Zoning may leave us with useless presidential candidates in 2023 – Sanusi
Former Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi has expressed fear of zoning leaving Nigeria with two “useless presidential candidates” in 2023.
In an interview with Arise TV, Sanusi stated that he has always opposed the idea of rotational presidency. He noted that what Nigeria needs at the moment is a President who can deliver.
The former Central Bank of Nigeria Governor said;
“I have always objected to this idea that we should focus on where the president comes from. We have got southern governors saying we want the presidency and some northern governors saying that they want it in the north. Have you noticed that nobody has given the name of what they want?
“This whole thing is to corner the presidency to one part of the country and the big masquerade will come out. And that is why at the end of the exercise, you end up as Nigeria… presented with two useless candidates. Those who want to be president should show their face either from the north or the south.
“Meanwhile, we have before us very serious issues. You have a simple issue of electronic transmission of results which is designed to make the electoral process fairer and you have people saying that they do not want it, shamelessly announcing to the country that they want to rig. Why are we not talking about these issues?
“The greatest weakness we have as a country is that we do not think. We are very smart when it comes to making money by doing our work but we do not apply critical intellect to and these guys just take the entire country for a ride.
“Give me a president from any part of the country who can deliver and we should vote for him. He is not taking the presidency to his hometown.”
On distribution of funds, Sanusi noted that though he is an advocate of less money at the centre, governors are also guilty of not distributing funds to the local government.
He said;
“I don’t want to talk about this matter because it’s in court but what we need is to learn how to distribute our resources properly.
“I’m a strong advocate of less money at the centre because this puts too much concentration on money from Abuja but the bulk of this Tax problem comes from not implementing what we have.
“These governors fighting for VAT are extremely undemocratic they hold on to money meant for the local government yet keeps complaining.
“The state governors complain what federal government do to them but don’t care about what they do to the local government, thereby ignoring the constitution.
“If we really want to put in for federalism we need to respect our constitution and do it at all tiers of government then I believe our constitution can work.
“ Let’s make what we have work and we’ll see this constitution is not that bad.”
FINTECH 5.0: EVALUATING HOW FIRSTBANK STRENGTHENS COLLABORATION
…To drive financial inclusion
It was Sir Isaac Newton, in his letter to Robert Hooke in 1675, who wrote the now-famous quote: “If I have seen further (than others), it is by standing on the shoulders of giants.”
The shoulders of giants Sir Newton referred to has to do with leverage provided by the discoveries and experiences of people who have gone before or walked that same path earlier, that pave the way for and enable other people and a new generation to take things to a totally new dimension.
The truth is, giants whose shoulders provide such leverage to the next generation can be found in various fields and various nations. In Nigeria, for example, such giants exist in various fields and they are known and recognised.
Take the fintech (financial technology) space in Nigeria, where one bank is known to have stood as a giant with very broad shoulders, having capacities that have been built up and accumulated over 127 continuous years. Every year since 2016 (apart from 2017 when it was implementing ideas from 2016, including a Digital Innovation Lab), this well-recognised bank has provided a platform for the most robust engagement of the fintech industry in Nigeria. Tagged Fintech Summit, the annual engagement has continued to help in catalysing the fintech sector to ever-higher levels from year to year.
Held in Lagos the commercial capital of Nigeria and arguably the fintech capital of Africa, given Nigeria’s status as the leading nation in the fintech space in Africa, the annual FirstBank Fintech Summit has attracted an average of a thousand participants, who are mostly fintech owners, workers and enthusiasts, yearly. Last year’s Summit, Fintech Summit 4.0 with the theme
“How Blockchain and Artificial Intelligence will Disrupt Fintech in Nigeria”, however, drew an unprecedented number of participants – over 6,000 from across 52 different countries. It was the first virtual Summit due to the restrictions imposed because of the COVID-19 pandemic and it featured as keynote speaker Silicon Valley-based innovator of international repute, Chinedu Echeruo, who founded HopStop that was later sold to Apple for US$1 billion. Imagine the inspiration, dreams and aspirations young people soak up while listening to speakers with such a profile.
Far from being one-directional – with all the talk flowing from only the speaker to the audience – the yearly Summit is actually a platform for multidimensional engagement involving various stakeholders in the fintech industry – operators, regulators, investors, enthusiasts, fintech journalists and writers, bankers, et cetera.
