Nigeria’s Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has finally declared to run for president, ending months of speculations and tepid denials.

“I formally declare my intention to run for the office of the President, Federal Republic of Nigeria, on the platform of our great party, the All Progressives Congress,” Osinabjo said in a video posted to his social media handles Monday morning.

The VP will be squaring up against APC bigwigs including his political benefactor and former governor of Lagos State Bola Tinubu, transportation minister Rotimi Amaechi, former governor of Imo State Rochas Okorocha and governors of Kogi and Ebonyi states Yahaya Bello and Dave Umahi.

Osinbajo served 8 years as attorney-general and commissioner for justice in Lagos State when Tinubu was the governor between 1999 and 2007. He was nominated as the running mate to Muhammadu Buhari in December 2014, the then-candidate of the APC for the 2015 presidential election.

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Osinbajo has since served about seven years as vice president to President Muhammadu Buhari, whom he described as a “true Nigerian patriot”.

He said he and Buhari spent the last seven years working through some of the most difficult times in the history of the country, focusing on securing the country, providing infrastructure and growing its economy.

Osinbajo said being Nigeria’s VP since 2015 has afforded the opportunities to understand the “diverse experiences and yearnings” of Nigerians.

“In these seven years, I have served the government in several capacities and I have, at the direction of Mr President, represented our country in sensitive high-level international engagements.

“I’ve been to practically all local governments in Nigeria. I’ve been in markets, in factories, in schools, in farms."

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“I’ve been in agricultural, mining and oil-producing communities in the Delta, in Kebbi, in Enugu, in Borno, in Rivers, in Plateau and Ondo and in all other states of the federation, listening to the diverse experiences and yearnings of our people.

“I’ve visited our gallant troop in the Northeast and brothers and sisters in the IDP camps. I’ve felt the pain and anguish of victims of violent conflicts, terrorist attacks, flooding, fire and other disasters.

“I’ve been in the homes of many ordinary Nigerians in various parts of the country. I’ve sat with our techpreneurs in Lagos, Edo and kaduna, with our Nollywood and Kannywood actors, with sour musicians from Lagos, Onitsha and Kano, and I’ve spoken to small and large businesses.

“I stood where they stood and I sat where they sat. I know their hopes and their aspirations and their fears. And in I believe that in those hopes and aspirations are the seeds for the great Nigeria that we all desire.”

Vice president of Nigeria declares his intention to run for presidency in the coming election

VP, Yemi Osinbajo finally declares to run for president

Singer Mr Eazi has engaged his long-term girlfriend, Temi Otedola, daughter of famous Nigerian rich man, Femi Otedola.

Temi, daughter of  Nigerian business tycoon, Femi Otedola, posted a video of the proposal on her official Twitter handle on Sunday afternoon.

DJ Cuppy, Temi’s sister also retweeted the 18-second engagement clip congratulating the duo.

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“Congratulations to my favourite couple on their engagement! 💍

“I’m so happy that my lil sister @TemiOtedola 👰🏽‍♀️ has found her personal person! Yo @MrEazi🤵🏾I’ve always wanted an older brother, WELCOME TO THE FAMILY!” she wrote.

“PS: I introduced you guys, so you better find me my own o!Congratulations to my favourite couple on their engagement! 💍”

Temi made her Nollywood debut in 2020 in ‘Citation’.

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a singer proposing marriage to his girlfriend 

Singer, Mr. Eazi Proposes to Longtime Girlfriend, Temi Otedola

An elder statesman and First Republic Minister of Aviation, Chief Mbazulike Amechi, has given assurance that the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, would soon be released.

Amaechi spoke to journalists in Onitsha, on Wednesday, ahead of Kanu’s April 8 hearing date.

The elderstatesman, who led a powerful delegation to meet the President, Major General Muhammad Buhari (retd.), concerning the release of Kanu last year, regretted that Kanu was still being detained despite the assurances by the president that he would release the freedom fighter.

He, however, stated that although negotiations were ongoing, he does not know the exact date Kanu will be released but has the assurance that he would be released soon based on the ongoing negotiations between the Federal Government and prominent Igbo leaders.

