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Nigeria’s dream won’t be based on hope alone – Presidency

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“Our road to 1 trillion dollars economy by 2030 shall remain a mere wish unless we lay a foundation strong enough to carry our dreams. Dreams are not built on hope alone. They are the sum of deliberate ideas and strategies, inspired by our desire to win.”

These were the words of Kashim Shettima, Nigeria’s Vice President, on Monday while reaffirming President Bola Tinubu’s commitment to economic reforms geared towards inclusive growth and bridging financial gaps across the country.

At the inauguration of the Presidential Committee on Economic and Financial Inclusion (PreCEFI), a Federal Government’s initiative to achieving a trillion-dollar economy by 2030 inside the Presidential Villa Abuja, the VP called on all stakeholders to support the government’s effort at bridging financial gaps for millions of unbanked citizens, stating that Nigeria’s economic aspirations required more than optimism but “deliberate ideas and strategies, inspired by our desire to win.”

Shettima, who noted that youths, women, MSMEs, rural populations, and certain regions continued to face systemic barriers that denied them the opportunity to reach their full economic potential, explained that the new Presidential Committee would operate through the Governance Committee (GovCo) and a Technical Committee (TechCo) and be supported by an Implementation Secretariat.

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His words: “This framework ensures that our approach is not only robust but also adaptable to evolving challenges and opportunities in financial and economic inclusion.”

Nurudeen Zauro, Technical Adviser to the President on Economic and Financial Inclusion, who said the inauguration of the committee was significant to Nigeria’s journey towards inclusive growth and the attainment of one trillion-dollar economy, added that collaboration would be critical to the actualisation of all set objectives.

Peter Mbah Governor of Enugu State, while advancing his own position, noted that economic and financial inclusion had been instrumental to the state’s astronomical increase in internally generated revenues, adding that growing the economy with the interest of the weak and vulnerable at heart was at the core of what the state government was doing.

Uba Sani his Kaduna State counterpart, who said financial inclusion for Nigeria was long overdue, expressed excitement at the VP’s visionary leadership, noting that beyond the issues of poverty, financial inclusion would help to address a lot of issues in the northern part of the country where digital infrastructure and network connectivity were inadequate.

While Emmanuel Itapson, President of IQS Africa expressed delight to play a role in the great national renewal challenge, Wale Edun, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, said the ministry remained committed to the tasks assigned to the Presidential Committee, adding that the ministry would take responsibility for translating the vision of the Aso Accord into actionable and impactful reforms and programmes.

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Nafiu Gombe: Yes, I have sponsors! *I can’t fight ADC big men alone!

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Nafiu Bala Gombe, the man on whose behalf the African Democratic Congress (ADC), is currently in a prostrate state, has admitted to getting outside help in prosecuting his legal matters against the David Mark camp.

Recall that Mark, former Senate President and Rauf Aregbesola were, last week, derecognised by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), and had their names struck out based on the case filed by Gombe on September 2, 2025.

The commission had relied on the pronouncement of the Court of Appeal, which ordered parties in the case to maintain status quo ante bellum, which it interpreted to mean that it should not deal with either side.

Against the backdrop of the dust the matter had raised across the country, the embattled ADC leadership, had accused the former Deputy Chairman of being sponsored by the All Progressives Congress (APC) to play the spoiler role to enable President Bola Tinubu have no challenge in the 2027 presidential election.

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Bolaji Abdullahi, spokesman of the Mark camp, had last week, stated this much when he wondered how Gombe, who on his own could not afford an ordinary lawyer, going by his financial status, would now be hiring more than three Senior Advocates of Nigeria (SANs) to represent him, which would probably run into tens of millions of naira.

Reacting on Tuesday, Gombe admitted getting outside help, but added that such assistance was not coming from government quarters or the APC, but from public-spirited individuals and Nigerians averse to the injustice being meted out to him.

Abimuku Monday, spokesman to Gombe, who spoke during an appearance on Morning Briefs, a breakfast programme on Channels Television, on Tuesday, told his host: “Before now, they were saying these people are big weights and we’re light weights. Now, we’re suddenly being seen as human beings. Earlier, we were seen as nobodies – as boys who don’t have capacity to challenge this in court.

“They say Nafiu Bala does not even have money to pursue his case. You see, that’s how they reduce people by their own estimation. They don’t find out who people. They have forgotten that for you to seek legal actions, there are so many ways to go about it.

“It is either you use your own money or your personal relationship with people. Does it mean that somebody in politics cannot have his own friends or cannot have lawyers as his friend or cannot have other members of the society as his friends.

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“These are not members of the APC. They don’t belong to any party. They’re citizens of this country, who mean well for Nigeria. Nobody is scuttling the coalition. The fact remains that if you have a challenge, people will rally around you knowing it’s a good cause you’re fighting. People will rally around you to give you the necessary support that you need. They even called my principal a small boy.”

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Woman returns N1million discovered in purchased items to owner  

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Serah Luca, a Christian woman, has returned N1 million she unknowingly took along with goods purchased from a trader at Terminus market in Jos, Plateau state capital.

Luca, a petty trader, reportedly said she made the purchase on Friday and only discovered the hidden cash after getting home.

She said her decision to return the money was driven by fear of God and her belief that she could not keep what did not belong to her, especially knowing the hardship that comes with losing money in business.

“I am a petty businesswoman. I know what it means to suffer loss. If I put that kind of money into my business, I believe God would punish me,” Daily Trust quoted her as saying.

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The trader, Abubakar Dola, who deals in polythene bags at Terminus market, expressed surprise at the woman’s honesty, noting that he had no idea where the money went after mistakenly placing it inside the bag she bought.

Dola said he had planned to transfer the cash through a point of sales (POS) operator but became worried when he could not see the polythene bag where the money was kept.

“I mistakenly included it in what she bought. I didn’t realise until days later, and I had already given up hope. For her to return it after three days is remarkable. I pray Allah rewards her and gives us more people like her.”

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Strait of Hormuz: Comply now or you’ll be history – Trump warns Iran

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“The entire country could be taken out in one night, and that night might be tomorrow night,” were the words with which US President Donald Trump, flashed the redlight signal over what could be the fate of Iran in the coming hours, after a month-old war, which saw leaders of the Islamic nation, all but totally obliterated.

The POTUS, who on Saturday, gave Iran 48 hours to to open the Strait of Hormuz to shipping traffic approaches, or comply or risk facing “hell,” later threatened that the US would blow up Iran’s power plants and bridges if Tehran failed to adhere to his warning.

However, in his latest threat on Monday, Trump told reporters that Iran had until Tuesday at 8 p.m. ET (1 am WAT) to make a deal, adding: “We have a plan, because of the power of our military, where every bridge in Iran will be decimated by 12 o’clock tomorrow night, where every power plant in Iran will be out of business – burning, exploding and never to be used again, I mean complete demolition – by 12 o’clock. And it’ll happen over a period of four hours if we want it to. We don’t want that to happen.”

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