It offers an unequalled opportunity for networking among fintech and other stakeholders, leading to opportunities for collaboration within the community. For small businesses and start-ups powered by FirstBank’s support, the annual Summit has been a veritable platform for showcasing them. The platform has also served for the announcement of policy initiatives coupled with pronouncements that provide clarifications to policy. This is due to invitations extended to regulators and the important role they are assigned in conversations facilitated during the Summit.
The Summit that preceded last year’s, i.e., the third edition of Fintech Summit 3.0 held in 2019, featured another heavyweight in Nigeria’s fintech industry, Victor Asemota, founder of Swifta Systems & Services, as keynote speaker. The theme “Banking + Tech = Solving Real Problems”, included panel sessions featuring experts with over two hundred combined years of experience in both the financial and technological industries.
They applied their knowledge, expertise and experience to address challenges in the technologically-driven business world, structured in terms of Solving Business Problems; Solving Regulatory, Security and Legal Problems; and Solving Lifestyle Problems. At the end of the Summit, participants must have felt that the Summit delivered on the confidence the Chief Executive Officer of FirstBank, Adesola Adeduntan, had expressed when he remarked in his welcome address, “I am optimistic that every organisation represented here will be empowered to provide services with greater speed and solve real societal problems to the advantage of the Nigerian populace through the insights that will be gained from this event.“
Fintech Summit 3.0 had built on the success of the second edition, Fintech Summit 2.0 held in 2018, which had “The Future of Banking – The Role of Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Big Data” as a theme. Adia Sowho, the Managing Director of Mines in Nigeria, had, as the first keynote speaker, stressed the importance of collaboration between legacy banks and fintechs in the overall good of their shared financial services space. The Deputy Managing Director of FirstBank, Gbenga Shobo, had, in his welcome address, said that FirstBank was committed to finding the right balance in its approach in supporting the budding fintech industry. It is gratifying that the bank has since found that right balance and pushed ahead enthusiastically with the continual annual engagement that is its yearly Fintech Summit.
For those who like to bring up the argument that deposit money banks (DMBs) and fintech are rivals competing in the same space for the same customers and wonder why FirstBank, a leading deposit money bank, would itself be involved in efforts to catalyse the fintech industry, they need to wake up and smell the coffee. FirstBank is continuously evolving and staying on the cutting edge of technology in order to better serve its customers, who are themselves evolving and adapting to newer and more efficient and convenient technologies as they become available.
And FirstBank is on a journey to a future where it is happy, in the spirit of the African tradition of Ubuntu, to take all fintech along with it. In the words of another famous quote, “The sky is too big for two [or many] big birds flying in it to collide.” FirstBank believes there is ample room for all players – deposit money banks, fintech, et cetera – to fulfil their unique roles. Therefore, collaboration, not competition, is FirstBank’s watchword. And FirstBank considers fintech partners in progress in its avowed commitment to driving financial inclusion.
FirstBank’s own evolution and the transition is causing some people to question its continuous classification by the Central Bank as a deposit money bank (with a preponderance of bricks-and-mortar banking operations) rather than a digital bank. And the reasons for their argument cannot be easily waved aside. In 2020, for example, over 85 per cent of the banking transactions that were required by customers of FirstBank were performed on the bank’s self-service channels.
That means customers of the bank only needed the attention of the bank’s staff or branches for just 15 per cent of all the banking transactions they required in 2020. There are now as many as over 16 million customers between FirstBank’s digital channels of online banking (called FirstOnline), mobile banking (christened FirstMobile) and USSD banking (called *894# quick banking).
Between FirstOnline and FirstMobile, a growth of 21 per cent in the user base was experienced in 2020. Customers on both platforms conducted approximately 256 million transactions worth N15.7 trillion in the same year. FirstOnline, as of June 2021, had an impressive 597,466 customers on the service, a 17 per cent growth on the previous year and 578,292 transactions per month, averaging a value of N388 billion per month.
For FirstMobile, besides the impressive gain in numbers, it gained recognition as “Best Mobile Banking App” at the Global Finance Best Digital Bank Awards, for providing excellent self-service through its user-friendly app. FirstMobile had, as of June 2021, 4,596,203 users on the platform, which is a nine per cent growth on the previous year and an average of 27,730,830 transactions every month. While these numbers point to the giant statue of the bank, none of it excites FirstBank as much as Firstmonie, because of its invaluable role in driving financial inclusion at the grassroots level, one of FirstBank’s overriding commitments.
