The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Nigerian Newspapers

  • Huge remittances

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has disclosed that total direct remittances to Nigeria in the first seven months of the year has risen 136 per cent to $11.54bn as against $4.9bn reported in the corresponding period in 2018. The apex bank revealed that diaspora remittances into the nation’s economy continue to soar amidst series of foreign exchange reforms that include licensing of many foreign exchange companies.

    Home remittances from Nigerian migrants in the Americas, Europe, Asia and many Arab and African countries have been rising for some years. For example, PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) said recently that remittances from abroad could strengthen Nigeria’s economy with an estimated amount of $25.5bn, $29.8bn and $34.8bn in 2019, 2021 and 2023, respectively. In 2018, migrant remittances were 77% of the Federal Government’s budget. Nigerians in diaspora in the same year sent home 10 times the Financial Direct Investment (FDI) from foreigners doing business in Nigeria.

    With $25.08 from Nigerians in 2018, the World Bank ranked Nigeria with the highest remittance in-flow in Africa and the fifth globally, behind India, China, The Philippines and Mexico. We applaud the patriotic feelings of Nigerians abroad, many of whom left home because they could not find fulfillment or realise their potential in their country of birth.

    It is gratifying that Nigeria’s brains and brawn losses to foreign countries have a positive side for the country, especially for providing family members left behind funds to assist them in respect of education, nutrition, health, and in some cases, housing. It is noble that the Nigerians abroad remain empathetic and willing to provide social security for the less fortunate of their kith and kin at home.

    But it would appear that the steady increase in home remittances in the last five years is more of a result of growing empathy on the part of Nigerians abroad than of direct or indirect result of licensing of new foreign exchange companies by the CBN. We congratulate Nigerians in diaspora for holding on to the tradition of family support that is becoming increasingly more inevitable today than when they left the country, and that is more difficult to sustain by those at home because of increasing inequality.

    Instead of complaining about brain drain, the governments – federal, state and local – must rise to the demands of the time. In particular, the Federal Government ought to be encouraging its citizens abroad with efficient delivery of consular services that their counterparts from other countries receive as of right. For instance, there should be no stress for Nigerian citizens abroad to access Nigerian embassies for services that other nationals take for granted – obtaining or renewing passports or travelling certificates in cases of emergency. The story of a Nigerian who got frustrated last year to the point of destroying vehicles in the premises of the Nigerian Embassy in London for failure to renew his passport does not demonstrate adequate sensitivity to the needs and concerns of Nigerians abroad.

    As important as financial remittances are to developing countries, there is another resource that Nigeria is in a good position to benefit from its diaspora community – social remittances or the flow of skills, knowledge, ideas and values that migrants transfer toward development of their home countries. In addition to informal social security benefits provided by financial remittances, communities in countries such as China, India, Indonesia, Malaysia, and many other places benefit significantly from values added to education, health, employment, business, governance, and technology from citizens abroad. Such benefits generally go beyond migrants’ immediate family members to the wider community.

    To have adequate access to social remittances, governments at all levels need to work harder by improving infrastructure and enhancing democratic governance, especially the rule of law, to make the country attractive to citizens in diaspora.

    But nothing we have said should be taken to mean that governments should abdicate their responsibility to make the country better for Nigerians. When all the stakeholders play their part, Nigerians at home would find something worthwhile to do while even those abroad may find cause to return to help develop their fatherland.

  • Expensive tourism

    Of course, medical tourism doesn’t come cheap. But the information that Nigerians spend more than $15bn yearly to seek medical treatment abroad shows just how expensive medical tourism can be.

    An American physician, Stephen Hunt of the University of Pennsylvania, gave an insight into the considerable amount of money Nigerian leaders and other individuals spend annually on medical tourism. He told journalists at the University of Ibadan, Oyo State, on September 14:  “We are in the Department of Radiology, UCH, and had a conference in UCH last week where there were physicians from the US to start interventional radiotherapy training. More than $15bn is spent yearly by Nigerians to travel abroad for medical reasons. We can reduce that if people are trained here so they won’t have to spend a lot of money. When they travel, they are not just paying for the medical service; they are also paying for food, accommodation and flight. It won’t be that expensive if it can be treated in Nigeria.”

