Germany scored twice in the second half to overcome Denmark 2-0 in the second round of the 2024 European Championship.

Kai Havertz’s penalty and Jamal Musiala’s well-taken goal made the difference against a spirited Danish side at the BVB Stadion on Saturday.

The Germans, who were shaky in their last group game, started the second-round clash a better side and thought they had the lead early on, but a review by the video assistant referee (VAR) ruled it out for offside.

The Danes eventually settled into the match, but their newfound confidence was scuttled when the game was suspended after 36 minutes due to heavy rain and lightning.

The players were forced off for 25 minutes before the match was resumed, but both teams went into the interval with the score goalless.

The eventual breakthrough goal came dramatically in the 53rd minute after VAR cancelled Joachim Andersen’s goal for Denmark for offside before awarding a penalty against the same player for handball.

Havertz duly stepped up to dispatch the penalty, handing Germany a controversial lead.

The scoreline was extended in the 68th minute when Musiala latched on to a long punt forward before slotting into the bottom corner to send a vociferous crowd into celebration mode for an impending passage into the last eight.

Die Mannschaft held on for a comfortable win and progressed to the quarter-final stage, where they will face either Spain or Georgia.

In the other match of the day, Switzerland scored once in each half to claim a deserved 2-0 win over Italy, knocking the holders out of the tournament.

Remo Freuler and Ruben Vargas were on target as the Swiss bagged the shock win to book a place in the last eight.

A Nigerian couple has been arrested in Anambra State and handed over to the police.

The couple was arrested over the treatment meted out to their five underage sons in the Osumenyi community, Nnewi South Local Government Area of Anambra State.

Mr Uche and Mrs Peace Mbonu are accused of alleged child abuse, starvation and refusal to provide necessities for their five underaged boys.

The arrest was carried out by the security operatives of the Nnewi South LGA before they were handed over to the police through the state Commissioner for Women Affairs and Social Welfare, Ify Obinabo.

This was made known on Saturday, June 29, in a statement by the media aide to the commissioner, Chidimma Ikeanyionwu.

The statement read, "On why they starved the kids, the couple denied the allegation and stated in their defence that the kids are always in the habit of eating raw rice, which makes them infuriated.

"While pleading for pardon, the couple said that they always feed the kids but that the children prefer eating raw rice, which they don’t know where they picked up the behaviour from.

"On his part, the oldest of the kids, Chigbo Mbonu, revealed that Peace Mbonu is his father’s third wife, and ever since she came into their family, they have faced a lot of untold hardship.

"Chigbo Mbonu, who is currently 17 years old, said that they feed once a day for the days their stepmother will give them food but rely on raw rice and palm kernel after hunger must have greatly dealt with them.

He went ahead to explain that he, at some point, stopped schooling because he helped his father in his block industry. He noted that he moulds blocks with four bags of cement on a bad day and six bags on normal days.

"Further physical examination of the children by the Women Affairs commissioner showed that they have been greatly starved and in need of medical care.

"It is important to note that Mr Uche Mbonu has married two wives before finally settling with the third one Peace Mbonu, who was his sales girl, and that the kids are all product of his previous marriages.

"According to the security operatives who helped in apprehending the culprits, they explained that after they got the husband, his wife Peace ran to Nnewi, her maternal home to hide before they eventually apprehended her too."

While reacting to the development, the Commissioner for Women Affairs, Ify Obinabo, condemned the act and stated that the state government will continue to ensure that child labour, abuse and all forms of maltreatment are reduced to the barest minimum.

The couple has since been handed over to the police for further investigation, after which the matter will be charged to court.

Olalere Oyewumi, a federal lawmaker from Osun State, who is a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) senator, has admitted that he bought votes during the 2023 general elections.

Vote buying and selling was rampant during the last elections, which affected the credibility of the polls conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) had also deployed its officials in some polling units.

In a viral video, Oyewunmi, who is the Deputy Minority Senate Leader, narrated how he sent his aide on an errand on the eve of the election with his personal money for vote buying but was rejected by strong supporters of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Speaking in Yoruba, the Minority Leader, who represents Osun West District, said “I tried all the tricks I knew to win at the Onilu House (Ile Onilu) polling unit but these people didn’t allow me.

