NEWS
Shettima Arrives New York for 79th UNGA

Vice-President Kashim Shettima has arrived in New York to represent Nigeria at the 79th United Nations General Assembly (UNGA).Mr Stanley Nkwocha, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media & Communications (Office of The Vice President), made this known in a statement on Monday.
According to Nkwocha, Shettima touched down at John F. Kennedy International Airport, New York in the early hours of Monday. He said on arrival, the vice-president was received by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar; and Minister of Communications, Innovation & Digital Economy, Dr Bosun Tijani.Others were the Director-General of the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Kashifu Inuwa; Nigerian diplomats, UN officials and many others.Nkwocha said as directed by President Bola Tinubu, Shettima would lead Nigeria’s delegation to this year’s UNGA.He added that the vice-president would deliver Nigeria’s national statement and participate in various high-level meetings.The 79th session of UNGA marks a crucial milestone in the global effort to accelerate progress towards the 17 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).The highly anticipated Summit of the Future, held during UNGA, underscores the urgent need for enhanced international cooperation.It us to address pressing challenges such as climate change, poverty and inequality, while also tackling the impacts of ongoing conflicts and global health crises.The UN Department of Global Communications will hold its flagship SDG Media Zone during the high-level week 23-27 September, with impactful in-depth interviews and dialogues on global issues that matter to people everywhere.The Heads of State and Government will gather at UN Headquarters in New York on 22-23 Sept. to address the critical challenges and gaps in global governance exposed by recent global shocks.The summit aims to reaffirm commitments to the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) and the UN Charter while enhancing cooperation and laying the foundations for a reinvigorated multilateral system.The summit will result in a negotiated Pact for the Future, an action-oriented document aimed to bolster global cooperation and adapt to current challenges effectively for the benefit of all and for future generations.In addition, the Secretary-General of the United Nations is convening the Summit of the Future Action Days on 20 and 21 September to generate additional opportunities for the engagement of all the actors. (NAN)NEWS
Diri Campaigns Against Drug Abuse, Trafficking

From Mike Tayese, Yenagoa
Bayelsa State Governor, Sen. Douye Diri yesterday, led a campaign against drug abuse and illicit trafficking as part of activities commemorating the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking.
Diri advised people of the state, particularly the youths, to shun hard drugs and trafficking of illicit substances, saying they were harmful to their health and to the society.
The Bayelsa governor, who spoke shortly after the weekly Prosperity Walk exercise at the Samson Siasia Sports Complex in Yenagoa, also urged youths to develop themselves by acquiring a skill and work towards actualising their God-given potential.
“We just completed a nine to 10km walk, which is a test of our fitness. As it is said, health is wealth.
“Today is the International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking. We are not only observing the global campaign, we are also leading it here in Bayelsa.
“No one in his right senses goes to commit crime and violent acts except that individuals are under the influence of hard drugs. My advice to youths is to be self-confident, have the fear of God and develop your innate potential for you to become a star.”
He implored youths to emulate the shining example of a Bayelsa-born United States-based athlete, Victory Godah, who was discovered through the state’s sports programmes.
He commended her gesture of donating sporting equipment as a way of giving back to the state.
“Victory Godah from Ekeremor local government area was discovered here and because of her skill, she is now at the University of Minnesota, United States. She has given back to the state through sports equipment so that more of us can have that access.”
In his remarks, the Commissioner for Health, Prof. Seiyefa Brisibe, emphasised the importance of the weekly walk, stating that participants above 40 years would have their blood pressure controlled after taking about 5,000 steps.
Also, state chairman of the Drug Abuse, Addiction, Prevention and Rehabilitation Committee, Dr Peter Owonaro, said the committee’s outreach in the state had been a huge success, noting that a recent research indicated that the drug abuse prevalence rate in Bayelsa dropped by five per cent from 21.4 per cent.
Also, the state commander of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA), Kanu Sunny, lauded the state government for its unprecedented support in the fight against drug abuse and trafficking.
He said the campaign was taken to secondary schools as well as tertiary institutions and encouraged all to join in the war against the menace.
Foreign News
Ally of Cameroon President, 92, Quits ‘Broken’ Government to Challenge Him

