SATURDAY 15TH AUGUST 2026

2027: APC, ADC, NDC, PDP, Others Race to Ready Campaign Machinery for Elections Parties target grassroots mobilisation

Chuks Okocha, Adedayo Akinwale and Sunday Aborisade in Abuja

Ahead of the August 19, 2026 commencement of political

campaigns for the 2027 presidential and National Assembly elections, some of

the leading political parties in the polls — the All Progressives Congress (APC), African

Democratic Congress (ADC), the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and Peoples Democratic

Party (PDP) — have intensified Continued on page 5

2027 Election Gets Murky, Atiku Goes to Court, Seeks to Stop Tinubu from Contesting...

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Agusto Withdraws Geregu’s ‘A’ Rating after N40bn Bond Default...

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IBB: No Successful Coup in Nigeria Without Civilian Backing Recalls Gen. Vatsa’s denial before inquiry linked him to 1985 coup plot

Laleye Dipo in Minna and Chuks Okocha in Abuja

As investigations into an alleged plot to overthrow President Bola

Ahmed Tinubu in 2025 continue, former military President, General Ibrahim Badamasi Babangida, has said that military coups have always taken place

with the support of civilians.

Babangida who will turn 85 years on Monday, also declared that late General Mamman Jiya Vatsa then Minister of the

Federal Capital Territory denied involvement in the 1985 coup Plot to unseat him as head of state.

General Babangida made

the remarks while speaking on Badeggi 90.1 FM Radio monitored in Minna Niger State, yesterday, as part of activities to mark his 85th birthday

Babangida declared: "No successful coup in Nigeria’s history had occurred without civilian involvement," explaining Continued on page 5

Two-Horse Race: Adeleke, Oyebamiji in Fierce Battle for Osun Governorship Tinubu to INEC, security agencies: Ensure peaceful, transparent election PDP, APM candidates step down for Adeleke Police announce 42-hour movement restriction Let ballot, not violence decide, IPCR declares

Deji Elumoye, Chuks Okocha, Alex Enumah, Michael Olugbede, Adedayo Akinwale, Linus Aleke in Abuja and Yinka Kokawole in Osogbo As the countdown to today’s election draws to a close, the contest for the governorship has effectively become a two-horse race between the incumbent,

Ademola Adeleke of Accord Party and the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate, Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, although other candidates are also in the race.

This is as President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has called on the Independent National Continued on page 5

ADEMOLA ADELEKE

STRENGTHS • Incumbency Advantage • Strong popularity, grassroots mobilisation • Strong Osun West Base WEAKNESSES • Loss of PDP Structure • Weaker Accord Platform • APC’s federal might • Criticism of nepotism

bucket list tthois submoo e k d mer from

BOLA OYEBAMIJI

STRENGTHS • APC’s strong statewide structure • Backing of the ruling party, federal might • Strong grassroots mobilisation • Public administration and banking experience WEAKNESSES • Lack of incumbency advantage • Burden of APC’s national performance • Being perceived as Oyetola stooge

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PAGE FIVE

Enugu Police Bust Criminal Syndicates, Arrest 14 Kidnap Suspects Recover 5 AK-47 Riffles, 2 pump action rifles, ammunition

Gideon Arinze in Enugu

The Enugu State Police Command has arrested and paraded 14 kidnap suspects involved in various kidnap operations in and outside the state.

Briefing pressmen at the Command’s headquarters in Enugu yesterday, the Commissioner of Police, Enugu State, Mamman Bitrus Giwa, said among those arrested were two remaining suspects linked to the August 2 kidnapping raid on St.

Joseph’s Catholic Church, Affa, Udi LGA of the state, who fled to Port Harcourt following the operational pressure mounted by joint security operatives.

“Further intelligence-led operations by the Command’s Anti-Kidnapping Violent Crime Response Unit (AK-VCRU) led to the arrest of two additional male suspects linked to the Affa Church kidnapping. Preliminary investigation reveals that, after fleeing Enugu, the suspects regrouped with their cohorts in Port Harcourt and abducted

another victim, who was released after a ransom of N5m was paid," he said.

CP Giwa noted that all the 14 suspects were arrested on various dates in June, July and August 2026 in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, and Enugu, Kogi, Nasarawa, Rivers, Kwara and Taraba States.

The suspects had also confessed to involvement in several recent and past kidnapping incidents along the Enugu–Ugwuogo– Opi–Nsukka Road, Obioma–9th Mile–Umulumgbe–Okpatu Road,

Eke–Affa–Egede–Ezinze axis, and various locations in Ezeagu LGA. “Specifically, preliminary investigation has linked the suspects to the following armed kidnapping incidents: the abduction of a male victim at Mgbabuowa/Aguobuowa, Ezeagu LGA, on 25th May, 2026, during which N5 million was obtained as ransom; the abduction of two male victims and the shooting and murder of a female victim at Obioma, Udi LGA, on 9th May, 2026, during which the gang obtained

$28,700 as ransom; the abduction of two male victims along the Eke–Ezinze Road, Udi LGA, on 10th April, 2026, for which $70,000 was obtained as ransom, and the kidnapping of seven victims at Obinaofia, Ezeagu LGA, on 12th April, 2026, during which N25 million was obtained as ransom,” he explained.

The CP revealed that the suspects, who were members of an organised criminal network operating from different parts of the country, usually came into

the state to plan and execute kidnapping operations before disappearing to their respective locations.

“The network is aided by an Enugu-based member who operates a tricycle and provides transportation for the gang members, their firearms and other criminal implements to and from operational locations. Another Enugu-based member provides intelligence that enables the gang to evade security surveillance and identify suitable targets and locations,” he added.

wealth to positively impact the lives of Nigerians irrespective of their background, he built friendships across the country and was exceptionally generous,” the former president added.

Babangida however reiterated that the decision to annul the 1993 presidential election result was, "one of the most difficult" of his military career but insisted that the "annulment was a collective decision taken in what was considered the overall interest of the country at the time.

“I must say that it was one of the toughest decisions taken

during my military career, but it was made in what we believed was the best interest of the nation,” Babangida stated.

When asked to comment on the current economic challenges and security situation in the country, the former military President urged Nigerians to, "remain hopeful and continue to support the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu,” expressing optimism that ongoing efforts by the government would eventually yield positive results for the country.

IBB: NO SUCCESSFUL COUP IN NIGERIA WITHOUT CIVILIAN BACKING further that wealthy civilians had often played significant roles in sponsoring military takeovers.

According to him, General Vatsa, a school mate of his denied involvement in the plot to overthrow his government but reports from the Commission of inquiry which investigated the matter Indicted him.

"Initially i found it difficult to believe reports linking Vatsa to a planned coup because of our long-standing friendship and shared history "When a senior military officer informed me of the allegations,

i immediately summoned both General Mamman Vatsa and General Mohammed Gado Nasko to my office for clarification.

“When they arrived, I asked them about the reports that they had been mentioned in a plot to topple my government. Both of them denied any involvement,” he stated adding that a military commission of inquiry was subsequently established to investigate the allegations.

"While General Gado Nasko was cleared of any wrongdoing, the panel found evidence linking

Vatsa to the coup plot" Babangida further said in the interview.

The former military President submitted that when General Vatsa’s involvement in the aborted coup was confirmed, "I was shocked, devastated and deeply disappointed.”

“There was nothing I could do to exonerate him from the consequences prescribed by military law. My hands were tied. That was how I lost my brother, General Mamman Vatsa,” Babangida said.

Vatsa was executed by firing squad in March 1986. Babangida

and Vatsa grew up together, attended Bida Middle School, now Government College Bida, graduated the same year, and joined the military together.

He also spoke on Chief Moshood Kashimawo Olawale (MKO) Abiola whom he described, "as a close personal friend whose generosity transcended ethnic, religious and regional boundaries" and his (Abiolas) philanthropy touched the lives of countless Nigerians across the country.

“Chief MKO Abiola was a man who used his God-given

TWO-HORSE RACE: ADELEKE, OYEBAMIJI IN FIERCE BATTLE FOR OSUN GOVERNORSHIP Electoral Commission and security agencies to ensure a peaceful and transparent election as well as ensure that the will of the people prevail on the polls.

The Nigeria Police Force has announced a 42-hour restriction of movement from 12:00 midnight yesterday, until 6:00 p.m. today, as part of comprehensive measures to ensure the peaceful, secure and orderly conduct of the election.

Osun has 2,339,233 registered voters, out of which 1,906,3,90, who collected the Permanent Voters Card (PVC) are eligible to vote. Figures revealed by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), show that Osogbo has the largest electorate in the state, with 167,704 registered voters, representing 7.17 per cent of the total register. It is followed

by Ife East with 128,515 voters,

or 5.50 per cent, while Olorunda has 123,063, representing 5.26 per cent. Ife Central has another 122,454 voters, or 5.24 per cent.

Iwo has 106,813 registered voters, representing 4.57 per cent of the state’s electorate. Irewole has 96,528, which is 4.13 per cent, while Ifelodun has 94,870, which is 4.06 per cent, among others.

The figures further showed that nearly half of Osun’s registered voters are concentrated in just 10 of the state’s 30 LGAs. INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Mohammed Haruna in a statement said the 1,906,390 PVCs collected represented 81.50 per cent.

He added that the remaining 426,842 PVCs, representing 18.50 per cent, have been safely deposited with the Central Bank

of Nigeria (CBN), in line with the Commission’s established practice.

The Commission reassured political parties, civil society organisations, media, and the good people of Osun State of its total readiness to conduct a free, fair, credible, transparent, and inclusive election.

Tinubu to INEC, Security Agencies: Ensure Peaceful, Transparent Poll The President, in a statement issued yesterday by his Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, also charged the electorate in Osun State to come out to discharge their civic responsibility and eschew any act that could disrupt the peaceful conduct of the election, while assuring the people of

their safety before and after the polls.

"As the people of Osun State head to the polling units to elect who will govern them in the next four years, I call on the Independent National Electoral Commission to ensure orderly conduct of the election.

"The election must be transparent, free and fair. I urge INEC to ensure the integrity of the process," Tinubu said.

"INEC must use this last offcycle election as a test case to demonstrate to Nigerians their full preparedness for the 2027 polls," he added.

“I have charged the InspectorGeneral of Police and other heads of security outfits taking part in the election to provide maximum security at polling units. No room should be allowed for troublemakers to disrupt the process.

"Electoral officials and voters must be protected so they can perform their civic duties without fear or intimidation.

“Voters should feel confident to go out in their numbers to vote for the candidate of their choice as all measures necessary to ensure a peaceful, free and fair election have been put in place.

"Our elections must be credible, and the outcome of the Osun Governorship election must reflect the will of the people," the President declared.

The Candidates Out Of the 15 political parties and their candidates listed by INEC for today's governorship polls, the most visible candidates have presented their manifestoes, gone beyond consultation and rounded up campaigns across

2027: APC, ADC, NDC, PDP, OTHERS RACE TO READY CAMPAIGN MACHINERY FOR ELECTIONS

preparations to mobilise voters and roll out their campaign structures nationwide.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) had published the particulars and credentials of the 19 presidential candidates and their running mates, paving the way for political parties to commence the next phase of the electoral contest.

President Bola Tinubu is seeking re-election on the platform of the APC with Vice President Kashim Shettima as his running mate, while former Vice President Atiku Abubakar is contesting under the ADC alongside former Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi.

Former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi is the presidential candidate of the NDC, with former Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso as his running mate.

With the official campaign window now only days away, the three major parties in the 2027 elections are focusing their preparations on grassroots mobilisation, campaign structures, voter engagement and the coordination of their nationwide political machinery.

For the ruling APC, preparations are focused on consolidating its existing structures and mobilising support for the renewal of the Tinubu-Shettima mandate.

The party's Director of Media and Publicity, Bala Ibrahim, said the APC was prepared for the campaign, stressing that the ruling party understood the greater responsibility placed on it.

"Why no party is over prepared, but our party is not under prepared. As the party in power, we know the responsibility is more on our head than it is on other parties that are jostling for positions with us," he said.

Ibrahim said the party was working to retain Nigerians' confidence and secure the re-election of Tinubu on the platform of the administration's Renewed Hope Agenda.

The APC has also activated

its grassroots mobilisation machinery ahead of the campaign season.

The Concerned National APC Stakeholders Forum recently inaugurated state coordinators for the Tinubu/ Shettima Grassroots Canvassers, with the objective of building support from polling units, wards and local government areas.

The convener, Dr Dominic Alancha, said the organisation would take the party's message beyond Abuja and state capitals to communities across the country.

He urged the coordinators to engage voters through persuasion rather than

intimidation, saying the campaign must focus on the administration's policies, reforms and achievements while acknowledging the challenges confronting Nigerians.

"We must listen to their concerns. Where Nigerians are angry, we must listen.

Where they are hopeful, we must strengthen that hope.

Where they do not understand government policies, we must explain them," Alancha said.

He described the proposed campaign as one of "ideas, engagement, persuasion and performance."

For the ADC, preparations are centred on building a nationwide grassroots structure

the 30 local government areas including Modakeke area office.

The list of those in the race include Governor Adeleke of (Accord Party), Salaam - ADC; Oyebamiji - APC, Farinloye Olarenwaju (Action Alliance), Esan Olajide (African Action Congress, AAC); Adeagbo Opawoye (African Democratic Party, ADP), Mustapha Adeniyi, Social Democratic Party, (SDP) .

Others include Adesina Aseyemi-Doro (All Progressives Grand Alliance, APGA); Adewale Adebayo (Allied People Movement, APM); Clement Adesuyi (Action Peoples Party, APP); Masilo Adeleke (Boot Party); Taofeek Adeleke (New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP); Saliu Oyelami (Peoples Redemption Party, PRP), Ogunsakin Olalekan Continued on page 19

around Atiku and Amaechi while sustaining efforts to bring opposition forces together.

The party has undertaken membership registration and revalidation across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory and has been strengthening its structures at state and local government levels.

It has also been developing grassroots-oriented campaign structures, with emphasis on young voters, women, first-time voters and community leaders.

ADC officials said the party's voter education efforts were also intended to translate political support into informed participation at polling units.

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tranche of a $5 billion derivatives press time. drawn attention from market closing at N1,380.9/$ at the inflows, despite mounting Nume Ekeghe with agency deal with United Arab Emirates' The $5 billion facility, participants because of the official market yesterday, pressure from investors chasing reports largest lender, ahead approved by the National limited public disclosure compared N1,380.1/$ assets, “In his infertile rambling, Tenebe state Mr. Godwin as N9 billion for the presented a forged NYSC certificate stupendous that Tinubu submitted to INEC filing theGovernor, suitwith but had received no dollar-denominated establish it. These are questions has swindledpressing

by Obaseki-led Adibe emenyonu Benin City Allbeen Progressives Congress (APC) captured.

Chuks Okocha ininAbuja made wild and completely off-theObaseki across all sectors of the fathom projects which only "Information at the behest of the with a transaction that has been Assembly earlier this year, is surrounding its terms.

The the previous day, while holding falling international oil prices Nigeria has accessed the first administration with an unassailto INEC in connection with an NYSC discharge certificate response at the time the processes that deserve answers, not political and the Independent National members mark suggesting that state over the federal paston seven years.” isand in theMonetary imagination of online of1,700 the Edo State House of existed humongous debt profile of span scrutinized for being opaque. part the federal government's International Fund firm atthat N1,390/$ the parallel acomments pullback thesilence. domestic tranche of presidential a proposed $5 able, over kilometres - aimed The minister reiterated that the the government about 85orper centin complete projects bold reform agenda, which included Olawale Ajimotokan in Abuja and the of 2023 presidential bearing the name “Tinubu Bola were prepared. insults presidential The Electoral Commission (INEC), The 2027 contest Edo State is owing $35 Ahoada billion.

“Tenebe hasmore beenprojects on a frenzy the governor, it was discovered Assembly isand to the2027 effect that they Edo State chapter of the All ProN135 billion and $35.6 billion, at unlocking economic activity and ongoing reforms by the Tinubu is concentrating in the handled by Rock Result along “The nation plan to diversify external (IMF) and which, Fitch recently market for thelies third consecutive equities market. billion derivatives the removalWest of fuelAfrican subsidies and the were Blessing Ibunge in Portfinancing Harcourt elections.

Adekunle”, according to Atiku said, “This is precisely case goes beyond the certificate Even if that was what was written looking for to tell since that the facility was not even N9 recalled from their holiday invokes, among other provisions, has taken a contentious turn, gressives Congress (APC), yesterday, the governor is unyielding and Nigeria.

Thesources Ambassador knows administration stability tothat thewere world.

I seeabout your South Nigeria's tax system, Nigeria's readiness to build in on the- bridging end of the tunnel."You find Deji Elumoye in Abuja regional divides. not just than northern areas ofasmaking theActing nation.it section ofnaira East West is can't atknown 60 per unification of foreign exchange rates drew about $1.5 billion the financing and reduce cautioned derivativeweek.

The hasRoad come under arrangement with the United for him, he should have assumed office but a figure wrapped in leave

by Qatar the Speaker ontaking the billion Speaking after personally the plaintiffs, iswhile different from the he why we foreign have gone to court. urged Godwin Obaseki to unstoppable insignificant his characteristic Sections 137(1)(j), 139(1)(a)(i) and orthat withGovernor former Vice President and I take very seriously. efforts in much human development, easier for investors to do cent momentum generated by his shifts state aitself.” better partner than Nigeria.

“The aimthe iscosts. not just connectivity, economic arithmetic, but about Responding to questions from completion, adding that RCC, two of the most policy Minister of Information and National that the figure is wrong and can't Chairman.

Rather than focus secrecy as as N17.5 billion request of state governor for last couple of weeks from a borrowing Structured as based financing can improve Analysts attributed pressure in recent sessions as Arab Emirates' largest lender, stop securing loans, noting that leave Edo State inhistory. ruin, theimmediate oath,willing Atiku said hisfurther presence at creating President’s name, Bola Ahmed Wereawakening arewho notobserved Nigerians Atiku and commitment the ADC are 285(14)(c) of the 1999 Constitution presidential candidate ofthe the design but economic opportunity,” he said. aand new foundation forLike inclusive his inspection Setraco have follow shown in We are to go peace prosperity. business in theasking country. visit toto Qatar in 2024, pledging to the I always global issues President Bola Tinubu yesterday in Nigeria’s recent economic Orientation, Mohammed Idris, has said be true. on histo completely which the opposition in you, the journalists approval ofFirst thein to N9 billion loan recently approved by asking for a facility of N17.5 total return swap transaction a Total Return Swap with liquidity, such arrangements the resilience strong investors reposition ahead of the according to a Bloomberg “Nigeria really retracing its steps. growth, Zarama section of theefforts Westto their the courtisregistry was deliberate.

Tinubu. tothe"We decide this matter onunable social also challenging provisions of our bilateral relations." we areaccountability, sandwiched between the of all difficult bilateral agreements are making and your efforts.

You have to welcomed new initiatives by implement (as amended), asago, welldecisions as provisions “These were that said Democratic theAfrican country was on Assembly the pathCongress towards "Injobs. reality, our debt stock is not comatose party, which isEast rejected andand orsustainable refused facility which according to house by the House of was few days which was with First Abu Dhabi Bank, proceeds are should be macroeconomic fundamentals, dollar-denominated fundraising report, marking first billion ItAbu isThe becoming an important nation once development. rehabilitation Bayelsa State, Addressing the journalists, Umahi President said the Qatari challenge ofof terrorism and helping between the countries. reform our tax system.

Going more inin Nigeria toare help fight had made.

They caused some them Qatari investors tothe explore economic recovery, restating federal “IDhabi here personally because further alleged Road media, and we in are not asking the Electoral Act, 2026 which, ado secret and fact, we ‘under to provide constructive criticisms of to the Electoral Act 2026.Bank to beThe partaffidavit the transparently approval. iscame said to be N9 billion (ADC),and Atiku Abubakar, dragging needless will plunge the state said tobe be N9two billion." again among the comity of nations.

In another development, who Umahi expressed satisfaction with the "We havein just inspected the work PJSC, according to people earmarked for refinancing debt managed toreaction, minimise fiscal healthy external still by Dangote Refinery and but like"It an taking reported under government’s commitment to restoring government had our neighbours.

We areUmahi conscious HeAtdirected the Minister ofis but by experiences ofareserves the past and poverty the humanitarian opportunities in the agricultural borrowed’.

Emperor Tenebe would expected of a viable opposition, But in its the Edo as event unfolded, after therespect issues before thedemonstrated court go to the disclosed that the same NYSC certificate INEC to become court.

We are said, according towhere their written address, into financialdrawdown distress.

Tenebe, said important the heart ofisaircraft the action President Bola Ahmed Tinubu turbulence, The thatforesight Nigeria used to have this yesterday while inspecting ongoing projects across Rivers, Delta ofPetrochemicals, Rockknown Result we have multiple off, we are now reaching stability.

The investors’ confidence and deepening maturity and in working of who is our friend and those Budget and Economic Planning, the need to depart from old area.

You have done well have this if he understood he has resorted to spreading State Government stated that sector and assured that Nigeria the mammoth request by the familiar with the transaction, and supporting infrastructure and debt risks. on a steadily upward trajectory prompting ain abefore facility that has attracted But inthea Federal swift reaction, thein toSection state, that it isofnow in public isheart of our Constitution and the was submitted in connection with asking the institution holding the effectively restrict who may 137(1)(j) the Constitution, High Court now gradually returning.

Investors the ongoing construction of federal and Bayelsa. concrete culvertsaofover the East West World Bank has noted our returnthe to opposition democratic values. the economics governance, fiscal misinformation in a have desperate Edo APC was “obviously in the House as to the for global peace and deserves helping us to ameliorate the Senator Abubakar Atiku Bagudu; ways, our reforms been developing knowledge-based remains open to structure strategic Edo State Government said it and political space that who asked not to be identified financing.

Meanwhile, the naira has at $51.2 billion and sustained rotation of capital from naira scrutiny over its integrity of thefor office of President. the 2027 presidential and records to produce them and the Road challenge qualification of a which provides that aState person shall Abuja inasa his bidto tolearn stop of him from fiscal have more confidence country,” roads in by Rivers, Bayelsaelection and Delta He said that the tough Bodo-Bonny Road failure the between Rivers and growth levels not seen in over a the This was counterpart, Minister responsibility and debt-to-GDP ratio. curry cheap popularity. the achievements of attempt rationale ain our facility as pained commendation. problems."

Minister of of Information and hard.

Itomade decisions economy in Qatar, but what partnerships. was perplexed what budget Edo was because they aren't authorised This transaction has, however, remained relatively resilient, foreign portfolio investment assets intoatdollars. and transparency. he said. states, dismissed the claims trending construction handled by Julius Berger Bayelsa.

I cannot ask Nigerians to respect contends that the document is not judiciary to examine the evidence candidate pre-election stage and not be qualified for election to decade,” Idris told Forbes Africa. contesting the election.

Works, David Umahi, has disclosed itoftermed “laughable and incredibly passed few weeks ago before the According to him, "I am proud President Tinubu also noted National Orientation, Mohammed so that we could grow.

We are about Nigeria?", the President The President gave that the to speak to the media."

Bloomberg reported He noted that this year’s observance that the federal government is investing the Constitution while treating a a certificate obtained by Tinubu. and pronounce on it. the removal of qualification as a theState office of President if he has of your efforts to bring peace and ongoing reforms to streamline gradually seeing the light at the explained. ridiculous attributed to Edo Atikutantrums yesterday personally of of Assembly Idris; and House Minister Foreign assurance at the State House, of the Democracy Day notYusuf just trillions ofacting naira in the construction Efforts by THISDAY toto matter of this magnitude casually.

Nigeria drew about $1.5 billion the newwhile chairman of on leave without the Atiku has also placed INEC on “If the certificate belongs to ground for questioning an election presented a forged certificate appeared atreceiving the registry ofthethe proceeded Affairs, Ambassador Abuja a special warranted celebration, buttogether sober and rehabilitation ofof roads the commencement Edo State chapter APC, Jarret of the execution independently the I have therefore put my name, notice to produce Tinubu’s Form Bola Ahmed Tinubu, let that be as envisaged by Section 139(a)(i) of over the past two weeks through Maitama Tuggar, toconfirm work envoy from the Amir of across the State INEC. Federal High Court, Abuja, where reflection on the journey democratic country.

Tenebe where he made baseless of the budget by theofexecutive. reported drawdown from a Total Return Swap (TRS) to ensure the timely execution of Qatar, Dr. Mohammed bin my signature andfrom my around oath behind CF001 submitted in connection established Heavy before themachinery court. If reported the Constitution empowers The suit specifically asksthe the Rescue he deposed tothis an yesterday affidavit and economicthat renewal.

Idris reaffirmed inin Itconsolidation and spurious allegations on the isthese most disheartening workers the trapped under rubble before the buildings. severewhich shortages of of agreements.

Abdulaziz Al-Khulaifi Nigeria’s Federal Ministry of transaction with First Abu Dhabi the facts we are presenting to the with the 2023 and 2027 presidential ‘Tinubu Bola Adekunle’ and ‘Bola the National Assembly to make court toGovernment determine whether Idris explained that funds recovered ofwith a suit ansupport interview Forbes Africa to Edo fiscal management of challenging our dear State now is world yesterday intensified efforts critical 72-hour "golden window" arrived in some of the hardest-hit essential supplies, saying years of was told that he would not board the would clear the air on what really every passenger has a right, your Chinedu Eze He said, "To all the members of Qatar's Minister of State for Finance were unsuccessful.

Bank PJSC, citing people familiar from the fuel subsidy removal were mark the Democracy Day celebration state by thequalification Governor Godwin requesting for a the facility of N17.5 court.

Now it is President Tinubu’s elections.

The affidavit stated that happened, Ahmed Tinubu’ are oneafter andthe the right lawsis that allows the questioning Tinubu and APC should Tinubu’s to contest to locate survivors trapped beneath for finding survivors begins to close, areas nearly two days the underfunding had left the country' s flight because boarding had closed. since the Senator and limited to what is within the the delegation, Idirectly want tointo asent big Foreign Affairs, Dr. Al-Khulaifi, being reinvested critical Obaseki-led government.” and unbroken 26 years ofrequested democratic with corollary ofsay project Calls andno text messages with the deal who turn answer Atiku had applied for certified true airline same person theofpurpose of whether a of person elected into be disqualified fromto the 2027 Airline the 2027 presidential election.in billion lid to Minerals Development, formalisation artisanal miners also want tobegin befor part the move d'Affairs, US Embassy, InBBC another development, the have made available their ownof ICAO (International Civil Aviation Operators ofthem.”

Nigeria (AON) Charge collapsed buildings in Venezuela the reported. disaster to clearing massive healthcare system ill-prepared for a thank you for coming Nigeria. conveyed Amir's strong interest Addressing a press conference attached there to the said facility infrastructure projects including two rule in Nigeria. topresidential the Ministerelection ofGod Finance and anonymity because they were his affidavit, Atiku alleged David copies of relevant that certificate, letthetheincident. evidence the cooperatives officeofofsuch President is and qualified.

Dele has described into amongst others. to reduce global emissions and put Organisation) in his form officebefore on over the Dr. action, instituted by Atiku and Minister of the Aviation and Aerospace that covered regulation the said that byAlake, disrupting the operations We are expanding bilateral yesterday, Tenebe had cooperation, said state alsograteful that thetocorridors facilityfor iswhat not afterIn two powerful earthquakes The Greene, worst-hit areas include the videos piles of debris. disaster magnitude. expansive highway that will HeThe defended President Bolathe Tinubu’s the United States as Nigeria’s "The mining sector provides our mining sector on the global Coordinating Minister of the Thursday, Alake lauded the United not authorised to speak publicly.

Development, Festus Keyamo, has Okonkwo stated the operators’ aviation industry.

There is no amount of Air Peace when it denied him plaintiffs’ that Tinubu and the ADC against Tinubu, was already suffering a debtthe contained asallegation loan to be taken in we have experienced as partners announcing that aunder high-level killed more than 900 people and capital, Caracas, the coastal state Among those anxiously awaiting The tragedy has also reignited and strategic veritable avenue for map. We on have critical minerals fostering orderedcommitment that a probetoshould be viewpoint the incident and said ofa any disappointment, if atincreased all, from boarding for theally Lagos-Abuja flight, States’ Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, According to Bloomberg, profile of N135 billion and $35.6 2024 fiscal budget recently in progress.

I am also just glad that the longstanding Qatari business delegation will the left thousands injured in one of the of La Guaira and neighbouring rescue efforts is Natacha Diaz, criticism of Venezuela's fragile partner forinthe nation’s mining trade between Nigeria and the United that are in commercial demand cooperation with Nigeria in diverse conducted on the incident. that passengers have their rights but any airline that gives you any rightin former governor of Edo State and billion. passed.

A cursory perusal of the are under scrutiny and processing," Penta M &Amp; Centre 2, Tambuwal one of them was also involved Kuni Tyessi Abuja wereofnot responded to as of sector development.

