Author: Sadiq Muhammad

THE Army has restored security along the Sheme-Kankara road, a 34-kilometre stretch once feared for its insecurity and regarded as one of the most dangerous roads in the state, also known as a key exit route between Katsina and Zamfara States. A team of journalists conducted an on-the-ground tour of the route and confirmed the deployment of army personnel, police and allied security agencies along strategic points of the road after almost 30 months. Our correspondent, who was part of the tour, observed that military outposts were visibly mounted at strategic locations on the road, signalling renewed government presence and…

SOUTH Africa has extended an invitation to Nigeria to host a G20 event in Abuja, an offer that could signal closer cooperation between the continent’s two economic giants. News Point Nigeria gathered that the invitation was made by Ronald Lamola, South Africa’s foreign minister, to his Nigerian counterpart, amid preparations for the annual G20 leaders’ summit, which includes 19 countries along with the European Union and African Union, set for November in Johannesburg While the event Nigeria will host is yet to be confirmed, it would mark Nigeria’s most direct involvement in the G20, so far While the country has…

PRESIDENCY has downplayed the recent US federal court ruling ordering the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) and the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) to release investigative files connected to President Bola Tinubu, saying the documents in question are decades old and contain no incriminating findings. Reacting to the judgement delivered last Tuesday by Judge Beryl A. Howell of the United States District Court in Washington D.C., Bayo Onanuga, special adviser on information and strategy to Tinubu, in a post on X on Sunday, said: “There is nothing new to be revealed. “The report by Agent Moss of the FBI and the…

THE Federal Government has faulted a recent social media post by the United States Embassy in Abuja concerning Nigeria’s security situation and testimonies of religious leaders at a U.S. Congressional hearing, describing the claims as inaccurate and misrepresentative of the country’s efforts. In a press statement signed by the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, on Friday, the government said: “The Ministry of Foreign Affairs observes with concerns a recent social media publication by the United States Embassy, Abuja, regarding the security situation in Nigeria and the testimonies provided by Bishop Wilfred Anagbe and Rev. Fr.…

THE Federal Government has concluded the vetting of persons nominated to fill diplomatic roles in its 109 missions, 76 embassies, 22 high commissions and 11 consulates globally, this newspaper gathered. Multiple sources with knowledge of the process told this newspaper that the relevant agencies had completed security and background checks on each nominee. However, the President, who is expected to transmit a consolidated list to the National Assembly earlier in the week, has yet to do so. On April 2, President Bola Tinubu departed Abuja for Paris, France, on a two-week working visit. “During the visit, the President will appraise…

THE Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has fined Abuja, Eko, Enugu, Ikeja, Jos, Kaduna, Kano, and Yola Electricity Distribution Companies the sum of N628.03 million for non-compliance with the capping of estimated billing for unmetered customers. The commission conveyed the sanction in a release on Thursday. It explained that the action was a sequel to a review of billing practices between July and September 2024, which revealed that the affected DisCos failed to adhere to monthly energy caps issued by NERC. The fines represent five per cent of the gross overbilling during the period under review, it said. Besides, NERC…

THE Dangote Petroleum Refinery has informed marketers of a reduction in the ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, from over N930 per litre to ₦865, in a move that has brought relief to millions of Nigerians. It was gathered that the $20bn refinery informed its marketers and customers of the slash on Thursday. An official of the refinery confirmed the price reduction from ₦880 to ₦865 per litre to News Point Nigeria. Filling stations like MRS Oil & Gas, Ardova Plc, Heyden, and others with special agreements with the Dangote Refinery are expected to reduce…

FORMER President Muhammadu Buhari has stated that he left office with the same physical assets he had when he assumed the presidency on May 29, 2015. In a statement on Wednesday, Buhari’s media aide, Garba Shehu, revealed that the former president made the remark during a meeting with members of the Progressive Governors’ Forum (PGF) at his residence in Kaduna. According to Shehu, Buhari advised the members of the Progressive Governors Forum to adopt a citizen-centric approach, saying that “leadership presents both a challenge and opportunity, and that balancing the two would significantly advance national progress.” He added that the…

ALI Pate, the coordinating minister of health and social welfare, says over 16,000 Nigerian doctors have left the country in the last five to seven years in search of greener pastures abroad. The minister spoke in Abuja on Tuesday at the seventh annual capacity-building workshop of the Association of Medical Councils of Africa (AMCA). “Integrated healthcare regulation and leadership in building resilient health systems” was the theme of the event. Pate said the exodus of doctors has created a doctor-to-population ratio of 3.9 per 10,000, which is far below the global minimum standard. The minister explained that training one doctor…

THE United States imported $643.1m worth of goods from Nigeria in the first two months of 2025, just a month before the implementation of new tariffs by the Trump administration, this newspaper gathered. The tariffs, which take effect Wednesday, April 9, 2025, have raised concerns about their potential impact on Nigeria’s trade. However, oil and minerals are exempted from the new tariff regime, offering some relief to Nigeria’s major export sectors. Data from the United States International Trade Commission revealed that Nigeria’s imports on a customs basis for February 2025 stood at $286.3m, a sharp decline from the $423.6m recorded…

