Headlines
Hardship: Traditional, Spiritual Leaders Reason Nigerians Are Yet to Revolt – Sultan
The Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Muhammad Sa’ad Abubakar III, has expressed worry over the level of suffering, insecurity, and impoverishment being experienced in Nigeria.
He stated that soon it would be difficult to keep the people from revolting.
The Sultan addressed participants at the Arewa House in Kaduna on Wednesday, during the 6th executive Northern Traditional Rulers’ Council meeting.
He said that the traditional rulers and religious leaders have been calming the general public, including the unemployed youth, in order to prevent any form of uprising against the political leaders currently.
The Sultan, however, said: “It is getting to a level that traditional leaders could no longer pacify the people from revolting against government and political leaders that are supposed to find solutions to their lingering socio-economic plight.”
“And let’s not take it for granted; people are quiet, they are quiet for a reason, because people have been talking to them. We have been talking to them, we have been trying to tell them that things will be okay and they keep on believing.
“I pray to Almighty Allah that they will not one day wake up and say we no longer believe in you, that would be the biggest problem. We can’t continue to keep these people quiet as traditional, spiritual leaders and diplomats forever.
“We have reached that level, people are very agitated, people are hungry, they are angry, but they still believe there are people who can talk to them. They believe in some of their governors, some other traditional rulers and some of their religious leaders, fortunately some of us double as traditional and religious leaders.
“So, we have this onerous task of reaching out to everybody, calming them down and assuring them that things would be okay. And that they should continue to pray and still do something good because prayer without work will not bring anything good.
“To make matters worse, we are faced with rising level of poverty of most of our people. They lack normal sources of livelihood by the common man to have even a good meal a day.
“But I believe talking about insecurity and the rising level of poverty are two issues that we cannot fold our arms and think everything is fine. I have said it so many times and at so many fora that things are not alright in Nigeria. Of course, things are not okay in the North.
“What are the real issues bringing about poverty and rising cases of insecurity? I don’t think it is the issue of the new government. To me, this government is a continuation of the former government. It is the same party. So, what really is the problem? I think that is one of the reasons we are here to talk to ourselves,” he stated.
FIFA on Thursday unveiled its list of match officials for the June 11-July 19 World Cup, including 52 referees, six of whom are women.
Football’s governing body will also take 88 assistant referees and 30 video match officials, who hail from all six confederations and 50 member associations.
“The selected match officials are the very best in the world,” said Pierluigi Collina, FIFA’s chief refereeing officer.
“They were part of a wider pool of officials that was identified and monitored over the past three years. They have attended seminars and officiated at FIFA tournaments.
There are 41 more match officials than at Qatar four years ago, where 32 teams played 64 matches.
“The fact that six women match officials have been selected continues a trend that was started four years ago in Qatar as we aim to further develop women’s refereeing,” Collina said, with six women having already refereed in 2022.
AFP
Iran, on Wednesday, shut the Strait of Hormuz following fresh Israeli strikes on Hezbollah targets in Lebanon, raising fears that a fragile ceasefire with the United States could collapse less than a day after it was reached.
The closure comes amid renewed hostilities that have cast doubt over efforts to halt more than a month of fighting. While both Iran and the United States had earlier declared victory after brokering the truce, fresh missile and drone attacks were reported across Iran and parts of the Gulf, alongside intensified Israeli bombardments in Lebanon.
In Beirut, Israeli strikes hit residential and commercial areas without prior warning, leaving at least multiple people dead and many others injured in what has been described as one of the deadliest days of the conflict.
Iranian state media confirmed the closure, with IRNA reporting that the move was taken “in the wake of Israel’s attacks on Lebanon.” The development has heightened concerns over the stability of the ceasefire agreement mediated by the United States.
Authorities in Iran also imposed strict controls on maritime movement in the strategic waterway. Ships near the strait were instructed to seek permission from Sepah, a special operations unit under the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, before passage. A radio message cited by The Wall Street Journal warned that any vessel attempting to cross without approval “will be destroyed.”
Earlier in the day, Iran had indicated a willingness to reopen the strait during the proposed two-week ceasefire, noting this would be done with “coordination with Iran’s Armed Forces and with due consideration of technical limitations.” U.S. officials, meanwhile, said American forces could assist in managing ship traffic, although details remain unclear.
U.S. President Donald Trump also told ABC News he was open to a “joint venture” arrangement with Iran that would involve charging tolls for vessels passing through the strait.
However, reports of ceasefire breaches soon emerged. Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, who played a role in negotiating the agreement, said on X that violations had already been recorded, further deepening uncertainty over whether the truce will hold.
The Presidency has come up with reasons behind President Bola Tinubu’s absent at the commissioning of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s projects in Lagos, on Wednesday.
Tinubu was noticeably absent at the scheduled project commissioning in Lagos, sparking public curiosity.
However, Sunday Dare, his Special Adviser on Public Communications and Orientation, has clarified the reason behind the last-minute development.
Speaking during an interview on Channels Television, Dare revealed that the President had to prioritise urgent national security matters over the event.
According to him, although Tinubu is currently in Lagos, he has been deeply engaged in high-level State duties, particularly ongoing security briefings tied to recent developments across the country.
“The president has been busy taking constant briefs and has to prioritise when it comes to state matters, especially security,” Dare stated.
He referenced rising security concerns, including recent unrest linked to incidents in Jos, noting that the President has been closely monitoring the situation and working directly with intelligence agencies.
Dare emphasised that Tinubu remains fully engaged behind the scenes, actively coordinating with security operatives and receiving continuous updates to address emerging threats.
The absence, he stressed, should not be seen as neglect of official duties but rather a reflection of the President’s focus on safeguarding national stability at a critical time.
Tinubu skipped the Lagos commissioning not out of disregard, but to handle pressing security issues demanding immediate presidential attention.
