WOW.THIS IS NOT A SNAKE, BUT ALONG TAPE..

  Massive 33ft anaconda was found in brazil, a lot of residents are still scared cinsidering the fact of finding such a big beast in their vicinity.i myself could still not believe the mystery behind this mother snake.the snake has been regarded to be the biggest snake ever.watch the video and be surprised...lol

 

AM SURE YOU WILL ENJOY THIS......

 This is just for fun, am sure olamide self will be surprised and dazzled.this is wow....

 

THIS IS FOR THE DRUMMERS.........YOUR DESIRE CAN NOT BE TAKEN.(PRACTICE)

    In this generation of ours, we have a lot of people who lay claims to be a drummer, it is not just you been a sticker(drummer), you also need the power of practice. it is generally said that practice make perfect. for the quiet people who knows me, i am also a drummer, but i discovered recently that every drummer needs an instrument for practice,instrument may possibly be a drum pad, but not everybody can afford a drum pad, but the most accessible of all drum practice instrument is a mentor whom you can listen to his or her drum cover.my own mentor is TOBI ALAPO(OFFICIAL D BANJ DRUMMER). but i will take it upon myself from today to post at least a practicing drum cover vid of an international drummer on my blog so we can check and practice online everyday. WE CAN ONLY BE THE BEST IF WE FOLLOW THE BEST.
        PRACTICE AND BE PERFECT........

Anti-graft war on civil service’ll boost economy –UNDP

  The Country Director of the United Nations Development Programme to Nigeria, Pa Lamin Beyai, says if the civil service can be rid of corruption, there will be an improvement in the ease of doing business in Nigeria and this will in turn boost the economy.

Beyai spoke through the UNDP Deputy Country Director-Programme, Mandisa Mashologu, at the Training of Trainers on Corruption Risk Assessments which held at the Anti-Corruption Academy of Nigeria, a training wing of the Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission, located at Keffi, Nasarawa State, on Monday.

He expressed optimism that the anti-corruption crusade of the Federal Government would help reduce the incidence of corruption in Nigeria.

Beyai said, “As you are all aware, in the 2015 Corruption Perception Index by the Transparency International which measures the perceived levels of public sector corruption in 168 countries, Nigeria ranked 136th, lower than the average for Sub-Saharan Africa.

“Tackling corruption remains a top priority of the government as one of means to facilitate efficient delivery of public services and enhance national development opportunities.

“The process has resulted in ongoing institutional reforms which are already yielding positive results. We believe that an efficient and effective public service can positively contribute to the ease of doing business in Nigeria and act as a stimulant to curb corrupt practices.”

The Provost of ACAN, Prof. Sola Akinrinade, who declared the training open on behalf of the ICPC Chairman, Mr. Ekpo Nta, said that the establishment of the academy was in line with the commission’s determination to fulfil its enlightenment and education functions in systematic and sustainable way to achieve long-term impact in the national war against corruption.

He said, “At the academy, we do not subscribe to the widespread notion that fighting corruption in Nigeria is a lost cause. Our philosophy is that corruption and related crimes can be controlled or managed through a system of training and re-training, geared towards sound policy formulation, operational efficiency and good management culture.”

   

UNDERSTAND YOUR VALUE ON EARTH.....

  A lot of motivational speakers have discussed about this, a lot of books have been written, yet a lot of people still finds it difficult to understand their values.values does not necessarily mean you been so special from your contemporaries but knowing the main reason you are where you are. you are the head because you are meant to direct the tail.never feel too indispensable wherever u may be. remember a lot of people are praying to be where yu are, yet you are not greatful for been there.you are rich because u are sent to help the poor and you poor so you can view and access the rich.

    when a dream scares you, then you can go for it because it is meant for you, if you do not understand your value on earth you can not be valued on earth.. a whole example ofpeople who understood their values on earth are; BEN CARSON, NELSON MANDELA, OLUSEGUN OBASANJO. focus is the major thing on earth.without focus you are no one.
 

ARSENAL HUMILIATES CHELSEA FC.LOL(WINK).

