The former Senior Special Assistant to ex-Vice President, Yemi Osinbajo on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande, has asserted that the concept of a rotational presidency is now firmly established in Nigeria.

He emphasized that it would be challenging and an anomaly to reverse the trend of a Southern presidency in 2027.

Akande made these remarks while speaking with journalists on Sunday in Lagos.

He characterized discussions regarding political alliances and efforts to shift power back to the North in 2027 as trivial, indicating that such strategies are unlikely to succeed.

Regarding the potential for opposition parties to unite against the ruling APC in 2027, Akande expressed skepticism, suggesting that such mergers would not effectively address the nation’s challenges.

“I think it is just child’s play to terminate Southern presidency in 2027. Nigeria has gone past that.

“The South is going to get its eight years. The North will get the next eight years.

“Politicians are just going to make noise. It is not going to be possible, really, to terminate the Southern term.

“Rotational presidency has come to stay in Nigeria. There is a national consensus around the idea of a rotational presidency between the South and the North.

“Anybody trying to reverse that is just joking. It’s not going to work. All of these political mergers are not going to solve the problems of Nigeria.

“In 2014, there was a merger that led to the APC. There were a lot of expectations in this country. APC carried the national wave. Nine years after, where are we?

“We are nowhere different from where we were then because the core issues have been left unaddressed. So all of these mergers, even if they (proponents) succeed, what is going to happen is that they will just change the characters of people in the Government House.

“We need to understand that there are fundamental problems that have to be sorted out, and we cannot leave it to politicians,” Akande said.

He urged Nigerians to come together in the face of shared challenges, emphasizing that it is the politicians who are reaping the rewards of the current system.

He stated that, in preparation for the 2027 elections, Nigerians should engage in conversations focused on achieving a national consensus regarding the rule of law, combating poverty and corruption, addressing local government autonomy, restructuring, and constitutional matters.

Key players in the Nigerian justice system have scored the courts, lawyers and the government low over the prolonged trial of some former state governors, ministers and other Nigerians for acts of corruption several years after they were arraigned in courts.

In some cases, the prosecution of the former elected officials, especially state chief executives by the anti-corruption agencies, have lasted for more than a decade without any hope of deciding their fate in the near future.

In fact, a reasonable number of the accused have died without the cases of alleged corruption brought against them concluded in any law court.

There are also others, whose cases are still pending in court but have been elected into the National Assembly (NASS) or serving as cabinet members in the current administration.

When LEADERSHIP Sunday sought the views of some eminent lawyers and members of civil society organisations (CSOs) on the fight against corruption by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the non-conclusion and conviction of the former governors, they blamed their lacklustre prosecution on judges, lawyers and the government.

A breakdown of the former governors whose cases have not been concluded showed that the North Central Zone has four, North West (4), North East (3), South East (5), South South (4) and South West (3).
Speaking with LEADERSHIP Sunday on the issue, the director of a Lagos-based CSO, Justice and Human Rights Reforms Initiatives (JHRRI), David Babajide, criticised lawyers for significantly contributing to delays in prosecuting criminal cases in court.

Babajide accused some of the country’s senior lawyers of facilitating corruption by undermining the prosecution of corrupt individuals through “orders of interlocutory or perpetual injunctions” that favour those embezzling public funds.

He said that in developed societies, lawyers are obligated to uphold the law above all individuals regardless of their status noting however that in Nigeria, many lawyers have placed wealthy and powerful individuals above the law.

Babagide said, “Several senior lawyers have been manipulating the criminal justice system to the detriment of society. They do this by using their expertise to assist clients in ways that violate legal standards.

“This behaviour contravenes paragraph 15 (2) of the Rules of Professional Conduct for Legal Practitioners, which specifies that: In representing a client, a lawyer must adhere strictly to the law, regardless of any contrary instruction from the client. If the client insists on breaking the law, the lawyer must withdraw their services.”

Babajide therefore called on the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) to investigate and discipline ethically-challenged lawyers found to be involved in manipulating the judiciary.

In his reaction, a professor of law, Ernest Ojukwu (SAN), expressed sadness at the failure of the Nigerian criminal justice system to indeed dispense fair and timely justice.

