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Akpabio Unveils Counter Terrorism Strategic Plan 2025 – 2030

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By Eze Okechukwu, Abuja

The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio yesterday formally unveiled Nigeria’s Counter Terrorism Strategic Plan 2025 – 2030.

The Strategic Plan was put together by the National Counter Terrorism Centre in the Office of the National Security Adviser.

In his Keynote address, Akpabio said the occasion was not merely the launch of another policy document but a defining moment in the nation’s journey.

“It is a moment when Nigeria again reaffirms that our people deserve to live without fear, that our children deserve a future of peace, and that our nation must be secured to prosper,” he said.

The Senate President remarked that every generation faced a question that history demanded it must answer.

“For ours, the question is clear: How do we secure our nation, safeguard our people and set Nigeria irreversibly on the path of peace, growth and stability?

“The Strategic Plan 2025 – 2030 answers this question with vision, discipline and ambition. It offers a framework for transforming our institutions, modernising our security architecture, strengthening national resilience and expanding partnerships across government, industry, civil society and the international community”

“As President of the Senate, I have seen how insecurity weakens the foundations of development. Investors withdraw, schools close, farmers abandon their fields, and hope retreats from the hearts of our young people. That is why a pragmatic, forward-looking and implementation-driven plan such as this is timely, necessary and welcome.

“While security is a constitutional responsibility shared by all arms of government, the legislature has a unique obligation — to provide the legal, oversight and budgetary backbone upon which security institutions stand and thrive.

“The 10th National Assembly has taken this duty seriously. We have enacted far-reaching laws in defence, policing, intelligence coordination, cybersecurity and counter-terrorism.

“We have strengthened agency mandates, promoted inter-agency synergy and championed better welfare for those who risk their lives daily so that Nigeria and Nigerians could be secure in their homes, hopeful in their communities, and proud to raise children in a country where safety is not a privilege, but a guarantee.

“But legislation alone cannot secure our country. We must invest in people, technology, training and strategic partnerships.

“We must replace short-term firefighting with long-term planning. That is why this Strategic Plan matters — because it translates intent into action and action into measurable results.

“It recognises that security is not the duty of the government alone, but a shared responsibility of citizens, communities, traditional institutions, the private sector, and international allies. It stands out because it reflects a Whole-of-Government and Whole-of-Society approach,” Akpabio said.

In his message at the occasion, the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu who was represented by the Coordinator of the National Counter-Terrorism Centre, Major General Adamu Laka said the Strategic Plan that was unveiled is a product of extensive research, inter-agency collaboration and consultations across government Ministries, security institutions, academia, civil societies and international partners.

He said the vision is to establish the National Counter Terrorism Centre as a regional centre of excellence in countering terrorism and violent extremism in West Africa and the Sahel.

Education

JAMB Breaks New Ground, Allows Home Upload of O’Level Results

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Candidates seeking admission into Nigerian tertiary institutions can now upload and verify their O’Level results from the comfort of their homes, following a new initiative by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB).

Under the new arrangement, candidates will no longer need to visit Computer-Based Test (CBT) centres solely to upload their Senior Secondary School Certificate Examination (SSCE) results, as JAMB will verify the results directly with the examination bodies, beginning with the West African Examinations Council (WAEC).

In a statement on Monday in Abuja, JAMB’s Acting Director, Public Affairs and Protocol, Dr.

Fabian Benjamin, said the Board would continue to deploy technology and collaborate with examination and government agencies to simplify its services and make them more accessible to candidates.

According to him, the initiative was part of its renewed commitment to making its services “easier, faster, safer and more convenient” for candidates.

He said the integration of its e-Facility platform with examination bodies would enable candidates’ results to be verified against the records of the issuing bodies before being downloaded into their profiles.

The new system is also expected to address problems associated with manual O’Level result uploads, including misplaced or mixed-up paper results, presentation of fraudulent or unverified certificates and errors in the manual entry of subjects and grades.

The examination body said the initiative would particularly ease pressure on CBT centres during periods of high patronage and help reduce the effect of network challenges and long queues.

The statement reads: “Consequently, candidates can now upload their O’Level results from the comfort of their homes, while the Board undertakes the verification of such results directly with the issuing examination bodies.

“The initiative is part of the Board’s renewed commitment to making services easier, faster, safer and more convenient for candidates. By using technology to reduce unnecessary visits to CBT centres, queues and manual processes, JAMB is putting candidate ease of service delivery at the centre of its operations.

“The new arrangement also addresses challenges associated with manual O’Level result uploads, including misplaced or mixed-up paper results, presentation of unverified or fraudulent results, and errors in the manual entry of subjects and grades. Through the integration of JAMB’s eFacility platform with examination bodies, results can now be verified directly against the examination body’s records before being downloaded into the candidate’s profile.”

To use the new service, candidates are required to visit its website, enter their National Identification Number (NIN) and select the number of examination sittings and relevant examination body or bodies.

After providing their email address and GSM number, candidates are required to pay for the verification using a debit card or bank transfer before entering their examination number, examination series and examination year.

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Tinubu Mourns Ogogo, Extols His Creative Legacy

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President Bola Tinubu has condoled with the family, friends and colleagues of veteran Nollywood actor, filmmaker and screenwriter Taiwo Hassan, popularly known as Ogogo, who died after decades in acting.

