Author: David Akonuche

NIGERIANS continue to await the verdict of world football governing body, FIFA, over a petition submitted by the Nigeria Football Federation, alleging that DR Congo fielded ineligible players during last November’s 2025 World Cup African play-offs. News Point Nigeria Sport reports that FIFA’s decision, earlier reported to be announced after the body’s meeting on Monday, has yet to be released and is now expected on Tuesday (today). African football fans, especially Nigerians, continue to await the ruling, given that the outcome could potentially reinstate the Super Eagles into the intercontinental play-offs in Mexico later this month, where one of the…

AN Enugu State High Court has ordered the British government to pay a total of £420 million in compensation to the families of 21 Nigerian coal miners who were killed by colonial authorities during a workers’ protest in 1949. News Point Nigeria reports that the court ruled that each family is entitled to £20 million as compensation for what it described as an unlawful and extrajudicial killing that violated the victims’ fundamental right to life. Justice Anthony Onovo, who delivered the judgment on Thursday, held that the massacre of the miners at the Iva Valley coal mine in Enugu was…

THE convicted leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, has filed a notice of appeal at the Court of Appeal, challenging his conviction and multiple sentences imposed by the Federal High Court in Abuja. News Point Nigeria reports that Kanu is insisting that his trial was riddled with fundamental legal errors and amounted to a miscarriage of justice. In the notice of appeal dated February 4, 2026, Kanu said he was appealing against his conviction and sentences on seven counts, including terrorism-related offences, for which he received five life sentences and additional prison terms after being found…

THE Abia State Police Command has dismissed widespread reports alleging that a bomb or Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was discovered at the United Evangelical Church in Ehere/Umuola, Ogbor Hill area of Aba, describing the claims as false and misleading. In an official statement sent to News Point Nigeria on Tuesday, the Command’s Public Relations Officer, DSP Maureen Chinaka, said a thorough investigation conducted by officers, including the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of the area, found no evidence whatsoever of any explosive device at the church premises or anywhere in Aba. “I can authoritatively confirm that no bomb or…

CONFUSION has engulfed preparations for the 2026 Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) after South Africa signalled readiness to step in as host amid reports that Morocco may have withdrawn from staging the tournament barely two months to kickoff. News Point Nigeria Sport reports the development surfaced on Sunday night when South Africa’s Deputy Minister of Sport, Arts and Culture, Peace Mabe, announced that the country would assume hosting duties for the continental women’s football showpiece, scheduled to run from March 17 to April 3, 2026. Speaking at the Super League Awards ceremony in Johannesburg, Mabe declared that South Africa…

TRADERS of the Onitsha Main Market have reopened their shops in compliance with a directive by the Anambra State Governor, Chukwuma Soludo. News Point Nigeria reports that Soludo had last Monday ordered that the market be shut down for one week due to the perceived compliance with the Monday sit-at-home order by non-state actors. The governor also warned that if traders failed to open at the end of the one-week shutdown, the market would be closed for another week, and subsequently for longer periods. However, a week after economic activities were grounded, the traders were seen trooping into the market.…

ABIA State Governor, Alex Otti, has said the Labour Party (LP) has formally notified the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) of plans to conduct its congresses and a national convention as part of efforts to reposition the party and strengthen internal cohesion. News Point Nigeria reports that Governor Otti disclosed this during a press briefing on Saturday, while addressing issues arising from recent engagements and resolutions of party stakeholders, noting that preparatory activities are already underway ahead of the congresses scheduled to take place in March. According to him, the party has also commenced arrangements for the revalidation of existing…

THE Governor of Abia State, Alex Otti has said that the state is no longer experiencing power failure caused by frequent collapse of the National Grid system, as his administration is now investing in converting organic waste products into electricity. News Point Nigeria reports that Otti disclosed this while addressing the media at the state’s government house on Thursday. According to him, waste products are now being converted from biogas into renewable energy for Abians, adding that the state is no longer under the control of the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC). He also disclosed that the new arrangement had…

JUSTICE Peter Lifu The Federal High Court Abuja, has recognized the Usman Nenadi-led exco of the Labour Party (LP) sacking Julius Abure as the national chairman of the party. News Point Nigeria delivering judgement, Justice Lifu relied on the April 4, 2025, verdict of the Supreme Court to declare Senator Nenadi, as the valid leader of the party. The court also ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to forthwith, recognize the Senator Usman-led Caretaker Committee as the only valid authority to represent the Labour Party, pending when the party convenes a national convention. The judgement followed a suit instituted…

JUSTICE Mohammed Umar of the Federal High Court Abuja, has adjourned the N1.2 billion fundamental rights enforcement suit filed by a human rights activist, Omoyele Sowore, against the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, and other defendants, to March 10 for a definite hearing. News Point Nigeria reports that Sowore had sued the IGP and others over his arrest, detention, and arraignment by the police in Abuja. At the day’s proceedings, his counsel, Marshal Abubakar, informed the court that the matter was slated for mention and all the defendants, who had been served with hearing notice, were not in court;…

