₦airaland Forum

The President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki, is now meeting with stakeholders in the education sector.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/photos-saraki-in-meeting-with.html

Suspected armed herdsmen have killed no fewer than 13 people and two Catholic priests in Ayar-Mbalom community in Gwer East Local Government Area of Benue State.

The armed men reportedly stormed the St. Ignatius’ Catholic Church, during an early morning mass on Tuesday, killing the priests and 13 others.

The Bishop of St Murray hospital Makurdi where the corpses were deposited confirmed to Channels Television that 13 bodies have so far been recovered.

The attack comes barely four days after the murder of 10 persons by suspected herdsmen in Guma Local Council.

However, the Commissioner of Police, Fatai Owoseni, who is said to be out in the field, is yet to confirm the attack.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/suspected-herdsmen-kill-13-worshipers.html

Controversial Big Brother Naija housemate, Cee-c was on Monday night attacked few minutes after arriving the Murtala Mohammed International Airport, Lagos.

Cee-c, who emerged First runner up, after Miracle won the just concluded reality show, arrived the airport at 8:00 p.m alongside other housemates.

It was gathered that a rowdy mob booed and slammed the car which came to pick her her from the airport.

They reportedly insulted her, banged the doors to her car before security operatives intervened.


https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_6BzcHCg60A

Delta State Government has awarded contracts for a total of 208 roads across the three senatorial districts of the state worth over N215 billion between 2015 and the first quarter of this year.

The state Commissioner for Works, Chief James Augoye, who disclosed this at a press conference in Asaba yesterday, noted that some of the various road projects were inherited from past administrations.

Specifically, the works commissioner said a total of 108 of the ongoing roads projects, for which contracts have been awarded since 2015, were inherited from the Governors James Ibori and Emmanuel Uduaghan administrations.


Among the major road projects inherited by the Okowa administration are the Warri-Effurun road, which was initially meant to be a BRT dual-carriageway under the Uduaghan administration that originally awarded contracts for the project.

The Ibori government also originally awarded the road cum drainage project in the Jesus Saves road corridor, whose rehabilitation is continuing towards its completion under the Asaba multiple storm water project, he added.

The works commissioner, who was flanked by his information counterpart, Mr. Patrick Ukah, and some senior ministry officials, said: “The ministry has embarked on the construction, reconstruction, rehabilitation and maintenance of 193 road projects at the cost over N112 billion between May 2015 and March 2018 covering over 732 kilometres of roads and 229 kilometres of concrete-lined drains.

“The value of projects currently being handled by the ministry, including those inherited from the previous administration, is put at over N215 billion and involving 208 roads with a total length of 866 kilometres.
“Of this figure, 92 roads covering over 350 km have been completed while 116 roads are at various stages of completion.”

Augoye also stated that the strategic Asaba-Illah-Ubiaja (Edo State) road has not been ceded to Delta State but remains a federal road.

He, however, observed that the state government has not been reimbursed in respect of the three major interventions carried out on the failed portions on the Ughelli-Isoko-Asaba dual-carriageway, the Warri-Benin expressway and the Agbor-Abraka-Eku road.

Fielding questions from journalists, the works commissioner admitted that the menace of youths attempting to disrupt various ongoing projects and making unreasonable financial demands was gradually creeping into parts of Delta North communities.

He decried that there had been “cases of some youths disturbing contractors on site, with some of them demanding as much as N5,000 daily for doing nothing, and this is affecting some projects.”

Augoye assured Deltans that the government was tackling the problem through community leaders and such efforts were “yielding positive results.”

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/n215bn-roads-contracts-awarded-by-okowa.html

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oDpD59QK11s

The Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammadu Sanusi II, has expressed disappointment over the federal government’s poor attitude to the attraction of foreign investors. Sanusi said this in an interview with journalists at the on-going US-Nigeria Investment Summit 2018 taking place in Washington DC.

The event, which has its theme as “Nigeria is Open for Business”, was billed to have top Nigerian government officials and ministers in attendance. However, when Sanusi arrived at the venue, he was disappointed that the government officials were not on the ground.


The ministers who drew the ire of the king were Chief Audu Ogbeh, Agriculture; Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, Science and Technology; Alhaji Lai Mohammed, Information and Culture; Mr. Babatunde Fashola, Power, Works and Housing; Dr. Ibe Kachikwu, Petroleum Resources; Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, Finance; and Dr. Kayode Fayemi, Steel and Solid Minerals.

Also absent were Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr. Godwin Emefiele; and Executive Secretary of Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission, Mrs. Yewande Sadiku.

According to him, “We have a meeting today with investors, we were supposed to start at 9am, but we started at 10am. When I came in, they took me to the Ambassador’s office to sit down, while investors were waiting down there. We had a list of people who were to be there – the Vice President, minsters, and some of them are in town. But they haven’t come up!

“You invite top investors, your ministers are in Washington, and they do not come to talk to the investors about Nigeria. That is not how you attract investors. If you have this forum in the Rwandan Embassy, I assure you that President Paul Kagame himself would be there telling people to come.

“Sometimes, it is about how we market ourselves, how we package ourselves. There is absolutely no reason for the Nigerian embassy to arrange a ‘Nigeria is Open for Business’ forum with ministers in town, with governors in town and not have the coordination that they are actually here to meet with these investors.

“There is no reason why we should start one hour late, and there is no reason why the public address system should not work.

“At the end of the day, this is the first point of contact of the country. He (the investor) hasn’t even come to Nigeria. So, what will be his experience in Abuja and he is saying, if I am having this experience in Washington, what will happen when I go to Abuja, when I go to Kano?

“How do I get to see the governor? Will it take me 10 hours?

“And for these people who are in Washington, they have investors to meet, they have Heads of State to meet, they have the World Bank to meet. So, one hour is a lot of time for them to be sitting down waiting for you.

“I think we need to just look at those kind of things that investors look at and have a very honest conversation – sector by sector, region by region, state by state – and what do we need to do to make those areas attractive.”

However, earlier, the former Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor told his audience that the country had a lot of growth opportunities. He pointed out that diversifying the economy would protect it from shocks, whenever they occur.

“If you look at all the things being done by Dangote Refinery, they would reduce our import, particularly petroleum imports, and conserve our foreign exchange,” Sanusi said.

The Emir noted that countries, such as Ghana, Ivory Coast, Kenya, Rwanda, and Ethiopia, had taken steps to make their environments attractive to investors.

Sanusi said: “We have to realise that the problems we have, from herdsmen/farmer clashes to the security situation, actually have their roots in not focusing on the productivity of agriculture.

“The second is the power sector. Many people here today do not know that Nigeria today can produce 12,000 megawatts of electricity, we need to improve on how to evacuate and distribute.”

FG Accelerates ERGP Implementation

Meanwhile the federal government has said it is putting measures in place to ensure the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) achieves the desired results, just as it disclosed that in the next two weeks, it would make the results of its Focus Lab public. The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, stated this in an interview with journalists on the side lines of the on-going IMF/World Bank Spring meetings in Washington DC.

The ERGP was launched by the President Muhammadu Buhari in April 2017. The plan is the administration’s comprehensive medium-term plan and it runs from 2017 to 2020.

However, the ERGP focus labs, which is one of the initiatives undertaken to ensure the full and effective implementation of the plan, was launched last month. It is a Malaysian model.

The focus labs involve stakeholders from the public and private sectors working together in a single environment to think out practical and workable solutions for delivering results that would propel the ERGP implementation.

Udoma explained: “At the moment, the focused labs are being conducted in agriculture, transportation, power and gas, manufacturing and processing. The response has been very good.

“We are looking forward to organising an open day in which we will share the results with the Nigerian public. That should be in the next one or two weeks and I am very encouraged by it.

