₦airaland Forum

The wife of the All Progressive Congress in the ongoing Edo state governorship election Professor Mrs Idia Ize-Iyamu failed to deliver her polling unit for her husband.

Prof. Ize-Iyamu voted at the Staff Training School Ward 2 PU 2 G.R.A Benin city.

A total of 154 persons were accredited to vote.

At the end of the election, the Independent National Electoral Commission adhoc staff who conducted the election counted the votes and the results were as follows.

Oredo ward 2 PU 2

154 accredited voters

Void votes: 3

APC: 40

PDP: 109

Interestingly, she shared the same unit with the current Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice in the state Professor Yinka Omoregie.

This feature article by Segun Kasali takes a look at how The Voice Nigeria Season 3 is discovering raw music talent in the country and nurturing them into music superstars in the nearest future.

The challenges of cost of production, cost of promotions and especially identification with renowned music record label, amongst others, have been identified as among the many challenges confronting upcoming artistes while making efforts at showcasing their talents. Asides the talent showcase of the craft, music plays a pivotal role at providing employment opportunities for key players in the industry – especially musicians – at making ends meet, whilst contributing their quota to the growth of the industry and the national economy as a whole.

These challenges undoubtedly handicap the young talents from realizing their potentials which invariably translate to debarring them from making meaningful contributions to the country’s Gross Domestic Product as it had been said that the entertainment sector contributed 2.3% (NGN239 billion) to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP) in 2016 and has been one of the priority sectors identified in the Economic Recovery and Growth plan of the Federal Government of Nigeria with a planned $1billion in export revenue by 2020.

In contributing to the growth of the music industry in the country, The Voice Nigeria was launched on the 10th April, 2016. The Voice Nigeria has since refined and helped unleash the brightest of Nigerian musical talents for the global stage as the country’s music industry continues to enjoy international attention. The Voice is a multinational singing competition with a television franchise in over 50 countries around the world.

The winner of the maiden edition of the music reality show, Agharese Emokpae was awarded a recording contract, an SUV worth N7 million and a 4-night all-expense paid ticket to Abu Dhabi, courtesy Etihad Airways. Sharing her experience, she noted that that they (participants in the competition) were on a different journey in terms of attention to detail, mentorship by the coaches and the incredible training sessions. All the contestants showed incredible growth personally and professionally with gratitude for the experience, the exposure and the platform which attests to discovering, nurturing and empowering musical talents.

Also, in Season 2 of The Voice Nigeria, Daniel Diongoli, popularly known as Idyl, was announced the winner beating finalists Ebube, Syemca, Wow, Chris Rio, J’Dess, Jahtell and Yimika to win the grand prize of a record deal with Universal Music Africa, a GAC car and an all-expense paid trip to Dubai.

One of the sponsors of this year’s edition, First Bank of Nigeria Limited has expressed its delight over the partnership with UN1TY Limited, organisers of The Voice Nigeria Season 3, as it is poised to empowering and investing in the Nigerian youths and demonstrating its contribution to the projected revenue of 86 million dollars by 2021 from the Nigerian music industry aimed at promoting a diversified economy in line with the federal government of Nigeria’s economic diversification policy.

Interested participants are to register via the link www.thevoicenigeria.com with their FirstBank account number as a requirement. Should one not have an account with the Bank, then dial the Bank’s USSD code, *894*0# to be a FirstBank account holder. The audition is open to individuals within the age of 18 -50 years who are have been residing in Nigeria for 12 consecutive months. The registration for audition closes at 11:59pm on Saturday, 19 September 2020.

The financial institution also stated its unrelenting passion for giving voice to the young and indeed all Nigerians, which would translate to creating employment, economic empowerment in the country.

Expressing her delight on the partnership, Folake Ani-Mumuney, Group Head, Marketing & Corporate Communication, FirstBank said; “FirstBank has given voice to Nigerians for the past 126 years, and will continue to give voice to Nigerians by creating employment, economic empowerment in the country through its products, services and initiatives and it remains committed to strengthening the creative industry which is fast growing into a multibillion-dollar business, with potential to be a leading contributor to Nigeria’s GDP in the near future.”

She concluded that supporting The Voice Season 3 means a lot to the Bank, especially as “it is a demonstration of the bank’s commitment to contributing to the projected revenue of USD86 million by 2021 from Nigeria’s music industry aimed at promoting a diversified economy in line with the Federal Government’s diversification policy.”

Sunday Tribune gathered that the registration for The Voice Season 3, which is open to both female and male contestants who are Nigerians and have a government-issued means of Identification, is free. Further to registering, talents are to have a one-minute video singing without a sound track, upload and fill the form on the website.

Talents and fans will go home with over 100million naira in prizes as The Winning Talent of The Voice Nigeria Season 3 will go home with monetary reward, a brand-new car and an international recording contract. The Voice Nigeria will take an interesting twist this year with many virtual engagements with fans, talents and the general public.

Eagles Players, Samuel Chukwueze and Kelechi Nwakali will be on parade for their respective clubs this weekend as StarTimes brings all the live actions of La Liga matches.

Chukwueze will lead Villarreal in their La Liga fixture against Eibar on Saturday at 3 pm, while Nwakali’s newly-promoted Huesca will face Cadiz on Sunday also at 3 pm.

Nwakali made his La Liga debut as a substitute last Sunday and had a 100% success pass rate to help his side secure a draw against Chukwueze’s Villarreal.

All La Liga matches air live on StarTimes’ Sports Premium Channel, a channel dedicated to the Spanish league, in French commentary.

Both Chukwueze and Nwakali are undoubtedly the Siamese twins of Nigerian football having started their career at Umuahia-based Diamond Soccer Academy en route to playing pivotal roles when Nigeria won the FIFA U17 World Cup at Chile 2015.

While Chukwueze shone last season, with some eye-catching performances for the Yellow Submarines, Nwakali featured when Huesca won promotion back to La Liga in July after a 3–0 win over CD Numancia to secure the Segunda title on the last matchday.

In other fixtures this weekend, Getafe will host Osasuna while Real Madrid takes on Real Sociedad, among others.

Ahead of the September 19 governorship election in Edo State, the National Association of Online Security Reporters, NAOSRE, has cautioned security agents, election observers, stakeholders and voters to play by the stipulated rules to avoid security breaches.

Arising from its general meeting on September 17, the association harped on the need for security consciousness by all the players saying that loss of life in the course of election defeats the reasons for democratic elections.

The association therefore, calls on all concerned parties including political parties, Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), security operatives and the generality of Edo people to embrace peace during and after the conduct of the polls.

Speaking during the general meeting, NAOSRE’s interim President, Favour Benson said: “True peaceful, free and fair election are the only pre-requisites for democracy. Although, polls have been major source of conflict and crisis not only in Nigeria, but in Africa, but it will guarantee true democracy, if conducted peacefully.

“As an association, we stand by the National Peace Committee, NPC, led by a former military Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar in curbing violence in the Edo state governorship election.”

The association further cautioned security agents to be professional in the discharge of their election duties.

“Security agents should be professional in the discharge of their duties in Edo and avoid undue harassment of journalists covering the elections.

“In the processes of electing our leaders, we must continue to support the law enforcement agents in various polls to provide an atmosphere that will encourage a greater turn out.

“Peace is fundamental to economic development and the reports of insecurity and violence scare away investors.

“It must be noted that every society grows in response to the socio-cultural and political environments that create it, therefore, NAOSRE urges the Edo people and indeed Nigerians to embrace true peace in the Saturday poll,” she said.

Opeolu Babalola, Managing Director of Webb Fontaine Nigeria who has been responsible for managing the implementation of the company’s technology solutions in Nigeria spoke to Journalists recently on his company’s operations, providing reliable ICT solutions being implemented by some government agencies in Nigeria, supporting ease of doing business and trade facilitation…Excerpts

Give us an overview of Webb Fontaine’s operation in Nigeria
Webb Fontaine was appointed by Nigeria Customs Service to implement a Customs centric Single Window Portal and the provision of IT & Telecom infrastructure for Nigeria.
This encompasses the delivery of Webb Fontaine’s: Customs Webb, Customs Management System nationwide as the Nigerian Customs Integrated System (NICIS II).
NICIS II has been adopted as a homegrown ICT innovation for Nigeria Customs electronic platform. We have impacted in capacity building through training and retraining of customs officers, some port users and other government employees.
So far, we have trained over 10,000 Nigerians on a total of 13,479 sessions on various aspects of ICT aided trade procedures. Many of them are customs officers.
Specifically on ASYCUDA ++ we trained 2804 persons; on NICIS I & II we trained 10,260; on Database (Oracle) 36 and System Administration 30.
Other training sessions undertaken by us for more Nigerians include SO Class for 6 ;Java 84; Help Desk 213; Support 26 and Networking 20
Our E-government software products, information and telecommunications technology and infrastructure services, peripherals and consumables, business process reengineering and standardization has been applied successfully across various government agencies.
Our services synchronises well with the Federal Government of Nigeria Ease of Doing Business and Trade Facilitation policies. We have always demonstrated commitment in helping government succeed in the drive to promote efficiency , time saving and transparency in the conduct of it’s businesses.
A lot of private sector operators have also found our support invaluable because of our culture of international best practices and promotion of legitimate way of doing things.
It is pertinent, I state that we are a company with international reach that has impeccable track records of providing trade solutions in several countries we have demonstrated adequate capacity.

