Author: Festus Adeloye

Max Air has suspended its operations for three months following an incident involving one of the aircraft of the local carrier at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport, Kano. A spokesman for the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), Michael Achimugu, made this known in a statement on Wednesday, hours after the Tuesday night incident at the Kano airport. The flight, Max Air B734, operated by the aircraft with registration marks 5N-MBD, on landing at the airport, at 10:51 pm, suffered a wheel landing gear collapse and a tire burst while landing on the runway at the airport throwing passengers into…

A British-Nigerian politician, Florence Eshalomi, has been appointed as the United Kingdom’s trade envoy to Nigeria. Her appointment makes Eshalomi the second Nigerian to hold the position. Confirming her appointment on X on Tuesday, she wrote: “It is an honour to have been appointed as the United Kingdom’s Trade Envoy to Nigeria. “I’m looking forward to building on my close ties with Nigeria to promote a strong and flourishing economic relationship between our two great nations. “I am looking forward to strengthening the UK’s relationship with Nigeria to explore shared growth and opportunities for both countries.” Announcing the appointment in…

The Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) has commenced the safety audit of commercial airline Max Air after one of the planes of the local carrier suffered a tyre burst while landing at the Malam Aminu Kano International Airport (MAKIA) on Tuesday night. A source told Channels Television that the audit began immediately after the incident which occurred at 10:57 pm on Tuesday when Flight VM1605, which had earlier departed from Murtala Muhammed Airport (MMA) in Lagos, touched down in Kano. The plane suffered a tyre burst, causing panic among passengers but all those onboard were safely evacuated without major injuries. It…

A Federal High Court in Abuja has adjourned the trial of former Kogi State Governor, Yahaya Bello, in the N80.2 billion fraud case to April 3, following the commencement of witness testimony by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. Bello is facing a 19-count charge bordering on money laundering, breach of trust, and misappropriation of public funds. At Wednesday’s hearing, the EFCC called its first witness, a property developer and chairman of Efab Properties Nigeria Limited, Fabian Nwora. Nwora told the court that in 2020, his company sold a property in Maitama, Abuja, to one Shehu Bello for N550 million.…

Former presidential candidate and activist, Omoyele Sowore has arrived at the Federal High Court in Abuja for his arraignment. He is facing charges related to comments he made on social media, referring to Kayode Egbetokun as an “illegal IG.” Sowore is facing three charges under the Cybercrime (Prohibition, Prevention, ETC) Act, 2015, as amended in 2024. The charges, filed in case FCH/ABJ/23/25, accuse Sowore of intentionally sending messages via his verified Twitter account, calling Egbetokun the “illegal IGP Kayode Egbetokun.” The police allege that Sowore’s posts were false and aimed at causing unrest and undermining the authority of the police.…

As a way of increasing gas utilisation and expansion in the country, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has awarded 10 Gas Distribution Licences (GDLs) to six companies, including a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.  The licenses were issued in a ceremony on Tuesday, in Abuja. The six beneficiary companies include the NNPC Gas Marketing Company, Shell Nigeria Gas Limited, NIPCO Plc, Central Horizon Gas Company, Falcon Corporation Ltd, and AXXELA. Speaking on the development, the Chief Executive of the NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, said the beneficiaries were selected from a pool of over 30…

Convener of the #RevolutionNow protest Omoyele Sowore has been arraigned by the Nigeria Police Force on charges of cybercrime before Justice Musa Liman of the Federal High Court Abuja. Sowore had honoured the invitation of the police on Monday, January 27, 2025, when he was questioned at the Force Criminal Investigation Department. He was subsequently granted administrative bail but rejected the conditions of bail and remained in custody. The police later filed a 16-count charge of cybercrime against him. In count three, the police said Sowore on December 20, 2024, through his X handle, called the Inspector General of Police,…

The Nigeria Police Force has filed a notice of discontinuance in the alleged defamation suit filed by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, against Lagos-based legal practitioner and author, Dele Farotimi. Channels Television sighted the notice of discontinuance dated January 29th which was filed pursuant to Section 108 (1) (2)(a) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 and which seeks to withdraw the charge pending against Mr Farotimi at the Federal High Court, Ado-Ekiti. The notice, which was signed by the police prosecutor, Samson Osubu, also disclosed that the police would be asking the court to strike…

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission has said that the Federal Government is ready to welcome deported Nigerians from the United States. The Director of Media and Corporate Affairs of the commission, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, in an interview with Vanguard on Tuesday evening, said that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs was in charge of such development. Balogun further said FG had already set up an inter-agency committee to handle the matter should Nigerians be deported from the US. “The Federal Government has set up an inter-agency committee, comprising the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, NiDCOM, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and office of the…

Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, has alleged that the All Progressives Congress (APC), lacks internal democracy and active party structures. El-Rufai was speaking at a national conference in Abuja on strengthening democracy in Nigeria. El-Rufai, who posted the report on his X handle on Tuesday, described the state of governance and opposition in the country as a “national emergency,” accusing APC of abandoning its founding principles and fostering poor leadership. “I no longer recognise the APC. No party organ has met in two years—no caucus, no NEC, nothing. You don’t even know if it is a one-man show; it’s…