He lamented that the continuous detention of Kanu has led to various agitations in the South-East, which have caused the destruction of lives and properties in the region.

According to him, we the Igbo elders met with President Buhari shortly after Kanu’s arraignment in court and told him to release him for us to go home and discuss with him the next Igbo agenda and Buhari gave us an audience and ever since then, negotiations between us and the Federal Government have been on to free Kanu.

“Although, I am disappointed that up until now, Buhari has not released him despite assurances he gave to us on the day we visited him in Aso Rock, all hope is not lost as we are sure that Kanu will soon be released based on the ongoing negotiations.

“I will call on those agitating for one thing or the other to remain calm and be hopeful. Although, these agitations have demonstrated that only the release of Kanu will stop the agitations and we are working towards his release.”

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Also, the Vice President, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Damian Okeke-Ogene, said the only thing that can guarantee peace in the South-East region is to release Kanu.

He said, “If anybody is looking for peace in Igbo land, Nnamdi Kanu should be first of all released unconditionally and soonest or else, we should not be expecting to have peace as long as he is still in detention.”

Nnamdi Kanu Will be Released Soon, Ex-Aviation Minister

Popular Nollywood actress Nkechi Blessing and her husband, Opeyemi Falegan, have both ceased to be in a relationship.

Although the duo were believed to be married, for the first time on Wednesday, the actress said she was never married to Falegan.

The estranged lovers made this known when they confirmed their broken relationship in separate videos on Instagram.

Preliminary investigation reveals that the lovebirds’ outburst came after a blog accused the famous actress of having a secret affair with a realtor for an endorsement deal.

Aside from acting, Nkechi is the Group Managing Director of a real estate company, Ojulowo – Omoluabi Empire Holdings Limited in Abeokuta, Ogun State capital. The actress is being accused of dating the owner of the company.

Lately, the actress, who has a love-hate relationship with her fans, has been in the news because of her affair politician boyfriend and many controversies.

In his accusation, the blogger tagged Nkechi as Falegan’s wife.

Responding to the blog’s accusation, Nkechi, who was shedding tears, rained curses on the anonymous owner of the social media page.

She also attacked her ex-lover, insisting that the relationship ended in February when she sent him out of her hotel room.

In the same video, she told her over 2million Instagram followers that she has had female sexual partners and looks forward to having more.

The movie star, while beating her chest in rage, affirmed that she is a lesbian and is proud of it.

“I’m coming out with my full chest that I’m a lesbian, so what now happened? This life will end? If you say I’m a lesbian, yes with my full chest, I am. I f**k girls a lot if that’s what you want to hear,” she said.

Falegan debunked the claim of being her husband in his video on Wednesday, saying, ” I am nobody’s husband.”

He said: “I don’t want to be known for any notoriety or anything controversial. I have a name, that name is my pride. I want to be known as someone who added value to people and who will keep doing the work for people."

“I have a name that I am trying to protect here. Anything at all, husband of who? Where did you see the husband?“ I’m not the husband of a lesbian, put some respect on my name.”

Addressing his statement on her Instagram, Nkechi Blessing also confirmed the split with her husband, warning that anyone who is with him should be ready to feed him.

Nollywood actress and her estranged partner 

Actress, Nkechi Blessing Sunday Talks About Her Ex-partner

The Senate has began asking questions over the failure of Super Eagles’ to qualify for the FIFA 2022 World Cup.

The Super Eagles had a 1-1 draw with Ghana in the World Cup playoff.

But the Senate says it is investigating the failure to qualify despite the huge funds put into the exercise by the government and corporate bodies.

This was made known during Tuesday’s legislative proceedings.

The Upper Chamber will also investigate the vandalism of the facilities at the MKO Abiola Stadium, Abuja in the aftermath of Nigeria’s loss to Ghana.

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It has directed its commuter on sports to Invite the NFF, the Minister of Youth and Sports, Sunday Dare,  as well as those involved in maintaining the stadium to ascertain the extent of damage to the stadium.

Meanwhile, the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) has sacked the Super Eagles’ technical crew.

