National News
Buhari tasks Nigerians abroad on responsible social media use

Buhari tasks Nigerians abroad on responsible social media use
President Muhammadu Buhari has again cautioned Nigerians abroad against the use of social media to insult and incite from a safe and anonymous distance.
Buhari rather urged them to always promote Nigeria’s unity.
The President’s spokesman, Malam Garba Shehu, in a statement on Thursday, said the president gave the advice in Lisbon, Portugal, while speaking at a meeting with representatives of Nigerians living in that country, on Wednesday night.
According to the president, social media can be a force for good, as well as a force for evil, urging all Nigerian citizens to make use of social media for the general good of society.
“The world is a global village, and technology has shrunk the world even more.
“Although you reside beyond Nigeria’s boundaries, you can engage easily with the country. In fact, we see the impact of that engagement clearly on social media.
“This platform has empowered Nigerians in the diaspora and given you great influence. As we have seen, however, social media can be a force for good as well as a force for evil.
“Many countries, including our own, have had to take strong measures against some social media platforms to curb their excesses and prevent them from destabilising our societies.
“I, therefore, call upon you to use social media responsibly. We all want the best for our country and people, so let us strive to build, unite and prosper our nation and people.”
President Buhari expressed delight at the successful involvement of the Diaspora in various fields such as agriculture, health care, education, ICT, and the food industry in Nigeria.
He noted that many countries, including Nigeria, had shown that their diaspora could be a veritable engine for growth and development.
While acknowledging the huge contributions the Diaspora had made to Nigeria’s economy, the President said:
“In every field of human endeavour, be it the creative industries, sports, health and academia, Nigerians in the diaspora have thrived and leveraged on their skills to raise our country’s profile higher, economically, socially, technologically and culturally.
“It is for these reasons that this Government established the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NiDCOM), to facilitate and support your engagement with our country for a win-win outcome in our effort to keep Nigerians united at home and abroad.
“You must continue to be our ambassadors-at-large in your comportment, actions and character.
“You must excel and be the best in all your endeavours. While here, you must also not forget home as you are the example we want to project to the rest of the world.’’
The Nigerian leader assured the meeting, coordinated by Chairman NIDCOM, Hon Abike Dabiri-Erewa, that the Federal Government would continue to do everything possible to catalyse development in various fields of the economy.
He also encouraged them to key into the programmes of NIDCOM, so as to contribute to initiatives such as the Nigerian Diaspora Investment Trust Fund.
On the forthcoming 2023 general elections, the reiterated his administration’s determination to allow the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), to continue to enjoy a free hand in the discharge of its responsibilities
According to him, the government will ensure that INEC delivers peaceful, transparent, free, fair and credible elections in 2023, saying that with the conclusion of the primaries of the political parties, all eyes are now on the 2023 elections in Nigeria.
“We also look forward to a smooth transition to the next government. As I have said before, our administration will not compromise on doing the right things and the welfare of Nigerians, home and abroad,’’ he said.
While citing the last gubernatorial elections in Anambra and Ekiti State, the president noted that his administration had proven consistently its zero tolerance for interference in elections and insistence that Nigerians should be allowed to vote for the party and candidate of their choice.
Nigerian Ambassador to Portugal, Alex Kefas, earlier told the President that; “records indicate that there are some 3,000 Nigerians living in the country, who are generally well behaved and living peacefully among themselves and their host country.”
Kefas, however, informed the president of the recent arrest and detention of about 13 Nigerians for alleged offences of money laundering and cybercrime.
He explained that the Embassy conducted a consular visit to the prison, which revealed that the arrests were “disproportionate and unjust’’, as many of them were innocent of the allegations.
According to him, the embassy is trying its best to ensure the release of the innocents to enable them to reunite with their families.
At the meeting with the Diaspora, a Nigerian professional footballer, Saviour Godwin, who plays for Portuguese side Casa Pia, presented a jersey to President Buhari.
National News
2027: A glance at Yobe politics and those struggling to succeed Governor Mala Buni

2027: A glance at Yobe politics and those struggling to succeed Governor Mala Buni
By: Yahaya Wakili
Yobe State in 2027 remains politically heavily influenced by a concentrated group of established elites, including former and current governors, legislators, and traditional leaders who maintain significant control over party nominations and resource distribution. This centralized power structure has contributed to political stability and smooth transitions but simultaneously limits democratic participation and impedes broader developmental progress. Notably, long-serving legislators such as Rt. Hon. Chiroma Buba Mashio exemplify the entrenched nature of this elite dominance. Within this context, the question of Governor Mala Buni’s successor is largely shaped by these influential actors rather than open electoral competition.

