Author: Abimbola Daniels

THE Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared the candidate of the All Progressives Congress as winner of the Surulere Federal Constituency 1 By-Election. Declaring the results, the Returning Officer for the bye-election, Prof Simeon Adebayo, revealed that the APC Candidate scored a total of 11, 203 votes. Laguda, a former chairman of the All Progressives Congress in the Surulere Local Government replaces Femi Gbajabiamila who was appointed Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu. Gbajabiamila was the Speaker of the House of Representatives between 2019 and 2023 and had won his re-election into the House for the sixth consecutive…

FIRST Bank of Nigeria Holdings Plc has appointed the 20th richest man in Africa, Femi Otedola, as its new Chairman. FBN Holdings, in a notice to the Nigerian Exchange Limited and the investing public, said the decision was made at the meeting of the Board of Directors of the company held on Wednesday. Otedola, also the Chairman of Geregu Power, succeeds the outgoing Chairman of the FBN Board, Ahmad Abdullahi. Otedola was appointed to the Board of FBN Holdings Plc on August 15, 2023 as a Non-Executive Director. Otedola was recently ranked by American business magazine, Forbes, as the 20th…

OYO State Governor, Seyi Makinde, on Monday, lamented that out of the three major candidates who contested the 2023 presidential election, only the Peoples Democratic Party candidate, Atiku Abubakar, has not called or sent a message to him to commiserate with the people of the state over the recent explosion in Ibadan, the state capital. Five people were confirmed dead while 77 sustained varying degrees of injuries and 58 houses were damaged during the explosion that rocked Adeji, Old Bodija in Ibadan. Makinde made his position known in Ibadan while receiving the presidential candidate of the Labour Party, Peter Obi,…

THE Ogun State police command has confirmed the release of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) Chairman in Lagos State, Philip Aivoj, after spending four days with his kidnappers. According to a police spokesperson in the state command, Omolola Odutola, the PDP chieftain was freed in the early hours of Monday, although she could not give details surrounding his release. The Lagos PDP chairman was abducted, alongside some other party officials, by gunmen around Ogere on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway on Thursday last week. They were returning from the party’s stakeholders’ zonal caucus meeting convened by the Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde,…

A 45-YEAR-OLD child trafficker, Alimot Haruna, has confessed selling off over 42 children into child labour in the last five years. The suspect was arrested on Wednesday by a team of policemen from Ijora Badia Police Station of the Lagos Police Command. It was learnt that the suspect whose operational base is in Ilorin, Kwara state capital, had been on the police wanted list over similar crime. The suspect in her confessional statement said she operates from her base in Molete village in Kwara. “I have sold over 42 children to different clients in the past. Most of my clients…

THE Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA), has suspended the Permit for Non-Commercial Flight (PNCF) of Mattini Airline Services Limited, following the the runway excursion involving its Challenger CL 601 aircraft with 10 persons onboard in Ibadan on Friday. The NCAA in a statement signed by its Director of Public Affairs and Consumer Protection of NCAA, Mr Michael Achimugu, noted that the Nigerian Safety Investigation Bureau (NSIB) has launched an investigation into the occurrence in line with statutory provisions. The agency stated that the suspension will subsist until it is determined that the conditions of the PNCF have been adhered to.…

A PRIVATE jet having about 10 persons onboard including Very Important Personalities (VIPs) has overshot the Ibadan airport runway in the Oyo State capital. An impeccable source said the incident happened on Friday around 11 am at the Samuel Ladoke Akintola Airport. The jet with registration number, N580KR, missed the runway and skidded into the nearby bush. Firefighters and rescue officials from the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) were immediately deployed to the scene. But there was no death or casualty recorded. “It was a private plane from Abuja. It landed safely but overshot the runway. There was no casualty,” a…

THE Lagos State governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Thursday disclosed a plan by the state to establish a commercial airline. The announcement was on Thursday made during the comprehensive presentation of the administration’s achievements in the West of Lagos at the Lagos West Senatorial District People’s Town Hall Meeting. The state government is also preparing to kickstart the construction of a new airport in Lekki. According to Sanwo-Olu, the idea to have a state-owned airport has been in deliberation for several months. He said the state is in the final stages of determining the financing model for the project. Asked why…

NOVAmbl Asset Management’s Dollar Fixed Income Fund has been named as the best-performing Dollar Fund in 2023 by Nairametrics, the leading financial information and content creation company based on data from the Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC). NOVAmbl Asset Management is a subsidiary of NOVA Merchant Bank. SEC had reported that a total of 21 dollar funds registered during the review period averaged an impressive 8.5% return, and all funds within this category achieved positive returns in 2023, with NOVAmbl Asset Management’s Dollar Fixed Income Fund emerging as the best-performing. Undoubtedly, NOVA Merchant Bank’s dedication to excellence and its unwavering…

GOVERNOR of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Olayemi Cardoso, has said the apex bank is implementing “inflation targeting policy” to reduce the inflationary pressures from the current 28.9% to 21.4 per cent in 2024. Cardoso said this would have a profound impact on businesses and reflate the economy in a way that more jobs would be created. He spoke while delivering his keynote address at the launch of the Nigerian Economic Summit Group (NESG) 2024 Macroeconomic Outlook Report presented in Lagos on Wednesday. Cardoso who joined the event virtually also highlighted various steps being taken to achieve economic stability…

