In a rare and candid declaration from a West African military ruler, Burkina Faso’s interim president, Captain Ibrahim Traoré, has vowed to step aside if he loses the country’s next elections, scheduled for 2026. “I won’t hold onto power,” Traoré said. “If I lose the elections in 2026, I’ll step down without a fuss. My goal is to serve the people, not to rule indefinitely.” His words stand in sharp contrast to a growing trend across parts of the continent, where military takeovers and prolonged transitional periods have often resulted in postponed elections and leaders clinging to power. Traoré’s commitment…
Author: Abdallah el-Kurebe
Millions around the world joined governments, civil society, businesses, and communities on Wednesday to mark World Environment Day (WED) 2025, with a unified call to end plastic pollution. Themed #BeatPlasticPollution, this year’s global observance highlighted the growing urgency to tackle one of the planet’s most pervasive environmental threats. Official celebrations were held in Jeju Province, Republic of Korea, where global leaders and environmental advocates gathered to rally support for sustainable solutions to plastic waste. The event comes just two months ahead of renewed negotiations toward a legally binding Global Plastics Treaty under the UN framework. “Plastic waste clogs rivers, pollutes…
The Supreme Court of Nigeria has ended the long-running legal battle over the Gwandu Emirate by setting aside the judgments that reinstated Al-Mustapha Jokolo as the 19th Emir of Gwandu. In its ruling delivered on Wednesday, June 4, 2025, the apex court declared that Jokolo failed to exhaust necessary administrative procedures before heading to court, thereby rendering his suit incompetent from the outset. In a split decision of three to two, the Supreme Court held that Jokolo violated Section 5(4) of the Kebbi State Chiefs (Appointment and Deposition) Law, which mandates that any aggrieved party must first submit a formal…
A professor in Software Engineering and Information System Technology, Giland Ifebuchechukwu Chime has emerged as the world’s youngest university proprietor. The news is coming in a groundbreaking achievement that blends academic brilliance with entrepreneurial vision, Recognized as a Prof. Chime is the founder and proprietor of the First African Distance Learning University (FADLU)—an innovative institution aimed at expanding access to higher education across the continent through modern technology. Prof. Chime’s milestone not only underscores his personal academic success but also represents a major stride for Africa in the global education space. His academic footprint is notable on platforms such as…
In a nation long beleaguered by the scourge of drug trafficking and abuse, a new dawn is breaking. Under the resolute leadership of Brigadier General Mohamed Buba Marwa (Retd), the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) is rewriting Nigeria’s narrative in the global fight against narcotics. A paradigm shift in drug law enforcement Since assuming the helm of the NDLEA, Marwa has implemented a multifaceted strategy that combines aggressive interdiction with preventive education and rehabilitation. In 2024 alone, the agency seized over 2.6 million kilograms of illicit substances, arrested more than 18,500 offenders—including 10 high-profile drug barons—and secured over 3,250…
The smell of wet earth and loss lingers in the air. In Mokwa, Niger State, the flood didn’t just come with water—it came with sorrow. It came like a thief in the night, swallowing homes, silencing laughter, and leaving behind the haunting stillness of a town in mourning. At least 151 people have died. More than 3,000 are now homeless. But behind these numbers are real stories—mothers searching for their children, fathers trying to rebuild with bare hands, and children who wake up crying in strange shelters, asking when they can go home. But there is no home anymore. “I…
In Maiduguri, not long ago, the skies opened — not with hope, but with fury. Floodwaters swept through communities, killing and displacing thousands. It was a horror that should have sparked immediate national alarm. But before the shock could fully settle, tragedy struck again — this time in Mokwa, Niger State, where floods from rains have claimed 151 lives and displaced over 3,000 people so far. Each number hides a face, a story, a home washed away by what has become a grim annual ritual in Nigeria. Floods are no longer unforeseen disasters. They are expected visitors, arriving with the…
In a remarkable and unsettling leap into the future of warfare, China has unveiled a new class of bio-inspired drones that mimic real birds so convincingly that they can fly through populated skies virtually undetected. These ornithopter drones, capable of both silent surveillance and precise tactical strikes, signal a transformative moment in military stealth technology—one that blurs the line between machine and nature. Dubbed “sky phantoms” by some military analysts, these drones flap their wings like actual birds, gliding and maneuvering with organic grace. From the ground, and even to the untrained radar system, they are indistinguishable from the pigeons…
New research shows how 310 premature deaths and 230 new children’s asthma cases can be prevented every day over the next 15 years if governments act towards reducing vehicle pollution and accelerate the move to electric vehicles. By Chetan Bhattacharji Pollution from fossil-fuel vehicles is most lethal for two age groups, those above the age of 65 and those under five, a new study shows. Five countries, China, the United States, Indonesia, India, and Mexico, are estimated to have the most road transport-attributable cases for children and older people in 2023. For lower-income countries, transitioning to cleaner transport is difficult for most countries, particularly…
Every year, road traffic crashes claim the lives of approximately 1.19 million people globally, with an additional 20 to 50 million people suffering non-fatal injuries—many of which result in lifelong disabilities, according to the latest global road safety data by the World Health Organization (WHO). Who is most at risk? The toll of road traffic injuries falls disproportionately on certain groups. Men are nearly three times more likely to die in road crashes than women, pointing to behavioral and exposure differences in road use. More alarmingly, road traffic injuries remain the leading cause of death for children and young adults,…