Wife of billionaire businessman Ned Nwoko and actress Regina Daniels has launched a magazine with her name. The luncheon which held in Abuja last weekend had Nollywood stars in attendance as well as other guests.
Regina took to her timeline to announce the good news and shared pictures from the event with her husband who was also present. More photos below...
The Ondo State Government has declared Tuesday a public holiday ahead of President Muhammadu Buhari’s visit to the state.
Buhari is expected in the state for the activities making the third anniversary of Governor Oluwarotimi Akeredolu in the saddle as governor of the State.
According to a statement signed by the Commissioner for Information and Orientation, Donald Ojogo, the President will be inaugurating some projects in the state to commemorate the anniversary.
The statement read, “The Ondo State Governor, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu, SAN, has approved the declaration of Tuesday, February 25, 2020, a Public Holiday.
“Governor Akeredolu while granting the approval says, the Public Holiday is necessary for the State to welcome the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari who is expected to arrive the State to commission two key legacy projects, the Ore Industrial Hub and the Ore Inter-change. These are part of activities marking the 3rd Anniversary of the administration.
“The Governor expresses appreciation to God for the journey thus far even as he enjoins all to take advantage of this period to participate fully in the series of activities lined up for the Anniversary celebrations.”
The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has warned Nigerians to be cautious when taking tea popularly known as `Maishayi’ from vendors.
Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, NAFDAC Director-General gave the warning in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Abuja.
Adeyeye said that the warning became necessary following information the agency received that Maishayi now mix intoxicating drugs in the tea prepared for customers.
She mentioned intoxicating drugs such as tramadol, Vieteling, Marijuana and others, adding that people could lose their lives after taking tea mixed with such drugs.
“In the US, lots of people are dying because of these medicines. How can such medicines mix with palm wine in the name of getting high in Nigeria?
“There are some medicines you cannot take if you have cardiovascular problem,” she said.
The director-general said that the agency was working toward collaborating with the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD) to check for quality medicine in orthodox and herbal.
According to her, the idea is necessary since NIPRD specialises on research, and the purpose is to safeguard the health of the nation.
LA Lakers' iconic Staples Center will be packed on Monday for a ceremony to celebrate the lives of NBA legend Kobe Bryant and his teenage daughter Gianna.
Bryant, Gianna and seven others died on January 26 when the helicopter they were travelling on crashed into the side of a mountain in Calabasas.
Bryant played for the Lakers for 20 seasons, and he is widely regarded as one of the greatest athletes of all time, while Gianna was a promising young basketball talent who had aspirations to play for the University of Connecticut.
More than 88,000 people applied for tickets to the memorial service in the first five hours, with a limited number available to the general public. The rest were reserved for friends, family and members of the NBA community.
A numbers of high-profile names will be at the service, and Bryant's wife and Gianna's mother Vanessa shared a tribute for her daughter on Instagram ahead of the event after women's football star Sydney Leroux had a number 2 tattooed on her arm.
Tyson Fury shared an emotional phone call with dad John just moments after his sensational win over Deontay Wilder on Saturday night.
Fury was cheered on by a vocal following of British fans as well as wife Paris, brothers Shane and Tommy and other members of his family at ringside at the MGM Grand.
But a noticeable absentee was father John, the man who trained him from childhood all the way through to his dramatic win over Wladimir Klitschko to become world heavyweight champion for the first time in 2015.
Unable to travel to the United States due to being denied a visa for a previous conviction, John Fury was forced to watch on from home for the third straight fight as his son dominated Wilder to claim his WBC belt.
He was quick to give his old man a call in the early hours of Sunday morning to discuss what had just transpired, with the emotional phone call before his press conference captured by iFL TV.
Despite earning plaudits from around the world, Fury was keen to get approval from the man that matters most - asking his dad how it looked on TV and highlighting he emulated Muhammad Ali as a two-time Ring Magazine champion.
Fury said: "Everyone was thinking what’s he doing at this high weight, 272lbs. I was 19 stone 4lbs tonight, solid.
"Listen, I was too strong for him dad. I was 40lbs heavier than him. He was about 15 and a half stone and I was about 19 and a half stone.’
