Author: Vardiafrica

The Federal Capital Territory High Court has affirmed the detention of former Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC). Justice Babangida Hassan on Thursday dismissed Malami’s application for bail from EFCC custody, affirming that his detention was lawful and backed by a valid court order. The ruling was disclosed in a statement issued by the EFCC’s spokesperson, Dele Oyewale. According to the statement, Malami, through his counsel, Sulaiman Hassan, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, had approached the court to challenge his detention, arguing that it was illegal because it…

Senate President Godswill Akpabio, on Wednesday, received the US Ambassador to Nigeria, Richard Mills Jnr, stressing the need to strengthen the relations between the two countries. The duo, who met at the National Assembly complex in Abuja, expressed their desire for a more robust diplomatic relationship between Nigeria and America. Akpabio said that Nigeria and America had a shared goal of operating a democratic system, as the country’s democracy was modelled after the US system, and therefore the need to nurture and preserve it. “I thank you for receiving me during the 249th Independence Anniversary of your country. I congratulate…

The National Economic Council (NEC) has constituted a committee on livestock development to expedite the implementation of livestock production in Nigeria. This is as Chairman of the Council, Vice President Kashim Shettima, says a practical, enduring, and nationally accepted solution to the farmer-herder crisis will guarantee food security in the country. The NEC committee on Livestock Development, which was constituted on Wednesday during the 155th meeting of NEC held virtually, is to work in collaboration with other stakeholders. The committee has one member each representing the six geo-political zones, comprising Bauchi for the North-East, Niger for the North-Central, Ondo for…

The house of representatives has approved a proposal mandating the real-time transmission of election results. The resolution was adopted on Wednesday during the clause-by-clause consideration of the report seeking an amendment to the Electoral Act 2022. The approved clause states that the “presiding officer shall electronically transmit the results from each polling unit to the IREV portal in real time, and such transmission shall be done after the prescribed form EC8A has been signed and stamped by the presiding officer and/or countersigned by the candidates or polling unit agents, where available at the polling unit”. The existing law does not mandate that…

Burkina Faso has released the Nigerian soldiers detained after their aircraft made a forced landing in the Sahelian country. The soldiers were released after President Bola Tinubu sent a delegation led by Yusuf Tuggar, minister of foreign affairs, to meet with Ibrahim Traoré, Burkin Faso’s junta leader, on Wednesday. A statement issued by Alkasim Abdulkadir, Tuggar’s spokesperson, said both sides amicably resolved the issue concerning the Nigerian Air Force pilots and crew. The soldiers were detained for nearly two weeks after the Confederation of Sahel States (AES) described the landing as an “unfriendly act carried out in defiance of international law”. Advertisement…

President Bola Tinubu has sought the approval of the House of Representatives to repeal and reenact the N43,561,041,744,507 budget for the 2024 fiscal year. The president made the request on Wednesday in a letter titled: ‘Transmission of the appropriation (Repeal and reenactment bill), 2024-2025’, with Reference No: PRES/134-1/17/HR/ARRENB, dated December 16, 2025 and addressed to the Speaker, Hon. Abbas Tajudeen. He explained that the proposed bill seeks to authorise the issue from the Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation of the total sum of N43,561,041,744,507, comprising N1,742,786,788,150 for Statutory Transfers, N8,270,960,606,831 for Debt Service, N411,268,513,380,853 for Recurrent (Non-Debt) Expenditure, and…

President Bola Ahmed 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 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…

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 Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has staged a protest over rising insecurity in different parts of the country. The NLC was joined in the protest by several civil society organisations on Wednesday. In Abuja, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the protesters marched from the NLC secretariat, under the watch of security agents from the Nigeria Police Force, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Department of State Services (DSS). They later moved to the Federal Ministry of Finance. In Lagos, NLC members and civil society groups marched from Ikeja, the state capital, to the Government House in Alausa.…

The Bayelsa State Governor, Senator Douye Diri, has commended the Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, for suspending its scheduled project inauguration as it joins other Nigerians in mourning the death of the state deputy Governor, Senator Lawrence Ewhrudjakpo. Governor Diri gave the commendation during a condolence visit by a delegation from the NDDC, led by the Managing Director, Dr Samuel Ogbuku, at the Government House, Yenagoa. The NDDC delegation included the Executive Director Projects, Dr Victor Antai; the Executive Director Corporate Services, Hon. Ifedayo Abegunde; the Bayelsa State Representative on the NDDC Board, Senator Dimaro Denyanbofa, and other Directors of…