₦airaland Forum

What people don’t understand, they seek to destroy. It’s sometimes difficult to adapt to change or to accept a certain fact due to several factors including sentiments, affiliations, interests and others. In every sector, there are naysayers who tend to influence the opinion of others on particular subjects but for the purpose of progress, it is high time the world dropped sentiments and faces reality.

Realistically, when it comes to accurate prophecies, Primate Ayodele of INRI Evangelical Spiritual Church has performed wonderfully well over the years. He has continued to uphold the prophetic ministry globally with the fulfillment of his prophecies. He has over 15,000 fulfilled prophecies to his credit yet disgruntled elements don’t seem to celebrate him rather, they criticize by sharing lies against him especially in his country, Nigeria.

Although, the criticisms have never hindered the man of God from sharing his prophecies, he has continued to wax stronger by the day, His fame has gone beyond the shores of Nigeria and Africa, He is the only prophet in Nigeria whose prophecies feature consistently in the western media but for their own sake, people need to start celebrating Primate Ayodele more than they criticize him. The bible has made us understand that ‘He who honours a prophet will get the prophet’s reward’ and how can you honour the prophet? By listening to him and following his instructions, the reward you get is the ability to be ahead of situations, opportunity to prepare well for troubles ahead, ability to get solutions to problems before they even happen because you have listened to the prophet who revealed them to you.

This further explains why Nigeria is going through tough times in terms of economy, the government and the citizens failed to honour Primate Ayodele when he warned them before the election about voting for a Muslim-Muslim presidency. The prophet said it several times that if APC returns to power, the country will retrogress and will experience harder times but the people dishonoured the prophet by ignoring his words and now, the citizens are wailing due to hardship because they failed to honour the man of God.

Primate Ayodele is so blessed that he ensures his prophecies are simplified. Unlike some that share prophecies in parables, Primate Ayodele analyses his prophecies in the simplest form to make even a layman understand what he is talking about. Due to the uniqueness and simplicity, it’s surprising that those who are involved in his prophecies ignore him even though they end up regretting and suffering for their insolence.

Among many others, one situation that best describes the above statement is the current brouhaha between Edo governor, Godwin Obaseki and his deputy, Phillip Shaibu. It’s been months of cold war between the duo who have been best of friends for several years. The deputy governor recently went to the court to stop moves to impeach him and a few days ago, was embarrassed by security aides of the governor at a public event.

Just yesterday, He walks out of a government event shamefully because his aides were denied entry into the hall and later at night, Governor Obaseki disbanded his media team and asked the ministry of information to step in. Indeed, it’s been serious troubles between the two politicians.

However, maybe this would have been stopped or averted if they listened to the warnings of Primate Ayodele which he shared shortly after they got their second term tenure in 2021.

Primate Ayodele who was the only prophet in Nigeria that foretold victory of Godwin Obaaseki warned that he foresees a fight between the governor and his deputy. He asked both of them to pray against misunderstanding but probably because everything was smooth between them then, they ignored the prophetic revelation.

These were the prophet’s words:

“Governor Obaseki will face challenges even as there will be problems between Obeseki and PDP. Obaseki will disappoint the PDP. The Deputy Governor and Governor need prayers because of unnecessary misunderstandings that will cause leakage in Obaseki’s government. The Governor and the deputy needs prayers for understanding.” (https://theeagleonline.com.ng/obaseki-will-disappoint-pdp-fight-his-deputy-primate-ayodele/)

It’s been three years since Primate Ayodele shared this prophecy and it has now been fulfilled exactly the way He said it. There is serious misunderstanding between them and in the coming days, more dramas will emerge.

For those who may have criticized Primate Ayodele for this prophecy three years ago because they didn’t see beyond what was happening then, I hope they will come to terms with the fact that Primate Ayodele is a real prophet, He is not one of those that does permutation and analysis before they can prophesy, He prophesies when there is no situation on ground and they come to pass when the situation occurs.

For years, residents of about 30 communities under Orile-Imo Town, in the Obafemi Owode Local Government Area, have relied on three ancient rivers – Ereku, Yemala, and Yeke as sources of seemingly good water for drinking, cooking, washing and bathing.

But that was in the past, as the rivers have been allegedly contaminated and not fit for use due to their murky-coloured look and nauseous smell.

Residents are accusing a multi-national company, International Breweries of being responsible for the contamination, alleging that all wastewater from the facility is emptied in its raw state into the rivers.

Among the affected communities are – Logbara, Kajola, Orile-Imo, Baara, Akinyemi, Idofa-Odo, Idofa-Oke, Bajila, Oguntayo, Olojo, Alakoka, Onibenbe, Awoo, Ogbara Onibata, Jibowu, Sangotedo and Lapooyo.

Even though these communities are at the receiving end of the pollution, Logbara bears the brunt due to its status as the host community.

International Breweries, based on residents’ accounts, came to the area with developmental promises to set up a $250m plant, but according to them, the reverse seems to be the case as the company’s activities, they alleged, are impacting negatively on the environment and humans.

According to them, aquatic lives have been eliminated completely, while, using the water for irrigation on farms, they claimed has led to unfathomable losses.

When visited Logbara, a pungent odour hung in the atmosphere, even though one of the said rivers was still some distance away.

Though a solar-powered bore was provided by the company to ameliorate residents’ suffering when it became apparent that sources of water had become unusable, findings showed that it barely serves the residents, as it only offers droplets of water most of the time.

Our correspondent learnt that on days that the borehole is functional, which could be once a week, there is a mad rush to fetch as much as possible.

Subsequently, residents must ration their ‘bounty’ carefully or depend on water collected when it rains.

The tough and most dangerous alternative they are left with, it was learnt, would be to fall back on the stinky, polluted rivers that are linked by tributaries.

Dangers of wastewater

According to the United States Geological Survey, Wastewater is water that includes substances such as human waste, food scraps, oils, soaps, and chemicals.

The World Health Organisation noted that insufficient treatment of wastewater and faecal sludge spreads diseases and is a driver of antimicrobial resistance.

Development at a price

It was gathered from residents that their joy knew no bounds when the company started operation and they expressed readiness to cooperate and give all the necessary support that will ensure a successful operation.

They said while sincerely embracing what they believed would usher modernity into the town, they never knew that they were laying a foundation for anguish and pain.

Findings by PUNCH Healthwise revealed that IB Plc, which is located at Km 3 Flowergate Industrial Scheme, Sagamu-Abeokuta Expressway, Ogun State is a subsidiary company under AB InBev Group, the world’s largest brewer.

The brewery plant is expected to boost local production of notable brands under the company’s stable.

Inaugurated on August 28, 2018, the multinational company was commissioned by former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Mr. Boss Gida Mustapha, who represented former president, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd).

During the commissioning, it was learnt that the sleepy Orile-Imo Town roared to life as it experienced an unprecedented human and vehicular movement, especially when the former Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibikunle came, accompanied by dignitaries.

During the grand event, as it was described in the media, the former Managing Director, IB Plc., Annabelle Degroot, described the plant as a major step towards the company’s strategic goal of producing high-quality drinks locally.

Degroot noted that the brewery will also be instrumental in empowering farmers and local manufacturers as most of the raw materials required will be sourced locally.

She also said one of the objectives of the company was to create job opportunities for the people of Ogun state, as well as Nigerians.

While the residents confirmed that the company was able to provide jobs for their teeming youth, they lamented that the company used its activities to take from them through the back door by negatively impacting their sources of water and the environment.

Enter contamination

According to the residents, with no regard for the environment or the people whose lives revolve around the host community, the company allegedly began to empty its wastewater into the rivers without treatment.

They alleged that toxic chemicals and heavy metals flowed freely into the rivers, creating bubbles.

According to a community leader, Jamiu Akinyemi, the pollution of their only source of water without providing a better alternative has made access to good water challenging and traumatic for everyone.


Jamiu Akinyemi lament that the contamination has made access to water quite difficult.
Image Source Sadiq Ojuroungbe
He lamented, “We want them to stop channelling their water into our rivers. Since they started doing this, it has made access to water a major problem for us.

“This river closest to the company has been used for hundreds of years, same as others. It is the water we drink and use for other domestic purposes, but that was in the past. The rivers have all been polluted. We only fetch from there when there is no other alternative.”

The community leader said he kicked against the idea of having wastewater channelled into the river, which serves as a link to others but claimed that the company was defiant.

“I remember when they wanted to do this thing but I protested against it because of the future. Some people boycotted me, despite the fact that I am the custodian of some land in these communities. It is wickedness on the part of the company to be discharging their water inside our only source of water,” Akinyemi said.



Blanket of filth

When our correspondent toured the affected communities and rivers, it was observed that the once-pristine rivers now have films of filth covering their surfaces like blankets. A foul smell also hung in the air like a heavy fog.

It was discovered a sewer pipe discharging brownish, foamy water into the river. A small bridge was constructed and the pipe was channelled through it.

One of the workers at the company, who took our correspondent around the riverbank, identified two rivers – Ereku and Yemala as closest to the brewery plant.

The worker, who did not want his name mentioned to avoid victimization, said the brewery once channelled wastewater to a vast land opposite it but had it re-channelled to the river after several complaints were made by residents.


The polluted abandoned land opposite the company.


The source revealed that the wastewater is discharged on a daily basis and indiscriminately.

He said, “The company discharges wastewater every day, but it is worse during the week. If you still go to the land opposite the company, you will see how the place has become polluted with wastewater.

“It was when the smell became unbearable that they re-channelled it to the rivers. What is coming directly from the company is not treated. I believe it can be harmful to residents, especially to those using water from the rivers that it enters for any domestic purpose.”

Tracing the pipes

To ascertain that the large sewer pipe alleged to be the source of wastewater discharge actually belongs to IB Plc., our correspondent and the worker traced it to more than three concrete chambers erected inside a bush path that led to the back of the company.

It was observed that the wastewater chambers are used to connect pipes that channel wastewater directly to the river. The last wastewater chamber was sighted at Fu Shax Road, opposite Agricon Boulevard, a street where the main plant of IB Plc. was located.

However, to confirm claims of the alleged indiscriminate discharge, our correspondent paid several visits on different days to the area and discovered that even on a Sunday, foamy and smelly wastewater was discharged through the sewer pipe for hours into the river.

We can’t breath

A resident, who identified himself as Ifagbemi and lives a few meters away from the river where the discharge is allegedly perpetrated before it moves downstream, claimed that the content emptied by International Brewery has a chocking effect on residents and they find it difficult to breathe once the wastewater is being emptied

He lamented that on several occasions, he was forced to leave home for days with his family so that the smell could subside.

Nigeria still battles water contamination

The continuous growth in population and industrial development has increased wastewater generation in high volume with resultant, negative effects on the quality of water found in sub-Saharan Africa.

During the commemoration of 2022 World Water Day, the United Nations Children’s Fund lamented that an estimated 70 per cent of water at the point of consumption is contaminated in Nigeria.

The U.N. agency said the contamination is the reason why Nigeria has the world’s highest number of deaths from waterborne diseases, especially among children under five years old.

UNICEF added that 117,000 children die in Nigeria annually due to water-related illnesses – the highest number recorded by any nation.

Several industries in Nigeria have been implicated in the indiscriminate discharge of effluents into surrounding water bodies.

Solid waste management is one of the major challenges facing the environment globally in recent times, and the world has become increasingly aware of the dangers posed by such waste and its huge risk to the environment and natural habitat.

Malfunctioning borehole leaves residents high and dry

For hours, Tunde Oyewole sat, slouched over with his eyes riveted on the solar-powered borehole serving several of the communities as it intermittently dripped and sputtered water.

The borehole was donated to the community by the multi-national brewing company to provide clean water due to the massive pollution, the young man also confirmed.

