Bayelsa State Government has signed an agreement with the City of Brampton in Toronto, Canada, to develop various areas of mutual interest.

According to a press releasr signed Chief Press Secretary to Governor of Bayelsa State from Brampton, Toronto, Daniel Alabrah, the sectors include education, environment, economic development, trade, commerce and investment as well as innovation and cities and urban management.

The deal also covered agriculture and staff training, administrative organisation/local state administration, citizenship, relations between local communities, social agents, economic agents and others as well as energy, culture, tourism, and sports development.

The Bayelsa Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice, Mr. Biriyai Dambo SAN, signed on behalf of the state while Brampton’s Director of Economic Development, Denise McClure, endorsed it for the city and witnessed by Governor Douye Diri and the Brampton Mayor, Patrick Brown.

This formed part of a three-day Bayelsa-Brampton Trade and Investment Forum held at the Brampton City Hall.

In his welcome remarks, the Brampton mayor described the visit and the meeting as special, saying the city has a huge Nigerian population that has integrated very well in the country and was still eager to give back to their home country.

Brown said having visited Nigeria twice in 2007 and 2019, he looks forward to another visit as a lot of positive developments were happening in the country from tech to economic development, innovation and even Nollywood.

“We have a large Nigerian community in Brampton, about 30,000, and many have been seeking for opportunity of collaboration between our city and states in Nigeria,” Brown said.

“One thing I know about the Nigerian community in Canada is that they are a gift to the country and our city. They love our city and our country but at the same time they have not forgotten their roots.”

He said both parties can explore areas of collaboration in agro-processing, entertainment, innovation, sports and medical technology as Brampton has excelled in these sectors.

“We are very serious about engaging with Nigeria as I think that the decades to come are Nigeria’s moment. As one of Canada’s fastest developing cities, we want to be a part of such success. Our city is saying let us diversity and work with countries that do want to have a hand of friendship. So there is no better time to do this than this moment that encourages such creativity.”

Responding, Governor Diri said Brampton and Bayelsa could do a lot together, noting that bilateral relations thrive when the parties involved were serious about it.

He told his host that Bayelsa was richly endowed in oil and gas, but more of gas, apart from other natural resources.

“Nigeria became an oil producing country because of Bayelsa, where oil was first struck in commercial quantities. Then our state was part of the old Rivers State before it was created in 1996.

“From information available to me, I know that Brampton is good in agro-processing and food security, for which you are ranked number one.

“We are also aware of what you have done in ICT innovation, skills acquisition and your healthcare programmes. In fact, Brampton is rated among the best in the whole of North America in some of these programmes, including your medical university, which we also have in Bayelsa. All these are areas we can partner.

“In Bayelsa, we have also established an ICT hub but it is still new. I believe this is an area we can learn from what Brampton had done.

“Bayelsa is open for investment and we are looking at what can be done in agro-processing and how to develop our oil palm estate, which has immense potential but still at its teething stage. Based on this partnership, we can establish factories and industries that will foster the relationship between Brampton and Bayelsa.”

While thanking the Mayor for the warm reception, the bilateral relationship and the prospects for both parties, Governor Diri directed the Director-General of the Bayelsa Investment Promotion Agency (BIPA), Patience Abah, and her team to liaise with the Brampton team to ensure the details are fleshed out.

He also extended an invitation to Brampton mayor for a reciprocal visit to Bayelsa.

The Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS), Kemi Nana Nandap, on Thursday paid a courtesy visit to the Director General/Chief Executive Officer of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), Engr. (Dr.) Abisoye Coker-Odusote, in Abuja. She was accompanied by members of her management team.

The visit highlighted the commitment of both agencies—key institutions under the Federal Ministry of Interior—to deepen their long-standing collaboration in enhancing national security, strengthening identity management systems, and improving service delivery to Nigerians.

Speaking during the visit, CG Nandap stressed the importance of sustained cooperation between the NIS and NIMC, particularly in securing the nation’s borders, upgrading identity verification mechanisms, and supporting national development priorities. She noted that the synergy between both agencies is vital to maintaining a robust and secure identity ecosystem for the country.

In her remarks, the NIMC DG/CEO welcomed the delegation and reaffirmed the Commission’s readiness to broaden its collaboration with the Immigration Service. She emphasized the need to further enhance data integrity, streamline operational processes, and fortify Nigeria’s borders through stronger identity infrastructure.

Both agencies reiterated their shared commitment to jointly driving policies and initiatives that enhance security, efficiency, and innovation in Nigeria’s identity and border management architecture.

