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Emefiele: The Baffling Audacity of A Partisan Central Bank Governor

By
Samuel Nwite
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0

The governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele, on Monday filed a lawsuit in the Abuja division of the federal high court, seeking legal backing to run for the office of the president while he remains at the helm of the apex bank.

The development, which confirms what a large section of Nigerians have believed about Emefiele, is said to be the latest among many impunity-characterized incidents of Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.

Last month, when Emefiele’s presidential campaign posters and branded vehicles trended online, it was a cause of worry for many though not surprising. Emefiele is largely seen as a political central bank governor, using the office to do dirty works for the ruling All Progressive Congress (APC). It is a belief backed by his reaction toward socio-political issues in Nigeria – the most prominent of them is the End SARS protest.

Two years ago, Nigerian youths took to the streets asking for the disbandment of the Special Anti-robbery Squad, a police unit that specialized in armed robbery cases but eventually turned rogue – maiming, robbing and killing the very people that it was designed to protect. The protest, which eventually became a movement, garnering international momentum, was the most organized and successful in Nigeria’s history. President Buhari, who is said to be always paranoid due to the coup d’etat in the skills part of his resume, felt his leadership position was being threatened and instigated institution-backed vendetta against the protesters.

Emefiele was very quick to do it. He illegally ordered regulated financial institutions in Nigeria to freeze all known accounts of the organizers of the protest, forcing them to stick to cryptocurrency, before he went to court to get a legal backing with the claim that the frozen financial accounts are being used to sponsor terrorism. Emefiele was way out of line, he has no jurisdiction to freeze people’s accounts for engaging in a peaceful protest – after all, Nigeria is a democratic country, legal experts said.

So in March, when the CBN governor was spotted at the APC’s national convention, it became a further credence to everything political that people believe him to be. Emefiele’s partisanship is believed to be the major reason for Nigeria’s two digit inflation which has resulted in the naira’s free fall – losing about its N160/$1 pre-2015 position to the current nearly N600/$1. He has been repeatedly accused of leaving his job as the central bank governor to play politics to the detriment of the monetary policy and Nigeria’s economy as a whole.

As of January 2022, the CBN has printed and lent to the federal government a whopping sum of N18.16 trillion, according to data on its website. This means that the central bank has ignored the CBN Act, which prohibits it from lending more than 5% of the federal government’s previous year’s revenue. To fight the inflation emanating from this, the apex bank has been converting the fund to long term loans and raising interest rates on SMEs.

This, like many other decisions and steps taken by Emefiele, is believed to be in the interest of the ruling party. Thus, when the report emerged that a group of farmers has purchased the N100 million APC’s presidential form for Emefiele, the pointer blinked toward the farmers’ loan scheme.

The CBN has given out billions of naira in loans to farmers under its Anchor Borrowers Programme designed to boost food security, Most of the farmers have defaulted in the loan repayment, questioning the motive behind their decision to purchase N100 million form for Emefiele. But that does not overshadow the crux of the matter, which glares with reckless effrontery, and was laid bare as an increasing number of Nigerians asked for Emefiele’s resignation.

“Emefiele is now poking his fingers at us and our law. This is just beyond contemplation, reason, and logic that a sitting CBN Governor is not only a closet member of a political party, he’s actively taking part in a partisan contest in defiance of Section 1 (3) of the CBN Act, 2007 which secures the independence of CBN. Section 9 of the Act talks about the Governor having no other vocation than running the CBN. If this isn’t a vocation for politics, nothing is. Terrible,” Nigerian lawyer Abdul Mahmud said.

The audacity behind Emefiele’s decision to approach the court, “challenging the attempt to disqualify and exclude him from participating in the party’s presidential primaries scheduled to hold on about May 30 and June 1 2022,” is believed to have been borne from the knowledge that, for some reasons linked to quid pro quo, the Buhari’s administration lacks the political will to sack him as the CBN governor.

In 2014, when the former CBN governor Lamido Sanusi Lamido, towed the same path as Emefiele – meddling in political issues, though he had a better record managing Nigeria’s monetary policies, the then President, Goodluck Jonathan, didn’t hesitate to fire him.

Emefiele, through his lawyer, Mike Ezekhome, told the court that stopping him from participating in the primaries while at the helm of the central bank, will cause him “irreparable harm.” But where Nigerians see “irreparable harm” is in allowing Emefiele to remain the CBN governor while pursuing his political ambition.

The spokesman for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), told People’s Gazette that Emefiele’s political activities have become cause for concern.