    The situation is complicated by the reality that a large number of medical doctors continue to leave the country for greener pastures abroad because of the poor healthcare system, demoralising remuneration and deteriorating hospital facilities. The exodus of doctors has escalated in the last two years, according to an investigative report. Nigerian doctors continue to pursue professional and material fulfillment in the United States, the United Kingdom, Canada, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait.

    For example, Chairman of the Nigerian Medical Association (NMA) in Lagos State, Dr Saliu Oseni, was quoted as saying: “It will be difficult to give a total figure of doctors that have left the service of the Lagos State Government since 2017, but to be conservative, no fewer than 50 to 60 doctors left the system every six months. Some of them leave for greener pastures abroad.”

    Also, in Kaduna State, a 2018 survey showed that, in less than a year, no fewer than 21 doctors left at least one hospital for other countries, or greener pastures elsewhere in the country, because of bad conditions of service. The NMA First Vice-President, Dr  Mingeh Tijo, said: “On the average, studies have shown that about 700 doctors leave the country every year.”  Public hospitals, which serve the majority of the population, are at the centre of the crisis.

    There may well be a connection between medical tourism by Nigerians and the remarkable exodus of Nigerian doctors. Medical travellers seek a better health system because of their health needs, just as medical doctors seek a better health system because of their professional and material needs. Those who seek healthcare abroad believe they would benefit from “most advanced technology, better-quality care for medically necessary procedures and quicker access for medically necessary procedures.” A healthcare system that cannot sustain doctors is likely to encourage those who need healthcare to look elsewhere.

    It is said that health is wealth. This explains why Nigerian medical travellers are willing to spend so much to get healthcare abroad, particularly when they can’t get the desired healthcare in the country. It is disappointing that the authorities have allowed this situation to persist. Indeed, people in power encourage medical tourism by their bad example of travelling abroad for medical purposes at the slightest opportunity.

    The exodus of doctors is a sad reflection of the state of public hospitals in the country. The situation calls for increased government expenditure in the health sector to provide an enabling environment for the country’s doctors. It also calls for a better economy. It is a shame that Nigerian-trained doctors are forced to take their expertise to foreign lands to the detriment of their compatriots.

    The development of the health system is a critical factor in the country’s pursuit of progress. There is no excuse for neglecting the health system.

  • Welcome to the real world!!!

    Certainly, you must have heard this statement a few times. Perhaps it was said to you or to someone else but the connotation is usually the same. It is usually said in the context of someone receiving a rude shock from life’s experiences. People welcome him or her to the world of reality, as though such a person has just awoken from a fantasy world.

    Michael was desperate for an admission into higher institution. He often thought he would do anything not to stay home for another year. Eventually, he was admitted and then realised that getting good grades was another matter entirely. While trying to relate with complex courses and more complex lecturers, people told him, “Welcome to the real world!”

    He worked hard until he was in his final year. Suddenly, he got so tired of school that the few weeks till graduation seemed like eternity. Michael couldn’t wait to see the “real world”! Well, he graduated but stayed home for a while. Soon, his parents began to ask him what his plans were! “I thought they missed me. Shouldn’t they let me stay around without being bothered?” He thought to himself. Few days later, Michael wanted to enjoy a day out with his friends so he asked his parents for money but they said, “You are a graduate now you know? You should earn your own money.” Welcome to the real world!

    Fed up of his parents’ fuss, Michael decided to get a job. “I am a graduate after all”, he thought, “there will be something out there for me”. When he went searching, however, he met several graduates who had been on the street for years looking for a job. He even saw someone who graduated the year he matriculated. And they all told him, “Welcome to the real world!”

    But what does this really mean? What is this real world?  A world full of failed dreams and hopelessness? Why do people feel proud to share stories of woes and failures? Why do they seem eager to tell someone attempting to succeed about the number of years they spent trying until they failed, and why the newcomer should also stop trying? Why wouldn’t anybody tell Michael about the rich and the successful in the land? Was it because they didn’t want to have false hope or was it because they feared he might actually succeed and leave them behind?

