Today’s Headlines:My Support for Tinubu Is Personal-Atiku’s Son;Obasanjo Warns Tinubu Over Borrowing

The son of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, Abba, has said his decision to back President Bola Tinubu’s re-election is a personal choice made in conscience, which he acknowledged may be viewed against the political positions of people he shares family relationships with.

Abubakar, Founder and Chairman of the Haske Bola Tinubu Organisation, HBTO, made the declaration at the group’s press conference in Abuja.

He said political decisions that differ from the positions of relatives “often attract considerable public attention” and that he was “equally conscious that my own political decision may be viewed within this context.”

“However, I wish to make one fundamental point: political conviction is a matter of personal judgement, conscience and the freedom of every individual to make independent choices,” he said.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has criticised the Bola Tinubu administration’s continued pursuit of domestic and external loans to finance the national budget and execute projects across various sectors, warning that excessive borrowing could destroy future generations.

Mr Obasanjo, who democratically governed Nigeria between 1999 and 2007, argued that the country’s continued borrowing and reliance on foreign institutions, particularly the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund (IMF), might not address its economic challenges, insisting that the institutions were not established to solve Nigeria’s problems.

The former president spoke on Friday in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital, at the Ajibosin Platform, a public forum themed “Leveraging Artificial Intelligence to Solve Grassroots Problems and Accelerate National Development.”

The Governor of Lagos State, Mr. Babajide Sanwo-Olu, has charged financial institutions to look beyond conventional lending and become more active partners in unlocking substantial private investment, improving productivity and creating employment.

Governor Sanwo-Olu said recapitalized banks should develop financing models that support long-term industrial growth without compromising prudent risk management.

He spoke at the 2026 Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) Fellowship Investiture themed: “Bank Recapitalization: Leveraging New Bank Capital for Nigeria’s Industrial Transformation” at Victoria Island, Lagos on Saturday.

During the 2026 CIBN Fellowship Investiture, 21 recipients were conferred with Honorary Fellowship, while 463 and 232 received new Fellows and Honorary Senior Membership of the Institute in recognition of professional excellence, leadership and contribution to the development of financial system and national economy.

𝗦𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝗵𝗼𝗹𝗱𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗺𝘂𝗹𝗹 𝘀𝘁𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗶𝗲𝘀 𝘁𝗼 𝘁𝗮𝗰𝗸𝗹𝗲 𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗽 𝗳𝗶𝗻𝗮𝗻𝗰𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗹𝗹𝗲𝗻𝗴𝗲𝘀

Stakeholders in the nation’s maritime sector have stated that high borrowing costs, collateral requirements and lengthy repayment periods can place Nigerian operators at a competitive disadvantage, urging the need to tackle the challenges affecting the sector.

These stakeholders spoke on Thursday in Lagos at the 2026 Annual Summit organised by the Shipping Correspondents Association of Nigeria.

The event was themed, ‘Low-risk capital for indigenous shipowners: Overcoming regulatory, financial bottlenecks.’

Speaking at the event, the Minister of Marine and Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, said one of the most significant constraints facing indigenous shipowners is the difficulty of obtaining long-term financing at commercially sustainable rates.

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