“We just need to accelerate the ERGP a bit on some of our measures. We have a lot of measures in the ERGP and we need to accelerate on them.”

He reiterated that the government had set a target of seven per cent growth for the economy by 2020.

Besides, Udoma said he was encouraged by the fact that positive developments in Nigeria, especially the country’s exit from recession, strong accretion in external reserves, and drop in inflation, were recognised by the multilateral institutions at the meetings.

He said: “As you know, the focus of the ERGP is to generate more revenue. As you are aware, we have the tax amnesty to try to increase tax revenues. We are looking at some of our excise duties and so the focus is to generate more revenues.

“Our problem is not a debt problem, our problem is a revenue problem and so we are focused on generating much more revenues.”

According to the minister, the federal government’s delegation met with some investors that expressed interest in the country’s agriculture and transportation sectors.

Commenting on the delayed passage of the 2018 budget, Udoma said: “The signals we are getting from the National Assembly is that they are now working hard to get this budget out in the next few weeks. That is very positive signals and we are encouraged.”

Also speaking, the Director-General, Budget Office of the Federation, Mr. Ben Akabueze, said the MDAs had submitted all that was required to ensure the passage of the budget.

He assured that when passed, activities around the 2019 elections won’t affect the budget implementation.

“It is in our collective interest to get the budget passed on time so that we can get on with implementation,” he said.

When asked about efforts by the government to reduce its high level of recurrent expenditure in the annual budget, Akabueze said: “When you look at the high non-debt recurrent component of the budget, 70 per cent of that is personnel cost. Therefore, the only realistic way you can drastically reduce recurrent expenditure now is to cut personnel.

“At this time, it is not an option the government is looking at. Therefore, the focus now is on containing other aspects of recurrent expenditure and shoring up revenue.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/sanusi-rebukes-ministers-in-washington.html

More reactions have continued to trail the recent snatching of the mace from the National Assembly, as a former member of the House of Representatives, Hon. Bitrus Kaze, has alleged that, “it is crystal clear that this criminality was planned and orchestrated with the full collaboration of the presidency”.

The former legislator also said the action has set a very dangerous precedence which is capable of truncating the nation’s democracy.


He said, “The rules, precedence and traditions are that a suspended member of the Senate or House of Representatives is a persona non grata anywhere within the precincts of the National Assembly.
“Therefore, that a suspended senator, not relying on any court pronouncement (if he has approached the courts) moved not just to the precincts of the National Assembly but indeed the Chamber of the Senate during plenary and with thugs is simply unthinkable.”
The former Reps member, who represented Jos South/Jos East Constituency between 2007 to 2015, said, “No word is sufficient enough to qualify this despicable novelty in the chequered history of Nigeria’s democracy.
“Watching the clips showing the desecration of the Red Chamber and the audacious removal of the mace; how the suspended senator contemptuously remained in the floor and how rather than promptly arresting and prosecuting them, the security agencies instead provided ‘protective cover’ to the perpetrators.
“It should be crystal clear that this criminality was planned and orchestrated with the full collaboration of the presidency, who media reports say mounted pressure on the Inspector General of Police, Idris to play along.
“PMB’s henchman in the senate incurred the wrath of his colleagues in the first place while trying to do the President’s bidding.”
The PDP chieftain warned that, “The national disgrace occasioned by this ignoble act sets a very dangerous precedence which is capable of truncating Nigeria’s democracy which the National Assembly symbolises.
Hide quoted text
“It’s unthinkable that all the engineers of this treasonable felony are going about scot free, that is if they are not still under protective cover of the Police.”

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/senate-mace-snatched-with-presidencys_21.html

Family of the leader of Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, Nnamdi Kanu has expressed anger and worry over the conflicting reports concerning his whereabouts.

The family, speaking through Prince Emmanuel Kanu, called on the military to tell them where their parents and son, Nnamdi are.



Ever since soldiers invaded the house of the Kanus late last year, both the IPOB leader and his parents had not been seen or heard of.

Spokesman of the family, Prince Emma Kanu made the call yesterday following fresh rumours making the rounds that Nnamdi Kanu and his parents had been traced to Ghana and Umuahia respectively.
Emma said, “If the military knows Nnamdi Kanu and my parents’ whereabouts, they better let us know and provide them without delay. If they know where they are, they should go and bring them, it’s as simple as that. How come my parents are with us in Umuahia and we cannot see or communicate with them? It’s impossible; they know what they are doing.
“Is it not the same military that denied the invasion of our house that came out now to say my parents are in Umuahia and Nnamdi in Ghana; they should go to Umuahia and bring them, let’s see or go to Ghana and bring Nnamdi Kanu let’s see.”
“The other time, some people said they saw Nnamdi Kanu going to London through Malaysia, others have said they saw him in Germany, Ghana and Cameroon. The military will soon come out to say they saw him in Kano. It’s like my brother has now become a ghost that he should be seen everywhere.
“If this is so, it goes to confirm our fears that the military who took him away when they raided our home last year had killed him and his ghost is now moving about in those places.
“All this are tissues of lies being propped by the military with the intention of diverting attention from people asking them where my parents and brother are. All these are tissues of lies from the pit of hell being junked out by the military thinking that will stop the family, Biafrans and the international community from asking them where they kept Nnamdi and his parents because they (military) saw them last.
“All we are saying is that they should allow us see Nnamdi and our parents because we know they are with them; where they are dead, they should release their corpses to us for burial. I thank them so much for the information they are giving us, they should do us more favour by telling us exactly where they are so that we will go and meet them.
“The Nigerian army is known for telling lies, even when they invaded our house they lied they never did even when they were confronted with hard evidence they still lied about it. They are a set of people who lie so much and they will continue to lie.”

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/military-has-turned-nnamdi-kanu-parents.html

.Says Wike is the main destructive machine decimating Rivers State and her people

Rivers State chapter of the All Progressives Congress has described as most unfortunate, despicable and disheartening that Governor Nyesom Ezebunwo Wike of Rivers State could use the visit of a delegation of an international body like the United Nations (UN) to degenerate and lampoon the APC led Federal Government as being behind the black soot currently ravaging the State.
The party said by this act, Wike has exposed himself as an unpatriotic, despicable, ignorant character and unfit to occupy the exalted office of the Governor of a high class State like Rivers State.

The party in a statement issued by Chief Eze Chukwuemeka Eze, the Media Consultant to Chief Davies Ibiamu Ikanya, the Rivers State APC Chairman on Fridaystated that Gov. Wike has not ceased to use any forum to expose his unpatriotic mind and hatred for the APC led Federal Government just because the party truncated the ambitious plot of his party - the PDP to continue to loot their common patrimony with impunity for the next fifty years.
The accusation by Wike that, "if we must move on, we must situate the cause of the soot and the fact that the Federal Government has decided to make sure that a greater percentage of the state dies" exposes Wike as an ignorant leader who have refused to study, cooperate and assist the relevant government agencies to tackle the menace that the soot posses to the health of Nigerians residing in Rivers State just because of his selfishness and personal aggrandizement.

By accusing the Federal Government under the watch of President Muhammadu Buhari of such unfounded heinous act knowing very well that we as a political party have with other stakeholders cried and pleaded for the Rivers State Government to converge a stakeholders' meeting for us to deliberate and find a way out of this mess but to no avail. The party notes with sadness that all our efforts to draw Wike's attention on how to tackle this menace failed on deaf ears instead he (Wike) was busy dancing macabre dance with the lives of Rivers State people”, Chief Eze said.

The party expressed gratitude that the position of the Federal Government on the causes of the black soot presently being experienced in Port Harcourt and environs is because of the activities of illegal oil refiners, bunkers and burning of tyres by most of the over 100 abattoirs operating in the State" tallies with our position as we have on several fora maintained that contrary to the accusation by Wike that the black soot is not caused by any Federal Government Agency but by the activities of illegal oil refineries and bunkering of which Wike and most of his cohorts are key sponsors.

