By Tony Obiechina, Abuja

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has approved sale of foreign exchange worth $20,000 to eligible Bureau De Change operators in the country.

Acting Director of Trade and Exchange Department, Dr W. J. Kanya disclosed this in a statement yesterday.

The statement said the sale will assist operators meet retail market demand for eligible invisible transactions.

The announcement comes hours after the Nigerian naira dropped in value against the dollar to N1,658.

Several parallel market bureau de change operators sold at the rate of N1670/dollar.

The statement reads, “This is to inform the Bureau De Change Operators and the general public that the CBN will be providing additional liquidity to this segment of the foreign exchange market.

“To this end, the CBN has approved the sale of US$20,000.00 to each eligible BDC at the rate of N1,590/$. This is to meet the demand for invisible transactions.”

The apex bank however warned that operators must not sell above one percent of the purchase rate, stressing that the BDCs cannot make more than N15.59 profit on each dollar they sell to their customers.

The intervention will on the long run meet the demand for invisible transactions and curb the widening exchange rate premium observed in the parallel market.

“All BDCs are allowed to sell to eligible end-users at a margin of NOT MORE THAN one percent above the purchase rate from CBN.

“Eligible BDCs interested in this transaction are directed to make the Naira payment to the CBN Deposit Account Numbers with them.“Also, payment confirmation and all necessary documentation for disbursement are to be submitted at the appropriate CBN branches (Abuja, Awka, Kano, and Lagos) for collection of the $20,000.00. Please be guided accordingly,” the statement added.

By David Torough, Abuja

Kwara State High Court has sentenced five persons to death for armed robbery.

The five convicts were found guilty of illegal possession of firearms, armed robbery, and culpable homicide by Justice Haleemah Salman of the Kwara State High Court.

They attacked five banks in Offa Local Government Area in 2018 leaving no fewer than 32 people dead, including nine police officers, two of whom were women.

The convicts are: Ayoade Akinnibosun, Azeez Salahudeen, Niyi Ogundiran, Ibikunle Ogunleye, and Adeola Abraham.

The sixth suspect, Michael Adikwu, a retired police officer died in custody before the trial commenced.

Justice Salman handed down the death sentence after a six-year trial that drew widespread attention.

The convicts faced a five-count charge including conspiracy, culpable homicide, illegal possession of firearms, and armed robbery.

Delivering her judgment, which spanned over four hours, Justice Salman found the accused guilty of robbing and killing innocent citizens.

She sentenced them to death by hanging for their roles in the crime.

The court also imposed a three-year prison sentence on the convicts for illegal possession of firearms in line with Nigeria’s penal code.

The judge said, “The convicts acted contrary to the law and allowed their connections with those in power at the time to lead them astray.”

The lead prosecution counsel, Rotimi Jacobs (SAN) expressed satisfaction with the verdict, commending the judge for her thoroughness despite the numerous distractions that prolonged the trial.

On the other hand, defence counsel Abdullah Jimba, who represented Mr. Mathias Emeribe acknowledged that the judgment was expected.

He noted that his principal was already compiling the necessary documents for an appeal.

By Daniel Amasingha, Abuja

Governor Mohammed Umaru Bago of Niger State yesterday raised the alarm over the high number of lives lost to boat mishaps.

In the last three years, water accidents claimed 182 two casualties.

Bago represented by his deputy, Yakubu Garba stated this at the headquarters of Hydroelectric Power Producing Areas Development Commission (HYPPADEC) in Minna.

The event was the 2024 World Maritime Day and distribution of 33 fibre glass boats to benefiting states.

He commended HYPPADEC for the gesture noting that it will go a long way to ameliorate the suffering of communities in riverine areas of the affected states.

According to him, the state government is committed to ensuring that the inland water ways of the states are safe for water transportation all year round.

“The huge number of loss we have incurred as a result of boat mishaps in the State is unacceptable

“From the available data, the state lost a total of 95 lives in 2022, 68 lives in 2023 and so far this year [2024] 19 casualties have been recorded.

“No life is worthy more than the other. We should all walk the talk to halt the menace,” he noted.

Speaking earlier, the Managing Director of HYPPADEC, Abubakar Sadiq Yelwa said the intervention agency decided on the occasion of the World Maritime Day which to commission fibre glass boats to be distributed to riverine communities along the rivers and lakes of hydroelectric dams across HYPPADEC member states.

On the theme for this year’s World Maritime Day – Navigating the Future: Safety First, he noted that it aligned perfectly with the vision of HYPPADEC.

He said since inception in 2021, the commission has been consistent in its efforts to improve the lives of the people in our member states.

“One of our primary goals has been to enhance marine transportation and mitigate the recurrence of boat mishaps, which have plagued these communities for many years.

“As many of you know, the majority of HYPPADEC communities are riverine, and for these communities, water transportation is not just a means of travel but the backbone of their daily life and commercial activities.

“Unfortunately, this reliance on the water transportation system has come with a heavy price as boat mishaps have equally become recurring issues in the areas.

“From the reports we have been receiving, the accidents were as a result of variety of factors, including the presence of tree logs/water snags, which obstruct the safe passage of boats, overloading, night travels as well as failure to use life jackets by the passengers on board,” Yelwa stated.

According to him, the commission’s finding reveals that the flow of the rivers is often affected by the operations of hydro dams, which complicate navigation for both commercial and private boat operators.

“We cannot forget the painful instances of boat accidents that have claimed lives and caused untold hardship in the communities neighboring the Kainji Lake between the vicinity of Shagunu of Borgu Emirate here in Niger State and Warrah of Yauri Emirate in Kebbi State.

“Recognising the dangers posed by water snags, we collaborated with NIWA to carry out a water snags clearing project.

“Together, we removed a considerable number of tree logs from parts of the Kainji and Shiroro Lakes, significantly reducing the likelihood of boat accidents caused by the snags.

 “We procured and distributed 10,000 life jackets to various communities across the N-HYPPADEC zone. These life jackets were meant to save lives during accident”

 The Managing Director explained that the commission decided to procure fibre glass boats instead of the traditional wooden boats because they are often prone to accidents.

  “They are more durable, safer and offer superior performance in navigating rivers. Unlike the wooden boats, the fiber glass boats are built to withstand the rigors of water travel.

“Even while they have the capacity of carrying 25 persons, they do not easily sink,” he said.Nine HYPPADEC states benefited from the boats distributed with Niger State getting eight, Kebbi six, Kwara and Kogi States receiving four each, Benue three, Nasarawa and Taraba two each and Kaduna one.