An All Progressives Congress (APC) rally held in Opi-Nsukka, Enugu State, was temporarily disrupted on Saturday following reported incidents of violence, including the destruction of canopies and rally materials.
Witnesses said the rally was interrupted multiple times before party supporters regrouped and continued the event. Party officials also alleged that campaign posters of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu were torn during the disturbance.
A former governorship aspirant and ex-commissioner in the state, Mr. Peter Okonkwo, who addressed the crowd after the rally reconvened, described the disruption as an attack on the party’s peaceful assembly. He noted that despite the setback, party members remained resolute in their support for the APC and President Tinubu.
“They tried to disperse us multiple times, but we stood firm and came back stronger,” he said. “We are here to show our support for the President and our belief in the future of the APC.”
No official confirmation has been made regarding the identity of those responsible for the disruption. The incident took place on the same day the Enugu State Government commissioned several projects in Nsukka, including a 5,000-shop international market and roads.
Top APC leaders in the state condemned the incident and called for an investigation. They included:
Chief Uche Nnaji, Minister of Innovation, Science and Technology
Barr. Ugochukwu Agballah, Enugu State APC Chairman
House of Representatives members: Hon. Sunday Umeha, Hon. Chimobi Atu, and Hon. Prof. Paul Nnamchi.
The party leaders urged the authorities to ensure the safety of political gatherings and allow all parties to freely mobilize support.
Despite the disruption, the rally proceeded with the reception of over 1,000 new members from other political parties including the PDP, Labour Party, APGA, ADP, and YPP.
Minister Nnaji praised the resilience of the attendees and the courage of the new members, describing their defection to the APC as “a significant step toward greater political participation.”
The APC chairman, Agballah, called for a peaceful and fair political environment in the state, noting that previous rallies in other areas had experienced similar challenges.
“We believe in democracy and the right to peaceful assembly,” he said. “We urge all stakeholders to respect that.” (Vanguard)
Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has expressed deep sadness over the demise of Dr. Doyin Abiola, widow of the acclaimed winner of the June 12, 1993 presidential election, Chief MKO Abiola.
Dr Abiola, former Managing Director of the National Concord newspaper, reportedly died on Tuesday at the age of 82.
Abiodun, in a condolence message on Wednesday, noted that Dr. Abiola was not only a devoted partner to her husband, Chief Moshood Abiola, but also a distinguished individual in her own right, who contributed immensely to the journalism profession.
The governor noted Dr. Abiola’s foray in the field of journalism, starting with the Daily Sketch Newspaper and a brief stint with the Daily Times before becoming the Managing Director of the Concord Newspapers.
“I am deeply saddened to learn of the passing of Dr. Doyin Abiola, a remarkable woman whose contributions to society and unwavering support for her late husband during the tumultuous period surrounding the June 12, 1993 presidential election in Nigeria will forever be remembered.
“Her dedication to justice, democracy, and the betterment of her country exemplifies the strength and resilience of her character.
“She displayed excellent spirit in the fight for the validation of the annulled June 12 election as the person in charge of the Concord Group of Newspapers, owned by her then embattled husband.
“She played a significant role in advocating for the democratic ideals that many Nigerians still strive to uphold today. Her commitment to these principles, particularly during a time of great political unrest, demonstrated her courage and unwavering belief in the power of democracy.
“As we reflect on Dr. Abiola’s life, it is essential to acknowledge the sacrifices she made alongside her husband during a period marked by challenges and adversity.
Her strength in the face of political turmoil exemplifies the spirit of resilience as she stood steadfastly by her husband, providing support and encouragement during trying times, and her unwavering dedication to his vision for a better Nigeria will never be forgotten.
“In addition to her political involvement, Dr. Abiola will also be remembered for her contribution to the journalism profession.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with her family, friends, and all who admired her. We must continue to uphold her ideals and strive for the principles she passionately advocated for throughout her life,” the statement noted. (Punch)
Operatives of the Rapid Response Unit of the Bayelsa State Police Command on Saturday evening recovered the corpse of missing real estate operator, Ekpeboh Richard, after days he was declared missing by his family.
His decomposing body was recovered from the forest between New NDDC Road and Otuokpoti in Ogbia Local Government Area of the state.
