President Goodluck Jonathan Working To Prevent Attacks On Mosques, Churches During Sallah

A mosque in Maiduguri where five people were killed in bomb blast in 2011

Baring fears and uncertainties among thousands of Muslim faithful across the country on the celebration of Eid-el-Fitr and intelligence reports indicating that Mosques and other prayer grounds as well as Churches may be attacked by terrorist groups, President Goodluck Jonathan has directed the nation’s security chiefs to work around the clock during the celebrations to counter and prevent any attack.

Saturday Vanguard gathered that the Chief of Army staff, Lt. General Azubuike Ihejirika has directed the General Officers Commanding the Divisions to put their men on the alert to thwart any sinister plot while the commanders of the joint task forces in the north have received same directives from the Defence Headquarters.

On his part, the Inspector General of Police, Mohammed Abubakar yesterday summoned an emergency meeting involving the Commissioners of Police in charge of Counter Terrorist Unit at Force headquarters; the CP in charge MOPOL, CP Joseph Mbu; the CP Federal Operations; the CP Border Patrol and the CP in charge Federal Capital territory, Adenrele Shinaba whereby specific directives were given on ensuring watertight security across the country.

Disclosing that the Presidency and the security agencies were not taking the threats by the terrorist groups lightly, the source told Saturday Vanguard that both the General Officer Commanding the 1 division of the Nigerian Army, Kaduna, Major General Gani Wahab and the GOC 3 division, Jos, Major General Jack Nwaoga, were particularly tasked to ensure that perpetrators of any such terrorist acts, were taken out before they strike.

To this end, Saturday Vanguard gathered that the Army has deployed ‘specially trained Quick Intervention’ troops along the Kaduna-Kano Corridor while the Joint Task Force complement in Kogi state which is under his command are on red alert as the state is now assuming a notorious status for the manufacture and distribution of IEDS.

General Ihejirika was said to have drummed it into the ears of the GOCs and Corp Commanders that terrorists should never be allowed the space and time to unleash any more mayhem on innocent citizens thereby trying to hold the nation to ransom. Hence, it was time for the well trained, better equipped and visionary Nigerian Army personnel to put the terrorists where they belong.

On his part, the IG yesterday sent out a signal directing all Zonal AIG’s and State Command Commissioners of Police to take adequate measures to ensure the provision of water-tight security across the country before, during and after the celebration.

“Officers and men are to be deployed to ensure that the highways are effectively covered with motorized patrol teams. CPs are particularly mandated to personally ensure that all places of worship, recreation centres, resorts and other public places are adequately and effectively protected, to enable worshippers and the general public enjoy maximum fulfillment”, the signal said.

In addition, all Zonal AIGs and CPs have also been advised to ensure the provision of 24hr security around all government installations, facilities and other related valuable targets. The IGP warned officers who will be deployed during the period, to ensure that they comport themselves within the confines of the law. They must be firm but polite, civil and professional in the discharge of their assigned roles, giving due regard and respect to the fundamental human rights of all Nigerians at all times.

The IG emphasized that his commitment and that of his Management Team towards reforming and repositioning the Nigeria Police Force for greater effectiveness and efficiency is irrevocable, adding that by God’s grace, the battle against crime and criminality will eventually be won.

On the circulation of threat SMS messages warning worshippers and picnickers to stay off such places, the CP urged worshippers and picnickers to ignore such messages saying the aim was to create fear and panic among the populace. He noted however that the Police will investigate the source of such messages and get to the root of the matter.

Shinaba then released three dedicated phone numbers through which the command can be reached in case of emergency and when suspicious movements of persons were discovered. They are 08061581938, 07057337653 and 08032003913.

Meanwhile, the Inspector-General of Police, has felicitated with Nigerians especially, Muslim faithful, on the occasion of this year’s Eid-el-fitr celebration coming on 20th and 21st of August, 2012. He specially congratulates all Muslim faithful for a most successful Ramadan period.

Man Kills Step-Daughter's Baby, Removes Heart For Ritual

A 39 year-old man, Akpotejere Osuna has been arrested by operatives of Delta State Police Command for allegedly killing the eight day-old daughter of his step-daughter for ritual.

The slaughtered baby was the daughter of the step daughter to Akpotejere who was visiting her mother for post-natal care.

