Headline

Atiku Dismisses Rivers LG Elections As ‘Awful Absurdity’, Calls for Rejection

Published

4 months ago

September 1, 2025

Eric

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has condemned Saturday’s local government elections in Rivers State, describing the exercise as “an awful absurdity” and urging opposition parties to reject the outcome.

The Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission (RSIEC) had earlier announced the results on Sunday, declaring the All Progressives Congress (APC) victorious in 20 out of 23 local government areas (LGAs), while the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) won three LGAs, including Obio-Akpor, Port Harcourt City (PHALGA), and Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni (ONELGA).

Governor Siminalayi Fubara notably lost his Opobo-Nkoro LGA to the APC.

Reacting in a statement released his official X handle, Atiku said the conduct of the polls undermined Nigeria’s democracy.

“The local government election conducted by the occupation government in Rivers State is an awful absurdity and a travesty to the very notion of elective democracy,” he wrote.

The former VP accused the APC of manipulating the process to gain undue political advantage.

“By the shameful and shambolic manner in which the occupation government went ahead to conduct local government elections in Rivers State, it is clear that the ruling APC party is not leaving anyone in doubt that it is prepared to throw caution to the wind in order to achieve an inordinate political advantage,” Atiku said.

The PDP presidential candidate in the 2023 general election further called on Nigerians and the international community to take note of the development.

“It therefore, becomes necessary to call the attention of well-meaning Nigerians, international community and all friends and partners of Nigeria to the dangerous curve that the President Bola Tinubu regime is taking our dear country,” he added.

Atiku also urged opposition parties in Rivers to reject the results, insisting the election lacked legitimacy.

“I will also call on all opposition parties in Rivers State to reject the local government election on the premise that the occupation government that conducted the exercise is extraneous to our laws, with absolutely no legitimacy to undertake such a crucial and sensitive assignment,” he said.

He expressed solidarity with the people of Rivers State, describing them as victims of political brigandage.

“In the same breath, I wish to share my unflinching solidarity with the good people of Rivers State, who are currently victims of political brigandry to a power cabal which is bent on overturning their democratic rights at all cost,” Atiku stated.

Headline

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

Published

22 hours 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

22 hours 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.

Headline

Corruption Allegations: NMDPRA Boss Farouk Ahmed Meets Tinubu, Resigns

Published

1 day ago

December 17, 2025

Eric

The Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, has resigned following a meeting with President Bola Tinubu amid corruption allegations.

Tinubu, on Wednesday, summoned Ahmed to the Presidential Villa in Abuja, following allegations of economic sabotage and corruption.

Also caught in the web of resignation was the CEO of the Nigeria Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Gbenga Komolafe, according to a statement on Wednesday by Bayo Onanuga, special adviser to the president on information and strategy.

Tinubu was said to have nominated successors to the senate for approval.

“Tinubu has asked the Senate to approve the nominations of two new chief executives for the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) and the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC),” the statement reads.

“The requests followed the resignation of Engineer Farouk Ahmed of the NMDPRA and Gbenga Komolafe of the NUPRC.

“Both officials were appointed in 2021 by former President Buhari to lead the two regulatory agencies created by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

“To fill these positions, President Tinubu has written to the Senate, requesting expedited confirmation of Oritsemeyiwa Amanorisewo Eyesan as CEO of NUPRC and Engineer Saidu Aliyu Mohammed as CEO of NMDPRA.”

Onanuga said the two nominees are seasoned professionals in the oil and gas industry.