Author

Folarin Kehinde

Peter Obi
Headlines

Breaking: American Business Community Confirms Peter Obi’s Capacity to Change Nigeria Fortune

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

The American Business Community has affirmed that Mr Peter Obi and his team have the wherewithal to move Nigeria into a 21-century country that is self-reliant and self-sufficient if given the opportunity.

This was confirmed by a Nigerian  U.S. based philanthropist, business analyst and the founder of Princewill and Shantel Odidi Community Foundation, Mr Princewill Odidi.

Echoing the heartbeat of participants during the interactive session at the US Chamber of Commerce organize for Peter Obi and his team, Odidi remarked that one of the greatest test to leadership is one’s ability to choose the right lieutenants.

“When Peter Obi was faced with questions at the US Chamber of Commerce meeting with Washington DC insiders, the world bank and IMF, he carried along Prof Pat Utomi.

“The way and manner Prof Utomi handled questions and addressed issues related to our forex, Capital Projects, what exactly is the problem with the economy at present, and how they planned to solve it, it is obvious, he is master of the game. I was proud of Nigeria.

Odidi said Nigeria and Nigerian would be better off if they elect competence over ethnicity. He said from what he saw and the reactions from investors, IMF and World Bank delegates, Peter Obi has the magic wand to turn things around for better if elected Nigeria President.

“The Washington boys found in Peter Obi and Pat Utomi a formidable  team capable of leading Nigeria into the 21 century.

“Sitting down here and watching the presentation and analysis, you will be proud to be a Nigerian.

“Later today as we leave Washington DC to Atlanta, there is a  town hall meeting slated for 6pm and a media chat with CNN Saturday morning. Proud to be Nigerian, happy I aligned with a team that has shown capacity.

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Nigeria Debt
BusinessHeadlines

Why Nigeria Is In Debt

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

The Director-General of the Debt Management Office, DMO, Mrs. Patience Oniha, yesterday attributed Nigeria high debt profile to lack of revenues and approval of the annual budget with a deficit by the National Assembly, which increased the debt stock of the country.

She said Nigeria had been running on budget deficit for many decades, which in turn affected its revenue profile.

Appearing before the House of Representatives Committee on Finance interfacing with the DMO on the heels of the consideration of Medium-Term Expenditure Framework MTEF and Fiscal Strategy Paper FSP from 2023 to 2025, Oniha said Nigeria was indebted to the tune of N41. 6 trillion

According to her, until the issues of personnel, overhead and capital expenditure are properly addressed in the budget, borrowing will not stop.

She said:  “As you know, we publish the debt numbers quarterly which is why there is a lot of discussions around it. But let me just give some numbers. As at December 2020, the debt stock of Nigeria and that includes the federal, state governments and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, was N32.92 trillion.

”By December 2021, it was N39.556 trillion. As at March of this year, we publish quarterly, it was N41.6triilion. On the average, (federal government) it is about 85 per cent of the total. Technically, the bulk of it is the federal government’s.

“Debt has grown and that has come really from the annual budget. There are three levels where those borrowings have increased. We have been running deficit budget for many, years. So, each time you approve a budget with a deficit, by the time we raise that money, because when you approve, it is giving us a mandate, authority to borrow.

”It will reflect in the debt stock, so debt stock will increase. Also remember that states are equally borrowing. So we add their own. They also have laws governing their borrowings.

“The Second leg to that really is as debt stock increases, so does debt service. And so, the clear message is go through the budget, we have been having deficit budget for many years and have been borrowing significantly.

How to reduce debt profile

“From COVID in 2020, the level of borrowing had increased significantly as you know. Those budgets pass through this House. The issue is how do you reduce that debt?  One of it is revenues, which we have talked about.

”So, if revenues are high, your deficit will be lower and your new borrowing will be lower and then your new borrowing will be less and your debt stock will be slower and debt service to revenue will now be so high.

“So, the challenge is, we have been borrowing because of shortfalls. So, the other thing to do is let’s look at our expenditure profile, what can we do to reduce this because you are asking me what is the remedy.

”It is from the budget. There is revenue, there is expenditure listed in various categories – personnel, overhead and capital. So, those are what bring out the deficit we borrow for. It is those things that should be interrogated, in addition to increasing revenue significantly.

