While bandits are ravaging Katsina state with local government Chairmen signing peace deals with bandit lords, the Katsina State Government appears to have turned its attention instead to schools, with the Commissioner for Basic and Secondary Education announcing the revocation of the licenses for all private and community schools operating across the state.

On Tuesday, 19 August 2025, at least 50 people were killed in a widespread attack on communities in Katsina state.

The revocation notice is contained in a circular signed by Commissioner Zainab Musa-Musawa.

The News Agency of Nigeria reports that the circular was issued in Katsina on Saturday by the Public Relations Officer of the ministry, Sani Danjuma.

“The ministry hereby notifies the public, proprietors and administrators of all private and community schools that all the previously issued operational licences have been officially terminated.

“On June 2, 2025, the ministry conducted sensitisation for key stakeholders regarding the new state policy for private and community schools.

“This policy aligns with the state’s educational reform agenda, aimed at ensuring quality assurance, standardisation, and effective regulation of teaching and learning across Katsina.

“The public is hereby informed that the state government has revised the licence application, registration, annual renewal, and school upgrade fees,” the commissioner said.

According to her, in light of these changes, all private and community schools in the state are directed to note that all existing licences were terminated effective from August 13, 2025 as approved by the State Executive Council.

“All affected schools should submit payment receipts for application and registration fees for new licences to the ministry via the Department of Private and Community Schools, based on school categorisation.

“And also, all payments must be made exclusively to the Katsina state’s single treasury account, on or before September 30, 2025,” the commissioner said.

According to her, the exercise is designed to enhance supervision, promote accountability, and ensure the delivery of quality education, in line with the state government’s commitment to educational excellence.

She reaffirmed the ministry’s dedication to safeguarding the future of the children by upholding global best practices in education delivery across Katsina.

Musa-Musawa stated that schools were expected to resume normal operations while the process of registration and annual renewal of licences was ongoing.

“Stakeholders in private and community schools are advised that the revised fees must not lead to an increase in school fees without explicit approval from the ministry as stipulated in the new policy.

“Further details, including the list of schools’ categorisations and a breakdown of the revised fees will be officially communicated to the National Association of Proprietors of private and community schools,” she said.

In August, Sahara Reporters revealed that Safana Local Government Area of Katsina State entered into a peace agreement with armed bandits, joining Jibia, Batsari, and Danmusa LGAs in similar accords aimed at restoring calm to their communities.

Before this development, only the three LGAs had such arrangements, enabling farmers to work without fear while bandits moved freely to markets, hospitals, and shops in towns and villages. 

However, the bandits struck on 19 August with a devastating effect.

The gunmen first targeted a mosque in the town of Unguwar Mantau, where some 30 worshipers were killed. Then, the attackers killed an additional 20 people and burned homes in nearby villages.

According to Segun Adeniyi in a recent publication, the way bandit kingpins are being enabled with a policy of appeasement has only emboldened them.

Quoting a young journalist Khaleed Yazeed, Adeniyi said: “This is what provoked Yazeed’s latest headline: ‘The chairman of Safana (local government area in Katsina State), Hon. Abdullahi Sani Safana, flanked by traditional rulers, Yariman Katsina, Hakimin Safana, and Hakimin Zakkah, walked deep into the Gemi forest… to negotiate with armed bandits. The same bandits who have murdered farmers, kidnapped children, burned villages, and turned farmlands into graveyards now sat at the table as partners. And the State, in full daylight, bowed to them. The Fulani militia, represented by Kachalla Ruga and his men, promised to ‘allow’ farmers back to their farms, ‘permit’ traders to go to markets, ‘let’ life return. And in exchange, the Nigerian state promised them freedom of movement, access to hospitals, repairs of their dams, and the comfort of legitimacy. This is not peace. This is surrender dressed in the language of diplomacy.’”

The District Governor of Rotary International District 9127, Dame (Dr) Princess Joy Nky Okoro, has congratulated Rotarian Engr. Olayinka Hakeem Babalola on his emergence as Rotary International President-elect(RIPE).

According to a statement signed by Dr. Max Amuchie, District 9127 Media Relations Chair, the District Governor described the selection of the Rotary International President-Elect by the Board of Directors of Rotary International as a testimony to his service to humanity in Nigeria and the World, notably, the eradication of Poliomyelitis.