"Nigeria has accessed first Amir Qatar greatly remembers visit Nigeria in the the coming States, especially in the area of value globally,"Alake said. sectors of the economy, stating that country' s deadliest natural disasters communities, where hundreds of whose two daughters are believed emergency response system, with Spokesman of AON and the airline operations are guided by for self-help.

We have been talking currently Senator representing Edo He said, "While it is a monumenbudgetdiscussed does not reveal where Oloyede said.

LGA, Sokoto, Sokoto State. impersonation. the issues during my weeks to explore opportunities entire Speaking while receiving addition, which implies processing The minister partneritChairman underscores significance of the ofthe United Nigeria regulations and itawelcomed isshopping the responsibility about unruly behaviour.

So,towhat North District, Adams Oshiohole, tal disaster that Edo State patrimony the project for the facility is ever said while three constituencies North II, and Ughelli South of Delta State, and Dawakin Adedayo Akinwale in Abuja in more than a century. buildings were reduced to piles of trapped inside complex residents urging authorities allow “The 2025 UTME showed the Oloyede added that 80 suspects The registrar also said that due to The Joint Admissions and in agriculture, food security, and visit last year. minerals and of setting up ship with the US on investments in of extracted smooth bilateral relations in between Airlines, Obiora Okonkwo, a press and passengers toby abide saw was avolunteers typical case unruly violated aviation regulation. were restored inparticular Delta, one was IIairlines State Constituencies, and Kudu State Constituency of According to (JAMB) Venezuelan concrete and twisted steel. where they worked.

Holding their more civilian to participate prevalence of some types of of were being interrogated the you substandard performance, four centres Board has both "Let me commend the brotherly Matriculation other critical sectors. factories here.

We would also require the mining value chain, expanding countries. in Lagos yesterday called by those regulations. behaviour. It is not acceptable. Air Senator Oshiomhole who had conference infractions, suggests systemic police for their involvement the had been delisted and blacklisted for officially announced of on restored inyou Kogi stage.

Kogi State: Yagba IIinState Kano Elections into these The Independent National authorities, at Abuja leastthe 920release people ofwhich grief unfolded acrossI access photograph, the distraught mother in rescue operations as thousands financing from multilateral institutions to technology infull extracting “IScenes for your visit.

President Tinubu emphasised relations between Qatar and 6:30a.m. thethank Federal Airports Authority “AON had had theWest brief of Peace is aState. respected airline.

No matter Lagosflight on Air Hope” and improving the lives of the Fidelis David in Akure vulnerabilities or gaps in registration examination malpractices and most technical deficiencies.

He listed the 2025 Unified Tertiary Matriculation for our local operators.

We are providand processing minerals and met the US Assistant Secretary of He noted, “The Independent Constituency. constituencies have been fixed Electoral Commission (INEC) have been confirmed dead, while affected communities as desperate said they were "all I have." remain displaced.

Peace last Wednesday was denied of Nigeria (FAAN) to bring out the Air Peace on this incident. And as what you think about it, they carry the people Ondo State.

Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan among theof youthful population. boarding “Werestored are3,300 establishing, this State ing incentives for investments like mining areas. forvideo Energy Resources, Geoffrey and examination administration or/ asecuring ofmatter them beas prosecuted. centres as: Adventure Associate, Behind Examination (UTME) results.

National Electoral Commission “Thewould commission has for 19th September, 2026. has four more CCTV of the incident, saying of fact, much asfixed we 40 to 50 percent of all the domestic when he arrived atpreviously 6:05a.m., more than others sustained families waited near collapsed Another resident, Andreina Meanwhile, international “Today, wethe takegovernment yet another bold The Governor of Ondo Union State, tax waivers for mining equipment, Throwing light on reforms Pyatt, on thevideo sidelines ofFAAN the Mines The Asaba Development professionals.

He said is year, 37,000to Citizens’ Brigade and monitoring.

“The Board has identified the Sheshe Supermarket, Kano, Saadatu Following poor performance the numerous challenges Olawale Ajimotokan in that it is the from that appreciate and understand that passengers in Nigeria.

25 minutes departure time and (INEC) wishes to notify the 21st – 25th August 2026 for the “For the avoidance of doubt, suppressed State House injuries afterSchool. the twin2025 earthquakes, structures, hoping forin news of embarked Valerio, appealed to rescue assistance hasrepatriation pouring into step “Importantly, in our ongoing commitment to inof Lucky Aiyedatiwa, has saidLagos his worried of full ofZaria. profits upon byfor thehelp federal govThe Director General, National Money London that about 72 per cent Primary inUTME, eachof and “The newconference trends observed were presence of fingers in policy Rimi College ofbegun Education, candidates in the1,000 (ADU) Women’s Wing initiative confronting thethe country, Abuja improving the youthful welfare ofpopulation our people, state, administration will continue to of public that itwe has restored four ernment, conduct ofextraneous party primaries for allhome other timelines and activities Assembly constituencies in past measuring magnitudes 7.2 and missing loved ones.

Many survivors her one-and-a-half-year-old son, the country.

Rescue teams from to countries amongst others," the minister highlighted year, and had a fruitful Orientation Agency (NOA), the nation’s including FCT, Abuja.

These in the Registration and Examination the registration details of some of On how to check the UTME results, telecommunications and digital will on Saturday, 22 August recognises thattoaand diagnosis social inclusion fulfilling prioritise socialIssa-Onilu, inclusion and ensuring urging them intensify emphasised.

Community Development I didwere analyse our morealso previously suppressed the restored contained in the already Delta and Kogiare states.

7.5, struck barely aGlobacom, minute have forced toallin sleep Santiago, whoconstituencies. remains trapped Alake Switzerland Mexicothe have Mallam Lanre has have become foreigners through Brigade going toapart be engagement. processes andbeen they mainly the revised these candidates.

This raises concerns Oloyede said:and "To check 2025 solutions company, said 2026, hold a Community without access to treatment the promise of Renewed Hope for Citizens’ economic empowerment of vulnerable In his remarks, the US Ambas(CDA) guidelines issues, andHouse fundamentally, we just Agreement prayers for President The federal government State of Assembly “This coincides with the published revised Timetable and announced plans to launch the influence of cartoons Bola It said this was pursuant to the on Wednesday night.

The second outdoors after their homes were alongside other family members joined local emergency responders, and like Boys’ Scout and Girls’ Guild following categories: Identity Fraud, regarding potential strategies for UTME results, candidates should send its Examination Preparatory Service Tinubu for the support given to the all,” he declared.

Kuni Tyessi in Abuja citizens through strategic partnerships Service Medical Outreach for offers little benefit.

To help sador commended the renewed geared towards reducing friction in want to diversify our economy Tinubu andand his administration. has asserted its unwavering awith 37,000 Citizens’ Brigade in movies constituencies, three more in period for the conduct of Schedule of Activities for the judgement of the courts directing which are foreign in of theEnumah olden days. and Biometric Fraud of Combined impersonation. by text message “UTMERESULT” as was specifically designed to help from quake is believed to be the strongest destroyed or declared unsafe. beneath the rubble. while the United States military is A statement posted on the anti-graft's prosecution to proceed with the trial described the May 27, 2025 bail application Alex in Abuja According to Aiyedatiwa, a total the federal government. interest of Nigeria in solid minerals, commission the Humanitarian host communities; on-going plans oil. Not just for our own its members and the residents of contents, bridge this andgap, ADU students primary schools across country .

He also expressed optimism resolve to securing freedom values cultures.

“Across the world, Nigerians Thumbprint of Candidate,” he said. l of 3,656 candidates fall within this one word to 55019 or 66019 using the excel in Computer-Based Delta and one more in Kogi primaries for bye-elections 2027 general election shall apply the restoration of the additional social media handle X, noted that the duo and prayed for accelerated hearing of of the defendants as incompetent, given of 16, 255 beneficiaries across all 18 to hit the South American nation In La Guaira, residents described Doctors in the disaster zone participating in humanitarian rescue stressing that the sector has huge Also, Aiyedatiwa has forwarded to for new security architecture to economic survival but also to Affairs Ministry.

The federal government yesterday theOndo Amuwo-Odofin community Women’s Wing will are He made theHouse disclosure whilea Local Other infractions, he trends said, were category.

Consequently, the results of that same they had used Issa-Onilu said as aLagos way out known beinFinancial the smartest examinations. were arraigned onglobal atosix-count defendants neither underto that ongoing security The Economic Crimes for Nigerians held captive potentials tonumber rivalwere the contribution Areas in the state secure efforts in tune with for the the State of Assembly states, pursuant the judgement tocase. fillnatural recent vacancies into to the thephone restored Constituencies.” constituencies the two states. be HeGovernment revealed that Nigeria said there arejournalists ongoing discussion since 1900. toand widespread devastation ascharge, rescue warned that resources; hospitals were operations despite longstanding in Lagos. go beyond screening

by Commission speaking with in Ibadan bordering on money toWe the Responding, defence J.J. arrest, nor inthe detention, nor have appeared impersonators at laundering the point of to the candidatesthe have beencounsel, withheld.” register the registration process. of the malaise, NOA would soon on earth. is abriefing positive (EFCC), yesterday, arraigned Speaking at workers aThis press in reduction of oil toduring nation's economy. generate big geo-data; the incourts global warming. will receive N75, 000 each, disbursed list of 12 nominees for the position of operations and coordinated byhow bandits. of the directing the Gombe/Kwami/Funakaye The commission urged has concluded plans to host people INEC National Commissioner on 15,000 Nigerians stranded Emergency are racing teams, police officers and military struggling to cope with the influx tensions between Washington during to Oyo at launch Thea working initiative isChad aimed facilitating the enrolment tune of $12 with million.

Usman, SAN, on on underage his part reminded the before the court,will being the grounds the Managing Director/Chief Executive registration the active Speaking candidates, Result printing available later." aleaders Mobile App containing but someof people Abuja yesterday, Registrar JAMB, monthly installments of N25, 000of development commissioners the visit State Executive interventions would yield global to discuss issues Secretary toinNiger, the Government in Cameroon, and in restoration of double the involvement additional Constituency of Gombe political parties tobesubmit notices and Chairman, Information and against time to rescue those feared personnel searched damaged ofFederal casualties.

Medical personnel and Caracas.

State.

The defendants according to the court of subsisting bail following applications of provided by thereacting Administration of Officer of SunTrust Bank Ltd, Halima for three months, directly through Council for confirmation. of few CBT centres, registration, he explained that the Meanwhile, to the poor indigenous cartoons through mischievously tend to portray Prof.

Ishaq Oloyede, revealed that the improving access to preventive 150 individuals in the Ilera migration and how it affects other parts of the worldSenator would of positive results in the fight us ofHe the Federation, constituencies inhowever, the two states.

State, Disina and Sakwa State of their various primaries to Voter Education Committee, statement, defendants, May 27, 2025 and Criminal Justice Act,students (ACJA) that should Buba the bank's Executive Director/ saidgovernor 1,000 Citizens’ Brigade their debit cards.

The made this which and attempted substitution ofpleaded self by the Ministry of dated Education’s decision performance of in the 2025 Board withheld the results of 39,834 local contents, national inand negative light.

But this is EFCC's healthcare services among Eko Health Insurance Scheme, countries under the membership be returned to Nigeria safety. against kidnapping and other George Akume, gave the values “The restored constituencies Constituencies of Bauchi the commission before their Mohammed Haruna, in a “not guilty” to all the charges when they prayed that the court should uphold the precipitate a bail application but rather Chief Compliance Officer, Innocent He said the total amount injected commitment during the official would be set up in each of the to enforce a minimum age of UTME, the company explained that candidates outare of the 1.9 million candidates. and culture would be who we asover a people. underserved members of the into administered by 219,125, the Lagos of the on not Federal Commissioner, National toDelta themadded following which theIsoko lead applications andState admit thegranted defendants for bail from the comfort of their Mbagwu, before Justice Emeka Nwite criminal activities. assurance yesterday when theEuro-African scheme is N1,Dialogue 000, flag-off ofFederal the second phase promoted. are: State:thatAbraka, State, Udu Constituency scheduled dates. statement issued 36 statesceremony andfor the Capital Oloyede 244 candidates 16, an exception was for applied the Glo Examination Preparatory applicants that the sat for theyesterday exam.

“To change negative nar- read Migration and Development.

Commission Refugees, Migrants community, while promoting State Health Management prosecution counsel, Rotimi Oyedepo, to bail. homes or offices when nor action has of the Federal High Court, Abuja for providing direct economic support of Conditional Cash national Transfer Tand erritory (FCT) to promote "Our mission on earth, hethe hosted members of According thesetting JAMB boss, According to him, "These vari- ratives, we to are upout theof were caught engaging in “WhatsApp “exceptionally gifted” underage Service trains students on practical Popularly known as the Rabat Internally Displaced Persons greater awareness the ous Agency (LASHMA).

This will SAN, announced thetoreadiness of the The prosecution counsel in his response, been taken againstinthem. alleged fraud. to thousands ofonhouseholds. disbursement to beneficiaries inofOndo values as of old, stating that the runs,” subscribing rogue groups students. ways to excel Computer-Based the figure 96 candidates' results were our goal earth is to policies are geared towards Citizens’ Brigade to produce the Federation of Muslim Process, thebeneficiaries meeting would be (NCFRMI), Alhaji Tijani Ahmed, The governor recalled that in a young State, held atthe theof Akure South Local importance regular health provide with essence ofthis Brigade was toin changing that bordering on terrorism murder. enumah in Abuja promising leaked questions.

The registrar said thatand of the 41,027 Fagbemi, examinationsSAN, such assubmitted Joint Admissions withheldNigerians over exam malpractices, the and the and createa Alex promote, tonarratives preserve, and Women's Associations the first thematic dialogue under disclosed atearly a media briefing November 2024, a total of 8,637 debit Government Secretariat yesterday. checks and detection of pathway to continued access to the charge having been filed by Although, they pleaded not revive and rebuild the national He said their results had also been underage candidates who registered, and Matriculation Board (JAMB), decrease from 123 in the previous year. wrong impression that the outside positive models to rebuild the to prolong life. toIt's not to Nigeria’s chairmanship, which Nigeria (FOMWAN), led cards in Abuja. were distributed beneficiaries, At the event, Governor Aiyedatiwa Justice Bolaji Olajuwon of a Fed- guilty the Inspector General of Police, was to all the charges, the judge the values and create positive models common health conditions. healthcare beyond the outreach. withheld to set a stern example. only 467 met the high-performance Junior and Senior West African Oloyede said the Board remained world is having about the country . national values." conveyed government' s approval stakeholder participation in health federal government’s Onyebuchi Ezigbo in Abuja is being co-chaired by Nigeria Ahmed revealed that no amounting to N647,775,000, making launched the distribution of the by its National Amirah, Dr. shorten it. The government resolute in its commitment to eralInHigh Court inhe Abuja, yesterday, incompetent and askedexaminations the court to however, ordered that they cases, said,Oversight the entire and criteria, with onedefendant. disqualified duebe to commitment Examination Council According a statement “The outreach the Wale Igbintade High Court which had dismissed onegovernance. other unreliable witness testimonies, at thesome 5th the Ministerial sector to1,3,4,5,6, strengthening and the Kingdom Spain, and fewer thanHope six to million people current phase ofa reflects significant Renewed Debit Cards to the dismissed application bycentres two remanded strike out counts and 7 of is doing everything to secure at malpractice. the Kuje Correctional and Sumaye Fadimatu Hamza. syndicates colluded with CBT examination as well as IELTS. eliminating any form of examination his no-case and quashed At lower court, Justice Raliatu those of PW9, PW10, and yesterday, “as part asof the expansion union’s commitment to itsnet. core The ofon theof social safety thousands of beneficiaries part isthe focusing youth, education were displaced inthat Nigeria, while Speaking yesterday at the Center, girls whose education has been created tosector provide girls whose Deji federal Elumoyegovernment in Abuja Committee (MOC) held in Abuja Asthe ofpending efforts to reinforce health governance, has Rivers Statesubmission, indigenes challenging the charge or strike strike out the the hearing of including release all who are He vowed no effort to register usingcharge multiple fingerprints.

He bail said that the Board remained Theas 2025 UTME results released malpractice, addingLagos that 1,957,000 the 12-count filed against Adebiyi had ruled that the EFCC PW11, well as Exhibits P59–P61.

Court of Appeal, Division, the “We understand the economic The ofoutreach, the federalofgovernment’s beneficiaries will and values of service, compassion innovation. thousands refugees areNational living jurisdiction of the court to try entire suit for been incompetent. their application fixed for inauguration of the renovated disrupted by life’s challenges education had been interrupted yesterday, said that committee state financing compliance, deepening accountability across approved N32,880,443,906.25 captured," he said. will be spared to facilitate the that regard, has approved your indicated that Governor Seyi Kemi Olaitan in Ibadan According to him, as a result of committed to providing the necessary by JAMB on May 5 had elicited candidates were verified to sit for him by the Economic and Financial had established a prima facie case The Court of Appeal agreed, has discharged and acquitted a that many of holds our people Social (NSIP), challenges them over alleged the Policeinstitutions, lawyer, Mr. February 2, as well directed as the motion Thecommunity meeting, which May under elsewhere acrossProgramme world. haveInvestment access tothefree medical and development, Alternative Highcomplicity School forinGirls aresome given a counts second chance byResponding, early pregnancy and Wife of the President, has so farthe disbursed aHouse total of the Committee theto holding implementing the second quarter, 2026 suspension as the Onido ofSenator Ido in burning Makinde approved the suspension this, 3,656 “extraneous support for persons with disabilities widespread concerns moreother than Crimes Commission (EFCC). of the and ordered that the appellant was not a He lauded FOMWAN for the exam while 71,705 were absent. former Director General of the safe return ofcollaboration captives, while and this programme is a clear implemented in with face ofcandidates Riverswith State of on Simon Lough, SAN,asurged the of the 1st and 2nd defendants 13th toof 14th, 2025, is2024. expected to “We haveState 15,000 Nigerians who screening and health checks, with a particular focus on The Oyo Government, yesthe area of authority of Ido Local on 1st February, in Agboju, Lagos, the First Lady fulfil their potential. socio-economic challenges with Oluremi Tinubu, has expressed N290 under thetheir initiative.

MOC to issue formal improving coordination among BHCPF disbursement memo Assembly The billion EFCC accused andtertiary his co-defendant the VIMSAS Nigerian Maritime fingerprints” have had results Akpobolokemi aspiringSecretariat to pursue education.

1.5 million out of 1.9 million candidates According to him,Administration 2,157 candidates thatcontributions the that government the Ondo State Government through demonstration complex in Port Harcourt, court toofdismiss the Committee; application challenging the jurisdiction of member its steadfast reaffirming the government's feature discussions would want to return to the country terday, suspended Oba Gbolagade Area ofcommitment Oyo State."

Thewith letteryou,” readthe ingovernor part,healthcare "I wish to Government including blood pressure and stands making preventive Akpobolokemi of conspiracy, open their not a signatory any of theto who was represented by wife to The school, an lacking opportunity toaccelerating return and Safety Agency (NIMASA), renewed TheState. meeting alsoCBT approved communication all2025 36 the states toin and stakeholders, andreleased added. withheld, and some centres He said that fortoestablished the UTME, whose results scored toher sustain implementation of Rivers the National Social Investment experienced fingerprint rejections due for in were merit. the court to defence. entertain suit tomore national development, commitment totesting, strengthening guide policy direction, shape voluntarily, and we alsoas have Muritala Babalola, as the Onido Itsuspected directed Oba Babalola hand inform you that His Excellency, the Patrick stealing, and forgery in connection Akpobolokemi, through his Committee’s accounts. blood sugar well accessible to vulnerable Akpobolokemi, of to alleged He further disclosed that efforts Chime Eguma Ezebalike and Programme Agency (NSIPA).

According to Lough, besides against them. implicated will face sanctions. a total of 501 candidates were below 200.

A breakdown of the results to registration infractions, of the Vice President, Hajiya 2007 by her during the tenure school, complete their secondary towards giving errant girls modalities to commence inclusion reiterate responsibilities relating to implementation of ongoing healthcare services nationwide. efforts among not lessinthan 100,000 foreigners cooperative describing association as of Ido Ido Local Government national security. all million government properties in Prince Executive Governor ofmembers Oyo of over alleged illegal transfers from the Collinsexamined Ogbonna and The court further held that he N754.8 fraud.

Lukman Oladele, were ongoing tothe expand theState state’s Sections and 66Monday of the Police and had the gathering, the are asAddressing medical consultations and and underserved He identified the centres as lawyers successfully

by Kunle JAMB released by4JAMB on showed asecond figure, hechance said, wasat far above with Shettima, reaffirmed her ofEzebalike President BolaOladele Tinubu as neither education and acquire vocational formal ofNana private sector actors within the counterpart funding obligations health sector reforms under the The Coordinating Minister countries origin, transit andof his living in the this country asand refugees.

Area of state. possession todecision the Chairman Nigeria, inof exercise ofpromoting the powers a vital partner in The SGF underscored account of the VIMSAS Committee. appealed the ruling, signed nor approved any In a unanimous delivered among five persons charged with Gbolahan, Acts that empower them to bring argued that byLagos the provisions social register to accommodate more governor expressed joy a deep Tigh Technologies Limited, Sascon Equal Opportunity Group (JEOG) that 983,187 candidates (50.29 per cent) acceptable margins and currently health education by healthcare society.” commitment to ensuring that Governor of State, was skills.

The government, in a letter dated Ido localthe government.

Incourt the terrorism conferred on him by stressing Sub-section destination, explore inclusive All are theof responsibilities Ministerial Oversight Committee and fund commitments. national agenda towarddefendants, achieving ofeducation.

Health and Social Welfare, He wasand originally arraigned with arguing thenationwide.

EFCC to withdrawal instructions internal yesterday, appellate murder.

The others the charge against of theequity Terrorism Act, it isfailed only the peace, advocacy, unity and thethese vital role faith-based households, that of sense ofFebruary, responsibility, noting that vulnerable International School, Maitama, across 11that centres scored between 160the andor199, while under investigation.

2nd of 2024 and signed meantime, the stateAli government 1&2 of Section 26 ofcooperation the Chiefs policies, stronger of the commission, tostep give them no framework to strengthen broader In his remarks, Pate reaffirmed Universal Health Coverage.

Prof.

Muhammad Pate who several others, but the charges were link him to any wrongdoing and memos related to the alleged are Kenneth Goodluck Kpasa, Osiga allowed Akpobolokemi’s appeal, Section 5 and 99 of the Terrorism Attorney General of the Federation vulnerable household should be the initiative is a bold towards social progress. organisations in addressing According to Oloyede, the results 488,197 candidates (24.97 per cent) "A total of 39, 834 results remain Abuja, Wudil Computer Information by the Commissioner for Local

Personally deposes to affidavit, asks INEC to produce Tinubu’s CF001 records

Umahi says FG investing trillions in construction of roads across Nigeria Affirms Nigeria's readiness for strategic partnership

Air Peace Incident: Oshiomhole Violated Aviation Mining Development: Nigeria, USto 920 Death Toll in Venezuela Earthquakes Rises Regulation, AON Alleges, Minister Orders Probe UTME: JAMB Releases Results, Withholds 39,834 Explore Areas of Strategic Partnership Places 1,426 results under scrutiny Globacom: how our product can help students excel in JAMB, other exams

Aiyedatiwa Launches FG's N1.2bn INEC Announces Restoration of Constituencies in Delta, Kogi ADU Women’s Wing Conditional Cash Transfer in Ondo, Akume Assures Nigerians Lagos Free37,000 Medical Nominates NOA DG: Takes FGCommissioners to Launch Citizens' Brigade Nationwide

Outreach to Amuwo-Odofin in Captivity of Freedom

FG to Repatriate 15,000 Nigerians Stranded Abroad

Alleged Money Laundering: EFCC Arraigns SunTrust Bank CEO, Executive

BurningofRiversAssemblyComplex:CourtDismisses Pate: FG Application Has Disbursed N32.88bn Challenging Competence of Charge

First Lady: I Remain Committed To Giving Basic Healthcare Fund for Q2 2026 Appeal Court Acquits Ex-NIMASA DG Akpobolokemi in N754.8m Fraud Case Errant Girls Second Chance At Formal Education

Oyo Govt Suspends Monarch in Ibadan

support,” hepromise said. of “Renewed fulfilling the Government andPresident Chieftaincy Ahmed thanked Bola Matters, Hon. Olusegun Olayiwola,

Law,sustained Cap. 28 Vol I, Lawsthat of Oyo and dialogue can left Statebehind. of Nigeria 2000positively. and by virtue reshape migration of all other enabling powers in

has vowedthe to hit hard atthe anyone, set aside Ikeja unreleased.

Ofruling these, of 1,426 results no matter how highly placed, who contravenes the law.

Donald and Ochueja Thankgod. later amended to include only him Technology.

Kano State and They wereWudil, last week arraigned on a seven-count criminal charge

relied onfileinadmissible evidence transfers.

Act, shows that theand police have that any released charge ofbut terrorism are can also being sadly, fraudulent scored between powers to also 140 initiate 159. terrorism against them.

Their lawyer, Mr. Lukman charges against the defendant.

7

SATURDAY AUGUST 15, 2026 • T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R

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75TH BIRTHDAY CELEBRATION...

L-R: Former Minister of Industry, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah; Managing Director, FSDH Merchant Bank, Mrs. Bukola Smith; pioneer Managing Director of Fidelity Bank, Mr. Nebolisa Arah, and his wife, Mrs. Philo Arah, at a 75th Birthday Thanksgiving Service organised by Fidelity Bank alumni in honour of Arah in Lagos…recently

Dangote Refinery Plans Retail-focused IPO, Rules Out Foreign Listing for Now

Omolabake Fashogon with agency report

Dangote Petroleum Refinery's planned October Initial Public Offering (IPO), which could become Africa's largest, is designed to let Nigerians share in the company's growth, its CEO, David Bird, has said, adding that a foreign listing was at least three years away.

The r‌efinery has submitted an application for a $5 billion IPO to the Securities and Exchange Commission, a source familiar with the matter had revealed, although the final size is not

decided.

"We really want to drive participation," Bird said in an interview with Reuters. "The mandate of the IPO was to be the people's IPO." Bird said the company wanted at least three years of proven production and financial performance before pursuing an overseas listing, which could support a stronger valuation.

London has been mentioned as a possible venue.

He declined to comment on the size of the IPO or the refinery's valuation.

A source had said the company

Benue Groups, Clergy Reject FG’s Ranching Plan George Okoh in Makurdi The Benue State Socio Cultural Organisation under the umbrella of Mdzough U Tiv, Ochetoha ‘k Idoma, and Omi Ny’Igede has given conditions before the establishment of ranch in the state.

The group in a media briefing by its Chairman, Air Commodore Titus Agbecha (rtd) in Makurdi, yesterday said the organisation will support the idea if only the over 500,000 displaced people by herdsmen are resettled and top-notch security is provided in the state.

He said, "I wish to address you on a matter of grave concern to Benue State. We have received with ‘mixed feelings’ the announcement by the federal

government on the establishment of ranches in the country; using Benue, Nasarawa, and Plateau states as a pilot scheme. Ordinarily, ranching as a modern practice of animal husbandry is welcome. It can reduce farmer-herder conflict and improve food security.

However, due to the peculiar realities on ground in Benue and neighbouring states, we have three critical realities that must be addressed first: We currently have over 500,000 Benue people living in Internally Displaced Persons’ camps across Benue State.

They have no home to return to, no shelter, no farms, and no livelihood. Thus, it is unjust to talk about new land use for ranches when the owners of the land are still refugees in their own state."

could take into account the $2.5 billion raised in a July private placement, which valued the refinery at about $40 billion.

The refinery, owned by Africa's richest man Aliko Dangote, has emerged as a major beneficiary of disruption linked to the Iran war,

selling jet fuel across Africa and into western Europe as buyers sought alternative supplies. It became Europe's largest supplier of ‌jet fuel in June and July, Bird said.

He said preparations for the IPO were on schedule and

Scientific conference signed by the National Chairman, Ambrose Ezeh Igwekamma and National Secretary, Obiageri Ikwu.

The conference themed ‘UNITY 2026: From Local Pharmacy Practice to Global Impact, Managing Complex Healthcare Systems’ was attended by major stakeholders in the pharmaceutical sector, government officials,

strong demand from African and international institutional investors.

Bird said the refinery compared favourably with US refining assets because of its access to local crude supplies, strong domestic demand and integrated operations.

Foundation Deepens Fight Against Period Poverty in Lagos Schools The Let's Limit Poverty Foundation (LLPF) has intensified efforts to combat period poverty among schoolgirls in Lagos State, taking menstrual health education and hygiene support to two secondary schools in Ikoyi and Ibeju-Lekki.

