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Heirs Insurance Group, Nigeria’s fastest-growing insurance company, has announced the winners of the 4th edition of the Heirs Insurance Essay Championship, a national competition designed to promote financial literacy and academic excellence among secondary school students and educators.

The grand finale, held at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja, brought together students, parents, educators, and industry leaders to celebrate creativity and intellectual achievement.

This year’s competition, themed ‘The Role of Insurance in Keeping Families Safe and Secure,’ drew over 5,000 entries from junior secondary school students across the country.

After a rigorous evaluation by a panel of academic experts, independently verified by Deloitte and Touche, 13-year-old Rhema-Love Abraham of Precepts Learning Field, Lagos, emerged as the overall winner, receiving a ?5 million scholarship and a ?1 million grant for her school.

Bernice Michael of S-TEE High School, Lagos, placed second with a ?2 million scholarship, while Afopefoluwa Tofio-Jacobs of D-IVY College, Ogun State, took third place, winning a ?1 million scholarship.

A major highlight of this year’s edition was the introduction of the Teachers’ Insurance Awareness Prize, an innovation aimed at recognising educators who champion insurance and financial literacy within their schools and communities.

Mr. Okpe James Chidi, a teacher at Urban Secondary School, Umuna Orlu, Imo State, emerged as the inaugural winner, receiving a ?1 million cash award and a ?500,000 grant for his school. His project, which enhanced students’ understanding of insurance and financial management, was lauded for its innovation, scope, and measurable impact.

Speaking at the ceremony, Niyi Onifade, Sector Head, Heirs Insurance Group, congratulated all participants for their creativity and drive, reaffirming the Group’s dedication to investing in education and youth development.

‘We are proud of every student and teacher who participated in this year’s Essay Championship,’ Onifade said.

‘Their creativity, curiosity, and commitment reflect the future we envision – one built on knowledge, innovation, and resilience. At Heirs Insurance Group, we believe financial literacy is a catalyst for empowerment and national transformation,’ Onifade added.

The Heirs Insurance Essay Championship remains one of the Group’s flagship Corporate Social Responsibility (CSR) initiatives, focused on fostering insurance awareness, financial inclusion, and critical thinking among young Nigerians. With the addition of the Teachers’ Prize, the programme now extends its impact beyond students to the educators shaping Nigeria’s next generation of financially literate citizens.

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Alhaji Mohammed Idris, says the UNESCO Media and Information Literacy Institute will help address falsehoods and trace malicious campaigns.

Idris stated this at the Progressive Governors Summit for APC states’ Commissioners of Information in Maiduguri, which has the theme ‘FGN Synergy 2025: One Message, One Future.’

According to the minister, the upcoming UNESCO Media and Information Literacy Institute in Abuja will equip teams to forensically debunk falsehoods, trace malicious campaigns, and saturate the digital space with credible, engaging content that reclaims our national story

‘Central to this effort is the National Values Charter, a critical agent of change and national reorientation that will soon be unveiled by President Tinubu.

‘The Charter, a creation of the National Orientation Agency (NOA) is structured to infuse patriotism, protect the country and citizens, and unify around one indivisible country.’

Idris further explained that the National Values Charter will be the most potent counter-narrative to negative foreign mischaracterization of Nigeria.

According to him, the Charter defines who we are: a people committed to unity in diversity, resilience, and mutual respect.

He urged stakeholders to ensure the Charter is made the foundation of all state-level communication, by using it to actively promote a narrative of shared identity that renders divisive labels meaningless.

‘Fellow party men and women, we must proclaim the great performance of the APC administration under President Bola Tinubu, a reformer second-to-none, who is gradually leading us towards economic efficiency.

‘This is translating policies into measurable impact, in relation to industrialisation, infrastructure, competitiveness, inclusion, sustainable institutions, and unlocking investment.

‘In other words, we are talking about the Renewed Hope Agenda, which first started with the emphatic removal of the rentier oil subsidy and the floatation of the naira,’ Idris said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the UNESCO Media and Information Literacy Institute, sited in the National Open University of Nigeria would be certified in November at the UNESCO General Conference in Samarkand, Uzbekistan.

FCMB Group Plc has outlined the strategic framework and financial rationale for its ongoing ?160 billion public offer during a ‘Facts Behind the Offer’ presentation at the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) in Lagos.

The session, which drew capital market operators, fund managers, investment analysts, and other stakeholders, provided an in-depth look into the Group’s financial fundamentals, growth trajectory, and recapitalisation roadmap.

This engagement followed the Analyst and Investor Session held on October 9, where FCMB’s leadership discussed the Group’s performance trends, long-term strategy, and progress in creating sustainable shareholder value.