    The world was the way it was when Bill Gates became one of the richest men on earth. As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he. What you see in your world is what it will be. Think about it; people always say things are impossible until someone achieves it. Trying and failing is not the worst thing that can happen to us; the worst thing is not having the courage to try at all. Most successful people have catalogues of failures to show but they didn’t stop there. While it is true that there are several examples of failed dreams around us, there are also several achieved dreams too, only if we choose to look critically. He who explains success away as others’ birthright will miss success.

    Some people believe that dreams can be stupid. They say dreams are not realistic. Of course, dreams are not realistic! They are larger-than-life. If dreams are realistic, they won’t be dreams! Dreams are projections into a desirable future. Your dreams must be bigger than your present or your future is in trouble.  Dreams are cheap. It doesn’t cost a thing to dream of yourself being the best person in your business. In fact, you can do it right now. That is, however, the first step. That you can dream means you have liberated yourself from the limitations of the “Real World”. You must now wake up and purse that dream with everything you’ve got until you achieve. Never mind people, never mind situations, just go for it.

    Thanks for reading my article today. I would really love to hear from you. So, do share your views with me by sending SMS to 07034737394, visiting www.olanreamodu.com and following me on twitter @lanreamodu. Remember, you are currently nothing compared to what you can become. This can be your year if you want it to be!

     

  • Buhari’s double shuffle

    It is settled in labour relations that he who hires has the authority to fire.  That is what applied to the amiable, industrious and proud daughter of Adiabo Okurikang in Odukpani Local Government, Cross River State, Mrs. Winifred Ekanem Oyo-Ita, until last week the head of service of the federation.

    Her story is well known but the facts may not have been fully established. President Muhammadu Buhari has only exercised the powers vested in him by asking Oyo-Ita to step aside, temporarily, to allow a thorough investigation of the allegations of abuse of office against her.

    Her replacement is by no means a push over in the federal civil service and service to the country. Folashade Yemi-Esan, a first-class dental surgeon, and proud alumnae of the University of Ibadan, began her career in the Federal Civil Service at the Federal Ministry of Health after graduation in 1987 from the nation’s premier university.

    She rose to the position of permanent secretary in 2012 when she first served as permanent secretary, service policy and strategy in the Office of the Head of   Service of the Federation.

    Her tour of duty has seen her serve as permanent secretary in the Federal Ministry of Information and the Federal Ministry of Education, among others. She was, until her recent elevation as head of service last week, the permanent secretary at the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources. Her selection was probably endorsed by President Buhari on account of her vast experience and being the most senior permanent secretary in the federal civil service.

    But perhaps more significant is the decision of President Buhari to extend the tenure of seven permanent secretaries who were expected to retire, at various dates, between September and December. By presidential fiat, the lucky seven distinguished public officers have had their tenures extended by one calendar year beginning this October.

    So how did the president acquire this executive power, some well-meaning people may ask? Others, more discerning, have also observed that the president had in the recent past granted extension of tenure to military chiefs, to wit, the chief of defence staff and the service chiefs – heads of army, air-force and the navy.

    The Nigerian Constitution at Section 171 (2) d empowers the president to appoint persons to hold or act in appointive offices at his pleasure. It is also his prerogative to determine the duration of such appointments, although extant rules stipulate a maximum of 35 years in service or 60 years age, whichever comes first.

    Section 171 (1) of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (as amended), unambiguously vested in the president, the power to appoint persons to hold or act as the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, ambassadors, high commissioners or other principal representatives of Nigeria abroad as well as permanent secretaries in the ministries, departments and agencies.

    In clear terms, Section 171 (2) is explicit on the power of the president on who may be appointed, act or be removed as permanent secretary in any ministry or head of any extra-ministerial department of the Government of the Federation  or ‘howsoever designated’.

    Beyond acting within the confines of the law, many analysts would also agree that President Buhari  has a moral responsibility to ensure that the fabric of the federal civil service is not unwittingly eroded by the sudden departure of seven permanent secretaries within three months. The consequential impact of such depletion of well-trained and tested civil servants cannot be in the interest of the nation and the effective delivery of the programmes and development agenda of the Buhari administration.

