Sabinews Daily Morning News Update for September 25, 2014
National News
Senate moves to ban tobacco production, consumption
The Senate has begun moves aimed at permanently banning the manufacturing, consumption and promotion of tobacco in Nigeria.
But the development generated controversies among senators, yesterday, during debate on a bill to that effect just as the Senate President, David Mark, lamented that powerful individuals who were against the ban and regulation of tobacco in the country influenced Presidency to withhold assent on a similar bill sponsored and passed by the 6th Senate. Read more
Alleged torture: NHRC to investigate Amnesty International’s allegation
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) on Wednesday said it will investigate the allegation of torture slammed against the Nigeria Police and military personnel by the Amnesty International in its report released last week.
Professor Angwe disclosed this when the Regional Representative for West African, Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights, Andrea Ori, led a delegation on a courtesy visit on him in his office in Abuja. Read more
Displaced persons become Almajiris in Maiduguri
Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) who escaped to Maiduguri when Bama was attacked by the Boko Haram insurgents are now begging for food and other essentials in Maiduguri while three women among them delivered babies on the streets.
A BBC Hausa report monitored in Kaduna quoted a Maiduguri resident who craved for anonymity as saying that he gave a woman from Bama N200 when she delivered her baby close to a Masjid. Read more
NASU threatens strike again in poly, colleges of education
Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions (NASU) has called on the Federal Government to resolve issues that led to strike by its members in polytechnics and colleges of education to avert resumption of the suspended strike. Read more
Ebola: Anxiety as schools reopen
Finally, primary and secondary schools across states in the country reopened on Monday for the new academic session, amid anxiety among parents, teachers and other stakeholders over perceived inadequate guarantee that the Federal Government had provided what it takes to prevent the Ebola disease infection and spread in schools.
The reopening of schools was by no means national, however, as the Nigeria Union of Teachers (NUT) had directed its members to shun the Federal Government’s directive to reopen on Monday 22 September, insisting that adequate facilities and training of staff had not yet been provided in schools to guarantee the safety of teachers and pupils. Read more
Chibok Girls: No New Information Different from DHQ’s, Says Maku
The federal government yesterday said there was no new information different from what the Defence Headquarters has said concerning the alleged release of over 200 Chibok schoolgirls abducted by terrorist group, Boko Haram, over five months ago.
Rumuor had made the rounds Tuesday that the abducted schoolgirls were freed from captivity. However, the Defence Headquarters debunked the rumour of their release, saying there was no proof to that effect. Read more
Alao-Akala unveils campaign committee for 2015
The campaign organisation of former governor of Oyo State, Chief Christopher Adebayo Alao-Akala, which is to work for the actualisation of his governorship aspiration, next year, will be unveiled on Saturday.
According to a statement made available to journalists in Ibadan, the Oyo State capital on Wednesday, coordinator of the campaign team, Prince Niran Adeyoju, said ‘Team Akala,’ “the umbrella body for the campaign committees of Otunba Adebayo Alao-Akala’s gubernatorial aspiration in the 2015 general elections will open its operations office on Saturday, 27 September, 2015. Read more
2015: Leaders Must Ensure Free, Fair Election Or Risk Revolution – Shehu Sani
The president of Civil Congress of Nigeria, Comrade Shehu Sani has urged those in power to ensure that elections in 2015 are free and fair or risk revolution because people were getting more enlightened about the need for good leadership.
Sani who spoke yesterday at a lecture to mark the Niger State Council of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ), press week at the IBB Pen House Minna, posited also that religious and ethnic affiliations should not be the basis for electing leaders. Read more
We Will Not Allow Election Spending To Affect Nigeria’s Economic Fortunes – CBN Governor
Central Bank Governor (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, has allayed fears that the 2015 General Elections would affect Nigeria’s economy and deplete the country’s forex reserves.
According to Emefiele, who spoke in New York, Wednesday, at the Africa Business Summit, Nigeria’s economy is doing well and not even the 2015 general elections will be allowed to take it down. Read more
S’South PDP Stakeholders worried over cancellation of meeting
Internal crisis currently rocking the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the South South states deepened on Wednesday following the sudden postponement of the reconciliation meeting scheduled to atone the anger of some party members across the region.
The national integration committee of the PDP was billed to have an interface with all aggrieved members of the party at the regional secretariat along Circular Road in Port Harcourt, Rivers State capital but was suddenly called off. Read more
Sabinews News Update on Economy
Naira Hits 2-Week High On CBN Intervention
The naira, yesterday, hit a two-week closing high of N162.65 against the dollar, after the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) sold greenbacks directly to banks to prop up the local currency, dealers said.