Osuna has allegedly made confessional statement to the police that he killed her for ritual.

He confessed taking the baby away from the side of her mother while she was sleeping, took her to a nearby bush, where he allegedly slaughtered her. Luck, however, ran out on him when he was arrested by the police who made a follow up of reports on the suspicious move by the suspect.

Delta State Police Command spokesman, Charles Muka who spoke with us on phone, disclosed that the suspect who was arrested at Jese Town, allegedly killed the baby, opened her up and removed the heart, the tongue and other parts. Muka said the suspect would be charged to court as soon as courts in the state resume sitting.

“The suspect sneaked into the house of the mother of the baby, took the baby into the bush where he murdered the child, cut of the heart and the tongue, wrapped them in a polythene bag, pocketed them and melted into the bush.”

Mr. Muka disclosed that upon report, the suspect was traced into the bush where he was arrested, adding that “he confessed that he was taking the parts to Ghana where he was going to make use of it for money making ritual.”

Father Apprehended For Sleeping With Seven Year Old Daughter For Seven Years

A 45-year old bricklayer, Elijah Olusesi who has been having sex with his 14-year old daughter (name withheld) since she was  seven, has been apprehended by members of O’odua Peoples Congress, OPC.

Elijah and his family were subsequently banished from the community after he allegedly confessed to engaging in the despicable act with his daughter.

We reliably gathered that the man was exposed when the sexually assaulted girl ran out of their home unclad in the middle of the night and was held by the security men guarding the community.

Upon interrogation by the security men, she told them that she ran out unclad because her father wanted to kill her with sex, adding that she could no longer bear
his sexual assault on her.

Quote
“I ran out when my father wanted to kill me with sex. He has been having sexual intercourse with me since I was seven years old and my mother knew about it. My mother and I ran away from him to come and hide here but we don’t know how he was able to trace us down here,” she reportedly told the guards.

Shade Olusesi, Eljah’s wife who is also a nursery school teacher in the neighbourhood, when queried by the community, said that when she caught her husband in the act with their daughter and reported the incident to her in-laws, they begged her.

She said that her husband equally begged her and promised that he will not repeat the shameful act again. She said she believed him, adding that to her utmost surprise, Elijah still continued the act with their daughter whenever she is not at home.

She added that her husband was sleeping with both of them simultaneously without her knowledge.

She said further that she stopped him from sleeping with her immediately she discovered he was having carnal knowledge of their daughter, adding that she had to run away with the girl from their former home to Adiyan in Ogun State.

She told the community that she did not know how her husband was able to trace them down to the remote village.

The Ekiti State-born bricklayer allegedly confessed to the crime after the OPC members took him round the community, and was banished from the community afterwards.

116 contestants for Miss World pageant in China desert city

ORDOS, China (AFP) – Global beauty queens dressed in shimmering ball gowns competed Saturday for the coveted tile of Miss World in the unlikely setting of a Chinese mining city on the edge of the Gobi desert.

Miss World contestant, Nicaragua’s Lauren Gabrielle Lawson Guerrero, waits backstage prior to a rehearsal for the final ceremony at the Ordos Stadium Arena in the inner Mongolian city of Ordos on August 17, 2012. More than 100 beauty queens from around the globe have descended on the northern Chinese mining city of Ordos on the edge of the Gobi desert ahead of the Miss World final on August 18. /AFP PHOTO

