The Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, has charged the new board of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) to maintain high standards of corporate governance, accountability and regulatory independence. Akume issued the charge on Tuesday in Abuja during the board’s inauguration, describing the event as a huge milestone in the Federal Government’s drive to strengthen governance and deepen reforms. He said the exercise indicated a critical step in implementing the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), which was enacted to reposition the petroleum industry through regulatory clarity, institutional independence and adherence to global best practices. “ The establishment and inauguration of the board underscore the Federal Government’s commitment to ensuring that Nigeria’s upstream petroleum resources are managed transparently, efficiently, and in the best interest of the Nigerian people ,” he said. Akume added that the board, as the Commission’s ape...

Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) on Tuesday hosted members of the Bayelsa State chapter of the Boys’ Brigade of Nigeria on an educational tour of the Nigerian Content Tower in Yenagoa. The NCDMB stated that the visit gave the group firsthand insight into the Board’s operations and its role in developing local capacity in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry and related sectors. Speaking during the event, the General Manager, Corporate Communications, Dr Obinna Ezeobi, represented by the Manager, Government Relations, Mr Teddy Bai, urged the visitors to focus on personal development and skills acquisition for future careers in the sector.  Ezeobi outlined the Board’s mandate under the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, stressing that building capacity was key to staying relevant in any career. READ ALSO : NCDMB, NYSC Deepen Partnership on Bayelsa Youth Development, Others As part of the engagement, the participants were introduced to t...

The Bayelsa State Government has imposed a dusk-to-dawn curfew on Ogboinbiri Community in Southern Ijaw Local Government Area (LGA) following unrest that left one person dead. Ebiuwou Obiyai, the Commissioner for Information, Orientation and Strategy said the curfew took effect on Tuesday, 28 April, and will run from 6 pm to 6 am daily until further notice.  “ As part of efforts to maintain public peace, the Bayelsa State Government has declared a dusk-to-dawn curfew on Ogboinbiri Community . “ Defaulters shall be treated as a threat to public peace ,” she said. The unrest reportedly began after allegations surfaced over the possession of metal electric poles by the community’s former youth president, Experience Pere.  Pere's tenure had expired but he was said to be still acting in the role. READ ALSO : NDDC to Fund 500 More Tech Trainees as SAGE Hub Expands AI Initiative in Bayelsa According to statements from local officials, the incident led to retaliatory attacks in which ...

Bayelsa has been named one of the four least indebted states in Nigeria, according to recent data from the Debt Management Office (DMO) covering 2025–2026. The other states in the lowest debt category are Ondo, Yobe and Jigawa.  At the other end of the ranking, Lagos remains the most indebted state, followed by Kaduna, Rivers, Edo and Ogun. State officials said the rating reflected “ prudent management of resources and accountability ” under Governor Douye Diri’s administration.  They also pointed to 2025 half-year reports which showed Bayelsa had recorded almost 50 per cent budget implementation, the highest among Nigerian states. READ ALSO : Bayelsa PDP Elects New Local Government Leaders According to the DMO, full ranking places states in five bands, and after the five highest debt states, come Cross River, Bauchi, Enugu, Delta and Niger.  The upper-middle band includes Katsina, Benue, Imo, Akwa Ibom, Oyo, Ekiti, Plateau,  Abia, Osun and Adamawa. Kano, Taraba, Sok...

National Council on Nutrition (NCN) has approved Nigeria’s National Policy on Food and Nutrition (NPEN) 2026–2035, paving the way for transmission to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for final ratification. According to reports, the decision was reached at the Council’s 15th meeting, held virtually and chaired by Vice President Kashim Shettima. The new policy is described as a comprehensive, multi-sectoral framework intended to guide Nigeria’s nutrition and food security interventions over the next decade.  Shettima said the NPFN was “ the most consequential nutrition policy this country has produced ,” adding that it was evidence-based, grassroots-driven and cuts across sectors.  “ We will be judged not by our deliberations but by our deliveries. Not by what we decided in April 2026, but by what mothers and children across the 774 local government areas experience by 2035 ,” he told the Council. Consequently, the Council directed all 36 states and the Federal Capital Terri...