The party maintained that if any group is behind the unfortunate state of Rivers State as regards of attempting to decimate the lives of Rivers State people through the use of the menace of soot then Wike, his government and cohorts sponsoring illegal oil refineries in the State should be held responsible.

The party reassured the Rivers State people not minding the frustration the security agencies are facing to eliminate the activities of the illegal refineries and bunkering, "we will intensify efforts to assist the relevant agencies to find solution to this menace".

The party admonished Governor Wike to start preparing for a life outside Government as no matter the amount of blackmail or sponsorship of falsehoods against President Buhari and the APC he (WIKE) is doomed as no force will save him from being disgraced out of the Brick House come 2019 so that Rivers State will be liberated from his evil government.


http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/rivers-soot-menace-apc-knocks-wike-for.html

The main concern of the Catholic Church must be to help the poor, Pope Francis said on a Friday pilgrimage to southern Italy in honour of a local bishop who is a candidate for sainthood.

Francis was paying a half-day visit to Alessano and Molfetta in Puglia, the region that forms the heel of Italy’s boot, where the late Bishop Tonino Bello had his diocese.

“The poor are really the wealth of the Church. Remind us of that again, Father Tonino, as we face the recurring

temptation of tagging along with the powerful of the day,” the pontiff said.

“A Church that has the poor at heart remains always tuned to the channel of God, it never loses the frequency
of the Gospel,” he added.
After flying in by helicopter, Francis prayed by Bello’s grave, met a crowd of about 20,000 people in Alessano,
and was due to celebrate Mass in nearby Molfetta before returning to the Vatican.
His pilgrimage marked the 25th anniversary of the death of Bello, a bishop who liked to travel by bicycle or
bus, ran several charity groups and headed an international Catholic peace movement.
Bello died of stomach cancer.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/catholic-church-must-help-poor-pope.html

Nigerian taxpayers need to know this. Their representatives at the National Assembly, led by Senate President Bukola Saraki and Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, have just illegally received and shared a hefty N10billion from the national treasury.

The money is not part of the obscene N125billion appropriated for the federal legislature in the 2017 fiscal year for recurrent and capital expenditures.

It is also not part of the N100billion allocated for the controversial zonal intervention projects through which lawmakers have always enriched themselves.

This N10billion, more than enough to pay a year’s salary of 45,000 civil servants on the minimum wage of N18,000 per month, was not appropriated, and insiders say it was not even approved by President Muhammadu Buhari.

It was arbitrarily and illegally approved for the lawmakers by the Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, in collusion with the Accountant General of the Federation, Ahmed Idris.

The money was released to the lawmakers as part of a secret N50billion approved for the execution of the so-called “constituency projects” Mr. Saraki and other lawmakers discreetly inserted into the budgets of several ministries, agencies and parastatals.

That is different from the controversial zonal intervention projects for which N70billion of the N100billion appropriated in the 2017 budget have so far been released to contractors handpicked by lawmakers.

Apart from the N10billion cash given to the National Assembly, another N485million was released for a project conceived by Mr. Saraki – construction of model junior secondary schools across Kwara Central Senatorial District.

Four hundred and fifty million naira (N450million) was approved for the project in the 2017 appropriation law. But an additional N35million cash was released for its execution, in clear breach of the law.


To take possession of the illegal N10billion cash given to them by Mrs. Adeosun, Messrs Saraki and Dogara submitted a list of 82 contractors which they claimed the National Assembly was owing and the amount due to each contractor. It was based on that single document that the cash management office at the finance ministry funelled the huge cash to the lawmakers.

Mrs Adeosun failed to do further due diligence such as asking the lawmakers to provide award of contract letters, Certificates of No Objection issued by the Bureau of Public Procurement and job completion certificates issued by the National Assembly.

Finance ministry insiders described the action as deceitful and illegal, saying since the National Assembly has its own budget, which is usually a first-line charge on the federal treasury, any other cash released to it is extra-budgetary and unlawful.
Slush funds and fraudulent companies

National Assembly sources described the released cash as slush funds for the leadership of the two chambers and top civil servants at the management unit. Our sources said the national assembly budget already provided for the projects and that there was no need for any extra-budgetary funding from the ministry of finance.

Investigations showed that at least 44 of the 82 contractors Messrs Saraki and Dogara claimed they were owing were not registered on the National Database of Contractors, a database of the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP). That means they are not eligible to be awarded federal contracts. A further check by this newspaper revealed that 17 of the 44 firms were not even registered with the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC).

Our National Assembly sources said the contractors were indeed awarded jobs but that some of them had already been paid while while pending payments were already provided for in the federal legislature’s own budget.

When contacted for explanation, Mrs. Adeosun referred our enquiries to the Accountant-General, Mr. Idris. After three days , the accountant-general sent us a written response saying the controversial payment was sourced from a N20 billion service-wide vote “provided for local contractors’ liabilities under the 2017 Appropriation for all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) and institutions of Government.”

But while it is true that N20billion was appropriated for the payments of local contractors, experts say it was illegal to pay those hired by the National Assembly from the funds.

Questions were also raised regarding why Mrs. Adeosun would give half of allocations made to pay local contractors to the National Assembly at a time those who built primary health centres and roads and supplied drugs to hospitals were yet to be paid.

One official at the finance ministry also challenged the minister to explain why the funds were first moved to the National Assembly instead of paying the contractors directly. “It is a monumental fraud that they are now desperate to cover up,” the official, who asked not to be named, said.
‘Furious activists want investigation’

“The National Assembly already has its own budget of N125billion and it cannot therefore benefit from any other federal funds without appropriation,” said Auwal Rafsanjani, executive director of the advocacy group, ‎Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC).

“This is a serious financial recklessness orchestrated by the minister of finance and the National Assembly. Here, the Appropriation Law, the Fiscal Responsibility Act and the Public Procurement Act appear to have been broken.

“It is sad that the executive, in a desperate bid to make peace with the National Assembly is now conniving with unaccountable lawmakers to further shortchange Nigerians.

“Nigerians must stand up for their right and the minister of finance must be compelled to explain why she sacrificed integrity and financial prudence to engage in this kind of practice.”

Olanrewaju Suraj of the Civil Society Network Against Corruption believes the nation’s anti-corruption agency should be called in to thoroughly investigate the matter.

“It is a major blight in the anticorruption fight of the government and prudent management of resources by the Buhari government,” Mr. Suraj said.

“The National Assembly has its own budget that should cover capital and recurrent expenditures. So it cannot benefit from any other fund without appropriation.

“Besides, every payment for capital expenditure is not at the whims and caprices of the finance minister. There is always a procurement process that must be certified by the BPP.

“The anti-corruption agency must be invited to investigate the motive, the process and the purpose of the released fund.”
Mum is the word from Saraki, Dogara


Messrs Saraki and Dogara declined to comment for this story. Their spokespersons, Yusuph Olaniyonu and Turaki Hassan, directed all enquiries on the matter to the Clerk of the National Assembly, Mohammed Sani-Omolori.

But Mr. Sani-Omolori did not answer multiple calls made to him by this reporter on Wednesday. He also failed to answer a text message sent to him.
full report at
http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/adeosun-saraki-dogara-accountant.html

Nigerian popular singer, Small Doctor has revealed his stand concerning Big Brother Naija housemate, Cee-c’s verbal abuse on Tobi.

Cee-c had on Wednesday accused Tobi of gossiping about her with other housemates and decided to challenge him face-to-face.

This caused her a warning strike from Biggie after she was shown on the television screen in the house hurling insults at Tobi.