With a tinge of frustration evident in his voice, Oyewole said he had been waiting for about three hours to fetch water with the three plastic buckets that he came with but had only been able to get one filled up.

“This borehole was put up in 2021, but it is not really giving us water as expected. It is solar-powered and even the tank they gave us is small. You can imagine how big this place is and they are expecting us to use just one small tank.

“Even on sunny days, the borehole can’t fill up the tank and only one of the three taps is working, which further complicates issues. It is really frustrating accessing water here. There are times that the water will not come out at all and we would be left with no choice but to look for alternatives.”

With time, Oyewole’s frustration gave way to rage and he cursed under his breath, walking away with the only bucket filled with water.

His predicament is a reflection of what several residents face daily, especially those in Logbara.

Here, water is a luxury they can’t afford and they are caught in a vicious circle of helplessness with no hope of having their water problem resolved any time soon.

It was gathered that residents get up before sunrise to be among the early callers to line up at the borehole to fetch water.

It was gathered that they form a queue that stretches out as far as the eyes can see and on most days, fights break out over the number of containers that can be used to fetch water by an individual and are usually resolved by the elderly ones,

The residents said every drop of water is a precious commodity and a lifeline in their world of scarcity.

The borehole itself, observed, had become a symbol of the residents’ resilient struggle for water and the frustrating ordeal they have to face every time the need for water arises.

Surviving with rain drops

For residents of communities under Orile-Imo Town, darkening of the clouds creates a buzz in homes as people scurry to bring out buckets and any container that can be used to fetch and store rainwater for the time being, to temporarily solve their water needs.

A resident and daughter of the community head, Olaoluwa Sogaolu lamented that the community has been deprived access to water, noting that the Eruku River had been their only source of water over the years before IB Plc., donated the borehole.

She said, “The borehole doesn’t satisfy our water needs. We usually go to the Eruku River to get clean water that we use daily before the borehole was provided by the International Breweries Plc., after the water was no longer good.

“The borehole can only supply 500 liters of water and it is not all the time. We have to wait for sunny days to power the solar before we can get water.

“The river that should have served as an alternative has been contaminated with water from the company we have no alternative source of water.”

Another community leader, James Sogaolu who spoke on behalf of the Baale of Logbara, said the solar-powered borehole is not deep enough to reach sufficient water source.

“It was war before they even gave us the borehole. The water only comes out once in a while. This place is big and what they gave us is not enough. We were deceived by some powerful people to accept the borehole.

“I can’t point to things they have done for the development of our community since they came here. We really need water in this place. They should give us more than enough because that is what they promised when they polluted our rivers,” he lamented.

The dying crops and fishes

Nigeria, according to a report by the Water and Sanitation Programme, loses $455 billion annually due to poor sanitation.

Water pollution has also been identified by the United Nations as a serious threat to fishes in rivers and oceans.

In its Sustainable Development Goals 6 and 14 that centred on clean water and sanitation, and life below water respectively, the UN noted that water is a top priority in its international agenda.

Almost 1,000 species of marine animals, according to a UN report, get impacted by marine pollution, and over 500 locations have been labelled dead zones where marine life cannot exist across the world.

Withered farmlands

During one of the visits, it was observed that several once-thriving farmlands now have their once lush fields littered with withered vegetation.

Meanwhile, flowing idly not far from the farms is the water that once nourished crops

From all indication the plants was a silent testament to the devastating impact of pollution and a grim reminder of the fragile balance between man and nature.

One of the farmers, who refused to reveal his name, said the pollution has left many of them with no means of livelihood after suffering unquantifiable losses.

He said before now, they farmed around the fertile river banks but had to abandon the place due to the devastating impact of the wastewater on their crops.

He recounted, “We used to fish here,” he said pointing at the river, adding, “We believe it is even dangerous to put our leg inside the water.

“There was a time a hunter mistakenly put the mouth of his gun inside this river and he ended up cutting that portion off because the water damaged it. That is to show you how strong this chemical they are discharging is.

“But I am not ready to talk about it because they will start looking for me when the story is out. They connived with some people in the community for them to be able to do this to us.”

Read full story below 👇

https://newsextra.com.ng/2023/08/28/multinational-brewerys-wastewater-contaminates-ogun-communities-water-sources-destroys-aquatic-life/

By Femi Onakanren

In the aftermath of its record breaking N10 trillion tax revenue collection in the 2022 fiscal year, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has continued to show that its historic performance was no fluke.

The recently announced 2023 half-year performance update is a clear pointer to this.

The FIRS seems to be on course to completely change the trajectory of tax collections and federal revenue diversification by its unrelenting drive to surpass itself regularly.

The FIRS’ 2023 Half-Year Collection Report showed that the Service achieved its target, 100%, for the first half of the year with a mid-year returns of N5.5 trn, as against the projected N5.3 trn target.

According to the report, tax revenue collected from the oil sector from January to June 2023, stood at N2.03 trillion, as against a target of N2.3 trillion; while non-oil tax collection stood at N3.76 trillion, as against a target of N2.98 trillion.

However, the most impressive part of the report was:

Mr. Muhammad Nami, Executive Chairman of the FIRS reported

" This half-year performance was achieved as a result of improved voluntary tax compliance by taxpayers, the continued improvement of automation of our tax administration processes, including the updated VAT filing processes; as well as our dogged engagement with stakeholders in both the formal and informal sectors of the economy.”.

The improved voluntary tax compliance on the part of taxpayers was a particular delight! This means the citizens are getting to understand the value and import of paying taxes. The efforts of the FIRS in educating the public are clearly yielding fruits.

The FIRS, as custodians of public trust, is doing its part to ensure that citizens are delivering on their obligations in the social contract with the government. Thus, the FIRS as an institution has become a reference tool for social accountability.

The improved collections mean the Federal Government has more funds at its disposal to drive the provision of social amenities, improve public infrastructure, and deploy progressive, people focused fiscal policies.

The march towards a better country needs the support and contributions of everyone. The fact that the FIRS is leading this impressive paradigm shift is an under-appreciated feather in the services' ever improving cap.

Femi Onakanren is a Business Development and Socioeconomic Policy Specialist. He writes from Lagos

The award will be presented to Mr Rabiu alongside other winners of the various award categories.

A business mogul and Chair of the BUA Group, Abdulsamad Rabiu, has emerged winner of the 2023 Man of the year Leadership Excellence Awards.

In a seven-day Leadership Excellence Awards voting by Nigerians via online platforms, monitored by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mr Rabiu was voted ahead of three other nominees.

The BUA chairperson polled a total of 568,247 votes to defeat other nominees including Allen Onyema, chair of Air Peace; Auwalu Rano, CEO A.A Rano Nigeria Limited and Aloysius Ikegwuonu, founder, Ebubechukwuzo Foundation; who polled 478,117; 286,374; and 68,352 votes respectively.

The prestigious Leadership Excellence Awards (LEEX Awards), the fifth in a row, is organised annually by IgbereTV that recognises and honours the outstanding impacts of leaders across both the public and private sectors in Nigeria.

LEEX Awards also promotes outstanding leaders and personalities, whose impacts have been felt in Nigeria’s political, social and economic spheres.



Abdulsamad Rabiu, who was born Aug 4, 1960, in Kano State, is widely known and recognised for his philanthropy across the African continent, through his foundation, the Abdulsamad Rabiu Initiative Africa (ASR Africa).

Mr Rabiu was equally nominated for the ‘Man of the Year’ award category by Nigerians during the last two editions but lost out to Peter Obi in 2022 and Obi Cubana in 2021.

The BUA founder recently came to the aid of the Nigerian educational system with a 5.5 billion naira grant for infrastructural development to 22 universities and other tertiary institutions. The grant came under the ASR Tertiary Education Grants Scheme.


NAN recalls that the new recipients brought to 30 the number of Nigerian higher institutions that have benefited from the scheme.


Before the new set, eight Universities in Nigeria had benefited from the Scheme, receiving billions of Naira in grants with some of their targeted projects nearing completion.


The LEEX Awards was endorsed in 2020 by the African Union Economic, Social and Cultural Council (AU-ECOSOCC), and in 2021 by the African Union Film Institute (AFI).

The award will be presented to Mr Rabiu alongside other winners of the various award categories November 4, 2023 to be held at the Abuja.

(NAN)

-As Nigeria grapples with a foreign exchange crisis, one person stands out in the scramble to obtain hard currency: Aliko Dangote, Africa’s richest man.



When the government restricted the supply of dollars in June 2015 to prop up the value of the Nigerian naira, firms owned by Dangote landed a healthy share of dollars available at the cheap official rate, a study by Reuters shows.

Reuters examined foreign currency transactions made during an 11-week period in March to May this year. Over that time, Dangote businesses were able to buy at least $161 million in hard currency from the central bank. That was around nine percent of all the hard currency the bank sold over the period. In a single week in March, one dollar in every eight went to Dangote companies. There is not enough data to see how that stacks up with the companies’ share of foreign trade.

Compared with buying dollars on the more expensive unofficial market, though, Dangote companies benefited to the tune of about $100 million.

The wrangling for dollars highlights Dangote’s pivotal role as Africa’s biggest economy tries to diversify away from oil.

Over the past year, Nigeria pegged its currency, the naira, to the U.S. dollar at an official rate of 197-199 naira. The central bank doled out dollars at the official rate to companies it deemed strategic to the Nigerian economy. Until June 20, when the bank abandoned the peg, anyone else had to pay a lot more on the black market.

Small businesses complained that the foreign exchange restrictions were forcing them out of business. Frank Jacobs, president of the Manufacturers’ Association of Nigeria, said that the majority of manufacturers – 2,000 of them – had been unable to source raw materials because they could not obtain dollars to pay for imports. Up to 100 firms either shut completely or cut production, he said. “The large companies have better clout.”

Dangote’s purchases were entirely legal, and some economists say the 59-year-old deserved such special treatment because he has promised to build a much-needed oil refinery. He also has a track record helping Nigeria become more self-sufficient in cement and food.

Dangote Group, the parent firm, declined to comment. Dangote Cement said it had received enough dollars. “We believe that we are being treated fairly and we do not receive preferential treatment,” Chief Financial Officer Brian Egan said by email.

The central bank did not respond to written requests for comment.

Reuters’ calculations are based on foreign exchange purchase data which the Nigerian government required banks to publish. Reuters examined every transaction that Dangote’s companies made between March 1 and May 13. One newspaper, This Day, calculated a weekly total of all the published official transactions. Reuters used this total to analyze Dangote’s share.



In the period Reuters analyzed, the average black market rate was around 320, according to AbokiFX, a Lagos financial company. The difference against the official rate equated to about 20 billion naira ($101 million).

Charles Robertson, global chief economist at Renaissance Capital in London, said Dangote got more hard currency than other firms because his plan to build a refinery will help the government end fuel imports, which cost Nigeria some $6 billion annually.

“A lot of drain on the foreign exchange is from the need to buy imported fuel,” he said. “Getting the refinery going will require a lot of investment and imported goods.

“He’s got a track record here. He did it with flour. He did it with cement and now the idea is he does it with the oil refinery ... He is trusted. You no longer need to rely on foreigners, Nigerians can do it themselves.”

“FRENZIED PURSUIT”

The collapse in the oil price has hit Nigeria’s revenues hard, pushing it into its worst economic crisis for decades. Crude oil and gas revenues bring in 90 percent of its foreign currency earnings and fund 70 percent of the state budget. At the same time as collecting lower revenues from crude oil sales, Nigeria has also had to spend billions importing refined products because it lacks refining capacity.

Africa’s biggest economy contracted for the first time in at least 12 years in the first quarter of this year, and state governments are struggling to pay public servants. After the central bank abandoned the currency peg, the naira tumbled 30 percent against the dollar in a single day.

