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…commissions Kuje-Gwagwalada dual carriageway linking Southern Nigeria President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has assured Nigerians that even though his reforms are tough, his administration is laying a foundation for prosperity. The President gave the assurance when he commissioned the seven-kilometre Phase 1 of the Kuje-Gwagwalada dual carriageway in the nation’s capital, Abuja, on Wednesday. He said […]

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POLICE-LED JOINT SECURITY PATROL TEAM NEUTRALISES FOUR SUSPECTED ARMED GANG MEMBERS, RECOVERS GPMG, AK-47 RIFLES, IEDs, AND OTHER EXHIBITS IN ANAMBRA

The Police-led Joint Security Patrol Team, Aguata Sector, recorded a major operational success on the evening of 23rd June 2026 following an armed confrontation with a suspected secessionist armed gang along the Ogboji–Ajalli Road in Orumba South Local Government Area of Anambra State.

During the operation, security operatives neutralised four members of the armed gang and recovered a cache of weapons, ammunition, explosive devices, and other incriminating items. Recovered exhibits include one General Purpose Machine Gun (GPMG) with 53 rounds of linked live ammunition, two AK-47 rifles, two magazines, twenty-nine rounds of 7.62 x 39mm ammunition, thirteen rounds of 5.56mm ammunition, four undetonated Improvised Explosive Devices (IEDs), Police camouflage uniforms and accessories, one white Toyota Sienna bus with registration number KJA 919 KH (Lagos), ten Android phones, two feature phones, one laptop computer, one Point-of-Sale (POS) machine, two power banks, assorted charms, two live cartridges, ATM cards, a National Identification Card, and a Driver’s Licence belonging to identified individuals.

The operation was carried out during a visibility and confidence-building patrol following credible intelligence gathered over time concerning the movement of heavily armed suspected members of a secessionist armed group operating in the aforementioned Toyota Sienna vehicle.

Preliminary investigations indicate that other members of the gang fled into the surrounding bushes with varying degrees of gunshot injuries. Consequently, the Joint Security Team has intensified its operations in the area, including extensive combing and search efforts to apprehend the fleeing suspects and recover additional weapons and operational equipment.

The Anambra State Police Command reiterates its unwavering commitment, in collaboration with other security agencies, to sustaining proactive, intelligence-led, and results-oriented operations against criminal elements that threaten the peace, safety, and security of residents across the State.

SP Tochukwu Ikenga

Police Public Relations Officer

Anambra State Police Command, Awka

24 June 2026

…describes him as a unifying leader Delta State Governor, Rt. Hon. Sheriff Oborevwori, on Wednesday, paid a condolence visit to the family of former Commissioner for Health, late Dr Joseph Sisanmi Otumara, at his country home in Ugbuwangue, Warri South Local Government Area. Speaking during the visit, Governor Oborevwori described the late physician, community leader, […]

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President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Wednesday, said the newly completed Phase I of the Kuje-Gwagwalada Dual Carriageway has brought an end to decades of hardship, insecurity and economic losses suffered by residents and commuters along the corridor.

Speaking through Vice President Kashim Shettima at the commissioning of the 7-kilometre dual carriageway in Kuje Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory, (FCT) Tinubu described the road as a critical economic and security infrastructure that would transform the lives of residents in Kuje, Gwagwalada, Kwali and adjoining communities.

“For decades, this road was a death trap. Traders from Kuje, Gwagwalada, Kwali and beyond lost time, goods and sometimes lives while plying this road. Criminals thrived in the darkness. Students wasted hours in traffic. Farmers could not get their produce to market on time.

“But that story ends today,” the President said.

Tinubu noted that the road, equipped with solar-powered streetlights, pedestrian walkways and modern drainage facilities, represents more than physical infrastructure.

“This 7-kilometre dual carriageway with solar-powered streetlights, pedestrian walkways and proper drainage is more than a road. It is security. It is commerce. It is dignity.

“It is the economic corridor linking Abuja to three area councils and an opening and exit route to Southern Nigeria. With the construction of this road, we have unlocked the agricultural potential of this area, opened new residential layouts and made it safer for mothers, students and workers to move at any hour,” he stated.

The President said the project was a practical demonstration of the Renewed Hope Agenda and reaffirmed his administration’s commitment to extending development beyond Abuja city centre to satellite communities.

“My people of Kuje, Gwagwalada, Kwali and all the area councils and satellite towns, hear me clearly: this government sees you. You are not forgotten.

“For too long, Abuja’s development stopped at the city centre. Under the Renewed Hope Agenda, every area council matters. Every community counts. We will keep bringing roads, water, schools and hospitals to you,” he said.

