Authorities claim there has been the death of a prosecutor looking into last week's attack on a TV station in Ecuador. According to the attorney general, César Suárez was shot and died on Wednesday in the port city of Guayaquil, Guayas province. It's unclear if Mr. Suarez's murder has anything to do with his probe into the attack on the TV station. Last week's dramatic event saw masked individuals breaking into the studio of public TV station TC during a live broadcast and threatening the hosts with guns.

While station employees were made to sit or lie on the studio floor, journalist Jose Luis Calderon was seen appealing to the gunmen in images that were shown live on television. The attack caused a fractured arm for one cameraman and a gunshot wound to another, according to TC's deputy director of news. According to the local media, Mr. Suárez was shot as he was driving close to his office. Another car on social media with gunshot holes in the glass is shown in unverified footage.

                                                                                                   Mr. Suárez

One day before he passed away, Mr. Suárez stated he had not received police protection even though he had questioned the 13 persons detained after the attack on the TV station in an interview with the publication El Universo. His murder is the most recent in a string of violent events that have rocked Ecuador, including the explosions in many towns, the escape of two gang leaders from jail, and the kidnapping of hundreds of prison guards. President Daniel Noboa responded by ordering the military to "neutralize" 22 armed groups, which he reclassified as terrorist groups, and imposing a 60-day state of emergency.

Attorney General Diana Salazar responded to Mr. Suarez's passing by saying, "With the fight against organized crime, it is impossible not to be broken by the death of a colleague." In his honor, we shall not waver—for justice, the nation, and him."César, I am grateful for your efforts. Peace be with you, "said the woman on X, the previous Twitter platform.

AFCON 2024 Top Scorers 22nd January 2024

1.       Emilio Nsue                                        EquatorialGuinea  5 goals

          Lopez.

3.       Baghdad                                             Algeria.                 3goals

          Bounedjah.

3.       Lamine Camara                                 Senegal                2 goals

3.       Bertrand Traore                                  Burkina Faso.      2goals

3.       M.Kudus                                            Ghana                   2goals

3.       Mostafa M.                                         Egypt.                   2goals

3.       Themba Zwane                                   South Africa          2goals

3.       Lassine Sinayoko                                Mali                      2goals

3.       Gelson Dala                                                 Angola                   2goals

Nobel Laureate Wole Soyinka Demands an Investigation Into Corruption in the APC of Nigeria In a recent televised interview, Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka expressed worries about corruption inside the All Progressives Congress (APC), the leading party in Nigeria. The celebrated author and political critic, who will soon turn ninety, demanded that certain leaders be held accountable for their acts while they were in government.

Soyinka called for an investigation by anti-graft organizations like as the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Commission (ICPC) and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) into allegations of corruption made against APC members. Even though he acknowledged President Bola Tinubu as a "doughty fighter" in the National Democratic Coalition (NADECO) era, Soyinka emphasized that no one should be shielded from criticism or examination in the present for their previous actions.

                                                                                                                               Pep Guardiola

After a 1-0 victory over Inter Milan in the championship match, Manchester City raised their first Champions League trophy in May. However, in front of their September opening against Red Star Belgrade, Pep Guardiola downplayed their accomplishment. "It will be simpler. The first one is the toughest to win," he remarked. Winning the Champions League once is not a huge thing. "While it is amazing for our team to win the Champions League, consider how many teams have ever won one? A great deal.

With just one, we haven't accomplished anything particularly noteworthy, but we are proud."

Ron DeSantis was the target of months of derision and scorn from Donald Trump, but on Sunday night, the Florida governor stopped his campaign for president and praised the outgoing leader, marking DeSantis as his newest ally. It has become a routine for Trump to accept support from those who have challenged him. But, it was noteworthy that Trump praised DeSantis at Sunday's event in New Hampshire without referring to him as "DeSantimonious" or "DeSanctus," ending what may have been the most acrimonious battle amongst Republicans running for president in 2024.

                                                                                                                          RON DESANTIS

 Trump began his speech by saying, "I just want to thank Ron and congratulate him on doing a very good job." He was so kind and gave me his blessing. Thank you for that, and I'm excited to collaborate with Ron. DeSantis was called "a terrific person" by Trump. DeSantis said via video earlier in the day that he would be suspending his candidacy two days before the nation's first-ever GOP primary in New Hampshire. Despite Trump's excitement on Sunday night, the endorsement wasn't very warm. "It's evident to me that the majority of Republican primary voters wish to offer Donald Trump another opportunity," DeSantis stated, delivering a detached appraisal while wearing a forced grin and excluding any compliments for the candidate.

