Author: Ranti Thomas

Argentina’s Lionel Messi and Portugal’s Cristiano Ronaldo, Vinicius Jr. is now receiving the most insults from opposition fans in the Spanish top-flight league, said La Liga president, Javier Tebas.

Tebas said that while Ronaldo received homophobic insults, Messi was mocked for his intellectual ability during their time in La Liga while playing for Real Madrid and Barcelona.

His position came less than a few days after Vinicius suffered racial attacks from Valencia fans.

“The great players like Ronaldo and Messi were the ones who received the most insults. For one, it was homophobic insults and for the other it was intellectual disability,” Tebas said (h/t Madrid Zone on Twitter).

“Messi and Cristiano were the ones who received the most insults, now it is Vinicius because he is a great player.”

Access Bank has appointed former president of the Nigerian Bar Association(NBA), Mr Paul Usoro, SAN, as its new Chairman.

Prior to his appointment in May, 2023, Mr. Usoro had been a Non-Executive Director of the bank since January 2014.

A Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators, Usoro us also the founder and Senior Partner of the Law firm of Paul Usoro & Co.

He has over 30 years of law practice experience and is acknowledged as a highly experienced litigator and communication law expert.

He was elected President of the Nigerian Bar Association in August 2018 for a two-year term and is currently a Non-Executive Director of PZ Cussons Nigeria Plc.

He represented Access Bank as a Non-Executive Director on the board of the defunct Intercontinental Bank Plc.

Mr. Usoro holds a Bachelor of Laws degree from the University of Ife (1981) and was called to the Nigerian Bar in 1982.

He joined the Board in January 2014 and currently chairs the Board Human Resources and Sustainability Committee and Board Technical Committee on Retail Expansion. He is also the Vice-Chairman of the Board Risk Management.

President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu has told Nigerians who put their trust in him by electing him their president would not be disappointed after all

The President-elect spoke on Thursday, during his investiture as Grand Commander of the Federal Republic (GCFR) – the nation’s highest honour-and Vice President-elect Kashim Shettima as Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON), and handing over of transition documents.

President Muhammadu Buhari, who conferred the highest national honour on the President-elect and the Vice President-elect, said he has finished his race well and he is satisfied that he is handing over Nigeria to competent hands in the person of Asiwaju Tinubu.

According to him, “I have run my course. I am happy that I am handing over to competent hands.”

In his address at the investiture, President-elect said his election to lead the over 200 million people in the country was a goodwill, which came from a place of trust.

He said, “I am a simple man who is the beneficiary of the support and goodwill of the people of Nigeria. The people have put their trust in us. You have done your part Mr. President.

“Now, that great duty descends on me. I understand the meaning of the honor given to me today and of the task that awaits.

“I must run this race and must do it well. On security, the economy, agriculture, jobs, education, health and power and in all other sectors we must make headway. The people deserve no less. In this, I shall disappoint neither them nor you, Mr. President.”

The President-elect recognized that though Nigeria’s path may not always be smooth but expressed faith in the country’s purpose and collective ability to overcome challenges.

He said, “Our way shall not always be smooth. Yet we are imbued with faith in our purpose and a firm belief in our collective ability to overcome the challenges that confront us.”

The President-elect also commended President Muhammadu Buhari’s unwavering commitment to progressive and democratic good governance, recognizing him as a leader who took courageous decisions when others shied away.

He specifically thanked President Buhari for designating June 12 as Democracy Day and honouring MKO Abiola with the GCFR title, a decision other presidents were afraid to take.

He said, “President Buhari, you have shown courage in taking tough decisions others avoided.

“One such decision was to recognize the injustice of the annulment of the 1993 election, to designate June 12 as Democracy Day, and to bestow the nation’s highest honor on the late MKO Abiola.

“As much as anyone could, you reached back into history to set the record straight and heal a festering wound.

“The justice you did in this matter lends special meaning to today.”

The President-elect also expressed his gratitude to President Buhari for bestowing the nation’s highest honors on him and Vice President-elect Shettima, promising to carry

“Thank you, Mr. President, for bestowing the nation’s highest honors on my Vice President elect Shettima and me,” he said.

