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PFIPC scandal: Atiku rejects ‘lone wolf’ theory, tells Tinubu to name insiders

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar has rejected the interim report of the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) on the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) scandal, saying it raises more questions than it answers.

Reacting on Friday through his Senior Special Assistant on Public Communication, Phrank Shaibu, Atiku said the Presidency cannot present the report as an exoneration when it reportedly admits to ‘negligence and connivance’ within government processes.

According to the findings referenced by Atiku, an individual allegedly forged a presidential appointment letter, created a fictitious federal agency, took over offices of the former Presidential Economic Advisory Council, opened bank accounts with forged legislative instruments, and created two additional fake government agencies.

‘Yet, the statement said, Nigerians are being told that State House systems were ‘above board.’

‘Both claims can not comfortably coexist,’ Atiku said.

‘If there was connivance, who connived? If public officers were negligent, who are they? Who granted access to government offices? Who recognised this supposed Director-General? Who enabled him to operate within the machinery of government?’

The presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) argued that the ICPC’s reported recommendation of sanctions against negligent public officers ‘demolishes any attempt to portray the scandal as the work of a lone impostor.’

‘A fake agency does not walk into government offices by itself. A forged appointment letter does not validate itself. Bank accounts do not open themselves. Behind every door that opened, every process that was bypassed and every official instrument that was accessed was a human being. Name them,’ he said.

Atiku said the ICPC interim report appeared to shield ‘shadow operatives within the presidency who allegedly connived to enable the fraud’ and demanded that their identities be made public.

He insisted that an independent panel of inquiry is needed, and backed calls for a live, televised National Assembly hearing.

‘The central figure in the saga, Mr. Adeyemi, has publicly challenged the government by asking to appear before a National Assembly investigation broadcast live on national television,’ he noted.

‘The Presidency now has nowhere left to hide. If Mr. Adeyemi is prepared to appear publicly, testify under oath, and answer questions before Nigerians, then let him be heard. The National Assembly should immediately institute an open, live-broadcast public hearing into this scandal.’

‘The Presidency must not attempt to block, gag, or shield anyone connected to this matter. If the Villa is truly clean, it should be the first to welcome live television coverage. Let Nigerians watch, unedited, as the witnesses testify, and the evidence is presented under oath. What is the presidency afraid of?’

Atiku warned that anything short of transparency would deepen suspicions that powerful interests are being protected.

‘You can not admit negligence and connivance within government and simultaneously pronounce the system spotless. That is like washing charcoal and expecting white water,’ he said.

He demanded the publication of the full ICPC report and the names of all culpable public officials, insisting that ‘transparency can not stop where the trail enters the corridors of power. The presidency can not investigate itself into innocence.’

‘Open the investigation. Put the witnesses under oath. Switch on the cameras. Let Nigerians hear the truth for themselves,’ the statement added.

‘The question remains: Who inside the Villa opened the door?’

P6.8 million worth of shabu seized from 3 dealers in Cotabato City

Anti-narcotics agents seized a kilo of shabu, costing P6.8 million, from three dealers entrapped with the help of their own relatives and local executives in a residential area in this city on Thursday, August 6.

City and barangay officials separately told reporters on Friday that they would help the Philippine Drug Enforcement Agency-Bangsamoro Autonomous Region in Muslim Mindanao prosecute the now-detained Jayson Kamsali Karon and his two female accomplices, Meriam Bagundang Rauf and Sambra Mama Gulo, using the P6.8 million worth of shabu confiscated from them as evidence.

Edgar Jubay, director of PDEA-BARMM, said on Friday that the suspects were immediately arrested by PDEA-BARMM agents, backed by operatives from different units of the Cotabato City Police Office led by their director, Col. Jibin Bongcayao, after selling them shabu at one spot in Barangay Rosary Heights 3.

