News
Let freed Chibok girls reunite with families, community tells govt
The Kibaku Area Development Association has asked the Borno State Government to allow the Chibok schoolgirls so far rescued from Boko Haram to reunite with their families.
The community made the demand at a press conference held at the Unity Fountain in Abuja on Sunday in commemoration of the 10th anniversary of the abduction of the Chibok schoolgirls in April 2014.
On the night of April 14, 276 female students of the Government Girls Secondary School, Chibok, Borno State, aged 16 to 18 and mostly Christians, were kidnapped by the fundamentalist group, Boko Haram.
Before the raid, the school had been closed for four weeks due to deteriorating security conditions, but the girls were in school to take final exams in Physics.
A few hours before the raid, residents in Chibok reportedly received phone calls from neighbouring villages, warning of the incoming attack, as they sighted convoys containing armed insurgents driving in the direction of the town.
The terrorists reportedly broke into the school, dressed in military camouflage and pretended to be soldiers of the Nigerian Armed Forces.
The attack lasted for about five hours, during which houses in Chibok were also burnt.
The development generated both national and international outcry against the administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan, with an advocacy group, Bring Back Our Girls, formed to raise awareness and collaborate with the families and Chibok community to demand government action on the girls.
A decade later, the fate of 89 of the girls remains uncertain, while some of them have regained freedom.
Some of the schoolgirls had escaped immediately following the incident by jumping from the trucks in which they were being transported, and others were rescued by the Nigerian Armed Forces on various occasions.
According to the Kibaku Area Development Association, some of those rescued have been in the custody of the Borno State government and are yet to be reunited with their families.
Speaking during the Abuja press conference on Sunday, the National President of the Kibaku community (otherwise known as Chibok), Dauda Iliya, decried what he termed the second captivity of the released girls by the Borno State Government.
“We demand the urgent release of the rescued girls in the custody of the Borno State government to their families and not to anybody, nor the terrorists, the so-called repentant terrorists that were in the first place their abductors.
“The girls’ consent and that of their parents and guardians were not sought before they were abducted. As such, what is the basis to seek their consent before they are allowed to be returned to their parents? We demand that we are availed all the rescued daughters at home and in school, for any organisation or group that wants to support them.
“There should be no restrictions. Borno State does not hold any monopoly over them. What we understand today is that these girls are held a second time in captivity, this time, by the government.” he said.
The association also challenged the government at all levels to bring an end to the fiasco by ensuring the rescue of the remaining girls.
Iliya further faulted the Borno State Government for the ‘obnoxious marriages’ between the returnee girls and ‘the so-called repentant terrorists,’ while also threatening legal actions against the state government for referencing marriages between the released girls and the terrorists.
“On this occasion of the 10th-year commemoration of the abduction of our daughters, we strongly challenge governments at all levels, federal, state and local, to work towards bringing closure, one way or the other, to this fiasco. To do nothing in the past decade is completely unacceptable.
“We demand a formal rebuttal and apology to all the families and the community at large, for the illegal cohabitation, encouraged by the Borno State Government, by calling the terrorists their husbands, and the failures to do so may result in legal action against the Borno State Government and all its officials, who have used this insulting and demeaning terminology to describe a very ugly and painful situation 10 years too long, too painful to bear,” he said.
When contacted on Sunday, the Borno State Commissioner of Information and Internal Security, Prof. Usman Tar, said he had spoken on the issue of Chibok girls on Saturday and was not disposed to speaking further.
In a press release on Saturday, the commissioner had said 187 of the abducted girls had been rescued and reunited with their families.
He said, “We also wish to use this occasion to take stock of the rescued girls and provide an update on how the girls are coming to terms with adjusting to normal life after captivity, and efforts of the Borno State Government to sustain the momentum on the rescue of the remaining girls.
“So far, out of the 276 abducted Chibok Girls,187 have been rescued and reunited with their families. Most of the rescued girls have, over the years, been enrolled in different schools or graduated under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Women Affairs. A number of the girls have been enrolled into local and foreign scholarships or empowerment programmes. Many have since been reunited with their immediate families and are continuing to receive psychosocial support to reconcile them with normal life.
“Furthermore, 16 recently rescued girls are being rehabilitated by the Borno State Government and attending the 2nd Chance School where they learn skills in various vocations that will provide them with sustainable livelihoods, while their kids are also placed in nursery schools. Four rescued girls have voluntarily decided to return to their parents.
We remain hopeful and determined that, with the combined efforts of our security forces, intelligence agencies, and community support, all abducted persons will be safely returned.”
Parents lament
One of the parents, Mrs Rebecca Samuel, whose first daughter, Grace, is among the still-missing girls, told our correspondent that she would be happy to have her daughter back, regardless of the condition in which she was returned.
“As a mother, all I want, in whichever shape and in whichever form, is that they bring my daughter back to me. In whichever way she comes, I will welcome her, because she is my blood,” she said.
The Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) has strongly condemned the recent threat by the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) to sanction broadcast presenters for allegedly airing personal opinions or bullying guests, describing the move as a dangerous assault on press freedom and democratic accountability.
In a press release issued on Tuesday, signed by President Eze Anaba and General Secretary Onuoha Ukeh, the body of editors raised “grave concern” over the NBC’s directive, which warned stations against breaches of the 6th Edition of the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, particularly in news and political programming.
While acknowledging the NBC’s stated goal of improving professional standards, the NGE argued that the commission’s language is “vague and broadly worded,” creating significant room for subjective interpretation and misuse.
“We consider such a move dangerous and injurious to journalism. It amounts to a direct assault on the principles of press freedom, editorial independence and democratic accountability,” the statement read.
