Category: cover

 

The Minister of Education, Tunji Alausa, says 24 federal institutions have been powered by solar energy under the “Energising Education Project” of President Bola Tinubu’s Administration.

 

Alausa, who disclosed this on Wednesday in Abuja at the Collaboration Agreement Signing Ceremony with the vice chancellors of beneficiary institutions, added that eight more universities have signed collaboration agreements to join the fourth phase of the project.

 

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that, before the signing ceremony, the minister undertook an inspection tour of the solar-powered facility at the University of Abuja, now Yakubu Gowon University.

 

Alausa, who described the project as a “new day for Nigeria”, hailed the transformative initiative under Tinubu, aimed at providing uninterrupted power supply to Nigeria’s federal tertiary institutions.

He said the projects had wide-reaching benefits for education and the economy.

 

According to him, the University of Abuja, which now boasts a solar farm comprising 6,000 photovoltaic panels, is generating approximately 3.3 megawatts of electricity daily, enough to power the campus round the clock.

 

“This project brings continuous, 24-hour electricity to our institutions.

 

“It allows for increased academic activity, powers laboratories and libraries throughout the day and night, and improves living and learning conditions for both students and faculty,” he said.

 

The minister emphasised the economic ripple effect of the initiative, explaining how reliable electricity stimulates business within campuses.

 

“Any campus is a community by itself. With constant power supply, you unleash high economic activity,” he said.

 

The minister explained that the project was backed by the Renewable Infrastructure Fund established by Tinubu to support infrastructure development across sectors.

He, therefore, challenged vice chancellors of universities on innovative and creative ways of sustaining the project, noting that by 2027, every tertiary institution would have renewable energy generation.

 

On his part, the Managing Director, Rural Electrification Agency, Abba Aliyu, said that phases 1, 2, and 3 of the project have so far impacted over 600,000 students and 50,000 academic staff.

 

Aliyu said that the project had also generated over 100 megawatts of electricity to power university campuses and teaching hospitals.

He said the initiative, implemented through multiple phases, had already brought solar mini-grid infrastructure to 24 federal universities across the country.

 

“What you are seeing here is one of our interventions in the education sector, and the aim is to ensure that universities have a sustainable and affordable electricity supply,” he said

 

In addition to educational institutions, he said the Universal Public Health Project, part of phase 2, had successfully delivered clean energy to two universities and two teaching hospitals.

 

He added that Phase 3, which includes the electrification of eight more universities and one additional teaching hospital, is near completion and set to be commissioned in the coming two months.

 

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the eight new beneficiary institutions include Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria; University of Nigeria, Nsukka; and Federal University, Wukari, Taraba State.

 

Others are Federal University Dutse, University of Benin, University of Ibadan, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife and University of Lagos.

 

NAN

 

The Senator representing Kano South Senatorial District under the platform of the New Nigeria People’s Party, Senator Kawu Sumaila, has defected from the party to the All Progressives Congress.

 

President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, read the letter of the lawmaker’s defection at plenary on Wednesday.

 

According to Sumaila in his letter, his decision to leave the NNPP is anchored on compelling and undeniable developments within the party, which have rendered the party severely divided and dysfunctional.

 

The letter is titled ”Notification of defection from the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) to the All Progressive Congress (APC).

 

The letter read, “Pursuant to Section 68, Subsection 1 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999, as amended, I write to the Senate President on behalf of the Senate.

 

“I write to formally notify the Senate through your esteemed office of my defection from the NNPP to the APC, the largest party in Africa.

 

“My decision to bid goodbye to the NNPP is anchored on compelling and undeniable developments within the party, which have rendered the party severely divided and dysfunctional.

“Over the past months, I have observed a growing number of litigations that have practically torn the party apart and left its structure fractured.

 

“All of which clearly centred on issues of party disunity, functional leadership, and the legitimacy of its operations.

