APC ex-councillors forum elect new executives
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by gami tadanyigbe5 former councillors of the all progressives congress apc have elected national executives that will pilot the affairs of members across the country1 the new executives were elected at the forums national convention held in abuja1 the patron of the forum danladi etsu zhin said the new body would help in setting up structures that would bring development closer to rural dwellers1 zhin a former chairman of kuje area council in the fct served as councillor between 1991 and 19931 he noted that councillors were closer to the grassroots and should be provided with a platform to always contribute towards effective development of their people1 he described the forum as political mobiliser that needed full attention to boost development across the 774 local governments in the country1 zhin said the idea of the forum was initiated as a means of connecting government to the people at the local level as well as ensuring apcs victory at the forthcoming elections1 in their separate acceptance speeches the forums chairman egop igah from rivers state and secretary hajiya aisha yakubu pledged their commitment to connect political office holders together1

Governors keep mum on meeting with Buhari
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this motion was duly carried by a majority of members present at the last nec meeting even though some of our party members have since spoken up very vehemently against it. others have even taken the matter to court2 he said in particular i think it is important for me to speak quickly on the contentious issue of the tenure of our national and state executive officers1 there are speculations that the governors discussed the issue of tenure elongation of party leaders1 at the end of the meeting the governors left the state house without speaking with journalists on the outcome of the dialogue1 one of the governor was heard saying that they were directed not to speak with journalists over issues discussed at the meeting1 sources said that the meeting could not reach consensus on some of the issues discussed including the challenges facing the apc national executives over tenure elongation1 the governors who appeared divided over the issue of tenure elongation for the apc national executives had met briefly among themselves before the arrival of president buhari for the meeting1 buhari had at the apc national executive committee nec meeting on march 27 said the tenure elongation of the partys executives was illegal and unconstitutional1 the apc national chairman mr john odigie-oyegun had earlier today inaugurated a committee to advise the party on the way forward following president buharis recent opposition to the tenure extension1 the nec had extended by a year the tenure of odigie-oyegun-led executives and others across all levels of the party starting from june1 the president said the decision was unconstitutional and already causing acrimony within the party1 the meeting on tuesday was held at the council chambers in abuja and all the governors refused to unveil the reason for the meeting1 as we all know a motion was moved at the last national executive committee meeting of february 27 2018 to the effect that when the tenure of the current executives expire in june this year they should be allowed to continue for one year1 the governors of the all progressives congress apc have met with president muhammadu buhari after the february meeting they had in katsina but refused to disclose their discussion1 on my own part i have taken some time to review and seek advice on the resolution. and what i found is that it contravenes both our party constitution and the constitution of the federal republic of nigeria1 another meeting between the apc governors and the president would be reconvened next week at the same venue1 governors at the meeting include yahaya bello kogi jubrilla bindow adamawa badaru abubakar jigawa rauf aregbesola osun atiku bagudu kebbi rotimi akeredolu ondo abdufatah ahmed kwara1 also in attendance are godwin obaseki edo abdullahi ganduje kano tanko al- makura nasarawa kashim shettima borno rochas okorocha imo akinwunmi ambode lagos abiola ajimobi oyo abubakar bello niger1 the rest include aminu tambuwal sokoto abdulaziz yari zamfara simon lalong plateau samuel ortom benue nasir el-rufai kaduna and ibikunle amosun ogun1 katsina state governor aminu masari and ibrahim geidam of yobe were absent at the meeting while gov. abdullahi abubakar of bauchi state was represented by his deputy1 the president had earlier in february met with the apc governors when he was in his hometown in daura in katsina state1 chairman of apc governors forum and imo state governor rochas okorocha led the governors on the visit coming exactly one year to the presidential election1 okorocha told journalists that the governors were in daura to commiserate with president buhari over the loss of two members of his extended family1

