By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

The Labour Party (LP) 2023 presidential candidate, Peter Obi, has opened up on a merger deal with the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP) or any other party.

Peter Obi made this known on Thursday morning during a press conference in Abuja on the state of the nation, stating that no agreement has been established with other parties.

The former Governor of Anambra State called on all lovers of Nigeria in the political space to unite in 2027 and defeat the All Progressives Congress (APC), which he accused of mismanaging the country’s resources.

According to him, the level of corruption in Nigeria remained high, including the cost of governance, which has led to an astronomical increase in public debt under the current administration of President Bola Tinubu of the APC.

Peter Obi maintained that government officials willfully mismanaged public funds in 2024 through incessant foreign travels.

Speaking further, Peter Obi frowned at the insecurity situation in the country, stating that it is unfortunate that Nigerians are dying needlessly due to banditry, terrorism, and kidnapping-for-ransom.

Meanwhile, the NNPP 2023 presidential candidate, Senator Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, has dismissed the purported report of reaching an agreement with the opposition presidential candidate of PDP, Atiku Abubakar, and Peter Obi, to share power by alternating terms.

The genius Media nigeria reports that Kwankwaso, in an interview with the BBC, expressed anger over the lies.

He stressed that he was unaware of such a claim but had heard reports that Atiku’s camp had been meeting with regional leaders, including clerics, to propagate the narrative.

The former governor of Kano State also explained that he had found peace since leaving the PDP for the NNPP and distanced himself from the power-sharing agreement.

The kidnapped senior Anglican cleric, Most Rev. Prof. Godwin Okpala has regained freedom.

Archbishop Okpala was set free alongside his driver.

He confirmed his freedom in a post on his Facebook page, Thursday morning.

The clergyman simply wrote: “Praise the Lord!”

Hundreds of reactions followed immediately, thanking God for his freedom.

Okpala, a retired Archbishop of the Niger Province and Bishop of Nnewi, was released one month after he was abducted.

It could be recalled that he went missing on his way to Umuchu, a community in Anambra State for a burial ceremony.

Details of his release are still sketchy as of the time of filing this report, but it is being celebrated on various social media platforms of the Anglican Communion.

One of such platforms is the official Facebook page of St Stephens Anglican Church.

Below, is the Dollar to Naira exchange rate for today, 02 January 2025.

What Is The Official Exchange Rate For Dollar To Naira Today?

The exchange rate between the Naira and the US dollar according to the data released on the FMDQ Security Exchange, the official forex trading portal showed that the Naira opened at ₦1544.00 and per $1 on Monday, December 30, 2024 and closed at ₦1538.25 per $1 on Tuesday, December 31, 2024.

However, the Naira is trading as high as ₦1,655 per Dollar at the black market even though the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) announced the unification of all segments of the foreign exchange market.

The apex bank, in a circular on Wednesday 14th June 2023, said all FX windows were now collapsed into the investors & exporters (I&E) window.

The statement read, “Abolishment of segmentation. All segments are now collapsed into the Investors and Exporters (I&E) window. Applications for medicals, school fees, BTA/PTA, and SMEs would continue to be processed through deposit money banks.

“Re-introduction of the “Willing Buyer, Willing Seller” model at the I&E Window. Operations in this window shall be guided by the extant circular on the establishment of the window, dated 21 April 2017, and referenced FM/DIR/CIR/GEN/08/007. All eligible transactions are permitted to access foreign exchange at this window.

“The operational rate for all government-related transactions shall be the weighted average rate of the preceding day’s executed transactions at the I&E window, calculated to two (2) decimal places.

“Proscription of trading limits on oversold FX positions with permission to hedge short positions with OTC futures. Limits on overbought positions shall be zero.

“Re-introduction of order-based two-way quotes, with bid-ask spread of N1. All transactions shall be cleared by a Central Counter Party (CCP).

“Reintroduction of Order Book to ensure transparency of orders and seamless execution of trades.

“The operational hours of trades shall be from 9 a.m to 4 p.m, Nigeria time.”

The apex noted that further guidance on the operational changes would be communicated to authorized dealers and the general public in due course.

The changes to operations in the country’s FX market imply that Nigeria has eased its control of the naira, allowing the local currency to float freely.

Meanwhile, a free-floating exchange rate occurs when a government allows the exchange rate to be determined purely by market forces and there is no attempt to ask the central bank to influence the external value of the exchange rate.