The Federal Government has declared Monday, March 31, and Tuesday, April 1, 2025, as public holidays to mark the Eid-el-Ftr festival after the completion of the Ramadan Fast.

The announcement was made by the Minister of Interior, Dr. Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, who extended heartfelt congratulations to the Muslim Ummah on the successful completion of the Ramadan fast.

The statement, signed by the Ministry’s Permanent Secretary, Dr. Magdalene Ajani, conveyed the Minister’s warm wishes and urged all Muslims to embrace the virtues cultivated during Ramadan – self-discipline, compassion, generosity, and peace.

Dr. Tunji-Ojo emphasised the significance of love, forgiveness, and solidarity as key elements in fostering a harmonious society.

The Minister further encouraged Nigerians to use the festive period for prayer, focusing on the peace, stability, and prosperity of the nation. He expressed hope that the joyous occasion of Eid-el-Fitr would serve as a catalyst for unity and cooperation, bridging divides across religious and ethnic lines.

Tunji-Ojo also called on citizens to celebrate safely and responsibly, while remembering the less-privileged through acts of kindness and charity—keeping in line with the true spirit of Ramadan and Eid.

A businessman, Okorie Sunday, arrested at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos, with $578,000 in cash, collapsed in court during his trial on Wednesday.

Okorie is being tried at the Federal High Court in Lagos.

He was called into the dock for the charge to be re-read to him but collapsed just as the court registrar was about to read the counts.

DAILY POST reported that the suspect was on Tuesday arraigned by the the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, at the same court on four counts of alleged money laundering and currency scam.

He pleaded not guilty.

The court later remanded him in custody and subsequently adjourned until Wednesday for his trial.

However, at the resumption of proceedings on Wednesday, his counsel, Uche Okoronkwo, informed the court that his client would like to change his plea from not guilty to guilty.

Okoronkwo asked the court to allow the charge to be read to Okorie again.

Counsel for the EFCC, Chineye Okezie, confirmed to the court that Okorie had indeed decided to plead guilty.

Justice Dipeolu agreed and ordered counts three and four to be withdrawn. He then asked the court registrar to read counts one and two to the defendant.

As the registrar was about to read the counts, he asked the defendant if he understood English. Okorie did not respond but suddenly slumped and collapsed in the dock.

His wife and daughter, who were in the courtroom, started crying.

As of the time of this report, the defendant has been rushed to the hospital while the matter has been stood down.

DAILY POST reported that the Nigerian Customs Service had intercepted the suspect who arrived in Lagos from Johannesburg aboard South African Airways Flight SA60 on March 19, 2025.

At the airport’s currency declaration desk, he declared only $279,000.

However, a routine search uncovered an additional $299,000 hidden in several packages, bringing the total amount to $578,000.

Popular Nigerian disc jockey, Florence Otedola, aka DJ Cuppy, has expressed optimism that the country will one day elect a female President.

She stated that the record recently set by Namibia as the first African country to have both a female President and a female Vice President could serve as a beacon of hope for women in Nigeria.

In a statement on her X handle, Cuppy said, “Namibia just made history.

“Africa’s FIRST country with BOTH a female President AND female Vice President.

“Maybe there’s hope for Nigeria one day after all…”

DAILY POST reported that Netumbo Nandi-Ndaitwah was recently sworn in as Namibia’s first woman President, after winning elections last year.

The Vice President is another woman: Lucia Witbooi.- making Namibia the first African country to have a female President and a female Vice President.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria CJN, Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun on Wednesday took a critical look into the practice of law in the country and lamented the downturn in adherence to ethical principles in the legal profession.

She noted with regrets that strict adherence to ethical principles in the legal profession was not only dwindling but facing serious challenges.

The CJN spoke at the public presentation of the report of the Directions of the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee held at the Body of Benchers Complex in Abuja.

To address the trend, Justice Kekere-Ekun canvassed an urgent need for law practitioners to recommit themselves to the fundamental values of ethics, discipline and professional responsibility.

She said, “It is instructive to note that the Body of Benchers, as the apex institution of the legal profession in Nigeria, is uniquely
positioned to lead the charge in this regard.

“The responsibility of upholding the legal profession’s sanctity rests heavily on its shoulders, and I have no doubt that the
Body will continue to rise to the occasion.

“The enforcement of professional discipline among legal practitioners, through the Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC), is a vital function that must be pursued with fairness, transparency, and unwavering resolve.”

