By Michael Olugbode in Abuja A coalition of media and civil society organisations has condemned the alleged brutal assault of the Editor of Pinnacle Daily, Sunday Ogwu, by police officers and members of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN) during a demolition exercise in Lugbe, Abuja. The Coalition for Whistleblower Protection and Press Freedom (CWPPF), in a statement issued on Thursday, 20 August, 2026, alleged that Ogwu was twice flogged with an electric cable by police operatives attached to the Lugbe Police Division after he attempted to document the demolition exercise with his mobile phone. The coalition alleged that the…
Author: Abimbola Ogunaike
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The Global Initiative for Food Security and Ecosystem Preservation (GIFSEP) and the United Nations Development Programme Global Environment Facility Small Grants Programme (UNDP GEF-SGP) have urged communities in Nasarawa State to sustain and expand the waste-to-wealth initiatives introduced under the #BioWaste4Resilience project. The call was made on Thursday, 20 August, 2026, at a Knowledge Management Workshop organised by GIFSEP in Karu Local Government Area of the state to mark the completion of the project. The workshop brought together the National Coordinator of the UNDP GEF Small Grants Programme, Dr. Ibironke Olubamise; representatives of the Nasarawa State Government; officials of the…
The Northern Christian Youth Professionals (NCYP) has welcomed the Nigerian Army’s planned recruitment of about 1,000 indigenous youths from Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State, but warned that the exercise must be backed by stringent security screening to prevent terrorists from infiltrating the military. The group said the recruitment, announced by the Theatre Commander during a visit by Senator Ali Ndume, representing Borno South Senatorial District, could provide a major boost to counter-insurgency operations in Southern Borno and neighbouring areas if properly implemented. In a statement signed by its Chairman, Isaac Abrak, and Borno State Coordinator, Daniel Halilu, on…
The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has sealed a high-profile maternity facility in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, over an alleged ₦13.5 million baby-sale and child-trafficking operation involving a Liberian national resident in Belgium. The agency, acting jointly with the Rivers State Ministry of Health, also arrested the owner of the suspected facility, an alleged facilitator of the transaction and another staff member following intelligence linking the maternity to the procurement, sale and unlawful transfer of children. The facility, located in the Elelenwo area of Port Harcourt, was reportedly operating from a residential apartment and is…
By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola The Federal Government, through the Family Homes Funds Limited (FHFL), has commenced the implementation of a national student housing programme designed to deliver 38,400 bed spaces across 24 tertiary institutions in the country, comprising universities, polytechnics and colleges of education spread across the six geopolitical zones. The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of FHFL, Abdul-Mutallab Mukhtar, disclosed this in a statement on Thursday, 20 August, 2026 in Abuja, noting that the initiative was aimed at addressing accommodation shortages in tertiary institutions across the country. Mukhtar explained that two projects had already been completed under the…
By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola The Presidency has affirmed its readiness to support the forthcoming Global Alliance World Public Relations Forum, scheduled to hold in Abuja from Sunday, 15 November, to Saturday, 21 November, 2026, with about 3,000 delegates from 126 member countries of the alliance expected to attend the event. The State House Director of Information and Public Relations, Abiodun Oladunjoye, disclosed this in a statement signed on Thursday, 20 August, 2026, and titled, “Presidency Pledges Support as Nigeria Hosts World Public Relations Conference in Abuja,” noting that the forum, themed “Deepening Responsible Communications,” is being organised in collaboration with…
By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola The Federal Government will commence implementation of its 90,000-kilometre nationwide fibre-optic network project in October, the Minister of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Bosun Tijani, has disclosed, noting that funding for the project had already been secured. Tijani made this known on Thursday, 20 August, 2026 in Abuja at the National Innovation Hub Standards Framework Workshop, organised to validate proposed standards, assessment criteria and the implementation approach for innovation hubs across the country. He explained that President Bola Tinubu had approved the deepening of connectivity across the country through the investment in 90,000 kilometres of fibre…
By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola Nigeria and the United Arab Emirates have reaffirmed their commitment to deepening bilateral relations, with both countries pledging to strengthen cooperation in trade, investment, technology and aviation connectivity. This was contained in a statement issued on Thursday, 20 August, 2026, by the Spokesperson of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abuja, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa. The Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye, received in audience the UAE Ambassador to Nigeria, Salem Saeed Alshamsi, at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Abuja, on Wednesday, 19 August 2026, for discussions centred on strengthening the longstanding and mutually beneficial…
By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola The Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology has challenged the Federal Institute of Industrial Research, Oshodi (FIIRO), to reposition itself as a major problem-solving institution for Nigerian industries, insisting that decades of research must translate into commercially viable products rather than remain on laboratory shelves. The Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Dr Mukhtar Muhammad, gave the charge on Wednesday, 19 August, 2026 during a visit to the institute in Lagos, alongside other senior ministry officials, as part of efforts to strengthen engagement between the ministry and its agencies. Muhammad noted that some agencies had not…
By Daniel Oluwatobiloba Popoola A chieftain of the All Progressives Congress in Ondo State, Mr Omoyele Olabode, has commended the Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, for personally donating cash to flood victims in the South Senatorial District of the state. Olabode, in a statement issued on Thursday, 20 August, 2026 said the minister’s gesture, carried out under his Flood Relief Palliative Sponsored initiative, had brought succour to victims and their households in the affected communities following the recent flood disaster that displaced residents across six Local Government Areas in the senatorial district. He explained that the minister had donated cash…