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A’Ibom not under threat from any terrorist group, says CP

The Commissioner of Police in Akwa Ibom, Baba Mohammed Azare, has said that the state is not under threat from any terrorist group.

Azare, who spoke with our correspondent in Uyo, said that the police and other security agencies have not received any reports of terrorist organisations operating in any part of the state.

He said, ‘Akwa Ibom is not under any sort of threat from ISWAP or any other terrorist groups. And we have no security information to that effect.

‘Any talk about terrorism or terrorist activities in Akwa Ibom State is imaginary. It doesn’t exist.

‘Akwa Ibom State is peaceful because the police under my command are working with sister security agencies to provide security for the lives and property of residents.

‘We have recorded maximum success in the fight against all sorts of crimes, but terrorism is not one of them. So the NYSC camp, schools, churches and public places in the state are safe’, he said.

Ugandan-founded AirQo named among 15 Earthshot Prize finalists

A Ugandan-founded clean-air technology initiative has been named among 15 global finalists for the 2026 Earthshot Prize, putting it in contention for one of the world’s most prominent environmental awards.

AirQo, an African-led clean-air technology initiative founded at Makerere University in 2015, was named a finalist for its work to close Africa’s air quality data gap through low-cost monitors, open-data platforms and artificial intelligence designed to track pollution levels across African cities.

AirQo uses locally manufactured, low-cost air quality monitors, AI sensors and mobile applications to collect real-time pollution data across Uganda and several other African cities.

The Earthshot Prize was launched by Prince William and The Royal Foundation in 2020 to identify, spotlight and scale innovative solutions to some of the world’s most pressing environmental challenges.

AirQo was nominated in the ‘Clean Our Air’ category, where it is being recognised for tackling one of Africa’s most urgent but often invisible public health threats.

In 2019, air pollution was the second-leading risk factor for death across Africa and contributed to an estimated 1.1 million deaths in a single year, according to the State of Global Air initiative.

Rapid urbanisation has increased emissions from transport, industry and waste, while many cities still lack reliable, locally relevant data showing where pollution is concentrated, when levels spike and whether measures to reduce pollution are working.

As a 2026 finalist, AirQo will work with The Earthshot Prize to accelerate its expansion across African cities, strengthen the investment case for clean-air infrastructure and connect the initiative with governments, funders, technology partners and urban leaders.

The support will also help AirQo expand its open-source data platform, build local technical capacity and make clean air a more visible public and political priority, according to a statement issued by the initiative on Friday evening.

Prince William, President and Founder of The Earthshot Prize, said the finalists offered evidence that progress on environmental challenges was possible.

‘Every year, our Finalists give me renewed optimism. They show us that, even as the environmental challenges remain urgent, extraordinary people around the world are already proving that progress is possible,’ he said.

‘Seeing solutions work gives us all confidence to act. When they succeed, they inspire others and accelerate change. I’m proud to welcome these 15 Finalists to the Earthshot Prize community and look forward to celebrating their stories in Mumbai this November.’

Search for a solution

AirQo was established to answer a basic but increasingly urgent question: how can people in cities be protected from pollution they cannot see?

After moving from rural Uganda to Kampala, AirQo founder Prof Engineer Bainomugisha observed the effects of worsening urban air quality but found that the local data needed to understand the problem was largely unavailable.

Conventional monitoring stations were expensive and difficult to maintain at the density required by African cities, prompting the AirQo team to develop a locally designed alternative.

Its monitors are built for African operating conditions, including dust, power interruptions and limited internet connectivity. Fixed monitors are complemented by mobile devices mounted on motorcycle taxis, commonly known as boda bodas, to map pollution at street level.

Data collected through the network is shared through open-data platforms, dashboards, mobile tools and application programming interfaces (APIs).

AirQo also uses artificial intelligence and machine-learning models to calibrate sensors, verify data quality, forecast pollution, identify hotspots and determine where additional monitors are most needed.

The affordable monitors complement traditional reference-grade monitoring stations used by governments. By bringing the data together, AirQo helps cities identify pollution patterns and determine where interventions are most urgently needed.

The information is also used by researchers and communities to understand local air quality, minimise exposure and support public health measures.

Public tools show citizens when pollution levels are high, while city authorities can use the data to improve traffic management, waste services, public health interventions and urban planning.

Prof Engineer Bainomugisha, founder and lead of AirQo and a professor of computer science at Makerere University, said the initiative was created to make air pollution more visible through locally generated evidence.

‘Air pollution has remained invisible across too many African cities because the data needed to understand it has been scarce.

