Doyin Okupe, former director-general of the Labour Party (LP) presidential campaign, has criticized Peter Obi, the party’s 2023 presidential candidate, for lacking a concrete policy document to support his “consumption-to-production” mantra during the election campaign.

Speaking on Tuesday while reviewing President Bola Tinubu’s administration, Okupe claimed that Tinubu presented a superior policy framework compared to his opponents in the 2023 elections.

He argued that the president has been methodical in implementing the “Renewed Hope Agenda,” which includes paying off crippling debts to stabilize the economy.

“Tinubu has a better policy document than any of his two rivals during the 2023 presidential election,” Okupe stated, as reported by NAN.

Okupe also criticized Atiku Abubakar, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, stating that his plans were overly reliant on theoretical loan arrangements.

He claimed that Atiku’s proposals were impractical given Nigeria’s financial situation at the time, as international institutions were unwilling to provide loans.

Addressing Peter Obi’s campaign, Okupe noted that the Labour Party failed to provide a policy document that could guide its vision.

“All we were saying was that we wanted to take Nigeria from consumption to production; good rhetoric, but it was not grounded either in policy development or principle application,” he said.

Okupe praised Tinubu’s economic reforms, particularly his efforts to address foreign exchange challenges and tax reforms, which align with his campaign promises.

He highlighted Tinubu’s focus on systematic and practical solutions, adding, “Though I never supported Tinubu ahead of the election and we were not in the same party, in retrospect, his reform agenda is the most credible.”

Okupe concluded by emphasizing that Tinubu’s “Renewed Hope Agenda” is effectively addressing Nigeria’s current challenges and has the potential to elevate the country to new heights.

Suspected Boko Haram insurgents have ambushed a Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) monitoring team on Monday in Farin-Kasa, Chukun Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The attack occurred while the operatives were inspecting the National Grid installation in Shiroro, Niger State.

In a statement, NSCDC spokesperson DCC Afolabi Babawale revealed that the team, consisting of nine officers and 71 other ranks, had been deployed to address recent power line attacks that caused blackouts in northern Nigeria.

While patrolling, the operatives encountered stranded expatriates near Dagwachi Village and offered them safety in their convoy. However, the team fell into a deadly ambush by over 200 armed Boko Haram militants positioned on a hilltop, who unleashed heavy gunfire on the convoy.

Despite the ambush, the NSCDC operatives fought back with resilience, neutralizing more than 50 insurgents during the clash.

“As they patrolled vulnerable areas, they encountered stranded expatriates near Dagwachi Village and allowed them to join the convoy for safety. Unbeknownst to the team, over 200 armed Boko Haram militants had laid a deadly ambush from a hilltop, ready to unleash a torrent of gunfire on the unsuspecting convoy,” he said.

“Determined and resourceful, the NSCDC operatives fought back valiantly, managing to neutralise over 50 insurgents during the exchange. However, the chaos left seven officers unaccounted for, prompting an urgent search in the bush for their whereabouts. Those who sustained injuries are currently receiving medical treatment.”

NSCDC Commandant-General Ahmed Audi condemned the attack, describing it as a cowardly act against those safeguarding the nation.

He commended the bravery of the operatives and reaffirmed the Corps’ commitment to protecting critical national assets and infrastructure amidst growing security threats.

The lineup of 24 countries for the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) is complete, with Mozambique claiming the final spot following a 2-1 win over Guinea-Bissau.

The tournament, set to begin in December next year, will be hosted by Morocco, who automatically have a place in the competition as the host nation.

The competition will feature a mix of traditional powerhouses and rising teams, all eager to make their mark on the continental stage.

Among the qualified nations are former champions Senegal, Algeria, Egypt, and title holders Côte d’Ivoire, who all demonstrated strong performances during the qualifiers.

Other iconic teams like Nigeria, Tunisia, and South Africa also earned their places, ensuring the presence of some of Africa’s most renowned footballing nations.

The tournament also welcomes back teams like DR Congo, Angola, and Gabon, with Botswana making a long-awaited return after a 12-year absence.

Sudan and Benin clinched their spots on the final day of qualifiers, adding to the drama.

