Category Nigeria News

All primary and secondary schools in the state are now taking a mid-term holiday to celebrate the upcoming Eid-el-Kabir celebrations.

Schools are scheduled to start taking a break on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, and are expected to resume academic work on Sunday, June 15, 2025, according to an official statement from the state’s education ministry.

According to the ministry, the directive applies to both day and boarding schools, with parents and guardians of boarding students being advised to arrive early on June 4 for their children.

The ministry stressed that the decision was in line with the 2024/2025 academic calendar, which remained unchanged despite the festive break, and that all academic and holiday schedules would be strictly adhered to.

READ ALSO: FG Declares June 6, 9, Holidays to Celebrate Eid-Ul-Adha.

The Commissioner of Education, Ali Makoda, urged parents to ensure that students resume after the holiday.

We also urge parents and guardians to make sure their children adhere to the school’s official resume date, according to Makoda.

Ayo Fayose, the former governor of Ekiti State, has advised Alex Otti, the governor of Abia State, to remain steadfast in the Labour Party (LP), despite the wave of defections that the party is facing.

At Otti’s home in Nvosi, Isiala Ngwa South Local Government Area, Fayose gave the counsel on Sunday.

Fayose urged the governor to resist any pressure to leave, noting that Otti’s contributions and identity within the Labour Party had developed into a standalone institution.

You are a prisoner here, my governor, don’t leave. We’re referring to Nigeria’s multi-party system’s diversity. Even if everyone leaves, people don’t leave, according to them. Keep it that way. The former governor of Ekiti claimed that you are the country’s chairman.

Otti refuted rumors that he planned to leave LP and join the All Progressives Congress (APC), calling the claims “false, baseless, and unfounded” in April.

The governor recently stated that he will consult with God before making a decision as a result of discussions regarding a re-election bid in 2027.

Given Back Leadership

Following his visit, the Otti-led administration in Umuahia and Aba visited several important projects.

Fayose continued his praise for the Abia governor’s accomplishments during his two-year term by describing his impactful and person-focused policies, particularly in road infrastructure, healthcare delivery, and education.

“The typical Abian does such a good job for them, raising their standard of living and bringing them to civility. So what I saw made me more than impressed. Some of the community maternity health care facilities were recently renovated, while others were completely rebuilt.

“It’s quite impressive in every sector we have seen.” We can’t say less than good in two years, and I’m not given a pass for a governor who has shown such zeal for his people.

Fayose cited Port Harcourt Road in Aba as a case in point, noting that the once-impassable route had been transformed into a dual carriageway, restoring access and economic viability.

“We are now in Aba once more. In Aba, I saw more than eight roads. I was told that Port Harcourt Road has been uninhabited for 37 years. It is not maneuverable. Therefore, it has been put in place, and a dual carriageway like this is all that would be required for a business city like Aba.

He praised Otti’s introduction of smart schools and promised to spread the idea to his home state, Ekiti.

The smart school is “the one I love the most,” he says. According to Fayose, I was able to sit down and discuss these ideas with my governor (Ekiti State Governor), who will also learn from them.

According to what I’ve seen, the governor has resigned from his position of authority over the people who surround him and made their priorities the people of Abia. The governor has informed me that his table will be his place of worship. Therefore, starting is not a big deal for anyone; it is just finishing. I therefore want him to continue to perform well.

Labour Party Turmoil and Otti’s Rise

After a failed bid to become governor under the All Progressives Grand Alliance (APGA), Otti resigned from the Labour Party (LP) in May 2022.

He defeated Okey Ahiwe, the Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP) candidate, in the tumultuous 2023 elections. He became the first and only Labor Party governor in Nigeria after gaining a sizable following among the youth.

However, the LP has experienced internal disagreements since the upcoming 2023 general elections, which has resulted in a wave of defections. Four LP lawmakers left the ruling APC in December 2024, citing factional issues. Alfred Iliya Ajang of Plateau State followed them.

These exits have also tested the party’s unity ahead of the 2027 general elections, which have reduced LP’s strength in the House of Representatives from 34 to 26 and from eight to six in the Senate.

The party’s candidate for president in 2023, Peter Obi, has stated that he is open to alliances as long as they focus on enhancing the welfare of the citizens rather than gaining power.

The army detention facility’s residents in Maiduguri, the state capital of Borno State, have vowed to have the barracks immediately relocated from the area.

The facility, known as Giwa Barracks, is situated in Borno State’s Jere Local Government Area.

Residents of the communities in Maiduguri criticized the risk level they are living near the detention facility during a press briefing.

Following an explosion that rocked the army’s armory at Giwa Barracks a month ago, which caused the nearby armory and other structures to be destroyed.

Giwa Barracks has been a target of Boko Haram terrorists, according to Zannah Boguma, the leader of the Galtimari Consultative Forum.

Also read: Akpabio advises governors, Don’t Select Successors Because They Kneel For You.

He continued, “Giwa Barracks has over time become a frequent target of attacks by Boko Haram insurgents, with significant incidents reported in 2014, three separate attacks in 2015, and another one in 2019 that were all aimed at releasing detained insurgents.

