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Headlines

Lewandowski Unveiled As Barcelona Number 9

by Folarin Kehinde August 5, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

Robert Lewandowski, former Bayern Munich Striker has been unveiled to the Barcelona fans with the number 9 shirt at the Camp Nou on Friday.

Lewandowski was presented as Barcelona’s new No.9 following his €50 million (£42m/$51m) transfer from Bayern Munich.

The European highest goal scorer has inherited the iconic jersey from Memphis Depay, who has been linked with a Camp Nou exit following Lewandowski’s transfer.

Lewandowski turns 34 later this month but dismissed any suggestion that his best years are behind him at his first press conference at Barca’s stadium on Thursday, even though he didn’t hit the net for the club in pre-season.

I think my age is not important right now, it’s just a number. I feel better than when I was 29,” he said.

He added, “I know that Barcelona was not going through an easy time, but when I spoke with Joan and heard about the project and the way they wanted to follow, I thought that the best thing was to make the jump to Barcelona.”

August 5, 2022 0 comments

Headlines

Former Inspector General Of Police Dead

by Folarin Kehinde August 5, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

Former Inspector General of Police, Mustafa Adebayo Balogun, popularly known as Tafa Balogun, is dead.

He is reported to have died at Reddington Hospital in Lagos

The late Mustafa Adebayo Balogun was born 25 August 1947 in Ila Orangun, Osun State.

He was the Inspector General of Police, IGP, between 2002 and 2005, before he was forced into submitting his letter of resignation to former President Olusegun Obasanjo because of widespread allegations of corruption against him

Prior to that time, Balogun was Police Commissioner in Delta, Rivers and Abia States, respectively. He was also an Assistant Inspector General of Police, AIG, in charge of Zone 1 Kano.

On April 4, 2005, Balogun was arraigned at the Federal High Court, Abuja by the economic and financial crime commission, EFCC under Nuhu Ribadu on charges involving about N13bn obtained through money laundering, theft and other sources.

As the case progressed in and out of court, he asked for plea bargain in exchange to return some money and property; nevertheless, he got six months sentence, the greatest part of which was spent on a sick bed at the National Hospital in Abuja.

August 5, 2022 0 comments

Opinion Headlines

Exposing Waste and Corruption in Lagos State Blue Line Railway Project

by Folarin Kehinde August 5, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

In 2009, during the tenure of Governor Babatunde Fashola, the Lagos state government commenced the Blue Line railway project. On paper, the railway line is supposed to run from Okokomiko to inner Marina (CMS), a distance of 27 Kilometre, with 13 stations and an end-end journey time of 35 minutes. The project is costing the Lagos government 1.5 billion dollars

The reality however, is that the railway line runs from Miles 2 to CMS, a distance of 14.2 Kilometre. Also, it is light weight, having the ability to carry only passengers not cargo. Even with this lowered distance and quality, the railway line is yet to be completed till this very day.

The reason this rail line is yet to be complete for over 13 years is mainly due to corruption and waste by the Lagos government through successive governors from 2009 till date.

To put it in context, in 2011 the government of Ethiopia began the construction of a heavy railway line capable of carrying cargo and passengers from Addis Ababa to Djibouti, the capital of the republic of Djibouti.

That railway line is 759 Kilometres in distance and its main of objective was to connect Ethiopia to the sea ports of Djibouti. The cost for executing the project was 4.5 billion dollars.

That 759 Kilometres railway line was largely completed in 2016 when testing began. It was commissioned for operations by the President of Ethiopia in 2018.

When you divide the 4.5 billion dollars which the railway line cost Ethiopia by 759 Kilometre, it amounts to 5.2 million dollars per kilometre.

The government of Lagos on the other hand is spending over 54 million dollars per kilometre in constructing their railway line, yet till now it is still to be completed.

This goes to show how far inefficiency, corruption and waste can go in stalling a project whose completion otherwise would have been beneficial to the citizens of Lagos state.

