Two former Vice Presidents—Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and Namadi Sambo, on Friday, paid a courtesy visit to a former Minister of Interior and ex-Governor of Osun State, Rauf Aregbesola, at his country home in Ilesa, Osun State.

The visit comes just hours ahead of the coronation of the 49th Owa Obokun and Paramount Ruler of Ijesaland, Oba Clement Adesuyi Haastrup, scheduled to hold today in Ilesa.

PUNCH Online had earlier reported that the Osun State High Court sitting in Ilesa, on Thursday, refused to stop the coronation.

Atiku confirmed the visit in a post shared on his verified X (formerly Twitter) account, accompanied by a video clip showing the leaders in cheerful conversation over a morning meal.

He wrote, “Breakfast time at the residence of former Governor of Osun State, Engr Rauf Aregbesola.”

Meanwhile, PUNCH Online cannot authoritatively verify the purpose of the former VP Atiku, Sambo and other members of his entourage to Aregbesola’s residence.

Seen in the video warmly receiving the entourage of the two former Vice Presidents alongside Aregbesola were prominent Osun political figures, including former APC Chairman in Osun State, Lowo Adebiyi; and Chairman of Omoluabi Progressives, Alhaji Azeez Adesiji.

Others include: the former Secretary to the State Government, Moshood Adeoti; and former Speaker of the House of Assembly, Najeem Salaam, highlighting the strong presence of the Aregbesola political camp at the gathering.

Atiku’s arrival in Ondo

In an earlier post from Akure Airport in Ondo State, Atiku also acknowledged the warm reception he received upon arrival for the monarch’s coronation.

Atiku, however, wrote, “I was warmly received by stakeholders on arrival at the Akure Airport in Ondo State, ahead of the coronation of the 49th HRH Owa Obokun Adimula and Paramount Ruler of Ijesaland, Oba Clement Adesuyi Haastrup today.”

The visit, though informal, is already being widely interpreted as a politically symbolic meeting, with comments and reactions to the post which was also shared to his Facebook account noting the significance of such a high-powered trio—Atiku, Sambo, and Aregbesola—convening in the build-up to Nigeria’s 2027 political horizon.

More updates to follow from Ilesa as dignitaries continue to arrive for the  coronation.

The coronation, which will be held at Obokungbusi Hall, Ilesa, with the reception taking place on the premises of Ilesa Grammar School,.

Four family members have died after consuming a poisonous spaghetti.

It was gathered that three children were among those that died in the Magama Jibia area of Katsina State.

The victims—Hussaina Ayuba, Ahmed Ayuba, and Nana Ayuba—were confirmed dead at the Jibia General Hospital after reportedly consuming a meal of spaghetti. A fourth victim, 12-year-old Hafsat Ayuba, is currently receiving treatment and is said to be responding well to medical care.

The incident was disclosed in a post by security and counter-insurgency expert Zagazola Makama via his verified X account. According to Makama, the victims were rushed to the hospital shortly after consuming the meal but succumbed to the effects while undergoing treatment.

In a twist that suggests foul play, a 20-year-old woman identified as Fatima Abdulkadir, who allegedly prepared the food, has been arrested by the police alongside two other unnamed suspects.

“The sources disclosed that Fatima Abdulkadir, who prepared the spaghetti noodles allegedly consumed by the victims, along with two others, has been arrested in connection with the incident,” Makama stated.

Authorities have since visited the scene, and an investigation is underway to determine the exact cause and circumstances surrounding the deaths.

The bodies of the deceased have been released to their relatives for burial according to Islamic rites.

The Labour Party (LP) in Abia State has debunked reports that Governor Alex Otti is backing President Bola Tinubu’s re-election bid for the 2027 general elections.

This comes after the Minister of Works, David Umahi, on Tuesday, asserted that all five governors from the South-East, regardless of their political affiliations, supported President Tinubu’s second-term ambitions.

Speaking in Umuahia on Thursday, the Abia State Chairman of the Labour Party, Emmanuel Otti, dismissed the minister’s statement as speculative.

“No, he (Umahi) didn’t say Governor Otti and the other South-East governors are supporting the President’s re-election in 2027. What he said was, ‘they will.’ Umahi was simply making a postulation,” Otti clarified.

Otti emphasised that Governor Otti had not communicated any official stance on the matter to the party, stating that it remained mere speculation.

“The governor has not told us anything like that. So for now, it remains speculation. We didn’t hear it from the governor—Umahi merely postulated,” Otti explained.

In response to Governor Otti’s invitation to President Tinubu to inaugurate the Port Harcourt Road in Aba, the Labour Party Chairman stressed that the invitation was purely an official one.

He explained, “That is the official function of the President. He is the President of the country, and commissioning projects is part of his statutory role. Abia is part of Nigeria, and therefore it is within the President’s jurisdiction to visit and perform such functions.”

On whether Governor Otti or President Tinubu may make political statements during the President’s upcoming visit, Mazi Otti said he would not speculate on the matter.

