Month: November 2021

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MTN Nigeria to sell shares via public offer

MTN Group Ltd has announced its plans to to sell up to 575 million shares in its Nigeria business in a public offer.

This was contained in a statement issued by the MTN Group on Thursday, November 4, as it reported higher third-quarter revenue and core profit.

The company, which has been exiting or reducing its stakes in some areas including its Ugandan and Zambian units, said the separation of fintech and fibre assets was on track.

MTN, which along with Vodacom Group Ltd controls more than 70% of the South African mobile market in terms of subscribers, said this month’s book-building exercise would target institutional investors before a fixed price was announced for retail investors.

“In South Africa, rising unemployment is a concern and may impact growth from prepaid customers in the lower-income segment in the near-term, if measures such as the temporary employee relief scheme are withdrawn,” the company said.

MTN listed its Nigerian business in Lagos two years ago to become the second-largest stock by market capitalisation.

Shares of MTN Nigeria, which traded flat on Thursday at N191, fell to the listing price of N90 in March 2020, hammered by lockdowns to slow the spread of coronavirus.

MTN’s core profit jumped 24.1% in the three months to September on robust demand for data and digital financial services. It added 0.2 million subscribers during the quarter, taking the total to 271.9 million.

Meanwhile, Africa-focused eCommerce platform, MallforAfrica, has allegedly suspended its operations in Nigeria, according to a report issued by TechPoint on Wednesday, November 3.

According to some public sources, Nigerian-born brothers and experienced entrepreneurs, Chris and Tope Folayan, founded MallforAfrica in 2011 to help people shop online for groceries, electronics, and other items.

The report detailed how MallforAfrica “received backing from notable investors, partnered with reputable US and UK stores, and in a few years, became one of Africa’s most popular eCommerce platforms.

“In 2015, Fortune actually described its presence, alongside Jumia and Konga, as heralding an eCommerce boom in Africa.

“However, while Africa’s online activity increased, Jumia and Konga had their fair share of struggles. But both companies, and MallforAfrica, continued to grow.”

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LadiPoe – Providence EP

LadiPoe – Providence EP Zip File & Mp3 Download

Nigerian Remarkable Music Maestro Artiste & Mavins Records Signed Rapper & Songwriter, LadiPoe has released his highly anticipated project titled “Providence EP”.

With “Running” featuring YBNL star, Fireboy DML serving as the lead single, the new Body of work is compiled with amazing 6 tracks with features from Rema, Fireboy DML & Amaarae.

Tracks:

  1. LOTR II
  2. Afro Jigga (feat. Rema) 
  3. Law of Attraction 
  4. Running (feat. Fireboy DML) 
  5. Love Essential (feat. Amaarae) 
  6. Providence 

DOWNLOAD ZIP FILE: LadiPoe – Providence EP

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Police Seal Plateau State House of Assembly

Following the crisis rocking the Plateau State House of Assembly over who should be recognised as the authentic Speaker between Ayuba Abok who represents Jos East Constituency and Yakubu Sanda who represents Pengana constituency, the Police high command has sealed the Assembly complex and barred both factions from entering the facility until further notice, The PUNCH learnt on Wednesday.

Security sources informed The PUNCH in Jos on Wednesday that the AIG in charge of Zone Four comprising Plateau, Benue and Nasarawa State commands, Mustapha Dandaura gave the order to seal the Assembly complex after visiting Jos to assess the situation on the ground.

A source that confirmed the development said that the decision was to prevent the crisis from degenerating into a full-blown breakdown of law and order.

The source said, “The AIG visited Jos yesterday(Tuesday) for an on-the-spot assessment of the situation. In his wisdom, he said the best thing to do for now is to seal off the Assembly until further notice.”

A member of the Assembly, Timothy Dantong who also confirmed the action by the police said that the decision had been communicated to the two contending groups in the Assembly.

Also Read: Plateau Gets New Commissioner Of Police

According to Dantong who represents Riyom State Constituency, “The impression they have is that we are having a crisis. So, they (police) decided to come and seal the Assembly complex.

“We are aware that the AIG gave the order that none of the factions should come into the Assembly complex for now until everything is sorted out.

“We are also aware that he is going to mediate in the matter and have a meeting with us to hear the grievances and see if we can resolve the matter before normal plenary will start again to avoid any crisis.

“We are aware that he has visited Government House but we didn’t see him visiting us. So, we waited and we are still waiting up till this morning (Wednesday) without seeing anybody. All we are saying is that we cannot allow illegality at the Plateau State House of Assembly on who becomes the Speaker.”

Source: The Punch

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Plateau Gets New Commissioner Of Police

The Inspector-General of Police, IGP Usman Alkali Baba, psc (+), NPM, fdc has ordered the immediate posting of CP Bartholomew Nnamdi Onyeka to Plateau State Command as the new Commissioner of Police (CP) in- charge of the State. The posting follows the redeployment of CP Edward to the Force Headquarters for other national engagements.

According to a statement signed by CP Frank Mba, Force Public Relations Officer Force Headquarters and obtained by Plateau Chronicle, the posting is with immediate effect. 

“The new Commissioner of Police, CP Onyeka, hails from Nkume, in Njaba Local Government Area of Imo State. He holds a B.A (Hons) in Public Administration and a Masters Degree in Defence Studies from Punjab University, India. 

