Author: Akintayo Adams

The United States has revealed that 3,270 Nigerians gained U.S. citizenship through military service between 2020 and 2024. This makes Nigeria the fourth highest among countries whose citizens were granted U.S. citizenship through military naturalization during this period. During this period, the U.S. naturalized over 52,000 military service members across different countries. The top five countries of birth among those naturalized were the Philippines (5,630), Jamaica (5,420), Mexico (3,670), Nigeria (3,270), and Ghana. The number of Nigerian service members gaining U.S. citizenship has steadily increased over the past five years. In 2020, 340 Nigerians were naturalized, a figure that rose…

Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, has visited Nigerian legal luminary, Afe Babalola, SAN, in Ado-Ekiti, Ekiti State. Obi pleaded with Babalola to consider the “situation” of human rights lawyer, Dele Farotimi, who has been remanded at the Ekiti prison. Babalola has come under intense criticism from several Nigerians since he petitioned the police to arrest Farotimi. On Monday, the court granted Farotimi bail in the sum of ₦50 million and a surety in like sum. However, Obi has decided to try and mediate between the two lawyers. A social activist, Moses Paul, posted pictures and…

The Naira experienced a slight depreciation on Monday, December 9, 2024. At the official market, it closed at ₦1,533.97/$, a marginal decline from the previous rate of ₦1,533.93/$. On the parallel market, the Naira depreciated to ₦1,630/$, compared to ₦1,590/$ over the weekend. This depreciation follows a week of strong performance where the Naira had appreciated significantly due to factors such as Nigeria’s successful $2.2 billion Eurobond issuance and the Central Bank of Nigeria’s introduction of the Electronic Foreign Exchange Matching System (EFEMS). Get instant and latest news updates via Our WhatsApp Community, X/Twitter or Google News online channel.

Nigeria’s Vice President, Kashim Shettima, has criticized the newly elected UK Conservative Party leader, Kemi Badenoch, for her comments about Nigeria. Speaking at the 10th Annual Migration Dialogue at the State House in Abuja, Shettima accused Badenoch of disparaging her country of origin. Shettima stated, “Kemi Badenoch, the leader of the British Labour or Conservative Party. We are proud of her in spite of her efforts at denigrating her nation of origin. “She is entitled to her own opinions; she has even every right to remove the Kemi from her name but that does not underscore the fact that the…

The Lagos State Government has indefinitely suspended operations on its Red Line Mass Transit Train Service (LRMT) due to mechanical failures. The suspension came after the train service experienced issues during its morning operations last week. Initially, operators announced that only the afternoon services would run, but later confirmed that no trains would operate until further notice. The Red Line, which began operations on October 15, 2024, was expected to provide critical relief to Lagos commuters. Get instant and latest news updates via Our WhatsApp Community, X/Twitter or Google News online channel.

The Ademola Adeleke-led Osun State Government has revealed that it has recovered ₦53,089,683.52 in pension overpayments to retirees. This disclosure was made on Monday during the annual Audit Forum held in Ede, highlighting issues uncovered through a comprehensive audit of the 2023 fiscal year. According to the Auditor-General, Kolapo Idris, the overpayments occurred between January 1 and December 31, 2023. A review of 437 pension files processed during this period revealed discrepancies in 137 cases, which were flagged for irregularities, while the remaining 300 files were cleared without incident. Penalties were imposed on the queried files in line with established…

Nigeria and Saudi Arabia have initiated talks on extracting and processing iron ore into steel. This collaboration was advanced during the Resourcing Tomorrow event at the annual Mines and Money expo in London, United Kingdom. The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, and the Deputy Minister of Minerals and Energy of Saudi Arabia, Khalid bin Saleh Al-Musdaifer, discussed plans for extracting and processing iron ore in Nigeria. Saudi Arabia currently imports iron ore from various African countries to support its solid steel industry. Dele Alake proposed that Nigeria should not only extract iron ore but also process it into…

Manchester City’s long-awaited hearing into 115 alleged breaches of Premier League rules has concluded, though a verdict is not expected until 2025. The Daily Mail reported that closing arguments in the case, which began on September 16 at London’s International Dispute Resolution Centre, were delivered to an independent panel on Friday1. City strongly deny any wrongdoing but could face severe sanctions if found guilty, including relegation from the Premier League. Last season, Everton and Nottingham Forest faced points deductions for breaching the league’s profit and sustainability regulations1. The English champions are accused of 80 financial rule breaches between 2009 and…

Airtel Nigeria has announced a new partnership with Google to bring YouTube to all television sets across the country, regardless of whether they are smart or older analogue models. This deal was signed at Airtel’s Lagos headquarters. Under the agreement, YouTube will be integrated into Airtel Nigeria’s Smart Router, a device that combines internet connectivity with the ability to transform regular TVs into smart TVs. Users can now access YouTube directly on their TVs, offering a seamless streaming experience for movies, sports, music, and educational content. Femi Oshinlaja, the Chief Commercial Officer of Airtel Nigeria, highlighted the significance of this…

Popular dancer Lil Smart has claimed that music stars Naira Marley and Zinoleesky should be held responsible if anything happens to him. Sharing disturbing photos and videos on his social media, Smart alleged that the duo were threatening his life. “If anything happens to me (missing or killed), just know it is both Naira Marley and Zino,” he said. In another post via his Instastory, he vowed to expose Naira Marley and Zinoleesky’s secrets, saying late rapper Mohbad was bullied until he died, just as he’s being threatened. “That’s the same way they bullied Mohbad till he died. I’m going…