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The former Vice President and African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, has said his campaign in Sokoto will proceed despite alleged intimidation, declaring that the party will resist any attempt to turn Nigeria into a one-party state.

Atiku stated this on Tuesday in Abuja while addressing the press on developments ahead of the party’s campaign in Sokoto.

He said what was unfolding in Sokoto was not ordinary political competition but a calculated campaign to frustrate the ADC, obstruct its campaign and deny Nigerians the freedom to choose.

‘Public facilities that should be available to every political party for legitimate campaign activities have been blocked. Logistical support has been withheld. These are not harmless administrative delays. They are deliberate attempts to deny ADC a level playing field,’ he said.

Atiku alleged that the leadership of the Department of State Services was recruiting people to stage protests in Sokoto to create disorder and give the APC-controlled state government a pretext to impose a curfew and prevent the campaign from taking off.

‘We know where some of these protesters are assembled: an office behind Zenith Bank on Koko Road. Trucks are stationed there and dispatched to key points, including roundabout. These mobilised protesters are causing gridlock. Commuters are being threatened and, in some cases, beaten,’ he said.

He said security agencies existed to protect Nigerians and uphold the law, not to recruit protesters or help a political party manufacture a crisis.

‘This is not intelligence work. It is political interference dressed in official uniform. I call on every officer involved to stop immediately and return to constitutional duty of impartial service,’ he said.

Atiku accused the Tinubu administration of devoting too much energy to weakening credible opposition and too little to solving the problems facing Nigerians in the last three and a half years.

‘It has pursued politics of absorption and intimidation, while drawing former opposition figures into APC and narrowing space for political competition. Aim is to reduce Nigeria to one party state in all but name,’ he said.

He said the government was afraid of the people’s verdict, having unleashed a crushing cost-of-living crisis.

‘Food, transport, fuel, electricity and other essentials have become unaffordable for millions. Families are struggling to feed their children, pay school fees and keep their businesses alive. That is record this government should be defending before people, instead of trying to stop rally,’ he said.

Atiku promised to make life affordable again if elected.

‘We will support local production, strengthen food production, create jobs and reduce cost of doing business. We will pursue targeted production subsidy tied to fuel refined in Nigeria, so that support reaches consumers through measurable relief while also strengthening domestic industry,’ he said.

He said the APC had still not recovered from the abysmal failure of its last rally in Kaduna and should have taken it as a warning that Nigerians were withdrawing their confidence.

‘Instead, it has chosen intimidation and obstruction. These are last kicks of dying horse. The more this government tries to silence people, the clearer it becomes that it has already lost their confidence,’ he said.

Atiku described the 2027 general election as a defining moment in Nigeria’s democratic history.

‘This is more than contest between parties or candidates. It is choice between government that has shown indifference to people’s suffering and Nigerians who have endured enough and want their votes to count,’ he said.

He said the ADC would resist every gimmick, administrative roadblock and underhand manoeuvre designed to exclude the opposition.

‘We will not be intimidated into silence or irrelevance. Our campaign will proceed, and I will be in Sokoto tomorrow, God willing, to address good people of state,’ he said.

He urged the people of Sokoto to remain calm and peaceful and not allow anyone to provoke them. He also urged security agencies to protect commuters, residents and rally participants without favor.

‘To voters of Nigeria, remain resolute. Stand your ground. Democratic freedom is not a gift from any government. It is your right. Do not allow anyone to intimidate you,’ he said.

Atiku added that the ADC would stand with officers who refused to be used against democracy.

‘Those who choose to betray their duty and collude in suppression of political freedom will be held accountable under law. Nigeria belongs to its people, not to any party or temporary occupant of power,’ he said.

ACROSS Nigeria’s sprawling commercial centres and quiet educational institutions, millions of citizens spend between eight and twelve hours every single day seated at desks, classroom benches, and computer workstations. Behind this ordinary picture of daily work and study lies a severe public health crisis that is developing silently across decades. Chronic low back pain and progressive spinal deformation have become widespread conditions affecting Nigerians of all ages. Clinical studies and physical assessments across the country reveal that over 65% of citizens regularly endure severe postural strain caused by standard, unergonomic furniture. The cumulative impact of sitting on poorly designed seats begins in early childhood, worsens throughout secondary and university education, and culminates in debilitating musculoskeletal disorders during peak working years.

