Home Blog Page 2759

Recession Will Soon Be Over, Says Ahmed |The Source

By
Uche Mbah
-
0
Zainab Shamsuna Ahmed,minister of finance

By Uche Mbah

Nigeria will emerge from the current recession within six months, if the Minister of Finance, Zainab Ahmed, is to be believed.

Speaking on Monday at the Nigerian Economic Summit  organized by the Economic Summit Group , holding in Abuja, Ahmed said that the recession has been induced by the Covid-19 Pandemic, and follows global trends.

She said that other countries like the United kingdom are also in recession. South Africa, for example, declined by 50 percent compared to Nigeria’s 6.1 percent in the first quarter in Nigeria.

The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) on Saturday announced the contraction of Nigeria’s economy in the third quarter of 2020 by 3.62 percent against a 6.10 percent contraction in the previous quarter.

With this, the economy has slipped into its second recession under the Buhari administration.

The last two previous recessions were also under Muhammadu Buhari, when he was head of state.

“Let me remind us that before the impact of COVID-19, the The Nigerian economy was experiencing sustained growth, which had been improving quarter by quarter until the second quarter of 2020, when the impact of the COVID-19 was felt.”

“Nigeria is not alone in this, but I will say that Nigeria has outperformed all of these economies in terms of the record of a negative growth,” Ahmed said.

“While the economy has entered into recession in the third quarter, the trend of the growth suggests that this will be a short-lived recession, and indeed by the fourth or, at worst, the first quarter of 2021, the country will exit the recession.

“Our expectation of a quick exit, which will be historically fast, is anchored on the several complementary fiscal, real sector, and monetary interventions that have been proactively introduced by the government to forestall a far worse decline of the economy and alleviate the negative consequences of the pandemic.”

Meanwhile, the Nigerian equity market has reacted negatively to the news of the recession. The market declined in early trading Monday,  with the All-share Index weakening by 1.07 percent to 33,773.72 points, according to Refinitiv Eikon data, led by the banking sector, which fell 5.79 percent, Reuters reported.

IGP Promotes 82,779 Junior Police Officers; As 16 Killed By EndSARS Rioters Get Posthumous Promotion |The Source

By
The Source
-
0
Nigeria Police

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP M.A Adamu, NPM, mni, has today, 23rd November, 2020 approved the promotion of Eighty-Two Thousand, Seven Hundred and Seventy Nine (82,779) Junior Police Officers to their next ranks. The promotion of the officers comprising 56,779 Sergeants to Inspector, 17,569 Corporal to Sergeants and 8,431 Constables to Corporal is part of the on-going efforts at boosting the morale of personnel and repositioning the Force for greater efficiency.

This was contained in a Press Release signed by the Force Public Relations Officer, DCP Frank Mba.

Those promoted also include 86 junior officers negatively impacted by the ENDSARS riots – 16 got special posthumous promotion while 70 others injured during the violence arising from the ENDSARS protests were equally specially promoted.

The IGP, while congratulating the officers, charged them to see their promotion as a mark of additional responsibility and a call to rededicate themselves to their professional calling. He enjoined them to continue to carry out their duties diligently and in conformity with best practices and respect for the rights of the citizen. He noted that the promotion ,albeit, posthumously, of the officers who were killed by some ENDSARS protesters, is a symbolic gesture in recognition of the ultimate price they paid in the service of the nation.

The IGP promised to work with all relevant agencies, organs of Government and other stakeholders in driving a successful reform of the Police for improved welfare and conditions of service towards better service delivery to the people.

Akeredolu Sacks Kinsman, Olawoye, Appoints New Attorney General |The Source

By
Ayodele Oni
-
0
Adekola Olawoye

By Ayodele Oni

Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, SAN, has sacked the State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Adekola Olawoye, over irreconcilable differences. He immediately replaced him with Human Right’s Lawyer, Charles Titiloye.

This was contained in a statement signed by the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Segun Ajiboye, on Monday. The statement  did not give any  reasons for the removal.

Olawoye, also a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, (SAN) hails from the same town, Owo, as Governor Akeredolu,  and both were childhood friends.

Both of them were practising in Ibadan, Oyo state, where they had their chambers until Akeredolu became governor.

The former Commissioner for Justice was regarded as one of the arrow heads and a reliable confidant of the governor.

It was learnt that last week’s protest by lawyers in state government job was the last straw, that brought the disagreement between the two Owo born sons.

The Governor was reported to have been embarrassed by the action of the Lawyers, and  believes it was due to negligence by the ousted Attorney  General.

