Nigeria's Economy Needs Visionary Leadership

Africa and the world cannot afford a failing economy in the continent’s most populous nation. Yet that is exactly what Nigeria might be getting: Its economy is on track to shrink by 1.7 percent this year, the official unemployment rate has more than doubled over the last two years,

Nigeria: Presidency Accuses N'Assembly of Frustrating 2017 Budget Submission

Abuja — By refusing to consider and approve the 2017-2019 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), a statutory prerequisite for the submission of next year's budget, the presidency is of the firm view that the National Assembly is doing everything possible to put pressure on the executive arm to fund the controversial constituency projects contained in the 2016 budget.

The MTEF is a three-year expenditure framework that sets out the medium-term expenditure priorities and hard budget considerations against which sector plans can be developed and refined. It also contains the outcome criteria for the purpose of performance monitoring.

In the past few weeks,

Anenih is called ‘Mr Fix it’ because he helped put Nigeria in present fix – Timi Frank

Suspended Deputy National Publicity Secretary of the All Progressives Congress, APC, Comrade Timi Frank, has risen in defense of former vice president, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar over claims made by erstwhile chairman of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, Board of Trustees, Chief Tony Anenih, urging the latter to stop making disparaging comments at old age and quietly retire from politics.

Anenih had revealed in his book titled,

#ONDODECIDES | How Akered­olu won

Former Nigerian Bar Associ­ation (NBA) President and candidate of the All Pro­gressives Congress (APC), Mr. Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akered­olu (SAN), has emerged the gov­ernor of Ondo State.

He polled a total of 224,842 votes to defeat 27 candidates from other political parties in Saturday’s election to clinch the office.

Akeredolu was announced the winner of the election by the Independent National Elector­al Commission (INEC) Return­ing Officer, Prof. Abdul Ganiyu Ambali.

He was trailed by the PDP candidate, Eyitayo Olayinka Jegede, who scored 150,380 votes while Olusola Alex Oke of the Al­liance for Democracy (AD) came third place with 126,889 votes.

Declaring the result, Ambali said that

Nigeria: The Return of Garrisonomics

Deploying security men to raid parallel markets offers no solution to the economic challenges

The Law Reform Commission is reported to have submitted a draft legislation to jail Nigerians who hold United States dollars beyond a 30 -day time frame. While the Senate has said it will not entertain the proposal, contingents of Directorate of State Service (DSS) officers have been raiding parallel market money changers in major urban centres like Abuja, Lagos and Kano. Similarly, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) which had earlier on announced a deregulation of foreign exchange rates has made pronouncements that seem more political than practical in the circumstance.

All these arbitrary and coercive measures are united by their regimental nature that seems to be the preferred method of President Muhammadu Buhari and his administration. Yet,

Wailings of a master planner

NIGERIA is facing severe economic challenges that have made life brutish for virtually everybody. Nigerians labour daily to overcome these economic challenges. Beyond the obvious economic challenges, there are agitations in the South-East led by MASSOB, challenges of herdsmen in different parts of the country, the scourge of the ‘technically degraded’ Boko Haram  in the North-East and the resurgence of violence in the Niger  Delta over calls for rapid development, resource control, resource ownership and restructuring of the Nigerian Federation.

Arms Fraud: The Real Enemies Within

 

Nigeria is indeed a powerful country. A country where things happen like it’s a movie. For a long time, I have watched the revelations from the arms purchase scandal and the role of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Office of the National Security Adviser. I have had my reservations for inexplicable reasons. But the recent revelations have confirmed my suspicion. Who can be trusted to work in tandem with President Buhari to rid this country of corruption?

Leading an agency as sensitive as the EFCC requires two things mainly. You have to be strategic and dead to sentiments in whatever form or guise.  But recent events in the EFCC and the Office of the National Security Adviser have made a mockery of the fight against corruption. You can’t go to war without a strategy. It is beyond the media hullabaloo and social media hysteria. The Office of the National Security Adviser is as important as the air we breathe. But I have been really disappointed and pained and decided to put this piece together.

