The US military’s new, expanded combat training of Ukrainian forces began in Germany on Sunday, with a goal of getting a battalion of about 500 troops back on the battlefield to fight the Russians in the next five to eight weeks, said Gen. Mark Milley, chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff. Milley, who plans to visit the Grafenwoehr training area on Monday to get a first-hand look at the programme, said the troops being trained left Ukraine a few days ago. In Germany is a full set of weapons and equipment for them to use. Until now the Pentagon…
Author: Ifeanyi Nwagboso
Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom has assured the people of the State not to be swayed from voting the candidates of their choice in the forthcoming elections because of fear that the elections may be rigged. He said the introduction of Bimodal Voting Accreditation System, BVAS, by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, will make it impossible for anyone to attempt to rig the elections. Governor Ortom, who spoke on Monday, while addressing PDP supporters at campaign rallies in Tarka, Buruku and Gboko Local Government Areas where scores of APC members and those from other political parties dumped their former…
Former Kogi West Senator, Dino Melaye has said the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar is not afraid of investigation. Speaking against the background of alleged money laundering, Melaye said Atiku is the most investigated Nigerian. The spokesman of the PDP Presidential Campaign Council disclosed this while featuring on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday. Melaye said Atiku has always submitted himself for investigation. “Atiku Abubakar is a democrat; he’s a Nigerian. He has always been available for investigation. He has been investigated time and time again and come out very clean with clean status. “So, you do…
The All Progressives Congress (APC) has postponed the Bola Ahmed Tinubu/Shetima presidential campaign rally scheduled to hold in Kwara on January 17. Saadu Salahu issued a statement on Monday on behalf of the Local Organising Committee (LOC). The spokesperson said President Muhammadu Buhari is expected to attend the campaign. The Nigerian leader has an international engagement this week. Salahu said the President “insists he would like to personally lead the rally” to be held in Ilorin, the capital. The party regrets inconveniences the postponement might have caused members, stakeholders and guests. The President heads to Nouakchott, Islamic Republic of Mauritania,…
Elections in Rivers State often come with intriguing twists and the 2023 election is no different from past elections in the State. With over 3.5 million registered voters and the strategic importance of the State at the national level, the battle over who controls the resources of the State becomes even more interesting. The current governor, Nyesom Wike, will be completing his second tenure by May 29. This means a brand new government will emerge and with the incumbent governor not in the race, it leaves the contest wide open. In 2019 it seemed like a one way ticket for…
President Joe Biden made a historical pilgrimage Sunday to America’s freedom church to mark Martin Luther King’s birthday, saying democracy was at a perilous moment and that the civil rights leader’s life and legacy “show us the way and we should pay attention. As the first sitting president to deliver a Sunday morning sermon at King’s Ebenezer Baptist Church, Biden cited the telling question that King himself once asked of the nation. He said, ‘Where do we go from here?’ Biden said from the pulpit. Well, my message to this nation on this day is we go forward, we go…
No fewer than 4, 780 persons have decamped from various rival parties to the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, in the build-up towards the general elections in Niger State. The North-Central Zonal Vice Chairman of the party, Mu’azu Bawa made the disclosure at the flag-off of the Niger North senatorial zonal campaign at the Kontagora mini stadium, Kontagora area of the state. According to him, among those who decamped were 87 officials of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and 261 women while 173 men were from the New Nigeria Peoples Party, NNPP. Bawa also disclosed that the ruling party was…
With a few weeks to the 2023 elections, Bishop David Oyedepo of Living Faith church has urged Nigerians to learn from the past. Oyedepo said the President Muhammadu Buhari All Progressives Congress, APC-led Federal Government failed. He said the APC-led Federal Government failed to deliver on their promises to Nigerians. Speaking with members of his church in Ota, Ogun State, Oyedepo lamented the security situation in the country under the APC-led Federal Government. He vowed the devil would not have his way in Nigeria. According to Oyedepo: “If you can’t learn from the past up until now, I don’t know…
Governor Ahmadu Fintiri of Adamawa State has said no Nigerian should die in pursuit of anybody’s interest in the course of the coming general elections. Fintiri who spoke on Sunday as he joined other dignitaries in the state in laying wreaths at the Mahmud Ribadu Square, Yola, in honour of the nation’s fallen heroes, urged Nigerians to always pray and support the country. Fintiri said: “We should continue to pray for our nation, we should support her to be in peace and support the widows of the fallen heroes who have died and sacrificed their lives in order to keep…
The General Overseer of the Citadel Global Community, Pastor Tunde Bakare has warned against vote-buying in the forthcoming elections. This was as Pastor Bakare urged Nigerians to reject political merchants during the 2023 general polls. Bakare spoke during his State of the Nation broadcast, titled: “Bridging the gap between politics and governance,” in Lagos yesterday. He noted that Nigerians can’t do without the God factor in the 2023 general elections. According to Bakare: “In 2023, we must avoid political merchants and vote buyers. “Everyone practicing bad politics in Nigeria, your time is up. “We cannot ignore the God factor and…