The statement was signed by Ayodele Babalola, Technical Advisor, Media & Communications to the DG/CEO of NIMC.

The Labour Party has extended warm felicitations to former President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, GCFR, on the occasion of his 68th birthday, praising his enduring contributions to Nigeria’s democracy and continental peacebuilding efforts.

In a goodwill message issued by the Interim National Chairman of the party, Senator Nenadi Usman, PhD, the LP described Jonathan as a “boss, friend, and confidante”, noting that his leadership record continues to resonate more than a decade after leaving office.

Senator Usman stated that as Nigeria confronts recurring leadership challenges, Jonathan’s tenure has become even more appreciated for its “exemplary stewardship, sterling records, and exemplary service to the nation.” She added that the former president’s commitment to democracy, peace, and stability across Africa has earned him consistent global recognition, particularly through numerous high-level peace mediation engagements and election observer missions.

The Labour Party prayed for God’s continued blessings upon the former president, including sound health, renewed wisdom, and sustained grace as he continues to contribute to national and continental development.

On behalf of the entire party, Senator Usman wished Jonathan a happy and memorable 68th birthday.

Your Excellency,

I woke up this morning with a weight that has become far too familiar to millions of Nigerians, the ache that comes from watching a nation we love slip repeatedly into cycles of violence, fear, and preventable tragedy.

I ask your pardon for making this an open letter. I do so only because I fear that a private communication may never reach you, and the matters I raise here touch the very heart of our national interest and the future of our country.

In recent days, we have witnessed schoolchildren abducted in Kebbi, worshippers murdered in Kwara, commuters seized on our highways, and a senior military officer cut down by bandits. These are not just headlines; they are open wounds on the conscience of our Republic.

I write not in anger, but in fidelity to a country that has given me everything — identity, purpose, and faith. And I write to you because you occupy the only office constitutionally empowered to steady our nation’s ship at a time of gathering storms. The presidency is never an easy burden, but history often calls individuals to rise above the noise of politics and embrace the quiet courage of leadership.

Today, Nigerians are wrestling with questions no citizen of a functioning state should ever have to ask: Is sorrow enough? Is silence wise? Is protest futile? Is hope naïve? In times like this, nations look to their leaders not merely for explanations, but for direction.

As Harry Truman famously said, “The buck stops here.” That responsibility, with all its weight, rests with you.

Below, I offer five thoughts — not as criticism, but as earnest counsel from one citizen to another, from one leader to another, both of us tied to the same destiny.

*1. A Decisive National Campaign Against Insecurity*
Nigeria does not lack brave men and women in uniform. We do not lack intelligence. We do not lack equipment. What we lack — painfully and visibly — is unified, unmistakable political will.

We know where these criminals hide. We know the networks that feed them. We know their local collaborators and their powerful patrons.

Sir, a nation cannot negotiate with those who have chosen war against civilisation. Draw the red line. Read the riot act. Make it clear that no title, no immunity, no foreign interest will shield anyone who sponsors or protects terror.

Leadership, at its core, is moral clarity. And moral clarity is always an act of courage.

*2. The Silence of Those Who Should Speak*
Your Excellency, a nation survives not only by the strength of its government, but by the courage of its moral voices. Yet today, far too many of those voices are silent — elders who once spoke boldly, faith leaders who once carried the nation’s conscience, and statesmen and women who once stood as guardians of our unity.

Their silence is costly — and dangerous. It isolates your government, weakens national resolve, and emboldens those who thrive in chaos. As Martin Luther King Jr. warned, “In the end, we will remember not the words of our enemies but the silence of our friends.”

And Pastor Niemöller’s haunting reflection reminds us of the consequence of apathy: “Then they came for me — and there was no one left to speak for me.”

Sir, only the President can awaken this moral army. Only you can call them to stand again, to speak again, and to remind Nigerians that we are a people worth fighting for.

Silence is not neutrality. Silence is surrender. And your leadership can break it.

*3. A Structural Solution — The Orange Union Model*
Your government has taken important steps toward decentralisation, including local government autonomy. But Nigeria’s crisis is more profound than any single reform can reach. From my engagements with scholars, statesmen and women, and global experts, the Orange Union Model — championed by the Fatherland Group — emerges as one of the most coherent pathways for a 21st-century Nigeria.

This model recognises Nigeria as a union of nations, much like the European Union — one defence, one foreign policy, one currency, but with regional autonomy that unleashes innovation, competition, and justice.

