Labour unions in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have threatened to shut down operations over the non-implementation of the ₦70,000 minimum wage, aligning with the Nigeria Labour Congress‘ (NLC) directive to embark on a nationwide strike by December 1, 2024.

Despite President Bola Tinubu signing the minimum wage bill into law on May 29, 2024, the FCT and seven other states—Zamfara, Sokoto, Osun, Cross River, Imo, Plateau, and Taraba—are yet to approve the new minimum wage, expected to have commenced in October.

Speaking to Punch on Friday, the Chairman of the FCT Council of the NLC, Stephen Knabayi, decried the non-implementation and said efforts to engage the FCT administration had been unsuccessful.

He further condemned the treatment of workers amid rising living costs, describing it as “unfair and unsustainable.”

Knabayi said, “FCT has not implemented the minimum wage. We have tried to meet with the FCT administration, but that has not been possible. And we are going to follow the directive of the NLC and shut down everywhere by November 30. Even the ₦70,000 minimum wage is not enough, and it is unfair.”

Knabayi and the chairman of the FCT chapter of the Trade Union Congress, Audu Akogwu, alleged that the FCT administration under the leadership of the Minister, Nyesom Wike, has failed to meet with the labour unions since his inauguration in August 2023.

Akogwu said, “Any moment the federal government pays anything, FCT pays the same thing. They paid the N35,000 wage award, and all the salary arrears, they have cleared. I do not think there is any formal negotiation with the administration or the FCT. Whatever the FG is paying is what they are paying.

“The only challenge we have with the FCT Minister is that the two labour unions cannot access him. Immediately they resumed office, we sent a letter from the TUC, telling him that we want to pay him a courtesy visit, till today they have not replied. That’s the only issue we have with the present minister of the FCT.”

• Analysts anticipate inflationary pressure to persist in November

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC) and oil marketers operating in the country imported 1.5 million metric tonnes of petrol and 414,018.764 metric tonnes of diesel respectively between October 1 and November 11, 2024, a document obtained by THISDAY has shown.
This emerged as the naira weakened to N1,740/$ on the parallel market yesterday, lower than the N1,720/$ it closed the previous day. Likewise, on the official forex market, the NAFEM, the naira depreciated marginally to N1,652/$ yesterday, compared with the N1650/$1 it closed the previous day.

Also yesterday, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) used to gauge inflation in the country increased to 33.88 percent in October compared to 32.70 percent in September, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed yesterday.
The oil importation data which highlighted the movement of motor tanker vessels during the period, further indicated that 13,500 metric tonnes of jet fuel was brought into the country during the 42-day period.

These petroleum products imported into the country were valued at approximately $1.9 billion or nearly N3 trillion, according to estimates.
 A further breakdown of the tonnages showed that the volume of petrol brought into Nigeria during the time was roughly 2 billion litres, about 500 million litres of diesel and around 17 million litres of jet fuel.
The Group Chief Executive Officer of the NNPC, Mele Kyari, at an event in Lagos during the week, said the company had ended its prolonged reliance on imported refined products.
However, the NNPC spokesman, Olufemi Soneye, later clarified that the national oil firm and its partners would not stop the importation of products,  but that decisions on whether to import or not would be based on the prevailing economics of it.

Although the management of the Dangote refinery had made case that since there’s sufficient local refining, products should be purchased within the country, the issue of pricing remains very knotty.
“Today, NNPC does not import any products; we are taking only from domestic refineries,” Kyari had said, a statement which Soneye later shed light on.
 “The GCEO’s statement should not be construed to imply that NNPC is obligated to be the sole off-taker of any refinery or that we will no longer import fuel. While NNPC prioritises sourcing products from domestic refineries, this is contingent upon economic viability.
“If local supply is cost-effective, it will be preferred, but the same principle applies to other marketers, who will also evaluate total costs when deciding whether to buy locally or import,” Soneye had said.

In addition, the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), it was learnt, may have granted additional licences for the importation of more petroleum products before December.
But the report obtained by THISDAY showed that tanker vessels carrying refined products have been arriving at ports in Lagos, Warri, Calabar, and Port Harcourt, despite the push by the Dangote refinery to ensure oil marketers get products from its $20 billion facility located in Lagos.

