Abuja is reeling from renewed fears over commuter safety after the killing of Princess Mediatrix Chigbo Esq, a senior lawyer, former Treasurer of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Abuja Branch, and a prominent member of the International Federation of Women Lawyers (FIDA, Nigeria), Abuja.

Her lifeless body was discovered early this week by a commuter along the Kubwa Expressway, near the Dawaki area opposite Gwarimpa Estate, in what authorities believe may be another deadly attack by suspected “one chance” robbers—criminals notorious for targeting unsuspecting passengers across the Federal Capital Territory.

Preliminary findings indicate that Mediatrix may have been assaulted during a violent encounter. A handbag believed to belong to her was reportedly found some distance from where her body lay, reinforcing suspicions that she may have been robbed and forced out of a moving vehicle.

The killing has sent shockwaves through Nigeria’s legal community, with colleagues describing her death as devastating and deeply symbolic of the country’s worsening security challenges.

In a statement confirming her death, Sir Chidi Udekwe, President of her professional association, said the news was received “with a heavy heart and profound disbelief.”

“I am at the Kubwa General Hospital Morgue, where I was faced with the devastating reality of sighting her lifeless body,” he said. “To see such a vibrant, promising soul stilled in such a manner is a pain that words cannot adequately capture.”

Colleagues described Mediatrix as more than a respected legal professional—calling her a mentor, advocate, and a steady voice for justice and women’s rights. Her death, they said, leaves a void not only within the legal profession but also in the communities she served.

“This is a catastrophic blow to us,” Udekwe added. “Instead of celebrating new beginnings, we are forced to confront the cold finality of death.”

The Nigeria Police Force, Dawaki Division, has taken custody of her body and confirmed that investigations are underway. Authorities have appealed to members of the public who may have information related to the incident to come forward, as formal identification and inquiries continue.

Her killing has reignited public outrage over persistent security threats along Abuja’s highways, particularly the menace of “one chance” operators, whose attacks have continued despite repeated assurances from authorities.

As tributes pour in, many within the legal profession are calling for urgent action, warning that Mediatrix’s death is not an isolated tragedy but part of a broader crisis that places ordinary commuters—and even prominent professionals—at constant risk.

For now, a grieving legal community mourns a life described as marked by grace, service, and promise—cut short on a road meant to lead home.

As the Federal Government was wrapping up efforts to secure public buy-in for sweeping tax reforms in December 2025, a lawmaker called them out for foul play.

Abdulsamad Dasuki, representing Kebbe/Tambuwal Federal Constituency, stated that the versions of Nigeria’s tax laws gazetted by the government did not match the bills debated, harmonised and passed by the National Assembly.

According to Dasuki, key provisions in the gazetted laws were never approved by lawmakers. His claim sparked immediate concern that the country’s tax laws may have been altered after leaving parliament.

The reaction of the Federal Government since then has moved from denial to minimisation, then refusal to name and hold the perpetrators to account.

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By Suyi Ayodele

“I spoke with AJ on the phone to personally convey my condolence. He assured me that he is receiving the best care in the hospital.” From wherever he then was, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu relayed that Anthony Joshua, the British-born boxer of Nigerian descent involved in a recent car accident, had told him he was receiving the best medical attention in Nigeria.

Yet, with something as ordinary as a headache, the same president routinely jets out of the country for treatment, sometimes to the United Kingdom, sometimes to France, sometimes to destinations left undisclosed. No one asks Mr. President why he cannot stay behind and partake of that same “best care in the hospital” available at home.

Instead, we busy ourselves with tallying the number of days he spends abroad, and when the arithmetic is done, we move on. Nothing more is demanded; nothing more is explained.

So, if tomorrow a President Donald Trump were to bar Nigerians from travelling to the United States for medical treatment, we would promptly denounce him as a racist. Yet the very next day, we would assemble a cultural troupe to welcome home a medical tourist president, one who left Nigeria quietly, without telling us what ailed him, and returned triumphantly after treatment abroad.