The local currency closed 0.76 per cent firmer on Wednesday, a level last seen on September 9, 2014, compared to the Tuesday’s close of N163.90 to the dollar. Dealers said the central bank sold an undisclosed amount of dollars to the interbank market. Read more
Wema Bank Moves to Boost Trade
As part of efforts to promote trade between Nigeria and other countries, Wema Bank Plc yesterday organised a forum for its customers involved in international trade.
Speaking to journalists on the sidelines of the forum on trade and structured finance, the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer, Wema Bank, Mr. Segun Oloketuyi noted that the forum is going to be an annual event. Read more
Digital Jewels Unveils Information Security Awareness Resources
In a bid to curb cyber threats in the public and private sector, Digital Jewels Limited, an information technology (IT) consulting and capacity building firm, has unveiled a set of information security awareness resources.
They are ‘Online Wisdom’ and ‘Secure Sense’ geared towards equipping people with the knowledge, skills and techniques to prevent or detect fraud and ensure online safety. Read more
FG Wants State Governments to Sign MoU on Smart States Project
The federal government, through the National Council on Communications Technology (NCCT) has urged all state governments to sign a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with the Ministry of Communications Technology for the implementation of the smart states initiative.
The smart states initiative is in line with the implementation of the National Broadband Plan at all tiers of government. Lagos State and Cross River State have already pioneered the initiatives while the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and being tested in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Anambra, Bayelsa, Ondo and other states. Read more
N100b textile fund: How solution became problem
It a generous interest rate of six per cent and a repayment period of five years, operators in the textile industry ought to be falling over themselves to access the N100 billion Cotton, Textile, and Garment (CTG) Revival Fund. But this has not been the case. Rather than scramble for the loan, most textile companies are said to be avoiding it like plague. Only about 20 textile firms have so far accessed the loan, according to the Director General, Nigeria Textile Manufacturers Association (NTMA), Mr. Jaiyeola Olarewaju. He also disclosed that very few cotton and garment firms have taken the loan, which sought to revitalise the CTG industry along the entire value chain, including textile, cotton, and garment production. Read more
We Are Targeting Over N1.5bn From Abuja Fair – ABUCCIMA
The Abuja Chamber of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (ABUCCIMA) has said that over N1.5 billion turnover was expected to be generated at the 9th Abuja International Trade Fair kicking off today.
The president of ABUCCIMA, Mr Solomon Nyagba,said at a pre-fair press conference in Abuja, said Egypt, India, Ghana, Senegal and Burkina Faso were among the foreign participation expected at the event starting from September 23 to October 6, 2014, with theme, ‘Strengthening Small and Medium Enterprises for Economic Growth.’ Read more
Eurobonds to the rescue of Nigerian banks
After the 2009 Nigerian banking crisis, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) opted for a risk-based supervision approach in the banking sector to address the inherent systemic risks occasioned by the failure in corporate governance, inadequate disclosure and exposure about financial positions, gaps in the regulatory framework, and uneven supervision and enforcement. Emerging themes in the global economy including the United States’ quantitative easing programme, Eurozone contagion issues and international conflicts in Iraqi, Syria, Ukraine, and Gaza juxtaposed with the whirlwind of domestic reforms has contributed in no small measure to increasing costs and a profitability squeeze in the Nigerian banking sector. Read more
Aluminium Extrusion increases sales by 11.88% as influx of cheap products stifles growth
Aluminium Extrusion Industries plc, through focus strategy and marketing penetration, has increased sales by 11.88 percent as influx of cheap products into the country stifles sector growth potentials.
For the first six months through June 2014, the Nigeria roofer’s revenue increased by 11.88 percent to N1 billion from N894.91 million the same period of the corresponding year (HY) 2013. Read more
Business Boom for Marketing Practitioners
With a few months to the 2015 general election, marketing communications practitioners are gearing up for the business ahead, Raheem Akingbolu reports
Business community was full of hope in January that the year 2014 would be a year of record bumper harvest. Businesses were expected to boom three years after the last election and a year before a fresh one, because business managers are full of expectation that the business environment would have been very conducive while those eyeing political post next year would be willing to touch lives.
For players in various sub-sectors of the marketing communication industry, the story was not different. As communication experts, they foresaw better patronage from the political class, because of the need to take the message to relevant stakeholders. Read more
Sabinews News Update on Oil and Gas
Persisting Crude Oil Theft is Threat to International Peace
The persistence of crude oil theft in the Niger Delta region where over 400,000 barrels per day are stolen may threaten world peace and democracy if concerted action is not taken to curb it, Delta State Governor, Dr. Emmanuel Uduaghan, has warned.