The NFF confirmed this in a statement issued on Thursday, less than two days after the three-time African champions drew 1-1 with Ghana in a playoff for the competition.

The result sent the Black Stars to the tournament on the away goal rule after the first leg ended barren.

Senate Quizzes Super Eagles’ Defeat at World Cup Qualifiers

British singer-songwriter Ed Sheeran on Wednesday won his copyright trial at London’s High Court after a judge ruled that his hit song “Shape of You” did not lift musical phrases from another track.

Judge Antony Zacaroli said that Sheeran “neither deliberately nor subconsciously” copied a phrase from British grime track, “Oh Why”, when writing the worldwide smash hit.

“Shape of You”, released in 2017, remains the most-streamed song ever on Spotify, with more than three billion streams.

It won Sheeran, 31, a Grammy for Best Pop Solo Performance. He, along with several others, has a writing credit on the track.

But two other songwriters, Sami Chokri and Ross O’Donoghue, alleged that the song had musical similarities to one they wrote called “Oh Why”, performed under Chokri’s stage-name Sami Switch.

Judge Zacaroli ruled on Wednesday that “there are obvious similarities” between hooks in the two songs, but that there were also “important differences”.

While both hooks drew from the minor pentatonic scale, “there are countless songs in the pop, rock, folk and blues genres where the melody is drawn exclusively” from the same scale, he said.

Zacaroli also said that the two phrases “play very different roles in their respective songs.”

The claimants hook “is the central part of the song” whereas in Sheeran’s hit, it is “something catchy to fill the bar before each repeated phrase ‘I’m in love with your body’.”

Sheeran attended court during the 11-day trial, bursting into song and humming musical scales and melodies as he was questioned over how the song was written.

The singer denied he “borrows” ideas from unknown songwriters and told court he “always tried to be completely fair” in crediting contributors.

Sheeran and the song’s other credited writers launched legal action against Chokri and McDaid in 2018, asking the High Court to declare they had not infringed Chokri and O’Donoghue’s copyright.

This prompted the pair to launch their own claim for “copyright infringements, damages and an account of the profit in relation to the alleged infringement”.

Lawyer Andrew Sutcliffe, representing the aggrieved songwriters, told the judge Sheeran was a “magpie” who “borrows ideas” and will sometimes not acknowledge them.

Chokri told the trial he was “shocked” when he first heard “Shape Of You” on the radio.

Sheeran’s lawyers told the High Court that he and his co-writers have no memory of having heard the song “Oh Why” at the time.

The PRS for Music, which pays out royalties for the use of music, has temporarily halted royalty payments.

Attendees at the high-profile trial inadvertently heard a snippet for free when an unreleased track was accidentally aired in court.

“That’s a song I wrote last January,” a confused Sheeran told his lawyers as the clip of the hitherto unplayed song was heard in London’s High Court. “How have you got that?”

One of the lawyers said the incident happened “by mistake” through the use of an iTunes account on the computer of Steven McCutcheon, one of the co-writers of “Shape of You”.

Ed Sheeran Wins 'Shape of you' Copyright Dispute

Popular rapper Jude Abaga aka M.I Abaga has announced his engagement to Eniola Mafe after sparking dating rumors' in February.

The ex-Chocolate City CEO disclosed this on Twitter on Sunday night.

Eniola Mafe is a strategist and international development leader with the World Economic Forum.

M.I Abaga shared the announcement alongside a one-minute long video of how they met in December 2020 through co-founder and President of the Chocolate City Entertainment, Audu Maikori.

The video also included pictures and highlights of their conversations.

He solicited prayers from his fans as they commence the lifelong journey.

M.I Abaga tweeted: “So..Wanted to share that I’ve gotten engaged to @EniolaMafe

“I’m generally very private with things like this but I wanted to share my joy with you guys.

“Pray for us… we will need it! Thank you for your support!”

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M.I Abaga announces engagement to Eniola Mafe

After a three-month delay caused by the Omicron surge, the 64th Grammy Awards returned Sunday night. The show moved from its usual home in Los Angeles to the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. Trevor Noah, who hosted the ceremony in 2021, came back to host once again this year. 

