Six people have been rescued while 14 other miners are still being trapped, two days after a mining pit collapsed in Galadima-Kogo, Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State.

Daily Trust could not independently establish if the six people rescued were alive or dead.

The permanent secretary, Niger State Ministry for Mineral Resources,  Alhaji Yunusa Mohammed Nahauni, blamed the management of the mining company for the collapse.

During a visit to the site of the tragedy where one person was reported dead on Tuesday, the commissioner said the collapse was due to lack of compliance and synergy between the mining company’s management and the community.

He said the governor earlier directed the suspension of all mining activities in the state and ordered a crackdown on illegal miners due to increasing security concerns.

He said, “The governor, through the ministry, had issued letters to all the emirates, instructing them accordingly,” warning that failure to adhere to his order would result in penalties.

He also urged the site engineer to consistently follow mining principles and operational guidelines to prevent future incidents, emphasising that safety should always be prioritised.

The ministry gave the names of the 14 victims being trapped as Abdullahi Yahaya, Ibrahim Mansir, Abubakar Isah, Friday Musa and Godwin Hussaini.

Others are Benjamin Ashafa, Zayyanu Ibrahim, Abdul Ali, Hamza Musa, Umar Abubakar, Joseph Madaki,  Ibrahim I. Ishiaku Kuta,  Abbas Musa and  Yakubu Mamman

While the State Emergency Management Agency had earlier said that 30 people were trapped, one person was killed and seven others rescued but severely injured, some locals said the number of miners trapped were more than the figures given by the authorities.

The police public relations officer, Niger State command, SP Wasiu Abiodun, in a statement, attributed the difficulty in rescuing the victims to lack of equipment.

[DailyTrust]

Former spokesman for the Atiku Abubakar/Ifeanyi Okowa presidential campaign in the 2023 presidential election, Daniel Bwala has said that his support for President Bola Tinubu is not for better for worse.

Bwala said he would easily work away if the President goes against the constitution of Nigeria and democratic Ideology.

He said this during an interview on Arise TV on Wednesday, insisting he had a good time with Atiku Abubakar but had to shift his support to Tinubu when it was clear the presidential election was over.

Bwala who was a strong supporter of former vice president Atiku, said, “It was nice that I supported former vice president Atiku and for the period I supported him, I gave my all but when I made a decision to support President Tinubu, it is just owing to the fact that the elections are over.

“We all know the problem we are in and if you’re privileged to have an attention of somebody who is now the sitting president who didn’t meet you in the first place but he felt that you have something to offer and said ‘Come and be a part of what we are doing in this government, let us see how you support good governance’, I feel it’s an honour.

“And don’t forget I was Asiwaju’s loyalist before. I changed party to Atiku, it is not a situation of going back to somebody you don’t know, I have always believed in him.

“The only thing that will make me withdraw my support for President Bola Tinubu is if he goes against the constitution of Nigeria and goes against democratic ideology but I do not see that happening because President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is on course.

“He is redefining the structure of our foundation and economy and I know that the decisions are hard, but they are definitely decisions that are going to work at the end of the day.”

[DailyPost]

Nigerians are groaning under the weight of food inflation which in March this year stood at 41.1 % as a result of the devaluation of the naira and high importation of food items. It is the same with transport inflation which currently stands at about 30% because of government unavoidable removal of fuel subsidy scam costing the country N3trillion loss yearly and consequent increase in pump price of imported petrol. Government has continued to appeal to Nigerians for more sacrifice while assuring us of greater gains after the current pains.

While most enlightened Nigerians identified with government plea that we cannot have omelette without first breaking an egg, many believe Nigerians are being asked to pay for the sins of unpatriotic Nigerians especially in the oil and banking sector responsible for our current economic nightmare. It was for this reason government came up with some palliatives and also set up a tripartite body of 37 members with organized Labour to look at the issue of minimum wage in the country.

Unfortunately, as it has turned out, if Joe Ajaero who has not been able to distance himself from the Labour Party and his group are not playing politics, they are out rightly incompetent. While it often takes as much as a year to negotiate a minimum wage in other climes, what manner of Labour leader after two strikes in less than a year, would declare  a third one, arrogantly labelled  “indefinite strike” without a thought for the health of the economy of a nation in distress?

The immediate cause of Ajaero’s current indefinite strike was because of a stall in negotiation by the tripartite body set up by government that has offered N60,000 as minimum wage as against Organized Private Sector’s (OPS)  N57,000 and Ajaero Labour’s unrealistic N476,000. Obsessed with the federal government headed by their political foe, Ajaero and organized labour forgot that besides the federal government, other stakeholders include the 36 states of the federation, 15 of who are yet to fully implement the N30,000 minimum wage approved by President Buhari in 2019  and 774 LGAs battling for survival.                                                       

For any competent labour leader, as observed by Daniel Bwala (Atiku’s former spokesman) on TVC programme on Monday, figures presented during wage negotiation must be based on available and verified government resources .The starting point according to him is to find out how much is accruing to government, its distribution and identifying sectors Labour believes can be starved of funds to accommodate its own demand.

