₦airaland Forum

Tottenham Hotspur forward, Richarlison, has said he would like to copy Ronaldinho by buying an island “with a lot of women”.

Richarlison is with the Brazil team, as they prepare for their World Cup opener against Serbia on Thursday.

The Selecao head into the tournament as one of the favourites with Brazil the number one ranked team and they will be looking to ease out of a group that also features Cameroon and Switzerland.

Brazil won their final two matches before the World Cup with an aggregate score of 8-1, dispatching Tunisia and Ghana.

Richarlison could play a huge role for Brazil at the tournament, with the 25-year-old playing in a central striker role in their most recent friendly win. Neymar is expected to play as the No.10, with Vinicius Jr and Raphinha out wide in a dynamic-looking Brazil attack.

In the build-up to the World Cup, Richarlison, however, conducted an interview on Brazilian TV in which he discussed his plans for retirement. As cited by Marca, Richarlison was asked what he planned to do when he gives up playing and he gave an interesting response.

He was asked: “Do you have an idea of what you will do when you retire?” Richarlison replied: “I am going to buy an island and I will stay there with a lot of women, like that photo of Ronaldinho.”

As mentioned, Ronaldinho posted a famous image partying on an island with a number of bikini-clad women. The 2005 Ballon d’Or winner became known for his party lifestyle after he hit the big time.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has said it would skip backlog of academic sessions which was halted by their eight-month strike, if the federal government insists on the no work no pay rule.

ASUU members, mainly of University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT) Chapter, Rivers state, held a special congress and protest rally on Monday.

They argued that the policy does not apply to them because they have picked up from where they down tools seven months ago and currently clearing the backlogs of work, combining two sessions.

Why we protested
Chairman, ASUU, Uniport, Dr. Uzoma Chima, said, “Today’s special congress and protest rally is to express our dissatisfaction with recent attempt by federal government of Nigeria to reduce university lecturers to daily pay casual workers.

“Because we know that there is nowhere in the world where university lecturers are treated as casual workers. So, today we invited parents, and students to let them know the state of things since after the suspension of our strike.

“Since we suspended the strike following the National Industrial Court order, we have come back to resume our duties and currently doing the backlogs of work we should have done during the strike. As a union of intellectuals, our job makes the no work, no pay policy not applicable to us.

Research during the strike
“Because during the strike we were doing research. It was only teaching we were not doing. We were doing research and members engaged in community services. The teaching that was not done, we are doing already. We are clearing the backlog of work.

“So, today, we called parents and students to carry the issue to the public. Let them not see it as a fight for only ASUU because we know and it is so clear now that the ruling class wants to decimate the public universities. And of course, as the eggheads of the nation, we will not allow that to happen.”

“What we are going to do if the FG refuses to listen to us is so simple. If government continues to say they will not pay us, we will abandon the work to do for those sessions and that will mean outright cancelation of those sessions.

“We will now wait for admission to be done for the 2022/2023 session so that we will continue from there.”

What that means is that the old students in the university will have to lose those sessions, that is the implication.”

Some of the inscriptions on their protest placards read, “No to Pro Rata Salary Payment, “Lecturers are not casual workers” and “FG, stop maltreatment of lecturers”.

In what appears a fresh move aimed at resolving the festering rift with the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has sought the intervention of former President Goodluck Jonathan.


Atiku, accompanied by his running mate, Dr. Ifeanyi Okowa, had, on Thursday night, paid a private visit to Jonathan at the ex-President’s Abuja residence.

Party sources observed Atiku to be deeply worried by Wike’s recent actions and utterances, which seek to undermine the PDP candidate and hurt his presidential bid.

Although details of the meeting were not made available to the media, a reliable source in the Atiku/Okowa Campaign told our correspondent on Friday that it was not impossible that Atiku indeed went to seek Jonathan’s intervention.

The source, who did not want his name in print because he was not mandated to speak to the media on the matter, said Atiku and his team believed that Jonathan could prevail on Wike to soft-pedal.

The source affirmed the strong ties between the ex-President and the Rivers State Governor, stressing that the latter has great respect for the former and also holds strong allegiance to him.

He said: “In case you didn’t know, Wike parted ways with his friend and predecessor, Rotimi Amaechi because Amaechi decided to work against Jonathan in the run up to the 2015 election.

“Even though it was Amaechi that nominated him for ministerial position under Jonathan, Wike chose to stick with Jonathan, ditching Amaechi in the process.

“So, outside their disagreement over local politics in Rivers State at the time, Amaechi’s irreconcilable differences with Jonathan accounted for the sustained animosity between him and Wike till now.”

It was also gathered that Jonathan may not be well disposed to wading into the Atiku-Wike rift bearing in mind the role Atiku played in frustrating his re-election bid in 2015.

Atiku and many other PDP bigwigs had dumped the PDP for the All Progressives Congress (APC) to work against Jonathan, leading to his defeat by General Muhammadu Buhari of the APC.

Even though Jonathan campaigned for candidate Atiku when he contested the 2019 presidential election on the platform of the PDP, the ex-President has stayed away from the activities of the party since then.

Many recall that Jonathan did not attend the September 28, 2022 inauguration of the Atiku Presidential Campaign Council even though he was invited to be the special guest of honour.

Speaking on the visit, Atiku’s Media Adviser, Mazi Paul Ibe, said the meeting had nothing to do with the rift between his principal and the Rivers State Governor.

Ibe, who spoke with our correspondent on the telephone yesterday, said the visit was part of Atiku’s consultation with stakeholders in the pursuit of his presidential project.

Ibe said: “We all know that as a former President who was elected on the platform of the PDP, Dr. Jonathan is a statesman and a highly respected leader in the PDP.

“The visit was part of consultations on topical national issues like restructuring, which is one of the key programmes of Atiku’s action plan.

“He went to tap from Dr. Jonathan’s knowledge and experience because the former President had been there before.

“For instance, when we talk about restructuring, there are a number of options on the table. It may come through executive pronouncement, reforms or negotiation.

“That is why there must be broad consultation with relevant stakeholders across all geopolitical zones. I can assure you that there will be more of such consultations in the days and weeks ahead.”

Corroborating Ibe’s position, one of the spokespersons of the Atiku-Okowa Campaign, Mr. Charles Aniagwu, also said the meeting was part of ongoing consultations embarked upon by the PDP presidential candidate.

Aniagwu added that the consultation is not restricted to only PDP leaders, saying that relevant stakeholders, regardless of party affiliation, would also be consulted as time goes on.

The campaign spokesperson, however, did not rule out the probability of the Wike issue coming up during the meeting.

Aniagwu said: “What I can say is that it was a total package in the sense that they couldn’t have gone to meet with Jonathan because of one person. It’s part of ongoing consultation that will be extended to diverse stakeholders.”

The Independent National Electoral Commission has stated that it will print a total of 187million ballot papers.


According to the National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, preliminary registered voters in Nigeria now stand at 93.5 million, noting that 9,518,188 new voters were added to the existing register of 84,004,084 voters

Okoye on Friday November 17, said 93.5 million ballot papers will be used on the 25 February 2022 for the presidential election and the remaining 93.5million ballot papers will be for run off of the presidential election in a case where there is no clear winner. The same, he said, would be applicable to states.


According to him, the Commission decided to print 187 million ballot papers for the presidential elections, as it will be difficult to engage printers at a short notice and also the issue of logistics.


Okoye said, “As of today, 18 political parties will participate in the 2023 general election and the law has outlined how candidates will emerge and how a presidential candidate will emerge in Nigeria.


“Because of the limited time on the Commission and by the law; in case a candidate does not emerge from the first ballot, the Commission prints ballots for run-off elections (second election) when we are printing ballots for the main election.