 It is very real but a whole lot of people still find it hard to believe that arsenal fc defeated chelsea in the week end EPL matches.3 for arsenal and nil for chelsea,isn't that unusual?, but that is the real fact about football. you cannot underestimate a club for the other. a lot of arsenal fans took it very annoying when you compare arsenal with chelsea. they keep saying arsenal football club is far better than chelsea.If you are a chelsea fan,ask yourself this rhetorical question of ARE WE BETTER THAN ARSENAL?. lol. i really can not stop laughing.
 
     

          RANGERS BREAKTHROUGH IN NPFL(NIGERIA PROFESSIONAL FOOTBALL                                                               LEAGUE ).
  It is definitely a very good and worm welcome for enugu rangers into the nigeria professional football league.it has been a whole 3 decade of trophy drought  for this team.but a very good reward for their hard work since the npfl season beegan was really brought into actualization.Rangers' 32 year trophy drought ends with their victory over ikorodu united in the weekend game.And am really happy to announce that the winner of NPFL 2015/2016 IS ENUGU RANGERS. And i believe it is a happy moment for them.

OLAYINKA SMACKPETERS OYE,THE REAL MAN WITH SOUNDCHECK ON RCCG RADIO.
    You might be wondering who olayinka oye is, but he is a very music thrilled guy, inspired by all the spirit filled christian songs. and he is the show host of sound check live on RCCGRADIO every friday.i call him my personal nigga coz of his versatility in music both home and abroad. if you know you are a spirit filled musician, you can hook up with him on facebook@olayinka smackpeters oye, twitter +smackpitarz oye same on IG.for your song(s) to be played on air. smackpitarz....(who you epp.lol..)

OGUNLEYE PELUMI'S BLOG WEEKEND AWUF.......

 As we all know everybody needs a thing a two to make his weekend a memorable one.Ogunleye Pelumi's blog is now going to add to our week end innovations. a free line card will now be distributed every friday with TERMS AND CONDITIONS applied which are:
 1)often views of the blog site
 2)usual and responsible comments on the blog site
 3)answer to every friday brain teasing questions......WINK
       Am sure that is no too much condition.this weekend AWUF will definitely start on the 23rd of september 2016. decode that.lol
         

MOSHOOD ABIOLA POLYTECHNIC (MAPOLY) IN RECESSION.LOL.

 

  One of the best polytechnic in nigeria, moshood abiola polytechnic, popularly known as ojere is also undergoing a process of admission recession.i believe a lot of us will laugh at this, bt that is the real truth.a whole lot of prospective students who choose mapoly for a provisional admission both for ND and HND  are still so skeptical about what the polytechnic is going to do with them. they are still expecting the admission list to be released by this institution. a lot of hopeful aspirants has kept glue to their phones and gadget checking on the update about the institution. but the fact remains that mapoly is still under going a hard moment of recession which will be over after admission list release.WINK..

THE REDEEMED CHRISTIAN CHURCH OF GOD YOUTH CONVENTION IS FAST APPROACHING.YOU CAN NOT AFFORD TO MISS IT.
 

  The 2016 RCCG youth convention is here again. THEME: Vessel Unto Honour.If you really want to be a vessel unto honour, then you can't afford to miss this year's youth convention because a lot of good things are involved which includes:blessing, promotion, healing, empowerment and divine fulfilment.For you to be vibrant, you must be a vessel unto honour.

THIS IS ANOTHER OPPORTUNITY TO GIVE NIGERIA AN OPPORTUNITY OF LIME LITE.
    
It is definitely not a story again that Nigeria has a lot of young talents embedded in her, and this is what Lagos state is appreciating through an award to different categories of young talents in different fields. visit lagos30under40.com to vote for your best under 40 young talents in different fields which includes. OAP'S, DJ'S, YOUNG RAPPERS E.T.C. your votes really counts. vote for LaBizzy under On Air Personality 2016. your vote really counts.

       

My husband married me with charms, wife tells court

After several unsuccessful interventions to save a 16-year-old marriage, an Igando Customary Court in Lagos on Wednesday dissolved the union, citing the husband’s infidelity.

The marriage between a food vendor, Adejoke, and her bricklayer-husband, Musiliu Omotosho, was dissolved the President of the court, Mr Adegboyega Omilola.

The mother of four boys accused her husband of being fetish, saying he married her with charms.

She said, “When I was single, my husband approached me that he wanted to marry me, I told him that I had a fiance and that our marriage was near.

