THE SENATE has directed its committees and the Clerk to suspend processing bills seeking the establishment of new universities and other tertiary institutions, in line with Federal Government policy. The Senate Leader, Sen. Opeyemi Bamidele, who made the position known during plenary, urged lawmakers to respect the government’s decision to halt the establishment of new tertiary institutions. Bamidele said the directive was necessary to ensure that existing universities and other institutions were adequately established and strengthened before considering additional ones. He urged the Clerk of the Senate to guide lawmakers on the policy, noting that some legislators might not be aware…
Author: National Record
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TWO leading figures in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry, Dr. Sophia Horsfall of Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) and Dr. Obinna Ezeobi of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), will headline a high-level panel discussion at the 14th Anniversary Lecture Series of Realnews Magazine and Publications Limited. A press statement, signed by Realnews Magazine’s Publisher/Editor, Dr Maureen Chigbo, said the panel will examine the theme, “Geopolitical Turbulence and Energy Security: Forging Strategic Opportunities for Africa,” immediately after the anniversary lecture scheduled for Thursday, November 19, 2026, at the Radisson Blu Hotel, Isaac John, Ikeja, GRA, Lagos. The event will…
THE YOBE State government says it has constructed and rehabilitated more than 627 schools in rural communities and employed 4,000 teaching and non-teaching staff to strengthen basic and secondary education. Gov. Mai Mala Buni disclosed this on Wednesday when he received a high-powered delegation from the Islamic Development Bank (IsDB) on a courtesy visit in Damaturu. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the IsDB and the state have concluded arrangements to partner to enhance and upgrade educational infrastructure. Buni, represented by his deputy, Alhaji Idi Gubana, said the interventions were part of his administration’s deliberate efforts to revive the…
THE LEADER of the Senate, Sen. Opeyemi Bamidele (APC-Ekiti) has said that 30 state Houses of Assembly have approved the Constitution Alteration Bill for the establishment of State Police Services in Nigeria. The bill is titled: “A Bill for an Act to Alter the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, to provide for the Establishment of State Police Services and for Related Matters.” Bamidele at plenary on Wednesday in Abuja said that Adamawa State House of Assembly was among the latest to approve the bill, bringing the total number of approvals to 30. He said that the figure surpassed…
THE RESIDENT Electoral Commissioner (REC), Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Ondo State, Dr Mutiu Agboke, says non-sensitive materials for the 2027 General Elections are available in the state. Agboke, who said this on Wednesday in Akure during a courtesy visit to the Deji of Akure, Oba Adetoyinbo Aladelusi, explained that INEC was also fully prepared for the forthcoming election. The REC said the visit was part of efforts to carry traditional institutions and other stakeholders along in the commission’s preparations, and solicited support to encourage the collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) He also said the non-sensitive materials included mats,…
THE FEDERAL High Court in Abuja has fixed December 8, 2026 for judgement in a N10 billion rights suit filed by former Governor Nasir el-Rufai of Kaduna State against the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC). El-Rufai also joined ICPC Chairman, Musa Aliyu, SAN, the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) in the suit. He alleged that they prevented him from having access to his wife, Mrs Aichatou Asabe; and son, Abba while in custody. Justice Chigozie Onah fixed the date after the former govenor’s counsel, Ubong Akpan; the ICPC’s lawyer, Yetunde Mosunmola, and Maimuna Lami-Shiru, who appeared for…
THE SENATE has received a request from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu seeking approval for N10.79 trillion external borrowing equivalent to approximately 7.7 billion US dollars (N10.79trn) to finance part of the 2026 budget deficit. The President’s request was contained in a letter seeking the National Assembly for the implementation of external borrowings approved in the 2026 Appropriation Act. Reading the letter during plenary, Senate President Godswill Akpabio said the request was made pursuant to Sections 21(1) and 27(1) of the Debt Management Office Establishment Act, 2003. In the letter, Tinubu recalled that the 2026 Appropriation Act provided for N29.2 trillion in…
THE HOUSE of Representatives has invited the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) to explain alleged discrepancies in payment of pension to the bank’s retirees. The invitation was sequel to the adoption of a motion by Rep. Hussain Jallo (APC-Kaduna) at plenary on Tuesday. Moving the motion earlier, Jallo said that the payment of pensions, approved pension policies, and other retirement entitlements to former employees of CBN were causing severe hardship among affected pensioners. He said that there are allegations of non-compliance with contractual agreements affecting the pension entitlements and welfare of retired employees of the CBN. According to…
PROF. Sebastine Hon (SAN), the governorship candidate of the Social Democratic Party (SDP) in Benue State, said his reinstatement by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has strengthened his political support ahead of the 2027 elections. Hon made this known in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Tuesday in Makurdi. The governorship candidate said the initial omission of his name and that of his running mate, Mrs Margaret Oga, from INEC’s list of candidates had generated concerns among his supporters. NAN reports that INEC had published its list of candidates on Oct. 10, with the names of Hon and…
BY IDUH ONAH THE APPARENT meltdown of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is profoundly instructive not merely as a political epic but more as a tragic drama of the contradictions, vanities and historical amnesia of Nigeria’s ruling class. Here was a party conceived in the crucible of the struggle against military dictatorship by eminent personalities and statesmen, nurtured into a national political institution and governed Nigeria for 16 uninterrupted years. Today, the PDPfinds itself battling internal divisions, leadership disputes, institutional paralysis and the sad reality of being captured by the ruling APC and weaponised for its victory in the 2027 general…