“In other words, if 93million Nigerians are on the ballot for the presidential election, we will print 93million ballots for the first election and at the same time, print 93million ballots for the run-off election in case a winner does not emerge from the first ballot.



“If at the end of the day, there is no runoff, when election petitions are disposed of, the Commission will destroy the 93million ballots printed for the runoff. This is because the law gives the Commission just 21 days within each to engage in reverse logistics and conduct a runoff election in case there is no winner.



“Moreover, as of the time of the conduct of the Presidential election, the governorship elections and State Assembly elections are still pending. So for the governorship election, the Commission will print at least run-off ballots for four governorship elections in case we have challenges in terms of a winner not emerging in the first ballot in some of the states of the federation.

A former Ekiti state governor, Ayodele Fayose, has claimed that the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi, would not get enough votes to win the election.

He also said Obi could affect the chances of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 polls.

Fayose stated this on Thursday during an interview with Channels Television.

Obi had dumped the PDP in May for LP and clinched the party’s presidential ticket.

In 2019, the former Anambra governor was PDP’s vice-presidential candidate while Atiku Abubakar, former vice-president, was the presidential candidate.

The participation of Obi in the 2023 presidential election under LP has elicited speculations that the votes of the PDP may be divided in the 2023 election.

Speaking on the development, Fayose said the former Anambra governor may not secure the required 25 percent of votes in two-third of the states to be declared winner.

The former Ekiti governor asked the PDP to negotiate with Obi, and also resolve the crisis in the party by reconciling with the camp of Nyesom Wike, governor of Rivers, in order to win the presidency.

“Obi is a danger to watch out for. I don’t believe Obi will make 25 percent of votes in two-third of the states of the federation,” he said.

“I’m not against Obi. I love him and he is a very vibrant leader. I don’t believe he will get the required 25 percent of votes because of my permutations as Ayodele Fayose, but with God, nothing shall be impossible.

“Let me say Obi is more of a chronic cancer to PDP and there is no denying.

“Let me give you an analysis. In south-west, people might not like to hear that, I don’t see how PDP will win. Anybody deceiving us can continue to deceive us.

“I don’t see how PDP will win in the south-east. South-south will be a combination of all interests. Let me come to the key states of the north.

“Without deceiving ourselves, there is so much work to do in the north-central. PDP and APC did not pick any candidate, either presidential or vice-presidential, from the north-central. The north-east is where the vice-presidential candidate of APC comes from.

“We will give Adamawa state to our party. Don’t forget there is still another Kwankwaso who is a semi-cancer that can equally upstage figures in the north.

“Reconciling or negotiating with Obi will be a good thing and finding a way to make peace with these Wike people will be a good thing too.”

I felt provoked by Erik ten Hag for putting me three minutes before the end of the game - Cristiano Ronaldo explains why he refused to come on against Tottenham


Cristiano Ronaldo has admitted he regrets refusing to come on against Tottenham last month, but felt provoked by Erik ten Hag for putting him three minutes before the end of the game.



Ronaldo has been making headlines over the past week after the release of his bombshell interview with Piers Morgan on TalkTV, where he slammed the current state of the club, along with heavily criticizing Manchester United manager Erik ten Hag and former teammates including Gary Neville and Wayne Rooney.


In the second part of the interview that was aired on Thursday evening, November 17, Ronaldo spoke about his highly-controversial decision to refuse to come on as a substitute against Spurs and then walking down the tunnel before the final whistle.



'Piers I will be honest with you, it's something that I regret to leave from the stadium,' Ronaldo said.



'Probably, or maybe no, I don't know. It's difficult to tell you 100 per cent but let's say I regret, but in the same way I felt provoked by the coach.



'Not allowed for me, a coach to put me in three minutes in a game. Sorry, I'm not that kind of player. I know what I can give to teams.


'Okay, you don't put me against Manchester City because of respect of your career and you want to put me three minutes against Tottenham. It doesn’t make sense…



'I think he did it on purpose because, for example, in a national team the other clubs, if the coach wants to put me five minutes, if someone injured or if they really need me, I will help. But in that way I felt provoked not only because of that game, but before.'



Following the incident, Ronaldo was suspended by the club for three days and was omitted from the squad for their 1-1 draw with Chelsea.



Cristiano Ronaldo says his suspension was humiliating for him.



'I think it was a strategy from the club for me to react that way,' he explained.



'I was very, very, very, very disappointed for the communication of Manchester United. To be honest, I never had a problem with any club, with any coach.



'And they suspend me (for) three days, which I felt it was a lot - and the level of sport, clubs, I felt a lot. It was a shame, that…



'I remember arriving home and Cristiano saw me and said "Daddy do (you) not go to the game?" I say "No, because the club punish me with three days".


'And he did like [laughs] "How they're going to punish you if you are the best player in the world and you're not gonna play?" I said "No I'm not going to play because I have not been behaved". And he looked at me like, "My Daddy not behave, what?"'



Ronaldo also went on to claim that he was angered with the way United allowed the media to humiliate him because he believed that his record as a player meant he deserved more than being brought on for the final stages of the 2-0 win.



He said: 'In one way, I was good because I was like, more relaxed, but in the same way, I feel very disappointed because, okay, I regret, I apologise, I'm not perfect, I made a mistake.


'But suspend me three days, for that, I think it's too much. And then they make fire for the press, which really disappoints me.



'Don’t tell me that the top players, the guys who want everything, the key players will play three minutes.



'Come on, this is unacceptable after what they keep saying before, that they respect me, that they do this, they do that. For me it was not respect, this is why I take this decision I regret.



'I apologised to my team-mates for the situation, I did a post, an Instagram, I regret to left from the stadium. I regret my team-mates know what I felt, and I apologised to them, but in the same way, I’m not regret to take the decisions to not come on…


'The coach didn’t have respect for me. So this is why the relationship, it’s in that way. He keep saying in the press that he come to me, he like me blah, blah, blah but that it’s only for the press. 100 per cent.'



He then added: 'If you don’t have respect for me, I'm never going to have respect for you.'



Within the interview, Ronaldo also continued to lay into Ten Hag as he insisted that he isn't a fan of the Dutchman.



'The feeling he always mentioned to me, that I didn't need the pre-season so I should wait for my opportunity.



'I really understand that should, well, okay, I understand. But I'm not going to give you points, but you don't do it the same procedure to every players. I'm not gonna mention players but they don't do it the same way.



'Second, I understand that becoming a new job, Manchester was so bad the last five years that it should make they should clean the house, let's say in that way.



'But the way they approach, the way the press make this so big, it's because… probably the communication wasn't the best.



'But I really understand in the beginning because I didn't do the pre-season, I don't start to play, but going more further than that, further than that. Other things happen that people they don't know.



'And I'm not hiding that the empathy with the coach is not good. I'm honest.'



'He don't respect the way I should deserve. But it is what it is. This is why probably, the game against Tottenham, I left.'

Party affiliation, ethnicity or religion will not determine the February 25, 2023 presidential election in Rivers State, Governor Nyesom Wike said yesterday.


He also listed equity, justice and fairness as the conditions for truce between the leadership of his Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and the aggrieved Group of Five (G5) governors.

Apart from Wike, other G5 members are: Samuel Ortom (Benue); Seyi Makinde (Oyo); Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia) and Ifeanyi Ngwuanyi (Enugu).

They are asking Dr. Iyorcha Ayu to quit as PDP national chairman to pave the way for a Southerner to step in, arguing that Ayu (from the North) cannot hold on to the position when Alhaji Atiku Abubakar (another northern) is the party’s presidential candidate.

Wike spoke yesterday when former Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole inaugurated a flyover located in Rumueprikon, his country home in Obio-Akpor Local Government Area, Port Harcourt.


