Year: 2025

 

A human rights lawyer and counsel for the Indigenous People of Biafra, Ifeanyi Ejiofor, has called on President Bola Tinubu to stop the monthly media chat of the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, describing it as wasteful and extravagant.

 

In a press statement released on Tuesday, Ejimofor said the media chat serves no purpose except to waste public funds and give the minister the opportunity to grandstand on national issues.

 

He expressed concern over the huge allocation of hundreds of millions of naira each month to finance the FCT minister’s media appearances.

 

He said it is lamentable and unconscionable, coming in the face of millions of Nigerians battling record inflation, stagnant wages, and deepening poverty, describing it as an exercise that offers little substance and reeks of misplaced priorities.

 

The statement read in part, “As millions of Nigerians battle record inflation, stagnant wages, and deepening poverty, it is unconscionable that the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, reportedly spends hundreds of millions of naira monthly on an ostentatious media chat – an exercise that offers little substance and reeks of misplaced priorities.

“Framed as a public engagement, this monthly spectacle is anything but a tone-deaf misuse of public funds – especially in a country where many survive on less than $2 a day, and access to basic healthcare, education, and shelter remains a daily struggle.

 

“To illustrate the waste: The cost of one media edition could fund emergency relief and shelter for thousands displaced by the recent floods in Niger State. It could refurbish crumbling primary schools, equip rural clinics, or sustain nutrition programs in IDP camps for several months.

 

“The optics are disheartening. The implications are worse. Nigerians are not asking for a televised circus – Nigerians are crying out for competent governance, prudent spending, and people-centred leadership.

 

“President Bola Ahmed Tinubu must take urgent action: call the FCT Minister to order, halt this wasteful spending, and redirect focus to service delivery. This is not a time for flamboyance and fanfare. It is a moment that demands humility, responsibility, and an unwavering commitment to the public good. Nigeria deserves better. The time to act is now.”

 

South Koreans began voting Tuesday in a snap presidential election, concluding months of political upheaval following former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s controversial imposition of martial law and subsequent impeachment, AFP reported.

 

Polling stations opened at 6:00 a.m. local time in districts across the country, including Seoul’s Munrae-dong area, where a small group of elderly voters queued early to cast their ballots.

 

“We were the first to arrive with the hope our candidate gets elected, and because the presidential election is the most important,” Yu Bun-dol, 80, told AFP, adding she was voting for the conservative People Power Party candidate.

 

Millions had already voted during the two-day early voting period last week, with more than one-third of registered voters participating, according to the National Election Commission.

 

The election is widely seen as a referendum on the conservative administration led by Yoon, who was impeached after deploying troops to parliament in a move that drew widespread condemnation.

 

His downfall has plunged the conservative People Power Party into crisis, as analysts note growing disillusionment among moderates and even core supporters.

 

Leading the race is liberal candidate Lee Jae-myung of the Democratic Party, who holds a significant lead in most opinion polls.

 

A recent Gallup survey showed 49 percent of respondents favoring Lee, compared to 35 percent for conservative candidate Kim Moon-soo. Lee’s party already holds a majority in the National Assembly.

 

The fallout from martial law, which has left South Korea effectively leaderless for the first months of US President Donald Trump’s second term, is the top concern for voters, experts said.

“Polls show the election is largely viewed as a referendum on the previous administration,” Kang Joo-hyun, a political science professor at Sookmyung Women’s University, told AFP.

 

The conservative bloc has faced additional setbacks, including Kim’s failure to unite with Reform Party candidate Lee Jun-seok, raising concerns over a divided right-wing vote.

 

Yoon’s impeachment marked the second time in under a decade that a conservative president has been removed from office, following Park Geun-hye’s ouster in 2017.

 

The series of scandals has severely damaged the image of conservative leadership in the country.

 

“Conservative politics was associated with competent governance, but it’s now hard to argue that they remain capable,” said Kang Won-taek, a political science professor at Seoul National University.

Unlike regular elections that allow for a transition period, the winner of this snap vote will take office immediately after the National Election Commission certifies the results. Many South Koreans, weary of months of interim leadership, hope the vote will bring stability.

 

In Gwangju, a stronghold of liberal sentiment, retired teacher Jung Se-yoon, 65, described the election as a critical moment. “It will take far too long for the country to get back on its feet if we miss this chance,” she said.

 

Voter turnout is expected to be high, with political observers watching not just for a win, but the margin. “The focus won’t be on whether Lee will win, but on whether he will secure more than 50 percent of the vote,” said Bae Kang-hoon, co-founder of the political think tank Valid. “If he does, it would give him a significant boost in momentum to govern as president.”

 

South Korean presidents serve a single five-year term. The outcome of today’s vote is set to chart the country’s course following one of the most turbulent periods in its democratic history.

 

The wife of Niger Governor, Hajiya Fatima Bago, has visited victims of the recent flood disaster in Mokwa Local Government Area, where she announced a personal donation of N50 million.

 

She said that the donation was on behalf of herself and her family to the victims, to help cushion the effect of the flood disaster.

 

“We are here to console victims of the flood disaster and to assess the situation. The flooding has happened, and from what we saw, it is really not exciting to behold.

 

“There is nothing we can do as the disaster has happened, we only advise the people to be cautious henceforth and avoid building on waterways,” she said.

 

The wife of the governor said that the village head and the council chairman have acknowledged the help they have been receiving in various forms and have commenced distribution to the victims.

 

She noted the ongoing search and rescue operation with the aid of an excavator to recover more bodies.

In his remarks, Alhaji Abubakar Usman, Secretary to the Niger State Government, appealed to the victims to see the flood disaster as an act of God.

 

In their separate remarks, Mrs Afiniki Dauda, Deputy Speaker of Niger House of Assembly and Hajiya Mairo Mann, Permanent Secretary Ministry for Humanitarian Affairs, extend their condolences to the victims.

 

Also, the Village Head of Mokwa ‘Ndalila of Mokwa’, Alhaji Mohammed Aliyu, appreciated the governor’s wife for the visit and called on the state government to compensate the affected community members.

 

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the flood disaster, which occurred as a result of heavy downpour on May 29, claimed the lives of 153 people and destroyed property worth millions of naira.

 

(NAN)