President Muhammadu Buhari, a former military ruler who was elected to office in March last year, has made it a priority to fund investments which can help make the country more self-sufficient in everything from food to energy. Buhari often uses the slogan, “We must produce what we eat.” Last month, he said the central bank would give firms which helped to diversify the economy “incentives,” without saying what that meant. Buhari’s office declined to comment for this story.

Buhari backed central bank plans to adopt a more flexible foreign exchange policy. But he long resisted devaluing the official naira rate. In a speech last month, he said, “we cannot get away from the fact that a strong currency is predicated on a strong economy.”

Atedo Peterside, chairman of Lagos-based Stanbic Bank, told a conference in February that the peg had guaranteed “huge windfall incomes” to those lucky enough to get dollars allocated at the official rate. Some speculators would buy dollars at the official rate and sell them for a quick profit on the parallel market.

“Most investors here are currently caught in a frenzied pursuit of the cheapest available dollars,” he said. “The difference between losing this game and winning it can be as high as a mind-boggling 50 per cent.”

In January, Central Bank Governor Godwin Emefiele said the bank would assist the Dangote Group to access foreign exchange to facilitate its refinery project, which will be the country’s first private oil refinery and is due by 2018. Emefiele also said the bank would help companies that boost local food production.

Muda Yusuf, a spokesman for the Lagos Chamber of Commerce, said the central bank’s allocation of hard currency gave businesses only 20 percent of what they needed to operate. Even state oil firm NNPC had to ask big international oil firms for loans worth $200 million to fund fuel imports, according its Managing Director, Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu.

In a February interview Dangote’s brother Sani Dangote, Group Vice President, said the firm was not getting 100 percent of its foreign exchange needs. “We’re getting some amount to make sure the industries keep going,” he said, adding that the firm’s sugar refinery was running at 60 percent capacity.

But Dangote, whose businesses refine sugar and produce cement and mill flour, continued to expand. He pushed ahead with plans to build the $12 billion oil refinery, a gas pipeline across West Africa, a tomato plant and farms in Nigeria to produce one million tonnes of rice.

Reuters’ analysis shows that about 80 percent of Dangote’s dollar purchases during the 11-week period were for the import of equipment and raw materials for his agricultural, sugar, cement and food companies.

POLITICAL CURRENCY


Technically, commercial banks decided how to allocate dollars. But executives at import firms say the central bank played a big part.


Competition among industrial bosses for the central bank’s attention was on display in April at the funeral of Governor Emefiele’s mother. Dozens of business leaders attended the service, including Dangote and the CEOs of most big banks. Business leaders, dressed in traditional robes, left their bodyguards behind as they crammed into the small town of Agbor deep in the Niger Delta.


Since founding his business in the 1970s, Dangote has been close to a series of presidents, both military and elected. He was an economic adviser to Buhari’s predecessor Goodluck Jonathan, who ruled from 2010 to 2015.


Although Dangote built his business under Jonathan’s People’s Democratic Party, he also had links with the opposition. On election night in 2015, when Buhari ousted Jonathan, a smiling Dangote was pictured next to Buhari at a house in Abuja as results came in.


Moses Ochonu, a Nigerian-born African history professor at Vanderbilt University in the United States, has criticized Dangote for having outsized power in the Nigerian economy. But he says Dangote also creates jobs. “People are willing to give him the benefit,” he said. “He’s contributing a lot to the economy.”


Story Culled From (Reuters)

By JANTIKU IJANADA

Just when we thought the peak in tax collection was attained, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) brought forward another harvest of revenue collection, peaking any collection in our nation’s history. The tax agency recently announced a total tax revenue collection of N5.5 trillion for the half-year period of January to June 2023 signifying the highest tax revenue collection ever recorded by the Service in any first six months of a fiscal year.

Even though this did not come as a shocker, it is still fascinating to see how the FIRS has improved so much under it's current leadership and by extension set the country's course on the path of economic growth, development and sustainability.

Prior to this feat, the Service achieved a total collection of N4.95 trillion in 2020 (representing 98% of target met). This was amidst the negative impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the Nigerian economy as well as the business disruptions and lootings during the #EndSARS protests. The tax agency collected in tax revenue the total sum of N6.405 trillion (representing 101% of target met) in 2021 and a total of N10.1 trillion in the year 2022.

The 2022 tax collection was the highest ever made by the FIRS in a single year, signifying over 96% of its collection target for the year, marking the highest tax collection ever recorded in its history and the first time that the FIRS will cross the N10 trillion mark in tax revenue collection. That was a jinx breaker as it rewrote Nigeria's tax collection history and set in motion the journey to future collections in double digits.

There is no doubt that the coming of Muhammad Nami as Executive Chairman of the FIRS , birthed a new era of reinvigoration and transformation of the agency. His reforms and strategies have paved ways for the service to achieve much more than it had achieved in time past under previous leaderships.

The FIRS have been diligently building on the Executive Chairman's 4-Cardinal Goals of: Making FIRS a Customer-Centric Institution; Making FIRS a data-centric Institution;
Improving Stakeholder Collaboration; and Rebuilding the Institutional Framework of the Service.

These goals were carefully curated to give direction towards transforming the service for improved tax revenue collection. The service at the same time identified more areas where it could improve in the delivery and efficiency of its collection. And this has no doubt yielded tremendous success as seen in it's 2023-2024 tax revenue outlook presented to the National Economic Council.

During the presentation, Mr. Muhammad Nami noted that the service was able to collect N5.5 trillion in tax for the first half of the year as a result of "improved voluntary tax compliance by taxpayers, the continued improvement of automation of our tax administration processes, including the updated VAT filing processes; as well as our dogged engagement with stakeholders in both the formal and informal sectors of the economy.”

The FIRS boss also stated that the tax revenue collected from the oil sector from January to June 2023, stood at N1.73 trillion, as against a target of N2.3 trillion; while non-oil tax collection stood at N3.76 trillion, as against a target of N2.98 trillion. With this, the agency has achieved over one hundred percent of its target for the first-half of the year when compared with a mid-year target of N5.3 trillion.

Further more, the Service collected a total of N1.65 trillion tax revenues in June 2023. This sum is the highest tax revenue collected by the Service in any single month.

With it's continued hyper achievements, one question that keeps coming to mind is, what is this current management of the FIRS doing differently? What are they adding to the table that is yielding these progressive results?

Muhammed Nami while speaking on how the tax agency achieved its 2023 half-year collection on channels television Business Morning Show revealed the key reforms responsible for it's continuous successes. The reforms includes: Improvement in stakeholder engagements; ensuring that taxpayers are satisfied; issuance of circulars to guide and educate taxpayers on tax laws, legislations, how to file, filing returns, etc;
enlightenment of taxpayers on their rights and obligations and redesigning the FIRS organizational structure to ensure optimum efficiency of staff.

Other reforms he stated include the constant training and retraining of FIRS staff to improve their capacity; the use of data and intelligence for tax collection and taxpayer profiling; building a comprehensive tax database; consistent stakeholder engagement in both the formal and informal sector; and deployment of the “TaxPro Max” as a tax administration solution as well as other technological tools automation of tax administration processes.

These reforms indeed are the contributors to the huge, unprecedented successes in revenue collection. Given its antecedent, one can confidently project better, prosperous days for the agency and the nation at large going forward. Mr. Nami also attested to this when he said that: "We believe that the performance in the second half of the year would be better considering the continuing improvement to our tax administration processes and positive impact of current government’s policies on the economy.”

The FIRS have a bigger target of N7.5 trillion for the second half of the year. It is almost certain that this will not be one nut too hard to crack for the agency and who knows, it might just surprise us again by exceeding its target as seen in the first half of 2023.

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has received a Petition against Billionaire Businessman, Alhaji Aliko Dangote over $3.4 Billion allegedly siphoned through the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The petition, seen by POLITICS NIGERIA, filed by Ahmed Fahan, a Social Justice Advocate, alleged that Dangote grossly violated the Forex Guidelines of the CBN for years.

The petition was attached to a letter written to the President on August 18th, 2023.

The Letter read; “BRAZEN ILLEGALITY: HOW DANGOTE SIPHONED $3.4BILLION DOLLARS THROUGH THE CBN USING FORM A”

“I write to you today as an alarmed Nigerian citizen and a tenacious advocate for social justice. I bring to your attention a scandalous issue of gross financial misconduct and illegality involving the Dangote Group – a flagrant abuse of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) forex guidelines for the past 10 years.”

“First exposed by Dr. Ope Banwo of Change Vigilantes International (CVI) in his 2016 petition to the former President Buhari(read here: https://www.ripplesnigeria.com/dangote-forex-violation-cbn/?amp) this brazen illegality involves a shocking violation of CBN guidelines, causing a USD 3.4 billion diversion from Nigeria’s national treasury at rates between 150-200USD when the parallel exchange rate was more than double that. This insidious financial maneuvering still threatens the very stability of our country’s economy even today.”

“Astoundingly, this flagrant siphoning was carried out using Form A, instead of the legal route through Form M, which is tantamount to a gross violation of the law as it offers no financial returns to our country. The barefaced audacity of these financial transgressions is further displayed by several implicated banks, which have audaciously sanctioned millions of dollars at the CBN rate to the Dangote Group, in direct violation of CBN’s instructions to source funds from the parallel or interbank market.”

“These unscrupulous actions facilitated the illegal transfer of funds for supposed foreign investments, including the supposed construction of factories in countries like Congo and Liberia. These funds were moved out of Nigeria with the alleged unlawful aim of industrial developments in other nations, while our own country was left bereft of these much-needed investments.”

More worryingly, there are several instances, such as in Liberia, where promised factories were never built. The siphoned funds were, instead, reportedly transferred to Dangote’s accounts abroad, thereby exploiting Form A for illicit cash movements that cannot be reclaimed by our country.

“It must be highlighted that the approvals sought from the CBN clearly stated that money sought by Dangote must be bought from the Interbank market – which means money outside the CBN. However, the funds were bought and transferred from the national treasury with the CBN, which was illegal. On a continued basis over the years and contrary to the approvals, Emefiele’s CBN continued illegally supplying money from Nigeria’s treasury at cheaper rates to Dangote Group (see some evidence attached). This is an illegality that must be righted. For instance in 2015, Form A number AA2541751 was used to transfer over 341million through telegraphic transfer (ECOBANK) in contravention of CBN directive to use interbank funds only for the Dangote Project in Cameroon whilst on February 12, 2016, Form A number AA2649626 was used to transfer over 420million for spare parts in Congo, also in contravention of the CBN directive.”

“To further highlight the brazenness of these actions, it recently came to light that the suspended CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, had borrowed USD 1 billion from Afrexim Bank in the second quarter of 2023, USD 750 million of which was illegally funneled to Dangote at a concessionary rate. These funds were subsequently transferred to Dangote’s account abroad just as previously done in the past.”

“Your Excellency, as the beacon of hope for our nation’s financial integrity, your swift action is desperately needed to rectify these glaring injustices. We implore you to order a comprehensive and immediate investigation into these flagrant violations of our financial laws.”

“We call upon you to ensure these stolen funds are returned and used for the betterment of our nation under your committed administration. This enforcement is essential not just to deter future violations but also to underscore the ethos of accountability and transparency that your administration represents. We enjoin you to direct the EFCC, ICPC, DSS and other relevant security agencies to investigate these illegal acts against our economy and ensure these funds are returned.”

“The time for a new era has come—an era where the rule of law supersedes illicit privileges, and economic justice becomes our national cornerstone. By addressing this issue decisively, you will send a powerful message that corruption, in all its forms, will no longer be tolerated in our country.”

“Thank you for your prompt attention to this urgent matter.

Yours faithfully,

Ahmed Fahad
A Concerned Nigerian and Social Justice Advocate”.

