Air Force Regrets Borno IDP Camp Bombing

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) is set to embark on its planned strike as it said it does not have any agreement with the federal government to shelve the action. This came from its Head of Information and Public Affairs, Mr Benson Upah, who countered a statement by the Ministry of Labour and Employment. Mr Upah also said the NLC did not have any date for a meeting with the government that may lead to the suspension of the proposed strike. “We do not have any agreement with the government to suspend the planned strike action. Neither

By Adedapo Adesanya The National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) has arrested a suspect wanted for attempts to ship illicit drug consignments to the United Kingdom. This was made known in a statement signed by the NDLEA spokesman, Mr Femi Babafemi, on Sunday. He further disclosed arrests made by NDLEA operatives through interdiction operations that led to the seizure of four tons of illicit substances in the past week. According to the agency, the suspect, Mr Obiorah Chigozie, had been on its wanted list since September 15. This, he said, was when a consignment of 1.500kg skunk concealed in flour

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) has been chosen as the best federal government agency in Digital Transformation. This recognition came from the Presidency through the Bureau of Public Service Reforms (BPSR). In a statement, it was disclosed that the Director-General of the maritime regulator, Mr Bashir Jamoh, has been nominated to receive the distinguished GovTech Trailblazers Award for his exemplary leadership. The BPSR explained that the nominees were picked from a nationwide nomination and online voting process initiated by the bureau, as well as a detailed analysis of the performance of all government MDAs

By Adedapo Adesanya The chief executive of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), Mr Gbenga Komolafe, has cancelled all activities lined up for his 60th birthday amid increased calls for his sack. Mr Komolafe, a Fellow of the Nigerian Society of Engineers (NSE), turned the milestone age on Tuesday, September 26 and there was a planned thanksgiving service to mark the day slated for this Saturday, September 30. However, he said that amid the current economic state in the country, he has decided to cancel all the planned celebrations, according to a report by Premium Times. This development comes

By Dipo Olowookere Nigerian e-commerce company, Konga, is considering the acquisition of a pharmacy chain in the country as part of its plans to delve into the health sector. The company had recently successfully launched its Konga Travel, a revolutionary omni-channel travel booking agency. Now, the firm is looking to provide integrated but cost-effective health services to the served, unserved and under-served across Nigeria with prompt delivery of genuine drugs. Co-CEO of Konga, Mr Nnamdi Ekeh, disclosed that negotiations have reached an advanced stage for the ambitious project, which will launch by third quarter of 2019. He said Konga was

By Adedapo Adesanya The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) has outlined regulatory forbearance for the insurance industry that will ensure protection to businesses and policyholders affected by the restriction to movement of the Federal Government. This was stated in a circular issued recently to insurance operators with referenced numbers, NO: NAICOM/DPR/CIR/29/2020, 01 April 2020 signed by the Director Policy and Regulation, NAICOM, Mr Pius Agboola. According to the regulator, the forbearance are as follows: “Where Approval-In-Principle for the preceding insurance period had been granted, all renewals or extensions of the foreign reinsurance proportions that become due during COVID-19 movement restriction are

By Adedapo Adesanya  Crude oil settled lower on Wednesday as traders weighed concerns over a surge in COVID-19 cases in China, the world’s top oil importer. Brent crude futures fell by $1.07 or 1.3 per cent to settle at $83.26 a barrel, while the US West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures lost 57 cents or 0.7 per cent to trade at $78.96 per barrel. China has said it will stop requiring inbound travellers to quarantine from January 8, a major step towards relaxing stringent curbs on its borders. However, Chinese hospitals have been under intense pressure due to a surge

By Ahmed Rahma The 2021 MTV Africa Music Awards ceremony has been postponed, the organisers announced on Thursday night. The event, which was scheduled to hold in Kampala, the Ugandan capital, on February 20, has been postponed indefinitely. The prestigious ceremony is being organised in partnership with Uganda’s Ministry of Tourism. In a message, MTN Base Africa said it was moving the date of the programme to a yet-to-be-announced date. The MTV Base Music Awards is one of the key events on the music calendar in Africa with performances from leading African and international artistes. “MTV Base is postponing the

By Dipo Olowookere Treasury bills worth N823.5 billion would be offered for sale to investors in the first quarter of 2019, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has said. In the Nigerian Treasury Bills Issue Programme First Quarter 2019 released by the central bank, a total of N985.9 billion worth of the debt instruments will mature in the period under review. Business Post reports that the apex bank has already conducted the first sale of T-bills via primary market auction. This exercise was conducted on Wednesday, January 2, 2019 and it was oversubscribed by market players. In the calendar released

By Adedapo Adesanya The African Development Bank (AfDB) Group has approved grants worth about $43.5 million for the construction of a bridge to connect Cameroon and Chad across the Logone river. The grants from AfDB comprising a $22.6 million tranche for Cameroon and $20.9 million for Chad were approved on April 30. The facility is from the Investment Facility for Africa under a framework agreement between the bank and the European Commission. According to a statement Mr Kwasi Kpodo, the Communication and External Relations Department of the bank, the funds will co-finance the costs of construction of the bridge between

By Investors Hub Asian stocks rose on Monday as the European Union agreed to London’s request for a Brexit deadline extension and reports suggested that Washington and Beijing are close to finalizing parts of a trade pact. U.S. and Chinese officials said they are “close to finalizing” some parts of a phase one trade deal after high-level telephone discussions on Friday. U.S. President Donald Trump has said he plans to sign the deal with Chinese President Xi Jinping at a summit in Chile next month. Chinese stocks ended on a firmer note amid the apparent headway in U.S.-China trade talks

By Dipo Olowookere The management of Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) has assured pensioners of the privatised NITEL/MTEL would soon begin to receive their payments. This assurance was given in a statement issued by the agency on Friday, September 7, 2018, in reaction to a press statement issued by the Association of Former Telecoms Employees of Nigeria (ATEN), claiming that PTAD and the Federal Ministry of Finance had submitted and defended “huge amount of money” for the payment of monthly pension to ex-workers of company, suggesting that the action was “illegal and against the law.” According to PTAD, during its