In truth,

Please Help me Beg Niger Delta Militants, Buhari Tells APC Leaders

 

President Muhammadu Buhari has asked leaders of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to help him pacify rampaging militants in the oil-rich Niger Delta.
Lamenting the effect of attacks on oil installations, the president said the country does not need such a distraction at this point in time.
He said the militants were in possession of sophisticated equipment, adding that unlike the Boko Haram sect which has one faction, the militants are in so many groups, suggesting that government has been having challenges relating with them.
Buhari was speaking on Friday,

Kashmiri religious figures, analysts condemn Bahrain regime on citizenship revocation of Sheikh Qassim

Scores of religious figures and analysts in the Indian-administered Kashmir region and in Nigeria have voiced their support for prominent Bahraini Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim

AhlulBayt News Agency - Scores of religious figures and analysts in the Indian-administered Kashmir region and in Nigeria have voiced their support for prominent Bahraini Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim, and expressed protest at the Al Khalifah regime’s decision to strip him of his citizenship.

On Friday, Kashmiri religious and political leaders described the move against the spiritual leader of Bahrain’s main opposition bloc, the al-Wefaq National Islamic Society, as “provocative” as it could stoke sectarian tensions and promote further mistrust in the Arab country.

“By the incarceration of opposition figures,

Kashmiris, Nigerians slam Bahrain over cleric’s citizenship revocation

    Bahrain’s top Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim (photo by AFP)

Scores of religious figures and analysts in the Indian-administered Kashmir region and in Nigeria have voiced their support for prominent Bahraini Shia cleric Sheikh Isa Qassim, and expressed protest at the Al Khalifah regime’s decision to strip him of his citizenship, Press TV reports.
On Friday,

Unpaid Debt: AMCON takes over AfriJet Airlines, Vitalis Ibe’s assets

 

The Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) on Friday continued its debt recovery drive by taking over the assets of some big debtors.
Pursuant to the order of Justice Chuka Obiozor of the Federal High Court, Lagos Division, AMCON took over the assets of Afrijet Airlines Limited owned by Vitalis Ibe, over a debt of almost N10billion.
AMCON had purchased the bank assets sometime in 2011 from the defunct FinBank and Bank PHB.
The court order also affected Mr. Ibe’s Continental Aviation Services Limited for which Gbolahan Elias, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria,

Nigeria: Task Force On Wheat and Rice

A National Task Force to drive the production of wheat and rice was recently inaugurated in Abuja with Kebbi State Governor Abubakar Atiku Bagudu as its chairman. His state, Kebbi, is expected to play a pivotal role in the program along with Kano and Ebonyi states. Other committee members include Kano State Governor Dr. Abdullahi Ganduje, Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi, Minister of State for Agriculture, President of Wheat Farmers Association of Nigeria and President of Rice Farmers Association of Nigeria.

At the committee's inauguration,

San Leon Energy confirms next step in completion of Nigerian oil deal

Overall, the deal will see San Leon acquire nearly 10% of OML 18.

It comes after San Leon revealed plans to raise £200mln of new funds so it can acquire loan notes from major shareholder Toscafund.

San Leon Energy PLC’s (LON:SLE) intricate Nigerian oil field deal has taken another forward step, with the completion of the second of three steps in Midwestern Oil’s acquisition of Mart Resources.
With the assistance of Toscafund, its major shareholder, San Leon has supported the funding for the acquisition.
Now, an issue of loan notes by the

Edo 2016: Female governorship aspirant joins race

 

National Chairman of All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Odigie-Oyegun, has advised a female governorship aspirant in Edo, Mrs Tina Agbarha to take her campaigns seriously.

Odigie-Oyegun gave the advice at the party’s secretariat in Abuja on Monday when Agbarha, visited him.
He told the aspirant to place less emphasis on role of money in politics,

Pinnacle poised to drop lawsuit against Nigerian Government

Nigeria’s plans for a smooth switch to digital broadcasting have been strengthened after Pinnacle Communications reportedly abandoned its N1.2 trillion law suit against the Government.

Last month the Government launched a digital TV switchover pilot scheme in Jos, Plateau State, heralding the push towards a nationwide digital broadcasting infrastructure.

