Leaders from the North have been pressuring President Bola Tinubu’s administration in Nigeria to forbid the US, France, and other states from moving their military outposts from the Sahel to Nigeria.

They issued a warning, saying Nigeria was in danger if they allowed the US and French governments to carry out such a move.

A letter written to Tinubu and the National Assembly included this information.

The letter was signed by the following individuals: Jibrin Ibrahim of the Center for Democracy and Development (CDD); Auwal Musa (Rafsanjani) of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CCISLAC); Attahiru Jega, former chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC); Abubakar Mohammed of the Centre for Democratic Development, Research and Training (CEDDERT); Kabiru Chafe, former minister of state for petroleum resources from the Arewa Research and Development Project (ARDP); and YZ Ya’u of the Center for Information Technology and Development (CITAD).

They stated in the letter that they had received pressure from the US and France governments to sign new defense agreements that would permit them to redeploy their expelled soldiers to Nigeria and other nations in the area.

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“This is for the simple reason that terrorism, far from abating, has in fact risen dramatically since the US began its operations in the region,” the leaders said.

They also expressed concerns about the economic and environmental impacts of hosting foreign military bases.

“Economically, the presence of these bases could potentially divert government funds and resources away from critical areas such as education, healthcare, and infrastructure development toward maintaining and securing these military installations.

“This redirection of resources could stunt economic growth and exacerbate poverty in a country where much of the population already lives under challenging conditions.

“Moreover, hosting foreign troops often leads to increased prices and living costs in local areas, disproportionately affecting the lower-income population.

“Environmentally, the construction and operation of military bases can lead to significant degradation of the local environment.

“These include deforestation, soil erosion, water contamination, and loss of biodiversity, which are detrimental to agricultural communities and indigenous populations.

“The long-term environmental damage could further hinder economic opportunities and sustainable development,” they further alleged.

The letter added that the presence of foreign military bases in Nigeria would worsen already strained relations between Nigeria and neighbouring French countries.

“Of the countries in the Gulf of Guinea, Nigeria turns out to be the most strategically located. There are indications that the Nigerian Government may be favourably disposed to the proposed defense pact.

“However, there is a widespread apprehension that signing of the pact by Nigeria would have wide ranging implications for defense and internal security of the country.

“These French and American bases were used by the French and the Americans to carry out manned and unmanned surveillance flights and other operations in the Sahel,” they further stated.

Primate Elijah Ayodele, the leader of the INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church, warned President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Sunday to approach the northern region of the country strategically since they would not support his desire for a second term.

Primate Ayodele predicted that President Tinubu would face several gang-ups in the North and that some of his closest allies would turn on him.

Ayodele claimed in a statement issued by his media assistant, Oluwatosin Osho, that leaders in the zone would plot and that Tinubu’s efforts would be in vain.

‘’Tinubu will still have a lot of problems ahead of 2027 because the northerners will gang-up against him. Some who are closer to Tinubu will betray him.

“Despite all that he will be doing, there is going to be an aggressive conspiracy from some of the northern leaders against him. He will try his best but it won’t be seen as anything,” he said.

The challenges that will develop from the north will cause the president and his vice president, Kashim Shettima, to have a lukewarm relationship, according to the prophet.

He foresaw conflict and a severe political blow to the current administration’s drive for a second term.

’Shettima and Tinubu will have a lukewarm relationship due to the issues that will arise from the north.

“The northerners will work against Shettima and rivals will rise up against him.

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“The president has to be tactical about the northerners, otherwise, he will face a lot of setback and political tension towards his second term,” he further stated.

Primate Ayodele went on to say that the north would not see any major development since the area would remain unstable until 2030 and have inadequate infrastructure and educational opportunities.

’I don’t see an end to insecurity in the north till about 2030 because it is within them, there is going to be mismanagement of development.

“Tinubu should watch his back; the northerners will become his enemies and let’s also be careful so we won’t experience Yoruba, Fulani-Kanuri crisis in the country.’

‘’There is no blueprint for northern development in this government because the northerners have worked against it.

“The north will continue to face insecurity, poor infrastructure, education and they will be divided,” he added.

Hope Hicks, a former White House communications director, stated on Friday that there was anxiety surrounding former President Donald Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

Hicks claimed that many were afraid of what might happen as a result of the Stormy Daniels and Trump “Access Hollywood” tape.

The former director of White House communications testified before Manhattan prosecutors during the hush money trial, claiming that the leak of the infamous “Access Hollywood” tape completely destroyed Trump’s 2016 presidential campaign.

Concern over the possible political fallout from a recording that purportedly showed the former president boasting about having sex with women without their consent dogged Trump’s 2016 campaign.

According to rumors, the former president gave Stormy Daniels $130,000 through Michael Cohen, his attorney, in the run-up to the 2016 presidential election.

Hicks said he was taken aback and huddled up with other Trump advisors when the news of the tape’s existence came on October 7, 2016, roughly a month before the election, via a Washington Post reporter.

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Hicks forwarded the reporter’s request to campaign leadership with the recommendation to “deny, deny, deny,” she said.

She testified: “I had a good sense to believe this was going to be a massive story and that it was going to dominate the news cycle for the next several days.

“This was a damaging development.

“This was just pulling us backwards in a way that was going to be hard to overcome.”

She was called to testify by the prosecution in order to support their claims that Trump conspired to obstruct the publication of embarrassing accounts of his personal life in order to improperly influence the 2016 presidential election.

Alvin Bragg, the district attorney for Manhattan, has worked to demonstrate this connection in an effort to convince the public of the case’s importance as well as to get a conviction in what may be the only one of four Trump prosecutions to get to trial this year.

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Hicks informed the jury that Trump maintained his ignorance of Cohen’s $130,000 payment to Daniels in order to keep her from disclosing her alleged sexual encounter with him.

According to her, Trump eventually arrived at the conclusion that it would be wise to keep Daniel’s tale secret, reasoning that “it would have been bad to have that story come out before the election.”

However, Hicks retorted that everything they discussed at the time was seen through the prism of the campaign when asked if Trump was similarly concerned about the story’s effect on the campaign.