However, Small doctor on his Instagram page, said he was still in support of Cee-c despite the drama.

According to him, he sees beyond her flaws.

He wrote “Nobody Holy Pass? See Beyond Her Flaws… Kindly Vote Cee-C . Iyanu Mashele soonest.”

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/bbnaija-2018-singer-small-doctor-reacts.html

Sterling Bank Plc has launched a new mobile banking application known as I-invest, in a bid to encourage people to build a savings and investment culture.

The new application is supported on Android and IOS devices.


The bank disclosed this in a statement thursday.

The Chief Marketing Officer of the bank, Mr. Dapo Martins, explained that the mobile application would provide customer with a secure, fast and convenient way to access investment opportunities hitherto reserved for the elite.

The new application will also provide customers access an array of treasury bill investments to enable them to match their investment maturities with their needs.

“Some of the advantages of the application include save time for the customer instead of chasing his account officer around or waiting in the bank.

“Also, any other bank customers can access the offerings through the application.

“For a potential customer to register, he needs to have a BVN number, valid phone number, utility bill, valid means of identification such as driver’s license or national identity card or international passport.

“The registration process takes less than five minutes to conclude but the potential customer needs to take a picture with his smart phone and upload it,” the statement added.

It showed that a customer can either fund his account with a debit card or pay at any branch of a bank and his account will be funded real time.

“Also, a customer can top up directly from his mobile banking platform.

“If a customer wants to invest, he will select from the list of available securities, enter the amount to invest and confirm the transaction,” it added.

The minimum amount one can invest is N100,000.

“Interest accrues daily, while the investment amount and interest will be credited to the customer’s account on maturity.

“Similarly, if a customer wants to withdraw, he will supply his bank details, enter the amount he wants to withdraw, supply the secret answer to his secret question but needs to update his KYC profile.

“On the security of the investment in case the phone of the customer is stolen or lost, the bank said I-Invest application installed on a phone is secured and the money is safe.

“The lender however, advised such a customer to install the application on another phone and log in, click settings and change his password,” it added.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/sterling-bank-launches-mobile-app.html

Big Brother Naija 2018 housemate, Cee-C has apologised to Tobi after verbally attacking him.

Cee-c had on Wednesday accused Tobi of gossiping about her with other housemates and decided to challenge him face-to-face, asking him to talk right before her instead of gossiping.

This caused her a strike from Biggie after he replayed the video of the fight to housemates.

Biggie announced that Cee-c had provoked Tobi with her words, even as he hailed Tobi for controlling himself by ignoring her.
However, after the whole incident, CeeC apologised to Tobi for the mean words she said to him.
She said “The insults came from somewhere. It came from the build up.

‘When I am really angry I have explosions like this that I could not hold it.
“There were times I knew I could have stopped but I felt like I needed to pass a message to you.
“Now I know there are better ways to have passed this message. I’m sure you are not used to me saying sorry but honestly I am sorry about the words I said to you.
“I hope i become a better person and learn my lesson from the strike.”

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/bbnaija-2018-cee-c-apologises-to-tobi.html

The police have arrested Senator Ovie Omo-Agege, who was accused of leading thugs to steal the mace at the senate.

He was whisked away in a waiting police van.

Oma-Agege was arrested after the plenary around 1.50am. He was in the chamber throughout the sitting.


http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/breaking-senator-ovie-omo-agege-arrested.html

A Federal High Court, Lagos has restrained Lagos and Ogun state governments from disrupting the business of lottery companies for allegedly operating without the states’ licences.

Justice Mohammed Idris held that it would be illegal to shut down lottery businesses on the basis that they have not obtained additional licenses having been earlier licenced by the Federal Government.

He restrained the Inspector General of Police, commissioners of Police in Lagos and Ogun, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Department of State Services (DSS) from arresting lottery operators or sealing up their offices on that basis.

The plaintiffs, Western Lotto Nigeria Ltd and Wesco Pools & Lottery Ltd, had prayed the court to determine whether in view of subsisting and binding judgments of the Federal High Court, the defendants can close down their businesses for not obtaining licenses from the states despite having been granted nationwide permits/licences by the National Lottery Regulatory Commission.

The respondents are the Lagos and Ogun states Attorneys-General, the Lagos State Lottery Board, the Ogun State Internal Revenue Service, the IGP, commissioners of Police in Lagos and Ogun, the EFCC and the DSS.
In his judgment, Justice Idris dismissed the defendants’ objections and granted the two prayers in the plaintiffs’ originating summons.He made a declaration that the defendants or any combination of them may not take any steps whatsoever whether by closure, arrests, detentions, sealing off, or howsoever designed, to disrupt, close down or otherwise impede the lottery business of the plaintiffs.
The judge held that having been granted national permits, the defendants cannot close down such businesses for reason that the plaintiffs have not obtained additional license to operate their lottery business.
Justice Idris granted an order restraining the defendants or their agents from disrupting the plaintiffs’ business in any manner having been given national licenses pursuant to the National Lottery Act of 2005.e plaintiffs, in a supporting affidavit, said a tussle over supremacy between the states and the NLRC was resolved by two earlier judgments of the Federal High Court in Abuja.Justice Idris held that the two judgments were still subsisting.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/court-restrains-lagosogun-security.html

Nigerian Association of Liquefied Petroleum Gas Marketers (NALPGAM) has exonerated its members from the importation and sale of explosive gas that has reportedly killed people and destroyed properties in gas-related fire outbreaks across the country.

The President of NALPGAM, Mr. Nosakhare Ogieva-Okunbor stated recently in Abuja, that members of the association were registered and trained on safe handling of their LPG stocks.

He noted that they could not be involved in shady deals that could result in the gas-fire outbreaks that had been recorded in the Magodo and Lekki areas of Lagos.
The reported cases of gas explosions and fire outbreaks had been linked to low quality LPG in circulation in the country.


But Ogieva-Okunbor said his association was not involved in shady deals.
“Before you become a member of the association, you must be licensed by the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR). So, to say my members did that is untrue because people wake up and set up gas plants. They are not members of NALPGAM,” he said.

According to him, NALPGAM has continued to enlighten Nigerians on safe use of LPG especially as it is reportedly a viable alternative fuel source for use in Nigeria.
He also noted that the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) has stepped up its supply of LPG to the country’s domestic LPG market, adding that this has helped to address the scarcity of LPG experienced before now in the country.

“Ninety per cent of what we consume in Nigeria today comes from the Nigeria Liquefied and Natural Gas (NLNG). As at last year we consumed about 700,000 metric tonnes and that is just scratching at the surface. We have the capacity to produce and consume about five million metric tonnes annually,” said Ogieva-Okunbor.

Speaking more on policies that had helped improve the LPG market, Ogieva-Okunbor said that with recent government involvement, there was steady gas supply in the country.

“Our effort is assisting a deliberate policy by NNLG to supply Nigerian market with more of their product. As we speak, the issue of scarcity is a thing of the past as a result of a deliberate government policy that was put in place and NLNG came in to remove the bottlenecks that we were having by increasing the jetties we have in Apapa.

“Now, we have a jetty that every ship can come in and can be discharged into storage facilities in Lagos. You will notice that most times in December there is scarcity but due to efforts put in by NLNG last year, there was no scarcity and scarcity is a thing of the past in the LPG industry,” he explained.

According to him, Nigeria is one of the lowest LPG consuming countries of Africa, a situation he explained can be improved on with the implementation of the right policies
He stated that if done, within the next five years, Nigeria will be ranked as one of the highest consuming LPG nations in Africa.
Further on safety, he said the association holds meetings on safety and has a training school where trainings on safety is frequently conducted for its members.


http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/cooking-gas-marketers-not-responsible.html

The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) market indicators resumed for the week on Monday with a growth of 0.14 per cent.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the All-Share Index appreciated by 59.07 points to close at 40,987.77 compared to 40,928.70 achieved on Friday.

