Issuu

Rising Emigration: Care Crisis Looms for Nigeria’s Ageing Population Experts call for trained caregivers, home-based services, stronger geriatric support Families urged to build local care networks for ageing parents

Sunday Ehigiator

As increasing numbers of

young and economically active Nigerians leave the country in search of greener pastures

abroad, a new challenge is emerging for those they leave behind as families grapple with

how to care for their ageing parents. With children increasingly

scattered across the United Kingdom, the United States, Europe, Canada and other

destinations, Nigeria’s traditional family-based system of caring Continued on page 5

Gov. Lawal to Wike: Join APC or Quit as Minister is Appointed to Lead Tinubu’s Campaign in FCT, Rivers...

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Saturday September 26, 2026 Vol 31. No 11493

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African Expansion: Nigerian Banks Face Tougher Regulatory Hurdles Ahead Nume Ekeghe

Analysts have urged Nigerian banks operating across Africa as L-R: President/Chief Executive, Dangote Industries Limited, Alhaji Aliko Dangote; Kenyan President, William Ruto, and his wife, Rachel Ruto, during a tour of the Dangote Refinery in Lagos… yesterday

Continued on page 5

Otti: Anyone Seeking Petrol Subsidy Return Does Not Mean Well for Nigeria

Says subsidy promotes inefficiency, corruption Clarifies his support for Tinubu Warns neglect of National Library weakens Nigeria’s memory

Chuks Okocha and Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

Abia State Governor, Alex Otti, yesterday, defended the removal of petrol subsidy by the administration, arguing that subsidising consumption encourages inefficiency and corruption rather than production. Otti said this during an interview on ARISE News Channel. This comes as the Governor also warned that Nigeria’s neglect of its libraries was weakening the nation’s institutional memory, stressing the need for stronger investment in the preservation and digitisation of Continued on page 5

WUNTI AT CONCORDIA ANNUAL SUMMIT...

L-R: President and CEO of Avalon Advanced Materials, Scott Monteith; CEO of World Energy Council Nigeria, Bala Wunti; Founder and Executive Chairman of Political Risk Consultancy Veracity Worldwide, Steven Fox, and Principal at DrivePath Advisors and former Bloomberg Television anchor, Alix Steel, during a panel session, ‘Rare Currency: Critical Minerals in a Shifting Global Economy,’ at the 2026 Concordia Annual Summit, held alongside the United Nations General Assembly in New York...recently

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SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2026 • T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R

PAGE FIVE

Tinubu Urges Nigerians to Keep Hope Alive, Says ‘There’s Light at End of the Tunnel’

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja

President Bola Tinubu yesterday charged Nigerians not to lose hope about the security challenges and economic hardship rocking the country, saying there was light at the end of the tunnel He made the appeal at the

66th independence celebration Juma’at Service at the National Mosque, Abuja. Tinubu, who was represented at the occasion by the Speaker House of Representatives, Rt. Hon. Tajudeen Abass, said Nigerians should not give up although the country was bedevilled with a lot of issues as well

as opportunities in the past. “Peace is coming back to this country. Development is coming back to this country. Things will get better as we progress in this democracy. It's interesting that we are using the opportunity to reflect on our past and also project to the future,” Tinubu said. Speaking on the specific

things to look for as the country celebrated its 66th anniversary, the President charged the citizens to look at the focus of the government of today, adding the mistakes of the past, the cumulative mistakes and missed opportunities of the past had been corrected by his administration.

The President assured Nigerians, saying the country was on the right path. He also added that both the government and the citizens had made the sacrifices for the country to be great again. “We should give this government more opportunity for it to come back and finish the good work,” Tinubu

added. Some of the dignitaries that attended the prayer service included the Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Barau Jibrin; Governor of Niger State, Mohammed Umaru Bago; Governor of Kogi State, Usman Ododo and Etsu Nupe, Alhaji Yahaya Abubakar, among others.

RISING EMIGRATION: CARE CRISIS LOOMS FOR NIGERIA’S AGEING POPULATION for older people is coming under growing pressure, raising concerns about who will provide the companionship, medical support, daily assistance and emergency care that ageing parents may need. Nigeria’s National Senior Citizens Centre defines older persons as those aged 60 years and above and has a statutory mandate covering their health, social care, income, security and dignity. The Centre has also recognised the need for caregiver training

and standards for geriatric social care. Yet Nigeria’s traditional reliance on family members for elder care is coming under strain from migration, urbanisation, changing family structures and economic realities. For 68-year-old Mrs. Amina Yusuf, the departure of her children has brought a new reality to old age. Two of her three children live in the United Kingdom, while the third works in another Nigerian state. Her children send

money for her upkeep, but she says financial support cannot replace physical presence. “When I am sick, I call my children first. They will send money and ask me to go to the hospital, but somebody still has to take me there,” she said. According to her, a neighbour sometimes accompanies her to the hospital, while a church member helps with errands. “I don’t want to disturb people. Sometimes I wait until somebody is going to the market before I ask them to help me

buy something,” she said. Her greatest concern, she said, is what happens during an emergency. “If something happens to me at night, who will know? My children are abroad. They can call, but they cannot enter this house.” Her children maintain regular contact through video calls, she said, but the conversations do not completely remove the feeling of loneliness. “I am happy they are doing well. I don’t want them to come back and suffer because of me.

But sometimes you just want your child to sit beside you.” A similar experience is described by 72-year-old Chalse Ehizogie, a retired soldier, whose two daughters live in Canada and son is based in the United States. Ehizogie, who has arthritis and occasionally requires assistance moving around, said his children pay his medical bills and employ a part-time domestic helper. “The money helps, but there are things money cannot do immediately. If I need to go

to church, attend a family ceremony or see the doctor, I need somebody physically here. When my children were around, one of them would simply say, ‘Daddy, let’s go.’ Now, we have to plan everything. We talk almost every day. But a phone cannot hold your hand when you are feeling weak.” The scale of Nigerian migration has changed considerably over the past three decades. Continued on page 14

OTTI: ANYONE SEEKING PETROL SUBSIDY RETURN DOES NOT MEAN WELL FOR NIGERIA the country’s intellectual heritage. The governor said he supported the removal of petrol subsidy and warned against attempts to restore it, arguing that government resources should be channeled towards supporting production and creating systems that enable businesses to operate efficiently. “I’ve always been consistent on subsidy. And I’ve written extensively. I also refer you to my back page in THISDAY, including the one that I wrote in 2020 during COVID-19. At that time, nobody was buying oil, and I said it was a good time to remove subsidy,” he said. Otti said subsidising consumption could encourage waste and create opportunities for abuse, while consumers became more conscious of their usage when they bore the cost themselves. “When you subsidise consumption rather than production, you are just subsidising laziness. You are subsidising,

sometimes, corruption,” he said. He maintained that the removal of petrol subsidy was the right decision, despite the initial hardship associated with the policy, adding that consistency and proper management could eventually produce greater efficiency. “You know, as election approaches, people will be making all sorts of arguments. But removing the subsidy was the right thing to be done,” he said. He added: “If you are pushing for subsidy to return, you don’t mean well for the country.” On electricity, Otti said businesses did not necessarily require subsidies if government could guarantee reliable power supply. “For the people who use it for production, for their factories, those people, they really don’t need the subsidy. They just need the constant power supply. And once you’re able to guarantee them constant power supply,

they’ll pay,” he said. Otti, who is a member of the Labour Party, also clarified his support for President Bola Tinubu, while acknowledging Tinubu’s right to seek re-election. “I have a presidential candidate and it is expected that I support my party’s presidential candidate,” he said. Asked about his position on Tinubu’s re-election bid, Otti said he was not in a position to oppose the President, arguing that doing so while being part of the government would amount to working towards an implosion. “I’m not in a position to oppose his (Tinubu’s) candidacy,” he said. He added that disagreements within government could be addressed internally rather than through open confrontation. Speaking on his administration’s management of Abia’s finances, Otti said the state had committed at least 80 per cent of its annual budget to capital expenditure over

the past three years. “We said no less than 80 per cent of our budget will go into capital expenditure. So, in the last three years, 80 per cent to sometimes 82 per cent of our budget was in capital expenditure, leaving a meagre 18 per cent for recurrent spending,” he said. He said the policy had enabled the state to channel more resources into roads, hospitals, schools and environmental projects. Otti also identified the reduction of the cost of governance as a key component of his administration’s financial strategy, saying governance expenditure had been kept within 20 per cent of the state’s total expenditure. He said salaries accounted for about 11.9 per cent of the state’s costs, despite the implementation of the new minimum wage. On inherited liabilities, Otti said his administration inherited N191.2 billion in debts when it assumed office in 2023, including

contractor debts, pension arrears and obligations to multilateral institutions. He said the state had reduced the debt to about N48.4 billion, representing a reduction of almost 75 per cent. Meanwhile, Otti has warned that the neglect of Nigeria’s libraries is weakening the country’s institutional memory. He gave the warning in Abuja at the launch of the Endowment Foundation for the National Library of Nigeria, where he was represented by his Special Adviser on Monitoring and Evaluation, Ugochukwu Okoroafor. Otti described libraries as critical institutions for preserving a nation’s knowledge, history and intellectual heritage, saying their role had become even more important in the digital age. “A nation that neglects its libraries weakens its memory. A nation that strengthens them gives its people the tools to think, to

innovate, and to build,” he said. He stressed the need to preserve igeria’s documentary and intellectual heritage in secure, searchable and accessible formats, adding that digitisation could no longer be treated as an optional modernisation project, particularly in the age of artificial intelligence. “Our libraries should connect the wisdom of the past with the technologies shaping the future,” he said. Otti said government could not accomplish the task alone, noting that libraries and schools required public investment as well as expertise, philanthropy and innovation from the private sector. He described the Endowment Foundation as an important platform for government, businesses, academia and publicspirited citizens to collaborate in expanding access to knowledge and sustaining the country’s libraries.

AFRICAN EXPANSION: NIGERIAN BANKS FACE TOUGHER REGULATORY HURDLES AHEAD well as those planning further expansion on the continent, to deepen compliance with host-country regulations as African regulators tighten rules governing foreign-owned financial institutions. The warning comes as The Gambia recently directed commercial banks to begin phasing out non-Gambian employees. Also, during the week, Kenya approved the transfer of the business, assets and liabilities of Access Bank Kenya to National Bank of Kenya (NBK), paving the way for the integration of the two entities. Although the developments are different in nature, analysts said they underscore the increasingly complex regulatory environment Nigerian banks must navigate

as they expand across African markets. The developments also highlight the need for lenders to adopt market-specific strategies, strengthen local compliance and invest in indigenous talent rather than relying on a uniform approach to continental expansion. In The Gambia, the Central Bank of The Gambia (CBG) directed commercial banks operating in the country, including subsidiaries of Nigerian lenders Access Bank, FirstBank, GTBank and Zenith Bank, to commence a phased replacement of nonGambian employees with suitably qualified Gambian nationals. Speaking with THISDAY, Director, Deals Advisory, PwC Nigeria, Wale Olusi, said the directive did not prevent foreignowned banks from operating in

The Gambia but required them to comply with the country's regulations. “On the Gambia, the regulation clearly doesn't stop foreign-owned entities or banks from operating, as the case may be, but they must comply with local laws,” Olusi said. He noted that The Gambia, with a population of about two million, has faced manpower constraints, which have historically resulted in Nigerians and other foreigners occupying senior positions in some institutions. “The Gambia has a manpower challenge. In fact, a number of Nigerians occupy top positions there precisely because of this gap,” he said. According to Olusi, the directive was aimed at protecting employment opportunities for

Gambians, making it necessary for affected banks to invest more in training and developing local talent. “What this simply means is that these institutions have to invest in training and empowering locals, building their capacity to do the jobs required, if they wish to continue operating in The Gambia,” he said. He, however, said the development should be viewed within a broader global trend towards greater protection of local employment, noting that similar concerns had emerged in other African countries and developed economies. “However, if you put what has happened in The Gambia together with what we've seen in South Africa and perhaps

a few other African countries, there is a growing concern not just in Africa, but globally - about migrants or expatriates dominating the job market while locals remain unemployed,” he said. Olusi said the challenge for governments was to ensure that policies aimed at protecting local employment were matched with investment in human capital, enabling local workers to eventually take up positions occupied by expatriates. Access Bank Gambia has four Gambians out of seven positions reviewed, representing 57.1 per cent, alongside two Nigerians and one Ghanaian. GTBank Gambia has the highest Gambian representation, with five of seven positions, or 71.4 per cent, held by Gambians, while two are

Nigerians. Zenith Bank Gambia has an even split, with three Gambians and three Nigerians among six positions reviewed, giving each nationality 50 per cent representation. At FirstBank Gambia, Nigerians occupy three of five positions reviewed, representing 60 per cent, while two are Gambian. Ecobank Gambia, which is not Nigerian-owned, has three Gambians, three Ghanaians and one Nigerian among seven positions reviewed, representing 42.9 per cent, 42.9 per cent and 14.3 per cent, respectively. The figures cover only publicly identifiable board and senior management positions and do not represent the nationality composition of the banks' entire workforce.

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HHI ISISSDTDDAY, SS AT RN AY JUNE 27, 2026 AT UUU RTHe DDD EEE WW SESS PA E JUNE AY, THHTHISDAY, HEEU ESR AT R AY N PA PER ERR• •SATURDAY •SATURDAY SATURDAY MAY14, 10, 2025 THIST DTTH AY, HAY, E STTAT D AY EAY W SNNPA PW RPA •PP SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2026 SATurDAY NewSpAper •February 3,2025 2024

NEWS

News Editor: Charles Ajunwa 09157401421 (sms only) Email charles.ajunwa@thisdaylive.com

UNVEILING REMODELLED PREMIER HOTEL IBADAN... L-R: Secretary to the Ekiti State Government (SSG), Prof. Abibat Adubiaro; SSG to Oyo State Government, Prof. Musibau Babatunde; Ondo State Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa; Secretary to the Government of the COURTESY VISIT... Federation, Senator George Akume; Group Director,TO Odu’ a Investment Company Limited/Chairman Planning Committee, Mr. Seni Adio, SAN; Chairman, Odu’a Investment Company Limited, Bimbo Ashiru and SSG to the 81ST UNITED NATIONS GENERAL ASSEMBLY... STrATeGIC ALLIANCe SANITISe FXInvestors MArKeT… L-R: Director-General of theMrs. Budget Office Salu-Hundeyin, of the Federation, Tanimu Yakubu; CEO, Impact Foundation, Etemore Glover; Chair ofin GSG Nigeria and Vice Chair of GSG Impact, Mrs. Ibukun Awosika; Minister of Lagos State Government, Abimbola during the inauguration of newly remodelled and redeveloped Premier Hotel Ibadan, OyoPartner State…recently PHOTO: ABIODUN AJALA L-R: Governors Siminalayi Fubara of Rivers State; Babagana Zulum of Borno State, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq of Kwara State; Vice President Kashim Shettima, and Zamfara Governor, Dauda at the ongoing United Nations Budget and Economic Planning, Abubakar Bagudu; CEO ofEconomy GSG Impact, Elizabeth Boggs Davidsen, and Market Development Manager at GSG Impact, Ms. State Atieno Otonglo, at theLawal, courtesy visit to the81st Federal Ministry RAPID DIAGNOSTIC TEST PRODUCTION FACILITY INAUGURATION... L-R: Minister of Finance andSenator Coordinating Minister of the ofMs. Nigeria, Wale Edun; Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ola Olukoyede and the Governor, Central General Assembly in New York…yesterday

Bloomberg: Nigeria Draws First Tranche ADC to APC: Criticising Our Campaign Council Edo APC, State Govt Trade Words Idris: Nigeria on Path of Economic President Tinubu Welcomes New of $5 Billion Swap With UAE Bank Won’t Hide Tinubu’s Underperformance over N9bn Fresh Loan Approval Renewal, Global Respect Dele Momodu: Why Atiku named El-Rufai in ADC campaign councilQatar from Investment Initiatives of Budget andand Economic Planning Abuja… recently Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, in aBabatunde StrategicAjayi; Alliance to Stimulate the forex market Abuja…yesterday L-R: Akarigbo Paramount RulerinOf Remoland, representative of Minister of Trade andin Investment, Dr. Rabiu Olowo; Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun; Group Managing Director, Codic Pharm Ltd, Sammy

Ogunjimi; Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Ali Pate Muhammad, and Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, during the inauguration of Codix Bio Limited held along the Sagamu-Benin expressway, Ogun State…yesterday