“Musiliu came back the following day and touched me, I did not know how I got to his village, and I started having babies for him. As an orphan nobody looked for me, but now I am back to my senses.

“My husband had also threatened to kill me and my hair dresser had confided in me that my husband also asked her to give him strands of my hair.”

The president of the court said the petitioner (Adejoke) was adamant despite several mediation from the court and family members.

He said, “Since the petitioner wants a divorce after several interventions, the court has no choice than to dissolve the union despite the fact that the husband claims he still `loves’ her.

“The court hereby pronounce the marriage between Adejoke Omotosho and Musiliu Omotosho dissolved today; both parties henceforth cease to be husband and wife.

“They are free to go their separate ways without any hindrance or molestation.”

The petitioner, Adejoke, 39, had approached the court to end her 16-year-old marriage over infidelity on the part of the husband.

She said her husband was in the habit of bringing his lovers to their one-room apartment to spend some days or months with them.

She said, “I always leave the bed for them and sleep on floor and on four occasions, I had reported him to both families.

“Recently, he came home with a woman who stole my pants and brassieres I discovered after she had left.

“I told my husband to retrieve my underwear from his lover, he later came home with a bra and pant that was not mine.”

Adejoke said she was the one feeding the family, paying the house rent and the children’s school fees.

She urged the court to dissolve the union, saying “I am scared of contracting sexually transmitted diseases (STD) from him due to his unfaithfulness”.

The estranged husband, 47, told the court that he had been paying some bills contrary to what the woman said.

“I usually pay the bills, I give my wife N500 per day for feeding, but she also assists me as any good wife will do.”

Musiliu said he had returned the under wears his lover took away from their house.

He, however, denied that he never approached his wife’s hairdresser for her hair.

In spite of his alleged unfaithfulness, Musiliu still urged the court not to dissolve the marriage, saying “I still love her.”

Terrible pieces of advice for pregnant women

When you’re pregnant, your body is in one very literal sense no longer completely your own. But in another, more uncomfortable sense, it’s become a public entity—because complete strangers think it’s absolutely fine to comment on what you’re eating, how you’re exercising (or not, in my case), even how you’re walking. We’ve compiled some of the best worst pregnancy advice through the ages. Please don’t tell any pregnant women they shouldn’t look at monkeys.

Don’t eat!

Mrs. Carter was also a proponent of the starvation diet during pregnancy as a way to “prevent the pooch,” by which we assumed she means the growing fetus. She wasn’t alone, however, in recommending that pregnant women eat even less than they did when they were not pregnant: Randi Hutter Epstein found an article from the March 1956 McCall’s magazine advocating a strict diet for expecting mothers—to keep them thin. Of course, the 1950s weren’t exactly a time of sensible maternal advice; after all, some women were prescribed thalidomide for morning sickness, with disastrous results for the infant.

Avoid cherries!

Don’t throw cherries at a pregnant woman. Another one from The Distaff Gospels, this claimed that “cherries, strawberries or red wine” thrown in the face of a pregnant woman would cause marks on the baby’s body. So don’t do it.

Don’t attend sporting events!

Watching sports might be too exciting for a pregnant woman, according to a pregnancy advice manual from the 1940s.

Don’t read!

Sporting events weren’t the only exciting things to be avoided: Advice unearthed by Tommy’s Campaign, a UK charity that supports research on pregnancy, miscarriage and stillbirth, shows that women were told to avoid “exciting books, breathtaking pictures or family quarrels.”

Have a smoke!

Doctors were aware of the ill effects maternal smoking had on the growing fetus from the 1920s; one early study noted that when the mother smoked, the fetal heartbeat rose precipitously, an effect they called “tobacco heart.” Later studies linked maternal smoking with low birth-weights, an increase in stillbirths and neonatal deaths. But the medical community tended to keep quiet about the links between adverse birth outcomes and smoking. In the 1940s and 1950s, tobacco companies ran ad campaigns where doctors endorsed their products. In fact, some advice implied that smoking was actually good for you and for the expecting mother because it was so relaxing. That’s why the indomitable Mrs. Carter recommends smoking.

It wasn’t until the 1960s that their findings on smoking and the impact on the fetus were made available to the wider public. And even then, it wasn’t until the 1980s that a nationwide campaign kicked off to get mothers to put out their cigarettes.

Don’t cut your hair!

