The Nigeria Customs Service has fixed online recruitment test for shortlisted applicants for the Superintendent Cadre for Thursday, 2 October 2025.
Announcing this in a statement on its X handle on Monday, the Service said candidates have been placed into three batches of A, B and C.
“All shortlisted Superintendent Cadre candidates should log in with their NIN via (https://updates.customs.gov.ng) to check their Batch, Date, and Time,” the statement read.
NCS warned that strict compliance with assigned batch and time is mandatory and that failure to sit at the allotted time will result in disqualification.
Other instructions include, “Candidates are strictly warned against the use of calculators and other devices during the test.
“Indiscriminate log-in or switching of browser windows may also prevent further sign-in attempts.
“Applicants of the Inspectorate and Assistant Cadres will be contacted later for their Pre-Test and Online Test.
“Inspectorate & Assistant Cadre applicants should NOT log in at this stage.”
PUNCH Online reports that the exam follows the superintendent cadre candidates conducted pre-test over the weekend.
The Police Service Commission on Monday subjected 30 senior police officers to a compulsory promotion examination in Abuja, warning that those who fail the test three times will be retired.
The exercise, held at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja, involved one Assistant Inspector General of Police, two Commissioners of Police, 11 Deputy Commissioners and 16 Assistant Commissioners.
Chairman of the Commission, retired Deputy Inspector General of Police, Hashimu Argungu in a statement, said the exam was now a permanent feature in police career progression.
“This exam is not going anywhere; it has come to stay.
“Any officer that fails it three times will have to go home. We can’t continue to carry people who are not competent,” Argungu said.
He explained that the new system was designed to improve standards in the Nigeria Police Force and restore public confidence.
“The world has changed, it is a skill-driven era.
“If our officers want to rise, they must be ready to show capacity.
“Otherwise, we can’t justify promoting them,”Argungu added.
The PSC Chairman also noted that the Commission was tightening procedures to avoid errors in promotions.
“We are paying attention to details, no dead or retired officer should ever appear on a promotion list again,” Argungu said.
Other commissioners of the PSC, including retired Supreme Court Justice Paul Adamu Galumje and retired DIG Taiwo Lakanu, were present during the examination.
Canada on Monday declared India’s Bishnoi gang a “terrorist entity,” targeting a group linked to a murder that triggered a breakdown in relations between Ottawa and New Delhi last year.
Canada has accused the notorious syndicate — known for assassinations and extortion in India — of possible involvement in the murder of prominent Sikh activist and Canadian citizen Hardeep Singh Nijjar near Vancouver.
Nijjar, who had advocated for a separate Sikh state carved out of India, was shot dead in a parking lot in 2023.
Following the incident, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police have alleged that members of Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government worked with the “Bishnoi Group” to target Sikh activists in Canada.
India furiously rejected those charges, sparking a diplomatic fallout that saw both countries expel top diplomats.
Canada’s Public Safety Minister Gary Anandasangaree said Monday’s terrorism designation gave Ottawa “more powerful and effective tools to confront” the Bishnoi group.
A statement from his office called the Bishnoi gang “a transnational criminal organization operating primarily out of India, with a presence in Canada, that generates terror through extortion and intimidation.”
The move comes as Prime Minister Mark Carney, who took office in March, seeks to repair ties with India that collapsed under his predecessor, Justin Trudeau.
Carney has courted India as part of an effort to deepen Canada’s trade ties in Asia, which the prime minister says is essential to offset the impact of the trade war with the United States.
Carney met one-on-one with Modi at the Canada-hosted G7 meeting in June, stressing “the significant commercial links between Canada and India.”
The Anambra State Police Command has appealed to members of the public for information that could help rescue a 3-year-old boy, who was allegedly stolen by an unidentified woman in Obosi, Idemili North Local Government Area.
In a statement on Monday by the command’s spokesperson, SP Tochukwu Ikenga, the child, identified as Chimaobi Nwadike was stolen while in the custody of his mother.
The statement read, “The Anambra State Police Command seeks assistance from members of the public, especially residents of Anambra State, regarding a case of child stealing that occurred on 26th September 2025 at Obosi, Idemili North LGA.
“Preliminary information reveals that the victim, Master Chimaobi Nwadike, a 3-year-old boy, was stolen by an unidentified woman while in the custody of his mother.
“The Command is calling on anyone with useful information on the whereabouts of the child or the suspect to kindly report to the nearest Police Station or call the Command’s emergency numbers.”
In related incident last week, the Command has arrested one Okwuchukwu Ezimuo, male, aged 45 years, for allegedly stabbing his relative to death over a family land dispute in Umunocha Village, Awka-Etiti, Idemili South Local Government Area of the state.
