University Unions Declare One-Day Protest Over Unmet Demands by Federal Government

The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions have declared a one-day protest on Thursday over the Federal Government’s failure to meet their demands.
Acting under the Joint Action Committee, both unions have directed all their branches to hold joint emergency meetings to mobilise members for protest activities.
These will include marches on campuses, placard displays, and press briefings.
The decision followed a comprehensive review of government actions at JAC’s meeting on October 6th, after several ultimatums had expired without resolution.

Tinubu Seeks National Assembly Approval for $2.3bn External Loan, $500m Sukuk Issuance

President Bola Tinubu has written to the National Assembly, seeking approval for a fresh external borrowing of two point three billion dollars.

This is in addition to a plan to issue a five hundred million dollars sovereign Sukuk, which will mark Nigeria’s debut in the international Islamic finance market.

The request was contained in a letter read on the floor of the House of Representatives by Speaker Tajudeen Abbas.

The borrowing plan seeks legislative approval for external financing to implement the 2025 Appropriation Act, refinance maturing Eurobonds, and expand Nigeria’s debt instruments to include Islamic finance products.

Super Falcons Star Chiamaka Nnadozie Tops WSL Saves Chart, Earns PFA Player of the Month Nomination.

Super Falcons goalkeeper, Chiamaka Nnadozie, continues to make headlines in England after climbing to the top of the Women’s Super League saves chart, while also earning a nomination for the PFA WSL Fans’ Player of The Month award for September.

The Brighton & Hove Albion shot-stopper, who joined the English side from Paris FC in the summer, has been a standout performer in her debut season, registering 22 saves in five matches, the highest in the league so far.

According to league statistics, Nnadozie has also kept two clean sheets, making her one of the most consistent goalkeepers in the division.

UK Prime Minister Starmer Condemns Planned Pro-Palestinian Protests on October 7 Anniversary.

Israelis are gathering at memorial events to mark two years since Hamas’s attacks, on seven October two thousand and twenty-three, in which about one thousand two hundred people were killed and two hundred and fifty-one others were taken hostage.

Israel’s military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to Hamas’s attacks, which has killed at least sixty seven people there, according to the Hamas-run health ministry

Meanwhile United Kingdom Prime Minister, Keir Starmer has urged students not to join pro-Palestinian protests, saying it would be un-British for the planned rallies to go ahead.

Thailand Floods Kill 22 as Authorities Rush Relief to 370,000 Affected.

According to authorities in Thailand, the death toll from floods has risen to twenty-two on Tuesday, as they rushed to get relief to an estimated three hundred and seventy thousand people affected by heavy rainfall and overflowing rivers.

The Disaster Prevention Department, disclosed that nineteen provinces were affected, with Uttaradit and Ayutthaya, north of Bangkok, among the worst-hit areas.

As it stands, authorities have confirmed to newsmen that emergency teams are distributing food and supplies, and closely monitoring water levels across regions.

Nile State Floods Claim Over 30 Lives, Hit Humanitarian Situation in Sudan.

Devastating floods in Sudan’s Nile State have killed more than thirty people and left thousands of others stranded, according to reports.

Authorities revealed that flooding of the Blue and White Nile rivers, has destroyed hundreds of homes and worsened the country’s already dire humanitarian situation. 

Sudan’s Ministry of Agriculture and Irrigation, had earlier identified six states at significant risk of Nile flooding this year, including Gezira State, Blue Nile, Al Jazirah and Khartoum. Authorities have called on citizens living in vulnerable areas to take all necessary precautions.

Legal Practitioners Urged to Be Role Models, Unbiased in Justice Delivery.

Legal practitioners have been enjoined to be good role models and unbiased in the delivery of justice.

This admonition was made at the legal year celebration held in Ibadan.

Declare Education State of Emergency, Professor Urges FG as Out-of-School Crisis Deepens.

As a way to litigate out of school children, some stakeholders in the educational sector in Ibadan, Oyo State have tasked the government at all levels to prioritize child education.

Meanwhile, an educator, Professor Olumide Olajide lamented the education situation in the country, calling on the Federal Government to declare a state of emergency in the education sector as the situation continues to decline.

According to data from the National Multidimensional Poverty Index, NMPI, in collaboration with the National Bureau of Statistics and UNICEF, Oyo State ranks the highest in the Southwest for the percentage of out of school children aged six to fifteen in the year two thousand and twenty-four.

After Weeks of Lull, Senate Resumes Debate on Key Bills, Including 20-Year-Old Budget Oversight Proposal.

Chief of Staff to Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Chinedu Akubueze, has confirmed that the Senate is reconvening plenary today, with a packed agenda led by long-delayed security and electoral reform debates, after weeks of legislative lull.

Among the bills and motions now awaiting urgent attention are the proposed National Security Summit, Electoral Act amendments, Constitution Alteration Bill of two thousand and twenty-five, and the National Assembly Budget and Research Office Bill, a twenty-year-old proposal aimed at strengthening fiscal oversight through independent budget analysis.

Meanwhile, the Senator representing Kogi Central, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, is set to officially resume plenary sessions, along with other lawmakers, after serving her six-month suspension, according to one of her lawyers, Victor Giwa.

Federal Government Harmonizes Talks with University, Polytechnic, COE Unions.

The Federal Government has reconstituted and inaugurated the Mahmud Yayale Federal Government Tertiary Institutions Expanded Negotiation Committee to accelerate ongoing discussions with academic and non-academic unions across universities, polytechnics, and colleges of education.

According to the spokesperson of the Ministry of Education, Folasade Boriowo, and the Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, the new committee was designed to harmonize all negotiation processes under one coordinated framework that reflects institutional memory and sector-wide inclusiveness.

Alausa explained that the expanded committee will engage all unions collectively, adding that President Bola Tinubu, has given full political backing to the process.