‘AirQo was built in Africa for the realities of African cities, bringing together locally designed monitors, open data, and artificial intelligence so that evidence can move from the street into public decisions.

‘Being named an Earthshot Prize Finalist will help us scale this infrastructure, equip more African technologists and city leaders, and make reliable air quality data a public good. As a non-profit, the funding and partnerships this recognition unlocks are vital to advancing our vision of clean air for everyone,’ he said.

AirQo now has more than 500 air quality monitors deployed across over 16 cities. Its work spans nine African countries – Uganda, Kenya, Nigeria, Ghana, Senegal, Cameroon, Zambia, Mozambique and South Africa – providing real-time air quality information to communities with a combined population of more than 30 million.

The initiative says its work is also contributing to a positive tipping point – a threshold in a system beyond which change becomes self-propelling.

The finalists

The 15 finalists for this year’s Earthshot Prize were selected from a database of nearly 7,000 nominations from 169 countries.

The selection process was supported by a global network of more than 363 nominators and an Expert Advisory Panel comprising more than 150 specialists, alongside assessment and research by The Earthshot Prize’s selection team and partners.

The 15 finalists join a community of 75 finalists supported by the prize since 2020.

According to The Earthshot Prize, the wider finalist community has collectively avoided or cleaned up 18 million tonnes of greenhouse gases (CO2e), while contributing to cleaner air for 600 million people.

The community has also protected or restored 58 million hectares of land and 85 million hectares of ocean and coastlines, kept 465,000 tonnes of waste out of the environment and saved 21 million tonnes of water from being wasted.

The 2026 Earthshot Prize winners will be celebrated in Mumbai in November.

’Bola’: Sunday Dare slams Atiku for addressing Tinubu by first name

Special Adviser, Media and Public Communications to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Sunday Dare, has criticized the presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Atiku Abubakar, for stripping the president of his official status and merely addressing him by his first name at a media briefing.

Atiku, at a press conference on Friday where he called on the present administration to reduce the price of fuel to give succour to Nigerians, had evaded the official status of President Tinubu and simply addressed him as ‘Bola Tinubu.’

He said: ‘Bola Tinubu should not be ashamed to do what is necessary to lower the price of petrol simply because Atiku Abubakar proposed a government intervention.

‘He should just take the idea, rename it if he wishes, and even take the credit. What matters to me is that Nigerians pay less.’

Dare, in a post on his X handle, @SundayDareSD, accused the former Vice-President of insolence.

Dismissing the ADC presidential candidate’s appeal to President Tinubu to intervene and moderate the price of fuel, Dare declared that ‘Nigerians do not need lectures on fiscal management from a political wanderer whose decades-long pursuit of the presidency has been defined by perpetual opportunism.’

His post read: ‘Alhaji Atiku’s manner of addressing President Bola Tinubu as Bola is the height of insolence. It is a clear descent into the abyss of unbridled desperation and an unravelling mind.

‘To seek to lecture a sitting president with the unbridled insolence of dropping his first name, petulantly barking instructions, and dictating how governance should be run within a truncated timeline is the height of political hubris.

‘Nigerians do not need lectures on fiscal management from a political wanderer whose decades-long pursuit of the presidency has been defined by perpetual opportunism. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is doing the heavy, foundational lifting required to restructure an economy crippled by decades of structural inertia and subsidy hemorrhaging.

‘Atiku’s sudden conversion to the gospel of interventionism rings hollow. This is a desperate strategy by a perennial seeker of power who weaponizes transient national discomforts for electoral mileage.’

Buratai: Military battles may be lost without timely information

Former Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt.-Gen. Tukur Yusuf Buratai (Rtd.), has warned that the military could lose battles if it fails to provide timely and credible information to the public.

He stressed that effective communication had become a critical component of modern warfare, urging the military to take control of the information space to counter terrorist propaganda and misinformation.

Buratai spoke in Abuja when he hosted the Conference and Award Committee of the Defence Correspondents’ Association of Nigeria (DECAN).

‘In modern defence and security, if you don’t protect yourself, if you don’t get your information out as timely as possible, then be rest assured that even your battle will be lost,’ Buratai said.

‘Your strategy will be ineffective, which by implication, your operational execution will also be affected,’ he added.

He said timely dissemination of credible information was essential to the success of military strategies and operations, noting that terrorists and insurgents had continued to exploit the media and information space to propagate their ideology and demoralise troops and civilians.

‘The terrorists, the insurgents, use the media, use information very strongly to propagate their ideas, to demoralise the citizens and even demoralise the military,’ Buratai said.

