Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Bola Tinubu, Bayo Onanuga, has dismissed a speech by the former Minister of Interior and National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress at the ADC national convention as the rant of a man with a failed record in public office.

Onanuga was reacting on X on Tuesday to remarks Aregbesola made at the party’s eighth national convention in Abuja, where the former minister declared, “The ruling party never had a vision; its Renewed Hope agenda was a scam!”

Speaking at the convention during the presentation of the secretariat report, Aregbesola said the ADC was “on a rescue mission to pry the country from the strangulating grasp of the ruling party.”

He attacked the APC for enacting what he described as an electoral law that decriminalised forgery in electoral documents, saying the ruling party was “decriminalizing criminality.”

On the economy, Aregbesola cited the naira’s fall from roughly N700 to the dollar when the Tinubu administration took office in 2023 to about N1,400, describing it as a 100 per cent devaluation that was “devastating” for an import-dependent economy.

“The government’s claim that the recent reduction in the exchange rate shows its mastery of economics is false,” he said.

“Before this administration, the cost of a litre of fuel was between N185 and N238, depending on which part of the country you were in; now it is about N1,400 per litre and still rising. The cost of transportation is now so prohibitive that it has become unrealistic for some workers to go to work,” he said.

He also cited deteriorating power supply, saying some parts of the country received an average of two hours of electricity daily while others had been “in darkness for weeks and months at a stretch.”

“The administration told Nigerians that if it does not solve the power problem by providing a constant power supply, it should not be voted for a second term. Today, power supply is far worse,” Aregbesola said.

Aregbesola called on Tinubu to step down, saying: “Ordinarily, having made such a promise and failed woefully, an honest president should simply step down and not seek reelection.”

He added that what Nigerians were witnessing instead was “the most desperate attempt by a candidate in Nigerian electoral history to retain power at all costs, even if it means bringing down the entire democratic system.”

Responding, Onanuga said Aregbesola had no moral authority to criticise the Tinubu administration, given what he described as a dismal record across two stints in public office.

“Unfortunately, Aregbesola did not undertake any honest self-reflection on his own record in public office — as governor or as Minister of Interior,” Onanuga wrote.

He said Aregbesola’s eight years as governor of Osun State had been “characterised by unmitigated hardship”, with civil servants going unpaid for months and pensioners dying because they could not receive their payments.

“It is to Aregbesola’s infamy that Osun became known as a state receiving negative federal allocation and paying just 20 to 30 per cent of normal salaries. It was worse for pensioners in Aregbesola’s Osun State. Many pensioners who relied on their meagre monthly payments died because they were not paid at all,” Onanuga said.

He added that Aregbesola’s immediate successor, Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, “worked hard to clean up much of the mess left behind,” and that Governor Ademola Adeleke was “still dealing with the consequences.”

Onanuga also attacked Aregbesola’s record as Minister of Interior under former President Muhammadu Buhari, saying his tenure recorded the highest number of jailbreaks in Nigeria’s history, including the 2022 Kuje Prison escape in Abuja.

“During his four years, obtaining a Nigerian passport became a nightmarish process, and there were 15 major attacks on correctional facilities in Jos, Abolongo, Imo, Kabba, and Okitipupa, resulting in over 4,000 inmates escaping to join criminal elements.

“For someone who failed so woefully to secure our correctional centres and uphold his duties between 2019 and 2023, it is ironic that Aregbesola now seeks to lecture others on insecurity. Maybe he thinks the entire Nigerian population suffers from amnesia,” Onanuga wrote.

He warned Nigerians to remain vigilant against “power-hungry individuals with no programme,” saying the opposition was “weaponising isolated terrorist attacks, as if the problem started from this administration.”

Onanuga also cited what he described as the gains of the Tinubu administration, including a minimum wage increase of over 100 per cent, a decline in inflation from over 25 per cent to below 15 per cent, and growth in foreign reserves and GDP.

“The Tinubu administration has never shied away from acknowledging that policy reforms have brought unintended consequences, impacting the most vulnerable. However, over the last three years, the government has introduced numerous relief measures to mitigate these effects,” he said

“No, Rauf, the Renewed Hope Agenda is not a scam. The real scammers are the politicians gathered inside the SPV called ADC,” he wrote.

For the first time in recent memory, the Professional Golfers’ Association of Nigeria is facing a crisis so severe it’s not just the trophies at stake—it’s the organization’s very survival.

At the center of this storm is the current Executive Committee, led by Tony Philmoore.

What was supposed to be a standard leadership run has turned into a high-stakes standoff. A growing, vocal faction within the membership has levelled explosive accusations against Philmoore, claiming he has morphed into a “high-handed” leader intent on overstaying his tenure.

The drama boils down to a classic case of “he-said, she-said” regarding the rulebook. The facts are these: Philmoore’s team was sworn in back in November 2023for what everyone understood to be a two-year term.

One senior member told our correspondent in no uncertain terms: “This is not how you run a professional body. Members were not properly represented in the decision for tenure elongation. You cannot wake up one morning and add three years to your mandate. Where is the governance? Where is the constitution?”

The member, who preferred not to be named for fear of further marginalisation within the association, revealed that formal letters have been circulated, legal opinions sought, and pressure quietly applied on the leadership to vacate or call for fresh elections. So far, Philmoore’s team has shown little sign of budging — and therein lies the stalemate that is strangling Nigerian professional golf.

However, in a move that has sent shockwaves through the greens, the leadership now claims they received an endorsement during their Annual General Meeting (AGM) for a five-year tenure proposal that was thrown up at the AGM, which members claimed hadn’t been endorsed.“It’s a power grab, plain and simple,” mutters another disgruntled member “There was no formal approval, no consensus, and certainly no transparency. We are looking at a leadership that wants to rule, not represent.”

A chance for truce had been blown when rather than heed a call for election, Philmoore initiated a court order that halted members’ proposed meeting to pass a ‘vote of no confidence’ in Lagos. The resolution would have forced the Executives’ hand and made and EGM obligatory but it got thwarted by the court order advising to stay action on the matter.

Earlier too, the apex ruling body for the game in Nigeria, Nigeria Golf Federation, had also attempted to broker peace and proposed terms to return normalcy through its President, Olusegun Runsewe. It obviously hasn’t worked.

