Nigeria Sets Record In Africa Women’s Player Of The Year Award

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December 13, 2023

Nigeria has now won an impressive 13 Africa Women’s Player of the Year Awards – a record on the continent after Asisat Oshoala added a record sixth to her cabinet.

The Super Falcons forward, who enjoyed fine form at country and club levels this year, guided Nigeria to the Round of 16 at the FIFA Women’s World Cup thanks to her eventual winner against hosts Australia in the group stages.

“Today is Nigeria’s night. This is the first time ever that two Nigerians have been awarded as African Player of the Year in the women and men’s categories. It is massive. I am so happy for Asisat [Oshoala] and Victor [Osimhen], said an excited Mercy Akide, winner of the inaugural edition in 2001.

“Asisat has been exceptional all year round at both country and club level for Barcelona and to see CAF awarding her means so much to us as a country. Nigeria – we are winners so this is a big day for us.”

Four-time winner Perpetua Nkwocha (2004, 2005, 2010 and 2011) from Nigeria added to the praise saying that, “Asisat has always been exceptional and for her to win tonight means a lot to her and us as a country. This will motivate her to continue working hard.”

Nkwocha and Akide, who are considered pioneers in the growth of Women’s Football in Nigeria and on the continent, said that this will further promote the growth of the game back home and across the continent.

Akide won the Women’s Africa Cup of Nations with Nigeria in 1998, 2000 and 2002 while Nkwocha won the continent’s biggest tournament with Akide in 2002 before inspiring the Super Falcons upfront as well in 2004, 2006, 2010 and 2014.

CAC To Delist Over 91000 Companies For Infractions

By

faith Jegede

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December 12, 2023

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The Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) is set to delist 91,843 companies from its register for failing to file their annual returns with it.

The commission presented the names of 91,843 companies for delisting in a list published on its website.

This is 2,738 less than the 94,581 names of companies it initially published in August.

It is also less than the initial 100,000 companies CAC said it would remove in an earlier announcement.

In July, the Registrar-General and Chief Executive Officer, of CAC, Garba Abubakar, revealed that the commission would delete 100,000 registered companies from its database for failing to file an annual return.

At the time, Abubakar announced that the commission would send notice of striking off to the affected companies before embarking on the action as enshrined in section 692 of the CAMA, 2020.

In an update on December 5, CAC said, “Further to its earlier notice of the commencement of striking off the names of Companies from the Register of Companies and published on August 2, 2023, the Commission hereby notifies the General Public that the list of Companies that have failed to comply with the provisions of the Companies and Allied Matters Act 2020, to file up to date annual returns is now ready for publication by the provisions of Section 692 of the Act.

“Companies who filed complete annual returns in response to the earlier publication are advised to confirm removal from the list of Companies to be struck off. The updated list for publication is available on the Commission’s website.”

It noted that any company that filed complete annual returns but still has its name on the list should send a mail with evidence of filing to compliance@cac.gov.ng no later within 30 days.

CBN Suspends Processing Fees On Large Cash Deposits

By

faith Jegede

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December 11, 2023

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The Central Bank of Nigeria has issued a new directive to all banks, other financial institutions, and non-bank financial institutions, suspending the processing charges previously imposed on large cash deposits.

The charges have been suspended for all cash deposits exceeding N500,000 for individual accounts and N3,000,000 for corporate accounts until April 30, 2024

The CBN had in 2019 declared that it would begin to levy bank customers making cash deposits and withdrawals as part of its efforts to reduce cash in use.

Ukraine War Aid: Zelensky heads to US for solicitation of $60bn

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Mana Balagbogbo

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December 11, 2023

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Ukraine President Volodymyr Zelensky is going to Washington DC to try to rescue a threatened US defence package to Kyiv worth billions of dollars.

The aid has become embroiled in US domestic, partisan politics.

It will be Mr Zelensky’s third visit to the US since Russia’s February 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

The week is a crucial one for Ukraine, with the European Union also deciding whether to open formal talks on its accession to the bloc.

Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orban has signalled that he opposes the move, and has the power to block such a decision.

Mr Orban and Mr Zelensky had an apparently intense conversation when they met on Sunday at the inauguration of Argentina’s new president. The details of their discussion have not been revealed.

The Ukrainian president will arrive in Washington on Monday. As well as holding meetings with US President Joe Biden and Republican House Speaker Mike Johnson, he will address the Senate on Tuesday morning.

