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A former Deputy Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Prof. Kingsley Moghalu, has advised the federal government to be mindful of the implication of several loans the country was seeking. Mo ghalu, in a statement yesterday, pointed out that borrowing so much without a real source of revenue to repay would likely result in a sovereign debt crisis. According to the former presidential candidate, while the popular opinion was that the country’s ratio of debt to GDP was moderate at 21 per cent, “the more relevant ratio is that of revenue to debt servicing which in the region of 60 per cent or more.” This, he said meant that nearly two-thirds of the country’s revenue go to debt servicing, even as he warned that Nigeria was entering, “a dangerously vicious cycle.” “We need to re-incentivise the economy to be productive. The surest way to do so is wean ourselves of oil dependence through constitutional restructuring that devolves far more powers to regions (not states, many ...

The attributes, which an ideal politician should have, are integrity, performance and compassion. People usually refer to politicians as untrustworthy, but we believe that any decent politician must have credibility and integrity. If I come to you and I say, ‘I am so impressed about what you are doing and I make a promise to see me tomorrow morning to deliver XYZ to you, based on what I see you do. If you come the next day and I stand by what I told you, that is a man of integrity’. So, if people refer to Chris Ogiemwonyi as a man of integrity, it is a big plus. He is a man they can trust. If he gives you his words, you can take it to the bank. Another aspect is performance in public office. How prepared is the man looking for the job? Take a look at the antecedents and profiles of all the four aspirants he is contesting with. Find out what they did in the past and how they performed in those positions. If you look at Ogiemwonyi’s curriculum vitae, you will be overwhelmed....

There are indications that the Executive Board of the International Monetary Fund may approve the $3.4bn loan sought by Nigeria on Tuesday (today). Although the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, had on April 6, while announcing that Nigeria had applied for the loan, said the funds were expected within six to 12 weeks, Reuters and Bloomberg reported that the IMF would meet over the request today. The reports quoted unofficial sources in the IMF. If approved, the loan would be among the largest allocations by the IMF to an African country in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. It is expected that the IMF Executive Board would approve the loan having already approved similar requests for several countries. According to the IMF, about 102 countries applied for aid as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic. The IMF Managing Director, Kristalina Georgieva, had in a statement on April 7 said the organisation was working hard to respond to the request ...

Seven inter-state buses with 95 passengers billed for night travel have been impounded by police in Lagos just before they took off, the command said on Sunday. The buses were discovered around 8pm on April 21 in the Bhojson area of Ebute Metta preparatory for departure for Benue, Abuja and Ilorin, spokesman Bala Elkana said in a statement. Elkana said drivers and passengers were charged to court, adding that they were among 620 violators arrested in one week from various parts of the state and charged to court for violating restriction order. Others included the Imam of Sheik Central Mosque, Mile 12 Ketu, Suleiman Abubakar, alleged to have held evening prayers (Maghrib and Isha prayers) in the mosque with a large number of worshippers on April 24. Similarly, Elkana said police operatives at Idimu arrested 39 alleged strippers and clubbers around 1:30am on April 24 at a hotel in the area, while 10 suspects were held for organising a party at Lekki Garden on April 23. He sa...

ALL Progressives Congress (APC) National Leaders Asiwaju Bola Tinubu and his wife, Senator Oluremi, have tested negative to COVID-19. The former Lagos State governor, his wife and their aides submitted themselves to COVID-19 tests at the weekend, following the death of his Chief Security Officer, Alhaji Lateef Raheem. However, while test results for Tinubu, Senator Oluremi and other aides were negative, the results for one aide were positive. A statement from the Tinubu Media Office signed by his media adviser, Tunde Rahman, said the particular member of staff who tested positive has been isolated in accordance with the Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) guidelines. He said further contact tracing and COVID-19 tests were being conducted by the NCDC on the relatives and possible contacts of the aide. Shortly after Raheem’s demise, NCDC medics took samples from his body for testing to determine the actual cause of death. According to the results, the deceased tested...

The Kano State Government has commenced the contact tracing to the five Almajiri pupils who tested positive for coronavirus in Kaduna State. The Kaduna State Government had on Monday, announced that five of the 195 Almajiri children evacuated from Kano tested positive for the virus. In a swift reaction, the Kano State Commissioner for Education, Muhammad Sanusi, said on Monday the government would conduct contact tracing of the Almajiri schools where the affected children were evacuated to their states of origin. Sunusi said the decision followed a report by the Kaduna State government that five of the Almajiri children evacuated from Kano to the state tested positive to the virus. The commissioner, who is also the Chairman of the Almajiri Evacuation Committee, disclosed that children were screened to ascertain their health status before they were conveyed to Kaduna and other states. He said: “Although, before we evacuated those children to their various states of origin...

Being a twin is not a taboo in Nigeria or what one should be ashamed of. But for former super Eagles defender, Taye Taiwo, his twin status over the years brought him some level of ridicule and embarrassment. In an interview with former Super Eagles media officer, Colin Udoh, the former Olympique Marseille defender revealed the truth about his twin who he said was a girl (not a male as mostly believed) who died several years ago at a very tender age. According to Taiwo, whose ferocious left-footed shots made him a fans’ delight, he was told by his father that they lost his twin sister while they were still very young. Reports in the media at different times had claimed that Taye Taiwo was inexplicably ten years younger than his twin ‘brother’, indicating that the footballer lied about his age. The damning reports over the years had seen many fans assume that Taye Taiwo was involved in age cheating. But having chosen to ignore the reports over the years, he cleared the air...

