Governors of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have paid a condolence visit to Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde over the death of his elder brother, Sunday Makinde

Sunday died in the early hours of Friday during a brief illness at the age of 65.

The Chairman of PDP Governors’ Forum, Gov. Bala Mohammed, led his colleagues on the condolence visit to Makinde in his private residence at Agodi GRA, Ibadan.

The Bauchi State Governor described Makinde’s brother as a man who lived a fulfilled life and expressed the forum’s heartfelt sympathy to his Oyo colleague.

He assured Makinde of the forum’s solidarity during this difficult period.

“We are here on behalf of the PDP Governors’ Forum to commiserate with you over the loss of your senior brother. Though we have spoken on the phone, we have to come to see you directly to show solidarity,” Mohammed said.

“We know this loss is huge and we know you to be a strong character. We know we are all here temporarily and would all go back to our creator.

“You should be consoled that this man came and contributed his own quota to the growth and development of Nigeria, which has even been testified to by your emergence as a governor.

“You have personally worked hard without going through the problem of godfatherism and you have become an indefatigable governor, who is in the PDP and has been doing very well.

“So, on behalf of my colleagues, we condole with you and the family and we pray that God will grant you the fortitude to bear this irreparable loss.”

In his response, Makinde acknowledged the emotional and moral encouragement provided by his colleagues, thanking them for their prayers and support.

“I want to, on behalf of the entire Makinde family, thank you for this visit. Thank you all for identifying with us at this very hour of need,” he said.

“We thought our eldest brother was just about to start life, because he was just 65. We thought after going all over the world, this is the time for him to settle down, but we cannot question God. We have to accept what has happened, because God giveth and taketh without needing any form of validation from anybody.

“It is also painful for us because it was quite sudden. This visit means a lot to us, especially the presence of my brother, Governor Sim Fubara, because we have been on different sides of the spectrum politically. But politics was put aside.

“I want to also, on behalf of the people and government of Oyo State, say thank you for the visit. Our prayer is that we won’t use this kind of visit as a payback.

“We pray that in our various families, people will grow old before they are called to the world beyond. So, thank you.

A former Executive Secretary of the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS), Professor Usman Yusuf, has been arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The Head of Media and Publicity for the Commission, Dele Oyewale, confirmed this to Channels Television in a telephone conversation on Wednesday.

Professor Yusuf was arrested by EFCC operatives who raided his residence on Wednesday.

According to the Commission, he will be arraigned on Thursday 30th January, 2025.

A petition was submitted to the immediate past presidency under former President Muhammadu Buhari and the Federal Ministry of Health, over misconduct and fraudulent practices.

Yusuf was relieved of his appointment in 2019 by the former President Muhammadu Buhari seven months after he was recommended for dismissal by a fact-finding panel set up by the Federal Ministry of Health over alleged mismanagement of N919m

The battle for the office of national secretary of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) heightened as the two contenders, Senator Samuel Anyanwu and Sunday Ude-Okoye, clashed at the party’s Board of Trustees (BoT) meeting at the Wadata Plaza national secretariat in Abuja on Wednesday. 

Ude-Okoye had moved into the venue of the meeting before the arrival of Anyanwu and acting national chairman of the party, Ambassador Iliya Damagum.

However, following Anyanwu’s arrival, Ude-Okoye was forced out of the BoT meeting by pro-Anyanwu elements.

The PDP National Secretary position has been a contentious issue since Anyanwu left the seat to contest the Imo State governorship position, which he lost.

In his absence, the South-East Caucus of the party endorsed Ude-Okoye to replace him.

After losing the election, efforts to reclaim his seat as the secretary has thrown the party into further crisis.

An Appeal Court sitting in Enugu had on December 20, 2024, upheld an earlier decision of a High Court removing Senator Anyanwu as the PDP National Secretary and affirmed Ude-Okoye as the authentic secretary.

Anyanwu has, however, filed for a Stay of Execution and appeal at the Supreme Court.

Details later….

Uganda head coach, Paul Put, has acknowledged the strength of the Super Eagles of Nigeria.

The Cranes are drawn in Group C of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria, Tunisia and Tanzania.

The East Africans defeated the Super Eagles 2-1 in their only meeting in the competition at the 1978 edition hosted by Ghana.