Sierra Leones ruling party accuses Britain, AU of rigging
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source63 sierra leones governing party has accused britain african union and ecowas of planning to rig the presidential election1 the party through a spokesman said tuesday the conspiracy involved the african union the west african regional bloc ecowas and the commonwealth among others1 deputy information minister and a government spokesman cornelius deveaux said the british high commissioner in freetown was championing the conspiracy alongside former ghanaian president john mahama1 mr mahama is heading the commonwealth elections observation mission in the country1 there is an international conspiracy to steal our victory. it is led by british high commissioner guy warrington and implemented by former ghanaian president john mahama mr deveaux told state broadcaster slbc1 mr deveaux who is also the apc publicity secretary said they had got evidence indicating that a brother of president mahama was bankrolling the campaign of the opposition candidate brig rtd julius maada bio1 all peoples congress apc said britain and the regional blocs were spearheading an international conspiracy to effect regime change by rigging its presidential election1 both parties have issued statements claiming victory even without the national electoral commission nec releasing any figures1 on monday slpp held a press conference where it presented the outcome of its tally indicating a 2 per cent victory margin for its candidate1 an internationally mediated peace deal in freetown on the same day paved the way for the resumption of vote tallying after it was stopped due to disagreement between the two parties. at that meeting the head of nec mr mohamed nfa allie conteh promised to announce the final results within the next 48 hours1 there were rumours now that apc was preparing to seek a court injunction blocking nec from announcing the results1 while the nation awaits conspiracy theories continue to fuel tension amidst reports of violence in parts of the country thanks to accusations and counter-accusations of ballot stuffing1 meanwhile the defence ministry has angrily dismissed the opposition allegations of a plot to assassinate its presidential candidate and it called on the police to investigate the matter1 the allegations come as the country anxiously awaits the results of the march 31 presidential run-off election pitching brig bio against apcs dr samura kamara1

Maduchukwu, Abia governors wife media aide dies in convoy accident
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immediately the vehicle began to somersault he said1 two women died on tuesday in an auto crash involving the motorcade bearing the wife of abia governor mrs nkechi ikpeazu.one of the dead was nwamaka maduchukwu the media aide to mrs. ikpeazu1 maduchukwu was a senior special assistant on media to mrs. ikpeazu1 the news agency of nigeria nan learnt that the accident occurred when the motorcade was returning to umuahia from ntigha-uzor in obingwa local government area of abia where ikpeazu had attended a burial1 witnesses said that the hummer carrying the deceased somersaulted thrice when the driver attempted to overtake a vehicle at ndiolumbe around 5 p.m1 a female occupant of the vehicle who escaped unhurt told nan that the driver was on high speed when the accident occurred1 the driver was on high speed and everybody in the vehicle was asking him to slow down. suddenly the bus started jumping up and down before it started somersaulting she said1 she said that the vehicle somersaulted about three times and that she only found herself seated safely on a field by the road1 the middle-aged fair-complexioned woman who was wearing a dress designed for the burial was full of praises to god saying that i escaped death by his grace1 the driver of the hummer mr bright ugwubujor blamed the accident on brake failure1 narrating the incident to nan at the accident and emergency unit of the federal medical centre umuahia ugwubujor said that the accident occurred when he attempted to overtake a vehicle ahead of him1 when i tried to overtake the vehicle i noticed an oncoming vehicle and attempted to retreat but i encountered a bump on the road and when i tried to apply the brake it could not work1 the other woman was identified as mrs promise uche-nwamkpa wife of a former member of the abia state house of assembly1 a medical doctor at the unit where all the victims were brought for medical attention confirmed to nan the death of the two women1 he said that other occupants of the bus including the driver sustained bruises and minor injuries1 he further said mrs promise uche-nwamkpa was brought in dead to the hospital1 the second woman mrs nwamaka maduchukwu gave up while doctors were battling to resuscitate her with the aid of an oxygen he said1 maduchukwu was a widow and mother of four children1 she was also the chairperson state information chapel of the abia council of the nigeria union of journalists nuj1 the chairman of nuj in the state mr john emejor who was at the hospital to sympathise with the victims has expressed shock over the incident1 also the former lawmaker uche-nwamkpa who came to the hospital to identify the body of his wife wept uncontrollably1 her body was thereafter taken to the hospital morgue1 meanwhile members of maduchukwus church and colleagues resorted to frantic prayers to revive her1 an aide to the governors wife mr chika ojiegbe said the office of the wife of the governor will issue a release soon. nan1

