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Tag: Nigerian Newspapers

  • ‘Disobeying court ruling on hijab will cause crisis’

    The Muslim Students’ Society of Nigeria (MSSN) has urged the newly-appointed commissioners in Lagos State to prioritise education and youth development.

    The Amir (President) of the MSSN in the state, Dr. Saheed Ashafa, in a statement yesterday in Lagos to congratulate the commissioners, warned them against religious bias and discrimination.

    He said: “Those appointed commissioners must realise that they are in the position to serve and solve problems, not to live large on the masses’ resources. We pray that their tenure will be full of development.

    Read Also: ISI hijab crisis: Forum files fresh 11 cases

    “We reiterate our zero tolerance for religious bias. Our position remains that people of other religions should be allowed to practise their faith, while their rights should not be denied.

    “As much as we guarantee the government peaceful engagement, we will not tolerate abuse of rights of our members, especially females who wear hijab to schools as legally backed by the ruling of the Court of Appeal.”

    Ashafa urged the Commissioner for Education, Mrs.  Folashade Adefisayo, to implement a technology driven policy that would add value to the standard of education in the state.

  • Unemployed accused of stealing motorcycles

    A 25-year-old unemployed man, Ibrahim Lateef, charged with stealing two motorcycles, on Thursday appeared at an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court, Lagos.

    Lateef, whose address was not provided, is facing a two-count charge of conspiracy and stealing before Magistrate Y. O. Ekogbulu.

    He pleaded not guilty.

    Prosecuting Sergeant Funmilola Akinleye said the defendant committed the offences with others at large on July 25 at Meiran, Lagos.

    Akinleye alleged that the defendant stole the motorcycles belonging to the complainants, Messrs. Suraju Ibrahim and Iskilu Olayode.

    Read Also: Suya seller arraigned for allegedly assaulting brothers

    “The defendant and his accomplices accosted the complainants with weapons and threatened to kill them if they refused to surrender their motorcycles.

    “They snatched the motorcycles and rode them away. A few weeks later, the defendant was arrested by the police,” the prosecutor said.

    Ekogbulu admitted the defendant to bail in the sum of N200,000 with two sureties in the like sum.

    She said the sureties should be employed and show evidence of two years tax payment to the Lagos State Government.

    The magistrate adjourned the case till September 5.

  • Unity Bank, Signal Alliance host SME Clinic

    Unity Bank has held the maiden edition of SME Clinic in conjunction with Signal Alliance and Businessday. The event was part of a collaborative initiative to consistently promote Small & Medium Enterprises (SMEs) in the country.

    The  SME clinic was designed to boost SMEs operators in leveraging effective branding and marketing strategy expected to play key role in creating added value for products and making start-ups become  big brand enterprise.

    Read Also: 2.5m SMEs to get financial support, training, says Osinbajo

    Coming on the verge of the fifth industrial revolution and the need to put SMEs ahead of fast paced developments, the clinic provided the platform to expose participants, drawn amongst Fintech operators, retailers, social services, schools, contractors, professional service firms, wholesalers, manufacturers, hospitality, clubs and associations, supplies and agric value chain, to the opportunities available as convergence of technology and human begin to take center stage.

    Head of SME, Unity Bank Plc, Opeyemi Ojesina said that SMES remain key market focus as they have contributed about 48 per cent of the national Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in the last five years.

  • FRC unveils individual’s registration portal

    The Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC) on Thursday launched a new individual registration portal.

    Speaking during the event held in Lagos, FRC Executive Secretary, Daniel Asapokhai, said the exercise is in continuation of the council’s effort to achieve its mandate through a friendlier, responsive and cost-saving process that makes it easier to do business with government.

    “The new individual registration portal enables a registeration with the council at the comfort of your office, home or indeed anywhere internet is available without a physical visit to our offices,” he said.

    “Furthermore, it reduces the registration process period to the barest minimum. With the new individual registration portal, we expect to issue registration numbers within 48 hours after success completion of the online registration process,” he added.