“I wouldn’t preempt either the governor or the President. Let’s wait and see what they say when the President visits,” Otti stated

The Coalition of United Political Parties (CUPP) has condemned the All Progressives Congress (APC) for adopting President Bola Tinubu as its sole candidate for the 2027 elections just two years into his term, calling the move a desperate attempt to cling to power amid growing public discontent.

In a statement by its National Secretary, Peter Ameh, CUPP argued that the early endorsement signals deep unease within the APC and a disconnect from Nigerians struggling with harsh economic realities.

Ameh said: “This adoption does not reflect the will of the Nigerian people, whose votes will ultimately decide the election.

“It stems from fear of rejection by an electorate burdened by economic hardship.”

He added that Nigerians view this move as an attempt to undermine democracy and warned that the people remain united in resisting any effort to rig or manipulate the 2027 polls.

“We call on all Nigerians to stay vigilant in defending our democracy. The 2027 elections will be a defining moment, and the people’s will must not be subverted,” the statement concluded

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has said he is not planning to leave the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), despite ongoing talks about a new opposition coalition ahead of the 2027 elections.

His spokesperson, Paul Ibe, made the statement on Thursday while speaking on Politics Today, a programme on Channels Television.

According to Ibe, Atiku is committed to the PDP and has already made that clear.

“My principal has said that he wasn’t leaving the PDP and you have to respect what he has said. I don’t need to come here to speak about it. It is an issue he has spoken of,” Ibe stated.

He also confirmed that Atiku has been holding talks with other opposition figures, including former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai and Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi.

“There is an ongoing discussion between Atiku Abubakar and some opposition leaders like Peter Obi and Nasir El-Rufai. Yes, it’s out there in the open. Discussion is still ongoing. At the end of that discussion, they will come out with a position and a direction that we’re going to follow based on the yearnings and aspirations of Nigerians.

“To also answer your question, yes, Peter Obi and Atiku are involved. And they are also talking,” he added.

Recall that last month, the PDP Governors Forum announced that the party would not join any coalition or alliance with other opposition parties

A former Special Adviser to President Bola Tinubu on Political Affairs, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, has demanded explanation on ₦6.93 trillion allegedly padded into the 2025 budget.

Naija News reported that non-governmental civic and transparency organisation, BudgIT Nigeria, alleged that the 10th National Assembly (NASS) inserted 11,122 projects worth ₦6.93 trillion in the 2025 budget.

BudgIT said analysis showed that 238 projects valued above ₦5 billion each, with a cumulative value of ₦2 trillion, were inserted with little to no justification.

According to BudgIT, 984 projects worth ₦1.71 trillion and 1,119 projects within the range of ₦500 million to ₦1 billion, totaling ₦641.38 billion, were indiscriminately inserted.

The report published on Tuesday stated that a closer look showed that 3,573 projects worth ₦653.19 billion were assigned directly to federal constituencies and 1,972 projects worth ₦444.04 billion to senatorial districts.

Reacting to BudgIT’s report, Baba-Ahmed said NASS and the Presidency have to explain to Nigerians how trillions were inserted into the budget.

He also advised the federal government to sue BudgIT if it claims the latter’s report was false.

“NASS and the Presidency should sue BudgIT for reporting the insertion of trillions into the 2025 budget if its claim amounts to falsehood. The alternative suggests accepting the genuineness of the published findings. In any case, govt owes Nigerians an explanation,” he wrote on his ? handle on Thursday.

A past statement credited to Senate President Godswill Akpabio has resurfaced online amid a wave of defections currently rocking the Nigerian Senate.

The statement, believed to be from November 2016 when Akpabio was a member of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), declared that any senator who defects from the party on whose platform they were elected must forfeit their seat.

“As lawmakers, Senators must not encourage political rascality. That is why PDP Senators today staged a walkout to protest the purported defection of Senator Yele Omogunwa, who was elected on the platform of the PDP but claimed he wants to defect to the APC to support the Governor-elect of his state. The constitution is clear on this: if a Senator defects to another political party, he loses his seat,” Akpabio posted on his official Facebook page at the time.

Nearly a decade later, Akpabio, now Senate President under the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), is under fire for allegedly shielding senators defecting from opposition parties, particularly the PDP, into the APC fold.

In recent weeks, the Senate has witnessed a string of high-profile defections from the PDP to the APC. On May 9, 2025, all three serving PDP senators from Kebbi State announced their defection to the APC after a meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

The defecting senators are Adamu Aliero (Kebbi Central), Yahaya Abdullahi (Kebbi North) and Garba Maidoki (Kebbi South).

In February, Ned Nwoko, the senator representing Delta North, also formally joined the APC.

Despite these defections, Akpabio has not called for any of the senators’ seats to be declared vacant, drawing criticism and accusations of double standards.

In a symbolic protest reminiscent of Akpabio’s 2016 stance, PDP senators recently walked out of plenary in protest, demanding that the Senate leadership uphold constitutional provisions and address what they described as “legislative banditry”.

Speaking on behalf of the protesting lawmakers, Senator Abba Moro (Benue South) said: “We cannot stand by and watch as the sanctity of our democratic institutions is eroded by political expediency. If the Senate President once believed in protecting party mandates, he must now prove it by his actions.”

