Tinubu Steps Aside as Envoy Meets Foreign Ministry Amid Diplomatic Row, Other Top Stories

President Bola Tinubu on Monday declined a direct audience with a special delegation sent by South African President Cyril Ramaphosa, directing the representatives to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs instead. The delegation, led by South Africa’s Minister of International Relations and Cooperation, Ronald Lamola, was received in Abuja by the Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Sola Enikanolaiye. The diplomatic visit comes in the wake of renewed xenophobic attacks targeting foreign nationals in South Africa, which recently prompted the evacuation of nearly 600 Nigerians.

Meanwhile, the Senate has clarified that the ban on preaching and hawking inside commercial vehicles is an existing law rather than a new restriction introduced in the proposed Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) Amendment Bill 2026. Responding to public criticism over proposed N50,000 fines for violations, the Senate Leader’s office emphasized that these offenses have been codified under national road traffic regulations and the FRSC Establishment Act since 2007.

In administrative reforms, the Federal Government officially activated the Human Resource Modules of the Integrated Personnel and Payroll Information System (IPPIS) to fully digitize workforce management across the civil service. Unveiled by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack, the automated platform replaces manual processing for postings, promotions, and leave applications as part of ongoing public service reform initiatives.

In security updates, Professor Wole Alamu, husband of rescued Oyo State school principal Rachael Alamu, revealed that he severed direct phone communication with his wife’s abductors during negotiations to protect his health amid extreme pressure and high blood pressure. Mrs. Alamu, who was kidnapped alongside students and teachers in Oriire Local Government Area in May 2026, regained her freedom after spending over 50 days in captivity following a government-led rescue operation.

Finally, Sijibomi Ogundele, Chief Executive Officer of Sujimoto Group, stated in a recent interview that he would rely on manual labor, such as washing up to 40 cars daily, to generate immediate daily revenue if forced to rebuild his financial standing from scratch. Addressing strategies for business recovery, Ogundele emphasized that securing immediate income for basic needs forms the necessary baseline before scaling back into larger enterprise ventures.