AFRICAN NEWS FLASH

The announcement of the new cbn management team will now be made on Thursday next week. The Vice President is expected to send his report to president Buhari on Wednesday. The president will on Thursday sack the management team of the cbn headed by Godwin emefiele. Buhari made it clear that the statement  of the cbn governor is very important and will help the Vice Presidents panel in getting to the rooth of the large sum of funds recovered from a flat in ikoyi , south west of nigeria.

Details coming.

Details coming

All things being equal, whistle-blowers are poised to get N2.1bn reward for their whistle-blowing efforts that have led to major discoveries since December 20, 2016 when the policy was inaugurated by the Federal Government, findings by our source  have shown. the inauguration of the policy, said any Nigerian who gave information leading to the recovery of looted funds would be compensated by up to five per cent of the amount. He had also laid out the compensation plan, saying informants whose information led to the discovery of up to N1bn would receive five per cent of the amount; those who gave tips leading to the discovery of between N1bn and N5bn would receive five per cent on the first N1bn and four per cent on the remaining N4bn; while those who gave information leading to the recovery of over N5bn would get 2.5 per cent of the amount. Mohammed had further clarified that those who gave information leading to the recovery of, say, N10bn would get five per cent of N1bn, four

The Presidency has ruled out the possibility of President Muhammadu Buhari resigning his position over his ill health as being suggested by some Nigerians. In an interview with journalists in Lagos on Friday, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, said those calling for the President’s resignation were merely expressing their opinion. According to him, the views of over 15 million Nigerians that voted for the President were more important than such opinions, while expressing confidence hat God would fully restore Buhari’s health. The President returned from medical vacation to the United Kingdom on March 10, where he spent 49 days. And since his return from vacation, Buhari has been absent at some Federal Executive Council meetings, including that of last Wednesday, where Vice President Yemi Osinbajo presided. It was learnt that the President needed some rest and had “asked that all the files on his table be brought to him at his official

Full details coming soon

The Special Adviser on Media & Publicity to President Muhammadu Buhari, Mr. Femi Adesina, has said that no one consulted the Presidency’s spokespersons before our correspondent in Aso Rock, Mr. Olalekan Adetayo, was expelled from his beat. In a series of tweets, Adesina extricated his office and the Presidency from the issue. He had tweeted, “We weren’t consulted in the media office by the CSO before he expelled The Punch reporter. President Buhari is committed to press freedom. “An amicable solution would be found to The Punch reporter matter. President Buhari does not intend to muzzle the media in any way.”

He was stuck between the devil and the deep blue sea; going forth was a great difficulty and turning back proved even far more tedious exercise – by the time the storms calmed to the nudge of pliant winds, Godwin Emefiele, Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has waded too deep in the murky waters of rancid economics and hideous politics. It would be recalled that Emefiele was persistently ridiculed as a pawn in the grand designs of former President Goodluck Jonathan and his cronies to milk Nigeria for all she’s worth in their bid to retain tenacious hold on power; the CBN governor was allegedly used by the former administration to turn the CBN into a conduit pipe for funding the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) led government. However, former President Jonathan and his cohorts’ hopes were dashed to smithereens following their loss to President Muhammadu Buhari of the All Progressives Congress (APC), at presidential polls. Few months into President Buhari’s administratio

The operatives of the Department of State Service has raided the office of National Pension Commission (PenCom) in Abuja, following the refusal of the former Director General of the commission, Mrs Chinelo Anohu- Amazu, to hand over to her successor,after her sacking on Wednesday by President Muhammadu Buhari. According to reports, the ex-PenCom DG was still passing out instructions as of Friday despite her sacking. Daily Times reports that when the DSS operatives visited the PenCom office today, Anohu-Amazu evaded arrest and went into hiding. However, the DSS had ordered that she appeared in the office on Monday.

