News
New Venezuela Leader Says ‘No Foreign Power’ Controlling Country
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
Venezuela’s interim leader, Delcy Rodriguez, insisted on Tuesday that no foreign power was governing her country, even as US President Donald Trump announced Caracas will be swiftly turning over millions of barrels of oil to the United States
Rodriguez, who was vice president under toppled leader Nicolas Maduro, has given mixed signals about how much she is prepared to cooperate with Trump, at times sounding conciliatory, at others defiant.
Speaking three days after US special forces snatched Maduro and his wife in a stunning raid in Caracas, Rodriguez said, “The government of Venezuela is in charge in our country, and no one else.”
“There is no foreign agent governing Venezuela.”
Trump insists Washington is now “in charge” of the Caribbean country but has said he is prepared to work with Rodriguez — provided she submits to his demand for access to Venezuela’s vast oil reserves.
The US leader was startlingly direct about his intent regarding the South American country’s reserves, announcing on his Truth Social platform late Tuesday that Rodriguez “will be turning over between 30 and 50 MILLION Barrels of High Quality, Sanctioned Oil” to the United States.
“This oil will be sold at its market price, and that money will be controlled by me” as president, Trump said, adding that he has tasked Energy Secretary Chris Wright with “immediately” executing the plan.
Rodriguez has offered an olive branch but also appeared anxious to keep on her side the hardliners who control the security forces and paramilitaries, which have patrolled the streets since Maduro’s capture.
“We are a people that does not surrender, we are a people that does not give up,” she declared, paying tribute to the “martyrs” of the US attacks.
She said the country is holding seven days of mourning for those killed.
In its first confirmation of losses, Venezuela’s military on Tuesday published a list of 23 troops, including five generals, killed in the US strikes
Top ally Havana separately issued a list of 32 dead Cuban military personnel, many of whom were members of Maduro’s security detail.
Venezuela has not yet confirmed the number of civilian casualties in the operation in which US forces grabbed Maduro and Flores and took them to the United States to face trial.
Attorney General Tarek William Saab spoke Tuesday of “dozens” of civilian and military dead, without giving a breakdown.
‘Trump, Murderer’
Thousands of supporters of the presidential couple, including powerful Interior Minister Diosdado Cabello, marched through Caracas demanding their release.
Fear of state repression has made it so that the unpopular Maduro’s many detractors are loath to celebrate his downfall.
Maduro and Flores appeared in court Monday in New York, where they pleaded not guilty to drug trafficking and other charges.
Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum has called on the United States to ensure they receive a fair trial.
Interim President’s Challenges
Rodriguez has sought to project unity with Cabello and Defence Minister Vladimir Padrino Lopez, two hardliners seen as the main powerbrokers in the Maduro administration.
Opposition leader Maria Corina Machado, sidelined by Washington in the post-Maduro transition, warned in a Fox News interview that Rodriguez was not to be trusted.
“Delcy Rodriguez, as you know, is one of the main architects of torture, persecution, corruption, narcotrafficking,” she said.
“She’s the main ally and liaison with Russia, China, Iran, certainly not an individual that could be trusted by international investors.”
In a sign that a repressive security apparatus remains in place, 16 journalists and media workers were detained in Venezuela on Monday, according to a journalists’ union.
All were later released.
Trump has warned that Rodriguez will pay “a very big price, probably bigger than Maduro” if she does not comply with Washington’s agenda.
A retired general who held high-ranking positions in the military predicted that Rodriguez would throw open Venezuela to US oil and mining companies and perhaps resume diplomatic ties, broken off by Maduro in 2019.
He also believed she would seek to appease criticism of Venezuela’s dire rights record by releasing political prisoners.
Trump told Republican lawmakers Tuesday that Maduro was a “violent guy” who “killed millions of people” and claimed that Rodriguez’s administration was “closing up” a torture chamber in Caracas.
The constitution says that after Maduro is formally declared absent — which could happen after six months — elections must then be held within 30 days.
Machado told Fox News she was confident the opposition, widely seen as the real victors of the 2024 elections, would win “over 90 per cent of the votes.”
No fewer than six inmates have died within one week following a suspected cholera outbreak at the Kurmawa Maximum Prison in Kano State.
Amnesty International raised the alarm in a post on its official Facebook page, calling on authorities to immediately declare an emergency at the correctional facility.
Amnesty said several other inmates were currently receiving treatment, warning that the death toll could be higher as the suspected disease continues to spread among prisoners.
