The Federal and the Enugu State Government have signed the host state agreement in respect of the 2026 National Sports Festival billed to hold in the South East State.

The agreement, which was signed by the Director-General of the National Sports Commission, Hon. Bukola Olopade for the FG and Governor Peter Mbah for Enugu State, on Tuesday, now awards Enugu State the full hosting rights for the 2026 edition of the National Sports Festival.

Speaking at the signing ceremony at the Government House, Enugu, Governor Peter Mbah thanked the Commission and other sports stakeholders for the confidence reposed in the state and his administration to stage the event, assuring that it would discharge its hosting responsibilities in a way that would leave a lifelong memory and experience on the athletes and all lovers of sports in Nigeria and beyond.

“We also appreciate the value and significance of this award. I want to commend the commission for finding Enugu worthy of being the next host of the 23rd National Sports Festival. We are going to discharge ourselves creditably.

“As you know, we like to be a role model as a state that gained preeminence over 115 years ago. We will not want to let our forebears down. We will live up to that standard.

“We have already set forth at dawn. Immediately that announcement was made, we mobilised our team. We are already working on revamping the Awgu Games Village and a whole lot. We have decided to deliver a brand new Games Village. We are also completely renovating the stadium to brand new.

“We are making sure that by the time you come here by the end of this year, you are going to be highly impressed. It is not revamping, rebranding or re-equipping, but we are also going to build additional facilities to the existing one.

“We are looking forward to having a word-class experience befitting the sports men and women, making our hosting a lifelong memory and experience,” he stated.

Earlier in his address, Hon. Olopade said the commission was encouraged by Enugu’s bid, available facilities, improved security in the state, and Governor Mbah’s determination to turn around the sports and social infrastructure to grant Enugu the right to host the event after the 22nd edition to be hosted by Ogun State.

The National Sports Commission boss added that the hosting would boost investment and tourism in the state before, during and after the event.

The Federal High Court In Lagos State is set to hear a case, seeking the liquidation of a Lagos-based firm, Sunrise Products Ltd, due to alleged failure to settle a debt amounting to $2,587,891.21 and N276,567,150.63.

The suit alleged that the Lagos company is bankrupt and ignored demands for payment, despite being served the statutory three-week notice required under the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA).

Nova Commercial Bank, a financial institution, brought the suit, asking the Federal High Court, Lagos, to grant an order winding up Sunrise Products Ltd for failure to liquidate the debts.

The petitioner made the winding-up prayer in a petition filed on December 19, 2024, by its counsel, Mr. Kemi Balogun (SAN), in a suit FHC/L/CP/2357/24 and obtained on Monday.

Specifically, the petitioner prayed for “an order granting leave to the Petitioner/Applicant to advertise the winding-up petition of the respondent in the Federal Government Official Gazette, one national daily newspaper, and other newspapers circulating in Lagos State, where the registered office and principal place of business of the respondent are located, or in such other newspaper as the Court may direct, in compliance with the Companies Winding-Up Rules 2001.”

Furthermore, the bank informed the court that there is “a real and imminent risk of the Respondent dissipating and disposing of its assets within jurisdiction.”

It prayed the court to make other orders to preserve the debtor’s assets; otherwise, the judgment of the court in the suit, if given in favor of the Petitioner, would be rendered nugatory, and the petitioner would be left with nothing.

Joined in the suit are the Central Securities Clearing System (CSCS) Plc and 21 banks.

The motion on notice prayed for several reliefs, including “an order appointing the Deputy Chief Registrar of the Federal High Court, Lagos, as Provisional Liquidator to take over and oversee the affairs and continuous running of the Respondent’s company, pending the grant of the winding-up order.

“An order of interlocutory injunction restraining the Respondents, their directors, members of staff, management, employees, officers, agents, privies, or any other person or group of persons whatsoever under the Respondent’s authority or any other authority (howsoever derived or sourced) from operating, withdrawing from, and/or otherwise tampering with the Respondent’s funds under whatsoever name or guise in the cited financial institutions, pending the grant of the petition.

“An order of interlocutory injunction restraining the Respondent, their agents, servants, and/or privies from tampering with, alienating, transferring, and/or otherwise dissipating or appropriating the Respondent’s fixed and movable assets, howsoever described and called, pending the grant of the winding-up order.”

Former Secretary to the Kano State government, Abdullahi Baffa Bichi, has threatened to unveil details about Governor Abba Yusuf and his political mentor, Rabiu Kwankwaso.

Bichi said he had compromising documents, voice recordings, and videos that he would expose “when the time is right.”

He spoke while addressing the public for the first time since being dismissed from his position, along with five other commissioners, by the governor in December 2024.

Addressing his supporters on Thursday, shortly after his return from Saudi Arabia, the former SSG promised to reveal the actions of his previous political allies.

He said, “I’m happy that I have finished my tenure in peace. As you know, this is not the best time to talk, but at the appropriate time we will expose them so that people will understand the kind of people they are.

“They are not trustworthy people. They’re very deceptive. They don’t know anything except treachery and betrayal. They are not people to be trusted.

“We have documented everything from written to audio and video evidence.”