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Transcorp Group CEO named LBSAA president

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Transcorp Group CEO named LBSAA president

The Lagos Business School Alumni Association has appointed the Group Chief Executive Officer of Transcorp, Owen Omogiafo, as its president, Omogiafo emerged as LBSAA president at the association governing council meeting, election & handover were held recently in Lagos and Valentine Okelu and Misan Eribo were also elected vice president and secretary, respectively.

Omogiafo succeeded Mr Agada Apochi, whose tenure lapsed.

The new president said she was honoured by the opportunity given to her to serve the association alumni alongside other elected members, describing her new position as a call to serve.

She promised to bring her wealth of experience and remarkable track record in leadership and business transformation to the association.

Omogiafo stated, “This is a call to service and a call that commenced a couple of years ago. Nigeria by Nigerians, for Africa by Africans and that is our commitment to transforming our great continent. People should see the value here, despite the challenges, that the beauty of challenges is there are a lot of opportunities.

“We just need the foresight, and discipline to continue on the foundation laid by our predecessors for the Lagos Business School. I am very humbled to be considered worthy. I ask for your support for us to be able to build the alumni association.”

She was said to be instrumental in driving Transcorp’s growth fostering innovation and sustainable growth across companies in diverse portfolios.

She attended the University of Benin, where she earned a bachelor’s degree (double honours) in Sociology and Anthropology.

Also, Omogiafo holds a Master of Science degree in Human Resource Management from the London School of Economics and Political Science and is an alumnus of the Lagos Business School and IESE Business School, Spain.

She is a member of the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development, UK and a Certified Change Manager with the Prosci Institute, USA. She is a member of the Institute of Directors Nigeria.

Owen’s early career commenced in Stockbroking and later, she moved to banking, where she held various roles spanning operations, service quality management and relationship management.

Before joining UBA, she worked with Accenture, where she covered various projects and clients spanning the private and public sectors and diverse industries.

The new LBSAA president has worked in diverse roles, including as director of human resources at Heirs Holdings; chief of staff, human resource advisor to the GMD/CEO at United Bank for Africa and as an organisation and human performance consultant at Accenture, specialising in change management.

She joined Transcorp as the executive director of corporate services in July 2018 and was later appointed as the managing director and chief executive officer of Transcorp Hotels Plc, leading the brand’s operation of its flagship Transcorp Hilton Abuja and Transcorp Hotels Calabar.

In March 2020, she became the President/Chief Executive Officer of Transcorp after her appointment to the role, becoming the youngest CEO on the Nigerian Stock Exchange and the youngest and first female to occupy the position at Transcorp Group.

Owen is a member of the board of trustees of the Association of Power Generation Companies in Nigeria, an association for power generation companies, representing the interests of developers and operators of independent energy facilities.

Imo economic adviser joins European DIGITAL SME Alliance committee

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Imo economic adviser joins European DIGITAL SME Alliance committee

The Chief Economic Adviser to the Imo State Government, Professor of Sustainable Finance at the European University Institute, Italy, Professor Kenneth Amaeshi, has joined the Scientific Committee of the European DIGITAL SME Alliance.

A statement indicated that the European DIGITAL SME Alliance is the largest network of ICT small and medium enterprises in Europe, representing more than 45,000 companies.

It noted that DIGITAL SME is the joint effort of 30 national and regional SME associations from EU member states and neighbouring countries to put digital SMEs at the centre of the EU agenda.

It mentioned that the committee creates a community of academic experts supporting DIGITAL SME´s evidence-based approach to advocacy.

According to the statement, within the scope of the committee, its members are encouraged to engage on an individual level with DIGITAL SMEs.

“The committee is a unique opportunity to advance this vision at a European level, and for its members to engage in fruitful exchanges with like-minded experts, with options to interact bilaterally with the DIGITAL SME community and pursue joint research projects or funding opportunities,” it added.

Amaeshi, who is also a professor of Sustainable Business at the University of Edinburgh, United Kingdom, is a sustainability expert and will contribute his expertise to the sustainable digitalisation agenda of the EU Digital SME Alliance.

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Lack of standards affecting outsourcing development – AOPN president

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Lack of standards affecting outsourcing development – AOPN president

The President of the Association of Outsourcing Professionals of Nigeria, Mope Abudu, has stated that outsourcing businesses have been affected by headwinds, ranging from infrastructure deficiencies, lack of policy and standards for outsourcing services, and diminishing quality and education standards of the labour force, amongst others.

