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Good morning! Newspaper Headlines Today: $4.5bn fraud: Court grants Emefiele’s request for forensic expert

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‎1. The Lagos State Special Offences Court in Ikeja on Monday granted former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, permission to engage forensic experts to examine WhatsApp conversations and a mobile device marked “iPhone 2” tendered as evidence in his ongoing $4.5 billion and N2.8 billion fraud trial.

2. The ward head of Shuwaka (Sarkin Shuwaka) Kyaram District, Garga Community of Kanam Local Government Area, Plateau State, Mallam Hudu Hassan Barau, who was abducted about six days ago by bandits, has been found dead. It was learnt that the body of the monarch was recovered from the bush Monday morning.

3. Lagos State Emergency Management Agency, LASEMA, on Monday confirmed that six persons were rescued and four died following the collapse of a three-storey building. The building is located at No. 325, Bornu Street, Ebute Meta, Lagos State.

4. No fewer than six persons are feared dead in Ikn’gwakap community of Mushere Chiefdom, Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State after gunmen stormed the community at midnight on Sunday and shot sporadically. In a statement, the National Publicity Secretary of the Mushere Youth Movement, Kutyil Gashion Nahum, said the dead included women and children, while several others are missing.

See also  Emefiele said politics shrouded naira redesign, witness tells court

5. Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar says over two years after taking power, there is no sign that President Bola Ahmed Tinubu can address the prevailing hunger and poverty in the country. The opposition leader described the hunger in the country as unacceptable, especially the underprivileged poor and down-trodden.

6. The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) says the inflation figure dropped to 20.12 percent in the month of August. A report released on Monday said food inflation also dropped to 1.65% when compared to the 3.12% recorded in the month of July.

7. Bandits in the early hours of on Monday attacked a mosque at Gidan Turbe village in Tsafe Local Government Area of Zamfara State, abducting no fewer than 40 worshippers. The attack came barely hours after a similar one at Godai village in Bukkuyum LGA of the state, kidnapping over 10 persons.

8. The Naira appreciated to N1,495 per dollar in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NFEM), the highest level in 27 weeks since February this year. Data published by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, showed that the exchange rate for the naira fell to N1,495 per dollar from N1,503.5 per dollar last week Friday, indicating N8.5 appreciation for the naira.

See also  How PDP spent over 400bn on presidential election – Dino Melaye

9. The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities, SSANU, and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions, NASU, have informed the federal government of plans to shut down public universities on September 22 if their demands are not addressed. The threat was contained in a 7-day ultimatum issued by the two unions through their Joint Action Committee, JAC, which started on September 15.

10. The Federal Government has suspended the implementation of the four per cent Free on Board levy recently introduced by the Nigeria Customs Service on all imported goods. The decision, announced by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr Wale Edun, followed widespread concerns from importers and trade experts.

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Good morning! Nigerian Newspapers Headlines: PCC inauguration: APC banks on Tinubu’s record for re-election

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1. The All Progressives Congress on Wednesday inaugurated its Presidential Campaign Council for the 2027 election, expressing confidence in President Bola Tinubu’s record and reforms while rallying party leaders and politicians from other political parties to secure his re-election.

The inauguration and federation general assembly, held at the State House Conference Centre, Abuja, drew opposition figures who pledged to back his re-election bid.

2. The re-election campaign will not stop governance because the economy needs all hands on the plough, the President declared yesterday. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu spoke at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, during the inauguration of his Presidential Campaign Council (PCC) for the January 16, 2027 election, an event that turned into a political carnival.


3. The Federal Government has approved plans to build a new eastern-western electricity grid as part of efforts to address Nigeria’s recurring power grid collapses. The Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe, disclosed this at the recent HBSAN energy conference in Lagos, where he outlined plans to address longstanding weaknesses in the country’s electricity transmission infrastructure.

See also  How PDP spent over 400bn on presidential election – Dino Melaye

4. Popular gospel singer, Olayemi Bayonile Bolaji, popularly known as Toluwanisings, has passed away. His family confirmed the news in a public announcement shared on his verified Instagram page on Wednesday night.
According to the statement, the gospel minister passed away in the early hours of Wednesday, October 14, 2026



5. The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Joash Amupitan, has said algorithms will not determine the outcome of the 2027 general elections, insisting that the decision on who governs Nigeria rests solely with voters. He warned that although artificial intelligence could influence electoral administration and the information available to voters, the technology must remain subordinate to human judgment and democratic institutions.

6. Inspector-General of Police (IGP)  Olatunji  Disu  has assured Nigerians that the police will demonstrate professionalism before, during and after the 2027 general election.
Disu said the police  reviewed their performances in recent elections and would  apply  the lessons learned in order to make Nigerians proud.



See also  Emefiele said politics shrouded naira redesign, witness tells court

7. The Federal Government has proposed a new examination timetable that will see candidates sitting the 2027 West African Examinations Council (WAEC), National Examinations Council (NECO) and other major external examinations receive their results by August, ahead of the September admission process into tertiary institutions.

8. The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, has urged All Progressives Congress, APC, governors to work hard in their respective states to ensure President Bola Tinubu wins next year’s election. Speaking at the inauguration of the APC Presidential Campaign Council in Abuja on Wednesday, Wike said any governor who failed to deliver his state for the President should not join others in claiming victory if Tinubu is re-elected in 2027.

