Author: Vincent Osuwo

Monday Okpebholo, the All Progressives Congress governorship candidate in Edo State’s September 21 governorship election, is facing a six-month prison sentence under the Central Bank of Nigeria Act of 2007, after a coalition of civil society organisations led by the Network of Civil Society Organisations in Nigeria accused him of abusing the Nigerian currency, the naira. The organisation filed a complaint against Okpebholo with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission on May 2, 2024, in a petition addressed to the EFCC’s chairman. The petition was signed by Victor Kalu, the group’s national coordinator, and Ali Abacha, the national secretary. The…

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has directed banks to stop charging cash deposits until September 30, 2024. The CBN announced this in a circular dated May 6, 2024, signed by Adetona Adedeji, Director of Banking Supervision. Some bank clients expressed concerns after lenders began collecting processing fees for cash deposits on May 1. Banks are required to charge 2% on deposits above N500,000 for individuals and 2% on deposits exceeding N3 million for business account holders. According to the CBN’s most recent circular to financial and non-financial organisations, processing fees have been stopped. “Please refer to our letter dated…

Three employees of Okomu Oil Palm Company PLC were slain by gunmen on Monday while working on their plantation in Benin, Edo State. The company’s Public Relations Officer, Fidelis Olise, confirmed the death to reporters on Tuesday, saying it was carried out by “unknown persons.” He added that the corporation had a good relationship with the host villages in the area, but he couldn’t say whether any of them were involved in the attack. He stated the event had been reported to the police, and an inquiry was already underway. He said, “I can confirm to you that three of…

Florence Friday, a bride-to-be reportedly called off her wedding over the groom’s refusal to leave his family house. The wedding, which was slated for Saturday, May 4th, 2024, in Farin Lamba, Vom, Jos South Local Government Area of Plateau State, was canceled before the event took place. According to reports, Florence, the bride-to-be, asked for N30,000 from her groom-to-be, Morgak James, on March 28th to reserve her wedding gown. Morgak, unable to provide the full sum, offered N15,000 and promised to complete it the following week. Florence, furious, insisted on receiving the entire sum by the end of the week,…

Nigerian President Bola Tinubu has returned to Abuja following a two-week trip overseas. Tinubu returned to his official residence, the Aso Rock Villa in Abuja, early Wednesday. In a tweet on Tuesday evening, Tinubu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr. Bayo Onanuga, disclosed that “President Bola Tinubu, along with his aides, will return to Nigeria tomorrow from Europe.” Two weeks ago, on April 23, 2024, the President left Abuja for the Netherlands for a three-day official visit, after an invitation from Dutch Prime Minister Mark Rutte. While in the Netherlands, he attended the Nigerian-Dutch Business and Investment Forum, which…

Stormy Daniels, the porn star at the centre of Donald Trump’s historic criminal prosecution, testified on Tuesday about her claimed 2006 sexual encounter with the former president in a hotel penthouse suite. Trump, 77, is accused of falsifying company records to reimburse his lawyer, Michael Cohen, for a $130,000 hush money payment to Daniels on the eve of his 2016 election against Hillary Clinton, when the lurid story of marital infidelity had the potential to sink his campaign. Prosecutor Susan Hoffinger has announced, “The people call Stormy Daniels,” as Trump, who is seeking to recapture the White House in November,…

Benneth Igweh, the Commissioner of Police for the Federal Capital Territory, has begun deploying motorbikes and troops to rural parts of the nation’s capital. Josephine Adeh, the command’s spokesperson, told reporters that the decision was intended to enhance security response operations and police efforts against banditry. She further stated that the deployment of motorcycles and staff began on Monday. Adeh said, “You may recall that recently, the Minister, Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, donated 30 motorcycles to the command in his continued support and responsiveness to the security and safety of residents, which he believed should not be limited to…

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is investigating 10 senior officers in the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) for an alleged N7.5 billion scam. The anti-corruption bureau has also invited ten contractors involved in the alleged fraud. On April 26, 2024, EFCC Chairman Ola Olukoyede wrote a letter to the NSCDC CG asking the ten indicted NSCDC personnel for questioning. According to a document obtained exclusively by our correspondent, the officers involved were due to be questioned by the EFCC on May 2, 2024, and thereafter. The ten invited NSCDC officers are Victor Olanrewaju Fayemi, Anthony Akpan…

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) allegedly arrested some Bureau de Change operators at the renowned Wuse Zone 4 market on Tuesday. This happened as traders claimed some BDC operators resisted arrest during a sting operation. The operators had conducted routine raids to clean up the street traders’ market and eradicate arbitrary trading. However, the effort was thwarted on Tuesday, resulting in gunshots and damage to the operative’s vehicles, according to two currency merchants who observed the incident. One of the traders, who wanted not to be named for fear of retaliation, stated that the traders acted out of…

In the early hours of Tuesday, bandits kidnapped Mansur Kaura, a bank manager at TAJ Bank’s Zamfara State branch. According to Musa Ibrahim, a resident of the region, Kaura was kidnapped when bandits broke into his home in the Rijiyar Gabas area of Gusau, the capital of Zamfara State, at about 1 a.m. The development comes after an attack on Sunday in the Piko district of the Bwari Area council in the Federal Capital Territory, in which 13 people were kidnapped. According to a source close to the community’s Madaki (head), Chief John Jatau, the criminals demanded N900 million to…