Nigeria loses $362.5m yearly due to toxic pesticides in beans

Stakeholders in the agricultural sector have disclosed that Nigeria loses about $362.5m annually due to its inability to export beans in the last eight years. The stakeholders, who disclosed this at the launch of the Strategic Partnerships for Agroecology and Climate Justice in West Africa (SPAC-West Africa), recently in Abuja, said the launch would enhance agroecological skills of 120,000 Smallholder Women Farmers (SHWF) and Young People in Nigeria. According to them, it would improve beans farmers’ knowledge of the right application of pesticides on their beans.   The launch of the SPAC-West Africa is a joint collaboration between ActionAid Nigeria (AAN), the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development (FMARD) and other stakeholders in the fight against use of dangerous pesticides. Various agricultural products have been rejected in the EU due to high residue of harmful pesticides. In a communique after the SPAC-West Africa launch, the stakeholders urged the Ministry of Agriculture and Rural Development to develop pesticide policies and legislation that would ensure most toxic pesticides are prohibited, and phased out in Nigeria, and a significant shift was made towards sustainable farm systems like agroecology. “To achieve this, the government needs to develop a safe sustainable food strategy that reduces the use of highly toxic synthetic chemical pesticides by 50% by 2030; 25% by 2040, a maximum of 5% by 2050 and strong support to be given to farmers in their transition towards agroecology. “The private sector through Public Private Partnerships (PPPs) that benefit smallholder farmers especially women and young people should promote agroecology and play a robust role in facilitating market access for agroecologically produced agriculture produce in Nigeria. “On access to Extension Services, smallholder women farmers have access to only 5.26% farm demonstrations and 19.47% of farmers’ field schools and these areas need massive investments to scale up agroecology,” it said. It is expected that SPAC-West Africa project will be implemented in Liberia, Nigeria, and Senegal, with regional engagement of stakeholders in partnership with the ECOWAS Commission. “In Nigeria, the project will improve food and nutrition security and enhance agroecological skills of 120,000 Smallholder Women Farmers (SHWF) and Young People by facilitating access to early maturing seeds, seedlings, livestock, and poultry, thus supporting agroecological practices, indigenous seeds, and agrobiodiversity preservation for increased farm yields. “Through agroecology budget monitoring, tracking and advocacy towards the expansion of the fiscal spaces, stakeholders will significantly benefit from budget increases and allocations in agriculture. 26 model agroecological farms will also be set up and scaled by SHWF to increase adoption of agroecological practices. This project will be implemented in Ondo, Delta, Ebonyi, Jigawa, the FCT and at the National Level.”

Emefiele’s exit will not negatively impact market— Experts

Former president of the Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), Okechukwu Unegbu, and other financial experts have opined that the unexpected exit of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele will not have any negative impact on both the capital and foreign exchange markets. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu had on Friday suspended the Central Bank Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele from office. He was directed to immediately hand over to the Deputy Governor (Operations Directorate), Mr. Folashodun Adebisi Shonubi, who will act as the Central Bank Governor pending the conclusion of the investigation and the reforms. Reacting to the suspension, Unegbu said Emefiele’s removal will impact positively on the capital and the foreign exchange market because the multiple exchange rates maintained by Emefiele hurt the economy. Corroborating Unegbu stance, Managing Director of Crane Securities Limited, Mr. Mike Eze, said the market will remain stable until the investigation is concluded and it provides sufficient information to inform market reactions. “The CBN is the highest financial institution in the country and the governor works with about three deputies who help him in fashioning out policies and most of these policies were hijacked by politicians. So, most of his policies were politically motivated. He, however, noted that politicians are the ones that destabilise the economy, not Emefiele. “The capital market does not react on hearsay, the market will have enough information before reacting, so, I believe the market will be stable until the outcome of the investigation,” he said. The Executive Vice Chairman of Hicap Securities Limited, Mr. David Adonri, said even though the secondary market benefited from Emefiele’s policies, the primary market did not. “We hope that his exit will bring a much-needed positive impact on the primary market and further boost the secondary market.” “However, if the multiple exchange rate regime run by Godwin Emefiele is discontinued and replaced by a single forex regime, that can assist the forex market to boom,” he said. Meanwhile, a capital market expert, Prof. Uche Uwaleke, had told NIGERIAN ANCHOR that the suspension of Emefiele was long expected. Uwaleke, a Professor of capital markets at the Nasarawa State University, Keffi, stated that the suspension will mark an end to a turbulent era He added that the CBN Ways and Means, which grew astronomically during his tenure also cast a dark spot on his legacy. He, however, noted that Emefiele would be remembered for implementing big ideas such as the Anchor Borrower Programme, the RT200, the eNaira, and a raft of interventions that helped to stimulate the economy during periods of economic recession.

