Author: TheLagosianMagazine

By Peter Omopo September 1, 2025 The First Lady of Nigeria, Senator Oluremi Tinubu, has empowered 500 women entrepreneurs in Oyo State with business grants worth ₦25 million under the Women Economic Empowerment Programme of her Renewed Hope Initiative (RHI). Each beneficiary received ₦50,000 at an event held in Ibadan on Monday. The First Lady, represented by the wife of the Oyo State Governor, Mrs Tamunominini Makinde, said the initiative was designed to strengthen women’s small-scale businesses, reduce financial burdens, and uplift communities. “This money is not a loan, but a grant and a seed of renewed hope to recapitalise…

By Peter Omopo September 1, 2025 Motorists and passengers were stranded for hours on Monday after a truck accident near a failed portion of a bridge along the Isoko axis of the Lagos-Benin Expressway rendered the busy route impassable. A viral video from the scene showed long queues of vehicles trapped on both sides of the road as commuters raised concerns over the dilapidated state of the bridge, which exposed a river beneath. One stranded passenger, speaking in the footage, lamented that road users had been stuck for more than two hours. He described the situation as a major threat…

By Peter Omopo September 1, 2025 The National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons (NAPTIP), Kano Zonal Command, has taken custody of 12 victims of human trafficking rescued in Kano while being transported to Saudi Arabia for suspected labour exploitation. The victims, all females aged between 15 and 50, were intercepted on August 31 at Karota Luxurious Park, Hotoro Western Bye-Pass, by the Kano State Hisbah Board in collaboration with NAPTIP. Zonal Commander Abdullahi Babale confirmed the development on Monday, disclosing that the victims, from Kano, Katsina, Borno, Jigawa, and Zamfara states, were lured with false promises of…

By Peter Omopo September 1, 2025 The Abia State Police Command has confirmed the identity of a traffic officer captured in a viral video allegedly attempting to extort money from a commercial tricycle operator in Umuahia. The video, which surfaced on Facebook, showed the officer confronting a Keke rider in what appeared to be an extortion attempt. Police spokesperson, DSP Maureen Chinaka, in a statement on Monday on behalf of Commissioner of Police Danladi Isa, said the officer had been traced and the case handed over to the State Criminal Investigation Department for probe. “The Abia State Police Command is…

By Peter Omopo September 1, 2025 Preparations for the coronation of former Oyo State governor, Chief Rashidi Adewolu Ladoja, as the 44th Olubadan of Ibadanland are in top gear, with a week-long programme of activities set to begin on September 22. This followed the inaugural meeting of the coronation committee held on Monday under the chairmanship of Chief Bayo Oyero. The session was attended by key government officials, including the Commissioner for Local Government and Chieftaincy Matters, Demola Ojo. According to a statement issued by the Commissioner for Information, Prince Dotun Oyelade, the events will open with an interdenominational service…

By Peter Omopo September 1, 2025 A Danish court on Monday sentenced former government minister Henrik Sass Larsen to four months in prison after finding him guilty of possessing thousands of images and videos of child sexual abuse. Larsen, 59, a former industry minister and senior figure in the Social Democratic Party, admitted having more than 6,000 photographs and 2,000 videos on his computer. However, he told the court he downloaded the material in an attempt to trace his own childhood abusers. During the trial, Larsen testified that he had received links in 2018 and 2020 to videos allegedly showing…

By Peter Omopo September 1, 2025 The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has dismissed as deceptive the promises by some politicians, including former Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, and ex-Rivers State governor, Rotimi Amaechi, to serve only one term if elected president. Speaking during his monthly media chat in Abuja on Monday, Wike backed former Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai, who had earlier argued that it is unrealistic for any presidential hopeful to guarantee a single-term presidency. Wike maintained that political realities often change once a candidate assumes office, making such pledges unreliable. “Stop deceiving Nigerians.…

By Peter Omopo September 1, 2025 A powerful earthquake struck eastern Afghanistan late Sunday night, killing more than 800 people and injuring thousands, Taliban authorities confirmed on Monday. The 6.0-magnitude quake hit just before midnight, collapsing homes onto sleeping families and rattling buildings as far as Kabul and Islamabad, Pakistan’s capital. The US Geological Survey (USGS) reported that at least 1.2 million people likely felt strong or very strong shaking, with five aftershocks recorded overnight. Casualties were reported across at least five provinces. In remote Kunar province, 800 people were confirmed dead and 2,500 injured, Taliban spokesman Zabihullah Mujahid said.…

By Peter Omopo 1st September 2025 Former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has criticised Labour Party’s 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, over his silence following the conviction of Nigerian-born Finnish separatist, Simon Ekpa. Ekpa was last week sentenced to six years in prison by the Päijät-Häme District Court in Finland for terrorism-related offences, including participation in a terrorist group, incitement to commit crimes for terrorist purposes, aggravated tax fraud, and violations of the Lawyers Act. The court ordered that he remain in custody. According to the judgment, Ekpa promoted the cause of a breakaway Biafra state through illegal activities between August…

By Peter Omopo 1st September 2025 The Federal Government has welcomed the conviction of separatist agitator Simon Ekpa by a Finnish court, describing it as a significant step in Nigeria’s fight against terrorism. On Monday, the Päijät-Häme District Court in Finland sentenced Ekpa to six years in prison after finding him guilty of several offences, including participation in a terrorist group, incitement to commit crimes for terrorist purposes, aggravated tax fraud, and breaches of the Lawyers Act. Reacting via his official X account, the Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, said the verdict was “a major victory for…