Author: Gbenga Olaleye

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Fidelis Oditah, has emphasised the urgent need for the next Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to be a person of unquestionable integrity, independence, and professional competence, not a political loyalist. Speaking on Arise Television’s Prime Time programme on Wednesday, Oditah stated that President Bola Tinubu has a constitutional and moral responsibility to appoint a credible and impartial figure to head the country’s electoral body, especially in light of the controversies surrounding the 2023 general elections. “The INEC chairman needs to be someone who is impartial, independent, competent, accountable, professional and trustworthy.…

Dozens of Nigerian youths under the banner of the National Youth Council of Nigeria (NYCN) staged a protest at the headquarters of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) in Abuja on Thursday, demanding the immediate reversal of the council’s deregistration and the removal of the Registrar-General, Hussaini Ishaq Magaji, SAN. Led by NYCN President, Ambassador Sukubo Sara-Igbe Sukubo, the protest marks the beginning of a 30-day nationwide demonstration aimed at pressuring the CAC to reinstate the council’s corporate status. The deregistration came amid an ongoing legal dispute, prompting accusations from the protesters that the action amounts to contempt of court. Displaying…

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Northern Support Group has officially declared its unwavering support for former President Goodluck Jonathan to emerge as the party’s presidential candidate in the 2027 general elections. The endorsement was made in a communiqué released following the group’s 8th meeting held in Birnin Kebbi, Kebbi State, spanning Wednesday and Thursday. According to the communiqué, jointly signed by the group’s Northern Coordinator, Yusuf Abubakar, and North-West Zonal Secretary, Adamu Narayi, Jonathan remains “the only man capable of redeeming the PDP and restoring Nigeria’s unity.” The coalition, made up of loyalists and support groups from all 19 northern…

The Federal Government has issued a 30-day ultimatum to all tertiary institutions in Nigeria to submit comprehensive reports on unutilised intervention funds received from the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund). This directive was given by the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, during a strategic meeting held with heads of tertiary institutions in Abuja on Thursday. Dr Alausa expressed deep concern over the persistent issue of idle funds that have not been deployed for developmental projects within institutions. According to him, the Ministry of Education has faced ongoing challenges due to financial allocations remaining unused, which has hindered critical infrastructure…

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has requested Senate approval for a new external loan of $2.3 billion to support the implementation of the 2025 national budget. The request was conveyed in a letter addressed to the Senate and read during plenary on Tuesday by Senate President Godswill Akpabio. READ ALSO: Tinubu seeks lawmakers’ approval for fresh $2.2bn loan In the letter, Tinubu said the loan was part of the 2022–2024 borrowing plan earlier approved by the Federal Executive Council. He explained that the loan would be used to finance key infrastructure and development projects in sectors such as power, transportation, health,…

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has issued a stern warning to the Chairman of the Abuja Municipal Area Council (AMAC), Christopher Maikalangu, over the practice of naming roads constructed by the FCT Administration without authorisation. Wike gave the warning on Wednesday during the official flag-off of the construction of Road A09 in the Asokoro district of Abuja. The Minister, visibly displeased, said the naming of roads funded and executed by the FCT Administration without proper coordination was inappropriate and would no longer be tolerated. “We cannot be doing roads, putting infrastructure, and then you wake up…

A compliance officer with the United Bank for Africa (UBA), Abimbola Williams, on Wednesday told the Federal Capital Territory High Court in Maitama that a total of ₦640 million was withdrawn from the Kogi State Government House account within just six days in 2019. Testifying as the third prosecution witness (PW3) in the ongoing corruption trial of former Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello, Williams revealed that the withdrawals were made via 64 separate cheques of ₦10 million each, issued between 31 July and 6 August 2019 by Abdulsalami Hudu, the then Chief Accountant of the Government House. Bello, Hudu, and…

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu has assured Lagos residents that the proposed Lagos Tenancy Bill, currently before the State House of Assembly, is designed to create a fair and transparent rental system, balancing the rights of both landlords and tenants. Speaking during the inauguration of the Sunny Ajose Housing Estate in Ajara, Badagry, on Wednesday, the governor said the bill was developed to address long-standing housing conflicts and promote a more equitable housing landscape in Nigeria’s commercial capital. “Everybody wants to be a landlord. But you must also have tenants who can survive and pay rent,” Sanwo-Olu said. The governor stressed that…

Just hours after vacating office as Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Prof. Mahmood Yakubu has been ordered to be arrested by the Federal High Court in Osogbo, Osun State, over alleged contempt of court. The order, issued on 7 October 2025, by Justice Funmilola Demi-Ajayi, directs the Inspector General of Police, Mr. Kayode Egbetokun, to arrest Yakubu and initiate contempt and committal proceedings within seven days of the ruling. The legal action was instituted by the Action Alliance (AA) over INEC’s alleged failure to fully comply with a court judgment delivered earlier this year in suit number…

Local government officials across Oyo State have called on Governor Seyi Makinde to join the 2027 presidential race, citing his transformational leadership and governance record as key reasons Nigeria needs his kind of leadership at the national level. The appeal was made on Tuesday during a solidarity rally held at the Oyo State Government Secretariat in Agodi, Ibadan. The rally was attended by hundreds of political appointees, including secretaries to local governments, chiefs of staff to council chairmen, supervisory councillors, and special assistants from all 33 local government areas of the state. The event was officially acknowledged in a statement…