The flyover is the eighth implemented by the Wike administration in the state.

The governor said Nigeria was in dire need of unity, justice and equity, adding that the next election would not be based on party, ethnicity and religion.

“We need a Nigeria that all us can be proud of, that I will know that truly I am not a second class citizen, that the same right you have is the same right I have, the same opportunity you have is the same opportunity that I have. There is no need of saying if you are not from this place people will not vote for you. We don’t want that.


On the condition for truce, Wike clarified that the group of five governors fighting for inclusiveness in PDP will spurn any reconciliation not based on the principles of equity, justice and fairness.

He renewed their position that elective offices must be shared equally between the North and the South in the opposition party ahead of the 2023 general election.

Wike said: “People will praise you but the day you say no, they will oppose you. I am sure those of them in my party, before they cannot say anything without mentioning Wike. But now because I said let the right thing be done, I have now become an enemy. These are people who are praising me everything.


“And some people believe they won’t obey an agreement but we say it must be done. We stand for equity, fairness and justice. That is what the G5 will continue to preach. We have said we are not against reconciliation but it must be based on equity, fairness and justice”.

Rivers governor regrets supporting Obaseki, apologises to Oshiomhole
The governor expressed regret for supporting the re-election of Edo State Governor Godwin Obaseki.

He apologised to Oshiomole for all his utterances in the run-up to the election of Obaseki for second term.

The Rivers governor, however, recalled that Oshiomhole, when he held sway as the national chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC) vigorously opposed his relection in 2019, accusing the former Edo helmsman of deploying soldiers to frustrate him.

He said Oshiomhole’s ouster as the APC Chairman brought a lot of relief to opposition parties, describing the former chairman as tough and strong.

Wike said: “I use this opportunity to apologise to you. I came to Edo State to make sure your candidate didn’t win the election. I was virtually in charge of everything. And I said you wouldn’t win and you didn’t win. That assignment had been done and we now know who is who. I want to tell my people that I sincerely apologise to you. I want to sincerely apologise for all the things I said that time.

“But you too, you peppered me here. During 2019 election, you sent all the soldiers, but the people stood firm and resisted it. So, you did me one and I did you one. So, we forgive ourselves. Now, we are friends. Let bygones be bygones. You did me, I retaliated.

“The Bible says when someone does you bad, you shouldn’t retaliate. But in politics, when someone does you bad, you retaliate because if you don’t retaliate, you don’t know whether you will survive the next one. Politics is not religion at all. If not that we were firm, your party needed this state badly.

“Your President has given us an award as the best in infrastructure. So, I don’t know again what you will use to campaign in the state again because I am carrying the certificate everywhere I am going to. So, you people should surrender. There is no need of campaigning in this state.

“People like you that had worked in your state are the people I invite to commission projects that impact on lives of the people. We know you, you always show strength and that is why when you were showing strength in your party, some people did not like it and they ganged up to remove you.

“Nigerians don’t like anything that is straight. They will find a way to circumvent it to make sure the person who is trying to do it is taken out. “But Gods time is the best. We were happy that you left because you were too strong. Anybody who watched you talk, sometimes the opposition did not know what to say again. So, the day you were removed, we thanked God because you gave us a lot of heat.”

The governor explained his choice of some key opposition leaders to inaugurate projects implemented by his administration.

He said no law stipulated otherwise, adding: “Party is like a conveyor belt. It is a vehicle to take you to your destination. You come down from that vehicle and focus on governance. Governance doesn’t know party. It doesn’t know ethnicity and it doesn’t know about religion. It is for everybody, those who supported you and those, who did not support you.

“Many people have been saying why am I inviting other people to come and inaugurate projects and I am not inviting people in my party. First, no law says I must only invite my party members to come and inaugurate my projects.

“When you invite other parties, they come and see really whether what they hear is correct. I am sure when Adams Oshiomhole goes back he will says all those things I heard, I went and saw and all are correct.

“In fact, tomorrow, Peter Obi is coming. He is not in my party. On Monday, Kwankwaso is coming.”

He said the eighth flyover and ninth flyover at Nkpolu-Oroworokwo that were awarded in July were all delivered at record time.”

He said: “This is the eighth flyover and the ninth flyovers will be commissioned tomorrow by Peter Obi. Last year June, July we flagged off the Nkpolu-Oroworokwo Flyover and the same period we flagged off this particular flyover. So within a year these two flyovers had been completed.

“I want to say authoritatively that we are not owing a dime as far as this flyover is concerned. Before development there must be some discomfort. I have told the contractor to go and complete all other roads that had not been completed in my community before I leave office.

“This is my community, if I don’t do it now I don’t know who will do it. I don’t want to wait for my successor because he too has his community. Let me finish my community so that when he comes he will face his community. If everybody comes and work like that, the entire state will be developed.”

Inaugurating the project, Oshiomhole, distanced himself from any military invasion of Rivers during the 2019 election, saying he was never in charge of the armed forces.

He commended Wike for inviting him and some opposition leaders to inaugurate projects, saying that when he was the Edo governor, he invited Peter Obi to open some projects in his state.

Oshiomhole harped on the need for politicians to keep to their agreements and fulfill their promises.

Describing Wike as his Man of the Year for maintaining his steadfastness in demanding equity and justice in PDP, Oshiomhole said the governor merited the award conferred on him as best in infrastructures by President Muhammadu Buhari.

He said: “In a democracy, yes, we need political parties and we need to contest elections, but in doing so; when we make promises and people give us the benefit of the doubts, when the election session is over we should move away from politics to projects.

“Our is not very generous in praising people. He does not flatter people and that is why it took him seven years to confer his first national honours. He told me you don’t throw honours away. You have to honour people who rally merit it. You can see you are one of the very few and I think yours was particularly celebrated.

“The President Buhari finds in your person, in spite of your statements about his government, worthy of that honour as Mr. Project. I think Rivers people should be proud. Governor Wike has truly transformed this city. Even the worst critic will admit that Governor Wike has made a difference.

“You made a difference, not just in projects. I join you in saying that a country should not be governed by people who cannot be trusted; when politicians make statements, promises and agreements and refuse to obey them. When they default, they will say it is politics.”




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The Federal Government has made it clear that university lecturers will not get paid for work not done. This is in line with the ‘No work, no pay’ policy.

The Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, stated this on Wednesday during a briefing with State House correspondents in Abuja.

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), which embarked on strike in February, called off the action in October following the directive of the Court of Appeal which ordered the lecturers back to work.

Following the calling off of the strike, the government paid the lecturers half salaries for the month of October, while insisting that it would not pay for the months the lecturers were on strike.

But the Minister of Education, on Wednesday, said the position of the Federal Government was that the lecturers “would not be paid for work not done.”

The minister also reacted to the allegation made by the President of ASUU, Professor Emmanuel Osodoke, that paying the lecturers on pro-rata basis was a ploy to make them casual workers.

“Nobody can make university lecturers casual workers,” he said.

When told that the lecturers were threatening a one-day action to protest government’s action, Adamu said he was not aware.

Ghanaian govt denies authorizing security advice to its nationals residing in Abuja

The Ghanaian government has denied authorizing a statement issuing security advice to its nationals residing in Abuja.



A statement alleged to have emanated from the Ghanaian government's office went viral on Wednesday, November 16. The purported statement advised Ghanaians against making non-essential travels to Abuja, citing heightened insecurity. The statement went viral weeks after the US and UK also issued a security alert.

In a statement released on Wednesday night November 16, the Ghanaian government said the security alert was not authorized.



Read the statement below...

The Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Abdulrasheed Bawa, has said the decision to redesign the naira is aimed at returning hidden public funds.



The antigraft agency boss made this known in his recent interview with Deutsche Welle DW Hausa Service. According to him, the Federal government wants people who hid the funds to deposit them in bank accounts.

