NIGERIAN NOTCH

  The International Air Transport Association (IATA), Wednesday revealed that present trends in air transport suggest passenger numbers could double to about 8.2 billion by The latest update to IATA’s 20-Year Air Passenger Forecast, shows that an increasing shift Eastwards in the centre of gravity of the industry is behind the continued strong growth.Over the next two decades, the forecast anticipates a 3.5 per cent Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR), leading to a doubling in passenger numbers from today’s levels.   Africa will grow by a CAGR of 4.6 per cent, while an extra of 199 million passengers will bring the total market available to Nigeria and other African airlines to 334 million passengers by 2037.   The association, however, warned that growth prospects for air transport, and the economic benefits driven by aviation, could be curtailed if protectionist measures are implemented by governments.   IATA’s Director General and Chief Executive Officer (CEO)

FOR the fourth time yesterday, the Senate passed the 2018 Electoral bill, retaining N5bn as expected maximum expenses to be spent by Presidential candidates on the platform of registered political parties for the most exalted position in the land. It also retained the maximum expenses for governorship position at N1billion but made an upward review of maximum expenses to be incurred by candidates running for senatorial seats from N100m to N250m. Similarly, it raised the expenses of those running for the House of Representatives seats to N100m from N70 million as amendments in clause 25 of the bill. Other clauses of the bill totaling 38, were adopted by the Senate as recommended by its committee on the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, headed by Senator Suleiman Nazif ( PDP Bauchi North). Nazif had in his lead debate on the bill last week, explained that clause 25 ,section 91 which stipulates limits of expenses to be incurred by candidates in the general elections,

A Federal High Court sitting in Lagos, Wednesday granted the immediate past Governor of Ekiti State Ayodele Fayose, bail sum of N50 million, bond, with one surety in like sum Justice Mojisola Olatoregun granted Fayose bail with two sureties in like sum, who must issue N50 million bond in a reputable bank as well as possess three years tax clearance. She also ordered that the former governor should deposit his International Passport with the court. The surety must possess three years tax clearance and must also secure a bond of N50million from a reputable bank which will be forfeited if Fayose jumps bail. Fayose was also ordered to swear to an affidavit not to tamper with the witnesses and should deposit his international passport with the chief Registrar of the court. Earlier, Kanu Agabi, Fayose’s lawyer, urged the court to grant bail to his client based on self-recognizance on the ground that he voluntarily submitted himself to the EFCC. But the commission opposed the bail r

With protesters, yesterday, laying siege to the national secretariat of the All Progressives Congress, APC, in support and denunciation of the party’s recent primaries, Governors Rotimi Akeredolu (Ondo) and Ibikunle Amosun (Ogun), yesterday, denounced new narratives allegedly spun to pitch them against President Muhammadu Buhari. The demonstrations took a different dimension when scores of female APC aspirants stormed the party’s national secretariat and accused the national leadership of the party of scamming them during the recently concluded primaries. The female protesters who threatened to go against the ruling party if concrete steps were not taken to reverse their situation, said even after being made to cough out millions for the purchase of forms, they were schemed out of participating in the primaries. However, a little respite came the way of the embattled National Chairman of the party, Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, as he, yesterday, received support from other party acti

A former governor of Old Kaduna State, Alhaji Balarabe Musa, on Monday urged Nigerians not to gamble with the idea of returning the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) and its candidate, Atiku Abubakar to power in 2019. Musa told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on telephone from Kaduna that the country would be worse off if the main opposition party was allowed to come back. He said the PDP had ruled the country for 16 years before 2015 and all they brought to Nigerians was misery and underdevelopment. Musa said that the opposition party almost completely ruined the economy with massive corruption and plunder while in power. The governor said though all is not well with the country under the present All Progressives Congress (APC)-led government, Nigerians should never risk having any hope in the PDP to make things better. Musa said that the PDP lacked the moral right to ask for a return to power, and a credible alternative was needed to turn things around in the coun

In another round of intervention, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), on Friday, injected over 337 million dollars in the Inter-Bank Foreign Exchange (Forex) market. The CBN also intervened to the tune of 53.44 million Chinese Yuan in the Spot and Short tenored forwards of the inter-bank foreign exchange market. The CBN spokesman, Mr Isaac Okorafor, in a statement in Abuja said that the move was in furtherance of the bank’s commitment to ensuring adequate liquidity and stability in the inter-bank foreign exchange market. The Bank had on Tuesday injected 210 million dollars in the Inter-Bank foreign exchange market. Meanwhile, the Naira maintained its steady rate against major currencies around the globe, exchanging for N362 to a dollar in the Bureau De Change segment of the market on Friday.