Category: PM News

Nigerian troops have foiled cattle rustling operation and recovered more than 500 cattle in Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The troops, from Sector 1, Operation Fansan Yamma Joint Task Force North West stopped the plan to steal the cattle on Tuesday.

The operation followed a distress call from residents over cattle rustling at Rugar Mande Kurmin community of the Igabi Local Government Area, Lt.-Col. Aliyu Danja, Media Information Officer of the Joint Task Force, disclosed in a statement on Tuesday in Kaduna.

He said that upon receiving the distress call, the troops swiftly mobilised to the suspected withdrawal routes of the terrorists and established blocking positions.

He said the troops engaged the terrorists from multiple positions, forcing them to withdraw in disarray and abandon the rustled cattle.

According to him, all the recovered cattle were subsequently handed over to their respective owners.

The media officer said the successful operation further demonstrated the troops’ commitment to protecting lives and property and disrupting criminal activities across the Joint Operations Area.

He urged members of the public to continue providing security agencies with timely and relevant information to enable the military to eradicate terrorist elements within the Joint Operations Area.

Danja reaffirmed the commitment of Operation Fansan Yamma to denying criminal elements freedom of action across the Joint Operations Area.

The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested and repatriated a suspected drug kingpin, Festus Ibewuike, alias Chidibest Ibewuike, who had been on the run for more than two years following the seizure of 49.70kg of heroin at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos.

The NDLEA spokesman, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja, saying Ibewuike was arrested at the airport in Cotonou, Benin Republic, on September 2, 2026, following actionable intelligence.

Babafemi said Ibewuike was subsequently handed over to a team of NDLEA operatives deployed to Cotonou on September 4, following collaboration between the Agency and the INTERPOL National Central Bureaus in Nigeria and Benin Republic.

He stated that the suspect was thereafter conveyed to Nigeria to face charges over his alleged involvement in the trafficking syndicate behind the 49.70kg heroin consignment.

According to Babafemi, the seizure, intercepted in February 2024, was the single largest heroin consignment ever recorded at the Lagos international airport.

He said Ibewuike was one of three suspects declared wanted and charged in absentia after operatives of the Agency’s MMIA Strategic Command carried out a coordinated 12-day operation that led to the interception of the heroin concealed in cartons of metal-cutting machines at the Import Shed of the airport’s cargo terminal.

Babafemi disclosed that Ibewuike had relocated to Mozambique, where he operated a hotel business as a front, while continuing to evade arrest.

He said the operation also led to the arrest of key members of the syndicate, including Ibewuike’s wife, Confidence Ndidiamaka Ibewuike, who routinely received drug-laden parcels marked with the code ‘ND’ on behalf of her husband.

The NDLEA spokesman added that the operation resulted in the freezing of 107 bank accounts and the forfeiture of properties linked to the drug cartel.

Babafemi said the suspects arrested during the operation were subsequently charged before Justice Ambrose Lewis-Allagoa of the Federal High Court, Ikoyi, Lagos, in charge No. FHC/L/205C/2024.

He disclosed that three of the suspects-Adinnu Felix Chinedu, Osita Emmanuel Obinna and Uzochukwu Frankline, had so far been convicted and sentenced by the court.

Babafemi stated that three other suspects-Chidiebere Reginald Peter, Ibewuike Ndidiamaka Confidence and Igbokwuputa Onyinye Ireene, were still standing trial before the court.

He added that three other suspects charged in absentia were Ibewuike Festus, also known as Ibewuike Chidibest; Osita Chidozie Cyril; and one Arinze.

According to Babafemi, Ibewuike had spent more than two years as a fugitive, moving between Mozambique and Nigeria through neighbouring Benin Republic in an attempt to evade Nigerian law enforcement authorities.

He said the suspect was arrested after actionable intelligence established his location, bringing an end to his prolonged flight from justice.

Babafemi disclosed that during preliminary interviews, the 52-year-old suspect confirmed his identity and revealed that he had changed his name from Chidibest Ibewuike to Festus Ibewuike.

