News
Ex-defence minister, Domkat Bali, dies at 80

- He saved Nigeria from genocide – Buhari
A former Minister of Defence, Domkat Bali, has died at the age of 80.
Bali, who died on Friday, was minister of defence and member of the Supreme Military Council between 1984 and 1985, and the Armed Forces Ruling Council of 1985 to 1990.
He was joint chief of staff between 1984 and 1985 when President Muhammadu Buhari was head of state.
The octogenarian retired as a decorated military officer in 1990. In December 2010, he emerged as Ponzhi Tarok, paramount ruler of the Langtang in Plateau State.
Buhari, in a condolence statement signed by his spokesman, Garba Shehu, described the retired officer as a man with records of bravery and patriotism.
He said Bali’s records would inspire young military officers, adding that his foundation would always be remembered.
“President Muhammadu Buhari condoles with the people and government of Plateau State over the passing of an illustrious son and highly decorated retired military officer, Gen. Domkat Bali, who served the country as Minister of Defence,” the statement read.
“The President, who spoke with the wife of the deceased, Esther, on Friday, also commiserated with other family members, friends and professional associates of the former member of the Supreme Military Council and Armed Forces Ruling Council, after rising through the ranks, with a distinguished military career, reaching the peak as Chief of Defence Staff.
“President Buhari believes the records of bravery and patriotism of Gen. Bali, the Ponzhi Tarok, will continue to inspire young military officers, while the foundation he laid in all the commands he headed will always be remembered.
“The President has also constituted a delegation led by the Minister of Defence, Maj-Gen. Bashir Salihi Magashi (retd.) to visit the family, and condole with government and people of the state over the loss. President Buhari prays that the almighty God will receive the soul of the departed and comfort his family.”
President Buhari described him as a loyal soldier who saved Nigeria from genocide.
Bali was loyal to his country and he spent decades in active service proving just that.
Born on February 27, 1940 in Zamko, Langtang, Plateau state, Bali attended elementary schools at Mban and Langtang and the Provincial Secondary School, Kuru, from 1955 to 1960. His military career began when he entered the Nigerian Military Training College, Kaduna in April 1961. He later attended the Royal Military Academy, Sandhurst, England in 1961 and had further military training at the Gunnery Staff Course, Larkhill, UK in 1968; Staff College, Camberley, Surrey, and the Royal College of Defence, Cowdon, UK.
From his military years in service to serving as the Ponzhi Tarok, the paramount ruler of Langtang people, here’s what we can tell of the octogenarian who died on on Friday.
Bali quit the army in January 1990 under not-so-pleasant circumstances. When Ibrahim Babangida reshuffled his cabinet on December 29, 1989, he removed Bali as defence minister and moved him to internal affairs. Bali, however, refused to accept the position and left.
Bali rose from a cadet officer in 1961 to the position of army general before he retired
“To be very frank with you, the Ministry of Internal Affairs is a very important ministry, but that was not my problem. My problem was that as a military officer, I was senior both to Babangida and Buhari, but I served under both as Minister of Defence and Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff. I could accept that they were heads of state. You cannot remove the fact that I was a senior to both of them. And when Babangida came, he said, ‘ok, you are no longer Chief of Defence Staff, but Chairman, Joint Chiefs of Staff.’ If I am not that, then I am also junior to all other military people other than the Head of State, which I would not accept,” Bali said in a 2006 interview with TheNEWS.
“I could accept that I was junior to the Head of State but to accept that I was also junior to other junior officers to me, that was unacceptable. That was the main reason that I had to leave. Not because I was made the Minister of Internal Affairs. Some people said it was because I was taking over from John Shagaya who was also a junior officer. Those were not the issues at all.”
In 2011, Bali rejected the national merit award of commander of the federal republic (CFR) given to him by ex-President Goodluck Jonathan. Justifying his rejection of the honour, Bali said he had earlier been conferred a higher title, adding that accepting that of the CFR would amount to demoting him.
“It makes no sense to me. I saw the recent national merit award given to me as an insult to my personality. They told me the 2011 honour awarded me is Commander of the Federal Republic, CFR. But the Federal Government of Nigeria gave me in the past a higher national merit honour as Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger, GCON, which is the second highest national honour in Nigeria. So what this current government offers me in 2011 National Merit Award is inferior to what I have before now,” he said.
