Category: Nigerian Tribune

Nigerian physician-scientist, Dr Abdulsalam Aliyu, has highlighted the prevalence and health burden of bowel disorders in two studies presented at the IBS Days 2026 conference in Bologna, Italy.

The conference, held from June 15 to 17 at Palazzo Re Enzo, featured research on gastrointestinal symptoms and disorders of gut-brain interaction.

Aliyu is a postdoctoral research fellow in neurogastroenterology at the Department of Molecular and Clinical Medicine, Sahlgrenska Academy, University of Gothenburg, Sweden, where his research focuses on gastrointestinal symptoms and disorders of gut-brain interaction.

In the first study, Aliyu and his colleagues examined incomplete bowel emptying among 825 adults in Sweden who reported bowel symptoms.

The researchers found that 82 per cent of the participants experienced incomplete bowel emptying at least occasionally, while 37 per cent of those who reported the symptom experienced it frequently.

The study also found that frequent incomplete bowel emptying occurred across different bowel habits and was reported by 61 per cent of participants with irritable bowel syndrome.

According to the findings, increasing frequency of the symptom was associated with more severe bowel, psychological and non-gastrointestinal symptoms, as well as poorer quality of life.

The researchers said incomplete bowel emptying should not be dismissed as a minor complaint or considered only in patients with constipation.

They recommended that clinicians routinely ask patients about the symptom when assessing different bowel disorders and consider its effects on their overall well-being.

In the second study, Aliyu and an international team examined the prevalence and burden of disorders of gut-brain interaction in Nigeria using data from the Rome Foundation Global Epidemiology Study.

The population-based study involved 1,632 adults across Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones and found that 23.5 per cent, or nearly one in four participants, met the criteria for at least one disorder of gut-brain interaction.

The prevalence was higher among women, at 26.1 per cent, than men, at 21 per cent. The study also found a higher prevalence in northern Nigeria than in the southern regions.

The most common conditions identified included functional dyspepsia, unspecified functional bowel disorder, functional constipation and irritable bowel syndrome.

Participants with the disorders reported poorer physical and mental quality of life, more psychological and non-gastrointestinal symptoms, and greater use of healthcare services.

The findings highlighted the need for government and public health authorities to give greater attention to bowel disorders in health education, clinical training and healthcare planning.

Public awareness programmes could help people recognise persistent symptoms, reduce stigma and seek appropriate medical care rather than rely solely on self-medication.

The researchers also called for adequate support and training for clinicians to recognise disorders of gut-brain interaction and assess their physical and psychological effects.

They recommended further studies to investigate the regional differences identified in Nigeria and determine how diet, healthcare access, socioeconomic conditions and other factors influence the disorders.

They further urged medical institutions and funding agencies to support larger African studies to ensure that diagnostic and treatment strategies reflect the experiences of local populations rather than rely predominantly on evidence from Europe and North America.

The two studies underscore the impact of bowel symptoms on patients’ health and daily lives, while highlighting opportunities to improve research, diagnosis and patient care.

The Ondo State Government has commenced a free trade test and certification programme for 500 young artisans as part of efforts to improve their employability, promote entrepreneurship and strengthen the state’s skilled workforce.

The programme, organised by the Ondo State Board for Adult, Technical and Vocational Education in collaboration with the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment and the German Centre for Migration and Development, is designed to formally recognise practical skills acquired by artisans outside the conventional education system.

Flagging off the programme in Akure, Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa described the initiative as a strategic intervention in youth empowerment and sustainable economic development.

Aiyedatiwa, represented by the Secretary to the State Government, Taiwo Fasoranti, said technical and vocational skills were critical to economic growth, noting that artisans such as electricians, automobile technicians and other skilled workers played important roles in driving economic activities and improving livelihoods.

He said acquiring skills without formal recognition could limit the opportunities available to artisans, stressing that certification would provide evidence of competence and increase the confidence of employers and customers.

‘Skills must not only be acquired, they must also be properly assessed, recognised and certified. Certification provides artisans with evidence of competence and gives prospective employers and customers greater confidence in their abilities,’ he said.

The governor said the certification would make the beneficiaries more competitive and enable them to access employment opportunities, expand their businesses and contribute more effectively to the state’s economy.

He urged the beneficiaries to see their certificates as evidence of competence and professionalism rather than mere documents, charging them to use their skills responsibly and continually improve their expertise.