While the executives trade accusations in boardrooms and WhatsApp groups, it is Nigeria’s professional golfers — the men and women who have dedicated their lives to the sport — who are paying the most devastating price.

Our correspondent spoke to Yusuf (not real name), an aggrieved professional player who expressed his frustration as this:

“We have lost one of our key regular year opening events in January due to this situation,” he revealed, his voice heavy with disappointment. “I heard that sponsors said we should go and put our house in order first.”

He paused. Then the real pain surfaced.

“It is a shame that the leadership are busy fighting for position, while the little channel for members to showcase their talent and earn their livelihood is being destroyed. I joined this career with so much hope. I am confident in my ability — but this situation has really made me depressed.”

The deeper and more alarming question swirling among golf industry insiders is this: how long can the PGA of Nigeria survive this self-inflicted wound?

Professional sporting bodies live and die by two things — credibility and continuity. The PGA is currently haemorrhaging both at an alarming rate. Without tournaments, players cannot earn. Without earnings, talent migrates or gives up. Without talent, there is no product to sell. Without a product, there are no sponsors. Without sponsors, there is no organisation.

It is a vicious spiral, and those watching from the outside say the end point, if nothing changes, is institutional collapse.

The PGA of Nigeria since formation in 1969 has survived economic downturns, infrastructure deficits, and the general turbulence of Nigerian sporting administration. But this — a leadership crisis born entirely of ambition and alleged constitutional overreach — may prove to be its most dangerous hour yet.

As of the time of filing this report, no resolution is in sight. Tony Philmoore’s camp remains entrenched, dismissing critics as a disgruntled minority. The opposition faction, meanwhile, is adamant and reaching out to the broader sporting governance community for intervention.

In the middle of it all stand Nigeria’s professional golfers — talented, ambitious, and utterly let down by the very institution created to serve them.

The greens are still beautiful. The clubs are still sharp. But the game, for now, is being played in the boardroom — and nobody is winning.

:
Troops of the Nigerian Army have rescued 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The rescue followed a distress call reporting that terrorists had invaded an ECWA Church in the community and abducted worshippers during the service.

In a statement posted on its X handle on Sunday, the Army said that upon receiving the information, troops swiftly mobilised to the scene and, with the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, advanced in pursuit of the fleeing attackers.

The Army said the troops engaged the terrorists in a fierce firefight, overpowering them with superior firepower.

“Troops of the Nigerian Army, through a swift response, successfully foiled a terrorist attack, leading to the rescue of 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

“The swift response followed a distress call reporting the abduction of worshippers during an Easter service at an ECWA Church in Ariko Village. The troops, on receipt of the information, promptly mobilised to the scene. With the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, they advanced in pursuit of the fleeing terrorists and engaged the criminals in a fierce firefight, overwhelming them with superior firepower.

“The pressure mounted by the advancing troops forced the terrorists to abandon 31 hostages, including one injured victim who is currently receiving medical attention,” the statement partly read.

However, the army disclosed that troops also recovered the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists at the scene.

“Regrettably, the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists were also recovered at the scene. The fleeing terrorists are believed to have sustained significant casualties, as evidenced by blood trails along their escape routes.

“Troops have since intensified pursuit operations to track the fleeing elements to their enclaves, with ongoing efforts aimed at rescuing any remaining captives and ensuring the perpetrators are brought to justice,” the statement added.

The army said additional troops had been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“To consolidate the gains recorded, additional troops have been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“The Nigerian Army reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the protection of citizens and the defence of Nigeria’s territorial integrity, in collaboration with other security agencies and local stakeholders. Troops remain resolute in sustaining offensive operations against all threats to national security.

“Members of the public are encouraged to continue supporting the Nigerian Army and other security agencies by providing timely and credible information, as collective vigilance remains vital to achieving enduring peace and stability,” the statement concluded.

Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Bola Tinubu, Bayo Onanuga, has dismissed a speech by the former Minister of Interior and National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress at the ADC national convention as the rant of a man with a failed record in public office.

Onanuga was reacting on X on Tuesday to remarks Aregbesola made at the party’s eighth national convention in Abuja, where the former minister declared, “The ruling party never had a vision; its Renewed Hope agenda was a scam!”

Speaking at the convention during the presentation of the secretariat report, Aregbesola said the ADC was “on a rescue mission to pry the country from the strangulating grasp of the ruling party.”

He attacked the APC for enacting what he described as an electoral law that decriminalised forgery in electoral documents, saying the ruling party was “decriminalizing criminality.”

On the economy, Aregbesola cited the naira’s fall from roughly N700 to the dollar when the Tinubu administration took office in 2023 to about N1,400, describing it as a 100 per cent devaluation that was “devastating” for an import-dependent economy.

“The government’s claim that the recent reduction in the exchange rate shows its mastery of economics is false,” he said.

“Before this administration, the cost of a litre of fuel was between N185 and N238, depending on which part of the country you were in; now it is about N1,400 per litre and still rising. The cost of transportation is now so prohibitive that it has become unrealistic for some workers to go to work,” he said.

He also cited deteriorating power supply, saying some parts of the country received an average of two hours of electricity daily while others had been “in darkness for weeks and months at a stretch.”

“The administration told Nigerians that if it does not solve the power problem by providing a constant power supply, it should not be voted for a second term. Today, power supply is far worse,” Aregbesola said.

Aregbesola called on Tinubu to step down, saying: “Ordinarily, having made such a promise and failed woefully, an honest president should simply step down and not seek reelection.”

He added that what Nigerians were witnessing instead was “the most desperate attempt by a candidate in Nigerian electoral history to retain power at all costs, even if it means bringing down the entire democratic system.”

Responding, Onanuga said Aregbesola had no moral authority to criticise the Tinubu administration, given what he described as a dismal record across two stints in public office.

“Unfortunately, Aregbesola did not undertake any honest self-reflection on his own record in public office — as governor or as Minister of Interior,” Onanuga wrote.

He said Aregbesola’s eight years as governor of Osun State had been “characterised by unmitigated hardship”, with civil servants going unpaid for months and pensioners dying because they could not receive their payments.

“It is to Aregbesola’s infamy that Osun became known as a state receiving negative federal allocation and paying just 20 to 30 per cent of normal salaries. It was worse for pensioners in Aregbesola’s Osun State. Many pensioners who relied on their meagre monthly payments died because they were not paid at all,” Onanuga said.