Jubay said the entrapment operation that led to the arrest of the three suspects and confiscation from them of P6.8 million worth of shabu was laid with the help of barangay officials in Rosary Heights 3 and the office of Mayor Bruce Matabalao, who is presiding chairperson of the multi-sector Cotabato City Peace and Order Council.

It was the relatives of Karon, Rauf and Gulo who first reported to Jubay and Matabalao their shabu and marijuana peddling activities in Cotabato City, enabling agents of PDEA-BARMM and policemen to promptly embark on the entrapment operation that resulted in their arrest.

Jubay said all of the three suspects are now locked in PDEA-BARMM’s detention facility, awaiting prosecution for violation of the Comprehensive Dangerous Drugs Act of 2002.

PDEA-BARMM agents and policemen had also impounded during the entrapment operation the black minivan of the suspects, with license plates MBK 2638, that they used in delivering shabu and marijuana to contacts in Cotabato City and in nearby areas in Sultan Kudarat and Datu Odin Sinsuat towns in Maguindanao del Norte.

IG seeks judicial training partnership for police officers

Inspector-General of Police Olatunji Disu has proposed a partnership between the Nigeria Police Force (NPF) and the National Judicial Institute (NJI) to provide specialised legal and judicial training for officers.

Disu made the proposal during a courtesy visit to the NJI in Abuja, Wednesday, where he was received by the Institute’s Administrator, Justice Babatunde Adejumo, and Secretary Olumo Abdulazeez.

According to a statement by police spokesperson CSP Ani Eniedu, Disu said the training would cover criminal justice administration, electronic evidence, cybercrime, digital forensics, human rights, prosecution advocacy and case management, alongside joint seminars and research initiatives.

Adejumo welcomed the proposal and commended Disu for establishing a police outpost at the Institute, calling for stronger collaboration to secure the facility.

Caiaphas at CoPF

The deterioration and debasement of what was once the pride of the country, the civil service, took decades of political capture, patronage and institutional neglect. Today’s poorly paid, overstaffed and often underutilised public service is routinely criticised at public forums, compared unfavourably with its more able and successful cousins in the private sector, and too often made the face of the State’s failures.

Reforming the public sector is one of Sri Lanka’s greatest challenges. But it would be naive to imagine that meaningful reform can be achieved in the near or even medium term. Rebuilding institutions and restoring a culture of professionalism is a long game. It requires razor-sharp, unwavering political will sustained well beyond election cycles.

Ordinary citizens have every reason to be frustrated. Dealing with bloated, inefficient institutions can test anyone’s patience. That frustration is sometimes reflected in how the Parliamentary Committee on Public Finance (CoPF) engages with the public officials who appear before it.

Some CoPF proceedings are painful to watch. Officials arrive unable to answer basic questions or demonstrate sufficient knowledge of the industries and institutions they oversee. That deserves scrutiny. Public officials entrusted with managing public resources must come prepared and be held fully accountable.

But accountability and humiliation are not the same thing.

Too often, proceedings descend into public admonishment. Officials are talked down to, interrupted, or treated as though they were schoolchildren standing before a headmaster. It may make for compelling online viewing, but it does little to strengthen institutions or improve governance.

This must stop.

Public servants should be questioned firmly. They should be expected to explain decisions, defend administrative actions and account for public money.

But they should not be publicly humiliated simply because they are less articulate, less media-savvy or less thick-skinned than career politicians. Unlike politicians, they have few public platforms and even fewer privileges with which to defend themselves. Parliamentary oversight can be robust without becoming a performance.

The larger institutional problem is that public servants are increasingly expected to defend policy choices that are ultimately political.

The majority of CoPF members belong to the ruling party. They, more than anyone else, should explain and defend Government policy. Civil servants implement policy; they do not make it. When officials are repeatedly called upon to justify political decisions while elected representatives remain silent, accountability becomes blurred.

Government MPs cannot sit through hearings as though they are hearing about Government policy for the first time. If the Opposition has every right to ask difficult questions-and it does-the Government has an equal responsibility to explain and defend its own decisions. That is how parliamentary accountability is meant to function.