The COVID-19 Pandemic had a very adverse effect on trade and logistics generally. How best do you think it should be managed in your areas of operations?
Navigating the complex world of logistics, international Customs and global supply chains in the post-COVID-19 era will require Government agencies and the private sector to embrace new methods that prioritise digitalisation.
We strongly recommend knowledge sharing and to streamline complicated and outdated processes for the benefit of all . Knowledge sharing will come with multiple benefits like increase in government revenue, support for trade and strengthening security in many ramifications.
As a way of good corporate citizen, we also supported the Federal Government battle to prevent and manage COVID-19 with donations of equipment. This is a gesture we did in many other countries like.
Countries like Nepal, Guinea, Ethiopia, DR Congo, Benin, Maldives and other areas in Asia and Africa also benefitted from our COVID-19 relief package.
We commend the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control, the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 and the Federal Government for rising to the occasion by being proactive in the face of the crisis.
On our own part we also strengthened our purpose of knowledge-sharing during this pandemic. We brought a group of experts. From Nigeria to talk in a webinar aimed at ensuring seamless trade transactions across our ports during the lockdown
Customs experts like Stephen Adekunle Oloyede, Comptroller Risk Management at the Nigeria Customs Service & Apeh Fateh Assistant Comptroller for ICT and Head of the Implementation Team for the Nigeria Customs Service who took a ‘deep dive’ into the major issues facing global cross border trade, debated the disruptions caused by the implementation of health and safety protocols in the webinar
They explored new concepts to improve the industry by introducing greater efficiency through technology and the simplification of processes and checks.
Following on from the discussions we have created a report to continue the knowledge and ideas sharing.
Soft copy of the report is Available to download at www.webbfontaine.com/2020/09/08/covid-19-customs-report/
The White Paper examines how international best practices can be incorporated into all aspects of the sector, particularly in emergency situations, and recommends possible routes of action in critical moments.
It draws conclusions from lessons learnt globally and how these can be integrated into a detailed package of procedures to enable a smooth transition towards recovery and the resumption of normal business functions.
Among the important topics addressed during the webinar and examined in detail in the White Paper are: Physical distancing and reducing physical presence to a minimum; Digitalisation and paperless approaches.
Other areas we touched in our readiness for post COVID-19 era are Revenue collection; Risk management Inspections; Passenge screening; Client segmentation; Movement of goods; Regional and international connectivity; Border management; Readiness for crisis and Digitalisation
We had emphasis on the importance of digitalisation as the world begins its journey to recovery and continues to adapt to the health safety rules now required for post COVID-19.
The White Paper outlines a number of important recommendations and findings.
Nigeria Customs Service are already doing so much in the digital space including application of e-form M, their revenue has experienced appreciable increase. The NICIS II has been recognised as a credible digital trade platform by the World Trade Organisation and the World Customs Organisation.
This led to them being able to adapt and be prepared for optimal operations even in the midst of the COVID-19 crisis.
Throughout COVID-19, the Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) has maintained revenue performance, which may not always have been the case for other Government agencies.
While the NCS revenue target changes from year to year, it was initially slashed in 2020 because of the expected revenue shortfall due to COVID-19.
However, the total collections up to May this year are greater than last year’s total at the same time, and NCS achieved well over 60 percent of the target.
The Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) generated N976.6 billion from January to August, despite the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to the shutdown of the country in March.
Also and notably, the Customs IT platform operated robustly throughout the period of reduced movement.
NCS have really shone a light on just how important a digital led Customs approach is, and in many ways is leading the way. With plans to get more automated as recently approved by the Federal Government

Some reports in the media that tend to criticize the recent $3.1b automation deal for customs. What is Webb Fontaine’s view about it?
We don’t know where those reports are coming from and have no part in them. I have read them and was surprised to see Webb Fontaine’s name prominently featured. We are investigating the source of the media reports. We won’t in anyway support a narrative that shows tendencies to discourage modernisation progress or against the work of the Federal Government of Nigeria to enhance revenue collection and border security. From what I have seen, the huge amount mentioned is even to be brought in by the private sector.
We have no issues with Bionica or their plans, and we have neither initiated nor asked to be joined in lawsuit against them.
Let me say here that Webb Fontaine is fully supportive of all the Federal Government’s move to continue and improve upon the modernization and full automation of Nigeria Customs Service and it’s processes.
This will help to facilitate trade, increase revenue and enhance national security, and will improve Nigeria’s standing in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business indices. This has been our focus and we have remained consistent with this over the years.

...Saves billions of Dollars in liabilities for Nigeria

The Litigation Team of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has won the Leading Case Counsel Team of the 2020 Africa Arbitration Awards.

A press release by the Corporation’s Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division, Dr. Kennie Obateru, states that the award was given to the NNPC Litigation Team in recognition of its stellar performance at the 8th Edition of the East African International Arbitration Conference (EAIC) which held in Nairobi, Kenya, recently, with participants joining in virtually.

At the conference which was aimed at promoting commercial arbitration and showcasing African lawyers and law firms which have performed well in arbitration practice, the NNPC Legal Team gave a presentation on the challenges and lessons learnt from arbitrations and the successes recorded.

Among the successful arbitration cases showcased by the NNPC Legal Team at the conference were the IPCO (Nigeria) Vs. NNPC in respect of the dispute over the Bonny Export Terminal Project in which $367.5m was saved after 13 years of litigation and ESSO E&P Nigeria Limited Vs. NNPC in respect of the dispute over the interpretation of the Production Sharing Contract (PSC) covering Oil Prospecting License (OPL) 209/Oil Mining Lease (OML) 133 in which the enforcement of $2.7bn claim was dismissed.

Other recent arbitration cases presented at the conference include: ESSO & Others Vs. NNPC in respect of alleged breaches in interpretation and implementation of the PSC covering OPL 222/OML 138 with over $380.141m saved and the Atlantic Energy Group vs. NPDC in respect of allegation of wrongful termination of Strategic Alliance Agreements over eight OMLs resulting in the award of $1.6bn in favour of NPDC.

Besides the presentation, the NNPC Legal Team’s entry for the Leading Case Counsel Team category of the Africa Arbitration Award was adjudged the best amongst entries from 100 other institutions across Africa resulting in the award.

The award is a testimony to the commitment of the Legal Division and indeed the staff of the Corporation to the Transparency, Accountability and Performance Excellence (TAPE) agenda of the Mallam Mele Kyari-led management of NNPC.

Terseer Kiddwaya, a recently evicted housemate of the 2020 Big Brother Naija TV show, says he is the man Ozo, his former colleague in the ‘Lockdown’ house, wants to be like.

In an interview with Beat FM, Kiddwaya said he was having a conversation with Ozo about his relationship with Nengi and “I think he was looking at the man he wants to be. I mean no disrespect.”

“I don’t fear anybody, man. I knew no one in the house was up to my level,” the ex-housemate bragged, prompting Osi Suave, the show’s host, to shout “shot fired!”

“The guy (Ozo) loves her. And you know people do dumb things for love. People love in different ways. Obviously the way he shows his love is how you guys see it on TV. I mean, I respect that. I have no issue with it but that’s Ozo for you,” the reality star added.

In another interview with Ebuka, BBNaija’s host, Kiddwaya clarified his relationship with Erica, his female acquaintance in the ‘Lockdown’ house for whom viewers think he has feelings.

On whether he nursed resentment towards Laycon for being the subject of the strike that got Erica disqualified, Kiddwaya said he has no issue with the ‘Fierce’ crooner.

“I really respect the girl. I kind of want her in my life whether as a friend or anything else. She’s a lovely human being and I enjoyed my time with her. That was genuine,” he said.

“At a point, I told her at a point that, ‘Look, If you want, me you and Laycon could sit and talk about whatever issues you guys have.’ My name gets called up with Nengi, Ozo, and Laycon.

“People are threatened of me. And I have no idea why. I had no issues with Laycon and I had no issues with Erica being friends with him. I had no problem her finding him mentally attractive.

“The guy is smart. He’s got a good brain and he’s a funny guy. I had no issue with Laycon from day one. So I couldn’t create an issue with him.”

I want Laycon to win BBNaija’s Prize Money, says Kiddwaya

“I want Laycon to win and I think he’ll win. At the start, I thought Neo will win. It became Laycon for me when I actually heard his music for the first time,” he said.

“When he played I just saw people jumping around him, I wasn’t paying attention. But I told the DJ to turn it up so I could hear better.

“I saw a lot of potential in this boy. And I thought that music really uplifts people. I thought that, with him winning, he will do more with that win than some other people.”

StarTimes GO, an e-shopping channel on pay-TV platform StarTimes, has partnered top retail and tech brands to cushion the rising cost of living and help Nigerians meet their household and personal needs at more affordable prices.

Via its maiden Black Friday on September 18, shoppers will have the opportunity to buy select tech and household products with up to 50% discount.

The Black Friday will hold on StarTimes Facebook page @StarTimesNG live at 7 pm this Friday.

The goods on display are directly from manufacturers and StarTimes has partnered them to subsidize the goods, saving shoppers extra money as inflation mounts. Goods will be sold at their bottom prices, much lower than market price only during the Black Friday sales. Early birds will be gifted extra tech products for purchases made.

The products on display include Tecno phones, female bags, blenders, smoothie makers, electric shaver; Lontor range of products which include energy-saving and power-surge LED bulbs, anti-surge power sockets, power banks, rechargeable mist fans as well as foldable and rechargeable reading lamps. Also on display are MINISO products, among others.