He went on, "I signed a pledge to support the Republican nominee, and I will honor that pledge," before making fun of Nikki Haley, the last competitor. The former governor of South Carolina and U.N. ambassador, according to DeSantis, is a stand-in for "the old Republican guard of yesteryear, a repackaged form of warmed-over corporatism." Trump gave off the impression that he was unaffected by DeSantis' strategy and that they were fellow political fighters. In Rochester on Sunday night, Trump remarked, "I will tell you it's not easy."

They believe that performing these things is simple, don't they? It's not simple. Then, without further ado, Trump launched into his standard rally address, hurling barbs at President Joe Biden, the political establishment, Washington's "warmongers" and "the deep state," as well as the criminal justice system, which has four times indicted him and has 91 felony charges pending in various trial stages. He spent a greater amount of time attacking Haley than praising DeSantis, portraying her as an instrument of the political establishment that he has disregarded. He pledged to reverse inflation and put an end to Russia's war in Ukraine, but he did not provide any specific ideas. Instead, he offered broad pledges of peace and prosperity. And he kept telling falsehoods about how fraud caused him to lose to Biden in 2020.

Throughout, a raucous audience in Rochester's old opera theater yelled, sang, and laughed. In response, Trump said, "The great silent majority is rising like never before." DeSantis has endorsed the former president along with other unsuccessful GOP candidates, including Sen. Tim Scott of South Carolina and businessman Vivek Ramaswamy. Asa Hutchinson, the former governor of Arkansas, and Chris Christie, the former governor of New Jersey, both suspended their campaigns and refused to support Trump; on Saturday, Hutchinson backed Haley.

On Sunday night, 64-year-old Brenda Moneypenny of Alton waited two hours in the cold to see Trump. Moneypenny said she had given Haley some thought, particularly because of the opportunity to elect the first female president, and she quickly produced her driver's license to verify her last name. But the independent with a Republican-leaning says she never gave DeSantis a thought. Of the governor, Moneypenny said, "Too flim-flamsy." "He needs more capable campaign staff. There isn't anybody giving him any favors at the moment. She finally decided on Trump, calling him "tried and true."

Throughout the campaign, the former president appeared to take great pleasure in making fun of DeSantis, frequently expressing that he had a personal grievance because he saw the governor's choice to run as a betrayal of his trust. DeSantis, a congressman at the time, received Trump's support in the fierce 2018 GOP primary for governor of Florida. In the end, DeSantis prevailed in both the primary and general elections. However, DeSantis was preparing for his own White House candidacy by the time he easily won reelection four years later. In November of last year, Trump visited Florida and spoke to an animated group of people at a state GOP gathering while holding a placard that said, "Florida is Trump Country."

 Trump did not bring up DeSantis during his address that evening until over thirty minutes into it. Even then, it was only to boast about his advantages over the governor according to surveys. Trump said that DeSantis had pleaded with him for his support, saying, "I endorsed him, and he became a rocket ship in 24 hours." He now resembles an injured bird that is plummeting from the sky. Trump refrained from debating DeSantis or any other opponent in 2024. Until someone demonstrates that they pose a danger to his candidacy, he has stated he won't. In recent months, DeSantis has focused his campaign mostly in Iowa, where he placed second in last week's caucuses, trailing Trump by 30 percentage points and just ahead of Haley.

Haley, meanwhile, has long prioritized New Hampshire as a potential springboard ahead of her home-state South Carolina primary next month. In Iowa, APVoteCast surveys of caucusgoers suggested DeSantis's supporters were much more likely than Haley's to consider themselves conservatives who would back Trump no matter what if he wins the nomination and faces President Joe Biden in November. If that trend holds in New Hampshire, then Trump could expect at least some boost from DeSantis dropping out, and whatever he gets could stretch out his margin and frustrate Haley's ability to claim any momentum.

Trump's advisors have stated that they anticipate a significant movement in DeSantis' national support toward Trump. On Sunday, Trump said that he had won the 2016 primary in New Hampshire by almost 20 points. In general elections, he was defeated twice in the battleground state. Trump will be balancing the pressures of running for another term with his legal issues in the final hours of the New Hampshire campaign. Trump will be in New York on Monday for a civil defamation trial related to a columnist's allegations that he molested her.

After that, he has an evening rally in Laconia slated when he returns to New Hampshire. He remarked, "I don't have to be there," about the judicial procedures. "I'd appreciate your prayers. But see, things are as they are. His first criminal trial is set to start on March 5, the day before the Super Tuesday primary slate, on allegations that he is accountable for his followers' attack on the U.S. Capitol on January 6, 2021. It's a shame, according to Trump.