The White House said in a statement on Sunday that Mr Zelensky’s visit was meant “to underscore the United States’ unshakeable commitment to supporting the people of Ukraine as they defend themselves against Russia’s brutal invasion”.

The US military aid package, worth $60bn (£47.9bn; €55bn), is currently stalled in Congress, facing pushback from Republicans who argue that more money should be going to domestic security at the US-Mexico border.

A vote in the Senate last week saw a package, which included the funding, blocked.

Mr Biden has been urging lawmakers to approve the funds. In an impassioned televised address last Wednesday, he said the package could not wait and warned that Russia would not stop at victory over Ukraine.

Though Ukraine fended off Russia’s original attack, its much-vaunted counter-attack this year has stalled and there have been signs of fatigue from some of the Western nations which have stepped up to support it militarily.

National Security: Tinubu in Maiduguri to attend Army Annual Conference

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Mana Balagbogbo

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December 11, 2023

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President Bola Tinubu departed Abuja for Maiduguri, Borno State capital.

The President made his departure from the Presidential Wing of the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja earlier today.

This is Tinubu’s first visit to the North-Eastern region of the country since taking office.

He is expected to attend the Nigerian Army Annual Conference as the Special Guest of Honour.

The activities of President Tinubu at the event will include an address to the troops of Joint Task Force North East Operation HADIN KAI, an inspection of the ongoing Nigerian Army Reference Hospital in Maiduguri, and the laying of the foundation stone for Headquarters 7 Division.

Egypt Presidential election: Sisi likely to secure a third term

By

Mana Balagbogbo

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December 11, 2023

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FILE PHOTO: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi meets with Russian President Vladimir Putin in St Petersburg — FILE PHOTO: Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi attends a meeting with Russian President Vladimir Putin on the sidelines of Russia-Africa summit in Saint Petersburg, Russia, July 26, 2023. Sputnik/Alexei Danichev/Pool via REUTERS

Egyptians went to the polls on Sunday in a presidential election overshadowed by war in neighbouring Gaza and with little doubt the incumbent Abdel Fattah al-Sisi would secure a third term.

In a country gripped by the most severe financial crisis in its recent history — inflation has hovered near 40 percent after the currency lost half its value and drove up the cost of imports — the economy is at the centre of Egyptians’ concerns.

Even before the current crisis, about two-thirds of the country’s nearly 106 million people were living on or below the poverty line.

Voting will take place until Tuesday, between 9:00 am and 09:00 pm (0700-1900 GMT) each day, with the official results announced on December 18.

In front of one Cairo polling station, posters bore messages to “get out and participate” while a DJ played nationalist songs.

Some 67 million people are eligible to vote, five million of whom had cast their ballots by 4:30 pm (1430 GMT) on Sunday, according to a statement from the National Election Authority.

Turnout is expected to be a key indicator of public sentiment in an otherwise uncompetitive election. Last time, it fell six points to 41.5 percent.

Casting her ballot in the western Cairo district of Dokki, Asmaa Refaat, a voter in her forties, said she “doesn’t know the other candidates”.

“I only know President Sisi,” she said, calling on the winner “to change our lives for the better and ease inflation”.

Annual inflation is at 38.5 percent, with food price rises alone hitting 45.2 percent, official figures showed on Sunday.

Voter Fathi Ali, 79, said he “only asks that the next president ensures full health insurance”.

Despite Egypt’s afflictions, a decade-long crackdown on dissent has eliminated any serious opposition to Sisi.

Under his rule, Egypt has jailed thousands of political prisoners.

New Administration: Argentina’s President Javier Milei has warned the country to prepare for severe economic shock

By

Mana Balagbogbo

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December 11, 2023

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Argentina’s new President Javier Milei has warned his country’s people to prepare for painful austerity measures as he seeks to turn around decades of economic stagnation and decline.

Taking office on Sunday after his upset election last month, Milei used his inaugural address to prepare Argetinians for the short-term hardship he insists is necessary to fix the biggest crisis in the country’s history.

In a break with tradition, the 53-year-old economist delivered his speech to supporters with his back turned to the legislature.

“There is no alternative to a shock adjustment,” Milei said after taking the presidential baton and sash. “There is no money.”