Yobe’s political future appears to be orchestrated by a limited cadre of power brokers whose influence will likely determine Governor Buni’s successor. The absence of transparent contestation or emerging alternative leaders suggests continuity within established networks rather than transformative political shifts by 2027.
For now, about six politicians are currently struggling to succeed Governor Mai Mala Buni, CON, in the 2027 general elections in Yobe State. The names currently circulating in the social media, who are all members of the All Progressives Congress (APC), include The former Senate President and current Senator for the Yobe North Senatorial District, Senator Ahmad Ibrahim Lawan, PhD, GCON Sardaunan Bade; Senator Ibrahim Mohammed Bomai, Turakin Fika, Yobe South Senatorial District; Senator Musa Mustapha, Yobe East Senatorial District; Hon. Jibrin Mai Gari, a Commissioner representing Yobe State in the Federal Character Commission; Hon. Kolo Lawan Geidam, who was currently a mandate Secretary for Agriculture and Rural Development, FCT Abuja; and the current Secretary to the State Government, Baba Mallam Wali mni

But the battle line may be drawn between former Senate President Senator Ahmad Ibrahim Lawan, PhD, GCON, and Senator Ibrahim Mohammed Bomai. The two top gladiators in Yiobe politics have been working to win the people recently. All Progressives Congress (APC) in the state, however, is warning its members to desist from such calling because it says it is too early now to start campaigning for the 2027 general elections. Yobe State is divided into three senatorial zones: Zone A, Zone B, and Zone C. Zone A is Yobe East, Zone B is Yobe South, and Zone C is Yobe North.

Despite rumors circulating about Governor Buni’s potential defection from the All Progressives Congress (APC), official statements from his spokesperson categorically deny any intention to leave the party or join coalitions ahead of the 2027 elections. This affirmation underscores Buni’s continued centrality within the APC framework in Yobe State. However, neither these denials nor public discourse provide clarity on who might succeed him after his tenure concludes.
Since the return of democracy in the country in 1999, only the APC has been ruling the state, and they call it a one-party state in the country, and since then only Zone A has been producing the governor; this includes the late Senator Bukar Abba Ibrahim, Minister of Police Affairs Alhaji Ibrahim Geidam, and current Governor Hon. Mai Mala Buni CON, and Zone B has produced only one governor, the late Senator Mamman B. Ali, and he spent only 18 months in office before he died, while Zone C didn’t produce anyone, not even the deputy governor. But recently , in his interview with newsmen at his residence in Potiskum, the former APC State Chairman, Alhaji Adamu Abdu Chillariye, said rotation or zoning has become necessary in Yobe politics if they want the party to succeed in the 2027 general elections in the state.

According to Adamu Abdu Chillariye, if they want justice in the politics of Yobe State, let the party introduce the rotating formula of the governorship set in the 2027 general elections to other zones. It is not a traditional institution to say that only one tribe or one zone can continue to produce the governor at any time, he said. This will not augur well for our great party, and even after our lives, the rotating must be done in Yobe politics. If they want justice to prevail in Yobe politics, people are afraid to say the truth. The people of Zone C are crying for marginalization; they said they were marginalized, and they call on the party in the state to do justice. They expressed their feelings. The people of Yobe North, Zone C, have started appealing to the party leadership that this time around it is the turn of Zone C. Because the marginalization is too much, they said since the restoration of democracy in 1999, the people of Zone C have been marginalized. They said we, the people of Zone C, are always loyal to the APC, but they do not carry us along; they have always marginalized us in Yobe politics.