It urged the authorities to immediately transfer critically ill inmates to hospitals for proper medical attention to prevent further deaths.
The organisation warned that failure to urgently intervene could amount to arbitrary deprivation of life, which it described as a serious human rights violation under international law.
Amnesty also expressed concern over the broader conditions in Nigerian correctional facilities, particularly the prolonged detention of inmates awaiting trial.
According to the organisation, detainees without financial means face greater difficulty having their rights protected, with some spending years in custody without being convicted of any crime.
It further said many inmates were being held in overcrowded and unhygienic cells without adequate food and healthcare.
Amnesty called for urgent reforms to improve conditions in Nigerian correctional facilities and ensure compliance with international best practices.
Popular media personality and self-acclaimed relationship expert, Blessing Okoro, popularly known as Blessing CEO, has reportedly lost her second son while remanded in custody.
The development was confirmed in an online appeal by Amira Agiye, head of the Isaamira Love Foundation, who spoke on Okoro’s behalf to request public financial assistance.
She said, “It is sad to announce to you all that Blessing CEO just lost her second son. My name is Amira Agiye.
“I’m here to appeal on behalf of Blessing CEO, who is currently in custody. I understand that people might have different opinions about her and the circumstances surrounding her case.
“And like every one of us, she deserves compassion and an opportunity for redemption.
She needs N20 million to meet the bail requirements. She also needs N36 million to pay the people she owes who brought the case against her.
“Please, Nigerians, let’s forgive her for the sake of that boy who is still in the mortuary. With Blessing’s full consent and authorisation, I’m appealing to all Nigerians to help donate so we can help her out of this situation.”
Also speaking in a voice conversation played by Amira, Blessing, CEO, said, “My second son, Bryan, was full of life. While in custody, I lost Bryan.
I pray this turns out positive so I can leave this place, pick up the pieces of my life and pay my respects to him.”
Recall that the self-acclaimed relationship expert was remanded in Kirikiri Prison over an N69.15 million property fraud trial.
She was granted N20 million bail in July 2026, with two sureties in like sum, and each surety was required to provide three years’ proof of deposits valued at N20 million.
Following her inability to meet the bail conditions, Blessing CEO, remains in prison facility two months after she was granted bail.
Deaconess Angel Oyakhilome, mother of Pastor Chris Oyakhilome of Christ Embassy LoveWorld Nation fame, is dead.
Reports from Edo State say that she died at the age of 88 yesterday, Friday, September 25, 2026.
A local publication, Esan News Magazine, reported thus:
“An Iroko has fallen. A mother of nations is gone. Heaven has gained a saint.
According to information made available to Esan News Magazine by a prominent member of the Ekagholo Family of Idunwele, Ewu, Esan Central Local Government Area of Edo State, the matriarch of the great Oyakhilome Clan, the beloved mother of our son Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, Deaconess Angel Oyakhilome, fondly called Big Mummy, has transited to glory.
September, 2026, leaving behind a legacy of faith, love, humility and motherhood that touched generations across the world.
“Big Mummy was not just the mother of Pastor Chris. She was the mother of all. A virtuous woman, a prayer warrior, a woman of uncommon grace who raised children that have become global blessings and pride to Esan land.
“Idunwele Ewu is mourning. Ekagholo Family is mourning. Ewu Kingdom is mourning. Esanland is mourning. For we have lost an Okpokhuo, a true jewel of Esan motherhood.
“Her life was a testimony. She lived for God, she lived for family, she lived for humanity. Her laughter brought joy. Her prayers brought strength. Her counsel brought wisdom.
“On behalf of the management and staff of Esan News Magazine and the entire Esan Nation home and abroad, we extend our deepest and heartfelt condolences to our dear elder brother, Pastor Chris Oyakhilome, the entire Oyakhilome Clan, the Ekagholo Family of Idunwele Ewu, and the Christ Embassy family worldwide.
“We mourn with you in this time of grief. We stand with you. We pray that the good Lord who called Mama home will grant you all the fortitude to bear this irreplaceable loss.
“May her gentle, beautiful and faithful soul rest in perfect peace. Rest on, Big Mummy. Rest on, beloved mother of Pastor Chris. Rest on, Iroko of Ewu.
“Adieu Mama!”
Meanwhile, a senior official of Christ Embassy who was contacted by News Express this Saturday afternoon neither confirmed nor denied the report.
He said: “I have heard the news, too, but it is not for me to confirm her death. I mean, she was aged 88.”
The official promised to make relevant contacts, adding: “I am sure that a statement would be issued if the news is true.”
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