Nigerian Newspapers reported on a variety of issues ranging from the tragic crash of the Nigerian Airforce ATR 42 plane that claimed the lives of 19 Airforce personnel, Six Civilians, comprising 20 passengers and Five crew members who were heading to Lagos from Benin City….
Nigerian Newspapers reported on a variety of issues ranging from the tragic crash of the Nigerian Airforce ATR 42 plane that claimed the lives of 19 Airforce personnel, Six Civilians, comprising 20 passengers and Five crew members who were heading to Lagos from Benin City.
The plane crashed shortly after take off from Benin.
Other issues that got prominent mention are the announcement by the Independent National Electoral Commission of 103 Million as the updated voters count as the 2027 General elections draw near.
1. The Nation leads with the ATR 42 Airplane disaster that claimed the lives of 25 personnel of the Nigerian Airforce when the plane carrying them from Benin to Lagos crashed in the swamps of Igbokoda in Ondo State near the Naval Base.
The nation is in deep mourning following yesterday’s crash of a Nigerian Air Force (NAF) maritime patrol/surveillance aircraft.
All 32 people onboard, comprising 25 passengers and seven crew members, died in the swampy terrain near Ita-Oko Island, Igbokoda, headquarters of Ilaje Local Government Area of Ondo State, where the Lagos-bound aircraft went down.
The aircraft, which departed Benin City, the Edo State capital, a few minutes before 9am, lost contact with radar 13 minutes into the flight and crashed at about 9:26am.
President Bola Ahmed Tinubu last night declared a three-day mourning period for the victims of the “painful” accident.
The President, in a statement by his spokesman, Bayo Onanuga, said: “This is a painful moment for our Armed Forces and for the entire nation. Read more in The Nation
2. The Guardian in its front page lead stayed with the NAF 931 ATR 42 disaster with a directive from President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for a full fledged investigation into the crash that claimed 25 lives.
President Bola Tinubu yesterday ordered an investigation into the Nigerian Air Force aircraft crash in Ondo State, as the latest accident brought renewed scrutiny to the military’s decade-long record of aviation losses and safety concerns.
“The Chief of Air Staff has briefed me, and I have directed the Nigerian Air Force to immediately commence a thorough investigation into the cause of the crash to prevent future occurrences,” Tinubu said in a statement by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga.
The President also expressed condolences to the families of the 25 passengers and seven crew members aboard the aircraft and prayed for the repose of the souls of the officers. Read more in The Guardian
3. The Punch in one of its front page lead reports on the move by the Joint Admission and Matriculation Board, JAMB, to conduct the UTME in Canada with an explanation by the Registrar, Professor Segun Aina, on the motive behind the move.
The Registrar of the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, Prof. Segun Aina, has explained the decision to establish a Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination centre in Canada, saying the move is aimed at expanding access to education rather than generating revenue.
Aina said the proposed centre in Ottawa would serve Nigerians living in Canada and other parts of North America who wish to sit the examination for admission into Nigerian tertiary institutions.
The registrar gave the explanation in a series of posts on X on Tuesday, following public questions about the planned centre, which is expected to begin operations for the 2027 UTME.
He said JAMB currently conducts the examination in about 10 foreign countries as a service to candidates, adding that the number of applicants was not the primary consideration for establishing such centres. Read more in The Punch
4. Leadership in one of its lead stories reports on the announcement of a new Voters count of 103 Million by the Independent National Electoral Commission as the 2027 general elections gradually draws near.
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has announced that nationwide collection of Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) will commence on Friday, October 9, 2026, as the National Register of Voters rises to more than 103 million.
INEC Chairman, Prof. Joash Amupitan, disclosed this on Monday in Abuja while speaking at a strategic workshop for editors organised by the Nigerian Guild of Editors (NGE) in collaboration with the commission.
Amupitan said the latest figure followed the conclusion of the three-phase Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise and the completion of the final Automated Biometric Identification System (ABIS) cleanup.
He said the three phases of the CVR exercise produced 10,772,421 new registrations, subject to the ABIS verification.
According to him, the first phase, which ran from August 25 to December 10, 2025, recorded 2,611,266 registrations, while the second phase, conducted from January 5 to April 17, 2026, registered 4,121,835 voters.
The third phase, held between May 11 and July 26, 2026, recorded 3,867,997 new registrations.
The INEC chairman said the commission had completed the processing and distribution of Phase One PVCs to local government collection centres ahead of Friday’s nationwide exercise.
“More importantly, I am using this high-level forum of editors to officially remind the Nigerian public that the nationwide collection of Permanent Voters’ Cards (PVCs) will commence in exactly four days, on Friday, 9th October 2026,” Amupitan said. Read more in Leadership
5. This Day in one of its Political lead stories reports on the Court order secured by Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim directing the Independent National Electoral Commission to recognise him and also upload his name as the Presidential Candidate of the Accord Party.
Justice Mohammed Umar of a Federal High Court on Monday ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to upload the name of Dr. Gbenga Olawepo-Hashim as the candidate of the Accord Party in the 2027 presidential election.
Justice Umar gave the order shortly after declaring that Olawepo-Hashim was lawfully nominated as presidential candidate of the party.
Olawepo-Hashim had approached the Federal High Court, Abuja, for an order compelling the Accord Party to recognize him as its presidential candidate for the 2027 general election.
The plaintiff also sought another order directing the party to also forward his name to INEC as its standard-bearer in the forthcoming general election.
Delivering judgment in the suit on Monday, Justice Umar agreed with the plaintiff that the primary election that produced him was lawfully conducted, adding that the purported cancellation of the primary having not been communicated was of no moment. Read more in This Day