“Let me say that a World Bank report just showed that in terms of debt-to=GDP ratio, Nigeria is low but for debt-service-to revenue ratio, we are very high. So, if you look at tax-to-GDP ratio of these other countries, they are in multiples of Nigeria.

”The World Bank report did a survey and I think it’s about 197 countries and Nigeria is number 195, meaning we beat only two countries and that was Yemen and Afghanistan and I don’t think we want to be at those places.

”So, we can’t talk about borrowing without talking about revenues and we can’t say why is the debt stock growing. It’s growing because we are running deficit budget and some of you may be aware we are also issuing promissory note to refinance arrears of government, which also comes to the National Assembly for approval.

“What we as DMO have been saying particularly since 2020, when the MTEF for 2021 to 2023 was being prepared, is to say hey, let’s begin to look at revenues because as debt is growing, debt services are increasing.

”So, the language we used was for debt to be sustainable in the medium term, sustainable means you can service your debt without difficulty, without it consuming all your revenues because you have very little for other projects.

”You must look at revenues very closely and I think the discussions you have had with the Customs is one part of it. There are many other revenue generating agencies. So, we must increasingly begin to look at our revenue for funding  activities as opposed to deficit.

“We talk about N11 trillion deficit and borrowing for 2023, how much is the revenue there? That’s one. When we looked at the first tranche that was N10 trillion for full year of subsidy and N9 trillion for subsidy next year, the size of the borrowing was 62 per cent of the budget. That’s high.

”The responsibilities, I think, are on both sides. Query the various expenditure lines and see what it is we can handle. So, if the deficit is lower, the borrowing will be lower and that’s how to grow on a slower pace.”

The DMO DG justified the past borrowings, pointing to the modernization of the airports and the construction of more rail-lines and roads.

“I think we should be fair to ourselves as people serving Nigeria to say we can’t see what we use the borrowing for.  This might not be exactly true. Look at the airports. How many do you have?

”You have a new international airport in Abuja, you have the modernization in Kano, even Enugu that is now international. Those came from borrowings. The rail-lines have also come from borrowings.

”So, it is not a zero performance. Those things generate revenue in some other countries. We have those projects not just this one in Abuja, then on Sukuk, which is a project tied borrowing, you have seen those ones,” she said.

In his remarks, deputy chairman of the committee, Saidu Abdullahi, who presided over the session, said that the country was on a good pedestal to keep borrowing.

“I want to appreciate the fact that for a developing country, the need for borrowing will always be there. It doesn’t matter how much we make, the country must borrow.

”What we should be interested in is the sustainability of what we are borrowing and from what she has said, the country is on a good pedestal in terms of managing its borrowing,” he said.

source: vanguard

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Jang
Headlines

Breaking: Court Acquits Jonah Jang of Fraud Charge

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

A Plateau State High Court sitting in Jos on Friday discharged and acquitted a former Governor of the state, Jonah Jang, over the N6.3 billion corruption charges levelled against him by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission

The court presided over by Justice Christy Dabup also discharged and acquitted a former cashier in the office of the Secretary to the Plateau state government, Yusuf Pam, who was accused alongside the former governor.

Details Later….

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Africa & WorldHeadlines

China Arrests 100’s Over Bank Fraud

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

Police in China have arrested 234 suspects allegedly involved in a rural banking scandal, a month after hundreds of depositors protested over their lost savings in one of the largest demonstrations the country has seen since the pandemic began.

Four banks in central China Henan province suspended cash withdrawals in April as regulators cracked down on mismanagement, freezing the funds of hundreds of thousands of customers and sparking protests that at times ended in violence.

Police said they had now arrested 234 people in connection with the scandal and that “significant progress” was being made in recovering stolen funds.

“A criminal gang… illegally controlled four village and town banks… and was suspected of committing a series of serious crimes,” police in the city of Xuchang said in a statement on Monday.

it said a criminal gang led by the alleged mastermind, Lv Yi, took control of four rural banks including Yuzhou Xinminsheng Village Bank, luring depositors with promises of annual returns as high as 18%.

Anguished depositors have staged several demonstrations in the city of Zhengzhou, Henan’s provincial capital, over the past two months to demand their savings back, but their calls had fallen on deaf ears.

In July, more than 1,000 depositors from across China gathered outside the Zhengzhou branch of the country’s central bank, the People’s Bank of China, to launch their largest protest yet. The peaceful demonstration was crushed violently by authorities, with police and plain-clothed security personnel forcefully dispersing protesters.