Speaking at an African Business Roundtable-organised workshop on combating emerging threats held on the sidelines of the ongoing United Nations General Assembly in New York, Uduaghan said with 90 per cent of the stolen oil exported, the cash return was enough to empower individuals and organisations engaged in the theft to destabilise democracies in the West African sub-region. Read more
Can Solid Minerals Be Viable Alternative To Oil?
The chairman, House Committee on Solid Minerals, Alhaji Tafida Isa Hassan, has bemoaned the lack of interests in the development of the sector, compared to the oil sector, which he said “would in no doubt dry up within two or three decades.
“Solid minerals is the main thing as there is no doubt that in the next two or three decades oil will dry up but there is no doubting the fact that it could take hundreds of years for solid minerals to fizzle out.” Read more
NUPENG, PENGASSAN Threaten Strike over Victimisation of Members
The joint forum of the National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas (NUPENG) and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) yesterday in Enugu threatened to shut down the oil and gas industry in Nigeria if the constant victimisation of its leaders is not stopped forthwith.
The unions specifically lamented the sudden transfer of two of its officials, the Deputy President 2 of NUPENG, Mr. Asuquo Okon who works with AGIP from Lagos to Port-Harcourt and Mrs. Elo Victor Ogbonda, the Port-Harcourt Zonal Secretary of PENGASSAN who was moved to Lagos by Total. Read more
We have not divested our downstream, says Oando
The management of Oando Plc has said it has not divested its downstream business as being speculated. It noted that as part of its strategy to focus the firm’s upstream operation, it is exploring ways to see if divestment of its downstream assets would do the magic.
Its Head, Corporate Communications, Ainojie Alex Irune, said the divestment plan is agreement with the shareholders of the company, which gave approval to partial divestment from the downstream business a few years ago. Read more
World News
Hyundai Workers Strike to Protest $10B Land Deal
About 47,000 workers at Hyundai Motor Co. are striking to protest the automaker’s decision to spend $10 billion on land for a new headquarters.
Union spokesman Hwang Ki-tae said Thursday the mood among workers turned sour after a Hyundai-led consortium offered 10.55 trillion won ($10.1 billion) for land in Seoul’s upmarket Gangnam district. They are walking off the job for a total of 12 hours this week. Read more
Leaders at U.N.: Ukraine conflict threatens world order
Russia’s annexation of Ukrainian territory and its support of separatist fighters confronting government forces in eastern Ukraine threaten to revive the Cold War and destroy a world order based on rule of law, world leaders said Wednesday.
Speaking on the opening day of the general debate of the United Nations General Assembly, Indonesian President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said the conflict in Ukraine “has now shaken relations between Russia and the United States,” so “we are concerned that the old Cold War will return.” Read more
Sabinews News Update on Energy
Power sector reform and steady electricity supply
Any action or plan to stem the energy crisis in Nigeria deserves the support of every Nigerian. The planned sale of the transmission lines, however, should be handled with care. In fact, with the debatable success rate of the privatisation of the generation and distribution assets, there is no need for any hurry in selling the transmission arm. Of course, putting an end to the embarrassingly low electricity supply in the country ought to be the priority of any government. The current one, especially, should be judged on the basis of its failure to fulfil its promises on power supply. Read more
US Consortium To Invest N35bn In Nigeria’s Power Sector
The quest by the Federal Government to attract investment into the Energy Sector and boost electricity supply in the country may have received additional boost as consortium of American Investors have indicated interest to inject about 100 Mega Watts of electricity in Abuja and Kano State.
The value of the renewable energy investment is N35billion about ($212 million) and is expected to come on stream by the third quarter of 2015. The consortiums of American companies who have indicated interest are Global Business Resources USA, Global Resources Network USA, Flatbush Solar USA and Charbourne & Parke, LLP USA. Read more
Sabinews News Update on Sports
NFF election: Umeh, Ogunjobi, others cleared
A clear picture of those gunning to lead the crisis ridden Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) emerged last night with the clearance of seven presidential aspirants by the Barrister Samson Ebomhe-led electoral committee.
Those cleared are incumbent vice president, Chief Mike Umeh; former vice president, Amanze Uchegbulam; former secretary general, Taiwo Ogunjobi; Dominic Iorfa; Shehu Dikko, Abba Yola and “home boy” in the elections, Pinnick Amaju, who is the incumbent Chairman of Delta state FA. Read more