The Bayelsa State Police Command has arrested and paraded 26 suspects in connection with illegal possession of firearms, fraud and cult-related offences. Iyamah Daniel Edebor, the Commissioner of Police said the arrests followed a sustained crackdown in line with the Inspector-General of Police (IGP)’s directive on zero tolerance for crime across the country. Among items recovered was a stolen Toyota Hiace bus, which police said is valued at N145 million.  According to Edebor, the principal suspect, Anyankpele Ebiowei, was arrested in Warri and subsequently led investigators to other alleged accomplices. Police said those arrested in connection with the case include Alhaji Jibo Aluseyni and Hassan Mumuni.  Investigations revealed that the vehicle had been resold to a Lagos-based dealer, Alhaji Sikiru Jimoh, who is currently at large. READ ALSO : Troops Recover Arms, Arrest Two Suspects in Delta In a separate operation, officers arrested three suspects for attempted armed robbe...

A police commissioner has told an Abuja High Court that investigations into an alleged fraudulent withdrawal of $6.23m from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) indicated the payment was made with the approval of former governor Godwin Emefiele. Commissioner of Police Eloho E Ekpoziakpho gave evidence on Tuesday, 28 April 2026, before Justice Hamza Mu’azu at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) High Court, Maitama. Ekpoziakpho, who heads the Special Fraud Unit in Lagos, testified as Prosecution Witness 14 in Emefiele’s ongoing trial on an amended 20-count charge.  The charges include criminal breach of trust, forgery, abuse of office and conspiracy to obtain by false pretence. Led by prosecution counsel Rotimi Oyedepo SAN, the witness said he took part in interrogating the defendant with Jim Obazee, the special investigator appointed to probe the CBN. “ In the course of the investigation, we got intelligence on the 6.23 million dollars that was fraudulently taken from the CBN branch in...

Delta State Police Command has arrested and transferred a serving police officer, Nuhu Usman, to the Force Headquarters in Abuja for disciplinary action following the fatal shooting of a suspect in Effurun, Delta State. The command’s spokesperson, Bright Edafe, disclosed this in a statement issued on Tuesday amid widespread public outrage over the incident. According to the police, the shooting occurred on Sunday, April 26, 2026, after operatives attached to the Effurun Area Command received intelligence from members of the public about a suspect, later identified as Mene Ogidi, who was allegedly apprehended while attempting to send a parcel containing a firearm and ammunition. Edafe said officers were deployed to take the suspect into custody, but the operation ended tragically. “ The police officer leading the team, ASP Nuhu Usman, in clear violation of Force Order 237 and the Standard Operating Procedure of the Nigeria Police Force, discharged his firearm, leading to the death of th...

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has started a pilot rollout of a long-acting HIV prevention injection, with more than 4,000 vials made available free to eligible residents. Dr Adedolapo Fasawe, Mandate Secretary for Health Services and Environment at the FCTA, announced the launch of LenPrEP at Asokoro District Hospital in Abuja on Tuesday. She said the injectable option is a “ game changer ” for people who find daily medication difficult to manage.  “ For many individuals, especially those who struggle with daily pill adherence, this innovation offers a discreet, convenient, and highly effective alternative ,” Fasawe said. LenPrEP is given twice a year and does not replace existing prevention methods such as oral PrEP, condoms or behavioural interventions, she added. “ Rather, it strengthens our prevention toolbox .” The FCT has an HIV prevalence rate of about 1.4 per cent, with more than 60,000 people currently on treatment.  “ Every new infection averted is a life prot...

The House of Representatives has approved President Bola Tinubu’s request for a $516.3m loan arranged by Deutsche Bank AG to fund sections of the Sokoto–Badagry Super Highway. It was said that the approval was given during plenary in Abuja on Tuesday after Abdullahi Rasheed, deputy chairman of the House Committee on Aids, Loans and Debts Management, presented the committee’s report. Notably, the loan will be used for Section 1, Phase 1A and Phase 1B of the project, covering about 120 kilometres. In a letter to lawmakers last week, Tinubu said the financing would come from a syndicated facility led by Deutsche Bank.  He asked for a resolution under Sections 16 and 21 of the Debt Management Office Act 2011 to secure the funds. The 1,000-kilometre highway is a flagship project of the Renewed Hope Agenda.  READ ALSO : APC Sets N100m Fee for Presidential Forms Ahead of 2027 Elections It is designed to link Sokoto, Kebbi, Niger, Kwara, Oyo, Ogun and Lagos states, connecting Illela t...