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Kidnapped Online, Enslaved in Asia: The Dark Secret Targeting Nigerian Youths

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When Sabiu demanded to leave the compound, his boss gave him an answer that still haunts him: “I had paid $5,000 to buy you.” What began as a promised job in Laos had become captivity. His passport was gone, his savings were stolen and armed guards watched over a workforce forced to scam strangers online. His story is one of several uncovered in this investigation by STEPHEN ANGBULU into the trafficking of Nigerian youths through social media into the brutal cybercrime camps of Southeast Asia

The last wrap of weed Sabiu sold in the Golden Triangle fetched him 20 Yuan, about $2.70. It was enough for a plate of noodles, which was all he ate most days, once, at night.

It was October 2024, and the 26-year-old who hails from Borno State had been surviving this way for months in Bokeo Province, Laos, a mountainous Southeastern nation in Asia bordering China, Vietnam, Myanmar, Thailand, and Cambodia. He was sleeping on bus station benches when he ran out of rent money, eating leftover food from restaurants, charging his phone by sitting in eateries until attendants chased him away, and selling marijuana at a small markup to other displaced Africans who had stumbled out of the same cyber-scam compounds that had held him captive. He had tried to kill himself once already, swallowing poison mixed into pineapple juice. It only gave him diarrhoea, after which he returned to scavenging.

A Laotian shopkeeper, a Buddhist who did not trust Black people, began letting Sabiu take noodles on credit after noticing that he, unlike other foreigners, always removed his shoes before entering the shop.

“He told me my character was different,” Sabiu said. It was the closest thing to kindness he had experienced in months.

“At some point, I was chatting with ChatGPT, asking it the easiest way I could just end it. It would not give me the answer. It just kept recommending agencies that could help me. That was how I found IOM,” Sabiu told our correspondent during a sit-down interview.

Before the weed supply dried up when his Laotian friend was arrested, Sabiu had built a fragile economy of survival. He buys at 30 yuan, sells at 50 and pockets the difference. It was, by his own reckoning, the most dignified phase of the six months he spent outside the cybercrime compound that had swallowed his scholarship, his savings, and nearly his life.

Scholarship that didn’t happen

Sabiu’s journey to that desolate point began in a university classroom. In 2023, he secured a scholarship to Jiangxi University of Science and Technology in China to study engineering. But the scholarship, he discovered upon arrival, covered only one year of Chinese language instruction. The remaining four years of tuition would fall on him. His father told him to return home. But Sabiu, who had “tried everything to leave Nigeria behind,” refused.

“I tried to be responsible. I tried to man up,” he said.

With a good command of Mandarin and English, Sabiu rose to the challenge. He taught English to private students in Xinyi city. He worked as a cargo inspector in Guangzhou’s business district, earning small commissions wrapping goods for export. But his student visa barred him from legal employment, and when Chinese immigration began cracking down, even those meagre earnings dried up.

“Unfortunately, in China, if you have a student visa, you cannot work for part time anywhere. So, your job will be illegal by the books. First, I got a job teaching English to a 17-year-old boy in my city, Xinyu in Jiangxi Province.

“But shortly after I started teaching English there, the family relocated to Guangzhou. This was when I became really broke,” he narrated.

It was during one of his trips to Guangzhou that he met a Chinese businessman who introduced himself as Wang Xu. The man was friendly, spoke English, and invited Sabiu to dinner. Over beer, Sabiu, a Muslim, does not drink, Wang Xu listened to his story and offered him a job, a three-month contract as a telecom representative in Laos during the summer break. The work, as he was told, involved helping tourists subscribe to local phone networks.

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“Everything sounded legit. He told me people in Laos do not speak English, so tourists need help subscribing to their SIM cards. I was like, okay, I am interested,” Sabiyu recalled.

He added, “My desperation took over me. I did not think twice.”

Given his aptitude and skills, Sabiu was by every measure the exact kind of bright and resourceful young Nigerian that traffickers operating Asia’s cybercrime underworld have begun to target.

“They do not just pick anyone anymore,” a senior NAPTIP operative who facilitated our correspondent’s access to Sabiu explained, adding, “They target intelligent youths with computer and IT skills, as well as those with clean health records.”

