Author: Farouk Abbas

THE National Drug Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a businessman, Ezemokwe Chukwuebuka Christian, at the Port Harcourt International Airport (PHIA), for ingesting 53 wraps of cocaine, while on his way to Tehran Khomeini, Iran. This came barely two weeks after operatives of the NDLEA at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) Kano, intercepted a 60-year-old businessman Chinedu Leonard Okigbo heading to Iran with 65 pellets of cocaine in his stomach. Spokesman of the agency, Femi Babafemi, on Sunday in a statement in Abuja, said that Ezemokwe, 44, was arrested on Saturday, 7th June, while trying to board Qatar Airways…

INSPECTOR-GENERAL of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, has approved an extension of the grace period for the enforcement of Tinted Glass Permit requirement to August 12. The Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi said this in a statement on Saturday in Abuja. Adejobi said the extension followed several concerns and feedback expressed by the public over the reactivation of the digital Tinted Glass Permit application process. “In line with our commitment to delivering transparent, inclusive, and citizen-focused policing, the force wishes to affirm that it has not ignored the voices of Nigerians. “Rather, these voices have been instrumental in guiding ongoing…

DESPITE the country witnessing nearly three decades of uninterrupted civil rule, Nigeria’s democracy is still dangerously underdeveloped, former National Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Attahiru M. Jega, has disclosed. Presenting a paper titled “Required Reforms for Stronger Democratic Institutions in Nigeria” at the Platform Nigeria: June 12, 2025 edition, organized by The Covenant Nation Global in Lagos Jega, a Professor of Political Science from Bayero University, Kano noted that, “we have perfected the rituals of democracy—elections, party campaigns, political handovers—but have failed to build the substance: institutions that work, leaders who serve, and a citizenry that…

THE Federal High Court in Abuja has heard how the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, allegedly smuggled a radio transmitter into the country, concealing it within household items. Testifying as the fourth prosecution witness, an operative of the Department of State Services (DSS), identified as Mister DDD, told the court that the transmitter was brought into Nigeria without declaration to the Nigeria Customs Service and was hidden at the residence of one Benjamin Madubougu in Ihiala, Anambra State. Led in evidence by the prosecution counsel, Adegboyega Awomolo, the witness stated that Kanu used the…

AIRLINE Operators of Nigeria, AON, Friday, expressed dismay over the conduct of former Edo State governor, Senator Adams Oshiomhole, at the Murtala Muhammed Airport in Lagos, saying it is unacceptable and another example of the growing trend of unruly passenger behaviour experienced by domestic carriers. Spokesperson for the AON, Professor Obiora Okonkwo, also expressed sadness that two days after the incident, the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria, FAAN, was yet to reveal what truly happened. Okonkwo spoke as the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo, directed relevant aviation agencies to investigate the dispute. Spokesperson for the AON spoke…

NIGERIA would have become far better economically had democracy hero Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola been allowed to become president in 1993, his son Jamiu has said. “Nigeria would have been better because, at that time, it was a very special time in global times; that 1993 period was a time when the world itself was having an international economic boom,” he said on Thursday during Channels Television’s June 12 Special Forum to celebrate Nigeria’s 26 years of unbroken democratic rule. “So, we could have tapped into that. But what did we get in return? We got a Kleptomaniac as…

THE Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has called on Nigerians to resist what it described as “anti-democratic” designs of the All Progressives Congress (APC), particularly the” plot to foist a despotic one-party regime in Nigeria”. The party urged Nigerians in a statement by its National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, as the country celebrates Democracy Day on June 12. It called on Nigerians to resist the alleged plot in the interest of the country’s democracy. “The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) calls on Nigerians to use the occasion of the June 12 Democracy Day to re-awaken and strengthen their resistance to the anti-democratic…

THERE is tight security in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) as some groups begin protests to demonstrate against what they described as rising hardship and insecurity. Security agencies had been deployed to strategic locations across the nation’s capital, especially hot spots where the protesters may likely be. The presence of operatives was particularly noticeable at major junctions, Eagle Square and the National Assembly, among other places where the protesters could have gathered. However, the protest, which coincides with Nigeria’s Democracy Day, commenced in the Apo area of Abuja, where demonstrators were seen chanting solidarity songs and waving placards to express…

THE Nasarawa State government has refuted allegations that it is harbouring killer Bandits responsible for attacks in Benue State, which have left scores dead and displaced several communities. In a statement yesterday, the Senior Special Assistant to Governor Abdullahi Sule on Public Affairs, Mr Peter Ahemba, debunked claims made by former Benue lawmaker, Mark Gbilah, who alleged that attackers of Benue communities were being sheltered in Nasarawa State. “The attention of the Nasarawa State Government has been drawn to misleading claims by one Mark Gbilah, former member of the House of Representatives from Benue State,” Ahemba said. “The former lawmaker,…

ABDULRAHMAN Bello, the prime suspect in the murder of a final year female student of the Kwara state College of Education, Hafsoh Lawal, told the court on Wednesday that he single-handedly carried out the cutting of the deceased into parts after taking alcohol. Testifying before Justice Hannah Ajayi of the State High Court, while opening his defence, the suspect said that his co-defendants did not have a hand in the incident. Abdulrahman Bello also told the court that he used the knife and cutlass found by police detectives in his two-room apartment at Olunlade area of Ilorin, the state capital,…

