Nollywood actress cum movie producer, Peju Johnson, has opened up about using financial demands to scare men requesting a romantic relationship with her.

Naija News reports that the movie star, in an interview with Punch, condemned women’s financial demands from men who desire to date them.

However, Peju stated that some men keep disturbing women even when they are uninterested in the relationship, and she uses financial demands to chase such men away.

She said, “I wouldn’t say it’s right (to make financial demands from men). But, I like to chase men away (from me) by making financial demands. For example, after telling some men that one is not interested in a relationship with them, they would still keep sending one lots of messages daily, professing how they love and care for one, even when most of what they are saying are lies. Many of them, especially married men, just want to sleep with one. That can be disturbing and exhausting for me. So, instead of blocking them, I use financial demands to chase them away. One won’t see their ‘brake light’ after that.”

On what she considers the most challenging role she has ever played, Peju said, “That would be the role I played in the movie I produced titled, ‘Payback’. I played the role of a tout. I did not believe I could play the role, and it was really challenging for me. But, with the help of the director, I pulled it off.”

Asked about the biggest sacrifice she had ever made for love, the actress said, “Many years ago, my former boyfriend, who I thought I would settle down with, asked me to stop my acting career for his sake. He did not want me to be an actress, because he is a jealous type. He wanted me only to himself. And, I actually quit acting because of him. But, he ended up cheating on me and impregnated someone else. Thereafter, we broke up and I went back to acting.”

President Bola Tinubu has named the M18 road in the Guzape district of the federal capital territory (FCT) as Chinua Achebe expressway.

Olusegun Dada, special assistant to the president on social media, said the president inaugurated the expressway on Saturday before naming it after the late renowned novelist.

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Commissions the M18 road infrastructure in Guzape District of Abuja. Names road after Nigerian Novelist and Poet, late Professor Chinua Achebe,” he wrote.

Achebe died in 2013 at the age of 83. He was a Nigerian novelist, poet, and critic who is regarded as one of the fathers of modern African literature.

On Tuesday, Tinubu named the inaugurated arterial road N20 from the northern parkway to the outer northern expressway (ONEX) in the nation’s capital after Wole Soyinka, a famous playwright. 

Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy, had said the naming of the road after Soyinka was recommended by the FCT administration.

Soyinka is the first African to win the Nobel Prize for literature.

In May, Nyesom Wike, the FCT minister, named Abuja’s southern parkway after Tinubu.

The southern parkway stretches from the National Christian Centre to ring road one and is considered one of the city’s major spines.

A young lady who recently confessed on a podcast to engaging in sexual activities with her dogs has tragically taken her own life.

The confession was made during a candid discussion on a podcast hosted by Nollywood actress, Abiola Adebayo, where the lady discussed her struggles stemming from early trauma and subsequent exploitation.

Throughout the episode, the lady’s identity was kept confidential as her face was blurred, while she shared her distressing experiences of abuse during her childhood.

The woman shared, “When I was in school, in my room, I would lock my room and call my two dogs to lick my private parts. I would start crying afterwards and start cursing myself. I was not attracted to any man.”

However, in a short video on her official Instagram page on Saturday, Adebayo revealed the news that the woman had taken her own life.

Through tears, Adebayo said, “For the first time in my life, I feel like a failure. Nike died. The lady I just interviewed who said she slept with dogs committed suicide. People heard her story. They abused me. They said we formulated the story that they are not real. I gave her a listening ear, but she didn’t tell me she was going to die.

“She committed suicide. I sent her number to therapists. I didn’t know she was going to commit suicide.”

Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti, has called on the Joint Task Force, South South Operation Delta Safe, to intensify efforts against oil theft and illegal refineries.

He described those who engage in the stealing and illegal refining of the nation’s crude oil as enemies of the state and should be treated as such.

Governor Otti stated this on Friday when he received a delegation of the sector commanders of the Joint Task Force team, charged with the responsibility to secure oil and gas operations in 10 states of the South South, South East, and South West.

“Those who operate illegal refineries and other activities, those are the enemies of the state and should be treated as such.

“Be they in Aba or in Ukwa or Port Harcourt or Bayelsa or any of the other 10 states, where you operate. The long arm of the government must be made to catch up with them.

“For us, we do not support any illegality by anybody in any form. You can take it for granted that we, as a government, will give you all the support to carry out your operation here,” Otti stated.

He implored the task force to also work to secure the Abia Innovation and Industrial Park (AIIP) at Owaza, in Ukwa West and assured them of the support of the State Government in terms of logistics and intelligence sharing to make their assignment easier.

Otti noted the importance of security for development. He pointed out that citizens of Abia State had enjoyed relative peace within the last one year, until the incident at Obikabia Junction, on Thursday, May 30, where five soldiers of the Nigerian army were brutally assassinated by criminals.

He assured the task force of the government’s ongoing investigation to bring the perpetrators to justice.

Rear Admiral John Okeke, Commander of the JTF South South Operation Delta Safe, stated that he was in Abia to familiarise with the State as one of their coverage areas in the fight against oil theft and illegal refineries among the oil producing states.