The operative, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to address the media, said between November 2024 and early 2025, the agency’s Intelligence and International Cooperation Unit intercepted close to 1,000 persons attempting to travel to the Middle East and Asia. But the Southeast Asian route, he said, represented something qualitatively different from the domestic servitude pipelines to Iraq and Saudi Arabia that NAPTIP had been combating for years.

“These are people with degrees, people who can code, people who understand trading platforms. And that is exactly why they are wanted,” the operative said.

Wang Xu bought Sabiu a train ticket to Sichuan Province, a 32-hour journey, arranged a hotel, paid for his Laos visa, and had an associate he identified as Wang Li escort him across the border. At the hotel in Sichuan, the Chinese receptionist gave Sabiu his first warning on this journey.

“He told me, ‘whatever you do, do not go to Myanmar. They kill people there.’ He said Laos is fine, but Myanmar, no. I told him I was going to Laos, not Myanmar. But something started feeling off,” Sabiu recalled.

He crossed into Laos by bus and was driven to Bokeo Province, to a place called the Golden Triangle, alleged to be one of the most notorious criminal enclaves on earth.

Bought for $5,000

The Golden Triangle Special Economic Zone is a sealed-off, Chinese-built enclave in northwestern Laos where the borders of Laos, Myanmar and Thailand converge at the Mekong River. Established in 2007 under a 99-year lease granted to Chinese businessman Zhao Wei, it was ostensibly designed as a trade hub.

In reality, however, it is allegedly a self-governed criminal city. The United States Treasury Department sanctioned Chinese businessman Zhao Wei in 2018 for running a transnational criminal organisation. As of 2024, up to 400 scam call centres operated within the zone. The US-China Economic and Security Review Commission revealed in 2025 that scam centres across Myanmar, Cambodia and Laos produced approximately $43.8bn in revenue in 2023, equivalent to 40 per cent of the GDPs of the three countries combined. The United Nations estimated that 220,000 people were being held as forced labourers in such centres across the region.

Sabiu described the Golden Triangle as mini state where the currency, signage and business language operated in Chinese. He said Laotian police couldn’t enter without permission from the zone’s management. For him, it felt like stepping back into China. Except this time, there was no way out.

On his first day, Sabiu was interviewed, not on his communication skills, but on his knowledge of cryptocurrency. After a 10-day probationary period, he was moved into the main compound. There, he saw persons from various nationalities; Ethiopians, Indians, Pakistanis, Filipinos, Brazilians, Russians, all typing at computer terminals, flanked by Myanmar bodyguards who, he said, “do not even smile at you.”

“They were just typing, and Myanmar bodyguards roaming around. They do not even smile at you. They have no sympathy. The moment you do something wrong, they can kill you. They just need an order.

“That was when I realised the whole thing was about scamming people online. We targeted Americans especially,” he said.

As Sabiu came to understand, the operation was a romance fraud on an industrial scale. Workers were instructed to find attractive female profiles on Instagram, women who looked 35 of age, with at least 500 uploaded photos. These images were used to build fake identities. An AI system processed selfies to enable real-time deepfake video calls via WhatsApp. A team of Russian women handled the calls. Once trust was established, the “girlfriend” would steer the target towards a rigged cryptocurrency platform that showed fabricated profits of 40 to 50 per cent on early investments. When the victim deposited their life savings, the money vanished.

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After his 10-day probation, Sabiu was handed a contract written in Chinese, which he could speak but not read. The guards pressured him to sign while his supervisor stepped out to smoke. Though he planned to work for three months, the contract he hurriedly signed bound him for two years. His passport was confiscated too under the guise of visa extension.

“That was the biggest mistake I ever made in my life,” Sabiu said, fighting tears.

“They took away my passport saying that they wanted to extend the visa. I had a tourist visa, which was only for two months. They said they wanted to extend it for three months. And that was it,” he added.

According to Sabiu, an Ethiopian detainee pulled him aside and warned, “Bro, if you know what is good for you, do not work in this company like me. That is the advice I can give you. They beat people and all they care about is money.”