Guests at the inauguration included Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Hungary’s nationalist Prime Minister Viktor Orban, right-wing former Brazilian leader Jair Bolsonaro, Uruguay’s conservative leader Luis Lacalle Pou and Chile’s leftist President Gabriel Boric.

Latin America’s third-largest economy, which has stumbled between crises for decades, is grappling with annual inflation of higher than 140 percent and a 40 percent poverty rate.

The country owes $45bn to the International Monetary Fund.

Milei, who is known for hard-right libertarian views, has promised a series of radical measures to fix the economy, including spending cuts equivalent to 5 percent of the economy and switching the Argentinian peso for the United States dollar.

A self-described “anarcho-capitalist”, Milei on Sunday reiterated that the state would shoulder the burden of getting the country’s finances in order.

“We know that in the short term, the situation will worsen, but soon we will see the fruits of our effort, having created the base for solid and sustainable growth,” he said.

In one of his first actions in office, Milei announced on social media that he had signed a decree to slash the number of ministries by half, from 18 to nine.

Milei, whose abrasive style has drawn comparisons with former US President Donald Trump, rose to fame with his diatribes against the “thieving” political class and invocations of Argentina’s “golden age” during the early 20th century.

His anti-establishment message struck a chord with Argentinians, particularly young men, after successive governments presided over the country’s decline from one of the richest economies to a cautionary tale of economic mismanagement.

Milei decisively beat former Economic Minister Sergio Massa of the centre-left Peronist coalition in a run-off election on November 19.

Still, Milei will need to negotiate with rivals to govern effectively as his coalition bloc lacks a majority in the legislature.

There have been signs that the political maverick could soften his more radical positions in office.

His cabinet includes mainstream conservatives in favour of ideological libertarians, while talk of shutting the central bank and dollarisation has dissipated in recent weeks.

Ondo Politics: Clark emphasizes how urgent Tinubu must address crisis

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Mana Balagbogbo

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December 11, 2023

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Leader of Pan-Niger Delta Forum, PANDEF, Chief Edwin Clark on Sunday urged President Bola Tinubu to adopt former Head of State, Gen. Yakubu Gowon’s eminent persons’ doctrine of necessity as the only way of resolving the political crisis in Ondo State.

Clark, in an open letter to President Tinubu, urged him to act fast to curb the crisis in the state just as he likened the situation to when late President Umaru Yar’Adua was sick and the Senate came up with the doctrine of necessity to tackle the situation.

The letter, entitled ‘urgent need to resolve the Ondo State impasse’, reads: “My letter may come to you as a surprise because I am not from the South-West geo-political zone, Ondo State in particular. “But as a senior citizen of our dear country, I sincerely believe that we have a duty to give you support and advice in all ramifications, particularly in solving the insecurity issues facing the country, and anything that can escalate it, in all parts, especially in the North-West. Every effort, should, therefore, be made, in this regard, to avert any crisis in any part of the country.

“The on-going impasse in Ondo State can be likened to what happened when our dear late President, Yar’Adua, was very ill and did not transmit a letter to the National Assembly in accordance with Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution, to enable the then Vice President, Dr. Goodluck Jonathan to act as president.

“I wish to recall that during the time, the nation was almost grinding to a halt because there was no one administratively in charge of the affairs of the country. Various groups such as the Save Nigeria Group, led by Pastor Tunde Bakare and Nobel Laureate, Prof. Wole Soyinka; socio-cultural organisations, ethnic organisations including some northern group, the South-Western group led by Bishop Emmanuel Gbonigi, the Ohanaeze Ndigbo, etc, rose to protest in Lagos and Abuja. It was as though the nation was rudderless.

“The Senate, under the leadership of David Mark, as Senate President, acted on the suggestion of the eminent persons group and declared Dr Jonathan, acting President under the Doctrine of Necessity on February 9, 2010. The House of Representatives followed suit by also adopting the Doctrine of Necessity. On February 10, 2010, Dr Jonathan was declared Acting President.

“At this time, our dear President Yar’Adua was still at Saudi Arabia receiving medical treatment. On February 24, 2010, President Yar’Adua was brought back to the country under the cover of darkness, still very ill, and taken to the Villa, unknown to the Acting President. However, while President Yar’Adua was at the Villa ‘recuperating’, Dr Jonathan continued to act as the President of the country. Unfortunately, President Yar’Adua could not make it. He died on May 5, 2010. On May 6, 2010, Dr Jonathan was sworn-in as President and Commander- in-Chief of the Armed Forces, Federal Republic of Nigeria, in accordance with constitutional provisions.