“The Guild maintained that the role of journalists is to probe, challenge inconsistencies, and demand accountability, rather than providing a “comfort zone” for public officials. “Democracy does not thrive on timid journalism, but on bold, responsible, and fact-driven interrogation of issues and personalities,” the editors stated.
Warning Ahead of ElectionsWith Nigeria approaching a new election cycle, the NGE warned that the threat of sanctions could weaponize the broadcasting code, encouraging self-censorship and inhibiting the watchdog role of the media.
“This responsibility demands that journalists ask tough, even uncomfortable, questions in the public interest,” the NGE added, vowing that the Nigerian press will not be intimidated in its duty to report without fear or favour.
The Guild urged the regulator to operate with transparency, distinguishing between genuine misconduct and the legitimate exercise of journalistic duty.
The NGE’s stance follows a recent surge in criticism from media rights groups against the NBC’s latest regulatory crackdown.
News
Arise News anchor Somtochukwu Maduagwu: Witness Discloses How Police Rounded Up Assailants
This prompted an adjournment until Thursday, 23 April, for conclusion of the evidence-in-chief for the third prosecution witness and for cross-examination.
The trial of the eleven defendants linked to the murder of Arise News journalist and anchor Somtochukwu Maduagwu during a robbery at her apartment continued Tuesday with the third prosecution witness giving details of how arrests were made.
During proceedings at the High Court of the FCT sitting in Jabi, Maxwell Eje, an Assistant Superintendent of Police and member of the Scorpion Squad, CID-FCT Command, said that the arrest of the defendants began with Shamsu Hassan.
The police discovered, on 30 September 2025, that Hassan had fled to Zaria, Kaduna State after the robbery at Unique Apartments in Katampe a day earlier, during which Miss Maduagwu jumped to her death from her three-storey apartment.
ASP Eje informed the court that Shamsu Hassan admitted to the crime and agreed to cooperate with the authorities to disclose the hideout of others.
Hassan informed on Sani Surajo, who was receiving treatment at an unnamed hospital in Gosa, a suburb along the airport road in Abuja.
Surajo was shocked at the sight of the Scorpion Squad operatives at the hospital, the witness said.
He too agreed to cooperate and assist with useful information on the whereabouts of others who took part in the robbery.
The witness testimony of ASP Maxwell Eje did not reach cross-examination as Dennis Abu, counsel for the seventh to eleventh defendants—who also held brief for counsel to the first and third defendants—sought leave of the judge, Mohammed Idris, to attend a medical appointment.
This prompted an adjournment until Thursday, 23 April, for conclusion of the evidence-in-chief for the third prosecution witness and for cross-examination.
The prosecutor had earlier informed the court that he had two witnesses available at the start of Tuesday’s proceedings.
The FCT Police Commissioner instituted the lawsuit against the 11 defendants charged with conspiracy, armed robbery, and murder in connection with the 29 September 2025 armed robbery at Unique Apartments in Katampe, Abuja, during which Arise News anchor/journalist Somtochukwu “Sommie” Maduagwu and security guard Barnabas Danlami were killed.
The trial began on 10 February 2026 after earlier delays due to the absence of defendants or other issues.
The first prosecution witness, Sani Yusuf, a civil engineer and former resident of Unique Apartments, and the second, Fatou Toborteh, another former resident, have so far testified about the events of 29 September.
Both described masked armed assailants raiding apartments but stated they could not identify any of the 11 defendants (who were masked during the attack).
The defendants are Shamsu Hassan, Sani Surajo, Hassan Isah, Abubakar Alkamu, Abdulsalam Saleh, and Suleiman Badamosi.
Others are Zaradeen Mohammed, Musa Umar ‘Aka’ Small, Mashikur Jamil, Suleiman Sani, and Abubakar Usman.
News
Edun, Dangiwa quit Tinubu’s cabinet * Oyedele becomes Finance Minister
Edun, until the latest development, was the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy. He has been directed to hand over to Mr. Taiwo Oyedele who is now to take over as Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has approved a minor cabinet reshuffle in the memberships of the Federal Executive Council.
In a memo signed by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Senator George Akume, two cabinet members, Mr. Wale Edun and Arc. Ahmed Musa Dangiwa are to leave the cabinet while their replacements have been named.
Edun, until the latest development, was the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy. He has been directed to hand over to Mr. Taiwo Oyedele who is now to take over as Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy.
Oyedele was formerly a Minister of State in the ministry.
Also Mr. Muttaqha Rabe Darma has been named as the ministerial nominee and minister designate for the Housing and Urban Development Ministry.
The memo also directed Dangiwa to hand over to the Minister of State in the ministry.
The memo stated that “all handing over and taking over processes should be completed on or before close of business on Thursday 23rd April, 2026.”
Explaining the President’s decision, Akume said: “These changes are aimed at strengthening cohesion, synergy in governance as well as achieving more impactful delivery on the economy to Nigerians, through the Renewed Hope Agenda.”
He said the President, in approving the cabinet reshuffle, has fully exercised his powers as conferred on him by Sections 147 and 148 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (1999, as amended).
The President thanked the outgoing ministers for their services to the nation while wishing them the best in all their future endeavours.
The President, Akume noted, equally assured all cabinet members that “the process of reinvigoration shall be continuous.”
NGE Accuses NBC of “Dangerous” Threat to Press Freedom Ahead of Elections
Arise News anchor Somtochukwu Maduagwu: Witness Discloses How Police Rounded Up Assailants
Edun, Dangiwa quit Tinubu’s cabinet * Oyedele becomes Finance Minister
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