For instance in October, the NNPC and its partners imported a total of 994,446.438 metric tonnes of petrol, with Lagos receiving 555,121.617 metric tonnes, Warri 281,100 metric tonnes, Port Harcourt 94,224.821 metric tonnes, and Calabar 64,000 metric tonnes.
Besides, a total of 285,518.764 metric tonnes of diesel was imported, with Lagos getting 162,500 metric tonnes, Warri 58,500 metric tonnes, Port Harcourt 56,018.764 metric tonnes and Calabar 8,500 metric tonnes.

In the same vein, from November 1 to November 11, a further 358,083 metric tonnes of petrol, 112,500 metric tonnes of diesel, and 13,500 metric tonnes of aviation fuel were discharged at Nigerian ports.
Aside the NNPC, 23 other oil marketers, including Matrix, A.A Rano, Bovas, Eternal Oil, Deep Water, Ibeto, Chisco, T-Time, Dozy, North-West, Shorelink, AYM Shafa, Rainoil, Prudent, Fatgbems, also got products.

Specifically, on October 10, NNPC received 60,590.187 metric tonnes of petrol via the Navig8 Honor ship at Pinnacle Terminal, while on October 16, another 38,083 metric tonnes of petrol were delivered by the CL Agatha Christie ship.
Similarly, on October 18, four ships, namely: Largo Sea, Binta Saleh, CL Game Ousten, and Berners, delivered a combined 97,000 metric tonnes of petrol. Additionally, AA Rano imported 18,860 metric tonnes of petrol and 20,000 metric tonnes of diesel via ships Binta Saleh and Lausu at its own terminal.
At a recent meeting with government authorities, President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, said  that his refinery currently holds more than 500 million litres of fuel in reserves.
Meanwhile, the CPI which measures the rate of change in prices of goods and commodities increased to 33.88 per cent in October compared to 32.70 per cent in September.
The 1.18 percentage increase in headline index was blamed on rising food and energy prices.
The uptick in inflation came despite the current harvest season when food prices are expected to crash.

According to the CPI report for October, year-on-year, inflation was 6.55 per cent higher compared to 27.33 per cent in October 2023.
Month-on-month, headline inflation rose by  0.12 per cent to 2.64 per cent compared to 2.52 per cent in September.
Food inflation rose 7.64 per cent to 39.16 per cent year-on-year compared to 31.52 per cent in October 2023.
The NBS attributed the rise in food inflation year -on-year to increases in prices of guinea corn, rice, maize grains, rice, others (bread and cereals class), yam, water yam, coco yam, (potatoes, yam and other tubers class), palm oil, vegetable oil milo, lipton and bournvita.

Month-on-month food inflation was attributed to increases in the prices of palm oil, vegetable oil, mudfish, croaker (apo), and fresh fish (obokun).
Others are dried beef, goat meat, mutton, skin meat, other meat class, and bread, guinea corn flour, plantain flour, and rice among others.
On other hand, core inflation which excludes the prices of volatile agricultural produces and energy rose by 5.79 per cent to 28.37 per cent, year-on- year in October compared 22.58 per cent in October 2023.

Core inflation was attributed to highest increases in prices of bus journey within the city, journey by motorcycle, bus journey intercity, others (under passenger transport by road class), rents (actual and imputed rentals for housing class).
Others are meal at a local restaurant (accommodation service class), and hair cut service, woman hair brush, women’s hairdressing, (hairdressing salons and personal grooming establishments class).

Year-on-year, in urban inflation increased to 36.38 per cent compared to 29.29 per cent in October 2023, while month-on-month, the index also rose to 2.75 per cent from 2.67 per cent in the preceding month.
Similarly, rural inflation increased to 31.59 per cent, year-on-year compared to 25.58 per cent in October 2023.
Month-on-month, the rural index stood at 2.53 per cent compared to 2.39 per cent in September.
At state level all item inflation year-on-year, was highest in Bauchi (46.68 per cent), Kebbi (40.02 per cent), Sokoto (39.65 per cent), while Delta (27.85 per cent), Benue (28.22 per cent) and Katsina (29.59 per cent) recorded the lowest rise.

