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Thursday, 29 October 2026Lagos · LondonUpdated 17:46 GMT

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Reported

Trump calls Brazil's presidential election 'a disgrace' as Flavio Bolsonaro claims victory from the US

Donald Trump official portrait
Photo: Shealeah Craighead / Wikimedia Commons, Public domain

US President Donald Trump has reportedly called Brazil's presidential election a disgrace, raising tensions with Latin America's largest country.

What he said

Asked by reporters on Thursday, 29 October 2026, whether he accepted the victory of President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, Trump reportedly described the election as a disgrace and an embarrassment to Brazilians, but said he did not want to say more at that time. He did not say whether he recognised Lula as Brazil's president.

Background

Lula, a veteran left-wing leader, faced Flavio Bolsonaro, the son of former president Jair Bolsonaro, in the election. Flavio Bolsonaro, an ally of Trump, has claimed he was the true winner. He reportedly travelled to the United States the day before Trump's remarks, after going into exile from Brazil, and declared himself the rightful leader. Earlier this week, a Brazilian court had banned him from leaving the country, according to reports at the time.

Why it matters

Trump's comments reportedly go further than his earlier remarks on the vote and are likely to strain relations between Washington and Brasília. The United States and Brazil are major trading partners, and relations were already tense after Trump imposed tariffs on Brazilian goods and criticised the prosecution of Jair Bolsonaro.

What happens next

Brazil's government has not yet responded publicly to the latest comments, and it is not clear whether the United States will formally question the result.

More gist

World & WestReported
A Spanish AVE high-speed train (file photo)
Stock image: Fedekuki / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0

Spain mourns as death toll in Toledo high-speed train crash reportedly rises to 69

Spain has begun three days of national mourning after a high-speed train reportedly crashed into a stationary train near Urda in Toledo province on Wednesday. The regional leader of Castilla-La Mancha says 69 people have died, and Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez has promised an investigation.

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Spain began three days of national mourning on Thursday, 29 October 2026, after a high-speed train reportedly ran into the back of a stationary train near the town of Urda in the central province of Toledo on Wednesday. The regional leader of Castilla-La Mancha, Emiliano García-Page, said the death toll had risen to 69 after another body was found overnight.

What happened

According to reports, the moving train struck the stationary one from behind, and three carriages came off the tracks. On Thursday morning, rescue teams with sniffer dogs were still searching the wreckage, while cranes lifted carriages and police officers and soldiers combed the site. The number of people injured has not been confirmed in the reports seen so far, and the cause of the collision has not been announced.

What the government said

Prime Minister Pedro Sánchez visited the scene and promised a full investigation as well as safety improvements on the railways. He reportedly said Spain must strengthen train safety to win back public trust in high-speed rail, and said it was unacceptable for the country to suffer two high-speed accidents in a single year.

Background

The crash is Spain's second deadly high-speed rail disaster of 2026. In January, a train derailed near Adamuz in Andalusia and collided with a train coming the other way, killing dozens of people the first deadly accident on a Spanish high-speed train since the network opened in 1992. Spain has one of the largest high-speed rail systems in the world, and both disasters have raised hard questions about maintenance and signalling.

What happens next

Investigators are expected to examine the signalling and the movements of both trains in the hours before the crash. Further updates on the victims and the injured are expected as families are informed.

2027 elections
Governor Seyi Makinde, right, in a blue cap and sunglasses, with Rotimi Babajide at a rally
Photo: LastBornOfTheGods / Wikimedia Commons, CC0

Makinde takes campaign to Enugu despite warnings about Obi's stronghold, questions Tinubu's Saudi trip

Oyo governor Seyi Makinde, who is running for president on the APM ticket, told a town hall in Enugu that his team was almost talked out of campaigning in the South East because it is seen as Peter Obi's territory. He also asked the Presidency to explain the real purpose of President Tinubu's trip to Saudi Arabia.

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Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde, the presidential candidate of the Allied Peoples Movement (APM) for 2027, has taken his campaign to the South East, telling supporters in Enugu that his team was almost discouraged from coming to a region widely seen as Peter Obi's base. On the same day, he raised questions about President Bola Tinubu's trip to Saudi Arabia.

What he said in Enugu

Speaking at an APM town hall meeting in Enugu on Thursday, 29 October 2026, Makinde said people had warned his team against campaigning in the South East because the zone was regarded as belonging completely to Obi, the Nigeria Democratic Congress (NDC) candidate. He said he decided to bring his message there anyway and urged Nigerians to reject politics that divides people along ethnic and tribal lines.

