• The national grid collapses for the tenth time in 2024
• Minister of Education reverses the age limit for tertiary institution admission
• Benue community cries out for help as bandits rape women
• “We don’t import adulterated petrol,” NNPC fires at Dangote accusations
• USD crashes against naira in official market, trades at ₦1,671/$

Across Nigeria’s 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory, these are the five top Nigerian news stories you shouldn’t miss.

The national grid collapses for the tenth time in 2024

The Transmission Company of Nigeria announced on Tuesday, November 5 that the national grid had once again collapsed from 2,711.84MW to 61.60MW, making it the tenth time the grid has collapsed in a single year.

According to the Independent System Operator (ISO), the generation dipped to 58MW at 3 pm, rose to 360.30MW at 4 pm, and dropped to 32MW at 5 pm.

TCN put out a public statement explaining that several lines and generators were the cause of the national grid collapsing.

Minister of Education reverses the age limit for tertiary institution admission

The Minister of Education, Dr Tunji Alausa, has announced that the age limit for admissions into tertiary institutions will be reversed to 16-year-olds instead of the newly instated 18 years.

The announcement was made at his inaugural briefing as he dismantled the policies of the previous Minister of Education, Prof Tahir Mamman.

We will not be going forward with the 18-year admission benchmark. We will go with 16 years and we are going to meet with JAMB and others on that,” Dr Alausa said.

“There will also be exceptions for the gifted students. 18-year is not part of our policy again.”

Benue community cries out for help as bandits rape women

A community in Benue State identified as Ufia Kingdom of Ado Local Government Area of Benue State has raised the issue of the constant rape of their women by armed bandits who invade their homes.

The community members have said that the act has become consistent, and they are riddled with fear, which makes it harder for them to continue with their livelihood.

One of the residents claimed that it was now impossible to go to the farm, fetch water or gather firewood as the insecurity within the community and state is alarming, hence their reason for calling the attention of the government for help.

“We don’t import adulterated petrol,” NNPC fires at Dangote accusations

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has defended itself by claiming that it has never imported adulterated petrol, contrary to the accusation of Dangote Group, which stated that any marketer importing oil at a cheaper rate is importing substandard petrol.

Olufemi Soneye, the chief corporate communications officer of NNPC, asserted his position on Tuesday while responding to protesters demanding the removal of Mele Kyari, the company’s group chief executive officer (CEO).

“The NNPC Ltd. does not import adulterated fuel. If anyone has evidence to the contrary, they should bring forward samples of any such fuel imported by NNPC Ltd,” Soneye said.

USD crashes against naira in official market, trades at ₦1,671/$

The US dollar has reportedly crashed in the official foreign exchange market, appreciating the naira to ₦1,671 from ₦1,676 per dollar.

The cause of the dollar’s reduction in value is the increase in dollar supplies in the foreign exchange market in October 2024, which rose to $5.4 billion.