Abudu said this during the 11th Edition Outsourcing Expo, themed ‘Navigating Economic Volatility: Strategies for Sustainable Outsourcing in Nigeria’, held recently in Lagos.

“The business and economic environment in Nigeria continues to be one of volatility and uncertainty. Yet as solution providers, outsourcing service providers must be agile and innovative in their value proposition to stay relevant and sustainable,” she said.

She noted that the essence of the expo was to address critical common issues but, more importantly, to do what we do best, which is to provide solutions.

According to Abudu, outsourcing provides an opportunity to optimise the skill, capacity and excellence of a third party who can show value and competence at the right price.

“As professionals, we can positively improve the productivity, output and outcomes of our clients through our continuous improvement and support,” she added.

She mentioned that it was essential that the proposed strategies be realistic and achievable, stressing the need to create detailed plans for structured engagements with buyers and the government.

Abudu highlighted how the outsourcing industry had been contributing to the nation’s economic empowerment, serving as a significant job creator and catalyst for advancing digitalisation to enhance global competitiveness.

“We must also fashion out sustainable business models that allow diversification of our outsourcing offering to attract clientele outside of the norm and even to other geographies,” Abudu stated.

Ganduje spent N240m state funds on personal lawsuit – Kano

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Ganduje spent N240m state funds on personal lawsuit – Kano

The Kano State government has filed fresh charges against immediate-past governor, Abdullahi Ganduje, accusing him of spending N240m belonging to the state to pursue a personal legal matter.

In the charge, marked K/143c/24, filed before the state high court, Musa Abdullahi, who served as the state’s Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice under Ganduje, was joined as the second defendant.

The charges border on criminal conspiracy, criminal breach of trust and criminal misappropriation contrary to and punishable under the provisions of the Penal Code (as amended) CAP 105, Vol. 2, the Laws of Kano State of Nigeria.

In the charges, the Governor Abba Yusuf-led state government alleged that Ganduje and the ex-AG “dishonestly, fraudulently and without reasonable justification, in the abuse of your respective officers, conspired between yourselves, misappropriated, diverted and converted the sum of N240m  to finance purely personal and private case for your own personal and private benefit, thereby causing wrongful gain to yourselves and wrongful loss to the government and people of Kano State.”

The state, in the charges, alleged that around November 2022, Ganduje conspired with Abdullahi to, in blatant display of abuse of office, “initiate a memo to the 1st defendant (Ganduje) to approve the release of N240m for the purpose of civil litigation in respect of the staff of Kano State who were being accused by the EFCC, while in reality the funds were converted to secure an order against the EFCC not to investigate the bribery and corruption allegation against the 1st defendant in purely private and personal matter.”

The prosecution said it had assembled four witnesses that will “adduce evidence to show that the 1st defendant, in betrayal of his official trust, took advantage of his privileged position as the Governor and Chief Executive Officer of Kano State.”

No date has been fixed for a hearing by the court.

The fresh charges come days after the state government arraigned Ganduje, his wife, Hafsat, son, Umar, and others for alleged $413,000 and N1.38bn bribery.

The Governor Abba Yusuf-led government had since April filed the charges against Ganduje and others but efforts to serve them the charges had proved abortive.

In the charges before Justice Amina Aliyu of the Kano State High Court, the state government  alleged that “Abdullahi Umar Ganduje, sometime between the period of January 10, 2016 or thereabouts, at Kano in the Kano Judicial Division, while serving as the Governor of Kano State and being a public servant in the government of Kano State corruptly asked for and received the sum of $200,000  being benefit for yourself from one of the beneficiaries of contracts awarded by the Kano State Government on your instruction and approval as part of your function as the Governor of Kano State.”

The state said Ganduje, contrary to Section 22 of the Kano State Public Complaints and Anti-corruption Commission Law 2008 (as amended), Law No 2 of 2009, Laws of Kano State of Nigeria.

In another count, the state government said, Ganduje, on February 10, 2017, “dishonestly and/or corruptly to your own advantage collected a kick-back of the sum of $ 213,000  being money generated from people and entities seeking or holding the execution of Kano State Government contact and or project for the remodelling of Kantin Kwari textile market as a bribe through one of the contractors (agent).”