Below are Documents attached to the letter;

Anybody who knew the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) before the advent of the administration of Muhammad Nami would in all fairness concede that he has remarkably used his salient administrative skills to improve the operations of the apex tax body. His dexterity in achieving an upward swing in revenue generation has much to do with his administrative skills than the deployment of technology.

To understand the road Nami traveled before arriving at this destination,  there is a need to look back at the state of affairs in the  Service before he happened. It will not be overstating the fact to say that the state of disrepair, staff disorientation, and demotivation in the Service when Nami took over the reins of leadership, was legendary. There was a backlog of more than ten years of promotions, the reporting line was skewed and obsequious, the structure was straitjacketed, and work ethics were thrown overboard. Staff allowances were not regularly paid which thereby affected staff morale and caused disenchantment.

With this overt climate of the insufferable condition of service prevailing at the time of his assumption of office,  there is no gainsaying the fact that the task he found himself handling required tact, circumspection, and astute administrative skills. And Nami rose to the occasion. He navigated the turbulent economic climate occasioned by the Covid-19 pandemic, the dwindled oil revenue, and the EndSars protest to post an impressive record of revenue generation. Today, the country relies on the non-oil tax revenue being administered by Nami’s leadership.

One thing that stands out for Nami, besides his ability to manage people and resources, is his ability to headhunt and identify resourceful people who are fit for various tasks and offices. The first thing he did when he assumed the mantle of leadership of the Service was to reorganize the structure of the Service. In doing this, he freed up offices, created new departments, additional state coordination, fourteen satellite offices, and more functions thereby making it possible for promotions to happen and staff to aspire to higher offices and responsibilities.

He similarly restored to the staff functions that were given to consultants which made it possible to harness the potentials and initiatives of the staff. One important result of this is the in-house building and implementation of the now famous TaxPro-Max, his baby which is yielding astronomical revenue haul for the country. This remarkable achievement could only have been possible with one that has administrative skills and the foresight to see beyond the here and now.

In the same vein, fixing the right people in the right positions as well as utilizing the experience and expertise of retiring officers of the Service has helped greatly in shoring up some gaps which would have put the Service in a serious manpower deficit. Therefore,  being able to mix both the experienced and the upstarts has helped to entrench mentorship and succession plans in the Service. This trend would surely bring about inbreeding and quality manpower that would be capable of standing up to any headwinds.

From the inception of his administration, Nami has maintained a studious approach to administering the affairs of the Service by setting up some cardinal goals for the organization,  which are rebuilding the FIRS institutional framework, making the Service data-centric, and customer-centric, and having a robust stakeholder collaboration. And these are not just mere concepts.
True to his words, he has religiously fixed his focus on achieving these goals against all odds. That is why presently he has created a department called Intelligence Strategic Data Mining and Analysis in the Service. He equally established Special Tax, Tax Incentives Management, and Special Crimes and Investigation Departments as a way of strengthening the mechanism of tax collection and administration. He has also maintained a close engagement with all facets of stakeholders to enhance the visibility of the Service and enhance its operations.

Nami has equally applied his leadership and administrative skills through wide consultation with both internal and external stakeholders in policy formulation toward enhancing workflow and work ethics within the system. This has resulted in the formulation of the right policies and reduced roles conflict considerably. Reporting lines have also been strengthened and redefined in a way that has put the staff on a sound footing for enhanced productivity. This is done through constant and rigorous performance evaluation.  
 
All these point to the fact that Nami's administrative skills manifest consummate leadership qualities and performative vision. Nami understands the intricate combination of administration, leadership, and vision for the attainment of organizational goals. That is why he has been able to raise the bar of revenue collection to an all-time high. And in the coming years he will do even better.

Andrew Okonkwo writes from Abuja.

...as DPP frees suspects

Family members of a slain Mobile Police Sergeant, Edison Fulman 13 others persons allegedly killed at Etegbin in Ojo Local Government Area of Lagos State, by suspected hoodlums working for some land grabbers, over three years ago are still crying for justice.

The slain police officer, until his untimely death on February 14th,2020, was attached to the Zone Two Police Command Headquarters,Onikan Lagos.

The police officer, in company with others were said to be on lawful duty when they were swooped upon by the suspected hoodlums numbering over 200.

Sergeant Fulman was among the policemen deployed to protect a landed property belonging to a real estate firm owned by one Chief Moruf Owonla ,who had bought some hectares of land from one Adeoku Family.

Before the bloody attack, a team of 17 policemen were said to have been drafted from the Zone 2 Police Headquarters, Lagos "to maintain law and order at the site of the property while the court sheriffs executed the warrant of possession on February 11, 2022."

Three days after the court judgement, hoodlums who were protesting the outcome of the court judgment attacked the police team almost immediately after the Commander of the Lagos State Special Task Force on the Environment, Shola Jejeloye, a Chief Superintendent of Police (CSP), who had visited Etegbin following a false distress alarm that some land grabbers had stormed the community, left the scene.

CSP Jejeloye and his team had left the community upon realising that some policemen from Zone 2 headquarters had been officially deployed to maintain law and order in the town.

But the murderous gang of hoodlums killed Sergeant Fulman in the process while also injuring others as they also allegedly abducted and killed 13 other persons.

The suspected hoodlums, it was learnt, had a field day causing mayhem in the area. The slain Mobile Police Sergeant, Edison Fulman, with Force number 500314 was not among the lucky ones that escaped the scene, as he was mowed down by his attackers who overpowered him.

"The Police Sergeant displayed bravery and gallantry during the unprovoked attack. It was very unfortunate that his attackers finally overpowered him as he put up a fight to repel them . He was disarmed and shot dead at a close range," one of his family members, who had a chat with our Correspondent on condition of anonymity, said.

Explaining further, the family member said Fulman was stabbed with broken bottles in an apparent move to ensure that he didn't survive the raw ordeal.

Recall that protracted legal tussle had earlier ensued between Adeoku Family and another family over the ownership of the hectares of land in the community.

The matter was heard by Justice O.H. Oshodi of the Lagos High Court sitting in Ikeja, who delivered judgment in favour of the Adeoku Family in 2013.

"Following the judgment, a possession order was given by Justice Oshodi on February 11, 2021, and a certificate of warrant of possession otherwise called Form ‘O’ was issued to the victorious family to take possession of the said property.

The victims' family members have been hoping that justice would be served at the end of the matter, just as the elder brother to the slain policeman, Fanny Fulman, could not control his emotions, lamenting how another sibling of his who was a soldier was killed in cold blood by bandits in Zamfara State and which he was still mourning when the killing of his younger brother, Sergeant Fulman occurred.

According to him, "After killing Fulman and injuring his colleagues, the hoodlums had encircled the operational site of the real estate developing firm and attacked the workers at the site. About six workers were abducted while others fled in different directions.

"Still, the hoodlums embarked on a house-to-house search for the fleeing workers and smoked no fewer than six of them out, bringing the number of workers abducted to 12."

The abducted workers identified as Ganiyu Ogunbakinde; Olamide; Omoakin; Jamiu Adegoke; Azeez; Oloye; Akeem; Taiwo; Dayo, Wasiu, Olamide Akinromola; Jamiu Adegoke, and Emmanuel, were said to have been marched to a remote location in the riverine town, where they were all allegedly killed by the hoodlums. Their bodies were later found floating on the Lagoon around the community.

Expectedly, the police launched an investigation and the suspects were arrested. Police investigators said the arrested suspects were found to be the masterminds of the tragic killing of Sergeant Fulman and the 13 workers they abducted during the incident, insisting that the suspects must be prosecuted.

"The police report explained further that the abducted persons were allegedly killed and their bodies were thrown into the Etegbin Lagoon. The police investigation report also revealed that a mob prevented detectives and personnel of the Force Marine Police Unit from carrying out a search on the Lagoon with a view to recovering the bodies..."

Based on the above findings, it was recommended that "Sabitu Anafiu alias Major; Sarafadeen Saka; Festus Onifade; Moses Adeola; Sakiru Lamidi; Moshood Ayepe, Lateef Oluwaseyi; Omoowo Rafiu; Omoowo Gafar; Onyeka Ibekwe and Jimoh Seliu be charged to court for conspiracy, murder of Sgt Edison Fulman; arson and unlawful possession of weapons.”

But in a prepared Legal Advice to the court, the state DPP said that the suspects had no case to answer and should be immediately set free.

The certified true copy of the legal notice dated October 20, 2022, reads: “After carefully considering the facts available in the duplicate case file, this office is of the considered view that there are insufficient facts to establish the prima facie offence of conspiracy to commit murder, murder, arson, criminal damage to property or breach of peace against the suspects: B1-Sabitu Anafiiu; B2-Sarafadeen Saka; B3-Festus Onifade; B4-Moses Adeola; B5-Sakiru Lamidi; B6-Moshood Ayepe; B7-Lateef Oluwaseyi; B9- Seliu Jimoh; B10-Segun Anifowoshe; B11-Uchenna Okoye; B12-Onyeka Ibekwe; B13-Augustine Olikagu; B14-Omoowo Rafiu; B15-Omoowo Gafar and B16-Michael Ebhaleme.

“In view of the foregoing, this Office is of the view that the suspects had no case to answer. Consequently, Pages B1-Sabitu Anafiiu; B2-Sarafadeen Saka; B3-Festus Onifade; B4-Moses Adeola; B5-Sakiru Lamidi; B6-Moshood Ayepe; B7-Lateef Oluwaseyi; Page B9- Seliu Jimoh; B10-Segun Anifowoshe; B11-Uchenna Okoye; B12-Onyeka Ibekwe; B13-Augustine Olikagu; B14-Omoowo Rafiu; B15-Omoowo Gafar and B16-Michael Ebhaleme are discharged and are to be released immediately, if still in custody. Also, Page A19 (CSP Shola Jejeloye, has no case to answer."

The families of the victims, however, expressed shock over the legal advice from the office of the Director of Public Prosecution (DPP), which they described as the travesty of justice.

By Owolola Adebola

Joko-tade Estate Resources Limited under the aegis of the Oyemade Royal Family comprising the three branches that include the following: Banjoko, Oyetubo and Okunade has petitioned the Office of the Inspector General of Police (IGP), Mr. Kayode Egbetokun, in Abuja over what they term illegal sale and occupation of their inherited landed property situated at Sangotedo area of Lagos State by a group of interlopers and land grabbers allegedly working for some top government functionaries at the Lagos State Ministry of Lands and Housing, Alausa, Ikeja, Lagos.

In specific terms, the company wrote the petition against Threeco and one Bode Agoro, the Permanent Secretary, Lagos State Ministry of Lands and Housing, Alausa,Ikeja.The Company accused Agoro of colluding with others, using his position and government apparatus to deprive them of their source of living.

The company revealed that they were displaced from Morekete in the Lekki area by the Lagos State Government, which they said did so well by relocating the Oyemade descendants in a new settlement via a Certificate of Occupancy (CofO) 75/75/1996AE on the 17th of June 1996.

The company claimed that the headship of the Land and Housing Ministry at Alausa, Ikeja, had been making it difficult for them to access the sprawling properties since he (the Permanent Secretary) was conscripted into the land matter by the managers whose services they had for disposed of .

The said Permanent Secretary, Mr Bode Agoro, in league with those who conscripted him, allegedly stationed armed Mobile Policemen on the property, thereby preventing the rightful owners from accessing it.

The complainants had initially, in unison, formed a joint venture known as *OYETUBO JOKO-TADE ESTATE RESOURCES LIMITED* and appointed two nominal directors, one each from the families to represent them in the financial affairs of the company.

The company said they jointly did this by freely and expressly giving the directors Power of Attorney so that the vast acres of land would be managed in such a way that it could generate profits to the benefits of the three families.

It was disclosed that while perfecting the deal, a Company Secretary , identified as Barrister Shade Ogundare (who also doubled as the company's Attorney), was so appointed to see to the day-to-day smooth legal running of the business and feed back the original owners.