None of this diminishes the work CoPF has done. Under Chairman Dr. Harsha de Silva, the Committee has become one of Parliament’s most effective mechanisms for improving accountability and transparency. It has exposed waste, questioned weak governance and forced long-overdue public scrutiny of State institutions.

But success does not excuse impropriety.

Wednesday’s parliamentary debate on the CoPF report into the $ 2.5 million Treasury scam offered a timely reminder. Members on both sides began by praising the report as bipartisan. Within minutes, the debate became predictably political. That is the nature of Parliament. Governments defend themselves; Oppositions challenge them.

But CoPF claims to aspire to something higher.

The Committee’s purpose is not theatre. It is to expose institutional failures, improve governance and strengthen public administration. That requires rigorous questioning, not ridicule; professionalism, not performance.

Expose the deepest, darkest flaws in the system. Demand better answers. Insist on higher standards.

But there is no need to destroy people in the process, nor to rend one’s robes like Caiaphas.

Trade order sparks boom for Kabale service providers as property owners rush to rebuild

As authorities continue to enforce the trade order directive, owners of dilapidated and illegal buildings in Kabale town are rushing to demolish and rebuild, and the ripple effect is putting money in the pockets of surveyors, architects, hardware dealers, masons and timber traders.

According to Kabale Deputy Town Clerk Mr Eric Sunday, all affected property owners must first have their plots surveyed and secure approved building plans before they can construct new structures.

‘The construction of the new houses must follow the physical development plans of our municipality where places designated for commercial, residential and industrial must serve the intended purpose,’ Mr Sunday said.

The directive has boosted local businesses as residents scramble for services and materials. It has also created an unexpected income stream for LC1 chairpersons who earn from witnessing and signing land sale agreements, as some affected owners opt to sell their plots rather than meet the urban authority’s building standards.

Mr. Joram Bwambale, proprietor of Macro Hardware and Macro Engineering Services in Kabale town, says demand for cement, iron bars, iron sheets and nails has nearly doubled.

‘The customers for building materials have almost doubled and I believe it is related to the implementation of the trade order as the affected people buy them to construct houses that meet the required standards of the municipal council authority. Before the implementation of the trade order we used to get about 50 customers for building materials but after the implementation of the trade order customers for building materials almost doubled,’ Mr. Bwambale said.

Masons are also feeling the surge. Mr. Rodney Muhwezi, a senior mason in Kabale town, says their services are now in high demand.

‘The payment for a mason per day ranges between Shs 50,000 and Shs 25,000 depending on the seniority while that of the porters ranges between Shs 20,000 and Shs 10,000 depending on their expertise. Although the trade order implementation disorganized local residents because of its abrupt implementation, it has helped some service providers to earn an extra income,’ Mr. Muhwezi said.

Professional fees have also gone up. Architects are charging between Shs 1 Million and Shs 2 Million to produce building plans depending on size and location, while surveyors demand between Shs 2 Million and Shs 3 Million to process land titles.

The trade order has had mixed effects on other groups. Kabale District Khadi Sheikh Kabu Lule said roadside timber traders were initially hit hard, but the municipal council’s decision to allow them to rent a 2-acre piece of Muslim land has helped.

‘After the Kabale municipal council authorities allowed us to rent out our 2-acre piece of land to the timber traders that were affected by the trade order, we get about Shs 100,000 per month from these dozens of traders currently using our land. If they can remain operating on our land for about 3 years, the Mosque administration will get some good money that can be used to support other development projects of the Islam,’ Sheikh Kabu Lule said.

Timber trader Mr. Erasmus Tumuhekye said relocation from the road reserve was disruptive, but rebuilding has revived sales.

‘There is scarcity of timber in Kabale town not necessarily because of the trade order implementation but also issues related to fuel price increases globally. The price of a piece of timber that measures 4×2 increased from Shs 3,300 to Shs 4,000 while that of 6×2 increased from Shs 4,300 to Shs 5,000,’ Mr. Tumuhekye said.