The former Army Chief described defence journalism as a critical component of national security, saying journalists had an important role to play in communicating the challenges, prospects and achievements of the defence sector.

‘The importance of journalism, especially defence journalism, is that it is a very important tool in disseminating the challenges and, of course, even the prospects, the achievements of the defence sector,’ he said.

Buratai recalled that, as Army Chief, he deliberately opened up military operations to journalists by allowing defence correspondents to accompany troops to the battlefield as part of efforts to counter terrorist propaganda.

‘The best way to counter it, as we did, was to carry the press along and they report right on the scene,’ he said.

He said the policy helped to break what he described as the ‘jinx’ of not allowing journalists to report military operations while they were ongoing.

Buratai recalled an operation during which his convoy came under attack while troops were advancing towards Gamboru Ngala in Borno State.

‘As we started moving, they (terrorists) ambushed the convoy, the leading convoy and unfortunately they killed one soldier, injured one general and then injured another soldier,’ he said.

According to him, the troops nevertheless continued their advance, eventually capturing terrorists and linking up with troops that had already advanced towards the area.

Buratai said the presence of journalists during the operation ensured that the military’s account of events was reported promptly, preventing Boko Haram from controlling the narrative.

‘And those issues were reported live and we now broke the Boko Haram information and media propaganda, and so they could no longer have the monopoly to tell lies or to spread rumour,’ he said.

He said the experience demonstrated the strategic value of journalists embedded with troops during military operations.

‘That was a very important role of the journalists that we saw, we appreciate you,’ Buratai said.

The former Army Chief commended DECAN for its contribution to defence journalism and its efforts to promote a stronger relationship between the military and the media.

He urged journalists, particularly defence correspondents, to uphold professionalism while providing the public with accurate information on national security issues.

Buratai also called for greater confidence in the journalism profession and urged journalists to pay greater attention to defence and security reporting, stressing that the media had an important role to play in shaping public understanding of military operations and national security challenges.

He confirmed his readiness to attend the forthcoming DECAN conference, where he is expected to deliver the keynote address.

The conference, themed ‘Beyond Kinetic Warfare: Harnessing Technology and Intelligence-Led Operations for Nigeria’s National Security,’ is expected to focus on emerging technologies, intelligence-led operations and evolving approaches to national security.

GUYANA-COURT-Election trial hears of 20,243-vote difference in Region Four

A forensic accountant has testified that his analysis of certified Statements of Poll (SoPs) from Guyana’s 2020 elections found a 20,243-vote difference between the figures recorded for APNU+AFC in Region Four and those contained in a March 5 Form 24 declaration.

Terrence Jaskaran, a chartered accountant who was engaged by the Ministry of Home Affairs as a forensic audit consultant and attached to the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Headquarters, gave evidence on Friday in the ongoing trial arising from the March 2, 2020 General and Regional Elections. Jaskaran told the court that he was asked by Police Officer Nigel Stephens to conduct a tabulation and analysis of certified copies of SoPs from the elections and compare the figures with declarations contained in Form 24.

He said he accompanied Stephens and a police prosecutor to the office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Judicature, where copies of the Region Four SoPs were made and certified. Jaskaran said he observed the certification process.

He began the analysis at CID Headquarters on June 3, 2021, using Excel spreadsheets to record the votes on each SoP by ballot box and political party. He then totalled the figures and compared them with the corresponding Form 24 declarations.

For the Region Four General Election, Jaskaran testified that his analysis of the certified SoPs recorded 116,215 votes for APNU+AFC.

That figure was compared with 136,458 votes recorded for APNU+AFC in the March 5 Form 24 declaration, representing a difference of 20,243 votes.

The March 13 Form 24 declaration recorded 136,057 votes for APNU+AFC, compared with the 116,215 votes in Jaskaran’s SoP tabulation, a difference of 19,842 votes.

For the PPP/C, the certified SoPs recorded 80,288 votes, compared with 77,329 votes in the March 5 Form 24 declaration, a difference of 2,959 votes. The March 13 declaration recorded 77,231 votes, representing a difference of 3,057 votes from the SoP total.

Jaskaran also outlined variances involving several of the smaller parties that contested the elections.

His evidence was confined to the numerical comparison between the certified SoPs and the Form 24 declarations. When his report was tendered, the court indicated that his testimony would be limited to those comparisons.

Despite objections from defence attorneys, Magistrate Faith McGusty accepted Jaskaran as an expert in forensic analysis, accounting and auditing. The defence had questioned whether his professional experience extended to auditing election results, while the prosecution argued that his role was to analyse and compare the numerical information contained in the election documents.

