Author: Gbenga Olaleye

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, has expressed strong confidence that he will emerge victorious in the August 8, 2026 governorship election, citing popular support and his administration’s record as the foundation of his optimism. However, his main challenger, Bola Oyebamiji of the All Progressives Congress (APC), has also appealed to voters, promising a people-centred government that will ensure the effective functioning of all sectors if elected. Both leaders made their positions known in separate New Year messages obtained in Osogbo, the state capital, on Thursday. The election is expected to be keenly contested, with Osun voters set to choose a…

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has declared that Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, will not be re-elected in the 2027 governorship election, insisting that control of state finances and a reported N600 billion war chest would not guarantee political victory. Wike made the statement on Wednesday during a ‘thank-you’ visit to the people of Tai Local Government Area of Rivers State. In a pointed attack on his estranged political protégé, the former governor accused Fubara of reneging on agreements reached during a peace and reconciliation meeting convened by President Bola Tinubu in June, describing the governor’s…

The General Overseer of the Mountain of Fire and Miracles Ministries (MFM), Dr Daniel Olukoya, has cautioned that 2026 will be a fast-paced, unusual and spiritually demanding year, urging nations, churches, families and individuals to embrace righteousness, discipline and intensive prayer to avoid confusion and calamity. Olukoya gave the warning on Thursday morning at the church’s Prayer City along the Lagos–Ibadan Expressway during the 2025 crossover service into 2026. The service, which ushered worshippers into the New Year, was themed “My Year of Great Deliverance and Fresh Glory.” According to the cleric, the new year will carry over many unresolved…

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has launched a strong criticism of President Bola Tinubu’s administration, accusing it of economic mismanagement, worsening insecurity and what he described as an erosion of democratic governance. In a New Year message released on Thursday, Atiku said 2025 ranked among the most “punishing” years in Nigeria’s recent history. The former vice-president and 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) blamed the hardship experienced by Nigerians on what he termed incompetent leadership and governance lacking empathy under the All Progressives Congress (APC)-led Federal Government. According to Atiku, the country endured what he described as “economic…

The Minister of State for the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mariya Mahmoud, has commended Nigeria’s First Lady, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, for her sustained dedication to maternal and child welfare through the annual First Baby of the Year initiative. Mahmoud described the programme as a compassionate and enduring tradition that reflects the First Lady’s genuine concern for mothers and newborns, while also symbolising hope and renewal at the start of each new year. She made the remarks on Thursday in Abuja while joining the First Lady to officially welcome the first baby of 2026, delivered at the Federal Medical Centre (FMC),…

The Minority Caucus of Nigeria’s House of Representatives has called on President Bola Tinubu to urgently confront the country’s worsening insecurity, rising inflation and persistent corruption, warning that the scale of hardship faced by Nigerians in recent years demands stronger and more deliberate government action. The appeal was made in a New Year message issued on Thursday and signed by the Minority Leader, Mr Kingsley Chinda, alongside three other principal officers of the caucus. The lawmakers expressed deep concern over the socio-economic pressures endured by citizens in 2025 and challenged the Federal Government to take concrete steps in 2026 to…

The President of the Nigerian Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, has directed his legal team to withdraw all ongoing defamation lawsuits filed in his name against several individuals, marking a dramatic turn in a series of high-profile legal battles that dominated much of 2025. Akpabio made the announcement on Thursday during a New Year Mass at Sacred Heart Parish in Uyo, Akwa Ibom State. Addressing the congregation, the Senate President revealed that he had instituted nearly nine defamation suits against individuals he accused of lying, slandering his character and damaging his reputation. According to him, the decision to discontinue the cases…

Executive members of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) in Gargari Ward, Dawakin Tofa Local Government Area of Kano State, have removed and expelled the party’s state chairman, Hashimu Dungurawa, less than two weeks after his re-election. The decision was reached during the ward’s second executive meeting and formalised through a resolution signed by 27 ward executives. The meeting was presided over by the Ward Chairman, Shuaibu Hassan, with the ward secretary, Yahaya Saidu Dungurawa, also in attendance. According to the resolution, Dungurawa was expelled from the party over a series of allegations, including causing division within the NNPP, fuelling…

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is set to arraign former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, SAN, before the Federal High Court in Abuja today, December 30, in connection with alleged financial crimes linked to his time in office. Malami, who served as Nigeria’s Justice Minister for eight years under former president Muhammadu Buhari, is expected to be docked on a 16-count charge bordering primarily on money laundering, alongside other related financial offences. His plea is scheduled to be taken before Justice Emeka Nwite. Security around the Federal High Court has been significantly heightened…

Troops of the 13 Brigade of the Nigerian Army, operating from the Forward Operating Base (FOB) Ikang, have successfully rescued eight civilians abducted along the Ikang–Cameroon waterways. The rescue followed credible intelligence provided by members of the local community, who reported that militants had intercepted a commercial boat and kidnapped six adults and two minors. In a statement posted on Tuesday by the Assistant Director, Army Public Relations, 13 Brigade Nigerian Army, Major Yemi Sokoya, on the Nigerian Army’s X account, the troops were said to have acted swiftly on the information. “Acting swiftly, the troops deployed to pursue the…