It was the second warning, but it arrived too late. When Sabiu protested that his contract was only for three months, the Ethiopian shook his head and replied, “There is no company in Golden Triangle that will give you a contract for three months. Go and check what you signed.”

Sabiu confronted his boss, who told him to call Wang Xu. But the answer came back cold.

“Finally, he told me he had paid $5,000 to buy me,” Sabiu said.

He worked 17-hour per day. Toilet breaks were capped at 15 minutes. Those who fell asleep were tasered. His Indian friend Raju, who was “always smiling, always happy,” was dragged into an office one day after being caught collecting recruitment commissions from multiple companies.

“I heard a gunshot. They never brought him out. I messaged him. Till today he has not responded. This is one of my own wounds I was telling you about,” Sabiu said almost inaudibly, showing our correspondent the small, circular cigarette burn scar on his arm, a parting gift from his supervisor the day he begged to leave.

That night, Myanmar bodyguards escorted him to a car. They demanded his phone. When he refused, the driver punched him in the nose. They tasered him and drained his Binance cryptocurrency wallet of $9,000, his entire life’s savings, which was not enough to carry him through school. They dumped him by the Mekong River with nothing.

“I wanted to just jump in and kill myself,” he said. Instead of killing himself, however, he scavenged. He ate leftovers from restaurants. An Ethiopian man, himself an agent who sold people to the compounds, took pity on him and gave him shelter.

It took six months of homelessness, a recommendation from ChatGPT, and the intervention of the IOM, the Nigerian Embassy in Vietnam, NAPTIP and the National Intelligence Agency before Sabiu made it back home to Nigeria.

He returned to Nigeria in September 2025, broke and in debt, owing over N3m to a friend from a business deal that collapsed while he was trapped in Asia. He now lives with his father, a stroke patient, and uses his younger brother’s phone. He cannot return to Maiduguri where many of his creditors live.

The day before our interview, his mother found him vomiting blood in his room.

“People thought it was food poisoning from Ramadan. It was not,” he said.

‘They said I will earn $1,500 monthly’

Sabiu’s experience is not an outlier. It sits within a rapidly expanding frontier of trafficking that NAPTIP’s Director-General, Binta Bello, flagged as a national emergency. In February 2026, NAPTIP repatriated 23 Nigerian youths from Thailand who had been trafficked for cyber-enabled crimes. Agency data showed 93 convictions in 2025 and over 2,500 interceptions of potential victims.

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The pipeline is industrial in scale and chillingly efficient in design; efficient enough to deliver 28-year-old Offor from a quiet life in Abia State into the dense humid jungles of Myanmar. Offor lost his father in January 2025. In April, while scrolling Facebook, he saw a sponsored advert for an online marketing job with a Chinese company called Tanjin in Thailand, offering $1,500 a month. He tapped the link, joined a WhatsApp group run by an admin called “Oscar,” and was interviewed on video by an Asian woman named “Mary” sitting at a professional-looking desk.

“She could speak English. She was Asian. She asked me my age, if I knew how to use a computer. I told her I could use Microsoft Word, a little of Excel too,” Offor said. He passed the interview. His mother, cautiously optimistic, told him, “Since the company says you are not going to spend any money, maybe you can try it.”

An agent called John, whom Offor would never meet, arranged his visa, NDLEA clearance and flight ticket. On September 5, 2025, Offor boarded an Ethiopian Airlines flight from Abuja to Bangkok. At Suvarnabhumi Airport, an immigration officer walked straight to him, holding up the selfie he had taken on the plane and sent to Oscar minutes before take-off.

“They will tell you to snap a picture of yourself and send at every point in the journey. It was when I reached the airport in Abuja that Oscar sent me my Visa and a token of $500.

“So in Thailand, this female officer showed me my picture. The same picture I took inside the plane. I was wearing this same white native,” he said, flapping the hem of his native wear. His passport was stamped without the standard interview and no questions were asked.

What followed was a 24-hour descent into the underworld. Over the course of 12 hours, Offor said was transferred between seven Toyota Hilux vehicles, each handover at an increasingly remote location, each new driver armed. Then he arrived at a small camp where, for the first time, he met others like him, trafficked from various countries, including a Nigerian couple. At dusk, the vehicles could go no further. The terrain had given way to swampy rice paddies and steep, muddy hills.

