By Bakare Majeed


Governor Umar Bago of Niger State has signed an executive order for the transition of Niger State into a green economy.

The executive order, titled, “Niger State Green Economy Initiative Order (No.3),” was signed on Wednesday at the commencement of the State Executive Council (SEC) meeting at the Council Chambers, Government House, Minna, the state capital.

This was contained in a statement released by the Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Bologi Ibrahim.

According to the statement, the executive order provides the guidelines for the transition of the state’s economy into a green economy.

“Green economy initiative shall be driven by the state blueprint that details the strategic pillars and outlines the strategic key performance indicators, targets and timelines of the transition into a green economy,” it reads in part.

The order also provides that the “Niger State government shall produce a state-wide land use and economic development plan to guide investment decisions and ensure investments that would stabilise the green transition is properly coordinated and planned.”

The Order further directed all the ministries, departments and agencies of the state to adhere strictly to the initiative as appropriate sanction would be carried out on any violator.

After signing the order, the governor explained that it will ensure effective implementation of the green economy policy.

Mr Bago, a former member of the House of Representatives, has been very keen on the green economy since he emerged as governor.

In October, he held a green economy summit in Niger State to encourage investors to invest in the state.

The governor also recently declared the planting of 10 million trees in six months in the state to stop the impact of climate change and also earn carbon credit.

This latest move by the governor is coming at a time the Conference of Parties (COP28) of the United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change is in progress in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates.

President Bola Tinubu and other world leaders are gathered in Dubai to take decisive action on climate commitments to prevent further impacts.

Mr Tinubu, in his budget presentation speech on Wednesday, also highlighted the green economy as one of the major opportunities Nigeria must tap into.

“I have directed relevant government agencies to diligently work towards securing substantial funding commitments that will bolster Nigeria’s energy transition.

“It is imperative that we seize this opportunity to attract international partnerships and investments that align with our national goals,” the president said.

Energy transition and climate financing are the core components of the year’s COP conversations.

The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Financial Derivatives Company Limited, Bismarck Rewane, has said that Nigerians are more concerned about the rising food prices and less bothered about the 2024 budget.

According to Rewane, many Nigerians are less interested in the details of the 2024 budget recently presented to the National Assembly by President Bola Tinubu but more worried that the rising food prices are making life difficult for them.

Speaking on Channels Television’s ‘Business Morning’ show, on Thursday, the respected economist said, “In the end, budgetary arithmetics, budgetary mathematics in economics is of no use to anybody except when by this time, six months, if we are buying rice at N40,000 a bag rather than N60,000 a bag, if we are buying bread N900 a big loaf instead of N1,300 which we are doing today. If we are buying garri at lower prices.

“The people are not interested in whether the budget is balanced and what the debt is. How does it (the budget) affect their day-to-day livelihood? That is the key thing.”

Tinubu, on Wednesday, said his administration is targeting a 3.76 per cent economic growth in the 2024 fiscal year, as he presented the 2024 budget proposal to a joint session of the 10th National Assembly in Abuja — his first since assuming office exactly six months ago.

This was as the president spotlighted national security, local job creation, and poverty reduction as the top priorities of the 2024 Appropriation Bill which he called the ‘Budget of Renewed Hope.’

On the economy, Tinubu argued that a stable macroeconomic environment is crucial in his administration’s quest to catalyse private investment and accelerate economic growth.

According to The PUNCH analysis, funding to the education sector (N2.18 trillion) is 101.85 per cent more than the N1.08 trillion that was budgeted for the sector in the 2023 appropriation, while the health sector was earmarked N1.33 trillion, and N534 billion has been budgeted for social investments and poverty reduction, amongst many others.

However, Rewane said that many people have become more frustrated in the face of the hard economic realities facing the country.

The economist said the high level of poverty is already causing mental health challenges for many people.

He said, “You will notice that on the streets of Lagos in particular, the number of lunatics has increased and part of it is driven by poverty.

We are having “many mental health issues. People are pushed to the wall. Some of them walk across the road even in moving traffic.”

Rewane added, “People need to feel the impact of the budget. the impact is not going to be felt because of 10 or 12 per cent of GDP, that is N27 trillion; it has to be more. Where is the more going to come from?

“It’s going to come from investors and investors are going to come here when they are sure that their money is safe and the environment is clean, and they can look forward to a brighter future.”

He said the government must be honest with Nigerians on the economic realities, noting that people cannot start pretending to be happy.

“You can fake news but you can’t fake prosperity,” Rewane noted.

Sweden fell into a recession in the third quarter as its economy contracted by 0.3 percent and consumers tightened their belts for a fifth straight quarter, Statistics Sweden said Wednesday.

The Scandinavian country is one of the worst economic performers in the European Union, with the European Commission forecasting average growth of 0.6 percent in the EU in 2023.

Sweden’s economy shrank by 0.8 percent in the second quarter. A recession is usually defined as two consecutive quarters of contraction.

“The downturn is mainly explained by a decrease in inventories and reduced household consumption,” the statistics agency said in a statement.

Household consumption shrank by 0.6 percent in the third quarter from the second, while decreased industrial inventories contributed a negative 1.4 percentage points to the economy’s performance.

The country has been struggling with stubbornly high inflation for more than a year as well as a depreciating krona — prompting the central bank to successively raise its key rate to four percent, its highest level in 15 years.

Consumers have been hard hit by the higher prices and interest rates, with many households having mortgages with variable interest rates.

“Household consumption was much weaker than expected and posted a negative contribution to GDP for the fifth consecutive quarter, which is in line with the previous longest decline from 1992-93,” Swedish bank Swedbank said in an analyst note.

Exports were however up by a solid 1.4 percent from the previous quarter, with net exports contributing positively to GDP by 1.5 percentage points.

Compared with the third quarter of 2022, the economy shrank by 1.4 percent, Statistics Sweden said.

“Overall … the outcome confirms a weak development in the Swedish economy,” Swedbank said.

The government recently expressed concern over the country’s “prolonged economic winter”, as unemployment rose to 7.7 percent in the third quarter.

The government forecasts a contraction of 0.8 percent for 2023 as a whole.

Cross River State governor, Senator Bassey Otu, has inaugurated a new aircraft in the fleet of the state-owned Cally Air, with a promise to add three additional aircraft as the airline resumed flight services at the Margaret Ekpo International Airport, Calabar.

Inaugurating the Boeing 737 with Registration No. 5N BYR, Tuesday, at the Margaret Ekpo International Airport, the governor said: “We have about three aircrafts that would be joining the fleet in no distant time. Calabar has been an international airport and we want to raise it to that standard,” a statement by his chief press secretary, Emmanuel Ogbeche, stated.

According to the statement, Governor Otu commended his predecessor, Senator Ben Ayade, for initiating Cally Air and putting Cross River on the aviation map, saying with the 32-day non-stop fun to begin on November 30, 2023, the two planes would be flying the Lagos-Abuja-Calabar route twice a day.

The governor used the event to commend aviation authorities for installing night landing systems, expressing the hope that the airport would soon be operating optimally.

“Permit me to thank the Ministry of Aviation and the Federal Airport Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) for making it possible that flights, very soon, would be landing here till 9pm. The lighting is being restored and the airport is returning to total functionality to exist as an international airport,” he said.

The governor used the opportunity to also welcome tourists to the state for the 2023 Carnival Calabar International Festival and called on them to explore the option of Cally Air as they visit for business and other recreational activities.

“I want to thank Aero Contractors, our partners, in this business. We have agreed to build even stronger and to make sure that this partnership becomes a very viable business for the state,” Otu said.

In his remarks, the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of Aero Contractors, Captain Ado Sanusi, commended the governor for midwifing the return of services of the two aircraft to Calabar, while describing the Governor Otu-led administration as one “poised to repositioning Cross River into an economically viable state.”

He called on air travellers to embrace Aero Cally as the state-owned aircraft operate the most pocket-friendly fares in Nigeria.

Speaking earlier, the Commissioner for Aviation, Captain Eno Inah, expressed delight at the return of Cally Air services to Calabar, adding that the development has brought the needed relief to a lot of those looking forward to Africa’s biggest street party – Carnival Calabar International Festival.

He said with three additional aircraft to be added to the Cally Air fleet, Cross River State was primed for robust aviation business.

Senate President Godswill Akpabio has told President Bola Tinubu not to allow his cabinet members travel when they are expected to defend the 2024 budget at the National Assembly.

He said this when the president presented N27.5trn budget proposal before a joint session of the National Assembly, on Wednesday.

Tinubu had appealed to the lawmakers to pass the budget within 30 days.

Responding, the senate president said the lawmakers will, on Thursday and Friday, consider the 2024 budget for first and second readings and then adjourn plenary till December 12 for budget defence with MDAs.

He assured President Tinubu that the budget proposals will be diligently considered accordingly.

He therefore urged ministers and the heads of government agencies to shun travelling engagements during the budget scrutiny.

Akpabio said, “We assure you that the proposals you have come to present will be diligently considered accordingly.

“We approach this moment with a sense of duty, unity, and purpose. To ensure maximum attention to the review of the Year 2023 Budget performance and the consideration of the Year 2024 Budget Proposal, we request that Mr President would mandate Honorable Ministers and Heads of Agencies to avoid any travelling engagements that would prevent them from honoring our invitation to promptly appear before our committees to defend their budget estimates.

“As we embark on the journey of reviewing the 2024 budget, let us remember that our actions today will shape the future of our nation. Together, let us work towards a budget that reflects the aspirations and dreams of every Nigerian citizen for a greater country.”

The Nigerian Senate has invited 15 companies including Dangote Oil Refinery, NIPCO Gas Limited and NIPCO Plc to explain how they spent over N120billion intervention fund disbursed to them by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The Senate in a memo to the companies, signed by Senator Jarigbe Jarigbe, Chairman, Senate Committee on Gas, and obtained by SaharaReporters on Tuesday, said the companies are beneficiaries of the disbursement from the Nigeria Gas Expansion Program (NGEP) Intervention Fund by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The invitation said they must appear on Thursday, November 30, at a meeting room in the National Assembly complex.

The memo read, “The following Companies who are Beneficiaries of the Disbursement from the Nigeria Gas Expansion Program (NGEP) Intervention Fund by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) are Invited to an Investigative Hearing with the Senate Committee on Gas;
COMPANY

1. NIPCO GAS LTD – N25billion
2 NIPCO PLC – N5billion
3. HYDE ENERGY LTD – N2billion
4. LEE ENGINEERING AND CONSTRUCTION COMPANY – N15billion
5 PINNACLE OIL AND GAS FZE – N10billion
6. TRANSIT GAS LIMITED – N8billion
7. ALMALGAMATED OIL COMPANY NIG, LTD (AMOCON) – N5billion
8 GAS NEXUS LTD – N10billion
9. FIRST MODULAR GAS SYSTEMS LIMITED – N4.3billion
10 NOVAGAS LIMITED – N1billion
11. GREENVILLE LIQUIFIED NATURAL GAS COMPANY – N10billion
12. AP LPG LIMITED – N8billion
13 DANGOTE OIL REFINERY – N5billion
14. DELTA STATE GOVERNMENT – N20billion
15. MOB INTEGRATED SERVICES LIMITED – N2.5billion

“The invited Companies are required to appear with their Progress Reports stating Location of Projects and the Current Status of the Projects. The meeting is scheduled as follows; Date: Thursday, 30th November, 2023; Time: 2:00pm; Meeting Room 107, New Senate Building, National Assembly Complex, Abuja.


