Nigerian Newspapers: 10 things you need to know Wednesday morning
Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:
1. President Bola Tinubu has said he enjoyed his month-long vacation in Europe. The President said this in a brief chat with journalists at Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos on Tuesday evening, when he arrived from France after a month-long vacation.
2. Prof. Isa Ali Pantami has once again emerged as the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, for the 2027 governorship election in Gombe State. Pantami had earlier emerged as the party’s candidate, but last Thursday, a Federal High Court nullified his victory and ordered a fresh primary election. The fresh primary election was held across the 114 wards in the 11 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of the state on Tuesday.
3. The Allied Peoples Movement, APM, has called on the World Bank and other international lenders to protect the interests of over 200 million Nigerians by withholding approval for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s fresh loan request. While describing the All Progressives Congress, APC, administration as “squandermaniac,” the APM condemned what it called an attempt by President Tinubu to further “mortgage the future of millions of Nigerians” with a fresh $1.5 billion credit from the World Bank.
4. The naira on Tuesday appreciated to N1,370 per dollar from N1,375 in the parallel market on Monday. However, the naira depreciated to N1,329 per dollar in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market, NFEM.
5. Africa’s richest man and President of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, has said he is prepared to confront legal challenges to his businesses, stressing that he is also willing to reduce his ownership of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery to 25 per cent as more Africans buy shares in the company.
6. Public servants under the Joint National Public Service Negotiating Council have reaffirmed their September 30, 2026, ultimatum to the Federal Government over the rising cost of petrol, the demand for a wage award and the commencement of negotiations for a new national minimum wage. The JNPSNC issued a three-day warning strike notice to the Federal Government, beginning October 2, should the government fail to slash the price of petrol to N500 per litre, announce a wage award and introduce other measures to cushion the crushing hardship in the country.
7. The Edo State Special Criminal Court has sentenced four persons to death for their involvement in the kidnapping of a woman in the popular Vegetable Market, off Airport Road in Benin City. Justice Aigbona Momodu delivered the judgment on 11 counts of kidnapping, conspiracy, armed robbery, cultism and unlawful possession of firearms.
8. Two Nigerians based in the United States, Chijioke Timothy Odimegwu and Harafat Mogaji have been sentenced to a combined 189 months in federal prison for their roles in an international cyber intrusion scheme that defrauded businesses of more than $2.4 million. It was learnt from a statement issued by the Public Information Officer, MacKenzie Tubbs, on Tuesday that US Attorney David Waterman of the Southern District of Iowa made the announcement.
9. Many residents on Tuesday stormed the Odi-Olowo, Osogbo, office of the Global Food Initiative and looted the warehouse where food items were kept by the operators of the scheme. The development followed an earlier report on the tension in Osogbo, Osun State, on Monday, after operators of the cheap food scheme disappeared, leaving residents who had paid various sums for food items stranded.
10. A Lagos teenager who was remanded in custody in 2022 after he was allegedly arrested over slippers similar to those worn by a complainant has regained his freedom after spending nearly four years behind bars. The teenager, whose identity was not disclosed, was among two men whose cases were taken up by the non-governmental organisation Citizens Gavel after its legal team discovered them during a visit to the Medium Security Correctional Centre in January 2024.