A total of 116 contestants — the highest number ever — took to the stage after a dance by a troupe dressed as Mongolian warriors at the start of the contest, watched annually by about a billion people around the globe.
This year it takes place on the arid and sparsely populated steppes of Inner Mongolia, where Ordos, around 700 kilometres (440 miles) from the nearest beach, makes an unusual venue for the world’s biggest beauty pageant.
Reigning Miss World Ivian Sarcos of Venezuela will hand over her crown in the futuristic Dongsheng stadium, which is surrounded by swathes of empty or unfinished apartment blocks.
Contestants made last minute preparations to their hair and make-up before the contest started. The smell of perfume permeated the red carpeted area, where an excited Miss Nicaragua was seen in a red ball gown, her high-heels making thudding sounds on the carpet.
Besides the traditional swimsuits and evening gowns, participants were also scheduled to don outlandish costumes, with some dressed as belly dancers and one, Miss Fiji, set to appear in an owl get-up.
The beauty queens have been in China rehearsing for nearly a month, soaking up traditional Mongolian culture by churning yoghurt in a nomad’s yurt and donning local attire to climb a sand dune.
The city, which has a vast town square dedicated to the mighty Mongolian warrior Genghis Khan, has grown rich over the last decade on the back of a coal mining boom that has transformed it from a sandstorm-afflicted backwater into one of the wealthiest places in China.
The boom triggered a frenzy of building in the city, but the local government has been unable to fill the vast tower blocks that have sprung up, earning it the title of China’s biggest ghost town.
Enthusiastic competitors seemed unfazed, expressing optimism that with the help of the pageant, the city could leave that reputation behind and take its place alongside other global centres of glitz and glamour.
“Ordos could be the next Dubai,” said Marielle Wilkie, representing the Caribbean nation of Barbados.
Albanian contestant Floriana Garo chimed in with her own bold prediction.
“In ten years, this city will be booming,” she said.
Architecture in Ordos — where the city museum is shaped like an undulating blob — is “world class”, added Markysa O’Loughlin, representing St. Kitts and Nevis, also in the Caribbean.
Contestants vying for this year’s title include a Kazakh doctor and a Peruvian medical student, but the bookmakers are tipping Miss Mexico, 20-year-old Mariana Reynoso, for the crown.
Other leading contenders are thought to be Miss China and Miss Nepal.
While the popularity of the contest, first held in 1951, has waned in the West, continued interest in Asian countries ensures that the final rakes in a huge global television audience.
Sweden’s Kiki Hakansson was the first Miss World, while Oscar-winning US actress Halle Berry was a finalist in 1986 and Bollywood star Aishwarya Rai took the crown in 1994.
Venezuela has produced the most Miss Worlds, with six winners, while India and Britain claim five titles each.
China has already hosted the competition five times, most recently in 2010 on the tropical southern island of Hainan.
In 2002, the pageant was moved from Nigeria to Britain after more than 200 people died in clashes sparked when a newspaper suggested the Prophet Mohammed would have chosen a wife from among the contestants had he been alive.

James Ibori Moved To Worcestershire Long Lartin Prison With Terrorists And Violent Criminals

The convicted former governor of Delta State, has been transferred to a maximum-security prison, the Worcestershire Long Lartin Prison outside London, according to the findings of online media, SaharaReporters
UK prison officials in the United Kingdom confirmed the transfer to SaharaReporters, but said they could not tell what informed the move. “Yes, Mr. Ibori is now serving his prison term in the Long Lartin prison in Worcestershire,” said an official of the UK prisons.
The maximum-security prison houses terrorists, rapists, drug barons and other violent criminals. A recent report in The Guardian, a major UK newspaper, portrayed the prison as a rough, lawless facility where gangsters reign supreme.
In April this year, Mr. Ibori was sentenced to 13 years in prison for using UK financial institutions to launder hundreds of millions of pound sterling he stole from public funds in Delta State.
The looted funds enabled Mr. Ibori, his family and mistress to live lavish lifestyles that included purchase of private jets, luxurious cars and to own plush homes as well as apartments in some of the swankiest areas in London. Mr. Ibori is expected to serve at least seven years in the UK since he received credit for his detention in the United Arab Emirates as well as the UK prior to his trial.
The US Department of Justice recently restrained assets belonging to the former governor in Texas and Massachusetts. A US attorney told SaharaReporters that the action means that Mr. Ibori is in legal trouble in the US whenever he serves out his prison term in the UK.
One of Mr. Ibori’s lawyers, Bhadresh Gohil, his wife, Theresa Nkoyo, sister, Christine Ibori-Ibie, and mistress, Udoamaka Okoronkwo were all sentenced to prison terms for aiding and abetting the former governor in his money laundering activities.
Meanwhile, several sources in Abuja and Asaba, the Delta State capital, have told SaharaReporters that Mr. Ibori has now perfected plans to reclaim the $15 million with which he tried, but failed, to bribe Nuhu Ribadu, the former chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
The Delta State government, led by Ibori’s cousin and money laundering accomplice, Emmanuel Uduaghan, recently stepped forward to claim the $15 million bribe which has been deposited at the Central Bank of Nigeria for several years.
Several sources had told SaharaReporters that Mr. Ibori frowned at the state government’s move, worried that an open admission that he gave the bribe would complicate things for him.
However, Saharareporters further learnt yesterday that the Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Adoke, who initiated a lawsuit in which the federal government sought to take over the money from the Central Bank, had struck a deal with Delta State Governor to enable Mr. Ibori to ultimately reclaim the money. The deal was communicated to Ibori to calm him down.
Our sources revealed that claims by Mr. Ibori’s associates which will be planted in several Nigerian blogs to the effect that the cash was not intended as a bribe were part of a series of complex schemes to clear the way for Mr. Ibori to reclaim the money.
“Adoke and the Delta State government are now on the same page and working in tandem,” said one source. He added, “Once the state government obtains a court order awarding the cash to Delta, Chief Ibori will get a Delta State high court to rule that the money was not a bribe but Ibori’s contribution for an undisclosed political purpose. The state court will argue that the former governor was never convicted for any crimes in Nigeria, and order the state to return the cash to its rightful owner, Chief Ibori. The state government will quickly comply.”
Another source close to Mr. Adoke told SaharaReporters that the country’s attorney general and Minister for Justice has rubberstamped the deal, after officials of Delta State and associates of Mr. Ibori promised him a cut of the $15 million.
The source added that it was Mr. Adoke who came up with the legal scheme to enable Mr. Ibori to eventually take possession of the seized funds. He reportedly stated that since a Nigerian court presided over by Justice Marcel Awokulehin had dismissed all money laundering and corruption charges against Mr. Ibori, it would be easy for a Delta State court to rule that it was “impossible to accuse Chief Ibori of stealing from Delta State to bribe Ribadu.”
A leader of an activist political group in Delta State told SaharaReporters that his group had heard rumors about the planned deal between Mr. Ibori, the state government and Mr. Adoke. “I can tell you that we are vigilant and will resist any attempt to hand back money Ibori stole to the man to enjoy when he comes out of jail. We plan to take him to court again in Nigeria to explain what he did with our people’s money,” said the source.