Prof Ojukwu said while the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA or laws for states) was designed to expedite criminal proceedings, its implementation has faced various obstacles.

He identified excessive adjournments, poor investigations, gaps in prosecution, lack of technology and adequate infrastructure, resource constraints, and inadequate training of judicial officers as some of the reasons why criminal cases linger in court.

Prof Ojukwu stressed that for the problems of protracted trials to be solved, there must be rigorous adherence to the provisions of ACJA on trial timelines and a limit on the number of adjournments.
He said, “Courts must introduce or strengthen pre-trial case management conferences to identify issues early, streamline the scope of the trial and set clear timelines.

“We must implement electronic filing systems and digital case records to reduce paperwork. We must ensure law enforcement officials receive ongoing training in investigative techniques, case organisation and evidence management and encourage police and prosecutors to collaborate from the outset, ensuring thorough investigations and well-prepared cases before reaching the courts.

“Recruiting and regularly training more judicial officers and adequately staffing courts can help address chronic backlogs. Judges can be more assertive in holding parties accountable for delays that lack valid justification.”

On his part, human rights lawyer, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa (SAN), said the problem of delay in criminal justice administration is a combination of several factors such as lack of funding of the judiciary “whereby we still have the same number of courts, to handle the upsurge in crimes and criminalities.”

Adegboruwa pointed out the lack of infrastructure and facilities as a significant issue. “For instance, there are situations where the court is ready to proceed with a case, with lawyers prepared and waiting, but no vehicle is available to transport the suspect from prison custody to the courtroom. Additionally, there are times when the suspect is present, but there is no power supply in the courtroom, leading to the adjournment of the case for that reason alone.

“In other cases, the investigating police officer is unavailable due to other official duties or outright transfer away from the trial court’s jurisdiction.

“However, the most prevalent of these factors is the lack of judicial personnel to handle the deluge of cases being heaped upon the courts daily. ACJA cannot cure all these issues.

“The search for effective criminal justice administration should, therefore, be holistic so that we do not achieve success in one area, and then failure in other areas still holds us down.

“Criminal cases should generally be given priority attention, given that the life and liberty of the defendants are involved and the cost to society of the criminal act and its prosecution,” he said.

Ogaga Dickson, a Sapele-born leader of an armed robbery gang, who, along with his members killed a Divisional Police Officer in Delta State Police Command, has disclosed how he joined a gang of thieves before he upgraded his criminal activity to involve snatching of vehicles at gun point.

Dickson also spoke on the robbery operation that led to an encounter with the police, resulting in the killing of the DPO of Agbarho Division, CSP Hassan Jega, on October 14, 2024, saying his gang knew when the police officer fell during the gunfire exchange, but didn’t know he was a DPO.

However, operatives of the Intelligence Response Team (IRT) of the Nigeria Police Force proved their mettle in intelligence gathering and tracking suspects as they arrested Dickson on November 1, 2024, less than three weeks after the killing of the DPO. Also apprehended was the buyer of the stolen and snatched vehicles, Chibike Umeh.

The suspected cop killer was among the suspects paraded on Monday, January 6, by the Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Olumuyiwa Adejobi, to showcase the achievements of the police in cracking criminal gangs and arresting suspects.

Parading the suspect, the Force PRO disclosed that Dickson, aged 35, was the leader of a notorious armed robbery syndicate responsible for the death of the DPO, Agbarho Division in Delta, CSP Jega, who was killed during a fierce gun battle between a team of police officers, led by the deceased DPO, and the assailants.

ACP Adejobi said that the operatives had earlier stormed the gang’s hideout and engaged them in a fierce gun duel, leading to the neutralisation of four of the gang members.

He added that the police recovered one AK-47 rifle, one English pistol, one locally-made pistol, ammunition of various calibres and six exotic vehicles.

In an interview, Dickson narrated how he got into the crime world: “I was a welder before my friend, John Linus, introduced me to stealing cars from where they are parked. I met him in Sapele. I had money issues in my welding job because I joined a welder like me to work. My salary was reduced and I left. Before the issue, I had met John. We closed from work one day and I was with John when his car broke down. We helped him and we exchanged numbers. We became friends, and he would give me money whenever I called him for financial help.

