News & Announcements

The Football Association of Zambia (FAZ) is mourning former Mufulira Wanderers and Zambia national team midfielder Philemon Mulala.

The 60-year-old was mauled to death by his three dogs at his Lichtenburg home in the North West on Saturday afternoon.

Police spokesperson Capt Sam Tselanyane confirmed Mulala was the victim of the dog attack.

Mulala arrived in South Africa to play for Kaizer Chiefs in 1988, Pule Iniesta Jakkals shared on the NPSL, NSL, NFL, FPL & PSL ex-Pros page on Facebook.

He also played for Cape Town Spurs and Lenasia Dynamos.

The association said Mulala was notably part of the 1984 Zambian squad that won the East and Central Africa Challenge cup under coach Col Brightwell Banda.

FAZ general secretary Adrian Kashala said the football fraternity had lost a gallant soldier.

“We remain with wonderful memories that the late Philemon honoured us with on the pitch. There is a lot that today’s players can learn from the deceased’s generation,” Kashala said.

Gunmen who abducted 31 Edo train passengers on Saturday have allegedly demanded N620m ransom for their release.

It was gathered on Monday that the criminals had presented their demands to the families of the abductees.

The Executive Director, Esan Youth for Good Governance and Social Justice, Benson Odia, disclosed that the kidnappers were demanding N20m for each victim.

This was as the police anti-terrorism squad and the Nigerian Railway Corporation on Monday met to strategise on ways to rescue the train passengers.

Speaking in an interview, Odia stated that the demand was absurd, calling on the authorities to intensify efforts in rescuing the 31 hostages in the custody of the kidnappers.

He also said that the Minister of Transportation, Mu’azu Sambo and the Managing Director, Nigeria Railway Corporation, Fidel Okhiria were at Igueben to assess the situation.

Odia said the authorities promised to deploy helicopters on Tuesday to locate where the victims were kept in the bush.

He said, “I can tell you that the kidnappers have demanded N20m, totalling N620m. This is absurd and I don’t know where poor people will be able to raise that amount of money.’’

The Edo state police spokesman, Chidi Nwabuzor could not confirm the veracity of the claim.

However, the Edo State Commissioner for Communication and Orientation, Chris Nehikhare,  disclosed that six victims had been rescued, adding that efforts were ongoing to rescue the remaining 26 victims.

The commissioner in a statement noted that Governor Godwin Obaseki had given directives that the criminals should be arrested.

He added that two wanted kidnappers who were not connected to the present case have been arrested and would also help the police in their investigation.

The statement read, “Following Governor Godwin Obaseki that the kidnappers that attacked the train in Igueben on Saturday be smoked out of their hiding and the persons abducted be rescued, we are happy to announce that six persons have been rescued.

“The six persons are a 65-year-old man, a nursing mother and her baby, a six-year-old girl, and two siblings; aged two and five years old. 

“We commend the efforts of the rescue team in the bushes and their support staff that have been working tirelessly since the incident occurred to ensure the kidnapped passengers are rescued and reunited with their families.

“We are confident that the other victims will be rescued soon as the highly motivated security personnel are in high spirits and have doubled down on the hot chase of the kidnappers.’’

“As events unfold in the bushes, be assured that we will keep you posted and we crave the support of all stakeholders, particularly the media, to stay with the facts and avoid sensational reports that could further inflict emotional pain on the families and friends of the victims who are already in distress. Operation Bush Combing continues,” Nehikhare added.

Also, the NRC MD, in an interview with Channels TV on Monday, said the agency had got approval to acquire sophisticated security systems.

On whether lessons were learned from the attack on the Abuja-Kaduna train, he stated, “We learned a lot from the last attack.

“We improved our security by increasing the number of personnel; vigilantes, army, police, and some technology but we are not there yet.

“We must continue to improve and ensure we get the required result.”

At least 1,200 protesters were detained by police on Monday following the invasion of Brazil’s capital buildings on Sunday.

According to reports, the authorities have also started dismantling the tent city where supporters of the former president, Jair Bolsonaro, had been camping out since he lost October’s election.

Thousands of Bolsonaro supporters broke into government buildings in the capital, Brasília, on Sunday to protest what they claimed was a stolen election.

Ex-military President, Gen. Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida(Retd.) has travelled to Germany for a medical check-up.

