Author: Sadiq Abdullateef

NIGERIANS may soon feel a measure of relief at the market stalls and fuel pumps as headline inflation dropped for the fifth consecutive month, signaling a sustained slowdown in price pressures across Africa’s largest economy. According to the latest Consumer Price Index (CPI) report released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Monday made available to News Point Nigeria, inflation cooled to 20.12 percent in August 2025, down from 21.88 percent recorded in July 2025. This represents a 1.76 percentage point decline on a month-on-month basis and marks a sharp reversal from the 32.15 percent inflation level seen in…

NASIR Ja’oji, Senior Special Assistant to the President, has set off a governance debate after creating two DG roles and naming five media aides under his office. According to an official appointment letter seen by News Point Nigeria, Ja’oji named Ibrahim Farouk as Director-General on Political Matters and Ahmad Saleh as Director-General on Media and Digital Communication. He further expanded his office with five additional appointees: Muhammad Sabiu Adam – Special Assistant (Media) Abbas Uba – Technical Assistant (Media) Mustapha Yusuf Waziri – Media Aide I Usman Shuaibu – Media Aide II Safiyanu Mohammed Yunusa – Media Aide III Ja’oji…

NIGERIA’s crude oil export earnings slumped by N3.18 trillion in the first half of 2025 despite a steady rise in production volumes, according to the latest Foreign Trade Statistics released by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Figures analysed by News Point Nigeria show that crude oil exports totalled N24.92tn between January and June 2025, an 11.3% decline compared with N28.10tn recorded in the same period of 2024. This drop came even as crude output surged by 12.7% year-on-year, highlighting a paradox where increased production failed to translate into higher revenue. In the first quarter of 2025, crude exports fell…

THE International Press Institute (IPI), Nigeria Chapter, has raised serious concern over the rising wave of media repression and harassment of journalists across the country, warning that the trend poses a grave threat to democracy and the free flow of information. News Point Nigeria reports that the alarm was sounded by IPI Nigeria President and Editor-in-Chief of Premium Times, Mr. Musikilu Mojeed, during a dinner held in Abuja on Saturday to honour Hajia Hadiza Hussaina Sani, a respected journalist and retired Director of Digital Media at the Voice of Nigeria (VON), who clocked the mandatory retirement age of 60. The…

THE Federal Capital Territory Administration (FCTA) has intensified its clampdown on illegal construction at the contentious River Park Estate, Lugbe, halting ongoing development, demolishing more than 30 building substructures, and arresting 15 workers for allegedly defying a subsisting court order and ministerial directive. News Point Nigeria reports that the latest action follows weeks of tension between the estate developers and the FCT authorities over ownership and development rights within the high-profile estate. An Abuja High Court had previously ordered all parties to maintain the status quo pending the resolution of disputes surrounding the estate. However, intelligence reports indicated that some…

OVER a year after the Federal Government pledged to subsidise electricity for Nigeria’s public hospitals and universities, the promise remains unfulfilled, leaving these critical institutions grappling with crippling power bills that reportedly run as high as ₦300 million monthly in some cases. News Point Nigeria reports that the pledge was made in August 2024 by the Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, during a live radio programme in Ibadan, where he assured Nigerians that government would cushion the impact of tariff hikes even for health and academic institutions on Band A, the highest-paying category of customers who receive 20+ hours of…

WHAT began as a routine flight from Lagos to Port Harcourt has exploded into a national scandal. On July 13, 2025, an Air Peace plane skidded off the runway, but all passengers escaped unharmed. Weeks later, the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau’s toxicology report accused two crew members of flying under the influence of alcohol and weed (Marijuana), a claim co-pilot David Bernard and cabin crew member Maduneme Victory say is false and defamatory. News Point Nigeria digs into the fallout threatening to shake public confidence in air travel. Speaking on Arise Television Friday night, co-pilot Bernard fiercely rejected the toxicology…

THE Federal Government on Thursday said it has not received any formal notification from the United States or Ghana regarding reports that Nigerians are among those deported under Washington’s revived “third-country deportation” policy and flown to Accra. The clarification followed media reports, citing Reuters, that Ghana had accepted a first batch of 14 deportees from the US, including Nigerians and other West Africans, under an arrangement that allows them to be processed in Ghana before being sent back to their respective countries. According to the report, Ghanaian President John Mahama disclosed that the deportees, who include citizens of Nigeria, The…

FORMER President Goodluck Jonathan and Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) in the 2023 general elections, met behind closed doors in Abuja on Thursday to discuss pressing national issues. News Point Nigeria reports that Obi, who made the visit public via a post on his official X (formerly Twitter) handle, described Jonathan as an “elder brother, a statesman, and a leader.” “Today in Abuja, I met with my very dear elder brother, statesman, and leader, former President Goodluck Jonathan. We had a fruitful closed-door meeting and discussed the state of our dear nation,” Obi wrote. Details…

THE Federal High Court sitting in Abuja has issued an interim order restraining the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) from recognising former Senate President David Mark as the interim National Chairman and ex-Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola as the National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress (ADC). News Point Nigeria reports that Justice Emeka Nwite, delivering the ruling on Thursday, granted the interim injunction following a motion ex parte filed on September 2, 2025, by Nafiu Gombe, who is challenging the legitimacy of the duo’s appointment. The motion lists: ADC as the 1st Defendant, David Mark as the 2nd Defendant,…

