To reduce traffic congestion that commuters experience as a result of the rehabilitation of the Ifako Bridge expansion joint, the Lagos State government has suspended the Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) lane enforcement along the Eko Bridge and Odo Iya-Alaro corridors.  ,
According to the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA), Sola Giwa, the governor’s special advisor on transportation, approved the move.
Giwa noted that the suspension is conditional and transitional, designed to handle the Third Mainland corridor’s partially closed Ifako-bound carriageway’s anticipated vehicular overflow.
“We are fully aware of the significant strain that is currently being placed on important ingress routes into the Lagos Mainland. Therefore, he claimed that this tactical suspension of BRT lane enforcement is a calculated response that will result in immediate relief, shorten the commuting process, and maintain vehicular fluidity throughout the bridge repairs.
Read more about the Lagos government’s closure of the Purple Mall over the parking deck collapse.
General vehicular access to previously restricted BRT corridors on Eko Bridge and Odo Iya-Alaro is permitted under this directive, especially during high traffic times.
However, Giwa emphasized that commercial buses and articulated vehicles must continue to operate in strict accordance with current loading and safety regulations to prevent compounding road inefficiencies or putting public safety at risk.
Additionally, Bakare Oki Olalekan, the general manager of LASTMA, praised the organization’s operational readiness and responsiveness in carrying out the State Government’s mandate with both efficiency and strategic foresight.
Our agents use tactical tact to control compliance, coordinate flow, and carry out quick on-the-ground interventions as needed. We ask all road users to uphold traffic regulations and show civic responsibility as we work together to reduce disruptions during this time, he said.
Before the deadline to reinstate global tariffs that he halted three months ago, US President Donald Trump stated this week that he is not confident the US will reach a trade agreement with Japan.
Trump also threatened to impose tariffs of 30 to 35 percent on Japan if a trade deal is not reached, particularly with regard to US car sales.
Japanese auto and electronic manufacturers, whose exports to the US support the country’s economy, are concerned about this.
What are our current knowledge’s regarding the US-Japan trade talks?
What was Trump’s response to Japan’s trade agreement?
As the deadline for the end of a reciprocal tariff pause approaches on July 9, the majority of Washington’s trading partners are looking for trade deals.
The US and Japan have been engaged in long-term trade negotiations. Ryosei Akazawa, the country’s chief trade negotiator and economic minister, is organizing his eighth trip to the US as soon as this weekend, according to a report from Japanese television company TV Asahi on Wednesday.
According to US federal data, the US and Japan had a $69 billion trading deficit in 2024. Trump wants to wrap up this. However, he expressed doubts this week regarding the totality of a trade deal between Washington and Tokyo.
We’ve handled Japan,” he said. Trump told reporters on Tuesday on the Air Force One, “I’m not sure if we’re going to make a deal with Japan. I doubt it.”
It’s really difficult for them to make a deal because they and others have ripped us off for 30 to 40 years.
Trump threatened Japan with new tariffs, but why?
If no agreement is reached by the time the reciprocal tariff pause is lifted on July 9, Trump threatened to impose a tariff of “30 percent or 35 percent” on Japan. Throughout this pause, there has been a basic 10% tariff on imported US products, including those from Japan.
Trump unveiled a 24 percent tariff on Japan on most products, excluding cars, aluminum, and steel on April 2, as part of his “Liberation Day” reciprocal tariff announcement.
Trump claims that he won’t be extending the reciprocal tariff pause.
Vehicles and car parts from Japan as well as from other nations are subject to a 25% tariff once they are reinstated. According to a Trump order signed on June 4, aluminum and steel imports from all nations, including Japan, are subject to a 50% tariff.
Trump is now focusing solely on Japanese rice purchases, alleging that the country does not purchase any from the US. He wrote on his Truth Social platform on Monday, “I have a great respect for Japan, they won’t take our RICE, and yet they have a massive rice shortage.” Trump continued, “We’ll just be sending them a letter, and we’ll love having them as a Trading Partner for many years,” without giving any specifics about the letter.