“After exhausting money for the election, I gave my personal money to Ten-Ten to give to people at night to buy votes on the eve of the election, Ten-Ten came back with my money, saying the people rejected it. I was surprised.

“That was why I reached out to these people because I cannot be a Senator and continue to fail there. I was the one who called Ayandosu from Abuja to join me in the PDP. I told him he has talent and that the party he was serving then (APC) would not allow him to grow.”

Reacting to the development, the leadership of APC through its chairman, Tajudeen Lawal, said the confession had shown that Osun election was not free and fair.

In a statement, Lawal said: “The confessional statement of Senator Oyewumi was a confirmation of the fact that the last series of the elections in the state which secured victory for all the PDP candidates including Governor Ademola Adeleke, were brazenly rigged.

“The self-confession of Senator Oyewumi was an indication that he is a desperate politician who could go to any length to illegally corner opportunities regardless of what such portends to the right-thinking members of the society.

“In a civilised clime, Senator Oyewumi has no iota of reason to remain a minute longer in the Senate where he has been the Minority Leader based on his self-confession that he engaged in vote-buying during the election that secured a fraudulent victory for him.

“By now, Senator Oyewumi should be a guest of the statutory law enforcement agency constitutionally saddled with the responsibility of investigating such political crime involving a senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.”

Kayode Adesile did not anticipate the tragedy that occurred when he visited his newlywed wife, Oluwaseun Omolara Olusola, on June 25, 2024, at her residence in the Powerline area of Meiran, a suburb of Lagos.

Unknown to Adesile, an automobile technician, he had incurred the wrath of Esther, his wife’s 15-year-old daughter from a previous marriage, for reprimanding on an occasion she disrespected her mother, The Nation reports.

Esther, it was said, invited hoodlums to teach her stepfather a bitter lesson for meddling in her matter. The hoodlums, who were around when Adesile was visiting Esther’s expectant mother, pounced on him while he was about to enter the house, dealt him blows and recorded the scenario with their mobile phones.

“I verbally reprimanded her recently for being rude and disrespectful to her mother, who is my wife. I didn’t know that she was upset by my action which I took in good faith.

“They had carefully plotted the assault on me, knowing that I usually visit my wife’s home three times in a week.

“It was when I came around on Wednesday, June 26, 2024 that I was accosted by Esther who beckoned on the hoodlums to beat me up.

“I was badly beaten and humiliated as they took their time to make videos of the assault.”

It was said that after Adesile was assaulted, his attackers ran to the Meiran Police Station to lie that he attacked them. By the time Adesile reported the matter at the same police station he was detained.

The police, according to sources, would later find out that he was actually the victim of the assault, contrary to the complaint made by his attackers.

“The hoodlums invited by Esther were led by one Oluwakemi a.k.a. Honour, who supervised the brutality meted out to me and even filmed the scene with his boys.

“I was severely punched and battered by the hoodlums and left helpless as there was no one to save me from them.

“Even my wife who tried to save me was slapped silly by the boys and pushed to the ground.

“The hoodlums then left for the station and lied that I had attacked them.

“The police detained me when I went there to complain about the assault.

“It was later discovered that the hoodlums had lied and that they were the aggressors in this case.

“Hence, I was released on bail on Thursday June 27.”

He further said: “I started dating my wife six years ago before her mother died, and there was no problem between us.

“Her mother had asked her to bring me home for proper introduction after she told her that we were in a relationship.

“I later went to see her mother and we had a very cordial relationship before she died two years ago.

“When her mother was sick, my wife and I took very good care of her by taking her to a hospital in Abeokuta.

“She died shortly after we brought her back to Lagos.

“My wife is currently pregnant for me. I was the one that raised money to send her to school after she finished her JSS 3.

“I did not do anything to deserve the brutality meted out to me by the hoodlums she invited in connivance with a disgruntled family member of her mother to dehumanise me and even ran to the police to further detain me when in actual fact they were the aggressors.

“I was released on bail this morning (June 27) and the leader of the hoodlums is the leader a cult group in the community.”

Speaking with The Nation, Adesile’s wife, Oluwaseun, who is also Esther’s mother, said her daughter was being brainwashed and used by her unscrupulous family members and neighbours.

