Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, representing Kogi Central, has accused immigration officials at a Nigerian airport of preventing her from travelling abroad by withholding her passport.

Speaking during a live broadcast on her Facebook page on Tuesday morning, the senator questioned the legality of the officials’ actions.

“Have I committed any offence? Why are you withholding my passport?” she asked, visibly frustrated.

The incident reportedly occurred shortly after the senator celebrated her second year in office.

“Having completed my second-year celebration, I decided to take a week off. I’m at the airport, and my passport has been withheld again,” she said.

Akpoti-Uduaghan recalled a previous instance when her passport was allegedly seized on the instructions of Senate President Godswill Akpabio.

She claimed that the officer told her, “Senator Akpabio instructed us to prevent you from travelling because each time you travel, you smear the country’s image through international interviews.”

The Kogi lawmaker rejected this explanation, noting that all pending federal government cases against her had been terminated following the intervention of the President, who she said recognized the cases as politically motivated.

“There is no reason why my passport should be withheld at the international airport. None whatsoever,” she said.

At the time of filing this report, neither Senate President Akpabio nor the Nigerian Immigration Service had issued a response to the allegations.

Angry and visibly upset, Akpoti-Uduaghan threatened to pursue legal action against the officials.

“You have no right to withhold my passport or deny me exit from my country. I have committed no offence, and this must stop. I think I have to sue you for continuously embarrassing me,” she said.

The senator also stressed that she had complied with all court proceedings related to her ongoing legal cases.

“I have attended all my court sessions. I am not a flight risk. I am not a threat to my country. So why are you treating me like a criminal?” she asked.

Minutes after the confrontation, one of the officials returned her passport.

“Can I have my passport, please? Thank you very much. Sometimes you just have to be a rebel to get things right. If I had not gone public, would you have given me my passport?” the senator remarked, as apologies from officials were audible in the background.

Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan is currently facing separate cases of alleged criminal defamation and cybercrime at the FCT High Court and Federal High Court, Abuja.

Her cybercrime trial, presided over by Justice Mohammed Umar, has been adjourned to 24 November. She faces a six-count charge filed by the Director of Public Prosecution, Mohammed Abubakar.

The senator recently returned to Senate plenary after a six-month suspension for alleged misconduct, a move that attracted public criticism.

Her office, which had been sealed during the suspension, was reopened on 23 September, allowing her full return to legislative duties.

Ahead of the November 8, 2025 Anambra State governorship election, political parties and their candidates have signed a peace accord, pledging to maintain non-violence and respect the outcome of the polls.

The signing, organised by the Kukah Centre under the National Peace Committee, chaired by Gen. Abdulsalami Abubakar (retd.) and Bishop Matthew Kukah, took place at the International Convention Centre, Awka.

It brought together INEC officials, security agencies, traditional rulers, and candidates from major parties including APGA, APC, PDP, Labour Party, ADC, Accord Party, and others.

INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, reaffirmed the commission’s readiness to conduct a credible and transparent election.

He stated that logistics had been fully addressed, with all election materials expected to reach polling units by 7 am, and voting scheduled to start at 8:30 a.m.

“We have engaged security and transport agencies to ensure smooth deployment of officials and materials across the 21 local government areas. Voters should expect significant improvements in logistics and result management,” Amupitan said.

INEC has approved a final register of 2,802,790 voters, deploying 24,000 personnel across 5,718 polling units, 326 ward collation centres, and 21 LGA collation centres.

Results will be collated transparently in the presence of party agents and aligned with BVAS records.

Inspector-General of Police Kayode Egbetokun, represented by DIG Ben Okoro, assured security across all LGAs, warning that any attempts to disrupt the election, by political actors or groups like IPOB or ESN, would be met with decisive law enforcement action.

A total of 45,000 police personnel and 10,250 NSCDC officers will be deployed.

Chief Ugwoji, Chairman of the Inter-Party Advisory Council, urged transparency and voter discipline, emphasizing the need to prevent inducement or violence.

Bishop Matthew Kukah called on candidates to demonstrate sportsmanship and fully implement the accord.

