Category: News

THE Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has made it mandatory for financial institutions to collect and verify customers’ social media handles as part of the institutions’ Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.

The CBN made this known on June 23 when it released its Customer Due Diligence Regulations 2023 for financial institutions under its regulatory purview, as it takes a decisive stance against financial crimes.

The apex bank explained that the move was geared towards bolstering bank customers’ compliance with anti-money laundering (AML) and counter-terrorism financing (CFT) provisions, while aligning with international best practices.

Thabo Mbeki’s report on illicit financial flow in Africa had put such flow at $80 billion annually, raising concerns over rising terrorism in the continent.

The new regulations, which complement existing provisions outlined in the CBN’s Anti-Money Laundering, Combating the Financing of Terrorism, and Countering Proliferation Financing of Weapons of Mass Destruction in Financial Institutions Regulations of 2022, were designed to fortify the fight against money laundering, terrorism financing, and proliferation financing.

Under the new regulations, financial institutions are required to establish internal processes and procedures for conducting customer due diligence measures for both potential and existing customers, including occasional customers.

They must identify customers, whether individuals or legal entities, and obtain specific information like legal names, addresses, contact details, identification documents, account types, nature of banking relationships, and signatures. Furthermore, the regulations emphasise the need to identify politically exposed persons (PEPs).

To verify customer identities, financial institutions must rely on reliable and independent source documents, data, or information.

For individuals, this involves confirming date of birth, residential address, contact details, and the validity of official documentation.

In the case of legal persons or legal arrangements, financial institutions are required to undertake searches on public registries or databases, review annual reports or relevant financial statements, and examine board resolutions.

The regulations also emphasise the importance of record-keeping and maintaining up-to-date customer information.

Financial institutions must retain records obtained through customer due diligence measures, account files, business correspondence, and analysis results for, at least, five years after the termination or cessation of a business relationship or an occasional transaction.

ICIR

President Bola Tinubu has departed Paris, France for London, the United Kingdom.

The Special Adviser to the President on Special Duties, Communication and Strategy, Mr Dele Alake, who disclosed this in a statement issued on Saturday, said President Tinubu, who was initially scheduled to be back in Abuja on Saturday, will now proceed to London, United Kingdom, for a short private visit.

The President, Alake stated, will be back in the country in time for the upcoming Eid-el-Kabir festival.

President Tinubu had on Friday concluded his official trip to Paris, France, during which he had an outstanding participation in the summit for ‘A New Global Financing Pact’ hosted by French President Emmanuel Macron.

Aside his participation at the event where he represented Nigeria well, the President also held high-profile sideline meetings with fellow heads of state and government, global business leaders and chief executives of leading multilateral and development finance institutions from around the world.

The summit afforded the President the opportunity of projecting, on a global stage, his advocacy for widening the fiscal space, economic justice for Africa as the world accelerates the pace of energy transition, and the urgency of addressing the pressing issues of poverty and climate change.

Arise News

Three miners were shot dead on Friday at a site around Tanjol in Jol community of Riyom Local Government Area of Plateau State on Friday.

Rwang Tengwong, National Publicity Secretary of Berom Youth Movement (BYM), confirmed the incident to Daily Trust, on Saturday, adding that other miners and farmers around have fled the area.

According to Tengwong, the incident occurred at about 11 a.m. He added that two other persons were injured.

The publicity secretary who described the attack as one of too many, called on the government and security agencies to intensify efforts towards the safety of lives and property in rural communities.

Subsidy: Why I overruled Dele Alake, Wale Edun in my inaugural speech – Tinubu

APC kicks as Plateau assembly approves Gov Mutfwang’s N15bn loan request

He said despite the deployment of mobile police officers in the area, killings have continued unabated.

DSP Alfred Alabo, Public Relations Officer of the Police Command in Plateau, did not pick several calls to his line, but a top police officer confirmed the attack.

More than 200 people were recently killed in the villages of the Mangu , Barikin Ladi and Riyom LGAs of the state.

Daily Trust

The Labour Party and its candidate Mr. Peter Obi, have closed the case against the election of President Bola Tinubu after calling 13 witnesses to prove their allegations that the presidential election that held on February 25 was rigged in his favour.

The petitioners closed their case after he tendered several documentary evidence and called a total of 13 witnesses that testified before the Presidential Election Petition Court, PEPC, sitting in Abuja.