Nuclear weapons threat to mankind Nigeria
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nigeria stressed that the universalisation of the non- proliferation treaty npt was dependent upon strict compliance with its three pillars disarmament non-proliferation and peaceful uses of nuclear energy1 aside the cost of maintenance and modernisation of nuclear weapons nigeria has warned that they also remained a threat to all mankind1 the cost of maintenance and modernisation of these weapons are both outrageous and inexcusable when compared to resources allocated by states for more useful and productive ventures1 these more useful and productive ventures could further the growth development prosperity and other peaceful and positive articulation of human endeavours nigeria said1 nigeria highlighted the 1996 advisory opinion of the international court of justice icj which affirmed that the threat or use of nuclear weapons constituted a crime against humanity1 the country added that the icjs opinion also affirmed that the threat or use of nuclear weapons constituted a violation of international law including international humanitarian law1 nigeria reiterated its view about the catastrophic humanitarian consequences that could result from either a deliberate use andor unintentional explosion of nuclear weapons1 it said these consequences should serve as a compelling reason for all states to address the question of the continued possession of nuclear weapons1 nuclear weapons still remain the ultimate agents of mass destruction and their total elimination should be the final objective of all disarmament processes within the broad spectrum of goals being pursued by the united nations1 to this end my delegation heartily welcomes the adoption of the landmark treaty on the prohibition of nuclear weapons which opened for signature on 20 september 20171 my delegation remains proud to have participated actively in the processes leading to its adoption as well as being one of the first countries to sign the treaty1 our commitment was guided by nigerias principled position on the denuclearization of the world1 nigeria stated this in its statement to the general debate of the 2018 substantive session of the un disarmament commission by faisal ibrahim first secretary permanent mission of nigeria to the un1 as a state party to the treaty of pelindaba nigeria welcomes the establishment of nuclear weapon free zones nwfz in parts of the world1 the treaty serves as a shield for the continent of africa including preventing the stationing of nuclear explosive devices on the continent and prohibiting testing of nuclear weapons1 nigeria noted that the nwfz serves as a measure to ensure a world free from the fear or possibility of the use of nuclear weapons1 it therefore called on all member states to support efforts to replicate it in the remaining parts of the world including in the middle east1 nigeria stressed the need for peaceful uses of outer space particularly preventing the weaponisation of the outer space to preserve peace and security to the benefit of all mankind1 in this regard we strongly support the negotiation of a treaty preventing an arms race in outer space and for interim transparency and confidence-building measures toward that end1 nigeria remains committed to using its space science capabilities for developmental purposes and to that end we have embarked on several developmental projects1 some of which include desertification sensitivity index population dissymmetric analysis and carbon emission assessment among others1 nigeria firmly believes that space technology has the immense potential to benefit both developed and developing countries1 and in this regard the un needs to promote equal and non-discriminatory access to outer space irrespective of levels of social economic or scientific development1 nigeria wishes to highlight the efforts of un regional centres for peace and disarmament in terms of their contributions to disarmament measures and other future challenges1 it noted the valuable input of the centre in africa particularly in its efforts to ensure the provision of a robust programme on capacity-building and in extending technical assistance to many states on the continent. nan1

Nigerian Embassy sacks 15 local staff in Washington
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they also assured the workers that the processes for the payment of their entitlements had reached an advanced stage1 the nigerian embassy in washington dc has disengaged some 15 local workers at the embassy1 they said the ministry of foreign affairs abuja approved the disengagement of the workers due to some ongoing rationalisation of workers at the embassy1 the officials however said the ministry had also approved the payment of gratuities to the workers some of whom had worked with the embassy for more than 30 years1 some of the affected workers had alleged that the decision to lay them off was arbitrary1 they also alleged that the embassy had no plans to pay their gratuity and other severance benefits1 further the local staff who are mostly nigerians accused the mission of retaining the non-nigerian employees at the expense of those who are of nigerian nationality1 however the embassy officials denied that there was no prior notice to the disengaged workers saying they actually agreed to the arrangement since february 20171 senior officials at the embassy told the news agency of nigeria nan that the benefits of the 15 local workers would be paid soon1 one of the officials said in february 2017 there was a decision to disengage some of the local staff1 however they pleaded to an arrangement to be on contract for another one year which lapsed in february 2018. the ministry from abuja approved their disengagement1 as i am talking to you we have received approval from abuja to pay their benefits and they would be paid very soon. it is true that some of them have put in up to 30 years of service1 they were engaged on contracts and it is the decision of the government to either continue to renew their contract or to terminate it if their services are no longer needed1 some whose contracts were terminated in 2013 were not paid in full but we are working out their benefits to make sure that those whose appointments were terminated receive their full benefits1 it is also not true that they were arbitrarily disengaged they were aware of the contract and they signed on to it since last year1 the embassy in 2017 had disagreements with the local workers over the non-payment of salaries spanning several months leading to protest at the embassy at the time1 some of the workers also embarked on work to rule which disrupted consular services at the embassy before they were paid following approval of three months salary by the ministry. nan1