“Venue: Accept the assurances of my highest regards.”

In a recent related development, SaharaReporters had on November 23 reported that the Senate committee probing the rehabilitation of the country’s four refineries threatened to demand for dismissal and trial of senior officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, (NNPCL) and other relevant agencies for shunning its invitation.

The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Isa Jibrin, had issued a threat following the failure of the senior executives of the NNPCL and other agencies to appear before it.

The agencies, he said, were those involved in the Turn-Around Maintenance (TAM) projects of refineries.

Some of the agencies whose chief executive officers failed to turn up at the session but sent representatives included NNPCL; Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA); Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and others, Daily Trust reports.

The senator noted that from 2010 till date, over N12 trillion had been spent on the rehabilitation of the refineries, yet none of them was functional.
He said, “We will ask for a refund and dismissal of all the chief executives involved in the Turn Around Maintenance.”

Jibrin said that for weeks, they had been asking for documents, which had not been given by the oil companies, a development that created suspicion.

“We sent them an invitation more than two weeks ago requesting for documents and the documents have not been released after two weeks. So, we want the chief executives to be present.

“More worrisome is that between 2010 and 2020, the sum of N4.8 trillion was said to have been spent as operational expenses.

“How do you incur operational expenses that have to do with purchase of raw materials and similar expenses on factories that are moribund? How do we come about operational expenses? We need to know.

“These are issues that Nigerians want to know; they want solutions to all these leakages. We know they are leakages. Whether you accept it or not they are leakages and they are all forms of compromise within your various establishments.

“We know and we will not hesitate to escalate it to the highest possible level, including the possibility of refund and outright dismissal of some of the heads of some of these agencies and possibly go to jail,” he had said.

There is no respite in sight for university workers under the umbrella of Academic Staff Union of Universities, ASUU, who are agitating for the release of their withheld salaries resulting from last year’s industrial action.

DAILY POST reports that the union last week lost its suit against the federal government over the salaries withheld for the period they were on strike in 2022.

The development came after the National Industrial Court, NIC, dismissed the case filed by ASUU against the Minister of Labour and Employment and the Accountant General of the Federation.

ASUU was on strike which lasted for eight months in 2022 over issues revolving around revitalisation of public universities and a review of lecturers’ salaries and allowances, among other matters.

After several meetings and efforts to resolve the strike ended inconclusively, the federal government headed to the National Industrial Court to challenge the union’s action.

In its ruling, the industrial court granted the federal government’s application for an interlocutory injunction to restrain ASUU from continuing with the strike pending the determination of the substantive suit.

However, early in November last year, when they returned to work, the members of the union were bewildered following the payment of half salaries for only 18 working days in October to its members by the federal government.

The development followed the federal government’s insistence on implementing the ‘No Work, No Pay’ policy when the university workers were away from their duty posts.

The then Minister of Labour and Employment, Chris Ngige, had said that the lecturers were paid in pro rata for the number of days they worked, counting from the day that they suspended their industrial action.

The National Industrial Court further upheld the no work, no pay rule when it ruled in the suit filed by the federal government against the ASUU.

The union had demanded salaries of members from February 14 to October 7, 2022, when the strike was called off.

But according to the court, it was within the right of the federal government to withhold salaries of workers who embark on industrial action.

In June this year, ASUU filed a separate lawsuit against the federal government over what it described as discriminatory, unfair and illegal treatment of its members.

The suit was filed by Femi Falana, a Senior Advocate of Nigeria, SAN, on behalf of ASUU.

The union asked the court to determine whether having paid the salaries of members of the Joint Staff Union, National Association of Resident Doctors and lecturers in the Medical Facilities/Medical and Dental Academic of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Nnewi Campus, Anambra State during the period of industrial actions, the decision of the defendants to withhold the salaries of the members of the claimant from February to October 2022 was not discriminatory and illegal.

The union also wanted the court to determine “whether the members of ASUU were not entitled to payment of their salaries for the months of February to October 2022, of which their members were on strike.

While ruling on the matter last week, the President of the NIC, Hon. Justice Benedict Kanyip, dismissed the case on the basis that it was an abuse of court process, frivolous and vexatious.

Justice Kanyip also awarded the sum of five hundred thousand Naira (N500,000) payable by ASUU to the Attorney-General of the Federation within 30 days.

“This stance is further reinforced when the supporting affidavit of the instant suit is considered. In paragraphs 6 to 12 and 15 of the affidavit in support of the instant suit, the Claimant recounted what constitutes the work of a lecturer, how the strike it embarked upon does not abrogate the responsibilities of its members as lecturers, how, despite that the defendants refused to pay its members their salaries for the period of the strike, how the strike continued thereby, how the teaching job component of their job was only restored upon the orders of this Court and the Court of Appeal, etc. These were matters ASUU ought to have canvassed in Suit No. NICN/ABJ/270/2022 if they had filed their defence processes. But ASUU ‘strategically’ chose not to.

“ASUU accordingly has itself to blame for all these ‘strategic’ blunders. It cannot, by the instant suit, re-litigate a suit it deliberately refused to file a defence to. To do so would be re-litigation through the backdoor. I so hold,” the court ruled.

Recall that before the court judgement, President Bola Tinubu had last month approved the partial waiver of the “No Work, No Pay” order against ASUU members.

According to the presidential spokesman, Ajuri Ngelale, Tinubu approved the grant of the waiver with a mandatory requirement that the Federal Ministry of Education and the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment must secure a Document of Understanding establishing that the exceptional waiver granted by the President would be the last one to be granted to ASUU and all other education sector unions.

Ajuri said the waiver would allow for the previously striking members of ASUU to receive four months of salary accruals out of the eight months of salary which was withheld during the eight-month industrial action undertaken by the union.

He said Tinubu invoked the Principle of the Presidential Prerogative of Mercy, seeking to “mitigate the difficulties being felt during the implementation of key economic reforms in the country, as well as his recognition of the faithful implementation of terms which were agreed upon during the deliberations between ASUU and the Federal Government of Nigeria”.

Findings by DAILY POST indicated that the union was not amenable to the condition attached to its members receiving the four months of salary accruals out of the eight months of salary.

A top official of the union told DAILY POST that signing the agreement would amount to ‘slavery.’

He said the union would never relinquish its rights because of the withheld salaries.

Speaking to DAILY POST about the matter, the ASUU UNN branch chairman, Comrade Nobert Oyibo Eze said the government was yet to reach out to the union concerning the eight months’ backlog of salaries – a fallout from last year’s strike.

He also said that the national body of ASUU has not come out with any statement on the recent court pronouncement on the matter.

Eze said that the leaders must consider the interest of the people for things to work well in the country.

He further warned that ‘‘it is going to be worse for this country if the courts are no longer doing what is proper’’.

He said, ‘‘As far as the idea of four months salary and signing documents are concerned, ASUU has not received any official communication from the government. And the truth of the matter is that we have done the work. And you cannot deny us our salaries after we have done the work.

‘‘You see, the problem with the Nigerian system is that we have a political class that is hypocritical, that is self-centred and extremely wicked.

“Why would they want to answer a doctor and a professor and claim they have attended university, which they did not? They claim all sorts of titles from the educational sector, they want to be doctor, professor; they want to claim they have the degrees. So, education is good to them but they cannot fund it in this country. What exactly is the government of this country doing?

“Recently, it was reported all over the place about the N160 million they appropriated to each one of the members of the National Assembly to buy bulletproof vehicles. So, they are the only ones to be secured.

‘‘The major salary they are paying the workers, they cannot pay it. Whenever it comes to their own, there would be money.

“I read somewhere two days ago about how N104 billion was sandwiched, smuggled into the budget as an end of the year parting gift, where a senator will take N300 million and a member of the House will take N200 million.

“Whenever it comes to their own needs, there would be money. But when it comes to taking care of the workers who generate this money, they will be talking about empty treasury. Are they talking to kids?

‘‘President Tinubu said during his campaign that if he becomes the president of this country, he will make sure that he stops strikes in the university by ensuring that whatever the universities need to be functional that he provides them.

“Since he took over as the President, has he called the members of the union to dialogue? Why do we have this type of system where the people, the masses who are working are being crushed?

“Today, we are buying a litre of fuel at N700, how much is our salary? A professor’s salary cannot feed him summarily for two weeks.

‘‘I want to tell them that if they want things to work in this country, they must consider the people. If all of us die, who are they going to govern?

“Why is it that our political class is self-centred? Other governments are pumping money into the system to have a state-of-art-university. Here in Nigeria, they are busy proliferating universities, which they don’t fund. The health sector is sick.

“I’m saying, unless they pay those salaries, things will not work well in the universities. And they are even using the eight months salaries, which we have worked for as a cover because the major issues why we went on strike, nobody talks about it anymore.

“We went on strike because our take-home-package can no longer take us home. This salary we are receiving today, they were negotiated and effected in 2009. What is the exchange rate now compared to 2009?

“What is a professor in Nigeria earning when you convert the dollars to naira? It is a shame that our people go to places where things work, they send their children overseas to study because things are working well there.

‘‘Why is it that the people who are now in government, those who went to the university, who enjoyed bursary award, free education, federal scholarship cannot even give scholarships, cannot even pay salaries?

“All over the place, the primary and secondary schools are crying. Then come to the universities, colleges of education and polytechnics.

‘‘Nobody is enjoying the strike. If they uplift the system, strike will stop. As long as they continue to play politics, we will continue to go on strike.”

When asked to comment on the court judgement, he said, ‘‘The courts are no longer the hope of common persons. I cannot address that issue because the national body has not come out with any statement.

“You see, they are using courts to do whatever things they want to do. The court is not helping the situation. Nigerian people don’t believe in court any more.

“It is going to be worse for this country when the courts are no longer doing what is proper; nobody will be interested in going to court.

‘‘We did our work. There is no question…Are they saying we did not work?

“After the strike, we went back and made sure that every lacuna was closed up. JAMB has continued to admit people because we are teaching.

Hamas fighters on Saturday released a second group of 13 Israeli hostages in exchange for Palestinian prisoners, freeing for the first time one of the people snatched during their bloody assault on a music festival.

The hostage-for-prisoner exchange had been delayed for hours in a heart-stopping development when Hamas accused Israel of breaching its side of the agreement, struck as part of a four-day ceasefire which is already past its mid-point.

But after the intervention of Qatari and Egyptian mediators and reassurances from Israel, Hamas agreed to proceed, releasing 13 Israelis and four Thai hostages in a late-night operation.

Israel in turn freed 39 Palestinian prisoners, officials said.

Red Cross minibuses could be seen ferrying the hostages late at night through Gaza’s Rafah border crossing with Egypt ahead of their transfer to Israel, AFP photo and video images showed.

Among the freed Israelis was 21-year-old Maya Regev, kidnapped by Hamas in their deadly October 7 assault on the Supernova desert rave, according to a forum of the hostages’ families.

Maya Regev and her 18-year-old brother Itay, who was also snatched by Hamas during the festival, were later shown tied up in the back of a pick-up truck in a video posted on social media.

