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The Federal Ministry of Finance has disowned a fraudulent message currently being circulated to newly recruited staff, falsely directing them to pay a non refundable administrative fee of ₦50,000 as a condition for resumption of duty.

The Ministry described the message as the handiwork of scammers seeking to exploit unsuspecting applicants through false claims made in the name of the Federal Ministry of Finance.

The fake message, titled “Administrative Update and Compliance Notice for Newly Recruited Staff,” falsely claims that the Human Resource Management Department directed newly recruited staff to pay an administrative fee before assuming duty.

The Ministry states categorically that no such directive was issued and that the message did not originate from any office or official of the Federal Ministry of Finance.

The Ministry further clarified that recruitment into the Federal Ministry of Finance is conducted strictly in accordance with the established procedures of the Federal Civil Service.

At no stage of the recruitment, documentation or onboarding process are applicants or newly recruited staff required to pay any administrative, processing or resumption fee.

Accordingly, prospective employees and members of the public are advised to disregard the fraudulent message and refrain from making any payment or disclosing personal or financial information to individuals behind the scam.

The Ministry urged anyone who receives the message or has information that could assist in identifying those responsible for the fraudulent scheme to report the matter to the appropriate law enforcement agencies. Such information may also be brought to the attention of the Ministry through its official communication channels.

The Federal Ministry of Finance remains committed to transparency, fairness and integrity in all its recruitment processes and will continue to work with relevant authorities to protect members of the public from fraudulent activities carried out in its name.

The Ministry appreciates the vigilance of members of the public and encourages Nigerians to verify any information relating to employment opportunities with the Federal Ministry of Finance through official Government channels before taking any action.

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Nigeria’s Kayinsola Ajayi and Temitope Adeshina claimed bronze medals in the men’s 100m and women’s high jump respectively at the 2026 Commonwealth Games in Glasgow on Tuesday, PUNCH Sports Extra reports.

Both national record holders delivered podium finishes for Team Nigeria, with Ajayi clocking 9.90 seconds in the men’s 100m final, while Adeshina cleared 1.90m to finish third in the women’s high jump.

Ajayi, 21, had entered the final as one of the favourites after winning his semi-final in an impressive 9.94 seconds and was aiming to hand Nigeria its first athletics gold of the Games.

However, African champion Emmanuel Eseme of Cameroon powered to victory in a Games record of 9.83 seconds, while Australia’s Lachlan Kennedy claimed silver in a personal best and Oceanian record of 9.85 seconds.

The bronze medal capped another outstanding performance in what has been a breakthrough season for the World Championships finalist.

The Auburn University sprinter won the NCAA title earlier this year before breaking Olusoji Fasuba’s 20-year-old Nigerian record with a blistering 9.84 seconds. He has since equalled that mark twice, running 9.84 seconds on three occasions this season, while also winning two Diamond League races before arriving in Glasgow.

Ajayi was Nigeria’s only representative in the men’s 100m final after Favour Ashe and Fakorede Adekalu failed to progress from the semi-finals. Ashe finished fifth in his race in 10.07 seconds, while Adekalu placed fourth in 10.06 seconds.

Adeshina also lived up to expectations in the women’s high jump, producing a best clearance of 1.90m to secure the bronze medal in a highly competitive field.

The Nigerian record holder, who enjoyed an outstanding collegiate season in the United States, added a Commonwealth medal to her growing list of achievements after qualifying comfortably for the final.

In the women’s 100m, African U-20 champion Miracle Ezechukwu narrowly missed out on a place in the final after finishing fourth in her semi-final in 11.23 seconds.

Rosemary Chukwuma finished eighth in her semi-final in 11.82 seconds after appearing to sustain an injury midway through the race, while national champion Blessing Ogundiran was unable to start her heat due to illness.

The two bronze medals boosted Nigeria’s athletics medal haul as Team Nigeria continued its quest for more podium finishes in Glasgow.

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The Federal Government on Tuesday unveiled the Government Service Portal, a digital platform designed to provide Nigerians and businesses with a single gateway to access government services, in a move aimed at improving service delivery, reducing bureaucracy and advancing the country’s digital transformation agenda.