He said that on September 5, Ibewuike was taken to the Agency’s Central Exhibit Store in Ikoyi, Lagos, where he formally identified the parcels of heroin bearing the ‘ND’ code that investigators had established were linked to him.

Babafemi further disclosed that investigations revealed that Ibewuike had previously been associated with another drug-related case before the Federal High Court in Lagos.

He said the earlier case, presided over by Justice Hadiza Rabiu Shagari, involved the seizure of 40.255kg of methamphetamine and was filed under charge No. FHC/L/203C/2013.

According to him, the case involved one Chidi Ihedioha, who was subsequently convicted by the court in 2023.

Reacting to the development, NDLEA Chairman and Chief Executive Officer, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd.), described the arrest as a major breakthrough in the Agency’s efforts to track down fleeing drug kingpins.

Marwa said the arrest demonstrated the NDLEA’s resolve to pursue drug barons who believe fleeing the country could place them beyond the reach of the law.

He vowed that the Agency would continue to pursue suspects involved in illicit drug trafficking regardless of how long they remained on the run or where they fled.

‘This arrest is a major breakthrough in our resolve to track down and bring to justice every drug baron who thinks that fleeing Nigeria’s shores puts them beyond the reach of the law,’ Marwa said.

He added: ‘As I have always vowed, the long arm of the NDLEA will catch up with anyone involved in this illicit trade, no matter how long it takes or how far they run.’

Marwa said Ibewuike had spent more than two years hiding under a changed name and a new life abroad but had now been returned to Nigeria to answer questions over the 49.70kg heroin seizure linked to his network.

He warned other fleeing suspects still at large that the Agency would not relent until they were brought to book.

Marwa also commended the multinational cooperation that facilitated Ibewuike’s arrest and transfer to Nigeria, particularly the Nigerian and Beninese INTERPOL National Central Bureaus for their role in ensuring a smooth transfer of custody.

The federal government’s fight against corruption, economic and financial crimes took a whole new dimension from Thursday, October 19, 2023 when Ola Olukoyede took over the reins of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission’s leadership.

Right from the outset, the past 34 months have continuously witnessed reforms and a realignment of the Commission’s operations in sync with its mandate for enhanced professionalism and better enforcement and preventive outcomes.

Within this period, EFCC’s efforts, pursuant to its mandate have strongly taken root in the deployment of the anti-graft fight to catalyse the national economy, enthrone transactional credit system, amplify preventive strategies, drive enforcement on the wheels of the rule of law and reinvent the country’s image.

Olukoyede’s work plan towards the actualisation of the Commission’s mandate translated to resilient enforcement, institutional reforms, enhanced prosecution, better preventive frameworks, massive asset recovery, restitutions to fraud victims, stronger collaboration on both the local and international fronts and standout upshots on all fronts.

For starters, the Commission broke its 23 years monetary asset recovery record in both national and foreign currencies in just 34 months of Olukoyede’s leadership. The same in fixed assets.

Recovery in naira hit a record high of ?1, 233,612,040,411.11, (One Trillion, Two Hundred and Thirty-three Billion, Six Hundred and Twelve Million, Forty Thousand, Four Hundred and Eleven Naira, Eleven Kobo).

In dollars, it hit an all-time high of $684,478,457,32, (Six Hundred and Eighty-four Million, Four Hundred and Seventy-eight Thousand, Four Hundred and Fifty-Seven Dollars, Thirty-two cents).

In Pound Sterling, the recovery hit £373,905.78, (Three Hundred and Seventy-three Thousand, Nine Hundred and five Pounds, Seventy-eight Shillings) while it rose to pound 9,343,803.66 (Nine Million, Three Hundred and Forty-three Thousand, Eight Hundred and three Euros, Sixty-six Cents) in euros.

Out of the naira recovery, approximately ?397.26billion, representing 33 percent was made for the federal government, while the larger chunk of ?836.34billion, representing 67 percent was made for ministries, departments and agencies, state revenue services, corporate entities, Nigerian and foreign victims of fraud.