On behalf of candidates, Governor and APGA candidate Prof. Chukwuma Soludo pledged adherence, stressing that peaceful conduct was essential for a credible election. Other candidates echoed the commitment, urging supporters to act responsibly.

Obi of Onitsha, Igwe Nnaemeka Achebe, encouraged voters to exercise their civic rights freely, shun vote buying, and vote according to conscience, while also calling on the Federal Government to continue addressing poverty and insecurity.

Anambra REC, Dr. Elizabeth Agwu, provided an operational update, confirming that all non-sensitive materials had been deployed, BVAS devices tested, and generators provided to ensure uninterrupted power during collation.

“Every step has been taken to guarantee a smooth, credible, and technology-driven election,” Agwu said.

President Bola Tinubu is set to conclude the long-awaited appointment of new ambassadors to Nigeria’s foreign missions across the world, DAILY GAZETTE gathered.

Multiple Presidency sources confirmed that the President ordered a “final cleanup” of the list of nominees ahead of its official release, after months of delay and growing diplomatic pressure over Nigeria’s lack of envoys abroad.

“It will be concluded very soon,” one senior official told DAILY GAZETTE

“They are simply updating the list because some nominees have died, retired, or are no longer eligible for appointment.”

According to another source, the Senate had already screened the initial nominees, but the list required revision to remove those close to retirement and replace those who had passed away or withdrawn due to ill health.

“The earlier list sent to the Senate is now outdated,” the source explained.

“Security and background checks were done months ago, but a few names need to be replaced. Once that’s done, the list can be finalised within a week.”

The move comes more than two years after Tinubu’s September 2023 directive recalling all Nigerian ambassadors from the country’s 109 foreign missions, comprising 76 embassies, 22 high commissions, and 11 consulates, as part of a comprehensive foreign service overhaul.

Since the recall, most missions have been managed by chargés d’affaires or senior consular officers, whose limited authority has weakened Nigeria’s diplomatic presence.

“Foreign governments don’t give the same weight to chargés d’affaires as they do to ambassadors,” a senior Foreign Service official said.

“At a time of rising diplomatic challenges, it’s crucial to have substantive envoys in place.”

The renewed urgency to complete ambassadorial appointments coincides with escalating diplomatic tension following remarks by former U.S President Donald Trump, who threatened military intervention in Nigeria over alleged killings of Christians.

In a series of posts on his Truth Social platform, Trump described Nigeria as a “country of particular concern” and claimed to have instructed the U.S. Department of War to “prepare for possible action.”

“If the Nigerian Government continues to allow the killing of Christians,” Trump wrote, “the U.S.A will immediately stop all aid and assistance to Nigeria and may very well go into that disgraced country, ‘guns-a-blazing.’”

While Presidency officials downplayed a direct link between the ambassadorial delays and the U.S row, one senior aide admitted that having ambassadors in place could have helped ease communication.

“Their absence didn’t cause the tension, but ambassadors facilitate smoother dialogue, especially in moments of crisis,” the aide said.

Foreign Affairs Minister Yusuf Tuggar is expected to meet President Tinubu at the State House on Tuesday to finalise the list.

Although the agenda of the meeting was not publicly disclosed, top officials suggested it would involve reviewing and approving the updated ambassadorial nominees.

“Once the President gives his final approval, the list will be made public,” another source said. “An official statement will follow shortly.”

In April 2025, DAILY GAZETTE reported that the Federal Government had completed all vetting and security clearances but delayed the postings due to funding constraints.

Officials estimated that over $1 billion was required to clear outstanding foreign service arrears, replace aging diplomatic vehicles, renovate embassies, and cover operational costs.

Tinubu had previously acknowledged the challenge of balancing political and professional considerations in the selection process.

“It’s not easy stitching those names,” the President told members of The Buhari Organisation, led by former Nasarawa State Governor Tanko Al-Makura, during a visit to the State House on September 2, 2025.

“I couldn’t appoint everybody at once. I still have some ambassadorial slots many are craving for.”

Governor Charles Soludo of Anambra State has rejected claims of a religious genocide in Nigeria’s South East, insisting that the violence in the region is not driven by religion.

