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By Gloria Ikibah

In a major milestone for indigenous African and scholarship and media leadership, the global open-science discovery network ScienceOpen has officially appointed Dr. Max Nwabueze Amuchie as an Expert Member and Peer Reviewer in Social and Behavioural Sciences.

In an email conveying the appointment on Tuesday, ScienceOpen stated that the decision was based on Dr. Amuchie’s extensive publication history verified through his Open Researcher and Contributor ID (ORCID) profile.
Dr. Amuchie, the CEO and Theorist-In-Chief of Sundiata Post Media Ltd and Lead Researcher for the Sundiata Post Intelligence Unit (SPIU), joins an elite global cohort of international scholars tasked with evaluating, validating, and shaping scientific, governance, and policy literature on the world stage.

This international elevation comes on the heels of Dr. Amuchie’s extensive work in developing groundbreaking, macro-theoretical frameworks designed to analyse complex geopolitical realities in the Global South. He is the architect of The Insecurity Triad framework for African security analysis, The Trinity of State Decay (TSD) theory, and the Decoupling Sovereignty Index (DSI)—original, quantitative, and analytical instruments used for understanding, categorising, and measuring conflict, structural degradation, and functional sovereignty.

To anchor these frameworks in global academia, Dr. Amuchie’s research works have already been widely published and archived across premier scholarly platforms. His papers and data indices are preserved in world-class open-science repositories including Harvard Dataverse and Zenodo. Furthermore, his output is accessible on the Social Science Research Network (SSRN) and Mendeley—the latter owned by Elsevier, the world’s largest corporate academic publishing house. His research footprints also extend to the Social Science Open Access Repository (SSOAR), operated by GESIS – Leibniz Institute for the Social Sciences in Germany, as well as Figshare. In addition, his papers are available on major global scholarly networks such as ResearchGate and Academia.edu, and are actively indexed on Google Scholar.

Commenting on his appointment by ScienceOpen, Amuchie emphasised that the recognition represents a significant step forward for the Global South intellectual sovereignty.
“For too long, the Global South has been treated primarily as a subject of external geopolitical analysis rather than a creator of macro-theoretical blueprints,” Amuchie said. “This elevation on a premier open-science platform like ScienceOpen provides an unassailable global platform to validate indigenous African and Global South research. It ensures that our original frameworks—born out of rigorous field observations and deep academic inquiry—are recognised as primary tools for understanding state structures worldwide.”

Amuchie is a seasoned professional in the Nigerian media landscape, having served as a Member of the Editorial Board and later Abuja Bureau Chief at BusinessDay; held senior editorial positions at ThisDay, and served as Managing Editor at Leadership newspapers. He was also the CEO and Editor-in-Chief at Truetales Publications Ltd. He is an alumnus of the University of Calabar and the University of Lagos. He also maintains The Sunday Stew, a highly regarded weekly syndicated column exploring faith, character, and the structural forces shaping contemporary society.

As an official Peer Reviewer on ScienceOpen, Amuchie’s vetting powers will bridge the gap between high-velocity media dissemination and rigorous, citable academic indexing. This appointment establishes a formidable foundation for the Sundiata Post Intelligence Unit (SPIU) as it continues to pioneer data-driven, sovereign policy analysis across Africa and the wider Global South.

Headquartered in Berlin, Germany, with its primary technical and editorial operations hub in Boston, Massachusetts, USA, ScienceOpen is a leading independent open-science discovery network and research platform. Founded on the principles of Open Access, the platform democratises knowledge by breaking down academic paywalls so that researchers, policymakers, and journalists can freely share and critique global research.

ScienceOpen operates an innovative, transparent post-publication peer review system. It aggregates a massive, interconnected global database of over 85 million research records and articles. To maintain absolute academic integrity, only scholars who meet strict criteria—including a verified track record of published, peer-reviewed scientific literature linked to their international ORCID ID—are appointed as Expert Members and Peer Reviewers. These experts possess the formal authority to critique manuscripts, evaluate new analytical theories, and curate specialised research collections that shape validated scientific and policy data on the world stage.

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A Federal High Court in Abuja has fixed June 30 for a ruling on Omoyele Sowore’s motion seeking to vacate the order revoking his bail, as his lawyer pushed for a stay of execution while DSS counsel mounted opposition.

Omoyele Sowore’s freedom hinges on June 30.

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Wednesday fixed that date for a ruling on the activist’s motion seeking to set aside the bail revocation order that landed him in Kuje Custodial Centre, according to Vanguard.

Sowore’s lawyer, Raphael Adakole, moved the motion for stay of execution before Justice Mohammed Umar, arguing that the June 16 order revoking bail and issuing a bench warrant — triggered by Sowore’s absence from court — should be set aside entirely and the status quo restored.

The application, filed June 19, leans on Sections 35(4), 36(1), and 66(a&b) of the 1999 Constitution and Sections 169 and 352 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Act (ACJA) 2015, alongside the court’s inherent jurisdiction.

