Author: News Room

​Insecurity across northern Nigeria is forcing many Christians to avoid public worship and cancel Christmas travel plans, the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) in the region has said. ​The warning comes against a backdrop of escalating violence in December 2025, which has seen religious centres and residents specifically targeted by criminal groups. The attacks are perpetrated by various armed groups and has led to the death and kidnap of thousands of people in recent years. ​The Context: A Bloody December ​CAN’s statement is a direct response to a series of harrowing incidents that have rocked the region in the weeks…

Yobe State has emerged as the overall winner of Nigeria’s Primary Health Care (PHC) Leadership Challenge, outperforming other states in an independently verified assessment. The assessment measures governance, financing, service delivery and accountability within PHC systems. The award was announced at the PHC Leadership Challenge Awards and Gala Night organised by the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), in collaboration with the National Primary Health Care Development Agency (NPHCDA) and development partners, including the Gates Foundation, UNICEF and the World Health Organisation (WHO). The annual challenge, which rewards measurable improvements in state-level PHC performance, aims to strengthen accountability, peer learning and sustained…

Kenya’s exquisite little pancake tortoise, locally known as kobe kama chapati, faces extinction due to habitat loss, land clearance for agriculture, poaching for the illegal pet trade and potential impacts from climate change. On 10 August, three suspects were arrested in a sting operation conducted by Kenya Wildlife Service (KWS) rangers and the police. The suspects were transporting four of these creatures to a buyer at the Marimanti trading centre in Tharaka-Nithi County. The sting operation came in the wake of KWS unveiling a National Recovery and Conservation Action Plan for the Pancake Tortoise (Malacochersus tornieri) in Kenya (2025-2035) on 16 May. These unusually soft-shelled, beautifully patterned,…

The Northern Christian Youth Coalition, NCYC, has called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to immediately remove the Minister of State for Defence, Bello Matawalle. The coalition said it was important for the minister to respond to what it described as “grave allegations” undermining the integrity of the nation’s security architecture. In a statement issued on Thursday by its national coordinator, Jeremaid Hudso Bako, the group said the call was driven by the need to uphold accountability and restore public trust in government institutions. Bako said the recent dismissal of Farouk Ahmed, the former Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream…

Chrisland Schools Limited has emphasised the importance of schools creating platforms beyond classroom instruction that enable students to express themselves, build confidence, and develop life skills essential for holistic education. The call was made during Chrisland’s Variety Night and Christmas Concert themed “The Gift of Love,” which brought together learners, parents, educators and other stakeholders from across Chrisland campuses. Speaking, the Director of Schools, Mrs Ayoola Akinyeye, highlighted the educational value of extracurricular activities, stressing that learning does not end in the classroom. She explained that platforms like the variety night are targeted to help students develop public speaking skills,…

The Safe Schools Initiative has recorded a sharp rise in school registrations, reflecting growing concerns over the safety of students amid an alarming increase in school kidnappings, particularly in rural areas. The total number of registered schools has now reached 14,685, a significant increase of over 3,000 from the 11,550 schools recorded just a month ago. The Commander of the National Safe Schools Response and Coordination Centre, Assistant Commandant General Emmanuel Ocheja, on Thursday, confirmed to The PUNCH the surge in registrations. “As of today, 14,685 schools are officially registered under the Safe Schools Initiative, marking a notable increase from…

A 37-year-old Nigerian man, Osinakachukwu Onu, has been shot dead on the N12 highway in Klerksdorp, North West Province, South Africa, allegedly by police officers during a traffic operation. PUNCH Metro learnt on Thursday, from a report published by Independent Online (IOL), a South African news outlet, that four traffic police officers have been arrested in connection with the killing. Confirming the development, the North West police said the officers, aged between 25 and 36, were arrested on Wednesday after they reportedly fled the scene following the shooting but were later tracked down by detectives. The report stated, “Four traffic…

Nigeria is a complicated entity—so complicated that it has repeatedly defied the wisdom of both leaders and the led. No one can claim ignorance of the origins of this complexity. It predates independence, to the days when leaders of one region insisted the country was not ready for self-rule, despite the clear readiness expressed by the two other protectorates. Our national fault lines have therefore been long-standing, buried deep in mutual suspicion. If you are old enough, you may recall that a self-confessed “evil genius” in Minna—former military ruler Gen. Ibrahim Babangida—once lamented in the early 1990s that despite the…

The Chairman, Accord Party in Lagos State, Mr Dele Oladeji, says the party’s candidate, Governor Ademola Adeleke, will deliver the best governance if elected in the August 8, 2026 Osun Governorship Election. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Adeleke emerged as the candidate of the party during its congress on Thursday in Osogbo. Adeleke, who announced his defection to Accord Party on Tuesday, resigned his membership of the Peoples Democratic Party, earlier in December citing party’s leadership crisis. Oladeji, in a statement on Saturday in Osogbo, described Adeleke’s candidacy within the party as the “refining stage that forms the fine cut of a…

Livestock and agriculture stakeholders have called on the Federal Government to fast-track the phased development of grazing reserves beyond the three pilot locations to at least one reserve in each of the six geopolitical zones. They welcomed the initiative as a step in the right direction. The call followed the Federal Government’s commencement of a phased grazing reserve development programme, beginning with pilot sites at Wawa-Zange in Gombe State, Wase in Plateau State and Kawu in the Bwari Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory. The Ministry of Livestock Development had said it was working with other ministries, state governments…