“We had to remove our slippers and go barefoot. You had to crawl up the hills. We broke sticks inside the bush to use as climbing hooks. These people, the guides, were doing it so easily. It was clearly their regular job,” Offor said.

They trekked for six hours through dense forest, across two rivers waist-deep, in total darkness, with armed guides who communicated only through hand signals and torch beams that vanished ahead if you fell behind. Several people sustained injuries from falls on the slippery terrain, he said. The Nigerian man he had befriended was exhausted. Offor kept encouraging him in Igbo: “We do not have any choice. If we run, where are we running to? Look at the distance we have driven.”

Offor said they arrived at CK Hills Hotel in Myanmar at 5am, caked in mud. At daybreak, a vehicle conveyed them from the hotel to a fenced compound guarded by soldiers he would later identify as the Democratic Karen Benevolent Army, a Karen ethnic armed group operating in Myanmar’s volatile border regions that the syndicate had contracted to provide military-grade security.

The DKBA soldiers carried rifles and machine guns, he narrated. They are one of several ethnic armed groups born out of Myanmar’s decades-long civil conflict which has splintered into factions, some of which have struck deals with Chinese-run criminal syndicates, providing armed protection in exchange for revenue.

Their presence meant that the facility was not merely a workplace for Offor and his colleagues but a militarised encampment from which escape was practically impossible. Inside, private security personnel wielded tasers and batons. Nearly a thousand people including Chinese, Nigerian, Indian, Pakistani, Ugandan, Kenyan were held there, each assigned a desktop computer, forced to execute fraud targeting wealthy foreigners.

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Ojogwu Godwin Chukwudi hailed from Delta State. A young talented personality, Alumnus of Delta State university,Abraka Studied Library and information science. He is an intellectual cyber communicator expert and a prolific blogger professional.

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NNPC Shocks Nigerians As Profit Skyrockets To N7.2tn, Remits N22.3tn

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October 1, 2026

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The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited recorded a 33 per cent increase in profit after tax, to N7.2tn in 2025, despite a decline in revenue amid falling crude oil prices and reduced product volumes.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, Bayo Ojulari, disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja during a media interaction to present the company’s 2025 audited financial results, achievements, and strategic vision.

Ojulari said the company’s profit after tax rose from N5.4tn in 2024 to N7.2tn in 2025, representing an increase of N1.8tn. Revenue stood at N34.5tn, while earnings per share reached N35.9. Taxes, royalties and other remittances to the government increased by 39 per cent to N22.3tn.

He said, “We have released the NNPC Limited 2025 audited financial results. I want to explain what they mean. What drove them and where we go from here. The central result is clear. Profit after tax rose 33 per cent, from N5.4tn in 2024 to N7.2tn in 2025. Revenue was N34.5tn. While taxes, royalties and other remittances to government rose 39 per cent to N22.3tn.”

Explaining the results, Ojulari said the company’s improved profitability came despite revenue pressures from lower international crude oil prices and reduced product volumes following changes in the domestic petroleum market.

“Revenue declined as crude oil prices fell for those, as you recall, in 2025. But we also had some decline that resulted from a wide product volume reduction. Following the market regulation, as you know, with the removal of subsidy,” he said.

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He added that operational improvements and financial discipline helped the national oil company increase its profit despite the challenging conditions.

“Yet, profit grew because we improved the way we operate. And we maintained discipline across our businesses,” Ojulari stated.

The results showed that the company’s profit growth outpaced the increase in government remittances, which rose by 39 per cent, while its operational performance also improved.

On production, Ojulari said crude oil and condensate output peaked at 1.77 million barrels per day, the highest level in five years. Nigerian gas supply also reached a three-year high of 7.2 billion standard cubic feet per day.

“These gains reflect sustained attention to our assets, infrastructure and our focus on delivering visible results,” he said.

According to the GCEO, the improved financial and operational performance would strengthen NNPC’s capacity to invest in its businesses, contribute to government revenue and support Nigeria’s energy security.

