Barcelona hammered rivals Real Madrid 5-2 in a wild Spanish Super Cup final in Saudi Arabia on Sunday to win the first trophy of coach Hansi Flick’s reign.

Kylian Mbappe put Madrid ahead but a dominant Barcelona hit five in response before their goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny was sent off in the second half.

Barcelona hammered rivals Real Madrid 5-2 in a wild Spanish Super Cup Clasico final in Saudi Arabia on Sunday to win the first trophy of the Hansi Flick era.

The electric Kylian Mbappe sent Madrid ahead but a dominant Barcelona hit five in response before their goalkeeper Wojciech Szczesny was sent off in the second half.

Madrid were hoping to avenge their 4-0 defeat by Barcelona in October’s La Liga Clasico but instead were left battered and bruised by their arch-rivals in Jeddah.

After Mbappe’s opener, Lamine Yamal levelled and Robert Lewandowski sent Barcelona ahead from the penalty spot, with Raphinha bagging a brace and Alejandro Balde also on target.

Rodrygo Goes pulled one back for Madrid with a free-kick but they could not capitalise further on their numerical advantage in a humiliating defeat for the European champions.

Both Flick and his opposite number Carlo Ancelotti opted to maintain the same line-ups they started with in the semi-finals.

Yamal issued Madrid an early warning with a curling effort from the right which forced Thibaut Courtois into a fine save.

The Belgian goalkeeper also produced a strong stop to keep a Raphinha header at bay after the Brazilian evaded Lucas Vazquez with ease.

Despite Barcelona’s opening salvo it was Real Madrid who took the lead in the fifth minute with Mbappe’s brilliant goal on the counter-attack.

The French forward, frustrated numerous times by the offside flag in the league defeat by the Catalans, broke loose on the halfway line after Vinicius won the ball back and, after bursting into the area, clipped past Szczesny.

It took a stunning individual goal from 17-year-old Yamal to level the scoreline, with the Spanish winger cutting in from the right before stroking home a low finish inside the near post in a similar style to former Barca great Lionel Messi, whom he is often compared to.

Inigo Martinez hobbled off injured and Flick sent on Ronald Araujo in his place, amidst heavy transfer speculation the Uruguayan defender wants to leave the club.

 Brilliant Barca

Barcelona kept pushing and moved ahead through Lewandowski’s penalty after Eduardo Camavinga arrived late and carelessly clattered Gavi.

Raphinha soon added Barcelona’s third with a header from Jules Kounde’s cross from deep and they grabbed their fourth before half-time on the break.

Yamal and Raphinha combined and the latter slipped in Balde, who slotted past Courtois.

Barcelona continued in the same vein after the break and Raphinha netted the fifth with a neat dribble and finish after Marc Casado played him in.

The Catalans were reduced to 10 men when Mbappe sped in at the other end, rounding goalkeeper Szczesny, who brought him down outside the area and after a VAR review was dismissed.

Rodrygo, who earlier hit the post, rifled home the free-kick past Szczesny’s replacement Inaki Pena.

Mbappe brilliantly teed up Jude Bellingham but the England international was denied by a superb Kounde challenge in stoppage time.

The French forward also came close to scoring again himself on a fine individual display but Pena tipped away his effort.

Barcelona brought on midfielder Dani Olmo for his first appearance since he was registered to play for the club on a temporary basis, a controversial issue which overshadowed the semi-finals earlier in the week.

However their five-star display offered a host of other talking points as Barca won a record-extending 15th Spanish Super Cup.

Dolapo Bright, a former Special Adviser on Agriculture to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, has said that President Bola Tinubu was misled by his advisers that the suspension of duties, tariffs, and taxes on the importation of food staples through land and sea borders would reduce inflation.

Bright was a guest on Sunday’s edition of Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a socio-political programme aired on Channels Television. He said the rise in the cost of diesel and petrol which are essential to the transportation of food items have grossly affected the prices of commodities.