“I am so excited and happy that Maya is on her way to us now. Nonetheless, my heart is split because my son Itay is still in Hamas captivity in Gaza,” her mother Mirit said in a statement released by the hostage families’ forum.

The family of freed nine-year-old hostage Emily Hand said they were “overjoyed” to embrace her again.

“We can’t find the words to describe our emotions after 50 challenging and complicated days,” they said in a statement via the forum.

Prison authorities in Israel said they in turn released 39 Palestinian detainees including 38-year-old Israa Jaabis, sentenced to 11 years in jail for detonating a gas cylinder at a checkpoint in 2015.

The handover of Hamas hostages came hours later than expected after the militant group said Israel was interfering in the selection of prisoners for release and was not allowing aid to reach civilians in northern Gaza.


– Nine-year-old boy hugs father –

Hamas later said it had “responded positively” to Egyptian and Qatari mediators, after they relayed a promise by Israel to “uphold all the conditions of the accord”.

Israeli officials denied any breach of the terms of the pause.

Saturday’s exchange followed an initial swap on Friday when Hamas released 13 Israelis, all of them women and children.

Ten Thais and one Filipino were also unexpectedly freed by Hamas.

Israel in turn released 39 Palestinian women and children from its prisons under an agreement that mandates exchanges at a ratio of three to one.

Israeli hostages who were let go in the initial swap reunited with their families in touching scenes.

Nine-year-old boy Otah, wearing glasses and carrying a stuffed toy, rounded the corner of a hospital near Tel Aviv and broke into a run, hurling himself into the arms of his father, video images showed.

The boy, his mother and grandmother were among those released in the first exchange Friday.

On the same day in the Israeli-occupied West Bank, fireworks exploded and crowds filled the streets to welcome the first release of Palestinian prisoners.

“I was just waiting for the day I would be released from prison so I could hug my mother like this,” said Rawan Abu Matar, who served eight years for attempting to stab an Israeli soldier.

Hamas is expected to free a total of 50 hostages during the truce in exchange for 150 Palestinian prisoners, under an agreement brokered by Qatar, Egypt and the United States.


– Aid trucks enter Gaza –

Its fighters snatched around 240 people when they broke through Gaza’s militarised border with Israel on October 7, killing about 1,200 Israelis and foreigners, according to Israeli authorities.

Following the deadliest attack in its history, Israel launched an air, artillery and naval bombardment alongside a ground offensive to destroy Hamas, killing nearly 15,000 people, mostly civilians and including thousands of children, according to the Hamas government in Gaza.

The pause in fighting in Gaza opened the way for more aid to Palestinians struggling to survive with shortages of water and other essentials. Israel had placed Gaza under near-total siege.

A total of 61 trucks delivered food, water and humanitarian aid via a “humanitarian passageway” to northern Gaza on Saturday, the United Nations office for humanitarian affairs said.

Another 187 trucks of vital supplies had been sent separately to aid organisations operating in the Gaza Strip, it said.

The UN humanitarian agency OCHA said that in “several reported incidents” on Friday, “Israeli forces opened fire and threw teargas canisters at people heading northwards; at least one person was reportedly killed, and dozens injured.”

The Hamas-run health ministry in Gaza said seven people had been wounded in similar incidents on Saturday.

Egypt said that it had received positive feedback from both sides about the idea of extending the truce for a day or two and releasing more hostages and prisoners.

“It’s only a start, but so far it’s gone well,” US President Joe Biden told reporters Friday, adding “the chances are real” for extending the truce.

Jordan’s Foreign Minister Ayman Safadi called for “a permanent ceasefire and a complete end to this aggression”.

But Israeli armed forces chief Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi insisted Saturday that the war to eliminate Hamas would resume as soon as the pause in fighting ends.

“We will return immediately at the end of the ceasefire to attack Gaza,” Halevi said.


– ‘They destroyed our houses’ –

“We will also do this in order to dismantle Hamas, also to create a great deal of pressure to return as quickly as possible and as many abductees as possible, every last one of them,” he added.

The UN estimates that 1.7 million of Gaza’s 2.4 million people have been displaced by the fighting.

Since the truce, thousands have been returning to what is left of their homes.

“We are civilians,” said Mahmud Masood, standing in front of flattened buildings in Jabalia, northern Gaza. “Why have they destroyed our houses?”

A woman sat on top of a mound of debris with her head in her hands, crying.

In southern Gaza, AFPTV drone images showed people walking or riding in donkey carts along paths cleared through piles of rubble.

Terrorists operating in Maru Local Government Area of Zamfara State on Friday abducted more than 100 residents in separate but coordinated attacks in several villages over the failure of the villagers to pay a N110 million protection levy.

The terrorists that carried out the attack are believed to be loyal to a terror kingpin, Damina, who operates around the Dansadau axis of the state.

PREMIUM TIMES gathered that those abducted were from Mutunji, Unguwar Kawo, Kwantar Dutsi and Sabon Garin Mahuta.

A local source told BBC Hausa that Mr Damina led a gang of terrorists on motorcycles and surrounded the community a few minutes after the dusk prayer at 8:00 p.m.

“We were sitting in a place called Yar Kasuwa after the Isha’i prayers when the terrorists stormed the community. They surrounded the community while others drove into the community centre. We began running but it was already too late. They matched people into the forest,” he said.

Men, women and children were abducted, he said.

Unknown to the residents of Mutunji, other neighbouring communities were being raided at the time.

“They also attacked other communities including Unguwar Kawo, Kwanar Dutsi and Sabon Garin Mahuta and took away several people. We’ve at least 100 people taken. We’re still counting to ascertain the true number of those taken,” another source said.


Compensation levy

The source said Mr Damina attacked Mutunji because the village failed to give him N50 million he asked them to pay as compensation for “informing soldiers” of the terrorists’ movements.

Mr Damina gave the residents a week to gather the money but the source said they couldn’t gather it.

“We were trying to gather the money reaching out to people when he (Mr Damina) decided to strike.

“He had also imposed such levy on the other communities. Kwana residents were asked to pay N30 million, people of Sabon Garin Mahuta were asked to gather N20 million while residents of Unguwar Kawo were asked to pay N10 million,” he said.

The police spokesperson in the state, Yazid Abubakar, did not respond to calls and SMS sent to him on the attack.

The North-west subregion has been battling terrorists, also called bandits, for over a decade.

The terrorists have killed and abducted thousands of people and tens of thousands of others have been displaced in the region.

The terrorists primarily target schools, religious houses, travellers and rural communities.

The senator noted that from 2010 till date, over N12 trillion had been spent on the rehabilitation of the refineries, yet none of them was functional.

The Senate committee probing the rehabilitation of the country’s four refineries has threatened to demand for dismissal and trial of senior officials of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited, (NNPCL) and other relevant agencies for shunning its invitation.

The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Isa Jibrin on Wednesday issued a threat following the failure of the senior executives of the NNPCL and other agencies to appear before it.

The agencies, he said, were those involved in the Turn-Around Maintenance (TAM) projects of refineries.

Some of the agencies whose chief executive officers failed to turn up at the session but sent representatives included NNPCL; Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA); Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) and others, Daily Trust reports.

The senator noted that from 2010 till date, over N12 trillion had been spent on the rehabilitation of the refineries, yet none of them was functional.

He said, “We will ask for a refund and dismissal of all the chief executives involved in the Turn Around Maintenance.”

Jibrin said that for weeks, they had been asking for documents, which had not been given by the oil companies, a development that created suspicion.

“We sent them an invitation more than two weeks ago requesting for documents and the documents have not been released after two weeks. So, we want the chief executives to be present.

“More worrisome is that between 2010 and 2020, the sum of N4.8 trillion was said to have been spent as operational expenses.

“How do you incur operational expenses that have to do with purchase of raw materials and similar expenses on factories that are moribund? How do we come about operational expenses? We need to know.

“These are issues that Nigerians want to know; they want solutions to all these leakages. We know they are leakages. Whether you accept it or not they are leakages and they are all forms of compromise within your various establishments.

“We know and we will not hesitate to escalate it to the highest possible level, including the possibility of refund and outright dismissal of some of the heads of some of these agencies and possibly go to jail,” he said.

The naira fell, on Thursday, to N956/$ on the official Investor and Exporter forex window as dollar supply declined by 46.77 per cent.

This is a 13.78 per cent decline from the N840.53/$ the naira closed trading on Wednesday according to data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange. Also, the turnover of dollars traded in the market fell to $105.50m from $198.21m on Wednesday.

The naira began trading at N800.90/$ for the day before hitting a high of N1136/$ and N615/$ within the day. It eventually closed trading at N956.33/$.

The instability of the naira has persisted despite recent moves by the Central Bank to clear the backlog of foreign exchange forward contracts. The naira is one of the worst-performing currencies in the world, losing about 40 per cent of its value since June, the World Bank recently disclosed.

Recently, the Economic Intelligence Unit, the research and analysis division of the Economist Group, disclosed that the CBN does not have the required firepower to clear the backlog of foreign exchange orders. This is expected to continue to put pressure on the naira.

It stated, “In Nigeria, an unsupportive monetary policy implies that the naira will remain under pressure, while the central bank lacks the firepower to adequately supply the market or clear a backlog of foreign exchange orders, which will keep foreign investors unnerved. High inflation and a continued spread with the parallel market will leave the exchange rate regime unstable and result in periodic devaluations.

Wole Olanipekun, counsel to Abba Yusuf, Kano governor, says the court of appeal does not have the jurisdiction to correct the errors made in the recently delivered judgment on the Kano governorship election dispute.

The appellate court in Abuja had on Friday affirmed the verdict of the Kano state governorship election petition tribunal which sacked Abba Yusuf, candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP).

However, the certified true copy of the judgment contained contradictory resolutions, with the judge ruling in favour of and against the governor in the document.

Addressing the situation, Umar Bangari, chief registrar of the court of appeal, said the discrepancy was a clerical error that did not affect the court’s decision.

Bangari said Order 23, Rule 4 of the court of appeal handbook “empowers the court to correct any clerical error once detected by the court or any of the parties in the matter”.

Responding in a letter addressed to the court on Thursday, Olanipekun said the 60-day timeline allowed to hear and dispose of an appeal expired on November 18.

“Assuming without conceding that the judgment has some errors, whether typographical or otherwise, we humbly and dutifully draw your attention to the fact that the court of appeal became functus officio in the matter on Saturday, November 18, 2023,” the letter reads.

“Any application for correction of errors can only be entertained by the supreme court. Section 285(7) of the Constitution earlier referred to becomes very handy and imperative to the effect that the court of appeal cannot take any further step in the appeal or subject after the expiration of sixty (60) days.”

Reacting to Bangari’s statement that parties should file a formal application for correction, the senior advocate said: “We are not aware that any of the parties has filed any application to correct any error.

“Even at that, judicial precedents are countless as to the procedure to follow, and which court has jurisdiction to take such an application, after the expiration of the sixty (60) days mandatorily benchmarked by the constitution.”

“Today is the seventh day, effective from Friday, November 17, 2023, since the delivery of the judgment of the court of appeal.

“We repeat that, out of the fourteen days mandatorily prescribed for our client to file his notice and grounds of appeal to the supreme court, he is left with just seven (7) days; and it is only fair that he should be allowed to exercise his constitutional right of appeal without any inhibition, within the fraction of days left for him.