Also speaking, the Minister of Labour and Employment, Muhammadu Maigari, represented by the Ondo State Controller of the ministry, Mrs Olanike Mogboruko, said the changing nature of the global labour market had increased the demand for technical and vocational skills.

She identified renewable energy, particularly solar technology, as an emerging area with significant opportunities for skills development, entrepreneurship and employment.

‘The world of work is changing rapidly, and the demand for technical and vocational skills continues to increase,’ she said.

She added that solar energy and related renewable technologies were becoming increasingly important as alternative energy sources and areas of economic opportunity.

The Senior Special Assistant to the Governor on Vocational and Technical Education, Tayo Oluyi, said the programme was introduced to formally recognise artisans who had acquired practical skills but lacked government-approved certificates to advance their careers.

Oluyi said the absence of certification had limited the ability of some skilled artisans to secure employment with industries and other relevant organisations.

‘The essence of this certification is to address the situation of artisans who are truly skilled but have no certification that could advance their careers and make them more employable by industries and relevant agencies,’ he said.

He explained that the beneficiaries were selected through an online application process conducted in line with federal guidelines, adding that applicants between 18 and 35 years were considered.

Oluyi disclosed that the state government was also expanding opportunities for young people through specialised vocational training programmes.

He said the government, in collaboration with ISA Public Health Services, was training 50 automobile technicians in compressed natural gas conversion and maintenance.

According to him, vocational and technical institutions in the state currently offer training in trades including electrical installation, welding and fabrication, motor mechanics, refrigeration and air-conditioning, solar photovoltaic installation, computer hardware maintenance, plumbing, tiling, GSM repairs and agriculture.

He said the expansion of training and certification programmes was part of the government’s efforts to equip young people with practical skills that could translate into employment, self-reliance and entrepreneurship.

The Supreme Court’s latest decision on key provisions of the Electoral Act 2026 may have opened a fresh chapter in the legal battles surrounding some candidates ahead of the 2027 general elections.

On Thursday, a seven-member panel of the apex court, led by Justice Adamu Jauro, restored Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act after setting aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal which had declared the provisions unconstitutional.

The court consequently restored the judgment of the Federal High Court, which had dismissed a suit filed by the Zenith Labour Party (ZLP) challenging the provisions, and awarded N2 million costs against the party.

The Supreme Court ruling did not disqualify any candidate.

However, its restoration of the disputed provisions means that the nomination of some candidates may now face closer scrutiny, particularly where questions arise over party membership, the timing of defections, membership registers submitted to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), or the manner in which candidates emerged from their parties’ nomination processes.

Among those whose nominations may attract attention are All Progressives Congress (APC) governorship candidate in Rivers State, Kingsley Chinda; Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) governorship candidate in Gombe State, Isa Pantami; former deputy Senate president, Ovie Omo-Agege; former Delta State House of Assembly Speaker, Victor Ochei; and former Cross River State governor, Donald Duke, the Peoples Redemption Party (PRP) presidential candidate.

Their circumstances are different, but each case raises questions around party membership, nomination or the use of waivers – issues that have become more significant following the Supreme Court judgment.

What the Supreme Court restored

Section 77(5) of the Electoral Act provides that only members whose names are contained in a political party’s membership register submitted to INEC at least 21 days before a primary, congress or convention can participate in the exercise.

Section 77(6) requires parties to use the register submitted to the electoral commission for their primaries, congresses and conventions.

Section 77(7) provides that a party which fails to submit its membership register within the stipulated period cannot field a candidate for the election.

Section 84(2), meanwhile, provides that political parties shall nominate candidates through direct primaries or consensus.

The provisions had been declared unconstitutional by the Court of Appeal in July, but the Supreme Court has now affirmed their validity.

The practical effect is that parties and candidates may have to answer questions about compliance with the provisions where a nomination is challenged.

Kingsley Chinda

In Rivers State, the nomination of APC governorship candidate Kingsley Chinda may attract attention.

Chinda, a member of the House of Representatives and an ally of FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, emerged as the APC candidate on May 21.

His movement from the PDP to the APC and the timing of his membership have generated questions, particularly concerning the party register submitted to INEC.

Chinda appeared before the APC screening committee shortly before the governorship primary, while his resignation as minority leader of the House of Representatives became public in June. Speaker Tajudeen Abbas said the resignation letter was dated April 23, 2026.