He said, “I don’t think it happened. The person who advised the government to do that, the person is clueless, if you understand what is happening, you won’t give such advice. The person is misleading the president. Do you know why? Let’s assume that you are going to import. Importation is going to be into Lagos. Are you not going to transport the thing to other states? It doesn’t make sense because that is going to make our agriculture stagnant.”

Food and commodity inflation have skyrocketed as Nigerians battle what can pass for the worst cost of living crisis since the country’s independence over six decades ago.

When Tinubu was sworn in as president in May 2023, Nigeria’s inflation rate was 22.41%, according to official numbers by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). The inflation rate rose astronomically to 34.6% in November 2024, more than 12% higher, a development that economic wizards have attributed to Tinubu’s twin policies of petrol subsidy removal and unification of the forex rates.

Significantly, the food inflation rate in November 2024 was 39.93% on a year-on-year basis, from 32.84% recorded in November 2023. The rise in food inflation is attributed to the rate of increase in the average prices of fish, rice, yam flour, millet whole grain, corn flour, egg, milk, milk, frozen chicken, among others.

To stem food inflation, the Tinubu administration in July 2024 announced the suspension of customs duties on imported food items but the policy has reportedly not seen the light of the day due to bureaucratic bottlenecks.

Bright, who was Buhari’s aide on agriculture from 2015 to 2023, said the government has been partly responsible for inflation because the administration is trying to sit on the driver’s side of agriculture instead of allowing the private sector to do so.

He said farmers won’t necessarily need the government’s intervention if the right environment is set for them to make a decent profit.

“A lot of farmers are not producing the capacity they were producing before because of high input costs,” he said, blaming the cost of diesel and petrol which he said significantly affect harvests.

‘Tractors Can’t Solve Output Shortages’

On December 23, 2024, during his maiden chat, Tinubu said he has “over 2,000 tractors coming into this country for mechanised farming” to make farming sexier.

However, Bright said tractors only won’t solve the food shortage problem in Nigeria. He argued that using local labour is job creation for locals and that over 80% of farmers in Nigeria are into subsistence farming.

The former presidential aide said, “When I heard about tractors and all those things, I laughed. The government is not getting it. Tractors won’t solve our problem. Mechanised farming to do what?

“We are having low harvest in terms of poor input, poor seed; we don’t have sovereignty of seeds — all the seeds we use in Nigeria are almost imported. All of these problems are there and we are going to use tractors.

“At the end of the day, what are we going to get? We are going to get peanuts. It is going to be very far from the potential. It is going to give us more problems because no one will be responsible for the maintenance. Corporate farmers can afford to get bank loans but smallholder farmers can’t afford to get bank loans to afford the use of tractors for mechanised farming.”

The former presidential aide said Nigeria can’t afford to be a mass producer of food as the country indirectly feeds neighbouring countries like Niger Republic, Benin, Burkina Faso, and others.

“Agriculture is supposed to be a serious priority of government because it is connected to security. The rural areas, if they are suffering, we are not secure. That is part of the reasons we have banditry, Boko Haram and all. If the people are satisfied, will they follow Boko Haram?” he queried.

A former Nigerian president Olusegun Obasanjo has paid tribute to the late American President Jimmy Carter, recalling how the former US leader visited Nigeria to plead for his release during the reign of military junta leader Sani Abacha.

Obasanjo spoke on Sunday at a memorial service in honour of Carter who died at 100.

“President Carter was one of my foreign friends who stuck their necks out to save my life and to seek my release from prison. On President Carter’s visit to Nigeria, he got Abacha to agree to take me from detention to house arrest on my farm,” Obasanjo said during the event held at the Chapel of Christ the Glorious King within the Olusegun Obasanjo Presidential Library, Abeokuta, Ogun State.

“But that did not last for too long. Many other friends and leaders intervened, but President Carter was the only non-African leader, according to my information, that paid a visit to Abacha solely to plead for my release.”