Tinubu also urged residents to safeguard public infrastructure and support government efforts through civic responsibility.

“Do not build on the median. Do not vandalise the solar lights. Pay your taxes and ground rents. When government works and citizens cooperate, development moves faster,” he added.

The President commended the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, for expanding development to underserved communities across the territory.

“I gave you an instruction when I appointed you: make Abuja work for all Nigerians, not just for those in Maitama and Asokoro.

“You have taken Renewed Hope to the grassroots. From judicial quarters in Katampe to roads in Kuje and Gwagwalada, you are proving that development must not be selective. You heard the cries of satellite communities and responded. That is leadership. Well done, Honourable Minister,” Tinubu said.

Earlier, FCT Minister, Barr. Nyesom Wike, said the road project was a direct response to demands made by residents, traditional rulers and stakeholders during consultations held across the six area councils shortly after the administration assumed office in 2023.

According to him, insecurity and poor road infrastructure featured prominently among the concerns raised by residents of Kuje.

Wike recalled that the administration revived the abandoned Airport Road-Kuje road project before approving the Kuje-Gwagwalada road after personally inspecting its deplorable condition.

“So, one day, while returning from Kwali after inspecting projects, I said let us pass through the road the traditional ruler had been talking about.

“As we travelled, it took us almost two hours. I asked where we were heading to and they said Kuje. I said, ‘Are we in America?’ This is within the FCT and it took us almost two hours. The road was terrible. In fact, saying it was bad is an understatement; there was practically no road,” he said.

The minister explained that the Federal Executive Council approved the project in early 2025 and that it was awarded to Gilmor Engineering Nigeria Limited.

He expressed satisfaction that the first phase had been completed within schedule and disclosed that the contractor had assured the administration that the second phase would be delivered by December 2026.

“What this means is that the people of Gwagwalada and Kuje can now interact more easily, businesses can thrive and farmers can move their produce to markets without stress. That is governance. That is bringing hope to the people,” Wike said.

Also speaking, Minister of State for FCT, Dr Mariya Mahmoud, described the project as a visible demonstration of the Renewed Hope Agenda and a testament to the Federal Government’s commitment to improving lives through strategic infrastructure investments.

She commended Wike for what she described as his exceptional leadership and determination in delivering critical infrastructure across the FCT.

Earlier, Coordinator of the Satellite Towns Development Department (STDD) Abdulkadir Zulkiflu, said the project was awarded on February 28, 2025, and consists of a 7-kilometre dual carriageway with two lanes in each direction, a three-span bridge, drainage systems and solar-powered streetlights.

He added that the project would improve access to farming communities, facilitate movement of agricultural produce, reduce travel time and stimulate economic growth in Kuje, Gwagwalada and neighbouring communities.

Zulkiflu disclosed that the second phase of the project, covering the remaining six kilometres of dual carriageway, is expected to be completed by December 2026, completing the full upgrade of the Kuje-Gwagwalada road corridor.

Kuje-Gwagwalada road was death trap for decades – Tinubu declares as he commissions phase I dual carriageway

The Lagos State Taskforce has issued a 72-hour ultimatum to street traders and illegal occupants along the Alaba Rago corridor of the Mile 2–Badagry Expressway to vacate the area ahead of a major enforcement exercise.

The agency said the operation is part of ongoing efforts to enforce environmental laws and the ban on street trading across the state as stipulated in the Lagos State Environmental Laws of 2017.

In a statement by the Force Public Relation Officer, Gbadeyan Abdulraheem, the Taskforce disclosed that, in collaboration with other enforcement agencies, it would clear illegal trading activities on highways, walkways, road medians and setbacks along the Alaba Rago axis.

The Force said the corridor has become a source of concern for motorists, pedestrians, residents and visitors entering the country through the Seme border due to rising environmental degradation, safety risks and security challenges.

Abdulraheem said the enforcement exercise will target makeshift shops, illegal structures, mini brothels, used-plastic depots, indiscriminate waste-disposal sites, and other environmental violations affecting the area.

According to the statement, the Chairman of the Lagos State Taskforce, CSP Adetayo Akerele, who spoke during a sensitisation exercise, urged affected traders and occupants to leave voluntarily within the stipulated period to avoid sanctions.

Akerele described the Alaba Rago corridor along the Lagos-Badagry Expressway, also known as the ECOWAS Road, as a strategic route that cannot be allowed to remain under the grip of illegal activities.

“Lagos State cannot continue to overlook the level of illegal activities and environmental hazards in the area. The situation is inconsistent with the status of a modern megacity, and the time has come to enforce the law,” he said.

Akerele noted that the government had engaged stakeholders through dialogue and public enlightenment before embarking on the planned operation.