He added that Aregbesola’s immediate successor, Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, “worked hard to clean up much of the mess left behind,” and that Governor Ademola Adeleke was “still dealing with the consequences.”

Onanuga also attacked Aregbesola’s record as Minister of Interior under former President Muhammadu Buhari, saying his tenure recorded the highest number of jailbreaks in Nigeria’s history, including the 2022 Kuje Prison escape in Abuja.

“During his four years, obtaining a Nigerian passport became a nightmarish process, and there were 15 major attacks on correctional facilities in Jos, Abolongo, Imo, Kabba, and Okitipupa, resulting in over 4,000 inmates escaping to join criminal elements.

“For someone who failed so woefully to secure our correctional centres and uphold his duties between 2019 and 2023, it is ironic that Aregbesola now seeks to lecture others on insecurity. Maybe he thinks the entire Nigerian population suffers from amnesia,” Onanuga wrote.

He warned Nigerians to remain vigilant against “power-hungry individuals with no programme,” saying the opposition was “weaponising isolated terrorist attacks, as if the problem started from this administration.”

Onanuga also cited what he described as the gains of the Tinubu administration, including a minimum wage increase of over 100 per cent, a decline in inflation from over 25 per cent to below 15 per cent, and growth in foreign reserves and GDP.

“The Tinubu administration has never shied away from acknowledging that policy reforms have brought unintended consequences, impacting the most vulnerable. However, over the last three years, the government has introduced numerous relief measures to mitigate these effects,” he said

“No, Rauf, the Renewed Hope Agenda is not a scam. The real scammers are the politicians gathered inside the SPV called ADC,” he wrote.

For the first time in recent memory, the Professional Golfers’ Association of Nigeria is facing a crisis so severe it’s not just the trophies at stake—it’s the organization’s very survival.

At the center of this storm is the current Executive Committee, led by Tony Philmoore.

What was supposed to be a standard leadership run has turned into a high-stakes standoff. A growing, vocal faction within the membership has levelled explosive accusations against Philmoore, claiming he has morphed into a “high-handed” leader intent on overstaying his tenure.

The drama boils down to a classic case of “he-said, she-said” regarding the rulebook. The facts are these: Philmoore’s team was sworn in back in November 2023for what everyone understood to be a two-year term.

One senior member told our correspondent in no uncertain terms: “This is not how you run a professional body. Members were not properly represented in the decision for tenure elongation. You cannot wake up one morning and add three years to your mandate. Where is the governance? Where is the constitution?”

The member, who preferred not to be named for fear of further marginalisation within the association, revealed that formal letters have been circulated, legal opinions sought, and pressure quietly applied on the leadership to vacate or call for fresh elections. So far, Philmoore’s team has shown little sign of budging — and therein lies the stalemate that is strangling Nigerian professional golf.

However, in a move that has sent shockwaves through the greens, the leadership now claims they received an endorsement during their Annual General Meeting (AGM) for a five-year tenure proposal that was thrown up at the AGM, which members claimed hadn’t been endorsed.“It’s a power grab, plain and simple,” mutters another disgruntled member “There was no formal approval, no consensus, and certainly no transparency. We are looking at a leadership that wants to rule, not represent.”

A chance for truce had been blown when rather than heed a call for election, Philmoore initiated a court order that halted members’ proposed meeting to pass a ‘vote of no confidence’ in Lagos. The resolution would have forced the Executives’ hand and made and EGM obligatory but it got thwarted by the court order advising to stay action on the matter.

Earlier too, the apex ruling body for the game in Nigeria, Nigeria Golf Federation, had also attempted to broker peace and proposed terms to return normalcy through its President, Olusegun Runsewe. It obviously hasn’t worked.

While the executives trade accusations in boardrooms and WhatsApp groups, it is Nigeria’s professional golfers — the men and women who have dedicated their lives to the sport — who are paying the most devastating price.

Our correspondent spoke to Yusuf (not real name), an aggrieved professional player who expressed his frustration as this:

“We have lost one of our key regular year opening events in January due to this situation,” he revealed, his voice heavy with disappointment. “I heard that sponsors said we should go and put our house in order first.”

He paused. Then the real pain surfaced.

“It is a shame that the leadership are busy fighting for position, while the little channel for members to showcase their talent and earn their livelihood is being destroyed. I joined this career with so much hope. I am confident in my ability — but this situation has really made me depressed.”

The deeper and more alarming question swirling among golf industry insiders is this: how long can the PGA of Nigeria survive this self-inflicted wound?

Professional sporting bodies live and die by two things — credibility and continuity. The PGA is currently haemorrhaging both at an alarming rate. Without tournaments, players cannot earn. Without earnings, talent migrates or gives up. Without talent, there is no product to sell. Without a product, there are no sponsors. Without sponsors, there is no organisation.

It is a vicious spiral, and those watching from the outside say the end point, if nothing changes, is institutional collapse.

The PGA of Nigeria since formation in 1969 has survived economic downturns, infrastructure deficits, and the general turbulence of Nigerian sporting administration. But this — a leadership crisis born entirely of ambition and alleged constitutional overreach — may prove to be its most dangerous hour yet.

As of the time of filing this report, no resolution is in sight. Tony Philmoore’s camp remains entrenched, dismissing critics as a disgruntled minority. The opposition faction, meanwhile, is adamant and reaching out to the broader sporting governance community for intervention.

In the middle of it all stand Nigeria’s professional golfers — talented, ambitious, and utterly let down by the very institution created to serve them.

The greens are still beautiful. The clubs are still sharp. But the game, for now, is being played in the boardroom — and nobody is winning.

:
Troops of the Nigerian Army have rescued 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The rescue followed a distress call reporting that terrorists had invaded an ECWA Church in the community and abducted worshippers during the service.

In a statement posted on its X handle on Sunday, the Army said that upon receiving the information, troops swiftly mobilised to the scene and, with the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, advanced in pursuit of the fleeing attackers.

The Army said the troops engaged the terrorists in a fierce firefight, overpowering them with superior firepower.

“Troops of the Nigerian Army, through a swift response, successfully foiled a terrorist attack, leading to the rescue of 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

“The swift response followed a distress call reporting the abduction of worshippers during an Easter service at an ECWA Church in Ariko Village. The troops, on receipt of the information, promptly mobilised to the scene. With the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, they advanced in pursuit of the fleeing terrorists and engaged the criminals in a fierce firefight, overwhelming them with superior firepower.