‘I was moved to tears’

The Abacha regime arrested Obasanjo in 1995 owing to an alleged coup plot. However, the former president was released after Abacha’s demise in 1998.

The following year, Obasanjo became Nigeria’s president, elected under the umbrella of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

“In the U.S., I called on President Carter, who told me all the efforts he made with other leaders and Abacha remaining unyielding for my release. But the most surprising thing Carter said to me was, ‘Please, see Ted Turner and thank him for his generosity. He came to me and asked me to get his friend, Obasanjo, released from prison.

I will take care of him and his family here or wherever he chooses to live.’ I was touched and moved to tears,” the former president told the gathering, describing the late Carter as his friend whom he will miss.

“For me, I would miss a great and true friend, but I know we shall meet again in Paradise. May his soul rest in peace,” the 87-year-old said.

Obasanjo extolled Carter’s virtues and said the former US president lived an exemplary life of service to humanity.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) says its operatives have nabbed a traditional chief priest of the Igunuko Shrine, Bariu Aliu, in the Alpha Beach area of Ajah, Lagos State.

Also known as “Malo,” the suspect was arrested after 2,760 kilograms of skunk were recovered from his shrine on October 25, 2024.

Babafemi noted that though two of Bariu’s accomplices had been arrested, charged, and convicted last year, the chief priest was identified as the leader of the drug syndicate operating from the shrine.

“In Lagos, the traditional chief priest of the Igunuko shrine at Alpha Beach, Ajah Lekki, where 2,760 kg of skunk was recovered on October 25, 2024, Bariu Aliu (alias Malo), has been arrested by NDLEA operatives after a three-month manhunt,” the statement read.

“Though two of his accomplices were arrested at the shrine last year and subsequently charged and convicted in court, Bariu was identified as the syndicate leader.”

He also disclosed that operatives intercepted a 40-foot trailer loaded with 2,217.6 kilograms of skunk, a strain of cannabis, during an intelligence-led operation in the Kagini area of Kubwa, Abuja.

The agency’s spokesman stated that the drugs were meant for onward distribution to some northern states.

“The intelligence-led operation, which took place at 1:20 a.m. on Saturday, January 11, 2025, led to the seizure of the large illicit consignment, the trailer, six vehicles—comprising a Toyota Van, Toyota Camry, Toyota Sienna, a JAC 4-wheel-drive Hilux, a Toyota Corolla, and a Vento Passat—and the arrest of a suspect, 42-year-old Isaac Monday Desmond.

“The consignment was loaded onto the trailer at Uzebba in the Owan Local Council Area of Edo State,” he stated.

He explained that 20 wraps of cocaine, weighing 330 grams, were intercepted from a cargo shipment bound for Australia at a logistics firm in Lagos. The cocaine was concealed in face cream containers.

Ghana President John Mahama has reduced the country’s ministries from 30 to 23 in a bid to cut government spending.

Mahama’s decision – an executive order – to trim the number of government ministries was contained in a gazette dated January 9 – two days after he took office.

The West African country would no longer have the ministries of information, sanitation and water resources, national security, railway development, parliamentary affairs, public enterprises, and chieftaincy and religious affairs.

The scrapped ministries were in place under Nana Akufo-Addo, immediate-past president of Ghana.

The order established the ministries of finance, health, interior, defence, education, energy and green transition, roads and highways, transport, sports and recreation, justice, lands and natural resources, and local government and chieftaincy and affairs.

Others are foreign affairs, communication, digital technology, environment, science and technology, youth development and empowerment, works, housing and water resources, gender, children and social protection, tourism, culture and creative arts, labour, jobs and employment, food and agriculture, fisheries and aquaculture, and trade, agribusiness and industry.

Mahama, who was first in Ghana’s Jubilee House between 2012 and 2017, returned to power after defeating former Vice-President Mahamudu Bawumia.