The key question is whether the relevant party membership and registration requirements were met at the time of the APC nomination process.

However, reports of a possible legal challenge should not be treated as a judicial finding against Chinda. The Supreme Court did not determine his membership status or the validity of his nomination.

Isa Pantami

The case of former Minister of Communications and Digital Economy, Isa Pantami, is also noteworthy.

Pantami withdrew from the APC governorship primary in Gombe on May 19 before leaving the party for the PDP, where he subsequently emerged as the governorship candidate through a voice-affirmation process.

Two PDP aspirants, Hamisu Mailantarki and Usman Garry, challenged his emergence, arguing, among other things, that he had not participated in the earlier screening process.

Last week, the Federal High Court in Gombe nullified Pantami’s nomination and ordered the PDP to conduct a fresh primary.

The party has scheduled September 29 for the fresh exercise.

Pantami’s case therefore goes beyond the Supreme Court ruling itself, as there is already a separate court decision concerning his nomination. Questions about his membership status and the circumstances surrounding his movement into the PDP could form part of the wider legal conversation around the nomination.

Ovie Omo-Agege

Former deputy Senate president Ovie Omo-Agege is another candidate whose nomination has attracted attention following the ruling.

Omo-Agege contested the APC’s Delta Central senatorial primary in May but lost to Ede Dafinone.

He subsequently resigned from the APC on May 22 and joined the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).

The NDC later granted him a waiver to contest its Delta Central senatorial ticket, which he secured through a consensus arrangement.

The questions surrounding his nomination centre largely on the timing of his movement from the APC to the NDC and the circumstances under which the waiver and subsequent nomination were granted.

Omo-Agege has, however, said the Supreme Court judgment did not disqualify him from the 2027 race.

In a statement issued through his media aide, he said the court made no order against him and that his name was contained in the NDC membership register submitted to INEC before the relevant deadline.

Victor Ochei

Former Delta State House of Assembly Speaker Victor Ochei is in a somewhat similar situation.

Ochei left the APC after its nomination process and joined the NDC in May.

The NDC subsequently approved a waiver allowing him to participate in its Delta North senatorial nomination process, where he emerged as the candidate through a consensus arrangement.

His case raises questions about the relationship between party waivers and the statutory requirements contained in Sections 77 and 84.

Donald Duke

Former Cross River State governor Donald Duke is another candidate whose nomination may attract scrutiny under the restored provisions.

Duke joined the PRP shortly before the party’s May 25 presidential primary and subsequently emerged as its presidential candidate.

His emergence was later challenged by PRP aspirant Yakubu Kingsley at the Federal High Court.

Kingsley alleged that Duke was not a member of the party when the membership register was submitted to INEC on May 4, 21 days before the primary.

Judgment in the case has been reserved for November 2.

The Supreme Court ruling does not determine the outcome of that case. Rather, the restored provisions provide part of the statutory framework against which the membership and nomination questions may be considered.

What the ruling means for the candidates

For all five candidates, one distinction remains important: the Supreme Court did not rule on their individual nominations.

The apex court determined the constitutional validity of the disputed provisions. Whether a particular candidate complied with those provisions is a separate question that would have to be established from the facts of each case and, where challenged, determined through the appropriate legal process.

Lawyer and policy specialist Yusuf Manjo said the relevant questions include whether the candidate met the applicable requirements for party membership, participated in the relevant nomination process, emerged through a valid primary and satisfied the statutory requirements for nomination.

He also cautioned against treating every party waiver as capable of overriding a statutory requirement.

Where a waiver concerns an internal party rule, the party’s constitution and guidelines may determine whether it is permissible. But where the requirement is imposed directly by legislation, a party cannot necessarily override it simply by granting a waiver.

More candidates could come under scrutiny

The implications may not end with the five candidates already attracting public attention.

With most political parties having completed their primaries, questions could emerge in other states where politicians defected shortly before nomination exercises, joined new parties after membership registers had been submitted or secured tickets through waivers or consensus arrangements.

The restored provisions could also become relevant in disputes involving substitutions, fresh primaries and candidates who emerged from factional party arrangements.

But such cases will depend heavily on their individual facts.

As legal practitioners have pointed out, the Supreme Court’s judgment is not itself a blanket disqualification order. A candidate’s fate cannot be determined simply by establishing that the person changed parties or received a waiver. The timing, membership register, applicable party rules, nomination process and specific statutory requirements would all have to be examined.