Olawoye,  too, according to sources, had his own grievances  against the Governor,  and had before now, threatened to quit his government.

He was reported to be unsatisfied with Akeredolu’s style of  governance.

Sources say he had wanted to resign before the election, but was prevailed upon not to do so that he would not be misunderstood.

Human Rights Lawyer, Charles Titiloye will be the next Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice.

His name is expected to be forwarded to the House of Assembly for clearance tomorrow.

Sanwo-Olu To Establish Youth Affairs Units In LGs, LCDAs |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
-
0

By Akinwale Kasali

Lagos State Governor,   Babajide Sanwo-Olu,  has decided to establish a Youth Affairs Department in all Local Governments and Local Council Development Areas (LCDAs) of the state.

This move was disclosed by Saheed Akanbi,  the Senior Special Assistant on Youth Matters to the State Governor, during  the Third Annual Media Retreat of ‘Conference 57’.

The ‘Conference 57’ is a forum of Chief Press Secretaries of all the 20 Local Government  Areas in the State and the 37 Local  Council Development Area.

Akanbi said that the Youth  Department at Council levels would help fast-track development across the State, and also make the Youths closer to the Government in channelling their demands and grievances.

“Effort is in progress, as there is need to establish Youth  Affairs  Department in all Local  Governments  and LCDAs to make the job more easier.

“So that if there’s anything happening in any council concerning the Youth, it will be easier to contact the supervisor on Youth  Affairs  in that Council  to fix the development collectively.

“At the same time, the Department will ensure that the plights  of the Youth  are properly taken care of at the grassroots levels,” he said.

Akanbi, also, said that there was need to review the remuneration of media aides of all Council  Chairmen in the state.

He said that reviewing their remuneration in terms of salaries and offices would assist in bridging the gaps between the residents and the councils.

Akanbi, however, advised the Spokespersons to be loyal to the Councils and ensure that its activities and programmes are properly publicised to the residents.

Emmanuel Bamgboye, Chairman, Mushin Local Government, in his remark, urged the Media aides to be proactive in disseminating information to the public.

“Your job is very valuable, this is the era of information, we need publicity in all levels of government.

“We appreciate what you are doing but continue doing more of it with loyalty, which is very important and we will continue to appreciate you,” the council boss said.

He urged the media aides to cooperate with their bosses and give adequate publicity to allow the residents know the level of development in the community.

Mr Oseni Ajimomuya, Chairman ‘Conference 57’, said measures were in place by the association to curb the menace of fake news in the society.

“Our major crusade in this regard is to enlighten the masses on the negative impact of fake news across various social media platforms.

Abuja Court Jails Senator Ndume Ali |The Source

By
Ayodele Oni
-
0

By Ayodele Oni

For his failure to produce a suspect on bail, a Federal High Court, Abuja,  today, Monday, ordered the remand, of Chairman Senate Committee on Army,  Senator Ali Ndume (Borno South ) in Kuje Correctional Centre.

He will remain there until he produces in court, Alhaji Abdulrasheed Maina, who he stood surety for.

Justice Okon Abang, who gave the order, also, ruled that Ndume should, alternatively,  pay N500m to the treasury  of the Federal Government, or forfeit his  property located at plot 158 cadastral zone Asokoro Abuja.

According to him, until any of the conditions is fulfilled, Ndume should remain in Kuje prison.

Senator Ndume stood surety in April 2020 after the defendant had spent six months in custody, due to his inability to  produce a senator to stand for him.

Maina is facing a-12 count charge of  laundering the sum of N2bn through multiple fictitious bank account names.

He has been absent in court for four consecutive times without any tangible reason acceptable to Court.

At the last adjourned date,  November 18, the judge gave Ndume till today to show cause why he should not be sent to prison.

Maina, who is standing trial for alleged money laundering charges, absconded and left Maina in the lurch. Ndume consistently told the Court he didn’t know Maina’s whereabouts.

Last week, a Bench warrant to arrest Maina was issued by the Court. And on Monday November 23, the Ndume was ordered remanded in Prison Custody.

*With Additional Report by Akinwale Kasali

Breaking: FIFA Bans CAF President, Ahmad, For Five Years For Corrupt Practices |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
-
0

By Akinwale Kasali

In one of the most shameful blows to hit African Football,  the World Football Governing Body, Federation International for Football Association, FIFA, has banned the Confederate of African Football President, CAF, Ahmad Ahmad.

Ahmad is seeking re-election for a second term as the Africa Continent President, but the ban by FIFA  has dashed his ambition.

