General News
No Plans to Sack Jega- Jonathan
President Goodluck Jonathan has restated that he has no plan to sack Attahiru Jega, chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), ahead of the March 28 and April 11 elections.
Speaking in an interview with Aljazeera, President Jonathan denied he was nursing such a plan and said that INEC is a sensitive and important institution and that removing its chairman arbitrarily would spark public outcry.
There has been speculation that the Federal Government was plotting to remove the INEC chairman before the elections.
Jega’s tenure ends in June but there are claims the administration plans to send him on a three-month pre-disengagement leave before the election.
The speculation followed allegations by the All Progressives Congress (APC) and the anti-Jega posturing of the Peoples Democratic Party as well as groups and individuals rooting for President Jonathan.
Last Thursday, senators of the APC, led by George Akume, said they had reliable Intelligence that Jega would be asked to proceed on pre-retirement leave this week through a letter that would originate from the office of the Head of Service of the Federation.
But president Jonathan said that “Except somebody is insinuating that the Chairman has done something wrong. You cannot change an officer, except the person has done something wrong,” Jonathan said in response to a question on Jega.
He added that “Government, whether at the federal or state level, president or governor, does not wake up and change somebody, especially somebody like the INEC Chairman, except that person has done something wrong.
“INEC is a very sensitive body. For me to change INEC Chairman Nigerians will ask questions. So, you cannot wake up and change INEC Chairman.”
He added that he had never discussed with “any human being on earth about changing INEC Chairman”.
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives yesterday passed a resolution warning the federal government of imminent danger that will lead to break down of law and order if the chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), is removed from office before the March 28 presidential poll.
The House at plenary presided over by the Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, urged the federal government, political class and the security agencies to heed the warning in the interest of the nation, not to interfere with the existing schedules of the general elections.
The House also said it would hold accountable at both domestic judicial forum or at the international criminal court, any person or organisation that foists on INEC any person or action whatsoever, that has the effect of making it impracticable for the election to hold on the 28th March and 11th of April 2015.
A motion under the matters of urgent national importance, moved by Rep Ali Ahmed (APC Kwara), noted that the initial postponement of the general election for six weeks due to the security concerns related to the Boko Haram insurgency has further heightened the tempo for pre-election violence.
He further warned that any alteration to the current arrangement in whatever form including but not limited to illegal removal of the current INEC chairman at this crucial stage would invariably lead to further postponement of the date of election.
He informed the House that already there is documented evidence from several sources that any change in status quo arrangement, especially removal of Jega ” present a possibility of violence” and would occasion the sowing of seeds of a major crisis.
He maintained that the civil society organisations and lawyers including usually reticent senior advocates of Nigeria have sounded “a note of warning” that such removal will be unconstitutional, giving the decision of the Supreme Court that removal of Jega or members of such an independent electoral body as INEC pursuant to section 157 of the constitution can only be achieve when two things happen, either his inability to discharge the functions of the office or for misconduct.
He added that any such deliberate induced violence as it did in 2011 post-election period into widespread or systematic attack, persecution, arson murder, thereby amounting to serious crime of concern to the international community as contained in article 5 of the 1998 Rome status of the international criminal court, to which Nigeria is a signatory.
However, the motion was challenged in a point of order moved by Deputy Minority Leader, Rep Leo Ogor (PDP Delta), who argued that the motion was totally speculative and that it will only bring confusion. He claimed that as it is, nobody is removing Jega as it was reported. His point of order was however over ruled by the Speaker who moved that the motion be read.
The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) strengthened bilateral relations with the Netherlands’ government through an agreement targeted at improving migration governance and border security.
This partnership was confirmed during a meeting at the NIS headquarters in Abuja, which was attended by a Dutch team led by Jurgen Bartelink, Chargé D’Affaires of the Embassy of the Netherlands in Nigeria.
The meeting focused on increasing bilateral migration cooperation and came after the comptroller general of Immigration, Kemi Nandap, paid a working visit to the Netherlands.
Under the agreement, the Dutch government pledged to continue supporting technology-driven solutions targeted at boosting Nigeria’s border control systems and improving migration management.
During the Netherlands Embassy diplomats handed over essential operational tools, such as Edison Software licence keys and the Passport Examination Programme Manual App.
According to NIS spokeswoman ACI Akinsola Akinlabi, “The partnership focuses on enhancing bilateral collaboration on migration management and reviewing ongoing capacity-building efforts.”