In other words, Ajaero and his group ought to know that the main source of government revenue is taxation: (personal income tax, corporate tax, excise duties, export and import duties, royalties from oil and other minerals, government domestic borrowings through sale of government securities through stock exchange and external borrowings through bonds for long term government loans or borrowings from IMF or World Bank and foreign grants.)

The above revenue figures can be accessed  by labour leaders during budget debate and budget public hearing  while the  concurrent and capital expenditures the revenues  are to cover can also be scrutinized.

But instead of going through this constitutional process, what did Ajaero and his fellow politicians masquerading as union leaders do? They came up with arbitrary figures they claimed was based on cost of feeding an individual member of a family of six thrice a day for one month, citing the current price of imported bag of rice.

But we don’t need to be labour leaders to know that minimum wage is for starters and not for a family of six. In any case, when did the number of children a family decides to have become the criteria for fixing minimum wage in a nation operating a market driven economy?  We can as well advance Labour’s sloppy argument by saying since Islam allows adherents to marry four wives and indeed a member of the federal legislature once displayed his four wives and some two dozen children on the floor of the house, we might as well settle for four wives and 22 children as the basis for arriving at a minimum wage.

It is surprising that in their overenthusiasm to shut the nation and its wobbling economy down indefinitely, over their proposed unrealistic figures of N475, 000 for a cleaner or a messenger, they forgot the monster we are currently fighting is inflation.  Precisely because they believe they can intimidate the federal government and the state government including Imo State where they were once involved in fisticuffs with party rivals, they pretended they did not know that they cannot force private sector to give what they cannot afford or dissuade them from downsizing. A Senior Advocate of Nigeria invited to throw more light on the issue by ARISE TV on Monday evening did not weigh words. If asked to pay Labour’s unrealistic minimum wage, he would reduce number of lawyers in his chambers by half, he declared.

But more disturbing is the way Ajaero and his ill-trained labour leaders behave as if they are above the law. Their first strike just as this government was taking off was said to be illegal. Their current indefinite strike has been declared illegal by the well-respected Minister of Justice and Attorney General. And as if to confirm Ajaero’s penchant for behaving as if he is above the law of the land, last Monday in addition to ordering hospitals and international airports across the country be shut down, he also shut down the national grid, an illegal act that constitute a threat to national security.

President Tinubu is an avowed democrat who believes in the rule of law. And this is why he must ensure those engaged in illegal and callous shutting down of the national grid must be made to face the law. And with three strikes in one year, two of which were illegal, it is apparent, Ajaero’s goal is not workers’ welfare but destabilizing the country. We could not have suddenly forgotten that some members of his party called for military take-over following their electoral defeat in 2023.

Kano sibling spiritual wars

 Lamido Sanusi’s sermon at last Friday prayers centred on the need for Muslims to accept their destiny for good or for bad: “We must believe whatever happens to us is predetermined and what we couldn’t have is also from God”. For those who claim religion is the opium of the poor, the Hausa masses who literarily worship their emir and spiritual leader are not complaining over their lot in life? On his path, by focusing on the theme of contentment, Sanusi is doing his job of preventing social dislocations by those who live in abject poverty while emirs live in opulence or as Fela put it. (Suffer suffer for earth enjoy for heaven while the Pope and Iman de enjoy for earth).

A few years back, Sanusi also paid glowing tribute to his grandfather who supervised the famous Kano groundnut pyramids and his father who attended one of the best universities in the world. Sanusi, the father or the son, didn’t need to be troubled that the children of labourers who laboured day and night to cultivate the groundnut farms while emirs sent their own children to the best universities in the world, ended up as labourers. After all the policy of feudalism is ‘labourers born labourers’.  And precisely because  emirs’ word among the ruled, rich or poor, is law, his admonition to Ado Bayero, the deposed cousin he replaced  to accept his destiny, is in order.                                          

Actress Halima Abubakar has shared an emotional video on Instagram, detailing her struggle with a mysterious illness. 

In the video, Abubakar tearfully described how the illness has felt like a punishment, adding that she believes it was a lesson from God.

She expressed deep gratitude to those who have supported her without judgment, acknowledging that the illness has been a challenging journey that helped her appreciate life more.

Abubakar emphasized that she is not seeking pity but wants to thank God for sustaining her through the ordeal.

Captioning the video, she wrote: “Good morning everyone following me, so I made a video for you all but the reel is filled up. So if I don’t know your names, it wasn’t intentional. God bless you all and enlarge your coast. You won’t lose anyone in your family. I don’t have the strength to mention everyone. May Heaven bless you my wonderful co-stars and fans. This video is for you all”.

[TheNation]

The Federal Government and Organised Labour on Wednesday adjourned the minimum wage talks till Thursday (today) when the negotiation is expected to continue.

The Tripartite Committee on National Minimum Wage postponed the session in anticipation of the Minister of Finance, Wale Edun, submitting the salary template to President Bola Tinubu today.

