Headline

Zoning Brought Buhari to Power, Not Competence, Ohanaeze, Afenifere, Middle Belt Tell Daura

Published

5 years ago

July 30, 2020

Eric

Socio-political organisations in the central and southern parts of the country on Wednesday took a swipe at Mamman Daura, a nephew of President Muhammadu Buhari, over his comment on the zoning of the presidency in 2023.

The organisations, including the Middle Belt Forum, Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Afenifere and the South-South Elders’ Forum, in separate interviews with The PUNCH, said Daura’s uncle, Buhari, benefitted from zoning in 2015.

They also said if Buhari were to be assessed based on Daura’s call for competence, the President was incompetent given the way he had been handling affairs of the country.

But the pan-northern socio-political organisation, the Arewa Consultative Forum, said zoning was alien to the constitution of the country.

Daura had, in an interview with the Hausa Service of the BBC, which was monitored in Abuja on Tuesday, said the country rotated the presidency thrice.

He stated, “This turn-by-turn, it was done once, it was done twice, and it was done thrice… It is better for this country to be one…it should be for the most competent and not for someone who comes from somewhere.”

But the President General of Ohanaeze Ndigbo, Chief Nnia Nwodo, who spoke through his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Chief Emeka Attamah, said Daura’s statement was self-serving.

According to him, former President Goodluck Jonathan was pushed out of office in 2015 because the North believed it was their turn.

Attamah stated, “Having benefited enormously, he now wants zoning jettisoned because it is the turn of the south.

The Punch

Headline

Defence Gulps Lion Share As Tinubu Presents N58.47trn 2026 Budget to NASS

Published

2 hours ago

December 19, 2025

Eric

President Bola Tinubu has presented a budget of N58.47 trillion for the 2026 fiscal year to a joint session of the National Assembly, with capital recurrent (non‑debt) expenditure standing at N15.25 trillion.

Tinubu presented the budget on Friday, pegging the capital expenditure at N26.08 trillion and putting the crude oil benchmark at US$64.85 per barrel.

He said the expected total revenue is N34.33 trillion, projected total expenditure: N58.18 trillion, including N15.52 trillion for debt servicing. The budget is N23.85 trillion, representing 4.28% of GDP.

The budget was anchored on a crude oil production of 1.84 million barrels per day, and an exchange rate of N1,400 to the US Dollar for the 2026 fiscal year.

In terms of sectoral allocation, defence and security took the lion’s share with N 5.41 trillion, followed by infrastructure at N3.56 trillion.

Headline

Mike Adenuga, Emmanuel Macron Hold High-Powered Meeting in Paris

Published

1 day ago

December 18, 2025

Eric

Accomplished billionaire businessman and Commander of the French Légion d’Honneur, Dr. Mike Adenuga Jr., GCON, CdrLH, has held a private meeting with the French President, Emmanuel Macron.

The two powerful citizens of the world held the meeting on Wednesday at the historic Élysée Palace in Paris.

The high-level engagement underscores the longstanding relationship between Dr. Adenuga and the French Republic, as well as his continued relevance in global business and diplomatic circles.

A respected industrialist and philanthropist, Adenuga has been widely acknowledged for his contributions to economic development, telecommunications, energy, and humanitarian causes across Africa and beyond.

The meeting adds to Dr. Adenuga’s growing profile as a bridge between African enterprise and international leadership.

Headline

Free at Last: Burkina Faso Releases 11 Nigerian Soldiers, Aircraft

Published

1 day ago

December 18, 2025

Eric

Burkina Faso has released Nigerian soldiers who were detained after their aircraft made a forced landing in the Sahelian country earlier this month, Nigerian officials said.

The release followed a diplomatic intervention by President Bola Tinubu, who dispatched a high-level delegation led by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, to meet Burkina Faso’s Military Leader, Ibrahim Traoré, on Wednesday.

In a statement, Alkasim Abdulkadir, Tuggar’s spokesperson, said both sides resolved the matter amicably and secured the release of the Nigerian Air Force pilots and crew.

The soldiers had been held for nearly two weeks after the Confederation of Sahel States (AES) described the aircraft’s landing as an “unfriendly act” carried out in defiance of international law.

The Nigerian Air Force, however, said the crew encountered a technical issue that required a precautionary landing in Bobo-Dioulasso, the nearest available airfield. It said the landing complied with standard safety procedures and international aviation protocols.