Firstmonie, the agent banking network of FirstBank, currently has over 130,000 agents across the country, making it the largest bank-led agent network anywhere in Africa. As the foremost financial inclusion service in the country, it has achieved over 750 million transactions worth N15 trillion (about US$30 billion) processed from inception to date.
Over 295 million of those transactions with a total value of N6.65 trillion were processed in 2020 alone – the same year COVID-19 caused widespread disruptions across the globe. Firstmonie agency banking scheme has empowered agents across all Local Government Areas in the country, providing employment to thousands of people.
FirstBank through the Firstmonie platform further supports the fintech industry via partnership collaborations with local and international fintechs. All these are geared towards expanding financial inclusion and providing a variety of services to customers of the bank with giant shoulders that customers and fintechs can stand on to see further.
As for Sir Isaac Newton, the giant of a scientist whose famous quote began this piece, if he could read us from the grave, he would feel very proud today to see that celebrated line from his 1675 letter being aptly used to represent the relationship that exists between the broad, energetic and dynamic shoulders of Nigeria’s banking behemoth, FirstBank, and the rapidly emerging beautiful bride of Nigeria’s economic sectors, the fintech industry. This relationship climaxes every year in the annual Fintech Summit and the forthcoming Fintech Summit 5.0 promises to take the relationship to a whole new dimension.
‘Fani-Kayode Is Not Real, He Is Practicing Stomach Politics’ — Gov. Wike
Nyesom Wike, the Governor of the Rivers State has played down the significance of the defection of a former Minister of Aviation, Femi Fani-Kayode, from the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to the All Progressives Congress (APC).
According to him, Fani-Kayode is ‘not real’.
Recall that the former minister had recently defected to the APC and was warmly received by President Muhammadu Buhari in the company of some top APC members at the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja. He is expected to be formally received into the APC in Abuja next week. But Wike is not troubled by the PDP’s Fani-Kayode’s loss.
“I don’t know why people are shocked by Fani Kayode’s defection. People make the mistake of taking anyone who is vocal serious. Some people talk just for people to find them something to eat, some people talk because of the problems they have, so that they can be saved — if they will be saved. Femi Fani-Kayode and I are not friends. I don’t like something that is too artificial,” Wike told BBC News Pidgin on Friday.
He added: “Stomach politics is not good. Nothing beats integrity.”
SuperTV for MTN Zero Data App Download Begins Today
The much awaited SuperTV for MTN Zero Data App Download begins Today, October 1st, 2021.
This good news coincides with Nigeria’s 61st Independence Anniversary, which has made entertainment watchers look forward to the new innovative and disruptive product from SuperTV in strong and disruptive partnership with MTN.
The SuperTV for MTN Zero Data App will enable Nigerians to enjoy their Independence holiday unbounded. It provides Nigerians a limitless entertainment streaming without watching their data? It is a case of watch your movie! Not watch your data.
To download the SuperTV for MTN App is easy and convenient. The ‘User’ downloads the App from the App Store (Google play store or Apple store) – that is the only time the internet is required. You can download the App through this link – https://supertv.ng/app
It sounds too good to be believed. But it is real. To have a test of this reality and experience, all an MTN network subscriber needs to do is to download the App beginning today, Nigeria’s 61st Independence Anniversary – to start a whole new experience – a flourishing world of video and entertainment streaming. Quadri Balogun who attended the SuperTV brand unveiling on September 15th, 2021, at Victoria Hall, Ebony Life Place, Ademola Adetokunbo Street, Victoria Island, Lagos, said that he can’t wait to download the App to confirm this innovation.
“At a time when Data is a major issue, I think that this will set this brand apart and in no time place it in the lead as a barrier-breaker, as long as entertainment video streaming is concerned.”
For him, this would mean abundance of entertainment. Some are still in doubt just wishing that truly this Zero Data App will be available for download come October 1st.
“Today is that expected date to begin the download. We can’t wait,” Balogun said.
Independence Day: Jonathan Strong Message To Nigerians
Former president Goodluck Jonathan has called on Nigerians to be optimistic about the future of the country, in spite of the challenges currently being faced.
Jonathan made the appeal in his goodwill message issued on in Abuja to Nigerians on the occasion of the nation’s 61st Independence anniversary.
According to ‘GEJ’, Nigeria held abundant promises for the citizens, adding that the country has what it takes to overcome today’s threats and trials.
The former president encouraged the leaders and the citizens to rededicate themselves to the virtues of equity, justice, tolerance and strive to give their best for the good of the nation.