    Going down memory lane, it is instructive to remember that before the appointment of new ministers, specifically between May 29 and August 21, permanent secretaries ran the affairs of ministries, department and agencies.  Besides, prior to the inauguration of the cabinet, the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation organised a presidential retreat for ministers and permanent secretaries where nine priority areas of government where identified to be jointly executed by ministers and permanent secretaries.

    It is also expected that these permanent secretaries have a crucial role to play in the avowed intention of the executive arm of government to kick-start the process for the 2020 budget, and working in collaboration with the National Assembly, to return to the January-December budget cycle. Furthermore, the creation of the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development while demerging four others, and thus expanding the bureaucracy, underscores the need for experienced hands to nurture them to stability.

    One other solid consideration for the tenure elongation is the fact that the process for finding replacements for the seven permanent secretaries due for retirement is multi-layered and may take up to three months.  By tradition, to climb to the peak of the federal civil service, those on the directorate level go through thorough security screening after written and oral examinations.

    The sudden exit of Mrs. Oyo-Ita as head of service may not necessarily affect this process. However, it may not be expedient for government to allow the loss of personnel who have garnered experience, become fully matured but have not yet attained the retiring age of 60 years. Certainly the nation can benefit more from their wealth of experience!

     

    • Kareem writes from Abuja.

  • Women in creative industry explore opportunities

    Experts and women in the creative industry converged on Oriental Hotel, Victoria Island, Lagos recently for a three-day business summit to widen their horizon as entrepreneurs on opportunities in their businesses.

    Organised by AMFEST EXPO Project, the summit, which had as theme: African Women in Arts & Culture, featured professionals in the creative arts industries – music, film, fashion and food.

    Managing Director, City 105.1FM, Lagos, Mrs. Doja Allen, urged participants to build a brand and a fan base for their music, adding that there is need for female artistes to see themselves as entrepreneurs. She noted that  women should not ignore the need to start small, but with an intention to grow their art-form and audience beyond their geographical locations.

    Mrs. Allen cited the examples of Yemi Alade and Tiwa Savage as artistes who have grown to become voices for their generation by putting together a creative team that is hard working, strategic and  staying resilient enough to weather the storms in their careers. She pointed out that the famous and successful artistes deliver their craft on local and international platforms.

    She said African women possess the power and voice, which they should use to their advantage. “Women professionals should think of long-term successes in their careers than brief and fickle popularity,” he said.

    She also stressed the need for African women to support and encourage one another in the journey to becoming a voice in the global music industry.

    Like the Ghana edition of the conference, which held two months earlier, the summit brought together women experts and business leaders in different disciplines in the creative industry to discuss the value chain and growth of the creative sector.

    Experts and participants explored how creative industry practitioners can leverage the size of the African market for better economic returns. To make this happen, ways to always deliver quality products and services, networking beyond Nigeria for artistic and cultural exchanges were highlighted along with the importance of gaining access into the markets of other geographical locations.

    Each panel was sector-based and led by a leading expert in the field. An international chef, investor and hospitality expert, Mr  Shile Jadesinmi, led the session on  African cuisine culture while talks on the creative arts was led by the Chief Human Resource Officer of MTN Nig. PLC, Mrs Esther Akinnukawe.

    Other panel leaders were author Mrs Bibi Bunmi Apampa for writing, Tonia Ahanor for the modeling industry and  Busola Olugbemileke for film business.

    The AMFEST EXPO Project Director, Mr Olukayode Adebayo, announced Kigali, Rwanda and Dubai as locations for the remaining meetings for 2019. Adebayo explained that the creative industry holds massive opportunities for wealth creation for practitioners, adding that it is strong enough to unlock economic prosperity for Nigeria and other African nations, if well harnessed.

  • Much ado about MTN Board

    I came across a news item in one of Nigeria’s leading online medium-The Cable, in which a pressure group-Human and Environmental Development Agency (HEDA) requested that the Nigerian Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) must sack from the newly constituted MTN board, the chairman,. Ernest Ndukwe and the others, namely Mrs Mobolaji Johnson, Mrs Ifueko Omoigui-Okauru, Mr Andrew Alli and Mr Muhammad Ahmad. HEDA insisted that the request must be complied with within 14 days, failure which it would resort to legal action to enforce the demand.