Launched last week, StarTimes GO, an integrated e-shopping platform, offers audience access to a massive array of superior quality products, with great designs, at super cheap prices. Goods are directly delivered to the doorsteps of shoppers.
StarTimes GO, the e-shopping channel which incorporates TV to e-commerce in real-time is the first of its kind in Africa. 

Available on free-to-air on Channel 002, StarTimes GO Channel has professional hosts and aesthetic scene settings to make shopping entertaining whilst the products are displayed by the hosts.

“StarTimes GO offers multiple shopping methods including TV shopping, online shopping and phone-call shopping. Having test-run the integrated e-shopping platform and received overwhelming support from our customers, we have now fully launched StarTimes GO to further enrich the e-shopping experience. StarTimes is not just a digital-TV, we are now an enabler of digital-lifestyle. StarTimes GO further reinforces our vision to ensure that every African family can access, afford, watch and share the beauty of digital TV,” Tunde Aina, COO, StarTimes Nigeria said.

A 22-year-old bank employee, Tope Olajide, on Monday, appeared before an Ikeja Magistrates’ Court for stealing two customers’ Automatic Teller Machine (ATM) cards and used them to withdraw N427,000.

The defendant, whose residential address was not disclosed, is facing trial before Magistrate O. A. Olayinka on a charge of stealing.

Olajide, however, denied committing the offence and was admitted to bail in the sum of N250,000 with two sureties in like sum.

Olayinka said that the sureties must be gainfully employed and show evidence of two years’ tax payment to the Lagos State Government (LASG).

The prosecutor, ASP Ezekiel Ayorinde, told the court that the defendant committed the offence in January, 2019 at the Abule Egba branch of Stanbic Bank.

He said that the defendant stole two customers’ ATM cards to withdraw money from the bank accounts of two customers.

“The defendant stole N207,000 from Mr Adegboye Olanrewaju and N220,000 from another customer who was only identified as Mr Abass.

“He was exposed by the Closed Circuit Television (CCTV) camera installed within the branch.

“It was based on the discoveries from the CCTV footage that the defendant was handed over to the police.”

Ayorinde said that the offence violated Section 287 of the Criminal Law of Lagos State, 2015.
The section stipulates three years in jail if the offender is found guilty of stealing.

The magistrate adjourned the case until November 17 for mention.

A fake crude oil merchant, Adesanya Olufemi, has been sentenced to 21 year imprisonment, for defrauding a lady, Oluwatoyin Akinwole, of N33,617.000.
Justice Mojisola Dada of the Special Offences Court, sitting in Ikeja passed the sentence on Monday.

The convict was arraigned by the Lagos zonal office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, (EFCC), alongside one Awojobi Ganiu, on December 11, 2018 on a four-count charge bordering on stealing and obtaining money by false pretence to the tune of N33.617 million.

The petitioner, Oluwatoyin Akinwole, alleged that the defendants, who claimed to be into crude oil business, had approached her to join them in the business sometime in 2017.

However, the defendants, after receiving money from her, reneged on the agreement mutually made by them.

One of the counts read: “That you, Adesanya Olufemi and Awojobi Ganiu sometime in 2017 at Lagos , within the Ikeja Judicial Division, with intent to defraud, fraudulently obtained the sum of N33,617.000 (Thirty-Three Million, Six Hundred and Seventeen Thousand Naira) by false pretence, property of Mrs. Oluwatoyin Akinwole, on the representation that you are into crude oil business, which representation you knew was false.”

The defendants pleaded not guilty to the charge when they were read to them, thereby leading to their full trial.

However, the trial eventually involved Olufemi alone, as the second defendant, Ganiu opted for a plea bargain by pleading guilty to the charge.

During the course of the trial of Olufemi, prosecution counsel, Daji Samuel, presented five witnesses, including Akinwole, also known as Toyin Texas, and also tendered several documents that were admitted in evidence by the court.

Delivering her judgment, Justice Dada convicted and sentenced Olufemi to 14 years imprisonment on count one and another 14 years on count two.

He was also convicted and sentenced to seven years imprisonment on count four.
However, he was discharged on count three.

The sentences will run concurrently from the date of his arraignment.

Funsho Arogundade



Great names and institutions are not built overnight. It was H.H. Younus AlGohar who drove it home by positing that respect does not come by asking for it; it is earned overtime through giving it to others.

Over the years, Nigeria’s political luminary, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu has shown like Laurence Sterne said that respect for ourselves guides our morals while respect for others guides our manners. Only little people are indifferent, superior people are caring and respect constituted authority whether traditional or political.

It is not out of place to say that Tinubu falls among those in our part of the world with great respect for traditional institutions having rightfully earned two great titles —among many others— Asiwaju of Lagos and Jagaban of Borgu Kingdom in Niger State, bestowed on him by two revered monarchs.

In a country where traditional leaders are still widely respected, these chieftaincy titles enhance his power and reach. And he has used them for the good of the nation and so many of the citizens.

As a two-term Governor of Lagos State, it is not by happenstance that nearly a decade and half since he left the seat as the State’s Chief Executive, Tinubu still retains massive support in the state and outside. He has been credited with the social and economic progress seen in Lagos over the past two decades.

He keeps an open house and reaches out to people in need. Tinubu is a man of the people. He is liked by many people of different social status. It is a known fact —by many— that Asiwaju has helped great numbers of young and elderly people to grow and achieve their dreams. Even when some of these people turned around to work against his interest, he never begrudged them and is always quick to forgive them whenever they realised their follies.

No matter the circumstances, Tinubu is not known to have ever undermined any of those he helped to rise or subject them to any form of public ridicule. This brings to the fore the needless furore dominating the social media feeds of some characters over a circulating video and still picture of His Imperial Majesty, Oba Babatunde Adeyeye Ogunwusi, the Ooni of Ife; and National Leader of the governing All Progressives Congress, APC, Asiwaju Tinubu exchanging greetings during the coronation outing of the 15th Oniru of Iru Land, Oba Omogbolahan Lawal in Lagos last Sunday September 6, 2020.

Of course, some mischief-makers have gone to town spinning different conspiracy theories around the picture and the fleeting moment of the interaction. There had been allegations of Asiwaju Tinubu displaying arrogance and disrespect to the highly revered Oonirisa. But that is farther from the truth and not a representation of what transpired at the coronation event.

While so much attention has been focused on the picture, those pushing the false narrative have refused to allow the true situation to explain itself.

His Imperial Majesty Ooni Ogunwusi actually came in when the programme was reaching its peak with Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu —represented by his Deputy, Dr. Obafemi Hamzat— reading his address.

Many dignitaries including Asiwaju Tinubu were already seated when Ooni made his way into the venue. At events, it is protocol not to allow anyone into a venue when a Governor or President is making a speech. Meanwhile, protocol was shunted aside to accommodate the entry of the revered Ooni, with the number one citizen of the state —a duly elected Governor standing— waiting to continue his speech, which he had to pause to welcome the Ooni. Everyone at the top table welcomed the Oonirisa, including Asiwaju, and allowed him to quickly take his seat. As rightly gathered, the circumstance of the exchange of courtesy was such that before Asiwaju could get up, Oonirisa had moved. This beggars the question: why so much ado about a harmless, fleeting courtesy moment? To them, such posture denigrates the office and stature of the Ooni. Some have even stretched the issue languorously with tales of how Oba Ogunwusi emerged as the Oonirisa. Of course, the true story of how the monarch emerged and people who knew the role played by Asiwaju are still alive to present the true narrative when necessarily. But to those who want to cry more than the bereaved, they should not drag the revered stool of the Ooni into the needless controversy.

There are always different angles to a story but those screaming for Asiwaju’s head, do so not because they love the Oonirisa more but definitely just because Asiwaju was involved.

Mr. Tunde Rahman, a seasoned journalist and media adviser to Asiwaju Tinubu, in a reaction to one of the threads on Facebook, said “Anyone who knows Asiwaju Tinubu would know that he has great respect for traditional institutions. He is full of humility. He would not disrespect any traditional ruler, talk less the Oonirisa, Oba Adeyeye Ogunwusi, who is no stranger to him. “Kabiyesi and Asiwaju know that there is no issue in this. They are not unmindful of the fact that some people are just out to fish for a non-existent disaffection between the two of them. Oonirisa knows Asiwaju holds him in high esteem and has high regards for him”.

Of course, Asiwaju Tinubu is the phenomenon! When they do not talk about him then there is nothing to talk about. But Jagaban is a recipient of many titles and he respects tradition so much. Observing rightly how Oonirisa and Asiwaju Tinubu were circumstanced at Oniru’s coronation outing, there was no way Ooni has been denigrated.

It is not surprising and unfortunate that those at the forefront of schisms and stoking controversies around the incident at the Oniru coronation outing notably were Yoruba. But I will like to leave these compatriots with a quote from a notable social commentator, Olukayode Salako, in a recent article; he said: “Yorubas are fast losing it, they hardly support themselves to grow economically, unlike the way the Igbos and the Northerners do to one another; they naturally rebel against their own kinsmen and they are fond of always standing and working against the survival of their leaders.

On Sunday September 6, 2020, President Muhammadu Buhari made a tweet via his verified handle, @mbuhari – “I am particularly saddened by the Kebbi flooding disaster, which has led to the loss of lives and destruction of thousands of hectares of farmland. It is a major setback to our efforts to boost local rice production as part of measures to end importation.