Nume Ekeghe with agency reports

tranche of a $5 billion derivatives press time. drawn attention from market closing at N1,380.9/$ at the inflows, despite mounting deal with United Arab Emirates' The $5 billion facility, participants because of the official market yesterday, pressure from investors chasing largest pressing ahead captured. approved by Mueez the National limited disclosure compared with held N1,380.1/$ “In Tenebe Governor, Mr. Godwin as N9Akande billion for has been lender, swindled by Obaseki-led Adibe emenyonu Benin City Adegboyega Akande stupendous controlled,public listed and the hadstate previously another dollar-denominated Thehis infertile Councilrambling, said assets, a US difficult to afford. Chuks Okocha ininAbuja made wild and completely off-theObaseki across all sectors of the fathom projects which only "Information at the behest of the with a transaction that has been Assembly earlier this year, is surrounding its terms. The the previous day, while holding falling international oilinprices Nigeria has accessed the first administration with an unassail-an introduced Tinubu to First Abiodun Agbele as directors. joint account at the same bank federal court ruled 2025 “Morka has become mark comments suggesting that state over the federal paston seven years.” isand in theMonetary imagination of online of1,700 the Edo State House of existed humongous debt profile of members scrutinized for doctor being opaque. part of the federal government's International Fund firm atthat N1,390/$ the the parallel athe pullback the domestic tranche of Democratic a proposed $5 able, span over kilometres - aimed The minister reiterated that the the government about 85 per centin complete projects bold reform agenda, which included Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja and Heritage Bank. Shortly after “A bank introduction. A with Audrey Akande, wife that Department of Justice untutored spin for a party The African Congress Edo State is owing $35 billion. “Tenebe has been on a frenzy the governor, it was discovered Assembly is to the effect that they Edo State chapter of the All ProN135 billion and $35.6 billion, at unlocking economic activity and ongoing reforms by the Tinubu is concentrating more projects in the handled by Rock Result along Ahoada “The West to opened diversify (IMF) and Fitch recently market for the narcotics thirdtoconsecutive equities market. billion derivatives the removalin ofthe fuelAfrican subsidies nation and of the plan Blessing Ibunge in Portfinancing Harcourt Even ifofofficially that was what was written looking for tell sinceit section the facility was not even N9 South recalled from their holiday Tinubu an external account transfer. cheque. Ajust of the had of acknowledged caught (ADC) Presidential Campaign gressives Congress (APC), yesterday, the governor is conundrum unyielding and Nigeria. Thesources Ambassador knows that stability toAthat the world. Icompany. seeabout your Nigeria's taxlies system, making Nigeria's readiness to build in on the-a were end the tunnel."You find Deji Elumoye in Abuja bridging regional divides. administration were not thanmajor northern areas ofas thesuspect, nation. East West is can't atknown 60 per unification of foreign exchange rates drew about $1.5 billion the financing and reduce cautioned while derivativeweek. The naira hasRoad come under arrangement with the United for him, he should have he assumed office Acting billion but a figure wrapped in or leave by the Speaker on the urged Governor Godwin Obaseki to unstoppable in his characteristic there, $80,000 arrived through Tinubu should explain those Adegboyega Mueez Akande. Tinubu as a subject of a criminal sinking regime,” Shaibu said. Council has rebuked the All that I take Qatar very seriously. efforts in human development, easier for foreign investors to do momentum generated by his state a better partner than Nigeria. “The aim is not just connectivity, economic arithmetic, but about Responding to questions from cent completion, adding that RCC, two of the most significant policy shifts Minister of Information and National that the figure is wrong and can't Chairman. Rather than focus secrecy as much as N17.5 billion request of the state governor for last couple of weeks from a borrowing costs. Structured as based financing can improve Analysts attributed pressure in recent sessions as Arab Emirates' largest lender, stop securing loans, noting that(APC) the design leave Edo State inhistory. ruin, a immediate transfer linked Akande. transactions and why the “Thewho affidavit documents involving FBI but economic opportunity,” he said. creating aand new foundation forLike inclusive observed his inspection Setraco have follow shown commitment in We are willing to gotofurther peace prosperity. you, business in the country. visit toto Qatar inthe 2024, pledging to the Iinvestigation always globalthe issues President Bola Tinubu yesterday “Strip away gutter language Progressives Congress in Nigeria’s recent economic Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has said by be true. on reawakening histo completely which the opposition insame the journalists approval ofFirst thein to N9 billion loan recently approved asking for a facility of N17.5 total return swap transaction a Total Return Swap with liquidity, such arrangements the resilience strong investors reposition ahead of the according to a Bloomberg “Nigeria is really retracing its steps. growth, the Zarama section of theefforts West our bilateral relations." we areaccountability, sandwiched between the of all difficult bilateralis agreements "We are making to their and your You have to welcomed new initiatives by implement Tinubu subsequently purchased names kept appearing around Oluremi Tinubu and her the efforts. Drug Enforcement “These were decisions that thespokesman, country was on Assembly the path towards and his argument simple: an said Felix Morka’s latest "Injobs. reality, our debt stock is not comatose party, which isEast unable rejected andand orsustainable refused facility which according to house by the House of was few days ago, which was with First Abu Dhabi Bank Dhabi proceeds are should be macroeconomic fundamentals, fundraising report, marking first billion ItAbu becoming anBank, important nation once development. rehabilitation in Bayelsa State,of dollar-denominated Addressing the journalists, Umahi said the Qatari challenge terrorism and helping Road between the two countries. reform our taxas system. Going more inin Nigeria toare help fight had to They caused somebe them Qatari investors tothe explore economic recovery, restating federal ado secret and fact, we ‘under aisThe $5,000 cashier’s cheque payable his husband Bola associates Administration. to provide constructive criticisms to befinances.” partofof the transparently approval. isPresident said to be N9 billion allegation against Atiku must attack and on former Vice President needless will plunge the state said tobe bemade. N9 billion." again the comity of nations. In another development, who Umahi expressed satisfaction withstill the said, havein just inspected thewould work PJSC, according to people earmarked for refinancing debt managed toreaction, minimise fiscal healthy external by Dangote Refinery and but anisaircraft taking reported drawdown under turbulence, government’s commitment to restoring government had demonstrated our neighbours. We affidavit areUmahi conscious He directed the Minister of but by ofreserves the past and poverty the humanitarian opportunities in theonagricultural borrowed’. Emperor Tenebe expected of a gang,” viable opposition, But in its the Edo asamong event unfolded, after into financial distress. to respect Akande’s wife, Audrey; the disclosed Shaibu said the also ongoing theexperiences narcotics Shaibu said. It"We also alleged that another Tenebe, said "It important treated as a like conviction.” Atiku Abubakar the recently The thatforesight Nigeria used to have this yesterday while inspecting projects across Rivers, Delta ofPetrochemicals, Rock Result where we have multiple off, we are now reaching stability. The investors’ confidence and deepening maturity and in working of who is our friend and those Budget and Economic Planning, the need to depart from old area. You have done well have known this if he understood he has resorted to spreading State Government stated that sector and assured that Nigeria the mammoth request by the familiar with the transaction, and supporting infrastructure and debt risks. on a steadily upward trajectory prompting ain anamed facility that has attracted But in members a swift reaction, the to state, that it is now in public cheque was deposited into allegedly placed Oluremi Tinubu “So, the President cannot dismiss report said an FBI search for The Council said Morka’s the party's World isfor now gradually returning. Investors the ongoing of federal Bayelsa. culvertsaofover the East West Bank has noted our returnthe to opposition democratic the economics governance, fiscal misinformation in a have desperate Edo APC “obviously in the House as to the global peace and deserves helping usconstruction towas ameliorate the and Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu; ways, our reforms been concrete developing knowledge-based remains open toof structure strategic Edo State values. Government said it and political space that who asked not to be identified financing. Meanwhile, the naira has at $51.2 billion and sustained rotation of capital from naira scrutiny over its Akande’s account. Corporate in thein banking records. stated aHe documented financial trail by Road “Bola” andin “Tinubu” appeared have more confidence country,” roads Rivers, Bayelsa andIt Delta said that the tough Bodo-Bonny Road failure between Rivers and warning that Atiku must bewas kept presidential campaign council growth levels not seen in over a the This was as his counterpart, Minister responsibility and debt-to-GDP ratio. curry cheap popularity. by the achievements of attempt rationale for ain our facility as pained commendation. problems." Minister of of Information and hard. Itomade decisions economy Qatar, but what partnerships. was perplexed to learn of whatas fiscal budget Edo State because they aren't authorised This transaction has, however, remained relatively resilient, foreign portfolio investment assets into dollars. and transparency. he said. states, dismissed the claims trending construction handled by Julius Berger Bayelsa. documents supplied for Compass that she held a joint checking pretending Nigerians have no in a file involving multiple decade,” Idris told Forbes Africa. Works, David Umahi, has disclosed away from the national treasury aThe grubby attempt to conduct a itoftermed “laughable and incredibly passed few weeks ago before the According to him, "I am proud President Tinubu also noted National Orientation, Mohammed so that we could grow. We are about Nigeria?", the President President gave the towas speak to the Bloomberg reported that He noted that this media." year’s observance that theby federal is investing whose accounts Tinubu account with her to husband and gradually right to ask where led.”at the explained. subjects. ridiculous tantrums attributed to Edo State House ofsermon Assembly aand remarkable from ofFinance, trial insult. your efforts to bring peace and ongoing reforms streamline Idris; Minister of Foreign seeing theitlight assurance atgovernment the State House, of theparty Democracy Day notYusuf just trillions of naira in the construction Efforts by THISDAY to Nigeria drew about $1.5 billion the new acting chairman of the proceeded on leave without the Affairs, Ambassador Abuja while receiving a special the of a president whose This was asofa roads chieftain ofthe the warranted celebration, but sober and rehabilitation Edo State chapter of APC, Jarret commencement of the execution independently confirm the over the past two weeks through Maitama Tuggar, tothe work together envoy from the Amir of across the State accounts were of a ADC, Dele Momodu, explained reflection on the journey democratic country. Tenebe where he made baseless of the budget by theofsubject executive. reported drawdown from a Total Return Swap (TRS) to ensure the timely execution of Qatar, Dr. Mohammed bin United States’ forfeiture case the decision by the onparty’s and economic renewal. Idris reaffirmed this yesterday in Itconsolidation and spurious allegations the isthese mostagreements. disheartening that the of Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of Rescue workers from around the trapped under rubble before the buildings. Heavy machinery reported severe shortages of transaction with First Dhabi Idris explained that funds recovered an interview with Forbes Africa to Edo fiscal management ofAbu our dear arising from narcotics trafficking State Government now is presidential candidate, Atiku, world yesterday intensified efforts was critical "golden window" arrivedclear in some thewhat hardest-hit essential supplies, years told72-hour that he would not board the would the airofon really every passenger hassaying a right, yourof EzePresident He said, "To all the members of Chinedu Qatar's Minister of State for Finance were unsuccessful. Bank PJSC, people familiar from the fuelfor subsidy removal were mark the Democracy Day celebration state by the citing Governor Godwin requesting a facility of N17.5 Kenyan William Ruto of Dangote Industries Limited, project would also support day and produces more than allegations, which the proceedings to appoint former Kaduna to locate survivors trapped beneath for finding survivors begins to close, areas nearly two days after the underfunding had left the country' flight because boarding had closed. happened, since the Senator and the right is limited to what is within thes the delegation, Idirectly want tointo asent big Foreign Affairs, Dr. Al-Khulaifi, being reinvested critical Obaseki-led government.” and unbroken 26 years ofrequested democratic billion with no corollary ofsay project Calls andwith text messages with the deal who yesterday toured the Dangote Aliko Dangote, said the Kenyan industrialisation and create 100 million litres of petrol, diesel ended the forfeiture of State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, lid Minerals Development, formalisation of artisanal miners also want to be part of the move d'Affairs, US Embassy, InBBC another development, the airline have made available their own ICAO (International Civil Aviation Airline Operators of Nigeria (AON) Charge collapsed buildings in Venezuela the reported. disaster to begin clearing massive healthcare system ill-prepared for a thank you for coming to Nigeria. conveyed Amir's strong interest in Addressing a press conference attached there to the said facility infrastructure projects including two rule in Nigeria. to$460,000 the Minister ofan Finance andin Dr. anonymity because they Dele hasthe described into amongst others. to reduce global emissions and put Organisation) Greene, in his include office on Refinery in Lagos ahead of the David refinery, whose construction is videos about 60,000 jobs when andcooperatives aviation fuel daily. Minister of Aviation and Aerospace that covered the incident. regulation and the from that byAlake, disrupting operations asHeDeputy Chairman ofthe hiswere 2027 and We are Godaccount for expanding bilateral yesterday, Tenebe had cooperation, said state alsograteful that thetocorridors facility iswhat not after two powerful earthquakes The worst-hit areas the piles of debris. disaster of such magnitude. expansive highway that will said defended President Bola Tinubu’s United asdenied Nigeria’s "The mining sector provides mining sector on the global aviation Coordinating of the Alake lauded the United not authorised to speak publicly. Development, Keyamo, has Okonkwo stated the operators’ is nothat amount ofgroundbreaking Air Peace States when itceremony him for Thursday, scheduled toFestus bethe launched next our completed. He industry. also There noted the Tinubu’s Presidential Campaign Council. was already suffering a debt contained asname. loanMinister to be in the we have experienced astaken partners announcing that aunder high-level killed more than 900 and capital, Caracas, coastal state Among those anxiously awaiting The tragedy has also reignited longstanding ally andpeople strategic aDangote veritable avenue for increased map. We have critical minerals States’ commitment to fostering ordered that a probe should be viewpoint on the incident and said of any disappointment, if at all, from boarding for the Lagos-Abuja flight, Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, According to Bloomberg, profile of N135 billion and $35.6 the 2024 fiscal budget just recently a new refinery project in Lamu, week, would be bigger than He said the refinery would Group had constructed in progress. I am also glad that the Qatari business delegation will “Tinubu court record reads at Morka had piled attacks on left thousands injured in one ofand the cooperation of La Guaira neighbouring rescue isCentre Natacha Diaz, criticism of Nigeria Venezuela's fragile forinthe nation’s mining trade between andinvolved the United that are in commercial demand with Nigeria in diverse that conducted on theand incident. passengers have their2, rights but any airline that gives you any rightin former governor of Edo billion. A cursory perusal the are under scrutiny and processing," Penta Mefforts &Amp; Tambuwal one of them was also Kuni Tyessi Abuja were responded toaofas1970s of partner "Nigeria has accessed the first passed. Amir ofnot Qatar greatly remembers visit Nigeria in the coming Kenya, describing theState Nigerian the Nigerian project. generate opportunities for for 120 kilometres of sea cables to times like the script of the constitution ofmonumenthe ADC sector development. States, especially in the area of value globally,"Alake said. sectors of the economy, stating that country' s deadliest natural disasters communities, where hundreds of whose two daughters are believed emergency response system, with Spokesman of AON and the airline operations are guided by self-help. We have been talking currently Senator representing Edo He said, "While it is a entire budgetdiscussed does not reveal where Oloyede said. LGA, Sokoto, Sokoto State. impersonation. the issues during my weeks to explore opportunities facility as a demonstration of The Kenyan president said the development of related facilitate the movement of crude Speaking while receiving addition, which implies processing The minister welcomed partnerit underscores the significance of the gangster film: an alleged heroin presidential campaign Council, Chairman of United Nigeria regulations and it is the responsibility about unruly behaviour. So, what North District, Adams Oshiohole, tal disaster that Edo State patrimony project for the facility is ever in moreJoint than aAdmissions century. buildings wereUTME reduced tobetween pilesthe of ship trapped inside a shopping residents urging authorities todue allow “Thebilateral 2025 showed Oloyede added 80 complex suspects The registrar also that to The and smooth visit last year. indeducting agriculture, food security, and the minerals and setting up with the US onthat investments in ofoilextracted relations what African the planned Dangote East industries, including fertiliser, from tosaid the refinery. Airlines, Obiora Okonkwo, in types a press airlines and passengers toby abide saw wasships avolunteers typical case of unruly network, aliases, wire transfers, violated aviation regulation. it as “dead on arrival According to governments, Venezuelan concrete and twisted steel. where they worked. Holding their more civilian to participate prevalence of some particular of of were being interrogated the you substandard performance, four centres Board (JAMB) has both "Let me commend the brotherly Matriculation other critical sectors. factories here. We would also require the mining value chain, expanding countries. inRefinery Lagos yesterday called bychemicals those regulations. behaviour. It is notachievement acceptable. Airis Senator Oshiomhole who had conference investors and financial African insystemic Lamu and packaging “This huge accounts spread across banksand and officially of politicalTinubu dead woods”. infractions, suggests police fortechnology their involvement in the hadrescue been delisted and blacklisted for announced release of on authorities, at Abuja leastthe 920 people ofwhich grief unfolded acrossI access photograph, the distraught mother in operations as thousands financing from multilateral institutions to extracting “IScenes you for your visit. between Qatar President emphasised relations thethank Federal Airports Authority “AON had had theinfull brief of Peace is a respected airline. No matter Lagosflight on Air institutions can achieve through would transform Kenya’s manufacturing. a testament of what African andwhose improving lives Fidelis Akure relatives namesthe recur inof the 6:30a.m. But David in a instatement issued Hope” vulnerabilities or gaps in registration examination malpractices and most technical deficiencies. He listed the the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation for our local operators. We are providand processing minerals and met the US Assistant Secretary of have been confirmed dead, while affected communities as desperate said they were "all I have." remain displaced. Nigeria (FAAN) to bring out the Air Peace on this incident. And as what you think about it, they carry last Wednesday was denied ofpetroleum the people of Ondo State. collaboration. sector and strengthen Highlighting the scale the 40 governments, investors and Kemi in Ibadan thetrail. youthful population. “Wethan are3,300 establishing, this State ing incentives for investments like mining areas. forvideo Energy Resources, Geoffrey financial Yet this is no work Peace and examination administration or/ asecuring ofmatter them would beas prosecuted. centres Adventure Associate, Behind by Olaitan its Director of Strategic among Examination (UTME) results. CCTV of the incident, saying of fact, much asofwe to 50as: percent of all the domestic boarding when he arrived atsustained 6:05a.m., more others families waited near collapsed Another resident, Andreina Meanwhile, international “Today, we take yet another bold The Governor of Ondo State, tax waivers for mining equipment, Throwing light on reforms Pyatt, on thevideo sidelines ofFAAN thesecurity Mines He said the government is year, 37,000 Citizens’ Brigade and monitoring. “The Board has identified the Sheshe Supermarket, Kano, Saadatu Ruto, who visited the $20 fuel reliability and Nigerian refinery, Ruto said the financial institutions can do Following poor performance of fiction. It is a sworn affidavit Communications, Phrank Shaibu, the numerous challenges Olawale Ajimotokan in that it is the from that appreciate and understand that passengers in Nigeria. 25 minutes to departure time and injuries afterSchool. the twin earthquakes, structures, hoping forin news of embarked Valerio, appealed forthehelp to rescue assistance hasrepatriation begun pouring into step in our ongoing commitment to inof Lucky Aiyedatiwa, hasNational said his worried policy of full of profits upon by federal govThe Director General, and Money conference London that about 72 per cent Primary 1,000 in each “The new trends observed were presence of extraneous fingers in Rimi College of Education, Zaria. candidates in the 2025 UTME, billion facility at the invitation of across the region. facility has a crude oil refining together,” Ruto wrote on X, filed in a United States federal the CouncilAgency said insults confronting theof our country, Abuja the youthful welfare people, state, administration willMorka’s continue measuring magnitudes 7.2 and past missing loved Many her registration one-and-a-half-year-old son, thehome country. Rescue teamsothers," froma to countries amongst the minister highlighted year, andones. weand hadExamination asurvivors fruitful ernment, Orientation (NOA),to ofimproving the nation’s population including FCT, Abuja. These in the Registration the details of some of On how to check the UTME results, telecommunications and digital the President/Chief Executive According to Ruto, the capacity of 700,000 barrels per social media handle. court,” Shaibu said. could not answer Nigerians ensuring social inclusion and fulfilling prioritiseLanre socialIssa-Onilu, inclusion has and urging them to intensify 7.5, struck barely a minute apart engagement. emphasised. Community Development I didwere analyse our have also forced toallin sleep Santiago, who This remains trapped Alake Switzerland Mexicothe have Mallam becomeofforeigners through going tosaid be processes andbeen they mainly the revised these candidates. raises concerns Oloyede said:and "To check 2025 solutionsBrigade company,are Globacom, the promise Hope for Citizens’ economic empowerment “The connections described In his remarks, the US Ambasaskingfederal whyplans food,government fuel, transport have (CDA) guidelines issues, andcategories: fundamentally, we just Agreement prayers for Renewed President Bola The announced toof vulnerable launch on Wednesday night. The second outdoors after their homes were alongside other family members joined local emergency responders, the influence of cartoons and like Boys’ Scout and Girls’ Guild following Identity Fraud, regarding potential strategies for UTME results, candidates should send its Examination Preparatory Service Tinubu for the support given to the all,” he declared. Kuni Tyessi in Abuja citizens through strategic partnerships sador commended the renewed geared towards reducing friction in want to diversify our economy by the investigator were specific. and electricity becomeinso movies Tinubu andand histhe administration. has asserted itshave unwavering awith 37,000 Citizens’ Brigade which are foreign in of theEnumah olden and Biometric Fraud of Combined impersonation. by text message “UTMERESULT” as was specifically designed to help from quake is believed to be the strongest destroyed or declared unsafe. beneath the rubble. while the United States military is A statement posted on the anti-graft's prosecution to proceed with the trial described the May 27, 2025 bail application Alex indays. Abuja According to Aiyedatiwa, a total the federal government. interest of Nigeria in solid minerals, commission Humanitarian host communities; on-going plans oil. Not just for our own primary schools across countryto . contents, He255 also expressed optimism resolve togovernment securing freedom values and across cultures. the in world, Nigerians Thumbprint of Candidate,” he of 3,656 candidates fall hearing withinzone this one to 55019 or 66019has using the Computer-Based social handle X, noted thesaid. duo prayed for of theword defendants as incompetent, given of 16, beneficiaries all 18 students to“Across hit theexcel South American nation economic Inmedia La Guaira, residents described inaccelerated thearchitecture disaster participating inthe humanitarian rescue that sector huge Also, Aiyedatiwa hasthe forwarded forlDoctors new security to ofstressing survival butthat also to and Affairs Ministry. The federal yesterday He made theHouse disclosure whilea Local Other he trends said, were category. Consequently, the results of that same they had used Issa-Onilu saidAreas as a in way out are known beFinancial the smartest examinations. were arraigned onglobal a six-count case. natural thephone defendants neither underto that ongoing security The Economic Crimes be for Nigerians held captive potentials tonumber rivalwere the contribution the state secure efforts in tuneinfractions, with for the the Ondo State of Assembly HeGovernment revealed that Nigeria said there arejournalists ongoing discussion since 1900. toand widespread devastation ascharge, rescue warned that resources; hospitals were operations despite longstanding speaking with in Ibadan bordering on toWe the defence J.J. arrest, inthe detention, nor have appeared impersonators at laundering the point of to theResponding, candidatesthe have beencounsel, withheld.” register the registration process. thereceive malaise, NOA would on earth. is abriefing positive Commission (EFCC), yesterday, arraigned Speaking at workers aThis press in reduction of oilnortoduring nation's economy. generate big geo-data; the inmoney global warming. will N75,and 000plans each, disbursed list of 12 nominees for the position of of operations coordinated byhow bandits. has concluded to soon host people on 15,000 Nigerians stranded Emergency are racing teams, police officers and military struggling to cope with the influx tensions between Washington during a working to Oyo launch of $12 with million. SAN, on on underage his part reminded the before court,will being the grounds the Managing Director/Chief Executive registration the active involvement Usman, Speaking candidates, Resultthe printing be available later." aleaders Mobile App containing but someof people Abuja yesterday, Registrar JAMB, tune monthly installments of N25, 000 development commissioners the visit State Executive interventions would yield global to discuss issues Secretary toinNiger, the Government in Cameroon, Chad and in against time to rescue those feared personnel searched damaged of casualties. personnel andMeanwhile, Caracas. State. The defendants according to the court of subsistingMedical bail following applications of provided by thereacting Administration of Officer of SunTrust Bank Ltd, Halima for three months, directly through Council for confirmation. of few CBT centres, double registration, he explained that the to the poor indigenous cartoons through mischievously tend to portray Prof. Ishaq Oloyede, revealed that the migration and how it affects other parts of the worldSenator would of positive results in the fight us ofHe the Federation, EFCC's statement, however,ofpleaded the defendants, dated May 27, 2025 and Criminal Justice of Act,students (ACJA) that should Buba and the bank's Executive Director/ saidgovernor 1,000 Citizens’ Brigade their debit cards. The made this which and attempted substitution self by Ministry of Education’s decision performance in the 2025 Board withheld the results of 39,834 local contents, national in negative light. But this is countries under the membership be returned to Nigeria safety. election. Segun Awofadeji in ofofficial against kidnapping andinjected other George Akume, gave the values guilty” to all the charges when they prayed that the acourt should uphold a bail application but rather Chief Compliance Officer, He said theculture total amount commitment during the would be Commissioner, set up in each the candidates. to enforce minimum age theof precipitate UTME, the company explained that candidates outare of the over 1.9Innocent million “not and would be who we as a people. of the on not Federal National “Following nullification, Gombe readOloyede to themadded following which the lead applications and admit thegranted defendants applied for bail from the comfort of their Mbagwu, before Justice Emeka Nwite criminal activities. assurance yesterday when into theEuro-African scheme isthe N1,Dialogue 219,125, 000, flag-off ceremony ofFederal the second phase promoted. 36 states and the Capital that 244 candidates 16, an exception was for the Glo Examination Preparatory applicants that sat for the exam. “To change the negative narMigration and Development. Commission for Refugees, Migrants to acaught cabal comprising family to“exceptionally pays attention to the homes on matters affecting our nation.'' Okocha inJAMB Abujaboss, counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, bail. little or no ortrains offices when nor has ofChuks the Federal High Court, Abuja for economic support the PDPdirect wishes to"These inform all its ratives, of Conditional Cash national Transfer Tand erritory (FCT) toDisplaced promote "Our mission hethe hosted members of providing were engaging in “WhatsApp gifted” underage Service students onaction practical According to thesetting of prosecution According to him, variwe are upout the Popularly known asontheearth, Rabat Internally Persons SAN, announced thetoreadiness of and the The prosecution counsel in his response, been taken against alleged fraud. to thousands ofon households. disbursement to beneficiaries in Ondo members, principal aides security and economic challenges Instead, theinthem. APM said that card-carrying members that there The Peoples Democratic Party values as of old, stating that the runs,” subscribing rogue groups students. ways to excel Computer-Based the figure 96 candidates' results were our goal earth is to ous policies are geared towards Citizens’ Brigade to produce the Federation of Muslim Process, the meeting would be (NCFRMI), Alhaji Tijani Ahmed, The be governor recalled that in young State, held atthe the Akure South Local other unelected persons who bordering hisTheadministration brought PresidentSAN, Tinubu prefers The Allied Movement essence ofthis was to that on terrorism and murder. enumah in Abuja promising leaked questions. registrar said thathas of the 41,027 Fagbemi, examinations such assubmitted Joint Admissions will a2024, gubernatorial repeat withheld over Peoples exam malpractices, (PDP) in Gombe State has the and the Nigerians and createa Alex promote, tonarratives preserve, and Women's Associations in changing the first thematic dialogue under disclosed atBrigade a mediayesterday. briefing November a total of 8,637 debit Government Secretariat the charge having been filed by Although, they pleaded not revive and rebuild the national have seized control of the to the country. holidaying abroad at taxpayers' (APM) has taken a critical look He said their results had also been underage candidates who registered, and Matriculation Board (JAMB), decrease from 123 in the previous year. wrong impression that the outside positive models to rebuild the primary election on Tuesday, cleared Professor Isa Ali Pantami, to prolong life. toIt's not to Nigeria’s chairmanship, which Nigeria (FOMWAN), led cards in Abuja. were distributed beneficiaries, At the event, Governor Aiyedatiwa Justice Bolaji Olajuwon of a Fed- guilty the Inspector General of Police, was to all the charges, the judge the values and create positive models withheld to set a stern example. only 467 met the high-performance Junior and Senior West African Oloyede said the Board remained world is having about the country . national values." administration. ''Mr. President’s repeated expense while critical matters at the way and manner Nigeria conveyed government' s approval stakeholder participation in health federal government’s Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja 29th September, 2026. All eligible Khamisu Ahmed Mailantarki is being co-chaired by Nigeria Ahmed revealed that no amounting to N647,775,000, making launched the distribution of the by its National Amirah, Dr. shorten it. The government resolute in its commitment to eralInHigh Court inhe yesterday, incompetent askedexaminations the court to however, ordered that they some cases, said, the entire criteria, with one disqualified duebe to and Examination Council According toAbuja, ahad statement by and absence at meetings of world of unreliable state areand left intestimonies, the hands is being administered under dismissed High Court which dismissed onegovernance. other defendant. witness Igbintade at the 5th the Ministerial Oversight sector commitment to1,3,4,5,6, strengthening and the are Kingdom Spain, and Wale fewer thanHope six Aliyu million people current phase ofa to significant expected Renewed Debit Hamza. Cards to and Usman Garry for the application bycentres two strike out counts and 7 of isvoters doing everything toassemble secure remanded at malpractice. the Kuje Correctional Sumaye Fadimatu syndicates colluded with CBT examination as well as IELTS. eliminating any form of examination his no-case submission, and quashed At the lower court, Justice Raliatu including those of PW9, PW10, expansion of the social safety net. thousands of beneficiaries as part is focusing on youth, education the National Publicity Secretary leaders, particularly, the United of a cabal of aides and family were displaced in Nigeria, while President Bola Ahmed Tinubu Committee (MOC) held in Abuja As of efforts to reinforce health sector governance, The federal government has Rivers State indigenes challenging at their respective ward areas the Center, pending the hearing of the charge or strike strike outand aHe freshvowed governorship primary the release of all who are that no effort toofregister usingcharge multiple fingerprints. He bail said that the Board remained Theas 2025 UTME results released malpractice, adding that 1,957,000 the 12-count filed against had ruled that the EFCC well as Exhibits P59–P61. The of Appeal, Lagos Division, “We understand the economic ofelection. the federalofgovernment’s innovation. thousands refugees areNational living and jurisdiction of the court to try Adebiyi entire suit for been incompetent. their application fixed for PW11, the party, Yusuf Abubukar, Nations General Assembly members. andCourt posited thatverified the President has the yesterday, said that the committee state financing compliance, deepening accountability across approved N32,880,443,906.25 to vote for an aspirant of their captured," he said. will be spared to facilitate the that regard, has approved your indicated that Governor Seyi Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan According to him, as a result of committed to providing the necessary by JAMB on May 5 had elicited candidates were to sit for him by the Economic and Financial had established a prima facie case The Court of Appeal agreed, has discharged and acquitted a that many of holds our people Social Investment Programme (NSIP), challenges them over alleged complicity in the Responding, Policeinstitutions, lawyer,''Is Mr.it February 2,also as well as the motion The meeting, which May under elsewhere the world. 'President Tinubu runs lethargic (UNGA) underscores his holding Thethat party further asked, notexam demonstrated the has so farthe disbursed aaHouse total of the Committee directed the implementing the second quarter, 2026 choice,” Dukku said. Inreturn a across statement issued as the Onido ofrequired Ido in burning Makinde approved the suspension this, 3,656 “extraneous support for persons with disabilities widespread concerns morenot than Crimes Commission (EFCC). some of the counts and ordered the appellant was a He lauded FOMWAN for the while 71,705 were absent. former Director General of the safe of captives, and this programme is a clear implemented in collaboration with face ofcandidates Riverswith State of on Simon Lough, SAN,asurged the of the 1st and 2nd defendants 13th toof 14th, 2025, is2024. expected to suspension “We haveState 15,000 Nigerianswhile who administration and most of the inability to effectively represent, not absurd that President Tinubu The Oyo Government, yesthe area of authority of Ido Local capacity to provide effective on 1st February, N290 under thetheir initiative. MOC to issue formal improving coordination among BHCPF disbursement memo Assembly Insteadfast adiscussions separate statement, the Nigerian yesterday, the State Publicity The billion EFCC accused andtertiary his co-defendant the VIMSAS Maritime fingerprints” have had results Akpobolokemi aspiringSecretariat to pursue education. 1.5 million out of 1.9 million candidates According to him,Administration 2,157 candidates thatcontributions the government the Ondo State Government through demonstration complex in Port Harcourt, court toofdismiss the Committee; application challenging the jurisdiction of member its reaffirming the government's feature that would want to return to the country terday, suspended Oba Investment Gbolagade Area Oyo State." Thewith letter read ingovernor part, "Ithe wish to Government time absent the theatre of to propagate haslacking never any of the for theofrejections country. Akpobolokemi of conspiracy, open their defence. not a signatory to any of the and Safetyfingerprint Agency (NIMASA), TheState. meeting also approved communication all2025 36Nigeria’s states to and stakeholders, andreleased accelerating you,” the added. withheld, and from some CBT centres He said that fortodrive the UTME, whose results were scored said it received court toleadership sustain implementation of Rivers the National Social experienced due Secretary ofand the Abdulkadir for invisited merit. the court toand entertain the suit toparty national development, commitment toparty, strengthening guide policy direction, shape voluntarily, we also have stands Muritala Babalola, as the Onido Itsuspected directed Oba Babalola hand stealing, inform you that His Excellency, the Patrick and forgery in completely connection Akpobolokemi, through his Committee’s accounts. Akpobolokemi, of to alleged He further disclosed that efforts Chime Eguma Ezebalike and Programme Agency (NSIPA). According to Lough, besides against them. governance. He is interest at the global level where communities being ravaged implicated will face sanctions. a total of 501 candidates were below 200. A breakdown of the results The party also asserted to registration infractions, modalities to commence inclusion reiterate responsibilities relating to implementation of ongoing judgement in good faith and healthcare services nationwide. Ahmed Dukku, said the three efforts among not lessinthan 100,000 foreigners cooperative describing association as of Ido Ido Local Government national security. government properties in Prince Executive Governor of Oyo of over all million alleged illegalfrom transfers from the Collins Ogbonna and Theterrorists, court further held he fraud. Lukman Oladele, were ongoing tothe expand theState state’s Sections and 66Monday of thethat Police and Oladele had Addressing thecleared gathering, the are He identified the within centres as lawyers successfully examined by Kunle JAMB released by4JAMB on showed a that figure, he said, was far above Nigerians. heEzebalike was expected toobligations engage in health by kidnappers and President Tinubu has with the decision of the N754.8 ofdisconnected private sector actors the counterpart funding sector reforms under the aspirants were toacontest The Coordinating Minister countries origin, transit and living in the this country asand refugees. Area of state. possession todecision the Chairman Nigeria, inof exercise the powers arespects vital partner inofpromoting The SGF underscored account of the VIMSAS Committee. Gbolahan, appealed the ruling, neither signed nor approved any In a unanimous delivered among five persons charged with Acts that empower them to bring argued that by the provisions social register to accommodate more his governor expressed joy deep Tigh Technologies Limited, Sascon Equal Opportunity Group (JEOG) that 983,187 candidates (50.29 per cent) acceptable margins and currently He seems unperturbed and high-level diplomatic discussions bandits." abdicated his official duties The government, in a letter dated localthe government. Incourt the terrorism conferred on him by stressing Sub-section destination, explore inclusive All are theof responsibilities court. advocacy, Ministerial Oversight Committee and fund commitments. national agenda towarddefendants, achieving inthese the rescheduled primary of Ido Health and Social Welfare, He wasand originally arraigned with arguing thenationwide. EFCC to withdrawal instructions internal yesterday, appellate murder. The others the charge against of theequity Terrorism Act, it isfailed only the peace, unity and the vital role faith-based households, that of sense ofFebruary, responsibility, noting that vulnerable International School, Maitama, across 11that centres scored between 160the andor199, while under investigation. 2nd of 2024 and signed meantime, the stateAli government 1&2 of Section 26 ofcooperation the Chiefs policies, stronger of the commission, tostep give them no framework to strengthen broader In his remarks, Pate reaffirmed Universal Health Coverage. Prof. Muhammad Pate who several others, but the charges were link him to any wrongdoing and memos related to the alleged are Kenneth Goodluck Kpasa, Osiga allowed Akpobolokemi’s appeal, Section 5 and 99 of the Terrorism Attorney General of the Federation vulnerable household should be the initiative is a bold towards social progress. organisations in addressing According to Oloyede, the results 488,197 candidates (24.97 per cent) "A total of 39, 834 results remain Abuja, Wudil Computer Information by the Commissioner for Local

Umahi says FG investing trillions in construction of roads across Nigeria Affirms Nigeria's readiness for strategic partnership

Air Peace Incident: Oshiomhole Violated Aviation Mining Development: Nigeria, USto 920 Death Toll in Venezuela Earthquakes Rises Regulation, AON Alleges, Minister Orders Probe Ahead of Kenya Refinery Launch, Ruto Tours Dangote Refinery UTME: JAMB Releases Results, Withholds 39,834 Explore Areas of Strategic Partnership Places 1,426 results under scrutiny Globacom: how our product can help students excel in JAMB, other exams

Aiyedatiwa Launches FG's N1.2bn Conditional Cash Transfer in Ondo, Akume Assures Nigerians Nominates NOA DG: FGCommissioners to Launch 37,000 Citizens' Brigade Nationwide

in Captivity of Freedom

FG to Repatriate 15,000 Nigerians Stranded Abroad

Gombe PDP Picks Date For Fresh Primary, Clears Pantami, 2 Others

Alleged Money Laundering: EFCC Arraigns SunTrust Bank CEO, Executive

APM: Tinubu Lacks Capacity, Has Abdicated Presidency to Cabal

ofRiversAssembly Dismisses Insists NigeriaBurning needs Makinde’s energetic,Complex: visionaryCourt leadership

Pate: FG Application Has Disbursed N32.88bn Challenging Competence of Charge Basic for Q2Fraud 2026 Appeal CourtHealthcare Acquits Ex-NIMASA DGFund Akpobolokemi in N754.8m Case

Oyo Govt Suspends Monarch in Ibadan

support,” hepromise said. of “Renewed fulfilling the Government andPresident Chieftaincy Ahmed thanked Bola Matters, Hon. Olusegun Olayiwola,

Law,sustained Cap. 28 Vol I, Lawsthat of Oyo and dialogue can left Statebehind. of Nigeria 2000positively. and by virtue reshape migration of all other enabling powers in

has vowedthe to hit hard atthe anyone, set aside Ikeja unreleased. Ofruling these, of 1,426 results no matter how highly placed, who contravenes the law.

Donald and Ochueja Thankgod. later amended to include only him Technology. Kano State and They wereWudil, last week arraigned on a seven-count criminal charge

relied onfileinadmissible evidence transfers. Act, shows that theand police have that any released charge ofbut terrorism are can also being sadly, fraudulent scored between powers to also 140 initiate 159. terrorism against them. Their lawyer, Mr. Lukman charges against the defendant.

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2026 • T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R

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PODFEST NAIJA 2026...

L-R: Executive Producer and Host of The Morayo Show, Morayo Afolabi-Brown; Deputy Governor of Lagos State, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat; Convener, PodFest Naija/CEO, AT3 Resources– The Muvmnt Agency Tosin Adefeko, and Deputy Governorship Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos State, Mrs. Damilola Sonayon-James, during the second edition of PodFest Naija 2026 held at Harbour Point, Lagos…yesterday

2027 Campaign: Obi Demands Unhindered Access to Voters Insists he left $150m in Anambra, state govt presents N363m salary arrears records

Chuks Okocha in Abuja and Emmanuel Ugwu-Nwogo in Enugu The presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr Peter Obi, yesterday said every part of Nigeria should be made conducive for election campaigns as the nation prepares for the 2027 general elections. This comes as the former Anambra Governor claimed that he left more than $150 million in state investments when he handed over power in 2014, arguing that the funds could have grown to about $335 million if retained and reinvested. But the Anambra State Government has released documents detailing N363.38 million in salary arrears owed to workers and pensioners of

two defunct state agencies, amid former governor Peter Obi’s insistence that he left the state without debt. Speaking at the ongoing 22nd All Nigeria Editors Conference holding at Enugu with the theme, ‘The Ballot, the Media and the Task of Keeping Democracy Alive,’ Obi said presidential candidates should be free to take their campaigns to every state without restrictions and at the state levels candidates of both ruling parties and opposition parties should be free to campaign. "We need that conducive environment to campaign in the country to make (democracy) work," he said. He decried the situation where some state governors have been manifesting signs of intolerance by

placing restrictions on movements of political opponents coming into their states. Using himself as an example, the NDC presidential flag bearer said that when he was the governor of Anambra State, he never made any attempt to stop the opposition from campaigning. He said, "In my second term (as governor), (Babatunde) Fashola came to Anambra State to campaign for (Chris) Ngige, who was in ACN. It was me who gave Fashola my convoy. "And because I didn't have two convoys—I didn't have that of my office that day—I gave him everything and stayed back in my office, Fashola is still there. You can go and ask him." Obi also stressed the need for the 2027 campaigns to be issue based, saying that the Editors have an important role to play in keeping the candidates and their supporters in check. He said that "it's time for you (Editors) to get involved. Question us based on our background. He spoke in a presentation titled, Question us based on what ‘Robust Pipeline Network Systems: we say. Question us on our Critical Assets for Economic qualifications and everything. Development’, delivered during It's not enough for anybody to a Canadian Trade Commissioner say ‘I'm this and that’. No". The former Anambra governor Service Business-to-Business insisted that election campaigns matchmaking programme. should be devoid of name-calling, According to him, Nigeria character assassination, among has about 215.19 trillion cubic other irrelevant issues. feet (TCF) of proven natural gas reserves, while its existing gas pipeline infrastructure spans more than 2,500 kilometres. He said substantial investment was required to expand the network and support growing domestic and export demand Dike Onwuamaeze for natural gas. Amagada stressed that reliable pipeline infrastructure was critical The UAC of Nigeria Plc has to power generation, fertiliser entered an agreement to sell production, petrochemicals, 43 per cent stake in DP World manufacturing, compressed natural Logistics (formerly MDS gas (CNG), liquefied petroleum Logistics Limited) to 22 Plus gas (LPG) and liquefied natural Invest Limited, a member of Tropical General Investments gas (LNG).

Nigeria’s Gas Ambitions Require Decade of Pipeline Infrastructure, Experts Say Wale Igbintade Energy experts have warned that Nigeria’s ambition to fully harness its vast natural gas resources could remain constrained unless the country undertakes a major expansion, modernisation and digitalisation of its pipeline infrastructure. The experts, Dr. Eloho Innocent Amagada, Chief Executive Officer, Amelin Projects Ltd., and Engr. Reuben Temerigha, Managing Director, Westend Diamond Energy Ltd., made the call at the 2026 International Pipeline Conference and Expo (IPCE) in Canada. Amagada said Nigeria’s challenge was no longer the availability of gas resources but the development of a reliable, intelligent and secure infrastructure network capable of transporting the resources to where they are needed.

"I cannot abuse any governor; I can never abuse anybody in government. I don't need to abuse people, even those in federal government, I've never abused anybody, including presidential candidates. Never. I will not do that," he said. The NDC presidential hopeful further stated that despite the differences he has with President Bola Tinubu, he has never attacked him or abused him. "He (Tinubu) is the President of the country. He has all my respect, but I can argue on other issues, whether you're doing well or not doing well in that. That is allowed. "We must respect the President because he is the leader (and) the character and behaviour of the leader, exemplifies the value of the society. And the leader must live it." Obi challenged his fellow presidential candidates to stop overusing their aides to speak for them on every issue, saying that they should make time and personally respond to serious accusations. According to him, presidential flag bearers should be ready to explain everything concerning them, adding that they "must come and explain, and don't do it through proxies." Obi emphasised the need to protect Nigeria’s democracy,

saying that "we made a choice to be a democratic country" hence all hands must be on deck to keep it alive. He stated that the media has a responsibility to make Nigeria’s democracy to thrive because "we can't talk about building a society that is good or building a real world without talking about communication and you are the hub of it. "So, it is important that whenever you are gathering, that as you discuss, please focus and remember to include in your discussions the future of our country," he charged the Editors.

Obi Insists He Left $150m in Anambra, State Govt Presents N363m Salary Arrears Records Meanwhile, Obi, has claimed that he left more than $150 million in state investments when he handed over power in 2014, arguing that the funds could have grown to about $335 million if retained and reinvested. But the Anambra State Government has released documents detailing N363.38 million in salary arrears owed to workers and pensioners of two defunct state agencies, amid former governor Peter Obi’s insistence that he left the state without debt.

Obi who made the claim in a statement yesterday while responding to the ongoing controversy over the state’s external debt and the financial position he left behind when he left office, said the funds constituted the dollar component of his investments in the state and were left in various bank accounts that could be independently verified. “On the day I left office, I left more than US$150 million as the dollar component of my investment in Anambra State as governor,” Obi said. He claimed that the investments were expected to generate about $10 million annually for the state if they had remained untouched. Obi further argued that, based on the income he said the funds could have generated over the 13 years since he left office, the state would have accumulated about $130 million in additional income. He said that, including compound interest on the principal and additional income, the total value could have reached approximately $335 million. Obi said the funds would, in his calculation, have been sufficient to settle the $92.35 million outstanding balance the Anambra State Government says remained on the development facilities linked to his tenure, while leaving about $242 million available for reinvestment.