“The pressure mounted by the advancing troops forced the terrorists to abandon 31 hostages, including one injured victim who is currently receiving medical attention,” the statement partly read.

However, the army disclosed that troops also recovered the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists at the scene.

“Regrettably, the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists were also recovered at the scene. The fleeing terrorists are believed to have sustained significant casualties, as evidenced by blood trails along their escape routes.

“Troops have since intensified pursuit operations to track the fleeing elements to their enclaves, with ongoing efforts aimed at rescuing any remaining captives and ensuring the perpetrators are brought to justice,” the statement added.

The army said additional troops had been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“To consolidate the gains recorded, additional troops have been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“The Nigerian Army reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the protection of citizens and the defence of Nigeria’s territorial integrity, in collaboration with other security agencies and local stakeholders. Troops remain resolute in sustaining offensive operations against all threats to national security.

“Members of the public are encouraged to continue supporting the Nigerian Army and other security agencies by providing timely and credible information, as collective vigilance remains vital to achieving enduring peace and stability,” the statement concluded.

Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Bola Tinubu, Bayo Onanuga, has dismissed a speech by the former Minister of Interior and National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress at the ADC national convention as the rant of a man with a failed record in public office.

Onanuga was reacting on X on Tuesday to remarks Aregbesola made at the party’s eighth national convention in Abuja, where the former minister declared, “The ruling party never had a vision; its Renewed Hope agenda was a scam!”

Speaking at the convention during the presentation of the secretariat report, Aregbesola said the ADC was “on a rescue mission to pry the country from the strangulating grasp of the ruling party.”

He attacked the APC for enacting what he described as an electoral law that decriminalised forgery in electoral documents, saying the ruling party was “decriminalizing criminality.”

On the economy, Aregbesola cited the naira’s fall from roughly N700 to the dollar when the Tinubu administration took office in 2023 to about N1,400, describing it as a 100 per cent devaluation that was “devastating” for an import-dependent economy.

“The government’s claim that the recent reduction in the exchange rate shows its mastery of economics is false,” he said.

“Before this administration, the cost of a litre of fuel was between N185 and N238, depending on which part of the country you were in; now it is about N1,400 per litre and still rising. The cost of transportation is now so prohibitive that it has become unrealistic for some workers to go to work,” he said.

He also cited deteriorating power supply, saying some parts of the country received an average of two hours of electricity daily while others had been “in darkness for weeks and months at a stretch.”

“The administration told Nigerians that if it does not solve the power problem by providing a constant power supply, it should not be voted for a second term. Today, power supply is far worse,” Aregbesola said.

Aregbesola called on Tinubu to step down, saying: “Ordinarily, having made such a promise and failed woefully, an honest president should simply step down and not seek reelection.”

He added that what Nigerians were witnessing instead was “the most desperate attempt by a candidate in Nigerian electoral history to retain power at all costs, even if it means bringing down the entire democratic system.”

Responding, Onanuga said Aregbesola had no moral authority to criticise the Tinubu administration, given what he described as a dismal record across two stints in public office.

“Unfortunately, Aregbesola did not undertake any honest self-reflection on his own record in public office — as governor or as Minister of Interior,” Onanuga wrote.

He said Aregbesola’s eight years as governor of Osun State had been “characterised by unmitigated hardship”, with civil servants going unpaid for months and pensioners dying because they could not receive their payments.

“It is to Aregbesola’s infamy that Osun became known as a state receiving negative federal allocation and paying just 20 to 30 per cent of normal salaries. It was worse for pensioners in Aregbesola’s Osun State. Many pensioners who relied on their meagre monthly payments died because they were not paid at all,” Onanuga said.

He added that Aregbesola’s immediate successor, Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, “worked hard to clean up much of the mess left behind,” and that Governor Ademola Adeleke was “still dealing with the consequences.”

Onanuga also attacked Aregbesola’s record as Minister of Interior under former President Muhammadu Buhari, saying his tenure recorded the highest number of jailbreaks in Nigeria’s history, including the 2022 Kuje Prison escape in Abuja.

“During his four years, obtaining a Nigerian passport became a nightmarish process, and there were 15 major attacks on correctional facilities in Jos, Abolongo, Imo, Kabba, and Okitipupa, resulting in over 4,000 inmates escaping to join criminal elements.

“For someone who failed so woefully to secure our correctional centres and uphold his duties between 2019 and 2023, it is ironic that Aregbesola now seeks to lecture others on insecurity. Maybe he thinks the entire Nigerian population suffers from amnesia,” Onanuga wrote.

He warned Nigerians to remain vigilant against “power-hungry individuals with no programme,” saying the opposition was “weaponising isolated terrorist attacks, as if the problem started from this administration.”

Onanuga also cited what he described as the gains of the Tinubu administration, including a minimum wage increase of over 100 per cent, a decline in inflation from over 25 per cent to below 15 per cent, and growth in foreign reserves and GDP.

“The Tinubu administration has never shied away from acknowledging that policy reforms have brought unintended consequences, impacting the most vulnerable. However, over the last three years, the government has introduced numerous relief measures to mitigate these effects,” he said

“No, Rauf, the Renewed Hope Agenda is not a scam. The real scammers are the politicians gathered inside the SPV called ADC,” he wrote.

For the first time in recent memory, the Professional Golfers’ Association of Nigeria is facing a crisis so severe it’s not just the trophies at stake—it’s the organization’s very survival.

At the center of this storm is the current Executive Committee, led by Tony Philmoore.

What was supposed to be a standard leadership run has turned into a high-stakes standoff. A growing, vocal faction within the membership has levelled explosive accusations against Philmoore, claiming he has morphed into a “high-handed” leader intent on overstaying his tenure.

The drama boils down to a classic case of “he-said, she-said” regarding the rulebook. The facts are these: Philmoore’s team was sworn in back in November 2023for what everyone understood to be a two-year term.

One senior member told our correspondent in no uncertain terms: “This is not how you run a professional body. Members were not properly represented in the decision for tenure elongation. You cannot wake up one morning and add three years to your mandate. Where is the governance? Where is the constitution?”

