Kwara Ex-Governor, Abdulfatah Ahmed Reacts After AMCON Seals His Mansion Over 5bn Debt
Former Kwara Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed has described the take over of his Ilorin property by a lawyer purportedly representing AMCON as unnecessary and overzealous.
He said talks were ongoing to resolve previous transactions with two defunct banks.
Ahmed’s media aide Wahab Oba clarified that the dispute was based on a margin loan he secured from the defunct Intercontinental Bank and Finbank in 2009 for the purchase of shares which was then lumped with unrelated loans obtained by others.
Reacting to a viral video depicting the takeover of his residence by an individual who claimed to represent the company, Ahmed explained that the banks held the shares as collateral to sell and recover the loans in the event of a default.
Senate Approves N13.98tr 2022 Budget Figure As It Passes 2022-2024 MTEF/FS
The federal government Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) has been approved on Wednesday by the Senate.
In approving the framework, the lawmakers assumed an international oil price of $57 per barrel and daily crude oil production of 1.88 million barrels.
Other parameters assumed by the legislators in passing the fiscal framework include an exchange rate of N410 to a dollar and an inflation rate of 13%.
According to Naija News, the assumptions will form the basis for the N13.98 trillion 2022 budget figures to be prepared and submitted for approval by the executive arm of the federal government.
The N13.98 trillion estimate is made up of total recurrent (non-debt) of N6.21 trillion; Personnel Costs (MDAs) of N3.47 trillion; Capital expenditure (exclusive of transfers) N3.26 trillion; Special Intervention (recurrent) amounting to N350 billion; and Special intervention (Capital) of N10billion.
The Senate approval follows the presentation of a report of the finance committee headed by Senator Solomon Olamilekan during Wednesday’s plenary.
He recommended that “the daily crude oil production of 1.88mbpd, 2.23mbpd, and 2.22mbpd for 2022, 2023 and 2024 respectively, be approved, in view of average 1.93mbpd over the past three years and the fact that a very conservative oil output benchmark has been adopted for the medium term in order to ensure greater budget realism.
“That the benchmark oil price of $57 per barrel should be approved because of the clear evidence of wide consultations with key stakeholders. and the age long fiscal strategy of addressing the oil price shocks by the adoption of a higher than forecast oil price benchmark for fiscal projections over the medium term.
“That the exchange rate of N410.15 to a dollar proposed by the executive for 2022-2024 be approved.”
It is understood that the parameters approved which include a projected Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rate of 4.20 percent were as suggested by the Federal Executive Council and the Senators didn’t make any adjustment.
Governor Abdullahi Ganduje of Kano state has said that he received with immense sadness and deep feeling of a great national loss, the news of the passing away of the Emir of Gaya, Alhaji Ibrahim Abdulkadir.
In a statement signed by the commissioner for Information, Malam Muhammad Garba, the governor observed that despite his ailing condition, the monarch’s uncommon leadership qualities earned him respect as traditional ruler since his days as Sarkin Gaya and until his death as first class Emir in Kano.
He said the death of the Emir of one of the oldest Emirates in northern Nigeria has created a vacuum difficult to be filled considering his contributions to peace, stability and progress in his domain and the country.
Alhaji Abdulkadir, who has been on the throne of Sarkin Gaya since 1990 has held several traditional positions to include district head of Kunchi and that of Minjibir, among others. He was one of the four Emirs elevated to first class Emirs by the Ganduje administration after the creation of Rano, Gaya, Bichi and Karaye Emirates in 2019.
Governor Ganduje, who is away in Abuja when the Emir’s death was announced, stated that the demise of the monarch is a big blow to his immediate family, Gaya Emirate, the government and the entire people of Kano state.
He prayed Allah in His infinite mercy to grant his soul Aljannah Firdausi and called on the entire people of the Emirate to bear the loss with the spirit of acquiescence to God’s will.
The governor also urged them to take solace in the fact that endurance was not the measure of a good life but the sense of fulfilment.
This was as the Speaker, Rt. Hon. (Dr) Mudashiru Obasa, described her demise as the “fall of a shining star.”
Adegeye, wife of respected musician, King Sunny Ade, was said to have died in the early hours of Tuesday after battling a brief illness.
The Speaker, in a statement by his media office, said her death was shocking and that the incident had thrown him and his colleagues into mourning.
According to Obasa, Mrs. Adegeye, a philanthropist, died at a period she was still very relevant to the progress of Lagos.
“As a member of the Lagos State House of Assembly, she had a very robust relationship with her colleagues.
“Madam Adegeye bonded with staff and management of the Assembly. She was always jovial and loved everyone irrespective of status. She touched lives. She truly did.
“She also played very vital roles to the growth and development of Lagos.