As the company blossomed and flourished, the company who legally own the sprawling hectres of land were reportedly soon pained and aggrieved as they were reportedly paid paltry sums of money in the first (15) fifteen years of running the business.

Apparently piqued by the ugly development, some of the directors reportedly complained about an alleged mismanagement of resources by the three directors, including Otunba Mojeed Babatunde Moses and Alhaja Amoke, and the company secretary, alleging that all entreaties to make them accountable were frustrated.

"It also led to the dissolution of the first management team and the Constitution of a new management team in 2017 in which case, Alhaji Muraina Banjoko, the Chairman of *Threeco Construction Company* was engaged to help salvage, manage and recover the some parcel of land in the Estate from encroachment : but rather Messrs Threeco reportedly decided to pitch his tent with one Mr. Bode Agoro, who is a civil servant and works in the Lands and Housing Ministry as the current Permanent Secretary, to dislodge and claim some parcel of land for their personal benefits, using the resources of the state to champion a personal course."

It was this noticeable unwholesome development that led to the writing of petition against the office of the Permanent Secretary and his alleged collaborators, prompting the office of the Inspector General of Police to serve them letters of invitation that they refused to honour.

Operatives from the FCID Abuja, who visited the venue of the property at Sangotedo on investigation activities arrested three police officers in Mobile uniform.On questioning,the arrested officers said they were there on behalf of Mr.Bode Agoro, close to eight months.

Our correspondent further learnt that it was in an apparent move to bring the aggrieved parties together so as to prevent conduct likely to cause the breach of peace that the police top brass at the Force Criminal Intelligence Department (FCID) directed the parties to come to Abuja for an audience with the police headship following a formal letter of complaint written to the police by Oyetubo Joko-tade Estate Resources Limited.

It was learnt that as those that were invited to meet with the IGP arrived the venue, another group of detectives swooped on them and swiftly detained them under the pretence that their action was based on another petition already written against them over the same land matter by those whose services were no longer required.

Recall that the family had repeatedly complained that the company secretary was having the backing of one female Superintendent of Police, Funmi Eguaoje, who is said to be the spokesperson for the police outfit, but appears to have taken side with Threeco as she reportedly boasted that she would frustrate every move made by the company to reclaim their legally owned property.

Meanwhile, it took the timely intervention of a Deputy Inspector General of Police, Fatai Adeleke, to release the already traumatized invitees turned detainees, who altogether spent over eight hours of interrogation before they were asked to leave for Lagos.

Further checks revealed that one of the alleged Interlopers, Olayiwola Kasali, arrested by Assistant Superintendent Sunday of the Legal Department in the wake of the arrests, and clamped into detention on Thursday, 5th of July,2023, died on the 7th of July ,2023 , hours after arriving Lagos. It was not clear what would have prompted his sudden death.

Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Muyiwa Adejobi, has repeatedly warned police personnel to steer clear of issues relating to land disputes.

He further warned that any police officer caught in the web of such civil matters, particularly that related to land matters would have himself to blame.

"Once it is civil, that is not our job..."he had warned.

On Wednesday morning, our correspondent visited the Lands and Housing Ministry at Alausa, Ikeja to hear the side of the Permanent Secretary, but hostile Ministry officials prevented him immediately he introduced himself as a journalist seeking to make an enquiry.

"This is not a newspaper house.Go away Mr.busy body," a hostile officer, whose name could not be immediately ascertained, barked at our reporter.

All attempts to hear the side of the Company Secretary, Barrister Shade Ogundare, were also not successful. But sources close to her described her as "an upright woman that does her things within the ambit of the law."

Seplat Energy has reportedly lost six workers, including a foreigner, in an accident involving the Majestic rig at Ogboren close to Ovhor Oilfield in Sapele Local Government Area of Delta State.

Reports say the Majestic rig was newly acquired and operated by SEPLAT/NNPCL Joint Venture.

It was gathered that about 96 crew members onboard the rig reportedly went down during the accident, while six bodies, including the Briton, were said to have been recovered.


The company’s management says is working round the clock to locate and recover other missing crew members.


A source close to the oil coy management said: “as soon as we got the news of the incident, the company activated search and rescue mechanisms, and the efforts yielded great results.


“As we speak, most of the rescued workers are safe and getting medical attention, but sadly, we lost six staff, a Briton included with about six other workers still missing as of 8:00p.m today, Tuesday,” he stated.


However, the management of Seplat Energy Plc, in a press statement signed by Seplat Chief Executive Officer, Mr. Roger Brown, has declared that out of the 96 crew members onboard the faulty rig, 92 of them are safe, adding that only one member died and three others still missing.


The Seplat’s statement read thus: “Seplat Energy regrets to announce a serious incident on the Depthwise swamp drilling rig “Majestic” in early this morning. Seplat, the operator of the SEPLAT/NNPCL joint venture, contracted the rig. It was in transit to its planned drilling location at Ovhor in Delta State when it capsized.


“92 of the 96-member crew are accounted for and safe. However, tragically one fatality occurred during the incident, while three other rig personnel are still missing.

Read the full story here

https://newsextra.com.ng/2023/08/16/seplat-energy-oil-rig-collapses-oil-worker-dies-others-missing/

By Adeyemi Obadimu


Business Moguls and other dignitaries on Friday witnessed the official ground breaking of PRIME ONE RESIDENCES in Sangotedo, Lagos.

PRIME ONE RESIDENCES by ISHI Homes is a smart estate with modern facilities like well paved road network, modern design as well as social infrastructures including Solar powered and high level security installation.

The Business Development Manager of Ishi Homes, Adesumbo Asuni while addressing newsmen at the ground breaking said PRIME ONE will address the housing deficit in Lagos which is now a megacity.

According to him, Lagos State lacks Housing Accommodation for influx of people from different parts of the country. We need to decongest Lekki and other parts of Lagos Island in order to open up the state for development.

His words: "We are opening up Sangotedo with Prime One Estate. We will giving subscribers the taste of Lekki. Prime One Residence is modern and affordable apartments with solar powered, CCTV for security and other high taste infrastructures.

"Ishi Homes is introducing to you PRIME ONE RESIDENCES; a fast rising estate that is a home to all. Prime One is a contemporary luxury apartment consisting of 16 units of 4-bedroom terraced duplexes and 10 units of 1 & 2-bedroom mixed-style apartments."



Adesumbo Asuni added that aside from the beautiful location, Prime One comes with amenities like a well-paved road network, well-developed buildings, access control, and many more.



Prime One is located off the Lekki- Epe expressway, Sangotedo, Lagos.

Among the dignitaries that graced the ground opening Prime One are, Mr and Mrs Fredrick Coker, Mr Deji, MD CEO Fine bricks, Barr. Okey MD block house, Pastor Femi Odulaja, Pastor Shade Odulaja to mention but few.

By Dapo Okubanjo

For any one who has paid more than a passing attention to the activities of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) in the last four years, the agency's tax collection receipt in the first six months of 2023 would certainly not be surprising.

This is because the FIRS under the leadership of Muhammad Nami has been constant in scaling new heights.

But even at that, a N5.5 trillion total tax revenue collection between January and June this year is not a mean feat especially as this was more than the N4.95trillion the FIRS collected in the entire 2020 fiscal year and about nine hundred billion naira less than the N6.4 trillion collected in all of 2021.

It is the highest ever tax collection by the service for the first six months of a fiscal year. But undeterred, the tax agency is convinced that it would better that number in the last six months of 2023.

In the words of the FIRS Executive Chairman on the day he made the record- breaking announcement at the meeting of National Economic Council (NEC) a few days ago, there are "better days ahead". And this he attributed to "continuing improvement to our tax processes and positive impact of current government’s policies on the economy".

A breakdown of the 2023 half year tax collection figure shows that while non-oil taxes continued to do well with N3.76 trillion, oil taxes stood at N1.73 trillion.

And listening to Muhammad Nami on the day, it would be difficult for anyone to bet against the agency exceeding that feat at the end of the fiscal year. This is because it collected a total of N1.65 trillion tax revenues in June 2023 alone, the highest tax receipt by the agency in a single month.

Success Foretold

A cursory look at FIRS trajectory since at least 2020 when the Muhammad Nami-led management assumed office shows that signs of a successful tax collection regime were there from the onset. This is inspite of the grim shadow of COVID-19 on the polity which was bound to have negative consequences on the economy.

In the year the pandemic held the world in its grips, the agency's tax receipt fell slightly short of its N5.07 trillion target when it raked in N4.95 trillion inspite of a global slump in crude oil prices and disruption to businesses.

One could easily recall how the FIRS Executive Chairman explained that the global oil slump impacted negatively on tax returns through the Petroleum Profits Tax which accounted for only 30.6% of the tax revenue generated in 2020, compared to previous years.

So the country had to rely more on non-oil taxes which rose astronomically as a result of the deployment of a tax reform built on a 4-pronged approach which includes: rebuilding FIRS' institutional framework, improving collaboration with stakeholders, making the agency a customer-centric institution and finally to turn it into a data-centric institution.

And with COVID-19 not fully a thing of the past, the tax reforms began to manifest in 2021 with increased stakeholder collaboration and the deployment of technology. It was the year of Tax Pro-Max so not surprisingly, FIRS overshoot its N6.401trillion target for that year.

In a personally signed performance update for the 2021 fiscal year,the FIRS helmsman said the agency collected a total of N6.405 trillion in both oil (N2.008 trillion) and non-oil (N4.396 trillion) revenues as against a target of N6.401 trillion.

A further breakdown shows that Companies Income Tax amounted to N1.896 trillion; Petroleum Profits Tax brought in N2 trillion; Value Added Tax raked in N2.07 trillion; Electronic Money Transfer Levy topped N114 billion while Earmarked Taxes recorded N208.8 billion; among others.

What this meant was that the non-oil sector contributed 68.64% of the total collection in 2021, while the oil sector’s contribution was 31.36% of total collection.

But in 2022, the oil sector did better as FIRS broke the N10 trillion mark by contributing 41% of the total tax collection for the fiscal year with an unprecedented figure of N4.09 trillion to N5.96 trillion from the non-oil sector according to the year's performance update report.

All of these can be attributed to a quantum leap in stakeholder engagements under the watch of the current FIRS leadership, an automated system with Tax Pro-Max as the guiding light for tax administration as well as training and retraining of FIRS staff to improve their capacity.

So it is quite easy to trace the performance index of FIRS from 2020 and come to the conclusion that its 2023 half year collection of N5.5 trillion was not entirely surprising.

It is indeed a story of success foretold right from inception, not only because of the ongoing tax reforms but also because of improved stakeholder collaboration. And indications are that things can only get better.

The Founder of Exambeta who doubles as the Co-Founder of Betaprep Africa (an Edtech startup), Abiodun Sijuade, has advised the school owners, CEOs, and business heads not to make the work environment and most especially school environment a toxic one for their staff amidst the current economic situation of the country.


Sijuade gave this advice during a business discussion session with NEWSEXTRA correspondent in Abeokuta the state capital of Ogun State.


He urged the owners of various private educational and training institutions, CEOs and founders of Edtech companies, and general business heads to do all in their might to make sure that the working environment is a safe and healthy one for their staff and people working with them. Not forgetting that we are at a very crucial stage where the country's economy is experiencing a hard time which has resulted in a hike in transportation costs and the prices of goods and commodities.


He further said in his words that, as much as the Government is working so hard to provide various palliatives to cushion the effect on the general public, all schools and business owners too can replicate the same in their own capacity to staff working for them. Truly, all businesses are at a stage of making critical decisions for business survival such as letting go of people the business can survive without which might further lead to mass unemployment in real time. In the same vein, he advises staff to upskill so that they can be more productive and valuable.


