The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has undertaken a major reorganisation of the Nigerian Army’s senior leadership, redeploying top commanders across operational theatres, training institutions and strategic headquarters in a move aimed at strengthening the military’s response to evolving security threats. The shake-up, announced on Saturday, affects key command positions in some of the country’s most sensitive security formations, including operations in the North-Central and South-South regions, where troops continue to confront insurgency, banditry, oil theft and other security challenges. A statement by the Acting Director of Army Public Relations, Colonel Appolonia Anele, said the redeployments were…
Author: National Update
Political analyst Mahmud Jega has warned that President Bola Tinubu’s silence over a wave of court actions involving opposition parties could deepen public distrust in Nigeria’s democratic process ahead of the 2027 elections. Speaking on Arise Television, Jega said a growing perception that opposition parties are being weakened through judicial interventions is taking root across the country, urging the presidency to publicly reassure Nigerians that democratic competition remains protected. According to him, the issue is no longer limited to individual court cases but has evolved into a broader concern about the health of Nigeria’s multiparty system. “The perception is growing…
The Federal Government on Friday revealed that security agencies arrested seven suspected commanders of Boko Haram and the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) at the Umaru Musa Yar’Adua International Airport in Katsina State as they returned from the 2026 Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia. Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed the arrests at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, shortly after President Bola Tinubu assented to the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) Act 2026. The disclosure provides a rare glimpse into ongoing efforts by security agencies to track and apprehend high-profile terrorism suspects using Nigeria’s increasingly integrated identity and border management…
The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC)/Transparency International Nigeria has warned that the proposed State Police framework could become a vehicle for political intimidation and abuse of power unless stronger constitutional safeguards are built into the legislation before its final ratification. The anti-corruption and governance advocacy group expressed concern that state-controlled police formations may be vulnerable to manipulation by governors and other political actors, potentially threatening democratic freedoms, electoral integrity, and citizens’ rights. In a statement signed by its Executive Director and Head of Transparency International Nigeria, Comrade Auwal Musa Rafsanjani, CISLAC said the success of state policing would depend…
Senior Advocate of Nigeria (SAN), Jibrin S. Okutepa, has strongly criticized the Federal High Court’s handling of the controversial judgment ordering the deregistration of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) and four other political parties, arguing that the trial court acted in disregard of a subsisting order of the Court of Appeal. Speaking during a television interview following the appellate court’s decision to halt the execution of the judgment, Okutepa described the development as a significant test of judicial discipline, constitutional order and respect for the hierarchy of courts in Nigeria. The Court of Appeal had unanimously ordered the Independent National…
The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and its allies on Friday warned against what they described as growing threats to Nigeria’s multiparty democracy, insisting that President Bola Tinubu must face credible challengers in the 2027 presidential election. The warning followed a Federal High Court ruling in Lokoja that set aside an earlier judgment which led to the registration of the NDC by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). Addressing an emergency press conference in Abuja, the National Chairman of the NDC said the party would immediately challenge the ruling at the Court of Appeal, maintaining that the judgment neither deregistered the…
Presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Peter Obi, has described the Lokoja court judgment that set aside the ruling which led to the party’s registration as a disturbing attack on Nigeria’s democracy, warning that the country is witnessing a systematic weakening of institutions meant to safeguard democratic freedoms. In a strongly worded reaction on Friday, Obi said the development was not merely about the fate of a political party but about the future of democracy itself, arguing that every Nigerian who believes in justice, fairness and political pluralism should be alarmed. The former Anambra State governor said he…
The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has rejected the Federal High Court judgment that set aside an earlier order compelling the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to register it as a political party, insisting that the ruling does not amount to its deregistration. The party said it would immediately challenge the decision at the Court of Appeal, maintaining that its legal status remains intact and that its political activities across the country remain valid. In a statement issued on Friday by its National Chairman, Senator Moses Cleopas Zuwoghe, the NDC argued that the court did not direct INEC to remove the…
**Says ‘No Judicial Process Can Deregister the Hopes of Millions of Nigerians’ The Peter Obi Media Reach (POMR) has declared that the political movement inspired by former presidential candidate Peter Obi remains unstoppable despite Friday’s court ruling setting aside the registration of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC). Responding to the Federal High Court judgment in Lokoja, the group described the development as a temporary legal challenge that would neither weaken the growing demand for political change nor diminish the resolve of millions of Nigerians seeking a different direction for the country. In a statement issued by its spokesman, Idris Zekeri…
The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) has expressed reservations over the proposed implementation of State Police, urging lawmakers and the Federal Government to ensure adequate safeguards are in place before the reform takes effect. In a statement released on Friday, the coalition’s Acting National Chairman, Chief Peter Ameh, described the Senate’s passage of the constitutional amendment bill establishing State Police as a significant development in Nigeria’s security framework. However, he warned that the reform should not distract from the urgent need to strengthen the Nigeria Police Force. Ameh argued that successive governments have failed to adequately recruit, equip, and…