President Bola Ahmed Tinubu departed the country on Sunday, at the invitation of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed Bin Salman to attend the Joint Arab-Islamic Summit.
In a statement by the special adviser to the president, on information and strategy, Bayo Onanuga, the meeting is expected to address a number of critical regional issues, with particular emphasis on the ongoing Israel-Palestinian conflict.
A counter-insurgency publication Zagazola Makama focused on the Lake Chad region, reported over the weekend, that members of a new terrorist group Lakurawa are offering financial incentives to recruit young people in Sokoto State.
According to the publication, the new group is offering as much as N1 million Naira to young men, in exchange for their allegiance.
Makama, quoted sources as saying that the financial incentives are part of an aggressive recruitment campaign aimed at attracting followers to their cause. The group are reported to adhere to extremist ideologies similar to the beliefs of Boko Haram.
The Sokoto State Police Command has confirmed the arrest and jailing of a woman Hamdiyya Sidi, who was accused of embarrassing the state Governor Ahmad Aliyu on social media.
Sidi was said to have condemned insecurity in the state and demanded action against bandits and incessant killings in a video posted on social media.
She also highlighted the takeover of villages, and houses being burned to the ground. Sidi was reported to have been secretly arraigned without access to a lawyer or family members, last week and is being prosecuted for inciting unrest in the state.
In the United States, as the president elect, Donald Trump’s victory at the recent polls continues to generate reactions, analysts from across the globe, debate on some of Trump’s campaign policies which may have helped him secure his second term in office.
The issue of Transgender rights has been a major topic. In a video now circulating online, which was released last year, Trump vowed that, if he was re-elected, he would punish doctors who provide gender-affirming care to minors which he equated to child abuse and child sexual mutilation.
Trump also stated that he would push for a federal law recognizing only two genders, Male and Female!
Meanwhile, a video where Kamala Harris invited cast members of TV series Queer Eye to the White House: back in June has made rounds on social media.
The 2025 nominations for the Grammy awards, were announced over the weekend and Multiple Grammy award winning Artist, Beyoncé Knowles made history, leading with 11 nominations, including the highly coveted Album of the Year, making her the most nominated artiste of all time, with 99 nominations, surpassing her previous tie with her husband Jay-Z, who has 88 nominations.
While Nigerian singer songwriter and record producer, Temilade Openiyi, who goes by the stage name Tems bagged three nominations.
She is among the notable nominees, for the Best African Music Performance category which includes Yemi Alade, Asake & Wizkid, Burna Boy, Davido and Lojay. Afrobeats Sensation, Rema received a nomination, In the Best Global Music Album category.
The Nigeria in Diaspora Commission, disclosed in a statement, over the weekend that Four Nigerians have made strides in international politics, by securing various elected positions in the recent elections, in the United States and Australia.
In a historic win in the United States, Adeyemi Mobolade was elected Mayor of Colorado Springs, becoming the first Black person to hold the position. His election has been described as a milestone for the city, reflecting its evolving political landscape.
Dr Oye Owolewa was re-elected as the Shadow Representative for the District of Columbia under the Democratic Party. His role focuses on advocating for the interests of Washington, DC, including the ongoing push for statehood and local governance issues.
Segun Adeyina also retained his seat, as the State Representative for District 110 in Georgia. Adeyina has an extensive background in IT programme and project management, having worked with Fortune 500 companies such as General Motors and Hewlett Packard.
In Australia, Chiaka Barry a legal officer, was elected to the Australian Capital Territory Legislative Assembly, representing the Ginnin-derra District, under the Liberal Party. Her commitment to serving the community has been a key part of her career.
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With : unresolved tensions and suspicions flowing from a Muslim-Muslim ticket in the 2023 Presidential elections and an APC party that is struggling to shake off the toga of creeping Islamism, especially more so pronounced under an immediate past APC president; (unchecked in)direct Islamic extremist violence threatening to tear apart the polity, coupled with inbred disharmony among the adherents of the two foreign religions; this meeting, for whatever government and its supporters, may claim it is worth, is attendance at one Islamo-tinted meeting too many, in our current circumstance. In Nigeria, perception matters, especially when it relates to religion, when most of us think more with our hearts, than with our head; hence, whether, or not, Islam is the theme of the meeting matters not. Methinks the “cooperation” that Dr Abati claims could result from Nigeria’s attendance at this meeting can be better, and more effectively, achieved at other neutral fora, like the AU, UN, ECOWAS and BRICS.
It is quite unfortunate that, as we try to douse the fires and fallouts from their Islam-induced policies and actions, government is digging in; which makes one wonder, if we are really serious about preserving our unity, that is often ever so threatened by the indiscretions of government officials who are unable to distinguish between official and private loyalties.
Let it be said that, it is only a secure, united and peaceful country that can enjoy the fruits of any international “cooperation” that may be established or “investments” that their leaders may be able to attract.
Finally, the secrecy with which Nigeria was dragged into OIC is an implicit acknowledgement by those who did it, that they were doing the wrong thing; hence, their action should not be grounds for the continuation of such illegality. Religion is far too divisive a thing to be carelessly toyed with in the manner in which government is presently behaving.