Bartelink, Chargé d’Affaires of the Netherlands Embassy in Nigeria, underlined the Netherlands’ commitment to helping Nigeria’s continuing border security and migration reforms.
Also speaking, Rob Bokhoven, head of international affairs, repatriation, and deportation services at the Dutch Ministry of Justice and Security, emphasised the country’s strong bilateral relations and announced plans to share a mobile border software solution with the NIS.
Receiving the equipment, Nandap said the delivery of the gadgets would boost West African country’s border security, significantly improve the service’s document verification border management capabilities and support the implementation of Nigeria’s National Migration Policy.
“The engagement will further reinforce the strategic partnership between Nigeria and the Netherlands advancing shared goals in migration governance, border security and international cooperation,” she added.
Peter Enogb, principal country economist, African Development Bank (AfDB), says the rise in global uncertainty, emanating from increases in global trade tariffs, has slowed Nigeria’s projected growth to 3.2% in 2025.
“Without this level of heightened uncertainty, our projections would probably have been somewhat higher. We’ve reduced our projections for Nigeria. We initially were projecting 3.5% – 3.6% growth in 2025.
“But given the current situation, our models are showing that we’re taking a more cautious approach. So that’s why we produced this and, of course, the main driver is uncertainty in the global economy,” Enogb said.
He said this at the launch of the 2025 Nigeria Country Focus Report (CFR) on Thursday.
AFDB projected that real GDP growth would hit 3.1% in 2026. Following the 2024 consumer price index (CPI) rebasing, with lower weights for food items, the inflation rate is expected to reduce over the medium term to 24.7% in 2025 and 17.3% in 2026.
As imports start to rise over the medium term, the current account is projected to decline to 3.9% of GDP in 2026.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) reported that Nigeria’s headline inflation slowed for the second consecutive month to 22.97% in May. This is down from 24.48% at the start of the year
This is contrary to the World Bank projection that Nigeria’s economy would record steady growth of 3.6% despite the shift in the global trade dynamics.
Joseph Ogebe, head of research and development at Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG), also said that global uncertainty had been very high in recent times, resulting from the Trump 2.0 effect.
“And also with the recent war between Israel and the international community, we’ve seen what’s happening to oil prices. Even with the call-off of the war, we’ve seen the effect on oil prices too, which has implications on the fiscal side. So it has implications for the general economy,” he said.
The head of research at NESG said that rather than focusing on just growth, what should be looked at is a strategy called growth with depth.
“Growth with depth means that your growth must be diversified, export-led, productive, and technologically driven,” he said.
Ogebe said that if the Government works towards adopting a strategy of growth with depth, there is a tendency for the government to move towards its goal of achieving a $1 trillion economy by 2030.
The report revealed that the country’s recent policy moves, including fuel subsidy removal, exchange rate unification, and tax reforms, reflect a commitment to long-term transformation.
However, it also pointed out that at about 13%, Nigeria’s tax-to-GDP ratio is among the lowest in West Africa, noting that fiscal reforms are urgent.
TikTok has announced the expansion of its global mental health fund to Sub-Saharan Africa and introduced new digital safety tools aimed at improving well-being on the platform.
The announcement was made at the inaugural Digital Well-being Summit held in Johannesburg, South Africa, with participants including government officials, mental health experts, NGOs and industry leaders from several African countries.
As part of the initiative, three organisations—South African Depression and Anxiety Group (SADAG), Mentally Aware Nigeria Initiative (MANI), and Kenya’s Mental360—were named as the first African beneficiaries of the platform’s $2.3 million Mental Health Education Fund.
TikTok also introduced an in-app guided meditation feature called “Sleep Hours,” rolled out globally to support better nighttime routines for users. The tool is automatically enabled for users under 18 from 10 p.m., with optional use for older users.
According to the company, the move is part of its broader efforts to support mental health, reduce stigma, and increase access to reliable support services on its platform.
The platform is also expanding access to local in-app mental health helplines across Africa, following successful pilots in Europe. The helplines will offer expert support on issues such as self-harm, harassment, and suicidal ideation.
Additionally, TikTok unveiled its first set of Mental Health Ambassadors in Africa under its collaboration with the World Health Organization. The ambassadors include medical professionals from South Africa, Nigeria, and Kenya.
Valiant Richey, TikTok’s Global Head of Trust and Safety Outreach, said the company remained committed to creating a safe and supportive space for users across all regions.
The summit featured discussions on online safety, digital literacy, and access to professional mental health resources, with support from local partners such as Spectra.
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