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The Federal Government says it has evacuated 1,490 Nigerian nationals from South Africa through a series of humanitarian flights following ongoing xenophobic attacks and related security concerns.

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs disclosed this in a statement on Wednesday by its Spokesperson, Kimiebi Ebienfa, following the completion of the fifth phase of the voluntary evacuation programme.

Ebienfa said the fifth evacuation flight, operated by Air Peace, departed O.R. Tambo International Airport, Johannesburg, at 6:30 a.m. South African time on Wednesday and arrived at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos, at 11:30 a.m.

He said the aircraft conveyed 308 passengers, comprising 305 returnees and three Nigerian government officials who coordinated and supervised the evacuation.

“The Federal Government has now evacuated a total of 1,490 Nigerians from South Africa through a series of coordinated humanitarian flights undertaken in partnership with Air Peace Limited and South African Airways,” he said.

Ebienfa said the evacuation followed sustained diplomatic engagement with the South African government in response to security concerns arising from xenophobic attacks targeting foreign nationals, including Nigerians.

He reaffirmed the Federal Government’s commitment to protecting the welfare of Nigerians abroad in line with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.

According to him, the evacuation programme began on June 10, when Air Peace evacuated 258 Nigerians, followed by South African Airways, which airlifted 66 returnees on June 24.

He said Air Peace subsequently evacuated 272 Nigerians on June 30, 268 on July 2, 282 on July 9 and 305 on July 15, while South African Airways returned another 39 Nigerians on July 11.

Ebienfa said the Ministry of Foreign Affairs coordinated the evacuation in collaboration with the Nigerian High Commission in Pretoria, the Nigerians in Diaspora Commission, NEMA, Nigeria Immigration Service, Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria, Port Health Services and other relevant agencies.

He commended Air Peace for its support throughout the evacuation exercise, outlining the airline’s role as patriotic and instrumental to its success.

According to him, the operation reflects Nigeria’s commitment to its citizens’ diplomacy policy, which prioritises the protection, welfare and dignity of Nigerians abroad.

Ebienfa said the government would continue to engage South Africa through diplomatic channels to promote the safety and peaceful coexistence of all residents while maintaining that xenophobia, racial intolerance and violence against foreign nationals remained unacceptable.

He also urged Nigerians living abroad to obey the laws of their host countries, register with the nearest Nigerian diplomatic mission and maintain regular contact with the missions to facilitate timely consular assistance when required.

(NAN)

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Senate Public Accounts Committee has issued a one-week ultimatum to external auditors of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) to account for more than N210 trillion in unreconciled figures contained in the company’s audited financial statements.

It said that auditors, who certified the accounts, could not evade responsibility for defending them.

The committee, chaired by Ibrahim Dankwambo, handed down the directive yesterday after a tense hearing during which lawmakers rejected repeated attempts by the auditors to refer questions back to the NNPCL, insisting that the figures they signed off on must be fully explained.

At the heart of the controversy are N107 trillion recorded as receivables and N103 trillion listed as payables in the company’s audited accounts.

The lawmakers said the figures remain unexplained because neither the NNPCL nor its auditors had produced schedules identifying the transactions, counterparties or calculations behind them.

The auditors, however, informed the committee that the supporting schedules formed part of their working papers and requested about two weeks to retrieve the documents.

The request was firmly rejected.

Dankwambo questioned why auditors, who had certified the accounts, could not immediately produce documents supporting the figures.

“When you have figures in audited financial statements, there must be schedules showing exactly how those figures were derived. If those schedules already exist in your working papers, why do you need additional time before presenting them to this committee?” he queried.

But the audit firm said that the NNPCL remained its client and that detailed explanations should ordinarily come from the company, recalling that during an earlier hearing, lawmakers had agreed that NNPCL officials would explain the figures.

That position drew sharp criticism from the committee.

The committee said that NNPCL, being wholly owned by the Federal Government on behalf of Nigerians, could not invoke commercial secrecy to shield information from the Parliament.

“NNPCL belongs to the Nigerian people, not to private shareholders. Parliament has every constitutional right to examine its accounts, and no confidentiality agreement can override that responsibility,” a lawmaker said.

The auditors were thereafter discharged and directed to reappear before the committee within one week with the requested documentation.