Tinubu had on Tuesday directed the finance minister to present the cost implications for a new minimum wage within two days.

The President gave the order at a meeting with the government negotiation team led by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, at the presidential villa in Abuja. 

Sources in the labour unions privy to the committee meeting said the parties decided to await the outcome of the presidential template before proceeding with further negotiations.

A source who attended the meeting said, “The meeting has been adjourned until Thursday. We showed understanding because we all know that the president gave the minister of finance 48 hours to come up with a minimum wage. So, we decided to give them the time. We will be meeting by 2 p.m.”

A top labour official who is a labour representative on the tripartite committee explained that the template was crucial to the minimum wage negotiation.

The source, who cannot be quoted because he was not authorised to disclose information to the media on the negotiation, expressed confidence that the talks would record good progress once the presidential template is presented to the parties.

The Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, had hinted that the President wished to know the financial implications of the new minimum wage in 48 hours.

Briefing journalists on the presidential directive, the information minister said, “We were all there to look at all issues, and the President has directed the minister of finance to do the numbers and get back to him between today and tomorrow so that we can have figures ready for negotiation with labour.”

Idris assured of the president’s readiness to accept the committee’s resolutions, adding that “The president is determined to go with what the committee has said and he’s also looking at the welfare of Nigerians.

“Government is not against or opponent of labour discussions; the government is not an opponent of wage increase, but what is there is that government is always there to ensure a balance between what government pronouncement is and what the realities are on the ground.

“And therefore, we will work assiduously to ensure that whatever promises the government makes are promises that will be kept. That is the idea of this meeting.”

Furthermore, he said Tinubu directed the government representatives to work collectively with the organised private sector and the sub-nationals to achieve a new affordable wage award for Nigerians.

Idris explained, “The President has given a marching order that all those who have negotiated on behalf of the Federal Government and all those who are representatives of organised private sectors, the sub-nationals to come together to have a new wage that is affordable, sustainable and  realistic for Nigerians.

“The wage is not just that of the Federal Government; as I mentioned earlier, the sub-nationals are involved, the organised private sector is involved; the Labour stepped out during that procedure. Now we have come back to the negotiation table.”

The minister assured that all hands would be on deck to present a new minimum wage for Nigerians in one week.

“All of us will work together assiduously within the next week to ensure that we have a new wage for Nigeria that is acceptable, sustainable and realistic,” Idris said.

Despite the intervention of the leadership of the National Assembly, labour embarked on a nationwide strike on Monday and Tuesday, crippling economic activities nationwide.

Banks, airports, public schools and courts were shut, forcing the Federal Government to convene an emergency meeting to find a way out of the impasse.

Following a meeting with the SGF, National Assembly leaders, and the National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu, on Monday, the unions announced on Tuesday the suspension of industrial action for five days after President Tinubu agreed to pay a national minimum wage higher than N60,000. The tripartite committee pledged its readiness to convene daily until a new minimum wage is announced.

In an interview on Channels television, the President of the Trade Union Congress, Festus Osifo, said the unions would not insist on its N494,000 demand, indicating that the labour leaders were willing to accept a reasonable compromise.

Though the union leader refused to mention a specific amount, he said the new minimum wage must equal purchasing power to the value of N30,000 in 2019 and N18,000 in 2014.

Meanwhile, airlines lament the revenue loss incurred during the two-day strike declared by the labour unions.

The action forced airports to shut down, resulting in scores of cancelled flights and huge financial losses.

The Chief Operating Officer of United Nigeria Airlines, Osita Okonkwo, highlighted the severe impact of the strike on UNA’s operations.

He said, “For two days, we didn’t fly. Ours (revenue loss) runs into millions. We do about 24 flights every day, and for two days, we didn’t do 48 flights. I can tell you it runs into millions.

“Our passengers were continuously informed of the situation. Our call centre was busy 24/7. The fallout now is what do we do with passengers who want to continue with their businesses because they have lost two days and all want to travel tomorrow (today)?

“And then, we have passengers booked to travel tomorrow (today). We are trying to accommodate as many as we can. Where possible, we put in additional flights. But you know capacity, you can’t stress it too much. Most flights are full now because of what happened in the last two days. It is not like we are against the strike, but everybody is feeling the situation of the country.’’

Okonkwo canvassed that essential services should be exempted from strikes, lamenting the plight of stranded passengers.

“It is understandable what labour is doing. But essential services should be exempted from this type of strike. Hospitals, and air travel, because some people had connecting flights. Some were stranded in Asaba, and they were supposed to go to Europe,” he noted.

The Chief Operating Officer of Ibom Air, George Uriesi, also expressed concern over the financial losses recorded by the local airlines during the labour action.

“There was a massive loss of revenue. If you were going to take N100 of revenue a day, and you don’t fly at all, you will probably make N2 or N3. And then there’s more to it because we must accommodate all the people that didn’t fly. So, you may be unable to sell seats for a long time because you’re dealing with a backlog,” he explained.

The Assistant General Secretary of the Aviation Round Table, Olumide Ohunayo, emphasised the strike’s broader impact on the aviation industry.

