United States of Nigeria

09/09/2026

09/09/2026

MR. PETER OBI MUST STOP LIES AGAINST GOVERNOR ALIA AND BENUE STATE GOVERNMENT.

Tuesday, September 8, 2026

The Benue State Government has rejected, in the strongest terms, claims by the candidate of the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC), Mr. that he was blocked by thugs working for the state government from accessing Yelewata to console with families of 2025 attacks.

The allegations are unfounded and desperate attempt to drag Governor and the Benue people into what may be an internal political matter within the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC).

We wish to emphatically deny that the government of Rev. Fr. Hyacinth Alia has an idea of what Mr. Obi is talking about.

Based on his antecedents of making untrue statements against the state, we have every reason to doubt whether he visited Makurdi, the state capital today.

Let it be known that Mr. Peter Obi is not a threat to Governor Alia in any way. Even if he actually visited the state, and we realized that he is a threat to anyone, the security agencies are there to handle the issue, not thugs.

Governor Alia is a peace-loving Reverend gentleman. He is averse to the promotion of thuggery. In fact, his administration does not engage, patronize, or deploy thugs as instruments of governance or security.

He is consistently committed to the rule of law and relies on recognized security agencies to maintain peace and order across the state.

It is therefore curious that an individual presenting himself as a presidential candidate could arrive in a state without the relevant security authorities being formally informed of his movement.

Ordinarily, such a visit would attract the attention and necessary security coordination involving the Commissioner of Police and other relevant security agencies.

We really find it difficult to understand the basis for Mr. Obi’s attempt to connect every fabrication with the Benue State Government, and Governor Hyacinth Alia in the first instance.

If Mr. Obi is confronted with disagreements or internal political challenges within his party structure in Benue State, those issues should be resolved within the party rather than being conveniently transferred to the State Government.

The Alia administration will not be distracted by attempts to manufacture political controversies where none exists.

Its attention remains firmly focused on delivering good governance, strengthening security and improving the welfare of the people of Benue State.

We therefore urge the public to disregard the allegations linking the State Government to any incident that happened around the NDC Presidential candidate, Mr. Peter Obi.

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

Sir , mnipr
Chief Press Secretary to the Governor of Benue State

06/09/2026

*Diaspora Nigerians Must Use Their Influence to Back Tinubu in 2027 - Omole*

The Renewed Hope Advocate and Chairman of the Nigeria Diaspora Voting Council (NDVC), Deputy Director, Diaspora Mobilisation I, APC Presidential Campaign Council (PCC),*Prince Ade Omole* has called on Nigerians in the Diaspora to take a more active role in shaping Nigeria's political future by using their considerable influence to support *President Bola Ahmed Tinubu*'s re-election bid in 2027.

Omole said that while Nigerians living outside the country cannot yet vote directly in Nigerian elections, they should not mistake the absence of a Diaspora ballot for an absence of political influence.

"You are not powerless," he said. "You are the uncle who paid a nephew's WAEC fees. You are the one whose monthly transfer keeps a small business, a hospital bill, or a landlord's patience afloat. That relationship, not a ballot you cannot cast, is your real leverage. Use it. Call home. Talk politics with the people you support. Encourage them to register, get their PVCs, and show up on election day. That is not voting by proxy; it is something more honest: civic influence, earned the old-fashioned way, through years of sending money and showing up for family."

"Your ballot may not yet be physically in your hands abroad, but your influence is," Omole said, urging Nigerians in the Diaspora to use their networks responsibly in the run-up to 2027. The responsibility of Diaspora Nigerians, he said, is to persuade, inform, and mobilise eligible voters.

Omole maintained that the case for President Tinubu should be judged against the economic and institutional changes taking place under the Renewed Hope administration. He acknowledged that Nigerians have experienced significant hardship, particularly from the cost-of-living pressures associated with economic reforms, but argued that the more important question is whether those reforms are beginning to put Nigeria on a more stable and sustainable path.

Recent assessments by the World Bank and International Monetary Fund have pointed to improving macroeconomic stability, continued economic growth, and strengthening external and fiscal conditions, even as they warn that poverty and household pressures remain serious. Nigeria's National Bureau of Statistics has also reported stronger year-on-year real GDP growth.

For Nigerians abroad, Omole said, developments in the Nigerian economy are not distant statistics; they affect the families they support, the value of money sent home, the businesses they finance, and the investments they have made or intend to make in Nigeria. Whatever else people argue about this administration, he pointed to three things he considers measurable.

