Author: Drum Africa Correspondent

The Nigerian Senate has said that it has not yet taken a position on the proposed amendment to the Electoral Act seeking to criminalise dual party membership, because the House of Representatives has not formally transmitted the bill. Chairman of the Senate Committee on Media and Publicity, Yemi Adaramodu, made the clarification in an interview, noting that the upper chamber cannot deliberate on any proposal that has not passed through the required legislative stages in the lower chamber. He said that Nigeria’s bicameral system requires that any amendment must first be considered, passed, and transmitted by the House before the…

A major advancement is about to be recorded by Nigeria in her public health response to HIV/AIDS as the Federal Government commences a pilot rollout of a long-acting preventive injection across selected states and the Federal Capital Territory. As gathered, the initiative, which introduces the use of Lenacapavir, is expected to deploy a total of 52,000 doses nationwide. Reports indicate that an initial batch of 11,520 doses has already been received ahead of the official launch scheduled for March 24, 2026. Information available to DrumAfricanews has it that the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, through the National AIDS,…

The Anambra State Governor, Professor Chukwuma Soludo, has said that the possibility of the All Progressive Grand Alliance (APGA), fielding a Presidential Candidate in the upcoming 2027 polls is not there. Soludo, the only Governor elected on the platform of APGA, who is also its national leader, said the party has adopted President Bola Tinubu as its flag bearer for the election. Speaking after he was sworn-in for a second term in office last week, Soludo said the decision to adopt the President is in tandem with the long-standing policy of the party to align with the ruling party at…

By S. I. Anyanwu-Azuka This is Chief Ikedi Ohakim. The man behind the Clean and Green initiative in Imo State between 2007 and 2011, with his new face of Imo mantra. He was the man that brought out the beauty of the capital city of Imo state Owerri, with his regular monthly cleanup exercises across the states. Chief Ikedi Ohakim during his regime provided to the people of Imo State over 500 Keke New Face to help combat challenges faced by Imo people on transportation after the removal of Okada which was a move that saved the lives of many…

In what proved to be drastic U-turn of domestic entrepreneurship, the Ministry of Labour and Empowerment in Nigeria’s South-West Zone has adopted in the One Kindred One Business Initiative (OKOBI), introduced by Governor Hope Uzodimma. OKOBI, is a brainchild of Hope Uzodimma, the Governor of Imo State, who launched the initiative in 2023 as a pragmatic response to unemployment and grassroots economic stagnation. At its core lies a simple but potent idea: small, trust-based groups—typically between two and ten individuals—should be supported to form cooperatives and run viable businesses. These enterprises are deliberately modest in scope but high in relevance,…

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lieutenant General Waidi Shaibu, has commended troops of Operation UDO KA (OPUKA) for their resilience, gallantry, and sustained offensive operations against criminal elements of the proscribed IPOB/ESN in the South East. Colonel Appolonia Anele, Acting Director Army Public Relations said that the commendation was delivered during the Chief of Army Staff Special Sallah Luncheon held at Mother Valley in Orsu Local Government Area of Imo State, a location previously identified as a stronghold of the insurgents. Represented by the Chief of Training (Army), Major General Valentine Okoro, the COAS conveyed the appreciation of the…

By Nze Tobe Osigwe (Ezeikolomuo Igbo Consciousness Teacher) Few days ago, the committee that was set up to look into the crisis with Awka traditional stool submitted their findings and declared Igwe Gibson Nwosu as the authentic Eze Uzu and His Majesty Austine Ndigwe as illegitimate. First, I am not disputing the findings and resolution of this committee. In fact, for the fact the government of Anambra State found it expedient to look into this crisis, I give them kudos. However, what I find strange is the speed and manner the committee went about their job. It took the committee…

Staff Sergeant Amoke, the soldier who led the operation that ended the reign of the notorious Abia-born kidnap kingpin, Obioma Nwankwo, also known as ‘Osisikankwu’, in Aba in 2010, has been honoured by Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti DrumAfricanews reports that when the ‘Osisikankwu’ led a notorious kidnapping hoodlums was terrorising Aba and its environs between 2009 and 2010, Amoke, a member of the Nigerian Army, played a key role in tracking and apprehending the gang leader, restoring security to the state. During a visit to the soldier at his country home in Nvosi, Isiala Ngwa South LGA, Otti…

Information available to DrumAfricanews from the BudgIT service delivery monitoring platform, Tracka, shows that Abia State has 20 per cent abandoned projects in the years under review, which placed her second to Taraba State with 29.9 per cent.  BudgIT, in its uncovering of widespread cases of abandoned projects across several states in Nigeria, revealed that after Abia, in second position, Nasarawa State has 10.5 per cent; Adamawa State has 7.5 per cent, while Ogun State has 7.1 per cent.  According to BudgIT (7.11 per cent), these states, led by Taraba and Abia, collectively account for 97.5 per cent of all abandoned…

South East Network of Civil Society Organisations (SENCSO), a coalition of civil society organisations in the South-East, has condemned what it termed an attempt to bully and harass the Deputy Speaker of the Federal House of Representatives, Rt Hon. Benjamin Kalu. Recall that recently, the Civil Society Groups of Good Governance (CSGGG) Legal Practitioners Disciplinary Committee (LPDC) cleared the Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, in a petition alleging certificate fraud. SENCSO said that it is its firm belief that every public office holder is entitled to due process and fair treatment and that constructive oversight by…