Trump also asserted that US automobile sales are nonexistent in Japan. He stated to reporters on Air Force One this week, “We didn’t give them one car in ten years.” Trump also claimed that Japan does not purchase American cars in an interview with Fox News on June 29 and that it was unfair.
“So what I’m going to do is I’ll write them a letter saying, “We thank you very much,”.” We are aware that you can’t provide the services we need, so you’ll be required to pay a 30%, 35%, or whatever the numbers are,” Trump said this week. Because, as you may well well know, we also have a significant trade deficit with Japan, which is unfair to Americans.
Does Japan purchase US cars and rice?
Yes . According to the Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC), a trade data research organization, Japan purchased $354.7 million of rice from the US between May 2024 and April 2025, contrary to what Trump previously reported to reporters this week.
Since the US price of locally grown rice has increased, Japanese imports have actually increased. Producing and distributing the rice that was available by the spring of 2024 was a result of an extreme heatwave in 2023.
Additionally, on August 8, 2024, an earthquake struck southern Japan, which caused rice to be in stores and a rice shortage. Rice from its own emergency stockpile has been chosen by the government.
According to data from the Japan Automobile Importers Association, Japan imported 14, 724 US passenger vehicles worth $1.04 billion in 2024.
However, this is not as much as the US is selling Japanese cars. For instance, Japan imported cars worth only $1.25 billion from the US in 2023 while doing so in the same year, according to the OEC.
On April 16, 2025, US President Donald Trump meets with Ryosei Akazawa, Japan’s chief trade negotiator, and his team in the White House’s Oval Office in Washington, DC. [Photo: Reuters]
Why else have trade negotiations between the US and Japan stalled?
A June 20 national election will put pressure on the Japanese government. The Liberal Democratic Party of Japanese Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has historically been a significant supporter of the party.
In trade negotiations with the US, trade negotiator Akazawa declared on Tuesday that Japan would not sacrifice its agricultural sector.
Agriculture is the foundation of the country, as I’ve said it before. Our stance on the American-US negotiations is unchanged: we won’t go into discussions that would compromise the agricultural sector, Akazawa said in a press conference.
Ishiba opposes any Trump-related trade agreement that doesn’t reduce car tariffs.
Ishiba said on Wednesday in a debate with opposition leaders that “Japan is unique from other countries because we are the biggest investor in the US and create jobs.” We’ll continue to defend our national interest as long as our main focus is on investment rather than tariffs.
Additionally, as the largest foreigner in the US, Japan is stronger than many other nations. Recent reports suggest that Japan may have more than $1 trillion in US Treasury securities as a leverage in trade negotiations.
Has Trump’s threat of higher tariffs been implemented in Japan?
Japan has so far declined to comment on this.
Japan’s Deputy Chief Cabinet Secretary Kazuhiko Aoki said, “We are aware of what President Trump said, but we don’t comment on every remark made by US government officials.”
How much do US exports affect Japan’s economy?
Japan depends more heavily on the US for exports than the other way around, despite having a sizable amount of US debt. According to the OEC, the US is Japan’s largest export market, accounting for 19.1% of all global exports in 2023.
Orlando Bloom, the director of the Lord of the Rings, has a number of quotes to share. Despite recent reports that he has split from Katy Perry, Carl Jung has been attributed to psychologist.
Orlando Bloom has shared a series of quotes on social media this week(Image: AFP via Getty Images)
Orlando Bloom has shared a series of cryptic quotes referring to “darkness” and “loneliness” following his reported split from his fiancée Katy Perry.
The Pirates of the Caribbean actor, 48, and Katy, 40, have reportedly parted ways after nine years together. The couple, who are parents to four-year-old daughter Daisy, have faced speculation over their relationship in recent weeks, with there once even the suggestion of potential “make or break talks” in the future.
Following yet more reports that they had separated, Pirates of the Caribbean star Orlando has shared a series of quotes, which aren’t attributed to him, on Instagram. They featured in a post that he shared on his account yesterday.