With all 24 slots now filled, the stage is set for an unforgettable AFCON in Morocco.

Full List of 24 Countries for AFCON 2025

Morocco (Hosts)
Burkina Faso
Cameroon
Algeria
DR Congo
Senegal
Egypt
Angola
Equatorial Guinea
Cote d’Ivoire
Uganda
South Africa
Gabon
Tunisia
Nigeria
Zambia
Mali
Zimbabwe
Comoros
Sudan
Benin
Tanzania
Botswana
Mozambique

The Naira appreciated on Tuesday at the official market, trading at N1,678.93 against the dollar and recovering from a three-day trading loss.

Data from the official trading platform of the FMDQ Exchange, revealed that the Naira gained N11.44.

This represents a 0.67 per cent gain when compared to the previous trading date on Monday when it exchanged at N1,690.37 to a dollar.

Similarly, the Naira yesterday appreciated to N1,730 per dollar in the parallel market from N1,735 per dollar on Monday.

However, the total daily turnover reduced to 128.59 million dollars on Tuesday down from 173.14 million dollars recorded on Monday.

At the Investor’s and Exporter’s (I&E) window, the Naira traded between N1,698 and N1,631 against the dollar.

(NAN)

A 17-year-old male, Samuel Onyeme, was reportedly assaulted and confined within a dog cage last weekend for visiting a female classmate, Miss Anastasia Celestine.

The incident occurred when Onyeme arrived at his classmate’s home at approximately 6:00 PM.

The victim’s mother, Mrs. Onyeme, informed journalists on Monday, noting that her experience at Mr Celestine’s residence was more helpful.

She said, “My son, Samuel, a 17-year-old Senior Secondary student of Redeemers International High School, Asaba, Delta State, on Sunday, visited his classmate, Anastasia Celestine, at her residence after she invited him.

“My son said they were having a discussion outside the house of Mr Celestine when he was brutally assaulted by her father and his two sons.

“They attacked him on the street, dragged him into their compound, and inflicted severe physical injuries on him. You see his head, he said they used wooden planks and locked him inside a dog cage.

“During the assault, they confiscated his mobile phone and called me (mother), deceiving me into coming to the scene. Upon my arrival, I was deprived of seeing him for two hours.”

She said her daughter, Jessica, who was outside attempting to seek help, was also subjected to assault by members of the Celestine family when she tried to re-enter the compound.

“The situation escalated when Ben, the other of my sons, who is the elder brother to Samuel, contacted a family friend, who then reached out to a human rights organisation before they mobilised police, officers were mobilised to rescue Samuel from the dog cage around 10:00 pm that night,” the mother added.

A human rights advocate, Victor Ojei, who alerted the Delta State Police Command about a troubling incident, stated on Tuesday that he took the initiative to engage the police, leading to the rescue of Samuel from a dog cage. He condemned the act as both barbaric and inhumane.

In a formal petition directed to the Commissioner of Police at the Delta State Police Command, Ojei urged for an immediate investigation and prosecution of Celestine and his sons on charges of kidnapping, unlawful detention, assault, and attempted murder in accordance with Nigerian Criminal Law and the Violence Against Persons (Prohibition) Laws.

The petition was also sent to the Attorney General of the Ministry of Justice in Asaba, Delta State, and the State Coordinator of the National Human Rights Commission in the same city, emphasizing the need for justice in this matter.

The petition reads: “One Onyeme Ben contacted a family friend, who then reached out to our organisation. Following our report to the Delta State Police, officers were mobilised, and Master Onyeme Samuel was rescued from the dog cage around 10:00 pm that night.

“Based on the above facts, Mr Celestine and his sons have committed criminal offences, which include unlawful detention of Mrs Onyeme Onome for two hours against her will and the forcible confinement of Master Onyeme Samuel in a dog cage from 6:00 pm to 10:00 pm. which contravenes Section 364 of the Criminal Code Act.

“The brutal assault on Master Onyeme Samuel using wooden planks, resulting in multiple injuries and psychological trauma, is a violation of Section 355 of the Criminal Code Act.

“Attempted murder; threats to pour fuel and set Master Onyeme Samuel ablaze amount to attempted murder under Section 320 of the Criminal Code Act.”

