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I won’t endorse any presidential candidate – Adeboye

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The General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, ha said he would not endorse any presidential candidate because they were all like his “children”.

He said he does not owe any political party any obligation, saying politics was not his calling.
Adeboye spoke during the special monthly prayer and thanksgiving service at RCCG National Headquarters, Throne of Grace, Ebute-Meta, Lagos.

Responding to critics of the church’s establishment of a directorate of politics and governance, he told the congregation in a sermon broadcasted live to All RCCG parishes across the country, that they should not distract him from his role as a pastor.

Adeboye said: “Let me make it loud and clear. I am a pastor and I would never be a politician. I have never been and will never be.

“I am called to be a pastor. That is what God wants me to be. That is why I don’t carry a big title. He says to me clearly: you are to be a pastor.

“I am a pastor. I am not even a prophet. I only hear from Him once in a while. My assignment is to pray for you and pray for nations, including Nigeria. It has nothing to do with partisan politics. Don’t distract my attention.”

Adeboye said he had never campaigned for anyone or directed his members to vote for any candidate or join a particular political party.

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“I have never told you this is the fellow you should vote for either in secret or the open.

“I have never said this is the party you should belong to. I will never say it. Why? Because every party is heavily represented in the church.

“If I vote for anyone, I will be unjust to every one of my children. I am the father of all and I like it that way,” he said.

Adeboye urged members to exercise their civic duties.

“All I am saying and I am saying it loud and clear: nobody is born a Christian. You are a Nigerian first. You have a duty to your country to register to vote and to make sure your vote will count.

“You have a duty to belong to any party of your choice at the grassroots. You can’t fold your arms and refuse to vote and begin to complain.

“You must register, you must vote. You must sit down there after you have voted and make sure they count the votes and you take note of who they said won.

“You must make sure that there is no more rigging in Nigeria. I don’t care who you vote for. Do your duty. And you must do it.

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“My assignment is to pray. I will pray for this nation. I asked for 1000 volunteers. I got more than 26,000 and we prayed. God heard. And the answer will come,” he said.

Adeboye said he was yet to hear from God on whether the 2023 election will hold.

“As of now, as I am standing before you, I still don’t know yet whether or not there will be an election next year.

“My father has not talked to me about an election. He might have told you. But I am yet to hear him.

“Don’t say that Pastor Adeboye said there would be no election next year; that’s not what I said. Adeboye does not know yet. Put the word ‘yet’,” he said.

The cleric expressed concern about insecurity in the Northwest, especially in Kaduna.

“I have a lot of things occupying my mind. Kaduna is on my mind. You can’t travel to Kaduna by air, by train or by road. The question is: Why Kaduna. Who is trying to isolate Kaduna?

“After Kaduna, which is next? Some of you are killing yourselves about 2023. You don’t even know if the rapture will come before the end of this year. Kaduna is a prayer point,” he said.

Adeboye claimed that over 80 per cent of Nigeria’s oil is stolen.

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He said: “It is in the news that the oil we are producing is being stolen. And nobody has denied it.

“That leads me to several questions. Who is stealing the oil? Where is the money going to?

“Eighty per cent of our money is going into the hands of some people. Who are the foreigners buying this stolen oil? How many of these foreign nations are your friends?

“It is an open secret and not denied that more than 90 per cent of our income from the leftover of the oil stolen is being used to pay interest on the money we borrow. We are borrowing more, meaning we are moving steadily to bankruptcy.

“My beloved Nigerians, we are moving to bankruptcy. You can see the reason why I am more concerned about what is happening now than what will happen a year from now.

“We must pray for Kaduna. Pray for all the states. Pray that God will expose those who are stealing our oil and that God will have mercy on our nation.”

Recalling that Nigeria became debt-free during the Olusegun Obasanjo Administration, Adeboye added: “God can still do it. If God does not intervene, our great-grandchildren will still be paying debts.”