Jaskaran told the court that he has worked in accounting, finance and forensic auditing for more than a decade. He is a Fellow of the Association of Chartered Certified Accountants (ACCA) in the United Kingdom, a member of the Forensic Certified Public Accountant Society in the United States, and a practising chartered accountant and registered member of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Guyana.

His testimony was adjourned until Monday, when he is expected to continue giving evidence on the March 13 Form 24 declaration and the corresponding PPP/C figures.

Manifested: Ilocos grad tops nursing exam, turns dream into reality

That was Dianne Tacazon Tolentino’s reaction after learning that she had topped the August-September 2026 Philippine Nurses Licensure Examination (PNLE)-a dream she had long held and now sees as manifested.

The achievement brought pride to her home province of Ilocos Sur, as Tolentino, a magna cum laude graduate of the University of Northern Philippines (UNP)-Vigan, emerged as the country’s No. 1 nursing board passer with a rating of 92.20 percent.

The Heritage Province of Ilocos Sur celebrated Tolentino’s feat, hailing her as an outstanding nursing topnotcher and a source of pride for the province.

Tolentino was not the only UNP graduate among the country’s topnotchers. Josian Vince Bajet Bermio placed ninth with a rating of 90.60 percent, giving the university two spots among the national top 10.

Tolentino said she owed her achievement to her parents, who supported her education and made sacrifices throughout her journey.

‘There’s nothing wrong with aiming for the top,’ she said in a radio interview, recalling the words that kept her motivated to excel.

She had been an achiever since elementary school, when she graduated valedictorian. She went on to finish high school as salutatorian before pursuing nursing at UNP.

Tolentino had wanted to become a doctor since she was young and chose nursing as her premedical course. She said she still wants to practice nursing first, gain experience and decide later whether to pursue medicine.

After graduating from UNP, she went to Baguio City for a three-month review for the licensure examination.

The review period was marked by anxiety and sleepless nights. While waiting for the results, she caught up on sleep and spent time with her family.

Her faith also helped her deal with the pressure. She said she would go to church and pray, while her family reminded her to focus on her studies and not worry too much.

Tolentino said the sacrifices she and her family made along the way became a source of motivation to succeed and eventually give back.

UNP described the achievement as a historic triumph for its College of Nursing, crediting the hard work of its students, the guidance of their mentors and the university’s commitment to nursing excellence.

University President Dr. Erwin Cadorna and College of Nursing Dean Dr. Francis Don Nero, along with the faculty and staff, congratulated Tolentino and Bermio for bringing honor to the university.

Abiodun appoints Oso SUBEB secretary

Governor Dapo Abiodun has approved the appointment of Mrs. Olubunmi Omotayo Oso as Secretary of the Ogun State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), a statement issued by the Head of Service, Mr. Iskeel Olanrewaju Saka, said.

The appointment, according Saka, was aimed at strengthening leadership continuity and improving operational efficiency in the state’s basic education administration.

Saka said the appointment was made in accordance with the Ogun State Universal Basic Education Board Law, 2005, and established procedures for appointing qualified officers to senior positions in the state public service.

He charged Oso to deploy her wealth of experience and professional expertise to advance the implementation of the state’s education policies and contribute to the realisation of the ‘Building Our Future Together’ agenda of the Abiodun administration.

‘Born on November 21, 1972, Oso joined the Ogun State Civil Service on June 11, 1999, as an Education Officer II.

She holds a Bachelor of Science degree in Business Administration, a Postgraduate Diploma in Education and a Master’s degree in Education Administration and Planning.

‘Before her appointment, she was the Director of Public Schools in the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology and a member of the Teachers Registration Council of Nigeria (TRCN), the statement said.

Bohol residents urged to wear masks as haze thickens across province

Residents across Bohol province are being urged to wear face masks as haze continues to blanket large parts of the province.

Some residents noticed the smoke appearing thicker on Saturday than in previous days.

Bohol Gov. Erico Aristotle Aumentado advised the public to take precautions and limit prolonged outdoor exposure unless necessary.

Aumentado said those who need to go outside should wear an N95 or equivalent mask for added protection, particularly children, senior citizens, and people with heart or respiratory conditions.

In Tagbilaran City, the City Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (CDRRMO) recorded a PM2.5 level of 70.6 at 9:07 p.m. on Sept. 18, indicating unhealthy air quality.

Residents, especially vulnerable groups, were advised to reduce prolonged outdoor activities while the haze persists.

