Author: Abimbola Daniels

NOVA Bank has announced the appointment of David Isiavwe as Executive Director, Operations and Information Technology, and Chinwe Iloghalu as Executive Director, Institutional and Commercial Banking. These appointments are part of NOVA Bank’s plan to strengthen its leadership team as the Bank continues its innovative journey, following its recent transition to a national commercial bank. Dr. Isiavwe has over 30 years of banking experience in domestic and international banks. With a Ph.D. in Accounting, Dr. Isiavwe is a Fellow of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria (FCA) and Fellow Compliance Institute of Nigeria (FCIN) in addition to other professional…

WITH the right interventions by the Federal Government, the pump price of petrol produced by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery may crash below N600/litre, crude oil refiners have said. The Publicity Secretary of the Crude Oil Refiners Association of Nigeria, Eche Idoko, told this newspaper in an interview that the association still has a strong belief that local refineries like Dangote and others can bring down the cost of petrol. Idoko said the N898/litre claimed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited as the price it bought petrol from Dangote reflected the rising exchange rate. He explained that the N898 would…

FORMER President Olusegun Obasanjo on Tuesday congratulated the immediate past Editor of The PUNCH, Dayo Oketola, during the public presentation of his book titled ‘The Catalyst: Nigerian ICT Evolution Through a Journalist’s Lens.’ The book was unveiled at the Muson Centre, Onikan, Lagos, with several dignitaries and media stakeholders gracing the occasion and pouring encomiums on the former PUNCH Editor. Oketola bowed out as The PUNCH Editor in June this year after nearly two decades as an accomplished journalist with multiple awards nationally and internationally. While speaking, Obasanjo, who unveiled the book, discussed the need for Nigeria to enable a…

AVIATION workers in Nigeria have suspended their planned protest slated for September 18, 2024, over 50% deductions of the revenue of aviation agencies. Last week, aviation unions in the country blamed the Federal Government for its refusal to reverse its 50 per cent deduction policy from the internally generated revenues of agencies in the aviation sector. The agencies are the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), the Nigeria College of Aviation Technology (NCAT), the Nigerian Meteorological Agency (NiMet), and the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB). However, in a statement dated September 17, 2024 and…

THE Federal Government earned approximately $1.2bn in telecom license fees from major operators, including MTN, Globacom, Econet (now Airtel), and Etisalat (now 9mobile), during the inception of mobile technology in Nigeria. These license fees played a vital role in establishing the telecom industry in 2000, a sector crucial to Nigeria’s economy. Former President Olusegun Obasanjo revealed this at the book launch and exaugural lecture of former Editor of The PUNCH, Dayo Oketola, in Lagos on Tuesday. He revealed that his administration rejected attempts to sell telecom licenses for a mere $3m, instead ensuring they were sold at their true value…

THE 2023 presidential candidate of the African Action Congress (AAC), Omoyele Sowore, on Sunday said he was briefly detained at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport in Lagos. He disclosed this in a post on his X handle (formerly Twitter) upon his arrival to Nigeria from the United States. Sowore, the convener of #RevolutionNow protest, said officials of the Nigerian Immigration Service seized his passport and told him that they had orders to detain him. “I had just arrived in Nigeria from the USA to the MMIA in Lagos; upon reaching Nigerian Immigration, my passport was seized, and they told me…

NO fewer than 300 trucks belonging to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited are at the Dangote refinery at the moment. NNPC spokesperson, Olufemi Soneye confirmed this in a video on his X handle on Saturday. Soneye said the trucks were arriving in preparation for the loading of petrol on Sunday. “NNPC Ltd. trucks are arriving at the Dangote Refinery in preparation for the scheduled petrol loading on Sunday, September 15, 2024. “By the end of today, at least 300 trucks will be stationed at the refinery’s fuel loading gantry,” Soneye confirmed.

UBA Foundation, the Corporate Social Responsibility arm of United Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, is positioning itself at the forefront of Africa’s green revolution, advocating for climate action and a greener future. In a bold move to champion environmental sustainability across Africa, the UBA Foundation has embarked on the 2024 Tree Planting Campaign, with the theme: ‘Our Land: Grooming a Greener Future’, and a commitment to plant one million trees across the continent by 2025. Giving the pledge during this year’s edition of the UBA Foundation Tree Planting for Sustainability Initiative, UBA’s Group Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Oliver Alawuba, reinforced…

PETROLEUM marketers, refiners, and depot owners in Nigeria have called for the full deregulation of the downstream oil sector, seeking to end government price controls due to subsidies. The Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria, in collaboration with the Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria, Crude Oil Refiners Association of Nigeria, African Refiners and Distributors Association, and Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria disclosed this during a webinar on Wednesday. The discussion, themed ‘Optimising the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry’, brought together key stakeholders from various sectors of the oil and gas industry to discuss challenges,…

OIL marketers are concerned about the delay in announcing the price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, being produced by the Dangote Petroleum Refinery, as they noted that the landing cost of imported PMS is now about N1,120/litre. Dealers stated that a high PMS price from the Dangote refinery would lead to the importation of the commodity by marketers since the government has opened up the market for competition. In July this year, the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria revealed that the landing cost of PMS was N1,117/litre. The landing cost is simply the price at which the…