“I join all citizens to celebrate the 61st Independence Anniversary of our great nation, Nigeria.
“As we mark this day of freedom, it gives us the opportunity to reflect on our progress, celebrate our humble attainments and ponder over those dreams that are yet to be fulfilled.
“We may have hiccups along the way and challenging times that might be stretching our resolve and determination to forge ahead. But we should not relent nor succumb to fear, discouraging trials and threats of today.
“We will never lose hope in our country and in our indomitable spirit and capacity to overcome difficult times, seize the moment and conquer,” Jonathan said.
Buhari Govt increases N-Power beneficiaries From 500,000 To one million
President Muhammadu Buhari says his regime has approved an increase in N-Power beneficiaries from 500,000 to one million.
“Considering the positive impact of our Social Investment Programmes, I recently approved an increase in the number of N-Power programme beneficiaries from 500,000 to 1,000,000,” Mr Buhari announced in his Independence Day address on Friday.
On the social welfare programmes of the federal government, the president reiterated the government’s commitment to achieving its goal of lifting 100 million Nigerians out of poverty in 10 years.
“Out of this, 510,000 have started the programme while the competitive selection process for onboarding the outstanding 490,000 beneficiaries is in progress. The National Home-Grown School Feeding Programme is currently being implemented in 35 States of the Federation and the FCT,” he added. “Over 103,000 women have been engaged and empowered as cooks under the programme, while about 10 million pupils are being fed across public primary schools in the country.”
He added, “To grant increased access to credit to the most poor and vulnerable, I have directed an increase in the disbursement of Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme loans to an additional one million beneficiaries laying more emphasis on the smallholding farmers through the farmers Moni programme.”
Mr Buhari also pledged to address the widespread discontent and disillusion about the efficiency and probity of the nation’s civil service.
He noted that for far too long, the nation had neglected the centrality of the civil service as the engine of governance, which had manifested in ineffective service delivery.
“It is for this reason that we are refocusing the Nigerian civil service to provide world-class service to run our country,’’ said the Nigerian leader.
The president also promised to bring more youths into governance to address youth restiveness across the country.
He said the government would also continue to encourage girl-child education, female scholarship schemes, life skills, and digital literacy skills to boost girl’s enrolment, retention, and completion of schooling.
“The youths of this great country remain propellants for our today and provide guarantees that we would have a secure tomorrow. It is for this reason that I remain focused on expanding opportunities for their participation in politics and governance,” the president further explained. “Recent appointments of young people into positions of authority and their track record so far gives me confidence that we need to bring more of them into governance, and this I promise to do.”
Breaking: Buhari lists conditions for lifting of Twitter ban
President Muhammadu Buhari, Friday gave two reasons the suspended Micro blogging site, Twitter, would be lifted in the country.
Disclosing this in his nationwide broadcast to Nigerians to mark the nation’s 61st independence, Buhari said Twitter ban would be lifted if Nigerians continue the use of the platform for business and positive engagements.
His words: “Social media is a very useful platform that has enabled millions of Nigerians to connect with loved ones, promote their businesses, socialise, and access news and other information.
“However, recent events have shown that the platform is not just an innocuous platform for information dissemination.
“Rather some users have misused the platform to organise, coordinate, and execute criminal activities, propagate fake news, and promote ethnic and religious sentiments.
“To address these negative trends, the Federal Government of Nigeria suspended the operations of Twitter in Nigeria on June 5, 2021 to allow the Government put measures in place to address these challenges.
“ Following the suspension of Twitter operations, Twitter Inc. reached out to the Federal Government of Nigeria to resolve the impasse. Subsequently, I constituted a Presidential Committee to engage Twitter to explore the possibility of resolving the issue.
“The Committee, along with its Technical Team, has engaged with Twitter and have addressed a number of key issues. These are National Security and Cohesion; Registration, Physical presence and Representation; Fair Taxation; Dispute Resolution; and Local Content.
“Following the extensive engagements, the issues are being addressed and I have directed that the suspension be lifted but only if the conditions are met to allow our citizens continue the use of the platform for business and positive engagements.
“As a country, we are committed to ensuring that digital companies use their platform to enhance the lives of our citizens, respect Nigeria’s sovereignty, cultural values and promote online safety.”