The platform was unveiled at a soft launch in Abuja by Galaxy Backbone in partnership with the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy and the Korea International Cooperation Agency.

Speaking at the event, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Galaxy Backbone, Prof. Ibrahim Adeyanju, said the portal would address the long-standing challenge of citizens having to navigate multiple websites and government offices to access public services.

He described the platform as “the beginning of a unified digital gateway through which citizens and businesses can easily discover, access and consume services offered by Government institutions from a single location.”

According to him, “Government should be organised around the needs of the people, not around institutional boundaries.”

Adeyanju said while many Ministries, Departments and Agencies had digitised their services individually, the overall experience for users remained fragmented.

“The Government Service Portal seeks to change that. By bringing Government services together under one trusted digital gateway, we are simplifying access, improving visibility, promoting consistency and creating a more seamless experience for everyone who interacts with Government,” he said.

He noted that the initiative aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda by improving public service delivery, deepening digital innovation and supporting economic growth through technology.

The Galaxy Backbone boss added that the portal was a key component of Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure initiative, complementing existing national digital identity, payment and data exchange systems to create a more integrated digital government ecosystem.

He explained that the platform was being introduced through a soft launch to enable government agencies to onboard their services, strengthen system integration and gather user feedback before a wider rollout.

“The success of this Portal will not ultimately be measured by the sophistication of its technology. It will be measured by the ease with which a citizen can access a government service, by the confidence businesses have when engaging with public institutions, by the time saved, by the transparency achieved and by the trust that is built between Government and the people it serves,” Adeyanju said.

The Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Communications, Innovation and Digital Economy, Nadungu Gagare, who was represented by the Director of E-Government, Mr Johnson Bareyei, described the platform as one of the flagship projects under Nigeria’s e-Government Master Plan 2.0.

He said the portal would provide a secure single sign-on system through which citizens could access government services without repeatedly submitting the same information to different agencies.

“Today’s event is not simply about providing a digital platform. It’s about demonstrating what can be achieved when government agencies work together with a shared purpose, making public services easier, faster and more accessible for every Nigerian,” he said.

Gagare added that the platform supports the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy, the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan and Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure framework.

He said the portal would improve transparency, strengthen accountability, enhance ease of doing business and make government services more responsive to citizens.

The Country Director of KOICA Nigeria, Mr Eunsub Kim, who was represented by the Senior Deputy Country Director of KOICA Nigeria, Ki-Hyun Baik, described the launch as the culmination of years of collaboration between Nigeria and South Korea.

According to him, the portal is the flagship achievement of the “Building a Foundation Towards Digital Governance in Nigeria” project.

“For KOICA, today’s event is more than the launch of a digital platform. It is the culmination of years of partnership,” he said.

Kim added that the platform would enable citizens to access government services “more conveniently through one point of entry,” describing it as the vision of “a true one-stop service.”

He reaffirmed KOICA’s commitment to supporting the project beyond the pilot phase, noting that digital governance requires continuous improvement and collaboration among stakeholders.

Also speaking, the Director of International Cooperation at the Federal Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, Dr Sampson Ebimaro, described digital transformation as a strategic enabler of national development.

He urged stakeholders to prioritise inter-agency collaboration and continuous evaluation to ensure the project’s success.

“We need to get feedback. We need to assess what we are doing so that when we get to the end, we won’t say we have left so many things behind,” he said.

The Executive Director, Digital Exploration and Technical Services at Galaxy Backbone, Olumbe Akinkugbe, said user acceptance testing for the portal was conducted across the six geopolitical zones and the Federal Capital Territory before the launch.

He disclosed that 184 participants took part in the exercise, with more than 80 per cent rating the platform as user-friendly and easy to navigate.

According to him, 88 per cent of participants were able to locate government services on the platform, while 71 per cent rated it as fast or very fast.

He added that 91 per cent said they would use the portal again, while 99 per cent indicated they would recommend it to others.

Akinkugbe said feedback from the pilot phase had already informed improvements to address sign-up issues, image capture challenges and one-time password delivery delays.

He added that more Ministries, Departments and Agencies would be onboarded in the next phase to expand the range of services available through the platform.