"Yeah they did a good thing. Listen, I was going to hurt him I was. I busted his ear, blood running down his ear.
"Listen, he was long dead. He didn’t recover from the first knock down. I hit him with a left hook to the body and tripled him. The sheer strength of me put him over with a body shot.
"Did it look good on the tele?
"Hey, dad, only the second man in history to win the Ring Magazine belt twice – me and Muhammad Ali, not bad eh?
"Go on then dad, I’ve got a million interviews. I’ll call you when I get back to the house. See you in a bit. Bye."
A mum's final act as she lay dying in hospital after being burnt alive along with her three children has been labelled heroic.
Hannah Clarke suffered burns to 97 per cent of her body after it is alleged her rugby player estranged husband Rowan Baxter covered her and their children Aaliyah, six, Laianah, four, and Trey, three, in petrol and set fire to their car during the school run.
Baxter, who trained for the New Zealand Warriors in the NRL, then killed himself by stabbing himself in the chest.
Eyewitnesses saw Hannah jumping from the burning vehicle in flames shouting "he poured petrol on me" before a neighbour rushed to her aid.
She was rushed to the Royal Brisbane and Women's hospital where she died later on Wednesday evening.
But before she died she managed to use her final breaths to give police a full statement about what had happened.
Family friend Simon Farmer, who was with Hannah in Intensive Care, took to social media to praise his friend's courage.
He wrote: "She hung in there … Until the last heartbeat brought a tidal wave of grief and anger."
“You should all know how strong she was, she fought so hard.”
Police Commissioner Katarina Carroll praised Hannah's incredible bravery moments before her death at a vigil over the weekend.
He said: "Right through to her passing, Hannah showed amazing courage and heroism, ensuring that she gave our police and emergency services at the scene a detailed statement of the horrific events that unfolded, leading to the death of her three children and ultimately herself.
"Hannah’s determination to provide our police the information they needed to ensure justice should be served truly encapsulates the sort of person Hannah was. She was strong, she was determined, she was courageous."
Clarke's family have branded their estranged son-in-law "scum" and a "monster" - and it has now been claimed she suffered decade-long abuse and feared for her life days before being killed.
Hannah had planned to write a new will just days before her death, her heartbroken mother has claimed.
In an emotional with 'A Current Affair' in Australia, heartbroken mum Suzanne said: "She said to me only last week, 'Mum should I do a will?'
"'What happens to my babies if he kills me? Because he'll go to jail for murder, who gets my children?'
"She said: 'I want you and dad to have them or Nat. I don't want his family to have them.'"
Nigerian singer, Joshua Iniyezo, popularly known as Solid Star is of the opinion that Niger Delta indigenes, especially Delta, his home state, do not show support to entertainers like the Igbos and Yorubas support entertainers from their region.
The singer who is from the Isoko speaking part of the state stated this via his Twitter handle.
He wrote; “It’s a shame that Deltans have no regard nor respect for their entertainers like the Igbos x Yoruba’s #Nolove, should be the reason why we don’t come home! Respect and support ur exports!”
It’s a shame that Deltans have no regard nor respect for their entertainers like the Igbos x Yoruba’s #Nolove,, should be the reason why we don’t come home! Respect and support ur exports!
Forty Italians were blocked on Monday from disembarking their plane upon arrival in Mauritius due to surging coronavirus cases in Italy.
An Alitalia flight from Rome to Mauritius arrived at its destination with 212 passengers, including 40 from Lombardy and Veneto, the Italian regions dealing with a coronavirus outbreak.
Mauritius authorities said the 40 could get off the plane only if they accepted to be quarantined. The airline, Alitalia, however, says it was not warned about this in advance.
The 40, who have not reported any symptoms of the disease, said they would rather go home and “Alitalia is arranging for their immediate return,” the company says.
Israeli strikes targeting the Palestinian militant group ”Islamic Jihad” and Iranian-backed militia have killed six people on Monday near the Syrian capital.
According to Israeli military, its fighter jets struck Islamic Jihad targets South of Damascus, as well as dozens of other sites across the Gaza Strip.
The Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, a Britain-based watchdog, said the Israeli shelling killed at least two Palestinian members of the Islamic Jihad and four from the Iranian-backed militias, and a Syrian national.
