Gov. Peter Mbah of Enugu State, on Friday, inaugurated the Enugu State Human Development Council at the Government House. He stressed that human capital remains the true wealth of any nation and a core priority of his administration. The Council is chaired by the Deputy Governor, Ifeanyi Ossai, and includes State Executive Council members and heads of MDAs.

Also represented are the legislature, local governments, traditional rulers, church leaders, and civil society organisations. Mbah explained the Council aligns with his government’s emphasis on human development and social investment. He urged the members to take the task seriously and work towards tangible outcomes. “One of our top priorities is eradicating poverty and reducing the poverty headcount to zero,” Mbah noted. He added that the government’s philosophy prioritises human capital over natural resources. “Our last two budgets allocated over 50 per cent to social services,” the governor stated. In his response, Ossai assured the governor of members’ commitment to the Council’s goals. He emphasised that all government initiatives — from schools to roads — are people-focused. “All our projects aim to improve lives, and the Council will help us track and measure progress,” Ossai said. (NAN)

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has urged the Federal Government to honour the 2009 FG/ASUU agreement or face a nationwide industrial action. ASUU President, Chris Piwuna, issued this warning during a news conference in Abuja on Friday. He stressed the importance of the government fulfilling its promises and addressing the worsening conditions in Nigerian universities.

According to Piwuna, nine critical issues remain unresolved, including the stalled renegotiation process since 2017. He mentioned withheld salaries from the 2022 strike and unpaid entitlements linked to the contentious Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS). Piwuna also criticised the delayed release of revitalisation funds and earned academic allowances due to government inaction. In spite of promises to inject ₦150 billion into universities and adjust irregular allowances by 2026, he said these commitments remain unfulfilled. He highlighted the marginalisation of ASUU members at state institutions such as Kogi State University and Lagos State University. According to him, victimisation, salary denial, and job insecurity persist in those universities, undermining staff morale. On university autonomy, he said political interference has compromised the selection of leaders, citing Nnamdi Azikiwe and Abuja universities as examples. Piwuna warned that universities are becoming battlegrounds for political and economic interests, which he described as unacceptable. He called for a national rebirth through education, saying it is vital for Nigeria’s transformation and prosperity. To address the crisis, he proposed a national education summit focusing on funding, autonomy, and academic welfare. “Education empowers citizens, drives innovation, and instils values. Without it, development is impossible,” Piwuna said. He reaffirmed ASUU’s commitment to reforming Nigerian universities and urged patriotic Nigerians and global allies to support their struggle. “Our universities should be centres for solutions to national challenges. “We are open to dialogue but will not tolerate further erosion of our rights,” Piwuna said. (NAN

The Tinubu Media Support Group (TMSG) has described the personal invitation to President Bola Tinubu by Pope Leo XIV to attend his inauguration as a reflection of Nigeria’s great stature in the comity of nations.Mr Emeka Nwankpa, the Chairman of TMSG, in a statement on Saturday, said Tinubu was the first Nigerian President to attend a Papal inauguration in recent memory.

“When the Presidency announced that President Tinubu would be attending the inauguration of the Catholic Pontiff, Pope Leo XIV, it did mention that the Papal invitation by the Vatican Secretary of State, Cardinal Pietro Parolin, underscored the need for the President’s physical presence. “For us, it represents the importance that the Vatican accorded the President and the country in the scheme of things, especially as the inauguration ceremony was to be Pope Leo’s first interaction with world leaders.“Indeed, the Pope had a brief interaction with all the international leaders in attendance, including President Tinubu, US Vice President J.D. Vance and President Volodymyr Zelensky of Ukraine,” said the group.According to TMSG, Tinubu’s presence at the Pope’s inauguration is the first time in 20 years that a Nigerian leader would be attending a Papal inauguration.“In 2005, when Pope Benedict XVI was inaugurated, there is nothing on record to show that the then President Olusegun Obasanjo, a Christian, was at the event even though Nigeria had a delegation in attendance that year.“When Pope Francis celebrated his papal inauguration in March 2013, the Nigerian delegation was headed by the then Senate President, David Mark, who delivered former President Goodluck Jonathan’s congratulatory letter to the Pope.“But in President Tinubu, we had a Muslim, who not only accepted the Papal invitation, but also attended and told newsmen that his presence was consistent with the true sense of achieving unity in diversity,” said TMSG.The group said this was reassuring, more so as some Christians in Nigeria had expressed reservations about peaceful coexistence and religious harmony as a result of the President’s Muslim-Muslim ticket in the 2023 election.“We, however, note that in the course of President Tinubu’s meeting with members of the Catholic Bishops’ Conference of Nigeria, he reaffirmed his commitment to using ‘our diversity, not for adversity but for prosperity.’“It is also a good development that the head of the Catholic Bishop’s Conference acknowledged the President’s action in facilitating their attendance at Pope Francis’ funeral as well as the inauguration of Pope Leo,” TMSG stated.The group expressed hope that many more Nigerians would appreciate the president as a fair-minded leader, contrary to the pre-election impression sold to them by the opposition. (NAN)