In setting another record, the Commission secured the forfeiture of 10,053 fixed assets under interim and final court orders within the period. These included 8,198 electronic items, 1,177 real-estate assets, 370 automobiles, 251 plots of land, as well as schools, factories, hotels, shops, oil rigs, barges, machinery, ocean-going vessels and aircraft. And also a forfeiture of 102 tonnes of solid minerals.

On prosecution, the Commission broke yet another of its institutional record, securing 10,872 convictions out of 14,476 cases it filed in court, reflecting a measurable conviction-to-filing ratio of 75.1 per cent. In the first half of 2026 alone, the Commission recorded 1,370 convictions from 1,889 filings.

Faces to the convictions include former minister of power, Saleh Mamman, jailed 75 years for N33.8 billion fraud, former Managing Director, Nigerian Import Export Bank, NEXIM, Robert Orya, jailed 490 years for N2.4 billion fraud and Chukwunyere Nwabuoku, a former acting Accountant General of the Federation, jailed 72 years for N868.4 million Fraud.

Evidential to the Commission’s pursuit of complex and high-profile matters is that it is at the moment prosecuting about 45 high calibre individuals, consisting nine former governors, five former ministers, sixteen former heads of agencies and 13 private sector players for corruption.

The clear message from this, is that in 34 months, the Commission through enforcement and prosecution delivered a huge cleansing of the fiscal space, strengthened federal and sub-national revenue, returned working capital to institutions, companies and citizens, supported financial-market integrity, protected the extractive and digital economies, denied the corrupt and the fraudulent the enjoyment of the proceeds of their unlawful activities and burnished Nigeria’s image.

Beyond the numbers, the EFCC has demonstrated that recovery is only truly meaningful when its value is channelled to public good or returned to victims of fraud and indeed that the national impact of recovery is best felt when proceeds of crime are converted to productive social investment.

This found application in the conversion of the former NOK University, forfeited to the federal government to a Federal University of Applied Sciences, Kachia, Kaduna State, resulting in a total of 1,909 students’ enrolment in the school in December 2025. Apart from opening up the space for more affordable tertiary education, the local economy of the university’s host community will be better energised for it. The news gets even cheerier as another high net worth private university has recently been forfeited to the federal government, through the EFCC. As the federal government has indicated, it will finish the outstanding infrastructure on the over 753 housing units the Commission handed over to it on May 20, 2025 and offer them for sale to the public. The forfeiture of the estate on December 2, 2024, situated on 150,500 square meters in Lokogoma District, Abuja, stands as the EFCC’s largest single asset recovery since its inception in 2003.

In line with Olukoyede’s pitch upon his confirmation by the Senate on October 18, 2003, that a transactional credit system was imperative for the country to stem the tide of corruption and lessen the negative impacts of cash-based economy and its physical currency dominance, the EFCC made a key contribution in the federal government’s establishment of Nigerian Consumer Credit Corporation (CREDICORP) alongside the Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) in August 2024. Both agencies had their start-up capital of N50 billion apiece, drawn from proceeds of crime, recovered by the EFCC. Further funding of the two agencies was subsequently approved in 2026 at also N50 billion each from recovered proceeds of crime by the Commission.

Again, beyond the numbers, NELFUND has disclosed that it has disbursed over N322 billion in loans to more than 1.6 million students, while the CREDICORP said it has disbursed over N37 billion in consumer credit to more than 200,000 civil servants.

The work of the Commission within the period equally contributed to improving the integrity of Nigeria’s financial space. The sustained enforcement in money laundering, terrorist financing, asset freezing, virtual assets and other higher-risk sectors within the period, formed part of Nigeria’s wider national effort at implementing the Financial Action Task Force, FATF, Anti-money Money Laundering and Counter- Terrorism framework that led to Nigeria’s removal from FATF’s Grey List in October 2025.

