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Japan To FG: No Special Visa For Nigerians In “Kisarazu” City

By
James Orji
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Tinubu in Japan

The Japanese government has debunked reports that the country is offering special visa for Nigerians as part of its new Japan International Cooperation Agency JICA Africa Hometown initiative.

The magazine had earlier reported that Nigerian President Bola Ahmed Tinubu was in Tokyo, Japan between August 20 and 22 where he  joined other African leaders, international development partners and stakeholders at the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development, TICAD9.

During the conference, President Tinubu and other African leaders signed some economic and other bilateral agreements with the Japanese authority, including the Africa Hometown programme meant to strengthen exchanges between African countries and Japanese local governments.

Recall that the federal government had last week claimed that  that Japan had designated Kisarazu city as the “hometown” for Nigerians and would create a special visa category for highly skilled and talented youths  planning to move to the Asian country to settle..

In a statement issued by the Director of Information at the State House, Abiodun Oladunjoye, the FG said “Artisans and other blue-collar workers from Nigeria who are ready to upskill will also benefit from the special dispensation visa to work in Japan.”

The Japanese government, in a statement on Monday,  however denied such claim, saying the reports were contrary to the facts as related to the agreement signed under the  “JICA Africa Hometown” initiative.

 

“Under this program, four cities in Japan are designated as “home towns” for four African countries. Under this program, JICA plans to promote exchanges between the four Japanese cities and the four African countries through various activities, including the organisation of exchange events involving JICA overseas cooperation volunteers.

“On the other hand, there are no plans to take measures to promote the acceptance of immigrants or issue special visas for residents of African countries, and the series of reports and announcements concerning such measures are not true. The Ministry of Foreign Affairs of Japan will continue to make efforts to ensure that appropriate reporting and statements regarding this matter are carried out,” the statement read.

FCMB Eyes Fresh Capital For Expansion

By
James Orji
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FCMB MD

First City Monument Bank, FCMB Plc has announced plans to raise capital as part of its plan for local and international banking operations.

The financial services company made this known in a notice filed with the Nigerian Exchange, NGX and other investing stakeholders, saying whatever is raised from the subscription will be transferred to its banking arm, First City Monument Bank Limited,  FCMB Limited.

the company further stated that all the modalities regarding the public offer is subject to the approval of various regulators, including the Securities and Exchange Commission., SEC.

The Group said, “FCMB Group Plc hereby notifies NGX Regulation Limited, our esteemed stakeholders, and the investor community that the Board of Directors of FCMB, acting pursuant to the approval granted by the shareholders at the Extraordinary General Meeting held on December 19, 2024, has resolved to undertake an Offer for Subscription.

“The offer is being undertaken in furtherance of the company’s strategy to strengthen its capital base in anticipation of its focused regional and international expansion plans. The proceeds of the offer will be remitted as equity into First City Monument Bank Limited.”

The magazine reports that FCMB has taken the right steps to beat the March 2026 recapitalisation deadline set by the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, for all commercial banks in the country, as part of a broader plan to leap-frog Nigeria’s economy to $1 trillion mark.

Aviation: Tinubu Signs Direct Flight Agreement With Brazil

By
Tosin Olatokunbo
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Tinubu and Da Silva

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has signed a landmark Bilateral Air Service Agreement with Brazil, which marks the establishment of direct air travel between Nigeria and the President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva -led country.

The agreement, according to a statement issued on Monday by the president’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga signaled the high point of President Tinubu’s trip to the South American nation.

The agreement, the federal government said  was formalised between Festus Keyamo, Nigeria’s Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development and his Brazilian counterpart.

The magazine reported that Tinubu’s trip to Brazil was part of the two-nations official travel he embarked on last week, meant to strengthen economic and bilateral with the two of the world’s largest economies.

