Author: straightnewsng.com

The age-long Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, would be reintroduced and perhaps passed very soon by the House of Representatives. The House would also reintroduce the bill prohibiting estimated billing in the power sector to permanently end the wastefulness and unfairness created by an unreliable and arbitrary system that imposes unforeseen costs on individuals and businesses alike. There would also be the Education Bank Bill, designed to ensure that no child is unable to get quality tertiary education in Nigeria due to a lack of funds. Another bill to work on is also the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Bill which…

The president of the Nigerian Bar Association, NBA, Paul Usoro, has accused President Muhammadu Buhari administration of undermining the independence of the judiciary. Usoro, who made the accusation at an event to mark the beginning of the 2019 judicial year in Abuja, blamed the executive arm of government and its agencies of plotting to “teleguide the activities and decisions of the courts.” The NBA president, who is facing trial on allegations of fraud, was one of the strong voices against the removal of former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Walter Onnoghen. Onnoghen was forced out of office, following allegations of false asset…

The xenophobic attacks on Africans including Nigerians by some South African locals which began as a child’s play is taking an unpredictable dimension. During the funeral service for ex-President Robert Mugabe in Harare, Zimbabwean capital on Sunday, South African President Cyril Ramaphosa got more than he bargained for from the angry masses: jeers. Though a South African envoy sent by Ramaphosa had visited and apologised to President Muhammadu Buhari over the attacks on Monday, some Nigerians have proffered tougher stance against the Rainbow country. Former Nigerian President Olusegun Obasanjo Monday urged countries whose citizens were affected in the xenophobic attacks…

The Consumer Price Index which measures inflation drop from 11.08 per cent in July to 11.02 per cent in August, the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, said on Tuesday. The bureau in the report stated that inflation rate of 11.02 per cent for August represents a decrease of 0.06 percentage point year-on-year. The NBS said that the drop in inflation rate continued in August despite several pronouncements regarding restrictions on the import of some food items, minimum wage and the recent border closures. On the impact of border closure on consumer prices, the bureau stated that the country may not…

The Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, has tasked the new Board of the Family Homes Fund Limited to raise private capital for its housing projects. Ahmed who gave the charge while inaugurating the new Board in Abuja Monday said the Family Homes initiative is one of President Muhammadu Buhari’s key schemes towards macro-economic stability to bridge the housing gap with the construction of 500,000 houses aimed at providing at least 1.5 million jobs. The minister told the board to source more funds from development finance institutions and the capital market, saying though the administration would…

The Federal Government has directed ministers to render their first performance reports by December 2019 to determine their compliance with its policies and programmes. Speaking at the Nigerian Institute of Management, NIM, 2019 Annual National Management Conference on Monday in Abuja, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo noted that prior to the inauguration of the ministers, the Presidency had developed a list of clearly defined mandates for each of the ministers and their ministries to serve as a guide for them. He said: “The presidential policy preceded the inauguration of this government. The President developed a list of specific mandate for each…

No fewer than five persons, including a lecturer and two teenagers, have been kidnapped in the Federal capital City, FCT, Abuja, in the last 24 hours. It was learned that the lecturer, Abubakar Alkali of Baze University, Abuja, and two tennegaers who were returning from Quranic lecturer at Wuse zone 6, were abducted early Saturday. Also kidnapped were one Hanna Azubuike, who was abducted near Habiba Paza, Maitama, and Ummi Ardo who was taken by the kidnappers in front of Blickers Supermarket at Asokoro. Ardo’s father, who is an Adamawa-based politician, confirmed the abduction of his daughter, saying “my daughter,…

The Federal Government, Monday, said it has completed arrangements to embark on the development of a 30-year economic development plan. Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed, dropped the hint at the media briefing in preparation for the 25th Nigerian Economic Summit (NES#25) in Abuja Monday. Ahmed said the plan became imperative because Vision 20:2020 and the present administration’s Economic Recovery Growth Plan, ERGP 2016-2020, would expire next year. She said: ‘‘A vision document is a document that helps to plan where you want to be in the next couple of years. So, the vision document for…

By Akanimo Sampson Gibson Shipbrokers said in a recent report that in the next 20 years when deciding for the type of tanker to invest in, ship owners should take a closer look at future demand for various oil-based products, as things are bound to differentiate considerably, compared to today’s conditions. Gibson Shipbrokers said in its report that “the so called War on Plastics has been steadily gaining traction over the past few years, with major companies such as McDonald’s and Carlsberg, to name a few, seeking to reduce the presence of single use plastics in their businesses. Governments are…

Kidnappers on Sunday night freed one of the Abuja residents after collecting Bitcoin as a ransom from her father. Bitcoin is a cryptocurrency. It is a decentralized digital currency without a central bank or single administrator that can be sent from user to user on the peer-to-peer bitcoin network without the need for intermediaries. The Abuja resident, Aishat Ardo, was released by her abductors in the Gwarimpa area of Abuja after her father paid $15,000 in Bitcoin, a report monitored on The Cable said. The development came after security sources had said that more than five Abuja residents were abducted…