He further warned that anyone found trading illegally on highways, walkways or road setbacks after the expiration of the notice would have their goods confiscated and face legal action.

He also reiterated the Lagos State government’s commitment to maintaining environmental order, safety, and security across the state, in line with the administration’s THEMES Plus Agenda.

Lagos Gives Alaba Rago Traders 72-Hour Quit Notice is first published on The Whistler Newspaper

 

A 42-year-old Nigerian national, Franklin Ikechukwu Nwadialo, has been sentenced to five years in prison in the United States for his scheme to steal some $3.5 million from eight different victims via an online romance scam. 

Nwadialo, the chairman of Ogbaru Local Government Area of Anambra State was arrested by the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) at a Texas airport upon his arrival in the U.S in 2024. 

The politician was elected chairperson on 28 September, 2024.

First Assistant U.S. Attorney Charles Neil Floyd announced this in a statement issued by the United States Department of Justice on Tuesday, June 23, 2026.

Nwadialo was sentenced on Monday in U.S. District Court in Tacoma, Washington.

He was indicted in December 2023 for 14 counts of wire fraud connected to his romance fraud scheme. 

At the sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge Tiffany M. Cartwright called the crime “devastating,” noting that it is “not an exaggeration to say it ruined lives—not only financial lives” but also from the nonmonetary harms the victims endured, such as “shame, depression, and isolation from their own family.”

“This defendant preyed on those already suffering from the loss of loved ones or other heartbreak. For some 15 years he upended the lives of people he never met,” said First Assistant U.S. Attorney Neil Floyd. 

“He spun tale after tale to gain the victims’ trust and their money – even claiming to run a non-profit providing services for autistic children. No scheme was too low for these conspirators.” 

“For years, Mr. Nwadialo preyed on vulnerable victims looking for relationships online, gained their trust, and told them lies to steal their life savings totaling millions of dollars,” said W. Mike Harrington, Special Agent in Charge of the FBI Seattle field office.

“Fortunately, although he operated his romance scams from overseas, Mr. Nwadialo ultimately traveled to the United States where he could be arrested and held accountable for his crimes here in the Western District of Washington.”

A retired Director of the Department of State Services, DSS, Dennis Amachree, has declared that political leaders in Nigeria have become active architects of instability due to their failure to make the dividends of democracy available to the masses.

Amachree, a security expert, equally declared that corruption and lack of patriotism among the political class threaten national security.

He spoke while presenting a book during the 40th anniversary of the establishment of the Department of State Services, DSS, also known as the State Security Service, SSS.

The intelligence agency was created in 1986, upon the dissolution of the National Security Organisation, NSO. The National Intelligence Agency, NIA, and the Defence Intelligence Agency, DIA, were also established from the NSO.

In the book titled, ‘DSS@40: My Journey Behind The Shield’, Amachree offered an insider’s view of the challenges, sacrifices and responsibilities that accompany the protection of national interests as an operative of the secret service.

Highlighting the threat posed by politicians to national security, he said, “The endemic corruption and profound lack of patriotism among Nigeria’s political class represent a fundamental threat to national security, one that arguably surpasses external adversaries.

“Rather than providing the stewardship required to stabilize a nation in decline, political leaders have become active architects of instability.

“Their actions and systemic inaction have transformed the state from a protector of the people into a primary driver of socioeconomic collapse.”

Also speaking on the “anatomy of political sabotage”, he stated that the current security crisis in the country is not merely a result of insurgent or criminal activity.

According to Amachree, “This ‘slippery slope’ is a direct symptom of political failure.”

Political leaders now architects of instability – Ex-DSS Director  

The Financial Institutions Training Centre (FITC) and the Fiscal Responsibility Commission (FRC) have begun discussions on a strategic partnership aimed at strengthening fiscal governance, enhancing institutional efficiency, and advancing capacity development in Nigeria’s public sector.

The proposed collaboration was explored during a meeting held on Wednesday at the Commission’s headquarters in Abuja, where officials from both organisations examined areas of cooperation to support institutional development and improve service delivery.

Leading the FITC delegation, Mrs. Adenike Animasaun described the institution as a world-class, innovation-driven knowledge centre established by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the Bankers’ Committee. She noted that FITC has spent over four decades building resilient institutions through learning, advisory services and research.

Animasaun commended the Fiscal Responsibility Commission for promoting prudent and transparent fiscal management, describing its mandate as vital to Nigeria’s economic sustainability.

She said the meeting was aimed at identifying areas of collaboration that would strengthen the Commission’s institutional capacity and operational effectiveness.

According to her, FITC has over 16 years of experience supporting regulatory agencies and public institutions, including the Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC), the National Pension Commission (PenCom), and other government organisations.