This is not secession. It is Nigeria reimagined, not Nigeria undone.

Bringing The Patriots, the Fatherland Group, and your administration into one harmonisation dialogue could become your most consequential legacy.

*4. Rule of Law as the Foundation of Renewal*
You recently condemned the commercialisation of the judiciary. That honesty was refreshing. But we must also confront a harder truth: a compromised judiciary does not emerge in a vacuum. It emerges when political actors normalise impunity.

What happens in parts of INEC and within some corridors of the judiciary is not merely malpractice — it is an assault on democracy itself.

No nation governed by transactional justice can ever know peace.

The reform of our courts and our electoral system — with electronic voting, real-time transmission of results, and independent candidacy — is not optional. It is existential.

*5. Democracy Needs a Strong Opposition*
I joined the APC not out of convenience but out of conviction — after witnessing how selfishness, internal sabotage, and incompetence wrecked the Labour Party from within. I defended your government at the time, when you were falsely accused of being behind the crisis in the Labour Party because I knew the truth.

But today, our democracy faces a new danger: an opposition so weak that the ruling party risks becoming unchecked.

Democracy requires balance. Balance requires competition. Competition requires strong institutions on both sides.

Do not suffocate the opposition — directly or indirectly. A confident leader does not fear dissent; he cultivates it. Strong democracies do not emerge in the absence of opposition; they flourish because of it.

*The Human Cost We Can No Longer Ignore*
Twenty-five girls abducted in Kebbi.
Church invaded and worshippers murdered in Kwara.
Children kidnapped on their way to school.
Citizens dragged off highways.
A military general ambushed, abducted, and murdered on camera.
Security is the first duty of the state.
When it fails, nothing else stands.

*A Humble Plea on the Matter of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu*
Yesterday, I visited Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

I left with a renewed conviction that a political solution is both just and strategic. Releasing him will calm the South East.

It will reduce violence. It will open doors for healing. It will show that your administration leads with wisdom, not fear.

Even if he erred, nations are healed through mercy, not martyrdom.

Agitations across Nigeria — North, West, and East — are cries for justice, not calls for division. With the Orange Union Model, strong institutions, and the fair application of law, these tensions will simmer down.

*Mr President, My Final Word Is One of Hope*
Nigeria has reached an inflection point. Crisis can either consume a nation or awaken it. The choice, ultimately, is leadership.

As former U.S. President John Adams said, *“Facts are stubborn things.”*

And the facts compel urgent, courageous action.

I believe — deeply — that Nigeria can still rise. And I believe that if you choose courage over caution, history will look kindly on your tenure.

Your task is great, but so is your opportunity.

With respect and unwavering hope,

*Valentine Ozigbo*
2025 Anambra Governorship Aspirant
Seven Stars Leadership & Governance Excellence Medal 2025 Recipient
Founder, The Valiant Movement
Immediate Past President & Group CEO, Transcorp Plc

The Managing Director of the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria (IXPN), Muhammed Rudman, has underscored the urgent need for Nigeria to strengthen its local traffic exchange ecosystem, describing it as a strategic national imperative for speed, security, and digital economic expansion.

Speaking during a presentation at the African Tech Alliance (AfriTECH) Forum on Thursday last week, Rudman explained that local traffic exchange, where ISPs, content providers, and networks exchange data within Nigeria rather than routing it through international paths, remains the backbone of a modern, efficient internet economy.

He noted that Internet Exchange Points (IXPs) enable this by ensuring that data generated in Nigeria stays within the country, leading to faster connectivity, better user experience, and significant cost savings.

Rudman emphasised that the most visible benefit for users is dramatically reduced latency.

According to him, internet traffic routed abroad often travels through undersea cables to Europe before returning to Nigeria, resulting in delays between 150ms and 300ms. However, with local peering at IXPN, latency drops to as low as 5ms to 10ms.

“This is the difference between a frozen video call and a smooth one,” Rudman said. “For real-time applications like gaming, fintech transactions, and cloud services, milliseconds matter.”

He added that lower latency boosts productivity for businesses and enhances the performance of modern digital tools.

Rudman listed data sovereignty as another critical benefit of keeping traffic local, and explained that when Nigerian data is forced to travel through foreign infrastructures, it exposes the country to unnecessary security and surveillance risks.

“Local traffic exchange keeps Nigerian data protected under Nigerian laws and reduces exposure to foreign interception,” he stated.