Jon Batiste came into the night with 11 nominations, the most of any artist this year, winning four Grammy Awards before the televised portion of the ceremony even began and taking home the coveted Album of the Year award. Justin Bieber, Doja Cat and H.E.R. all scored eight nominations of their own, with H.E.R. winning the Best Traditional R&B Performance award earlier in the evening.

Olivia Rodrigo earned awards for Best New Artist and Best Pop Solo Performance and Silk Sonic took home all four awards they were nominated for.

Find the full list of nominees and winners below;

"Leave the Door Open" - Silk Sonic — Winner

"I Get a Kick Out of You" - Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga

"Peaches - Justin Bieber ft. Daniel Caesar and Giveon

"Montero (Call Me By Your Name)" - Lil Nas X

"Love For Sale" -Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga

"Leave The Door Open" - Silk Sonic — Winner

"A Beautiful Noise" - Alicia Keys & Brandi Carlile

"Peaches" - Justin Bieber featuring Daniel Caesar and Giveon

"drivers license" - Olivia Rodrigo — Winner

 "Kiss Me More" - Doja Cat featuring SZA — Winner

"I Get A Kick Out Of You" - Tony Bennett and Lady Gaga

 "Lonely" - Justin Bieber and Benny Blanco

"Love For Sale" - Tony Bennett & Lady Gaga — Winner

 "Til We Meet Again (Live)" - Norah Jones

 "A Holly Dolly Christmas" -Dolly Parton

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"Justice (Triple Chucks Deluxe)" – Justin Bieber

"Alive" - Rüfüs Du Sol, Jason Evigan & Rüfüs Du Sol, producers; Cassian Stewart-Kasimba, mixer — Winner

"Hero" - Afrojack & David Guetta, Kuk Harrell & Stargate, producers; Elio Debets, mixer

 "Loom" - Ólafur Arnalds Featuring Bonobo, Simon Green, producers; Ólafur Arnalds, mixer

"Before" - James Blake, Dom Maker, producers; James Blake, mixer

"Heartbreak" - Bonobo & Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs, Simon Green & Orlando Higginbottom, producers; Simon Green & Orlando Higginbottom, mixers

"You Can Do It" - Caribou Dan Snaith, producer; David Wrench, mixer

"The Business" - Tiësto, Hightower, Julia Karlsson & Tiësto, producers; Tiësto, mixer

"Subconsciously" - Black Coffee — Winner

"Music Is The Weapon (Reloaded)" - Major Lazer

"Double Dealin'" - Randy Brecker & Eric Marienthal

"Deep: The Baritone Sessions, Vol. 2" - Mark Lettieri

"Making A Fire" - Foo Fighters — Winner

"Know You Better (Live From Capitol Studio A)" - Black Pumas

Grammy 2022: Complete List of Nominees And Winners

Manchester United midfielder, Bruno Fernandes, has penned down a contract extension that keeps him at Old Trafford till 2026.

Fernandes has become an invaluable member of the team since arriving from Sporting Lisbon in 2020, where he has found the back of the net 49 times and provided 39 assists in 117 appearances.

The Portuguese is expected to earn around £240,000 a week with the option of a year’s extension.

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“Manchester United is delighted to announce that Bruno Fernandes has signed a new contract, which will keep him at the club until June 2026, with the option to extend for a further year,” was what the club’s official statement revealed on Friday.

The 27-year-old couldn’t hide his excitement saying “That dream is now a reality and an honor.”

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“Even after two years, it still feels amazing to step out at Old Trafford, to hear the fans sing my song and to score in front of the Stretford End. It is a true privilege to wear this shirt and to fight for our incredible club,” he also said.

“There is so much more that I want to achieve here, and I know that is the same for the rest of the squad and staff. More than anything, we want to give the fans the success that they deserve.”

Fernandes, who has already won the Sir Matt Busby Player of the Year award twice, has created more chances than any other United player since joining the club in January 2020.

Bruno Fernandes Signs Manchester United Contract Extension

Nollywood mourns a colleague as Yoruba comic actor, Dejo Tunfulu is confirmed dead.

Fellow thespian, Kunle Afod, shared the news on his Instagram page on Friday.