Police arrest bandits’, kidnappers’ informant in Abuja

The Police Command in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has arrested an alleged informant and logistics supplier to a kidnapping and banditry group terrorizing the FCT and its environs. The Police Public Relations Officer in the FCT, SP Josephine Adeh, said this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja. She said the suspect, who was arrested by the Anti-Kidnapping unit at the Mongoro Forest, had been on the wanted list of the command. Adeh said the suspect was arrested over involvement in the supply of firearms, ammunition, and other weapons. She said the suspect was also involved in the supply of food items and illicit drugs to the criminals in their various hideouts in the forests using a motorcycle. According to her, exhibits recovered from the suspect include one AK47 rifle, AK47 ammunition, one mobile phone, foodstuffs, and an unregistered boxer motorcycle. She said investigations into the case had been intensified to identify and cut off the criminal supply chain and arrest other members of the gang. In a related development, Adeh said the command had arrested 11 suspects over illegal possession, fabrication, and production of small arms and light weapons, armed robbery, and other criminal offenses. She said the suspects were intercepted and arrested in the Zuba area of the FCT by operatives of the State Intelligence Bureau (SIB). Adeh said the items recovered from the suspects were four locally-made firearms and one live cartridge. According to her, preliminary investigations by the police have revealed that the gang is involved in the fabrication and production of small and light weapons locally. She said operatives from Utako Divisional Police Headquarters had on Wednesday arrested eight suspects over armed robbery at one Amala Garden in Utako. Adeh said three firearms of different calibers, knives, and hard drugs were recovered from the suspects, arrested following a tip-off. 

Ignore fake news about Kyari’s suspension—Presidency

Cold water has been poured on speculations going round that President Bola Tinubu has suspended the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) GCEO, Mallam Mele Kyari. Presidency sources said on Saturday night that the President had not given such directive for the suspension of Kyari as NNPC Boss. Social media platforms were abuzz on Saturday evening with several posts claiming the President had directed the immediate suspension of Kyari as NNPC GCEO. The social media posts of the purported suspension of Kyari gained traction as it was coming barely 24 hours after the Presidency announced the suspension of the Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria, Godwin Emefiele. Multiple sources in the Presidency reiterated that there was no such plan to suspend Kyari as the GCEO of the NNPC. One of the sources said, “We got to know about the purported suspension through social media posts. But I can confirm to you that there is no such directive coming from the President. Nigerians are known to play a lot with trends and someone may just have sat down somewhere to make such posts. “There is no iota of truth in that post claiming that the President has suspended the NNPC GCEO. There is nothing to be worried about because the Petroleum Industry Act is clear on how the NNPC GCEO or any member of the NNPC Board could be removed.”

97,591 micro pension participants contribute N436m in May -PenCom

The National Pension Commission (PenCom) says the Micro Pension Plan (MPP) contributions as of May, stood at N435.61 million from 97,591 participants registered. Mr Dauda Ahmed, Head, Micro Pension Department, PenCom, revealed this on the sidelines of the maiden Micro Pension Open Day, organised by the Pension Operators Association of Nigeria (PenOp) in Lagos. The event had its theme as “Micro Pension – Challenges, Prospects for Growth and Deepening Financial Inclusion in Nigeria”. Ahmed said that the total contingent withdrawal by 150 Micro Pension Contributors (MPC) as of the month under review stood at N30.24 million. According to him, the commission recorded N6.51 million as the amount converted by 581 Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs) holders, under the informal sector to RSA’s under the formal sector. The PenCom scribe explained that the MPP is an opportunity for workers, who are mainly in the informal sector to save for their retirement. Ahmed said that the MPP, as revised this year, is expected to extend pension coverage to over 2.2 million informal sector workers by 2024. He said, as part of incentives to embrace micro pension, PenCom was working toward adopting a minimum health insurance for eligible MPP participants. Ahmed stated that the commission was also engaging with labour unions, trade associations, and several groups on embracing the plan. Ahmed listed the challenges to the implementation of the plan including; lack of awareness, mistrust about the pension system, absence of appropriate incentives, and lack of financial literacy. According to him, the Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs) based MPP on short-term perspectives, especially in terms of financial benefits and the perceived associated cost. Ahmed blamed the PFAs for poor service delivery, an inadequate awareness campaign for the product, and slow adoption of shared services arrangements. The identified other factors impeding the implementation of the MPP as weak economic indices, inflation, and increased poverty level. Earlier, Mr Oguche Agudah, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), PenOp charged the informal sector workers to visualise how their needs would be met in next 20 to 30 years without a pension plan. Agudah noted the PFAs were concerned about improving the micro pension penetration in Nigeria, saying, “The country has the largest informal sectors who are not covered by any form of formal pension”. “We, in the pension industry, work to get as many informal sector workers as possible on a pension scheme. “Those within a structured organisation or who employ less than three persons and youths growing the informal gig economy; starting businesses on their laptop without any office, yet earning decently. “We are passionate about micro pension, as today’s event revolves around the audacious industrial goal to engage as many informal sector workers as possible, to sign up for the scheme for the benefit of everyone,” he said. 

