NewStats: 3,261,446 , 8,174,033 topics. Date: Thursday, 29 May 2025 at 10:07 AM p3m23

A Peoples Democratic Party chieftain in Lagos State, Ganiu Taofik, says the party is ready to receive Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu if indeed he wants to return to office in 2023.

Taofik made this known in a chat with The PUNCH on Thursday.

The former PDP spokesman in Lagos said his party is a platform that gives Lagosians the best form of governance.

He said, “Recently, we had a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, Olajide Adediran aka Jandol, decamp with his group, Lagos4Lagos, into the PDP. This is because they have confidence and they have seen that the PDP is a better platform.

“Governor Sanwo-Olu probably could have done 100 per cent more than he has done if he were not to be in the APC because it is a structural thing; the PDP in Lagos has a controlling leadership for sanity, morality and service delivery but what they have in the APC is a selfish leadership. That is why Governor Sanwo-Olu cannot do more than what he is doing.

“If Governor Sanwo-Olu is checking to have a ticket to recontest, we will give him the opportunity to contest the primary election in the PDP like every other aspirant. Everybody has a level playing field in the PDP, unlike the APC where nobody can become a councillor without the leader’s .

“The PDP has a wide umbrella to cover every politician from the House of Assembly to the House of Representative and others.”

As political permutations earnestly begin ahead of the 2023 elections, there are indications that Sanwo-Olu wants to return for another four years.

“I think we are doing a very good job, I dare say so. I think the citizens know what it is they will be missing if they don’t let us continue to wrap up all the things we are doing,” Sanwo-Olu said in a recent interview when asked if he has any plan to throw his hat into the ring in the next election.

The PUNCH had earlier reported that the immediate past governor of Lagos State, Akinwunmi Ambode, on Tuesday, urged youths to get their Permanent Voters Cards ahead of the 2023 general elections.

Ambode was Lagos governor from 2015 to 2019 and had lost his reelection to Babajide Sanwo-Olu at the APC primary due to intra-party squabbles.

Both Ambode and Sanwo-Olu are constitutionally permitted to be in office for one more term of four years if the electorate so decide.

https://punchng.com/2023-pdp-ready-to-receive-sanwo-olu-if-party-chieftain/?amp

The Management of Shebah Exploration and Production Company Ltd. (SEPCOL) has confirmed a fire incident at its offshore Floating Production Storage and Offloading (FSPO) facility on Wednesday.

Ikemefuna Okafor, the chief executive officer, SEPCOL (in receivership), confirmed the incident in a statement issued on Thursday in Lagos.

Mr Okafor said an explosion occurred at the Trinity Spirit FSPO located at the Ukpokiti Terminal in the early hours of Wednesday.

He said: “The cause of the explosion is currently being investigated and we are working with necessary parties to contain the situation.

“At this time, there are no reported fatalities, but we can confirm that there were 10 crew men on board the vessel prior to the incident, and we are prioritising investigations with respect to their safety and security.

“We appreciate the assistance provided to us by the Clean Nigeria Associates, the Chevron team operating in the nearby Escravos facility and our community stakeholders.

“We also appreciate the fishermen who have been of tremendous assistance since the incident happened.”

Mr Okafor said the company has duly notified all relevant authorities and appealed to the of the public to stay away from the area.

SEPCOL’s Crisis Management Team would continue to monitor the situation and provide updates with new information as the investigation evolves, he said.






Source: Nigerian oil company confirms explosion at its offshore facility https://semmatloaded.com/2022/02/nigerian-oil-company-confirms-explosion-at-its-offshore-facility/amp/

President Joe Biden said he will nominate a Black woman to the US Supreme Court for the first time in history, filling the vacancy left by retiring Justice Stephen Breyer.

Candace Jackson-Akiwumi has been noted as one of the most likely potential nominees for a Supreme Court appointment under President Joe Biden.

Jackson-Akiwumi is married to her husband Eric Akiwumi, who is a Nigerian.

“I’ve made no decision except (the) person I will nominate will be someone with extraordinary qualifications, character, experience and integrity,” Biden said in an address from the White House.

“And that person will be the first Black woman ever nominated to the United States Supreme Court.”