UAC Nigeria Enters Agreement to Sell 43% Stake in DP World Logistics to TGI’s Subsidiary (TGI) Group. The proposed sale, which was announced on Thursday by the Company Secretary/ Group General Counsel UAC of Nigeria PLC, Ayomipo Wey, is subject to requisite regulatory approval. The Group Managing Director

of UAC, Fola Aiyesimoju, said “UAC has worked closely with DP World’s management to support the significant growth and expansion of the Company over the years. We believe TGI, following completion of the proposed transaction, will be a strong long-term partner for

DP World, its management and employees, bringing deep market knowledge and a strong track record of building businesses in Nigeria. “We look forward to seeing the Company continue to grow and strengthen its contribution to Nigeria’s logistics sector.”

T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R • SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2026

NEWS

2026 FICAN CONFERENCE...

L-R: Corporate Affairs/Media Relations Officer, First City Monument Bank Limited (FCMB), Rafiu Mohammed; Corporate Communications Officer, Development Bank of Nigeria Plc, Sadiq Wada; Registrar/Chief Executive Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) Akin Morakinyo; Manager Communications and Public Affairs Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) Gbenga Fabuyi; Communication Officer, Corporate Communications Department, Assets Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON), Hauwa Ibrahim; Group Head, Media and External Relations United Bank of Africa (UBA), Ramon Nasir, and Head Corporate Communications, Signature Bank, Nnamemeka Lucky Egwu, at the 36th anniversary conference of the Finance Correspondents Association of Nigeria (FICAN) in Lagos… recently

Gov. Lawal to Wike: Join APC or Quit as Minister is Appointed to Lead Tinubu’s Campaign in FCT, Rivers Zamfara governor: You can’t support APC and other parties at same time

Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja and Sunday Ehigiator in Lagos Zamfara State Governor, Dauda Lawal, yesterday challenged the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to clarify his political allegiance ahead of the 2027 general elections, insisting that he cannot support President Bola Tinubu’s re-election while simultaneously backing political parties outside the All

Progressives Congress (APC). Lawal’s position came as Wike confirmed that he would lead campaign teams for Tinubu’s 2027 re-election bid in the FCT and Rivers State, despite retaining his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Wike said he would soon inaugurate the campaign structures in the two areas. The development has further exposed the political disagreement

Nigeria Seeks Global Partnership Against Sickle Cell

Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja

The federal government has canvassed global partnership to scale up fight against sickle cell disease (SCD), urging multilateral institutions, development partners and private sector to invest in country-owned systems. Minister of State for Health and Social Welfare, Dr. Iziaq Adekunle Salako, made the call on Wednesday at the launch of OneSCD - A Global Partnership to Advance Equity and Transform Sickle Cell Care,

held on the sidelines of the 81st UN General Assembly in New York. Salako said the launch is moving SCD from a neglected disease to the front burner and must translate to on-ground implementation. "I call on multilateral institutions, development partners, philanthropies, researchers and the private sector to align efforts, invest in country-owned systems, and help to move proven interventions from pilots to national scale.

2026 Ohanaeze Day Will Strengthen Igbo Unity

Boniface Okoro in Umuahia

Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, the apex Igbo socio-cultural organisation, has said the 2026 Igbo Day celebration is aimed at strengthening the bond of unity among Igbo people both at home and in the diaspora. The two-day celebration is scheduled to hold in Umuahia, Abia State. It will kick off on Monday, September 28, 2026, with a public lecture, while Tuesday, September 29 will be the grand finale. Delegates are expected from the core seven states of Ohanaeze Ndigbo.

Briefing journalists at the Government House, Umuahia, on the upcoming event, the Policy Secretary of Ohanaeze Ndigbo Worldwide, Dr. Ezechi Chukwu, said the celebration would promote greater unity and strategic engagement among Ndigbo. "Igbo Day celebration is an opportunity for us to revitalise our sense of oneness as one people and to reflect on where we are coming from, where we are and where we are going, in a very amiable and fraternal sense of organic solidarity," Chukwu said.

between Wike and APC Governors over the minister’s involvement in the Rainbow Coalition, a crossparty platform he has described as a vehicle for mobilising support for Tinubu’s presidential bid. Speaking in an interview on a national television on the sidelines of the 81st United Nations General Assembly in New York, Lawal said Wike must choose where his political allegiance lies. “Our message is very clear: Be

on one side. You can’t be in two sides. If you are in APC, please come out and support APC, not you are supporting APC here and you are supporting some other political parties somewhere else,” Lawal said. Asked whether the APC governors were effectively asking Wike to join the party, Lawal replied: “Exactly.” He said the governors would maintain their position and that he would discuss the matter with

Tinubu when the President returns from France. “It’s something I will discuss with the President when he comes back. Let there be a clear line where this guy belongs to. It’s either he is in APC or he is out. It’s simple. So I go with my brothers, the governors,” Lawal said. Wike to Lead Campaign in FCT, Rivers Wike, meanwhile, confirmed that he would lead Tinubu’s campaign teams in the FCT and

Rivers State, saying supporters of the President across different political platforms were already putting their structures in place ahead of the 2027 elections. THISDAY had exclusively reported this on Monday. The minister disclosed this yesterday in Chikuku, in the Kuje Area Council of the FCT, after inspecting the ongoing Phase Two construction of the Kuje-Gwagwalada Road dualisation project.

Defence Minister: Terrorism Has National Impact, Regional Consequences with Global Implications COAS tasks new officers to turn manpower into combat power

Linus Aleke in Abuja The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (rtd) has said that terrorism, banditry, and other emerging security threats in Nigeria, as in every other country, have national impacts, regional consequences and global implications. This was as the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, charged newly commissioned officers of Direct Short Service Course (DSSC) 29/2026 to provide purposeful, professional and decisive

leadership as the Nigerian Army expands its manpower, force structure and operational reach to address evolving national security challenges. General Musa stated this while addressing an international audience comprising diplomats, security practitioners, and representatives of the United Nations, African Union (AU), and ECOWAS during a high-level discussion held on the margins of the 81st United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 81) High-Level Week in New York. The event convened by

the Ministry of Defence of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, was themed ‘Confronting Nigeria’s Multidimensional Security Challenges: A Whole-of-Society and Partnership-Based Approach’. According to a statement by the Special Assistant on Media to the Minister of Defence, Leah Katung-Babatunde, the minister called for a global partnership and a whole-of-society approach to addressing Nigeria’s evolving security threats, as well as those confronting the wider Sahel region. “Our recognition that we

cannot address these challenges alone is not a statement of dependence; rather, it is an acknowledgement of the multidimensional character of modern security threats and the importance of collective action. “Sustainable security requires resilient communities, effective institutions, inclusive development, and good governance,” Musa said. The Defence Minister also outlined decisive measures being implemented under the leadership of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Omolehin: Bandits Have Rendered Me,100 Others Homeless

Adedayo Adejobi

Founder of Word Assembly Ministries, Ilorin, Evangelist Isaac Omolehin, has said he and more than 100 vulnerable residents of his camp in Kwara State, have remained homeless since bandit threats forced a midnight evacuation of the facility in May, 2026. Omolehin, an outspoken Christian evangelist known for his criticism of

denominational divisions within the Nigerian church and his calls for a nondenominational Christian leadership, said the camp has remained deserted after police warned that kidnappers were on their way to attack the facility. According to him, the police arrived at the camp on the midnight of May 30 into May 31 and ordered an immediate evacuation.

“The police came to my camp in the middle of the night and asked everybody to run because kidnappers were coming to attack me. The whole camp was deserted, and it has remained deserted,” he said. He disclosed that although he was away when the evacuation took place, the kidnappers eventually came to the camp but met an empty facility. “They came, the bandits,

but they didn't meet anybody.” The evangelist said he has since gone into hiding and can no longer return to his home or move freely in public. “I have a house I can't enter. I have a car I can't ride. I have to hide myself from the public. If I sleep here today, I'll sleep somewhere else tomorrow. I'm homeless with my wife and children.”

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2026 • T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R

NEWS

BACK TO THE CREEKS INITIATIVE...

L-R: Project Supervisor, Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Khadija Jekhine; Member of the Board of Directors, Mr. Henry Nwabuzor; Chief Executive Officer, Techico Resource Solutions Limited, Omolola Bolushire, and Auditor, NCDMB, Zekime Blankson, during the donation of educational materials and teaching enhancement tools to Ugbuwangue Secondary School through the ‘Back to the Creeks’ initiative in Warri, Delta State…recently

Wunti to World Leaders: No Country Can Build Energy Security Alone The Chief Executive Officer of World Energy Council Nigeria, Mr. Bala Wunti, has warned that the United States and its allies cannot build credible defence systems, reliable electricity grids and artificial intelligence infrastructure while depending on a single country for critical

mineral processing. A statement quoted Wunti to have made the remarks at the 2026 Concordia Annual Summit held from September 20 to 23 at the Sheraton New York Times Square, alongside the United Nations General Assembly. The summit, now in its 16th

year, brings together heads of state, senior government officials and business leaders from more than 100 countries. Wunti participated in a panel titled, ‘Rare Currency: Critical Minerals in a Shifting Global Economy’ alongside Alix Steel, Principal at DrivePath Advisors

and former Bloomberg Television anchor; Steven Fox, founder and Executive Chairman of Veracity Worldwide; and Scott Monteith, President and Chief Executive Officer of Avalon Advanced Materials. The session examined America’s growing dependence

NDC Warns State Chapters Against Collecting Money from Support Groups Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

The Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) has warned its state chapters against demanding or collecting money from support groups seeking registration with the party, declaring that registration is free and exclusively handled by its Directorate of Support Groups at the national headquarters

in Abuja. The warning came amid growing political activities by support organisations ahead of the 2027 general elections, with the party directing all state chapters to desist from registering support groups or collecting fees from them under any guise. In a statement yesterday, the NDC National Publicity Secretary, Osa Director, said

the party had become aware that some state chairmen were demanding registration fees from support groups. “The registration of support groups is free. It does not attract any fee whatsoever,” Director said. He stressed that registration of support groups remained the exclusive responsibility of the Directorate of Support Groups at the party’s national

headquarters in Abuja. “Therefore, all inquiries and registration must be directed to the Directorate of Support Groups at the national headquarters of the party in Abuja,” he said. The NDC spokesman further clarified that no state chapter, officer or official of the party had the authority to register support groups or collect money for such registration.

Nigeria Moves to Strengthen Protection, Welfare Rights of Children Alex Enumah in Abuja

Stakeholders in the justice sector have begun the process of strengthening legislation on the protection of the welfare and rights of the Nigerian children. The stakeholders which included policy makers, legislators, judges, law enforcement agencies, civil society representatives, are all unanimous in the call for appropriate and implementable legislation that would enhance

the development and prosperity of the Nigerian child. They spoke at the opening of a 3-Day National Stakeholders' Engagement on the Review and Amendment of the Child Rights Act (CRA) 2023. The review is coming some 23 years after the CRA Act berthed in the country. The event, which was organised by the Federal Ministry of Justice, is in collaboration with UNICEF and International Idea.

Speaking at the occasion, Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Prince Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, who noted that the development of the Nigerian children is inseparable from the development of the country disclosed that the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has placed human capital development, social inclusion and the well-being of Nigerians at the heart of the Renewed Hope Agenda.

"Investment in the Nigerian child is an investment in the future workforce, leadership, innovation, peace and prosperity of our nation. Every child who is protected from violence, given access to quality education, provided with adequate healthcare, nurtured in a safe family environment and given an opportunity to participate meaningfully in society represents an investment in Nigeria's future.

NDLEA Docks KC Luxury, 2 Others, Uncovers Multi-billion Naira Money Trail Michael Olugbode in Abuja

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arraigned luxury lifestyle influencer Afolabi Kazeem Michael, popularly known as KC Luxury,

and two alleged accomplices before the Federal High Court in Lagos. The agency also uncovered an alleged multi-billion-naira financial network behind a 184.5-kilogramme cocaine shipment valued at about N39 billion.

The development has opened a new dimension in the investigation of the massive cocaine haul, with the prosecution filing 22 counts against the defendants — six relating to alleged cocaine trafficking and illegal export and 16 bordering

on alleged money laundering. KC Luxury, Boniface Freeman Ochoche Sule and Ikechukwu Ekugo Patriarch were arraigned yesterday before Justice Ayokunle Olayinka Faji. They all pleaded not guilty to all the charges.

on imported critical minerals and China’s dominance of global processing capacity, as well as the implications for defence, electricity, grid transmission, technology and industrial competitiveness. Wunti, who has more than three decades of experience in developing and financing large scale energy systems, previously served as Chief Upstream Investment Officer at the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited. “The session brief is correct. The urgency, need and speed of action are essential,” Wunti said. “Closing the supply gap has become a compelling national priority for the United States. However, domestic production takes decades, allies are indispensable, and a considerable distance remains between policy ambition and commercial reality.” Highlighting the national security implications of critical mineral dependence, Wunti said the global energy economy was moving from hydrocarbons

measured in barrels to strategic minerals measured in kilograms. “For the last 50 years, we priced energy in barrels. For the next 50 years, we will price it in kilograms, including kilograms of lithium, cobalt, graphite and rare earth elements,” he said. “An F 35 fighter aircraft requires about 900 pounds of rare earth elements, while a Virginia class submarine requires approximately 9,200 pounds. You cannot win the critical minerals race, and you cannot build credible deterrence, while depending on your competitor’s supply chain.” According to him, the greatest strategic vulnerability lies not only in the mining of critical minerals, but also in their processing and refining. “The real weapon is not the mine. It is the midstream,” Wunti said. “China controls more than 90 per cent of rare earth processing, about 80 per cent of graphite processing and approximately 75 per cent of cobalt processing.

Bayelsa at 30: Stakeholders Seek Legislative Backing for 60MW Power Project

Olusegun Samuel in Yenagoa

Stakeholders including energy experts, financial advisors, captains of industry, the academia, development experts, policy makers and the media have called on the Bayelsa State government to ensure legislative backing for the 60KVA gas turbine and other infrastructures critical to the growth and development of the state and backed it by law. The stakeholders who spoke at the special South-South Reawakening Group Roundtable meeting in commemoration of the state’s 30th anniversary since creation, also called on the state government to expand the existing 60-Megawatt gas turbine facility to guarantee statewide electricity coverage. In his opening address, the host and convener of the South-

South Re-Awakening Group (SSRG), Joseph Ambakederimo, while commending the state government for establishing the 60-Megawatt gas turbine in Yenagoa, stressed the need to transition Bayelsa into a sustainable 24-hour power economy, describing electricity as the primary catalyst for industrialisation and economic growth. He said, "Without power, you cannot industrialize. Power is everything.As we celebrate, let us not be lost in the euphoria. There's more work to be done in Bayelsa State. We should start now to begin the plan for the future. How do we and where do we want to be in the next 30 years in terms of industrial development and deployment of power resources to better the lives of our people? Ambakederimo stated.

T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R • SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2026

NEWS XTRA

LUX MUNDI UNIVERSITY GET PERMANENT LICENCE...

L-R: Director in-charge of Inspection and Monitoring Division, National Universities Commission (NUC), Mrs. Justina Emerole; Founder and Pro-Chancellor, Lux Mundi University, Umuahia, Abia State, Prof. G.O.C Okenwa; Executive Secretary, NUC/ Representative of the Minister of Education, Prof. Abdullahi Ribadu, and wife of the founder, Mrs. Gabriella Okenwa, during the issuance of a permanent licence to Lux Mundi University to operate as a private university by the federal government in Abuja…recently

Oyebanji: Nigeria Needs 28% Annual Growth to Hit $1trn Economy by 2030

Fred Ojeh

Nigeria would need to achieve an annual compound economic growth rate of 28.02 per cent to increase its estimated 2025 nominal Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of $290.79 billion to $1 trillion by 2030, the President of the Chartered Institute of Directors Nigeria (CIoD), Adetunji Oyebanji, has said. Oyebanji made the assertion in Lagos while delivering the keynote address at the 42nd Omolayole Management Lecture, themed ‘One Trillion Dollar Economy: What It Will Take Nigeria to Achieve It’. He said the required growth rate was highly ambitious and had no historical precedent for an economy of Nigeria’s current size, stressing that the target could not be achieved through incremental improvements or business-as-usual policies. “The ambition cannot be achieved through incremental

improvement or business-as-usual policies. There is a need for sustained acceleration in economic growth, structural transformation and investment,” he said. Oyebanji identified power shortages, infrastructure deficits, inefficiencies in the oil sector and foreign exchange volatility as major structural constraints limiting Nigeria’s economic expansion. He also cited the country’s low tax-to-GDP ratio, insecurity, policy inconsistency and human capital deficits as factors affecting economic growth. According to him, Nigeria must move beyond dependence on its abundant economic resources by strengthening institutions and ensuring consistency in government policies. He said the country needed to create an environment capable of attracting private-sector investment and supporting industrial expansion. “Economic potential alone

does not guarantee economic size. It will be achieved through disciplined governance, effective institutions, consistent policies, and a shared commitment to national development,” Oyebanji said. The CIoD president noted that recent reforms in monetary policy, tax administration and

the petroleum sector were contributing to improved economic conditions, greater investment certainty and fiscal sustainability. He said reforms by the Central Bank of Nigeria had contributed to the moderation of inflation, improved stability in the foreign exchange market and stronger

investor confidence. Oyebanji added that tax administration reforms could strengthen domestic revenue mobilisation and reduce Nigeria’s dependence on oil revenues, while petroleum sector reforms could improve transparency, investment certainty and production capacity.

He identified oil and gas, agriculture and agro-processing, manufacturing, technology and the digital economy as key sectors capable of driving economic expansion. Other sectors he highlighted included infrastructure, solid minerals, services and the creative industry.

Firm Leads Medical Supply Chain Advocacy with MedicYard Launch Sunday Ehigiator

Nigerian healthcare company, MedicYard, has called on stakeholders in the medical sector to strengthen the integrity of the country’s medical supply chain to improve health outcomes and reduce the risks associated with substandard and delayed medical supplies.

The company made the call during the launch of its e-commerce platform, MedicYard, held recently in Lagos. The event brought together professionals from the healthcare, banking, technology and media sectors to examine challenges within Nigeria’s medical supply system, particularly the risks posed by adulterated

products, delayed supplies and limited access to genuine medical consumables and pharmaceuticals. Speaking at the event, the Chief Executive Officer and Co-Founder of MedicYard, Dr. Ante Ante, said the availability and integrity of medical supplies were critical determinants of patients’ health outcomes. He said delays in accessing

essential medical supplies could have serious consequences for patients, noting that such gaps informed the establishment of MedicYard. “A patient whose treatment is delayed not because the medicine doesn’t exist, but simply because it’s not where it’s meant to be. That gap is why Medicyard was created,” he said.

HALEC 2026: Young Girls MOWAA Publishes Audited Accounts, Puts Institute Cost at N22.26bn The Director of Finance and statements presented a true and at N5.358 billion. Dare to Reimagine Africa Oluchi Chibuzor Administration, Kingsley Odigie, fair view of MOWAA’s financial The expenditure comprised

Funmi Ogundare

The Hannah Agunkejoye Leadership Essay Competition (HALEC) is set to hold its third edition in 2026, with a renewed focus on creativity, innovation, technology and community development among secondary school girls in Lagos and Ogun states. Organised by the Ladies Helpline Initiative, HALEC was established to create a platform where young girls can develop their voices, express their ideas, engage with issues affecting their communities and begin to see themselves as capable leaders and problem-solvers. The 2026 edition will challenge participants with the thoughtprovoking essay topic: ‘If I

Could Change One Thing in My Community, What Would I Create to Make Africa Better?’ The question is designed to move girls beyond simply identifying problems to thinking critically about solutions they can create. According to the organisers, the 2026 edition is built around the belief that Africa’s future will not only be shaped by the leaders of today, but also by the ideas, creativity and innovations of young people who are being empowered today. Speaking on the vision behind the competition, Hannah Agunkejoye, Convener of HALEC, said the initiative is intended to help young girls understand that their voices and ideas have value.

The Museum of West African Art (MOWAA) has disclosed that the total cost of building and equipping its Institute in Benin City was N22.26 billion, with the Edo State Government contributing N3.95 billion in cash towards its development.

disclosed this as MOWAA published its 2025 annual report and audited financial statements. Odigie said the accounts, audited by Ernst & Young (EY), received an unmodified opinion, indicating that the financial

position and performance and complied with applicable accounting standards. According to him, MOWAA recorded N14.011 billion in revenue in 2025, compared with N12.530 billion in 2024, while total expenditure stood

N2.533 billion on programmes, N2.017 billion on support services, N605.095 million in exchange losses and N202.816 million in depreciation. The organisation consequently recorded a surplus of N8.653 billion for the year.

Appoint Abia Indigene Minister To Make APC Job Easier, Nto Appeals To Tinubu Charles Ajunwa A chieftain of All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abia and former Commissioner for Finance and Economic Planning in the state, Prof. Phillips Nto, has appealed to President Bola

Ahmed Tinubu to appoint an indigene of the state as minister to replace Hon. Nkiriuka Onyechiocha who resigned more than six months ago. He said the non replacement for Abia's ministerial slot has raised a lot of questions

concerning the status of Abia in the Federal Executive Council. Speaking when he received APC stakeholders from Ututu, Prof. Nto argued that the replacement of Onyejiocha in the federal cabinet will ginger APC to campaign more vigorously

for the reelection of President Tinubu. He noted that states whose ministers resigned from the cabinet like Oyo and Bauchi had their replacements almost immediately while that of Abia is still lingering.

SaturDAY, SEPTEMBER 26, 2026 • T H I S D AY

SEPTEMBER 26, 2026 • THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

COMMENTARY

Would Nigeria Know When An Ai Agent Breaks Into Our System?

It has not been demonstrated publicly a tested protection across the national digital estate, argues SONNY IROCHE

n artificial intelligence agent does not need to bring down a government website to threaten a country. It may quietly obtain information, alter a file or compromise an account while public services appear to function normally. By the time the intrusion becomes visible, the most consequential damage may already have occurred. Australia’s disclosure that an OpenAI agent gained unauthorised access to a Medicare statistics portal should therefore command attention in Abuja, Pretoria, Nairobi, Harare, Kigali and across Africa. The confirmed incident concerned a standalone statistics service, rather than the entire healthcare system, and Australian authorities said there was no evidence that individual medical records had been accessed. Nevertheless, an agent pursuing a research assignment crossed a boundary it should have respected. Australia learned of the June incident through a notification from OpenAI in September 2026. If something similar happened to Nigeria’s electoral infrastructure, banking and financial institutions, security institutions or healthcare databases, would we detect it promptly before it causes damages of huge magnitude? Let us just assume for a moment that Nigeria possesses important capabilities, but the public evidence does not justify confidence in timely detection across all critical systems. Equally, it would be untenable to declare the country defenceless. Preparedness varies between organisations. What has not been demonstrated publicly is consistent, independently tested protection across the national digital estate. That distinction should shape our response. Neither official reassurance nor sweeping pessimism can substitute for evidence. Nigeria is not starting from zero. The Nigeria Computer Emergency Response Team (ngCERT) provides a national incident-response function and publishes security advisories. The Nigeria Data Protection Commission provides a regulatory structure for personal-data protection. The 2024 Designation and Protection of Critical National Information Infrastructure Order provides a further policy foundation. These are meaningful assets. Their existence, however, does not guarantee that every bank, public hospital, state agency, contractor and government database

INEC SHOULD COMMISSION INDEPENDENTLY SUPERVISED EXERCISES THAT TEST BOTH TECHNICAL RESILIENCE AND INSTITUTIONAL DECISION-MAKING. A REALISTIC EXERCISE WOULD ASSESS SUSPICIOUS ACCESS, SERVICE DISRUPTION, COMPROMISED SUPPLIER CREDENTIALS AND FALSE PUBLIC MESSAGES TOGETHER

is continuously monitored. The International Telecommunication Union’s 2024 Global Cybersecurity Index placed Nigeria in Tier 3, described as “Establishing”. Ghana, Kenya, Mauritius, Rwanda and Tanzania were in Tier 1. This is a dated assessment of cybersecurity commitments across legal, technical, organisational, capacity-development and cooperation measures; it is not a live penetration test or a measurement of how quickly a country detects an AI agent. It nonetheless challenges any assumption that Nigeria’s size automatically confers continental leadership in preparedness. More recently, Deloitte’s Nigeria Cybersecurity Outlook 2026 identified older public-sector technologies, uneven security controls, identity-related threats and heightened risks approaching the 2027 elections. Its assessment reinforces the need to distinguish policies and procurement from operational protection. It is industry analysis, not a forensic audit of every government system. The decisive question is whether an institution can see what is happening inside its systems, recognise when that activity is dangerous, and intervene before serious harm occurs. Detection depends on practical arrangements: an accurate inventory of assets; reliable records of account activity, data access and system changes; analysts able to distinguish suspicious behaviour from ordinary work; and authority to contain an incident. A security alert that nobody reviews overnight offers little protection. A monitoring centre without access to relevant cloud or contractor logs may have an impressive dashboard and a substantial blind spot. Nor must defenders first prove that an attacker is an AI. An AI-assisted intrusion can use the same accounts, web requests and software weaknesses as a human attack. The immediate priority is to identify unauthorised behaviour and contain it. Establishing whether an agent acted autonomously, followed a criminal’s instructions or belonged to a particular company is a separate investigative task. Iroche is Founder and Chief Executive Officer of GenAI Learning Concepts Ltd and an AI strategist with more than four decades of experience in finance and infrastructure

Otedola Bridge: When The Next Crash Is Not Merciful

KALU OKORONKWO contends that the serial accidents on the bridge are enough to prompt some attention

n Wednesday, September 16, 2026, Otedola Bridge on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, outbound Lagos, offered travelers yet another terrifying glimpse of how quickly an ordinary journey can become a fight for survival. Five vehicles, including a containerised truck, a loaded trailer, another truck and two cars were caught up in a violent chain of collisions, leaving wreckage strewn across one of Lagos' busiest transport corridors. For a frightening period, one victim was trapped inside a mangled vehicle, struggling desperately to escape as rescuers battled to reach him. It was a grim reminder of how thin the line can be between an ordinary journey and irreversible tragedy. In its preliminary account of the incident, the Lagos State Emergency Management Agency (LASEMA) said a containerised truck developed a mechanical fault while in motion, lost control and rammed into three vehicles before another truck crashed into the wreckage. Five people were rescued alive. No fatality was recorded. LASEMA said its response team arrived about 10 minutes after receiving the distress call, while the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), the police, the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) and ambulance personnel participated in the rescue and evacuation operation.

That fortunate outcome is a cheering news. But it should not lull the Lagos State Government, the Federal Government or agencies responsible for the road and its safety, including the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) into complacency. Rather, it should force a more uncomfortable question: what happens when the next Otedola Bridge crash is not merciful? For a bridge with a long and disturbing history of crashes, injuries and deaths, September 16 should not be filed away as another traffic incident. It should be read as a warning: a stark reminder that the latest crash could have ended very differently, and that the question is no longer simply whether government can respond when disaster strikes, but whether it will act decisively enough to reduce the likelihood and severity of the next one. That nobody died on September 16 should be a source of relief, not reassurance. Otedola Bridge is not safe simply because one potentially catastrophic crash ended without a recorded fatality. Sometimes survival is not proof that danger has disappeared; it is evidence of how narrowly disaster was avoided. For those who are not familiar with the geography of Lagos State, Otedola Bridge got its name from a low-medium income estate consisting of about 100 or more three-bedroom bungalows built for Lagos

State civil servants by former governor of Lagos State, Sir Michael Otedola, just after the Lagos State secretariat heading towards the popular Berger bus stop out of Lagos to Ogun State. It is sandwiched by two more illustrious neighbouhoods of Magodo Estate and Omole Phase 2. The residents of the estate just overlooking the ever-busy Lagos-Ibadan express way would be traumatized by these serial fatal accidents beside their estate. The history of Otedola Bridge is inseparable from Nigeria's continuing struggle with road safety, heavy duty vehicles and infrastructure management: overturned trailers, jack-knifed trucks, sudden walls of smoke, vehicles crushed against one another, kilometres of gridlock and the familiar scramble of emergency responders. These are no longer extraordinary images. They have become part of the vocabulary of commuting along the Otedola bridge corridor and, more broadly, on Nigerian highways. The defining tragedy came on June 28, 2018, when a fuel laden tanker crashed and exploded on Otedola Bridge. The Federal Road Safety Corps confirmed nine deaths at the scene and reported that 54 vehicles were burnt, including buses, trucks, a tricycle and cars. Rescue operations continued as emergency workers dealt with the devastation and the massive traffic disruption that followed.

The precise casualty figure was later the subject of varying reports as rescue operations continued, but the essential fact remains: Otedola Bridge had demonstrated its capacity to turn a traffic incident into a mass casualty disaster within minutes. The 2018 incidence should have changed the way the location was treated. It should have triggered a comprehensive safety audit. It should have prompted a forensic examination of the recurring causes of heavy-vehicle crashes. It should have produced a sustained strategy for preventing a recurrence. Yet the accidents continued. The Federal Road Safety Corps' analysis of the Kara Bridge, Otedola Bridge and OPIC corridor recorded 256 road traffic crashes between January 2018 and June 2020. Of those, 39 occurred at Otedola Bridge, representing 15 per cent of the crashes recorded across the corridor. The FRSC identified speed violation as the leading recorded contributory factor, followed by brake failure, mechanical deficiency and tyre bursts. The report also recorded 36 fatal crashes across the corridor during the period under review. Those figures are important because they move the debate beyond anecdote. Okoronkwo is a communications strategist, a leadership and good governance advocate dedicated to impactful societal development

SEPTEMBER 26, 2026 • THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

INSIGHT 13

SEPTEMBER 25, 2021 • THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

INSIGHT

The wages of floods... What a waste!