“When I lost my welding job, I called John and told him to help me get another one. He invited me to come to Warri where he was domiciled. He asked whether I could drive and I replied in the affirmative. He said he wanted to give me car to deliver somewhere.

“The first time, John didn’t let me know it was a stolen vehicle. It was the second time that he opened up to me that he was using master key to open parked cars at night and steal them. I had no choice but to follow him because I had no job again then and I believed something good would come out of the operations.

“After about two months, I was provoked by the way John was spending the money he was making from sale of the stolen vehicles. I was thinking one would not be able to have anything in life if John continued to spend lavishly in clubs after sale of the vehicles. Before then, he had taught me how to use the master key. He had also introduced me to buyers of the stolen vehicles. So, I left him and started the robbery operation on my own.

“An Ijaw friend, Ebimoh, joined me. He was staying in Bayelsa State, but I knew him in Sapele. In November 2023, we started stealing parked cars in Sapele and Warri, like we did when I was with John. After some time, Ebimoh asked me whether the buyers would be interested in exotic vehicles. He pointed out that a master key could not be for such vehicles, and I told him that it meant we would need guns to snatch them from their owners. I agreed with his idea.

“After some days, Ebimoh left and returned at night with three guns–an AK-47 rifle, an English pistol and a locally-made pistol. He also brought three fully-loaded AK-47 magazines and 40 ‘seeds’ (bullets) for the pistols. That was how we started car snatching in January 2024.

How we carried out our first armed robbery operation

“It was in Abraka that we snatched the first car at 9pm. Our style was to check the number of people in the targeted vehicle. If they were more than two, we would not accost them, but if it was only the owner or he had a female friend, we would follow them to their destination.

“At Abraka, we snatched Lexus 350 Sport Utility Vehicle (SUV) at gun point. The vehicle owner was with his girlfriend. We followed him in my Toyota Corolla car which I stole with master key. When he got to the gate of his house, we went to him before the gateman could open it. Immediately the vehicle owner saw us, he just came down with his girlfriend, raising his hands in submission when he saw our guns.

“We collected the vehicle key, his phone, and that of his girlfriend. I knew that he could demobilise the vehicle’s tracking device through his  phone. We left for Warri, and I searched the vehicle, found the tracker and demobilised it. I had learnt about removing tracking devices in vehicles, so I did it effortlessly. I also did it with cars stolen from where they were parked.

“I sold the Lexus 350 for N9 million to the person later arrested by the IRT. Ebimoh and I shared it equally after removing money for fuel and other expenses. After the operation, Ebimoh, who had prepared his papers, left Nigeria for Canada, so I went to get a friend, Gabriel, who also called one Samson that he knew to join us. In the second operation, we snatched a Mercedes Benz GLE SUV. The buyer paid N10 million.

“My last operation was in October 2024, and it landed me in trouble. We snatched one Toyota Hilux from the owner in Sapele and went to Agbarho in Warri. I was searching the vehicle to remove the tracker when Gabriel and Samson who were on guard sighted a police van. They quickly alerted me.

“As the police van approached us, Gabriel and Samson started shooting at them. I ran into the bush nearby. The police and my gang members had an exchange of gunfire, and my gang members’ bullet hit one of the police officers. At that time, we didn’t know it was the DPO. When the operatives noticed that one of them had been hit, they retreated. We quickly got inside the Hilux and drove off.

“We sold the Hilux for N10.5 million for another buyer, a woman. She knew we snatched it. I knew her to be a buyer of stolen vehicles. She was the one used to arrest me.

How I was arrested

“Before the last operation, I had been preparing to travel out to Canada. After snatching the Hilux, I relaxed from the armed robbery operation and my papers were almost ready. Before that time too, I had snatched one Lexus 330. I sold the Corolla I was using to someone in Bayelsa. The woman who bought the Hilux asked me to sell the Lexus for her. When my papers were complete to travel, I went to bury the guns used by my gang and went to Bayelsa, planning to take flight from there to Lagos State.