“Even after leaving office as lawmaker, we could not just allow her wisdom to lay fallow. She was appointed as Commissioner in the Lagos State House of Assembly Commission where she again brought her experience to bear in the scheme of progress in the legislature and governance of our dear State.
“To say we are shocked is an understatement. The feeling her demise has brought us is beyond description. It is a huge loss to us and to the State. Indeed, a shining star has fallen, a wisdom-filled person has left us.
“As we continue to mourn her demise in the days ahead, we take solace in the fact that she touched lives positively, she served Lagos with passion and was very dedicated to her constituency.
“We at the Lagos State House of Assembly pray for divine strength for her husband, her children, her beneficiaries and all those who are affected by this loss.
“May God grant her a special place in His kingdom, amen.”
While at the House of Assembly, Hon. Adegeye, a loyal member of the All Progressives Congress (APC), represented Amuwo-Odofin Constituency 1
Just In: Health minister tests positive for Covid-19 at UN gathering
Brazil’s Health Minister Queiroga talks with Brazilian Deputy Barros before a ceremony. (Reuters)
BRASILIA: Brazil’s Health Minister Marcelo Queiroga tested positive for Covid-19 Tuesday after attending the UN General Assembly in New York that was inaugurated by his president, Jair Bolsonaro, according to an official statement.
“The other members of the delegation have been tested and are negative,” said the official Brazilian government press release.
Queiroga, who had received a Covid-19 vaccine, was the second member of Bolsonaro’s entourage to test positive for the virus since arriving in New York for the UN gathering.
The 55-year-old health minister will remain in the United States for a period of isolation, even though the rest of the delegation has returned to Brazil.
Bolsonaro, who appeared without a mask on several occasions during the trip, has not been not vaccinated and repeated that he would be “the last” Brazilian to receive the vaccine.
Queiroga was with Bolsonaro, who last year survived a bout of the virus, at several events, including a meeting with British Prime Minister Boris Johnson on Monday.
He was “doing well,” the statement said. He wrote on Twitter that while following “all health security protocols,” the ministry “will continue to take firm action to deal with the pandemic in Brazil.”
Bolsonaro caused a stir on social media after a photograph showed him taking few precautions against contagion while around others in his delegation, as he ate a slice of pizza from a New York street vendor.
The health minister was the only one in the photo wearing a mask, but he had pulled it down under his chin.
Under fire for his controversial handling of the pandemic, which has claimed more than 591,000 lives in Brazil, Bolsonaro opened the General Assembly with a speech in which he made several misleading or inaccurate statements, some of which related to the pandemic, according to AFP’s Factcheck team.
Buhari Appointed A ‘Supermaket Manager’ To Head NNPC Board – Adeyanju
Popular activist, Deji Adeyanju, has slammed President Muhammadu Buhari over the appointment of Senator Ifeanyi Ararume as the chairman of the Board, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.
It will be recalled that President Buhari on Sunday, September 19, approved the incorporation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC).
In a statement made available to newsmen by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr Femi Adesina, the President approved also the appointment of the Board and Management of the NNPC Limited.
Senator Ifeanyi Ararume was appointed as Chairman and the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), while Mele Kyari was appointed as Chief Executive Officer.
According to Naija News, each of the six geo-political zones in the country also has a representative on the board and all the appointments take effect from the date of the company’s incorporation.
Reacting to the development in a post on Wednesday, Adeyanju described Ararume’s appointment as a travesty.
The Convener of Concerned Nigerians said he believes the All Progressive Congress has more qualified and experienced people in the oil and gas industry who could have been given the appointment.
Adeyanju pointed out that Ararume is inexperienced in the industry dealings and hence not fit for the appointment.
He noted his only major achievements are being a Senator and managing a supermarket.
“The All Progressives Congress, APC we believe has more qualified technocrats and well-experienced players in the oil and gas industry as members that could have been appointed as the chairman of Board of the country’s mainstay source of revenue,” Adeyanju noted.
He added: “Nigeria’s oil and gas sector represents about 65% of government revenues and such sensitive sector ought to be superintended by a competent person who has the requisite knowledge and experience of the industry instead of appointing Ararume whose only major achievement is being a Senator and managing a supermarket.
“Ordinarily, after the incorporation of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited as a business entity, one would have thought that the president would appoint a business-oriented technocrat with vast knowledge in oil and gas to pilot the affairs of the company but alas, the rudderless government of President Muhammadu Buhari’s led Federal government opted for a politician with zero experience in oil and gas industry.
“The appointment of Ararume whom former president Olusegun Obasanjo in 2011 described as the “Big Thief” has brought to the fore, President Muhammadu Buhari’s penchant for outlandish and unconventional methods of appointing cronies and men of questionable characters.
“We call on the President to as a matter of urgency, reverse the appointment of Senator Ararume as chairman of Board, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited as it goes against reason and logic,” he added.
