ABUJA AMEBO'S BLOG

Agency Report Bandits have killed at least nine farmers in a raid on a village in northwestern Nigeria’s Kaduna State and kidnapped “several” others, according to a security report seen by AFP on Sunday and a local source. Weeks into the annual rainy season, jihadists and criminal gangs — kidnappers for ransom and cattle thieves known locally as “bandits” — have stepped up attacks on farming communities in northern and central Nigeria that fail to pay the levies they impose. Kaduna is one of several states in northern and central Nigeria impacted by the gangs, who raid villages, kill and kidnap residents for ransom and loot homes before burning them. A security report prepared for the United Nations and seen by AFP on Sunday said the attackers on Saturday swept into the farmlands outside Kakangi village in Birnin Gwari district and shot farmers as they worked on their fields “Nine bodies have been recovered so far, with six of the victims identified by local authorities,” the re...

***Troubling pattern of scandals now too frequent— Atiku ***Presidency can’t escape accountability over Gbajabiamila claims — PDP ***SERAP asks Akpabio, Abbas to explain N1.3bn allocation to ‘fictitious’ PFIPC By Dapo Akinrefon, Olasunkanmi Akoni, Omeiza Ajayi & Luminous Jannamike FRESH documents have emerged showing that the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, OSGF, approved the disowned Director-General of the non-existent Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council, PFIPC, Mr Adeniyi Adeyemi, to attend the Canada-Africa Fintech Summit, CAFS, in August 2025. This came as former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar, yesterday, slammed President Bola Tinubu’s administration for dragging Nigeria to a point where scandals were no longer viewed as isolated incidents but recurring features of governance. Nigerianpolitical analysis This is even as the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, also yesterday, urged the Senate President, ...

Jude Bellingham told his England teammates they can be world champions after leading by example in a 3-2 win over Mexico that will go down as one of the Three Lions’ best ever World Cup triumphs. InternationalSports Competitions The odds were stacked against Thomas Tuchel’s men as they entered the lion’s den of the Estadio Azteca, where Mexico had only lost twice in 89 previous matches and never in 10 outings at the World Cup. On top of facing down a passionate 80,000 crowd, England also had to cope with playing at high altitude and over 45 minutes a man down after Jarell Quansah’s red card. Jude Bellingham told his England teammates they can be world champions after leading by example in a 3-2 win over Mexico that will go down as one of the Three Lions’ best ever World Cup triumphs. InternationalSports Competitions The odds were stacked against Thomas Tuchel’s men as they entered the lion’s den of the Estadio Azteca, where Mexico had only lost twice in 89 previous matches and ...

Stock By Mather Godwin Dangote Cement Plc has announced a 50 per cent increase in dividend payout to shareholders, raising the dividend from N30 per share to N45 per share, which translates to a total payout of approximately N753.8 billion, reaffirming the company’s position as one of the most rewarding investments on the Nigerian Exchange (NGX) The increase follows the company’s outstanding 2025 financial performance and underscores its unwavering commitment to shareholder value creation. The dividend payout, which was approved by the shareholders at the Company’s Annual General Meeting (AGM), represents the highest dividend payout in the history of Dangote Cement and reflects the strength of its earnings capacity, robust cash generation ability, and disciplined execution of its growth strategy Dangote Cement delivered a landmark financial performance in 2025. Earnings per share rose significantly to N59.86, demonstrating the company’s resilience and operational excellence de...

Nigerian News Updates The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Waidi Shaibu, says troops are making “tremendous progress” towards the rescue of the 39 students and seven teachers abducted in the Oriire LGA of Oyo State by band!ts on May 15. Speaking at an interactive session with media executives in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital over the weekend, the Army chief said operations are ongoing to rescue the abducted schoolchildren and teachers. “Operations are currently ongoing to rescue those children abducted in Oyo state, and we are making tremendous progress,” he said He added that the army remains actively engaged in various operations across the country’s six geopolitical zones to address security challenges. On May 15, gunmen attacked three schools in Oriire LGA and abducted 39 pupils and seven teachers, including the principal of one of the affected schools. Days later, the abductors k!lled Michael Oyedokun, one of the abducted teachers, while he was in captivity.

It has been revealed that FIFA overturned US star striker Folarin Balogun's red-card ban, after a personal phone call from President Donald Trump. Balogun had been set to miss Monday's last-16 knockout clash with the Belgians after receiving a straight red card following video review for stepping on the foot of a Bosnian defender in a round-of-32 clash that the US won 2-0. However, the player will now be available to play in the World Cup co-hosts' showdown with Belgium the overturning of the red card decision. Under FIFA rules, a straight red card automatically triggers a one-game ban, which cannot be appealed by the player's team. But world football's governing body said Sunday the ban will now be suspended for a year, in a stunning move for which no specific explanation was offered. It was gathered that Trump personally called FIFA President Gianni Infantino asking him to review Balogun's punishment. "Thank you to FIFA for doing what was righ...