Author: Sadiq Abdullateef

ON the morning of February 13, 1976, gunfire shattered the calm of Lagos and altered the course of Nigeria’s history. In traffic near the Federal Secretariat in Ikoyi, Nigeria’s Head of State, Murtala Ramat Muhammad, sat in his car like every other commuter. He did not travel with a long convoy. He did not clear the roads with sirens. Within minutes, he was dead, 37 years old and barely 200 days in office. Half a century later, as Nigeria reflects on that fateful Friday, the story of the young general who ruled in a hurry remains one of the most…

A FEDERAL High Court in Abuja has granted an application seeking to investigate the academic qualification of the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo. News Point Nigeria reports that Justice Binta Nyako on Friday approved the application filed by an activist, Emorioloye Owolemi, to inquire into the authenticity of the Secondary School Certificate allegedly obtained by the minister from the West African Examinations Council (WAEC). The application was brought through Owolemi’s counsel, Philemon Yakubu, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), via a motion ex-parte pursuant to Order 34 of the Federal High Court (Civil Procedure) Rules 2019 and Sections 1, 20…

THE Federal Government’s ambitious plan to provide stable electricity to federal universities and tertiary hospitals across Nigeria has suffered a major setback following the non-release of funds allocated in the 2025 Appropriation Act. Although about N300 billion was earmarked in the 2025 budget for a special energy intervention programme, findings reveal that no funds have been released, resulting in zero implementation of the project announced last year. Confirming the development, the Special Adviser on Media to the Minister of Power, Bolaji Tunji, disclosed that the initiative has stalled due to the absence of budgetary releases. “Zero funding has been released…

PRESIDENT Bola Ahmed Tinubu has nominated Ambassador Ismail Abba Yusuf as the new Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), subject to confirmation by the Senate. News Point Nigeria reports that the nomination, which is in line with Section 3(2) of the NAHCON Act, 2026, was formally conveyed to the Senate on Tuesday through a letter addressed to Senate President Godswill Akpabio. In the correspondence, President Tinubu requested the expeditious screening and confirmation of Ambassador Yusuf to enable him assume leadership of the commission without delay. The development follows the resignation of the immediate…

THE alleged ₦8.7 billion money laundering and assets forfeiture cases involving former Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami (SAN), have been reassigned to Justice Obiora Egwuatu of the Federal High Court, Abuja Division. The cases, instituted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), were previously handled by Justice Emeka Nwite, who sat as a vacation judge during the court’s annual recess. News Point Nigeria gathered that following the end of the court’s vacation, both matters were returned to the Chief Judge of the Federal High Court in line with standard judicial practice and subsequently…

PRESIDENT Bola Ahmed Tinubu is set to embark on a landmark two-day state visit to the United Kingdom beginning March 18, Buckingham Palace has confirmed, marking the first such visit by a Nigerian leader in 37 years. News Point Nigeria reports that the visit, which comes at the invitation of King Charles III, is being widely described as a significant diplomatic milestone in Nigeria–UK relations and a major exercise in soft-power diplomacy. In a statement released late on Saturday, the Royal Household announced that President Tinubu will be accompanied by his wife, the First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu. According to…

A UNITED States Congressman, Rep. Riley Moore, has dismissed claims that there are ongoing serious discussions about the possible division of Nigeria, saying such an idea has not featured prominently in his engagements since he began raising concerns about the persecution of Christians in the country. News Point Nigeria reports that Moore, who represents West Virginia’s 2nd Congressional District, made this known after a recent visit to Nigeria, where he held several high-level meetings with government officials, church leaders, humanitarian organisations, and internally displaced persons (IDPs) affected by insecurity. In a statement shared on his official X (formerly Twitter) account…

BY any measure, the unfolding legal battle involving a former Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, has reopened an old but unresolved national conversation: where exactly does appreciation end and corruption begin for those entrusted with public power? As News Point Nigeria observes, the case is no longer only about properties, court filings, or technical objections; it has evolved into a wider test of Nigeria’s laws on gifts, privilege, and the ethical limits of public office. At the centre of the controversy is Malami’s decision to formally challenge the interim forfeiture of several properties seized by the Economic and Financial…

THE Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), Bayo Ojulari, has revealed that Nigeria’s state-owned refineries were operating at what he described as a “monumental loss” to the country, forcing his management team to halt operations to prevent further erosion of national value. News Point Nigeria reports that Ojulari made the disclosure on Wednesday in Abuja during a fireside chat titled “Securing Nigeria’s Energy Future” at the Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES) 2026, offering one of the most candid explanations yet of the commercial realities behind NNPC’s controversial refinery shutdowns. According to the NNPC…

WITNESSES appearing before the United States Congress have again warned that Nigeria risks descending into widespread Christian–Muslim violence, identifying the country as one of the most dangerous flashpoints in a rapidly worsening global crisis of religious freedom. News Point Nigeria reports that warning is contained in written testimonies released ahead of a joint hearing of the House Foreign Affairs Committee scheduled for Wednesday (today), where some Nigerians and groups mentioned in the report, whose identities News Point Nigeria has withheld for safety and security reasons, cited recurring killings, mass displacement and persistent insecurity as indicators of a broader religious conflict…