Asiwaju Tinubu also extended his appreciation for the transition documents and the diligent work performed by the transition council led by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Boss Mustapha.

While acknowledging the comprehensive scorecard presented in the transition documents, he said, “The documents summarize the immense work of your administration. They constitute an impressive and noteworthy scorecard.”

He further emphasized that the ceremony exemplified Nigeria’s vibrant and true democracy, where one leader honors his successor and ensures a smooth transition of power.

“This stately occasion is living evidence that Nigeria is a vibrant and true democracy.”

The appointment of Garzali Muhammed Abubakar as the Executive Secretary of the National Agricultural Development Fund has been approved by President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday.

A statement by the president’s spokesman, Garba Shehu, disclosed this.

The statement said Buhari also approved the appointment of at least seven persons for the office of Chairman and members of the Board of the organisation.

They include:

Mrs. Aduke Bamidele Hussain – Chairman

Dr. Hussaini I. Mohammed (North Central Representative)

Mr. Mohammed Umar (North West Representative)

Mr. Abdulsalam Yahaya Ahmed (North East Representative)

Mrs. Stella Uzokwe (South East Representative)

Mr. Stephen Ikata (South-South Representative)

Mr. Olufunlayo Oluwole Faloye (South West Representative).

The non-oil sector’s contribution to Nigeria’s Gross Domestic Product dropped to 93.79 per cent in the first Quarter of 2023 from 95.66 per cent in the Fourth Quarter of 2022.

A statement by the National Bureau of Statistics, stated that crop production, 19.48 per cent; trade, 15.97 per cent; telecommunications & Information services, 14.13 per cent are the top-three significant non-oil sectors’ contributors to the country’s GDP in Q1 2023.

On the other hand, the oil sector contributed 6.21 per cent.

The report stated that other critical contributors to the country’s GDP in Q1 2023 are Real Estate, 5.31 per cent; food, beverage and Tobacco, 5.13 per cent; financial institutions, 4.91 per cent; construction, 4.22 per cent; professional, Scientific and Technical Services, 3.25 per cent, others services, 3.17 per cent.

Flying Eagles midfielder, Victor Eletu, has they are a good team that can also beat a good team.

Flying Eagles beat Italy in their Group D encounter at the 2023 FIFA U-20 World Cup on Wednesday.

Eletu was handed his first start of the competition by head coach Ladan Bosso.

The AC Milan youngster proved his mettle as he controlled proceedings in the middle with Daniel Daga.

The 18-year-old was replaced by John Joshua on 70 minutes after sustaining an injury.

The Flying Eagles won the game 2-0 with Salim Fago and Jude Sunday netting both goals.
.
“I know we can go far in this competition because we have a very good team. We played as a team and that’s why we could beat a strong opponent like Italy,” Eletu said after the game.

Ladan Bosso’s side will take on Brazil in their last group game on Saturday.

The highest National Honours have been conferred on President-elect Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his Vice President-elect, Kashim Shettima by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Tinubu and Shettima were conferred with the National Honours of Grand Commander of the Federal Republic (GCFR) and Grand Commander of the Order of Niger (GCON).

President Buhari also performed the investiture at the State House Conference Center in Abuja, as part of a series of events lined up for the May 29 inauguration ceremony.

Also, President Buhari is to happen to
handover of Transition Documents to the incoming Administration, a process that some believe will be the most organized and seamless Presidential Transition in the history of Nigeria, enabled by Executive Order 14 signed by President Buhari.

Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha, who doubles as Chairman of the Presidential Transition Council, had disclosed at a briefing last Thursday, that an Inauguration Lecture on the topic: Deepening Democracy for Integration and Development by His Excellency, Uhuru M. Kenyatta, former President of Kenya will take place on Saturday 27th May.

This will be followed closely by a Children’s Day Program which would involve a parade and a party for the kids.

As part of the schedule of activities marking the 2023 Presidential Inauguration, an Inter-denominational Church Service will hold Sunday the 28th at the National Christian Centre by 10:00am and an Inauguration Dinner/Gala Night will take place later on at the State House Conference Centre.