Among exhibits he tendered before the court included polling unit results from 36 states of the federation and the Federal Capital Territory, FCT, Abuja, as well as bundle of documents containing the total number of Permanent Voters Card, PVCs, that were collected in 32 states prior to the 2023 general elections.

Aside from tendering four video exhibits, one of which was a press conference, where the Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, assured that results of the election would be electronically transmitted to the IReV portal in real-time using the Bimodal Voter Accreditation System, BVAS, machines, Obi and his party, equally tendered bundle of documents that contained the total number of registered voters in each of the states.

Other electoral documents the court admitted in evidence were certified true copies of INEC Forms EC40Gs; EC40G1; EC40GPU, which were reports of various polling units where elections did not hold.

However, all the Respondents had challenged the admissibility of all the documents in evidence, saying they would adduce reasons behind their objections in their final written address.

Meanwhile, though the Petitioners initially told the court that they would call a total of 50 witnesses to testify in the matter, however, they closed their case on Friday with the testimony of the 13th witness. Earlier in the proceeding, Mr. Tanko Yunusa, who testified as the 12th witness, told the court that he served as the Chief Spokesman of the Labour Party Presidential Election Council as well as the National Director of Media in the party.

He told the court under cross examination that during the presidential poll, he voted at Dawaki district of Abuja and afterwards went to LP’s Election Situation Room at Asokoro. The witness however said he did not state any figure to indicate the number of unlawful votes that were credited to President Tinubu and the APC, in his statement on oath.

Yunusa further told the court that though there are176, 974 polling units in the country, his party, deployed a total of 133, 000 agents to monitor the elections.

Sun

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has spoken about the suspension of Godwin Emefiele, embattled governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

On June 9, Tinubu had suspended Emefiele and ordered investigation into some allegations leveled against him.

He was subsequently arrested in Lagos and flown to Abuja, by the Department of State Services (DSS), where he is being interrogated.

Speaking during an interactive session with Nigerians residing in France, the President said the financial system was rotten under Emefiele.

He said many of those living outside the country could not send money to their parents and relatives due to the multiple exchange rates.

Tinubu, however said “that is gone now”.

“Then the financial system was rotten. Few people made bags of money and then you yourself, you stopped sending money home to our poor parents. Several windows. But that is gone now.

“The man is in the hands of the authorities. Something is being done about that. They will sort themselves out.

“We have security challenges in the country. Maybe that is how they are fuelling insecurity; we have to look at everything. We will change the financial system; it will work for you,” Tinubu said.

Daily Trust

The Anambra State Governor, Prof. Chukwuma Soludo, has advised indigenes of his state based in Lagos State that their homeland is ready for business, adding that investing in the state will be in their own best interest.

The governor made the appeal during a town hall meeting with Ndi Anambra residents in Lagos while enumerating some of the progress made so far by his administration after a year in office, a statement by his media aide, Christian Aburime, said on Friday.

While delivering his speech, Soludo told the Anambra natives that God could not have made a mistake by making them Onye Anambra.

He enjoined them to reflect deeply on it and do everything possible to contribute to the growth of the state.

“This is the same question I ask myself every day. And we have a responsibility to leave Anambra State better than we met”; the Governor said.

He emphasised the need to change Anambra State from a departure lounge to a destination, stressing that the homeland consciousness must be inculcated in the perceptual mind of every onye-Anambra.

“Your host will never respect you if you don’t have a livable and prosperous homeland,” Soludo stressed.

See the full statement below:

SOLUDO TO NDI-ANAMBRA IN LAGOS: INVESTING IN ANAMBRA IS IN YOUR OWN BEST INTEREST

By Christian ABURIME

Anambra State Governor, Professor Chukwuma Charles Soludo, CFR, has warmly advised Ndi Anambra residents in Lagos that Anambra State is ready for business, adding that investing in the State will be in their own best interest.

The Governor made the appeal during a town hall meeting with Ndi Anambra residents in Lagos while enumerating some of the progress made so far by his administration after a year in office.

While making his speech, Governor Soludo sounded philosophical by telling his audience that God couldn’t have made a mistake by making them Onye Anambra.

He enjoined them to reflect deeply on it and do everything possible to contribute to the growth of the state.

