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Victor Osimhen Makes FIFA Best Shortlist Few Days After Ballon d’Or Nomination

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Just a few days after he was nominated for the 2023 Ballon d’Or award, Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen was on Thursday listed for the FIFA Best Player award.

Argentine superstar, Lionel Messi; Erling Haaland; Kevin De Bruyne, and Kylian Mbappe were also nominated alongside the Super Eagles forward in the men’s category of the award.

Other nominees include Julian Alvarez, Marcelo Brozovic, İlkay Gundogan, Rodri, Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, Declan Rice, and Bernardo Silva.

Osimhen’s nomination makes him the first Nigerian player to be listed for the FIFA Best Footballer Award which was first won by Cristiano Ronaldo in 2016.

Osimhen was in monstrous form for Napoli last season, helping the Italian Serie A side win their first Scudetto in 33 years.

The forward scored 25 league goals to beat off Lautaro Martinez of Inter Milan and AC Milan’s Rafael Leao to scoop the prize for the Best Striker in Serie A.

The feat earned the 24-year-old the accolade as the first African to top the Serie A scorers’ chart, equally breaking George Weah’s record for the most goals scored by an African in the Italian league.

He also helped Napoli reach the quarter-final of the UEFA Champions League and was instrumental as the Super Eagles sealed a ticket for the delayed 2023 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

Osimhen’s compatriot, Asisat Oshoala, who also bagged Ballon d’Or nomination in the female category however failed to make the cut in the FIFA Best Award.

The nominees for Women’s Best Player are Aitana Bonmati (ESP), Linda Caicedo (COL), Rachel Daly (ENG), Kadidiatou Diani (FRA), Caitlin Foord (AUS), Mary Fowler (AUS), Alex Greenwood (ENG), Jenni Hermoso (ESP), Lindsey Horan (USA), Amanda Ilestedt (SWE), Lauren James (ENG), Sam Kerr (AUS), Mapi Leon (ESP), Hinata Miyazawa (JPN), Salma Paralluelo (ESP), Keira Walsh (ENG).

Men’s best coach nominees are Pep Guardiola (ESP), Simone Inzaghi (ITA), Ange Postecoglou (AUS), Luciano Spalletti (ITA), and Xavi (ESP).

Women’s best coach nominees are Peter Gerhardsson (SWE), Jonatan Giraldez (ESP), Tony Gustavsson (SWE), Emma Hayes (ENG), and Sarina Wiegman (NED).

BIG STORY

Defections: Three More PDP Governors Will Soon Resign — Fayose

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Former Governor of Ekiti State, Ayodele Fayose, has claimed that three more governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) will soon dump the opposition party.

Fayose made the claim on Wednesday while speaking on Politics Today, a Channels Television programme, following the recent resignation of Bayelsa State Governor Douye Diri from the PDP.

According to him, the opposition party may soon be left with only five governors as internal crises continue to plague its ranks.

“Let me tell you, there are three more governors that will leave soon. There will be five remaining. The five remaining, one of them will struggle to catch the ticket, and they all know that the ticket is an ordinary tissue paper,” Fayose said.

He accused some PDP governors of contributing to the party’s decline due to their desire to control its structure.

“They are largely killing the party because they want to control it. This is what happened in 2023,” he added.

Fayose dismissed claims that President Bola Tinubu has been coercing opposition governors to defect to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). He argued that most of the defecting governors are acting out of self-interest and political calculation.

“President Tinubu should not be blamed for PDP’s problems. The PDP is sick and remains perpetually sick without a cure in view,” he stated.

The former governor maintained that the crisis within the PDP is the result of internal sabotage by some of its leaders.

“Those who killed the party know themselves. There is a difference between a former governor and a sitting governor,” Fayose said.

Although still a card-carrying member of the PDP, Fayose said he bears no responsibility for resolving the crisis, insisting that the current leaders must own up to their role in the party’s troubles.

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BIG STORY

Court Faults Kaduna Police Ban On Political Gatherings, Awards ₦15m To ADC, SDP

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A Kaduna State High Court has declared unconstitutional the ban on political gatherings imposed by the state commissioner of police, describing it as a violation of citizens’ rights to freedom of assembly and association.

Delivering judgment on Wednesday, Justice Murtala Zubairu ruled that the police acted outside their powers by disrupting an African Democratic Congress (ADC) meeting held on August 30, 2025, which was attended by former Kaduna governor Nasir el-Rufai and other party leaders.

Thugs had invaded the meeting, attacking participants and damaging property, after which the police claimed the event was organised without prior notice to security agencies.

The police subsequently filed a case against the ADC and the Social Democratic Party (SDP), citing “inciting disturbance” and other offences — a move the court described as an abuse of process.

Justice Zubairu faulted the police’s actions, saying they amounted to “selective enforcement and abuse of power.”

> “The applicant’s actions demonstrate a clear pattern of potential abuse of power, warranting perpetual restraint by the Court,” the judge held.

 

He further declared the police’s blanket attempt to prohibit all political assemblies in the state as unconstitutional, awarding a total of ₦15 million in damages to the ADC and SDP.

The compensation covers:

  • The unlawful suspension of the September 4, 2025 meeting,
  • The wrongful portrayal of the parties as violent,
  • The improper ex parte injunction obtained by the police, and
  • The failure to investigate the August 30 violence.

The court also granted a perpetual injunction restraining the commissioner of police, his officers, and agents from interfering with lawful political activities without due process.

Additionally, Justice Zubairu ordered the police to investigate the August 30 attacks and submit a report to the Kaduna attorney-general within 60 days.

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BIG STORY

Peter Obi Sues Deji Adeyanju, Demands N1.5bn Damages Over ‘Defamation’

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Peter Obi, the former presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), has filed a lawsuit against human rights lawyer Deji Adeyanju, accusing him of making defamatory and reckless statements on social media.

The case, lodged at the Anambra State High Court in Onitsha, seeks several declarations and orders against Adeyanju for what Obi described as “false, baseless, unfounded, malicious, reckless, scandalous, and defamatory” remarks.

In the suit, Obi is asking the court to compel Adeyanju to issue an unreserved public apology on all his social media platforms and in three national newspapers.

According to the court documents, the plaintiff wants “an order compelling the Defendant to immediately retract and delete from all his social media platforms, including but not limited to his ‘X’ handle @adeyanjudeji, his verified Facebook account ‘Adeyanju Deji,’ Instagram account @AdeyanjuDeji and any other online platforms or sites, all false and malicious publications describing the Plaintiff with derogatory labels (including ‘leader of a mob,’ ‘religious bigot,’ ‘fraud,’ ‘scum,’ ‘political fraud,’ ‘political prostitute’), allegations of financial misconduct, dishonesty, or abuse of office, which have harmed the Plaintiff’s personal, political, and professional reputation.”

Obi is also seeking an order of perpetual injunction restraining Adeyanju and his associates from further publishing or broadcasting any defamatory content about him.

The Labour Party chieftain further demands aggravated and/or exemplary damages of ₦500 million for what he described as Adeyanju’s “reckless, malicious and persistent” publications, allegedly aimed at ridiculing him before Nigerians and the international community.

In addition, Obi seeks ₦1 billion in general damages as compensation for the emotional distress and reputational harm caused by the alleged defamation.

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