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The Minister of Finance, Kemi Adeosun, on Friday explained why President Muhammadu Buhari is seeking the National Assembly’s approval for some emergency economic powers. The minister, who was briefing the media on efforts by the federal government to navigate the country’s economy out of recession, said “unusual times need unusual measures.” With the economy in recession, analysts say the country can ill-afford the luxury of time in search solutions to bring the economy out of the woods. Mrs. Adeosun, who said the government was aware of the pain Nigerians were experiencing, said President Buhari was in a hurry to get the economy out of the recession as soon as possible. “It is a tough time. But, there is hope for Nigerians,” she said. “Government is doing everything to ensure the country comes out in a sustainable way, so we never get back here again by addressing the infrastructure challenges. “The government has a very credible plan. It’s going to result in an economy not depende...

President Muhammadu Buhari will leave Abuja for New York, United States, this weekend to participate in the 71st session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) holding from September 19-23. The President will deliver Nigeria’s statement at the opening of the General Debate of the Assembly, on the theme: The Sustainable Development Goals: a Universal Push to Transform our World.” According to a statement issued by Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, Buhari would also attend a high-level summit, hosted by the UN, on “Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants’’. President Buhari The summit, which is the first of its kind organised by the General Assembly at the Heads of State and Government level, is expected to come up with a blueprint for a better international response to enhance protection of migrants and refugees. While in New York for the annual gathering of world leaders, the President would attend series of meetings as well as sid...

The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun has disclosed that the Federal Government will begin the disbursement of another N350 billion for capital projects next week. Finance Minister, Kemi Adeosun The Minister, who said this at a media briefing on Friday in Abuja, added that the amount will be cash backed. According to the Minister, it is part of the N700 billion that have so far been released. Mrs. Adeosun, also disclosed that Nigeria was in talk with multi lateral institutions to get cheap funds to execute capital projects. She said: “We said we will borrow the cheap money. We have approvals in that plan from the World Bank, the African Development Bank, AfDB, with interest rate as low as 1.5 per cent and tenors as low as 40 years to intervene in specific areas which includes; agriculture, education,health, rebuilding of the North-east and of course the railway project that are very key to what we are doing.” It will be recalled that the Federal Government has said it will f...

Residents of Maiduguri in Borno State and Internally Displaced Persons (IDPS) in camps have raised alarm over Federal Government plans to grant amnesty to repentant Boko Haram insurgents, warning that it may be dangerous to returning displaced persons. The alarm was raised on Friday at a workshop on the Sensitization of Religious and Traditional Leaders, De-radicalisaition and Counter- Terrorism and Migration in Northeast at the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) secretariat complex, Maiduguri. Participants at the workshop warned government that it would be dangerous and pose security risks for members of communities and repentant insurgents to live together after the series of attacks and killing of many people for over six years. They said that the de-radicalised insurgents should be provided with a special place or areas by the Federal and state governments. “This may lead to another war, and even worse than the current Boko Haram insurgency that has claimed many lives and property in Bo...

The Consumer Price Index (CPI) increased by 17.6% (year-on-year), which is 0.5 per cent higher from 17.1 per cent recorded in July. The National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, in its August CPI report stated that the increase was fuelled by index in Housing, Water, Electricity, Gas and Other Fuel, Education and Transportation Services. The Statistics Bureau noted increases were recorded in all COICOP divisions which contribute to the Headline index reflecting higher prices across the board. The Food Index rose by 16.4 percent (year-on-year) in August, up by 0.6 percent points from 15.8 percent recorded in July. The highest price increases were recorded in Meat, Fish, and Bread & Cereals groups. During the month, all the major food groups contributed to the increase in the Food sub-index, however the pace of increase was slowed by Fruits, Potatoes, Yam and other Tubers as well as Oils and Fats, which reported slower increases during the month. In addition, imported foods as reflecte...

Exactly eight days ago, hopes and heightened tension in Edo State were doused against the backdrop of a botched anticipated governorship election that made the state a centre of political attention. Although, Saturday, September 10, 2016 in Edo State, may not have recorded yet another epoch in the history of the state, as a reschedule of the date for the poll that will see the state in another four years under a new helmsman, saw it fixed on a Wednesday, the 28th of the month. And indeed, election in the country on a Wednesday is somewhat a kind of history in itself. Prof. Mahmood Yakubu For many, the postponement of the Edo governorship election by the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC may have come as a surprise because of its initial vow that nothing will change the Election Day. Thus reactions have since been trailing the postponed election. While many believed that postponement was largely motivated by the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC as indications in...

