1. The Federal Government has assured Nigerians still residing in South Africa of their safety, even as fresh concerns over xenophobic tensions and renewed anti-immigrant protests continue to trigger calls for stronger diplomatic action.
This comes after Nigerians reportedly stormed the country’s embassy in Pretoria as xenophobic tensions escalated while another batch of 269 Nigerians evacuated from South Africa arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, on Tuesday aboard an Air Peace flight from Johannesburg at 10.48 am, marking the second government-coordinated evacuation exercise in recent weeks
2. President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday commended the performance of the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike, declaring that the former Rivers State governor fully understands the vision and intentions of his administration. He said Wike’s unprecedented infrastructure revolution across Abuja and the satellite towns has not only transformed communities but also restored public confidence in government through visible delivery of democratic dividends.
3. The federal government has said it would seek from its South African counterpart compensation for Nigerians forced to abandon businesses and other valuable properties as they returned home, following renewed anti-immigrant tensions in the country. This came as 269 more Nigerians arrived Lagos in the third government’s evacuation flight, thus bringing the total number so far evacuated to 603.
4. The National Working Committee, NWC, of the All Progressives Congress, APC, has removed former Benue State Governor, Gabriel Suswam and former House of Representatives member, Gbenga Elegbeleye from the party’s final list of National Assembly candidates. The decision also saw the replacement of five other senatorial aspirants and 19 House of Representatives candidates.
5. Senate President Godswill Akpabio, his deputy, Senator Jibrin Barau, Senate Leader Opeyemi Bamidele, Senate Chief Whip Mohammed Monguno and Senator Adams Oshiomhole have received Candidate Affidavit Forms (EC9) and are among the candidates whose names are being uploaded to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) portal, it was learnt yesterday. Also, four governors – AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq (Kwara), Hope Uzodimma (Imo), Ahmadu Umaru Fintiri (Adamawa) and Inuwa Yahaya (Gombe) – have been cleared by the ruling party to contest Senate seats
6. Fuel marketers have declared that their filling stations will stop selling petrol should the Federal Government try to enforce price control. The National Publicity Secretary of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chinedu Ukadike, issued the warning on Tuesday.
7. Another batch of Nigerians evacuated from the Republic of South Africa due to xenophobic attacks has arrived the country. The second evacuation flight from Johannesburg, operated by Air Peace, arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, at 10.48 am. on Tuesday with 269 returnees.
8. Floodwaters swept through several communities in Lagos State on Tuesday following hours of heavy rainfall, submerging homes and roads, disrupting movement and knocking out electricity in parts of the state after critical transmission facilities were affected. Videos obtained by PUNCH Metro showed flooded streets in FESTAC, Gbagada, Evans, Olushi, Anikantamo and Adeniji Adele on the Lagos Island, with residents wading through waterlogged roads and motorists struggling to navigate submerged streets
9. Ondo State Security Network Agency, also known as the Amotekun Corps, has arrested 28 persons allegedly involved in various criminal activities across the state. Among the suspects are a 56-year-old man identified as Iliasu and his three sons — Usman, 33; Wahab, 27; and Yakubu, 18 — who were arrested over the alleged abduction of a man in Oba Akoko, Akoko South-West Local Government Area of the state.
10. Bauchi State Police Command has warned residents, particularly parents and guardians, against taking shelter under trees during heavy rainfall after a windstorm killed two children and injured two others in Bashe Village, on the outskirts of Burra in Ningi Local Government Area of the state. The command’s spokesperson, Superintendent of Police Nafiu Habib, disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday.