Launched on October 2, 2025, the ?160 billion offer comprises 16 billion ordinary shares priced at ?10 each and is scheduled to close on November 6, 2025. The capital raise is designed to help First City Monument Bank Limited, one of the Group’s subsidiaries with a national banking licence, meet the Central Bank of Nigeria’s new ?500 billion minimum capital requirement for international banks.

The latest public offer follows FCMB’s successful ?147.5 billion rights issue in 2024, which marked its first capital raise in 16 years.

That exercise was oversubscribed by 33% and attracted more than 42,800 investors, with 92% participating through digital platforms-an indicator of strong investor confidence in the Group’s long-term prospects.

According to analysts, the new offer represents the second phase of FCMB’s three-stage recapitalisation plan. Following the current exercise, the Group intends to finalise the sale of minority stakes in two subsidiaries, with the proceeds to be channelled into strengthening the bank’s capital base.

Upon completion, FCMB’s qualifying core capital is expected to exceed ?500 billion, paving the way for the Group to secure an international banking licence and enhance its competitive positioning within Nigeria’s financial services sector.

Investors can subscribe to the offer through various channels, including the FCMB Mobile App, retail and business banking platforms, the websites publicoffer.fcmb.com and invest.ngxgroup.com, FCMB branches nationwide, or through licensed stockbrokers such as CSL Stockbrokers (contact: 02012777628, cslservice@fcmb.com/ cslcsu@fcmb.com).

Descendants of the foremost late Nigerian nationalist, Sir Herbert Macaulay, on Thursday faulted the Oct. 9 presidential post-humous state pardon granted him by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

President Tinubu had granted the pardon to the late nationalist and 174 others, dead and alive.

But the descendants of Macaulay said while the family appreciated the state pardon by President Tinubu, their expectation was that their progenitor would have been honoured separately.

They argued that lumping Macaulay with other convicted characters is a little bit unfair.

The descendants, led by one of Macaulay’s grandsons and former Deputy National Chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olabode George, said this at a news conference in Lagos.

Speaking on behalf of others, George, accompanied by some great- grand children of the late nationalist said, ‘We thank Mr President (President Bola Tinubu) for the state pardon but not pleased with the way it was lumped with other convicted characters. Lumping him with all manners of characters is a little bit unfair.

‘If he (Macaulay) is to be honoured, he should be be honoured independently. The British hated him with passion, harassed him and imprisoned him for his fight for the cause of freedom for Nigeria.

‘Don’t lump him with other characters. He should be isolated and be honoured separately.

‘He deserves a better commendation. He should not be lumped up with those convicted of drugs, murder, corrupt practices being pardoned.

‘We are appealing to the inner chambers of powers- that-be to isolate Baba and honour him, for all he did for this country,’ George said.

According to him, Macaulay’s contributions can never be erased in the country.

He urged the President to create an everlasting memory for Macaulay by rebuilding his house at Marina, demolished by the British for the construction of General Post Office.

The PDP chieftain described Macaulay as a man whose courage, intellect, and conviction had helped lay the very foundation of Nigeria’s political consciousness.

George said that Macaulay,more than a century ago, rekindled the flame of patriotism, visionary leadership, political integrity, and people-centered governance.

He said that Macaulay’s choice to stand against injustice ,when it was far easier to conform and enjoy prestige under colonial administration, made him remarkable.

George said: ‘Yet, he chose the harder path – to question authority, to challenge exploitation, and to speak truth to power. He was a relentless critic of colonial misrule.

‘In 1908, Macaulay’s growing criticism of British policies found a public platform through his involvement in the Lagos Daily News, a paper he co-founded to serve as the voice of the voiceless.

‘The newspaper became his weapon – a weapon of truth and advocacy. He used it to expose corruption, racial discrimination, and economic exploitation.

‘In his time, Macaulay was vilified by the colonial press, labeled a troublemaker, even imprisoned,but history has vindicated him.’

Describing Macaulay as a people’s advocate, George said that his late uncle understood that political freedom was meaningless without social justice.

‘In his time, he took risks – he was imprisoned twice by the colonial government, yet he never wavered,’ he said.

He also recalled how Macaulay founded the Nigerian National Democratic Party (NNDP), the first political party in Nigeria, to create an organised platform for collective political expression.

The grandson highlighted that Macaulay believed in self-determination, unity in diversity, accountability, education and politics of integrity.

‘If we truly seek to honour Herbert Macaulay today, we must not do so with mere words or statues.

‘We must embody his principles in our politics – in the integrity of our elections, in the transparency of our governance, and in our commitment to justice for all Nigerians.

‘He envisioned a country where government is not a master, but a servant of the people.

