Flowerbud News

Author: Lara Olaniyi

  • Analyst calls for Govt sanction against roadside herbal vendors

    An Owerri-based public affairs analyst, Mr Ifeanyi Olumba has called on federal and state governments to sanction activities of roadside herbal medical dealers, saying their public awareness strategy is deceitful.

    Olumba, a legal practitioner disclosed this in an interview with the Flowerbudnews, on Monday while reacting to what he described as `deceit by herbal vendors.’

    He said besides being deceitful, the health message which they preached every day was destroying the mindset of under age children.

    “Government must wake up to the issue and fight against the ugly trend before the society is completely destroyed.

    “I get worried because their health message is usually not decent and can register easily in the brain on young children,” he said.

    According to him, their advertisement and public announcement of sexual performance could simply be described as verbal pornography.

    He, therefore, suggested that government should put a stop to it by setting up a tax force to drive them out of the streets.

    Olumba also suggested that herbal medicine dealers must be streamlined and licensed, while also adding that they must operate from designated offices.

    “Value for decent information has been distorted and sometimes, the health message they preach contradicts modern medicine.

    “I am not against their operation but it must be guided so that it will not reduce value for decent information.

    “They have constituted big nuisance to the society and this ugly trend must stop,” he said. (NAN)

  • AngloGold Ashanti’s falling third-quarter production, rising costs disappoint

    South African miner AngloGold Ashanti said on Monday that it expects its full-year production will be at the low end of its forecast range after output fell in the third quarter from a year ago and costs rose sharply.

    Shares in the miner, which had rallied around 83 per cent since the start of this year as the company benefited from surging gold prices, were down 2.9 per cent by 1023 GMT after the sluggish production data.

    The miner said its output in July-September fell three per cent from a year earlier, hit by lower ore grades at its Mponeng mine in South Africa, as well as a planned reduction in output at the Cerro Vanguardia mine in Argentina and at its open-pit mining at Kibali in Democratic Republic of Congo.

    AngloGold’s total costs rose 12 per cent year-on-year in the third quarter. However, its free cash flow also jumped 12 per cent from a year earlier thanks to higher gold prices, and it said its Obuasi project in Ghana would start by year-end.

    Gross profit jumped 52 per cent from the same quarter last year to 281 million dollars, helped by the rise in gold prices, and the higher free cash flow helped bring debt down and take the company’s net debt to EBITDA ratio to 1.06, close to its target of 1.

    AngloGold Ashanti said its planned asset sale in South Africa, including the Mponeng mine, was progressing at a steady pace, adding the market could expect an update by the end of this year.

    Sibanye-Stillwater and Harmony Gold have both signalled interest in the Mponeng mine, the world’s deepest, which AngloGold put up for sale in May along with a processing business and mine waste retreatment operation.

    Chief Executive Officer Kelvin Dushnisky said the Mponeng sale would likely close before its other divestment, the Sadiola mine in Mali, which is seeing “very strong interest”.

    A new bidder entered the process in Mali and site due diligence is being completed, Dushnisky said.

    The miner also said its Obuasi mine rehabilitation project in Ghana is set to start producing gold by the end of the year, ramping up during 2020 to eventually produce 400,000 ounces a year of gold.

    Dushnisky said the company’s strategy was working.

    “We’re certainly pleased with the share price performance, we think it reflects a clear strategy which our investors are supporting,” said Dushnisky.

    “There’s been some positive sentiment around the divestment processes we have underway.”

    AngloGold Ashanti produced 825,000 ounces of gold in the third quarter, and forecast production increases from its Geita mine in Tanzania, Siguiri in Guinea, and its Australian and Brazilian operations in the fourth quarter.

    However, overall annual production is likely to be in the lower half of its forecast range of 3.25 million to 3.45 million ounces, with costs at the upper end of the range, it said.

    Gold production at Mponeng rose 4.8 per cent from the previous quarter, while production at the Geita jumped 15 per cent and the Kibali mine – a joint venture with Barrick Gold – saw a 3.2 per cent drop in production.

  • Migrants continue arriving in Greece from sea, land

    Greek authorities, already overwhelmed by the number of asylum seekers and migrants, on Tuesday reported that more people arrived from Turkey by sea and land.

    Just in the morning hours, a total of 118 people were intercepted or had arrived on boats at Alexandropouli on the mainland and the islands of Samos and Farmakonisi.

    According to UNHCR figures, 42,010 people arrived across the Aegean between the start of the year and October 20.

    The number of sea arrivals is by far the highest since an EU-Turkey agreement seeking to shut down the Balkan route in March 2016.

