Good morning! Here are six top headlines from Nigerian Newspapers today;
1. The Federal Capital Territory Internal Revenue Service on Wednesday initiated a criminal action against Dino Melaye, a former Senator, representing Kogi West Senatorial district over his alleged failure to file mandatory tax returns for two years. In a criminal complaint now before Court 17 of the Magistrate Court of the FCT in Wuse Zone 2, the FCT/IRS accused Dino of failing to file annual tax returns for 2023 and 2024.
2. The Inspector General of Police, IGP, Kayode Egbetokun has charged politician and online publisher, Omoyele Sowore with false publication and forgery. In a three-count charge marked: FHC/ABJ/CR/374/2025 filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja, the IGP accused Sowore of among others, making false publication about the police on his media platforms and forging a police signal.
3. The Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet) has predicted floods in eight States of the country between Thursday and Saturday this week. The States likely to experience flood, according to the agency, are: Niger, Kogi, Benue, Lagos, Ogun, Ondo, Cross River and Ebonyi.
4. A United States court has sentenced Oba Joseph Oloyede, the Apetu of Ipetumodu in Osun State, to 56 months in prison for his role in a multimillion-dollar COVID-19 relief fraud scheme. According to a statement issued by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Ohio, Oloyede, who holds dual U.S. and Nigerian citizenship was sentenced on August 26 by District Judge Christopher A. Boyko.
5. The President of the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, Prof. Chris Piwuna, has accused the federal government of failing to implement any of the agreements reached with the union. According to him, ASUU had consistently engaged the government in dialogue, but no part of the negotiated agreements has been enforced.
6. Former President Goodluck Jonathan has called for a new process to appoint the next chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, proposing an independent screening and nomination mechanism to strengthen the commission’s credibility ahead of the 2027 general elections. This comes at a moment the tenure of the current INEC chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, is due to expire around October this year.
The draw for this season’s Carabao Cup third round was conducted on Wednesday night, after Grimsby Town eliminated Manchester United from the competition.
This is the stage of the competition where the teams playing European competitions get involved.
Arsenal will face Port Valen in an away tie, while Chelsea also travel to Lincoln.
Liverpool host Southampton and Manchester City are away at Huddersfield Town.
Fixtures will be played the weeks commencing 15 and 22 September.
The Nigerian currency, the naira, appreciated against the dollar at the official foreign exchange market on Wednesday, the first gain recorded this week.
The Central Bank of Nigeria’s official data indicated that the Naira appreciated marginally to N1,537.07 per dollar on Wednesday, up from N1,537.61 traded on Tuesday.
This indicates that the Naira weakened slightly by N0.54 on a day-to-day basis.
Meanwhile, at the black or parallel market, the Naira remained flat at N1548 per dollar on Wednesday, the same rate exchanged on Tuesday, Hussein Aminu, a Bureau de Change operator in Wuse Zone 4, confirmed.
The development comes amid a day-to-day surge in the country’s external reserves to $41.22 billion as of Tuesday, up from $41.19 billion on Monday, according to CBN data.
Nigerian popular TikToker and content creator Habeeb Hamzat, popularly known as Peller, appeared to have been abducted by unknown gunmen during a livestream on Wednesday night.
Peller, who was live online during the alleged kidnap incident, could be heard in clips from the livestream saying, “You dey carry gun, Ogun wan kill you? Calm down, Jor. Na who you come dey point gun for?”
One of the unknown gunmen responded, “Na me you dey follow me the tok like that? I say, “Make you calm down, you dey follow me dey tok anyhow.”
The voices in the background after those exchanges hinted that Peller and the gunmen were dragging.
Moments later, someone at the scene with Peller announced that they have taken him [Peller] to an unknown location.
The faces of the unknown gunmen were not captured in the video.
The incident has sparked mixed reactions on social media, with Nigerians on X wondering if it is real or a skit while others expressed concerns over the safety of the streamer.
Details of the incident are still sketchy at the moment as of filing the report.
The Nigeria Police Force is yet to issue a statement on the report.
A cross section of dignitaries during the public presentation in Abuja on Wednesday
The Director General of the Energy Commission of Nigeria (ECN), Dr. Mustapha Abdullahi, has said that real-life and transparent data are crucial in the nation’s quest to save energy and protect the environment.