Leading NATO officials said on Thursday that the organization would begin its largest military exercises in decades next week. Approximately 90,000 soldiers will participate in months of training meant to demonstrate the alliance's ability to defend all of its territory up to its border with Russia. The drills take place as Russia's conflict with Ukraine drags on.

NATO does not directly participate in the war; its role is limited to providing non-lethal assistance to Kyiv. However, many member nations have sent arms and ammunition, either individually or in bulk, as well as military expertise. NATO started bolstering security on its eastern border with Russia and Ukraine in the months before President Vladimir Putin's decision for Russian forces to enter Ukraine in February 2022. This is the largest alliance build-up since the end of the Cold War. The goal of the war exercises is to dissuade Russia from attacking one of the member nations.

Cristiano Ronaldo has identified two other teams who are vying for Europe's top trophy in the Champions League, but he feels that Manchester City has a "good chance" of winning it again this year. The 38-year-old, a five-time Champions League champion with Real Madrid, revealed the information while giving a speech at the 2023 Globe Soccer Awards in Dubai.

Here he listed Real Madrid and Bayern Munich as the other favorites after saying that Manchester City had a "good chance" to win the Champions League once more.

Although it was virtually a given that Ronaldo would mention Los Blancos, he gave Manchester City, managed by Pep Guardiola, more credit than that team—a group with which he was strongly associated in 2021. "I firmly believe that Manchester City will emerge victorious in the Champions League this year," he went on. "I hope not, but I believe they have a chance [to win]."

                                                                                                                               Pep Guardiola

Nigerian employee Tolulope Fayokun, who was fired from Johnson & Johnson, a US pharmaceutical corporation, for working on "African time," has successfully sued the business for racial discrimination. According to the Reading Tribunal's decision, Fayokun was wrongfully "racially profiled" and will get compensation. The hearing was informed that Fayokun, a dual-nationality British Nigerian, began her career at the firm in 2017 and was originally commended by her supervisors for her outstanding leadership abilities. Alessandra Toro, director of strategic insights and analytics at Johnson & Johnson, told Fayokun at her appearance before an employment tribunal that she had "Nigerian traits."

It was said that Toro and Fayokun had a cordial friendship at first, exchanging presents and talking about private issues. According to reports, Toro claimed to Fayokun that she worked on "African time," implying that she missed deadlines for some tasks at certain times. She claimed that after researching Nigerian workplaces, her boss informed her that they were "fluid," which is slang for "any-howness" or "disorganization."

In 2020, Fayokun was fired by the corporation based on this assumption. She started as a senior manager at the firm in 2017. She claimed that soon after she contacted Toro about some of the concerns, she received the sack. Her next move was to sue the business. "The fact that the Nigerian working profile was fluid was in contrast to my personal fixed preferences, meaning that whereas I see deadlines as fixed and set in stone, this indicated to me that I should not adopt or assume the same approach with someone who identified with a Nigerian work style," Toro was quoted as saying before the tribunal in support of her case.

Judge Andrew Gumbiti-Zimuto concluded after hearing the case that Fayokun had been "unfairly racially profiled." Gumbiti-Zimuto decided that Fayokun may legitimately believe that she was treated unfairly at work after learning that the exercise had taken place and was being actively utilized to control her. Another hearing will determine Fayokun's compensation.

Femi Otedola, the wealthy businessman from Nigeria, is not one to back down from a challenge, especially when it comes to worthwhile investments. He attempted but was unable, to unseat the Odukalas from the top spot in FBN Holdings Plc. Tony Elumelu refused to back down when he went after Transnational Corporation Plc (Transcorp) for a front seat. The most recent is a rumor (which has not yet been verified) that he is purchasing Dangote Cement shares, raising questions about whether he would feel at ease taking up the second position in Aliko Dangote's business this time. The biggest industrial conglomerate in West Africa, the Dangote Group, was founded, is chaired, and is led by Dangote.

In November 2023, the Bloomberg Billionaires Index put his net worth at $16.1 billion, making him the richest individual in Africa, the richest Black person globally, and the 107th richest person in the world overall. On October 23, 2021, Otedola and his nominee, Calvados Global Services Limited, acquired 1,818,551,625 units of shares from FBN Holdings issued share capital of 35,895,292,791, making his equity stake in the financial holding company 5.07 percent at that time. This was done through APT Securities and Funds Limited. After the news of Otedola's share buying leaked that October, Otedola, and Hassan-Odukale fought over who was the single largest shareholder before he lowered his position.

Serial investor and chairman of Geregu Power Plc Otedola had previously attempted to acquire a comparable stake in Transcorp, but his bid was turned down when Elumelu reversed course and purchased another 9.7 billion shares of the business in discrete transactions. Otedola, who is well-known for his audacious stock selections, was a key factor in the 2023 stock market boom after he expressed interest in Transcorp.