The EFCC chair insisted that there was no political motive behind the idea. According to him, President Buhari had evaluated and accepted the advice put forward by the Central Bank of Nigeria on the redesign of the naira.



“These public funds were embezzled and we want them to return them; we have not told anyone not to bring this money out. What the government said was to deposit the money into bank accounts, or else sanctions may follow.

The redesigning of the naira in law is expected to be done after every eight years; Nigeria has 20 years without redesigning, almost 80% of the naira is not in the bank and the CBN is in the hands of people; so how can the government succeed? How can a country get 25% of foreign exchange which is a benefit from its currency in 10 days?

There is no political motive behind this; some people siphoned and hid public funds and that is why we want them to bring them out.

We are also calling on Nigerians and even non-Nigerians that all channels are accessible; if anyone knows someone who hid suspicious money, they should alert us and we will investigate it; when we investigate the money and get it, the whistleblower also gets 5 per cent.”he said

Media personality, Frank Edoho has reacted to the criticism Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi has faced from some South-East politicians.



In the tweet he shared, Frank stated that Igbo politicians will never stop baffling him.

He further averred that instead of supporting their kinsman who has been presented a rare opportunity to become President of the country like Yoruba and Hausa people do with their candidates, Igbo are looking for ways to disrupt and thwart him.



Frank tweeted;



Igbo politicians will never stop baffling me. You have the rare opportunity of one of your kin being President but instead of supporting and clamoring for him like Yoruba and Hausa people do with their candidates, you look for ways to disrupt and thwart him! Tufia Kwa!

A Court of Appeal in Abuja has set aside the judgment of the Federal High Court Abuja, which removed Godswill Akpabio as the All Progressives Congress (APC) candidate for Akwa Ibom North West Senatorial District.

On Monday, a three-member panel of justices led by Justice Danlami Senchi, held that Akpabio failed to file a proof of arguments within the time provided by the rules.

Furthermore, the panel ruled that Akpabio, being a presidential aspirant of the APC, could not participate in the valid primary of the party held on May 27 and monitored by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), which produced Udom Ekpoudom as a candidate.

But a Federal High Court in Abuja had on September 22 asked INEC to reinstate Senator Akpabio as APC’s candidate, being the candidate nominated by the party in the second primary of June 9.

The lower court had directed that INEC accepts the former Minister of Niger Delta as the APC flagbearer.

Also, the court ordered that INEC publish Akpabio’s name as APC senatorial candidate for Akwa Ibom North/West senatorial district in 2023, stating that the Commission acted illegally by refusing to accept and publish the former governor’s name when it was submitted to it by the APC as its candidate.

Justice Emeka Nwite who delivered judgment held that Akpabio was validly nominated as the Akwa – Ibom North/West Senatorial District candidate of the APC from the primary conducted by the party’s National Working Committee (NWC) on June 9, 2022.

The trial Judge faulted INEC for electing to monitor the May 27 primary, conducted by an illegal faction of the party led by Augustine Ekanem as against the June 9 primary authorized conducted by the APC NWC.

The police in Adamawa state have apprehended a 32 years old man while using an ATM at an old generation bank along Bank road in yola North local government area on November 8.



The suspect identified as Joseph Nwakibe, a native of Nnewi South Anambra state and resident of Makurdi, Benue state, was said to have been invited to Yola by his friend, Obinna Ajima now at large for joint fraudlent activities.



''Preliminary investigation reveals that, the suspects goes around with several expired ATM cards of various banks and await their victims, they usually queue behind customers with pretend as customers and usually offers to assist anyone they perceive is having difficulties in making transactions and in the process take note of the person's ATM pin number and smartly swap the card with the fake one in their hand.'' a statement by SP Suleiman Nguroje, reads in part



The spokesperson mentioned that the state Commissioner of Police CP SK Akande commended the effort of the operatives in apprehending such criminal minded elements, equally directed that effort be intensify to arrest the other suspect who is currently at large.

Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) Group Managing Director, Mele Kyari, yesterday said oil thieves were after his life.

He said the discovery of about 295 illegal connections to oil pipelines has resulted in death threats to him.

Kyari was silent on who made the threats and said nothing about reporting the matter to security agencies.

He dismissed the threats as a non-issue because “every human being will die someday”.

Kyari said NNPCL destroyed thousands of illegal refineries in the last few months.

A connection to the main pipeline carrying crude to the terminal for export was also discovered, he added.

Kyari said the battle against oil thieves was yielding results as daily production has risen to about 1.4million barrels per day.

Also yesterday, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Chairman, Abdulrasheed Bawa, said the anti-graft agency was investigating the crude oil theft.

Independent Corrupt Practices and other related Offences Commission (ICPC) Chairman, Prof Bolaji Owasanoye (SAN), said Nigeria was losing about 60 per cent of its revenue to bad agreements.

The trio spoke at a one-day Legislative Transparency and Accountability Summit organised by the House of Representatives Committee on Anti-Corruption.

Kyari, however, said not all the 700,000 barrels of crude lost daily was stolen.

According to him, some oil companies sometimes refuse to pump crude into the export line when they discover that such crude does not get to the export terminal.

He said NNPCL engaged private security firms to police the pipelines in collaboration with other security agencies.

“We didn’t know that this (oil theft) was happening. The scale is enormous, Kyari said.


“We have seen pipelines taken from our main trunk lines to abandoned platforms. We have thousands of illegal refineries that we have taken down in the past few months.

“We have seen over 295 illegal connections to our pipelines. Many of them have been there for years.

“You have a situation where your production came down to 1.1 million barrels from 1.8 million, but the truth is that not all of them are stolen. Let me clear the misconception that the remaining balance is stolen.

“Companies will stop injecting oil into the pipeline the moment they discover it can’t get to the terminal.

“Therefore, at the peak of production, you lose over 200,000 barrels per day.

“But once companies discover that their products won’t get to the terminal, they will terminate it.”

The NPPCL GMD said the company has restored two of its trunk lines, following the discoveries.

“We were left with no choice but to involve private security contractors and it worked. They are complementing our security agencies and they have done great work.

“I have received several death threats to myself. This is the cost of change.

“When people walk away from things they are used to, to something new, something that will take away value and benefit from them, they will react.

“That reaction is beneficial to us for all of us that will work together to make sure that this works,” he said.

Kyari, who said NNPCL was open to an audit, blamed the lack of remittances to the Federation Account on the subsidy regime.

“We are inviting it (an audit) so that Nigerians will know what we are doing.

“It’s not possible for you to buy fuel at N165 when your actual cost is far from the value.

“We need to understand what this subsidy means. When PMS (Premium Motor Spirit) comes into this country, we transfer to the marketers at N113 for us to realise N165 at the port.

“That means whatever is the cost, anything after that value is a subsidy. So someone has to pay for it. Every difference between 113 and that value is the subsidy.

“Some developed countries are taking out taxes on PMS. That’s another name for subsidy. No matter how they try to put it, it’s a subsidy.

“Countries are doing something to bring down the cost of energy.

“These common conversations you’re seeing in the media that NNPCL has not gone to FAAC (Federation Account Allocation Committee) since January are a misplaced expectation because our value should go to the tax authority.

“Therefore, Nigerians must get used to seeing NNPCL off those transactions; we are not able to meet our fiscal obligation of tax reality because of the subsidy regime,” the NNPCL GMD said.

Kyari believes a government-owned company can make a profit.

He said: In 2018, we made a loss of N803 billion. We reduced the losses to N1.3 billion in 2019.

“By 2020, we made a net profit of N207 billion and by 2021, we made a net profit of N687 billion. So, it’s possible to make a profit.

“But is that the capacity of a company that has assets worth over $600 billion? No, because people who have less capacity are making stupendous profits.