That is our lot; the predicament of a people wedded to decay and decadence. And it is precisely this contradiction, this ritual of self-deception, that makes it easy for some world leaders to dismiss Nigeria as a disgraced country.

President Trump is a man many love to hate. And justifiably too. The man attracts ‘hatred’ for himself as if his mission on earth is to do what many consider ‘despicable.’

I, however, have a different opinion about the man who rules America at the moment. I see him as more of an American patriot than the brute many people project him to be. I don’t see anything wrong in a president asking non-nationals to go back and fix their own countries. That, to me, is the central message of the Trump Presidency. My understanding of his philosophy on governance is that citizens should hold their leaders accountable, rather than fleeing their countries.

This is one of the reasons I hardly argue about Nigeria and its numerous failing institutions with any Nigerian living outside the shores of the country, especially those who japa less than 20 years ago. My position is simple: if you know that Nigeria is being run by the best of men now, just pack your bags and baggage and come back home. A friend once asked me why I don’t see anything wrong in “the racist called Trump,” and I responded by asking him to come back home and enjoy our nationalist president. If farming is an easy venture, blacksmiths will not sell hoes and cutlasses. Those are the words of our elders.

Three days into the New Year 2026, President Trump opened the new year on a very good note for the people of Venezuela. Venezuelans, at home and in the diaspora, woke up that Saturday, January 3, 2026, morning to discover that they had no president. Trump, using the sophisticated American soldiers in the US elite corps, invaded Venezuela in the dead of the night and abducted, if you like, kidnapped President Nicolás Maduro and his wife. Surprisingly, the people rejoiced at the news!

The husband and wife were in bed when the American soldiers came calling. One can picture how startled they were when they saw the strange faces in their inner room. The shock, especially when Maduro had, less than a month ago, boasted that he was safe and secure and dared America to come after him, is better imagined! What if the couple were making out when the intruders arrived?

Hours later, Trump boasted of the feat as “an extraordinary military operation,” during which “air, land, and sea were used to launch a spectacular assault. And it was an assault like people have not seen since World War Two.” He then described the operation as “…. One of the most stunning, effective and powerful displays of American military might and competence in American history” as the Venezuelan military capacities were “rendered powerless”, and “…. the men and women of our military working with US law enforcement successfully captured Maduro in the dead of night.”  Could this be the reason why our elders advise that when one’s mother’s co-wife is older, one must call her mother (Tí ìyàwó ìyá eni bá ju ìyà eni lo, ìyá làá pèé).

A great public speaker, Trump warned that “This extremely successful operation should serve as a warning to anyone who would threaten American sovereignty or endanger American lives.” He listed those to be warned to include Cuba, saying, “I think Cuba is going to be something we’ll end up talking about because Cuba is a failing nation right now, a very badly failing nation. And we want to help the people. It’s very similar in the sense that we want to help the people in Cuba.”

Trump is a consummate power wielder. He did not forget Colombia. It is a known fact worldwide that Colombia and drugs are Siamese twins. If President Maduro of Venezuela could be ‘captured’ because he was accused of importing cocaine to America, the Colombian President, Gustavo Petro, President Trump warned, should “watch his ass,” because “He’s making cocaine and they’re sending it into the United States, so he does have to watch his ass.”

We must get this right from the start. No law permits what President Trump did in Venezuela. The invasion of the presidential palace and the kidnapping of President Maduro and his wife are bad in all ramifications. America is not the world police. At least, the United Nations (UN), that toothless world bulldog, Charter does not permit such an infraction. The sovereignty of Venezuela was raped by Trump. The sanctity of the human person of President Maduro was violated. Oh, yes, I must add this: the solemnity of the bedroom of Maduro and his wife was desecrated! What if Maduro and his wife had slept naked, as most couples do?

Article 2(4) of the UN Charter prohibits any member state from using force against the territorial integrity (sovereignty) of an independent country. The Charter, in Article 51, only allows the use of force in self-defence, while Articles 24 and 25 permit only the Security Council to use joint or collective force against any independent nation that threatens world peace. So, where did President Trump derive the power to invade another country, pick up the incumbent president, and transport him to America in handcuffs, as he did to President Maduro of Venezuela?