“We adopt the said reply on points of law while placing reliance on the further affidavit and urge the court to grant the application as prayed in the interest of justice,” Adakole told the court.

Justice Umar has now heard both sides. June 30 will deliver the verdict.

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. Arrests Mexican, 4 others; recovers multi-billion-naira worth of illicit substances

. We’ll find you in the cities, track you into the forests, and dismantle your infrastructure of death, Marwa warns drug cartels

Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have struck yet another decisive blow against transnational drug syndicates following the discovery and dismantling of a fortified, industrial-scale clandestine methamphetamine laboratory operated by a Nigerian-Mexican cartel deep within the forest of Tapa Village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area, Oyo State.

The breakthrough comes barely four weeks after the Agency dismantled a similar massive meth laboratory in a forest in Ijebu East, Ogun State, signaling a desperate attempt by drug barons to turn the Southwest axis into a synthetic drug manufacturing hub.

Speaking on the development at the NDLEA Headquarters in Abuja, the Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of the Agency, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) who was represented by the Director of Media and Advocacy, Femi Babafemi at a press briefing on Wednesday 24th June 2026, commended the gallantry, dedication, and clinical professionalism of the officers involved in the operation.

According to him, “On Wednesday, 17th June 2026, tactical operatives of the NDLEA stormed a highly fortified, industrial-scale clandestine methamphetamine laboratory operating deep within the forest of Tapa Village, Ibarapa North Local Government Area, Oyo State.

“This was not a rudimentary setup; it was a sophisticated, highly organized transnational syndicate. During the raid, our operatives successfully arrested five key members of the cartel on-site.

They include a 56-year-old Mexican Methamphetamine expert, Jose Villa Ochoa, brought in specifically to provide the technical expertise for large-scale synthesis and four Nigerian collaborators providing logistical support, cover, and local operations. They are: Maxwell Uche Nevoh, 30; Olatunji Yusuf, 37; Bankole Akeem Owolabi, 45; and ⁠Ganiu Monsiu, 43.

“The arrest of a foreign cartel specialist on Nigerian soil underscores the transnational nature of this threat, but more importantly, it underscores our Agency’s world-class intelligence capability to track, intercept, and neutralize them. Following the successful raid, a specialized team from our Directorate of Forensic and Chemical Monitoring moved in on June 18th, 2026, to conduct a rigorous forensic examination of the facility. What they uncovered is a massive, factory-level production line of poison.

“The laboratory was fully stocked with a frightening array of precursor chemicals, industrial catalysts, and heavy-duty processing equipment. Chemicals and Materials recovered include: Phenyl-2-propanone (P2P), which is the the main, highly controlled precursor required for methamphetamine synthesis; 1800-litre drums containing Phenylacetic acid (the primary precursor used to synthesize P2P); Two 180L drums containing a staggering 300 litres of whitish crystalline substance; Four 180L drums containing dark liquid undergoing synthesis.

“Others include: 101 bags (25kg each) of Caustic Soda; 17 containers (25L each) of Sulphuric Acid; 19.5 containers (25kg each) of Tartaric Acid; 5 containers of Reniso Ultracool 68 (three 50L and two 25L capacity; 25 bottles (500ml each) of 80% Thioglycolic Acid; 2 containers (25L each) of Ethyl Phenylacetate, and 25 cartons of aluminum foil.

“The Industrial Processing Equipment discovered at the site include: One (1) Reactor Pot, which is the heart of the chemical synthesis; Two (2) mounted distillation units and three (3) fabricated mixers and condensers; as well as Two (2) vegetable dehydrator machines used for the rapid drying of the crystals.

“As a result, immediate field tests were conducted by our forensic experts. Samples of the finished crystals recovered yielded a definitive positive result for Methamphetamine. Furthermore, the crystalline substance from the 180L drum tested positive for Phenylacetic acid. Every single gram of these exhibits has been safely evacuated, documented, and preserved for comprehensive and strict evidential presentation in court.

This is yet another multibillion-naira worth of illicit substances and production equipment ready to push millions of doses of synthetic drugs into our streets, communities and the international community but for the vigilance of our dedicated officers.”

Marwa noted that the proximity of the latest discovery to the Ogun State lab uncovered about four weeks ago reveals a desperate attempt by drug barons to establish a synthetic drug manufacturing hub in the Southwest axis, adding that the cartels thought hiding in dense forests would shield them from the long arm of the law but were wrong.

“Let the message go out clearly to all drug cartels, domestic and international that Nigeria is not, and will never be, a safe haven for your illicit trade. We will find you in the cities, we will track you into the forests, and we will dismantle your infrastructure of death. They thought hiding in dense forests would shield them from the long arm of the law. They were wrong”, the NDLEA boss warned.

“We want to commend the gallantry, dedication, and clinical professionalism of our officers of the Oyo state Command involved in this operation. To the Nigerian public, we say thank you for your continued trust and credible information. Together, we are securing the future of our nation”, he added.