The Presidency has refuted a report by Bloomberg claiming that Nigeria had delayed coupon payments on its savings bonds, affirming that all financial obligations are being met on schedule.

Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, in a post on his verified X handle, described the report as incorrect.

According to Onanuga, Finance Minister Wale Edun confirmed that Nigeria has sufficient liquidity to meet all its obligations and does not owe anyone at the moment.

He said Edun had affirmed that the country has enough funds to meet its financial commitments, with no outstanding payments.

According to him, Edun’s position was corroborated by Patience Oniha, Director General of the Debt Management Office (DMO).

Oniha said the Central Bank of Nigeria had processed all due payments as of September 19, with the payment due September 20 also being processed.

“Bloomberg is not correct with this report. Finance Minister and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, says that Nigeria does not owe anyone at the moment,” Onanuga said.

“We have enough liquidity to meet all our obligations. We do not have any outstanding payments.

“Director General of the Debt Management Office, Patience Oniha, also confirms that, as of September 19, the Central Bank of Nigeria has processed all due payments. The payment due today, September 20, is also being processed for payment.”

Specifically, Bloomberg’s report alleged that Nigerian authorities had failed to make timely coupon payments on two savings bonds, citing “system and processing issues” as the cause for the delay.

Bloomberg’s article claimed this was the second such delay in two months, involving coupon payments on two- and three-year debt sold in June, totaling ₦4.2 billion ($2.56 million).

President Bola Tinubu has declared to the National Assembly that he has no intention of exploiting his position for personal gain.

Tinubu says his administration is focused on delivering tangible results and making a positive difference in the nation’s infrastructure, food and energy security, education and long-term economic stability.

At a meeting with the Forum of Former Presiding Officers of the National Assembly, led by former Senate President Ken Nnamani, the President emphasized that he is not in office for personal gain but to serve the country.

”I didn’t come to look for money and exploit the situation; I came to work. I asked for the votes, and Nigerians gave them to me, ” the President, who was a former senator, told the meeting after a session of banters and handshakes with former parliamentary colleagues.

The meeting was attended by 16 former presiding officers, including former senate presidents, former speakers of the House of Representatives, former deputy senate presidents, and former deputy speakers of the House of Representatives.

The President acknowledged the support and encouragement from the Forum members, irrespective of party affiliations, and implored them to continue fostering unity and camaraderie to achieve national development goals.

Reflecting on the complex nature of legislative activities, constitutional reviews, and nation-building processes, the President expressed confidence that Nigeria can progress through collaboration and inclusiveness.

”Regardless of party differences of the past and difficulty of the present, you still believe in me and what we all plan for this country.

”I thank you very much; no one will do it better than us. I have travelled the world and seen how developed countries have done it for themselves through collaboration, inclusiveness and financial structure.

”Yes, there is hardship, but how did we get here? What did we do when we had very high crude production?”

“We neglected our communities; we neglected the goose that lays the golden eggs; we forgot even to give them a good standard of living.

”We forgot to educate our children. Go round and look at the dilapidated schools. The education environment must be decent enough for pupils to want to learn.

”We can complain from now till eternity that the school enrolment is low. But did we do anything to encourage the enrolment process? We must ask ourselves because it is a matter of conscience,” he said.

The President outlined his administration’s focus on addressing these challenges, including improving infrastructure, ensuring compliance with financial regulations, exploring alternative energy sources and providing energy security.

”We have come a long way, and I promise we must do our best,” he said.

He urged the former presiding officers to continue sharing their wealth of experience in nation-building and governance, noting that they were uniquely positioned to provide “clear interpretations of where we are” to Nigerians.

Senator Nnamani, who spoke on behalf of the delegation, expressed full support for President Tinubu’s administration and its efforts to address Nigeria’s pressing challenges.

He noted that the meeting was the president’s first official engagement with the group since his assumption of office. Nnamani congratulated the President.

”Mr President, history has never been the burden of one man alone, but some are called to meet a special share of its challenges.

”Though not of your creation, it has fallen onto you to end the pervasive insecurity across the nation, the economic downturn that has resulted in hunger and anger, infrastructural decay due to years of neglect and myriads of other national challenges.

”As difficult as these problems are, we believe that with your experience, you can face the difficulties and surmount them.

The Lagos State government is collaborating with the Lagos Urban Development Initiative (LUDI) and other stakeholders will observe the annual ‘Car Free Day’ in Lagos, on Sunday, September 22, 2024.

This initiative encourages road users and motorists to set aside their cars for a day and embrace active and inclusive means of transport, such as cycling and walking, known as Non-Motorised Transport (NMT).

The State Commissioner for Transportation, Oluwaseun Osiyemi, said in a statement that the primary aim of the initiative is to raise awareness about the benefits of non-motorised transport beyond reducing environmental pollution and addressing the detrimental effects of insufficient physical activity on health.

According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), physical inactivity is the fourth leading risk factor for global mortality, accounting for 6% of global deaths. Increasing physical activity and reducing sedentary behaviours are essential steps in promoting public health, as people of all ages and abilities can benefit from a more active lifestyle.

This event also provides an opportunity for cities and governments to advance public transport systems, offering viable and reliable alternatives to private cars in urban areas. Moreover, it emphasises the importance of non-motorized transport by prioritising walking, cycling, and inclusive mobility.