She disclosed that FITC offers more than 180 specialised courses tailored to the needs of public institutions and remains committed to delivering customised solutions that address performance gaps and improve efficiency.

“Our objective is to ensure that the Fiscal Responsibility Commission benefits from our innovative learning solutions, advisory services and institutional development programmes designed to drive sustainable performance,” she said.

Animasaun highlighted FITC’s offerings, including executive development programmes, staff promotion examination support, performance management systems, strategic planning, change management, workforce transformation, technology advisory and board capacity development.

She also announced that FITC would host a major conference on July 8, with participants expected to attend both physically and virtually.

Responding on behalf of the Acting Chairman of the Commission, Barrister Charles Chukwuemeka Abana, Chairman of the FRC Collaboration Committee, Mr. Ugoh Chinemerem, described the engagement as timely and beneficial.

He stressed the importance of institutionalising professionalism in public service training, noting that effective capacity building is critical to improving performance across government institutions.

Ugoh assured the delegation that the Commission would review FITC’s training and development calendar before taking steps to formalise the partnership.

He also underscored the need for stronger platforms to improve public awareness of the Commission’s policies, programmes and activities.

Describing the FRC as a credible institution, he attributed its reputation to its commitment to accountability, transparency and prudent management of public resources.

Also speaking, the Commission’s Head of Monitoring and Evaluation advocated a two-pronged approach to future collaboration, stressing the need not only to strengthen staff capacity but also to educate Government-Owned Enterprises covered under the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007 to improve compliance.

Both parties expressed optimism about future engagements, with the Commission assuring that the outcome of the discussions would be conveyed to its Chief Executive.

The proposed partnership is expected to strengthen fiscal discipline, improve governance standards and support sustainable economic development in Nigeria.

FITC, FRC Eye Strategic Alliance To Boost Institutional Efficiency is first published on The Whistler Newspaper

The Managing Director of Port and Terminal Multiservices Limited (PTML), Mr Ascanio Russo, has unveiled a

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The Federal Government has inspected the ongoing construction of a $400m rare earth processing plant in the Uke community of Nasarawa State.

A delegation from the Federal Ministry of Solid Minerals Development (MSMD) assessed the project’s compliance with regulatory requirements and environmental standards.

The facility, being developed by Hasetins Commodities Limited, is expected to add 12,000 tonnes per annum to the company’s existing capacity and increase total output to 18,000 tonnes per annum.

The delegation included the Director, Mining Inspectorate, MSMD, Mr Ganiyu Imam, and the Director, Mines Environmental Compliance, Dr Vivian Okono.

Imam said the team was satisfied with the level of compliance at the site and urged the company to sustain the safety and environmental measures put in place.

A Deputy Director in the ministry, Mr Oladehinde Oladusi, who represented Dr Okono during the visit, commended the quality of work and the modern equipment deployed at the facility.

He said the project was different from cases where companies extract minerals without proper environmental considerations.

“The commitment that we have seen so far in respect of the way the company is starting is different from the narrative of some others, who just bumped into our environment, broke the ground and carry our minerals away,” Oladusi said.

He commended Hasetins for conducting an environmental and social impact assessment before commencing the project.

“One of the first things that impressed me about this company is the initiative it took to prepare a sound environmental and social impact assessment, which is one of the prerequisites to commence this kind of big project. It is quite impressive.

“I am quite impressed and what we need to do now is to encourage them to see that most of the mitigation measures that are inside that document are put in place,” Oladusi said.

He also commended the security arrangements at the site and advised the company to ensure an adequate community development agreement to prevent future disputes when operations begin.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Hasetins, Prince Jidayi, thanked the Federal Government and the Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dr Dele Alake, for their support and encouragement.

Jidayi said the company was introducing new approaches to the processing of rare earth and critical minerals in Nigeria.

“For decades, the narrative has been of raw extraction and immediate export. Hasetins is advancing that. This plant will process rare earth metals and other critical like Tantalum, Tungsten tin and others.

“In doing so, we are strictly deploying advanced, closed-loop processing technologies designed to minimize environmental impact, manage Tailings responsibly and protect local water bodies and air quality.

“We believe that extracting and processing the components of the world’s green energy transition must not come at the expense of our local environment,” he said.

Jidayi added that the company was establishing regional separation centres and satellite separation centres to integrate artisanal and small-scale miners into a structured supply chain.

“We are equipping them with gears, safety, training, support and offering them offtake structures that increases economic stability at rural communities,” he stated.

FG Inspects $400m Rare Earth Plant In Nasarawa, Commends Progress is first published on The Whistler Newspaper