D'Banj Prays Against Death In Church After Pastor Warns Him

On Thursday, July 12, 2012, top music star, D'Banj was dragged to church by his mum as a result of a warning that entertainers should pray against death. This call was made by Pastor Wole Oladiyun of Christ Livingspring Apostolic Church (CLAM), Ogba, Lagos.
Close sources to the Pastor told Nigeriafilms then that Pastor Wole also warned D'Banj not to join illuminati or else, he would land in hell fire.
Weeks after the prayer, a picture has emerged online where D'Banj was captured praying fervently like a prayer warrior. His mother and the pastor joined in the prayer.
Who says D'Banj is not a prayer warrior?

Cossy Orjiakor Builds Multi Million Naira Mansion In Lagos

If you have been in the Lagos hustle, you will understand what Psqaure had in mind when they sang the song "E no easy o". She might have been a topic of mockery amongst jealous ladies, but that doesnt stop the sexy Cossy Orjiakor from getting her hustle on, she just completed her massive multi million naira mansion in Lagos.

20-Yr-Old Caught Trying To Rape 61 Year Old Grandmother

A 20-year-old man attempted to rape his grandmother after complaining to her he could not get a girlfriend.

Samuel Dye is alleged to have beaten his grandmother with a hammer before launching the sex attack.

He had complained about not being able to find a girlfriend and told her he was going to ‘get some’.

Police said Dye’s assault was stopped by his father after he heard the screams of his 61-year-old mother.

He found his son on top of his mother with his trousers pulled down and hitting her in the head with a hammer.

The father pulled his own away and detained him until police arrived.

The alleged attack took place after Dye turned up at his grandmother’s home in Chester, South Carolina, at 4am last Thursday.

The woman told police Dye showed up at her home with a hammer in his hand and began complaining about not having a girlfriend. He said he was going to ‘get some’.

The arrest report, seen by the Charlotte Observer, said Dye began attacking her.

She pleaded with her grandson to stop and suggested they pray together.

Dye then exposed himself to the woman and tried to rape her before hitting her in the head again and knocking her onto the ground, the report states.

Sheriff Richard Smith said Dye’s father caught him ‘in the act’ of trying to rape his mother.

Dye is being held at the Chester County Detention Center having been charged with charged with attempted murder and attempted sexual contact.