Oluwaseun said: “Esther Adekunle is a product of my former marriage. Her father humiliated me and was fond of brutalising me till we parted ways.”

She said she had struggled and weathered the storm to ensure that Esther and her two siblings got a good life and education after she parted with their father.

“There is no work that I have not done to give Esther and her siblings education. I am into cleaning services just so that I can have money to ensure that they feed well and go to school since their father abandoned them for me.”

The 36-year-old woman said that Esther had formed the habit of disrespecting and insulting her in public.

“Yet, despite all my struggle to make ends meet and raise them, Esther disrespects me in public and refused to heed my instructions.

“She would leave home without my consent and return when she wishes. She bedwets and exhibits dirty habits at home.

“It was recently when she insulted me openly that my new husband called her out and verbally reprimanded her for her misguided attitude.

“It was for that reason that she further became recalcitrant and planned with my mother’s family members and neighbours to invite the hoodlums to brutalise my husband.

“My new husband is not a gold digger. I have been dating him before my mother passed on two years ago.

“He was the one that provided the money we spent in processing admission for Esther to proceed for her Senior Secobdary education.

“Yet, he is the same person my daughter brought hoodlums to humiliate in public on June 25.

“While the boys were beating my husband, they also slapped me when i tried to stop them.

“”To my surprise, the boys came back the next day, June 26, and further assaulted me and there was no one to save me from them.

“They rushed to the police station and lied to the police that my husband attacked them. The police later detained my husband.

“The leader of the hoodlums, who is the husband of my daughter’s boss, was also detained when my husband indentified him as the leader of the gang that attacked him.

She added: “My husband was freed after the police discovered that the hoodlums were the culprits.”

In an audio recording obtained by our reporter, Esther, confronted by some persons on her complicity in the assault on her mother’s husband, accused Adesile of fondling her breasts about two months earlier.

“He (stepfather) fondled my breasts about two months ago,” Esther said.

Asked why it took her two months to avenge her purported molestation and why she did not tell her mother about it, she said: “I told my mother’s family members about it.”

Adesile and Esther’s mother however described the allegation as a tissue of lies.

“She is lying. I have never molested her. She is acting a script handed to her by the people that are guiding her to disrespect her mother and myself over my wife’s inheritance which they want to dispossess her of, ” Adesile said.

Esther’s mother also said her daughter was misguided and told to lie against her stepfather after it dawned on them that their action was criminal and could have consequences.

She said: “My daughter was told to lie that my husband recently molested her.

“The truth is that  she is doing a hatchet job for some people who are planning to take over my late mother’s property at all cost.

“My husband has never molested Esther. She is being used without her knowing.”

Contacted for comments, the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) of the Lagos Command, Mr. Benjamin Hundeyin, did not answer his call and also had not responded to the inquiry sent to his WhatsApp at press time.

Vice-President Kashim Shettima says Nigeria’s economy is experiencing turbulence but it is not limited to the country.

Shettima spoke at a one-day town hall meeting organised by the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC) held in Abuja on Friday.

Outlining the achievements of President Bola Tinubu when he was the governor of Lagos state, Shettima said the country needs to be fair to him. 

“This is a man we need to rally round and support. Yes, our economy is going through turbulence but is it confined to Nigeria alone? Let’s take a global picture,” he said. 

“Is any economy immune from the challenges of the times? So, I ask you to be fair to this poor man. 

“There is no doubt that every thriving economy grows from the quality of reforms adopted to offer the people avenues to translate their business ideas into formidable enterprises.”

Speaking further, Shettima said PEBEC is an enabler for the ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs).

“Our role requires a unified and collaborative effort across the councils and MDAs and we can not afford to look away,” he said.

“The long-term success of PEBEC hinges on our ability to institutionalise reforms capabilities, foster deep collaboration across government and maintain a commitment to continuous improvements.”

He said the current reforms must become ingrained in public institutions. 

“By doing so, we kept the way for sustained progress and lasting impact that would outlive us all, creating a better Nigeria for our children and their children afterwards,” Shettima said.

He said the government must be driven by every citizen who aspires to grow businesses and who looks to the government for prosperity. 

According to the vice-president, these are peculiar times for developing solutions to improve the ease of doing business.

