Ashosh, 3 Babatola Close, Off Awolowo Way Beside Awolowo Glass House, Ikeja (2026)

07/11/2016

Minister says NNPC wrong on petrol price hike

The Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, says the recent N4 increase in the price of petrol in Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) filling stations, is wrong.

Kachikwu said this after receiving an award at an event organised by the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) in Abuja on Sunday.

NNPC had been selling fuel at N141 but on Thursday, November 3 increased it by N4 to the government benchmark of N145.

”It is obviously humbling and too early in the day to receive an award and to be recognised so soon in some of the things we are trying to do. It is humbling, I thank them very much.

”First, I am not aware that the NNPC has increased the price. I need to look into that. It is a bit of surprise for me because there are processes in doing this if they have done that, it means they are doing it wrongly.

”Let me find out what the facts are,” he told newsmen.

Kachikwu said the increase could be as a result of foreign exchange differentiation.

He said there were areas within government controlled aspects like payments to the Ministry of Transport and the Nigerian Ports Authority that were foreign currency denominated.

”Having said that, the reality is that what we did at the point where we did some liberalisation, was to enable the free market float the price.

”Obviously, as you look at foreign exchange differentiations and all that, it would impact. The worst thing you could do is to go back to an era where we basically were fixing prices.

”What we ought to be doing was watching the prices, making sure that they are not taking advantage of the common man; making sure that the template is respected.

”One of the things I think we had hoped to do, which we should still do before we embark on any price increase is to work on those templates.”

He, however, promised to discuss with industry operators.

The minister said: ”those who are investing must be able to predict the pricing methodologies, the pricing consequences and the actions, to be able to justify their investments.

”At the end of the day, I think PPPRA is the one that has the authority to say it is time the template justified some level of movement.

”Otherwise, you have a crisis of individual decisions on pricing,” he said.

On the issue of insecurity in the Niger Delta, Kachikwu assured that President Muhammad Buhari was committed to finding lasting peace in that region.

07/11/2016

Ifeanyi Ubah FC wins 2016 Federation Cup

Ifeanyi Ubah FC has emerged victorious in the 2016 edition of the Federation Cup after defeating Nasarawa United 5-4 in penalty shootout. The game ended 0-0 after regulation time.
The Anambra Warriors will represent Nigeria in the CAF Confederation Cup next season.This is the first time the two teams got to the finals of the Federation Cup played at the Teslim Balogun Stadium on Sunday.

07/11/2016

Breaking: Ronaldo to sign new contract on Monday

Cristiano Ronaldo has agreed to sign a new deal with Real Madrid on Monday to remain with the club until June 2021. The 31-year-old’s current deal ends in June 2018.

The former Manchester United player has helped Real win the Champions League twice and one La Liga title since moving from Old Trafford in 2009.The Portugese has scored 358 goals in seven years at Real.

07/11/2016

IWOBI ASSURES: WE WILL FIGHT ALGERIA FROM ADMIN'S BLOG

Iwobi assures: We will fight Algeria

•Arrives Abuja today

Vastly improved Arsenal Football Club and Super Eagles forward, Alex Iwobi has disclosed that the Super Eagles must fight very hard to beat Algeria and remain on top of Group B of the last Phase of the 2018 World Cup African qualifiers.

Smarting from his impressive performance for Arsenal against Tottenham Hotspur in the week 11 of the English Premier League derby that ended 1-1 , Iwobi told SportingLife he had wished for a victory against his club’s arch-rival Tottenham but he said his side was unlucky not to have emerged winners.

He said his focus has now shifted to the Nigeria versus Algeria match slated for the Nest of Champions Stadium, Uyo, Akwa Ibom on Saturday.

“I would have been a very happy man if we had won the match against Tottenham Hotspur. But we will make amends in the next game. Now my focus is on Nigeria versus Algeria World Cup qualifier coming up this Saturday in Uyo.

‘It is going to be one of the toughest matches we would play in this qualifier and we are aware of this. So we have resolved to fight very, very hard and cover all the blades of the grass on the pitch to ensure we get victory against Algeria.

“Algeria is highly ranked in the continent but the Super Eagles are blessed with great players that are ready to shed their blood on the pitch if need be to get the needed victory and the three points that will make us top our group and eventually win the World Cup ticket at stake”, Iwobi toldSportingLife yesterday.

