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Shettima, Atiku, Obi Attend Buhari’s Fidau Prayer In Daura
The three-day Fidau for the late former President of Nigeria, Muhammadu Buhari, was held last Wednesday at his residence in Daura, Katsina State.
The prayer drew prominent national leaders, Islamic scholars, and dignitaries from across the country, and was led by the Sarkin Malamai of Daura, Mallam Naziru Daura, who offered prayers seeking Allah’s forgiveness for the deceased.
At the event were Vice President Kashim Shettima, former Vice President Atiku Abubakar; former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi; Borno State Governor, Prof Babagana Zulum; Katsina State Governor, Dikko Radda, and former Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai, among others.
The event also attracted former Minister of Foreign Affairs, Babagana Kingibe; Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa; former Katsina State Governor, Bello Masari; Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris; Minister of Budget and National Planning, Atiku Bagudu; Minister of Health, Prof Ali Pate; Minister of Agriculture, Abubakar Kyari; former Minister of Aviation, Hadi Sirika; former Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, and former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Muhammed Bello.
Also present were Senator Abdulaziz Yar’Adua, Senator Sani Zangon Daura, former Director General of the National Intelligence Agency, Ahmed Rufai; former Chief of Army Staff, Tukur Buratai, and chairman of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency, Brig Gen Buba Marwa (retd).
The late President Buhari’s nephew, Mamman Daura, was also present at the event.
Traditional leaders in attendance included the Emir of Daura, Alhaji Faruk Umar Faruk; the Emir of Potiskum, the Emir of Gumel, along with kingmakers and district heads from both Katsina and Daura Emirates.
Shettima who represented President Bola Tinubu at the event, said, “Death is an inevitable destiny that is hanging on everyone’s neck.”
He shared a behind-the-scenes account of an assignment given to him by the President to visit the late President in a London hospital.
According to him, “When Buhari was in London for medical attention, it was Tinubu who sent me on a very sensitive mission to see him. It was not a public engagement but quiet and critical.”
The Vice President did not, however, detail the specifics of the mission.
While praying to God to grant the late Buhari’s soul eternal rest, he asked the people to consider themselves as travellers with bags and baggage waiting for the train.
“Former President Buhari’s death wasn’t a loss to the family alone, or the people of Daura or Katsina State, it was a national loss,” he said.
Radda, who led the Katsina State Government’s delegation, offered prayers for the late leader.
“For we, the people of the state, it is indeed a great loss. We have lost a father, a guide, who supported us throughout our journey.
“All we have to do today and beyond today, forever, is to continue to pray for his departed soul.
“May Almighty Allah accept all his good deeds, and forgive his wrongdoings.
“May Allah return each one of you to your final destination safely and continue to guide us all to uphold the legacies he left behind,” Radda said.
Radda called on leaders to reflect on Buhari’s death, “so that it may serve as a lesson to fear God in our leadership positions.”
Former Minister of Communications, Prof Isa Pantami, led an additional session of prayers, asking for Allah’s mercy on the soul of President Muhammadu Buhari.
Meanwhile, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, also on Wednesday, led a National Assembly delegation to Daura for a condolence visit.
Akpabio, speaking during the visit, described the late President as “a patriot, a man of integrity, and a shining light who served Nigeria both as a military leader and democratically elected president.”
He revealed that the delegation faced travel challenges the previous day when their flight could not land due to airport closure, forcing them to circle for over two hours before diverting to Abuja.
“We insisted we must return today to honour a man who gave everything for Nigeria,” Akpabio said.
The Senate President, who served as a minister under Buhari, described his legacy as one defined by discipline, humility and love for the country.
He equally highlighted his connection to Katsina State, recalling the establishment of the Faculty of Law at Federal University, Dutsin-Ma, which he insisted be named after Buhari rather than himself.
Governor Radda thanked the delegation for the visit.
The delegation included the Chief Whip, Senator Tahir Munguno, Senator Ali Ndume, Senator Saliu Mustapha, Senator Benson Agadaga, Senator Munir, Senator Sani Zangon Daura Jr., and Senator Asuquo Ekpenyong.
The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has intercepted 1.63 million pills of tramadol concealed in two long trailers heading for Kano as it intensified efforts to dismantle a transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria corridor.
The agency also arrested an 80-year-old suspected drug dealer in Rivers State, a businesswoman linked to cannabis shipments from Canada, a Chadian woman, a couple and other suspects in coordinated operations across Lagos, Edo, Kogi and Rivers states.
The NDLEA’s Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi, disclosed this in a statement, yesterday.
According to the statement, the latest intelligence-led operation came barely one week after NDLEA operatives recovered 558,900 pills of tramadol concealed in the false-bottom compartment of a truck that entered Lagos through the Togo-Benin Republic route.
Babafemi said, “Ongoing efforts to dismantle a transnational drug trafficking syndicate smuggling tramadol from Togo, through Benin Republic into Nigeria have yielded another success with the interception of two long trailers used to move One Million Six Hundred and Thirty (1,630,000) pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in fabricated compartments of the trucks across multiple borders into Lagos.”
He added that one of the two trailers was intercepted on July 2 along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, where operatives recovered 853,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor.