The Foundation, through

its Period Poverty Initiative (PPI), recently organised outreach programmes at Girls Senior Grammar School, Ikoyi, and Magbon-Alade Senior Grammar School, Ibeju-Lekki, where students received education on puberty, menstrual hygiene, personal health, self-care and

confidence-building.

According to LLPF, the initiative was designed to address not only the lack of access to menstrual hygiene products but also the misinformation, embarrassment and stigma often associated with menstruation among adolescent girls.

The Foundation said the outreach created an opportunity for students to openly discuss issues surrounding puberty and menstruation, with participants asking questions and receiving practical information on managing their menstrual health.

Group Shifts Opposition Political Parties’ Summit to August 31

Chuks Okocha in Abuja

The G100 yesterday announced the rescheduling of its proposed Summit of Opposition Political Parties to Monday, August 31, 2026.

This was contained in a statement issued by Salihu Moh. Lukman on behalf of the group.

According to Lukman, the decision followed consultations with the six participating political parties and members of the Minority Caucus of the House of Representatives.

He said the adjustment became necessary in view of the National Peace Summit

scheduled for August 18, which is expected to bring together the leadership and key stakeholders of the political parties participating in the G100 consultations.

“Following discussions with the parties and the Minority Caucus, there was a broad consensus that the G100 Summit would benefit from being held after the National Peace Summit, allowing sufficient time for further internal consultations and preparation,” he said.

Lukman said the G100 had, over the past several days, held extensive engagements with the leadership and

ACPN Urges National Assembly to Fast-track Bills In Pharmaceutical Sector Pharmacists under the aegis of Association of Community Pharmacists (ACPN) have called on the National Assembly to expedite action on all pending legislative Bills affecting the pharmaceutical sector in Nigeria.

This was one of the major highlights of the communiqué issued by ACPN at the end of its 45th Annual International

investor interest had been strong during pre-marketing and the July private placement.

Africa Finance Corporation said on Thursday it led a group of strategic investors in the private placement, adding the deal was 3.7 times subscribed and attracted

representatives of health agencies, and leaders of the Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria (PSN); also stressed the need to urgently address issues affecting drug procurement and distribution in the country.

The ACPN proposed the establishment of a National Drug Management Agency to manage the 10 per cent allocation

for essential medicines under the Basic National Health Provision Fund. The drug management agency, it said, will be responsible for the coordination of drug procurement in the country through a centralised facility as well as manage the 10 per cent allocation for essential medicines under the Basic National Health Provision Fund.

principal stakeholders of the six participating opposition parties, as well as members of the Minority Caucus of the House of Representatives.

He described the consultations as “frank, substantive and encouraging,” noting that the group was particularly encouraged by the seriousness with which the parties had approached the discussions.

“There is a clear recognition across the different parties that this is an important moment for Nigeria’s democracy and that the opposition must begin to engage one another with greater purpose and structure,” he said.

Lukman added that the consultations had also revealed a willingness among the parties to explore areas of cooperation despite their differences.

USSSOSA Pushes Early Childhood Counselling, Builds Secretariat to Lead Cause Omolabake Fasogbon

for indigent students, alongside routine maintenance of the Amid growing concerns over renovated school facility and moral decline among school the donation of educational children, the Unity Senior materials, including notebooks, Secondary School Old Students received by the school's Acting Association (USSSOSA) has Vice Principal, Mr. Olukoya F.J. Chief among the drives for renewed calls for counselling and guidance in basic schools the facility was concern over social problems among young to stem negative trends.

The call came as USSSOSA people and schoolchildren, unveiled a newly built believed can be averted through secretariat donated to its alma early guidance.

Recent reports have linked mater in Lagos, designed to attend to students' varied needs. counselling deficits in schools Also announced by the to student dropouts, career association was a N2.5 mismatches, and increasing million scholarship scheme social ills.

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REFINED FUEL MARKET CONFERENCE 2026...

L-R: Senior Executives of Rosehill Group Limited, Mr. Muhammed Mubi; Dr. Samira Ladan Tsamiya; Founder and Chairman, Rosehill Group, Mallam Suleiman Yahyah; Senior Executives, Dr. Sam Ede; Serah Ogah, and Dr. Mubarak Yahyah, at the West African Refined Fuel Market Conference 2026 held in Abuja…recently

At Washington Talks, Nigeria Reinforces Defence, Security Partnership with United States Government Linus Aleke in Abuja

The federal government has reinforced its defence and security partnership with the United States Government with a view to deepening military-to-military relations and strengthening counterterrorism cooperation between Nigeria and the United States.

The Minister of Defence, General Christopher Gwabin Musa (rtd), stated this during a high-level bilateral engagement with the United States Government in Washington, D.C. During a strategic meeting at the Pentagon, the Defence Minister was joined by a highpowered Nigerian delegation that included the Minister of

Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Taiwo Oyedele; the Chief of Defence Staff, General Olufemi Oluyede; the Chief of Defence Intelligence, Lt. Gen. Parker Udiandeye; and other senior officers from the Armed Forces of Nigeria.

According to a statement by the Special Assistant on Media to the Minister of Defence, Leah Katung-Babatunde, the Nigerian delegation held robust discussions with senior cabinet officials of the U.S. Department of War, led by the Acting Principal Deputy Assistant Secretary of War for International Security Affairs, Julia Sokol.

The engagement, she said, served as a direct continuation

FG, Nestle Launch Nationwide Campaign Against Unsafe Water Michael Olugbode in Abuja The federal government and Nestle Nigeria Plc have launched a nationwide water quality advocacy campaign aimed at tackling unsafe drinking water and taking water safety education directly to communities across the country.

The initiative, being implemented in collaboration with the Organised Private Sector in Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (OPS-WASH), seeks to shift Nigeria’s water conversation from mere access and availability to the quality, safety and sustainability of water consumed by citizens.

The campaign was unveiled at a National Training of Trainers (ToT) workshop on the Water Quality Handbook, bringing together government officials, technical experts and other stakeholders to build a network

of personnel capable of cascading water safety knowledge to states, local government areas and communities.

Representing the Minister of Water Resources and Sanitation, Engr. Prof. Joseph Utsev, at the event, Director Habu Jamilu said Nigeria could no longer afford fragmented interventions in water quality management, stressing the need for a unified national approach.

He described the Water Quality Handbook as a definitive technical guide designed to establish standard procedures across the water quality value chain.

According to him, the handbook covers source protection, household water handling, water testing, household water treatment, climate-related water quality challenges and channels for reporting water quality concerns to relevant authorities.

of the United States-Nigeria Joint Working Group Defence Bilateral Talks, focusing on shared security architecture, intelligence collaboration and operational synergies.

Mrs. Katung-Babatunde said the diplomatic mission,

led by the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, was made up of senior government officials who were in the United States of America for the second meeting of the US-Nigeria Joint Working Group, held from 12 to 13

August 2026.

Co-chaired by Mallam Ribadu and Allison Hooker, the U.S. Under Secretary of State for Political Affairs, the meeting reviewed actionable progress and strategic frameworks following Nigeria’s designation

as a Country of Particular Concern (CPC).

“Both sides reaffirmed their commitment to sustained dialogue, mutual respect and strategic alliance in combating global and regional threats,” the statement said.

Tinubu Woos Diaspora Nigerians to Invest in Nigeria Deji Elumoye

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has urged Nigerians in the diaspora to channel their wealth, expertise and global networks into productive investments in Nigeria, saying their success abroad should help expand opportunities at home.

Tinubu made the call on Thursday in Toronto, Canada, in a keynote address delivered on his behalf by his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, at the

2026 Nigeria Diaspora Economic Conference (NIDEC), themed, ‘Thrive Abroad, Invest Nigeria’.

The President said Nigerians abroad should not be asked to invest out of nostalgia, guilt or charity, but based on “opportunity, shared strategic interest, and disciplined patriotism.”

He urged the diaspora to move beyond property acquisition and invest in agro-processing, healthcare, technology, energy, housing, logistics, mining,

education, creative industries and export manufacturing.

“Do not merely acquire property in Nigeria; acquire productive stakes in Nigeria,” Tinubu said, urging Nigerians abroad to use Nigeria as a platform for continental expansion under the African Continental Free Trade Area.

He also called for diaspora investors to embrace professionally governed investment clubs, sector funds, co-investment vehicles and

venture networks, stressing the importance of due diligence, audited accounts and proper governance.

According to him, remittances, which have sustained millions of Nigerian households, should become “the floor of diaspora engagement, not its ceiling.”

“Remittances sustain consumption.

Investment expands production. Expertise builds institutions. Networks open markets. Nigeria now needs all four,” he said.

Customs Seizes N3.57bn Goods in Ogun James Sowole in Abeokuta

The Nigeria Customs Service, Ogun I Area Command, has intercepted smuggled goods worth N3.57 billion in duty-paid value.

The Acting Area Comptroller of the Command, Mr. Olukayode Afeni, disclosed this during a press briefing at the Command’s headquarters in Idiroko.

Afeni said the agency has vowed to make Ogun border corridors “hostile” for smugglers and drug traffickers.

He stated that the seizures were part of intensified operations from June 24 to date, aimed at protecting local industries and national security.

The Acting Comptroller listed the items seized as 2,339 bags of foreign parboiled rice, 70 cartons

of basmati rice, 6,035 parcels of Ghana Loud/Indica, 30 bags of foreign sugar (50kg), 11,450 litres of PMS in kegs, 1,750 litres in drums, 30 kegs of diesel, 100 bags of fertiliser and 67 bales of second-hand clothing.

Other items include 47 cartons of cosmetics, 36 packages of hair accessories, 2,674 pieces of new trousers/shorts, 3,760 pieces of new tops, 480 cartons of

drinks, 53 packages of oat, 85 fire extinguishers, 127 pieces of new purses and 3 packages of surgical shoes.

Afeni described smuggling as “economic sabotage” that is killing local jobs and threatening food security, warning that smuggled rice poses health risks as it is often re-bagged under unhygienic conditions or stored for years past its safe consumption date.

New Plateau Police Chief Vows Crackdown on Jungle Justice, Others

Yemi Kosoko in Jos

Plateau State’s new Commissioner of Police, CP Faniyan Ayodeji, has hit the ground running with a firm, reform‑driven maiden address that promises a decisive shift in

policing across the state.

Speaking at the Police Command headquarters in Jos, Ayodeji vowed to make Plateau “a positive model for others,” anchoring his mission on human‑rights‑centred policing, zero tolerance

for corruption, stronger community partnerships, and technology‑driven crime‑fighting.

He warned officers against brutality and excesses, stressing that the Command must earn public trust through

professionalism, transparency, and empathy.

Ayodeji issued a strong message to residents over rising mob attacks. “Jungle Justice is a criminal act and where it results in death, it constitutes culpable homicide.”

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SEPTEMBER 25, 2021 • THISDAY, THE SATURDAY NEWSPAPER

INSIGHT

Let the votes count...

What a waste!

In Praise of President Nigeria's Dwindling Football Fortunes Buhari

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Kogi Deserves an Airport Stop Ritual Attacks and Killings

means represents another step toward by the Buhari by his actionevelopment has successfully brought back to hen President Muhammadu took over the of number n today's world, footballBuhari is the Areins great of EFCC, our President secondthe public consciousness the need to treat public funds with the the highest level on Maysporting 29, 2015, Nigeria was sadly a ary brokenschools' state in improving quality expanding the economic opmost power popular activity. football prodigies of transparency and accountability. many respects. As a result of many other factors including bad of life of people through portunities available to the people Fromgovernance Brazil to Ghana, and matured to play for our national After keeping treasury looters on their toes and at bay through the and untold level of corruption, government could not he Advocacy for Alleged Witches (AfAW) better services, of Kogi State andpublic neighbouring EFCC, particularly, President Buhari movedinfrastructure, to curb unnecessary spending Italy obligations to Australia, football and for renowned live upfrom to its financial to citizenspeople and service providers at bothteams the urges the Nigerian to stop ritual opportunities economic communities.

Kogi Statetheoccupies habits ofand the nation on what economists call articles ofand ostentation.

Part federal and levels.different races play attacks and killings because notion who arestate from club sides in Nigeria beyond. of the disclosures of the President’s stock taking was how the country Indeed one of the first official assignments that President Buhari carried of ritual money and wealth is completely growth.

Against this background, a strategic position at Nigeria’s the game of football.

Millions of At that time, football clubs that frittered away billions in foreign currency by importing goods, which can AfAW is making this call following the out was the approval of billions of Naira in bailout funds to enable state I stand with Governor Ahmed baseless.

North-South confluence.

ItsOyo State football fans follow football events reigned Nigeria were Stationery be produced at home. One of such items was rice, a major staple among reported arrest of suspected ritualists in governors pay something as basic as workers’ salaries. Granting thosein bailout Usman Ododo on the proposed location connects different parts By banning rice importation into the country, the President on one in southern Nigeria. The local media reported funds competitions, was a huge boost to national security because the Stores pressure ofof arrears and religiously.

Lagos, Nigerians.

IICC Shooting hand had saved the nation billions in foreign currencyof annually. thatof members of the Western Nigeria Security of unpaid monthly salaries building dangerously all over the country was a development an airport project the country and places it along Back in Nigeria, football has been Stars of Ibadan, Enugu Rangers And, on the other hand, the President has boosted domestic production Network, Amotekun, arrested suspected ritualists ticking bomb. in Kogi State.

I see the project important trade and transportaour unifying factor weremind youInternational FC,of Flash rice and Flamingoes in the process had nudged the country into self sufficiency in with the body parts of a 73-year-old man.

Askonly the naysayers and they wouldas readily of how long it more than a development tion corridors.

An apprehended airport could food He also created as millions of jobs for young people in the rice for The suspects, who were in the tookbury President Buhari to appoint hisreligious ministers and how that contributedSharks to do our ethnic and of Benin, of production.

Port Harcourt, Kogi State alone.

I see it as an therefore strengthen theastate's value chain.

Boluwaji area in Ibadan, said that Muslim collapse of the economy as if, without ministers, governance was frozen. differences to cheer our national Calabar Rovers, Spartans of What is most admirable aboutinvestment President Buhari that and hiscould government is cleric asked to procure some human But buying that narrative would amount to what a famous Nigerian writer, contribute role as them a major economic and body teams whenever they“the are playing Owerri, Jets ofmanagement Jos, Racca its frugal of scarce national resources to attain optimum goals. parts for rituals. Ritual attacks are widespread Chimamanda Adichie, termed danger of a single story”.

Yet the Mighty whole the development of Nigeria in Nigeria. transportation centre. against other Rovers of Kano,Recall andthat others.

And Buharito since President stepped in the saddle, oil revenue dropped Irrational conceptions of how to story was that manycountries of our citizensduring did not know how decrepit a state as a whole.

In my view, Usman Second, an airport in and Kogi abysmally as if to sabotage him knowing all the big promises he made to make money or become wealthy successful President Buhari inherited in 2015. international football competitions. such talented footballers as Patrick citizens during his campaigns. But with the little resources that trickle in, the undergird these atrocities.

Manythe Nigerians It was therefore necessary for him to take stock against the background Ododo is becoming a “Mr Projcould help decongest Nnamdi In the past, when sporting Okala, Yisa Sofoluwe, Adokiye President is achieving what governments that received windfalls could strongly believeInternational in blood money,Airport known in of the fact that the departing government did not, reportedly, cooperate full ect” because ofoilhis commitment Azikiwe competitions were integrated Amasiemeka, Agada, not dream of. Mike some local languages as Ogun Owo (Yoruba) well with the incoming government in terms of leaving workable handover Jude to infrastructure other in Abuja by providing another Today, the trainsothers are up and running daily from Abuja toand Kaduna.

And devel- or Ogwu ego (Igbo).

They think that they notes. Although President GoodluckcurJonathan was gracious in defeat, many into secondary schools' Emenalo, Friday Ekpo, and opment initiatives.

Governments aviation option for passengers, from Lagos to Ibadan a brand new rail track was started and completed; could become rich, or successful through ritual of his appointees were still sulking over what they saw as their personal ricula, football competitions were dominated our football scene, citizens are already commuting daily to and fro these two major cities in the sacrifice.

Unfortunately, this is not the case. losses and therefore pulled all the stops to make things difficult for the must respond to the changing businesses and cargo within the organized for secondary schools then. country seamlessly as they reap from the dividends of democracy. And with wealth has no basis in reason, science, Buhari government. needs of their people. Today, the Ritual region.

The project could also the way this government is going, before 2023 when the President would or reality. Home movies known as Africa with the obvious obscurantist behaviour of theUche PDP Okoye, in Even different statesand in unpatriotic the country, Chiedu Uruowuludream of establishing an airport serve neighbouring states.

Bethe entire country would be linked by rail with all of its economic magic or Nollywood films have not helped appointees and their supporters still in government hell-bent on making periodically.

And many football Obosi, Anambraleave, State matters.

These movies continue to reinforce things difficult for Buhari, the President moved on with his methodical repair advantages. cause of Kogi's strategic location, stars who played forthing our these other superstitions. of a broken country.

The first he national did was to identify all possible sources Ainofenokhai Ojeifo, Abuja anmistaken airportnotions couldand provide easier teams were discovered during Families, churches, mosques, and other public of income to the nation and directed that all inflows be access to communities and busiinstitutions do not encourage the interrogation paid into one single account in line with the policy of such secondary schools' football across the wider ofnesses these traditional occult beliefs. region.

There are Single Treasury Account (TSA). competitions.

S ATUURRDAY DAYNNEEWWSSPA PAPPEERR no robust to Abubakar criticize or dispel these The TSA policy, interestingly, was mooted by the TTHHEESAT Idris efforts Rufai, Tatari EDITOR ADEBOWALE For example, Stephen OkechukEDITORYEMI OBINNA CHIMA irrational and paranormal claims in schools, PDP government but its penchant for imprudence DEPUTY EDITOR AHAMEFULA OGBU Ali polytechnic, Bauchi State DEPUTY EDITOR AHAMEFULA OGBU colleges, and universities. So millions of and lack of accountability denied it the courage of wu Keshi, who won the Nation's MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO MANAGING DIRECTOR ENIOLA BELLO Nigerians grow up blindly believing that they implementing the policy.

What the President literally DEPUTY MANAGING DIRECTOR ISRAEL IWEGBU Cup for Nigeria as both a player DEPUTY MANAGING ISRAEL IWEGBU CHAIRMAN EDITORIALDIRECTOR BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI could make money through ritual sacrifice of did was to gather all the nation’s money into one box CHAIRMAN EDITORIAL BOARD OLUSEGUN ADENIYI EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL IYOBOSA UWUGIAREN and a coach, excelled in and thewatched roundfor humanWhich body parts. One The belief has led many and locked it up with a big padlock Day? EDITOR NATION’S CAPITAL UWUGIAREN MANAGING EDITORIYOBOSA BOLAJI ADEBIYI leather while attending St. Nigerians to commit crimes and perpetrate any thief togame come close.

THE THEOMBUDSMAN OMBUDSMANKAYODE KAYODEKOMOLAFE KOMOLAFE atrocities. Many Nigerians have been jailed Who can blame the President for almost developing Finbarr's College, Lagos.

Another ay by court day, trials willduethe events or are undergoing to ritualparanoia over the safeguard of the national treasury footballer, Henry Nwosu, who related attacks murder. that President with revelations and reports of mind-boggling looting and and problems was a member ofyears theofGreen Not tooTrump long ago,said the police arrested some that took place in the 16 the PDP? Eagles With will be solved on DAYNNEEWWSSPA PAPPEERRSSLLI M I MI TI TEEDD TTHHI SI SDAY young Nigerians for stealing female pants, such disclosures of how billions meant for fighting team that won the 1980 Nation's EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA EDITOR-IN-CHIEF/CHAIRMAN NDUKA OBAIGBENA his first day in the job be solved which they intended to use for ritual sacrifice. insurgency in the Northeast ended up in the pockets of GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOLA BELLO, KAYODE KOMOLAFE, Cup, played secondary school GROUP EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS ENIOLA BELLO, KAYODE KOMOLAFE, before last day in the tojob or left ISRAEL IWEGBU, IJEOMA NWOGWUGWU, EMMANUEL EFENI AfAW his is asking all Nigerians desist fromto a few individuals while our gallant soldiers fought with ISRAEL IWEGBU football, too.

ArthurPresident Ebunam, DIVISIONAL DIRECTORS SHAKA MOMODU, PETER IWEGBU, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE ritual-related abuses because ritual money bare hands and on And empty stomach, Buhari his successor?

DIVISIONAL DIRECTORS SHAKA MOMODU, PETER IWEGBU, ANTHONY OGEDENGBE DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI beliefs are baseless superstitions.

Nigerian was duty bound to bring sanity and accountability who once played for Enugu Rang-back DEPUTY DIVISIONAL DIRECTOR OJOGUN VICTOR DANBOYI The lack of actual progress with his SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERIC OJEH media, schools, and colleges should help in national spending.

SNR. ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR ERICEIMIUHI OJEH ers International, was a member of ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR PATRICK Iran war suggests someone else will have educate and reorient the public.

They should Thus, under President Buhari, the Economic and ASSOCIATE DIRECTOR PATRICK EIMIUHI CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI the Christ the King College (CKC), in it. reasoning Nigerians out of this toassist solve Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), which had CONTROLLERS ABIMBOLA TAIWO, UCHENNA DIBIAGWU, NDUKA MOSERI DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO Onitsha football team the DIRECTOR, PRINTING PRODUCTION CHUKS ONWUDINJO killer-superstitious absurdity and nonsense. remained comatose for years, wasthat wokenwon up to resume Dennis Fitzgerald, 28 Landale St, Box TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com Leo Igwe directs the Advocacy for Alleged its duties.secondary Apart from the trillions of looted world schoolof Naira football TO SEND EMAIL: first name.surname@thisdaylive.com Hill, Vic Australia Witches (AfAW) funds and property recovered from corrupt politicians championship in Dublin, Ireland.

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STAKEHOLDERS’ ENGAGEMENT....

L-R: Representative of Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy’s, Mr. Olufemi Olarinde; Head of ICT, Office of the Tax Ombud, Udobong Morrison; Tax Ombud/Chief Executive, Dr. John Nwabueze; Representative of Fintech Association of Nigeria's, Abiola Jimoh; National Assembly Relations Executive, Nwachukwu Okafor, and Representative of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Mr. Adeyemi Folorunsho, during the stakeholders engagement organised by the Office of the Tax Ombud in Abuja…yesterday PHOTO :ENOCK REUBEN

Your Flamboyant Lifestyle Caused Our Dad's Kidnap, Jezco's Daughter Tells Brother, Jowizaza David-Chyddy Eleke in Awka Daughter of Chief Joseph Ezeokafor, the kidnapped businessman and Chairman of Jezco Group, Blessing Ezeokafor, who is said to be the first child of the victim has accused his younger brother Eberechukwu Ezeokafor, popularly known as Jowizaza for being responsible for the fate of their father.

Blessing said the flamboyant lifestyle which his brother

displays on social media, which she described as fake was the reason the kidnappers believed they were rich, and also upped the ransom from N700 million to N1.5 billion.

In a series of posts she made on social media, the distraught daughter said her family was not as rich as her brother portrayed, saying they were swimming in debt already, while accusing her brother of running their father's company aground before he

was removed as director and placed on a monthly salary of N1 million.

In another post, she slammed critics who were telling her she should not have come online to spill the beans about her younger brother's lifestyle, saying he agreed to pay kidnappers N700 million, which was the reason the kidnappers upped the ransom to N1.5 billion.

She said her brother does not have N100 million in liquid cash

and questioned how he could have accepted to pay kidnappers N700 million.

She added, "Why Jowizaza my brother. You are the cause of this madness. Social media noise, when we don’t have that money. You use audio money to make hudroms (hoodlums) think the money is available.

"Imagine, N1 billion? If anything happens to my dad, I will hold you responsible.

Making noise, when we are

Agusto Withdraws Geregu’s ‘A’ Rating after N40bn Bond Default

Emmanuel Addeh in Abuja and Nume Ekeghe

Agusto & Co has withdrawn the ‘A’ credit rating assigned to Geregu Power Plc and its N40.09 billion Series 1 Senior Unsecured Bond following the power generation company’s recent default on the eighth coupon payment and fourth principal repayment.

The rating agency, in a statement, said the withdrawal was prompted by both the default and its conclusion that it no longer had “sufficient reliable

information” to maintain a credit rating opinion on the company and its bond.

Agusto & Co explained that Geregu Power’s management had informed the agency that the company’s previously issued financial statements were undergoing an independent verification process.

“Pending completion of this review, Agusto & Co is unable to rely on the current audited financial statements and, therefore, cannot provide an opinion regarding the Company’s creditworthiness,”

the rating agency stated.

The development marks a significant setback for Geregu Power, which had previously maintained an ‘A’ rating from Agusto & Co, indicating a relatively strong capacity to meet financial commitments.

The rating agency said its decision was directly linked to the company’s failure to meet the latest scheduled debt obligations.

“Agusto & Co has withdrawn the ‘A-’ rating assigned to Geregu Power PLC and its N40.09 billion Series 1 Senior Unsecured Bond

following the Company’s recent default on the eighth coupon payment and fourth principal repayment,” it said.

The company’s financial reporting has also become a key concern for the rating agency, following management’s decision to subject previously released financial statements to an independent verification process.

According to Agusto & Co, the uncertainty surrounding the financial statements means it cannot presently form a reliable view of Geregu Power’s creditworthiness.

US Mission Welcomes Hudspeth New Consul General to Lagos Pledges to deepen trade, investment, technology ties

Nume Ekeghe

The United States Mission in Nigeria has welcomed Brandon Hudspeth back to Lagos as its new Consul General, marking his return to Nigeria after previously serving at the U.S. Consulate General in Lagos between 2020 and 2022.

In a statement from the Consulate, Hudspeth begins a three-year tenure as the senior U.S. government representative across the 17 states of southern Nigeria, succeeding Rick Swart, who retired from the U.S. Foreign Service in July.

Commenting on his return, Hudspeth said he was honoured to resume his diplomatic assignment in Lagos, noting the depth of the relationship between Nigeria and the United States.

“I am honoured to return to Lagos as the U.S. Consul General.

I know firsthand the strength of the U.S.-Nigeria partnership and the extraordinary energy, ingenuity, and entrepreneurial spirit that Nigerians and Americans share.”

He noted that he looks forward to reconnecting with old friends, building new partnerships, and working alongside Nigerians to

expand trade and investment, drive innovation, strengthen collaboration in the technology and creative industries, and create new opportunities that advance shared prosperity for both countries.

Hudspeth brings two decades of diplomatic experience spanning Africa, Asia, Latin America, and Washington. Most recently, he served as the Deputy Chief of Mission at the U.S. Embassy in Windhoek, Namibia. His earlier assignments include serving as Director of International Narcotics and Law Enforcement at the U.S.

Embassy in the Philippines, where he led U.S. civilian assistance programmes supporting law enforcement, rule of law, counternarcotics efforts, and maritime security cooperation. He also served as Political-Economic Section Chief in Bamako, Mali; Nonimmigrant Visa Chief in Havana, Cuba; and Political-Military Officer in Kabul, Afghanistan. In Washington, D.C., he served in the Department of State’s Operations Centre, on the Secretariat Staff supporting the Secretary of State, and as a Desk Officer in the Bureau of African Affairs.

owing bank N40 billion. And these people think the money is there, see what your madness exposing us has done to us.

"Fake life claiming what we don’t have. You are owing banks FCMB N40 billion, no hope to pay, you are owing Union Bank, you are struggling, even American company I introduced you guys to, Feedco, yet you keep making noise. Now your madness has made people think we have money.”

Speaking directly to the kidnappers she said, "Kidnappers they don’t have money, it is audio money, please leave my dad alone. Please release him, they are swimming in debt."

In another post she said, "Some... are saying I should not talk about what I know. So, you want those kidnappers to think we have money and refuse to give them and kill him there?

I will now become fatherless.

"At this point, I need to talk so they can be talking reasonably about what we can provide. Dad needs his medication and I don’t want anything to happen to my dad.

"See, coming to Facebook was the biggest mistake my brother made. We have simple life, not exaggerating wealth. Any blogger that I see exaggerating (our wealth) again will have questions to answer.”

Direct Public Servants, Others to Open Feedback Loop, Atoyebi Tells Tinubu

Bennett Oghifo

The Convener of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Ideological Group, Hon. Bamidele Atoyebi, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to enforce structured delegation of authority across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and establish a direct channel through which Nigerians can communicate their concerns and ideas to the Presidency.

Atoyebi said the measures were necessary to address what he described as the excessive centralisation of decisionmaking, prolonged absence of some political appointees without proper handover and the growing inaccessibility of senior government officials.

Atoyebi said in a statement that the President’s efforts to decentralise governance could be undermined if ministers, managing directors and other heads of government institutions continued to concentrate operational authority in their own hands.

According to him, “Governance in a nation as dynamic and

complex as Nigeria requires vision, efficiency, and structural agility.”

