President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Wednesday held a private working lunch with French President Emmanuel Macron at the Élysée Palace in Paris.
LEADING REPORTERS gathered that Tinubu is on a 10-day working vacation in Europe, which began last Thursday.
The Nigerian leader is spending the period between France and the United Kingdom before returning to the country.
Presidential spokesperson Bayo Onanuga had earlier explained that the vacation forms part of Tinubu’s 2025 annual leave.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has the former Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Mele Kyari, in its custody.
LEADING REPORTERS gathered that the former NNPC boss is being questioned over alleged financial improprieties during his tenure.
Kyari, who arrived at the EFCC headquarters in Abuja at about 2:15 p.m., was invited to answer questions on financial and technical transactions linked to the $7.2 billion refineries’ turnaround maintenance programme.
His interrogation comes weeks after the Commission placed him on its watch list, following mounting allegations of fraud in NNPCL operations under his watch.
It can also be recalled that the Federal High Court in Abuja has ordered the temporary freezing of four bank accounts allegedly connected to Kyari, pending further investigations.
The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has criticised Senate President Godswill Akpabio and the leadership of the All Progressives Congress (APC)-controlled Senate over alleged plans to prevent Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan (PDP, Kogi Central) from resuming her seat after completing a six-month suspension.
The Senate is scheduled to reconvene from its two-month recess on September 23.
Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, who was suspended on March 6, had on September 4 written to the National Assembly leadership notifying them of her intention to resume.
However, in a reply signed by the Acting Clerk to the National Assembly, Dr. Yahaya Danzaria, she was informed that her suspension remained in force and was tied to a pending case at the Court of Appeal.
Reacting on Tuesday, the PDP accused Akpabio and the Senate leadership of deliberately plotting to silence the people of Kogi Central senatorial district and weaken the opposition in the upper chamber.
The party described the move as undemocratic and urged the Senate to allow Akpoti-Uduaghan resume her legislative duties without further delay.
The Nigerian national electricity grid has collapsed on Wednesday, causing power generation to plummet from 2,917.83 megawatts (MW) to just 1.5 MW between 11 a.m. and 12 p.m.
Following the incident, Nigeria National Grid, an X handle that tracks electricity distribution, confirmed the development, stating that “system restoration is in progress.”
In a subsequent update, the account revealed that load allocations to all Distribution Companies (DisCos) across the country had dropped to zero, with the exception of Ibadan DisCo.
“Disco load” refers to the volume of electricity (in megawatts) allocated to each power distribution company from the national grid.
As of the time of filing this report, none of the DisCos had issued official statements on the collapse.
The National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has announced plans to commence a nationwide strike on Thursday over poor working conditions and other unresolved issues.
President of the association, Dr. Osundara Zenith, disclosed this in an interview with journalists on Wednesday, noting that the decision would be ratified at a National Executive Council meeting.
He said the action became necessary after the expiration of a 10-day ultimatum issued to the Federal Government, which he claimed was ignored.
“The reasons are because of the poor working conditions of our members, the shortage of manpower, the downgrading of certificates, the non-payment of salary arrears and allowances, and the issue of the Medical Residency Training Fund (MRTF) for over 2,000 resident doctors across the country,” Zenith explained.
The NARD president added that the strike is also in solidarity with resident doctors in Abuja and Oyo State, who are already on strike over similar grievances.
He called on both the Federal Government and affected state governments to urgently address the demands to avert a complete shutdown of public hospitals nationwide.
Efforts by the Federal Government to avert the looming strike by the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) hit a brick wall on Monday, as a closed-door conciliatory meeting with the Dangote Group ended in deadlock.
The meeting, convened by the Minister of Labour and Employment, Mohammed Dingyadi, alongside the Minister of State, Nkiruka Onyejeocha, was aimed at resolving the industrial dispute triggered by alleged attempts by the Dangote Refinery to bar its compressed natural gas (CNG) tanker drivers from joining labour unions.
In attendance were national executives of NUPENG, representatives of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), and the Trade Union Congress (TUC).
NUPENG had last week announced plans to withdraw its members from work starting Monday, September 8, in protest against the alleged anti-union practices. Although the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) and the Direct Trucking Company Drivers Association (DTCDA) distanced themselves from the action, the union on Sunday reaffirmed its readiness to proceed with the strike.
Alarmed by the potential impact on the economy, the Federal Government had earlier appealed to NUPENG to shelve the action and allow dialogue to continue. Dingyadi, in a statement issued through the ministry’s spokesperson, Patience Onuobia, urged the union to reconsider its decision, warning that even a day’s disruption in the petroleum sector could result in huge revenue losses and hardship for Nigerians.
“The petroleum sector is very important to this country. It constitutes the core of the economy. A strike, even for just a day, will have an adverse impact, leading to heavy revenue losses running into billions of naira and causing untold hardship for Nigerians,” the minister said.