“We reiterate that this response has been borne out of a compelling duty and responsibility to the administration of justice, and, as counsel, it is our responsibility to draw attention to these salient statutory imperatives.”

The bursary and scholarship award ceremony organized by the Ondo State Oil Development Area Development Commission (OSOPADEC), has been disrupted by suspected hoodlums who beat up the agency’s commissioner, Kehinde Akinrotoye.

Vanguard learnt that the hoodlums invaded the venue of the ceremony and started shooting sporadically, disrupting the event for hours.

Both staff and students who came for the event scampered for safety as a result of gunshots from the suspected hoodlums.

Sources told newsmen that the “hoodlums came in hired vehicles and started to shoot into the premises, thereby preventing the event from being held at a scheduled time.

“The beneficiaries of the bursary and scholarship award were already seated when the hoodlums came and started shooting sporadically into the venue and this led to pandemonium in the area.

”Security officers attached to the office, could not curtail the activities of the hoodlums as they forced their way into the premises.

Vanguard gathered that one of the agency’s commissioners, Kehinde Akinrotoye, was beaten to a pulp by the beneficiaries who alleged him of sponsoring the hoodlums to disrupt the event.

Akinrotoye’s vehicle and another vehicle parked on the premises of the agency were vandalized.

Timely intervention of police detectives from the State Police Command saved the situation from degenerating.

They were able to bring the riotous situation under control.

Police detectives were still keeping vigil at the agency at the time of filling in the report.

Meanwhile, the attacked commissioner has been rushed to the state hospital for medical attention.

He declined to comment when contacted for comments.

Kayode Egbetokun, the Inspector General of Police (IGP), revealed to federal lawmakers yesterday that some police stations in the country do not have a single operational vehicle.

He made the speech while addressing National Assembly members during a debate organised by the House of Representatives to receive briefings on challenges confronting security agencies and other organs of the federal government.

Egbetokun lamented the poor welfare of police operatives and operational challenges impeding their efficiency.

Mini trucks Wasting Away at Police College, Lagos Photo Credit: Sodeeq Atanda/FIJ

“We have 1,137 police divisional headquarters across 774 LGAs in Nigeria, but getting operational vehicles for the divisions is difficult. Each of these divisions at least require four functional vehicles, but we have divisions that don’t have any functional operational vehicle as of today,” the IGP said.

“The welfare of personnel is nothing to write home about. Funding is critcal to achieving the mandate of the Nigeria police. Unfortunately, the citizens are not interested in our excuses for underperformance. What the citizens want is performance.

“They want us to serve them. We are willing to serve them, but we need your cooperation, funding, more manpower and logistics to train our men adequately. We need to improve the welfare of our officers. We want a well-motivated workforce in the police.”


The brown pick-ups. Photo Credit: Sodeeq Atanda/FIJ


VEHICLES BEGGING TO BE USED

While it is correct that police personnel face numerous challenges, there are indications that the resources available to the Nigeria Police Force are not evenly distributed.

As Egbetokun pointed out, some divisions lack operational vehicles. However, some police facilities have so much that vehicles are wasting away.

For example, the police college located opposite the Lagos State’s Standing Tribunal of Inquiry Into Chieftaincy Matters, Ikeja, is home to some unused vehicles.

During a visit to the facility on Wednesday, our reporter observed no fewer than 19 new mini trucks close to the college’s main gate.

There were also four unused pickups on the college’s premises: two white pickups and two brown pickups. The brown ones appeared to be in poor physical condition from abandonment.


The white pick-ups. Photo Credit: Sodeeq Atanda/FIJ


What is not hidden from plain sight is that all the vehicles have been on the same spot for long. A source told FIJ that the vehicles had been parked on the same spot for some months.

“I am not sure of when they brought them. But I am sure the vehicles have been here for some time now. I was here in April, and I saw these vehicles,” said the source, who does not want to be named.

The Minister of Interior, Hon. (Dr.) Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, has said the Federal Government is ready to expel officers abusing their powers by locking up people without a detention warrant.

The Minister disclosed this on Tuesday in Abuja during his presentation at the International Donor Round Table on Correctional Service Reform organized by the United Nations Office on Drugs and Crime, UNODC.

While speaking on the abuse of power by correctional facility controllers, which has in recent years become a commonplace practice, the Minister who frowned at such development noted that the Renewed Hope agenda of the President was set to crack down and expel anyone caught in the act.

“Any controller caught taking money from a big man to lock up a poor man without a detention warrant will be expelled from the service.

“We are here to fill in the gap for the weakest in the society. We are here, as a government, to be the voice of the voiceless, and the strength of the weakest. Never again should the freedom of anybody be taken away on the basis of his weakness,” Tunji-Ojo was quoted as saying in a statement by his media aide Alao Babatunde on Wednesday.

The Minister assured the United Nations team that the current administration is key to doing things differently in order to earn the trust of its citizens and the international communities.

“Trust is something you don’t ask for – you earn it. This government wants to work to earn your trust and loyalty. We are doing things differently, and ready to deliver on the renewed hope agenda of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu where Nigerians can have a better life, and brighter future,” the Minister said.

The UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator, Mr. Matthias Schmale, commended the Minister for his proactive measures since taking over the helm of affairs of the Ministry.

“I want to commend you for the good job you are doing. I am aware of the great things you have done.”

Held in the UN House in Abuja, the round table saw the participation of top officials from the Ministry of Interior, Ministry of Justice, House Committee on Reformatory Institutions, UNODC, UNFPA, concerned NGOs, diplomats, and international communities including the Italian Ambassador, and representatives of the governments of Germany, Qatar and the USA.

The Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa has disclosed that prison warders help Boko Haram members move money around.

Musa said the prison warders also help Boko Haram members carry out some of their criminal activities.

He disclosed this during the sectoral debate with Service Chiefs organized by the House of Representatives in Abuja on Tuesday.

Musa said during debriefing, some Boko Haram members in the North-East, confessed to how from the prisons they could plan operations and pass funds to the field through the help of some prison warders.

He said: “They passed funds across and we asked how. They told us they use some of the warders.

“We are not saying all of them are bad, but they use some of the warders’ accounts to transfer money and the deal is anybody whose account it is transferred, shared it 50-50. Those are the challenges.”

The Army Chief also lamented that the high dollar rate had hampered the purchase of relevant equipment needed to fight insecurity.

According to Musa, all the items procured are bought with foreign currency.

He added: “We don’t produce what we need in Nigeria and if you do not produce what you need, that means you are at the beck and call of the people that produce these items.

“For example, during the last regime, about $1 billion was set aside for defence procurement. Out of that amount, over $600 million was for the procurement of aircraft. So, the whole money had gone.

“So many times when people see that funds are being released to the armed forces, they think it is so much but by the time you convert them to dollars you do not get much.

“One precision missile for our drone costs $5,000. So imagine how many we would be able to use and how many we can procure. So, those are the challenges.”

Former President Muhammadu Buhari has said his eight-year administration might have been hijacked by a cabal.

Buhari said this while speaking in a recent interview with the Nigeria Television Authority (NTA).

A cabal is a powerful political clique that runs the affairs of the country for their advantage at the expense of the people.

Speaking on the possibility of losing the grip of power to a cabal, the ex-president said the insinuations were possible.

Recall that the former First Lady, Aisha Buhari, first raised the allegation in 2016, but her husband played it down.

But when the question was asked again during the NTA interview, Buhari said, “it must have been.”

He, however, added that he was not sure anyone who breached the law was allowed to “walk away.”

About ruling the country, he said, “God gave me the opportunity to serve my country, but I did my best. But whether my best was good enough, I leave for people to judge.”

The former president also said he was too pre-occupied with local matters to be bothered with foreign issues as president. He said his biggest challenge was securing the country.

Buhari said he did not try to compete with Nigeria’s wealthy class by acquiring land, houses and cars during his time as Nigeria’s leader, explaining that it was the reason he was “living in peace” after exiting government.

He argued that some Nigerians attempted to set a trap for him by trying to ambush him with certain opportunities, but that he avoided the trap because he knew that once they knew he had been compromised, they would take advantage of the situation to milk the country.

State governors as well as former ministers and other officials, who served in the administration of former President Muhammadu Buhari, and the political associates of President Bola Tinubu have launched an intense lobbying for appointment as Nigerian ambassadors to foreign countries.

Saturday PUNCH gathered that chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Congress, National Assembly members and retired military officers were among those jostling for ambassadorial nominations.

Nigeria has a total of 109 missions, 76 embassies, 22 high commissions and 11 consulates abroad.

The desperate lobby for ambassadorial appointments commenced after the Federal Government recalled all the envoys from their posts on September 2, 2023.

The envoys were directed to return to the country on or before October 31.

On October 20, 2016, former President Muhammadu Buhari approved the nomination of 46 non-career ambassadors-designate in addition to the previous nomination of 47 career ambassadors-designate.

Earlier, there was controversy over the recall of ambassadors by Buhari’s government but his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, debunked the reports in a statement, saying only 25 career ambassadors, who had attained the retirement age and had been in public service for 35 years, were recalled.

He explained in a statement, “There was nothing like mass recall of ambassadors. What happened lately is that 25 career ambassadors, who attained the retirement age, or 35 years of public service in December 2018, were recalled.

“They were allowed to remain at their duty posts and given an extension, if that is the word, in view of the upcoming elections, which are now behind us.”

In January 2021, Buhari approved the posting of 95 envoys, comprising 43 career and 52 non-career ambassadors, to man the nation’s diplomatic missions.

Before the approval, the Senate had ratified their nomination in 2020.

The diplomats were deployed after they were confirmed by the Senate in accordance with Section 171(2) (1c) and subsection 4 of the 1999 Constitution.

But the envoys were recalled by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, on September 2, 2023.

The minister confirmed the development following reports that Nigeria’s High Commissioner to the United Kingdom, Ambassador Sarafa Isola, had been recalled.

But while clarifying the directive, Tuggar said the action was not a witch-hunt and that it applied to all career and non-career envoys.

The minister, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media, Al-Kashim Abdul-Kadir, had said, “Sequel to the enquiries on the letter recalling the Nigerian High Commissioner to the UK, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Maitama Tuggar, has reaffirmed that all career ambassadors and non-career ambassadors have been recalled on the instructions of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.”

The Presidency later clarified that all the country’s United Nations permanent representatives in New York and Geneva were exempted from the recall.

A statement by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, said the exemption was a result of the UN General Assembly, which was held between September 18 and 22.

Our correspondents could not confirm whether the recall order had been extended to Nigeria’s UN permanent representatives in New York and Geneva after the UNGA.

Foreign affairs ministry officials had yet to provide information on the status of the diplomats as of the time of filing this report on Friday.

Saturday PUNCH had reported that the Presidency had begun compiling the list of new ambassadors.

Pressure on Gbajabiamila, minister

Following the development, it was gathered that the jostle for the vacant diplomatic posts escalated with politicians and other interested individuals bombarding the President and his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, with requests for nomination.

Our correspondents further learnt that the foreign affairs minister and the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and International Relations, Ambassador Olusola Enikanolaiye, had come under immense pressure from prominent Nigerians seeking appointments.

Sources disclosed that those who failed to get ministerial nominations were at the forefront of the rush for the ambassadorial positions.

Speaking on condition of anonymity, an official said, “The President’s associates and state governors are intensifying their lobbies for career and non-career ambassadorial nomination.