The president polled 6,328,397 votes, representing 56.55 percent of the vote cast, while Bawumia gathered 4,657,304 votes with 41.6 percent.

Bawumia conceded defeat before the official results were announced.

Mahama’s cost-cutting move is in contrast to that of President Bola Tinubu, his Nigerian counterpart, who increased ministries to 48 in 2023 from 44 under the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari.

Tinubu’s decision has faced widespread criticism as Nigeria struggles with a deepening cost-of-living crisis.

Monday Elela, the father of a 14-year-old boy, Tope Elela, who was allegedly killed and buried has confessed that he killed and buried his son for always engaging in housebreaking, stealing, and other criminal activities.

Elela who lives in Ajowa Akoko in Akoko North-West Local Government Area of Ondo State descibed the deceased son as the black sheep of the family among his seven children.

The father and his wife were alleged to have killed the Tope Elela following which they were arrested by police.

Speaking with journalists when being paraded by the Ondo State Commissioner of Police, CP Wilfred Afolabi at the police headquarters in Akure, Elela disclosed that he buried the boy in a shallow grave under a banana tree behind his house after he gave up the ghost.

“I did not know that the boy would die when I beat him in the night after he escaped from the custody of the State Security Network codename Amotekun,” Elela said.

He added that he usually hand over the late son to Amotekun or vigilante groups whenever he was arrested for stealing or other criminal activities for punishment.

Elela, however noted that his wife took to her heels alongside other children when he got to know about his arrest.

“The deceased had escaped from Amotekun’s detention and was embarrassing the family as a result of criminal activities he engaged in. When he came back, we beat him and went to sleep. The following morning, his siblings discovered that he was dead and I decided to bury him under a banana tree,” he narrated.

Elela was paraded alongside 24 other suspects by the Commissioner of Police for various crimes including murder, cultism, house breaking and stealing.

The CP also paraded those who allegedly took part in the recent cult clashes that left five persons dead in Owo, Owo local government area of the state.

Among those paraded include one Olamide Ogunseyila, a 28 years old man who confessed to being a member of a cult group.

Also, Gbenga Bisi, a 25 years old wife of Steven Dada, also known as “Ogodo,” who is currently on the run was apprehended alongside Gbenga Esther, ‘F’, age 20 years at a hideout where the Police found a double-barrel, cut-to-size gun, two expended cartridges, and additional ammunition.

The CP named others as 61-year-old man, Ijarotimi Taye who was discovered with physical injuries around his body and could not give a satisfactory account of how he got the injuries, raising suspicions about his involvement in criminal activities.

CP Afolabi added that the duo of 30-year-old Bero Adeola, and Olabode Ojo (a.k.a Paw paw), who claimed that his brother’s wife and child were killed in the melee were arrested in their hideout in Akure.

“They both confessed to being cultists belonging to the Aye group and claimed it was the Eiye and Aiye groups that were fighting.

“The suspects claimed they left Owo because of the fight because they did not want to be part of it,” the police CP said.

He further added that Ijalade Olorunfemi, ‘m’, aged 42 years, and Ayodele Olayemi, ’m’, aged 20 years have also been implicated as cultists through ongoing investigations.

“The remaining suspects are currently undergoing thorough interrogation to ascertain their roles in the crisis while the Command is intensifying efforts to apprehend Steven Dada (alias “Ogodo”) and any other individual connected to these criminal activities,” the police commissioner said.

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, has charged troops to make a difference in the operations against insecurity in 2025.

The CDS charged them to intensify their efforts in combating criminals and to pursue and neutralise threats wherever they may hide.

Gen. Musa gave the directive during the Armed Forces Remembrance Day celebration and award evening for soldiers, ratings, and airmen in Abuja on Sunday.

The CDS stated that there was a need for a more proactive approach in addressing security challenges across the country.

He said, “We are not where we want to be, but we’re heading there, and I can assure you that by working together, we shall overcome all acts of evil.