The Madagascar born CAF President was slammed with a five-year ban by FIFA for engaging in corrupt activities.

The announcement was made by FIFA on Monday. The adjudicatory chamber of the independent Ethics Committee  banned Ahmad for breaches of duty of loyalty, offering and accepting gifts or other benefits, abuse of position, and misappropriation of funds, a FIFA statement confirmed.

CAF is yet to respond to the news. It remains to be seen what this means for the elections of the new CAF president, scheduled for 12th March 2021.

Ahmad, a former Madagascarn Minister, quit his office to vie for CAF President. He has been the President  of CAF since March 2017 and was standing for re-election.

Eedris Abdulkareem Slams Buhari’s Administration, Says It Is On Life Support |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
-
0
Eedris Abdulkareem

By Akinwale Kasali

Member of the defunct Music Group, The Remedies, Eedris Abdulkareem, has described President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration as a failed one, living on life support.

The Rapper lamented the backslide in the economy of the nation, reacting to the dollar exchange rate to the Naira.

As at Monday morning, 23rd November, 2020, a Dollar to a Naira was between N475-N480.

Abdulkareem further described the Buhari Government as a ‘Mean regime surviving on life support system’

He applauded Nigerians, noting that it is a miracle to live in Nigeria at this point, where things are upside down.

Commenting on his  Instagram page, the Rapper said: “When you see a Nigerian living in Nigeria, give him/her some accolades.

“It is a miracle to live here. Shocking if you save a Naira a day you may not have up to a dollar at the end of the year.

“$1=N475, A very mean mean regime, surviving on propagandas and life support system. Transmogrifying Change to Next level”, he wrote.

Abdulkareem has over the years been a strong critic of past Nigerian Presidents, putting them on their toes to to do things aright.

He once criticised the administration of former President Olusegun Obasanjo, following the increase in Petrol.

He sang the song, “Nigeria Jagajaga”, talking about the anomalies and Corruption in the Nigeria system.

Nigeria has just entered its second depression under the Buhari Government, described as the worst in decades.

GT Bank Targets PFAs, Telcos in New Holco Plans |The Source

By
Bayo Bernard
-
0

By Tosin Olatokunbo

The managing Director/ chief executive officer of Guarantee Trust Bank, Segun Agbaje has disclosed that the bank will leverage on its huge customers base to become Africa’s financial behemoth in few years, by diversifying into telecoms, insurance, pension franchises.

The bank’s has strategically positioned itself as the most profitable commercial banks in the country for three decades and has passed the Central Bank of Nigeria’s capitalization threshold.

“We have never had the strategic objective of being the biggest bank in the country. The strategic objective of GTB is to be number one in profitability, ROEs and ROAs. We believe it is not the size that matter to shareholders; the bank with the biggest branches does not make enough profit,” Agbaje said.

The retail lender has grown from barely 3 million customers few years ago, to over 13 million customers, and remained the most capitalized and profitable deposit money banks, DMBs in the country, according to figures from the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN.

According to a report from the Nigerian Stock Exchange, NSE the bank has declared a third quarter 2020 pre-tax profit of over N167 billion, coming barely few days after its management hinted of plans to become a holding company.

Speaking in Lagos recently, Agbaje said GT Bank has decided to diversify income beyond banking in line with its strategic position as the leading financial service provider in the continent.

He said the bank is creating opportunities for Fintechs, Telcos, insurance under one platform which will lead to job creation and profitability for its numerous shareholders.

“The universe of banking is changing r=dramatically from what it was 10 years ago and GT Bank” cannot afford to be left behind, adding that the bank does not want to lose a large chunk of what is happening in the financial landscape because that means “you will miss what the Telcos, Fintechs and lending companies are doing.”

He said the decision not to join the bandwagon of holdco over a decade ago was purely strategy, as the bank wanted to focus on providing core banking service which helped the bank to become the most profitable bank in the country within few years.

But now “it is time to diversify earnings. And the only way to diversify your earnings in Nigeria today is to create a holding company structure. We are focused on creating our assets management system. The PFA is growing, what we want to do is to build an assets management company.

The reason why we have asset management is because it complements our business. We have grown a very big retail business today. Sometimes when some people has a high yield, we lose such opportunities” to our competitors, but creating our own assets management  company will bring all services” in the banking, PFAs, Asset management into the bank’s ‘ecosystem’  the bank’s CEO said.

He, however, hinted that “We are still going to face our core banking services; and we are not going to let that drop. GTB will continue to be the mother ship for us. We will continue to deepen our retail, SMEs business.”