The Exambeta CEO also advised the general public to try as much as possible to cut down unnecessary expenses at this present time of fuel subsidy removal so as to reduce the hardship on survival.



He then pleaded to the Government of Ogun State to fulfill all palliative promises made to the vulnerable citizens of the state and to set up various models that would allow the survival of MSME at the present time in the state as the sector also contributes a lot to the growth of the state. This would sure be a welcome development and would make the state a pacesetter for other states to emulate.



When asked about the current project of his brand, the CEO explains that his brand 'Exambeta' has been a brand providing international admission test registrations and preparation services to Nigerians with its physical prep centers over the past 4 years, and at the moment, working on introducing the 'Betaprep-Africa', an EDTech Mobile App by leveraging world-class teaching, media, and technology to create high quality, affordable and on-demand preparation services for standardized tests candidates and overseas admissions prospects across Africa.

President Bola Tinubu @officialABAT has sent his goodwill message to frontline businessman and philanthropist, Alhaji Abdulsamad Rabiu, founder of BUA Group @BUAgroup and the Abdul Samad Rabiu Africa Initiative (ASR Africa) on the occasion of his 63rd birthday anniversary.


President Tinubu praised the entrepreneurial ingenuity of the renowned industrialist and his abiding faith in Nigeria. He further extolled the many huge investments that the BUA Group owner has made across critical sectors of the economy through which he has created thousands of jobs for Nigerians.


The Nigerian leader used the opportunity of the industrialist’s birthday to also eulogise Alhaji Abdul Samad for his massive philanthropy in education, social development, and healthcare. All of these combined efforts have positively changed lives, not only in Nigeria but also across Africa.


“I rejoice with Abdul Samad Rabiu, a great son of Nigeria and Africa on the occasion of his 63rd birthday anniversary. The founder of BUA Group is a significant businessman in Nigeria and Africa who, through his hardwork and commitment to the public good, continues to empower millions of Nigerians through the creation of employment opportunities and extensive philanthropic activities.


“I salute his unyielding spirit and abiding faith in our country, for which he has not stopped making huge contributions to our economic development through his many businesses.


“On this special day, I join his family, friends, and associates to extend my good wishes and pray that the grace of the Almighty Allah will be with him. I wish the founder of BUA Group many happy returns in good health.”


Ajuri Ngelale
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
August 4, 2023

...Abuja joins network to tackle cancer




In order to mitigate Nigeria's rising cancer burden, the Federal Government through Ministry of
Health and FCT Administration, the Clinton Health Access Initiative, Medicaid Cancer
Foundation, and City Cancer Challenge Foundation (C/Can) have signed Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), to address the challenge.

The landmark agreement, which was signed in Abuja, makes the Nigeria’s capital part of a growing network of C/Can cities committed to improving cancer care
agreement, signally the government response to tackle acute cancer burden.


This was disclosed in a press statement from City Cancer Challenge, which was made available to newsmen Thursday.

The statement revealed that cancer is responsible for 79,000 deaths and approximately 124,000 new cases in Nigeria each year,
accounting for the second highest cancer burden in Africa.

It added that the multi stakeholder commitment by national and subnational governments, international health organisations and civil society, represents a key milestone in Nigeria's ongoing efforts against cancer.

According to the statement, Abuja is the 14th city and the fourth African city to join the growing C/Can network alongside Kumasi (Ghana), Kigali (Rwanda) and Nairobi (Kenya).

Commenting on the
agreement’s significance,
Permanent Secretary of the Federal Ministry of Health, Engr, P. Funso Adebiyi, said: “This collective effort strengthens the Ministry’s commitment to fostering a healthier Nigeria by urgently reducing our country’s cancer incidence and mortality.”


Similarly, FCTA Permanent Secretary, Mr. Olusade Adesola, noted that: “Given Nigeria’s sizable population within the region, Abuja's partnership with C/Can carries immense potential for broad-scale impact on our health systems and the health of our population."


Also speaking, CEO for C/Can,
Isabel Mestres, who opined that progress has already been made, said “Throughout 2022, with the support of C/Can, Abuja has undertaken a robust due diligence process.

" This has provided a
comprehensive understanding of the local cancer care landscape, paving the way for the next steps,
including the launch of a three-year City Engagement Process.”

Not left out, CEO of the Medicaid Cancer Foundation, Dr. Zainab Shinkafi Bagudud said: "Alone, we can do a lot. However, as partners, we can strengthen Abuja’s cancer ecosystem.

"I am certain that this partnership with C/Can will achieve the much-needed transformation."

Furthermore, Executive Vice President of the
Clinton Health Access Initiative Nigeria, Owens Wiwa noted: “Through C/Can, we have an unparalleled opportunity to
ensure that progress made in cancer care at a city level will benefit the most people in both Abuja and the rest of Nigeria.”


" Abuja’s successful application to join C/Can was supported by the FCT Administration and Ministry of
Health of Nigeria and led by a task force of leading organisations, including civil society.C/Can is set to launch a new call for city applications later in 2023.

"To ensure the success of the initiative, the city of Abuja has, over the last two years, conducted
assessments to inform the development of a strategy to implement the project, culminating effectively in a three-year City Engagement Process.

"Guided by the principle that cities are crucial to driving meaningful change through local engagement and global partnerships, the C/Can initiative supports cities to develop data-driven, locally relevant and
sustainable cancer care solutions.

"The C/Can City Engagement Process will be led by a local governance body, the City Executive Committee, with the support of a dedicated city manager, to engage stakeholders in identifying needs,
and implementing locally-created cancer care solutions.


"C/Can supports cities around the world as they work to improve access to equitable, quality cancer care. Since its launch in 2017 by the Union for International Cancer Control (UICC), C/Can has developed a new model of addressing access to cancer care that, for the first time, leverages the city as a key enabler in a health systems response to cancer", it added.

The crisis rocking Abuja Markets Management Limited has taken a new turn as the sacked Managing Director, Abubakar Usman Faruk who continued to parade himself as the MD has reportedly ‘sacked ‘ all Management staff of the Company opposed to his continued stay.




Faruk who was removed as the Company’s MD by its shareholders following a resolution passed on the 17th of July 2023 had continued to parade himself as Managing Director; not only ‘dismissed’ seven of the key staff but also published a disclaimer in the dailies.




In a manner an insider described as

depicting of a ‘drowning man’, Faruk appears to be out to destroy everything he could in the company even while illegally and temporarily occupying the seat.

In an effort to remain on the seat, Alh. Faruk is said to be applying every trick in the book including dropping the name of the newly appointed National Security Adviser (NSA) Mallam Nuhu Ribadu as his backers. He is said to be married to a relation of the NSA.




Faruk had returned with a court order purpotedly reinstating him,three years after being redeployed by the immediate-past FCT Minister Mallam Mohammed following issues surounding development of market stalls opposite Area 7 UTC shopping complex .


He was said to have embarked on self help in enforcing the said order and had continued to parade himself as the MD of the company.




Bouyed by this development, Faruk is said to be going around dragging the name of the NSA as his source of power, staying in office even after he has been sacked by his employers.


In a swift reaction to a disclaimer purpotedly authored by Abuja Markets Management Limited, howver, the Federal Capital Territory Adminstration (FCTA) and Abuja Investments Company Limited (AICL) have all debunked the sack as well as the disclaimer.


In a Notice jointly signed FCTA and AICL, noted that ‘the attention of the Shareholders and Directors of Abuja Markets Management Limited (AMML) has been drawn to a purported publication on Wednesday August 2 2023 in Thisday and Leadership Newspapers to the effect that AMML has disengaged some staff as

suggested on the said publications.




This disclaimer notice is made to debunk the said publication dismissing the said Management Staff as false and not authorised by either the Management, Board of Directors or Shareholders of AMML”, it continued.




They stated further that ‘the Board is aware that one Alh. Abubakar Usman Faruk whose appointment as Managing Director of AMML was effectively terminated vide a termination letter dated July 17 2023 continued to purportedly impersonate the office of the MD AMML.




They therefore maitained that the termination of Alh. Abubakar Usman Faruk’s employment as the MD of AMML remains in force, adding that ‘having been effectively removed from office, Alh.




Abubakar Usman Faruk can no longer act on behalf of Abuja Markets Management Limited(AMML) as its Managing Director”.

By Salisu Na'inna Dambatta
 
It is common truth that no country on earth, including Nigeria, is able to tax all the taxables, or even bring all the untaxed into the tax net. Tax registers everywhere rarely contain all the untaxed as required by the tax laws.
 
Even though the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) which last tax year (2022) celebrated a record N10.1 trillion tax collection for the federation, the country wants it to generate more than that amount of money in 2023.
 
It is a positively achievable ambition by the top tax man, Muhammadu Nami, who turbo-charged the tax gathering machinery to haul that N10.1 trillion despite low oil revenue and targeted tax waivers and holidays granted to encourage higher economic activities in some sectors. In 2022, over ₦1.8 trillion was granted in tax waivers and incentives. If this had been collected by the FIRS in tax revenue, the agency would have raked in almost N12 trillion in 2022.
 
As at the half of 2023, the FIRS had raked in over N5.5 trillion. Two interesting facts make this tax revenue collection remarkable. One, it is the highest tax revenue collection made in the first six months of any fiscal year. And in June of 2023 alone, N1.6 trillion was raked in—the highest tax revenue collection made in a single month in Nigeria’s history.
 
While ₦10.1 trillion is phenomenal by any standards, a doubling of this can be achieved by the FIRS and State Revenue Services if they can successfully tax the untaxed and bring in the taxables. A consultant’s report submitted to the former Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun identified and listed about a thousand taxable activities that could yield huge revenue for Nigeria that were yet untaxed.
 
For instance, the countless iron mongers in cities, towns and villages all over the country, who forge beautiful doors, windows, security and ornamental railings, are definitely untaxed.  The National Bureau of Statistics reported that in the third and fourth quarters of 2021 iron, steel and metals worth N837 billion were imported to Nigeria.  Road-side informal iron-mongers who turn a significant portion of those products into useful items do not pay tax on their production activities.
 
The furniture industry in Nigeria has been transformed beyond imagination. So also the entertainment sector. Both are probably untaxed, or minimally taxed. The two sub-sectors can be taxed appropriately to boost Federal government revenue.
 
Hewers of wood, lumberers and drawers of water are depleting our forests, turning Savannah to sahelian bushes, rain forests into derived Savannah, just to produce charcoal for energy and timber for construction and furniture, without being taxed. Taxing them heavily enough can discourage the destruction of the country's flora, and consequently, fauna, and the whole environment.
 
Another way in which huge tax revenue is lost is through dodging withholding tax by landlords who own rental properties such as residential, business premises and even undeveloped plots let out to mechanics and other artisans.
 
Huge number of warehouses let out at profitable rates are mostly untaxed, especially those which are located in the outskirts of major cities: Lagos, Abuja, Kaduna, Port Harcourt, Kano, Ibadan, Warri, Onitsha and even Owerri, among others.
 
The "unrecorded and unmonitored" economy, reportedly constituted a huge 57.7 per cent of the country's total economy in 2022. It thrives and enriches its operators, but deprives the national treasury of a fraction of its treasures through the payment of taxes or fees and levies.
 
"The size of Nigeria's informal (shadow) economy is estimated to be 57.7% which represents approximately $1,164 billion (over a trillion USD)  at GDP PPP," a report based on Quarterly Informal Economy Survey (QIES) by World Economics, London, indicates.
 
The $1,164 billion shadow economy in 2022 alone, is just a shadow below nine times the cost of the Kano-Maradi and Kano-Dutse Gadawur dual track railway lines under construction.  Nigeria borrowed $1.9 billion to finance the project. Collecting just ten per cent of $1,164 billion would have almost covered the price of the project.
 
