Author: straightnewsng.com

Nigerians share in the blame of the country’s bad ranking in Transparency International’s corruption perception index, CPI, Mr. Femi Adesina, Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, has said. In 2017, Nigeria dropped from 136 in 2016 to 148 on the index of TI. The ranking was seen as a blow to the current administration which claims to have the fight against corruption as one of its core mandates. But speaking during a Channels Television’s programme on Monday, Adesina said the ranking was about Nigerians and not the federal government. He said: “My position is that that ranking is not strictly…

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo on Monday night made a veiled mockery of the governorship candidate of the People’s Democratic Party, PDP, in the just concluded governorship election in Osun State, Senator Ademola Adeleke, and Senator Dino Melaye for being humorous. Osinbajo, who spoke at the Independence Gala night held at the Banquet hall of the Presidential Villa, said he agreed with the poll reportedly conducted by the British Independent newspapers which declared Nigerians as the happiest and most optimistic people in the world. He said Adeleke provided humor by dancing while Senator Melaye made people laugh by claiming to escape assassination,…

Members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria, ICAN, are tasked to join hands in addressing the country’s economic challenges and in tackling insecurity. Speaking at the 48th Annual Accountants’ Conference of ICAN in Abuja, President Muhammadu Buhari also solicited ICAN’s support in the fight against corruption and other vices. Buhari, who was represented by Mr. Udo Udoma, the Minister of Budget and National Planning, further called on the body to condemn criminal activities and show disdain for hate speech and acts that could destabilise the corporate existence of Nigeria. The president insisted that there must be renewed efforts…

As Nigeria clocked 58 years of independence, panel discussants at a privately owned television station in the country have expressed reservations on the existence of the National Assembly, calling for the abolition of the bicameral legislature seen as being too expensive for government to maintain in the face of other competing demands. Speaking at TVC News, Lagos on Monday, October 1under Journalists Hangout tagged ‘Special Independence Anniversary,’ programme, the discussants called for abolition of the bicameral legislature comprising Senate and House of Representatives, which according to them, serves as a conduit in draining the scarce financial resources of the country.…

Brent crude oil prices hit their highest level since November 2014 Monday, ahead of U.S. sanctions against Iran that kick in next month. Brent sweet crude oil futures rose to as much as $83.27 a barrel. U.S. West Texas Intermediate, WTI, crude futures were at $73.57 a barrel. Brent was pushed up by the looming sanctions against Iran, which will start targeting its oil sector from November 4. ANZ bank said on Monday that “the market is eyeing oil prices at 100 dollars per barrel’’. There had been expectations China would ignore U.S. sanctions. However, China’s…

An attempt by suspected herdsmen to break into a major hostel at the University of Jos has left at least one student dead. The deceased, Shedrach Kums, a 300-level law undergraduate, was among the scores of students trying to beat back the attackers at the gate of Village Hostel when he was fatally shot. The university’s student’s union president, Fwangshak Pantu, who stated this Monday, said three others, comprising a student and two villagers near the school, were critically injured and were receiving treatment at the hospital. The state’s Police Commissioner, Undie Adie, denied knowledge of the attack Monday but…

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, Monday, attributed the rise in its trading surplus in the month of May 2018 to the improvement in the financial performance of its subsidiaries and the high volume of crude oil production and sales in the month under review. The NNPC in a statement on its April 2018 Financial and Operations Report, said its trading surplus for May 2018 rose by N0.96 billion from N17.16 billion recorded in April 2018 to N18.13 billion According to the NNPC, the additional monthly trading surplus of N0.96 billion is mainly due to increased performance of…

Wireless telecommunications operator, MTN, has said it may no longer seek to raise capital through an Initial Public Offering, IPO, on the country’s stock exchange due to a combined $10 billion in claims from Nigerian authorities. The mobile phone company said it was considering other options of trading its shares on the Lagos-based bourse, including a so-called listing by introduction, in which existing shares are listed. However, Ralph Mupita, the company’s Chief Financial Officer, said in a report that MTN’s board still needed to make a final decision. “The IPO type of listing has become challenging under current market conditions.…

Less than a week after leaders and stakeholders of Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, agreed to hold the party’s national convention in Port Harcourt, the Rivers state capital, investigations have shown how the controversy over the choice of venue was finally resolved. Following a week of uncertainty over a venue which saw to a sharp disagreement between the National Working Committee, NWC, and the Board of Trustees, BoT, on the one hand and Governor Nyesom Wike and some presidential aspirants on the other, the party resolved the issue at its 82nd emergency National Executive Committee, NEC, meeting last week. A party…

Despite pockets of violence during the direct primary, an All Progressives Congress, APC governorship candidate has emerged in Akwa Ibom State to contest the 2019 general elections. Nsima Udo Ekere, who is the managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Niger Delta Development Commission, NDDC, polled 160,458 votes to emerge the overall winner. Of a total of 167,904 votes, Ekere won in 30 local government areas in the state except Uyo defeating Bassey Dan-Abia with 4,189 votes, James Akpanudoedehe, 2,015 while Dr. Edet Efretuei polled 1,234 votes. Announcing the results at APC Secretariat, 149 Ikot Ekpene Road, Uyo on Monday, the chairman…