The suspect struck the deceased, identified as Joseph Dike, a 65-year-old, on the chest during a quarrel over the land dispute on Monday evening, said the Command.
The Borno Police Command have confirmed the arrest of two Internally Displaced Persons for allegedly beating a 72-year-old man to death in Ngala Local Government Area of the state.
The Police Public Relations Officer, Nahun Daso, told the News Agency of Nigeria in Maiduguri on Monday, that the incident occurred at the ‘ISS IDP camp’ in Ngala on Saturday.
He said that the suspects, identified as Modu Mohammed, 25, and Annami Modu, 32, conspired and attacked the victim, Abba Mustapha, with sticks over allegations of witchcraft.
“The suspects accused the victim of bewitching the wife of one of them and causing her ill health.
“They beat him up in his house at the camp,” the spokesman said.
He added that policemen at the camp rescued the victim and rushed him to the General Hospital in Ngala, where he was confirmed dead by medical personnel.
According to him, the suspects were arrested at the scene, and the police have also recovered some exhibits.
Daso said the corpse of the deceased was released to his family for burial in line with Islamic rites after an autopsy.
He said the Criminal Investigation Department, Maiduguri, had begun an investigation into the matter.
PUNCH Online had reported that Zulum’s administration had resettled 6,000 displaced families in Dikwa and Mafa Local Government Areas.
He made this known during a visit to the Muna IDP camp in Maiduguri, which shelters over 11,000 families and remains one of the largest in the state.
Nigeria continues to grapple with the humanitarian fallout of insurgency in the North-East, where millions have been displaced from their homes.
Borno State, the epicentre of the conflict, hosts some of the largest camps for internally displaced persons.
The Ambode Comeback Crusaders has appealed to the leadership of the All Progressives Congress to consider former Lagos State Governor, Akinwunmi Ambode, as the party’s candidate for the 2027 governorship election in the state.
In an open letter dated September 28 and addressed to the APC National Chairman and Lagos State Chairman, the group’s convener, Abiodun Fashola, described Ambode as a proven leader whose first term in office from 2015 to 2019 delivered “exemplary leadership” in infrastructure, public transportation, and healthcare.
The letter argued that Ambode’s financial expertise strengthened Lagos as a leading economic hub, while his inclusive approach to governance positioned him as “a leader who listens to stakeholders and the populace.”
“As you deliberate on candidates for the upcoming elections, I urge you to consider the broader implications of Ambode’s second term. His proven track record and vision for the future align seamlessly with APC’s commitment to progress and development,” the letter read in part.
The group maintained that bringing back Ambode would “propel Lagos into a new era of prosperity and innovation” while reinforcing APC’s image as a party of progress.
The letter was copied to President Bola Tinubu, Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, Speaker of the House of Representatives Femi Gbajabiamila, Deputy Governor Dr. Obafemi Hamzat, and other stakeholders in the state.
Ambode, a fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, succeeded Babatunde Fashola as governor in 2015 but was denied a second-term ticket in 2019 after losing the APC primary to Sanwo-Olu.
The Federal Government has approved a policy that makes submission of students’ theses and final year projects into the Nigeria Education Repository and Databank, a compulsory requirement for mobilisation into the National Youth Service Corps.
PUNCH Online gathered that effective from October 6, no graduate, whether trained in Nigeria or abroad will be mobilised for or exempted from the NYSC without proof of compliance.
The new directive was contained in a circular issued by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, who conveyed President Bola Tinubu’s approval on Saturday.
The circular stated that the “NYSC mobilisation criteria [have been adjusted] in accordance with the President’s regulation requiring proof of NERD Policy compliance for all prospective corps members, regardless of where they were educated.”
The policy requires all students to deposit their academic outputs, such as theses or project reports, into the national database. According to Section 6.1.23 of the NERD guidelines, the measure serves “as a quality assurance check and as a yearly independent proof of continuous academic enrolment and affiliation.”
Explaining the intent of the reform, NERD spokesperson, Haula Galadima, said,”Apart from the mandate to verify for authenticity as a national flagship, the NERD digitisation programme has a clear objective, to raise the bar in the quality of academic content, output and presentation nationwide.”
She added that the database will capture every detail of academic work deposited.
“Each item shall feature the full name of the student, those of his supervisor, co-supervisor if any, and that of the Head of Department, as well as the sponsoring institution and department,” Galadima explained.
On why the move matters for university supervision, she stressed:
“If our eminent scholars are aware that their names will appear next to those of the students they supervise on a globally available digital platform, there is the likelihood that each lecturer would up his or her standard.
“Very few lecturers would want their names associated with poorly produced academic works.”