The 20-year-old striker also confirmed that he would hit Abuja today for the camping exercise for the World Cup qualifying match against Algeria.

“I hope to be in Abuja tomorrow (today) since we have played our league match today (Sunday)”.

13/06/2016

SUPER EAGLES JOB: NFF settles for Serbian coach

• Green hits Serbia this week
• Glasshouse chiefs deny Le Guen, reject Ince
• How Frenchman Tigana lost Eagles deal to Oliseh

SportingLife can confirm authoritatively today that the next Super Eagles Technical Adviser will be a Serb coach with a rich resume known to the football world, if the words from the Glasshouse in Abuja on Sunday are anything to take seriously.

To underscore the seriousness that the NFF chiefs attach to the matter, SportingLife can reveal that the body’s technical committee chairman, Chris Green will depart the country this week to discuss with the three Serbian coaches on the list and invite them for an intreview session to be conducted by one of Nigeria’s respected coaches, whose pedigree in the industry has been appreciated in FIFA and CAF.

Indeed, a top member of the federation poured cold water on the stories making the rounds in the international media platforms that Frenchman Paul Le Guen has been paid $50,000 to become the new Super Eagles manager.

A decent source at the Glasshouse revealed that the body doesn’t have that kind of cash to pay any foreign manager at the moment, insisting that the interim coach, Salisu Yusuf would be allowed to handle the team while Flying Egales chief coach, Emmanuel Amuneke would work as his assistant. Alloy Agu will keep his position as the team’s goalkeeper trainer.

Sportinglife gathered that Frenchman, Jean Tigana would have been given the Super Eagles job, having satisfied the requirements listed by the NFF. But the intervention of two key members of the board’s executive board suggested that the federation should pick Sunday Oliseh for the job. Oliseh got the job but resigned due to personal reasons.

Jean Amadou Tigana (born 23 June 1955 in Bamako, French Sudan, now Mali) is a former French international footballer, having played in midfield and managed professional football extensively throughout France, including 52 appearances and one goal for the France national football team during the 80s.

He most recently coached Chinese Super League outfit, Shanghai Shenhua. In his prime, he was a tireless central midfielder, renowned as one of the best midfielders in the world during the 80s.

Courtesy:TheNation

06/06/2016

N115b loot: ex-Air chiefs, politicians top refund list
INEC officials, others also surrendered cash
EFCC probes ex-Akwa Ibom governor

www.nigeriaworldconnect.com
Barely 24 hours after the confirmation of the recovery of about N115billion, The Nation yesterday glimpsed a likely list of some of those behind the huge refund.
They include some politically exposed persons, ex-military chiefs and some of those involved in the $115million poll bribery scandal.
Besides, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is said to be tracking about $3.9billion believed to have been stolen.
A Presidency source however said the government was not yet aware of the said $3.9billion.
The recovered cash includes the following: $3.1b from Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) accounts (the money was paid to the oil giant by the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Limited); $1m seized from a former Chief of Air Staff; National Broadcasting Commission (N10,061,172,600); another Chief of Air Staff(N2.3b); an ex-presidential aide (N900m); a businessman (N750m); an ex-governor of Delta State ($15m); an ex-Chief of Staff and others (N420m); and an ex-Minister (N140m); an ex-Military Administrator (N100m).
Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) officials in Oyo and Ogun (N359millon); a former Minister (N2m); a former state Speaker N1m and N580 million (£2 million) in jewelry, allegedly from a former minister.
An EFCC source said: “We cannot release the names of those affected because some of them are already on trial before the court. We do not want to take any prejudicial action. We have been advised against doing so.
“As soon as it is legally convenient, we will release the full list.”
Also yesterday, It was learnt that the EFCC was probing a former governor of Akwa Ibom State in connection with N450million which was allocated to the state out of the N23.29billion allegedly provided by former Minister of Petroleum Resources Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke. The cash is believed to have been for INEC officials as bribe to change the results of the 2015 presidential election.
The anti-graft agency had questioned a former Military Administrator of the state and others in connection with the bribe.
But during one of the interrogation sessions, one of the suspects said the ex-governor allegedly “deducted N150million out of the bribe sum for personal use”.
“We are likely to invite the ex-governor for interaction,” the EFCC source added.
But there were indications yesterday that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) was tracking about $3.9billion.
The said amount was allegedly not yet captured in the fact-sheet which was released to the public on Saturday by the Federal Government due to an outstanding reconciliation process.
The $3.9billion includes the $15million seized from former Delta State Governor James Ibori, who is serving term in the United Kingdom.
Other components are about $3.1billion intercepted in the accounts of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the Nigerian Liquified Natural Gas (NLNG), which was yet to be moved to the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in line with the Treasury Single Account (TSA) policy.
A reliable source in the anti-graft commission, who spoke in confidence with our correspondent, said the list of recoveries issued out on Saturday might not be the final.
The source said: “The EFCC has also intercepted over $3.9billion, including those in the NNPC and NLNG accounts and put in the TSA account.
“This has not been captured yet. So, what we have on Saturday was certainly not the final list of recoveries.”
“Following a judgment of the Court of Appeal, a $15million recovered from ex-Governor James Ibori has been paid into the treasury too.
“We will soon make the breakdown available to Nigerians accordingly. This process is a continuous one .”
A top Presidency source said: “The affected $3.9billion is unknown to this government. The list of recoveries released to Nigerians on Saturday by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alh. Lai Mohammed, went through vetting and other checks before the announcement.
“Do you know the value of $3.2billion? If there is such money in the system, do you think we will go to AFDB for a loan of $1billion?
“I only hope you will get the figures right from whoever is giving the information. Some people have sent an online link to the government but the source only quoted a member of the House of Representatives.”

