On Thursday morning, policemen tear-gassed defiant protesters at the Lekki Tollgate in Lagos.

These protesters carried placards expressing their dissatisfaction with President Bola Tinubu’s administration, marching against hunger and hardship across Nigeria.

Protesters gathered at the Lekki Tollgate during the End Bad Governance protest on August 1, 2024.

Chanting solidarity songs, the protesters decried the hunger in the country and called for swift government action. “We just want the country to be stable. People are hungry. People are dying. We are not coming to fight; we only want the government to do something,” said one female protester.

Numerous security agents, including policemen, soldiers, officers of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), and the Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Agency, were present at the iconic tollgate.

They informed the mostly young demonstrators of a court order restricting their gathering to Gani Fawehinmi Park in Ojota and Peace Park in Ketu, both in Lagos mainland.

The youths who converged at the tollgate rejected the relocation to Lagos mainland and continued their demonstrations until they were dispersed by police teargas.

The nationwide protests against economic hardship began on August 1, 2024, and are scheduled to continue until August 10 across all states in the country.

In recent months, food and basic commodity prices have skyrocketed as Nigerians face one of the worst inflation rates and economic crises, exacerbated by the government’s petrol subsidy removal and forex unification policies.

Despite warnings from the police, military, and Department of State Services against Kenya-style protests, and politicians’ appeals for youths to cancel the planned rallies, the young people remain undeterred.

Nigeria’s Badminton star, Anuoluwapo Opeyori, crashed out of the 2024 Paris Olympics after losing his second consecutive match against China’s Li Shi Feng 2-0 in a Group N encounter.

Opeyori started his Olympics campaign on a sad note when he lost his first match against Switzerland’s Tobias Kuenzi 2-0 (20-22, 14-21)on Tuesday.

It was not a straightforward victory for Li Shi Feng as Opeyori gave him a tough run. The first set ended 21-17 in favour of the Chinese.

Opeyori bounced back in the second set with an impressive performance to lead 11-7 before Li Shi Feng fought back to win 21-17 to end his Olympics campaign in the first round.

He is Nigeria’s only representative in Badminton and his exit ends Nigeria’s chances of winning any medal in Badminton.

Opeyori is delighted with the opportunity to showcase his talent at the Olympics.

He said, “I am so impressed with my performance; I gave a good account of myself in the men’s singles playing against one of the best players in the world. The Olympics gave me an opportunity to get exposed properly and I am wishing myself all the best.”

Opeyori joins the table tennis quartet of Aruna Quadri, Fatimo Bello, Offiong Edem and Omotayo Olajide to crash out of the Paris 2024 Olympics.

Popular singer, Paul Okoye, aka Rudeboy, has said his twin brother Peter Okoye, aka Mr P, was behind his recent arrest by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC.

In a recent interview with City FM, Lagos, Rudeboy said Mr P wrote a petition to the anti-graft agency to invite him over alleged fraudulent dealings.

He said that despite the EFCC clearing him of all allegations after a thorough investigation, his twin brother refused to apologise over the false accusations.

“This year, I was invited by the EFCC after they received a petition against me from my twin brother. I never thought it [our beef] would get to this extent. I thought it was just music,” he said.

“The next thing, people are asking me, ‘What do you do?’ Somebody said, ‘You’re going to go to jail for 20 years. They’re going to lock you up.’ I got to the EFCC office, they told me everything. They’ve already printed all my account statements. They asked me to explain every transaction.

“First of all, what entered my mind was, what if I was into fraud? That’s how my brother would have finished me? But I took it. Then they started the investigation. At a point, I was no longer comfortable with the kind of questions they were asking me. When I knew it was serious was when they asked me to get a lawyer and sureties. I did everything.

“One month ago, they called me, my twin brother and our elder brother [Jude Okoye], and said, ‘First of all, we have to say that after all investigations, Paul is innocent. Paul is cleared. Everything you accused him of, we’ve done our investigation and he’s innocent.’

“Despite the fact that I was proven innocent, my twin brother didn’t apologise for the false accusations,” he narrated.

The Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Dr. ‘Bosun Tijani, has lamented the destruction of a technology hub in Kano, just days before its scheduled launch.

The Digital Innovation Park, designed to support Nigeria’s technical talent accelerator program (3MTT), was reportedly set ablaze and looted during the protests on Thursday.

“Sad to learn that our Digital Innovation Park in Kano slated for launch next week to support our technical talent accelerator (3MTT) has been set ablaze and looted by protesters,” Tijani stated in a post via X on Thursday.

The incident occurred as part of wider unrest in Kano, where protesters targeted the yet-to-be-commissioned Nigeria Communication Commission Industrial Park.

Tijani highlighted the immediate impact of this destruction on planned initiatives.

“Alongside #3MTT, this building is set to host our buildathon holiday maker programme for secondary school kids starting next week,” he added.

The minister characterised the damage as a setback for the journey to deepening the workforce for technology and creating job opportunities for the youth.

“Millions of Naira down the drain,” Tijani said.

Former Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has clarified that his recent remarks on Nigeria’s population challenges were not aimed at any specific person or region and that he stands by his comments without apology.