In another count, the state alleged that Ganduje, between September 2020 and March 2021, “together with one Hafsat Umar (your spouse) and Abubakar Bawuro, a businessman, Safari Textile Ltd, a limited liability company, wholly owned and maintained by the 3rd defendant, agreed to do an illegal act to wit: dishonestly converted to your own use the sum of N1,376,000,000 through account No. 7085982019 belonging to the 3rd defendant being money earmarked and approved for the purchase and supply of face masks and other hospital equipment for the health sector, thereby causing wrongful loss to the people and the government of Kano State and thereby jointly committed the offence of criminal conspiracy contrary to Section 96 and punishable under section 97 of The penal code (as amended) CAP,105, Vol.2. The Laws of Kano State of Nigeria, 1991.”

The Kano State’s Attorney General, Muhuyi  Magaji, said he was empowered by Section 211 of the 1999 Constitution and Sections 121(1), 126(b) and 377 of the Administration of Criminal Justice Law, 2019, “to apply to prefer the charge attached herewith against the defendants.”

Olu of Warri bags UK award

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Olu of Warri bags UK award

The Olu of Warri, Ogiame Atuwatse III, won the Leadership & Community Development Awards category presented to him by Rt Hon. Baroness Verma, member of the House of Lords, London.

The monarch said at the 14th African Achievers Awards recently at the Parliament House United Kingdom that, as the king of the Warri Kingdom, he had long been burdened by how certain traditional terms of identity had taken on negative connotations promoting segregation.

According to the traditional ruler, he changed those long-used terms to ensure everyone was seen and identified as freeborn.

Delivering a keynote address on the theme ‘Africa’s Sustainable Future: Redefining its Global Identity, at the event, the Queen Consort of Warri Kingdom, Olori Atuwatse III, stated that the imperative for the black continent to continue to propagate positive cultural and traditional values to reclaim the identity of the continent is sacrosanct and cannot be overemphasised.

She noted that the stories people hear and tell about Africans have a far-reaching effect.

Olori Atuwatse III said that since her husband, the Olu of Warri, after ascending the throne of his forebear, had taken notable positive steps to change negative traditional connotations that portray others as inferior. She added that one’s identity must be maintained with dignity and pride.

She noted that to address some of those challenges, she and her husband founded Elevate Africa to contribute their quota to channelling African ideas into solutions for the continent and the world.

Olori Atuwatse III tasked other changemakers to come together and speak in one voice.

She said, “I am here to share my thoughts with fellow lovers of our great continent.  My husband and I share your passion, so it feels fitting that I should start by telling you something he did a few years ago.

“A few weeks ago in London, I shared how my heart skips when I hear an African country mentioned in a movie or show, fearing another negative portrayal. Sadly, these ‘prophetic’ narratives often come true. Yet, ‘the city of love’ instantly evokes Paris. These examples, though small, show the powerful impact of identity and narrative.

“We must come together, trade together, build solutions together, and speak with singularity on the global stage. We must stop saying what Africa does not want and we must begin to speak to who we are and what we want for ourselves and our continent,” she added.

In her brief remarks, Verma expressed joy that Africans had taken up the responsibility to shape the continent by telling their stories the way they should be and not as others want to see them.

Waldrum addresses Plumptre, Ayinde absence as Falcons face Canada

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Waldrum addresses Plumptre, Ayinde absence as Falcons face Canada

Super Falcons head coach Randy Waldrum agrees injured Ashleigh Plumptre and Halimatu Ayinde will be sore misses for the team at the Olympics, describing them as top-quality players, According Sports Extra reports.

The American tactician bared his mind on the sad development ahead of today’s international friendly against Olympic champions Canada, starting at 6.30 p.m. Spain time (5.30 p.m. Nigeria time) at the La Quinta Football Centre, Malaga, Spain.

He gave the assurance that there are other players ready to fill the voids, appreciating the camping exercise, and several quality players coming through the ranks and anxious to make a mark at the Olympics.

He said, “The players are excited; they have been sharp and full of confidence. I like what I am seeing at this camp. It has been productive for us. The players are full of confidence coming out of the World Cup; they know they can face the best teams in the world, and that is the biggest improvement I have seen from that time until this time.

“The good thing about having a national team is having experienced players and the young ones coming up to replace them when ready. Right now, we have a good blend of experienced players and young ones, and I think they are going to have a great future with the team.

“When you lose Ashleigh Plumptre and Halimatu Ayinde, they are two world-class players tough for anything to lose, especially two of them. But then the thing we preach to our players all along is that somebody else has to step up and replace them, and I think we saw that with Chidinma Okeke coming in at left-back for Plumptre when she was out against Cameroon and South Africa.