Hunt in Zamfara: FreeRitual Samalia Bala PraiseApo-Karshi of President Stop Attacks Breaking theIn16-Year Jinx Buhari Witch he Advocacy for Alleged charge at the local sharia court, and

and Killings

the EFCC, President Buhari by his action has successfully brought back to President Muhammadu Buhari took over the reins of omehen infrastructure projects re-awarded, whileby closer supervision Witches urges Zamfara Bala was remanded for six months. the public consciousness the need to treat public funds with the the highest level power on May 29, 2015, Nigeria was sadly a broken state in are many measured not onlyof many by other factors was introduced toof ensure that transparency andwork accountability. respects. As a result including bad State government to release But he was later released. In 2024, Afterto keeping treasury looters on their toes andcompensate at bay through the level ofvalue, corruption, government could not he Advocacy for Alleged theirgovernance length and or untold financial progressed according an agreed and Mr Samahe was jailed again, butWitches after (AfAW) two EFCC, particularly, President Buhari moved to curb unnecessary spending live up tobut its financial obligations and service providers at both the urges the Nigerian public to stop ritual by the years toofcitizens hardship timeline. lia Bala. Mr Bala has been accused months the Grand Khadi granted habits of the nation on what economists call articles of ostentation. Part federal and state levels. attacks and killings because the notion endured by the people waiting for This is the hallmark of the Wike and jailed Sharia himofaritual pardon, he was released. of the disclosures of the President’s stock takingby wasthe how Upper the country Indeed one of the first official assignments that President Buhari carried moneyand and wealth is completely their thebillions probfrittered away in foreign Court currency in by importing goods, which can and baseless. is making this arrested call following the out wascompletion. the approval of The billionsApo–Karshi of Naira in bailout fundsleadership to enable statestyle: identify Tsafe for 'witchcraft And AfAW in June, he was and at home. One of such itemsan was'offence' rice, a majorthat staplehas among arrest ofagain suspected in Oyo governors as basic as workers’ salaries. Granting those responsibility bailout be produced Road is pay onesomething such project. lem, take and pursue juju', no basis reported remanded andritualists remains in State Nigerians. By banning rice importation into the country, the President on one in southern Nigeria. The local media reported funds was a huge boost nationalthe security because the results. pressure of arrears First awarded into2010, road ininlaw, since June 2026. Sources prison. hand had saved the nation billions foreign currency annually. that members of the Western Nigeria Security of unpaid monthly salaries building dangerously all over the country was a remained uncompleted for apDuring his inspection of the in Zamfara told AfAW that Bala's AfAW contact in Gusau hasritualists And, on the other hand, the President has boosted domestic production Network, Amotekun, arrested suspected ticking bomb. proximately 16 and years. project on itSeptember 2026, the had nudged of rice 24, and in the process country self sufficiency in 2020. with the body partsinofprison a 73-year-old man. Ask the naysayers they For wouldresidents readily remind you of how long case the has beenintoongoing since visited Bala and got food production. Hethat also createdThis millions ofthe jobsthird for young people in the rice has The suspects, who wereand apprehended in the took President Buhariand to appoint his ministers and how that contributed to of Apo, Karshi surrounding Minister expressed satisfaction is time that Bala details of his case incarceravalueof chain. Boluwaji area in Ibadan, said that a Muslim collapse of the economy as if, without ministers, governance was frozen. communities, the prolonged delay the road, after years delay, had imprisoned the alleged tion. More visits have been What is most admirable aboutbeen President Buhari and hisfor government is cleric asked themprison to procure some human body But buying that narrative would amount to what a famous Nigerian writer, translated into difficult journeys, finally reached stageofof offence. scheduled the attacks coming and frugal management scarce national resources to attain optimum goals. parts for rituals.in Ritual are weeks widespread Chimamanda Adichie, termed “the danger of a single story”. Yet the whole anitsadvanced traffic increased completion. Recall that since President Buhari stepped in theMr saddle, oil revenue Nigeria. Irrational of how to story wascongestion, that many of our citizens did transnot know how decrepit a state In 2020, Bala was adropped teacher at in months. AfAWconceptions will provide legal if to sabotage him knowing all the big promises he made to make money or become wealthy and successful President Buhari inherited 2015.economic portation costs andinlost The significanceabysmally of the as Apo–Karshi a local school when a female stuand humanitarian support to Mr citizens during his campaigns. But with the little resources that trickle in, the undergird these atrocities. Many Nigerians It was therefore necessary for him to have take stock againstRoad the background opportunities. What should goes far beyond asphalt and dent fell and,oilduring Bala. believe Local in and international efforts President is achieving what governments thatill received windfallsher couldillness, strongly blood money, known in of the fact that the departing government did not, reportedly, cooperate full been a strategic concrete. When completed, mentioned his name. The student some willlocal be languages made toasfree Bala. not dream of. it will Ogun Owo (Yoruba) well with the incomingalternative government inroute terms ofinto leaving workable handover Abuja gradually became painfulwas gracious improve between Today, the trains the are up and running daily from to Kaduna.and And after or Ogwu ego (Igbo).aThey that they notes. Although President GoodluckaJonathan in defeat,connectivity many was taken toAbuja a hospital, Meanwhile, legalthink expert in the to Ibadan a brand new rail track was started and completed; could become rich, or successful through ritual of his appointees wereunfulfilled still sulking over what they saw as their personal reminder of an governAbuja city centre from andLagos rapidly growsome blood tests, she was found region has been consulted and already commuting daily to and fro these two major cities in the sacrifice. Unfortunately, this is not the case. losses and therefore pulled all the stops to make things difficult for the ment promise. ing communities citizens alongare the corridor. to be sickle of cell patient. But shewealth said this regarding the said country seamlessly as they reap from theadividends democracy. And with Ritual has no basis in reason, science, Buhari government. Today, theunpatriotic story isobscurantist behaviour Dr. Jumai Ahmadu is this thegovernment Director, the way is going, before 2023 when theother President would or offence: reality. Home movies known as Africa Even withhowever, the obvious and of the PDP the parents and relatives "Actually, our laws do not changing. Reform Coordination and Service leave, the entire country would be linked by railthe withailment all of its economic or Nollywood films have helped appointees and their supporters still in government hell-bent on making attributed to witchcraft magic recognize the offenses ofnot juju or advantages. FCTA matters. These movies continue to reinforce things difficult for the President moved on with his methodical repair Through theBuhari, determined intervenImprovement Department, and claimed that the teacher, Bala, witchcraft. these mistaken notions and other superstitions. of a broken country. The first thing he did was to identify all possible sources Ainofenokhai Ojeifo, Abuja tion of the Minister of the Federal was responsible. They filed a Leo Igwe directs the Advocacy for Families, churches, mosques, and other public of income to the nation and directed that all inflows be Capital Territory, Ezenwo Nyesom institutions do not encourage the interrogation paid into one single account in line with the policy of Alleged Witches of these traditional occult beliefs. There are Single Treasury Account (TSA). Apo–Karshi Wike, the once-stalled T H E S AT U R DAY N E W S PA P E R no robust efforts to criticize or dispel these The TSA policy, interestingly, was mooted by the Road is finally approaching compleEDITOR YEMI ADEBOWALE irrationalIntelligent: and paranormal A claims in schools, PDP government but its penchant for imprudence Super Dumb Idea DEPUTY EDITOR AHAMEFULA OGBU tion. colleges, and universities. So millions of and lack of accountability denied it the courage of T HMANAGING E SAT U RDIRECTOR DAY N EENIOLA W S PABELLO PER The roadthe is policy. expected toPresident be handed EDITOR OBINNA CHIMA Nigerians grow up blindly believing that implementing What the literally DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR ISRAEL IWEGBU he suggestion, an instruction inthey the CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN OGBU ADENIYI DEPUTY EDITOR AHAMEFULA could make money through ritual sacrifice of did was gathercontractor all the nation’sinmoney into one box over byto the November EDITOR NATION’SDIRECTOR CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN MANAGING ENIOLA BELLO US, that Artificial Intelligence now human body parts. The belief has led many and locked it up with a big padlock and watched for and opened to residents by DecemMANAGING EDITOR BOLAJI ADEBIYI DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR ISRAEL IWEGBU be called "Super Intelligence' seems Nigerians to commit crimes and perpetrate any thief to come close. THE EDITORIAL OMBUDSMAN KAYODE KOMOLAFE CHAIRMAN BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI ber 2026. atrocities. Many have been jailed Who can blame the President for almost developing silly andNigerians pointless. EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN This is not the or are undergoing court trials due to ritualparanoia over the merely safeguard of thecontinuation national treasury THE OMBUDSMAN KAYODE KOMOLAFE I however, as child of the sixties first related attacks and murder. with and reports of mind-boggling looting of anrevelations inherited project. It is the result think super as being Superheroes but Notoftoo long ago, the police arrested some that took place in the 16 years of the PDP? With T H I S DAY N E W S PA P E R S L I M I T E D of purposeful leadership, political young Nigerians about for stealing female pants, such disclosures of how billions meant for fighting now I wonder people who wear EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA will and ina the deliberate decision topockets of which they intended for ritual sacrifice. insurgency Northeast ended up in the GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOLA BELLO, KAYODE KOMOLAFE, their underpants on to theuseoutside and wear TH I S DAY N E WNWOGWUGWU, S PA P E R S LEMMANUEL I M I T E D EFENI ISRAEL IWEGBU, IJEOMA confront a long-standing AfAW is asking all Nigerians to desist from a few individuals while our gallant challenge soldiers fought with masks. These marks were to hide from EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA DIVISIONAL DIRECTORS SHAKA MOMODU, PETER IWEGBU, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE ritual-related abuses because ritual money bare hands and on administrations empty stomach, President Buhari that previous could GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOLAOJOGUN BELLO, KAYODE DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR VICTORKOMOLAFE, DANBOYI everyone, likesuperstitions. the ICE people now, beliefs are just baseless Nigerian was duty bound to bring sanity and accountability back not resolve. ISRAEL IWEGBU SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEH media, schools, and colleges should help in national spending. although they would be seen as Antiheroes. DIRECTOR PATRICK EIMIUHI DIVISIONAL DIRECTORSASSOCIATE SHAKA MOMODU, PETER IWEGBU, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE Upon assuming office,thethe FCT and educate and reorient theyet public. They should Thus, under President Buhari, Economic CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI I am sure it is just another media Minister did Commission not ignore the which condition assist in reasoning Nigerians out of this Financial Crimes (EFCC), had DIRECTOR, PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO SNR.PRINTING ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEH stunt, either to get more coverage as he has killer-superstitious absurdity and nonsense. remained comatose for years, was woken up to resume ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR PATRICK EIMIUHI of the Apo–Karshi Road or hide TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com banned many outlets, or to distract from Leo Igwe directs the Advocacy for Alleged its duties. Apart from the trillions of Naira of looted CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI behind the fact that the contract preWitches (AfAW) funds and property recovered from corrupt politicians DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO something else such as the Epstein files. dated his administration. The stalled Dennis Fitzgerald, 28 Landale St, Box TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com contract was reviewed, revoked and Hill, Vic. Australia

T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R • SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2026

NEWS XTRA

CORPORATE SOCIAL RESPONSIBILITY...

BOOK READING SESSION...

L-R: Author, Against All Odds, The Biography of Innocent Chukwuma, Mr. Obinna Ezugwu; Executive Chair, Innocent Chukwuemeka Chukwuma Empowerment Foundation, Mrs. Josephine Effah-Chukwuma; Lawyer, Mrs Helen Essien, and media specialist, Mr. Richard Mammah, at the book reading session of the biography in Lagos...recently

L-R: Chairman of Egun community in Ikpoba Oka LGA of Edo State, Nosa Afimagbon; Head Teacher of Ozuola Primary School, Egun, 0sagie Roseline 0layinka; Director of Public Relations of Yongxing Nigeria Steel Company Ltd, Hazel Han; Chairman of Ikpoba Oka LGA Nigerian Union of Teachers (NUT), Kennedy Ehimatie, and Secretary, Etinosa Eruhuwense, at the inauguration of the Ozuola Egun Primary School renovated by Nigeria Yongxing Steel Company Limited in Edo State…recentlt

Supreme Court Upholds INEC’s Appeal on Electoral Act The Supreme Court has upheld the appeal by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) against a Court of Appeal judgment that voided parts of the Electoral Act 2026 on political party primaries and membership registers. A seven-member panel led by Justice Adamu Jauro set aside the Court of Appeal’s decision, which had favoured the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP), and upheld the judgment of the trial court. According to the News Agency of Nigeria, the court held that Sections 77(5) and 84 of the Electoral Act do not conflict with the 1999 Constitution. It also awarded N2 million in costs against the ZLP. Also, the court in two other judgments dismissed two separate appeals, filed by Social Democratic Party (SDP) and Youth Party that also filed seperate appeals against INEC. The two political parties had filed appeals to challenge the decisions of the court of appeal in their cases. In SDP vs INEC, the appeal

was heard on its merit and was accordingly dismissed by the court. In Youth Party’s appeal, the preliminary objection filed by INEC was upheld and the appeal was struck out for being incompetent. The court described the appeal as invalid and incompetent having been filed out of time by one day. The Federal High Court, Abuja Division, presided over by Justice Mohammed Umar had dismissed the party’s action in a judgment delivered on May 5, 2026. Dissatisfied, ZLP appealed and the court of appeal, in its judgment delivered on July 16, 2026 allowed the appeal in part and voided provisions of the Electoral Act relating to party primaries and membership register. The appellate court’s decision prompted INEC to approach the apex court according to the commission’s brief of argument filed in the appeal. ZLP at the Federal High Court, Abuja, challenged the provisions of the Electoral Act, describing it as being

inconsistent with the 1999 Constitution. In its appeal, INEC urged the court to dismiss the appeal filed by YP and SDP. The provisions at the centre of the dispute included Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026.

Sections 77(5), 77(6) and 77(7) concern the statutory requirements relating to political parties’ membership registers, while Section 84(2) prescribes direct primaries or consensus as methods for the nomination of candidates by political parties.

The ZLP had argued at the trial court that the provisions conflicted with the 1999 Constitution and amounted to unconstitutional interference in the internal affairs of political parties. The party’s case was anchored, among others, on

Sections 221 and 222 of the Constitution, which provides for the constitutional framework governing political parties. After the Federal High Court dismissed the suit, the ZLP appealed, leading to the Court of Appeal’s July 16 judgment. (NAN).

NHA to Release Three New Calabar Nautical Charts October 1 Oluchi Chibuzor

The National Hydrographic Agency (NHA) is set to release three new nautical charts covering the approaches to Calabar, Jamestown and the Port of Calabar on October 1, 2026, as Nigeria moves to strengthen authoritative chart coverage of its waters. The release would coincide with the planned withdrawal by the United Kingdom Hydrographic Office (UKHO) of Admiralty Charts 3433 and 3434, which currently provide navigational coverage of the Calabar area. The development is expected to mark a significant transition to Nigerian-produced nautical charts

for the Calabar maritime corridor and further expand the country's national nautical chart portfolio. The three new charts are NG5514 – Approaches to Calabar, NG5515 – Jamestown, and NG4255 – Port of Calabar. According to a statement by the NHA, the charts collectively provide updated navigational coverage from the approaches to Calabar through Jamestown and into the Port of Calabar limits, providing mariners with current hydrographic information to support safe and efficient navigation along the maritime corridor. As part of the quality assurance process ahead of their release, the paper charts underwent technical

assessment by the UKHO to verify consistency with adjoining chart coverage. The corresponding Electronic Navigational Charts (ENCs) were also independently validated by the International Centre for Electronic Navigational Charts (IC-ENC). The agency said the processes provide assurance that the products meet applicable technical and navigational requirements for their intended operational use. The NHA and UKHO will also coordinate the transition following the withdrawal of Admiralty Charts 3433 and 3434 to ensure continuity of authoritative navigational coverage and minimise the possibility of any gap in

chart availability to the maritime community. Commenting on the development, the Hydrographer of the Federation and Chief Executive Officer of NHA, Rear Admiral O.O. Fadahunsi, said the publication of the charts demonstrated Nigeria's growing capacity to undertake hydrographic surveys and produce navigational products to international standards. “The publication of these charts is more than the release of new navigational products. It demonstrates Nigeria’s growing capacity to survey, chart and maintain our waterways to internationally recognised standards.

The United States accounted for about 565,000, the United Kingdom 324,000, Niger 200,000 and Cameroon 188,000. World Bank data based on UN estimates also show that Nigeria’s international migrant stock rose from about 457,000 in 1990 to 1.2 million in 2015, although migrant-stock estimates measure people living outside their country of origin and should not be confused with annual migration flows. The growth of migration has coincided with a growing population of older Nigerians. Another recent review of elder caregiving in Nigeria by the United States’ National Library of Medicine found that migration and urbanisation are

can also reduce daily interaction and hands-on assistance. The problem, according to a Geriatric-care specialist, Dr. Tunde Adebayo, is that families often equate financial provision with caregiving. “Money is an important part of care, but elder care is multidimensional. An older person may need somebody to notice that they are becoming confused, that they have stopped eating properly, that they are taking the wrong medication or that they have fallen. These are things that may not be captured in a bank transfer,” he added. Adebayo said families with migrant children should develop a formal care plan rather than wait for emergencies.

schedule and who has authority to make decisions when the children cannot physically be present.” He said communities would also need to play a greater role. “We cannot continue to assume that every family will always have a child living in the same city. Nigeria needs properly trained caregivers, home-based care, community support and stronger geriatric services.” The physical absence of children can also have an emotional cost. A 2025 study examining ageing parents left behind by migration in Nigeria, published on Zenodo, reported cases involving anxiety, depression and loneliness. Stakeholders at a recent Lagos

neglect, loneliness and reduced quality of life among older people living with dementia, even where relatives continue to provide financial support from abroad. In her contribution, Counselling Psychologist, Dr. Ngozi Balogun, who spoke with THISDAY, said the emotional consequences could be particularly difficult for parents whose children were once their primary source of companionship. “Some parents deliberately hide their loneliness because they don’t want their children to feel guilty about leaving. They tell the children, ‘Don’t worry about me, I am fine.’ But psychologically, that may not always be true.” She said migrant children could maintain stronger bonds by creating structured routines

Nigerian-born Broadcaster, RISING EMIGRATION: CARE CRISIS LOOMS FOR NIGERIA’S AGEING POPULATION Nations data show that reshaping traditional family-care “That plan should identify a symposium organised by the Edoki Named Community theUnited number of Nigerians living arrangements. It noted that trusted person who lives close Gabi Williams Alzheimer’s outside the country reached an remittances can help pay for care, to the older person, their doctor, Foundation had pointed out that Radio Awards Finalist estimated 2.094 million in 2024. but migrant children’s absence emergency contacts, medication migration could contribute to Nigerian-born broadcaster, Richard Edoki, has emerged as one of the finalists for the 2026 Community Radio Awards in the United Kingdom, following recognition for his contribution to community engagement and cross-cultural understanding in Cornwall. Edoki, a volunteer broadcaster with CHBN Radio, a community and hospital radio station based in Cornwall, was recognised for using conversation, storytelling and advocacy to build trust, confidence and engagement across the county's diverse communities. His recognition comes as the Community Radio Awards marks its 10th anniversary of celebrating excellence among presenters, volunteers, producers and stations across the UK.

The 2026 finalists were announced ahead of the national Community Radio Awards ceremony scheduled for Saturday, October 24, following the National Community Radio Conference hosted by the UK Community Radio Network. Edoki's recognition also followed an award presented to him by the Devon and Cornwall Police Positive Action Team as part of its annual celebration of community leaders, volunteers, ambassadors and partner organisations. The award recognised individuals whose lived experiences, platforms and authentic voices have inspired others and contributed to positive change within their communities.

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r •September 26, 2026

SHOWBIZ

Ferdinand Ekechukwu- 08035011394 Email: ferdi_adthisday@yahoo.com

Davido to Thrill Fans with ‘Oriade: The Residency' Stories by Ferdinand Ekechukwu

arely two months after dropping his sixth studio album, Oriadé, superstar, Davido has announced a three-night festival taking place at the newly refurbished Lagos' National Theatre in Iganmu, Lagos. Taking to social media to share the news alongside an electrifying video trailer, OBO could not hide his excitement for the concert. For Davido, this residency is deeply personal. Dubbed “ORIADÉ: The Residency,” The singer, in an interview with CNN further discussed the Oriadé, scheduled for December 17, 18 and 19, 2026, marking his 15th anniversary in music and celebrating his latest album. The residency doubles as the first live Nigerian performance of his sixth studio album. Davido said his 2025 African tour reignited his connection to home fans and inspired the Lagos residency concept. According to him, the decision to anchor a major music event on home soil was rooted in both personal inspiration and a broader vision for Afrobeats. Davido cited Bad Bunny's 30-date Puerto Rico residency last year as a blueprint for turning the Lagos shows into a cultural and economic moment. Davido explains what sparked the residency idea, saying the seed was planted during his 2025 African tour, his first time performing across the wider continent in eight years. The experience reconnected him with something he felt had been missing. "Me just being home just gave me so much inspiration," he said. "This kind of feels better doing it from where you're actually from. I don't ever want to take that kind of break again away from my fans back home." Davido said.

"The country made money, he made money, he promoted his culture. So that's kind of where my head is at." Lagos already draws large crowds during December, when diaspora Nigerians and international visitors flock to the city for what is widely known as "Detty December." Davido hopes the residency gives fans a further reason to visit and puts the city on the radar of those who have never been. "The talent in Lagos is mind-bl.owing," he said. "Talent is like water in Lagos." National Theatre and the wider message, the choice of venue carries symbolic weight. The newly renovated National Theatre holds a significant place in Nigeria's entertainment history, and Davido described it in terms that reflect its cultural stature. It's like our own MSG (Madison Square Garden) kind of thing," he said. "It's very important that we show the outside world that we have these kinds of facilities in Africa as well. We're really showing people that we can do this ourselves." Davido also acknowledged that performing at home does not always match the financial returns of international shows. Even so, the singer argued that established artistes owe it to their roots to bring the same ambition home. "Everybody's going to get a hit and run to America, run to the UK, run to the Middle East and do shows," he said. "But I feel like bringing everything back home is very important for the culture. We might not get paid as much as we get paid overseas." His message to fellow artistes was equally direct: "Don't forget where you started. These are the fans. If not for these fans, we wouldn't be here." This year alone, Davido has already made his Coachella debut, surprised the crowd with Adekunle Gold, and landed on the official FIFA World Cup 2026 soundtrack alongside Major Lazer and Nelly Furtado. Fans can expect three unforgettable evenings packed with sonic renditions of tracks off Oriadé, classic careerdefining hits, and guest appearances from featured collaborators.

Davido

TitoSax: Longevity in Music Requires More Than Talent

TitoSax

t is not often you see Nigerian saxophonist TitoSax talk about his music career. He would rather prefer his performances, artistic discipline to engage you, and speak for him. Having distinguished his by treating music as both art and business, showcasing his prowess at any given opportunity, TitoSax is a step closer impacting his footprint. Passionate about his craft, committed and dedicated to the instrument, TitoSax, born Gabriel Oluwatoyin Oluyemi, has kept to consistency and dedication. “What keeps me going is just consistency and dedication to the instrument,” he reveals. “There’s a lot to do on the saxophone. This is the passion because I’m passionate about it. There’s something it does to the minds of people.” “The best time to do something was yesterday. And the next time to do it is today,” he adds. For his music, “I would say a take-home for me is premium joy and excitement because I take pleasure in seeing people smile”. He’s acutely aware of the weight people carry; the stress, the worry, the uncertainty of daily

life. Music, in his understanding, isn’t an escape but a reprieve, a reminder that joy still exists. Not surprising TitoSax has built not only as a talented artist, but as a performer who understands how music creates memorable experiences. His performances have featured at notable venues and events, bringing more than a decade of experience on the saxophone, to bear across a wide range of settings and engagements. TitoSax operates across multiple sonic dimensions: Jazz, Afro-Jazz, contemporary Gospel, and ensemble performances. He once mentioned American legends Charlie Parker and Gerald Albright to Nigerian maestros, Mike Aremu and Jerry Omole as his musical influences.. However, he’s careful to distinguish between learning and imitation while owning his sound. What sets TitoSax apart is his understanding that longevity in music requires more than talent alone. His work reflects a balance of artistic discipline and entrepreneurial clarity, allowing him to build a brand that is both creatively fulfilling and commercially sustainable. Over time, this approach positioned him

as a growing name within live performance space with a mark of originality. Looking ahead, TitoSax is preparing to shift from primarily a live performer to building a stronger recorded presence. He has a praise melody cover in the works, along with several covers of popular songs by aphorists within the contemporary Nigerian music industry. After years of ephemeral live performances, he’s ready to create recorded content that expands his reach. While live performance will always remain central to his repertoire, recorded content expands his reach, creates visibility for his creative performance business Surprise by Tito Sax, and allows people who’ve never seen him perform to experience his musicianship. TitoSax operates across multiple sonic dimensions: Jazz, Afro-Jazz, contemporary Gospel, and ensemble performances. He once mentioned American legends Charlie Parker and Gerald Albright to Nigerian maestros, Mike Aremu and Jerry Omole as his musical influences.. However, he’s careful to distinguish between learning and imitation while owning his sound.

Nkechi Blessing, Phyna Set to M’Kido: YouTube Gives Settle Rivalry in Boxing Match African Artistes a Global Voice

ollywood actress Nkechi Blessing Sunday and reality TV star Josephina Otabor, popularly known as Phyna, are set to take their ongoing social media beef to the boxing ring on October 1, 2026. The much-anticipated boxing match, tagged “Phyna vs Nkechi,” is part of the “Chaos in the Ring” fight organised by Balmoral Group Promotions. The bout is the latest celebrity contest in the series, which has previously featured male entertainers including Portable, Charles Okocha, Speed Darlington and Carter Efe, Mr. Real Legbelegbe and Ido West. Both Nkechi and Phyna posted faceoff clips of the upcoming boxing show, which appears to be the first featuring female celebrity fighters, scheduled to hold in Lagos. Meanwhile, fans have expressed willingness to see the organisers bring female celebrity rivals like Iyabo Ojo and Liz Anjorin, Toyin Abraham and Funke Akindele, Angela Okorie and Mercy Johnson, to the ring to settle their beefs. Ezekiel Adamu, CEO of Balmoral Promotions had expressed readiness during the pre-event conference to make the challenges become reality. The growing celebrity boxing circuit has witnessed beefs; social media exchanges and entertainment become major parts of the promotion, combining celebrity boxing attractions with professional bouts. “We don’t create the beefs; the beefs just come up. My DM is full of other beefs; even female beefs. We just chose the ones that give us major eyeballs.” Adamu said.

“So, the female celebrities I think we are supposed to have one I’m still not sure we wouldn’t have one at this edition. We have quite a lot of beefs from the female sides. But it’s not just about bringing female celebrity fighters into the ring. We want real fight not gidigbo. So until we get one, and can get the female fighters to go train properly so when they get into the ring we can see proper fight.” Other celebrities billed to box on same Independence Day are streamer, Carter Efe and singer, Speed Darlington. The contest will be the first boxing match between the boisterous Efe and controversial Darlington. “Carter fought already with Portable so Carter is the champion. He has a rematch clause. And Carter said Speed Darlington has been on his case. “So, he wants to work on Speed so we granted that and we called Speed who agreed to the fight as well. And now we have a fight.” Continuing he said, “We expect Chaos as usual, we expect fight. Carter has shown he’s a fighter the last time he fought. Speed has shown he’s a fighter the last time he fought Portable he fought well but he lost due to a technical knockout having pulled out his hand.” Speed Darlington will be looking to revive his fortunes when he steps into the ring against Carter, following an intense faceoff ahead of the highly anticipated fight. Besides, the fight is entertainment. “The last time we done ‘Chaos in The Ring’ we had MI and Reminisce walking the fighters. So it’s just pure entertainment on the night, pure chaos, and pure fight from the professional boxers.

Tosin Clegg

ouTube has been instrumental to the growth of content creators across Africa and the world. From short-form to long-form videos, the platform has opened up significant revenue opportunities for entertainment creators across the film, music, podcast and comedy industries. Anglophone and Francophone artiste Amosun Adekunle, popularly known as M’Kido, has benefited significantly from the YouTube platform, with more than 166,000 subscribers. His blend of multiple languages in his music has taken his craft across diverse nationalities, opening him up to a wider audience through the platform. On the importance of YouTube to his career, particularly in reaching new audiences in Nigeria and internationally, M’Kido said, “YouTube has become very important to my career because it gives me a direct connection to people beyond borders. As an artiste, I don’t want my music to be heard only in Nigeria. I want people in Cameroon, Côte d’Ivoire, Mali, France and different parts of the world to discover my sound and understand my story. “For me, YouTube is more than just a platform for uploading music. It is a global stage where I can introduce people to M’Kido, my culture, my languages, my journey and my vision as an African artiste. Every

person who discovers my music through YouTube is another opportunity to build a relationship with a new audience.” The artiste also believes YouTube has changed the way Nigerian artistes promote and release music compared with the traditional era of radio, television and physical media. He said, “The traditional era depended heavily on radio, television, record stores and other gatekeepers. Those platforms are still important, but YouTube has made it possible for an independent or emerging artiste to speak directly to the world.

M’Kido

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r •September 26, 2026

•Tourism •Arts&Culture

Charles Ajunwa

• 08064268968 • ajunwacharles@gmail.com

Ida Jeng Njie: Africans Should Promote Continent’s Destinations Director General of the Gambia Tourism Board, Mrs. Ida Jeng Njie, speaks about tourism in Africa, efforts to get more Nigerians visit Gambia for leisure, businesses, among others. Charles Ajunwa brings excerpts:

an you tell us what Gambian Tourism is all about? We’re the mandated institution to market and promote destination Gambia to its rightful target markets and beyond. The reason for that is to ensure that we place Gambia at its rightful position in the tourism map, in terms of visibility, and also in terms of bringing numbers to the Gambia. That is why when we had that engagement with Nigerian tourism stakeholders, I said I have one simple message for everyone. That simple message was, come to the Gambia. And come to the Gambia means a lot. Come to the Gambia to explore, come to the Gambia to learn, come to the Gambia to experience all that we have to offer. Come to the Gambia to be educated, because the perception of Africa, Africa is one. Yes, we are one, we are united. But every country has its distinctive selling points and every country has its distinctive strengths. So that is why we say come to the Gambia and explore, come to the Gambia, visit, come to the Gambia, study, come to the Gambia, enjoy. So, regardless of what you want, come to the Gambia, it will be catered for you. Come to the Gambia so that we also can increase our numbers. Because we were mandated to market the Gambia. The end result is to increase the numbers and everybody knows when numbers increase at the destination, what that means. Increment in GDP, create employment, elevate poverty, and others In terms of tourism, what does your country have to offer the world? That is why we said come to the Gambia. Come to explore, come to explore our culture, come to explore the nature, come and explore the smiling coast, which is our unique selling

point as Gambians. Our people are our strength. When you have the people as your strength, you can do everything possible. Come and explore the nature. The beaches on the coast are comparable to none. Our eco-resorts, our products, our culinary, we have, I mean, the best culinary. We are a one-river country. Come and explore the river. We can do so much in that river. Come and explore the retreat. Bring your businesses, let them come for retreat. We have state-of-the-art new conference centre. Come and do your meetings, mice, leisure, you name it. We have all the facilities to cater for that. Come and explore the flora and the fauna, the birds, and the wildlife. You talked about the tourism package in Gambia. Why target Nigerians? We believe that as Africans, we should sell each other. But Gambia and Nigeria have strong bonding ties. And we want to use Gambia and Nigeria to show the other African countries that it can be done. We want to show not only the other African countries, but the world, that it can be done. We have the belief in Nigeria. They are our big brother. Nigerians are high spenders. Nigerians travel. So we want Nigerians to come to Gambia to spend. We know Nigerians are travellers. Let them come to Gambia. We, Gambians, we know what it takes to make sure that the Nigerians enjoy their visit to Gambia. Regardless, whether it’s honeymoon, or wedding, or birthday party, or conference, or leisure. Because of the bond and the ties that we have, we know what the Nigerians want and we are ready to deliver that to the Nigerians. Gambia population is above two million. How prepared are you to receive Nigerians when they start coming in terms of leisure? We are ready for Nigerians. What shows that

Njie we are ready for Nigerians? Back in the days, when we did a study about what Nigerians want, one of them was a shopping mall. And we are having more of that now. Like I said, we studied the Nigerian market. We know what the Nigerians want. We are ready for the Nigerians. We have over one something million population. We are ready for them. You look at other destinations. For example, another European destination that receives more guests, visitors, than their population. Seychelles, they are not even three million. How many millions do they have of visitors in that country? If others

can do it, we can do it. We are ready What is your take on tourism in Africa? That is why we are in Nigeria, because of the ties that we have. When we promote each other, we gain. The money stays. So, we need to promote each other. Nowadays, if anybody is travelling, like for example, you are travelling from Asia or you are traveling from Europe, you rather do two destinations than you do one destination. So, two for the price of one. We feel that as Africans, we should come together. We should promote each other.

