Ajayi Olaoluwa

journalist ✍🏾

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

NDC supporters in Lagos have rejected Nigeria's current national anthem, calling it the "Tinubu anthem" and singing "Arise, O Compatriots" instead.

Watch 👇🏿
https://t.co/EQRJbmabAY

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

The abducted corps members in Imo have been released following an operation involving the military and other security agencies. Alex Ogbonnaya reports.

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

Goods and property worth millions of naira have been destroyed in an early-morning fire at a temporary section of Creek Road Market in Old Port Harcourt Township, Rivers State.

Watch 👇🏿

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

"If I lose the FCT, I am not supposed to be the FCT Minister..."

FCT Minister Nyesom Wike says he must secure votes for President Bola Tinubu and the APC in Rivers State and the FCT in 2027, adding that failure to do so would make him question his political worth.

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

Air Peace passengers have blocked Abuja airport’s terminal entrance after their 8 PM Lagos-bound flight was cancelled, saying other airline travellers would not proceed until their concerns are addressed.

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

The names of 37 suspected illegal miners who died in the custody of the NSCDC in Mina, Niger State, have been made public.

https://t.co/sv6mMVdZFO

[Ajayi Olaoluwa @Ajayiolaoluwa_]

Over the past few days, this interview has gone viral. I’m amazed by the impact my team’s efforts have had on this young man’s life.…. I hope it doesn’t end here

[Atiku Abubakar @atiku]

I have watched Yusuf Aliyu’s video repeatedly, and each time, my heart breaks.

A child with such intelligence, clarity and confidence should be in a classroom building his future—not struggling for survival in a community surrounded by gold but buried in poverty.

I cannot look at him and see an “illegal miner.” I see a Nigerian child failed by the country that should have protected him. I see brilliance trapped by poverty and enormous promise abandoned by leadership.

I appeal specifically for his safety. His courage must not expose him or his family to intimidation or retaliation. I am prepared to support his education and ensure that the brilliance we have witnessed is not buried by poverty. Any effort to reach him must be handled responsibly through his family and appropriate child-protection channels.

But this video raises a question that should trouble the conscience of every Nigerian: how can a community sitting upon gold remain so poor that it cannot educate its children? How can its wealth leave the soil while hunger and deprivation remain in its homes?

This is an indictment of the Tinubu administration. The Federal Government controls Nigeria’s mineral resources, yet the communities producing that wealth remain without schools, opportunities or protection.

The contrast is revealing. President Buhari established PAGMI to register, train and integrate artisanal miners into the formal economy, with Niger State included among its intervention states. Tinubu inherited that framework but has met these vulnerable citizens with raids, detention and the label “illegal miners.”

Buhari saw people to formalise. Tinubu sees poor people to criminalise.

This boy is evidence against the Tinubu government. His intelligence exposes the opportunities it has failed to provide. His poverty exposes the injustice of Nigeria’s mining economy. His presence at that site exposes an administration that has left brilliant children without a ladder out of deprivation.

The government must explain what became of PAGMI in Niger State and how 37 Nigerians died in the custody of a federal agency. Calling them “illegal miners” cannot erase their humanity or excuse their deaths.

As a father, a grandfather and a Nigerian, I refuse to look away. I will continue to speak for these children because their lives matter, their dreams matter and their future belongs to Nigeria.

The gold beneath their community should build classrooms and livelihoods, not graves. —AA

[Ajayi Olaoluwa @Ajayiolaoluwa_]

Over the past few days, this interview has gone viral. I’m amazed by the impact my team’s efforts have had on this young man’s life.…. I hope it doesn’t end here

[Nigeria Stories @NigeriaStories]

“We are not into ill£gal m!ning. The Niger State Civil Defence Corps don’t have the right to shøøt at us. We are under 18. Heat cannot k!ll a gold miner.”

