News
Paris 2024 Olympics: Bello Increases Nigeria’s Slots
The number of Nigerian table tennis players heading to the Paris 2024 Olympic Games increased to three after Fatimo Bello defeated Algeria’s Lynda Loghraibi 4-2 in the final of the second stage of the African Olympic Qualification Tournament at BK Arena in Kigali, Rwanda.
Bello failed to qualify through the first stage of qualifiers after losing 4-1 to Cameroon’s Sarah Hanffou. Still, she returned stronger to win the sole slot in the second stage of qualifiers of the women’s singles.
Bello will join her compatriots – Olajide Omotayo and Offiong Edem to compete in the Paris 2024 Olympic Games.
Also, Algeria’s Mehdi Bouloussa who missed out from the first stage of the qualifiers atone for his defeat to pick the last slot in the men’s singles of the qualification tournament.
The qualified players from Kigali qualifiers include Nigeria’s trio of Bello, Omotayo and Edem. At the same time, Cameroon’s Sarah Haffou picked her tickets to her third Olympics appearance. At the same time, Fabio Rakotoarimanana became the first Madagascan table tennis player to qualify for the Olympic Games after picking the second slot in the first stage of the qualifiers. Mehdi Bouloussa of Algeria secured the final slot in the men’s singles.
Bouloussa, who narrowly lost 3-4 to Wassim Essid of Tunisia in the quarterfinal round of the first stage, returned to winning ways to pick the final ticket in the men’s singles of the qualification tournament.
To win the second stage of the qualifiers, Bouloussa defeated Saheed Idowu of Congo Brazzaville. (16-14, 11-4, 11-8, 11-4) to pick his maiden ticket to the Olympic Games.
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, on Friday announced the release of the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, results.
Elanza news reported that over 1.9 million applicants participated in the just-concluded exercise.
The board also disclosed that 80 suspects across the country are currently under interrogation for examination fraud, with Anambra State leading the pack with 14 suspects.
The board said it is withholding the results of 39,834 candidates over issues relating to examination irregularities.
JAMB Registrar, Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, stated this on Friday while officially releasing the 2025 UTME.
He also disclosed that while 467 underage candidates met the prescribed minimum score, 50 were engaged in cheating scandal.
A press conference to this effect is ongoing.
Details coming…
A massive fire razed a warehouse at Global Crystal Foam Nigeria Limited in Oko-Oba, Oyo State, on Thursday night, destroying property worth millions of naira, officials confirmed.
The blaze, which broke out along Akinmorin Road, prompted a rapid response from state and federal fire services, who managed to contain the inferno within 15 minutes.
Hon. Maroof Akinwande, Senior Adviser on Fire Service Reform to Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, visited the scene and urged the company’s management to prioritise fire safety measures to prevent future incidents.
“The governor places immense value on the safety of lives and property,” Akinwande said, calling on the public to cooperate with firefighters during emergencies.
The Oyo State Fire Service Agency, led by General Manager Akinyemi Akinyinka, was alerted to the fire at 8:50 pm by a retired fire officer, Mr. M.O. Adewuyi.
“Upon arrival, we found the warehouse engulfed in flames,” Akinyinka said.
“Our team, supported by the Federal Fire Service, Oyo Command, applied firefighting chemicals to restrict the fire from spreading to other sections of the company.”
Akinyinka noted that the fire, caused by overheating foam blocks igniting nearby combustibles, had raged for an hour before the agency was notified by a passerby who spotted smoke.
Despite the delay, the coordinated response prevented the blaze from consuming the entire facility, saving property worth millions.
Security was provided by a team from the Oyo East Division of the Amotekun Corps, led by CFS Adeduntan, who ensured no looting occurred during the operation.
MTN Nigeria, a leading telecommunications company, has invested N3.5 billion in corporate social investment (CSI) in 2024, bringing its total CSI spending to N31.9 billion since its inception, the company’s Chief Sustainability Officer, Tobechukwu Okigbo, announced on Thursday.
Speaking at the Nigerian Exchange Ltd (NGX) during the presentation of the company’s Facts Behind the Sustainability Report, Okigbo highlighted the tangible impacts of MTN’s initiatives.
“Our efforts have benefited over 663,300 individuals, supported 628 small businesses, and improved educational outcomes in 62 schools across Nigeria,” he said.
The company also launched the Sustainability in Action, Value for the MTN Everyone (SAVE) campaign to enhance employee engagement in sustainability efforts.
To improve global accessibility, MTN’s 2023 sustainability report was digitally tagged with extensible Business Reporting Language (XBRL), making it easier for investors and stakeholders to access.
MTN Nigeria made significant strides in reducing its environmental footprint, cutting Scope 1 and 2 emissions by 11% from its 2021 baseline of 113,826 tCO²e to 101,300 tCO²e in 2024.
The company expanded renewable energy use by adding 194 solar-powered rural telephony sites and became the first telecom operator in West Africa to introduce eco-friendly SIM cards.
On the social front, MTN reaffirmed its commitment to gender equality through its Yellowpreneur platform, which provides women access to low-interest loans.
“No fewer than 600,000 women have benefited from this initiative,” Okigbo noted, adding that the loans, facilitated through partner banks, carry an interest rate not exceeding N3.00.