“The strategic partnership between the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Independent National Electoral Commission, which enables the Commission to store its election sensitive materials with the CBN, has been in place for many years and beneficial in several ways.

“Indeed, there have been various reports that the CBN Governor is nursing an intention to run for the office of President… if and when he eventually does, the Commission [will] look at the implications and take a decision on what becomes of the long-standing strategic partnership with the CBN,” he said.

INEC stores sensitive electoral materials such as ballot papers and biometric equipment with the CBN – materials which would influence the results of elections if compromised.

Though the court has refused to give immediate answer to his prayer, adjourning decision on the matter till May 12, Emefiele, besides setting the unlawful precedent, is believed to have cast further stench on Nigeria’s dwindling economy by his actions.

“What is the Central Bank of Nigeria governor hiding? … Emefiele’s disqualification mustn’t end at the court. Foreign investors are watching the circus. Meffy [Emefiele] must leave the CBN to restore trust and confidence in the apex bank,” a Twitter user wrote.

More outrage has trailed the development as both legal and economic experts weigh in. A professor of Comparative Constitutional Law and Governance, Edoba Omoregie, said Emefiele should either resign to pursue his aspiration or be kicked out.

“Already, and rather unsurprisingly, local and international media have picked up the news of Emiefele’s reported interests and his unwise response to his linkage to partisan politics. It’s needless to say that his alleged aspiration while holding office as governor of the apex bank is a very weighty turn of events. It can potentially erode the confidence in the Nigerian monetary system, which is expected to be administered by non-partisan experts with the CBN governor as the dominant head of the team,” he stated.

“Consequently, I join other well-meaning Nigerians to call on Mr. Emiefele to resign his office as Governor of the CBN forthwith, to save the Nigerian economy from further erosion on account of his political partisanship, ” he added.

Participate In Tekedia Capital Special Active Deal Flow

By
Ndubuisi Ekekwe
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0

Join us at Tekedia Capital Syndicate for our active deal flow of two great. One of the startups processes N4 billion per month on GTV and is growing at a really fast rate (we supported it when it was processing just N5 million per month).

Another, since its launch in Sept 2021, has processed $11 million (we provided its first $15,000). These firms are available and you can own a piece of them. Pitch decks, Tekedia overview videos, etc, on these startups are in the Board.

New Syndicate members are invited; begin registration here 

The Second Coming of Goodluck Jonathan to Nigeria – My Dec 2020 Prediction

By
Ndubuisi Ekekwe
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0

In December 2020, I wrote, thus: “It seems some politically sagacious northern states’ governors in Nigeria’s ruling party, APC, want former President Goodluck Jonathan to be APC  presidential flagbearer in 2023, if Jonathan agrees to decamp from PDP to APC. Lol. That is really unfair as Ndubuisi Ekekwe has not even tasted any water in Aso Rock, and they are focusing on making more presidents out of former presidents. Haba Nigeria….Obasanjo, Buhari…and Jonathan.

It does not sound really crazy if you look at the permutation: Jonathan can only serve a single term. Period. And if that is the case, he is the only Southern Nigeria politician that would make it possible for many governors from the north to have a chance in 2027.”

This does not seem crazy as we read that some people have bought forms for Jonathan to run for president.  

In August 2021, I noted that Jonathan and Tinubu were the frontrunners in APC for president. But let me add that President Buhari can save these men these troubles (or some troubles) by calling and endorsing Ndubuisi Ekekwe!

Yes, irrespective of the campaigns for delegates, only Buhari and Buhari alone will determine the flagbearer. So, watch what he does in the coming days! The race is not open because it is possible Buhari has decided.

Buhari for APC is like Tinubu in Lagos State; Lord Lugard handed Lagos to Tinubu while Buhari got Nigeria for 2023!

I Challenge All The Politicians in Sokoto, Zamfara To Help The Kids

By
Ndubuisi Ekekwe
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1

“Students of public secondary schools of Sokoto and Zamfara will not be taking part in this year’s May/June diet of the West African Senior School Certificate Examination (WASSCE). The head of Nigeria’s office of the West African Examinations Council (WAEC), Patrick Areghan, who disclosed this on Monday, however, did not state the reasons for the exemption. But PREMIUM TIMES can report that the examination body refused to accept candidates from Zamfara State over an accumulated debt owed over the years”, writes Premium Times.

Yes, young people from Sokoto and Zamfara will not be writing WAEC because of fees. Yet, farmers in the state are mobilizing to buy a presidential nomination form for a governor of the central bank, as politicians from the areas pay millions of naira to purchase forms for different political offices.

