The Executive Director of Estate Services at the Federal Housing Authority (FHA), Ezekiel Nya-Etok, has blamed land grabbers for the deplorable state of FESTAC Town and other satellite estates.
Nya-Etok, who spoke in an interview on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily , programme on Thursday, acknowledged the frustration of residents but stressed that the FHA was “doing everything possible to restore the glory of housing estates across the country”.
“We feel the pain and frustration of FESTAC residents”, he said, warning against the purchase of uncharted land. “Do not buy unallocated land from ‘ omo onile ‘]Land grabbers]”.
However, a FESTAC resident, Valentine Uduebor, who also appeared on the programme, faulted the FHA for neglecting the community, insisting there was no federal presence in the estate.
“The state of FESTAC is unacceptable. It is an embarrassment to say FESTAC was once the beauty of Nigeria. Today, it is worse than Ajegunle”, Uduebor lamented.
He alleged that estate parks and public utilities had “been sold off by the FHA”, worsening the infrastructure challenges in the area.
Uduebor appealed to President Bola Tinubu and Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu to work with local governments and residents to restore sanity to FESTAC.
American football fans never thought they would see the day – the head of the National Football League standing shoulder to shoulder with Donald Trump in the Oval Office.
Trump has frequently traded blows with the NFL since he first became US president in 2017, but he and America’s most popular sports league have been sparring partners for more than 40 years.
Trump’s ‘feud’ with the NFL has involved him testifying against the league and failing, on multiple occasions, to buy a team. It may even have propelled him to the presidency.
When NFL commissioner Roger Goodell joined Trump in May to announce the NFL Draft would be coming to Washington DC for the first time, it seemed Trump had finally made friends with arguably his oldest foe.
Lawsuit fails to force league merger
AP
Already a real-estate magnate by that point, Trump viewed owning an American football team as a means of building his brand. After attempting to acquire an NFL franchise, a 37-year-old Trump bought the New Jersey Generals in September 1983.
They were founding members of the USFL, which started in the spring of 1983 so did not clash with the NFL. The new league managed to lure top players from the NFL and the college game.
The Generals improved during their two seasons under Trump but lost in the first round of the play-offs in both 1984 and 1985.
However, Trump had made his intentions clear from the outset. He didn’t want the USFL to remain a spring league; he wanted to go directly against the NFL in autumn-winter.
That was not the USFL’s original plan but, in August 1984, Trump convinced team owners to vote on switching to an autumn-winter schedule from 1986.
Then, two months, later the USFL filed an anti-trust lawsuit against the NFL – led by Trump. The case went to trial in May 1986, with the USFL arguing the NFL had conspired to monopolise TV contracts, seeking damages worth $1.7bn (£1.25bn).
Trump hoped it would force a league merger and earn him an NFL franchise. He also envisaged a Trump-branded stadium in Manhattan.
The trial lasted 42 days and a jury found the NFL was an ‘illegal monopoly’. But it rejected the other charges and the USFL was awarded just $3 as the jury felt most of the USFL’s problems were self-inflicted.
The league had built up huge debt and, days after the verdict, it folded.
In a book about the USFL, one of the jurors said Trump “came off as arrogant and unlikeable” in court.
Did failed Bills bid lead to presidential run?
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Trump had already attempted to buy the Baltimore Colts, before the NFL franchise relocated to Indianapolis in 1984.
He then turned down the chance to buy the Dallas Cowboys for $50m in 1984 and bought the Generals instead for $9m.
“I feel sorry for the poor guy who is going to buy the Dallas Cowboys,” he told the New York Times.
Jerry Jones became the Cowboys’ owner in 1989. ‘America’s Team’ won three Super Bowls in the ’90s and are now the world’s most valuable sports team at $10.1bn (£7.5bn).
After the USFL’s demise, Trump pulled out of discussions in 1988 to buy the New England Patriots, who have won six Super Bowls under current owner Robert Kraft.
Trump focused on other enterprises, becoming a reality TV star on The Apprentice, until the Buffalo Bills were put up for sale in 2014.
Trump claims he bid $1bn in cash but Terry Pegula, who already owned the NHL’s Buffalo Sabres, ultimately bought the Bills for $1.4bn.
That bidding process was mentioned during the fraud trial that ruled against Trump – who had denied all accusations – in 2024, before his $500m (£372m) penalty was overturned last week.
His former lawyer Michael Cohen used it as an example of how he would inflate Trump’s assets, in that case claiming a net worth of $8bn in a bid to secure a loan to buy the Bills.
Documents also showed Trump declined to provide financial statements to the Bills’ bankers – one of whom testified that, instead, Trump “gave us handouts of the Forbes list of the top-paid entertainers”.
ESPN analyst Stephen A. Smith has repeatedly claimed that before Pegula’s takeover was approved by NFL team owners in October 2014, he received a call from Trump in which he said: “If they screw me over, I am going to show them. I’m going to get them all back. I’m going to run for president.”
Trump and the anthem debate
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It was during Trump’s first presidential run that NFL quarterback Colin Kaepernick began taking the knee during America’s national anthem, to protest against racial injustice and police brutality in the US.
