FEC Yet to Approve $3.5bn Ibadan-Kano Standard Guage—Amaechi

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The Oyo State government has maintained that its decision to register all commercial motorcycle and tricycle riders in the state was to promote public safety and not for any other purpose. The Commissioner for Information and Civic Orientation, Mr Dotun Oyelade, said this during a one-day sensitisation meeting with Okada and Keke riders in Ibadan. He explained that the meeting became necessary following a recent state security council meeting, noting that the exercise will help in the documentation of riders in the state. The Commissioner called for sustained cooperation between motorcycle and tricycle riders and the state

By Adedapo Adesanya A Federal Capital Territory High Court, Abuja, has adjourned an alleged procurement fraud case involving ex-Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele, to January 18 and 19, 2024, for continuation of trial. Mr Emefiele is standing trial on a six-count amended charge on alleged procurement of vehicles to the tune of N1.6 billion. He had pleaded not guilty to the charges. He was granted bail on November 17, 2023, to the tune of N300 million, and two sureties and remanded at the Kuje Correctional Centre, pending when he meets his bail conditions. However,

By Adedapo Adesanya Operatives of the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency (NDLEA) have uncovered illicit substances bound for Europe, the United Arab Emirates and Asia. Disclosing this in a statement on Sunday, NDLEA spokesman, Mr Femi Babafemi, said the illicit substances intercepted included various quantities of methamphetamine and opioids concealed in hems of new jeans trousers, dolls, buttons, local soap and tins of milo beverage. He noted that the operation was carried out by operatives of the Directorate of Operations and General Investigation (DOGI) at courier houses in Lagos, he said some of the items seized included tramadol 225mg concealed

By Adedapo Adesanya The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked the Senate to reject the planned N15 billion for the construction of the vice president’s residence new building contained in the FCT 2023 supplementary budget. The call was contained in a letter addressed to the Senate President, Mr Godswill Akpabio. In the letter, dated December 2 and signed by SERAP’s deputy director, Mr Kolawole Oluwadare, the organisation urged Mr Akpabio to use his leadership position “to promptly reject the plan by the Minister of the FCT, Mr Nyesom Wike to spend N15 billion for the construction of a

By Adedapo Adesanya The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has disclosed that Nigeria’s crude oil and gas export increased by 94.3 percent month-on-month in January 2020. The national oil company, in its first Monthly Financial and Operations Report (MFOR) for the year released in Abuja, on Wednesday, stated further that the total revenue from oil and gas within the period amounted to $434.85 million It also said that during the month under review, crude oil export sales contributed $336.65 million (77.42 percent) of the dollar transactions for the period, compared with the $136.36 million in the previous month, December 2019.

By Adedapo Adesanya The oil market was bearish on Friday as prices headed south on the back of information that demand would recover more slowly than expected from COVID-19 pandemic lockdowns. As a result, the international benchmark, Brent crude futures, dropped 13 cents or 0.29 per cent to $44.83 per barrel, while the US benchmark, West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures, fell 15 cents or 0.36 per cent to $42.09 per barrel. This week, two prominent forecasters, the International Energy Agency (IEA) and the Organization of the Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), trimmed their 2020 oil demand forecasts. OPEC sees demand tumbling by

By Dipo Olowookere Foremost independent PR measurement and evaluation agency in Nigeria, P+ Measurement Services, is celebrating its third anniversary. P+ Measurement Services has been providing detailed and unbiased media monitoring, measurement and performance audit services in Nigeria. Its clientele includes local and multinational companies in the banking, insurance, assets management, oil & gas, breweries, airlines, government, NGOs and PR & Advertising agencies. The company was established in 2015 by a PR expert, Mr Philip Odiakose, and the firm is now one of the top three service providers in West Africa. The company dedicates majority of its resources to research

By Investors Hub The major US index futures are pointing to a higher opening on Monday, with stocks poised to extend the upward trend seen in recent sessions. The markets may continue to benefit from recent upward momentum, which has propelled the major averages to record highs. Trading activity may be somewhat subdued, however, with traders reluctant to make significant moves ahead of the key earnings news later this week. Traders are also digesting remarks by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen, who spoke at the Group of 30 International Banking Seminar on Sunday. Despite subdued inflation, Yellen reiterated her belief

By Adedapo Adesanya Over 80 million Nigerians are living in poverty, latest data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) has shown on Monday. According to the country’s official statistical authority, a total of 82.9 million Nigerians, representing about 40 percent, live in Africa’s largest economy and most populous nation. This was contained in a report titled “the Nigerian Living Standards Survey (NLSS)” in the country about poverty and inequality and samples data from September 2018 to October 2019. The survey is used to measure prevalence of poverty and to estimate a wide range of socio-economic indicators including bench-marking of

By Adedapo Adesanya Leading crypto exchange, Bitfinex, has announced the listing of the Prema token or PRMX as it is known by its ticker, a utility token that acts as the native token within the Prema platform. The listing will help drive Prema’s strategy to build out its tech around the ability to link blockchain-based Web3 digital collectibles in the form of NFTs to tangible items in the real world. It has a limited supply of 100 Billion PRMX tokens, which are the primary utility token for minting NFTs, creating marketplaces, interacting across chains, on-chain governance, fees, and payments within

By Aduragbemi Omiyale The appropriation bill passed into law on Wednesday should be signed into law next week by President Muhammadu Buhari, the Senate President, Mr Ahmad Lawan, has disclosed. He made this disclosure after he had a closed-door meeting with Mr Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Abuja on Friday. While addressing reporters after the private meeting, the number three citizen of the country said he discussed the 2023 budget and other issues, including the general elections taking place next year. The Senate President specifically said the 2023 fiscal year budget, which is the highest in the history of

By Modupe Gbadeyanka Data released on Monday by Nigeria’s National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) showed that the headline inflation for the month of June 2018 moderated further as expected. The stats office said the Consumer Price Index (CPI), which measures inflation, increased by 11.23 percent (year-on-year) in June 2018. It stated that this was 0.37 percent points less than the rate recorded in May 2018, 11.61 percent, representing the 17th consecutive disinflation since January 2017. The NBS explained that increases were recorded in all COICOP divisions that yielded the Headline index. Also, on a month-on-month basis, the headline index increased