“They are pushing the profiles of their candidates. They are jettisoning those with a year or less to retire and picking those with longer career years ahead.”

“The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar; Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and International Relations, Ambassador Olusola Enikanolaiye; and the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila, are under intense pressure from the lobbyists, including National Assembly members, APC support groups and party chieftains to be listed as ambassadors.

“Some of these lobbyists include past administrators, politicians, retired military men, unsuccessful governorship aspirants, and those who served as heads of agencies under Buhari, among others.”

When asked about the ratio of career and non-career diplomats that may be appointed, the source said, “Fifty-five per cent to 45 per cent.”

One of our correspondents gathered that the majority of the recalled ambassadors had returned to the country, while those who had yet to do so had formally handed over to the most senior officers at their diplomatic posts, while perfecting travel plans to return home as directed.

Confirming this, a senior official at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, who spoke on condition of anonymity said, “Most of the ambassadors are rounding off their tours of duty and heading back to Abuja. A good number of them have already returned.”

Similarly, a source in the Presidency said while some of the bigwigs in the APC and former governors had started submitting their curriculum vitae, some former ambassadors were also jostling to be reappointed.

While noting that the names of persons to be shortlisted remained confidential, the source added, “The Presidency didn’t extend it (ambassadorial appointment) for them (former envoys). Some of them are returning (to Nigeria) already.

“I don’t know anyone lobbying. I know that they’re working on it but I don’t know the specifics. People are submitting CVs.

“Different party leaders and stakeholders are pushing their interests. Even some of them (former ambassadors) are lobbying to be reinstated, so until the list is made official and published, anything can change.”


‘No political cronies’

However, a former Director-General of the Nigerian Institute of International Affairs, Prof Bola Akinterinwa, urged President Tinubu to desist from appointing ambassadors as a reward system for his cronies.

He said the President should consider appointing academic ambassadors who specialised in handling international affairs of the countries they would serve in, saying most political ambassadors usually pursue personal interests over national interests.

Akinterinwa said, “Political ambassadors are not interested in any national interest to protect abroad. The moment they are appointed, they look out for how to survive even after the tenure of the President who appoints them.

“Nigerian politicians do not place priority on the protection of national interests. If President Tinubu is not careful with the appointments and decides to reward his political cronies and friends, Nigeria will certainly be in trouble very shortly.

“If we are suggesting academic diplomats, I agree with that; there are many academic diplomats in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs. There can be a focus on the specialisation of those who have served in some countries if they meet the level of Grade Level 16 or 17; those are the people they should be looking out for.”

Speaking further, the former NIIA DG explained that anyone appointed as an ambassador without prior training as a diplomatic agent, or career ambassador was referred to as a “political ambassador.”

“Political ambassadors need diplomatic training to be able to perform diplomatic functions enshrined in the 1961 Vienna Convention. Most unfortunately, it is the political ambassadors that have always behaved in a manner considered not compatible with the status of diplomats,” he added.

By Ameh Ejekwonyilo


Olumide Akpata, a former President of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), says it is only by sheer luck that the Nigerian judiciary can produce a good judge.

Mr Akpata spoke recently at the International Bar Association (IBA) conference in Paris, France.

Addressing the gathering, the former NBA president noted that Nigeria remains the largest black nation on earth, adding that the country is confronted with a major problem he termed, “judiciary capture.”

Chidi Odinkalu, a law professor and former chairman of the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC), shared Mr Akpata’s perspectives on his X handle on Friday.

In two short videos posted on X (formerly Twitter), Mr Akpata who is vying for the Edo State governorship election next year, was seen lamenting how Nigeria’s political class had emasculated the judicial system.

He was the NBA president between 2021 and 2022, before being succeeded by Yakubu Maikyau in August 2022.

Drawing on his experience as president of the NBA, Mr Akpata recalled how flawed the recruitment process of judges is in the country.

“For a good judge to emerge out of that process is by fluke only; sheer luck with judicial appointment in Nigeria. It is ridiculous.”

Being president of the NBA conferred Mr Akpata with the statutory membership of the National Judicial Council (NJC), a body saddled with the responsibilities of recruiting and disciplining erring judges in Nigeria.

“While I was president of the NBA, what I found out was that there is a deliberate attempt on the part of the political class in Nigeria to capture the judiciary. And that has very insidious consequences for rule of law in Nigeria. It is deliberate and it is intentional. And it is achieving results for them.”

Without giving further details of his observations while being on the recruitment panel for judges, Mr Akpata described his findings as “bizarre.”

“Because the kind of people who show up as judges have no business being there.”

The recruitment process of judges in Nigeria has been controversial with many lawyers calling for reforms.

Recently, Mr Odinkalu, a vocal critic of the process of appointment of judges, wondered why heads of courts like the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Olukayode Ariwoola and the Presidents of the Court of Appeal and National Industrial Court of Nigeria, Monica Dongban-Mensem and Benedict Kanyip, respectively, would appoint their children or spouses as judges.

He also described the situation as “judicial capture.”

There are several retired and serving justices including politicians whose children and spouses currently serve as judicial officers across various courts in the court.


Public confidence in judiciary eroded

Referencing the burning of the High Court complex in Lagos State during the EndSARS protests in October 2020, Mr Akpata said the picture of a man holding a machete and clad in a judge’s robes – wig and gown – was a clear message to the Nigerian judiciary that justice was not being served from the courts.

“So, what we have is a total erosion of confidence in the judiciary.”

He said politicians, especially governors, pauperise judges by denying them their basic entitlements like official cars and accommodation.

Mr Akpata disclosed that “some chief judges kneel before the governors” to beg for funds.

Judicial unions in Nigeria have been demanding financial independence but to no avail.

Judges’ salaries are abysmally poor, a situation Mr Akpata said breeds corruption.

“When you know a man (judge) that knows the law but his judgement flies against the face of what the law should be, you know that there is something else motivating him or her.”

He said some judges were living above their legitimate income by sending their children to Ivy Leagues like Cambridge, Yale and Harvard.


Urges IBA to intervene

Mr Akpata asserted that the “IBA being the global body of the legal profession has a role to play in dealing with what I call ‘the judiciary capture.'”

He said what happens in Nigeria has wider implications for the world.

Responding, an official of the IBA whose name could not be ascertained from the video promised to consider Mr Akpata’s concerns.

“What I am going to commit to you is that the IBA will put our minds together on whether a statement on the situation should come from the IBA,” the IBA official said.

CBN derelicts responsibilities

An investigation by our reporter showed that generally, money lending falls under the realm of financial services the CBN regulates. While microfinance, commercial banks and finance houses are the digital lenders licensed by the CBN, loan sharks operate under the state’s money lender laws.

Section 57 of the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA), 2020, statutorily makes the CBN the primary regulator governing financial services, with the mandate to regulate banks and the business of other financial institutions, which include those solely operating electronically, virtually or digitally.

Invariably, this means the CBN is required to incorporate and also license fintech businesses, which loan sharks are part of, except those involved in pension fund management, collective investment schemes, insurance and capital market business.

Incidentally, these digital lending companies resort to state money lender licenses, not the CBN license as required by section 57 of the BOFIA Act. Currently, the FCCPC’s Digital Lending Guidelines 2022 oversees the registration of DMLs.

Section 163(1)(c) of the FCCPC Act empowers the commission to make regulations on administrative penalties, fees, charges or levies and other related matters.

However, there are no clear provisions or directives concerning penalties for non-compliance stated in the DMLs registration guidelines. This means that no penalty or sanction would be met on digital lenders who even fail to register with the FCCPC or when they compromise standard.

The CBN, through its spokesperson, Isa Abdulmumin, declined to comment on the question as to why these loan sharks are not licensed and regulated by the CBN, which is statutorily mandated as the primary regulator of all financial services in the country.

However, a senior management staff of the apex bank who spoke under anonymity said, “Unlicensed loan sharks are illegal financial entities, and the apex bank has repeatedly cautioned borrowers to avoid obtaining loans from them to avoid running into financial difficulties.”


Banker’s reaction

Hakeem Ikumogunniyi, Regional Manager, North, Cooperative Mortgage Bank, said Nigerians find loan apps advantageous due to the delay in processing bank loans which are highly collateralised and involve signing of bulky documents.

“One of the major reasons as to why people prefer loan apps to bank loans is the turnaround time. The turnaround time for a bank loan is extremely long and it involves signing a lot of documents before the loan can be granted. But the loan app has a lesser processing procedure although it is riskier,” he said.

“Because it is very easy to secure a loan online, those with urgent needs even if they’re civil servants, they’ll approach loan apps as it is tied to little or no collateral. That is why when a person defaults in repayment, they’ll use any possible means to get back their funds,” he added.

Ikummogunniyi, a seasoned banker with two decades of experience described both loan methods as good ways of accessing loans. He however said while loan apps bank on character and credit worthiness which is a British way of banking; conventional banks focus on collateral and proper documentation procedures.

Using forgery, impersonations and breach of privacy, Digital Money Lenders (DML), popularly called loan sharks, will go to any length to retrieve their funds from Nigerian loan defaulters. In this investigation, Daily Trust Saturday reveals how the largely unchecked and unregulated activities of loan sharks by regulatory bodies are pushing the country’s lower class to the edge.

Maryam Audu is paranoid, to the extent of blocking all calls from getting through to her phone. She has, in the last six months, faced mental and emotional torments in the form of message threats, harassing voice notes and ridicule before family and friends.

She is a victim of a vicious cartel of Digital Money Lenders (DML), who uses unconventional and illegal means of threats and harassment to torment loan defaulters into paying their debts.

Digital Money Lenders have earned the name of loan sharks in Nigeria for not only charging exorbitant interest rates but adopting threats and harassment to recover loans.

In response to a rising complaint over their savagery loan recovery techniques, the federal government, in March 2022, commissioned the Joint Regulatory and Enforcement Task Force (JRETF) to probe and clamp down on DML operators who violate the ethics of lending and individual data privacy.

The inter-agency task force included the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offenses Commission (ICPC), the Nigeria Police Force and the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

The operation led to the freezing of some DLM accounts and the FCCPC delisted over 30 loan apps from the Google Play Store.

Incidentally, despite these measures, Daily Trust Saturday investigations reveal that these loan sharks have continued to operate in open sight, with their activities having dire consequences on the mental and emotional health of borrowers.

In the absence of publicly available statistics on the number of digital borrowers in Nigeria, this newspaper gathered that due to its ease of accessibility and no collateral demands, thousands of low-income Nigerians are drawn to DMLs without fully understanding their modes of operation, debt recovery techniques and the illegal structures they operate on.

However, while the blame is mostly being pushed towards the lenders during conversations, some observers also questioned the rationale behind the borrowing, saying some Nigerians trapped in the saga also collected the loans under questionable circumstances, believing that they could go away with it.


Trapped in a circle of debt

Maryam Danladi, a widow and mother of two, who resides in Niger State, is one of many Nigerians lured by the ‘quick, easy and collateral-free’ offers made by digital money lenders.

Speaking with Daily Trust Saturday, she narrated how months of torment by agents of multiple DML operators pushed her into chronic depression that led to suicidal thoughts.

“I was considering suicide, but when I looked at my children, I thought if I killed myself nobody would look after them the way their mother would,” she said.