“I think right now it’s a good thing we have some depth in midfield, players Deborah Abiodun and Toni Payne. It’s still a solid midfield. We have other players; Echegini can play in there, and Ajibade can play in there. So, even though we lose some players, we have some depth in there. It certainly has to happen; I feel bad for them for not going to the Olympics.

“Against Canada, we will go into the match with the aim of giving a good performance, irrespective of the results. We are also aware that some players are coming back from injury, so we will give some players the opportunity to see what they can do at the Olympics. Canada are Olympic champions, so we expect a tough match, and the girls are ready.

“We are in a tough group at the Olympics. We have Brazil, Japan, and world-champion Spain. It’s a very difficult group, but our girls will be ready to compete.”

Nigeria and Canada were involved in a hard-fought FIFA Women’s World Cup Group B opener at the Melbourne Rectangular Stadium on July 21, 2023, with the game ending 0-0. Nigeria’s goalkeeper Chiamaka Nnadozie saved a penalty kick by veteran Christine Sinclair and made 14 other big saves in the afternoon encounter.

Rangers to face El-Kanemi in 2024/25 NPFL opener

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Rangers to face El-Kanemi in 2024/25 NPFL opener

Reigning Nigeria Premier Football League champions Enugu Rangers will begin their quest in the 2024/25 season against newly-promoted side and President Federation Cup champions El-Kanemi Warriors in the first game of the season on Saturday, August 31, According Sports Extra reports.

Match-day one fixtures for the incoming season were made on Tuesday during the Annual General Meeting of the NPFL board and club owners in Abuja, where the clubs also agreed on the August 31 proposed date for the start of a new season as well as a 38-game format for the league.

Chairman of the NPFL board, Gbenga Elegbeleye also announced that the prize money of the league has been increased to N200m ahead of next season.

After the curtain raiser in Enugu, the nine other match-day one fixtures will be played the following weekend.

Those fixtures will see last season’s runners-up Remo Stars make a trip to Abia Warriors, Lobi Stars welcome Akwa United, Bendel Insurance take on Rivers United and Sunshine Stars play host to Bayelsa United.

Newly promoted side Ikorodu City will begin life in the NPFL with an away fixture against Kano Pillars in Kano just as Beyond Limits were handed a home debut in the league against nine-time champions Enyimba. Nasarawa United will also mark their return with a date against Shooting Stars in Lafia.

Other fixtures will see Kwara United welcome Niger Tornadoes in a north central derby while Plateau United will host Katsina United at the New Jos Stadium, where Enugu Rangers were crowned last season.

As the clubs await the full fixtures of the league, chairman of NPFL club owners and general manager of Rivers United Okey Kpalukwu stressed the importance of starting the league on August 31 to forestall cases of fixtures congestion as four teams will be engaged on the continent.

“There is no way we will not have such conflicts but all we need is to start earlier. We have agreed to start this league on August 31. That is quite early enough believing that the matches that will be rescheduled will be played in the midweek. Considering the President Federation Cup, if we start that early too, we won’t have any problem of fixtures congestion,” Kpalukwu told journalists in Abuja.

Champions Enugu Rangers and Remo Stars will be seeking places in the group stages of the CAF Champions League while Enyimba and El-Kanemi Warriors are the country’s representatives In the CAF Confederation Cup.

Nigerian coaches not good enough for Eagles job – Abdallah

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Nigerian coaches not good enough for Eagles job – Abdallah

Former Super Eagles assistant coach, Usman Abdallah, shockingly stated that no Nigerian coach is good enough for the managerial role of the country’s senior men’s national team, According Sports Extra reports.

Abdallah’s assertion comes after the Nigeria Football Federation announced it was considering hiring a foreign coach following the resignation of Finidi George last month.

Of the 27 coaches that had managed the Eagles since its inception, 10 were Indigenous coaches, with Finidi the last to take charge of the team.

The Eagles have been without a head coach since the former winger resigned in June.

Finidi quit his role as head coach of the three times African champions following the NFF’s announcement that they would appoint a foreign technical adviser for the team.

The decision came after an outcry by the football-loving populace following the team’s poor performances, including a shock defeat to Benin Republic, in the 2026 World Cup qualifiers last month.

As the federation continues its search for the next coach of the team, with reports indicating officials of the football body had approached Portuguese Jose Peseiro for a possible return, while also considering Frenchman Herve Renard, Abdallah, who served as an assistant coach under Peseiro, isn’t bothered his comments will stir the hornet’s nest.