“Our task is to look for the bad guys and take them down. Is that clear? I’ve encouraged all our commanders, this year, we must make a great difference in all our operations. We must step out of the temple, look for the criminals wherever they enter, and go after them.”

General Musa said military work was no longer all about court martial but to also appreciate excelling officers.

“I choose to say thank you for the job you are doing. We appreciate every one of you. For us, anyone who has signed to put his life on the line for his nation deserves commendation, so we commend all of you.

“I want to tell you that we appreciate everything you are doing, all the sacrifice, leaving your families behind, staying in the trenches, doing so many wonderful things. Most times, we don’t tell you thank you enough, but this is one way of saying thank you and we appreciate you. And to whom much is given, and to tell you that we will do everything possible to ensure that we take care of you, we look after your welfare, that will make you work better.

“So, for those of you here, let me start from this end. So I say congratulations to all of you. We appreciate you. You know in our system, the more you do, the more we want. So this is just the beginning. This is the first time we’re doing this.

“We’re going to maintain this and ensure that every year we commend all those who have done. It is not only to punish people, anything little, to charge him 252 gold for Court Martial. But that if you equally do well, we should also commend you, just like we are commending them,” he stated.

For his part, the Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Olufemi Oluyede, reinforced the importance of the military’s role in ensuring peace and stability.

He reminded troops of their oath to serve the nation with loyalty and resolve.

“We must not lose sight of the oath we took to be dutiful, faithful, and loyal servicemen and women,” Lagbaja said. “We must go wherever lawfully sent—by land, sea, or air. Therefore, we must remain resolute in our fight against terrorism, insurgency, secessionism, and other threats to our collective peace as Nigerians,” Oluyede said.

He also urged personnel to support the government’s efforts to improve the lives of Nigerians, noting that their commitment was crucial to achieving national aspirations.

In his remarks, the Chief of Naval Staff, Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, assured personnel of the Navy’s commitment to their welfare and operational efficiency.

“We will continue to prioritise your welfare and provide the necessary equipment to tackle the challenges ahead,” Ogalla stated.

“The Nigerian Navy will also continue to rejig our operations by introducing new assets and improving surveillance capabilities. This will boost the morale of our gallant troops and make it easier for us to overcome the enemy,” he stated.

Ogalla added that the measures would enhance the military’s ability to neutralise threats and turn the tide against criminal elements.

The Oyo State Government has filed an 18-count charge, including manslaughter, against Naomi Silekunola, the former wife of the Ooni of Ife; Oriyomi Hamzat, CEO of Agidigbo FM; and Fasasi Abdullahi, Principal of Islamic High School, following the tragic stampede at a Christmas Funfair in Ibadan that claimed the lives of 35 children.

According to a source within the government, the charges were filed in connection with the deadly incident.

“The court will most likely grant bail on Monday, but the state government has filed an 18-count charge of manslaughter and similar offences against the defendants,” the source said.

At the Oyo State High Court on January 7, the defence team argued passionately for the release of the defendants on bail. They cited their cooperation with investigations and the fact that they posed no flight risk.

The defence lawyers also questioned the constitutionality of the defendants’ detention, describing it as a procedural irregularity.

They challenged the “holding charge” under which the accused were remanded, stating that it lacked recognition under the Administration of Criminal Justice Act.

The Oyo State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Abiodun Aikomo, led the prosecution team, opposing the bail applications.

Aikomo insisted that the accused had not provided sufficient justification for their release and dismissed claims of persecution by the state government as baseless.

“The gravity of the charges and the need for justice for the victims and their families necessitate the continued detention of the accused persons,” Aikomo argued.

After hearing arguments from both sides, Justice K.B. Olawoyin reserved his ruling on the bail applications until Monday, January 13, 2025.

The case centers on three defendants:

Naomi Silekunola: Former wife of the Ooni of Ife.

Oriyomi Hamzat: CEO of Agidigbo FM.

Fasasi Abdullahi: Principal of Islamic High School.