 

#EndSARS Protest: UK Parliament Set To Deliberate On Petition Against Nigeria |The Source

By
Akinwale Kasali
-
0
Endsars Protesters in Edo State

By Akinwale Kasali

The United Kingdom Parliament is set to deliberate on the petition against Nigeria over the, alleged,attacks, killing, victimization and abuse on the Fundamental Human Rights of the #EndSARS Protesters by the Nigeria Government.

The Petition before the UK Parliament seeks sanction for the Nigeria Government and the Nigeria Police Force over alleged human rights violations during the #EndSARS protests, would be debated on, today,Monday, 23 November 2020.

The UK Parliament’s website contained information about the debate, to be led by Theresa Villiers at the Westminster Hall between 6:00 pm and 7:30 pm.

In the debate pack titled, ‘E-petition 554150, relating to Nigeria and the sanctions regime’, the parliament referenced the shootings of #EndSARS protesters at the Lekki Toll Plaza on October 20, 2020, as one of its press articles.

According to the statement, “Parliament will debate this petition on November 23, 2020. You will be able to watch online on the UK Parliament YouTube channel.

“On July 6, the British Government established the Global Human Rights sanctions regime by laying regulations in Parliament under the Sanctions and Anti-Money Laundering Act 2018.

“This sanctions regime will give the UK a powerful new tool to hold to account those involved in serious human rights violations or abuses. The sanctions regime is not intended to target individual countries. It will allow for sanctions to be imposed on individuals and entities involved in serious human rights violations or abuses around the world.”

The petition asking the United Kingdom to sanction members of the Nigerian government and Police Force for human rights abuses over the #EndSARS movement was signed by 220,304 individuals.

The petition, created by one Silas Ojo, sought to generate 100,000 signatures.

Any petition signed by over 100,000 individuals will be considered for discussion according to information obtained from the UK parliament’s website.

Insurgency: Army Chief Orders Soldiers To Go After Nigerians |The Source

By
Bayo Bernard
-
0
Burutai

By Fola James

Few hours after some soldiers were allegedly killed by boko haram in Borno state, during an attack on the convoy of Governor Babagana Zulum the chief of Army Staff, COAS Lt General Tukur Burutai has given a marching order to the soldiers fighting insurgents to treat all Nigerians as possible terror suspects.

The Borno state government has debunked the report claiming that the state’s helmsman was attacked on his way to Baga town on Saturday, while the military has remained mum on whether soldiers were actually killed by the insurgents.

The state government said in a statement that “For the record, we write to quickly clarify that contrary to a “breaking news” by an online news medium, Governor Babagana Umara Zulum was neither attacked nor was any component of his convoy attacked by anyone.

The governor was actually in Baga from Saturday to Sunday (Sunday), during which he supervised the distribution of food and cash to 5,000 residents and he assessed major reconstruction and resettlement efforts with no hitch whatsoever.

While we continually accord respect to all media organisations as supportive partners, we importantly clarify that we have no knowledge of the breaking news” in question. As members of the public can testify, it is the culture and principle of Professor Zulum to say things as they are, and in this case, it is what it is- no attack whatsoever.

Any media organisation that wants further clarification may wish to contact the Nigerian military. “Meanwhile, Governor Zulum appreciates all well- wishers, and he gratefully commends armed forces and civilian volunteers for the relentless efforts to fully regain lasting peace in Borno State,”

Sources at Defence Headquarters in Abuja said the armed forces is taking the war on terror very seriously which may require adequate profiling of some persons to determine his/her level of involvement or otherwise in terror activities in the north east.

The COAS directed the troops to brace up because the nation is in a state of war and cannot afford to take anything for granted any longer, after lamenting that a slack in soldiers’ performance had prolonged the war.

An online newspaper, Sahara Reporters quotes an army correspondence where the COAS said “All persons must be treated as suspects unless fully identified and cleared especially in isolated, high threat areas, when on clearance operations and check point duties.

“We are not in peacekeeping operations, internal security operations or deterrence actions. This is real war fighting.”

The memo titled: “COAS Special Order-01 Change to War Mode,” also directed soldiers deployed in ‘Operation Lafiya Doleé a special anti-terrorism combat squad to embark on adequate profiling of resident in the troubled region as a way to fish out Boko Haram suspects.

Meanwhile, some experts informed the magazine that the order could lead to unnecessary harassment of innocent Nigerians resident in the region.

But another school of thought also insists, that it is within the Army’s rule of engagement to do whatever necessary within the the law to rein in insurgency in the region.

1...2,7582,7592,760...3,161Page 2,759 of 3,161