Nadal loses

Defending champion Rafael Nadal crashed out of the Italian Open with a stunning 6-2 7-5 defeat by Argentine Diego Schwartzman in the quarter-finals on Saturday.

The nine-times Rome champion, who had won all nine previous meetings against Schwartzman, struggled with his serve throughout the match.

He made a series of uncharacteristic unforced errors that proved to be his undoing.

The Italian Open was the Spaniards first tournament in over seven months and while he cruised through the previous two rounds, his rustiness showed from the outset against the 15th-ranked Schwartzman.

Nadal committed 30 unforced errors to Schwartzmans 17 and had his serve broken five times.

Losing that many serves, you cant expect to win a match, Nadal said. So thats something that I have to fix. I know how to do it.

Nadal will now travel to Paris, where he will look to clinch a record-extending 13th French Open title.

Schwartzman will face Denis Shapovalov in the semi-finals after the Canadian defeated Grigor Dimitrov 6-2 3-6 6-2 for his 100th tour-level match win.

Earlier in the day, Novak Djokovic overcame a mid-match wobble against Dominik Koepfer before securing a 6-3 4-6 6-3 win over the unseeded German and a semi-final spot.

The top-ranked Serb had sailed through the previous two rounds, his first matches since being defaulted at the U.S. Open for hitting a line judge with a ball.

But he faced a potentially tricky test when Koepfer levelled the contest at one set apiece.

However, Djokovic regained his focus to close out the victory and stay on course for his 36th ATP Masters 1000 crown.

He takes on Casper Ruud for a place in the final after the Norwegian battled past fourth seed and local hope Matteo Berrettini 4-6 6-3 7-6(5) in their last-eight clash.

Clay is definitely Caspers preferred surface. This is where he feels most comfortable. Its semi-finals and its anybodys game, said Djokovic, who will be targeting his 30th victory from 31 matches this year.

Ill do some homework and be ready for that one.

In the womens draw, 2018 French Open champion Simona Halep advanced to the semi-finals when her opponent Yulia Putintseva retired due to a lower back injury while trailing 6-2 2-0.

The top-seeded Romanian will now meet Spains ninth seed Garbine Muguruza, who survived an early scare against Victoria Azarenka to beat the U.S. Open runner-up 3-6 6-3 6-4.

Halep said: Every time I played well against her (Muguruza), I was as much as possible aggressive.

If I play my best game, and if I feel great physically on court, I have a big chance to win the match. But every time is different, because shes playing so hard. You dont really know what to expect. Its tough.

Two-times champion and fourth seed Elina Svitolina of Ukraine, who skipped the U.S. Open to prepare for the claycourt swing, was stunned by Czech Marketa Vondrousova 6-3 6-0.

Number 12 seed Vondrousova will face compatriot Karolina Pliskova in the semi-finals after the defending champion survived a mid-match scare to beat Belgiums Elise Mertens 6-3 3-6 6-0. (Reuters/NAN)

Source: NAN News

FC Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu

FC Barcelona president Josep Maria Bartomeu says he does not wish to have any more disputes with club captain Lionel Messi.

This was after the Argentina captain reluctantly opted to stay at the club this month after failing to force through a move.

I wont get into any conflict with him. Hes our captain and the leader of our team, Bartomeu said before the teams 1-0 friendly win over Elche on Saturday.

I couldnt let him leave the club. He is the best player of all time and the team needs him. Having Messi is a guarantee of success.

Messi had complained earlier this month that Bartomeu had not fulfilled a promise to allow him to break his contract unilaterally and leave the club without a transfer fee.

He had also lashed out at the presidents leadership.

But Bartomeu chose not to fire back against Barcas all-time top goalscorer.

Instead, he praised Messi for turning a page and performing well in the teams pre-season matches, including scoring twice in a 3-1 win over Girona last week.

We have seen him do his talking on the pitch and we have moved on from the saga, Bartomeu added.

We should congratulate ourselves for getting Messi to stay with us and for how he has behaved in the last few days. The best player in the world should stay at our home.

Bartomeu has been in the firing line ever since Barcas historic 8-2 defeat to Bayern Munich in the 2019/2020 UEFA Champions League quarter-finals last month.

He came under renewed pressure after a campaign group gathered over 20,000 signatures from members to force a vote of no-confidence against him.

In compliance with the clubs statutes, Barca are currently validating the votes and if over 16,520 are approved, then a referendum will be held in the next three months.