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Two Oyo commissioner, special adviser resign

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Two senior officials in the Oyo State Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning have resigned their appointments from Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration.

The officials are Ayobami Ojo, the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, and Simeon Oyeleke, the ministry’s Special Adviser on Budget and Economic Planning.

In separate letters dated November 2, and addressed to Mr Makinde, both officials said their resignations would take effect immediately, while thanking the governor for the opportunity to serve but did not give specific reasons for their decisions.

In his letter, Ojo referred to his appointment letter dated 22 June 2026 and formally announced his resignation as commissioner.

“With reference to your letter dated 22nd June, 2026 (SP.S.662/2/VOL.IV/192), I respectfully write to formally resign my appointment as Honourable Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, with effect from today, 2nd November, 2026,” he wrote.

He described his time in government as an honour and said he appreciated the opportunity to serve the state.

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Oyeleke also tendered his resignation with effect from 2 November.

In his letter, he thanked Mr Makinde for the confidence reposed in him and the opportunity to contribute to the administration’s policies and development programmes.

He also expressed appreciation for the governor’s leadership, support and encouragement during his time in office.

“I remain grateful for the opportunity to have been part of this administration and to have contributed to its laudable achievements. I also remain committed to the peace, progress and development of Oyo State,” he wrote.

The latest resignations come amid a series of exits of political appointees and other officials from the Makinde administration in recent months.

It would be recalled that Segun Ogunwuyi resigned as the governor’s chief of staff on 12 October, a position he had held since July 2021. His resignation took immediate effect, although he did not state a reason for his departure.

A few hours after Ogunwuyi’s departure, Makinde appointed Bashorun Akinwole, popularly known as Wolekanle, as his replacement.

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On the same day, Tara Adefope, the Director-General of the Oyo State Due Process Office, also resigned from her position, while in late October, Kabiru Salami, the governor’s Executive Assistant on Security Coordination, also tendered his resignation.

Other officials who have left the administration include Funmi Arulogun, a Senior Special Assistant on Diaspora Matters, who resigned in August, citing personal and political considerations.

Babatunde Oduyoye, a member of the Oyo State Advisory Council, also resigned in July, while Fatai Owoseni, a former Commissioner of Police who served as the governor’s Special Adviser on Security resigned in May.

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Good morning! Nigerian Newspapers Headlines: Campaigns: OK Movement insists on independence

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1. The OK (Obi/Kwankwaso) Movement has declared that it will maintain its independent identity while mobilising support for the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and its candidates ahead of the 2027 general election. 

Movement’s leader John Ughulu said the group remained committed to its original mission of securing the election of former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi and erstwhile Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.

Speaking in an interview, Ughulu dismissed suggestions that the movement’s decision to campaign independently would undermine its support for the NDC, insisting that the focus should be on achieving a common  political objective.

2. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid got a big boost at the weekend with endorsements from across the country. His achievement, the need for consolidation, national cohesion, and other reasons were adduced for the show of solidarity. The presidential election is billed for January 16, 2027

3. The Federal Government has vowed to crack down on inflated public contracts and procurement violations, warning heads of government-owned agencies, corporations, councils, authorities and commissions that they risk sanctions for breaching procurement regulations. The government raised the alarm over contract awards that exceed approved price benchmarks.

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4. The African Democratic Congress has rescheduled its presidential campaign kick-off in Sokoto State to Wednesday, November 4, despite alleging threats, attacks on its members and attempts by the state government to frustrate the event. The party said its decision to proceed with the campaign was a demonstration of its determination to exercise its constitutional rights despite what it described as growing political intimidation ahead of the 2027 general elections.

5. Troops of Operation Hadin Kai have neutralised four leaders of the Islamic State West Africa Province, including two Arabs, a commander and several of their foot soldiers in Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State. The Army said they were neutralised on October 31, 2026, by combined troops of the Joint Task Force deployed to Kukawa following a massive ISWAP terrorists attack on their locations.

