Nation
THE STATES
Bauchi
Bauchi town was agog last Saturday as Mohammed Abubakar, son of former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar and Badriyya Muazu, daughter of former Governor of Bauchi State, Ahmed Muazu, were joined in holy matrimony.
The marriage contract was sealed at the palace of the Emir of Bauchi, Alhaji Rulwanu Suleiman, after the payment of N1million and a flashy car as bride price by the groom.
Gov. Sule Lamido of Jigawa represented the groom, while the Governor of Bauchi State, Malam Isa Yuguda, represented the bride.
The Chief Imam of Bauchi Central mosque, Alhaji Bala Baba-inna, who presided over the religious aspect of the ceremony, urged the couple to have the fear of God and live in peace.
The ceremony was attended by prominent personalities, among them, business mogul, Alhaji Aliko Dangote, former Head of State Abdusalami Abubakar as well as Gov. Ibrahim Dankwambo of Gombe State and Gov. Babangida Aliyu of Niger.
Borno
The Borno Government said on Sunday that it trained 37,000 youths in various trades to fight the current security challenges facing the state.
The Commissioner for Poverty Alleviation and Youth Empowerment, Hajiya Zainab Gimba, announced in Maiduguri that the training was carried out under the skill acquisition programme of the ministry.
Gimba said the objective was to engage the youths in meaningful ventures and prevent them from joining bad groups.
She said that the state government was also collaborating with the Millennium Development Goals (MDG) office to implement a conditional cash transfer to 2,337 poor households in the state.
“We are collaborating with the MDG to begin immediate cash transfer to 2,337 poor households in five local government areas of the state. “The households are located in Kaga, Nganzai, Gubio, Guzamala and Magumeri,” Gimba said.
FCT
The Attorney-General of the Federation, Mr Mohammed Adoke, said he would assign lawyers from the Federal Ministry of Justice to re-investigate cases handled by the Public Complaints Commission (PCC) to ensure transparency.
A statement issued on Saturday in Abuja by the Public Relations Officer of PCC, Mr Chukwuemeka Nwosu, said the efforts would help the commission to fight injustice.
It said the attorney-general would host a stakeholders’ conference with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Crimes Commission in that regard.
According to the statement, the National Human Rights Commission and PCC will also feature in the conference to form the desired synergy for fighting criminality and corruption.
It said such cooperation would help the commission to handle cases where an offence had been committed against the state.
Jigawa
An estimated two million Muslim faithful in Dutse, Jigawa, participated in a special prayer session for peace, unity and prosperity in the country, newsmen reports.
The prayer session, held on Saturday, was part of the five-day activity organised for the 27th Maulaud celebration to commemorate the birth of Sheik Ibrahim Nyass, a famous leader of the Tijjaniya Islamic movement.
Malam Ahmad Inyass, who led the congregation, prayed for peaceful co-existence among the people for sustainable social and economic development.
Inyass admonished Muslims to be upright, honest and dedicate themselves to the worship of Allah in accordance with the teachings of Islam.
Kaduna
Hundreds of refugees displaced by gunmen who attacked three villages in Birnin Gwari Local Government area of Kaduna State, are now taking shelter at Kamfanin Doka Primary School.
The Chairman of the council, Alhaji Idris Alhassan, who visited the displaced persons, pledged to provide relief materials and security to the camp. He said that several of the villagers, including women and children, were injured in the attack.
The chairman gave the names of the affected villages as Goron Dutse, Gwaska and Unguwar Nabango located on the border with Zamfara.
Lagos
The Founder of the O’odua Peoples Congress (OPC), Dr Frederick Fasheun, on Sunday said that President Goodluck Jonathan had a constitutional right to run for a second term in office.
Fasheun said that the Southern Nigeria Peoples Assembly only recently acknowledged the right of Jonathan to seek two terms in Office, as provided for in the Constitution.
Controversy had trailed the third conference of the Southern Nigeria Peoples Assembly (SNPA) held on May 20, at the Eko Hotels in Lagos, as a the leaders had been accused of endorsing Jonathan for the 2015 presidential polls.
Fasheun said that the issue of Jonathan running in 2015 was a matter of the right granted to all Nigerian citizens by the constitution.
Niger
Senator Ibrahim Musa (CPC-Niger) on Sunday said he had sunk 82 bore holes, including two motorised ones, to improve water supply in his constituency.
Musa said that he decided to intervene to end the suffering of the communities by executing the project to complement the efforts of the government.
He said the projects were undertaken with the assistance Sen. Mohammed Maigoro (PDP) and some members of the House of Representatives.
