Tag Archives: nigeria

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigeria’s two main presidential candidates on Wednesday staked their claim for the country’s top job, with one month to go to polling in Africa’s most populous nation. President Muhammadu Buhari and Atiku Abubakar both staged set-piece meetings to secure the support of a record 84 …

Kano, Nigeria | AFP | Seven people were killed when Boko Haram fighters attacked a military base in remote northeast Nigeria, setting fire to shelters for those displaced by the conflict, military and humanitarian sources told AFP Tuesday. The attack in Rann, some 175 kilometres (110 miles) northeast of the Borno state capital, Maiduguri, began …

Lagos, Nigeria | AFP | In Nigeria, where religious and ethnic identity often determines support for a candidate, Mudi Bawa might well have been expected to vote for Muhammadu Buhari in 2015. Both are northern Muslims. But the fisherman had another reason to choose Buhari: the hope he could help him return to the home …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigeria’s chief justice, Walter Onnoghen, was absent Monday from the first day of his fiercely-disputed trial overshadowed by the country’s upcoming elections. Onnoghen had been scheduled to attend the Code of Conduct Tribunal, a special court set up to enforce ethical conduct among holders of public office. Last week he was …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigeria’s most senior judge was on Saturday charged with failing to declare his assets, in a move the main opposition party said triggered alarm bells as elections approach next month. Chief Justice of Nigeria Walter Samuel Nkanu Onnoghen will appear before a panel of three …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | The head of a Nigerian presidential anti-corruption body has said charges will be brought against football officials for allegedly misappropriating public funds. Okoi Obono-Obla disclosed that the body was in the process of finalising charges and that a “prima facie case” had been established. “We …

Warri, Nigeria | AFP | Nigerian police on Saturday said many people were feared dead after a petrol tanker veered off the road, caught fire and exploded as people tried to recover fuel. The vehicle crashed in the Odukpani area of the southeastern state of Cross River, just north of the state capital, Calabar, at …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday said he was confident of winning a second term of office at polls next month. The 76-year-old former military ruler, from the All Progressives Congress (APC) party, is one of 73 candidates on the ballot at the February 16 poll. His main challenger is …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Nigerian troops were back in a strategic town on the shores of Lake Chad, military and civilian sources said Thursday, after Boko Haram attacks forced tens of thousands to flee. Fighters from the self-styled Islamic State West Africa Province overran a naval base and another housing troops from a regional …

Abuja, Nigeria | AFP | Boko Haram fighters have told civilians in northeast Nigeria to leave their homes, the army said on Thursday, as tensions mount in the long-running conflict. Army spokesman Onyema Nwachukwu said there was “credible information” the jihadists had “infiltrated some villages” near the Borno state capital Maiduguri. “They have clandestinely been …