Author: straightnewsng.com

Ahead of Saturday’s governorship and state assembly elections, the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, has cautioned President Muhammadu Buhari and the All Progressives Congress, APC, to steer clear of its strongholds, particularly the Niger Delta, saying any attempt to manipulate the process would breed widespread crisis across the country. The party also vowed to resist alleged moves to unleash thugs on the people in the governorship polls in Akwa Ibom. In a statement signed by the PDP National Publicity Secretary, Kola Ologbondiyan, the party said its position was predicated on the on-going heavy shipment of security forces and armed thugs into…

President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday reassured Nigerians that he would not let them down in his second term in office. This is even as the Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF, has promised to continue to support the President because he has addressed most of the concerns they brought to his attention in 2016. President Buhari, who received the leadership of the ACF that paid him a congratulatory visit at the Council Chamber Presidential Villa Abuja, said he would work harder in the next four years to address the challenges facing the country. “This is my last lap, I will try to work…

The British High Commission has warned that those who incite electoral violence on social media could be denied access into the United Kingdom. In its call for credible, peaceful elections on March 9, the high commission asked Nigerians to turn out and vote on Saturday 9 March in elections for State Governorships and State Houses of Assembly. “These elections are an important opportunity for citizens to exercise their democratic rights and choose their leaders. We hope that the causes of logistical issues on the 23 February election have been identified and addressed. “We commend INEC staff and the National Youth…

The Presidency said yesterday that President Muhammadu Buhari and his government will not allow the the frosty relationship that existed between the executive and the legislature in the eight National Assembly to repeat itself by allowing emergence of saboteurs in the leadership of the parliament. The relationship between the executive and the leadership of the eight National Assembly, especially the presiding officers, has not been cordial and the situation was said to have affected governance. Though President Buhari did not interfere in the election of the Senate President, Deputy Senate President, the Speaker and the deputy Speaker of the House…

Guaranty Trust Bank Plc, Wednesday, posted a profit before tax of N215.6 billion, representing an increase of 9.1 percent over the ₦197.7 billion recorded in 2017. This was contained in its audited financial results for the year ended December 31, 2018 released to the Nigerian and London Stock Exchanges. A review of the results shows positive performance across some financial metrics and improved strategic positioning of the brand. Gross earnings for the year grew by 3.7 percent to ₦434.7 billion from ₦419.2 billion reported in the December 2017. The bank’s customer deposits increased by 10.3 percent to ₦2.274 trillion from…

A High Court of the Federal Capital Territory sitting at Apo Wednesday granted bail to two former management staffers of the defunct Skye Bank Plc, who are facing money laundering charges in the sum of N500 million each. The duo are Mr. Tunde Ayeni, chairman and Mr. Timothy Ajani Oguntayo, the Managing Director of the bank who are answering a four-count charge the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, preferred against them over their alleged complicity in a N456.6 billion fraud. Justice Valentine Ashi granted the former bank chiefs bail after they pleaded not guilty to the charge. Aside from…

President Muhammadu Buhari has appealed to Nigerians, especially those of voting age, to make the forthcoming Governorship and House of Assembly elections better than the presidential and National Assembly polls. The President also urged the electorate to come out en masse and cast their votes bearing in mind that Saturday’s election is close to the people. In a message to Nigerians Wednesday, Buhari commiserated with the families of those who died as a result of violence in the Presidential and National Assembly elections as well as those who sustained injuries during the exercise, appealing to the youths not to allow…

The Presidential Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja Wednesday ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, to surrender all the materials used for the February 23 presidential election for inspection. The tribunal, in a unanimous decision by a three-man panel of Justice, led by Justice Abdul Aboki, directed the electoral body to grant the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and its presidential candidate, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, access to the materials. However, the panel declined to allow Atiku and PDP to conduct forensic analysis on any of the election materials, stressing that such request was outside the scope of the Electoral Act,…

As Christians are marking Ash Wednesday, the beginning of Lent, a Nigerian Catholic priest has enjoined Nigerian political leaders to refrain from using falsehood and barefaced lies to govern their subjects. Rev. Fr. Thomas Ebong, the Director of Media Communication Department, Ikot Ekpene Diocese of Catholic Church, said “The leaders should worship God in sincerity and in truth and show good example in deeds and in action. They should be honest in their dealings. Once the government releases money to them for the development of their communities, they should plough the money into that purpose instead of diverting it for…

The Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, has scheduled Saturday, March 23 for the conduct of its 2019 Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination, UTME, mock exercise. A statement signed by Dr. Fabian Benjamin, its Head, Media and Publicity, on Tuesday in Abuja, said that candidates were expected to begin the printing of their Mock Examination Notification slips from Wednesday, March 6. Recall that the mock examination was introduced in 2017 to give candidates the opportunity to familiarise themselves with the conduct of Computer Based Test, CBT, particularly, candidates who are not conversant with the use of computers. It also stated that…