~ A kid witness says

[Ajayi Olaoluwa @Ajayiolaoluwa_]

Another phase of brutality from those meant to be protecting the citizens…
#news

[Ajayi Olaoluwa @Ajayiolaoluwa_]

Another phase of brutality from those meant to be protecting the citizens…
#news

[Ajayi Olaoluwa @Ajayiolaoluwa_]

Reporting on what matters most @NewsCentralTV

[Ajayi Olaoluwa @Ajayiolaoluwa_]

#news
So much to say…

[Nafiu Muhammad @nafiumohammad]

It looks like this boy is not from a poor family. Na Tinubu downgraded them from middle class to poor by force, just like many other Nigerians.

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

Yazeed Aliyu’s mother has spoken about his involvement in mining and the circumstances surrounding the fatal incident. She said she was initially unaware that he had gone to the mining site, adding that he took up the work to support himself and his family. @Ajayiolaoluwa_ reports.

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

Following his recent interview on the deaths of 37 miners in NSCDC custody in Niger State, the News Central crew paid a courtesy visit to Yazeed Aliyu and his family.

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

Niger State Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago says authorities will conduct a thorough investigation into the deaths of 37 suspected illegal miners, while providing support to affected families.

Watch 👇🏿

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

Residents and victims' families in Niger State have reacted to the deaths of suspected illegal miners. Some prayed for the dead while others demanded answers about the incident. The tragedy highlighted child labour in mining and economic pressures forcing children into work at an early age. Victor Ajayi reports.

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

Parents and community members in Musa and Lassa communities of Borno State have appealed to authorities to rescue children abducted since May 15, 2026. They say families have endured months of uncertainty as they continue to call for the safe return of their loved ones. @Uykirawa1 reports.

[News Central TV @NewsCentralTV]

Residents in Niger State have shared concerns over allegations of unlawful arrests and extortion involving young miners. Governor Umar Bago has pledged to work with relevant authorities to address the circumstances surrounding the deaths and prevent a repeat.

[Atiku Abubakar @atiku]

I have watched Yusuf Aliyu’s video repeatedly, and each time, my heart breaks.

A child with such intelligence, clarity and confidence should be in a classroom building his future—not struggling for survival in a community surrounded by gold but buried in poverty.

I cannot look at him and see an “illegal miner.” I see a Nigerian child failed by the country that should have protected him. I see brilliance trapped by poverty and enormous promise abandoned by leadership.

I appeal specifically for his safety. His courage must not expose him or his family to intimidation or retaliation. I am prepared to support his education and ensure that the brilliance we have witnessed is not buried by poverty. Any effort to reach him must be handled responsibly through his family and appropriate child-protection channels.

But this video raises a question that should trouble the conscience of every Nigerian: how can a community sitting upon gold remain so poor that it cannot educate its children? How can its wealth leave the soil while hunger and deprivation remain in its homes?

This is an indictment of the Tinubu administration. The Federal Government controls Nigeria’s mineral resources, yet the communities producing that wealth remain without schools, opportunities or protection.

The contrast is revealing. President Buhari established PAGMI to register, train and integrate artisanal miners into the formal economy, with Niger State included among its intervention states. Tinubu inherited that framework but has met these vulnerable citizens with raids, detention and the label “illegal miners.”

Buhari saw people to formalise. Tinubu sees poor people to criminalise.

This boy is evidence against the Tinubu government. His intelligence exposes the opportunities it has failed to provide. His poverty exposes the injustice of Nigeria’s mining economy. His presence at that site exposes an administration that has left brilliant children without a ladder out of deprivation.

The government must explain what became of PAGMI in Niger State and how 37 Nigerians died in the custody of a federal agency. Calling them “illegal miners” cannot erase their humanity or excuse their deaths.

As a father, a grandfather and a Nigerian, I refuse to look away. I will continue to speak for these children because their lives matter, their dreams matter and their future belongs to Nigeria.

The gold beneath their community should build classrooms and livelihoods, not graves. —AA