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Friday 27 November 2015

Court dismisses EFCC N19.2bn fraud charges against Timpre Sylva

The Federal High Court in Abuja has dismissed the N19.2 billion fraud charges filed against former Bayelsa state governor Timpre Sylva by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC. At the resumed hearing of the case today, Justice Adeniyi Ademola dismissed the case, saying it was an abuse of court process. He stated that the fraud charges brought against the former governor who is now the APC candidate in the Bayelsa governorship election, had been dismissed by two federal high courts, and resuscitation was tantamount to an abuse of court process.

Kevin Federline apologizes to Beyonce

Britney's ex-husband Kevin Federline has apologized to Beyonce for accusing her of abusing Botox and ruining her looks. He actually called her sawface. His apology after the cut...

Photos: Buhari departs for Malta for CHOGM meeting

President Buhari has left for Malta to participate in the 2015 Commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting which begins in the Island nation on Friday Nov. 27th. At the conclusion of the Summit on Sunday November 29th, President Buhari will leave Malta for Paris where he will present Nigeria's statement at the United Nations Climate Change Conference scheduled to open in the French capital on Monday, November 30.

He is accompanied by by the Minister of Foreign Affairs, Geoffrey Onyeama, the Minister of Environment, Amina Mohammed and the National Security Adviser, Maj.-Gen. Babagana Monguno (rtd.)

Chris Brown shows off his blings

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Buhari Bounce Becomes Bust as Nigeria Policies Irk Investors

Nigerian President Mohammadu Buhari.

Photographer: Pius Utomi Ekpei/AFP via Getty Images

Growth rate set to slow to 16-year low of 3.3% as oil falls
Naira policy is biggest concern, Citigroup analyst Howell says

When Muhammadu Buhari clinched victory in Nigeria’s presidential elections in March, stocks soared as investors looked to the former military ruler to reverse decades of economic mismanagement and policy inertia. Now hopes have fizzled in his ability to turn around Africa’s largest economy and oil producer.
Money that flowed into stocks and bonds in the West African nation, which McKinsey & Co. says could become one of the world’s 20 biggest economies by 2030, is now fleeing as growth prospects diminish along with oil prices. While Buhari, 72, has prioritized stamping out the graft that has plagued Nigeria since independence from Britain in 1960, policy-making appears as uncertain and haphazard as ever.
“After the initial euphoria, people have become disillusioned,” Ayodele Salami, who oversees about $500 million of African equities as chief investment officer of London-based Duet Asset Management Ltd., said by phone. “He would probably say that he’s being deliberative and cautious. But we expected more.” Duet’s Africa fund has cut its investments in the country to about 24 percent of the total from 38 percent in the last year.

Buhari waited five months before naming his cabinet, hasn’t proposed a clear plan to revive growth and backed foreign-exchange controls aimed at defending the naira. His retention of gasoline subsidies, plans to raise spending in the face of declining revenue and silence about a $5.2 billion fine levied on mobile-phone operator MTN Group Ltd. have added to investor unease.
Nigeria’s benchmark stock index has plunged 22 percent since reaching a year-high on April 2, the day after Buhari was declared the winner of the presidential race against incumbent Goodluck Jonathan. That’s the third-worst performance globally in the period, after the bourses in Ukraine and Egypt. The index advanced 12.5 percent in the two days after Jonathan conceded.

To be sure, Buhari inherited depleted government coffers and a bureaucracy that multiple probes have blamed for looting billions of dollars of oil revenue. The president has said he delayed appointing ministers because he needed time to vet suitable candidates.
Garba Shehu, a spokesman for Buhari, didn’t immediately respond to written questions after requesting they be sent that way.

