IMO BREAKING NEWS BLOG

Pope Francis’s coffin began its transfer to St Peter’s Basilica Wednesday for three days of lying in state, with thousands of well-wishers gathering to pay their respects to the leader of the world’s Catholics before he is laid to rest. Crowds gathered in St Peter’s Square from early morning to catch a glimpse of the Argentine pope, who died on Monday aged 88, and to begin queuing for the public viewing which begins at 11:00 am (0900 GMT).

Francis died in the Casa Santa Marta, the modest residence where he lived during his 12-year papacy. His body was moved from the chapel there to St Peter’s on Wednesday morning. Accompanied by a procession including red-robed cardinals, his simple wood coffin will enter through the central door of the basilica before being placed before the Altar of the Confession.

Anna Montoya, 33, from Mexico, said she decided to come to bid farewell in person as Francis was like “a family member” to her.

“I had to come… it feels like I knew him,” she told AFP, adding: “He was a good man. He represented what the church needs to be, what Jesus wanted to teach us.” Saturday’s funeral is expected to draw hundreds of thousands of pilgrims, as well as world leaders including US President Donald Trump, Ukraine’s Volodymyr Zelensky, as well as Britain’s Prince William.

Afterwards, Francis’s coffin will be transported to his favourite church, Rome’s papal basilica of Santa Maria Maggiore, where it will be interred in the ground and marked by a simple inscription: Franciscus. He will become the first pope in more than 100 years to be laid to rest outside the Vatican. 

Four men — Ojo Ibrahim, Shuaibu Eleke, Abdulrauf Sodiq, and Daudu Teslim— have been arraigned before an Upper Area Court in Ilorin, Kwara State, for allegedly impersonating a lawyer, Barr. Imam Fulani, to prepare fake land documents.

Their arraignment followed a petition from the Ilorin branch of the Nigerian Bar Association alleging that the suspects forged land agreements using the lawyer’s identity.

Police investigations revealed a criminal conspiracy and impersonation, as Fulani denied preparing the documents or knowing the accused.

Justice Sunday Adeniyi granted bail to two suspects and ordered the remand of the others at Oke Kura Correctional Centre. The case was adjourned to May 5, 2025. 

Nigeria has reached a landmark 1 terabit per second (1Tbps) in internet traffic, marking a major step in its digital transformation and positioning the country as a key tech hub in Africa.

The Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN) announced the milestone, noting the rapid growth from 5–10Mbps in 2008 to 900Gbps in 2024, culminating in 1Tbps in March 2025.

IXPN CEO Muhammed Rudman attributed the progress to expanded local data centers, increased interconnectivity, and partnerships with global tech giants like Google, Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and TikTok.

Rudman said the achievement boosts internet speed, reduces costs, and saves Nigeria $40 million annually by retaining data traffic locally, improving digital access for millions, and cutting reliance on foreign bandwidth. 

A coalition of civil society groups under the Civic Room for Rule of Law has backed calls for the immediate sack of Rivers State Sole Administrator, Ibok-ete Ibas, over alleged constitutional violations.

The group, in a statement by its president Maxwell Egboh, accused Ibas of defying presidential directives and sacking appointees of Governor Siminalayi Fubara without due process.

Human rights lawyer Femi Falana, SAN, had earlier urged the Federal Government to remove Ibas, citing breaches of the official Gazette which limits his powers to presidential regulations.

The coalition warned that Ibas’ actions have created tension and uncertainty, and urged President Tinubu to act swiftly. They also praised the House of Representatives’ Ad-Hoc Committee for probing the administrator’s conduct. 

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has lowered its 2025 economic growth projection for Nigeria to 3.0%, down from an earlier forecast of 3.2%, citing declining global crude oil prices.

The updated outlook was released in the IMF’s April 2025 World Economic Outlook (WEO) report, unveiled during the ongoing Spring Meetings of the IMF and World Bank in Washington, DC.

The report also noted a broader slowdown across sub-Saharan Africa, with regional growth expected to dip from 4.0% in 2024 to 3.8% in 2025, before edging up to 4.2% in 2026.

Nigeria’s downgrade was attributed to weaker oil revenues, while other major African economies faced similar revisions. South Africa’s forecast was reduced by 0.5 percentage points for 2025, amid subdued economic momentum and rising uncertainty. Meanwhile, South Sudan saw a dramatic 31.5 percentage point cut due to delayed oil production after pipeline damage. 

The Federal Government has revitalised 991 primary healthcare centres (PHCs) nationwide, with renovations ongoing at an additional 2,701, the Executive Director of the National Primary Healthcare Development Agency (NPHCDA), Dr Muyi Aina, announced Tuesday.

Speaking at a quarterly briefing to mark World Vaccination Week, Aina highlighted key milestones, including the retraining of 120,000 healthcare workers and improved emergency response through nationwide ambulance deployment.

He said the agency is leveraging technology with a live dashboard to monitor PHC performance, while maternal and neonatal health initiatives have launched in 172 LGAs across five states.

Vaccination coverage has increased by 54%, with 26 million children vaccinated and over 101,000 protected against malaria. A new polio campaign targeting 83 million children across northern states begins May 3.