That lost tax revenue derivable from the shadow economy could have been utilised in massive rural electrification projects to power micro and small businesses that contribute to economic growth in rural areas.
 
It is perhaps in its bid to tax the untaxed that the FIRS recently entered a partnership with the Market Traders Association of Nigeria (MATAN), where the FIRS would educate members of MATAN on tax payments and cooperate with them to charge and remit Value Added Tax (VAT) in the course of their businesses. This masterstroke partnership may hold the key to untapping the volume of taxes hitherto uncollected from country’s trillion-dollar worth informal sector.
 
More of these kinds of partnerships need to be seen between tax authorities and organized unions in the business place if the FIRS and its colleagues in the State Internal Revenue Services must tax the untaxed taxables.
 
 
Salisu Na'inna Dambatta is a retired federal Director of Information.

Our attention has been brought to various false allegations published against BUA Group on some online platforms.

BUA Group categorically refutes the baseless allegations of illicit forex
dealings with the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) from January to March 2016. These accusations, propagated online by Mr. Desmond Ike-Chima and Mr. Oliver Fejiro of ENigeria News and
SecretReporters respectively, are false and entirely unfounded.


These individuals, known for their Alledged
involvement in cyberstalking, blackmail, and defamation, have faced previous arrests (see news reports attached) for such misconduct, casting a dark shadow over their credibility.



We emphatically state that neither BUA Group nor the Chairman of the Group, Abdul Samad Rabiu, received any of the alleged foreign exchange allocations from the CBN during the indicated period.


This fact is corroborated by the CBN and the respective banks.
Furthermore, in compliance with CBN’s regulations, all forex transactions by banks during 2016, were published publicly in national newspapers (some copies attached). These records, still
accessible today, provide unequivocal evidence that counters these false allegations.


We, therefore, challenge Mr. Ike-Chima, Mr. Fejiro, and their sponsors to validate their claims with concrete evidence.


We urge the public and our stakeholders to disregard these deceptive publications in light of these facts.


We have engaged the necessary law enforcement agencies
and initiated legal action against the perpetrators under the Cybercrime Prohibition Prevention Act, Laws of the Federation, 2015.



SIGNED:
Management
BUA Group
30 Jul 2023

The Abdul Samad Rabiu Africa Initiative (ASR Africa) has commenced the construction of a 2,000 square meters Career and Renewable Natural Resources Center at the University of Ibadan. The center will provide counseling and career support to students of the university and explore the potential of cleaner energy solutions for the institution. This comes barely three days after the groundbreaking of a Student Affairs Center comprising a sports center, Information & Communication Technology (ICT) hub, administrative offices, and a 1,000-student capacity amphitheater at the Nnamdi Azikiwe University, Anambra State by ASR Africa.

Both projects, drawing from the N1 billion grant to the University, are in fulfillment of the tertiary infrastructure grant awarded to the six universities in 2021 as part of the ASR Africa Tertiary Education Grants Scheme. The grant was drawn from ASR Africa’s US$100 million Fund for Social Development and Renewal. Other universities that benefitted from the grant were the University of Maiduguri, Ahmadu Bello University Zaria, the University of Ilorin, the University of Benin, and Nnamdi Azikiwe University.

Speaking at the groundbreaking ceremony in Ibadan, Oyo state, Dr. Ubon Udoh, the Managing Director of ASR Africa thanked the university management for their cooperation on the project implementation. He described the project as “life-changing” as it will address diverse mental health issues amongst students, nurture students in their career path and provide cleaner energy solutions for the university’s use.

Furthermore, Dr. Ubon said the project affirms Abdul Samad Rabiu, founder and Chairman of ASR Africa’s commitment to supporting quality education within the tertiary education system in Nigeria and Africa at large. He added that the career center is a project that would further boost the morale of the students of the University of Ibadan to compete academically with their peers outside the country.

“I want to on behalf of Abdul Samad Rabiu thank the university management for the cooperation and partnership they have shown us so far. I want to assure you of growing this partnership and looking forward to better things to come”. Dr. Ubon said.

In his remark, Prof. Kayode Adebowale, the university’s Vice Chancellor, thanked Abdul Samad Rabiu, founder and Chairman of ASR Africa for making the project a reality. Prof. Kayode said the project is of great importance to the university, as it will address students’ needs for counseling and career mentorship and pave the way for research on alternative energy. He assured the ASR Africa team of the management’s support to ensure the speedy completion of the project.

ABOUT ASR AFRICA
The Abdul Samad Rabiu Africa Initiative seeks to support sustainable development initiatives in the Health, Education, and Social Development within Nigeria and the rest of Africa, every year. For more information visit asrafrica.org or email asrafrica@buagroup.com.

*Charges Tinubu To Arrest Asari Dokubo



The General Overseer of
Divine fountain Prophetic Gospel Centre in Kano State, Nigeria, Prophet Emmanuel Ameh, has revealed that the suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Mr Godwin Emefiele should expect more disgrace.



He made this known via his verified Facebook page on Wednesday, stating that God reveals to him that the current predicament of the embattled CBN Governor was nothing short of nemesis that has caught up on him and that he should expect more disgrace.



According to the man of God, Emefiele sufferd the masses following the naira redesign policy, which resulted in naira scarcity, affecting so many Nigerians. In fact, many people died during this period. This is the time that God want to proved to him that he is the King of King.


On the political sagacity in the last Presidential election, the man of God noted that even if the tribunal declare rerun in the outcome of its judgement, Peter Obi will still lose woefully.


He, therefore, called on President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to arrest the Leader of the Niger Delta Peoples Salvation Force (NDPSF) Asari Dokubo for illegal possession of arms.


"Asari Dokubo shouldn't be working freely with Arms and ammunition, AK 47 to be presicley, he should also be arrested and charge to court for illegal possession of Arms", he added.

A legal practitioner, Femi Oniyide, has submitted a petition to both the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) and the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) against the Secretary to the Ogun State Government (SSG), Tokunbo Talabi.

In the petition, Talabi is alleged to have engaged in money laundering and illicit activities linked to the printing of ballot papers for the last general elections.

At a press briefing held in Abeokuta, Monday, Oniyide publicly presented and signed the petition, expressing his concerns to the moral justification for a concern party in the last general elections getting contract from INEC to print ballot papers.

He revealed that Talabi purportedly laundered a sum of N189,797,163.9 in 2020 through a company account named Superflux International Ltd, which he held with Access Bank Plc and linked to Talabi's BVN.

According to Oliyide, the amounts with payment description; "INEC Electoral amount....4 55 of BALLOT P" were meant for the supply of ballot papers by the company under the financial grip of the SSG to INEC.

The legal practitioner further claimed that these payments were divided into four tranches, each amounting to N47,449,290.90, all processed on the 19th of June 2020.

Oniyide also made a separate allegation that an amount exceeding N10,800,000.00, initially designated for Covid-19 funds, was discovered in Superflux International Ltd's account in 2020.

He asserted that this amount was allegedly paid into the SSG's company account on two occasions, totaling N21,600,000:00.

"I have come to the knowledge, through different stories Online, that Superflux International Ltd, sometime in 2020, took lodgement of various sums of money from the Central Bank of Nigeria account of the Independent National Electoral Commission INEC for the printing of ballot papers meant for elections in Nigeria.

"The alleged payments were supposedly made in four tranches on the 19th of June, 2020, for N47,449,290.90 per each transaction, totalling W189,797,163.9 Only. The amount, according to the description of payment was meant for "INEC Electoral amount....4 55 of BALLOT P.

"Of another major importance in this petition is the alleged discovery of COVID 19 funds in the account of the same Superflux International Ltd, which has the financial control imprimatur of the SSG to Ogun State government.

"The sum of N10,800,000:00 was allegedly discovered to have been paid twice into the SSG's company account twice, totalling W21,600,000:00 Naira on the 4th of February, 2020 of which there was an onward transfer to Zimanel Global Enterprises with the description, "Covid 19 food support", he added

He however implored the Chairman of EFCC and ICPC to cause detailed investigation into the circumstances of "how Ogun State taxpayers funds will be so brazenly managed and laundered by a private company owned by a political appointee and his family".

When contacted, the SSG promised to call our correspondent back, which he never did as at the time of filing this report.

The Federal Capital Territory Administration ( FCTA) raised alarm on Friday as it uncovered illegal sales of shop space at the Area 7, Garki Informal Market.  


Investigation by our Correspondent revealed that already many unsuspecting members of the public, especially desperate traders have fallen victims to the fraudsters. 


This development is coming barely few days after the sack of the embattled former Managing Director of Abuja Markets Management Limited ( AMML).


Recall that the  former MD of AMML,  Alhaji Abubakar Faruk, was removed from office following AMML's shareholders resolution and also endorsed by Mr.  Abubakar Maina, vide a letter dated July 17, as  the Group Managing Director (GMD) of Abuja Investments Company Ltd (AICL) the supervising agency over AMML. 


Our Correspondent also learnt that while AMML has initiated measures to unravel the syndicate behind the illegal activities, members of the public and traders have been warned to beware of fraudsters parading themselves as FCTA officials. 


The Public Relations officer of AMML, Innocent Amechina who confirmed that there was no official allocation of the spaces yet, he also advised people to approach appropriate and relevant officers for guidance. 


He said, " the general public is hereby informed that neither the shareholders, the Board of AMML nor the Management has authorised the disposal of any of the assets in the Area 7 informal market.


" Accordingly, anybody who purportedly acquires any assets, space or properties from any persons claiming to be an agent or employee, or staff AMML does soat his or her own peril ".

The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) has announced a total tax revenue collection of N5.5 trillion for the half-year period of January to June 2023. This is the highest tax revenue collection ever recorded by the Service in any first six months of a fiscal year.

Mr. Muhammad Nami, Executive Chairman of the FIRS stated this while presenting the 2023-2024 tax revenue outlook to the National Economic Council at its meeting held on Thursday 20th July 2023, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The presentation, which contained FIRS’ 2023 Half-Year Collection Report, showed that the FIRS achieved over one hundred percent of its target for the first-half of the year when compared with a mid-year target of N5.3 trillion.

According to the report, tax revenue collected from the oil sector from January to June 2023, stood at N2.03 trillion, as against a target of N2.3 trillion; while non-oil tax collection stood at N3.76 trillion, as against a target of N2.98 trillion.

Mr. Nami, in his presentation, further stated that the Service collected a total of N1.65 trillion tax revenues in June 2023. This sum is the highest tax revenue collected by the Service in any single month.

Speaking to what he described as “a good head start, despite stubborn headwinds,” Mr. Muhammad Nami, attributed the excellent performance to improved voluntary tax compliance enabled by the automation of FIRS’ tax administrative processes.

“This is a good head start as we work towards meeting our target for the year. And it was achieved despite stubborn headwinds such as the impact of the currency redesign and 2023 General Elections on the economy in the first and second quarters of 2023”, said Mr Nami.

“This half-year performance was achieved as a result of improved voluntary tax compliance by taxpayers, the continued improvement of automation of our tax administration processes, including the updated VAT filing processes; as well as our dogged engagement with stakeholders in both the formal and informal sectors of the economy.”, he concluded.

Commenting on the outlook for the remainder half of the year, the FIRS Executive Chairman gave assurances that the country should expect “better days ahead” in terms of tax revenue collection.

“We believe that the performance in the second half of the year would be better considering the continuing improvement to our tax administration processes and positive impact of current government’s policies on the economy,” said the Executive Chairman.

It would be recalled that the Service achieved a total collection of N10.1 trillion in the year 2022, being the highest tax collection ever made by the FIRS in a single year.

South Africa’s Johann Rupert maintains position as Africa’s Richest over Nigeria’s Aliko Dangote on Forbes Realtime Billionaires Ranking (as at July 12, 2023)
as Dangote, remains Africa’s second richest.

