Headlines
Why Buhari Canceled Planned Subsidy Removal
Details have emerged on how security advice forced President Muhammadu Buhari to make a U-turn on the decision to remove fuel subsidy.
An impeccable security source told The PUNCH that intelligence handed over to the President by security officials showed that the protests that would have accompanied the subsidy removal might have been far worse than the #EndSARS demonstrations, mass protests against police brutality that grounded many parts of the country in 2020.
The official, who spoke to The PUNCH on strict condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak with the press, said the President was eager to implement the Petroleum Industry Act which would have ensured that subsidy was removed by June and investments in the oil sector increased.
He further stated that the government was afraid that such protests would have easily been hijacked by the opposition and affected the chances of the All Progressives Congress in next year’s election.
The official added, “The police, DSS, the National Intelligence Agency and the Office of the National Security Adviser usually send security reports to the President on the impact of sensitive issues like fuel subsidy. Reports given to the President showed that the protests being planned by unions would have been 10 times bigger than the #EndSARS protests.
“Petrol price was projected to increase to about N350 if the international price of oil continues to rise. This would have increased the cost of everything and encouraged everyone to take to the streets.
“They also drew the President’s attention to the coups sweeping many African countries and how the protests could have been hijacked by the opposition. This was why the President not only delayed subsidy removal but transferred the responsibility to the next government.”
Former President Goodluck Jonathan had in 2012 faced a similar challenge when he removed petrol subsidy forcing the price to rise from N65 per litre to N140.
The incident sparked protests in several parts of the country especially in Lagos where thousands converged on Ojota for over a week, grounding commercial activities in the country’s commercial capital.
“Some ministers actually advised the President to go ahead with subsidy removal because of the potential investments that deregulation would bring. But the President could not have taken such advice. The country is currently facing insecurity in several states, people are hungry. Outright removal of subsidy would have led to a rise in the cost of goods and protests. The alternative given to the President is to increase fuel price slightly. This could be done gradually by adding N3 or N5 periodically,” he said.
When one of our correspondents called the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, on the phone on Thursday for a reaction, he declined making any comments on the issue
But, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, had in an interview on Channels Television’s ‘Sunrise Daily’ programme on Wednesday, said subsidy removal would have forced Nigeria into a tailspin.
Adesina added, “If that subsidy had been removed, it would have been a show of will that we want to solve this problem (oil fraud). There was a will but if you have a will and what you want to do will upturn the system, throw the country into a tailspin, then you would have to reconsider, you will weigh it. That is why further consultations will still happen.”
The Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union had last year said it would on Thursday (yesterday) and February 2 embarked on nationwide protests against government’s plan to remove fuel subsidy.
But on Tuesday, the union shelved the protests following government decision to shift fuel subsidy removal by 18 months and amend the Petroleum Act, whose implementation was earlier scheduled to start in June.
The Punch
African football has been plunged into fresh uncertainty after the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) provisionally suspended a controversial ruling that stripped Senegal of their Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) title and awarded it to Morocco.
In an interim decision issued on Monday, CAS accepted Senegal’s appeal against the Confederation of African Football (CAF) Appeals Board and ordered a “freeze” on the implementation of its verdict.
The move effectively places the 2025 AFCON title in legal limbo pending a full hearing.
The dispute stems from a chaotic final played in January 2026, where the Teranga Lions of Senegal defeated the hosts, the Atlas Lions of Morocco, 1–0 after extra time. The match took a dramatic turn late on when a contentious penalty was awarded to Morocco.
Although the spot kick was missed, Senegal’s players briefly walked off the pitch in protest, prompting confusion before play eventually resumed, and the match was concluded. Weeks later, Morocco’s federation challenged the outcome, citing provisions within AFCON regulations relating to match forfeiture.
On March 17, CAF’s Appeals Board ruled in Morocco’s favour, declaring that Senegal’s walk-off constituted a breach severe enough to forfeit the match. The result was overturned to a 3–0 victory for Morocco, with Senegal stripped of the title.
Senegal swiftly condemned the decision as unjust and escalated the matter to CAS, arguing that the sanction was disproportionate and undermined the integrity of the on-field result.
CAS has now sided, at least temporarily, with Senegal’s request for urgent intervention.
By granting provisional measures, the tribunal signalled that enforcing CAF’s ruling before a full hearing could cause irreparable harm, particularly in a case involving the revocation of a major continental title.
The immediate consequence is that AFCON 2025 currently has no officially recognised champion. The trophy remains unassigned while legal proceedings continue.
US President, Donald Trump, said on Tuesday that Iran gave him a “very big present” related to the Strait of Hormuz, boosting his confidence that he is talking to the right people in Tehran to end the war.
The cryptic announcement came a day after Trump unexpectedly postponed threatened attacks on Iran’s power plants and said Washington is in negotiations with unspecified figures in Iran.
Tehran has, however, denied being part of any talks to end the war, which is now in its fourth week and has disrupted global oil supplies passing through the strategic Hormuz Strait.
“They did something yesterday that was amazing actually. They gave us a present and the present arrived today. And it was a very big present worth a tremendous amount of money,” Trump told reporters in the Oval Office.
“That meant one thing to me — we’re dealing with the right people.”
Speaking at the swearing-in ceremony for new US Homeland Security Secretary Markwayne Mullin, Trump said the “gift” was “very significant”, adding that it was “oil and gas-related.”
Asked if it was related to his demand that Iran reopen the Strait of Hormuz to oil traffic, Trump replied: “Yeah, it was related to the flow and to the strait.”
