The Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM) says Zuriel Oduwole, a 22-year-old Nigerian, has been nominated for the 2025 Nobel Peace Prize.

In a statement issued on Monday, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, NIDCOM’s spokesperson, said three personalities nominated Oduwole, an education advocate, including a professor of clinical education engineering on behalf of the University of Southern California, an emeritus professor of social science for the University of Missouri, and a Nigerian senator.

Odowole is said to have played an active role in global diplomacy, shaping conversations on education and peace, while striving to create opportunities for marginalised communities and drive meaningful change.

Born in Los Angeles to Nigerian grandparents, Oduwole has met with 36 world leaders, including presidents and prime ministers, to discuss policy and development issues.

At the age of 13, Oduwole mediated a territorial dispute between Guyana and Venezuela, meeting with then-President David Granger at the United Nations, and stressed the importance of peaceful dialogue.

In 2020, she advised Egyptian President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi on global peace strategies amid the Arab blockade of Qatar, which was peacefully resolved in 2021.

In 2017, at just 14, she met with John Kerry, then-US secretary of state, to push for reward-based education programmes in developing nations.

In 2022, Oduwole received the 8th UN secretary-general leadership award in New York, in recognition of her decade-long mediation efforts and advocacy for gender parity.

Balogun said Abike Dabiri-Erewa, NIDCOM chairperson, congratulated Oduwole for the nomination.

Dabiri-Erewa said the nomination was not a surprise due to the tireless work of Oduwole in advocating for girls’ education over the last 12 years across Africa and the Caribbean and for her peace mediating work between nations in South America and the Middle East.

Dabiri-Erewa urged youths to emulate the impactful spirit of Oduwole and shun any acts capable of denigrating the image of Nigeria.

“It is the culmination of a dedication to making a measurable difference in the world that has seen her receive, among others, a Forbes Leadership Award, the CARE Global Impact Award, and the UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon Award,” the statement reads.

“Her recognition and nomination for arguably the most prestigious award known to man is another evidence of that resilient and hardworking Nigerian spirit, warmly coded in Nigerians DNA, and simply waiting for the slightest opportunity to not just express the innate abilities, but to lead and dominate wherever Nigerians find themselves across the globe.”

Michael Oduwole, her grandfather, left Nigeria in 1954 for Scotland to train as a medical doctor, where her father, Ademola Oduwole, was born.

Ademola then emigrated to Los Angeles in 1991, where Zuriel was born in 2002.

MultiChoice Nigeria has announced an increase in the cost of subscriptions for its DStv and GOtv packages.

The increase comes nearly one year after MultiChoice hiked its subscription rates.

In an email to customers seen by TheCable on Monday, the pay-TV firm said the new rates would take effect from March 1.

MultiChoice said its rationale behind the price increase is due to the rise in the cost of business operations.

“Due to prevalent economic factors leading to increased operational costs, we have unavoidably had to adjust the prices of our DStv and GOtv subscription packages,” MultiChoice said.

“We understand the impact this change may have on our valued partners, and we have only taken this step after careful consideration and in-depth analysis.

“It has always been our mission to offer the best entertainment to our esteemed customers and we are committed to continue delivering high quality content and unparalleled service to our viewers across Nigeria.”

According to the pay-TV firm, from March 1, customers on the DStv premium bouquet will no longer pay N37,000 but N44,500 and those on Compact+ would pay N30,000 – up from N25,000.

Customers on Compact bouquet will pay N19,000 — up from N17,000.

To subscribe to Confam, Yanga, and Padi packages, customers will pay N11,000, N6,000, and N4,000 – up from N9,300, N5,100, and N3,600 respectively

MultiChoice also said GOtv Supa+ subscribers will pay N16,800 as against the old price of N15,700.

Similarly, subscribers on the GOtv Supa package are expected to pay N11,400 contrast to the N9,600; while customers on the GOtv Max bouquet will pay N8,500 instead of N7,200.

The company added that GOtv Jolli package will now cost N5,800 and no longer N4,850.

MultiChoice said the price of the GOtv Jinja and Smallie packages would rise from N3,300 and N1,575 to N3,900 and N1,900, respectively.

Nuhu Ribadu wants to be president in 2031

Nasir el-Rufai, the former governor of Kaduna, says Nigerians should not believe the narrative that the national assembly rejected him as a ministerial nominee.

Speaking in an interview with Arise TV on Monday, el-Rufai said President Bola Tinubu did not want him in his cabinet.

The former Kaduna governor said the president begged him publicly for him to suspend his plans for ministerial appointment.

“The president publicly appealed to me to put my plans on hold, and through two months of negotiation, we finally agreed that he will nominate me as minister,” he said.

“There were certain conditions I attached to that. I think along the line either the president changed his mind or something else.

“Please don’t believe the story that the national assembly rejected me. The president did not want me in his cabinet. He changed his mind.”

In July 2024, Tinubu sent the list of ministerial nominees, including el-Rufai, to the senate for screening and confirmation.

In August 2024, the senate withheld the nomination of el-Rufai, Stella Okotete (Delta), and Danladi Abubakar (Taraba), citing security clearance.

