News

Speaker Abbas urges Ganduje To Constitute C’ttees to Reconcile Aggrieved APC Members

Published

6 months ago

May 19, 2024

Gloria Ikibah

…seeks support for party structures

By Gloria Ikibah

The Speaker of the House of Representatives Rep. Abbas Tajudeen, has urged the National Chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. Abdullahi Umar Ganduje to constitute reconciliation committees that would unite the members of the party nationwide.

Speaker Abbas noted that some members of the APC were aggrieved, which was why there was the need to reconcile and make peace with them.

Speaking at the APC stakeholders’ meeting for the Northwest in Kaduna on Sunday, the Speaker said such action would bring more successes to the APC as one big political family.

He said, “I want to call on the National Chairman and our party Executive to ensure peaceful coexistence among all party members. As previous speakers have said, we are bedeviled with many issues in different states, in every local government.

“It is time to draw a line. Elections are over; this is time for governance. We should forget what has happened; let’s forgive one another; let’s embrace one another.

“I want to suggest to the National Chairman, and by extension the National Vice Chairman, to, as a matter of urgency, constitute reconciliation committees for the zone and for every state to constitute the same reconciliation committees so that we can make peace and bring those that we may have offended back to the party.”

Speaker Abbas also urged Ganduje to use his position in addressing the high turnover rate of members of the National Assembly, saying APC members that perform well should be given the opportunity to return in 2027.

“On the issue of the high turnover of members of the National Assembly, this is a golden opportunity under your tenure to ensure that you do everything humanly possible for current (APC) members of the National Assembly and States Houses of Assembly to return in 2027.

“Some people may say there are others waiting. But I need to emphatically mention that the National Assembly is an institution where the older you are in the system, the better you become.

“Today, the Northwest, based on the 2023 elections, is worse off. That is the reason, perhaps, we did not get the kind of prominence we should have gotten. So, let’s ensure that only the worst of us do not get reelected. We should give the competent ones the opportunity to return to the National Assembly.”

Speaker Abbas commended President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for giving some key positions to the Northwest, saying the zone should appreciate him by redoubling its efforts in 2027.

“We thank Mr. President for finding the Northwest worthy of many important positions. This is the first time that we have the Speaker, the Deputy President of the Senate and the National Chairman of our party emerging from the zone.

“To whom much is given, much is expected. It is our turn to appreciate Mr. President, to appreciate our party by ensuring that we do everything humanly possible to bring dividends of democracy to our people; to ensure that the insecurity that has bedeviled our zone is brought to its logical conclusion; to also ensure that in 2027, we redouble our efforts for the APC to do better in every ward, every local government, every state and the country as a whole.”

He called on party leaders at different levels to support the party structures, saying “What I observed is that attention is given to the party when elections are near. After elections, nothing moves, nothing happens.

“I want to implore us, the leaders, to support our party not only during elections but at all times. That’s the only way we can guarantee success for our party.

“On our part at the National Assembly, we’ll sit with the leadership of the party in the Northwest to come up with some measures of support. I’ve already briefed the National Chairman during our last meeting that we would reach out to every member to ensure that every month, something is sent to the party to support it. We expect that all members of state caucuses will replicate the same.”

On the ongoing constitution amendment by the National Assembly, Speaker Abbas said, “This is an opportunity for us in the Northwest to sit down and bring up the areas that we can do better as a country.

“We want to see if we can replicate what we did in the 8th Assembly by empowering all our senators and Honourable members to go back to their constituencies on an appointed date to interact with the people, giving them the areas of priority so that by the time we come back, every member will vote based on the mandate given by his people.”

He said some of the critical areas that the National Assembly identified in the constitution review were state police, local government autonomy, women inclusion in politics and governance, and the role of the traditional institutions.

News

AFCONQ 2025: Nigeria’s Super Eagles fail to beat Benin Republic in Abidjan

Published

1 hour ago

November 15, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Nigeria’s Super Eagles on Thursday failed to beat Benin Republic in their 2025 Africa Cup of Nations, AFCON, qualifier as two West African neighbours settled for a 1-1 draw in Abidjan

With the results, Nigeria officially qualified for the TotalEnergies CAF AFCON, securing a top-two finish in Group D,

Benin opened the scoring in the 16th minute when Mohamed Tijani capitalized on a corner delivery from Junior Olaïtan, heading the ball into the center of the net.