Kabale District Staff Surveyor Ms. Prosper Aheisiibwe noted a slight rise in land title applications in municipalities where the trade order is being enforced, though rural sub-counties remain largely unaffected.

‘The advantage of having your land titled is that there is proof of land ownership with defined boundaries, helps in organized development and urbanization, securing a mortgage among others. Bureaucracies involved in getting the land title should be reduced if the people are to be timely served. Why should the members of the area land committee come from the sub county yet the LC1 chairman and his committee can do the same work with ease since they are all residents of the same area that can tell who owns what in the village,’ Ms. Aheisiibwe said.

Meet six Google-backed startups, leaders transforming fintech, healthtech, SaaS

A new wave of African startups is transforming key sectors, from financial services to healthcare and enterprise software, by building solutions tailored to local challenges while competing on a global scale.

Google has played a supporting role in this journey through funding, infrastructure, and accelerator programmes, as part of its one billion dollar commitment to Africa’s digital transformation. Some of the startups featured have participated in its accelerator initiatives, while many build directly on its technology stack.

One such initiative is the Google for Startups Accelerator Africa, a three-month, equity-free programme that has run since 2018. It has supported over 100 startups across 17 African countries, offering mentorship from Google teams, technical bootcamps, cloud and AI resources, and access to a global network. Globally, alumni of Google accelerator programmes have collectively raised more than 25 billion dollars.

In addition, the Black Founders Fund, launched in 2021, has backed over 220 startups across Africa and Europe with non-dilutive capital. Beneficiary companies have gone on to raise 379 million dollars and create more than 6,000 jobs.

Beyond funding and mentorship, the startups also leverage tools such as Google Cloud, Gemini, and Vertex AI to power critical functions including risk decisioning, message routing, emergency dispatch, and software testing.

In this report, The Nation’s Samuel Oamen highlights six startups and the leaders behind them who are driving this innovation across the continent.

1. Termii – Olajuwon Abayomi, General Manager, Nigeria

Olajuwon Abayomi, General Manager, Nigeria

Founded in Lagos in 2017, Termii provides the infrastructure behind essential customer communications such as OTPs, debit alerts, fraud checks, and transaction notifications used by banks, fintechs, and telecom companies. The platform now serves over 10,000 businesses monthly, including more than 500 fintechs, with message volumes growing from one million to over 400 million per month.

Termii’s approach has evolved from basic message delivery to what it describes as AI-driven reliability infrastructure. Its systems monitor delivery routes across telecom carriers in real time, predict potential failures, and automatically reroute messages to improve success rates, often without users ever noticing.

‘The best compliment is silence,’ Abayomi said. ‘When the message arrives and everything works, nobody thinks about us.’

The company has raised $5.3 million to date and is part of a growing class of African startups building infrastructure rather than consumer-facing products. It is also an alumnus of the Google for Startups Accelerator Africa and leverages cloud and AI tools to scale its operations.

Leading its Nigerian operations, Abayomi brings experience from Ecobank Nigeria, where he worked across retail banking, agent networks, and digital adoption initiatives before joining Termii and rising through the ranks. He holds a master’s degree from the University of Ibadan.

As digital transactions become more widespread, companies like Termii are increasingly forming the invisible backbone of financial services, ensuring that, in moments when trust matters most, the message always arrives.

2. Bani – Rodney Jackson-Cole, Co-founder and CEO

Rodney Jackson-Cole, Co-founder and CEO

Bani is tackling one of Africa’s biggest financial bottlenecks, slow and expensive cross-border payments. Founded in 2022, the fintech startup enables businesses to settle transactions across African countries in minutes using local currency rails, cutting costs by up to a quarter compared to traditional channels.

Typically, such payments are routed through correspondent banks in Europe or the United States, taking three to seven business days with high fees. Bani eliminates these delays by allowing businesses to accept local payments and complete cross-border settlements seamlessly.