Month-on-Month, however,  highest increases was observed in Kano (3.77 per cent), Bauchi (3.74 per cent), Adamawa (3.59 per cent), while Kwara (1.27 per cent), Ondo (1.49 per cent) and Lagos (1.91 per cent) recorded the slowest rise.
Year-on-year, food inflation was highest in Sokoto (52.18 per cent), Edo (46.55 per cent), Borno (45.85 per cent), while Kwara (31.68 per cent), Kogi (33.30 per cent), and Rivers (33.87 per cent) recorded the slowest rise.
iOn a Month-on-month basis, however, food inflation was highest in Adamawa (5.08 per cent), Sokoto (4.86 per cent), Yobe (4.34 per cent), while Kwara (1.11 per cent), Ondo (1.31 per cent) and Kogi (1.50 per cent) recorded the slowest rise.

However, reacting to the inflatable report, analysts at Cordros Research, said despite the typical boost from the October harvest season, food inflation surged by 30 basis points (bps) to 2.94 per cent month on month, resulting in a 39.16 per cent year on year.
It said, “This trend reflects persistent structural challenges undermining the agricultural sector’s productivity. Key factors include widespread flooding disrupting farming activities, ongoing conflict in the Northern region limiting agricultural operations, and rising input costs constraining harvest yields below historical averages, all of which have kept agricultural food prices elevated.

“Additionally, the persistent currency depreciation maintained upward pressure on imported food prices, while increased transportation costs –  a direct consequence of higher Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) prices – inflated retail food prices across the board.
“To put this in perspective, October’s month on month food inflation significantly exceeded the five-year October average of 1.47 per cent, underscoring the unusual intensity of current price pressures.”

Cordros added that “Across sub-items, prices rose for farm produce (+20bps to 2.95 per cent month on month) and Processed food (+33bps to 2.93 per cent month on month), while imported food prices saw a slight decline (-24bps to 3.37 per cent month on month).
“Concurrently, the core inflation increased by 4bps to 2.14 per cent month on month (September: 2.10% m/m) within the review period after declining in September, pushing the year-on-year print higher to 28.37 per cent (September: 27.43 per cent y/y).”
In its outlook, however, Cordros further stated that combined with persistent naira volatility and festive-driven consumer demand, inflation is expected to sustain price pressures on both locally produced and imported food items.  

Cordros said, “As a result, we expect food inflation to print 3.04 per cent month on month in November, leading to a further increase in the year-on-year numbers (+160bps to 40.83 per cent).
“At the same time, prices within the core basket are poised to remain elevated, reflecting the combined effect of (1) naira depreciation, (2) elevated costs of energy, (3) increased transport expenses and (4) high operational costs.

“Consequently, we project core inflation to increase by 2.16 per cent m/m, cascading to 28.17 per cent y/y (October: 27.42 per cent y/y).
“Taking these components together, the headline inflation is expected to print 2.65 per cent m/m, pushing the year-on-year numbers higher to 34.60 per cent in November (October: 33.88 percent y/y).”

• Insists anti-crime agencies Acts need no ratification by state assemblies 

The Supreme Court yesterday affirmed the powers of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC) and the Nigeria Financial Intelligence Unit (NFIU) to investigate and prosecute alleged crimes whether at the federal, state and local government levels.

The apex court in a judgement delivered by Justice Uwani Aba-Aji, held that the Acts establishing the anti corruption agencies were lawfully made by the National Assembly that is constitutionally empowered to make laws for the good governance of the entire country.

The Attorney-General of Kogi State had dragged the federal government to court to challenge the legality of the EFCC, ICPC and NFIU’s Acts, on the grounds that they were not ratified by the state Houses of Assembly haven been an offshoot of the United Nations convention on corruption.
The plaintiff later joined by 18 others, thereby asked the apex court to hold that the anti-graft agencies lack powers to investigate and prosecute states on how they administer funds belonging to them in their states.

Besides, the plaintiffs prayed the court to restrain the EFCC, ICPC and NFIU form inviting, arresting, investigating and or prosecuting them in respect of their states’ funds.

However, the apex court in its judgement on the issue held that the anti-graft agencies are legal entities empowered to investigate and prosecute economic and financial crimes across all strata of the country on the grounds that they are products of the National Assembly, whose laws are binding on all the federating units as well as their agencies.

Besides, the apex court held that although the Acts establishing the anti corruption agencies were an offshoot of the United Nations convention, they are nonetheless lawful, legal and binding, having been enacted by the National Assembly.
According to the apex court, laws passed by the National Assembly do not need any ratification by the states of the federation.
“Let me first look at the constitutional provision. The plaintiffs rely on Section 12 of the constitution in their argument. Treaty is an agreement reached by two or more countries which has to be ratified.