Many NFL players followed suit and Trump was a vocal critic, before and after he was elected in November 2016.
During a rally in September 2017, Trump urged fans to boycott games and NFL team owners to sack any players who did not stand for the anthem. He also called for the league to change its rules, regarding both the protests and the game itself.
The following day NFL commissioner Goodell issued a statement, in which he said: “Divisive comments like these demonstrate an unfortunate lack of respect for the NFL.”
Patriots owner Kraft told BBC Sport that Trump’s comments on the anthem protests were “inflammatory and inappropriate”. In a meeting between players and owners in October 2017, Kraft added: “We have a president who will use that as fodder to do his mission, that I don’t feel is in the best interests of America”.
After a team owners’ meeting in the same month, the Jacksonville Jaguars owner Shahid Khan told USA Today that Trump was “trying to soil a league or a brand that he’s jealous of”.
Khan added: “He’s been elected president, where maybe a great goal he had in life to own an NFL team is not very likely, so to make it tougher, or to hurt the league, it’s very calculated.”
Trump said he “would love” to see Kaepernick return to the NFL as it continued to struggle with the anthem issue.
In May 2018, the NFL introduced a new policy giving players the option to stand or stay in the locker room but, in the wake of George Floyd’s death, Goodell admitted the NFL was wrong and encouraged players to peacefully protest.
Added intrigue around White House visits
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The tradition of championship teams visiting the White House started long before Trump took office, but now there is far greater attention on who is invited and whether they will attend.
Half of the Patriots team did not travel in 2017, including quarterback Tom Brady, with five of those players citing political objections to Trump.
The following year he revoked an invitation to the Philadelphia Eagles the day before the planned visit, after most of the team said they would not attend.
The Patriots were asked to return in 2019, but both parties were unable to schedule a date, while the Covid pandemic ruled out any chance of the Kansas City Chiefs visiting in 2020.
Three weeks after Trump’s second inauguration in January he watched the Eagles beat the Chiefs, and this time they did visit the White House in April.
Less than half the team attended, quarterback Jalen Hurts among those not present, although a White House official said he and the other absentees had “scheduling conflicts”.
Trump has also invited the Chiefs as they “missed their turn” in 2020, even though only six players remain – and one of them is Travis Kelce, who this week announced his engagement to Taylor Swift.
Trump said he “hated” Swift after she endorsed his rival presidential candidate Kamala Harris last year, and celebrated the singer being booed at this year’s Super Bowl.
Could Trump create more NFL history?
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After becoming the first sitting president to attend a Super Bowl in February, Trump looked to have achieved a complete turnaround with the NFL when Goodell and the Washington Commanders owner Josh Harris joined him at the White House to announce the US capital would host the 2027 draft.
The news came a week after the Commanders reached an agreement to build a $4bn (£3bn) domed stadium in Washington DC, which Goodell acknowledged would “dramatically” boost the district’s chances of hosting a Super Bowl.
The local council approved the deal in August, but Trump has said he may block those plans if the “Washington ‘Whatevers”” do not “change the name back”. The team won three Super Bowls while known by a name which is considered offensive to Native Americans and was dropped in 2020.
Some say you should never mix sport with politics, but Trump continues to embrace it more than any of his predecessors.
Earlier this month he reintroduced the presidential fitness test to American schools and announced a sports council including high-profile figures such as Goodell and several NFL players, although Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa “didn’t know too much about it” and Philadelphia Eagles running back Saquon Barkley said he had declined his invitation.
Trump now has a choice about how the next phase of his relationship with the NFL plays out.
The league has agreed a multi-billion-dollar deal with ESPN which would see the NFL take a 10% stake in the Disney-owned media company. There are fears Trump will block the deal or follow through on his Washington stadium threat.
Mateus Fernandes has been signed by West Ham for more than £40 million.
The 21-year-old has been given permission to travel to London for a medical procedure.
Sebastien Haller (£45 million) and Lucas Paqueta (£51 million) would make Fernandes West Ham’s third-biggest signing.
Under-pressure Hammers manager Graham Potter, whose side have lost their first three matches of the season in all competitions, will gain from the move.
Southampton appears to be making a sizable profit from the £15 million deal they made last summer to sign Fernandes from Sporting.
The Portugal Under-21 international has scored four goals and added seven assists in 46 games for Saints.
Before the end of the small-value package exemption, Mexico declares it will stop shipping packages to the United States.
As they await further information from the US government, postal services from several European nations, including Germany, Denmark, Sweden, Italy, and the United Kingdom, are following in the footsteps of the announcement on Wednesday.
Since 2016, packages valued at less than $800 have been allowed to enter the US tariff-free under the “de minimis” exemption, but Friday is the deadline to close the loophole.
The change is anticipated to hurt the business of Chinese e-commerce platforms like Shein and Temu, which have evaded US tariffs by mailing customers directly, and it has also stifled the confusion of other US trade partners. In the event that Washington provides more information about new duties, Mexico announced it would suspend shipments.