    The grouse of HEDA in issuing the demand to SEC and their threat of pursuing legal enforcement if SEC failed to act, or turns down the request is that the enlistment of Ndukwe, Omobola Johnson and. Ifueko-Okauru in the telecom company’s board, was, in their opinion, a reward for the roles they allegedly played in shielding MTN from being severely punished during the period of its travails with the federal government which of course is now public knowledge.

    According to The Cable, HEDA in a petition signed by its chairman, Olanrewaju Suraju, said the appointments were an attempt, among other reasons, to “insulate MTN from adverse local political action given its recent history with the regulatory agency, the Nigerian Communications Commission and the office of the Attorney General of the Federation.”

    Let us take the issues one after another.

    First, HEDA has a right to hold an opinion on any matter. What I consider outrageous in this case for which HEDA is seeking redress,  is the notion that the appointment of these eminent Nigerians has anything to do with the board members (the accused), acquiescing to a wrong done by MTN for which it has been duly sanctioned.

    Take a look at the allegations from HEDA’s point of view: “It is a complete show of irony that Mr Ernest Ndukwe who was the Vice Chairman of Nigerian Communications Commission during the MTN infractions, the regulatory body solely responsible for the business activities of telecommunications and Mrs Mobolaji Johnson as the communication minister at the time of this infractions will be selected as the designate chairman and board member respectively by the telecommunication company, adding, “Mrs Okauru was chairman of FIRS when the allegations of MTN Nigeria’s tax evasion of over $2 billion relating to import duties, VAT, withholding tax on foreign import/payments were revealed and despite this, it was reported that tranches of transfers were discovered to have been made to companies in Dubai and Mauritius as reported by Satellite Times on the 8th October, 2018 and these allegations under the nose of the former chairman was consequent upon the failure of the FIRS to undertake diligent and effective supervision and no record of investigations to confirm the authenticity or otherwise while in office.”

    This is an admixture of truth and lie, or fiction at play. It’s an attempt to pull a wool over the face of the discerning public by HEDA. That Dr. Ndukwe and Mrs. Omobola held those positions is factual, but that they did at the period MTN was enmeshed in its fine crisis, is fiction. Add to that the other lie that   Mrs Okauru was chairman of FIRS when the allegations of MTN Nigeria’s tax evasion of over $2 billion and others were resonating. All of these contraptions fit into the web of calling a dog a bad name just to hang it.

    As HEDA alleged in its petition. “It is our firm belief that these persons who were once public office holders who ought to have acted against some activities and alleged infractions of this company but failed in their responsibilities and capacities are now being compensated with appointments into the board.”

    To put the records straight and not obfuscate the discerning public, Ndukwe (OFR) an Electronic/Electrical Engineer was Executive Vice Chairman, NCC from February 2000-March, 2010. To insinuate that Ndukwe is being rewarded (in the place of Professor Dambatta, if at all) who is calling the shots at NCC since the onset of the saga, is uncharitable. Ndukwe, who successfully raised the stakes at NCC and meritoriously saw to the vibrant growth of the telecommunications industry and now a faculty member at the Pan Atlantic University, would not have taken such a steep climb-down n reputation as to indulge in assisting MTN, or other firm in compromising the laws of the land.

    Mrs. Omobola ansd Mrs. Ifueko-Okauru hold no less a reputation. The former was a commissioner in Lagos State before ascending to being a minister of the Federal Republic and the latter, a foremosdt player in the success story that the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), is today. It’s important that when one makes allegations, especially against individuals with track records, that enough proof, or evidence be provided so that such accusations can be verified so they can stand the test of time.

    For the records, the allegations stated in the story, to say the least are false in their entirety based on the fact that Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta was and still is the Executive Vice Chairman of Nigerian Communications Commission when the fine was issued and not Ernest Ndukwe. Also, Adebayo Shittu was the Communications Minister and not Omobola Johnson; Ifueko Okauru who was mentioned to be chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) at the period, was actually in office from May 2004 to April 2012!