The victim, Samuel, is presently undergoing treatment at the Asaba Specialist Hospital due to physical injuries and psychological trauma sustained during the incident.

Upon inquiry, the Police Public Relations Officer for the state, SP Bright Edafe, stated that he had not received any report regarding the incident at the time this report was prepared.

The lawmaker representing Imo West senatorial district, Osita Izunaso, on Tuesday disclosed that he attended a meeting in London during which late Anambra South senator, Ifeanyi Ubah, promised Senate President, Godswill Akpabio that he would join the ruling party, APC.

Izunaso stated this during the valedictory session organised by the Senate in honour of the late senator.

According to Izunaso, part of the agreement reached during the meeting held in London was that Ubah would dump the Young Progressives Party (YPP) for the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Izunaso said, “When Ifeanyi Ubah was about to join the All Progressives Congress, he invited me as a witness to have our popular London meeting with you Mr President.

“In that London accord, you (Akpabio) asked Ifeanyi Ubah two questions – ‘are you (Ubah) sure you are going to join APC?’ Ifeanyi said ‘yes, I’ll join APC.’ You asked him this question: ‘but I am aware that your (Ubah) matter is still in court. Are you going to tell us that it is after you finish with the court battle that you will join us?’ Ifeanyi said ‘No, I am joining APC.’ That deal was sealed and Mr President of the Senate said, ‘the moment I (Akpabio) return to Nigeria, I will go and see the Commander-in-Chief and I (Akpabio) will tell him that Ifeanyi Ubah wants to join APC.’

“Mr President, that London accord, Ifeanyi Ubah kept to his words and you also kept to your words and within a very short period of time, he (Ubah) joined our party and transformed APC in Anambra State. That is the man Ifeanyi Ubah.”

Ubah defected to the ruling APC in October 2023. He was the sole YPP senator from 2019 till his defection.

Former Governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom, has called upon Mkor Aondona, the Special Adviser to the current Governor on Research and Documentation, to retract the recent allegations of financial misconduct he made against him.

He added that should Aondona fail to do so, he must be prepared to substantiate his claims in a court of law.

Naija News reports that formal notice from Ortom’s legal representative, Barr. S. E. Irabor, was sent to Aondona and delivered through the office of the Secretary to the Benue State Government. The notice asserts that Aondona’s actions constitute cyberstalking, criminal defamation, malicious falsehood, and libellous online publication against the former governor.

Irabor stated: “On November 8, 2024, you published a damaging post on your Facebook page (Mkor Aondona Donatus) with the title – ‘May God Almighty Never Allow The Wickedness Of An Ortom To Overshadow His Glory!

“What followed this banal headline was a godless cacophony of mischievous, malicious and malevolent webs of lies that bothered on the utterly ridiculous.”

He went further to allege that Mkor’s publication on social media deeply harmed Ortom’s hard-earned reputation in the eyes of the public.

“By your deliberate design, you ensured that these defamatory and libellous falsehoods received prominent attention on social media platforms where gullible persons took turns to pour invectives on our client.

” By your latter Facebook post of 9th November 2024, you sustained your incontinence against our client and even scoffed at the suggestion of legal action against you.

“It is the brief of our client that the said publication is in all material particular false, unsubstantiated, concocted, malicious, mischievous, wicked, offensive, in bad taste and made in utmost bad faith to bring him to public ridicule, hatred and opprobrium,” he stressed.

He asserted that, contrary to Mkor’s claims, the previous administration led by Ortom did not allocate any funds from Benue for the proposed Cargo Airport at Daudu or the Igumale Cement Factory, nor did it make any payments related to any Memorandum of Understanding.

He further clarified that Ortom does not possess any water factory along the banks of the River Benue and has never been involved in any legal proceedings, either within the state or outside its jurisdiction, concerning tax evasion.

Additionally, he emphasized that Ortom never utilized imported industrial machinery intended for Benue State for personal purposes, as alleged by Mkor.

As a result, the demand notice requires Mkor to issue a letter of retraction and apology to the former governor regarding his false, defamatory, and libellous statements.