Pinnacle,

South China Sea: Obama calls for ‘peaceful resolution’ of disputes

 

The United States President,  Barack Obama  has called for the “peaceful resolution” of disputes in the South China Sea in a speech in Hanoi, the capital of Vietnam, according  to CNN report.
“In the South China Sea, the U.S. is not a claimant in current disputes, but we will stand with our partners in upholding key principles like freedom of navigation,” Obama said.
His remarks came the day after the U.S. lifted a decades-long ban on the sale of lethal weapons to Vietnam.
“Vietnam will have greater access to the equipment you need to improve your security,

EgyptAir Flight 804: Conflicting reports trail final moments

 

As the search for EgyptAir Flight 804 continues, there have been  contradicting reports as to the final moments of the aircraft’s flight.
Five days after disappearing en route from Paris to Cairo, some signs of the plane — including life vests, personal belongings and human remains — have been recovered.
Still missing, however, is the plane’s fuselage and the critical black boxes, which will provide vital clues of the fate of the doomed airliner.
At the heart of the confusion over the final moments of flight are conflicting reports from Greek and Egyptian authorities.
The flight was at 37,000 feet when it lost contact above the Mediterranean,

Poor Nigerians will start getting N5,000 payment soon – Presidency

 

The Special Adviser on Social Investments in the office of the vice president, Maryam Uwais, Monday, disclosed that poor Nigerians will start getting money directly from the federal government to ease their hardship.

She spoke at a workshop on Child Poverty and Social Protection in West and Central Africa, at the ECOWAS Secretariat in Abuja.
Uwais said: “30% of the poor in every state and local government would be catered for while the figure would be increased to about 50% next year.

“For the first time,

Fuel subsidy removal: The way forward

T    HE cry in Nigeria presently is as a result of the increase in fuel price. However, it is important we come to terms with the dynamics of development, which are always in stages, and which require sacrifice and patience.

I am not saying the Muhammadu Buhari-led administration has put in its best, or is working at a pace expected by most Nigerians, but this does not erode the fact that we have experienced improvements in some quarters.

The removal of the subsidy, no doubt, will cause some hardship by virtue of inflation, especially on the cost of transportation, commodities, daily expenses, school fees, rent, among others, which have all skyrocketed. Howbeit, if the subsidy funds being previously paid to oil marketers are well-utilised and accounted for, the long term effect would bring relief to the people.

Now, having removed the subsidy, more is expected of this administration to provide succour for the people.

The government should be more responsive, amenable to the citizens’ needs, particularly by prioritising the following:

The provision of effective rail system: This is cheaper to run for the people and many would prefer to go on the train than going in their private cars.

Construction and maintenance of good roads: This will jettison the idea of Nigerians buying big cars which are generally not fuel-efficient, compared to small cars which are cost and fuel-efficient.

Steady power supply: This will reduce the demand for fuel for generators and will encourage more entrepreneurial skills to be acquired and business ventures to be established. It is a common knowledge that virtually every business needs energy to keep functioning.

Diversification of economy: Unfortunately, this is no longer news since the price of oil is going down drastically in the international market; there is now a clarion call for investment in other sectors, such as the agricultural and solid minerals sectors.

Education: This is a golden key to eradicating poverty. According to President Barack Obama and the late Nelson Mandela, education is a weapon of change in any society. Our government needs to restructure our educational system and make it affordable and compulsory for everyone, at least, to secondary school level.

Repositioning and restructuring of the economy and politics of Nigeria: This is germane in rebuilding Nigeria as a whole. Power should be regionalised and geo-political zones decentralised. Things must begin to be done in a new way, that is, there must be paradigm shift for Nigeria to actualise the long-awaited change.

Conclusively, followers should embrace and imbibe the principle of prayer and patience, which are cornerstones of development. Impatience is not a virtue and we should not under play the efficacy of prayers in supporting our leaders and directing them aright.

Fighting crime with technology

THE  saga of the recent rescue of the abducted Senator Iyabo Anisulowo from the kidnappers’ den in Ogun State might read like the script of a James Bond thriller. But it is sufficient proof that the country’s high rate of crime can actually be simmered by the use of technology. By deploying the appropriate technology, the security agencies were simply able to track down the abductors through their conversations and it is commendable that they were able to secure her release without hurt.

Anisulowo’s rescue clearly represented an advancement in the offensive against crime and if crimes could in future be so intercepted by the security agencies,