Two-thirds of 150,000 members are needed to vote against Bartomeu to force his dismissal.

Yet Bartomeu, who will be leaving the role after elections in March regardless of what happens with the motion of censure, ruled out resigning.

The board and I will keep working to ensure we have the most competitive team possible, he said.

We will speak again after validating the votes, but right now no one wants to quit. The club wont stop and we will keep working, we have lots of issues to sort out.(Reuters/NAN)

Source: NAN News

Athletes in a Marathon

By Hussaina Yakubu

Gov. Nasiru El-Rufai of Kaduna State says the state is making arrangements to host a half-marathon on Nov. 21, 2020, tagged Kaduna Runs.

According to him, the maiden marathon will hold annually, and is meant to discover talents and attract investors to the state.

Our hope is that it will also help reinforce Kadunas hard-earned reputation as an investment hub. As a fixture on the sporting and social calendars, Kaduna Runs will also attract interested persons to visit our state.

It is a compelling idea to bring our people together in a common endeavour, he added while unveiling the event to newsmen in Kaduna.

Let us run together. From those seeking the glory of winning a sporting contest, to young persons out to hone their talent in the half-marathon, to citizens who merely want to exercise or meet people or cheer up the runners, there is something for everyone, he said.

The governor added that the event can also be used to raise funds for charities or to support good causes.

He therefore called on all residents old or young, male or female, rich and poor to support Kaduna Runs, a 13 miles half-marathon.

El-Rufai assured that all COVID-19 protocols will be observed during the event.

NAN reports that the governor obtained form to participate in the Marathon. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Florence Onuegbu

The Lagos State Government has permitted the reopening of cinemas and gyms, with a maximum of 33 per cent occupancy.

Gov. Babajide Sanwo-Olu said this during the 18th update on the management of coronavirus in the state.

Sanwo-Olu said that in October, the state government would announce the decisions regarding the reopening of other sectors of the economy.

Dear Lagosians, henceforth, cinemas and gyms are permitted to reopen as soon as possible, with a maximum of 33 per cent occupancy.

This means that there must be a minimum of two empty seats between occupied seats; and in the case of gyms, there must be constant disinfection of machines and equipment throughout the course of the day.

Next month, October, we will announce the decisions regarding the reopening of other sectors of the economy: night-clubs, bars, event centres, spas, public parks and so on.

For now, these will continue to remain closed, until fixed plans for reopening are announced in October 2020, he said.

Accordings to him, places of worship are also permitted, while the mosques to resume their five times a day prayers; the churches are permitted to resume their mid-week services.

We must not forget that the coronavirus pandemic is still very much with us, and we must therefore strive to prioritise the safety of all our children, teachers, parents, and the entire society.

All of these resumption guidelines and protocols must be strictly adhered to by the various stakeholders, he said.

Sanwo-Olu said that the state government was committed to continuing the maintenance of a balance between the safety of lives and the sustenance of livelihoods.

He said that the state would continue to make adjustments as required, but the gradual resumption of social, educational and economic activities must never be taken as an excuse to let down the guard against the pandemic.

According to him, some parts of the world are seeing a resurgence of infections, and rising possibilities of the kind of hard lockdowns being experienced a few months ago.

Let me make it clear that if we do not continue to maintain our guard, and sustain the adherence to all required protocols and guidelines, we will find ourselves in a situation where fresh lockdowns are inevitable.

The only way to avoid this is to continue to act responsibly: maintain the required levels of hygiene, through regular handwashing and use of sanitisers, wear masks in all public places, avoid non-essential public gatherings, and maintain the prescribed levels of physical distancing at all times, Sanwo-Olu said.

Source: NAN News

Eight persons were on Saturday night burnt to death in a lone accident involving a Mazda bus on the Lagos-Ibadan expressway.

Mr Ahmed Umar, the Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abeokuta on Sunday.

Umar explained that the accident, which occurred at about 8:45 p.m. near Saapade bridge, was caused by tyre burst.

This, he said, resulted in the bus summersaulting and bursting into flames.

The sector commander added that 11 people were involved in the accident made up of three male adults, one female adult, one child and six unidentified persons.

The suspected cause of the lone accident involving the Mazda bus marked AAA 249 VX was tyre burst which led to loss of control before crash and bursting into flames immediately, he said.