Militias kill peacekeeper, 21 civilians in CAR
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nothing can justify such acts that can be considered war crimes1 militias have stormed a un base in southern central africa republic car killing one peacekeeper and 21 civilians1 abbording to a statement from the un at around 5 a.m. 0400 gmt armed anti-balaka militants attacked the base in tagbara about 300 km 190 miles northeast of the capital bangui1 the un said ensuing gunfight lasted hours and 22 anti-balaka were also killed1 it added that peacekeepers discovered 21 dead civilians including four children near a church in tagbara1 it was not immediately clear who was responsible for those deaths1 the un confirmed on wednesday that the attack happened on monday1 an investigation will be conducted and will leave no room for impunity the un said1 car was torn apart after mainly muslim seleka rebels ousted president francois bozize in 2013 provoking retaliation killings by the anti-balaka1 a 12000-strong un peacekeeping mission has struggled to restore order to the countryside where attacks on civilians are frequent1 the un security council approved an extra 900 peacekeepers in november to help to protect civilians1 the mission has become a deadly one more than a dozen un peacekeepers were killed there in 2017. reutersnan1

FG releases 23 PDP looters names
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fg releases 23 pdp looters names1 the federal government has reacted to the barrage of attacks by some of the named treasury looters and has gone further to name 23 others1 most of them members of the peoples democratic party1

Abubakar, presidential hopeful, counsels youths on mentoring
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this is a matter that has to be addressed to raise high number of intellectually sound youths to play high quality politics1 former vice president atiku abubakar who is eyeing the presidency in 2019 has stressed the need for the youths to be properly mentored before venturing into politics1 the vice president from 1999 ft0 2007 on the platform of pdp identified poor quality of education as one of the factors affecting youths participation in high quality politics in nigeria1 the presidential aspirant who defected from the ruling all progressives congress apc to his former pdp again was represented by the chairman all atiku support group mr oladimeji fabiyi at the symposium with the topic politics qua politic atiku abubakar the youths and the nigerian state1 abubakar said that in developed countries young people who had the potential of being politicians were identified in schools and exposed to political activities along their academic programmes1 by the time they graduate from school they have mastered the political terrains of their countries. they also try to empower themselves before going full blast into politics1 abubakar however said that in nigeria a large chunk of youths get involved in politics by accident adding that they ventured into politics because politics was seen as a quick way to make money1 he said that a lot of them crashed in and crashed out of politics because they failed to achieve their targets within a short period1 i have come to realise that the damage that poor quality of education has done to nigerian youths1 he spoke as a special guest of honour at a symposium tagged the man atiku organised by turaki youth ambassadors turaya on saturday in abuja1 they also need exposure and financial empowerment in their quest to wrestle power from the older generation who have mastered the game over time1 remember the older generation of nigerian politicians ventured into politics when they were young and since politics is addictive it is not usually easy to quit1 the reality is that young persons must work hard and should device superior arguments and strategies to send the older generation into retirement and to achieve their political targets abubakar said1 he noted that a lot of mentorship is required in the countrys clime to come out of smoky political terrain1 i did mine with the late shehu yaradua just as am impacting my knowledge skills and experience on young persons i come across1 he advised nigerian youths interested in politics to subject themselves to mentorship1 earlier the president turaya mr ayo akinrimisi said that abubakar has paid his dues to be the next president of nigeria saying he has empowered many nigerian youths1 he pledged that turaya formed in 2003 would work with over 500 support groups now working and other available groups to elect abubakar in 2019. nan1