She said the choice of RIPE Babalola is also an acknowledgement of the contribution and impact of Nigeria to the growth of Rotary International.

The District Governor eulogised the several leadership positions Babalola held in Rotary since joining as a Rotaractor in 1988.

She in addition, said District 9125 and now 9127 has benefitted from his mentorship through the Rotary Leadership Institute (RLI), where he is a team lead and facilitator.

Babalola began his Rotary journey in 1988 as a Rotaractor. He joined the Rotary Club of Trans Amadi six years later. His leadership roles include serving as district governor (2011-12), RI vice president (2019-20), and member of the RI Board (2018-20). He was also an active leader and participant in RI committees such as the End Polio Now Countdown to History Campaign Committee (2017-23) and the Nigeria National PolioPlus Committee (2013-present, adviser 2016-present).

Babalola received a university degree in engineering in 1988. He has worked for 25 years in the oil and gas industry, holding senior positions in Shell PLC and carrying out projects on four continents. He is the founder of two companies: Riviera Services Ltd., an oil and gas infrastructure delivery company, and Lead and Change Consulting, an executive coaching and organizational performance advisory group.

Babalola’s professional affiliations include the Nigerian Society of Engineers, the Institute of Safety Professionals, and the Association of Change Management Practitioners. He is a member of Jericho Business Club, an organisation in his home city that provides input to governments on economic and social policy.

Babalola and his wife, Preba, live in Port Harcourt. He supports The Rotary Foundation with a named endowment and as an Arch Klumph Society member. A trustee of ShelterBox UK and director of the Safe Blood Africa project, he is a recipient of the Africa Centennial Heroes Award, the Regional Service Award for a Polio-Free World, the RI Service Above Self Award, and The Rotary Foundation Citation for Meritorious Service.

The president of Rotary International serves a one-year term, presiding over the Board of Directors and providing inspirational leadership for the organization. As the spokesperson for the global network, the president visits clubs around the world to promote Rotary’s values and represent the organisation at major events. Rotary chooses its president from members who have demonstrated extensive leadership experience within Rotary, including service as a club president, district governor, and member of the Board.

A third female prison officer has been convicted for inappropriate relationships with inmates at HMP Five Wells, Northants, United Kingdom. 

Aimee Duke, 26, was sentenced to one year in prison after admitting two counts of misconduct in public office at Northampton Crown Court. Investigators found she “interacted inappropriately” with two prisoners, exchanging 248 calls and messages with one inmate over two months and 254 with another. CCTV footage showed Duke emerging from a one-person cell with the prisoners.

Duke was arrested in September 2022, months after the £253 million super-prison opened. She sobbed throughout the court proceedings.

This case follows two similar incidents at HMP Five Wells. Prison officer Toni Cole, 29, was jailed for 12 months in February for trysts with an inmate, while Rachel Stanton, 31, narrowly avoided a prison sentence in July after engaging in a relationship with an armed robber.

The cases have highlighted ongoing concerns about staff misconduct at the new super-prison and the challenges of maintaining security and professional boundaries.

Linda Ikeji

A university law student cried and declared ‘my life is finished’ after being caught travelling without a rail ticket by an inspector on a station footbridge.

The young man was stopped by a South Western Railway revenue protection officer at Clapham Junction station in London and initially claimed he had a valid ticket.

But while claiming his phone was being slow, he secretly bought a ticket in front of the inspector before displaying it and claiming it was purchased on the train.

The officer, however, could see after scanning the man’s ticket that it was purchased during their conversation – and therefore reported him to colleagues for prosecution.

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Life Bencher and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Mike Ozekhome, SAN who was a speaker at the just concluded Annual General Conference (AGC) of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) in Enugu, has declared that national security is a lie.

“The reality is that their national security is actually government security. It’s not security for you and I…”

Watch the video.

• Plant to create 5,000 jobs, produce 100 cubic metres of oxygen, and 45 cubic metres of acetylene per hour
• Remodels Hotel Presidential, others

Governor Peter Mbahof Enugu State on Thursday, unveiled Nigergas Company Limited, revamped and upgraded by his administration after over 30 years of inaction.

Mbah said Nigergas had so far created direct employment for over 100 skilled and semi-skilled workers, and would further create over 5,000 indirect jobs across distribution, fabrication, transport and supply chain.