FORMER Chief of Staff to ex-President Muhammadu Buhari, Professor Ibrahim Gambari, has revealed that one of the deepest regrets of the late Nigerian leader was his inability to fully resolve the country’s security challenges before leaving office in 2023. Gambari made the disclosure on Monday during an appearance on Politics Today, a current affairs programme on Channels Television monitored by News Point Nigeria, where he reflected on Buhari’s leadership, personal struggles in office, and the broader realities of governance in Nigeria. According to Gambari, although Buhari achieved notable successes against Boko Haram insurgents, the persistence of insecurity in other parts…

THE Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Police Command has urged the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) to reschedule their planned protest in Abuja, warning that it cannot guarantee the safety of participants due to prevailing security concerns. The protest, billed for Tuesday, February 3, 2026, was announced by the two labour unions on Sunday as a peaceful solidarity rally in support of workers of the FCT Administration currently on strike over welfare-related issues. In a joint statement issued by NLC spokesperson Benson Upah and TUC Secretary-General N. A. Toro, and sent to News Point Nigeria, the…

MINISTER of Defence, General Christopher Musa (rtd.), has revealed that he was among the high-profile targets of a foiled coup plot against President Bola Tinubu’s administration, disclosing that the plotters planned to arrest him and shoot him dead if he resisted. General Musa made the revelation during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics monitored by News Point Nigeria, just days after the military confirmed that some of the 16 officers arrested in October 2025 would be tried for allegedly plotting to overthrow the Federal Government. The Defence Minister, who is also the immediate past Chief of Defence Staff (CDS),…

FOR months now, Nigeria’s opposition politics has been gripped by quiet negotiations, whispered assurances and deep suspicion. At the centre of this delicate chessboard is Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, former Kano State governor, national leader of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), and one of the most influential political mobilisers in Northern Nigeria. As News Point Nigeria gathered from multiple highly placed sources, Kwankwaso’s anticipated defection to the African Democratic Congress (ADC) has been deliberately stalled, not because of uncertainty about the party itself, but due to a far more consequential question: who gets the 2027 presidential ticket? According to…

THE Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Policy and Coordination, Mrs. Hadiza Bala Usman, has been thrown into mourning following the death of her younger brother, Hussaini Bala Usman. News Pont Nigeria reports that Hussaini passed away on Saturday afternoon after a brief illness, family sources confirmed. According to a family source, the deceased will be laid to rest on Sunday in Abuja in accordance with Islamic rites. His funeral prayer (janazah) is scheduled to take place at the National Assembly Juma’at Mosque, Zone 5, Apo Legislative Quarters, Abuja, by 1:00 pm. The death has drawn sympathy from colleagues,…

THIRTY years after the tragic plane crash that claimed the life of Ibrahim Sani Abacha, eldest son of Nigeria’s former military Head of State, General Sani Abacha, the incident remains one of the most haunting and controversial tragedies in Nigeria’s modern history. As Nigeria marks three decades since the disaster, News Point Nigeria, revisits the events of January 1996, a moment that froze the nation in shock, ignited rumours of sabotage, and left behind unanswered questions that still linger in the country’s political memory. On Thursday, January 18, 1996, newspapers across Nigeria carried the same grim headline: Ibrahim Abacha is…

SECURITY operatives have arrested Nollywood filmmaker and actor, Stanley Amandi, over his alleged involvement in a plot to overthrow President Bola Tinubu’s administration, deepening revelations surrounding a foiled coup allegedly involving both military officers and civilians. News Point Nigeria gathered that Amandi, a former Chairman of the Actors Guild of Nigeria (AGN), Enugu State chapter, was taken into custody in September 2025, although the arrest only became public months later as authorities expanded their probe into the alleged conspiracy. According to sources familiar with the investigation, the actor was allegedly engaged as a propagandist by elements behind the plot, with…

A FRESH wave of religious and political tension has erupted following a declaration by the Supreme Council for Shari’ah in Nigeria (SCSN) that it will not recognise any election conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) under the leadership of its chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, a move that has drawn sharp reactions from Christian groups and divided public opinion. News Point Nigeria reports that the Shari’ah Council made the declaration on Wednesday during its annual pre-Ramadan lecture and general assembly held in Abuja, where it openly called for the immediate removal of Prof. Amupitan, citing what it described as…

THE Presidency has criticised former Vice President Atiku Abubakar over his recent claim that Nigeria under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is worse than the era of military rule, describing the comment as historically distorted, reckless, and deeply contradictory. News Point Nigeria reports that Atiku made the remark while speaking at a political event organised by the African Democratic Congress (ADC), where he alleged that the current administration represents a form of governance more oppressive than Nigeria’s past military regimes. Reacting to the statement, the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Public Communication, Sunday Dare, dismissed Atiku’s assertion as untenable and…

THE Nigerian military has officially confirmed that some of its officers were involved in a plot to overthrow President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, marking the first formal admission by the Armed Forces following months of speculation and denials. The confirmation came after the completion of an internal investigation into allegations that surfaced in October last year, when reports emerged that several serving officers ranging in rank from Captain to Brigadier-General had been arrested and detained by the Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA) over an alleged coup plot against the civilian government. On Monday, News Point Nigeria reported that the panel constituted to investigate…