“This bad news couldn’t have come at a worse time for our farmers and other Nigerians who looked forward to a bumper harvest this year in order to reduce the current astronomical rise in the costs of food items in the markets.”

News reports from Kebbi indicated that 6 lives were lost while thousands of hectares of rice farmland were devastated in the flood disaster. The losses are estimated at about N10bn and expected to have a direct impact on availability and price of rice.

The disaster is worrisome because as early as January, the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMET) released its Seasonal Rainfall Prediction (SRP) while its sister agency, the Nigerian Hydrological Services Agency (NIHSA) released its Annual Flood Outlook (AFO) on the 28th May 2020.

Based on those advisories which identified 500 communities in 102 Local government areas across 28 states as flood prone and at risk, Sadiya Umar Farouq, the minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social development sent out early warning signals in conjunction with the Nigeria Emergency Management Agency (NEMA). The warning was clear – Nigeria cannot afford a humanitarian disaster from flooding just as we are battling Covid-19.

It seems those warnings are not being heeded and so here are 7 ways states in flood prone areas can begin to make hay while the storms gather:

Ensure the preparedness of the State Emergency Management Agency, frontline Local Government Authorities, and other response Agencies;
Carry out public enlightenment campaigns, targeting vulnerable communities to undertake mitigation actions and prepare for evacuation to safer ground;
Identify high grounds for possible Internally Displaced Persons camps, to shelter evacuated communities;
Desilt river channels and canals;
Remove all refuse, weeds, water hyacinths and floats from water channels, drainage, and on all avenues for river run offs so as to allow free flow of flood waters;
Organize a State Humanitarian Coordination Forum meeting to prepare all stakeholders for mitigation and response.
Preposition relief materials for prompt response after incidents.

The Managing Director of Multichoice, John Ugbe has revealed that the production of this year’s Big Brother Naija ‘Lockdown’ cost the company a whooping N3.5 billion.

Ugbe made the revelation during the Multichoice Showcase 2020 held via Zoom.

Speaking on the on-going BBNaija, which started on July 19, 2020 and expected to come to climax on Sunday, September 27, 2020 Ugbe said: “Big Brother Naija has been widely regarded as one of Africa’s biggest entertainment exports, being the biggest showcase of Nigeria’s diversity outside of core Nollywood. No doubt, the fifth season has been adventurous, exciting and entertaining, and undoubtedly the biggest thing on African television in 2020.”

The figure we learnt includes construction costs of over N300 million, N2 billion spent on production equipment such as consoles, cameras, microphones, cables, lighting, audio, and so on. Hundreds of millions also went into the provision of utilities, information technology and safety systems, building modifications, COVID-19 adaptations to the house among others.

Ugbe, also reaffirmed the company commitment to creating top-notch entertainment content for its numerous audience across Africa. Most of these new changes coming to DStv and GOtv will kick-off after Big Brother Naija Lockdown edition ends.

Also, speaking during the Showcase, Chief Customer Officer, MultiChoice Nigeria, Martin Mabutho said there will be new channels coming to DStv and GOtv before the end of the year.

Martin talked about the new division of SuperSport into different channels specialised in different sports and different football leagues. That means that each sport like UFC, Tennis, Motorsport, gymnastics, etc will have dedicated SuperSport channels while there’ll be special channels for different football leagues. In all, there are going to be 19 sports channels on DStv, including two ESPN channels.

Dr Busola Tejumola, Executive Head of Content at MultiChoice Nigeria also talked about other new international non-sporting channels coming to DStv and GOtv by November. They will be introducing Wild Earth, a documentary channel; Kix, a channel strictly for lovers of action films; and ZooMoo, a new kids channel. They will also be introducing tvN, home for K-Pop and Korean dramas dubbed in English; Timeless Drama Channel, a Turkish telenovela station for soap-opera lovers; and TLNovelas, a Mexican Televista channel dubbed in English.

Mrs Wangi Mba-Uzoukwu, Channels Director of Africa Magic also talked about a new set of series and shows coming to Africa Magic as soon as Big Brother Naija is over. Fans can expect to see new seasons of ‘Date My Family’, ‘Confessions’, ‘Judging Matters’ and ‘Unmarried’. Africa Magic will also begin new shows like ‘Enakhe’, ‘Riona’, and ‘Shoot My Shot’.

To top it all off, MultiChoice is also rearranging their M-Net stations to streamline different genres of movies. Instead of five M-Net channels, there will now be four channels numbered MNet 1-4. Customers can get access to all four channels with DStv Premium.

Chairman of the Chartered Institute of Bankers (CIBN) Consultative Committee organizing the13th Annual Bankers Conference and Managing Director Ecobank Nigeria, Mr. Patrick Akinwuntan has said banks in Nigeria are leveraging Digital technology to drive customer satisfaction, especially in response to the demands of COVID-19.

According to Mr. Akinwuntan, the evolution of digital banking is visible in the use of Automated Teller Machines (ATM), Point of Sales Services (PoS), Mobile banking services, Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) amongst several others.

He said bank customers in Nigeria now have the ability to open bank accounts remotely and this was made possible by the forward thinking of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), that established the tier 1, 2 and 3 accounts, to enable first level account opening by customers via their phones or through the internet.

The “tier 1 account, he noted is a basic account that operates like a wallet and can be opened straight from the mobile phone. With Ecobank for instance, you can just dial *326# to open an account. He stated that as you climb up the value chain, the account can  then be upgraded to either tier 2 or 3,  which would require a Bank Verification Number (BVN).

The BVN is a biometric registration of customers in the financial system which allows a customer to have a single identity within the financial system. Its  introduction is intended to tackle cybercrime and ATM fraud. This according to the bank Managing Director is a revolutionary step credited to the banking industry.

Mr Akinwuntan was speaking during an interview session on Arise TV to sensitize the public on the annual Banking and Finance Conference slated for the 15th  and 16th of September, 2020. The conference themed; ‘Facilitating a Sustainable Future: The Role of Banking and Finance’ will bring together prominent bankers; major economic players; captains of industry; regulators; policy makers; members of the academic community and other stakeholders in the banking and finance industry.

Mr Akinwuntan, also noted that Nigerian banks are determined to take financial services to every household so that everyone can participate effectively in the growth of the largest economy in Africa.

In his words; “The thinking amongst the larger populace  pre-COVID-19 was that one must go to the physical bank branches to transact. Today the case is different with the introduction of Agency Banking. Agency banking refers to our branchless banking model that allows us, the traditional banks to extend our network of branches and services in a cost-efficient manner through authorized agents. This is part of our distribution strategy to take banking service to the doorstep of the customer.

“We are extending our banking services to consumers’ neighborhood to offer even greater convenience and accessible financial services in a cost effective and secure manner through the use of technology. Agency location can be a beverage location, a supermarket, barber shop, tailors shop, a nearby vendor etc . This is the product of forward thinking of both the regulators, the telecoms and the participants that have embraced this.”

He maintained that: “This is the major reason for the banking and finance conference coming up on the 15th and 16th of September, 2020, where we will be talking about facilitating a sustainable future and the role of banking and finance. It is a forum that provides the platform for all the stakeholders, be it the policy makers, the analysts, the participants, business men and women, millennials and the banks to come together to deliberate on how best to leverage the platform, policies and trust that exist in our country, leveraging digital and to take the country into its rightful place in the committee of nations.”

The President and Chairman of Council of the CIBN, Mr. Bayo Olugbemi in a previous media interview had said the Institute for the first time is adopting a hybrid approach to the conference which will take place simultaneously, at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel, Abuja and the Bankers’ House, Adeola Hopewell Street, Lagos and through Zoom teleconferencing.

He emphasized that in line with the theme, participants will evaluate the role of the Banking and Finance Industry in engendering an inclusive sustainable growth as well as offering a direction on how to reposition the Industry for relevance in the new world order, by leveraging on digitalization to boost Nigeria’s economy.

Olawale Popoola is the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of HighBridge Homes Limited, one of the foremost players in Nigeria’s real industry. He explains how good track record helped his firm blossom despite pandemic pains and more, in this interview

Could you introduce yourself and your organisation?
My name is Olawale Popoola, I am the MD/CEO of High BridgeHomes Limited. I am also an executive member of Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria (REDAN) Our corporate headquarters is located at Royal Plaza, Bogije on the Ibeju-Lekki axis of Lagos. We are into real estate; our operations cover the major spectrum in real estate. HighBridge has carved a niche for itself as a big player in booming real estate sector. We are actually reputed for having one of the largest Land bank all over the country. We sell affordable lands to all categories of Nigerians; the low, middle and high income strata of society.
Primarily, we are in the business of helping people own their own houses, and we do that we acquiring large expanse of lands that is free from all encumbrances, and sell plots to prospective property owners with approved title documents from relevant government department. We also assist people buy both luxurious, middle level and low cost houses, soon that people can have shelter at affordable prices.

How did you get into property. business?
I studied civil engineering at Kwara state Polytechnic. Then read Economics and acquired my BSc in Economics from the University of Ilorin. I have other professional certifications. Armed with my engineering, economics background and all of that, I decided to explore the burgeoning real estate sector; and I am so glad I did. Business has been exciting.