    The FRC boss said that all professional accountants and other professionals involved in the financial reporting process are encouraged to leverage the new registration portal to ensure that their name appears in the register of professionals and for the general public to use the online register to confirm that the professionals you engage or deal with, are registered with the Financial Reporting Council.

    “We further request that you constantly verify on this portal, the FRC registration numbers of professional accountants and other professionals engaged in financial reporting. Once more I welcome you to the unveiling of individual registration portal.  We believe that you will find it useful, simple, secured and friendly,” he said.

    He said the FRC is the regulatory agency of the federal government that promotes trade and investment in Nigeria by ensuring high standards of financial reporting and corporate governance.

  • FUOYE to honour Garguilo, Abdullahi, Ajakaiye

    The Federal University Oye-Ekiti, (FUOYE),will at its combined convocation  August 26, award honourary doctorate degrees to three personalities “who have genuinely dedicated their lives in service to the nation.”

    To be honoured are 86-year old Imam Abubakar Abdullahi, who saved the lives of 262 Christians that would have been killed by insurgents in the north; Catholic Bishop of Ekiti Diocese, Rev. Felix Ajakaiye and a British septuagenarian, Chief Guy Garguilo, a retired school principal who had dedicated over 60 years of his life teaching and moulding destinies of Nigerian youngsters in Okeogbe Akoko, Ondo State.

    The week-long ceremony is the second convocation of the institution. It will kick off on August 26 with an interface with the reporters by Vice-Chancellor  Prof. Kayode Soremekun on the achievements in infrastructural and learning facilities to improve FUOYE’s educational standard.

    Read Also: Phony group dupes FUOYE students

    The convocation continues till September 1, featuring a public lecture titled: “Anticipating the Birthday Boy, Options and Possibilities for a Besieged Nation at 60”, to be delivered on August 29 by Prof Tony Afejuku, a Public Affairs analyst and Professor of English at the University of Benin, Edo State. The lecture will reflect, in retrospective and prospective fervour, Nigeria’s thorny journey ahead of the nation’s Diamond anniversary next year.

    The trio of Imam Abubakar, Bishop Ajakaiye and Garguilo will be garlanded with FUOYE’s Honorary Doctorate Degrees (PhDs), with PhD in Peace Studies going to Abubakar, while both Ajakaiye and Garguilo get the institution’s Honourary PhDs in Public Administration .

    According to a statement from the VC’s office, the convocation  will be spiced in the evening of  August 29, with a performance of the Convocation play entitled : ‘Once Upon a Tower’.

    Written by Nigeria’s first Professor of Dance, ex-Abuja Carnival’s CEO/artistic director and  currently, FUOYE’s Dean, School of Post Graduate Studies,  Prof. Rasaki Ojo Bakare, ‘Once Upon a Tower’ x-rays the dire consequences of the rot being perpetuated by some bad eggs in the nation’s tertiary institution.

  • Éric Akoa Trailblazer for AFRICA model

    Eric Akoa is a super star model born in Cameroon.

    He started his modeling career in his home country and has moved round the world modeling for big brands and signing mega endorsements.

     

    His first early Jobs where advert campaigns for MTN Cameroon and Smirnoff Cameroon.

    Read Also: Uber driver charged with theft of N12m church equipment

     

    Then he moved to Dubai in 2017 where he started also a new modeling career there and ended up singing an exclusive contract with puma in 2018, also did other campaign Ariel Nigeria and other Nigerian companies .

     

    He also has featured on advert and campaigns with Hollywood celebrity like Chris Hemsworth and others.

    Eric is hard working, intelligent and smart. He is currently making Cameroon and Africa proud.

  • Buhari: we’ve invested N1.3tr in education

    The Federal Government has invested more than N1.3 trillion to develop the education sector in the last four years, President Muhammadu Buhari, said on Thursday.

