In a dramatic turn of events at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport on Wednesday morning, immigration officers briefly seized the passport of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan. The senator, who represents Kogi Central in the National Assembly, arrived at the airport alongside her husband, Chief Emmanuel Uduaghan, intending to board a British Airways flight to London. But just as she approached immigration clearance, officers pulled her aside and informed her that her name had been flagged on a “security watchlist.” Eyewitnesses described tense moments as officials held on to her international passport without offering any clear explanation. “You have no right to…
Author: National Update
The All Progressives Congress (APC) on Thursday turned a fresh page in its leadership journey as the party’s National Executive Committee (NEC) officially ratified Professor Nentawe Goshwe Yilwatda as its new National Chairman — a decision widely seen as both strategic and symbolic. Inside the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa in Abuja, the atmosphere was one of quiet calculation and consensus. Governors, state party chairmen, and key stakeholders aligned behind Yilwatda’s candidacy, marking the end of intense behind-the-scenes consultations and the beginning of what many insiders are calling a “tech-forward” chapter for the ruling party. Moments after the NEC’s…
By Fatima Ndagi The House of Representatives is stepping up efforts to fix the slow wheels of justice in the Federal Capital Territory, with two key bills aimed at boosting judicial capacity and accelerating access to justice. At a public hearing held Wednesday at the National Assembly, Chairman of the House Committee on FCT Judiciary, Rep. Adamu Gamawa, declared the House’s commitment to making justice delivery faster, more affordable, and closer to the people. “We want an FCT where no citizen waits endlessly for justice,” Gamawa said. “The goal is simple: timely, fair, and accessible justice for all.” One of…
A chilling case of suspected ritual killing has sent shockwaves across Kogi State, following the gruesome murder of a young photographer, Mr. Ayo Aiyepeku, allegedly at the hands of his close colleague and friend, Mr. Adebayo Pelumi. The tragic incident reportedly unfolded late Tuesday night at a photography studio located around the Government House/GRA axis of Lokoja, where both men worked in what many described as a cordial professional relationship—until it turned deadly. The Kogi State Police Command has since launched a full-scale manhunt for Pelumi, who remains at large. Confirming the development, police spokesperson SP William Ovye-Aya described the…
A Lagos property owner, Mr. Babajide Debayo Doherty, has petitioned the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, over what he described as a coordinated scheme of fraud, impersonation, and criminal trespass involving a lessee, Madam Funke Otti of CTSR Properties Limited, and an alleged impostor, Babatunji Wusu. In the petition dated July 2025 and filed through his lawyers, Country Hill Attorneys and Solicitors, Doherty alleged that he and other beneficiaries of the Doherty family estate have been unlawfully dispossessed of their property at Plot 60, Chief T.A. Doherty Layout, Morison Crescent, Oregun, Ikeja, Lagos. According to Doherty, the property was…
The Labour Party (LP) has been plunged deeper into internal strife as rival factions exchange accusations over the interpretation of the Supreme Court’s April 4 judgment and the party’s stance on its 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi. Senator Nenadi Usman’s faction, which claims legitimacy following the court ruling, dismissed reports of an alleged plot to expel Obi as false and mischievous. Her Senior Special Adviser on Media, Ken Eluma Asogwa, accused “political jesters” and “impostors” of spreading disinformation to undermine Obi’s coalition-building efforts. “Their antics are laughable, illegal, and desperate,” he said, stressing that only communications from the Acting National…
In a symbolic move blending reform with compassion, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, on Tuesday commissioned a fleet of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses and revived key welfare provisions for staff, describing ministry personnel as “the fuel powering Nigeria’s economic transformation.” At a special engagement forum at the Ministry’s headquarters in Abuja, Edun declared that internal strength and staff morale are critical to delivering the government’s broader economic reform goals, calling the Finance Ministry “the engine room of national transformation.” The CNG buses, received under the Presidential Initiative on CNG, serve a…
***Produce for Lagos Hailed as Food Security, Economic Model The Federal Government has thrown its weight behind the Produce for Lagos Programme and its ₦500 billion Offtake Guarantee Fund, describing the initiative as a game-changer for agricultural investment, urban food security, and economic resilience. Speaking during the groundbreaking ceremony in Lagos, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, said the initiative signals a new era of bankable agriculture, where risks are reduced and value chains are strengthened from farm to city. Represented by Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, Edun noted that…
The Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, has restated the Federal Government’s unwavering commitment to strengthening local government institutions as a vital pillar of inclusive and sustainable economic development. Speaking at a high-level policy dialogue hosted by AGORA Policy with support from the MacArthur Foundation, Edun emphasized that grassroots empowerment is at the heart of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s economic transformation agenda. Director of Information and Public Relations in the ministry, Mohammed Manga quoted the Minister to have indicated, “Empowering local governments is not just a governance reform — it is an economic…
By Harrison Tombra Before the truce came the tremor. When President Bola Ahmed Tinubu declared emergency rule in Rivers State and appointed Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd) as Sole Administrator on March 18, 2025, it felt like a political earthquake had just struck the state. Governance had ground to a halt. Budgets were frozen. Public institutions were paralysed by a bitter feud between Governor Siminalayi Fubara and his political benefactor, Nyesom Wike. The State Assembly was factionalised, with each side issuing contradictory laws and threats. To many, Rivers stood on the brink of institutional collapse. Fast forward to the present,…