He noted that President Tinubu had consistently signalled a commitment to decentralisation through initiatives including the push for state policing, decentralisation of the power sector and efforts to recalibrate responsibilities between the Exclusive and Concurrent Legislative Lists.

However, he said a “troubling disconnect” persisted within some MDAs, where decision-making remained excessively concentrated at the top.

“Rather than keying into the President’s decentralised vision, many political appointees, whether Ministers or Managing Directors, have hyper-centralised operations within their respective domains,” Atoyebi noted.

He explained that in some institutions, routine administrative processes, procurement approvals, payments and other critical government activities could not proceed without the personal approval or signature of the head of the organisation.

saturday AUGUST 15, 2026 • T H I S D AY

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T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R • SATURDAY AUGUST 15, 2026

NEWS XTRA

PHOTO EXHIBITION....

L- R: Exhibiting visual artists, Managing Director, Photo Legend, Emmanuel Zannou; Director, Art of Amah, Dr Timipre Willis Amah, Board Member of Odu'a Investment Company Limited (OICL), Otunba Bimbo Ashiru and THISDAY Photojournalist, Kunle Ogunfuyi, during the private viewing reception of Relational Waters, a trio photography exhibition at Thought Pyramid Art Centre Ikoyi, Lagos... yesterday

ICPC Boss: Anti-Corruption Reforms Key to Economic Stability Says commission uncovered payroll fraud involving family members Tracked 4,582 public projects valued at over N22.53 trillion, saved N385.62 billion for government, projects worth N507.04 billion returned to construction sites

James Emejo in Abuja

Chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC), Dr. Musa Adamu Aliyu, yesterday declared that anti-corruption reforms should no longer be treated merely as a law-enforcement agenda, insisting that integrity in public administration had become critical to economic stability, investment climate and development outcomes.

He spoke during his keynote address at the 4th Economic Confidential Lecture and 6th National Spokespersons Awards, organised by Image Merchants Promotions Limited in Abuja.

Aliyu linked the effectiveness of economic reforms directly to the country’s ability to reduce corruption, strengthen institutions and communicate government actions credibly.

According to him, corruption undermines economic transformation by diverting public resources, weakening institutions, increasing the cost of governance, discouraging investment and eroding public confidence.

Also speaking at the occasion, Minister of Information and National Orientation, CHANGE OF NAME Mohammed Idris, the I formerly known said and addressed OLASUNBOYE MICHAEL country's asADESOJI anti-corruption now wish to be known and addressed as ADESOJI MICHAEL campaign must move beyond OLASUNBOYE. All former documents remain valid, and the general public arrests and prosecutions to should please take note

strengthening institutions and systems capable of preventing abuse.

He said corruption, economic stability and public communication were closely interconnected, noting that sustainable economic stability would remain difficult where corruption weakens institutions, distorts public expenditure and erodes public confidence.

This came as the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) acting Director, Corporate Communications, Hakama Sidi-Ali, was named the 2026 Spokesperson of the Year, emerging as the overall

payroll.

The commission identified another individual who allegedly enrolled his wife, children and other relatives as public servants and collected as many as 13 salaries.

Aliyu said investigations into ghost workers had revealed sophisticated manipulation of government payroll systems, with individuals exploiting weaknesses in the system to divert public funds through fictitious employees.

He said, “We discovered that one person enrolled 14 members of his family. He lived in a

Alex Enumah in Abuja

for services to the federal government.

According to the senior lawyer, beyond carrying a KYC on their clients, it is imperative that lawyers also do a due diligence on where the money for their fees comes from.

He gave the advice in

a keynote he delivered at a conference organised by the BNH Governance and Professional Network Forum in Abuja.

The conference which has as theme, ‘Beyond Compliance: The Role of Stakeholders in Corporate Governance, Public

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) wishes to inform the general public that the “Loss of Documents” notice earlier published in respect of the property known as Plot 219, Cadastral Zone, Karu District, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), was published in error.

A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mr. Michael Numa, SAN, has warned that legal practitioners who fail to conduct a proper 'Know Your Client' (KYC) on the sources of their client's funding risk forfeiting fees

Accordingly, the said publication is hereby withdrawn and retracted in its entirety, and members of the public are advised to disregard the notice and its contents.

AMCON regrets any inconvenience or misunderstanding the erroneous publication may have caused.

Court Restrains Imo Govt, Police, Others from Blocking Ugochinyere's Rallies, Meetings

Signed: Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON)

religious hotel, a hotel at the public office, receiving salaries."

The ICPC boss said another case involved an individual who allegedly enrolled his wife, daughter, son and other relatives and received 13 salaries.

He said, “Another person enrolled his wife, his daughter, his son, and others and was receiving 13 salaries.

Aliyu disclosed that the commission had identified about 900 suspected ghost workers and published their names, challenging those listed to establish that they were genuine employees.

SAN: Lawyers Risk Forfeiting Fees over Improper KYC On Client's Fundings

PAGE 19

RE: LOSS OF DOCUMENTS

winner at the awards.

Sidi-Ali clinched the top communication award ahead of other nominees at an event that recognised individuals and institutions considered to have demonstrated excellence in public communication, crisis management, media relations, digital engagement and corporate affairs.

However, the ICPC chairman further disclosed that it uncovered fresh cases of payroll fraud in the public service, including an official who allegedly placed 14 members of his family on the government

Alex Enumah in Abuja

A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja, has restrained the Imo State Government, the Nigeria Police Force, other security agencies and the Chairmen of Ideato North and Ideato South local government areas from interfering with the civic and political activities of the member representing Ideato

North/South Federal Constituency in the House of Representatives, Hon. Ikenga Imo Ugochinyere.

Justice K. Agunloye, issued the restraining order while delivering ruling in an ex parte application, pending hearing in the substantive suit marked: FCT/ HC/CV/153/2026.

Defendants affected by the application filed by Chizubor Ezike, counsel to the claimant/

applicant, are; the Inspector General of Police, the State Security Service, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, the Governor of Imo State, the Imo State Signage and Advertisement Agency (IMSAA), the Chairmen of Ideato North and Ideato South local government areas, the Commissioner of Police in Imo State, and the Director of the SSS in the state, among others.

Accountability, and Nigeria's Institutional Future’, had in attendance legal practitioners, representatives from the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), the National Assembly among others.

While observing that Nigeria has several laws in place towards ensuring corporate governance, Numa noted that the challenge is in the area of implementation of those laws.

CHANGE OF NAME

I formerly known and addressed as OLASUNBOYE MICHAEL ADESOJI now wish to be known and addressed as ADESOJI MICHAEL OLASUNBOYE. All former documents remain valid, and the general public should please take note

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SATURDAY AUGUST 15, 2026 • T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R

NEWS XTRA

50TH/15TH BIENNIAL METHODIST CHURCH CONFERENCE....

L - R: Lay President, Lagos West, Methodist Church Nigeria, Olugbenga Akindele; Conference Public Relations Adviser, Mr Abiona Babarinde; Archbishop of Ilesha, Most Rev. Amos Akindeko; Bishop of Ngbo, The Rt Rev. Ken Egbochue; Archdiocesan Lay President of Lagos Mainland, Olushola Adu; Deputy Director, Evangelism & Discipleship, Very Rev. Ayo Adepoju, at the thanksgiving service at Methodist Church Nigeria, Oke - Ado, Ibadan during the 50th/15th Biennial Conference of Methodist Church Nigeria, held in Ibadan... recently

SEC Orders Capital Market Operators to Freeze Assets Traced to 9 Terrorism Financiers Admits blockchain into its accelerated regulatory incubation programme

Ndubuisi Francis in Abuja and Emma Okonji in Lagos

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has directed Capital Market Operators (CMOs) to freeze assets, including monies traced to six individuals and three entities on the Nigeria Sanctions List.

This comes as the Commission has admitted blockchain into its Accelerated Regulatory Incubation Programme (ARIP), marking an important step in the company’s long-term commitment to Nigeria and its broader expansion across Africa.

The Commission which

conveyed its directive to CMOs via a circular to all Capital Market Regulated Entities (CMREs), said the action was made in line with the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act (TPPA) 2022.

The individuals and entities had earlier been designated by the Nigeria Sanctions Committee (NSC) under the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act (TPPA), 2022.

“In line with the provisions of the Terrorism Prevention and Prohibition Act (TPPA), 2022, the Nigeria Sanctions Committee (NSC) has designated six (6) Individuals and three (3)

Entities as terrorist financiers and subsequently added them to the Nigeria Sanctions List,” the circular stated.

The six individuals are Babangida Muhammed Adamu Hammajam, Abdullahi Umar Usman, Ibrahim Abubakar,

Adamu Chiroma, Muktar Muhammad Adamu and Yakubu Ogirima Ibrahim.

The three designated entities

Anosike Unveils Blueprint to Make S'East United Regional Force Boniface Okoro in Umuahia

The Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) governorship candidate for Abia State in the 2027 election and a special guest at the South East Zonal Summit of the Nigerian Institute of Management (NIM),

Dr. Kelechi Anosike, has called for deliberate institutional reforms to transform the South-east into a united regional economic and political force.

Delivering the keynote address yesterday at the Zonal Summit in Enugu, Anosike, said the region’s

future depends less on politics and more on strong institutions, professional management, and a new culture of accountability.

“And the questions our children will ask us years after, ‘what did you do when this happened', may be that we

TWO-HORSE RACE: ADELEKE, OYEBAMIJI IN FIERCE BATTLE FOR OSUN GOVERNORSHIP (Young Progressives Party, YPP) and Adefemi Adesuyi (Zenith Labour Party, ZLP).

Meanwhile, the three leading candidates - Accord, APC and ADC - presented their manifestoes at a recent Town Hall Meeting organised by ARISE NEWS Channel.

While Governor Adeleke hinged his re-election campaign on his five-point agenda reloaded, his rival, Oyebamiji of the APC, tagged his manifesto as ‘Prosperity agenda’.

Adeleke’s Strengths Apart from being the incumbent governor, he also enjoyed acceptability among the state civil servants and the leadership of the labour unions.

The NLC, TUC and JNC are all on his side and appearing in the Accord party campaign soliciting support for the governor.

Adeleke is equally banking on his achievements in the area of infrastructure across the three senatorial districts, which has been driving his campaigns so far.

It is also a major point for his party members and supporters. In addition, the Ede-born politician seems to be enjoying the backing of some

traditional rulers in the state, led by the Ataoja of Osogbo, who on different occasions publicly declared support for the Governor and Accord party despite resistance from his subjects.

Also, Adeleke’s popularity has extended to the party, with the Accord party becoming more popular than the PDP through which he won the governorship poll about four years ago.

The PDP’s failure to field a candidate for the 2026 polls in the state is more of an advantage for the Governor’s re-election bid as the party’s structure, apart from a few strong men, still works for the Accord.

Also, Senator Iyiola Omisore’s loyalists’ defection is another major advantage the governor has in the defection of Senator Iyiola Omisore’s loyalists to the Accord Party due to the fallout of the APC primaries.

However, Omisore still remains in the APC, as many of his associates who served in the Gboyega Oyetola administration, including three commissioners and special advisers, left the party and joined the Accord.

Also, political stakeholders believe that Governor Adeleke has an advantage in the OsunWest Senatorial District, where

are Nine to Nine Bureau De Change (BDC) Ltd, Generation Currency BDC Ltd and Abbal Bako & Sons Bureau De Change.

he won massively in 2022.

But the APC candidate is also from the district, which may lead to a division of votes cast during the polls.

Ede federal constituency, which the Governor hails from, consisting of Ede-North, Ede-South, Egbedore and Ejigbo local governments, has a total of 319,489 registered voters. This is a major advantage for the governor who still retains hold on the senatorial district. Besides, with the help of Stakeholders Adeleke may swing votes in Ijesaland.

Also, in Osun Central, the Governor Ademola Adeleke enjoy the support of the Ataoja of Osogbo, the Secretary to the State Government, Teslim Igbalaye, Mr Gani Ola-Oluwa and the House of Representatives member, Mr. Morufu Adewale who are likely to help the Governor’s cause in Osogbo and Olorunda local government.

Adeleke’s Weaknesses The governor’s major challenge began from his policy decisions early in his administration. The opposition cites the sacking of teachers, executive orders on traditional Rulers, agencies and health workers without replacements;

the sacking of media workers of the State-owned broadcast stations and the administration’s failure to recruit civil servants as a minus for his re-election bid.

The administration is facing serious allegation of nepotism, with outcry over recent employment into the teaching service and the University of Ilesa favouring Ede indigents without other towns benefiting Also, the governor’s dismal performance in major sectors like agriculture, health, commerce, industry and education form major issues for his opponents’ campaign strategies.

Another factor that may affect the fortunes of the governor is that a major PDP bloc loyal to former Governor Olagunsoye Oyinlola has publicly dumped the governor for the candidate of the APM, Mr Adewale Adebayo.

Bola Oyebamiji’s Strengths The APC candidate is believed to enjoy the support of President Tinubu and the APC governors, who will stop at nothing to ensure victory for the party at the polls. He also has strong support of a former Governor of the State and Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Gboyega Oyetola.

The APC candidate’s

personality and philanthropy has endeared him to the people.

Apart from being endorsed by the President and Oyetola, Oyebamiji’s election bid receive a major boost with the defection of all the federal lawmakers from Osun-East senatorial district, who are also major political gladiators from the towns.

They include Senator Francis Fadahunsi, Mr. Wole Oke (IjesaNorth federal constituency), Sanya Omirin (Ijesa-South federal constituency) and Mr. Taofeek Ajilesoro (Ife federal constituency). Their defection, according to party leaders, may tilt the pendulum in favour of Oyebamiji from the senatorial district.

Besides, some of Omisore’s points men in Ife have also pledged loyalty to the party and its candidate.

While Adeleke got massive votes from Osun-West in 2022, the candidature of Oyebamiji may change the narrative, with the total registered votes from Ikire federal constituency amounting to 222,786 votes for Irewole, Ayedaade and Isokan local governments, likely reducing the influence of the governor in the district.

While Governor Adeleke seems to enjoy endorsement among royal fathers from Ife,

played our part and did our best to ensure that our region is strengthened, institutions are energised, and we are able to build our individual entrepreneurial success into a collective regional bargaining power,” he told delegates.

Oyebamiji’s major endorsement programme has been coming from markets and traders. In most of his engagements, the APC candidate has always taken advantage of the allegation of nepotism against the incumbent to sell himself as a man for all.

In Osun-Central, whoever wins in Osogbo and Olorunda local government is likely to win the senatorial district.

Oyebamiji has the likes of the party’s national secretary, Senator Ajibola Basiru who is from the core Osogbo supported

by Executive Director, Marine and Blue Economy, Olalekan Badmus and many elites in the Olorunda and Osogbo, supporting the APC.

Oyebamamiji’s Weaknesses Oyebamiji’s major issue is the policy decision of the Oyetola administration under whom he served. The modulated salary under Governor Rauf Aregbesola and the inability of Governor Oyetola to pay part of it has been a major issue confronting his candidature. His critics, especially from the Accord party, believe he is responsible for the modulated salary under Aregbesola’s administration and should not be trusted with the governorship seat.

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T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r • AUGUST 15, 2026

Tribute

Herbert Wigwe @ 60:

Celebrating a Life of Impact

Dr. Herbert Onyewumbu Wigwe, the late banker, entrepreneur and philanthropist, would have turned 60 today, offering an occasion to reflect on a life defined by ambition, institution-building and service. From transforming Access Bank into a major African financial institution to investing in education, healthcare and youth development, Wigwe believed success carried a responsibility to create opportunities for others. His vision extended beyond banking, finding expression in The HOW Foundation, Wigwe University and initiatives aimed at nurturing future leaders. Two years after his death, the institutions he built and the lives he touched continue to keep his remarkable legacy alive, writes Omolabake Fasogbon

D

r. Herbert Onyewumbu Wigwe, the late banker, entrepreneur and philanthropist, would have turned 60 today, leaving behind a legacy that continues to influence banking, education, healthcare and youth development in Nigeria and beyond.

Wigwe, who rose to become one of Africa’s leading financial executives, was widely known for his role in the transformation and expansion of Access Bank. But beyond banking, he devoted considerable attention and resources to building institutions, supporting young people and creating opportunities for disadvantaged communities.

To his family, friends and associates, he was also a mentor and a firm believer in the ability of people to achieve more when given the right opportunities.

As Co-Founder and Group Chief Executive Officer of Access Bank and later Access Holdings, Wigwe played a major role in the growth of the financial institution from a Nigerian bank into a financial services group with operations across several countries. His ambition was not simply to build a successful Nigerian bank, but to develop an African institution capable of competing with leading financial organisations around the world.

His influence also extended beyond Access Bank. As Chairman of the Bankers’ Committee, Wigwe participated in discussions on major issues affecting Nigeria’s banking industry and economy.

He worked with government officials, regulators and other business leaders, believing that the private sector had a responsibility to contribute to national development and help find solutions to the country’s social and economic challenges.

Wigwe’s belief that business success should make a difference in society was reflected in the establishment of The HOW Foundation in 2016.

Through the Foundation, he supported programmes in education, healthcare, mentorship and youth development.

Its interventions included educational support for disadvantaged children, programmes in Makoko and for Almajiri children, medical scholarships and specialist oncology training. The Foundation also supported the adoption and rehabilitation of 25 primary healthcare centres in Rivers State.

Perhaps one of Wigwe’s most ambitious projects was Wigwe University, which reflected his strong belief in the power of education to transform Africa.

He envisioned a university that would produce confident, entrepreneurial and globally competitive young Africans capable of creating jobs, solving problems and building institutions.

The university received its operating licence in 2023 and, despite Wigwe’s death before it fully opened, went ahead to welcome its first students and continue the vision of its founder.

His commitment to developing a new generation of African leaders also continues through initiatives such as the

Wigwe

Fearless Leadership Series and the Wigwe Venture Lab. Wigwe encouraged young Nigerians to think boldly, challenge convention, take responsibility and create solutions. He believed leadership was not simply about occupying an important position, but about making a positive impact on people and society.

Wigwe died in February 2024 while many of his plans were still unfolding, but the institutions he helped to build and the people he supported continue to carry his vision. As family members, friends, colleagues and associates mark what would have been his 60th birthday, his story remains one of ambition, institution-building, philanthropy and service.

His legacy is increasingly being measured not only by what he achieved during his lifetime but also by the institutions he created, the opportunities he provided and the people he inspired.

Born on August 15, 1966, the deceased started his professional career with Coopers & Lybrand Associates, an international firm of Chartered Accountants. He spent over 10 years at Guaranty Trust

Bank Plc where he managed several portfolios, including financial institutions, large corporates and multinationals.

He left Guaranty Trust Bank as an Executive Director to co-lead the transformation of Access Bank Plc in March 2002 as Deputy Managing Director. He was appointed Group Managing Director/ CEO effective January 1, 2014 and served in that capacity till May 2022. He was subsequently appointed a Non-Executive Director of the Bank effective May 2022.

Wigwe was an alumnus of the Harvard Business School Executive Management Programme. He held master’s degree in Banking and International Finance from the University College of North Wales, a master’s degree in Financial Economics from the University of London and a B.Sc. degree in Accounting from the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (UNN).

He was also a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (ICAN).

He was the Chairman of Access Bank (UK) Ltd and a Non-Executive Director of Nigerian Mortgage Refinance Company Plc; FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange; Shared Agents Network Expansion Facilities Ltd and Agri-Business/ SME Enterprises Investment Scheme. He is also a member of the Governing Council of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria.

Wigwe was one of the most respected bankers on the continent, without a shadow of a doubt and he understood that without embracing change and having foresights, banks would not be able to compete and would be left behind by their peers, which would definitely impact customer satisfaction, operational efficiency, and revenue growth negatively.

This was why he continuously ensured that Access Holdings under his watch emerged as one of Africa’s leading financial services groups. He showed relentless pursuit for growth, but in a measured and calculated manner.

From a small bank in 2002, the late Wigwe and his close friend, business partner and currently Non-Executive Chairman of Access Holdings Plc, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, completely transformed the bank which at some point was ranked 65th among 89 banks operating in the country.

Wigwe has helped to develop some of Africa’s biggest companies in the construction, telecommunications, energy, oil and gas sectors through Access Bank.

Immediately the African Continental Free Trade Area (AfCFTA) was established in 2018, Wigwe saw it as an opportunity to position Access Bank and the parent company for the continental benefits. This saw him aggressively drive the expansion of the institution.

“We are building a strong and sustainable franchise to support economic prosperity, encourage Africa trade, advance financial inclusion thereby empowering many to achieve their financial dreams.

“We believe that we are best positioned to basically do all of that. Our focus is to become an aggregator in Africa and we are building a global payment gateway and providing trade finance support and correspondent banking across the continent. We are focusing on the key markets.

“The approach would always be that in the country we wish to go to, that we have the right skills. We would not just be a drop in the country in which we are present, we would make sure that we have an impactful presence in each of the major countries in which we are present.

“In doing this, we are also mindful of the country we are going to so as to make sure that it is of benefit to the bank.

As we do this, we are working with our friends and partners,” he had said while speaking about his big dream for the financial institution.

Today, Access Holdings has spread from Nigeria to Rwanda, Ghana, South Africa, Mozambique, Kenya, Zambia, Angola, France, United Kingdom, Botswana, Guinea, R.D. Congo, Gambia, Tanzania, Uganda, among several other countries.

His latest aggressive expansionist drive was in Zambia, where Access Bank Zambia Limited last month announced the completion of its acquisition of African Banking Corporation Zambia Limited (also known as Atlas Mara Zambia), after obtaining all requisite regulatory approvals.

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T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r • AUGUST 15, 2026

TRIBUTE

Peter Odili at 78: Celebrating An Icon With Golden Heart Christopher Unuigbe

A

s Dr. Peter Odili, a former Governor of Rivers State, marks his 78th birthday today, his family, friends and associates are celebrating what some of them have described as “a special icon with a golden heart.”

Born August 15, 1948, to the family of Chief Philip Celestine and Princess Janet Okwei, in Ndoni, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Area of the state, Odili has, for decades, distinguished himself as a man with deep passion for the well-being of others, a well-respected family man, and a man that is making great impact within and outside his country, Nigeria, especially in the areas of medicine and politics where he is widely acknowledged today as a leader.

A highly experienced physician, Odili has invested quality years in medical practice and has crowned his impact in this special field by founding PAMO University of Medical Sciences, a unique private facility and institution that is quietly setting great standards in Nigeria and Africa in areas of specialized medical training and research.

As a politician, he is a household name both in Rivers State and in the other parts of the country.

According to his community members and his close associates, it is one of Odili’s rare qualities that his enviable public achievements and top position in the society did not stop him from remaining humble and focused to his deepest passion, which may be described simply as interest to serve humanity and to offer knowledge and skills that will save lives and improve the people’s wellbeing.

A celebrity, but he tries hard to remain calm, may be unnoticed. In fact, one thing his relatives and close associates, who know the elder statesman very well always talk about is how he has succeeded in shielding his home from the usual endless conviviality that normally define the homes of political leaders of his pedigree in Nigeria.

For a man like him, who is also married to a prominent legal officer, now a retired Justice of the Supreme Court of Nigeria, Hon. Justice Mary Peter Odili, JSC - a union that produced a brilliant renowned medical guru, teaching hospital administator and eminent justices, it is to his credit that he is a man of silent achievements.

A Nigerian political leader with a great difference, Peter Odili, though a distinguished godfather whose name and influence have opened doors and offered great opportunities to his people and to his followers, has refrained from self-adulation and has remained unwilling to brag over his achievements. He has also refused to engage some of his political children, who, after benefitting immensely from his generous patronage, turn around to bite the hand that fed them.

When he emerged the Executive Governor of Rivers State for two terms, from May 29, 1999, to May 29, 2007, on the platform of the then ruling PDP, he assumed the position with so much experience in political leadership, unlike some other elected governors of his time who assumed leadership of their states without adequate experience.

Before he was elected governor, he served as an elected Deputy Governor from 1992-1993 during the short-lived Third Republic. The impact of his experience could be seen in the way he handled the affairs of the state from day one when he served as governor.

Already grounded as a grassroots political leader, Odili was elected to

Odili the National Constitutional Conference, where he served as the Chairman of the Conference Committee on State Creation.

As the Deputy Governor of Rivers State in 1992, it was reported that “he laid the groundwork for a transformative era in the state’s history.” He helped to lay the foundation for the Fourth Republic.

The former governor first served as National Vice Chairman (South-south) Democratic Party of Nigeria (DPN), and later as National Secretary. He was the Founder and Leader of Rivers Platform in 1998.

The elder statesman was the founder and leader of what was described as “The Restoration Team”, as well as the State Leader of the PDP. Odili was also the National Chairman, PDP Fund Raising Committee (2000); and Chairman, Presidential Committee on Housing and Urban Renewal (2001) at various times.

Commenting on why Odili should be celebrated in his State and across Nigeria today, Elder Israel Nwonu, a political analyst in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, described Peter Odili with these glowing words: “He is a visionary physician, politician, statesman, and nation-builder whose life embodies selfless service, transformative leadership, and enduring commitment to humanity.”

“His patriotism, religious tolerance and fear of God distinguish him as a great man for all times. So, to rightly celebrate Dr. Odili as he marked 78 years here on earth, we must not only celebrate a rare political leader who helped greatly to build the Rivers State we know today; we should also celebrate in Dr. Odili, a remarkable journey of service, leadership, and humanity.

“We should celebrate him for he is still demonstrating his love for human-

ity through his new occupation of producing medical doctors and other medical personnel at a time when he should be resting at home,” Nwonu said.

Nwonu’s comments confirms people’s acknowledgement of the importance of Odili’s endeavours since he left the Rivers State Government House in Port Harcourt.

Perhaps to satisfy his natural interest in human health, welfare and in the training of medical personnel, Odili left a bold imprint on the sands of time both for Rivers, Nigeria and the human race when he founded, what has been described as the first wholly private medical university in Nigeria - PAMO University of Medical Sciences.

To effectively support the university, he also built a 250-bed integrated PAMO University Hospital. An earlier report on the facility have revealed: “The purpose-built multispecialty, tertiary care private hospital offers patient care services across a range of medical and surgical specialties.” This is in addition to PAMO Hospital and Clinics in Port Harcourt.

His biography shows that the former governor received his early education at St. Michael’s School, Oguta; Sacred Heart School, Onitsha, and Christ the King College (CKC), Onitsha.

He was Senior Prefect and College Captain in CKC Onitsha. While at CKC, he excelled not only in academics, but also in sports- representing the school in soccer, high jump, long jump, and lawn tennis.

After the Nigerian Civil War, he proceeded to the University of Nigeria, Nsukka (Enugu Campus) in 1970, and served as Speaker of the Medical Students Association of the university in 1972 and President, League of Human Affiliates (Students Humanitarian Association) between 1972 and 1974.

He graduated with a Bachelor of Medicine and Bachelor of Surgery (MBBS) degree in 1977. In 1985 he obtained a certificate in Tropical Medicine and Hygiene from the University of Liverpool, United Kingdom.

Odili commenced his medical practice first as a House Officer with the University of Benin Teaching Hospital, Benin City, and Senior House Officer between 1977 and 1979.

After his stint as a Senior House Officer, he relocated to Port Harcourt with his wife and infant daughter and secured a job as Staff Physician at the Medical Consultation Centre in Port Harcourt.

Two years later, he set up his private hospital – PAMO Clinics and served first as Resident Clinician, and subsequently as Consultant in Tropical Medicine and Venereology, Clinical Director and then Medical Director following the clinic’s rapid expansion to a hospital.

Between 1981 and 1982, he served as Secretary of the Nigerian Medical Association, Rivers State Branch; and Secretary, Association of Private Medical Practitioners Association, Rivers State between 1985 and 1987. He was also at a time a member of the Medical Advisory Council, Rivers State Ministry of Health.

Odili has other passions geared towards ensuring people’s wellbeing. In 1994 for example, he ventured into agriculture and set up RockMay Farms And Industries Ltd. He was the President, University of Nigeria Alumni Association, Port Harcourt and National Vice President, University of Nigeria Alumni Association between 1985 and 1988.

He was appointed to the Board of Directors of Michelin Nigeria Limited and served on the board for three years, between 1987 and 1989.

Odili was elected as a member and leader of the Rivers State delegates at the Constituent Assembly of 1988 –1989. It has been said that this role marked the formal beginning of his active participation in politics. In 1992, he was elected Deputy Governor of Old Rivers State. He served in this capacity until the coup of November 1993.

Odili was later elected as Delegate and Leader of the Rivers State Delegates in the National Constitutional Conference of 1994 -1995, and while there, he served as the Chairman of the Committee on Creation of States and Local Government Areas.

He was also at various times the National Vice Chairman (South-South), Democratic Party of Nigeria (DPN); Founder and Leader, Rivers Front Movement; and National Chairman, PDP Fund-Raising Committee.

He chaired the Presidential Committee on Housing and Urban Renewal in 2001 and was President of the Swimming Federation of Nigeria between 2001 and 2005.