Put admitted that his team will need self-belief to pull through in the group.

“There are no easy games in Africa. We are going to face Nigeria, the last edition’s finalists, and Tunisia, a team that consistently reaches the latter stages of this tournament,” the Belgian said after the draw ceremony in Rabat,

Tanzania adds the derby element, which is always intense. However, we must believe in ourselves.”

Tanzania will face the Super Eagles in their last group game in Fez on Tuesday, December 30.

A 44-year-old Nigerian-British politician, Florence Eshalomi has been appointed as the United Kingdom’s trade envoy to Nigeria.

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Eshalomi who is now the second Nigerian to be appointed as the UK trade envoy after Helen Grant confirmed her appointment on X (formerly Twitter) on Tuesday.

“It is an honour to have been appointed as the United Kingdom’s Trade Envoy to Nigeria,” she wrote.

“I’m looking forward to building on my close ties with Nigeria to promote a strong and flourishing economic relationship between our two great nations.

“I am looking forward to building on the UK’s relationship with Nigeria, to help explore shared growth and opportunities for both countries,” Eshalomi said.

Confirming Eshalomi’s post in a statement on Tuesday, the UK’s Business and Trade Secretary, Jonathan Reynolds announced the appointment of 32 parliamentarians, stating that trade and investment are key to delivering economic growth.

“I’ve launched a new team of Trade envoys, who will use their experience, expertise and knowledge to unlock new markets around the world for British businesses, drumming up investment into the UK and ultimately driving economic growth,” Reynolds said.

Eshalomi was first elected as a member of parliament (MP) for Vauxhall in 2019, succeeding Kate Hoey.

She was re-elected in 2024 for the newly created Vauxhall and Camberwell Green constituency.

A member of the Labour and Cooperative parties, she previously represented Lambeth and Southwark as a London Assembly member (AM) from 2016 to 2021.

Before her new appointment, she focused on transport, housing, and equality issues as an MP and currently serves as chair of the housing, communities, and local government committee

Popular Nigerian entertainer, Ayo Makun, also known as AY, has advised netizens to stop condemning 2face for announcing his divorce without addressing the root causes of the marital breakdown.

Speaking amidst the ongoing backlash directed at 2Face, the comedian stated that no one gets married with the intention of separation from their spouse later in life.

He berated the critics for failing to critically analyse the reasons behind the divorce.

AY also urged those he referred to as ‘online in-laws’ and blogs to choose empathy over creating social media drama and sensational content.

In a post on his Instagram story, AY wrote: “The man is always the monster in every story. Until you hear the true story.”

Similarly, on his X account, he wrote: “Instead of casting blame in broken marriages, why not focus on why the institution itself is under attack? No one goes in with a plan to fail.

“It is troubling to see online in-laws and blogs revel in sensationalism, often at the expense of those who are hurting. Real lives are involved. Let’s choose empathy over drama and content. Some of you will never rest until you lead your fellow human to suicide.”

The Federal High Court in Ado Ekiti has dismissed the defamation case brought against activist lawyer, Dele Farotimi, by the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, over allegations of cybercrime.

The case arose from comments Farotimi made during an interview about his book, Nigeria and its Criminal Justice System, which included remarks regarding the founder of Afe Babalola University, Ado Ekiti, Aare Afe Babalola.

At the court hearing on Wednesday, the complainant’s lawyer, Samson Osobu, informed the court that a notice of discontinuance had been filed.

Osobu cited Section 108(1)(2)(a) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act 2015, explaining that the prosecution sought the withdrawal of the case following intervention by well-meaning Nigerians and a formal request from Afe Babalola to drop the charges.

Defendant counsel, Adeyinka Olumide-Fusika (SAN), did not oppose the decision to withdraw the case. In response, Justice Babs Kuewumi officially struck out the suit.

After the ruling, Olumide-Fusika told journalists that the case had been resolved in Ado Ekiti but refrained from discussing related cases ongoing in courts in Lagos, Ibadan, Abuja, Port Harcourt, and the Magistrate Court in Ado Ekiti.

He also mentioned that he had advised Farotimi not to give any press interviews regarding the matter.