Furthermore, it stipulates that the Special Adviser to the Governor must ensure the retraction/apology is published in at least five national newspapers that circulate in Benue State, along with paid advertisements to the same effect during prime time slots on Arise News, Channels Television, AIT, TVC News, Nigerian Television Authority, Radio Benue, and Harvest FM Makurdi.

Mkor must also provide a written commitment not to engage in any similar false publications against Chief Ortom in the future.

Lastly, he must compensate the former governor with N1 billion as exemplary, aggravated, and general damages.

Hadiza el-Rufai, wife of former Kaduna State governor Nasir el-Rufai, has taken on her son Bashir on X (formerly Twitter) after he criticized President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

The heated exchange began when Bashir described Tinubu’s media team as “ineffectual clowns” for their response to former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s recent comments on the 2023 elections and INEC.

Obasanjo, in his remarks on Sunday, referred to the 2023 elections as a “travesty” and called for credible leadership at INEC with short tenures to prevent corruption and restore public trust.

The presidency, through spokesperson Bayo Onanuga, fired back, accusing Obasanjo of presiding over Nigeria’s most fraudulent election and leaving behind poor economic policies.

Bashir took to X to question the priorities of Tinubu’s media team, saying, “Instead of addressing inflation at 33 percent, they are attacking Obasanjo. A mental illness seems to be permeating the team.”

 

Hadiza, in her reply, questioned her son’s stance, asking, “Would you be saying this if your father were part of this government?”

Bashir retorted, asserting that his father would have resigned by now due to the administration’s failures. “If my father were part of this government, he would have dissociated himself by now,” Bashir wrote.

The Secretary to the Delta State Government, Kingsley Emu, says the allegations against former Governor Ifeanyi Okowa are frivolous and politically motivated.

He alleged that the allegations against Okowa are sponsored by his political enemies in order to tarnish his image ahead of the 2027 elections.

Speaking on Tuesday during an interview with Arise News, Emu maintained that Okowa is a man of impeccable character and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has no case against him.

“From the allegations on expenditure and the projects that most of these resources were tied to, it’s obvious it is political. Because diversion could come in different ways, but to say that they were taken totally and completely to build private estates and for personal gains is one wrong assertion. Those are frivolous allegations. They are strictly political, they are targeted at 2027 and targeted at impugning the personality of Okowa.

“Okowa’s character is impeccable, that is the target. Okowa has a good history, a good record, and a good reputation country-wide,” he said.

The SSG insisted that Okowa, during his tenure as the Delta State Governor implemented several developmental projects in the state, insisting that unnamed detractors and political jobbers are behind the accusations.

“They are unknown political jobbers; they are faceless, using cheap propagandists to do the job. Senator Okowa has been to EFCC, and EFCC has the right to do every iota of interrogation,” Emu noted.

Addressing concerns about contracts awarded through the Delta State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (DESOPADEC), Emu said all appropriations were done transparently.

“DESOPADEC is a well-structured organisation. Those appropriations are right. If you go to oil-producing areas, you will see major road constructions and bridges,” he explained.

On the allegations of financial misappropriation of ₦1.3 trillion in derivation funds and other financial irregularities against Okowa which has pitched the former Governor against the EFCC, Emu stated, “Most of, if not all, of those allegations are pretty spurious. We can’t even be talking about ₦1.3 trillion when the total receipt was about ₦2.65 trillion. So you’re talking about 50 percent of it diverted—that is not possible.

“EFCC have been writing letters to inspect and verify some of the projects that most of these alleged funds were attached to. I dare say that they have been very satisfactory because they are physical projects; you can feel them and you can see them,” he said.

Regarding reports that some officials who served under Okowa went into hiding following the allegations, Emu refuted the claims, saying, “That is very strange. I served under him… EFCC has not declared anybody wanted. If EFCC carries on a major investigation of this nature, which has been on for over four years, EFCC should have declared some of them wanted.”

Emu expressed confidence that the EFCC would clear Okowa of all the charges against him, maintaining that the allegations are all lies.

“Senator Okowa is very strong and confident because he knows, and the world knows, the discerning people know, that 80, 90, if not all, 100 percent of those allegations are lies,” he said.

“It’s just a matter of time, and this will pass,” he concluded.