He, however, warned that the company must sustain the gains and improve its performance in subsequent years.

“The numbers matter because of what they enable. Stronger performance gives NNPC Limited more capacity to invest, more capacity to contribute to public revenue and strengthen Nigeria’s energy security. It also gives us higher standards to meet,” Ojulari said.

He added, “As we deliver exceptional results, the following year we strive to even beat those records.”

Ojulari said the improved results also raised expectations for the company, making it necessary to strengthen its capacity to sustain growth.

“So having a good performance is not just easy. It means that the bar has been set one level higher. So we now need to focus on building the capacity to deliver,” he said.

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The profit growth came despite revenue pressures from lower international crude oil prices and reduced product volumes following changes in the domestic petroleum market.

The figures indicate that NNPC improved its bottom-line performance even as its revenue came under pressure, although the company did not provide a breakdown of the contribution of individual business segments to the profit increase in the figures presented.

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Tragedy In Captivity: Kidnapped Farmer Delivers Baby As Bandits Demand N94m Ransom

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October 1, 2026

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One of the abducted 47 farmers in Tugan-Rimi, Mariga Local Government Area of Niger State, has been delivered of a child in captivity.

The chairman of Mariga LGA, Aliyu Bagga Muhammadu, confirmed the incident on Tuesday.

The 47 farmers were abducted, while harvesting groundnuts on their farms on Saturday, September 26, 2026.

According to Muhammadu, the bandits are demanding N94 million ransom from families of the abducted farmers.

He said that the bandits are demanding N2 million for each of the abductees.

“My local government is faced with a serious security challenge. The information at my disposal indicates that women were harvesting groundnuts on their farm, when bandits invaded the area and assembled them and took them away. They also saw some men working on their farms and took them away. But women formed the majority of those kidnapped. One of the women had given birth in Captivity,” he said.

He added that security operatives have been mobilized and are following the trail of the abductors to ensure the safe release of the victims.

He noted that the joint security operatives had earlier engaged the abductors around Kasuwan Garba and Beri axis during which one of the vigilantes sustained injuries.

It was further revealed that the armed men were reportedly seen moving through areas between Mangoro and Wamba after allegedly emerging from the Dogon Dawa axis.

The Spokesperson for the Niger State Police Command, SP Wasiu Abiodun, confirmed the incident, saying that over 20 people were kidnapped.

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“On 28th Sept 2026, a report indicated that on 27th Sept 2026 at about 3pm, suspected bandits abducted over twenty persons at Mukura village, Kasuwan-Garba District of Mariga LGA. Joint security rescue efforts are ongoing,” he said.

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Tinubu Makes Big Move For Nigerian Researchers – Seeks Senate Approval For National Research Fund

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October 1, 2026

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President Bola Tinubu on Tuesday transmitted the National Research and Development Fund (Establishment) Bill, 2026, to the Senate for consideration and passage into law.

The proposed legislation seeks to consolidate fragmented research and development funding across Ministries, Departments and Agencies into a central fund through which research institutions and academic bodies can access financing.

The letter transmitting the Bill was read by the President of the Senate, Senator Godswill Akpabio, during plenary.

Akpabio said the Senate would expedite consideration of the proposal to facilitate its passage.

In the letter, Tinubu said the proposed fund would improve research financing, promote collaboration among research agencies, academia and the private sector, and ensure that funding was directed towards strategic national priorities.

The President said the Bill was designed to “consolidate research financing, ensure more efficient utilization of resources” and bring fragmented research and development funds across MDAs under one central mechanism.

The letter partly read, “The Bill is prepared in a bid to consolidate research financing, ensure more efficient utilization of resources, and to consolidate the fragmented Research and Development Funds across Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) into the National Research and Development Fund to serve as a central mechanism through which research agencies and academic institutions can access funding.

“The establishment of the National Research and Development Fund will serve as a competitive central funding mechanism. It seeks to foster strategic collaboration among research agencies, academia and the private sector.

“Going further, the Bill establishes the National Research and Development Fund as an Agency under the supervision of the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Science and Technology, with direct funding from the Nigerian Content Development Fund.”