“You can’t do that until you change the system and the trajectory, but we can do better than we are doing today.”

Owasanoye decries illicit financial flows

Prof Owasanoye said the oil and gas sector accounts for about 92.9 per cent of illicit financial flows (IFFs).

According to him, there are indications that Nigeria accounts for the highest IFFs in Africa from the extractive sector.

He said: “To effectively and significantly reduce the menace of IFFs from Nigeria, we must focus on the extractive industry, especially the oil and gas sector.

“I will suggest that privatisation of NNPC does not eliminate extractive industry transparency standards of – ‘publish what you pay’—oil, gas, and mining companies disclosing the revenue payments they make to NNPC and stakeholders, including legislature and Civil Society Organisations; ‘publish what you earn’—government disclosing the revenues received from extractive companies; and – ‘publish what you spend’—government publishing full budget expenditures.”

The ICPC chairman believes that aggressive tax avoidance by multinationals was costing Nigeria a huge chunk in IFFs, which must be addressed.

He said: “Some multinational companies falsify trade records, fuel transfer pricing, inflate operational costs and retain on the payroll as expatriates staff who work remotely, but make huge emoluments claims for these, among other anomalous practices.

“The privatisation of NNPC does not protect it from being a victim of sharp business practices by trading partners.

“NNPC and Nigeria, therefore, remain vulnerable to corruption of the process, illegal exploitation of natural resource and course tax evasion.”

Owosanye lamented that several agreements negotiated and signed by the country have not been well coordinated.

We must not be left behind, says Speaker

House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila regretted that oil theft was taking a toll on the economy.

He said: “Due to theft and various acts of economic sabotage, we are experiencing a massive decline in crude oil production and export volume.

“Our country is the victim of bad actors determined to achieve great personal wealth at our collective expense.

“At a time of severe financial constraints, the perpetrators of this brazen heist threaten our ability to meet the demands of governance and nation-building.

“Their actions effectively amount to treason against our country, for which they must be held accountable.

“At the same time, we cannot be ignorant of global trends, and we cannot wish the facts away.

“The reality is that the best days of the fossil fuel industry are not ahead; they are long past.

“There is a coming, and some might say, ongoing shift in the global policy conversation about the economics and regulation of the oil and gas industry.

“We must be clear about how these changes affect us and what we need to do so that we are not left behind.”

Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI), Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, said available records revealed that between 1999 and 2020, Nigeria earned $741.74 billion from oil and gas alone and about N624 billion from the solid mineral sector.

He said the agency looked forward to its reports being laid at plenary in the National Assembly and debated.

“The National Assembly needs information on what is paid, what is received and what the money is used for, and NEITI has that data,” he said.

Orji said NEITI examines how much oil Nigeria produces in a given year, and what is received as revenue.

He urged the National Assembly to subject NEITI reports to debates, just as it does the Auditor General’s report.

“The two of them wear the same cap and the same nomenclature.”

Chief Spokesperson for the Tinubu-Shettima Presidential Campaign Council, Festus Keyamo has claimed that the alleged drug money the All Progressives Congress presidential candidate forfeited in the United States was tax.



Keyamo made the claim following the controversy surrounding a document recently released by the US District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, after Tinubu’s alleged involvement in narcotics and money laundering about 30 years ago was investigated.



Appearing on a Channels Television program last night, Keyamo who insisted that Tinubu was an employee of Mobil Oil and not a treasurer of a drug cartel, also said that he (Tinubu) deposited some funds in bank accounts in the US as investments and got returns on those investments.

He claimed that 10 accounts were linked to Tinubu by United States authorities in the early 90s, and $460,000 were deducted from one of the accounts as tax on investments domiciled in US banks.



The Minister of state for Labour also said Tinubu took responsibility for all the 10 accounts because they were also traced to his mother and “relatives”. He added that the banks were supposed to deduct taxes from the investments but they did not and this was not a “deliberate act” on the part of Tinubu.



Keyamo said;



“He, Asiwaju, went to open an account, the address by which he opened the account was already used by these people…investigated for narcotics.

“The deposits he made there (in banks) are what bankers called investments; he kept the money there and he was getting interests. They (US government) said he had not paid tax on those interests. That is all and guess what? The banks are supposed to deduct the tax from source.


“Out of the 10 accounts, it was only one account – the one in Heritage Bank – that they took $460,000 as tax on interest that he benefited on the investment he made in those accounts.

“In fact, all the money in Heritage Bank was not taken; they took only $460,000 as tax.”



Keyamo insisted that there's no criminal indictment or conviction against Tinubu, alleging that the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) was behind the reincarnation of the controversial court document.



He added;



“His (Tinubu’s) detractors kept bringing up these issues over and over when his political profile is rising, when he wants to run for office or any political turn in his life, they will bring up these issues.

“The date on the papers flying up and down, the date of certification is 2022, so they are using this to confuse people that these are fresh papers. If documents are 40 years old or 100 years old, once you go to court, and apply for certified true copies of those documents, they will give you those documents but they will stamp the day they are giving you those documents.

“This is what our detractors, the PDP, perhaps that is what they went to the US for when they pretended that they went for high-level engagement. This is part of the high-level engagement they went for.”


Nigeria and Nigerians are going through a lot at the moment;
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2⃣ Insecurity
3⃣ Exchange Rate (Naira/Dollar)
4⃣ Flood
5⃣ Fuel Scarcity and so on.

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The Lagos State Government has said it will henceforth begin impounding all unregistered vehicles plying Lagos roads.

 

Engr. Abdulhafiz Toriola, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Transportation, made this known on Tuesday, November 8, at Alausa, Ikeja, saying it is in line with Section 16 and 196 of the Lagos State Transport Sector Reform Law (TSRL), 2018.

 

 Toriola said the move was necessary in a bid to checkmate the activities of some criminal elements who devised strategies including the use of unregistered vehicles to attack unsuspecting members of the public; thereby making it difficult for law enforcement agencies to track or trace such incidence.

 

He explained that number plate is a vital security feature of any vehicle as it is the only means of identifying the detail of vehicles that are registered in the state government's data base.


 
He urged Motorists to register their vehicles under the Motor Vehicle Administration Agency (MVAA) and the Vehicle Inspection Service (VIS) in order to prevent the clamp down of their vehicles.

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Tesla Inc. Chief Executive Officer (CEO) Elon Musk has reportedly sold about 19.5 million shares of the company ever since he reached a deal to buy Twitter for $44 billion

 

According to The Verge, these shares are close to worth $4 billion as per the forms filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. 

 

The report adds that Musk has offloaded almost $20 billion in the electric vehicle maker this year. All this offloading has been reportedly done to mostly finance the Twitter deal which was worth $44 billion. 

 

In April and August, Elon Musk has sold a combined $15.4 billion worth of Tesla shares, with $8.4 billion in April and around $6.9 billion in August. However, after these sales, he said that there were no more sales planned. 

 

With regards to these sales, Musk also tweeted, “No further TSLA sales planned after today.”

 

His takeover of Twitter has also invited drastic measures like the sacking of almost 50 per cent of Twitter's workforce, a verification fee. 

 

According to a Reuters report, Musk’s net worth also dropped below $200 billion on Tuesday as investors dumped Tesla’s shares on fears of the Chief Twit being more preoccupied with Twitter. The report reads, “Now Wall Street fears that Musk has stretched himself too thin at a time when the EV maker is ramping up production and faces rising competition.”

 

Musk now has a net worth of $197.4 billion, according to Forbes, with a big share of that coming from his nearly 15 percent stake in Tesla, which has a market value of $622billion.  

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Operatives of the Delta State Police Command have arrested three suspected armed robbers in Orerokpe and Sapele areas of the state. 

