FRANK Onyekwelu, president of the Nigerian community in South Africa, has disclosed that more than 130 Nigerians have voluntarily registered for repatriation following renewed xenophobic attacks against foreign nationals in the country. News Point Nigeria reports that Onyekwelu made the disclosure during Channels Television’s Morning Brief programme on Thursday. The development comes days after the Federal Government announced plans for the voluntary evacuation of Nigerians willing to return home from South Africa. On Sunday, the Federal Government said it had commenced arrangements for the voluntary repatriation of Nigerians in South Africa following attacks targeting foreign nationals. Nigeria’s Minister of Foreign…
Author: Maimuna Bashir Isa
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FORMER Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, has disclosed that President Bola Tinubu has approved his redeployment as Nigeria’s Ambassador-Designate to South Africa. News Point Nigeria reports that Fani-Kayode made the disclosure in a statement issued on Thursday, explaining that the decision followed his personal request to be reassigned after he was initially nominated for a diplomatic posting to Germany. According to the former minister, he formally communicated his concerns regarding the Germany posting to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and requested consideration for deployment to South Africa instead. He stated that the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, approved the…
NIGERIA has called for a thorough investigation and full autopsy reports following the killing of two Nigerians in South Africa. News Point Nigeria reports that the spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Kimiebi Ebienfa, made this known during a press briefing on the outcome of a meeting between the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Ambassador Dunoma Ahmed, and South Africa’s Acting High Commissioner, Lesoli Machele, held earlier on Monday. Ebienfa said the Nigerian mission in South Africa is closely monitoring the situation after the two Nigerians were killed in violent attacks. He noted that the South African government had…
THE federal government has invited Bobby Moroe, the acting high commissioner of South Africa to Nigeria, for a meeting over the recent xenophobic attacks against Nigerians in the former apartheid country. News Point Nigeria reports that Kimiebi Ebienfa, director of public affairs at the federal ministry of foreign affairs, said the meeting is scheduled for Monday at the ministry’s headquarters in Abuja. “The objective of this engagement is to formally convey the Nigerian Government’s profound concern regarding recent events that have the potential to impact the established cordial relations between Nigeria and South Africa,” Ebienfa said in a statement on…
MORE than 1,000 victims across 19 countries were allegedly defrauded of about $215 million in a sprawling email fraud scheme that has now resulted in several convictions, including those of Nigerian nationals, the United States Attorney’s Office has disclosed. In a statement issued on Thursday, the office said 25 defendants were convicted on April 24 for their involvement in the fraud and money laundering operation, commonly referred to as “business email compromise.” Among the 25 convicted persons were four Nigerian nationals identified as Emmanuel Okereke, also known as Omo Igbo, 42; Olalekan Bashiru, also known as Ola Bash, 36; Jeremiah…
FORMER Adamawa State governorship candidate, Aishatu Binani, on Friday formally joined the Nigeria Democratic Congress, marking her latest political move ahead of the 2027 general elections. News Point Nigeria reports that her defection came barely nine months after she left the ruling All Progressives Congress for the African Democratic Congress. Speaking shortly after receiving her NDC membership card, Binani attributed her decision to what she described as the party’s commitment to structured governance and the influence of her political supporters. “I believe many Nigerians are asking why I decided to join the NDC. The answer is quite simple. After carefully…
THE World Health Organisation (WHO) has identified Nigeria and nine other countries as accounting for the majority of global hepatitis-related deaths in 2024, raising fresh concerns over the burden of the disease and the slow pace of progress toward elimination targets. The WHO disclosed this in its 2026 Global Hepatitis Report released at the World Hepatitis Summit obtained by News Point Nigeria, where it revealed that hepatitis B and C responsible for 95 percent of hepatitis-related deaths claimed about 1.34 million lives globally in 2024, while new infections stood at approximately 1.8 million annually. According to the report, 10 countries,…
A SERVING member of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC), Abdulsamad Jamiu, has died after being caught in the crossfire during a gun battle between soldiers and suspected robbers in Abuja. News Point Nigeria reports that the tragic incident occurred in the early hours of Saturday at Shagari Estate, located in the Dei-Dei area of the Federal Capital Territory, throwing the community into shock. The Nigerian Army confirmed the development in a statement sent to this newspaper on Sunday by the Acting Assistant Director, Army Public Relations, Headquarters Guards Brigade, Olawuyi Odunola. According to Odunola, troops of the Guards Brigade…
FACTIONAL National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Senator Tanimu Turaki, was on Wednesday arraigned before a High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) sitting in Maitama over allegations bordering on false information. News Point Nigeria reports that Turaki was brought before the court on a one-count charge filed against him by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), accusing him, among other things, of providing false information to the police. According to the charge, the PDP chieftain allegedly submitted a petition on his letterhead dated October 5, 2022, addressed to the IGP, in which he accused Saidi Mohammed…
THE Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, Hannatu Musa Musawa, has stirred widespread online debate after appearing at a public event wearing luxury sunglasses. Musawa represented President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the 2026 edition of the Nwonyo Fishing Festival in Taraba State over the weekend. News Point Nigeria had earlier reported that the event, held at Lake Nwonyo in Ibi Local Government Area, attracted tourists and dignitaries from within and outside Nigeria. Reflecting on the festival via her X handle, the minister described it as a celebration of life. “From the thrilling fishing competition to the dazzling displays…