2023 was a good year for the market, pushing the return up to 45.90 percent. Shares of Dangote Cement have increased by 48% so far this year, a phenomenon associated with Otedola purchasing the stock. This year, the stock opened at N317 per share and closed at N538.80 on Friday, demonstrating a tremendous growth in value. His 2023 purchase of Transcorp stock ignited a surge that sent the company into the top five performing equities of the year.

From less than N2 per share to N19 per share, the stock increased. In 2022, the share price of FBN Holdings was less than N5. At the time he bought it. The stock recently traded at around N30 per share and crossed the trillion-naira market value. The largest economy in Africa had the strongest stock market gain internationally, with 26 percent as of Friday. In terms of returns, the Nigerian stock market surpassed Argentina's last week. This year, the bulls have remained in charge of the stock market action. There has only been one session with a negative closing on the market. The benchmark performance index crossed 90,000 basis points last week due to investor interest in stocks, defying the market's reaction to Monday's inflation news.

General Ali-Keffi appeals to Tinubu over detention for exposing masterminds with terrorism financing. President Bola Tinubu has received a letter from Maj Gen Ali-Keffi, the former General Officer Commanding (GOC) of the Nigerian Army's 1 Mechanized Division, about his arrest, incarceration, and mandatory retirement.

As head of Operation Service Wide (OPS), which was established by former President Muhammadu Buhari to look into those involved in terrorism financing, he claimed that this was in response to revelations made by a presidential investigative task force he headed, which revealed the involvement of top military brass, senior government officials, and a top banker in terrorism financing. Major General BM Monguno (rtd), the former National Security Adviser (NSA), called a five-week Board of Inquiry (BOI) that Ali-Keffi oversaw and held in the Office of the National Security Adviser (ONSA) from early January to late February 2020.

As the President of the Board of Inquiry, I oversaw a group of members and secretaries from the NCS, NIS, DSS, NIA, ONSA, and NFIU. The Board of Inquiry was primarily charged with investigating the circumstances surrounding the illicit smuggling of petroleum products into the Benin Republic through a single smuggling route in Ilesa Barbara, Kwara State. According to him, the BoI went above and above to find 295 oil tankers that carried Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and the main smugglers that were identified.

According to the petition, the BoI produced an important finding on the connection between the smuggling network, the terrorism plaguing the Northeast, and the ransom kidnapping/banditry that was developing in the North-West and some areas of the North-Central geopolitical zones. He asserted that this included large-scale money laundering, primarily for counterterrorism and insurgency activities that were mostly taking place in the country's northern areas, as well as illicit mineral extraction in the northwest and north-central regions. The hub for transferring money for terrorism and other illegal acts mentioned above was a syndicate with a wide-ranging network throughout the nation and linkages to the global criminal network.

The most concerning thing was that there were people with ties to the military who were financing Boko Haram terrorists and obtaining and transferring weapons and ammunition for BH and other criminal groups. This meant that terrorism and insurgency in the North-east, North-west, and North-central regions were criminal enterprises with profit—rather than ideology—serving as the driving force behind them.

"Therefore, it is evident to us at the BOI that progress cannot be made until the leaders, financiers, accomplices, and supporters of terrorist and insurgent organizations are found and the network destroyed," he stated. According to the petitioner, suggestions on the results were made and forwarded to the president.

The petition claimed that the operation had effectively penetrated the terror groups' leadership in the northeast, leading to their annihilation, and that important terrorism funders were connected to those found guilty of funding terrorism in the United Arab Emirates. The petitioner stated that the task force became a "victim of unfair attacks" when it was denied money to continue operating. He remarked, "This supports the claim that some influential people in the military and in and out of government felt uneasy about the task force, and particularly about my modesty as commander."

The petitioner claimed that the task force suffered a setback when Lt Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, the acting army chief, passed away and Lt Gen Faruk Yahaya took over as GOC of the 1st Mechanized Division, Kaduna. He observed that the AGF was "less helpful" after the president. He said that the entire ordeal resulted in his imprisonment and 64 days in solitary confinement, during which he slept on the floor, having negative health effects. He bemoaned that the most agonizing aspect of his ordeal was that President Buhari, who permitted him to lead the task group, did not intervene to save him. Thus, he asked President Tinubu to become involved in the situation.

Please launch an inquiry into the events surrounding my arrest, confinement, mistreatment, and forced retirement from the Nigerian Army, he pleaded to the president. In addition, he requested reimbursement for the task force's expenses related to renting cars and apartments, as well as a review of his forced retirement from the army and a move to voluntary retirement. In addition, Ali-Keffi requested authorization for personal security as well as recompense for the suffering and wounds sustained while detained.