06/06/2016

Trade deficit: More job loss likely in banks

www.nigeriaworldconnect.com
Twenty Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) are expected to fire at least 10,000 out of their estimated 110,000 workers before the year-ends, The Nation has learnt.
This becomes exigent as the impact of trade balance deficit recorded in the first quarter of this year begins to hurt the economy.
The National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) said foreign trade statistics for the first quarter showed that merchandise trade, the sum of visible import and export goods, plunged by 38 per cent year-on-year from N4.4 trillion last year to N2.7 trillion.
The figure represents the latest in the series of negative economic indicators published by the Bureau in recent time. Total trade declined by N793.5 billion or 22.6 per cent on a quarter on quarter (Q-o-Q) basis compared to N3.5 trillion in December last year as import and export for the period touched the lowest in 13 quarters.
Internal sources within the banks said the lenders are downsizing, following rising difficult operating environment, decline in operational output of most companies, which has led to the decline in their transaction turnover, rising cost of overheads and tough policies from regulators.
The source said a large part of the workforce to be axed will come mid-tier lenders, which have been badly hit by the tough regulatory polices of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and losses incurred by overexposure to oil and gas loans.
Already, Ecobank Nigeria Limited, last week fired 1,040 out of its over 9,000 workers over poor performance. First City Monument Bank Limited (FCMB) Limited and Diamond Bank Plc had earlier sacked combined 400 workers even as more banks are expected to follow suit in the coming weeks, or months. The massive workforce disengagement affected almost all cadres of the three lenders’ workforce.
Regulatory pressures from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) including the ongoing implementation of the zero Commission on Turnover (CoT) fees, increase in contribution to the Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) and Nigeria Deposit Insurance Corporation (NDIC) levies as well as high Cash Reserve Ratios (CRRs) are key policies depleting banks’ revenue bases.
The 20 commercial banks are expected to lose over N100 billion annually to the zero COT policy; N140 billion to the AMCON levy, which has been increased from 0.3 per cent of banks’ total assets to 0.5 per cent and nearly N50 billion to the NDIC levy.
Report from Afrinvest West Africa said more disturbing is the fact that the economy recorded the first negative trade balance since 2013 as crude oil export with average of 75.6 per cent contribution to total exports in the last three years slowed to 64.7 per cent. Oil export tumbled 50.9 per cent Y-o-Y and 46.6 e Q-o-Q to N821.9 billion in March this year. The weakening external sector performance as indicated in the numbers above is consistent with March 2016 Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth and unemployment figures published by the NBS recently, indicating that the economy contracted by 0.4 per cent while unemployment rate increased to 12.1 per cent in the same period.
Despite the government’s determination to diversify the revenue base of the economy, crude oil export continued to account for over 70 per cent of total merchandise export in the last 12 months.
Within the first quarter, petroleum and oil related items accounted for 82.8 per cent of total export, followed by raw cocoa and cocoa related items with 3.6 per cent while other item accounted for 13.6 per cent.