Also, the market capitalisation which opened at N14.784 trillion increased by N21 billion or 0.21 per cent to close at N14.805 trillion.


A breakdown of the price movement chart showed that Seplat led the gainers’ table, improving by N27.60 to close at N725.90 per share.
Nestle followed with a gain of N25 to close at N1,410, while Unilever gained N2.50 to close at N54 per share.
GlaxosmithKline rose by N1.35 to close at N31.35, while Oando gained 65k kobo to close at N7.55 per share.
Conversely, Mobil Oil led the losers’ table, dropping by N10 to close at N190 per share.
Nigerian Breweries trailed with a loss of N4 to close at N126, while Presco shed N2 to close at N70 per share.
Access Bank declined by 25k to close at N11.20, while UAC Property was down by 22k to close at N2.58 per share.
NAN reports that Guaranty Trust Bank was the most active in volume terms, accounting for 37.61 million shares valued at N1.65 billion.
Japaul Oil and Maritime followed with an account of 21.35 million shares worth N10.31 million, while Fidelity Bank traded 13.23 million shares valued at N32.57 million.
Zenith International Bank exchanged 11.08 million shares worth N293.17 million, while United Bank for Africa sold 10.10 million shares valued at N109.54 million.
In all, the volume of shares traded rose by 15.17 per cent as investors bought and sold 192.49 million shares worth N3.13 billion transacted in 3,917 deals.
This was in contrast with 167.13 million shares valued at N2.04 billion exchanged by investors in 3,453 deals on Friday.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/nse-market-indices-resume-trading-with.html

Largest Nigerian Online mall, Konga and Yudala, have officially announced a merger of their operations to significantly alter Nigeria’s online retailing space in terms of size of operations and customers base.

From May 1, both companies will now operate as ‘Konga.’

The strategic decision will see both companies leverage the combined strengths of their platforms and further broaden the scope of organized retail and e-commerce in Nigeria, as well as deliver more value to customers and merchants.

In a official statement, Olusiji Ijogun, Konga chairman said:


“Combining forces to power the new Konga will enable us effectively achieve our goals of platform expansion and accelerated growth, as we embark on an ambitious journey to redefine the retail ecosystem with the industry’s most advanced technology.

“Effective from May 1st, Yudala will now operate under the name Konga, with dual CEOs in the persons of Nick Imudia who will be in charge of online among others and Prince Nnamdi Ekeh who will be responsible for offline. This merger will further strengthen our position in the Nigerian retail market as we creatively position Konga as the first profitable e-commerce company in Africa.”

“The efficiency of Konga’s cutting-edge online platform, access to thousands of merchants and Yudala’s expansive network of fully stocked offline stores is poised to give our customers the best shopping experience imaginable. We will be working closely with all our combined clients, customers, merchants and employees to make the integration process as seamless as possible and thereafter make public our road map to sustain our leadership on the continent,” Ijogun stated.

One of the exciting benefits of this merger is the possibility it offers prospective shoppers to order online, pay and pick-up the product(s) at the nearest Konga offline store. There are also increasing business opportunities for merchants nationwide.

The ‘re-born’ Konga will bring services closer to consumers and widen depth of options with which merchants may engage the eCommerce company across Nigeria.

“We are very excited about the operational merger between Yudala and Konga into the new Konga,” noted Prince Ekeh.


“A merger of this magnitude has never been experienced in Africa. We will be leveraging on Konga’s strong technology backbone and online experience as well as Yudala’s offline experience, network of retail stores and operational efficiency. In the near future, we plan to have a Konga store in every local government area in Nigeria. While this is ambitious, we believe that every Nigerian deserves the right to have access to the full range of genuine products offered by Konga,” Prince Ekeh declared.

Plans are also underway to showcase the full power of the merger with expanded access to thousands of products in Konga online and offline stores for all categories of shoppers.

According to Imudia, “We believe this operational merger between Konga and Yudala will bring immense opportunities for consumers in the e-commerce space. We urge all shoppers, consumers, merchants and clients to stay tuned as we unveil the massive ambitious contents we have to offer.”

Widely applauded by industry watchers as a masterstroke, the merger will broaden the range of products and solutions on offer within the Konga/Yudala stable, while giving the customers and merchants more options and access to an expanded variety of guaranteed quality offerings and payment methods.

The Konga Business platform will now include two distinct but fully integrated aspects including Konga Online, the e-commerce/marketplace platform and Konga Retail, the offline arm of the business.

Both will be supported by Konga Pay, a CBN-licensed mobile money platform and Konga Express, a world-class logistics company with advanced delivery capabilities for internal and external customers.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/konga-and-yudala-merge.html

Who is a better performer!! Who can Bring the energy! the vibe on stage better when performing ??



Comment for Davido


Share for Wizkid


http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/wizkid-vs-davido-who-is-better-performer.html

The All Progressives Congress has said it will not force anyone on President Muhammadu Buhari as his running mate if he wins the party’s presidential ticket.

Consequently, the ruling party said it would not compel the President, who recently told the APC leadership of his intention to seek a second term in office, to pick his incumbent deputy, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN), as his running mate.


But while informing the National Executive Committee of the APC of his interest to seek re-election in 2019 in Abuja on Monday, Buhari was silent on who would be his running mate in his bid to get a second term as President.

Buhari did not, however, indicate, at the meeting, that he would pick any other candidate apart from Osinbajo, whom he had previously described in glowing terms.

But the National Publicity Secretary of the APC, Mallam Bolaji Abdullahi, said on the issue, believed it would be unfair to impose anyone on the party’s presidential candidate.

Abdullahi, a former sport and youth development minister, said doing so might cause friction between the two party representatives.

The spokesperson for the APC stated that rather, the winner of its presidential primary would be allowed to choose his running mate.

When asked if Buhari would retain Osinbajo as his running mate in 2019, Abdullahi said, “You know it is not the duty of the party to impose someone on the presidential candidate. In any case, if the President emerges as the party’s candidate, we won’t impose anyone on him. Remember he (Buhari) is not going to be the sole aspirant?

“But it is the duty and the responsibility of the candidate to pick whosoever he likes and he is ready to work with. It is not the duty of the party to pick or impose anyone on him. No, that is not democracy.

“So, if President Buhari emerges as our candidate, he is the one to pick and also announce his running mate.”


The camp of the National Leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, was said to have picked Osinbajo, a former justice commissioner under Tinubu in Lagos, in 2014 as Buhari’s running mate after the ex-head of state emerged the candidate of the then opposition party.

While Buhari came from the defunct Congress for Progressives Change, Tinubu’s group, which was said to be a major one because of the number of governors and legislators that were in office on the platform of the then Action Congress of Nigeria, was allowed to produce the emerging party’s running mate.

Though party sources said some members of the then New Peoples Democratic Party, comprising five governors, tried to truncate the emergence of Osinbajo, the sources added that Tinubu insisted on nominating Osinbajo.

A source, who was privy to Osinbajo’s emergence then, said, “The fact then was that one of the then current governors wanted the slot. But he was not very close to the former Lagos State governor.

“Then, a former governor from the South-South region also wanted it. He belonged to the NPDP then and he had the backing of his fellow governors as well.

“But we knew the importance of the South-West and the number of people coming behind Asiwaju was equally intimidating. At a point, the merger was threatened because of this.

“The former governor even wanted to take the slot. But because of his religion, many people felt it would be unfair to have a Muslim-Muslim ticket.

“But at the end of the day, Asiwaju nominated Osinbajo, who is not only a Christian, but also a pastor in one of the largest growing churches in Nigeria.”

Another source, however, argued that events of 2014 and 2015 were different from the current power game in the ruling party.