The hiatus has compounded the pain caused by the slide in the price of crude, which accounts for two-thirds of government revenue and 90 percent of export earnings. Growth, which averaged 6.3 percent annually over the past decade, is set to slow to a 16-year low of 3.3 percent this year, according to the median estimate of 15 economists surveyed by Bloomberg.
Many filling stations ran dry this month as the government withheld fuel subsidies to suppliers, preventing them from restocking. Lengthening lines forced Buhari to ask lawmakers for permission to pay 413 billion naira ($2 billion) in overdue payments, an amount that hadn’t been budgeted for.
While next year’s budget has yet to be finalized, Buhari wants to raise spending by 56 percent, according to a person who attended a briefing on the government’s plans and asked not to be identified because the matter is private. Vice President Yemi Osinbajo says the government plans to spend its way out of a slowing economy and that an infrastructure fund will be created with public and private financing.

The penalty imposed on MTN’s Nigeria unit last month for failing to register about 5 million subscribers may be an attempt to plug the hole in government finances, according to Cobus de Hart, an economist at NKC Independent Economists.
“You cannot deny there might be a fiscal element to the massive fine,” he said by phone from Paarl, near Cape Town. “It will make investors a little bit more wary of investing in Nigeria.”
An even bigger concern for many investors is the authorities’ naira policy. The Central Bank of Nigeria, with Buhari’s backing, has burned through $4.3 billion of reserves this year and choked off supply of foreign exchange to banks and their customers to defend the naira, even as major oil exporters such as Russia and Colombia have let their currencies slide. The restrictions prompted JPMorgan Chase & Co. to remove Nigeria from its local-currency emerging-market bond indexes, tracked by more than $200 billion of funds, in September, triggering a selloff in the nations’ assets.
While the naira has been all but fixed at about 198 to 199 per dollar since March, forward prices suggest it will drop by almost one-fifth, to 243.5, in a year.

“The number-one issue is the exchange rate,” Andrew Howell, a Citigroup Inc. frontier markets strategist, said from Lagos. ”Access to foreign exchange is becoming a widespread problem.”
Nigerian Breweries Plc, the nation’s biggest brewer that’s controlled by Heineken NV, said it takes two weeks to obtain dollars to pay for its imports, twice as long as it required a few months ago. Nestle SA’s Nigerian unit has had to wait six weeks for dollars, according to Renaissance Capital Ltd. analysts.
Buhari has won plaudits from leaders including President Barack Obama for his efforts to tackle graft. He replaced the management of the state oil company, which was accused of withholding billions of dollars from the government, and has stepped up the fight against an insurgency being waged by Islamist group Boko Haram.
“The degree of transparency we’re starting to get with the new administration is hugely positive,” Douglas Rowlings, an analyst at Moody’s Investors Service, said in an interview in Lagos. “It gives investors the perception that operating in Nigeria will now be done following proper procedures.”
Jan Dehn, head of research at Ashmore Group Plc, which oversees almost $60 billion of emerging market assets, remains unconvinced that Buhari is up to the job. The fund manager sold all its Nigerian government debt in the past year.
“So far the Buhari administration has done all the wrong things,” Dehn said by phone from London. “Not only has he been incredibly slow in taking any action, when he finally has taken action on the economic front it’s been diametrically opposed to sensible policy. That is a major disappointment given expectations prior to his election.”

From:Yahoo News

Wednesday 25 November 2015

Read What Prof. Soyinka Has To Say about Tinubu

"I do not admire Tinubu because he is a saint...

I do not admire Tinubu because he is from the south...
I do not admire Tinubu because he is a Yoruba...
If I want saints, I will proceed to heaven not on earth...

Every human is fallible (but) I admire Tinubu because...
He saved Nigeria from the danger of falling into "one party state". He has nurtured many renowned National successors. He listened to the voice of the masses to surrender his personal ambition at the most critical moment.

He strategically terminated PDP 60 years life span in 16 years. The robust critic and critique we are enjoying today is because Tinubu aligned himself to the masses to return the power to them.

Tinubu has the option of joining the PDP elites to hold us hostage for another decade but he gave his all to the masses to dethrone the elites.

Political juveniles believed that APC won because of the votes from the North. No!!!, APC's victory was cemented the day Muhammadu Buhari and Asiwaju Tinubu resolved to work together.

