Author: Samuel Akpenpuun

A former Aviation Minister, Osita Chidoka, has recommended that for Nigeria’s electoral process to be strengthened and improved, all petitions arising from elections should be resolved before the swearing-in of elected officials. He stated this on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics where the off-cycle governorship elections in Kogi, Imo and Bayelsa states were reviewed. “All petitions must end before swearing in,” he said. “We must make sure that nobody takes advantage of the lacuna in the election. We should scan the results – all the paper ballots, they should appoint election auditors should scan the results.” “INEC has the power to…

A Tokyo shrine seen as a symbol of Japan’s past militarism reported on Monday a second case of graffiti in three months. The Yasukuni shrine in Tokyo honours 2.5 million mostly Japanese killed in wars since the late 19th century, including convicted war criminals. Officials regularly pay homage at Yasukuni, as did three government ministers and scores of other lawmakers on the 79th anniversary of Japan’s surrender in World War II on Thursday. Such visits have angered some of Japan’s Asian neighbours and former victims of its imperialism, especially China and South Korea. A Yasukuni shrine official confirmed the new…

Economist Pat Utomi has alleged that a former governor of Ogun State Ibikunle Amosun violated a contract he entered with his government. Utomi’s comment was in reaction to Amosun’s admission that he cancelled a deal with Chinese firm Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Limited. He said the firm presented false documents and described them as “impostors”. A court in France later ruled in favour of the company and ordered the seizure of three Nigerian presidential jets. In a tweet on his X handle on Sunday, Utomi claimed that like the Chinese company, he also faced a similar fate. “So, it…

Osun State Governor, Ademola Adeleke, held a Thanksgiving service in memory of his late mother, Nnena Adeleke, at the Cherubim and Seraphim headquarters in Lagos State on Sunday. The governor’s spokesperson, Olawale Rasheed, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday. The statement read, “In memory of his late mother, Nnena Esther Adeleke and in appreciation of God’s blessings in his life, Governor Ademola Adeleke today attended the much-delayed Thanksgiving service at the headquarters of the Cherubim and Seraphim, Lagos, praising divine grace in the making of his governorship of Osun State. “The Governor’s mother, late Esther Adeleke, was a Senior…

The candidate of the Labour Party in the Edo governorship election, Olumide Akpata, has said that September 21, 2024, is a freedom day for the Edo people. In a statement on Sunday by the Publicity Secretary of Edo LP, Sam Uroupa, Olumide said the people would finally break free from the shackles of the All Progressives Congress and Peoples Democratic Party’s leadership failures. The statement read, “I declare September 21 as freedom day for the people of Edo State. This historic declaration marks a turning point in Edo State’s trajectory, as the people will finally break free from the shackles…

Nigerian socialite and businessman, Obi Iyiegbu, popularly known as Obi Cubana, has revealed that some people alleged he had used his wife for money ritual when she developed a strange illness. The socialite added that his wife fell sick after the February 14 Valentine’s Day, adding that she assured him she’d give birth to their baby and get back on her feet. Cubana, while speaking during an interview with Chude Jideonwo, said, “So, my wife, after she gave birth on Valentine’s Day, developed a strange illness. “Someone called me and said, ‘See what they are hearing—that I went to use…

The Economic Community of West African States Parliament is stepping up diplomatic efforts to prevent Niger, Mali, and Burkina Faso from leaving the regional bloc. The Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, confirmed that parliamentary diplomacy mechanisms are being deployed to engage the three nations, emphasising the importance of unity within ECOWAS. He spoke in an interview on Saturday, August 17, 2024, with newsmen in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, on the sidelines of a meeting of the parliament’s Joint Committee on Administration, Finance, Budget, Public Accounts, Macroeconomic Policy and Economic Research, of which he is Chairman. Kalu assured…

The Kano State Commissioner for Women Affairs, Disabled and Children, Aisha Saki, has pledged that justice will be pursued following the tragic death of nine-year-old Rummaisa Sadiq, who was allegedly raped by a chemist in Jana, Fanisau Unogo Local Government Area of Kano State. In a statement, Saki emphasized that despite attempts to divert the case, Governor Abba Yusuf’s administration is committed to ensuring that the matter is thoroughly investigated and prosecuted to serve as a deterrent to others. Saki, during a condolence visit to the victim’s family, declared, “There must be justice for the little girl who lost her…

Several shops have been gutted by fire at the Mgbuka Obosi Old Motor Spare Parts Market in Idemili North Local Government Area of Anambra State. It was gathered that the inferno occurred on Saturday night, mostly affecting three shops, including a provision store. The cause of the incident was attributed to a power surge as a result of a poor electrical connection in one of the burnt structures. The chairman of the market, Samuel Ifurunwa, who spoke when our correspondent visited the scene on Sunday, said he was alerted to the incident at about 3 am on Saturday, while the…

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has announced the arrest of Paul Okwuy Mbadugha, a businessman traveling to Vietnam, at Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in Abuja. Mbadugha, who was intercepted at the boarding gate on August 12, 2024, tested positive for cocaine ingestion. He was found to have excreted 88 wraps of the drug, weighing 1.710 kilograms, after being under observation for four days. According to NDLEA spokesperson Femi Babafemi, Mbadugha claimed that he was a Lagos-based businessman who had been given the cocaine pellets by a friend in Isolo for delivery in Vietnam, with a fee of $2,000.…