Bandits kill 50 farmers, rustle livestock in Niger

At least 50 farmers have been reportedly killed by bandits in various communities in Rafi Local Government Area of Niger State, while several others have fled their homes. According to reports, the attacks occurred between Wednesday and Saturday. In the latest attacks on about five villages which took place between 2pm on Friday and Saturday morning, an unspecified number of lives were lost and several others abducted including women and girls. While 13 people lost their lives in Kusherki community, 12 others were killed in Gidigori village and several others were yet to be accounted for. The humanitarian crisis in the area had worsened since Wednesday as hundreds of Internally Displaced Persons including women and children from various villages trooped to Kagara, the Headquarters of Rafi LGA, abandoning their villages for bandits whom they said now sleep in their homes. One of the fleeing farmers, Abdullahi Usman, told newsmen that bandits numbering over 100, rode on about 50 motorcycles, took over many villages from around 2pm on Friday and operated unchallenged until Saturday morning. “It’s true that bandits have resumed attacks with full force. We have not had it easy in the last two weeks but the situation had worsened since Wednesday. “As I speak to you, bandits have taken over most parts of Rafi LGA. They had been in Kusherki Community since around 2pm on Friday; they spent the night in Garin-Zara Community and rustled hundreds of cattle, goats and rams and killed an unspecified number of people,” Usman said. Another Resident, Mohammed Yakubu disclosed that “they (the bandits) first came to Kusherki Community on Wednesday during which they killed 13 people.  They came back on Friday afternoon and operated in all the villages around the axis until Saturday morning. People had fled. Right now, we don’t even know where many of our people are because everybody ran into the bush.” Also speaking, Abdulmalik Usman, another fleeing farmer said, “they raided several villages including Gidigori, Gando, Kusherki and many others. Our cattle, goats and rams have all been stolen.  After they had raided our villages, they headed to Madaka, Hanna-Wanka, Kukoki through Tegina axis this morning (Saturday). The entire Rafi LGA is not safe now. More than 50 farmers were killed in Rafi LGA this week.” Victims alleged that the soldiers camped in Kagara and Pandogari did not respond to attacks, saying that they were only patrolling Kagara town. One of the IDPs, Sanusi Umar, appealed to the federal and state governments to take quick and decisive steps towards addressing the security challenges, saying that “we don’t know what President Tinubu is waiting for to take action against these people. These people have finished us already. We are hungry and helpless.” He added, “The current security situation in Rafi LGA requires immediate and urgent counter insurgency action. The past few days have been very disturbing, rural communities are attacked and people are being kidnapped for ransom while some people are being killed. In Gidigori village alone, 12 persons were killed including the leader of vigilantes. Also, Garun Gabas, Pangu-Gari, Yakila and Kukoki villages have all been attacked between Wednesday and Saturday.” The Senator Representing Niger East Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Senator Mohammed Sani Musa on Friday lamented that the bandits had resumed attacks on Rafi, Paikoro, Munya and Shiroro local governments that formed part of his constituency. He said the criminals were out to test the power and capacity of the new administrations at both federal and state levels. He, however, said he believed President Ahmed Bola Tinubu and Governor Mohammed Umar Bago led governments would deal with the situation.

