Author: Amina Mohammed

The Niger Delta Development Commission has begun the payment of N50,000 monthly stipends to 10,000 indigenous youths from the Niger Delta under its Youths Internship Scheme. The Director of Corporate Affairs at the NDDC, Mrs Seledi-Thompson-Wakama, disclosed this to journalists in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital, on Thursday. She explained that the beneficiaries would undergo practical, hands-on training across the various organisations for 12 months to develop critical skills. NAN reports that during the inauguration of the scheme on July 31, 2024, Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the Federal Government’s approval of a N50,000 monthly stipend for the trainees. According…

Justice Azuka, an Anambra State House of Assembly member, was found dead near the Second Niger Bridge on Thursday. Tochukwu Ikenga, spokesperson for the Anambra State Police Command, confirmed the discovery. He said a joint security team found Azuka’s decomposing body during a routine patrol. “In the early hours of today, 6/2/2025, the Joint Security Team, including Police and AVG Operatives, was on a mission to rescue Honourable Azuka. Unfortunately, they found his lifeless body at the scene,” Ikenga stated. Ikenga assured the public that the investigation is ongoing. “The joint security team has taken control of the scene. Efforts…

Tunisia’s President, Kais Saied, has dismissed Finance Minister Sihem Boughdiri Nemsia and appointed Michket Slama Khaldi as her replacement. This was revealed in an official statement released late Wednesday night. The presidency announced the move via Facebook, revealing images of Khaldi taking the oath of office to assume the role. No further explanation was provided regarding the dismissal of the outgoing minister, Nemsia. However, Khaldi, a prominent magistrate, comes with notable experience, having previously chaired a national commission focused on recovering embezzled public funds. Tunisia has been grappling with persistent shortages of essential goods, including milk, sugar, and flour, for…

The Federal Government has officially commenced toll operations on the Abuja-Keffi-Akwanga-Lafia-Makurdi Road corridor as part of efforts to repay the $460.8m loan obtained from China Exim Bank for the rehabilitation and upgrade of the road. Motorists using the highway will now pay tolls ranging from N500 for saloon cars to N1,600 for multi-axle vehicles, while police and military vehicles are exempted to enhance their operations. The toll gates, strategically positioned along the 227.2km stretch of road, are divided into four sections: Keffi, Akwanga, Lafia, and Makurdi. Speaking at the official launch of toll operations at the Garaku Toll Station in…

Argentina said Wednesday it will pull out of the World Health Organization, following in the footsteps of the United States and citing similar complaints over the UN body’s management of the Covid-19 pandemic. President Javier Milei’s spokesman announced the decision two weeks after President Donald Trump, an ideological ally and hero of the Argentine leader, announced Washington’s planned exit from the agency. Milei’s decision was based on “deep differences regarding health management especially during the pandemic,” spokesman Manuel Adorni told reporters, adding Argentina would not “allow an international body to interfere in our sovereignty.” He cited the “longest lockdown in the…

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Board of Trustees (BoT) has recognised Ude Okoye as the party’s authentic National Secretary. They urged the party’s national working committee to immediately swear him in as the substantive national secretary of the party. The decision was taken during an emergency meeting at Transcorp Hilton Hotel Abuja on Wednesday over the party’s lingering crisis. The meeting has in attendance the BoT Chairman, Senator Adolphus Wabara; Secretary of the BoT, Senator Ahmed Makarfi. Others included former governors Achike Udenwa, Sam Egwu, Babangida Aliyu, and Senator Ben Obi among others. At the gathering the BoT received report…

Tragedy struck in the Ukubie community, Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of Bayelsa State, on Monday when a woman, identified as Madam Stella, drowned her six-year-old daughter, Rachael, in a fit of rage. The incident, which has left residents in shock, reportedly occurred after Rachael defied her mother’s repeated warnings against bathing in the river. Eyewitnesses said the little girl had gone to the waterfront when her mother found her and ordered her to leave, but she refused. “Despite warnings to leave the water, Rachael refused, prompting her mother to become enraged,” an eyewitness recounted. In a moment of fury,…

President Bola Tinubu has approved an increase in the retirement age for doctors and other healthcare workers from 60 to 65 years. The National Publicity Secretary, Nigerian Medical Association, Dr Mannir Bature, made the disclosure in a statement on Wednesday in Lagos. Bature said the Coordinating Minister of Health and Social Welfare, Prof. Muhammad Pate, has been directed to formally present the approval to the Council on Establishment through the Office of the Head of Service for finalisation. He said Pate conveyed the policy shift during a high-level meeting with the NMA President, Prof. Bala Audu, and key stakeholders in…

US President Donald Trump on Tuesday signed an executive order withdrawing Washington from a number of United Nations bodies, including its Human Rights Council (UNHRC), and setting up a broader review of US funding for the multilateral organization. The executive order said it withdrew Washington from UNHRC and the main UN relief agency for Palestinians (UNRWA), and would review involvement in the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organisation (UNESCO). The moves were made in protest against what White House staff secretary Will Scharf described as “anti-American bias” at the UN agencies. The 47 members of the UN Human Rights…

The leadership crisis rocking the Lagos State House of Assembly is yet to be over, since the removal of the former speaker Mudashiru Obasa on January 13, 2025. Some members of the Lagos State House of Assembly are currently in Abuja to meet with President Bola Tinubu over the leadership crisis at the assembly. On Monday, February 3rd, members of the Governor’s Advisory Council and members of the Lagos State House of Assembly held a meeting at Lagos House Marina to discuss the issues at the assembly. The meeting was attended by the Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Deputy Governor…