The new cbn management team would have been announced since Thursday if not for the presidential panel set up by president Buhari on the 43 million dollars found at an apartment in ikoyi, lagos state. Our insider sources has confirmed to us that if not for the invitation of the incumbent governor of the cbn to the panel, all was set to announce his dismisssal. However he will be asked to resign on Wednesday next week after appearing before the Vice Presidents panel on Tuesday. The new management team will be announced immediately . Meanwhile the new management team has been placed on surveillance by security agencies since friday as directed by the presidency. More details coming.

Just in: Buhari to announce new cbn management team next week Wednesday. Gov emefiele to make statement on Tuesday at the Vice Presidents panel. To be sacked Wednesday.  Details coming.

The Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Ibrahim Magu, was on Friday quizzed by the committee set up by President Muhammadu Buhari to investigate the suspended secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal, and the suspended Director-General of the National Intellegence Agency, Ambassador Ayo Oke. The three-man committee which is chaired by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has the Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN); and the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno, as members. Magu appeared before the committee members for hours at the Vice-President’s office inside the Presidential Villa, Abuja as the committee began sitting early Friday. It was gathered that the EFCC chairman was asked questions on the recovery of N13bn, which the Director-General of the National Intelligence Agency had claimed belonged to the agency. It was learnt that Magu justified the raid on the Ikoyi apartment where the money was recovered an

The Senate may write the Presidency when it resumes from recess to insist on its decision to reject the appointment of the acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, Mr. Ibrahim Magu. Some senators, in separate interviews with our correspondent, faulted the constitutional references made by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo and human rights lawyer, Mr. Femi Falana. The lawmakers also indicated their intention to approach the Supreme Court for clarifications on Magu’s appointment. The Presidency had stated its decision to retain Magu as the EFCC’s boss despite the rejection of his nomination by the legislature. It had also said the decision would not be communicated to the Senate. Speaking to our source ,  the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Anti-Corruption and Financial Crimes, which has the oversight over the EFCC, Senator Chukwuka Utazi (PDP/Enugu North), however, faulted Osinbajo and Falana for quoting Section 171 of the Constitution as empowering President

A member of the House of Representatives, Mr Babatunde Kolawole (Ondo-APC), has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for suspending the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Babachir Lawal.  Kolawole said on Thursday in Abuja, that the action was long expected from the president. “The SGF’s continued stay in office without reprimand in spite of the heavy allegations against him was a taint on the anti-corruption fight of this administration. “It is a welcome development because we were all wondering what was going on concerning the allegation against the SGF. “If you remember, he was alleged to have abused the Public Procurement Act in contract awarded by the Presidential Initiative on North-East (PINE). “He was also alleged to have awarded contracts to his family members as well as top government officials. “Also, I think a committee in the Senate, which investigated the matter made some recommendations against him. “Yet, there was a deafening silence from the presi

Although Nigeria’s total current debt is relatively low compared to the Gross Domestic Product, the interest rate payment is not sustainable by current revenues, the World Bank has said.

STATE HOUSE PRESS RELEASE PRESIDENT BUHARI SUSPENDS SGF AND DG, NIA President Muhammadu Buhari has ordered an investigation into the allegations of violations of law and due process made against the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr David Babachir Lawal, in the award of contracts under the Presidential Initiative on the North East (PINE). The President has also directed the suspension of the SGF from office pending the outcome of the investigations. In a related development, the President has ordered a full scale investigation into the discovery of large amounts of foreign and local currencies by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in a residential apartment at Osborne Towers, Ikoyi, Lagos, over which the National Intelligence Agency (NIA) has made a claim. The investigation is also to enquire into the circumstances in which the NIA came into possession of the funds, how and by whose or which authority the funds were made available

