Employees
Zimbabwe authorises Sputnik V, Sinovac vaccines for emergency use
Zimbabwe has authorised the emergency use of four Covid-19 vaccines, including Russia’s Sputnik V and China’s Sinovac, the minister of information said on Tuesday. The southern African nation last month rolled out its Covid-19 vaccination programme after receiving a donation of 200 000 doses of shots from China National Pharmaceutical Group (Sinopharm). Last week, India announced that Zimbabwe had become the first African country to authorise the use of its Covaxin vaccine. The Medicines Control Authority of Zimbabwe has authorised the use of Sinopharm and Sinovac shots from China, Russia’s Sputnik V and India’s Covaxin, the information minister Monica Mutsvangwa said in a post-Cabinet briefing. “All Covid-19 approved vaccines will be procured through the National Vaccine Procurement Fund ...
Ex-VP Namadi Sambo advocates shift in Nigerian educational system
Reuters Former Vice President Namadi Sambo has advocated for a dynamic approach of the Nigerian educational system to produce employees with skills and ability to handle complex jobs and create opportunities for others. Sambo made the call in his goodwill message at the 22nd Matriculation of Igbinedion University, Okada, on Saturday in Edo. The former vice president noted that it was the best time for the country to refocus from one size-fits-all approach that creates employees that are not fit for complex jobs. According to him, Nigerian universities must refocus on building of graduates that will create and end poverty among the people and ultimately close the wide social inequality and promote social coefficient in the communities. “As a nation, we must focus our educational system to o...
Nigerian lady convicted in US for online fraud
Oyindamola Akinrinola, 23, a Nigerian resident of Lawrence, Kansas, has pleaded guilty in federal court for her role in online fraud schemes that targeted victims in the United States. U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister announced her conviction Monday night, saying she will now face time in federal prison for her crime. “Akinrinola and her co-conspirator in Nigeria victimised individuals, several elderly, through a variety of online scams,” he said. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to prioritise the investigation and prosecution of fraud schemes like these, no matter where they originate. “I also take this conviction as an opportunity to reiterate to all Kansans the vulnerability of our senior citizens to scams and con artists, who prey upon them. “We must all be v...
Nigerian lady convicted in US for online fraud
Oyindamola Akinrinola, 23, a Nigerian resident of Lawrence, Kansas, has pleaded guilty in federal court for her role in online fraud schemes that targeted victims in the United States. U.S. Attorney Stephen McAllister announced her conviction Monday night, saying she will now face time in federal prison for her crime. “Akinrinola and her co-conspirator in Nigeria victimised individuals, several elderly, through a variety of online scams,” he said. “We will continue to work with our law enforcement partners to prioritise the investigation and prosecution of fraud schemes like these, no matter where they originate. “I also take this conviction as an opportunity to reiterate to all Kansans the vulnerability of our senior citizens to scams and con artists, who prey upon them. “We must all be v...
How ICPC is combating corruption in MDAs, stopped diversion of N189 billion personnel cost
File Photo In the past few years, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other-Related Offences Commission, as part of its statutory mandate, has been conducting systems study and review of ministries and organisations in the federal public service. The overall objective of a system review is reform of the systems and procedures of public agencies with a view to identifying and eliminating, preventing, blocking and obstructing opportunities for corruption. To achieve this, the exercise targets detecting areas of vulnerabilities, actual weaknesses, leakages and corruption risks and to recommend ways of strengthening these systems and removing the discretionary gaps and such opportunities for both individual and institutional malfeasance on public resources. In addition, the review also targe...
How ICPC is combating corruption in MDAs, stopped diversion of N189 billion personnel cost
File Photo In the past few years, the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other-Related Offences Commission, as part of its statutory mandate, has been conducting systems study and review of ministries and organisations in the federal public service. The overall objective of a system review is reform of the systems and procedures of public agencies with a view to identifying and eliminating, preventing, blocking and obstructing opportunities for corruption. To achieve this, the exercise targets detecting areas of vulnerabilities, actual weaknesses, leakages and corruption risks and to recommend ways of strengthening these systems and removing the discretionary gaps and such opportunities for both individual and institutional malfeasance on public resources. In addition, the review also targe...