They also expressed their feelings on Yobe politics; the people of Yobe South Zone B said, This time is our turn. Let them allow us to complete our tenure because the late Senator Mamman B. Ali spent only 18 months in office before he died. He was supposed to spend 4 years in office, so the people of Zone B are overdue to complete their tenure. The political analysis in Yobe State says this time in Yobe State, if care is not taken, in 2027 the APC in Yobe State will lose its credibility and its seat to the opposition party in the state because the opposition will use this opportunity to wrestle the governor’s seat in the state. They said the politics of Yobe is becoming a family affair, and if the APC doesn’t change its style of dictatorship, it will lead them to failure.
2027: A glance at Yobe politics and those struggling to succeed Governor Mala Buni
National News
DEMOCRACY STRONG AND ALIVE IN NIGERIA; IGNORE ALARMISTS

DEMOCRACY STRONG AND ALIVE IN NIGERIA; IGNORE ALARMISTS
By: Bayo Onanuga
We have read the alarming claims of disgruntled opposition figures, some partisan human rights crusaders and emergency defenders of democracy over recent defections of key members of opposition parties into the governing All Progressives Congress.
The seismic shift caused by Akwa Ibom Governor Umo Eno’s open declaration of support for President Bola Tinubu, the defection of the Delta State Governor, Sheriff Oborevwori, the former vice presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party in the last election, Dr Ifeanyi Okowa, and the principal political actors in Delta and Rivers States certainly threw the opposition and their sympathisers into disarray.
While the opposition elements are understandably heartbroken over the failure of their fabled grand coalition to gain traction, we find it disturbing that they resorted to peddling false allegations of promoting a one-party State against President Bola Tinubu, who is working very hard to reverse decades of economic mismanagement in our country.
Contrary to the false claims in the propaganda materials in circulation across mainstream and social media, democracy is not under any threat in Nigeria. Accusations that the administration is moving towards authoritarianism are baseless and exaggerated.
We must add that no policy, official action, or directive from the Presidency seeks to “dismantle democracy” or “weaken opposition or create a one-party state.” Accusations of bribery, blackmail, and the weaponisation of state institutions only exist in the idle minds of politicians and their agents who have failed in their assigned role of opposition and are fishing for scapegoats.
The opposition cannot blame President Tinubu and the governing APC for their poor organisation, indiscipline, and gross incompetence in managing their affairs. It is certainly not part of President Tinubu’s job to organise or strengthen opposition parties.
We find it curious that those who celebrated the defection of the former Governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, to the Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the formation of a regional grand coalition with the sole aim of defeating President Tinubu in the 2027 election are the same people shedding crocodile tears over Nigeria’s so-called drift to a one-party state and authoritarianism.
While the latter-day defenders of democracy raised no anxious voice against the disgruntled politicians cobbling an anti-Tinubu, anti-APC coalition along dangerous regional lines, even before INEC blows the whistle for party politicking, they are quick to ascribe the political shifts in some states to “bribery, blackmail, and coercion” without any shred of evidence.
Without any equivocation, freedom of association, freedom of speech and freedom of choice are part of the cherished ideals of democracy. When politicians and citizens cannot freely join any association or political party of their choice or cannot openly express their views, democracy is imperilled. Those opposed to the Tinubu administration should understand that they can issue diatribes, without fear, against the government because we practice a thriving democracy.
It is hypocrisy writ large when opposition politicians and their collaborators in the ‘human rights’ movement desire that the party of the President should implode so they can gain electoral advantage and cry wolf when their wish does not materialise.
We want to state that democracy is not threatened or undermined simply because politicians exercise their rights to freedom of association. Nigerians migrating to the APC and expressing support for Tinubu are doing so out of their free will, based on the belief that the reforms being executed are in the interest of Nigerians and the unborn generation. It is a gross disservice to democracy in itself for these emergency defenders of democracy to delegitimise the political choices of some Nigerians while upholding the choices of others to form a coalition against Tinubu and APC.
Under President Tinubu, democracy is strong, and the multiparty democratic system will continue to flourish unhindered. His administration remains resolutely committed to upholding and strengthening the democratic foundations upon which our Fourth Republic has stood since 1999
Politicians changing party affiliation is not new or peculiar to Nigeria. In more advanced democracies, there are ready examples of notable politicians, statesmen and women who changed their parties.
President Tinubu and the National Working Committee of the APC, under the leadership of Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, deserve commendation for making the ruling party viable and attractive to all Nigerians willing to participate in the democratic process.
President Tinubu is an avowed democrat and a firm believer in multiparty democracy. His political activism and democratic credentials in galvanising and strengthening opposition platforms as a force that defeated a sitting President and the then ruling party attest to his credibility as a tested defender of multiparty democracy.
We urge all Nigerians to join hands with the administration in protecting our democracy by respecting our people’s choices and giving alarmists, who draw their narratives from the pool of fiction, a wide berth.
DEMOCRACY STRONG AND ALIVE IN NIGERIA; IGNORE ALARMISTS
National News
At World Bank/IMF Spring Meeting, VP Shettima Pushes For Nigeria’s HCD 2.0 Agenda

