1. President Bola Tinubu on Thursday told a delegation of Oyo State traditional rulers in Abuja that his government refused to negotiate with or pay ransom to the militants who kidnapped schoolchildren and teachers in Oriire last May.
He said the abductors demanded both money and the release of jailed members of their gang, demands that were flatly rejected, and described the military-led rescue that freed the victims after 56 days as intelligence-driven and successful without ransom.
2. The Nigerian Association of Resident Doctors, NARD, has issued a fresh nationwide strike notice, warning that its members will embark on an indefinite industrial action from 8:00 a.m. on August 10 if the Federal Government fails to address longstanding demands relating to unpaid arrears, welfare and poor working conditions.
3. The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, on Thursday rejected the routine deployment of troops of the armed forces during elections, saying the Force should remain exceptional. The electoral body specifically said the deployment of the military should arise only where prevailing security conditions require armed forces’ support in aid of the civil authorities.
4. Barely seventeen days to the August 15, 2026 Osun State Gubernatorial Election, the incumbent Governor, Ademola Adeleke, candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji, alongside twelve other candidates, have signed a Peace Accord. Other notable candidates are the Allied Peoples Movement, Hon Adewale Adebayo, and the African Action Congress, Olajide Esan, among others.
5. Terrorists holding 176 residents of Kwara State have rejected a ₦155 million ransom raised by their families and allegedly threatened to kill the captives they do not force into marriage. The victims, abducted from communities in Kaiama Local Government Area, have remained in captivity for nearly six months as their families continue to plead for urgent government intervention
6. Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has set up a Judicial Commission of Inquiry to investigate the abduction of pupils and teachers from Esinele and Yawota communities in Oriire Local Government Area. Mr Dotun Oyelade, the Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, made this known in a statement on Thursday in Ibadan.
7. The spokesman for Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, Ladipo Johnson, has disclosed that the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi, is unhappy over the leadership dispute currently affecting the OK Movement. Johnson made the revelation during an interview, where he acknowledged the existence of tensions within the movement but maintained that the disagreement would not derail its political objectives ahead of the 2027 general election.
8. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has asked governors to stop building flyovers where it is not really necessary, but redirect the resources to ventures and amenities that will assist in tackling the prevailing insecurity in the country. Addressing traditional rulers from Oyo State, who visited him at Aso Villa, Abuja, on Wednesday, the President also spoke about insecurity.
9. The Secretary to the Osun State Government, Teslim Igbalaiye, has been released by the Osun State Police Command. Igbalaiye’s release was announced by Pelumi Olajengbesi, the spokesperson for the Imole Campaign Council, the group leading the re-election campaign of Governor Ademola Adeleke. Olajengbesi shared the development on his verified Facebook page on Thursday.
10. The Nigerian Army has commenced an investigation into the leakage of a classified Department of State Services intelligence report warning of planned attacks by suspected Boko Haram insurgents and bandits in parts of Adamawa and Borno states. Findings by The PUNCH revealed that senior officers at the 232 Battalion in Yola, Adamawa State, have launched an internal probe to identify the personnel responsible for circulating the confidential security document, which was originally sent by the DSS to alert the military to impending attacks