Lagos chamber projects positive economic recovery by Q2
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI) has projected a return to positive growth path for the Nigerian economy in the second quarter of 2021. Mrs Toki Mabogunje, President, LCCI, addressing journalists at the first edition of the chamber’s quarterly news conference, said the projection was subject to the absence of major economic shocks. Mabogunje, however, said that the projected recovery was expected to be subdued within the region of one per cent. “Projections by the World Bank and the International Monetary Fund put Nigeria’s annual average growth for year 2021 at 1.1 per cent and 1.5 per cent, respectively. “Expectation of slow growth momentum reflects the lingering effects of the pandemic on the Nigerian economy and prospects of stricter containment measures considering th...
2021: Banks to walk a tightrope amid low revenue environment
Nigeria’s deposit money banks (DMBs) must brace up for the challenge of 2021 that might tax their resolve to remain in business. Reason: the industry is faced with a tougher operating environment that could threaten the operators’ ability to meet their stakeholders’ needs and expectations yet perform meaningful corporate social responsibility roles. Their valuable customers such as high net-worth individuals, corporate bodies and other institutions are equally challenged. In his book, Business Stripped Bare, celebrated iconic entrepreneur and founder of the Virgin Group, Richard Branson, says, “without trustworthy banks, there can be no business, no employment, no money. According to Branson, “People have got to be able to go to bed at night secure in the knowledge that the money they depo...
Pinterest overhauls harassment policy following discrimination complaints
A five-month investigation into Pinterest’s company culture published on Wednesday recommends broad changes to how the firm handles workplace conflicts, including harassment and retaliation. Produced by the law firm WilmerHale, the report details how the company can improve its workplace conditions and prevent discrimination, specifically recommending the creation of an internal ombudsman’s office that can field employee complaints. The law firm spoke with 350 current and former Pinterest employees over the course of its five-month investigation. Pinterest’s board has already unanimously voted to adopt the recommendations, which were shared with employees on Wednesday and posted publicly on the company’s website. In recent months, a number of Pinterest employees have come forward with comp...
ExxonMobil staff killed, others wounded in gas flaring accident
File Photo Fire explosion from a gas flaring operation at the Qua Iboe Terminal (QIT) process area at ExxonMobil facility in Ibeno local government area, Akwa Ibom State has allegedly killed some staff of the company and left others wounded. It was gathered that the incident happened on Sunday, December 13, 2020, when the victims were about to light up the gas flaring plant. Sources who preferred to remain unnamed said one of the victims who was killed was a supervisor working at the facility’s processing area, while another supervisor injured by the explosion had been rushed to an undisclosed hospital in the state. He said it was possible that the victims who were to turn on the plant shut for maintenance purposes, flouted all safety procedures that would have averted the explosion. “Two ...
U.S. sanctions Turkey over purchase of Russian defense system
The United States imposed long-anticipated sanctions on Turkey on Monday over Ankara’s acquisition of the Russian S-400 air defense systems, further complicating already strained ties between the two NATO allies. Turkey condemned the sanctions as a “grave mistake” and urged Washington to revise its “unjust decision.” Senior U.S. officials said in a call with reporters that Ankara’s purchase of the S-400s and its refusal to reverse its decision left the United States with no other choice. The sanctions, first reported by Reuters last week, target Turkey’s top defence procurement and development body Presidency of Defence Industries, its chairman Ismail Demir and three other employees. While limited to one company, they are still likely to weigh on the Turkish economy, analysts said, at a ti...
CIBN urges banks to strengthen cyber-security
The Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN) has urged the banks to strengthen their cyber-security architecture in order to prevent attacks by fraudsters. President/Chairman of Council of the institute, Mr. Bayo Olugbemi, made the call while delivering his remarks at the 2020 CIBN Fellowship Investiture in Lagos, at the weekend. The CIBN at its investiture formally conferred its honorary fellowship awards on 19 distinguished bankers in recognition of their contributions to the banking industry and the economy; 77 associates as elected Fellows while 105 senior management staff of banks and the academia became Honorary Senior Members of the institute at the event with the theme: ‘Financial Services in a post COVID 19 Environment: Strategic Imperative’. Some that were conferred with ...
