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,