Author: Maryam Sulaiman

Operatives of the Department of State Services have apprehended a suspected arms courier in Kano State who was allegedly moving a cache of weapons intended for a notorious bandit leader operating in Zamfara State. According to an operational report made available to the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja on Saturday, the suspect was caught on Friday in the Gezawa Local Government Area of Kano State following actionable intelligence. The report indicated that the suspect was intercepted while transporting weapons and ammunition from the Maigatari Local Government Area of Jigawa State toward Funtua in Katsina State, with the ultimate goal…

Operatives of the Nigeria Police Force have apprehended a man identified as Nwali Nwibo for allegedly fabricating and circulating false information regarding an invasion of the Nguzu Edda Community in the Edda Local Government Area of Ebonyi State by bandits and Fulani herdsmen. The state command’s spokesperson, SP Joshua Ukandu, confirmed the arrest in a press statement released on Friday night. According to Ukandu, the arrest was the result of a meticulous, intelligence-driven investigation carried out by the command. The investigation successfully proved that the invasion reports were completely false and ultimately led tracking down and securing the suspect. Following…

Nigeria’s Minister of Defence, General Christopher Musa (retd.), has stated that the ongoing battle against terrorism, banditry, and insurgency persists because criminal networks continue to receive critical backing from their sponsors and select members of the public. He noted that terrorists and bandits are heavily dependent on local accomplices for sustenance, intelligence, logistics, and financing. He cautioned that overcoming insecurity will remain a monumental challenge until everyday citizens collectively choose to reject and expose those aiding these criminal elements. The Defence Minister shared these insights on Friday during the 2026 edition of The Platform Nigeria, an annual national discourse organized…

Operatives of the Katsina State Police Command have successfully thwarted a kidnapping attempt, rescuing nine abducted passengers after a swift tactical operation along the Katsina-Kankara highway. The Command’s Public Relations Officer, DSP Abubakar Sadiq, confirmed the development in a statement issued on Saturday. He detailed how police operatives engaged suspected armed bandits in a fierce gun battle, ultimately forcing them to abandon their captives. The incident took place on Friday, June 12, 2026, at approximately 2:30 PM. A group of armed bandits had set up a barricade on the Katsina-Kankara Road at Tashar Kanya Village, located within the Kankara Local…

Barrister Hannatu Musa Musawa, the Minister of Art, Culture, Tourism and Creative Economy, has delivered a deeply moving tribute to the legendary figures and martyrs of Nigeria’s democratic journey. In her address, she challenged citizens to protect the foundational values of unity, personal sacrifice, and active civic participation that originally paved the way for democratic governance in the country. As reported by News Point Nigeria, Musawa penned a dedicated Democracy Day spoken-word piece titled “Honouring the Heroes of June 12th.” Through this creative medium, she reflected on the immense costs paid by prominent pro-democracy activists who fought to restore civilian…

Activists, civil society organizations, and frustrated citizens flooded the streets of Lagos on Friday, utilizing Democracy Day to launch a renewed #EndBadGovernance demonstration. The crowd gathered to demand swift government intervention regarding the nation’s escalating economic distress, widespread joblessness, insecurity, and the soaring cost of living. Despite the heavy presence of security personnel, the procession remained peaceful. Demonstrators marched through the city hoisting placards with stark messages including, “Free All Captives Now,” “End Anti-People Policies Now,” and “For a Living Wage and Mass Creation of Employment.” The resurgence of public anger follows on the heels of recent back-to-back mass kidnappings…

The National Industrial Court sitting in Abuja has thrown out a lawsuit brought forward by Yisa Usman, a former Deputy Director of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), who was contesting his termination from the exam body. In a ruling delivered on June 2, presiding judge Justice Osatohanmwen Obaseki-Osaghae determined that Usman’s dismissal was entirely legal and aligned perfectly with the guidelines laid out in the JAMB staff manual. Usman’s removal occurred in July 2023 after the Minister of Education approved the recommendations of a disciplinary panel set up to probe his actions during his tenure as a deputy…

Five residents of the Paze community in Byazhin, located within the Bwari area of the Federal Capital Territory, have been rescued by the FCT Police Command. The successful rescue occurred on Tuesday during a joint clearance operation involving police officers, local hunters, and vigilantes. During the intense face-off, security forces neutralized two suspected kidnappers, apprehended two others, and recovered two AK-47 rifles along with ammunition. A statement issued on Wednesday by the command’s spokesperson, Josephine Adeh, detailed the successful security raid. The statement noted that the FCT Commissioner of Police, Ahmed Sanusi, personally spearheaded the tactical operation. The statement read:”The…

Fears of bandit incursions caused an early shutdown of schools in several regions of the country on Wednesday. The sudden closures followed an armed raid on the UBE Secondary/Primary School in Iluke, Kogi State, alongside intelligence reports and rumors hinting at looming attacks in Edo and Niger States.The developments occurred just weeks after a mass abduction of school pupils in Oyo State, an incident that drew widespread national and international condemnation over Nigeria’s deteriorating security environment.Tragedy in Kogi StateSuspected bandits raided the UBE Secondary/Primary School in Iluke, located within the Kabba-Bunu Local Government Area of Kogi State, resulting in the…

The International Monetary Fund has projected that Nigeria’s public external debt will surge by $20.7bn by the year 2027, coinciding with the nation’s next election cycle. In its 2026 Article IV Consultation report on Nigeria released on Tuesday, the global financial institution estimated that public external debt will climb from $51.9bn in 2025 to $72.6bn by 2027. This represents an estimated 39.9 per cent increase over a two-year window, heightening ongoing anxieties regarding the country’s debt sustainability despite recent gains in macroeconomic stabilization. With the next presidential election scheduled for January 2027, the Fund cautioned that mounting fiscal pressures tied…