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Continuing, Tinubu said the proliferation of research institutions, each operating with separate mandates and budgetary allocations, had made it necessary to improve the management of available resources for the development of science, technology and innovation.

The President said the Bill had been reviewed by relevant stakeholders, including the Ministries of Education, Innovation, Science and Technology, and Justice.

“It is pertinent to note that with the current proliferation of research institutions and agencies operating within the research and development commercialization landscape, each agency operates with a separate mandate and budgetary allocations.

“In consequence of the above, the National Research and Development Fund (Establishment) Bill, 2026 is hereby forwarded to the Senate for legislative action by the National Assembly.

“While it is my hope that the Senate will consider the Bill and its passage into law expeditiously, please accept, Distinguished Senate President, Distinguished Senators, the assurances of my highest consideration,” he stated.

Tinubu said the review was aimed at ensuring that the proposed legislation aligned with national education and scientific innovation priorities.

The President also urged the Senate to consider and pass the Bill expeditiously.

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74-Year-Old Ex-Kogi Senator Stuns Many As He Weds 18-Year-Old Lover

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Former Kogi Senator, 74, finds love again, weds 18-year-old lady

Former Kogi State Senator, Dangana Ocheja, 74, has found love again in the arms of an 18-year-old lady, Winifred.

According to businessman Isaac Fayose, who congratulated the couple via social media, the bride is Senator Ocheja’s granddaughter’s best friend.

The couple had their white wedding on September 19 in Abuja while their traditional wedding held on September 13.

Sen. Emmanuel Dangana Ocheja, a lawyer-turned politician represented Kogi East senatorial district in the 7th National Assembly (2011-2015)!and a member of the All Progressives Congress.

Congrats to them!

Former Kogi Senator, 74, finds love again, weds 18-year-old lady
Former Kogi Senator, 74, finds love again, weds 18-year-old lady
Former Kogi Senator, 74, finds love again, weds 18-year-old lady
Former Kogi Senator, 74, finds love again, weds 18-year-old lady

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Tinubu Drops NDDC 2026 Budget Bombshell to Reps

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President Bola Tinubu has forwarded the 2026 statutory budget proposal of the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) to the House of Representatives for consideration and passage.

The proposal was contained in a letter dated August 20, 2026, addressed to the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Tajudeen Abbas, and received by the National Assembly on September 24, 2026.

In the letter, Tinubu said the budget proposal was prepared by the Minister of Niger Delta Development in line with Section 121 of the 1999 Constitution, which provides for the submission of budget estimates for consideration by the National Assembly.

The President said the proposal was based on the NDDC’s revenue and expenditure projections and aligned with the fiscal and developmental policies of the Federal Government as well as the Renewed Hope Agenda.

He added that the proposal also took into consideration the 2024–2026 Economic Recovery Growth Plan and key assumptions underpinning the 2026 Appropriation Act.

According to Tinubu, the NDDC’s 2026 spending priorities would focus on sectors considered critical to improving living conditions and reducing poverty in the Niger Delta.

He listed youth empowerment, energy and power supply, education, industrial and enterprise development, healthcare, security and increased agricultural productivity as areas of priority.

“The House of Representatives is invited to note that the NDDC is prioritising improvement in Youth Empowerment, Energy and Power Supply, Education, Industrial and Enterprise Development, Health, Security and increased productivity in Agriculture in order to lift a significant number of our citizens out of poverty,” the President said.

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Tinubu expressed confidence that the House would give the proposal timely consideration and passage.
The submission comes as the National Assembly begins consideration of statutory budget proposals from government agencies ahead of the 2026 fiscal year.

The NDDC is responsible for coordinating development interventions across the nine Niger Delta states, with its programmes covering infrastructure, human capital development, health, education, agriculture and other sectors.

 

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SHOCKING: Edo Governor Reveals He Started Casting Out Demons At Age 17

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September 29, 2026

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The Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, has said he started casting out demons at the age of 17 or 18, while linking his early religious experience to his stance against insecurity and cultism in the state.

Okpebholo made the remark during a Sunday service at The VOTAGE Church, also known as The Voice of This Age, at the WINLOS Centre in Benin City. The video of his remarks resurfaced and began trending on social media on Tuesday.

Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo
Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo, Reverend Ohis and his wife Pastor Anwinli Ojeikere. Photo credit: Instagram | The VOTAGE

“When I see young ones standing in the presence of God, I remember at the age of 17/18, I’ve also started casting out demons,” Okpebholo said.

He added, “So fighting insecurity, most especially cultism, is not a new thing to me. It’s something that has been happening.”

The VOTAGE Church confirmed the governor’s attendance at the service in a post on Instagram on Sunday, saying it was honoured to host him.

Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo
Monday Okpebholo during a prayer session. Photo credit: Instagram | The VOTAGE

The church said the service was a time of prayer for the “peace, progress and prosperity of Edo State,” and thanked the governor for worshipping with the congregation.

Edo State Governor, Monday Okpebholo
Monday Okpebholo. Photo credit: Instagram | The VOTAGE

Okpebholo also confirmed his attendance in a post on X, saying he worshipped at Living Faith Church on Sapele Road before later attending The VOTAGE Church in Benin City.

He said the congregation prayed for the continued peace and protection of Edo State, wisdom and strength for those entrusted with leadership, and God’s blessings on the people and families in the state.

READ ALSO:  Federal High Court Dismisses Suit Challenging Eze Nri Succession, Upholds Nri Regency (See Details)

Watch video here:

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Police Arrest Man Producing Fake Dry Gin In Akwa Ibom

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September 28, 2026

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The Akwa Ibom State Police Command has arrested a 40-year-old man for alleged production and distribution of adulterated alcoholic beverages and recovered five cartons of suspected fake dry gin in Ikot Ekpene.

The suspect, identified as Ubong Ntiense, a native of Ibiaku Village in Ibiono Ibom Local Government Area and resident along Abak Road, was arrested on September 26, 2026, at about 1:45 pm by operatives of the command during a stop-and-search operation along Aba Road.

In a statement by the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Timfon John, made available to journalists on Monday, the police said the suspect was intercepted while allegedly conveying the products to Essien Udim Local Government Area for delivery.

The statement read, “The Akwa Ibom State Police Command has intensified its ongoing crackdown on the production, distribution and circulation of counterfeit and adulterated alcoholic beverages across the State, with the arrest of a 40-year-old man and the recovery of five cartons of suspected fake/adulterated dry gin in Ikot Ekpene.

“The suspect, identified as Ubong Ntiense, aged 40 years, a native of Ibiaku Village, Ibiono Ibom Local Government Area, and resident along Abak Road, was arrested on 26 September 2026 at about 1345 hours by operatives of the Command.”

The police said a thorough search led to the recovery of five cartons of suspected adulterated dry gin bearing the fake label, “Pointers Special Dry Gin”, with each carton containing 24 bottles, bringing the total to 120 bottles.

According to the police, the suspect and the recovered exhibits were taken to the station for preliminary investigation, where he allegedly confessed to being involved in the production of the fake alcoholic drinks.

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The police spokesman said following his confession, operatives secured and executed a search warrant at his residence and premises, where substances and materials allegedly used in the production of the adulterated drinks were recovered as exhibits.

“Based on information obtained during the investigation, Police operatives secured and executed a search warrant at the suspect’s residence and premises, where substances and other materials allegedly used in the production of the adulterated drinks were recovered as exhibits”, part of the statement said.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, CP Baba Azare, directed that the investigation be conducted thoroughly and professionally, with a view to identifying other persons connected to the production and circulation of the counterfeit products.

The commissioner described the production and distribution of adulterated alcoholic beverages as a serious public safety concern, noting that unsuspecting members of the public may consume such products without knowledge of their contents or origin.

He warned individuals, distributors, retailers and organised networks involved in the manufacture, transportation or sale of counterfeit drinks to desist immediately, stressing that the command would continue to deploy intelligence-led operations and surveillance to disrupt such activities.

The CP urged members of the public to exercise caution when purchasing alcoholic beverages and promptly report suspicious production or distribution activities to the police or relevant regulatory agencies.

