Author: Abimbola Daniels

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…

FINANCIAL institutions that have started raising capital have stated that they will allocate $1.20bn from the proceeds to invest in technology and bolster their cybersecurity infrastructure. This was indicated in the offer prospectus of five lenders that have commenced their capital raise, to meet the new capital requirement of the Central Bank of Nigeria. In late March, the CBN announced new capital requirements for the banks operating in the country. The apex bank directed commercial banks with international authorisation to increase their capital base to N500bn, national banks to N200bn and those with regional authorisation were expected to achieve a…

TRANSCORP Power Plc wishes to notify the investing public of significant changes to its Board of Directors. Mr. Christopher Ezeafulukwe has been appointed as a Non-Executive Director. According to a statement issued by the company, this appointment has been approved by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, in accordance with the provisions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020 and the Articles of Association of Transcorp Power Plc. “Mr. Ezeafulukwe is a highly accomplished professional with over 20 years of executive management experience spanning multiple sectors, including power, oil and gas, financial services, legal services, and corporate governance. He currently…

THE Ogun State Government, on Thursday, faulted the process that led to the provisional attachment of three Nigerian-owned aircraft in France by the Judicial Court of Paris. In a statement signed by the Special Adviser to the Governor on Media and Strategy, Kayode Akinmade, the Ogun State Government described the latest development as the new antics by a Chinese company to appropriate Nigerian assets in foreign jurisdictions, as past efforts had continually failed. The Chinese company, Zhongshan Fucheng Industrial Investment Co. Ltd, sought orders from the court over an aborted contract between the company and Ogun State Government, which was…

THE cord of consanguinity within the All Progressives Congress (APC) family in Lagos State seems to be waxing strong with the refreshing sight of Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his immediate predecessor Akinwunmi Ambode. In the sight rare as hen’s teeth, the two men beamed with pleasing teeth-opening smiles after a meeting on Monday. “Today, I welcomed my brother and predecessor, Governor Akinwunmi Ambode, back to Lagos House on a courtesy visit,” an elated Sanwo-Olu captioned social media photos of himself and his predecessor. “Our conversation centred around the future of Lagos and building on the solid foundation already in place.…

THE Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) is probing the destruction of the country’s passport by a lady and has also invited the woman for questioning. A viral video captured the female traveller identified as Favour Igiebor destroying the Nigerian Standard Passport – said to belong to her husband – at the Murtala Mohammed International Airport (MMIA) in Lagos. It was initially unclear the reason for her action but in a Monday statement, the NIS spokesman Kenneth Udo said the incident is a violation of the law. “The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has launched a formal investigation following the circulation of a…

NIGERIAN billionaire businessman, Tony Elumelu, has said oil theft largely contributed to the reasons International Oil Companies (IOCs) are divesting their interests from Nigeria to other countries. Elumelu stated this in an interview published by the Financial Times on Friday. According to him, the government and security agents in Nigeria should be able expose those responsible for stealing the country’s crude oil. His recent outburst follows that of 2022 when he tweeted about how the country lost a huge amount of its crude oil to oil thieves. “How can we be losing over 95 per cent of oil production to…

WITH President Bola Tinubu’s directive to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to sell the crude meant for local consumption to Dangote and other local refineries in naira, a lawyer and energy consultant, Liborous Oshoma,  says Dangote refinery should sell fuel to depot owners and other marketers in local currency to ease forex pressure There has been a series of controversies about the Dangote refinery, what are your views about it?  I think what is basically playing out here is like two friends quarrelling over a pot of soup. You have a government that has been overly protective of Dangote…

HEIRS Insurance Group (HIG), Nigeria’s fastest-growing insurance provider, has announced the appointment of Ibrahim Puri and Sonny Iroche as Independent Non-Executive Directors of its non-life insurance business, Heirs General. The appointments further strengthen HIG’s governance and leadership team.  HIG has enjoyed rapid growth since its launch in 2021, as consumers benefit from the Group’s unique offering of digitally driven insurance products and customer-centric service proposition. Ibrahim Puri is an accomplished financial services leader, with over 30 years of experience in banking, fintech, and FMCG industries.  He was Group Executive Director at the United Bank for Africa and serves on the…

ONE of the domestic workers of Aribemchukwu, the slain daughter of Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia, has owned up to being involved in the murder of her boss, a police source exclusively disclosed on Thursday. This newspaper reported that the deceased, popularly called Chuchu, was reportedly killed in her Parkview Estate residence in the Ikoyi area of Lagos State. Although a family source said she was killed Tuesday night, her lifeless body was discovered on Wednesday morning outside the gate of her residence. Her three domestic employees, which included the house help, a security guard, and a driver, were, however, arrested in…

DESPITE a court order restraining the #Endbadgovernance protests in Lagos to specific venues, the demonstrators still held street processions in the nation’s commercial capital. A Lagos High Court had on Wednesday granted an exparte application filed by the State’s Attorney General Lawal Pedro (SAN), seeking to restrict the nationwide protest, in Lagos to the Gani Fawehinmi Freedom Park in Ojota and the Peace Park in Ketu. Justice Emmanuel Ogundare granted the order of pre-emptive remedy by way of an interim injunction to restrict the defendants from converging and carrying out the proposed protests in Lagos from Aug 1-10th except in…

AN Improvised Explosive Device (IED) was discovered at the fence of the Federal Operations Unit (FOU), Zone A of the Nigeria Customs Service on Bank Anthony way, Ikeja, Lagos, on Wednesday. The object was discovered on the eve of the planned nationwide protest against the hardship in the land. The 10 days protest would start from August 1 to and end 10 August 10, 2024, according to the organisers. Our Correspondent gathered that the IED was allegedly dropped by a yet to identified person who drove to the spot in a car and zoomed off immediately after the action. It…

ARIBEMCHUKWU, the daughter of Justice Rita Ofili-Ajumogobia, has been killed. The deceased, popularly called Chuchu, was reportedly killed in her Parkview Estate residence in the Ikoyi area of Lagos State on Wednesday morning. A family source who craved anonymity because of the current state of the family said she was killed last night, and her body was discovered this morning outside the gate of her residence. “It would appear that new household staff might have been responsible and tried to stage as if she was outside when it happened. “There are signs of an attempt to clean up blood inside…

A LAGOS High Court has granted an exparte application filed by the State’s Attorney General, Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Lawal Pedro seeking to restrict the proposed August 1 nationwide protest, in Lagos to the Gani Fawehinmi Freedom Park in Ojota and the Peace Park in Ketu. Justice Emmanuel Ogundare granted the order of pre-emptive remedy by way of an interim injunction to restrict the defendants from converging and carrying out the proposed protests in Lagos from Aug 1-10th except in the two approved locations from 8 am to 6 pm. Listed in the application as defendants are Adamma Ukpabi and…

DESPITE the ongoing spat between Dangote Refinery and the Nigerian regulators, Midoil Refining and Petrochemicals Company Limited has finally performed the turning of sod ceremony, marking the commencement of construction activities in Lagos. The turning of the sod took place at Shekungba, Ikosi/Ejinrin Local Council Development Area of Lagos State recently. The Executive Chairman of Midoil, Mrs Elizabeth-Omolara Akintonde, led dignitaries to the large expanse of land spanning various communities at Ikosi/Ejinrin Local Council Development Area. Akintonde assured leaders and members of the communities that the refinery would transform their areas by bringing immediate development, creating both direct and indirect…