A month ago, it all looked so different for the Republic of Congo. The Red Devils were top of Group A and cruising as they headed into their double-header against South Africa. A win over defending champions Nigeria had made the world sit up and take notice; it was a big leap from fortunate no-hopers to group leaders. Perhaps it was too big. One point from two games against South Africa has seen Claude Le Roy’s men cede top spot, and their five-point lead over the Super Eagles has been whittled down to three. However, it cannot be discounted that Congo still…
Author: orientalnewsng
Lenders in Nigeria, Africa largest economy, are still grappling with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) multiple regulations, as third quarter earnings slow on spiralling costs. The cumulative after tax profit of 15 commercial bank’s which have released third quarter 2014 financial results, increased by just nine percent, to N424.04 billion, from N390.09 billion, lower than the 13.16 percent growth recorded in the 2013 period. Nigerian lenders were less efficient in minimising costs last quarter, as the average cost-to-income (CIR) increased to 63.55 percent in 2014 from 58.97 percent the preceding year. The average loan-to-deposit ratio for the 15 banks…
The Federal Government has held talks with Nigerian banks on ways of plugging revenue leakages in the system and ensuring that the nation is not plunged into indebtedness by arbitrary lending to sub-nationals. The talks focused on ensuring that all revenues due government are remitted and that going forward, any lending to subnational entities must pass through the ministry of finance for approval. Government has also extracted a strong commitment from banks that going forward, the usual practice of banks colluding with the ministries, departments and agencies of the Federal Government to withhold revenues collected on behalf of the government…
Boko Haram militants have seized Chibok, a town in Borno State, where nearly 300 schoolgirls were abducted by the same group on April 14. Residents of Chibok said militants attacked and took control of the Chibok Local Government Area Thursday night. One resident, Musa Chibok, told ORIENTAL NEWS he managed to leave the town as the insurgents took charge. It is not clear whether any resident was killed. The extremist group, Boko Haram, has seized several towns lately in Borno and Adamawa State, driving out government soldiers and other security operatives and confiscating their arms. On Thursday, the Adamawa State…
U.S. President Barack Obama said on Saturday that Russia’s aggression against Ukraine was “appalling” and a threat to the world, while European nations threatened further sanctions against Moscow if it did not end the flow of weapons and troops. Speaking on the sidelines of the G20 summit in Brisbane, Obama placed security and climate change at the center stage of the leaders meeting, overshadowing talks on global economic growth. Obama said the United States was at the forefront of “opposing Russia’s aggression against Ukraine, which is a threat to the world, as we saw in the appalling shoot-down of MH17”.…
A suspected suicide bomber struck at a filling station in Kano late Friday killing at least six people, police said. Several other people were injured and rushed to undisclosed hospitals. The Kano police declined to disclose the hospitals, saying they do not want to expose the victims to further danger. The attack occurred at Magasiku Filling Station, opposite the NNPC mega filling station in the Hotoro area of Kano. The station is along Maiduguri Road. The Kano State police commissioner, Adenrele Shinaba, told PREMIUM TIMES the attacker detonated a bomb so powerful it left a deep crater on the station’s…
Mercedes-Benz is changing the way it identifies its cars and light trucks as it prepares to launch 30 models, including 11 all-new vehicles, by 2020. In addition to new models, Mercedes said it would also introduce new body variants and drive systems, Autonews reports. “This results in an increasingly complex situation when it comes to naming the models,” a statement by the company said. Mercedes joins Infiniti and Cadillac among luxury brands changing the way they name their vehicles. The new nameplates will begin appearing next year when Mercedes will launch redesigned or freshened versions of all of its crossovers…
A former vice-president, and a presidential aspirant on the platform of the All Progressives Congress, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar, and a national leader of APC, former Lagos State governor Bola Tinubu, held separate meetings with a former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, on Friday. The meetings held at Obasanjo’s Hilltop presidential residence in Abeokuta. The meetings which lasted less than one hour, were said to be connected with the 2015 elections. Tinubu had paid such a visit early last month to Obasanjo, where he said he had come to discuss the state of the nation and seek the former president’s advice on…
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