“The road is expected to be completed within three years, which include the expansion of the bridges. This would end the suffering of commuters and open up the area for economic activities, “ he said.
Ogun
Ogun Government has declared June 12 a public holiday to commemorate the 20th anniversary of the June 12, 1993 Presidential Election believed to have been won by late Chief MKO Abiola.
The Secretary to the State Government, Taiwo Adeoluwa, in a statement issued on Sunday in Abeokuta said the holiday would enable people to further appreciate the watershed that the annulled election represented, particularly as it served as the forebear of the current democracy which the country now enjoyed.
It said that during the anniversary, now known as Democracy Day, the government would host a Democracy Walk and rally in Abeokuta.
Osun
The Osun Government has commenced arrangements to relocate traders from the popular Alekuwodo Road in Osogbo, the state capital.
The state Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Mr Sunday Akere, gave this indication while speaking in Osogbo on Saturday.
Akere said the government had begun to pull down illegal structures around the new Orisunmbare market, to create room for the street traders.
The information commissioner said the Osun Government would move the street traders as soon as all illegal structures around new Orisunmbare market had been pulled down, adding that it was wrong for anybody to have put up a permanent structure on a piece of land owned by government.
Oyo
The former Director-General of NTA, Tony Iredia, said on Saturday said that the Nigeria Police Force would achieve its goals only through effective coordination of resources and communication.
Iredia said at the Police South-West Zone Intelligence Sensitisation and Community Partnership workshop held in Ibadan, that effective communication would go a long way in improving the police by helping the force to maintain a cordial relationship with the public.
He also implored members of the force to always conduct themselves appropriately in public as people would address them as they were perceived.
Iredia criticised acts of intolerance by some members of the police force against the media, adding that it constitutes a hinderance to their public relations efforts.
Sokoto
Governor Aliyu Wamakko of Sokoto State has directed the state Ministry of Environment to conduct a special sanitation within Sokoto and its environs.
The Commissioner for Environment , Dr Jabbi Kilgori, said in Sokoto on Sunday that it was sequel to presence of several heaps of refuse in the town.
According to Kilgori, the special sanitation is to make the town cleaner, healthy and more conducive for living.
He said public enlightenment had been intensified to sensitise the residents on the need to properly dispose refuse .The commissioner also said that the state government was making arrangements to provide more incinerators.
Kilgori urged residents of the town to support and cooperate with the government to ensure the success of the exercise.
Taraba
Taraba Justice Forum, a political pressure group, has asked Taraba Acting Governor, Alhaji Garba Umar, to make the medical report of Gov. Danbaba Suntai public.
In a statement, signed by its General Secretary, Mr Ambulus John, and issued in Abuja on Saturday, the group said that producing the medical report had become necessary in order to clear the air on conflicting reports about the true state of Suntai’s health.
“The people deserve to know the true state of the Gov. Suntai’ s health because in the past eight months the government has been spending public fund to foot his medical expenses abroad,’’ the statement said.
The group said that Taraba was facing the most critical challenge in its history and urged the acting governor to do the right thing.
“He must strike a balance between loyalty to his boss and the Taraba people.
“It is time for Umar to demand for and make public the governor’s medical records,’’ it said.
The Head of the Department of Anatomy at the University of Port Harcourt’s College of Health Sciences, Prof Gabriel Sunday Oladipo, has underscored the urgent need for Nigeria to develop a comprehensive forensic science infrastructure, warning that the nation’s ability to investigate and solve crime is being hampered by lack of scientific data and systems.
In his inaugural lecture titled, “Man: Fearfully Different, Wonderfully Made,” delivered as part of the 207th Inaugural Lecture Series of the university, Prof Oladipo highlighted that while no two individuals are exactly the same, the country currently lacks the robust systems needed to collect and manage biological and anthropometric data that could support criminal investigations.
He explained that the natural variations among humans — from fingerprints to physical measurements — form the foundation of personal identification in forensic work. These biological differences, he said, are essential for distinguishing one person from another, especially in the context of criminal investigations where clarity of identity can mean the difference between justice and impunity. Without this scientific foundation, he argued, law enforcement agencies lack a critical tool in the fight against crime.
Experts have noted that Nigeria’s forensic science capacity has historically lagged behind needs, with only a few forensic facilities available and many law enforcement agencies struggling to access or use scientific evidence effectively. One review of the state of forensic investigation in Nigeria found that outdated facilities and limited adoption of modern forensic methods have left many cases unsolved or poorly investigated, even as crime rates rise across the country.
In Lagos, efforts to improve forensic capabilities have focused on DNA analysis, with the Lagos State DNA Forensic Centre — the first of its kind in West Africa — providing critical support for criminal investigations and helping to identify human remains, link related cases, and assist with paternity testing. However, such initiatives are yet to be replicated at a national scale, leaving many regions without access to these vital scientific tools.