A new legal chapter before 2027

With the Supreme Court ruling settling the constitutional validity of Sections 77 and 84, attention is now likely to move from whether the provisions are valid to whether individual parties and candidates complied with them.

That could make party membership registers an increasingly important document in the months leading to the 2027 elections.

For candidates whose nominations are questioned, the next stage may therefore be determined less by political arguments and more by dates, documents, party records and the circumstances in which their tickets were secured.

For now, however, the five candidates remain candidates unless and until a competent court makes a specific determination concerning their nominations.

Ogun State Governor, Dapo Abiodun, has announced that construction of the over $7 billion Gateway Deep Sea Port and Ogun State Blue Marine Special Economic Zone in Ogun Waterside Local Government Area will begin in November.

Abiodun said the project would move into the construction phase immediately after its groundbreaking ceremony, with substantial completion expected within two and a half years.

The governor disclosed this while speaking to All Progressives Congress (APC) stakeholders in Ijebu East and Ijebu North Local Government Areas, shortly after signing a Memorandum of Understanding with DP World MEA FZE in Paris, France, in the presence of President Bola Tinubu.

‘By November, we will perform the groundbreaking and the construction will start immediately. In two and a half years, that port will almost be completed 100 per cent,’ Abiodun said.

The Gateway Deep Sea Port is being developed in partnership with DP World, a major global port operator, as part of efforts to expand Ogun State’s maritime infrastructure and create new opportunities for investment and economic growth.

Abiodun said the port had remained largely unrealised for more than 30 years despite its potential, but his administration had revived the project as part of its broader plan to attract investments and strengthen the state’s economy.

He described the project as an example of his administration’s focus on turning development plans into completed projects.

‘Governance is about vision and implementation,’ the governor said, adding that the project would position Ogun as a major maritime destination in Africa.

‘Ogun State will become the marine capital of Africa, the marine hub of West Africa, meaning that the biggest ships in the world, when they are coming to Africa, will first come to Ogun Waterside.’

‘Ogun State will become the marine capital of Africa, the marine hub of West Africa, meaning that the biggest ships in the world, when they are coming to Africa, will first come to Ogun Waterside.’

Abiodun also pointed to crude oil resources in other parts of Ogun, including Odogbolu, saying the state government would continue to pursue ways of converting its natural resources into opportunities for economic development.

Nigerian Exchange Group (NGX Group) and the Nairobi Securities Exchange (NSE) are stepping up efforts to deepen cross-border capital-market integration, with both exchanges exploring stronger links that could enable companies and investors to access opportunities beyond their domestic markets.

The latest push emerged from a high-level investor engagement in Nairobi on Tuesday, hosted by the NSE as part of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery IPO, where Nigerian and Kenyan market stakeholders discussed ways to strengthen connections between the two markets and promote wider collaboration across Africa.

Aliko Dangote, President and Chief Executive Officer of Dangote Industries Limited, used the occasion to commend Umaru Kwairanga, Group Chairman of NGX Group, and Temi Popoola, Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of NGX Group, for advancing collaboration among African capital-market institutions.

Dangote said deeper cooperation among African exchanges could allow companies operating across the continent to raise capital in multiple markets rather than restricting their capital-market presence to their home countries.

He pointed to the planned Dangote refinery project in Mokowe, Lamu, as an example of the cross-border opportunities that could emerge from stronger integration between African capital markets.

According to him, companies with significant operations in different African markets should have the opportunity to consider listings in more than one market.

The Nairobi engagement builds on a strategic meeting convened by NGX Group in Lagos in April, which brought together leaders of major African exchanges to examine cross-border market connectivity and ways of strengthening cooperation among capital-market institutions across the continent.

Popoola said the objective of the initiative goes beyond the Dangote refinery transaction, describing the Nigeria-Kenya engagement as an initial step towards developing a broader continental framework for capital-market cooperation.

‘When we began this engagement, our objective was continental: to bring African exchanges together and explore how we can create stronger connections between African capital markets,’ Popoola said.

‘Kenya represents an important first step in translating that ambition into practical collaboration. We see this engagement with the Nairobi Securities Exchange as a model that can be strengthened and potentially replicated across other markets on the continent.’

While the Dangote Petroleum Refinery offer provides a practical platform for the Nigeria-Kenya engagement, stakeholders said the broader objective is to strengthen relationships between African exchanges and facilitate greater cross-border access to capital-market opportunities.

