INEC to distribute PVCs in FCT on Monday, warns against collection by proxy
The Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) on Friday warned FCT residents against collection of their Permanent Voter Cards (PVCs) by proxy, as distribution begins Monday, Dec. 12.
Yahaya Bello, Resident Electoral Commissioner, INEC-FCT, stated at a news conference on PVC collection in Abuja that INEC offices would open at 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. daily.
Bello said that the conference was needed so that the commission could brief the public about its upcoming activities, which are lined up primarily to update the national register of voters.
“Having successfully conducted the nationwide display of the preliminary voters’ register, the commission has approved the collection of PVCs from December 12 to January 22, 2023.
“This exercise will be done at the Local Government Area offices nationwide.
“The commission also resolved to devolve PVC collection to the 8,809 registration areas/wards from Friday, January 6 to Sunday, January 15, 2023.
“Those that are unable to collect their PVCs at the wards during that time can do so at the Area Councils from January 15 to January 22, 2023,’’ he said.
Read also: INEC laments 160,966 uncollected PVCs in Kogi
NAICOM revises guidelines on Bancassurance
The National Insurance Commission (NAICOM) issued revised guidelines for Bancassurance on Friday.
Jide Orimolade, chairman of the media subcommittee of the Insurance Industry Committee (IIC), said this at a news briefing at the end of the 13th IIC meeting in Lagos.
Orimolade, who is also Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Stanbic IBTC Insurance, explained that the new guidelines would allow insurance companies to partner with many banks rather than dealing with only one bank at a time.
“This would disable exclusivity, which is also in line with the Central Bank of Nigeria’s regulation that prescribes that a commercial bank cannot propose the product of only the insurance company they were partnering with to a consumer.
“Banks are expected to also present products from other insurance companies as well,” he said.
According to him, the new guidelines were laudable and would ensure fair play by operators in the insurance market. This is according to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).
Port concession: FG not owing sacked dockworkers – Sambo
Mu’azu Sambo, the minister of transportation, denied claims that the Federal Government owed dockworkers sacked due to port concessions in 2006.
Sambo stated this at the 34th Maritime Reporters’ Association of Nigeria (MARAN) Anniversary and Awards, which took place on Friday in Lagos.
The anniversary, themed “16 Years of Port Concession: The Pains and the Gains,” was an opportunity for the federal government to update stakeholders with its achievements in the sector and present the current challenges being faced and what the government is doing to overcome such challenges.
He said that the only group of people that were not paid then were those working in the private sector but were given severance packages.
Sambo also stressed that the Federal Government would remain committed to policies that would drive growth and development of the Port Community System.
“The government is embarking on many projects to help the maritime industry, including the Deep Blue Project, which will ensure the cost of importing cargo into the country is reduced.
“For the Lekki Deep Port, there is no reason why we should have a replica of Apapa Port there, and so I have instructed the Nigerian Ports Authority to ensure no movement of cargo by road,” he said.
FTX founder Bankman-Fried to testify before U.S. House panel
FTX’s Sam Bankman-Fried said on Friday that he is set to testify before a U.S. House committee on Tuesday, as regulators investigate his role in the wake of its collapse.
Maxine Waters, the chair of the House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services, told Reuters on Thursday that she was prepared to subpoena Bankman-Fried if he did not agree to appear before the panel, which is holding a hearing as part of its probe into FTX.
In a statement late Friday, the panel said it would hear from newly appointed FTX CEO John Ray and from Bankman-Fried, FTX’s founder and former CEO, on Tuesday.
“I still do not have access to much of my data, professional or personal. So there is a limit to what I will be able to say, and I won’t be as helpful as I’d like,” Bankman-Fried tweeted on Friday.
“But as the committee still thinks it would be useful, I am willing to testify on the 13th,” he added.
Crude oil price falls below $71
West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude futures fell below $71 per barrel on Friday, the lowest in a year, owing to the role played by most advanced economies in the global recession.
Added to the fears of the recession affecting demand for oil, the COVID-19 infections in China are set to rise as some restrictions are being relaxed, depressing economic growth in the second largest economy in the world.
On the supply side, the recent shutdown of the Keystone pipeline in Alberta, USA, added to the fears of an uncertain supply outlook.
Investors are also assessing the impact of the latest sanctions on Russian oil and the G7 price cap with Russian President Vladimir Putin.
OPEC+ have also decided to stick to their existing policy of reducing oil output by 2 million barrels a day from November through 2023.