“So I said, let them give the CFR to someone else who deserves that. I don’t deserve that because I had a higher one. That was the reason why I refused to attend the programme because my appearance there in Abuja will mean my acceptance to be demoted.”
News
Reps panel: Ibadan, Warri, Lagoon among 31 proposed new states

The House of Representatives Committee on Constitution Review says it has received proposals for the creation of 31 additional states to the existing 36 in Nigeria.
Chairman of the committee and Deputy Speaker of the House of Representatives, Benjamin Kalu, made this announcement on Thursday during plenary while reading a letter from the committee’s clerk.
According to Kalu, the proposed states have six in the North Central, four in the North East, five in the North West, five in the South East, four in the South-South, and seven in the South West.
He listed the states being considered as Okun, Okura, and Confluence states from Kogi; Benue Ala and Apa states from Benue; FCT State; Amana from Adamawa; Katagum from Bauchi; Savannah from Borno; and Muri from Taraba.
Others are New Kaduna and Gujarat states from Kaduna; Tiga and Ari from Kano; Kainji from Kebbi; Etiti, Orashi, Adada, Orlu, and Aba from the South East; Ogoja from Cross River; Warri from Delta; Ori and Obolo from Rivers; Torumbe from Ondo; Ibadan from Oyo; Lagoon from Lagos; Ijebu from Ogun; and Oke Ogun/Ijesha from Oyo, Ogun, and Osun states.
The committee outlined the criteria required to initiate the state creation process, stating, “An act of the National Assembly for the purpose of creating a new state shall only be passed if it requires support by at least the third majority of members.
“The House of Representatives, the House of Assembly in respect of the area, and the Local Government Council in respect of the area are received by the National Assembly. Local Government Advocates for the creation of additional local government areas are only reminded that Section 8 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, as amended, applies to this process.”
News
Kenya Airways apologises to Nigeria for mistreating passenger

Kenya Airways apologises to Nigeria for mistreating passenger
Kenya Airways has apologised to the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) over the mistreatment of Nigerian passenger Gloria Omisore and for issuing a misleading statement on the incident.
The apology came after the airline’s management and NCAA representatives met Tuesday in Abuja.
Michael Achimugu, the Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection at the NCAA, revealed this in a post on his official X handle.
“Their team has apologised for the obfuscation of facts in their earlier statement. They also admitted that, phone call or not, it was the airline’s fault for failing to identify the issue before airlifting the passenger from Lagos,” Achimugu stated.
He pointed out that his job was to enforce the civil aviation authority’s rules while safeguarding all parties involved in aviation, including travellers and airlines.
According to Achimugu, he had insisted that Kenya Airways apologise publicly to the NCAA and the passenger. Since then, the airline has issued a revised statement that accurately depicts what actually happened in Nairobi.
James Nganga, the country manager for Kenya Airways; Eric Mukira, the station manager; and Ezenwa Ehumadu, the duty manager, were in attendance.
Before her journey, Omisore reportedly checked with Kenya Airways to see if she could travel on the Manchester-Paris-Nairobi-Lagos route incoming and the Lagos-Nairobi-Paris-Manchester route outbound, according to the NCAA.
READ ALSO:
- Oshiomhole insists retired generals, foreigners behind solid minerals theft
- Senate threatens warrant of arrest against Egbetokun, Cardoso, Kyari, others
- Lagos-Ibadan road: Julius Berger, RCC under pressure as FG threatens to take over incomplete sections
According to reports, she disclosed to the airline that she was a Nigerian who lacked a Schengen visa but had a British residency status. She was assured of her eligibility in spite of this.
“Based on this information, she purchased the ticket and successfully flew into Nigeria via Paris and Nairobi without incident,” Achimugu explained.
However, the airline failed to obtain a transit permit for the Paris leg and boarded her from Lagos on her return trip. Only in Nairobi was the oversight found.
After a 17-hour layover, Kenya Airways offered her a direct ticket to London at no additional cost, but she had to wait an extra 10 hours.
“Exhausted and unwell, the passenger requested accommodation and care, citing the airline’s error. When this was denied, an argument ensued between her and the airline staff,” Achimugu added.
