Nigerian Current Affairs: Officeholders and Q&A Pack

Nigerian current affairs at a glance: President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Vice President Kashim Shettima, Senate President Godswill Akpabio, Speaker Tajudeen Abbas, Chief Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun, INEC Chairman Joash Amupitan, IGP Kayode Egbetokun, CBN Governor Yemi Cardoso, NNPC Ltd GCEO Bayo Ojulari. Below is a sourced Q&A pack for JAMB, WAEC, NECO, scholarship and job interviews.

This page is rebuilt against current sources every cycle. Bookmark it. Use it for self-test.

Useful companion pages:

• Nigerian coat of arms in detail
• Nigeria’s national symbols
• CBN governors since 1958

Current officeholders

Sources: State House, INEC, Supreme Court records, NNPC Ltd.

Service chiefs

President Tinubu replaced all four service chiefs on 30 October 2025.

• Chief of Defence Staff: General Olufemi Oluyede.
• Chief of Army Staff: Lt Gen Waidi Shaibu.
• Chief of Naval Staff: Vice Admiral Idi Abbas (25th CNS).
• Chief of Air Staff: Air Marshal Sunday Aneke (23rd CAS).

Key cabinet ministers

• Finance & Coordinating Minister of the Economy: Olawale Edun.
• Defence: Mohammed Badaru Abubakar.
• Education: Tunji Alausa.
• Petroleum (Oil): Heineken Lokpobiri (Minister of State).
• FCT: Nyesom Wike.
• Foreign Affairs: Yusuf Maitama Tuggar.
• Information: Mohammed Idris.
• Power: Adebayo Adelabu.
• Works: David Umahi.
• Interior: Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo.

The President holds the substantive Petroleum Resources portfolio.

Nigeria — fast facts

• Capital: Abuja (Federal Capital Territory, created 3 February 1976).
• Largest city: Lagos.
• States: 36 + FCT.
• Local government areas: 774.
• Federal constituencies: 360. State constituencies: 990. Wards: 8,810.
• Senators: 109 (3 per state + 1 from FCT).
• House of Reps members: 360.
• Geopolitical zones: 6 — North-Central, North-East, North-West, South-East, South-South, South-West.
• State with most LGAs: Kano (44).
• State with fewest LGAs: Bayelsa (8). FCT has 6 Area Councils.
• Official language: English.
• National motto: “Unity and Faith, Peace and Progress” (since 1978).
• National anthem: “Nigeria, We Hail Thee” (reinstated 29 May 2024).
• Currency: Naira (₦), introduced 1 January 1973.
• Borders: Benin (west), Niger (north), Chad (north-east), Cameroon (east), Gulf of Guinea (south).
• Independence: 1 October 1960. Republic: 1 October 1963. Democracy Day: 12 June.

Founders and firsts

• First Governor-General of colonial Nigeria: Sir Frederick Lugard (1914–1919).
• Last colonial Governor-General: Sir James Robertson (1955–1960).
• First indigenous Governor-General and first ceremonial President: Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe.
• First Prime Minister: Sir Abubakar Tafawa Balewa.
• First military Head of State: Major-General Aguiyi Ironsi (1966).
• First Executive President: Alhaji Shehu Shagari (1979).
• First military President: General Ibrahim Babangida (1985).
• First Vice President of Nigeria: Dr Alex Ekwueme.
• First Senate President: Dr Nnamdi Azikiwe (1960).
• Longest-serving Senate President: David Mark (2007–2015).
• First indigenous Speaker, House of Reps: Jaja Wachuku (1959).
• Person who named Nigeria: Flora Shaw, 1898.
• Designer of the Nigerian flag: Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi (1959).
• First female governor: Virginia Etiaba (Anambra, 2006–2007).
• First female NAFDAC DG: Prof Dora Akunyili.
• First Nigerian Nobel Laureate: Wole Soyinka (Literature, 1986).
• First Anglican Bishop in West Africa (Niger): Samuel Ajayi Crowther.
• First African Pentecostal Archbishop: Benson Idahosa.
• First refinery: Port Harcourt, opened 1965.
• First crude oil discovery: Oloibiri, Bayelsa State (1956).
• First TV station in Africa: WNTV Ibadan (October 1959).
• Oldest degree-awarding university: University of Ibadan (1948).

Nigeria’s coat of arms and flag

• Green stripes: Nigeria’s agricultural wealth and natural resources.
• White stripe: peace and unity.
• Red eagle (top of coat of arms): strength.
• Two white horses: dignity.
• Black shield: Nigeria’s fertile soil.
• Wavy white “Y”: the meeting of the Niger and Benue rivers at Lokoja.
• Yellow flowers (base): Costus spectabilis, the national flower.

Important Nigerian acronyms

• APC — All Progressives Congress
• ASUU — Academic Staff Union of Universities
• ASUP — Academic Staff Union of Polytechnics
• CAN — Christian Association of Nigeria
• CBN — Central Bank of Nigeria
• EFCC — Economic and Financial Crimes Commission
• FRSC — Federal Road Safety Commission
• INEC — Independent National Electoral Commission
• JAMB — Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board
• NAFDAC — National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control
• NDA — Nigerian Defence Academy
• NDLEA — National Drug Law Enforcement Agency
• NIMC — National Identity Management Commission
• NIPOST — Nigerian Postal Service
• NNPC — Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited
• NUPENG — Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers
• NURTW — National Union of Road Transport Workers
• NYSC — National Youth Service Corps
• PDP — Peoples Democratic Party
• SAN — Senior Advocate of Nigeria
• WAEC — West African Examinations Council

International acronyms and bodies

• ECOWAS — Economic Community of West African States (12 member states after Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger withdrew in January 2025 and formed the Alliance of Sahel States).
• ECOMOG — ECOWAS Cease-fire Monitoring Group.
• UN Secretary-General: António Guterres (since 2017).
• African Union Chairperson: João Lourenço of Angola (2025 term).
• UK Prime Minister: Keir Starmer (since July 2024).
• US President: Donald Trump (47th, sworn in 20 January 2025).
• UNICEF — United Nations Children’s Fund.
• ICAO — International Civil Aviation Organisation.