Chef Bakare Partners Lagos Continental Hotel Onah: Carnival Calabar Needs More Private Funding

Stories by Charles Ajunwa

ondon-based Nigerian chef, Adejoke Bakare, has partnered Lagos Continental Hotel to promote Nigerian cuisines internationally. Bakare, a Michelin-starred chef, is bringing her acclaimed London restaurant, Chishuru, to Lagos from 4-7 November 2026 for four exclusive dinners at Lagos Continental Hotel in Victoria Island. The residency brings Bakare’s cooking back to the country where her story began, at a moment when Lagos will be welcoming artists, galleries, collectors and cultural leaders for ART X Lagos week. Rather than recreate the Fitzrovia restaurant in Nigeria, Bakare and Chishuru’s senior team will develop a menu specifically for Lagos, responding to the ingredients, energy and food culture of the city. Addressing journalists in Lagos, Bakare said she wants to transfer her culinary skills to younger chefs in Nigeria, to help boost their confidence to work and compete globally. Bakare, who dressed in white apron with her team, prepared a six-course menu namely: Ose-ji, Roast Yam and Oil, Moin Moin Elemii Meje, Masa, Fish Head Soup and Obe Dudu, which draw on the Yoruba, Igbo and Hausa influences that shaped her childhood, alongside the technique and perspective she has developed during more than 25 years in London. She said, “I love Lagos and I love West African art. To cook here during one of the most creative weeks in the city’s calendar is incredibly special. Chishuru was shaped by the food cultures I grew up with and by the chef I became in London. This residency brings those parts of my story together. Speaking on collaboration, the General Manager of Lagos Continental Hotel, Christoph Schleissing, said, “We are filled with pride to welcome Michelinstarred celebrity chef Joké Bakare and the Chishuru team to Lagos Continental for this extraordinary

Bakare

culinary residency. Chef Joké holds a remarkable place in culinary history as the first Black female chef in the UK to be awarded a Michelin star, and is currently the only Black female chef in the world still running her Michelin-starred restaurant.”

he Chairman of the Cross River State Carnival Commission for Carnival Calabar, Gabe Onah, has said more private sector funding was needed for the 2026 Africa’s biggest street party. Onah, who disclosed this in Lagos, recently, said they also need funding from the public sector and individuals. He further stated that the state government is working hard to reintroduce the international segment of Carnival Calabar. “We are really working hard to reintroduce the international segment because we are global and we have received a lot of offerings. So we are working on it. We will soon unveil our headline artist and we will form the backdrop.” Onah, who said that four successive governors of the state including incumbent Governor Bassey Otu supported the festival, stressed that collaborations were needed from the Ministry of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy to make the sector thrive. “The globalists have christened the sector as orange economy, which buttresses what you have always called it, the low-hanging fruit. Which means in an orchard of oranges or any kind of fruits, the

moment you can harvest from your ankle or your knee or your hip, it’s a low-hanging fruit. That is tourism. For us, as our most tangible product, Carnival Calabar Festival, we can’t thank the media enough for all you have been pushing out for us.” For this year’s Carnival Calabar, he said there would be deliberate digital streaming and online voting. “We are encouraging Nigerians in Africa to register to become members of Carnival bands organically, like we register for premiership clubs. “Then we discovered that the artistic scoring by our adjudicators that come from the artistic field, architects, engineers, because the ambulatory float you see on the road, they have mechanical production. So, the spectacle is good, but based on the elements of theatre, we now want the public to have a say, like the Big Brother framework because by the time you say Seagull won, for me I saw Passion 4. So, vote Passion 4 “But the bottom line is the IGR receipt. As you are voting, you are saying hello better to us. We are planning for the rainy day. We have been blessed, four governors have successfully adopted this sector. What if the fifth one comes and says, I want to do only cassava?” Onah noted.

Youth Tourism, Hospitality Leaders Forum to Hold in Ibadan October 29th

he 14th edition of the Youth Tourism and Hospitality Leaders Forum (YTHLF), an annual gathering of young people, stakeholders and entrepreneurs in the tourism and hospitality sector, will hold in Ibadan on October 29, 2026. According to a statement by the Convener of YTHLF and Managing Editor of Travelscope Magazine, Omololu Olumuyiwa, the forum is

designed to sensitise, educate and motivate young people while promoting the social, cultural and economic value of the tourism and hospitality industry. The 2026 edition is expected to bring together participants from across different backgrounds for a day of tourism education and industry engagement. A distinguished tourism scholar Dr. T.G. Yusuf of the Department of Hospitality and Tourism Management, Obafemi Awolowo

University, Ile-Ife, will deliver a keynote address on “ *Youth Innovation, Digital Marketing & Tourism Development.”* Olumuyiwa also disclosed that notable scholars, industry stakeholders and young people who have contributed to the advancement of tourism in Nigeria will be recognised with awards during the event. Participants will also have the opportunity to take part in raffle draws, with prizes including free aviation college scholarships.

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r •September 26, 2026

People

Zaccheus Akinadewo: Building Entrepreneurship on Faith, Grit, Reinvention

He left a decade-long corporate career because, he says, God instructed him to go. What followed was a failed partnership, ﬁnancial hardship, a car sold to fund ministry, a family tested by adversity and the eventual emergence of Graza Media. Today, Managing Director, Graza Media Limited, Zaccheus Akinadewo is building not merely a business, but an institution designed to outlive its founder, writes Adedayo Adejobi

he office is almost unnaturally white. White walls. White furniture.Aquiet, immaculate elegance that gives the room the atmosphere of a place where decisions are made and destinies are altered. At the centre of it sits Zaccheus Akinadewo, Managing Director of Graza Media Limited, dressed in a three-piece suit, composed and regal, his bearing carrying something of the old-world authority of royalty. There is little in the room to suggest the chaos that once surrounded the beginning of his entrepreneurial journey. But the story is there, beneath the polish. Before Graza Media Limited became a growing business with ambitions beyond advertising, Akinadewo had been instructed to leave the security of employment and the familiarity of church service. The instruction, he says, came from God. “I left because I was instructed by God to do so,” he says. “God had impressed upon me that after spending 10 years in the Church and in the office where I served and worked respectively, it was time for me to move on.” So, in 2016, after a decade with Gems Communication and a decade in the Church, he left both. What followed was not the smooth beginning of an entrepreneurial success story. It was a season of partnerships that collapsed, money that disappeared, school fees that could no longer be paid and a family that had to reorganise itself around financial uncertainty. He had started a business with four others. Within six months, the partnership failed. “I was the only one without another job, while the others still earned salaries, leaving me struggling financially,” he recalls. There was another problem. He owned only 35 per cent of the company. “I had only 35 per cent, which made me function more like an employee while the other partners became more like my bosses.” Eventually, the partners decided to liquidate the company. Akinadewo was paid three months’ salary and asked to leave. It was the end of one chapter. It was also the beginning of Graza

Media Limited. Yet, entrepreneurship would soon expose him to a hardship more personal than the collapse of a business. At his lowest point, he could no longer afford to feed himself properly or meet his family’s needs. His wife became the family’s breadwinner. His children had to leave their former school because the fees were no longer affordable. “I eventually sold my car to survive,” he says. The car sale would later acquire an entirely different meaning, because it was not simply an act of survival. Part of the money was used to secure land for the Church. The land was paid for by Zaccheus through an agent, and a church building was eventually erected. But there was a problem: The landlord had a deep objection to selling property to members of Akinadewo’s white-garment denomination. The church could not worship there. For six months, the congregation held services in Akinadewo’s home. The dispute over the property eventually became a police matter when the money was not refunded. The irony was painful. He had sold his car to pay for a church property, yet he could not worship on the very land for which the money had been paid. Eventually, he told the members that if they wished, they could find another denomination. Meanwhile, the business was struggling. It was a period in which the lines between ministry, family and entrepreneurship almost disappeared. Every problem seemed to arrive at once. His wife, however, remained. She had already sacrificed alongside him for five years while their home was being built, only to find herself carrying the family financially after the business crisis. “She supported me financially, emotionally, and in every other way,” he says. At one point, she suggested that he update his CV as a Chartered Accountant and look for employment. It was no doubt, a practical advice from a woman confronting the same storm. But Akinadewo’s response to the crisis was not to abandon the instruction that had brought him there. It was to go deeper into it. “The one year I spent at home, financially dependent on my

Akinadewo wife, became one of the most significant periods of my spiritual growth,” he says. ‘I studied, prayed, fellowshipped and spent personal retreat time at Redemption Camp. See concluding part on www. thisdaylive.com

Femi Iromini: How Young Africans Are Rewriting Rules of Wealth The CEO and co-founder of Rank, Femi Iromini, says young Africans are rewriting the rules of wealth creation by harnessing technology, community and collective capital to overcome traditional barriers to financial opportunities and asset ownership. He spoke with Kayode Tokede

forms, and digital communities to pool resources, share market intelligence, and execute collective opportunities. By taking these informal digital behaviors and hosting them within a structured financial platform like Rank, youth can convert online coordination into pooled capital, lowering individual entry thresholds for high-value investments.

hy collective wealth-building in Africa despite the challenges? Africans have always built informal support systems when formal structures were weak. Technology now allows those traditional systems to scale efficiently. With Africa’s population projected to reach 2.5 billion by 2050, the demand for accessible financial services and investment will skyrocket. The goal is not to wait for perfect macroeconomic conditions, but to build resilient systems that work within realworld environments today. As a Fintech company, what are the major setbacks facing the sector’s ecosystem and how are key major stakeholders collaborating in creating solutions? While significant progress has been made on the issue of financial inclusion, there is still some work to be done on financial empowerment. It is certainly easier to send and receive money these days but that is just the tip of the iceberg when it comes to financial services. For example, The Nigeria Exchange was recently recognised as the best performing Exchange in the world, yet everyday citizens remain largely locked out. The barriers are two-fold: limited access to financial education and restrictive regulatory frameworks. Stakeholders, regulators, and fintechs must collaborate to streamline compliance, expand access to capital markets, and build safer entry points for retail investors.

Why does the future of wealth creation lie in pooling capital and coordinating digitally to shatter traditional barriers and access high-yield opportunities? Individually, small retail investors face prohibitive entry costs and zero pricing power. Digitally pooling capital allows retail users to act with institutional force. By aggregating funds, groups can access high-yield instruments, bulk-asset acquisitions, and primary market opportunities that were historically reserved for high-net-worth individuals and institutional funds.

Iromini

What are the ways young Africans are using their digital native status to access, organise and coordinate around financial opportunities at an unprecedented scale? Young Africans leverage social networks, messaging plat-

Why does the most educated and digitally connected generation in Africa’s history still faces the weakest, least reliable pathways to building real wealth? Modern African youth face a severe structural mismatch: severe macroeconomic headwinds, currency devaluations, high unemployment, and legacy financial systems designed for a bygone era. Traditional financial institutions still evaluate credit and investment readiness using outdated metrics, completely ignoring the digital economy, freelance earnings, and informal cash flows that drive today’s workforce.

T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R S E P T E M B E R 26, 2026

PERSPECTIVE Anambra’s Debts: Peter Obi and Danger of Single Story Chike Anyaonu

n her landmark 2009 TED Talk, Nigerian writer Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie warned of “the danger of a single story”. She argued that reducing complex realities to one-dimensional narrative robs people of dignity, equity, and peculiarity. Nearly two decades later, this warning resonates with striking relevance in Nigeria’s polity, particularly in the construction of NDC presidential candidate and former governor Peter Obi’s fiscal legacy in Anambra State. For over a decade, Nigerians have been sold a singular narrative: that the former governor exited office with billions in savings and zero debts for the state. It was a parable of administrative purity in a country where corruption is the default expectation. The story was seductive because it offered relief from cynicism; it allowed Obi’s supporters to believe that good governance is not only possible but was already achieved. But a single story, no matter how flattering, eventually meets the inconvenient force of facts. And now, the books have been opened. What emerges is not necessarily a story of villainy or corruption, but certainly one of disingenuous, non-transparent incompleteness: debts undisclosed, accounts unmentioned, and handovers that listed assets but concealed liabilities. This piece is thus an invitation to fuller truth. Yes, the danger of a single story does not end when that story belongs to someone you admire; it only shifts from erasing what was bad to obscuring what is complicated. Let’s now take a closer look at the narrative that was polished to perfection for over a decade. Peter Obi, as former governor of Anambra State, left office in 2014. The claim became gospel in political discourse that he departed with N75 billion, or was it $156 million, or perhaps N86.7 billion, in savings, allegedly without leaving behind any trace of debt. For years, this single story carried the weight of administrative virtue and fiscal responsibility. However, stories, even celebrated ones, have a habit of crumbling under the scrutiny with facts. Recently, the Anambra State Government, through Commissioners for Finance Izuchukwu Okafor and Information Law Mefor, disclosed what had remained conspicuously absent from the public record for twelve years: as of June 30, 2026, Anambra State still carries an outstanding external loan burden of $92.35 million, equivalent to N127.37 billion, incurred during and carried into the Obi administration. Eight distinct facilities, ranging from the $48.33 million Malaria Control Booster Project with $37.34 million outstanding, to the $37.89 million Nigeria Erosion and Watershed Management Project with $34.86 million still due, continue to attract monthly deductions from the state’s Federation Accounts Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocations. Hundreds of millions of naira are expended each month to service debts taken thirteen years previously. Yet, a debt dropped, accessed, and utilised remains a debt taken by the governor in office. This is the uncomfortable arithmetic that no amount of rhetorical flourish can dissolve. Public finance operates on principles older than the nations themselves:

the current Soludo administration is instructive. Governor Chukwuma Soludo, himself a former central banker and economist, recently rejected a World Bank loan offer on grounds that the terms were unfavourable and would risk creating a debt trap for Anambra in the future. Other governors across the federation opened their arms in warm reception of that loan regardless of its future implications. This decision, turning down readily available financing precisely because of its long-term consequences for the state’s fiscal sustainability, sets a benchmark for what responsible fiscal stewardship demands. Soludo’s administration has stated it has not borrowed from any commercial bank since taking office, yet continues servicing the inherited debts as mandatory FAAC deductions. Through disciplined fiscal management, they report reducing the burden by over 83%. The implication is that a governor who refuses to contract debts he cannot service within his tenure leaves a cleaner slate for his successor. This is accountable leadership, whereby you do not borrow against your successor’s future revenue streams unless you have ensured those revenues will be available when payment falls due. But into this accounting gap steps another claim, this one emerging only after the debt question was raised by the current state government. Obi’s defence now includes reference to First Bank Account No. 2018779464, purportedly holding N2.13 billion designated as an ecological fund at the UNIZIK branch, a detail, supporters say, that proves substantial reserves were left behind. This defence collapses under basic scrutiny. If N2 billion in project-tied savings existed, why was it not captured in the handover note delivered to the succeeding administration in 2014? Handover notes, in Nigerian public service, serve as legal and administrative bridges between regimes. Soludo They are meant to disclose both assets and liabilities, not selectively present one while omitting the other. debts contracted by the executive are debts borne by the state. The state counters that the account in question is an IGRThe eight World Bank and related external facilities attributed to Consolidated Revenue Account that never carried the alleged balance. Obi’s tenure, including Fadama programmes, health initiatives, education projects, and community development loans, were not So, where is the money Mr Obi revealed was in a dedicated First federal gifts to Anambra. They were state-level facilities facilitated Bank Plc account? Regardless of which version prevails, the timing of the revelation is telling: the account details emerged only after the debt through the administration then in power, disbursed into state disclosure forced a defensive posture. accounts, and utilised for state purposes. This is being smart by half, as claiming savings in a commercial The distinction matters profoundly. A World Bank facility bank account only after the liability question becomes unavoidable is facilitated for the state and drawn down is a state debt, not a federal subsidy. Subsequent governments inherit both the benefits an afterthought, not transparency. Interestingly, a popular suggestion advanced by a news anchor and the obligations. Yet, here lies the central contradiction: if Obi truly left N75 billion in savings as he claimed, those funds would personality in one of the television stations and various pro-Obi analysts proposes deducting the N127 billion debt from the claimed have been accessible to service or liquidate the liabilities before $156 million in savings, so that the ledger will balance. This proposihandover. The absence of such liquidation, and the continued tion represents an aberration in public finance accounting. servicing of these debts under successive administrations, suggests either that the savings never existed in the manner claimed, Anyaonu is Coun Hart, Member of the National Instior that they existed separately from the mechanisms required to tute, is Chief of Staff to Benjamin Kalu address the liabilities. Both possibilities undermine the foundational claim of a Read full article online - www.thisdaylive.com debt-free exit and transparent legacy. The contrast provided by

Benjamin Okezie Kalu: From Bende to The World Sam Hart

here is a certain kind of representation that begins at home but refuses to be confined by geography. It begins with a constituency, in this case, Bende Federal Constituency in Abia State, but expands into the national arena, across Africa and ultimately into the rooms where legislators from around the world debate peace, trade, development, security and the future of multilateralism. That is the international parliamentary journey of Rt. Hon. Benjamin Okezie Kalu, Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Bende’s representative in Nigeria’s National Assembly has, particularly since becoming Deputy Speaker of the 10th House in June 2023, accumulated responsibilities across some of the principal forums of parliamentary diplomacy. He has served in the ECOWAS Parliament and Pan-African Parliament, participated in the Inter-Parliamentary Union and, in February 2025, was invited to join the Steering Committee of the Parliamentary Conference on the World Trade Organisation. The latter was particularly significant because his appointment is Nigeria’s first representation on that global parliamentary trade panel. Records of Kalu’s international engagements is not simply a catalogue of foreign trips. It is a progression, from participation to responsibility, from making interventions to helping frame international parliamentary discussions and, eventually, to serving as co-rapporteur of a resolution adopted by the Inter-Parliamentary Union.

Geneva, March 2024: Taking Africa’s Trade Challenges To The WTO

One of the early markers came in March 2024 when Kalu joined Nigeria’s delegation to the 148th Assembly of the Inter-Parliamentary Union in Geneva, Switzerland. The Assembly, held from March 23 to 27, focused

on parliamentary diplomacy and the building of bridges for peace and understanding. The IPU’s official records confirm Kalu’s participation as Deputy Speaker of Nigeria’s House of Representatives. But his Geneva engagement extended beyond the Assembly hall. During a visit to WTO Director-General Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Kalu raised the practical obstacles confronting African primary-product exporters. He drew attention to difficulties involving product standards and aflatoxin contamination and sought greater WTO collaboration to improve market access for Nigerian and African products. There was a broader philosophy behind that intervention: international engagement should ultimately connect to the economic circumstances of citizens at home. At the same IPU Assembly, Kalu also argued for changes to the Union’s procedures for admitting emergency items. His position was that the existing mechanism could limit the ability of African crises to receive sufficient international parliamentary attention. He raised conflicts affecting Sudan and other African countries while also addressing the humanitarian situation in Gaza and advocating greater gender inclusion in governance. The pattern was beginning to take shape: participate in the international institution, but also challenge its processes where those processes appeared insufficiently responsive to African concerns.

more than one million people had been displaced in one affected state. He connected the disaster to the broader African challenge of climate change and called for continental solidarity. The intervention produced a tangible parliamentary response: the Conference of Speakers subsequently expressed solidarity with Nigerian flood victims and other Africans affected by similar natural disasters. At the same gathering, Kalu advanced proposals linked to the African Union’s Agenda 2063, including subregional centres of excellence in technology, innovative financing mechanisms and stronger public-private partnerships for infrastructure development. Nigeria’s immediate humanitarian concerns had therefore been placed within a larger argument about Africa’s resilience, infrastructure and long-term development.

New York, February 2025: Reimagining Multilateralism

Midrand, 2024: From Nigeria To PanAfrican Representation

By June 2024, Kalu’s parliamentary responsibilities had expanded further with his entry into the Pan-African Parliament, the African Union’s legislative organ. That placed him in an institution designed to bring African legislators into continental policymaking and integration. In September 2024, at the 12th Annual Conference of Speakers of National and Regional Parliaments held at the Pan-African Parliament in Midrand, South Africa, Kalu used the continental

Kalu

February 2025 marked another stage. At meetings connected to the Inter-Parliamentary Union at the United Nations Headquarters in New York, Kalu argued that the architecture of global multilateralism required reform. Representing Nigeria at a meeting of parliamentary leaders preparatory to the Sixth World Conference of Speakers of Parliament, he called for greater representation of developing countries in international decision-making and argued for Nigeria’s inclusion as a permanent member of the United Nations Security Council. He also questioned aspects of the UN funding structure, arguing that excessive dependence on a small number of major donors could create imbalances in international priority-setting.

platform to draw attention to catastrophic flooding Hart, Member of the National Instiin Borno, Adamawa and Yobe states. tute, is Chief of Staff to Benjamin Kalu He told fellow African parliamentary leaders that more than $200 million would be required to address Read full article online - www. the humanitarian consequences and reported that

T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R S E P T E M B E R 26, 2026

PERSPECTIVE

Niger Mining Tragedy: Why Nigeria’s Artisanal Mining Problem Is Really Financing SaheedAhmed

ning; processing plants; gravity concentration and other appropriate recovery technologies; laboratory testing and assaying; occupational health and safety; environmental management; traceability and responsible sourcing; formal employment; tax and royalty payments; and transparent mineral sales. Instead of 100 people working independently with shovels and improvised equipment, a properly structured mining operation can create an integrated business employing hundreds of people directly and many more through contractors, logistics, engineering, security, catering, equipment maintenance and mineral processing. This is not about eliminating artisanal miners. It is about graduating them. Nigeria’s Ministry of Solid Minerals Development already recognises the importance of formalisation, extension services, mining clusters, safer mining techniques and access to finance for artisanal and small-scale miners. The policy direction is therefore clear. What is missing is scale. The financing problem. Mining is different from most businesses. A manufacturer can show a bank its factory, machinery, historical cash flow and inventory. A miner may have something potentially worth billions of naira underground—but before that mineral can become revenue, the company may need to spend significant amounts on geological exploration, drilling, assays, feasibility studies, environmental approvals, roads, power, water, equipment and processing infrastructure. And the biggest risk is that the mineral deposit may not ultimately be economically viable. That makes conventional bank lending difficult. Commercial banks understandably do not want to lend long-tenor money against an unproven geological proposition. This is why virtually every serious mining jurisdiction has developed institutions, capital markets, development-finance mechanisms or specialised investors capable of taking geological and project-development risk. Nigeria needs to do the same.

he death of 37 people in Niger State should force Nigeria to confront a difficult truth about our mining industry: we cannot police our way out of an economic problem. On September 17, 2026, 37 people who had been detained in Niger State on suspicion of illegal mining died while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps. The circumstances of their deaths remain the subject of an independent investigation established by the Federal Government. The government has suspended officers connected with the incident and constituted a 10-member committee to investigate what happened. Whatever the final findings of that investigation may be, the tragedy should become a catalyst for a much larger national conversation about artisanal and small-scale mining. I write this not simply as an observer, but as a practitioner. Through Cap9 Minerals, we operate and evaluate mineral opportunities across Nigeria and other African mining jurisdictions. We see every day the gap between the geological potential of African deposits and the capital, technology, equipment and technical expertise available to the people actually extracting those minerals. Nigeria’s artisanal miners are often described as the problem. I believe many of them are actually the first participants in what could become a much larger mining industry. The question is whether Nigeria will help them make that transition. From artisanal mining to productive mining Artisanal mining exists because there is economic value in the ground. A young man (or woman) does not leave school, travel to a remote mining community and spend his day digging through rock, soil or river sediments because he has an ideological commitment to illegal mining. He or she does it because there is gold, tin, lithium, tantalite, lead, zinc or another mineral—and because mining represents an economic opportunity. The problem is that too much of Nigeria’s mineral production is still taking place at the lowest end of the value chain. The typical artisanal operator does not have geological data, modern exploration equipment, appropriate excavation machinery, efficient processing technology, environmental management systems, occupational safety systems or affordable working capital. The result is predictable: Low recovery, high risk, environmental degradation, lost government revenue and limited value creation. At Cap9 Minerals, when we examine deposits, one of the first questions is not simply “Is there gold?” It is: How much economically recoverable mineralisation is there, what technology is required to recover it, what is the capital requirement, and can the operation be converted into a sustainable commercial mining business? That is the difference between digging and mining.

The Mining Development Bank of Nigeria Bill Alake

The missing middle

This is why the proposed Nigerian Mining Development Bank (NMDB) deserves serious national attention. The Nigerian Mining Development Bank Bill, HB 808, sponsored by Hon. Uchenna Harris Okonkwo, proposes a specialised institution to provide financial support and credit facilities to individuals, cooperatives and companies involved in mining, while also supporting investment, technical expertise, research, technology and sustainable mining practices. The bill passed second reading in the House of Representatives in March 2024. In July 2026, the House adopted the committee report on the bill, demonstrating that the proposal remains part of the current legislative process.

Nigeria has spent considerable time discussing artisanal mining on one side and large multinational mining companies on the other. Compared to more advanced markets such as South Africa and Tanzania where medium to large scale represents over 75 percent of the market, Nigeria is the exact opposite with less than 25 percent. But there is a missing middle. Medium-scale mining. Ahmed is the Abuja based Chief Executive Officer This is where I believe Nigeria’s greatest immediate opportunity lies. A properly financed medium-scale operation can take an existing (CEO) of Cap9 Minerals artisanal mining community and introduce: Geological exploration Read full article online - www.thisdaylive.com and resource definition; mechanised excavation; proper mine plan-

Africa’s Youth Are Ready, Are Our Systems?

Ruby Igwe

frica’s industrialisation and digital transformation are reshaping what it means to be ready for work. Artificial intelligence, data analytics and digital tools are increasingly influencing how work gets done across manufacturing, finance, agriculture, media, the arts and almost every other sector. Yet we continue to ask whether young Africans are ready for this future. I believe we need to ask a bigger question: are the systems around them ready to match their ambition? Across the continent, young people are already acquiring digital and entrepreneurial skills, launching businesses and participating in the gig economy. The challenge now is whether education providers, employers, governments and development partners can scale what is working and convert that capability into broad based economic opportunity. Since 2021, ALX has trained more than 350,000 young people across Africa. The scale of that participation points to something important: young Africans recognise that technology fluency is becoming increasingly relevant, regardless of career path. Manufacturing, finance, marketing, journalism and the creative industries are all being reshaped by data, AI, automation and other digital tools. The old separation between “tech jobs” and “everything else” is becoming less distinct.

This requires a mindset shift. Young people do not need to master every technology, but they do need to understand how technology intersects with their chosen field and how it can improve the way they work. Increasingly, the advantage will come from combining technical fluency with critical thinking, leadership, adaptability and other human skills. This is where the conversation about readiness needs to shift from individuals to systems. Training alone is not enough. Skills providers need stronger feedback loops with employers so that learning reflects real market demand. Employers, in turn, need to clearly define the capabilities they require and create meaningful entry points through which emerging talent can gain experience and enter the workforce. Governments have an equally important role. Reliable power, connectivity and digital infrastructure remain critical to participation in the digital economy. Development partners can help expand access and take proven models beyond pockets of excellence. None of these actors can solve the challenge independently. Systems readiness means connecting skills, infrastructure, investment and opportunity so that talent has somewhere to go. Africa’s demographic profile amplifies both the opportunity and the urgency. With a significant share of the population under 30, the continent has the potential to build a powerful labour and innovation base. But demographics alone do not guarantee

a dividend. That potential depends on whether young people can access the skills, infrastructure and economic pathways required to participate productively. Some view the technology wave primarily as a threat to jobs, to traditional industries, or as a driver of emigration. I see it differently. AI and digital tools offer Africa a chance to leapfrog older development paths. In addition, they allow tasks to be completed more efficiently and enable firms and workers to build on global advances rather than reinventing everything from scratch. Concerns about brain drain are understandable, but mobility is only part of the picture. The bigger priority is to expand the overall talent pipeline while creating viable pathways for young Africans to build careers and businesses at home and participate in opportunities globally. The path forward requires coordinated action. Skills providers must continue expanding access to practical, high-quality training. Employers must define demand more clearly and create entry points. Governments must deliver infrastructure and enabling policy. Development partners must help scale what works. When these elements reinforce one another, a flywheel emerges: better-aligned training leads to stronger employment outcomes, which strengthens the case for further investment in skills and infrastructure, which in turn expands opportunity. Africa’s young people are not waiting for the future of work to arrive. They are already learning, adapting, building and

Igwe creating. The defining question for the next decade is whether the systems around them can move with the same urgency, turning individual capability into

opportunity at scale. Igwe is the Regional Director for West & Central Africa at ALX, part of the African Leadership Group

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r •September 26, 2026

FeATUReS

Optimus Bank: Offering Convenience, Expanding Financial Inclusion As Nigeria’s banking landscape becomes increasingly digital, customers are demanding greater accessibility, ﬂexibility and security. Optimus Bank is responding with a range of card solutions designed to simplify everyday transactions, expand ﬁnancial access and meet customers’ payment needs, writes Omolabake Fasogbon

s Nigeria’s financial ecosystem continues to evolve, customers are increasingly seeking banking solutions that combine convenience, accessibility and flexibility with the security expected of modern financial services. Against this backdrop, Optimus Bank has continued to strengthen its digital banking proposition with payment card products designed to meet customers at different points of their financial journey, enabling seamless transactions across everyday purchases, online platforms and, for eligible customers, international markets. Beyond facilitating payments, the bank’s card portfolio reflects a broader commitment to expanding financial inclusion by giving customers greater choice in how they transact and manage their finances. From Naira-denominated cards for everyday payments to Visa products offering broader transaction capabilities and a dollar-denominated option for customers with international needs, Optimus Bank is positioning its card solutions as tools for participation in an increasingly cashless and digitally connected economy. Recognising the changing needs of customers, Optimus Bank developed a range of card products designed to support customers across different levels of banking needs.

