The EFCC obtains a court judgment forfeiting to the federal government a 150,500 square meter estate that includes more than 700 homes (including duplexes and apartments).
According to reports, a high-ranking government person owns the estate.
Since the commission’s founding in 2002, this recovery has been the biggest one to date.
Details will be provided later.
Nigerian musician David Adeleke, better known by his stage name Davido, has disclosed that his motivation to persevere in the face of adversity comes from his father’s teachings on faith in God.
Davido discussed his Christian upbringing and the influence of his father’s religious teachings on his life in a recent Rollingout podcast interview.
He said that because his father taught him to never doubt God, he has been able to go through challenging situations.
“My dad is an elder in the church, but he’s also quite successful. I grew up as a member of the Seventh-day Adventist Church. I went to a Christian university.
My dad helped me overcome many obstacles. Although I didn’t understand at first, I’ve since realized. I was upset. At times, I wondered, “Why do good people get bad things?” My father also informed me that you cannot doubt God.
“What do you mean you can’t question God?” I said. And then we had twins, my biggest album came out, and I received my first Grammy nominations a year later [after my son Ifeanyi passed away]. After that, it began to make sense. “Remember that God has your back, even though everyone faces different obstacles,” he stated.
Pastor Enoch Adeboye, the General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God, has expressed regret for the detention of one of the church’s pastors overseas.
He claimed that the pastor was jailed for using the phrase “Ladies and gentlemen” when speaking to the audience at a program.
He said that because the statement did not include all of the genders that their culture recognized, it was discriminatory.
This was revealed by the pastor on Sunday at the RCCG’s Throne of Grace in Lagos State during the church’s monthly Thanksgiving ceremony.
“My father’s house” was the title of his sermon, which was aired to every parish in the church.
“The end is closer than you might imagine. This is a wake-up call because things are getting worse. For merely referring to a group of people as “ladies and gentlemen,” one of my pastors overseas was imprisoned.
He claimed that several individuals had accused him of discriminating, posing the question, “What about those who are neither ladies nor gentlemen?”
Another unsettling tale of a woman who called her dog her husband was also related by the clergyman.
He related how the woman said, “I took him to the vet before coming,” in response to a question concerning her husband. She calls her “husband” a dog, saying, “He doesn’t talk.”
Seeing these instances as indicators of the end times, Adeboye voiced alarm about the decline of moral norms around the world.
“Take this issue seriously, those of you who are already followers of Christ. Don’t allow anyone to undermine your position. God is sacred. Those still playing church—singing, clapping, and enjoying things without genuine commitment—remember, Jesus is coming back. The devil is trying to harvest you, but you must not allow him to. I want to see you in my Father’s house,” he noted.
Adeboye, known for talking about national issues and the dealings of the church especially about incorporating alien cultures into its branches across the world recently faulted men with braided hair and women sporting false eyelashes and heavy makeup.
Expressing his discontent with the trend among church workers, Adeboye made it clear that such styles will no longer be tolerated on RCCG altars.
In an address at the church’s 72nd annual convention held in August, his comments highlighted his disbelief at the rising trend of these fashion choices among church members.
This edition of the convention with the theme “Heaven” started Monday, August 5, and ended on Sunday, August 11, 2024, at The Redemption City, Mowe, Ogun State (Lagos-Ibadan Way).
For the sake of the country, Rabiu Kwankwaso, the New Nigeria People’s Party’s (NNPP) 2023 presidential candidate, has urged President Bola Tinubu to follow in the footsteps of former Presidents Obasanjo and Jonathan and remove the contentious Tax Reform Bill from the National Assembly.
“In the interest of Nigerians, you should reevaluate your steadfast stance on the Tax Reform Bills so that the country will finally get out of it,” Kwankwaso stated.
“Tinubu should reconsider his stance on the Bill for the interest of Nigeria, just as former Presidents Olusegun Obasanjo and Goodluck Jonathan withdrew some critical bills in the interest of Nigerians,” Kwankwaso said Monday, making the appeal through his X handle.
Kwankwaso stated: “I believe that the moment is not right to revisit VAT or impose any new taxes at this time. Such actions would be foolish in light of the current economic difficulties that many Nigerians are suffering.
“Instead of placing further financial strain on the populace, the government should focus on helping and supporting them, especially during these difficult times.
“I implore President Bola Tinubu to take the National Economic Council’s and other reputable experts’ advice seriously. The common good, not selfish or ego-driven interests, should drive decision-making.
There is precedent for the withdrawal of these bills. Both Presidents Obasanjo and Jonathan have taken similar actions in our democratic history, withdrawing important measures for the good of the country. I think the same strategy should be used today.
“To sum up, I humbly ask President Tinubu to change his mind about these bills and make sure that the opinions of the vast majority of Nigerians are respected and heard throughout this process.”
A widely shared video on social media purporting to show uniformed officers in camouflage removing petroleum from the wreckage of a tanker accident has been rejected by the Nigeria Police Force.
The Force Public Relations Officer, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, announced this on Monday through X.
The people in the video are not Nigeria Police Force officers, the police said.