    In 2018 there were 32,494 arrivals and in 2017, 29,718.

    Under the Brussels Ankara deal, those who arrived since it came into effect are kept on Lesbos, Chios, Kos, Samos and Leros until they are granted asylum or returned to Turkey.

    But arrivals have outpaced processing even before the inflow spiked since April, leading to massive overcrowding as the population more than doubled over the past six months.

    The government has already started relocating people to the mainland just in order to be able to manage the situation.

    Prime Minister, Kyriakos Mitsotakis initially said 10,000, but later that 20,000 would be moved.

  • Bahari, Iranian beauty queen begs for her life

    Iranian beauty queen detained for almost two weeks at an airport in the Philippines on Tuesday pleaded for help, saying she fears for her life.

    Bahareh Zare Bahari, was held after arriving in Manila from Dubai on Oct. 17 based on a request for her arrest by Interpol, the Bureau of Immigration said.

    She has been held in a room at Ninoy Aquino International Airport’s Terminal 3 since then, after she applied for asylum.

    “Today is 13th day, I’m here without (updates),’’ she tweeted on Tuesday.

    “The Philippines is not safe for me anymore, I need a safe place to live without constantly fearing for my life.’’

    “Please have consideration,’’ she said in another tweet.

    “I need a safe place to live without stress.’’

    Bahari, who represented Iran in the Miss Intercontinental pageant held in Manila in January, has been living in the Philippines since 2014 to study dentistry.’’

    The Bureau of Immigration said the 31-year-old beauty queen is wanted for an assault and battery case in Iran, but no other details were available.

    Bahari denied the allegations, and said the charges aimed to harass her for her political activism.

    She said she would be facing imprisonment or even death if she is forced to return to Iran.

    “I would be killed or detained for 25 years for criticizing Iran’s government if they bring me back to Iran,’’ she told ABS-CBN News in Manila.

    The Department of Foreign Affairs has declined to comment on her case, saying, “Since her application for asylum is being considered, the (department) has no comment on this matter.’ ’(dpa/NAN)

  • Tax Assessment: Court fixes Jan. 30, 2020 for MTN’s suit against AGF

    A Federal High Court Lagos on Tuesday, further adjourned hearing until Jan. 30 and Jan. 31, 2020, a suit filed by MTN Nigeria Communication Ltd, against the Attorney General of the Federation, over alleged N242 billion and 1.3 billion dollars import duties and withholding tax assessments.

    Flowerbudnews  reports that MTN instituted the suit by a writ, on Sept.10, 2018, challenging mainly, the legality of the AGF’s assessment of its import duties, withholding tax and value added tax in the sums of N242 billion and 1.3 billion dollars.

    The plaintiff is seeking among other declaratory reliefs, a declaration that the AGF’s demand of the sums of N242 billion and 1.3 billion dollars from MTN, is premised on a process which is malicious, unreasonable and made on incorrect legal basis.

    When the case was called on Tueday, Chief Wole Olanipekun, SAN, leading a team of other senior lawyers appeared for MTN.

    On the other hand, Mr T.A. Gazali, a State Counsel from the Federal Ministry of Justice, alongside Mr Terhember Agbe, announced appearances for the AGF.

    Plaintiff’s counsel then informed the court that he was ready to proceed with trial but had been called by the respondent who informed him that he would not be able to proceed with trial as he was representing government in another matter.

    Olanipekun also told the court that he had filed a reply to the plaintiff’s motion and had served same on him but added that since the respondent said he required time to study same, it will only be fair to allow him.

    On his part, Gazali also informed the court of his motion seeking extension of time to regularise his processes.

    Following consensus of parties, Justice Chukwujekwu Aneke adjourned the case until Jan. 30 and 31, 2020 for hearing.

    Meanwhile. the court vacated the Nov. 31 initial date.

    In its writ of summons, MTN is seeking declaratory reliefs on the following grounds:

    That the purported “Revenue assets investigation” allegedly carried out by the Federal Government on MTN, for the period of 2007 to 2017, and its decision conveyed through the office of the AGF by a letter dated Aug. 20, violates the provisions of section 36 of the constitution.

    A Declaration that the AGF acted in excess of its powers, by purporting to direct through its letter of May 10, a “self assessment exercise” which usurps the powers of the Nigerian Customs Service to demand payment of import duties on importation of physical goods.

    A Declaration that the AGF acted illegally, by usurping the powers of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, to audit and demand remittance of withholding tax and value added tax.

    A Declaration that the purported “self assessment” exercise instituted by the AGF via its letter of May 10, is unknown to law, null and void and of no effect whatsoever.

