Headline

Senate, CBN Set To Clash Over Cash Withdrawal Policy

Published

3 years ago

December 13, 2022

Indications emerged on Tuesday that the Senate may have a running battle with the management of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, over the cash withdrawal limit policy of the apex bank.

Although the upper legislative chamber agreed to debate the latest policy on Wednesday, Senator Adamu Bulkachuwa (PDP Bauchi North), warned that the report of the Committee on Banking, Insurance, and Other Financial Institutions, chaired by Senator Uba Sani (APC Kaduna Central) must not be swept under the carpet.

This caused uneasy calm in the chamber, pointing to the fact that not many senators would agree to the cash withdrawal policy.

A member of the committee, Senator Olubunmi Adetunmbi (APC Ekiti North) had drew the attention of his colleagues to the absence of the panel chairman, who is the APC governorship candidate in Kaduna State from the chamber due to the North West zonal presidential campaign rally of the party in Kaduna.

Senator Adetunmbi said the chairman was billed to present the report of the screening exercise conducted for the two CBN Deputy Governor-nominees, Mrs Aishat Ahmad, and Mr. Edward Lametek Adamu.

Both Ahmad and Adamu were recently reappointed by President Muhammadu Buhari who requested the Senate’s screening and confirmation for their second and final tenure at the apex bank

Ahmad, who is the CBN Deputy Governor on Financial System Stability, had explained details of the policy to the panel during the screening last Friday when she and her colleague appeared for screening.

Details of the explanation given by the CBN chief was to be presented for debate, alongside the screening exercise on Tuesday by the senators.

However, Senator Adetunmbi said the debate could not take place because of the absence of the panel chairman.

He said: “Exactly a week ago the Senate resolved that the committee on banking and financial institutions should come forth today to report on the enquiries that it was mandated to make on the new policy of the Central Bank on the withdrawal limit.

“The committee was specifically mandated to interrogate these issues based on the concern that was expressed in the chamber, with the two deputy governors that were coming for clearance.

“This took place on Thursday last week. Two candidates came for clearance and the issues were thoroughly looked into, especially in the opening remarks of the chairman.

“He specifically reported that the Senate wanted the two deputy governors to elaborate on the rationale behind this policy in view of the massive public reaction to that policy.

“The deputy governors gave elaborate explanations and the committee also requested for further evidence in terms of documented reports that will enable the committee to fully understand the issues behind this policy during the plenary appropriately.

“Unfortunately, the report is not ready today because the chairman of the committee is busy on a political assignment; he is coming tomorrow to present the formal report of the committee.”

This explanation did not go down well with Senator Bulkachuwa, who said the fact that the panel didn’t submit its report should not stop the Senate debate on the CBN Nara withdrawal limit policy.

“We should not allow this thing to be swept under the carpet, it is a very serious issue and Nigerians are waiting to see what the Senate will do like the House or Representatives.

“The House of Representatives has asked the Governor of the Central Bank to stay action on this; leaving it till tomorrow is giving him another excuse and I urge this Senate to discuss this thing today,” he said.

The Senate President, Dr. Ahmad Lawan, ruled Senator Bulkachuwa out of order and insisted that the matter would be debated tomorrow (Wednesday).

He said: “I don’t think it is fair to say we are sweeping the matter under the carpet. To sweep something under the carpet in my understanding means to avoid it.

“Nobody here suggests by action or inaction that we are avoiding discussion on this matter.

“I think it is appropriate to give the Chairman of the Committee an opportunity to come and present his report personally and Senator Adetunmbi is a member of the Banking Committee.

“The Vice of the Committee who is the Chief Whip is here and they are all in attendance.

“They have something to tell us. The chairman wants to present the report himself and when he does that, we will be better informed and we can take appropriate action.

“Tomorrow is less than 24 hours by the grace of God., Please distinguished Senator Adamu Bulkachuwa, I want you to be present so that if there is anything that you want all of us to know even as all of us here feel strong about this.

“If we are going to debate it, let’s do that on the basis of information because that is when we can argue it and say no, stop it because of superior argument. So, let’s not doubt our sincerity here.”

Headline

92-year-old Convicted For 1967 Killing In UK’s Oldest Cases

Published

13 hours ago

June 30, 2025

Editor

A 92-year-old British man was convicted on Monday for a rape and murder committed nearly 60 years ago, in one of the UK’s longest-running cold cases.

Ryland Headley was found guilty by a UK court for raping and killing 75-year-old Louisa Dunne after breaking into her house in Bristol, southwest England in June 1967, when he was 34 years old.

It is “one of the oldest cold cases to ever be solved in the UK”, the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which brings criminal prosecutions, said.

Local police reopened the case in 2023 and matched DNA from the victim’s skirt and other items from the original probe to Headley, who had also served a prison sentence for raping two elderly women in 1977.

He is due to be sentenced by a judge at Bristol Crown Court on Tuesday.

During the initial investigation, police had found a left-hand palm print from Dunne’s home, where she was found dead from strangulation.

The palm print was compared to 19,000 men to no avail.

