The Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Yemi Cardoso, has appealed to Nigerians to shelve any plan of leaving the country because of economic hardship.

Yemi Cardoso said the current economic hardship in the country required the collective effort of all Nigerians to fix it.

He stated that the government through its policies is building an economy that would sustain and help businesses thrive.

The CBN Governor made the appeal in a keynote address at the 59th annual Bankers Dinner of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria, CIBN, in Lagos.

“It is not a good idea to japa at this stage. Two reasons. One, those who may decide they are going to do that, they will sell and get rid of their assets.

“You’ll be doing it for cheap. Predators, who are outside looking for bargains, will come and take it and pocket it, put it in their pocket and wait for the turnaround and sell it away.

“Number two, you want to be part of the solution. You want to be part of the solution, and this is time that we need all hands on them,” Daily Post quoted him.

While acknowledging the hardship Nigerians face because of the government’s economic reforms, he said “the reforms were focused on tackling challenges of today and on securing the opportunities of tomorrow with the aim of building an economy where everybody thrives”.

Aba Power Electric Ltd, Nigeria’s newest electricity distribution company, is working towards obtaining more natural gas supplies from its partners to increase electricity to nine of the 17 local government areas (LGAs) in Abia State it services as the Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) starts the regular services of the Alaoji-Aba 132kv line.

A statement this morning by Ugo Opiegbe, the managing director of Aba Power, explained that “a team of dedicated and competent TCN engineers and technicians is scheduled to service the line from December 1 to 7 to ensure regular and quality bulk power supply to the Aba Ringfenced Area managed by Aba Power, Nigeria’s 12^th distribution company (DisCo).

“We have, therefore, been in talks with the NNPCL and Heirs Energies to increase gas supply to the 188-megawatt Geometric Power Plant in the Osisoma Industrial Layout in Aba to enable us to provide electricity to the people, businesses, and communities in the nine LGAs we cover, and they have pledged to do their best to give us increased gas”.

The NNPCL and Heirs Energies own Oil Mining Lease (OML) 17 in the Owaza community in Ukwa West LGA in Abia State as a joint venture, with Heirs Energies as the operator.

Geometric Power gets its gas from the 27-kilometre gas pipeline it built to the OML, according to Engineer Cliff Eneh, an electric power consultant in Lagos who used to work for both the Texas Power and Light company in the United States and the defunct National Electric Power of Nigeria (NEPA).

“Due to the insufficient gas supplies to the Geometric Power Plant”, Eneh told journalists today, “the electricity firm has been augmenting its own power generation with supplies from the Niger Delta Power Holding Company (NDPHC) which uses TCN’s 133kv and 330kv lines to make them available to the Geometric Power Plant.

“This is why Aba residents and businesses might be affected by the scheduled one-week maintenance work on the Line, though Geometric Power has taken proactive steps to either minimize the impact on the customers or reduce it to the barest minimum”.

While commending the cooperation between Geometric Power and the TCN as well as the NDPHC, Engr Eneh noted that the planned TCN shutdown would not have any impact on the Aba Ringfence if there were sufficient gas supplies to the 188MW plant.

People in the Aba Ringfence, recalled the engineer, did not experience outages when there was a series of nationwide outages in October and November 2024 because there was a significant gas supply improvement to the area during this period by the NNPCL and Heirs Energies.

“Not only would the plant have started to provide full and uninterrupted electricity to all the nine LGAs under its coverage since commissioning last February 26,” said the power expert, “it would have been exporting power to the national grid to increase power availability in other parts of Nigeria since it already has installed three turbines of 47MW each, with the fourth to be installed anytime the gas issue is resolved.

“The whole nation is waiting anxiously to see the NNPCL and Heirs Energies deliver on their promise to increase natural gas supply to the Geometric Power Plant which will, in turn, provide electricity to Aba Power Electricity Ltd.

The alumni association of Ajayi Crowther University, Oyo State, has donated a Sienna bus worth millions to its alma mater to ease the movement and activities of Principal officers in the institution.