HEIRS Energies, Africa’s foremost indigenous-owned integrated energy company, commemorated its three-year anniversary. In a short timescale, Heirs Energy has implemented a track record of significant production increases, pioneered a new model of community engagement and built at world class Nigerian management team, all contributing to a new beginning in ensuring Nigeria’s sustainable energy future. Heirs Energies launched in January 2021, following the completion of an 8-year, $1.2 billion transaction to acquire oil license OML17, from the Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria Limited, Total E&P Nigeria Limited, and ENI, and solidifying the joint venture partnership with the NNPC. The Chairman…

THE National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control says it is investigating a viral social media post alleging a woman fried plantain chips using oil adulterated with polythene. In a statement on Saturday by NAFDAC’s Resident Media Consultant, Sayo Akintola, the agency said it was taking a science-based approach to verifying the claim before taking any action. The agency assured citizens of its commitment to safeguarding public health amid the disturbing allegation. According to the viral post, a woman allegedly melted about five pieces of “olonka rubber” (polythene) into oil before grating plantain to make chips. The statement…

THE Monetary Policy Committee of the Central Bank of Nigeria will hold its first policy meeting for the year on February 26th and 27th. This is according to a tentative MPC meeting calendar posted on the website of the apex bank. The meeting which will be the first under the leadership of Governor Yemi Cardoso is scheduled to be one of the six meetings scheduled for this year. According to the document, the bank will hold its second MPC meeting on the 25th and 26th of March, 2024. It also stated that other meetings will be held in May, July,…

THE management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery has commenced registration of distributors for the lifting and distribution of refined petroleum products across the country. So far, members of three prominent associations, that constitute 75 per cent of the total market in Nigeria have been registered. The associations are Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria (DAPPMAN), Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, (IPMAN), and Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria, (MOMAN). The company is also considering other marketers that have signified interest in the lifting and distribution of its petroleum products in the country. Executive Secretary, Depot, and Petroleum Products…

THE Supreme Court on Friday dismissed all three appeals to overturn Sheriff Oborevwori’s election as governor of Delta State. The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) declared Oborevwori of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as the winner of the March 18 governorship election. But unsatisfied, the three parties headed to the court. While Oborevwori was victorious in the tribunal and at the appeal court, the parties pushed the matter to the Supreme Court. When the case came up at the apex court, it upheld the earlier judgments and upheld Oborevwori’s win in the Delta governorship. The court first dismissed Ovie Omo-Agege’s…

FITCH Ratings has placed Union Bank of Nigeria Plc’s (UBN) Issuer Default Ratings (IDRs), Viability Rating (VR) and National Ratings on Rating Watch Negative (RWN). The RWN follows the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) announcement on 10 January that it had dissolved the board and management of three Nigerian banks, including CBN, as a result of regulatory non-compliance, corporate governance failure, disregarding the conditions under which banking licenses were granted and involvement in activities that pose a threat to financial stability, among other infractions. The CBN has since appointed new executives, including chief executive officers, to oversee the affairs of…

NOVA Merchant Bank Limited, a leading merchant bank in Nigeria, has announced a substantial increase in staff salaries, effective November 1, 2023.    The increase in salary by up to 50% across all staff categories by the Board of Directors is a strategic move which shows a resounding display of commitment to its workforce and comes few months after the Bank announced the approval of its shareholders to transition into a commercial bank, marking a new era. According to the Bank, the decision to up its salary structure comes after reviewing the impact of the escalating cost of living and…

AFRICAN Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank) has successfully arranged a syndicated US$3.3 billion crude oil prepayment facility sponsored by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL). An initial disbursement of US$2.25 million has been made. A second tranche of US$1.05 million is expected to be disbursed subsequently. United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) acted as the Local Arranger and Onshore Account Bank for the transaction, which is expected to ease the foreign exchange illiquidity and stabilise the Nigerian currency market. The transaction is seen as a significant further step in unleashing Nigeria’s economic potential. This landmark financing is Nigeria’s largest crude oil…

UNITED Bank for Africa (UBA) Plc, on Monday joined the elite group of companies with market capitalisation of over N1tn just as its share price value hits N29.90 per share. At the close of trading on Monday, the Bank’s market capitalization hit N1,022,562,698,843, making it the 3rd most capitalized financial institution in Nigeria, a remarkable lift from N283.8bn at the beginning of the 2023. The Bank has 34,199,421,366 shares in issue. UBA’s N1tn market capitalisation mark comes amidst the bank’s share being named as the highest performing stock in the banking sector in 2023, which underscores the bank’s robust growth…

OPERATIVES of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have reportedly stormed the head office of Dangote Group and 51 others where they are currently probing forex allocation to the companies during the tenure of Godwin Emefiele as Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria. Workers at the office reportedly confirmed the development to our source on Thursday. According to the unnamed workers who were quoted by our sources, the EFCC officials are conducting a search on forex allocations to the company during the tenure of Godwin Emefiele as governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The EFCC spokesman,…