Author: News Room

A faith‐based civil society organisation, CSO, Independent Hajj Reporters, IHR, has written a letter to the Chairman of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria, NAHCON, Prof. Abdullahi Saleh Usman, raising concerns over delays in refunding excess Hajj fare funds amounting to N437,000 per pilgrim who participated in the 2025 holy pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia. In the letter dated January 19, 2026, and signed by its National Coordinator, Ibrahim Muhammad, the organisation said its independent monitoring revealed a significant financial surplus arising from exchange rate differentials during last year’s Hajj operations. IHR noted that while pilgrims were charged at an exchange…

A faction of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in Rivers State has thrown its weight behind court ruling halting impeachment proceedings against Governor Siminalayi Fubara. The factional spokesman, Darlington Nwauju, expressed backed the court ruling during a press conference on Thursday. This is coming after the State Chief Judge, Chibuzor Simeon Amadi, declined to constitute a seven-member panel to investigate allegations of gross misconduct against the governor and his deputy, Ngozi Odu. Nwauju said, “We take leaf of this opportunity to restate our earlier call on the Chief Judge of Rivers State, Honorable Justice, Simeon Amadi, not to act upon…

Suspected bandits have killed two residents and abducted several others during an attack on Rarah town in Rabah Local Government Area of Sokoto State. The incident was reported in a post shared on X on Thursday by security analyst Bakatsine. The post stated that the attack occurred late at night, during which the armed men stormed homes and shops in the community. Men and women were reportedly among those abducted during the raid. “Last night, bandits attacked Rarah town in Rabah LGA of Sokoto State, killing two residents, abducting several others including men and women, and looting shops and homes,”…

Egypt’s coach, Hossam Hassan, has said that playing the Super Eagles in the third-place playoff at the Africa Cup of Nations was just a formality. Hassan also said he was satisfied with his team’s performance, even though they did not win the bronze medal. Even though Eric Chelle chose to let some important players, like Wilfred Ndidi, Victor Osimhen, and Frank Onyeka, take a break, the Super Eagles continued their strong performance in third-place games at the tournament. After the game ended goalless regular time, Nigeria won 4-2 in the penalty shootout. Super Eagles goalkeeper, Stanley Nwabali, was named Man…

Nigeria’s cashew industry has contributed over $400 million in export earnings, boosting the country’s non-oil revenue. Industry leaders, however, say the sector has the potential to deliver even greater value through increased production, processing, and domestic consumption. Sheriff Balogun, President of the Federation of Agricultural Commodity Associations of Nigeria, said this at the 4th Nigeria Cashew Day held in Abuja on Thursday, noting that official data showed steady growth in non-oil exports, driven largely by agricultural commodities such as cashew. Balogun said, “Based on official statistics, we see tremendous growth in non-oil exports, contributing to Nigeria’s economic development, from about…

A Federal Capital Territory High Court has adjourned the trial of 11 suspects linked to the murder of an ARISE TV journalist, Somtochukwu Maduagwu, and a security guard, Barnabas Danlami, to February 26, 2026. The spokesperson for the FCT Police Command, Josephine Adeh, confirmed the development in a statement on Wednesday. Adeh disclosed that the suspects were arraigned on Wednesday on nine counts bordering on criminal conspiracy, armed robbery, and murder. She identified the suspects as Shamsu Hassan, Sani Sirajo, Hassan Isah, Abubakar Alkamu, Abdulsalam Saleh, Suleiman Badamasi, Zaharadeen Mohammed, Musa Umar, Mashkur Jamil, Suleiman Sani, and Abubakar Usman. Adeh…

The Plant Director of Dangote Cement Plc, Obajana, Azad Nawabuddin, has been commended by host communities for his outstanding commitment to community development and corporate responsibility. A statement from the firm on Wednesday stated that community leaders and stakeholders praised Nawabuddin’s leadership for the timely implementation of the Community Development Agreement and the consistent rollout of impactful Corporate Social Responsibility initiatives. According to them, these programmes have strengthened community relations, enhanced social infrastructure, and promoted sustainable cooperation between the company and its host communities. The Bajana of Obajana, Idowu Isenibi, extended appreciation to the Plant Director, the company’s Vice President,…

The Confederation of African Football has imposed fines totalling $100,000 on the Algerian Football Federation and suspended two of its players following their involvement in the brawl that ensued after Algeria’s 2-0 defeat to Nigeria in the quarter-finals of the 2025 Africa Cup of Nations on January 10, PUNCH Sports Extra reports. The sanctions were confirmed on Wednesday by the Algerian Football Federation, which has also opted to appeal the punishments. Scuffles broke out between players and team officials on the pitch after Nigeria’s 2-0 victory in Marrakech. Referee Issa Sy had to be shielded from irate Algerian team staff…

Google is helping AI Mode to provide more personalized responses in Search by allowing the chatbot to analyze your Gmail and Google Photos accounts. After launching for Gemini AI last week, “Personal Intelligence” is now coming to tailor AI Mode search results to your interests and daily life by gathering information from your emails and photos, instead of requiring you to manually create and adjust your preferences.For example, Google says Personal Intelligence allows AI Mode to suggest travel itineraries by referencing hotel bookings in your Gmail and holiday snaps in Photos. If you take a lot of selfies with ice…

Financial technology and tokenization company Superstate has raised $82.5 million in a Series B round as it pushes deeper into onchain capital markets, aiming to modernize the way companies raise money and go public using blockchain. The round was led by Bain Capital Crypto and Distributed Global, with participation from Haun Ventures, Brevan Howard Digital, Galaxy Digital, Bullish, ParaFi and several other crypto-focused investors, according to a press release shared with Cointelegraph. “This year, tokenization will catalyze the transformation of capital markets,” said Robert Leshner, CEO of Superstate. “We’re grateful to our partners that allow us to grow our best-in-class…