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has claimed there is no credible evidence to support reports that 16 civilians were killed during an airstrike targeting insurgents in Tungar Kara, Maradun LGA of Zamfara state.

On Sunday, the NAF said the air strikes, conducted under Operation Fansan Yamma on January 10 was a “devastatingly well-coordinated air-ground assault” targeting banditry in the state.

However, reports had emerged from the community alleging that 16 residents, including members of the Zamfara Community Protection Guard (ZCPG) and vigilantes, were mistakenly killed during the operation.

In a report, Zagazola Makama, a counter-insurgency publication focused on the Lake Chad region quoted intelligence sources as saying the vigilantes were misidentified as bandits after gunmen fled the area.

 

“So far, 16 dead bodies have been retrieved, but the total number of casualties is not yet clear,” the report noted.

NAF: OUR OPERATIONS BASED ON CREDIBLE INTEL

Following an enquiry by TheCable on Sunday, Olusola Akinboyewa, NAF’s director of public relations and information, denied the allegations, stating that the air force employs “every possible measure to prevent, minimise and mitigate harm to civilians in the conduct of operations”.

He added that the reports might be “emanating from terrorists and their sympathisers as a way of discrediting the military with propaganda, seeing they are now increasingly on the receiving end”.

Akinboyewa said there was no credible report of civilian casualties and that the airstrikes were based on reliable intelligence.

“Nevertheless, please remain assured that the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) operations against bandits, terrorists and other similar threats are conducted based on credible, reliable intel drawn form multiple verifiable sources and subject to further confirmatory analysis,” he said. 

“The air component of Operation Fansan Yamma carried out the airstrikes in question to repel ongoing bandit attacks on villages in the area.

“As of date, we have not received any credible reports of civilian casualties being involved in this instance. As events unfold, members of the public would be kept informed as might become necessary.”

HISTORY OF CONTROVERSY

The incident is not the first time military air strikes have been accused of claiming civilian casualties.

On December 25, 2024, media reports indicated that air strikes targeting the Lakurawa terrorist group in Sokoto state mistakenly killed civilians in the Silame LGA of the state.

The military denied the allegations, with Abubakar Abdullahi, joint media coordinator for Operation Hadarin Daji, saying the strikes were based on thorough intelligence to ensure precision.

However, the Sokoto state government countered the military’s claims, stating that no fewer than 10 civilians were killed when fighter jets “mistakenly” bombed the village.

Muhammad Sifawa, secretary to the state government, announced N20 million and food relief for the victims’ families while assuring coverage of medical bills for the injured.

Two days later, the Defence Headquarters (DHQ) said the deaths were caused by secondary explosions at a terrorist logistics base.

Edward Buba, director of defence media operations, said, “When munitions hit a logistics base, secondary explosions can occur, causing unintended casualties.”

Vice-President Kashim Shettima later apologised to the affected families, describing the incident as “one of the rare but unfortunate consequences of counter-terrorism operations.”

Over the past decade, at least 19 military airstrikes in Nigeria have “mistakenly” hit civilians instead of the intended terrorist targets.

These incidents have claimed more than 400 lives, injured hundreds, and raised concerns over violations of humanitarian laws which requires minimal harm to civilians during armed conflict.

Joshua Zirkzee scored the winning penalty for 10-man Manchester United against Arsenal after their hectic FA Cup third round tie finished 1-1 after extra time at Emirates Stadium on Sunday.

The visitors took the lead in the 52nd minute through Bruno Fernandes’ curling effort from just inside the box, before Gabriel Magalhãesl equalised 11 minutes later — just after United’s Diogo Dalot was sent off for a second booking.

United goalkeeper Altay Bayindir produced a superb save to deny Arsenal captain Martin Ødegaard from the penalty spot, before the Gunners spurned several chances to score a winner.

Ruben Amorim’s team will find out their opponent in the fourth round when the draw is made later on Sunday evening.