There is a marvelous old superstition that persists to this day—ask any Russian baboushka or Southern grandma—that cutting your hair during pregnancy is a no-no. Exactly why isn’t entirely clear; some say that it’s because cutting your hair can make it drier or visiting the salon can harm your child somehow. Others, however, who are closer to the original purpose of the myth claim that you’re cutting your life-force. That’s right, Samson and Delilah style.

Migrant boat capsizes off Egypt coast, kills 29

  

Migrants aboard a dingy boat AFP PHOTO / STRINGER

At least 29 people have drowned after a boat carrying migrants capsized off the Egyptian coast on Wednesday, two health ministry officials has said.

“The toll now is 29 dead and five injured,” said health ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed.

Another health ministry official, Adel Khalifa, confirmed the toll and said the dead included Egyptians and Sudanese and “other African nationalities.”

The incident comes months after the head of the EU’s border agency warned that growing numbers of Europe-bound migrants were turning to Egypt as a departure point for the perilous journey.

Smugglers often overload the boats, some of them scarcely seaworthy, with passengers who have paid for the journey.

More than 10,000 people have died crossing the Mediterranean to Europe since 2014, according to the UN.

With the closure of the Balkans route popular with migrants seeking to reach northern European countries, as well as an EU deal with Turkey to halt departures, asylum seekers have been turning to other options.

“Egypt is starting to become a departure country,” Frontex chief Fabrice Leggeri said in an interview with the Funke group of German regional newspapers in June.

“The number of boat crossings from Egypt to Italy has reached 1,000 (so far) this year,” he said.

Recession: Hospitals jack up prices of surgeries, others

   

  Nigerians nowadays pay more for health care services in both private and public health facilities in the country, findings by our correspondent have shown.

Many hospital owners, doctors, pharmacists and patients, who spoke to our correspondent on Tuesday, however, linked the development to the recession currently hitting the country.

For instance, they noted that the fees for major surgeries as well as prices of drugs in many hospitals, especially the privately-owned ones, had increased significantly.

The Medical Director, Light Heart Hospital, Ilorin, Kwara State, Dr. Segun Adeniran, who confirmed the increment, said the cost of the medical consumables had gone up.

Besides, the overhead cost of running the health facility, Adeniran noted, had doubled with the inflation and recent hike in fuel prices.

The physician added, “We used to charge N100,000 for emergency Caesarean Section but it is now N150,000. I was shocked when I travelled to Lagos the other day to buy some consumables for the hospital and I found out that their prices had changed. In fact, I could only buy half of what I needed. It was that bad.

 “Even the doctor that assists me with the surgery has asked for an increment. The price of the anaesthesia for patients during surgeries has shot up.  It is either I increase the price or I shut down my facility.”

 Another doctor, Ahmed Jubril, said he “adjusted” the fees he charged at his Ikorodu, Lagos clinic, in line with the current economic reality in the country.

Jubril added that with the recession in the country, many hospital owners would find it difficult to bear the cost of providing services to the public.

Asked if this could scare patients from his hospital, Jubril said although it was a painful decision to increase his fees, he did so to keep his facility afloat.

He explained, “I spend an average of N200,000 on fuel every month. It used to be N100,000. You must turn on the generator for patients because if anything happens while they are on admission, you can be found liable.

“This is aside from the cost of maintaining the laboratory equipment and buying consumables. Right now, I owe the pharmacist that supplies drugs to my hospital. So, if a patient comes to treat cerebral malaria, I should bear the cost of the injections and drugs that have gone up. People must remember that doctors also live in Nigeria not Mars.”

NSCDC intercepts boat loaded with smuggled fuel

  

the Marine squad of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Ogun State Command, early Wednesday morning intercepted a flying boat loaded with allegedly smuggled Premium Motor Spirit popularly known as petrol along Badagry-Tongeji waterways, on its way to the Republic of Benin.

Our correspondent gathered that two flying boats were said to have been sighted near Kese waterfront at about 2.30am on Wednesday during the squad’s regular night patrol of the waterways that link Badagary, Araromi-Onfo, Akere and Tongeji Island to the Republic of Benin.

The state Public Relations Officer, NSCDC,  Kareem Olanrewaju, said the command’s operatives ordered the drivers of the boats to stop but they refused.