Naija News reports that Fayose, an ally of President Bola Tinubu, recently suggested that polygamy and large family sizes are significant factors in Nigeria’s population crisis.

These remarks were made during an interview on Channels TV, where Fayose indicated that Tinubu’s difficulties in managing economic hardship stem from “indiscriminate” childbearing and marriage, particularly in Northern Nigeria.

In response, social activist and former Kaduna State lawmaker, Shehu Sani, condemned Fayose’s statements about marriage customs in the North.

Similarly, a chieftain of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dele Momodu, also criticized Fayose, urging against blame games during this critical period.

Addressing the backlash, Fayose took to his X handle to clarify his stance, stating, “No Apologies, My Comment Not Targeted At Anyone or Any Region.”

He elaborated, “I have no reasons to say derogatory things about anyone, not even the North, not the South.

“What I said was very clear.

“I said I visited a State in the North, I didn’t mention the State. And I gave an illustration that I got talking to a Gateman who said to me that he had four wives and 16 children. And I said what can the government do about such a person? What can government do about a Gateman with four wives and 16 children?

“That illustration is not about the North, it could be anyone in the Southwest, Southeast or South-South.”

Fayose emphasized, “Some people are saying I should apologize, and I want to state that I have no apology because I have not offended anyone. My point is, the nation needs to address the issue of its population, either North, South or anywhere.”

He further remarked, “It is regrettable that people like to pervert the truth and quote others out of context. Majority of those who have reacted to that interview did not even watch it, they didn’t also bother to see the video.

“Therefore, I can’t be bothered about the anger of anyone. I have no reasons to be derogatory about anyone, any region or group.”

The Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has declared that the #EndBadGovernance protest in Kano State is no longer peaceful.

The presidential media aide took to his account on the X platform to share some happenings in the ancient city of Kano, which informed his submission.

Onanuga said properties were getting destroyed, and some of the protesters had started looting items, including mattresses, bags of rice and other things.

He shared a video of an attack on a property during the protest in Kano, with the caption; “The place attacked is a supermarket on Hadejia Road in Kano, all in the name of protest.“

In another video of the incident, the presidential media aide wrote: “An office attacked in Kano. It is no longer a peaceful protest in the city.”

Earlier, Onanuga had also shared some pictures of protesters looting in Kano.

He wrote: “Protesters are also looting in Kano, stealing furniture, rice bags, mattresses and so on.”

In another video, Tinubu’s aide also disclosed the vandalization of the Nigeria Communication Commission (NCC) building in Kano State.

“Protesters go on rampage in Kano. Here is the gate house of the NCC set ablaze,” he wrote.

Six protesters have been reportedly shot dead, with many others sustaining injuries in the ongoing hardship protest in Suleja, Niger State.

Naija News learnt that the victims were killed while security operatives were struggling to dislodge a group of protesters who mounted a barricade on a section of the Abuja-Kaduna highway, trapping motorists for several hours. 

However, an uproar occurred after the arrival of the reinforcement team, which was sent to restore sanity to the area.

A resident of Hassan Dalatu Road, Suleja, identified as Yahaya Nda Isah, was reportedly hit by a stray bullet while on his bike in front of the Suleja Police ‘A’ division, where protesters had assembled.

A nephew of the deceased who spoke with Daily Trust said his uncle was on his bike without joining the ongoing protest when the bullet fired to disperse the protesters hit him on his chest, and he died on the spot.

He said, “He was my uncle. He was not even protesting. He was passing in front of the Police ‘A’ division where some people were protesting when stray Bullet hit him on his chest and he died. As I speak with you, I am in his house alongside other mourners. It’s unfortunate.”

Another victim identified as Mallam Abu also said died on the spot with three other people shot at the same scene while 2 others were shot at the Suleja Junction on Abuja-Kaduna road.

Spokesperson of the Niger State Police Command, SP Wasiu Abiodun, said some hoodlums also attempted to set the Tafa LGA ablaze, but security operatives dispersed them.

He said, “The miscreants attempted to set the Tafa LGA ablaze, they were dispersed by the Police and military. Kaduna road and toll gate was cleared.”

A tense standoff between angry youths and police officers has erupted at the Kurudu Axis in Abuja, with protesters blocking the road using burning tires and refusing to allow vehicles to pass.

Despite attempts by the police to engage in dialogue and disperse the crowd using tear gas, the situation remains volatile.

The youths, fueled by frustration and anger, are demanding attention to their grievances, while the police are working to maintain order and restore normalcy to the area. The confrontation has brought traffic to a standstill, causing disruptions to daily activities.

As the situation continues to unfold, concerns about safety and potential escalation are growing. The use of tear gas by the police has added to the tensions, and it remains to be seen how the situation will be resolved.

Two parallel groups, for and against Tinubu’s government staged their protest in Yola as security agents averted a clash by the two groups.

As the two groups marched in opposite routes, the situation got tensed, as they started infiltrating into each other leading to commotion and verbal abuse.

The presence of heavily armed personnel prevented the situation from degenerating into a free for all fight.

No breach of peace has been recorded in Adamawa, even as the situation has created fear among the people.