The member, who preferred not to be named for fear of further marginalisation within the association, revealed that formal letters have been circulated, legal opinions sought, and pressure quietly applied on the leadership to vacate or call for fresh elections. So far, Philmoore’s team has shown little sign of budging — and therein lies the stalemate that is strangling Nigerian professional golf.

However, in a move that has sent shockwaves through the greens, the leadership now claims they received an endorsement during their Annual General Meeting (AGM) for a five-year tenure proposal that was thrown up at the AGM, which members claimed hadn’t been endorsed.“It’s a power grab, plain and simple,” mutters another disgruntled member “There was no formal approval, no consensus, and certainly no transparency. We are looking at a leadership that wants to rule, not represent.”

A chance for truce had been blown when rather than heed a call for election, Philmoore initiated a court order that halted members’ proposed meeting to pass a ‘vote of no confidence’ in Lagos. The resolution would have forced the Executives’ hand and made and EGM obligatory but it got thwarted by the court order advising to stay action on the matter.

Earlier too, the apex ruling body for the game in Nigeria, Nigeria Golf Federation, had also attempted to broker peace and proposed terms to return normalcy through its President, Olusegun Runsewe. It obviously hasn’t worked.

While the executives trade accusations in boardrooms and WhatsApp groups, it is Nigeria’s professional golfers — the men and women who have dedicated their lives to the sport — who are paying the most devastating price.

Our correspondent spoke to Yusuf (not real name), an aggrieved professional player who expressed his frustration as this:

“We have lost one of our key regular year opening events in January due to this situation,” he revealed, his voice heavy with disappointment. “I heard that sponsors said we should go and put our house in order first.”

He paused. Then the real pain surfaced.

“It is a shame that the leadership are busy fighting for position, while the little channel for members to showcase their talent and earn their livelihood is being destroyed. I joined this career with so much hope. I am confident in my ability — but this situation has really made me depressed.”

The deeper and more alarming question swirling among golf industry insiders is this: how long can the PGA of Nigeria survive this self-inflicted wound?

Professional sporting bodies live and die by two things — credibility and continuity. The PGA is currently haemorrhaging both at an alarming rate. Without tournaments, players cannot earn. Without earnings, talent migrates or gives up. Without talent, there is no product to sell. Without a product, there are no sponsors. Without sponsors, there is no organisation.

It is a vicious spiral, and those watching from the outside say the end point, if nothing changes, is institutional collapse.

The PGA of Nigeria since formation in 1969 has survived economic downturns, infrastructure deficits, and the general turbulence of Nigerian sporting administration. But this — a leadership crisis born entirely of ambition and alleged constitutional overreach — may prove to be its most dangerous hour yet.

As of the time of filing this report, no resolution is in sight. Tony Philmoore’s camp remains entrenched, dismissing critics as a disgruntled minority. The opposition faction, meanwhile, is adamant and reaching out to the broader sporting governance community for intervention.

In the middle of it all stand Nigeria’s professional golfers — talented, ambitious, and utterly let down by the very institution created to serve them.

The greens are still beautiful. The clubs are still sharp. But the game, for now, is being played in the boardroom — and nobody is winning.

:
Troops of the Nigerian Army have rescued 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The rescue followed a distress call reporting that terrorists had invaded an ECWA Church in the community and abducted worshippers during the service.

In a statement posted on its X handle on Sunday, the Army said that upon receiving the information, troops swiftly mobilised to the scene and, with the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, advanced in pursuit of the fleeing attackers.

The Army said the troops engaged the terrorists in a fierce firefight, overpowering them with superior firepower.

“Troops of the Nigerian Army, through a swift response, successfully foiled a terrorist attack, leading to the rescue of 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

“The swift response followed a distress call reporting the abduction of worshippers during an Easter service at an ECWA Church in Ariko Village. The troops, on receipt of the information, promptly mobilised to the scene. With the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, they advanced in pursuit of the fleeing terrorists and engaged the criminals in a fierce firefight, overwhelming them with superior firepower.

“The pressure mounted by the advancing troops forced the terrorists to abandon 31 hostages, including one injured victim who is currently receiving medical attention,” the statement partly read.

However, the army disclosed that troops also recovered the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists at the scene.

“Regrettably, the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists were also recovered at the scene. The fleeing terrorists are believed to have sustained significant casualties, as evidenced by blood trails along their escape routes.

“Troops have since intensified pursuit operations to track the fleeing elements to their enclaves, with ongoing efforts aimed at rescuing any remaining captives and ensuring the perpetrators are brought to justice,” the statement added.

The army said additional troops had been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“To consolidate the gains recorded, additional troops have been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“The Nigerian Army reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the protection of citizens and the defence of Nigeria’s territorial integrity, in collaboration with other security agencies and local stakeholders. Troops remain resolute in sustaining offensive operations against all threats to national security.

“Members of the public are encouraged to continue supporting the Nigerian Army and other security agencies by providing timely and credible information, as collective vigilance remains vital to achieving enduring peace and stability,” the statement concluded.

Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Bola Tinubu, Bayo Onanuga, has dismissed a speech by the former Minister of Interior and National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress at the ADC national convention as the rant of a man with a failed record in public office.

Onanuga was reacting on X on Tuesday to remarks Aregbesola made at the party’s eighth national convention in Abuja, where the former minister declared, “The ruling party never had a vision; its Renewed Hope agenda was a scam!”

Speaking at the convention during the presentation of the secretariat report, Aregbesola said the ADC was “on a rescue mission to pry the country from the strangulating grasp of the ruling party.”

He attacked the APC for enacting what he described as an electoral law that decriminalised forgery in electoral documents, saying the ruling party was “decriminalizing criminality.”

On the economy, Aregbesola cited the naira’s fall from roughly N700 to the dollar when the Tinubu administration took office in 2023 to about N1,400, describing it as a 100 per cent devaluation that was “devastating” for an import-dependent economy.

“The government’s claim that the recent reduction in the exchange rate shows its mastery of economics is false,” he said.

“Before this administration, the cost of a litre of fuel was between N185 and N238, depending on which part of the country you were in; now it is about N1,400 per litre and still rising. The cost of transportation is now so prohibitive that it has become unrealistic for some workers to go to work,” he said.

He also cited deteriorating power supply, saying some parts of the country received an average of two hours of electricity daily while others had been “in darkness for weeks and months at a stretch.”

“The administration told Nigerians that if it does not solve the power problem by providing a constant power supply, it should not be voted for a second term. Today, power supply is far worse,” Aregbesola said.