KANO State is on the verge of implementing a landmark employment reform that could transform job opportunities for its citizens. The state government, under the leadership of Governor Abba Kabir Yusuf, is considering a bold policy that would mandate private businesses operating within Kano to allocate 75 per cent of skilled jobs and 100 per cent of unskilled and semi-skilled positions to indigenes of the state. The proposed reform is contained in a comprehensive document titled “Draft Kano State Inclusive Employment Policy 2025,” which was formally presented to the Secretary to the State Government (SSG), Alhaji Faruq Ibrahim Umar, by…

THE Federal Government has disclosed that it has successfully collected over ₦600 billion in Value Added Tax (VAT) from international digital service providers such as Facebook, Amazon, and Netflix, marking a milestone in Nigeria’s expanding tax net. News Point Nigeria reports that the revelation was made by Mr. Mathew Osanekwu, Special Adviser on Tax Policy to the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Tax Reforms, during a media workshop in Abuja on Wednesday. According to Osanekwu, amendments to the VAT Act now empower the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) to mandate non-resident companies offering services in Nigeria to pay VAT.…

THE Federal Government has reaffirmed its commitment to decriminalising attempted suicide in Nigeria, announcing December 2025 as the target date to complete the historic reform. News Point Nigeria reports that the disclosure was made on Wednesday in Abuja by the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, during a press briefing to mark the 2025 World Suicide Prevention Day, themed “Changing the Narrative on Suicide, Creating Hope Through Action.” Globally, September 10 is set aside to raise awareness, promote prevention strategies, and recommit to saving lives from suicide. According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), over 720,000…

THE former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, on Wednesday, submitted himself to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) for questioning. News Point Nigeria reports that Kyari arrived at the anti-graft agency’s headquarters in Abuja at exactly 2:15 p.m., following an invitation to clarify financial and technical issues relating to his tenure as head of the national oil company. Sources within the EFCC confirmed that Kyari’s appearance is connected to the ongoing investigation into the controversial $7.2 billion refineries’ turnaround maintenance project, which has long been a subject of public scrutiny…

THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has officially recognised the leadership of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) under former Senate President, Senator David Bonaventure Mark, bringing months of internal wrangling within the opposition party to an end. In a major update published on its website on Wednesday in Abuja sighted by News Point Nigeria, INEC listed the new National Working Committee (NWC) members of the ADC, confirming the David Mark-led team as the party’s authentic leadership. According to the updated particulars, the new executive structure of the ADC features: Senator David Mark – National Chairman, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola (former Osun…

WITH the 2027 general election drawing closer, the much-heralded coalition of opposition heavyweights under the African Democratic Congress (ADC) is already facing serious questions about its viability after a poor outing in the recent by-elections. The by-elections, conducted across 16 federal and state constituencies in 12 states on August 16 to fill vacant seats, were expected to showcase ADC’s renewed strength after the dramatic entry of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former governors Peter Obi, Nasir El-Rufai, and Rotimi Amaechi. Instead, the coalition’s performance revealed the gulf between elite endorsement and grassroots penetration. Despite public anger from some quarters over…

THE Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has suspended its nationwide strike following a truce brokered by the Federal Government and the Department of State Services (DSS). News Point Nigeria reports that the strike, which was declared on Monday, had threatened to disrupt fuel supply across the country after NUPENG accused the Dangote Group of denying its employees the right to unionize. According to a source, who spoke to News Point Nigeria on condition of anonymity, the decision to suspend the industrial action came after an emergency meeting convened by the DSS on Tuesday in Abuja. The…

BILLIONAIRE businessman Femi Otedola has revealed how the 2008 global financial meltdown wiped out an estimated N220 billion of his fortune, nearly collapsing his oil empire, Zenon Petroleum, and forcing him to surrender prized assets to survive. The dramatic account is contained in his newly released memoir, ‘Making It Big: Lessons From a Life in Business’, published on August 18, 2025. Otedola recalled that the crisis began when crude oil prices, which had peaked at $147 per barrel, plummeted to $34 per barrel in just months. Confident of continued boom, he had already placed a $500 million diesel import order.…

FORMER Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, has revealed that late former President Muhammadu Buhari once threatened to sack him if his push to remove petrol subsidy failed. News Point Nigeria reports that Kachikwu, who also served as Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), made the disclosure on Monday during a virtual business mentorship lecture series organised by the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB). Reflecting on his turbulent tenure between 2016 and 2019, the former minister said one of his biggest challenges was tackling recurring nationwide fuel queues, which had…

EFFORTS by the Federal Government to resolve the labour dispute between the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) and the Dangote Group ended in a stalemate on Monday, raising fears of fresh industrial unrest in the oil and gas sector. News Point Nigeria reports that the meeting, convened by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammad Maigari Dingyadi, alongside the Minister of State, Rt. Hon. Nkeiruka Onyejeocha, was intended to address long-standing disputes over unionisation rights and labour relations at the Dangote Refinery and petrochemical plants. While the Dangote Group reportedly agreed in principle to allow refinery…