“This is the same question I ask myself every day. And we have a responsibility to leave Anambra State better than we met”; the Governor said.

He emphasized on the need to change Anambra State from a departure lounge to a destination, stressing that the homeland consciousness must be inculcated in the perceptual mind of every onye-Anambra.

“Your host will never respect you if you don’t have a livable and prosperous homeland”. Governor Soludo reiterated

Speaking on the chaotic nature of Onitsha, Governor Soludo assured the audience that his government is determined to resurrect Onitsha by returning it back to its former glory as the biggest commercial city in the South East and beyond.

On security-related issues, the Governor maintained that his administration has drastically reduced the menace of killings and kidnapping to the barest minimum with the security architecture put in place by his government.

He commended the Security forces- the Army, Navy, Police, the States Vigilante Group and other paramilitary agencies for their dogged efforts in contributing to the successes recorded so far.

The Governor also told his audience that the first order of business is law and order and reassured them that law and order have been greatly restored in the state compared to the impunity that held sway before he came into office.

He also reassured that more roads will be flagged off in addition to the over 300 kilometers of roads already flagged off and are in various stages of completion.

To boost power supply in the state, Governor Soludo stated that his government recently signed an MOU with EEDC for a 24hrs supply of electricity in the state.

He however enjoined anyone who is interested in collaborating with his government to set up Independent Power Plant in the state is welcome to do so.

On transportation, Governor Soludo reassured that his government is working towards the introduction of rail services; both light and sky rail, to improve the transportation system in the state.

On health and education, reassured of adequate human capital investments being put in place with the recent employment of 5,000 teachers and over 300 medical personnel to end the pathetic eras of schools without teachers and hospitals without Doctors and Nurses.

The Governor decried the menace of gully erosion and flooding ravaging the state, assuring that efforts are being exerted to control it.

He informed the audience that Anambra Investment Summit will be coming up soon in September this year, urging every business conscious Ndi-Anambra to join the rest of the world at the summit. He added that the summit will be “all about closing deals” and agreements’ signing.

“Anambra is loading and the options are open.” Governor Soludo further reassured.

Concluding, Governor Soludo appealed to Ndi-Anambra to always think home by imbibing the ‘homeland consciousness’ and to also ensure that part of their taxes are paid to the State, irrespective of where they reside or work, adding that this is the only way they can contribute to the state’s development.

Others who spoke at the occasion commended the efforts and doggedness of the Governor in completely turning the state around.

The event featured key Ndi-Anambra businessmen and women as well members of the State Executive Council.

Channels TV

The Acting Inspector-General of Police (IGP), Mr Olukayode Egbetokun said the Nigeria Police will establish a Quick Intervention Squad to tackle the menace of crimes and criminality.

Egbetokun said this on Friday in Abuja during his inaugural conference with Strategic Police Managers, consisting of officers from the rank of Commissioners of Police and above.

“The Nigeria Police Force under my command, in its quest to stamp out violent crimes and their detrimental and debilitating effects on the security and safety of our society, will forge ahead to tackle the menace of crimes and criminality head-on.

“This will be done with the establishment of a specialized Quick Intervention Squad which will comprise combat-ready Police Mobile Force personnel with effective and enhanced training in crisis de-escalation and violent crime reduction strategies.

“This will lead to a review of the engagement patterns of the Police Mobile Force in a bid to restore the days of glory of the Police Mobile Force as a punching arm of the Police,” he said.

The IG said his administration would embrace innovation and technology as powerful allies in the fight against crime.

According to him, the world is evolving at an unprecedented pace, and so the Nigeria Police should adapt to the evolving landscape of crime.

He said criminals were presently more sophisticated, more organised and more ruthless than ever before.

Egbetokun said the Nigeria Police would leverage cutting-edge tools, data analytics and intelligence networks to stay one step ahead of the criminals, seeking to disrupt the peace of the country.

He said this would be achieved through a robust and effective human and technical intelligence-gathering process to enhance the capacity of personnel.

“By harnessing the power of technology, we can make our streets safer, our investigations more efficient and our communities more resilient.

“We cannot afford to be reactive; we must be proactive in our approaches by equally collaborating with other security agencies, both domestic and international to strengthen our intelligence network,” he added.

The IG said his administration would also prioritise the enhancement of the Nigeria Police training curriculum with special focus on attitudinal and behavioural changes for new recruits and reorientation programme for serving officers.