Aregbesola called on Tinubu to step down, saying: “Ordinarily, having made such a promise and failed woefully, an honest president should simply step down and not seek reelection.”

He added that what Nigerians were witnessing instead was “the most desperate attempt by a candidate in Nigerian electoral history to retain power at all costs, even if it means bringing down the entire democratic system.”

Responding, Onanuga said Aregbesola had no moral authority to criticise the Tinubu administration, given what he described as a dismal record across two stints in public office.

“Unfortunately, Aregbesola did not undertake any honest self-reflection on his own record in public office — as governor or as Minister of Interior,” Onanuga wrote.

He said Aregbesola’s eight years as governor of Osun State had been “characterised by unmitigated hardship”, with civil servants going unpaid for months and pensioners dying because they could not receive their payments.

“It is to Aregbesola’s infamy that Osun became known as a state receiving negative federal allocation and paying just 20 to 30 per cent of normal salaries. It was worse for pensioners in Aregbesola’s Osun State. Many pensioners who relied on their meagre monthly payments died because they were not paid at all,” Onanuga said.

He added that Aregbesola’s immediate successor, Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, “worked hard to clean up much of the mess left behind,” and that Governor Ademola Adeleke was “still dealing with the consequences.”

Onanuga also attacked Aregbesola’s record as Minister of Interior under former President Muhammadu Buhari, saying his tenure recorded the highest number of jailbreaks in Nigeria’s history, including the 2022 Kuje Prison escape in Abuja.

“During his four years, obtaining a Nigerian passport became a nightmarish process, and there were 15 major attacks on correctional facilities in Jos, Abolongo, Imo, Kabba, and Okitipupa, resulting in over 4,000 inmates escaping to join criminal elements.

“For someone who failed so woefully to secure our correctional centres and uphold his duties between 2019 and 2023, it is ironic that Aregbesola now seeks to lecture others on insecurity. Maybe he thinks the entire Nigerian population suffers from amnesia,” Onanuga wrote.

He warned Nigerians to remain vigilant against “power-hungry individuals with no programme,” saying the opposition was “weaponising isolated terrorist attacks, as if the problem started from this administration.”

Onanuga also cited what he described as the gains of the Tinubu administration, including a minimum wage increase of over 100 per cent, a decline in inflation from over 25 per cent to below 15 per cent, and growth in foreign reserves and GDP.

“The Tinubu administration has never shied away from acknowledging that policy reforms have brought unintended consequences, impacting the most vulnerable. However, over the last three years, the government has introduced numerous relief measures to mitigate these effects,” he said

“No, Rauf, the Renewed Hope Agenda is not a scam. The real scammers are the politicians gathered inside the SPV called ADC,” he wrote.

For the first time in recent memory, the Professional Golfers’ Association of Nigeria is facing a crisis so severe it’s not just the trophies at stake—it’s the organization’s very survival.

At the center of this storm is the current Executive Committee, led by Tony Philmoore.

What was supposed to be a standard leadership run has turned into a high-stakes standoff. A growing, vocal faction within the membership has levelled explosive accusations against Philmoore, claiming he has morphed into a “high-handed” leader intent on overstaying his tenure.

The drama boils down to a classic case of “he-said, she-said” regarding the rulebook. The facts are these: Philmoore’s team was sworn in back in November 2023for what everyone understood to be a two-year term.

One senior member told our correspondent in no uncertain terms: “This is not how you run a professional body. Members were not properly represented in the decision for tenure elongation. You cannot wake up one morning and add three years to your mandate. Where is the governance? Where is the constitution?”

The member, who preferred not to be named for fear of further marginalisation within the association, revealed that formal letters have been circulated, legal opinions sought, and pressure quietly applied on the leadership to vacate or call for fresh elections. So far, Philmoore’s team has shown little sign of budging — and therein lies the stalemate that is strangling Nigerian professional golf.

However, in a move that has sent shockwaves through the greens, the leadership now claims they received an endorsement during their Annual General Meeting (AGM) for a five-year tenure proposal that was thrown up at the AGM, which members claimed hadn’t been endorsed.“It’s a power grab, plain and simple,” mutters another disgruntled member “There was no formal approval, no consensus, and certainly no transparency. We are looking at a leadership that wants to rule, not represent.”

A chance for truce had been blown when rather than heed a call for election, Philmoore initiated a court order that halted members’ proposed meeting to pass a ‘vote of no confidence’ in Lagos. The resolution would have forced the Executives’ hand and made and EGM obligatory but it got thwarted by the court order advising to stay action on the matter.

Earlier too, the apex ruling body for the game in Nigeria, Nigeria Golf Federation, had also attempted to broker peace and proposed terms to return normalcy through its President, Olusegun Runsewe. It obviously hasn’t worked.

While the executives trade accusations in boardrooms and WhatsApp groups, it is Nigeria’s professional golfers — the men and women who have dedicated their lives to the sport — who are paying the most devastating price.

Our correspondent spoke to Yusuf (not real name), an aggrieved professional player who expressed his frustration as this:

“We have lost one of our key regular year opening events in January due to this situation,” he revealed, his voice heavy with disappointment. “I heard that sponsors said we should go and put our house in order first.”

He paused. Then the real pain surfaced.

“It is a shame that the leadership are busy fighting for position, while the little channel for members to showcase their talent and earn their livelihood is being destroyed. I joined this career with so much hope. I am confident in my ability — but this situation has really made me depressed.”

The deeper and more alarming question swirling among golf industry insiders is this: how long can the PGA of Nigeria survive this self-inflicted wound?

Professional sporting bodies live and die by two things — credibility and continuity. The PGA is currently haemorrhaging both at an alarming rate. Without tournaments, players cannot earn. Without earnings, talent migrates or gives up. Without talent, there is no product to sell. Without a product, there are no sponsors. Without sponsors, there is no organisation.

It is a vicious spiral, and those watching from the outside say the end point, if nothing changes, is institutional collapse.

The PGA of Nigeria since formation in 1969 has survived economic downturns, infrastructure deficits, and the general turbulence of Nigerian sporting administration. But this — a leadership crisis born entirely of ambition and alleged constitutional overreach — may prove to be its most dangerous hour yet.