I have read many comments about the Trump Presidency. This recent action in Venezuela added fuel to the inferno of hatred for the American President. If Nigerians in the Diaspora in America were to choose who governs God’s Own Country, Trump would not have smelled the presidency. In fact, he would not have been elected as the mayor of any city. But unfortunately for the entire world, the American people, or, as someone argued, ‘the American skewed system’, elected Trump as president. Everybody, haters or lovers alike, would have to deal with that fact.

From day one, Trump never hid his identity. He never pretended to be a gentleman. He did not tell anyone that he would run America for foreigners. His ‘Make America Great Again’ (MAGA) mantra is self-explicit. America would be for Americans, he promised. And he has lived up to that. That is honesty in its illiterate form!  If you ask me, that is the type of president every nation deserves. No pretence, no diplomacy; all that matters is American interests. I wish Nigeria had such a president, the one who thinks, sleeps and dreams of Nigeria. We have been unfortunate with the selfish individuals that we have had as leaders. The present crop of transactional leaders is the very worst in our recent history.

If I were to choose a president for Nigeria, I would not think twice before picking a character like Trump. A man who places the nation’s interest above any other consideration is the man after my heart. This is what is lacking in Africa, and particularly in Nigeria. A nation that has no defined national interest is bound to be in ruins, like most nations of Africa.

Nigeria has the capacity, in all ramifications, to be great. What we lack is a president who is purposeful, courageous and above all, patriotic. We can imagine that our military became suddenly effective and efficient only after Trump ‘invaded’ Sokoto and cleared out a good number of terrorists. Yet again, nobody is asking what went wrong before the coming of Trump.

I have read so much about the sovereignty of Venezuela. I have no problem with that. But the one question I keep asking the proponents of national sovereignty is: at what time does the respect for a nation’s sovereignty stop? If, for instance, the sovereignty of Nation A threatens the peace of Nation B, what should Nation B do? Should it act in the interest of its own peace or fold its hands while the rudderless nation A acts anyhow?

If President Maduro was exporting drugs to America as Trump alleged, what should be the response of President Trump?

After the ‘capture’ of President Maduro, the American President said that the US would “run” Venezuela. Many said that Trump was only interested in Venezuelan crude oil. Trump himself did not deny that. His press conference after Maduro had been taken into custody was clear enough. America had a huge investment profile in the oil sector of Venezuela. One of the responsibilities of President Trump, and this is applicable to all presidents, is the protection of the American economy at home and abroad. If the US investments are threatened in Venezuela because of the activities of Maduro, would Trump not be failing in his responsibility if he did not act in the name of sovereignty?

Nnamdi Kingsley Akanni, a professor of International Law and Diplomacy, Rivers State University, in a 2019 paper on “The Concept of Sovereignty in International Law and Relations,” suggests that the concept of sovereignty may be a ruse after all. According to him, “The paper found that what third world countries enjoy is not sovereignty but ‘sovereignty on dictated terms’ of the so-called developed powers.”

The erudite scholar states further that at the end of the research exercise, “The paper also found that smaller States are not accorded protection from developed countries and that until that is done, the concept of sovereignty will continue to be elusive to smaller nations.” He then recommends “…that the UN should take proactive steps to give greater recognition and voice to developing countries as well as offering them the platform to assert their sovereignty in line with international law.”

What the scholar is saying here is that the concept of ‘sovereignty’ exists only when the developed countries are involved. When there is a conflict of interest between the world superpowers and any of the developing or ‘disgraced’ countries of the world, the principle of “Just War” applies. This is why Trump is going to get away with the Saturday invasion of Venezuela and the impending similar exercises in Cuba and Colombia, as the American President hinted.

If the UN wakes up today and gets its mojo back to interrogate Trump on Venezuela, the US can simply hide under the cover of the principle of ‘Just war’ as the invasion of Venezuela and the ‘capture’ of its president satisfied the jus ad bellum requirements of the ‘just cause’, just intention’; ‘just peace’; reasonable chance of success’; and ‘expected benefits outweighing anticipated cost.’. We don’t need a seer to predict that many drug-friendly leaders across the globe will think twice before making America their ‘depots.’ Trump took the American oath of office to protect American interests. This is why there has been no serious condemnation of the invasion in the US today.

