Author: Sadiq Muhammad

THE recent withdrawal of Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) has raised significant security concerns for Nigeria, with experts warning of potential threats from insurgent groups. Mike Ejiofor, former director-general, Department of State Services (DSS), said their exit could raise issues of cross-border terrorism, refugees, and weakened regional cooperation. According to him, the political and security situations in these countries directly impact Nigeria’s stability, noting that the loss of ECOWAS unity means that Nigeria may have to take more significant unilateral action to safeguard its borders and national interests. In an interview,…

MINISTER of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris yesterday highlighted some of the key achievements of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Administration. Speaking at a news conference to herald a flurry of ministerial briefings to highlight the scorecards ahead of the second anniversary of the government, he explained that a huge impact had been made in the student loan scheme initiated by the Administration. According to him, no fewer than 169,000 students got N32.8 billion in tuition and upkeep allowances under the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND). The student loan is a major campaign promise of the President. The minister said…

THE Senate Public Accounts Committee has raised serious concerns over multiple issues related to the Nigeria Police Force, including financial irregularities and missing firearms. During a review of the Auditor-General’s report, lawmakers were informed of eight infractions recorded against the police including contract irregularities totalling ₦1.136 billion, as well as the disappearance of over 3,900 firearms, including AK-47 rifles, which are feared to be at large in the hands of criminal elements. The Assistant Inspector General of Police (Budget), Abdul Suleiman, assured lawmakers that the police had responded to the audit queries appropriately. However, tensions arose when some lawmakers disagreed…

A RECENT report by the Salama Sexual Assault Referral Centre (SARC) has revealed that every 10 minutes, a woman is either sexually violated or killed in Nigeria. The study followed findings by the centre indicating that between 2019 and 2025, about 4,426 women, girls and children across eight council areas of Kaduna State had experienced one form of gender-based violence (GBV) or the other. SARC Centre’s Manager for Kafanchan Zone, Grace Abim, gave the figure at a capacity-building session for the group, organised by Global Rights Nigeria, in Abuja. She said in 2019, they recorded two GBV cases, however with…

FEDERAL civil servants have been given a Monday, February 17, 2025, deadline for identity verification as the government moves to weed out ghost workers. This was contained in a memo by the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation and sighted by this newspaper on Sunday. Civil servants are expected to verify their identities on the portal of the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System amid the planned stoppage of salaries and other sanctions for ghost workers. This newspaper gathered that civil servants had been in haste to generate their Taxpayers Identification Number to meet the deadline. Part of the…

NASARAWA State Governor, Abdullahi Sule, has disclosed how government officials sold appointment letters to about 2,277 poor applicants before recruiting them as teachers. He threatened to hand over to security agencies suspended officials of the Nasarawa State Teachers’ Service Commission (NSTSC) over alleged extortion of money from applicants for employment. Governor Sule handed down the threat after he was presented with the report by the committee set up to investigate irregularities in the recent recruitment of teachers by the Nasarawa State Teachers Service Commission, at the Government House. Alarmed by the enormity of the irregularities, Governor Sule said he is…

TWO prominent politicians, Rauf Aregbesola and Rabiu Kwankwaso, could form alliances and work together against the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the 2027 general election. This is as the two politicians meet today in Lagos to discuss the modalities of such merger. Sources at the meeting told this newspaper that Kwankwaso, the national leader of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) was in Lagos on Saturday, where the the two leaders had a meeting that lasted for more than two hours. Although details was was not released to the media, but the sources said it was in preparation…

THE Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, has revealed that 774 alleged electoral offenders from the 2023 general elections are currently facing prosecution across the country. Speaking at the first quarterly meeting with media executives on Friday, Yakubu said the prosecutions are being conducted in collaboration with the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA). However, he expressed concerns over delays in the process due to the absence of an electoral offenses tribunal and a defined time frame for such cases. He noted that regular courts, burdened with multiple responsibilities, often do not give electoral offenses the urgent…

THE federal government has officially adopted ‘Destination 2030; Nigeria Everywhere’ as Nigeria’s Global Soft Power and Tourism brand, marking a significant milestone in the country’s journey to become a prominent global hub for Art, Culture, Tourism, and Creative Economy. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu approved the adoption on Tuesday in Abuja during the Federal Executive Council meeting. Since its inception in 2023, the soft power initiative has yielded remarkable progress in showcasing Nigeria’s creative industries globally, expanding the country’s cultural influence, improving its global soft power ranking by 14 places, and positioning it as a lucrative destination for investment in the…

THE Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, says it recovered over N20 billion in pension deductions from the salaries of ghost workers in 2024. The Chairman of ICPC, Dr Musa Aliyu, said this on Wednesday in Abuja at a breakfast meeting with some members of the Nigerian Guild of Editors. Aliyu said that the commission also arrested some people who specialised in inserting names of their cronies into the Federal Government payroll. According to him, while deductions for workers’ pension are remitted to Pension Fund Administrators, the same cannot be said for ghost workers’ pension. “Any deduction…

