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Violence Along Religious Lines Is Treated As Attack On Nigeria – Nuhu Ribadu

Published

3 months ago

January 24, 2026

The Federal Government has declared that the protection of all citizens is non-negotiable.

The National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, stated this at the conclusion of the first session of the U.S.–Nigeria Joint Working Group, held in Abuja, to address concerns around religious freedom and insecurity.

Ribadu asserted that any violence framed along religious lines will be treated as a direct attack on the Nigerian state.

He reaffirmed that the protection of all citizens, Christians, Muslims, and adherents of other faiths is non-negotiable.

“Nigeria is a deeply plural society, and the protection of all citizens, Christians, Muslims, and those of other beliefs, is non-negotiable.

“Violence framed along religious lines is treated as an attack on the Nigerian state itself,” Ribadu said.

He said the government’s response to insecurity goes beyond military action, combining security operations with the rule of law, humanitarian safeguards, and strategic communication to ensure that operational successes translate into public confidence and stronger social cohesion.

“Our response integrates security operations, rule of law, humanitarian safeguards, and strategic communication, ensuring that operational successes translate into public confidence and strengthened social cohesion,” he added.

Meanwhile, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has questioned the growing wave of insecurity in Nigeria, lamenting that it should not be.

According to Obi, the government is to be blamed for allowing insecurity to grow unchecked and unchallenged.

Speaking against the recent conflicting reports of another abduction of worshippers from a church in Kaduna, the former Anambra State Governor insisted that the frequency of such reports and happenings shows there is a crisis of safety, unity and leadership.

He cited examples of other communities around the country where there have been confirmed cases of insecurity and called on the government to wake up to its responsibility of protecting the lives and properties of citizens.

He again criticized reports that the government of President Bola Tinubu paid millions of dollars to a foreign lobbying firm to launder the administration’s image on the international scene.

“Just recently, other communities in Benue, Zamfara, Kano, Niger and Plateau, have faced similarly gruesome insecurity. Nigeria is not at war, yet here we are again, counting victims with inconsistencies that surpass those of nations at war. A government that can mobilise resources for waste, for propaganda, for foreign lobbyists, but cannot secure communities or protect its people has misplaced its priorities.

“I have just been informed that yet again, at the weekend, about 172 worshippers were abducted from churches in Kaduna. This is yet another unfortunate consequence of a nation where insecurity has been allowed to grow, unchecked and unchallenged in our everyday lives, as though it were normal. This should not be.

“Even with the government and police stating they are not aware of this incident, we must ask ourselves hard questions. Is this how we will continue? Can we keep waking up to news of mass abductions, disputed figures, and official denials while citizens live in fear? Whether confirmed or contested, the frequency of such reports alone shows a greater crisis of safety, leadership, and unity.

“To the people of Kaduna, you are not alone. We stand with you, and to the families whose loved ones were taken, we share in your pain. We pray and hope that those abducted will be found and returned safely, and that those injured in the course of this attack receive swift and full medical recovery.

“If the denials are true, we thank God Almighty. if untrue, we stand with the families of those affected and urge the relevant authorities to take swift action.

“Nigeria deserves a government that treats human life as sacred, the time to confront this insecurity is now.

“A New Nigeria is POssible. -PO,” Obi wrote in a statement released on Tuesday via his 𝕏 account.

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Senate names new minority whip as two more senators defect to APC

Published

1 hour ago

April 22, 2026

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The Senate on Wednesday appointed Senator Tony Nwoye as the new Minority Whip, following a fresh wave of defections that has further boosted the numerical strength of the All Progressives Congress in the upper chamber.

Nwoye, who represents Anambra North Senatorial District, was unanimously selected by the Senate minority caucus to fill the vacancy created by the exit of his predecessor.

His emergence comes on the heels of the defection of former Minority Whip, Senator Osita Ngwu, from the Peoples Democratic Party to the APC on Wednesday, one of several high-profile crossovers that altered the balance within the opposition ranks.

In a letter read on the floor by Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Ngwu said his decision was driven by the need to align with Enugu State Governor, Peter Mbah and President Bola Tinubu.

He also described the APC as the most stable political platform in the country.