The commissioner further explained that the event, involving the Lagos State Ministry of Transportation in collaboration with other Ministries, Departments, Agencies, and Lagos Urban Development Initiative, aims at educating the public on the significance of environmental health and its direct impact on the well-being of the people.

Hundreds of participants are expected to gather at Ahmadu Bello Way venue for a day filled with fun and exciting activities such as cycling, cycling training, cycling competitions, skating, stretches, music, and dance.

The Allergy and Clinical Immunology Society (ACIS) has lamented the difficulties encountered in caring for allergy conditions owing to a lack of training, access to drugs, and the cost of drugs.

Chairperson of ACIS, Dr Olatunde Odusote, decried the lack of awareness in this region regarding allergy diseases while noting that the increase in these conditions, though not fully understood, can be attributed to climate change and global warming.

This was stated at a media parley yesterday, ahead of the two-day World Allergy Training School (WATS) starting today in Lagos, organised by ACIS in partnership with the World Allergy Organisation (WAO).

He noted the need to develop a curriculum within the context of the nation to offer basic training to practitioners who can care for allergies at the primary level.

He added that participants for the training would cut across the various medical spectrum, and lectures would cover disease processes, necessary tests to run, their interpretation, and how to go about it.

“One of the major problems we have had in the world of allergy is that people think when one has such conditions, you must do a test, but it is not necessarily so. You need to listen to their story first, and if there is a need for a test, you can go ahead,” he said.

Odusote stated that the organisation is focused on creating awareness, promoting advocacy, and empowering healthcare practitioners and the community with the right information.

President of the American College of Allergy, Asthma and Immunology, Prof. James Tracy, said the training would deal with a catalogue of allergies such as asthma, food allergy, and practical training on how to treat severe allergic reactions.

He noted that disease awareness, genetic components, and environmental pollution are possible causes of increased allergic conditions globally.

Edo State Governor, Godwin Obaseki, has stated that Nigeria is “technically bankrupt” and urged the Federal Government to implement urgent restructuring for the country to progress.

Speaking during an interview on Channels Television’s Politics Today, Obaseki said the nation is unable to cover its expenditures due to insufficient earnings, while government spending remains high.

“Nigeria is technically bankrupt. And I mean it,” Obaseki said, comparing the situation to the U.S. Chapter Eleven bankruptcy process, where organisations restructure to meet their obligations.

He noted that Nigeria is not undertaking such restructuring, continuing to act as though it still had significant financial resources.

The governor also criticised the Federal Government’s centralised management of resources, arguing that individual states should be allowed to exploit their own economic opportunities. “

“It (Nigeria) has been in trouble for a while. I won’t say insolvent, but technically so, in the sense that we don’t have enough to cover our expenditure, we are not reducing our expenditure, and we are not earning more,” he said.

“First, the Federal Government does not have the capacity to manage the economy at the scale and in the way it is currently doing. You’re producing 1.3 million barrels of oil, right? Because you are trying to do it centrally. We have 147 oil wells in Edo, and only 53 or fewer are producing.

“Unless you create a new design that allows the individual states to take advantage of the economic opportunities they have, stressing the assets of this country and paying what they need to pay to the central government, the federal government cannot sit and try to micromanage the country and its assets. It has shown that it cannot. It doesn’t have the capacity to do so.”

Obaseki also expressed concern that the government is “stuck in the past” and lacks the courage to make difficult decisions necessary for restructuring.

He stressed that the current governance structure is outdated, noting that the current structure “is expired; it’s outdated” and Nigeria needs a new structure to run the economy of the state.

He added, “I think for me, it’s like this federal government is stuck, and stuck in the past. Because you cannot resolve a malignant problem using the same tools you have used over the years.

“It’s not that the people there are not smart; it’s not that they’re stupid. It’s more that they just don’t have the courage to make the decisions they need to make.

“The problem with Nigeria today is structural. The structure we have is expired; it’s outdated. We need a new structure to run the economy of the state. If it doesn’t happen, we are not going anywhere.”

The Nigeria Police Force (NPF) has disclosed some of the benefits of the new Electronic Central Motor Registry (E-CMR), a digital innovation designed to modernise vehicle registration and improve road safety.

The Force Spokesperson, Olumuyiwa Adejobi, announced the benefits of the innovation on Thursday.

Adejobi said the E-CMR will eliminate the need for physical vehicle documents and enable real-time verification of registration information by police officers

He explained that the Electronic Central Motor Registry system was launched to make roads safer and the policing process more efficient.

Adejobi also stated the new E-CMR system elimination of paperwork, saying, “NO MORE PAPERWORK! With the NPF’s new E-CMR system, you don’t need to carry around physical documents. Access all your vehicle info digitally – quick, easy, and secure.

He added that this new system allows vehicle owners to immediately flag their vehicle as stolen through their online profile if it goes missing, triggering alerts to field officers nationwide within seconds.

With this new E-CMR system, according to Adejobi, there is no more need to stop and check papers, as officers are equipped with cutting-edge technology to verify documents in real time.

Adejobi stated, “If your vehicle is registered with the NPF E-CMR and gets stolen, you can instantly flag it as stolen through your online profile. All field officers nationwide will be alerted within seconds! Let’s make our roads safer together,”

“Inspector-General Egbetokun is revolutionising how we keep our roads safe with the new E-CMR system! Now, no more stopping to check papers; our officers are equipped with cutting-edge tech to verify documents in real-time.”