Shockwaves are reverberating across Yorùbáland and the global Yorùbá diaspora following the sudden death of the Baba Ọba (King’s Father) of the famed Oyotunji African Village in South Carolina, USA. The late Baba Ọba, Lukman Arohunfale, a revered socialite and traditionalist, passed away under circumstances already sparking fierce controversy. His death comes just days after he publicly accused the newly installed Alaafin of Oyo, His Imperial Majesty Oba Akeem Adéyẹmọ Owoade, of allegedly ordering his courtiers to beat him mercilessly during a recent courtesy visit to the Oyo palace in Nigeria. In a widely circulated voice recording, the deceased recounted how what was meant to be a simple homage turned violent. Although the Baba Ọba had reportedly battled ill health in the past year, growing insinuations suggest that the alleged physical assault may have aggravated his condition, ultimately leading to his untimely death. The palace in Oyo recently denied that s...
The Nigeria Amputee Football team, nicknamed ‘Special Eagles’ have finally recorded their first victory at the ongoing Amputee Football World Cup in Mexico.
The Special Eagles pipped their counterparts from El Salvador by a lone goal.
The team had earlier crashed out of the tournament after losing their first 2 games to Russia and Brazil.
The victory, though slim, is quite historic and commendable knowing the odds the Nigeria Amputee Football team braved to make their debut appearance at the World Cup after missing out on the past three editions and almost also missed out in Mexico.
A journalist, Stefan Lovgren, was approached for a review of the match and had this to say about the Nigerian team:
“this is the stuff of dreams. Ezeji Kennedy scored and enters the record books as the first Nigerian to ever score in an amputee World Cup game.
“The match was nervy for the crowd and those on the bench. The Nigerians came in strongly into the game, dominated the game especially in the first half. They were faster and stronger than their opponents.
“We played more on the counter. We could have scored more but the slim margin victory was all that was needed. As the match ended, the Nigerians were bombarded by the appreciating crowd. They were signing autographs and taking pictures. They are in very high spirits.
“Foreign-based Bamgbopa came in in the second half and played more as a striker to drive up the needed energy. Chimaobi Michael was too much to handle for his speed and strength. He had couple of chances that were wasted.
“Man of the match should go to Kennedy who scored the goal and had some outstanding plays in the match. It was a fantastic outing for the Nigerians.”
Many Nigerians rallied round the Special Eagles to ensure they made it to the World Cup including the NFF, Super Eagles players, Mikel Obi and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, whose donation of N10 million lifted a lot of burden off the shoulders of the team.
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