Author: Prima News

I did not travel to Ekiti last Saturday, but the dispatches from the frontlines were chilling. News outlets reported it, and Dr Marcel Mbamalu, the distinguished communication scholar and publisher of Prime Business Africa, confirmed that the Nigerian democratic project has reached a new, quantifiable nadir. “The price of democracy was N15,000 last Saturday,” Mbamalu observed. “Governor Biodun Oyebanji bought 319,224 of them.” While INEC officials hailed the poll as peaceful and the BVAS machines hummed with efficiency, the landslide victory concealed an uglier tally: voters were paid between N10, 000 and N15, 000 to display their marked ballots. Party…

Until January 2023, when Starlink launched in Nigeria—its first African market—the continent’s telecom industry operated on a simple assumption: connectivity had to be built from the ground up.  Mobile operators have spent decades investing billions of dollars in towers, fibre networks, spectrum licences, and, more recently, data centres to connect millions of people across Africa. The farther a community was from existing infrastructure, the more expensive and difficult it became to serve. Starlink’s arrival challenged that logic. By delivering high-speed internet directly from low-Earth orbit satellites, the company introduced a new connectivity model that bypassed many of the infrastructure constraints…

World Bank has warned that court case could derail Nigeria’s $500 million power recovery programme. NewsOnline Nigeria reports that the legal dispute initiated by local electricity meter manufacturers is threatening to derail Nigeria’s $500 million World Bank-funded Distribution Sector Recovery Programme (DISREP), with the lender warning that the procurement of 1.55 million smart meters could be cancelled if the matter is not resolved. The warning was contained in the World Bank’s latest Implementation Status and Results Report for the Nigeria Distribution Sector Recovery Programme. According to the report, the programme continues to record steady implementation progress and currently maintains a “Moderately Satisfactory” performance…

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The mother of the National Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, Senator Ajibola Basiru, Alhaja Sidikat Basiru, has died. Her death was announced in a statement signed and released by the Osun State APC Director of Media and Information, Kola Olabisi, and obtained on Sunday in Osogbo. The Osun APC expressed heartfelt condolences to Senator Basiru and his family over the passing of their beloved mother. The party described her death as a painful loss not only to the family but also to all who knew and benefited from her exemplary life. In the statement signed by Olabisi, the APC…

The Commissioner in charge of the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Ahmed Sanusi, has warned police officers against extortion in the discharge of their duties.Sanusi, who recently took over the reins of the FCT command, issued this warning on Saturday during a strategic briefing on the ongoing security and traffic enforcement operations in Abuja. The new FCT police boss warned officers that the command will no longer shield uniform-wearing extortionists targeting commercial tricycle (Keke) riders and motorists across Abuja According to him, public complaints regarding police extortion have reached a tipping point, stating that his administration is prepared to flush out…

Africa will have a record nine representatives in the knockout stage of the ongoing 2026 FIFA World Cup. Algeria and DR Congo are the latest teams from the continent to seal their last-32 ticket at the ongoing competition following their last group stage matches on Sunday. They joined Morocco, South Africa, Côte d’Ivoire, Egypt, Cabo Verde, Senegal and Ghana, who had previously confirmed their places in the Round of 32. DR Congo qualified after their first victory, 3-1 over Uzbekistan in Atlanta. The result earned the Leopards four points and took them to the top of the eight best third-placed…

A traditionalist, Abiola Rosanwo, has criticised Nollywood actress and filmmaker Yetunde Barnabas over the portrayal of Yoruba deities in her forthcoming film, Olokun Mermaid, accusing the actress of misrepresenting the Isese tradition. Rosanwo, who identified herself as the Yeye Owonrin Ojose Isara Remo and a custodian of Yoruba Isese tradition, made the criticism in a series of Facebook posts on Saturday, where she insisted that neither Yemoja nor Olokun should be portrayed as mermaids or fish-like beings. According to the actress who is the producer of the project, the movie was initially produced under the title Yemoja before it was…

Under-Secretary-General for Political and Peacekeeping Affairs Rosemary DiCarlo briefed the Security Council on latest developments in the ongoing war between the Sudanese Armed Forces (SAF) and former allies the Rapid Support Forces (RSF), now in its fourth year.Over the past two weeks, drone attacks by the parties have increased significantly in El Obeid, while the RSF have expanded their presence in and around the city.Appeal for restraintShe recalled that UN human rights chief Volker Türk issued a stark warning that an offensive would lead to “impending human rights disaster”.Escalation would put hundreds of thousands of civilians at immediate risk of…

Yes, Nigeria’s presidential election is seven months away and the campaigns, should there be any, have not begun. But today, I will tell you how it will play out and who will win. First, let us recall that Bola Ahmed Tinubu won the contest in 2023 on a nationally embarrassing record-low 26.72% voter turnout. Of that, he received just 36.61% (8,794,726 votes), the lowest winning share in Nigeria’s Fourth Republic.  He is ruling Nigeria on less than nine million votes. That happened because a fragmented opposition split the anti-incumbent majority three ways. But Atiku Abubakar (29.07%), Peter Obi (25.40%) and…