Likewise, the governor, on 21 August, reinaugurated the remodelled Hotel Presidential Enugu, built 62 years ago by the former premier of the defunct Eastern Region, Michael Okpara, describing the revival of the edifice as “a homecoming for history.”

He stressed that the revival of Nigergas company, which was established in 1962 as part of Dr. Michael Okpara’s vision after decades of abandonment, was another proof of his administration’s commitment to reviving state-owned moribund assets and grow Enugu State’s economy from $4.4bn to $30bn.

The governor stated, “What we have revived and unveiled today is not simply metal and a network of pipes; it is the restoration of purpose, dignity and productivity to a site that once symbolised Eastern Nigeria’s industrial promise.

“When we speak of the goal to grow our GDP from $4.4bn to $30bn, it is not mere posturing. It is rooted in the conviction that Enugu can become a truly diversified, self-reliant economy, if we muster the will to do things differently to launch us to the future we dream of.”

On Nigergas’ rehabilitation model, capacity, and expansion plan, Mbah said, “We approved a full rehabilitation scheme and a management model that blends public ownership with private-sector performance discipline.

“The intention was clear: retain public ownership, but run the facility on modern, accountable, commercially viable lines.

“So, today, Nigergas returns to production with modernised equipment and clear technical specifications designed to meet immediate healthcare and industry needs.

“The plant’s installed capacity has been upgraded to produce significant volumes of medical and industrial gases, ensuring steady local supply and reducing dependence on distant, expensive suppliers.

“Crucially, the plant will supply liquid oxygen, medical and industrial oxygen, and acetylene gas to our hospitals, welders, agro-processors and manufacturers, improving clinical outcomes and reducing production costs for businesses that are the backbone of local livelihoods.

“The new plant has a capacity to produce 100 cubic metres of oxygen per hour; and 45 cubic metres of acetylene per hour.

“We will soon bring on stream these additional products: nitrogen; argon gas; carbon dioxide; and CNG stations.”

Mbah maintained that Nigergas’ revival would guarantee access to reliable medical oxygen, and save lives, as well as provide on-demand industrial gases to lower operating costs, speed up turnaround, and keep workshops and factories turning.

“These improvements ripple outward: increased industrial activity strengthens our revenue base, and deepens opportunities for MSMEs,” he said.

He commended Managing Director of Enugu State Investment Authority, and the Commissioner for Trade, Investment and Industry, Dr. Sam Ogbu-Nwobodo; the engineering firm, Ten Gas Development Ltd (a division of INDEV GROUP), and the community leaders of Emene for their roles in resurrecting Nigergas.

Ogbu-Nwobodo, on his part, expressed joy that although the firm established by the Okpara administration, in partnership with SiadMachine Impianti, was abandoned for over three decades due to mismanagement, misappropriation of revenue, abuse of company resources, nepotism, and weak corporate governance, Mbah had restored the lost dreams.

Managing Director, Ten Gas Development Ltd., Chief Chike Madueke, stated that the restored Nigergas would provide training and thousands of employments for the youth of the state.

Chairman, Enugu State Traditional Rulers Council, Igwe Samuel Asadu; community leader and health consultant, Dr. Joy Uduji; Chairman of Enugu East Local Government Area, Pastor Beloved Dan Anike; and a businessman, Engr. George Ndubeze Ugwu, also commended Mbah for not only breathing life into dead state-owned assets, but for also building infrastructure that made life better and enabled businesses to thrive.

“You are the Nehemiah of our time. Like Nehemiah, who came and supervised the rebuilding of the walls of Jerusalem, you have also come to rebuild Enugu State,” Uduji said.

On Hotel Presidential reopening, Mbah who praised the former premier for his visionary leadership in building the hotel as a symbol of the Eastern Region, lamented that time and neglect had dimmed the light.

“For about 15years, this glorious edifice stood as affront to our pride and something contrary to what we represent. We came into office with strong pledge to recover what belongs to our people,” Mbah said.

He said that the revival of Hotel Presidential was in line with his campaign promise to recover Enugu’s moribund assets and also grow the state’s economy sevenfold.

“That is why this unveiling is more than opening the doors of a hotel; it is the reopening of Enugu’s confidence. It is a tangible sign that when we say Enugu is open for business, we mean business.