The CJN who chaired the inaugural edition of the Body of Benchers annual lecture and the public presentation of the Body of Benchers Law Report, praised the Chairman of the Body of Benchers, Chief Adegboyega Solomon Awomolo, SAN, and the entire members of the Body for their foresight and dedication in initiating the lecture.

She said that the lecture was not only a testament to the progressive evolution of the Body but also a much-needed platform for intellectual engagement, practical discourse and introspective reflections on the role of the Body of Benchers within the legal profession in Nigeria.

According to her, the lecture initiative was conceived as an annual event to serve multiple purposes, including illuminating on the workings of the Body of Benchers, both nationally and internationally, to foster greater understanding of its critical role in legal practice and professional discipline, and providing a forum for robust, critical and well-researched discussions.

The CJN further explained that the lecture will address challenges and future prospects of the Body, evaluating the ethical standards of the legal profession in Nigeria to ensure the highest levels of discipline, integrity, and professional responsibility among lawyers, and presenting a forward-looking agenda for strengthening the legal profession while enhancing public confidence in the judiciary and legal practice.

She pleaded that the initiative be sustained and expanded, noting that it should not only serve as an avenue for reflection and discourse but also as a mechanism for setting clear benchmarks for professional ethics, continuous legal education and justice sector reforms.

This maiden edition of the annual lecture, with the theme ‘Half-A-Century of the Body of Benchers: The Past, The Present, and The Future of Maintaining the Ethics of the
Legal Profession in Nigeria’, is to be delivered by a former governor of Lagos State and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, Babatunde Raji Fashola.

A bill seeking to strip the Vice President, Governors, and Deputy Governors of immunity from prosecution has successfully passed its second reading in the House of Representatives.

The bill, which aims to amend the Constitution of Nigeria, was debated and voted on during Wednesday’s plenary session.

The proposed legislation is sponsored by a Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) lawmaker from Rivers state, Solomon Bob.

He said the bill seeks to “promote accountability in public office” by removing the immunity currently granted to the vice-president, governors, and their deputies.

More details later…

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has vowed to ensure that the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, fails in his presidential ambition.

Naija News reports that Atiku addressed his decision not to select Wike as his running mate in the 2023 election, stating that he has no regrets.

In an interview for the television show Untold Stories with Adesuwa Giwa-Osagie, Atiku responded to questions regarding the leadership crisis in the PDP that followed his choice.

Many observers speculated that the decision to overlook Wike, who had led a rebellion within the PDP along with five other governors, contributed to Atiku’s loss in the election. Wike later boasted about working against Atiku and delivering Rivers State for President Bola Tinubu.

When asked if he regretted not picking Wike, Atiku responded firmly: “No, not at all.”

Atiku explained that his decision was rooted in the process followed within the party, recalling the criticism he faced in 2019 for allegedly failing to consult widely when selecting Peter Obi as his running mate.

Reacting through his media aide, Lere Olayinka, Wike said he has no regret that Atiku refused to pick him as his running mate during the build-up to the 2023 presidential election.

He admitted to playing a role in Atiku’s defeat in the 2023 election and vowed to ensure his defeat in future elections.

In the post via ?, Lere wrote, “Two years after making the @OfficialPDPNig lose a presidential election it could have won, @atiku is giving reasons he did not pick @GovWike as his running mate and that he has no regrets.

“Someone should tell our serial presidential election contester that Wike also has no regret for ensuring that he failed in the election and will make sure that he fails again and again.”

A former member of President Bola Tinubu’s campaign council, Adamu Garba, has said unless the President retraces his steps, he may lose the North’s support in the 2027 election.

Naija News reports that the All Progressives Congress (APC) chieftain said the Hausa/Fulani community feels alienated by the President.

In an interview with AIT on Wednesday, Garba stated that President Tinubu failed to carry along politicians who helped him win the 2023 election.

He stressed that the opposition parties were already capitalizing on the President’s lapses to rally Northerners against the President.

On the way forward, Garba advised the President to use the remaining two years of his administration to recalibrate his political moves.

He emphasized that Northern politicians with the President may leave him by 2027 if he did not work hard on his political choices.

His words: “I think he has lost his diplomacy and also lost his reach, and a kind of politics of inclusivity with so many people of the Northwest and the Northeast, especially to be very candid with you, the Hausa/Fulani communities are feeling alienated. So because of this challenge, you will see that so many of the leaders are disenchanted. They were feeling like government came and they were just thrown out of the window.