First, I call the Minister of Education to step forward and help these kids. This is the 21st century, and Nigeria cannot allow these things to happen. He must work with the President and Finance Ministry to deduct the monthly allocations of Sokoto and Zamfara states and pay these debts to WAEC directly.

As that happens, I challenge politicians in Sokoto and Zamfara states to show leadership. There is no decency buying N100 million forms when young people in your state cannot even attempt WAEC because the states have been accumulating debts which resulted to a WAEC ban. With N100m, you can settle these debts and win an election which truly matters. That election is one for the future!

Reliable sources confirmed to this newspaper how the administration of the immediate past governor of the state, Abdulaziz Yari, owed the examination body accumulated fees for public school candidates sponsored for the examination.

But the state’s commissioner for education, Zainab Gummi, told our reporter on the phone that the issue is being addressed in the interest of the students and Nigeria as a whole.

How To Take Care Of Your Finances When Playing Online Casino Games

By
TI Partners
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0

Do you want to play casino games online? Nowadays, there are tons of opportunities to do this. You can simply hop onto a casino online pl website, make your deposit, and gamble away!

Even so, you need to be cautious about where you play and how much you gamble. Even when you play on popular sites like the Lemon casino, known to be safe and fair to players, you still need to keep track of what you spend.

Unless you are cautious with your finances, you can easily get carried away and lose more than you can afford to gamble. That’s exactly what this article will tell you – how to take care of your finances when you’re gambling at online casino sites.

Tip no. 1: Play Only at Secure Casinos

This should be your number one priority when you are gambling online. Unless you play at secure casino websites, you cannot expect your finances to be safe. It won’t matter how well you are handling your bankroll and your finances – shady websites are often attacked by criminals, and your banking details and money will be at risk.

For this reason, you need to first make sure that you are gambling on a safe casino website. Here are some tricks for determining if a site is good for you or not:

  • Read reliable reviews on casino websites to learn more about their offerings
  • Check the casino’s reputation with players
  • Check if the site has a license (this information is usually at the bottom of the landing page)
  • Go through the casino’s T&C before you start playing
  • Check if the website has a seal of approval from third-party regulation bodies like eCogra (this is not a prerequisite, but it’s definitely a plus)

Tip no. 2: Make Smaller Wagers on Games You Aren’t Familiar With

It doesn’t matter how long you’ve been gambling online – there are always some new games at online casinos. This is one of the biggest perks about playing online. On many sites, your choices for games will exceed thousands, so you can hardly know how to play all of the games offered.

Whenever you are starting a new game, make smaller wagers until you get familiar with the gameplay. This is especially important if you are on a lower budget. You wouldn’t want to run through your gambling budget before you even get a chance to familiarize yourself with the game.

Tip no. 3: Practice in Demo Version

Top-rated software developers always have a demo version of their games. This means that you can practice the games and see the real gameplay without having to invest money. The difference is that you cannot win money until you decide to gamble with real money. This is only used for entertainment purposes and to get some hands-on practice.

Demo versions of casino games can prove to be very useful. You can use them to learn how the games are played, form your own strategies, and have some fun even if you don’t have a lot to wager. Once you are ready, you can switch to the paid version of the game and start betting for real money.

Tip no. 4: Set Yourself a Time Limit

Gambling is an excellent form of entertainment, but it can also become an addiction. To avoid this from happening and minimize your spending, set yourself a time limit. Decide on how many hours per day or week you can spend on gambling – and respect your rule. This way, you won’t get carried away if you start winning big, or try to recoup your money if you are losing.

Tip no. 5: Set Yourself a Stop-Loss Limit

Let’s say that you are a big fan of gambling and spend a few hours on this every day. After all, online casinos give you the opportunity to play whenever you want without having to travel to a land-based casino. Still, if you want to prevent yourself from spending too much, you can set a stop-loss limit for yourself.

How does this work, you wonder?

This is very simple. Decide what portion of your finances you can use to gamble on a daily basis or whenever you play at a casino. If you can afford $20 or $50 per day, consider this your stop-loss limit. Even if you are on a winning streak or the game looks really fun, stop playing when you reach your limit. You will continue to do that later with tomorrow’s budget.

Tip no. 6: Create a Gambling Budget for Yourself

Speaking of budgets for gambling, you need to create one for yourself as soon as possible. This is strongly advised. If you want to keep track of your finances, you cannot just sit and start gambling whenever you feel like it. You can’t keep loading your e-wallet or spending money out of your credit card without considering other costs and obligations.