The president of the Theatre Arts and Motion Pictures Practitioners Association of Nigeria, Bolaji Amusan, known as Mr. Latin, also confirmed his death.

“Yes, it is confirmed. He died in a hospital this morning. But I am yet to get full details of the incident,” he told our correspondent on Friday.

The deceased shot into limelight for his role in the movie titled: “Omo Oran”, featuring the veteran actor Fatai Adetayo (Lalude).

Breaking: Nollywood Comic Actor, Dejo Tunfulu, is Dead

The UK on Thursday announced new sanctions against Russian “propagandists”, including a well-known television presenter, and two Kremlin-funded media operations accused of spreading “lies and deceit” about the invasion of Ukraine.

The 14 latest sanctions follow several previous rounds of penalties against more than 1,000 Russian and Belarusian individuals and entities in response to Moscow’s war in its western neighbour.

“Britain has helped lead the world in exposing Kremlin disinformation, and this latest batch of sanctions hits the shameless propagandists who push out (Vladimir) Putin’s fake news and narratives,” Foreign Secretary Liz Truss said in a statement.

“We will keep on going with more sanctions to ramp up the pressure on Russia and ensure Putin loses in Ukraine. Nothing and no one is off the table.”

Prime Minister Boris Johnson’s official spokesman told reporters separately: “Countries can adapt to sanctions over time so it’s right that we continue to move forward on this.

“It is equally right to impose sanctions on those who are seeking to disinform people at a mass scale.”

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London targeted Russian Colonel-General Mikhail Mizintsev, head of the Russian National Defence Control Centre, who the UK foreign ministry said had become known as “the butcher of Mariupol” over Russia’s actions in the besieged Ukrainian city.

Johnson’s spokesman said “on the face of it there does appear to be evidence of war crimes” in Mariupol.

TV-Novosti, which owns the global television channel RT — formerly Russia Today — was also sanctioned, as was Rossiya Segodnya, which controls the news agency Sputnik.

The UK broadcasting regulator Ofcom earlier this month revoked RT’s licence with immediate effect, saying it was not “fit and proper” to broadcast in the country.

In reaction, Margarita Simonyan, editor-in-chief of RT told RIA Novosti state news agency, said: “We’ll add this insult to the total count.”

Meanwhile, the UK also included Sergey Brilyov — a famous TV anchor in Russia on state-owned media outlet Rossiya, known for his interviews with high profile political figures — to its sanctions list, describing him as a “propagandist for Putin”.

“Having previously lived in the UK, (he) will no longer be able to access any of his UK assets or continue business dealings,” the ministry said.

Alexander Zharov, chief executive officer of Gazprom-Media, Alexei Nikolov, the managing director of RT, and Anton Anisimov, head of Sputnik International Broadcasting, were also targeted.

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“These sanctions will ensure RT will not be able to find its way back on UK televisions, and will prevent companies and individuals operating in the UK from doing business with Russian state propaganda vehicles,” the foreign ministry added.

London said it had also fast-tracked sanctions against another seven individuals connected to “the Strategic Culture Foundation,” which it described as an online journal registered in Russia.

The ministry noted they were recently sanctioned by Australia for their role in spreading disinformation.

“The UK is operating closely with allies to target Russia’s oligarchs, banks and businesses,” it added.

journalists promoting Putin's invasion of Ukraine 

UK Sanctions Russian ‘Propagandists And State Media’

Four persons, including the traditional ruler of Bukpe community, Alhaji Hassan Shamidozhi, have been kidnapped.

The traditional ruler of the community in Kwali, the Federal Capital Territory, and others were abducted on Wednesday evening.

The Head of Information and Protocol at the Kwali Area Council Secretariat, Emmanuel Habila, confirmed the abduction. He said that the police and operatives of the Department of State Service (DSS) are on the trail of the kidnappers.

Habila explained that the incident happened while the monarch was taking a rest for the day.

The spokesperson of the FCT Police Command, Adeh Josephine, is yet to respond to the requests for confirmation.

Gunmen Storms Palace, Kidnaps Abuja Monarch And Others

Nigerian newspapers,on one page.