He insisted the Indigenous coaches weren’t good enough for the job.

“It doesn’t bother me whether the NFF is considering bringing Jose Peseiro back or if they want to hire Hervé Renard as the Eagles coach as long as they can afford to pay their salaries,” he said.

“The issue is, I have heard people say they don’t want us to spend money on the foreign coach but show me a coach qualified for the Eagles job who is a Nigerian whether home or abroad. The fact is we don’t have it.

“The only person we have is Salisu Yusuf, who a lot of people don’t want because of what happened in the past, but I don’t want to argue about that. Nigerian coaches have always been serving as assistants and none of us can argue that we were better than those we’ve worked with.”

However, the former Enyimba gaffer frowned at NFF allowing foreign coaches to bring along their assistants with them.

“Appointing Peseiro or whoever is no issue, but why allow them to come with their assistants when some of us have always been named?

“How do we tap from their experience and grow to become the national team coaches? This is the mistake the federation has always made, and they need to correct that.”

The NFF will hope to have the issue resolved in time as Nigeria hope to get their World Cup qualifiers back on track after a poor start that saw them claim just three points from a possible 12 and sit fifth in their six-team qualifying group.

Like Kogi, Kaduna to conduct local council election October 19

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Like Kogi, Kaduna to conduct local council election October 19

The Kaduna State government has scheduled the election into the 23 local government areas in the state for October 19.
The chairman of the state Independent Electoral Commission (KAD-SIECOM), Hajara Mohammed, announced the date at a meeting with political parties and other concerned individuals in Kaduna on Tuesday.
Mohammed said the current council members were sworn into office on November 1, 2021, and would end their three-year tenure on October 31, 2024.
The Supreme Court had last week granted full autonomy to the 774 local government areas in the country.
The apex court in the ruling ordered the Federal government to withhold revenue allocation to local government areas without elected officials.
READ ALSO: Kogi sets October 19 for local government elections
Kogi State government had also fixed the election into the 21 LGAs for October 19.
Mohammed said: “KAD-SIECOM is responsible for organising the elections of chairpersons, vice-chairpersons, and councillors in the state.
”In consonance with the provision of section 25(1) of the KAD-SIECOM Law 2024, the general public is hereby informed that the LGA council election will be held in Kaduna on Saturday, 19th October 2024, between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m.
”The commission issued the election timetable today, Tuesday 16th July 2024.”
The chairperson revealed the election guidelines had been released with the election timetable.
The post Like Kogi, Kaduna to conduct local council election October 19 appeared first on Latest Nigeria News | Top Stories from TVN.

Minister lauds Nigerian Army’s housing intervention

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Minister lauds Nigerian Army’s housing intervention

The Minister of Housing and Urban Development, Ahmed Dangiwa, has commended the Nigerian Army for its efforts in providing affordable housing for its soldiers.

The minister gave the commendation during a meeting with the Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Army Post Service Housing Development Limited, Major General Joseph Omale in Abuja on Tuesday.

The Nigerian Army’s housing scheme is aimed at providing affordable homes for its soldiers, particularly those who are not within the officer cadre.
The scheme is part of the Army’s efforts to improve the welfare of its personnel and their families.

According to a statement signed by the ministry’s Director of Information and Public Relations, Badamasi Haiba, the minister stated, “I am happy you are already ahead in providing that welfare to men of your service.”.

He also commended the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoreed Lagbaja, for identifying with housing affordability for the soldiers, by his removal of costs of land and infrastructure that would have made the houses unaffordable to acquire.

The minister noted that the cost of land and infrastructure provision is very critical to housing development and affordability.

He advised that with the availability of encumbered land with title deeds, identification of off-takers, and design of the houses, the agency could approach the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria to access loans to build the houses.

The minister also highlighted the achievements of the ministry under the Renewed Hope Agenda of President Bola Tinubu, which includes setting up reform task teams on housing agencies reform, land reform, and the establishment of building materials manufacturing hubs in six geo-political zones of the country.

“We are committed to providing affordable housing for our soldiers, and we are grateful for the support of the Ministry of Housing and Urban Development,” said Major General Joseph Omali, the Managing Director of Nigerian Army Post Housing Development Limited.

The minister urged the Nigerian Army to consider getting their officers to buy from the National Housing Units, which are available in 36 states of the federation.

He noted that the sales of the housing units are already ongoing and that the ministry is waiting for the Defence Headquarters to provide the list of fallen heroes to enable the ministry to allocate houses to their families.

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