Fayemi for Ekiti governorship again
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he declared that the said white paper cannot stop his ambition describing the document as final result of several months of political witch-hunt launched against him by the ayo fayose-led administration that cannot stand the test of time1 mr kayode fayemi defeated in the 2014 governorship election in ekiti state is to contest for the position again on the platform of the all progressives congress apc1 fayemi said on sunday that he will contest the july 14 gubernatorial election1 he made his ambition known at a news conference at his isan-ekiti country home in oye local government area of the state1 the news agency of nigeria nan reports that fayemi had hosted leaders and scores of members of the party from all the 16 local government areas and the 177 wards of the state1 he said he was driven by his past records of positive achievements especially for workers retirees and pensioners while in office in the state1 he explained that his decision to seek re-election was to deliver the state from incompetent and dubious hands and take her to where it is supposed to be1 nan reports that the former governor becomes the 35th person to formally indicate interest in the governorship poll in the apc alone aside the dozen others whose campaign posters and billboards are already out on the streets without formal declaration1 fayemi said he would formally submit his letter of intent to the state secretariat of the apc as soon as the independent national electoral commission inec lifts ban on campaigns on april 151 on the issue of a white paper indicting him for corruption and consequently banned him from seeking public office for 10 years fayemi said he was not bothered1 the current minister of mines and steel development was defeated by incumbent ayo fayose of the peoples democratic party pdp1 regardless of whatever anybody may think i know i am eminently qualified to contest the election. if i am not qualified i would never have come to tell you i want to contest1 most of the negative things fayose and his government said or alleged of me were deliberately concocted out of malice to either malign my character or score cheap political goal but the truth will always prevail1 same goes for the manipulated debt profile of the state which was a clear case of exaggeration and distortions1 can you imagine fayose said he issued white paper banning me from holding public office but today i am giving him red card. by the end of the gubernatorial poll exercise we will know who is right between the two of us he said1 the minister vowed to dislodge fayose and his deputy in the poll if picked at the may 5 2018 gubernatorial primary of the party in ado ekiti1 he advised other aspirants against divisive tendencies by their followers stressing that whoever that eventually emerges from the coming primary must be embraced by all since the national secretariat of the party had promised that the whole exercise would be open free and fair1 he promised to use his second-term to correct all past mistakes and improve on the good ones saying he had learnt his lessons since leaving office about four years ago as governor1 fayemi therefore asked all those he offended while in office as governor to forgive him while also saying he had forgiven all those who erred against him in the interest of the party1 he warned fayose not to attempt to remove or destroy his campaign posters and billboards the way his government was currently doing to some opposition posters1

Jury selection due to start in Bill Cosby sexual assault retrial
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jury selection for the retrial of us comedian bill cosby on sexual assault charges was set to begin in a pennsylvania court on monday1 the 80-year-old is charged with three felony counts of aggravated indecent assault for allegedly drugging and sexually assaulting accuser andrea constand at his home in 20041 he was originally tried in june last year but the court case ended with a mistrial after the 12-member jury was unable to agree on a verdict1 cosby a household name in the us hired a new legal team for the re-trial including tom mesereau who is best-known for his part in michael jacksons acquittal on child molestation charges in 20051 more than 50 women have come forward to publicly accuse cosby of drugging and raping them but the trial is focused solely on accusations from constand a former employee at temple university in philadelphia cosbys alma mater1 she alleges that cosby gave her pills and sexually assaulted her as she drifted in and out of consciousness1 at a pre-trial hearing last month the judge said the testimony of five other women who allege similar misconduct by cosby would be allowed local media reported1 the african-american actor started his career as a stand-up comic in the 1960s1 his biggest success was the television sitcom the cosby show which ran from 1984-92 in which he played obstetrician cliff huxtable the wise and loveable patriarch of an affluent black family in new york1 the trial is scheduled to start on april 9 in norristown pennsylvania.dpanan1

Catholic bishop tasks families on proper child upbringing
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no matter how things go leah has become a blessing and model to her family and to our generation. may she be released soon and unharmed to a glorious easter1 the bishop of the catholic diocese of oyo most rev. emmanuel badejo has called on families to teach their children to be god-fearing truthful persevering and honest to save their future1 christianity teaches us to be truthful peaceful forgiving generous and god fearing otherwise we cannot be salt of the earth and light of the world1 trouble must come and tribulations may occur but through it all we must not allow anything to take all that goodness away from us he said1 the cleric said that through the sad abduction and non-release of teenager leah sharibu god was reminding the people what it really meant to know him1 he said this had shown how wicked some people could be to an innocent teenager in the name of religion1 badejo in his easter message on monday said that no matter what people were passing through in the course of life they should be steadfast1 he urged both muslims and christians to shun false religion that could force people to believe anything saying that god is not violent or wicked1 he urged the political leaders business men civil servants and everyone to emulate jesus christ through the example of teenager leah1 be courageous in doing what is right and pleasing to god. at the end of it all god will vindicate you1 may god hear the prayers of nigeria for the release of all who are in captivity may god release all nigerians from greed wickedness and false religiousity1 may our land come to know peace and victory which jesus christ won for us on the cross of calvary so that we all go from this calvary of sin to the glory of easter he said.nan1