‘Today, as we grapple with the challenges of nation-building – insecurity, inequality, and corruption – we must draw from his example. We must build bridges, not walls; institutions, not empires, ‘ he said.

The other descendants in attendance include Erelu Adeola Macaulay, Mr Lanre Oshodi, Ms Mayokun Thomas, Miss Kofoworola Macaulay, Miss Adeyinka Macaulay, Mr Ayo Ogunlana and Miss Turi Akerele.

Herbert Macaulay was born on Nov. 14, 1864, in Lagos, BJand died in 1946.

Popular Yoruba comic actor Yomi King, widely known as Opebe, has opened up about his early struggles in the Nigerian movie industry.

He revealed that many of the beatings he endured on set were not part of the script but actual physical attacks.

Speaking during an interview on Behind The Fame Podcast on YouTube, Opebe disclosed that some of his on-set experiences went far beyond acting and became genuine physical encounters.

‘Those sufferings were beyond acting; they were real beatings. That’s what they call acting – you have to do it well and real for people to know it truly happened. Baba Suwe doesn’t mind. Anyone that knows him well knows he will beat you directly; ask the director,’ the actor said in Yoruba, translated to English.

Opebe narrated a particular incident involving veteran actors Baba Suwe and Yinka Quadri, recalling that what was meant to be a scripted fight in the Yoruba movie Eku Meji turned into a real confrontation.

‘In that movie Eku Meji, I had a role with Yinka where he was supposed to beat me. But we had a misunderstanding before then, and when the scene started, he beat me seriously. I shouted ‘Cut! This isn’t a movie anymore!’ It wasn’t acting at all,’ he said.

According to Opebe, the beating was personal and stemmed from his earlier decision to take sides in a dispute between the two actors.

‘He laughed and said, ‘In your life, you won’t interfere in people’s fights again.’ The person I supported – Baba Suwe – was laughing at me. That day, I said to myself, ‘If people fight, it’s none of my business again.’ Since then, I know my boundaries.’

The Senator representing Bayelsa Central Senatorial District, Sen. Benson Konbowei has cited ‘total disarray’ of Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as reason for his defection to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

‘The PDP has become characterised by eternal power struggles, irreconcilable conflicts and, at the moment, is in total disarray,’ Konbowei said in his letter of defection read by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, during plenary on Thursday.

Konbowei, in the letter, also attributed his defection to what he called the ‘unpleasant circumstances and the crisis-torn situation’ in his former party.

He recalled that he had been a member of PDP since 1998, and from which he was elected into the 10th Senate.

‘After due consultation with my family, my associates, my political leaders in my state, and across the nation, I have resolved to join the governor of my state, the state of Bayelsa, Sen. Douye Diri, to resign my membership of the party.

‘In coming to this decision, I have taken a deep look at the protracted leadership crisis and the division that has resulted from the competition for power within the PDP, especially at the national level.

‘I have lost hope in the capacity of my party to play the role of a political party that is capable of winning councilorship elections in Nigeria,’ he stated in the letter.

He said that PDP, built on lofty promises for Nigerians, had fallen into wrong hands, adding that it currently lacked principled leadership.

‘The PDP has become characterised by eternal power struggles, irreconcilable conflicts and, at the moment, is in total disarray,’ the senator said.

According to him, no politician will sit and wait for those issues in the PDP to be resolved, even as the 2027 elections beckon.

‘Accordingly, it has left me with no option but to resign from that party. So, I hereby resign my membership of the PDP and hereby declare my total loyalty, support and movement to the APC,’ he said. (NAN)

The Nigerian Senate has begun the screening exercise for President Bola Tinubu’s nominee for the position of the Chairman of the electoral commission.

Professor Joash Amupitan, SAN, was previously nominated by the president for the position of Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC.

The screening exercise which began on Thursday, is to ensure that Amupitan is eligible and the best fit for the position.

He was joined by Ahmed Ododo, the governor of Kogi State and other dignitaries.

More than 25,000 intending Nigerian pilgrims may be unable to perform the 2026 Hajj following Saudi Arabia’s decision to slash the country’s approved camp slots to 66,910, a large drop from the 95,000 originally allocated.

The National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) disclosed this in a statement titled ‘NAHCON, States Discuss Hajj Costing and Other Critical Issues; Ministry Briefs NAHCON on Tour Operators’, signed by its Deputy Director of Information and Public Relations, Fatima Usara.

According to the Commission, while Nigeria received a total allocation of 95,000 slots for next year’s pilgrimage, only 66,910 spaces have been confirmed on Saudi Arabia’s NUSUK Masar portal. This, NAHCON said, has dire implications for state pilgrims’ boards and licensed tour operators, who will now have to make tough choices on allocation.