Authorities continue to urge the public to monitor air-quality advisories and take precautions as conditions develop.

Psychological first aid eyed for South Cotabato school community

The South Cotabato provincial government is considering deploying trained psychological first aider personnel to Banga National High School here.

The action is meant to help students, teachers and parents cope with the emotional impact of Friday’s shooting.

Rolly Doane Aquino, head of the Provincial Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Office (PDRRMO), said the intervention was being discussed by provincial officials following the incident at the school.

Aquino said the team can provide psychological first aid to students, particularly those affected by the shooting, while teachers and parents may also be included.

The psychological first aider crew had undergone training funded by the PDRRMO.

Aquino said some relatives of the victims were understandably emotional over the incident, which left some families grieving and others worried about their injured loved ones. ‘We understand what they are feeling, and we continue to support them emotionally,’ he said.

Aside from possible psychological intervention, the provincial government is assessing the immediate needs of the victims and their families.

Aquino mentioned that South Cotabato Gov. Reynaldo Tamayo Jr. went to the site of the shooting on Friday.

Meanwhile, Aquino had visited six patients confined in hospitals, and also went to funeral homes to check on the families of the fatalities.

Among the immediate concerns are the hospital expenses of victims who were transferred to private hospitals.

Aquino said patients admitted to the South Cotabato Provincial Hospital will receive free treatment, while the provincial government will also look into assistance for those being treated in private hospitals.

He said some initial assistance had already been extended to the affected families.

2027: Ondo APC sets up 162-member committee, takes reconciliation move to grassroots

The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in Ondo State has constituted a 165-member committee to take its ongoing ‘reconciliation efforts’ to the grassroots ahead of the 2027 general elections.

The Chairman of the APC Reconciliation Committee in the state, Prince Biyi Poroye, disclosed this at a meeting with the party’s local government and council chairmen and stakeholders.

He said the committee would engage party members in all 18 local government areas to address grievances and strengthen unity within the party.

Poroye explained that the initiative was part of efforts to deepen reconciliation in the party and ensure members at the ward and local government levels were included in the process.

According to him, the committee would work with stakeholders across the state to identify areas of disagreement, listen to aggrieved members, and seek solutions that would promote cohesion within the party ahead of the 2027 poll.

He added that the reconciliation committee’s focus would go beyond electoral victory, stressing that it also aimed to rebuild unity, discipline, and inclusiveness within the party.

‘The reconciliation is not just about winning an election. It is about establishing discipline within the party. It is about encouraging contributive leadership.

‘People have responded by embracing the principles and ideals of the reconciliation committee. They have decided on the number of members that will replicate this committee at the local government level.

‘So, there will be nine members. They are going to send the names to us and, by next week, we will constitute an enlarged reconciliation committee from the 18 local governments that will continue to work at the local government level,’ he said.

Poroye explained that the committee had encountered several grievances from party members, including complaints about a lack of inclusiveness in the distribution of appointments.

He said the reconciliation process was also intended to change members’ mindsets and discourage attacks, divisions, and entrenched factional positions within the party.

‘That is why the reconciliation is about addressing the mindsets of party members so that people can change from their former positions to new positions, bearing in mind that there is nothing to share in losing.

‘This is how we will reach the grassroots. Our people must not just read the news; they must hear directly from our leaders so that all of us can go into the election united and, after the election, still have an established party that everyone will be proud to belong to.’

The Chief of Staff to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, Olusegun Omojuwa, described the decision to extend the reconciliation process to the grassroots as a step that could strengthen the party ahead of the 2027 elections.

Omojuwa, who commended Aiyedatiwa’s leadership, urged party members and leaders to cooperate with the reconciliation committee and support its efforts to resolve internal disagreements.

He said extending the committee’s structure to the local government level would give grassroots members the opportunity to participate directly in the reconciliation process.

Chairman of Idanre Local Government, Hon. Smart Omotadowa, said taking the reconciliation process to the grassroots was necessary to achieve lasting unity within the party.

Omotadowa urged APC members across the 18 local government areas to support the party’s candidates in the 2027 elections, stressing that unity remained critical to the party’s campaign.

‘The best way to make the reconciliation process work is to take it to the grassroots level. There is no way we can do better than to work in unity,’ he said.

A member of the reconciliation committee, Erelu Modupe Martins, also called for genuine reconciliation, warning that unresolved internal grievances could affect the party’s electoral fortunes.

She urged all party members to support the reconciliation initiative and ensure it reached loyalists at the grassroots.

‘There is no second in any election. We can’t afford to lose any position to the opposition,’ Martins said.