 

Spokesperson of the command, DSP Bright Edafe, in a statement on Tuesday, November 8, 2022, said one locally made gun and a stolen Lexus SUV were recovered from the suspects.

 

According to the PPRO, one of the suspects, Idowu James, shot a driver identified as Victor Olori and snatched the vehicle from him around Ebrumede Area of Sapele. 

 

"On the 5/11/2022 at about 1215hrs, an indigene of Orerokpe (name withheld) reported that about 1140hrs, four (4) hoodlums armed with a gun attacked and dispossessed them of one (1) Iphone Xr, one (1) Iphone 6s, one (1) Tecno spark 2, one (1) Iphone Max, Camon 19 and Uba Atm card at gunpoint," the statement read.

 

"On receipt of this information, the DPO Orerokpe mobilized and led the patrol team to the scene. The hoodlums took to their heels on sighting the Police but the team succeeded in arresting one of the suspects named Desmond Ejinyere ‘m’ 18yrs while others escaped into the bush

 

"One locally made cut-to-size double barrel gun and two live cartridges were recovered. While combing the bush, another member of the gang one Joshua Emoefe ‘m’ 20yrs of Abraka Street Orerokpe was also arrested. Manhunt for the fleeing members of the gang is ongoing.

 

"On the 6/11/2022 at about 2100hrs, Dragon Patrol teams 15/13 while on stop-and-search duty along Warri-Sapele road by Ibada-Elume in Sapele LGA, Intercepted one Lexus RX 330 SUV with reg no. KWC 81 HH, Chasis no. JTIHF31U400010242 for a search. 

 

"The driver who was the lone occupant of the vehicle jumped out of the vehicle and fled into a nearby bush in a bid to escape. He was given a hot chase by the operatives and was arrested.

 

"During investigation, suspect was identified as Idowu James ‘m’ 28yrs of No. 25 Kareem Oyeladi Street Mangoro Agege Lagos State. When the car was searched, documents bearing the name of one Victor Olori were recovered

 

"When phone call was put across to the phone number found in the document, one man (name withheld) answered and informed the police that the vehicle was snatched at gun point from his son (name withheld) on the 4/11/2022 at about 1900hrs around Ebrumede Area during which he was shot and currently receiving treatment. Suspect is in custody aiding investigation."

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Man sets his five stepchildren ablaze in Ondo after wife allegedly denied him sex

The Ondo State Police Command has arrested a 54-year-old man, Ojo Joseph, for allegedly setting ablaze five of his stepchildren.



The sad incident occurred at the Fagun Crescent area of Ondo town, headquarters of Ondo West Local Government Area of the state.

It was gathered that the suspect poured petrol into the room of his stepchildren and set them ablaze while asleep.



A source within the area to Nigerian Tribune, that the man perpetrated the heinous act because the mother of the children allegedly denied him sex and they have been having misunderstandings over the issue.



According to the source, the alarm raised by the children attracted the neighbours who raced to the scene of the incident to save the children, but one of them was burnt to death in the inferno.



The mother of the seven children was said to have escaped from the inferno with her twins with a minor injury, but four of the children were rushed to a clinic where they were referred to the Federal Medical Centre, Owo, for medical treatment.

Confirming the incident on Sunday, spokesperson of the command, Funmi Odunlami said the man had been arrested for a case of alleged arson and murder.



The PPRO explained that the suspect is the stepfather of the victims and not their biological father, but said the suspect is the father of the 18-month-old twins.



Odunlami said an investigation had commenced into the matter and the man would be charged to court after the investigation.

Former Ekiti state Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has warned there will be more turbulence within the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

Fayose, in a tweet, claimed things might get messier within the next few days or weeks.

The former governor warned that the impending turbulence might be more serious than ever.

He wrote: “I see more serious turbulence for the PDP, more than ever before. I have been silent all this while, hoping that things will get better.

“I’d advise we do more than we are doing now to resolve this crisis as events in days/weeks ahead may likely get messier. I pray this advice is not ignored.”

PDP has been in crisis since former Vice President Atiku Abubakar emerged as the party’s presidential candidate.

Atiku’s emergence led to the factionalization of the PDP. Governor Nyesome Wike, who lost out on the presidential ticket, is aggrieved that Atiku opted for Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State ahead of him.

Wike, who succeeded in pulling some governors and party chieftains to his side, also demanded the resignation of Iyorchia Ayu as the PDP’s National Chairman.

The governor and his allies noted that a particular region of the country couldn’t produce the party’s National Chairman and presidential candidate.

2023: Fayose reveals who he’ll vote for during presidential, governorship election
Isaac, the younger brother of a former Ekiti state Governor, Ayodele Fayose, has revealed he will vote for Peter Obi, the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, LP, in the 2023 election.

The younger Fayose made the remark while declaring the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, as a dead party.

In a Facebook post, he said he would vote for Babajide Sanwo-Olu as the Governor of Lagos State.

“PDP National is a dead party! In Lagos, I am voting for Governor Babajide Sanwo Olu. My polling unit is on Admiralty way Lekki phase 1.

“For President, I am voting Mr. Peter Obi,” Fayose wrote.

Many Nigerians have been clamouring for the former Anambra State governor to succeed President Muhammadu Buhari.

Obi’s supporters continue to grow in numerical strength.

Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) will from Monday, November 7, begin impounding unpainted commercial vehicles in the state as directed by the state government.



This was disclosed by the General Manager of LASTMA, Bolaji Oreagba, in a statement released on Sunday, November 6, by the Director of Public Affairs Unit of the authority, Toafik Adebayo.


Oreagba said minibuses known as ‘Danfo’, including ‘Korope’, should be painted in Yellow with Black stripes while mass transit buses with two doors should be painted with the approved Red Colour.



Drivers of buses that have been authorised to ply Victoria Island and its environs, have been directed to ensure it has the approved colour and also registered at established offices.



It read;



“Officers of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority (LASTMA) have been directed to impound any commercial bus not painted in the approved Lagos State colour of red or yellow with black stripes.

“Any vehicle impounded will not be released until the needful is done in accordance with the law.

“All commercial buses must be duly registered with commercial number plates and hackney permits issued by the appropriate authority in Lagos.

“Also, all approved area shuttle buses must henceforth restrict their operations to their ‘approved’ areas of coverage as anyone caught outside their jurisdiction would be impounded and charged to court accordingly.”

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission EFCC has released photos of some of the 40 properties Justice Inyang Ekwo of a Federal High Court, Abuja, ordered former Deputy Senate president, Ike Ekweremadu, to forfeit to the Federal government.



LIB had earlier reported that the antigraft agency today secured the order for the interim forfeiture of 40 landed properties, nine in Dubai, linked to Ekweremadu.


A statement released by EFCC says among the affected properties forfeited include a London property at Flat 4, Varsity Court, Hormer Street ( WIH4NW) which was acquired on December 4, 2008 for £830,000; three properties in Florida, United States, one of which was purchased for $155,000 USD; a property on approximately 3000 square meter parcel of land consisting of 7 bedroom detached Boys Quarters, swimming pool, enclosed 3 car garage with roller shutter doors, gate house and generator house at No.6 Ilado Close, Ikoyi, Lagos bought for N630million on August 8, 2015; three blocks of six flats each, totaling 18 luxury flats at Plot 904 Durumi, Abuja acquired for N700million and Four Rootown House at Villa No. 148 Maeeni the Lahes Emirate Hill Dubai valued at $250,00 USD.



See more photos of the properties below...

Lecturers under the aegis of the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) were paid half salaries for the month of October by the federal government.

The federal government paid them for 18 working days in the month of October.

Lecturers and senior members of ASUU, who spoke to Punch revealed that the government only paid half salaries.

