Author: New Daily Prime

The Federal Government has announced the discontinuation of the Bilateral Education Agreement (BEA) programme, citing its high cost and limited benefit as justification.  The move follows growing criticism from former beneficiaries who accused the government of neglect and delay in fulfilling financial obligations. Speaking on Tuesday, April 29, during a courtesy visit by the newly elected leadership of the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), Minister of Education, Maruf Tunji Alausa, declared that the BEA scheme would not continue beyond 2025.  He described the initiative as a “waste of public funds,” vowing instead to redirect resources toward domestic scholarship programmes…

Wife of the President, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, on Tuesday called on traditional rulers and stakeholders across the South-West to actively support efforts to curb preventable deaths caused by cervical cancer, tuberculosis, and other life-threatening diseases. Speaking at an enlarged stakeholders’ meeting held in Ibadan, Oyo State capital, Mrs Tinubu emphasised the importance of collaboration in combating diseases that continue to claim thousands of Nigerian lives annually. The meeting was attended by traditional rulers, senior government officials, industrial leaders, and civil society representatives from across the region. She stressed that these health challenges are preventable, adding that all stakeholders must unite…

The All Progressives Congress Youth and Students Council (KASASCO) has categorically rejected any plans to facilitate the return of Senator Rabi’u Musa Kwankwaso to the party, branding him politically irrelevant and a potential threat to the unity and progress of the APC. Addressing journalists at a press conference held at the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) Press Centre in Kano on Tuesday, April 29, the youth group made clear that the APC in Kano has no interest in welcoming Kwankwaso back, stating his influence has significantly diminished and that his return would add “no value, either directly or indirectly.” KASASCO…

Former Governor of Delta State, Ifeanyi Okowa, has alleged that former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is preparing to leave the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections. Okowa, who served as Atiku’s running mate during the 2023 presidential election under the PDP banner, recently defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). Speaking during an interview on Arise News on Tuesday, April 29, Okowa revealed that he had informed Atiku of his intention to leave the PDP.  “I actually did communicate with him that we were going to have stakeholders’ meetings this week [last week] and that…

The South-South zonal chapter of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has given controversial social media influencer Martins Vincent Otse, also known as VeryDarkMan (VDM), one week to apologise to the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, following disparaging comments made in his recent video. The APC issued this demand in a statement by the Zonal Organising Secretary, Blessing Agbomhere, which was released on Sunday, April 27.  The statement followed a viral three-minute video in which VDM criticised Akpabio for representing Nigeria at the funeral of Pope Francis in the Vatican on 20 April 2025. In the video, VDM called…

Senator Ned Nwoko, representing Delta North, has called on Governor Sheriff Oborevwori to leave behind what he described as the “old habits” of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), following the governor’s recent defection to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). In a statement issued after Oborevwori’s move, Senator Nwoko welcomed the decision but emphasised that genuine transformation must accompany the shift in political allegiance.  He urged the governor to abandon the political practices that, according to him, contributed to the PDP’s decline in Delta State. “Leave behind the politics of survival and step into the politics of legacy. No one…

Governor Nasir Idris of Kebbi State has categorically denied rumours suggesting he is planning to defect from the All Progressives Congress (APC), reaffirming his unwavering loyalty to the ruling party. In a statement released on Sunday by his Chief Press Secretary, Ahmed Idris, the governor described the speculation as “ridiculously malicious” and attributed it to “uninteresting political comedians” intent on causing political instability. Reacting to reports linking him with a proposed coalition allegedly spearheaded by former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Governor Idris stated: “I am made in APC, by APC, and for APC.” “For the avoidance of doubt, I am…

Four additional Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) have joined the legal defence team of Nnamdi Kanu, leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), ahead of the resumption of his trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja. The trial is scheduled to resume before Justice James Omotosho on Monday, 29 April. The newly appointed legal practitioners include Prof Onyechi Ikpeazu (SAN), Emeka Etiaba (SAN), Mela Audu Nunghe (SAN), and Dr Joseph Akubo (SAN). Their inclusion was disclosed by Kanu’s Special Counsel, Aloy Ejimakor, in a formal notice to the court, as well as to Kanu’s family and supporters. “UPDATE:…

Dr ‘Niyi Sunmonu is an Associate Professor of Atmospheric Physics in the Department of Physics & Engineering Physics of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Nigeria and he is the National President of the Congress of University Academics, CONUA.  In this exclusive interview with The New Daily Prime, he speaks on several issues, including how the congress was registered as an academic staff union in the Nigerian university system. Excerpts. Can you tell us about the registration of CONUA? Sunmonu: It was a very tortuous task. CONUA started the registration process in May 2018 after more than 700 academics were expelled…

The National Association of Nigerian Students, NANS, has strongly condemned the scheduling of the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, which has placed students in precarious situations by assigning examination times as early as 6.30 a.m. Given the prevailing security challenges in the country, the student body said the decision is both inconsiderate and dangerous. The body spoke through the National President, Comrade Olushola Oladoja and the National Public Relations Officer, Comrade Samson Ajasa Adeyemi in a statement they endorsed on Sunday. READ ALSO: JAMB announces no extension for 2025 UTME registration deadline “It…