President of Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, has said the launch of his 700,000-barrel-per-day refinery disrupted a fuel subsidy system that he claimed was costing Nigeria about $10 billion annually. Dangote said he could not afford to abandon the project despite the resistance it faced because, in his view, Nigeria’s dependence on imported petroleum products and subsidy payments had become a major drain on government finances. He made the disclosure in a recent interview with Al Jazeera, where he also spoke about the opposition he encountered while building the refinery. “Turning back was not an option. They were looting $10 billion…
Author: National Update
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has warned that the misuse of artificial intelligence could create competing and contradictory narratives among Nigerian voters ahead of the 2027 general elections, potentially complicating efforts to maintain trust in the electoral process. The commission said the rapid development of generative AI had made it cheaper and increasingly difficult to identify manipulated audio, videos and images, while enabling the production of targeted messages aimed at different groups of voters. National Commissioner and Chairman of INEC’s Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Kudu Haruna, raised the concern on Monday in Abuja while declaring open a…
Hundreds of students of the Taraba State College of Nursing Sciences, Jalingo, on Monday took to the streets to protest growing insecurity around their hostels after hoodlums reportedly invaded a female hostel, raped a student and injured her. The latest attack, which occurred in the early hours of Monday, was reportedly the second raid on students’ accommodation within two weeks, raising fresh concerns over the safety of students living in hostels located outside the college premises. According to a students’ union official who spoke on condition of anonymity, the attackers invaded the female hostel, stole mobile phones and other valuables…
The Federal High Court in Abuja has adjourned the N1 billion fundamental rights suit filed by former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, against the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), the Inspector-General of Police and the Attorney-General of the Federation. Justice Joyce Abdulmalik adjourned the matter to October 27, 2026, for definite hearing after the AGF’s counsel filed a counter-affidavit opposing El-Rufai’s claims. El-Rufai’s counsel, Akinyemi Aremu, did not oppose the application seeking an extension of time to regularise the AGF’s processes. The court subsequently granted the application and fixed a new date. The former governor instituted…
The controversy over the ancestry of the All Progressives Congress governorship candidate in Ogun State, Senator Solomon Adeola, popularly known as Yayi, has escalated, with former Nigerian Ambassador Folake Marcus-Bello daring him to take her to court. Marcus-Bello, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party, said she was still waiting for the legal action Adeola threatened over claims about his state of origin. The former ambassador repeated her allegation that Adeola had given different accounts of his origin at different stages of his career, including allegedly identifying himself as an indigene of Ekiti while working with The Guardian newspaper. She…
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has thrown fresh fuel on the growing battle over his Rainbow Coalition, declaring that Nigerians will soon hear what he described as the “real undertones” behind opposition to the political alliance. Wike, who spoke in Abuja on Monday after inspecting ongoing FCT projects, said the resistance by some APC governors was not really about fears that the coalition could weaken the ruling party. He said he would disclose what was behind the controversy during a television appearance later on Monday. “You will hear it today. What is the real cry about the…
By Ehichioya Ezomon The importance and relevance of former Rivers State Governor and Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, Chief Nyesom Wike, to the election of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu in 2023 and his contribution to the cabinet therefrom were brought home to members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) by ex-Edo Governor and Senator representing Edo North, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, on Friday, January 3, 2025. It’s at a New Year luncheon organised by Wike in Port Harcourt, the Rivers capital city, where Oshiomhole, likening then-Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to a football club allowing its “best player”…
The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has alleged that political opponents are being attacked during rallies and ward meetings in Enugu State, accusing the state government of allowing political violence to thrive. The group also reaffirmed its decision to boycott the forthcoming general elections, linking the position to the continued detention and legal proceedings involving its leader, Nnamdi Kanu. IPOB’s Head of the Directorate of State’s Fourth Administration, Mazi Chris Nwaọgụ, made the allegations in an address on Monday. Nwaọgụ alleged that political gatherings involving opposition groups had been disrupted by suspected thugs, particularly in Nkanu West, with some attendees…
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has called for the conversion of the controversial multi-billion-naira official residence of Vice President Kashim Shettima into a General Hospital for poor and vulnerable Nigerians. HURIWA said the continued non-use of the residence nearly two years after it was commissioned had vindicated its earlier opposition to the project. The rights group said it was unacceptable for government to spend billions of naira on a presidential-style residence while millions of Nigerians were struggling with poverty, insecurity and lack of access to basic healthcare. The residence, originally awarded in 2010 at about N7bn, was…
Niger State Governor, Mohammed Umaru Bago, has ordered a wider investigation into the deaths of 37 miners in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), saying the probe will also examine other detainees who died or were held at the facility. Bago said the state government would make the outcome of the investigation public, as families of the deceased gathered in Minna on Sunday for a three-day Fida’au prayer for the victims. The governor said the government was determined to establish not only how the 37 miners died, but also the circumstances surrounding their arrest, detention…