He shared a post on the account @sapienkind about Carl Jung, who is regarded as the father of analytical psychology. More than a dozen quotes from the psychologist were included in the post.
One quote from Orlando’s repost addressed loneliness. It said, “Loneliness does not come from having no people around one, but rather from being unable to communicate what seems important to one.”
Orlando Bloom recently shared a post, uploaded by another account, that included a series of quotes attributed to psychologist Carl Jung(Image: sapienkind/Instagram)
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while another post featured love and power in its focus. There is no will to power, and where power predominates, love is lacking, according to the quote. The one is “the other’s shadow.”
According to one quote, “Even a happy life cannot be without a measure of darkness, and the word happy would lose its significance if it were not balanced by sadness.” While another remarked, “Be just another human soul as you touch a human soul, but you know all the theories and techniques.”
Orlando later shared his Instagram Story post. He continued to highlight a few of the quotes in particular, including one that made reference to touching the human soul and one that made a specific mention of loneliness.
He also cited a different phrase there. We are what we choose to become, he said in his third quote from his Instagram post from yesterday.
It comes following reports that Orlando (right) has split up from his fiancée Katy Perry(Image: Variety via Getty Images)
It comes after Orlando previously shared some quotes from other sources just days ago. As reported at the time, he posted a quote attributed to Buddha that read: “Each day is a new beginning. What we do today is what matters most.”
Amid ongoing speculation over his relationship with singer-songwriter Katy, it’s been reported that they are “amicable”. A source told US Weekly for an article that was published last week: “It’s not contentious at the moment.”
The source claimed that their apparent separation has been “a long time coming,” adding that communication has been “tense for months.” They claimed Katy is “of course upset,” but that she is “relived” that she won’t have to go through another divorce.
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British and Irish Lions vs. New South Wales Waratahs
Date: Saturday, July 5th, 2019 Kick-off: 11:00 BST
Irishman Tadhg Beirne was named captain of the British and Irish Lions team for Saturday’s Sydney game, which was dominated by head coach Andy Farrell naming his son, Owen, in place of the injured Elliot Daly.
Hugo Keenan will start at full-back for the Lions, while Blair Kinghorn will make his Lions debut, making 14 changes from the one that defeated the Queensland Reds in Brisbane. Kinghorn, a natural 15-year-old, was chosen on the left wing after his season-winning debut with Toulouse.
The Lions will play backs and forwards on the bench for the first time on tour.
After Tomos Williams was forced out last weekend, Scotland’s scrum-half, Ben White, will make his Lions debut in Sydney. White replaces it.
For the first time on tour, Huw Jones joins his Scotland midfield partner Sione Tuipulotu alongside him, the only player returning from Brisbane.
Fin Smith and Alex Mitchell replace Finn Russell and Jamison Gibson-Park as Northampton halfbacks. Henry Pollock, a different saint, is back in the lineup for blind-side flanker.
The majority of Farrell’s press conference for the team announcement was dominated by questions about his son in downtown Sydney. When the coach was eventually inquired about the upcoming game between the Waratahs and his new captain, Beirne, he replied, “I’m delighted for Tadhg.”
“The squad that was chosen (to play the Waratahs) is an exciting one,” said Owen, “even though the sad news about Elliot and the news about Owen coming is the big one.” Tadhg serves as captain at the top of that list. He feels both proud and proud. When I told him, he was taken aback, which is exactly what you want.
The Lions packed up and left for Sydney, where Farrell’s call-up announcement began to surface. Farrell, a fly-half-cum-insider, took the place of the deeply unlucky Daly, a wing-cum-full-back-cum-outsider.
Given that he isn’t exactly a like-for-like switch, his father and his fellow coaches make a very contented call. If this tour was gliding along without edge or controversy, it would have ended on Thursday night, Sydney-time.
When Farrell was questioned about the negative way his son’s promotion went, Farrell replied, “Look, I hope people can get past that.” “That nonsense has been around for a while. That was a long time ago. All we need to do is move and accept both the Lions’ goals and the ones that lie ahead.
