Sadness and grief enveloped the town of Uwala Abaka, Ukehe, Igboetiti Local Government Area of Enugu State, on Friday as the remains of actor John Odonwodo, popularly known as Junior Pope, was laid to rest. The burial rites commenced at 10:00 am with a commendation mass at St. Peter’s Catholic Parish, Ukehe, and lying-in-state at his father’s compound, where family members, well-wishers, colleagues and friends had the final glimpse of the late actor before the body was moved to a private venue for internment at about 1:30 pm. The atmosphere at the burial ceremony was sombre as colleagues and fans gathered…
Author: KahawaTungu Editor
Popular businessman and socialite Emeka Okonkwo, aka E-Money, has reacted to allegations of having an affair with the late Nollywood actor, JohnPaul Odonwodo, popularly known as Junior Pope’s wife. KahawaTungu recalls that Junior Pope and three others lost their lives after their boat capsized on the Anam River in Anambra State while returning from a filming location last month. Following his death, some online analysts had linked Junior Pope’s death to E-money because he was having an affair with the late actor’s wife. Reacting, E-money vowed to ensure that those behind the false information are made to face the full…
Troubled Japanese industrial giant Toshiba said Thursday that it plans to cut up to 4,000 jobs domestically as part of a restructuring programme. The announcement follows the delisting of the firm’s shares in December after being taken private by a consortium in the wake of multiple crises. The headcount reduction will be achieved by November by offering employees aged over 50 who meet specific criteria voluntary early retirement. “It was a tough decision for the management to make. But we believe these measures are essential to putting Toshiba back on the trajectory of recovery and growth,” a company spokeswoman told…
World champion N’Golo Kante will make a surprise return to international football as France coach Didier Deschamps announced Thursday the 25 players that will make up the French squad at Euro 2024. Kante left English side Chelsea last summer to join Saudi club Al Ittihad and has not represented France since June 2022. “He played a full season (Kante struggled with injury during his time with Chelsea), albeit not in a European league, as he is in Saudi Arabia,” said Deschamps on French TV channel TF1. “He’s back to full fitness. With his experience, I’m convinced that the French team…
Premier League clubs will be given the chance to scrap VAR from next season when they vote on the controversial review system at their annual general meeting next month. Wolves have submitted a resolution to abolish VAR to the Premier League, triggering a vote of the top flight’s 20 teams on June 6. The Molineux club said VAR is “undermining the value of the Premier League brand” after another season marred by a host of debatable decisions. In order for VAR to be axed by the Premier League, 14 of the 20 clubs will have to vote against it. Wolves…
France deployed troops to New Caledonia’s ports and international airport, banned TikTok and imposed a state of emergency on Thursday after three nights of clashes that have left five dead and hundreds wounded. Pro-independence, largely indigenous protests against a French plan to impose new voting rules on its Pacific archipelago have spiralled into the deadliest violence since the 1980s. Palm-lined boulevards in the capital Noumea, that are usually thronged with tourists, were littered with debris and patrolled by armoured vehicles, while some locals piled up household objects to make roadblocks. A gendarme was killed on Thursday, French Interior Minister Gerald…
Fifteen EU states have demanded a further tightening of the bloc’s asylum policy, making it easier to transfer undocumented migrants to third countries, including when they are rescued at sea. The demand, sent in a letter to the European Commission that AFP received on Thursday, comes less than a month before European Parliament elections, in which far-right anti-immigration parties are forecast to make gains. The letter asks the European Union’s executive arm to “propose new ways and solutions to prevent irregular migration to Europe”. The group includes Italy and Greece, which receive a substantial number of the people making the…
Football’s world governing body FIFA will decide the hosts for the 2027 Women’s World Cup at its congress in Bangkok on Friday, where the war in Gaza will also rear its head. After the 2023 World Cup in Australia and New Zealand lifted the women’s game to new heights, FIFA must decide whether to take the 2027 edition to South America for the first time or return to Europe. FIFA’s 74th Congress – held for the first time in Premier League-mad Thailand – will also hear a call from the Palestinian Football Association to sanction Israel for “violations of international…
The autopsy conducted on the body of late singer, Ilerioluwa Aloba, aka Mohbad, is said to have been unable to ascertain the cause of his death. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Wahab Shittu, disclosed this while addressing journalists at the coroner’s inquest held in Lagos State on Wednesday. According to him, the pathologist in charge of the autopsy told the coroner that the deceased’s body had decomposed by the time the test was conducted. He said, “According to him (pathologist), the cause of death cannot be determined because by the time they conducted the test, the body had decomposed and…
Award-winning singer, Damini Ogulu, popularly known as Burna Boy, has stated why he does not want to have kids yet. Burna Boy said he was not ready to be a father yet because he cannot give the kids the attention they rightfully deserve. He made this statement during a question and answer session during a recent Instagram live session with his fans. The ‘African Giant’ hitmaker explained that he would have children when he is fully settled. He said: “Why haven’t I had kids yet? Bro, because I don’t want to have kids yet. Also Read: ‘Beef’ threatens Nigerian Afrobeats as…
South African President Cyril Ramaphosa has signed into law a bill that aims to provide universal health coverage. The president on Wednesday hailed the law as a major step towards a more just society two weeks before an election that is expected to be fiercely competitive. “The provision of healthcare in this country is fragmented, unsustainable and unacceptable,” he said at the signing ceremony at the Union Buildings, the seat of government in Pretoria. “For those who would like to see (their) privileges continuing, sorry, you are on the wrong boat. The boat we are on is about equality,” he…
United States President Joe Biden and his Republican challenger Donald Trump have agreed to a CNN-hosted debate in late June, the US media outlet said, as the rivals traded barbs on social media about the prospect of the showdown. In a post on X, Biden said on Wednesday morning that he had received and accepted an invitation from CNN to debate Trump on June 27. “Over to you, Donald. As you said: anywhere, any time, any place,” he wrote. CNN reported that a Trump campaign official later said the former Republican president also accepted the offer. The move came just…
Caster Semenya said Wednesday’s hearing at the European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) into whether the double Olympic champion can be required to lower her testosterone levels to compete was an “important day” as her costly legal marathon entered its last lap. The 33-year-old runner won an earlier round at the ECHR, which last July ruled she was the victim of discrimination from the Lausanne-based Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS). “This is an important day in my journey as a human being and athlete. It has been a long time coming,” said Semenya, who was the Olympic 800m champion…
Switzerland’s top criminal court has sentenced Ousman Sonko, a former interior minister of The Gambia, to 20 years in prison for crimes against humanity. In its verdict on Wednesday, the Federal Criminal Court in Bellinzona, southern Switzerland, said Sonko was guilty of intentional homicide, torture and false imprisonment during former President Yahya Jammeh’s 22-year rule over the country. The charges against Sonko, who served as interior minister from 2006 to 2016, covered alleged crimes during 16 years under Jammeh, who was removed from power in 2017. Swiss prosecutors had accused Sonko, who was acquitted of rape charges, of supporting, participating in and failing…
A landslide that followed heavy rain in central Kenya has swept away at least five people, residents said on Wednesday, and the Red Cross said its workers would assist in rescue efforts. The landslide occurred in Kimende Escarpment in Kiambu County, north of the capital Nairobi, the Kenya Red Cross said in a post on social media platform X late on Tuesday. “The area has been cordoned off and declared a danger zone,” it said. Joseph Gitau, a resident of Kimende, said his cousin was among four people engulfed by the landslide, which happened while they were walking along a…