Biden, speaking at a podium alongside Breyer, also indicated that he would seek a speedy nomination process, promising to name his candidate by the end of February.

The exit of Breyer, who is 83, gives Biden a likely smooth opportunity to name a replacement to the lifelong seat on the Supreme Court while his Democratic Party retains control of the Senate.

The Supreme Court is currently split between six conservatives and three liberals. Biden will now be able to nominate another liberal-leaning jurist to the court, maintaining the balance.

Breyer had been under pressure from liberals to leave in time for Biden to get his nominee through the Senate before November’s midterm elections, when Republicans are in a strong position to win majorities in Congress and would then control the approval process.

As president, Donald Trump had the rare opportunity to put no fewer than three new justices on the court, fundamentally shifting its political leaning for potentially years to come.

Biden’s one pick so far will have nowhere near that level of impact. However, the Democrat will be glad of a successful confirmation process, delivering a much needed morale boost to his party ahead of the mid.

As an immediate reminder of the tensions that Supreme Court confirmations often provoke, Republican senior Senator Mitch McConnell warned Biden “not to outsource this important decision to the radical left.”

“To the degree that President Biden received a mandate, it was to govern from the middle,” McConnell said.

In his resignation letter, published Thursday, Breyer underlined the coordinated plan to ensure that the succession moves with minimal upheaval, confirming that he will stay on the court through the packed current term — but not before his replacement is ready.

“I intend this decision to take effect when the court rises for the summer recess this year (typically late June or early July) assuming that by then my successor has been nominated and confirmed,” he wrote.

– Campaign pledge –
Biden promised to put an African-American woman on the court back when he was campaigning for the Democratic presidential nomination.

The vow was part of his vital outreach to the Black community, which became a crucial component in ultimately defeating a crowded field of Democratic rivals and then unseating Trump.

Biden put the first Black and Asian woman, Kamala Harris, on the ticket as his vice president, and since taking office has also pushed hard to place more women and ethnic minorities as senior judges.

Biden said that in the search for Breyer’s replacement, he would be asking Harris to help, describing her as “an exceptional lawyer” and noting she was a former member of the Senate judiciary committee — a body he himself led while serving as a senator.

Among the leading candidates to replace Breyer are Ketanji Brown Jackson, a US Court of Appeals judge, and Leondra Kruger of the California Supreme Court.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki said Biden had “already started reviewing potential candidates” and the nomination process should “happen as expeditiously as possible.”

Of the 115 justices who served on the Supreme Court, only five have been women, including three today — Sonia Sotomayor, Elena Kagan and Amy Coney Barrett. Only two have been Black men, one of whom is current Justice Clarence Thomas.

Breyer is the oldest justice on the court and was nominated in 1994 by then Democratic president Bill Clinton.

Praising Breyer, Biden highlighted his bipartisan spirit, saying he “patiently sought common ground” and was “a model public servant in a time of great division in this country.”

AFP

https://www.google.com/amp/s/punchng.com/biden-to-appoint-nigerian-woman-us-supreme-court-justice/%3famp

Candidate of Accord Party in Ekiti State, Reuben Famuyibo, has asked residents of the state to reject the candidates of All Progressive Congress, Biodun Oyebanji, and that of Peoples Democratic Party, Bisi Kolawole, in the June 18, 2022 election.

Famuyibo disclosed this after the affirmation of his candidature at Fajuyi Hall in Ado-Ekiti on Friday.


Kolawole is the preferred aspirant of Ayodele Fayose, former governor of the state, while Oyebanji is Governor Kayode Fayemi’s ‘anointed’ candidate.

Speaking further, Famuyibo berated the leadership of the APC in the state over what he termed “selfish agenda of the state governor and his wife in imposing candidate on Ekiti people”, saying it would be rejected at the poll.

The Ado-born politician, who left the APC over an alleged imposition of candidate by the governor, said that his ers and other stakeholders within and outside the state have endorsed him to be the third force towards winning the election.

He said, “We are here to liberate Ekiti from the shackles of the governor and his wife.Their time is up and we will resist any form of rigging in the state.

”There is no industrialisation that is felt in the state, instead they have been amassing wealth. I will ensure that our children are gainfully employed.

