Headlines
Call Your Lieutenants to Order, NSA Warns Politicians Ahead Guber Polls
The National Security Adviser (NSA), Babagana Monguno, has called on political gladiators in the country to call their supporters to order ahead of the forthcoming governorship and state assembly elections
He also said security agencies will work round the clock to ensure the polls are conducted safely in the country.
Speaking at a meeting of the inter-agency consultative committee on election security organised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Tuesday, Mongonu commended security agencies, political parties and individuals for the peaceful conduct of the presidential and national assembly elections.
The NSA urged politicians to call their supporters to refrain from violence during the polls.
“Our preparation for the presidential and national assembly elections took place a few days ago. These elections were conducted with a considerable level of success in terms of security, in terms of collation and other matters,” Monguno said.
“I want to echo what the INEC chairman has just said by way of commending security agencies and intelligence organisations in the process that we just witnessed. Of course, the elections we are going into on Saturday are going to be much more complicated.
“Contextually, they are going to be different, but first of all, we are going to have 1,021 constituencies, meaning we are going to have more people interested, more people voting, more collation centres and obviously, the dynamics would be much more different than the elections that were just concluded.
“While commending the efforts of the various political parties and the individuals that participated in the last election, especially those that called for peace, for calm, I want to also urge the same individuals, especially at the state level to demonstrate the same level of maturity, the same level of discipline by calling their supporters to conduct themselves in a manner that is congruent with the expectations of the larger Nigerian society.
“Of course, there are channels for laying complaints and for addressing these complaints. For the security agencies, I know a lot has been done. I’ve been talking with the chief of defence staff, I’ve been talking with the Inspector-general of police, who is the head of the lead agency in the process of elections.
“So far so good, we do not envisage anything that is going to be terrible or apocalyptic in terms of the next few days. But, that does not mean that we should all do away with our readiness. We must comply with the rules, we must also allow everyone. I’ve said this so many times to exercise their fundamental right as citizens of this country.
“What we do not want to happen is for anybody to take the law into his or her own hands. I want to be very very clear on this, we are going to give the maximum support to all entities involved in this process.
“And we are also calling on the political bigwigs, the gladiators to call their lieutenants to order. Anybody who is itching to undermine this process should please think again. It is not in his own interest, not in the interest of the nation as well.
“Finally, those of us in the security agencies will continue to work round the clock. All the crisis centres are open and we will be talking with the chairman of INEC, if there’s anything that needs to be done, if there’s anything that needs to be added, my office is always open, ready and available to give that support.”
Vanguard
The Super Eagles of Nigeria defeated Egypt 4-2 on penalties to win the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) 2025 third-place playoff on Saturday.
Goalkeeper Stanley Nwabali proved the hero of the night with two crucial saves during the shootout, including one from Egyptian star Mohamed Salah.
Ademola Lookman then calmly converted the decisive penalty to secure the bronze medal —Nigeria’s ninth third-place finish in AFCON history.
With neither side able to break the deadlock in a cagey second half, the game ended 0-0, sending the contest directly to penalties.
Despite Fisayo Dele-Bashiru missing Nigeria’s first kick, Nwabali’s immediate saved from Egypt’s first two attempts shifted the momentum.
The Supreme Court has dismissed the appeal of the son of a former Jigawa State governor, challenging the decision of the trial court, which convicted him for failing to declare $40,000 at Kano airport.
In a unanimous decision, the apex court panel dismissed the appeal of Aminu Sule Lamido, the son of former governor Sule Lamido, for lack of merit.
Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) arrested Aminu on December 11, 2012, at the Mallam Aminu Kano International Airport while preparing to travel to Cairo, Egypt.
The prosecution said Aminu declared $10,000 to the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS), but was found with an additional $40,000, which was not disclosed on his currency declaration form.
The EFCC charged him before the Federal High Court in Kano on a one-count offence of false declaration of foreign currency, contrary to provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act.
On July 12, 2015, the court convicted Aminu and ordered him to forfeit 25 per cent of the undeclared sum to the Federal government.
Dissatisfied with the ruling, Aminu approached the Court of Appeal in Kaduna to overturn the conviction and set aside the forfeiture order.
In a judgment delivered on December 7, 2015, however, the Court of Appeal dismissed the appeal.
Meanwhile, the Supreme Court has ordered that the trial of former governor Lamido, his two sons, and others, over alleged N1.35billion fraud, should continue before the Federal High Court in Abuja.
A five-member panel of the apex court issued the directive in two unanimous judgments, in the two appeals filed by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The Supreme Court upheld the decision of the trial court, which dismissed the no-case submission filed by the Lamidos and held that the defendants had a case to answer.
Both appeals were against the July 25, 2023, judgments of the Court of Appeal in Abuja, which upheld the no-case submission made by Lamido and others and struck out the 37-count charge on which they were being prosecuted, on the grounds that the Federal High Court in Abuja lacked the jurisdiction to hear the case.
In the lead judgments of the Supreme Court, Justice Abubakar Umar set aside the July 25, 2023 judgments of the Court of Appeal and affirmed the earlier decision by Justice Ijeoma Ojukwu of the Federal High Court, Abuja, which overruled the no-case submissions by Lamido and others and ordered them to enter their defence.
The EFCC, in the 37-count charge, among others, accused Lamido of abusing his position as a governor between 2007 and 2015, allegedly laundering sums of money received as kickbacks from companies that were awarded contracts by the Jigawa State Government under his leadership.
The other defendants charged alongside Lamido are his two sons – Aminu and Mustapha; Aminu Wada Abubakar and their companies – Bamaina Holdings Ltd and Speeds International Ltd.