There’s one rule of thumb when it comes to smart gambling – never put capital at risk if you cannot afford it. The money you spend on gambling should be extra money and not funds you need for bills, everyday necessities, and your normal lifestyle.

The idea is to set aside a specific amount of cash that you can gamble in a day, a week, or a month. This is your bankroll, and it is important for two main reasons:

  • It helps you stop when you spend the amount of cash you have set aside for gambling
  • It shows you how to adjust your gambling level, what games to play, how much to bet, etc.

The budget you set should be based on your financial situation and how much you are prepared to lose. Yes, gambling can result in wins, even life-altering wins, but you should still be prepared in case you lose what you are wagering.

Instead of thinking how much you can win, think of how much you can afford to lose. To create a budget, invest between 2% and a maximum of 10% of the budget you have. You can adjust this range depending on your financial obligations and situation at the moment, but don’t go above it.

Spending more than you can afford is the number one cause for gambling addiction.

When we gamble more than we can afford to lose, that’s when problems occur. Even if you aren’t really addicted to gambling when this happens, you’ll still have many troubles trying to cover the expenses that you could have avoided in the first place.

https://www.pexels.com/photo/person-holding-100-us-dollar-banknotes-2068975/

Tip no. 7: Detach from Your Emotions

Gambling is all about entertainment. The adrenaline that comes with the idea of winning money is often making us too emotional. Not only is showing emotions bad for games like poker, but it can also cloud your judgment and overpower your wit.

When you gamble online, you will win and you will lose. Emotions can cause you to spend more than you can afford in both scenarios. If you start winning, you might be encouraged to gamble more money than you should, thinking that your lucky streak will never end. If you start losing, you might feel frustrated and tempted to keep gambling until you finally win, and lose a lot of money in the way.

If you want to protect your money as well as yourself, it’s important to look at this as a form of entertainment. Don’t get too emotional when gambling. After all, this is supposed to be a game where you are having fun, not your source of income.

Tip no. 8: Pace Yourself

This is especially important if you are on a limited budget. If you have a smaller budget, betting higher sums on a slot machine or your entire budget on a single hand of poker is not a smart idea. Yes, bigger bets result in higher wins, but if you lose, you won’t have more money for gambling.

The faster your pace in gambling, the more mistakes you’ll make. Some games require tons of thought, so it’s important to take your time when making your decisions. Also, if you spend big amounts on games like roulette and slot machines, you won’t have much time to gamble.

By reducing your gambling pace, you can maximize the time you spend gambling. You’ll get more chances at a win. For example, if you use smaller bets on slots, you’ll get more spins. This will allow you to increase your winnings gradually and, when you arrive to a point where you have more to gamble, you can switch to higher bets.

Tip no. 9: If You Can Afford It, Bet More

Those on a lower budget should pace themselves and make smaller bets. They should pick casinos that allow for small deposits and play low-deposit games like slots and roulette to be able to entertain themselves longer.

But, what happens if you have more money to gamble?

If your gambling budget is bigger, small bets should not be your priority. Players that are really financially stable usually choose to bet more, even the highest requested amount. This makes you eligible for the big jackpots that everyone likes, and the potential winnings are much bigger when you are making larger deposits.

Tip no. 10: Take Advantage of Casino Promotions

One of the greatest things about gambling online is that you can claim bonuses that aren’t available at land-based casinos. Some websites these days offer dozens of special offers starting with the welcome promotion to the large VIP perks.

Whenever you play online, go through the site’s promotions page and the terms and conditions to learn what you can claim and use to gamble. Bonuses and promotions are a great way to maximize the number of bets, get some free spins and credits, and gamble more with minimal financial risk.

However, before you claim a bonus of any kind, make sure that it is a legit, reasonable option. What does this mean?

It’s hard to think that, when you are given something for free and as a gift, it might not be smart to take that gift. Still, this is very true for many promotions online. Casinos give promotions to attract and reward their players, as well as convince them to keep gambling. But, they can’t give them out for free – at least not in most cases.

Most bonuses today will come with their wagering requirements, playthrough requirements, and other demands that you must meet to be able to claim, use and withdraw the bonus funds. Not all promotions are a smart idea.

For example, a casino can match your deposit up to a few thousand, which sounds amazing, right? This will prompt you to deposit $1000 upon signing up. But, what if that bonus comes with playthrough requirements of 200x? This means that you have to spend your deposit and the bonus amount 200 times before you can withdraw. Not only will this take forever, but it makes it very unlikely that you’ll end up with winnings after all that playing.

That being said, you should use the promotions you are given, but only when you are sure that they are worthy of your investment. Very often, bad promotions can convince you to wager more than you can afford, and the conditions they come with will make it impossible for you to win.