Olukoyede’s reform and restructuring that repositioned the EFCC in the past 34 months include new guidelines on arrest and bail, a review of the Commission’s sting operations, the establishment of the Department of Fraud Risk Assessment and Control, (FRAC), Security Department, Immigration and Visa Fraud Section, the EFCC 97.3 FM and Cybercrime Rapid Response Centre, (E-C2R2). The E-C2R2 is equipped with hotlines for 24hours uninhibited telephone access for members of the public to fill the Commission in on cyber-enabled financial crimes in both real time and static reporting. At the moment, nearly 60 percent of processes and operations of the EFCC have been digitized.

The Fraud Risk Assessment and Control, (FRAC), deserves a special mention. It is Olukoyede’s shot at corruption and financial crime prevention, which instantly become the Commission’s silver bullet in the examination of the systemic vulnerabilities that allow corruption to fester in MDAs.

The department identifies gaps and vulnerabilities that promote fraud in MDAs, assesses and analyses the identified gaps. It sets a threshold to mitigate the identified gaps and ensures that MDAs take proactive steps at preventing the occurrence of the identified risks through an effective project management mechanism.

It now implements the aspects of the Commission’s Corruption Prevention Strategies that deal with risk-based approaches in the fight against corruption, economic and financial crimes. It drives the Commission’s corruption and financial crime preventive measures that are tailored for budget monitoring and implementation in MDAs.

It focuses attention on the budgets of the three arms of government with real time monitoring and tracking of their allocations. With FRAC, the EFCC goes into MDAs and monitors in real time the implementation of their budgets and follows the trail of their allocations as the money is being released. With FRAC, the EFCC is no longer reactionary to incidences of corruption in MDAs. It blocks them from happening.

As part of his promotion of proactive deterrence, Olukoyede catalysed action on the establishment of Cybercrime Research Centre in the Commission’s New Academy in Giri, Gwagwalada Area Council of the FCT. The drive anchors in his desire to redirect the youth onto the path of ethical values and further entrench integrity in Nigeria’s financial space.

As a hub for advanced research, training, and capacity building in the fight against cybercrimes, the Centre will focus on the three key areas of Advanced Fraud Detection and Prevention; Youth Empowerment and Capacity Building and Technological Advancement and Resource Facility.

In the period under review, Olukoyede commissioned the Enugu and Ilorin directorates and established new directorates in Ekiti, Anambra and Katsina states, which has significantly improved Nigerians’ access to the Commission.

Collaboration is central to Olukoyede’s successes. Locally, he prioritised partnership and synergy with other law-enforcement agencies, regulators, the judiciary, MDAs, and state revenue authorities.

At the sub regional level, he is currently a two-term President of the Network of National Anti-corruption Institutions in West Africa, NACIWA. As the rallying point of all anti-corruption institutions in the sub-region, NACIWA has become a crucial platform for regional dialogue on asset recovery, money laundering, other financial crimes enforcement and institutional strengthening in West Africa.

Beyond Africa, the EFCC under Olukoyede has forged strong bonds with the US, Federal Bureau of Investigation, FBI, foreign embassies, United Kingdom’s National Crime Agency, the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, INTERPOL and other international law-enforcement agencies.

Tony Egbulefu is of the Media and Publicity Unit of the Public Affairs Department of the EFCC

The Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Cross River Sector Command, says it has intensified preparations to ensure safer roads and reduction in road traffic crashes during the 2026 Ember Months.

The Sector Commander, Corps Commander Innocent Etuk, said this in a statement made available to newsmen in Calabar on Tuesday.

Etuk said that the command had deployed strategic measures to address increased vehicular movement, congestion and road user indiscipline during the period.

He said the command has also strengthened special intervention patrols along major highways, traffic corridors, crash-prone black spots and other strategic locations across the state.

According to him, patrol teams have also been strategically deployed to enhance monitoring, enforcement and prompt responses to emergencies throughout the Ember Months.

‘The command will focus its enforcement activities on dangerous driving, overloading, speeding, driving under the influence of alcohol or drugs, use of mobile phones while driving and non-use of seat belts. Other infractions targeted include tyre-related offences, mechanically deficient vehicles, number plate violations and other unsafe practices capable of endangering lives on the highways,’ he said.

