Senior lawyer, Jibrin Okutepa, SAN, has warned that Nigeria’s legal profession is facing a grave crisis of confidence, saying partisan, sectional and personal interests are increasingly undermining professional integrity. Okutepa made the remarks in a statement posted on his X handle, where he expressed concern over what he described as the weakening of law, integrity and professional courage within the legal profession. He alleged that disciplinary processes were, in some instances, being misapplied to harass lawyers who seek to promote what they consider to be the proper course for the profession. According to him, some lawyers entrusted with leadership responsibilities…
Author: National Update
The spokesperson for the Atiku Abubakar Presidential Campaign, Kenneth Okonkwo, has accused President Bola Tinubu and the National Assembly of failing to discharge their constitutional responsibilities over the President’s prolonged absence from Nigeria. Okonkwo, who spoke during an interview on Arise TV, argued that Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution does not make the President’s obligation to transmit a written declaration dependent on an absence lasting 21 days. President Tinubu has been outside Nigeria since August 30 on what the Presidency described as a working vacation, while Vice-President Kashim Shettima has been representing Nigeria at the United Nations General Assembly…
The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has rejected the reported directive by the Minister of Works, David Umahi, to decorate the First Niger Bridge with photographs of President Bola Tinubu, describing the move as an attempt to personalise public infrastructure. HURIWA argued that the bridge, having been constructed and rehabilitated with public resources, belongs to Nigerians and should not be converted into a platform for promoting the personality of an individual political office holder. In a statement signed by its National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, on Thursday, the rights group said the directive raised fundamental questions about…
By Olaide Ahli There is a difference between making noise and winning a political argument. In the unfolding confrontation between the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, and Kwara State Governor Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq, that difference is becoming increasingly difficult to ignore. Wike has talked. He has attacked. He has named AbdulRahman publicly. He has questioned his political position and accused him, alongside Imo State Governor Hope Uzodimma and Ogun State Governor Dapo Abiodun, of working against his Rainbow Coalition. But what has AbdulRahman done? Almost nothing publicly. And that, in my view, is precisely where the political significance…
Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago has disputed earlier reports of a mass abduction at a mosque in Dakera, saying 63 people were abducted and three of them killed, rather than the hundreds reported on social media. Bago said 33 worshippers were taken from the mosque, while another 30 people were abducted from a nearby market as the attackers fled, bringing the total to 63. He also disclosed that 14 of the abducted persons had been recovered, while three had been killed by their captors. The governor gave the figures when his predecessor and Senator representing Niger North, Abubakar Sani…
The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) and its presidential candidate, Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, have dragged Abia State Governor Alex Otti and other state authorities to court over a controversial ₦200 million campaign fee imposed on presidential candidates seeking to display campaign materials in the state. In the suit filed at the Abia State High Court, the plaintiffs argued that the fee imposed by the Abia State Signage and Advertisement Agency (ABSAA) was unlawful and inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution and the Electoral Act 2026. The suit, marked HC/214/2026, was filed through their lawyer, Musibau Adetunbi, SAN. Makinde and…
A fresh crisis has erupted in the Lagos State chapter of the All Progressives Congress following the expulsion of former Agege Local Government chairman, Ganiyu Egunjobi, and Azeez Yusuf, over their defection to the Allied Peoples Movement. The APC accused the duo, who contested its House of Assembly primaries, of anti-party activities and disloyalty after they subsequently secured APM tickets for the same constituencies. Egunjobi contested the APC ticket for Agege Constituency I, while Yusuf contested Agege Constituency II. The two later emerged as APM candidates after disputing the outcome of the APC primaries. Lagos APC Chairman, Cornelius Ojelabi, said…
The Federal Government has ruled out any increase in electricity tariffs, saying its immediate priority is to stabilise the power sector and improve supply without imposing additional costs on consumers. Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, gave the assurance on Wednesday in Abuja while marking his first 100 days in office. “We have no plan to increase electricity tariffs,” Tegbe said, stressing that the position was not a political statement. Instead, he said the government was focusing on improving generation, settling sector debts, strengthening transmission and expanding electricity metering. Tegbe said power generation reached 5,330 megawatts (MW) in August and September,…
Nigeria’s worsening for-ransom crisis is exposing serious weaknesses in the institutions responsible for protecting citizens and enforcing the law, the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC) has said. CISLAC Executive Director and Head of Transparency International Nigeria, Comrade Auwal Ibrahim Musa (Rafsanjani), made the observation while presenting the 9th Nigeria SDG 16 Shadow Report at a United Nations General Assembly side event in New York. The report, covering July 2025 to August 2026, examines Nigeria’s progress on SDG 16, which focuses on peace, justice and strong institutions. Rafsanjani said the growing commercialisation of kidnapping was no longer only a security…
The Forum of Former Deputy Governors of Nigeria (FFDGN) has celebrated its National Chairman, Dr Chris Akomas, on his 66th birthday, praising his contributions to governance and national development. The forum’s Director-General, Dr Kenneth Ibe-Kalu, in a birthday message issued in Abuja, described Akomas as a committed public servant whose wealth of experience had strengthened the leadership of the organisation. Ibe-Kalu said Akomas had deployed his experience in public administration to promote dialogue on governance, democratic development and issues affecting Nigerians. He noted that the forum’s national conferences under Akomas had provided opportunities for former deputy governors and other stakeholders…