The party official stated, “In 2015, Tinubu was treated like a semi-god by both the leaders of the party and President Buhari. What happened after winning the election?

“Did the President or the party defer to him anymore? Even the majority of those he brought to the party, especially from the South-West, were encouraged to work against his interest in the zone.”



Buhari will name running mate after emerging candidate –Presidency

Meanwhile, the Presidency, on Saturday, said Buhari would only name his running mate for the 2019 presidential election after he might have emerged the candidate of the APC.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, said this in an interview with one of our correspondents.

He was responding to questions on whether or not Buhari would pick Osinbajo as his running mate and why he did not make his position on the matter known while declaring his interest at the party’s NEC meeting on Monday.

Shehu explained that only candidates in elections nominated running mates and Buhari had yet to become a candidate but still an aspirant.

He recalled that Buhari nominated Osinbajo as his running mate for the 2015 presidential election at the point when, as the then candidate of the APC, he wanted to file his nomination with the Independent National Electoral Commission.

The presidential spokesman added, “There is a way these things are done. When was the Vice President nominated for the ticket? If you recall, it was in December 2014 after President Buhari won the party primary. It was done at the point of filing nomination form.

“As a matter of fact, the nomination form was filed with Vice President Osinbajo’s name less than 24 hours to the closure.

“I am not an expert in this matter but my sense is that candidates nominate running mates. President Buhari is not officially a candidate yet. He has just signified his intention to seek party nomination.

“It is after winning the ticket that you will expect him to name his running mate for the contest. That’s the requirement, he can’t run alone.

“Though I have not been briefed on this, this is my assumption. My view is that it is not the norm that you name a running mate when you are not a candidate.”

Buhari had shortly before he travelled to the United Kingdom on Monday told NEC members that he would be seeking re-election based on Nigerians’ clamour that he should do so.

Buhari/Osinbajo ticket remains a perfect match, says Ganduje

In his own reaction, the Kano State Governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, said that the Buhari/Osinbajo ticket remained the best to steer the ship of Nigeria in 2019.

The governor, who spoke through his Commissioner for Information, Mallam Mohammed Garba, said Nigerians, especially the people of Kano State, were pleased that the President had put to rest speculations about his political future.

According to him, the President has, through his declaration, proved once again that he is indeed a leader who listens to his people.

He said, “The team of President Muhammadu Buhari and Vice President Yemi Osinbajo has, within the last three years plus, showed the world what teamwork can produce.

“There is no doubt that the Buhari/ Osinbajo ticket is one that will deliver the goods.

“Nigerians have seen what the partnership has delivered in terms of good governance within the last three years and we remain confident that Nigerians will remain solidly behind this winning team in come 2019.”

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/buhari-not-party-to-determine-osinbajos.html

Lagos State government yesterday said it has paid about twenty two billion Naira as pensions and gratuity in the last 12 months.Commissioner for Establishment, Training and Pensions, Akintola Benson, revealed this while giving account of his ministry’s activities, at the on-going 2018 ministerial press briefing of the Lagos State Government, meant to mark the third anniversary of governor Ambode.

Giving a breakdown of the payment, Oke said from May 2017 to date, contributions by employee and that of the employer credited into the Retirement Savings Account is N9.56B while another N9.3B was paid as terminal entitlements of 2466 retirees. He added that within the last one year also, Civil Service Pensions Office, Teachers Establishment and Pensions and Judiciary Service Commission paid N3.2 billion as pension.

Speaking on pension deduction and remittance, he said there have been regular deductions of 7.5 per cent of monthly basic salary, rent and housing allowances from the salaries of staff and corresponding 7.5 per cent by the state government into the Retirement Savings Accounts maintained by their appointed Pension Fund Administrators.

When asked why the state government has not complied with the pension administration policy, which increased the contribution of employers to 10 per cent and that of the employee to 8 per cent, he declined comment, evading the question and abruptly brought the press briefing to a close.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/lagos-claims-payment-of-n22bn-as.html

The Chief Executive Officer, MTN Group, Rob Shuter has said that the telecommunications firm expects the listing of its Nigerian unit on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) to be done by the end of 2018.

Shuter, according to Reuters, said “we are progressing very well with the Nigerian listing and if market conditions are appropriate, we will conclude that by the end of the year. He declined to provide more details on the process.

MTN agreed to the NSE initial public offering (IPO) as part of the settlement of a $1 billion fine imposed by local regulators in 2015. Africa’s biggest wireless operator by sales incurred the penalty after missing a deadline to disconnect unregistered subscribers amid a security crackdown in the West African country.

Nigeria is the largest of the company’s 22 markets across Africa and the Middle East. The South African telecommunications giant controls 36.4 per cent of the market and by so doing servicing 53.4 million users in the country.
MTN is planning to raise at least $500 million from the sale of shares, people familiar with the preparations for the listing said. The company could dispose of as much as 30 per cent of its Lagos-based unit, the people, who asked not to be identified as the details aren’t public, said in February.
MTN is also preparing to list a 35 per cent stake of its local unit in regional neighbour Ghana, part of a deal with the government to use fourth-generation spectrum, a high-speed mobile data service.
“The Ghana IPO is well advanced,” Shuter said, declining to provide details. “We will make the specific announcement of that in accordance with the IPO schedule.”
Meanwhile, during the visit of some MTN directors to the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), the Executive Vice Chairman of the Commission, Prof. Umar Danbatta, disclosed that MTN Nigeria Communications Limited has so far paid N165 billion out of the N330 billion slammed on it for contravening regulations on SIM management in the country.
A fine of N1.04 trillion was handed MTN for irregular registration of subscribers. However, after prolonged negotiation with both the regulatory agency and the Federal Government, the company had the fine reduced to N330 billion.
The payment of the fine was spread over a period of three years and Danbatta said the company had so far kept to the schedule, making a total deposit of N165 billion as the regulatory agency received a cheque of N55 billion in the last two weeks.

Danbatta said, “I am delighted that you chose to have this strategic meeting in Nigeria. We always try to find pragmatic ways to engage with all operators, including the MTN.
“The National Frequency Management Council has accepted our recommendation that the 700 Megahertz spectrum that was assigned to you by a sister agency, the National Broadcasting Commission, (which has been on hold) should stay with you on condition that you use it for telecommunications services instead of broadcast services.
“Part of the fine was paid in March. Not more than two weeks ago, we received a cheque for N55 billion. So far, MTN has paid more than 50 per cent of the fine. That would translate to N165 billion. The payment they are making is consistent with the terms of agreement we reached with them.”

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/mtn-nigeria-hinges-500m-ipo-on-improved.html

The All Progressives Congress (APC) United Kingdom chapter, said it would pay for Expression of Interest and Nomination form for President Muhammadu Buhari to re-contest in 2019.

The chapter made the promise in a statement by its Spokesman, Mr Jacob Ogunseye, on Tuesday in Abuja, following Buhari’s declaration on Monday that he would seek a second term.

It said that the president’s declaration was reasonable and satisfactory, adding that his second term would make Nigeria stronger as well as preserve the tenets of democracy in the country.

It stated that the chapter`s expectations had been met by Buhari`s declaration, and assured that it would work assiduously for the electoral success of the APC at all levels.

President Buhari needs to consolidate on the achievements his administration has recorded in over three years, especially in economic growth, anti-graft war, security and youth development.

“He deserves a second term and we are proud that he has yielded and declared his readiness to re-contest the election as Nigeria’s President in 2019 in earnest.

“His administration’s achievements in the areas of security, economic growth, anti-corruption war and social development and other areas are visible to Nigerians,’’ the chapter said.

It added that Nigerians should consider the re-election bid as a major step to consolidate and re-invent the country into an emerging economic and democratic world power.