06/06/2016

Varsity workers to Fed Govt: we’re dying

www.nigeriaworldconnect.com
The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU), University of Ibadan (UI) chapter have appealed to the Federal Government to pay their salaries.
The Chairman of SSUNU, UI chapter, Comrade Wale Akinremi, spoke with reporters at the weekend.
He said life has not been easy for the workers in the university because of the shortfall in payment of salaries.
According to him, the development has affected school system because the workers are psychologically unbalanced due to heavy indebtedness of bank loans and inability to take care of their homes.
He added that the university workers have been suffering from this since December last year while their counterparts in other universities who are in similar circumstance have resolved the issue.
Akinremi wondered why only workers of the University of Ibadan are experiencing hardship coupled with lack of incentives while he said the workers are not willing to go on strike but if situation don’t improve, they willing resort to strike.
Also speaking, the Chairman NASU of the university, Comrade Oluwasegun Arojo, said there is no assurance that the Federal Government would be able to pay debts.
Arojo said the university workers have reliably confirmed that the shortfall from the Federal Government is 92 per cent but the workers are only receiving only 50 per cent of salaries.

06/06/2016

Nigeria will today join the rest of the world to begin the Ramadan fast.
Sultan of Sokoto, Alhaji Sa’ad Abubakar last night directed the Muslim Ummah to commence the Ramadan fast on June 6.
The Sultan gave the directive in Sokoto sequel to the sighting of the new moon of Ramadan, 1437 AH.
He said the new moon was sighted in various states of the federation.
Alhaji Abubakar noted that the sighting of the new Moon had been duly verified by the National Moon Sighting Committew.
“Today (yesterday), Shaaban 29, equivalent to June, 5, 2016, therefore marks the end of Shaaban. Therefore, tomorrow (today), June 6, is equivalent to the 1st of Ramadan, 1437 AH,” he added.
The Sultan appealed to Nigerians to intensify their acts of worship during the month-long fasting.
Alhaji Abubakar further called on the Muslim Ummah to fervently pray for the nation’s leaders to succeed, at all levels.
He also urged the Muslim Ummah to pray for sustained peace, unity of Nigeria and the world, as well as inter- religious harmony.
Millions of Muslims around the world will also start of the holy month of Ramadan on today, a time marked by intense prayer, dawn-to-dusk fasting and nightly feasts.
Saudi Arabia’s state TV announced the new moon of Ramadan was spotted Sunday evening.
Local media in Indonesia, the world’s most populous Muslim country, also said Muslims there would begin fasting Monday, as will Muslims in Singapore, Yemen, Lebanon, Syria, Qatar, Kuwait, Jordan, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates, Afghanistan and the Palestinian territories, among others.

06/06/2016

Fed Govt loses N1.3b daily to Avengers’ attacks on oil facilities
www.nigeriaworldconnect.com
Avengers
Sustained attacks on pipelines by Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) have led to the daily loss of 140,000 barrels of crude from oil fields operated in Bayelsa State by Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC) and Aiteo Oil, it was learnt yesterday.
Using $48 per barrel price benchmark, the two oil firms are losing an estimated $6.72m (about N1.3 billion).
Eni, an Italian energy firm and parent company of Agip, said the oil firm’s production had been cut by 65,000 barrels per day following last Friday’s attack on its pipeline in Bayelsa.
Previous attacks in Agip oilfield on May 18 and May 24 were said to have resulted in a shutdown of some 5,200 barrels of the company’s equity share of oil output.
A company source, who pleaded for anonymity, confirmed the development yesterday.
The source said: “The total deferred production due to the attack is 65,000 barrels of oil equivalent daily. There is no further impact on production, since all production from the swamp area has already been stopped days ago.”
Spokesman of Aiteo – operator of the Nembe Creek trunkline – which was attacked on May 28, Mr. Shola Omole, said the line which conveys crude to Bonny export terminal had been shut.
Omole said some 75,000 barrels daily production had been deferred as the line remained out of service following the attack on the facility.
Figures from Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) could not be obtained, but the Dutch oil firm has placed its oil exports from Bonny export terminal under force majeure.
Force Majeure is a legal clause that frees a company from liabilities arising from its inability to meet contractual obligations due to reasons beyond its control.
SPDC in 2014, sold the 100-kilometre Nembe Creek trunkline to Aiteo, but still relies on the line to lift crude produced from onshore oilfields in Bayelsa to the Bonny terminal in Rivers State.
The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, was quoted as saying that Nigeria was producing 1.6 million barrels per day, excluding further production outages due to attack on Agip, Chevron and Shell at the weekend.
The development will likely affect the implementation of the N6.07 trillion 2016 budget premised on a daily crude oil production of 2.2 million barrels.
The Niger Delta Avengers, the group which has claimed responsibility for most of the attacks, has rejected dialogue with the Federal Government, demanding instead a Niger Delta Republic.
But the Federal Government, which has delpoyed troops in the creeks has vowed to deal with the militants. It has deployed attack aircraft, and naval war boats in the region.