“Mr President I think there is need to act fast because we have seen that despite your good intentions, the crisis is brewing much tension rather than abating. There is a growing agitation for and against each of the parties.

“Like I stated earlier, this matter is building up tension. It is, therefore, my opinion that Mr President, as leader of his ruling APC political party, may want to amend his earlier terms of settlement. And since there is no constitutional provision for such quagmire, because under Section 5 (2) of the Constitution, the state governments are autonomous and are not subsidiaries of the central government.

“Let me add that beyond any constitutional provision and your leadership of your political party, the APC, it is Your Excellency’s moral obligation as father of the country to use your good office to intervene and resolve all manners of political crisis around the country.

“The action of the Ondo State House of Assembly by going to court to prevent the National Assembly from interfering in the matters of the State House of Assembly is also escalating the issues. I will continue to pray for your well being and success.”

COP28: LP Chair calls FG’s huge delegation insensitive

By

Mana Balagbogbo

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December 11, 2023

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The National Chairman of the Labour Party, Julius Abure, on Saturday, said the controversy that trailed the huge delegation Nigeria took to the Climate Change Conference in the United Arab Emirates has shown that President Bola Tinubu is not ready to learn from the mistakes of the previous administration.

Abure raised the concern while receiving an award of excellence from the Benin chapter of the Nigerian Bar Association. The Federal Government received knocks recently following the revelation that it took a delegation of 1,411 to COP28.

The FG, through the Minister of Information, Mohammed Idris, however, said that it only funded 422 persons to the event.

But Abure said in a country where people are struggling with poverty and the current minimum wage is still being debated, it is insensitive of Tinubu’s government to embark on such a ‘jamboree.’

He said, “It is obvious that the government of President Tinubu and the APC are not willing to depart from the circumstances that have plunged the nation into economic quagmire in the past.

“How can a country that is borrowing money to pay workers’ wages, a country plagued by insecurity, battered by power collapse where investors are exiting the country by the day fritter away such a humongous amount of resources on a jamboree?

“A sober government should have known that borrowing money to attend conferences while rich nations attended the same event with less than 20 persons bothered on insensitivity and brazen impunity. Nigerians have made their point and they are aware that the nation’s salvation lies with the Labour Party as we approach subsequent elections.”

Kaduna Bombing: Falana threatens FG over failure to compensate victims

By

Mana Balagbogbo

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December 11, 2023

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Human rights lawyer, Femi Falana, has issued a two-week ultimatum to the Federal Government to compensate those who have fallen victims to military air strikes in the country in the past seven years.

Falana, who gave the condition in a statement on Sunday, said the Federal Government risked being sued before a Federal High Court if the demand is not met.

“The Federal Government should pay adequate compensation to the victims of all airstrikes that have occurred in Nigeria in the past seven years.

“If our demand is not met within the next two weeks, we shall sue the Federal Government at the Federal High Court to secure the enforcement of the fundamental right of the victims to life,” he said.

The Nigeria Air Force and Nigeria Army have between March 2014 and December 2023 dropped bombs which claimed the lives of hundreds in some states in the northern part of the country, according Falana.

In the most recent incident, no fewer than 80 people were killed in an erroneous air strike by the Nigerian Army at Tudun Biri in the Igabi Local Government of Kaduna State on December 3, 2023.

Falana, who is the Chairman of Alliance on Surviving Covid 19 and Beyond (ASCAB), lamented that there has been no compensation for the victims of these bombings over the years.

He noted that after January 17 Rann bombing in Borno, the Federal Government instituted a commission of enquiry headed by Justice Biobell Georgewill of the Court of Appeal, but said that nothing has come out of it up until now.

“The Commission was mandated to review extant rules of engagement applicable in the armed forces of Nigeria as well as the extent of compliance with the rules. Part of the mandate of the commission was to also prefer means of preventing violations of international humanitarian and human rights law.

“The Commission was given 90 days for the assessment. Our law firm represented the victims of the Rann airstrike at the Commission of Enquiry. Upon the conclusion of the assignment, the Commission submitted its report. But up until now, the federal government has neither published the report nor implemented the recommendations of the Commission.”

The Senior Advocate suggested that instead of setting up a new panel of enquiry, the Federal Government should publish the findings of the Georgewill Judicial Commission.