 

“These legal battles have not only eroded internal cohesion but have created parallel and conflicting authorities within the party.”

 

The lawmaker added that a further manifestation of the division was the existence of multiple factions, each with its own distinct party logo.

 

This, he noted underscored the depth of the division and reflected a clear and public splintering of the party’s identity in both form and substance, as the party was divided in form and substance.

 

“Therefore, in the spirit of democratic accountability and in line with my constitutional right, I have moved to APC, a national platform, an international platform, which I believe will better support my legislative responsibilities and aspirations of the good people of my senatorial district,” he said.

 

NAN

 

With the defection of the Edo State House of Assembly Speaker, Blessing Agbebaku and other Peoples Democratic Party members to the All Progressives Congress on Tuesday, the member representing Oredo East Constituency, Frank Omosigho, has reaffirmed his loyalty to PDP.

 

In a statement released in Benin on Wednesday, Omosigho said he remained an unwavering member of the PDP.

 

He said that despite speculations linking him and others to defection, it is important to clarify that he was absent from the venue where the speakers and others pledged allegiance to the APC.

 

He said, “I, Hon. Frank Omosigho, remain firmly committed to the PDP, the party under which I was elected to serve the good people of my constituency. I will be and continue to be an active participant in party activities, advocating for policies that support the advancement of my constituency and the growth of the state.

 

“I stand by the party that gave me the platform to serve my people. The PDP remained the most viable vehicle for democratic growth and development in Edo State. I urge my constituents and supporters to disregard any misleading reports and remain steadfast in their support for our collective cause.

“My stance remains clear: my focus is on the continued well-being of my constituents, effective governance, and the strengthening of the PDP in Edo State. I urge my supporters to remain undistracted by the political shifts in the assembly and continue to rally behind the PDP’s vision for a better future.”

 

He also noted that as Edo State faces this period of political transition, his steadfast position is to provide much-needed stability.

 

With the Tuesday defection, the PDP in Edo State has lost the majority of seats, with only six members still remaining out of 14 that won the election on the platform in 2023.

 

The six remaining members are Frank Uyi Omosigho, Charity Iguodeyala Aiguobarueghan, Maria Edeko, Andrew Uzamere, Osawaru Natasha and Inegbobor.

 

The Chairman of Bariga Local Government Area of Lagos State, Kolade Alabi, on Wednesday, suddenly slumped at the All Progressives Congress stakeholders’ meeting held at the party’s Secretariat in Ikeja, the state capital.

 

PUNCH Online reports that Alabi, who is the state chairman of the Association of Local Governments of Nigeria, was addressing party members when the sad incident happened.

 

Fortunately, he was subsequently revived and rushed away to the hospital in an ambulance for further treatment.

 

See photos below.

 

Boko Haram terrorists have killed a Nigerian Army Captain and a soldier in a midnight attack on Izge community in Gwoza Local Government Area of Borno State.

 

The Emir of Gwoza, Mohammed Shehu Timta, made this known in an interview with Channels Television on Wednesday.

 

He said the attack happened around 1 am on Wednesday when the terrorists infiltrated the farming community, shooting sporadically before the personnel of the Nigerian Armed Forces, with the assistance of local hunters, vigilantes and members of the civilian Joint Task Force, repelled the terrorists.

 

According to the emir, the security agencies killed three of the terrorists, and recovered several motorcycles, bicycles, an operational vehicle and a sophisticated rifle from the terrorists.

 

The traditional ruler commended the military, men of the Civilian Joint Task Force, Local hunters, vigilantes and the resilient community of Izge for their collaborative efforts in repelling the attack while praying for the repose of the souls of the departed military personnel and their families during this irreparable loss.

 

He also called for urgent steps by the Federal Government to address the renewed attacks, as people prepare for this year’s farming season.

“My people in Izge community came under Boko Haram invasion today at about 1 am. Unfortunately, a Captain and a Soldier paid the supreme price.