“I asked the person who wanted to collect the Lexus from me to meet me the following morning. Unknown to me, he was arrested with the Hilux, and the woman was also arrested. She called me and said she would come for the Lexus in Bayelsa. However, it was IRT operatives who came, and I was arrested.”

The buyer of the stolen and snatched vehicles, Umeh, who hails from Abia State and aged 39, also narrated his involvement thus: “I live in Enugu State. I was into jewelry sales. I started buying stolen vehicles two years ago. One of my customers, Kingsley, who was a military man, linked me with John Linus. I don’t know if he is still in the job. I told him that a friend needed a vehicle and the ones we were seeing were very expensive. That was when he told me that he had a friend who would sell for me at a cheap price. He opened up to me that the vehicles sold by John were being stolen through the use of master key.

“Kingsley was the one who got a man to register the vehicle and prepare the documents. When I spoke with John on the need for a Toyota Corolla car, he took me to Warri and sold the car for N1 million. I sold it to the person who needed it for N1.8 million and gave the soldier N200,000 as his share and N100,000 to get necessary documents. I took N500,000.

“That made me take up car sale business. At a time, John was arrested, I stopped buying. Last year, Dickson came to me and asked if needed a vehicle. I told him that I needed them. He started bringing Toyota Corolla cars to me once in a while, and I was buying them.

“When he brought an exotic vehicle, I noticed that it couldn’t have been removed with a master key from where it was parked, but I bought the first and second one. After that, I gave him a video call and I saw him carrying an AK-47 rifle while sitting on a chair; he was smoking. That was when I stopped buying from him. I had yet to sell the two vehicles I bought from him when I was arrested in Anambra.

“There was one Toyota Corolla he gave me and I took it to a painter. I was accosted by Anambra police who said I was selling stolen vehicles. I didn’t know Dickson had been arrested.”

Sunday Tribune gathered that Dickson’s other gang members, Gabriel and Samson, had also been arrested by the Delta Police Command.

The United Kingdom (UK) has over the years experienced an increase in its migration rate and this has led the nation to implement significant changes to its visa system, which will ultimately affect employers and prospective international employees. 

In this article are some of the modifications made to its work visa.

1. Increased Salary Thresholds

As of April 2024, the minimum salary requirement for the Skilled Worker visa in the UK rose from £26,200 to £38,700. The Skilled Worker visa refers to the main work visa for overseas nationals in the UK. It allows employers to sponsor non-UK nationals to work in the UK in eligible, skilled roles. 

Applicants are now expected to meet this new threshold or the specific salary dictated by their position, whichever is higher. 

2. Replacement of the Shortage Occupation List

The Shortage Occupation List is a list that shows roles/professions that are in short supply in the UK. The jobs that appear on this list are given some benefits within the UK Immigration Rules to make it easier for employers to hire employees through the Skilled Worker visa route. 

The Shortage Occupation List (SOL) has now been replaced with the Immigration Salary List (ISL) since April 2024. This comprises roles deemed appropriate for a discounted salary threshold. 

3. Adoption of Updated Occupational Codes

The Standard Occupational Classification (SOC) is a coding framework used in the UK to classify occupations, enabling comparisons of occupations across different datasets. 

The UK Home Office has transitioned to the Office for National Statistics (ONS) Skills Occupational Codes 2020 system, replacing the 2010 version. This update necessitates employers to reassess and possibly adjust the occupational codes used for sponsoring employees, ensuring alignment with the new classification system. 

4. Restrictions on Dependants for Care Workers

Care workers and senior care workers under the Health and Care Visa are no longer permitted to bring dependants to the UK effective March 2024. 

Additionally, only Care Quality Commission (CQC)-registered providers in England can sponsor Health and Care Visa applicants. 

5. Expansion of the ETA Scheme

The United Kingdom Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) is an advance travel permission required from foreign nationals who intend to visit or transit the United Kingdom without a visa.

The UK’s Electronic Travel Authorisation (ETA) scheme expanded in November 2024 to include all non-visa nationals except Europeans, who will be included by April 2025. The scheme requires applicants to hold a valid national passport and meet specific criteria.