Shettima said Nigeria is the future of Africa and the burden is not only on leaders but on everyone to achieve set goals.

‘TINUBU CAPABLE TO LEAD NIGERIANS’ 

On May 29, Tinubu missed his steps and fell while climbing the parade vehicle at Eagle Square in Abuja.

Speaking on the issue, Shettima expressed disappointment in those who took a jab at the president’s health status due to the incident.

“We are not asking you not to question the eligibility of your president’s condition. But there is this mischievous vexation about the president’s health status,” Shettima said.

“We are not preparing for the Olympics, but an institution that builds on the superiority of ideas. But I dare to put it to you. The hallmark of true leadership is not the ability to lift a bag of cement, but the capacity to come up with robust ideas to solve a nation’s problems.”

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has agreed to disburse $360 million to Ghana as part of its $3 billion loan arrangement.

In a statement on Friday, the IMF said the new tranche increases the country’s total receipts from the Washington-based lender to about $1.6 billion since signing up to the $3 billion three-year programme in May 2023.

“The Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund (IMF) completed today the second review of Ghana’s US$3 billion, 36-month Extended Credit Facility (ECF) Arrangement, which was approved by the Board in May 2023,” IMF said.

“Completion of the second ECF review allows for an immediate disbursement of SDR 269.1 million (about US$360 million), bringing Ghana’s total disbursements under the arrangement to about US$1.6 billion.

“Ghana’s economic reform program is delivering on its objectives.”

Following acute economic and financial pressures in 2022, the IMF said the fund-supported programme served as a credible anchor for the government to adjust macroeconomic policies.

The Bretton Woods institution said it has also propelled the implementation of reforms to restore macroeconomic stability and debt sustainability while laying the foundations for higher and more inclusive growth.

“These efforts are paying off, with growth proving more resilient than initially expected, inflation declining at a faster pace, and the fiscal and external positions improving,” IMF said.

“The medium-term outlook remains favorable but subject to downside risks—including those related to the upcoming general elections

“Ghana’s performance under the IMF-supported program has been generally strong. All quantitative performance criteria for the second review and almost all indicative targets were met. Good progress has also been made on the key structural reform milestones, despite some delays.”

The Ghanaian authorities, IMF said, have also continued to make progress on their comprehensive debt restructuring.

In January, Ghana got a moratorium with official creditors on debt payments through May 2026, negotiating a deal with Eurobond investors to restructure $13 billion debt by the end of March.

The passing of Nollywood’s beloved comic legend, Mr. Ibu, marked a somber and heart-wrenching moment for the entertainment industry and his grieving family.

The iconic actor, who brought joy and laughter to countless fans, passed away on March 2 at the age of 62, leaving a void that can never be filled.

Amidst the solemn funeral ceremonies that had his loved ones and colleagues in attendance, a deeply emotional and shocking revelation came to light from Mr. Ibu’s first daughter, Amarachi.

Emerging at her father’s burial, she delivered a soul-stirring speech that has since gone viral, shedding light on her heartbreaking relationship with the late actor.

In the now widely circulated video, Amarachi disclosed that her connection with her father was virtually nonexistent.

The painful reality she unveiled was that the only time she ever met Mr. Ibu was during his final moments in the hospital, as he lay on his deathbed.

Amarachi noted that the only memories she would carry with her of her father were the ones forged in the hospital during his final moments. Fighting back tears, she shared how the accounts of others painted a picture of Mr. Ibu as a great actor and a compassionate man, beloved by many.

Her sorrow was palpable as she revealed that she had always lived with her mother and expressed deep regret that their relationship never had the chance to develop.

The tragic reality that their first and only meeting occurred at the brink of his death weighed heavily on her.

The late, legendary actor John Okafor, affectionately known as Mr. Ibu, who succumbed to a prolonged battle with ill health on March 2, 2024, was finally laid to rest on a poignant Friday, June 28, 2024.

The solemn yet grand ceremony took place in his hometown of Amuri, located within the Nkanu West Local Government Area of Enugu State, drawing a significant crowd of mourners.

A trending clip captured Mr. Ibu’s wife, Stella Maris Okafor, and their children, all donned in pristine white attire, leading a striking parade of undertakers who carried the late actor’s body in a gleaming white coffin.