Police discovered the deceased was shot in the head in an execution-style and dumped in the bush.
A graduate of the Niger Delta University, Ekpeboh is the Vice Chairman of the Real Estate Consultants Association of Bayelsa and hails from Amassoma in the Southern Ijaw Local Government Area of the state. He is married with two kids.
He left home on July 24, 2025, and his wife became worried at around 2 a.m. when he failed to return home.
According to family sources, all calls by the worried wife to his mobile phone were left unanswered until three days later via WhatsApp chat, when he purportedly asked her not to mount unnecessary pressure on him and that he was okay.
Further prompted by the wife that she would reach out to the extended family to ask him why he abandoned the house was met by a promise to send money via POS, where the sum of N15,300 was purportedly sent to a POS agent and not her account.
The family source also revealed that he owes two persons the sums of N9 million and N3 million, respectively, within the association.
However, it was later discovered that those who abducted and killed him were the ones using his phone to chat with his worried wife.
The RRS operatives, working on intelligence, youths, and an eyewitness, discovered that two young men in a blue-coloured Honda V-Boot car had dragged the deceased out and took him deep into the forest. “What we heard later were two gunshots. And the two young men scampered to their car and left.
“They also left with the deceased’s car, a Toyota Matrix.”
Police investigators discovered that there was a struggle between the deceased and his killers, with footwear discovered a few metres from where the body was discovered.
“We, the youths, assisted in recovering the body. The place he was dumped was a swamp. His head was blown off by gunshot,” one of the youths revealed.
Our correspondent gathered from sources at the Police Headquarters that the Homicide Department of the State Criminal Investigation Department have taken over the case and is already working on two leads.
“We are looking at the fact that it may be a case of business deals gone wrong with members of his Association of Real Estate Consultants, or that he may be involved in a cybercrime or money laundering deal that went wrong.” “We will get to the root of the matter and bring the culprits to book,” a police source stated.
A senior police officer, who confirmed the development, told our correspondent that the Commissioner of Police, Francis Idu, is fully aware of the development. (Guardian)
The Ogun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its 2023 gubernatorial candidate in the state, Ladi Adebutu, on Monday endorsed President Bola Tinubu as their candidate for the 2027 presidential election.
The State party chairman, Abayomi Tella, disclosed this in Sagamu, at the official campaign flag-off and inauguration of the campaign council for Bolarinwa Oluwole, the PDP candidate for the Remo Federal Constituency bye-election.
Bolarinwa is seeking to replace the late Hon. Adewunmi Oriyomi Onanuga, the former lawmaker representing the constituency, who passed away in January after a brief illness.
Addressing the party faithful at the palace of Akarigbo of Remoland, Tella said Ogun PDP has adopted President Tinubu as its candidate because he is from the Southwest.
“We will support President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Though he is in the opposition, let us support our own from the Southwest. Our support is for Tinubu, and we will stand by him. We are ready to give him our votes. The whole of the Southwest will give him our votes.
“We are going to support him. We will give him our votes. All we want in that election is fairness and justice,” Tella said.
Speaking on the recent defection of the party’s former governorship running mate, Adekunle Akinlade, and others to the ruling APC in the state, he described them as immaterial, stressing that most of them lack political weight.
He said, “Do not be discouraged by the defections. Those who left—what did they contribute to the party? Even their polling units, they couldn’t deliver. We are not moved by that,” he added.
Also speaking, Adebutu said Ogun PDP holds no grudge against Tinubu and his candidacy.
He, however, accused Governor Dapo Abiodun of bad governance and vowed that the PDP will challenge the ruling APC in the state come 2027.
He said, “I was with the President in January, and I told him that we have no issue with his leadership and candidacy.
“We, however, have an issue with bad governance in Ogun State; that is why we must have this platform to challenge bad governance.”
He emphasised the importance of winning the bye-election and the need to challenge bad governance in the state.
Adebutu noted that the party won 34 wards out of 35 in the previous election in the federal constituency, saying the APC-led government has lost goodwill due to its conduct.
Adebutu rallied support for the PDP candidate, describing the bye-election as an opportunity to punish bad governance and restore sanity.
On his part, the PDP candidate for the Remo Federal Constituency, Hon. Bolarinwa Oluwole, pledged quality representation if elected.