    Speaking at the inauguration of the Post-Graduate Centre of Excellence at the Ahmadu Bello University (ABU), Zaria, Kaduna State, the President explained that the investments in education exclude other financial comitments and releases for education infrastructure

    The Centre in ABU was donated by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

    He promised that his administration, in its second term, will continue to accord education priority by ensuring adequate funding for the sector to make it affordable, qualitative and competitive as obtained in other climes.

    Before inaugurating the edifice, occupying 34,102.81 square metre, President Buhari described the project as a testimony to his administration’s effort at supporting qualitative learning from the primary through to the tertiary level.

    Praising the apex bank for supporting the Federal Government’s investments in the education sector as well as other keys areas of the economy tied to overall national development, he urged the CBN to sustain such gesture for research and overall economic development.

    In a chat with reporters, CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele said the bank spent about N21 billion to build, equip and furnish three academic Centres of Excellence at the University of Ibadan, University of Nigeria Nsukka and Ahmadu Bello University, Zaria.

    The centres are to be activated for academic use in October.

    Read Also: International Youth Day: Gbajabiamila seeks transformation of educational system

    Emefiele said: “Education and health are the bedrock of every nation’s development. These centres are built in University of Ibadan, University of Nigeria, Nsukka and Ahmadu Bello University and the project will also be cited in some six other states, including Lagos and Port Harcourt.

    “The centres are built for post graduate studies in economics, finance, market, accounting, management and specialised areas.”

    The CBN governor added that the academic centres of excellence will compete with any centre or business schools in economics, banking, finance, in any part of the world.

    Emefiele said: “We are talking of proven forensic accounting, programmes in global financial market and treasury development; programmes on risk and compliance management. These programmes, as they commence in October this year in these three universities, we are going to have programmes that will offer scholarship to indigent people.

    “Some of the financial institutions in Nigeria will be requested to pay for the fees these students would have paid for the programmes to come in and acquire knowledge for the development of the country.”

    He said that the bank’s intervention in the funding and infrastructural support in the educational sector was borne out of its conviction that an educated workforce played a critical role in the advancement of the Nigerian economy and the society in general.

    “These centres”, he said “are very expensive and we want to make sure they are not run down due to lack of proper maintenance. So, the central bank will get involved in the facility management. The central bank will collaborate with the university in offering some of these subjects by releasing some staff of the bank with hands on experience to share their knowledge with the students.

    “The centres in Enugu and Ibadan costs us nothing less than N7 billion. If you look at these centres under a different kind of environment, you will know that they will cost over N10 billion and am sure you know what am talking about.”

    Emefiele said that the CBN will soon commence its intervention in the health sector by supporting the construction of seven medical diagnostics centres in the six geopolitical zones and the National Hospital Abuja.

    He said: “Education and health form the bedrock of any country’s development. Now that we have sowed seed in the area of education, the CBN intends to build, first, diagnostic centres; like you know, diagnostics is the bedrock of medicine.

    “We are building diagnostic centres in the six geopolitical zones in the country together with one – that is seven – in the national hospital in Abuja. The one in Abuja will also have Heart as well as cancer centres.

    “It is important to do this because what takes people out of the country is diagnostics. Once your ailment is diagnosed, the assignment of the doctor is made simple. That is why I said we will be having diagnostics centres that will be serving as referrals from the teaching hospitals rather than our people going abroad for diagnosis, paying a lot of money.”

  • LAPO Microfinance Bank lends N90b in eight months

    Lift Above Poverty Organisation (LAPO Microfinance Bank), has lent about N90 billion to its customers in the last eight months, its Managing Director, Godwin Ehigiamusoe, has said.

    Ehigiamusoe said the lender plans to lend N152 billion within the year, adding that a total of N137 billion was loaned to customers in 2018.

    He said the bank’s loans went to deserving Small and Medium Scale entrepreneurs and the poor in the society, saying his business focus is not just about making profit, but ensuring that the poorest of the poor have access to microcredit.

