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As Ekiti, Ondo State shine on Match Day 6… Lagos files out against Oyo State in the final The exciting and thrilling week long South West Basketball League ends today at the basketball court of the Liberty Stadium, Ibadan.

Host Oyo State that dropped only one game will take on unbeaten Lagos State in the final later today.

Before the grand finale, Ondo State will confront Ekiti in the third place game.When Oyo State met Lagos State during the group stage, the city of aquatic splendor ran away win a slim 4 points margin win.

The project manager of the League, Olumide Oyedeji told your authoritative and award-winning news channel FIRST ZEALMEDIACAST BLOG, that the League was designed to offer young and talented players in the South West zone to get more game time and experience.

“Very few States in the country have an active league or championship program, so competition like this will help the young ones to get game time and experience, it will open opportunity for them to be seen by other clubs out the region.

”He explained that the hosting of the South West Basketball League will be rotated among the six States, Ekiti, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Osun and Oyo.The last two games were decided on Thursday, Ekiti defeated Ogun 85-57 while Ondo stopped Osun 70-57.✓ Ogun 57 Vs. Ekiti 85✓ Osun 57 Vs. Ondo 70

The naira has continued to depreciate against the dollar in the foreign exchange market. According to FMDQ data, the naira weakened further to N1660.49 per dollar on Thursday, compared to N1659.69 on Wednesday.

This represents a drop of N0.8 within a day and a cumulative loss of N107.5 over the past three days.Meanwhile, the black market rate held steady at N1705 per dollar on both Wednesday and Thursday.

Foreign exchange transactions recorded a turnover of $330.18 million on Thursday, up from $217.86 million on Tuesday, indicating increased market activity.

Speaking at the Nigerian Economic Summit (NES) on Wednesday, Central Bank Governor Olayemi Cardoso remarked that while the weak naira poses challenges, it could also present opportunities if the right investments are made.

“It may seem like a threat given the exchange rate’s decline, but with adequate investment, the situation can be advantageous,” he said.Despite various interventions by the Central Bank of Nigeria, the naira’s value has fluctuated persistently.

The World Bank recently ranked the naira among the worst-performing currencies in Africa, highlighting ongoing concerns about its stability in the FX market.

The Labour Party (LP) chieftain, Peter Obi is concerned about the untold hardship the policies implemented by President Bola Tinubu’s administration have unleashed on Nigerians, lamenting that they are unimaginable.

Obi aired his grievance with the economic policies of Tinubu’s administration through a post he shared on his official X account on Friday morning, especially with the president and his vice, Kashim Shettima both out of Nigeria.

He said while it is arguable that with the President and Vice President absent from the Villa, there is no vacancy in the presidency, in a situation where both the President and Vice President are out of the country, as reported in the media yesterday, it’s concerning for a country with such myriads of domestic problems.

“The President had told us he would only be gone for 14 days. The 14 days have passed now and we are waiting to see him in the country,” Obi said.

“One would have expected him to return earlier than expected, considering the volume of work that needs to be done in a troubled nation like ours.

“The untold hardship that has been unleashed on our people as a result of some of his administration’s policies is unimaginable and we need his urgent attention to pilot the nation out of this present situation.”

Obi said again, since the president is reportedly in Paris, France which is just about 833 nautical miles from Stockholm, Sweden, one wonders why he did not just attend the two-day working visit to Sweden.

He said Tinubu could simply have done it on his way back from France with his new powerful jet which would have taken him a little over two hours.

The former governor of Anambra State added that this would have saved time and the very scarce national resources Nigeria as a country needs critically at this time.

“Instead, he delegated the Vice President who needed to travel 3055 nautical miles, over nine hours and (about four times the travel time from Paris) Abuja, Nigeria to Stockholm, Sweden to represent him at the event,” he said.

“It would take about four times the time and distance it takes to travel from Paris to Stockholm to travel from Abuja to Stockholm.

“This does not represent the kind of fiscal responsibility and common sense that is expected of leaders whose people are facing severe hunger and poverty.”

Obi said this is the time to show true and committed leadership to the people by making decisions that prioritize the well-being of the people and effective management of the nation’s scarce resources in alleviating the sufferings of the people.

The Economic Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has permitted two United States (US)-based witnesses in the trial of the former Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele to testify virtually.

The EFCC made this known in a statement it shared on its official X account on Friday morning.

“A prosecution counsel in the ongoing trial of Godwin Emefiele on Thursday, October 17, 2024 prayed Justice Maryanne Anenih of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Maitama, Abuja, to allow two of his witnesses, I.E Obiora and Aisha Ahmed currently in the United States of America to give testimony via video links,” the statement read.

The EFCC is prosecuting Emefiele on a four-count charge bordering on disobedience of legal directives and illegal actions; causing harm to the public concerning the controversial naira redesign policy.

At the resumed session of the matter on Thursday, the counsel, Abass Mohammed, informed the court that his team encountered difficulties in bringing the witnesses to Nigeria and sought to file a motion to have the oral evidence of the witnesses taken via ZoomZoom or other video platforms.

“We filed a motion seeking my lord’s indulgence to take the oral evidence of the two witnesses via zoom or any other video links, my lord,” he said.

He further said the motion had been served on the defence counsels, adding, “Subject to my lord’s permission, we seek my lord’s permission to move the motion.”

