Diezani Forfeits N34b to FG

By Bliss Okperan The Nasarawa State House of Assembly has announced its election of Danladi Jatau, representing Kokona West Constituency, as the new Speaker. The state parliament also disclosed on Friday that it now has a new Deputy Speaker, who is Mohammed Oyanki, the lawmaker representing Doma North Constituency. The election of the two principal officers of the legislative arm of the state followed the sacking of its former Speaker, Mr Ibrahim Abdullahi, by the Appeal Court sitting in Abuja on Tuesday. While the new Speaker is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), his deputy is a member

By Modupe Gbadeyanka A key suspect in the Dangote Cement price slash scam, Mr Benjamin Ezeukwe, has been arraigned in court by the police in Lagos State. A statement issued by the spokesman of the Lagos Command of the Nigeria Police Force (NPF), Mr Benjamin Hundeyin, disclosed that the accused person was taken to court for prosecution after he was arrested in Rivers State. The Police Public Relations Officer, who is a Superintendent of Police (SP), disclosed that Mr Ezeukwe was picked up by police operatives on Thursday, October 19, 2023, in the Rumuolumeni area of Obio/Akpor local government area

By Dipo Olowookere President Bola Tinubu has arrived at the National Assembly to present the 2024 Appropriation Bill to the federal lawmakers. The President got to the parliament at about a few minutes past 11 am on Wednesday, November 29, 2023, and was accompanied by the Vice President, Mr Kashim Shettima; his Chief of Staff, Mr Femi Gbajabiamila; the National Chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Mr Abdullahi Gandoje; and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr George Akume; among others. He is expected to present the 2024 budget of N27.5 trillion to a joint

By Bliss Okperan The Commissioner for Physical Planning and Urban Development in Lagos State, Mr Oluyinka Olumide, has debunked claims that the ongoing demolition of illegal buildings in the metropolis was targeted at the South-Easterners by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu administration. It was alleged that the state government was pulling down structures belonging to residents of the state from the Igbo extraction because of their protest votes in the 2023 governorship election. Speaking as a guest on Wednesday on Channels Television’s flagship breakfast programme, Sunrise Daily, Mr Olumide disclosed that, “Those buildings causing uproar are buildings rushed during the COVID period

By Adedapo Adesanya The African Development Bank (AfDB) has approved the establishment of the African Pharmaceutical Technology Foundation. The foundation is a new groundbreaking institution that will significantly enhance Africa’s access to the technologies that underpin the manufacture of medicines, vaccines, and other pharmaceutical products. Rwanda will host the African Pharmaceutical Technology Foundation. A common benefits entity, the foundation will have its own governance and operational structures. It will promote and broker alliances between foreign and African pharmaceutical companies. The African Pharmaceutical Technology Foundation will strengthen local pharmaceutical companies to engage in local production initiatives with systematic technology learning and

By Dipo Olowookere The decision of the management of Unilever Nigeria Plc to increase the amount spent for branding and marketing of its products in the first quarter of 2020 for better turnover did not yield the expected results. This is because despite the spike in the marketing and administrative costs, the revenue generated by the company in the period under review was lower than the corresponding period of 2019. In its financial statements for the period ended March 31, 2020 released by the board over the weekend, the revenue raked by Unilever Nigeria dropped to N13.3 billion from N19.2

By Bliss Okperan Nigeria’s President, Mr Bola Tinubu, has approved the appointment of new Chief Executive Officers for some agencies and parastatals under the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment. A statement on Friday from the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Ajuri Ngelale, disclosed that the appointments, which take immediate effect, are in line with his resolve to base the country’s economic revival on the foundation of trade expansion through small, medium and large scale industry facilitation. Mr Ngelale said his boss “expects all new appointees in the critical sector to optimally deliver in accordance with

By Nkem Ndem A driver’s license is a very important document in Nigeria. It allows you to operate a vehicle legally and serves as a form of identification. Unfortunately, the process of getting a driver’s license can be quite tedious. To help ease the process, Jumia Travel, Africa’s No.1 hotel booking portal, shares 5 things Nigerians need to keep in mind when looking to get a driving license. It is preferable to get training at an accredited driving school The general idea when you are applying for a fresh driver’s license is that you are new to driving. The FRSC

By Modupe Gbadeyanka The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has expressed its readiness to work closely with the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC) in tackling corruption in the Nigerian capital market. Acting Director-General of the apex capital market regulatory agency in the country, Ms Mary Uduk, during a visit to the ICPC at its headquarters in Abuja recently, said she was sure of the commission’s competence and capacity in helping SEC trace and recover stolen assets of hardworking Nigerians that had been invested in companies, no matter where they were stashed. She and her management staff

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Investors in the capital market in Nigeria lost about N782 million this week as a turnover of 678.710 million shares worth N6.875 billion in 11,808 deals were traded on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE). This was in contrast to a total of 674.721 million shares valued at N7.657 billion that exchanged hands last week in 12,290 deals. During the week, the Financial Services Industry as measured by volume led the activity chart with 529.258 million shares sold at N2.774 billion in 6,290 deals; thus contributing 77.98% and 40.35% to the total equity turnover volume

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Managing Director of First Bank of Nigeria Limited, Mr Adesola Adeduntan, has reiterated the commitment of the financial institution to leverage Financial Technology (Fintech) to deliver innovative services. Mr Adeduntan made this known at the Fintech summit hosted by the tier-1 lender on Wednesday in Lagos. The bank chief, who was represented at the event by the Deputy Managing Director of the bank, Mr Gbenga Shobo, stressed that, “To remain competitive, banks must make the most of this disruptive change.” He said, “At the moment, some actors are using this new technology so enthusiastically that it’s hard

By Adedapo Adesanya The move by the Organisation of the Petroleum Exporting Countries and allies (OPEC+) to raise production limits by 400,000 barrels per day monthly from this month will leave the oil market in deficit at the end of 2021, research analysts at Merrill Lynch have said. The analysts, Karen Kostanian and Ekaterina Smyk, noted that the move by the 23-member alliance was positive for oil in both the short and medium-term as a change in baseline production levels does not mean an immediate 1.6 million barrels per day hike from April 2022 and will mostly redistribute quotas within