Still active at 78 in service through grooming of future healers in his university and not tired as a political leader, Odili’s admirers in Rivers State, across Nigeria and beyond, are proud to openly celebrate this icon who demonstrates that leaders with conscience should never retire from guiding and grooming.

As the renowned elder statesman marks his 78th birthday today, I join others to wish him God’s blessings, good health and more peaceful life ahead.

• Unuigbe is a postgraduate student in the United Kingdom

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The HOW FOUNDATION

Honouring Dr. Herbert Onyewumbu Wigwe, CFR on his posthumous 60th birthday

2027 2026 2025 2024

2023 2021-21 2016 FOUNDED THE HOW FOUNDATION

HEALTH CARE INITIATIVES

WIGWE UNIVERSITY

Wigwe University granted operating licence

FEBRUARY 2024 Dr. Wigwe, wife Chizoba, son Chizi & friend Abimbola Ogunbanjo lost thier lives in helicopter accident

ACTIVE INITIATIVES 2024 - 2025

2024: Wigwe University opens; first cohort of 108 students 2025: Student body grows to 275 with 4 colleges

1,000+ men registered to be screened (PSA campaign) Fearless Leadership Series launched with Tara Fela-Durotoye Wigwe Venture Lab live

Adopted 25 primary healthcare centres across Rivers State

Launched education initiatives Maroko, Slum2School & Almajiri .

Launched medical Scholarships for training doctors

His Legacy Lives on (1966 - 2026)

THE FUTURE

Expand Wigwe University with new colleges Scale the Fearless Leadership Series Launch additional youth entrepreneurship initiatives Scale the PSA campaign nationally

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SHOWBIZ

Ferdinand Ekechukwu- 08035011394 Email: ferdi_adthisday@yahoo.com

Peter Okoye’s Solo Career Gains Momentum as P-Square Family Feud Resurfaces

Stories by Ferdinand Ekechukwu

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igerian singer Peter Okoye, formerly of P-Square music group, has been in the news cycle lately for airing a series of escalating allegations against his other brothers, his twin Paul Okoye aka Rude Boy, elder brother and music executive, former manager, Jude Okoye, accusing the latter of financial misconduct tied to the group’s earnings. Jude has however denied the claims.

For years, fans have watched the famous twins, Peter and Paul Okoye, exchange subtle jabs online without directly addressing the issues that divided them. Peter who goes with the moniker Mr. P, without mincing words on the long-running PSquare family feud which once again took social media, releasing an eight-part video detailing his account of P-Square’s history.

In the series, Peter made mention of his relationship with his brothers and the treatment of his wife, Lola Omotayo-Okoye, and their son. Jude and Paul have disputed some of his claims and presented their own accounts of the disagreements. The public fallout has kept the Okoye family trending, and some fans, watching Mr. P release new music and content in the middle of it.

Questions arose considering the timing, with a handful of comments accusing him of trying to draw attention to his solo career while his family’s issues dominate headlines. While “Mr. P” recorded significant growth across his music, social media and fashion platforms amid a wave of public support over the renewed P-Square family feud.

His new single ‘I Love You Because’ ahead of his upcoming album, OG Forever, fans described as underwhelming, with some questioning

the singer’s recent musical output. The song itself was released on August 7 as part of the buildup to his upcoming album. The official music video, featuring Nollywood actors Stan Nze and Blessing Nze, followed days later.

Prompting a fresh wave of commentary once Mr. P shared the video announcement on X with a simple caption asking fans for their thoughts, which elicited mixed reactions and comments. Mr. P has not directly addressed the criticism of the song itself. He has, however, previously pushed back against unrelated backlash this year, including comments questioning his age and relevance as an artist, arguing that similar behaviour from older international stars rarely draws the same level of scrutiny.

For years, fans have watched the famous twins, Peter and Paul Okoye, exchange subtle jabs online without directly addressing the issues that divided them. His recently released song, “I Can’t Look Away”, has also been viewed 3.7 million times on YouTube. On Spotify, Album Talks announced on its social media pages on Sunday that Mr P had reached 500,000 monthly listeners for the first time in his solo career.

The wave of attention has also extended to Zipp Republic, the lifestyle and street wear brand founded by Mr P. The singer said on X on Sunday that nearly 3,000 units of the red ZR snapback cap he has worn during his ongoing tell-all series were sold within seven days. The 44-year-old singer has crossed one million subscribers on YouTube, surpassed 500,000 monthly listeners on Spotify for the first time in his solo career, and said nearly 3,000 units of his Red ZR cap were sold within seven days.

“Guys, we honestly didn’t see this coming. Almost 3,000 Red ZR CAPS sold in the last 7 days, and more orders are still pouring in every second, ZippRepublic. “We are overwhelmed with orders right now, so please be a little patient with us. We promise every single order will be delivered asap,” he wrote. Peter and Paul formed P-Square.

Peter Okoye

Expectations High as Funke Akindele Sets Another December Film ReleaseTitled ‘The Four’

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Funke Akindele

ollywood actress and filmmaker, Funke Akindele is set to return to cinemas later this year with a starstudded cast of her latest feature, The Four: No One Fights Alone. The film follows three successive December releases that have strengthened Akindele’s position as one of Nigeria’s most commercially successful filmmaker.

Scheduled to hit cinemas December 11, 2026, ‘The Four’ is a drama about friendship, motherhood, love, sacrifice and resilience. It tells the story of Esosa and three women who come together to fight for the future of a young man they care about. Their journey tests their friendship, courage and loyalty.

The Four’ also explores themes of hope, sacrifice and unity, while incorporating music, fashion, language and tradition to reflect aspects of Nigeria’s cultural identity. It comes after another

successful year for Akindele, who has become one of the leading names in Nigerian cinema.

Remarkably, Akindele has continued to prove herself as one of Nigeria’s biggest filmmakers, with several successful movies in recent years.

Her latest projects have helped made her one of the leading forces in Nollywood and one of the industry’s biggest box-office names.

Akindele’s latest film brings together some powerful names in Nigerian movie, and music, including Akindele herself as usual in the lead role, Antar Laniyan, Bisola Aiyeola, Chioma Akpotha, Richard Mofe-Damijo (RMD), Timini Egbuson, Lateef Adedimeji, Ali Nuhu, Uzor Arukwe, Ronke Oshodi Oke, and Wunmi Toriola.

The cast also features singer Waje, Afrobeats artiste Shoday, and entertainment personalities, Omotunde Adebowale David (Lolo 1), Samuel Banks, Kolapo Omotosho and Mide of BBNaija.

Akindele, who wrote, directed and produced the film, said the feature explores the relationships that shape people’s lives.

With this project, expectations are already high for Akindele who is renowned for creating culturally resonant stories with mass audience appeal. Akindele, who has in recent years kept a strong run of yearly movie releases, has produced and directed blockbusters, including Omo Ghetto: The Saga.

In 2022, she released Battle on Buka Street, which became a major box-office hit. In 2023, she followed it with A Tribe Called Judah, which broke more box-office records. In 2024, she released Everybody Loves Jenifa, bringing back the popular Jenifa character. In 2025, she continued the run with Behind the Scenes.

Akindele, who wrote, directed and produced the film, said it explores the relationships that shape people’s lives. “With The Four, we are exploring the relationships that shape us, challenge us and stay with us.” The upcoming production will test Akindele’s strength to sustain the momentum of her recent December releases and extend a run that has repeatedly made cinema records.

Ride With Me Seeks to Improve Entertainment BAP Productions’ ‘DEAR KAFFY’ Sells Out London Run, Earns Critical Acclaim Services Through Integrated Logistics

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Nigerian mobility and travel services company, Ride With Me Logistics, has unveiled plans to tackle longstanding transportation and logistics challenges affecting the country’s tourism, travel, entertainment and corporate sectors through an integrated service model designed to deliver seamless travel experiences.

Founder of the company, Samuel Isong, said it was established after years of witnessing how unreliable transportation disrupted events, business engagements and tourism activities, particularly during his time in artist management. “Ride With Me was born from experience,” Isong said, explaining that his work in the entertainment industry exposed him to recurring logistical failures.

“For years, I watched artists miss sound checks because transportation fell through. I saw executives struggle to coordinate airport pickups, tourists unsure who to trust, and event organisers managing five or six different vendors just to move people from one place to another,” he said. According to him, those experiences revealed a broader structural problem.

To address these challenges, the company has expanded beyond transportation to provide integrated services covering tourism, flight bookings, tours and travel, concerts and event logistics. Explaining the strategy behind the expansion, Isong said customers do not view travel as separate industries but expect

one coordinated experience.

Speaking on the company’s all-in-one “360 Package”, Isong argued that uncertainty, rather than transportation itself, remains the greatest obstacle for travellers and event organisers. “Growing from a local setup into a multi-city transport network across Nigeria was a massive battle,” he said. “The team had to deal with tough interstate roads, unforeseen delays, and the stress of keeping the exact same high standard across 25+ states. There were days the road tested everything we had.”

Samuel Isong

Oluchi Chibuzor

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AP Productions’ London staging of Dear Kaffy – Diary of a Single Woman in Lagos has closed to strong acclaim, with full houses at every performance and positive reviews from audiences, critics, and theatre enthusiasts.

The production which ran from August 7th to 9th at the Shaw Theatre, Euston Road, London, introduced the energy, humour, and storytelling of Nigerian theatre to London audiences, resonating with both the Nigerian diaspora and the wider theatre community.

According to a statement, across the run, audiences responded with consistent enthusiasm, marked by laughter, applause, and standing ovations. It revealed that critics and theatre observers praised the production’s quality, performances, and storytelling, noting its ability to present a distinctly Nigerian narrative in a way that felt accessible and engaging to London audiences.

“A key outcome of the run was growing demand for more Nigerian theatre in the UK. Audience members and theatre stakeholders have called on BAP Productions to return to London every summer with a new production, effectively proposing an annual BAP Productions theatre season in London.

“The success of Dear Kaffy reflects increasing international appetite for African stories and high-quality African stage productions. For BAP Productions, the London engagement reinforces its broader mission of

bringing Nigerian stories, talent, and productions to global audiences.

“The production was made possible with the sponsorship from Access Bank UK and with partners including Bank of America, Nigerian-British Chamber of Commerce, Bank of Industry, Channels TV, WimBiz, Lagos Mums, Beat FM, Molly Africa, Africa Movie Channel, Heavy wind media, university of Westminster, and Bridge Clinic, whose contributions helped bring the production to the international stage,” it added.

1948

W H A T M A D E

SO SPECIAL?

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In geopolitics

The Cold War was taking shape. Berlin became a major point of confrontation between East and West, Soviet influence deepened across Eastern Europe and Korea was divided into rival states.

1948 was a year that changed the world.

Across continents, history was moving at extraordinary speed.

In human rights

The world took two historic steps within just 24 hours ; adopting the Genocide Convention and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, two documents that would redefine the global conversation around dignity, freedom and justice.

In science and technology the future was beginning to reveal itself. The Manchester Baby ran a stored computer program, the transistor emerged as a revolutionary breakthrough, and the Hale Telescope expanded humanity’s view of the universe.

Building Communities. Empowering Lives.

In the Middle East

The creation of the State of Israel, the Arab–Israeli War and the displacement of Palestinians reshaped the region and created consequences that remain central to world affairs today.

In global health The World Health Organization — WHO — was established, creating a new international framework for protecting human health.

But while the world was witnessing the birth of new institutions, new technologies and a new geopolitical order, Nigeria was also welcoming a new life.

A child was born who would one day become a medical doctor, a political leader, a two-term Governor of Rivers State and a major figure in Nigeria’s democratic history.

That child was

Dr. Peter Odili.

...as the world was making history ; a Nigerian who would later help shape history had just arrived.

Happy 78th Birthday Sir

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MEMORABLE MILESTONES

Dosu Joseph Reflects on Atlanta Gold to Heartbreak, Healing

Nigeria’s debut at the World Cup in 1994 in the United States, where the country was ranked the fifth-best team in the world by FIFA rankings prior to the tournament, is still regarded as one of the country’s greatest football milestones. Notwithstanding these achievements, former Super Eagles goalkeeper, Dosu Joseph believes that winning the gold medal at the Atlanta Olympics remains the greatest moment in Nigeria’s football history. Here, he recounts his 10 most memorable milestones to Kunle Adewale

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Fulfilling the late Coach Joseph Erico’s prediction I fulfilled Coach Joseph Erico’s prediction that I would one day be in goal for the national team. My brother was a goalkeeper, and I used to watch him train alongside Alloy Agu because we grew up in the same area. I used to be their ball boy. I grew up under the guidance of Joe Erico, and he prophesied that I would one day play for Nigeria. The first time I stood in goal for the Super Eagles, I remembered his prediction. The rest is history.

visit every morning, but she refused, saying she preferred to stay by my side rather than waste money.

6) The unforgettable victory over Argentina I will always look back on our victory over Argentina with intense nostalgia. I felt incredibly proud to be an African.

We felt like we could reign as champions forever. When we arrived back in Nigeria, the atmosphere was unforgettable.

Thousands of people lined the streets to welcome us at the airport. It felt as though that moment should last forever, but all celebrations must eventually come to an end.

7) Helping Julius Berger win the FA Cup The FA Cup was a massive competition in our playing days, and the winners were highly respected. I helped Julius Berger win the Nigerian FA Cup in 1996 by keeping a clean sheet in the final against Katsina United.

2) Defying the odds to play in Italy During that era, most of my contemporaries chose to play in Belgium, which was then the Mecca for Nigerian footballers. However, I elected to ply my trade in the Italian Serie A—a league not only famous for its defensive tactics but also one that boasted great goalkeepers. Despite the competition, I was able to command a regular starting shirt with my club, Reggiana.

3) The golden moment in Atlanta I will never forget the 1996 Atlanta Olympic Games.

Winning the gold medal in the football event was the golden moment of Nigerian sports. While Nigeria boasted a lot of talented players during the 1994 World Cup, I do not really see what that team achieved.

Our feat in Atlanta was the best achievement ever by any of our national teams. The Olympics is second only to the World Cup on FIFA’s calendar, and Nigeria was the first African country to win it. That is no small achievement by any standard.

4) The tragic car accident that cut short my career Shortly after our Olympic victory, I was involved in a horrific automobile accident on Ikorodu Road in Lagos. It was an unfortunate tragedy that prematurely ended my football career.

5) Marrying a supportive wife Marrying a very supportive wife remains the most memorable

8) Rising from underdog to first-choice Olympic goalkeeper I was the only home-based player included in Nigeria’s 1996 Olympic squad. Despite being the least experienced of the three goalkeepers, I ended up as the team’s first choice, which was highly unusual. Ahead of our first game against Hungary, I still did not believe I would start. Coach Jo Bonfrère announced the names of the ten outfield players but omitted the goalkeeper.

Later, he simply said, ‘Dosu Joseph in goal.’ I did not expect it, and football fans back home did not expect it either.

Joseph event of my life. Were it not for her, I might never have walked again; she is everything to me. After the accident, people said all sorts of things: ‘He can’t walk again,’ ‘He is finished,’ and ‘He will be in a wheelchair for life.’ A different woman might have packed her bags and left me to my fate, which would have completely demoralised me and perhaps stopped my recovery.

Instead, she stood by me throughout my predicament and rehabilitation. She was right there with me in the hospital when my surgery was performed in Tallahassee. She even slept on the floor just to give me comfort. I urged her to sleep in a hotel and

9) Establishing the Westerlo Football Academy Steering the Westerlo Football Academy into becoming one of Nigeria’s top clubs for producing elite stars is an enduring milestone in my life. We formed the academy in 2002, and we give glory to God for our growth.

Today, we are exactly where we want to be: consistently producing players for the local league, the national teams, and European clubs.

10) Fans marching with my pregnant wife An unforgettable moment occurred when ecstatic, passionate local fans stormed my family home in Lagos. In a frenzy of celebration over our Olympic achievement, they playfully dragged my eightmonth-pregnant wife out into the street to march alongside them in victory

Globacom at 23: The Indigenous Imagination That Rewired Nigeria’s Digital Destiny Louis Ibe

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here are companies that participate in history, and there are companies that alter its trajectory. At 23, Globacom belongs unmistakably to the latter category. Founded in August 2003 through the vision of Dr Mike Adenuga Jr., Globacom was never merely the entry of another telecommunications operator.

It represented something more consequential: the emergence of an indigenous proposition that a Nigerian enterprise could think at global scale, build to international standards, and remain deeply aligned with the aspirations, sensibilities, and realities of its people.

Over time, that proposition has acquired an almost philosophical resonance. Globacom’s journey has been one of enterprise, infrastructure, technology, and cultural imagination. Beneath these visible dimensions lies a more enduring idea: that Nigeria need not remain a passive observer of technological progress. It could be a participant, a builder, and, in certain instances, an architect of the future it seeks to inhabit. In an industry shaped by successive waves of innovation, investment, and competition, Globacom has established a durable institutional presence whose significance extends beyond the mechanics of telecommunications.

Some enterprises are built around market opportunity; others evolve into expressions of deeper conviction. Globacom’s story belongs to the latter tradition. Its defining question has never been merely how to provide connectivity, but what connectivity could enable for Nigeria.

That distinction has shaped its technological decisions, consumer philosophy, and its nuanced

understanding of the cultural environment in which a telecommunications brand must operate.

That conviction was evident from the outset.

Globacom’s introduction of per-second billing reshaped both the economics and psychology of mobile communication in Nigeria, challenging long-standing assumptions about consumer pricing.

In a market where the cost of communication had previously constrained access, the innovation made mobile telephony more transparent, accessible, and consumer-centric.

The company subsequently advanced through successive technological generations—from 2.5G at launch to 3G Plus and 4G LTE—reflecting an institutional disposition unwilling to treat technological limitation as destiny. The underlying message was clear: Nigeria need not wait for the future to be imported.

Then came Glo-1. In 2010, Globacom deployed a 9,800-kilometre fibre-optic submarine cable beneath the Atlantic, linking Nigeria and West Africa to Europe. Its significance extended beyond engineering achievement. It was symbolism expressed in fibre and steel—a tangible articulation of a national possibility.

Nigeria would not only consume global digital infrastructure; a Nigerian enterprise could actively participate in building it. Executed without foreign equity or consortium partners, the project remains one of the most compelling demonstrations of indigenous technological ambition in the country’s corporate history. Beneath the ocean, fibre transmitted data; above it, the project transmitted belief in national capability.

Yet Globacom’s indigenous imagination has never been confined to technology alone. From an early stage, it recognised that telecommunications

Adenuga brands do not exist solely in balance sheets, network architecture, or infrastructure assets. They also exist in culture. Musicians, actors, sports figures, and other national icons became more than brand ambassadors; they became channels through which the brand entered the emotional and cultural consciousness of Nigerians. In doing so, Globacom demonstrated a

critical understanding of its market: technology is not merely consumed; it is interpreted through culture, memory, aspiration, and identity.

Its engagement with African football, the Super Eagles, the Nigeria Football Federation, domestic leagues, and the Glo Soccer Academy extended this philosophy into sport. Its support for cultural institutions and festivals—including Ojude Oba, Ofala, and Lisabi—further reflected a broader understanding of connectivity. To connect a people is not only to enable communication between devices; it is to connect generations to memory, communities to identity, creativity to opportunity, and tradition to the future.

The widely celebrated $1 million reward to the victorious Super Eagles following their 2013 Africa Cup of Nations triumph belonged to the same continuum. It was corporate patronage, but also an expression of emotional citizenship: an acknowledgment that there are moments when national spirit converges around shared achievement, and that responsible enterprise can participate meaningfully in such moments.

This helps explain why describing Globacom simply as “the Nigerian network” is both accurate and incomplete. It is accurate because the company emerged from an indigenous conception of the telecommunications opportunity and has consistently interpreted the Nigerian market from within.

It is incomplete because its ambition has never been limited to national identity alone. Rather, it has sought to demonstrate that Nigerian origin can coexist with technological sophistication, international scale, continental relevance, and cultural confidence.

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AUTOWORLD

Bennett Oghifo

• 07052343083 •Email: benett.oghifo@thisdaylive.com

Metropolitan Electric Unveils Six-point Roadmap to Mass Adoption of EVs

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igeria must move beyond policy announcements and urgently implement a coordinated six-point roadmap to turn growing interest in electric vehicles into mass adoption, Metropolitan Electric Limited has said.

The company’s Chief Executive Officer, Olugbenga Obadina, made the call during a his presentation at the 3rd Nigeria Auto Industry Summit, organised by the Nigeria Auto Journalists Association (NAJA) in conjunction with the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) in Lagos.

Obadina said Nigeria had reached a critical turning point in the transition to electric mobility, arguing that the immediate challenge was no longer the formulation of policies but their coordinated execution across government agencies.

According to him, the country has already put several building blocks for EV adoption in place, including the National Automotive Industry Development Plan (NAIDP) 2023–2033, which targets a 30 per cent local EV production share and 40 per cent local content.

He also cited the zero-rating of VAT on EVs and semi-knocked-down assembly parts under the Nigeria Tax Act 2025, reported reduction of EV import duty from five per cent to zero under the 2026 Fiscal Policy Measures, as well as government initiatives covering EV procurement, charging infrastructure, standards, recycling and skills development.

But Obadina warned that these measures would

Obadina not automatically translate into a functioning mass market unless government agencies work together to reduce the uncertainty and costs confronting operators and investors.

“The policy pieces are largely in place. What is needed now is to connect them, with coordination and execution across agencies,” he said.

He noted that inconsistent tariffs, customs-related delays and demurrage costs could undermine investment in the sector, stressing that investors needed predictable rules, long-term naira financing, clear charging permits and tariffs, as well as

measurable local-content requirements.

“Investors price execution certainty, not policy intention,” he said.

Six-point EV Compact To transform the current momentum into mass adoption, Metropolitan Electric proposed what it described as a six-move “Nigeria EV Compact.”

The first is the publication of a stable 10-year EV roadmap under a single coordinating body with sufficient authority to align the activities of relevant government agencies.

The second is the creation of anchor demand through progressively higher EV procurement quotas for government fleets and public transportation.

The company’s third recommendation is to “finance kilometres, not cars” through a nairadenominated green-mobility facility, credit guarantees and multi-year leasing arrangements.

It also called for charging infrastructure to be treated as regulated infrastructure, with standardised permits, service levels and transparent tariffs.

The fifth recommendation is for Nigeria to pursue performance-based localisation, with incentives tied not merely to vehicle assembly but to production, quality, jobs, components, research and development and exports.

Finally, the company urged government and industry stakeholders to build consumer and investor confidence through technician certification, transparent warranty disclosure, battery-health standards and clear end-of-life rules for batteries.

Obadina said the objective should not be to sustain EV adoption through permanent subsidies, but to create a market capable of attracting finance, supporting local production and eventually competing without extraordinary government support.

“The objective is not permanent subsidy. It is a bankable market that scales, localises and eventually competes,” he said.

Put fleets before private cars Rather than attempting to replicate the privatecar-led EV transition seen in wealthier countries, Obadina advised Nigeria to start with vehicles that clock high daily mileage.

ABC Transport Secures Abia Approval for New City Transit Inn in Aba

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ity Transit Inn (CTI), the hospitality arm of ABC Transport Plc, is expanding its footprint across Nigeria with plans to establish a new hotel in Aba, Abia State, following approval from the Abia State Government for the development.

The planned Aba hotel represents the next phase of CTI’s growth strategy as it seeks to establish a stronger presence in key commercial centres across Nigeria and provide travellers, business visitors and other customers with affordable, safe and quality accommodation.

The new facility is expected to feature air-conditioned rooms with private showers, uninterrupted power supply, complimentary internet access and a comfortable environment, reinforcing CTI’s commitment to providing decent and accessible accommodation while delivering value to its customers.

The decision to expand into Aba reflects the city’s growing commercial and business activity, supported by improvements in infrastructure, including road connectivity and power supply, in recent years.

As one of southeastern Nigeria’s important

budget-friendly hotel owned and operated by ABC Transport since 2001.

Located in the Federal Capital Territory, CTI Abuja has provided travellers and visitors with affordable, decent and safe accommodation, enabling guests to maximise their budgets for experiences, dining and other activities.

The experience gained from operating CTI Abuja provides a strong foundation for the brand’s expansion into other commercial centres, with the Aba project marking an important step in the next phase of its growth.

Provide CNG Buses for MDAs, Civil Servants, Atoyebi Urges Tinubu

ABC Transport coach commercial centres, Aba presents a strategic opportunity for City Transit Inn to serve an expanding base of business travellers, visitors and other customers while complementing ABC Transport’s existing transportation and logistics operations in the region.

The Aba development is part of a broader hospitality expansion programme, with Port Harcourt and Lagos also identified as potential locations for future City Transit Inn facilities.

The expansion into Aba builds on the experience of City Transit Inn Abuja, a 113-room

FRSC Zone RS 8 Benefits from Corps Marshal’s Repositioning Training Initiative

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n a bid to improve effective service delivery amongst the Marshal Cadre (non-commissioned officers) of the Federal Road Safety Corps nationwide, these set of officers have been exposed to a Repositioning training at the RS 8 Command compromising Ekiti, Kogi and Kwara states.

The Repositioning training which held at the headquarters of the Zone in Ilorin, Kwara state, was conducted by Deputy Corps Marshal Joshua Fanola (Rtd.), while the Corps Marshal address was read by the Zonal Commanding Officer (ZCO) for the three states, Assistant Corps Marshal Ann Oladayo.

The professional repositioning training programme is also part of efforts to improve operational efficiency, professionalism and service delivery in FRSC operations across the country.

The Corps Marshal, Shehu Mohammed, said the initiative, themed “Repositioning Marshals for Effective Service Delivery,” is a strategic investment aimed at strengthening the capacity, discipline and competence of frontline personnel.

L-R: DCC Hakeem Abejide, representing the Sector Commander, Kwara State; DCM Joshua Fanola Rtd; ACM Ann Oladayo, Zonal Commanding Officer Zone 8 covering Kwara, Ekiti and Kogi states; and CC Celestine Anzewu, at a repositioning training in Ilorin, Kwara State... recently Mohammed described the training as a in road traffic crashes.

He noted that Marshals are the most visible critical step towards achieving the Corps’ 2026 Corporate Strategic Goals, which focus representatives of the Corps and that public on operational excellence, institutional integrity, confidence in the FRSC largely depends on digital transformation and a sustained reduction their professionalism and conduct.

Comrade Bamidele Atoyebi, convener of the Bola Ahmed Tinubu Ideological Group (BAT-IG) has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to urgently provide Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) buses for federal ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) as part of measures to reduce the rising cost of transportation and ease the economic burden on civil servants.

Atoyebi made the call following a series of encounters with federal workers in Abuja, which he said exposed the severity of transportation challenges facing civil servants despite their regular salaries.

According to him, the experience began on Wednesday, August 12, 2026, when he visited the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to obtain a licence for an upcoming media and podcast studio.

Atoyebi said that while at the NBC, he met staff members who complained that transportation costs were consuming a significant portion of their salaries. One of them, lived in Kuje, where the cost of commuting to work had become increasingly difficult to bear.

He said another staff member, an Assistant Director, also disclosed that although she owned a car, the cost of fuel had made it difficult for her to drive to work.

The complaints prompted Atoyebi to propose that CNG buses be provided for NBC workers, initially focusing on junior staff and subsequently extending the initiative to senior employees.

He said he instructed his staff to prepare a letter to the Executive Chairman of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, Ismail Ahmed, seeking the provision of CNG buses for NBC workers from managerial level and below.

T H I S D AY, T h e sat u r day N e w s pa p e r A U G U S T 15, 2026

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PERSPECTIVE

Why Air Peace? The Selective Targeting of Nigeria’s Largest Airline Fred Chukwuelobe

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hy Air Peace? That is the question Nigerians must ask following the decision by aviation industry unions to picket and disrupt the operations of Nigeria’s largest airline in Lagos and Abuja.

This is not the first time Air Peace has found itself at the receiving end of what appears to be disproportionate industrial action. A few years ago, when the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) was engaged in a dispute with the Imo State Government, Air Peace was also picketed despite having nothing to do with the dispute.

So, what is different this time? And why does Air Peace repeatedly appear to become the target?

The unions have advanced two principal reasons for the latest action: the alleged refusal of Air Peace workers to join the unions and an alleged debt owed the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) by all the airlines in respect of the five per cent Ticket Sales Charge (TSC).

On the alleged debt, the Director-General of the NCAA, Captain Chris Najomo, reportedly said the regulator and all the airlines under the Airlines Operators of Nigeria (AON) had reached an agreement for the settlement of the outstanding owed by all the airlines. If such an agreement exists and the airlines are complying with it, why has the matter suddenly become grounds for industrial action against Air Peace?

Records obtained indicate that the airline has paid billions in Ticket Charges last year and several billions this year and is still paying. It also paid several millions in other charges during the period and so far this year. As the country’s largest airline, Air Peace naturally pays more in statutory charges because of its size and operations.