The sector commander said the command has equally strengthened collaboration with the state government, transport unions, security agencies, emergency responders, traditional institutions and local authorities.

He said that the partnership would enhance coordinated traffic management, intelligence sharing, emergency response and effective intervention during the festive period.

‘The command will intensify public enlightenment campaigns through radio, television, social media, motor parks, town hall meetings, road shows and other platforms,’ Etuk said.

He added that personnel would be deployed to strategic intersections, entry and exit points, busy traffic corridors, motor parks and other locations expected to witness increased vehicular activities. I charge personnel to remain professional, disciplined, civil and responsive because our operation is aimed at saving lives, preventing crashes and ensuring seamless movement. Motorists are also advised to plan journeys, avoid night travel where possible, rest adequately before long trips and report dangerous driving by calling the FRSC toll-free line, 122,’ he said.

Etuk urged motorists and other road users to comply with traffic regulations and exercise caution throughout the Ember Months to ensure safer journeys across the state.

Troops of Operation Hadin Kai have foiled an ambush by suspected Boko Haram terrorists and dismantled several makeshift camps in Biu Local Government Area of Borno State.

The Acting Military Information Officer, Headquarters Joint Task Force North East, Capt. Mohammed Goni, confirmed the operation in a statement on Monday.

Goni said troops of 27 Task Force Brigade, Sector 2, encountered the terrorists while conducting a routine patrol along the Buni Gari-Buratai axis on Monday.

He said the troops responded decisively to the ambush, forcing the terrorists to withdraw from the area in disarray.

According to him, reinforcements were subsequently deployed to clear the ambush site and search the surrounding area.

‘During the operation, troops discovered and dismantled several makeshift camps assessed to have been used by the terrorists as temporary staging and hideout locations,’ Goni said.

He disclosed that the troops recovered a motorcycle, bicycles, a magazine, ammunition and rocket-propelled grenade bombs during the operation.

Goni said no soldier was killed or injured in the encounter, although some military vehicles sustained damage.

‘Notwithstanding the damage, the troops remained operational and successfully completed the mission,’ he said.

The military spokesman said the operation demonstrated the troops’ determination to deny terrorist elements freedom of movement and disrupt their activities across the theatre.

He said the security situation in the area remained calm but unpredictable, as troops continued aggressive patrols and coordinated security operations.

Goni urged residents to remain vigilant and promptly report suspicious persons, movements or activities to security agencies.

He stressed that timely information from members of the public remained critical to efforts to detect, disrupt and neutralise terrorist activities in the North-East.

Governor Hyacinth Alia has described allegations by Mr Peter Obi that he was prevented from accessing victims of the 2025 attack on Yelewata as a desperate attempt to drag the governor and the Benue Government into what could be an internal political matter within the NDC.

Alia said this while dismissing claim by Obi who is the presidential candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) that he was blocked from accessing Yelewata by thugs working for the state government.

The chief press secretary to the governor, Mr Tersoo Kula, made the government’s position known in a statement issued on Tuesday in Makurdi.

Kula described Obi’s allegation as a desperate attempt to drag the governor and the Benue Government into what could be an internal political matter within the NDC.

He said the state government had no knowledge of the alleged incident and questioned whether Obi actually visited Makurdi, citing what he described as his antecedents of making untrue claims against the state.

The CPS said Obi was not a threat to Alia, adding that even if he were, security agencies were responsible for handling security concerns, rather than thugs.

According to him, Alia is a peace-loving clergyman who is opposed to thuggery and whose administration does not engage, patronise or deploy thugs as instruments of governance or security.

He said the administration remained committed to the rule of law and relied on recognised security agencies to maintain peace and order across the state.

Kula also questioned the failure to formally inform relevant security authorities about Obi’s movement, saying such a visit ordinarily required coordination with the Commissioner of Police and other security agencies.

He urged Obi to resolve any disagreement or internal political challenge within the NDC rather than attributing such issues to the state government.