Soludo was responding to recent comments by U.S. President Donald Trump, who alleged that Christians were being killed in Nigeria and hinted that Washington might take military action to “protect Christians.”

Speaking during a live media chat on Channels Television, Soludo said while the United States is entitled to its opinions, its actions must still respect international law.

“There is a deeper conversation and introspection about what goes on in this part of the country. In eastern Nigeria, it is not religious,” he stated.

The governor emphasized that most of the ongoing violence in the region is intra-communal rather than religious.

“People are killing themselves, Christians killing Christians. The people in the bushes are Emmanuel, Peter and John, all Christian names, and they have maimed and killed thousands of our youths. It has nothing to do with religion,” he said.

Soludo noted that the South East is about 95 percent Christian, yet the perpetrators and victims of most attacks share the same faith.

“In this part of the country, we are 95 percent Christians, and the people in the bushes killing others bear Christian names,” he reiterated.

“It is much wider than the categorisation of Christians and Muslims.”

He urged both local and international observers to avoid framing the crisis as a religious conflict and instead focus on addressing the political, social, and economic causes of insecurity in the region.

“Nigeria will overcome, and it will end in conversation,” Soludo added, calling for dialogue and reconciliation as the path to lasting peace.

A tragic accident claimed the life of a female political supporter identified simply as Nana during a campaign rally for the just-concluded council elections in Suleja, Niger State.

Eyewitness Ubale Bala told Abuja Metro that the incident occurred on Thursday near the main junction in the Maje community, on the outskirts of Suleja.

According to Bala, the campaign convoy, which included all councillorship and chairmanship candidates under the All Progressives Congress (APC), had departed Suleja metropolis earlier that afternoon, making stops in Kwamba and Maje communities.

He explained that the open-body vehicle carrying Nana and other supporters somersaulted due to reckless driving.

The truck, which was also transporting a power generator and sound system, burst into flames after the crash.

“The generator caught fire immediately after the vehicle somersaulted,” Bala said.

“The victim could not be rescued quickly, which caused severe burns from the lower part of her body downward.”

Another eyewitness, Abdulmumini Ahmad, revealed that earlier in the day, four party supporters sustained injuries during a confrontation between rival APC factions, those backing first-term and second-term aspirants, at Kwamba.

Ahmad said the campaign rally was suspended following the second, fatal incident.

“She was rushed to Talba Hospital in Suleja, where doctors confirmed her dead. She was later buried the same day,” he said.

When contacted, Suleja Area Police Commander, Muhammad Sani Musa, said the matter had not yet been formally reported to his office.

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, has defended the presence of his sons at official engagements in Nigeria and abroad, insisting that no law prevents him from travelling with them.

Appearing on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Monday, Wike addressed the viral photos showing his sons accompanying him to events, including a recent summit in Dubai, United Arab Emirates.

“What law says that my sons shouldn’t travel? Let the FCT say where they paid one naira,” Wike said.

“What official matter? Did they sign any document? I have the right to travel with anyone from the FCT or from anywhere in Nigeria.”

The former Rivers State governor explained that his sons, who hold master’s degrees, are gaining exposure through these trips.

“They have to know how Nigeria works. They have to learn about government,” he said.

When asked whether he was grooming them for political careers, Wike dismissed the suggestion.

“No, that’s not correct. My first son is a lawyer but says he wants to be a farmer. He’s trained in Spain and Lisbon. My second son has a master’s in Economics from King’s College and wants to go into real estate,” he explained.

Wike said he was grateful for the discipline and character of his children, contrasting them with what he described as wayward behaviour seen elsewhere.

“I’m happy that I have children who give me comfort and not problems. Assuming they were somewhere smoking, you’d have said, ‘Look at Wike’s children.’ I will not travel with my enemy’s children,” he added.

Photos of Wike and his sons at official ceremonies, including project inaugurations in Abuja, have circulated widely online, drawing mixed reactions.

Critics recently faulted the minister for taking them to an international summit in Dubai, but Wike insists he has done nothing wrong.