ASUU called off its eight-month-old strike on October 14, 2022. Lecturers were encouraged to resume back to work by the union on that same day.

Speaking with our correspondent, a senior member of the National Executive Council, said, “We were only paid for the days after the strike. I received a half salary. Other members are angry right now, they are blaming the NEC for calling off the strike.”

Another member, who confirmed the development, said, “Yes, it is true, I received half salary. It seems the government is set to kill unionism in the country but we are ready for them.”

ASUU strike: We have not cancelled any admission – JAMB
The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, has made it clear that the board has not cancelled or deferred any admission to Universities, Polytechnics, or Colleges of Education as a result of the strike embarked upon by the Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU.

Professor Ishaq Oloyede, the Registrar/Chief Executive of JAMB, confirmed this.

Oloyede revealed this shortly before he opened the National Executive Council, NEC, meeting of the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions, NASU, in Abuja.

He said that the onus of taking students lies in the individual universities.

According to him, some schools are still in their 2020/2021 session, others are in the 2021/22 academic session. And some other schools are in their 2022/2023 session.

Nonetheless, he advised candidates to interact with the schools to know the particular session they are running.

Oloyede maintained that JAMB has not cancelled any admission for any session and that no admission by the board has elapsed or will elapse.

He advised students seeking admission to contact the school of their choice on their current session.

Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Abdulrasheed Bawa has revealed that the agency is currently monitoring three Governors who are allegedly planning to launder stashed billions of naira through table payment of salaries to workers.



Bawa who called for support from Nigerians in an interview with Daily Trust, added that the raid on Bureau De Change operators will be sustained.

The EFCC Chairman during the interview refused to disclose the identity of the three governors. He only said two of them are from the North, while the third Governor is from the southern part of the country.



He said;



“I don’t know how they want to achieve that but we have to stop them from doing that. Well, we are working, they have not paid the salaries in cash yet but it is a very serious thing.

“The law is very clear regarding cash transactions. Anybody that is to consummate any cash transaction as an individual, if it is not through a financial institution must not be above N5million and if it is above that it is criminal for you to engage in such transaction. And for corporate entities it is N10million.

“Yes, I agree the salaries are not up to that but why are you all of a sudden, and all along you have been paying people salaries through their bank accounts and now you want to pay them in cash, what are you trying to do? They will come under a lot of guises, they are trying to do verification of officers, that is what we have gotten.”



Bawa also confirmed that there is a mad rush by some people to dispose off their stashed funds by buying properties.



He said;



“We are aware of that. Even if you dispose of your property and you receive cash, for that cash to be of value to you after January 31, 2023, you have to take it to the bank; so what happened, are you coming to the bank with those millions? That is why we are working with the bankers and if you have this information let us know about it.”



On raids carried out against BDC operators, Bawa said;


“They (BDCs) are very important in the sense that a lot of people that have this naira cash, will want to convert them to USD or other foreign currencies, that is why they are very important.

“And based on the known gullibility of these people (BDCs), they are willing to accept this cash from the owners of these monies and they are willing to depart with the foreign currencies that they have and so that is why they are very important and very critical to us in this project that we said to ourselves that we are going to do."



When it was pointed out that Naira's value is crashing against the dollar, he said;



“The truth of the matter here is just a simple function of demand and supply, people are rushing this commodity not that they are going to use it for any meaningful business engagement but they are just rushing for it, just a store of value, that is what is happening.

“And what they say in economics is the higher the demand, the higher the price; so people are just seeing USD or other hard currencies just the way that they are seeing gold, to get it exchanged and store their value.”

On why he met with chief compliance officers of banks in Lagos recently, Bawa said;



“We knew a lot of people are hoarding these funds, it is with them and they will always find a way of trying to bring it back to the system.

“So, irrespective of what they use their cash for, whether they exchange it for dollars, whether they use it to purchase houses for those that are willing to accept cash, it has to eventually come back to the financial institution. So, irrespective of what you do, the banks are very important and critical in the sense that they are the end recipients of this cash.

“The owner of BDC must deposit the money he exchanged for the currency he did, the owner of real estate must also do the same and all of that. So, we sat down, we deliberated and we agreed on what to do. Everybody is happy about it."

For the second day in a row, activities at the Federal High Court in Ikoyi, Lagos have been crippled following a power blackout.

The Nation reports that the court has been in darkness since Wednesday morning following the non-supply of electricity to the facility.

Some cases slated for hearing Wednesday and Thursday, could not go on as the atmosphere was inconducive for some judges.

Despite the poor lighting nevertheless, some judges, court officials, lawyers and litigants carried on proceedings.

However, most of the judges and lawyers took off their wigs and gowns – compulsory courtroom attire – during proceedings, because of the heat.

The Nation learnt that the court authorities could not resort to an alternative power source because of the unavailability of diesel to power the two generators servicing the facility.

Lagos, like several other parts of the country, has been in the throes of another round of fuel scarcity since Tuesday last week.


A court official, who spoke in anonymity, confirmed that there was no diesel

Some lawyers equally expressed their displeasure about what is happening.

Another lawyer, who declined to be named, also complained.

“This is very bad, how can the Federal High Court which has wide jurisdiction in adjudicating cases like pre-election matters not be able to power generators for the comfort of its judges? The situation in the country is really alarming as no sector is working optimally,” the lawyer lamented.

Eko Electricity Distribution Company which services the area had yet to reply to The Nation’s enquiry as of the time of this report.

The Federal High Court’s Lagos division is the busiest or second busiest in the country.

The Nation reports that on February 23, an almost eight-hour power blackout stalled activities at the court.


On that day, the court was in darkness from about 8am till the close of business.

It could not resort to an alternative power source because the two generators which supply backup electricity were faulty and undergoing repairs.

A similar power outage the same day at the Lagos High Court sitting at the Tafawa Balewa Square (TBS) lasted for over an hour.

Security operatives in Anambra State have killed three fierce-looking gunmen during a duel.

The incident took place on Wednesday at Umunze, Orumba South local government area.

The gunmen had different charms on their bodies, including legs, necks, waists and hands.

The Nation gathered the gunmen were part of the group killing innocent citizens around the Orumba area.

Anambra Police spokesman Ikenga Tochukwu could not be reached as his phone was switched off.

But one of the senior police officers in the Command confirmed the incident to The Nation.

He said a combined team of the Police and Military carried out the operation around 4:30 pm.

The presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, has warned the vice-presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Kashim Shettima not to be “irresponsible and disrespectful”.

Atiku said in light of a recent comment by Shettima, the administration of Bola Tinubu will be “anti-entrepreneurship”.

Shettima had criticised one of the businesses of Abubakar at an event in Lagos. He said being an owner of a table water company does not mean he understands the economy.

“And believe me, the ability to sell bottled water doesn’t make one an expert on the economy,” Shettima had said.

But in a statement signed by Paul Ibe, his media adviser, Abubakar said any business should be valued.

Watch your tongue
Abubakar said politics should not make anyone utter “irresponsible statements”.

“It is with utter dismay that we listened to the presidential candidate of the APC, Bola Tinubu and his running mate talk condescendingly about other presidential candidates at a gathering that they invited members of the private sector to on Tuesday,” the statement reads.

“The remarks from the candidates of the APC show gross irresponsibility and disrespect.

“It is indicative that the Tinubu-Shettima administration will be anti-entrepreneurship and business.

“One would have thought that the duo would use the advantage of such a gathering to talk about solutions that their party, APC, has foisted on the country. Rather, they went on the ultra highway of political indecency.

“Any business that produces products, creates jobs and delivers dividends, especially in this era of the APC administration when the country is bleeding jobs is an asset and should not be mocked.

“It is irrelevant if it is a small business or a big business. And for Shettima, it is more shameful he will denigrate business that employs large chunk of people in the Northeast.