At World Bank/IMF Spring Meeting, VP Shettima Pushes For Nigeria’s HCD 2.0 Agenda
** Calls for evidence-based interventions, stronger global partnerships in education, health, labour sectors
By: Our Reporter
Vice President Kashim Shettima has called for stronger international collaboration to advance Nigeria’s Human Capital Development 2.0 (HCD 2.0) strategy.
He reaffirmed the commitment of the administration of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to positioning human potential at the heart of national development.
Speaking virtually at a high-level roundtable on the sidelines of the 2025 World Bank/IMF Spring Meetings, VP Shettima said the success of HCD 2.0 will hinge on data-driven, evidence-based interventions and sustained political will.
The HCD 2.0 programme is designed to elevate Nigeria’s Human Capital Index (HCI) and equip Nigeria to face both national and global challenges, including climate change and digital transformation.
The Vice President pointed out that the meeting was necessitated by the urgency to invest in the Nigerian people and by the recognition that true national wealth is found not in natural resources, but in human potential.
“This meeting, for us, is not just another item on our global agenda. It is a continuation of a journey whose beginnings I had the privilege of witnessing about seven years ago. True national wealth is found not in natural resources, but in human potential.
“We will offer our HCD 2.0 Strategy the political backing it deserves to be the priority of our nation, and His Excellency, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, has never wavered on this,” he said.
The session featured key stakeholders from the World Bank, including Executive Director, Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed; Regional Director for Human Development in the Western and Central Africa, Trina Haque; Senior Social Protection Specialist and Regional Task Team Leader, Africa West & Central region, Tina George, and Chief Economist for Human Development in the World Bank Group, Norbert Shady.
The Nigerian delegation included the Deputy Chief of Staff to the President/ Chair of the HCD Core Working Group, Senator Ibrahim Hassan Hadejia and Special Adviser to the President on National Economic Council & Climate Change/National Coordinator of HCD programme, Rukaiya El-Rufai.
VP Shettima reiterated the federal government’s determination to ensure the continuity and deepening of the HCD agenda.
“Government is a continuum. Nowhere is this truer than in programmes that demand patience, vision, and long-term commitment—programmes such as our Human Capital Development programme,” he noted.
He revealed that under HCD 2.0, six priority indicators from the health, education, and labour force sectors have been selected as “quick wins” to guide policy interventions and track measurable progress.
“We have carefully curated priority indicators and an HCD Dashboard to track them. This allows us to make informed policy decisions and measure our progress against tangible benchmarks,” Senator Shettima said.
The Nigerian Vice President also reaffirmed the administration’s resolve to remain transparent and results-oriented to achieve measurable outcomes.
“We will continue to hold ourselves accountable and press forward toward our bold goal to elevate Nigeria among the top 80 countries in Human Capital Index rankings,” he said.
Senator Shettima also called on the World Bank and other development partners to support the availability of disaggregated, state-level Human Capital Index (HCI) data to enable more targeted interventions.
Stressing the need for equity and inclusiveness in implementing the HCD 2.0 strategy, he said, “We are leaving no sub-national in Nigeria behind. Some of the states have already set a template for the others, having localised the HCD strategies to align with the peculiarities of their people while, of course, aligning them with the national strategy.”
The World Bank representatives at the meeting committed to strengthening the bank’s partnership with Nigeria to improve the country’s Human Capital Index and proposed senior-level stakeholder engagement to identify optimal areas for technical support.
There were also several speeches from representatives of Nigerian state governments, including Akwa Ibom and Lagos, as well as representatives of other local and international development organisations.
At World Bank/IMF Spring Meeting, VP Shettima Pushes For Nigeria’s HCD 2.0 Agenda
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