Author: Lekan Adeyeye

IT was a gloomy weekend in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, as a multiple-vehicle accident on the Ibadan end of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway claimed at least five lives. News Point Nigeria reports that the accident occurred on Friday night at about 10 p.m. and involved several vehicles, including tankers, trucks and smaller vehicles. Eight people were rescued alive from the scene with varying degrees of injuries. The incident occurred around Satguru Maharaji Ji Village, just before the Ibadan Toll Gate. According to the Oyo State Fire Service Agency, the accident involved six trucks, two Toyota Hilux vans and two cars.…

THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has commenced the upload of polling unit results from the Ekiti State governorship election to its Result Viewing Portal (IReV), after the official close of voting. News Point Nigeria reports that as of 7p.m., the commission had uploaded 846 results out of the 2,445 expected polling unit results, representing 34.60 per cent of the total. The uploads followed the conclusion of voting, sorting and counting of ballots in many polling units across the state. Data available on the IReV portal showed that results from several wards in Irepodun/Ifelodun Local Government Area had already been…

THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has dismissed allegations that uncollected Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) were handed over to the All Progressives Congress (APC) for distribution to non-indigenes ahead of the ongoing Ekiti State governorship election, describing the claims as baseless and misleading. The reaction followed a viral video by Mr. Isaac Fayose, who alleged that the electoral commission released uncollected PVCs to the APC to enable non-indigenes participate in Saturday’s governorship election in the state. News Point Nigeria reports that INEC officials familiar with the election process insisted that the allegation reflects a fundamental misunderstanding of how elections are…

YIAGA Africa has alleged discrepancies between the ballot papers, result sheets, and the list of candidates published by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in the ongoing governorship elections in Ekiti State. In a statement sent to News Point Nigeria and signed by Dr. Aisha Abdullahi, Chair, 2026 Ekiti Election Observation Mission Yiaga Africa, and Samson Itodo, Executive Director, Yiaga Africa, the duo drew attention specifically to the Form EC8A polling unit result sheets, which provided spaces for 15 political parties, as against 19 parties carried by the ballot papers in circulation. Yiaga noted that INEC’s final list of candidates,…

DISTRIBUTION of sensitive materials from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has begun in Ekiti State ahead of the governorship election and a series of senatorial and federal constituency by-elections scheduled for Saturday, 20th June 2026. This is as the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) said the number of registered voters in the state increased from 987,647 in 2023 to 1,059,360 in 2026. A statement sent to News Point Nigeria by Mohammed Haruna, the National Commissioner and Chairman Information and Voter Education Committee, on Wednesday, also noted that the number of Permanent Voter Cards (PVC) collected has risen from 958,052…

PROTESTERS on Friday took to the streets of Lagos in a renewed #EndBadGovernance protest, using the occasion of Democracy Day to demand urgent government action on worsening economic hardship, insecurity, unemployment, and the rising cost of living. The protest, which drew activists, civil society groups, and concerned citizens. It was marked by peaceful processions and the display of placards carrying messages such as “Free All Captives Now,” “End Anti-People Policies Now,” and “For a Living Wage and Mass Creation of Employment.” This protest comes amid the recent coordinated mass abductions that occurred in Oyo and Borno states within hours of…

THE first batch of Nigerians evacuated from South Africa following the recent wave of xenophobic attacks has arrived in Lagos. News Point Nigeria reports that atotal of 268 returnees landed at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport on Thursday aboard an Air Peace flight arranged as part of the Federal Government’s repatriation efforts. The evacuation flight, originally scheduled to depart on Monday, was delayed to Wednesday due to documentation and processing issues before eventually taking off. The latest repatriation exercise follows growing concerns over the safety of Nigerians living in South Africa, where reports of xenophobic violence have prompted many foreign…

THE Ogun State police command has confirmed the death of five persons, including a soldier, during an attack in Magbon Etido, Mowé, Obafemi Owode Local Government Area of the state News Point Nigeria reports that the command’s spokesman, Oluseyi Babaseyi, disclosed this in a statement issued in Abeokuta, the state capital, adding that it was “an isolated criminal attack and not a bandit operation as being speculated in some quarters”. “Regrettably, a soldier on security duty lost his life during the incident, while another sustained injuries and is currently receiving treatment,” the statement read. Babaseyi said, “Attackers abducted four persons…

THE Oyo State Government on Monday demolished a building identified as one of the locations where the sister of former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, and her twin sons were allegedly held captive by kidnappers in Ibadan. News Point Nigeria reports that the demolished structure was reportedly linked to the gang responsible for the abduction of Mrs. Olaide Busayo Adegoke John-Paul and her 12-year-old twin sons, Peter and Paul. The action followed investigations conducted after the victims were rescued, with authorities identifying the building as one of the hideouts allegedly used by the kidnappers during the period of captivity. Mrs.…

THE Oyo State Police Command has arrested four suspected members of the gang linked to the abduction of Mrs. Adegoke Olaide John-Paul and her 11-year-old twin sons, Peter and Paul, uncovering what investigators described as an elaborate kidnapping operation that involved seven weeks of surveillance, profiling and attempts to infiltrate the family’s household. News Point Nigeria reports that the victims, including John-Paul, who is the younger sister of former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, were rescued unharmed on Saturday after spending three days in captivity. They were abducted on June 3 at about 7am in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital,…