He said, “Instead of obeying the operatives, they pulled off in different directions. Our operatives pursued them, but one of the boats escaped into the Republic of Benin’s territorial waters, while the second was trapped in Nigerian waters.”

He said the two men inside the trapped boat jumped into the sea, while their boat and 67 jerry cans of petrol were recovered.

He said the jerry cans altogether contained 1,675 litres of petroleum products.

He noted that the petroleum products must have been stolen, arguing that “otherwise, the owners would have used the right route.”

Olanrewaju said consequently, the marine squad of the NSCDC has been instructed by the state’s Corps Commandant, Aboluwoye Akinwande, to commence 24-hour patrol in that axis to prevent illegal transportation of Nigeria’s petroleum products to neighbouring countries.

We will solve problems in Niger Delta soon – Presidency

      

Niger Delta militant

     Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday assured Barack Obama, the American President, that Nigeria was making steady progress towards resolving the Niger Delta region problem, which had led to economic sabotage on a grand scale.

The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity,  Mr Femi Adesina, in a statement said the president gave the assurance at a bilateral meeting on the sidelines of the ongoing 71st edition of the UN General Assembly, holding in New York.

The statement reads, “We are making definite progress on how many factions of the militant groups exist, their leadership and operational basis, and we have equally sought the cooperation of the oil majors.

“In a short while, I believe the issues would be resolved.”

He thanked America for assisting Nigeria in provision of armaments, training for Nigerian troops, and sharing of intelligence, which had led to the degradation of Boko Haram in the North East.

Buhari said the country was open to support in combating the humanitarian crisis currently ravaging the region.

He said the farming season was good in 2016, with the prospect of good harvest, and “Nigeria is on the road to food self-sufficiency soon.

“We shall be able to feed ourselves, and utilize the billions of dollars spent on importing food on other productive areas.’’

The president reiterated that his administration came to power on the tripod promises of security, battle against corruption, and revamping of the economy.

He stressed that there would be no let-up in fulfilling those electoral promises.

Responding, Obama described Buhari as a man of “integrity and honesty,’’ saying “we have confidence in your leadership.

He added, “There are some difficulties you face, but this administration is willing to assist in the short time we have left.

“You have made real progress in defeating the brutal organisation called Boko Haram, and that was achieved because of your leadership.”

Antalyaspor drop Eto’o in racism row

  

Turkish top flight club Antalyaspor said on Wednesday that their star striker Samuel Eto’o would be left out of the squad until further notice in a bitter row over comments on social media.

Former Cameroon international Eto’o, who in a glittering career has turned out for Barcelona, Inter Milan and Chelsea, had written on his Instagram account he was not being given respect for his achievements as he is black.

Eto’o had moved to Antalyaspor in June 2015 as the keystone of the club’s bid in the southern Mediterranean resort city to find national and even European success.

But his stint has turned sour in the past weeks amid intense rumours in the close season Eto’o would join Istanbul arch rivals Besiktas.

Tensions have been compounded by a dreadful start to the new season which has seen Antalyaspor reap just one point from four matches.

Eto’o had written on his Instagram account in Turkish: “Reminder — perhaps some people do not feel respect for me because I am black.”

“But I am not going to come down from the level I have reached. I have been in this game for 18 years,” he added, posting a screenshot from Wikipedia of all the cups he has won.

Eto’o did not specify to whom he was targeting his criticism but later posted another message insisting it was not directed at Antalyaspor chairman Ali Safak Ozturk.

But Antalyaspor said in a terse statement on its website that a meeting of its board had decided to leave Eto’o out of the squad until further notice.

Turkish commentators had interpreted the remarks of Eto’o as a response to apparent criticism by Ali Safak Ozturk of his performance in the early season.

“No player is above the interests of Antalyaspor. Everyone must know their place,” the chairman was quoted as saying.

Turkey is the latest stop in Eto’o’s eclectic career which has taken him to high-profile and lesser known football hotspots around the world.

He played between 2011-2013 for Russian side Anzhi Makhachkala in the Caucasus region of Dagestan before the owner pulled the plug on its ambitions.

Heavy bleeding weeks after menses indicates health problems — Gynecologist

  

 An Abuja-based Gynecologist, Dr Adaora Ukoh, said heavy bleeding after menstruation could be an indication of underlying health problems.

