Nigerian press zooms in on ECOWAS ordering troops on standby against Niger junta, others

APA – Lagos (Nigeria)
The report that the safety of ousted Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum may not be guaranteed as the junta which overthrew his government has reportedly threatened to kill him should the ECOWAS attempt any military intervention to restore democracy in the francophone country dominates the headlines of Nigerian newspapers on Friday.
The Punch reports that the safety of ousted Nigerien President Mohamed Bazoum may not be guaranteed as the junta which overthrew his government has reportedly threatened to kill him should the Economic Community of West African States attempt any military intervention to restore democracy in the francophone country.
The junta revealed their dark plot to murder the deposed president to a top United States diplomat, two Western officials confirmed to the Associated Press on Thursday.
The threat is coming on the heels of the resolution of the ECOWAS to deploy troops in Niger following the refusal of the military leaders to restore democracy despite the sanctions imposed on them and their collaborators by the regional body.
Speaking on condition of anonymity because of the sensitivity of the situation, a Western military official said representatives of the junta told the US Under Secretary of State Victoria Nuland of the threat to Bazoum during her visit to the country on Monday.
According to AP, a US official confirmed the account, also speaking on condition of anonymity, because they were not authorised to speak to the media.
Bazoum, who was deposed on July 26, is being held hostage at his residence.
However, rising from a meeting of the ECOWAS Heads of States and Government in Abuja on Thursday, the President of ECOWAS, Omar Touray, said the bloc had directed the deployment of a “standby force” to restore democracy in Niger after the coup.
But Touray gave no details about the make-up, location and proposed date of deployment for the military intervention force.
Financing had been discussed and “appropriate measures have been taken,” he disclosed.
Reading the resolutions of the ECOWAS on the military junta in Niger at the end of the commission’s extra-ordinary summit, he also called on the African Union, partner countries and institutions to support the decision taken by the sub-regional body.
The newspaper says that the fall of the naira against the United States dollar, coupled with the recent rise in global crude oil prices, is making Nigerians apprehensive of a possible hike in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol.
Although the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and other oil marketers have not announced any increase in petrol price, they confirmed that the scarcity of foreign exchange and crude oil price rise were key factors that determined PMS price.
Petrol price moved up from N198/litre in May to over N500/litre in June after President Bola Tinubu removed subsidy on PMS.
The cost jumped again to over N600/litre in July, and there were concerns that it might rise further in August, going by the crash of the naira against the dollar.
The naira dropped below N900 against the dollar on Thursday at the parallel market. It also fell against the US dollar at the official Importers and Exporters forex window.
Also on Thursday, Brent, the global benchmark for crude oil, was traded at about $87/barrel. It traded for less than $80/barrel few weeks ago.
A resident of Abuja, Collins Nnabude, stated, “The crash of the naira against the dollar and the recent rise in crude oil price is making one apprehensive when you consider the effect on petrol price in Nigeria. Fuel price is likely going to rise again this month.”
Oil marketers also confirmed the possibility of another hike in petrol price this month.
The Guardian reports that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), yesterday, released the 2022 audited financial statement, showing a profit of N65.63 billion for the year.
In the period, the Group’s performance recorded a profit of N103.85 billion.
The performances were modestly higher than in 2021, when the group and bank’s accounts showed a profit of N75.13 billion and N31.04 billion, respectively.
The apex bank, last night, published financial reports dating back to 2015 on it’s websites.
The regulator had come under intense criticism for failure to publish it’s financials in the past year’s, a decision Prof. Godwin Owoh described as a major flaw in the management of the institution and an indication of the depth of the rot.
Last month, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu appointed Jim Obazee a “special investigator’ for the bank. A letter of suspension of Godwin Emfiele, who oversaw the bank in the past nine years, was attached to the letter of appointment of Obazee.
Obazee was Chief Executive Officer of the Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria (FRC) when the ex-CBN governor, Lamido Sanusi, was similarly suspended.
The FRC he supervised was strongly linked with Sanusi’s suspension. Then, there were reports that the Council, dubbed the super-regulator in the financial circle, indicted the CBN for violating the financial reporting regulations contained in FRC Act.
Obazee, a renown auditor, was later suspended after the Code of Conduct rules he championed attempted to oust general overseers of churches. The leader of The Redeemed Christian Church of God, Pst Enoch Adeboye, actually stepped as head of the Nigeria operation, following the law.
Obazee’s recent appointment was seen as a milestone in the investigation of the suspended CBN boss.
The newspaper says that the Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) has restated its commitment to leveraging the $1.06 billion global securities lending industry (SLI) and resuscitating the country’s SL space currently at an abysmal N513 million.
At the NGX securities lending workshop, ‘Business Facilitation Act 2023 as a Catalyst for Deepening Securities Lending in Nigeria,’ held in Lagos, the Divisional Head, Capital Markets, NGX, Jude Chiemeka, said the global SLI hits $1.06 billion in revenue as at May 2023 representing 15 per cent rise when compared to $923 million recorded in 2022.
He noted that the country’s capital market recorded SL transactions worth N95.2 million with 7.4 million units as volume of securities in 2020.
The figure rose to N513 million in 2021, representing 4.95 per cent of the figure achieved in 2020.
However, no transactions have been recorded in the space since last year, he said.
Chiemeka said: “Since the SL and borrowing were officially launched in the capital market, uptake has been quite slow. There has been a dearth of transactions since 2022 till date.”
He also announced plans by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), National Pension Commission (PENCOM) and Nigerian Exchange Limited (NGX) to further develop the space and boost market liquidity.
According to him, one of the significant achievements during the previous administration of ex-President Muhammadu Buhari was the assent of the Business Facilitation (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act, 2022 on February 14, 2023.
He said the legislative milestone led to crucial amendments being made to Section 89 (2) of the Pension Reform Act, allowing pension assets to qualify for securities lending, subject to guidelines issued by PENCOM.
Chiemeka emphasised that these amendments would create new possibilities within Nigeria’s securities landscape, particularly for institutional investors like Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs).
He also pledged NGX’s commitment to partnering with all relevant stakeholders in the market to enhance securities lending.
GIK/APA