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State police will curb commercial kidnapping, it’s non-negotiable — Jonathan

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Former President Goodluck Jonathan says the state police is crucial to addressing the challenge of insecurity in the country.

Jonathan spoke in Abuja on Monday at a national security dialogue organised by the house of representatives.

 

The former president said the state police should be established on a framework that makes it difficult to be abused.

 

“The issue today is very critical. One thing is that we don’t need to debate whether we should have state police or not. I think that matter has been concluded. The issue is the operations of the police,” Jonathan said.

 

He said security in Bayelsa was epileptic in the late 90s, noting that it was a security architecture in the form of state police that salvaged the situation.

 

“So there is no way we can manage internal security if states would not have their police,” he added.

 

The former president said the concern is how state police would freely operate without the interference and control of governors and other actors.

“But how would the state police function vis-á-vis the national security architecture,” he asked.

 

“When I set up the 2014 national dialogue, during that period we had lots of challenges in the country.

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“People were agitating so many areas but one thing that the almost 500 (people) agreed without much ado was the issue of state police.”

 

Jonathan said state police is not new to the country as it was practised during the military regime.

 

“You know in this country, we operated it before. Why is it that the military scrapped it? It was because of the abuse and that is the area we should concentrate on,” he said.

 

“How do we manage the state police so it would not be abused by state political actors?

 

“If state political actors are abusing the state police and using the state police to harass and make life miserable for people who do not belong to their political parties, would the commander-in-chief sit down and watch or would he order the military to go and overrun the state police? Of course, that would bring crisis.”

 

Jonathan said the state police should be designed in a way that will not make it clash with the national security architecture of the country.

 

“These things need to be done carefully,” he said.

 

“So, if we are talking about state police, we must also rejig INEC and the police must not be used against or to the advantage of any political party.”

See also  FG considering creation of state police, says information minister 

 

He advocated that the conduct of elections should be improved to require minimal participation of the police.

 

“So, the national assembly needs to look into all these. These are the areas that we have to concentrate on,” he said.

“The issue of the need for states to have their own police is not negotiable. There is no way we can continue this kidnapping that is going on in this country.

 

“Commercial kidnapping started around 2006, I don’t want to go into that history. But it started in the Niger Delta. Now it is all over the country.

 

“The only thing that can help us if we cannot stop it completely at least we reduce it to the barest minimum is for states to have their police.”

Jonathan said the state police must be well equipped with sophisticated weapons to be able to combat aggression from criminals.

“Sometimes people say the state police should have limited weapons, that the calibre of weapons they should have should be limited. That is an area that must also be cleared, we must be careful with it,” he said.

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“I am not expecting states to have rockets and missiles, but the conventional weapons if you look at the calibre of weapons criminals use, the states must have superior weapons or at least equal.

 

“If you make the state (police) have weapons that are inferior to the ones that the criminals are using, then you are asking them to commit suicide in the field.

“So we must not even go there in terms of limiting the capacity of the state police. A state that has enough resources must equip the police very well and that state can also assist other states that have challenges.”

 

Also speaking, Vice-President Kashim Shettima said the federal government would support the consensus of the dialogue.

 

“The president is committed to listening to your recommendations and insights invariable to share in the policies that would lead us to a more secure and good society,” Shettima said.

 

On his part, Abdulsalami Abubakar, former head of state, harped on the need for the government to be transparent, honest, and accountable to citizens.

 

Abubakar said there should critical discussion on how the state police would operate.

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Two Oyo commissioner, special adviser resign

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Two senior officials in the Oyo State Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning have resigned their appointments from Governor Seyi Makinde’s administration.

The officials are Ayobami Ojo, the Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, and Simeon Oyeleke, the ministry’s Special Adviser on Budget and Economic Planning.

In separate letters dated November 2, and addressed to Mr Makinde, both officials said their resignations would take effect immediately, while thanking the governor for the opportunity to serve but did not give specific reasons for their decisions.

In his letter, Ojo referred to his appointment letter dated 22 June 2026 and formally announced his resignation as commissioner.

“With reference to your letter dated 22nd June, 2026 (SP.S.662/2/VOL.IV/192), I respectfully write to formally resign my appointment as Honourable Commissioner for Budget and Economic Planning, with effect from today, 2nd November, 2026,” he wrote.

He described his time in government as an honour and said he appreciated the opportunity to serve the state.

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Oyeleke also tendered his resignation with effect from 2 November.

In his letter, he thanked Mr Makinde for the confidence reposed in him and the opportunity to contribute to the administration’s policies and development programmes.

He also expressed appreciation for the governor’s leadership, support and encouragement during his time in office.

“I remain grateful for the opportunity to have been part of this administration and to have contributed to its laudable achievements. I also remain committed to the peace, progress and development of Oyo State,” he wrote.

The latest resignations come amid a series of exits of political appointees and other officials from the Makinde administration in recent months.

It would be recalled that Segun Ogunwuyi resigned as the governor’s chief of staff on 12 October, a position he had held since July 2021. His resignation took immediate effect, although he did not state a reason for his departure.

A few hours after Ogunwuyi’s departure, Makinde appointed Bashorun Akinwole, popularly known as Wolekanle, as his replacement.

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On the same day, Tara Adefope, the Director-General of the Oyo State Due Process Office, also resigned from her position, while in late October, Kabiru Salami, the governor’s Executive Assistant on Security Coordination, also tendered his resignation.

Other officials who have left the administration include Funmi Arulogun, a Senior Special Assistant on Diaspora Matters, who resigned in August, citing personal and political considerations.

Babatunde Oduyoye, a member of the Oyo State Advisory Council, also resigned in July, while Fatai Owoseni, a former Commissioner of Police who served as the governor’s Special Adviser on Security resigned in May.

