Enugu|•Eze Anaba, President of NGE

The 22nd All Nigeria Editors Conference (ANEC) organized by the Nigerian Guild of Editors, opened today in Enugu.

The two-day conference, which is the flagship annual gathering of the Guild, is being held at The Dome, International Conference Centre, Opara Square Road, Enugu, beginning at 2p.m and continue on Friday, September 25.

In a statement by the President and General Secretary of the NGE, Eze Anaba and Onuoha Ukeh, respectively, the Guild said that Vice President Kashim Shettima would address editors and other participants at the event.

The conference has the theme, “The Ballot, the Media and the Task of Keeping Democracy Alive,” as well as the sub-theme, “When Lies Look Real: Detecting and Debunking AI Disinformation Before, During and After Election.”

The Vice President is also expected to speak on other issues relating to democracy, elections, press freedom and national development.

The statement said Enugu State governor, Dr. Peter Mbah, would also address the conference.

More than 500 editors from across the country, alongside government officials, academics, civil society representatives and other stakeholders, are expected to attend the conference, which will focus on critical national and global issues with significant social, economic and political implications.

The Guild said His Royal Majesty, Igwe Nnaemeka Alfred Achebe, the Obi of Onitsha, would chair the conference, while former Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, John Cardinal Onaiyekan, would deliver the keynote address.

An independent panel has begun its investigation today into the deaths of 37 people who died while in the custody of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) in Niger State.

The Federal Government constituted the 10-member committee last week following the deaths, which occurred on Thursday, September 17, 2026. The victims, described as suspected illegal miners, had been arrested during enforcement operations against artisanal mining activities in the state days earlier.

Minister of Interior Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo announced the panel’s formation, stating it would examine the circumstances surrounding the arrests, detention and deaths. The committee, chaired by retired DSS Deputy Director-General Jonathan Kure, has been given two weeks to submit its report. It is also mandated to determine any negligence or misconduct, recommend accountability measures and propose steps to prevent a recurrence.

Twenty NSCDC officers, including the Niger State Commandant, have been suspended pending the outcome of the probe. Authorities have stressed that any attempt to interfere with the investigation or destroy evidence will be treated as a serious offence.

The incident has drawn widespread attention, with reports of overcrowding and poor ventilation in the detention facility cited among possible factors. Officials have confirmed that medical and forensic examinations are under way to establish the precise causes of death.

•A Nigerian man and registered sex offender, Babatunde Odutola

A Nigerian man and registered sex offender, Babatunde Odutola has been jailed in the UK after exposing himself and masturbating in front of a woman on a train travelling towards Manchester.

Odutola, 36, of no fixed address, was sentenced to 44 weeks in prison at Manchester Magistrates’ Court on Monday, September 14, after pleading guilty to outraging public decency and breaching a suspended sentence order.

The incident occurred around 7pm on Friday, September 11, on a train travelling through Cheshire towards Manchester Piccadilly railway station.

British Transport Police said Odutola approached a woman on the train, looked her up and down and became aggressive when she refused to engage with him. He then exposed himself while sitting in a wheelchair and began masturbating while staring at the woman and telling her to “come over”.

A fellow passenger intervened and escorted the distressed woman from the carriage.

According to police, CCTV footage showed Odutola continued masturbating as other passengers walked through the carriage.

British Transport Police officers arrested him after the train arrived at Manchester Piccadilly. He was subsequently prosecuted and jailed within 72 hours of the incident