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Monday Lines 2 Small Talks With A Childless Mother By Lasisi Olagunju  (Published in the Nigerian Tribune of Monday, 02 February, 2026). One sad Monday in June last year (2025), I wrote in passing about the perils of fibroid and the ruin it does to hopes, wombs and homes. I got plenty of reactions and comments, some of them from ladies who have seen everything fibroids- with all the tears and pains. One victim volunteered a close-up picture of her problem for me: “You may publish,” she said. She attached her real name to the message. I found it very surprising that she said that much. I was surprised because afflicted women rarely talk; they merely sulk on their reproductive disappointments. The person who spoke with me added that she had twice gone through fibroid procedures. “I did the second surgery because it grew back since I didn’t have children still. They say fibroid grows in a disappointed womb. It takes over when pregnancy refuses to occur.” But why did she op...

Monday Lines  Idolatry: The Worship Of A President By Lasisi Olagunju  (Published in the Nigerian Tribune of Monday, 02 February, 2026). President Bola Ahmed Tinubu returned over the weekend, swagger intact, despite his tumble in Turkey. His face was calm; his steps steady. His left arm tucked into the left fold of his riga; his right palm expectantly popped into the waiting hands of top appointees lined up to receive him. Ministers and governors do this airport praise-and-worship ritual routinely. From the aircraft steps to his waiting car, Tinubu left no one in doubt: power, in his court, walks with a king’s gait. 'American Idolatry: The Worship of a President' was an opinion article published in the November 9, 2004 edition of the Yale Daily News by Christopher Ashley. What I have here is the Nigerian version of that headline; it borrows from Ashley’s critique which deplores the worship of a leader who demands “support of his person in spite of his policy” and a...

EFCC Arraigns Former Benue Electoral  Chairman,  Loko, Over N1.1Billion Fraud By Editor  The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Wednesday, January 28, 2026, arraigned Dr. Tersoo Joseph Loko, a former Chairman of the Benue State Independent Electoral Commission (BSEIC), over an alleged N1.1 billion fraud involving public funds. Loko was brought before Justice M. S. Abubakar of the Federal High Court in Makurdi, Benue State, alongside 10 other defendants.  The defendants are accused of participating in the diversion and misappropriation of public funds amounting to N1,100,000,000. The case forms part of ongoing investigations into the handling of funds by officials entrusted with managing state-level electoral institutions.  According to the EFCC, it has intensified scrutiny of such agencies amid growing concerns over financial accountability and transparency in the conduct of elections across Nigeria. The arraignment of the former BSEI...

Court Remands Mohammed, Ex-NEDC Project Coordinator, Abuja Socialite Over ‘N2.28bn Fraud’   By Editor  The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has arraigned Danjuma Mohammed, a former project coordinator with North East Development Commission (NEDC), and Prince Chibuike Echem, an Abuja socialite, over alleged N2.28 billion contract fraud. Mohammed and Echem were arraigned on Tuesday at the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) high court alongside one Aminu Alhaji, who is currently at large, on a 54-count amended charge. The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charges. Mohammed previously served as the national coordinator of multi-sectoral crisis recovery project (MCRP) at the NEDC. The EFCC alleged that the defendants conspired to defraud Kenneth Ejiofor Ifekudu, the managing director of Diamond Leeds Limited. “That you Alhaji Danjuma Mohammed being the National Coordinator of Multi- Sectoral Crisis Recovery Project, (MCRP) North East Development Commissio...

Teachers, Students Extol Gov. Okpebholo For Renovation Of Army Day Secondary School By Editor  Students, teachers, and management of Army Day Junior and Senior Secondary School, Ekenhuan, Benin City, have commended Edo State Governor, Senator Monday Okpebholo, for the comprehensive renovation and remodelling of the school. The principals of the Junior and Senior Secondary Schools, speaking separately with newsmen, described the intervention as timely and life-changing, noting that the school was previously in a deplorable condition before the governor’s intervention. According to the Junior Secondary School Principal, Itohan Emokpai-Ogbebo, "classrooms were dilapidated, roofs leaking, and learning conditions unsafe for students and teachers alike.  “I assumed duty October 15, 2024, when I came, the state of this school was in a mess, I cried in my heart, I saw students sitting on the floor, sitting on the window, they were not enough classrooms. We had ...

Police Apprehend Six In ₦7.7B Telecom Hack, Seized 400 Laptops  By Editor  The Nigeria Police Force has arrested six suspects for allegedly hacking a major telecom company and diverting airtime and mobile data worth N7.7 billion. According to a statement on Wednesday by the Force Spokesperson, Benjamin Hundeyin, the suspects gained unauthorized access to the company’s core systems, exploiting compromised staff login credentials. The arrested individuals—Ahmad Bala, Karibu Mohammed Shehu, Umar Habib, Obinna Ananaba, Ibrahim Shehu, and Masa’ud Sa’ad—are accused of orchestrating the illegal diversion of telecom resources, causing massive financial losses. During the operation, police recovered two mini plazas and retail outlets, over 400 laptops, 1,000 mobile phones, and a Toyota vehicle linked to the suspects. Investigators also traced a substantial amount of money to the suspects’ bank accounts. Hundeyin said the investigation began after the telecom company reporte...

Benin High Court Issues Form 49 Against Edo State Officials By Editor  A Benin High Court has issued Form 49, a notice to show cause, against several Edo State officials, including the Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, the Commissioner for Lands and Housing, the General Manager of Edo Geographical Information Service, and Dr. Abdulwashiu Oyakhire, Secretary of the Edo Lands Restitution Committee.  This notice is in response to alleged disobedience of a court order or judgment  The Form 49 notice requires the officials to appear in court and show cause why they should not be committed to prison for contempt of court. This development is part of an ongoing legal battle over land disputes in Edo State. This followed a case in Suit Number  B/672/2023 instituted in a Benin High Court by Mayer Uyiekpen Ologbosere and Portcall lnternational Farms Limited over a parcel of land measuring approximately 200.309 hectares marked and delineated in the surv...