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Good morning! Nigerian Newspapers Headlines: Campaigns: OK Movement insists on independence

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1. The OK (Obi/Kwankwaso) Movement has declared that it will maintain its independent identity while mobilising support for the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) and its candidates ahead of the 2027 general election. 

Movement’s leader John Ughulu said the group remained committed to its original mission of securing the election of former Anambra State Governor Peter Obi and erstwhile Kano State Governor Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso.

Speaking in an interview, Ughulu dismissed suggestions that the movement’s decision to campaign independently would undermine its support for the NDC, insisting that the focus should be on achieving a common  political objective.

2. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s re-election bid got a big boost at the weekend with endorsements from across the country. His achievement, the need for consolidation, national cohesion, and other reasons were adduced for the show of solidarity. The presidential election is billed for January 16, 2027

3. The Federal Government has vowed to crack down on inflated public contracts and procurement violations, warning heads of government-owned agencies, corporations, councils, authorities and commissions that they risk sanctions for breaching procurement regulations. The government raised the alarm over contract awards that exceed approved price benchmarks.

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4. The African Democratic Congress has rescheduled its presidential campaign kick-off in Sokoto State to Wednesday, November 4, despite alleging threats, attacks on its members and attempts by the state government to frustrate the event. The party said its decision to proceed with the campaign was a demonstration of its determination to exercise its constitutional rights despite what it described as growing political intimidation ahead of the 2027 general elections.

5. Troops of Operation Hadin Kai have neutralised four leaders of the Islamic State West Africa Province, including two Arabs, a commander and several of their foot soldiers in Kukawa Local Government Area of Borno State. The Army said they were neutralised on October 31, 2026, by combined troops of the Joint Task Force deployed to Kukawa following a massive ISWAP terrorists attack on their locations.

6. United States President, Donald Trump, has agreed to grant an immediate visa to the mother of a 15-year-old Ghanaian boy shot dead in New York, following a request by the city’s mayor, Zohran Mamdani.
Mamdani announced the development on Saturday after speaking with Trump, saying the visa would allow the teenager’s mother to travel to the United States and attend her son’s funeral.

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7. The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency has arrested two Nigerians based in Europe after they allegedly ingested 200 wraps of cocaine weighing 3.46kg while attempting to travel from Abuja to Paris, France. The suspects, identified as Aliocus Odife and Sam Blackborn, were arrested on Wednesday during the outward clearance of an Air France flight, AF 832, at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja.

8. Gunmen suspected to be kidnappers have abducted a 100-level female student of Plateau State University, Bokkos, while another person sustained injuries during an attack on off-campus student residential areas in Bokkos Local Government Area of Plateau State. It was learnt that the incidents, which occurred on Saturday evening at about 8:40pm, had heightened concerns over the safety of students residing outside the university campus.

9. An early-morning fire outbreak at the weekend destroyed no fewer than 110 buildings and structures at Kofar Ruwa Timber Market in the Kano metropolis. The Kano State Fire Service, while confirming the incident in a statement on Sunday, said the inferno razed 75 permanent buildings and 35 temporary structures across different sections of the market.

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10. The immediate past National Chairman of the Labour Party, Julius Abure, has declared his readiness to align with President Bola Tinubu or former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar ahead of the 2027 presidential election, while ruling out support for the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress, Peter Obi.

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Relief as suspected Ebola cases in Adamawa tested negative

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The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has said that there are currently no laboratory-confirmed cases of Ebola  in Adamawa.

The NCDC had on Saturday said that there were two suspected cases of Ebola in the north-east state, adding that the individuals had been isolated while contact identification was ongoing.

But in a statement on Sunday, the director-general of NCDC, Jide Idris,
said samples collected from the two individuals, who had symptoms suggestive of Ebola, tested negative after two rounds of testing.

“The report was received by the Adamawa State Public Health Emergency Operations Centre (PHEOC) in the early hours of 30 October 2026, following the identification of two individuals presenting with symptoms suggestive of Ebola, requiring further investigation,” the statement reads.

“Hence the alert that was released early this evening. The individuals have been isolated, and appropriate public health measures have been initiated.

“Samples were collected for laboratory testing to establish the cause of the illness. Fortunately, the samples turned out negative for EBV after two rounds of testing.”

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Idris commended the Adamawa health commissioner and his team for their “proactive approach”, adding that the NCDC was working closely with the state government to investigate the report of suspected Ebola cases.

“Currently, there is no laboratory-confirmed Ebola case in Adamawa state,” he said.

“The index case previously confirmed in the Federal Capital Territory remains the only confirmed case reported in Nigeria to date.”

He urged the public to remain calm and avoid sharing unverified information or speculating about the situation.

“The public is encouraged to obtain information from official government and public health communication channels,” he said.

Idris described Ebola as a serious infectious disease that requires prompt identification, appropriate clinical management and effective infection prevention and control measures.

“Anyone experiencing symptoms such as fever, severe weakness, headache, muscle pain, vomiting, diarrhoea or unexplained bleeding, particularly following relevant exposure, should seek immediate medical attention and inform healthcare workers of any relevant travel or contact history,” he said.

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“Individuals should avoid self-medication and follow the advice of healthcare professionals.”

Nigeriaconfirmed its first Ebola case in more than a decade on October 20, after a 42-year-old Swiss woman tested positive for the Bundibugyo strain in Abuja.

The patient, who had travelled from Uganda to Nigeria, was subsequently isolated and treated by Nigerian health workers.

On Monday, the federal governmentevacuated the patient to Switzerland aboard a medical plane.

Her husband, who was identified as a close contact, was also evacuated to Switzerland.

Ali Pate, coordinating minister of health and social welfare, said the patient was clinically much improved, stable, conscious and communicating, with her laboratory test results approaching baseline levels.

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