NEWS
Kachikwu begs ASUU to call off strike
…tells Nigerians to unite against inept leaders in 2023
The African Democratic Congress (ADC) party Presidential Candidate, Mr. Dumebi Kachikwu, has urged on the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) to put an end to their industrial action to enable students in tertiary institutions that have been at home in the last five months return to classes and continue their education.
Kachikwu made this call in his State of the Nation address at an emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) and Board of Trustees (BOT) meeting of the ADC in Abuja.
He urged Nigerians not to allow religion, ethnicity and language to divide them ahead of the 2023 general elections.
He also called on medical doctors in the country to stop leaving the country abroad and allowing the healthcare system in the country to continue to degenerate.
He said: “Do we let ourselves be killed? Do we wait for the next rain of bombs on our cities? Do we wait for the next calamity? Please look around you and understand that all is not well with us.
“Nigerians are hungry, Nigerians are suffering, and Nigerians are afraid. This is the hill before us. We must understand that we must first have a country before we can talk of elections. Who will save Nigeria? Who will save Nigeria from her government? Who will save Nigerians from Nigerians? You.
“Today we must reset. Today we must chart a new course. Today we must choose to fight for Nigeria. Today we must fight for ourselves. Let us look within us and find the courage to start again.
“We must take our country back from these evil men. We must resist all invaders. We must defend our lands, our cities, our country, block by block.
“This is our patriotic duty. No longer will we let religion, tribe and tongue divide us. Those who have destroyed our country are from all tribes, tongues and religions so we must not be deceived. They are in the minority. We are in the majority. We have suffered and endured for too long and we must endure for a little while longer.
“They will induce you. They will make promises. They will say they have changed. They will threaten you. They will beat you. They will incarcerate you. Whatever they do to you just endure because in a little while, in a short time, in the near future, our small voices, our small actions, our small protests, our small plans, our small groups will become a mighty rescue mission to save our nation.
“You must endure. We must endure. Architects and town planners form groups in your communities. Create the masterplan of the community you envision for your city. Engineers come together in your different cities and design the infrastructure we need. Design the power grids we need. Start with the design. Start with the plan.
“Lawyers, civil society groups, men and women of good will, contribute your quota to a new and better constitution that divides us rather than the corrupt one that now divides us.
“Lecturers go back to classes. You have sacrificed before. Sacrifice one more time for the sake of our children. This government can’t afford to pay your demands. They are broke.
“They can’t give what they don’t have.
Please go back to classes and save the future of our children. Our medical personnel are leaving the country in droves, and nobody cares. Who will staff our hospitals? Who will treat the sick?
“Are we going to leave our healthcare to quacks? No. We must take a stand for Nigeria today. It is the right thing to do.”
Kachikwu further bemoaned the degenerating security situation in the country and called on Nigerians to rise up and take their country back in 2023.
He added: “Several months ago, when I announced my intention to run for the highest office in the land, I was clear within me that it was a suicide mission.
“I knew what was at stake. I was not in any doubt about the capabilities of those in the better-known parties. I expected the hound dogs would come after me.
“I was prepared to be imprisoned. I was prepared to even be killed in the process, but I was not fazed because I knew that the real threat was not any of those.
“No. The real threat was the tens of millions of Nigerians who had only known abuse all their lives.
“People whose normal was the abnormal.
People who couldn’t trust anyone who promised change because President Buhari had shown us all what change was. People who were affected by the Stockholm Syndrome. They love their captors and prefer them to those who will try to save them.
“Some of my family, friends, colleagues and business associates are also affected by this syndrome and most would say to me they didn’t believe Nigeria could be salvaged.
“Most of them had given up on themselves and on Nigeria. They didn’t give me or my rescue mission any chance.
“I remember trying to galvanise young Nigerians to run for office because I believe you must walk your talk. Don’t just complain, do something. Be the change you desire.
“Most of them just laughed. Most people I encountered on this journey believed that the only reason for them to embark on this mission was money.
“They believed that I had to incentivise them to join the rescue mission. Most felt there was nothing like patriotism so they would rather go for me, myself and I.
“This was my reality every day. Extremely discouraging. How do you help those who don’t know they are in need of help? As I toured media organisations and heard them all asking me questions that suggested they believed only the two better known parties had a chance, I pondered at the fate of my country.
“If most people have given up, then who is going to be part of this rescue mission? Who will save Nigeria? The answer is simple, you. I refuse to give up on you. I refuse to give up on Nigeria. Our nation might have failed but we will rise again.
“As long as I have breath in me, I will keep on speaking, I will keep on nudging, I will keep on prodding you. One man at a time, we will build a formidable rescue army.