“Even Atiku’s opponents have acknowledged the business resume. That has seen him being engaged in businesses covering farming, animal feed, beverages, banking, logistics, polymer and plastics, education, among others. Employing thousands directly and hundreds of thousands indirectly.”

Apologize to Nigerians
The PDP presidential candidate said Shettima should apologise to Nigerians, especially those who benefit from his business.

“Politics does not confer on anyone the license to make irresponsible statements,” Abubakar said.

He said Shettima should have used the opportunity to discuss what he and Tinubu intend to do for Nigerians.

He said Shettima “chose to embarrass their guests, using their audience to play vile political games”.

“For someone who self-appoints as the APC national leader, it is ridiculous that the presidential candidate of the APC failed to proffer solutions to the economic woes that his party has foisted on Nigerians in the past seven years,” the statement reads.

“Unlike Tinubu who sat idly by and watched his APC ruin Nigeria to the current sorry state, the Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, Atiku Abubakar has been consistent in proffering solutions to the myriads of ineffective policy options of the APC administration.

“Atiku, it was, who first raised the alarm about the debt burden that the APC has thrown Nigeria into. It was also Atiku who continued to call the attention of the nation to the need to diversify the economy away from heavy dependence on the exploration of crude oil. Atiku, again, was the one who said that the quickest path to lift the majority of Nigerians out of the poverty belt, is for the government to give incentives to the private sector in order for them to create more jobs for Nigerians.

“Even during the COVID-19 pandemic, Atiku pioneered the private donor relief funds. Which opened the gateway for other Nigerians of means to follow suit. In providing succor to people who were worst hit by attendant self-isolation in management of the pandemic.”

Former Ivory Coast striker, Didier Drogba, has hailed Nigeria’s Victor Osimhen as a complete striker.

Osimhen has been in sensational form for his Serie A club Napoli this season.

The 23-year-old grabbed a hat-trick in their 4-0 drubbing of Sassuolo last weekend.

It was his first hat-trick for the Parthenopeans.

Drogba made the assertion while reacting to a video clip on Twitter.

In the video, Osimhen unselfishly gave the ball to his Napoli teammate, Khivicha Kvaratskhelia to score from the penalty spot in a UEFA Champions League clash against Ajax last month.

Kvaratskhelia didn’t disappoint the Nigerian as he slotted the ball into the net to put the Partenopei 3-1 ahead in the game.

Osimhen later capitalized on Daley Blind’s howler to score Napoli’s fourth goal in the 89th minute.

Reacting to Osimhen’s gesture, Drogba wrote on his Twitter handle: That’s a complete striker: unselfishness…the real meaning of ‘win as A TEAM’ “!!!@victorosimhen9#fuoriclasse.”

He is making progress – Spalletti
Victor Osimhen impressed Luciano Spalletti after scoring a hat trick in Napoli’s 4-0 win over Sassuolo in Serie A on Saturday.

The Super Eagle displayed remarkable technique, pace, and physical power in his team’s 4-0 triumph over Sassuolo in a Serie A game at Diego Maradona Stadium. The Super Eagle displayed remarkable technique, pace, and physical power in his team’s 4-0 triumph over Sassuolo in a Serie A game at Diego Maradona Stadium.

Coach Spalletti was pleased with his top player’s ability to capitalize on opportunities to extend the team’s unbeaten streak.

“Seems to me that he is making progress, he has a lot of margins because his possibilities and his flashes are not accessible to a normal player,” Spalletti said according to Tutto Napoli.

“He was fast and accurate. Then today he didn’t take off his shirt, because he would have wanted to take it off.”

The Governor of Rivers state, Nyesom Wike, has mocked the publisher of Ovation magazine, Dele Momodu, over his comment on the ongoing crisis in the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

In an interview, Momodu warned Wike and his allies “not to cross the lines” in their insistence not to work for Atiku Abubakar, the party’s presidential candidate.

“People get angry, there is nothing wrong in that. They have every reason to be angry, but they should not cross certain lines,” the publisher was quoted as saying.

“I have written in the last couple of months to Governor Wike, the closest to me among them, because I call him the ‘poster boy in PDP’, great guy, doing very well, advising him not to cross certain lines.”


Wike hits back
Responding to Momodu’s comment, Wike, in a media chat, mocked the publisher for getting zero vote in the PDP presidential primary, saying Momodu contested for the sake of recognition.

The Rivers governor said he will not allow anybody to use him to gain “relevance”. Adding that he has not left the PDP since 1999 unlike some of his critics.

“I have also read where some people say we should not cross the lines. Ordinarily, I should not have responded to this,” Wike said.

“I read they said it is one Dele Momodu. These are the things I’m talking about. Ask him. When did he join the party?

“He came into PDP two weeks before the presidential primary. He’s from Edo state. He did not even get one vote, not even from his own state.

“When you just want them to recognise you — from presidential aspirant to becoming spokesperson — somebody who wants to rule Nigeria has become a spokesperson of a presidential aspirant.

“All of you know how many times Dele Momodu had been in Port Harcourt, from one project commissioning to another.

“I’m not going to be a party to anybody using me to be relevant. If you don’t have a job, say you don’t have any job. I have a job and I will continue to do my job.”

The acting leader of Afenifere, Ayo Adebanjo, has faulted the visit of the flagbearer of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Tinubu to Reuben Fasoranti.

Adebanjo spoke on Monday during an interview on Channels Television.

On Sunday, Tinubu visited the home of Fasoranti, a founding father of Afenifere, in Akure, the Ondo capital.

During the meeting, Tinubu who had visited Ondo to present his manifesto to Afenifere leaders, could be seen bowing his head to receive prayers from Fasoranti.

The development came weeks after Adebanjo, one of the founding fathers of Afenifere, endorsed Peter Obi, presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP).

In March 2021, Fasoranti handed over Afenifere to Adebanjo due to old age.

There is a conspiracy
Speaking on the development, Adebanjo said there is a conspiracy to divide the socio-cultural group.

He said Fasoranti informed him about the notice of Tinubu’s visit and that he encouraged the elder statesman to allow the visit.

“Pa Fasoranti phoned me on Friday that Tinubu had phoned him that he wanted to come and that he wanted to say he should not come,” he said.

“But I said, ‘no, don’t do that; you are an elder statesman; if he wants to see you, why not’, and I went further to say it is a sort of conspiracy among those who want to divide Afenifere.”

Asked if he consulted Fasoranti before endorsing Obi, Adebanjo said he doesn’t have to consult the elder statesman.

“I don’t have to consult him. He handed over the party (referring to Afenifere) to me over a year ago. That is not the way we do it in the Action Group and he knows it,” he added.

“When he phoned me, I told him that these people want to cause dissension and that he should get out of it. I know all of them.

“I would like you to examine all of them who you called Afenifere, ask them when did they last attend Afenifere meeting and look at all the personnel there. They are the Yoruba leaders in APC.”

No endorsement
Asked if Fasoranti’s gesture to Tinubu connotes endorsement, Adebanjo said the elder statesman did not endorse the presidential bid of the former Lagos governor.

“From what he told me and what I understood, it cannot be an endorsement because I told him to receive him as a citizen,” he added.

“I would like you to ask Pa Fasoranti if he is opposed to the stance of Afenifere. If he says, yes, I’m okay.

“The people in Afenifere — the executives and all that — we know where we are. Those who have left Afenifere, who are jealous of the solidarity there now and who want to cause dissension, that are bringing in him (referring to Tinubu).

“I warned Pa Fasoranti not to allow himself to be put into this mess. I can deal with all of them who were there. They were not there when we were doing all these things. But I don’t want any diversion at this time. Afenifere is for Obi, hook, line and sinker.”