According to Onanuga, Tinubu was welcome in Brazil with a full military honours, during an official reception at the Planalto Palace in Brasília,signaling the strong friendship between him and President Da-Silva, adding that the Nigerian leader is also scheduled to meet with other Brazil’s top executive, legislative and judicial leaders during the trip.

Onanuga:  “The ongoing state visit will also see President Tinubu meeting the President of the Brazilian Senate at the National Congress, the President of the Chamber of Deputies, and the President of the Supreme Federal Court.

“The working visit, which continues tomorrow, will also feature high-level engagements between Nigerian and Brazilian delegations across various sectors, underscoring both nations’ commitment to building a future of mutual growth and prosperity.”

Instructively, the agreement creates a new framework for direct flights between Nigeria and Brazil, with the potential to significantly enhance trade, tourism, investment, and diplomatic relations, aviation analysts said.

Wike To PDP: Zoning Presidency To South Is Right Decision

By
Tosin Olatokunbo
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Nyesom Wike - FCT Minister
Nyesom Wike.

Following the decision of the PDP, on Monday, to zone the 2027 presidency to the South, the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Nyesom Wike says he has been vindicated.

According to Wike, the PDP has now done what it should have done during the 2023 election, saying he warned then that the decision of the party to do otherwise would make it lose the election. The party actually lost.

The minister’s remark was contained in a statement issued yesterday by his Special Assistant on Public Communications and Social Media, Lere Olayinka after the PDP made the decision to zone the 2027 presidency to South, and the position of the National Chairman to the North.

The party made its decision known in a communique issued on Monday by Debo Ologunagba, the party’s National Publicity Secretary at the  end of the party’s 102nd National Executive Council, NEC, held in Abuja, the nation’s capital.

Wike said the PDP made a huge mistake by not listening to him in 2023, leading to the loss of the presidency to the All Progressives Congress, APC.

Olayinka said: “Now, that the party has realised its mistake of not listening to Wike and the G-5 in 2022, and have chosen to do what they said, three years after, have they not been vindicated now?

“Recall that the FCT Minister and the G-5 had insisted that the presidential candidate of the PDP and its National Chairman must not remain in the same zone, insisting that since Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, from the North had emerged as the presidential candidate,  Senator Iyorchia Ayu, also from the North must resign to pave the way for a National Chairman from the South. Ayu, however, insisted on not resigning, with Atiku and his group backing him. Aftermath of this was the electoral misfortune the party suffered in 2023, followed by instability after the elections.

“But today, the NEC resolved that since the National Chairman of the party is zoned to the North, the PDP 2027 Presidential ticket be zoned to the South.

“Has PDP not come back to eat its own vomit?

“Sadly, they know the truth. Wike simply said, take the chairmanship to the South if you want to gain the presidency, but they said no, they must take the two, and the PDP lost!

“They have realised the mistake they made in 2022 and are correcting it in 2025.”

We Are Mobilizing Voters Against Rigging In 2027-Obidient Movement Assures

By
Suleiman Anyalewechi
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INEC BVA

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

Worried by the increasing apathy of eligible voters towards the ongoing Continuous Voter registration, CVR,  by the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC, the Abia State Chapter of the Obidient movement said it has  commenced moves aimed at encouraging people to  participate fully in the exercise.

This is as the Movement dedicated to the promotion of the Presidential ambition of Peter Obi ,the former Governor of Anambra State, vowed to mobilize no fewer than four million voters to register and collect their PVCs before the end of the CVR exercise .

At an interactive session with the Media in Umuahia, the State capital on Monday August 25, 2025 ,a chieftain of the Movement, Comrade Chukwuebuka Ezenna, expressed serious concern over the unwillingness of people to avail themselves the opportunity presented by the CVR exercise to prepare themselves for the great task of reclaiming the country from the precipice.

According to him, the refusal of potential voters to register and collect their Permanent Voters Cards, PVCs, before the 2027 general elections, is a tacit and dangerous endorsement of the ongoing shenanigans in the political landscape of the country.