The initiative also comes against the backdrop of existing continental efforts, including the African Exchanges Linkage Project (AELP), which seeks to improve connectivity and facilitate cross-border trading and investment among participating African exchanges.

The planned groundbreaking of Dangote’s proposed 700,000-barrel-per-day refinery in Lamu further highlights the potential scale of Nigeria-Kenya economic and investment links.

The project is intended to serve the East African market, creating a business connection between Nigeria and Kenya that extends beyond capital markets into the wider investment and industrial landscape.

Popoola said NGX Group intends to build on the Kenya engagement and develop a model that could be extended to other African markets.

‘We see the work with Kenya as a prototype for how African markets can support greater connectivity among themselves. This is an important step towards facilitating cross-border access to capital-market opportunities, with the potential to scale across West Africa and the wider continent,’ he said.

Frank Mwiti, Chief Executive Officer of the Nairobi Securities Exchange, also commended NGX Group for facilitating the engagement.

Mwiti said stronger collaboration among African exchanges could deepen relationships between markets, encourage the exchange of expertise and create additional opportunities for investors and issuers across the continent.

The discussions therefore place the Nigeria-Kenya market relationship within a broader effort to improve the ability of African companies to raise capital and investors to access investment opportunities across national borders.

The Ogun State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has dismissed claims challenging the eligibility of its 2027 governorship candidate, Hon. Oladipupo Adebutu, describing the allegation that his name was omitted from the party’s official membership register as baseless and unfounded.

The party, in a statement issued by the State Publicity Secretary, Architect Kayode Adebayo, clarified that Adebutu remained a fully registered, financially compliant and undisputed leader of the party in Ogun State.

Adebayo was reacting to a report being circulated by the Ogun Democratic Accountability Forum (ODAF) alleging that Adebutu’s name was not on the party’s membership register.

The party affirmed that all legal and statutory requirements under the Electoral Act regarding party registration and the submission of membership registers to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) were strictly satisfied within the stipulated deadlines.

The party maintained that the narrative claiming Adebutu was disqualified was a sponsored smear campaign allegedly designed by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and its proxy groups to create artificial panic among the electorate and distract from what it described as key political vulnerabilities ahead of the election.

Adebayo said the primary motivation behind the alleged false narrative was to cover up unresolved questions surrounding the indigeneship status of Senator Solomon Olamilekan Adeola, popularly known as Yayi.

The party noted that, after decades of representing Lagos State in the legislature, Senator Adeola’s shift of political base to Ogun State remained a critical vulnerability that the APC was allegedly desperate to conceal.

Furthermore, the PDP alleged that the propaganda was engineered to bury mounting public scrutiny over the alleged diversion of federal constituency projects meant for other states to Ogun State, a tactic the party claimed was used to falsely project administrative achievements and deceive the people of Ogun State.

Rejecting the legal assertions made by ODAF regarding Supreme Court rulings and nomination fee payments, the party emphasised that political eligibility was governed by the Constitution and the Electoral Act rather than press statements issued by politically aligned groups.

The PDP urged INEC to ignore pressure from political proxies, reassuring supporters across Ogun State that Adebutu’s nomination process remained intact and that he remained fully eligible to contest the 2027 governorship race.

Deputy Director of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Dr Michael Ononugbo, has attributed the difficulty faced by farmers in accessing finance to weak agricultural infrastructure, inadequate research funding and other structural challenges within the sector.

Ononugbo said expanding the volume of credit available to agriculture would not be enough to address the financing challenges confronting farmers and rural businesses if other constraints affecting production were left unresolved.

He made the submission at the National Close Out Conference of the Global Project for the Promotion of Agricultural Finance for Agri-based Enterprises in Rural Areas, known as GP AgFin Nigeria, held in Abuja.

The eight-year project, funded by the German government and commissioned by the Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development, was implemented by the Deutsche Gesellschaft fr Internationale Zusammenarbeit, GIZ.

The intervention reached 101,449 farmers and agribusinesses across 10 states during its implementation period.

Ononugbo said, many smallholder farmers and rural enterprises operate under conditions that make them difficult customers for conventional financial institutions.

He identified fragmented farmland, poor access to technology, inadequate infrastructure and storage facilities, exposure to climate related risks and fluctuations in commodity prices among the factors affecting agricultural businesses.