    He said in July, the bank gave N14 billion to customers. For instance, in 2013, the micro finance bank celebrated the issuance of naira equivalent loan of $1 billion, while the amount keeps growing yearly. In 2017 the bank did N128 billion.

    Read Also: Microfinance takes banking, credit to grassroots

    As at December 2018, the bank has produced over 10, 000 home owners under the affordable housing scheme in response to the housing deficit in the country.

    Ehigiamusoe said LAPO is much more than a credit lending institution; it is a development oriented organisation with priority focus on poverty alleviation, economic empowerment, environmental protection, education and an advocate for good quality of life.

    He said the bank has a little above four million Nigerians who are currently on its list, accessing loans and depositing modestly. Through their loan services, many more have moved on to higher social status as the bank provides capital for their businesses, stabilise their enterprises and strengthened their families, economically.

    Ehigiamusoe said the bank  has equally provided more than 7,000 direct employment, adding that LAPO has issued 3000 fully funded free education  scholarships to the children of our customers, including Vocational trainings for almost 400 beneficiaries.

    “Currently, we are opening a multi-million naira massive healthcare facility center in Benin for quick access to qualitative diagnostic and medical treatment for people, especially women, this is in furtherance of our commitment to improving the lives of the ordinary Nigerian.

    “We have also been investing in renewable energy, through the provision of cleaner energy for cooking (Cooking Gas), thereby discouraging huge deforestation by women who otherwise depend heavily on firewood to cook on a daily basis and also provision of solar lamps to encourage the switch from kerosene lanterns”, Ehigiamusoe .

    On the impact the company has made in developing the society, he disclosed that in 2006, LAPO won the Grameen Foundation Award for Excellence in microfinance bank. “The cash prize of $10,000 of award was used as a seed fund for a scholarship scheme for children our our clients. Over 3,000 children have benefited from the awards. Also, Skill acquisition support for children of our clients who are pout of the school with over 600 benefiting from the scheme,” he said.

  • Police confirm abduction of Sokoto lawmaker

    The Sokoto State Police Command on Thursday confirmed the abduction of Alhaji Aminu Bodai, a member of the House of Assembly, by gunmen in Bodai, Dange/Shuni Local Government Area of the state.

    Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) Abubakar Sadiq confirmed the arrest in Sokoto.

    Bodai, who is representing the Dange/Shuni Constituency, is a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

    Sadiq said that the state command received the information from the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) of the area.

    He said that the gunmen in the early hour of yesterday went to the resident of the lawmaker and abducted him.

    Read Also: Suspected kidnappers of Chief Imam’s son, others nabbed

    The spokesman said that on receiving the information, the Commissioner of Police, Mr Ibrahim Kaoje, directed a re-enforcement to the division to track the abductors.

    He said that policemen were currently carrying out full surveillance of the forest surrounding the village of Bodai and neighboring communities.

    Sadiq assured that the police are working closely with other security agencies to maintain a peaceful and secured environment in the state.

    He called on the public to continue to support the security agencies by providing useful information about strange activities in their areas of residence.

  • 131 Nigerian refugees return from Cameroon

    Humanitarian Services, Disaster Management & Internally Displaced Persons Minister Sa’adiya Faruk on Thursday received 133 Nigerian refugees from Cameroon.

    The refugees arrived in Yola Airport, Adamawa, aboard a Nigerian Air Force plane at about 5pm.

    The refugees, mostly women and children, had fled to Cameroon at the height of Boko Haram attacks in the Northeast.

    Read Also: ‘Nigeria, 14 ECOWAS countries constitute 40 per cent of world refugees’

    The minister expressed satisfaction for the successful transportation of the refugees who are all from Adamawa and said they would be accommodated at Duware transitional camp in Yola South local government area after screening.

    She said there are about 97,000 Nigerians taking refuge in Cameroon, out of which 8,000 were from Adamawa and the rest from Borno.

    Faruk said that the evacuation of the refugees would continue up to the time that those that wanted to come back to Nigeria were brought back home.