Asiwaju and PMB almost became a Nomadic by visiting every human that can help midwife Nigeria's salvation. Those 'Nomadic Almajiri' walk later brought salvation to us.

God willing, PMB is the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. Anybody, any cabal, any Viju milk activist, attempting to humiliate Asiwaju must have me to contend with.

An average PDP man is sad with Asiwaju because he brought them to their knees. If anyone thinks that to bring down Asiwaju is his project, that mission will not only crash but it will boomerang.

Don't tell me he is overbearing, your "underbearing" mentors were nowhere to be found when this Country was lying critically at the intensive care of the universe. Recall my first line, Asiwaju is not a saint. Stop demonising what you admire out of envy. Even your mentors admire him.

He owns Lagos? I hear you!
Ask your grand father and parents how they acquired your so called "family land". Is it God that allocated it to them?

You are terrorizing your neighbours and village with your kpof-kpof kobo yet you criticise a man that is naturally addicted to technocrats, irrespective of their tribe or religion.

He is evil? I agree, but we need more of him than any of your saintly specie.

Dear Asiwaju, the gentle stride of a tiger is not a symbol of a cowardice".

- Prof. Wole Soyinka's Tribute to APC National Leader, Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

Photos: Pope Francis arrives in Kenya

Pope Francis arrived Kenya for his state visit this afternoon and was received by Kenyan president Uhuru Kenyatta, his wife, Reverend Fathers and other top government functionaries. See more photos after the cut...

Buhari will decide on MTN’s N1.04tn fine- Minister of Communication says

Minister of Communication, Bayo Shittu, says only President Buhari will decide on the N1.04 trillion fine Nigeria Communication Commission slammed on the MTN for defaulting in the Sim registration exercise. Shittu said this at the Alliance 4 Affordable Internet Nigeria Coalition conference in Lagos yesterday November 24th

“I don’t think there is any conflicting position on where government stands on the MTN issue. Recall that there were violations which were established against MTN. The violations were to the tune of five million subscribers.
There are many countries where subscribers, in the entire country, are not up to half of the five million. In the case of Nigeria, we had more than five million violations. However, both the government and MTN are on the same page that rules have been broken in this instance. The issue is now before Mr President. He will take the necessary decision at the appropriate time. And the President would do what is best for the public interest. The good thing is that MTN did not contest the fact that they had violated the regulations and guidelines. They never contested it. They admitted they were at fault. They apologized for their role in the saga and they made a commitment that what happened will never happen again. And of course, they made a plea for review of the payment terms,” he said.

Lasca Residence Abuja for rent

LASCA Residence is one of the most sought after properties in the Gaduwa District of Abuja. It is a brand new luxury apartment located in an area that places it within easy reach of everything the city has to offer such as hotels, schools, shopping malls and plazas, Banks and other financial institutions, good roads and recreation centers.

It is situated in Gaduwa, along the Games Village Road, close to Apo Legislative quarters corridor that boast of new developments in hospitalities, market infrastructures and real estate. The location and the spectacular views makes Lasca Residence a reference in Abuja, with less than 7 minutes’ drive to Shoprite at Apo and 10 minutes’ drive to the Central Business District.

Side View

The apartments are magnificently restored to provide discerning home seekers with a stunning selection of spacious one bedroom penthouse to 4 bedroom luxury rental apartments in the heart of Abuja city most desirable and convenient neighborhood. It offers an incomparably luxurious metropolitan rental lifestyle with impeccable finishes of the finest features, from Spanish tiles and Italian bathroom fittings to custom made kitchen cabinet.

The units are expansive with Floor-to-ceiling windows in the living areas and the rooms that allow an abundance of natural daylight and proper ventilation.

LASCA Residence is managed by Prixair Properties Limited and situated at Plot 687, Gaduwa Estate Road off Oladipo Diya Way, Gaduwa District, Abuja.

Unit Features: