Category Nigeria News

The Federal Government has inaugurated the Inter-Ministerial Committee on the Ban of Single-Use Plastics (SUPs), marking a significant step toward environmental sustainability and waste management reform in the country.

In his inaugural speech, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, said the ban was an initiative that aligned with Nigeria’s commitment to global environmental standards and the resolve to reduce plastic pollution that posed serious threats to public health, ecosystems, and marine life.

READ ALSO: Lagos Enforces Single-Use Plastic Ban

‘‘The Federal Government arrived at this decision following a Federal Executive Council Memorandum EC (2024), presented by the Honourable Minister of Environment, which was held on Tuesday, 25 June 2024,” Akume, who was represented by the Permanent Secretary Overseeing General Services Office, Mohammed Danjuma, said.

“The FEC decision was in line with the Federal Government’s efforts to tackle various health and environmental challenges, especially those caused by single-use plastic products, and therefore, approved the ban in the country of polyethene terephthalate (PET) bottles, styrofoam, plastic bags, sachet water, and straw, which has become an environmental sanitation challenge.

“The inappropriate disposal of plastic materials is a major cause of marine pollution as well as land degradation. Plastic wastes take a longer time to decompose both on land and water; therefore, they pose a serious threat to wildlife and public health due to the toxic chemicals,” he said.

Phase-Out Plan

The committee, which comprises key representatives from various ministries, departments, and agencies, and stakeholder organisations, is charged with the mandate to coordinate and oversee the implementation of policies and strategies aimed at phasing out single-use plastics nationwide.

The terms of reference of the committee are to investigate the issue of single-use plastics, evaluate the benefits and broader implications of the ban on the use of SUPs, and design the ways and means to promote best environmental practices within the plastic value chain, among others.

“The ban on single-use plastics is an initiative that underscores Nigeria’s leadership in environmental stewardship and commitment to achieving the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs),” a statement by the Director, Information and Public Relations, Segun Imohiosen, read.

Single-Use Plastics

Concerns over the use of single-use plastics inceasing due to their impact on the environment.

In July, the Lagos State Government commenced the enforcement of the ban on single-use plastics after it issued a six-month notice to all stakeholders.

It warned that any company that failed to adhere to the ban on single-use plastics would be prosecuted and sealed off.

It said that the ban was expected to move the state towards realisation of reduction of the quantum of waste generated in the state and at different landfill sites.

“There will be no going back from July 1, 2025, on the enforcement of the ban of single-use plastics (less than 40 microns) in Lagos state.

Former Abia State governor Orji Uzor Kalu, believes President Bola Tinubu will face little to no opposition in the 2027 presidential election, declaring that the contest will be ‘Tinubu versus Tinubu’.

Kalu spoke with members of the Senate Press Corps at the National Assembly on Tuesday.

Senator Kalu, who chairs the Senate Committee on the South East Development Commission (SEDC), noted that the All Progressives Congress (APC) remains firmly rooted across the country and continues to enjoy massive grassroots support.

“Has he gotten anyone contesting against him? The election is Tinubu vs Tinubu, just like Soludo vs Soludo, Our party is fully on ground and with the people. We’ll keep doing all we can to help Nigerians progress,” the lawmaker told the gathering.

READ ALSO: [VIDEO] Atiku, Obi, Jonathan Can’t Defeat Tinubu In 2027 — Orji Kalu

The former Chief Whip of the 9th Senate underscored that the National Assembly, under Senate President Godswill Akpabio, is focused on passing laws that will support the President’s economic recovery drive.

Reacting to comments by US President Donald Trump on killings in Nigeria, Kalu said Trump told the truth, insisting that the attacks have affected both Christians and Muslims and must be condemned by all.

“If it’s a lie, then it’s not a lie because he said the truth. Nigerians are being killed, Christians and Muslims alike. There are jihadists who want to destroy Nigeria. We must blacklist and smoke them out without pity,” he said.

The former governor revealed that he had discussed Nigeria’s security challenges with two ex-U.S. presidents and six sitting Senators who, according to him, expressed readiness to assist Nigeria in the fight against terrorism.

He added that recent airstrikes by the Nigerian Air Force may have benefited from U.S. intelligence sharing.

“Before Trump says a word, the American intelligence community must have found out where these terrorists are located,” Kalu said.

The Senator blamed part of the global insecurity on the U.S.-led removal of Libya’s Muammar Gaddafi and Iraq’s Saddam Hussein, which he said unleashed arms across Africa.

He also dismissed speculation that the U.S. was targeting President Tinubu’s administration, further noting that its focus is on jihadist groups destabilizing Nigeria.

The Senate has advanced a bill seeking to earmark excise duties collected from non-alcoholic, carbonated, and sweetened beverages for health-related programmes and infrastructure across the country.

READ ALSO: Senate Orders NAFDAC To Enforce Sachet Alcohol Ban From December 2025

The sponsor of the bill, Senator Ipalibo Harry-Banigo (Rivers West), explained that the amendment was not merely fiscal in nature but a public health investment to ensure that existing excise revenues were redirected toward improving healthcare delivery and promoting healthy living among Nigerians.

“This bill does not seek to introduce new tax rates,” she clarified.

“It is about putting existing revenues to better use in ways that directly improve the health and productivity of Nigerians.

“By earmarking excise proceeds for health, we can transform fiscal policy into a tool for disease prevention and human capital development,” she added.

According to Banigo, who is also a former deputy governor of Rivers State, the bill has two primary objectives.

Preventive Health

These, she said, included strengthening public health financing by allocating part of the excise duty from sugar-sweetened beverages to preventive health programmes and primary healthcare infrastructure.

It also aims at sustaining national efforts in tackling the increasing prevalence of non-communicable diseases (NCDs) such as diabetes, obesity, hypertension, and cardiovascular diseases, conditions largely linked to poor dietary habits and excessive sugar consumption.

She further noted that the NCDs now account for over 30 per cent of annual deaths in Nigeria, stressing that the proposed amendment would support nutrition and wellness education, facilitate early disease screening and improve national health security.

However, the Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, raised concerns about the need for such legislation, suggesting that the executive arm could implement the proposal through policy adjustments rather than a new law.

Public affairs analyst Jide Ojo has dismissed allegations of vote buying in the recently concluded Anambra Gubernatorial elections, describing them as “A convenient excuse for people to mourn their losses.”

Speaking on Channels Television’s breakfast show The Morning Brief, Ojo said that some candidates, particularly from smaller parties like the Labour Party and the African Democratic Congress (ADC), are using the issue of vote buying to justify their poor performance.

READ ALSO: Anambra Poll Was A ‘Bazaar,’ Nigerians Should Be Worried About 2027, Says ADC

“This issue of vote buying, I think, is just a convenient excuse for people to mourn their losses,” he said. “Imagine someone like the Labour Party candidate or the ADC candidate saying they could not have won because of vote buying, it is not true.”

Ojo argued that winning elections goes far beyond monetary inducement, stressing that factors such as party structure, visibility, and proper campaign strategy are far more decisive.

“The issue of winning and losing elections goes beyond the monetary purchase of votes. It has to do with a lot of other things. Did they have a structure? Did they campaign?” he questioned.

He noted that the only strong campaigns in the election were those of the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate and the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) candidate, Governor Charles Soludo, who was “light years ahead” of his competitors.

“In this election, we saw that the only robust campaigns that took place were between the APC candidate and the APGA candidate. In fact, Soludo was light years ahead of his competitors; he was on air, on national networks, paid for live transmissions, and people knew he was campaigning,” Ojo stated.

He criticised some of the other 15 candidates for what he described as “political evangelism,” saying, “You’re not going to win elections by just visiting shops and small gatherings.”

Ojo also pointed out internal crises within major opposition parties as a key reason for their electoral setbacks.

“Look at the Labour Party, PDP, and ADC  all in crisis. Even the leader of the Labour Party couldn’t deliver his polling unit,” he added.

He concluded that the narrative of vote trading is misplaced, insisting that election outcomes are shaped more by preparedness and strategy than by alleged vote buying.

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Sunday declared Governor Soludo as the winner of the November 8 Anambra governorship election.

According to the results announced by the State Returning Officer, Omoregie Edoba, Soludo of the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA) polled 422,664 votes to defeat his closest rival, Nicholas Ukachukwu of the All Progressives Congress (APC), who scored 99,445 votes.

Paul Chukwuma of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) came third with 37,753 votes, while John Nwosu of the African Democratic Congress (ADC) got 8,208 votes. Labour Party’s George Moghalu scored 10,576 votes, and Jude Ezenwafor of the PDP had 1,401 votes.

The PDP polled 1,401 votes in Saturday’s election, placing one of Nigeria’s biggest parties in sixth position, a distance way below the winning party – the APGA’s 422,644 votes.

INEC stated that 598,229 voters were accredited out of 2,788,864 registered voters, with 584,054 valid votes and 11,244 rejected ballots.

A former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Babachir Lawal, has said that the Nigerian government will have no moral ground to blame citizens for seeking help elsewhere if it cannot provide security.

READ ALSO: Tinubu’s Govt Not Interested In Fighting Insecurity – Babachir Lawal

Speaking as a guest on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, Lawal said the government must assure the people of their safety if it does not want them to cry for help from outside.

“The government should assure us that they can give us the peace, security, and prosperity that we desire,” Lawal said.

“If they are unable to do that, they cannot blame any part of society that decides to seek help anywhere,” he added.

‘Genocide Or Pogrom’

The former SGF also supported US President Donald Trump’s position that the killing of Christians in Nigeria qualifies as genocide.

“It’s a genocide; if it’s not a genocide, it is a pogrom,” Lawal stated.

He insisted that the claim that more Muslims than Christians were killed did not justify what is happening.

The former SGF said, “I have watched the argument going on about this issue of genocide; it is one-sided. Obviously, those who are more vehemently opposing it are the Muslims whose brothers are the perpetrators of the genocide,” he said.

“They come with this very funny narrative that, ‘Oh, Muslims too are being killed, more Muslims are being killed than Christians.’

“That is their argument, but it does not justify what is happening. If 1,000 children are killed, and among them one is your own, your worry is about that one.

“In any case, why dodge the fact that those being accused of carrying out the genocide are Muslims, not Christians?”

Lawal claimed that before the current pressure from Trump, President Bola Tinubu, then a leader of the All Progressives Congress (APC), had led a delegation of party leaders ahead of the 2015 election to inform former US President Barack Obama that Christians were being slaughtered in Nigeria.

The opposition African Democratic Congress (ADC) chieftain said the issue of whether there is genocide or not should be secondary, as the government’s priority should be to guarantee the security of lives and property.

He also lamented that soldiers continue to lose their lives to Nigeria’s lingering insecurity because the government had left them with outdated weapons to fight terrorists equipped with more sophisticated arms.

Lawal’s assertion followed a recent threat of military action in Nigeria by former US President Donald Trump over what he described as the “Christian genocide” in Africa’s most populous nation.

The family of former President Shehu Shagari has announced the death of his last surviving wife, Hajiya Saratu Shehu Shagari.

She passed away on Monday at the age of 89, after a prolonged illness.

A statement signed by the eldest son of the former president, Captain Mohammed Bala Shagari, confirmed that Saratu died at about 3 p.m.

READ ALSO: Ex-President Shehu Shagari’s Wife, Hadiza Dies At 80

He described her as an embodiment of grace, humility, and quiet strength, who lived a life of dignity and service.