 

“But in a brave and swift reaction from the military, men of the Civilian Joint Task Force, Local hunters, vigilantes and the resilient community, the attack was repelled with the killing of three terrorists.

 

“As the community is still trailing the terrorists, over 10 bicycles, motorcycles, a one-sized military vehicle and one sophisticated rifle with ammunition were recovered from the terrorists.

 

“Let me commend our military forces, other security agencies, men of CJTF, local hunters and vigilantes and our resilient people for their bravery, because as I speak, many people are still in the bush combing the whereabouts of the fleeing terrorists.”

 

The monarch also commended the state governor, Professor Babagana, for his relentless efforts in providing enabling resources to the security agencies and our CJTF members in the fight against Boko Haram/ISWAP terrorists, which has brought about relative peace and resettlement of many displaced people back to their ancestral homes.

 

“I want to equally call on the federal government to equip our security forces with technological warfare/weapons to defeat the remnants of Boko Haram members terrorising our communities almost on a daily basis”.

 

Animal welfare officers have faced the grisly task of euthanising more than 350,000 chickens by hand after they were left starving and cannibalising each other.

 

This happened when a South African state-owned poultry company ran out of money to feed them, officials said on Tuesday.

 

The National Council of Societies for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals said it wasn’t able to say for certain how many other chickens had already died by that time.

 

Its officers reached several neglected poultry farming sites because of the “mass cannibalism” that took place among the birds.

 

The NSPCA had managed to save more than 500,000 chickens, it said.

 

“It was a harrowing scene,” the NSPCA said in a statement.

“Skeletal chickens huddled together, chickens eating one another, feeding lines stripped bare.”

 

The chickens were owned by Daybreak Foods, a major poultry supplier owned by South Africa’s state asset management company, Public Investment Corp.

 

NSPCA officers were first alerted to a crisis at one farm on April 30.

 

The organization uncovered at least five other farms in northern South Africa with multiple sites on each farm where birds had been left to starve, it said.

 

(AP/NAN)

 

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, on Wednesday, urged Nigerian media professionals and editors to play a strategic role in the fight against terrorism by deliberately denying terrorist groups the publicity they seek.

 

Speaking during the seventh edition of the 2025 Ministerial Press Briefing Series held at the National Press Centre in Abuja, Idris noted that the media’s editorial choices could significantly impact national security and the morale of the Armed Forces.

 

He said, “The media, as gatekeepers and partners in nation-building, have a crucial role to play in supporting our military’s morale by highlighting their successes and sacrifices. Our armed forces are not only respected by global allies but also feared by those who threaten our collective peace.

 

“It is equally important to recognise that the fight against insecurity is not limited to kinetic approaches. It is also a battle for the hearts and minds of our people – one that terrorist groups are actively exploiting through propaganda, especially on social media platforms.

 

“I therefore call on our media professionals and editors to be discerning in their reportage. We must deny these groups the undue publicity they crave. ”

 

He warned editors against glamorising terrorism through sensational coverage and called for a more patriotic and security-conscious approach to reporting.

“We must take them off the front pages and accurately report them as the criminals they are, without glorifying their acts or giving credence to their false narratives. These are not freedom fighters; they are murderers, kidnappers, and destroyers, and they must be presented as such.

 

“Let us remember that responsible and patriotic journalism is essential to building a peaceful and prosperous Nigeria – one that holds promise not just for our nation, but for the stability and development of the entire West African sub-region and the African continent at large.”

 

Highlighting security as the second pillar of the administration’s agenda, the Minister noted that Nigeria’s Armed Forces have continued to gain ground against insurgents, aided by new weaponry, improved intelligence, and international cooperation.

 

“As many of you are aware, ‘Strengthening National Security for Peace and Prosperity’ is the second pillar of the Renewed Hope Agenda. This emphasis on security underscores a fundamental truth: no nation can achieve sustainable development without peace and stability.