If the dispute is between a regulator and an airline over payment obligations, when did aviation unions become debt-collection agents for the NCAA? The situation becomes even more curious when union officials are heard telling Air Peace passengers to “go and buy tickets from other airlines” and “leave Air Peace.”

That is not the language of neutral industrial action. It raises the legitimate question of whether something beyond workers’ rights is driving the campaign.

The second justification - that Air Peace workers must join the unions - is even more troubling. Workers have a constitutional right to freedom of association. Union membership should not be imposed on employees against their will.

Air Peace workers say they have enjoyed cordial relations with management for about 12 years and have regularly received salaries, promotions, healthcare benefits, allowances and other entitlements. They cite, among other benefits, travel privileges for themselves and family members.

One of their leaders, Comrade Aminu Suleiman, put the position bluntly: “We can choose to join or not. It’s not by force.”

Onyema Trade unions have historically played an important and legitimate role in protecting workers, negotiating better conditions and defending labour rights. I covered organised labour as a labour correspondent during my years in journalism and witnessed both the positive contributions of unions and instances of abuse and mismanagement of union funds.

But the legitimate role of trade unions does not include forcing satisfied workers into membership simply because their numbers would increase union revenue or influence.

That is where the current dispute becomes troubling, and questions need to be asked about the motives of the unions.

Air Peace is one of the biggest employers in Nigeria’s aviation industry. Bringing its workforce into the fold of organised labour would undoubtedly increase union revenue through compulsory

deductions from workers’ salaries. That may be the unions’ objective, but it cannot justify coercion or the targeting of the airline.

And if the real issue is union membership, why only Air Peace?

Other airlines also have workers who are not members of these unions. Why were their operations not similarly disrupted?

If the issue is the alleged NCAA debt, why should passengers and workers be punished for a financial matter between a regulator and an airline?

Even more disturbing are allegations that some Air Peace workers were physically assaulted during the picketing. If established, such conduct must be condemned unequivocally.

A picket is not a licence for violence. Industrial action is a legitimate instrument of negotiation and pressure. It does not confer on union members the right to assault workers, intimidate passengers or prevent people from exercising their lawful right to work.

The consequences of the action extend far beyond Air Peace.

Passengers were stranded. Flights were disrupted. Airports were thrown into confusion. Businesses suffered losses, while families were left scrambling to reorganise travel plans.

These are not abstract statistics. They are real people bearing the cost of an industrial dispute in which they have no stake.

Responsible industrial action should minimise unnecessary hardship to the public while putting pressure on the employer or institution concerned if they have genuine reasons to do so and not this contrived grievance.

I witnessed this during a railway workers’ strike in London last April. The strike affected services, but operations were managed in a way that allowed some services to continue. The objective was to exert pressure without unnecessarily paralysing the entire system.

Nigeria must develop the same culture of responsible industrial relations. The ability to cause maximum disruption should not be mistaken for the strength of a union. Air Peace is not above the law.

If the airline violates any law or regulation, it should face appropriate sanctions through due process. But regulation must be impartial, and enforcement must not become selective.

No airline should receive preferential treatment. Equally, no airline should be selectively targeted.

That is why the government should investigate the circumstances surrounding the latest industrial action, including the allegations of assault, the basis for targeting Air Peace and whether the unions acted within the law.

Most importantly, the aviation unions owe Nigerians an explanation for targeting only Air Peace.

If Air Peace workers did not invite you, if the NCAA has an agreement with the airlines, and if passengers certainly did not invite you, why did you choose to shut down Air Peace?

Who sent you? That question is not an attack on organised labour. It is a legitimate demand for accountability. Nigeria is already battling serious economic challenges.

Read full article online - www.thisdaylive.com

Re‑Ontologising Audit Profession Before the Next Crises Christian C. Ekeigwe

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ancy Kline’s insight in More Time to Think — that “the quality of everything we do depends on the quality of the thinking we do first” — has long resonated with many who, like those of us who have spent our careers inside the audit profession’s interior struggles, recognize its diagnostic power. The observation exposes a structural flaw at the center of many professions, including auditing.

For centuries, audit has been governed by a procedural ontology: the belief that assurance emerges from a choreography of verification, documentation, and mechanical compliance — an ontology that has historically directed more auditor time toward procedural choreography than toward audit intellection. Regulators have reinforced this worldview by generating a palimpsest of rules, checklists, templates, and documentation, assuming that procedural density produces audit quality.

A deep review of accounting and auditing literature shows that neither “intellection” nor the phrase “audit intellection” appears in the profession’s vocabulary, and even “thinking” is treated only as a behavioral skill rather than being instilled as an ontological foundation of audit. Yet avoidable audit failures

continue to multiply — the predictable consequence of a profession that has never named, cultivated, or centered intellection.

To arrest this drift toward audit failure, the profession must cultivate auditors’ intellection, skepticism, and conscience — cognitive‑moral capacities proceduralism cannot supply. Residual‑imperfection failures are inherent to audit — the irreducible limits of perception, interpretation, and judgment. They will always remain.

After decades in the audit profession — field work, boardrooms, audit rooms, and regulatory discussions — I reached an unmistakable conclusion: the profession rests on the wrong ontology. Audit is not procedural but a cognitive‑moral discipline. Unless it re‑ontologizes around thinking and conscience, the next crises will be more devastating. The accounting clerisy must redefine audit around the ontology of thinking so practice can rise into praxis.

The arrival of AI makes re‑ontologising audit urgent. AI introduces synthetic plausibility, machine‑mediated drift, opaque reasoning pathways, and adversarial manipulation — hazards that are cognitive, not procedural. It expands what auditors can see but not what they can understand. As Mark Zuckerberg noted in an August 10,

2026 Meta article, “the most important question will be how we direct it” — a reminder that human intellection, skepticism, and conscience must remain sovereign over machine exteriority.

Re‑ontologising audit is the decisive shift from a procedural ontology to a cognitive‑moral ontology. It replaces the inherited choreography of procedural steps with a truer conception of audit as a discipline of thinking and conscience.

Procedures remain important, but they belong to the mechanics of audit work; intellection belongs to its essence. And in an AI‑mediated world, only thinking can discern and govern systems that themselves do not think.

A re‑ontologised audit profession would train auditors to perceive, interpret, and interrogate — governed by intellection rather than procedure; protect slow, System 2 thinking, per Daniel Kahneman, for abductive reasoning; evaluate understanding rather than paperwork; and supervise AI as an epistemic actor to keep human interiority sovereign over machine exteriority. In such a profession, the interiority of the auditor becomes the decisive site of audit quality — the sensemaking and judgment through which practice is elevated into praxis.

The next audit crises will not arise because procedural steps were skipped or compliance forms were incomplete.

They will arise because auditors fail

in intellection — failing to perceive what matters, interpret what they see, resist persuasive narratives, sustain skepticism, or make sense of complexity. AI accelerates these collapses by fabricating coherence, fabricating plausibility, and producing opaque decision systems.

The emerging sensorial audit is an instrumented environment of telemetry, drift‑detection signals, provenance trails, and AI‑mediated control data — a machine exteriority that expands what auditors can see but not what those signals mean.

Saturated with signals, it requires human interiority for meaning‑making — the act that turns observability into understanding.

This sensorial environment will sit atop the palimpsest of inherited procedural routines — layers of legacy choreography familiar to every auditor. Without centered intellection, those routines will absorb sensorial signals into their old patterns, reproducing the same cognitive limits in a more technologically complex form.

The profession must recognize that thinking is the First Control — the control that governs all others.

But cognition alone is insufficient.

The mind can see, but only the

conscience can care. As Lynn Stout argued, conscience is “the cheapest police force one could hope for,” the internal moral architecture that turns rules from external constraints into internal commitments. Thus, the Dual First Control — thinking and conscience — becomes even more essential in an AI‑mediated world.

Audit cannot continue to depend on the ontology of proceduralism in a world this complex. Our generation must re‑ontologize audit now to strengthen the interior architecture of judgment, conscience, and intellection that the future generation will depend on.

The future of audit depends on the thinking auditor. Re‑ontologizing audit is therefore an existential imperative — and it must begin now, before the next crises arrive.

Audit is Trustworthy, Not Perfect.

Ekeigwe, FCA, CPA (Massachusetts), CISA, a global thought leader in accounting and auditing, is the Chairman of Audit Committee Institute, Founder of ISACA in Nigeria, and a Visionary at Audit is Trustworthy, a global advocacy for the accounting profession: info@ auditistrustworthy.org

T H I S D AY, T h e sat u r day N e w s pa p e r A U G U S T 15, 2026

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polity Dangote Refinery IPO: When Africa Begins to Own What It Builds Abiodun Alade

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here are moments when a company’s listing is more than a transaction. It becomes a statement about who gets to participate in wealth creation. The proposed public offering of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery & Petrochemicals could become one of those moments.

If completed as currently contemplated, the listing would rank among the largest capital market transactions Africa has ever seen. Recent reports indicate that the refinery is targeting an initial public offering of about $5 billion, potentially making it the largest IPO in African history, with the Nigerian Exchange as the primary listing venue. But the significance of the transaction goes beyond its size. The bigger story is ownership.

For decades, Africa’s greatest industrial assets have often been either state owned, foreign controlled or inaccessible to ordinary citizens. The Dangote Refinery IPO presents a different possibility: an African built industrial giant becoming an asset in which Africans can participate as investors. That is why this could become a people’s IPO. From consuming the refinery to owning a piece of it. The symbolism is powerful.

Millions of Nigerians have already experienced the refinery primarily as consumers. They buy its petrol. Businesses depend on its diesel. Airlines use its aviation fuel. Manufacturers consume its petrochemical products. Its operations influence transport costs, logistics, foreign exchange demand and the wider economy. The IPO potentially changes that relationship.

A Nigerian who buys shares would no longer be merely a customer of the refinery. He or she would become a shareholder.

That distinction matters. It changes the psychological distance between the ordinary citizen and the industrial economy.

The refinery ceases to be something that Nigerians simply see on the skyline of Lagos or encounter at the filling station. It becomes something they can potentially own, participate in and benefit from through the capital market. This is the deeper meaning of democratising wealth. It is not simply about making people richer overnight. It is about widening access to the ownership of productive assets.

A scale the African market has rarely seen. The numbers are extraordinary. The proposed transaction could raise around $5 billion, several times the previous record Nigerian IPO, MTN Nigeria’s approximately $876 million offering in 2019. Its potential impact on Nigeria’s capital market is equally significant.

Economist Bismarck Rewane has estimated that, under a scenario in which the IPO brings genuinely new capital into

the market, the Nigerian Exchange’s market capitalisation could rise from around N161 trillion to N236 trillion. That is not simply another stock-market statistic. It would represent a substantial expansion of the investable Nigerian economy. And it could force global investors to reconsider the depth and sophistication of Africa’s capital markets.

The idea of ordinary Africans owning a piece of Dangote’s industrial empire is not entirely new. Dangote Cement has been publicly traded on the Nigerian Exchange since 2010 and has become one of the most important companies on the exchange. Dangote Sugar Refinery and Dangote Agro allied businesses have similarly demonstrated how private industrial enterprises can transition into publicly owned companies.

The refinery therefore enters a capital-market ecosystem in which the Dangote name is already familiar to millions of Nigerian investors.

But the refinery is different in scale and strategic importance. This is not simply another manufacturing company.

It is an energy and industrial platform with consequences for Nigeria’s balance of payments, fuel security, regional trade and manufacturing capacity. It is an asset built to change the economics of an entire sector.

And opening part of its ownership to the public would represent another kind of transformation: from industrialisation to financial inclusion. A people’s movement, not merely a public offer.

There are indications that the transaction is being designed with significant retail participation in mind, including efforts to make access available through digital channels and fintech platforms. Reports have suggested the use of POS terminals, mobile technology and other distribution channels to reach investors beyond traditional brokerage networks.

That matters enormously in a country where millions of people have historically regarded the stock market as an arena reserved for wealthy investors and financial professionals.

The technology can change that. A market once accessed through brokerage offices and paper forms can increasingly be reached through a mobile phone. If the final offer structure provides a genuinely accessible minimum subscription, the IPO could become one of the largest exercises in financial participation ever undertaken in Nigeria.

A trader in Kano. A teacher in Enugu. A civil servant in Abuja.

A young professional in Lagos. A Nigerian entrepreneur in Port Harcourt. A member of the diaspora in London, Johannesburg or Toronto. All could potentially sit on the same shareholder register.

The significance is not that everyone will become wealthy. The significance is that more people could become owners.

There is an even deeper economic logic. Aliko Dangote built the refinery with private capital and enormous entrepreneurial risk.

The proposed IPO would represent a transition from concentrated

L-R: Executive Secretary/CEO, Lagos State Security Trust Fund, LSSTF, Dr. Ayodele Ogunsan Presenting a Souvenir to the Consul General, People’s Republic of China, Yan Yuqing during LSSTF’s ES/CEO, Ogunsan’s courtesy visits to the Consul General on diplomatic donations to the fund at the Consul in Victoria Island, Lagos.....recently

L-R: Secretary, Shoreline Developers Association of Lagos, Kingsley Agbamuyin; President, Lai Omotola; Publicity Secretary, Ojieh Ernest and Head Legal, Kumuyi Olusegun, during the inaugural briefing of the association with press men, in Lagos...recently

Dangote

ownership towards broader participation in the value created by the asset. That is a natural evolution of successful capitalism.

Entrepreneurs build. Institutions finance. Markets distribute ownership. Citizens participate. And productive assets become part of the wider economy.

The process is particularly important in Africa, where the continent’s enormous wealth creation has not always translated into broad asset ownership. Africa has resources. Africa has consumers. Africa has entrepreneurs. What it has often lacked is sufficiently deep domestic pools of capital capable of owning and financing the businesses that will define its future. The Dangote Refinery IPO could help address that gap.

The refinery does not need the IPO simply to prove that it can attract money. It has already attracted extraordinary amounts of capital. The proposed listing is about what happens next. Recent reports indicate that the transaction could raise approximately $5 billion to support expansion of the refinery and broader growth ambitions, including increasing refining capacity towards 1.4 million barrels per day and supporting the planned East African expansion. That means public investors would potentially not simply be buying into yesterday’s refinery. They could be buying into tomorrow’s African energy platform.

The investment thesis is therefore not merely about petrol. It is about refining, petrochemicals, aviation fuel, polypropylene, regional energy security, exports, logistics and the industrial ecosystems that develop around large scale production.

L-R; Permanent Secretary Ministry of Economic Planning and Budget Lagos State, Modupe Ojo; Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Babatunde Onigbanjo; Special Adviser to the Governor on Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) Dr. Oreoluwa Finnih; Permanent Secretary Office of the SDGs, Mrs. Kaphayah Sarumi, and Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Physical Planning and Urban Development, Wasiu Olayinka during the dissemination and Launch of Lagos State Second Voluntary Local Review held in Lagos…. recently

L-R: Vice President, MTN MIP Cohort 5, David Eluemunoh; Strategy Partner Manager, Google, Onyinyechi “Nini” Eze; Course Director, MTN MIP, Dr. Chike Mgbadichie; Class President, MTN MIP Cohort 5, Veronica Dan-Ikpoyi during the MIP Session with Google held at the Pan-Atlantic University, Lagos...recently

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T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r • AUGUST 15, 2026

PeOpLe Nebolisa Arah at 75: Celebrating Legacy of Integrity, Leadership Twenty-three years after leaving Fidelity Bank, its pioneer Managing Director, Nebolisa Arah, continues to inspire banking leaders shaped by his integrity, humility and accountability. At his 75th birthday thanksgiving in Lagos, former colleagues and associates celebrated his contributions to Fidelity and enduring mentorship, writes Sunday Ehigiator

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wenty-three years after leaving the Managing Director’s office at Fidelity Bank, Nebolisa Arah returned to the company of many of the professionals he once led, only to discover that time had done little to diminish his influence.

At 75, Arah was celebrated not merely as the pioneer Managing Director of Fidelity Bank, but as a mentor whose former colleagues credit with shaping their careers and instilling values that have endured across generations of bankers.

The August 8, 2026 thanksgiving and reception in Lagos, attended by bankers, lawyers, politicians, statesmen, family members, friends and associates, was therefore less a birthday party than a celebration of a leadership legacy built on integrity, humility, accountability and mentorship.

Arah’s career route Arah’s route to banking was not a conventional one. Born on August 8, 1951, in Port Harcourt to Akunwata David Okwudi and Mrs. Lily Obiamaka Arah, he attended schools in Port Harcourt, Victoria in Cameroon, Onitsha and Lagos before completing his secondary education at Government Secondary School, Owerri.

He proceeded to the University of Ibadan, where he obtained a Bachelor of Science degree in Agricultural Economics.

In 1976, he travelled to the United States for further studies at Ohio State University, Columbus, earning an MSc in Agricultural Economics and an MBA in Finance.

His first professional experience was outside banking. From July 1977 to August 1978, he worked as a Brand Marketing Trainee at Lever Brothers Nigeria Limited. He joined International Merchant Bank Limited in March 1981 and rose from Analyst to Senior Manager before leaving in August 1988.

Two months later, he took up the position of General Manager/Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Fidelity Union Merchant Bank Limited, which later became Fidelity Bank Plc. He remained there until December 2003, making him the institution’s pioneer Managing Director and one of the central figures in its early development.

But Arah’s career did not end with Fidelity.

Between 2004 and 2005, he served as an independent director in two commercial banks and worked as a merger consultant to five banks.

He subsequently founded AGL and LDL before returning to executive banking as Managing Director and CEO of Afribank Nigeria Plc from 2009 to 2011.

He also served as Chairman of Afribank International in Dublin, Ireland, and sat on the boards of several financial institutions, including Consolidated Discounts Limited, Trustfund Nigeria Plc and Nigeria Interbank Settlement System.

Celebrating Enduring Legacy Amongst the numerous persons he inspired was the Managing Director of FSDH Merchant Bank and Chairperson of the Planning Committee, Bukola Smith.

For her, the decision to honour Arah was deliberate: His former colleagues wanted to celebrate the man while he could still see the impact of his work.

She added: “As the pioneer MD of Fidelity Bank, he was one person who stood on integrity; he was forthright, and he was a very humble person. So that legacy is what we are celebrating today as we remember him.”

For Smith and the alumni of the bank’s pioneer management team, Arah’s story was a reminder that the most enduring form of leadership was

not the power attached to an office, but the people left better because of one’s stewardship.

“We feel that it is best to honour somebody while they are still alive rather than waiting for when they pass on,” Smith said.

That philosophy was particularly significant given that Arah had faced health challenges in the preceding two years.

“For us, it was a thanksgiving service to celebrate the man who we love, the man who stands for a lot of things for a number of us in the banking industry today,” she said.

The occasion also became a reunion of professionals who had started their banking careers under Arah and subsequently spread across Nigeria’s financial services industry.

Smith explained that the gathering was not the first time the alumni had celebrated their former boss.

“He exited the bank 23 years ago. When he turned 70, he had a book launch, and there was also a service where the alumni, the association, came together. So we had a big party for him at 70.

“But since 70, five years ago, we haven’t had anything. So, because he’s turned 75 now, not only to celebrate him but also as a means of reunion.

So that all the members that he nurtured, that he supervised as managing director, could come together and see themselves again.”

That reunion offered perhaps the clearest evidence of Arah’s influence. The professionals who once occupied offices under him have themselves risen through the ranks, taking leadership positions in banks and other institutions.

Yet, according to Smith, they still regard him as a mentor.

“Even though he left Fidelity Bank 23 years ago, there’s still a strong army that recognises him as a mentor who has deposited a lot in people’s lives. And that for me is a great legacy,” she said.

Smith revealed that the former MD had been particularly insistent that subsequent leaders of the institution should also be recognised.

“He’s very, very particular about that. He built, people have watered, and there should also be celebration for the other MDs that came,” she said.

That perspective was reflected in the decision to honour members of the alumni community who had turned 70 and above. Smith said the celebration was therefore not solely about Arah.

“Today, not only did we celebrate him, we celebrated those who had turned 70 and above amongst us. And those were people that were with him at the beginning. So those were also celebrated and given awards today.”

The gesture reinforced an important aspect of Arah’s leadership philosophy: institutions are built by people, and the contributions of those people should not be forgotten.

Tributes for the Celebrant President Bola Tinubu, in celebrating Arah’s 75th birthday, highlighted his contribution to Nigeria’s banking industry, describing him as a professional whose influence extended beyond Fidelity Bank.

According to the President, Arah laid “a foundation of integrity and professionalism” not only for Fidelity Bank but for the banking institution generally.

Tinubu also noted Arah’s influence on a generation of bankers and finance-sector practitioners His story is a lesson in the value of education as a lifelong journey.

The Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Achebe, in his remarks at the birthday celebration, extolled Arah’s integrity and traced their relationship to their shared background and educational experiences.

Arah He emphasised the importance of sound education, recalling the philosophy of their secondary school principal that passing examinations was merely incidental to obtaining a sound education.

From secondary school through the University of Ibadan and beyond, he noted, Arah continued to succeed.

For the royal father, Arah’s story demonstrated how education could provide the foundation for a productive and impactful life.

He also urged Nigerians to leave their communities and institutions better than they found them, an admonition that fitted naturally into a celebration of Arah’s career.

Nigeria’s former Minister of Trade, Okechukwu Enalamah, who preached at the Thanksgiving and Reception ceremony held in Lagos to mark the milestone, urged the guest to understand that the quality of a person’s life is ultimately reflected in the seeds he or she sows.

He explained that the results of one’s actions may not always be immediate.

“We do not reap what we sow at the time we sow. There is a time to sow and a time to harvest. It is never the same time. It can be short; it can be long. But there is usually a difference between the time of sowing and the time of harvest,” he said.

The preacher encouraged the congregation to consciously sow good seeds through their relationships, actions, service and generosity.

Undiluted Appreciation For Arah, perhaps the most remarkable part of the occasion was the continued affection of people he had led more than two decades earlier.

Addressing the gathering, he appeared surprised by the continued relationship.

“I would like to thank my colleagues here today. I don’t know whether it is usual. I don’t know whether this is the way that they treat people who have left their own positions.

“In December, it will be 23 years since I left Fidelity. You, my colleagues, have not stopped to celebrate at every point.”

The statement captured the central theme of the gathering: Arah’s influence had survived his departure because the relationships he built had survived with it.

His remarks were filled with appreciation for former colleagues and associates who had remained connected to him and gone on to build successful careers of their own.

He spoke warmly about people who had started with the institution and later moved into senior positions in the financial services industry.

Rather than taking credit for their achievements, however, he celebrated their progress and prayed for their continued success.

Nebolisa Arah Award for Best Graduating Student The celebration did not end with speeches and tributes. The alumni association announced the establishment of the Nebolisa Arah Award for the best graduating student in Banking and Finance at Bowen University.

The initiative was designed to reflect Arah’s passion for academics while ensuring that his name continues to inspire young professionals.

Announcing the award, the Vice-chairperson of the planning committee, Emeka Obiagwu, said the decision was a deliberate attempt to create a lasting legacy.

“We all know that our MD is a lover of academics, so we decided as alumni to institute an award in his honour. It is a great delight to announce that this year, as a group, we have decided to put on an award in honour of our MD at the Bowen University.”

“Each year, the best graduating student will get a cash of N200,000. We will have that every year for the next 10 years,” he said.

According to the organisers, the funding for the award for the 10 years has already been provided.

The initiative effectively turns the celebration of a 75th birthday into an investment in the next generation.

Conclusion Perhaps the most striking aspect of Arah’s 75th birthday was the fact that his former colleagues did not gather primarily to recount financial figures, corporate milestones or executive achievements.

They gathered to talk about character. They spoke of integrity. They spoke of humility. They spoke of accountability. They spoke of mentorship. And they spoke about the people whose professional lives were shaped by a man who left Fidelity Bank 23 years ago.

At 75, therefore, Arah’s most important achievement may not be found in the number of years he spent in executive positions or the institutions whose boards carried his name. It may be found in the people who still call him mentor; those who continue to celebrate him more than two decades after he left the bank; student who, years from now, will receive the Nebolisa Arah Award at Bowen University and perhaps ask who the man behind the award was.

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T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r • AUGUST 15, 2026

Features

How Jobs on Ewalefoh-led ICRC is Reshaping Nigeria’s PPP Landscape Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit remains a major constraint on growth, even as government faces limited fiscal space to fund critical projects. Against this backdrop, the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission under Jobson Ewalefoh, is pursuing reforms to make PPPs faster, more predictable and capable of mobilising private capital for infrastructure delivery, writes James Emejo

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or years, Nigeria’s infrastructure deficit has presented a paradox: The country has enormous development needs, yet the public purse alone cannot provide the capital required to close the gap.

That reality has made PublicPrivate Partnerships (PPPs) increasingly central to Nigeria’s infrastructure strategy. But attracting private capital is only one part of the equation.

Investors need predictable rules, efficient approvals, transparent processes and projects capable of delivering value.

It is against this backdrop that the leadership of Dr. Jobson Oseodion Ewalefoh, Director-General of the Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC), has assumed significance in Nigeria’s evolving PPP ecosystem.

As the federal government agency responsible for regulating and supervising PPP projects, the ICRC occupies a critical position between government institutions seeking infrastructure solutions and private investors looking for viable, bankable opportunities.

Since assuming office, Ewalefoh has pursued a reform-oriented agenda aimed at making Nigeria’s PPP process faster, clearer and more predictable, while strengthening regulatory oversight and ensuring that infrastructure concessions deliver value for money.

Career Built Around Devt Finance and Infrastructure Ewalefoh brings to the ICRC a career that cuts across development finance, infrastructure, investment promotion and public-sector leadership.

His professional experience spans project finance, project development, strategic planning, investment structuring and institutional reforms designed to improve the investment environment.

His academic background is equally broad. He holds a PhD in Development Studies from the University of South Africa (UNISA), alongside an MSc in Economics from Enugu State University of Technology; a Master of Information Technology from Ladoke Akintola University of Technology; an MBA and Master of Public Administration from the University of Abuja and a BSc in Computer Science from the University of Benin.

He has also undertaken executive training at internationally recognised institutions, including Harvard University, the Brookings Institution, the University of Pennsylvania, Duke University and Lagos Business School.

That combination of economics, technology, public administration and development studies has informed an approach to PPP regulation that places emphasis not merely on approving projects, but on improving the structures through which those projects are conceived, financed and delivered.

From Approval Bottlenecks to Faster Project Delivery One of the most significant changes under Ewalefoh has been the effort to simplify and decentralise the approval process for PPP projects.

Traditionally, lengthy approval procedures have been identified as one of the challenges capable of slowing infrastructure transactions and discouraging prospective investors.

Under the reforms driven by the ICRC, PPP projects have been categorised according to value thresholds, giving Ministries, Departments and Agencies greater room to process projects within defined limits.

Ministries can now approve projects valued at N20 billion and below, while parastatals and agencies can approve projects valued at N10 billion and below. Where a project initiated by an agency or parastatal exceeds N10 billion but remains below N20 billion, the Project Approval Board of its supervising ministry can approve it.

are sufficiently structured to withstand investor and lender scrutiny. This is particularly important in sectors where infrastructure projects require substantial upfront investment and long periods before investors recover their capital.

A More Coordinated Govt Approach Ewalefoh’s emphasis on collaboration with Ministries, Departments and Agencies is another defining feature of his leadership. PPPs often require several institutions to work together, from the ministry sponsoring a project to regulators, financing institutions and other government bodies responsible for land, taxation, environmental approvals or sector-specific regulation.

Poor coordination can delay projects even where the underlying investment case is strong.

The ICRC’s deeper engagement with MDAs is therefore aimed at ensuring that projects move through the PPP cycle with fewer institutional obstacles. The broader objective is to create a government ecosystem in which PPPs are treated as structured investment transactions rather than simply procurement exercises.

•Maiwada Projects above those thresholds, as well as projects involving multiple MDAs, remain subject to approval by the Federal Executive Council.

The objective is straightforward: ensure that projects do not become unnecessarily trapped in layers of bureaucracy when they fall within clearly defined approval limits.

For the PPP market, the potential impact is considerable. Faster approvals can shorten transaction timelines, improve investor confidence and enable government institutions to respond more quickly to infrastructure needs.

Bringing Greater Certainty to PPP Process Beyond approval thresholds, Ewalefoh’s administration has also sought to make the PPP process easier for both public institutions and private-sector proponents to navigate.

Clear guidelines have been issued to explain how PPP transactions should progress from inception through procurement and ultimately to financial close.

This is important because infrastructure investors typically assess not only the commercial viability of a project but also the certainty of the regulatory and procurement environment surrounding it.

By clarifying the process, the ICRC is seeking to reduce uncertainty and create a more predictable pathway for projects.

The Commission has also introduced the Model PPP Agreement, providing a standard template for PPP agreements across MDAs, irrespective of the nomenclature used for individual transactions. Standardisation has the potential to reduce ambiguity, improve consistency and give investors a clearer understanding of the contractual architecture within which PPP projects are expected to operate.