THE political atmosphere ahead of the 2027 general elections continues to gather momentum as the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has dismissed claims that former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, can deliver Rivers State to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in the upcoming polls. News Point Nigeria reports that Wike made the remarks during an interview with journalists, where he reflected on past electoral contests in Rivers State and used historical election outcomes to question Amaechi’s political influence in the state. According to him, despite Amaechi’s previous influence and high-ranking positions within the ruling All Progressives…
THE Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention has placed 10 states on high alert following forecasts of heavy rainfall and possible flooding, warning that the affected regions face an increased risk of disease outbreaks, particularly cholera. In a statement sent to News Point Nigeria on Wednesday, the agency’s Director-General, Jide Idris, said projections from the Federal Ministry of Environment and the Nigerian Meteorological Agency indicate that parts of Adamawa State, Enugu State, Kaduna State, Kogi State, Niger State, Osun State, Oyo State, Plateau State, Taraba State, and Kwara State are expected to experience intense rainfall between April 13 and…
THE Nigerian Institute of Public Relations (NIPR) has announced Her Excellency, Ambassador Dr. Brylyne Chitsunge, Pan-African Parliament Ambassador for Food Security and Chief Executive Officer of Elpasso Farms, South Africa, as the Keynote Speaker for the Nigeria Public Relations Week (NPRW) Croc City 2026. News Point Nigeria reports that scheduled to hold in Kaduna from 19th – 25th April, 2026, the conference will convene leading voices from across Africa and the global community under the theme: “Food Security: From Policy Paper to Public Plate – The Imperatives of Public Relations.” Ambassador Chitsunge is widely recognised as one of Africa’s foremost…
FORMER Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, has denied allegations of bribery, telling a United Kingdom court that she neither solicited nor received illicit payments, insisting that expenses incurred during her time in office were official and reimbursed by the Nigerian government. News Point Nigeria reports that testifying on Monday at Southwark Crown Court in London, Alison-Madueke maintained that payments made on her behalf in the United Kingdom were tied strictly to her official responsibilities and not for personal benefit. “I can state categorically that at no point did I ask for, take or receive a bribe of any sort…
THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has dismissed as false and malicious claims circulating on social media alleging that its Chairman, Joash Amupitan, operates an account on X (formerly Twitter) and had endorsed a partisan post. In a statement sent to News Point Nigeria by by Adedayo Oketola, the Chief Press Secretary/Media Adviser to the INEC Chairman, the Commission described the allegation as a coordinated campaign of calumny aimed at misleading the public and damaging the credibility of its leadership. INEC stated categorically that the claim is entirely baseless and a complete fabrication, stressing that the Chairman does not own…
THE Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy has inaugurated four drafting committees—Policy & Strategy; Programmes & Implementation; Stakeholder Engagement; and Monitoring & Evaluation—to design policy and financing frameworks for Nigeria’s arts, culture, tourism and creative economy. According to a statement sent to News Point Nigeria on Monday by her Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Dr. Nneka Ikem Anibeze, at Tuesday’s inauguration in Abuja, Musawa said the creative sector commands global attention yet accounts for only about 2.3% of national output, constrained by fragmented governance, weakly enforced intellectual-property rules, and scarce financing. Under President Tinubu’s Renewed Hope agenda,…
THE National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has warned prospective corps members against night travels even as it announced the timetable for the 2026 Batch ‘A’ Stream II orientation exercise for them, scheduled to hold nationwide. This was disclosed in a statement sent to News Point Nigeria on Wednesday in Abuja by the scheme’s Director of Information and Public Relations, Caroline Embu, who outlined key dates and guidelines. According to the statement, the three-week orientation programme will be conducted simultaneously across the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) for all eligible participants. The NYSC said registration…
NIGERIA has been ranked as the highest food-wasting nation in Africa, with an estimated 38 million tonnes of food lost annually, according to the European Union. News Point Nigeria reports that the alarming figure was disclosed during the commemoration of the International Zero Waste Day in Abuja, where stakeholders called for urgent and coordinated action to address food waste and promote sustainable consumption and production. The event, themed “Food Waste Reduction – Minimisation and Valorisation,” brought together representatives of the Federal Government, the United Nations Industrial Development Organization, and development partners to highlight the scale of the crisis and propose…
CHANNELS Television anchor, Seun Okinbaloye, has said he is not afraid and will not be intimidated following controversy surrounding remarks by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, while also thanking Nigerians and organisations for their support. News Point Nigeria reports that Okinbaloye made this known during a broadcast on Sunday, where he acknowledged the outpouring of solidarity from civil society groups, viewers, and both local and international organisations. “I sincerely want to thank civil society organisations, our viewers, for your love and your comments and your solidarity… Your support is deeply appreciated and reinforces our collective commitment…
NO fewer than six persons were injured following the collapse of a three-storey building under construction in Jikwoyi within the Abuja Municipal Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory. According to the Federal Capital Territory Emergency Management Department (FEMD), 17 workers were on the upper floor of the structure when the building caved in. Nine persons reportedly came out unhurt. The head of the Department of Public Affairs of the FEMD, Nkechi Isa, explained in a statement that rescue operations were done with immediate effect to ensure that no one was left trapped in the rubble. “The FEMD search and…