The resurfaced Facebook post has triggered widespread reactions, with many Nigerians accusing Akpabio of hypocrisy and questioning his consistency on constitutional matters

Mohammed Bello El-Rufai, son of former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, has declared support for President Bola Tinubu’s second-term bid, ignoring his father’s recent move to the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Bello, a member of the House of Representatives for Kaduna North, was at the APC National Summit in Abuja, where Tinubu was endorsed as the party’s sole candidate for the 2027 election.

This comes after his father, Nasir El-Rufai, left the APC in March 2025, saying the party no longer reflects his values.

He joined the SDP and promised to unite the opposition to defeat APC in 2027.

Bello’s support for Tinubu has sparked reactions.

Activist Reno Omokri mocked the situation, saying, “If El-Rufai can’t convince his son to leave Tinubu, how will he convince Nigerians?”

The family’s political split deepened last year when another El-Rufai son, Bashir, attacked Tinubu and Governor Uba Sani on social media.

He said both would lose in 2027 and claimed the probe into his father over alleged mismanagement of N423 billion was politically motivated.

He tweeted, “Nobody is too big to be ‘elected out of office’ by the people. It will happen & wallahi nothing will happen. So forget all these intimidations flying up and down. Let us be patient.”

A former deputy governor of Sokoto State, Muktar Shagari, has said the North will give President Bola Tinubu all the support he needs to win the 2027 election.

Shagari claimed that Tinubu has performed very well, especially in the area of of security.

He stated this on Friday while fielding questions on Arise Television’s Morning Show programme.

According to him, Tinubu has been able to implement the programs he promised Nigerians, insisting that the President needs a second term.

He said: “We in the APC, we have absolute confidence in the ability of President Bola Tinubu to run this country effectively. You would agree with me when he came into power, you people did say that there are problems, particularly the economy of the country and so on and so forth, which requires some sort of drastic decisions to be taken.

“The President is doing everything he can to make this country better, and results are now being seen that the country is gradually moving, and I believe we’ll get there.

“So for President Tinubu to be able to implement the programs he promised Nigerians, he needs a second term, and we in the APC believe in him, and we believe that he has the ability and capability to do that.

“What we can do is to give him the moral support, the political support, and ensure that nobody distracts him by contesting against him. So what the party did at the North-West level and at the national level yesterday is completely correct and right, and it’s constitutional, and we will give him all the support he needs to win this election.

“And I want to say that there are people who are saying that, “Oh no, Nigerians will not vote for him, northerners and so on.”

In the north, we have nothing against President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. He’s doing very well in the area of of security. I can tell security is getting better and better. And there are so many things that he is doing. So as far as I’m concerned and as far as we are all concerned in the APC, we are going to support Tinubu, and I feel confident that he win the election in 2027.”

A U.S. district court has sentenced a Nigerian man, Henry Ezeonyido, to 27 months in prison for orchestrating a health insurance fraud scheme that defrauded insurers of over $1 million through fake international medical claims.

The 37-year-old was also ordered to pay $655,313 in restitution and forfeit $396,998 in proceeds linked to the fraudulent scheme, and will serve three years of supervised release after completing his prison term.

According to a statement by the US department of justice, from October 2019 to February 2022, Ezeonyido submitted false claims to five insurance companies, claiming that he and at least seven others had received emergency medical treatment overseas for severe injuries such as stabbings, gunshot wounds, and car accidents. 

The statement read, “Ezeonyido was arrested and charged in July 2024 along with co-conspirators Brendon Ashe, Aqiyla Atherton, Darline Cobbler and Ariel Lambert. Ezeonyido was later indicted by a federal grand jury in September 2024. All four of Ezeonyido’s co-defendants pleaded guilty to their roles in the scheme and were subsequently sentenced to probation.

“From approximately October 2019 to February 2022, Ezeonyido submitted fraudulent health insurance claims – on his behalf and on behalf of at least seven other individuals, including Ashe, Atherton, Cobbler and Lambert – to five different health insurance companies for expensive medical treatment that they purportedly received and paid for out-of-pocket while travelling overseas.

“Many of the claims included fake traumatic injuries such as stabbings, gunshot wounds, and hit-and-run car accidents that the defendants and others purportedly suffered, requiring their hospitalisation abroad. In nearly all instances, the individuals were actually in the United States at the time of the purported international medical events.”

Following the submission of the false claims, the insurance companies disbursed approximately $655,313 to the individuals involved, some of whom reportedly paid kickbacks to Ezeonyido for orchestrating and facilitating the payouts.

It added, “As a result of these fraudulent claims, the victim’s health insurance companies were billed over $1m for services that were never provided, resulting in payments totalling approximately $655,313.

“Upon receiving these payments from their health insurance companies, Ashe, Cobbler, Lambert, and others paid a portion of the proceeds to Ezeonyido and other co-conspirators, including Atherton, who acted as an intermediary, bringing others into the scheme in exchange for a cut of their paid claims. In total, Ezeonyido retained approximately $396,998 in fraud proceeds.”

The US authorities emphasized the significance of the sentencing in combating healthcare fraud. “Healthcare fraud affects every American through increased premiums and reduced trust in the system,” said U.S. Attorney Foley