The Deputy Senate President, Barau Jibrin, has urged state governors to release grains to the people to cushion the effects of the rising cost of foodstuffs.

Barau hailed President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for ordering the release of 102,000 tons of rice, maize, millet and others to address the high cost of commodities.

The federal government had through the Special Presidential Committee on Emergency Food Intervention, headed by the Chief of Staff, Rt. Hon Femi Gbajabiamila, on Thursday, ordered the release of 102,000 tons of grains to Nigerians. 

The Deputy Senate President, in a statement by his media aide, Ismail Mudashir, said the move would go a long way in cushioning the effects of the rising cost of commodities in the country. 

He urged states and local governments to emulate the federal government by releasing grains to the needy in the country. 

Barau said in the coming days, he would distribute rice to 200,000 households as part of his contribution to address the challenge.

“At this trying period, we should all support the federal government to address the challenges our country is facing. As we all know the rising cost of food is a global phenomenon and our country is not unaffected by it. 

“I, therefore, implore states and local governments to distribute food items to those in need across the country to cushion the effects of the rise in the cost of food items,” he urged.

[DailyTrust]

A deputy director in the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Michael Onyeka Ogbu, has explained why the apex bank released $6,230,000 as payment to some international election observers prior to last year’s general election.

Ogbu, who is currently a Deputy Director and Head of the Service Delivery Division at the CBN, said the funds were released because the request documents contained evidence of approvals by the then President Muhammadu Buhari and erstwhile CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele.

The deputy director said this while testifying yesterday as a prosecution witness in the trial of the former CBN governor.

Emefiele is facing a 20-count amended charge filed by the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) in which he is, among others, accused of engaging in criminal breach of trust, forgery, conspiracy to obtain by false pretence and obtaining money by false pretence.

He is, in the amended charge, accused of forging a document, titled: Re: Presidential Directive on Foreign Election Observer Missions, dated: January 26, 2023 with reference number SGF.43/L.01/201 and purported same to have emanated from the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (OSGF) to the governor of the CBN.

Emefiele is alleged to have, on February 8, 2023, knowingly obtained by false pretence $6,230,000.00 by falsely representing that the SGF vide a letter, dated: January 26, 2023, with reference number SGF 43/L.01/201 requested the CBN to provide a contingent logistic advance in the sum of $6,230,000 “in line with Mr. President’s directive”.

Ogbu, who was led in evidence by Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN), said he served as the Branch Controller until he was redeployed last September.

He recalled that on February 8, last year, there was a request for payment addressed to the Branch Controller.

Ogbu said after going through the documents and was satisfied, he minuted on it to the Head of Business Services Unit for processing and payment.

On whether the money was eventually released, the witness said: “Payment was eventually made. The $6,230,000 was paid on September 8, 2023. The payment was in cash.”

At that point, Oyedepo handed the witness a bundle of documents, which Ogbu identified as the documents he referred to.

Identifying each of the documents one at a time, the witness said the first page “is the payment slip, which was issued at the point of payment from my bank to the person nominated to receive the payment”.

He added: “The second page is the memo from the Banking Services Department authorising the branch to make the payment of $6,230,000.

“The third page is the request of the Director of Banking Services Department for approval of the Governor for the payment.”

The witness explained what pages four to six contained.

Ogbu told the court that the presidential approval was addressed to the then SGF, Mr. Boss Mustapha.

Oyedepo was about tendering the documents when he noticed that some of them were not properly certified.

The laywer prayed the court to be allowed to tender them as they were with a promise to replace them later with properly certified copies, a request the defence lawyer, Matthew Burkaa (SAN), rejected.

He also urged the court to grant him a stand-down of about 30 minutes to get the documents certified, which Burkaa also rejected.

Burkaa argued that it was impossible for the prosecution to have the documents certified within the 30 minutes Oyedepo requested for.

He urged the court to instead grant an adjournment to allow the prosecution sufficient time to put its house in order, an option the judge, Justice Hamza Muazu, felt comfortable with.

With the agreement of lawyers to parties in the case, Justice Muazu adjourned till February 13 for continuation of trial.

[TheNation]

Access Holdings Plc on Monday announced the appointment of Ms. Bolaji Agbede as the Acting Group Chief Executive Officer.

This follows the death of its former Group Chief Executive Officer, Dr. Herbert Wigwe.

Wigwe died in a helicopter crash alongside his wife, son, and a former chairman of the Nigeria Exchange Group, Abimboloa Ogunbanjo on Friday

A statement made by the company’s Board of Directors and dated February 12, 2024, stated that the appointment was subject to the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria

“Further to its announcement dated February 11, 2024, the Board of Directors of Access Holdings Plc (‘the Company’) has today announced the appointment of Ms Bolaji Agbede as the Acting Group Chief Executive Officer of the Company following the unfortunate demise of its former Group Chief Executive Officer, Dr Herbert Wigwe, on February 9, 2024.

“The appointment is subject to the approval of the Central Bank of Nigeria,” the statement read in part.

Agbede who joined Access Bank in 2003 as an Assistant General, has nearly three decades of professional experience cutting across banking and business consultancy services.

She served in different roles at the bank including, Head, Group Human Resources between 2010 and 2022 before she was appointed the company’s founding Executive Director, Business Support in 2022, a role she held until her new appointment

She holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Mathematics and Statistics from the University of Lagos and a Masters of Business Administration Degree from Cranfield University UK in 2002.

She is also a member of the Chartered Institute of Management UK and the Chartered Institute of Personnel Management of Nigeria.

[Punch]

Senator representing Edo North Senatorial District, Adams Oshiomhole, said Nigerians are still suffering from the impact of the policies of ex-President Muhammadu Buhari.

Oshiomhole stated this in an interview on Channels Television.

The former governor of Edo State said President Tinubu should not be held responsible for the right or wrong decisions taken by the previous administration.

Oshiomhole said he (President Tinubu) always places national interests above partisan interests.

He said, “My first loyalty is to Nigeria. At some point, before the last president left office, I lamented loudly what I saw as reckless policies that were designed to dehumanize the population that was already in pain.

“I felt that it is not what the then president promised. I dissociated myself from those policies and I’m happy that I was not the only one.

“There were governors who approached the court to denounce some of those policies. It is the long term consequences of those policies that we are still grappling with now.

“Yes, it is our party platform. Like Tinubu also said, he was not a minister or adviser. He never took a contract in that government and he cannot be held responsible for what the government did right or wrong,” he said.