She disclosed this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Wednesday in Abuja.

Ukoh explained that spotting or bleeding after menstruation period was a condition where the woman still noticed some amount of blood droppings days or weeks after her menstrual cycle.

She added that every woman’s cycle differ in some ways and should be considered normal as long as the pattern of the cycle remained steady, saying that most spotting after period was normal.

The expert noted that a healthy menstrual cycle last between 28 and 32 days in which the woman experienced bleeding between three and five days, though, it could be up to seven days for some women.

Ukoh identified rough sexual intercourse shortly after menses and remaining uterine tissue as factors that could predispose a woman to spotting or bleeding after menstrual cycle.

According to her, the use of oral contraceptives, polyps, uterine fibroids, ovarian cysts, fluctuating menstrual cycle, ovulation, pregnancy and infections are causative factors of bleeding after menses.

She noted that the prevention and treatment of the condition would start from self hygiene, as well as identifying the underlying cause.

She suggested antibiotics to treat the condition if caused by any form of infection such as Sexually Transmitted Infection (STI), among others.

Ukoh encouraged the use of hormonal therapy such as birth control pills to correct hormonal imbalance which also help to shrink uterine growths as measure of treating the condition.

She advised that birth control pills should be administered and changed according to doctor’s prescription and intake of aspirin be limited in order to help treat the condition.

The gynecologist urged patients susceptible to the condition to keep stress under control, menstrual cycle in record, do regular pap smear test, as well as maintain healthy weight in order to treat the condition.

She, however, advised post-menopausal women that had heavy bleeding weeks after menses accompanied with pain in the pelvis to seek urgent medical help.

Ondo poll: INEC distributes one million PVCs

  

A youth corper distributes pvc ahead of the Edo Governorship election

    The Independent National Electoral Commission said it had distributed 1.2 million Permanent Voter Cards in Ondo state ahead of November 26 governorship election in the state.

The Resident Electoral Commissioner in the state, Mr Olusegun Agbaje, made this known at a news conference in Akure on Tuesday, and added that the distributed cards was as at Aug. 11, 2016.

Agbaje said that a total of 331, 078 PVCs were yet to be collected by their owners.

He said a total of 1, 531, 771 PVCs were received in the state before the continuous voter registration carried out in the state about two months ago.

He congratulated the 30 political parties that would participate in the election for the successful conduct of their primary elections.

The REC advised politicians on violence-free campaigns, saying “it is my belief that a peaceful campaign is a likely harbinger to the conduct of a peaceful election”.

He said that INEC had a good relationship with all the existing political parties in the state.

He said, “I wish to mention that the commission has cordial and robust relationship with all the political parties in the state.

“Meanwhile, the commission has commenced an aggressive, persistent and sustained voter education, mobilisation and public enlightenment campaigns to create awareness ahead of the election.

“Essentially, the voter education campaigns are geared towards preventing voter apathy and to appeal to citizens to shun violence before, during and after the election.”

Agbaje also disclosed that 3, 009 Presiding Officers, 9,029 Assistant Presiding Officers I, II and III would be deployed for the election.

He added that the officers would service the 3, 009 polling units in the 18 local government areas of the state.

Nigeria’s debt rises by N4.17tn in one year

Director-General, DMO, Dr. Abraham Nwankwo

  The country’s debt profile has risen to N16.29tn, the Debt Management Office has said.

Statistics obtained from the DMO on Tuesday showed that the country’s total debt liability had risen to N16.29tn as of June 30, 2016. As of June 2015, the country’s total debt stood at N12.12tn.

This means that within the one-year period (July 2015 to June 2016), the country’s total debt rose by N4.17tn, or 34.41 per cent.

A breakdown of the country’s debt profile shows that external debt by the federal and state governments stood at $11.26bn or N3.19tn as of June 30, 2016. It was $10.32bn or N2.03tn by July last year.

According to the DMO, the Central Bank of Nigeria’s official exchange rates of N283 to $1 as of June 30, 2016, and N197 as at December 2015 were used in arriving at the naira equivalent of the foreign debt status.

The domestic debt of the Federal Government alone stood at N10.61tn as of June this year, up from N8.4tn a year ago.

This means that within 12 months, the Federal Government’s domestic debt profile rose by N2.21tn or 26.31 per cent.