Records with the State Law Enforcement Division shows that Dye has no prior criminal history in South Carolina, aside from a seat belt violation that is still pending in court, it was reported by the Charlotte Observer.

Nigerian Billionaire Mike Adenuga, Dantata, Fola Adeola, Others Behind Fuel Subsidy Scam

Mr. Adenuga’s company, which was once accused of tax evasion, has been accused of being behind the current fuel scarcity.
Nigerian billionaire, Mike Adenuga, through his company, Conoil Plc, is one of those behind the fuel scarcity being experienced in Abuja, the Federal Government has said.
Mr. Adenuga is not alone in this alleged misdemeanour, according to Finance Minister Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala. Companies owned by other wealthy Nigerians such as Eterna Oil, whose directors are Mahmud Tukur, son of Peoples Democratic Party National Chairman, Bamanga Tukur, and Fola Adeola, the Vice Presidential candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria in the last presidential elections; and MRS Oil and Gas, believed to be owned by businessman Sayyu Dantata were also found to be instigators of the fuel crisis.
Mr. Adenuga, listed by Forbes Magazine as one of the world’s richest billionaires, is not new to controversy. In 2009, the Ogun State born businessman was indicted by Nigerian tax authorities. The Federal Inland Revenue Service sealed the Lagos office of Conoil, and Continental Oil and Gas, another company owned by the businessman, over the non-remittance of $610 million tax to government. At that time, Mr. Adenuga was able to wriggle his way out of the crisis.
This time however, the FG says it is bent on dealing with Conoil and its other partners in crime over their fraudulent activities.
The subsidy fraudsters
Not content with fleecing Nigeria of hundreds of billions of naira through the fuel subsidy scam, the indicted oil companies, have decided to punish Nigerians by creating artificial fuel scarcity, Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala said.
The companies were earlier indicted of large-scale fraud by the Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede presidential committee which investigated the 2011 fuel subsidy payments.
“It is clear that those behind the strikes are marketers being investigated for possible fraud. These elements have now resorted to hiding behind the unions to unnecessarily antagonize Government and create hardship for Nigerians,” Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala said in the statement.
Seven of the companies had created fictional ships, which delivered imaginary petrol, for which they got N13 billion naira subsidy payments, PREMIUM TIMES had exclusively reported here.
Some of the others were involved in ship space travel, in which they claimed that vessels that were in China, or UAE, delivered petrol to Nigerian waters at the same time. Nigeria lost 21 billion naira to this category of fraudulent companies.
Already, petrol stations in Abuja are filled with long queues as road users struggle for the little petrol available. Should the oil workers go ahead with their strike which would commence next week, the rest of the country would join in the fuel scarcity.
We remain undaunted
In the statement, Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala said government remained committed to seeing its actions through despite the scarcity.
The minister said following the submission of the report of the Aig-Imoukhuede committee that investigated the payments, the federal government has paid all marketers with “legitimate and unencumbered” claims and that such marketers will continue to be paid.
Between April and May 2012, two batches involving 14 oil marketers with a claim of N17 billion were settled while N25.6 billion worth of claims were paid since early July 2012, the minister said.
In all, between April and August this year, N42.666 billion have been paid to 31 oil marketers.
“Government will continue to encourage honest efforts by genuine companies engaged in fuel importation but we will not fall for the cheap blackmail of indicted marketers who are using all kinds of subterfuge to escape sanctions,” he minister said.
The companies punishing Nigeria
Apart from Conoil, other companies the finance minister mentioned include Alminnur resources ltd, Brilla energy ltd, and Eterna plc, headed by Mahmud Tukur, the son of the national chairman of the PDP, Bamanga Tukur. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) is already prosecuting the younger Tukur for his role in the subsidy scam, and he has since been granted bail by the court.
Other companies involved are Caades Oil and Gas Ltd, Capital Oil and Gas Industry Ltd, Downstream Energy Source Ltd, Euraafric Oil and Gas Ltd, Lumen Skies Ltd and Majope Investment Ltd.
Matrix Energy Ltd, Menon Oil and Gas Ltd, Mob International Services, MRS Oil and Gas Ltd, Nasaman Oil Services Ltd, Natacel Petroleum Ltd, Ocean Energy Trading and Services, Pinnacle Contractors Ltd. Sifax Oil and Gas Company, Tonique Oil Services Ltd and, Top Oil and Gas Development Co. Ltd, were also named.
Discussing with the cabal
Some other companies, also indicted by the Aig-Imoukhuede committee are however being courted by the government in other to prevent a nationwide fuel scarcity.
Mrs. Okonjo-Iweala said these groups of companies, with infractions which are relatively minor, are already in discussion with government for a quick resolution of the issues.
She said the outstanding claims of companies under investigation for possible refunds to the government, will be netted against their expected refunds to government and those with positive net balance will be processed and paid.
In other words, even though these companies dubiously received fuel subsidy payments, the government will let them off the hook by simply deducting the money they are expected to refund from the genuine subsidy payment the FG owes them.
The Aig-Imoukhuede committee had recommended that all the indicted marketers refund N382 billion to government.
Mr. Imoukhuede had however advised Nigerians not to expect that all the money would be recovered.