He also appealed to the NLC to withdraw its red alert to affiliate unions to prepare for solidarity action, stressing that the matter would be resolved amicably.
Despite the government’s intervention, Monday’s conciliation talks ended without an agreement, leaving the threat of a nationwide disruption in the petroleum sector unresolved.
The Idoma Area Traditional Council has declared null and void the chieftaincy title conferred on President Bola Tinubu and four others at the Igede Agba yam festival in the Oju Local Government Area of Benue State.
The title, received on behalf of the President by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, was bestowed by the Adiharu of Igede, His Royal Highness CP Oga Ero (retd.), during Saturday’s celebration.
Four other dignitaries were similarly honoured at the event.
But in a statement on Monday, the Idoma Area Traditional Council, led by its President and Och’Idoma V, His Royal Majesty Dr. Elaigwu Odogbo John, described the conferment as a violation of its earlier directive suspending all chieftaincy title conferments in the Idoma nation.
The statement, signed by the council’s secretary, Mr. Adegbe Uloko, and titled “Nullification of Purported Chieftaincy Titles Conferred by the Igede Traditional Council,” stressed that the move contravened the council’s declaration dated September 2, 2025.
The council said, “The purported conferment of chieftaincy titles by the Igede Traditional Council on September 6, 2025, is in direct violation of the Declaration of the Idoma Area Traditional Council. Such conferments are null, void, and of no legal, customary, or traditional effect.”
Reaffirming its authority, the IATC said it remained the only government-recognised traditional body in the Idoma nation and warned that any acts contrary to its directives amounted to a breach of extant law.
It therefore urged the general public, government institutions, and traditional stakeholders to disregard the titles purportedly conferred on President Tinubu and the other recipients.
“This pronouncement is made to safeguard the integrity of traditional institutions in Benue State, to uphold due process and to maintain peace, unity, and order within the Idoma Area Traditional Council,” the statement added.
The council had last week announced a suspension of all chieftaincy title conferments across its domain, citing the need to sanitise and regulate the process.
The National Assembly (NASS) has informed suspended Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, that she cannot resume her legislative duties yet after serving her six-month suspension.
According to the National Assembly bureaucracy, Akpoti-Uduaghan’s suspension remains in effect as the case is still before the Court of Appeal.
Tribune Online earlier reports that after the Federal High Court in Abuja ruled in favour of the Senate, Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan, dissatisfied with the judgment, approached the appellate court seeking redress.
In a letter dated September 4, 2025, and signed by the Acting Clerk to the National Assembly (Ag. CNA), Dr. Yahaya Danzaria, the Parliament acknowledged receipt of Akpoti-Uduaghan’s notification of her intended return to the Senate on the same date, which she cited as the end of her six-month suspension.
However, the letter clarified that her suspension, effective from March 6, 2025, remains in force while the matter is subjudice.
“The matter, therefore, remains subjudice, and until the judicial process is concluded and the Senate formally reviews the suspension in the light of the court’s pronouncement, no administrative action can be taken by this office to facilitate your resumption,” the letter read.
Dr. Danzaria further assured that Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan “will be duly notified of the Senate’s decision on the matter as soon as it is resolved.”
Recall that Akpoti-Uduaghan was suspended by the Senate in March 2025 following an alleged misconduct involving a dispute with Senate President Godswill Akpabio over seat arrangements during a plenary session on the floor of the Red Chamber.
The letter emphasised that the Senate will only review her suspension after the Court of Appeal delivers its final judgement.
Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central, is set to return to the National Assembly this month following the completion of her six-month suspension.
Her counsel, Victor Giwa, confirmed the development in Abuja, noting that the lawmaker is currently on vacation in London but has made arrangements to resume plenary when the Senate reconvenes on September 23.
“Actually, she’s ready to resume her term. She’s in London. Everything is in place, and the six months have expired. The only thing left is her resumption,” Giwa said.
He added that the Senate leadership is not expected to hinder her return. “We have been told that even the leadership of the Senate is ready to welcome her. So that’s the situation at the moment. There is no obstacle at all,” he assured.
Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, has expressed concern over Nigeria’s escalating debt profile, cautioning that it has reached a level capable of undermining the country’s economic stability.
Abbas raised the alarm on Monday in Abuja while speaking at the 11th Annual Conference and General Assembly of the West Africa Association of Public Accounts Committees (WAAPAC).
He disclosed that Nigeria’s total public debt stood at ₦149.39 trillion (about $97 billion) in the first quarter of 2025, a significant increase from ₦121.7 trillion recorded the previous year.
According to the Speaker, the country’s debt-to-GDP ratio has climbed to 52 percent, surpassing the 40 percent legal threshold.
“This is no longer just a budgetary issue but a structural crisis,” Abbas warned. “We must strengthen oversight, embrace transparency, and ensure every loan we take delivers real benefits to citizens.”