6. United States President, Donald Trump, has agreed to grant an immediate visa to the mother of a 15-year-old Ghanaian boy shot dead in New York, following a request by the city’s mayor, Zohran Mamdani.
Mamdani announced the development on Saturday after speaking with Trump, saying the visa would allow the teenager’s mother to travel to the United States and attend her son’s funeral.

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7. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested two Nigerians based in Europe after they allegedly ingested 200 wraps of cocaine weighing 3.46kg while attempting to travel from Abuja to Paris, France. The suspects, identified as Aliocus Odife and Sam Blackborn, were arrested on Wednesday during the outward clearance of an Air France flight, AF 832, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

8. Gunmen suspected to be kidnappers have abducted a 100-level female student of Plateau State University, Bokkos, while another person sustained injuries during an attack on off-campus student residential areas in Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State. It was learnt that the incidents, which occurred on Saturday evening at about 8:40pm, had heightened concerns over the safety of students residing outside the university campus.

9. An early-morning fire outbreak at the weekend destroyed no fewer than 110 buildings and structures at Kofar Ruwa Timber Market in the Kano metropolis. The Kano State Fire Service, while confirming the incident in a statement on Sunday, said the inferno razed 75 permanent buildings and 35 temporary structures across different sections of the market.

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10. The immediate past National Chairman of the Labour Party, Julius Abure, has declared his readiness to align with President Bola Tinubu or former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar ahead of the 2027 presidential election, while ruling out support for the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi.

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Relief as suspected Ebola cases in Adamawa tested negative

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The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has said that there are currently no laboratory-confirmed cases of Ebola  in Adamawa.

The NCDC had on Saturday said that there were two suspected cases of Ebola in the north-east state, adding that the individuals had been isolated while contact identification was ongoing.

But in a statement on Sunday, the director-general of NCDC, Jide Idris,
said samples collected from the two individuals, who had symptoms suggestive of Ebola, tested negative after two rounds of testing.

“The report was received by the Adamawa State Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC) in the early hours of 30 October 2026, following the identification of two individuals presenting with symptoms suggestive of Ebola, requiring further investigation,” the statement reads.

“Hence the alert that was released early this evening. The individuals have been isolated, and appropriate public health measures have been initiated.

“Samples were collected for laboratory testing to establish the cause of the illness. Fortunately, the samples turned out negative for EBV after two rounds of testing.”

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Idris commended the Adamawa health commissioner and his team for their “proactive approach”, adding that the NCDC was working closely with the state government to investigate the report of suspected Ebola cases.

“Currently, there is no laboratory-confirmed Ebola case in Adamawa state,” he said.

“The index case previously confirmed in the Federal Capital Territory remains the only confirmed case reported in Nigeria to date.”

He urged the public to remain calm and avoid sharing unverified information or speculating about the situation.

“The public is encouraged to obtain information from official government and public health communication channels,” he said.

Idris described Ebola as a serious infectious disease that requires prompt identification, appropriate clinical management and effective infection prevention and control measures.

“Anyone experiencing symptoms such as fever, severe weakness, headache, muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhoea or unexplained bleeding, particularly following relevant exposure, should seek immediate medical attention and inform healthcare workers of any relevant travel or contact history,” he said.

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“Individuals should avoid self-medication and follow the advice of healthcare professionals.”

Nigeriaconfirmed its first Ebola case in more than a decade on October 20, after a 42-year-old Swiss woman tested positive for the Bundibugyo strain in Abuja.

The patient, who had travelled from Uganda to Nigeria, was subsequently isolated and treated by Nigerian health workers.

On Monday, the federal governmentevacuated the patient to Switzerland aboard a medical plane.

Her husband, who was identified as a close contact, was also evacuated to Switzerland.

Ali Pate, coordinating minister of health and social welfare, said the patient was clinically much improved, stable, conscious and communicating, with her laboratory test results approaching baseline levels.

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