Delayed Budget: Economy will not witness meaningful growth in Q2- Economist
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so fiscal policy and fiscal actions were put on hold throughout the period1 by chinyere joel nwokeoma1 tella a professor of economics from olabisi onabanjo university oou ago-iwoye in ogun spoke in an interview with the news agency of nigeria nan in lagos1 according to him the economy will not witness meaningful growth unless the budget is passed on time to complement the monetary policy to be introduced by the newly inaugurated monetary policy committee mpc1 it takes time for implemented policies to have effect on the economy. therefore we should not expect much improvement in output of the capital market and the economy at large tella said1 he said that the capital market was largely bearish in the first quarter of the year while the economy remained sluggish in spite of positive indices1 both are symptomatic of an unsettled economy where governments macroeconomic policy is unpredictable1 this was so because both fiscal and monetary policies have not been put in place due to the perilous activities of the legislature1 we can recall that up till now the 2018 budget has not been passed1 an economist prof. sheriffdeen tella on monday advised nigerians not to expect much from the nations economy in the second quarter following continue delayed in the passage of 2018 budget1 the central banks monetary policy membership committee was not properly constituted to meet and fashion out monetary policy due to failure of the legislature to approve new members submitted for consideration by the executive1 where you have such situation the policy environment cannot be conducive for business activities to thrive tella said1 nan reports that the national assembly had on march 27 postponed the approval of 2018 until may1 this is contrary to the expectations that the 2018 budget estimates of n8.612 trillion would be passed by april1 the chairman house committee on appropriations rep mustapha dawaki had on tuesday explained that if the budget was not passed by april 24 then the n2.06 trillion 2017 capital budget would run until may 311 dawaki made this known at the 2018 national budget hearing in abuja which was jointly organised by the senate and house committees on appropriation1 nan recalls that president muhammadu buhari had in his presentation of the 2018 appropriation bill to a joint session of the national assembly on nov.7 2017 called for speedy passage of the budget1 the president said that this would allow for implementation of the january to december budget cycle1 however the two chambers of the national assembly had attributed the delay in the budget passage to refusal of heads of ministries departments and parastatal agencies mdas to come forward and defend their respective budget proposals. nan1

Anthony Joshua set for unification title fight in Cardiff
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joshuas camp had made much of just how seriously the 28-year-old was taking training his obsession with shedding the pounds and how that had been paying off in his ringcraft and training1 a leaner and lighter anthony joshua weighed in some six pounds heavier than joseph parker on friday for the battle of the undefeated heavyweight world champions in cardiff1 joshua the reigning wba ibf and ibo world champion is also taller and with a six inch reach advantage over parker who will be bringing his wbo belt to the principality stadium for saturday nights unification fight1 the briton had stepped into the ring against cameroonian-french opponent carlos takam in cardiff last october for a defence he won in 10 rounds at a career-high 18 stones and two pounds1 ive been running well training well said the 2012 olympic champion who has a 20-0 record with all his fights won by knockout1 losing that little bit of extra weight has made things that little bit easier1 i feel betterif everything goes to plan youll see ill be a lot sharper and my reactions and timing will be a lot better the briton told the crowd1 the briton tipped the scales at 17 stones four pounds and two ounces at the weigh-in attended by a crowd of more than 4000 compared to the new zealanders 16 stones 12 pounds and seven ounces1 parker 24-0 took it as a compliment ahead of what will be the biggest fight of his career with an 80000-strong crowd expected through the doors on saturday1 it makes me think that hes taking this fight really seriously hes trained very hard he said after standing face to face and staring into the eyes of his opponent for the last time before they meet in the ring1 hes in good shape im in good shape. theres not much of a weight difference which is good. were both going to be fast for tomorrow night were both going to move well and throw some big bombs1 parker said he saw confidence in joshuas eyes and was ready for anything1 im here for a good fight im here for war he declared. youre going to have to give me everything to beat mehes got a bigger crowd but that doesnt matter that doesnt faze us1 saturdays fight will bring the heavyweight title a step closer to undisputed status and put the focus even more on american deontay wilder who holds the wbc crown and is undefeated in 401

