Gist Arena

While addressing PDP stakeholders in Lokoja, Kogi state, today, PDP spokesperson Olisa Metuh said Buhari is treating people who worked under GEJ in the last administration like prisoners of war. We condemn the uncivilised method of arrest, intimidation and the denial of the fundamental human rights of members of our party who served in the last administration by the Buhari led administration. We're being treated as if we are prisoners of war. We're being treated like refugees. But we are not afraid, we have faith in our strength & unity; faith in the peace, unity & progress of Nigeria. We're not afraid of the intimidation, harassment and arrest of our members by the administration of President Buhari.” he said

Nigerians react to President Buhari's interview with CNN's Christiane Amanpour this evening. See some tweets below..

In an interview with CNN's Amanpour, President Buhari talked about what he wants the US to do for Nigeria as it relates to the fight against Boko Haram "The United States and even the G7 promised to do what they can to help Nigeria so we have brought our requirements in terms of training and equipping and in intelligence gathering for Nigeria to be able to fight Boko Haram" - he said As regards speculation that Boko Haram wants to trade some of their members in prison for the kidnapped Chibok girls, President Buhari said  "We have to be very careful about the credibility of various Boko Haram leadership coming up and claiming that they can deliver. We have to be very careful indeed and we are taking our time because we want to bring them safe back to their parents and their school"he said Asked further if he was against negotiating with Boko Haram, he said  "I cannot be against it because as I told you our main objective as a government is t

President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday openly objected to Nigeria Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele letting Jim Ovia, the former Managing Director of Zenith Bank, into his dinner party. The event was organized for the President by the U.S. Chamber of Commerce and The Corporate Council on Africa. During his remarks, Buhari departed from his prepared text to tell the surprised crowd he was surprised to see Mr. Ovia, and that he thought the CBN Governor had brought him along. He also expressed surprise at the presence of Wale Tinubu, who happens to be a good friend of Buhari’s All Progressives Congress chieftain, Bola Tinubu.  The crowd, which mostly comprised of US businessmen, did not fully understand the heart of Buhari’s position which wasn’t part of his prepared speech for the evening. SaharaReporters had exclusively reported earlier in the day that Buhari warned his aides not to smuggle Nigerian businessmen into his meetings throughout his US visit

Press statement from Gov Fayose Ekiti State Governor, Mr Ayodele Fayose has warned the Federal Government of the consequences of the detained Chief Security Officer (CSO) to former President, Dr Goodluck Jonathan, Mr Gordon Obuah, dying in detention. Obua, who was arrested and detained by men of the State Security Service (SSS) in Abuja since the night of July 16 reportedly collapsed and was rushed to an undisclosed hospital yesterday. Speaking through his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, Governor Fayose said it was unlawful for the CSO to have been dumped in detention since July 16 without any court order, warning that; 'Obua must not be allowed to die in detention.” “We read in the newspapers that Obua was denied access to his doctor, lawyer and family members – and his lawyer claimed on Sunday that Obua was also denied his medications for hypertension and diabetes. Today, we have heard that Obua fainted yesterday and h

28 year old Michael Adegbite, a model, fitness instructor and teaching assistant who campaigned against knife crime was stabbed to death after robbers pretended to be interested in buying the second hand MacBook laptop he advertised on a classified website- Gumtree for 200 pounds. It was learnt that he went with a friend to meet someone they believed was a buyer in Enfield on Sunday evening but were confronted by 3 youngsters. Police believe the men lured the 28-year-old to the rendezvous with the intention of mugging him for the laptop. Mr Adegbite and his friend managed to snatch the laptop back after they tried to rob them and the suspects ran off. However, Police say shortly after the incident, another joined the victim and his friend and the 3 men set out to look for the group who had attempted to rob them. Minutes later, they found the group, a confrontation and a scuffle ensued on the street and Mr Adegbite got stabbed once in the chest. He d

President Buhari and US Secretary of State John Kerry held a joint press conference today to discuss on the fight against Boko Haram in Nigeria. More photos below.

An emergency landing happened this evening at MM2 airport wing with the Aero flight NG127. According to a passenger, one of the wings of the plane tore apart just few minutes after take off. The plane had to go on an emergency landing back to Lagos. On landing, the pilot announced that one of the wheels has also been lost. It couldn't move further from the run way so buses came to pick the passengers from the runway "A passenger detected that the wing of the flight was damaged and alerted a hostess. The pilot lost control, but thank God we landed safely." a passenger told confirms. See more pics below

The decision by the governor of South Carolina to remove the Confederate flag from the State House following the shooting of 9 black churchgoers in Charleston was met with protests from KKK clan. During the rally, one of the Klan members pissed on his pants when he was confronted by a black guy. Lol

Members of a white garment church on railway line, Idi-Oro, in the Fadeyi area of Lagos State brought the church service to an abrupt end on Sunday and fled the premises. It was learnt that some hoodlums had approached the pastor of the church around 3pm and instructed him to round off because they wanted to foment trouble and did not want the members to be caught up in the crossfire. PUNCH Metro learnt that residents of the area also went indoors after the church members told them why they had to stop service earlier than usual. Our correspondent gathered that when it was 4pm, the gun-wielding gang, numbering about 50, stormed the community from Lawan Street, Jibowu, and started shooting indiscriminately. It was learnt that the hoodlums, said to be loyal to one Toyeeb, had come for a rival group ─ Toba boys. PUNCH Metro had, in no fewer than six times this year, reported the attacks of the factions on each other, which had claimed several lives, including t

