Headlines
Abuja Pastors That Endorsed Tinubu Are on Their Own, Says PFN
The Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria has distanced itself from the endorsement of the All Progressives Congress presidential candidate, Bola Tinubu, by the Nigeria Coalition of Pastors for Good Leaders.
The Deputy National Chairman, Bishop Don Daniel, while addressing newsmen in Lagos on Thursday, said members of the coalition have the free will to endorse any candidate of their choice, adding that it has nothing to do with PFN.
He said, “The pastors endorsing Tinubu do not change our stance as a bloc of CAN in supporting credible candidates. We still stand on the same agreement and injunction that CAN has given. Everybody is not part of CAN. They chose to and everybody is entitled to their own free will.
“They cannot force anybody to follow them to do what they have decided to do. So if they said they had endorsed a candidate, that is purely their own doing. Everybody has a right and choice of who they want to vote for. It has nothing to do with us.”
Daniel also reiterated the position of PFN on the Muslim-Muslim ticket saying it has not changed.
He said, “We have not changed our stance because we are still part of CAN and we are still frowning at the Muslim-Muslim ticket. We believe that the church can vote for people that are credible and competent. And you know that our president made a press conference recently and he clarified that we are looking for people to move the country forward. And if a Muslim is credible to take the nation forward, we will vote for him.
“The church frowned at the Muslim-Muslim ticket, but it is not a dead end and we are still praying. We have not been able to come up with something definite or specific to say that this is who everybody should vote for. The election is still about three months away. Who knows if the church through CAN can come up with a resolution. But our stance still remains.”
The cleric urged Nigerians to take responsibility by getting their PVCs and be strategically prepared to vote for credible leaders that would take the nation forward and unite the country on all fronts.
He also disclosed that the fellowship visited Bayelsa and Kogi states to donate some relief items to flood victims in a bid to alleviate their sufferings.
He added that the Israeli Ambassador to Nigeria, Shimon Ben-Shoshan, paid a courtesy visit to the headquarters of the fellowship where they had a mutual discussion on immigration and agriculture.
The Punch
The first hostages freed from Gaza under a long-awaited ceasefire agreement are back in Israel. The news sparked jubilant scenes in Tel Aviv where large crowds gathered ahead of their release.
The three freed Israeli hostages – the first of 33 to be released over the next six weeks – are Romi Gonen, Doron Steinbrecher and Emily Damari. They are said to be in good health and are receiving treatment at a medical center in Tel Aviv.
In exchange, 90 Palestinian prisoners and detainees are set to be released by Israel from Ofer Prison in the occupied West Bank.
The Israeli military withdrew from several locations in southern and northern Gaza after the truce began earlier on Sunday, an Israeli military official told CNN.
Displaced Gazans have started returning to their homes, while the aid trucks laden with much-needed supplies have crossed into Gaza. Here’s what we know about how the ceasefire deal will work.
Hamas, despite suffering devastating losses, is framing the Gaza ceasefire agreement as a victory for itself, and a failure for Israel.
One of Hamas’ main goals for taking some 250 people during its brazen October 7, 2023, attack on Israel was to secure the release of Palestinian prisoners held in Israeli jails. As Israel pounded Gaza in response, Hamas vowed not to return the hostages until Israel withdrew its forces from the enclave, permanently ended the war, and allowed for rebuilding.
Source: CNN
The leader of UK’s Conservative Party, Kemi Badenoch, has said she doesn’t want Britain to be like Nigeria that is plagued by “terrible governments.”
Speaking on Thursday at an event organised by Onward, a British think tank producing research on economic and social issues, Badenoch expressed fears that Britain may become like Nigeria if the system is not reformed.
“And why does this matter so much to me? It’s because I know what it is like to have something and then to lose it,” Badenoch told the audience.
“I don’t want Britain to lose what it has.
“I grew up in a poor country and watched my relatively wealthy family become poorer and poorer, despite working harder and harder as their money disappeared with inflation.
“I came back to the UK aged 16 with my father’s last £100 in the hope of a better life.
“So I have lived with the consequences of terrible governments that destroy lives, and I never, ever want it to happen here.”
Badenoch has been in the news of late after she dissociated herself from Nigeria, saying she has nothing to do with the Islamic northern region.
She also accused the Nigeria Police of robbing citizens instead of protecting them.
She said: “My experience with the Nigeria Police was very negative. Coming to the UK, my experience with the British Police was very positive.
“The police in Nigeria will rob us (laughter). When people say I have this bad experience with the police because I’m black, I say well…I remember the police stole my brother’s shoe and his watch.”