First, he said, the numbers have moved in a direction that matters to the Diaspora specifically. Inflation, which spiralled brutally in 2023 and 2024, eased to about 15 per cent in 2026, still painfully high, but a real decline from where it was. Foreign reserves are presently above $58 billion, manufacturing has posted consecutive quarters of growth, and both the IMF and World Bank have publicly acknowledged progress in stabilising Nigeria's external and fiscal position. None of that fixes a household budget overnight, Omole said, but it is the difference between a currency in freefall and one a Diaspora investor can plan around.

Second, he said, the government has built actual instruments for Diaspora Nigerians to use, not just rhetoric. Nigeria's dollar-denominated domestic bond, opened to Diaspora investors, targeted $500 million and was oversubscribed by 180 per cent, raising $917 million, later recognised as West Africa's Deal of the Year.

Third, he highlighted the Central Bank of Nigeria's introduction of the Non-Resident Nigerian Ordinary Account and the Non-Resident Nigerian Investment Account, which he described as significant steps toward bringing Nigerians abroad into the country's formal financial and investment ecosystem.

These arrangements, he said, reflect a broader recognition that Nigerians in the Diaspora should not be seen only as sources of remittances but as investors, entrepreneurs, professionals, and strategic partners in national development.

"The Diaspora is not a spectator constituency," Omole said. "Nigerians abroad have a direct stake in the prosperity, stability, and future of Nigeria. They send money home, support families, build businesses, own property, and bring knowledge, capital, and international experience into the country. What happens in Nigeria affects them."

Omole further pointed to the administration's efforts to improve infrastructure, strengthen investment opportunities, and modernise government services, including developments in the passport and immigration system that directly affect Nigerians living outside the country.

Omole urged Nigerians in the Diaspora to reach out to at least five people back home, relatives, friends, colleagues, and other trusted contacts, and make the case for why the Tinubu administration deserves a second term. He asked them to confirm those contacts are registered to vote and that their PVC details are current, to share both the economic gains and the real cost-of-living concerns rather than a one-sided pitch, and to encourage a strong turnout for President Tinubu on election day.

He described this as a practical way for Nigerians abroad to exercise what he called their "political proxy influence" until a formal Diaspora voting arrangement becomes possible.

"You cannot cast a ballot in 2027," Omole said, "but you can make sure the people who can do so do, with better information than they'd otherwise have."

He said his support for President Tinubu's second term rests on a belief that the administration has begun the difficult work of repositioning the Nigerian economy, deepening Diaspora participation, and laying foundations that should be strengthened rather than discarded.

According to Omole, the question facing Nigerians in 2027 is ultimately one of continuity and direction: whether to consolidate the reforms already underway or abandon them before they've had time to mature. For him, the choice is crystal clear.

Hon. Tosin Olayinka, LL.B (Hons), B.L, LL.M (London)
Programme Director,
Renewed Hope Global.
WhatsApp: +44 7480 805585.

©️ Renewed Hope Global

05/09/2026

Let me start with the thing nobody wants to say

By Ben Murray-Bruce

Atiku Abubakar is wrong. Bringing back the fuel subsidy is not the answer. We tried it for forty years. It made a few men billionaires, it fed smugglers at our borders, and it never once put money in the pocket of the woman selling tomatoes by the roadside. Going back to it would be going back to the same thieves.

Mr President, you have done well. Removing the subsidy was hard and you did it. You have also sent far more money to the states than any President before you. The Federal Government has done its part.

Now the states must do theirs.

And let me say this as plainly as I know how, so that no governor can pretend to misunderstand it.

Subsidising transport inside a state is the job of that state government. It is not the job of the President. It has never been his job. It is not his job today. It will not be his job tomorrow. Moving people around Ilorin is not the work of Abuja, it is the work of the Kwara State Government. Moving people around Kano is the work of Kano State. Moving people around Lagos is the work of Lagos State.

This is not my opinion. It is our Constitution. Transport within a state is a state matter. The Federal Government has no business running a bus from Ozumba Mbadiwe to Ikorodu, and it should not be asked to. In fact, since the constitutional amendment of 2023, our governors have more power over transport than any governors in the history of this republic. They are simply not using it.

So when a governor tells you the hardship in his state is Abuja's fault, ask him one question: what have you done with your own allocation?

Because that is where the money is. And that is where the responsibility is.

In December 2022, one bus drop inside a Nigerian city cost ₦644. Today it is ₦1,431. Our people are now working half the month just to pay the bus. A man who cannot afford to reach his workplace does not really have a job. A child who cannot afford to reach school does not really have an education.

So this is what I am asking every one of the 36 governors and the Minister of the FCT to do.

