Author: Drum Africa Correspondent

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board has responded to criticisms by a former Presidential Candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, over the early resumption time for its Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination. Obi had, in a post on X on Sunday, decried reports of candidates, mostly teenagers, being asked to travel to examination centres as early as 6:30 am despite security concerns. He described the situation as “reckless,” citing incidents of accidents and missing candidates, and blamed it on what he called Nigeria’s inadequate investment in education. According to Obi, setting exams for vulnerable teenagers at such early hours was…

Private school owners in Edo State, under the umbrella of the Coalition of Associations of Private Schools (CAPS), staged a peaceful protest on Friday in Benin City to express grievances over an alleged hike in personal income tax. The protest, held at the premises of the Edo State Ministry of Education, saw participants carrying placards and banners demanding the reversal of what they described as an outrageous increase in tax rates—reportedly between 200% and 400%. CAPS comprises several educational bodies, including the Association of Private School Owners of Nigeria (APSON), Association for Formidable Education Development (AFED), National Association of Proprietors…

A group of women in Rivers state are protesting the suspension of Siminalayi Fubara, the governor, and the declaration of emergency rule in the state. The protest began early Friday morning with the women chanting slogans and demanding an end to what they perceive as an “unconstitutional state of affairs” in Rivers. During a march to the government house in Port Harcourt, the women also demanded a return to democratic governance in the state. “We want governor Fubara back,” one protester was heard saying in a viral video. ‘We need our democracy restored’, ‘#BringBackFubara’, ‘Obey the rule of law’, and…

Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufa’i, and former Governor of Sokoto State and serving Senator, Aminu Tambuwal on Friday visited former President Muhammadu Buhari at his residence in Kaduna. Also on their entourage were the former Governor of Imo State, Achike Udenwa, former Benue State Governor, Gabriel Suswam and former Adamawa state Governor, Jubirila Bindow as well as former Minister of Communications, Isa Pantami. While El-Rufa’i is now a member of the Social Democratic Party, Atiku and the rest are of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Both El-Rufa’i, Atiku, Tambuwal, and Pantami also observed…

Some representatives from communities affected by the Abia airport project on Wednesday alleged that the state government did not apply transparency and fair treatment in the acquisition of lands for the project. However, the Abia State government maintains that it transparently and fairly engaged affected communities and paid adequate compensation to landowners. The community members, who gathered at Umunkolo Civic Hall, carried placards with messages such as “Adequate compensation should be paid to landowners” and “30% discount not acceptable after 10% deduction by attorney,” among others. They also claimed that the Abia State government’s approach to payments of compensation was…

Abia State Chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), says the Umuahia–Uzuakoli–Akara–Alayi–Abiriba Road, alongside several other rural road projects across the state, was made possible through the Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP)—a $60 million World Bank-powered development facility secured during the tenure of the PDP-led government under the leadership of Dr. Okezie Victor Ikpeazu. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on the invitation of Governor Alex Otti is due to commission the strategic 45-kilometre Umuahia–Uzuakoli–Akara–Alayi–Abiriba Road this, Friday, April 11, 2025, However, the PDP in a statement by the Publicity Secretary, Eric Ikwuagu said the RAAMP Loan Facility which enabled…

The Federal Government is emphasizing the urgent need for sustainable agricultural practices focusing on root and tuber crops to address food security challenges in Nigeria. The Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Senator Abubakar Kyrai made this known during the Annual Research Review and Planning Workshop of National Roots Crops Institute, Umudike Abia State. Themed ‘A Sustainable Future for Nigeria’s Agriculture: Focus on Root and Tuber Crops’, the Workshop brought together a diverse group of stakeholders, including Policy makers, Scientists, Academia, former Executive Directors and Directors of NRCRI, Provosts, Professors, Deans of Faculties/Colleges of Universities, Farmers, NGOs, His Royal Highnesses…

A former governorship aspirant of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Sir Paul Chukwuma, has emerged as the candidate of the Young Progressives Party (YPP) for the November 8, 2025, governorship election in Anambra State. Chukwuma, who recently resigned from the APC, citing irregularities in its primary, secured the YPP ticket through a consensus vote by 374 delegates during the party’s primary held in Awka on Thursday. The exercise, conducted using the Option A4 method, was supervised by the party’s National Secretary and Chairman of the Election Committee, Vidieno Bamayi. Bamayi declared that the process was peaceful and followed the party’s…

The Ondo State House of Assembly on Thursday intervened in the crisis rocking the Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo, over unpaid salaries of the workers. Members of staff of RUGIPO on Tuesday protested against non-payment of six months’ salaries. The workers also accused the state government of failing to implement the national minimum wage. The workers are under the umbrella of the Non-Academic Staff Union and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnics. Speaking at the plenary, the Speaker of the Assembly, Chief Olamide Oladiji, said the House had no option but to constitute an ad-hoc committee to investigate the protest.…

The All Progressives Congress has shut down its national secretariat in Abuja, popularly known as Buhari House, following the murder of its Director of Administration, AbdulRauf Adeniji. The APC made this known in a memo titled ‘Secretariat closure for the mourning of the director of administration’, on Thursday. It was learnt that the deceased, who was kidnapped weeks ago, was killed last month. The ruling party stated that the closure of the secretariat would take effect on Monday, April 14, 2025. It advised all the staff to use the mourning period for sober reflection and prayers for the family and…