Tinubu described the late actor as a distinguished artiste whose decades-long career contributed significantly to the growth of Yoruba-language theatre and Nigerian cinema, particularly through memorable performances.

The President’s condolence message is contained in a statement issued by his Presidential Spokesperson, Bayo Onanuga, on Monday in Abuja.

Tinubu said Ogogo’s body of work would remain an important part of Nigeria’s cultural history, while his mentorship of younger artistes further strengthened his enduring legacy in Nollywood.

He said that through his distinctive acting style, powerful screen presence and dedication to his craft, Ogogo entertained generations while promoting Yoruba culture and Nigeria’s diverse cultural heritage.

“Alhaji Taiwo Hassan was a gifted artiste who used his talent to tell Nigerian stories, preserve our cultural heritage and entertain audiences at home and abroad.

“His passing is a great loss to his family, the Yoruba film industry, Nollywood and the entire Nigerian creative community.

“On behalf of the Federal Government, I extend my heartfelt condolences to his family, colleagues, friends and millions of admirers,” Tinubu said.

The President urged members of the creative industry and Nigerians to honour Ogogo’s memory by preserving and building on the cultural values and artistic traditions to which he devoted himself.

Tinubu also prayed for the peaceful repose of the late actor’s soul and strength for his family and loved ones, describing his death as an irreparable loss to those closest to him.

“I pray that Almighty Allah will grant him eternal rest and give his loved ones the strength to bear this irreparable loss,” Tinubu said.

Ogogo worked as a mechanic with the Ogun State Water Corporation for about 13 years before gaining prominence in acting and becoming a notable figure in Yoruba cinema.

He began acting in 1981 while combining the profession with his mechanic job, eventually leaving the employment in 1994 to pursue acting as a full-time career.

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Nigeria Upgrading its Digital, Intelligence-led Border Management System — NIS

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Nigeria is strengthening its border management architecture through digital technology, biometric identity systems, intelligence sharing and stronger collaboration with border communities.

The Comptroller-General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Kemi Nandap, made this known at the African Borderlands Research Network (ABORNE) 2026 conference on Monday in Lagos.

She said the transformation was necessary as changing migration patterns, regional integration, cross-border economic activities and emerging security threats continue to reshape Africa’s borderlands.

The conference, with theme: “The Connected Borderlands: Socio-Cultural Integration and the Centrality of Policy, Research, and Security,” brought together scholars, policymakers, practitioners and development partners.

The stakeholders examined the changing nature of border management across Africa.

According to Nandap, borders should no longer be viewed merely as geographical lines separating sovereign states, but as dynamic spaces where families, communities and cultures interact and where legitimate trade and movement take place.

She said the challenge for governments was to keep these spaces secure while facilitating lawful mobility, strengthening regional cooperation and preserving the socio-cultural and economic relationships that sustain border communities.

She noted that the nature of border security had also evolved, with threats such as human trafficking, migrant smuggling, identity fraud, organised crime, terrorism and cyber-enabled crimes increasingly operating across national boundaries.

The NIS boss said that the service was therefore combining the experience and professional judgment of its officers with technology, intelligence and stronger institutional cooperation to respond to emerging threats.

She outlined Nigeria’s progression in modern border management, recalling that the country became the first African nation to introduce the electronic passport in 2007.

She said Nigeria had subsequently introduced an enhanced e-Passport with stronger security and biometric features, while automating passport applications, payment systems, processing and identity verification.

According to her, the centralisation of passport personalisation has also improved the integrity and efficiency of passport production.

She further said Nigeria’s participation in the International Civil Aviation Organization’s Public Key Directory (ICAO PKD) was strengthening international confidence in the authentication of Nigerian electronic passports.

She noted that contactless biometric passport services were making passport processes more accessible to Nigerians living abroad while maintaining required security standards.

The comptroller-general also highlighted the deployment of automated border control systems, including e-gates, at Nigeria’s international airports.

He said the systems were transforming passenger processing by combining biometric identity verification with faster, more efficient and secure border procedures.

These measures, she said, are being complemented by investments in surveillance systems, command and control capabilities, communications infrastructure, and integrated border and data platforms covering Nigeria’s air, land and maritime borders.

She stressed, however, that the investments were not about technology for its own sake.

The NIS boss also emphasised the continued importance of the human element in border management, saying technology could not replace professionalism, experience, judgment and integrity.

She called for greater involvement of border communities, describing them as strategic partners whose local knowledge could contribute significantly to effective border management.

The Chairman of ABORNE, Prof. Paul Nugent said emerging health threats such as Ebola, COVID-19 and regional insurgencies routinely placed borders at the center of political and security interventions.

He said that these often lead to prolonged closures.

Nugent said that bridging academia and policy, ABORNE aimed to move beyond isolated academic debate by actively engaging border enforcement agencies, policymakers, and field practitioners.

He said that in reframing African borderlands, rather than viewing borders purely through the lens of instability or poor reputation, ABORNE scholars emphasise borderlands as vibrant hubs of trade, urban innovation, and cultural creativity.

Prof. Anthony Asiwaju, a former Director of the Centre for African Regional Integration and Border Studies, commended the ABORNE conference.

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