It called on Nigerians across the world, irrespective of religion and geographical location, to see the re-election bid of the president as a major step that would help Nigeria to stabilise.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/2019-well-pay-for-buharis-nomination_10.html

THE Organised Labour has presented fresh demand for the new National Minimum Wage for workers to the tripartite committee, using current economic indices as its yardstick.

It said the N56,000 earlier presented was no longer feasible.

Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) General Secretary Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson, who spoke in an interview in Abuja, said the earlier demand by labour, which was presented two years ago, has been overtaken by the present economic realities.

The NLC scribe said that the fresh demand was submitted at the last meeting of the tripartite committee after an agreement among Labour leaders.

He said: “We have taken a position when we made the initial demand on the government, which is almost two years back. But then when we got to the tripartite committee and the committee called on all stakeholders involved to submit a memorandum.

“In responding to the request for a memorandum, we then use current economic indices to make a fresh demand. So, what we place and what we demand is an outcome of analysis we carried out.

“We did the analysis using the current economic table and data of the nation and of cause that came to something different. We are going to maintain what is in the memorandum that we have submitted to the tripartite committee and it is not something or a figure we will be discussing in public.”

He said the fresh demand was contained in a joint memorandum by the NLC and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), saying: “We have also formerly made the presentation to the committee and we have defended it and we have a different submission from the initial one. We have also taken account of changes between the first demand and the current position.”

He, however, did not disclose the new demand by organised labour.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/labour-raises-minimum-wage-demand-from.html

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) has said that the 2018 Unified Tertiary University Examinations (UTME) candidates who could no longer access their results might have had their results withheld.

The Board’s Head of Media, Dr Fabian Benjamin disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria, NAN, Monday in Abuja.

NAN reports that some candidates had earlier cried foul, following the removal of their released results from the website of the Board, after initially accessing it.
The candidates complained that the site displayed, “You do not have any result yet” or “you did not write the examination,” after such results were earlier published.
According to Benjamin, the board may reschedule the examinations for some whose cases were exceptional but some results may have been withheld.
“Once you don’t see your result after a while it means it has been withheld.

“However, there are exceptions and the board intends to reschedule the examinations for those who fall in that category but they would be contacted before then,” he said.
He explained that the board was still working to release other results.
He also noted that the board would continually give an update to the general public on its latest developments as time goes on, especially if there are any changes in the system.
Benjamin also enjoined those who intend to change their choice of institutions before the 2018/19 admissions process begins, to visit the board’s site and follow the procedure as displayed.

He said the process had been ongoing and costs N2, 500 only and can only be processed online, just like every other process of the board.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/utme-2018-jamb-speaks-on-removal-of.html

The naira remains stable at the official and parallel markets, with the foreign exchange (forex) reserves standing at $46.7billion, a report by Exotic Capital, an investment and research firm, has said.

The naira exchanges at 362 to the dollar in the parallel market and 305.6 in the official market. It has remained at those rates since April, last year, after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) resumed forex interventions in the market.

The report said although the level of reserves was still below the record high of $64 billion realised in August 2008, it is nearly double the $24 billion recorded in October 2016, increasing by more than $22 billion in 15 months.

The reserves hit $46.7 billion on March 29, from just over $23 billion in October 2016, as the economy continues to attract huge investment inflows from foreign investors.


The economy benefited from increased forex supply with over $20 billion inflow to the Investors’ & Exporters’ (I&E) Forex Window since inception in April 2017.

The report said the macro fundamentals suggested the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN’s) appropriate reaction function would have been to hold rates unchanged as it did in last week’s Monetary Policy Committee MPC meeting.

“We have written extensively on Nigeria’s multiple exchange rate system and will abstain from further discussion at present, suffice to say that a fairly valued naira at 360 to the dollar combined with high domestic rates has led to a tremendous increase in the level of gross foreign reserves held at the CBN,” the report said, adding:

”With reserves at their current levels, it is easy to imagine the MPC being in a position where it could afford to cut as it is less dependent on attracting dollar inflows than it has been to both build reserves and stabilise the naira.”

A similar report by FBN Capital, titled: “Towards the $50 billion threshold, and counting”, said the rapid accumulation of $15.96 billion over 12 months was due to two sizeable Eurobond launches, a small diaspora bond issue, the recovery in oil export revenues (through the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation’s share of production and, more recently, the steady bid by the CBN at the I&E Forex window.

“We should stress that the data are gross and mask the swap transactions the CBN has entered into with local banks. The steady bid by the CBN has been seen variously as a response to the softening of demand for forex by importers and other economic actors, and as a move to contain naira appreciation,” the FBN Capital said, adding:


“The CBN will be pleased with the healthy signals from I&E Forex window where the weekly average has now settled above $1 billion. Reserves at end-March covered 17 months’ merchandise imports, and 10.9 months when we add services. These calculations are based on the balance of payments for 2017. The ratios are a little less impressive, but still robust, if we use the measure of current account payments (including income debits) favoured by the ratings agencies.”

Before the stability in the forex market and naira, the economy witnessed a depressed Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth, which culminated in a recession in 2016. There was also rising inflation, which peaked at almost 19 per cent in January 2017 and a persistently rising unemployment rate to 14.23 per cent in 2016 fourth quarter from 6.41 per cent as at 2014 fourth quarter. There was also a significant depreciation of the exchange rate, reaching N525 to $1 in February 2017 and witnessed a fast depletion of the reserves which bottomed out at about $23.6 billion in October 2016 from as high as $40 billion in January 2014.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/467b-foreign-reserves-keep-naira-stable.html

Former Governor of Edo State, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, has said that President Goodluck Jonathan should be docked if the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) insists that prosecution of suspected looters is selective.

According to Oshiomhole, Jonathan should be docked for approving money beyond his powers and spending same in a way that was not accounted for.

Oshiomhole spoke to newsmen in Benin City at the weekend shortly after attending the wedding of the daughter of the member representing Ikpoba Okha/Egor federal Constituency, at the national assembly, Hon Ehiozuwa Agbonayima.

The former Edo Governor also faulted the calls by the PDP that the National Assembly should approve the $1bn the federal government wants to spend on security.


He said the PDP spent well above that sum without going to the national assembly.

On the condemnation that trailed the release of looters’ list, Comrade Oshiomhole said names of looters should be made public as it was the right of Nigerians to know the level of rot that transpired.

Oshiomhole urged President Muhammadu Buhari to be ruthless in going against those alleged to have looted the nation’s resources.

He alleged that hired writers were made to challenge him when he first raised alarm over the money that was looted from the treasury.

“I hear them say prosecution is selective. Maybe they are right because if they are not, maybe President Jonathan should be on the dock. He approved money beyond his powers and spent it in a way that is not accounted for.

“I think that if other Nigerians don’t understand the power of transparency, the right to know, the media should uphold that right and defend it. What was stolen was not from private purse; the house that was destroyed was not a private residence. We are talking of resources which if it is distributed on basis of equality divide by 180 million people you will be a lot richer.


“I think my only complain is that the federal government should go more ruthless because they are a lot of people who should be in court who are not there because when I was still in the office and I said the kind of money they stole was huge in dollars, they paid hired writers to say how do I know.

“I know that we cannot be lamenting today without understanding that the treasury was burgled yesterday. It is like someone sneaked into your kitchen and took everything out and you woke up he tells you am sorry I stole the pot of soup, in fact, I broke the pot. Should we continue like that?

“I think the promise of democracy is that good or bad the people have the right to know and that is the starting point and particularly important when that armed robber of yesterday is trying to do face surgery so that he looks different. Some are jumping the boat to wear new face, to change identity, and to change their finger print so that they can come back. I think the people have the right to know and If any of them think that what has being said is not true, they can go to Court”

“All of them who are involved and those who they are looking for they should put everything in public domain and that is the promise of democracy and it is about you. Just by virtue of being in a winning party, they helped themselves so much. One of the acting chairmen of PDP, Makarfi, I used to respect him so much, I heard him saying that the reason they did not indict Diezani was that the money missing and everything that was done Goodluck approved.