Man In Police Net For cutting off 8yr-old daughter’s breast for Early Signs Of Puberty
A Nigerian man has been arrested by the Police in Lagos state for allegedly brutalising his eight-year-old daughter following early signs of puberty.
According to Ebenezer Omejalile, Chief Operating Officer of Advocates for Children and Vulnerable People’s Network, the victim’s left breast was completely cut off by her father identified as Adegboyega after he used a hot stone to massage his daughter’s breast to stop it from growing.
The father, who tried to blame his action on his wife, was however picked up by the police last Friday following the intervention of the Advocates alongside the Inclusive Social Welfare, the Ministry of Youth & Social Development office, Ajegunle.
“He will be charged to court on (Monday), Omejalile stated.
He said: “This little girl was brutalised by her biological father who felt ‘how come she developed breasts so rapidly’.
“He turned himself into a medical doctor and heartlessly placed a stone in a fire and used it to massage her breast so that the breast would stop increasing in size.
“She was burnt on her left breast following the hot water massage from the father because he thinks the child is too young to develop breasts.
“The girl’s mother also complained of excessive beating for the same reason. Surprisingly the father is an engineer by profession, we engaged him in a conversation and he admitted to the crime.
“He tried to blame his wife for his negative actions; the most annoying aspect was when he claimed he bathes the 8-year-old (girl) every day.
“This is a red flag, the young girl is in serious pain. In addition, we discovered the left breast of Aishat was completely cut off as a result of the brutalisation by the father
He was, however, arrested around 9.30 pm on Friday. He is currently in custody and had been charged to court on Monday.
“This is a positive outcome for us, it is a result of good partnership work from Inclusive Social Welfare, Ministry of Youth & Social Development, social welfare office, Ajegunle and the Ajegunle police station.”
Chinese Ambassador to Nigeria, Cui Jianchin, has said he is in talks with Chinese banks to establish operations in Nigeria to boost Nigeria’s economy and expand trade relations between the two nations.
Mr Jianchin disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja while addressing journalists during the commemoration of the 2021 Chinese Moon Festival and China-Nigeria Cultural week, NAN reported.
He explained that establishing Chinese banks in the country would also be a point of discussion during the China-Nigeria Binational Committee meeting.
“Before my departure from Beijing to Abuja, I talked to several banks in China. When you list the world’s 10 big banks, six are in China. The banking sector is very important because, without money, we cannot build our industries,” Jianchin said
“What I am thinking here is best to talk to the governor of the central bank, and how we can allow the Chinese banks to run office here and now, they are doing the feasibility studies on that.
“I am working hard that in the binational meeting, I hope we can make a big decision and give a big push to let the banking industry and insurance industry because financial integration and institutions are key,” Mr Jianchin added. “If you go to China, you will find our banking industry is very powerful, not only for business but a change in the way of life.
Extolling the extant China-Nigeria trade relations, the Chinese ambassador noted that the trade volume between China and Nigeria was nearly $20 billion, increasing from 2020’s $19.2 billion.
According to Mr Jianchin, the 2021 celebration is special as it coincides with the 50th anniversary of China-Nigeria’s bilateral relations and that the countries share October 1 national day.
He disclosed that the Chinese embassy would honour 50 Nigerian employees of Chinese companies in Nigeria for their outstanding performance and contribution to strengthening diplomatic ties
Four Dead, As 18-seater bus plunges into River Niger in Kogi
No fewer than four persons have been confirmed dead when an 18 seater bus plunged into river Niger in Koton Karfe area of Kogi State.
DAILY POST also gathered that 13 others have been rescued alive while one person is still missing in the accident.
The accident occurred around 7.30pm on Tuesday when the driver of the bus slept off and lost control, thereby, plunging into the river.
According to the State Commandant, Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, (NSCDC), Suleiman Mafara, who disclosed this to newsmen in Lokoja, on the receipt of the distress call, his men of the Disaster and Crisis Unit in conjunction with the Federal Roads Safety Corps and volunteer divers were mobilised to the scene.
He added that his men and others Security personnel are working round the clock to recover the only person yet to be accounted for.
Mafara disclosed that the corpse have been deposited in a morgue in Lokoja.
The NSCDC Commandant, however, warned drivers and commuters to adhere strictly to road safety guidelines to prevent avoidable carnage on the highways.
Society gazette reports that the national leader of the All Progressive Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu had a nice time with the governor of Ogun state, Dapo Abiodun during his visit to him in London.
Governor Dapo Abiodun joined the long list of important personalities that have visited the ailing politician since he retired to London some months ago.
Tinubu is reportedly sick and went through a knee surgery which he is yet to fully recover from.
During Dapo Abiodun’s visit, both of them were seen having a nice time together.