Sample exam questions

1. Who is Nigeria’s current President?
Bola Ahmed Tinubu (since 29 May 2023).

2. Who is the Vice President?
Kashim Shettima.

3. Who is the Senate President?
Godswill Akpabio.

4. Who is the Speaker of the House of Representatives?
Tajudeen Abbas.

5. Who is the Chief Justice of Nigeria?
Justice Kudirat Kekere-Ekun (23rd CJN, since 22 August 2024).

6. Who is the current INEC chairman?
Prof Joash Amupitan, SAN (sworn in 23 October 2025).

7. Who is the IGP?
Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun.

8. Who is the CBN Governor?
Olayemi Cardoso.

9. Who is the NNPC Ltd GCEO?
Engr Bashir Bayo Ojulari (since 2 April 2025, replacing Mele Kyari).

10. Who is the Chief of Defence Staff?
General Olufemi Oluyede.

11. State Tinubu’s state of origin.
Lagos State (Iragbiji-Osun by ancestry, born in Lagos).

12. When was Tinubu born?
29 March 1952.

13. When did Nigeria gain independence?
1 October 1960.

14. When did Nigeria become a republic?
1 October 1963.

15. What is the current Democracy Day date?
12 June (changed from 29 May in 2018 to honour MKO Abiola).

16. How many LGAs are in Nigeria?
774.

17. How many senators?
109.

18. How many House of Reps members?
360.

19. How many states are in Nigeria?
36 plus the FCT.

20. Which state has the most LGAs?
Kano State (44).

21. What is the smallest geopolitical zone by population?
The South-East.

22. When was the FCT created?
3 February 1976.

23. When was the Naira introduced?
1 January 1973.

24. When was the CBN established?
1958 (CBN Act 1958, started operations 1 July 1959).

25. When did the Nigerian Civil War start?
6 July 1967. It ended on 15 January 1970.

26. Who designed the Nigerian flag?
Michael Taiwo Akinkunmi, then a 23-year-old engineering student in London.

27. Who is Nigeria’s national flower?
Costus spectabilis.

28. What is Nigeria’s national animal?
The eagle.

29. What does GCFR stand for?
Grand Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic — reserved for sitting and former Presidents.

30. Who is Nigeria’s Sultan?
Sultan Sa’ad Abubakar III, 20th Sultan of Sokoto.

World facts you should know

• Most populous country: India (since April 2023, overtaking China).
• Largest continent: Asia.
• Smallest continent: Australia/Oceania.
• Highest mountain in the world: Mount Everest (8,849 m).
• Highest mountain in Africa: Mount Kilimanjaro, Tanzania (5,895 m).
• Largest desert: Antarctic Desert. The hottest is the Sahara.
• Five oceans: Pacific, Atlantic, Indian, Southern, Arctic.
• UN founded: 24 October 1945, San Francisco.
• First Secretary-General of the UN: Trygve Lie of Norway.
• American Civil War: 1861–1865.
• World War I: 1914–1918. World War II: 1939–1945.
• First African country to gain independence: Liberia (1847) — though declared rather than granted; Ghana was the first sub-Saharan African colony to win independence (1957).
• Last African country to gain independence: South Sudan (9 July 2011).
• Founder of the first political party in Nigeria: Herbert Macaulay (NNDP, 1923).
• First man on the moon: Neil Armstrong (Apollo 11, 20 July 1969).
• Inventor of the light bulb: Thomas Edison.
• Inventor of the motor car: Karl Benz (1885).
• Co-inventors of the internet (TCP/IP): Vint Cerf and Robert Kahn.
• Founders of Google: Larry Page and Sergey Brin (4 September 1998).
• Founder of Facebook: Mark Zuckerberg (4 February 2004).
• Fastest man: Usain Bolt (9.58s 100m world record, 2009).
• Last World Cup winner (2022): Argentina, beating France in Qatar.
• Richest person in the world: Elon Musk (Forbes 2026 ranking).

Common questions

How often is this list updated?
After every change in officeholders or major event. Last refresh: May 2026.

Will the same questions appear in JAMB or interviews?
Most factual questions on Nigeria’s structure, history and current officeholders are stable across exam cycles. Always confirm officeholder names against the latest news before any test.

What’s the difference between FCT and a state?
The FCT is administered by an FCT Minister appointed by the President. States have elected Governors. FCT residents vote for the President but have no Governor or Senator slot of their own beyond Senate FCT representation.

How many ECOWAS member states are there?
12 — after Burkina Faso, Mali and Niger formally exited in January 2025 and formed the Alliance of Sahel States.

What major events are shaping 2026?
Early positioning for the 2027 general elections, the new Electoral Act 2026 (regulating FCT Area Council elections), and the bipartisan committee created in January 2026 to oversee the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway and Sokoto–Badagry Super Highway.

Related

• Nigerian Coat of Arms in detail
• Nigeria’s national symbols
• CBN Governors since 1958
• Nigeria’s Senate Presidents
• Nigerian military ranks
• Nigeria Customs Service ranks