Strengthening ICRC’s Regulatory Gatekeeping Role Another major development under Ewalefoh has been the reinforcement of the ICRC’s central role in Nigeria’s PPP system.

A Presidential directive mandating that PPPs, by whatever name they are called, be routed through the ICRC has strengthened the Commission’s regulatory oversight.

The implication is that PPP arrangements cannot simply be developed independently by government institutions without passing through

the country’s designated PPP regulator.

For the ICRC, this creates a stronger platform to ensure that proposed projects are subjected to appropriate scrutiny, including considerations around bankability, transparency, risk allocation and value for money. For investors, it can provide greater assurance that projects are being processed within a recognised national framework.

Turning PPP Pipeline into Investment Opportunities The reforms are taking place at a time when Nigeria is under increasing pressure to unlock private capital for infrastructure. The country’s requirements extend across virtually every major component of the economy, namely: power, transportation, healthcare, maritime infrastructure and digital connectivity among them.

Government’s ability to finance these requirements solely through conventional budgetary allocations remains constrained. PPPs therefore offer a mechanism through which public assets, private capital, expertise and risk-sharing can be brought together.

Under Ewalefoh’s watch, more than 15 priority PPP projects have received approval, with additional projects reportedly moving through the pipeline.

The significance of these approvals extends beyond the number of projects. Each viable PPP represents the possibility of mobilising capital that would otherwise be difficult for government to deploy on its own. But the success of the model ultimately depends on the quality of those transactions.

The Bankability Question For Ewalefoh, the challenge appears to extend beyond attracting investors to Nigeria. The projects themselves must be structured in ways that make them capable of attracting financing. That is where the concepts of bankability, transparency and value for money become central. A PPP may be attractive in principle but still fail to secure financing if its revenue model is weak, risks are poorly allocated, contractual obligations are unclear or government commitments are uncertain.

The ICRC’s role therefore goes beyond serving as an approval point. It is also expected to help ensure that projects reaching the market

What the Reforms Mean for Nigeria Nigeria’s PPP story is ultimately about more than contracts and concessions. It is about whether the country can transform private capital into roads, ports, power infrastructure, hospitals, digital systems and other assets capable of supporting economic growth.

The success of Ewalefoh’s approach will therefore be judged not simply by the number of projects approved, but by how many reach financial close, achieve construction and operational milestones, deliver expected public benefits and remain commercially sustainable over the life of their concessions. That distinction is critical.

A large PPP pipeline without bankable projects can create the illusion of progress. A smaller pipeline of well-structured projects capable of attracting financing and delivering measurable value may have a much greater economic impact. For this reason, the reforms being pursued at the ICRC represent an important shift in emphasis - from simply having PPP projects on paper to creating a more efficient institutional framework capable of taking projects from concept to investment and ultimately to infrastructure delivery.

The Road Ahead The next phase of Nigeria’s PPP development will require sustained implementation. Investor confidence must be maintained. Government agencies must continue to build technical capacity.

Projects must be transparently procured. Contracts must be properly structured and monitored. And the balance between private-sector returns and public interest must remain at the heart of every transaction. Ewalefoh’s leadership at the ICRC is taking place within this challenge. His six-point policy agenda, the streamlining of approval thresholds, the issuance of clearer transaction guidelines, the Model PPP Agreement, stronger regulatory oversight and the growing pipeline of priority projects collectively point towards an attempt to make Nigeria’s PPP environment more coordinated and investment-ready.

For a country confronting a huge infrastructure financing gap, that transformation could prove consequential. The real measure of the ICRC’s current reform drive, however, will ultimately be visible beyond government offices and approval documents in the infrastructure delivered, the investment mobilised and the economic opportunities created for Nigerians.

If the current trajectory is sustained, Ewalefoh’s tenure could come to be defined not merely by the number of PPP transactions processed, but by a broader institutional shift in how Nigeria conceives, structures, finances and delivers infrastructure through partnerships with the private sector.

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Interview

T H I S D AY, Th e S ATURDAY, N e w S PA P e r • AUGUST 15, 2026

Dimanche Sharon:

Nigerians Shouldn’t Risk Their Lives to Seek Better Future Abroad

For many Nigerians, the dream of a better life abroad has become so compelling that they are willing to risk everything to pursue it, sometimes through dangerous and irregular routes. But behind the images of success often shared on social media lie stories of exploitation, trafficking, trauma, debt and, tragically, death. In this interview with Michael Olugbode, International Organisation for Migration’s Chief of Mission in Nigeria, Ms. Dimanche Sharon, warns Nigerians against gambling with their lives, urging them to pursue opportunities abroad only through safe, orderly and regular migration pathways

I

rregular migration is often discussed in terms of numbers and statistics. From your experience, what does the human cost of irregular migration actually look like for migrants and their families?

Every statistic has a name. It has a face.

And behind every face is an individual—a woman, a man, a child and a family. Irregular migration is, above all, a human story. People migrate with hope and aspirations. They want to find decent work, pursue education, improve their livelihoods and build a better future for themselves and their families. Unfortunately, too often, many people who embark on these journeys end up experiencing exploitation, and the reality they meet is very different from the dreams they had before leaving home. Many face human trafficking, violence, detention, family separation and, in some cases, death.

The human cost is not only measured by lives lost; it is also measured by dreams that have been interrupted and opportunities that have disappeared. Some people spend years saving money for these journeys. Others sell their homes, land or other valuable possessions to finance their migration. Sadly, many eventually return home with nothing, carrying huge debts and struggling to know where to begin rebuilding their lives. Families also suffer greatly. In many cases, relatives are left waiting for answers about their loved ones who are travelling through irregular routes. They may not know where they are, what they are experiencing or whether they are safe. Recently, during activities marking the International Day Against Trafficking in Persons, we heard stories of young men who had been deceived and trapped in criminal compounds. Some were lured with promises of jobs and better opportunities abroad but ended up being exploited. After a raid on one of these locations, authorities had difficulties identifying victims and they were placed in detention for months, in some cases close to a year, while the situation was resolved. This shows the deep human cost of irregular migration. Families experience anxiety, uncertainty and emotional distress because they often have no information about what is happening to their loved ones. At IOM, we believe that nobody should have to risk their life in order to improve their life. The objective of migration is to create a better future, but when people take dangerous irregular routes, they end up putting that very life at risk. Our mission is to ensure that migration is safe, orderly and regular while protecting the dignity and rights of every migrant.

Many Nigerians embark on irregular migration journeys because they are searching for better opportunities. What are some of the realities they encounter along these routes?

This is an important question because social media often shows only the destination. It shows the success stories and the images of people who appear to have made it abroad, but it rarely shows the dangerous journey behind those images. Many Nigerians leave home with genuine dreams and aspirations. They want better jobs, better opportunities and a better

•Sharon life. However, along irregular migration routes, many encounter realities that are extremely painful. Migrants may face dehydration while crossing deserts such as the Sahara, exploitation by smugglers, detention for ransom, abuse by traffickers, violence and months or even years stranded in transit countries without protection. The challenges do not always end when they reach their destination countries.

Many continue to face exploitation, forced labour, abuse and difficult living conditions.

The deepest wounds are often invisible. Many returnees come back carrying trauma, debt and the emotional burden of dreams that did not become reality. I will share the story of a young Nigerian woman I met recently in Edo State. She was promised a better opportunity abroad. She discussed it with her mother, and together they decided to support the journey.

Her mother sold a property to raise money for the migration process. However, when she arrived abroad, what she found was completely different from what she was promised. She experienced exploitation and abuse. She became sick and did not know where to turn for help.

She eventually managed to escape; she was afraid to return home. She felt ashamed because she was returning to a home where she had nothing left, having sold her property before leaving. She feared being seen as someone who had failed. She even faced pressure from some relatives who advised her not to return but to continue searching for another opportunity abroad despite the trauma she had experienced.

Eventually, her mother encouraged her to come home. Through collaboration between the Nigerian Government and IOM, she received support to rebuild her life. Today, she is part of a cooperative, she has acquired land, she is building a livelihood and she is able to send her child to school. She now has hope again.

The lesson from this story is that migration itself is not the problem. The problem is unsafe

migration. Our responsibility is to ensure that people have access to accurate information and regular migration pathways before making life-changing decisions. At the same time, we must work with government and partners to address the reasons why people migrate in the first place. Migration should be a choice, not something people undertake out of desperation.

From your experience, what are the major factors driving irregular migration among Nigerians?

There are several factors. People migrate because they have dreams and aspirations.

They want better jobs, improved livelihoods and opportunities to support their families. When these opportunities are not available, people naturally look for alternatives. In Nigeria, we are currently experiencing several challenges, including climate-related pressures. Flooding, drought and other climate shocks are affecting livelihoods and forcing some people to leave their communities. Climate change also contributes to competition over natural resources, which can increase conflict and displacement.

When people lose their livelihoods and become vulnerable, traffickers often take advantage of their situation. Traffickers target people who are desperate. They approach them with promises of jobs, education and a better future, knowing that these individuals are searching for opportunities. Another major factor is lack of information. Many people do not understand the proper migration process. They may not know that travelling legally requires visas, documentation and proper procedures. A trafficker may simply promise someone, “Give me money and I will take you to Europe,” or “I will arrange a job for you abroad.” Because the person lacks the right information, they believe the promise and become vulnerable. So, lack of opportunities, poverty, climate challenges, displacement and misinformation are some

of the key factors driving irregular migration.

How does irregular migration expose migrants, particularly women, children and young people, to trafficking and other forms of exploitation?

Irregular migration creates opportunities for traffickers because it pushes people outside formal systems of protection. When people travel through unsafe and unregulated channels, they become more vulnerable to exploitation. Women and girls face particularly high risks of sexual exploitation, gender-based violence and other forms of abuse. Children are also extremely vulnerable, especially those travelling alone, separated from their families or moving without adequate protection.

Young people are often targeted with false promises of jobs, education and opportunities that simply do not exist. Traffickers know that young people are looking for a better future, and they exploit those hopes. From the cases we have supported, including those assisted in collaboration with the Nigerian Government, a significant number of trafficking victims are women and children. This shows how vulnerability increases the risk of exploitation.

Whenever there are situations such as poverty, climate-related displacement, conflict or loss of livelihoods, women and children are often among those most affected. These conditions create opportunities for traffickers because they prey on people who are desperate and searching for solutions. Protecting migrants must begin long before they start their journey. It requires accurate information, strong protection systems and safe migration pathways. It is important to understand that addressing trafficking is not only about legal measures. We must also look at the social and economic factors that make people vulnerable in the first place.

You have worked with thousands of returnees over the years. Are there particular stories or experiences that stand out when migrants reflect on their journeys?

One message comes through repeatedly whenever we interact with returnees: “I wish I had known the truth before I left.” Most returnees do not regret wanting a better future.

That desire is natural. People want to improve their lives and support their families. What many regret is making life-changing decisions based on misinformation, false promises and unrealistic expectations. However, their stories are also stories of resilience. We have seen many returnees overcome extremely difficult experiences and rebuild their lives when they receive the right support. Some have rebuilt businesses, returned to school, found meaningful employment and become advocates for safer migration. They use their experiences to educate others and prevent young people from making the same mistakes. One returnee told us, “I would not wish even my worst enemy to go through what I experienced.”

Many survivors say that they survived their journeys and now want to use their voices to ensure that others do not experience the same suffering. Their experiences remind us that hope must be guided by facts and accurate information, not false promises.

See concluded part on www. thisdaylive.com

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T H I S D AY, T h e sat u r day N e w s pa p e r A U G U S T 15, 2026

Interview

Ahmed Usman: Community Intelligence Key to Tackling Rural Insecurity

As he approaches three years in office as Special Adviser to Governor Ahmed Aliyu of Sokoto State on Security Matters, retired military officer, Col. Ahmed Usman, says community-based intelligence has become a critical tool in the fight against rural insecurity in Sokoto State. In this interview, Usman highlights the administration’s security interventions, the importance of stronger collaboration with local communities and the need for sustained efforts to tackle banditry and other criminal activities. Onuminya Innocent brings the excerpts: You have now spent almost three years in office as Special Adviser on Security Matters. Looking back, what achievements would you say the administration has recorded in the area of security?

I

t is true that it is now almost three years since I was appointed by Governor Ahmed Aliyu. I was among the first set of appointees because the governor considers security a top priority. Security is one of the key pillars of the administration’s 9-Point SMART Agenda, and that demonstrates the importance attached to protecting lives and property. When this government came into office, many sectors had deteriorated, and the security sector was particularly affected. The previous administration had withdrawn most forms of support to security agencies, especially personnel operating in frontline areas. Operational allowances were discontinued, and there was little or no provision of vehicles, equipment, or other logistics required for effective operations. One of the major gaps we met was the absence of a functional platform where security stakeholders could regularly meet to assess threats and develop coordinated responses. The first major step taken by this administration was the establishment of a State Security Committee under the chairmanship of the Deputy Governor, Engr. Idris Mohammed Gobir. The committee includes security chiefs, traditional rulers, and other relevant stakeholders. It meets regularly, and its recommendations have guided many of the security interventions implemented by the government.

As a result, the government restored and increased the allowances being paid to security personnel. More importantly, it began addressing the serious shortage of operational vehicles and equipment.

Since the inception of this administration, the state has procured and distributed Toyota Hilux patrol vehicles, Toyota Buffalo vehicles, armored personnel carriers, motorcycles, protective gear, and surveillance equipment to security agencies.

In the first phase, more than 200 Hilux and Buffalo vehicles and 250 motorcycles were provided. To mark the governor’s

third anniversary in office, the administration procured 62 additional armored vehicles, 320 motorcycles, bulletproof helmets and vests, night-vision devices, thermal imaging equipment, security kits, and other advanced operational tools at a cost of about N27.6 billion. And just last Thursday, Governor Ahmed Aliyu approved N1.7b for the purchase of 1000 Bajaj motorcycles to enhance security across the state. These assets were distributed to security agencies to strengthen intelligence gathering, improve mobility, and enhance operations against banditry, terrorism, kidnapping, cattle rustling, and other violent crimes. In addition, the government provided 40 Hilux vehicles and 700 motorcycles for the Sokoto State Community Guards Corps which was the initiative of this administraUsman tion, and which has become an important complementary security outfit supporting conventional security agencies, especially in rural communities. Similarly, this administration constructed military barracks in Illela and a Mobile Police Barracks in Tangaza Local Government Area, operationalised the Nigerian Air Force 119 Composite Group Base in Sokoto, enhanced the communication and surveillance capabilities of the Department of State Services, and provided housing units for security personnel as part of efforts to improve welfare and operational efficiency. Forest guards were not left out, as

they have also continued to receive sustained support from the state government as part of efforts to strengthen security operations across the state. I believe these interventions represent one of the most significant security investments made by any state government in Nigeria in recent years.

Read full article online - www.thisdaylive.com

Nigeria’s Power Sector: Why Innovation, Not Resignation, Will Light Up Our Future

Peter Ikenga

G

lobal electricity demand is growing at one of the fastest sustained paces in a decade. According to the latest report by the International Energy Agency (IEA), this shift, largely driven by AI data centres, industrial electrificatioAn, and severe heatwaves, is projected to increase annual consumption by 3.3 percent to 3.9 percent.

In developing countries, especially Nigeria, our relationship with electricity is peculiar. We measure our days by the relief of a restored line, and the quiet calculation of whether the power supply will hold long enough to finish what we started. For a nation of our ambition, energy, and youthful population, this should not be our normal. The good news is that it does not have to remain so.

I do not intend to add to the long catalogue of complaints about our power sector. As someone who has spent a career in the energy sector and leading one of Nigeria’s leading power generation companies, Transcorp Power Plc, I believe the more useful conversation is about what is holding us back, and what those of us inside the industry must do differently. The truth is that Nigeria’s power challenges are not mysteries.

They are well understood. What they demand now is execution, partnership, and a culture of innovation.

A Sector Under Pressure and A Government That Is Responding

Ikenga.

It would be unfair to discuss our difficulties without first acknowledging the noble reforms by the Federal Government. The Electricity Act 2023 is

one of the most consequential pieces of legislation our sector has seen in a generation. Decentralising the electricity market and empowering states to develop their own frameworks has opened the door to competition, local solutions, and fresh investment in ways the old, over-centralised model never could. The government has also moved to address legacy liabilities and attract private capital back into the value chain. These are serious steps, and they deserve recognition.

The foundation is being laid. But a foundation is not a finished building, and the constraints that remain are real. Three stand out. The first is gas supply. As present, Nigeria’s grid is overwhelmingly thermal with approximately 75 percent of electricity supplied to the national grid is generated by gas-fired power plants.

This means power generation from these plants is only as available as the gas that feeds them. When gas supply is interrupted or constrained, generation falls, no matter how much available generating capacity the plant has.

The second is transmission and infrastructure security. Even when power plants generate, the electricity must travel uninterrupted to the end users. Vandalisation of transmission infrastructure and the fragility of the grid infrastructure means that the electricity generated by power plants- which the- often cannot reach the homes and businesses that need it. The third is liquidity. The Nigerian Electricity

Supply Industry (NESI) continues to suffer from a severe liquidity crisis. Due to several factors, including non-cost-reflective tariffs for most electricity consumers, unpaid subsidy commitments on the part of the Federal Government and significant technical, commercial and collection losses, the Distribution Companies (DisCos) collect significantly less revenue than is required to pay for electricity supplied. Given that DisCos are the revenue assurance base for the electricity value chain, the resultant payment shortfalls affect the entire value chain from Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading Company (NBET) to Generating Companies (GenCos) to gas suppliers, manifesting in the form of mounting market debts, inadequate investments, recurring gas supply constraints, continued government intervention through subsidies and weakening investor confidence.

The familiar cycle of delayed payments across the power value chain weakens everyone’s ability to invest, maintain, and grow. These are not the failings of any single company; they are systemic, sector-wide realities that affect us all.

Engr. Ikenga writes from Ughelli, Delta State. He is the MD/CEO of Transcorp Power Plc

Read full article online - www. thisdaylive.com

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T H I S D AY, T h e sat u r day N e w s pa p e r A U G U S T 15, 2026

ANALYSIS

Beyond Pain: How Nigeria’s Reforms Are Rebuilding the Economy

For millions of Nigerians, the past three years of economic reforms have brought significant hardship, but emerging indicators suggest the difficult adjustments are beginning to yield results. The Chairman, Nigeria Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji says stronger revenue, investment, production and financial stability are laying the foundation for broader prosperity. Dike Onwuamaeze brings the excerpts:

F

or millions of Nigerians, the past three years have been a period of difficult economic adjustment. The removal of petrol subsidy, changes in the foreign exchange market, tighter monetary conditions and other structural reforms came with higher costs and significant pressure on households and businesses.

Yet, beneath the immediate pain, a different story has been unfolding in the fundamentals of the Nigerian economy.

According to the Executive Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service (NRS), Dr. Zacch Adedeji, Nigeria has now moved beyond the most difficult phase of adjustment and is beginning to enter a period of consolidation, with several key macroeconomic indicators pointing in a more positive direction.

Adedeji’s assessment in a recent interview, is significant because it provides an insight into how the economic reforms introduced by President Bola Tinubu since May 2023 are changing the underlying structure of the economy.

His argument is that the reforms should not be judged only by the immediate discomfort they created, but also by the distortions they have corrected, the capacity they are creating and the stronger economic platform they are building for the future.

“Nigeria’s economy is showing strong signs of full recovery and accelerated growth following a series of necessary reforms by the current administration,” Adedeji said.

He added: “The economy has moved decisively from acute macroeconomic distress to a more stable and increasingly resilient footing.”

The reforms were never designed to correct structural weaknesses that had accumulated over many years and were increasingly becoming unsustainable.

The NRS identified four major distortions inherited in May 2023.

These are an unsustainable petrol subsidy regime, a fragmented and opaque foreign exchange market, an oil sector producing substantially below capacity and a tax base operating far below its potential.

The Tinubu administration’s response was to tackle these problems simultaneously.

The removal of petrol subsidy and the unification of the foreign exchange market were the two foundational adjustments.

Stronger Fiscal Foundation

One of the clearest indicators of the changing economic landscape is government’s revenue.

Tax collections increased from N12.3 trillion in 2023 to N21 trillion in 2024 and N28.3 trillion in 2025. In the first eight months of 2026 alone, total collections stood at N27.1 trillion. The tax-to-GDP ratio also increased from 10.3 per cent in 2023 to 13 per cent.

These figures are important because Nigeria’s long-standing fiscal weakness has been one of the country’s biggest economic vulnerabilities. For years, government revenue has been inadequate relative to the size of the economy and the scale of the country’s infrastructure and development needs. Low revenue has meant limited fiscal space, greater dependence on borrowing and difficulty financing critical public investments.

Adedeji said the tax reforms simplified administration and broadened the revenue base.He explained that digitalisation, expansion of the tax base and the implementation of the new tax framework were among the factors driving the increase.

The national e-invoicing system for large taxpayers is one of the digital initiatives supporting compliance, while four new laws that came into effect on January 1, 2026—the Nigeria Tax Act, Nigeria Tax Administration Act, Nigeria Revenue Service Establishment Act and Joint Tax Board Establishment Act—are expected to further modernise the tax system.

The transformation of the former Federal Inland Revenue Service into the Nigeria Revenue Service also broadened the revenue consolidation framework by bringing together non-tax revenue streams previously collected by other government agencies.

Most encouragingly, the NRS said non-oil sources now account for 76 per cent of total collections.

From FX Market Distortion to Greater Transparency

Another major reform was the unification of the foreign exchange market. Before the reform, the existence of multiple exchange rates created significant distortions. The gap between official and parallel-market rates encouraged arbitrage and made it difficult for businesses and investors to determine the true value of their investments.

Adedeji illustrated the problem by recalling the disparity between the official and parallel markets.

“When you have exchange rate at N463 and the official rate is roughly at N1,200, you have zero capital importation,” he said.

Investors need certainty. A company considering a major investment must be able to determine how much its capital is

worth, what it will cost to import equipment and how much revenue it can repatriate. An opaque exchange-rate system makes those calculations difficult. The reform has therefore sought to restore price discovery and make the market more transparent. =According to the NRS, the improvement in exchange-rate stability and liquidity conditions has strengthened business confidence and enabled cmpanies and investors to make longer-term decisions with greater certainty. Investment is the bridge between macroeconomic stability and economic growth.

When businesses are confident enough to invest, they expand factories, purchase equipment, employ workers, increase production and develop new markets. The benefits eventually move from the balance sheets of companies to the wider economy. This is one reason the current reform period should be viewed as a process rather than a single event.

Oil Production: Unlocking Nigeria’s Dormant Capacity

The oil sector provides another important illustration of the changing economic landscape. Nigeria has enormous oil reserves, but production has frequently remained below potential because of theft, vandalism, underinvestment and regulatory uncertainty.

According to the NRS, crude production had recovered to approximately 1.73 million barrels per day by August 2026, equivalent to about 104 per cent of Nigeria’s OPEC quota. That compares with production of between 1.2 million and 1.3 million barrels per day around the beginning of the reform period.

The recovery was attributed to intensified security operations against pipeline vandalism and crude theft as well as continued implementation of the Petroleum Industry Act. The PIA has been important because investors need regulatory and fiscal certainty before committing billions of dollars to long-term oil and gas projects. Higher production means greater export earnings, stronger government revenue and improved foreign exchange availability.

More importantly, increased investment in the sector can generate activity across engineering, logistics, construction, services and other supporting industries. The NRS also pointed to major upstream transactions involving Seplat Energy and Aradel Holdings as developments capable of strengthening the long-term prospects of the sector by expanding reserves and production capacity.

According to the NRS, Nigeria’s domestic refining capacity increased from approximately 30,000 barrels per day in May 2023 to about 700,000 barrels per day by mid-2026. About 90 per cent of domestic petrol supply is now reportedly being met through local refining, while diesel imports fell to zero by May 2026. That represents a fundamental shift in an economy that for decades exported crude oil and imported large volumes of refined petroleum products.

Adedeji directly linked the development to the removal of petrol subsidy.

“If Mr. President had not removed subsidy, there is no way [the] refinery will work,” he said.

The crude-for-naira arrangement between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and Dangote Refinery has also reduced the dollar demand associated with fuel imports, according to the NRS.

Stronger Banks, Stronger Businesses

The banking sector recapitalisation represents another important component of the reform programme. A stronger banking system is essential if Nigeria is to finance the next phase of economic growth.

According to the NRS, stronger bank capital positions will improve the capacity of financial institutions to support large-scale corporate financing and provide businesses with greater access to capital for expansion. The significance of this reform may become more visible over time.

Bank recapitalisation is about creating financial institutions with sufficient balance-sheet strength to support a growing economy.

When banks have stronger capital, they are better positioned to absorb shocks and finance productive activities.

Adedeji said the combined effect of monetary, fiscal, tax and structural reforms had created a more predictable environment for capital-intensive and export-oriented businesses.

“These reforms have improved the overall business climate and reduced structural inefficiencies,” he said.

The NRS boss also highlighted an improvement in Nigeria’s debt-to-GDP ratio, which he said declined from 35.5 per cent in 2025 to 32.3 per cent in 2026. The agency attributed the decline largely to nominal GDP growth outpacing debt accumulation and noted that the ratio remained below the IMF’s 55 per cent risk threshold. At the same time, it acknowledged that debt-service-to-revenue remains an issue that requires continued attention.

Adedeji

The Human Side of Reform

Adedeji argued that without the reforms, many more Nigerians could have fallen into poverty.

“If you remember where we are coming from… if we’ve not done what we are supposed to do, possibly double of that population will have gone to poverty, and I’m telling you that progress is what we should measure,” he said.

Nigeria inherited significant economic distortions. The government has now begun correcting them. The question is how quickly the benefits can reach households.

Adedeji pointed to state finances as one example, saying state governments are no longer as heavily reliant on federal support to pay salaries.

He also highlighted improved access to credit for civil servants and the student loan scheme.

“Before now, nobody talks about student loan. Based on the last check, more than one million students in 300 higher institutions have been disbursed more than N303 billion to them in the last three years. This has never been in existence,” he said.

For a student who can remain in university because of access to financing, the reform has a human face. For a state government that can meet its salary obligations more reliably, the reform has a human face. For a company that can plan investment because the foreign exchange market is more predictable, the reform has a human face. For a refinery producing fuel locally rather than relying entirely on imports, the reform has a human face. While the transmission from macro to micro takes time, it begins with the macroeconomic foundation.

President Tinubu’s reforms have generated considerable debate because they challenged long-standing arrangements that had become deeply embedded in Nigeria’s economy. But the latest assessment by the NRS suggests that the country is beginning to see the benefits of correcting those structural weaknesses.

Adedeji described the President’s approach as an example of the courage required to act as “a statesman and not a politician.”

Some of the government’s policies may be politically difficult in the short term but economically necessary in the long term. The real test, however, is whether those decisions eventually produce a better economy. The task now is to sustain that momentum.

Nigeria cannot afford to return to the distortions that produced the crisis in the first place. The country must continue improving productivity, protecting vulnerable households, supporting businesses and ensuring that increased government revenue translates into visible public value. If that happens, the painful adjustment period can ultimately become the foundation for a more productive economy.

GLOBAL MORE THAN A SOCCER CHARITY

THISDAY, The SATURDAY Newspaper • april 24, 2011

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news

A

weekly pull-out

15.8.2026

Oghenegaren Osievwo-Thompson

Page. 43

Blade of Destiny: How 17-YearOld Prodigy Rewrote Nigeria’s Sporting History

T H I S D AY, T h e sat u r day N e w s pa p e r A U G U S T 15, 2026

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GLOBAL SOCCER 2026 COMMONWEALTH FENCING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Oghenegaren Osievwo-Thompson

Blade of Destiny: How 17-Year-Old Prodigy Rewrote Nigeria’s Sporting History

On August 9, 2026, 17-year-old Oghenegaren Osievwo-Thompson made history by winning Nigeria’s first-ever gold medal in an international fencing tournament, triumphing in the U-23 men’s epee event at the 2026 Commonwealth Fencing ChampionshipsinLagos.CompetingforNigeriaforthefirsttime,theformerEngland fencer finished the tournament completely unbeaten,signaling a promising new era for the sport in the country,writes Kunle Adewale

O

ghenegarenEsiovwa-Thompson made history by winning Nigeria’s first-ever international fencing gold medal at the 2026 Commonwealth Fencing Championships. On Sunday, August 9, 2026, the 17-year-old phenomenon dominated the men’s U-23 epee division at Rugby School Nigeria in Atlantic City, Lagos.

In his debut tournament after switching athletic allegiance from England, the teenager dismantled the international field to spark nationwide celebration and fundamentally alter the trajectory of Nigerian fencing.

system, a deeper calling remained. The decision to switch athletic allegiance from England to Nigeria at such a young age was a calculated risk driven by a singular focus.