The company is led by Co-founder and CEO Rodney Jackson-Cole, who previously co-founded Prospa, a Y Combinator-backed business banking startup that raised $3.8 million. He also served as Director and CTO at Nestbank and began his career in research and development at Finn Labs. He studied at the Ghana Institute of Management and Public Administration.

3. Lendsqr – Grace Effiom, Head of Enterprise

Grace Effiom, Head of Enterprise

Lendsqr provides the technology backbone that powers credit businesses for banks, microfinance institutions, and digital lenders. Its Lending-as-a-Service platform offers backend infrastructure, decision engines, and data tools, allowing lenders to operate without building systems from scratch.

Thousands of lenders across multiple countries use the platform, which has also committed one billion naira in on-lending capital to smaller lenders. The company has raised $1 million. Its relevance is underscored by data from EFInA showing that only about six percent of Nigerian adults accessed credit from regulated institutions in the past year.

Grace Effiom, Head of Enterprise, has been instrumental in the company’s growth. She joined in 2018 as the first assistant and has worked across several departments, including customer success, HR, finance, and product management. Now an equity holder, she has helped over 2,000 lenders serve more than one million borrowers. She holds a degree in Mass Communication from Caritas University.

4. E-doc Online – Founder and CEO Tunde Ogundipe

Founder and CEO Tunde Ogundipe

E-doc Online is addressing financial exclusion by providing open banking and data infrastructure. Founded in 2021, the fintech and AI startup connects users’ bank accounts, based on consent, and delivers automated KYC, risk assessment, and credit decision tools to institutions via APIs.

With about a quarter of Nigerian adults financially excluded and many lacking formal credit histories, E-doc Online enables lenders to assess previously invisible borrowers. The company is an alumnus of both the Google for Startups Accelerator Africa and the Visa Africa Accelerator.

Founder and CEO Tunde Ogundipe brings over a decade of experience in British banking, including roles at HSBC, Barclays, RBS, Santander, KPMG, and Metro Bank. He previously founded a microfinance bank and KoloboxNG, a micro-investment platform later acquired by an asset management firm. He studied at the Georgia Institute of Technology.

5. Scandium – Jafar Alabi Zubair, VP Product and Business Development

Jafar Alabi Zubair, VP Product and Business Development

Scandium is an AI-powered, no-code software testing platform that enables teams to automate testing for web applications, mobile apps, and APIs without writing code. Built in Lagos, the company operates in a global market and has no direct Nigerian competitors in its category.

The startup achieved a 90 percent gross margin in its first year and was selected as one of 15 companies for the Google for Startups Accelerator Africa from nearly 1,500 applicants.

Jafar Alabi Zubair, Vice President of Product and Business Development, leads growth and innovation at the company. He studied Electrical and Electronics Engineering at the University of Ibadan and has held product roles at Andela, Descasio, and Fagopay. He is also active in mentoring product managers and supporting innovation ecosystems in Nigeria.

6. Emergency Response Africa – Folake Owodunni, Founder and CEO

Folake Owodunni, Founder and CEO

Emergency Response Africa (ERA) is addressing critical gaps in Nigeria’s emergency healthcare system by providing 24/7 medical response services. Founded in 2018, the healthtech startup connects people in crisis to trained responders, ambulances, and verified hospitals.

With over one million preventable deaths recorded annually in Nigeria and no national ambulance dispatch system, ERA is building a coordinated emergency response network. Its motorcycle medics are equipped to begin treatment on-site, especially in areas where traffic delays traditional ambulances.

Founder and CEO Folake Owodunni was inspired to start ERA after experiencing an efficient emergency response in Canada during her son’s medical crisis. She has over 15 years of experience across healthcare, consulting, and marketing in Nigeria, the United States, and Canada.

She holds a master’s degree in Global Health and Development from University College London, an MBET from the University of Waterloo, and is a certified first responder with the Canadian Red Cross.

