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Prof Wole Soyinka: I was kidnapped, robbed in Romania

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Professor Wole Soyinka
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Renowned Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka, has narrated how he was abducted and robbed during a visit to Bucharest, Romania, after missing his hosts at the airport.

The playwright had visited the country to attend the prestigious Sibiu International Theatre Festival (FITS), which is one of the largest performing arts festivals in the world, attracting thousands of artists and spectators globally.

In an interview with TheNEWS, the playwright recounted the experience, which unfolded shortly after his arrival in Romania, stressing that he arrived in Bucharest at 12:10 a.m. in high spirits, looking forward to the festival.

According to him, events took a dramatic turn after he and the party meant to pick him up missed each other at the airport. Thereafter, he stated that he boarded what appeared to be an official taxi to Novotel Hotel, where he was scheduled to lodge.

Instead of heading for the hotel, the driver, he explained, diverted to a deserted, dimly lit area, where he was coerced into surrendering his bank details.

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He said: “So I got into the taxi and the man drove and drove and finally we got to a spot. It was now close to 1 o’clock in the dead of the night. And I thought we were in the hotel. Then he brought out his POS. A conversation took place.

“Anyway, the bottom line is that I was in effect abducted, robbed, and deposited in this strange place. I had to enter it without seeing the POS because this man kept hiding it. He was insisting ‘enter your pin, enter your pin.’

“That drama lasted inside the taxi between 25 and 30 minutes. I was deliberately entering the wrong pin, playing for time, hoping people would come out maybe from the hotel or be strolling around. It was one of those times when everybody refused to come out. Completely bare where I was. No sign.

“I didn’t discover it wasn’t a hotel until I finally got down. I was still playing for time, hoping somebody would come out of the hotel, maybe smoking cigarettes, even a street worker or whatever. So, it became a battle of wills inside the car, which approached violence – he wondering who I was, what I was and I playing for time, hoping somebody would come along.

“And then you can imagine all sorts of imagination in my head. Why had he dropped me in this particular place? Was it a gang-infested area? Let’s just say it was a weird and not very comfortable kind of situation. Eventually, that night, anyway, I got to the hotel. I was picked up by a car and taken to Sibiu,” he narrated.

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Gunmen on rampage in Awka: Popular media personality- Isaac Nwosu shot dead

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• Police Commissioner visits family, vows to get perpetrators

By Chuks Collins, Awka

Some yet to be identified three-man assassins suspected to be cultists have k!lled a very popular media personality in Awka Sunday afternoon.

The popular public announcer and broadcaster/radio guest artiste, comedian -Isaac Nwosu, aka ‘Aiza Nwosu’, was according to eye witnesses shot point while on the steering on the street of the Anambra capital city of Awka.

He was said to have been shot alongside two other victims at separate locations, point-blank, gangster style.

The State Commissioner of Police, Nnanna Oji Ama, today 31st August 2026 after a 2-hour closed-door strategic meeting with the Command’s strategic and operational officers as part of ongoing efforts to reassess information from the public especially within Awka to strengthen security operations and sustain the fight against violent crime, paid a condolence visit to the family of late Nwosu.

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In his reaction shortly after the visit, Ama vowed to fish out the assailants.

Eyewitnesses who spoke to journalists said the unfortunate acts were apparently by the same assailants on Sunday, August 30, 2026.

Late Nwosu was shot along S.M. Okeke Street, Amaikwo area of Awka.

Whereas the other victims were shot dead along Capital City Road, Amaenyi area in Awka.

Eyewitnesses and residents believed the dastardly act. were cult related.

According to one of the witnesses, “The assailants, numbering about three and driving in a tinted vehicle, trailed the comedian from his home, double-crossed his vehicle and before attacking and shooting him dead.

“They left the victim in a pool of blood inside his car. As they drove some distance away, they also shot another victim d3ad by the roadside, dispossessed him of his belongings and fled.

“The assailants fired some shots into the air before leaving the scene in a commando-like manner, thereby creating tension in the area. After they left, the security operatives arrived at the scene and recovered the lifeless bodies of the victims.

“The security operatives later beefed up security around the areas following the incident.”

Some videos circulating online showed the lifeless bodies of the victims lying in pools of blood at different locations as onlookers gathered around the scenes.

The Anambra State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Ikenga Tochukwu, confirmed the incident in a statement on Monday, August 31.

