The suspended commandant of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger state, Suberu Aniviye, has said that the deaths of suspected illegal miners in custody was a costly and avoidable mistake.

The embattled commandant reportedly apologised to the victims’ families while testifying before a panel of inquiry investigating the deaths in Minna, the Niger state capital. The panel is chaired by Mohammed Mohammed, a judge.

He described the incident as a costly mistake that occurred during his tenure.

Also, while giving evidence, Stephen Tsado, suspended head of the NSCDC legal unit, said that he had advised Aniviye to release the underage suspects to their parents on bail, but his advice was not heeded.

Aniviye said the operation followed complaints from residents around M.I. Wushishi Housing Estate about mining activities in their communities.

According to him, he visited the site on September 15 before deploying mining marshals, who arrested the suspected illegal miners the following evening.

Aniviye told the commission that he learnt of the deaths through a telephone call on September 17 and returned to the command’s office, where he found bodies lying on the detention cell floor.

He said he informed Umaru Bago, governor of Niger state, who directed that the bodies be taken to the mortuary, adding that he also contacted the state commissioner of police and the director of the Department of State Services (DSS).

According to him, the suspects were scheduled to be arraigned in court on September 17 before their deaths.

Maryam Etang, a nurse attached to the command’s medical unit, told the commission she was shocked to find the body of one Emeka Emmanuel among those brought out of the cell. She said Emmanuel was not among the miners arrested during the operation.

It would be recalled that 37 suspected illegal miners arrested in M.I. Wushishi and Lukoto villages in Niger state died in NSCDC custody in September.

Aniviye had said the suspects were arrested during operations conducted on September 15 and 16.

Following the death of the 37 miners, the Federal Government suspended Aniviye and ordered an investigation into the deaths.

It also constituted a 10-member independent committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding the incident.

The African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential campaign council has accused the vice-presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Rabiu Kwankwaso, of undermining the opposition to advance President Bola Tinubu’s re-election chances in 2027.

Kola Ologbondiyan, director of media and publicity of the ADC-PCC, in a statement on Friday, said Kwankwaso had been attacking opposition leaders instead of criticising the Tinubu-led All Progressives Congress (APC) government.

Ologbondiyan was reacting to Kwankwaso’s recent call for Atiku Abubakar, the ADC presidential candidate, to step down for Peter Obi, the NDC flagbearer, ahead of the 2027 elections.

He described the call as reckless and self-serving, alleging that it was an attempt to divide the opposition for the APC’s benefit.

According to him, Kwankwaso should focus on strengthening the opposition rather than undermining another opposition leader, adding that Atiku would win Kano, the former governor’s home state, with or without his support.

“Rather than campaigning against President Tinubu, whose administration Nigerians are eagerly working to vote out, Kwankwaso is fixated on Atiku Abubakar, the ADC candidate, whom millions of Nigerians believe can restore economic stability and make life affordable again,” he said.

“What Kwankwaso is doing amounts to advancing President Tinubu’s interests. It is a familiar APC strategy to use willing collaborators within the opposition to create confusion, sow division and weaken the collective efforts to bring about political change.

“Nigerians are wiser than that and will not allow themselves to be distracted by political manoeuvres designed to rescue an unpopular administration.”

The ADC-PCC spokesperson further alleged that Kwankwaso’s intervention was driven more by personal ambition and calculations for future political negotiations than by a genuine desire to strengthen Obi’s chances.

“He appears to believe that by pushing the South-east narrative, he can position himself for a future bargain with the ruling party. It is an old-style political calculation that Nigerians are increasingly unwilling to accept,” he said.

Ologbondiyan also questioned Kwankwaso’s political consistency, citing his movement across different parties as evidence of what he described as repeated political repositioning.

“From the PDP to the APC, back to the PDP, then to the NNPP, the ADC, and now the NDC, Kwankwaso’s political journey calls for serious reflection. His latest interventions appear to be taking him back into the political shadows of the APC,” he said.

Contrasting Atiku’s political reach with Kwankwaso’s, Ologbondiyan described the ADC candidate as a nationally established politician with extensive networks across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones.