He made this assertion in Abuja during the public presentation of the industrial energy efficiency (IEE) database developed under the United Nations Industrial Development Organisation (UNIDO) and Global Environment Facility (GEF)’s project titled Improving Nigeria’s Industrial Energy Performance and Resource Efficient Cleaner Production through Programmatic Approaches and the Promotion of Innovation in Clean Technology Solutions (NIG IEE/RECP) project.
Abdullahi explained that the commission, under the project, has been focused on strengthening national industrial energy efficiency policies and regulatory frameworks towards the adoption of UNIDO’s Energy Management Systems Standards (EnMS/ESO/ISO 50001) in Nigeria. He maintained that reliable data is required for evidence-based policymaking on energy saving and environmental protection.
A cross section of stakeholders during the ECN/GEF- Unido meeting in Abuja
According to him, without comprehensive knowledge of how industries acquire and use energy, any attempt to develop policies that promote energy management systems and energy supply optimisation would be baseless and counterproductive.
“Most manufacturing industries in Nigeria are currently experiencing hard times because of epileptic power supply. This has led to many industries closing down while some are relocating outside the country. Policymakers like you and me, who are concerned with the effects of poor energy access in the country, are expected to develop appropriate policy and legislative frameworks based on actual data to reduce these negative impacts.
“The most obvious area for action is to improve the reliability of the energy supply by minimising energy wastage through the adoption of energy efficiency and conservation best practices. Data collection, storage, retrieval, and analysis are the bedrock for effective energy management. It is often said that you cannot manage or monitor what you don’t measure,” he added.
Represented by the commission’s director of ICT, Engr. Steven Adedayo, Abdullahi stressed that the popularisation and dissemination of the IEE Database is aimed at enhancing stakeholders’ understanding of the need for data keeping as a prerequisite for mainstreaming energy efficiency best practices into the nation’s development goals and actions.
In his remarks, the national programme officer of UNIDO, Dr. Reuben Bamidele, commended the ECN for implementing the project and underscored the importance of reliable data. According to him, without data, planning becomes meaningless and ineffective. He expressed optimism that the database being developed by ECN would significantly improve how industrial processes are managed, with a wider impact on the energy sector.
Also speaking, the director-general of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Segun Ajayi-Kadir, noted that the public presentation workshop reflected a collective effort to raise awareness and engage stakeholders on the benefits of industrial energy efficiency, such as saving money, cutting energy use, and reducing greenhouse gas emissions in Nigeria’s industrial sector.
Represented by the director of MAN’s Abuja liaison secretariat, Adeyemi Folorunsho, Ajayi-Kadir stated that the forum would foster the synergy required to mainstream energy efficiency into Nigeria’s industrial development strategy. “It will also strengthen national industrial energy efficiency policies and regulatory frameworks, paving the way for the full adoption of Energy Management Systems Standards in Nigeria. This forum presents an opportunity for stakeholders to engage directly with project partners, share their expectations, and express their commitments towards advancing industrial energy efficiency in the country,” he said.
In a separate interview with journalists, the industrial energy efficiency consultant to the ECN, Engr. Okon Ekpenyong, emphasised the practical urgency of measurement and baseline assessment. He explained that assessment teams had visited plants to determine how much energy is consumed, where it is used, and when peak demands occur. “You cannot manage what you don’t measure,” he said, noting that findings revealed stark realities, as several factories have shut down because of soaring tariffs, while an unstable power supply has forced others off the national grid.
Ekpenyong further explained that some manufacturers have migrated to gas-to-power solutions and compressed natural gas generation to sustain operations, a costly coping strategy that highlights systemic gaps in supply and pricing. He argued that the IEE project provides clarity on where operational improvements, control upgrades, and targeted retrofits will yield rapid returns. He urged firms to view energy efficiency not as a compliance exercise but as an investment in competitiveness and sustainability.
The stakeholders agreed that access to credible data remains the bedrock of reforms that could unlock cleaner industrial growth, reduce energy costs, and protect the environment.
1. A political scholar and leader of the North Central stakeholders agitating for power shift to the region, Prof K’tso Nghargbu, says the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC and the leading opposition People’s Democratic Party, PDP may lose the 2027 presidential election for ignoring the North and ceding their tickets to the Southern region.