Together, these six companies highlight the growing momentum of African innovation, demonstrating how local solutions can address systemic challenges while scaling across the continent and beyond.

Zamfara AGILE project to construct 42 new schools, meets consultants

The Zamfara State Adolescent Girls’ Initiative for Learning and Empowerment (AGILE) project has commenced preparations for the construction of 42 new secondary schools in the state and held a meeting with s consultants.

In a statement, the Project Communications Officer, Bashir Kabiru Ahmad, said the construction of the junior and senior secondary schools in the 14 local government areas of the state is under Sub-component 1.1 of the project.

‘The construction supervision consultants engaged for the assignment are Mega Projects Nigeria Limited, which will supervise three construction lots covering Gummi, Bukkuyum, Anka, Bakura, Talata Mafara, Maradun, Maru, Bungudu and part of Gusau Local Government Area.

‘Also, Chediya Ventures will supervise two construction lots covering Shinkafi, Zurmi, Birnin Magaji, Kaura Namoda, Tsafe, and part of Gusau Local Government Area.

‘During the meeting, the consultants presented reviews of key project implementation documents and activities.

‘The review sessions provided the consultants with a comprehensive understanding of the project requirements, enabling them to commence construction supervision with adequate technical, environmental, social and security information necessary for the successful delivery of the schools.’

Speaking during the meeting, Ibrahim Ahmed Nahuche, underscored strict adherence to quality standards, approved specifications and project timelines.

‘This meeting reflects the unwavering commitment of the administration of Governor Dauda Lawal to transforming the education sector through sustained investments in infrastructure, particularly in expanding access to quality secondary education for adolescent girls in the state.

‘It also underscores the ongoing efforts of the Commissioner for Education, Science and Technology, Mallam Abdulmalik Abubakar Gajam, towards the effective implementation of the State of Emergency on Education (SEE),’ he said.

The project coordinator, Hajiya Sa’adatu Abdu Gusau, reiterated the need for all stakeholders, including contractors, consultants, host communities and government agencies, to play their respective roles in ensuring the successful implementation of the project.

‘The AGILE project remains committed to delivering quality educational infrastructure that will provide safe, inclusive and conducive learning environments, thereby contributing significantly to the advancement of education and the socio-economic development of the state,’ she said.

Alapag wants NLEx to keep current speed

Getting off to a 6-0 (win-loss) start to kick off his PBA coaching career is nice and dandy for NLEx’s Jimmy Alapag, who is asking his team to keep its foot on the gas pedal in the Governors’ Cup.

‘There’s still so much work to be done,’ Alapag said.

The Road Warriors start their second-round campaign in Group A on Friday, facing a Terrafirma Dyip side which has had two identities so far this conference: A team that can upset big guns and one that always seems to fall short.

The two teams square off at 5:15 p.m. at the Ninoy Aquino Stadium, before Magnolia and Meralco meet at 7:30 p.m. in a crucial Group B affair.

Alapag has steered NLEx to new heights since returning to Manila following an NBA stint as a player development coach of the Sacramento Kings, with his recent conquest coming at the expense of his former coach Chot Reyes and his former team TNT, 88-83.

Alapag understands that there’s more work to be done despite becoming the first rookie mentor in PBA history to win his first six games.

‘This is a compliment to their work ethic and their competitive spirit, which is why we’re here right now,’ Alapag said, praising his players for buying into the way he wants to run things.

NLEx has been somewhat cruising in the group stage, with four of those wins coming by double figures.

The closest the Road Warriors came to tasting defeat was against the Dyip, who erased a double-digit deficit and had a chance to win when import Justin Strings missed a potential go-ahead shot before the buzzer.

It was one of many heartbreakers absorbed by Terrafirma, which holds a 2-4 record and is not far behind fourth-placer Converge.