They are uniformed officers from a nearby francophone nation instead, and their camouflage outfits are strikingly similar to those of the Nigerian police.
According to the statement: “The Nigeria Police Force was recently tarnished by the revelation of a widely shared viral video that shows uniformed officers in camouflage collecting petrol from the wreckage of a tanker accident. It is important to make clear that the people in the video are not Nigeria Police Force officers.
Their camouflage clothes are similar to those of the Nigeria Police, and they are uniformed officers from a neighboring francophone country.
The statement claims that the officers in the video were speaking French instead of English or any Nigerian language.
“The officers who were apprehended were conversing in French rather than English or a Nigerian language.”
In an effort to damage the reputation of the Nigeria Police Force, the police vehemently denounced the dissemination of such false information and unconfirmed material.
Protests have been started by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC)-employed National Identification Number (NIN) agents in the South-West geopolitical zone over the purported nonpayment of a two-year commission.
Speaking to reporters in Ibadan, Oyo State, the Agents’ spokesperson, Mr. Taiwo Odebunmi, claimed that their members had experienced extreme adversity.
Speaking on behalf of more than 120 NIN agents in South West who were purportedly hired by NIMC, Odebunmi urged President Bola Tinubu to step in.
He stated that NIRSAL Microfinance Bank’s (MFB) AGSMEIS lending program was used to finance the purchase of enrollment devices and licenses.
He clarified that a loan of ₦4,109,485.72 was given to each NIN agent in exchange for a monthly commission. According to him, NIMC allegedly paid commissions in April and May of 2021 before ceasing to do so.
Each agent was expected to receive $1 for each enrollment, Odebunmi continued. In addition, he insisted that NIMC revalidate their license, which the commission had purportedly revoked after they had paid for it.
Under the condition that the monthly commissions received by NIMC be transferred into our NIRSAL MFB repayment accounts in order to offset the loan, each agent was given a loan of ₦4,109,485.72.
But following the initial two months of payment by NIMC in April and May of 2021, the Commission’s payment ceased, and we did not receive any money from June to December of the same year.
For our members, this resulted in a great deal of loss and misery. However, this backlog was paid in March 2022, and when the moratorium ended in February 2022, deductions were made for loan repayment based on this backlog, according to Odebunmi.
Since then, commissions on completed enrollments have been owed to NIMC’s members. Since NIRSAL MFB has started the GSI Recovery procedure on agents with the help of the Central Bank of Nigeria, this nonpayment of commission has caused us a lot of problems.
Additionally, through a fraudulent revalidation process, NIMC revoked our licenses in 2023. Despite the fact that our contract is for five years, these licenses were revoked after being paid for with this loan.
According to Leadership, Odebunmi stated, “We are now pleading with the federal government and its pertinent agencies to act quickly in order to ensure the payment of the outstanding commission of $1 per enrollment and revalidation of our operation license.”
Abdulrasheed Shehu, an assistant to former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, has stated that a merger or coalition with the Labour Party’s (LP) 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, is still possible.
After their Saturday meeting in Yola, Atiku and Peter Obi reportedly revived discussions over the prospect of both running for president in 2027.
Obi delivered the keynote address at the 20th anniversary of the American University of Nigeria (AUN), which Atiku controls.
Although both politicians’ spokespersons denied that the invitation had any political implications, social media was abuzz, particularly after Atiku shared a video of his breakfast meeting with Peter Obi at his Yola home.
However, there are suggestions that the conference was part of preparations for the 2027 presidential contest, as the problems between the Labour Party and Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) show no signs of abating.
An X user, Theo Agada, stated, “Repeat the 2019 ticket and vow to complete one term. Then watch the Nigerians do their thing.”
Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, the LP’s Lagos State governorship candidate in the last election, quoted Atiku’s tweet and commented, “We must form a united opposition to end this T-pain remix that we are all featuring in,” referring to the country’s current difficulty.
Doyin Okupe, who previously served as Peter Obi’s campaign director but recently shifted allegiance to President Bola Tinubu, presented a contrasting perspective in a post on his X Twitter.
He remarked, “The politically naive, uninformed, or intolerant have always attacked me when I say that politics is a game, not a religion. There are no permanent friends or enemies—only permanent interests! Expect some interesting days ahead. We now shift from consumption to absorption. “End of discussion!”
However, speaking with Daily Trust, Abdulrasheed Shehu confirmed that Peter Obi and Atiku did not discuss the 2027 election or a merger at their meeting on Saturday.
He stated that the two lawmakers would disclose their positions on potential mergers at the proper time.
He stated, “There was no conversation about 2027. He just welcomed Obi to Yola and shared breakfast with him before accompanying him to AUN, where Obi delivered a remarkable presentation. But, as you may be aware, Oga (Atiku) initiated the demand for a coalition of opposition leaders following the 2023 general elections in order to defeat the APC in the next election. When the time comes, their viewpoint will be made clear.”
Hospital sources informed AFP of images of mass devastation at a football game in N’Zerekore, Guinea’s second-largest city, when fan conflicts claimed dozens of lives on Sunday.
