Nigerian Newspapers: 10 things you need to know Friday morning

Good morning! Here is today’s summary from Nigerian Newspapers:

1. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, on Tuesday, intervened in the face-off between the Osun State Government and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, over the freezing of the state’s bank accounts. He directed the anti-graft agency to immediately take steps to vacate a court order freezing the accounts.

2. Vice President Kashim Shettima on Thursday commenced a two-week leave, his first since assuming office on May 29, 2023, following the approval of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu. A statement by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications, Office of the Vice President, Stanley Nkwocha, said Shettima would use the period for study, reflection and intellectual renewal aimed at strengthening his capacity.

3.  Ahead of his inauguration as the Chairman of the Board of the Rural Electrification Agency, REA, former Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose has met with the Minister of Power, Joseph Tegbe. The REA Board is billed to be inaugurated at 10am today at the Ministry of Power office in Maitama, Abuja.

4. The Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission, ICPC, has cleared the Presidency of any involvement in the appointment of the purported Director-General, Adeniyi Adeyemi and creation of the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, PFIPC. The commission said the appointment letter presented by Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew was forged and did not originate from the State House.

5. A retired officer of the Department of State Service, DSS, Nwaogu Ihechimere Ezeakolam, has been remanded in the Kuje Custodial Centre for allegedly associating himself with the proscribed Indigenous Peoples of Biafra, IPOB. Ezeakolam, who was arraigned by the secret police, was on Thursday, August 6, put on trial at the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on a four-count charge before Justice Mohammed Garba Umar.

6. The Nigeria Customs Service on Thursday recorded another major breakthrough in its anti-smuggling campaign with the interception of a container containing concealed parts of pump-action rifles and the seizure of illicit cannabis-infused products valued at N373.8 million at the Tincan Island Port Command. Addressing journalists during a press briefing, the Comptroller-General of Customs, Adewale Adeniyi, described the seizures as a significant victory against transnational criminal network.

7. The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Olatunji Disu, has approved the deployment of Commissioners of Police to State Commands and strategic formations across the country following the approval of his recommendations by the Police Service Commission. Force Public Relations Officer, CSP Aniete Iniedu disclosed this in a statement last night.

8. Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday said the state faces a deficit of about 40,000 doctors and another 40,000 nurses, while its health sector requires at least N100bn above current budgetary provisions to meet the needs of its growing population. The governor also disclosed that more than 1.5 million residents had enrolled in the state’s health insurance scheme, Ilera Eko, as the government intensified efforts to build a sustainable healthcare system.

9. The presidential candidate of the Social Democratic Party, Prince Adewole Adebayo, on Thursday said President Bola Tinubu, rather than the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ola Olukoyede, should resign over the controversy surrounding the freezing of the Osun State Government’s accounts. He also claimed that the EFCC chairman should not be blamed for carrying out his statutory responsibilities.

10. The Publicity Secretary of the African Democratic Congress in Gombe State, Abdulrahman Buba Zaune, has resigned his membership of the party with immediate effect. Zaune conveyed his decision in a resignation letter dated August 5, 2026, addressed to the Chairman of the ADC in Zaune Ward, Dukku Local Government Area of the state.