Chris Brown, Drake sued over NYC nightclub

NEW YORK — Chris Brown and Drake were sued Wednesday over a bottle-throwing nightclub brawl involving their entourages, as a company with ties to the club sought to hold the music stars responsible for the melee.

Brown's representatives had no immediate comment about the $16 million lawsuit, and Drake's representatives didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. The suit faulted the artists for — at a minimum — doing nothing to stop the June 14 melee and said it sullied the chic Manhattan nightspot's name.

Brown and Drake should bear blame for a glass-flinging, broken-bottle-swinging free-for-all in a crowded club "in circumvention of the venue's extensive security measures," says the lawsuit, filed by Entertainment Enterprises Ltd. The company owns the trademark for Greenhouse; the owners of the club itself aren't involved in the lawsuit and declined to comment.

No criminal charges have been filed in the fight, which left Brown, NBA star Tony Parker and others injured. Police say the fracas started after members of Drake's entourage confronted Brown on the dance floor as he was leaving the club's basement lounge, called W.i.P. Drake's representatives have said he was on his way out and didn't injure anyone.

The lawsuit, however, points to news accounts of bad blood between Brown and Drake, both of whom have dated singer Rihanna. Entertainment Enterprises believes the two men instigated, encouraged, or at least failed to stop the fight, lawyer Andrew T. Miltenberg said.

"It's their posse, and they're in charge, and to the extent that they could have controlled or dissipated whatever was going on, we don't believe they did," he said.

Because of publicity about the fight, a $4 million deal to license Greenhouse's name for other clubs around the country fell through, the lawsuit says.

Entertainment Enterprises is headed by a former Greenhouse owner, Jon Bakhshi.

The current owners face suits over the fracas, including a $20 million claim from Parker.

The city shuttered the club for a time after the brawl; Greenhouse reopened July 10. It is continuing to fight a State Liquor Authority effort to nix its liquor license.

Lagos is 3rd worst liveable city in the world

Lagos has been ranked the third worst liveable country in the world by a recently released 2012 Global Liveability Survey.
 
The survey, which was carried out by the Economist Intelligence Unit, ranked the commercial hub of Nigeria 138 out of 140 cities surveyed around the world to assess the best or worst living conditions.
This was a drop from its 137th position in the 2011 ranking.
Following closely after Lagos was Port Moresby, which took the 139th position, and Dhaka, Bangladesh in the 140th position, making it the worst liveable city in the world.
Ranking first on the list as the city with the best living conditions is Melbourne, Australia, with an overall rating of 97.5. Vienna, Austria, ranked second while Vancouver, Canada, ranked third. Johannesburg and Pretoria, South Africa took the 92nd and 96th positions respectively.
London is ranked 55th, while Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, the next host of the Olympics, shared the 92nd position with Johannesburg.
The liveability report surveys 140 locations around the world to assess the best or worst living conditions. Cities are scored on political and social stability, crime rates and access to quality healthcare. It also measures the diversity and standard of cultural events and the natural environment, education (school and university), and the standard of infrastructure, including public transport.
The Economist Intelligence Unit produces regular reports on the “liveability” and cost of living of the world’s major cities, which receive wide coverage in international news sources.