As of the time of filing this report, no resolution is in sight. Tony Philmoore’s camp remains entrenched, dismissing critics as a disgruntled minority. The opposition faction, meanwhile, is adamant and reaching out to the broader sporting governance community for intervention.

In the middle of it all stand Nigeria’s professional golfers — talented, ambitious, and utterly let down by the very institution created to serve them.

The greens are still beautiful. The clubs are still sharp. But the game, for now, is being played in the boardroom — and nobody is winning.

:
Troops of the Nigerian Army have rescued 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The rescue followed a distress call reporting that terrorists had invaded an ECWA Church in the community and abducted worshippers during the service.

In a statement posted on its X handle on Sunday, the Army said that upon receiving the information, troops swiftly mobilised to the scene and, with the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, advanced in pursuit of the fleeing attackers.

The Army said the troops engaged the terrorists in a fierce firefight, overpowering them with superior firepower.

“Troops of the Nigerian Army, through a swift response, successfully foiled a terrorist attack, leading to the rescue of 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

“The swift response followed a distress call reporting the abduction of worshippers during an Easter service at an ECWA Church in Ariko Village. The troops, on receipt of the information, promptly mobilised to the scene. With the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, they advanced in pursuit of the fleeing terrorists and engaged the criminals in a fierce firefight, overwhelming them with superior firepower.

“The pressure mounted by the advancing troops forced the terrorists to abandon 31 hostages, including one injured victim who is currently receiving medical attention,” the statement partly read.

However, the army disclosed that troops also recovered the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists at the scene.

“Regrettably, the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists were also recovered at the scene. The fleeing terrorists are believed to have sustained significant casualties, as evidenced by blood trails along their escape routes.

“Troops have since intensified pursuit operations to track the fleeing elements to their enclaves, with ongoing efforts aimed at rescuing any remaining captives and ensuring the perpetrators are brought to justice,” the statement added.

The army said additional troops had been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“To consolidate the gains recorded, additional troops have been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“The Nigerian Army reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the protection of citizens and the defence of Nigeria’s territorial integrity, in collaboration with other security agencies and local stakeholders. Troops remain resolute in sustaining offensive operations against all threats to national security.

“Members of the public are encouraged to continue supporting the Nigerian Army and other security agencies by providing timely and credible information, as collective vigilance remains vital to achieving enduring peace and stability,” the statement concluded.

Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to President Bola Tinubu, Bayo Onanuga, has dismissed a speech by the former Minister of Interior and National Secretary of the African Democratic Congress at the ADC national convention as the rant of a man with a failed record in public office.

Onanuga was reacting on X on Tuesday to remarks Aregbesola made at the party’s eighth national convention in Abuja, where the former minister declared, “The ruling party never had a vision; its Renewed Hope agenda was a scam!”

Speaking at the convention during the presentation of the secretariat report, Aregbesola said the ADC was “on a rescue mission to pry the country from the strangulating grasp of the ruling party.”

He attacked the APC for enacting what he described as an electoral law that decriminalised forgery in electoral documents, saying the ruling party was “decriminalizing criminality.”

On the economy, Aregbesola cited the naira’s fall from roughly N700 to the dollar when the Tinubu administration took office in 2023 to about N1,400, describing it as a 100 per cent devaluation that was “devastating” for an import-dependent economy.

“The government’s claim that the recent reduction in the exchange rate shows its mastery of economics is false,” he said.

“Before this administration, the cost of a litre of fuel was between N185 and N238, depending on which part of the country you were in; now it is about N1,400 per litre and still rising. The cost of transportation is now so prohibitive that it has become unrealistic for some workers to go to work,” he said.

He also cited deteriorating power supply, saying some parts of the country received an average of two hours of electricity daily while others had been “in darkness for weeks and months at a stretch.”

“The administration told Nigerians that if it does not solve the power problem by providing a constant power supply, it should not be voted for a second term. Today, power supply is far worse,” Aregbesola said.

Aregbesola called on Tinubu to step down, saying: “Ordinarily, having made such a promise and failed woefully, an honest president should simply step down and not seek reelection.”

He added that what Nigerians were witnessing instead was “the most desperate attempt by a candidate in Nigerian electoral history to retain power at all costs, even if it means bringing down the entire democratic system.”

Responding, Onanuga said Aregbesola had no moral authority to criticise the Tinubu administration, given what he described as a dismal record across two stints in public office.

“Unfortunately, Aregbesola did not undertake any honest self-reflection on his own record in public office — as governor or as Minister of Interior,” Onanuga wrote.

He said Aregbesola’s eight years as governor of Osun State had been “characterised by unmitigated hardship”, with civil servants going unpaid for months and pensioners dying because they could not receive their payments.

“It is to Aregbesola’s infamy that Osun became known as a state receiving negative federal allocation and paying just 20 to 30 per cent of normal salaries. It was worse for pensioners in Aregbesola’s Osun State. Many pensioners who relied on their meagre monthly payments died because they were not paid at all,” Onanuga said.

He added that Aregbesola’s immediate successor, Governor Adegboyega Oyetola, “worked hard to clean up much of the mess left behind,” and that Governor Ademola Adeleke was “still dealing with the consequences.”

Onanuga also attacked Aregbesola’s record as Minister of Interior under former President Muhammadu Buhari, saying his tenure recorded the highest number of jailbreaks in Nigeria’s history, including the 2022 Kuje Prison escape in Abuja.

“During his four years, obtaining a Nigerian passport became a nightmarish process, and there were 15 major attacks on correctional facilities in Jos, Abolongo, Imo, Kabba, and Okitipupa, resulting in over 4,000 inmates escaping to join criminal elements.

“For someone who failed so woefully to secure our correctional centres and uphold his duties between 2019 and 2023, it is ironic that Aregbesola now seeks to lecture others on insecurity. Maybe he thinks the entire Nigerian population suffers from amnesia,” Onanuga wrote.

He warned Nigerians to remain vigilant against “power-hungry individuals with no programme,” saying the opposition was “weaponising isolated terrorist attacks, as if the problem started from this administration.”

Onanuga also cited what he described as the gains of the Tinubu administration, including a minimum wage increase of over 100 per cent, a decline in inflation from over 25 per cent to below 15 per cent, and growth in foreign reserves and GDP.