RELATEDLY, the House of Representatives Committee on Finance has demanded a comprehensive breakdown of the estimated N34 trillion worth of import duty waivers granted in 2025,

It, however, directed the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) to disclose the beneficiaries, legal basis and objectives of the concessions as part of efforts to ensure transparency and accountability in the implementation of the Federal Government’s fiscal incentives.

The committee also faulted the NCS over what it described as inconsistencies in its revenue reporting, insisting that the agency must explain how it generated collections above its approved revenue targets and reconcile apparent disparities in its monthly financial records.

Chairman of the committee, James Abiodun Faleke, gave the directive when the management of the NCS appeared before the panel as part of the National Assembly’s ongoing revenue monitoring and oversight exercise.

Faleke said the committee was not opposed to the government’s waiver policy, noting that such incentives remained legitimate tools for stimulating economic growth and supporting key sectors.

He, however, maintained that lawmakers had a constitutional duty to ensure that the concessions were granted transparently and achieved their intended objectives.

According to him, the committee wants to know who benefited from the waivers, the legal authority under which they were approved and whether they translated into measurable gains for the economy.

The committee equally queried the NCS over its revenue presentation, saying that while the agency had consistently exceeded its yearly targets, the documents submitted to lawmakers did not clearly explain the sources of the additional revenue.
Faleke said proper financial accountability required the NCS to provide a detailed month-by-month analysis showing why revenue collections fluctuated and how the excess earnings were realised.

Deputy Chairman of the committee, Saidu Mohammed Abdullahi, said the Federal Government should consider raising the revenue targets assigned to the NCS, saying that its consistent over-performance showed the agency possessed greater revenue-generating capacity than currently projected.

Responding on behalf of the Comptroller-General of Customs, Bashir Adeniyi, the Deputy Comptroller-General in charge of Finance, Administration and Technical Services, Kikelomo Adeola, clarified that the NCS does not approve import duty waivers.

She said that approvals are granted by the Federal Ministry of Finance in accordance with existing laws and government policy, while the Customs merely implements the approvals.

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The Police Service Commission (PSC) has announced the release of names of successful applicants in the ongoing recruitment exercise for 50,000 Police Constables into the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).

The Commission disclosed that the successful completion of the recruitment process followed a comprehensive, transparent, inclusive and equitable exercise conducted in collaboration with key stakeholders, including the Nigeria Police Force, the Federal Character Commission, the Ministry of Police Affairs, State Career and Counselling Departments, and the Police Community Relations Committee (PCRC).

In a statement issued by the Head of Protocol and Public Relations of the PSC, Mr. Torty Njoku Kalu, candidates who participated in the recently concluded written examination were advised to visit the official recruitment portal at npfapplication.psc.gov.ng to verify their recruitment status.

According to the Commission, the portal will become accessible from 12:00 a.m. on Thursday, July 16, 2026.

The PSC further stated that successful applicants would also receive notifications through emails and text messages sent to the contact details they provided during the application process.

The selected candidates are expected to report to their designated Police Training Institutions on dates and times that will be communicated subsequently for medical screening and documentation exercises.

The Commission warned that candidates who fail to report within the stipulated period would be deemed to have rejected the offer of appointment. It also noted that applicants who do not pass the mandatory medical examination to be conducted by the Police Medical Team upon resumption for training would be declared medically unfit and subsequently disqualified from the exercise.

Successful candidates have been directed to report with their training call-up slips, National Identification Number (NIN) slips, Bank Verification Number (BVN) slips, original copies and photocopies of their academic certificates, alongside other required documents and items that will be specified on the recruitment portal.

Chairman of the Police Service Commission, retired Deputy Inspector-General of Police, DIG Hashimu Salihu Argungu, expressed appreciation to President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for approving the recruitment of 50,000 police constables, describing the initiative as a significant intervention aimed at reinforcing the country’s security architecture.

Argungu urged the successful candidates to regard their enlistment into the Nigeria Police Force as a national call to duty, stressing the need for discipline, integrity and professionalism in the discharge of their responsibilities.

He charged the recruits to serve with dedication and unwavering commitment towards building a safer and more secure Nigeria, noting that the expansion of police manpower is expected to improve law enforcement capacity, enhance community policing and address growing security challenges across the federation.