By Sunny Desmond | DESSY'S BLOG | Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, has concluded search, rescue and recovery operations at the site of the collapsed building on Old Ojo Road, Alakija Bus Stop, Satellite Town, with 27 persons rescued alive and 9 confirmed dead. How It Happened: Thursday’s Collapse. The two-storey residential building gave way at about 12:47 p.m. on Thursday, June 25, 2026, trapping occupants under concrete and debris. Some early reports cited a three-storey shopping complex in the same Alakija area of Ori-Ade LCDA. The Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service said it received a distress call at 11:37 a.m. and deployed responders from Ijegun-Egba Fire Station, who arrived at 11:49 a.m. Eyewitnesses said the structure collapsed without warning, forcing residents and traders to flee.   Final Casualty and Rescue Figures. LASEMA confirmed that 27 people were rescued alive with varying degrees of injuries. All survivors received emergency medical ca...

By Sunny Desmond | DESSY'S BLOG |  Panic gripped residents of Alakija, Satellite Town on Thursday morning after a two-storey residential building collapsed at Old Ojo Road, near Alakija Bus Stop along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, trapping multiple occupants under rubble. The Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service said it received a distress call at 11:37 a.m. on Thursday, June 25, 2026. Emergency responders from the Ijegun-Egba Fire Station arrived at 11:49 a.m. and began search and rescue operations.  The structure was an occupied residential building housing multiple families. Eyewitnesses said it gave way without warning around 11:40 a.m., forcing occupants of nearby structures to flee for safety.    Casualties and Rescue Efforts At least 10 persons have been rescued alive with varying degrees of injuries, according to Lagos Fire Service Director Margaret Adeseye. All rescued victims were handed over to medical personnel for treatment.  ...

By Mbaegbusi Desmond  Biodun Abayomi Oyebanji has done what no Ekiti governor has done since 1999 — win re-election. INEC declared the APC candidate winner of Saturday’s governorship poll, taking all 16 local government areas in a landslide that cements APC’s grip on the Southwest. 1. The Final Numbers: Clean Sweep* Oyebanji polled 319,224 votes. His closest rival, Wole Oluyede of the PDP, scored 40,543 votes. ADC’s Dare Bejide managed 12,872. The margin of victory — 278,681 votes — is the widest in Ekiti’s electoral history. INEC’s Returning Officer, Prof. Ayobami Salami, announced Oyebanji “having satisfied the requirement of the law, is hereby declared winner and returned elected” at 2:45am Sunday. Total valid votes: 376,540. Turnout was 43.2%. President Bola Tinubu congratulated Oyebanji, calling the result “an endorsement of the APC’s progressive agenda and a rejection of politics of division.  How Oyebanji Broke the Jinx. Since 1999, no elected governor in Ek...

Nigeria will import 165,000 metric tonnes of LPG in 2026 to cover cooking gas deficit. Demand growth, FX, and local supply gaps keep prices under pressure. By Mbaegbusi Desmond. Nigeria is importing 165,000 metric tonnes of Liquefied Petroleum Gas to close a supply deficit in 2026. The move highlights the gap between the country’s huge gas reserves and the cooking gas available in homes across Lagos, Abuja, Kano, and Port Harcourt. The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority confirmed that marketers have received approvals to bring in multiple cargoes through Lagos and other coastal terminals. The 165,000MT volume is spread across the third and fourth quarters of 2026 and is meant to stabilize supply ahead of peak demand in December. Why Nigeria Has a 165,000MT LPG Deficit Nigeria holds over 200 trillion cubic feet of proven natural gas. Yet the country imports over 40 percent of the LPG it consumes. Three factors explain the 165,000MT gap. First, d...

By Sunday Desmond . France is baking under its second major heatwave of 2026, with conditions set to worsen this week as temperatures push toward historic highs and authorities scramble to prevent more deaths. Deaths and Red Alerts as Heat Intensifies Three elderly people aged 80 to 95 died over the weekend in the Bordeaux region from heat-related health issues. At least 13 people have drowned across France since Sunday while trying to escape the heat in unsupervised waters. Drowning deaths spiked 58% last year during similar conditions. Météo-France placed 49 of France’s 96 departments under a red heatwave warning Monday — the maximum alert level. That jumps to half the country under red alert Tuesday. Paris mayor Emmanuel Gregoire ordered city parks to stay open 24 hours a day. Météo-France warns this heatwave will be “widespread, prolonged, and intense,” with peaks of 40°C to 42°C expected Monday and Tuesday. Paris could hit 39°C Sunday, close to its all-time record of 4...

By Sunday Desmond . British Prime Minister Keir Starmer announced Monday that he will resign, ending a turbulent two-year term and triggering an “orderly transfer of power” to a new Labour leader.  Starmer, 63, said he had “listened to his governing Labour Party and realised that he was no longer the man who should lead it into a national election due in 2029.” His resignation follows months of pressure from Labour lawmakers, disastrous local election results, and plunging approval ratings.  More than 100 Labour MPs — roughly a quarter of the party in the House of Commons — had publicly called for him to quit or set out a timetable to exit. Starmer’s rival Andy Burnham, the former Greater Manchester mayor, won a seat in Parliament on Friday, giving him the platform to launch a formal leadership challenge.  Starmer discussed the decision with his wife Victoria at the Chequers country residence over the weekend before confirming his departure Monday.  Starm...

 Umueze, Amorka, Ihiala-born Uzoma Raphael Asoanya-Ekwu Echefule Afunwaechetanna wins Anambra state Union Berlin/Brandenburg chairmanship. Destiny and Wisdom slate takes leadership of key diaspora union in Germany. By Mbaegbusi Desmond | DESSY'S BLOG |  The Anambra Union Berlin/Brandenburg has elected a new chairman with strong roots in Ihiala LGA. Uzoma Raphael Asoanya-Ekwu Echefule Afunwaechetanna, who hails from Umueze, Amorka in Ihiala L.G.A, Anambra State, Nigeria, was declared winner of the union’s chairmanship election. He contested under the *Destiny and Wisdom* ticket. 1. The Election: Diaspora Politics in Germany   The Anambra Union Berlin/Brandenburg is one of the most active Nigerian state unions in Germany. It serves Anambra indigenes across Berlin and Brandenburg, focusing on culture, welfare, and business networking. This year’s chairmanship race was closely followed by members, with campaigns running across community meetings, WhatsApp gro...

Ronaldinho has signed for Serie C club Ravenna FC in Italy at age 46. Here’s what the deal means, if he’ll actually play, and why Serie C just got global attention. By Sunny Desmond | June 21, 2026. At 46, Ronaldinho is back in football. Not for Brazil. Not for Barcelona. For Ravenna FC — a Serie C club in Italy’s third division. The news broke June 20, 2026. By June 23, he’ll be unveiled in Miami. This is not a joke. This is strategy. 1. The Facts: What Ravenna Actually Signed Ronaldinho last played professionally in September 2015. Since retiring, he’s done exhibition games and futsal tours. Now he’s signed a contract with Ravenna FC, who finished 3rd in Serie C Group B last season. The club confirmed the signing, with owner Ignazio Cipriani calling it “something absolutely extraordinary”. Ronaldinho’s own words: “New colours, same smile. I can’t wait to dance on the ball again and write a new story alongside Ignazio and the entire Cipriani family. Football has always bee...