The evidence of early postural damage is clearly documented in primary school classrooms across North-Central Nigeria. A 2026 study conducted by Abdulraheem and Abdulrasak from the University of Ilorin, published in the Journal of Environmental Spectrum, evaluated six hundred and twelve primary school pupils aged six to twelve years across Ilorin Metropolis. The researchers measured key physical body dimensions against standard classroom furniture parameters and discovered alarming physical mismatches. Seat height exceeded the lower leg height in 68 % of pupils, desk height exceeded sitting elbow height in 74%, and seat depth exceeded buttock to popliteal length in 59%. These physical incompatibilities forced young children into forward trunk flexion, unnatural shoulder elevation, and dangling feet without ground support. The study established that exposure to unergonomic furniture during formative physical growth creates a direct foundation for long-term spinal misalignments.

As students progress into secondary education, the physical strain intensifies due to the widespread practice of supplying identical furniture sizes to growing adolescents. A 2023 study led by Dr. Aiyegbusi and his colleagues at the University of Lagos examined secondary school classrooms in Lagos State. The researchers found that manufacturing homogeneous furniture without considering adolescent growth variations creates severe anthropometric mismatches. This continuous physical mismatch was identified as a direct primary risk factor for adolescent spinal deformities, establishing a pattern of postural overload that students carry into adulthood. Meanwhile, by the time young adults transition into the corporate workforce, decades of uncorrected seating strain manifest as chronic medical conditions. A 2021 investigation conducted by Salihu and colleagues from the National Orthopaedic Hospital Dala in Kano surveyed three hundred office workers across the Kano metropolis. The researchers found a 65.3% prevalence of active low back pain among office staff. Furthermore, 68% of respondents reported suffering from previous musculoskeletal disorders, with 54.4% specifically reporting persistent hip pain. The study highlighted that only 33.7% of office workers maintained proper seating posture and 37.7% had access to an ergonomic chair, demonstrating a widespread lack of supportive seating in Nigerian workplaces.

Addressing this national health challenge requires a clear understanding of how health-focused seating differs from conventional/traditional furniture. In an interview conducted with Mr Endurance Thompson Ukoyo, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Thekan Ergonomic Chairs and Table, he highlighted the fundamental difference between ordinary office seating and engineered ergonomic solutions. Unfortunately, it has taken us decades in Nigeria to fully absorb and understand the difference between basic furniture and specialised seating. People often use the blanket term ‘office furniture’ when referring to chairs and tables, without realising there are distinct functional categories. Standard furniture simply provides a place to sit, whereas ergonomic furniture is health-focused. It is engineered to enhance productivity, manage space effectively, and support human anatomy. Just as smartphones replaced basic mobile phones to offer advanced capabilities, ergonomic furniture has emerged to deliver measurable medical, ergonomic, and productivity benefits in the workplace.

Mr Ukoyo explained that the modern Nigerian workday combines extended desk hours with daily commutes, multiplying the risk of physical degeneration over a career. Many professionals do not realise the severe threat posed by spending 8 to 12 hours daily sitting at a desk under work pressure. Prolonged sitting causes physical degeneration and contributes to abdominal weight gain, which people often misattribute solely to diet or lifestyle choices. To compound the issue, after spending 8 to 10 hours seated in an office, workers commute home in Lagos traffic, spending another 3 to 4 hours in the exact same sitting position inside a car. Upon arriving home, they sit in front of the TV to eat dinner and then go straight to bed. This sedentary lifestyle accumulates over 10, 20, or 30 years. Upon retirement, or even after just a decade of work, individuals experience severe chronic waist pain, back pain, knee issues, reduced mobility, and obesity.

The medical effectiveness of ergonomic seating interventions is supported by clinical research in southern Nigeria. A 2023 experimental trial conducted by Ubom Achalu from the Department of Health Education at the University of Port Harcourt, published in the Partners Universal International Innovation Journal, evaluated fifty patients suffering from chronic back conditions at the University of Port Harcourt Teaching Hospital. The trial demonstrated that introducing adjustable ergonomic chairs, height-adjustable desks, anti-fatigue mats, and structured posture education significantly promoted proper spinal alignment and brought about measurable reductions in low back pain among both outpatient and spine physiotherapy groups. Technological advancements in active workspace design are also helping professionals maintain continuous spinal health. Modern ergonomic seating features multi-directional adjustments including four-dimensional armrests, adjustable seat depth, dynamic recline mechanisms, and customisable lumbar supports that adapt to individual spinal curves.

