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JUST IN: Tinubu’s Rivers Agency Nominees Face Senate Screening

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…..The 17 nominees were all presented before the Senate committee by the Special Adviser to the President on Senate Matters, Basheer Lado, who divided them into three categories.

The 17 candidates nominated by President Bola Tinubu to oversee the affairs of Rivers State Independent Electoral Commission, Rivers State Civil Service Commission and Rivers State Local Government Service Commission have officially declared their assets before the Code of Conduct Bureau.

The assets declaration came on the heel of security clearance by the Department of State Services and the Nigerian Police.

The Leader of the Senate, Senator Opeyemi Bamidele, disclosed this during the screening exercise by the Senate ad hoc committee to oversee the activities of the Rivers Sole Administrator, Vice Adm Ibok-Ete Ibas (retd).

The development comes barely one week after President Tinubu transmitted the names of nominees to the Senate for confirmation.

The five nominees for the Rivers State Civil Service Commission are Dr Barikor Baribuma (Chairman), Lot Egopija, Ms Maeve Ere-Bestman, Mrs Joy Obiaju and Mrs Charity Lloyd Harry.

Rivers State Electoral Commission has seven nominees – Dr Michael Ekpai Odey (Chairman), Mr Lezaasi Torbira, Prof Arthur Nwafor, Prof Godfrey Mbudiogha, Prof Joyce Akaniwor, Dr (Mrs) Olive A. Bruce and Prof Chidi Halliday.

The category of Rivers State Local Government Service Commission also has seven appointees namely Israel N. Amadi (Chairman), Linus Nwandem, Lady Christabel George-Didia, Dr Tonye Willie Pepple, Richard Ewoh, Rear Admiral Emmanuel Ofik (retd) and Sammy Apiafi.

The 17 nominees were all presented before the Senate committee by the Special Adviser to the President on Senate Matters, Basheer Lado, who divided them into three categories.

The nominees for the Rivers State Primary Health Care Management Board are expected to take place on Wednesday at the Senate.

Bamidele who doubles as the chairman of the 18-member committee, however, reaffirmed the Senate’s commitment to upholding democratic processes in the oil-rich state.

He said, “Let me quickly inform distinguished colleagues and members of the public that the nominees who are seated before us have gone through security screening by the various security agencies, including the Department of State Security as well as the Nigerian Police.

“And none of them had had any issue with security clearance, which is germane to what we are doing here. We will just be speaking to your CV because I will have no issues with security clearance.

“Members of the public are also to be told that we have also insisted that they should go through the constitutional requirement of going to do their assets declaration by the Code of Conduct Bureau, which they have also complied with.

”The Ekiti lawmaker also disclosed that once they finished the screening exercise, the results and recommendations would be presented to the Senate leadership at the next plenary.

“Finally, it is also for me to report that as a committee we did not have any petition against any of the nominees who are here. So there is no inhibiting factor that would really prevent us from screening any of the nominees.

“The screening exercise itself is a process and all of these individual steps that I have mentioned are part of the process.“

Once we are done with this, we then make our recommendations to the Senate in plenary for the confirmation or otherwise based on our findings and recommendations,” he said.

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BREAKING: FG, state, local governments share N2.001trn July revenue

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The three tiers of government—federal, state, and local—shared a total of N2.001 trillion from the Federation Account as revenue for the month of July 2025, according to the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC).

The allocation was made during the FAAC meeting held in August 2025 in Abuja, with details released in an official communiqué.

The distributable revenue included:

  • N1.282 trillion in statutory revenue
  • N640.610 billion from Value Added Tax (VAT)
  • N37.601 billion from Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL)
  • N39.745 billion from exchange rate difference

Out of the total distributed funds:

  • The Federal Government received N735.081 billion
  • State Governments received N660.349 billion
  • Local Government Councils received N485.039 billion
  • N120.359 billion was shared to oil-producing states as 13% derivation revenue

Revenue Breakdown:

Statutory Revenue (N1.282 trillion):

  • FG: N613.805 billion
  • States: N311.330 billion
  • LGs: N240.023 billion
  • 13% Derivation: N117.714 billion

VAT (N640.610 billion):

  • FG: N96.092 billion
  • States: N320.305 billion
  • LGs: N224.214 billion

EMTL (N37.601 billion):

  • FG: N5.640 billion
  • States: N18.801 billion
  • LGs: N13.160 billion

Exchange Gains (N39.745 billion):

  • FG: N19.544 billion
  • States: N9.913 billion
  • LGs: N7.643 billion
  • 13% Derivation: N2.643 billion

The total gross revenue for July was N3.836 trillion, down from N3.485 trillion in June. Cost of collection deductions amounted to N152.681 billion, while N1.683 trillion was allocated for transfers, refunds, savings, and interventions.