President Muhamadu Buhari has paid tribute to traditional rulers, the Christian Association of Nigeria, the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, and other prominent religious and community leaders for their support in the fight against coronavirus in Nigeria. According to Buhari, their cooperation and support have significantly contributed to the successes Nigeria has recorded so far in controlling the spread of COVID-19. The president made this known during a live broadcast on Monday. He said: “I will also recognize the support we have received from our traditional rulers, the Christian Association of Nigeria, the Nigerian Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs and other prominent religious and community leaders. “Your cooperation and support have significantly contributed to the successes we have recorded to date. “I will urge you all to please continue to create awareness on the seriousness of the coronavirus among your worshippers and communities while appeal...

ADDRESS BY H.E. MUHAMMADU BUHARI, PRESIDENT OF THE FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA ON THE CUMULATIVE LOCKDOWN ORDER OF LAGOS AND OGUN STATES AS WELL AS THE FEDERAL CAPITAL TERRITORY ON COVID- 19 PANDEMIC AT THE STATE HOUSE, ABUJA, MONDAY, 27th APRIL, 2020 Fellow Nigerians I will start by commending you all for the resilience and patriotism that you have shown in our collective fight against the biggest health challenge of our generation. As at yesterday, 26th April 2020, some million confirmed cases of COVID-19 have been recorded globally with about 900,000 recoveries. Unfortunately, some 200,000 people have passed away as a result of this pandemic. The health systems and economies of many nations continue to struggle as a result of the coronavirus pandemic. Nigeria continues to adapt to these new global realities on a daily basis. Today, I will present the facts as they are and explain our plans for the coming months fully aware that some key variables and assumptions may change ...

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) Saturday night confirmed 87 new cases of COVID-19 in the country. The latest figure has increased the number of confirmed COVID-19 cases in Nigeria to 1, 182. The NCDC released the following figures on its Twitter handle Lagos (33), Borno (18), Osun (12), Katsina (9), Kano (4), Ekiti (4), Edo (3), Bauchi (3) and Imo (1). At least 222 cases have been discharged from hospitals and isolation centres across the country and 35 others died from COVID-19 complications. The centre said: “As at 11:55 p.m. 25th April there are 1182 confirmed cases of #COVID19 reported in Nigeria. “Discharged: 222 AND Deaths: 35 “Breakdown on state-by-state: Lagos-689, FCT-138, Kano-77, Ogun-35, Osun-32, Gombe-30, Katsina-30, Borno-30, Edo-22, Oyo-18, Kwara-11, Akwa Ibom-11, Bauchi-11, Kaduna-10, Ekiti-8, Delta -6, Ondo-4, Rivers-3, Jigawa-2, Enugu-2, Niger-2, Abia-2, Zamfara-2, Sokoto-2, Benue-1, Anambra-1, Adamawa-1, Plateau-1, Imo-1.”

Former Minister of Education and ex-Ambassador of Nigeria to Germany, Prof Tunde Adeniran, is a distinguished academic and politician. He also served as the Chairman of the Directorate for Social Mobilization (MAMSER). The erudite university teacher was also a former member of the Board of Trustees (BoT) of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) before his defection to Social Democratic Party in 2018, where he took over from Chief Olu Falae as the acting national chairman of the party. In this chat with Sunday Sun, he speaks on the COVID-19 pandemic, what should be done and lessons learnt, the problem with Nigeria and why Nigerians bother about the political zones that would produce its leadership, among other key issues. Excerpt: Let’s start with the COVID-19 pandemic and how the government is tackling it in its management and control. Are you satisfied? The way the thing has been going and by the very nature of the virus, it is not a government issue and the government sho...

The actual number of Nigerians infected by coronavirus in China, the outbreak centre of the global pandemic, is yet to be ascertained after conflicting figures from the Nigerian Government, Chinese authorities and a section of local media. The Nigerian Government on Friday disagreed with Chinese authorities over the claim that 72 Nigerians had been infected with coronavirus in China. Nigeria, on the other hand, said only nine of its citizens in China have been infected. How it started A Nigerian daily Punch Newspaper on Thursday reported that 72 Nigerians had contracted coronavirus in China. The national daily reported the story based on a “note verbale (diplomatic correspondence) to the Nigerian Consulate in Guangzhou dated April 22, 2020” seen by it’s correspondent. “The results of the tests conducted on 56 Nigerians, which were released on Tuesday, indicated that the affected individuals were asymptomatic, raising concern that they might have infected other people,” Punch...

The Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF) has asked President Muhammadu Buhari, to scale down the total lockdown imposed in Lagos, Ogun and Abuja. This was contained in a letter dated April 24, 2020 and signed by NGF chairman, Governor Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State. The letter was addressed to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation/Chairman, Presidential Task Force on COVID-19, Boss Mustapha. The Governors have asked Buhari to allow free movement in all the states, but with restrictions on large gatherings. The other things the governors want incorporated into President Buhari’s impending pronouncement on the lockdown are: “Inter-state lockdown, excluding movement of essential supplies- food, beverages, medical and pharmaceutical, petroleum supplies and agricultural products; internal free movement but with restrictions on large gatherings and assemblies; overnight curfews; lockdown of flights; and compulsory use of face masks/coverings in the public.” Fayemi said NGF’s ...