9. The Kwara State Police Command has arrested four men in connection with two separate incidents involving the alleged removal of human heads from exhumed graves and the possession of suspected human hands allegedly intended for money-making rituals. The Commissioner of Police, Ojo Adekimi, disclosed the arrests on Tuesday while briefing journalists at the command headquarters in Ilorin, where he provided details of the investigations into the two cases.

See also  Good morning! Here Are Some Major News Headlines In The Newspapers Today: Emefiele fails to meet ₦300 million bail, may remain in custody till 2024

10. The Police Special Fraud Unit in Lagos State has arraigned a banker and seven other defendants before the Federal High Court in Lagos over an alleged N710 million proof-of-funds fraud. The defendants — Elvis Osazee Eghile, Egharevba MaryJane Osarieyekemwen, Precious Omonigho Irbhogbe, Aghatise Kelvin Uhuenkpoewen, Nweke Nnamdi Emmanuel, Obinyan Esther, Egharevba Emmanuel Osagioduwa and Emmanuel Obinyan Osenonome — were arraigned on a 12-count charge.

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‘Delusion of grandeur’ — Shettima calls Peter Obi master of bogus statistics

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Vice President Kashim Shettima has knocked former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi, describing him as “the master of bogus statistics and incoherent economic prescriptions”.

Shettima made the remark on Wednesday at the inauguration of the All Progressives Congress Presidential Campaign Council at the State House Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Calling Obi “my very good friend”, the Vice President mocked his habit of comparing Nigeria with other countries, especially Bangladesh.

Shettima stated. “He seems convinced that a size 36 shirt tailored for Bangladesh will somehow fit Nigeria’s size 52 frame.”

He said Obi’s “fascination with foreign comparisons overlooks the peculiarities that distinguish one nation from another”.

According to Shettima, “Governance is an art that demands mastery of context, whether social, economic, political or institutional.

“What succeeds in Bangladesh cannot simply be transplanted to Nigeria without accounting for the differences in our population, economic structures, institutions and national circumstances.

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“A country of over 250 million people cannot be governed through borrowed statistics and economic prescriptions detached from its peculiarities.”

The VP said he respected Obi but accused him of making a “bogus claim” about winning the 2023 presidential election without evidence to support the assertion.

“This is called delusion of grandeur.
Our contest is with the politics of yesterday dressed as tomorrow’s deliverance,” he said.

Obi has frequently cited Bangladesh in his criticism of the Tinubu administration’s economic management, including its borrowing.

In February, he said Nigeria’s challenge was fund mismanagement, not borrowing.

Obi ran as the Labour Party candidate in 2023 and finished third behind Tinubu and Atiku Abubakar.

He challenged Tinubu’s victory in court, and the Supreme Court dismissed his appeal and affirmed Tinubu’s election in October 2023.

Obi is seeking the presidency again in the election on January 16, 2027, on the platform of the Nigeria Democratic Congress.

See also  PDP crisis: G5 governors, Wike’s allies in Lagos for crucial meeting

The APC will flag off its campaign in Kaduna on October 24.

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El-Rufai’s associates earmarked $600,000 to compromise EFCC probe, DSS witness tells court

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A forensic investigator with the Department of State Services (DSS), Segun Kayode, has told a Kaduna state high court, sitting in Kawoa, that Nasir el-Rufai, former Kaduna state governor, and some of his associates earmarked $600,000 to pay officials of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and intermediaries.

Kayode, who is the first prosecution witness in the ongoing trial, made the allegation on Tuesday while testifying before the court presided over by Justice Darius Khobo.

According to the witness, $500,000 and $100,000 were allegedly set aside for the payments, adding that forensic audio recordings captured conversations involving el-Rufai and some of his suspected associates.

According to Kayode, the recorded conversations centred on alleged efforts to frustrate an EFCC investigation into a company identified as Singularity.

He said a senior advocate of Nigeria (SAN), another individual and Bashir el-Rufai, were among those allegedly mentioned in the conversations.

Kayode told the court that the SAN and the other individual were allegedly directed to meet one Ahmadu Sule to obtain a template previously used to liquidate another company, with the intention of applying a similar process to Singularity.

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The investigator further alleged that the discussions included plans to liquidate the company in Nigeria and Mauritius, where it was reportedly under investigation by the Nigerian Financial Intelligence Unit.

He also alleged that the recordings contained discussions about preventing the EFCC from investigating a company he said was listed on the New York Stock Exchange.

The allegations formed part of the prosecution’s evidence against the former governor and have yet to be established by the court.

Proceedings lasted nearly eight hours, from 12:26pm to 8:18pm, with about two hours devoted to playing the recorded conversations.

After Kayode submitted a hard copy of his findings to the court clerk, the defence objected, saying the document should have been served earlier to allow the legal team to study its contents.

The judge ruled that the defence could obtain a certified true copy of the document admitted as Exhibit One for examination.

The court adjourned the case until November 30 and December 1, 2026, for the continuation of cross-examination, following agreement by the prosecution and defence.

See also  Again, court orders forfeiture of $1.4m linked to Emefiele

Recall that El-Rufai is facingtrial over alleged money laundering and conversion of public property.

The DSS is also prosecuting the former governor before the federal high court in Abuja over allegations of wiretapping.

He has been in the custody of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) since February 19, after being released by the EFCC.

On April 13, the ICPC arraignedthe former governor at the Kaduna high court on an amended nine-count charge bordering on alleged fraud and abuse of office.

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