Are you saying that COVID-19 has not taken toll on the operations of High Bridge Homes particularly when all sectors of the society are complaining?
COVID-19 pandemic affected real estate players in different measures. Players who have good track record of performance and the capacity to dangle enticing and innovative schemes to consumers of real estate products still closed fantastic deals despite the economic limitations that the pandemic had on people, For us at HighBridge Homes, Covid 19 pandemic was a blessing because we made so much sales than we did before the pandemic. At the moment we have sold out two schemes already namely HighBridge Cottage which is located in Sangotedo area of Lekki; and HighBridge Oakland, Lekki Free Trade Zone, Lagos. Currently, we have HighBridge Park Estates is the fastest estate within the Lagos Free Trade Zone, with a high appreciable value. A prospective property buyer can get a patch of land in Ibeju-Lekki at the rate of N970,000 per plot and N540,000 for half plot, respectively. I can assure you that, in two weeks, all the plots in the estate will be sold out because give our customers prime properties at affordable rates. They love us because our properties are safe. That’s our hallmark.

What would you say has endeared HighBridge Homes to property buyers?
Our selling point is; we deliver intact and promptly too. HighBridge is known is for adding value to our estate even before we start selling out the plots. We construct gate houses, paved roads within the estate, provide power generating plants, perimeter fencing and general amenities for the benefit of our esteemed residents. We don’t wait until we sell a large volume before we start development. But as soon as we have taken possession we commence development; and that gives our clients confidence because they can interact with us, They see our presence on site and they believe us which helps our business. Yes; we deliver and give back value to our clients. And they are left with no choice than to patronise us. Our clients don’t need to deal with the natives (omo onile) we shield them from every omo onile challenges. They are safe and comfortable with us. We basically bring investors closer to affordable lands and houses without stress.

Could you tell us a little bit about future prospects of High BridgeHomes?
High BridgeHomes is spreading across the nation, currently we are running a pre-launch offer on our Benin City Estate; we are also working on the launch of three new estates; two in Lagos and one in Abuja very soon. We are coming up with a unique build and sell Estate in one of the prime property zones of Lekki Peninsular, Lagos. The estate is very unique in the sense that a prospective buy can acquire a plot and be able to express his creativity by building to his or her taste. We also have a section that will feature HighBridge prototype kind of apartments to cater for for all categories of income earners. For instance, there will be self-contained or studio and one bedroom apartments for beginners and young families, two bedrooms and three bedroom terrace apartments for the middle income class and semi detached four and more luxury flat for the upper class.
The Benin project is currently going for 1.6m for a full plot and 850 for half plot. A plot in Benin is 900 square miters which is bigger than that of Lagos by 100 ft. The pre lunch offer is about to close, by the time we lunch it fully the price will go over two million this is the right time to get a pre-launch offer at a cheap rate.The Benin project is going for N1.6m for a full plot and N850,000 for half plot. A plot in Benin is 900 square miters which is bigger than that of Lagos by 100 ft.

What do you have to say to those who are interested in the pre-launch offer in Benin?
The pre-launch offer is about to close, by the time we lunch it fully the price will go over two million this is the right time to get a property in our Benin Estate at a cheap rates.

Movie producer and director, Cas Chidiebere Obidike, has asked the Federal High Court sitting in Lagos to perpetually restrain the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) from enforcing the sixth edition of the National Broadcasting Code.

The amended code, which has continued to generate controversy, was unveiled last month in Lagos by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

In a fundamental human rights suit (No. FHC/L/CS/1211/2020) filed before the court on his behalf by his counsel, Mr. Emeka Okpoko (SAN) of Straddle Partners, Obidike said paragraphs 6.2.11, 6.2.3, 6.2.4 and 6.2.17 of the code constitute gross violations of his fundamental human rights and freedom of expression enshrined in sections 37 and 39 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended).

In the suit filed on September 4, Obidike is seeking an order of perpetual injunction restraining the NBC, the sole respondent in the suit, and any of its agents or proxies from enforcing the aforementioned sections of the code.

In the affidavit in support of the originating motion, Obidike said paragraphs 6.2.3, 6.2.4 and 6.2.17 breach his right to privacy or have a likelihood of infringing upon his fundamental human rights.

According to him, the provision of the National Broadcasting Code requiring that broadcast rights to sporting events be submitted to the NBC for ratification within two weeks, as stipulated in paragraph 6.2.3, and the revocation of the rights in the event of non-compliance, as noted in paragraph 6.2.4, will force him to divulge business secrets contained in contracts of sale/acquisition of broadcasting rights to movies and other media production.

He also argued that confidentiality clauses inserted in business contracts in which contracted parties are bound to comply with will be breached as a result of the code.

Obidike stated that paragraph 6.2.17, which mandates a broadcaster to, within 14 days, provide the original or certified true copy of agreements and other documents by which such contents have been duly acquired, prevents him as a private Nigerian citizen from engaging in the business of film making and business production and contravenes his fundamental human rights as enshrined in the 1999 constitution (as amended).

Citing Order ii, Rule 1 of the Fundamental Rights (Enforcement Procedure) Rules, 2009, the applicant insisted that any individual who deems that there is a contravention of fundamental human rights can institute legal action against such person or entity.

The affidavit partly read: “In the course of my business in the industry, I enter into contracts of sale/acquisition of broadcasting rights to movies and other media productions in which terms such as “confidentiality” are agreed upon in order to protect the parties’ interest such as privacy to business secrets against outsiders.

“In view of the above paragraphs of the 6th edition to the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, I risk protection of my privacy to my business secrets usually contained in contracts of sale/acquisition of broadcasting rights to movies and other media productions which I enter into in the industry.

“That a contract of sale/acquisition of broadcasting rights described above once submitted to the Respondent, the contractual document becomes a public document which members of the public are entitled to apply for and obtain certified true copies of thereby creating a likelihood of my constitutionally guaranteed right to privacy being jeopardised.”

Obidike also argued that paragraph 6.2.11, which prohibits the broadcast of advertisement of products and services during prime foreign sporting contents if such advertiser does not equally sponsor such product and services of prime local sports content in the same category, infringes or has a likelihood of infringing his fundamental human right to freedom of expression.

The affidavit read: “In order to promote, impart ideas and information regarding my products which consist in released movies, upcoming movies and other media productions to a larger audience, I often advertise these products in prime foreign sports contents at costs within his financial capacity.

“I believe from Counsel’s information that by virtue of paragraph 6.2.11 of the 6th edition to the Nigeria Broadcasting Code, I am likely to suffer a limitation to my freedom to express information and ideas about my products as the said paragraph now imposes an advertisement platform as well as an increased cost of advertisement which I may not be able to meet up with, on me.”

The document further stated: “Your lordship, the provisions of paragraph 6.2.11, 6.2.3, 6.2.4 and 6.2.17 of the Respondent’s 6th edition to the Nigeria Broadcasting Code offend the letters and spirit of the provisions of sections 37 and 39 of the Constitution, in that they contravene or have a likelihood of contravening the Applicant’s fundamental human rights thereunder.”

A film production company, Oakfil Productions Limited, has dragged the National Broadcasting Commission, NBC, before a Federal High Court in Lagos over the recent amendment of the broadcasting code.

In its deposition before the court, the company contended that the NBC lacks the statutory powers to make amendments or sign the NBC code.

Insisting that the recently reported amendment to the broadcasting code was an act of illegality, the company asked the court to compel NBC to comply with the procedure prescribed by the National Broadcasting Commission Act in making amendments to the code.

It also wants the court to declare that NBC acted ultra vires improperly, in bad faith, and in gross abuse of the powers vested in it by the National Broadcasting Commission Act when it allowed its management to make the sixth edition of the National Broadcasting Code.

Amongst the company’s numerous prayers before the court is an order restraining the NBC from acting on the code or giving effect in any manner whatsoever to the said sixth edition of the National Broadcasting Code.

The NBC, in the new regulation, states that every broadcaster must license its broadcast and/or signal rights in any genre of programming to another broadcaster in Nigeria if the genre of programme enjoys compelling viewership by Nigerians, relates to a product or service that is objectively necessary to be able to compete effectively on a downstream market; or if it is likely to lead to the elimination of effective competition on the downstream markets.

The new subsidiary legislation also stipulates the imposition of a N10 million fine for operators who refuse to comply. No date has been fixed for hearing of the suit.

Managing Director of Ocean Marine Solutions Limited (OMSL),  Rear Admiral Ameen Ikioda (retd.), has slammed blogger, Mr Jackson Ude, over his tweet in which he imputed wrong and malicious motives into the business transactions of Chairman of the company, Capt. Idahosa Wells Okunbo (Capt. Hosa).

In the latest tirade tweeted by one Jackson Ude, whose trade in stock has been to fabricate utter falsehood and disseminate via multiple social media platforms, the pen-for-hire writer alluded to an alleged Trans Forcados Pipeline (TFP) contract, and attached bank statements from January and February, 2018 purported to reflect our transactions.

Debunking the tweets as utter lies, Rear Admiral Ameen Ikioda (Rtd), considers “very laughable the fact that Ude and his sponsors, as well as those mischievously escalating the fake news, were so blinded by mischief and pull-him-down syndrome that they could see the clear holes in their fabrication.”

According to Ikioda: They ought to have known that OMSL was not in contractual relationship with TFP as at February 2018. That assertion is completely false.

Ikioda explained that Jackson Ude “is in the trade of tarnishing Nigerian brands with unsubstantiated contents. He had unsuccessfully attempted in 2015 to scandalise our company and Capt Okunbo by creating a non-existent story linking us with the activities of  former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke while in office.”