The Central Bank of Nigeria has introduced “Form X” for the Small and Medium-scale Enterprises seeking to purchase foreign exchange from the apex bank. The CBN said the decision was part of its commitment to increase forex liquidity and improve access by the SMEs and retail businesses to forex. The Acting Director, Corporate Communications, CBN, Mr. Isaac Okorafor, who confirmed this on Monday, said that the measure was intended to ease documentation challenges usually encountered by this category of businesses. He further explained that the new form, which must be completed by all the SME applicants required the applicant to fill the form with a supporting application letter as well as beneficiary invoice and bank wire transfer. The objective of the new guideline, he added, was to remove obstacles usually encountered by those whose forex needs for either visibles or invisibles were as small as or less than $10,000. He reiterated the apex bank’s determination to continue to ensure

Minister of Transportation, Mr. Rotimi Amaechi, has written to a former Minister of Aviation, Chief Femi Fani-Kayode, and an aide to Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State, Mr. Lere Olayinka, citing character defamation over the allegation that he (the minister) owns the $43m (about N13bn) seized by the Economic and Financial Crime Commission in Ikoyi, Lagos. Amaechi, in letters dated April 14, 2017, written on his behalf by his lawyer, Mr. Lateef Fagbemi (SAN), to the two men, said his client had been defamed by the claims of the two men. Fagbemi is demanding N500m from Fani-Kayode as compensation for the alleged malicious posts by the former minister on his twitter handle on April 14. He is also demanding two separate sums of N750m totalling N1.5bn from Olayinka as compensation for the alleged “malicious” posts by the Ekiti State Governor’s spokesperson on his facebook timeline and twitter handle on April 14. In his letter to Fani-Kayode, Fagbemi said it was wrong for the former

Details soon

There was jubilation on Friday after the Edo State Governorship Election Petitions tribunal dismissed a petition filed by the Peoples Democratic Party and its candidate, Pastor Osagie Ize-Iyamu, challenging the declaration of Godwin Obaseki of the All Progressives Congress as winner of the September 28, 2016. The two-hour ruling read by the Chairman of the three-man panel, by Justice Ahmed Badamasi, upheld the return of Obaseki as Governor of the state by the Independent National Electoral Commission. The tribunal held that the petition lacked merit as the petitioners failed to ‎prove their case. The PDP and Ize-Iyamu had in the substantive petition marked “EPT/EDS/GOV/2/2016″‎ urged the tribunal to declare him as the rightful winner of the election, having scored the highest number of votes cast. They had listed INEC, Obaseki and APC as first, second and third respondents, respectively, and called 92 witnesses to prove their case. Prior to the ruling, there was a heavy presence o

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Thursday said some of its staff accused of benefitting from a N3.4 billion bribe money in the 2015 general elections have refunded their share. The INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmud Yakubu, disclosed this when he visited the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Ibrahim Magu, in Abuja. A statement by spokesman of the EFCC, Mr Wilson Uwujaren, quoted the INEC chairman as saying that 70 of the affected staff in three states were still in denial. Yakubu, according to Uwujaren, said they would be referred to the EFCC for further investigation.

The Federal High Court in Lagos has ordered the temporary forfeiture of the sums of $43,449,947, £27,800 and N23,218,000 recovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission from an apartment in the Ikoyi area of Lagos on Wednesday. The court, in a ruling on Thursday afternoon by Justice Muslim Hassan, ordered that the funds be temporarily forfeited to the Federal Government. The judge adjourned till May 5, 2017, for anyone interested in the funds to show up before him to show cause why the money should not be permanently forfeited to the Federal Government.

PRESIDENT BUHARI NOMINATES NON-EXECUTIVE DIRECTORS OF CBN BOARD In accordance with Sections 6 (1) (d) and 10 (1) and (2) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (Establishment) Act, 2007, President Muhammadu Buhari, Wednesday, forwarded the list of his nominees to the Senate for confirmation as Non-Executive Directors of the Board of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN). The letter to the Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki, contained the following as the nominees and their geo-political zones. 1. Professor Ummu Ahmed Jalingo - North East 2. Professor Justitia Odinakachukwu Nnabuko - South East 3. Professor Mike I. Obadan - South South 4. Dr. Abdu Abubakar - North West 5. Adeola Adetunji - South West. FEMI ADESINA Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity) April 12, 2017.