In summary, the UK’s recent alterations to its work visa system reflect a strategic shift towards attracting higher-skilled labour while managing migration numbers.

The Emir of Kano, Muhammadu Sanusi II, has appealed to residents to maintain calm and resist any temptation that could provoke unrest in the ancient city, noting that those who want to ignite Kano will be consumed by their wish.

Emir Sanusi, who made the appeal in a viral video while reacting to the verdict of the Court of Appeal, which ruled in his favour, said some people were hell-bent on instigating unrest in the state.

The monarch said, “As you all know, the Appeal Court has confirmed today that the Federal High Court has no jurisdiction over emirate issues. This judgment was expected, and those who initiated the case in court knew this all along.

“Even the judge who issued the initial order was aware of the limits of his jurisdiction. Those who influenced him to make that decision also knew the truth.

“However, for the past eight months, their aim has been to promote selfish interests and instigate unrest in this part of the country.

“Despite their efforts, our greatest achievement is that the state has remained peaceful. There has been no violence or disorder. We call on everyone to continue maintaining peace and unity.

“This battle is not ours but God’s. And God does not need anyone’s help. Let us keep praying for His guidance and intervention. May God protect us, and whoever seeks to ignite chaos in Kano, may that fire consume them instead.

“To those who wish harm upon Kano or its peace, may they face the consequences of their own wishes.

“They may attempt to provoke violence, but let us not respond to their actions. Let us not engage them in any way. Whoever questions God’s judgment will ultimately face the consequences of doing so,” Sanusi said.

The Nasarawa State Judicial Commission has demoted Emmanuel Jatau, a Chief Magistrate, following his handling of a controversial case involving Chioma Okoli and the Nigeria Police Force.

In a letter dated January 6, 2025, and signed by Yahaya Shafa, the commission’s secretary, it was revealed that Jatau was demoted from Chief Magistrate II (Grade Level 15) to Senior Magistrate I (Grade Level 14) and stripped of his magisterial duties.

“Consequently, I have been directed by the Hon. Chief Judge of Nasarawa State and Chairman Judicial Service Commission to write and inform you that Hon. Emmanuel A. Jatau has been demoted by a grade level lower than his current grade level i.e from Chief Magistrate II on GL 15 to Senior Magistrate I on GL 14 and stripped of his magisterial duties,” the commission said.

The disciplinary action stemmed from Jatau’s issuance of arrest and remand warrants against Okoli, which were deemed “fraudulent” and outside his jurisdiction.

The saga began on September 17, 2023, when Okoli, via Facebook, claimed that Nagiko Tomato Mix, a product of Erisco Foods Limited, was sugary. The company, led by its CEO Eric Umeofia, denied the claim and filed a petition that led to Okoli’s arrest by the police.

She was subsequently arraigned on charges of conspiracy and cyberstalking. Although remanded at the Suleja Correctional Centre, she was later granted bail. Amid the ordeal, Okoli tragically suffered a miscarriage, sparking public outrage and widespread calls for justice.

Petition Against Jatau

Inibehe Effiong, Okoli’s legal counsel, filed a petition against Jatau, arguing that the magistrate had overstepped his jurisdiction.

Effiong highlighted that Okoli neither resides in Nasarawa State nor committed any alleged offences there; the charges of cybercrime fall under the exclusive jurisdiction of the Federal High Court, as stipulated in the Cybercrimes (Prohibition, Prevention, etc.) Act, 2015.

Effiong described Jatau’s actions as a “brazen” abuse of judicial authority and demanded an investigation.

NATIONAL Agency for Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP) has accused some medical centres and personnel of indulging in organ harvesting in what has become a booming trade in Akwa Ibom state.

The State Zonal Coordinator of NAPTIP, Mr Emmanuel Awhen, made the startling allegation Saturday in Uyo as stakeholders marked the National Human Trafficking Awareness Day 2025 themed, “Strengthening Communities by Connecting the Dots”

Represent by Eme Inionong Ukpabio, Head, Public Enlightenment NAPTIP, Akwa Ibom, Awhen captured that approximately 750,000 to one million children were abducted in Akwa Ibom for trafficking and other exploitative purposes between 2021 and 2024.