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Innocent Man K!lled In Ogun After Being Mistaken For Cultist

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September 28, 2026

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Man k!lled after being mistaken for cultist in Ogun

A man identified simply as Seyi has been killed by suspected cultists who allegedly mistook him for a member of a rival group at Ijako Market in Owode-Ijako, Ogun State.

The incident reportedly occurred on Wednesday, September 23, when suspected cult members stormed the area in search of another man identified as Dammy. A police source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to comment publicly, told Punch the attackers arrived at a location behind the market and opened fire on Seyi.

“We got a report that the incident happened just behind the market. Some boys came to the market looking for a certain target. They got to the spot where the boys were, and they shot the victim,” the source said. The source also said the incident was believed to be connected to the drug trade, adding that police had begun investigating the killing and were working to identify and arrest those responsible.

An anti-cultism advocacy platform, Naija Confra, separately alleged that the attackers had been searching for Dammy when Seyi was killed. The group claimed Seyi was also attacked with an axe after being shot. “It was reported that as soon as the NBM attackers arrived, they echoed ‘Aye Axemen’ and mentioned Dammy’s name before someone was killed,” the platform said. “People initially thought it was Dammy who had been killed until they saw the body and realised it was Seyi.”

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Nationwide Health Crisis Looms As Resident Doctors Issue 2-Week Strike Notice to FG

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1 week ago

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September 28, 2026

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Resident doctors give FG 2-week strike notice to meet their demands

The National Association of Resident Doctors has given the Federal Government two weeks to resolve outstanding welfare and professional issues affecting its members, warning that failure to act could lead to industrial action. The ultimatum was contained in resolutions reached at NARD’s 46th Annual General Meeting in Calabar and presented by the association’s National President, Dr Emmanuel Ogar.

The resident doctors expressed concern over what they described as the slow implementation of agreements previously reached with the Federal Government, saying the prolonged delays had become unacceptable. NARD demanded urgent action on remuneration, career progression, professional allowances, excessive workload, manpower shortages and the general welfare of resident doctors. The association called for the immediate implementation of agreements reached with the government, particularly those relating to improved conditions of service and professional development.

It also urged the government to conclude the review of existing remuneration and professional salary structures for doctors, arguing that the current framework no longer adequately reflects prevailing economic conditions. NARD demanded appropriate compensation for doctors handling additional responsibilities because of manpower shortages in hospitals.

The association called for standardised templates for calculating compensation for excess workload, as well as reliable data to support payments to doctors performing duties beyond their normal responsibilities. It also raised concerns about attacks on healthcare workers and called for the full implementation of policies and anti-assault measures designed to protect doctors and other medical personnel in health facilities.

NARD said the continued migration of doctors and other healthcare professionals from Nigeria had worsened existing manpower shortages and increased pressure on those remaining in the country. The association urged the Federal Ministry of Health and Social Welfare to urgently address factors contributing to the migration of medical professionals.

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State governments were also urged to prioritise the welfare of doctors and other healthcare workers employed by their institutions and ensure the implementation of relevant welfare policies. NARD called for improved infrastructure, adequate medical equipment and better working conditions in healthcare institutions, saying these measures were necessary to improve patient safety and healthcare delivery.

The association also urged the National Assembly to strengthen budgetary provisions for healthcare, stressing that adequate funding remained critical to addressing challenges facing the sector. It demanded the prompt payment of salaries and other entitlements owed to house officers and called for their inclusion in relevant welfare arrangements.

On the use of electronic clocking systems in hospitals, NARD said it was not opposed to the technology provided it was properly implemented and used to support accurate data management rather than as a punitive measure against medical personnel. The association said several agreements and commitments made by the Federal Government remained unresolved despite repeated meetings and assurances.

It therefore urged the government to use the two-week window to address the outstanding issues and prevent a breakdown of industrial harmony in the health sector. NARD said resolving the disputes would improve doctors’ welfare, reduce burnout and ultimately enhance the quality of healthcare available to Nigerians.

The association also elected new national officers at the meeting, with Dr Emmanuel Ogar emerging as president alongside other members of the National Executive Council. NARD urged the new leadership to pursue the implementation of its resolutions and maintain engagement with the government towards securing improved conditions of service for resident doctors.

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