PHOTOS: Burna Boy performs at UEFA Champions League final in Istanbul

Nigerian afrobeat sensation, Burna Boy performed on stage before the start of the UEFA Champions League final football match between Inter Milan and Manchester City at the Ataturk Olympic Stadium in Istanbul, on Saturday.

Do business with Binance at your own risk, SEC warns Nigerians

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has warned Nigerians against doing business with Binance Nigeria, saying that they were doing so at their own risk. According to a circular by the Commission at the weekend, the activities of Binance in the country was illegal. Binance Nigeria Limited is a subsidiary of the well-known global cryptocurrency exchange, Binance. According to the circular, “The attention of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the Commission) has been drawn to the website operated by Binance Nigeria Limited, soliciting the Nigerian public to trade crypto assets on its various web and mobile-enabled platforms. Binance Nigeria Limited is neither registered nor regulated by the Commission and its operations in Nigeria are therefore illegal. “Any member of the investing public dealing with the entity is doing so at his/her own risk”. The SEC further stated that “as the regulator with the statutory mandate of investor protection, the Commission urges Nigerians to be wary of investing in crypto-assets, and crypto-asset related financial products and services if the service provider/its platform is not registered or regulated by the Commission. The Commission, therefore, warned Nigerian investors that investing in crypto-assets is extremely risky and may result in a total loss of their investments. “By this circular, Binance Nigeria Limited is hereby directed to immediately stop soliciting Nigerian investors in any form whatsoever. “The Commission shall provide updates on further regulatory actions with respect to the activities of Binance Nigeria Limited, and other similar platforms and shall work with other regulators in Nigeria to provide further guidance on this matter” the SEC added.

I’m not a thief, Orji-Kalu declares at NASS valedictory session

*9th Senate served Nigeria in turbulent times- VP Shetimma The Chief Whip of the 9th Senate, Sen. Kalu Orji-Kalu, went emotional and broke down on Saturday at the valedictory session to signal the end of legislative activities, which began on June 11, 2019. Kalu thanked his colleagues for giving him unalloyed support as Chief Whip for four years. He also thanked his colleagues who visited him while in prison. Orji-Kalu said his election to the Senate gave him a better opportunity to continue to fight for a united Nigeria. He stressed that he was not a thief before he took to politics, saying that he never lacked anything and could buy anything money could buy. He said he brought money in 1997 and 1998 to fund and support the formation of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) before he became governor, stressing that he was never a thief. He said those who put him in prison had their reasons to do so, adding that they also took over his businesses. According to him, Nigeria is not fair to people like him. He said he built factories and manufacturing companies to employ Nigerians and all he got was to be labelled a thief. Present at the session were Vice-President Kashim Shettima, Sen. Oluremi Tinubu, Malam Ibrahim Hadejia, Deputy Chief of Staff to President Bola Tinubu and Governor Uba Sani of Kaduna State. Also in attendance were the Deputy Governor of Akwa Ibom, Dr Akon Eyakenyi and former Deputy Governor of Zamfara, Alhaji Hassan Muhammadu. They were members of the ninth Senate, before their election into new positions on March 18. The former lawmakers were ushered into the chamber following a motion to suspend the Senate order as moved by the Leader of the Senate, Abdullahi Gobir (APC-Sokoto). Before the session, senators present were presented with certificates of service and a copy of the Legacy Report of the ninth Senate each. Clerk to the National Assembly, Alhaji Sani Tambuwal, presented certificates to the Senate President, Sen. Ahmad Lawan and Deputy Senate President, Sen. Ovie Omo-Agege. Lawan, in turn, presented certificates to other senators. The senators thereafter took turns reminiscing experiences of their four years of service in emotion-laden tones. Words of thanksgiving to God, commendations, love, apologies and admonitions formed the bulk of expressions of senators at the session. Sen. Omo-Agege (APC-Delta), said it was a solemn moment as he was grateful and honoured to be elected deputy president of the Senate, saying that it was a rare privilege. He commended colleagues for defiling odds to pass the landmark Petroleum Industry Act, the Electoral Act, the Finance Act and for ultimately returning the budget cycle to January-December. Omo-Agege thanked senators for their patriotic disposition and urged incoming senators to support the new leadership of the Senate that would be elected on June 13. In his remarks, Shettima noted that debates at the ninth Senate defined Nigeria’s politics, saying the Assembly was leaving behind indelible memories to guide generations, successors and followers. He said Nigerians would continue to need the services of members of the ninth Senate as they had served Nigeria in turbulent times. He said the ninth Senate was a testament to the possibility that could transpire between the Executive and the Legislature, realising the fact that they were bound for the same destination. Shettima said the senate chamber would continue to bear memories of the lives the senators touched by serving humanity. He thanked the senate president for his leadership, patriotism and dedication to democracy. He urged incoming senators to note that the “stability of Nigeria is superior to the stability of their pockets’’ and urged them to vote wisely on June 13 at the election of principal officers. In her remarks, Sen. Tinubu thanked God for sustaining her as a three-term senator, saying that it entailed a lot of sacrifice to serve Nigeria. She also thanked her husband, President Bola Tinubu for his unflinching support and freedom to make contributions for the people, especially women and youths. She said God used her to make exploits in the Senate, saying she did virtually everything required as a lawmaker, sponsoring bills and motions that were signed into law. She said a nation that young Nigerians would be proud of could be built given the crop of lawmakers that emerged from the Legislative to the Executive arm of government. “It is not due to share luck that the president passed through the Senate before, so has the vice-president and myself; the president’s Chief of Staff, the deputy; governors and deputy governors. “We can only say God is good. “We need to give so much to this nation; this new administration beckons hope, and we have to make the necessary sacrifices which starts with the 10th Assembly,’’ she said.

