Odita Sunday 
29 SEPTEMBER 2026
WORLD, NIGERIA & AFRICA EDITION
LEAD • PRESIDENCY
Tinubu Due Home Tuesday as Absence Row Grips Abuja
Diaspora Dispatch Desk — Lagos/Abuja
President Bola Tinubu is expected to land in Lagos today ending a four-week working vacation in England and France, after the Presidency described a change of plan as “a slight adjustment.” He left Abuja on 30 August; an initial three-week leave was extended on 21 September, and he had been expected home at the weekend. Governor Babajide Sanwolu is due to receive him, and he will stay in Lagos through Independence Day.
The delay has become a constitutional argument. Critics want the National Assembly to invoke Section 145, which deals with handing over to the vice-president, while a lawyer quoted by Daily Trust argues there is no vacuum while a president can work remotely. Presidential spokesman Bayo Onanuga called Tinubu “hale and hearty.” Opposition figures, including Peter Obi and the ADC campaign council, have demanded a full explanation, turning the absence into campaign material for 2027.
EXCHANGE RATE WATCH
Parallel (“Aboki”) market, Tue 29 Sept:
Buying ₦1,375/$1 • Selling ₦1,385/$1
Parallel-market quotes remain a key gauge for diaspora remittances.
POLITICS • 2027 WATCH
Supreme Court Backs INEC Powers as Wike’s Coalition Splits APC
Diaspora Dispatch Desk — Abuja
The Supreme Court ruled on Thursday that Sections 77(5), 77(6), 77(7) and 84(2) of the Electoral Act 2026 are consistent with the Constitution, restoring INEC’s powers over party membership registers and candidate nominations and setting aside a July Court of Appeal judgment. Lawyers and politicians are reading the ruling differently, and the PDP says it will wait for the certified true copy before taking a position.
Separately, several APC state chapters have rejected the “Rainbow Coalition” being assembled by FCT Minister Nyesom Wike, a PDP member serving in an APC government, and are telling him to formally join the ruling party if he is serious about backing Tinubu’s re-election.
AFRICA • BUSINESS
Ruto Tours Dangote Refinery Days Before Kenya’s $17bn Lamu Launch
Diaspora Dispatch Desk — Lagos/Nairobi
Kenyan President William Ruto toured Aliko Dangote’s Lekki refinery on Friday, five days before he is due to break ground on a 700,000-barrel-a-day refinery in Lamu on Wednesday. Ruto said the Kenyan plant, which he expects to create about 60,000 jobs, would be bigger than the Lagos facility; Dangote is expanding Lekki to 1.4 million barrels a day, which would still leave Lamu at half that size.
The commercial test is crude supply. Lamu needs regional output above 600,000 barrels a day to run at capacity, against projections of 350,000 from South Sudan, 250,000 from Uganda and 120,000 from Kenya. Construction is expected to take three years.
CONTINENTAL AFFAIRS
Shettima Presses UN for Permanent African Security Council Seats
Diaspora Dispatch Desk — New York
Standing for President Tinubu at the 81st UN General Assembly, Vice-President Kashim Shettima renewed calls for a shake-up of the Security Council, arguing Africa can no longer fill the Council’s agenda from the margins. He left New York for Abuja on Sunday. Nigeria’s Finance Minister Taiwo Oyedele also told a UN climate finance dialogue that Africa needs cheaper, longer-term capital to close its infrastructure gap.
At home, Budget Minister Abubakar Bagudu said Abuja and UNHCR want to mobilise $10 billion in private investment over five years to turn displacement-hit communities into economic hubs. The Guardian meanwhile reports that Nigeria carries a heavy share of the cost of the multinational task force fighting Boko Haram and ISWAP around Lake Chad, with equipment and funding gaps persisting.
INDEPENDENCE WATCH
Wed 30 Sept: public lecture for the 66th anniversary. Thu 1 Oct: President’s Independence Day broadcast, and a National Theatre premiere of a documentary on the late MKO Abiola.
DIASPORA & SPORT
Old Trafford Packed for Jerry Eze’s Prayer Conference
Diaspora Dispatch Desk — Manchester
Nigerian pastor Jerry Eze led thousands in prayer at Manchester United’s Old Trafford on Saturday at the sold-out NSPPD UK conference, drawing reaction from fans online. Back home, Tinubu congratulated Nigerian filmmakers on a Guinness World Record for the film Black Market.
In football, Manchester City’s guilty verdict on 114 of 115 Premier League charges is still the talking point among Nigerian fans, with former chairman David Bernstein saying any punishment must affect the club’s top-flight status. Portugal beat Norway 2-1 in the Nations League.
WORLD NEWS • MIDDLE EAST
Trump Expects Iran Talks Despite Rejecting Truce Plan
Diaspora Dispatch Desk — New York
President Donald Trump said he expects talks with Iran to resume this week even though he rejected Tehran’s plan for a seven-day truce followed by reopening the Strait of Hormuz, telling Axios Iran had “overplayed their hand.” Axios reported indirect talks could begin as early as Monday. Foreign Minister Abbas Araghchi said reopening Hormuz depends on Iran’s conditions being met, and the Revolutionary Guards said they seized a US underwater drone in the strait. Seven months after the war began, the standoff keeps oil markets, and Nigeria’s export earnings, in focus.
WORLD NEWS • UKRAINE
Russian Strikes Kill Eight as Washington Pushes for Talks
Diaspora Dispatch Desk — Kyiv
Russian strikes on Ukraine killed eight people, TVC News reported, extending a weekend of deadly exchanges. Washington has proposed a meeting of Russian, Ukrainian and US officials in the United Arab Emirates, and Trump has said he hopes Zelensky will “settle” with Putin.
DIASPORA DISPATCH • Compiled from Nigerian and international news reports.
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