Payment Solutions

From its Naira-denominated Verve and Visa Gold cards to its US dollar-denominated Visa Platinum card, the bank’s card portfolio provides customers with options for local transactions, online payments and international spending. For customers looking for a straightforward payment solution for everyday banking, the Optimus Bank Verve Naira Card provides access across major transaction channels, including ATMs, web platforms and point-of-sale terminals. The card is accepted by merchants and platforms such as Glovo, Adobe, Shein Nigeria, Oraimo, Netflix and Spotify, giving customers the flexibility to pay for a range of goods and services without relying solely on cash. The Verve card is available to Tier 1–3 account holders, with daily transaction limits of up to N100,000 on ATMs, subject to a cumulative weekly limit of N500,000, and up to N1.5 million daily on POS and web transactions. For customers whose needs extend beyond everyday local transactions, Optimus Bank’s Visa Gold Naira Card provides additional features and international functionality. Also, Optimus Bank Visa Gold Naira Card was designed for Tier 3 Naira account holders seeking broader payment capabilities. Beyond its use for local transactions, the card is enabled for cross-border transactions and usage abroad, as well as local and international subscription payments. Customers also have access to Visa Travel Assist and 24-hour global customer assistance services from Visa. The card additionally provides buyer protection and access to discounts offered by participating Visa merchant partners, including Booking.com, IHG Hotels & Resorts, Agoda and RentalCars. The Visa Gold card provides transaction limits of up to N100,000 daily on ATM withdrawals, with a cumulative weekly limit of N500,000, while POS and web transactions can reach N3 million daily. Its cross-border/international limit is $25,000 per quarter. This combination makes the card particularly relevant to customers whose financial activities

increasingly extend beyond Nigeria’s borders. For customers who require a card denominated in US dollars, Optimus Bank offers the Visa Platinum USD Card, targeted at Tier 3 USD account holders. The card provides international payment functionality while giving customers access to a number of Visa services and benefits. Cardholders can access 24-hour global customer assistance services, Visa Travel Assist, buyer protection, YQ Meet and Assist, and extended warranty benefits. The card is also enabled for international subscription payments, providing customers with a convenient payment option for services billed outside Nigeria. Its international orientation is further reflected in access to discounts from participating Visa merchant partners, including the Visa Luxury Hotel Collection, Booking.com, Bookingbash, IHG Hotels & Resorts, Agoda and RentalCars. The Visa Platinum USD Card allows ATM withdrawals of up to $1,000 daily, or its equivalent in other currencies, while POS and web transactions are subject to a daily limit of $5,000. A key feature of Optimus Bank’s card offering is the variety of options available to customers. The Verve Naira Card caters to everyday local payments and digital commerce, while the Visa Gold Naira Card extends the customer’s reach to cross-border transactions, international subscriptions and additional Visa services. For customers with dollar accounts and more international financial requirements, the Visa Platinum USD Card provides a dollardenominated payment option with international services and benefits. This tiered approach allows customers to select a card based on their individual financial needs rather than adopting a one-size-fits-all approach.

Offering Customers Flexibility

The Chief Digital Officer of Optimus Bank, Biodun Alli, said the bank incorporated technology into its card services to make the request and activation process more suitable for customers. “Optimus Bank has incorporated technology to improve customer experience by making card request and activation seamless via the Optiverse mobile application,” Alli added. According to him, customers have the flexibility to initiate card requests through the application and choose between home delivery and branch pickup, depending on their preference. “Customers have the option of initiating card requests by choosing home delivery or branch pickup. Customers can either pick up the card themselves or nominate a proxy to pick up the card on their behalf,” he added. Alli further said the bank’s cards were designed to support multiple digital payment channels, providing customers with access to different transaction platforms. He listed the channels as ATM withdrawals, Point-of-Sale (PoS) payments and online purchases and e-commerce transactions. The Chief Digital Officer said the bank’s technology-driven approach was aimed at ensuring that customers could access and use their cards conveniently across different payment environments. He said the bank is also paying particular attention to security as card usage and digital transactions continued to expand. “Card fraud and cybercrime remain major concerns for Nigerian consumers. At Optimus Bank, card platforms are built around multiple

Odeyemi security layers of protection designed to reduce fraud risk and give customers immediate control over their cards,” Alli added. He explained that the bank’s card platforms incorporated secure transaction protocols covering ATM, POS and online payments. According to him, the security architecture also includes One-Time Password (OTP) authentication and other verification measures for digital transactions. Alli noted that OTP authentication and other verification measures were deployed to help prevent unauthorised use of customers’ cards during digital transactions. He also stressed the importance of customer awareness in combating financial fraud, noting that technology alone could not eliminate risks associated with phishing, SIM-swap fraud, fake banking applications and social engineering scams. “Customer awareness and fraud prevention controls are an important component of the bank’s approach, he said, adding that customers were actively advised never to share their PINs, passwords or OTPs. The bank also promotes two-factor authentication where applicable,” he explained. Alli further disclosed that real-time account connectivity had been incorporated into the bank’s card ecosystem to facilitate faster monitoring and detection of suspicious activity. He said customers could quickly block their accounts through self-service options available on the mobile application or by using the bank’s USSD service. “Customers can quickly block their account by using self-service options on the mobile app or USSD string,” he said. He listed the USSD options as *930*911# for self-service and *930*911*Account Number# for third-party account blocking. Also, the Head, Card Business, Optimus Bank, Seye Balogun, said the bank’s future card strategy would focus on delivering smarter, safer and more seamless payment experiences as Nigeria’s digital economy expands. “The future of payment cards at Optimus Bank is centered on delivering a smarter, safer, and more seamless payment experience for customers in an increasingly digital economy,” Balogun added. He said the bank, as a digital-first institution, was continuously evaluating emerging payment technologies and strategic partnerships that could improve convenience, security and accessibility

for customers. “Our vision is to ensure that our cards remain relevant across physical, online, and mobile payment ecosystems,” he said. According to Balogun, partnerships would remain central to the bank’s strategy as it seeks to expand the functionality and relevance of its card products. “Partnerships will remain a key part of our strategy. We will continue working with payment networks, fintech partners, and merchants to introduce innovative solutions that simplify everyday payments while maintaining the highest standards of security and reliability,” he said. He pointed out that the bank’s ambition went beyond issuing payment cards, stressing that the objective was to develop payment solutions that reflected how customers increasingly live, work, shop and transact. “Our goal is not just to issue cards, but to create payment solutions that align with how customers live, work, shop, and transact today,” Balogun added. He further noted that the next phase of the bank’s card development would combine convenience with real-time digital control and strong security. “Ultimately, we see the next evolution of our cards as one that combines convenience, real-time digital control, and robust security, enabling customers to transact with confidence whether they are making purchases online, at a merchant location, or through emerging digital payment channels,” he said. Indeed, the growth of online shopping, digital subscriptions, travel and cashless payments has changed the way consumers interact with financial institutions. Optimus Bank’s card portfolio reflects this changing environment by combining traditional ATM and PoS functionality with web payments, subscription payments, merchant acceptance and, where applicable, international transactions. As Nigeria’s payment ecosystem continues to evolve, payment cards will remain an important part of the country’s broader shift towards convenient, secure and increasingly digital financial services. And for Optimus Bank, its range of Verve, Visa Gold and Visa Platinum USD cards provides customers with different pathways to participate in that evolving financial ecosystem, whether their needs are primarily local, digital, international or a combination of all three.

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r •September 26, 2026

Features

Enugu Air: Opening New Gateway to Africa Enugu Air’s inaugural ﬂight to Douala has opened a new chapter in regional connectivity, linking Enugu directly with Cameroon while creating fresh opportunities for trade, tourism, investment and stronger economic ties between both countries, writes Gideon Arinze

t exactly 2:48 p.m. on Wednesday, September 23, the Enugu Air aircraft touched down at the Douala International Airport, bringing cheers, applause and a sense of anticipation from passengers and officials gathered to receive the historic flight. For those on board, the moment was the physical manifestation of a journey that had begun in Enugu and, for the first time, crossed Nigeria’s borders under the banner of the state’s own airline. As the aircraft taxied to its position, the atmosphere around the airport changed. Cameroonian authorities, airport officials, members of the Nigerian community, diplomatic representatives and other guests gathered to welcome the aircraft and its passengers. The excitement was palpable. Some of the first set of passengers that joined Enugu Air to Douala – Mrs. Chukwuma, Mrs. Love Chidiogarum, and Mr. Ogbonna Jude – were rewarded with gifts by the airline to appreciate their patronage. Mrs. Chidiogarum, expressed delight that she doesn’t need to travel to Lagos anymore to catch a flight going to Douala. “I doubted this initially when I was booking. Before, we normally travel first to Lagos and in some instances, we need to book hotels. All these come with cost. But now, we have a direct flight and in less than one hour, I am in Cameroun. “I am so happy because I come to Enugu often. I have a school in Enugu. So, next month I will still fly Enugu Air back to Enugu,” she added. Another passenger, an elated Arsenal Bruno Chiagozie, commended the state government for the feat and urged travellers to patronise the airline. “I am happy and proud to be an Enugu man. I believe that very soon this airline will conquer Africa,” he added. The inaugural flight marked Enugu Air’s first major step beyond Nigeria and the launch of a direct air connection between Enugu and Douala, Nigeria and Cameroon, and the South-east and Central Africa. For businesses, connectivity means access to markets. For traders, it can mean shorter journeys and easier movement of goods. For tourists, it means greater accessibility. For families and communities, it means people can move more easily between countries. For governments, it creates another channel through which economic and cultural relationships can deepen. And for Enugu, the route creates the possibility of positioning the state not merely as a destination within Nigeria but as an emerging regional gateway. For a state that has historically looked to Lagos and Abuja for much of its international air connectivity, the significance of the moment was not lost on the delegation from Enugu. It was, in many respects, Enugu announcing itself to a wider African market. And for Enugu Air, it was the beginning of an ambition to transform Enugu into a place from which people, goods, businesses and ideas can move into Africa and, eventually, the wider world. Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah, described the development as part of a broader master plan to reposition the state as a preferred destination for investment, business, tourism and habitation, as his administration pursues its ambition of growing the state’s economy to $30 billion. “Months ago, right here, we watched Enugu take to the skies. In just barely six months after a rigorous regulatory process, Enugu Air obtained her Air Operator’s License. This is not a mean feat,” Mbah said. “Today, 14 months after, we can see that dream flying beyond our expectations, as Enugu Air

is one of the fastest-growing airlines in Nigeria, without a doubt.” According to him, Enugu Air was conceived as part of a larger development strategy rather than simply as a state-owned aviation venture. “But we did not conceive of Enugu Air as a bragging right or because of the clamour, or to gain some political acclaim. Enugu Air is part of the masterplan to make Enugu State the premier destination for investment, living, business and tourism. For us, Enugu Air is part of connecting the dots,” he added. From Enugu to Douala The significance of the inaugural flight was amplified by the long-standing relationship between the people of Nigeria and Cameroon. At the Douala reception, the General Manager of Aéroports du Cameroun, Thomas Assoumou, recalled that the name Enugu was not unfamiliar to Cameroonians. He pointed to the sporting history between Canon Yaoundé and Enugu Rangers as one of the longstanding links between the two places. “Today, however, we are witnessing a new partnership and a new connection between our two states,” Assoumou said. For him, the importance of the new route was also economic. He noted that many Nigerian businessmen live in Cameroon and that some have faced difficulties moving goods in significant quantities. A reliable air connection, he said, could help increase economic activity and facilitate travel between the two countries. “When there are no flights, economic activity is hindered, and that is not good for either country,” he said. The Commissioner for Trade, Investment and Industry in Enugu State, Dr. Sam OgbuNwobodo, described the route as a major step in the state’s trade, investment and economic integration strategy. “For decades, the vibrant traders, manufacturers, and entrepreneurs of Enugu and the broader region have navigated complex transit routes to access Central African markets,” he said. By reducing the complications associated with indirect travel, the route could help businesses connect more efficiently with customers, suppliers and partners across borders. Africa’s economic integration has often been constrained not only by tariffs and border procedures but also by inadequate transport links. The Enugu-Douala route therefore arrives at a

time when the language of African integration is increasingly moving from aspiration towards practical questions about connectivity, logistics and market access. Douala Welcomes Enugu The reception in Douala reflected the enthusiasm of the Cameroonian authorities about the new connection. “Today is not an ordinary day. We are not simply witnessing the landing of an aircraft. We are witnessing the beginning of a new milestone in the economic, cultural and fraternal relationship between our two countries,” the Governor of the Littoral Region said. He described the initiative as a new bridge between the people of Nigeria and Cameroon and linked it to the vision of a more connected and integrated Africa. Another Cameroonian official emphasised the potential benefits for the Nigerian community in Douala. According to him, the connection could enable larger quantities of products to move between Nigeria and Cameroon while also facilitating exports in the opposite direction. He particularly welcomed the opportunity created for the Igbo community in Cameroon, which he described as having a longstanding presence and strong entrepreneurial traditions. That community provides another layer to the significance of the route. The Mayor of Douala, Roger Mbassa Ndinè, also welcomed the development, recalling the historical links between Enugu and Cameroon through football and other interactions. Enugu Becomes a Gateway For the airline’s Chief Executive Officer, Captain Tolu Ita, the inaugural international flight represented a change in the way the city should be perceived. “We are not merely launching a flight; we are launching a new chapter,” she said. “This is a chapter in which Enugu is no longer simply where a journey begins or ends. Enugu is becoming a gateway.” Ita said the movement created by the new route would involve more than an aircraft. “Today, much bigger than an aircraft will be moving across our skies. Opportunity will be moving. Business will be moving. People will be moving. Ideas will be moving. And Enugu will be moving with them. This is what makes today so significant.”

That is the broader narrative behind the airline’s international expansion. Enugu Air did not begin with an international network. Its domestic network has progressively connected Enugu with Lagos, Abuja, Port Harcourt, Kano, Owerri, Asaba, Benin City and Warri. The Douala flight was the first major step beyond Nigeria. The airline’s ambition, she added, is to build a stronger regional network across Africa while progressively opening the door to wider international markets. The challenge, however, is to ensure that the excitement of an inaugural flight translates into sustainable connectivity. Ita, however, used the occasion to reassure passengers and stakeholders that the airline was committed to maintaining the route. “We are not like some airlines that start operations and stop shortly afterwards. What we do is go where we intend to go, remain committed and ensure that the connectivity we have established today continues,” she said. For Ita, however, the focus remains firmly on the future. She said the airline’s ambition is to connect people, markets and possibilities. The Secretary to the Enugu State Government, Prof. Chidiebere Onyia, also emphasised consistency. Onyia, who led the delegation from the state government that travelled to Cameroun, which included the Commissioner of Information, Dr. Malachy Agbo, among others, pointed out that the airline was not approaching the international route as an isolated project. Upon assuming office, Mbah set a target of attracting three million visitors to Enugu State annually, the SSG stressed. For such an ambition to become realistic, transportation connectivity becomes essential, Onyia stressed. “Businesspeople need efficient access. Investors need to be able to move between markets. International visitors need confidence that the city is accessible. An airline can therefore become a critical component of a broader tourism and investment strategy,” the SSG added. “So, giving Dr. Peter Mbah the opportunity to do what he is doing for another four years, is an important decision to make. This is a Governor that in three years has done unimaginable things for this State and for this region,” he added The Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) also welcomed the development.

T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R S E P T E M B E R 26, 2026

Right of Reply

Urgency is Not Panic Olarenwaju Modupe

deola Akinremi’s “Joseph Tegbe’s Panic Response to Power Sector Reform” raises legitimate questions about the proposed national electricity complaints call centre. But using that single intervention to portray the Minister of Power as acting out of panic rather than pursuing a systemic reform agenda is a significant analytical leap. Akinremi is correct that Nigeria already has an established complaints architecture involving Distribution Companies and the regulator. The pertinent question, however, is not simply whether a process exists, but whether it is sufficiently effective, responsive and accessible to the millions of Nigerians who interact with the power sector. The existence of a process does not automatically establish its effectiveness. A proposed call centre is certainly not the power-sector reform. It is one possible instrument within a much broader reform process. To make it the basis for judging the Minister’s entire approach reduces a complex transformation programme to a single announcement. Nigeria’s power problem is not one problem. It is an ecosystem of interconnected challenges involving generation, transmission, distribution, metering, financing, regulation, infrastructure protection, customer service and institutional coordination. No serious reformer would imagine that one intervention can resolve all of these. The real challenge is to make the entire system work better. That is precisely where process management becomes important. A process can exist on paper and still be slow, fragmented or ineffective. An organisation can have a complaints unit, an escalation procedure, and a regulatory framework while consumers continue to experience frustration. The more useful question, therefore, is whether a national platform could improve the interface between consumers and the institutions that already have statutory responsibility. Could it provide a single point of access? Could it track complaints? Could it improve escalation? Could it identify recurring failures? Could it generate actionable data for government? Could it ensure that complaints reach the institution capable of resolving them? If properly designed, such a mechanism need not replace NERC, the DisCos or existing consumer structures. It could

strengthen them. That is a legitimate policy debate. It is not, by itself, evidence of panic. Nigeria’s electricity crisis also has a deeper dimension worth considering: public cynicism. Years of unreliable power have conditioned Nigerians to expect promises without sustainable outcomes. Consequently, even when improvements begin, the government faces the added challenge of convincing citizens that the change is real and durable. That requires more than infrastructure. It requires responsiveness, feedback, accountability and visible evidence that the old culture of failure is being challenged. In a system where failure has become normalised, reform may require what can reasonably be described as cultural shock—new expectations, faster responses and a visible disruption of established habits. Urgency, therefore, should not automatically be confused with impulsiveness. A minister confronting a sector in distress cannot wait until every long-term reform is complete before addressing immediate problems. Generation, transmission, metering, vandalism, distribution and consumer complaints do not occur sequentially. They occur simultaneously. Reform must therefore operate on multiple fronts. That is why the Minister’s early interventions should be assessed as components of a developing transformation programme, not isolated announcements. Criticism is necessary. Indeed, Tegbe should be subjected to rigorous scrutiny over the cost, governance, statutory relationships and measurable outcomes of every initiative, including the proposed call centre. But scrutiny should also be contextual. The proper test is not whether the Minister has found a single solution to Nigeria’s power crisis. He has not—and no serious reformer could. The test is whether his interventions collectively begin to change the way the system functions. Power-sector reform is not a quick-fix policy document. It is a long-term transformation of a complex ecosystem. Tegbe’s first months should therefore be judged with both accountability and context. His professional background in management consulting and process transformation does not exempt him from scrutiny; it makes the architecture and execution of his reforms particularly important to examine. Ultimately, Nigerians do not need a government that merely creates more places to complain. They need a system that listens, responds, fixes problems and learns from them. But neither should Nigerians be asked to reject an intervention simply because it does not solve the entire problem. The power sector has waited too long for change. What it needs now is not paralysis disguised as prudence, but strategic urgency,

Tegbe

disciplined execution and measurable results. That is Tegbe’s approach! Urgency is not panic. And one intervention is not a reform strategy. Modupe, a public affairs and communication practitioner based in Lagos, wrote this in response to Adeola Akinremi’s opinion article published on Saturday, September 19, 2026

Globacom and Renaissance of Fresh Impetus Ekedinma Uchegbulem

very institution eventually encounters the danger that accompanies longevity: the temptation to confuse having survived with having arrived. Experience can become either a launchpad or an anchor, depending upon the imagination with which an organisation interprets its history. At 23, Globacom has chosen the more demanding path. It has elected to treat experience not as a reason for repose, but as the raw material for reinvention. This is perhaps the deepest meaning of “Never Settle for Less”. It is the psychology of the Never Settler: the individual and institution that looks at what exists and asks what ought to exist; that recognises achievement without becoming imprisoned by it; that sees adequacy not as a destination, but as an invitation to improve. It is a philosophy rooted in movement, because the moment an organisation becomes entirely satisfied with what it has achieved, it begins, paradoxically, to surrender the future. Globacom’s history offers several powerful chapters of this temperament. When the company entered Nigeria’s telecommunications landscape in 2003, its introduction of per-second billing challenged established assumptions about the economics of mobile communication and helped alter the relationship between consumers and service providers. It was an innovation that demonstrated that an apparently technical decision could possess a larger social meaning. By aligning payment more closely with actual usage, it introduced a different understanding of fairness into the marketplace and helped make mobile communication more accessible to a wider population. The same disposition was evident in the company’s subsequent technological evolution and its investment in Glo-1, an international submarine fibre-optic cable whose arrival strengthened Nigeria’s connection to the global digital ecosystem. Such infrastructure is rarely visible to the ordinary consumer. It lies beneath oceans and roads, hidden from public gaze, yet it carries the invisible traffic upon which visible modern life depends. In that sense, the history of telecommunications resembles the history of civilisation itself: the most

consequential foundations are often those that attract the least applause. But the Never Settler does not worship the breakthrough. The Never Settler creates a culture in which another breakthrough remains possible. This distinction is important. A company may be celebrated for an innovation and still become irrelevant if it subsequently treats that innovation as the conclusion of its intellectual journey. True institutional imagination is different. It understands that every answer contains the seed of another question. This is why the emergence of new products and propositions at Globacom is significant beyond their immediate commercial purpose. Glo Magic Data Bundle, TalkMasta Reloaded, Welcome Bonus and related offerings represent attempts to translate a philosophy of greater value into the everyday experience of customers. TalkMasta’s reward structure, for instance, gives voice communication an additional dimension by linking qualifying usage to further voice and data benefits. Welcome Bonus similarly seeks to make the first encounter with the network a meaningful expression of value. The significance of these propositions becomes clearer when viewed against the changing nature of Nigerian society. The mobile device has become one of the principal instruments through which Nigerians conduct modern life. It is a bank, a classroom, a business terminal, a television, a newsroom, a marketplace and, sometimes, a bridge across emotional distances. For the entrepreneur, connectivity can mean access to customers. For the student, it can mean access to knowledge. For the creative, it can mean access to an audience. For families, it can mean the preservation of intimacy despite geography. Connectivity has consequently evolved from a service into an ecosystem of possibility. This transformation places a higher intellectual burden upon telecommunications companies. It is no longer sufficient merely to provide access. The deeper challenge is to understand what people are attempting to accomplish through that access and to design experiences that make those ambitions easier, richer and more rewarding. The customer is no longer simply consuming a service; the customer

Adenuga

porary indication of the company’s continuing movement. In May 2026, Globacom added approximately 1.2 million internet subscribers, nearly half of the total monthly increase reported for Nigeria. Such a figure is not merely a statistic; it represents thousands upon thousands of individual decisions to enter, remain within or deepen engagement with a digital ecosystem. Yet numbers, however impressive, remain only the footprints of a larger journey. The true measure of a Never Settler lies in what happens after success. Does success breed complacency, or does it produce greater curiosity? Does experience narrow the imagination, or deepen it? Does achievement become a trophy, or a platform? At 23, Globacom appears to be choosing the platform. There is something almost paradoxical about an organisation celebrating maturity while simultaneously proclaiming dissatisfaction with the ordinary. Yet perhaps that is precisely the point. Age should not necessarily make an institution older in spirit. Sometimes it should make it more restless, because accumulated knowledge provides greater confidence to venture beyond familiar boundaries. The metaphor is that of a river. Its strength does not lie in having travelled yesterday; it lies in continuing to move today. It does not carry its history as a burden, but as water drawn from distant sources and transformed continuously as it journeys towards the sea. So it is with Globacom at 23. The years provide depth. The experience provides wisdom. The infrastructure provides foundation. But ideas provide movement. And the birth of fresh products, fresh propositions and fresh possibilities is therefore not a departure from Globacom’s history. It is perhaps the most authentic continuation of it. A 23-year-old company that still asks what more can be done is not announcing uncertainty. It is announcing vitality. It is saying that the future remains unfinished—and that it intends to remain one of those institutions audacious enough to help write it.

is using connectivity to construct life. That is why the philosophy of Never Settle for Less possesses such resonance. It demands continual interrogation of the status quo. Is the proposition sufficiently rewarding? Is the experience sufficiently seamless? Is the technology sufficiently relevant? Is the value sufficiently meaningful? And perhaps most importantly, is the organisation still capable Uchegbulem, a Digital Creator and Fashion of surprising its customers? Recent market performance provides one contem- Entrepreneur wrote in from Aba, Abia State

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r •September 26, 2026

FOCus When Transparent Election Monitoring Platform Becomes Ruling Party’s Nightmare

Charles Odibo

n the often-opaque theatre of Nigerian politics, few things expose the true posture of a ruling party faster than an independent attempt to protect the integrity of the ballot. The recent warning issued by the pro-All Progressives Congress group, Renewed Hope for Greater Nigeria (RHGN), against plans by the associated groups of Nigeria Democratic Congress and its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, to deploy independent polling-unit result monitoring and protection ahead of the 2027 general elections, has done precisely that. What the group presented as a defence of institutional order has instead revealed a deeper anxiety: a transparent, citizens-driven election monitoring platform has become the ruling party’s nightmare. At the centre of this unfounded fear stands Obidient Connect, a technology-enabled civic platform developed under the Professor Pat Utomi-led Big Tent Coalition. Far from the parallel electoral authority some APC voices have sought to portray it as, Obidient Connect is a deliberate response to a simple but profound question that has haunted Nigerian democracy for decades - how do well-meaning citizens ensure that the results announced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) actually match what was recorded and displayed at the polling units where they voted? The platform’s philosophy is straightforward. It does not seek to replace INEC. It does not claim the legal authority to declare winners or losers. It does not create a rival results management system. What it does is enable real-time capture, transmission, and independent verification of polling unit results by trained citizen observers and party agents. In doing so, it treats transparency not as a threat to democracy but as its indispensable foundation. This distinction appears to be lost on those who have rushed to sound the alarm. RHGN’s Deputy National Leader for the South-East, Mazi Franklin Ngoforo, has called on security agencies to seek clarification from the NDC and Obi, warning against the creation of “rival electoral authorities.” He has pointed to the Electoral Act 2026, particularly Section 60(3), which requires presiding officers to electronically transmit polling unit results to the IReV portal after Form EC8A has been completed and signed. That statutory framework, he insists, must be respected. No serious democratic actor disputes the primacy of the Electoral Act or the constitutional mandate of INEC. What is being contested is the suggestion that citizen monitoring of results somehow undermines that mandate. The Act itself, after all, requires that certified results be pasted at every polling unit for public viewing. Obidient Connect simply takes that principle of public visibility and extends it into the digital age, ensuring that the same information is captured, time-stamped, geo-located, and available for independent scrutiny in real time. The case for such technology-driven protection becomes clearer when one examines the documented failures of the 2023 presidential election. An independent analysis by the election monitoring application Mundx.com produced findings that still demand sober reflection. Forty-eight per cent of the result sheets uploaded to the IReV portal were not transmitted from BVAS machines as required by law. Instead, they originated from more than 800 different phone devices. In Oru-East Local Government Area of Imo State, over one hundred polling units had no agents from any political party, according to the Form EC8A documents themselves. The APC won virtually all of those units. More troubling still, the results from those

•Obi agent-less units were uploaded from just two locations - one in Omuma within the local government, and another on the Owerri–Port Harcourt road, the site of the state INEC office. Photographs of those result sheets were taken a day after the election, not at the polling units where the votes were cast. These were not isolated technical glitches. They were systemic vulnerabilities that eroded public confidence and left many Nigerians with the justified suspicion that the gap between what happened at the polling unit and what was eventually announced could be exploited. In the face of such evidence, the demand for independent, technology-enabled monitoring is not an act of political mischief. It is a civic imperative. Obidient Connect has been designed precisely to close that gap. Its architecture rests on several interlocking features that prioritise transparency, verifiability, and citizen agency. At its core is a web application that allows accredited and party agents to photograph the completed and signed Form EC8A at the polling unit, immediately after results are announced and before they leave the premises. The image is automatically geolocated, time-stamped, and encrypted before transmission to a secure central dashboard. This ensures that the primary evidence of what occurred at the unit is preserved independently of any subsequent electronic transmission to IReV or physical movement of result sheets. The platform also incorporates a real-time transmission layer that feeds polling unit data into a situation-room dashboard accessible to authorised stakeholders. This is not a parallel declaration system. It is a monitoring and early-warning tool. Discrepancies between what is captured at the unit and what later appears on official portals can be flagged immediately, allowing for timely queries and documentation rather than post-election speculation. A network of trained citizen monitors, recruited across the 176,864 polling units in thirty-six states and the Federal Capital Territory, provides the human infrastructure that technology alone cannot supply. These monitors are not partisan foot soldiers; they are ordinary Nigerians committed to the principle that every vote must be accounted for. Additional layers of the platform include offline capability for areas with poor connectivity, ensuring that data can be stored securely on devices and uploaded once a network

•Kwankwaso becomes available. Blockchain-inspired audit trails create an immutable record of each transmission, making retrospective tampering far more difficult. A public-facing verification module will, in due course, allow interested citizens to cross-check specific polling unit results against the images and data captured by monitors, further democratising access to electoral information. None of these features usurps INEC’s authority. All of them strengthen the environment in which that authority is exercised. The vehemence with which some APC voices have responded to the mere idea of such a platform is itself instructive. If the ruling party is confident in the integrity of the electoral process, independent monitoring should be welcomed as an additional layer of reassurance. If it is not afraid of free, fair, and transparent elections, it should have no difficulty joining the call for more robust, technology-driven tools that allow citizens to protect their votes. The alternative reading is less flattering - that any system capable of independently documenting what actually happened at polling units is perceived as a threat precisely because opacity has historically served certain political interests. Nigeria’s democratic journey has been marked by repeated cycles of hope and disappointment. Each electoral cycle brings fresh promises of technological innovation, only for familiar controversies to reappear when results are announced. The introduction of the BVAS and IReV in 2023 was hailed as a watershed. Yet the Mundx findings demonstrate that technology, without independent citizen oversight, remains vulnerable to the same human and institutional frailties that have long plagued the system. Obidient Connect does not reject official technology but complements it by placing an independent check in the hands of the people whose votes are at stake. There is also a deeper democratic principle at play. Elections are not the private property of electoral commissions or political parties. They are public processes whose legitimacy depends on the informed consent of the governed. When citizens are reduced to passive spectators who vote and then wait for distant announcements, trust erodes. When they are empowered to document, transmit, and verify results at the point of origin, confidence can be rebuilt. The Electoral

Act 2026’s insistence on pasting results at polling units already recognises this principle. Extending it through secure digital means is a logical and necessary evolution. Critics who frame independent monitoring as a recipe for confusion or violence invert the causal relationship. Confusion and violence are far more likely to arise when the gap between polling unit reality and official declaration becomes too wide to ignore. Transparent systems that allow rapid verification reduce, rather than increase, the space for rumour, suspicion, and confrontation. The call by RHGN for security agencies to investigate NDC or its affiliated coalition groups therefore risks weaponising state institutions against a legitimate civic initiative. The proper response of the security architecture should be to protect the right of citizens to monitor their own elections, not to treat transparency itself as a security threat. As 2027 approaches, Nigeria stands at another crossroads. It can continue the pattern of official assurances followed by post-election disputes, or it can embrace a culture in which technology and citizen agency work together to make every vote count and every result verifiable. Obidient Connect represents one concrete attempt to move in the latter direction. Its existence should not be a source of fear for any party that claims to believe in credible elections. That it has already become a source of anxiety for elements within the ruling party is the clearest possible signal of why such platforms are needed. The team behind Obidient Connect has made their position plain. They will not be intimidated into abandoning the work of protecting the ballot. They will not accept the false choice between respecting INEC and empowering citizens. Both are possible. Both are necessary. The Nigerian people deserve an electoral process in which the results announced at the national level can be traced, without ambiguity, to the polling units where the votes were cast. Technology makes that possible. Independent monitoring makes it credible. The only remaining question is whether those who currently hold power are prepared to live with the transparency they so often claim to support. Odibo, a Marketing and Communications Practitioner, is the Coordinator of Obidient Connect Platform

T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R S E P T E M B E R 26, 2026

INTERVIEW

Mike Dada: Political Marketing Must Be Digitally-driven to Resonate with People

Political marketing is experiencing a fundamental reset, just as data analytics, artificial intelligence, and digital platforms are changing how candidates understand voters, shape narratives, and compete for attention. Mike Dada, a lawyer, Marketing and Public Relations expert and CEO/ Managing Director of PRM Africa Marketing and Communications Ltd, with close to three decades of experience across strategic public relations, advertising, brand communication and political campaigns, insists the change goes beyond technology. Raheem Akingbolu brings the excerpts.