Converge fell to 3-4, its fourth defeat in a row, after a 126-114 loss at the hands of San Miguel Beer late Wednesday at the Smart Araneta Coliseum.

Meanwhile, Magnolia seeks to go 3-3 and tie Blackwater for third in Group B against a desperate Meralco side sitting at the bottom of Group B at 1-4.

Magnolia is coming off a rout of Barangay Ginebra, a result it hopes to capitalize on after a sluggish start to the conference.

Meralco, on the other hand, suffered an 85-83 defeat to Rain or Shine after blowing its lead in the fourth quarter.

Osun guber: Smear campaign won’t save APC from defeat – Imole Campaign Council

The Imole Campaign Council (IMC) has dismissed as ‘laughable and defeatist’ the attempt by the Osun State All Progressives Congress (APC) Governorship Campaign Council to link Governor Ademola Adeleke to an alleged oath-taking video circulating on social media.

The Chairman of the IMC Media and Publicity Committee, Bamidele Salam, made the clarification in a statement issued on Friday, insisting that Governor Adeleke has no connection with the alleged video.

According to Salam, the campaign council is examining the authenticity, source and circumstances surrounding the video but stressed that the governor neither authorised, participated in, directed nor endorsed the taking of any oath in relation to the August 15 governorship election or for any political purpose.

‘Governor Ademola Adeleke is a democrat who believes fundamentally in the freedom of citizens to make their political choices according to their conscience. He does not need oaths, threats, intimidation or any form of coercion to secure the support of the people of Osun State,’ the statement read.

Salam added that the governor enjoys widespread support across the state based on his performance in office and his relationship with the people, noting that his campaign is anchored on his achievements, vision for the state and the confidence of the electorate.

He described the APC’s attempt to associate the governor with an unverified social media video as a political strategy borne out of desperation.

‘The APC’s attempt to convert an unverified video into a campaign issue exposes the poverty of its campaign strategy,’ he said.

Salam argued that instead of engaging the Adeleke administration on issues such as roads, healthcare, education, workers’ welfare, infrastructure and rural development, the opposition had resorted to allegations based on a video whose origin remains unclear.

The Imole Campaign Council maintained that Governor Adeleke does not require anyone to swear an oath or invoke curses before supporting or voting for him, stressing that the governor’s strength lies in the support of the people and his record in office.

The IMC urged the APC to stop focusing on unverified videos and prepare for the verdict of the electorate on August 15.

‘The people of Osun are not being asked to vote for Governor Adeleke because of any oath. They are being asked to vote for him because they have seen the difference between a government that works for the people and an opposition that has offered little beyond fear, propaganda and empty accusations.

‘Governor Adeleke will face the people on August 15 with his record. Let the APC face the people with its own record,’ the statement added.

Police Rescue 4 Kidnap Victims in Edo

Operatives of the Edo State Police Command have rescued four victims abducted by suspected kidnappers along the Lagos-Benin Expressway.

The victims were rescued by the police in collaboration with members of the Vigilante Group of Nigeria (VGN), local hunters and other sister security agents.

The command spokesperson, Eno Ikoedem, in a statement, said the police received information that armed men, numbering about three and dressed in vigilante uniforms, had blocked the Ugbokun axis along the Lagos/Benin Expressway with logs of wood and leaves, attacked motorists and abducted some occupants into the forest.

She said upon receipt of the report, the Divisional Police Officer, Okada Division, immediately mobilised a combined team of police operatives including vigilante, local hunters and other security partners to the scene.

According to her, the operatives swiftly embarked on an aggressive bush-combing operation enhanced by drone technology to search and aid the rescue mission.

She said following the sustained pressure mounted on the criminals, they abandoned the captives and fled, leading to the rescue of the victims.

The spokesperson, who gave the names of the victims as, Muritala Babatunde, Bello Aminat, Otor Prince, and Yeiyah Gift, said they had been reunited with reunited with their families.

She disclosed that operations were ongoing to apprehend the fleeing suspects and bring them to justice.