August 5, 2022 0 comments

Headlines

Jamb To Conduct Mop-Up Exams Tomorrow

by Folarin Kehinde August 5, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB) is conducting a mop-up Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination (UTME) for candidates who could not participate in the examinations for verified reasons.

The mop-up will hold tomorrow being Saturday 6th of August 2022.

JAMB is holding the examination to give equal opportunity to all candidates who are desirous of tertiary education admissions.

No fewer than 1,969 candidates missed the 2022 UTME and Direct Entry (DE) examinations due to fingerprint peculiarities, Bank Verification Number (BVN) challenges and other technical issues, according to data obtained from JAMB.

The data also showed that some candidates had their examination cancelled due to malpractices in 10 examination centres across five states.

JAMB urged the concerned candidates to urgently visit its website on: www.jamb.gov.ng to check their eligibility status and print their mop-up notification slips.

The board warned that there will be no room for excuse for any candidate who misses the opportunity.

August 5, 2022 0 comments

Headlines

Nigerian Airforce Appoints New Branch Chiefs

by Folarin Kehinde August 4, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

Chief of the Air Staff , Air Marshal Oladayo Amao has approved the immediate appointment and redeployment of new Branch Chiefs, Air Officers Commanding and other senior officers.

The shake up is coming 48 hours after his directive to Air Force Operational and Air Component Commanders to maximize the deployment of firepower against terrorists and other criminal elements.

The newly appointed and redeployed senior officers are expected to assume their new offices on or before Friday, 5 August 2022.

In a statement on Thursday, the Director of Public Relations Information, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, said among the newly appointed Branch Chiefs are Air Vice Marshal Jackson Yusuf, formerly Chief of Training and Operations, now the Chief of Policy and Plans Headquarters NAF, Abuja; and AVM Oluwafemi Ogunmola, former Director of Intelligence Surveillance and Reconnaissance now Chief of Communications Information Systems.

AVM Aliyu Bello, former Chief of Standards and Evaluation is now redeployed as the CTOP, HQ NAF, Abuja while AVM Nkem Aguiyi takes over as the Chief of Air Intelligence, and AVM Hassan Abubakar, former AOC Logistics Command is now the Chief of Standards and Evaluation.

August 4, 2022 0 comments

Headlines

United States Senate Approve Finland and Sweden For NATO

by Folarin Kehinde August 4, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

The United States senate has voted unanimously to allow Finland and Sweden gain membership status in the defensive alliance of the North Atlantic Treaty Orgainztion (NATO). The two countries in Northern Europe which have always maintained a non-alignment policy had in May, decided to join the military organization due to threats posed by Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.

In June, after the NATO Summit in Madrid Spain, Finland and Sweden’s quest was formalized by member states, a process that must go to the Senate of member state for approvals. The US Senate voted 95 to 1 to ratify the request of both countries.

The US Senate majority leader, Senator Chuck Schumer, who invited the Ambassadors of the two countries to observe the process said, “Finland’s and Sweden’s membership will strengthen NATO even further, and is all the more urgent, given Russian aggression, given Putin’s immoral and unjustified war in Ukraine.”

The United State president, Joe Biden, who was glad at the landslide approval, said: “This historic vote sends an important signal of the sustained, bipartisan U.S. commitment to NATO, and to ensuring our Alliance is prepared to meet the challenges of today and tomorrow.”

“I look forward to signing the accession protocols and welcoming Sweden and Finland, two strong democracies with highly capable militaries, into the greatest defensive alliance in history,” the president added.

August 4, 2022 0 comments

Business Headlines

More Troubles For Flutterwave As Ghanaian, Kenyan Government Probes Operations

by Folarin Kehinde August 4, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

Nigerian payment company, Flutterwave, is being probed by Ghanaian government, days after Kenyan authority filed a lawsuit against the tech unicorn over card fraud and other financial infractions.