Maryam’s problem began when she sought financial assistance for the upkeep of her children and was unable to get help. When she bumped into a loan app advertisement for “We Credit” while surfing Facebook, she downloaded it; a decision she would later regret.

She explained that while advertising the loan facility, “We Credit” had indicated that they could lend her up to N200,000 to be paid within 90 days.

“But in reality, they gave only a week to repay after deducting a significant amount they called ‘service charge’.

“After registering, what I saw was a loan of N6,000 to pay back N10,000 within seven days. After a short while, they credited my account with N4,000 instead. They deducted N2,000 as service charge,” she narrated.

She added that when she couldn’t pay back within seven days, the embarrassment and insults from the lenders drove her to download two other loan apps to repay the first loan. This situation repeated itself over time, and in just six months, she was caught in the shackles of debt that has held her prisoner till date.

“That was how it started. Before I knew what I was doing, I was in the middle. You keep borrowing from one app to pay the other, and before I knew what was happening, I had downloaded about 11 to 12 apps,” she said, regretfully.

With an accumulated debt of N1,328, 122 borrowed overtime from about 12 apps, she now owes about N2,201,737 with interest.

Similarly, Roseline Audu, a civil servant, almost consumed a popular poisonous insecticide called Sniper to end her life due to humiliation from loan sharks.

“I was not far from being suicidal because I had entered my bathroom to drink the Sniper insecticide, but the smell was offensive to me,” she said, adding that the thought of leaving her children behind and the fear of putting her husband into a difficult position also deterred her from suicide.

“Every night, I cried, I lost weight, I couldn’t eat, and nothing was appealing to me,” she said.

Her nightmare with loan sharks began in May 2023 when she received a text message advertising a loan facility. After going through the Play Store to verify the app, she explained to Daily Trust Saturday how she proceeded with the registration and was offered a N6,000 loan.

“When you click on apply, instead of them to allow you select options, it will tell you loan approved automatically,” she added.

Roseline said her target was to pay as soon as she received her monthly salary. However, a slight delay in the salary disbursement led to a barrage of harassment, which made her download two other apps to repay one loan, a situation that continued over time.

“Before the seven days, I was like salary would soon come and I would pay. Unfortunately, my salary was delayed. In fact, on the fifth day, I started getting calls from their agents. If you argue with them, they will start harassing you.

“Due to constant insults, when a call comes in I start trembling. I went into depression and I couldn’t tell anybody. When the loan and interests accrued to N1million, I was helpless,” she said.

Roseline said she had borrowed about N1,500,000 from the DML operators but had already paid more than N3m to them due to high-interest rates. She, however, still owes a debt of about N400,000, which she said she hoped to repay to get back her life.

Ahmad, a student of one of the tertiary institutions in Bauchi, said he was depressed and nearly dropped out of school when he was boxed into a corner by one of the lenders.

“Let me be frank with you, when I collected the loan I thought they would not be able to track me, but I was wrong.

“What I collected wasn’t really much, but the loan increased more than 700 per cent within a very short period and the lenders kept threatening me.

“I really don’t know how they did it, but they succeeded in tracking my account. Whenever my parents sent me upkeep money they would withdraw everything. I kept it to myself and at the risk of sacrificing my studies.

“One day, I summoned courage and sent the account of my friend to my elder brother to send my upkeep. I think my brother suspected something and insisted I must tell him the truth. That was when I opened up.

“The money lenders are really dubious, but I also blame myself for thinking that I could shortchange them. I hope the government would put an instrument on ground to checkmate them because they are destroying the lives of many people silently,” he said.


How DMLs breach customer data privacy

Maryam, Roseline and Ahmad’s cases are part of a large case of harassment, bullying and breach of privacy by many loan apps.

In 2021, the National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) fined Soko Loan, a notorious loan shark, the sum of N10,000,000 for data privacy invasion of customers.

Checks by Daily Trust Saturday revealed that in May, Google updated its personal loans policy as a result of the increasing reports of offensive lending practices in Nigeria and Kenya, the two African countries with significant adoption of digital lending services.

As part of the changes, Google noted that personal loan apps would have no access to sensitive user data, such as photos, videos, contacts, precise location data and call logs.

Incidentally, these loan apps have remained adamant as they continue to breach users’ privacy by using customer contact lists and images to threaten them.

Daily Trust Saturday gathered that they pick numbers from customers’ contact lists to either call or send slanderous messages to the contacts with the aim of debt-shaming the defaulters.

Concurrently, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), which oversees the registration of DMLs and is tasked with ensuring compliance and protection of consumers from being exploited by lenders, in September shook up the digital money lending industry by delisting over 30 illegal loan apps.

Investigations by Daily Trust Saturday reveal that some delisted apps like Eagle Cash and Fly Pay have rerouted from Google Play Store to Android Package Kits (APK) file formats, using these websites to host their apps, offer loans, harass individuals and breach their privacy.

Our reporter reached out to the FCCPC, which currently oversees the registration of these DMLs by asking if it was losing the fight with these loan sharks and whether it was aware that the delisted apps were still active, but the commission failed to respond.

The head of the FCCPC Public Relations Office, Ondaje Ijagwu, had asked this reporter to forward the questions to him via WhatsApp, and when done, he failed to respond despite several promptings.

Findings show that to access customer data, app subscribers are requested to grant mobile app permissions to certain data points, like location, contacts and pictures. However, when DMLs get hold of these data, they send defaming messages to the contacts in a bid to embarrass the debtors.

Victims of these harassments say Apex Lending, Eagle Cash, Fly Pay, Cash Loan and Credit Wallet, are some of the notorious apps that have breached their privacies, as well as harassed borrowers.

Daily Trust Saturday reached out to Apex Lending, Eagle Cash, Fly Pay and Credit Wallet via their respective email addresses to get their reactions to these allegations but only Credit Wallet responded to the email.

Martha Olowe, the assistant Customer Service manager for Princeps Credit Systems Limited, the parent company of Credit Wallet, said they would only respond to the allegations when they received official emails from the victims and full details of the concerned customers were provided.

“The full details of the people concerned on the subject should be provided to validate the source of your information about our organisation. We would require an official email from the individuals concerned, giving their consent to discuss and divulge their personal information to balance your report as their investigator on this matter,” she added,

Roseline Audu described her experience with Apex Lending, an approved DML that meets the FCCPCs’ digital money lending requirements, as a nightmare.

A check on the data safety segment of Apex Lending on Google Play Store shows that the app states that it does not share user data with third parties and only collects personal information. But users said the contrary.

“When you install the app they ask for permissions. You can’t access the app unless you grant them permission. What they do is to download the customer contacts on the phone. That is what they use to harass people,” Roseline said.

She added that agents of Apex Lending had sent a screenshot of her contact list and threatened that messages would be sent to them if she failed to settle the loan.

In Maryam’s case, agents of Cash Loan took her WhatsApp profile picture, which had her two kids on it, engraved it with Rest in Peace (RIP), and sent her messages, asking for her preferred method of death.

All these are a violation of the governing principle of data processing as contained in the Nigeria Data Protection Regulation of 2019. Part two, section 2.1(2) of the regulation states that “anyone who is entrusted with personal data of a data subject or who is in possession of the personal data of a data subject owes a duty of care to the said data subject.”

Efforts were made and questions sent to the spokesperson of the Nigeria Data Protection Commissions, Itunu Dokunu, regarding the commissions’ action plan on loan sharks that breach customer data and privacy but he failed to respond to the questions.


Charging exorbitant interest, service rates

Maryam Danladi alleged that “almost all of the apps I have used charge between N3,000 to N6,000 as daily interest rates. In fact, I don’t even have the mind to open those apps again. I don’t know what the apps are reading now.”

Since a lot of these digital money lenders are headquartered in Lagos and governed by the Moneylenders’ Law of Lagos State, Cap M7 2009, the license is issued by the Lagos State Ministry of Home Affairs and Tourism.

Any DML based in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) will be issued a license and certificate by a designated magistrate on a yearly, renewable basis, only after the application for a license is officially made at the Chief Magistrate’s Court.

Section 15(1)(c) of the Lagos State Money Lenders Law 2009 only allows ‘simple’ interest at the rate of 48 per cent (maximum) per annum for unsecured loans, just as in the case of digital money lenders. Charging higher interest rates is a violation that could lead to conviction and a fine of N600 in respect of such a loan.

An investigation by Daily Trust Saturday revealed that both Apex Lending, Eagle Cash and Fly Pay or Fly Kash flout this law. They capitalise on customer’s desperation to offer loans at high interest rates after deducting a significant sum from the loan amount as service charge.

Confirming this, Roseline had requested for a N150,000 loan from TLoan on September 16, 2023 to be paid on September 23, but she was credited with N105,000. A ‘service fee’ of N45,000 was deducted upfront.

Eventually, she would later be asked to repay N204,000. This means she is to pay N96,000, which is equivalent to 91 per cent of the loan she was credited with.

As part of its policy, Google Play Store does not allow apps that expose users to deceptive or harmful financial products and services. It states on the policy centre that “all financial apps must display their maximum Annual Percentage Rate (APR), calculated for their customers.”

Checks by Daily Trust Saturday revealed that despite Apex Lending having met all the requirements stipulated by Google and being in line with the Guidelines for Digital Lending 2022, their review section on the Google Play Store is flooded with negative comments by users.

Some of the comments described the app as a scam and fraud, while others expressed disappointment, accusing the DML of unscrupulous deductions.


How DMLs use forgery, impersonations to harass lenders

Fly Pay, one of the delisted loan sharks, has consistently impersonated the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission and the Nigeria Immigration Service by sending purported letters of loan escalation notice, travel ban and arrest warrants to loan defaulters.

While scrutinising the purported undated letters from the EFCC by Fly Kash, our reporter found red flags in the spelling of the organisation’s name. CRIMES, from the commission’s name, was spelt as CRIME, without the letters. One of the letters, which was purported to have been signed by Abdulrashid Bawa and delivered on September 29, 2023, came at a time he was incarcerated.

A second letter purportedly from the EFCC signed by Abdulkarim Chukkol, the director of operations, was also discovered to have been fake.

Findings revealed that Chukkol was the acting chairman of the agency at the time the letter was delivered, not the director of operations.

Daily Trust Saturday reached out to the anti-graft agency and its acting spokesperson, Dele Oyewole refuted the letters, saying, “I wish to place it on record that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission does not issue arrest warrants on loan defaulters. All documents flying around with all manners of information such as arrest warrant processing and all those claims being made are not from the EFCC.”

Oyewole noted that DMLs use such fraudulent ways of compelling customers to repay their loans. He said the commission would not allow anyone to use its name to make fraudulent claims as those culpable would be prosecuted.

Equally, Daily Trust Saturday reached out to the Nigeria Immigration Service to ascertain if the travel ban letter Fly Pay sent to Roseline was approved by it, and the public relations officer, Aridegbe Adedotun, described the letter as forged and devoid of all of their security features.

“I want to say emphatically and categorically that this letter didn’t emanate from the Nigeria Immigration Service. It is forged. We have our security features in all our letters. It was surprising when we saw it,” he said.

Adedotun added that the service is currently investigating the matter to ensure that those involved are brought to book.

Lagos State Government said it has recorded no fewer than 340 cases of wives beating their husbands to submission, in the last year.

