1. Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, former governor of Kaduna State, hosted Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, at his Abuja residence, on Thursday. El-Rufai hosted the New Nigerian People’s Party, NNPP, former presidential candidate, a few days after visiting former President Muhammadu Buhari in Daura, Katsina State.

2. Minister of Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, tackled Mike Ozekhome, Senior Advocate of Nigeria SAN, at a programme in Abuja, on Thursday over claims that the country has not made progress since it returned to democracy. Wike, who was an awardee at This Nigeria Lecture and Award, said previous speakers acted as if there has been no gain for the country under democracy.

3. There was fear among successful candidates being recruited for the Constable cadre into the Nigeria Police Force following a recent crash witnessed by the recruitment portal of the Police Service Commission. It was learnt that the portal, containing the list of successful candidates for the recently concluded recruitment, could not be accessed again.

4. The Executive Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, Mr. Ola Olukoyede, has ordered the arrest of two officers of the Commission allegedly involved in the manhandling of a female staff of Regional Hotel, Ojo, Lagos.

5. Senate President Godswill Akpabio has said the red chamber will approve funds for the purchase of a new presidential jet if requested by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. Speaking during plenary on Thursday, Akpabio, however, said he had not received any correspondence from the President requesting the Senate’s approval for a presidential jet.

6. President Bola Tinubu has approved the National Construction and Household Support Programme during the National Economic Council meeting on Thursday in Abuja. According to a statement issued by the presidential spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, the programme is aimed at boosting agricultural productivity, strengthening the economy, and providing immediate economic relief for Nigerian households.

7. The Lagos State Police Command has commenced an investigation to unravel the true circumstances surrounding the death of the former Chief Executive Officer of Konga, one of Nigeria’s e-commerce giants, Nick Imudia, who reportedly died by suicide at his residence in the Lekki area of Lagos State.

8. The Imo State Commissioner of Police, Aboki Danjuma, on Thursday, expressed the determination of the police to apprehend the killers of six traders in the Okigwe area of the state, assuring the residents, particularly the traders at the Gariki Market, in the Okigwe Local Government Area of the state of their maximum safety and security.

9. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC on Thursday urged the Federal High Court in Abuja to punish two Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) – Ifedayo Adedipe and Abdulwahab Muhammed – for contempt. It is for their failure to honour their commitment to produce the immediate-past Kogi State Governor Yahaya Bello for arraignment.

10. The Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, in the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University, ATBU, Bauchi State, yesterday staged a peaceful protest, urging President Bola Tinubu to implement Prof. Nimi Briggs’ recommended salaries for academic staff of federal universities. The protesting members marched from their secretariat in the Yelwa campus to the main gate, holding placards with various inscriptions to draw attention to their plight over the years.

Mikah Suleiman, the abducted parish priest of St. Raymond Catholic Church in Damba, Gusau, Zamfara state, has pleaded for help to regain freedom.

In a 51-second video clip trending on social media, Suleiman, dressed in a blue T-shirt with boxer shorts, is seen sitting on the ground while calling for help.

Suleiman was kidnapped by bandits in the early hours of June 22 at the rectory located within the church premises in Gusau, the state capital.

The priest said he was the only one being held captive by the bandits.

“I am pleading for help to be freed from this place. They (bandits) told me that they don’t keep people here for long. People don’t stay for up to a week,” he said.

“They told me that killing a person is not difficult for them. They said they are just helping me by keeping me; please, I am asking for help.

“Please save my life in the name of God. Look at my head; look at my legs. I was tied to a robe, and I am the only one in this place.

“Normally, if they kidnap somebody, they don’t waste time.

“If ransom is not paid immediately, they kill the person. Please, for God’s sake, help me.”

A few seconds to the end of the video, a stick from one of the bandits standing off the camera was seen touching his head.

Lieutenant General Taoreed Lagbaja, Chief of Army Staff, has ordered the promotion of Second Lieutenant Oluchukwu Owowoh to the substantive rank of Lieutenant in the Nigerian Army.

The Nigerian Defence Academy disclosed this in a statement on X.com on Wednesday.

The statement by the NDA on Wednesday partly read, “Speaking during the decoration ceremony that took place today, June 26, 2024, at the Nigerian Defence Academy Officer’s Mess and Golf Club, the NDA Commandant, Major General JO Ochai, extolled the track record of excellence of Lt. Owowoh as a cadet, which accorded her the rare privilege of becoming the first female Nigerian to be trained at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst as well as her promotion to the new rank.

“The event was attended by senior military officers, academic and non-academic staff, and family members, among others.”

In April, Owowoh, 24, made history when she became the first Nigerian female officer to graduate from the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, in the United Kingdom.