He said that FRSC operatives contacted the Sagamu Fire Service immediately for a joint rescue operation.

Umar said that three injured victims were taken to Idera Hospital, Sagamu, for medical attention while the Health Department of Remo North Local Government Area was contacted on the burnt victims.

He advised motorists to drive cautiously, obey traffic rules and regulations and ensure that their tyres were in good condition.

Source: NAN News

Security agents deployed to Edo for governorship election

By Diana Omueza

Cleen Foundation, a Non-Governmental Organisation (NGO), has commended the conduct of the security personnel deployed for the Edo State Governorship election on Sept. 19.

Mr Benson Olugbuo, the Executive Director of the foundation, gave the commendation in a preliminary statement on the conduct of the election.

Olugbuo said that the conduct of the security agents made the electorate feel safe and confident while carrying out their civic duty.

We observed the feeling of safety at the polling units. Our reports showed that 78 per cent of the polling units were safe and secure while 22 per cent were observed to be somewhat safe and secure.

Report from our observers also showed that 94 per cent of the security personnel at the polling units were approachable and 83 per cent of the security personnel were impartial.

However, we observed that at Uwa Primary School, Ward 10, Pollin Unit 21, Oredo Local Government Area, party and security agents were observed monitoring electorates votes in the cubicle disregarding the secrecy of the balloting system, he said.

He lauded the security for early arrivals at 86 per cent of the polling units and for not scaring or threatening the safety of the electorate with the possession of firearms.

Olugbuo said its foundations observers also reported that on the aggregate, 83 per cent of the polling units had three or more security personnel which boosted voters safety and confidence.

He said that 96 per cent of security personnel were observed to be wearing easily identifiable name tags, which also encouraged voters to feel safe.

He noted that most electorate and few security personnel did not comply with the INEC COVID-19 protocols of wearing face masks and observing physical distancing.

He said that apart from wearing of facemasks, there was no physical distancing and there was absence of sanitisers.

He said that other observations were vote trading across the state, malfunctioning of some smart card readers and late commencement of voting in few places.

Olugbuo said that the organisation would continue to observe the elections and issue its post-election statement to detail more on the overall conduct of the security personnel.

He said that the observation was done by its trained observers under the platform of the Election Security Support Centre (ESSC), of the foundation, in collaboration with the Police Service Commission (PSC). (NAN)

Source: NAN News

INEC

By Nefishetu Yakubu

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) says that delay in the receipt of collated results of the governorship election from local government areas in Edo has delayed the collation at the state level.

INEC National Commissioner May Agbamuche-Mbu announced this on Sunday in Benin.

Agbamuche-Mbu, INEC commissioner incharge of Edo, Bayelsa and Rivers, is the commissioner overseeing the Edo election.

Addressing newsmen and party agents at the state collation centre, INEC headquarters, Benin, she said that results were still being expected from the 18 local government areas of the state.

She said: This is to inform you all that we are still waiting for results from the local government areas.

I am sorry we have to wait before we start collation. Only one local government has arrived in the centre.

We are going to wait until at least, when results from seven local government areas arrive in the centre before we start.

We do not want anybody to cast aspersions on us. So we are going to wait,.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

Students of a secondary school

By Philip Yatai

The Commissioners of Education in the 19 Northern States, say they may reopen schools before October 30, but subject to approval of their respective state governors.

The commissioners made this known in a communique issued in Kaduna on Sunday, at the end of a two-day meeting on student exchange programme, school reopening and other matters held in Abuja.

The communique was signed by Dr Shehu Makarfi, Commissioner of Education, Kaduna State, who is also the Chairman of the northern states School Exchange Programme (SEP).

The meeting was attended by commissioners of 10 of the 19 northern states namely, Kaduna, Bauchi, Yobe, Plateau, Niger, Kogi Gombe, Taraba, Nassarawa and Plateau, while others sent their apologies.

We have agreed to reopen schools as soon as possible, hopefully before Oct. 30, fully or in phases, but subject to the approval of our respective governors.

Some states have already reopened fully while others opened partially since Sept. 14, so we are looking at the possibilities of reopening as soon as we get approvals.

We therefore urge state governments, development partners, parents and relevant stakeholders to combine efforts in the provision of COVID-19 prevention facilities in schools to fast track reopening.

The Federal Government should equally support states to meet the COVID-19 requirements for school reopening, as it did to other sectors, they said.