One. Students ride free. Every student, to school and back home, at no cost. Not discounted. Free.

Two. Nobody pays more than ₦500. From one end of a city to the farthest end of that same city, ₦500 maximum. And in our smaller cities and towns, it should be far less than that.

Three. Do not buy a single bus. Governors, please. No buses. No taxis. No boats. We have seen those vehicles rusting in government yards from Sokoto to Yenagoa. Instead, register the drivers who are already on the road, fix the fare the passenger pays, and pay the driver the difference.

Four. Pay only for trips you can prove. GPS on the vehicle, a tap card in the passenger's hand. If a trip did not happen, nobody gets paid. That is how you kill fraud before it is born.

The drivers will not lose. The drivers will get richer. Today a driver chases passengers in traffic and prays. Under this scheme he earns a guaranteed payment from the state every month. With steady income he can service his vehicle, and in time he can buy a newer, cleaner, safer one.

And our people will feel it immediately. Money that used to disappear into transport will stay in the pocket for food, for rent, for medicine, for school fees. That is a pay rise that costs nobody a job.

Now, the money. FAAC allocations to the states have exploded since the subsidy was removed from ₦2.8 trillion in 2022 to ₦7.3 trillion in 2025. Nigerians have been asking a fair question ever since: where did it go?

I am asking each state to spend no more than five per cent of its FAAC allocation on this. Five per cent. Ninety-five per cent remains untouched for everything else.

If a governor cannot find five per cent to stop his own people from suffering, then the problem in that state was never money.

This can be done before 2027. Nothing needs to be built, because the vehicles and the drivers are already there. Any state can start with its busiest routes, publish what it spends, and expand from there.

Mr President, I am not asking you to fund this. I am not asking you to run it. I am asking you to write to all 36 governors and the FCT Minister and tell them plainly that this one is theirs and that the Federal Government has sent them the money, and the Constitution has given them the power, and there is nothing left to wait for.

You have carried this weight alone for long enough. Hand it to the people whose job it actually is.

And to those governors: I will explain this to any of you, personally, at no cost. All 36 of you, and the FCT. My phone is not switched off.

This is not rocket science. It is common sense.

31/08/2026

PRESS RELEASE

OGUN POLICE ANTI-KIDNAPPING UNIT NEUTRALISES TWO SUSPECTED KIDNAPPERS IN SUCCESSFUL COUNTER-TACTICAL OPERATION; RECOVERS TWO AK-47 RIFLES, AMMUNITION, CASH AND OTHER EXHIBITS

Operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit of the Ogun State Police Command have recorded a major breakthrough in the Command's ongoing war against kidnapping, successfully securing the safe release of an abducted victim, neutralising two suspected kidnappers, and recovering two AK-47 rifles, twenty-five rounds of live ammunition, two cell phones, a cash sum of Two Million Naira (₦2,000,000), and other exhibits linked to the criminal enterprise.

The successful operation is a testament to the effectiveness of the intelligence-driven and proactive crime-fighting strategies being vigorously pursued by the Ogun State Police Command in ensuring the safety and security of residents across the State.

The victim, a professional truck driver was abducted on August 25, 2026, at about 11:10 p.m. at the Ajibawo area of Ibese, Ogun State. Upon receipt of the report, the command’s Anti-Kidnapping Unit squad swung into action to secure the victim's release and bring the perpetrators to justice.

Determined to ensure that the perpetrators did not evade justice, operatives of the Anti-Kidnapping Unit working on actionable intelligence stormed the kidnappers' hideout located along the Papalanto–Ilaro Road and in the process, two suspected kidnappers were neutralised, while other members of the gang fled the scene with different degrees of gunshot injuries.

A search conducted at the hideout led to the recovery of two AK-47 rifles, twenty-five rounds of 5.6mm ammunition, two cell phones, and a cash sum of Two Million Naira (₦2,000,000), reasonably suspected to be part of the proceeds of criminal activities.

The corpses of the neutralised kidnappers have been deposited at the morgue for autopsy, while the Command has since intensified efforts to track down and apprehend the fleeing gang members.

The Commissioner of Police, Ogun State Command, CP Bode Ojajuni, psc, FCSS, MNIPR, commending the gallantry, professionalism, courage, and operational effectiveness of the Anti-Kidnapping Squad, stated that the success reinforces the Command's resolve to relentlessly pursue kidnappers and other violent criminals wherever they may seek refuge.

