General
Nigerian Businessman Furious Over Allegation of N51bn Fraud
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
A businessman in Nigeria, Mr Nasiru Danu, has expressed his displeasure over a report linking him with an alleged N51 billion fraud.
A popular online news platform, Sahara Reporters, had claimed in a report published on March 5, 2021, that Mr Danu connived with the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), Mr Hameed Ali, to rob the nation of the said amount.
This did not go down well with the businessman, who is now considering taking a legal action against the online newspaper for defamation of character.
Already, the lawyers of the philanthropist have written to the management of Sahara Reporters to retract the “defamatory publication on all its distribution platforms” within seven days.
The media organisation has also been asked to tender an unreserved apology to Mr Danu and must be “published in three national dailies for seven consecutive days.”
They warned that failure to comply might see Sahara Reporters facing a tough legal battle as Mr Danu was ready for a showdown.
They described the report as not only false but a fabrication as the story was published without the presentation of facts to back their claims.
Sahara Reporters had said in its story that Mr Danu, a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) defrauded the Nigerian government of N51 billion meant to improve the revenue of the customs.
“Some top customs operatives and one Alhaji Nasiru Haladu Danu shared N51 billion. N2.5 billion out of the fund was transferred to a foundation owned by President Muhammadu Buhari’s daughter.
“Comptroller-General Hameed Ali has been on low key since the scandal broke out. They have him by the vice grip,” the online news platform had quoted an unnamed source as saying.
But the man responded in a letter dated March 6, 2021, to SaharaReporters through his lawyer, Mr Bode Olanipekun of Wole Olanipekun & Co., that he was not “part of any fraud including that alleged in your publication as involving N51 billion.”
“In the same vein, our client asserts, in the most vehement manner possible, that he did not transfer, or know about any transfer of N2.5 billion to any foundation, which he is purportedly a signatory to,” he further said.
“Our client’s position is that your publication was made, either with actual or constructive knowledge of the falsity of its content or without any effort to verify the authenticity of such damaging stories which any media outlet should be loath to publish.
“This is obvious, for instance, from the paucity of details as to time, place, account details, etc, in the publication. Such action is clearly indicative of bad faith and/or, recklessness, with respect,” the letter added.
By Aduragbemi Omiyale
The United States government gave some terrorists in Nigeria a Christmas gift that sent many of them to the great beyond.
On Thursday, December 25, 2025, the United States President, Mr Donald Trump, directed his country’s military to launch air strikes on camps of members of the dreaded Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) in Sokoto State.
According to Mr Trump, the military action, which he threatened to carry out a few weeks ago if the Nigerian government does not stop the killing of Christians in the country, occurred on Thursday night.
“Tonight, at my direction as Commander in Chief, the United States launched a powerful and deadly strike against ISIS Terrorist Scum in Northwest Nigeria, who have been targeting and viciously killing, primarily, innocent Christians, at levels not seen for many years, and even Centuries!
“I have previously warned these Terrorists that if they did not stop the slaughtering of Christians, there would be hell to pay, and tonight, there was.
“The Department of War executed numerous perfect strikes, as only the United States is capable of doing.
“Under my leadership, our country will not allow radical islamic terrorism to prosper. May God bless our military, and Merry Christmas to all, including the dead terrorists, of which there will be many more if their slaughter of Christians continues,” Mr Trump wrote on his Truth Social platform.
In a video on X, formerly known as Twitter, the Department of War of the United States posted the below video of the air strikes;
https://twitter.com/DeptofWar/status/2004351717131903272
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The presidency has reacted to speculations that Mr Femi Gbajabiamila has been removed as the Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu.
It was alleged that Mr Gbajabiamila has been replaced with the President’s Principal Private Secretary, Mr Hakeem Muri-Okunola.
Mr Muri-Okunola went to Abuja to take up this role after leaving as the Head of Service of the Lagos State Civil Service.
Reacting to the reports on social media on the purported removal of Mr Gbajabiamila, a former Speaker of the House of Representatives, the presidency said no such change has been made.
In a statement signed on Thursday by the Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, members of the public were advised to disregard the report as “there is absolutely no truth to this story.”
“The Chief of Staff remains in his position. The Principal Private Secretary likewise remains in his role. Hakeem Muri-Okunola has not replaced Femi Gbajabiamila as Chief of Staff.
“The viral claim is a fabrication by mischievous purveyors of fake news whose sole aim is to create disharmony within the government.
“We reiterate that news media should always verify their information before publishing or sharing on social media,” the statement said.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The new chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mrs Oritsemeyiwa Eyesan, has assumed office with a clear message to advance the country’s upstream oil and gas sector in line with the mandate of the commission as enshrined in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021.
According to a statement signed by Mr Eniola Akinkuotu, the Head of Media & Strategic Communications at the upstream regulator, the NUPRC boss made this assertation during her first town hall meeting with management and staff on Tuesday December 23, 2025.
She further disclosed plans to make the commission a business enabler and re-ignite investments in the upstream sector.
Recall that President Tinubu nominated Mrs Eyesan to take over the NUPRC after the abrupt resignation of her predecessor, Mr Gbenga Komolafe as well as his counterpart in the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Mr Farouk Ahmed.
In her new capacity, Mrs Eyesan also set a firm production ambition of growing Nigeria’s output and increasing gas production.
“The goal is that we must enable the industry, we are regulators. We must enable the industry from our interactions with the stakeholders, from our interactions with everybody.
“My main objective is to ensure that we make a difference. I believe the NUPRC is at the Center of the industry,” she said.
The commission boss who has served for over three decades in the oil and gas sector, promised to entrench digitisation, transparency and efficiency in operations.
The NUPRC head said with the support of staff and management, the NUPRC will become the gold-standard regulator in Africa. She also promised capacity development, stronger technical depth and sustained engagement with stakeholders, unions and professional teams.
On leadership style, Mrs Eyesan promised an open-door policy and frequent staff engagement, while also soliciting for support and cooperation as the industry embarks on the next phase of transformation.
“If we work together we can unleash opportunities, I don’t see impediments only opportunities,” she added.
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