Ikioda pointed to the petition of Vice President Yemi Osinbajo  to the Inspector-General Police, demanding a thorough investigation of the blogger after publishing malicious story, in which he alleged that the suspended acting Chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu, facing a presidential probe, told the investigative panel that he gave N4bn to Osinbajo. Not only has Magu debunked the claim; the panel has also released statement putting a lie to Ude’s allegation.

“This is calling on unsuspecting public to be wary of Ude’s shenanigans, as we also wish to sound a note of warning to all those who have made it their pastime to sponsor malicious write-ups, tweets and online publications against OMSL and our chairman, that their day of reckoning is not far away,” Ikioda expressed.

“We have put our legal team on notice to deal with such malicious write-ups. We also urge the general public to kindly disregard the Ude mischievous tweets and similar others, for what they are: blatantly false and malicious,” he advised.

First City Monument Bank (FCMB) has again lived up to expectation as a customer-centric and responsive Bank. The latest in the series of actions taken by the financial institution is a reduction of interest rates on all consumer loan products.

The reduction, which took effect from August 12, 2020 applies to all Salary Plus Loans, including Premium Salary Plus, Auto Loans and Home Loans, of FCMB, whether they are newly disbursed or already running loans. The slash of interest rates means that customers will be repaying lower amounts each month and can also borrow higher amounts than previously.

In addition to the benefits of interest rates reduction, customers also have the option to restructure their consumer loans by opting for reduced tenure instead of reduced repayment amount.

In a statement, FCMB explained that the decision to reduce interest rates and restructure its consumer loan products in a more flexible manner are the latest initiatives in response to the current economic realities induced by the novel COVID-19 (coronavirus) pandemic, which has impacted negatively on personal and households income and expenditure, as well as on businesses and the socio-economic environment in general.

FCMB’s bold move to cut interest rates has been applauded by customers, as it will go a long way in enhancing standard of living by helping customers free up extra income to boost purchasing power and meet other expenses in a convenient manner. The development is also expected to have a multiplier effect on the Nigerian economy in terms of stimulating growth and development.

Commenting on the interest rate reduction and restructuring of repayment tenure, the Executive Director, Retail Banking of FCMB, Mr. Olu Akanmu, said: “We realise the financial challenges confronting our customers due to the prevailing economic situation caused by COVID-19. As a caring and responsive Bank, we are committed to give them all the support needed to ease the situation. This year alone, we have given out more than N30 billion in retail loans to over 475,000 customers. Because we have also digitized the application process for many of our loans, customers can get some loans instantly simply by applying on their mobile phone or the ATM. With the reduction in interest rates, we expect to make positive impact in more lives by giving our customers the financial support they need, when it matters most.”

With a customer base of almost 6 million as at the end of June 2020, robust digital banking offerings cutting across mobile, internet and ATM platforms, as well as over 200 branches spread across Nigeria, FCMB offers bespoke financial solutions that align with the lifestyles of its existing and potential customers.

The Bank’s giant strides and consistent impressive performance in the retail segment of the Nigerian banking industry continues to receive positive affirmation.

FCMB was conferred with the award of “Most Business-Friendly Bank” at the 2019 edition of the Business Day Banking and Finance Awards. It equally bagged the award of “Excellence in Customer Experience” at the Finnovex Award held last year.

In 2018, it won the prestigious award of ‘’Excellence in Retail Banking’’ at the New Age Banking Summit & Awards.

First City Monument Bank (FCMB) is a member of FCMB Group Plc, which is one of the leading financial services institutions in Nigeria with subsidiaries that are market leaders in their respective segments.

Having successfully transformed to a retail banking and investment management led group, FCMB expects to continue to distinguish itself through innovation and the delivery of exceptional services.

For more information, please visit www.fcmb.com

By Eche Munonye

 

COVID-19 brought a huge challenge to education and literacy, First Bank of Nigeria Limited responded with a Rosetta stone of innovative e-learning initiatives that have far-reaching effects.

Since 1967 that the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) have been celebrating International Literacy Day to promote the importance of literacy and education, every September 8 had witnessed book gifting, book reading and related activities are undertaken by the UN body and its coalition of partners.

But this year is a departure as such enshrined activities are suspended and replaced with virtual meetings, a gesture that reflects the sign of the precarious situation of the world is as it is grappling with the devastating coronavirus pandemic.

Education has been in a state of limbo since schools–primary, secondary and tertiary institutions––and research institutes across the world were abruptly shut down as countries enforced lockdown to contain the ravages of the novel Covid-19. The disruption, a setback for education globally, inevitably fostered a lull in the effort to enhance literacy. And in the meantime, the world shifted to an alternative learning method which, by and large, is narrowed down to digital learning.

These challenges provided the backdrop for the theme of this year’s International Literacy Day: “Literacy Teaching and Learning in the COVID-19 Crisis and Beyond,” which threw open discourse on how innovative and effective education and teaching methodologies are to be adopted or adapted in youth and adult literacy programmes during the period of the pandemic and beyond. In line with this thematic direction, countries are reviewing how they have fared in the new normal, and evaluation of various initiatives by individuals, corporate bodies and governments are being undertaken to ascertain how they align with the reality and what gaps needed to be filled.

For Nigeria, the stake is higher. Burdened with a high rate of illiteracy, inadequate digital infrastructure and an economy in dire straits, Nigeria has on its hand a challenging learning situation in the of the new order. The possibility of the country being further left behind in the race to literacy was writ large, an uncomfortable fact that raised several legitimate concerns bordering on how to ensure that students have access to learning resources, how they can be fully engaged to make them competitive internationally with their peers and how such engagement can help close the gap created by the closure of all educational institutions nationwide.

While a cocktail of initiatives surfaced in the past few months to address these concerns and challenges, there was none as suitable, comprehensive and far-reaching as the e-learning initiatives of the First Bank of Nigeria Limited.

The initiative which could as well be nicknamed “Operation Moving One Million Nigerian Students To e-Learning” is a tripartite effort between the bank, Lagos State government and Roducate, an innovative technology firm that is providing educational solutions that enable primary, secondary and university students to continue to study the government-accredited curriculum of various subjects and disciplines in the convenience of their home.

Out of the mushroom of e-learning platforms in the aftermath of the lockdown, the First Bank initiative came with a big difference: the Roducate e-learning platform is available for free at www.firstbanknigeria.com/e-learning.

Secondly, the content is boosted with value-added features such as tutorial videos, assignments, mock exam, note-taking, podcast and online games that further promote interactive learning and deepen digital skills of the learner.

Thirdly, the initiative is further reinforced with the provision of free 20, 000 units of e-learning devices for pupils, which FirstBank presented to the Lagos State government on June 11. This helped to break the barriers of data cost and device affordability as the low-end smartphones are preloaded with offline content for children who may not have access to devices or data. By all means, this initiative has been an outstanding effort and a boon to digital learning in the country.

The inevitability of the adoption of e-learning technology goes hand-in-hand with the imperative of imparting skills in emerging digital technologies. In this regard, FirstBank went an extra mile with the rollout of complementary initiatives that justifiably empowered youths with the required capability.

The Bank’s partnership with IBM, for instance, brought the benefit of the global tech company’s Digital-Nation Africa programme to youths in tertiary institutions. The online youth-focused learning programme enables innovation and skills development on emerging technologies in key areas such as Artificial Intelligence, coding, cloud, internet of things, blockchain, Data Science and analytics, and cybersecurity.

A second partnership with Curious Learning, a non-profit organisation renown for providing learning apps for kids, afforded pupils in the age range of three to eight years old the use of fun, self-guided learning apps to help them with their cognitive skills at a fundamental level.

The significance of the FirstBank e-learning initiatives cannot be overemphasized. As schools are gearing up to resume soon, there are over 10,000 sign-ups on the Roducate e-learning platform. It is expected that the students have had a grasp of the nitty-gritty of e-learning which, going forward, is expected to be integrated into the country’s educational system.

For FirstBank, a member of UNESCO’s Global Education Coalition, the initiatives are an attestation to its longstanding tradition of supporting education in various ways, a commitment succinctly echoed by its Chief Executive Officer, Dr Adesola Adeduntan: “The e-learning initiative aligns with our Corporate Responsibility and sustainability initiatives and falls under one of our key strategic pillars, thus Education through support to our Communities.”

Indeed, the Bank has a portfolio of projects in support of education, including infrastructure projects in 10 universities and three secondary schools, support for professorial chairs in 10 universities and teaching of financial literacy and entrepreneurial and career counselling to over 80,000 students in over 80 secondary schools in the country via its FutureFirst programme.

The e-learning initiatives further reinforced FirstBank’s status as an important stakeholder, leader and innovator in the country’s education space, a fact amplified by the Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, who, having noted that the “intervention by FirstBank could not have come at a better time,” went on to declared his delight that the state government “have found a real development partner in FirstBank.”

The degree of ecstacy and enthusiasm that greets the public appearance of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola of the State of Osun is becoming both interesting and thought-provoking.

Governor Oyetola had commissioned massive dredging of waterways and rivers across the State, and expectedly, he stepped out on a tour to inspect how far the work had gone. It was just a tour of duty as Mr Governor’s reflective jacket said. Yet, a random observer would easily have mistaken the occasion for a carnival, giving the large crowd of the old and young that trooped out, dancing and singing at the site of the inspection to appreciate the Governor.