The CP reiterated that Ogun State will remain a hostile terrain for criminal elements and assured residents that the Command will continue to deploy intelligence-led policing, robust tactical operations, and strategic partnerships with communities to protect lives and property. He further urged members of the public to remain security conscious and continue to provide timely, useful, and credible information particularly regarding persons seeking treatment for gunshot wounds that will aid ongoing efforts to rid the State of criminality.

For emergencies and credible information, residents may contact the Ogun State Police Command through:
Gateway Shield (Toll-Free): 0800 000 9111
Emergency Lines: 09164859299 09154293464

ASP OLUBORODE OPEYEMI,
DEPUTY POLICE PUBLIC
RELATIONS OFFICER
OGUN STATE COMMAND
ELEWERAN, ABEOKUTA,
30TH AUGUST, 2026

29/08/2026

29/08/2026

STATEHOUSE PRESS RELEASE

ATIKU AND THE BORDERS: NIGERIANS DESERVE FACTS, NOT CAMPAIGN SLOGANS

The Presidency has noted the recent declaration by former Vice President and presidential candidate of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, that he would “open the borders” immediately upon assuming office.

The facts are straightforward: Nigeria's land borders are already open.

The Federal Government announced the reopening of most of the country's land borders on 14 March 2024, and it has not reversed that position.

It is therefore difficult to understand which borders the former Vice President intends to “open” when the borders are already open. On February 14, 2026, President Tinubu opened the Kamba borders in Kebbi State, with attendant economic and diplomatic gains.

If he means he would relax existing border controls, then Nigerians deserve to know precisely which controls he intends to remove, why he considers their removal necessary, and what safeguards his administration would deploy against terrorism, arms trafficking, smuggling, human trafficking, and other forms of transnational organised crime.

This distinction is fundamental.

But of course, Atiku is unhinged now, and he would say or announce anything to attract and deceive the politically gullible.

An open border is not an uncontrolled border. Modern border management is designed to facilitate legitimate movement, trade and economic interaction while preventing criminals and terrorist organisations from exploiting the same channels. Effective border governance therefore requires a combination of immigration control, customs administration, intelligence-sharing, surveillance, technology and coordinated security operations.

This is particularly important for Nigeria because our northern security environment cannot be divorced from developments across the Sahel and the Lake Chad Basin.

As Atiku rightly acknowledged, Nigeria shares borders with Niger, Chad, and Cameroon. While the region continues to confront terrorism, violent extremism and transnational organised crime have proven to be domestic disturbances that have found border porosity as a channel for their export to other countries.

The security reality is compelling. The Global Terrorism Index 2026 indicates that approximately 41 per cent of terrorist attacks occur within 50 kilometres of an international border, while about 64 per cent occur within 100 kilometres. Borderlands are particularly vulnerable where difficult terrain, limited state presence and weak coordination create opportunities for terrorist organisations to operate.

The implications for Nigeria are obvious. As domestic insurgencies evolve into increasingly networked and transnational terrorist threats, effective border management becomes an indispensable component of national security. Terrorists and criminal networks exploit sovereign boundaries precisely because security forces cannot simply pursue them across international borders without appropriate cooperation and legal frameworks.

Consequently, Nigeria's focus on the Northeast and Northwest corridors, including the coordinated deployment of the Armed Forces and other security institutions, should not be misconstrued as evidence of closed borders. It reflects responsible border security.

The former Vice President, as an experienced politician who has previously occupied the second-highest office in the country, should know this distinction.

While political contestation is legitimate in a democracy, statements about national security and the Nigerian economy should be grounded in facts, institutional understanding, and a credible alternative policy agenda.

What Nigerians should reasonably expect from a presidential aspirant is not a slogan about “opening borders,” but a detailed explanation of how his administration would improve border surveillance, strengthen intelligence-sharing with neighbouring states, modernise customs and immigration operations, deploy technology, protect border communities and deepen regional cooperation against terrorism and organised crime.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's administration remains open to scrutiny and should be judged by measurable outcomes in security, economic recovery, border management and citizens' welfare. But such scrutiny must be based on facts.

Nigeria's borders must be open to legitimate commerce and movement, but secure against terrorists and criminals. They must be monitored with technology, led by intelligence, and integrated into the country's broader national-security and economic strategy.

That is the policy conversation Nigerians deserve.
But, increasingly, the former Vice President's public outings and policy pronouncements raise a more fundamental question: what new and credible contribution does he intend to make to Nigeria's development that is not already contained in the reform trajectory of the present administration?

Rather than presenting Nigerians with a coherent alternative, Atiku appears increasingly preoccupied with promising to reverse, reopen, or rename initiatives already being implemented.

Sunday Dare
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Public Communication)
August 28, 2026