”People in APC and PDP will know that we are a force and I hope they don’t set the state ablaze. Let us see a little bit of decency in the process and I pray they don’t rig the election, because I confident of victory.

“Those who took over the affairs of the state since the return of democracy are not projecting the state well and in order to put the state right on track the Accord party has chosen me to free Ekiti from the PDP and APC.”

Speaking while presenting the flag of the party to Famuyibo, National Youth Leader of Accord party, Abduraman Muhammed, urged the people to and vote him to transform the state from abysmal ruling of the APC.

He declared that the party was providing an alternative to what he described as an unfortunate rule of the PDP and the APC.

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Source: https://semmatloaded.com/2022/01/accord-party-asks-ekiti-residents-to-reject-apc-pdp-over-lack-of-infrastructural-development-in-state/amp/

The Labour Party in Ekiti state, on Saturday picked Olugbenga Daramola as its concensus candidate for the June 18 gubernatorial election in the state.

At a ceremony, held at its situation office located at Dallimore junction, Ado-Ekiti, the Chairman of the party, Odunayo Okunade, presented Mr Daramola with the party flag.

Mr Okunade appealed to the people of Ekiti to vote the party’s candidate in the June 18 governorship elections.

He declared that the party will provide an alternative to the alleged misrule of the PDP and APC.

He said, “the time is now to take our future in our hands. We should say enough is enough to foreigners and liberate Ekiti from their hands, saying it is time for the home-based to govern their own state by themselves.

The party chairman noted that time has come to resist any form of rigging in the state.

It is unfortunate that those who took over the affairs of the state since the return of democracy are not projecting the state well and in order to put the state right on track, the Labour Party has picked a home-based to free Ekiti from the hands of the foreigners.”



In his acceptance speech, Mr Daramola thanked of the party, drawn from the 16 Local Government Areas of Ekiti, for their wise decision in presenting him as the concensus candidate of the party in the state.

“With all humility, no one will regret my candidature as I pledge to serve in a spirit of fidelity and commitment to the common goal, always in accord with the purpose and principle of the Labour Party constitution.

“I want to specially thank the National leadership of our great party, under Mr Julius Abure, and the state executive under Mr Odunayo Okunade, for piloting the affairs of our party despite several challenges,” he said.

Mr Daramola, however, promised to deliver the state through the votes of the electorate to Labour Party and move it to the next level.

The event was witnessed by representatives of the Independent National Electoral Commission, security agencies, party in the South-west, among others. (NAN)

https://www.timesng.com/news/more-news/508561-ekiti-2022-daramola-emerges-labour-party-concensus-candidate.html

On March 20, 2021, FIRS announced the deployment of the Automated Tax istration System (ATAS). The initiative was brought pursuant to Section 25 of the FIRS Establishment Act as amended by the Finance Act 2020.

By section 18 of the Finance Act, section 25 of the FIRS Act has been amended to empower the FIRS deploy proprietary or third-party technology to automate the tax istration process including tax assessment and information gathering provided it gives 30 days notice to the taxpayer.

This entails granting the FIRS access to your systems to enable them access your finances, incomes and expenditures to see whether you pay the right taxes.

It provides that the FIRS may use “proprietary or third-party payment processing or other digital platform or application to collect and remit taxes”.

Consequently, any person who fails to grant access to the Service after 30 days of receipt of the notice or the extension granted, is liable to an istrative penalty of N25,000 for each day that it fails to grant access.

For instance, if an organization fails to grant the FIRS access in 31 days after the 30 days notice or extension has elapsed, it means that the organization will pay the agency the sum of N775, 000 (seven hundred and seventy-five thousand Naira). The 25,000 fine is calculated to start counting after the last day of the notice or the extension given.

By section 19 of the Finance Act, Section 28 of the FIRS act has been amended to increase the penalties for a Bank’s failure to provide correct information or returns with respect to the filing of quarterly returns to the FIRS from N500,000 to N1,000,000.00

An Abuja based lawyer, Muhammed Yahaya who spoke to Nairametrics said these penalties are binding on entities and individuals who do business in Nigeria, whether citizens or foreigners.