Though you wear many caps, you have built a career in brand development and corporate communications for close to three decades. How would you describe the growth of the industry, considering where it is coming from?

et me say, brand development and management, yes, but more than corporate communications. Perhaps you meant Marketing and Public Relations, which are broader disciplines and careers. It is a pleasure to share my perspectives on these developments. Having transitioned from traditional brand building to the high-stakes arena of political marketing, I’ve witnessed a profound transformation in how we communicate value, whether it’s for a product or a presidential candidate. Obviously, the industry has moved from a rudimentary stage of “mere publicity” to a sophisticated era of strategic brand management. In the early days, corporate communications were largely reactive—putting out fires. Today, it is a proactive, data-driven discipline. We have seen a shift from purely traditional media (billboards, television, and print) to a holistic ecosystem where the brand is emotional, experiential, and digital. The industry has grown to become a cornerstone of corporate governance and business sustainability in Nigeria and around the world. It is also important to note the evolution of the strategic and historic role of the body of knowledge of Marketing that birthed other disciplines and legs of communications, with its attendant technological leveraging and impact. There is more precision and exactness these days. Overall, there is a significant leap in improvement and advancement, especially with technology and science.

Since the Abiola 1993 era, the impact of professionals in political campaigns has not been very pronounced until you and some others emerged as key players in the political marketing scene. What informed this development?

The “Hope ’93” campaign was a masterclass in political communication for its time, but for nearly two decades afterwards, political campaigns in Nigeria returned to largely “organic” or “thuggish” methods where professional political marketing strategy was sidelined. The political candidates were used to, and many still rely on, the crude and unstructured push strategy that depends on fellow politicians and volunteered relatives as campaign committee members to communicate their intentions and manifestoes to potential

electorates. What informed our organisation’s, in this case PRM Africa’s, emergence and the current professionalisation is the realisation that the voter has evolved and become more discerning and critical. You can no longer win solely by “stomach infrastructure” and/or deliberate voter suppression. You need a story or narrative, a compelling, convincing, and distinct one, for that matter. We saw a gap where politicians had great manifestos and genuine intentions but zero brand identity and emotional resonance, so we stepped in to provide solutions that treat the candidate as a “brand” that must promise and deliver enduring value.

Having been involved in the campaigns of a few political candidates and achieved success in them, would you say our political environment is ripe for modern political marketing?

Absolutely. Our environment is more than ripe; it is demanding it. In fact, after managing sixteen elections end-to-end over the years and winning all, I am more than convinced that political marketing and communications make a lot of difference in determining who becomes victorious in a democratic election or else the candidate will be winking in the dark. The days of addressing the same crowd at different political rally locations are gone. With a younger (because the median age in Nigeria is 18), more sceptical, and more exposed electorate, “politics or electioneering as usual” is falling apart and becoming boringly unfashionable. Modern political marketing—which involves deep and honest situation assessment, demographic and psychographic analysis, voter segmentation, and targeted messaging—is now the only way to reach a fragmented and distracting audience that no longer sits in one place watching the same television channel.

Is the impact of political marketing measurable?

Yes, it is highly measurable. We no longer guess. We need to count the numbers for it to count. In any case, democracy is a game of numbers. Through sentiment analysis, digital footprint tracking, evaluation, consistent control and periodic polling, we can measure the “conversion rate” of a campaign. We can see how a specific message moved a specific demographic in a specific geopolitical zone. If your marketing isn’t moving the needle in the polls or social sentiment, you know you need to pivot. It is important I point out that political marketing needs to be married with push strategy, OTG- onthe-ground work- for success or for the campaign objective to be achieved.

Dada

If you were asked to mention one of the most striking campaigns you have handled, which would you mention?

We have many campaigns that stand out. While it is fashionable to have a stand-out campaign, I think it is better to achieve the objective of the campaign in this case, winning an election. I remember a story that I have used many times as a case study whenever I have the opportunity to lecture or teach brand communication, and many of my university mates, friends, or comrades at Ife will remember this student union election story. I was the campaign manager with no professional training, and our ideological group lost the student union presidency because our poster looked very expensive (a full-colour poster, not black and white), and our candidate was overdressed. The campaign stood out, but we lost.

Ondo Methanol Deaths: Questions Over Regulatory Accountability Duro Ikhazuagbe

he recent methanol poisoning outbreak in Ondo has raised questions over regulatory enforcement, 11 years after a similar tragedy struck Irele and Odigbo. The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) confirmed 48 deaths and 182 cases linked to locally prepared alcoholic and herbal concoctions. The agency said five victims were totally blind, while two others suffered partial blindness following consumption of the suspected poisonous products. NAFDAC said laboratory analysis of 15 samples detected high concentrations of methanol, while further investigations into the outbreak were ongoing. The agency also disclosed that 15 people had been arrested over the production, distribution and sale of the suspected toxic products. Those arrested would be investigated, while further action would depend on the outcome of investigations into the circumstances surrounding the outbreak. However, the incident has revived concerns about whether lessons from previous methanol poisoning outbreaks have been adequately translated into sustained enforcement. In April 2015, a methanol poisoning outbreak in Irele and Odigbo recorded 37 cases and 27 deaths, according to a published epidemiological investigation. The investigation linked the outbreak to locally brewed gin and found high concentrations of methanol in some samples examined by researchers. The researchers recommended stronger enforcement against illicitly produced alcoholic beverages to prevent similar outbreaks. The 2015 outbreak therefore provided authorities with evidence of the danger posed by illicit alcoholic beverages in the affected

Adeyeye

communities. Eleven years later, another suspected methanol poisoning outbreak has occurred in the same Ondo communities, prompting renewed questions about prevention and regulatory enforcement. Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye became NAFDAC Director-General in November 2017 and has remained in the position for almost nine years. Adeyeye has previously defended her administration by

highlighting challenges she said existed when she assumed office. She said most of NAFDAC’s laboratory equipment was not functioning and that companies sometimes provided vehicles for regulatory inspections. Adeyeye also said no director had an agency-purchased laptop in 2017 and described the agency’s information technology system as severely neglected. The NAFDAC management has subsequently highlighted improvements in regulatory capacity, laboratory operations, enforcement and international recognition. However, the latest Ondo outbreak has again placed questions about product safety, enforcement and consumer protection in the public domain. The controversy intensified in September after Adeyeye was asked during a media engagement about calls for her resignation. Reports said she laughed before responding to the question and defending her administration against criticism. The incident generated criticism on social media, with Nigerians sharing photographs and videos of products they suspected were counterfeit or adulterated. NAFDAC has also reported seizures involving counterfeit cosmetics, food and beverages, which accounted for more than half of counterfeit products confiscated during a period cited by the agency. Separately, the federal government has cited industry estimates that about 40 per cent of spirits and wines consumed in Nigeria are illicit or unrecorded. The estimate was based on a 2024 Euromonitor survey cited during the launch of Nigeria’s Alcohol Policy and Multisectoral Implementation Plan. The figures underscore the challenges facing regulators in controlling illicit alcoholic beverages and protecting consumers from potentially dangerous products.

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r •September 26, 2026

Bennett Oghifo AUTOWORLD All-new Toyota Hilux Now Available with Two-seat

• 08037128871 •Email: benett.oghifo@thisdaylive.com

he all-new Toyota Hilux is now available as a two-seat model, offering more versatility and loadcarrying capability for people wanting a pick-up that’s tailor-made to meet their business needs. Launched earlier this year, the ninth generation of Toyota’s world-renowned Hilux is presented exclusively in a Double Cab body style, in line with the market’s strong preference. Customers now have the option of a new factory conversion that removes the three-seat bench from the rear section of the cabin and creates a large, flat and secure load area. Measuring 1,290mm wide and 640mm deep, it’s suitable for carrying tools and equipment, easily accessed via the Double Cab’s rear doors. The conversion in no way compromises performance, safety or standard equipment specifications. Hilux also remains compatible with Toyota’s extensive range of accessories and customisation options. In addition to the convenience of extra load space, the conversion brings potential savings in ownership costs for business users. It also enables flat rate benefit-in-kind taxation and a 100 per cent plant and machinery allowance, where applicable. There’s further peace of mind with Toyota’s market-leading warranty which provides cover for up to 10 years or 100,000 miles, subject to an annual vehicle service at a qualifying Toyota workshop*. This latest development strengthens Hilux’s market appeal, founded on its fundamental Quality, Durability and

All-new 2026 Toyota Hilux

Reliability and its legendary ability to take the toughest driving environments in its stride. In line with Toyota’s multi-pathway approach to giving customers powertrain

options that meet customers needs and help reduce carbon emissions, the all-new Hilux range includes both a Diesel 48V engine and a battery electric system. The BEV version has been designed and

engineered to ensure authentic strong performance, with permanent all-wheel drive and the ability to tackle a wide range of off-road conditions, including wading through water up to 700mm deep.

Piggyvest, Mikano Motors Unveil Auto-finance Scheme, to Reward Savers with N2m Dike Onwuamaeze

s Nigerians spend over N15 million to acquire 10-year old used cars, Piggyvest and Mikano Motors have launched a savings and financing scheme that would enable prospective car buyers to own a brand new car at N20 million or above depending on the model. The companies also announced a N2 million cashback offer for Nigerians who are able to save and take delivery of their vehicles within the next one year. This scheme was announced this week by Piggyvest, an online savings and investment platform, and Mikano Motors. It allows users of Piggyvest app to select their preferred Mikano Motors’ car and savings plan, and once they reach their goal, Mikano Motors would process and deliver their respective cars to them. A Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer of Piggyvest, Mr. Joshua Chibueze, said that the idea for the partnership came from a behavioural trend on Piggyvest’s platform. Chibueze said: “A lot of people in Nigeria today cannot afford to own a brand new car outright. They do not have the money upfront, but they want that car, and can actually afford it by installment.” The National Operations Manager, Mikano Motors, Mr. Syam Abdulkadir, said that the partnership is built on the company’s focus on making new vehicles more accessible to Nigerian buyers. Abdulkadir said: “One of our key

L-R: CEO, PocketApp, Mr. Mbonu Chijioke; Head of Sales, Mikano Motors, Mr. Ayo Akinola; National Operations Manager, Mikano Motors, Mr. Syam Abdulkadir; and Co-founder and Chief Marketing Officer, Piggyvest, Mr. Joshua Chibueze, during the launch of auto-finance scheme in Lagos… recently

slogans here at Mikano is ‘Affordable Luxury.’ So you do not have to limit yourself to patronising ‘used cars’ or cars without after-sales service just because that is the only thing you can afford.” The Head of Sales, Mikano Motors, Mr. Mbonu Chijioke, said the company was pleased to be part of an initiative that could make vehicle ownership more attainable for more Nigerians.

“At Mikano, we’re happy to support initiatives that make it easier for Nigerians to afford and own a vehicle,” Chijioke said. Vehicles currently available through the plan start in the N20 million range and include passenger and commercial models, from sedans and executive SUVs to pickups and light-duty trucks. Every vehicle comes with a six-year or

200,000km warranty, and is supported by after-sales services. The Chief Executive Officer of PocketApp, Mr. Ayo Akinola, said that the partnership reflected Piggyvest’s broader mission of making large financial goals feel more attainable for Nigerians. “So, this partnership is bigger than just cars, it is about making financial goals feel more achievable,” he said.

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r •September 26, 2026

Expression

Abysmally, Not ‘Woefully’

“D

ESPITE these challenges associated with a wilful but woefully (abysmally) wrong choice of….” “…in the creation of permanent solution (a permanent solution or permanent solutions—depending on intended context) towards….” We continue this edition with a gaffe from THE NATION ON SUNDAY Glamour Social Circuit of September 20: “He said Chikwe’s post natal (post-natal) outing was….” “Orlu Zonal Political Leaders (Leaders’) Forum: “…as he marks his 76th birthday anniversary today. ‘Birthday anniversary’ indicates padding! THE NATION ON SUNDAY Comment Page of the above edition mounts the stage: “…fan the ember (embers) of discord among the people.” THE GUARDIAN of August 15 takes over the baton today with two headline blunders: “NCC raises alarm (the alarm) on increasing threat to communication services” “ExxonMobil invests $40bn on (in) hydrocarbon” “At the induction ceremony (sic) of the new provost of Christ Church Cathedral, Lagos, the choir rounded up in the induction ceremony (sic) by rendering an anthem.…” Even the Bible cannot confuse ‘round off’ with ‘round up’! “Africa continues to experience sluggish economic growth because more than half of the countries in the continent are among the poorest nations in the world.” Get it right: on the continent. “But they point out that the organization had expended all its ammunitions…” ‘Ammunition’ is non-count. “The Trans-Saharan Trade which broadened Kan’s fame and fortune dealt principally in

slaves and traditional dye-clothings.” This way: ‘clothing’ does not admit any inflection. “They had only been paying lip service (a hyphen, please) to the pursuit for agricultural self-sufficiency.” Get it right: in the pursuit of…. “As they continue to sing… government may be forced to chew its words not too far from now…” Correct expression: swallow one’s (its) words; not chew. “In a country where friends share no faith in each other; where the only objective is ‘me and my brother’ must carry the loots. “ ‘Loot’ is non-count. “In spite of the air-condition in the car….” It’s called air-conditioner. “Passport booklets scarcity worsen” Scarcity worsens. “Furthermore, to check all manners of inhumanity to one another….” Standard idiomatic expression: all manner of… The next grotesque blunder is from THISDAY of August 15: “His recent errands to Europe for the present administration and his utterances has prompted this essay.” Essay indeed! Verb plurality here is very clear (have; not has). “There is bound to be conflicts and if need be wars…” An accord: there are bound to be conflicts… “At every fora, that was mouthed even by those in the saddle now.” (Source: as above) This way: At every forum—singular: forum; plural: fora or forums “Please switch off all lightings/appliances after the days’ work.” (Notice on Vanguard Media Limited doors) I think pressmen ought to mind their language: the day’s work. Also, ‘lighting’ is uncountable. “To compliment their lean financial purse.…” An example of malapropism: inability to distinguish between ‘complement’ and ‘compliment.’ Some writers need to go back to school! “Food production has often failed to keep pace with population growth, while earning

from export commodities have not done much.” Get it right: while earning from export commodities has (not have). “What is your recommendation with regards to that?” Either ‘as regards’ or ‘with regard to’ No irregularity! “Cuba, Nigeria to strenghten cultural ties” Get it right: strengthen “Newspaper pages are repleted with such stories.…” Replete, gentlemen “Unfortunately, it was…who blew the lead open.…” It’s ‘lid’; not ‘lead’! “But on Monday, hundreds of restive staff of the ministry laid siege around the entrance to the….” (THISDAY, August 31) Lay (laid) siege to; not ‘around’. “Among other things, this has repeatedly given rise to late procession of examination particulars.” Get it right: late processing (not procession). “But it soon done on the ring leader of the putsch that it was only partially successful.” Bad grammar can hinder a coup! ‘Dawned’ (not ‘done’) “He died Wednesday evening in Abuja at Agura Hotel junction within the city in a ghastly motor accident.” When death results from a vehicular mishap, it becomes a fatal—not a ghastly—one. “Heavy downpour almost marred proceedings….” ‘Downpour’ does not require any amplification (heavy, intense, et al) “What tradition has joined together….” (THISDAY, August 31) ‘Join’ can elegantly perform the function of that Biblical phrase! “Consequent upon poor funding, the commission’s ability to acquire new vehicles have been greatly impaired.” The syntactic arrangement here calls for ‘has’—not ‘have’. “The research institutes should therefore take into cognizance the relevance of local needs, simplicity, economic viability and market acceptance when designing their produces.”

‘Produce’ is an uncountable entry. “Its centrality as the link and gateway to the outside world make it all the more pervasive.” Its centrality…makes…. It is perhaps too late to object to ‘upliftment’ now. There is upliftment meaning uplift in the dictionary (see World Book Dictionary, Page 2299). Besides, there are uplifting (adjective), uplift (verb) and uplifter its corresponding noun. More power to your elbow. In journalism, Gentlemen of the Press is the appropriate tag irrespective of gender. In the judiciary, Justice Mary Odili is His Lordship. In the Constitution, former Chief Justice Aloma Mouktar was the chairman (not chairwoman/ person) of the National Judicial Council. This is not a matter of grammar. “We maintain that the government must take the bull by the horn by empowering NDIC….” Formal structure: take the bull by the horns. “…winner of the women’s cycling race power home under the rain….” This way: in the rain. “FRSC must device its means and ways of self-sustenance.” Noun: device; verb: devise. “Everything was available in abundance at the party that was held somewhere in Victoria Island.” Famous folk celebrate on Victoria Island. “Already the poor is financially emasculated.…” Even the rich are (not is) equally emasculated. “It must also have taken into consideration that the case, if not satisfactorily managed, could become a precedence with latent domino effect.” Any lead writer worth his salt ought to appreciate the distinction between ‘precedence’ and ‘precedent’. Clinical editorial writing is the hallmark of newspapering.

Of Godfathers And Restless Godsons

lex Otti has said something in Abia that sounds almost subversive in Nigerian politics: “I don’t want to be a godfather.” More unusually, he says that after completing his tenure as governor, he intends to retire from active politics because younger Nigerians should have their turn. He also says he has no interest in the Senate. His larger argument is that once people experience good governance, they should become unwilling to return to the old order. These are certainly worthy sentiments. But Nigeria has heard many worthy sentiments from politicians before. The interesting question is whether we can finally escape the peculiar political culture in which the man who helps you become governor later expects to become the invisible governor. The Nigerian political godfather is not simply an elder statesman offering advice, an experienced politician mentoring a younger colleague, or a benefactor helping an ambitious aspirant find his feet. There is nothing inherently sinister about any of those things. The trouble begins when political assistance is treated as an investment requiring repayment from the public treasury, when electoral support becomes a private franchise, and when the elected office-holder is expected to remember that although the voters put him in Government House, somebody else believes he owns the key. That is where the innocent-looking word “godfatherism” acquires its Nigerian sting. The godfather finances the campaign, deploys the political machinery, influences the nomination, helps secure the victory - and then expects the godson to understand that gratitude has a timetable. Appointments must reflect the patron’s interests. Contracts must not forget the benefactor. Political enemies must be dealt with. State resources may acquire new meanings. And the governor, who constitutionally answers to the people, discovers that another person is waiting for his monthly report. The Fourth Republic has supplied an extraordinary catalogue of such arrangements.

In Anambra, the Chris Uba-Chris Ngige saga became perhaps the most dramatic early illustration. Human Rights Watch documented a written agreement in which Ngige was expected to show loyalty to Uba and accept his influence over appointments and contracts. The relationship subsequently collapsed spectacularly; Ngige was abducted in 2003 in an attempt to force him from office, while the state descended into political violence and institutional disorder. The courts eventually overturned Ngige’s election and recognised Peter Obi as the rightful winner. That was not merely a quarrel between two politicians. It was a brutal demonstration of what happens when a private political bargain collides with a public office. Oyo provided another lesson. Rashidi Ladoja’s relationship with Lamidi Adedibu, once a powerful political patron in Ibadan, deteriorated after Ladoja became governor in 2003. The quarrel culminated in an impeachment by lawmakers loyal to Adedibu in January 2006. Ladoja later returned to office after the courts nullified the impeachment. Again, the political argument was dressed in constitutional clothing, but beneath it lurked the familiar question: who really owned the mandate? Kwara offered another variation through the long influence of the Saraki political establishment. Lagos subsequently supplied the Bola Tinubu-Akinwunmi Ambode rupture, with the incumbent governor losing his party’s governorship ticket in 2018 after an increasingly public disagreement with the political structure that had brought him to office. Anambra later produced the bitter Peter Obi-Willie Obiano relationship. Kano gave us Rabiu Kwankwaso and Abdullahi Ganduje, once mentor and protégé, eventually occupying opposite political trenches. The names change. The choreography remains remarkably familiar. And that is the troubling part. Nigeria seems to have perfected a political apprenticeship in which the student is expected eventually to become independent - but preferably not too independent. The godson is encouraged to grow wings, provided he does not actually attempt to fly away from the godfather’s

compound. The damage is more serious than the colourful quarrels suggest. When a governor spends political energy negotiating with the person who helped him into office, governance becomes hostage to an arrangement that was never part of the voter’s contract. Public appointments can become rewards for loyalty rather than instruments of competence. Projects may be abandoned because they belong to the previous political camp. Legislators may become weapons in factional warfare. Party structures become personal machines. And the electorate, which was supposedly sovereign, is left watching politicians fight over possession of the mandate it supposedly gave them. Recent academic work on Nigeria’s Fourth Republic reaches much the same broad conclusion: patronage and godfatherism can weaken administrative effectiveness, encourage clientelism and distort decision-making when personal loyalty and elite interests displace institutional considerations. The problem, therefore, is not merely that godfathers are powerful. It is that political power becomes personalised, while institutions become progressively less important. But is this Nigerian wickedness specially manufactured for our peculiar political entertainment? Not entirely. Patron-client politics is hardly a Nigerian invention. Political patronage, factions, dynasties and political machines have appeared in many societies. The Philippines, for instance, has a long-established tradition of patronclient politics and powerful political families. Research on the country has documented how personal alliances, patronage networks and political dynasties can shape access to office and public resources. Comparative research has also examined patronage systems in Japan, Thailand and other political systems. The difference is not necessarily that other societies have no political godfathers; it is that stronger institutions can sometimes constrain how much personal patronage is allowed to commandeer public authority. That distinction is crucial. Patronage thrives where institutions are weak, money is disproportionately powerful, political par-

ties are personality-driven and citizens have limited means of enforcing accountability. Nigeria therefore cannot cure godfatherism simply by denouncing godfathers. The soil that produces them must also be examined. And perhaps the most uncomfortable question is what happens when the godson becomes the godfather. This is where the Nigerian cycle becomes almost comic, if its consequences were not so expensive. Yesterday’s political victim becomes tomorrow’s political patron. The man who once complained that somebody was controlling him eventually acquires candidates of his own. He discovers that political influence is a wonderful thing when exercised by oneself and an undemocratic abomination when exercised by somebody else. So Otti’s declaration deserves neither applause nor dismissal. It should be treated as a proposition to be tested by conduct. If he completes his tenure and genuinely withdraws from active politics, declines the temptation to install a successor merely because that successor will remain beholden to him, and allows younger Nigerians to compete on their own merits, then he would have demonstrated something more valuable than a political speech: that power can actually be relinquished. That is the real test of the godfather. Not whether he can make a governor. But whether, having made one, he can leave the governor alone. Nigeria has had enough political fathers who confuse mentorship with ownership. What the republic desperately needs are elders who can pass on experience without demanding possession, benefactors who can support candidates without purchasing governments, and politicians mature enough to understand that a democratic mandate is not an IOU. The voters did not elect anybody’s godson. They elected a governor.

SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2026 • T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R

BACKPAGE CONTINUATION NDIGBO, REMEMBER OFFODILE’S BOOK passing attention. One important question that stares at us from Offodile’s book is this: “What does the Biafran experience tell us about the political structure and future of Nigeria, and especially the future and fortunes of Ndigbo within it?” A superficial reader can easily assume from the title that the book offers a conventional account of the Biafran War. This was the mistake of some commentators and reviewers, as they expressed their views without fully understanding the book under reference. The author was not satisfied to simply navigate the subject of Igbo identity, the two military interventions of 1966, the Aburi accord and its aftermath, the civil war and its politics, and the roles played by such key Nnamdi Azikiwe and Emeka Ojukwu. He was also not satisfied to merely take the reader through the realities of post-war Igbo politics and the emergence of later-day self-determination movements, no! He rounds it all up by resolutely leading the conversation towards the possibility of a better and greater Nigerian future, with restructuring as an issue for serious consideration. Offodile challenges dated interpretations, caked perspectives and fossilized assumptions about the nature and causes of the Igbo problem in Nigeria. He examines the historical and political roles of Nnamdi Azikiwe Emeka Ojukwu, and Gowon, while not leaving out Achebe over aspects of pre-independence NCNC politics and Azikiwe’s historical role. And it must be said here, for the record, that one of the core strengths of this book is the writer’s bold interrogation of respected individuals and views. His discussion of the Aburi question is particularly important because he does not pussyfoot on this event that led to one of the greatest crises in Nigeria’s history. And it is from this singular fact that the author deftly ventures into his discourse on federalism, trust,

political leadership and the consequences of failing to reach a durable constitutional settlement in a nation like Nigeria. And it all fits the book’s broader perspective and argument, namely, that the best way to understand the Biafran crisis is to first admit that it was not just a purely and exclusively ethnic conflict. It had an underlying political economy, a dimension that can be traced to a crisis of constitutional structure, the question of political power and competing ideas about how Nigeria should be governed. Concerning federalism, the book posits a dramatically consequential proposition that calls for an “inclusive, equitable and proper federal structure”. Beyond that, he warns that failure, or refusal, to reform Nigeria’s political structure holds the prospect of continuously generating lasting instability and unending demands for self-determination. Offodile avoids the very convenient and lazy approach of presenting the Biafra question simply as: “Should Nigeria remain one country or should Biafra return? He notes, instead, that we may need to consider this more unsettling and complicated question: “Can Nigeria be restructured sufficiently to make coexistence more politically rewarding and acceptable to its constituent units”? And it is here, and also in this regard, that the book establishes its stature and relevance as a work of great national significance. It is not about Ndigbo or the South-East, no! It pushes forth an embedded problem in the question of how to accommodate diversity within a functioning federation. With that, what stands forth is no longer partly or exclusively Igbo issue, but a Nigerian problem. Then comes Offodile’s telling submission on Igbo politics. His criticism of aspects of Igbo political leadership after the war has every leg to stand upon. He does not join the bandwagon of those who hold marginalization

and “external” forces responsible for all Igbo problems in Nigeria since after the civil war. His bold assertion that the quality of leadership in Igboland has a hand in the matter has more than passing merit. His submissions on the roles played by internal political failures in contributing to, reinforcing or orchestrating the problems are mostly spot on. He distances himself from the wholesale thesis of Igbo victimhood being touted by presumed defenders of Igbo interests. This level of objectivity, insight and the courage to speak up adds fillip to the strength of this book. It makes it a strong, rigorous and radically important contribution to the conversation because a historically serious account has to be able to examine both external structures and internal agency in any political or historical engagement. As for those who have argued that Offodile made his political, constitutional and other preferences very obvious in the book, I ask: “Why would any self-respecting individual put pen to paper unless he has something he believes and want to say. To say that his advocacy of restructuring and competitive federalism means that he has taken sides in a debate he is moderating is to overlook that fact that he convened the debate simply in order to push a point of view. He was not making any neutral, antiseptic submission, but he is not subjecting the reader to a detached historical reconstruction. He set out to push a particular narrative and a particular conception of what Nigeria’s political future should be and how to go about it. That only invites reflection and possible alternative points of view. It shows that the author did not set out to perform an academic exercise. A determined advocacy validates itself if, in making its case, it tenders cogent arguments

without precluding other points of view. He has given his interpretation to complicated events and is inviting the reader to on a journey that should interest anyone who is interested in war and military history, power politics and much more. It is to the eternal credit of the author that he drives home the point that the idea of Biafra goes far beyond a dared historical event that ended in January 1970. The Politics of Biafra and the Future of Nigeria gives us a perspective on Biafra that exposes it as an unresolved political national blight, with implications that continue to influence and also haunt our politics to this day. In connecting the civil war to later movements, such as MASSOB, and to contemporary arguments about restructuring and selfdetermination, Offodile argues that the political conditions that precipitated the original crisis have not been properly, or adequately, addressed. He also implies that historical grievances can always reappear in new political forms in the steady match of national events. All things considered, Ndigbo should take another look at Chudi Offodile’s book, as reviewed above. It questions received wisdom or (more appropriately) received ignorance, it emphasizes the true political history of the Biafran crisis, it presents Azikiwe and other actors in a new light, it establishes undeniable linkages between the Civil War to post-war Igbo politics and argues that Nigeria’s constitutional structure remains central to the country’s political difficulties. This book invites the reader to move from “Who was right in the Civil War?” to the more challenging concern of determining the type of political arrangement can create the right ecosystem for Nigerians to live together as one people. And it is against this background that the book has become even more relevant today. Ndigbo, Remember Offodile’s Book.

THIS UNITED NATIONS IS FAILING TO DELIVER FOR ALL appears unable to move beyond issuing press statements condemning the attacks. Since the joint Israeli and US attacks on Iran and the Iranian retaliatory strikes on Israel and the Gulf region, which led to disruptions and restrictions of movement around the Strait of Hormuz, a situation that disrupted global energy supplies, maritime trade and freedom of navigation, the UN's response has largely centred on condemnation, calls for restraint, de-escalation, diplomacy and the restoration of freedom of navigation. Yet, for countries and populations caught in conflicts beyond their control, repeated calls for restraint raise a fundamental question about whether condemnation without effective enforcement can deliver the peace and security the UN was created to guarantee. Wars have dire economic consequences. History shows that while bombing may remove rulers, they rarely improve the lives of ordinary people. This is evident in countries such as Iraq, Afghanistan, and Libya. Since the First World War, which saw the creation of the League of Nations in 1920 and thereafter, the UN, rules have been made to bring order to chaos, and human societies have long sought to craft and formalise them. The Charter of the UN, its founding document, places emphasis on the territorial integrity and political independence of states. These widely agreed principles are meant to prevent war, especially wars of choice. But the unequal nature of the Security Council, persistence of proxy wars and violent conflict have shown how enforcement of international law remains uneven, especially when powerful states act outside collective mechanisms. That is why given the profound changes in global politics, economics and security since its establishment 80 years ago, the United Nations must reform its structures and processes to align its goals with present realities.

UN Secretary-General, António Guterres

Nigeria, like many other members countries and regional groups are demanding a fundamental restructuring of the United Nations Security Council. They strongly believe the composition of the security council must reflect the realities of the contemporary world rather than preserve the distribution of power established at the end of the Second World War. Many of the UN’s institutional arrangements and decision-making mechanisms still reflect a bygone era, failing to adequately respond to the complex challenges and power dynamics that have emerged over the past several decades.