Following the protest, Henan’s financial regulator said depositors would be refunded, with the first payments being sent to bank customers with a combined total of less than 50,000 yuan ($7,200) deposited at a single bank.

On Monday, the financial authorities said they would launch another round of repayments to customers, this time focusing on those with deposits of between 400,000 yuan ($57,800) and 500,000 yuan ($72,200).

Depositors who have lost more would receive an initial sum of 500,000 yuan with the remainder reserved for now, according to the regulators.

“After this round of repayments, the centralized repayment work will be largely completed, and further matters will be dealt with by the four rural banks,” the statement said.

Runs on small Chinese banks have become more frequent in recent years and some have been accused of financial improprieties or corruption. But experts worry that a much bigger financial problem could be looming, caused by fallout from a real estate crash and soaring bad debts related to the Covid-19 pandemic.

About a quarter of the total assets in China’s banking system are held by around 4,000 small lenders, which often have opaque ownership and governance structures and are more vulnerable to corruption and the sharp economic slowdown.

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Kastina
Headlines

Banditry: FG Grants Kastina N6.25 Billion For Cattle Ranching

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

Kastina state has been granted N6.25 billion by FG for the establishment of cattle ranches in local government areas affected by banditry in the state.

The state’s Deputy Governor, Alhaji Mannir Yakubu, who doubles as Commissioner for Agriculture and Rural Development, disclosed this during the Ranch Stakeholders Development Meeting in Katsina.

He said that the frontline local government areas where grazing reserves would be established were Jibia, Batsari, Dutsinma, Safana, Danmusa, Kankara, Faskari and Sabuwa Dandume among others.

According to him, part of the funds will be used to construct schools, health centres and veterinary clinics in the affected communities.

The deputy governor of Kastina, he said that the state government would engage reputable contractors to handle the projects.

According to him, the federal and the state governments are determined to ensure that peace and stability are restored in areas affected by banditry, cattle rustling, kidnapping and other criminalities.

“We are therefore soliciting for the support and cooperation of the affected communities to provide suitable sites for the execution of these projects,” Yakubu said.

source: pointblanknews

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Ice Prince
EntertainmentHeadlines

Breaking: Ice Prince Arrested For Assaulting Police

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

Popular Nigerian Hip Hop star Panshak Henry Zamani aka Ice Prince has been arrested by the Lagos State Police Command, for abducting, assaulting and threatening a police officer.

The music star was arrested after he allegedly abducted a police officer who stopped him for driving without plates and threatened to throw him in the river.

This events occurred at about 3am this morning.

Ice Prince was said to have initially agreed to be taken to the station immediately but ‘abducted the police officer’ in his car, assaulted him, and threatened to throw him in the lagoon.

Confirming the incident, the state’s Police Public Relations Officer, Superintendent of Police (SP) Benjamin Hundeyin said the musician has been arrested and would be arraigned today.

“At about 3a.m Ice Prince was stopped for driving without license plates. He agreed to be taken to the station,” Hundeyin tweeted.

“He, thereafter, abducted the police officer in his car, assaulted him, and threatened to throw him in the river. He has been arrested and would be arraigned today.”

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wike
Headlines

Governor Wike Vows To Destroy PDP in 2023 Elections

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

The Governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike has threatened to destroy the Peoples’ Democratic Party (PDP) chances in the upcoming 2023 presidential election.

Wike, who is having a running battle with Senator Iyioricha Ayu, National Chairman of the PDP, said this at the commissioning of a road in Omerelu community in Ikwerre Local Government Area of Rivers, on Thursday.

The governor was responding to recent comments by Ayu that those asking him to step down were children.

In an interview with BBC Hausa, Ayu had said, “I have not violated any rules; in fact, I am working to bring reforms to the party. I am truly not bothered by the unnecessary controversy being generated. When we started PDP, these children were not around. They are children who do not know why we formed the party. We will not allow any individual to destabilise our party.”

But in his response, Wike described Ayu as a greedy man who was only after his interest.

Wike said it was obvious that Ayu wanted the PDP to lose in 2023 and he was willing to assist him achieve that.

“You can imagine what power can do. You can imagine the ingratitude; how people can be ingrates in their lives. I thought as a chairman of a party who wants to win elections, your business is to bring peace to your party; your business is not to divide your party. Your business is not to show arrogance to your party.

