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Brazil ex-president Collor de Mello sentenced to 9yrs imprisonment over corruption

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Brazil’s former president Fernando Collor de Mello was arrested and taken to prison Friday to begin serving a nearly nine-year sentence for corruption and money laundering, the latest former leader to face jail time.

Collor de Mello, Brazil’s first democratically elected president after a decades-long dictatorship, resigned in 1992 after Congress launched impeachment proceedings against him for allegedly taking bribes.

His arrest stems from a conviction over bribes taken two decades later while a senator, part of the sprawling “Car Wash” corruption scandal.

The 75-year-old was detained in Maceio city in northeastern Alagoas state, where he served as a senator and governor, a federal police source told AFP.

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In 2023, Collor de Mello was found guilty of having received 20 million reais ($3.5 million dollars) in bribes while a senator between 2010 and 2014 to “irregularly facilitate contracts” between a construction company and a former subsidiary of Brazil’s state oil company Petrobras.

On Thursday, Supreme Court justice Alexandre de Moraes rejected Collor de Mello’s last-gasp efforts to have the arrest order annulled.

His lawyers told local media the arrest came as he was about to travel to the capital Brasilia to turn himself in.

Moraes ordered he be incarcerated in an individual cell in a “special wing” of Baldomero Cavalcanti de Oliveira prison in Maceio.

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His lawyers said they would seek permission for him to serve his sentence under house arrest.

Collor de Mello is not Brazil’s first president to fall foul of the law.

Four of the seven people who have led the country since the 1964-1985 military dictatorship have either been convicted, jailed or impeached.

In the latest case, far-right former president Jair Bolsonaro has been ordered to stand trial over an alleged coup plot after losing the 2022 election.

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While recovering in hospital this week from intestinal surgery, a court official handed the 70-year-old a summons giving him five days to submit his initial defense.

– ‘Car Wash’ fallout –

Current President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva, who served two terms between 2003 and 2010, was among dozens of top businessmen and politicians in Brazil and elsewhere in Latin America who were caught up in the Car Wash mega-probe.

The investigation uncovered a vast network of bribes paid by large construction companies to politicians in several countries to obtain major public works contracts.

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Lula spent a year and a half behind bars before having his conviction overturned by the Supreme Court and winning a third term in October 2022.

Collor de Mello was heralded as a youthful non-conformist figure who promised far-reaching political and social reforms when he beat the leftist Lula to the presidency in 1989.

But his day in the sun did not last long.

Less than three years later he stood down as president as the impeachment process was nearly complete.

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He returned to politics, after a period of ineligibility had expired, and in 2006 was elected senator for Alagoas, a seat he held until 2022.

In 2022, he campaigned for Bolsonaro who was seeking re-election but it was Collor de Mello’s old adversary Lula who triumphed. [AFP/CBS]

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Just in: Dangote Refinery slashes petrol, diesel prices

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Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals has announced fresh reductions in the prices of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, and Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), commonly referred to as diesel.

Information made available to an online medium on Saturday by a source familiar with the development showed that the refinery has lowered the gantry price of petrol by N25 per litre, bringing it down from N1,275 to N1,250 per litre.

The source also disclosed that the price of Automotive Gas Oil (diesel) has been reduced by N100 per litre.

The product will now sell at N1,700 per litre at the gantry, down from the previous N1,800 per litre.

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The latest price reduction comes about three weeks after reports emerged that Dangote Refinery had increased the ex-gantry price of petrol.

At the time, a credible inside source disclosed that petrol continued to sell at N1,275 per litre at the refinery, hours after reports claimed that the company had raised its petrol price by N75 amid fluctuations in global crude oil prices.