The main focus should be the reform of the Security Council, the most powerful UN institution with the most potential for bringing change. The UN Charter was written as a result of the bloodiest conflict in modern history, and what should be learnt from that is that the international system should not wait until after wars end to build institutions that ensure peace. The UN Security Council ought to be the cornerstone of peacekeeping policy and the growing trend of unilateral interventions severely erodes the aspiration of collective security founded in the UN system. It also

sets a dangerous precedent that larger powers can usurp smaller ones should they choose to do so. That is why world leaders at UNGA 81 must work towards enthroning an international system where military intervention is not governed by the temperaments of individuals, as opposed to an international framework. The world becomes a far less stable place when policies are based on the mood of powerful Presidents instead of multilateral decision-making. Multilateralism is the only realistic way to address the problems of today. Alone, no country can prevent a pandemic, stabilise the climate, secure resilient supply chains, regulate Artificial Intelligence, ensure financial stability or deliver sustainable development. Alone, no country, however powerful, can build lasting peace. The focus should be how to enthrone multilateralism that is strong, effective, representative and capable of delivering for people. Equally, the world needs multilateralism that protects human rights, strengthens democracy and advances gender equality. Equally, Agenda 2030 is in danger. Progress towards its Sustainable Development Goals is falling behind, putting the UN’s ambition of achieving inclusive and sustainable development by 2030 at risk. Eq Inequality continues to widen, leaving millions of people behind as wealth and opportunities remain unevenly distributed. Hunger and poverty also persist, underscoring the widening gap between the UN’s development aspirations and the realities confronting vulnerable populations. Therefore, reforming the UN is imperative to restore credibility, strengthen accountability and ensure that international decision-making delivers tangible results for all nations and peoples, not just FOR the most powerful.

ANALYSIS

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r •September 26, 2026

New Fiscal-Monetary Covenant and Inflation Expectation

James Emejo writes that the country’s inﬂation battle is entering a new phase as the Central Bank of Nigeria moves beyond the traditional tools of interest rates and liquidity management to demand stronger ﬁscal discipline as the other pillar of price stability

or years, Nigeria’s fiscal and monetary authorities have operated in the same economic space but have not always pulled with the same force. Government borrowing could inject liquidity that monetary policy subsequently had to restrain. Fiscal financing pressures could complicate the CBN’s effort to contain inflation, while high interest rates adopted to restore price stability could simultaneously increase the government’s cost of borrowing. It is this longstanding tension that gives the September 18 Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Federal Ministry of Finance a significance beyond the signing ceremony. At face value, the agreement is about consultation, information-sharing, forecasting, government cash management and debt issuance. But beneath the bureaucratic language is a bigger proposition: Nigeria’s two principal macroeconomic policy engines should no longer be allowed to work at cross-purposes. And Cardoso, speaking after the latest Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting, made perhaps the clearest case for why the agreement matters. “There’s nothing new about this,” the CBN governor stressed, pushing back against any interpretation that the MoU represented the beginning of cooperation between the two institutions. His point was important. Fiscal and monetary authorities had always interacted. The CBN board already includes the Minister of Finance, the Permanent Secretary of the ministry and the Accountant-General of the Federation, while the ministry’s Permanent Secretary sits on the MPC. Various committees and institutional channels have also historically provided opportunities for coordination. What has changed, Cardoso observed, was that the relationship is being moved from personalities and informal engagement into a formal architecture. “That is the difference here,” he said in

The IMF’s earlier assessment had been even more direct, describing monetary conditions as still accommodative and characterised by fiscal dominance, while recommending reduced reliance on CBN overdrafts. This was the difficult environment into which Cardoso stepped. The CBN subsequently tightened monetary conditions aggressively, raised its policy rate, reduced its involvement in quasi-fiscal activities and began repositioning the institution around its traditional mandate of price and financial stability. The Bank itself now describes the rollback of quasi-fiscal operations, cessation of deficit financing beyond statutory limits and stronger monetary-fiscal coordination as key components of its monetary-policy reforms. The point, therefore, is not that Nigeria suddenly discovered fiscal-monetary coordination in September 2026. Rather, the authorities are attempting to turn coordination from an administrative necessity into an operating system.

Cardoso substance, explaining that the institutions had decided to institutionalise their collaboration because “individuals come, individuals go.” That observation may ultimately prove to be the most consequential element of the agreement. From personalities to process The country’s history provides ample evidence of the danger of relying on personal relationships to coordinate macroeconomic policy. The problem was not necessarily that officials refused to talk to one another. It was that the architecture for ensuring that fiscal decisions, debt operations, liquidity management and monetary policy moved around a common set of assumptions was not sufficiently robust.

The legacy was particularly visible in the CBN’s financing of government deficits. Ways and Means advances to the federal government accumulated to about N22.7 trillion before their securitisation, according to the CBN. Cardoso subsequently identified the cessation of deficit financing through Ways and Means as one of the major changes under his administration. The IMF had also warned about fiscal dominance and the consequences of excessive reliance on central-bank financing. Its 2024 assessment noted that Nigeria had again relied on monetary financing in the first half of 2023 and stressed that successful inflation targeting required, among other conditions, the absence of fiscal dominance.

Complementary groundwork For Cardoso, the timing is particularly significant because Nigeria is attempting to complete its transition towards an inflationtargeting framework. Inflation targeting cannot operate effectively if monetary policy is attempting to suppress demand while fiscal policy simultaneously generates new liquidity or places unpredictable financing pressures on the financial system. As Cardoso put it at the MPC, inflation targeting is a journey on which countries can suffer serious policy missteps if they attempt to proceed with only one “leg”. His argument was blunt: monetary policy cannot carry the entire burden. The MoU, therefore, represents what he described as an important addition to the See concluding part on www. thisdaylive.com

Jumoke Azeez: Making of An Ibadan Fashion Entrepreneur Charles Ajunwa

t 40, Jumoke Azeez has reached a milestone that offers her an opportunity to reflect on a journey defined by creativity, resilience, enterprise and an enduring passion for fashion. The Ibadan-based fashion entrepreneur and Founder/Creative Director of Zeezdesigns clocks 40 on Friday, marking four decades of life and celebrating a growing entrepreneurial journey in Nigeria’s dynamic fashion industry. For Jumoke, fashion is more than clothing. It is a means of expressing creativity, individuality, confidence and identity. Through Zeezdesigns, she has steadily built a contemporary fashion brand offering bespoke tailoring, ready-to-wear fashion, fabrics, accessories and fashion training for both men and women. The journey Building a fashion business requires considerably more than the ability to create beautiful clothes. It requires vision, discipline, consistency, customer understanding and the resilience to navigate the challenges of entrepreneurship. These qualities have shaped Jumoke’s journey. From her base in Ibadan, Oyo State, she has continued to develop Zeezdesigns as an expression of her creative vision and entrepreneurial ambition. Her approach has been to combine contemporary style with quality craftsmanship, creating pieces that

enable her customers to express their individual personalities while remaining connected to the evolving Nigerian fashion landscape. Over time, Zeezdesigns has grown beyond the idea of simply making clothes. It has become a brand through which Jumoke continues to explore creativity, fashion and enterprise. Building from Ibadan One defining feature of Jumoke’s story is the decision to build her fashion enterprise from Ibadan. Nigeria’s fashion industry is increasingly attracting global attention, with Lagos, Abuja and other major cities serving as important centres of fashion and creative enterprise. Yet entrepreneurs such as Jumoke demonstrate that creativity and commercially viable fashion brands can also emerge from other parts of the country. For her, Ibadan provides both a home and a market from which to develop her vision. The city has a long history of entrepreneurship, commerce and culture, and Jumoke’s journey adds another dimension to that story: the emergence of contemporary creative businesses driven by individuals who are combining talent with enterprise. More than a fashion label Zeezdesigns has evolved into more than a clothing label. Its offering spans bespoke clothing, ready-to-wear pieces, fabrics and accessories, while Jumoke has also incorporated fashion training into the brand’s activities. This reflects an entrepreneurial philosophy that looks beyond the creation of individual garments towards building a sustainable fashion enterprise.

For Jumoke, every design represents an opportunity to translate an idea into something tangible — and every customer interaction provides an opportunity to strengthen the brand. Her entrepreneurial journey has also received recognition, including the Excellence Enterprise Award, while her work and the Zeezdesigns story have attracted media and public attention. A milestone, not a destination Turning 40 represents an important personal milestone, but for Jumoke it is also a moment to look ahead. The fashion industry continues to change rapidly. Consumer preferences are evolving, social media is transforming how fashion brands reach customers, and Nigerian designers are increasingly looking beyond traditional markets. These changes present both opportunities and challenges for entrepreneurs. Jumoke’s ambition is to continue building Zeezdesigns into a distinctive Nigerian fashion brand while remaining faithful to the creativity, quality and individuality that have shaped its journey. Her story also reflects a broader reality about entrepreneurship in Nigeria: many successful businesses begin with an individual’s talent and determination and gradually evolve into brands with the potential to create value, inspire others and contribute to the creative economy. Looking ahead As she celebrates her 40th birthday, Jumoke Azeez can look back on the journey with gratitude while keeping her attention firmly on what lies ahead. Her next chapter will be about deepening the

Jumoke Azeez Zeezdesigns brand, expanding its reach, developing new creative possibilities and continuing to build a business that reflects her vision. At 40, the story of Jumoke Azeez is therefore not simply about reaching a birthday milestone. It is the story of a woman who has chosen to turn creativity into enterprise, passion into a brand, and a personal vision into a growing fashion business. And from her base in Ibadan, the journey continues.

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THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER • APRIL 24, 2011

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26.9.2026

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MICHAEL KAYODE SPURNS FATHERLAND FOR ITALY MichaelKayodehasofficiallycommittedhisinternationalfuturetoItaly,turningdowna persistent pursuit by Nigeria.The 22-year-old Brentford full-back revealed that his deep roots in theAzzurri youth ranks made the proud decision an incredibly easy one as he prepares for his senior international debut againstTurkey on Monday

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MICHAEL KAYODE

Spurns Fatherland for Italy

nside the bustling media center at Coverciano—the legendary, sun-dappled training headquarters of the Italian national football team, Michael Kayode sat before a microphone, wearing the famous training kit of the Azzurri. At just 22 years old, the Brentford fullback possesses the calm composure of a seasoned veteran, a trait that has served him well in the high-octane corridors of the Premier League. For months, his international allegiance had been the subject of a fierce tug-ofwar. Born in Borgomanero to Nigerian parents, Kayode was the crown jewel of an intense recruitment campaign by the Nigerian Football Federation (NFF). Yet, when the definitive moment arrived, the choice was simple. With a quiet, unyielding conviction, Kayode closed the door on the Super Eagles, officially ending Nigeria’s international dream of securing one of Europe’s most promising defensive talents. “Nigeria approached me, that’s true,” Kayode revealed, his tone respectful but entirely definitive. “But I came through the Italian youth ranks, and I’ve always considered it an honour to be part of this national team. For anyone, playing for Italy is an honour.” For Nigeria, it is a familiar sting—the loss of a diaspora talent who feels a deeper connection to the country of his birth than the homeland of his parents. For Italy, and specifically head coach, Roberto Mancini, Kayode represents the vanguard of a modern, multi-ethnic era designed to lift the four-time world champions out of a historic slump. The Midnight Notification The trajectory of Kayode’s life shifted irreversibly penultimate Saturday afternoon. Fresh off a gruelling, triumphant performance in Brentford’s victory over Chelsea, Kayode was still cooling down in the dressing room when he received the news. Mancini had named him in the senior squad for the upcoming UEFA Nations League fixtures against Belgium and Turkey. The call-up was a validation of his explosive form since swapping the romantic streets of Florence for the grit of West London. Having moved from Fiorentina to Brentford, Kayode has adapted seamlessly to English football, establishing himself as a regular Premier League starter. The relentless intensity of the English game, he says, provided the crucible he needed to forge his senior international credentials. While summer transfer speculation loudly linked him with a high-profile return to Serie A—with Italian champions Inter Milan making concrete approaches, Kayode chose a path of pragmatic progression. He rejected the allure of the San Siro Stadium, electing instead to sign a contract renewal with Brentford. “Inter? It’s pleasing to know about such interest, but my idea was to stay where I was,” Kayode explained, offering a piece of wisdom unusual for a 22-year-old in the modern era. “It’s the right place for me to improve. Renewing my contract with Brentford

play for Italy’s youth teams; he lived through them, suffered with them, and won with them. “It was a very easy decision. I went through all the youth teams here. Nigeria approached me, but I never thought about changing national teams,” Kayode told the FIGC media channels. “I think Italy have always been a great national team.” His rise underscores a profound shift in Italian football culture. For decades, the Azzurri were defined by rigid, insular selection traditions. Today, Mancini is actively constructing a new, multi-ethnic squad cycle—one that reflects the evolving demographics of modern Italy. Kayode speaks of this transition not as a political statement, but as a natural evolution of home. He is an Italian boy who grew up dreaming of the blue shirt, and no amount of external pressure could alter that childhood blueprint. A Tale of Two Systems Had Kayode chosen the Super Eagles, he would have stepped into a fascinatingly volatile ecosystem. While Nigeria possesses some of the most devastating attacking talent in world football, their defensive sectors have long been a laboratory of experimentation. In the Nigerian setup, Kayode would have entered a highly competitive pool at right-back. He would have had to wrestle immediate playing time away from established figures like Ola Aina and Bright Osayi-Samuel, while keeping an eye on rising longterm prospects like Ryan Alebiosu and Abdullahi Bewene. Instead, he enters an Italian tactical ecosystem hungry for his specific profile. Following a catastrophic failure to qualify for previous major tournaments, Italy is a football nation in search of an identity. Mancini is desperate for modern, dynamic full-backs who can bomb forward without sacrificing defensive solidity. The Italian tactician is reportedly planning to rotate Kayode heavily with veteran Giovanni Di Lorenzo over the current international window. It is a passing of the torch happening in real-time. Michael Kayode (l) celebrating with teammate after scoring a goal for Brentford

was always my idea.” Kayode has become an advocate for patience, urging young footballers to prioritise actual pitch time over the glamour of high-profile transfers. At Brentford, under a system that trusts young talent, he got the minutes he required to catch Mancini’s eye. Now, he stands on the edge of a full international debut, which could come as early as Monday in Turkey. The Unbreakable Blue Thread To understand why Nigeria’s pitch failed, one must look backward to a rainy night in Malta during the summer of 2023. Kayode was the driving force behind Italy’s European Under-19 Championship campaign. In the final against a heavily favoured Portugal side, it was Kayode who rose highest, scoring the decisive, championshipwinning goal.

That moment cemented a psychological bond with the Azzurri shirt that the NFF simply could not break. The NFF has a rich history of successfully blooding dual-nationality players, pulling the likes of Alex Iwobi, Ademola Lookman, Leon Balogun, William Troost-Ekong, amongst many other, from the European system into the green and white. In recent months, Nigerian officials launched a persistent, quiet charm offensive to convince Kayode that his path to senior international football would be smoother and more celebrated in Abuja than in Rome. They promised the adoration of over 200 million people and a guaranteed pathway into a squad that consistently challenges for African supremacy. But they underestimated the strength of the emotional infrastructure built by Italy’s youth setup. Kayode didn’t just

The Future in Focus

As the press conference concluded at Coverciano, Kayode walked out toward the training pitches, where the autumn air was crisp and the expectations immense. The chatter about what could have been is over. The dual-nationality debate, which so often strains the identities of young diaspora players, has been settled with a clean, surgical stroke of loyalty. Nigeria will look elsewhere, scanning the academies of Europe for the next defensive prodigy to fortify the Super Eagles. Brentford will watch proudly from London, knowing their prized asset’s market value and confidence are soaring. But for Michael Kayode, the only thing that matters is the green grass of the Stadio Olimpico, the swelling notes of Il Canto degli Italiani, and the heavy, historic weight of the blue jersey. The dream of Nigeria is gone; the reality of Italy has begun.

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Chairman NSC, Mallam Shehu Dikko with NFF Ag. GS, Ikpeme and SSA Adeboye presenting the framed jersey to Moses Simon to mark his 100th senior cap for Nigeria.

Super Eagles Survive Madagascar Scare to Win 2-1 Decisions Reached on Man City’s 115 Charges Case

Manchester City players pose for a group photograph after winning the Champions League to complete a treble

he Super Eagles of Nigeria began their 2027 Africa Cup of Nations qualifying campaign on a scary but winning note but secured a hard-fought 2-1 victory over Madagascar at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium in Uyo yesterday. Nigeria started brightly but found Madagascar difficult to break down, with the visitors eventually taking the lead through Couturier. The early moments were grim for Nigeria as the presence of just two midfielders was evident, but Samuel Chukwueze provided a bright spark, dribbling past the opponents, but nothing solid came from the 27-year-old’s footwork. The Super Eagles continued to push for a response and came close on several occasions, with George Ilenikhena particularly involved in the attack. The Al-Ittihad striker had an effort saved by Madagascar

2027AFCONQUALIFIER goalkeeper Geordan Dupire after being played in by Calvin Bassey, before heading another chance over the bar from Samuel Chukwueze’s cross.” The Eric Chelle side however fell behind in the 16th minute when Ehsan Kari headed Madagascar into the lead. The Super Eagles responded as they searched for an equaliser, with Alex Iwobi having the ball in the net in the 34th minute. However, Nigeria’s effort was ruled out after Akor Adams was adjudged to have impeded the Madagascar goalkeeper. Nigeria eventually got their reward in first-half stoppage time when George Ilenikhena scored on his Super Eagles debut. The forward finished well after receiving an assist from Iwobi to make it 1-1 before the break. Ilenikhena’s goal capped an eventful debut after Éric Chelle

handed him his first senior appearance for Nigeria. Nigeria continued to push after the interval and completed the comeback in the 65th minute through another debutant. Moses Usor put the Super Eagles ahead with his first Nigeria goal after receiving an assist from Semi Ajayi, giving Chelle’s side a 2-1 advantage. Nigeria had opportunities to extend their advantage, but Madagascar remained dangerous and continued to look for a route back into the game. The result gives Nigeria three points from their opening Group Lfixture as they begin their pursuit of qualification for the 2027 Afcon. The Super Eagles will now turn their attention to their second Group L fixture against Guinea-Bissau on Tuesday, September 29 in Morocco. Group L Results Tanzania 0-2 G’Bissau Nigeria 2-1 Madagascar

... Simon Now Fifth S’Eagles Player to Reach 100 Cap The floodlights at the Godswill Akpabio International Stadium burned bright, reflecting the electric anticipation of thousands of passionate fans. The air hummed with history. As the Super Eagles lined up for their crucial Africa Cup of Nations qualifier, all eyes locked onto one man, who was on the bench, Moses Simon. The winger wore a calm, focusedexpressionthatmasked the profound weight of the moment. When he came in the 61st minute for Akor Moses it became official as a 109th capped international player. A decade of relentless grit and unwavering dedication culminated in this single mo-

ment. Having made his senior international debut back in 2015 as a vibrant 19-year-old, Simon’s journeyhasbeendefinedbyconsistency. With this appearance, he became only the fifth player in Nigerian history to join the prestigious 100-cap club. Before kickoff, officials presented him with a commemorative jersey, but the true tribute came from within the camp. “Moses is the ultimate professional,” the Super Eagles head coach, Eric Chelle, remarked in his post-match press conference. “Alot of players have talent, but to reach 100 caps requires a rare level of discipline and sacrifice. He is a gift to Nigerian football.” On the pitch, his teammates

shared the same deep admiration. “We call him the Trojan for a reason,” the team captain said, smiling as he wrapped an arm around Simon during the celebrations. “Whenever we are in a battle, you look to your left and you see Moses running his heart out. He inspires all of us.” As Simon accelerated down the flank for his first touch, he wasn’t just chasing a victory; he was running with the pride of a century of battles fought for the green and white.” He has now joined the ranks of Vincent Enyeama,Alex Iwobi, Joseph Yobo and Ahmed Musa who are the only senior players to have made the century mark in Super Eagles colours.

Make Sure You Show Up on the Night, Joshua Fires Savage Warning to Fury Ahead of the December 12 in a heavyweight showdown at the Principality Stadium in Cardiff, Anthony Joshua has told Tyson Fury to make sure he shows up on fight night. Joshua and Fury will clash under the roof of the Principality Stadium in Cardiff in the early hours of December 12. Their heavyweight showdown will end a decade-long debate over which Brit is the best of their generation. The two rivals will come face to face in London next week, but Joshua has taken to social media to send Fury a message. “All that matters is whoever I fight turns up on fight night,” he said. “Whatever they do between

now and then is none of my business; it’s none of my business what happens between now and then. We just focus on ourselves, our families and my supporters. I listen to my coaches and do what I do best.” The details of the all-British showdown were announced by Turki Alalshikh, chairman of the General Entertainment Authority and president of the Saudi Boxing Federation, with the tagline: “Years in the making. One night to settle it.” Alalshikh’s The Ring will collaborate with promoter Dana White, with the fight streamed globally on Netflix at no additional cost. It had appeared doubtful whether agreement would ever be reached for Britain’s two most high-profile boxers

to settle a rivalry that has until now been played out in words, with much speculation over the potential venue. Alalshikh said: “Two of the best heavyweights of this generation, finally in the ring together. This will be one of the biggest fights in boxing history, I am very happy to make this fight happen for the fans.” British boxing fans will be delighted that the fight will take place on these shores, while Fury and Joshua will both participate in a press conference on September 30 at British Airways Arc in London. Both fighters have held multiple world titles, with Joshua boasting a 30-4 win-loss record, while Fury has 36 wins, two losses and a draw.

ccording to reports, an independent tribunal has reached decisions in Manchester City’s 115 charges case. An independent tribunal has reached decisions in Manchester City’s 115 charges case, according to reports. The reports claim that most of the charges were found to have been proven. According to reports it is understood that the process is moving to the appeal stage. The Premier League is not commenting as this is a private and confidential process. It will notbeprovidinganyguidance. A Manchester City spokesperson said: “The Premier League process remains ongoing, with significant elements to be completed, and subject to strict confidentiality. As such Manchester City FC’s position remains consistent with the club’s statement of February 2023. “The club has diligently respected due process for eight years on the basis that the Premier League Board

and Executive would behave asanindependent,impartialand fair-mindedregulator,freefrom partisan influence.”

chargesrelatingtofailingtocomplywith UEFA’srules,includingFinancialFair Play rules in the 2013-14 and 2017-18 seasons.”

What are the charges? “City were charged with breaking the Premier League’s financialrulesbetween2009and 2018 and also failing to cooperate with the Premier League investigationbetween2019and 2023.Itisveryimportanttostress thatCitydenyanywrongdoing andthey’vealwayssaidthattheir defence is supported by a body of irrefutable evidence. “Fifty-fourchargesaretodowith failingtoprovideaccuratefinancial information.Thirty-fivechargesto dowithfailingtoco-operatewith thePremierLeagueinvestigations betweenDecember2018andFebruary2023. “Fourteen charges relate to a failure to provide accurate details forplayerandmanagerpayments from 2009-10 season and also the 2017-18season.Andsevencharges were to do with breaching the PremierLeague’sprofitabilityand sustainabilityrulesintwoseasons 2015-16and2017-18,andalsofive

What are the possible punishments? “If the commission rules against City, it can punish them in any way it sees fit. “According to Premier League rules, the sanction could be a points deduction, a fine or even expulsionfromthePremierLeague. “Anythingispossiblebecausethe Premier League does not have set sanctionsforfinancial rule breaches. Clubs decided not to have them because there were fears clubs would break the rules and take the punishment if they knew what that punishment was going to be. “In February 2025 Richard Masters said the Premier League was looking at having a ‘sanctions grid’ - setting out agreed sanctions for different rules breaches - but that is not yet in place. “Everton were deducted six and then two points during the 2023/24 season for PSR breaches, while Nottingham Forest were deducted four points that same season.

Senator Adeola Throws Weight Behind 2026 Abeokuta 10km Race Senator Solomon Olamileleadership of the company. I was kan Adeola (YAYI), representtruly delighted when I learnt that ing Ogun West Senatorial you are the one in charge. “As District at the NationalAssemfor the race, I want to sincerely bly and the All Progressives thank you for organising it in Congress (APC) governorship my honour. candidate in Ogun State, has You have honoured me, and I thrown his weight behind appreciate the gesture with every the 2026 Abeokuta 10KM sense of responsibility. “I will do Race, assuring that he will everything humanly possible to personally grace the October 3 be part of it, especially because it event. SenatorAdeola gave the is a race held in my honour. I will assurance when the Managalso be glad to be there to honour ing Director of Nilayo Sports MD, Nilayo Sports Management you in return.” Mrs Olopade, ManagementLimited(NSML), Ltd, Mrs. Yetunde Olopade (l) and who presented a running kit Mrs.YetundeOlopade,paidhim Senator Solomon Adeola to the Senator during the visit, acourtesyvisittoformallyinvite ofthecompanyunderherwatch.He said Senator Adeola was being himtotherace,whichisbeingheld describedthedecisiontohonourhim honoured in recognition of his in his honour. withtheraceasagesturehedeeply contributions to youth and sports TheSenatorcommendedMrs appreciates, assuring that despite development in Ogun State. “For Olopadefortakingovertheleader- hisbusyschedule,hewouldmake everything you have done for ship of Nilayo Sports Manage- every effort to be present at the youth and sports development, mentLimited,expressingdelight event. “Let me start by thanking we have come to invite you to attheprogressandachievements you for taking up the mantle of support the race.

Premier League Joins Call for FIFA Reforms

The Premier League has joined three of its top European counterparts in calling for “fundamental” reform of the way that Fifa is run, claiming its president Gianni Infantino has “actively promoted exploitative ideas”. InajointstatementwithSpain’s LaLiga,Germany’sBundesliga,and Italy’sSerieA,theEnglishtopflight saysitisspeakingout“becausewe understand how Fifa’s relentless expansionism affects everyone”. Thefourleaguessaytheshake-up isneededtomakeworldfootball’s

governingbody“transparent,objective, proportionate and inclusive” and claim that “our sport cannot grow globally if its foundations are undermined”. It comes days after Infantino proposedanexternalreviewofhow Fifaoperatesamidtheongoingcrisis over his failed plan to sell a stake in the World Cup to private investors, which sparked a global outcry. Referencing “one of the biggest abuses of power in Fifa’s history”, the four leagues say that “while football’s stakeholders ultimately

forced the withdrawal of the Fifa Forward Enterprise scheme, the conditionsthat led to FFE remain”. The statement added: “The Fifa president has now acknowledged the need for reform, but it is not enough for surface-level, process changes to be explored in the aftermath of FFE – fundamental governance reform is essential to restore clearconstitutionalboundarieswithinFifa,includingconfidence thatindividualdisciplinarymatters remaindemonstrablyinsulatedfrom political interference.”

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SATURDAY SEPTEMBER 26, 2026 • T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R

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ALL NIGERIA EDITORS CONFERENCE 2026...

L-R: Former Director-General, Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Mr. Kevin Ejiofor; President, Nigerian Guild of Editors, Mr. Eze Anaba; Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Special Duties, Mr. Tunde Rahman; Founder and Publisher of Vanguard, Mr. Sam Amuka-Pemu; Presidential Candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. Peter Obi; former Ogun State Governor, Chief Olusegun Osoba; former Chairman, Niger Delta Development Commission, Onyema Ugochukwu, and Prof. Chinyere Okunna, during a session at the ongoing All Nigeria Editors’ Conference organised by the Nigerian Guild of Editors in Enugu…yesterday

OKEYIKECHUKWU Ndigbo, Remember Offodile’s Book EDIFYING ELUCIDATIONS okey.ikechukwu@thisdaylive.com

t the time he wrote The Politics of Biafra and the Future of Nigeria nearly ten years ago, Hon Chudi Offodile probably thought he was just contributing to enlightened discourse on the following three issues: (1) The Biafra and Igbo question against the background of obvious persecution and (not-so-obvious) self-inflicted problems; (2) The convoluted relationship crisis between the various ethnic groups in Nigeria, with emphasis on avoidable historical missteps, and (3) The challenges of nationhood and inclusive leadership in a fractured and fractious nation that has been on the path of nihilism for far too long. Offodile’s book presents thoughts that should Offodile be made general knowledge and (possibly) Igbo kith and kin. Yes, compulsory reading recommended as compulsory literature for his because this presents a unique re-consideration

and re-interpretation of the very history of the “misrepresentative” of the thrust of the work Nigerian State. It uses the Biafran experience that I thought it was best to let the season as a peg on which to hang many things that pass, (2) Sometimes the best way to help a should have since been said and done about cause is to bring it up when it will attract the the Federal Republic of Nigeria; but which have greatest attention – which is when no one else is talking about it, and (3) I did not think that been left unsaid and undone. One of the things I noted after reading the book Offodile’s passionately argued narrative should back then was that it stood out in its attempt suffer the indignity of being treated as exciting to refocus Ndigbo on their real problems. The “seasonal” literature and nothing more. author called for realism. He invited Ndigbo A work that makes a serious attempt to connect to reinvent their sense of history, instead of the history of the Nigeria–Biafra War with the always settling for hysteria in their public political unresolved political questions of contemporary commentary. And the book was well received. Nigeria, and which examines the war and It was well publicized. It was also reviewed the evolution of Igbo political thought in a post-war Nigeria which also addressing the by several individuals. I refrained from public commentary on the continuing debate on restructuring, federalism book at the time for three main reasons, as and self-determination deserves more than follows: (1) There were already enough reviews Continued on page 27 and comments, one or two of which were so

OBINNACHIMA EDGY OPTIMIST

obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com

This United Nations is Failing to Deliver for All

he 81st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA 81), an annual gathering that brings together 193 member states of the United Nations (UN) is underway in New York. While this year, the theme of this highlevel event is, “Restoring Trust, Managing Transformation: A United Nations That Delivers for All,” it is instructive to note that the UN has continued to struggle to deliver equally for all with wars, humanitarian crises, widening inequalities and unresolved global challenges exposing the limits of a system created to promote peace, security and collective prosperity.

Alongside the assembly, the World Economic Forum will hold its Sustainable Development Impact Meetings, convening leaders from politics, business and civil society. Every September, world leaders from UN member states gather at the organisation's headquarters in New York to debate the most important global issues. This year's session takes place at a pivotal moment for multilateral cooperation. Geopolitical tensions, conflict, pressure on development financing, rapid technological change and a warming planet continue to test the international system. The UN was created in 1945, following the devastation of the Second World War, with a

central mission of maintaining international peace and security. The UN tries to accomplish this by working to prevent conflict, helping parties in conflict make peace, deploying peacekeepers, and creating the conditions to allow peace to hold and flourish. The UN Security Council has the primary responsibility for international peace and security. Also established in 1945 under the Charter of the UN, the General Assembly occupies a central position as the chief deliberative, policymaking and representative organ of the UN. It provides a unique forum for multilateral discussion of the full spectrum of international issues covered by the Charter. It also plays a central role in the process of

standard-setting and the codification of international law. Since the first UNGA session convened on 10 January 1946 in London with 51 countries represented, the Assembly has grown to include 193 member states. In 2023, 88 Heads of State, 42 Heads of Government, and over 650 ministers attended the debate. However, recent global developments have intensified calls for far-reaching reforms of the organisation. Escalating wars and geopolitical tensions across several regions continue to test the credibility of the body. Yet in many of these situations, the UN Continued on page 27

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