NEWS

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has resumed the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise across the country, signalling the start of the second phase of the process. The registration exercise recommenced on Monday, following the conclusion of the first phase on December 10, 2025. INEC had earlier launched online pre-registration on August 18, 2025, before rolling out physical registration at centres nationwide on August 25, 2025. According to the commission, a total of 9,891,801 Nigerians initiated online pre-registration during the first phase. However, by November 28, 2025, only 2,572,054 applicants had successfully completed the process nationwide. This figure includes 1,503,832 online registrations and 1,068,222 completed through physical enrolment at reg...

Asari Dokubo, the Amanyanabo of Torusarama Piri in Degema Local Government Area of Rivers State, has pledged to work towards President Bola Tinubu’s re-election in 2027. Dokubo made the commitment on Tuesday during a courtesy visit by the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to his palace in Degema. He praised Wike for the visit and recalled that President Tinubu stood by him during a difficult period in his life, saying the time had come to reciprocate the gesture. “As you said, my friend, whatever needs to be done, I will stand with you to ensure that the President succeeds,” Dokubo said. “Everything within my capacity, I will do to make sure he is successful. “When we first met in 1992, I was not a traditional ruler and never imagined I would become ...

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has named Dr Olugbemisola Titilayo Odusote as the new Director-General of the Nigerian Law School. The appointment was announced on Tuesday by the President’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga. According to the statement, Odusote’s four-year tenure will begin on January 10, 2026. At 54, Odusote is currently the Deputy Director-General and Head of the Lagos Campus of the Nigerian Law School. Her appointment makes her the first woman to head the institution since its establishment in 1962. She will take over from Professor Isa Hayatu Chiroma, whose eight-year tenure as Director-General ends on January 9, 2026. Odusote earned her Bachelor of Laws (LL.B) degree from Obafemi Awolowo University and was called to the Nigerian Bar in ...

The National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) has announced that the 2026 Batch ‘A’ Stream I Orientation Course will commence nationwide on Wednesday, January 21, 2026, across all 37 NYSC orientation camps in the country. The announcement was made in a statement shared on the NYSC’s official X handle on Tuesday. According to the statement, camp registration for all corps members will take place from Wednesday, January 21, to midnight on Friday, January 23, 2026. The swearing-in ceremony is scheduled for Friday, January 23, 2026, while the closing ceremony will hold on Tuesday, February 10, 2026. The Director-General of the NYSC, Brigadier General Olakunle Nafiu, wished prospective corps members safe travels to their states of deployment and advised them to avoid travelling at night. ...

The Ondo State Government says no fewer than 54,000 pregnant women and children under five have benefited from the Abiyamo Scheme under the state’s Contributory Health Insurance Scheme. The Special Adviser on Health to Governor Lucky Aiyedatiwa, Prof. Simidele Odimayo, said in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday in Akure that the scheme enables pregnant women and children under the age of five to enjoy free health services. “The Abiyamo scheme that the government is currently running is an advancement of the Abiye scheme. “With this system, all the people who are pregnant, and children below five years are able to enjoy free health services. “The government has done it in such a way that we register them, we put them in an insurance system, and by that i...

The US Department of Justice (DOJ) said Monday that it is still reviewing more than two million documents potentially related to convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, missing the December 19 deadline set by the Epstein Files Transparency Act.  The department began releasing documents from the decades-long investigation last month. According to a letter to a federal judge, about 12,285 documents totaling over 125,000 pages have already been made public, less than 1% of the files currently under review.  The DOJ discovered on December 24 that more than one million additional files were not included in the initial review. Some of these are duplicates but still require “processing and deduplication,” the letter said. “Substantial work remains to be done,” the letter, s...

Donald Trump has released a chart detailing the proportion of immigrants from various countries in the United States who rely on public assistance. The chart indicates that roughly 33.3% of Nigerian immigrant households receive some form of public support. Trump shared the data on his Truth Social platform on January 4, 2026, amid ongoing Republican discussions about immigration, welfare dependency, and immigrants’ economic contributions in US politics. Titled “Immigrant Welfare Recipient Rates by Country of Origin,” the chart covers about 114 nations and territories and tracks households receiving public assistance, including food aid, healthcare benefits, and other support programs. The countries with the highest welfare rates include: Bhutan – 81.4% Yemen – 75.2% S...

Panic gripped motorists on Tuesday afternoon following a fire outbreak involving a Bus Rapid Transit, BRT, vehicle on the Third Mainland Bridge, leading to massive traffic disruption. The incident occurred around 1:00 p.m. near the Adekunle section of the bridge, heading towards Iyana Oworo. The Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, confirmed the development in a statement posted on its official X handle. According to the agency, the high-capacity BRT bus suddenly went up in flames, prompting anxiety among road users in the area. Footage shared online showed the bus completely consumed by fire, with thick plumes of smoke rising into the sky as motorists slowed down or sought alternative routes to avoid the scene. While no injuries or loss of life were reported, t...

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control and Prevention (NCDC) has reported 1,119 confirmed cases of Lassa fever in 2025, with young adults identified as the most affected age group nationwide. The data comes from the NCDC’s Lassa Fever Situation Report for Epidemiological Week 51, covering December 15–21, 2025, which provides details on cases, deaths, and affected states. The report shows that people aged 21 to 30 accounted for the highest number of infections, with a median patient age of 30 years. Males were slightly more affected than females, reflecting differences in exposure or health-seeking behaviour in high-risk communities. A total of 206 deaths were recorded among confirmed cases, resulting in a case fatality rate of 18.4%, up from 16.4% during the same period in 2024. D...

The United Nations Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) on Tuesday warned that U.S. intervention in Venezuela breaches international law and threatens global security. Over the weekend, U.S. forces carried out a surprise operation that removed Venezuelan leader Nicolas Maduro, who now faces four criminal charges in the U.S., including narco-terrorism. Maduro’s vice president has been sworn in as interim president. “The operation clearly violated a core principle of international law: no state should threaten or use force against the territorial integrity or political independence of another state,” the OHCHR stated. Ravina Shamdasani, the Office’s chief spokesperson, urged the international community to “speak with one voice” in defending this principle. She st...