    I am not in a position to advocate for MTN, but if the telecoms firm’s selection of these eminent Nigerians as its board members is anything to go by, I would surmise that it is so that the mistakes of the past are not repeated, or allowed to remain, or to fester. The combination of Ndukwe, Mrs Johnson, Mrs Omoigui-Okauru, Andrew Alli and Ahmad in any firm’s board will no doubt elicit envy either in the competition and among stakeholders, so this issue, which to me is contrived, should not be an exception.

    It is heartwarming to note that the Non Governmental Organisation has sought SEC’s intervention on the matter, a body created by law to adjudicate on such matters, and finally the courts, the final arbiter on all matters. It is expected that while the waiting game is on, all parties will defer to the respective authorities and allow the due process run its course.

     

    • Samuel, a public affairs commentator, writes from Lagos.

  • Calabar seaport: Reps summon Customs, NIMASA, Navy, others’ chiefs

    The ad-hoc committee set up by the House of Representative to determine why Eastern Ports are not put to maximal use has invited the heads of some key security agencies operating in Calabar seaport to appear before it in Abuja on Wednesday, September 26.

    The Committee chairman, Hon. Yusuf Buba Yakub gave the order  during the sitting of the ad-hoc committee at the conference room of Calabar Seaport, Nigeria Port Authority, Calabar at the weekend.

    He directed the clerk of the committee to immediately invite the Comptroller-General of Customs, Immigration, NIMASA, the Chief of Naval Staff and the Inspector General of Police to appear before the committee following questionable operations of illegal jetties within the Calabar port channel area, an act adjudged to be a huge economic sabotage to the country.

    The committee who was received in NPA Calabar by the Port Manager of Calabar Seaport Mrs. Marie Asien, in a meeting with stakeholders, frowned at the reports of the free operations of illegal jetties within the port area and further directed that “within one month, the security agencies responsible should ensure that no illegal jetty will be seen or reported as operating in Calabar Port area. We want to have the reports after one month in writing, address to the House of Representatives.

    “This committee came out on this national assignment. It is an ad-hoc committee formed by the House of Representative to investigate and find out why our Eastern Ports are not being used maximally. We stated from Lagos port to Warri port to Port Hart court Port, Onne Port and today we are in Calabar port.”

    He commended Calabar Port Manager for being frank in her briefing. “She has reduced most of our work. Most of the ports we visited, we had to struggle before they will open up to tell us certain essential things,” he said.

    However, the committee advised that NPA should increase the 10per cent rebate given to ships coming to Calabar port and ensure that the rebate is for all ships coming to the port, without any categorisation.

    “If the rebate can also be increased, that will be good. Our target is to see that Calabar Port is fully functional,” he said.

    The committee was also briefed about the myriads of problems hampering operations and functionality of Calabar seaport.

  • New Chams management assures on good corporate governance

    The management of Chams Plc has assured the investing public that it will uphold good corporate governance by providing adequate and timely information to the investing public.

    Chams Plc’s new Group Managing Director, Mr Gavin Young, made the assurance during a courtesy visit to the management of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE).

    He said Chams was prepared to ensure sustainable shareholder value by focusing on innovations in its core area of identity management.

    According to him, the company would place premium on investment in innovative solutions and software across the commercial, consumer and government sectors of the economy to sustain its competitive edge.

    Young, who was accompanied by the immediate past group managing director of the company, Femi Williams, assured the Exchange that Chams would always take the issue of compliance with all the post listing requirements seriously.

    He said the company’s focus is to perfect and package innovative solutions so that it can realise value from its investments.

    As Chams is one of Nigeria’s foremost identity companies, we are also focussing on innovation in the identity space, and particularly verification, as there are now over 40 million National Identity Numbers (NIN) and BVN records to which we can link to provide such verification solutionsn,” Young said.

    He pointed out that the company has good working relationships with the National Identity Commission (NIMC) and Nigerian Inter Bank Settlement System (NIBSS) noting that Chams’ subsidiaries are making good progress in the Fintech payment segment.

    Young, who had worked with  Chams for over one decade in various capacities at both formal and informal level as well as the company’s subsidiaries, including investment companies, commended his predecessor, and his team for taking the company out of debt overhang within the last two years.

