Author: Chronicle Editor

Senate President Ahmad Lawan has given a one-week ultimatum to Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) of government yet to appear before relevant Committees to defend their budget proposal for 2022, to do so or risk zero allocation in the coming year. Lawan gave the ultimatum in an announcement moments before the upper chamber adjourned plenary on Tuesday. According to him, the one-week extension would allow relevant Committees to conclude work on the budget estimates of MDAs for scheduled presentation to the Committee on Appropriations. He said: “A one week deadline is hereby given for all MDAs to defend their budget.…

The Conference of Nigeria Political Parties (CNPP) has congratulated the winner of the 2021 Anambra State governorship election, Prof. Charles Soludo. The coalition also praised the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) for the transparent conduct of the polls and for allowing the wish of the people to prevail. In a statement signed by its Secretary General, Chief Willy Ezugwu, the CNPP counselled both the winner and the other contestants to join hands to turn the fortunes of the state around for the benefit of all the residents. “The contestants should accept the outcome and ovoid the temptation of needless post…

Moves against public servants with unexplained sources of wealth The Senate on Tuesday considered two critical bills seeking to facilitate the swift prosecution of money launderers and terrorist financiers in Nigeria. The bills when passed into law would also provide the needed framework for the prosecution of public servants with unexplained sources of wealth. The bills are Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) Bill, 2021, and Money Laundering (Prevention and Prohibition) (Repeal & Re-enactment) Bill, 2021. Both bills which scaled second reading during plenary were sponsored by Senator Suleiman Umar (APC, Kwara North) and Suleiman Abdu Kwari (APC, Kaduna North). Leading…

BudgIT Foundation, a foremost civic-tech organisation, leading the advocacy for fiscal transparency and accountability in Nigeria and three other African countries, has called on the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) to publish data on FAAC disbursements in Nigeria between March-August 2021 on the bureau’s official website. This is imperative as it enhances public oversight and provides CSOs and analysts with the opportunity to analyse revenue generation at the subnational level while holding respective representatives to the standards of fiscal responsibility. Over the years, the timely release of public data by the NBS has been crucial to our advocacy within Nigeria’s…

The Chairman Board of Trustees (BOT) of the Association of Advertising Agencies of Nigeria (AAAN), Sir Steve Omojafor has lauded the recently announced Advertising Industry Standard of Operating Procedure (AISOP) launched by the Advertising Practitioners Council of Nigeria (APCON), the sector regulator, Sir Steve Omojafor made his view on the AISOP known in Lagos yesterday in a statement released by the AAAN Press Office. The AAAN BOT Chairman, also commended Dr. Olalekan Fadolapo, Chief Executive Officer/Registrar of APCON, for signing off the proposed procedure, saying It will be of immense benefits to the industry. “This is long overdue, and the…

By Bamidele Johnson Apparently accustomed to getting away with reckless claims, marked by outright concoctions attributed to dodgy sources and serving such through his Notes from Atlanta, Farooq Kperoogi, the US-based professor and newspaper columnist, produced a 1,541-word salad of dangerous speculations over the weekend. The article: “Ikoyi Tragedy and Casual Bigotry Against Yoruba Muslims,” was a merry dirge – a poorly disguised expression of joy at the tragedy that befell Femi Osibona, the developer behind the ill-fated Ikoyi, Lagos State multi-storey building. For reasons not exactly hidden, the article instantly put him on the shit list of many of…

A US judge has ruled a congressional committee investigating the Capitol riot can access some of ex-President Donald Trump’s White House records. Mr Trump had argued the materials were covered by executive privilege, which protects the confidentiality of some White House communications. The inquiry is trying to find out if Mr Trump had foreknowledge of the riot. The ruling came on the day 10 Trump aides were issued with legal summonses to testify before lawmakers. Hundreds of Mr Trump’s supporters stormed the Capitol building and disrupted the official certification of President Joe Biden’s election victory on 6 January this year.…

Newcastle United are interested in signing Juventus and Wales midfielder Aaron Ramsey, 30. (Goal) Manchester United are prepared to sell France midfielder Paul Pogba, 28, in the January transfer window, before his contract expires at the end of the season. (Star) Leicester City manager Brendan Rodgers is the favourite to replace Ole Gunnar Solskjaer as Manchester United boss. (Eurosport) Manchester United are hoping to beat Chelsea to sign 22-year-old France defender Jules Kounde from Sevilla. (AS via Express) Barcelona stars remain disgruntled with Brazil midfielder Philippe Coutinho, accusing the 29-year-old of downing tools amid rumours of a potential move to Newcastle United. (Star) Liverpool are interested in West Ham’s English winger Jarrod Bowen, 24, but will not make…

Malala Yousafzai, the campaigner for girls’ education and Nobel Peace Prize laureate who survived being shot aged 15 by a Taliban gunman in her native Pakistan in 2012, has got married, she said on social media on Tuesday. The 24-year-old, who lives in Britain, said she and her new husband, who she named only as Asser, had wed in the city of Birmingham and celebrated at home with their families. “Today marks a precious day in my life. Asser and I tied the knot to be partners for life,” she wrote on Twitter, adding four pictures to her post. Malala…

The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has declared Prof. Charles Chukwuma Soludo as the winner of the governorship election in Anambra State. The result was announced at about 1:50 am on Wednesday by the returning officer for the election and Vice Chancellor of the University of Calabar, Prof. Florence Obi. Soludo pulled a total of 112,229 votes including most of the votes in Ihiala supplementary election held on Tuesday. Voting had been extended to Tuesday to allow people of Ihiala Local Government Area to vote as they were previously unable to do so due to due to technical difficulties. In…