General
Gerald Irona has no Case With EFCC—Aide
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The immediate past Deputy Governor of Imo State, Mr Gerald Irona, has denied reports that he was arrested by operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The politician, who was sacked from office alongside his boss, Mr Emeka Ihedioha, by a supreme court judgement that brought in Mr Hope Uzodinma, said via a statement from his media aide, Mr Walter Duru, said he has no case with the anti-graft agency.
The statement said reports that Mr Irona was “intercepted at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja and taken to the EFCC headquarters for interrogation” was not only false but also malicious.
It was alleged that Mr Irona was picked up by the EFCC for allegedly collecting N400 million monthly from the account of the Imo State Oil Producing Areas Development Commission (ISOPADEC) in their short stay in power.
It was also alleged that he mismanaged N5 billion counterpart funds for the Rural Access Mobility Project (RAMP) and that he failed to return his passport to the EFCC after using it last year.
But Mr Duru, in a statement made available to Business Post, disclosed that, “For the avoidance of doubt, immediate past Deputy Governor of Imo State, Gerald Irona was neither invited nor arrested by operatives of the EFCC or any other law enforcement agency in Nigeria.”
He added that Mr Irona was not under any form of investigation whatsoever, noting that he is relaxing in his residence and is not arrested, invited or wanted as reported.
According to him, “The allegation of misappropriation of ISOPADEC funds is laughable as the former Deputy Governor was never the Chief Executive Officer of the oil commission and could not have been in charge of the commission’s funds.
“We consider it an insult and an attempt to reduce Imo State’s former Deputy Governor to the mere head of one of the many parastatals in the state.
“On the allegation of mismanaging RAMP funds, nothing could be more untrue. The former Deputy Governor never managed any such funds and has nothing whatsoever to do with it.
“On the allegation that the former Deputy Governor never returned his passport to EFCC, it is strange as Irona was never a guest of the EFCC and at no time did the anti-graft agency seize his passport.
“Gerald Irona is a responsible and patriotic, law-abiding Nigerian and will not waste a second in responding to any call or invitation from any constituted authority.
“In and out of office, Irona has lived a transparent, disciplined and decent lifestyle, worthy of emulation.
The sponsors of this report are political detractors envious of the rising profile of the darling former Deputy Governor of Imo State.
“While we consult our lawyers on a possible legal remedy for this brazen and irresponsible spread of outright falsehood, the general public is hereby advised to disregard the report in its entirety, as there is no iota of truth in it.
“It is on record that the brief administration of former Governor Emeka Ihedioha remains the most transparent, focused and result-driven administration Imo State has ever had.”
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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