FAAC noted improved collections from Petroleum Profit Tax, Oil and Gas Royalties, EMTL, and Excise Duties, while Companies Income Tax and CET Levies declined slightly. VAT and Import Duties saw marginal growth.

The committee reiterated its commitment to ensuring transparency in the allocation of national revenues across all levels of government.

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Female Corps Member Recalls Harrowing Assault by Anambra Security Forces

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A National Youth Service Corps member, Jennifer Elohor, who was brutalised by Anambra security operatives, otherwise known as  “Agunechemba”, at a corpers lodge in Oba, Idemili Local Government Area of the state, has recounted her harrowing experience.

In a video that went viral on Tuesday, the operatives armed with guns stormed the corps members’ lodge, accused them of being Internet fraudsters, although they knew they were corps members. They were seen beating the female corps member despite her cries for help.

The incident has continued to generate widespread reactions across the state, with stakeholders, civil society organisations, human rights groups, and lawmakers condemning the action of the vigilante group, with many demanding justice for the victim and calling for sanctions against the vigilante team.

Elohor, who narrated her ordeal in an interview with a media personality, Aprokoking, shared online on Wednesday, said the Anambra State operatives broke into her residence, assaulted her, and forcefully took her and some of her colleagues away.

This is just as the Anambra State Government has tendered a public apology to the victim and anyone who had suffered abuse or harassment in the hands of Agunechemba personnel.

The corps member said the incident occurred on July 13, around 5pm, at the lodge where she and other corps members were residing.

She said she and her colleagues were indoors when suddenly they heard a violent knock on their door.

She said, “At first, we thought it was our neighbours’ door because it’s a three-storey building with several flats. But the knock became louder and more aggressive, so I decided to check. Before I could reach the door, it was kicked open.

“A masked man armed with a gun stormed into the room without any form of identification or uniform.

“At first, I thought it was an armed robber until he ordered all of us to come outside. I tried to explain that we were corps members and even suggested showing our NYSC identity cards. My colleagues also presented theirs, but the men ignored us. The intruders ransacked our room, seized our phones and laptops, and became violent.

“They pushed us downstairs, almost shoving me down the staircase. They kept asking what gave me the right, as a woman, to challenge them. It was when we got outside that we saw their vehicle and discovered they were from the Anambra Vigilante Group.”

She further claimed that when they requested to call their lodge proprietor or NYSC officials to notify them of where they were being taken to, the vigilante members became more brutal and violent.

“They beat me, tore my clothes, and even hit one of my colleagues with an iron rod for pleading on my behalf. They forced me into their vehicle, pressing my neck, slapping me, and threatening to smash our phones if we contacted anyone,” she added.

Following the outrage, the Anambra State Government, through the Special Adviser to the state governor on Community Security and leader of Agunechemba, Ken Emeakayi, while speaking to journalists on Thursday, restated that the eight personnel responsible have been identified, sacked, arrested and detained.

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Nigeria Consul-General in Cameroon, Ambassador Coker dies

The Ministry noted that before his appointment as Consul General in Buea, Ambassador Coker had served Nigeria meritoriously in the country’s Missions in Conakry, Guinea, and Shanghai, China.

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The Ministry of Foreign Affairs has announced the sudden death of Ambassador Taofik Obasanjo Coker, Nigeria’s Consul General in Buea, Republic of Cameroon.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Ministry’s Spokesperson, Kimiebi Imomotimi Ebienfa, Ambassador Coker died on Saturday, August 16, after a brief illness.

Ebienfa described the late envoy as a hardworking and dedicated career diplomat who served Nigeria with distinction and professionalism in different capacities.

“His untimely death, therefore, is a great loss to the diplomatic community and the nation at large,” the statement read.

The Ministry noted that before his appointment as Consul General in Buea, Ambassador Coker had served Nigeria meritoriously in the country’s Missions in Conakry, Guinea, and Shanghai, China.

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