In a letter dated July 13, 2022, the Bank of Ghana mandated financial institutions to submit every Flutterwave records in their possession, stating that it wants to review the Nigerian firm.

The financial institution of the West African country said the probe is part of a continuous surveillance of the financial system, directing financial institutions to submit operational accounts of Flutterwave and details of all financial exposures of the company.

It was gathered that the financial institutions were given until July 20, 2022, to make available the information requested, including the services Flutterwave had stated to be offering.

The statement reads; “The Bank of Ghana is conducting a review on Flutterwave Technology Solutions Limited as part of its continuous surveillance of the financial system.

“To this end, we request you to furnish us with the following information on the above company: Details of services provided by the company to your institution.

“All operational accounts of the company with your institution. Details of all financial exposures to the company. You may also include any other information you have on the company.

“Kindly submit your response to fintech@bog.gov.gh by 20th July, 2022.” The statement, signed by Ismail Adam, Head of Banking Supervision Department, Bank of Ghana, disclosed

FLUTTERWAVE TROUBLES

In the last three months, Flutterwave and its founder, Gbenga Agboola, have been accused of various financial infractions, including insider trading, manipulation of stock price, and creating fake identity to deceive co-founders.

August 4, 2022 0 comments

Headlines

Niger Republic Honours 2 Northern Governors, Dangote, Others

by Folarin Kehinde August 4, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

To mark its Independence Day commemorated on August 3, the Republic of Niger Wednesday honoured two Presidential aides, two businessmen and two state governors with their national honours in recognition of their roles as ‘brother Nigerians’ who have strengthened the promotion of better relations between the two sister states.

The awardees are Alhaji Aliko Dangote, President of the Dangote Group, Abdulsamad Rabi’u, President of the BUA Group, and two northern governors, Alhaji Badaru Abubakar of Jigawa State and Mohammed Bello Matawalle of Zamfara State.

The Niger Republic also its highest Civilian Awards to two aides of President Muhammadu Buhari – the Senior Special Assistant (Household and Domestic Affairs) to the President, Sarki Abba, and the State Chief of Protocol, Ambassador Lawal Kazaure.

August 3 is set aside to mark the country’s independence from France in 1960 and since 1975 has been recognised as “tree planting day” when trees are planted across the nation to aid the fight against desertification.

In giving the awards, President Mohammed Bazoum said his country cherished Nigeria as one of its closest neighbours and friends.

They were awarded the “Order of Merit of Niger, Great Master of National Awards.”

In various citations read by the country’s leader, President Bazoum praised the efforts of “brother Nigerians” who had made great strides in increasing understanding between the two nations and for acting as agents of social and economic development.

August 4, 2022 0 comments

Headlines

Buhari Swears in New Permanent Secretaries

by Folarin Kehinde August 3, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

President Muhammadu Buhari has on Wednesday, administered the Oath of Allegiance and the Oath of Office to three new Permanent Secretaries of the Federal Civil Service.

Buhari swore in the new senior officials shortly before the start of Wednesday’s Federal Executive Council meeting at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

They include Farouk Yabo (Sokoto State), Lydia Jafiya (Adamawa State), and Udom Ekenam (Akwa Ibom).

Attending the meeting are the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; Head of the Federal Civil Service, Dr Folasade Yemi-Esan; and the National Security Adviser, Major General Babagana Monguno (retd.).

Ministers in attendance include Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed; Attorney-General and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami; Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed; and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Mohammed Bello.

Others are the Ministers of Industry, Trade and Investment, Niyi Adebayo; Communication and Digital Economy, Prof. Ali Pantami; Power, Abubakar Aliyu; Labour and Employment, Dr Chris Ngige; and that of Human Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development, Sadiya Farouq.

All other members of the Council not physically present joined the meeting through virtual means, including Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, who attended from home.