John Isner defeats del Potro for Miami final
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isners serve as usual was dominant but his groundstrokes and volleys carried him to victory1 american john isner outplayed argentine juan martin del potro 6-1 7-62 to reach his first miamiopen final and fourth career masters 1000 final1 big serving isner will know his final opponent after the the match betweenpablo carreno andalexander zverev later today1 the final match will be played on sunday1 as atpworldtour.com reported the american did little wrong against del potro who was on a 15-match win streak and leads the atp world tour with 21 wins this season1 it was the first semi-final match of the day with the american dominating proceedings and del potro playing out-of-sort1 he swung freely and played aggressively on serve and return. the american finished with 39 winners including 16 aces to only 10 from del potro1 the last time del potro lost was more than a month ago on 23 february against nextgenatp american frances tiafoe at the delray beach open1 since then the argentine had captured back-to-back titles in acapulco and indian wells. del potro had to save three match points against no. 1 roger federer in the bnp paribas open final to win his maiden masters 1000 crown1 isner broke in the third game pounding del potros backhand before hitting a forehand volley winner at net. after only 27 minutes he had a one-set lead thanks to his 19 winners compared to zero from his opponent1 del potro behind a boisterous argentine crowd on key biscayne recovered in the second set. but isner was too strong too aggressive too confident. he never faced a break point all match and in the tie-break his volleys were the difference. a backhand dropper pushed him into sundays final1

North Korea to send teams to next two Olympics
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read more18 north korea president kim jong un is committed to sending teams to the next two olympics the ioc chief thomas bach said saturday1 bach the president of the international olympic committee also said the ioc will make a proposal for a potential joint march and other shared activities between the north and south korean teams at the tokyo games1 last months winter olympics in south korea saw competitors from the two countries march together at the opening ceremony and field a joint womens ice hockey team1 the winter games triggered a fast-moving rapprochement that will see kim sit down with the souths president moon jae-in in late april with a us summit with president donald trump planned for may1 bach told reporters after landing in beijing that his talks with kim on friday had been very open and fruitful1 they announced to us that they will definitely participate in the olympic games tokyo 2020 as well at the olympic winter games beijing 2022 and all editions of the youth olympic games bach said1 and this commitment was fully supported by the supreme leader of dprk he said using the official abbreviation for the country1 north koreas official kcna news agency said kim thanked bach for helping to bring about a dramatic thawing of tensions on the korean peninsula1 bach arrived in the country on thursday and his visit which concluded saturday was the result of an invitation extended by pyongyang in january1 he unveiled the commitment of north korea after a rare meeting with the leader of the nuclear-armed regime in pyongyang1 kim told bach that the olympics had opened a new chapter of concord between the north and the south kcna said1 he said that the once frozen north-south relations greeted a dramatic thawing season with the olympics as a momentum and it was totally attributable to the efforts of the ioc which offered an opportunity and paved a path for it the agency reported1 bach told reporters the ioc will continue to support the athletes from dprk to prepare well for the next olympic games1 the ioc will make a proposal for a potential joint march for potential other joint activities for tokyo and maybe also for beijing at the appropriate time he said1 the two men also held discussions about the development of sport in the north and attended a womens football match1 north and south korea plan to hold a summit on april 271 trump is then due to meet kim before the end of may for talks on pyongyangs denuclearisation1 bach has hailed the reconciliatory mood saying previously that the olympic spirit brought two sides together and the two neighbours sent a powerful message of peace to the world1 the isolated regime rarely hosts foreign dignitaries but recent weeks have seen a flurry of diplomacy with kim making his first foreign trip as leader to meet chinese president xi jinping and inviting him to visit pyongyang1