Issa Tchiroma Bakary – a prominent minister and long-time ally of President Paul Biya – has quit Cameroon’s government, in the hope of ending 92-year-old Biya’s four-decade grip on power in upcoming elections.
Just four months before the central African nation went to the polls, Tchiroma said the Biya administration he belonged to had “broken” public trust and he was switching to a rival party.
“A country cannot exist in the service of one man,” he said on Wednesday.
While he was communications minister, Tchiroma notably came under fire for denying – then backtracking on his denial – that Cameroonian soldiers had killed women and children in a viral video.
His other roles during almost two decades in government include being a spokesman for the Biya government, and, until his resignation on Tuesday, he was employment minister.
Paul Biya – the world’s oldest head of state – has yet to confirm if he will attempt an eighth term as president. Last year, the country banned reports on the president’s health following rumours he had died.
As this election approaches, high unemployment and soaring living costs are of concern to many Cameroonians, as are corruption and security. A separatist insurgency in the English-speaking provinces as well as jihadists operating in the northernmost region have forced many thousands of Cameroonians from their homes in the past decade.
Cracks in Tchiroma’s relationship with President Biya were blown open earlier this month, when he told crowds in his home city of Garoua that Biya’s time in power had not benefited them in any way.
Tchiroma, widely reported to be 75, continued this criticism in a 24-page manifesto released a day after his resignation – promising to dismantle “the old system” so that Cameroon could move beyond “abuse, contempt, and the confiscation of power”.
One of his proposed solutions is federalism – he is offering to hold a referendum on devolving more power to Cameroon’s 10 provinces. This has long been mooted by many as a solution to the country’s so-called Anglophone crisis.
Specifically addressing English-speaking Cameroonians, who have long complained of marginalisation and discrimination in Francophone-dominated public institutions, he said “you do not need people to speak for you – you need to be listened to” and that “centralisation has failed”.
Tchiroma also used his manifesto to say Cameroon “has been ruled for decades by the same vision, the same system. This model, long presented as a safeguard of stability, has gradually stifled progress, paralysed our institutions, and broken the bond of trust between the state and its citizens”.
As the October presidential election approaches, rights groups have condemned the government’s crackdown on dissent.
Shortly after Tchiroma announced his plans to run for the presidency, the government reportedly announced a ban on all political activities by his Cameroon National Salvation Front (CNSF) party in a sub-district of the Far North region – a part of the country where he is said to be an influential power-broker.
Weeks earlier, fellow presidential hopeful Maurice Kamto had his movements curtailed during a two-day police stakeout in Douala, after promising supporters at a rally in Paris that he would protect Biya and his family if he wins in October.
Parliamentary elections that were also supposed to take place earlier this year have been delayed until 2026.
Reaction to Tchiroma’s presidential bid has been mixed – some think he is canny.
“By positioning himself as the elder statesman who ‘saw the fire coming’, Tchiroma is hedging that his break with Biya will be seen as bold – not opportunistic,” Cameroonian analyst and broadcaster Jules Domshe said.
“From economic fallout to youth unemployment, insecurity, and growing unrest in the North-West, South-West, and Far North [regions], Cameroon is ripe for change.”
Opposition voices are divided – some want Tchiroma to support Kamto, who was the runner-up in 2018 with 14% of votes. But others say he is tainted by his long association with Biya.
“He cannot embody change… He was part of the system for too long. The youth do not trust him,” says Abdoulaye Harissou, a legal notary and prominent critic once detained by the government.
Another member of the opposition – Jean Michel Nintcheu of the APC coalition – simply said: “We don’t see Tchiroma as a potential winner.”
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Foreign News
Crash Kills 29 Pupils Taking Exams after Blast in Central Africa

Torough David, Abuja
Twenty-nine children who were taking their school exams in the Central African Republic have been killed in a crash after a nearby explosion caused panic, a hospital director disclosed.
The blast, on the second day of the high-school finals on Wednesday, occurred at an electricity transformer, said Abel Assaye from the Bangui community hospital.
“The noise of the explosion, combined with smoke” caused alarm among the almost 6,000 students sitting the baccalaureate at a school in the capital, Bangui, local radio station Ndeke Luka reported.
President Faustin-Archange Touadéra has declared a period of national mourning.
He also ordered that the more than 280 who were wounded in the crash get free treatment in hospital.
Students from five different schools in the capital had gone to the Lycée Barthélémy Boganda to sit the baccalaureate exam.
The education ministry said the explosion happened after power was restored at the electricity transformer, located on the ground floor of the main building that had been undergoing repairs.
“I also offer our sincere condolences to the parents of the affected candidates and wish a speedy recovery to the injured candidates,” Education Minister Aurelien-Simplice Kongbelet-Zimgas said in a statement.
He also announced the suspension of further exams.
A female survivor said.
“I don’t even remember what happened. We were in the exam room and when I heard a noise, I immediately fell into a daze,” she said. “Since then, I have had a pain in my pelvis that is causing me a lot of problems.”
Radio France Internationale spoke to another student whose face was covered in blood after he had climbed out of a window.
Magloire explained that the blast happened during the history and geography exam.
“The students wanted to save their lives, and as they fled, they saw death because there were so many people and the door was really small. Not everyone could get out,” he told RFI.
The CAR continues to face political instability and security challenges.
Government forces, backed by Russian mercenaries, are battling armed groups threatening to overthrow Touadéra’s administration.