He emphasized the urgent necessity for the people to participate fully in the registration process so as to be in a vantage position to halt the uspation of the democratic processes by those he labelled “political hijackers”

The Obidient movement leader  informed that the aggressive campaign to rally potential voters for the CVR exercise is part of  the comprehensive ant-rigging framework -Get Organized and Make Election Rigging Difficult, GOMERD,  recently launched by the national leadership of the Movement.

However, he underscored the imperative of mass participation of  eligible voters in the CVR exercise ,to the success of the campaign.

“The success of this campaign lies in the ability of eligible voters to get their PVCs . So we urge all Abians from 18 years and above to go out , register ,collect their PVCs and hold firmly to them a a bridge to a new Nigeria.

” INEC statistics indicate that Abia recorded a total of 2, 120,808 registered PVCs as at 2023 ,with 1,949 ,197 , representing 91.9% as those who collected their PVCs .

” With the continuous rise in population figures it is, therefore ,our target to mobilize over million voters in Abia state to get their PVCs before 2027.

Besides, the quest to mobilize people to get their PVCs ,Comrade Ezenna noted that the GOMERD campaign also aims to sensitize voters on the need to shun vote-buying and other manipulative measures by political actors , warning that such practices tantamount to mortgaging the future of unborn generations .

PDP 2027: South To Produce Presidential Candidate, North, Party Chairman

By
Ayodele Oni
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Umar Damagun - PDP Chairman

By Ayodele Oni

Damagun, retains, elevated to National Chairman

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has zoned its 2027 presidential ticket to the South, while maintaining the current National Working Committee (NWC) zoning arrangement for its November elective convention.

With this, Damagum, who has served as Acting National Chairman for over a year, has been elevated to substantive Chairman to enable him superintendent over the National Elective Convention scheduled for November 15 and 16 in Ibadan, Oyo State.

The PDP’s National Legal Adviser, Kamaldeen Ajibade, administered the oath of office to him.

This decision was reached at the 102nd National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting of the party held in Abuja on Monday.

Briefing journalists after the meeting, PDP National Publicity Secretary, Debo Ologunagba, explained that the resolution followed the submission of a report by the Zoning Committee, chaired by Bayelsa State Governor, Douye Diri.

He noted that the NEC also expressed satisfaction with preparations for the November convention.

Ologunagba stated, “NEC recommended that the North and South should retain their current NWC positions.

“NEC also resolved that since the National Chairman of the party is zoned to the North, the PDP 2027 Presidential ticket is hereby zoned to the South.”

After 2027 Elections, Amaechi, Others Will Fizzle Out Of Rivers Politics, APC Boasts

By
Suleiman Anyalewechi
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Rotimi Amaechi
Rotimi Amaechi

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

The All Progressive Congress, APC, has vowed to bring to an end the political trajectory of Rotimi Chibuike Amaechi and other politicians they described as yester-years political figures in Rivers state.

The party said it is set to use the August 30, 2025, Local Council polls in the State as dress rehearsal of its wider plans to retire Amaechi, a chieftain of the emerging opposition Coalition platform the African Democratic Congress from the politics of Rivers state.

Addressing supporters at the grand finale of the campaign rally for the forthcoming Local Government Election in Omagwa community, the Head of APC Campaign Organization for Ikwerre Local Government Area Obinna Ekem,  boasted that the duo of Amaechi, Celestine Omehia, and others from the area will be retired from active politics after the 2027 general elections.

According to him, the days and years of the old breed Ikwerre political landscape will be brought to an  end, in 202, using the outcome of the Local Council polls as a launch pad.

He expressed the optimism that the APC will sweep not just the 13 wards in Ikwerre Local Council, but will also emerge victorious in all the 23 councils of the state come August 30.

This is as he informed that the APC is already looking beyond the Local Government election with the landside victory of President Bola Tinubu in 2027 being its main focus.

