stopped him abruptly, interjecting. “Between you and me, what really do we have to celebrate? We are still settling down, we have not even appointed commissioners, we…

Fola Ojo Call it cruelty. Call it barbarity.  Call it a trail and straggle of atrocities, savagery, and truculence, and you will be right on the money. South Africans in recent season have neither hidden their anger, nor sheathed their savage swords. It is daggers drawn; this time round, not against a white minority rulership and dominance over the majority; but a war of sorts on citizens of nations from across the world who have called South Africa home. Nationals from a few countries that were neck-deep in the freedom fight that helped Black South Africans break the chains…