“We will rebuild our country, we will revive our economy, we will protect our citizens, we will secure our borders and we will defend our land.
“I don’t care about what this government has done, I care about what we need to do now. Time is not on our side, but God is on our side. Forget about 2023 and start today.
“Raise your voices, speak up and don’t be cowed. Our nation is blessed with the people who can make this the greatest nation in the world, and you are one of those people.
“Join this rescue mission and let’s start changing Nigeria one person at a time, one street at a time, one city at a time and one state at a time.
“We will rescue Nigeria. It is our goal, it is our destiny, it is our mission. Remember, the rescue starts with you.”
He insisted that the present political leaders have lost focus, saying it will take the collective efforts of the masses to vote them out of office ans vote in a new team ready to change the current abysmal narratives.
He said: “Under the Buhari administration, Nigeria has witnessed unprecedented calamity second only to the Nigeria civil war. From Taraba, Kogi, Niger, Abuja, Katsina, Zamfara, Borno, Sokoto, Kaduna, Ondo, Imo, Anambra, tales of woe.
“The streets of Nigeria flows with the blood of the innocent. Many a mother is weeping. Many a wife in sorrow. Many families left to mourn quietly and helplessly.
“In all this, no one has lost his or her job. No Minister, National Security Adviser or President has resigned. The shame of a nation. Who did this to us? We reduce the dead to nomenclature such as scores killed, dozens killed, hundreds killed.
“Don’t we know they have names?
They had dreams, ambitions, aspirations. They had loved ones. What needs to happen before we know Nigeria is a failed state? Who needs to die again?
“Which school needs to be attacked? Who needs to be kidnapped before we realise that this administration has nothing more to offer?
“Beyond the killings and kidnappings, we also have to contend with a failed economy.
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Tens of millions unemployed and underemployed. ‘Yahoo’ and the trade in human parts are now accepted as industries in our nation.
“The naira is 612 to the dollar today. Our farms are untended as terrorists rape, maim and kill our farmers while our government looks the other way.
“Five months of fuel scarcity in some cities like Abuja, diesel at an all time high of N800 a litre and the middle class who are the engine room of every society just wiped out overnight.
“Our children are at home as government and ASUU fritter away their future. I can spend the next 24 hours talking about the failures of this government, but they are all too familiar to us all.
“How did we get here? How did we let our nation descend to this abysmal level? How did we fail on multiple levels with our eyes wide open?
“Didn’t we have any constitutional safeguards? What is the role of the parliament when the executive fails? What is the role of the media when the government fails? What is the role of society when you have a failed government?
“What is your role? It is important that these questions are asked and answered. We can’t run away from this. We can’t run full throttle towards the 2023 general elections when we don’t know if we will have a nation in six months. This is the crux of the matter.
“How much more can this nation take? How much more can the Nigerian people take? When does the abuse stop? When do we say no more?
“The most painful part of our collective suffering is that we are too afraid to say anything. The media operate in fear of having their licences suspended or revoked.
“The opposition parties dread that invitation from the security agencies when they speak out of turn. The people remember the forgotten victims of the END SARS protest, so they stay silent in the face of despair, disillusion and abuse.
“Who will save the Nigerian people? Who will save us from ourselves? Because we must accept that we all have a role to play in this mess. Silence in the face of tyranny is not an option. An emasculated parliament is not an option.
“A weakened judiciary is not an option. Abandoning Nigeria for other countries is also not an option.
“We also know that this President will never resign and that he will never be impeached by this weak assembly. So, what are our options as a people?
“As I prepared to make this speech today, certain media organisations declined to cover me. They were worried that I would say something about the government that would affect them.
“There is no society in the world that can survive with a cowed and cowardly media. None. When the parliament fails, when the executive fails, when the judiciary fails, when society fails, the media must never fail.
“For if they were to fail then all hope is lost. The media must arise and shine at a time like this. Your country needs you. My dear Nigerians all hands must be on deck. This ship will run aground if we don’t act fast.
“The poor and hungry we ignore today will eat us tomorrow. The terrorists we pamper today will kill us tomorrow. The religion we introduce into politics today will divide us tomorrow.
“The politics and politicians we avoid today will govern us tomorrow. The hatred we incubate today will destroy us tomorrow. We can’t run away from these truths. Let us act now to save Nigeria. Let us speak with one voice.
“Don’t let them divide us. Don’t let them change parties and deceive you. Don’t let them change logos and deceive you. If they have been there, then they have done that. Get rid of them.”