The media aide and close family confidant of the former military ruler, Alhaji Mahmud Abdullahi, revealed this to the News Agency of Nigeria in Minna.

Abdullahi told NAN, “I did not discuss with Oga before he left Nigeria where he had travelled to and why.

“I know he is due for a medical checkup because recently he has not gone for it.

“Therefore, I believe he travelled to Germany on Saturday for the medical check-up.”

He said he could not give more details about the trip since he did not discuss it with his boss before traveling out of the country.

The media aide assured the public that there was no cause for alarm as the former leader had only travelled for a routine medical check-up.

The Nigeria Immigration Service NIS has reprimanded 36 of its employees for corruption as part of efforts to make doing business easier and guarantee that Nigerians receive the best services possible.

For a variety of offenses for which they appeared before the Orderly Room Trial Committee of the Service, 14 of the figure were demoted while four of them were discharged.

This was revealed in a statement released on Tuesday in Abuja by service spokesman DCI Tony Akuneme.

He stated in the statement “As part of efforts to rid the Service of bad eggs and in furtherance of the Federal Government’s fight against corruption, the Nigeria Immigration Service has dismissed 4 personnel and demoted 14 for various offences for which they appeared before the Orderly Room Trial Committee of the Service.”

He claims that two additional employees were redeployed and four other employees were fired and found not guilty.

“Eleven were issued warning letters and one was compulsorily retired. According to the Committee, 11 personnel are still awaiting trial.

“The CGI is assuring the general public that there are no sacred cows in the NIS as all offenders shall be appropriately sanctioned.

Abiodun Alabi, the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, has issued a warning to Yoruba Nation agitators that he will not tolerate additional acts of violence in the state.

Alabi pledged to deal with anyone or anything seen upsetting the tranquility of the city, no matter what their cover.

According to SP Benjamin Hundeyin, the state’s police public relations officer, who emphasised that such individuals “would be decisively dealt with in accordance with the terms of the law,”

Following the armed assault on police officers who were dispersing an illegal gathering in the early hours of Monday, according to Hundeyin, the warning grew urgent.

The PRO stated that the police will make sure that nobody infringed on the fundamental human rights of others, noting that the command is not against people’s right to association, assembly, and expression.

The commissioner of police urged peace-loving citizens to go about their legitimate responsibilities without fear of harassment or intimidation, while pledging not to accept even the slightest kind of violence on its employees or Lagos residents.

Rio Ferdinand, a former defender for Manchester United, advised the team to choose Mehdi Taremi of Porto over Wout Weghorst.

Rio Ferdinand believes that at this time, it would be too pricey for Manchester United to bring in Victor Osimhen.

Erik ten Hag is finishing negotiations to sign Weghorst because he is keen to get a new striker during this transfer window.

Burnley player Weghorst is presently on loan at Besiktas of the Turkish Super Lig.

When Manchester United tried to convince the Turkish giants to revoke Weghorst’s season-long loan, their initial offer was turned down.

The Red Devils, in contrast, ought to pursue Taremi, who has scored 14 goals in 20 appearances for his Portuguese club this season, according to club great Ferdinand.

Currently, Taremi’s contract with Porto has a €60 million (£53 million) release clause that will run out the next year.

Ferdinand responded, “I’d have gone and got Taremi in from Porto,” after the United team’s pursuit of Weghorst was brought up on the YouTube program Vibe with Five.

“It’s massive money, 100 million, 120 million, [Victor] Osimhen, you’re getting charged. You’re paying big dough for these guys.”

Nsofor Chukwukadibia, a rumored drug boss, had an astounding N4.3 billion hidden in 126 bank accounts, which has now been frozen.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency reported that over N50 billion had gone through the accounts held by several commercial banks, with cash inflows of N4.3 billion and outflows of N7.9 billion.

Chukwukadibia was detained in October of last year after a massive shipment of drugs worth N8.8 billion was found in one of his houses in the affluent Victoria Garden City neighborhood of Lekki, Lagos.

The NDLEA Director of Media, Femi Babafemi, claimed that the chemicals were housed inside the home in hundreds of containers.

The NDLEA last week discovered domestic accounts worth $381, 794.19 (or around N267, 255,933), £5,543.24 and another N100m as part of its investigations into Chukwukadibia’s drug trafficking business.

Additionally, the NDLEA has seized 20 houses in Lagos, Abuja, and the South-East that belonged to the alleged drug lord.

It was discovered that Victoria Garden City was home to six of the structures.

“Though he claimed to have sold the mansions in the South-East, investigation is going on to ascertain his claims. Meanwhile, he is due to face drug trafficking and money laundering charges soon,’’ a senior official confirmed.

Further information revealed that nine vehicles, including three SUVs with bulletproof glass, were also taken from Chukwukadibia’s houses by the NDLEA.

In a related event, the drug agency and India have reached an agreement to stop the smuggling of tramadol into the country from Asia.

In addition to the successful operations against the drug barons, which had resulted in the crippling of their criminal networks throughout the nation, this is anticipated to considerably restrict the shipping of tramadol and other illegal substances into Nigeria.

Chief Raymond Dokpesi, the founder of DAAR Communications Plc, was detained and released, according to the London Metropolitan Police in the United Kingdom.

The 71-year-old man was detained at Heathrow Airport on Sunday, and police claimed they were looking into whether or not he had forced a woman.

Dokpesi was in the UK in connection with the British government’s invitation to PDP presidential contender Atiku Abubakar to speak about the 2023 elections.

In an email response to questions from Punch newspaper regarding the circumstances surrounding Dokpesi’s arrest, the Met Police omitted mentioning the PDP chairman by name.

The mail read: “On Sunday, 8 January, a 71-year-old man was arrested at Heathrow Airport on suspicion of rap*. The arrest relates to an allegation of rap* in August 2019. The man has been bailed, pending further enquiries, to a date in early April. Enquiries into the circumstances continue. “Please, note that we don’t confirm the identity of any person who has been arrested but not charged.”

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has issued a severe threat to call off the upcoming general election if the nation’s general level of insecurity does not decrease.

Mahmood Yakubu, the chairman of INEC, reportedly said that the upcoming election stands a severe threat of cancellation if the insecurity across the nation doesn’t get better when speaking at the validation of election security training resources on Monday in Abuja.

“We all appreciate the fact that Election Security is vital to democratic consolidation through provision of enabling environment for the conduct of free, fair, credible, and inclusive elections and thus strengthening the electoral process,” said Yakubu, who was represented by the Chairman, Board of Electoral Institute, Abdullahi Zuru.

“Consequently, in preparations for the 2023 General elections, the Commission is not leaving anything to chance in ensuring that intensive and extensive security are provided for election personnel, materials and processes.

“This is particularly significant to the Commission given the current insecurity challenges in various parts the country and the fact that the National Youth Service Corps NYSC members constitute the core of the Polling Unit Election officials.

“Moreover, if the insecurity is not monitored and dealt with decisively, it could ultimately culminate in the cancellation and/or postponement of elections in sufficient constituencies to hinder declaration of elections results and precipitate constitutional crisis.

“This must not be allowed to happen and shall not be allowed to happen. Therefore, Security Personnel in particular and all election officials in general must be security conscious and alert to unusual activities in their environment and must be fully equipped to deal with any challenge at all times.

“To this end, the National Security Adviser, Gen. Mohammed Babagana Monguno and the Chairman, INEC have jointly assured the nation that conducive environment will be provided for successful conduct of the 2023 general Election.

“Similarly, the Inspector General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, has conducted Election Security Management Workshops across the Six Geopolitical Zones.

“On its part the Commission, through The Electoral Institute, has institutionalized the development and implementation of a cascaded training mechanism for security personnel as a critical component of its training plan”.

The Bimodal Verification and Accreditation System (BVAS), he said, will be used at polling units to conduct continuous verification, accreditation, and voting. Real-time polling unit-level results will also be uploaded on to the INEC Results Viewing (IReV) Portal using the same BVAS, he said, adding that the Commission was encouraged by the protection provided by the amended Electoral Act.

“These commitments require innovative security strategies and deployments for protection of voters, election personnel, materials, equipment, the electoral processes as well as the general public and infrastructure.

“These innovative systems and processes minimize human errors and delays in results collation and improves the accuracy, transparency, and credibility of the results collation process thereby ensuring credibility of the process.

“They were tested during the Ekiti and Osun Governorship elections, held on June 18, 2022 and July 16, 2022, respectively”, he added.