Author: straightnewsng.com

The Federal Government, States and Local Government councils collected N1.1 trillion allocation for December 2023, according to the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC). This was contained in a communiqué issued at the end of the FAAC meeting for January 2024, a statement by the Director of Press and Public Relations under the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, Bawa Mokwa, said Tuesday. The meeting was chaired by the Accountant General of the Federation, Dr. Oluwatoyin Madein. The N1,127.408 billion total distributable revenue comprised distributable statutory revenue of N363.188 billion, distributable Value Added Tax (VAT) revenue of N458.622 billion,…

World cup semi-finalist Moroccan national football team’s journey at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) has come to an end after sustaining a 2-0 defeat against South Africa in the tournament’s round of 16. Despite being favorites to not only win today’s clash but the tournament itself, the Atlas Lions were unable to put the ball in the net against a South African team whose tactics appeared to be to defend in numbers and rely on few counterattacking opportunities to score. With today’s win, the Bafana Bafana, who proved to be strong opponents, have booked their ticket for the AFCON…

Mali booked a quarterfinal berth after cracking Burkina Faso 2-1 on Tuesday to set up an Africa Cup of Nations quarterfinal match against tournament host Ivory Coast. An own-goal from Edmond Tapsoba and second-half strike from Lassine Sinayoko were enough for the Eagles to win the round-of-16 game, the last match of the tournament to be played in Korhogo. Mali will next play Ivory Coast in Bouaké on Saturday, when the home team can count on supporters whose belief has been restored after beating defending champion Senegal on Monday. Burkina Faso, which has repeatedly gone close to winning its first Africa Cup title in…

Two prominent former members of National Assembly from Nigeria’s Akwa Ibom State have transited to eternal abode of the living after brief illness. They are Senator Itak Bob Ekarika of Ikot Ntuen in Oruk Anam Local Government Area and Rt. Hon. Bassey Etim of Ekpene Ukim, Uruan Local Government Area of the state. Born on December 18, 1937, Ekarika attended Methodist High School, Uzuakoli now in Bende Local Government Area of Abia State. A letter made available to Straightnews by Arc. Ekarika Itak Ekarika announced the obsequies. Read also Three-year-old Akwa Ibom Child dies in Aba  Popular Akwa Ibom Pastor…

African Union and Nigeria are sad over the exit of Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). The African Union on Tuesday said it feels ”deep regret” over the withdrawal of  the Francophone countries. The AU said its commission president, Moussa Faki Mahamat, “calls on regional leaders to intensify the dialogue between the ECOWAS leadership and the three aforementioned countries”, which on Sunday accused the West African bloc of posing a threat to their sovereignty. It also indicated  that the African Union Commission was willing “to provide all the assistance in its power…

Rejuvenated hosts Ivory Coast came back from dreadful defeats to edge out defending champions Senegal following a dramatic penalty shoot-out to grab quarter-finals ticket in the 2023 African Cup of Nations thriller. Nigeria had beaten Ivory Coast 1-0 and the hosts suffered a 4-0 debilitating loss to Equatorial Guinea regarded as giant killers during the preliminary stage at the soccer tournament. As a result, Ivory Coast sacked head coach Jean-Louis Gasset, but the interim Coach Franck Kessié brought the hosts from near burial in the last 16 at the Africa Cup of Nations. However, Ivory Coast beat Senegal 5-4 on…

Dark horses Cape Verde tamed highly rated Mauritania to zoom into quarterfinals in the 2023 African Cup of Nations (AFCON) on Monday. Ryan Mendes converted a late penalty as Cape Verde beat Mauritania 1-0 in Abidjan to seal their place in the quarter-finals of the Africa Cup of Nations. Cape Verde captain Mendes struck the decisive spot kick in the 88th minute and the Blue Sharks will now face either Morocco or South Africa in the quarter-finals. Cape Verde, one of the surprise teams of the tournament after finishing unbeaten at the top of Group B ahead of Egypt and Ghana, were second best for most of the first half,…

Abia State Governor, Mr. Alex Otti has revolutionized the construction of the hitherto deplorable internal routes in Aba, the commercial hub of the state. Most of the roads are being constructed by Julius Berger Construction Company. In his X (formerly Twitter) handle, Otti wrote ‘‘Yesterday, I visited Aba, in the company of some members of my team, to inspect the ongoing road projects at Port Harcourt Road, Old Court Road, Ndoki Road and Omuma Road. ‘‘We were impressed with the progress of work on Port Harcourt Road. The contractor, Julius Berger Plc, has assured us that the road will be…

The 2023 Africa Cup of Nations witnessed more surprises on Sunday as Egypt, the seventh-time champion and Equatorial Guinea, the giant killers suffered shocking exit in the round of 16. DR Congo knocked Egypt out in the Round of 16 of the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations after long-drawn penalties at Laurent Poku Stadium on Sunday night. This was as a late winner from Mohamed Bayo sent Guinea into the quarter-final of the 2023 African Cup of Nations, eliminating giant killers- Equatorial Guinea. Congo won 8-7 with goalkeeper Lionel Mpasi scoring the 18th spot as the Leopards are in search…

Jannik Sinner stormed back from two sets down to beat Daniil Medvedev in a gruelling five-set Australian Open final on Sunday, winning his first Grand Slam. The Italian fourth seed was blown off course in the first two sets but recovered to win 3-6, 3-6, 6-4, 6-4, 6-3 in three hours and 44 minutes. The result is a bitter blow for the Russian third seed, who has now lost a second Australian Open final after being two sets up, following his defeat by Rafael Nadal in 2022. Medvedev came into the match boasting a 6-3 winning record against the 22-year-old,…