“Convention: Conventions are agreed by a larger number of nations. Conventions only come into force when a larger number of countries agree.

“Therefore, the EFCC Act, which is not a treaty but a convention does not need the ratification of the Houses of Assembly. A convention would have been ratified by members state and the NASS can make laws from it, which will be binding on all the states in Nigeria as it is the case of EFCC Establishment Act,” Justice Aba-Aji held.
While pointing out that the federating units in a country like Nigeria, do not have absolute power, the apex court held that where an Act or law is made by NASS like the NFIU and its guideline, it is binding on all.

“Any act that has been competently enacted by the NASS cannot be said to be inconsistent.
“Where the NASS has enacted several laws on corruption, money laundering, etc, no state has the right to make law to compete with it. The investigative power of the EFCC cannot be said to be in conflict with legislative powers of the state assembly.

“I must agree with the AGF that the plaintiffs’ argument, that is, the Houses of Assembly of the plaintiffs’ states is not tenable in law,” the Supreme Court adding that the NFIU guideline had not any way contravened the provision of the constitution to manage the funds of their states.

The apex court subsequently dismissed the suit for lacking in merit.

Although, the panel initially dismissed the federal government’s objection to the suit for being incompetent and lacking in merit.

Reacting, the counsel to Kogi State, Abdulwahab Mohammed, SAN, said, “This is an issue we have raised before the FHC, it was not addressed. We raised it at the Appeal Court and was not addressed. This is going to enrich our jurisprudence. We thank your lordship for hearing us out.”

Representative of the AGF, Rotimi Oyedepo, SAN, said, “We convey our gratitude to the court for your wisdom. Your lordship has permanently settled the legality of the anti-corruption agency in fighting corruption.” 

First Bank of Nigeria (FBN) Holdings Plc says shareholders have approved its plan to change the company’s name to First Holdco Plc. 

In a notice on Friday, Adewale Arogundade, the company secretary,  said the decision was approved by shareholders at its 12th annual general meeting held virtually on Thursday.

According to the company, the change will be extended to all subsidiaries.

“That there should be a change of the legal and brand names of the Company from FBN Holdings Plc and FBNHoldings to First Holdco Plc and FirstHoldco, respectively,” FBN Holdings said.

“That the change of legal and brand names should be extended to the subsidiaries of FBN Holdings Plc

“That the directors be and are hereby authorised to perform all such other acts and do all such other things as may be necessary to give effect to the above resolutions, including, without limitation, complying with the directives of any regulatory authority.

“That upon completion of the processes for the change of name, Increase of the Company’s share capital and allotment of the new ordinary shares in accordance with the resolutions above, the Memorandum and Articles of Association of the Company be amended as necessary to reflect the Company’s new legal name and Issued share capital.”

FBN HOLDINGS TO RAISE N350BN VIA RIGHTS ISSUE, PRIVATE PLACEMENT

FBN Holdings also announced shareholders approved the sale of shares to private investors and existing shareholders to raise N350 billion.

“The Company be and is hereby authorised to undertake a capital raise of up to ₩350,000,000,000.00 (Three Hundred and Fifty Billion Naira),” FBN Holdings said.

“The capital raise transaction shall be implemented by one or more transactions through the issuance of shares by way of a public offering, private placement, rights Issue in the Nigerian or International capital markets.”

FBN Holdings said the price will be determined by “way of a book building process or any other valuation method or combination of methods, in such tranches, series or proportions and at such periods or dates, coupon or interest rates, within such maturity periods and upon such other terms and conditions as may be determined by the Board of Directors.

The financial institution said the capital raise will be subject to approvals of the relevant regulatory authorities.

FBNH Holdings said the share capital of the company will be Increased by the exact number of ordinary shares “which would be required upon determination of the terms of the capital raise and the Directors are authorised to pass resolutions for such increase, as well as to allot the new ordinary shares. required in connection with the capital raise”.

“That the directors be and are hereby authorised to undertake all necessary actions to secure the listing and admission to trading of securities issued pursuant to the foregoing resolution on the Official List of the Nigerian Exchange Limited and/or on any other securities exchange(s) or market(s),’ the company said.

In April, the company had said it would sell shares to private investors and existing shareholders to raise N300 billion.

On November 1, FBN Holdings  announced plans to raise about N150 billionthrough a rights issue programme.