Nwoye was elected into the Senate in 2023 on the platform of the Labour Party before defecting to the African Democratic Congress in late 2025, positioning him within the opposition bloc prior to his new leadership role.

The reshuffle in minority leadership came amid a broader pattern of defections that has steadily eroded the strength of opposition parties in the Senate since the inauguration of the 10th National Assembly.

In a related development, Senator Anthony Siyako Yaro, representing Gombe South, also announced his defection from the PDP to the APC, citing internal crises within the opposition party.

Similarly, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Public Accounts, Senator Aliyu Wadada, formally announced his defection from the Social Democratic Party to the APC.

Wadada, who has also been endorsed as the APC consensus governorship candidate for Nasarawa State ahead of the 2027 elections, said he had previously aligned with the ruling party but completed the formal procedures of his defection on Wednesday.

Reacting to the developments, Senator Adams Oshiomhole commended the lawmakers, describing their defections as voluntary and consistent with constitutional provisions.

He said the increasing movement of legislators into the APC reflects growing confidence in the party’s leadership and the administration of President Tinubu.

With the latest defections, the APC’s strength in the Senate has risen to 91 lawmakers—further consolidating its dominance and tightening its grip on legislative proceedings as political realignments gather pace ahead of the 2027 general elections.

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Lagos clarifies sanitation modalities, warns defaulters ahead of April 25

Published

2 hours ago

April 22, 2026

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The Lagos State Government has provided further details on the reintroduced monthly environmental sanitation exercise, set to resume on Saturday, April 25, 2026, with movement restrictions and enforcement measures in place.

In a statement on Wednesday, the Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, said, “The exercise will hold every last Saturday of the month between the hours of 6:30 am and 8:30 am.

During this period, there will be controlled movement across the state to allow residents to carry out thorough cleaning of their homes, surroundings and drainage frontages.”

He stated that enforcement teams comprising officials of the ministry, Lagos State Environmental Protection Agency, Kick Against Indiscipline, Lagos Waste Management Authority, and local government sanitation inspectors would “conduct physical inspections during and after the sanitation window to ensure compliance,” warning that “defaulters will be sanctioned in accordance with the Lagos State Environmental Management and Protection Law of 2017.”

Wahab also stated, “LAWMA intervention trucks will go around to cart away bagged wastes generated during the exercise,” noting that “there will be rewards for the cleanest Local Government Area, Local Council Development Area, and the cleanest street as part of efforts to encourage healthy competition and community participation.”

He urged residents to cooperate with the initiative, saying, “We urge all residents to take ownership of this exercise and join hands with the government in building a cleaner, safer and more sustainable Lagos.”

The clarification follows the symbolic flag-off of the exercise along the Mushin–Agege Motor Road corridor on March 14, ahead of its full implementation later this month.

The state government had earlier announced in March that the sanitation exercise would resume nearly a decade after it was suspended in November 2016 following a legal pronouncement restricting movement during the programme.

While some residents have welcomed the move, saying it could curb indiscriminate waste disposal and reduce flooding, others have raised concerns about enforcement, warning that movement restrictions could be abused and calling for sustained public education on proper waste management.

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Court remands suspected coup plotters in DSS custody

Published

2 hours ago

April 22, 2026

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The Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday ordered the remand of six defendants in the custody of the Department of State Services after they were arraigned on a 13-count charge bordering on alleged terrorism.

At the sitting, which commenced at about 1:46pm, the Attorney-General of the Federation, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), informed the court that the charge was ready and sought leave to have it read to the defendants.

Proceedings were briefly stalled after the third defendant informed the court that his counsel was indisposed, while counsel to the sixth defendant said his client understood only Arabic and Hausa, prompting the court to stand down the matter to secure an interpreter.

When the court reconvened at about 2:18 pm, all six defendants took their pleas and denied the allegations, pleading not guilty to the 13 counts.

Following the arraignment, the prosecution applied for their remand in DSS custody and urged the court to grant an accelerated hearing of the case, a request that was not opposed by most defence counsel, although the first defendant’s lawyer indicated an intention to file a bail application.

Ruling, the trial judge ordered an accelerated hearing, directed that the defendants be remanded in DSS custody with access to their lawyers, and adjourned the matter till April 27, 2026, for commencement of trial.