“It’s not only the airlines. The aviation industry lost lots of money due to the strike. The airlines,  airport terminals, concessionaires, taxi drivers, and others. In fact, the entire ecosystem lost millions of naira, even the charter flights.

“Some flights were cancelled. People are now forced to reschedule flights and see if they can get seats on a future date. And in getting those seats, ticket prices have jumped due to the rush to get seats.” he stated.

Pointing out the long-term economic effects on the aviation sector, the Chief Executive Officer of Centurion Security Limited, John Ojikutu, said, “The domestic airlines will lose some money, and that will affect the economy. The kind of money I’m talking about is not coming from local airlines because they contribute virtually nothing. If you compare the money they make from ticket sales to the money we make from foreign airlines, that is where the problem is.

“In the next two, three days, they would have cleared all those passengers, and we would now go back to our normal aviation problems, which are fuel and ticket fares,” he said.

Speaking on the long-drawn minimum wage negotiation, Debo Adeniran, the Executive Director of the Centre for Anti-Corruption and Open Leadership, urged the Federal Government and labour unions to finalise their talks quickly.

“The FG and the labour unions should not waste any more time beyond the 48 hours given to the finance minister. Everything is already concluded; they need to harmonise their positions based on their capacities to raise resources,” Adeniran stated.

Stressing the need for swift negotiations, he noted, “Labour unions and the FG should be realistic, which should not take an eternity to conclude. They should aim to finalise everything by the end of tomorrow (today).”

Adeniran also cautioned the labour unions against rushing to embark on strikes.

On his part, the Executive Director of the Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre, Auwal Rafsanjani, admonished the government to be honest and realistic during the negotiation.

“The Federal Government needs to be honest and realistic. They should be able to restore dignity in labour. Once the FG is realistic in presenting a minimum wage to Nigerians, there would not be any delay in the meeting with labour unions,” he concluded.

[Punch]

The truth is, I do not particularly care about the words in the re-introduced national anthem that some people deem offensive. They consider words like “tribe” and “native” as derogatory and outdated, while the idea of a nation where people stand “in brotherhood” bespeaks its female gender as alien to its body politic. None of that bothers me, honestly. Even the idea of Nigeria as a “motherland,” makes a little difference to me. If Nigeria is a mother, she must be exhausted from giving without replenishment. The imagery of familyhood in the anthem does not move me. Some critics are rankled by the provenance of the national anthem, but not me. I remain unmoved by whether the anthem came from colonial masters or even Ancient Greece. Whatever!

What I find terribly amusing is the supposed objective of the anthem: to foster a united nation where everyone belongs. Now, that ideal is not only overly idealistic, but will be quickly discarded next cycle of election. None of the nice and cute words in that anthem will stand against the ferocious competition and divisiveness that typify our general elections. If you ask me, the song of fealty declaration to Bola Tinubu, “on your mandate we shall stand…” would have been a far more honest choice as the Nigeria national anthem than the farce of “Nigeria we hail thee” that will unravel when the general elections approach.

Why elections? Well, which other national event else brings out the beast in us? It is what our democracy solely boils down to, the ultimate determinant of our political personhood. For the political class, elections are a do-or-die affair because they calibrate their social relevance. You either deliver your constituency, or you die. To be a dead politician does not mean you stopped breathing. It simply means you cannot pull the required weight during an election season. For the underclass, the so-called “masses,” winning an election is imperative too. Elections do not guarantee that your material conditions will improve, but winning is a symbolic victory over other identity groups in the country.

We can still recall the triumphalism of Bola Tinubu’s supporters this time last year. Some were happy their tribe won; others celebrated their religion as the winner. Such joy is the sum total of their dividend of democracy. Democracy is a quadrennial cycle of conquest, the time we get to beat down the others wallowing in the same dysfunction as us for momentary self-validation. Anyone who thinks all of that sentiment will evaporate simply because the national anthem has a line about “tribes and tongues” has got another think coming.

In a pre-presidency interview, Tinubu mentioned that if he had his way, he would bring back the old national anthem because it “describes us better” and “we are one and one Nigeria.” Now, it is ironic that the election that allowed Tinubu to have his way and be in the place to change the national anthem actively pursued ethnic divisiveness as a winning strategy. Our public memory can be extremely short, but I do not think anyone could have forgotten the dirty details of their deeds so soon. At no point did Mr “We Are One And One Nigeria” publicly censure his attack dogs. They ran freely, digging their rabid teeth into the tender flesh of an already troubled nation. After the election, Tinubu appointed one of those e-hounds, Bayo Onanuga, as his media spokesperson. Such contradiction is their MO. They will gaslight you by preaching against toxicity in the same breath they use to spread it. Now that the Tinubu boys know that the current national fetish is “unity,” their new madness will be public payments of lip service to this idol.