Awhen further disclosed the agency’s arrest of one suspect for organ harvesting, having secured 60 convictions of human trafficking offenders under the period in review with 15 cases pending in court.

He said, “The arrest we had on organ harvesting, the person involved is not an Akwa Ibomite. So when we have such a case, we refer to the mother state the suspect comes from. Ours is just do the job and do a referral to the command that covers the person’s state where justice will take it course.

“Organ harvesting is one thing that is very high now. You may not notice it, some clinics in this town, with due apologies to doctors who are carrying out legitimate businesses, there are hospitals in this town (Uyo) that are involved in organ harvesting.”

“Between 2021 and 2024, approximately 750,000 to 1 million children have been abducted for trafficking and other exploitative purposes. These often involve victims being forced, coerced, deceived, or manipulated into providing sexual services or labour through abuse of trust, power, or authority.

“The key elements of human trafficking include recruitment, transportation and transfer of victims to different locations. This heinous act can be carried out by individuals, gangs, or organised criminal networks.

“We have had arrests, I cannot count. The arrest we do, we bring them to the office and when we realize most of these cases are not really human trafficking cases, we send them away. The ones that are arrested and put in our centres and charged to court are many. We have had over 60 convictions.”

The state Coordinator, Network Against Child Trafficking, Abuse and Labour (NACTAL), Peace Edem, highlighted the emotional and phycological dangers of human trafficking, calling on continuous sensitization of communities against the dangers

He said, “Different forms of human trafficking have been mentioned -sex trafficking, labour trafficking and organ trafficking and others. The associated dangers are, first, physical danger, violence and abuse, force labour and rest of them.

“Then there is the emotional and psychological dangers. So, we need to also sensitize our communities against these dangers because some of them innocently go into it without knowing”

The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Mrs Eno Ime Akpan commended the collaborative efforts of NAPTIP and NACTAL in the fight against human trafficking in Akwa Ibom.

She acknowledged Governor Umo Eno for establishing the ministry which she noted has enhanced the fight against human trafficking, saddled with the responsibility of improving the dignity of humans.

The presidency on Saturday insisted that President Bola Tinubu will fulfill the agenda of reducing Nigeria’s inflation to 15% by December 2025.

The Special Assistant to President Tinubu on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, said agriculture and food security is one of the ways the President intended to achieve his aim.

Speaking via a statement on his X account, Olusegun said several mechanisms have already been put in place to achieve the agenda.

Recalls  that President Tinubu had, during the presentation of the ₦47.9 trillion 2025 budget to the National Assembly, stated that the budget projects a decline in inflation from the current 34.6% to 15%. He also reiterated it in his 2025 New Year message.

His projection has, however, elicited pessimism from certain quarters. But the presidency, on Saturday, insisted that the aim would be achieved.

The media aide disclosed that part of the steps put in place to achieve the dream include the delivery of 2,000 tractors, 4000 disc ploughs, ⁠1000 disc ridges, ⁠1200 tractor trailers and other assorted spare parts to Nigeria in the next few weeks.

He added that an agricultural manufacturing firm, JohnDeere, is also expected to set up assembly/maintenance plants for these equipment in Nigeria.

“On food security, I can categorically confirm that agriculture will be a major priority for the administration in 2025 as President Tinubu has set an ambitious agenda of reducing inflation across the board to 15% by December.

“To achieve this, several mechanisms have been put in place including the delivery of farm equipment which will begin soon.

“It’s not just the 2,000 tractors mentioned by President Tinubu in his new year speech;

– 4000 disc ploughs
– ⁠1000 disc ridges
– ⁠1200 tractor trailers and other assorted spare parts are set to be delivered to Nigeria over the next few weeks as part of a major mechanization project under the National Agricultural Mechanization Programme (NAMP).

“@JohnDeere is also expected to set up assembly/maintenance plants for these equipments in Nigeria as they will be replicating the supply successively over the next five years,” Olusegun noted in the statement.

He added that several states would also receive support through the Special Agro Processing Zone program and several zonal commodity exchanges are expected to come on board in the all-inclusive approach.