    Williams, who had worked for Chams for over two decades in various capacities, outlined many milestones recorded by the company during his four-year tenure, including declaration of dividend after three years of continuous losses, 100 percent appreciation of the company’s share price on the Exchange, balance sheet restructuring, maintenance of business relationship with Osun State Government till date, creation of Project Arise in 2017 and payment of all loans, among others.

    Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) Chief Executive Officer, Mr Oscar Onyema, congratulated the company on its tradition of seamless transition and urged the management to take advantage of opportunities created by the Exchange for ease of communication to the market.

    He emphasised the need for the company’s board to adhere to principles of corporate governance.

     

  • Bricklayer ‘rapes’ girl, 15

    Officials of the Lagos State Neighbourhood Safety Corps (LNSC) have arrested a bricklayer identified as Fatai Kehinde, 41, for allegedly raping a 15-year-old girl.

    The incident occurred at Olisa/Arogundade Street, in Iju Ishaga.

    It was gathered that the suspect allegedly hypnotised the teenager and took advantage of her in his house.

    She was said to be going to work when the incident occurred and had narrated her experience to her colleagues in the office who came for the man almost immediately.

    According to a source, a mob soon gathered and descended on the man following alarm raised by the girl’s colleague who came to his house with her.

    Read Also: Visitor ‘rapes’ host’s daughter

    “They were about to lynch him when LNSC officials arrived the scene. It was around past 11am. They moved in and took the man and the young girl away.

    “But before they got there, people questioned the girl and she said she was going to work when the man touched her and said she was being spiritually monitored by her father’s family.

    “She said after the touch, she did not know what was happening to her again. That the man asked her to go and by egg and salt which she did and followed him inside his house.

    “He told her to take off her clothes and she complied. He raped her and she ordered her to wear her dress and leave.

    “She said she was on her way to the factory she works at when she regained herself and promptly narrated her experience to her colleagues.

    “They followed her to the place and accosted the man. He confessed he slept with the girl and they started beating him,” he said.

    But the suspect told LNSC officials that it was inside his brother’s shop that he raped the girl, adding that he gave her N1,500 after the act.

    He said: “She told me to help her collect money from her boyfriend. From there I took her inside my brother’s shop and slept with her on the floor. After that I gave her N1500. She told me she will come back in the evening and she left.”

    Confirming the arrest, the Public Affairs Officer of LNSC Adewale Afolabi said the suspect, his brother and the victim were handed over to policemen at Isokoko Division.

    He said the man’s house was searched and it was discovered he had three shrines which he and his brother used for alleged fraudulent practices.

  • IPOB threatens protest against Buhari at UNGA

    The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) has vowed to stage a peaceful protest against President Mohammadu and his government at the United Nations General Assembly in the United States of America.

    It said the demonstration was to prove its resoluteness and determination for the actualisation of Biafra republic and Buhari’s tyrant style of leadership.

    The group, in statement by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Emma Powerful, said its members in the US had perfected arrangement necessary for the protest.

    It noted that it was aware Buhari departed Abuja for New York with three governors and seven ministers to attend the General Assembly.

    The statement partly reads: “IPOB family worldwide especially our great family members in the US are on ground waiting for Buhari to appear in the United Nations General Assembly this week, the General assembly is scheduled to start deliberation from 25th of September 2019 in the city of New York.

    “Our people in the US perfected every arrangement necessary to protest against Buhari and his government in Nigeria during the summit to prove our resoluteness and determination for the coming of Biafra and how tyrant Buhari has become.

    “The world must understand why Biafrans need outright freedom from unworkable system of Nigeria without much delay.

    Read Also; IPOB takes independence agitation to UN

    “Buhari and his Fulani government in Nigeria have totally destroyed this country and we must let the world know what transpired between Biafra and Nigeria since 1945 till date.

    “IPOB is going to stage a powerful and unprecedented protest against him in US for the purpose of continued and incessant killing, arrest, destruction of properties and secret abduction of Biafrans both men, women and children every day and night in Biafraland.

    “The plans by Fulani government of Nigeria to stop IPOB from demanding their right for free state and independent nation of Biafra will not work.

    “The whole world must see IPOB right in front of UN headquarters in New York.”