GUNMEN have kidnapped a nine-year-old boy following a violent attack on residents of Ugbosi Quarters in Idogun Ido-Ani, Ose Local Government Area of Ondo State. The attack, which occurred in the early hours of Friday, threw the community into panic as armed assailants reportedly invaded the area and fired sporadically, forcing residents to flee for safety. Confirming the incident, the Public Relations Officer of the Ondo State Police Command, Jimoh Kazeem, said the attack took place at about 1:30 a.m. According to a statement sent to News Point Nigeria by the police spokesperson, the armed men stormed the community and…

THE Vice Chairman of Ilejemeje Local Government Area of Ekiti State, Grace Ogunleye, has landed in legal trouble after she was remanded at the Ado-Ekiti Correctional Centre over allegations of conspiracy and self-kidnapping. News Point Nigeria reports that Ogunleye was arraigned before a Chief Magistrate’s Court in Ado-Ekiti, the Ekiti State capital, alongside three other defendants on Wednesday following police investigations into the alleged incident. The court ordered that the council vice chairman and her co-defendants be remanded in custody pending further proceedings in the matter. The development marks a dramatic twist in a case that initially generated widespread concern…

GOVERNOR Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State has said governors across the South-West geopolitical zone are intensifying collaboration to strengthen security and protect lives and property amid the growing wave of crime and insecurity in parts of the country. News Point Nigeria reports that the governor made the disclosure while reacting to recent security challenges in the region and the conviction of four persons over the 2022 terrorist attack on St. Francis Catholic Church in Owo, Ondo State. Speaking on Tuesday during an appearance on Politics Today, a programme on Channels Television, Aiyedatiwa said South-West governors have continued to engage one…

THE Oyo State Police Command on Wednesday said it had commenced an investigation into an invasion of the Nigeria Immigration Service office in Ogbomoso on Tuesday night, during which firearms belonging to officers on duty were allegedly carted away. Investigation by News Point Nigeria revealed that the incident occurred around 10:00 pm at the Immigration office located along the Ogbomoso–Ilorin Expressway, near an NNPC filling station. A source said, “The assailants stormed the facility while commercial activities were still ongoing at the nearby Ayanyan Cattle Market. “During the attack, officers on duty were reportedly overpowered and dispossessed of their firearms.…

SUSPECTED gunmen have abducted the sister of a former Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital. The family of the former minister and chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC) confirmed the incident, disclosing that Mrs. Olaide John-Paul and her 12-year-old twin sons were kidnapped on Wednesday, June 3, 2026. According to a statement sent to News Point Nigeria by Adelabu’s media aide, Femi Awogboro, the abduction occurred at about 7:30 a.m. while Mrs. John-Paul was taking her children to school. Mrs. John-Paul, the youngest of five children of Mrs. Olufunmilayo Aduke Adegoke Adelabu, was said…

THE Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) has directed all public primary and secondary school teachers in Oyo State to withdraw their services from schools beginning Monday, June 1, 2026, until further notice. According to the directive, issued by the national leadership of the union, the strike is in protest against the continued captivity of abducted teachers and pupils, whose rescue and safe release, according to the Union, “remain uncertain”. It argued that the prolonged detention of the victims has created fear and anxiety among teachers, discouraged parents from sending their children to school, and heightened tension across communities in the…

THE National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu; the Inspector-General of Police, Olatunji Disu; the Minister of Defence, Christopher Musa; and the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, on Saturday visited Ogbomoso, Oyo State, to meet with community leaders and families of teachers, students and pupils abducted from schools in the area. News Point Nigeria reports that the visit followed the abduction of teachers and pupils from Community Grammar School, Baptist Nursery and Primary School, and L.A. Primary School in Oriire Local Government Area on May 15, 2026. During the visit, the Federal Government delegation met with community leaders and…

OYO state governor, Seyi Makinde has declared Bimbo Adekanmbi, the governorship candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement, as his preferred successor ahead of the 2027 governorship election in Oyo State. News Point Nigeria reports that the declaration appears to have ended weeks of speculation surrounding Makinde’s alleged endorsement of Adekanmbi. Rumours about the governor’s support for the APM candidate intensified on May 14 after Makinde announced his intention to contest the 2027 presidential election. At a joint mega rally organised by the Peoples Democratic Party and the APM in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital, Makinde and Adekanmbi were seen sitting…

THE Ogun State Police Command has reportedly arrested a man for allegedly staging and circulating a fake bandit attack video on social media in a bid to gain online followers and traction. According to a source who spoke to News Point Nigeria, the incident was reported on May 23 after one Ayinla Sodiq from Obasanjo Ota visited a police station alongside the suspect, identified as Qowiy Oloyede of Oriya, Sokoto Road, Atan Ota. The complainant was said to have accused the suspect of creating and sharing a misleading TikTok video in which he falsely claimed that bandits had invaded the…

SUSPECTED terrorists who abducted schoolchildren and teachers from three schools in Esinele, Yamota and Alawusa towns in Oriire Local Government Area of Oyo State have reportedly opened communication channels with the state government, raising cautious hope amid growing fears over the safety of the victims. Two highly credible sources told News Point Nigeria that the hoodlums declined to negotiate directly with the families of the abducted victims, insisting instead on speaking only with the government. According to one of the sources, the kidnappers specifically demanded communication with Governor Seyi Makinde and no other individuals. “They said they only want to…