Author: Adejuyigbe Francis

Hamas announced a four-day ceasefire with Israel, aiming to release hostages in Gaza in exchange for Palestinians held in Israeli jails. The agreement also facilitates the entry of humanitarian aid and fuel into the besieged enclave. Hamas announced the release of 50 hostages (women and children) out of around 240 captured by militants during the October 7 attack in Israel. In exchange, 150 Palestinian women and children will be released. The agreement, facilitated by Qatar and Egypt, permits the entry of numerous humanitarian, medical, and fuel aid trucks into Gaza. Additionally, Israel’s air activity in south Gaza will cease for…

The Minister of State, Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Dr Mariya Mahmoud has urged graduates undergoing the one-year mandatory National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) scheme to channel their talent to productive ventures. Mahmoud gave the charge during the closing ceremony of the 2023 Batch ‘C’ Stream I Orientation Course, at the NYSC Orientation Camp in Kubwa, Abuja on Tuesday. She enjoined the corps members to deploy their potential towards building a strong, united, and prosperous nation that focuses not only on consumption, but also on manufacturing. “Nation building and socio-economic developments are twin areas of vital importance to the country. “The…

Changpeng “CZ” Zhao has resigned as CEO of Binance as part of a significant $4 billion settlement between the cryptocurrency exchange he established and various United States regulatory agencies. On Tuesday, the announcement from Zhao and multiple regulatory agencies capped yearslong investigations by the Department of Justice and others into anti-money laundering violations and sanctions violations. “I made mistakes, and I must take responsibility,” Zhao wrote in a post to X, the platform formerly known as Twitter. “This is best for our community, for Binance, and for myself.” In a press statement, Binance said it would take responsibility for not having…

Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu of Lagos State has said his administration is open to criticism. The governor said this in response to the controversy that has trailed the procurement record released by the Lagos State Public Procurement Agency. Speaking during the inauguration of the Lagos State Building Control Agency Building, Ikeja, the governor said he welcomed the open letter by the governorship candidate of the Action Democratic Congress in Lagos, Funso Doherty. Doherty had challenged Sanwo-Olu to come out clean on the approval of humongous expenditure. But the governor assured him that the government will continue to publish its spending and…

The Lagos State House of Assembly has received a letter from Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu seeking the screening and confirmation of six new nominees for cabinet positions. This was made known in a statement by the Chief Press Secretary to the Speaker of the Lagos State House of Assembly, Eromosele Ebhomele. At a sitting presided over by Speaker Mudashiru Obasa, the Clerk of the House, Barr. Olalekan Onafeko, read the letter before the lawmakers quoting the governor as seeking the confirmation of a commissioner-nominee and five nominees in the position of special advisers. However, the letter only named the commissioner-nominee as…

President Bola Tinubu-led government, through the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development, has revoked 1,633 minerals titles previously given to non-complying mining companies. The Minister of Solid Minerals Development, Dele Alake, announced this during a press briefing on Tuesday in Abuja. He said the licenses of these mineral title holders were revoked due to failure to pay mandatory annual service fees of N1,500 per cadastral unit. He said, “The Mining Cadastre Office has recommended the revocation of 1,633 mineral titles as follows: Exploration Licence, 536; Quarry Licence, 279; Small Scale Mining Licence, 787 and Mining Lease, 31. “In line with the powers conferred…

Speaker of the Plateau State House of Assembly, Hon Moses Thomas Sule and his deputy, Hon Gwottaon have resigned their positions. The member representing Pankshin North, Gabriel Dawang, was subsequently elected as the new speaker of the Assembly. Hon Timothy Dantong, representing Riyom constituency, emerged the new Deputy Speaker of Assembly. Although the details of the resignations are still sketchy as at press time, the development may not be unconnected to the political instability in the state.

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has alerted Nigerians, especially healthcare providers, on the sale of one batch of fake Meronem 1g Injection in Nigeria. NAFDAC Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye gave this warning on Tuesday in Abuja. She said the Marketing Authorization Holder (MAH), Pfizer, reported the occurrence via a patient notification mechanism and included a suspicious park of Meronem 1g injectable transaction. She cited Pfizer, stating that additional visual examination of the pack revealed that the contents of the vial did not dissolve when reconstituted for use. Furthermore, it was said that the crimp…

The Nigerian Senate now has a new minority leader in person of Senator Abba Moro representing Benue South Senatorial District. Moro – a two term Senator on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP – is taking over from Senator Simon Davou Mwadkwon representing Plateau North Senatorial District who was removed by the appeal court. He was nominated by the opposition party during Tuesday’s plenary session in the red Chamber and was subsequently affirmed. Earlier, the Senate had zoned the Minority leader to the North Central. Senator Mwadkwon, though a first timer to the Senate, was nominated by the…

The World Anti-Doping Agency (WADA) has warned that Nigerian athletes may be disqualified from competing in the 2024 Olympics in Paris if the Nigerian Anti-Doping Committee (NADC) does not follow the World Anti-Doping Code. At its executive committee meeting last Thursday in Montreal, Canada, WADA accused Nigeria’s NADO, as well as those of two other nations, Venezuela and Tunisia, of failing to comply with the Code according to a statement on its website. WADA said the “Nigerian NADO has still not addressed several critical requirements following an audit carried out by WADA in late 2022” (October 19-20, 2022). The statement…

CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso who has kept his plan for a new CBN to his chest, would seize the moment at the forthcoming Bankers’ Night, a yearly event organised by the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), this weekend to make a bold statement and unveil key policy directions. Cardoso is expected to examine the macroeconomic direction and outlook for the Nigerian economy at the event where private sector operators look forward to a clue of the CBN’s thinking about the economy. Cardoso will be addressing bankers and other public and private sector stakeholders at the Annual Bankers’ Dinner-themed…

Zazuu, a fintech company focusing on Africa, has officially ceased its operations due to the inability to secure additional funding. The closure announcement was made through a LinkedIn post where the startup acknowledged the challenge of obtaining sufficient growth funding as the primary reason for the shutdown. Established in 2018 by four Nigerian entrepreneurs – Kay Akinwunmi (CEO), Korede Fanilola (COO), Tosin Ekolie (CTO), and Tola Alade (CDO) – Zazuu aimed to revolutionize the remittance payment landscape in Sub-Saharan Africa. Serving as an end-to-end money transfer marketplace, the company’s mission was to reduce the cost of remittance payments. Zazuu positioned…