The Nigerian Army has recorded another success in its ongoing offensive against terrorism and banditry in Zamfara State, forcing terrorists to flee their hideout, destroying their camp, and rescuing three kidnapped victims.
According to an operational report released on Saturday, troops of Sector 2, Operation Fansan Yamma, carried out the operation on June 12 across communities in Zurmi and Shinkafi Local Government Areas of the state.
The report stated that troops conducting a fighting patrol through Birnin Saba, Yanbuki, and Sabon Garin Daudawa communities came into contact with terrorists operating in the Yanbuki District of Zurmi LGA.
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During the encounter, troops engaged the criminals in a gun battle, successfully neutralising one terrorist while others escaped into nearby areas.
Security forces recovered several items from the scene, including rifles, four magazines loaded with ammunition, two motorcycles, seven mobile phones, two MP3 players, woodland camouflage trousers, and an inner vest.
Maintaining pressure on the fleeing terrorists, the troops advanced toward Sabon Garin Daudawa. On sighting the approaching soldiers, the terrorists reportedly abandoned their camp and fled.
The troops subsequently cleared the area and destroyed the camp to prevent it from serving as a base for future criminal operations.
In the course of the clearance operation, three kidnapped victims were rescued and safely evacuated from the area.
The military said the operation forms part of ongoing efforts to rid Zamfara and other parts of the North-West of terrorist and bandit groups responsible for attacks, kidnappings, and other criminal activities.
The Nigerian Army reaffirmed its commitment to sustaining aggressive operations across the region until lasting peace and security are restored to affected communities.
The Department of State Services (DSS) has intercepted a shipment of weapons allegedly destined for a notorious bandit kingpin operating in Zamfara State and arrested a suspected arms courier in Kano State.
According to an operational report obtained by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), the suspect was apprehended on Friday in Gezawa Local Government Area of Kano State following intelligence-led operations by DSS operatives.
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The report disclosed that the suspect was intercepted while transporting a cache of arms and ammunition from Maigatari Local Government Area of Jigawa State to Funtua in Katsina State, from where the weapons were expected to be delivered to criminal elements.
Items recovered from the suspect included three AK-47 rifles, four rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) tubes and warheads, as well as two empty magazines.
Security sources said preliminary investigations linked the weapons consignment to a suspected bandit leader believed to be operating in parts of Zamfara State.
During interrogation, the suspect reportedly confessed that he had been contracted to move the weapons from Maigatari to Funtua and was promised a payment of N450,000 upon successful delivery.
The report noted that investigations are ongoing to uncover the network behind the arms trafficking operation and identify other individuals connected to the movement of the weapons.
Authorities described the arrest as a significant breakthrough in efforts to disrupt the flow of arms and ammunition to criminal groups responsible for violent attacks, kidnappings, and other security threats across the North-West region.
The suspect remains in DSS custody and is expected to face further investigation and possible prosecution in accordance with the law.
The development comes as security agencies continue to intensify intelligence-driven operations aimed at dismantling logistics networks that support banditry, terrorism, and other forms of organised crime across Nigeria.
Well-equipped criminal syndicates are disguising themselves as members of a Federal Government taskforce to steal critical oil infrastructure across Nigeria.
The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC Ltd) made the revelation, describing it as a disturbing trend in the country’s worsening pipeline vandalism crisis.
According to the state oil major, 24 cases of vandalism had been recorded along sections of the Warri-Kaduna crude oil pipeline corridor since 2025, with about nine kilometres of pipeline already stolen by suspected vandals.
The revelation came as the NNPC Ltd, through its Industry-Wide Security Architecture and its subsidiary, the Nigerian Pipelines and Storage Company, conducted a joint inspection of a vandalised section of pipeline at Pai Community in Kwali Area Council of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The inspection, carried out alongside the Office of the National Security Adviser Special Prosecution Team, the FCT Police Command, the Nigerian Army and other security stakeholders, followed the arrest of three suspected pipeline vandals in the Piri and Pai communities.
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In a statement on Thursday by the Chief Corporate Communications Officer of NNPC Ltd, Andy Odeh, asserted that the inspection was aimed at assessing the extent of damage to the critical national asset, advancing ongoing investigations and reinforcing efforts to combat economic sabotage.
The statement read, “The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited through the Industry Wide Security Architecture and Nigerian Pipelines & Storage Company in collaboration with the Office of the National Security Adviser Special Prosecution Team, the Federal Capital Territory Police Command, the Nigerian Army and other security stakeholders, on Tuesday conducted a joint inspection of a vandalised section of the NPSC crude oil pipeline at Pai Community in Kwali Area Council of the FCT, Abuja.