A middle-aged woman, Tessy Igbinadolor, has in Osogbo pleaded with security agencies to protect her from suspected cultists, which she said are trailing her, claiming that the assailants had earlier killed her mother and brother-in-law. Igbinadolor, who spoke to newsmen in the premises of Press Centre of the NUJ, Iwo road, Osogbo, also pleaded with security agents to assist her in finding her sister, Igbinadolor Amen nee Eghomwanre, whom she claimed got missing in Otobo, Delta State last year. Igbinadolor said two members of her family, Uyi Igbinewke, her brother-inlaw, and her mother, Mrs. Victoria Egbhomwanre, were murdered in Augustn 2015 and January this year respectively by suspected cultists. According to her, Amen was resident in Otobo, Ugheli, Delta State and used to work with Fexam Hotel located within Otobo metropolis before her sudden disappearance. Before she got missing, the senior Igbinadolor said a cult group in the town had threatened to kill her and further explained ...

The National Examination Council, NECO, has just released the 2016 June/July Senior School Certificate Examination (SSCE) results. This year’s results show a new exam record of 88.5 per cent pass level. The release was confirmed to DAILY POST Friday afternoon by a senior NECO staff. When our correspondent visited the NECO website, http://www.mynecoexams.com/results/, the homepage has been updated with the development. It reads: “SSCE (Internal) 2016 Examination Result has just been released!!!” NECO management is expected to officially annouce breakdown of the results any moment from now.

The United Nations is warning that Nigeria is seriously on the verge of a famine that is worse than that ever seen anywhere in the world, according to a report by Sky News. The report attributed to UN’s assistant Secretary-General Toby Lanzer said currently, about a quarter of a million children in the north-eastern part of Nigeria are severely malnourished. While this is so, millions of other children are supposedly starving in refugee camps ‘that are too dangerous for aid agencies to reach.’ “Nigeria is already economically struggling – it is in a recession for the first time in more than a decade, inflation is at an 11-year high and oil, which makes up 70 percent of the government’s revenue, is still suffering from a slump. “For the country’s north eastern region, however, things are made worse by Islamic militants Boko Haram, who have disrupted trade and farming in the region and are also hostile to western medicine,” the report said. According to Mr Lanzer, “we will s...

John Obi Mikel believes Chelsea team-mate Diego Costa's scintillating early-season form can be put down to a desire to prove his critics wrong following a disappointing 2015-16 campaign. Costa is the current joint-top goalscorer in the Premier League ahead of the Blues' match with Liverpool on Friday after scoring four goals in as many league matches under Antonio Conte. The Spain international is already just eight goals behind his league tally in what proved to be a difficult campaign for the striker last season. And Mikel reckons Costa is out to silence any doubters he picked up during his struggles by proving his class under Conte this term. “I definitely think he can get even better," Mikel told Goal . “He can score more goals, he can help the team even more, but Diego is a player that likes to find and doesn’t give up. “He knows that everyone had a bad season last year so I think this season he is trying to prove people wrong...

Juventus are preparing a swap bid for Arsenal attacker Alexis Sanchez. Alexis Sanchez Juve's CEO Beppe Marotta is preparing a move for the 27-year-old. CalcioMercatoWeb says the Turin-based club will offer out-of-favour striker Mandzukic as part of a swap deal for Sanchez. The Croatia international is not needed by Massimiliano Allegri who has Paulo Dybala, Gonzalo Higuain and Marko Pjaca at his disposal. The report says Arsene wenger could be tempted into the deal as he is an admirer of Mandzukic since his days with Bayern Munich

A group, the Aviation Round Table (ART), has called on the Federal Government to resist any pressure to offer bailout to ailing domestic airlines. Gbenga Olowo President of the group, Mr Gbenga Olowo, made the call while speaking with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Friday in Lagos. Olowo, who admitted that some of Nigeria’s airlines were currently facing challenging times, however, urged the government to pay serious attention to the aviation sector. He said, “Government should get serious with this sector of the economy; without airlines, there are no airports. “Airports are useless if you don’t have airlines; so, government should pay serious attention to the issue of airlines. “It is not a bailout issue. No airline should ask for bailout and there should be no bailout for any airline in any form “Anyway, government does not have such money to dole out to any airline for now.’’ According to him, the government should rather look into the issues of multiple tax...

Arsene Wenger will expect his Arsenal side to offer more convincing signs of their ability to compete for the Premier League title when they visit Hull City on Saturday after a testing week in Europe. A 1-1 draw at Paris Saint-Germain ensured the Gunners avoided defeat in their opening Champions League outing although the point came at the expense of a red card for Olivier Giroud. Arsene Wenger The performance was hardly impressive and were it not for the efforts of Arsenal goalkeeper David Ospina, controversially selected ahead of Petr Cech, the home side could well have inflicted a heavy defeat on Wenger’s men. That result followed last Saturday’s narrow win against Southampton when it took an added-time penalty from Santi Cazorla to clinch victory and keep the north London club within five points of leaders Manchester City. Arsenal have yet to hit top form this season, although recent signings Shkodran Mustafi and Lucas Perez are still bedding into their new surrounding...