He insisted that the opposition Coalition being package by Amaechi, Omehia and others will not be able to stop the victory train of the APC both in Ikwerre and the entire Rivers state in 2027.

Ekem noted that Ikwerre land despite being the home Local Council of Amaechi, and some other ADC Coalition members remains one of  the strongholds of APC in Rivers State.

“We have received strong assurance from the people that the APC will not only emerge victorious on Saturday August 30, but also remains the party to beat come 2027 general elections.

“This is because despite being the home of both Amaechi and Omehia, two former Governors of Rivers and other notable coalition forces, Ikwerre is firmly under the grip of APC.

“In fact, when Amaechi was in the APC, the party suffered serious electoral defeats in Ikwerre and other parts of the state.

“But since leaving the party, it has been making steady progress, with the APC having very bright chances of bouncing back to winning ways”, Ekem noted.

In his message, the Rivers State APC factional Chairman, Chief Tony Okocha, urged the people of Ikwerre land to resist any attempts by opposition parties to win the forthcoming local Government polls.

According to him, APC members should seize the opportunity presented by the  readiness of the River state Independent Electoral Commission RSIEC to conduct a free and fair exercise to affirm the dominance of the party.

Constituents Storm NBA Conference, Demand Ngene’s Release, Prison Inmate Declared Winner Re-run Election

By
Suleiman Anyalewechi
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Protest at NBA Conference over Bright Ngene

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

Activities at the ongoing Nigeria Bar Association, NBA, Conference, were on Monday, August 25,2025  somewhat overshadowed by the protest match held by the people of Enugu South I State Constituency ,to draw attention to the the plights of Bar.Bright Ngene winner of Enugu South state Constituency re-run ,who is presently languishing in jail .

The Source reports that Ngene of the Labour Party LP  was on Tuesday  August 19  declared winner of the re-run polls conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC in Enugu South I State Constituency on Saturday August 16 .

Instructively,he was declared winner while still in Custodial Centre where he is serving a 7-year jail term slammed on him by an Enugu South Magistrate Court in July 2024 in connection with the communal clashes that erupted in Akwuke Community over missing N15 million public funds

The case was first said to have been referred to an Alternative Dispute Resolution Committee ,for a peaceful settlement at on set in 2017 .

However , following events post-2023 general elections ,in which Ngene an LP candidate emerged victorious in the Enugu South I State Constituency contest ,the matter was revived and brought before an Enugu South Magistrate Court ,where he was allegedly summarily convicted and sentenced .

But in even jail, all attempts so far made to push Ngene out of subsequent court-ordered re-runs proved abortive.

The August 16 ,2025 exercise which Ngene still won ,was the third in the series of court-ordered re-runs in the Constituency since March 2023 .

Declaring Ngene the winner ,of the re-run polls ,the INEC Commissioner for Voter Education Sam Olumekun stated that Ngene polled the highest number of votes to defeat his closet rival from the Peoples Democratic party PDP .

” Two re-run elections by order of the Election Appeal Tribunal were held in Enugu and Kano states .

” After previous disruptions of the elections in the two states by violence and thuggery, the exercise have now been concluded .

” For the Enugu South Constituency , Ngene Bright Emeka of the Labour Party LP was declared winner .

” Certificate of Return would be presented to the successful candidates ,on August 21 and 22 ,2025 in Abuja and state offices respectively.” Olumekun stated.

But as at the time of reporting, the Electoral Umpire was yet to  issue Ngene with his Certificate of Return, owing to his peculiar case of being a prison inmate.

All those declared winner ,in the August 16 by-elections and re-run polls held across 12 states of the country have all been issued with their Certificates of Return, except Ngene

At the NBA Enugu Conference the protesters in their numbers ,with various placards , while calling for the intervention of the umbrella body of legal practitioners in the country , insisted on the innocence of Ngene , himself a practicing lawyer .