    In addition, the plaintiff wants a court order, vacating the AGF’s demand letter dated Aug. 20, for the sums of N242 billion and 1.3 billion dollars from MTN Nigeria Communications Ltd.

    Besides, MTN is claiming a total sum of N3 billion in damages, against the defendant, which covers General damages, exemplary damages, and Legal costs.

    Meanwhile, in its preliminary objection, the AGF argues that the plaintiff in seeking redress to the subject matter, has just three months from the date the cause of action arose, to institute the action.

    It argues that the plaintiff commenced the suit in clear disregard to Section 2 of the Public Officers Protection Act, which provides that any action commenced against a public officer, must be made within three months from commencement of cause of action.

    AGF argues that plaintiff’s failure to commence the suit within three months as stipulated by law, robs the court of jurisdiction to entertain same. (NAN))

  • Commonwealth Society boss advocates constant dialogue to promote national growth

    Mr Blackson Bayewumi, Country Director of the Royal Commonwealth Society in Nigeria, has underscored the need for constant dialogue between Nigerian citizens and their elected officials to engender national growth.
    Bayewumi, also Chairman of Nigeria Conversation, a non-governmental organisation, gave the advice in his address at the 2019 national edition of the “Nigeria Conversation” in Abuja.
    Nigeria Conversation is a citizenship mainstreaming initiative which engages Nigerians both at home and abroad in discussion on nation building processes and the need for all-round development of the country.
    Bayewumi said, “The present democracy we are practicing is the representative type.

    “After electing leaders we must not abandon them. We must be part of the decision-making and governance processes to achieve targets.

    “We can achieve that through constructive engagement using dialogue not hate speeches.

    “We must engage ourselves because we know our challenges, and we must find ways to address them.”

    Speaking, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, Minister of Information and Culture, said that the conversation initiative was in line with the ministry’s philosophy on exchange of ideas on achievements in Nigeria.

    Mohammed, who was represented by Mrs Priscilla Ihuoma, Director of Public Communication and National Orientation in the ministry, described as apt, the theme of the event entitled “Towards a peaceful, united, secured and prosperous nation”.

    According to him, it is expected that this will enhance partnership for sustainable national development.

    “As a philosophical plank of constructive engagement with Nigerians and significant stakeholders, the Nigeria conversation forum should project the positive image of Nigerians.

    “It should draw goodwill to the country from the international community.

    “As laudable as it is, it must be an added mileage to the building story of our nation,” Mohammed said.

    Also speaking, Nigeria’s representative in ECOWAS, Amb. Babatunde Nurudeen, described peace as panacea not just for driving development, but for sustaining Nigeria’s democracy.

    According to Nurudeen, who was also represented by Mr Adeyemi Adewale, a staff of the ECOWAS Commission, peace and unity are important concepts linked together to achieve security and development in the society.

    “Therefore, considering efforts of Nigeria in strengthening security capacity, there is also need to ensure human security by providing comprehensive security approaches for the citizens of the country.

    “This will complement other laudable frameworks, to achieve peace in our society,” he said.

    The event featured panel discussions on peace and security, youth and women development, trade and investment, job and wealth creation. (NAN)

  • Franco’s remains to be exhumed Thursday – Spanish Govt.

    The remains of Francisco Franco, Spain’s former right-wing dictator, will be exhumed on Oct. 24.

    The government in Madrid said on Monday, after a legal and political battle that raised divisive questions over his legacy.

    The plan is to move Franco’s body from a massive mausoleum in the so-called “Valley of the Fallen”, north-west of Madrid, to a cemetery north of the city.

    “Both exhumation and re-inhumation will be carried out in privacy, in the presence of Franco’s family,’’ the government said in a statement on Twitter.

    Spain’s acting Socialist Government decided on the move as part of a bid to transform the “Valley of the Fallen” into a place of national reconciliation.

    The exhumation will take place at a time of heightened political tension, with general elections just weeks away on Nov 10.

    Originally a memorial erected by Franco himself in honour of those who died on his side of the Spanish Civil War, the site has become a pilgrimage site for Franco followers and right-wing extremists.

    Franco’s family lost a legal battle to keep the dictator’s remains in the Valley of the Fallen or have them taken to a family burial site in the Almudena Cathedral in central Madrid.

    Franco ruled Spain from 1939, when his forces won the Spanish Civil War, until his death in 1975.

  • Brexit: UK government takes risk on vow to leave EU

    British Prime Minister Boris Johnson is still at odds with Parliament over how to break the Brexit impasse as the EU considers his half-hearted request for a delay to the October 31 deadline.