The decision to withdraw the charges was influenced by the intervention of prominent traditional leaders, including the Ooni of Ife, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, and followed Afe Babalola’s announcement that he would instruct his legal team to drop the defamation charges.

The kingmakers in Oyo, commonly referred to as the Oyomesi, have initiated legal proceedings against Governor Seyi Makinde and others, alleging the improper utilization of the Oyo State Anti-Corruption Agency to intimidate and harass them, including through threats of arrest.

Naija News reports that the conflict between the two parties arose when the governor proposed a new selection process for the Alaafin of Oyo, a suggestion that was largely rejected by the kingmakers, who had already chosen a candidate.

Ultimately, the governor opted for a different candidate, selected without the majority’s approval, a decision that the kingmakers contested, leading them to seek judicial intervention.

In various submissions to the Federal High Court in Ibadan, three kingmakers—Yusuf Akinade, Basorun of Oyo; Wakeel Akindele, Lagunna of Oyo; and Hamzat Yusuf, Akinniku of Oyo—are requesting the court to safeguard their fundamental human rights and to halt what they describe as the governor’s campaign of persecution.

In their individual submissions, they claim that the governor instructed the state anti-corruption agency to summon them for an investigation on January 21st, with the invitation letter dated January 20th, the day prior to the scheduled meeting.

They are asking the court to declare that the harassment, intimidation, threats of arrest, and attempted arrests by OYACA officials acting under the governor’s direction are “unwarranted, baseless, unlawful, unconstitutional” and infringe upon their rights to liberty and dignity.

Furthermore, they emphasized that the agency’s actions are inappropriate, as the matter is already under investigation by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and is the subject of Appeal No. CA/IB/134/2024, thus constituting a violation of legal protocols

The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM) has expressed the Federal Government’s readiness to receive Nigerians who may be deported from the United States.

The Director of Media and Corporate Affairs at NiDCOM, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, shared in an interview with Vanguard on Tuesday that the Ministry of Foreign Affairs would be overseeing such situations.

He also revealed that an inter-agency committee has already been established to handle any cases of deportation, involving key agencies such as the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, NiDCOM, the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, and the National Security Adviser’s office.

“The Federal Government has set up an inter-agency committee, comprising the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, NiDCOM, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and office of the National Security Adviser, NSA, should there be mass deportation of Nigerians from the US,” Balogun said.

However, Balogun clarified that NiDCOM had not received any official reports indicating that Nigerians in the US were currently being processed for deportation.

This follows reports that nearly 3,690 Nigerians in the US are at risk of deportation due to the stringent immigration policies enforced under U.S President Donald Trump.

According to the US Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE), these individuals are among the many facing removal orders.

In a report from ICE, it was disclosed that by November 2024, over 1.4 million non-citizens had received final removal orders.

The data, compiled by ICE’s Enforcement and Removal Operations (ERO), revealed that Mexico and El Salvador were among the countries with the highest number of individuals facing deportation.

As part of the larger effort to combat illegal immigration and ensure national security, ICE has been leading a crackdown on undocumented immigrants.

Last week, mass arrests were made, and some deported individuals were transported out of the country via military aircraft, signaling the commencement of a large-scale deportation operation promised by the previous administration

The Nigeria Police Force has filed a notice of discontinuance in the alleged defamation suit filed by the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun, against Lagos-based legal practitioner and author, Dele Farotimi.

Channels Television sighted the notice of discontinuance dated January 29th which was filed pursuant to Section 108 (1) (2)(a) of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act, 2015 and which seeks to withdraw the charge pending against Mr Farotimi at the Federal High Court, Ado-Ekiti.

The notice, which was signed by the police prosecutor, Samson Osobu, also disclosed that the police would be asking the court to strike out the charge following the desire of the nominal complainant, Are Afe Babalola, to discontinue the case after the intervention of well-meaning Nigerians.

As of the time of writing this report, parties to the suit have gathered at the Federal High Court, Ado Ekiti and the prosecution has served the notice on the defendants counsel in court.

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The judge is, however, yet to sit to formally strike out the charge.

Meanwhile, there is still another charge filed by the police which is pending at the Magistrate Court, Ado Ekiti, which has not been discontinued. That case will come up on February 13, 2025.

The expectation is that the police will discontinue that case before the next adjourned date.