“The Tinubu administration has never shied away from acknowledging that policy reforms have brought unintended consequences, impacting the most vulnerable. However, over the last three years, the government has introduced numerous relief measures to mitigate these effects,” he said

“No, Rauf, the Renewed Hope Agenda is not a scam. The real scammers are the politicians gathered inside the SPV called ADC,” he wrote.

For the first time in recent memory, the Professional Golfers’ Association of Nigeria is facing a crisis so severe it’s not just the trophies at stake—it’s the organization’s very survival.

At the center of this storm is the current Executive Committee, led by Tony Philmoore.

What was supposed to be a standard leadership run has turned into a high-stakes standoff. A growing, vocal faction within the membership has levelled explosive accusations against Philmoore, claiming he has morphed into a “high-handed” leader intent on overstaying his tenure.

The drama boils down to a classic case of “he-said, she-said” regarding the rulebook. The facts are these: Philmoore’s team was sworn in back in November 2023for what everyone understood to be a two-year term.

One senior member told our correspondent in no uncertain terms: “This is not how you run a professional body. Members were not properly represented in the decision for tenure elongation. You cannot wake up one morning and add three years to your mandate. Where is the governance? Where is the constitution?”

The member, who preferred not to be named for fear of further marginalisation within the association, revealed that formal letters have been circulated, legal opinions sought, and pressure quietly applied on the leadership to vacate or call for fresh elections. So far, Philmoore’s team has shown little sign of budging — and therein lies the stalemate that is strangling Nigerian professional golf.

However, in a move that has sent shockwaves through the greens, the leadership now claims they received an endorsement during their Annual General Meeting (AGM) for a five-year tenure proposal that was thrown up at the AGM, which members claimed hadn’t been endorsed.“It’s a power grab, plain and simple,” mutters another disgruntled member “There was no formal approval, no consensus, and certainly no transparency. We are looking at a leadership that wants to rule, not represent.”

A chance for truce had been blown when rather than heed a call for election, Philmoore initiated a court order that halted members’ proposed meeting to pass a ‘vote of no confidence’ in Lagos. The resolution would have forced the Executives’ hand and made and EGM obligatory but it got thwarted by the court order advising to stay action on the matter.

Earlier too, the apex ruling body for the game in Nigeria, Nigeria Golf Federation, had also attempted to broker peace and proposed terms to return normalcy through its President, Olusegun Runsewe. It obviously hasn’t worked.

While the executives trade accusations in boardrooms and WhatsApp groups, it is Nigeria’s professional golfers — the men and women who have dedicated their lives to the sport — who are paying the most devastating price.

Our correspondent spoke to Yusuf (not real name), an aggrieved professional player who expressed his frustration as this:

“We have lost one of our key regular year opening events in January due to this situation,” he revealed, his voice heavy with disappointment. “I heard that sponsors said we should go and put our house in order first.”

He paused. Then the real pain surfaced.

“It is a shame that the leadership are busy fighting for position, while the little channel for members to showcase their talent and earn their livelihood is being destroyed. I joined this career with so much hope. I am confident in my ability — but this situation has really made me depressed.”

The deeper and more alarming question swirling among golf industry insiders is this: how long can the PGA of Nigeria survive this self-inflicted wound?

Professional sporting bodies live and die by two things — credibility and continuity. The PGA is currently haemorrhaging both at an alarming rate. Without tournaments, players cannot earn. Without earnings, talent migrates or gives up. Without talent, there is no product to sell. Without a product, there are no sponsors. Without sponsors, there is no organisation.

It is a vicious spiral, and those watching from the outside say the end point, if nothing changes, is institutional collapse.

The PGA of Nigeria since formation in 1969 has survived economic downturns, infrastructure deficits, and the general turbulence of Nigerian sporting administration. But this — a leadership crisis born entirely of ambition and alleged constitutional overreach — may prove to be its most dangerous hour yet.

As of the time of filing this report, no resolution is in sight. Tony Philmoore’s camp remains entrenched, dismissing critics as a disgruntled minority. The opposition faction, meanwhile, is adamant and reaching out to the broader sporting governance community for intervention.

In the middle of it all stand Nigeria’s professional golfers — talented, ambitious, and utterly let down by the very institution created to serve them.

The greens are still beautiful. The clubs are still sharp. But the game, for now, is being played in the boardroom — and nobody is winning.

:
Troops of the Nigerian Army have rescued 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

The rescue followed a distress call reporting that terrorists had invaded an ECWA Church in the community and abducted worshippers during the service.

In a statement posted on its X handle on Sunday, the Army said that upon receiving the information, troops swiftly mobilised to the scene and, with the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, advanced in pursuit of the fleeing attackers.

The Army said the troops engaged the terrorists in a fierce firefight, overpowering them with superior firepower.

“Troops of the Nigerian Army, through a swift response, successfully foiled a terrorist attack, leading to the rescue of 31 civilians abducted during an Easter church service in Ariko Village, Kachia Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

“The swift response followed a distress call reporting the abduction of worshippers during an Easter service at an ECWA Church in Ariko Village. The troops, on receipt of the information, promptly mobilised to the scene. With the support and guidance of members of the Ariko community, they advanced in pursuit of the fleeing terrorists and engaged the criminals in a fierce firefight, overwhelming them with superior firepower.

“The pressure mounted by the advancing troops forced the terrorists to abandon 31 hostages, including one injured victim who is currently receiving medical attention,” the statement partly read.

However, the army disclosed that troops also recovered the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists at the scene.

“Regrettably, the remains of five victims already killed by the terrorists were also recovered at the scene. The fleeing terrorists are believed to have sustained significant casualties, as evidenced by blood trails along their escape routes.

“Troops have since intensified pursuit operations to track the fleeing elements to their enclaves, with ongoing efforts aimed at rescuing any remaining captives and ensuring the perpetrators are brought to justice,” the statement added.

The army said additional troops had been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“To consolidate the gains recorded, additional troops have been deployed to the area to reinforce ongoing operations, enhance security presence, and prevent further threats to lives and property.

“The Nigerian Army reaffirms its unwavering commitment to the protection of citizens and the defence of Nigeria’s territorial integrity, in collaboration with other security agencies and local stakeholders. Troops remain resolute in sustaining offensive operations against all threats to national security.

“Members of the public are encouraged to continue supporting the Nigerian Army and other security agencies by providing timely and credible information, as collective vigilance remains vital to achieving enduring peace and stability,” the statement concluded.