The watchdog said the shelling hit a post manned by the Islamic Jihad and the Iranian Revolutionary Guards, located a few kilometres from the Damascus International Airport.
Syria’s state-run News Agency (SANA), said Syrian air defence responded to the missiles in the airspace over the capital.
The Islamic Jihad claimed responsibility for firing barrages of rockets and mortar shells at Israel after Israeli soldiers shot dead a member of its armed wing, planting an explosive device at the heavily secured border fence with Israel.
The latest escalation comes a week before an unprecedented third parliamentary election in Israel. Following the barrages, school lessons were called off and roads closed in Southern Israel.
A group, Advocacy for Alleged Witches (AFAW) has said that witchcraft does not exist and that the concept is a myth, saying that the act of killing children and others on the premise that they are witches is barbaric and must be stopped.
Dr. Leo Igwe, Chief Executive Officer of AFAW, told PM News in an interview in Lagos that persecution of alleged witches should stop, lamenting that there had been several cases children and women suspected to be witches were brutally killed in Nigeria and in some parts of Africa.
He said AFAW was planning a decade of activism against witches persecution in Africa, spanning between 2020 and 2030 in which to end the menace, adding that to realize the objective, the group would engage sharing latest news on witchcraft allegation/witch persecution, as well as engage state and non-state actors in the field of witchcraft accusation.
Igwe added that the group would engage in intervention to protect alleged witches and to educate the accusers and also lobby local, national and regional and global institution in tackling abuses that were linked to witch persecution and witch hunting, as well as cooperate with institutions with similar aims and objectives.
He said the group would organize public education and enlightenment campaigns to reason people out of the misconceptions that drive witch persecution and other harmful traditional practices through training, workshops and seminars for various interest groups.
“AFAW uses a secular, humanist, skeptical and human rights approach to examine witchcraft narratives and address related abuses. Our campaign is founded on the principles that witchcraft is a myth and an imaginary crime which no one commits.
“It is founded in the principles that attributions or causing harm through occult means are based on hearsay and misinformation, panic and anxieties, fear and superstition.
“Witch persecution, killings and trials are forms of human rights abuses that should not be tolerated in the name of religion, culture or tradition. I urge all Africans as well as none Africans, including all Africans in the diaspora to join efforts with us to achieve this important objective,” Igwe stated.
Fire has destroyed 10 houses harbouring silos in Dirani village, Jigawa state.
The Suletankarkar Local Government council Information Officer, Alhaji Usman Abubakar, told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday that the silos contained grains worth over N5 million.
Abubakar said the silos contained sorghum, beans and guinea corn, among others.
Abubakar said the fire, which occurred late on Sunday, was believed to have started from a kitchen in one of the houses.
According to him, the occupants of the building might have failed to put out the fire used in cooking.
“We are suspecting that the fence of the house caught fire from the cooking spot and spread to other houses in the neighbourhood,” he said.
The spokesman said the council’s Chairman, Alhaji Ja’afaru Mohammad, had visited the village for on-the-spot assessment of the incident.
He called on the State Emergency Management Agency to assist the affected persons with relief materials.
There was tension in Sagamu, one of the biggest cities in Ogun State, after angry young men and women took to the streets on Monday to register their displeasure over the killing of a footballer by operatives of Special Anti-Robbery Squad.
The soccer player with Remo Stars Football Club known as Tiyamiyu Kazeem was said to have been pushed from a SARS van on motion and onto an oncoming speeding car that eventually killed him.
This was shortly after SARS operatives allegedly seized him from his car and labelled him an Internet fraudster (Yahoo boy).
Media Officer of the football club, Dimeji Oshode, in a statement confirmed that the incident occurred on Saturday.
However, angered by the situation, youths in Sagamu have now taken to the streets to register their frustration.
In videos making the rounds on the Internet, young men and women could be seen chanting various songs and calling for the abolition of SARS.
One person is currently feared dead as a result of the protest and there are concerns more damage could be witnessed if the situation persists.
A Togo opposition leader has accused authorities of setting up fake polling stations in Saturday's presidential election to skew the result in favour of the incumbent.