    Mr Johnson has endured defeats in Parliament but hopes to turn it around with a majority vote for his new Brexit divorce deal. The numbers are tight and there is a chance he could win.

    A vote is possible in the coming days. He also needs to enact the legislation that would make the deal legal.

    If he can do that quickly, Britain would either need no extension or a short “technical” extension of weeks, not months.

    If Mr Johnson cannot convince Parliament to quickly back the deal, the EU will determine if it grants Britain another extension or sticks to the October 31 date, which would mean a “no-deal” Brexit that many national leaders have been trying to avoid.

    The EU is not expected to reveal its answer in the coming days but an extension is considered to be preferred by many of the bloc’s leaders, despite their growing frustration.

    Mr Johnson has tried to call a national election for a new Parliament that would support his Brexit strategy.

    But the opposition Labour Party and its leader, Jeremy Corbyn, say they will not approve an election until a Brexit extension has been received.

    If the EU grants the extension Mr Johnson has requested, an election may take place in the next few months, with the prime minister campaigning on a promise to deliver Brexit and blaming Parliament for blocking it.

    It is possible that no clear winner would emerge from the election with a majority, so a new Parliament might be as divided as this one.

    Mr Johnson complied with a law requiring him to seek a delay to the October 31 deadline, but he followed his request with a letter to EU officials saying he did not really think a delay was a good idea.

    That infuriated opponents, who believe he deliberately tried to frustrate the will of Parliament.

    Activists who have brought a case against Mr Johnson in Scotland plan to return to court on Monday. The dispute may end up in Britain’s Supreme Court.

  • MTN to start charges on USSD voice, text messages

    MTN Nigeria says it will go ahead to charge its customers for Unstructured Supplementary Service Data (USSD) voice or text message which allows them access to bank services via their mobile phones.

    The telecom said it would start charging its subscribers from today, despite a directive by the Federal Government to halt the plan.

    MTN’s subscribers on Sunday received messages from the company informing them that with effect from today, it will start charging them N4 per 20 seconds for USSD voice or N4 for text message.

    One of the messages from MTN read: ‘’Yello, as requested by your bank, from Oct 21, we will start charging you directly for USSD access to banking services. Please contact your bank for more info.’’

    In yet another message, it said: “Yello, please note that from Oct 21, we will charge N4 per seconds for USSD access to banking services. Thank you.’’

    But most of its customers reacted negatively to the new charge, saying it is exploitative. They therefore complained to the Minister of Communications Dr Isa Ali Panatmi via his twitter handle @DrIsaPantami, calling on the minister to rein in on MTN.

    Dr Pantami answered one of them, saying he has directed NCC to ask MTN to halt the planned charge. ‘’Many thanks for drawing my attention to it. We have directed NCC to ask MTN to suspend the plan.

    “We are not aware of it officially. We will investigate and make sure right thing is done. Best wishes’’, the minister said.

    But a top official said that the telecom would still go ahead to introduce the charge, Daily Trust reports. The official who pleaded anonymity because he was not officially cleared to speak to the press said it introduced the charge on the directive of Bankers Committee.

    “Other telecom operators have been charging their customers for USSD before they could access their banks’ services; we are the last to introduce it.

    “Bank Committees with the knowledge of CBN told us to charge the customers directly. Before it was the banks that deducted the whole charge, now it was agreed in a meeting with CBN knowledge that we should now charge N4 directly, and that the banks should charge their customers the rest.

    “It should be N22: we charge N4 and they should deduct the remaining. But as it is now, the banks are still taking the whole N22.”

    Meanwhile, the CBN has told banks to yank off businesses from telecommunication operators charging bank customers using USSD to make transactions.

    The CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele said this during a press briefing at the sidelines of the World Bank/IMF meetings in Washington DC.

    He explained that “about five months ago, I held a meeting with some telecom companies as well as the leading banks in Nigeria and the issue of USSD came up.

    “At that time, we came to conclusion that the use of USSD is a sunk cost which is not an additional cost on the infrastructure of the telecom companies.

    “But the telecoms companies disagreed with us and said it’s an additional investment and they needed to impose it. I appeal to them that they should review it downwards and they refused’ he said.

    Explaining further Mr. Emefiele said: “I understand that three or four weeks ago, rather than reduce it, they went ahead to increase it by 300 percent. I opposed it and I have told the banks that we will not allow this to happen.

    “The banks are the people who give this business to the telecoms companies and I leave the banks and the telecom companies to engage.

    “I have told the banks that they have to move their business, move their traffic to a telecom company that is ready to provide it at the lowest possible if not zero cost”. That’s where we stand and we must achieve it.’’

    He said the telco’s decision will impede financial inclusion.