“In the barracks recently, there was an explosion. Thankfully, no lives were lost. This incident highlights the serious danger that over a million people in the vicinity of the barracks face daily.

Let it be made clear that we fully appreciate and support the need for a powerful military presence in our nation. However, such strategic locations shouldn’t be positioned within residential areas, especially those that house frightened civilians.

We therefore urge the Federal Government of Nigeria, the Defense Headquarters, the Nigerian Army, the governor of Borno State, and the Borno State House of Assembly to immediately and practically relocate Giwa Barracks to the outskirts of Maiduguri or to a suitable location far from dense civilian populations in the interests of public safety and strategic military effectiveness, he added.

The ongoing major renovation of two water treatment plants has caused the disruption of the supply of water in Abuja city and some satellite towns, according to Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Minister Nyesom Wike.

Wike made this known in a statement released on Sunday in Abuja by Lere Olayinka, his senior special assistant for public relations and social media.

He claimed that among the four facilities that produce and deliver water to FCT residents are those that are responsible for their care.

The minister claimed that the two functioning treatment plants’ water supply would be rationed for two weeks as a result of the ongoing plant rehabilitation.

Because two of the water treatment plants are still operational, what is happening is a partial but not complete shut down of the entire FCT water supply.

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SCC Nigeria Ltd. is “working 24/7 to make sure the rehabilitation is finished on time.” Therefore, residents are advised to store enough water to meet their needs during this time because the supply will be rationed, he said.

The minister assured residents that the FCT would have better water supply when the rehabilitation was finished, assuring them.

However, he claimed that residents would be temporarily able to drink water from the two newly renovated buildings while Sallah celebrations were taking place.

The FCT Water Board has four 30- 000 m3/hour water treatment plants that are divided into Phases 1, 2, 3, and 4. A contract was awarded to Messrs SCC Nigeria Ltd. as a result of the inefficiency of the plants, which are currently producing below their installed capacity.

Phases 1 and 2 have advanced in the rehabilitation works, with the replacement and reinstallation of the electro-mechanical equipment, which is the main force behind the treatment plants.

The two interconnected plants were completely shut down because of this. Phases 3 and 4 of the water treatment plants are operational but won’t support, meet, or meet the population’s needs, he claimed.

Wike claimed that the Water Board alternated between lines 1 and 2 of the distribution network to create a rationing schedule.

Femi Falana, a senior advocate for Nigerian human rights, has accused African leaders of failing to uphold the rule of law, which is a part of the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS).

Falana also accused them of disdainfully applying the Community Court of Justice’s (ECOWAS Court) decisions.

The attorney claimed in a statement under the heading “End Disobedience of ECOWAS Courts” that the court’s record demonstrated that 154 ECOWAS member states had not been enforcing any laws as of December 2024. He claims that Nigeria has the highest number of judgments, followed by Togo and Guinea, which have 27 and 15, respectively.

Read more about Tinubu’s plea for the preservation of the ECOWAS founding fathers’ legacy.

Mali (10), Sierra Leone (9), Niger (eight), Senegal (eight), Ghana (six), Benin (five), The Gambia (three), Liberia (four), Burkinabe (five), Cabo Verde (one), and Guinea Bissau (one).

The ECOWAS leaders have violated democratic principles and the rule of law without being treated with respect. Thus, there hasn’t been a constitutional change in government in the area. The leaders have disregarded the decisions of the Community Court of Justice (ECOWAS Court) without any legal or political justification, according to Falana.

We feel compelled to remind the ECOWAS leaders that some of their predecessors who did not uphold the court’s decisions have contacted the same court after they have left office to demand the protection of their human rights.

“These figures include Burkinabe Charles Taylor of Liberia, Laurent Gbagbo of Côte d’Ivoire, Boni Yayi of Benin, Mamadou Tanja of Niger, and Blaise Campaore of Burkinabe. A judgment has been issued in the court, according to Mr. Doe, the widow of Samuel Doe, the late Liberian warlord.

According to the SAN, who was also the former president of the West African Bar Association, each member state is required to designate a competent national authority to handle the processing of the court’s decisions.

Therefore, he demanded that President Bola Tinubu direct Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), the attorney-general, to put an end to what he termed the “unwarranted embarrassment,” and direct the Attorney-General to immediately ensure that Nigeria adheres to the Court’s decisions.

The Attorney-General and the Minister of Justice were given the task of upholding the ECOWAS Court’s decisions in 2014 as the nation’s authority.

The fact that Nigeria is at the top of the list with the most stringent unforced judgments comes at a time when the ECOWAS’s highest body, the Authority of Heads of State and Government, is at its height.

We urge President Tinubu to direct Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), the attorney-general and minister of justice, to ensure that Nigeria adheres to the ECOWAS Court’s decisions without further delay. Nigeria should be leading by example now.

President Tinubu claimed that the regional bloc had lived up to the expectations of the founders in many ways during his speech at the ECOWAS Golden Jubilee.