In March, while declaring the NERD policy effective, Minister of Education, Dr. Tunji Alausa, had emphasised that submission of academic outputs would become obligatory.
“The approved stipulations for mandatory submission of academic outputs as provided in Sections 2.3, 4.3(1), and 7.6.11(c), among others, of the approved National Policy for the NERD Programme shall become obligatory requirements in Nigeria,” Alausa said.
A copy of the approved policy also revealed that President Tinubu endorsed an academic output monetisation mechanism to reward students and lecturers.
“This ensures students and lecturers can earn lifetime revenues from their academic deposits,” the document stated.
According to the SGF’s circular, the enforcement will apply to all graduates from Nigerian universities, polytechnics, colleges of education, and foreign institutions.
It clarified that the new rules “do not affect serving corps members or those mobilised before the October 6 enforcement date.”
With the reform, the Federal Government said it aims to curb certificate racketeering, secure Nigeria’s intellectual property, and strengthen the credibility of higher education qualifications.
Schools, libraries, and parks were closed on Monday in Valencia in eastern Spain after heavy rains prompted a red alert and fears of a repeat of deadly floods that hit the area last year.
Spain’s national weather agency, AEMET, warned of a “very complicated situation” in the Mediterranean region.
The overnight downpours caused localised flooding and a ravine to overflow in Aldaia, one of the towns hardest hit by October 2024’s floods that killed more than 230 people. No injuries have been reported.
AEMET warned of “extraordinary danger” in the provinces of Valencia and Castellón, as well as the province of Tarragona in the neighbouring region of Catalonia.
Schools and universities will stay closed in the city of Valencia on Monday, as well as public spaces including libraries, parks, gardens, markets, and cemeteries, local officials said.
Last year’s disaster sparked public anger over warning systems and emergency response, fuelling tensions between Spain’s left-leaning central government and conservative regional authorities.
Residents continue to protest, accusing officials of failing to provide timely alerts.
Because a warmer atmosphere holds more water, climate change increases the risk and intensity of flooding from extreme rainfall.
The National Biotechnology Research and Development Agency has assured Nigerians of the health safety of genetically modified organisms
The Director-General of NBRDA, Abdullahi Mustapha, disclosed this in a statement on Monday.
Mustapha gave the assurance against the backdrop of ongoing debates and conversations around GMOs, which he described as based on general misinformation.
According to Mustapha, the agency remains committed to bridging the gap of ignorance through evidence-based engagement, sensitisation, and research-driven advocacy.
Mustapha added that the agency’s core mandate is to promote and conduct innovative research in agriculture, health, industry, the environment, and other strategic sectors, based on a commitment to humanity.
“Our top priority is the well-being of Nigerians. We will never compromise public health or safety in the pursuit of innovation,” he said.
Mustapha said GMOs were globally recognised as safe for human health and the environment.
According to him, the approval of GMOs in Nigeria is subject to strict biosafety regulations by the National Biosafety Management Agency.
“It is important for Nigerians to know that GMOs are safe. Around the world, they have been researched for decades, regulated by rigorous international standards, and tested extensively.
“Here in Nigeria, no GMO product enters circulation without the full approval of the NBMA, which subjects every product to thorough risk assessments,” he said.
Mr Mustapha said that the NBRDA has intensified efforts to sensitise and engage stakeholders, including farmers, policymakers, scientists, youth, and civil society, about biotechnology.
He said that through training programmes, community outreach, open forums, and field demonstrations, the agency was rebuilding public confidence and countering misinformation with facts.
German airline group Lufthansa said Monday it will cut 4,000 jobs, nearly four percent of its workforce, underscoring the slump gripping Europe’s largest economy.
Lufthansa said the majority of the job cuts would be in Germany and take place by 2030, targeting administrative rather than operational positions.
The group, which employs around 103,000 people, includes Eurowings, Austrian, Swiss and Brussels Airlines, as well as the recently acquired Italian flagship airline ITA Airways.
Germany is facing a second straight year of recession, with unemployment at a decade high.
The downturn has hit some of the country’s corporate giants hard, squeezed by Chinese competition, high energy costs and slow adoption of new technologies.
Lufthansa’s announcement comes just days after another major German company, industrial giant Bosch, said it would cut 13,000 jobs, or three percent of its global workforce.
“The Lufthansa Group is reviewing which activities will no longer be necessary in the future, for example due to duplication of work,” the company said in a statement.
“In particular, the profound changes brought about by digitalization and the increased use of artificial intelligence will lead to greater efficiency in many areas and processes,” it said.
Lufthansa set new financial targets for 2028-2030, including an adjusted operating margin of eight to 10 per cent.