‘The Alia administration will not be distracted by attempts to manufacture political controversies where none exists,’ Kula said.

He said the government’s attention remained focused on good governance, strengthening security and improving the welfare of Benue residents.

Kula urged the public to disregard allegations linking the state government to any incident involving Obi.

‘Benue remains open to legitimate visitors, political actors and all Nigerians who come in peace,’ he said.

The legal team representing the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Osun State has rejected a petition filed before the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal challenging Governor Ademola Adeleke’s victory in the August 15 governorship election.

A senior member of the legal team, Adekunle Adegoke, said the petition was not authorised by the APC governorship candidate, Bola Oyebamiji, or the party.

Adegoke disclosed on Monday that the legal team had advised Oyebamiji against challenging the election outcome after reviewing the circumstances surrounding the poll.

He said the lawyers met with Oyebamiji and other party leaders shortly after the election to assess possible legal options but concluded that approaching the tribunal was not the best course of action.

‘Right from the second day after the election, the legal team, led by about four Senior Advocates of Nigeria, advised our client that, in the circumstances, the best course of action was not to go to the tribunal,’ Adegoke said.

He explained that the decision was taken despite the team’s knowledge of possible grounds that could have been used to challenge the result.

‘It is not that the election was entirely free or that there were no malpractices. There may have been valid grounds to challenge the result, but we decided to allow the populace to rest,’ he said.

Adegoke also questioned the legitimacy of any petition filed in Oyebamiji’s name, saying the APC candidate had already congratulated Adeleke after the election.

‘Our client willingly, without pressure or duress, congratulated Governor Adeleke. Do you now think it would be legitimate, or honourable, for Asiwaju Munirudeen Bola Oyebamiji to turn around and authorise the filing of a petition?’ he asked.

The lawyer described the tribunal document as unauthorised and accused individuals behind it of presenting themselves as APC lawyers without approval from the party or its candidate.

‘I want it to be on record that the APC legal team has denounced the bundle of papers filed by some individuals masquerading as APC lawyers. It was not authorised by the APC as a party or by its candidate,’ he said.

Another APC chieftain, Adebayo Adedamola, also denied involvement in any petition against Adeleke’s victory, saying he had already endorsed the governor.

The controversy followed the display of two petitions at the Osun State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal in Osogbo on Monday.

One petition, marked EPT/OS/GOV/01/2026, listed Oyebamiji and the APC as petitioners against Adeleke, the Accord Party and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The second petition, marked EPT/OS/GOV/02/2026, was filed by Adebayo Olugbenga Adedamola against Adeleke, INEC and the Accord Party.

Former Ekiti State Governor and ex-Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Kayode Fayemi, has accused African Democratic Congress (ADC) presidential candidate Atiku Abubakar of using his fuel subsidy promise as a political strategy ahead of the 2027 election.

Fayemi made the claim during an interview on Arise Television’s Prime Time, where he compared Atiku’s subsidy proposal to the All Progressives Congress (APC)’s Muslim-Muslim presidential ticket strategy in the 2023 election.

According to him, the promise to restore subsidy was designed to appeal to Nigerians who have been affected by rising fuel prices and the cost-of-living crisis rather than being based on an economic framework.

‘My take on that is that Atiku’s proposal of subsidy is politically equivalent to our own Muslim-Muslim ticket in 2023. It’s a political strategy. It’s not an economic construct,’ Fayemi said.

However, Fayemi admitted that the proposal could gain support among Nigerians struggling with the impact of subsidy removal, noting that many citizens are more concerned about survival than the technical arguments surrounding subsidy policy.

He said vulnerable Nigerians are focused on issues such as the cost of food, transportation, education and healthcare.

Fayemi maintained his support for fuel subsidy removal, saying he had advocated for the policy for years, including during his time as chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum.

‘I was and I remain an advocate of fuel subsidy removal. As chairman of the governors’ forum, I spent four years in this battle,’ he said.

The former governor also said President Bola Tinubu inherited groundwork on subsidy removal from the previous administration but criticised the manner in which the policy was implemented.