At the time, Headley was a railway worker who lived just outside the area in which men and boys were asked to give prints.

Reaching a dead-end, police sealed away forensic evidence for half a century. Both DNA testing and later Headley’s palm print resulted in matches.

When Headley was arrested at his home last November, he told detectives: “I don’t know what you are talking about. Very strange, very strange.”

“For 58 years, this appalling crime went unsolved and Ryland Headley, the man we now know is responsible, avoided justice,” said Charlotte Ream of the CPS.

Following the conviction, Dunne’s granddaughter Mary Dainton said her death had a “far-reaching impact throughout my family”.

“I was just 20-years-old when my grandmother died and I’m now almost the same age as she was when she was killed,” Dainton said outside court.

Police said they were now looking into other possible cold cases Headley could be linked to.

“Ryland Headley has now been convicted of three rapes of elderly women within their own addresses, and in the case of Louisa Dunne, her murder as well,” Dave Marchant of Avon and Somerset Police told the PA news agency.

“I think there’s every possibility that there are other offences out there – over the 60s, 70s, however long a time period – which Mr Headley could be culpable for.”

Headline

Hope Dashed As Norwegian Company Apologizes For ‘Mistakenly Telling’ Thousands They Won Big On Lottery

Published

14 hours ago

June 30, 2025

Editor

A Norwegian lottery company on Monday apologised to 47,000 crestfallen gamblers who were mistakenly told they had won huge sums in a lottery, the firm blaming a currency conversion error.

State-owned gambling group Norsk Tipping said they had published incorrect prize amounts after a Eurojackpot draw on Friday because of an error converting from euro cents to Norwegian kroner.

The winnings had been multiplied by 100 instead of being divided by 100, the company said.

Among the disappointed was Ole Fredrik Sveen, who was on holiday in Greece when he received a message from Norsk Tipping that he had won 1.2 million kroner ($119,000).

“I thought: ‘Wow, is it finally my turn? Could it be true?’ I go onto the Norsk Tipping website, and there it says in black and white: ‘Congratulations, you have won!’,” Sveen told public broadcaster NRK on Monday.

In reality, he had won 125 kroner ($12).

On Monday, Sveen and the 47,000 others received apologies by text message from Norsk Tipping for the snafu.

“The apology was a poor consolation. They should have sent it out after the mistake, not today,” he said.

The Lottery Authority said Monday it had launched a review to determine if gambling laws had been broken, and Culture Minister Lubna Jaffery called the error “totally unacceptable”.

The firm’s chief executive Tonje Sagstuen resigned on Saturday after the scandal, leaving acting chief executive Vegar Strand to apologise on Monday.

Strand said his company’s state ownership made the mistake particularly problematic, noting that the firm was “entirely dependent on the trust of the population”.

“We have deeply disappointed our customers and take full responsibility for rectifying the situation. Such errors are serious for a company that is supposed to manage the trust of Norwegians,” Strand said.

“The work to rebuild trust again has the highest priority going forward.”

AFP

Headline

Musk Renews Attack On Trump, Says ‘Big, Beautiful Bill Utterly Insane’

Published

14 hours ago

June 30, 2025

Editor

Tech entrepreneur Elon Musk has renewed his public criticism of United States President Donald Trump, taking aim at the administration’s controversial “Big, Beautiful Bill,” which recently cleared a critical hurdle in the Senate, TIMES reported.

In a post on X on Saturday, Musk denounced the 940-page legislative package as economically harmful, claiming it would severely damage emerging industries while supporting outdated sectors.

“The latest Senate draft bill will destroy millions of jobs in America and cause immense strategic harm to our country,” he wrote to his more than 220 million followers.

He further described the legislation as “utterly insane and destructive.”

The senate narrowly voted 51–49 to advance the bill on Saturday night, following extended negotiations among Republicans. Vice President J.D Vance was present to cast a tie-breaking vote, though it was ultimately not required.

Musk, who once served as head of the Department of Government Efficiency under Trump, left the administration after a high-profile fallout and has since emerged as one of the bill’s fiercest opponents.

He described the measure as “political suicide” for Republicans and warned that it would raise the national debt ceiling by $5 trillion — the largest such increase in US history. “America is in the fast lane to debt slavery,” he added.

Responding in an interview aired Sunday on Fox News Sunday Morning Futures, Trump attempted to defuse the tension. “I haven’t spoken to him much, but I think Elon is a wonderful guy,” he said. Trump also suggested Musk’s frustration stemmed from disagreements over recent changes to electric vehicle mandates.

Musk’s opposition to the bill is not new. Earlier in June, he urged Americans to contact their representatives, calling the legislation a “massive, outrageous, pork-filled Congressional spending bill.”

Despite the bill’s advancement in the Senate, it faces continued resistance. Senate Democrats have slowed proceedings by demanding the entire bill be read aloud in protest.

“If Senate Republicans won’t tell the American people what’s in this bill, then Democrats are going to force this chamber to read it from start to finish,” said Senate Democratic Leader Chuck Schumer