The police boss said the idea was to further refine the perception of officers to concepts of human rights, rule of law and citizen-focused policing.

He said the new training curriculum would be produced with inbuilt tests, designed to weed out individuals with negative mentality and high tendency for violence from recruits.

The IG said his administration would also make a case for improved welfare for officers to ensure the availability of resources, trainings and support necessary to carry out their duties professionally.

“To this end, my administration will intensify collaboration with relevant stakeholders for the resuscitation of the Police Officer Support Unit (POSU) of the Police Medical services.

“This will serve as a confidential support and counseling facility for all police officers,” he said.

Vanguard

The Rivers State Governor, Siminalayi Fubara, on Friday, said at least 16 projects are estimated to be ready for commissioning in his first 100 days in office.

He said that this is according to his mantra of continuing and consolidating his predecessor’s achievements in infrastructure delivery.

According to the governor, the projects which cut across different sectors in all parts of the state were initiated by the administration of immediate past governor Nyesom Wike.

Governor Fubara stated this after an inspection of some of the schools and roads that are under construction in four local government areas (LGAs) of the state.

“Part of our ‘hundred days in office’ achievement is to ensure that we complete a good number of the projects we inherited from our predecessor.

“As you saw yourself, I am very, very convinced that by the time we will be doing our hundred days in office, we will have more than 16 projects if not about 20 to commission, to show we really mean business for the people of Rivers State,” Fubara said.

Before the inspection, the governor swore in the Secretary to the State Government, the Chief of Staff and one more commissioner, tasking them never to let his administration fail.

The governor defied the rain to undertake the inspection of some ongoing projects by the state government, in an effort to continue and consolidate the achievements of his predecessor.

He first visited the Comprehensive Secondary School, Borikiri in Port Harcourt LGA, which was about 90 percent completed.

He then moved to Eleme LGA where he inspected the new site of the Comprehensive Secondary School in the Alesa community.

Channels TV

After calling 27 witnesses and tendering tons of electoral documents, Atiku Abubakar, on Friday, closed his case at the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja, which he prayed to upturn President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the 25 February poll.

Three people have been reportedly killed and several others kidnapped by bandits who attacked the Sabon Layi community in the Birnin-Gwari Local Government Area of Kaduna State.

Although the police and Birnin-Gwari local government authorities have yet to comment on the incident, a community leader, Anas Musa, confirmed the attack to Channels Television on Friday.

He said that the bandits stormed Sabon Layi village at about 12pm on Thursday and started shooting sporadically, killing three farmers in the process.

He gave the names of the victims as Anas Sabonlayi, Abubakar Dankibiya, and Harisu Un-Guwar Lemu.

The Chairman of Birnin Gwari Emirate Progressive Union (BEPU), Usman Kasai, also confirmed the attack, saying they are trying to ascertain the exact number of those kidnapped and still with the bandits inside the forest.

Kaduna is one of the North-Western states hit by banditry in the past few months.

Abductions for ransom and intercommunal attacks have been on the rise again after a brief calm period during the February and March elections for the presidency and governorship posts.

Mass kidnappings and bandit gangs in the northwest are just one of several security challenges facing President Bola Tinubu since his inauguration on May 29.

The military is also battling a grinding jihadist conflict in the northeast that has killed 40,000 since 2009, as well as simmering separatist tensions in the southeast of the country, where gunmen often target police.

Channels TV

The Presidential Election Petitions Tribunal has admitted certified copies of academic and work records of President Bola Tinubu tendered by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar.

The documents include a B.Sc certificate from the Chicago State University, NYSC Discharge Certificate, and Mobil Nigeria Oil Plc certificate of service.

The PDP had brought the documents through their subpoenaed witness, Mike Enahoro Ebah Esq, who noted that the documents were “purportedly” obtained by Tinubu but bore the name ‘Bola Adekunle Tinubu’.

Led in evidence by PDP counsel, Chris Uche (SAN), the witness also tendered forms EC13 and EC9 nomination forms and the letters written to the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) as attachments.

Counsel to INEC, Abubakar Mahmoud (SAN); Tinubu, Emmanuel Ukala (SAN) and the APC, Lateef Fagbemi (SAN) all objected to the admissibility of the documents.

Details soon…

Vanguard