IMO BREAKING NEWS BLOG

Champions Manchester City face West Ham away on the opening weekend of a 2022-23 Premier League campaign that will include a mid-season break for the World Cup in Qatar. There will be no top-flight games after the weekend of 12-13 November until 26 December because of the World Cup.

The first fixture takes place on Friday, 5 August when Crystal Palace host Arsenal. Liverpool play at promoted Fulham, with Nottingham Forest at Newcastle. Forest are back in the Premier League for the first time since 1998-99. The World Cup, which will feature both England and Wales, starts on 21 November. The final is on 18 December, eight days before the Premier League season resumes. There are no meetings between the Premier League's so-called 'big six' on weekend of 12-13 November - the one before the World Cup - following a request by the Football Association.

England will meet up on 14 November before flying to Qatar the following day. Special arrangements have been made to allow more time between games played across the three festive match rounds. This will allow squads greater time to recover. Previously clubs were given a minimum of 48 hours between matches. After fixtures on 26-27 December, the following match round will be played across 29, 30 and 31 December. The New Year match round will be played on the 2, 3, 4 and 5 January.

First round of fixtures in full

Friday, 5 August

Crystal Palace v Arsenal (20:00 BST)

Saturday, 6 August

Fulham v Liverpool (12:30)

Bournemouth v Aston Villa (15:00)

Leeds United v Wolverhampton (15:00)

Leicester City v Brentford (15:00)

Newcastle United v Nottingham Forest (15:00)

Tottenham Hotspur v Southampton (15:00)

Everton v Chelsea (17:30)

Sunday, 7 August

Manchester United v Brighton (14:00)

West Ham United v Manchester City (16:30) 

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the 2023 elections, Atiku Abubakar, has announced Ifeanyi Okowa as his running mate.

Atiku made the announcement at a meeting attended by PDP executives at the party’s headquarters in Abuja.

PDP National Chairman, Iyorchia Ayu, said a 17-member committee had been set up by the party to pick a running mate. He said the committee had submitted three names to Atiku to choose from.

The final decision however, Ayu said, was Atiku’s.

Chelsea's sponsorship deal with telecommunications company Three is set to resume following the club's sale. Three cut links with the club in March as the UK government sanctioned Blues owner Roman Abramovich over his ties to Russian President Vladimir Putin following the invasion of Ukraine.

The company asked Chelsea to remove its logo from shirts and the stadium but is now willing to resume sponsorship. LA Dodgers co-owner Todd Boehly led the purchase of Chelsea for £4.25bn in May.

Despite Three's request, Chelsea continued to display the company's logo on their shirts until the end of the season as shirt manufacturer Nike was prevented from supplying the club with new unsponsored shirts because of the sanctions.

Other solutions, including taping or spray painting over the logo were rejected as unworkable. Three has sponsored Chelsea since 2020.

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Lucky Irabor, has advised persons vying for political offices to abide by the rules of the game and maintain decorum in the forthcoming elections. 

Addressing journalists in Abuja at the bi-weekly media briefing of the Defence Media Operations, General Irabor warned that any attempt to circumvent the process would be dealt with according to the nation’s laws. “They must allow peace reign in the country by navigating away from actions and comments that can undermine national security as they engage in political campaigns,” the CDS maintained.

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Lucky Irabor, has advised persons vying for political offices to abide by the rules of the game and maintain decorum in the forthcoming elections. Addressing journalists in Abuja at the bi-weekly media briefing of the Defence Media Operations, General Irabor warned that any attempt to circumvent the process would be dealt with according to the nation’s laws.

“They must allow peace reign in the country by navigating away from actions and comments that can undermine national security as they engage in political campaigns,” the CDS maintained. 

President Muhammadu Buhari Thursday in Kano said three priorities of the administration, security, economy and corruption, have received significant attention, with measurable results, following his vision of making Nigeria more peaceful, prosperous and reliable, among nations.

At the Passing Out Parade of the Regular Course 4/2016 Cadets of the Nigeria Police Academy, Wudil, the President noted that policies and actions of the government made impact on the tripod vision, in spite of challenges, assuring that more will still be done to safeguard lives and property, enhance livelihood and ensure probity. “As you are all aware, this administration came to office determined to make impact in three main areas: security, building a sustainable economy and fight against corruption. We can say that recent positive developments in these areas have shown that despite the challenges on ground, we can see general improvement in all three areas.

“In the area of corruption, as you are all aware, I am determined to ensure that we do not have a repeat of what has gone on in previous administrations and we have taken a strong stand against pervasive corruption. “This administration has also focused on security by repositioning our national security to perform their duties effectively. We have equally embarked on some crucial changes in their funding, structure, and modes of operation. With the launching/empowerment of the Police Trust Fund, this administration swung into action after taking the assessment of needs for possible interventions in the provision of logistics and infrastructural needs of the Force,’’ he said.

Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has warned of the implications of ongoing plot of by the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to change its own rules at the end of the game to favour preferred aspirants in Abia State, urging the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to stick to the rules of the game in accordance with the Electoral Act 2022 to safeguard the country's democracy. 

The CNPP in a statement signed by its Secretary General, Chief Willy Ezugwu, noted “with dismay that the APC, which is supposed to be a shinning light for all political parties will engage in a manipulative process against its own rules.”

The statement was issued on the heels of a move by the APC to replace candidates that emerged after its direct primaries in Abia in line with its request to the INEC in its letter dated 25th May, 2022, with reference no. APC/NHDCINEC/19/022/61, in which the party adopted direct primaries mode of election in Abia, Benue and Osun States. 

The letter was signed by the party’s National Chairman, Senator Abdullahi Adamu and the National Secretary, Senator lyiola Omisore and in response, INEC monitored the primary which produced the immediate-past Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development, Dr Uche Ogah, as the APC governorship candidate in Abia State.

The CNPP noted that “We are worried that the APC, after the primary election in Abia State, turn around to plot to upturn the outcome of the election in a fresh letter backdated to 26th May 2022 notifying the commission "that Abia State was inadvertently included among states for direct primaries”, which we see as a bad omen ahead of the 2023 general elections.  

“The CNPP, therefore, strongly condemned this unhealthy development and calls on INEC and the APC to thread with caution and play politics according to the rules as that is the only way to deepen the country's democracy and promote good governance. 

“Nigerians and the whole world is watching as the attempt to submit a fresh letter to the commission today, June 16, 2022 after the primary election has been won and lost is a Coup against democracy that cannot be tolerated in a sane clime”, the statement read.