The Super Eagles found themselves trailing despite creating opportunities, with Victor Osimhen and Moses Simon both testing Benin’s defence.

In the second half, Nigeria intensified their attack and were rewarded in the 81st minute when Osimhen met Simon’s cross with a precise header to level the score.

Benin fought hard to reclaim the lead, but Nigeria’s defence held firm, preserving the draw.

Nigeria’s qualification for TotalEnergies CAF AFCON marks a relief for fans and sets the stage for their preparations for the tournament. Benin, meanwhile, remains in contention but will need positive results in their final game to have any chance of progressing.

News

Wike suspends FCDA secretary indefinitely

Published

2 hours ago

November 15, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has suspended, with immediate effect, the Executive Secretary of the Federal Capital Development Agency, Shehu Hadi Ahmad, indefinitely.

This was made known in a statement by the Senior Special Adviser to the Minister of Public Communication and Social Media, Olalere Olayinka, on Thursday.

Circumstances leading to or surrounding the suspension of the secretary were, however, undisclosed as of the time of filing this report.

According to the statement, the suspended Executive Secretary has been consequently directed to hand over to the Director of Engineering Services in the FCDA.

News

UBA to raise N239bn via rights issue

Published

2 hours ago

November 15, 2024

Kayode Sanni-Arewa

United Bank for Africa Plc has issued 6,839,884,274 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each at N35 per share in a rights issue to raise N239.4bn in a bid to meet the fresh capital requirements of the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The rights issue which opened on Friday (today) allows existing shareholders to purchase one new ordinary share for every five existing ordinary shares held by shareholders as of November 05, 2024.

In late March, the CBN announced an upward review of the minimum capital requirement for banks in the country.

In a letter to the shareholders informing them of the rights issue, the Group Chairman of United Bank for Africa, Tony Elumelu, noted that following the resolution of the Group’s shareholders at the Annual General Meeting held in May 2024, authorising the establishment of the N400bn Equity Shelf Programme, UBA will embark on a Rights Issue, as the first step in its broader capital raising programme.

“UBA’s Rights Issue aims to raise N239.4bn, through the issuance of new ordinary shares to our shareholders. The primary objective of this rights Issue is to further strengthen our capacity to take advantage of growth opportunities and sustain our leadership in the banking industry,” Elumelu said in the letter.

On the use of proceeds, Elumelu noted that, beyond regulatory compliance, the funds will expand the Group’s lending capacity, invest in digital infrastructure, support sustainable business practices, and expand the group’s African operations.

Elumelu also highlighted how UBA is driving economic growth across Africa, saying “Our historic partnership with the Africa Continental Free Trade Area Secretariat, where UBA pledged up to $6bn in financing over the next three years to support eligible SMEs across Africa underscores our commitment to fostering economic development.”

It was revealed that application for the provisional allotment of the Rights to the new ordinary Shares will be made exclusively through the NGX e-offer portal, during the offer period, while existing shareholders may also apply for additional shares above their provisional allotment as described in the Provisional Allotment Letter. Shareholders who are customers of the Bank are also encouraged to access their Rights through UBA’s internet banking and mobile banking channels.

At the end of the third quarter, the gross earnings of UBA appreciated by 83.2 per cent year-on-year to N2.39tn from N1.31tn in the same period of 2023. Its profit before tax went up by 20.2 per cent to N603.48bn from N502.09bn in Q3 2023, while profit after tax also rose by 16.9 per cent to N525.31bn from N449.26bn recorded a year earlier.

The lender’s total assets rose to N31.80tn, representing a 54.0 per cent increase over the N20.65tn recorded at the end of December 2023.

In the 2023/2024 report year, UBA won ‘Bank of the Year’ awards in eight of its subsidiaries – Cameroon, Chad, Ghana, Cote d’Ivoire, Mozambique, Republic of Congo; Sierra Leone; Tanzania, as well as the Regional Award for Africa and in 2024 has won World Best Frontier Markets Bank and Best SME Bank Africa.

UBA Plc offers banking services to more than 45 million customers, across 1,000 business offices and customer touch points in 20 African countries.