The development was interpreted by political analysts as a move to whittle down the influence of the former Kaduna governor in the presidency.

Reacting to the senate’s refusal to screen him, el-Rufai said Tinubu changed his mind, noting that the security clearance cited by the upper chamber was a smokescreen.

The former Kaduna governor questioned what security concerns could have prevented his confirmation, given that he had spent over two decades in public service.

He added ministerial nominees who are “less qualified” were confirmed by the senate because the president made a call.

El-Rufai said the president publicly pleaded with him to delay his plans for a ministerial appointment to help address the country’s electricity challenge.

“The president publicly appealed to me to put my plans on hold, and through two months of negotiation, we finally agreed that he will nominate me as minister,” he said.

“There were certain conditions I attached to that. I think along the line either the president changed his mind or something else.

“Please don’t believe the story that the national assembly rejected me. The president did not want me in his cabinet. He changed his mind. “

“What was the security issue? I had been a governor for eight years in one of the most difficult states in the country. I had been a minister twenty years earlier. I have been in public life for the last 25 years.

“Where is the report? What about other ministers who are far less qualified, less experienced with huge controversies around them, but they scaled through because the president made a call?”

‘RIBADU WANTS TO DESTROY MY REPUTATION BECAUSE OF HIS 2031 AMBITION’

El-Rufai also accused Nuhu Ribadu, national security adviser (NSA), of attempts to destroy his reputation because of his (Ribadu’s) 2031 presidential ambition.

He alleged that Ribadu is collaborating with Uba Sani, governor of Kaduna, and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) to destroy his image.

“This project of destroy Nasir el-Rufai is Nuhu Ribadu’s conception. He is the architect and builder of that project. He is the one working with Uba Sani to implement it. So far, it has been frustrating for them,” el-Rufai said.

“Somebody wants to destroy my reputation. Why? Nuhu Ribadu wants to be president in 2031. He has to eliminate every northerner that he thinks is on the radar.

“In fact, what they have resorted to doing is to call low level people and some of my officials to say, ‘implicate el-Rufai and your problems will go away’. This is what ICPC has become.

“Uba Sani and Nuhu Ribadu are not my friends. They were my friends at some point but not anymore.”

Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa of Ondo State and his deputy, Olayide Adelami, have been sworn in for a fresh four year term.

The Chief Justice of the state, Olusegun Odusola administered the oath to Aiyedatiwa and Adelami amid the presence of the people of the state and dignitaries who witnessed the event.

While taking the oath of office, the number one and number two citizens vowed to uphold the constitution, work within its dictates, and ensure the well-being of the people of the state.

The inauguration marks the takeoff of a new administration in Ondo State.

Present at the oath-taking event were the Governor of Lagos State, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Governor of Ekiti, Abiodun Oyebanji, Minister of Interior, Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, Minister of Youth Development, Ayo Olawande, among others.

Omowunmi, the wife of the late singer Mohbad, has stated that Joseph Aloba, her father-in-law, is fully aware that Liam, her son with Mohbad, is indeed his grandchild.

In an interview snippet with BBC Pidgin that started trending on Monday, Omowunmi asserted that Aloba is “100% sure” of Liam’s paternity.

She added that she agreed to the DNA test to clear the “lies circulating in the media, not to prove anything to her father-in-law”.

Expressing her grief, she shared how much she misses her late husband, especially as their son recently started school—a milestone that deepened her sense of loss.

“I miss my husband with everything. My child started school and they wanted to write his name. And they wrote to Mr and Mrs Aloba. I remember him from every angle of my life. You know I have a child for him,” she said in Pidgin-English,” she said.

“…I want to do the DNA for the media that has been fed with lies, not my father-in-law. Because left to me, he is 101% sure that the child is his (Mohbad) son.”

Last week, Omowunmi also opened up about her love story with Mohbad, revealing that they first connected on the social networking platform 2go when she was just 13 and he was 15.

Mohbad passed away on September 12, 2023, and was buried the next day. However, on September 21, his body was exhumed by the police for an autopsy.

Aloba has insisted that Mohbad will not be reburied until a DNA test confirms Liam’s paternity. However, Mohbad’s mother, Abosede, has accused Aloba of deliberately delaying the test.

Eniola Ojajuni, the abducted national president of the Afenifere Youth Council, has pleaded for financial help to pay the ransom demanded by his kidnappers.

In videos circulating on social media, Ojajuni is seen sitting on the ground while a gunman points an AK-47 rifle at him.

Appearing distressed, Ojajuni appealed to Nigerians, particularly those from the Ilaje area of Ondo state, to contribute towards his release.

Ojajuni said he has been given a 24-hour deadline, warning that his captors have threatened to kill him if the ransom is not paid.

 

“Nigerians, please help me! Your donation, N100,000, N50,000, or N1,000,000, will go a long way to save my life. My name is Prince Eniola Ojajuni. God bless you. Aderohunmu, please help me spread this video,” he said.

His abduction was first announced by Abiodun Aderohunmu, national secretary of the Afenifere Youth Council.

