News
FG Invites Over 65 World Leaders For Tinubu’s inauguration
Programmes and plans are in top gear Thursday, as Federal Government invites about 65 world leaders, including Heads of State to grace the inauguration of the President-elect, Bola Tinubu, who will be sworn in as the 16th President of Nigeria on May 29.
Also expected at the nation’s seventh transition ceremony are past presidents, diplomats, heads of international organisations and prominent Nigerians and representatives of foreign governments and agencies.
According to the Federal Government, the inauguration programmes will begin on Thursday with the investiture of Tinubu with the Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic and the Vice-President-elect, Kashim Shettima, as the Grand Commander of Order of the Niger.
A director in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs confirmed to The PUNCH on Thursday that several African leaders had indicated interest in attending the inauguration ceremony which would take place at Eagle Square, Abuja.
“We have 54 countries in Africa and most of them have been invited to the inauguration; so, we don’t expect less than 65 world leaders from Africa, Europe and America at the event,’’ said the director, who spoke on the condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to speak on the issue.
Representatives of Nigeria’s traditional allies such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, France, Saudi Arabia, United Arab Emirates, Pakistan, China, Germany, Finland, Jamaica, Japan, Israel, Turkey and several others are expected at the high-profile event.
Addressing journalists in Abuja on Thursday as activities for the transition of power to the incoming administration began, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, disclosed that scores of world leaders would attend the event.
The preparation for the swearing-in of the former Lagos State governor is gathering steam as the battle to nullify his election victory by the standard bearer of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar and his Labour Party counterpart, Peter Obi continues at the Presidential Election Petitions Court.
News
FIRS says NIN to serve as Tax ID for individuals
The new tax law is scheduled to come into force in January 2026 and mandates the use of a Tax ID for certain financial and economic transactions, including banking-related activities.
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has announced that the National Identification Number (NIN) issued by the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC) will now automatically serve as the Tax Identification Number (Tax ID) for individual Nigerians under the country’s new tax regime.
FIRS also said that registered businesses will also no longer need a separate Tax Identification Number, as their Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) registration (RC) number will now function as their Tax ID.
The Service made the disclosure on its official X handle on Monday, ahead of the passage of the Nigeria Tax Administration Act (NTAA), one of the new tax laws introduced as part of the Federal Government’s broader fiscal and tax reform agenda .
The new tax law is scheduled to come into force in January 2026 and mandates the use of a Tax ID for certain financial and economic transactions, including banking-related activities.
News
Tanker crushes Akpabio’s dispatch rider to death
We went to Oyo State for the installation of our colleague, but the vehicles that came to pick me up at the Ibadan airport, unfortunately, my dispatch rider was run over by a tanker driver, and his head was shattered.
Ibrahim Hussaini, a dispatch rider attached to the convoy of Godswill Akpabio, the Senate President, has been killed after a petrol tanker rammed into the motorcade.
Although the Senate President did not state the precise location of the crash, he said that it happened in Ibadan, Oyo State, shortly after members of his convoy picked him up from the Ibadan Airport.
Akpabio announced the death during the plenary on Tuesday; he extended condolences to the family of the deceased.
Dispatch riders, who are police officers, form part of the security detail of top government officials and typically escort convoys on motorcycles.
Dispatch riders, who are police officers, form part of the security detail of top government officials and typically escort convoys on motorcycles.
“We went to Oyo State for the installation of our colleague, but the vehicles that came to pick me up at the Ibadan airport, unfortunately, my dispatch rider was run over by a tanker driver, and his head was shattered.
“We just buried him 15 minutes ago in Kogi State. He left two wives and four children,” the Senate President told lawmakers
News
Public holidays: FG declares December 25, 26, and January 1
The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, announced the public holidays on behalf of the Federal Government.
The Federal Government has declared Thursday, December 25, and Friday, December 26, as well as Thursday, January 1, 2026, as public holidays to mark the Christmas, Boxing Day, and New Year celebrations.
The Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, announced the public holidays on behalf of the Federal Government.
In a statement by the Permanent Secretary in the Federal Ministry of Interior, Dr Magdalene Ajani, the minister extended warm Christmas and New Year felicitations to Christians in Nigeria and across the world.
He extended the same gestures “to all Nigerians as they celebrate the end of the year and the beginning of a new one”.
Tunji-Ojo urged Christians to reflect on the virtues of love, peace, humility, and sacrifice as exemplified by the birth of Jesus Christ, noting that these values are critical to promoting unity, tolerance, and harmony in the nation.
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