The National Vice Chairman of PDP, Engr Kamorudeen Ajisafe, presented the party’s flag to the candidate, Bolarinwa Oluwole. (Vanguard)
After four months of trial, Justice Hannah Olushola Ajayi of the Kwara State High Court sitting in Ilorin today, Thursday, sentenced Abdulrahman Bello, the suspected killer of Hafsoh Yetunde Lawal, a 24-year-old final-year student of Kwara State College of Education, Ilorin, to death by hanging.
The court, however, discharged and acquitted four other suspects: Ahmed Abdulwasiu ‘M’, 41 years; Suleiman Muyideen ‘M’, 28 years; Jamiu Uthman ‘M’, 29 years; and Abdulrahmon Jamiu ‘M’, 31 years.
Recall that Alfa AbdulRahman Bello, the killer of the final-year student of Kwara State College of Education Ilorin, Hafsoh Lawal, at the commencement of the trial confessed before the court to killing his Facebook lover for money rituals.
He also claimed to be an Islamic cleric and that he carried out the act all alone.
Bello, who said he killed Lawal because he needed human hands for money rituals, regretted that if only he had known another way to source the needed ingredient, he wouldn’t have killed her.
On February 13, 2025, Hafsoh Lawal was said to be attending a naming ceremony of her friend’s newbornbaby when AbdulRahman Bello called her to his residence somewhere around Offa garage area of Ilorin.
AbdulRahman Bello, during the trial, told the court that after having bouts of sex with Hafsoh, he choked her by the neck, after which she passed on, and he then dismembered her body.
At another time, AbdulRahman Bello said Hafsoh Bello died of asthma after having rounds of sex with her and that the fear of how to dispose of the lifeless body caused him to dismember her body. (Vanguard)
The Presidency on Thursday announced that President Bola Tinubu has extended the tenure of the Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Customs Service, Mr. Bashir Adewale Adeniyi.
The tenure of the CG of Customs is due to expire on August 31, 2025, but the President has extended his tenure by one year.
The Presidency, in a statement by the presidential spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, explained that the extension, approved by Tinubu, will enable Mr. Adeniyi to consolidate ongoing reforms and complete critical initiatives of the administration.
The statement listed the reforms to include the modernisation of the Nigeria Customs Service, the implementation of the National Single Window Project, and the execution of Nigeria’s obligations under the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) protocol.
The statement further added that “President Tinubu recognises Mr. Adeniyi’s steadfast leadership and commitment to service.
“The President is confident that this extension will further strengthen the Nigeria Customs Service in achieving its strategic mandate of trade facilitation, revenue generation, and border security.” (Vanguard)
The Benue State Governor, Hyacinth Alia on Wednesday dissolved the State Executive Council.
Alia announced the dissolution in a statement signed by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr Tersoo Kula, and made available to newsmen in Makurdi.
Kula said that the governor informed the council members of the dissolution at the end of the 12th (2025) SEC meeting.
The chief press secretary said that the governor directed the commissioners to hand over to the permanent secretaries of their ministries as soon as possible.
He appreciated all the former commissioners who worked with him for two years and urged those who might not be reappointed, to remain in the party.
He said those who would not be reappointed are only paving the way for other citizens to also contribute their quota to the development of the state.
Meanwhile, the governor has approved the immediate appointment of Mr Moses Atagher, a legal practitioner, as the new Chief of Staff to replace Mr Paul Biam.
Kula said that Atagher is a former two-term attorney general and commissioner for justice in the state.
Atagher, who is a seasoned administrator, is also the former acting managing director of the Federal Mortgage Bank.
Speaking for the dissolved commissioners, immediate past Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice and Public Order, Mr Bemsen Mnyim, appreciated the governor for giving them the opportunity to serve the state.
“At every stage in life, everywhere you are called to serve is a school. We have learnt a lot while working with you,” Mnyim said. (Punch)
The Presidency has defended President Bola Tinubu’s $150,000 reward to the Super Falcons, arguing that the gesture is well-deserved, especially when compared to the ₦150 million prize money awarded to winners of the reality TV show, Big Brother Naija.
Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, said Tinubu’s generous reward to the Super Falcons following backlash from some Nigerians about the gifts splashed on Nigeria’s women’s national team.
