State Leaps from ₦27.5bn to ₦62.6bn, Fastest-Growing in Northern Nigeria By Ahmed Rufa’i, Dutse Jigawa State Governor, Malam Umar Namadi, has been honoured with the 2025 Excellence Award on Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) after steering the state’s local revenue from ₦27.5 billion in 2023 to an unprecedented ₦62.6 billion in 2024 — a leap of more than 200% in just two years. According to official reports, Jigawa posted the fastest IGR growth rate among the 19 Northern states and the FCT last year, outpacing states like Katsina, Niger, Bauchi, Kogi, and even Southern peers such as Osun, Ondo, Cross River,…
Author: National Update
By: Ahmed Rufa’i, Dutse The Civil Society and Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) and Christian Aid Nigeria have trained 50 Civil Society Organisations (CSOs), women-led groups, and media practitioners in Jigawa State on budget education and transparency. The two-day capacity-building workshop, conducted through Prime Initiative under the Tax Justice and Governance Platform (TJ&GP), aimed to equip participants with the skills to present public demands and needs in state and local government budgets. Speaking at the event, the Executive Director of Prime Initiative, Comrade Muhammad Abdu Dutse, said the training was designed to help CSOs, women’s groups, and informal sector representatives analyze…
The Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, today hosted the Director-General of the World Trade Organization (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, in Abuja for high-level talks aimed at driving trade-led growth, investment, and inclusive development. Director of Information and Public Relations, Mohammed Manga quoted Edun to have highlighted Nigeria’s recent macroeconomic gains; a stronger naira, easing inflation, and sovereign credit upgrades from Fitch and Moody’s as a platform for sustained expansion. He outlined an ambitious growth strategy anchored on export diversification, private-sector investment, and human capital development to deliver 7% GDP growth. Dr. Okonjo-Iweala…
By Umar Muhammed, Lafia The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Olufemi Oluyede, has announced the relocation of the Nigerian Army’s Special Forces School from Buni Yadi, Yobe State, to the 4 Special Forces Command in Doma, Nasarawa State. Speaking at the foundation-laying ceremony of the new school on Friday, Oluyede said the move was a strategic step to provide an ideal environment for training Special Forces personnel with the skills and competences required for their unique missions. He explained that the relocation would ensure better preparation of troops to safeguard the nation’s territorial integrity in the face of…
***Commission Complies, Publishes Names for 12 States Despite Late Ruling The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has confirmed it will include Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidates in Saturday’s by-elections across 12 states, following a last-minute court order. In Suit No.FHC/ABJ/CS/1525/2025, the Federal High Court in Abuja directed the electoral body to list the SDP and its candidates for the polls. The party had initially been excluded after failing to submit a valid notice for the conduct of primaries — a process INEC said it could not monitor. INEC, while reserving its right to appeal, said it had “manually submitted” the…
***Launches ‘GO MERD’ Drive to Stop 2027 Rigging **Vows to Mobilise Millions, Deploy One Million Vote Defenders Nationwide The Obidient Movement has raised fresh concerns over the integrity of Nigeria’s 2027 general elections, warning that there are “alleged positions” suggesting the polls might not even hold. n response, the movement has rolled out its most ambitious mobilisation drive yet, a nationwide operation to register millions of new voters, form disciplined voting blocs, and make election rigging “difficult, unattractive, and dangerous.” Speaking in Abuja on Thursday, National Coordinator of the movement, Tanko Yunusa, said the initiative, tagged “A New Nigeria is…
***Rallies Support Ahead of Saturday’s Crucial Bye-Elections National Chairman of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Senator David Mark, has challenged the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to prove that Nigeria can hold free, fair, and credible elections as the nation heads to the polls in 10 states this Saturday, August 16, 2025. In a goodwill message to ADC candidates for the Senate, House of Representatives, and State Houses of Assembly, the former Senate President declared that this weekend’s bye-elections are a test of INEC’s integrity. “All eyes are on the Commission,” Mark said pointedly. “A truly transparent exercise this weekend…
Abuja is set to play host to a wave of energy, colour, and camaraderie as the Scouts Association of Nigeria prepares for its annual jamboree, expected to draw 3,500 young scouts from across the country. Speaking at a world press conference in Abuja on Thursday, Chief Commissioner of the Scouts Association of Nigeria, Dr. Dave Paldopal Awuna, said the one-week event—scheduled for August 15–21, 2025—will welcome participants from all 36 states under the theme “Towards Peace and Unity.” According to Dr. Awuna, the jamboree aims to reignite national consciousness among Nigeria’s youth, promoting harmony across religious, cultural, and ethnic divides.…
With 23 Nigerian lawmakers preparing for another costly foreign training trip in two weeks, National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies (NILDS) Director-General, Prof. Abubakar Sulaiman, is urging a rethink: Why keep flying our leaders abroad when Africa can be its own classroom? Speaking at an ECOWAS Parliament workshop in Abuja, Sulaiman dismissed the value of many overseas programmes, arguing that Ivy League and European courses often ignore Africa’s real governance challenges. “We have the expertise, the facilities, and the resources here,” he said, warning that the coming trip will drain a hefty—but undisclosed—sum from public coffers. Instead of exporting…
***Urges him to drop the Passport, Pick Up the Problems Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has launched a stinging attack on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, accusing him of treating Nigeria like a layover stop while the country faces deepening crises. In a fiery post on X titled “Again, Our President Moves as the Nation Bleeds,” Obi slammed Tinubu’s decision to embark on a 12-day, two-nation trip—his latest journey pushing his tally to over 200 days abroad in just 806 days in office. The President’s itinerary takes him from Abuja to Dubai, then Japan for the TICAD9 summit (August…