Africa Business News

The Department of State Services says it will begin a clampdown on agents of anarchy in various parts of the country.The spokesman, Peter Afunanyai in a statement says the service faulted those said to be creating instability through comments that threaten the sovereignty and corporate existence of the nation.It also condemned what it called the unnecessary vituperations and activities of some religious and past political leaders who have either called for a forceful change of government or mass action against it.The agency, however, says it was working with other security and law enforcement agencies to ensure the maintenance of peace and internal security in the country.

Nigeria’s Security forces have uncovered a plot by insurgents to infiltrate the nation’s capital, the Federal Capital Territory using tinted vehicles and covered plate numbers.The joint security task force, comprising the military, police, Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps and intelligence agencies, however, has intensified patrols and surveillance in and around Abuja.The investigation also revealed that the meetings of the joint security task force under the office of the Chief of Defence Staff, General Lucky Irabor, continued at the weekend.A statement by the command says while security forces sustained pre-emptive measures against any eventuality, the reported attack on FCT was a clash of cultists in Mpape, an outskirt of Abuja and not an attack by terrorists.

President Muhammadu Buhari and the President of the Senate, Dr Ahmad Lawan, have urged the media to express its freedom with responsibility.Buhari called for responsible press freedom among media professionals in the country and urged the media to purge itself of bad eggs, promising that the National Assembly won’t pass anti-press legislations.Buhari stressed the commitment of his administration to the freedom of the press.He, however, urged journalists to wield their freedom responsibly and without licentiousness.He says freedom of the press is a minimum feature of a democracy that would flourish, adding that freedom must be used responsibly.He charged those who manage government information to do everything in the public interest, while also encouraging the media to use the Freedom of Information Act to make its jobs easier.

Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas has postponed planned parliamentary elections next month amid a dispute over voting in Israeli-annexed East Jerusalem and splits in his Fatah party.Abbas blamed Israel for uncertainty about whether it would allow the legislative election to proceed in Jerusalem as well as in the occupied West Bank and Gaza on Friday.The decision came three months after he announced the first national elections in 15 years in what was widely seen as a response to criticism of the democratic legitimacy of Palestinian institutions, including his own presidency.

Former US President Donald Trump complained Thursday that an FBI raid on the New York apartment of his ex-personal lawyer Rudy Giuliani was so unfair.Federal investigators with search warrants combed Giuliani’s Manhattan residence and a separate office on Wednesday, seizing electronic devices as part of a probe into his dealings in Ukraine.Trump told Fox Business that Rudy Giuliani is a great patriot and loves the country.Giuliani, himself once a top New York prosecutor and then mayor of the city, was a personal lawyer for Trump when the president was impeached in December 2019 for seeking political help from Ukraine.

Kenya’s President Uhuru Kenyatta has sacked the entire board of directors of the country’s medical supplies agency that has been hit by a series of scandals.The Kenya Medical Supplies Authority's latest scandal involved supplying 24,000 doses of HIV drugs that had been phased out.Kenya stopped using Nevirapine in 2019 after patients suffered serious side effects.The agency is also part of the reason why more than 200,000 doses of anti-retroviral drugs are stuck in a warehouse in the coastal city of Mombasa, four months after being donated by the US.Last year, Kemsa was also implicated in the alleged misuse of millions of dollars meant for buying Covid-19 supplies.

Kenya says it has formally communicated to the UN refugee agency that it will close the Dadaab and Kakuma refugee camps on 30 June 2022.Interior Minister Fred Matiang'í says a team of officials from the government of Kenya and the UNHCR will fast track the process set to begin on 5 May 2022.The latest roadmap includes voluntary repatriation or issuing of free work or residence permits for refugees from the East African Community.The government in March gave the UN a two-week ultimatum to come up with a roadmap for the closure of the two camps, which host more than 400,000 refugees mostly from Somalia, South Sudan and the Democratic Republic of Congo.Principal Secretary Karanja Kibicho added that the decision to close Dadaab and Kakuma camps by 30 June 2022 is in the country’s public interest.

Ebonyi State Governor, Dave Umahi has issued a seven-day ultimatum to native doctors and traditional medicine dealers to register with government agencies or face arrest and prosecution.The governor says all Native Doctors and Traditional Medicine Dealers in the state shall register with the Commissioner of Police, Commissioner for Health and Commissioner for Internal Security and Border Peace, within 7 days as part of security measures in the state.The governor imposed a 10-hour curfew on the state’s entry and exit points, from 8:00 p.m. to 6:00 a.m., with defaulters facing an N1 million fine.Umahi also directed the security forces to bring those responsible for the deaths of a police officer and two soldiers to justice within 72 hours.

The Central Bank of Nigeria has announced new appointments in one of Nigeria’s commercial banks, First Bank of Nigeria PLC, and retained Dr Sola Adeduntan as the bank’s Managing Director.This comes a day after the bank announced the removal of Adeduntan and Gbenga Shobo as his successor.The CBN, however, queried the bank for the move on Thursday, saying that it did not notify it of the decision to remove Adeduntan who had yet to complete his tenure.The Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emefiele, told a news conference in Abuja that the board is vested with the authority to make changes in the management team subject to CBN approval.The CBN governor reassured the depositors, creditors and other stakeholders of the bank of its commitment to ensuring the stability of the financial system.

The Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant-General Ibrahim Attahiru has reiterated the commitment of the Nigerian Army in crushing Boko Haram terrorists in the northeast.The Army chief says there is no way troops would always claim victory over their enemies, as sometimes the opposite is the direction.He says they are committed to the focus of the entire operations which is the total annihilation of Boko Haram from Nigeria.The COAS says President Buhari is committed to providing them with the needed resources they would require to execute the fight against insurgency and other violent groups across Nigeria.