THE Court of Appeal, Abuja Division, has struck out two motions filed by the President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, and awarded costs of ₦100,000 against him. A three-member panel of the Court of Appeal, presided over by Justice Hamman Barka, struck out the motions on May 21, 2025, following the request for withdrawal of the appeal. This newspaper obtained a certified true copy of the ruling on Tuesday night. The motions, dated March 3, 2025, and March 25, 2025, and marked CV/395/M1/2025 and CV/395/M2/2025, listed Akpabio as the appellant. The respondents were Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, the Clerk of the…

SOME Nigerian pilgrims officials, popularly called NAHCON stakeholders, have protested in Makkah, Saudi Arabia, over unpaid allowances. The protest took place at the Nuzha Funduk Asalatuk Maqaam hotel in Makkah city, around 4 pm (local time) on Monday. The hotel is housing over 700 adhoc officials sponsored to the holy land by the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON), under the “stakeholder” category. The protesters had urged President Bola Tinubu and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to come to their aid by probing the Hajj commission’s leadership. The pilgrims held placards in front of the hotel with inscriptions…

THE Federal High Court in Abuja on Tuesday ordered the remand of Mr. Jesam Michael, Chief Executive Officer of Afriq Arbitrage System (AAS) Limited, at the Kuje Correctional Centre over alleged involvement in a multi-million-dollar investment fraud. Justice Obiora Egwuatu gave the order following Michael’s arraignment by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on a seven-count charge bordering on money laundering, advance fee fraud, and operating financial services without a valid license. Ruling on Michael’s bail application, Justice Egwuatu denied the request, citing the severity of the allegations, weight of evidence, and the growing number of petitions from victims…

HUMAN rights lawyer, Femi Falana (SAN), has warned the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, not to contemplate sealing 34 embassies and foreign missions said to be owing ground rents in the nation’s capital city Abuja. “Embassies and missions cannot be invaded because they have not paid ground rent, which is not applicable for all of them,” the senior advocate said on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday monitored by News Point Nigeria. The Wike administration in the FCT had published the details of 9,000 debtors in newspapers, asking them to pay their ground rents to avoid…

SEVEN people were killed on Sunday when a motorcycle struck an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) allegedly planted by suspected Lakurawa insurgents in Tangaza Local Government Area of Sokoto State. The victims, who were returning from a Sallah celebration in Gwabro village, were travelling on motorcycles when one of them struck the explosive device. The IED was reportedly planted beneath a tree commonly used as a rest point by military personnel during operations in the area. According to local sources, six men died instantly, while one of the two injured girls succumbed to her injuries the following day. Confirming the incident,…

LAGOS State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Sunday, dismissed a rumoured rift with President Bola Tinubu, saying it is a father-and-son affair. Sanwo-Olu stated this shortly after he met with the President at his Bourdillon residence in the highbrow Ikoyi area of Lagos. He met with the president alongside the Governor’s Advisory Council (GAC), the highest decision-making body of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Lagos. There have been rumours of a perceived rift between the president and the governor, especially after the controversial removal of Mudashiru Obasa as Lagos speaker and his eventual reinstatement. Sanwo-Olu’s conspicuous absence from the flag-off…

THE Federal Government has declared Thursday, 12th June, 2025, as Public Holiday to commemorate this year’s democracy day celebration. The Honourable Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, who made the declaration on behalf of the Federal Government, congratulated Nigerians on this occasion of 26 years of an uninterrupted civil rule. This was contained in a statement signed by the Permanent Secretary of the Interior Ministry, Magdalene Ajani, and released on Sunday. “June 12 represents our historic journey to building a nation where truth and justice reign and peace is sustained and our future assured,” the statement quoted the minister as saying.…

THE Republic of Ireland has deported no fewer than 35 Nigerians, including five children, to Nigeria in a chartered flight that departed from Dublin Airport on Wednesday night. According to the Irish Mirror, the returnees, comprising 21 men, nine women, and five children, landed in Nigeria on Thursday. Irish Minister for Justice, Jim O’Callaghan, said he was “happy to say” that all of them returned to Nigeria despite an unscheduled stopover due to a medical incident on board. While the Irish government did not give a specific reason for the deportation of the Nigerian nationals, O’Callaghan only said, “Ireland has…

A FORMER Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Mohammed Uwais, is dead. He was aged 89. His family confirmed his death. The retired jurist died on Friday, June 6, 2025, in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital city. Born on June 12, 1936, Justice Uwais served as the Chief Justice of Nigeria from 1995 until his retirement in 2006. After retiring from the Supreme Court, he was appointed by the late President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua to lead the Electoral Reform Committee, where he played a key role in efforts to improve Nigeria’s electoral system. Uwais chaired a commission that published a much-publicised report on…

FORMER President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday congratulated his friend and course mate in the military, Major-General Muhammadu Iliyasu Bashar who secured a Supreme Court victory following a 20-year battle for the throne against a deposed emir, Major Haruna Jokolo (retd.) “I hope you will continue to promote peace, happiness, and prosperity of the people in Gwandu Emirate and beyond,” a statement by Buhari’s spokesman, Garba Shehu, quoted the ex-president as saying in a phone call. The statement is titled ‘In a phone call, ex-president Buhari welcomes stunning SC victory of Emir of Gwandu.’ In the telephone call from London where…