It was a plain cry. In rugbyland, it appeared that the news wasn’t all that positive. Farrell, 33, recently left Racing and made a comeback to Saracens following a disappointing time in France. Since being concussed in a match against Lyon on May 4, he hasn’t played rugby. He didn’t play since he only had 18 minutes that day.
Farrell, who was unquestionably a great player in his day, hasn’t played Test rugby since the incredible 615 days that he spent playing for England against Argentina at the World Cup in October 2023. He claimed at the time that he was deciding to leave the test field to concentrate on his and his family’s mental well-being.
British and Irish Lions vs. New South Wales Waratahs
Date: Saturday, July 5th, 2019 Kick-off: 11:00 BST
Irishman Tadhg Beirne was named captain of the British and Irish Lions team for Saturday’s Sydney game, which was dominated by head coach Andy Farrell naming his son, Owen, in place of the injured Elliot Daly.
Hugo Keenan will start at full-back for the Lions, while Blair Kinghorn will make his Lions debut, making 14 changes from the one that defeated the Queensland Reds in Brisbane. Kinghorn, a natural 15-year-old, was chosen on the left wing after his season-winning debut with Toulouse.
The Lions will play backs and forwards on the bench for the first time on tour.
After Tomos Williams was forced out last weekend, Scotland’s scrum-half, Ben White, will make his Lions debut in Sydney. White replaces it.
For the first time on tour, Huw Jones joins his Scotland midfield partner Sione Tuipulotu alongside him, the only player returning from Brisbane.
Fin Smith and Alex Mitchell replace Finn Russell and Jamison Gibson-Park as Northampton halfbacks. Henry Pollock, a different saint, is back in the lineup for blind-side flanker.
The majority of Farrell’s press conference for the team announcement was dominated by questions about his son in downtown Sydney. When the coach was eventually inquired about the upcoming game between the Waratahs and his new captain, Beirne, he replied, “I’m delighted for Tadhg.”
“The squad that was chosen (to play the Waratahs) is an exciting one,” said Owen, “even though the sad news about Elliot and the news about Owen coming is the big one.” Tadhg serves as captain at the top of that list. He feels both proud and proud. When I told him, he was taken aback, which is exactly what you want.
The Lions packed up and left for Sydney, where Farrell’s call-up announcement began to surface. Farrell, a fly-half-cum-insider, took the place of the deeply unlucky Daly, a wing-cum-full-back-cum-outsider.
Given that he isn’t exactly a like-for-like switch, his father and his fellow coaches make a very contented call. If this tour was gliding along without edge or controversy, it would have ended on Thursday night, Sydney-time.
When Farrell was questioned about the negative way his son’s promotion went, Farrell replied, “Look, I hope people can get past that.” “That nonsense has been around for a while. That was a long time ago. All we need to do is move and accept both the Lions’ goals and the ones that lie ahead.
It was a plain cry. In rugbyland, it appeared that the news wasn’t all that positive. Farrell, 33, recently left Racing and made a comeback to Saracens following a disappointing time in France. Since being concussed in a match against Lyon on May 4, he hasn’t played rugby. He didn’t play since he only had 18 minutes that day.
Farrell, who was unquestionably a great player in his day, hasn’t played Test rugby since the incredible 615 days that he spent playing for England against Argentina at the World Cup in October 2023. He claimed at the time that he was deciding to leave the test field to concentrate on his and his family’s mental well-being.
You are aware that making a decision like this involves only the periphery, not the rugby decision. For 48 hours and a lot of discussion, it turns into a major story.
I’ve gone through that process, but I would rather not believe we made calls to try to avoid criticism or gain public support.
Andy Farrell, the head coach of the British and Irish Lions, may agree with his son’s decision to call up Owen.
Instead, they date back 12 years. A man in the same position, in the same city, but facing a different set of circumstances in a different time.
The series finale between the Wallabies and the Lions was Brian O’Driscoll, who was Warren Gatland defending. In O’Driscoll’s place, he placed Jamie Roberts and Jonathan Davies, the midfielders he knew and trusted from his day job in Wales.
