News
Akpabio: Buhari Maintained Integrity in Office, Even Critics Can Agree
Senate President Godswill Akpabio praised former President Muhammadu Buhari for his leadership, noting that he governed the country without mismanaging public funds.
Akpabio, who stated this at an expanded Federal Executive Council meeting in honour of Buhari in Abuja on Thursday, said even the former president’s critics would agree that he did not embezzle public funds while in office.
He said, “And let us be honest, he was tough. He was a soldier who did not flinch under fire, a leader who did not flee from responsibility, and above all, a Nigerian whose loyalty to this nation was never up for sale.
“His toughness was born not out of pride but of a patriotism, a fierce, unrelenting belief that Nigeria, with all its challenges, was still worth fighting for. And yet some disagree with him.
“That is the nature of democracy. But even his fiercest critics will admit that he did not pilfer the nation’s boss, nor pander to its pleasures to the very end.
The special FEC meeting was attended by the leadership of the National Assembly, ministers, governors, and the children of the former leader, led by his son, Yusuf.
Akpabio further stated that Buhari sought duty when others sought glory.
He also described the former president as a leader who did not flee from challenges.
“President Buhari did not merely pass through the corridors of power; he left his boots and imprints in them. He believed that discipline mattered, that integrity mattered, that leadership, even when lonely, must be anchored on something greater than power,” he added.
Buhari, a former military head of state, served as a civilian president for eight years from 2015 to 2023.
He died on Sunday at a clinic in London at the age of 82.
His remains were brought back to Nigeria on Tuesday and received by President Bola Tinubu at the Katsina Airport.
His body was later buried during a state funeral at his residence in Daura and was well-attended by top government officials, political associates, and family members of the former president, as well as residents of the area.
Justice Darius Khobo of the Kaduna State High Court has adjourned the bail hearing of former Kaduna State governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, to the first week of June, 2026.
El-Rufai was arraigned last week on an amended nine-count charge bordering on alleged fraud and abuse of office, filed by the Independent Corupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
He appeared before the court last Tuesday for hearing of his bail application.
However, the presiding judge, Darius Khobo, adjourned ruling on the application to Tuesy April 21, 2026.
The former governor was, last week, granted bail by a Federal High Court in Kaduna in another corruption case instituted against him by the ICPC.
Justice Rilwanu Aikawa admitted El-Rufai to bail in the sum of N200 million.
The judge had ordered that El-Rufai remain in ICPC custody pending the fulfilment of the bail conditions.
As part of the conditions, the defendant was barred from making public comments on the case and must attend all court sittings.
However, speaking after the court session on Tuesday, counsel to the former governor, Ukpon Akpan, said the bail application had been adjourned.
He kicked against the lingering adjournment, saying it is politically motivated.
Barcelona are set to let five key players leave the club this summer, as they plan a squad overhaul, according to reports.
The Blaugrana are currently sitting nine points clear at the top of LaLiga, and are set to romp to a second consecutive title ahead of rivals Real Madrid.
However, after more disappointment in the Champions League, in which they were dumped out by Atletico Madrid, Hansi Flick and the board at Barcelona are preparing to rebuild their squad at the end of the campaign.
Spanish media outlet Marca are reporting that there are five players who have ‘completed a cycle at the club’ and will likely be moved on come the summer.
Marcus Rashford is one of those players. Barcelona can buy the 28-year-old, who is on loan from Manchester United, for £26million under the terms of the deal, but reports have emerged that they are not willing to exercise that option.
The 28-year-old has contributed 12 goals and 13 assists this season to help the Catalan giants run rampant in LaLiga, and as recently as last week, it was believed that Barca would like to keep him.
However, they have made a failed bid to renegotiate the £26m fee with United, who are refusing to budge on the clause which expires on June 15 – four days after the World Cup kicks off in North America.
It means there is a strong chance that Rashford will be forced to return to his boyhood club following England duty if he is selected for the tournament this summer.
Another attacker who seems set for the exit door is none other than Robert Lewandowski.
The Pole, who joined Barcelona from Bayern Munich in 2022, is out of contract in the summer, and there has been little indication that he will sign a new deal at the club.
It is believed that both Lewandowski’s ‘age and recent physical problems’ have thrust his future at Barca into doubt.
Barcelona are said to be looking at freeing up some financial legroom, and for that reason, they want to offload stars on big wage packets.
One of those players is Frenkie de Jong, who is understood to be on just under €400,000 (£348,000) per week, and Marca suggest that he could be sold to ‘ease the financial burden’ on the Spanish giants.
Former Chelsea defender Andreas Christensen and La Masia graduate Marc Casado are also said to be on the proverbial chopping block.
Christensen played 161 games in six seasons with the Blues before making the move to Catalonia in 2022 on a four-year deal. That deal is now set to expire, and there are no plans for an extension at this moment in time.
Casado, however, still has two years left on his contract, but due to a lack of minutes, could be forced to find a new club.
The defensive midfielder has failed to break into the team ahead of Pedri, Eric Garcia, and Gavi, and has started only one of the last eight LaLiga games.
Kimberly Daniels, a United States Democratic member of the Florida House of Representatives for District 14, has alleged that Nigeria’s minister of state for defense, Bello Matawalle, attempted to bribe a US official to deflect the narrative of the United World Congress of Diplomats, UN-WCD, report.
The lawmaker made the claim in a viral video released on her official Facebook account on Monday.
She said Matawalle’s alleged move was to cover up the UN-WCD report on Christian genocide in Nigeria, which indicted him.
Daniels insisted that no amount of pressure can silence her stand against the killings of Christians in Nigeria.
“A US elected official was offered money by Nigeria’s minister of state defense, Bello Matawalle, to change the narrative of the UN-WCD Christian genocide in Nigeria report,” she said in the viral video.
Recall that Daniels, who doubled as the chairperson of UN-WCD, had called for President Bola Tinubu to remove Matawalle over alleged complicity in the killings in Plateau, Benue, Kaduna, and other parts of Nigeria.
Matawalle is yet to officially reply the US lawmaker.
-
Health & Wellness8 months agoPresident Tinubu Directs Cut in Dialysis Cost from ₦50,000 to ₦12,000
-
Business4 weeks agoDangote Refinery Reduces Petrol Gantry Price To ₦1,200 Per Litre
-
News3 years ago2023 Elections: Outgoing Rwandan High Commissioner say s Nigeria, ‘ handle their destiny’ in a peaceful way.
-
News3 years agoOgun HoS Solicit Affordable Housing For Civil Servants
-
Entertainment3 years ago9mobile Ambassadors Begin “Meet And Greet” Session With Staffs, Customers.
-
News9 months agoPICTURE: In Lagos Couple Sentenced to 22½ Years for Cannabis Trafficking
-
News3 years agoJust In: President Tinubu returns to Nigeria
-
Trending News8 months agoNELFUND Disburses ₦86bn To 449,000 Beneficiaries