Addressing the media ,leader of the protesters , Benedict Kachukwu said that  Ngene’s travails were  orchestrated and politically motivated by some forces who are bent on undoing and keeping him out of  circulation.

He alleged that Ngene at the Magistrate Court level was never given a fair hearing,but was hurriedly convicted and sentenced ,to satisfy the wishes of some interested forces .

More disturbing however , according to Kachukwu is that all efforts to appeal Ngene’s conviction since 2024 at the High Court have so far been frustrated.

” As at this moment ,two Judges have so far recused themselves from the appeal filed by Ngene against his conviction at the state High Court .

In fact ,the High Court has continued to frustrate the hearing of the appeal since 2024 ,with Ngene languishing in jail ,.

We have the strong belief that the whole thing is a deliberate ploy to continue to keep Ngene out of circulation.

We are here to appeal to the NBA ,to rise to the occasion and defend not just one of their own ,but to save the Judiciary from being used to punish innocent people , owing to differences in political affiliations” Kachukwu stated

APC Says PDP Governors Not Justifying Improved Fund Allocation To States

By
Ayodele Oni
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PDP Governors Forum in Gusau

By Ayodele Oni

The ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), has expressed surprise that despite improved allocations to states under the control of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the performance of the Governors remain abysmal.

The ruling party pointed out that PDP Governors are some of the biggest beneficiaries of President Tinubu’s outstanding economic policy innovation that is revamping and revitalizing economy for sustained growth and progress.

“Even with federal revenue allocation to state governments that has more than doubled under this President of Progress, distributing two trillion Naira as of July 2025, the highest ever allocated by any government in history, the PDP Governors have continued to fail their citizens with disgracefully dismal performance in the governance of their states.

Signed:

National Publicity Secretary of APC, Felix Morka, made the remarks in a statement on Monday while reacting to the outcome of the PDP governors’ meeting at the weekend.

“Emerging from their meeting in Zamfara State on Saturday, August 23, 2025, the Governors elected on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), again displayed their odiferous hypocrisy in a statement alleging undemocratic conduct by the All Progressives Congress (APC), opining that our great Party lacked agenda and vision, and that the electorate would deny it support in 2027.

“It is morbidly comical for the Governors of the PDP, a party in deep comatose, savagely crippled by intractable crisis of its own making, and turned an unrecognizable shadow of its old self, to be making statements that only aptly describe its own doomed fate, now and in the lead up to 2027.

“The PDP has since fallen into ruins, and stands rejected by Nigerians. When its Governors gather in their scanty numbers, one would expect them to have some shame and concentrate on how to resuscitate their terminally ailing party with a sense of urgency and responsibility.

“Instead, they prefer to waste their time making frivolous and senseless allegations and innuendos against our great Party.

“The APC’s dominant victory in the just-concluded bye-elections attest loudly to the level that President Bola Tinubu’s administration’s Renewed Hope policies and programmes are resonating with Nigerians, and underscores the electorate’s solid confidence in our Party.

“It is infantile and irresponsible for PDP Governors to hail democracy where they won in the bye-election and decry democracy everywhere they lost.

“The victory or defeat of the PDP or other opposition parties is not, and cannot become, the barometer for measuring the credibility of our country’s electoral process or performance. That would be invidiously anti-democratic and unacceptable.

“APC’s decisive win in non-APC states like Zamfara, Adamawa, Kano flies in the face of PDP Governors’ baseless allegations of undemocratic dealings by our Party.

“Quite to the contrary, the electorate in those states voted hugely in support of our candidates in-spite of the state-sponsored thuggery and violence unleashed against our candidates and loyalists by opposition state governments.

“The PDP Governors should eat the humble pie and accept the bye-elections verdict as a categorical declaration of loss of confidence and rejection of their party by the voting public.

“Wallowing in denial of the party’s expired political vitality and relevance is a reckless betrayal by PDP Governors of their highly disillusioned members still hanging hopelessly on straws of hope for an elusive miracle to turn the tide for their party.

