Business
Enchanting Plateau Exhibition Opens in Jos With Bold Call for Unity and Creative Investment
The 2025 Enchanting Plateau Exhibition opened on Monday at Odilins Event Center, Jos, with renewed excitement as artists, cultural figures, and creatives from across the state converged for a week-long celebration of Plateau’s rich heritage.
With the theme “One,” this year’s edition reinforces the exhibition’s mission of uniting communities through art, promoting tourism, and strengthening cultural identity.
Delivering the opening address, Chuwang Pwajok described the exhibition as an evolving cultural force in Plateau State. He noted that Enchanting Plateau has grown beyond a gathering of artists to become “a platform for societal reflection, pride, and healing.” According to him, the creative works showcased mirror the resilience, diversity, and communal spirit that define the state.
Pwajok commended the young artists whose pieces capture narratives of unity, beauty, struggle, and hope, adding that their creativity remains a vital tool for shaping Plateau’s cultural future. He expressed confidence that the exhibition is emerging as a signature event that deserves continuous support and expansion.
Founder of the exhibition, David Thomas, followed with a deeply emotional speech that set the tone for the ceremony. He said Enchanting Plateau was inspired by a dream to give Plateau artists a global stage and open doors of opportunity often shut to young creatives.
Thomas outlined the challenges many artists face—limited visibility, lack of appreciation, and financial constraints—yet stressed that Plateau continues to produce exceptional talent. He described the exhibition as a bridge linking art, culture, tourism, and economic development, urging government agencies, corporate bodies, and private investors to see art not only as entertainment but as a viable long-term investment.
He expressed gratitude to Governor Caleb Manasseh Mutfwang, his team, partners, and supporters for believing in the vision, noting that he hopes to see Enchanting Plateau grow into one of Nigeria’s and Africa’s major cultural events.
In his remarks, Hon. Dachung Bagos praised the initiative for inspiring young creatives and providing them with a platform to shine. He emphasized that the creative sector holds immense potential for wealth creation, citing examples of artworks that have gained global value over time.
Bagos encouraged sustained support for the exhibition and urged young artists to keep honing their craft, saying platforms like Enchanting Plateau can shape careers and elevate Plateau’s cultural profile.
One of the exhibiting artists, Naomi Adamu, shared her joy at participating for the second time. She described the exhibition as an inspiring space that motivates artists to keep creating despite the challenges within the art sector. Naomi discussed her featured piece, “Symbolic Identity,” made from natural seeds and gourds to reflect the deep cultural roots of Plateau people, including their symbols, values, and traditional communication patterns. She noted that the exhibition strengthens unity among artists and boosts their confidence.
Artist David C. Nwadike also expressed gratitude for the opportunity to showcase his work. He said Enchanting Plateau provides essential visibility for young artists and encourages appreciation of local creativity. Nwadike emphasized that monetizing art begins with valuing it locally and called for continuous support for the platform.
The week-long exhibition continues with art showcases, cultural performances, panel discussions, and interactive sessions aimed at celebrating and preserving Plateau’s artistic legacy.
A 38-year-old South African lady, Ms. Will Jessica Ann has been arrested by operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport (NAIA) Abuja after she was found to have concealed 14 large blocks of heroin weighing 5.75 kilograms in her luggage, using her three-year-old son as a cover to beat security checks and evade thorough screening.
The suspect was arrested by NDLEA officers on Monday 6th July 2026 during the inward clearance of passengers on Qatar Airways flight QR 1433 from Doha to Abuja. Though she initially denied travelling with check-in bags, but after operatives were able to quickly establish that the two bags containing the drugs had tags which tallied with the claim tags attached to her passport, she recounted and admitted ownership of the bags adding that she forgot she checked in the two bags.
She claimed to have travelled from Cambodia through Doha to Abuja. Intelligence leading to her arrests indicates she is a member of a transnational drug trafficking organization along with her husband/partner, Jan Coenraad De Jager, based in Cambodia from where they operate their drug network along the Cambodian-South African axis.
In another successful interdiction operation, NDLEA officers at the terminal 2 arrival hall of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA) Ikeja Lagos on 28th June 2026 intercepted a commercial motorcycle operator popularly known as ‘Okada rider’, 48-year-old Onyechere Daniel Chinadu following his arrival from Madagascar via Addis Ababa aboard an Ethiopian Airways flight.
A thorough search of his back pack, which he had checked in, led to the discovery of 87 wraps of methamphetamine concealed within cloths in his bag. In his statement, Onyechere claimed he has been working for 15 years as an Okada rider at Oke-Afo area of Lagos before his Uganda based friend recruited him into drug trafficking.
He said he ingested the recovered pellets of methamphetamine in Uganda before embarking on his planned journey to Madagascar to deliver the drug consignment. He however said that upon arrival in Madagascar, he was denied entry by Immigration authorities. As a result, his friend and sponsor, Ozor Igo, based in Uganda rerouted his flight to Lagos, where he was eventually arrested by NDLEA officers.
