Headline

Constitution Review: States To Control Airport, Power, Others

Published

3 years ago

January 25, 2023

The House of Representatives has approved the transmission of bills seeking to amend various parts of the 1999 Constitution, which have been passed by the state Houses of Assembly to the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), for assent.

Some of the bills are for devolution of powers from the Federal Government to the states, moving some items from the Exclusive Legislative List to the Concurrent List in the Constitution.

At the plenary on Wednesday, Chairman of the House Committee on Rules and Business, Abubakar Fulata, moved a motion for the House to transmit 35 passed by the Assemblies in concurrence with the National Assembly, out of the 44 bills sent to them.

The motion was sponsored by the Deputy Speaker, Ahmed Wase, who is Co-Chairman of the Joint Senate and House of Representatives Special Ad Hoc Committee on the Review of the 1999 Constitution.

To amend a clause in the Constitution (two-third or four-fifth) majority of each of the Senate and the House have to approve the amendment after which it will be transmitted to the state Houses of Assembly, where two-thirds or 24 of the 36 of them have to concur.

Fulata said, “The House notes that Section 9 (2) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) provides that an Act to alter the provisions of the Constitution can be passed only when it is supported by 2/3 majority of members of the House of Representatives and the Senate, and approved by the 24 state Houses of Assembly.

“The House recalls that 68 bills seeking to alter provisions of the Constitution were presented at the floor of the House and the Senate on Wednesday, 23 February, 2022 for passage. The House of Representatives and the Senate approved 44 of the bills without differences and were transmitted to the state Houses of Assembly for their resolutions on the 27 March, 2022.”

Fulata noted that 27 Houses of Assembly – Abia, Adamawa, Akwa Ibom, Anambra, Bauchi, Bayelsa, Benue, Borno, Cross River, Delta, Ebonyi, Edo, Ekiti, Enugu, Imo, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kogi, Lagos, Nasarawa, Niger, Ogun, Ondo, Osun Rivers and Yobe – had forwarded their resolutions on the bills.

He added, “The House is convinced that the under-listed 35 Constitution alteration bills have satisfied the provisions of Section 9(2) of the Constitution for passage into law, having been approved by not less than 24 state Houses of Assembly…”

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Headline

Indian Court Denies Bail To Nigerian Man Over Drug Charges

Published

5 hours ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

A court in India has denied bail to a 44-year-old Nigerian national, Cristian Soporuchukwu, who is currently facing drug trafficking charges in the country.

Cristian Soporuchukwu initially entered India on a business visa but was later arrested over allegations of involvement in the sale of hard drugs.

Reports indicated that after arriving in India, Soporuchukwu travelled through Goa, Delhi, and Mumbai, where he allegedly established links with suspected drug traffickers.

He was accused of purchasing MDMA crystals and distributing them to college students and information technology workers.

According to reports, operatives of the Beguru Police arrested Cristian Soporuchukwu in April 2025 for allegedly selling MDMA crystals around Begur Lake and the AECS Layout Road area.

The New Indian Express reported that the High Court of Karnataka subsequently dismissed the Nigerian’s bail application.

“The anti-narcotics wing seized about 1 kg of MDMA crystals, a pocket weighing machine, 10 zip-lock covers, a mobile phone and a scooter from him,” the report stated.

Justice V. Srishananda, while ruling on the bail application, reportedly held that errors relating to the grounds of arrest could not automatically justify bail in serious narcotics-related offences under the Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, NDPS, Act.

The court further noted that Cristian Soporuchukwu had allegedly overstayed his visa in India, according to the report.

Headline

Strait Of Hormuz: US Announces Sanctions Against Iran

Published

5 hours ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

The United States Treasury has announced sanctions against Iran’s Persian Gulf Strait Authority.

Treasury Secretary, Scott Bessent, said this in a statement on Wednesday.

The statement extended the threat of sanctions to anyone paying the fees, saying they may be providing support to and receiving services from Iran’s Revolutionary Guards, and therefore may be exposed to sanctions risk.

“The Iranian military’s latest attempt to extort global maritime trade is proof that Economic Fury has left the regime desperate for cash.

“Treasury has deprived the Iranian regime of revenue for their weapons programs, terrorist proxies, and nuclear ambitions,” Bessent said.

Bessent added that the US has succeeded in disrupting tens of billions of dollars’ worth of revenue from being accessible to Tehran.

Headline

US Launches New Airstrikes On Iran

Published

5 hours ago

May 28, 2026

Editor

The United States has launched new airstrikes in southern Iran.

The strike shot down four one-way attack drones that posed a threat around the Strait of Hormuz and then a ground control site.

A US official revealed that American forces struck an Iranian ground control station in Bandar Abbas that was about to launch a fifth drone.

The official described the strikes as purely defensive, saying the US intended to maintain the ceasefire.

Report says this is the second time in three days that the US has carried out self-defense strikes against Iranian military targets in southern Iran.

Recall that on Monday the US carried out airstrikes against Iranian missile locations and boats that US Central Command said were preparing to launch mines in the Strait of Hormuz.