“If President approved that money, should it be stolen and not go into the federation account. Is that the reason the PDP led senate and a sub –committee led by Markarfi cannot say it is not the minister but President Jonathan?.

“Jonathan may have immunity against prosecution, but he doesn’t have power to appropriate what the national assembly have done. Right now, they are now saying the national assembly should approve the $1 Billion the federal government is going to spend on security, but this is a party that spent well above that without going to the national assembly at all,” Oshiomhole

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/jonathan-should-be-docked-says.html

Telecom operators on Saturday blamed intermittent interruptions on network on vandalism of base stations, destruction of optic fibre, high forex and shutting of base stations by government agencies.


The President of Association of Telecom Companies of Nigeria (ATCON), Mr Olusola Teniola, made the attribution in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.

“There is a situation in the industry whereby the equipment to bring into the country to increase capacity is either delayed by government, or at the port, we are not given the right payment in time.

“Secondly, forex is high but the equipment price has not reduced, making it very difficult to sustain investment in increasing our network coverage and capacity.

”Vandalism, theft and sabotage of our base stations’ equipment, and base stations being shut down by different agencies demanding one tax after another do not help operators.

“We have incidents of optic fibre destruction, which impacts on traffic to be carried to and from one location or city to another.

“”There is need for security operatives to ensure that telecommunications equipment which is a critical national infrastructure is protected,” the ATCON president said.

He urged that the the Federal Government should ease burden on service providers by expediting action on issuance of relevant right of way permits for operators.

According to Teniola, if all the issues affecting operators are resolved, quality of service will improve.

The ATCON president said that interruption during festive periods resulted from heavy traffic associated with such periods.

He said that some operators still used equipment bought 10 years ago, calling on the government to encourage the operators by investing in telecom equipment.

“During festive period it seems that intermittent interruption is more because most of the calls are originating from Lagos to people that are living in the villages, and the network capacity is not strong.

“There has not been any form of investment in equipment that will carter for additional traffic on the network since the past 10 years, and this is not good for the industry.“We need government to encourage us to bring in the needed equipment by investing in them and making forex available for operators,” he said.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/telecom-operators-give-reasons-for_18.html

An Information Communication Technology (ICT) expert, Mr. Bakee Chidiebere, has disclosed that recent research indicated that about 65.per cent of primary school pupils enrolling today could face uncertainty of non-existent jobs in future, due to global challenges associated with IT knowledge.

Chidiebere, who delivered paper at the Third Anniversary Lecture of the Founders’day/carnival of the Federal Polytechnic, Nekede, near Owerri, to mark the institution’s 40th anniversary at the weekend, said there were pointers to the early warning, which needed to be taken very seriously by relevant authorities in the country.

He said 75 per cent of both teachers, educators and students needed to handle the gap in the system, adding: “By 2020 it’s estimated there will be 1.5 million new digitised jobs across the globe.

At the same time, 90 percent of organisations currently have IT skills shortages, while 75 per cent of educators and students feel there is a gap in their ability to meet the skills needs of the IT workforce.”:
The Rector of the Polytechnic, Dr. Celestine Ugochi Njoku, said she was pleased by the achievement of the founding students of the institution, noting that she did not hesitate to sustain the ceremony since three years ago.

full report at http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/it-expert-sees-bleak-future-for.html

The Benue state police command said it intercepted an 18 seater bus in Makurdi, the state capital with conveying twenty three (23) occupants, mostly children suspected to be victims of human trafficking . The state commissioner of police, Fatai Owoseni who disclosed this while parading the suspected abductors and victims at the command headquarters in Makurdi said , the victims were being trafficked from various local government across the state. According to the CP, the victims whose ages range from 12 to 45 were said to be coming from Buruku and were intercepted in Makurdi by the police patrol team, adding that some of the victims who were able to identity their places will soon be re united with their families through the chairmen and traditional rulers of their various local governments. In an interview with the alleged principal trafficker, Prince Masenengen Tar, he told our correspondent that he was not a trafficker. According to him, two ladies out of the 23 are going to work in his restaurant in Kaiama,while the others are going there to stay with their relations and help them in farm work. He said, “ I am a farmer, in Kaiama local government area of Kwara state, I am not a trafficker, everybody here is going with me with the consent of their relations, the little boys among us are going there to stay with their relations while those two ladies are going to work in my restaurant in Kaiama and we negotiate that I will be paying each of them N10,000 per month In another development, 30 suspects were also paraded by the command for various crime which include arm robbery and cultism where 13 weapons were recovered from them. Owoseni while taking journalists around the paraded suspects said among the suspects, a 65 -year- old cleaner with the Nigerian Air force who specialised in the sell of army and police uniform to armed robbers for a return after a successful operation, Peter Agbande was also nabbed. Speaking with our correspondent, Mr Angbande said as a cleaner with the Air force, they do give him most of their thorn uniform to throw away and instead, he keeps some that are better for his personal use. “ I did not know that this boy was going for arm robbery, he came and beg me to give him this uniform, that he likes them that was why I gave it to him and now I am caught, frankly speaking I am innocent of these allegations “ But the 18 – year -old JSS 2 dropp out who was caught in army uniform said, he use to get the uniform from Angbande and bring returns after every successful operation. He added that he ran out of luck during his second time of his operation as an Hear him, “ I dropped out of school in JSS 2. I am from Mbaivur, Ikpayoyongo in Gwer local government area of Benue state. My father is a farmer, this is my second time of going for operation, I was lured into armed robbery by one of my friends called Hangeior,” he stated.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/benue-police-nab-human-traffickers.html

Students of tertiary institutions in Adamawa have commenced debate on finding lasting solutions to insurgency and challenges posed by displaced persons in the North East.

The debate involved students of Moddibo Adama University of Technology, Yola; Adamawa State University, Mubi; and Federal Polytechnic, Mubi.

The event is organised by Centre for Information Technology and Development (CITAD) with the support of North East Regional Initiative (NERI), an NGO.

Speaking at the maiden debate ceremony on Saturday in Yola, the Executive Director of CITAD, Mr Yunus Zakari, said the debate was organised to provide the youths a platform to discuss and proffer solutions to the insurgency crisis in the region.

“As students in the North East, you have experienced the problem, the hardship and dislocation caused by the insurgents.
“You are closer to the theatre of war, so we feel it’s important you to speak; let’s listen to your conversations.”
Zakari said similar discussion would be organised for students in Borno and Yobe states, adding that there is plan to extend it to students in neigbouring countries of Chad, Cameroon and Niger.
He said the presentations and suggestions by the students would be made available to relevant stakeholders, including policy makers.
The Adamawa Programme Manager of NERI, Mr Machill Maxwell, said NERI has been supporting various kinds of interventions in areas ravaged by insurgency and such positive mobilisation of the youths was one of such support.
“This is one of our soft activities where people are encouraged to sit together and talk; come up with ideas and how solutions can be found for crisis that bedeviled the North East.
“We have started now. We have a long way to go and we need your full commitment and presence to be able to get the result that we expect,” Maxwell said.
Topics discussed at the debate included: “What should youths do to contribute to ending insurgency in the North East;
“How can young people be won away from getting recruited into insurgency;
“The North East of the Future: A vision of the youth;
“What should government do to make the counter insurgency more effective; and
“How can students of tertiary institutions contribute to addressing the problem of Internally Displaced Persons”.

http://www.akelicious.net/2018/04/students-move-to-end-insurgency-in.html