Mexico continues to work with US authorities and international post offices to develop policies that will ensure the smooth resumption of services, ensure users, and prevent setbacks in the delivery of goods, according to the government.
Important issues remain unresolved, particularly regarding how and by whom customs duties will be collected in the future, what additional data will be required, and how data transmission to US Customs and Border Protection will be handled, according to shipping giant DHL.
As part of US President Donald Trump’s wider trade war, the White House announced plans to suspend the de minimis exemption for all nations starting on July 30.
Due to concerns about the flow of fentanyl and other drugs over the US border, the exemption was previously suspended for China, Hong Kong, Mexico, and Canada.
Two schemes may be used to calculate tariffs for small packages, according to a White House Fact Sheet released on July 30.
The first method calculates the package’s value, while the second method sets a tariff range of $80 to $200 per item.
Based on the Trump administration’s overall tariff schedule for the majority of its US trade partners in August, which ranges from 10% to 40%, are both rates.
Additionally, tariffs have been levied on a number of different industries, including automotive parts, automotive parts, and semiconductors.
After losing his left eye during a tournament last year, Jeffrey Guan describes it as a “great feeling” to resume professional playing.
The Australian, age 21, made his US PGA Tour debut in September when he was struck by a golf ball in Sydney.
He was left blind in one eye after the incident, but he made a promise to play again and worked for months to perfect his recovery.
Guan, a two-time Australian junior amateur champion, made a second-round 74 at the NT PGA Championship in Palmerston on Thursday.
Guan remarked, “Teeing off the first was genuinely a great feeling.
“There were lots of mistakes out there and lots of room for improvement,” I said, “but I wasn’t nervous at all from what I had predicted over the past few days.”
After being struck by a ball, Guan underwent surgery in New South Wales, where he spent two weeks in intensive care, moving to Sydney for a second operation.
Doctors there advised him that it was unlikely that he would regain vision in his left eye.
Guan said he had to adjust to playing the game with “a mix of emotions” as he prepared for the Palmerston tournament.
“I didn’t anticipate it would be this year, but then I practiced and realized why not give it a shot,” I thought. ‘”, he said.
I just kept thinking, “Is this going to be over,” as I repeatedly said in the hospital.
“I couldn’t even eat,” I said. Really, I couldn’t do anything. Because I had to maintain eye stability, I was prevented from walking. So yeah, those thoughts were undoubtedly going through my head for three, four months.
Guan continued, “I’m making my comeback one step at a time.”
Floyd Levine, an actor from Hanover, passed away as a result of his daughter-in-law’s sad news. Following a distinguished career, the TV and film star passed away at the age of 93.
The Hollywood legend, who was best known for his roles on TV and the big screen, including Murder, She Wrote, Babylon 5: Thirdspace, Baywatch, Cagney and Lacey, Dog Day Afternoon alongside Al Pacino, and The Hangover, passed away on Sunday.
In a series of Instagram snaps of the actor, Tracy Robbins, his daughter-in-law, revealed the news. She stated, “My beloved father-in-law, Floyd Levine, passed away peacefully on August 24 in a beautiful home, probably wishing someone would give him a martini.”
The sad news was shared by Floyd’s daughter-in-law via Instagram (mrstracyrobbins/Instagram).
Floyd was known as the “best father-in-law, grandpa, and all-around jokester” for his love of Frank Sinatra, classic movies, and making everyone laugh. He began his acting career in New York City as a cab driver before pursuing Hollywood aspirations in California. We’ll notice Floyd’s grin almost every time we turn to him because his son, Brian, is essentially his twin.
“I will miss Stella’s humor, his stories, and his F-bombs, which he made a lot of money from!” Floyd, my forever Brooklyn boy, may the drinks be cold and the Sinatra songs never end. You showed up early, script in hand, and I would like to believe there was a casting call in heaven.
I’m sure I’ll miss him dearly, but I’m certain that he’s already bringing his stunning wife Rochelle back together.
“I’ll take care of your baby boy forever, don’t worry.” Grandpa, I love you. And yes, you did it perfectly. (Bottom emojis for “White Heart, Cocktail, and Statue of Liberty)”
During his career, the actor appeared in a number of well-known films and television shows (mrstracyrobbins/Instagram).
In addition to playing Abe the Tailor in Norbit with Eddie Murphy, Floyd also appeared in the Bradley Cooper film The Hangover in 2009.
The actor began his acting career as a cab driver before transitioning to the stage. Brian Robbins, a film producer, is his father, and he has contributed to everything from Mission: Impossible to A Quiet Place.
Along with Michael Keaton, his extensive work also appeared in Coach Carter and Night Shift. In the early 1980s, Brian made the decision to go by Floyd’s last name when his son started acting.
In 1981 and 1982, the father-son duo appeared in different CBS programs Archie Bunker’s Place. In Head of the Class on ABC, Floyd and Brian played judges and Eric Mardian, both actors shared roles.
Floyd’s later roles included Kenan and Kel on Nickelodeon, and Good Burger’s ice cream man.
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