Some casinos have amazing bonuses to offer. You should not miss out on grand welcome promotions, no deposit bonuses, and match promotions with reasonable terms and conditions.

If you want to claim promotions, enjoy more gambling, and minimize your financial risk, there are a few things to look for when considering casino sites. These are:

  • Promotions that fit your gambling budget. Let’s say you’ve set a gambling budget for yourself of $200-$300 for this month. A promotion you came across requires a $500 deposit to be activated. Since this doesn’t fit into your budget, you should not be tempted to claim the offer, no matter how good it looks and sounds. Claim only bonuses that fit your gambling budget.
  • Special offers with good playthrough conditions. Playthrough requirements of a few hundred are never good, not even when they casino asks you to deposit very little and promises a lot. Even $20 deposited on a bonus with unreasonable terms are a bad idea, because they are $20 less for you to gamble with. Look for special offers with reasonable playthrough conditions that go up to a maximum of 40x. Most good bonuses will range between 20x and 35x.
  • Deals that allow you to play your favorite games. Promotions are often linked to specific games or game categories. For example, free spin bonuses can only be used on slot machines. Most casinos select a few slots and tell you to play them with your free spins. If you aren’t a fan of slots, what’s the purpose of making a deposit to claim such a bonus?
  • Deals that allow you to use your preferred banking method. If you don’t feel comfortable with using your card or bank transfers, don’t opt for bonuses that don’t allow you to use methods like prepaid cards or e-wallets. While you can change these afterward for future deposits, it usually takes a bit longer and you will still have to enter your card details to make that first deposit. If you aren’t sure that the website you are playing on is absolutely secure, don’t stray from your favorite banking method just because of the attractive bonus.

Tip no. 11: Make Use of Responsible Gaming Programs

Have you noticed how most casinos have Responsible Gaming programs listed on their website? This is a prerequisite from licensing bodies. Casinos today have to provide their players with the options to treat themselves in case they are addicted to gambling or notice that they are losing their focus and their control.

Top-rated casino sites have amazing programs that promote responsible gambling. This is one of the reasons why players trust those sites. Such programs can help you avoid a gambling addiction or stop it before it hurts you.

If you notice that you are losing more than you can afford and don’t know how to stop gambling even though you spent your budget, go through the casino’s responsible gambling program list. Contact organizations that offer assistance, use programs to prevent yourself the access to gambling sites, and basically ask for help. Those programs are there for a reason – and they can really help you.

Tip no. 12: Choose the Right Games to Play

Your choice for games at online casinos will play a vital role in how long you play and how much you spend. It is recommended to pick games based on your budget. There are low-deposit and high-deposit games at casinos, as well as titles that require a medium budget.

For example, if you have a very small budget, you might want to look for sites that have penny slots. If you can afford a bit more, look for games with average betting choices, or a wide betting range from low to high deposits. Lastly, if you can afford to wager more, choose slots with high bets, table and card games with high wagers, and live casino games that require more money.

Based on that budget you set, consider your options for games at online casinos. There are high-wager games for the VIP players, but there are also more modest games for those on a limited budget.

Tip no. 13: Know When It Is Time to Stop

Now, this is a very useful tip. The reason why gambling addiction is present in this world is because people don’t know when to stop. When you’re winning, the adrenaline rush is too strong, and you cannot stop yourself. When you are losing, you are thinking: “I’ll play a bit longer until some luck hits me”. In both ways, you end up without money, sooner or later.

The important thing is to play for fun, not for money. Be logically, not emotionally involved. Setting your gambling time and budget is one great way to do this, but the most important thing is your own control.

Gambling can be extremely enjoyable and often very beneficial when you win, but only if you set boundaries for yourself. Don’t ever forget this – no matter how much you’re winning.

Tip no. 14: Withdraw Winnings Every Now and Then

Even though you were prepared to lose those money when you set your budget for gambling, there’s no reason why this should happen. If you are winning some money, you shouldn’t keep playing until you lose them all. Some players withdraw their deposits only and keep playing with the winnings, which means that their personal funds are no longer at risk. However, not withdrawing anything you win until you actually lose it is not a smart idea, either.

This is how you can practice control, too. It is advisable to make smaller payouts every now and then. Don’t withdraw your entire gambling budget or winnings, but withdraw some sums every now and then.

Final Thoughts

These tips are applicable in every case and for every player. Naturally, your gambling habits and preferences will be based on your budget. Even so, keeping track of your finances is always important, so keep these things in mind the next time you start playing casino games.

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