Babafemi said, “One of the two trucks already heading to Kano was tracked and located on 2nd July 2026 along the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway where NDLEA officers recovered 853,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor of the trailer and arrested the 22-year-old driver Jabir Kabiru.”
He further disclosed that another trailer was intercepted two days later on the same route.
“Two days later, 4th July, NDLEA operatives acting on processed intelligence successfully tracked and recovered the second trailer from the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway while heading to Kano. A total of 777,000 pills of tramadol 250mg concealed in a fabricated compartment beneath the cargo floor of the truck were evacuated and the 22-year-old driver Muhammed Nuhu arrested,” the statement read.
According to Babafemi, investigations established a link between the three intercepted consignments.
He said, “Investigations revealed that all three trucks and consignments intercepted on 21st June, 2nd July and 4th July belong to the same transnational drug trafficking syndicate operating along the Togo-Benin Republic-Nigeria axis.”
The agency also intercepted 4.70 kilograms of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Ikeja, Lagos.
Babafemi said, “Two consignments of Canadian Loud, a synthetic strain of cannabis, with a combined weight of 4.70 kilograms have been intercepted at the import shed of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, Lagos. The cargoes, which arrived the Lagos airport from Canada in cartons with ‘Odugwu’ boldly written on them, came aboard British Airways and Ethiopian Airlines flights on 24th June and 3rd July respectively.”
He said two cargo agents, Ali Rotimi Samson and Orimolade Oluwagbenga, were initially arrested in connection with the shipments, while another suspect, Edeh Onyeamachi Stanislus, was apprehended after arriving at a logistics company to take delivery of the consignments.
The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction has denied claims that it has commenced registration for a purported ?50,000 National Support Allowance.
The ministry, in a public notice posted on its official X handle, yesterday, described messages, links and websites advertising the alleged programme as fraudulent.
It urged Nigerians to disregard such claims and verify information only through official government channels.
“The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Reduction has NOT commenced registration for any ?50,000 National Support Allowance,” the ministry said.
It added, “Disregard fraudulent messages, links and websites claiming otherwise. Verify any info only through official govt channels.”
The alert is in response to a circulating scam flyer that falsely claims the program is ongoing under President Bola Tinubu’s directives.
The fake advertisement, which includes text in Hausa and English, directs victims to a suspicious website (kluspz.com) for applications.
The ministry’s warning comes amid heightened concerns over digital fraud targeting vulnerable populations seeking social support.
Similar scams have previously surfaced around programs like N-Power, prompting questions from citizens in replies to the official post.
The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has expressed its preparedness for a major national struggle for a comprehensive review of the national minimum wage.
NLC President, Comrade Joe Ajaero, hinted at this while making his remarks at the commissioning of the Comrade Godwin Abumisi Pensioners Legacy House and Multipurpose Hall in Abuja.
Ajaero said it is no longer acceptable to discuss the welfare of workers without also discussing the welfare of those who have completed their active years of service.
He advised workers and pensioners to get prepared for the ideological and economic battles that lie ahead.
According to the NLC president, “The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) is one of the proud affiliates of the Nigeria Labour Congress. Therefore, your struggle is our struggle, and your welfare remains a priority for the organised labour movement.
“We are currently in the preparatory stages for a major national struggle for a comprehensive review of the national minimum wage.
“However, let me state unequivocally that it is no longer acceptable to discuss the welfare of workers without also discussing the welfare of those who have completed their active years of service.
“Accordingly, the Nigeria Labour Congress will not only push for a new national minimum wage but will also demand the establishment of a national minimum pension. It is a historical injustice that men and women who devoted their youth, strength and productive years to the service of this nation should be condemned to live below the poverty line after retirement.”
Ajaero noted that the cost of living has risen astronomically as food, healthcare and transportation have become increasingly unaffordable.
“We cannot continue to allow our senior citizens to survive on pensions that have become poverty wages. Every retiree deserves to live with dignity after decades of faithful service to the nation,” he said.
He urged pensioners across the country to remain united and prepared as the process begins, adding: “This Legacy House should not merely be seen as a physical structure; it should become a centre for mobilisation, strategic engagement and solidarity as we prepare for the struggles ahead.”
The NLC president pointed out that the working class has always understood that “those who exploit workers are united in advancing their interests. We too must remain united in defending our collective interests and ensuring that government fulfils its obligations to both serving workers and retirees.”
He urged pensioners across the country to remain united and prepared as the process begins, adding: “This Legacy House should not merely be seen as a physical structure; it should become a centre for mobilisation, strategic engagement and solidarity as we prepare for the struggles ahead.”
The NLC president pointed out that the working class has always understood that “those who exploit workers are united in advancing their interests. We too must remain united in defending our collective interests and ensuring that government fulfils its obligations to both serving workers and retirees.”
He said the completion of the project should serve as a clarion call to all workers and lovers of the masses.
“We must not only build physical structures but also build a strong movement capable of compelling government to honour its commitments,” he said.
Ajaero further stated: “We will continue to demand the immediate payment of all outstanding pension arrears and the implementation of a pension regime that guarantees every retiree a life of dignity and security.
“Together, we shall continue to fight until every Nigerian worker and pensioner receives the justice, respect and welfare they deserve.”
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