Nigerian Newspapers: 10 things you need to know Friday morning
Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:
1. The Presidency on Thursday said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu remains fully engaged in Nigeria’s governance even though he is away in Europe. It said in a statement signed by Bayo Onanuga, Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, that the President will return to Nigeria after the Easter holiday.
2. The Ad-Hoc Committee of the House of Representatives on Rivers State has rescheduled its interactive session with the Administrator of the state, Vice Admiral Ibok-Ete Ibas (rtd.). In a statement signed by Reps spokesman, Akin Rotimi, on Thursday, the meeting earlier scheduled for today, April 17, 2025, at 4:00 PM, has been postponed.
3. The Concerned Christian Youth Forum has raised alarm over the relentless killings in Benue and Plateau states, lamenting the rising number of mass burials as a result of incessant attacks by armed bandits and criminal gangs. Speaking in Abuja on Wednesday, the Convener of the group, James Paul Adama, described the spate of violence in the North Central region as a “national tragedy,” warning that the continuous loss of innocent lives threatens the corporate existence of the country.
4. The Defence Headquarters, DHQ, said the troops of Operation Delta Safe have in the last one week uncovered and deactivated at least 42 illegal refining sites in the Niger Delta region. The Director, Defence Media Operations, Maj.-Gen. Markus Kangye, made this known in a weekly report of ongoing military operations on Thursday in Abuja.
5. The Central Bank of Nigeria has issued a fresh regulatory directive to banks, payment service banks, and fintech companies, warning them to tighten their sanctions compliance frameworks or face enforcement actions. In a circular dated April 17, 2025, signed by Amonia Opusunju for the Director, Compliance Department, the apex bank reminded all financial institutions of their obligation to comply with both domestic and international sanctions lists.
6. The Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, has vowed to avert a shutdown of the electricity sector over N4 trillion debts owed to power generation companies. The Minister disclosed this while responding to questions from journalists at the sixth Ministerial Press Briefing held in Abuja on Thursday.
7. The Police Force, Ondo State Command, has dismissed as false a report claiming that a vehicle in the convoy of the First Lady, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu, was responsible for the death of a nine-year-old girl in Akure on Thursday. In a statement, the Command’s spokesperson, DSP Olushola Ayanlade, clarified that the claim, published by online reporters, was entirely baseless and misleading.
8. A former lawmaker representing Kaduna Central Senatorial District, Shehu Sani, has advised President Bola Tinubu to shun nepotism in key appointments.The former senator gave the advice on ‘Politics Today’, a programme on Channels Television on Thursday, urging Tinubu not to toe same line.
9. The Lagos State Commissioner for the Environment and Water Resources, Tokunbo Wahab, has announced that at least 20 suspected drug peddlers arrested in Gowon Estate and Egbeda will be prosecuted. Wahab disclosed this in a statement on Thursday via his official X handle, following an operation carried out by the Lagos State Environmental and Special Offences Taskforce on Wednesday.
10. A Yoruba self-determination group, Yoruba One Voice, led by the Aare Onakakanfo of Yorubaland, Iba Gani Adams, has kicked against the push to introduce Sharia law in parts of the South-West, warning that such a move could destabilise the region and threaten Nigeria’s already fragile pluralism. This position was articulated in a communique issued at the end of YOV’s international virtual conference with the theme “Sharia Law in Yorubaland: Setting Things Straight through Restructuring.”