He added that many farmers lacked proper financial records and sufficient collateral, while limited information about their businesses created additional difficulties for lenders.

These conditions, he said, had left many agricultural producers without adequate access to formal financial services despite the importance of agriculture to the economy.

Speaking on the theme: ‘From Access to Impact: Embedding Agricultural Finance in Nigeria’s Economic Policy Architecture’, Ononugbo said attention should shift from simply increasing the supply of agricultural credit to ensuring that available financing was designed around the realities of farmers.

He noted that some agricultural financing arrangements could fail to deliver the desired results when funds were provided at the wrong time, structured poorly, priced beyond the capacity of borrowers or disconnected from the production cycle.

The CBN official, who also serves as Special Assistant in the Office of the Deputy Governor, Economic Policy Directorate, said the country needed to examine the broader factors affecting agricultural productivity alongside efforts to expand lending.

He particularly called for increased investment in agricultural research and innovation, questioning the proportion of agricultural financing directed towards research.

Ononugbo said inadequate funding for research could prevent the country from developing new technologies, production methods and other solutions capable of improving agricultural productivity.

He stressed that sustained investment in research was necessary if Nigeria was to generate innovative approaches to the challenges facing its agricultural sector.

Also speaking at the conference, the Cluster Coordinator for GIZ’s Transformation of Agri Food Systems programme, Dr Andrea Rdiger, said the GP AgFin Nigeria project had demonstrated that targeted interventions could help bring farmers and financial institutions closer together.

Rdiger said the next step was to ensure that the lessons and approaches developed through the project became part of the regular operations of financial institutions and relevant government policies.

She also called for stronger integration of the project’s experience into efforts to improve compliance with the CBN’s agricultural lending target.

According to her, the number of financial service users reached through the project increased from 1,260 in 2020 to more than 101,000 by the middle of 2026.

She said the value of loans disbursed also increased from pound 776,000 in 2021 to pound 53.9 million.

Rdiger disclosed that 11 financial institutions had received support to develop agricultural finance products, while 19 of the 22 products tested through the project had been permanently incorporated into the portfolios of partner institutions.

Women represented 53 per cent of those who received financial literacy training under the intervention, although women and young people continued to face difficulties accessing formal credit.

The project is expected to formally close in October 2026, with its tools, partnerships and lessons transitioning into GIZ’s Value Chain Enhancement programme, which is funded by the European Union and the German Federal Ministry for Economic Cooperation and Development.

Stakeholders at the conference said maintaining the gains recorded under GP AgFin would depend on incorporating its lessons into Nigeria’s agricultural and broader development policies, as well as ensuring that financial institutions continued to develop products suited to the needs of farmers and rural enterprises.

Two prominent members of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) in Sokoto State, Alhaji Sanusi Mai Kyame and Alhaji Umar Salah, have defected to the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).

Mai Kyame, a former chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in Sokoto North Local Government Area and an ADC chieftain, was received into the APC by the state chairman of the party, Alhaji Haruna Adiya.

He was received alongside the Special Adviser to the Governor on Political Matters, Alhaji Faruku Labbo, and other APC officials.

Similarly, Salah, a former Director General of the ADC, joined the APC and was received by the Chairman of the Sokoto State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB), Alhaji Umaru Nagwari Tambuwal, with the support of the Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education, Prof. Ahmed Ladan Ala.

The defections followed meetings between the two new APC members and Governor Ahmed Aliyu at the Government House, Sokoto, on Saturday.

Speaking after his defection, Mai Kyame attributed his decision to join the APC to what he described as the leadership qualities of Governor Aliyu and his respect for human dignity.

He also cited the transformation and development projects being undertaken by the administration across the state as factors that influenced his decision.

Salah, on his part, said he joined the APC because of what he described as the governor’s transformative agenda and developmental projects aimed at improving the quality of life of residents.

He pledged his support, as well as that of his followers, to the governor ahead of the 2027 general elections.

Receiving Mai Kyame, the APC state chairman, Adiya, commended him for joining the party, describing the decision as wise and a demonstration of his commitment to the development of Sokoto State.

Adiya assured the new entrant that he would be carried along in the affairs of the party, saying the APC in the state was committed to putting the interests of the people first.

Also welcoming Salah into the APC, Tambuwal assured him of equal treatment, stressing that there was no discrimination among members of the party.

He commended Governor Aliyu for what he described as his achievements in infrastructure and other sectors across the state.

Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Aladelusi, has commended the Minister of Youth Development, Comrade Ayodele Olawande, for his intervention in the beautification of the palace and redesign of its entrance.

The monarch gave the commendation during the inauguration of the exercise, describing the project as a significant gesture towards preserving the cultural heritage of Akure Kingdom.

According to him, the intervention, undertaken by the minister with the support of the 10th anniversary coronation committee, forms part of ongoing efforts to renovate and beautify the historic palace.

Oba Aladelusi said the project will help project the palace and its heritage to residents, visitors and younger generations, urging other indigenes, public officials and corporate organisations to support similar initiatives.

He stressed that preserving the palace was a collective responsibility, particularly as urban development continues to reshape the city, and expressed hope that the project will attract further interventions.

Speaking on the initiative, Olawande said his decision was informed by the historical and cultural importance of the palace to the people of Akure.

He described the palace as more than the residence of the Deji, as it remains a living symbol of the history, traditions and identity of the Akure people.

Olawande said the renovation was intended to demonstrate respect for the traditional institution and preserve the heritage for younger generations, adding that the redesign would retain the palace’s cultural character.

He noted that the palace had served generations of traditional rulers and remained central to the cultural life of Akure, making its preservation important to the community.

The palace, which has housed generations of Dejis, is recognised for its historical, architectural and cultural significance and was declared a national historical monument in 1990.

The Managing Director of the North East Development Commission (NEDC), Mohammed Goni, disclosed that the Commission has crossed the N1.5 trillion mark in executed, ongoing and upcoming projects.

Goni, who disclosed this in Abuja while declaring open the 2026 ISO Executive Retreat holding from 28-30 September, 2026, explained that the training was organised for senior management staff to strengthen leadership ownership of the Commission’s Integrated Management System and its application to programme delivery.

While noting that the figure is evidence-based and not based on what he described as ‘imperial declarations’ or assumptions,

He stated: ‘The current value of delivered physical infrastructure, including roads and bridges, stands at about N800 billion, while the addition of projects to be unveiled in the coming days will push the total portfolio to about N1.5 trillion. I just noticed that we have already crossed the N1.5 trillion path. It is an ongoing and upcoming projects.

‘As of today, projects for roads, bridges and other physical infrastructure were at about N800 billion, and by the time we add what we are having now in the next few days, we will be in the range of N1.5 trillion projects. I don’t think any other state government can boast of this kind of level of activities,’ he stated.

Goni explained that the e-banking project, which is scheduled for commissioning in the next few weeks will cost about N200 billion.

He further disclosed that the second major project is the deployment of 50 megawatts mini-grid, which he described as unprecedented at sub-national level.

Goni added: ‘At the last board meeting, we made a very big pronouncement on deployment of mini-grids – 50 megawatts. It is a big one. I don’t think any state or any region has that kind of localized energy infrastructure.

‘The e-banking will consume about N200 billion, the mini-grid will also consume something very close to that,’ he said.

Asked why the commission was holding another retreat in Abuja after the Maiduguri Excellence Forum retreat, Goni explained that the two events were part of the same institutional improvement process.

According to him, Maiduguri focused on practical application among staff at Levels 6-13. Abuja brings senior management together to focus on leadership ownership, accountability, governance and sustainable programme delivery.

The NEDC helmsman stressed that the management training programme combined learning with practical problem-solving using real institutional and programme-delivery issues.

Recall that the Commission recently secured certification to five management system standards covering quality management, environmental management, occupational health and safety, anti-bribery management and sustainable development in communities.

While describing the certifications as a significant milestone, the Commission said the priority now is to ensure that the standards become firmly embedded in its leadership processes, organisational culture, risk management and implementation of development programmes.

According to him, while the Master Plan identifies key development priorities, effective management systems provide the framework for planning, coordination, accountability, risk management, performance monitoring and continuous improvement.

In her remarks, Acting Head of the Governance and Compliance Service Reforms Unit, Fatima Dalhatu, said the retreat was designed to shift the focus from merely understanding ISO standards to taking ownership of their implementation.

Dalhatu explained that ISO standards should not be viewed as a separate requirement but as a framework for strengthening service delivery and advancing the objectives contained in the North-East Master Plan.

She stressed the importance of senior management ownership, noting that although the Governance and Compliance Service is responsible for coordinating the management systems, senior managers must ensure that the standards are effectively implemented within their respective areas of responsibility.