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…promise to pursue viable and realistic legislations to develop sector

The House of Representative minority caucus has hailed the Super Eagles describing the round leather players as African records smashers.

This was contained in a letter of commendation jointly signed by the caucus leaders, Rep. O.K Chinda,Minority Leader,
Rt. Hon. Ali Isa J.C
Minority Whip ,Rt. Hon. Aliyu Madaki
Deputy Minority Leader ,Rt. Hon. George Ozodinobi
Deputy Minority Whip stating that:

The Minority Caucus i commends the Super Eagles, Nigeria’s senior men football team for its superlative performances at the 35th edition of the African Cup of Nations, (AFCON), emerging the Bronze Medal winners, at the end of the four-week tournament which was held in Morocco.

The caucus said: “Though the Team failed in its bid to win the tournament for a record fourth time, the Caucus eulogized the players, technical and other staff members for their consistency, commitment, courage, discipline, and single-mindedness; on and off the pitch throughout the tournament.

“We are happy that the Super Eagles’ display of resilience, sacrifices, unity, and can-do-it spirit; which are the attributes of every Nigerian elicited regional, and global recognitions and commendation.

The Caucus noted that the Super Eagles, even with the third-place position recorded some milestones that will be difficult to equal, let alone break by any other African country.

” The Bronze Medal, the 9th, is the highest by any nation since the tournament began in 1957; Nigeria maintained a perfect record in third-place playoff matches, by never losing any match at this stage of the tournament.

It was also noted in the commendation letter that “Nigeria recorded 17th-time podium-finish (the highest by any country) in the history of the tournament; the Super Eagles, alongside Egypt emerged the highest goal scoring country in this edition, with 14 goals; 6 players; Semi Ajayi, Ademola Lookman, Raphael Onyedika, Victor Osimhen, Akor Adams, Stanley Nwabali won the Man of the Match Awards in 6 of the 7 matches Nigeria played; the highest by any country in the history of the tournament.

“While the Caucus salutes the bravery, focus, and relentless resolve of the Team towards reinforcing the country’s status as a leading light in African football, we enjoin all Nigerians; particularly the political class and public officials to imbibe the same spirit in our collective pursuit of national development, and in tackling insecurity, and other pervading challenges.

“To achieve this, we must all, like the Super Eagles, eschew tribalism, ethnicity, nepotism, religious, and other narrow-minded cleavages.

The caucus further stressed that “the importance of sports, as a unifying factor in Nigeria, and an emerging soft power in global politics and international diplomacy, the Caucus promise to pursue viable and realistic legislations towards ensuring that the Federal Government improves the sector, and re-invigorate it as the fulcrum for youth empowerment and economic development.

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The Kano State Police Command has nabbed three principal suspects in connection with the murder of a housewife and her six children at Dorayi Chiranchi Quarters, Kano.

This was revealed in a press release issued on Sunday, stating that the arrests followed intelligence-led operations carried out on the directive of the Inspector-General of Police, IGP Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun.

The operation was coordinated under the leadership of the Commissioner of Police, CP Ibrahim Adamu Bakori.
Police Public Relations Officer, CSP Abdullahi Haruna Kiyawa, disclosed that the suspects were arrested during a sting operation that lasted through the night.

“Acting on credible intelligence, a team of crack operatives successfully apprehended three suspected masterminds behind the brutal killing of a housewife and her six children in Dorayi Chiranchi Quarters,” Kiyawa said.

The suspects were identified as Umar Auwalu, 23, of Sabuwar Gandu Quarters; Isyaku Yakubu, also known as Chebe, 40, of Sagagi Quarters; and Yakubu Abdulaziz, popularly called Wawo, 21, of Sabon Gida Sharada Quarters.

Police revealed that Umar Auwalu, alleged to be the leader of the syndicate and a nephew of the deceased, confessed to orchestrating the attack.

“During interrogation, the principal suspect confessed to the crime and further admitted that the syndicate had been involved in several violent attacks in the recent past, including the killing and burning of two housewives at Tudun Yola Quarters,” the Command’s spokesperson stated.
Items recovered from the suspects include blood-stained clothes, two mobile phones belonging to the deceased, a cutlass, a club (locally known as gora), and an undisclosed amount of cash allegedly stolen from the crime scene.

“These recoveries are critical to the ongoing investigation, which is still in progress,” Kiyawa added.
The Command commended the officers involved in the operation and appreciated the members of the public for their cooperation.

“The Command assures the good people of Kano State that it remains fully committed to ensuring that all perpetrators of criminal acts are brought to justice,” the statement concluded.

The tragic incident, which shocked residents of Dorayi Chiranchi, has continued to draw widespread condemnation and renewed calls for community vigilance across the state.

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The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has eliminated more than 40 terrorists during a series of coordinated close air support and air interdiction missions conducted in parts of Borno State.

The operations targeted terrorist strongholds in Azir and Musarram communities and were executed by the Air Component of Operation HADIN KAI, significantly disrupting planned attacks and bolstering ongoing ground offensives by Nigerian troops.

This development was disclosed in a statement issued on Sunday in Abuja by the Director of Public Relations and Information of the Nigerian Air Force, Air Commodore Ehimen Ejodame.

According to Ejodame, the precision air operations were carried out on January 15 and 16, following the receipt of credible and actionable intelligence. He noted that the missions were conducted in close coordination with ground forces that were already in active contact with fleeing terrorist elements.

He explained that in the early hours of January 16, NAF aircraft responded swiftly to a distress call from troops engaged with terrorists attempting to escape at Azir. Subsequent aerial reconnaissance revealed the insurgents trying to regroup under nearby tree cover.

“These movements prompted well-coordinated and successive air strikes, which effectively neutralised the threat,” Ejodame said.

He added that post-strike assessments showed no remaining hostile activity in the area. Feedback from ground troops, local authorities, and community sources also confirmed a significant reduction in terrorist presence, leading to a restoration of relative calm in the affected communities.

The NAF spokesperson further revealed that a day earlier, on January 15, air assets carried out a separate but equally successful air interdiction mission at Musarram, located within the Tumbuns general area.

Intelligence reports, he said, indicated that terrorists were gathering on canoes in preparation for coordinated attacks along the Baga and Fish Dam axis.

“Upon arrival at the location, NAF aircraft identified about ten canoes and over 40 suspected terrorists. The targets were engaged in multiple attack runs, throwing the group into disarray,” Ejodame stated.

He added that some of the fleeing terrorists were tracked and neutralised, while others who attempted to regroup at an assembly point were also struck, effectively dismantling the concentration and foiling the planned attacks.

Reacting to the success of the operations, the Chief of the Air Staff, Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, reaffirmed the Nigerian Air Force’s unwavering commitment to providing timely and decisive air support to ground troops in the ongoing fight against terrorism.

He noted that the operations underscored the effectiveness of intelligence-driven air power and strong air–ground coordination in denying terrorist groups freedom of movement and operational space.

The Air Chief assured Nigerians that the Armed Forces would continue to sustain pressure on terrorist elements until their capabilities are fully degraded and affected areas stabilised.

According to him, the military remains resolute in fulfilling its mandate to protect lives, restore peace, and secure communities in the North-East and across the country.