Executive Secretary, of Lagos Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency, DSVA, Mrs. Titilola Vivour-Adeniyi, made the disclosure in a quarterly report of the agency.

She said the incidence of reports of domestic violence from males also increased in the last year.

Vivour-Adeniyi disclosed that 340 male reported cases of domestic violence perpetrated against them by their wives between September 2022 and July 2023.
She expressed worries over the trend, saying the agency “Is currently handling the cases with the aim to find amicable resolution.”

Commences monitoring of safeguarding, child protection implementaton

Meanwhile, the Lagos State Government, through the Joint Task Force on Implementation of the Executive Order on Safeguarding and Child Protection has commenced monitoring and assessment across the six education districts in the state.

Members of the Joint Task Force comprise of top level representatives of Office of Education Quality Assurance, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Youth and Social Development, Lagos State Safety Commission, State Universal Basic Education Board, Child Protection Network and Lagos State Domestic and Sexual Violence Agency.

According to Vivour-Adeniyi, the monitoring exercise which began on October 31, 2023, at the Lagos City College, Sabo-Yaba, has so far engaged over 200 schools in Education Districts 4 and 5, while over 90 schools have been visited to ascertain and measure compliance in those districts.

“On-the-spot assessments were conducted at the schools to confirm the practical implementation of the policy and identify strengths and areas for improvement.

“The aim of the monitoring exercise is to ascertain the level of adoption and implementation of the Executive Order across all six education districts in Lagos State,” Vivour-Adeniyi.

On the engagement, representative of the Office of Education Quality Assurance, Mr. Kamaldeen Akodu, elaborated the need for schools to put precautionary measures in place to ensure a safe learning environment.

Similarly, representative of the Ministry of Youth and Social Development, Mr. Jubril Yakub informed school administrators of the essence of the exercise, highlighting the fact that it is not punitive in nature rather corrective.

There is no respite yet for the nation’s currency as the naira recorded the biggest fall in recent times exchanging for N1,105 at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market (NAFEM), the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) approved official market.

The currency depreciated by over N200 within hours after it opened earlier in the day at N830. However, the fall would not last as the currency bounced back, closing at 841.14 yesterday.

According to Reuters, the sharp depreciation of the currency yesterday brought “The official exchange rate within touching distance of the parallel market rate.”

At the parallel market, Daily Trust reports that dollars opened at N1,135 and closed at N1,150 to N1,200.

One of the Bureau De Change (BDC) operators at a popular market in Lagos, Alhaji Hassan Sabo said, “Today we are buying at N1,100 and selling at N1,150.”

Asked on the prospect of the rate dropping, he said, “It cannot come down like that because the dollar is not available, some are not even selling at the rates I just gave you. It might even go up tomorrow.”

A capital market analyst, Samuel Showunmi said the government should return to multiple exchange rates to push the dollars into the market through the BDC.

“What we are seeing now with the banks is currency racketeering within the banking sector as well,” he said.

60-year-old Farouk Sanni has emerged as the best graduating student in the Department of Sociology, University of Ibadan.

Farouk Sanni, a retired banker, who said he felt accomplished with studying sociology in his quest to understand why people behave the way they behave, said he had read accounting at Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife as an imposed course by an uncle.

Alhaji, as fondly called, the best graduating student, narrated his experience at the 75th convocation ceremony at the University of Ibadan.

According to him, he took up the challenge to stay healthy and pursue his quest to understand human behaviour after retiring from UBA and had to write JAMB to be admitted to study sociology.

Sanni, who bagged eight awards as a result of the feat, said he wrote JAMB with his child, who is now studying law at the University of Ibadan.

He said: “Studying in a class where you have those who are of the same age as your children can be very challenging, but I was magnanimous to accommodate what happened. Some called me Daddy, some called me Mr Sanni while some will even say “he may be a daddy but he is not my father”. I experienced a lot of things, but as an old person, I was able to remain focussed.”

Speaking on the feat of Mr Sanni, Dr Oludayo Tade a lecturer in the department, said the best-graduating student had a chair which he tied to a tree where he read under a tree in the faculty of the social sciences.

He said: “This 60-year-old man, Mallam F. K. Sanni graduated with FIRST CLASS in Sociology, University of Ibadan as the best student in his set, and with that won 8 awards.”

“He has two undergraduate children in UI at the moment. Until he graduated, he picked and dropped his two children at lecture halls, and most of the time, I met him reading under the tree on Saturday and Sunday.”

“On Ileya day, I saw him at the usual reading space under a faculty tree, where he had brought a chair tied to the tree to use whenever he came around to read. I asked him jokingly: Alhaji ni Ojo Ileya, he said Oga, I have bought everything they needed for them oooo. Staying with them will distract me, Sir.”

The Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), General Christopher Musa; Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Lt-General Taoreed Lagbaja; Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hassan Abubakar, and Chief of Naval Staff (CNS), Vice Admiral Emmanuel Ogalla and the Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Kayode Egbetokun have failed to honour the invitation to appear before the House of Representatives today.

They were invited to appear today as part of the Sectorial Debates introduced by the House Pursuant to Order 17, Rules 1(3) of the Standing Orders of the House.

The Service Chiefs were to meet the parliament on their constitutional responsibilities to ensure the security of lives and property as well as the territorial integrity of the nation.

However, the service chiefs as well the IGP sent in representatives who were sent back by the House on the ground the heads are to appear in person.

The representatives were introduced into the Chamber after a motion by the House Leader, Prof. Julius Ihonvbere (APC, Edo) which was seconded by Aliyu Sani Madaki (NNPP, Kano).

But after the self introduction by the representatives of the service chiefs and the IGP, the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, objected, saying that although the representatives were competent in their capacities, they would be allowed to speak on behalf of their principals.

He said, “Mr Speaker, I want to move, that Chief Executives, be it private sector or public sector, they must come in person. I want to pray that we don’t break this sacred tradition of our House less we be taken for granted.

“I therefore move that this sectoral engagement be suspended until the leaders of the agencies that we invited who are our friends, who are working for Nigeria, people we are proud of, come. They should come to address us, take our questions and explain certain things to us.”

After the Deputy Speaker’s motion which was seconded by Nnolim Nnaji, the Speaker, Abbas Tajuddeen, put the motion to a voice vote and was adopted by the House.

He said, “Our dear brothers, you have heard from the House in an emphatic manner, that this House does not encourage, does not accept representation particularly at this high-level engagement.

“We thank you for coming. Please convey our message to your service chiefs, that we understand the tight schedules they have and we are willing to make an adjustment to reschedule this engagement to Tuesday next week for them to appear in persons.”

Recall that, in anticipation of the meeting with the service chiefs today, the Speaker had on Wednesday instructed that the Order Paper for today be made light to give more time for the interaction.

Spokesperson of the House, Akin Rotimi Jr, had in a statement earlier last week informed that the ‘Sectoral Debate’ Series were introduced by the House to provide political appointees and key government officials an opportunity to brief members of the House of Representatives about the policies and programmes of their respective MDAs.

The inaugural session was earlier scheduled to commence on Thursday, November 9, 2023 with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Dr. Olayemi Cardoso and his deputies but was postponed.

The All Progressives Congress (APC) is leading by a significant margin in results of the 18 Local Government Areas (LGAs) of Kogi State so far declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

Usman Ododo, candidate of the ruling party, has won in 11 LGAs, Muri Ajaka, his Social Democratic Party (SDP) rival has won in six, while Leke Abejide of African Democratic Party (ADC) has won in one LGA.

So far, Ododo has polled 409,450 votes, Ajaka has had 208,503 while Dino Melaye of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has polled 41,925 votes.

Below are the LGAs announced so far:

Okehi

APC 53,0623
PDP: 2,722
SDP: 153

Yagba East

APC: 7,096
PDP: 2,615
SDP: 312

Ijumu

APC 10,524
PDP: 6,909
SDP: 356

Mopa-Muro

APC: 5,077
PDP: 1,562
SDP: 253

Adavi

APC: 101,156
PDP: 1,005
SDP: 268

Ofu

APC: 5,245
PDP: 293
SDP: 28,768

Koton Karfe

APC: 14,769
PDP: 2,974
SDP: 8,441

Bassa

APC: 9,519
PDP: 3,605
SDP: 7,543

OMALA

APC: 2,902
PDP: 832
SDP: 18,160

Olamaboro

APC: 5,572
PDP: 1,376
SDP: 22,173

Ankpa

APC: 8,707
PDP: 3,654
SDP: 43,258

OKENE

APC: 138,416
PDP: 1,463
SDP: 271

Dekina

APC: 9,174
PDP: 499

SDP: 47,480

Ajaokuta

APC: 23,211
PDP: 483
SDP: 8,869

Aliko Dangote says the Dangote refinery has secured a license to refine more than 300,000 barrels of Nigerian crude per day and will begin to process petrol “soon”.

Dangote said this in an interview on Saturday in Riyadh on the sidelines of the Saudi-Nigeria business roundtable.

“We don’t want to start our refinery with foreign goods, we want to start with the Nigerian crude,” the billionaire told Bloomberg.

“We’re more than ready and you will see our gasoline products soon.”

The 650,000 barrel-a-day refinery was supposed to start production by the end of July but missed that target.

Speaking on the commencement of operations of the refinery, Dangote said the refiner will start producing “very very soon”.

He said the refinery’s first priority is to supply petrol to Nigeria before exporting to elsewhere, including the West African region.

Dangote said the 650,000 barrel-a-day facility — which is expected to produce 27 million litres of diesel, 11 million litres of kerosene and 9 million litres of jet fuel — will receive crude from other producers in Nigeria, as well as the country’s state oil company.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited is expected to allocate six million barrels of crude oil to Dangote Refinery in December 2023.

Meanwhile, during the week, the national oil company had announced the introduction of the Nembe crude oil grade to the market.

The Nembe crude stream is expected to be managed and marketed by a joint venture between NNPC and Aiteo Eastern Exploration and Production Company.

The Kano Hisbah, under the leadership of Sheikh Aminu Daurawa, has announced plans to facilitate marriages for TikTokers in Kano, along with providing support for their business endeavors.

This initiative was unveiled during a meeting convened by the Hisbah to offer guidance to TikTokers on improving their moral values.

At the onset, Murja Ibrahim Kunya, a TikToker known for her controversial content that frequently stirs debate in Kano state, and other popular tiktokers, were invited to the Kano State Hisbah Command’s headquarters for potential rehabilitation on Monday, November 6th, 2023, at 4 pm.

The invitation issued by the Deputy Commander-General of Hisbah, Dr Mujahid Aminuddeen encouraged the attendees to bring their educational and business certificates, ensuring their identities remain protected by covering their faces.

The primary purpose of this gathering is to offer support to those interested in receiving assistance from the state’s governor, Abba Kabir Yusuf.

The Tiktokers in overwhelming numbers attended the meeting dressed in full traditional regalia and covering their faces with Niqabs.

Speaking while unveiling the scheme the Commander-General of Hisbah board Sheikh Aminu Daurawa, said “We are willing to give you all the necessary support to live a sustainable life, those of you that have fiancees or are interested in marriage we promise to organize a grand wedding and take responsibility for all the expenses.”

He also advised the popular TikTokers Murja Kunya and others in attendance on how to improve their morals.

