Even with his father’s abysmal performance in office as president, which has led to bad economy , skyrocketing of prices of goods and services across Nigeria, strong indications have emerged that Seyi, one of the sons of President BolaTinubu may be contesting the office of the governor of Lagos state in 2027.

Seyi has been following closely activities of his father since he became president in 2023 and was reported to have played active role during last year’s presidential election.

A group said to be of Nigerian youths, endorsed Seyi Tinubu for governor and urged him to contest for the office in 2027 to succeed Babajide Sanwo-Olu who himself was helped by Tinubu to become President.

The group which described itself as Coalition of Nigerian Youth Leaders (CONYL) and claimed to represent youth groups from Nigeria’s six geopolitical zones, said it preferred the president’s son as its candidate for Lagos State Governor in 2027.

In a statement issued in Owerri, CONYL’s leadership, including President General Comrade Goodluck Ibem, Secretary Comrade Junard Abubakar, Public Relations Officer Comrade Iniobong Sampson, and Publicity Secretary Comrade Adeyemo Adewale, announced their resolution following an ‘extensive meeting.’

The coalition credited its decision to the “transformational performance” and “leadership traits” of President Tinubu during his tenure as Lagos State Governor, saying President Tinubu’s achievements laid the foundation for Lagos’ status as the “Center of Excellence.”

The statement expressed confidence that Seyi Tinubu possesses the leadership qualities needed to build on his father’s achievements, noting that Nigerian youths see him as a symbol of fresh ideas and innovation.

“Lagos State needs a youth with wonderful ideas and experience to govern. Seyi Tinubu is gifted, qualified, experienced, well-read, and capable to lead Lagos State to the promised land come 2027,” the group stated.

CONYL urged President Tinubu to heed the voices of Nigerian youth by supporting Seyi Tinubu’s gubernatorial aspirations, describing the younger Tinubu as a capable leader who has demonstrated excellence in previous roles.

Ambassador Zakari Ibrahim, a former Director General of the Nigerian Intelligence Agency (NIA), has died at the age of 81.

A statement issued by the family of the deceased said he died in Abuja after a brief illness.

The late Talban Katsina was buried at Dantakun Cemetery, Katsina, after a funeral prayer held at the Katsina Emir’s palace at 4:45 pm.

Governor Dikko Radda, his chief of staff, Jabiru Tsauri and other government officials attended the funeral prayer.

While Nigeria’s defence architecture has been fully activated leading to huge success in the fight against insecurity, there are some individuals that are carrying out nefarious activities aimed at undermining the gains recorded so far.

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa, who made the disclosure, however vowed that such plots to sabotage the fight against insecurity, “will not happen.”

General Musa spoke when 58 rescued kidnap victims were handed over to the National Security Adviser (NSA), Mallam Nuhu Ribadu, for a formal handover to the Kaduna State Government.

Ribadu formally handed over the victims comprising young men, women and children to the Chief of Staff, Kaduna State government, Alhaji Sani Liman Kila who represented Governor Uba Sani at the handover ceremony.

They were first handed over to Ribadu by General Musa.

They were rescued through a joint operation led by the General Officer Commanding (GOC) of 1 Division, Kaduna, Major General MLD Saraso, in the Birnin Gwari area of Kaduna State.

Musa said combating insecurity would require a whole-of-the society approach, adding- “I know the question is how were they rescued? It’s a joint effort. We were able to do that through non-kinetic means of getting across. No penny was paid for these individuals.

“This is what has made us achieve this success. You can see from the people, the women, the children, both girls and boys, and the little one. The question you want to ask is why would somebody kidnap these kinds of people? If you see them, they are barely just surviving.

“And that is to tell you that there are individuals that on their own are trying to make it impossible for the government to succeed. They are doing everything possible to sabotage the efforts of the government. That will not happen. I urge Nigerians to understand that we can only succeed by working together. Combating insecurity requires a whole-of-society approach.

“I want Nigerians to understand that if we do not come together to work, it will make it extremely difficult for us to succeed. Success depends on all of us working together. It’s a whole-of-society approach.

“You can see from these people — the women, the children, both girls and boys and even the little ones. The question is: why would anyone kidnap such vulnerable individuals? These are people barely surviving.”

He said the kidnappings, particularly of farmers in their farms, “is to tell you that there are individuals that on their own, are trying to make it impossible for the government to succeed. They are doing everything possible to sabotage the efforts of the government. That will not happen.

“Today is Saturday, the 16th of November, 2024. Part of the operations, as we have always said, is we are doing the kinetic and the non-kinetic. The kinetic being carried out by the military.

“The non-kinetic is a combined effort by all. And we have told you, for us to succeed, we need all Nigerians to take ownership of this operation, and that is what is happening. What we are seeing out of this number is the success of the collaboration right from the top, from the presidency, from the Office of the National Security Advisor, Ministry of Defence to the Defence Headquarters – all agencies working together, including Kaduna State. The Governor has been very, very supportive and very helpful. It is this collaborative effort that has made it possible for us to be able to rescue these individuals.”

Also speaking at the handover ceremony, the National Coordinator of the National Counter-Terrorism Centre, Major General Adamu Laka, revealed that preliminary investigations indicated the victims were kidnapped by suspected armed bandits under the command of a notorious leader known as Janbros.

According to him, “during the kidnapping, the victims were forced to trek hundreds of kilometres to the thick forest of Birnin Gwari.

“The government provided them with all necessary support for their stabilisation, including rehabilitation and medical check-ups. Six victims were admitted to hospital but have since recovered and joined the others for the handover to their respective families.”

The Chief of Staff to the Kaduna State Governor, Sani Limankila, expressed gratitude to the security agencies.