Prof Oladipo’s lecture went beyond academic theory to propose concrete actions. He called for the establishment of a National Institute of Forensic Science responsible for creating and managing a nationwide anthropometric and forensic data bank. This repository, he stressed, would significantly enhance Nigeria’s capacity to track crime, assist law enforcement agencies, and improve the administration of justice by providing reliable scientific evidence for investigative and legal processes.
He also highlighted the importance of strengthening research and training in forensic science. Many Nigerian universities currently lack the funding and infrastructure to offer complete undergraduate or postgraduate programs in areas such as forensic anthropology, DNA analysis, and crime scene investigation, a gap that forces aspiring experts to rely on collaborations with institutions abroad. By fostering a research-friendly environment and securing greater support from both government and private sectors, Nigerian institutions could produce homegrown experts capable of advancing forensic science in the country.
Awareness of forensic science’s role in criminal justice remains low among the general public and even among some security professionals. Studies have shown that a significant portion of Nigerians are unfamiliar with basic forensic concepts or the existence of tools such as DNA profiling and national forensic databases — tools that are common features of criminal justice systems in countries like South Africa and the United Kingdom.
Prof Oladipo also urged regular training and retraining programs to keep forensic practitioners updated with evolving scientific methods. According to him, continuous professional development is critical in a field where technological advances — from biometric databases to digital forensic tools — are transforming how crimes are investigated and solved.
The lecture was attended by academics, students, and professionals drawn to the intersection of science, identity, and justice, all of whom heard the professor make a compelling case for scientific innovation and institutional reform as central to Nigeria’s effort to contain crime and strengthen its justice system.
The event not only showcased Prof Oladipo’s expertise in human anatomy and forensic psychology but also positioned forensic science as a strategic national priority — one that could bring clarity to investigations, support victims and their families, and ultimately enhance public safety across Nigeria.
The University of Port Harcourt Women Association (UPWA) on Thursday staged a vibrant and memorable edition of its Annual Inter-House Sports Competition at the University of Port Harcourt Sports Village, drawing an impressive turnout of pupils, parents, staff and invited guests.
The event, organised by the UPWA International Group of Schools, brought together children from the pre-nursery, nursery and secondary sections in a colourful celebration of youth athleticism, discipline and teamwork. The arena came alive with cheers and excitement as pupils, clad in their various house colours, marched in a ceremonial parade before proceeding to compete in a wide range of track and field events, relays, novelty races and other team-based activities designed to promote physical fitness and healthy competition.
Declaring the competition open, the Vice-Chancellor of the University of Port Harcourt, Professor Owunari Georgewill, commended UPWA for sustaining a tradition that continues to nurture young talents beyond the classroom. He noted that sports remain a critical component of holistic education, helping to build resilience, confidence, leadership skills and social interaction among children.
In her remarks, the President of UPWA, Professor Udeme Georgewill, expressed appreciation to parents, teachers and members of the organising committee for their dedication and sacrifice in ensuring the success of the programme despite prevailing economic challenges. She described the event as a reflection of unity and collective effort within the school community.
“This is the first time White House is emerging overall winner, and that shows remarkable improvement and great sportsmanship,” she said. “We all had fun. It is not easy putting an event like this together considering the economic situation, but we are grateful to the parents for being part of this journey. The excitement everywhere is truly heartwarming.”
The competition featured spirited participation from the various houses, including Purple House, San Chicago Red House and White House, with pupils demonstrating strength, speed, coordination and teamwork. Parents and supporters filled the stands, cheering enthusiastically and adding colour to the spectacle, while teachers ensured orderliness and safety throughout the proceedings.
Professor Georgewill emphasized that the true essence of sports lies not merely in winning trophies but in participation and personal growth. “Sports is not just about winning. It is an avenue for growth, discipline and opportunity. The fact that a child is able to participate is already a win. Losing this year does not mean you cannot win next year. Keep trying,” she encouraged, urging pupils to see both victory and defeat as stepping stones to greater achievements.
She further observed that while there are many competing interests in the Nigerian sports sector, consistent grassroots investment remains essential for discovering and nurturing future champions.
The colourful ceremony culminated in medal presentations, trophy awards and group photographs, with UPWA executives, including Vice President I, Professor Adedamola Onyeaso, joining the participating teams to celebrate the day’s achievements.
The annual inter-house sports competition continues to stand as one of UPWA’s flagship events, reinforcing its commitment to balanced education, character formation and the promotion of healthy lifestyles among its pupils.
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