His question about Tinubu's trip

In a video shared the same day by an Oyo affairs account on X, Makinde said he had read on social media that the President was travelling to Saudi Arabia to pray for Nigeria. He remarked that prayers can be answered from within Nigeria too, and asked the Presidency to tell Nigerians the true situation. He did not say what he believed the situation to be.

How people reacted

Reactions online were divided. Some users backed his call for openness, while others accused him of politicising a religious trip, and one asked whether he was wishing the President ill because of the election. The Presidency has said the President is performing Umrah, and an aide has rejected claims that the trip is for medical treatment.

Background

Obi won most of the South East in the 2023 presidential election and remains very popular there. Makinde, who is serving his second and final term as Oyo governor, is one of several candidates now trying to build support across regions. Tinubu left Abuja for Makkah this week, and Atiku Abubakar and activist Omoyele Sowore have also questioned the trip.

PoliticsReported
President Bola Tinubu
Photo: Nosa Asemota / Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 4.0

Tinubu defends new loans, says debt should be judged by what it builds

President Bola Tinubu has defended his government's borrowing in a new essay, arguing that loans should be judged by the roads, power and ports they deliver. He listed major projects and economic figures and said Nigeria cannot reach a $1 trillion economy by 2030 on old infrastructure. Atiku Abubakar has again criticised the borrowing plan.

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President Bola Tinubu has responded to criticism of his government's borrowing plans, saying the real test of debt is what it produces rather than how large it is. His essay, titled 'From Reforms to Delivery', was released in Abuja on Thursday, 29 October 2026, and shared on X by his adviser on information and strategy, Bayo Onanuga.

What he said

Tinubu reportedly argued that the key question is not how much Nigeria borrows but what the country builds and leaves behind. He listed projects including the Lagos–Calabar Coastal Highway, the Sokoto–Badagry Superhighway, the Trans-Sahara Highway, upgrades to the electricity grid and the modernisation of ports in Lagos, as well as spending on health, education and skills. He said the coastal highway alone could cut logistics costs on the corridor by 15 to 20 per cent, add up to 2 per cent to GDP and create about 100,000 construction jobs.

The figures he cited

The President pointed to growth of 4.43 per cent in the second quarter, inflation of 14.63 per cent in September compared with about 21 per cent a year earlier, external reserves of about $55 billion and a tax-to-GDP ratio of 12.5 per cent. He credited the removal of the petrol subsidy, the unification of exchange rates and tax reforms. He said a $1 trillion economy by 2030 cannot run on infrastructure built for a much smaller economy, and named food affordability and energy prices among his priorities for the next phase.

The criticism

The essay follows the President's request to the Senate for approval to borrow about $20.5 billion and €1 billion. Atiku Abubakar, the ADC presidential candidate, said the request proved an earlier warning he gave, and has accused the government of piling up debt, which he says now stands at about ₦167 trillion. He has asked for details of how previous loans were spent.

What happens next

The Senate is yet to approve the new borrowing plan, and the debate over debt is expected to be a major theme of the 2027 campaign.

Naija newsReported
Nigeria Labour Congress members on a protest march
Photo: Altruistic2020 / Wikimedia Commons (CC0)

NLC president Ajaero says a ₦1m minimum wage would collapse the economy

NLC president Joe Ajaero has reportedly said a ₦1 million monthly minimum wage would collapse Nigeria's economy. He said the focus should be on bringing down living costs and strengthening the naira, as talks on wages continue.

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The president of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), Joe Ajaero, has reportedly said that a minimum wage of ₦1 million a month would bring down the Nigerian economy, in comments that surprised many workers.

What he said

Speaking in an interview on Channels Television, reported on Thursday, 29 October 2026, Ajaero is said to have argued that the priority should be lowering the cost of living and improving the value of the naira rather than chasing very large pay figures. He reportedly said that without tackling inflation, the weak currency and high living costs, bigger salaries on paper would not make workers better off, and that government must first take steps to stabilise the economy.

Background

Labour unions and the Federal Government are still discussing a review of the national minimum wage, which was raised to ₦70,000 a month in 2024. Some workers and activists have called for a much higher figure because of rising prices. The government recently approved a ₦70,000 monthly transport allowance for public workers to ease the impact of high fuel prices, a move that the opposition criticised as too small.

How people reacted

The comments drew mixed reactions online. Some users said the NLC leader was being realistic about what the economy can afford, while others said labour should be pressing for the highest possible increase at a time when food and transport costs have risen sharply.

What happens next

Talks between labour and the government are expected to continue, with wages likely to become a major issue in the run-up to the 2027 elections.