Source: gistcore

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KWARA 2027: A FOOD FOR THOUGHT AND A POINT OF DECISION

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My dear people of Kwara State,
Today, I speak not merely as the governorship candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), but as a concerned son of Kwara State who believes that our future can and must be better than our present. This is not an acceptance speech; it is a food for thought and a point of decision for every Kwaran who desires genuine progress, security, and prosperity.
I begin by expressing my profound gratitude to the leadership of our great party, the ADC, and to our members and supporters across the sixteen local government areas for the confidence they have reposed in me. I am humbled by this trust and fully aware of the enormous responsibility it carries.
But beyond politics lies a fundamental question: What kind of Kwara do we want to leave behind for our children and generations yet unborn?
Kwara State is uniquely blessed. By geography and history, we are the gateway between Northern and Southern Nigeria. This strategic location places us at the crossroads of commerce, agriculture, transportation, and investment. Yet, despite these natural advantages, our state has not fully harnessed its immense economic potential.
Under purposeful leadership, Kwara can become the logistics and commercial hub connecting the North and South. We can attract industries, agro-processing facilities, warehousing hubs, transport terminals, and investments that create jobs and wealth for our people. Our fertile lands can support large-scale agriculture and agro-industrial development, while our strategic location can position Kwara as one of Nigeria’s leading destinations for business and investment.
However, no economy can thrive where insecurity persists. Investors do not invest where there is fear. Farmers cannot cultivate their lands where they feel unsafe. Communities cannot prosper when criminal elements threaten lives and property.
Security, therefore, is not merely a government responsibility; it is the foundation upon which development rests.
As a scholar and practitioner in Defence and Security Studies, I possess a deep understanding of contemporary security challenges and the strategies required to address them. My academic background, combined with practical experience in public service, has equipped me with the knowledge necessary to formulate effective security policies for our state.
If entrusted with the mandate to serve, my administration will work closely with conventional security agencies, traditional institutions, community leaders, vigilante groups, hunters’ associations, and other community-based security outfits to establish a comprehensive security architecture that protects every corner of Kwara State.
We shall strengthen intelligence gathering at the grassroots, improve coordination among security stakeholders, support lawful community policing initiatives, deploy technology where necessary, and ensure rapid response mechanisms to emerging threats. Our goal will be clear: to restore Kwara’s reputation as one of the safest and most peaceful states in Nigeria.
Kwara was once widely known for its tranquillity, harmony, and peaceful coexistence. We must not allow criminality, banditry, kidnapping, or external threats to define our future. Together with our security agencies and local communities, we shall reclaim every space threatened by insecurity and restore confidence among our people.
The ADC remains distinct because it is built on the principles of accountability, transparency, inclusion, and people-oriented governance. We believe leadership should be measured by results and service, not by propaganda and political patronage.
My candidacy represents competence, experience, independence, and a genuine commitment to the welfare of our people. I come without the burden of political Baggage, My commitment is to the people of Kwara State and to the vision of building a state where every citizen has an opportunity to succeed.
The election before us is therefore not merely a political contest. It is a defining choice between complacency and progress, between managing challenges and solving them, between unrealized potential and shared prosperity.
I firmly believe that Kwara can become a model state in Nigeria a state where security guarantees prosperity, where agriculture drives economic growth, where industries create employment, where education empowers our youth, and where government remains accountable to the people.
This vision is achievable, but it requires courage, unity, and a collective decision to embrace a new direction.
I therefore call on all Kwarans regardless of ethnicity, religion, political affiliation, or social status to reflect deeply on the future of our state. Let us rise above division and focus on competence, character, and capacity.
Let us choose leadership that understands our challenges and possesses the vision to transform them into opportunities.
Let us choose a future where Kwara’s strategic location becomes a source of wealth, where our communities are secure, where our youths are gainfully employed, and where prosperity is shared by all.
The time has come to move Kwara from potential to performance, from uncertainty to confidence, from insecurity to peace, and from promises to prosperity.
The choice is ours.
The future is ours.
The moment is now.

Hon. Zakari Mohammed
ADC Governorship Candidate, Kwara State.

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Rema finally reveals why he ended his relationship with girlfriend

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Nigerian singer Divine Ikubor, popularly known as Rema, has revealed why he ended his affairs with his ex-girlfriend, claiming that she was “quite manipulative”.

In an interview with YouTuber Korty EO, Rema said the relationship was “beautiful” but not always peaceful.

The singer lamented that sometimes when he returns home hoping to rest from the pressure of the outside world, his then girlfriend often greeted him with chaos.

He said he eventually walked away when he could no longer tolerate her excesses.

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“My romantic relationship was beautiful but a little quite manipulative. So much pressure. Knowing the world puts so much pressure on me but coming back home is where you want to feel relieved but when you come back home and you are getting more pressure, it’s a different story. For now, I’m done,” he said.

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