The Association made the donation on Wednesday, during the 16th convocation ceremonies and Alumni Lecture that was held at the Folorunsho Alakija Law Faculty of the University.

The activities were lined up to celebrate the university’s academic achievements and the strides made in nurturing excellence among its students.

According to the President of the Alumni association, Mr. Busoye Ogunlade, they have been supporting the university with various donations.

The Alumni Executives also awarded some selected staff of the institution for their long-serving, dedication to the University.

Ogunlade recalled that the executives, under his leadership, purchased a set of computers for the Transcripts department, to ease collection of transcripts for old students, within and outside the country.

Mr. Ogunlade, who also chairs the Oyo State Road Maintenance Agency, OYSROMA, promised that the association would continue to make contributions to the development of the university.

He said the Alumni website, to be launched in December 2024, will avail old students, both at home and in the Diaspora, the opportunity to bond, towards achieving a greater goal as a body.

Ogunlade, while handing over the bus to the Vice-chancellor, said that the school authorities alone could not provide all the needs of the institution, urging all old students to endeavour to contribute to the development of their alma mater.

He noted that “to meet the increasing demand for quality education, the University urgently requires the support of its old students, to enhance the infrastructure on its campuses.”

Ogunlade prayed that the University keeps expanding in larger strides as well as every graduate of the School.

Responding, the Vice-Chancellor of Ajayi Crowther University, Professor Timothy Adebayo, expressed gratitude to the Ajayi Crowther University Alumni for its contribution to the university’s development. 

The vice-chancellor affirmed that the association has been a worthy partner in progress since he assumed office nearly a few years ago. 

He equally recalled that the association has made several donations towards the University.

In the vice-chancellor’s words “We are grateful to the university’s alumni for purchasing this bus. It is timely and we appreciate it.”

While explaining the numerous feats of the University in the last year, the VC said the institution has signed many pacts with various bodies and institutions which has aided academic developments, stability, accreditation, and expansion of frontiers.

The association delegation included other members of the executive, including the National Secretary, Yemisi Peters, among others.

E-signed: 

'Busoye Ogunlade,                                 'Yemisi Peters

National President,                                 Nat'l Secretary,

ACU Alumni.                                             ACU Alumni,

November 29, 2024.                               Nov. 29, 2024.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has threatened to impose fines on erring banks over the ongoing cash scarcity at automated teller machines.

Olayemi Cardoso, governor of CBN, spoke on Friday at the annual Bankers’ Dinner organised by the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN).

On November 13, some Nigerians took to X to complain about the lack of cash in bank ATMs and having to depend on point of sale (POS) operators.

Reacting to the development two days later, the CBN directed banks to prioritise cash disbursement through ATMs.

The regulator also warned that banks disbursing naira notes to persons hawking the Nigerian currency will be penalised.

Speaking on Friday, Cardoso said non-compliance will lead to severe penalties.

“We also recognise the ongoing challenges with cash availability at ATMs, which disproportionately affect ordinary Nigerians,” the CBN governor said.

“To address this, we are conducting spot checks across deposit money banks, and we will impose penalties on underperforming institutions.

“Effective December 1, 2024, customers are encouraged to report any difficulties with withdrawing cash from bank branches or ATMs directly to the CBN through designated phone numbers and email addresses for their respective states.

“Guidelines will be distributed widely to raise public awareness. We will also urge full regulatory compliance by all stakeholders, including mobile money operators and POS agents, to promote digital transaction channels and improve service delivery. 

“I repeat, financial institutions found engaging in malpractices or sabotage will face severe penalties.

“The CBN will continue to maintain a robust cash offering to meet the country’s needs, particularly during high-demand periods such as the festive season and year-end.”

Speaking on foreign exchange (FX), Cardoso said Nigeria missed out on a potential N6.2 trillion due to its less flexible FX regime.

“These funds could have significantly contributed to critical investments in education, healthcare, and infrastructure development,” Cardoso said.

The CBN governor said the apex bank is focused on rebuilding Nigeria’s economic resilience through targeted reforms, including prioritising domestic refining capacity, promoting non-oil exports, and advancing technological innovations in the financial sector.