Just In: IPOB Coordinator In Sierra Leone Arrested
The coordinator of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) in Sierra Leone, Chidi Uchendu, has been arrested by police in the African country. According to Lauretta Onochie, Uchendu’s arrest which was confirmed by a reliable source, took place on Monday, September 27, at his business location in Freetown.
The presidential media aide disclosed that the suspect was nabbed because of his involvement in promoting Biafra agitation in the African nation. At the moment he is still in police custody pending when he will be prosecuted.
Reacting to this development, she said that Nigeria’s allies will no longer accommodate nor tolerate terrorists in their territories. Court document finally reveals country that extradited Nnamdi Kanu Meanwhile, a lawsuit on behalf of Kanu, filed by his lawyer Kingsley Kanunta had shown that the leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra was extradited from Kenya. The suit was filed against the Kenyan government for what the embattled secessionist described as unconstitutional extradition. According to the petition, Kanu was in the African nation to seek medical attention for a heart challenge and for “Indigenous People of Biafra-related work”. Revealing further, the suit said the agitator arrived at Jomo Kenyatta International Airport in May from Kigali, Rwanda, on an East African tourist visa. It added: “The subject is believed to have been apprehended at the airport on June 19, 2021, and unlawfully detained for several days after which he was illegally and stealthily extradited to Nigeria without his British passport in utter-non-compliance with laid down processes of laws in Kenya.”
Among those mentioned as respondents in the suit are Kenya’s Interior CS, director of immigration, director of criminal investigations, OCPD Jomo Kenyatta International Airport, and Attorney-General. Meanwhile, senators of southeastern extraction on Wednesday, September 15, took the initiative to set up a panel that would look into the case of Kanu.
Ogun Assembly asked to impeach Gov Abiodun, Deputy over alleged abdication
The New Nigerian People’s Party (NNPP) has asked the Ogun State Assembly to commence impeachment processes against Governor Dapo Abiodun and his Deputy, Nomiot Salako-Oyedele.
The NNPP on Thursday said it was highly disturbed and worried by the “lackadaisical attitude of the Dapo Abiodun’s administration since inception.
The party requested that the duo of Abiodun and his Deputy be impeached for leaving the country at the same time.
The opposition party had earlier stormed the Assembly Complex at Oke-Mosan, Abeokuta, to submit its petition to the lawmakers.
According to the petition signed by the party’s State Chairman, Olaposi Oginni, the party described Abiodun as an “accidental governor”, saying he was never prepared to govern Ogun State.
The petition titled, “Immediate Impeachment Processes Against Gov Dapo Abiodun And His Deputy”, partly read:
“The Ogun State Chapter of New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) is hereby calling for the immediate action of IMPEACHMENT NOTICE against Gov.Dapo Abiodun and his Deputy, Engr. Naimot Salako, by the provision of the Act of the Parliament.
“The recent abdication and dereliction of duties by Gov Dapo Abiodun and his Deputy are unpardonable impeachable offences.
“It’s on record that from May 2019 to date, all the medical and leisure vacation trips of Gov Dapo Abiodun, except one, were in flagrant disobedience of the constitutional provision that made the transmission of a letter to Ogun State House of Assembly mandatory.
“It’s also on record that the recent trip of Gov Dapo Abiodun violated his oath of office and therefore deserved to be impeached for his failure to transmit a letter to the OGUN STATE HOUSE OF ASSEMBLY and subsequent failure to transmit power to the Deputy Governor to be in charge as an Acting Governor during the time of his absence.”
Oginni added that “the executive rascality of unceremoniously making the SSG to act and to direct the affairs of Ogun State is unacceptable because it’s at sharp contradiction to the constitution the government swore to protect.”
He added, “Recognizing the fact that Prince Dapo Abiodun was an accidental Governor who never prepared himself for governance, however, it’s ridiculous that Gov Dapo Abiodun and his aides at intervals rush to a serving Lagos Senator, Adeola Olamilekan Yayi, to take briefs and instructions on how to run Ogun State.
“The Ogun State House of Assembly must help us to find out when and how Ogun State became a Lagos colony under Prince Dapo Abiodun.
“It’s very obvious that Ogun State is presently rudderless. The permanent solution to this mediocrity is for the Ogun State House of Assembly to do the needful as far as this impeachment process is concerned,” Oginni maintained.
Meanwhile, the Commissioner for Information in Ogun, Waheed Odusile, has said the Governor and his Deputy handed over to the Secretary to the State Government, Tokunbo Talabi, before their trip to London.
Odusile said the governor could run the State from his destination in London.