Lions calls are frequently contentious. For everyone to accept these actions, the quantity and quality of those who are ignored are too great.
However, the debate over Owen Farrell’s call-up is heated up like O’Driscoll’s.
Despite Owen’s on-screen pedigree, Andy Farrell’s harshest critics will assert that blood ties have a role in the film’s success.
Close are Andy and Owen. Owen was born at the age of 16 to Andy. Owen would play soccer on the sidelines while his father watched Wigan as a child. Owen made his first Saracens appearance off the bench against Western Force as a teenager, taking the place of his father.
Andy’s words about his son have become sparse and scarce as Owen’s career has progressed.
After World Rugby attempted to reinstate a red card that would have prevented Owen from participating in some of England’s Rugby World Cup campaigns, he let his guard down in 2023.
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There will undoubtedly be enough rumination about Owen’s Lions call-up to fill a significant number of seats.
It is obvious who is to blame. Owen lacks top-level rugby, fitness, and form.
His most recent game was two months ago, when Lyon forced him to withdraw from Racing 92. His last Test match appearance was for England’s preparation for the 2023 World Cup.
His most recent club season was halted by an injury that prevented him from playing place kicks and playing with a groin.
After feigning relegation, Racing placed 10th overall.
Why has Andy disrupted the Lions’ Test preparations with the furore that will accompany Owen’s call-up alongside the likes of Tom Scotland’s Jordan and Wales’ Blair Murray, both geographically closer, fitter, and less controversial?
Perhaps because Farrell believes that disruption is necessary for the tourists.
Owen’s chances of appearing in the Test 23 are unquestionably slim even with the exception of one more curveball call.
Fin Smith is more likely to serve as the Scot, but Finn Russell appears to be in good standing. Both are more appropriate for Farrell’s tentative more expansive style.
Bundee Aki and Sione Tuipulotu provide a ball-carrying threat that Farrell, 33, doesn’t, especially inside center. Farrell’s inclusion would also turn their tactics on its head.
With Blair Kinghorn and Hugo Keenan still untested, fly-half looks more useful than Marcus Smith’s ability to cover full-back on the bench.
Farrell does, however, inject intensity right away as the Wallabies head toward the door.
Alun Wyn Jones asked the great and the good huddled around him at half-time about the 21-year-old rookie on their final trip to Australia and why he was the one who screamed the loudest and asked the most questions on the field.
That tour included Johnny Sexton. and impressed by it as well.
Before being chosen for Farrell’s Lions coaching staff, he told the Times newspaper in October that he would still have Farrell as his Test 10 for the 2025 tour.
He described him as one of the best team members I’ve ever had.
He is “one of the best players I’ve ever played with.” When things get difficult, who do you want to join? Animals that match the test.
He’s not always a good teammate, which is frustrating. However, winning is not always simple.
And perhaps Farrell Sr. feels that the situation there was too relaxed.
Slow starts and lost collisions with the Western Force and Queensland Reds suggest a side that is still far from ruthless edge, while his verdict on the loss to Argentina was “unacceptable.”
The game will definitely get crankier if Owen Farrell is dropped into the pool.
In his press conference on Thursday, Andy reaffirmed Owen’s contention for a Test spot.
Everyone should be competing, he said, “If he didn’t have a chance, then what’s the point? “
In his second breath, he concentrated on the intangibles that might have had the biggest impact on the series’ fate.
Along with that, Andy noted, “You need the support you need for the group, the way you make the room feel,” as well.
The rest of the 37 players’ ripples are difficult to predict.
Will Russell experience any creative tension at 10 when he could reasonably have anticipated being outside of Sexton and Farrell’s shadow on this tour?
Will Maro Itoje’s leadership be impacted by his long-time captain, both for the club and for the nation?
Will Owen, who has resigned from Test rugby following the scrutiny and resentment of the 2023 Rugby World Cup, enjoy the Aussie humor that will undoubtedly be his friend?