Condemning Kenya Airlines over the incident, the NCAA said, ““I expressed deep disappointment over the unruly behaviour of the airline’s staff, particularly the disparaging remarks about the Nigerian government, insinuating that nothing would be done regardless of how Nigerians were treated,” Achimugu stated.
He said that, contrary to what the airline had previously stated, Omisore did not decline to take the other flight.
Her annoyance instead arose from the extended wait and the refusal of basic care, even after the airline acknowledged its mistakes.
Kenya Airways has been ordered to refund and compensate Omisore for the “avoidable humiliation and distress” she endured, which also threatened her job security.
Although the airline initially requested 72 hours to respond, the NCAA granted only 48 hours, stating, “Truth should not be that hard to publish, considering how swiftly the misleading statement was released.”
Kenya Airways apologises to Nigeria for mistreating passenger
News
Afe Babalola seeks increase in doctors’ salaries

Afe Babalola seeks increase in doctors’ salaries
Aare Afe Babalola, the founder and chancellor of Afe Babalola University, Ado-Ekiti (ABUAD), has called on the government to increase the salaries of medical doctors and ensure prompt payment, attributing poor remuneration to their emigration from Nigeria.
Babalola made this call on Tuesday in Ado-Ekiti during the 7th induction and oath-taking ceremony of the 2024 graduating medical students of the institution.
The elder statesman bemoaned the poor remuneration paid to doctors in Nigeria, describing it as ridiculous and paltry.
His words, “The reason many Nigerian doctors and nurses leave this country immediately after completing their training is because the emoluments paid in naira are much less than what cleaners in hospitals overseas earn.
“Worse still, doctors in many states and government hospitals have not been paid for many months. I appeal to the government to increase the salaries of doctors and ensure prompt payment”.
The legal luminary also criticised the federal government for limiting TETFund beneficiaries to only public universities and not including private universities.
Babalola stated that a quality-driven private university, such as ABUAD, should not be denied access to the TETFund, and that this would also assist self-funded universities in providing higher-quality teaching, research, and community service.
READ ALSO:
- Naira sustains gains, appreciates to N1,595/$
- BREAKING: Tinubu signs North-Central Development Commission bill into law
- Court clears Fani-Kayode of EFCC’s medical report forgery case
“I am not asking that the money should be given to private universities to develop structures but the functions of a university properly so-called according to the World Bank are quality teaching, research, and community service.
“It is common knowledge that our university is leading in community service and research into the use of African herbs for the production of herbal drugs. The question then is, why should the government deny private universities access to TETFund for research?” he added
Inducting the graduating medical students, the registrar of the Medical and Dental Council of Nigeria (MDCN), Professor Fatima Kyari, praised Afe Babalola for establishing quality facilities in the university to effectively equip the students.
The registrar expressed confidence in the transformative momentum aimed at upgrading the country’s healthcare sector, saying that the federal ministry of health is capable of improving the quality of the healthcare system.
Professor Kyari encouraged the entrants to roll up their sleeves and get back to work, emphasising that their contribution to mankind is essential in a country like Nigeria.
The guest lecturer, Professor IkeOluwapo Ajayi, exhorted the inductees to harness the core skills learnt at ABUAD to achieve in their jobs.
Ajayi also pushed them to use their high-quality university knowledge to achieve a competitive advantage in the medical field.
Meanwhile, 23 medical graduate students achieved distinctions, including Oluwatosin Motajo (7 distinctions), Bumiyo Ojogbane (5), and Benedict Orina (5), with all twenty-three exceptional students receiving N100,000 apiece.
Afe Babalola seeks increase in doctors’ salaries
-
metro3 days ago
Police arraign suspended Ogun monarch for assaulting 73-yr-old man
-
metro1 day ago
Obasa: Tinubu abandons meeting with Lagos advisory council, lawmakers
-
metro2 days ago
Assault: Suspended Ogun monarch remanded over inability to meet bail condition
-
metro1 day ago
IGP counters PSC, orders retired police chiefs to remain in office
-
Education20 hours ago
Tinubu sacks University of Abuja VC Maikudi, dissolves governing council
-
metro2 days ago
You must be suffering from amnesia, El-Rufai tells Ribadu
-
International2 days ago
Police confirm 10 killed, many injured in Sweden school shooting
-
metro3 days ago
The historical reasons why I strongly support Tinubu – Omokri
You must be logged in to post a comment Login