General
CNPP Urges Abure to Resign as Labour Party National Chairman
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
Mr Julius Abure has been advised to resign as the National Chairman of the Labour Party (LP) amid controversies trailing his leadership of the opposition political group.
This advice was given by the Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) in a statement signed by its Deputy National Publicity Secretary, Mr James Ezema.
CNPP is the umbrella body of all registered political parties and associations in the country.
The group said the leadership of LP, which gained momentum after the former Governor of Anambra State, Mr Peter Obi, joined the party from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) ahead of the 2023 general elections, mismanaged the crisis it is going through at the moment.
The party recently held a national convention, which was disowned by some party executives and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The event was not attended by Mr Obi, its candidate in the 2023 presidential election won by Mr Bola Tinubu of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC).
In its statement issued on Sunday, CNPP applauded INEC for resisting pressure to endorse the outcome of the contentious national convention of the party.
“In view of the obvious lack of internal democracy in most of the political parties in Nigeria, INEC has done well for the sake of advancing our democracy by resisting obvious pressure to use its officials to endorse the outcome of the recent contentious national convention organised by a faction of the party.
“Therefore, we call on Barrister Julius Abure to make himself the hero in the crisis by tendering his immediate resignation as the National Chairman of the party,” it said.
The group further said, “Nigeria is supposed to be a liberal democracy, where inclusive representation, rule of law, and protection of the rights and liberties of individuals within the political parties must be encouraged by all democrats and democratic institutions.
“It was against this backdrop of the lack of inclusivity that characterised the build-up to the convention held in Anambra State, making it contrary to the Federal High Court’s judgment of Friday, July 23, 2021, which ordered parties in the Labour Party leadership tussle “to maintain status quo ante bellum in order not to disturb the rest of the matter pending further order of the court.”
“In the same vein, in the judgment of the Federal High Court in Suit no. FHC/ABJ/CS/866/2014 between Labour Party and 3 Ors. vs. Com. Salisu Muhammed, the court unequivocally declared the Labour Party as an institutional political party founded, promoted, and registered by the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on behalf of the Nigerian workers.
“In this light, the Julius Abure faction of the party misfired by holding the purported national convention of the Labour Party when it fell short of “an expansive and inclusive” exercise as ordered in a widely publicised subsisting court order.
“Leaving out NLC and other critical stakeholders in its consultations ahead of the convention was a miscalculated move as we recall that the former national chairman of Labour Party, High Chief Dan Nwanyanwu, on leaving office, submitted the Labour Party’s certificate of registration to the union in recognition of Labour Party as an institutional political party founded, promoted, and registered by the NLC.
“For us, the current leadership crisis rocking the Labour Party is needless and avoidable if basic ingredients of democracy, including inclusivity, justice, and accountability, were observed,” the CNPP stated.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has explained why it initiated a move to freeze the bank account of the Osun State government.
Earlier on Wednesday, the Governor of Osun State, Mr Ademola Adeleke, claimed that the anti-money laundering agency asked one of its bankers, First Bank, not to release funds to the state government.
According to the Governor, this was part of the strategies to frustrate his administration ahead of the August 15, 2026, governorship election in the state.
Reacting to the issue on Wednesday night, the EFCC, in a statement, said it has been investigating the state government since March 2026 over an alleged “fraudulent handling of Ecology Funds, Intervention Funds and Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) account to the tune of N11.0 billion.
The organisation noted that some officials of the state government, especially the Accountant General of the State, have had interview sessions with investigators of the EFCC.
“These ongoing investigations of the state government would not have warranted any placement of Post No Debit order on its account but for the precipitate and unwarranted movement of funds from the accounts to different suspicious accounts since August 2, 2026.
“The commission noticed huge transfers of funds into different corporate entities and had to swiftly halt the trend by freezing the accounts from which such heavy funds are being moved,” parts of the statement said.
In the disclosure, the agency noted that its preventive mandate is a public-inclined framework of safeguarding public funds, assets and resources, stressing that it cannot “watch idly while a state government’s account is being pillaged.”