A breakdown of the figure shows that 51,513 slots have been reserved for states and government officials, while 15,397 are designated for licensed private tour operators. This leaves a shortfall of 28,090 from the total allocation, meaning more than 25,000 Nigerians may be cut off from participating in the holy exercise.

NAHCON explained that the reduction came as a penalty imposed by Saudi authorities due to Nigeria’s underutilisation of the slots allocated for the 2025 Hajj. Records show that while 95,000 spaces were approved for that exercise, only about 59,128 pilgrims eventually made the trip, 41,218 under the government quota and 18,000 through private operators, leaving 35,872 slots unused.

The Commission warned that the new cap would significantly affect planning, as states and tour operators must now review their numbers and adjust to the reduced capacity. It added that discussions are ongoing with state pilgrim boards and the Ministry of Hajj Affairs to resolve the shortfall and ensure a smoother exercise next year.

The Nigerian Bar Association Section on Public Interest and Development Law (NBA-SPIDEL) and the Nigeria Police have agreed to review the tinted glass permit policy.

Prof. Paul Ananaba, the Chairman of NBA-SPIDEL, disclosed this in Ikeja on Thursday during an interactive session held as part of activities ahead of the NBA-SPIDEL Annual Conference in Akwa-Ibom.

Ananaba, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, said the review was to ensure it aligned with public interest and national security objectives.

The learned silk said the decision followed weeks of engagement between both parties after concerns were raised by Nigerians over the harassment of motorists whose vehicle windows were not completely transparent.

He said the association intervened after several reports of indiscriminate arrests and impoundment of vehicles by police officers enforcing the tinted permit directive.

‘Following our discussions with senior police officers, we agreed that enforcement of the tinted permit should be suspended, while a joint review committee is constituted.

‘SPIDEL’s engagement with the police is not confrontational but aimed at promoting accountability and justice in public administration.

‘The committee, comprising representatives of NBA-SPIDEL and the Nigeria Police, will examine the legal and security implications of the policy and recommend new modalities for its regulation,’ Ananaba said.

He said the association filed a suit against the police over alleged discrimination against some citizens, adding that such legal actions were necessary to uphold the rule of law.

‘SPIDEL is not a body of activists. ‘Our focus is public interest and development,’ he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the annual conference will be taking place from Dec. 1 to 5.

Also speaking, Mrs Adaobi Egboka,Director of the Africa Initiative at the Vance Centre, New York City Bar, said the centre for International Justice had proposed a partnership with NBA-SPIDEL to strengthen public interest law and institutionalise pro bono legal services across Africa.

Egboka made this known while presenting the centre’s proposal to collaborate with the NBA in promoting access to justice, ethical legal practice and development.

Egboka said the Vance Centre, a non-profit arm of the New York City Bar Association, works globally to advance justice through cross-border legal collaborations, pro bono services and institutional integrity.

She explained that the centre operates through four major program areas environment, human rights and access to justice, institutional integrity, and public interest reporting to strengthen democracy and the rule of law.

According to her, the proposed partnership will help the NBA develop a structured pro bono framework, create a database of participating law firms and establish standards for measuring legal aid contributions.

Egboka also called for collaboration in establishing a ‘Pro Bono Declaration for Africa,’ similar to the Pro Bono Declaration of the Americas, which committed law firms to dedicate specific hours annually to free legal services for the underprivileged.

‘Such initiative will promote accountability, enhance diversity within the legal profession and improve access to justice for vulnerable groups.

‘The Vance Centre has successfully launched a Pro Bono Institute in Kenya in partnership with local universities and law firms, serving as a model for possible replication in Nigeria through collaboration with the NBA-SPIDEL.

‘We urge the NBA to support the centre’s vision of building a stronger, data-driven, and institutionalised pro bono culture in Africa,’ Egboka said. (NAN)

The team appointed by the President of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) has stated that the ailment reported by the detained self-proclaimed leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, is not life-threatening.

The medical team was ordered by Justice James Omotosho, midway through Kanu’s terrorism trial at the Federal High Court in Abuja, to determine Kanu’s actual health status following conflicting claims from medical experts engaged by both the prosecution and defence.

In the panel’s report, submitted to the court on 13 October by the prosecution team led by Adegboyega Awomolo (SAN), part of which was read aloud in open court during Thursday’s proceedings, it was stated that the defendant’s ailment is not life-threatening.

The team concluded that Kanu is fit to stand trial.

Based on the information contained in the report, and in the absence of any objections from the parties’ lawyers, Justice Omotosho stated that the court was convinced the defendant could continue with the trial.

Justice Omotosho subsequently granted the defendant six consecutive days, beginning on 23 October, to open and close his defence.