The Commander, who used the opportunity to intimate the Governor of activities of the task force, said that part of their mandate is to curb illegal activities in the oil and gas sector.

“The Federal Government thought it wise to come up with Joint Task Force South South Operation Delta Safe with a mandate to protect oil and gas infrastructure and stop militancy, sea robbery, crude oil theft and other forms of militancy that could impact negatively on the economic activities, with emphasis on the oil and gas sector,” Okeke said.

He assured that the task force would collaborate with the State Government as well as other security agencies in the area of information sharing, adding that they were determined to curb illicit activities within their areas of operation.

The Commander requested logistical support from the state government to achieve their objectives.

A prominent member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State, Joe Korka-Waadah, has disclosed that the party is uniting behind Governor Siminalayi Fubara as the consensus candidate for the 2027 gubernatorial election.

This development arises amidst concerns regarding former Governor Nyesom Wike’s recent stance towards Governor Fubara.

In a statement made available to journalists on Friday, Korka-Waadah noted that the consensus is driven by a desire to ensure continuity and stability in the state’s leadership.

He mentioned that this decision reflects the collective will of a newly formed political movement within Rivers State, which aims to foster unity and progressive governance.

He said, “Due to the litany of political missteps of Nyesom Wike, a new political movement has emerged in Rivers state. His overbearing attitude has compelled a new wave of political force to emerge.

“Stakeholders of all political strides have come together. Reconciliation has taken place among former political enemies in the state. Even those who were lapsed politically are now at the forefront of this battle to save the state from the grip of a known and established hegemon.

“There is a strong likelihood that come 2027, Rivers State may have only one governorship candidate unopposed. Most, if not all other parties would collapse their structures into one.

“Looking at the horizon, in the search for that rallying figure, Governor Sim Fubara would likely be the candidate that would stand unopposed in 2027 from the way things are going.

“Through his sudden twist of fate, from emerging against the odds to reign at the helms, from being guided through soft landing into sudden thrust into adversity, Fubara has been handling it all with tact, humility, open mindedness and magnanimity.

“From his policies, prudent, selfless and transparent management of the commonwealth and respect for even development of Rivers state in the choice and spread of milestone projects, Fubara is proving to be that governor for all Rivers the state has never had in the past eight years.

“Amidst the ongoing consultations, deliberate and debates towards unification through harmonisation of interests, he is proving to be the dominant choice with the feelers from stakeholders.

“For too long, Rivers, our state has suffered as the common conduit powers brokers of national politics feast on to filter away our enviable resources while perpetually dividing us. The time to end that narrative is here. Enough is enough.”

An 18-year-old suspected vandal has been arrested while removing LED road stud light on the newly renovated Third Mainland Bridge in Lagos State.

The suspect living in Makoko was identified as Mubarak Abdullahi.

At the time he was arrested, it was gathered that he had already removed 10 of the LED road stud light screwed to the road to enhance the visibility of road users.

Abdullahi was arrested by the operatives of the Rapid Response Squad (RRS) on patrol of the bridge around 10:00am on Friday.

In May, RRS– a unit of the Lagos State Police Command, commenced a 24-hour bike patrol on the Third Mainland Bridge.

The Commander of RRS, Olayinka Egbeyemi, who gave the directive had said then that it was a measure to protect the bridge and prevent incidence of harassment of road users by miscreants

“The Commander Rapid Response Squad (RRS), CSP Olayinka Egbeyemi has directed the squad’s Bike Riders to commence a 24 hour patrol of the Third Mainland Bridge, Lagos as a way of protecting the infrastructure on the bridge as well as prevent incidence of harassment of road users by miscreants.

“This is in line with the directives of the Commissioner of Police, CP Adegoke Fayoade to the squad for protection of lives, property and public infrastructure on the newly renovated bridge.

“CSP Olayinka Egbeyemi appealed to motorists and road users to co-operate with the riders so that they can serve them better,” RRS had said in a statement.

The arrest of Abdullahi comes about a month after one Friday Nwafor was arrested for committing similar offence on the bridge.

The 46-year-old was arrested by the operatives of Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Corps (LNSC) early in May.

A chieftain of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Buba Galadima, has said Nigerians should not complain of the hardship in the land after shunning his advice and voting for the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Bola Tinubu in the 2023 general election.

Recall that Tinubu defeated Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) and several other presidential candidates.

Speaking with Saturday Sun, Galadima noted that Nigerians were warned against voting for Tinubu, but they ignored his advice.

Galadima, who spoke on a viral video in which he said Nigerians deserve to suffer and even die for voting for Tinubu, said, “Ah! Ah! I thought you people voted for him. If you are told don’t do this, it will burn your finger, and you went and did it, who do you blame?”

He further stated that President Tinubu has not made any promises to Nigerians, despite some policies put in place by the President lately.

In his take, the NNPP chieftain said, “I want to ask you one question. Can you show me any document where Tinubu has said that he was going to do this, do that or that? Can you show me? He has not promised anything. And you voted for him. So, you are stuck with him.”

Galadima also spoke on the North working against Tinubu in 2027, when asked if he had an idea about the agenda said, “No. I don’t know. I have my party, which is the NNPP and we will contest national elections and we believe we have the best candidate, if he is eventually chosen by the party or put forward by the party.”

A chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in Delta State, Sunny Onuesoke has said the solution to Nigeria’s economic problem is not an increase in minimum wage but deflation of the economy.

He made the assertion in a phone interview with our correspondent in his reaction to the imbroglio between the federal government and labour unions in the country.

Onuesoke said the increment of wages will not solve the economic problem in the country but it will rather increase it.

“Nigerians are getting it wrong. What Nigeria want is deflation. If you increase the salary to one million Naira today, the prices of goods and services will keep increasing.

“The more you increase the minimum wage, the more it goes ‘pari pasu’ with the increase of goods and services. The average person who is not in the civil service but produces food items like pepper, tomatoes, yam, garri etc will increase his produce.”

According to Chief Onuesoke, ”Wage increase cannot resolve the inflation rate because as there is more salary increase, there is more currency circulating in the system. When there is more currency flow in the system, the prices of goods and services will keep increasing. It is a simple economic theory. The more increases in workers’ salaries, the more you will build up the high inflation rate.

“The country is not being controlled by only civil servants alone. The civil servant is just 14% of those providing services in Nigeria. They are an insignificant margin. When you are thinking of civil servants, the private sectors are not addressed as civil servants. There is no private sector that will be able to pay that amount of money as salary monthly.”

He said what Nigerians need right now is the reduction of the inflation rate to the extent that even if a worker is receiving N20,000 thousand as minimum wage, he should be able to pay his rent and take care of other responsibilities comfortably.

He also urged the federal government to intensify building low-cost houses for the common man, subsidise them and mortgage the same for the period of their lifetime as a way to reduce the inflation rate.

“The people need social infrastructure that will downsize, that will deflate, that will reduce the hard side of their hardship. What I am saying is that the Federal Government and state governors should intensify massive agricultural and housing programmes. They should subsidise and reduce the cost of education. Health insurance should be all-embracing.

“Our problem is that we are giving projections without knowing the database of Nigerians. If you ask our leaders how many acres of land will produce a certain quantity of cassava, they don’t know it. But they go on air to produce certain figures borrowed from armchair economists.

“Each local government should be able to have 80,000 acres of cassava farmland. Yam, maize, rice etc. They should fix the refineries. What stops the country from fixing the four refineries till tomorrow? Is it a problem to fix the refineries? Why are we importing refined products and we are the number six oil-producing country in the world”.

The increase in the minimum wage is an addition of two thousand naira which the Federal Government said is above their initial offer of sixty thousand naira.

The labour union had stepped down their demands from four hundred and ninety-four thousand Naira ₦494,000 to ₦250,000 per month.

Both parties have not arrived at any conclusion on the matter.

South Africa head coach, Hugo Broos, has congratulated his players for being outstanding against the Super Eagles of Nigeria despite their ordeal before the match.
The Bafana Bafana of South Africa reportedly spent over 18 hours in transit before they finally arrived in Uyo on Thursday for their 2026 FIFA World Cup qualifiers against the Super Eagles on Friday night.

They ought to have arrived in Uyo on Wednesday but they took off from South Africa later than scheduled, hence, before they were done with a routine Customs Service clearance in Port Harcourt, the airport in Uyo had closed. They slept in Port Harcourt and continued their journey to Uyo the following day.

Despite their dramatic journey which the Nigeria Football Federation had blamed South Africa for, the Bafana Bafana managed to put up a show against the Super Eagles.

Thembo Zwane gave South Africa the lead in the 29th minute and Nigeria’s Fisayo Dele-Bashiru scored the equaliser for Nigeria in the second half.

After the 1-1 draw at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo, Hugo Broos praised the mentality of his players to be able to withstand the star-studded Super Eagles despite their hectic journey to Nigeria.

“I have to congratulate my players. As you know or you don’t know, we had a terrible travel to Nigeria on Wednesday”, Broos told reporters in Uyo.

“We were only in bed at two o’clock on Thursday morning. So we were 20 hours on the way. And when you see the mentality in the team today, then I can only be proud of my players.”

South Africa who are now sitting 4th in Group C will face their neighbours, Zimbabwe at the Free State Stadium, Bloemfontein on June 11.

About ten Nigerian teenage girls, between the ages of 15 and 16, have been rescued by the Nigerian authorities from human trafficking and prostitution.

The girls were forced into prostitution after being reportedly lured to Ghana with promises of a better life.

Three of the victims are from the same parents, while the suspect, a Nigerian man, has been arrested and is currently in police custody.

Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, explained that the girls were rescued after a tip-off by NIDO, the umbrella body of Nigerians living in Ghana.

According to him, the victims were said to have revealed that they were beaten, molested, and forced into prostitution without pay, saying that their phones were reportedly seized, and they were unable to contact their parents.

According to one of the girls, “They give us out to men, and they don’t give us money; they collect everything.”

Chief Callistus Elozieuwa, the Chairman of NIDO, appealed for support to ensure the girls’ safe return to Nigeria.

Dabiri-Erewa called on the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons to take decisive action, describing the situation as “very, very heartbreaking.”