Even the sun was out, after days of unusual cold weather, as if in agreement with the celebrators.

So, what is so special about the dredging of waterways that could have necessitated so many gongs and drums and turn out of citizens?

A cursory glance at history provides evidence that the State of Osun, and Osogbo in particular, had experienced painful flooding in the past that wrecked havoc, destroyed homes and even claimed many lives. These sad instances were fallouts of inadequate river channels, poor drainage system, indiscriminate and unsafe waste disposal practice among residents.

Heart-breaking and nerve-wracking episodes such as the drowning of two primary schools pupils at the Okoko stream after a heavy downpour on July 7, 2010, is one of the tragedies that the people will never forget.

There were also reports of a woman who had lost two of her children to flood, which left the poor woman a mental wreck. Also unpleasant was the report about an infant that was swept away by flood on the day he was to be christened.

Governor Adegboyega Oyetola has had enough. His government is determined not to document any tales of horror produced and directed by flood.

It will be recalled that Osun is one of the few States warned recently by the officials of the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to prepare for an imminent flood between the month of August and October this year.

According to the NEMA Director of Operations in charge of Osun, Ekiti and Ondo States, Mr. Olusegun Afolayan, 28 States and 102 Local Government Areas in the country risked being flooded due to expected heavy rainfall in the country.

Oyetola needed no other soothsaying yo give marching orders to the relevant managers in his team do everything necessary to nip a potential disaster in the bud. And the governor himself was willing to March beside his commissioners and Special Adviser on Environment and Sanitation, Hon Sola Oladepo and Hon Rufus Oyegbile respectively. In fact, to show that he was serious about this dredging project, Oyetola was in his T-shirt, jean, boots and safety helmet.

For the eyes of the people of Osun never to behold evil again, the entire body parts must spring a quick reaction. For the state to be rid of the groaning that flooding brings along with it, a proactive intervention is required, and that is exactly what Oyetola did.

The river that passes through the Rasco area of Oke-fia in Osogbo, the State capital, which was the first point of call during the Governor’s unscheduled visit, was dredged to remove debris preventing the free flow of water. With about 1.3meters depth attained through the exercise, the water flowed seamlessly again. Imagine the turn of events had there been a heavy downpour, with the river in its former state?
History also furnished us with the fact that Rasco area pf the state capital has always been prone to flooding over the years, with a spotlight on 2009, 2010 and 2015, when many buildings were submerged, lives were lost and properties worth millions of naira were washed away by the devastating flood of those years.

Besides the Rasco bridge area, Oke-Ijetu, Lake 264 and about 17 other rivers, streams and canals across the State are also currently being dredged and channelised to prevent the fury of the floods.

From the inception of his administration, Oyetola had been unequivocal about his desire to protect citizens of the State from both actual and potential threats. His interventions across different sectors continue to validate his declaration and further establishes that with Oyetola, all lives matter.

When Lionel Messi announced in the first week of September that he would – after all – remain with Barcelona for the forthcoming season, a collective sigh of relief could be heard all over Spain.

Messi, of course, is not just any player.

A six-time Ballon d’Or winner, the Argentine forward is arguably the greatest player the world has ever seen, or certainly ranks amongst the best.

It is thus not surprising that when he wrote a letter to Barcelona requesting a clearance, it was not only his club that was stunned, the whole La Liga was shocked.

But on Friday, when the 2020/21 La Liga season kicks off, Messi will still be with Barcelona and, as he said in an interview, give his all for the club.

Football fans will be able to watch Messi and other La Liga matches live and in HD on the StarTimes with all matches to be broadcast on Classic and Super Bouquets. Over fifty matches will also air on Basic and Smart Bouquets. ST Sports Premium Channel has been dedicated to La Liga. Thus, all sports content on the channel is in French language from Sept 1.

StarTimes recently secured the broadcasting rights of La Liga Santander (French commentary) for the next four seasons beginning with the 2020-21 season up until 2023-24 season across sub-Saharan Africa.

Barcelona’s first two games have been postponed to give the club time extra time to prepare after participating in the recent European cup competition finals.

Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Sevilla will start their campaign in the second week.

Threatens legal action against online publication

 

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has dismissed, in its entirety, the allegation that the Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano (AKK) Gas Pipeline Project was inflated to the tune of $1.527billion, describing the accusation by an online medium against the National Oil Company as false, baseless and unfounded.

A release today in Abuja by the Corporation’s Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs, Dr. Kennie Obateru, stated that the NNPC was considering instituting legal actions against the medium and her collaborators.

NNPC stated in the release that the corporation brought the unfounded accusation to the attention of the Bureau for Public Procurement (BPP) which completely rejected the speculative analysis of the online medium as false and not portraying the true position of the BPP’s report on the subject.

“This is clearly a concocted analysis aimed at attacking the character of the Group Managing Director (GMD) of NNPC, Mallam Mele Kolo Kyari, and the integrity of the Bureau of Public Procurements (BPP). Mallam Mele Kyari did not become the GMD until July 2019 and he is being mentioned in a process that took place in 2017 by the account of the publication.

This is rather unfortunate and malicious, considering that a further cut of $300million of the contract value was achieved under the Mele Kyari-led NNPC Management leading to the recognition by the Federal Executive Council as an unprecedented action.

The release explained that BPP, following a detailed review and analysis of the procurement bid, confirmed that the unit costs for line pipes adopted by the NNPC for the project were reasonable when compared with current market prices for 40”, 36”, 20” and 14” steel pipes, adding that it was on that basis that BPP confirmed and granted certificate of no objection dated August 11, 2017.

NNPC stated that the AKK project underwent a transparent and open competitive tender process that resulted in the emergence of the most competitive bidders, wondering how a competitive tender process could be inflated.

“Approval of all relevant authorities were obtained after an intense scrutiny by the various agencies. This is a deliberate attempt to mislead the Nigerian public with baseless information,” the release exclaimed.

NNPC said the AKK pipeline project was one of the key landmark projects that have had transparent processes from inception to date, with the entire evaluation exercise carried out by NNPC and Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC).

The corporation cited the various stringent due process reviews and scrutiny, internally and externally, which the AKK pipeline project was subjected to to include:

• Conduct of project bankability study, at project’s conception in 2013, undertaken by Standard Chartered Bank to confirm appetite for attracting financing from international community

• Execution of project feasibility and Front End Engineering Design (FEED) by a reputable international company, ILF of Germany, in 2014. The details developed at this phase had enough engineering design details to enable a competitive class of estimate to be submitted by the contractors

• Advertisement of the project in both local and foreign print media in 2013. After completion of the FEED study by ILF in 2015, the prequalified bidders were issued tender documents

• Competitive tendering and evaluation of the bids by both NNPC and transaction advisers, Alpine and also by a team from ICRC

• Extensive review of the project design and the final cost in 2017 by the BPP, culminating in the issuance of a Certificate of No Objection in August 2017

• Receipt of due process certificates for the project, including Original Business Case and Final Business Case from ICRC and Local Content Compliance Certificate from Nigerian Content Development and Management Board (NCDMB) before presenting to the Federal Executive Council (FEC) for approval in December 2017

• Renegotiation of the contract when financing was not to be provided by the contractors following a stalemate due to the inability of the company awarded the contract to progress financing in 2019, leading to further cut of $300million of the contract value under the Mele Kyari-led NNPC Management

• Formation of a Steering Committee in July 2020 by Mallam Mele Kyari comprising key project stakeholders as NNPC, Ministry of Finance, Ministry of Justice, the Central Bank, Debt Management Office, Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) and representative from the Presidency to ensure transparency in the implementation of the project.

NNPC stated that after several failed attempts in the last 13 years to commence the AKK project activities, the leadership of Mallam Mele Kyari, within one year of stewardship brought the project on track leading to the award of the contract at a competitive price and eventual flag off of construction that the world witnessed in June 2020.

The release called on all well-meaning Nigerians to give the Mallam Mele Kyari-NNPC led Management the credit it deserves, even as it encouraged them to follow the execution of the project which it said was being undertaken in a transparent and aggressive manner in line with Transparency, Accountability, Performance Excellence Agenda of the Corporation.

NNPC advised members of the public to ignore the online medium report which it described as malicious, baseless and a direct attack on the character of the person of its Group Managing Director and the BPP, and designed to distract Mallam Kyari from successful pursuit of delivering the Next Level Agenda of President Buhari.

Ecobank Nigeria, a member of the pan African banking Group has concluded plans to host its first Regional Trade Conference. The virtual forum with the theme “Facilitating Regional Trade in the emerging AFCFTA era” is slated for the 22nd of September.

The conference, which will feature presentations and panel discussions by highly experienced subject matter experts and thought leaders in relevant industries, will provide an opportunity for exporters and importers within Africa to engage, creating a marketplace experience.

The Ecobank Nigeria ‘Africa Trade Conference 2020’ earlier slated for March was postponed due to the lockdown restrictions following the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic.

 Announcing the new date and movement of the conference to an online platform in line with current realities, Sunday Abah, Head, Trade Finance, Ecobank Nigeria stated that due to its unrivalled footprint across Africa, Ecobank is uniquely positioned to facilitate cross border trade within the region leveraging its comprehensive trade solutions and various payment methods available across its network within Africa.