According to Fayemi, state governors had earlier worked with the Federal Government and the World Bank on a safety-net strategy aimed at protecting vulnerable Nigerians from the effects of subsidy removal.

He argued that Atiku was capitalising on the hardship Nigerians are currently facing.

‘I believe that’s what Vice President Atiku is taking advantage of. The vulnerable segment of the population is still hard done by,’ Fayemi said.

Fayemi added that poverty and inequality remain major drivers of insecurity, saying political leaders must focus on policies that improve the living conditions of ordinary Nigerians.

The Lagos Waste Management Authority (LAWMA) has announced that, beginning next week, persons found buying goods from traders operating illegally on roads, medians, setbacks, walkways and other unauthorised public spaces will be arrested and prosecuted in accordance with section 151 subsection 2 of the Lagos State Environmental Management and Protection Law 2017.

The Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of LAWMA, Dr. Muyiwa Gbadegesin, disclosed this at the Authority’s headquarters on Tuesday.

He said the measure formed part of a renewed enforcement strategy to curb illegal trading, indiscriminate waste disposal and the obstruction of public infrastructure across Lagos State.

Gbadegesin explained that enforcement would no longer focus only on illegal traders as people who sustain such activities by purchasing goods from them would also be held accountable under the relevant provisions of the Law.

‘The law does not only prohibit illegal street trading. It also makes it an offence to buy goods exposed or offered for sale in prohibited places. From next week, anyone found buying from traders operating on roadsides, medians, walkways, setbacks or other unauthorised spaces will be arrested, alongside the traders, and prosecuted in accordance with the law,’ he said.

He added that a person convicted of the offence could be liable to a fine of N90,000, imprisonment for six months, or both.

Gbadegesin said that illegal roadside and median markets frequently generate waste that is dumped in drains, on roads and in other public spaces, thereby obstructing drainage channels, worsening traffic conditions and creating risks to public health.

‘Our objective is to stop the cycle that allows illegal trading and indiscriminate waste disposal to return after enforcement operations. Traders occupy public spaces because people continue to patronise them. Buyers must understand that their actions sustain the problem and that they are also accountable under the law,’ he said.

The LAWMA boss noted that the Authority was simultaneously strengthening waste collection in inner streets and communities surrounding previously cleared dumping hotspots. He stressed that identified service gaps would be addressed, while deliberate dumping, redumping and patronage of illegal markets would attract enforcement.

He urged residents and businesses to patronise recognised markets and use approved waste collection channels, noting that personal convenience must not come at the expense of public health, environmental sanitation, road safety and the orderly use of the city’s shared spaces.

Gbadegesin reaffirmed LAWMA’s commitment to sustained enforcement, stakeholder engagement and improved waste collection services as part of the drive to eliminate open dumping and achieve a cleaner Lagos.

Thousands of Nigerians seeking routine United States visa services will now have to process their applications through Lagos after the US Embassy in Abuja stopped handling routine visa applications.

The change, which took effect on August 1, 2026, means that routine visa services are now available only at the US Consulate General in Lagos.

The US Embassy, in a fresh advisory, said applicants who already had appointments scheduled in Abuja would still be attended to, although some appointments could be moved to new dates.

Applicants affected by the adjustment have been advised to check their emails for updated appointment information.

The embassy stated that those with valid and unused Machine Readable Visa (MRV) fee receipts can use them to schedule new appointments at the Lagos consulate.

The advisory read: ‘Routine visa services are only available at Consulate General Lagos. Effective August 1, 2026, U.S. Embassy Abuja no longer processes routine visa applications.’

The development means Nigerians outside Lagos who previously relied on the Abuja embassy for routine visa interviews may now have to make additional travel arrangements to complete their applications.

However, the embassy clarified that existing appointments would be honoured, although some applicants may receive revised appointment dates.

The move affects routine visa categories, while applicants have been directed to consult the official US visa appointment platform for updated information on services, locations and operating hours.

The US Consulate General in Lagos now becomes the primary centre for routine US visa processing in Nigeria.