A data released by the Debt Management Office (DMO) has revealed that Nigeria’s total public debt has risen to N142.3 trillion as of September 30, 2024.This represents an increase of 5.97% (N8.02 trillion) compared to N134.3 trillion in June 2024.The rise, according to DMO, is attributed to the combined effects of escalating domestic borrowing and the impact of exchange rate depreciation on external debt when converted to naira terms.A look at the data released by the DMO reveals that Nigeria’s external debt in dollar terms grew marginally by 0.29%, from $43.03 billion in September. However, the naira equivalent of external debt…
Author: Abimbola Ogunaike
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The Apex Igbo Sociocultural Organisation, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, has raised an alarm over an alleged political conspiracy aimed at derailing President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid in 2027. The group claims the plot is being orchestrated by a coalition of influential figures, including two former Presidents, past military Heads of State, opposition elites, and disenchanted factions within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC). In a statement signed by the Deputy President General, Mazi Okechukwu Isiguzoro, Ohanaeze warned that “these forces are exploiting Nigeria’s economic challenges, insecurity, and the perceived insensitivity of the Federal Government to incite unrest and destabilize the administration.”…
A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) in Bwari has nullified the contempt order against Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, and Victor Ike-Oye, immediate past Chairman of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA).The contempt order was initially issued on 9 November, 2023, by Justice Mohammed Madugu, who found Yakubu and Oye guilty of disobeying the court’s earlier order to recognize Chief Edozie Njoku as the National Chairman of APGA.However, on Wednesday, 22 January, 2025, Yakubu’s lawyer, Ahmed Mohammed, informed the court on July 11, 2024, that his client had complied with the order…
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the appointment of Prince Ntufam Hilliard Eta as Chairman of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) National Governing Board. Eta, a seasoned politician and strategist, once served briefly as the acting national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) under the Muhammadu Buhari administration. He is a former National Vice Chairman (South-South) of the APC and a Director in the party’s 2023 Presidential Campaign Council. The NYSC National Governing Board, the scheme’s highest policy-making body, is responsible for setting its strategic direction. Eta has been a staunch advocate for progressive policies and grassroots mobilization.…
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved the appointment of Gen. Jibril Abdulmalik as the Secretary of the Civil Defence, Immigration, and Prisons Services Board (CDIPB). A seasoned security strategist, Gen. Abdulmalik brings a wealth of experience to the role, having served in the Nigerian Army and various security agencies. He also served as the Director of Security in the Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) during the last election. With an extensive background in military intelligence and security operations, experts say Gen. Abdulmalik is well-equipped to oversee policy formulation and operational strategies for Nigeria’s paramilitary agencies.
A Kaduna State High Court presided over by Justice Isa Aliyu has denied bail to Alhaji Bashir Sa’idu, the former Chief of Staff to ex-Governor Nasir El-Rufai, and ordered his remand in a Correctional Facility. Sa’idu faces a 10-count charge, including allegations of money laundering, embezzlement, and stealing during his tenure as Commissioner of Finance. The prosecution accused Sa’idu of undervaluing and selling $45 million of state-owned hard currency at N410 per dollar instead of the parallel market rate of N498 per dollar, causing a N3.96 billion loss to the Kaduna State Government. Sa’idu pleaded not guilty to the charges…
Former Chelsea and Bayern Munich midfielder, Michael Ballack, has predicted Liverpool as the favorite team to win the Champions League trophy this season. Ballack, who spoke after Liverpool defeated Lille 2-1 in the Champions League on Tuesday, 21 January, 2025, said Arne Slot’s side are dominating every team in the Champions League so far this season. Liverpool, English Premier League giants, booked their place in the knock-out stage of the Champions League after beating the French Ligue 1 side at Anfield. Mohammed Salah and Harvey Elliot scored the goals for the Premier League leaders against the visitors. Speaking to German…
A Magistrates’ Court sitting in Osogbo, presided over by Magistrate Adekanmi Adeyeba has remanded an ex-convict, Sunday Omisakin at the Ilesa Correctional Centre, Osun State, just eight days after receiving a state pardon from Governor Ademola Adeleke. Omisakin, it gathered was number 8 among the list of 53 inmates pardoned on December 26, 2024, under the governor’s prerogative of mercy by Governor Adeleke for a reportedly “simple offence”. Following his release, Omisakin was accused of burgling a residence in Osogbo on Friday, January 3, 2025 and allegedly stole a plasma television valued at ₦600,000 during the incident. The police apprehended him…
The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has awarded scholarship grants of N5.8 million to 29 indigent students of the Ogun state-owned Olabisi Onabanjo University (OOU) Ago-Iwoye. Each student received ₦200,000. While the OOU branch of the ASUU gave the scholarships to 27 of the students, the ASUU national body awarded its own to two students, bringing the number of the beneficiaries to 29, to lessen the burden of university education on them. Presenting the grants to each of the beneficiaries at the ASUU-OOU Secretariat after its Branch Congress on Tuesday, 21 January, 2025, the ASSU-OOU Chairman, Dr. Olukayode Oyenuga, said…
Wild celebrations erupted in Mpu community, Aninri Local Government Area of Enugu State, on Wednesday, 22 January, 2025 were in a celebrative mood following reports of the return of Lady Beatrice Ekweremadu, wife of former Deputy Senate President, Senator Ike Ekweremadu, from a UK prison. Lady Beatrice had been sentenced to four years and six months in March 2023 by a judge at The Central Criminal Court in the United Kingdom for organ harvesting. Her husband, Ike Ekweremadu, was also convicted of the same offence and sentenced to nine years and eight months in prison. News of Mrs. Ekweremadu’s return…