The domestic debt of the states stood at N2.5tn at the end of June this year, whereas it was N1.69tn in July 2015. This means that within a period of one year, the domestic debt of the states rose by N810bn, an increase of 47.93 per cent.

For domestic debt, FGN Bonds remained the dominant instrument for borrowing from the domestic market, as it accounted for N7.47tn or 70.46 per cent of the Federal Government’s domestic debt profile.

The Nigerian Treasury Bills accounted for N2.9tn or 27.36 per cent of the Federal Government’s domestic debt profile.

Treasury Bonds, on the other hand, accounted for N230.99bn or 2.18 per cent of Federal Government’s domestic borrowing.

Although the Federal Government had for long acknowledged that it was borrowing too much from the domestic debt market and crowding out the private sector, current debt statistics show that the trend has not changed.

The DMO recently said that refinancing 30 per cent of the Federal Government’s domestic debt amounting to N2.56tn within the next one year posed a high risk to the economy.

The DMO, in a document, ‘Nigeria’s Debt Management Strategy 2016-2019’, said at least 30 per cent of the nation’s domestic debt would fall due within a one-year period

Labour kicks as Saraki joins call for sale of oil assets

   

Senate President, Bukola Saraki

The President of the Senate, Bukola Saraki, on Tuesday itemised measures he said the Executive must take to take Nigeria out of recession.

The measures include the partial sale of the Nigeria LNG Limited and the reduction of government shares in upstream oil joint venture operations.

He also recommended the sale of government’s stakes in financial institutions like the Africa Finance Corporation and the privatisation and concession of major/regional airports and refineries to private operators.

Saraki made the suggestions in his address of welcome, which he read to his colleagues at the resumption of plenary.

According to him, the current economic recession transcends political parties, as well as religious and socio-cultural divides.

The Senate president noted that the economic problem facing the nation was a collective problem and should be treated as such.

He stressed that the Executive must begin to take steps to show not only Nigerians but the international community as well as local and foreign investors that the nation was ready to reform and do business.

Saraki said, “The Executive must immediately put in place a leadership-level engagement platform with the private sector. This must be one that is pro-business and shows unequivocally that the government is ready to partner the private sector towards economic revival. This is a critical signpost towards market confidence, which is a key ingredient to help us revamp the economy out of recession.

“The Executive must raise capital from asset sales and other sources to shore up the foreign reserves. This will calm investors, discourage currency speculation and stabilise the economy.

“The measures should include part sale of the NLNG Limited; reduction of government’s shares in upstream oil joint venture operations; sale of government’s stake in financial institutions e.g. Africa Finance Corporation; and the privatisation and concession of major/regional airports and refineries.”

The Senate President also insisted that the Executive should consider tweaking the pension funds policy within international best practice safeguards to accommodate investment in infrastructure and mortgages.

He stated, “The Executive and CBN must agree on a policy of monetary easing to stimulate the economy and harmonise monetary and fiscal policies until economic recovery is attained. We must ensure that local government borrowing does not crowd out credit for the private sector.

“The Executive must re-tool its export promotion policy scheme with export incentives such as the resumption of the Export Expansion Grant; and introduce export-financing initiatives. The Executive is urged to engage in meaningful dialogue with those aggrieved in the Niger Delta and avoid an escalation of the conflict in the region.

“The National Assembly is very ready to play any role in the process and offer ideas on approaches that will deliver quick win-win in order to move the region and the economy forward.

“The Executive must as a deliberate response consider immediate release of funds to ensure the implementation of the budget for the near short term to inject money into the economy.”

However, the Nigeria Labour Congress and the Trade Union Congress faulted the call by Saraki and other prominent Nigerians for the sale of some national assets.

The General-Secretary, NLC, Dr. Peter Ozo-Eson, and President, TUC, Mr. Bala Kaigama, stated this in separate telephone interviews with our correspondents on Tuesday, while reacting to the call.

Ozo-Eson and Kaigama said that those in the forefront of the move to sell the national assets were being motivated by a desire to acquire them.

Ozo-Eson advised the key players in the President Muhammadu Buhari administration to avoid taking advantage of the economic situation to loot the remaining national assets in the country.

He insisted that acquisition of national assets by those in power was partly responsible for the current economic situation in the country.