August 3, 2022 0 comments

Headlines

Data Of Completed Voter Registration Across Nigeria

by Folarin Kehinde August 3, 2022

written by Folarin Kehinde

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has officially ended the Continuous Voter Registration (CVR) exercise, which started last year.

The total number of registered voters who completed their registration (online and physical) at the close of the CVR exercise stood at 12.29 million.

On June 28, 2021, INEC resumed the CVR and has since then given weekly updates of the online pre-registration and the physical completion of registration by voters.

The CVR was initially scheduled to end on June 30. However, on that day, the Commission, through its National Electoral Commissioner for Information and Voter Education, Festus Okoye, announced an extension of the exercise to ensure that all eligible Nigerians get registered.

The CRV was first extended by 15 days, then another 2 weeks, bringing the total duration for the extension to 31 days (July 1st-31st).

This new deadline elapsed on Sunday, July 31st, and the electoral Commission has stated there would be no further extension as they need to carry out other functions, which among others, include the clean up of the voter register for double and multiple registrations.

As the exercise finally ends, Dataphyte looks at the figure of those who completed their registration in the year-long CVR exercise and will join other registered voters from previous elections to decide the country’s fate in the 2023 general election.

Number of Completed Registrations

Data released by INEC shows that 12.29 million persons completed their registration. Of this figure, 3.44 million were done online, while 8.85 million were done physically. By this figure, the total number of registered voters for the 2023 election is an estimated 96.3 million.

Election Year	Number of Registered Voters (Millions)	Percentage Increase of New Registration
1999	57.94	–
2003	60.82	4.98
2007	61.57	1.22
2011	73.53	19.43
2015	67.42	-8.30
2019	84.00	24.59
2023* estimated	96.30	14.64

This figure is, however, subject to change after the electoral body cleans up the voter register for double registration.

Completed PVC Registration by States

At the end of the CVR exercise on July 31, the data published by INEC shows that Lagos has the highest number of persons who completed their PVC registration. The state has a total of 585,629 persons who completed their registration, followed by Kano with 569,103. Delta state came third with 523,517.

On the other hand, Ekiti, Yobe, and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) recorded the least number of registrations. Ekiti and Yobe recorded 124,844 and 152,844 completed registrations, respectively, while the FCT had 211,341.

Number of Males and Females who Completed their PVC Registration

As earlier stated, 12.29 million persons completed their registration in the just concluded CVR exercise. Of this figure, 6.22 million, 50.6% of those who completed their PVC registration are females, while 6.07 million, 49.4% are males.

It is worth mentioning that 84,083 Persons with Disabilities (PWDs) completed their registration across genders. This is 0.68% of the 12.29 million completed registrations.

Completed PVC Registration by Age Group

A breakdown of the data shows that 71.4% (8.78 million) of those who completed their registration are youth. This means that out of every 10 persons who completed their registration, at least 7 fall within 18-34 years range; the Soroke generation.

2023 Election: Completed PVC Registration Across Nigeria in 5 Charts

Following is the middle age group, which accounts for 19.8% of the total number of persons who completed their registration. The elderly and the Aged (70 years and above) account for 7.8% and 1% of the completed PVC registration, respectively.

Completed PVC Registration by Occupation

Students constitute the highest population of those who completed their registration. Of the 12.29 million who completed their registration, 4.5 million persons identified themselves as students.

Those into business and farming/fishing followed with 2.24 and 1.54 million respectively.

At the bottom are Public Servants and Civil Servants, with 124,027 and 381,254 completed registration, respectively.

Completed PVC Registration by Geo-Political Zones

Nigeria has six geo-political zones. 2.51 million persons in the North-West completed their PVC registration making it the region with the highest registrations.

In the South-South, 4.46 million completed their registration. The North-Central and South-West followed with 2.31 million and 2.04 million respectively.

The North-East and South-East recorded less than 2 million, making them the two regions with the lowest number of persons who completed their registration at the end of the CVR exercise.

Source: Datahyte

August 3, 2022 0 comments

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