Author: Aliyu H. Mohammed, Minna

THE Gaba Development Association in Lavun Local Council of Niger State has expressed strong dissatisfaction over the recent state pardon granted to eleven individuals sentenced to death by Justice Maimuna A. Abubakar of the Niger State High Court for the culpable homicide of seven unarmed members of the Gaba community. Speaking at a press conference in Minna, the Chairman of the Gaba Development Association, Mr. Paul Gana, appealed to Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago to withdraw the amnesty, insisting that the decision has deeply hurt the families of the victims. Gana recounted that in 2018, the victims were brutally attacked on…

THE Honourable Minister of State for works, Hon. Goronyo Bello carried out an urgent inspection of the collapsed culvert in Mokwa, Niger State, a tragic site that has claimed numerous lives and disrupted transportation and economic activity in the region. During the inspection, the Minister expressed deep concern over the devastating impact of the collapse on residents and commuters. He extended his heartfelt condolences to the families of those who lost their lives as a result of the incident. In line with the directive of His Excellency, President Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the Honourable Minister, issued an immediate order for…

PRESIDENT Bola Tinubu has approved the immediate release of ₦2 billion for the reconstruction of all houses affected by the flood in Mokwa, Niger State. Vice President, Kashim Shettima, disclosed this during a visit to Mokwa, following the devastating flood that destroyed lives and property, and left hundreds displaced. The Vice President also said the President authorised the immediate release of 20 trucks of rice to be delivered to the victims. Assuring that President Tinubu’s heart is with the people, Shettima said that all the issues affecting the people would be addressed. According to him, the President has also directed…

THE Commissioner for Humanitarian Affairs in Niger State, Ahmad Suleiman, says more than 200 corpses of victims have been recovered after devastating floods hit the Mokwa Local Government Area of the state. “We have more than 200 casualties or corpses but we are still looking for more,” the commissioner said on Channels Television’s The Morning Brief show on Tuesday. “We are still recovering corpses up till now.” “Nobody can tell you the number of casualties in Niger State right now because up till now, we are still looking for some corpses.” Suleiman said the Umar Bago administration in the north-central…

THREE days after floods devastated several communities in the Mokwa Local Government Area of Niger State, victims at makeshift camps continue to voice deep dissatisfaction over the handling of relief efforts. A visit to the affected communities by our correspondent revealed the frustration and disappointment of flood victims, especially over the lack of adequate food supplies and poor camp conditions. Many displaced residents lamented that although they were photographed with food items by authorities and relief personnel, they were not given the supplies. One of the victims, Mama Isah, expressed her pain, saying: “We are 17 people in my household,…

FLASH floods that ripped through parts of Niger State have killed more than 100 people, an emergency services official said on Friday, with the toll expected to rise further. Teams of rescuers continued to search for missing residents after torrential rains late on Wednesday washed away and submerged dozens of homes in and around the city of Mokwa, in Niger State. “We have so far recovered 115 bodies and more are expected to be recovered because the flood came from far distance and washed people into the River Niger,” Ibrahim Audu Husseini, a spokesman for the Niger State Emergency Management…

A DEVASTATING flash flood has claimed 21 lives and left more than 10 persons missing in Mokwa Local Government Area of Niger State, following a torrential downpour that struck overnight. According to a statement issued by the Acting Director General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), Ibrahim Hussaini, the disaster struck the communities of Tiffin Maza and Anguwan Hausawa in Mokwa town during heavy rainfall of high intensity that lasted for several hours. The floodwaters submerged and washed away over 50 residential houses along with their occupants, resulting in significant casualties and property loss. In response, NSEMA, in…

IN a decisive move to clamp down on rising criminal activities and youth restiveness in Minna, the capital of Niger State, Governor Umaru Bago, has issued a sweeping Executive Order targeting thuggery, drug abuse, and associated crimes. One of the orders is the ban on dreadlocks among the youths. individuals keeping dreadlock hairstyles are to be arrested and forcibly shaved. This, according to the governor, is part of an effort to dismantle the identity and networks of known street gangs. The Executive Order, which takes immediate effect, outlines a series of stringent measures aimed at restoring peace, order, and public…

THE Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Airport, Minna, has been declared as the alternative airport to the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport. Minister of Aviation Festus Keyamo declared this at the inaugural flight commencement of Overland Airways from Bola Ahmed Tinubu International Airport in Minna. Keyamo said the airport has the face, runway, ambience, and location that fits any other international airport across the world. Highlighting the airport’s capacity and strategic relevance, Keyamo praised the facility’s infrastructure and its potential to serve as a major aviation hub. “The runway is an international runway; a 747 and a tripple 7 can use this…

ANOTHER petroleum tanker containing PMS exploded in Karamin Rami village of Mashegu Local Council, Niger State, on Thursday, March 4, 2025, at about 6:30 p.m., claiming seven (7) lives. According to a statement issued to newsmen in Minna by the Director-General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), Alhaji Abdullahi Baba Arah, the incident occurred as a tanker truck attempted to maneuver its way due to bad roads without shoulders and fell down, causing its content (PMS) to flow into a nearby stream where dry-season farmers were working on their rice fields. The statement added that the tanker’s content…