RENOWNED author, Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie, and her husband, Dr Ivara Esege, have lost one of their twin sons, Nkanu Nnamdi. According to a statement sent to News Point Nigeria on Thursday by Omawumi Ogbe, on behalf of the family, the 21-month-old baby passed away on Wednesday, January 7, 2026, after a brief illness. The statement said the family is devastated by the loss, and requested that their privacy be respected during this difficult time. The statement reads, “We’re deeply saddened to confirm the passing of one of Ms Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie and Dr Ivara Esege’s twin boys, Nkanu Nnamdi, who…

THE Labour Party’s Vice-Presidential candidate in the 2023 general election, Senator Yusuf Datti Baba-Ahmed, has formally declared his intention to contest the presidency in 2027, adding a new layer to the evolving political realignments within Nigeria’s opposition space. News Point Nigeria reports that Baba-Ahmed made the declaration on Wednesday at a rally held at the Labour Party’s national secretariat in Abuja, where party members, supporters and stakeholders gathered amid heightened uncertainty following recent defections and internal debates. His announcement comes barely one week after the party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Mr Peter Obi, announced his departure from the Labour Party for…

A FRESH political storm is brewing within the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Rivers State following conflicting positions over who truly controls the party’s structure ahead of the 2027 general elections, pitting the party’s national leadership against influential grassroots actors loyal to Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike. News Point Nigeria reports that the controversy erupted days after Nentawe Yilwatda, National Chairman of the APC, publicly declared Governor Siminalayi Fubara as the leader of the party in Rivers State, a position that has been openly rejected by key APC executives at the local level who insist they will…

THE Labour Party’s presidential candidate in the 2023 election, Peter Obi, along with other political leaders from the South-East geopolitical zone, has officially declared for the African Democratic Congress (ADC). News Point Nigeria reports that the leaders gathered in Enugu, the capital of Enugu State, on Wednesday to make the declaration. They stated that after months of consultations, they had decided to join the ADC and collaborate with other opposition leaders from across the country to “rescue Nigeria from the poor governance of the All Progressives Congress (APC)”. Those present at the event included former Deputy Speaker of the House…

THE 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has criticised the House of Representatives for failing to criminalise vote-buying at the level of party primaries, describing the decision as a setback for Nigeria’s democracy. In a post on X (formerly Twitter) on Sunday sighted by News Point Nigeria, the former Anambra State governor said Nigerians had hoped the lawmakers would take a firm stand against vote-buying. Describing vote-buying as a major problem undermining credible elections in the country, Obi said the expectation was dashed when the House declined to address inducements at the level of party primaries. “Just…

ENUGU State Governor, Peter Ndubuisi Mbah, has approved a fresh round of appointments, naming new commissioners, board chairmen, executive secretaries, and other senior officials across key government agencies. The Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Professor Chidiebere Onyia, disclosed this in a statement sent to News Point Nigeria on Wednesday. According to the statement, Osinachi Nnajieze and Dr. C. O. C. Egumgbe was appointed as Commissioners-designate. Their names have been forwarded to the Enugu State House of Assembly for screening and confirmation. Other appointments approved by the governor include Kenechukwu Nnamani as Managing Director of the Enugu State Investment Development…

THE Ebonyi governor, Francis Nwifuru, has announced a Christmas bonus of ₦150,000 to every civil servant in the state for the 2025 festive season. News Point Nigeria reports that Nwifuru made the pronouncement on Sunday during a church service at the Government House Chapel in Abakaliki. According to him, the gesture aligns with his administration’s commitment to improve the welfare of civil servants despite dwindling revenue accruing to the state in the past year. The governor also dispelled rumours of lethargy in Vincent Agwu Nwankwo Flyover, popularly known as VANCO, a monumental infrastructural marvel of his administration. “You cannot find…

THE Labour Party (LP) presidential candidate in the 2023 elections, Peter Obi, says some of the names President Bola Tinubu submitted to the Senate for ambassadorial confirmation are “shocking.” News Point Nigeria reports that in a post on X, Peter Obi expressed disappointment with the list, saying several of the names were questionable. “Yes, some of the names being paraded to represent us as ambassadors globally are shocking. But with a leadership that has allowed mediocrity, corruption, and impunity to rise to the top, who else did you expect them to choose?” he asked. The former governor of Anambra also…

THE Special Assistant on Media and Public Affairs to former Bayelsa State Governor, Chief Timipre Sylva, Julius Bokoru, has raised alarm over what he describes as the unlawful and inhumane detention of four domestic and security aides linked to his principal. In a statement sent to News Point Nigeria titled “Detention of Sylva’s Aides: A Call for Reason, Humanity and Due Process,” Bokoru condemned the continued incarceration of the individuals whose families, he said, have been left distressed and traumatised. According to him, the first individual arrested, Mr. Paganengigha Anagha, has remained in custody for an extended period without clarity…

THE Court of Appeal in Abuja has struck out the appeal by the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, who has been convicted of terrorism, on the grounds that it lacked merit and had become academic, following his conviction for terrorism offences by a Federal High Court in a judgment on November 20. News Point Nigeria reports that delivering judgment, a three-member panel of the appellate court found that Kanu’s claim that his fundamental rights to human dignity, right to quality health care and religion, were being breached by his continued detention in the facility of the…