The SGF further stated that on Monday, 29th May, the Inauguration Parade and Swearing-In exercise will take place at the Eagle Square by 10:00am, this is to be followed afterwards by a Post Inauguration Luncheon.

Boss Mustapha assured that adequate arrangements have been made for the safety and security of all people throughout the inauguration period.

Italy fell 2-0 yesterday to Nigeria’s Flying at the Mendoza Stadium in their Group D second game of the FIFA U20 World Cup in Argentina.

The result puts  Ladan Bosso wards one foot in the knockout phase pending the result of the late fixture  between Brazil and the Dominican Republic.

The feat earned the Nigerian side two wins with maximum six points. They now needed just one point in their last match on Saturday against Brazil to top the group.

Should Flying Eagles fall to the Brazilians, the possibilities of all top three teams ending the group stage with six points is there.

The Monetary Policy Rate (MPR) has been increased to 18.5 per cent from 18 per cent by the Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The CBN Governor, Godwin Emefiele, disclosed this, on Wednesday, in Abuja, after presenting the communique of the 291st meeting of the MPC.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the MPR is the baseline interest rate in an economy, on which every other interest rate used within an economy is built.

The committee had raised the MPR from 17.5 per cent to 18 per cent at its last meeting in March.

According to Emefiele, the 11 MPC members at the meeting were faced with the dilemma of whether to hold or to hike the policy rates to offset the moderate increase in headline inflation.

“Considering the option of a hold-policy, the committee reiterated the empirical counterfactual evidence and believe that the rate hikes have indeed helped moderate continued rising inflation.

“In addition, the evidence revealed that the rate hikes also helped moderate growth in new credit and reduced a pent-up aggregate demand, which had continued to heighten inflationary pressure.

“Members were unanimous in their conclusion that the current policy stance is, indeed, impacting targeted parameters and yielding the expected outcome, albeit, somewhat slowly,” he said.

Emefiele said that the MPC members were also convinced that the current uptrend in inflationary pressure was driven by a combination of both demand and supply side issues.

“The MPC observed the continued risk to price development driven primarily by expectation of rising energy and food prices, unabating security challenges in food producing areas, as well as persisting exchange rate pressure.

“The committee, thus, felt it expedient to continue to address the demand side issues falling within the ambit of its policy tools,” he said.

According to him, the balance of argument thus leaned significantly in favour of a further hike, albeit less aggressively, considering the adverse impact of rising inflation on real income.

“The MPC considered that the current policy stance is moderating the rising inflation, and sustaining the stance would consolidate the gains made so far,” he said.

The CBN governor said that tightening would also support efforts toward moderating the demand-pool inflation as cost of funds increased.

“Members, therefore, resolved by unanimous decision to raise the MPR moderately.

“10 members voted to raise the MPR by 50 basis points and one member, by 25 basis. All members voted to hold all other parameters constant.

“Members voted to raise MPR to 18.5 per cent; to retain the Asymmetric Corridor of +100/-700 basis points around the MPR, retain the Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) of 32.5 per cent and retain the Liquidity Ratio of 30 per cent,” he said.

The inauguration of President-elect Bola Tinubu will not affect the petitions at the election tribunal, Chris Uche, a lawyer to Atiku Abubakar, the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, in the 2023 general election, has said.

Tinubu was declared the winner on March 1 by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, and is expected to be sworn in on May 29.

However, his victory is being challenged in court by Atiku and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP).

Some Nigerians, including the former Catholic Archbishop of Abuja, John Onaiyekan, have demanded that Tinubu should not be sworn in before the conclusion of the election tribunal.

But speaking with journalists in Abuja on Tuesday, Uche, who is Atiku’s lead counsel, said: “I have been asked about May 29. I want to assure people that swearing in is only a ceremony that does not in any way tie the hands of the court.

“The taking of oath binds the person who takes the oath and not the court.

“The court has given you its timelines for parties to present their case. We are happy that with the development, the petitions will be expeditiously determined.”

The electoral act stipulates the tribunal has 180 days to determine the petitions.

This means the court should have rounded up its activities on or before September 16, 2023.