“Yes, these penalties are binding on entities and individuals who do business in Nigeria. It is applicable to both citizens and foreigners,” Mohammed said.

The Executive Chairman of FIRS Muhammad Nami said earlier in the week that the Service seeks to achieve 100% automation of all its tax istration processes, which will block revenue leakages and revolutionize revenue generation in the country.

Mr Nami stated that the service had leveraged on the amendments to its Establishment Act to embark on major infrastructure overhaul, focusing on the deployment of technology for the automation of its processes and procedures.

What you should know about FIRS Establishment Act

On 31 December 2021, President Muhammadu Buhari signed the Finance Bill, 2021 (now the Finance Act, 2021) into law. The Finance Act, 2021, which took effect from 1 January 2022, amended various provisions in 13 Acts of the National Assembly.
The Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) is the agency responsible for evaluating, accumulating and ing for tax and other revenues accruing to the Federal Government of Nigeria.
To strengthen FIRS access to its tax information, it is now stipulated that individuals must grant the FIRS access to their organization’s information processing systems in a bid to allow the FIRS to install their automated tax istration technology.
Other federal government agencies have been given the responsibility to report cases requiring tax Investigation, enforcement or compliance, encountered in the course of performing their duties, to the FIRS for necessary action.
However, they are forbidden from carrying out tax monitoring, audit or investigation as stipulated by Section 68 (5) of FIRSEA. It is an offence for any other agency to carry out the function of the FIRS.
Any person convicted of an offence under the provisions of Section 68 of the FIRSEA will be liable on conviction to imprisonment of five years or a fine of N10,000,000 or both.
Section 50 of the FIRSEA states that both individuals employed to the service and others, who have access to taxpayer’s information cannot divulge such information to the public, and breach of this attracts a prison term and a fine.
Section 50 of the FIRSEA 2007 states that “Every person in an official duty or being employed in the istration of this Act shall regard and deal with all documents, information, returns, assessment list and copies of such list relating to the profits or items of profits of any company, as secret and confidential.”




Source: https://semmatloaded.com/2022/01/finance-act-taxpayers-who-fail-to-grant-firs-access-to-their-systems-will-be-fined-n25000-per-day/amp/

Reacting to a statement credited to Atiku, Umahi the former vice president and the PDP to stop linking him with their woes.

Atiku had through Raymond Dokpesi, the Chairman of the Technical Committee for the actualization of Atiku Abubakar Presidential ambition, described Umahi as heartless for unjustly sealing the Ebonyi PDP secretariat and the continued detention of the party’s spokesperson in police custody.

“I vividly when I came here on two, three occasions, the first one was when I was contesting for chairman of the party, this governor met me at Abuja after I have visited here to plead with me to step down for the chairmanship race for the overall interest of the party and in the overall interested of the federal government.

“This same man did not have sufficient patience when it came to his own personal ambition of becoming the president, he brutally shut down the PDP secretariat, that’s a heinous act, that is the height of brutality and wickedness,” Dokpesi said.

Speaking to newsmen through the special assistant on Media and Publicity Mr Francis Nwaze, Umahi said: “Our attention has been drawn to a publication credited to the former Vice President, Atiku Abubakar in which he urged Governor David Umahi, to unseal the PDP Secretariat and release detained Spokesman of the Party in the State.

“The People’s Democratic Party in Ebonyi State should make efforts to first, find the location of its Secretariat without involving the focused istration of Governor David Umahi, that is if it has a Secretariat as we are not aware of where they have a permanent Secretariat in their name.

“Governor David Umahi left the party in November 2020, he did not leave with even a pin belonging to the Party. And so long as we understand the continued reference to Governor Umahi by the PDP long after his exit, is a sign that the Party misses his astute leadership acumen, we appeal to the Party to please find a soft landing as Governor Umahi has since moved on in his Progressive march to eldorado.

“We are constrained to make further comments on the case of its spokesperson, Nwoba Chika who is now in detention, his case is now pending in a court of competent jurisdiction. His political party have the leeway to prove themselves innocent through the court process instead of tempting the State Government to meddle in contempt of court.”

https://semmatloaded.com/2022/01/2023-umahi-replies-atiku-says-pdp-missing-his-leadership/amp/