According to him: “Ecobank’s unique intra-Africa trade solutions enable settlements of international transactions and mitigation of payment risk while providing regional solutions such as issuance of payment guarantees to exporters without the need for a letter of credit and its related costs to the importer. Ecobank works closely with clients in structuring transactions, settlements, financing and risk mitigation,” he noted.

He further said: “Our trade products and solutions are designed around two broad areas; trade finance and trade services. Trade Finance enables our customers benefit from adequate and well mitigated credit facilitation in the area of Import finance, export finance, bill discounting, trade loans, distributor finance, payables and receivables finance, structured trade and commodity finance amongst others while our trade services, offer our customers the advantage of speedy turn around and error free processing of their import letter of credits, import collections, avalised bills, Customs bonds, export collections as well as their local purchase orders and payment invoices, via our electronic trade platforms OMNI e-Trade and OMNI eFSC (electronic financial supply chain).

The Ecobank Regional Trade Conference, which will be moderated by Mr. Tedd George, the Founder and Chief Narrative Officer of Kleos Advisory, UK is privileged to have as its Special Guest of Honour, Mr. Segun Awolowo, Executive Director/ Chief Executive, Nigeria Export Promotion Council. Notable speakers and facilitators across the globe are also expected at the event.

Lucy Essien, 30 was on Sunday 6th, 2020 evicted from the ongoing Big Brother Naija ‘Lockdown’.

She was evicted after scoring the lowest vote among the six housemates put up for possible eviction. He was nominated for possible eviction alongside Trickytee, Vee, Neigi. Kiddwaya, Lycon.


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

150 suspects, 20 dane guns recovered from bandits -Army

Local miners in Zamfara State, who hitherto were accused recently by the state Governor, Bello Muhammad Matawalle, of exchanging mined products for firearms with foreigners, yesterday denied the allegations, insisting that nothing of such transpired.

The miners denials, we learnt, has however, has raised a fresh twist to the allegations made by Matawalle, that the state government was not only losing huge resources in form of Foreign Direct Investments (FDIs) and revenues, but was also at the mercy of bandits, kidnappers and other terrorists groups, as the situation was contributing to the security challenges being witnessed in the state.

This is as troops attached to the Operation SAHEL SANITY arm of the Nigerian Army dismissed the miners’ arguments, stating that the troops in a well-coordinated intelligence-based operation resulted in the raid of an illegal mining site located along Gadan Zaima – Zuru Road in Bukuyyum Local Government Area of Zamfara State.

The illegal site, which also serves as bandits’ hideout, resulted in the troops arresting 150 suspects and recovering 20 locally fabricated dane guns.

But findings by our reporter revealed that the local miners, (who mostly spoke on anonymity), argued that the governor’s allegations were “mere figment of his imaginations”, as they don’t sell their gold to foreigners in exchange for firearms.

According to them, we make legal transactions with the Zamfara State chapter of the Nigeria Association of Buyers and Sellers of Gold (NABSG).

Recall that Matawalle had during an interview with State House correspondents, after a meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, claimed that that some foreigners exchange arms for gold and other precious stones in his state.

He had said: “It is very important to us as a government, particularly on the issue of insecurity, to know the cause of insecurity.

“Zamfara State is blessed with many mineral resources and some people outside the country come in to buy gold and other precious stones and sometimes, instead of paying people, they pay with arms.

“I did some investigations. So, the state government will be buying some of these minerals so that we can block that chain.

“The state government is engaging the miners. We will be buying some of this gold from them with the limited resources we have.”

Based on this, we went to town to feel the pulse of the local miners as regards the allegation, which most of them denied.

For instance, a miner, who claimed to have duly obtained his license for rights of mining from the Mining Cadastre Office and preferred anonymous, alleged that he usually travels to some Arabian countries, where he had lucrative but legitimate trade contacts to sell off his mined products. And that does not mean he does not run his domestic trade within Nigeria.

He said: “Sometimes, we were contacted by large scale buyers from within and outside the country even before arriving at getting our gold and other related mined products processed, and we finally negotiated for the legitimately methods of payments through our banks accounts.

“Let the State Government and or the security agencies go and investigate my records of financial transactions across banks through which I receive payments, my transactions with constitutionally accepted companies, states and or individuals could easily be traced.”

To corroborate this, another miner, who dismissed the claim that there was firearm-for-gold business taking place at the mining sites, said he never knew about such exchange of weapons for the precious stones.

He noted that the use of AK-47 rifles was predominantly in control of security personnel until when armed banditry became the order of the day.

“There were about one thousand four hundred mining sites across bushes of Zamfara State managed by both legal and illegal miners, I cannot say I know the missions behind establishing other sites, but for those that I made contact with, were eventually mining for money.”

But contrary to the disputes by most of the miners, residents close to the mining areas or sites from the three senatorial zones of the state, also added their voices to the ongoing feud between the state government and local miners, insisting that, a number of mining sites were owned and managed by either armed bandits, kidnappers or cattle rustlers.

A resident, who spoke, said even a helicopter used to land at some mining sites, especially along the Dansadau axis, where some consignments suspected to have contained weapons were uploaded, and later the labourers load on some bags unto before it lift away.

However, some residents living across the bushes along the Anka-Bukkuyum-Gummi tacitly admitted that foreigners including Koreans and Chinese were trooping either by air or by land to meet with miners, although, it was learnt that some mining sites were 100 per cent managed by foreigners.

One of the residents said: “I witnessed as many times as possible, when bike riding Kanuri people in large numbers came to the mining sites with loads of unidentified stocks in bags, and later they returned with what I strongly believed were the packages of Gold and other related valuables.”

Although the residents further narrated that, the recent operations by the Nigerian Army, under the Sahel Sanity, which witnessed incessant aggressive patrols and raids on bandits camps and illegal mining sites have discouraged frequent visits by the foreigners.

Recently, some Chinese and Korean nationals were arrested at Nasarawa village under Bukkuyum local government area by the team of Police about a couple of months ago, when Zamfara State Commissioner of Police, Usman Nagogo-led a comb-the-bush operation.

This, according to Matawalle, was to ensure total restoration of peace and tranquility in the state, as well as stoppage of the proliferation of firearms.

The governor also added that he intended to use the mining potential of the state to employ about 70,000 youths and the establish Gold Trade Centres (GTC), in each of the three senatorial zones of the state.

Matawalle said: “We have intelligence reports that, large number of mining sites were owned and managed by groups of bandits, especially non repentants out of which they used to fund their nasty activities, hence the need for the state government to come into the system.

A recent investigation by the Intelligence Department of the Nigerian Army which was made available to journalists in Gusau had it that groups of bandits have embarked on mining activities possible to rely upon to continue funding their criminal activities within the North-West zone.

Meanwhile, Acting Director, Defence Media Operations, Brigadier General Benard Onyeuko, while briefing journalists on the Operation of Sahel Sanity, at the Nigerian Army Special Super Camp 4, Faskari, Katsina State, said one of the suspects was neutralised while trying to escape.

“Preliminary investigation reveals that aside from sabotaging the nation’s economy, banditry is being financed through these illegal mining activities.

“Similarly, on August 22, gallant troops on a fighting patrol encountered three bandits on motorcycles around Maigalma Village in Anka LGA of Zamfara State while attempting to attack innocent residents. During the encounter, one of the bandits was neutralized while others escaped.

“Troops recovered one AK-47 Rifle, one AK 47 Rifle magazine loaded with five rounds of 7.62mm ammunition and two motorcycles from the fleeing bandits.”

Says all safety protocols have been put in place


The state Government of Osun says it has put in place measures that will help tame the spread of the dreaded Covid-19 pandemic as part of the preparations for the full resumption of schools across the state slated for September 21.

Special Adviser to the Governor on Education, Mr. Jamiu Olawumi stated this today while responding to questions on a live Rave Fm radio program tagged “Frank Talk” monitored in Osogbo.

The Special Adviser allayed the fears of parents and guardians concerning the novel coronavirus, saying the administration of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola has set machineries in motion to ensure the safe resumption of students.

He said apart from the provision of safety materials that will help curb the spread of the virus among students and teachers, all schools including private schools across the state have been fumigated by the Osun Ministry of Environment, which has the right formula for the process.

Hon. Olawumi added that the State Government had also engaged all stakeholders including parents on the modalities for resumption before deciding on the procedure, manner and date for resumption.

Speaking on the review of the education policy, the Special Adviser said reversal of the schools names will take place immediately, while the reversal to the old uniforms will commence on November 9th which is the start of the new academic session.

According to him: “We want to assure all stakeholders in the state’s education sector that the administration of Governor Adegboyega Oyetola has put everything in place to ensure that our pupils are safe in schools.

“Almost all sectors across the country have opened up, Covid-19 is already here with us and the situation doesn’t look like abating anytime soon, we can’t continue to keep our children at home. We just have to find a way around it, the only way is to put safety measures in place at our schools which we have done.

“Government through the Ministry of Environment have fumigated all private and public schools across the state including tertiary institutions, apart from that, we have also provided enough safety materials for both students and their teachers in all the schools.

“We will continue to ensure that our pupils remain safe while we strive to ensure that we give them the best in terms of quality education as promised by Governor Adegboyega Oyetola,” Olawumi stated.

Also speaking during the programme, the Chairman, Parents Forum for both private and public schools in the state, Mr. Bisi Olaniyan commended the State Government for listening to parents in the state and revert back to the old education policy as recommended by the education review committee set up by the state government.