“Some of them are feeling that they didn’t get their fair share. The people are desperately angry. The problem that we are having in the country, ordinary people don’t have explanation to why they become, in a situation where they find themselves. So this is now… And then you have the opposition saying that because the President is anti-North, and that’s why you are suffering. So that narrative that was sold to the people. And then people are sitting well.

“Meanwhile, the people that the President is supposed to use to carry out his mission and maintain this political base, those political houses that used to maintain this base, we are not anywhere near the power equation. So they are feeling alienated. And that’s why everybody is just watching.

“I think the President needs to recalibrate his political structures in this whole area. And I think he needs to move deeper. And he has to do this reconciliation himself. Otherwise, there are so many people that are close to him, smiling, but I’m telling you, they don’t want to lose their base. And if the base say no, if they go back, they’ll betray, because this is politics, and everybody is about to survive. So the best solution is to find a way to extend his diplomatic tentacles and making sure that these people are feeling carried along.

“I am telling you, that’s exactly what will save his political interest. The President needs to take personal active interest in the political permutation of 2027. He has two years, so it’s something that he can 100% retrieve, but he really has to recalibrate his strategy going into 2027.”

The National Chairman of the Action Democratic Party (ADP), Yabagi Sani, has expressed that some northerners are angry with President Bola Tinubu over the “unprecedented poverty” experienced in the region since he assumed office.

Speaking on Channels Television’s Political Paradigm programme on Tuesday, Sani stated that the anger directed at the president is now being transferred to his son, Seyi Tinubu, particularly in light of the latter’s recent philanthropic activities in the North.

When questioned about Seyi Tinubu’s recent trip to the North, where he distributed food during Ramadan, Sani said the backlash against Seyi’s gesture stemmed from the worsening poverty in the region, which many northerners blame on the president.

He said, “Well, you see, the issue is that it’s always difficult to separate, you know, the person from the office. What am I trying to say? Is that president Bola Tinubu as a person today cannot be separated from the office of the president, isn’t it? And I don’t think there’s anything wrong with any member of his family that can contribute to the development of democracy and to making the situation better for the people. You know, they should be denied the opportunity of doing that because I mean blood is thicker than water.

“I mean, it’s the fact that this is in the case of Seyi, like you are saying. It’s my father. So if he succeeds, I have succeeded. If he fails, I have failed. You know, it goes on for everybody. So, but the, I think what people are complaining about is the fact that you have chosen a particular region. You know, and then again you contribute to making that region poorer than it used to be. Because today, the poverty level in the North is is unprecedented. We have never had anybody has ever seen anything like that.”

Sani further explained that while no one should stop members of the president’s family from contributing to national development, the current economic situation in the North has fueled frustration, and some people see Seyi’s philanthropic actions as an extension of the perceived failure of his father’s administration.

He said, “No, the president could be somebody from the North, Southeast, Southwest, or wherever he may be from. The point I’m making is that whoever is in charge is responsible for whatever is happening to the country, especially when you talk about the the the the lot of the people, how the the welfare people have been have been eroded, you know, in the manner that it has been eroded here today. So it is the anger of the North against the horrendous, you know, situations they have found themselves that is now being extended to Seyi. It’s not because Seyi is helping his father because nobody can stop, you know, even there’s no country where you don’t find families coming together to help their own. “

Sani did not criticize Seyi Tinubu for his actions but called for more diplomacy in how they are carried out. “It’s a natural thing for families to come together to help their own. I don’t blame Seyi for what he’s doing,” he said.

However, he pointed out that certain actions, such as singing and dancing during the Ramadan Iftar, were “anti-Islam” and should be avoided.

“What is wrong with Iftar is when you start singing and dancing and engaging in activities that are not in line with the teachings of Islam,” he remarked.

Former Minister of Education, Oby Ezekwesili, has defended her clash with the senator representing Ebonyi North Senatorial District, Onyekachi Nwaebonyi, at a Senate Committee hearing on Tuesday.

Speaking during an appearance on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Wednesday, Ezekwesili stated that she is pleased with her verbal engagement with the Imo lawmaker, saying that the clash has exposed what women face in a patriarchal society.