THE Ministry of Foreign Affairs has refuted claim of visa ban by Saudi Arabia on Nigeria and 13 other countries. According to a statement signed by the Special Assistant on Media and Communications Strategy to the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Alkasim Abdulkadir, Saudi Arabian authorities have officially denied the validity of the viral memo. See full statement below: No Saudi Entry Ban on Nigeria: Ministry of Foreign Affairs Debunks False Claims The Ministry of Foreign Affairs wishes to categorically refute the false claims circulating online, alleging that Nigeria has been included in a list of countries facing an entry ban…

SAUDI Arabia has announced a significant change to its visa policy, restricting nationals from 14 countries, including Nigeria, from applying for new short-term visas, News Point Nigeria gathered. The restriction, which takes effect on 13 April 2025, impacts multiple visa categories, including business visas (both single and multi-entry), tourist e-visas, and family visit visas. According to the official notice, Nigerian nationals currently holding valid Saudi visas may continue travelling to the Kingdom until 13 April 2025, but must exit no later than 29 April. After this deadline, affected individuals face potential penalties, including a possible 5-year ban from entering the…

GOMBE State Governor, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya, CON, alongside his counterparts in the All Progressives Congress (APC), have paid a courtesy visit to former President Muhammadu Buhari at his residence in Kaduna. The visit, which was carried out under the auspices of the Progressives Governors Forum (PGF), was led by the Forum’s Chairman and Governor of Imo State, Senator Hope Uzodinma. Addressing journalists shortly after the visit, Governor Uzodinma said the delegation came in solidarity as members of the APC family to extend warm Sallah greetings to the former President, and to congratulate him on the successful completion of the Ramadan…

LESS than three weeks after News Point Nigeria had reported that President Bola Tinubu is finally moving to fill diplomatic leadership positions after operating without ambassadors for a year and a half, the Federal Government is vetting candidates to fill the roles in its 109 missions, 76 embassies, 22 high commissions, and 11 global consulates. Recall in March, News Point Nigeria reported that, according to a credible source in the Villa, the government has concluded screening of potential candidates and final security checks will begin soon. “The issue is being resolved,” the source said, indicating that the long diplomatic vacuum…

THE Nigeria Police Force has summoned Emir Muhammadu Sanusi II to Abuja as part of an ongoing investigation into a violent incident that marred this year’s Eid-Al-Fitr festivities in Kano. On March 30, 2025, a clash reportedly involving members of Sanusi’s entourage led to the death of a vigilante member and injuries to others. The Kano State Police Command subsequently arrested a 20-year-old suspect, Usman Sagiru, of Sharifai Quarters, in connection with the attack. Authorities also launched an inquiry into the incident and invited Alhaji Wada Isyaku, the Shamakin Kano, for questioning. According to an official correspondence dated April 4,…

A KANO man has told this newspaper how he managed to survive an attack on his hunting party that left 16 of his companions dead, and shocked the nation. The group of young men, mostly in their 20s, was travelling in the back of a truck when they were stopped by vigilantes. “They asked us to alight from the vehicle and without saying much, one of them hit our leader on the shoulder with an axe,” Abubakar Shehu, 20, told this newspaper. “Then they started beating us. I was able to dodge a couple of punches and tackles and ran…

WHEN listeners in northern Nigeria tuned into Voice of America last month, they found music playing in place of their regular broadcast — a telltale sign, historically, that soldiers had seized telecoms offices, and even the government. “Was there a coup in the US?” Babangida Jibrin, a VOA journalist, recalled one worried listener asking, as he and colleagues fielded unending calls after the US-funded station abruptly went off air on Friday. The station started its West African Hausa broadcast in 1979. The dismantling of VOA by President Donald Trump’s administration has left a particular dent in northern Nigeria, where a…

FORMER Director-General of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Brigadier General Maharazu Tsiga (rtd), who spent over two months in captivity, has recounted his harrowing experience in the hands of terrorists and kidnappers. Tsiga revealed that he and other abductees were held in a dense forest surrounded by hills, teeming with dangerous animals. He described his survival as nothing short of divine intervention. The 72-year-old said: “We were kept with dangerous animals—hyenas, snakes, and scorpions. A day before I was released, just the day before yesterday, while on the mountain where I was staying, we suddenly noticed a hyena circling…

WEDNESDAY’s overhaul of Nigeria’s state-run oil company NNPCL did not come as a surprise to keen observers who have vociferously pressed for reforms in the upstream and downstream sectors after the epochal birthing of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, and the subsequent commercialisation of the state-run oil company in July 2022. Having given the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) about two years to ramp up performance, President Bola Tinubu sacked all the Board members of the company on April 2, 2025. Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga was unequivocal with the reasons for the restructuring, which he said was “crucial…

THE Kano State Police Commissioner, CP Ibrahim Adamu Bakori, has inaugurated an eight-member Special Investigation Panel (SIP) to investigate violence that erupted during the procession of the entourage of 16th Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, after Eid-el-Fitr prayers on Sunday, March 30, 2025. According to a press release issued by the Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO), SP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, the panel was tasked with uncovering the root causes of the violence and determining whether there was defiance of the Command’s ban on all forms of Durbar or horse-riding throughout the Sallah festivities. This newspaper reports that the Police…