“The hospital has bodies arranged in a line as far as the eye can see. Others are sprawled out on the corridor floors. Because he was not authorized to speak to the media, one doctor stated, “The morgue is full,” under the condition of anonymity.
“There are about 100 dead,” he added, adding that the local morgue and hospital were overflowing with bodies. “Dozens of dead” were reported by another physician.
Images of commotion in the street outside the match and multiple bodies on the ground were captured in social media videos that AFP was unable to confirm right away.
According to witnesses, angry protesters also damaged and burned the N’Zerekore police station.
It all began when the referee made a contentious call. After then, fans stormed the field, a witness told AFP, requesting that his identity be kept anonymous for security reasons.
According to local media, the game was a part of a tournament held in honor of Mamadi Doumbouya, the head of Guinea’s junta, who established himself as president after seizing power in a coup in 2021.
These competitions have become widespread in the West African country as political alliances are formed and Doumbouya considers a possible candidacy for president in the upcoming election.
An extended period of transition
President Alpha Conde had appointed the then-colonel to lead an elite squad that was supposed to defend the head of state from such coups, but Doumbouya overthrew him in September 2021 and took power by force.
He has now stated that he will not return power to a civilian government by the end of 2024, despite his vow to do so under pressure from other countries.
The military officer “exceptionally” rose through the ranks, first becoming a lieutenant general in January and then an army general last month.
Doumbouya has been in charge of a continuous crackdown on dissent, which has resulted in the detention, legal proceedings, or exile of numerous opposition figures.
No junta member was allowed to run in either municipal or national elections, according to a “transitional charter” that the junta drafted shortly after the coup.
However, Doumbouya’s supporters have recently stated that they will support him in the upcoming presidential election.
Authorities announced at the end of September that 2025 will see elections aimed at reestablishing constitutional order.
Even with its abundance of natural resources, Guinea is nevertheless a poor country.
Authoritarian regimes have dominated it for many years.
Since 2020, a number of officers, including Doumbouya and other military leaders in Mali, Burkina Faso, and Niger, have taken control of West Africa.
About 200,000 people live in N’Zerekore, the southeast Guinean region where the conflicts occurred.
According to President Bola Tinubu, Nigerians led false lives prior to the 2023 elimination of the gasoline subsidy.
At the Federal University of Technology Akure’s (FUTA) combined 34th and 35th convocation ceremonies in Ondo State, Tinubu stated that his twin policies of eliminating gasoline subsidies and unifying the currency rate were intended to prevent the collapse of the Nigerian economy.
“We assumed power during a period when our economy was in a state of collapse due to significant debts from fuel and dollar subsidies,” Tinubu stated through Wahab Egbewole, the vice-chancellor of the University of Ilorin.
He emphasized that the economy required immediate action to prevent collapse and stated that the subsidies were intended to help the impoverished and improve everyone’s quality of life in Nigeria.
“Unfortunately, unless immediate action was taken, the good life we believed we were leading was a fake one that could cause the nation to completely collapse.”
On May 29, 2023, President Tinubu said that the gasoline subsidy would be eliminated. A litre of petrol now costs more than N1,000 at filling stations all around the country as a result of this decision. Following the elimination of subsidies, the foreign exchange market was unified, and as a result, the naira is currently trading at over N1,600/$ on both the official and black markets. Nigerians have suffered greatly from these reforms, which have increased living expenses in the most populous country in Africa.
“The strategic decisions to eliminate the gasoline subsidy and unify the currency rates were necessary in order to save our children’s future and save the nation from impending collapse. I am mindful of how our people will be affected by the difficult choices. “I genuinely hope there are more gentle options,” Tinubu stated.
He pointed out that many of the country’s professionals and intellectuals, in whom enormous sums of money have been spent to train for the sake of our nation, are leaving the country “at a time their services are most required at home.”
He declared, “It is heartbreaking, and the syndrome is not the answer to our problems.”
Benson Ogundeji has been authorized by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to serve as Greenwich Merchant Bank’s substantive managing director and CEO.
The appointment was made public by the bank Limited’s board of directors after the CBN gave its approval.
“The Board is pleased to announce Benson Ogundeji as our managing director/Chief Executive Officer,” said Kayode Falowo, the board chairman.
Ogundeji comes to this position with more than thirty years of broad banking expertise. He is a seasoned financial services expert who was instrumental in the successful conversion of Greenwich Merchant Bank from the historic Greenwich Trust Limited to a merchant bank while serving as Executive Director there starting in July 2020. In this role, he oversaw Global Markets, Corporate Banking, and Treasury.
Prior to joining Greenwich, Ogundeji exhibited outstanding leadership abilities in a number of top leadership positions at well-known financial organizations, such as Ecobank Nigeria Plc, GTBank Plc, and other noteworthy banks.
Ogundeji has proven to be an outstanding specialist in company development and operational efficiency over the course of his career. As Greenwich Merchant Bank begins the next stage of its expansion goals, his hiring comes at a pivotal moment. The board has strong faith in Ogundeji’s capacity to guide the bank in accomplishing our strategic objectives, having worked closely with him over the past four years as an executive director and acting managing director.