“There’s something in me that has always longed to fence for Nigeria,” Esiovwa-Thompson explained. “Even though I grew up in England and won several medals there, I knew representing Nigeria would be the right path to fulfil my Olympic dream.”

Transitioning into a tournament as a country’s sole representative brings immense psychological pressure. However, Esiovwa-Thompson credits his lifelong dedication to the weapon for his unshakable mental focus. “I’ve been fencing longer than I haven’t been fencing,” he remarked.

“Because I’ve been fencing all my life, I knew what to do. I knew how to stay calm, stay relaxed, and take every match one at a time.”

A Historic Homecoming in Lagos The atmosphere inside the sports hall at Rugby School Nigeria was electric. Standing as Nigeria’s sole representative at the tournament, Esiovwa-Thompson carried the hopes of a nation unfamiliar with fencing podiums. Fencing has long been perceived as an elite, Eurocentric sport, making a Nigerian breakthrough on the Commonwealth stage a distant dream.

By the end of the evening, that perception was shattered. The final scoreline read a staggering 15–5. Esiovwa-Thompson had not just defeated the reigning Asian champion, Lokesh Vemani of India; he had delivered a tactical masterclass.

When the final point landed, the arena erupted into a wall of sound.Amid the roaring fans stood Esiovwa-Thompson’s grandparents, watching their grandson wave the green and white flag.

“I didn’t realise I was the first Nigerian to win gold at the Commonwealth Championships until just before the final,” Esiovwa-Thompson admitted, visibly moved by the gravity of his achievement. “Doing this in front of my grandparents, in front of the fans—it’s overwhelming.

Everything is just coming to me now, and I’m proud to represent my country.”

Catalyst for Nigerian Fencing

The broader Commonwealth Fencing Championships saw other powerhouses find success. England’s Oliver Strange claimed the tournament’s first gold by defeating India’s Manoj Patil in the men’s U-23 foil final, while India’s Singh Sanasam and England’s Thomas James secured bronze.

Yet, no story captured the imagination of the public like Esiovwa-Thompson’s. Initially flying under the radar, his dominant pool performance quickly made him the star attraction of the tournament. The home crowd responded by turning Rugby School Nigeria into a fortress.

“It was the first time I experienced that kind of support,” the champion recalled. “The cheers from the fans hit me every time I stepped onto the stage. Their support was key to my victory.”

For the Nigerian Fencing Federation, this gold medal is a proof of concept. It demonstrates that with the right talent pipeline, Nigerian athletes can challenge the traditional global hierarchy in combat sports. Esiovwa-Thompson’s triumph provides a blueprint for dual-heritage athletes looking to represent their ancestral home.

Path of Total Dominance

While the final score suggested an easy victory, Esiovwa-Thompson’s gold medal was forged through a gruelling, flawless campaign. He drew a target on his back early in the tournament during the preliminary pool stages.

Road to Olympic Games

Pool Stages and Early Rounds

Placed in Pool 4, the Nigerian teenager refused to drop a single bout. He swept through the group completely unbeaten, earning the top seed and a crucial bye into the knockout rounds.

In the Round of 16, he faced South Africa’s resilient Karabo Mathobela. Showing a mature understanding of distance and timing, EsiovwaThompson cruised to a 15–7 victory.

The Indian Gauntlet

What followed was an unprecedented sporting narrative: a lone Nigerian teenager taking on the powerhouse fencing contingent from India.

In the quarterfinal, Esiovwa-Thompson faced India’s Shivaansh Kapoor. In a display of defensive steel and lightning-fast counter-

Osievwo-Thompson

attacks, the Nigerian conceded only two points, winning 15–2.

In the semifinal, the true test came against India’s Ashwini Shaurya. Shaurya pushed the pace, testing the 17-year-old’s composure. Backed by a partisan Lagos crowd, Esiovwa-Thompson adjusted his strategy, finding the target in tight quarters to edge out an intense 15–11 victory.

In the final against top-seeded Lokesh Vemani, Esiovwa-Thompson left no room for doubt. He jumped to an early lead, using his reach and exceptional point control to keep Vemani offbalance, closing out the historic 15–5 win. India’s Godwin Natarajan and Ashwini Shaurya took

home the bronze medals.

AnatomyofanAllegianceSwitch

Esiovwa-Thompson’s journey to the top of the podium did not begin in Lagos, but rather in the highly competitive British fencing circuits.

Before donning the Nigerian green, he was one of England’s brightest prospects.

He tasted international success early, winning the U-13 boys’ epee gold at the prestigious 2022 Wratislavia Challenge. He followed that with a bronze medal in the cadet men’s epee team event in Naples while representing England.

Yet, despite his success within the British

At just 17 years old, Esiovwa-Thompson has achieved something no Nigerian before him has done: winning gold at an international fencing event. But for the teenage prodigy, the Commonwealth crown is simply a stepping stone.

“A lot of training, dedication, sweat, and tears went into this,” he reflected. “I’m just happy I won in front of Nigerians, in front of my family.”

With his technical foundation established in Europe and his heart firmly rooted in Nigeria, Esiovwa-Thompson’s ultimate target remains the Olympic Games. If his dominant performance in Lagos is any indication, the international fencing community has been put on notice. The young epeeist has proven he possesses the composure, pedigree, and passion to carry the Nigerian flag all the way to the world’s biggest sporting stage.

T H I S D AY, T h e sat u r day N e w s pa p e r A U G U S T 15, 2026

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GLOBAL SOCCER 2026 WAFCON... 2026 WAFCON...

The house allocated to Westerhof in Gwagwalada. He appeals to President Tinubu to change it

Galatasaray Issue Fresh Warning to Arsenal over Osimhen

Falcons on redemption battle

History Beckons as Cameroon, Malawi Clash of their group. In contrast, Cameroon are no strangers to the latter stages of WAFCON. The Indomitable Lionesses’ journey to the final has been remarkable. They initially failed to qualify for what was a 12-team tournament.

However, the expansion to 16 teams offered them a second chance, which they have seized with both hands to stand on the verge of a historic triumph.

Malawi’s sensational run has been powered by the formidable sibling duo of Tabitha and Temwa Chawinga. Both were instrumental in the semifinal win over Algeria, with Tabitha scoring a brace. Their attacking prowess has made them two of the tournament’s standout performers.

Temwa Chawinga, known for her clinical finishing, currently leads the Golden Boot race with five goals and two assists.

If Malawi are to complete their fairytale and lift the trophy on their debut, the Chawinga sisters will undoubtedly

Cameroon and Malawi will battle in the final of the 2026 Women’sAfricaCupofNations tomorrow as both teams close in on a first major title.

The 2026 WAFCON is set for a thrilling conclusion as Cameroon and Malawi prepare to face off in the final tomorrow.

With a new champion guaranteed to be crowned, both nations are vying for their first-ever major title. Cameroon secured their place in the decider after a tense penalty shootout victory against hosts Morocco, following a goalless 120 minutes.

Meanwhile, Malawi continued their dream run by defeating Algeria 3-1 to reach their first-ever final.

Malawi, making their tournament debut, have been the surprise package of the competition.

They announced their arrival by stunning tentime champions Nigeria with a 3-2 victory in their opening match, a result that propelled them to the top

be at the heart of the action.

While Malawi’s attack has grabbed the headlines, Cameroon’s success has been built on a rock-solid defence, marshalled by 22-year-old goalkeeper Michaely Bihina.

The Benfica shot-stopper was heroic in the 1-0 quarter-final victory over Nigeria, making nine crucial saves. She followed that with another clean sheet against Morocco.

Bihina became the star of the semi-final, saving an extra-time penalty before denying three more spot-kicks in the decisive shootout to send her team to the final. Sunday’s showdown will be a classic clash of styles, pitting a potent attack against a resolute defence to determine who will be crowned champions of Africa.

Morocco andAlgeria will contest the third-place play-off today.

Fixtures Today Morocco v Algeria Sunday Cameroon v Malawi

More than A Charity as Arsenal, Man City Set to Face Off on DStv, GOtv The new football season begins with an early dose of rivalry on Sunday when Arsenal and Manchester City meet in the Community Shield, with both sides eager to begin the campaign with silverware and gain an early psychological advantage.

The game, which kicks off on Sunday at 3 pm, will be available live to DStv Yanga and GOtv Jolli subscribers via SuperSport Premier League (DStv channel 203) and SuperSport Premier League Africa (GOtv channel 65) The traditional season curtain-raiser carries added intrigue this year, given the fierce battle between the

Community Shield two clubs last season. Arsenal eventually ended a 22-year wait to win the Premier League title, but City ran Mikel Arteta’s side close, remaining in contention deep into the campaign before finishing four points behind the champions.

Recent encounters have also favoured City. Pep Guardiola’s side won the most recent Premier League meeting 2-1 at the Etihad in April and followed that with a 2-0 victory over Arsenal in the Carabao Cup final at Wembley in March. The Community Shield, therefore, gives Arsenal an immediate opportunity to turn the tables, while City will be looking

to reinforce their recent dominance in this fixture.

For City, however, this will be a new era. With Guardiola gone, Enzo Maresca takes charge for his first competitive match as manager. Maresca inherits a squad with considerable quality but has also strengthened it in the summer as he begins the task of putting his own stamp on the team.Avictory over Arsenal would provide an ideal launchpad for his reign and an early indication that City remain serious contenders on all fronts.

Arsenal will also have a major new addition to showcase, with Brazilian midfielder Bruno Guimaraes arriving from Newcastle United in a £75 million deal.

Veritas University Emerges Champions at Inaugural NBA REC University Tourney Veritas University defeated University of Abuja (UNIABUJA) 41-36 to win the inaugural NBAREC University Tournament,heldrecentlyatthe University of Lagos (UNILAG) Sports Center.

The two-day event brought together eight university teams from across Nigeria: University of Lagos (UNILAG), Lagos State University of Education (LASUED), Veritas University, University of Ibadan (UI), Lagos State University (LASU), Lead City University, Afe Babalola University (ABUAD) and Uni-

versity of Abuja (UNIABUJA). ing fan giveaways, dance Following the group stage performances and musical played on the first day, Veri- performances from Nigerian tas, ABUAD, UNIABUJA and artists Taves and Samad, creUNILAG advanced to the semi- ating opportunities for fans to finals. On day two, UNILAG engage with the event beyond secured third place with a 57-50 the competition. victory over ABUAD, before NBA REC is the league’s Veritas beat UNIABUJA in recreational basketball platform the championship game to for players ages 18 and older, claim the inaugural NBA REC designed to elevate university, University Tournament title. community and adult basketABUAD’s Anthony Chioke ball experiences. The tournawas named the NBA REC ment was held through the University Tournament MVP. NBA’s collaboration with Future The tournament also featured Concerns Nigeria Limited and halftime activations, includ- Munch It.

Galatasaray President, Galatasaray submitting a Dursun Özbek has issued £38.5 million offer for the a fresh warning to Arsenal Brazil international. over Super Eagles striker Ethan Nwaneri was also Victor Osimhen, insisting discussed, but according to the Turkish champions have The Telegraph, Osimhen’s no intention of selling the availability was raised durSuper Eagles striker. ing negotiations between the Osimhen’s name has en- clubs. tered discussions between It remains unclear whether Galatasaray and Arsenal, Arsenal sporting director, with the Premier League Andrea Berta initiated the champions exploring the conversation about Osimhen possibility of signing the or whether the Nigerian was Nigerian forward. offered to the Gunners.

According to The Stan- Arsenal have maintained dard UK, the talks between a long-standing interest in the two clubs initially the 27-year-old and are centred on Arsenal winger still searching for another Gabriel Martinelli, with forward before the trans-

fer window closes. However, Galatasaray’s latest position could make any potential move extremely difficult. Özbek has made it clear that Galatasaray are not interested in losing their star striker, regardless of the size of the offer. Speaking to 343 Digital, the Galatasaray president delivered a firm message about Osimhen’s future.

“I will not sell Osimhen no matter how much money it is,” the 77-year-old said in quotes revealed by Haber Sariki Mirzi.

The statement comes after Galatasaray rejected a €130 million (£111m) offer from Saudi Pro League club Al Hilal for the Nigerian striker.

... S’Eagles Scores Brace, but Gala Stumble in Super Lig Opener ​Super Eagles striker, Victor Osimhen scored a brace for Galatasaray as they were held to a 2-2 draw by Çorum in their opening match of the Süper Lig season. ​Süper Lig champions, Galatasaray kicked off their 2026/2027 campaign with a fixture against newly promoted Çorum at Rams Park. Going into the match, Cimbom were the overwhelming favorites due to their status as reigning champions and superior squad quality.

​As expected, they dominated the early proceedings, bossing the midfield. Osimhen made his presence felt early on, lurking inside the box and waiting for opportunities to pounce. ​Abdulkerim Bardakcı had the first real opportunity of the game, connecting with a corner kick cross, but he failed to direct his header on target. ​Osimhen earned his first genuine chance in the 15th minute, outjumping his

marker to power a header toward goal. However, his effort drifted just a whisker wide. ​The top Nigerian marksman looked sharp all night, constantly calling for the ball. Although he lacked adequate service and had to work hard for scraps, he managed a shot from the edge of the box in the 25th minute, which was comfortably saved by the goalkeeper. ​Ultimately, the first half ended goalless, setting the stage for a dramatic second half.

Westerhof Appeals to Presidency for Relocation of House Promised Him to Safer Environment

Former Super Eagles Eagles Coach, Clemens Westerhof has appealed to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu and Nigerians for a switch of the house allocated to him in a remote area of Gwagwalada, near Kuje, within the Federal Capital Territory, to a safer place.

In an open letter to the president, the Dutch coach recalled how 30 years ago, he shared a dream. “Together, we built a football team that united a nation, inspired a continent, and made history.

In 1994, we lifted Nigeria’s first Africa Cup of Nations trophy

and qualified the Super Eagles for their first FIFA World Cup. Those achievements were never mine alone—they belonged to every Nigerian.

“Although I was born in the Netherlands, Nigeria became my second home. The love, kindness, and support I received from the Nigerian people remain among the greatest blessings of my life.

I will always be grateful for the privilege of serving such a proud football nation.

“In recognition of those achievements, the Federal Government of Nigeria graciously allocated a house to my family in 2019. My wife and I accepted this

honour with deep gratitude. To us, it represented far more than a building; it was a lasting symbol of the friendship between Nigeria and a coach who gave his heart to the country,” Westerhof recalled.

Sadly however, Westerhof and his family have not been able to enjoy this generous gift because the house is located in a remote area of Gwagwalada, near Kuje, within the Federal Capital Territory, and with the prevailing security concerns, including the risk of kidnapping, the Dutchman was strongly advised that it is unsafe to live there or even visit whenever he travelled to Nigeria.

Arteta Assures Arsenal Fans of Extending His Contract

Mikel Arteta has revealed he will sign a newArsenal contract and there is no need for fans to be worried about his future.

Arteta has entered the final year of his contract with the Premier League champions - despite co-chairman Josh Kroenke saying in May that a new deal was” an “upmost priority” of the club.

ButArtetasaysheandtheclub

will come together to “resolve” a talks. contract extension in “an organic “When we have the possibilway” - because he is happy at the ity, we will resolve that. That’s it. club, and his bosses appear “Everybody feels comforthappy with him. able that the timing of the “They (the fans) don’t have contract is not going to be an to worry about any of that issue because my will certainly because I want to be here, is to be here and I’m very happy I’m extremely happy and here. My feeling from the club I feel very grateful to work is the same one. That’s why with the people I work with,” everyone is doing things in a said Arteta about his contract very organic way.”

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T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R • SATURDAY AUGUST 15, 2026

BACKPAGE CONTINUATION AKANO’S ALMAJIRI-TO-TECH INITIATIVE IN ABUJA Months before the “graduation” programme of last week, many of the trainees in that hall had never seen, nor used, a computer. Most of them also could not communicate in English at all. Fast forward to a life-changing encounter with Tim Akana and his truckload of good ideas six months ago, they can now assemble drones, repair laptop and desktop computer, fix troubled mobile phones and power banks, as well as electric fans, microwave ovens and other electronic devices.

All it took was an intensive practical training that combined technical education with entrepreneurship training, mentorship and character development. Unlike many programmes that end with theoretical and paper certificates, this one equipped graduates with professional work tools and start-up support to make them income earners immediately. As part of the package, a business directory was launched, to connect households and businesses with the graduates for computer and electronics repair services.

This is all thanks to the Almajiri-to-TechFoundation, founded by Tim Akano, in partnership with New Horizons Nigeria.

They took vulnerable youths off the streets of Abuja and turned them into effective tech entrepreneurs. The skills these hitherto troubled youths have now acquired include Hardware Building, that is the assembling of custom desktop computers, battery inverters, robots, and drones from scratch. They also carry out electronics repair jobs, in terms of fixing laptops, mobile phones, power banks, electric fans, washing machines, and microwave ovens.

They have all learnt basic English and numeracy. They can communicate and negotiate with customers. This was all carried out under a welfare support system that provided daily meals, uniforms, learning materials, and transportation support. The holistic mentorship encapsulated in the programme also offered guidance from integrated religious mentors, psychologists, and imams to reorient mindset and character.

And it was all being rounded up two weeks ago via a Business Launch that would equip top Amajiri graduates with

professional toolkits and enterprise backing, via a dedicated workshop in Wuse II, Abuja, to start earning immediately.

Akano and New Horizons have joined forces to also address the second, and even bigger, problem of Almajiri children in Nigeria. And that is the fact that they often lack any true moral compass, notwithstanding the fact that they could recite one of the world’s strongest sources of moral precepts, the Qur’an. Because it is in Arabic, and they can only recite it in Arabic, the revered scripture does not give them any real guidance, thus leaving them to the machinations of unscrupulous individuals in society. This second dilemma of the Almajiri child has also been addressed by the Almajiri-to-Tech initiative.

The event of two weeks ago should be seen as a clarion call to all to wake up and realize that the solution to a decades-old programme lies within our grasp, and at an affordable cost. The Almajiri child is the product of a system and not the work of the devil. To pretend that he is intrinsically evil is to overlook the fact that whoever wants to find out why a river is polluted downstream must look for the source of the pollution upstream.

What we are seeing, and condemning today in many places is actually not exactly the authentic Almajiri tradition, but a distorted version that has evolved under the weight of irresponsible leadership, poverty, neglect, and poor governance. When we consider that the word Almajiri derives from the Arabic al-muhajir, which refers to one who migrates in pursuit of knowledge, we easily see that the Almajiri system was historically a respected institution of Islamic scholarship across West Africa.

Young learners travelled from their homes to study under accomplished scholars, immersing themselves in Qur’anic education, moral discipline, and character development. The system was designed in such a way that communities, parents, and rulers collectively bore the responsibility of supporting both the teachers and the students in the system. The present crisis is not because the philosophy of Almajiri education was flawed, but because the social structures that sustained it gradually

collapsed. Economic hardship, rapid population growth, urbanization, and inadequate public investment transformed many Qur’anic schools into institutions struggling merely to survive.

In too many cases, children were constrained to beg for food and money in the streets. This was ordinarily not a requirement, or a component of the Almajiri educational system; but the obvious consequence of poverty, hunger and societal abandonment.

Those who argue that the Almajiri system itself is beyond redemption today overlook the fact that there is a difference between the original intentions of an educational philosophy and the new conditions under which it operates in a more or less properly or improperly adapted manner.

The issues should be looked at from the angel of what needs to be done to create the kind of Almajiri education that can work sustainably in today’s Nigeria and today’s world.

The question should probably not be whether Almajiri education should exist, but how an authentic Almajiri system can coexist with contemporary education; while combining religious scholarship with literacy, mathematics, science, digital skills, and vocational training. Such an integration and consolidation will preserve cultural values, religious identity and the emergence of Almajiri ‘graduates’ equipped to thrive in a rapidly changing world.

When we also consider that recent education policies in Nigeria have similarly emphasized integrating Tsangaya education with broader basic education and improving access for Almajiri learners, it becomes clear that this is the way to go. That is why we cannot dismiss the prospects of the Almajiri system as a mirage today. To do so would be to ignore its historical contributions to scholarship, ethics, and community life over the years.

The real mistake and illusion is the belief that abolishing the system will solve the problems of child poverty, educational exclusion, or social inequality. These problems predate the current crisis and will outlive it, unless they are tackled from their roots. The future of the system lies in

the rehabilitation of its original promise, by taking g urgent steps to reconfigure it in the face a dynamic modern world while modifying whatever needs modification.

The system needs reforms, accountability parameters, adequate funding, community involvement, leadership responsibility, and curriculum upgrade and the integration of numeracy and non-Arabic literacy for it to move from being a relic of the past and a symbol of neglect to a model of inclusive learning in a 21st century world. That will make it the oasis it is not at the moment.

The task before Nigeria, for which Akano and new Horizons have set a precedent, is to clear the dust and show a way out of the distortion and confusion and, thus, allow its true value to flourish and shine once again. The uniqueness of Tim Akano’s Almajiri-to-Tech Programme lies in the fact that it is has shown how we can transform Almajiri children from street begging into skilled ICT professionals; through practical technology training while allowing them to continue their Qur’anic education. It rests on the belief that the Almajiri system should be reformed rather than abolished.

Saving the Almajiri system requires the reforming of content and structure, while preserving its original purpose. This will rescue a centuries-old tradition of Islamic scholarship, and restore its integrity; as adapted to contemporary realities.

Introducing vocational and technology education delivers practical skills in such areas as agriculture, carpentry, tailoring, electrical installation, computer literacy, coding, and electronics repair can prepare students for employment or entrepreneurship. And initiatives like Tim Akano’s Almajiri-to-Tech programme demonstrate how technical education can complement, rather than completely replace, Qur’anic learning.

In sum, it about balancing tradition with transformation, and combining moral education and memorization with anti-poverty capabilities. As our people would say, instead of cutting the tree because some of its branches are diseased, let the branches are pruned so the tree can flourish again and not have to be cut down as an eyesore.

choose their leaders, and that sovereign choice is what makes democracy unique.

No responsible leader should seek to impose himself or herself on the people.

All stakeholders must therefore adhere to the principles of democracy, respect the rights of others and prioritise the interests of the Osun people and Nigeria in general.

Unfortunately, the internet is littered with videos of the major political parties in this exercise inducing voters with cash, rice, bread and other edible items ahead of the polls. It will be in the interest of the citizens of Osun to avoid any form of inducement and vote-buying, as it undermines the integrity of democracy and also mortgages their future.

The political class must understand that Osun belongs to all its citizens, not to any political party nor family. The Governor does not own the state. The opposition does not own the state. The traditional rulers and religious leaders do not own it either. The people own Osun. Political power is merely entrusted to whoever receives the mandate.

Also, political leaders must understand the enormous responsibility that comes

with their words. Reckless statements like that by Senator Francis Fadahunsi and other incendiary remarks by political actors and interest groups can be interpreted by thousands of followers as a command to kill or unleash mayhem on their opponents.

INEC has a huge responsibility in ensuring that the election is conducted professionally and transparently. Even though it has continued to assure stakeholders of its commitment to transparency, fairness and professionalism, it must match it with decisive action, strict adherence to electoral guidelines and absolute impartiality throughout the process.

The National Union of Road Transport Workers and road transport owners involved in logistics must not allow themselves to be used to deliberately delay, divert or interfere with or compromise the movement of electoral materials in any part of the State. Results must be handled transparently. Where there are irregularities, the law should provide the remedy.

The security agencies equally have a delicate role to play. They must prevent violence without becoming instruments

of political intimidation. They must understand that their loyalty is to the constitution and the Nigerian people, not to any candidate or political party.

No politician is above the law and no voter should be afraid to vote. We expect all political parties to respect and honour the peace accord they signed with the National Peace Committee and commit themselves to a peaceful poll.

Equally, social media users also have a responsibility to refrain from sharing unverified results, inflammatory claims and misleading information capable of heightening tension, provoking violence or undermining confidence in the electoral process.

Finally, politics should never destroy the social fabric that binds the people together. After today, Osun will still exist. That is why the political class must look beyond the election itself.

The real victory for Osun will not simply be the emergence of a governor.

The real victory will be an election in which people vote freely, candidates compete fairly, security agencies remain professional and electoral officials do their jobs.

ELECTION IS NOT WAR involved six National Commissioners, directors, senior officials and technical staff. The exercise, which lasted about five days, involved a review of every aspect of the commission’s preparations, including a mock accreditation exercise to test the effectiveness of the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS).

But INEC alone cannot guarantee a credible election. The success of today’s exercise will also depend on the conduct of security agencies, political parties, their supporters and other stakeholders.

That is why everyone involved in the process must prioritise peace, equity and justice. Election is not war. It is simply an exercise to choose leaders that we expect to promote good governance, accountability and development.

Election provides a peaceful way to change leadership and policies, allowing for progress and adaptation to new ideas and issues. It encourages public participation in the political process, fostering a sense of community and engagement among citizens.

In a democracy, the will of the electorate is sacrosanct and must be respected.

The people alone have the power to

saturday AUGUST 15, 2026 • T H I S D AY

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SATURDAY AUGUST 15, 2026 • T H I S D AY, T H E S AT U R D AY N E W S PA P E R

BACK PAGE LEAD PHOTOGRAPH

CELEBRATION OF LIFE...

Delta State Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori (left), dancing with the Chairman, All Progressives Congress (APC), Delta State, Chief Solomon Arenyeka, during the funeral service of the late Mrs. Felicia Arenyeka, mother of the APC State Chairman, at First Baptist Church, Warri…yesterday PHOTO: BRIPIN ENARUSAI

OKEYIKECHUKWU EDIFYING ELUCIDATIONS

okey.ikechukwu@thisdaylive.com

Akano’s Almajiri-to-Tech Initiative in Abuja

O

ur people say that the slave you see splitting firewood in the morning in his master’s compound when other children are leaving home to learn one trade or the other is not necessarily unwilling to head out with other children to learn a trade. The salve is also not necessarily less intelligent than the children in the plethora of trade and skill centers in the community. It is just that his circumstances have confined him to a tasks that will never make him a significant democratic fact in his environment. He is Cannon Fodder: Easily replaceable and often no Tim Akano great loss at all if he suddenly drops dead. a large audience to recite the entire Qur’an.

Now, picture a child standing up before That same child could have used the same

intellectual capacity to study and pass thuggery if recruited for the purpose. He almost any other subject in our conventional best among them take to begging, and schools. But his 100% score in the Arabic keep begging. rendition of the Islamic scripture does But, let us backtrack to an event that not give him any skill and knowledge took place in Abuja some two weeks ago. in his economic environment. He therefore around you. There were about twenty-one begs, in order to ensure materially from former Almajiri and street children in a hall one day to the next, notwithstanding his in Peniel Apartment. They had learned to build computers and drones. All it took demonstrated brilliance.

He cannot engage in the local economy was an intensive six-month program that in any way whatsoever. He cannot compete combined daily practical training, holistic in any way whatsoever. He has ‘graduated’ welfare support, and entrepreneurship from his school, but only as an economic mentorship. These can, henceforth, be the burden to society. He has no goods he new face of Almajiri in Nigeria. Which can offer to earn income. And that is means, replicating what made this possible why others must provide for him, why on a much larger scale. he must go out and beg for alms, or get Continued on page 46 involved in petty thievery and occasional

OBINNACHIMA Election is Not War EDGY OPTIMIST

A

fter more than four months of organising rallies and public events, media interviews and other activities aimed at wooing the 1.9 million persons that have so far collected their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) in Osun State, the moment of reckoning has finally arrived.

Eligible voters in Osun would be going to the polls today with 15 political parties cleared to participate in the exercise. The major contenders are the incumbent, Governor Ademola Adeleke of the Accord Party; the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC),

obinna.chima@thisdaylive.com

Bola Oyebamiji, and that of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Najeem Salaam.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday added the Social Democratic Party (SDP) candidate, Francis Ajala, to the ballot. Yemisi Adeagbo of the African Democratic Party is the only female candidate in the race.

With a tense political atmosphere which has seen no fewer than 73 election-related violent incidents resulting in 29 deaths, according to a pre-election Security Risk Assessment (ESRA) by the Kimpact Development Initiative, across major roads, streets and strategic locations in

Osun, soldiers, conventional policemen, Police Mobile Force personnel, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps’ operatives are visibly present. The heightened security came as authorities seek to prevent violence, intimidation, disruption of voting and other forms of electoral malpractice.

Specifically, no fewer than 25,310 security personnel have been deployed across the state, comprising 15,000 personnel of the Nigeria Police Force, 10,210 NSCDC personnel, about 100 officers of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, as well as military personnel.

The electoral body had already

expressed concern over the growing threat of vote buying, warning that the practice could undermine the credibility of the poll if not decisively checked by security agencies today. Before now, INEC had disclosed that it had completed critical preparations for the election, including the deployment of election materials, training of personnel and testing of its electoral technology, and had indicated that it was 90 per cent prepared for the off-cycle poll.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, recently led a comprehensive readiness assessment in the state, which Continued on page 46

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