Tinubu himself has been a politician enough to know that there are words, and there are also words without power. Uttered words can indeed have a perlocutionary effect if the circumstances around the speaker provide the necessary integrity. Without such galvanising context, words are just words, lacking any pronunciatory effect. Singing about building a nation “where no man is oppressed” in a country where the military can detain and torture you just because you wrote an article that one small big man in Aso Rock finds offensive is enough to douse whatever passion the anthem is supposed to inspire. For people to even call for the arrest of an activist who refused to stand up while the national anthem was being played means those clowns have not bothered to digest the anthem. Yet, they somehow expect the song to instigate unquestioning genuflections of loyalty. That anthem and the sense of national unity it is expected to foster is an intriguing example of magical thinking in contemporary Nigeria.

The anthem has words like “truth and justice,” but they are terms that have no corresponding meaning to the reality of our being Nigerian. They are words emptied of meaning; mere gibberish poor schoolchildren will regurgitate during their daily general assembly. Hardly anyone, especially those who introduced, “debated,” passed, and signed the bill for the former anthem to be restored, believes there is any charm to its composition that can make it foster unity. They demanded its re-introduction simply because they were struck by nostalgia. And what do you expect from old men whose debilitated minds have long dreamt the last of their dreams?

In fact, the 2027 election might be too far before the rubber of the virtues they want to signal through the anthem hits the road of the Nigerian political system. With the way people have been severely impoverished by the poorly conceived and ill-executed policies of this administration, do not be surprised if they testily peck at each other’s intestines earlier. By 2027, the All Progressives Congress will start fuelling and harvesting that toxicity to rally its supporters. Given their administrative missteps so far, it is not that hard to forecast how the next three years will go. It will be virtually impossible for them to sell Tinubu’s second term based on his performance, and they will need to fall back on their old gimmicks of ethnic and religious divisiveness.

You can expect that sometime in 2026, the agenda will start agending. Seemingly out of the blue, someone will restart the stale conversation about “Lagos is no man’s land” and the usual idiots will fall in line. Their choristers, presently buried in the sewers of social media, will be activated in their sleeper cells with chants of “Yoruba ronu!” Another clown will come up with a “Christianisation” agenda to mobilise Muslims who might have become disillusioned with a Muslim-Muslim presidency. Even though the present administration would not have done anything significant for Muslims, they will still stir religion by reminding Muslims of the possible loss of the presidency in which they at least get to claim some symbolic power.

As the invigorated partisans herd out to vote, guess what nobody will give a hoot about? Yup, the ideals of national unity despite diverse “tribes and tongues.” The utopic vision of a “nation where no man is oppressed” and where “peace and plenty” will one day exist will be distant in our minds. The next time you hear it will be during the swearing-in where it will be, once again, trotted out as another meaningless rite of nationhood; the things we are expected to mindlessly repeat like a digital voice assistant but which we would be dupes to believe. If those who brought back the anthem had truly believed the national anthem could potentially configure cohesive nationhood, they would have approached the whole exercise far more thoughtfully. They were shoddy because they—like most of us who will now be unfortunately subjected to mouthing meaningless words—are seriously cynical about the whole Nigerian project.

5 June 2024: Lagos, Nigeria: Fidelity Bank Plc (“Fidelity Bank” or the “Bank”) has concluded all necessary arrangements to raise a total of up to ₦127,100,000,000.00 (One Hundred Twenty-Seven Billion, One Hundred Million Naira) by way of a Rights Issue to existing shareholders and a Public Offer (the “Combined Offer”). The Combined Offer is a part of the Bank’s strategy to increase its share capital base in compliance with the revised minimum capital requirements for Nigerian commercial banks introduced by the Central Bank of Nigeria (“CBN”) on 28 March 2024. Overall, the Bank expects that the capital raised would support the Bank’s efforts to drive sustained growth and diversification of its earnings base.

The Signing Ceremony with respect to the Combined Offer was held at the Board Room of the headquarters of Fidelity Bank in Lagos on Wednesday, 5 June 2024. The Bank's shareholders had already approved the Rights Issue and Public Offer at the Extra-Ordinary General Meeting held on Friday, 11 August 2023. Under the Rights Issue, 3,200,000,000 (Three Billion Two Hundred Million) ordinary shares of 50 kobo each will be offered in the ratio of 1 new ordinary share for every 10 ordinary shares held as of 05 January 2024, at ₦9.25 per share. For the Public Offer, 10,000,000,000 ordinary shares of 50 kobo each will be offered to the general investing public at ₦9.75 per share. 

Stanbic IBTC Capital is the Lead Issuing House to the Combined Offer, whilst the Joint Issuing Houses include Iron Global Markets Limited, Cowry Asset Management Limited, Afrinvest Capital Limited, FSL Securities Limited, Futureview Financial Services Limited, Iroko Capital Market Advisory Limited, Kairos Capital Limited and Planet Capital Limited. The Acceptance and Application lists for the Rights Issue and Public Offer are expected to open on Thursday, 20 June 2024 and close on Monday, 29 July 2024. 

At the Signing Ceremony, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Fidelity Bank PLC, Dr. Nneka Onyeali-Ikpe, disclosed that the proceeds of the Combined Offer will be applied towards investment in IT infrastructure, business and regional expansion, and investment in product distribution channels. 