“Atiku Abubakar is a cosmopolitan, detribalised and nationally recognised political figure who has built relationships across the North, South, East and West over more than three decades,” he said.

“Kwankwaso, on the other hand, has concentrated much of his political strength within Kano State. His ability to translate that regional influence into broad national electoral success remains a major question.”

The ADC-PCC urged Nigerians to disregard what it described as Kwankwaso’s attention-seeking intervention and support Atiku and the ADC’s bid to “rescue, recover and rebuild” the country.

1. Outrage has greeted the alleged renovation of a police post located at the Abuloma Okuro Junction by members of a secret cult group identified as the DNKI (Vikings).

It was gathered that the cultists reportedly unveiled the renovated police post on Thursday during a ceremony attended by some police officers.

During the inauguration, leaders of the cult groups in the area were seen in a viral video inspecting the completed job, which was mainly repainting the walls and fixing dilapidated furniture

2. Twelve days after a Nigerian Air Force aircraft plunged into the waters of Igbokoda, Ondo State, fishermen and boat operators are counting their losses, with many struggling to feed their families as their incomes dry up.
The Chairman of the Ilaje Fishermen Association, Igbokoda, Festus Ikuomola, told Saturday PUNCH that about 1,500 members of the association had been affected by the October 5 crash, which involved an aircraft carrying 25 people.

3. The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, has described former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi as political gamblers, accusing them of pursuing personal interests rather than a clear national development agenda. Addressing traditional rulers, political leaders and other groups in Rivers State, Wike urged residents to be cautious of politicians seeking public office, saying they should assess candidates’ records against their promises.

4. The Delta State Police Command said it had arrested 95 suspected cultists and recovered five firearms during coordinated operations across four local government areas of the state. The arrests were made in Asaba, Ika South, Ughelli South and Okpe local government areas on Thursday, October 15, 2026. The command’s spokesperson, Bright Edafe, disclosed this in a statement on Friday, adding that the operations were carried out by personnel of the Department of Operations, the Rapid Response Squad and the Command Anti-Cultism Unit.

5. The Department of State Services, DSS, has arrested Faisal Abdulrasheed Maina, the fugitive son of Abdulrasheed Maina, former chairman of the defunct Pension Reform Task Team. The agency has also handed him over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. The development comes after the EFCC declared Faisal wanted. Security sources revealed that he, having been on the run since 2020, was trailed and apprehended by DSS operatives in the Karsana area of Abuja.

6. Tension erupted at Ogolonto Bus Stop along Ikorodu Road in Lagos State on Friday after an angry mob set a Bus Rapid Transit (BRT) bus ablaze following a fatal accident involving a motorcyclist. The mob also attacked the BRT driver before police officers and officials of the Lagos Neighbourhood Safety Corps intervened and rescued him. Amodu Shakiru, the Public Relations Officer of the Lagos State Fire and Rescue Service, confirmed the incident.

7. Operatives of the Department of State Services, DSS, the military and the police have arrested five suspected members of a criminal gang allegedly responsible for the abduction of 20 prospective National Youth Service Corps, NYSC, members in Imo State on Nigeria’s 66th Independence Day. Five other suspected gang members, however, escaped with gunshot injuries, prompting a massive manhunt for them.

8. Troops of the Joint Task Force North West, Operation Fansan Yamma, have neutralised two terrorists and recovered four AK-47 rifles and eight motorcycles during clearance operations in Sokoto State. The operations, conducted on Thursday, October 15, 2026, also led to the recovery of ammunition, communication equipment and other items from the terrorists.

9. Disqualified candidates and their parties are putting up a fight following last week’s publication of the final list of contestants for next year’s elections by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The parties and the affected candidates have already flooded INEC with petitions and demands for restitution. The commission confirmed yesterday that it has commenced work on the complain

10. The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control, NAFDAC, has destroyed seized fake and substandard products valued at N2.6 billion in Rivers State. The products, which included medicines, tomatoes, cookies and chemicals, were intercepted and seized by the Nigeria Customs Service at the Onne Port between 2025 and 2026.