 

“The Tinubu administration has demonstrated this resolve not merely through words, but through concrete actions – including the acquisition of advanced platforms and armaments, enhanced intelligence gathering, intensive training and retraining of personnel, and strategic global partnerships, ” the minister said.

 

The trial of the leader of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra, Nnamdi Kanu, continued at the Federal High Court in Abuja, with Justice James Omotosho presiding.

 

The prosecution presented more evidence to support claims that Kanu was involved in terrorism.

 

A witness known as named BBB, led by the prosecuting lawyer Adegboyega Awomolo, resumed testimony.

 

He spoke about a letter written by the former Attorney General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami, to the Department of State Services which accused Kanu of terrorism, murder and inciting violence against Nigerian security agencies.

It was dated June 17, 2021, and was admitted as Exhibit PWF after the defence, led by Kanu Agabi, raised no objection.

 

The witness read from the letter, “He instructed, through his broadcast, that police and army seen, should be brought down and their guns seized and used.”

 

The letter also listed violent acts, saying Kanu’s words caused attacks on police stations, correctional centres, and public property.

 

The court also accepted a written statement by Kanu to the DSS on July 17, 2021, where he declined to write anything new, saying he had already said all he needed to. This was marked as Exhibit PEG.

 

A flash drive that reportedly contains Kanu’s broadcasts was also admitted, despite an objection by the defence. It was marked as Exhibits PWA and PW1.

 

The court played several video and audio recordings. In one clip, dated December 12, Kanu is heard speaking from “the blessed land of Biafra” and warning against “Fulani domination.”

 

He also warned Southeast governors, saying, “No Fulani parading as herdsman shall be allowed in our land.”

 

In another video, a voice the DSS said is Kanu’s is heard saying, “Go and burn down Lagos,” “Set Murtala Mohammed Airport on fire,” “Burn down that Tinubu hotel,” “Go into the bush, collect policemen’s guns and kill them.”

In a different clip, the voice said, “Every Federal government building in Lagos should be set on fire. Any government vehicle you see, burn them. Manufacture your own weapons, ambush them.”

 

Another audio recording played in court had the same voice telling people, “Any police officer you kill, go to their station and set it on fire. Kill them. They are janjaweeds.”

The voice also said, “Tinubu is in trouble, he cannot run. Anywhere he runs to in this world, we will find him.” “If we don’t behave like mad people in this zoological republic, this revolution will not work.”

“Start killing soldiers now, set ambush for them, dig holes on the roads so that when their vehicle comes it will somersault and they will die.”

 

The court was told this audio came from the October 2020 End SARS protest with people calling in from different parts of Nigeria to update Kanu.

 

One caller from Ogbor Hill in Aba said they needed guns.

 

The voice replied, “Join the elite Biafra volunteer force and you will understand how things work.”

 

Another recording had the same voice declaring a total sit-at-home in the Southeast, “Nobody is allowed to come out no matter who you are. If you dare open your shop tomorrow, we’ll burn you inside that shop!”

 

In another clip, the voice tells someone on the phone, “There are some guns already in Edo State. Take those guns and kill some army officers. Take their guns and use them to attack others.”

 

The prosecution witness said these recordings were played to Kanu and that “he admitted that he made them.”

 

The last video showed Kanu speaking at a gathering where he said weapons were needed for the Biafran cause.

 

He said, “The Fulani ethnic group wants to take over the entire country as they took over Hausa territories. The only way to stop this is by a revolution.”

 

The Governor of Borno State, Professor Babagana Zulum, has banned the sale of alcoholic beverages in the state.

 

The governor made the announcement on Tuesday at the inauguration of a reconstituted committee on “revocation of illegal hotels, brothels, shanties, and criminal hideouts and curbing the menace of antisocial vices” at the council chambers of the government house in Maiduguri, the state capital.

 

Zulum also reconstituted and re-empowered the committee to purge the state of all forms of criminality and antisocial vices in the Maiduguri metropolis and surrounding environments.