04/06/2016

Court jails man 108 years for assaults on children

A court in Turkey has sentenced a Turkish man to 108 years in jail for sexually assaulting at least eight Syrian children at a flagship refugee camp, reports said on Saturday.

The 29-year-old man, identified only as Erdal E., worked as a cleaner at the tented refugee camp in Nizip in the southern Gaziantep province near the Syrian border.

He was found guilty of sexually abusing eight children in the camp’s toilets in exchange for payments of between 1.5 and five Turkish lira ($0.50-$1.70/0.45-1.50 euros), the Dogan news agency said.

His defence had asked for his acquittal, saying an earlier confession to police had been made under duress.

But the judges at the court in the southern city of Nizip rejected the arguments, sentencing him late Friday to 108 years in jail. Prosecutors had asked for a sentence of 289 years.

The camp, which is home to some 10,800 refugees, has been visited by international dignitaries and is adjacent to the Nizip container camp for Syrian refugees which was visited by German Chancellor Angela Merkel in April.

During the trial, the accused claimed he had been made a “scapegoat” to cover up the crimes of others and prevent a wider scandal.

“I know very well the names of many managers and camp workers guilty of abuse… but I will not say them so as not to hurt my own family,” the Hurriyet daily quoted him as saying.

04/06/2016

The Presidency on Friday explained that top political office holders in the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government from the Niger Delta region have started peaceful dialogue with their kith and kin, who are involved in the spate of ongoing bombings of oil facilities in the area.
The Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters, Senator Ita Enang, who gave the hint at a news conference in Abuja, said that the dialogue involved the governors and the various community leaders in the oil rich region.
Enang expressed confidence that the political office holders would achieve the much desired peace and restore normalcy in the area as soon as possible.
He also explained that Buhari was not contemplating the use of force to tackle militancy in the Nigeria Delta because such an action could further reduce Nigeria’s oil production rate from the region.
Enang said, “The Federal Government’s officials, at the moment, are in their various states talking not only to their governors but aggrieved persons on how to resolve the problems arising from bombing of oil installations in the Niger Delta region.
“The Minister of Niger Delta, the Minister of Interior, the Coordinator of the Amnesty Office have been taking actions consistent with their powers and what I know is that almost all the ministers and officers from the Niger Delta region have returned to their respective states.
“They are in their respective states to talk to their leaders and the aggrieved persons on the need for us to maintain peace.
“They are the representatives of the President. So, I will not tell you what the President wants to do in person.”
The Niger Delta Avengers had on Wednesday blown up two additional facilities belonging to Chevron Nigeria Limited, making it the fourth time the oil major’s assets would be attacked in less than a month.
Three grades of nation’s crude oil grades – Forcados, Brass River and Bonny Light – are under force majeure, while ExxonMobil lifted force majeure on Qua Iboe, the country’s largest export stream, on Friday, according to Reuters.
In February, Shell declared force majeure — a legal clause that allows it to stop shipments without breaching contracts — after militants blew up a pipeline feeding the Forcados export terminal, knocking out at least 250,000 barrels per day.
Enang also explained strategies being adopted by the executive to avoid the delay in the presentation of the 2017 budget.
According to him, the Ministry of Budget will soon begin a pre-budget consultation with the National Assembly and its various relevant committees on the 2017 budget. Enang promised that the delay in the presentation of the budget, controversies and delayed passage as witnessed in the 2016 budget would be avoided this year.
According to him, the Ministry of Budget will soon begin a pre-budget consultation with the National Assembly and its various relevant committees on the 2017 budget. Enang promised that the delay in the presentation of the budget, controversies and delayed passage as witnessed in the 2016 budget would be avoided this year.

Ashosh

07/11/2016

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