Defending the President’s gesture in a tweet on Tuesday, Onanuga compared the gifts to prize money awarded by reality show Big Brother Naija, saying some Nigerians didn’t appreciate President Tinubu’s gifts to the victorious players.
He wrote: “When you remember that Multichoice, the organizer of the BBNaija reality show, is offering the winner ₦150 million grand prize, you wonder why some Nigerians are unappreciative of President Tinubu’s rewards to the Super Falcons. President Tinubu has rewarded excellence, creativity, hard work, soccer artistry and the undying Nigerian spirit.”
The comment comes amid debate over Tinubu’s lavish package for the national women’s football team after they clinched their 10th Women’s Africa Cup of Nations (WAFCON) title in Morocco on Saturday.
On Monday, the President hosted the victorious Falcons at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, and announced national honours and substantial financial rewards for the team.
Each player received a national award of Order of the Niger (OON), a three-bedroom apartment, and $100,000 (approx. ₦153 million) in cash.
The 11-member technical team was also gifted $50,000 (₦75.6 million) each in recognition of their contribution to the team’s success.
President Tinubu praised the team’s resilience, calling their comeback from two goals down against host nation Morocco “a testament to the Nigerian fighting spirit.”
Despite widespread celebration of the win, some critics questioned the size of the reward amid Nigeria’s economic challenges.
The Super Falcons’ latest WAFCON triumph marks their 10th title, further cementing their status as Africa’s most successful women’s national team. (Vanguard)
Ex-police personnel under the aegis of the Kwara State Chapter of Association of Retired Police Officers of Nigeria held a peaceful demonstration in Ilorin, on Monday, demanding that they be immediately exited from the Contributory Pension Scheme.
They said the scheme has been fraught with a number of challenges since its inception; hence, retired officers who fall in the category of the pension platform should be excused like those who rose to the position of Generals in the force.
In its stead, the protesters sought the establishment of a Police Pension Board with sole responsibility of overseeing the pension matters of the police as applicable in other security agencies.
The ex-Police officers who brandished placards with inscriptions such as “President, NASS and IGP should honourably exempt the police from the “CPS, Establish Police Pension Board to manage gratuity and pensions, “Mr President: Improve Police Welfare for effective service delivery”, If CPS is so good, why did AIGs, DIGs and Is exempt themselves from the scheme?”
The Chairman of the state chapter of ARPON, Yakubu Jimoh, a retired Chief Superintendent of Police, who addressed his members during the peaceful demonstration to the Press Centre of the state Council of Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), Ilorin, pleaded with President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to urgently come to their aid.
He said the retired police officers should be removed from the contributory pension scheme, adding the force pension board should be established to manage the pension of the officers.
Jimoh stated that the report of the Senate Committee on Establishment and Public Services on the bill for the establishment of Police Pension Board, which was held in public hearing in November last year, should be released, notwithstanding that it was conducted eight months ago.
He also called on the federal government and the National Assembly to fast-track the legislative process for the disbursement of the N758 billion, a pension shortfall owed to security agencies. He noted that retired officers were informed that payment was scheduled for June 2025, but expressed concern about the delay in the disbursement.
He appealed to the National Assembly to expedite action on the payment so as to assuage the suffering of the retirees and improve the retirement welfare of both serving and retired officers.
In the letter of agitation made available to the press, Jimoh said, “Our exit being advocated should be outright removal from the scheme. Since the inception of the contributory pension scheme, it has been one problem or another.
“It is unfortunate that officials of the National Pension Commission/Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs), who came to deliver a lecture on the workings of the scheme, do not reveal their bitter experiences in the hands of their host to their masters when they get back.
“We have always resented this contributory pension scheme, which provides gratuity and monthly pension, but it is just a pittance and not a living wage. We are all witnesses to the lamentations of the retired police officers on social media. Imagine Superintendent of Police being paid N2.4million as his gratuity after 35 years of meritorious service and a paltry N30,000 as monthly pension.
“This, to say the least, is responsible for corruption in the Police Force, as the officers want to make it by all means. From Commissioners of Police down the ladder are lamentations of woe. Only the Police “Generalismos”, retired Inspector Generals, Deputy Inspector Generals and Assistant Inspector Generals recently exited the scheme while this agitation was on. They are getting fat pension benefits as the case may be.