The Chief Executive of Stanbic IBTC Capital, Oladele Sotubo, commended Fidelity Bank’s management team for their commitment towards executing the Combined Offer. He lauded their efforts for being at the forefront of achieving the CBN’s revised minimum capital requirements for Nigerian commercial banks. While thanking the Bank for trusting Stanbic IBTC Capital to lead and advise on this landmark transaction, Dele expressed confidence that the deal would encourage other corporates to tap into the equity capital markets to raise funding to meet their strategic business needs. 

The Rights Circular for the Issue, which contains a Provisional Allotment Letter and the Participation Form, will be mailed directly to shareholders of the Bank. Printed copies of the Public Offer Prospectus can be obtained at the offices of Fidelity Bank and the Issuing Houses during the Public Offer Application Period. 

All existing shareholders and prospective investors are encouraged to read the Rights Circular and Prospectus and, where in doubt, consult your Stockbroker, Fund/Portfolio Manager, Accountant, Banker, Solicitor, or any other professional adviser for guidance before subscribing.

-ends-

About Fidelity Bank Plc

Fidelity Bank Plc is a full-fledged commercial bank, operating primarily through branches and service centres located across Nigeria, with authorisation from the CBN to operate internationally through branches located in foreign countries. The Bank provides a range of banking and other financial services to over 8.3 million corporate and individual customers from 250 business offices in the country with a total asset base of ₦6.2 trillion, all as of 31 December 2023. The Bank also operates in the United Kingdom through its wholly-owned subsidiary, FidBank UK Limited, located in London.

Financial products and services offered by the Bank include granting of loans and advances, equipment leasing, corporate and trade finance operations, treasury and investment services, retail banking (including current and savings accounts, debit cards, ATM services, electronic banking, agency banking and retail lending), money market activities, private banking/wealth management services, foreign exchange services, funds transfer services, and bank guarantees.

The National Minimum Wage Act that came into force on 18 April 2019 prescribed a five-year review cycle. For that reason, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC) had the law on their side for the strike that paralysed the country on Monday. But even if some of us have issues with shutting down the national grid and closing the airspace, workers were not just seeking to fill a requirement of the law. The current socio-economic realities in Nigeria have rendered the N30,000 agreed upon in 2019 almost worthless. If living in extreme poverty, going by World Bank parameters, means living on less than $1.90 (almost N3000) per day, it is indeed very telling that few Nigerians can now afford what amounts to 10% of the current minimum wage. ‘Subsidy is gone’ and merging the exchange rates are at the heart of the inflationary crisis that is depleting incomes and savings, fuelling suffering and despair across the country. 

Today, millions of Nigerian families go to bed without any certainty as to where their next meal will come from. To compound their problem, prices of foodstuff are skyrocketing. Using a ‘cost of food basics’ analysis that compares the monthly minimum recommended spend on food per adult and average wage in 107 countries, a United Kingdom-based Institute of Development Studies, last year placed Nigeria as the second poorest country in the world in terms of food affordability. We don’t even have to seek external validation for the current suffering by most Nigerians. A recent and more comprehensive report on poverty by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) estimated that 133 million Nigerians were multi-dimensionally poor based on four indicators: food security, healthcare, education, and work.

With no conscious effort to cut down on the money spent on frills by political office holders at all levels, it is difficult to tell Labour that there is no money to pay whatever they demand as the minimum wage for workers. President Bola Tinubu, for instance, has a bloated cabinet of 45 ministers and the two budgets he has put forward in the past one year do not inspire anybody to believe he understands the gravity of the situation in the country. In the absence of concrete measures to tame food inflation, the obsession with all manner of revenue generating gambits that further pauperize the people makes it difficult to sympathise with the government. But there are still pertinent issues on minimum wage that should not be glossed over by critical stakeholders. An historical context may be important here.

In 1981, a minimum wage of N125 was agreed upon. Given the exchange rate at the time ($1.48 to a Naira), that translated to about $185 per month. Ten years later in 1991, the minimum wage was increased to N250. Going by the exchange rate of 8 Naira to a dollar at the time, that amounted to about $30. But that did not tell the whole story. As a National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) member in 1989/90, my monthly ‘allawee’ was N250 per month. Not only was it enough for my upkeep but I still had savings. That speaks to the Cost-of-Living Index (COLI) in the country and the purchasing power of the Naira at the time. In 2000 when the minimum wage was pegged at N5,500, the exchange rate was N84 to a dollar. Eleven years later in 2011, when the minimum wage was jarked up to N18,000, the exchange rate was N155 to a dollar. In 2019 when the new minimum wage became N30,000, the exchange rate was N305 to a dollar, but the COLI had started to go haywire. With the same exchange rate now about N1500 to a dollar, we can do the arithmetic to understand how hard things have become for the average Nigerian worker.