The procession moved to the rhythm of bustling, vibrant music, creating a powerful and emotionally charged atmosphere.

In an unexpected twist that left onlookers in awe, the parade came to a halt right in front of Mr. Ibu’s residence. The coffin was then ceremoniously carried inside, right into his sitting room, marking an unprecedented and deeply personal final resting place.

Among the witnesses were his colleagues—Charles Inojie, Charles Awurum, and Victor Osuagwu—who, alongside family members and grave diggers, solemnly covered the ground of the freshly dug grave within the sitting room, sharing a moment of collective grief and reverence.

The funeral ceremony continued with even more notable personalities paying their respects. Figures such as Shatta Bandle, Bob Manuel, and a host of other celebrities and dignitaries were present, further highlighting the significant impact Mr. Ibu had on the entertainment industry and beyond.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has released new directives to commercial banks regarding the deposit of foreign currency cash with the apex bank.

In a circular COD/DIR/INT/CIR/001/016 published on the bank’s website, the Director of Currency Operations, Mr. Mohammed Solaja, instructed Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) to submit a written notification to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) at least three working days prior to depositing foreign currency notes, indicating their intention to make such a deposit.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has specified that deposits of foreign currency can only be made at its branches in Abuja and Lagos.

It further directed that each bank would be allowed a maximum deposit of $10 million threshold for USD 100 notes and USD 50 notes daily.

‘Products of febrile imagination’ — NNPC disowns allegations of inflated subsidy claims
The CBN said that smaller denominations of $ 20 notes and belows would be at a maximum of $1 million daily.

“British Pound and Euro were also pegged at GBP 1 million and Euro 1 Million per day per DMB,” the CBN said.

According to the circular, each denominations would be in separate boxes and two representatives of a DMB wanting to make.deposits must be present to witness the counting and confirm the amount.

It added that only CBN-registered CIT companies for deposit of foreign currency notes would be allowed to representative the DMBs in the exercise.

The CBN directed that the deposits would take place between 8.00 am and 12 noon and that the selected branches must confirm the deposits same day.

Handling charge, it.said would be at 0.30 percent and would be received from the Current Accounts of DMBs with the CBN.

The bank said that the new guidelines supersede the June 17, 2017 circular referenced: COD/DIR/GEN/CMF/11/094.

A 41-year-old man, Baridapsi Needam has been sentenced to to 14 years imprisonment by the Bayelsa State High Court, sitting in Yenagoa.

The man was jailed for r*ping and impregnating his daughter.

It was learnt that the victim gave birth to a baby girl while the trial was pending.

Bayelsa State Commissioner of Justice and Attorney-General Biriyai Dambo, in the suit numbered YHC/14C/2022, charged the accused with the offence of r*pe, contrary to Section 1(1) of the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Law of Bayelsa State, 2021.

The State Prosecuting Counsel and Deputy Director in the Bayelsa State Ministry of Justice, Pere Amanda Egbuson, told the court that investigations revealed that the accused began defiling his daughter when she was seven years old by inserting his fingers into her vagina and started having sex with her in 2020 until she got pregnant in 2022.

The presiding judge, Justice D.E. Adokeme, stated while delivering the judgement that the prosecution presented credible evidence and made reference to the DNA result, which revealed a 99.99 per cent positive report that the convict is the father of the child.

The court ruled that the prosecution has proven its case beyond reasonable doubt that Needam committed the offence of r*pe and sentenced him to 14 years imprisonment.

Speaking after the judgement, lead prosecuting counsel Pere Amanda Egbuson noted that the judgement will serve as a deterrent to others as a strong message has been sent that the court will not tolerate such heinous acts.

The convict, Baridapsi Needman, who hails from Ogani Wily Kaira Community in Ogoni in Rivers State, was reported to the police by members of the state gender advocacy group, Gender Response Initiative Team, GRIT, in 2022, when a concerned neighbour noticed that the victim was five months pregnant and that the father was responsible for the pregnancy.

Needman was reported to have replaced his deceased wife with his daughter on his matrimonial bed. While the 14-year-old girl, who was in Junior Secondary School 3, was sleeping on the bed with her father, her two younger brothers were made to sleep on the floor.