“Yes, the children brought you to be chairman of the party. The children brought you from the gutter to make you chairman. Doctor Ayu said we are children. Yes, the children brought you from the gutter to make you chairman. Now we have seen that you don’t want the party to win election, we will help you.

“Ayu, you said you founded this party, but you left the party in 2007. You founded a company, you left the company, people stood and brought out the company to what it is today, you have no moral right to still come and claim that you founded that company, you left with your shares. You want to show integrity, you want to show a party to Nigeria that we want to take over, you must convince Nigerians that we have the integrity. You are the driver that will drive the vehicle to convey us to go our destination. That is the victory we are looking for. If the driver has no integrity and cannot show honesty, how do you convince Nigerians? If you tell Nigerians something and cannot do it, is it when you enter into power that you will do it

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Haaland
EntertainmentHeadlinesSports

Haaland Makes History After Last Night Goals Treble

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

Fans have gushed over Erling Haaland, the Norway international for his first-half treble against Steve Cooper’s Reds

Haaland first-half hat-trick for Manchester City against Nottingham Forest at the Etihad Stadium has thrown social media into a frenzy.

During Wednesday’s Premier League encounter against the Reds, the Norway international was in devastating form – scoring thrice to give the Citizens a 3-0 lead over Steve Cooper’s men.

He found the net first in the 12th minute after he was set up by Phil Foden. Eleven minutes later, he doubled the advantage for Pep Guardiola’s men with a fine finish.

In the goal-laden first 45 minutes, the former Borussia Dortmund star completed his treble thanks to John Stones’ last pass.

Fueled by the 22-year-old’s notable act, enthusiasts went on social media to sing his praises.

With his heroics, Haaland has scored nine goals in his first five Premier League appearances, a new competition record, surpassing Mick Quinn and Sergio Aguero (both 8).

Also, he has now matched Harry Kane (26 appearances) for goals scored in the month of August in the Premier League (8)

source: goal

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September
ExclusivesHeadlines

New Month: Things That Will Happen In September

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

Welcome to the Month of September our esteemed readers from us at LEADINGREPORTERS. This month, though just beginning is packed with intriguing political events, sober memories, amongst other activities.

September 1 – Emirates Airline Suspend Nigerian Flights

Taking effect from 1st of September, Emirates Airline would completely suspend further operations in Nigeria.

This is due to their over 95 million dollars trapped funds in Nigeria which they cannot repatriate due to foreign exchange (FX) scarcity in the Nation.

According to the Dubai owned Airline company, it had tried every avenue possible to address it’s ongoing challenges in repatriating funds from Nigeria.

They had made considerable efforts to initiate dialogue with relevant authorities without any success.

They have therefore taken the difficult decision to suspend flight in Nigeria in order to minimize further losses and impact on their operational costs that continue to accumulate in the market.

In their statement, the Emirates airline stated that “We sincerely regret the inconvenience caused to our customers, however the circumstances are beyond our control at this stage. We will be working to help impacted customers make alternative travel arrangements wherever possible,” the airline stated.

 The airline further stated that if there would be any positive developments in the coming days regarding its blocked funds in Nigeria, it would re-evaluate its decision.

September 11 – 9/11 Attack Commemoration

On the 11th of September, the world would commemorate with the United States who were attacked by Al Qaeda terrorist on that day in 2001.

Four planes were hijacked that day by the terrorist. Two of the planes crashed into the twin towers of the world trade center in New York, another crashed in the Pentagon while the last plane crashed in a field without hitting its target.

A total of 2,996 people were killed in the 9/11 attacks, including the 19 terrorist hijackers aboard the four airplanes. Citizens of 78 countries died in New York, Washington, D.C., and Pennsylvania.

Three Nigerians died during the attack. Their names are Godwin Ajala, 33, Ignatius Udo Adanga, 62, and Olabisi Shadie Layeni-Yee. May their souls rest in peace.

9/11 is known to be the deadliest attack on American soil and its aftermath changed a lot of the world’s dynamics. It initiated the war on terror and the continued presence of American troops in the middle east till this very day.

September 12 – Academic Activities Resume

On September 12th, pupils in primary and secondary schools across the nation would resume for their first term academic activities.

The first term is expected to run from 12th September till early December.

