President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Tuesday signalled a major shift in Nigeria’s economic diversification strategy with the inauguration of Africa’s first Renewable Energy College, saying the country is investing in the skills needed to power the continent’s clean energy future. The President said the establishment of the Barefoot Renewable Energy College, Osara (BARECKS) and the Green Hydrogen Research and Demonstration Pilot Plant marks Nigeria’s transition from merely discussing renewable energy to building the human capital required to lead Africa’s green economy. Represented by Vice President Kashim Shettima at the commissioning ceremony in Kogi State, Tinubu said the institution was created…
Author: National Update
The 2027 presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Prince Adewole Adebayo, has presented a reframed assessment of Northern Nigeria’s challenges, arguing that the region’s core issue is not insecurity, poverty, or demographic growth, but a persistent deficit in leadership, accountability, and governance culture. Speaking at the Arewa Awareness Summit on Unity Against Insecurity in Kaduna, Adebayo challenged the prevailing perception of Northern Nigeria as a national burden. Instead, he described the region as a vast reservoir of human and economic potential capable of driving Nigeria’s development and contributing significantly to progress across the Sahel and West Africa. Addressing…
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has condemned the reported freezing of an Osun State Government bank account by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), warning that the development could undermine public confidence in Nigeria’s democratic institutions ahead of the August 15 governorship election. The rights group said the reported action, allegedly taken less than two weeks before the poll, raises serious constitutional, legal and democratic concerns, particularly if it was carried out without a valid court order or other lawful authority. In a statement issued on Wednesday by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, HURIWA…
Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister, Barrister Nyesom Wike, has launched a renewed drive to position Abuja as Nigeria’s premier investment destination, assuring investors of a transparent, business-friendly environment while declaring zero tolerance for land fraud, speculative allocations and illegal developments. The minister said the era of land racketeering and impunity in the nation’s capital was coming to an end, warning that individuals and organisations undermining the Abuja Master Plan would face the full weight of the law. Speaking at the opening of the Abuja Business and Investment Expo (ABIE) 3.0 on Wednesday, Wike, represented by the Minister of State for…
Fresh fears over the worsening security situation around the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have emerged after a retired Nigerian Army officer was shot in the chest and left for dead by suspected terrorists during a midnight raid on Karshi, one of Abuja’s satellite communities. The victim, Master Warrant Officer (MWO) Michael Eneware, a retired public relations officer who last served at the Nigerian Army War College, Abuja, narrowly escaped death after the attackers abandoned him in a bush, believing he had died from the gunshot wound. The July 29 attack also resulted in the abduction of one of Eneware’s neighbours,…
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for approving salary increases of between 30 and 80 per cent for members of the Nigerian Armed Forces, describing the move as a landmark intervention that should herald a new era of sustainable welfare reforms for military personnel. The civil rights organisation, however, urged the Federal Government to go beyond the pay raise by putting in place enduring legal and institutional mechanisms that would guarantee the welfare of serving and retired military personnel. In a statement issued on Wednesday by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Onwubiko,…
The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has introduced a stringent new verification requirement for prospective corps members, declaring that no graduate will be mobilised for the mandatory one-year national service without clearance from the National Electronic Registration Database (NERD). The directive, announced in a public notice on the scheme’s official X (formerly Twitter) account, marks a significant tightening of the NYSC’s mobilisation process as authorities move to enhance the credibility and integrity of the national service programme. “This is to inform Prospective Corps Members (PCMs) that without NERD clearance, there will be no NYSC. Get your NERD clearance early. Avoid…
A prominent chieftain of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Jonathan Vatsa, has openly challenged the Presidency’s handling of criticism from the Catholic Church, warning that attacks on senior Christian clerics could exact a heavy political cost on President Bola Tinubu ahead of the 2027 general election. In a rare rebuke from within the ruling party, the former Niger State Commissioner for Information, Culture and Tourism urged presidential spokespersons Daniel Bwala and Bayo Onanuga to stop what he described as attempts to discredit Catholic bishops whose observations on hunger, insecurity and economic hardship reflected the daily realities confronting millions of Nigerians.…
Presidential candidate of the National Democratic Coalition (NDC), Peter Obi, has challenged Nigerian youths to take greater responsibility for the country’s future by embracing leadership, active citizenship and good governance. Obi made the call on Tuesday while delivering the keynote address at the Babcock International Model United Nations (BIMUN 2026) hosted by Babcock University, Ogun State, where he said Africa’s youthful population must become the driving force behind peace, development and democratic progress. Speaking on the theme, “Better Together: A Decade of BIMUN Advancing the United Nations Vision for Peace, Development, and Human Rights,” Obi urged students to prepare themselves…
In a move to heal cracks exposed by its recently concluded primary elections, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has constituted a high-powered National Reconciliation Committee headed by political economist, Prof. Pat Utomi, with veteran politician Engr. Buba Galadima serving as Co-Chairman. The intervention comes as the opposition party moves to consolidate its ranks following post-primary grievances in several states, with the leadership determined to prevent internal disputes from undermining preparations for the 2027 general elections. The committee was unveiled in a statement jointly signed on Wednesday by the NDC National Chairman, Senator Cleopas Moses, and the National Secretary, Mr. Ikenna…