The 5 Biggest Banks In Nigeria

0 inShar

 

VENTURES AFRICA – Nigeria’s banking sector is back on the right road after the 2010 meltdown that saw the Nigerian Stock Exchange lose 66 percent of its capital in a bank-led crash. The sector, which had previously issued aggressive denials about the levels of bad debt in the system, now operates under a new regime of transparency thanks to new Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) rules. Investigations led to criminal charges being levelled against certain banking executives, while international lending, which vanished in the wake of the crash, has now returned.
The five largest banks in Africa’s second-biggest economy dominate the its highly competitive banking industry. In 2011, these top five banks had a combined balance sheet (including contingents) of 12.9 trillion naira ($821 billion), indicating a strong 33 percent growth from the prior year. The growth was largely reflective of bonds received from the Asset Management Company of Nigeria AMCON)  in exchange for non-performing loans. In addition, these five banks account for a sizeable portion of lending activities undertaken by the industry, though growth was modest at 10 percent. Ventures Africa takes a look at the five biggest banks in Nigeria.
Zenith Bank plc
Incorporated as Zenith International Bank Limited in May 1990 and headquartered in Lagos, the bank was licensed to carry on the business of banking the next month. The name was changed to Zenith Bank Plc in 2004 to reflect its status as a public limited liability company. The bank’s shares were listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) that year following a highly successful Initial Public Offering (IPO). Nigerian institutions and individuals numbering over a million currently own the shares of the bank. The bank has 330 branches and 125 cash offices in Nigeria. The latest ranking of the Top 1,000 Global Banks by the influential Bankers Magazine placed Zenith as the largest bank in Nigeria and the seventh biggest in Africa. It has $2.398 billion of Tier-one capital.
First Bank of Nigeria plc
First Bank traces its ancestry back to the first major financial institution founded in Nigeria, hence its name. The current chairman is Prince Ajibola Afonja. The bank is the largest retail lender in the nation, while most banks gather funds from consumers and loan it out to large corporations and multinationals, First Bank has created a small market for some of its retail clients. At the end of September 2011, the bank had assets totalling approximately $18.6 billion. The bank’s profit after tax for the nine months ending 30 September 2011 was approximately $270.2 million. The bank maintains a subsidiary in the United Kingdom, FBN Bank (UK), which has a branch in Paris, and also has representative offices in South Africa and China. It is Nigeria’s second biggest bank with $2.36 billion of Tier-one capital.
Guaranty Trust Bank plc
Registered in 1990 by Central Bank of Nigeria, GTB Plc was incorporated as a private limited liability company wholly owned by Nigerian individuals and institutions. The approval as a commercial bank followed the same year and operations were started in February 1991. It listed on the NSE in 1996, and became licensed as a universal bank in 2002. In 2007 it became the first sub-Saharan bank and first Nigerian joint stock company, listed on the London Stock Exchange and Deutsche Börse. The IPO raised $750 million. In the same year, they successfully placed Nigeria’s first private Eurobond issue on the international capital markets. GTB Plc is a partner of Morgan Stanley and BNP Paribas and has Tier-one capital of $1.478 billion.
Access Bank plc
With the purchase of a 75 percent equity stake in Intercontinental Bank Plc,  Access Bank Plc attained the fourth position in the Nigerian banking industry by total assets and contingents, with $1.05 billion of Tier-one capital. It has an asset base in excess of $12.6 billion, as of February 2012. The shareholders’ equity in the bank is valued at approximately $2.33 billion. The purchase of Intercontinental goes alongside an international expansion drive, which has seen the bank gain subsidiaries in Burundi, Côte d’Ivoire, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ghana, Rwanda, Sierra Leone, The Gambia, Tanzania, United Kingdom, and Zambia.
United Bank for Africa plc
UBA is a Nigerian financial services provider with subsidiaries in 20 sub-Saharan countries and representative offices in France, the United Kingdom and the United States. It offers universal banking services to more than 7 million customers across 750 branches. Formed by the merger of the commercially focused UBA and the retail focused Standard Trust Bank in 2005, the Bank purports to have a clear ambition to be the dominant and leading financial services provider in Africa. Listed on the Nigerian Stock Exchange in 1970, UBA claims to be rapidly evolving into a pan-African full service financial institution. The Group adopted the holding company model in July 2011. As of December 2011, the valuation of UBA Group’s total assets was approximately $12.3 billion, with shareholders’ equity of about $1.07 billion. It has $1 billion of Tier-one capital.