 

The governor said the ban on sales and consumption of liquor and alcoholic contents stems from the rising cases of clashes among rival groups, cultism, prostitution, drug abuse, thuggery and theft, which have led to loss of lives and valuables.

He also co-opted the military, police, civil defence, and several other security agencies, including the civilian JTF, to join the committee for a holistic approach.

 

He also stated that former and current serving personnel of the Nigerian security forces have played a significant role in influencing the civilian populace into criminality, radicalism, prostitution and other vices, heightening terrorism threats in the state.

 

“I am happy to know that army officers are here, especially the military, police, and others are here because most of these activities were committed by whom? Some of them are dismissed army officers, dismissed security officers, current army officers, men and officers, including civilians.

“So, there should be no sacred cow in this matter if we want the Maiduguri metropolis and indeed the state to get rid of insurgency, terrorism and other sorts of criminalities,” Zulum said.

 

India launched military strikes on Pakistan on Wednesday and Pakistan claimed it shot down five Indian Air Force jets, in an escalation that has pushed the two nations to the brink of a wider conflict.

 

The escalation puts India and Pakistan, two neighbors with a long history of conflict, in dangerous territory, with Islamabad vowing to retaliate against India’s strikes and the international community calling for restraint.

 

New Delhi said the strikes are in response to the massacre of 26 people – mostly Indian tourists – who died in April when gunmen stormed a scenic mountain spot in the India-administered part of Kashmir, a disputed border region. India has blamed Pakistan for the attack, which Islamabad denies.

 

-What happened with India’s strikes?-

 

India launched “Operation Sindoor” in the early hours of Wednesday morning local time (Tuesday night ET) in both Pakistan and Pakistan-administered Kashmir.

 

Indian officials said nine sites were targeted, but claimed no Pakistani civilian, economic or military sites were struck. They said the 25-minute operation targeted “terrorist infrastructure” belonging to two militant groups – Lashkar-e-Tayyiba and Jaish-e-Mohammed.

 

The name ‘Sindoor’ appears to be a reference to the red vermilion, or powder, many Hindu women wear on their foreheads after marriage. The April tourist massacre – which singled out men as victims – left several Indian women widowed.

 

But Pakistan is painting a different picture of the strikes – saying civilians were killed and mosques were hit. CNN has yet to verify those claims.

 

A Pakistani military spokesperson said six locations were hit with 24 strikes. Some of those strikes hit the densely populated province of Punjab, Pakistan’s military said, and were the deepest India has struck inside Pakistan since 1971, when the two countries fought one of their four wars.

 

-How did Pakistan respond?-

 

Pakistani security sources claimed they had shot down five Indian Air Force jets and one drone during India’s attack.

They did not say exactly where, or how, the jets were downed – but said three Rafale jets were among those planes. India’s Rafale fighter jets are prized military assets that it bought from France only a few years ago.

 

India has not confirmed any planes were lost. CNN has not been able to verify the claim and has reached out to India’s government and military for comment.

 

An eyewitness and local government official said an unidentified aircraft crashed in the village of Wuyan in Indian-administered Kashmir. Photos published by the AFP news agency showed aircraft wreckage lying in a field next to a red-brick building.

It was not immediately clear from the photos who the aircraft belonged to.

 

Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif said on Wednesday the country “has every right” to respond, calling India’s actions an “act of war.”

 

-How many casualties are there?-

 

At least 26 civilians were killed and 46 injured by India’s strikes, a Pakistan military spokesperson said, according to the news agency Reuters.

 

Lt. Gen. Ahmed Sharif Chaudhry, a spokesperson for Pakistan’s military, said those killed include teenagers and children – the youngest of whom was three years old.

 

Eight civilians in Indian-administered Kashmir were also killed by shelling by Pakistani troops from across the border, a senior Indian defense source told CNN.

 

CNN/Reuters