Defence counsel, A. Labi-Lawal, responding to the prosecution, expressed no objection to the prosecution’s application but sought clarification on whether the witnesses would be the last to be called by the prosecution.

“We are not opposing the motion, but we would like to confirm from the prosecution whether these are the only witnesses that are left in the trial, my lord,” he said.

Mohammed clarified that there were other witnesses apart from the two based in the U.S., maintaining that the prosecution was calling the witnesses first as part of an ongoing review of its case plan.

Justice Anenih, after hearing the parties, granted the prosecution’s request and adjourned the trial till November 14, 26 and December 4, 2024 as well as January 21, 2025.

The Kebbi Government has announced the closure of the College of Health Sciences and Technology, Jega, indefinitely following a violent protest by students.

The Commissioner for Higher Education in the state, Alhaji Isah Abubakar-Tunga, made this known in Birnin Kebbi on Friday while briefing newsmen.

” Sequel to the violent protest that resulted in the setting ablaze the residence of the Provost of the college, Alhaji Haruna Saidu-Sauwa, we have directed that the college be shut down indefinitely,” he said.

Abubakar-Tunga said the action became imperative in view of the fact that if the demonstration was allowed to continue, it might escalate.

”Students are hereby  advised to vacate the college premises with immediate effect.

” Their main target was the Provost, they burnt down his house and completely vandalised his car.

” When we visited the college, we only met the Registrar of the school. The  Divisional Police Office (DPO) of the area yold us the provost was in a safe pace.

”But for the DPO’s intervention,  the students would have lynched the provost,” he said.

Abubakar-Tunga said that the government asked the rioting students to nominate 10 representatives for dialogue.

” While deliberating with the students’ representatives, the students outlined some of their grievances to include; lack of accreditation of some courses of the college.

” Others they said are; lack of toilets, lack of potable water, poor sanitary environment, and bad leadership, among others.”

”The college will remain closed for three weeks to one month. Before the students return, they must come with their parents and must write an undertaking, promising to be of good behaviour.

“In this undertaking, every student must promise to pay for damaged property,” he said. 

The Lagos State Government has alerted residents and property owners at the Ogun River Banks to relocate after the Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authority (OORBDA) commenced the staggered release of water from Oyan Dam.

The Lagos State Government issued the alert through the Commissioner, Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab who spoke during a press briefing on Thursday.

“We, hereby, alert residents and property owners at the Ogun River Banks to be ready to relocate to higher grounds as the Ogun-Osun River Basin Development Authorities commence staggered release of water from Oyan Dam,” Wahab said.

“Lagosians needed to be alerted on the commencement of release of water to maintain the sanctity of the dam and it’s socio-economic implications for Lagos State.

“It is crucial to understand that the dam’s annual operations are informed by real-time hydrological data, rainfall predictions from the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NIMET) and flood outlooks from the Nigeria Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA).

“These sources guide the water release decisions to ensure both flood control and the integrity of the dam.”

Wahab said the Lagos State Government and OORBDA acknowledge the concerns raised regarding the release of water from the dam and it’s impact on surrounding communities, particularly those along the Ogun River water channels extending into Lagos.

According to him, a detailed operational report by OORBDA states that the total water released from the dam this year as of October 12, 2024 stands at 1,484.2 million cubic meters (mcm) which remains below the average synthesized annual flow volume of 1,770 mcm.

Although rainfalls across the Oyan River catchment area have been significant with a cumulative 984.1 mm recorded this year, he said it remains lower than last year’s 1,540.8 mm and is within safe operational levels.

Wahab explained that 62.1% of the dam’s flood control capacity remains intact with the dam not under any imminent threat of releasing excess water beyond safe limits.

The commissioner added that this has been made possible through the collaboration of Lagos with OORBDA.

He said the Lagos State Government fully recognizes the challenge faced by residents in affected communities which include Kara, Mile 12, Agiliti, Ikosi Ketu, Owode, Ajegunle and Odo-Ogun as reported.

“However, I want to emphasize that while the flooding experienced in these areas has often been attributed solely to water released from the Oyan Dam, this is not entirely the case,” Wahab said.

“In reality, the downstream section of the Ogun River is influenced by a complex network of over 52 tributaries, all of which converge and contribute to rising water levels in the affected areas.

“These tributaries, combined with rain-induced runoff significantly exacerbate the flood situation which makes it a critical point to consider when addressing flood management strategies for this region.”

He explained that in an effort to reduce the flood risks and ensure the free flow of water within the Ogun River system, OORBDA recently flagged off the dredging of the Ogun River downstream from the Ikorodu to Isheri axis (Ajelogo, Owode-Elede, Ajegunle and under deck-on-pile of Itowolo Bridge) for the water released on Friday, September 13, 2024.

Wahab added that some right-of-ways along the catchment areas were protected and restored while the dredging project was a proactive measure to deepen the river channel and increase its capacity to convey water, thereby reducing the likelihood of flooding during periods of high inflow.

He said the Lagos State Government would continue to monitor the situation closely and collaborate with relevant agencies and affected communities to address humanitarian concerns, particularly for vulnerable groups like women, children, the elderly and people living with disabilities.

“I wish to appeal once again to our people to support our efforts by complementing the State Government through regular clearing of drains in their frontages to ensure free-flow of storm water as well as to desist from dumping of refuse into drainage channels and roads,” Wahab said.