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Kano APC Chairman shot dead by terrorists

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Terrorists have shot dead the All Progressives Congress (APC) Chairman of Rantan Ward in Bebeji Local Government Area of Kano State, Alhaji Garba Buba, during an attack on the community.

Buba was killed on Sunday night, August 30, 2026, after terrorists reportedly invaded Rantan community and opened fire on residents. Another resident identified as Sulaiman Zunduma was also killed during the attack.

A resident of the community, Hamza Isah Rantan, confirmed the incident in a Facebook post, saying the attack forced residents to flee their homes in search of safety.

According to Hamza, the terrorists shot Buba inside his house before he was taken to a hospital for treatment. He, however, died from the injuries sustained during the attack.

Hamza also said Zunduma was shot during the invasion and died instantly. He expressed condolences to the families of the victims while praying for the recovery of those who sustained injuries.

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“On Sunday night kidnappers attacked our town, Rantan, where they shot Alhaji Garab Buha, the APC ward chairman in Rantan, who later died in a hospital. They also killed another resident, Sulaiman Zunduma,” Hamza said.

The development was also confirmed by the Kano State APC spokesperson, Alhaji Auwalu Soja, who said Buba was killed on Sunday. He added that the party would issue an official statement on the incident.

The killing occurred less than 24 hours after another attack in the area, where three residents of Garun-Mallam were reportedly killed by unidentified attackers. The successive attacks have heightened concerns over the security situation in communities around the area.

The latest killing has further raised concerns over the safety of residents in Kano communities, with calls growing for security agencies to strengthen operations and prevent further attacks.

As of the time of this report, the identities and motives of those responsible for the Rantan attack had not been officially established.

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Ex-Bayelsa Gov, Timipre Sylva dumps APC, gives reasons

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Ex-Bayelsa Governor Chief Timipre Sylva
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Former Bayelsa State Governor and ex-Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, has resigned from the All Progressives Congress, citing what he described as the party’s departure from its founding ideals.

Sylva, a founding member of the APC, announced his resignation in a letter dated August 31, 2026, addressed to the APC Chairman of Ward 4 in Brass Local Government Area of Bayelsa State.

He said he made the decision after consulting his family, associates, colleagues and sympathisers.

Sylva also criticised the administration of President Bola Tinubu, saying it had disappointed most Nigerians and expressing confidence that voters would seek a change in the 2027 general elections.

In the letter, which was electronically delivered, Sylva said he could no longer remain in a party whose leaders appeared to believe that “all is fair in politics.”

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He wrote, “Having consulted widely with my family, associates, colleagues and sympathisers, I wish to formally tender my resignation from the All Progressives Congress (APC), with immediate effect.

“As a founding member of the APC, and one who joined other well-meaning Nigerians in building the party with sweat and money, it is deeply saddening to witness how the ideals we espoused have been so thoroughly and unrecognisably thwarted.

“Moreover, I cannot, in all good conscience, continue to belong to a party whose leaders believe that ‘all is fair in politics;’ and have consistently demonstrated that belief in practice.

“All cannot be fair in any endeavour of life. The demands of basic decency and morality forbid it. Unfortunately, this mentality appears to underpin virtually every action, and even inaction, of this administration.”

The former governor said the APC-led government had failed to meet the expectations of Nigerians, adding that he saw no realistic effort to change its direction.

“The present Government, formed under the banner of the APC we once loved, has disappointed the vast majority of Nigerians. And I can see neither a credible attempt nor any possibility of a revamp,” he said.

Sylva said he had therefore decided to leave the party rather than remain part of what he described as a “floundering ship.”

“I am therefore left with no other choice than to jettison a floundering ship whose fate appears to have been sealed by its irredeemable load of iniquities. I have no doubt that, in the coming election, Nigerians will vote for Nigeria and free the Country from this stranglehold on our beautiful country,” he stated.

Sylva also explained why he copied the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in his resignation letter.

He said he knew the decision could lead to increased scrutiny of him and his associates but was prepared to face the consequences.

“I am fully aware that this action of mine may invite a redoubled witch-hunt against me and my associates, but that is a risk I am willing to take,” he said.

Copies of the resignation letter were also sent to the National Chairman of the APC, the Executive Chairman of the EFCC and the APC Chairman in Bayelsa State.

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