Author: straightnewsng.com

Edi Umoh The Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA) has increased its top ticket price for the 2026 World Cup final to $10,990, compounding a growing affordability crisis around the tournament as sales reopened this week amid widespread technical failures. The new figure marks a sharp increase from the $8,680 price set following the tournament draw in December, with Category 2 tickets for the July 19 final at MetLife Stadium in East Rutherford, New Jersey, rising to $7,380 and Category 3 to $5,785. FIFA raised its top ticket price during the glitch-hampered reopening of sales on Wednesday, after the 48-team…

Akakan Umoh President Bola Tinubu has affirmed that enduring progress is often forged in moments of challenges, declaring that no nation can thrive where fear prevails. This is just as Senate President, Senator Godswill Akpabio, assured that Nigeria would overcome insecurity. President Tinubu in his Easter message to Nigerians stated that true transformation cannot be achieved without sacrifice, stressing that history affirms that enduring progress is often forged in moments of challenges. To Christians in Nigeria and around the world, Tinubu said the Easter season reminds the people of the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus Christ and the redemptive power…

Former presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi, has criticised President Bola Tinubu over Nigeria’s electricity crisis. According to him, the president’s recent comment during a visit to Plateau State reflected a failure to meet earlier campaign promises. In a statement on Saturday, April 4, Obi recalled Tinubu’s pledge during the 2023 presidential campaign that Nigerians should not vote for him for a second term if he failed to deliver constant electricity within four years. Obi argued that the country’s power situation had worsened since 2023, noting that average electricity generation dropped below 4,000 megawatts, while tariffs have increased.…

Agency Report American humanitarian and missionary, Alex Barbir has left Nigeria, days after a former presidential aide publicly claimed authorities had ordered his departure over alleged incitement of religious tensions. Barbir, founder of the nonprofit Building Zion, rose to prominence in Nigerian public discourse through his on-the-ground humanitarian work in the Middle Belt, particularly Benue and Plateau states. He has helped rebuild dozens of homes destroyed in attacks on predominantly Christian farming communities, including efforts in Yelewata, Benue State, following massacres attributed to Fulani herdsmen. In recent weeks, he drew widespread attention for documenting and speaking out against violence in…

Edi Umoh Popular Nigerian comedian, Mathias Odey has recounted the painful experiences one year after his release from kidnappers’ den. The comedian popularly known as General Odey took to social media on April 3, 2026, in a message entitled A Day I Will Never Forget, describing how his life changed suddenly. “What started like a normal mid-morning became a moment that tested everything – my strength, my faith, and my will to survive,” he wrote. General Odey said he was taken from comfort and control into a difficult situation where every moment felt uncertain. Despite the fear, he said, his…

Aniefiok Christopher After years of living in darkness, some communities in Ukanafun and Oruk Anam communities in Akwa Ibom State are witnessing return to electricity following test run of transformers donated to them. The House of Representatives member for the Ukanafun/Oruk Anam Federal Constituency, Dr Unyime Idem, who had vowed to restore light to the people, donated 25 units of 500 KVA transformers to 25 wards in Ukanafun and in Oruk Anam. For Ukanafun, residents of the area stayed 15 years without electricity supply and the residents wallowed in blackout. Already, the first phase of the project is completed and…

Aniefiok Christopher In a show of solidarity with families of its departed colleagues, Akwa Ibom Police Command has disbursed over ₦53.7 million to families of 34 fallen officers. The State Commissioner of Police, CP Baba Mohammed Azare, fsi, as as part of the ongoing Police Week Celebration, doled out Fifty-Three Million, Seven Hundred and Fifty-Five Thousand, Eight Hundred and Forty-Four Naira, Ninety-Four Kobo (₦53,755,844.94) to 34 families of police personnel who paid the ultimate price in the line of duty. Presenting the package for the Inspector-General of Police, CP Azare described the occasion as a solemn yet significant moment that…

Press Release The Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of Nsik Oil and Gas Company Limited, Mr. Nsikan Johnny, has urged applicants to approach the process with adequate preparation and professionalism. Addressing applicants at the commencement of the company’s recruitment interview sessions at Rosmohr Gold Hotels, Uyo on Wednesday, Mr. Johnny further encouraged them to remain confident and optimistic. The interview forms part of its strategic drive to strengthen its workforce and support its expanding operations within Nigeria’s oil and gas sector. Mr. Johnny clarified that the ongoing recruitment is not limited to staffing the company’s Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) Mother Station project.…

Aniefiok Christopher Work on a section of Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project is suffering following the disruption by angry youths of Okobo Local Government Area in Akwa Ibom State over non-payment of compensation to them. Specifically, the youths of Nsie community are demanding adequate compensation for houses, farmlands, shrines, tombs and aquatic ecosystems destroyed by construction firms handling the project. Straightnews gathered that the first phase is nearing completion ahead of May 2026 deadline. However, the aggrieved beneficiaries expressed anger that out of the reported N18 billion compensation earmarked for the project by the federal government, none had been paid them…

Edi Umoh The 2026 FIFA World Cup will kick off on Thursday, June 11, with host nation Mexico taking on South Africa in Mexico City. This is as expanded 48-team tournament begins its group stage across venues in the United States, Canada, and Mexico. The competition, which for the first time features 12 groups of four teams each, will run through the end of June before the knockout rounds begin. Also read: 2026 World Cup winners will get $50m in prize money The 12 groups for the tournament confirmed after the conclusion of both the European and inter-continental play-offs, are…