“Back to memory lane, when the Military was to exit this scheme, their senior officers did not discriminate. They pulled out all the other ranks. In the case of the Police, IGP Egbetokun was asking a Police lecture parade of Senior Officers and men in Kwara State, Where are you expecting to? Because of the regimentality of the job, the audience kept mute and watched in “admiration” of the Speaker/IGP.
“The answer from retirees since then has been that we want to exit to where the Police Generals had gone to. Those agencies that exited the scheme, such as the Military, DSS, take more pension compared to their counterparts, of the same rank in the Police.”
The Legal Adviser of ARPON, Adekunle Iwalaiye, said the retired officers deserve to be paid living pension away from the crumbs they receive monthly.
Iwalaiye, a retired Superintendent of Police, tasked the government to act on the demand of the retirees, considering the meritorious services they rendered to the country for 35 years.
“We are here to get across to the press so that our voices can be heard in respect of the pains retired Police Officers have been passing through under the current pension scheme. What we are saying is that retired Police Officers are human beings too, that we deserve a living wage, that we are Nigerians with flesh and blood flowing in our veins.
“The set of people you are seeing here are Nigerians who have used 35 years of our youthful age to serve this country in various capacities. Some of us carried bullet wounds and various degrees of wounds suffered in the cause of our service to this nation.
“And that for God being so merciful enough for us to retire well, we deserve a living pension, and our demand is just simple. The government should just do the needful by pulling us out of the Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS), the same way it has been done to some other security agencies in the country.
“It is disheartening for senior citizens to earn peanuts as monthly pension and even money that cannot get you anything as gratuity. Just imagine somebody, who retired after 35 years, being given less than N3million; the money cannot even buy a tricycle, assuming you want to go into a tricycle business.
“Somebody who retires, on a monthly basis, is being given less than N50,000 as pension that cannot even buy a bag of rice. Our wives and children are suffering. Most of our members are dying prematurely of all forms of illness. We can’t take care of our children, either.
“We have chosen not to be violent. We are not violent people. We have served this country diligently and we cannot be part of what will lead to breakdown of law and order,” he said (Punch)
The Minister of Innovation, Science, and Technology, Chief Uche Nnaji, has expressed confidence that the All Progressives Congress will take over Enugu State in the 2027 general elections.
Nnaji made this assertion while receiving over 500 defectors from the Peoples Democratic Party, Labour Party, and the All Progressives Grand Alliance into the APC on Monday.
The minister condemned the Enugu State government’s indiscriminate demolition of markets and people’s shops without notice and compensation, saying it has inflicted untold hardship on traders, leading to the death of several traders in the last year.
“Enugu has never had it this bad, and as I stand today, I imagine how a people can survive without something like Ogige Nsukka market.
“Ogige Nsukka market has gone; they have bulldozed Ogige Nsukka to ashes, without any notice.
” Many of our people have died out of that singular act of government. If you come to Enugu too, Holy Ghost suffered the same fate, Garki and Abakpa suffered the same fate, and Ogurute market here in Igbo-Eze North LGA suffered the same fate, and I wonder how our people who are predominantly businessmen can survive without trading.”
Nnaji expressed gratitude to President Bola Tinubu for appointing Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla, who is from Igbo-Eze North Local Government Area, as the Chief of Naval Staff.
“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu knows that we are here; he knows we are doing all these things for the state and for him and the Federal Republic of Nigeria.
“He knows and he has our support 101 per cent and he is behind us, we are APC,” Nnaji said.
The minister assured that the APC will do everything possible and within the law to displace the PDP government under Governor Peter Mbah in 2027.
“We are going to fight, we are going to do everything humanly possible and within the ambit of law to make sure that come 2027 our people will start rejoicing again,” Nnaji asserted.
The APC State Chairman, Ugochukwu Agballah, welcomed the defectors, describing the influx of new members as a “rainbow movement.”
“You know that in the last election, the Labour Party won in Igbo-Eze North, LP won the House of Assembly, won the House of Rep, won everything, but they were rigged out.
“Do you know why they were rigged out? It’s because they were in a one-man show. One-man-show parties don’t go far, politics is like a market, one person does not constitute the market,” Agballah said. (Punch)
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