Nollywood actress Temitope Osoba has died after a prolonged battle with cancer, bringing an end to her courageous fight against the illness.

The sad news was confirmed on Wednesday by fellow actor Alesh Ola Sanni, who announced her passing in a heartfelt message shared on his Instagram page.

Sanni disclosed that the actress died on Tuesday evening, expressing deep sorrow over her passing and recalling the memorable moments they shared together. He said he had been unable to sleep after receiving the news and described Osoba as a dear sister whose memories would remain with him.

Temitope Osoba’s death comes nearly two years after she publicly appealed for financial assistance to undergo a second surgery as part of her cancer treatment in November 2024.

During her battle with the illness, the actress spoke openly about the challenges she faced, revealing in an interview that doctors had informed her she might not be able to conceive for five years because of the medication required for her treatment.

She also disclosed that she underwent several medical examinations to determine whether the cancer had spread, but remained hopeful despite the diagnosis.

According to Osoba, she chose not to accept the medical prognosis regarding her chances of having children. Instead, she said she relied on her faith through prayers and fasting while continuing her treatment.

Her passing has sparked an outpouring of grief from colleagues, fans and members of the entertainment industry, who have continued to pay tribute to her life, resilience and contributions to Nollywood.

The West African Examinations Council has withheld the results of 167,486 candidates, representing 8.59 per cent of those who sat the 2026 Computer-Based West African Senior School Certificate Examination for School candidates, over alleged examination malpractice.

The figure, however, represents a decline from the 9.7 per cent recorded in 2025.

This was disclosed by the Head of WAEC Nigeria National Office, Dr Amos Dangut, who announced the release of the results in Lagos on Wednesday.

Dangut said the council withheld the affected results due to various infractions, including the increasing use of mobile phones in examination halls despite the existing ban and organised cheating in some schools, Vanguard reports.

“The increasing use of cell phones in the examination hall, in spite of the existing ban, and organised cheating in some schools, are other nagging issues,” Dangut said.

He added that some supervisors and invigilators found assisting candidates in malpractice had been arrested and would face disciplinary action through the relevant state ministries of education.

Performance breakdown

A total of 1,959,668 candidates from 24,207 schools registered for the examination across Nigeria, Benin Republic, Côte d’Ivoire and Equatorial Guinea, while 1,950,726 candidates eventually sat for the examination.

Out of the candidates who took the examination:

1,200,514 candidates (61.54 per cent) obtained credits and above in at least five subjects, including English Language and Mathematics.

1,687,378 candidates (86.50 per cent) secured credits and above in a minimum of five subjects, with or without English Language and Mathematics.

The number of candidates who obtained credits in five subjects including English and Mathematics dropped by 1.42 percentage points compared with the 2025 examination.

Of the 1.2 million candidates who achieved credits in English and Mathematics:

558,883 (28.65 per cent) were male.

641,631 (32.89 per cent) were female.

Overall, 997,267 females (51.12 per cent) and 953,459 males (48.88 per cent) participated in the examination.

WAEC said 1,834,695 candidates, representing 94.05 per cent, had their results fully processed and released, while the results of 116,031 candidates (5.95 per cent) were still being processed.

The council also disclosed that 1,213 candidates with special needs participated in the examination. They included:

137 visually impaired candidates;

491 candidates with hearing impairment;

55 spastic and mentally challenged candidates; and

41 physically challenged candidates.

The 2026 examination marked the second edition of the Computer-Based WASSCE for School Candidates, following the introduction of the format by WAEC.

Dangut said the council introduced several innovations, including the Digital Examiner Mark System to improve the speed of processing results, serialisation of question papers to curb malpractice, and a new portal that allows candidates to generate e-PINs directly for checking their results.

The examination was conducted between April 24 and June 19, 2026, with 102,708 examiners involved in marking across 88 marking venues.

Dangut, who described the briefing as his third and final engagement as WAEC Nigeria National Office head, said candidates sponsored by states indebted to the council would not have their results released until the outstanding payments were cleared.

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has reportedly placed a “Post No Debit” restriction on an Osun State Government account with First Bank, barely 10 days before the state’s governorship election.

The affected account is said to be one of the government’s salary accounts, a development that has heightened political tension ahead of the August 15 poll.

The action came shortly after Governor Ademola Adeleke raised the alarm over what he described as an alleged plan by the anti-graft agency to freeze the state’s accounts as well as those belonging to key government officials.

In a statement issued on Wednesday by the Commissioner for Information and Public Enlightenment, Kolapo Alimi, the governor condemned the reported move, describing it as an attempt to disrupt government operations in the build-up to the election.

Adeleke argued that the EFCC lacked the legal authority to freeze the state’s accounts, insisting that there was no lawful basis for such action.

A government source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorised to comment publicly, confirmed that the account had already been restricted.

“The account has been frozen by the EFCC. This is no longer speculation. The governor will brief the public shortly on the development,” the source said.

As of the time of filing this report, the EFCC had yet to issue an official statement explaining the action, while the reason for the restriction remained unclear. (Vanguard)