“While the commission is fully aware of the impending governorship election in Osun State, it has a responsibility to act in defence of the sanctity of the funds of the state. It will be uncharitable for the commission to allow an excuse of an upcoming election to fold its arms to perform its legally-assigned functions,” it pointed out.
The EFCC disclosed that it is “keeping watch over the finances of other states like Osun State. Many of these states are on the investigative radar of the commission to ensure accountability and probity. The commission has always pointed out that it is non-partisan and non-sectarian but always working in the overall interests of Nigerians. The Osun State government account was frozen to save public funds from being looted.”
The organisation urged the public “to ignore false narratives and deliberate demonisation of the works of the EFCC. The interests of all Nigerians are greater and will always be protected by the commission.”
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has launched a mobile application designed to monitor fuel consumption patterns in real time across retail outlets nationwide.
The NMDPRA, established under the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) 2021, is responsible for the technical and commercial regulation of Nigeria’s midstream and downstream petroleum operations. The deployment of the mobile application aligns with the authority’s broader efforts to leverage technology to improve regulatory compliance and strengthen accountability.
The pilot phase of the project began on August 1 in Abuja and its six Area Councils, the authority said in a statement published on X.
As part of the rollout, the Executive Director for Distribution Systems, Storage and Retailing Infrastructure (DSSRI), Mr Ogbugo Ukoha, led a team alongside officials from the Abuja Regional Office to assess the readiness and operational performance of the digital platform at participating retail outlets.
According to the NMDPRA, the application captures inventory and compliance data in real time, enabling regulators to monitor fuel distribution more effectively while improving operational efficiency across the sector.
The authority said the platform would generate reliable, data-driven insights to support evidence-based decision-making, strengthen national energy security planning and enhance transparency in the downstream petroleum industry.
It added that the initiative is expected to provide significant value to government, investors, operators and other stakeholders by improving access to accurate fuel consumption and compliance data.
Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector has undergone significant changes since the deregulation of the petrol market and the removal of fuel subsidies, with regulators placing greater emphasis on data-driven supervision to ensure product availability, prevent supply disruptions and discourage sharp regional disparities in distribution.
By Modupe Gbadeyanka
No doubt, moving money among African markets remains a slow, fragmented process that relies on multiple intermediaries and prolonged settlement cycles.
To solve this issue and drive the development of stablecoin-enabled payment services for businesses across the continent, Onafriq has joined forces with a leading stablecoin infrastructure provider, Privy.
The collaboration will enable Onafriq to create and manage embedded digital asset solutions for its partners and, in time, institutional clients where regulation allows. The initial phase focuses on cross-chain stablecoin transfers and treasury and settlement workflows, creating the foundation for future cross-border payment and liquidity solutions.
Integrating Privy’s secure infrastructure enables Onafriq to build the capabilities required to support a new generation of efficient digital payment services for banks, fintechs, and mobile money operators.
This partnership is a key component of Onafriq’s broader strategy to modernise pan-African payment infrastructure, enabling secure multi-modal wallets and more efficient movement of value across the continent.
The outcome will support a range of future institutional use cases, including stablecoin-enabled settlement, treasury management and liquidity services, as it reflects Onafriq’s commitment to driving Africa’s digital transformation agenda by investing in technologies that make financial services more efficient, connected and accessible.
It was gathered that Onafriq selected Privy for its enterprise-grade infrastructure to enable the seamless integration of digital asset wallet capabilities into its products, subject to regulatory approval, and deliver a simple user experience while abstracting the complexity of blockchain technology.
“At Onafriq, we keep investing in technology that makes payments faster and more accessible. Privy gives us a building block for faster settlement and better liquidity management. As demand for digital asset services grows, our goal is to ensure Africa’s payment ecosystem benefits securely and in line with regulatory frameworks,” the Group Chief Product and Innovation Officer at Onafriq,” Mr Luke Kyohere, said.
The chief executive of Privy, Mr Henri Stern, said, “Stablecoins will play an increasingly important role in the future of global payments, but real-world adoption depends on infrastructure that is secure, scalable and simple to implement. Working with Onafriq allows us to help build that foundation across Africa and beyond.”