The invasion of Venezuela is a lesson for third-world countries. The argument that Trump took that decision because of the last Venezuelan election and economic interest is noble in my opinion. That is what he was elected to do: protect America and its interests world over.

In Africa, in general, and in Nigeria in particular, let our leaders learn to develop our lands. Let those saddled with the responsibilities of paddling our canoes do so with utmost patriotism. And more importantly, let those who want to lord it over us do so through free and fair elections. Otherwise, we will all clap and celebrate should Trump decide to ‘capture’ and ship all undesirable elements with questionable character to America for trial. Venezuelans set the precedent on Saturday when they trooped to the streets in jubilation at the news of the removal of Maduro!

The views expressed by contributors are strictly personal and not of Law & Society Magazine.

At least 60 people were killed after armed attackers stormed Kasuwan Daji Market in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger State on Saturday, in one of the deadliest assaults in the region in recent months, local residents and officials said.

The attackers, believed to have emerged from the Kainji Lake National Park, struck the busy market around 4 p.m., surrounding traders and shoppers before opening fire, abducting several people—mainly women and children—and setting parts of the market and nearby homes ablaze.

Rescue efforts continued more than 12 hours after the attack, as villagers from surrounding communities searched nearby bushes for victims. At least 43 bodies—belonging to both Muslims and Christians—were buried in a mass funeral on Sunday, according to local sources, while the overall death toll was feared to be higher.

Among those abducted were pupils and students of St. Mary’s Primary and Secondary School in Papiri, Agwara LGA—some of whom had only recently been rescued from a previous mass kidnapping in November, Daily Trust reported.

Residents said the assailants continued their rampage after leaving the market, moving through nearby communities, shooting residents, torching houses and looting food supplies and valuables worth millions of naira.

“They operated freely from late afternoon into the night,” said Marcus Philips Adoka, a resident. “People were kidnapped, many were injured, and bodies are still being recovered.”

Another resident said the attackers locked some residents inside their homes before setting the buildings on fire, forcing others to flee with gunshot wounds.

The affected area lies close to Papiri, where more than 200 pupils and staff of St. Mary’s Catholic School were abducted on November 21, 2025, in an incident that drew national outrage. The victims were later rescued following a security operation coordinated by the Office of the National Security Adviser.

The Director of Communications of the Catholic Diocese of Kontagora, Rev. Father Stephen Kabirat, said the attackers had earlier attempted to abduct a parish priest, looting the mission house and kidnapping villagers, including children.

“As we speak, some communities have abandoned their homes and are sleeping in the bush because of fear,” he said.

Niger State’s Commissioner for Information and Strategy, Obed Nuhu Nana, confirmed that the attackers also struck a police outpost in Shafacci village and a Catholic school in Sukumbara, destroying property and stealing motorcycles.

He said intelligence suggested the attackers were Boko Haram elements who relocated from Kainji Lake National Park following recent U.S. airstrikes on militant hideouts in Sokoto and Kwara states.

The Niger State Police Command said joint security teams confirmed that at least 30 people were killed, while several others were abducted. Efforts were ongoing to rescue the victims.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu condemned the attack and directed the Minister of Defence, the service chiefs, the Inspector-General of Police and the Director-General of the Department of State Services to track down and apprehend the perpetrators.

“These terrorists have tested the resolve of our country,” the president said in a statement issued by spokesman Bayo Onanuga. “They must be hunted down and brought to justice.”

Tinubu also ordered the immediate rescue of all abducted victims and vowed to intensify security operations around forested areas believed to serve as criminal hideouts.

The Northern State Governors’ Forum also condemned the attack, calling it a brutal assault on innocent civilians and a threat to regional stability.

“This kind of violence against traders, women and ordinary citizens is morally reprehensible,” said the forum’s chairman and Gombe State Governor, Muhammadu Inuwa Yahaya.