But what most people don’t understand is that the minimum wage is not about just government workers. It is meant for all workers in the formal sector except those on part time employment, or establishments with less than 25 persons. In a survey report titled ‘Labour Force Statistics’, released in February, the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) revealed that about 92.3 percent of Nigerian workers are in informal employment as at the third quarter of 2023. The implication is that Labour is fighting for a tiny minority with their fixation on federal workers. So, this conversation is narrow and counterproductive.

Last week, the Organised Private Sector of Nigeria (OPSN) defended the initial N60,000 on offer by the federal government. “While it is important to note that socio-economic conditions over the years have rendered the N30,000 minimum wage inadequate, the same conditions have incapacitated many businesses, fatally affecting their sustainability and ability to pay,” according to the Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) and OPSN spokesperson on the minimum wage negotiation, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde.

The OPSN is made up of the Manufacturers’ Association of Nigeria (MAN), National Association of Chambers of Commerce, Industries, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), National Association of Small Scale Industries (NASME) and National Association of Small Scale Industrialists (NASSI) and NECA. “The offer of N60,000, which is a 100 per cent increase in the current national minimum wage was sacrificial on the part of the organised private sector,” said Oyerinde who harped on the need to protect jobs and ensure sustained growth in the economy. “The demand by organised labour at this period has the potential to cripple small and medium enterprises and push many other businesses into comatose.”

To understand our national dilemma, here are facts that should compel sobriety. As of June 1980 (44 years ago), a barrel of oil was selling for $37.24 and we were pumping 2.2 million barrels into the international market daily. The population of the country at that time was 73.44 million. Today, the price of oil is $85, and we are pumping roughly 1.3 million barrels a day. Several times in recent years we were pumping less than a million barrels per day. The implication is that while our population (currently estimated to be 229,152,217) has more than tripled, our earnings have not changed because we still rely on oil to run our economy. And with a penchant by succeeding administrations to create bubble jobs, we have almost five times the number of workers in the public service today than we had at the time!

Meanwhile, the process by which the Ama Pepple-led national minimum wage tripartite committee arrived at the figure of N30,000 was perhaps the most rigorous of any such undertaking in recent years. When they began work in December 2018, labour was demanding N66,500 per month while the organised private sector proposed N25,000. Incidentally, of the six governors, each representing a geo-political zone, that were in the committee, only Abubakar Bagudu, then governor of Kebbi, who represented the North-west, took the assignment seriously by attending the sessions. Bagudu is now Minister of Budget and National Planning and is involved in the current negotiations. Aside the institutional memory that he brings to the table, Bagudu understands the economic dynamics at play. But he also knows that these issues go beyond what the federal government can offer its workers.

Shortly before he retired after 15 years of meritorious service as founding Director General of the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF), I sought to know from Mr Asishana Okauru the stand of governors on the minimum wage crisis. He gave me a highly revealing position paper prepared in January by the NGF secretariat. Market conditions, according to the NGF paper which relies heavily on figures from the NBS, “have become tougher amidst indications that the (federal) government did not have the fiscal headroom (the tripod of a robust external reserve balance, Excess Crude Account savings and revenue adequacy) to manage the fallouts of both policies (fuel subsidy removal and exchange rates merger) in the near term.”

Most countries, according to the NGF paper, set their national minimum wage “on the back of price movements such as inflation, cost of living, median earnings (average earnings of the middle half of earners) and the state of the economy.” With several graphs and charts, the paper then referenced the position of the International Labour Organisation (ILO) that “in many of these countries, except where collective agreements cover over 90% of employees, the coverage of collective bargaining as a norm for wage fixing is insufficient to provide protection of minimum standards to a broad majority of workers.” The NGF paper advocates for a decentralised minimum wage system. “This debate has risen in the context of broader economic and social concerns about income inequality, cost of living, labour market flexibility and the fiscal capacity of each state government. In other jurisdictions where this has been applied, two wages still exist, and the higher minimum wage usually applies.”

Citing examples from the United States and the United Kingdom, the NGF paper highlights where the government and Labour get the entire conversation about minimum wage wrong before delving into the challenge of the 36 states. Quoting NLC reports, the NGF paper admits that “many States are yet to implement the 2019 wage review, reflecting indications that they did not have the fiscal headroom to comply with the recommendations of the 2019 NMW review, and that they may not be in a good position to adopt another review in 2024.” The paper added, “In addition to the non-implementation of the 2019 NMW review, new governments still face the burden of legacy salary and pension arrears which had accumulated to N672.6 billion in 2021. It is unclear what the present value of these debts amounts to, but it is estimated at 10% of the total recurrent revenues of States.”

Fiscal reprieve expected from the removal of PMS subsidies has not been sufficient to accommodate a new minimum wage, according to the paper. “The upside of the Naira devaluation has been a sharp growth in exchange gain from dollar denominated revenues, but overall transfers to states have not significantly outperformed records in the first half of 2023. The smoothening of Federation Account transfers to the three tiers of government by fiscal authorities may be attributed to a posture of money supply tightening given the current level of inflation in the country.”