“He has attended several tactical and leadership courses within and outside Nigeria including Strategic Leadership and Command Course (SLCC), Police Staff College, Jos; Financial Malpractices Investigation Course; and Armed Conflict Management Course, Command Staff College, Jaji, Kaduna State. He has served in various operational, investigative, and administrative capacities in Bauchi, Imo, Abia, Zamfara State Commands and Zone 1 Headquarters, Kano.

“The IGP, while assuring the people of Plateau State of the unrelenting commitment of the Police leadership to containing prevailing and emerging crimes in the State, charged the new Commissioner of Police to deploy his community building experience in ensuring improved public safety and security of lives and property of the citizenry in the State. 

“He enjoined the people of Plateau State to continuously work with the Police for effective policing of their communities,” the statement said. 

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PLHA Saga: Rep Bagos Appeals to NASS Leadership Over Plateau Assembly Crisis

Rep. Dachung Bagos (PDP-Plateau) has called on the leadership of the National Assembly to intervene and resolve the crisis rocking Plateau State House of Assembly.

Bagos made the call while addressing newsmen at the National Assembly Complex on Tuesday in Abuja.

He said that Plateau House of Assembly was constituted in 2019 with 24 elected members under the leadership of the Speaker, Mr Abok Ayuba.

He alleged that the speaker became a scapegoat for saying the truth as regards the killings and the state of insecurity in the state.

“Few days back, six members of the House of Assembly carried out a coup and purportedly impeached the speaker.

“I call on my colleagues, the Speaker of the House of Representatives and the Senate President to look into this issue immediately.

“They should look into it before democracy is murdered in Plateau; before we are looked down upon that we do not respect the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria,” he said.

Bagos said section 92 of the Constitution clearly states that a speaker of a state house of assembly can only be impeached by a 2/3 majority members of the house.

According to him, six members cannot represent 2/3, so this coup is clearly against the constitution of the country.

“Ayuba remains the legitimate speaker of the house that the plateau people know; this is not about party politics, he is APC and I am PDP, it is about defending the Constitution of Nigeria.

“It is about doing the right thing; it is about carrying out the legitimate assignment; it is about doing what is right for the people and giving the people what is right for them,” he said.

Bagos said he did not have any problem if the embattled speaker was impeached in accordance with the provisions of the law.

“We are working hard to ensure peace in Plateau, but this action could fuel disunity and insecurity among the people.

“We will not sit here and allow illegality; we will not sit down and allow selfish reason to override the interest of the people.

“We stand for what is right and we will continue to recognise Ayuba as the legitimate speaker until 2/3 majority of the house impeaches him.

“But six out of 24 members sitting to impeach a speaker, is an act of murder on the constitution,” Bagos said.

Rep Dachung Bagos


Credit to NAN

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Squid Game: Cryptocurrency up and nearly 2,400% in the last 24 hours

Netflix’s new Korean-language show “Squid Game” about a deadly tournament of adults playing children’s games in the hopes of winning a big cash prize is a worldwide sensation.

Now, it has its very own brand of cryptocurrency that has launched with a huge price run-up.

SQUID is trading at $2.22, up nearly 2,400% over the last 24 hours, and its market capitalization is above $174 million.

However, those interested in taking part may want to exercise caution before jumping into trading squid. CoinMarketCap has issued a warning; saying that it’s received “multiple reports” that users are not able to sell this token on Pancakeswap, a popular decentralized exchange.

It is unclear why some users are unable to sell their tokens,;but the white paper describing the coin does lay out an anti-dumping technology that prevents people from selling their coins if certain conditions are not met.

CNBC reached out through contact information listed on the Squid website to ask whether the developers were aware of the problem and working to fix it, and didn’t immediately hear back.

Netflix told CNBC it has nothing to do with the currency and doesn’t endorse it.

The coin, which started its presale Oct. 20 and apparently “sold out in 1 second,” according to its white paper; joins a list of other parody cryptocurrencies that have witnessed big run-ups for no particular reason, other than good publicity.

The meme-inspired shiba inu coin, for example, has doubled in price in the last week.

The squid token was launched as the exclusive coin of the Squid Game project — a crypto play-to-earn platform.

The online tournament, which launches in November; mimics the six rounds of games featured in its namesake TV show. But unlike its Netflix counterpart; the company said “we do not provide deadly consequences apparently!”

Also unlike the series, which capped the grand prize at $38.5 million for the final winner; this virtual simulation of Squid Game will not limit the maximum of the final bonus, nor the number of participants.

Players will, however, have to pay a preset price in squid tokens in order to participate in each game, and some rounds also require users to purchase a custom-made NFT, available for sale on their website.

Some of these NFTs feature characters from the show; including the guards who wear full-body reddish-pink suits (the exact coloring has prompted a heated debate among show fans) and black masks covering their entire face.

Gameplay doesn’t come cheap, especially at current prices.

If you want to take part in the final game of the tournament; you’ll have to pay 15,000 , or $33,450, and purchase an NFT.

Entry fees from each of the rounds are split between developers (10%) and the reward pool (90%).

The Squid Game platform also offers Marbles Pools — yet another reference to the show — wherein holders can earn tokens through staking; which is putting up their cryptocurrency holdings as collateral to earn passive income.

This comes amid a recent spate of Squid Game-related scams and malware schemes; as cyber criminals look to lure fans.