The recap of top stories that you might have missed this Sunday evening, 8th February, 2026
IPOB orders total cancellation of sit-at-home in South East
The proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra has said that its leader, Nnamdi Kanu, ordered the total cancellation of the Monday sit-at-home across the South-East, with effect from February 9, 2026.
This was disclosed by the IPOB spokesperson, Emma Powerful, in a press statement issued on Sunday.He added that the directive came directly from Kanu.
Recall that the pro-Biafran group declared the sit-at-home in August 2021 as a way of protesting the rendition of Kanu to Nigeria and his subsequent incarceration.
During the exercise, markets, schools, banks and offices remained shut.
Powerful said that with the current directive, there is no need, excuse or justification for anyone to stay at home on Mondays, adding that markets, schools, offices, transport services and economic activities must resume fully and normally from Monday.
Nigerians mourn as late footballer’s widow, daughter arrive UK
Grief has continued to trail the death of Nigerian footballer, Saburi Adeniji, popularly known as Ola, following revelations that his wife and young daughter arrived in the United Kingdom barely a day after he passed away.
Adeniji, a left winger for Kings Park Rangers Football Club of Sudbury, a non-league side competing in the Eastern Counties League Division One North, died on Friday morning after battling a severe brain stem injury.
The club confirmed his death in a statement on Saturday, noting that the 26-year-old footballer had fought to stay alive until arrangements were completed for his family to travel from Nigeria.
“It is with great sadness that we must announce our number 17 Saburi Adeniji ‘Ola’ passed away yesterday morning.
Probe Senate over Electoral Act, tax laws, SERAP urges CCB
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project has petitioned the Code of Conduct Bureau to investigate members of the Senate and other public officers over alleged irregularities in the passage of the Electoral Act Amendment Bill and the Tax Reform Laws.
According to a statement issued on Sunday by SERAP Deputy Director Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation is seeking a prompt, thorough, and effective probe into claims that some senators removed provisions on electronic transmission of election results from the Electoral Act Amendment Bill during plenary, despite a majority having voted for their inclusion and without any debate on the proposed removal.
“According to our information, certain members of the Senate allegedly removed the provisions on electronic transmission of election results from the Electoral Act Amendment Bill during plenary after the majority of the senators had voted for the inclusion of the provisions and without any debate on the proposed removal of the said provisions,” SERAP said.
Obasanjo seeks recognition of Iwe Iroyin House, others as heritage sites
A former President, Olusegun Obasanjo, on Sunday called for the recognition and promotion of the Iwe Iroyin House — where the first newspaper in Nigeria was published in Abeokuta in December 1859 by British missionary, Rev. Henry Townsend—as a key heritage site.
Chief Obasanjo also urged that similar recognition be extended to the Abeokuta residence of one of the wealthiest Yoruba women in history, Efunsetan Aniwura, a former Iyalode of Ibadan; Madam Efunroye Tinubu’s two-storey building near Akin Olugbade Hospital, Abeokuta; her burial ground at Gbagura; as well as the old Ibara Railway Station and the first flyover in Abeokuta.
Kaduna cleric commiserates with Kwara community over bandits attack
A former National Secretary of the Pentecostal Fellowship of Nigeria and immediate past Chairman of the Southern Kaduna Christian Leaders Association, Apostle Emmanuel Kure, has expressed sympathy with victims of the tragic incident in Kwara State that claimed lives and left many families grieving.
In a statement obtained by PUNCH Online on Sunday, Kure said he stood in solidarity with the affected community, extending his sympathies to the traditional ruler, Islamic clerics and residents of the area.
Describing the incident as heartbreaking and deeply distressing, the cleric said the pain, fear and anguish being experienced by the victims and their leaders could only be imagined, particularly by communities that had endured similar tragedies.
“We can imagine the nightmare and anguish they are going through.
We in Southern Kaduna have walked a similar path, but for the grace of God, the story could have been worse.
Our hearts go out to the king, the imams and the entire people at this very difficult time,” Kure said.
Cash-and-Carry Judgments: SANs divided over allegations against Judges
A recent allegation by the President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Mazi Afam Osigwe, SAN, that many court judgments are influenced by the fatness of envelopes rather than the evidence, has continued to generate varied reactions within judicial circles.
The NBA President stirred the hornet’s nest last Friday when he labeled judges and lawyers the worst bribe-takers, even as he made a case for holistic judicial reforms.
Speaking at the Ralph Opara Memorial Lecture organized by the National Association of Sea Dogs in Enugu, themed “Judicial Corruption in Nigeria: A Menace to Democracy and Social Justice”, Osigwe, SAN, described the rot in the judiciary as a “moral crisis and a democratic emergency” that threatens the foundation of the country.
Electoral Bill: Senate to hold emergency sitting on Tuesday
The Senate has announced that it will hold an emergency plenary sitting on Tuesday, February 10, 2026, amid growing public controversy over its recent amendments to the Electoral Act.
The announcement was made on Sunday in a statement signed by the Clerk of the Senate, Emmanuel Odo.
“The President of the Senate, Godswill Akpabio, has directed the reconvening of plenary for an emergency sitting on Tuesday, February 10th, 2026,” the statement said, adding that the session would commence at 12 noon and that all senators had been requested to attend.
The emergency sitting comes barely days after the Senate passed the Electoral Act Amendment Bill on February 4 but voted down Clause 60(3), which sought to make the real-time electronic transmission of election results mandatory.
El-Rufai warns against ‘Regime Security,’ calls for people-centred national security framework
Former Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has cautioned that Nigeria’s national security architecture has drifted dangerously from protecting citizens to preserving political power, warning that the trend threatens justice, democracy, and long-term stability.
El-Rufai made the remarks in a lengthy statement posted on his Facebook page on Sunday, titled “National Security, Justice, and the People’s Wellbeing: Reclaiming the Purpose of Power.”
He argued that national security should exist solely to guarantee that Nigerians “live long, live well, and live in peace,” stressing that security is inseparable from justice and the wellbeing of citizens.
Ebonyi boundary Killings: Amasiri community demand withdrawal of military, calls for investigation
The Amasiri Clan in Afikpo local government area of Ebonyi State has demanded for immediate withdrawal of military forces from community.
The clan called for independent investigation into killings, arrests, and property destruction by suspected warlords in Okporojọ in Edda community in January 29, 2026.
In statement made available to the international media and signed by Princess Joy Omagha Idam, Former Assistant Secretary NUJ FCT Council, Maduabichi Idam, Esq Human Rights Advocate, Chioma Okpara Journalist/Activist to draw urgent attention to a deepening humanitarian, constitutional, and security crisis unfolding in Ebonyi State, Nigeria.
