Nigerian President To German Chancellor: "I Will Respect Rule Of Law"

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari on Friday said his administration would always uphold the sanctity of the rule of law in governing the country.He said unity and harmony in every society could only be preserved by observing the rule of law.In a statement by Presidential Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, the President spoke during a bilateral meeting he had with visiting German Chancellor, Angel Merkel, at the Presidential...

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Nigeria's UBA Records 16 Pct Growth in H1 Earnings

Nigeria's United Bank for Africa (UBA) posted 16 percent growth in revenue at the end of its first six months of the year. The bank's gross earnings rose to 258 billion naira against 223 billion in the same period of last year. The said despite declining yield environment in two core markets – Nigeria and Ghana – the lender showing strong growth across key performance metrics as well as a significant contribution from its African subsidiaries.The...

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APC Says Presidential Candidate To Emerge Through Direct Primary

Nigeria's ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) on Thursday said will choose rose its presidential candidate through direct primaries, against its previous arrangement of the delegate model, the party arrived at this decision at the end of its sixth National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting in Abuja. The Party, however, decided that other elective positions would be through the indirect option. The APC also provides flexibility for states that...

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Nigeria Reverts To "How NOT To Run An Oil Industry"

The Nigerian Senate passed the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill ("PIGB") into law in May 2017. This was followed by a similar action by the House of Reps in Jan-18.  After due consideration by the joint committee, the harmonised version of the bill was transmitted to The President in June-2018 for his assent. Shockingly, the President declined to assent the Bill, maintaining that it will reduce the power of the minister.We think this is a major setback for the Nigerian oil industry given that the PIGB was drafted to: harmonise regulation...

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Nigerian Bank CEOs To Meet On CBN Sanction Against MTN, Four Lenders

Chief executives of Nigeria major banks are to meet soon to discuss the implications of the huge fine imposed on four commercial and the directive of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) that South African telecoms firm MTN returns $8.1 billion illegally transferred outside the country.The discussion is expected to hold under forum of Bankers' Committee Meeting, which comprises top CBN officials and banks chiefs executives. No date has been agreed...

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MTN Ghana raises $238.5 million in IPO, misses target

MTN Group said on Thursday its Ghana unit raised 1.14 billion cedis ($238.5 million) in the largest initial public offering in the West African country but failed to reach its target.Telecoms operator MTN had hoped to raise 3.47 billion cedis from selling about 4.63 billion shares representing up to 35 percent of the issued shares of MTN Ghana at 0.75 cedis per share, it said in a statement. It only sold 1.53 billion shares.MTN’s Group said its stake in MTN Ghana will be 85.40 perce...

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Nigeria's Senate President Saraki Says Want To Become President

Nigerian Senate President Bukola Saraki said he’ll challenge President Muhammadu Buhari as leader of Africa’s most populous country in 2019 elections.“I hereby announce my intention to run for the office of president,” Saraki told reporters Thursday in the capital, Abuja. “I do so with the firm conviction that I have what it takes to secure inclusive growth for Nigeria and Nigerians.”Saraki, 56, said he’ll run on the platform of the main opposition...

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Nigeria central bank fines four banks, orders MTN to refund $8.1 bln sent abroad

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has imposed a total fine of 5.87 billion naira on four commercial lenders for the breach of the country's foreign exchange regulations and ordered the local unit of South African telecoms firm MTN to return $8.13 billion back to the country. In a tweet by the regulatory bank's spokesman, Isaac Okorafor the telecoms firm and four banks are also to refund the amount "for breaching Nigeria's forex regulations on MTN's...

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President Buhari withholds assent to 17-year-old oil bill

Nigerian President Muhammadu Buhari has withheld his assent to the Petroleum Industrial Governance Bill (PIGB). The decision is coming after 17 years of rigorous consultations and legislative hassles on the document.The Guardian quoted sources who claimed the president hinged his action on the argument that the bill reduces the president’s control of an industry that contributes the largest chunk to the national economy.“The president said those he contacted among his ministers, especially the attorney general and minister of justice, claimed that...

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Why Lagos port is congested, by Osinbajo

Nigerian Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo has blamed the increased congestion of the Apapa Port, Lagos was due to the failure of successive administrations to invest in infrastructure using the huge resources realised over the years. He said the past administrations failed to invest in the other ports and the rail system when Nigeria earned higher revenues from oil.Osinbajo spoke during a special plenary at the ongoing Annual General Conference...

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South African Banks Weigh New Fund to Boost Black Farm Ownership

South African banks are in talks to start a joint fund that could be used to accelerate the transfer of land to black people as they seek to protect billions of rand in assets tied up in farm loans.Lenders are wading into the racially charged land-reform debate as the ruling party embraces calls to change the constitution to allow expropriation without compensation. While the African National Congress sees the step as a means to improve equality 24 years after the end of racial segregation, the main opposition party says it is trying to deflect...

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UK Prime Minister Says Nigeria Is Home To highest number of world’s very poor people

The Prime Minister of the United Kingdom, Theresa May has said 87 million Nigerians were living below $1.90 a day, making Nigeria “home to more very poor people than any other nation in the world. The Prime minister who is expected to visit the country on Wednesday stated in Cape Town, South Africa that many individual Nigerians were enjoying the fruits of “a resurgent economy” but more people are slipping into poverty daily. May is visiting Nigeria, Kenya and South Africa this week and has expressed the desire to see Britain become...

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Kenya’s deputy chief justice arrested for suspected corruption - police

Kenya’s deputy chief justice Philomena Mwilu was arrested on Tuesday on suspicion of corruption, failure to pay tax, and improper dealings with a local bank now in receivership, the police and the country’s top prosecutor said.Chief Public Prosecutor Noordin Mohamed Haji told a news conference that Mwilu had abused her office for personal gain, undermining public integrity in the judiciary. The director of criminal investigations, George Kinoti, told Reuters in a text message: “I can confirm the arrest of the deputy chief justice.”Reuters was unable...

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Nigeria's Zenith Bank CEO Peter Amangbo in EFCC net Over Rivers State funance

The chief executive officer of Nigeria's Zenith Bank, Peter Amangbo has been held by anti-graft investigators over a series of transactions his bank allegedly carried out on behalf of one of Nigeria’s largest oil-producing states, Rivers, an online news portal PREMIUM TIMES has reported. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is alleging that the transactions, at least 117 billion naira in value, are suspicious in nature but that Zenith failed to report them as demanded by law.Insiders at the EFCC and Zenith Bank said Amangbo...

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Nigeria's forex reserves down to $46 bln by Aug 23

Nigeria's foreign exchange reserves declined by $990.98 million in twenty-three days to $46.13 billion by August 23, data from the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has shown. The country's buffer stood at $47.11 billion at the end of July, data published on the website of the regulatory bank showed. Analysts attributed the drop in the country's forex reserves was as a result of capital flights by foreign portfolio investors in recent time as the economy experience some slow down. Nigerian stock market has experienced a major decline with the main...

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Nigerian economy loses momentum in Q2 as GDP slows to 1.50 Pct

Nigeria, Africa’s top economy Gross Domestic Products (GDP) grew 1.50 percent year on year in the second quarter of the year down from 1.95 percent growth achieved in the first three months of the year, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) data showed on Monday. Analysts traced the slow down in economic growth to the uncertainty engendered by the delay in approving the 2018 fiscal policy, which was not ready until June. Nigeria's parliament approved 9.1 trillion naira budget estimate for 2018 in June after delaying the approval for more...

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