“The high-level inspection was undertaken to assess the extent of damage to critical national assets, advance ongoing investigations, and reinforce coordinated efforts to combat economic sabotage and safeguard Nigeria’s strategic energy infrastructure.
“The visit followed the arrest of three suspected pipeline vandals in the Piri and Pai communities through a joint operation involving the ONSA Special Prosecution Team, the FCT Police Command, and the NNPC Ltd’s Industry-Wide Security Architecture.”
According to Odeh, the Nigerian Pipelines and Storage Company, a subsidiary of the NNPC Ltd, owns and manages more than 5,000 kilometres of crude oil and petroleum products pipelines across the country.
He expressed sadness that pipeline theft across the network has intensified in recent years.
“NPSC, a subsidiary of NNPC Ltd, owns more than 5,000km of crude oil and petroleum products pipeline network. Pipeline theft across NPSC’s network has been on the increase since 2024.
“Well-equipped criminals disguising themselves as the ‘NNPC/Federal Government Taskforce for Recovery of Abandoned Pipelines’ connive with locals to dig out and steal these pipelines,” the statement noted.
The company disclosed that 19 incidents were recorded in 2025 alone.
“In 2025, a total of 19 cases were reported, with about 9km of pipeline section stolen along the Enugu-Makurdi-Yola corridor and between Piri and Izom along the Warri-Kaduna pipeline corridors.
“So far in 2026, five cases have been reported at Piri-Kwali and Gwagwalada along the Warri-Kaduna crude oil pipeline segment and at Badanga along the Jos-Gombe pipeline corridor,” it added.
The affected infrastructure serves as a strategic route for transporting crude oil from the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company (WRPC) to the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company (KRPC).
Speaking during the inspection, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd, Bashir Ojulari, represented by the company’s Chief Interface Officer, Dahiru Sani-Gwarzo, said the arrests marked an important breakthrough in the fight against pipeline sabotage.
“The industry-wide security architecture has been actively pursuing criminal elements involved in the sabotage of our energy infrastructure. Those apprehended are only a small part of a larger network.
“Our focus remains on identifying and bringing to justice the masterminds and sponsors behind these criminal activities.
“Beyond the significant economic losses they cause, such acts undermine national development, energy security and investor confidence.
“We will continue to work closely with our security partners to ensure these crimes are decisively addressed,” he said.
On his part, the Commissioner of Police, FCT Command, CP Ahmed Muhammed Sanusi, said the arrests demonstrated the resolve of security agencies to dismantle organised criminal groups targeting national infrastructure.
“The operation demonstrates our collective determination to protect critical national assets and dismantle criminal syndicates involved in pipeline vandalism.
“The suspects were apprehended following intensive intelligence gathering, surveillance operations and targeted patrols after reports of interference with sections of the pipeline.
“Our investigations have already generated valuable leads regarding the sponsors and receivers of the vandalised materials.
“We want to assure Nigerians that all individuals connected to these criminal activities will be identified and prosecuted in accordance with the law,” Sanusi stated.
Also speaking, the Director of Energy Security at the Office of the National Security Adviser, Goodluck Ebele, urged Nigerians to support ongoing efforts by providing timely information to security agencies.
“Public vigilance and cooperation remain critical to protecting national assets and strengthening Nigeria’s energy security.
“We appeal to citizens living around these facilities to report suspicious activities promptly. Pipeline vandalism is not a victimless crime; it affects national revenue, energy supply and economic development,” he said.
Representing the Nigerian Army, Lt. Col. J.O. Ajongbo reaffirmed the military’s commitment to safeguarding oil and gas infrastructure nationwide.
“We remain committed to working closely with NNPC Ltd and all relevant agencies to secure critical energy infrastructure across the country.
“The protection of these assets is a national responsibility, and the military will continue to play its part in ensuring that criminal elements do not succeed in their attempts to sabotage the economy,” he stated.
Similarly, the Deputy Chairman of the House Committee on Petroleum Resources (Upstream), Hon. Sesi Whingan, pledged legislative support to strengthen deterrence against pipeline vandalism.
“We will continue to support measures that enhance the legal and regulatory framework needed to combat pipeline vandalism.
“Those who engage in economic sabotage must understand that there will be consequences, and we will work with relevant institutions to ensure that our laws serve as effective deterrents,” he said.
Pipeline vandalism has remained one of the biggest challenges confronting Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, contributing to production losses, environmental degradation and reduced revenues.
While much of the public attention has focused on crude theft in the Niger Delta, the latest incidents suggest that criminal networks are increasingly targeting pipeline infrastructure in other parts of the country.
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