For many States, according to the paper, “it would be unrealistic to expect a full implementation of a wage adjustment in 2024” because current circumstances require additional measures, including “a budget review to identify non-essential expenditures that can be deferred or reduced, debt restructuring to free up the fiscal space, a wage freeze for selected personnel, phased implementation for the new NMW, and the introduction of social safety nets to provide a cushion for workers where job cuts are necessary.”

Given the state of the economy, the paper concludes, a new minimum wage will worsen employment outcomes in the public and private sectors – both in terms of current workforce retention and the potential to make new hires. “A wage hike may lead to higher prices for goods and services and exacerbate the cost-of-living crisis. This is particularly concerning for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), as they are more sensitive to production cost increases. Of those employed, the NBS puts the number of workers in wage employment at 12% while the remaining 88% are self-employed.”

Following the suspension of the strike by Labour on Tuesday, President Bola Ahmed Tinubu directed his Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister for the Economy, Olawale Edun, to come up with the cost implications of an affordable, sustainable and realistic new minimum wage. But we all know that Edun’s assignment is strictly limited to federal government workers. While the 2020 data on IPPIS Platform revealed that there were 696 Federal Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) with 1,139,633 workers, the Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Ben Akabueze, revealed last August that the federal government’s personnel cost had hit over N5 trillion, with 1.5 million workers on its payroll. Of course, we know that many of these would be ‘ghost workers’, but even at that, we are talking about far less than one percent of our population.

At a period, such as this, when most Nigerians are struggling to survive, it is difficult to fault the argument of Labour for a living wage. But outside the federal government that they can easily arm-twist with the shutdown of the national grid, they cannot enforce anything with the states or private sector. This, of course, is not an argument against minimum wage. It is to point out that no matter what Labour agrees with the federal government this week, most workers in the country will not earn it, and at the end, the people could be worse off. 

What the situation in Nigeria today demands is a comprehensive and bold economic policy that increases our productivity and helps create jobs for our young people. That cannot be done when you take one step forward and three steps backwards, as is now the case in Abuja. “At current rates, expenditure on fuel subsidy is projected to reach N5.4trillion by the end of 2024. This compares unfavourably with N3.6 trillion in 2023 and N2.0 trillion in 2022,” according to the latest Accelerated Stabilisation and Advancement Plan (ASAP) presented to the president by Edun which officially confirms that the ‘Subsidy is gone’ claim is audio, as they say on the street. We also need targeted social interventions that include population control. Subsidising healthcare and education as well as other welfare programmes for the most vulnerable of our society is equally important.

In essence, as much as we require a new national minimum wage law, nobody should be under any illusion that it is a solution to the challenge of daily living in today’s Nigeria.

Turning your pain into gain

  Your pain is becoming your testimony. You are being healed now! You are being located, rescued and restored. I said that you will not nurse those wounds again. You will no more pine away in that pain, hopelessness and regret. Our God specializes in turning wounds and pains into sweetness and greatness. Yes, pains, wounds and scars mark out generals. True. Show me a general and I will show you a man with scars and near-death experiences from battles.  Do you want to be great? Then you must be ready to accumulate scars, wounds, enemies, deprivations, betrayals and battle stars. Even Jesus went through them all. God gave him a name that is above all names in heaven, on earth and under the earth (the waters), but that was not without scars. He went through robbing, wounding, abandoning and ultimately was killed.  But he came back, rose again to become the sovereign, the indestructible, the immortal King of Kings and the Lord of lords. And today when you mention his name all things - principalities, powers, dominions, thrones, Satan, demons, situations, diseases, occult masters, and satanic agents bow. No scars no authority! In fact, the bible said that his wounds brought us healing - spiritually, emotionally and physically. And by his death, we have received life and victory! If he was not robbed, disgraced, bruised, betrayed and abandoned to die we would not have been saved and empowered today.

   Now, there are many in the bible that went through this experience, but we will just pick one or two because of time and space. Look at the hopelessness of the paralyzed man that was abandoned at the Pool of Bethesda. His good health was taken away. He could not walk or help himself and he did not have anybody to help. Even when he lay near the solution, there was nobody to rush him into the water when it was stirred by the visiting angel. And he was in this situation for 38 years. He was virtually left there to die. So he also had no friends or relations?  My God! Yes, friends and relations have a limit to what they can do for you at the time of trial. Don’t put your hope on people, trust God. Don’t trust things, rely on the creator. He is the one that will stay with you when everything has failed. He will stand with you when everyone is gone. The main problem of this man was that he had nobody to help him. As his situation got worse and complicated, everybody deserted him. Nobody, unless a God-sent will stand with you in such condition for 38 years. Nobody! Just few weeks every sympathizer is gone. And few more months, your relations and best friends will gradually start distancing from you. Only your children and a godly spouse, I repeat, a godly spouse will hang on with you when it gets too tough and too long. But I doubt if our friend here had kids and wife. Or they also abandoned him and vamoosed because it happens. It’s possible. Haven’t you seen such before? Human beings are unreliable and unpredictable. May you not over stay in that trial in the name of Jesus!