The US president added that the “present” was not related to Iran’s nuclear program, but repeated his claim that the Iranian side “agreed they will never have a nuclear weapon.”
Trump has not yet revealed who the United States is negotiating with in Tehran, saying only on Monday as he postponed a threat to attack Iran’s energy sites by five days that it is a “top person.”
“We’re actually talking to the right people, and they want to make a deal so badly,” Trump said.
Former Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei was killed on the first day of the joint Israeli-US air campaign, and successor Mojtaba Khamenei has not been seen in public.
But Trump said that the killing of Khamenei senior and a host of other top Iranian officials meant “we have really regime change. The leaders are all very different with the ones that we started off with.”
US Vice President, JD Vance, Secretary of State Marco Rubio, global envoy Steve Witkoff and Trump’s son-in-law Jared Kushner were all involved in the Iranian talks, Trump said.
But he did not confirm reports that Witkoff and Kushner were headed to Pakistan for talks with Iran, with Vance possibly to follow afterward if the negotiations appeared serious.
Pakistani Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif offered on Tuesday to act as a mediator to end the conflict.
He said he had spoken with Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian, promising Islamabad’s help to bring peace to the region.
Trump meanwhile joked that Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth “didn’t want it to be settled” because he wanted to keep striking Iranian targets.
“We see ourselves as part of this negotiation as well. We negotiate with bombs,” Hegseth said when he was called to the podium by Trump.
Agency Report
Iran, on Tuesday, fired a fresh broadside of missiles at Israel, causing damage and injuries in Tel Aviv, as uncertainty swirled over possible talks to end the three-week Middle East war.
AFP images showed rubble-strewn streets and the side of a building in Israel’s commercial hub in ruins, as first responders scrambled to assist at least four people lightly injured at four different locations.
Tel Aviv mayor, Ron Huldai, told reporters a “direct strike” had targeted a building in the upscale neighbourhood, as AFP video showed the facade of the three-storey block torn open.
According to several Israeli media outlets, police believe the damage was caused by a cluster munition missile equipped with three to four warheads, each carrying around 100 kilograms of explosives.
Iranian media reported US-Israeli warplanes had struck two gas facilities and a pipeline, hours after President Donald Trump stepped back from his threat to attack energy sites citing “very good” talks to end the war.
Trump said his administration was speaking with an unidentified “top person”, warning if talks failed in the next five days “we’ll just keep bombing our little hearts out”.
But Tehran’s parliamentary speaker, Mohammad Bagher Ghalibaf, reportedly involved in talks, said “no negotiations” were underway, insisting Trump was seeking “to manipulate the financial and oil markets.”
Stock markets soared and oil prices saw brief respite after Trump’s abrupt about-turn that came ahead of a deadline he had set to reopen the Strait of Hormuz shipping lane or see the US “obliterate” Iran’s power plants.
US media outlet – Axios – reported negotiators Steve Witkoff and Jared Kushner may meet an Iranian delegation for talks in Pakistan as soon as this week, with Vice President JD Vance possibly joining.
White House spokeswoman, Karoline Leavitt, did not deny the reports, saying “speculation about meetings should not be deemed as final until they are formally announced by the White House.”
Pakistan’s Prime Minister, Shehbaz Sharif, said on Monday he spoke with Iran’s President Masoud Pezeshkian, promising Islamabad’s help to bring peace to the region.
Iranian foreign ministry spokesman, Esmaeil Baqaei, said messages were received from “some friendly countries indicating a US request for negotiations aimed at ending the war”, but denied any such talks had taken place, Iran’s official IRNA agency reported.
Israeli Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, said he had spoken to Trump and acknowledged Washington thought a deal was possible, but vowed to continue striking Iran and Lebanon to protect Israel.
“Trump believes there is a chance to leverage the tremendous achievements of the IDF and the US military… in an agreement,” he said.
Israel kept up its bombardment on Beirut’s southern suburbs throughout the night, while a strike on Bshamoun, south of the capital, killed two people on Tuesday, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.
AFP images showed smoke billowing from gutted buildings in Beirut, as rescuers picked through the rubble and twisted metal.
Strikes also targeted several service stations linked to Iran-backed Hezbollah that Israel has vowed to dismantle.
Israel’s attacks in Lebanon have killed more than 1,000 people and displaced more than a million, according to Lebanon’s health ministry.
The war has killed at least 3,230 Iranians, including 1,406 civilians, according to the US-based Human Rights Activists News Agency. AFP cannot access strike sites nor independently verify tolls in Iran.
On Monday, Iran’s neighbours breathed a sigh of relief after Trump stepped back from his threat to target the country’s power infrastructure.
Tehran had vowed to deploy naval mines and strike power and water infrastructure across the region in retaliation, threatening to escalate an energy crisis of already historic proportions.
“Trump has been a master of sudden pivots and switches. So it’s sometimes hard to know if there is a strategy or if it’s just always improvisation,” said Garret Martin, a professor of international relations at American University in Washington.
Thousands of US Marines are headed to the Middle East, reinforcing America’s presence following weekend speculation Trump was mulling ground operations either to seize Iranian oil assets or to forcibly reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Since the war erupted, Tehran has retaliated against US-Israeli attacks by throttling traffic through the Strait, a conduit for one-fifth of global crude, and by hitting Gulf energy sites and US embassies as well as targets in Israel.
International Energy Agency chief Fatih Birol warned if the war is protracted, daily oil losses would pave the way for a crisis worse than the combined impact of both 1970s oil shocks and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Oil prices have been driven above $100 a barrel by the conflict, but they tumbled sharply after Trump’s announcements.