Tribunal dismisses LP, Obi’s request to question INEC on technology deployed

The Presidential Election Petition Court (PEPC) on Saturday dismissed the application filed by the Labour Party and Mr. Peter Obi seeking an order to question INEC on the technology it deployed for the conduct of the general elections. Obi and LP are petitioners in the petition marked CA/PEPC/03/2023 challenging the election which brought President Bola Tinubu into power. Respondents are the INEC, President Bola Tinubu, and Vice President Kashim Shettima, and All Progressives Congress (APC). Ruling on the application, the five-member panel led by Justice Haruna Tsammani held that it lacked the jurisdiction to grant the request as it was brought outside the pre-hearing session and therefore incompetent. “It is an afterthought on the grounds that the pre-hearing period to file such an application elapsed on May 22. “I have not disputed the fact that they did not call the attention of the court during the pre-hearing session.” “It is for the applicant to take a step towards the hearing of his motion on notice. The court cannot do that for him. “The petitioners’ counsel are very conversant with the provisions of the law and did not ask for an extension of time. ”They rather seek to employ the right to fair hearing as a magic wand to escape the consequence of their failure to comply with the law and blame the court for its inaction” the court held. The court also held that the applicants failed to disclose any extreme circumstance that stopped them from filing within the statutory time. In a unanimous decision, the court stated that motions cannot be heard at the hearing session and as such can be deemed abandoned. ”Their application is incompetent and the court lacks the jurisdiction to entertain it and accordingly, the application is struck out,” It held. The petitioners, among other reasons for disputing the outcome of the elections, are accusing the electoral umpire of non-compliance with the Electoral Act. Their concerns also included failure to transmit the results of the presidential election in real-time on the INEC results viewing portal as assured. In their effort to support the grounds of their petition, the petitioners had asked the court to permit them to question INEC. On the technology deployed to conduct the election including the quality of the ICT experts who oversaw the conduct of the election. In two applications, the petitioners through their lawyer, Patrick Ikweto, SAN, urged the court to order INEC to supply the names and other details of its ICT professionals that deployed electronic devices for the conduct of the election. Specifically, the petitioners maintained that given INEC’s reply to their petition, it should be compelled to answer 12 questions posed to them. They added the date the electoral body conducted functionality tests on the system it deployed for the elections, as well as the names and details of those that conducted the test. They further required INEC to answer the following questions: “Who created/deployed the four (4) Applications Patches/Updates to fix the HTTP 500 error that prevented the e-transmission of the results of the Presidential election on 25th February 2023? “What was the exact time of the occurrence of the technical glitch which prevented the e-transmission of the result of the Presidential election on 25th February 2023? “What time were the technological glitches fixed and or repaired? “What percentage of the result of the Presidential election was uploaded on the I-Rev on Feb. 25? “What percentage of the result of the Presidential election was uploaded on the I-Rev at the time of the declaration of the Result of the Presidential election on March 1?”