Business Moneyline P23
Business Interview P62
A partnership for transfer services
e unending investments potential in Nigeria .~
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urges action on rising food prices
Sterling Bank
'T1iE world faces a broader 1 trend of increasing food and commodity prices and more countries shoUld wake u!' to the need to curb price volatility, ~&i:t President. Robert
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In a phone interview from Berlin Zoellick called on G20 globa l leaders to "put food first" to tackle the surge in !,rices and increased volatility threatening the ~r and driving up inflation In developing countries, mainly in Asia. "We are going to be facing a broader trend of increasing commodity prices, including food commodity prices," he told Reuters. '1'his can put pressure but also create op!'ortunities," he
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Group Managing Director, Sterling Bank Pic, Vemi Adeola (left); Chairman, Alhaji Suleiman Adegunwa; and Comapny Secretary, Justina Lewa, at the bank's extra-ordinary general meetlng,ln lagos, last week.
How Nigeria can improve on N2.83tr tax'receipt, by IMF From Mathias Okwa, Abuja
rn'lE International Monetary lFund (IMF). has prescribed a roadma'p for diversification of Nigeria s economy, cuITently dominated by crude oil, which would ensure deeperdng of tax administration, among oth~ The Executive Chairman of the Fetlerallnland Revenue SeIVice (FIRS), Mrs. lfueko OmogulOkaru, had declared that her agenC)\lastyeaJ; raised N283 trillion from all categories of taxes
the backbone ofNigerta's economy and assured that the IMFwiIl be ready to assist Nigeria deliver on this charge. Mslska, who Is the IMFs former Technical Representative and Commissioner-General of the . lambianRevenueAuthority;was sharing his experiences In a Eper he delivered titled: Quantifying the compliance gap, effective Implementation of self-assessment system In
Tax administration is a dynamic area in which constant improvement is required in order to keep up with the ever changing face of the global economy, lastye;n;exceedingbyl3percent the settaIget ofN25 trillion, re~ resenting almost 30 per cent of the previous years collection of N2J97tril1ion. . She made the declarationatthis year's FIRS' Enlarged Management Meeting (EMM)- a forum for top management of
thetaxagenC)< But Mr. Berlin Mslska, the IMF representative at the meeting, said though the FIRS, under OmoguHlkaru, has undertaken some WOrthwhile refonns, leading to the increase of tax collection, it still needstoemploylatest strategies if taxes must become
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Court restrains NLC from picketing Union Bank By Dale FanImo and Collins 0IayInb MOVES by the Nigeria .Labour Congress (NLC) to Paralvse bus~ ness activities at the headquarters and branches of Union Bank of Nigeria Pic nationwide may not materialise after all Reason: The National Industrial Court, Sitting in Abu/a, has restrained the labour centre, Its affiliates and agents from disrupting the operations of the
bank. Besides, llade Union Congress
nuC) has faulted the call byNLC fur the removal of labour and Productivity Minister, Chier Chukwuemeka Wogu, from
office. In a suit no NlC/lAIOt/2an, the路 court granted an order of inter-
1m injunction restraining the (Defendant/Responaent) Nigeria labourCongress,directIy or Indirectly through its agents, privl~ amIlates representatives or any otller person(s) from canytng out Its threat as contained in Its letter ofjanuaryT7,2an, toUnion Bank pending the hearing and determination of the baIik's motion on notice dated januaI}'20, 2ou. The President of National Industrial Court, Justice 路BA Adejumo, having gone through the motion, the affidavit in support and affidavit of UIgenq\ reasoned that irreparable damage will be done to the bank as well as its numerous customers across the country if this order of interim relief was not grant-
ed. "I amof theviewthatthis Is one of the cases that the matter of urgency, balance' of convenience and quantum ofclaInaRe that may be suJrered are to 50 taken into consideration if jmr tice Is to be done to the parties", the judge ruled. The order alsci restrained NLC from obstructing or a t i n g any strike action or p' action against the baiIk, ing tlie /iearing and detennination of the OOnk's motion on . notice, adjourned to FebruaJy to,2ou. NLC, had at the .end of Its National' Executive Council (NEC) meeting, at the weekend in Ahuja, declared that it could no longer guarantee.the Impar- .
tiality of the MinIster in the crisis between Union Bank managementand the AssocIation of Senior Staff of Banks, Inswance and Finandal Institutions (ASSBlFI) affiliate ofNLC, as such, he should resign. Besides, the communique Issued and read by NLC President, Abdulwaheed 0maI; indicated that the congress doubted "the ability of the Minlstertodeliverjustlceinthe matter and as such, we would no longer be 路able to honour subsequent invitation to any meeting on the mattel:" The M.C NEC - in - sessinn urged the' management of UnlonBanktowithdrawtheletter de-recognising the lnbouse
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by increasing food production to meet rising global dem~nd. He said increased consumer demand, especially for sugar and meat, In fast-growing emerging economies was a major factor pushing prices higher compared with the 2007/2008 ensis. A mix of high oil and fuel prices, growing use of biofuels, bad weather and soaring