She said, “I was very pleased with what happened yesterday because now it is in the public domain what women endure in many instances, and the rest of society may know a little about it but has not focused on it. It has now come to the top of our public agenda that we should not allow for a society that shuts down voices.”

The clash occurred during a Senate Committee on Ethics, Privileges, and Public Petitions hearing on a fresh petition submitted by Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan against Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

Ezekwesili was present at the hearing alongside Abiola Akiyode-Afolabi, counsel to Akpoti-Uduaghan, and the chief petitioner from Kogi Central, Zubairu Yakubu.

Trouble started when the petitioner urged the Chairman of the Committee, Neda Imasuen, to step down in the case following the ‘controversial’ manner in which he had so far handled the alleged sexual harassment allegation against Akpabio.

He further alleged that some committee members had pre-existing ties to Akpabio, which he said compromised their ability to be neutral.

His remarks angered some lawmakers, who accused him of attempting to undermine the committee’s credibility.

Ezekwesili also came under fire for what they saw as her insistence on forcing herself into the proceedings.

However, Ezekwesili insisted on being heard out.

She said, “I asked to be put on oath as a witness. I am a citizen of Nigeria.”

This led to a heated argument with Nwaebonyi, who lashed out at her, saying, “You’re a fool. What do you mean? Why are you talking to me like that? I will not take it. You’re an insult to womanhood. People like you cannot be here.”

Ezekwesili called him a “hooligan,” further escalating the altercation.

The verbal battle momentarily disrupted the hearing before order was restored.

During the proceedings, tensions flared when Nwaebonyi was heard hurling derogatory remarks at Ezekwesili, referring to her as an “insult to womanhood” and a “hooligan.”

The Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, has criticised the Independent National Electoral Commission for not outrightly rejecting the petition seeking her recall, describing the commission’s response as an indication of bias.

INEC, in a statement on Tuesday signed by its National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Sam Olumekun, confirmed receiving the petition, which reportedly contains signatures from more than half of the 474,554 registered voters in the senatorial district.

However, the electoral body noted that the petition failed to include essential details such as the contact addresses, phone numbers, and email addresses of the petitioners, as required under the Commission’s Regulations and Guidelines for Recall 2024.

In response, Akpoti-Uduaghan, through her lawyer, Victor Giwa, in a letter dated March 26, accused INEC of compromising its neutrality by offering guidance to the petitioners instead of declaring the petition incompetent due to its procedural flaws.

The letter partly reads, “Your position as disclosed in your press release on March 25, 2025, signed by Sam Olumekun shows that the Commission has taken sides and has become partial in favour of the Petitioners in this case.

“The Commission has observed that the Petitioners’ Petition did not meet the threshold of the requirement of a Petition to recall a member, having not contained the required contact addresses, telephone numbers and email addresses in their covering letter forwarding the Petition as contained in Clause 1(f) of INEC Regulation and Guideline. The proper thing and step to have been taken is to declare the Petition as “incompetent” and subsequently disregard same.”

The embattled lawmaker said the proper step INEC should have taken to show it was unbiased in the matter was to declare the petition defective, which would have brought an end to the process.

She added, “Lawfully, the Commission is supposed to have declared the Petition as incompetent for being patently defective for the reasons stated above but surprisingly, the Commission, instead of disregarding the Petition for failure to meet the requirements, opted to take the role of an adviser to the Petitioners and so advised the Petitioners that once they provide the needed information that is not contained in the Petition by meeting the requirements, it shall commence the verification of the signatures in each polling units.

“We posit that the Commission has by this press release shown partisanship and partiality in favour of the Petitioner and has compromised the process.

“The proper step to take by the Commission, if the Commission will maintain its integrity and impartiality, is to declare the Petition as incompetent and defective and notify the Petitioners accordingly. Therefore, putting an end to this process at this stage.”

Akpoti-Uduaghan also pointed out that the addresses provided in the petition were limited to Okene, Kogi State, suggesting that the alleged signatures did not represent the entire senatorial district.

“Secondly, the address disclosed and provided in the petition according to your press release was Okene Kogi State, meaning that the two hundred and fifty signatories as contained in the petition came only from Okene, Kogi state, which seems more probable, ” She said.

She insisted that INEC’s decision to allow the petitioners to correct their errors rather than disqualifying the petition outright was a breach of due process, urging the commission to “do the needful and rebuild the public trust that is fast declining.
We still believe that the Commission will act rightly”.