Author: News Room

The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons, in collaboration with the Taraba State Ministry of Women Affairs and Child Development, has reunited 10 trafficked children with their biological parents in Jalingo, the Taraba State capital. The children were rescued on January 31, 2026, after operatives of NAPTIP intercepted a suspected trafficker conveying them at Kurmi Motor Park, Jalingo. Confirming the development in a statement on Tuesday, the Taraba State Commander of NAPTIP, Mr Bako Amos, said the children were formally handed over to their families on February 2. He said the Commissioner for Women Affairs and Child…

Political scientist Akinwunmi Akinfenwa has asserted that while the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, remains a formidable force in Nigerian politics, Governor Seyi Makinde maintains an undisputed stranglehold on the political landscape of Oyo State. Speaking on the ARISE TV Morning Show on Wednesday, Akinfenwa provided a clinical analysis of the power dynamics within the Peoples Democratic Party and the strategic manoeuvres of the Presidency ahead of the 2027 general elections. Addressing the perceived influence of Wike across various states, Akinfenwa was quick to draw a line at the borders of Oyo. He said, “Well, let me…

United Bank for Africa has announced the appointment of Loknath Mishra as the Chief Executive Officer of its United Kingdom subsidiary. The appointment, announced in a statement on Tuesday and becoming effective 2 February 2026, is said to reinforce the group’s commitment to strengthening its international footprint and enhancing its role as a key financial bridge between Africa and the world. The PUNCH reports that UBA UK plays a critical role within UBA Group’s international network, supporting African corporates, financial institutions, sovereigns and global partners through its strong capabilities in correspondent banking, trade finance, transaction banking and treasury services. As…

The Edo State Government has approved a two-week closed camping programme for selected athletes and coaches ahead of the second edition of the Niger Delta Games scheduled to hold in Benin City from February 20 to 27. The Secretary of the Edo State Liaison Committee for the Niger Delta Games, Bright Idahosa, disclosed this on Wednesday as the state commenced trials to select athletes for the regional sports festival. Idahosa said the closed camping, which begins on Sunday, is aimed at intensifying training and fine-tuning preparations for the games. He added that only the best athletes within the approved under-20…

Latin American digital asset platform Mercado Bitcoin said that it had deployed more than $20 million of tokenized private credit on Bitcoin sidechain Rootstock, deepening its push into real-world assets (RWAs) and targeting $100 million in issuances by April. According to a release shared with Cointelegraph, several offerings had already reached target capacity since going live.The move adds Rootstock to Mercado Bitcoin’s multichain tokenization strategy, which includes planned RWA issuances on Stellar (XLM) and the XRP Ledger, giving international investors Bitcoin‑secured exposure to Latin American private debt markets.Lucas Pinsdorf, business director at Mercado Bitcoin, told Cointelegraph that the newly issued assets…

Travis Kelce may have quite literally landed himself in fiancée Taylor Swift’s bad books. During a Tuesday, February 2, teaser clip for the following day’s episode of Travis, 36, and older brother Jason Kelce’s podcast, “New Heights,” the Chiefs tight end fell back in his chair, landing with an audible crash on the ground. A red-faced Travis, who had been enthusiastically laughing at a comment made by Jason, 38, regarding the trotting out of “best in show” dogs, joked after his fall, “Taylor’s going to kill me.” As both brothers cracked up over the mishap, and Travis regained balance on…

The Ogun State Police Command has invited a prominent community leader in Ijebu-Ode, Ogun State, Rasheed Adesanya, for questioning over an ongoing investigation into alleged bribery and financial inducement. Mr Adesanya is the Olisa of Ijebu-Ode, a prominent traditional chieftaincy title in Ijebuland. As Olisa, he is a senior chief and head of the Ilamuren council in Ijebu-Ode, with roles in traditional leadership and local customary governance. In recent months, he has been publicly involved in matters related to the transitional process towards the selection of a new Awujale of Ijebuland, including relating with the Awujale Interregnum Administrative Council (AIAC).…

The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd), Bayo Ojulari, has disclosed that they halted operations at the country’s state-owned refineries after discovering that continued operation was destroying value and draining public resources, despite huge financial commitments. Speaking during a fireside chat at the ongoing Nigeria International Energy Summit (NIES) on Wednesday, he said the company took the difficult decision to shut down the refineries temporarily after an internal review revealed monumental losses, low utilisation rates and the absence of a credible path to profitability. “We were under extreme pressure. Nigerians were angry, a…

Many book reviews focus on the title, pagination, number of chapters, publisher, author, themes, structure and technical faults but it is equally important to draw out lessons in books to attract readers, inspire and empower them especially if the subject of the book, like in this case, is exemplary. Biographies are often written to reveal the life of the subject in raw form apart from serving as a family chronicle. In Attah : Architect of a New Democratic Dawn’, written by Dr Dele Sobowale, readers will discover that a young Victor Attah, although born into a family that was one…

The Lagos State Water Corporation, LWC, has begun a major rehabilitation of the Iju and Adiyan water treatment facilities as part of efforts to improve potable water supply and service efficiency across the state. The eight-month project, designed to upgrade aging infrastructure and strengthen water production capacity, was formally unveiled on Tuesday during a project inception meeting held at the corporation’s headquarters in Ijora, Lagos. The corporation disclosed that the initiative, officially tagged “Rehabilitation of Iju Headworks and Akute Intake Station, Lots 1, 2 and 3,” is being financed by the Lagos State Government and will run from February to…