Good morning, Nigeria. Welcome to the Editor roundup of top newspaper headlines in Nigeria for today, Thursday, 30th November 2023.
1. The Commissioner of Police, Ogun State, Abiodun Alamutu, on Wednesday night confirmed the killing of Mr Taiwo Oyekanmi, the Director of Finance and Accounts attached to the office of Governor Dapo Abiodun at Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta. Alamutu said Oyekanmi was gunned down while returning from the bank where he had taken a bullion van to withdraw some funds for the state.
2. The President Bola Tinubu-led administration is planning to spend N6.75tn of its projected N27.5tn budget on defence and security, education, and infrastructure in 2024. This is as it earmarked N6.48tn (96 per cent of the amount to be spent on the three sectors mentioned above) for personnel and pension, an increase of N576.16bn over the 2023 provision.
3. The Nigeria Police on Wednesday arrested and detained three officers of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps for shooting two students of Senior Secondary School, Life Camp, within the Jabi and Gwarinpa areas of the Federal Capital Territory. The two students shot by the NSCDC officers are currently receiving treatment at the Gwarinpa Hospital.
4. The Kano State Commissioner of Police, Mohammed Usaini Gumel, has ordered the arrest of the inspector who killed a resident during a clash between some rival gangs in the state. At least two residents of Kano were shot when the police were invited to quell an outbreak of violence at Kurna Asabe area of Fagge Local Government Area of Kano State, on Wednesday.
5. The office of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in Lokoja, Kogi State capital on Wednesday came under a siege by a mob that took the intervention of the Nigerian Army to disperse. The Social Democratic Party (SDP) and the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) have continued to trade words on who “sponsored” the mob that laid siege on the INEC office.
6. The naira was stable on Wednesday at N1,167 per dollar in the parallel market. However, it appreciated to N831.47 per dollar in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM).
7. Peace may be returning to the Ondo State Executive Council as it holds its meeting today in Akure, the state capital, after three months. Deputy Governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa will preside over the meeting, which is the first since the warring camps endorsed a peace deal at a reconciliation meeting hosted in Abuja by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu at the weekend.
8. The Supreme Court on Wednesday laid to rest anxiety over the lifespan of the old 200, 500 and 1,000 naira notes. It granted the Federal Government’s request to allow the bills to circulate indefinitely. The extension of the bills’ lifespan will subsist until necessary facilities are put in place for their replacement.
9. A Chief Magistrate Court sitting in Isabo, Abeokuta, Ogun State, has sentenced the Osolo of Ado-Odo, Muftau Dosunmu, to six months in prison for presenting himself as an Oba. The Osolo title, which is one of the high chiefs in Ado-Odo, Ado-Odo/Ota Local Government Area of Ogun State, was upgraded to a coronet Oba by the past administration of Senator Ibikunle Amosun, among 74 others across the state.
10. The Benue State Police has arrested 25 suspects for various offences across the state. Among those arrested were a suspected spiritualist, his pregnant wife and five others who travelled from Delta State to Benue State. The spokesperson for the state command, SP Catherine Anene, in a statement issued and made available to journalists on Wednesday, also said 15 suspected arm manufacturers were arrested.
