Business

Shippers Council Pushing for Cargo Movements By Rail

Published

2 years ago

August 20, 2024

456 Views

The Executive Secretary of the Nigerian Shippers Council, Barrister Pius Akutah, has assured that the council will continue to push for policies that can enhance the expansion of the rail system as a major means of cargo movement from the seaport to the hinterland.

The executive secretary gave the assurance, yesterday, when he toured the Kaduna Inland Dry Port.

He said the benefits of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that the council has entered into with the Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) were enormous noting that the efforts were being made to ensure the standard gauge from Lagos to Kano is achieved.

He highlighted the benefits of moving cargo by rail from sea ports to hinterland, he said it will reduce accidents and take away pressure on the roads.

He added, “We have saved this country billions of Naira from performing our roles through our dispute resolution.

Moves are however being made to transform the shippers bill into law to make the council a regulatory agency to address high tariffs and bring in competition so we get back the market we are losing to neighbouring countries.

He then assured that the Cargo Defence Fund will be administered to the shippers according to the judgment of the Supreme Court and urged the shippers association to be more innovative and reduce the physical handling of goods.

He informed that the council is taking steps to ensure the Legal Regime Bill, which is pending before the National Assembly is fast tracked so it can be passed by the end of the year in order to bring shipping services closer to the hinterlands.

He said that he will engage the Kaduna State government to see how the access road to the port can be completed.

Related Topics:Cargo Movement Featured Rail Shippers Council

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Naira Exchange Rates Friday, 3 July 2026

Published

19 hours ago

July 3, 2026

OCHEFA

22 Views

BLACK MARKET RATES

US DOLLAR (USD) Buy ₦1, 397 Sell ₦1,405

GREAT BRITISH POUND (GBP) Buy ₦1,850 Sell: ₦1,865

EURO (EUR) Buy ₦1, 580 Sell ₦1,600

CANADIAN DOLLAR (CAD) Buy ₦1,030 Sell ₦1,100

SOUTH AFRICAN RAND (ZAR) Buy ₦75 Sell ₦90

UAE DIRHAM Buy ₦350 Sell ₦370

CHINESE YUAN Buy ₦180 Sell ₦200

GHANA CEDI (GHS) Buy ₦95 Sell ₦110

WEST AFRICAN CFA Buy ₦2, 380 Sell ₦2, 460

CENTRAL AFRICAN CFA Buy ₦2, 220 Sell 2,300

AUSTRALIAN DOLLAR Buy ₦800 Sell ₦900

CBN OFFICIAL EXCHANGE RATES

US DOLLAR (USD) ₦1,370.15

GREAT BRITISH POUND (GBP) ₦1,832.17

EURO (EUR) ₦1,568.28

SWISS FRANC (CHF) ₦1,1705.44

JAPANESE YEN (JPN) ₦8. 51

CHINESE YUAN (CNY) ₦201. 80

WEST AFRICAN CFA (XOF) ₦2.38

WEST AFRICAN UNIT ACCOUNT (WAUA) ₦1,859. 98

SAUDI RIYAL (SAR) ₦364.91

SOUTH AFRICAN RAND (ZAR) ₦84. 32

Business

Issue: Cloning Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC)

Published

2 days ago

July 2, 2026

OCHEFA

46 Views

The Presidency says the bodies allegedly used by Adeyemi—including the so-called Presidential Economic Advisory Council, Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, and Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council—do not exist as government agencies.

The Presidency says a man identified as Prince Adeniyi Adeyemi Matthew allegedly created and operated fake government agencies, forged appointment letters, and falsely claimed to have been appointed by Femi Gbajabiamila.
According to the statement:
The Office of the Chief of Staff discovered the alleged scheme after complaints from the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) that an unauthorized body was operating in a way that conflicted with its functions.

The Chief of Staff petitioned the Department of State Services and the Nigeria Police Force in October 2025 to investigate alleged forged appointment letters.

The Presidency says the bodies allegedly used by Adeyemi—including the so-called Presidential Economic Advisory Council, Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council, and Presidential Foreign Intervention Promotion Council—do not exist as government agencies.

Investigators allege Adeyemi operated from an office in the Federal Secretariat Complex, held meetings with diplomats, and sought diplomatic support to obtain U.S. visas for members of the alleged organization.
Police reportedly recovered forged documents and other exhibits during searches of his office and residence.

The investigation allegedly found that Adeyemi operated 34 bank accounts, including several in the names of fictitious organizations, and used forged documents to open a Central Bank of Nigeria account.

The Presidency says no government funds were paid into that account.
Police charged Adeyemi and two others before the Federal High Court on multiple counts, including forgery, impersonation, and obtaining by false pretence. The case is scheduled for hearing on July 27.

The Presidency also denied claims that Gbajabiamila appointed Adeyemi, stating that appointments to federal offices are issued through the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, not the Office of the Chief of Staff.

Current status

The Presidency maintains that:
the agencies in question are fictitious,
the appointment letter was forged,
Adeyemi is an impostor,
and the allegations against him should be resolved by the court.

As the case is pending before the court, the allegations remain subject to judicial determination.