The suspect was unable to state the exact number of pellets he had ingested in Uganda and as a result, he was placed under excretion observation for a period of three days. Between the date of his arrest and 1st of July, he was able to excrete 13 pellets in addition to the initial 87 wraps recovered from him, bringing the total number to 100 wraps of methamphetamine with a gross weight of 1.715 kilograms.
At the Apapa seaport in Lagos, a total of 8,287 nylon bags of Canadian Loud weighing 4,143.5 kilograms worth over N10.3 billion in street value were discovered in a container imported from Canada during a joint examination of the shipment by NDLEA officers, Customs personnel and other security agencies on Friday 10th July 2026.
The discovery followed weeks of targeted tracking and monitoring of the shipment since its departure from Montreal, Canada, by operatives of the Maritime Intelligence Unit of NDLEA in close collaboration with the Apapa Strategic Command of the Agency. Meanwhile, an attempt to export a 2.5kg skunk, a strain of cannabis, concealed in a gas compressor going to Cyprus through a courier company in Lagos has been thwarted by NDLEA operatives of the Directorate of Operation and General Investigation(DOGI).
With the same zeal, Commands and formations of the Agency across the country continued their War Against Drug Abuse (WADA) sensitization activities in schools, worship centres, work places and communities among others in the past week. These include: WADA enlightenment lecture for students and staff of Nnodo Secondary School, Abakaliki, Ebonyi; Government Girls Secondary School, Sabon Gida, Sharada, Kano; Royal Jesuit College, Agbado Ekiti; and Community Secondary School, Idofa, Ogun, while the leadership of Zone 14 Command of NDLEA paid a WADA advocacy visit to Rivers State Governor, Sir Siminalayi Fubara at Government House Port Harcourt, among others.
While commending the officers and men of DOGI, MMIA, NAIA, MIU, and, Apapa Commands of the Agency for the arrests and seizures, Chairman/Chief Executive Officer of NDLEA, Brig. Gen. Mohamed Buba Marwa (Rtd) noted their drug supply reduction efforts balanced with WADA sensitization activities while he charged them and their compatriots across the country not to rest on their past laurels.
The post NDLEA intercepts South African lady with 3-year-old son as cover to traffic heroin appeared first on Business Today NG.
The earnings’ season is here once more, with the half-year period already gone past and the publication of corporate results set to commence any moment soon.
The largely positive investor sentiment that dominated trade in that period drove a sweeping rally in Nigerian stocks January though June. That positive has made the country’s equity market the best-performing in the world in dollar terms.
If half-year corporate reports come out stronger than they were a year ago, the market could ride on that momentum to turn out a fabulous yield that could meet investors’ expectations in the short term.
“Nevertheless, we expect pockets of bargain hunting to emerge as investors gradually position ahead of the H1:2026 earnings season, particularly in fundamentally sound stocks that have become more attractively valued following the recent market pullback,” analysts at Meristem Securities said in their note to investors last week.
“We also expect companies with strong earnings prospects and attractive interim dividend potential to continue attracting selective buying interest.”
PREMIUM TIMES has assembled some stocks with sound fundamentals, adopting rigorous approaches to save you the risk of picking equities at random for investment.
The pick, a product of an analytical market watch, offers a guide to entering the market and taking strategic positions, with the expectation that selected stocks will record reasonable price appreciation with the passage of time.
This is not a buy, sell or hold recommendation but a stock investment guide. You may need to involve your financial advisor before taking investment decisions.
Zenith Bank
Zenith Bank tops this week’s pick on the basis of its strong fundamentals and for trading below its intrinsic value. The lender’s net profit ratio (NPR) is 21.8 per cent, while the price-to-earnings (PE) ratio is 4.4x. Its 14-day relative strength index (RSI) is 41.6.
Unilever
Unilever makes the selection for its strong fundamentals. The NPR of the consumer goods company is 14.8 per cent, while the PE ratio is 21.4x. Its 14-day RSI is 14.1.
BUA Cement
BUA Cement appears on the pick on the basis of its attractive fundamentals. The NPR of the cement manufacturer is 36.4 per cent, while the PE ratio is 25.5x. The 14-day RSI is 0.
READ ALSO: Zenith Bank backs Canada-Africa Business Conference to deepen trade, investment ties
Coronation Insurance
Coronation Insurance makes the selection by virtue of its strong fundamentals. The NPR of the insurer is 19.8 per cent, while the PE ratio is 8.1x. Its 14-day RSI is 46.2.
UACN
UACN makes the cut based on its strong fundamentals. The NPR of the conglomerate is 2.3x, while the PE ratio is 26.2x. Its 14-day RSI is 53.
-
News2 days agoGagdi Defends Lalong, Accuses Dasuki Nakande of Meddling in APC Affairs
-
Entertainment4 days ago
JOGAMA UNVEILS THE OFFICIAL THEME FOR THE 16TH EDITION OF THE JOINT GOSPEL ARTS AND MUSIC AWARDS (JOGAMA) 2026
-
News2 days ago
Nigerian Army Secures Unconditional Release of Abducted Oyo Pupils, Teachers After Weeks of Operations
-
Business4 days ago
SPECIAL REPORT: How soaring cooking gas prices are squeezing Nigerian households, businesses