“These inept Governors are in no position to suggest to Nigerian voters what their disposition to 2027 elections  should be.

“The PDP has nothing of value to offer Nigerians now, and hadn’t any credible alternative ideas or policies to offer in the last three general election cycles in which Nigerians have handed to it scathing verdicts of merited failure.

“Opposition politics must go beyond finger pointing at APC that is busy justifying itself, and delivering evidence-backed transformative governance that Nigerians are witnessing under the present APC-led administration across all sectors of our national life.

“Nigeria will not return to the dark era of the PDP-led federal administration when many state governments were literally bankrupt and unable to meet even their basic wage bills.

“President Tinubu has paved a new and clear path of prosperity for our country and shall not stumble on mischievous distractions fashioned by the PDP and its floundering Governors.

“Nigerians know the Party that is working assiduously for renewed hope and national renewal. They are highly discerning and know what is best for them and our dear country.

“They will not be hoodwinked by opposition parties that cannot manage their own internal affairs, who have failed to drive progress in their small states as Governors but boast vainly and deceptively about doing better for Africa’s most populous country.

“We urge Nigerians to ignore empty and misleading rhetorics of these detractors, and standfast with Mr President and our great Party as we continue the onward march into a confident future of wholesome development and shared prosperity for all Nigerians.”

Ex-Benue Assembly Speaker, Dajor, Suffers Double Loss

By
Suleiman Anyalewechi
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Hyacinth Dajoh - Benue State Speaker

By Suleiman Anyalewechi

For Hon Aondona Dajoh, until Sunday, August 24, the Speaker, Benue State House of Assembly, it is double loss. It just didn’t rain for him, it poured.

A few hours after he was forced, under pressures he could no longer ignore, to resign as Speaker of the  Assembly, he sufferered an irreversible loss.

His elder brother, Elder Gwamile Dajoh succumbed  to death and passed on.

While the circumstances surrounding his passing are not yet public, the senior Dajoh, according to sources, suddenly collapsed and passed. Before the sudden incident, he was said to have been very worried over   the political fate of his younger brother, the former Speaker. His brother’s resignation on Sunday, and his subsequent replacement with a member he had suspended 24 hours earlier, it is alleged, may not have helped matters.

Recall that  Dajoh resigned his position on Sunday, a- no- work day, as Speaker of the House of Assembly.

In the days running to his resignation, the Assembly he presided over had had a running battle with the State Governor, Hyacinth Alia, a suspended Rev. Fr. of the Roman Catholic Church.

The Assembly, under Dajoh, had refused to screen the Commissioner- nominees forwarded to it by the Governor on the premise that the Governor had ignored to give consent to a couple of decisions forwarded to him, including the suspension of some Government officials.

To have his way, the Governor, acceded to the suspension of the officials for one month each, instead of the six months recommend by the Assembly. His nominees, but two, including a professor of Law, were eventually confirmed.

But events took a dramatic turn when the Dajoh-led Assembly, suspended, for six months, four of its members known to be loyal to the Governor. But in an ironic twist, Dajoh was forced to resign about 48 hours after the suspension of the four. And, to humiliate him the more, one of those he suspended, Hon. Berger Alfred, replaced him as Speaker.

In is resignation letter dated August 24 ,2025, Dajoh said in part:

“I write to resign my position as the Speaker, Benue state House of Assembly , effective today , August 24 ,2025 .

“This is done in good faith and in the best interest of the State. I want to appreciate my dear colleagues for the opportunity they gave me to be the first among.equals .

‘I pledge to remain committed to my duties as a legislator and representative of Gboko.West State Constituency.”

The ex- Speaker had earlier survived an alleged  impeachment attempt by some members.

Not a few people think the Governor was behind the sudden resignation of Dajor.

Dajor and some others are said to be loyal to the Secretary to the Federal Government, SGF, George Akume, whose relationship with the Governor is untidy.

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