Aderohunmu said Ojajuni was kidnapped on February 17, 2025, in Abuja and sustained a gunshot wound to his buttock.

“The Afenifere National Youths Council is deeply saddened to announce the kidnapping of its National President, Prince Eniola Joseph Ojajuni, in Abuja, Nigeria,” Aderohunmu said.

He added that the kidnappers have demanded N100 million for Ojajuni’s release.

MultiChoice, the pay TV company, is set to increase the monthly subscription rate of its DStv Compact bouquet from N15,700 to N19,000, industry sources have told TheCable.

This is coming almost one year after its last price review.

The fall in the value of the naira along with increased energy costs have been blamed for upward price reviews across across telecommunications, transportation and consumer goods in general.

Subscribers to Compact, Access and Family bouquets form the bulk of MultiChoice subscribers.

Family and Access bouquets may have their tariffs reviewed from N9,300 to N11,000 and N5,100 to N6,000 respectively.

Meanwhile, the two highest-priced bouquets, Premium and Compact+, will also be affected by the rate review.

GOtv Value customers, who currently pay N3,600, will start paying N3,900, while the tariff on GOtv Plus will rise from N4,850 to N5,800, sources further told TheCable.

“Since 2023, when the federal government began its economic reforms of fuel subsidy removal, naira floatation and electricity tariff increase among others, prices of goods and services have almost quadrupled, with the inflation rate at 34.80 per cent as at December, 2024,” an industry source said, adding that businesses have been forced to increase prices, with some doing so as many as three times last year.

Many companies have posted huge losses arising from foreign exchange instability.

Bishop David Oyedepo, the founder of Living Faith Church, widely known as Winners’ Chapel, recently revealed a remarkable testimony that left his congregation in awe.

He disclosed how a woman in the United States conceived simply by tripping him during a church program.

Addressing his congregation, Oyedepo recounted the incident, highlighted the woman’s unwavering faith in her quest for a miracle.

According to him, the woman had struggled with infertility for years and saw the church program as a rare opportunity to change her story. He revealed that she strategically positioned herself, maneuvered through the tight security surrounding him, and at the perfect moment, intentionally tripped into him.

The act, he said, was not accidental but a deliberate move rooted in her belief that a touch could ignite her miracle.

Following the encounter, Oyedepo disclosed that the woman went home and boldly declared to her husband that she had conceived. Her husband, taken aback by her sudden assertion, questioned how she could be so certain.

However, according to the cleric, the woman’s conviction was unshaken. She believed that the divine touch had already set things in motion, and her faith became her reality.

Nine months later, Oyedepo revealed, the woman gave birth, solidified her belief that faith had played a crucial role in her conception.

The revelation sent waves through the congregation, online world, drew gasps, intrigue, and a renewed sense of awe.

THE Executive Director of the Centre for Free Speech Organisation, Mr Richard Akinnola, yestyerday, faulted the claims by former Military President, Gen. Ibrahim Babangida (retd) over the murder of founding Editor-in-Chief of Newswatch, Dele Giwa.

Akinnola, in a statement, titled ‘Dele Giwa: IBB lied’, said: “I can understand the denial of General Ibrahim Babangida of his innocence over the murder of Dele Giwa. It is expected. Have you seen an armed robbery suspect charged to court pleading guilty in court? It’s a matter of self-preservation.

“Even Major Gideon Orkar, who announced on radio the ouster of Babangida in the abortive coup of April 22, 1990, pleaded not guilty before the military tribunal. So, Babangida’s denial of his government’s involvement in the murder is understandable.

“However, in doing that, he doesn’t have that latitude of revisionism by deliberately misrepresenting facts. I make reference to two of such.

“In his book, General Ibrahim Babangida made two major false assertions regarding the letter bomb murder of Dele Giwa, founding Editor-in-Chief of Newswatch.

It’s either those, who wrote the book for him didn’t have the facts, or that IBB was just being mischievous.”
Still on Dele Giwa, General Babangida said in his book: “When the Obasanjo civilian administration reopened the Giwa case at the Oputa Panel on Human and Civil Rights, I expected that the police and lawyers would come forward with new evidence as to their findings on the Giwa murder over the years. Nothing of such happened.

“My response: Invitation was extended to Babangida by the Oputa panel, he shunned it. He was wrong to state that the police and lawyers didn’t come up with a new thing at the Oputa panel.

At the Oputa panel, Abubakar Tsav, Commissioner of Police (retd) gave evidence on oath that he was assigned to investigate the case and at the end of his investigation, his findings pointed to the Babangida government.and that he submitted his findings to DIG Chris Omeben.

“Also, contrary to what IBB said in his book that no fresh evidence came up, the issue of Gloria Okon came up during the hearing.

“Having said these, it’s either those who wrote the book for him didn’t get their facts right or that General Babangida was being mischievous in what he wrote in the book regarding the murder of Dele Giwa.

“It is even deceitful to be referring to Dele as your good friend. From where to where? If you could execute your childhood friend, Mamman Vatsa, who then is Dele Giwa, who you only met in the course of his official duties as a journalist? Dele Giwa was not your friend, General.”