Mixed reactions have continued to trail the removal of Labour Party presidential candidate Peter Obi’s posters in Anambra State. The Labour Party, LP, alleged that the Government of Anambra State has pulled down Obi’s campaign billboards in strategic places in the state. The party accused the state governor, Chukwuma Soludo, of giving the order in that respect. A Labour Party chieftain told journalists that Obi and Umeh’s giant billboard at the Unizik Temporary Site Flyover along the Enugu-Onitsha expressway was pulled down at the weekend by the Anambra Signage and Advertising Agency( ANSAA). He said, “The billboard at UNIZIK Temporary…
The Supreme Court has ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to carry out a fresh delineation of electoral wards and units in Warri South West, Warri South and Warri North local government areas of Delta State. The Apex Court ordered that the delineation be carried out before future elections in the affected areas. The court made the compelling order while delivering judgment in an appeal filed by Hon. George Timinimi and nine others against INEC in the appeal marked SC/413/2016. In the judgment delivered by Justice Uwani Musa Abba-Aji, a copy of which was obtained by our correspondent, the…
The Zamfara State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has postponed the flagging off of its campaign following the death of one of its chieftains in the state. According to the state party chairman, Hon. Mukhtar Lugga, the postponement was unavoidable, saying that preparations for the burial have been concluded as of the time of filing this report. “We can not abandon the person that has contributed in no small way for the development of the party in the state,” he said. Lugga urged the party supporters to bear the irreparable loss with fortitude, saying that another convenient time…
Public policy expert, Joe Abah said Nigeria’s next President would have to press the “reset button” to fix the nation after the 2023 elections. The ex-Director General of the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR) stressed that the winner must focus on policy issues. Abah wondered if President Muhammadu Buhari’s successor would allow the country to limp on or make tough decisions that could cost re-election. In a thread on his Twitter account, the DAI Country Director listed 10 questions for the presidential candidates in the race. “When will you remove fuel subsidy enjoyed mainly by urban dwellers and neighbouring…
Pakistan’s top investigative agency has opened an inquiry against former prime minister Imran Khan over allegations that an expensive necklace received as a gift during his tenure was sold to a jeweller for Rs 18 crore instead of depositing it to the state gift repository, according to media report on Wednesday. The necklace Khan received as a gift was not sent to the tosha-khana (state gift repository), but given to former special assistant Zulfikar Bukhari, who sold it to a jeweller in Lahore for Rs 18 crore, the Express Tribune newspaper reported. The Federal Investigation Agency (FIA) has initiated a…
The United Kingdom and Japan signed a “landmark” defence agreement which will bolster economic security and reiterated their commitment to the Indo-Pacific, UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak said. Taking to Twitter, Sunak said, “This week Prime Minister @Kishida230 and I signed a landmark defence agreement which cements our commitment to the Indo-Pacific, bolstering our economic security. The UK and Japan stand together as democracies.” This tweet came after Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida visited Britain, which marks the third stop of a five-country tour as Japan seeks to pave the way for a successful G7 summit, which is scheduled for…
The opposition Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, said no right-thinking person will vote for the All Progressives Congress, APC, again, especially in the Northwestern part of Nigeria in the forthcoming 2023 election. Chairman Atiku United Front Northwest geo-political zone (AUFNW) Umar Danjani Hadejia stated this on Saturday after the inauguration of new executives. He said no right-thinking person would support the APC again in the Northwest of the country, looking at the difficult situation Nigerians are going through. “Only two persons remain in the APC and would vote for it, those contesting and their close relatives”, he stated. According to him,…
A social critic, Reno Omokri has warned Nigerians against voting the Muslim-Muslim ticket of the All Progressives Congress, APC, saying religious balance would be a forgone issue if they do so. Omokri is a strong supporter of the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Atiku Abubakar. Omokri’s statement was contained in a post via his verified Twitter handle. He noted that APC in Kaduna State fielded a Muslim-Muslim ticket after the incumbent, Nasir El-Rufai, who also ran on the same ticket. He wrote, “APC are not only giving us a Muslim-Muslim ticket for the Presidency, they are also…
Labour Party Presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has called on the electorate not to vote for tribe but look out character. Obi said this on Saturday in Akure at the town hall meeting to seek the support of the people of Ondo State in the February 25 election. He explained that he and his running mate, Ahmed Datti were people with traceable backgrounds, saying if elected as president, Nigerians would be proud of their country and secured. Obi, who said he was stingy but not corrupt, added that was why he could save the people of Anambra State as a governor.…
A total of 20,350 members of the All Progressives Congress (APC) have dumped the party for the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Bauchi State. The Special Assistant, Political Matters to Governor Bala Mohammed said this while receiving the decampees at an event held on Saturday in Bauchi. He said the decampees are from the 20 local government areas of the state. One of the defectors, Bala Zungur said the development was informed by the feat achieved by the ruling PDP in the state, especially in the area of infrastructure development. He said the Bala Mohammed administration had constructed thousands of…