Agbéyomé Kodjo made the accusation against President Faure Gnassingbé who has been in power since 2005 when he took over from his father.
The president's office is quoted by AFP news agency as denying the accusation.
Cristiano Ronaldo’s bodybuilder ex-minder has died at 50.
Hulking Nigel Davis, known to pals as "Big Nige" passed away at Royal Stoke University Hospital after a short illness which initially started when he collapsed at home.
The former Mr Universe contestant who lived in Wolverhampton was hired as Ronaldo’s bodyguard in his Manchester United days.
Paying tribute to the dad-of-one, wife Collette said: “We were inseparable. He was my soul mate and one in a million.
“You’d only have to walk into a room and the aura he had was that everybody saw him as a gentle giant. He was polite, loving, he would do anything for anybody.
“He was my angel. His life has been cut way too short. He was an amazing husband and dad, it’s going to be hard to fill his shoes.
“I feel blessed to have the four years that I did. I just wish I had asked him out sooner so I could’ve loved him for longer.
“He really helped me not just as a wife or a partner, he was my best friend.”
Friends have set up a GoFundMe to cover the costs of his funeral – and the page has already raised £3,000.
Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun, has advised residents of the state to remain calm and not resort to self – help in respect of the late Remo Stars Football Club defender, Kazeem Tiamiyu who was killed by men of the Nigerian Police in Sagamu on Saturday.
While also assuring that similar cases will be looked into, he described the killing of the soccer star as unfortunate and urged players, management and supporters of Remo Stars Football Club, to remain calm, adding that the killers would be brought to justice.
The Governor, who expressed shock at the tragic event, assured that a proper, transparent and independent investigation would be launched into the incident to know what transpired with a view to bringing those responsible to justice.
The Governor eulogised the late player as a young man with great potentials and stated that his government would not take with levity, the safety of lives and property of the good people of Ogun State.
He promised that the incident would not be swept under the carpet, calling on everyone to be calm during the investigation and be confident that anyone found culpable would be brought to book.
He also sympathised with the two persons hospitalised as a result of Thursday’s shooting at Olomoore Market, Abeokuta by men of anti-cultism team of Ogun State police Command.
Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has expressed deep grief over the death of the vice chairman of the Rivers State Football Association, Chief and Remo Stars’ players Kazeem Tiamiyu.
Omineokuma-Kile died last Thursday while Tiamiyu was killed by men of the Nigeria Police on Saturday.
In a letter signed by the NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, the NFF said it remembered Chief Omineokuma-Kile as “a man of integrity with dignified bearing, as he accomplished his duties quietly and with diligence, both during the Annual General Assembly and in his position as the vice chairman of Rivers State Football Association.
Also at the weekend, the NFF sent a letter of condolence to the Chairman of Ogun State Football Association and NFF Executive Committee member, Alhaji Ganiyu Majekodunmi over the untimely death of assistant captain of Remo Stars Football Club, Kazeem.
Italy today announced its fourth death from coronavirus as the country imposes drastic security measures to contain the first major outbreak in Europe.
The 84-year-old man was confirmed dead today in Lombardy in northern Italy, where 50,000 people have been placed under lockdown, schools have been shut and bars and restaurants have been ordered to close.
The fourth virus victim died in Bergamo after he was taken to hospital with an unrelated illness but was later found to have the coronavirus, Italian media said.
The outbreak has sparked fears that tourists returning from Italy could send the epidemic spiralling across Europe, with many Britons returning to school and work after the half-term break today.
The country has confirmed more than 160 cases of the virus, by far the largest number outside Asia.
The wealthy Lombardy region which includes Milan is the worst-affected region, while 22 people have been infected in neighbouring Veneto which includes Venice.
As the panic spread last night, Austria halted trains from crossing the Alps into Italy after two German women reported a fever on board, although they later tested negative.
Authorities in Lombardy and Veneto have banned public events including Masses, while Milan's famous cathedral has been closed to visitors.
The spread of the virus has also forced the stoppage of high-profile events including the Venice Carnival, Milan Fashion Week and Serie A football fixtures.
US President Donald Trump has arrived to a thunderous reception in Gujarat on his first official visit to India.