2. National Security Adviser, NSA, Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, yesterday, handed over 128 rescued kidnap victims from Zamfara State to their families in Abuja. He also dismissed allegations that 35 of the victims were killed by the bandits/terrorists before others were rescued.
3. The Naira on Tuesday depreciated to N1,550 per dollar in the parallel market from N1,540 per dollar on Monday. Similarly, the Naira depreciated to N1,537 per dollar in the Nigerian Foreign Exchange Market, NFEM.
4. Senate Minority Leader, Senator Abba Moro, has admitted that the Peoples Democratic Party made a costly mistake by fielding former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as its 2023 presidential candidate. Speaking on Channels TV program on Tuesday, Moro said the party’s decision to jettison its zoning arrangement in 2022 and present a northern candidate to succeed a northern president contributed to its defeat.
5. The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC has dissolved its Edo Council following failed efforts to reconcile internal leadership disputes. Mr Benson Upah, acting General Secretary of the NLC, announced the dissolution in a statement issued on Tuesday in Abuja. Upah explained that the move was due to the escalating conflicts between the elected State Council Chairman, Odion Olaye, and a rival faction backed by the state government.
6. Suspected armed herders have killed four people and destroyed properties in many areas of Tombu Council Ward, Logo Local Government Area of Benue State. The incident, according to a community leader in the area, Joseph Anawah, happened on Monday.
Former Arsenal star, Emmanuel Petit, has said that Mikel Arteta’s side cannot win the Premier League title this season.
According to the Frenchman, it will be difficult for the Gunners to win the title despite bringing in new players this summer.
Arsenal manager Mikel Arteta has led the club to second place finish in the last three seasons but the club’s fans are believing that the Emirates outfit will win the title this season because of this summer’s reinforcements.
“New signings, like Viktor Gyökeres and Martín Zubimendi, still have to adapt to Arteta’s style,” Petit told AS.
“It will be very difficult, and I’m not convinced anyway.”
Petit, who also played for Chelsea in the Premier League, urged Arteta to sign more wingers before the end of the transfer window.
“Saka is too isolated on the right, and Ødegaard is the only real playmaker. They’ve replaced those who left, but they still lack real depth.”
Arsenal will have their first real test of the season when they play Liverpool at Anfield on Sunday.
The federal government ministries, departments, and agencies and private firms are in panic as the Nigeria Data Protection Commission commenced nationwide compliance on the implementation of the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDP Act).
In a statement on Monday by the commission’s Head of Legal, Enforcement, and Regulations, Babatunde Bamigboye vowed to clamp down on MDAs or institutions not complying with the provisions of the NDP Act 2023.
“The Nigeria Data Protection Commission (NDPC), in furtherance of its mandate under the Nigeria Data Protection Act (NDP Act), 2023, has commenced a sector-by-sector investigation of organisations suspected of non-compliance with the provisions of the Act”, the statement reads.
The NDP Act, 2023, seeks to:
1. Safeguard the fundamental rights, freedoms, and interests of data subjects as guaranteed under the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999.
2. Strengthen the legal foundations of Nigeria’s digital economy while ensuring the nation’s trusted and beneficial participation in regional and global economies through responsible use of personal data.
In line with Sections 5(i), 6(a), 6(c), 46(3), and 47(1)-(2) of the NDP Act, the Commission has issued Compliance Notices to certain organisations listed in the schedule of its notice. The list of these organisations will be published on Monday, 25th August 2025, in some major newspapers across the country. The list of organisations was drawn from insurance companies, pension companies, gaming companies, banks, and insurance brokers.
These organisations are required to, within twenty-one (21) days of issuance, provide the following:
1. Evidence of filing NDP Act Compliance Audit Returns for 2024 (S.6(d) of the NDP Act).
2. Evidence of designation or appointment of a Data Protection Officer, including name and contact details (S.32).
3. Summary of technical and organisational measures for data protection within the organisation (S.39).
4. Evidence of registration as a Data Controller or Processor of Major Importance (S.44).
The Commission reiterates that failure to comply with this Compliance Notice may result in enforcement actions, including the issuance of an Enforcement Order, administrative fines, and/or criminal prosecution in accordance with the NDP Act, 2023.
The NDPC remains committed to ensuring a culture of accountability and trust in Nigeria’s data protection and privacy ecosystem, while safeguarding the rights of data subjects and strengthening the nation’s digital economy.