In addition, automated smart power tables incorporate built-in height controls that automatically raise the desk to a standing position after two or three hours of sitting. This automated feature encourages workers to alternate between sitting and standing, stimulating blood circulation and relieving continuous pressure on the lumbar spine throughout the working day. Despite these proven health benefits, financial perceptions remain a primary barrier to widespread adoption in Nigeria. Standard office chairs sell for fifty thousand to one hundred thousand Naira, whereas high-quality ergonomic chairs range between seven hundred thousand and one point five million Naira. Mr Ukoyo addressed this price gap by contrasting the initial purchase price with the long-term cost of medical treatments.

In Nigeria, prospective buyers often ask why they should spend 700,000 Naira or 1.5 million Naira on an ergonomic chair when they can buy a standard chair for 50,000 Naira or 100,000 Naira. While they may look similar visually, functionally they are completely different. Ergonomic chairs are engineered to align joints, support spinal curvature, and prevent muscular strain. After visiting orthopedic hospitals and witnessing patients undergoing knee replacements, hip replacements, and severe spinal surgeries, my perspective changed. Many individuals spend millions in healthcare costs for preventable conditions that stemmed from decades of poor seating. It is surprising that people readily spend 20 million Naira to 30 million Naira on luxury vehicles or high-end real estate, yet hesitate to invest 700,000 Naira in an ergonomic chair that directly protects their daily health and physical mobility.

To make health-engineered furniture accessible across different income levels, manufacturers have developed practical financial solutions. These include tiered product models that preserve core anatomical lumbar support, flexible installment plans for verified employees, and four-year buyback programmes that allow customers to trade in used chairs for upgrade credits. To build local technical capacity and reduce dependence on expensive imports, domestic producers have partnered with public institutions. Government collaboration is vital. We have partnered successfully with the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to establish a technical training and manufacturing facility in Akwa Ibom State. We brought in international experts from the US and India to train Nigerian youth in specialized manufacturing skills and build local industrial capacity.

Ongoing academic collaborations between manufacturing firms and Nigerian tertiary institutions, such as postgraduate thesis research at the University of Lagos, continue to build local scientific data on workspace ergonomics. As public health awareness grows, experts emphasize that addressing back pain requires systemic policy changes, including enforcing anthropometric furniture standards in public schools and prioritizing locally manufactured ergonomic products in government procurement. Protecting spinal health from childhood through adult employment is essential to securing the long-term well-being and economic productivity of the nation.

Failing to prioritize proper ergonomics shortens productive careers and forces people to spend their retirement and savings in hospitals treating preventable spinal injuries. You do not need to suffer through that.

Nigerian equities market recorded a marginal recovery on Wednesday, as gains in select heavyweight stocks lifted the benchmark NGX All-Share Index by 0.02 per cent to 254,289.35 points, despite continued selling pressure across a larger number of stocks.

The modest appreciation increased the market’s year-to-date return to 63.41 per cent, while market capitalisation rose by N28.66 billion to close at N165.11 trillion.

However, the positive index performance masked weak underlying market sentiment, as declining stocks significantly outnumbered gainers, reflecting investors’ cautious positioning and sustained profit-taking in several equities.

Market breadth closed negative at 0.6x, with 32 stocks recording losses against 19 advancers. Fortis Global Insurance, Vitafoam and UPDCREIT led the decliners, indicating that the marginal market recovery was concentrated in selected stocks rather than broad-based buying interest.

Sectoral performance was mixed, with four of the six sectoral indices closing in positive territory.

The Commodities index led the gainers, appreciating by 0.22 per cent, followed by Consumer Goods, which advanced 0.18 per cent.

The Banking index gained 0.03 per cent, while Oil and Gas edged up 0.02 per cent. In contrast, the Insurance index declined by 1.15 per cent, emerging as the worst-performing sector, while the Industrial index closed unchanged.

Trading activity presented a mixed picture, with the value and number of transactions declining despite a marginal increase in traded volume.

Market turnover fell by 52.38 per cent to ?22.61 billion, while the number of deals dropped by 27.65 per cent to 39,078 transactions. Volume, however, increased by 1.58 per cent, suggesting that the higher number of shares traded did not translate into stronger transaction value.

The combination of negative market breadth and declining turnover points to a market recovery that remains fragile, with investors yet to demonstrate broad-based conviction.

Analysts at Cowry noted that going forward, selective accumulation of fundamentally sound stocks could provide support for the market, although persistent selling pressure and weak investor sentiment may limit the scope for further gains in the near term.