  Yesterday, thousands took to social media to celebrate the death of a certain man they call''Alhaji Gay"..From the information circulating, they claim he was a snitch and police informant .Many allege he had collected millions from ''yahoo boys'' as well as innocent men who make a good living ..Others allege he was a land grabber who stole from land owners and threatened them using his influence with the police force This is how  Punch  reports his death  A suspected homosexual rapist, identified only as Alhaji Tunji, and a landlord’s son, Ganiyu Adebayo, were shot dead in a riot which enveloped Temidire, in the Alagbado area of Lagos State on Monday. The unrest, which started at about 11am after the landlords had ended a community meeting, resulted in sporadic shootings and fighting allegedly between Tunji’s thugs and youths in the area. The two persons were said to have been killed in the incident. Our correspondent had exclusi

Gordon Obua, former chief security officer to former President Goodluck Jonathan, says he is not dead, contrary to widespread rumours. At an impromptu press briefing on Tuesday afternoon at the headquarters of the Department of State Services (DSS), told journalists that he was “alive and well”, and had been well taken care of by his employers, the DSS. He said at the briefing:  “Gentlemen of the press, let me use this opportunity to thank all Nigerians, members of my family and concerned citizens who have expressed very serious concerns for the past six days because of the prevailing situation between I and my office. “This morning my attention was drawn to the fact that I have died in detention. This has ca‎used serious anxiety within the public. I want to use this medium to tell Nigerians, members of my family and all concerned citizens that I’m healthy. I’m a staff of the Department of State Services and having completed my tour of duty as the chief security offic

Barrister Calistus Nwabueze Obi has taken over as the Acting Director General/Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) following the handing over by Dr Ziakede Patrick Akpobolokemi as directed by the Federal Government. Barrister Obi, who until his appointment was the Executive Director, Maritime Labour and Cabotage Services in the Agency, brings over two decades experience in the public sector, law practice and the maritime industry into his new responsibility. Born on May 1, 1964, Barrister Obi, who hails from Ihiala Local Government Area of Anambra State, studied Law at the University of Nigeria Nsukka and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1991 after duly completing the mandatory studies at the Law School. He also holds a Post Graduate Diploma in Public Administration from the Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.  The Acting DG is a member of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), member of the International Bar Associ

Watch out, Christiane Amanpour's interviews President Buhari at 6pm GMT tonight. That is 7pm Nigerian time.

Rivers State Governor, Chief Nyesom Wike, monday expressed strong reservation over the interpretation given to his visit to the office of the Chief Justice of Nigerian (CJN). A national newspaper had monday reported that Wike had paid two visits to the CJN without prior appointments especially when a petition was pending in at the governorship Election Petitions Tribunal against his election as governor. Wike in a statement by his Special Assistant on Media, Simeon Nwakaudu, said while it was true that he went to see the CJN on July 7 and 9, his mission was to brief the CJN in his capacity as the Chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC) on the need to renew the appointment of the acting Chief Judge of the state, Justice Daisy Okocha, and also the acting President of the Customary Court of Appeal, Justice Christy Gabriel Nwankwo. He noted that the current tenure of the incumbents would expire by the end of August 2015, by which time, the courts would be on

Here are more photos from the dinner organized by the US Chamber of Commerce & the Corporate Council on Africa yesterday in the US. Guests at the dinner included CEO Symbion Power, Mr Paul Hinks, Pres. & CEO of Exxon Mobil Mr Rex Tillerson, Wale Tinubu, Tony Elumelu and others. More photos below..

Hopes of a rapprochement between President Muhammadu Buhari and Senate President Bukola Saraki have continued to fade by the day. The No. 1 and No. 3 citizens are still not on speaking terms despite saying the eid-el-fitr prayers together on Friday July 17, TheCable can report. In a widely publicised photograph, Saraki next to Buhari at the praying ground in Abuja, fuelling speculations that the Ramadan, the Muslims’ holiest month, might have helped to break the ice between them. But presidency sources have told TheCable that if anything, “the relationship has grown colder and the coming weeks promise to be very tense between the two men”. There are no phone calls, private meetings or exchanges of correspondence between them, according to presidency insiders. TheCable understands that Saraki had tried all possible avenues to have a one-on-one meeting with Buhari but did not get the green light, although both men have met in public on a couple of occasions and produc

Gordon Obua, the former chief security officer (CSO) to former President Goodluck Jonathan, is now in a “stable condition” after falling ill on Monday. According to online blog, TheCable, Obua, who has been detained by the SSS in Abuja since the night of July 16, had embarked on hunger strike to protest the conditions of his detention.  He was denied access to outsiders, including his doctor, lawyer and family members – and his lawyer claimed on Sunday that Obua was also denied his medications for hypertension and diabetes. The effect of the hunger strike took its toll on the detainee on Monday and he fainted, according to an SSS source, leading to speculations that Obua had died. The source added that Obua was taken to the hospital and was treated and discharged on Monday, after which he was returned to SSS headquarters where he is being detained. It's however yet not confirmed if Obua has been allowed access to his medications. Though the SSS is y