In March 2023, Forbes released its annual ranking with Aliko Dangote as Africa’s richest; however, as of July 13, 2023, the global authoritative ranking has listed South African luxury goods magnate Johann Rupert, as Africa’s richest with a real-time net worth of 11.9billion as at July 12, 2023 vs Aliko Dangote’s Networth of $10.6 billion as at July 12, 2023.


Whilst Aliko Dangote had remained top of the Forbes African billionaires list for years, his position was recently affected by the devaluation of the Nigerian Naira with the South African billionaire, Rupert, capitalizing on this to take the crown as Africa’s richest.




billionaire, Rupert, capitalizing on this to take the crown as Africa’s richest.


You can view the Forbes realtime billionaires list (updated daily) here: https://www.forbes.com/real-time-billionaires/

Popular Kano Based Controversial Prophet, Emmanuel Ejembi Ameh Popularly called (ORACLE111) of Divine Fountain Prophetic Gosple Centre in Kano State Nigeria has released shocking National Prophesies for Nigerians.


In his Prophesies posted on his Facebook page, Prophet Ameh said popular business tycoon, Alhaji Aliko Dangote will face serious problems, because he saw that many of his trailers will record massive killing soon.

According to him, Aliko Dangote needs to be very prayerful. I saw death arisen caused by Dangote's trailer driver's and many people will be affected and Nigerians will react badly to this.

"Those incharge needs to sensitize the Dangote's driver on road caution because this will give Aliko serious heartbreak. Prophet Ameh also urged the Billionaire to pray and pay more attention to his health, he will soon have health challenge". he added.


He also explained that Dangote's refinery will not go far because interest by politicians will kill the dream on his Refinery and it will not go far at all.


See Other Shocking Prophesies Below:

1. I see the National flag flying half mask

2. Alhaji Aliko Dangote will have issues

3. Nnamdi Kanu's continuous detention will cause international crises

2. Dollar to exchange for N1000-N1200 per dollar

5. I see more killings in IMO, ANAMBRA, ABIA, ENUGU, EBONYI

6. Fcmb, Sterling Bank, others will experience massive retrenchment of staff

7. Doctors will embark on nation wide strike in Nigeria

8. I saw people crying over Olu Jacob

9. The economy will pick up a bit in Nigeria but hunger will still persist

Companies that were unable to file their Companies Income Tax returns for the 2023 year of assessment (YOA) that fell due on the 30th of June 2023 have been given up to 31st August, 2023 to submit their returns to the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS).

The FIRS in a Public Notice signed by its Executive Chairman, Mr. Muhammad Nami, and issued today stated that it had received numerous calls from companies requesting for the extension of time to submit their Companies Income Tax (CIT) returns as they were unable to meet up with the deadline due on 30th June 2023.

It noted that as a measure of goodwill and in line with relevant provisions of the Companies Income Tax Act, “all companies whose CIT returns for 2023 year of assessment that fall due between 30th June and 31st August, 2023 (both days inclusive) are given up to 31st August, 2023 to submit the returns to the Service.”

The FIRS noted that the relevant Companies Income Tax returns will not attract late filing penalties or interests if payments were made on or before 31st August 2023, noting further that where companies fail to file by the extended date, the penalty and interest for late payment will be computed from the original due date.

“The relevant CIT returns shall, therefore, not attract Late Filing Penalty or interest for late payment if submitted to the Service on or before 31st August 2023.

“Where relevant CIT returns are not filed by the extended date, penalty and interest for late payment shall be computed from the original due date and not the extended date.”

The Service also stated that the extension of filing date is only for Companies Income Tax and does not include returns for withholding tax, value added tax, personal income tax (PAYE), among others.

“The Service invites all relevant taxpayers to take the opportunity afforded by this extension to submit their CIT returns within the specified time, pay the taxes due and avoid payment of penalty and interest,” the notice read.

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.... Tribunal will not Favour Obi, Atiku


The founder of Divine fountain prophetic gospel center in Kano, Prophet Emmanuel Ameh has condemned act of some Prophet for using Clem Ohaneze Health to trend on social media.

The popular Kano controversial prophet, who made this known on his Facebook, noted that, in 2021, Prophet Jeremiah omoto gave one of the popular Nollywood Actor, Clem Ohaneze the sum of eight million naira for his health challenge.

The prophet also prayed for him sometimes last year and the news was widely reported.

Another pastor, Apostle Samuel king oiji
yesterday gave Clem Ohaneze money for the same purpose prophet Omoto did,.

As a prophet of God, he said, this action looks as if this pastors are acting film on Clem Ohaneze Health challenge to trend on social media.


Prophet Ameh noted that, "this same prophet and apostle who claims to have opened the eyes of the blind, Heal HIV, in their churches, why can't they heal this man with anointing to heal him instead of using him to trend all over social media just to gain followers and be famous."

This, he stressed, is an act to brain wash and collect their money from thier followers all in the name of helping clem Ohameze.

In the same vein, the popular Kano State prophet has urged labour party and people's democrats party presidential candidate; Peter Obi and Atiku Abubakar not to waste their time and resources on tribunal to fight Tinubu.

He said, going to Tribunal to claim thier mandate is like wasting their time and energy because the judiciary are now in president Tinubu hand.

There is no amount of pressure of court case you filed, you can never win, Tinubu is in charge of judiciary, prophet Ameh added.

By: Kayode Odunaro

There is no doubt that Senator Godswill Obot Akpabio and Senator Jibril Barau fought an intense democratic fight to emerge victorious as the President and the Deputy Senate President of the 10th Senate respectively on June 13, 2023. Members of their Stability Group led by Senator Dave Umahi as Chairman of the Akpabio-Barau Campaign Organisation with Senator Ali Ndume and Senator Opeyemi Bamidele as Director General and Deputy Director General respectively spent endless nights and days in consultations and lobbying of not only the majority of APC Senators but also other Senators from opposition political parties including PDP, LP, SDP, NNPP, APGA and YPP.

Their strenuous efforts were in spite of the ruling APC endorsement through a zoning arrangement and the proclaimed support of the President, Ahmed Bola Tinubu for the candidacy of Akpabio and Barau in the Senate and that of Hon. Tajudeen Abbass for Speaker of House of Representatives with Hon. Benjamin Kalu as the Deputy Speaker. For many cursory and objective observers, the Akpabio-Barau was almost a done deal towards the June 13, 2023 election of principal officers of the 10th Senate following their early success in getting some key opposition senators and governors to openly endorsed their candidacies.

At various points in the race the Stability Group boast of between 65 and 70 signed up members but the major spanner in the works perpetually making the group to watch over their shoulder was the so-called Democratic Group of Senators under the leadership of Senator Abdul Azis Yari of Zamfara State.
The Democratic Group that was opposed to the APC’s zoning arrangements and the President Tinubu preference has Senator Jimoh Ibrahim from Ondo State as Chairman with Senator Ishaku Elisha Abbo of Adamawa as its Director General. Their major selling points was to preach a North-South divide, canvassing of further compounding the Muslim- Muslim situation with a mantra that it would not matter if both the leadership of the two chambers of National Assembly are Muslims like the President and Vice President, the nebulous right of the senators under the constitution, not minding the constitutional provisions that grant the parliament right to order its affairs with its rules which ab initio ruled out Senator Yari for presiding officers position as a first time senator and more importantly,
the recourse to massive financial inducement of some distinguished senators which was pointedly stated by Senator Ndume. And there was the bogey of a fifth columnist in form of PDP presidential candidate, Atiku Abubakar and PDP rooting and supporting Senator Yari as yet another way of continuing struggle for political relevance.

June 13 came a day after the nation’s Democracy Day 2023 celebration and in a truly democratic exercise, Senator Akpabio was duly elected as the 9th Senate President with a total votes of 63 against Senator Yari’s 46. Senator Barau was returned unoppose, thus proving bookmakers right on the Stability Group projections of victory. The 10th Senate has since commenced the toddler steps of establishing a stable structure for legislative backing of the Renewed Hope Agenda. In the only sitting it had before its departure for a two-week recess that coincided with the Eid-el- Kabir holiday, it set up a Welfare Committee headed by Senator Jibril Isah (Kogi East) to allocate offices and seats in chamber as well as other welfare issues for members.

It was then surprising that after what amounts to a good start, some on the losing side in a democratic exercise have started plotting and fanning embers of discord for some purely selfish advantage to upstage the Akpabio Presidency of the 10th Senate. This came in form of a sponsored and syndicated stories in the media to the effect that out of the blues 22 unnamed APC senators are set to decamp to PDP in a preliminary step towards removal of Akpabio with a majority of senators. While the brains behind this desperate move to rock the boat did not see the outlandish nature of their plot beats ones imagination.

Were it to be true, this plot will be the fastest in the history of our parliament for a move to change the presiding officers. The Akpabio presidency of the Senate is yet to take off in terms of announcing principal officers, announcing its committees, both of which are usually the beginning of possible schism in the parliament from our history of such. Or were the authors of such destabilizing plot dreaming of tying the hands of the leadership of the 10th Senate even before it is fully formed and consummated? An election has been won and lost in the most democratic manner. The best any patriotic parliamentarian can do is to allow the leadership to perform its mettle based on its agenda and the agenda of the ruling APC before any plot to upstage a leadership based on its performance or
lack thereof. To begin any such destabilizing tantrums by any parliamentarian at this point is not only selfish but flies in the face of making efforts to resolve the various challenges facing the nation which the Tinubu Presidency seems focused on tackling with its incipient policy moves and thrust.

It is even comically ludicrous that such a plot was hinged on the alleged possible decamping of a whopping 22 APC senators just to satisfy the whims and caprices of individuals with bloated ego unable to accept a democratic loss. I am sure no APC senators will contemplate decamping for whatever reasons at this point as such a move is fraught with not only possibility of loss of seat but also potential backlash from constituents back home who may not be privy to the dealings of their newly elected representatives to jump ship even before the sailing commences. It will certainly be an unforgivable betrayer of the mandates entrusted to the alleged 22 parliamentarians.

Much the same can be said about another brewing plot of possible legal challenge of the victory of Akpabio- Barau. Indeed, the brains behind these kinds of shenanigans and waste of time appear cerebrally challenged not to realize the futility of their brain wave. Maybe they should go ahead to read the Legislative (Power and Privileges) Act 2017, the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic (As Amended), and relevant sections of the Senate Rules. Such composite reading and understanding will educate them that the election of Akpabio and Barau cannot be successfully litigated upon on the basis of the powers, privileges and immunity of such in the chambers of the parliament, not to talk of the issue of locus standi of such litigators.

Thankfully, a major ‘opposition’ figure to the Akpabio- Barau ticket, in the person of Senator Orji Kalu, erstwhile Chief Whip of the Senate and indeed a frontline senate presidential candidate has come out in a viral video post to acclaim and acknowledge the democratic victory of Akpabio and Barau while pledging his support for the new leadership of the 10th Senate. Others like Senator Yari are encouraged to follow suit to affirm the sportsmanship he displayed on the day of election by accepting the victory of Akpabio and publicly distancing himself from any untimely and ill-advised plots against the duly elected presiding officers of the 10th Senate.

The new administration at the executive and legislative arms of government have their jobs cut out for it in the months and years ahead in addressing the parlous state of our nation’s socio-economic circumstances.

This is not the time to play hopscotch political game and the ongoing plots should end at the stage of storm in a tea cup in the interest of the nation in dire need of moving away from the precipice. As we say in our local parlance “let the Akpabio Presidency breath” its uncommon agenda first before any hullabaloo is contemplated. The nation awaits an uncommon 10th Senate for a Renewed Hope Agenda.


Chief Kayode Odunaro
Former Special Adviser to Speaker of House of Representatives and Senior Legislative Aide in the 8th and 9th Senate writes from Abuja.