Olusegun promised that 2025 will be a great year for Nigerians.

“Several states will also be supported via the Special Agro Processing Zone program which is spearheaded by the Africa Development Bank. This is an entirely different agricultural development scheme as the administration seeks to make the challenge of food security a thing of the past in the country by institutionalizing programs that will maximize our potentials as a major food producing nation.

“On storage and commodity boards, several zonal commodity exchanges are expected to come on board just as much as many state governments have started the process of floating the same to mitigate the effects of hoarding and middlemen-induced inflation.

“It’s an all inclusive approach aimed at correcting the wrongs of the past and there are a lot of reasons to be optimistic. 2025 promises to be a great year because “joy is coming,” he concluded.

The Senior Pastor of the Commonwealth of Zion Assembly (COZA), Pastor Biodun Fatoyinbo, has declared that while the devil fears prayers, he does not fear poor people.

Fatoyinbo made the statement while preaching to his congregation in a viral video online.

The clergy emphasised the importance of financial success and stability alongside spiritual growth.

He recounted a story of a man who went to preach the gospel but was chased away by another man who questioned his appearance, asking, “Has God helped you? Look at the way you look.”

According to him, the devil wants people to stay behind and make noise even though “Jesus became poor for our sake that through the grace of God we might become rich.”

Fatoyinbo encouraged his members to pursue spiritual and material wealth, stressing that financial resources can effectively help spread the gospel.

Amid the ongoing controversy surrounding the proposed tax reform bills by the current administration, the Federal Government and 21 out of the 36 states in the federation have projected a combined Value Added Tax revenue of N2.5 trillion for 2025 in their respective budget estimates.

This projection excludes additional funds that may accrue from the implementation of the contentious tax reform bills.

VAT, a consumption tax on goods and services, is levied at each stage of the supply chain where value is added.

Sunday PUNCH previously reported that VAT revenue collected under the current administration increased by N549bn within six months.

This figure was derived from financial reports released by the Federation Account Allocation Committee between October 2023 and March 2024.

An analysis of the 2025 budget documents from the Federal Government and 21 states revealed a combined VAT revenue projection of about N2.53tn, representing a significant increase of N1tn (65.8 per cent) compared to the N1.527tn projected in 2024.

The 21 states include Kebbi, Kaduna, Ekiti, Oyo, Osun, Ogun, Enugu, Borno, Ondo, Kano, Katsina, Ebonyi, Gombe, Anambra, Abia, Niger, Jigawa, Bauchi, Akwa-Ibom, Adamawa, and Delta. Budget documents for the remaining 14 states and the Federal Capital Territory were unavailable.

In 2024, the Federal Government’s share of VAT revenue was N512.8bn, but it is projected to rise to N972bn in 2025. Similarly, Kebbi State, which received N41bn from VAT in 2024, anticipates N87.3bn this year. Kaduna State’s VAT revenue is projected at N57.8bn, up from N48.2bn in its 2024 budget.

Ekiti State plans to generate N54.9bn in VAT revenue this year, compared to N52.6bn in 2024.

Oyo State, which earned N78.8bn from VAT in 2024, projected N144bn for 2025, while Osun State expects N78.1bn, up from N45.3bn last year.

Other states such as Ogun, Enugu, Borno, Ondo, Kano, Katsina, Ebonyi, Gombe, and Anambra have projected VAT revenues of N85bn, N74.9bn, N87.3bn, N71.5bn, N97.3bn, N85.9bn, N50.8bn, N39bn, and N92.4bn respectively for 2025.

In comparison, their 2024 projections were N57.7bn, N44bn, N49.4bn, N30.3bn, N76.6bn, N46.9bn, N36.5bn, N30bn, and N58.4bn respectively.

Similarly, Abia, Niger, Jigawa, Bauchi, Akwa-Ibom, Adamawa, and Delta have projected VAT revenues of N60.6bn, N64.6bn, N80bn, N78.5bn, N70bn, N52.5bn, and N46.6bn respectively for 2025. Their projections for 2024 were N40bn, N50.6bn, N45bn, N45bn, N45bn, N47bn, and N45.7bn.