THE Dangote refinery may resort to exporting its Premium Motor Spirit (petrol) following the refusal of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to be the sole buyer of its product. The NNPC, in a statement by its spokesman, Olufemi Soneye, said on Saturday that it would not buy Dangote fuel unless it was cheaper than that of the international market. This is contrary to claims by the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, that the refinery was waiting for the NNPC to roll out its product. On Saturday, the NNPC stated that it would only fully offtake petrol from…

LAGOS State Government has extended the work-from-home policy for civil servants due to the rising cost of living. In a statement on Wednesday, Lagos State Head of Service, Bode Agoro, said the government has extended the “flexible work initiative” for another three months to assuage the effects of the removal of petrol subsidy. “Babajide Olusola Sanwo-Olu has magnanimously approved the extension of the flexible work-from-home initiative for an additional three (3) months with effect from September 4th to 3rd of December 2024,” the statement reads. “Accordingly, all accounting officers are enjoined to note the content of this circular for compliance…

AFTER over a year of its launch in May 2023, Dangote Refinery, on Tuesday, rolled out its first Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol, from its 650,000 barrels per day facility. At a press conference, owner of the Lagos-based refinery and billionaire businessman Aliko Dangote declared that “it’s a celebration day” for Nigerians. He assured all citizens that they “are now going to have good petrol while the engines of your vehicles will last longer. You will not be having an engine issue, which a lot of us were having. It won’t happen at all.” “The quality here…

THE Dangote Petroleum Refinery is set to roll out the sale of Premium Motor Spirit, otherwise known as petrol, this newspaper gathered. This is coming a few days after the 650,000-capacity refinery engaged in a test-run of the product. Industry sources confirmed to our correspondent that the product would hit the market soon. The sources, who pleaded anonymity, told our correspondent that the government and the Dangote Group were working out modalities for the circulation of the product. A government source hinted that the sale and distribution of the PMS is being sorted out with the Federal Government. The source…

LATE Nigerian music icon, Onyeka Onwenu, aka Elegant Stallion will be buried today in Lagos. The singer died on July 30, 2024, at Reddington Hospital, Ikeja, after collapsing at an event honouring Dr Stella Okoli, the Managing Director of Emzor Pharmaceuticals. According to a burial arrangement issued by the family, her funeral service will be held at the Fountain of Life Church Ilupeju and burial held at a private vault in Ikoyi. Also, a funeral flyer stated that the Service of Songs is scheduled for 10 -12 noon while the burial, 2-4 pm. Onyeka Onwenu’s illustrious career spanned several decades,…

DANGOTE Group’s industrialization stride in Nigeria has received yet another momentum as federal lawmakers back the company’s stride. Members of the House of Representatives who visited Dangote Cement Plc in Obajana, Kogi State, expressed their delight at the significant economic impact the company has made in Nigeria’s cement subsector. Speaking during the visit, Hon. Gaza Jonathan Gbefwi, Chairman of the House Committee on Solid Minerals, who led his team to the Dangote cement plant, emphasized the need for collaboration between Nigeria’s political leaders and investors to drive the country’s industrialization. He noted that Dangote Cement has paved the way with…

THE immediate past Editor of The PUNCH, Dayo Oketola, is set to launch a book he authored on the evolution of  Nigeria’s Information and Communications Technology industry. The book,  ‘The Catalyst: Nigerian ICT Evolution Through a Journalist’s Lens,’ will be launched on September 17, 2024, at an exaugural lecture to mark the end of his time as an editor and celebrate his nearly 20 years of experience in journalism. The evolution of Nigeria’s telecommunications sector, which began with the introduction of GSM in 2001,  has attracted over $70 billion in investments and created over 500,000 jobs in the country. Oketola…

A LAGOS State Magistrate Court in Ogba has discharged six men who were arrested during the 2020 #EndSARS protests and have spent almost four years in prison. The defendants, identified as Daniel Joyinbo, Adigun Sodiq, Kehinde Shola, Salaudeen Kamilu, Sodiq Usseni, and Azeez Isiaka, were set free by Magistrate Bolanle Osunsanmi on Thursday, after being cautioned. The defendants were discharged after pleading guilty to a single amended charge brought against them by the Lagos State Government. The charge, dated August 22, 2024, accused them of conducting themselves in a manner likely to cause a breach of peace, a violation under…

OANDO Plc has completed the acquisition of Eni’s subsidiary, Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NAOC), for $783m. The company announced this on Thursday in a statement by its Chief Compliance Officer and Company Secretary, Ayotola Jagun. The deal sees Oando, which is listed on the Nigerian Exchange Limited and Johannesburg Stock Exchange, take ownership of 100 percent of the shareholding interest in NAOC from Italian energy company, Eni. For Oando, a leading energy solutions provider in Nigeria, the acquisition “is a significant milestone” in its long-term strategy to expand its upstream operations and strengthen its position in the Nigerian oil and…

THE National Data Protection Commission has fined Fidelity Bank a total sum of N555.8m for infractions relating to breaches of its customers’ data. The commission’s National Commissioner, Vincent Olatunji, announced this at the Validation Workshop on the Nigeria Data Protection Act General Application and Implementation Directive on Wednesday in Abuja. He stated that the tier one bank violated the NDP Act, 2023, and the NDPR, 2019 on data breach and was fined the amount being 0.1 per cent of the Bank’s annual gross revenue in 2023. The CEO said the fine which represents the highest fine to be issued by…