Author: Ifetayo Adeniyi

Tinubu lauds Super Eagles for hard-fought AFCON bronze President Bola Tinubu has praised the Nigerian national football team, the Super Eagles, following their bronze medal victory at the 2025 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Morocco. The President commended the team for bouncing back from their semi-final defeat to host nation Morocco, praising their resilience and determination in the third-place playoff. Nigeria defeated Egypt, a seven-time AFCON champion, 4-2 on penalties after dominating regular time. In a statement, President Tinubu said: “Despite their good run during the tournament, the Eagles lost the semi-final match to Morocco during the penalty shootout…

Manny Ita ​Veteran musician and cultural advocate Dare Fasasi, popularly known as Baba Dee, has voiced strong concerns regarding Nigeria’s inability to derive significant economic value from the global success of Afrobeats. Speaking in an exclusive interview with The Nation today, January 17, 2026, the artist—who is the elder brother of the late music icon Sound Sultan—attributed the lack of financial return to a fundamental lack of structure and weak regulation within the domestic creative industry. He argued that while the genre enjoys unprecedented international visibility, the core economic benefits are being siphoned away by foreign entities. ​”Afrobeats is not…

Manny Ita The 8th edition of the Hadiza Ibrahim Aliyu Schools Festival (HIASFEST), widely recognized as Africa’s largest teen arts festival, officially drew to a close today, January 17, 2026, at the Legbo Kutigi International Conference Centre in Minna, Niger State. The event solidified the city’s standing as a premier incubator for Nigeria’s emerging creative class, bringing together hundreds of students for a week of high-stakes competition across literary, performing, and scientific disciplines. This year’s festival saw a significant escalation in institutional support, with a total prize pool exceeding ₦30 million distributed among the winning participants and institutions. ​The “Overall…

Manny Ita Afrobeats star Davido is at the centre of a widely publicised paternity dispute after a teenage girl, Mitchelle Anuoluwapo Adeleke, publicly appealed to the singer to submit to a DNA test to establish whether he is her biological father. The matter resurfaced in January 2026 after the 12‑year‑old shared an emotional message on social media in which she described years of bullying and psychological distress linked to the unresolved claim and appealed respectfully to Davido to consider a fresh test to confirm her identity. In response, Davido has strongly denied paternity and said he has already taken multiple…

Manny Ita Nigerian Afrobeats artists Wizkid and Asake have released a new collaborative single, “Jogodo,” the lead track from their upcoming joint EP REAL, Vol. 1, which is scheduled for release on January 23, 2026. The single, which debuted on January 16, marks the first official extended play jointly credited to both artists, following previous collaborations on singles such as “MMS” and “Bad Girl.” Produced by Magicsticks, “Jogodo” blends Afrobeats rhythms with percussion and brass elements, featuring vocals in Nigerian Pidgin and Yoruba. The track’s lyrics explore themes of nightlife and indulgence, with both artists delivering alternating verses in a…

Manny Ita The National E-Soccer Pro League Division 2 officially kicked off on January 17, 2026, marking a significant milestone in Nigeria’s fast-growing gaming and esports industry. Organisers say the competition is a key component of a structured “Road to Pro” system aimed at professionalising competitive gaming and positioning Nigeria as a leading digital entertainment hub in Africa. The Division 2 league will run for seven weeks and features 20 players who qualified from the recently concluded Division 3. At the end of the season, the top eight competitors will secure promotion to the Division 1 Pro League, which is…

AFCON 2025: Nigeria get victory over Egypt with 4-2 on penalties, win third-place File: Super Eagles Victory extended Nigeria’s remarkable dominance in AFCON bronze matches. The Super Eagles defeated Egypt’s Pharaohs 4-2 on penalties on Saturday to claim the bronze medal in the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations after a tense third-place playoff at the Stade Mohammed V in Casablanca. The encounter ended goalless after 90 minutes, forcing the contest into a shootout where goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali again proved decisive, saving spot-kicks from Mohamed Salah and Oumar Marmoush to hand Nigeria their ninth AFCON third-place finish and maintain their…

Manny Ita Nigeria’s fuel supply dynamics shifted sharply in December and January as increased output from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery significantly reduced the country’s dependence on imported petrol, marking what industry observers describe as a turning point in the long-running “battle for the pump.” Data from sector regulators show that petrol supply from the Dangote Refinery surged by about 64 per cent over the period, rising to an estimated 32 million litres per day. The increase in locally refined petrol had a direct impact on imports, which fell by approximately 19 per cent during the same period. Despite the decline,…

Manny Ita Maserati has opened 2026 with a major showcase at the Brussels Motor Show, marking a century of its involvement in motorsport and 100 years of its Trident emblem. The Italian luxury carmaker presented a wide range of vehicles spanning supercars, electric models and bespoke Fuoriserie creations, underscoring both its heritage and current design and engineering direction. Among the highlights was the debut appearance of the MCPURA Cielo, the open-top successor to the MC20 Cielo, alongside the all-electric GranCabrio Folgore and Grecale Folgore. Maserati also displayed the special-edition Grecale Lumina Blu, reinforcing its expanding portfolio of battery-electric and performance-focused…

Manny Ita Providus Bank is in the final stages of a landmark merger with Unity Bank Plc, a consolidation expected to create Nigeria’s ninth-largest lender by total assets and significantly reshape the country’s banking landscape. The transaction, which has received shareholder approval from both institutions, involves the transfer of Unity Bank’s assets and liabilities to Providus Bank, with Unity Bank ceasing to exist as a standalone entity upon completion. Under the merger scheme, Unity Bank shareholders were offered either a cash consideration or an equity swap, reflecting efforts to balance investor interests while strengthening the capital base of the enlarged…