Lukaku sets Belgian record of 100 goals in EPL
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romelu lukaku became the first belgian to reach 100 premier league goals as manchester united quickly regained second place in the table from liverpool with a comfortable 2-0 win over swansea city on saturday1 the powerful striker put his team in front within five minutes from a pass by alexis sanchez who added the second quarter of an hour later1 united with record signing paul pogba back in the side were dominant although david de gea did have to make two saves from tammy abraham1 swansea revitalised under jose mourinhos friend and compatriot carlos carvalhal remain three points above the relegation zone but drop down a place to 15th1 swansea improved after the break with tammy abraham twice denied by david de gea but united were always in control1 jose mourinhos side re-opened a two-point gap over third-placed liverpool who won 2-1 at crystal palace earlier on saturday. reuters1

Djokovic sacks Andre Agassi
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former world number one novak djokovic has parted company with head coach andre agassi after struggling to rediscover his form following a long elbow injury layoff1 with only the best intentions i tried to help novak. we far too often found ourselves agreeing to disagree american agassi said in a statement broadcast by espn1 i wish him only the best moving forward1 the split leaves djokovics coaching staff down to czech radek stepanek who joined on a part-time basis after eight times grand slam winner agassi came on board ahead of last years french open1 djokovic the winner of 12 grand slams suffered a sharp decline in form after lifting his maiden french open title in 2016 to complete a career slam1 after failing to retain his title at roland garros the serb retired against czech tomas berdych in the wimbledon quarter-finals and was side-lined for six months with a recurring elbow injury1 following a last-16 australian open exit to south korean youngster chung hyeon in january the 30-year-old djokovic had elbow surgery but has struggled to make an impact since returning to action1 he suffered successive defeats this month to japans taro daniel in the first round at indian wells and to frenchman benoit pare at the miami open looking a pale shadow of his former vintage self1 djokovic is due to play at the monte carlo masters which is scheduled for april 14-221

Schalke 04 delay Bayerns title celebration
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schalke 04 beat 10-man freiburg 2-0 on saturday to delay bayern munichs title celebrations by at least another week and tighten their grip on second place with six games left of the season1 daniel caligiuris controversial 63rd-minute penalty put the hosts ahead and guido burgstaller slotted in their second goal 10 minutes later as schalke earned their sixth win in a row1 minutes earlier freiburgs nils petersen was sent off after a second booking and coach christian streich got his marching orders and a seat in the stands for dissent1 schalke are now 17 points behind leaders bayern who are on 69 after walloping third-placed borussia dortmund 6-0 on saturday1 but even a win would not be enough for them to secure their sixth straight league title this weekend1 rb leipzig worked their way back into champions league contention with a nervous 3-2 victory at hanover 961 the victory lifted them to 46 points and fourth place a point ahead of bayer leverkusen who managed only a goalless draw against augsburg1 the top four teams qualify automatically for the champions league group stage next season1

Nigerian looters: Secondus, PDP reply Lai Mohammed
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dr raymond dokpesi chairman of daar communications on trial for taking n2.1 billion from the office of then nsa1 the national chairman of the peoples democratic party pdp mr uche secondus has challenged the minister of culture and information alhaji lai mohammed to be ready to proof in court that he collected n200m from the national security adviser nsa1 he said he is challenging mohammed to be ready to establish his allegations in court immediately1 secondus said that the agenda of the minister was to damage his reputation and distract him from serving pdp adding that such agenda would fail woefully1 for the purposes of some gullible public prince secondus never collected any money from the nsa under any guise1 also listed at the news conference by mohammed were former pdp financial secretary who allegedly collected n600 million from the same source on the oct. 24 20141 then national publicity secretary olisah metuh who is on trial for collecting n1.4 billion from the office of then nsa1 secondus made the challenge in a statement issued by his spokesman mr ike abonyi on friday in abuja1 former ssa to president jonathan dudafa waripamo-owei on trial over n830 million kept in accounts of four different companies1 former president jonathans cousin robert azibaol on thursday a federal high court ruled that he has a case to answer for collecting 40 million from the office of then nsa1 mohammed in giving the teasers was responding to an earlier challenge by the pdp asking the federal government to name the countrys looters1 also the pdp in a statement by its national publicity secretary kola ologbondiyan described the teasing list released by the minister of information as hollow and laughable1 the party described the list as an extension of federal governments media trial and challenged it to come up with names of its members against whom the government had secured convictions1 ologbondiyan stated that the list put forward by the federal government as purported looters amounts to a cheap blackmail saying that none of those listed have been indicted or convicted by any court of competent jurisdiction or any panel of enquiry in the country1