THE Niger State Sector Commander of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Kumar Tsukwam, has confirmed a tragic road crash that claimed the lives of 14 people and left six others injured on the Lapai-Agaie-Bida Federal Highway. In a statement, Tsukwam attributed the crash to excessive speeding and wrongful overtaking. The accident, which occurred at 10:59 am on Saturday, February 22, 2025, between Kusobogi and Nami, involved a Toyota Hiace bus travelling from Minna to Agaie and a DAF tanker heading from Lagos to Kaduna. According to the FRSC report, the driver of the Toyota Hiace bus, in an attempt…

A GROUP of suspected bandits abducted a council secretary and four others during a late-night attack in Sarkin Pawa, Niger State, on Thursday. Security analyst Zagazola Makama revealed that the abduction occurred around 10 pm on Thursday night. According to the security analyst, the perpetrators of the attack quietly infiltrated the residence of the Council Secretary, which is located near the riverbank in Sarkin Pawa. He further revealed bandits and other criminals frequently target this area. The abductees were identified as Daina Usman, the council secretary; Deborah Daina, the wife of the council secretary; Sati Daina; Gambo Shagari; and Sorro,…

THE Catholic Bishop of Kontagora Diocese, Most Rev. Dr. Bulus Yohanna, has conducted a mass wedding ceremony for 21 couples in Niger State. The ceremony, which took place at the St. Mark Catholic Church in Nsanji Nkoso, Magama local government area, brought together couples who had completed their traditional marriage rites and undergone three months of marriage counseling. According to Bishop Yohanna, the ceremony was necessary to ensure that the couples were properly married in the eyes of the church. He emphasized that until a couple is joined together in marriage legally and blessed in the church, it is wrong…

ANOTHER gas explosion in Sabon Wuse, Tafa Local Government Area (LGA) of Niger State, has destroyed several vehicles, shops, and foodstuffs, leaving business owners counting their losses. The Director General of the Niger State Emergency Management Agency (NSEMA), Abdullahi Baba-Arah, confirmed the incident on Sunday, stating that while no lives were lost, the destruction was extensive. The explosion occurred around 11 p.m. on Saturday when a gas tanker was offloading at a local filling station. Witnesses reported that the blast sent shockwaves through the community, causing panic among residents. The fire quickly spread, reaching a nearby petrol station and engulfing…

AN explosion at a mining site in Sabon Pegi, located in Mashegun Local Government Area of Niger State, has resulted in the deaths of half a dozen people and left several others injured. The explosion occurred on Sunday afternoon when miners had resumed work at the site. The cause of the blast remains unknown, though residents of the Sabon Pegi community have suggested that poor handling of explosive devices by mining companies could be to blame. Community sources report that four bodies have been recovered from the explosion site. However, the total number of casualties is still unclear, with further…

FORMER military President, Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida (IBB) is set to launch his long-awaited autobiography. The memoir titled: ‘A Journey In Service’, will be released on February 20, 2025, at the event billed for the Congress Hall of Transcorp Hilton Hotel in Abuja. The development is coming 32 years after IBB left office. The regime of the former Head of State was dogged by the Structural Adjustment Programme (SAP) policy which sparked a nationwide riot among others economic regulations. There was also the unresolved murder of late veteran journalist, Dele Giwa and the June 12 annulment among other controversial issues. While…

THE federal government has ordered the immediate transfer of victims of the recent tanker explosion in Suleja, Niger state, from the General Hospital to tertiary health facilities to ensure they receive advanced medical care. Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, made this known during a visit to Suleja, Niger State. He led a high-level federal delegation, including the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation, Dr. Nentawe Yilwatda, and heads of relevant agencies, to assess the situation firsthand and express condolences to the government and people of Niger State. In a statement, Idris conveyed President Bola Tinubu’s deep…

A 27-YEAR-OLD woman identified as Fatima Dzuma has been apprehended for killing her 25-year-old husband, Baba Aliyu, in Lafiyagi Dzwafu village in the Katcha local government area of Niger State. Dzuma was said to have married Baba three years ago as his second wife after divorcing her first husband, but she had not given birth to Baba, while Baba’s first wife had just given birth, and preparations were underway for the naming ceremony. Sources told The Nation that the deceased and the suspect usually had misunderstandings, and even the night before Dzuma killed Baba, they had a fight in which…

ONE farmer, Dauda Haruna has been reportedly killed while four others, including 3 siblings, were severely injured in bomb explosions in Bassa community, Shiroro LGA of Niger State. This newspaper gathered that the incident happened between Bassa and Gwadara communities on Thursday morning when the victims were going to farm to harvest crops. Residents told this newspaper that the first explosion went up while the 3 siblings, Mali (20), Nehemiah (14) and Jona (15) were on a motorcycle, while the second one went up when the motorcycle of those coming for rescue stepped on it, killing one of the rescuers,…

NIGER State Governor, Umaru Bago, has extended deep sympathy to residents and shop owners opposite NSTA garage, Tunga, Minna over an inferno that destroyed property worth millions of Naira. The governor, in a statement issued by his Chief Press Secretary, Bologi Ibrahim, acknowledged that it was a tragic and trying moment for the victims of the fire incident, adding that he shared in their pains. He, however, encouraged the victims to take solace in God and deepen their faith in Him as He would bless them beyond what they have lost to the fire disaster. The governor observed an increase…