“This hotel is a strategic enabler of our growth plan, comprising the ambitious target to grow Enugu’s economy seven-fold to at least $30 billion and to achieve a zero percent poverty headcount rate,” he said.

He assured that the standards for the hotel’s revamp were truly world-class, because the administration “insisted on this so that when Enugu says ‘welcome’ to its investors, our hospitality infrastructure speaks with the same credibility as our policies.”

According to him, “Our hospitality ecosystem today is simply inspiring: the 5,000-seat International Conference Centre (ICC) now anchors Enugu’s conferencing ambitions; the adjacent 5-star, 345-room ICC Hotel under construction will deliver premium “keys” for large events; Enugu Air, which has given wings to our dreams and announced the scale of our vision to the world; And now, the renewed Hotel Presidential adds a full-service icon back into the mix.

“None of this is a whimsical project; they are connecting dots on a large canvas. These assets are crucial to our aim to welcome up to three million annual tourist visits and to make Enugu the Conferencing Capital of Africa.

“The economic value is already visible. This hotel alone supports hundreds of direct jobs, culinary and events teams, engineering, landscaping, suppliers, and several other opportunities.

“Every conference day books our taxis and CNG buses; every visiting family discovers our art, our music, our cuisine, and our warmth.

“And the signal to investors is even bigger: when government shows it can recover assets, fix the fundamentals, and protect investments, private capital follows. That is why you see momentum across other moribund assets like UPPL, Sunrise Flour Mill, Nigergas; International Conference Centre, and a host of others,” he added.

Speaking, Nollywood veteran actor and movie producer, Kanayo O. Kanayo, said, “It is not praise-singing, security is working here because when I come to make movies here, we usually stay out late into the night at Nike, and we are safe

Thailand’s Constitutional Court has removed Prime Minister Paetongtarn Shinawatra from office over ethics violations after only one year in office.

In a verdict issued on Friday, the court ruled that Ms Shinawatra violated ethical rules in the leaked phone call with Cambodian Senate President Hun Sen.

In the phone conversation, which leaked in June, Ms Shinawatra appeared to have criticised a Thai army commander when Thailand and Cambodia were on the brink of a conflict.

She was also heard referring to the former Cambodian prime minister as “uncle” while stating that if he “wants anything, just tell me, and I will take care of it,” according to the BBC.

She criticised her army’s actions in the border clashes that had led to the death of a Cambodian soldier.

These contentious remarks became the centre of the case against her.

The court ruled that she lacked “demonstrable honesty and integrity and had seriously violated or failed to comply with ethical standards during the phone call.”

Ms Shinawatra, who is the youngest person ever to serve as Thailand’s prime minister, at the age of 39, is the sixth leader tied to the billionaire Shinawatra family to be ousted by either the military or the courts in the nation’s prolonged power struggle over the past 17 years.

The ruling plunges Thailand into fresh political uncertainty, amid simmering frustration over stalled reforms and an economy projected to expand by only 2.3 per cent this year.

Attention has now turned towards electing Ms Paetongtarn’s successor, with Thaksin Shinawatra, founder of the ruling Pheu Thai Party, expected to play a central role in behind-the-scenes negotiations among parties and power brokers to keep his party at the helm of the coalition.

The Pheu Thai party has led and won every election in the country since 2001. However, it has also been repeatedly removed from office by coups or court rulings.

Ms Shinawatra, daughter of Mr Shinawatra, was still very new to politics when she was thrust into the spotlight after the surprise dismissal of her predecessor, Srettha Thavisin, by the same court a year ago.

With her dismissal, Deputy Prime Minister Phumtham Wechayachai and the current cabinet will act in a caretaker capacity until the parliament selects a new leader.

There is no set timeline for when the election is likely to be held.

However, five figures are eligible for the premiership. One of them is from the Pheu Thai party. That is, Chaikasem Nitisiri, a 77-year-old former attorney general with limited ministerial experience who has been mainly out of the political space.

Other potential contenders include former Prime Minister Prayuth Chan-ocha, who seized power in a 2014 coup against a Pheu Thai government before retiring from politics, and Anutin Charnvirakul, a deputy prime minister. He recently withdrew his party from Ms Paetongtarn’s coalition following a leaked phone call scandal.

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