The resuming students includes those in governments schools in Abuja that were closed abruptly due to the insecurity facing the nation’s capital.

LEADINGREPORTERS wrote on the closing of unity and government schools in the nation’s capital due to reports of bandits infiltrating areas in Abuja.

We hope that the schools are now safe for our children to learn without any harm coming their way.

September 28 – Presidential Campaigns Begin

September 28th is the date slated by the Independent National Electoral Commission for presidential and National Assembly campaigns to begin across the country.

According to section 32(I) of the electoral act 2022, campaigns are expected to start 150 days before the election and end 24 hours before election day.

Presidential candidates can begin travelling across the country, holding mega rallies in order to canvass for votes in the upcoming elections. It would surely be an event to look forward to.

Conclusion

These are the activities are pre scheduled for the month September. The month would surely bring its own news and events and we at LEADINGREPORTERS will always be here to bring the undiluted, transparent and accurate news to your tabloids.

Happy new month once again.

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Headlines

New MSME Policy To Ensure Inclusive Development – SMEDAN

by Folarin Kehinde
written by Folarin Kehinde

People engaging in Medium, Small and Medium Enterprise, MSME in Plateau State have been taken through the intricacies of the National MSME Policy to enable them to understand the priority of the policy, see how they can key into and own the policy for inclusive development of the MSME sub-sector.

The one-day stakeholders’ dialogue on the implementation of the National MSME Policy in Plateau State was organized by the Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency of Nigeria, SMEDAN with the support of the GIZ-SEDIN programme (a Deutsch Gesellschaft für Internationale Zusammenarbeit, pro-poor growth and promotion of employment in Nigeria) in collaboration with the Plateau State Microfinance Development Agency, PLASMIDA.

Speaking at the event held on Thursday in Jos, the Director General of SMEDAN, Olawale Fasanya in his keynote address, said the engagement forum is an avenue to “harvest inputs of stakeholders which would assist the Agency to decide the exact intervention that is needed to enable MSME to continue to improve and add value to the nation’s economy.”

Fasanya reiterated the need to bridge the information gap between the government agencies in charge of MSMEs development, adding that there are adequate funds to support MSMEs but operators do not have the requisite knowledge to access the funds due to lack of proper information hence, plans are underway to establish business information centres in all the local government areas for the benefit of grassroots dwellers who own small businesses.

Giving an update on the said policy as well as the National Survey on MSMEs, Onesi-Lawani Daberuje of SMEDAN noted that the forum sought to “create awareness/ownership If the policy implementation at the State level, provide a platform for regular interface towards the implementation of the policy recommendations and allows for input-harvest by SMEDAN in driving sustainability and strengthening the MSME subsector.”

He pointed out that among other things, the policy priority areas are to “raise awareness, five extension/support services, marketing, infrastructure, cost of doing business,” among others.

Also, Markus Wauschkuhn of the GIZ-SEDIN reinforced that the role of MSMEs in employment and the creation of jobs cannot be played down as the sub-sector contributes to Nigeria’s economy and its GDP growth.

His words, “… MSMEs generate income and further employment, we work closely with private and public institutions to improve the conditions these enterprises have to work, the business environment, the policies, the local economic development. The SEDIN programme is supporting the SMEDAN to organize the stakeholder engagement in Plateau State to strengthen the collaboration among the different actors and to strengthen the MSMEs ecosystem.

“We offer support for maximum impacts of MSMEs because of the roles of MSMEs in economic development and creation of jobs, especially in Nigeria where the unemployment rate is high. Available statistics show that MSMEs contribute up to 48% of the national GDP but despite this significant contribution, challenges hinder the growth and development of the sector therefore, we give this support to address the issues which hinder the growth of MSMEs in Nigeria…”

Bomkam Wuyep, the DG of PLASMIDA who represented the Secretary to the State Government, Professor Danladi Atu promised an improved environment for small businesses to thrive while Akinropo Omoware of GIZ assured of continued collaboration with all stakeholders to strengthen MSMEs.

Discussing the challenges faced by MSMEs in the State, as well as the possible solutions to the issues raised, participants complained about the cumbersome conditions for accessing funds, the unlevel playing field for small businesses to thrive, and the lack of data to help in monitoring and evaluation, lack of access to the Bank of Industry, lack of access to improved seedlings, lack of access to markets for sales of products as well as the use of intervention for consumption rat

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