Mr Trump is addressing a massive public rally with PM Narendra Modi at the Motera stadium, the world's largest cricket venue.
More than 100,000 people present at the venue burst into applause as the two leaders entered.
Mr Trump's visit will focus on deepening ties between the world's two largest democracies.
The event at Motera stadium is being compared to the "Howdy, Modi!" event the two men held in Houston last year, which was attended by 50,000 people.
On his way to the stadium, Mr Trump participated in a 22km (13.5 miles) roadshow, as thousands of people lined the roads. Billboards along the route were emblazoned with pictures of the men and carry slogans such as "two dynamic personalities, one momentous occasion".
He entered to the music of Elton John playing on the speakers. Mr Trump's love of his songs is well documented.
The road show also featured performers from across the country, showcasing the arts from different Indian states.
Mr Trump earlier made a quick stop at the Sabarmati Ashram, where Indian independence leader Mahatma Gandhi, who was born in Gujarat, lived for 13 years.
Mr Trump and First Lady Melania Trump tried their hand at the charka or spinning wheel, which is used to spin cloth. Gandhi popularised the act as a form of protest against foreign-made cloth during India's independence movement.
"To my great friend Prime Minister Modi, thank you for this wonderful visit," Mr Trump wrote in the ashram visitor's book.
The Duke and Duchess of Sussex were accused yesterday of 'losing all sense of perspective' after making an extraordinary online 'swipe' at the Queen and other royals.
Harry and Meghan announced on Friday evening that they will stop using their Sussex Royal brand when they step down as senior royals on March 31.
But hours after releasing a carefully worded statement via Buckingham Palace confirming the move, the couple posted a 1,114-word 'update' on their personal website.
They claimed the Queen had no 'jurisdiction' over the word 'Royal' overseas and said the monarch and the Government would have been powerless to stop them had they continued to use the word while abroad.
The lengthy statement contained what appear to be references to other royals, including the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge, Princess Beatrice, Princess Eugenie and the Earl and Countess of Wessex.
There was also a thinly veiled attack on the British media, who they feel have been unfairly critical of their actions.
The statement claimed they had been treated differently from other members of the Royal Family and reminded readers that Harry remains sixth in line to the throne and an HRH by birth.
Last night it was clear that the Palace was exasperated by the intervention, although not unduly surprised. Others described the couple's words as unhelpful to their public image and family relations.
'Let's just hope they feel they have got whatever they want to get out of their system,' said one.
Another royal insider – who is not part of the negotiations – told the Mail that the couple seemed to have 'lost all sense of perspective'.
It was their decision to do this and the family is clearly trying their best to facilitate it,' the source said. 'But it inevitably requires sacrifices on both sides and the Sussexes need to be rather more gracious about it.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi is set to welcome his US counterpart Donald Trump to India with a massive rally on Monday, kicking off a two-day visit likely to be more about pomp and ceremony than concrete agreements.
The American president, in his first official visit to India, will deliver a speech at the world's biggest cricket stadium at a "Namaste Trump" rally watched by at least 100,000 people in Modi's home state of Gujarat.
The rally comes in the wake of the wildly successful "Howdy, Modi" extravaganza in Houston last year that highlighted the bond between the nationalist leaders.
A visit to the Taj Mahal with the First Lady Melania is on the cards, followed by talks with Modi in the capital New Delhi on Tuesday.
"The president is going to India as a demonstration of the strong and enduring ties between our two countries," a senior US administration official told reporters ahead of the trip.
"This has been exemplified by the very close relationship between the president and Prime Minister Modi."
There were fevered preparations by workers in Gujarat's capital Ahmedabad on the stadium, where construction has yet to be completed and which officials said would be inaugurated at a later date rather than by Trump.
Across the city, giant cutouts of Modi, Trump and Melania were on display alongside national flags.
Thousands of posters with the words "world's oldest democracy meets world's largest democracy" and "two strong nations, one great friendship" were erected every 10 metres (around 30 feet) along Ahmedabad's major roads.
Trump meanwhile tweeted Sunday that he was looking "forward to being with my great friends in INDIA!" alongside a video showing his face imposed on hero "Baahubali" in one of India's biggest blockbusters of the same name.