Author: Sadiq Muhammad

A YET to be ascertained number of people have been killed while others sustained injuries after a trailer lost control on the popular Muhammadu Buhari bridge in Kano. The ill-fated trailer was said to be heading for the southern part of the country. Commenting on the incidebt, a social media user, Yahya Abubakar Sadiq, wrote, “Right now, at Hotoro NNPC, under the bridge from Mariri to Unguwa Uku, a truck (Tarela) has overturned, carrying both people and goods. At least more than twenty people were involved, some have lost their lives, while others have sustained serious injuries.” According to an…

DANGOTE Peugeot Automobiles Nigeria Limited (DPAN), the official manufacturer and marketer of Peugeot vehicles in Nigeria, has assembled the GT variant of the Peugeot 3008, a globally acclaimed and award-winning SUV. Equipped with a high-performance 1.6-litre turbo engine, the Peugeot 3008 GT expands DPAN’s existing lineup from its state-of-the-art assembly plant in Kaduna. This marks a significant step in Dangote’s commitment to boosting local vehicle production and enhancing Nigeria’s auto industry. Peugeot’s first assembly of the 3008 model in Africa took place in Ghana in 2022. This marked a significant milestone in the brand’s expansion into the continent, specifically the…

JUSTICE Folashade Ogunbanjo of the Federal High Court Abuja has discharged and acquitted a former Director-General of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Ishaq Kawu Modibbo and Pinnacle Communications Limited. They were being prosecuted by the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences (ICPC) of charges bordering on the ₦2.5 billion released to Pinnacle Communications under the Federal Government Digital Switch Over (DSO) project. Delivering judgement on Thursday, Justice Ogunbanjo held that the ICPC was not able to prove the allegations against the defendants. The judge further discharged the defendants on the grounds that the statements and evidence of the witnesses,…

NATIONAL Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, has slammed the Canadian government over its decision to deny visas to Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, and other top military officers. Ribadu, who spoke on Thursday at the maiden annual lecture of the National Association of the Institute for Security Studies in Abuja, described the visa snub as “disrespectful” and declared that Canada “can go to hell.” His reaction came after Gen Musa narrated how he and some senior military officers were denied entry into Canada for an official engagement. The CDS explained that the delegation had been invited to an…

THE Tony Elumelu Foundation (TEF), the leading philanthropy empowering young African entrepreneurs, from all 54 African countries, today, signed a USD$6million strategic partnership agreement with the UAE Office of Development Affairs and Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation (an affiliate of Erth Zayed) to provide business training, mentorship, access to networks, and non-refundable $5,000 seed capital, to an additional 1,000 young African entrepreneurs. The agreement signed, at the World Governments Summit, by TEF Founder, Tony O. Elumelu, and the Director General of the Khalifa Bin Zayed Al Nahyan Foundation, His Excellency Mohamed Haji Al Khoori, evidences both organisations’ shared commitment…

THE House of Representatives Committee on Public Petitions has summoned the Comptroller General of Nigerian Customs Service, Adewale Adeniyi, to appear before it Tuesday next week. According to a statement by the Media Head, Public Petitions Committee of the House of Representatives, Chooks Oko made available to News Point Nigeria, Adeniyi is to answer a petition before the Committee over the refusal of some top officials of the service to leave the service after their due retirement dates. Obasi-Pherson Help Foundation had petitioned the 10th House alleging that some Assistant Comptrollers and Comptrollers were due for retirement but have blatantly…

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…