Sheikh Daurawa said that all TikTok users who need capital support, should write a business plan and submit it to the Hisbah board, if they are satisfied with the information they have provided, the Kano government will support them with capital.

This initiative, which has gained approval from Kano Governor Engineer Abba Kabir Yusuf, is designed to assist youth in the region and promote moral growth.

The TikTokers responded positively to the offer and engaged in discussions with senior Hisbah officials.

To demonstrate their commitment to this endeavor, the Hisbah provided N2,000 transport fare to TikTok participants in these discussions.

This surprising partnership between TikTokers and the Kano Hisbah is a unique and unexpected move aimed at empowering the youth and enhancing moral values within the local TikTok community.

The federal government has begun implementation of a 40 percent automatic deduction from internally generated revenues of federal universities and other partially-funded institutions.

The policy of 40 percent auto-deduction of gross IGR is in line with the Finance Circular with reference number FMFBNP/OTHERS/IGR/CRF/12/2021 dated December 20, 2021.

The circular limits the annual budgetary expenditure from IGR of the partially funded federal government.

The information was contained in a letter that was issued by the accountant-general of the federation, Mrs Oluwatoyin Madein, to the universities titled ‘Implementation of 40% automatic deduction from internally generated revenue of partially funded federal government institutions.’

The letter on implementation of the policy dated October 17, 2023 and addressed to vice-chancellors of universities was approved by the minister of Finance and coordinating minister of the economy, Wale Edun.

It was signed by the director of Revenue & Investment in the office of the Accountant-general of the Federation, Felix Ore-ofe Ogundairo.

Ogundairo said, “I am directed to inform you that the Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy (HMF&CME) has approved the implementation of a 40% auto deduction from the Gross Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of all Partially Funded Federal Government Institutions in line with the Provision of Section 62 of Finance Act, 2020 with effect from November, 2023.

“Agencies/parastatals to not more than 50% of their gross IGR and the remittance of 100% (hundred percent) of the remaining 50% (fifty percent) to the Sub-recurrent Account. While all statutory revenue lines like Tender Fees, Contractor’s Registration Fees, Disposal of Fixed Assets, Rent on Quarters, etc shall be remitted 100% (hundred percent) to the Sub-recurrent Account.

“Consequently, all partially funded Agencies/Parastatals must align their budget requirements and ensure total compliance with the provision of Section 62 of Finance Act, 2020 and Finance Circular, 2021.”

The federal government had hinted that it was granting universities full autonomy to explore sources of financing their activities.

The minister of Education, Tahir Mamman disclosed this in Abuja. The aim is to grant full autonomy to the universities as part of the government’s effort to create new means of funding tertiary education.

Already, controversy is trailing the policy which approved 40% auto deduction from the Gross Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) of all Partially Funded Federal Government Institutions and payable into the federation account.

A letter addressed to some institutions from the office of the Accountant-general of the Federation, which was obtained by LEADERSHIP showed that the minister of Finance and coordinating minister of the Economy has approved the implementation of 40% auto deduction from the Gross IGR of all partially-funded federal government institutions.

The letter was addressed to some federal universities and other institutions across the country.

However, LEADERSHIP estimates that federal universities such as the University of Abuja, which approximately generate up to N1.4 billion yearly, will be remitting to the federation account an amount within the range of N560 million or more when the 40 percent.

It would be recalled that during the review of financial records and documents by the Senate Public Accounts Committee (SPAC) in February 2022, the committee observed that the university generated the sum of N2,413,787,645.48 internally in 2016 and 2017.

Although as of the time of filing this report the authorities of the university of Abuja failed to provide us with the latest IGR of the institution when contacted, the yearly revenue generated internally in the University, according to the committee, was N1,463,097,604.13 in 2016 and N950,690,041.35 in 2017.

However, key players across the education sector have kicked against the policy, saying it will strangulate their activities and also deprive them of embarking on major infrastructure and critical projects that would put the institutions at par with its counterparts elsewhere.

The president of ASUP, Anderson Ezeibe, who confirmed that the union has seen the memo, said it was really unfortunate and one of the contradictions inherent in the perception and operations of tertiary education institutions.

He said, “It is a contradiction because the government clearly views these institutions as revenue generating agencies/agents of government.

“Yet the same institutions are dying of paucity of funds and dilapidated infrastructure. The same institutions cannot meet basic needs and obligations to keep them running.

“Of course, it will adversely affect the operations of the institutions as it will further pauperize them and demotivate them too.”

Ezeibe urged the government to relook the students’ loan scheme, stressing the need for a robust conversation on the direction of the education system in Nigeria.

“How can you give loans to the students to pay their fees, collect 40% of the fees immediately from the same students through this ridiculous policy and refuse or reduce the funding of the same institutions on the basis of the fees paid by the students? This will cripple the loan scheme as the institutions will continue to suffer,” he added.

Meanwhile, the National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS), zone C, has described the decision as dangerous to the tertiary education system.

The coordinator of NANS Zone C, Comrade Anzaku Shedrack, who spoke in an interview with LEADERSHIP, said academic institutions may have only one option left to charge more fees in order to boost the IGR, thereby increasing the number of school dropouts.

Hs stated: “Federal government that does not adequately fund universities is now demanding 50% of what the universities generate from IGR.

“It’s simply madness. Universities are merely managing to survive; recently they introduced some fees/charges to enable them function. Now government wants equal share from the little collected. Two things will happen automatically:

“Universities will not be able to function well (UniAbuja receives a meager N12m monthly subvention from government with which to operate. N12m!). After remitting 50% of IGR to government there will be only little left with which to operate: pay for light, water and diesel; do maintenance of hostels, classrooms, lecture theatres; buy consumables for laboratories and workshops, pay impress, pay allowances for casual workers, etc.

“The only option left is to charge more fees in order to boost the IGR. This way, students and their parents will suffer; some will certainly drop out.”

According to him, the directive by the minister is dangerous, counterproductive and hence unacceptable.

When contacted, the Bursar of the Nnamdi Azikiwe University (UNIZIK), Awka, Anambra State, Gozie Egwuatu, said the institution remits to the federal government every kobo that accrues from the statutorily approved internally generated revenue (IGR) 0sources.

He named such statutory revenue windows from where IGR accrues to the federal government to include tendering fees and charges on hiring of the university’s properties.

He also said the institution does not have students’ loan scheme.

The UNIZIK bursar revealed that the only charges students pay to the university are for their personal services which the institution runs for the students at a cheaper cost compared to what they will pay if they were to go and get such services for themselves.

He said such services include medical care and laboratory services, adding that the amount charged by the institution is normally arrived at between the university management and parents of the students.

The Bursar stated that due to the rising costs of virtually every service nationwide the university has been finding it difficult to provide such services at the agreed levies.

Egwuatu stated that in line with the policy of the federal government for all its institutions, “tuition is free” for the students in the university.

He lamented that the federal government was not giving any subvention to the university for overhead expenses, saying “it has been difficult for us in running the university “.

Meanwhile, efforts by LEADERSHIP to get the estimated derivable annual revenue of the Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) proved abortive, as neither the vice Chancellor, Prof Mohammed Ahmed Abdul’azeez, nor the varsity PRO Zailani Bappa agreed to respond to his request.

The varsity’s PRP said Sunday was not a working day, and that he should let him be in office to access the revenue figures of the university.

But the Student’s Union Government president of Abubakar Tafawa Balewa University (ATBU) Bauchi, Sen Wakili Dauda Abdulrahman, said that the policy of deducting 40% from the revenues (IGR) accruable to the ATBU, Bauchi, can have several implications for students and the student union.

On the impact of revenue deduction on student services, Abdulrahman explained that such a significant reduction in university revenue could potentially affect the quality of services provided to students, especially in the areas of facilities, infrastructure and academic resources.

The SUG president told LEADERSHIP: “If the university faces a revenue shortfall due to this deduction, they may consider raising tuition fees to compensate for the loss. This could directly impact students by making education more expensive.”

According to him, financial strain on students such as tuition fee increase can place a financial burden on students, making it more challenging for some to afford their education.

“The deduction of 40 percent from the university’s revenues (IGR) can potentially affect students’ loans and would negatively pose repayment challenges. Higher student loan amounts can lead to greater debt burdens upon graduation. Students who have taken out loans may find it more challenging to repay their loans due to the increased debt load”.

On students’ union, funding and budget, the SUG president said a reduction in university revenue may lead to budget constraints, which could impact the funding allocated to student union activities and initiatives, hence limiting the ability of the student union to organize events, programmes, and services for the student body.

Abdulrahman further explained that a decrease in funding might affect the quality and availability of services and resources that the student union can provide to the student body.

Governor Seyi Makinde of Oyo State has approved the payment of N25,000 for workers and N15,000 for pensioners as wage awards in the state.

The governor said the payment will be for six months at an additional N2.2 billion to the wage bill of the state.

Makinde made the disclosure in the company of labour leaders including Comrade Kayode Martins (NLC), Comrade Bosun Olabiyi (TUC), Comrade Olaonipekun Oluwaseun (JNC Public Sector) while addressing workers at the entrance of the Governor’s Office, Secretariat, Ibadan.

Other government functionaries including, Special Adviser (Labour Matters), Comrade Adebayo Titilola-Sodo, the Executive Assistant to the governor, Reverend Idowu Ogedengbe among others also accompanied the governor during the address.

The workers had stormed the Governor’s Office as part of a decision taken during a Congress on Monday to ensure the issue is resolved once and for all.

Makurdi—No fewer than 22 persons have been killed in Chito and Tyo Akosu communities of Ukum Local Government Area of Benue State, following a rival gang fight and attack on a drinking spot.

It was gathered from sources in the area that the gang supremacy fight, which erupted, weekend, in Chito Community between the notorious criminal armed groups, known as ‘Chain Gang’ and ‘Full Fire’, left about 15 persons dead, while several others sustained gunshot wounds.

One of the sources said that the killings at Tyo Akosu settlement was perpetrated by armed men, who stormed a drinking spot in the village and opened fire on unsuspecting customers at the bar.

He said he could not readily confirm if the attack at Tyo Akosu was an extension of the Chito fight, but noted that the suspicion among the locals was that the supremacy fight was fast spreading in the communities of the council.

One of the sources explained that “It all started on Friday afternoon, during a fight for supremacy between kingpins of crime in Ukum council. They are known as Chain and Full Fire gangs, with their operational base located in the council.

“Both groups are looking for each others necks. Full Fire employed the services of another banditry group to help kill the Chain gang, which got wind of the plan and laid ambush for them.

“They opened fire and killed all of them. Some persons claimed that 10 pereons were killed in the bloody fight while others said they counted 15 bodies.

“”But it was an internal fight for supremacy among gangs and not a communal crisis. In fact, the locals ran away because they feared for their lives. They feared that in the course of the reprisal, they might be affected despite being innocent.”

It was gathered that after the Chito bloody fight on Friday evening, a gang of armed men Saturday evening stormed the drinking spot at Tor Akosu village and opened fire on the customers at the bar, killing seven persons and injurying several others.

He said: “Though we cannot say for sure that it was an extention of the supremacy fight but we cannot rule it out because we cannot tell who belongs to whatever groups anymore.

“Ukum has become something else, we are all living in fear as we speak because we cannot tell who is who among our local boys,” he said.

Contacted, the Police Public Relations Officer, Catherine Anene said she was yet to receive information on the incidents.