He also stressed that maintaining local routing is essential for continuity during cable cuts. “If an undersea cable fails, locally hosted services, such as .ng websites and email, continue running normally,” he added.

Citing a major milestone, Rudman revealed that the Internet Exchange Point of Nigeria has recently crossed 2 terabits per second (Tbps) in peak domestic traffic, and described this as evidence of the rapid localisation of Nigerian internet traffic, with some members already achieving up to 70% traffic localisation.

According to him, this growth has saved the Nigerian economy hundreds of millions of dollars in international bandwidth costs, positioned Lagos as a digital hub for West Africa, and provided the foundation for local innovation in fintech, media, cloud services, and more.

“A fast, cheap, and reliable internet is the platform upon which new digital businesses are built,” he said.

Rudman urged policymakers, telecom operators, businesses, and global content providers to deepen their commitment to local peering, and recommended that government recognises IXPs as critical national infrastructure, mandate public-sector peering, and create policies that incentivise local hosting.

He further noted that while Telecoms and Internet Service Providers (ISPs) peer more aggressively to strengthen the ecosystem, content providers such as Google, Meta, Netflix, and the rest, deploy more local caches.

While urging businesses to choose ISPs that participate in local exchange and adopt Nigeria’s online identity such as .ng, the IXPN Chief Executive posited that local traffic exchange is no longer a technical luxury but a cornerstone of Nigeria’s digital sovereignty, economic competitiveness, and national security.

“Local traffic exchange is the foundation for a faster, safer, and more sovereign digital future,” he said.

The fifth edition of the Africa Tech Alliance Forum, (AfriTECH 5.0), which held on Thursday, November 13, 2025, at the Oriental Hotel, Lagos, had as its theme, “AI & Sovereign Tech: Building Africa’s Digital Independence.”

…Bandits Shoot Two Due to Fatigue During Long Trek in the Forest

A 17-year-old boy, Emmanuel Okonkwo, who was kidnapped by rampaging bandits in Kogi State with 14 others, has regained his freedom.

Okonkwo was among 15 passengers who were kidnapped in the Kabba axis of Kogi on Sunday, November 9, 2025, while travelling from Lagos to Abuja.

Family sources told Swift Reporters that the teenager was travelling to Abuja to prepare for WEAC when the kidnappers attacked the bus.

The vehicle belonging to the Andyliz transport company, in which Okonkwo was travelling, was attacked by the bandits in Kogi, and they took all 15 passengers into the bush.

The bandits took the passengers into the bush, held them hostage and placed individual ransoms on them.

While in the bush, two passengers became too weak to embark on the long trek into the forest, and they killed them.

The source said that it is the operational rule of the bandits not to hold captives for more than seven days, as they carry out immediate execution after a week.

The 17-year-old, while narrating his ordeal to family members, said they were feeding them rice and beans cooked without salt or any other ingredients.

The kidnap victims are fed once a day, and they drink from the dirty water in the forest where they were held for days.

It was gathered that security formations in Kogi advised family members of the victims to immediately raise the ransom, dismissing the possibility of security operations to set them free.

After days of pleading and a gruelling process of negotiation, the bandits agreed to place a ransom of N80 million on the abducted passengers, which was negotiated down to N60 million.

They gave an ultimatum of seven days to the worried family members to raise the money or risk losing them.

The terrorists were said to have given the condition that the money for the demanded ransom be delivered to them with the same company bus that was attacked.

They also insisted that the money be delivered in six packs of N1000 notes.

“In fact, what we were told is that when they kidnap anybody in that Kogi axis, the issue of rescue is completely ruled out. Even the security people will tell you that you have to raise the ransom to get your person out.

“The kidnappers asked us to bring six bags and put the money, N10m, in each bag in N1,000 denomination only.

“They were very mean. On three occasions, they cocked a gun to shoot Emmanuel Okonkwo but later dropped the gun. One of them chased him around with a knife to stab him on several occasions in the bush, and the knife nearly cut off his hand.

“And they demanded that the ransom be delivered using the same company bus. One of their drivers did the delivery, as they had said that they wanted only one person to come.”

The Swift Reporters gathered that while the negotiations were going on, the kidnappers kept moving the victims around Obeiba Ihima, Kogi; Along Ikowa Road, Near Transformer, Kabba, Kogi State; Around the Okebuku-Bunu area of Kogi State; and a Piece Of Land Belonging To Hon. Joel Oye, Behind Nta Tower, Kabba-Ayetoro Road, Okegbo, Kogi State.