OPERATIVES of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), yesterday, raided the headquarters of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) in Abuja over alleged fraud. The EFCC operatives, who arrived at the commission in a white bus, at about 11am with a valid warrant of arrest, left the premises with the spokesperson of the commission, Fatimah Usara, and three other yet-to-be-identified senior staff members of the commission. Sources close to this newspaper revealed that the arrest was not unconnected with an ongoing investigation concerning misappropriation of funds. Also, operatives of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission…

INSPECTOR-GENERAL Of Police (IGP) Kayode Egbetokun, Central Bank Governor (CBN) Yemi Cardoso and Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, (NNPCL) Group Chief Executive Officer (GCEO) Mele Kyari risk being arrested, this newspaper gathered. Others are the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) Chairman/Chief Executive Officer Zacch Adedeji and the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Mr. Adewale Adeniyi among other CEOs. The Senate, through its Public Accounts Committee (SPAC), vowed to issue warrant of arrests against them for failing to appear before the Red Chamber panel. The CEOs were summoned to defend queries against them in several audit reports by the…

THE National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, has demanded public apology and retraction from leader of Northern Star, Hajiya Naja’atu Muhammad, over a Tik Tok video which he alleged is malicious. In the Tiktok video, Hajia Muhammad accused the NSA of serving in President Bola Tinubu’s government, whom he castigated when he was the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). In a letter through his lawyer, Dr Ahmed Raji, SAN, the NSA said publicly or privately, he has never maintained such viewpoint. He said the damage that had been done as a result of the Tiktok…

A PROSECUTION witness in the trial of former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Godwin Emefiele has said the award of contracts for the purchase of vehicles for which Emefiele is facing tried, followed due process. The prosecution witness, Salawu Gana, is a former official of the Procurement Department of the CBN. He was testifying yesterday as the 10th prosecution witness in the case the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) filed against Emefiele. The former CBN governor is facing a 20-count amended charge. He is accused, among others, of engaging in criminal breach of trust, forgery, conspiracy to obtain…

FOUR people have allegedly been killed in Rimin Auzinawa, Ungogo Local Government Area of Kano State, following a violent clash with security operatives over demolition of properties. The victims were reportedly shot dead by security personnel after residents retaliated against the destruction of their buildings. Sources revealed that the demolished structures—mostly residential buildings under construction estimated at 40 – had been previously marked by the Kano Urban Planning and Development Authority (KNUPDA). The land in question reportedly belongs to Bayero University, Kano (BUK). A resident affected by the demolition, who spoke on condition of anonymity, claimed that KNUPDA had earlier…

THE naira appreciated to an eighth-month high of 1474.78/$ at the official foreign exchange (FX) market on Friday as dollar demand eases on a raft of fiscal and monetary policies of the government. The naira traded at 1,485.99/$ on June 3, 2024 at Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM). However, the currency is now stronger eight months after due to a slew of factors, including a rising local petrol refining capacity, higher dollar inflows and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN)’s swift policy actions in the last 17 months. The 650,000-barrels-per-day Dangote Petroleum Refinery began refining petrol in September 2024, providing…

DANGOTE Petroleum Refinery has reduced the ex-depot price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), commonly known as petrol, from N950 to N890, effective from Saturday. In a statement, the company said the price adjustment is in response to favourable developments in the global energy sector and a significant decline in international crude oil prices. “Dangote Refinery’s decision reflects its commitment to aligning with market realities and ensuring that consumers benefit from changes in international crude oil prices.” In the statement issued by the Group Chief Branding and Communications Officer, Anthony Chiejina, the company explained that this latest move follows a similar…

THE Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle, has warned the former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, over his recent comment that Nigerian politicians are in power to steal, kill, and retain power. Amaechi made the remark at a two-day National Conference on Strengthening Democracy in Nigeria held earlier this week, aimed at discussing pathways to good governance and political integrity in Nigeria. The former Governor of Rivers State further said President Bola Tinubu and other members of the political class would not cede power to the younger generation without a fight. According to Amaechi, Nigerian voters are easily swayed…

THE Nigerian Immigration Service has intercepted 21 minors suspected to be victims of human trafficking at Geidam town near the Nigeria-Niger Republic Border in Yobe state. The Comptroller of the Nigeria Immigration Service in the state, Sani Sule-Jega, while handing over the suspected victims to the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), said the children are between the ages of seven to 15 years. According to him, the minors were being transported from Magama local government area in Niger state to the Niger Republic for studies and do not have any travel documents. “These are minors…

TRACKA, the service delivery platform of BudgIT, has revealed that 17 contractors received N2.4 billion for 15 projects across nine states, yet none of the projects have been initiated on the sites monitored. The platform, which allows citizens to track and provide feedback on public projects, highlighted several payments, including: The payment of N401 million to Mainstream Contractors in December 2023 under the Federal Ministry of Works and Housing for the rehabilitation of Welcome-Nasarawa-Farewell from Nasarawa, linking the North and Southern parts of Nigeria in Nasarawa LGA, Nasarawa State. N153 million to Icent Light Ltd between August and November 2023…