The commissioners noted the challenge of communications during the COVID-19 period between the states Ministries of Education and the Federal Ministry of Education (FME).

They recommended the establishment of an effective communication channel between the FME and the state commissioners of education, on policy issues, development in the sector, and particularly plans on schools reopening.

The commissioners observed that most of the SEP schools were overpopulated and directed that affected states should adhere to the numbers stipulated in the guidelines establishing the programme.

According to them, decongesting the schools will ensure quality teaching and learning.

Commissioners should intensify monitoring of SEP and other schools to improve the education delivery system in their respective states.

States should equally invest in building the administrative capacities of principals and teachers by organising workshops and supporting school administrators and teachers to attend courses in institutes of education and public administration.

Similarly, Information and Communication Technology should also be included in school administration to equip school principals and teachers with relevant skills to deliver quality education, they stated.

The commissioners also resolved to engage the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) in developing the needed strategies for integrating children of all almajiri schools into the formal education system.

They agreed to intensify efforts to gain the support and cooperation of all stakeholders to ensure success of the integration process. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Buhari greets Sen Oluremi Tinibu at 60

By Ismaila Chafe

President Muhammadu Buhari has felicitated with the former First Lady of Lagos State, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu, who will turn 60 on September 21, 2020.

In a congratulatory message by his spokesman, Mr Femi Adesina, in Abuja on Sunday, Buhari joined family, friends and political associates to celebrate the milestone, adorned by many years of service to the nation and humanity.

The president saluted the senator, who has been re-elected three times to represent Lagos Central, for her courage and tenacity in many daunting situations.

He lauded Mrs Tinubu for remaining consistent in her passion for inclusivity, particularly as it relates to women and children, who constitute majority of the population, yet rank highon vulnerability.

Buhari noted, with gratitude, the loyalty and dedication of Sen. Tinubu to the growth of the governing party, All Progressives Congress (APC).

He also acknowledged her contributions to strengthening leadership structures at various levels, always providing wise counsels and advocating middle ground reconciliation in favour of greater good for greater majority.

According to him, as the Senator turns 60, the stage for better and more rewarding service has been set, with all the experiences gathered over the years from the Lagos State Government House, and as a ranking member the National Assembly.

Buhari prayed for strength, good health and wisdom for the graceful matriarch of the Asiwaju Bola Tinubu family.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

Kaduna State Internal Revenue Service (KADIRS)

By Philip Yatai

The Kaduna Internal Revenue Service (KADIRS), has so far, shut down 40 bet9ja offices in the last seven days, in its ongoing operation to close all unregistered gaming offices in the state.

Mr Liye Anthony, Head of Gaming in the agency, who made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Sunday, added that eight others were also closed within the period.

Anthony said that five King Bet, two Access Bet offices and one office of Derby Lotto were also closed, amounting to 48 offices closed so far within the period.

NAN reports that KADIRS on Sept. 10 commenced shutting down of all gaming companies operating illegally in the state and for withholding taxes.

The head of gaming said that 38 of the gaming offices were closed in Kaduna metropolis, while 10 offices were sealed in Zaria.

He said that the operation would be extended to Kafanchan within the week, adding that the revenue agency was awaiting court injunction to go after other gaming companies.

The exercise will continue until we seal the about 1,500 gaming offices across the state.

It is therefore in the best interests of the gaming operators to come to KADIRS and duly register their companies and obtain license to reopen, Anthony said.

Dr Zaid Abubakar, Executive Chairman, KADIRS, had explained at the commencement of the operation, that apart from operating illegally, the gaming companies were owing tax liabilities close to N500 million.

Abubakar said that the gaming companies were mopping about N2.0 billion monthly from the state and were not paying a kobo to the state government as tax.

He also said that the operators of the gaming companies were equally required by law to integrate their operations into the KADIRS Service Software, stressing that the companies failed to do so.

We will continue to go after them until all the operators of the gaming companies regularise their operations and obtain the needed licenses to operate in the state, he said.

Mr Samuel Akins, a Business Development Consultant to the agency, said that gaming operators generated an estimated one trillion naira annually in the country.

Akins said that in Kaduna state, the operators generated more than N24 billion annually without remitting any tax to the state.

NAN recalls that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had recently placed the accounts of some gaming companies in the country under post-no-debit (PND) for alleged unauthorised foreign exchange transfer and economic sabotage. (NAN)

Source: NAN News