Author: Vardiafrica

The Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), which will now be known as the National Revenue Service (NRS), Zacch Adedeji, has announced that the newly signed four tax reform bills will take effect on January 1, 2026. He said this timeline would give the administration six months for planning, sensitization, and alignment with the fiscal calendar. This was made known by Adedeji while addressing the State House Correspondents on Thursday, June 26, 2025, after the signing of the bills by President Bola Tinubu at the Presidential Villa. Adedeji noted that it takes time for all the stakeholders, participants, operators, and the regulator to change the…

The Senate Committee on Public Accounts has issued a 10-day ultimatum to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) Group Chief Executive Officer Bayo Ojulari to respond to 11 critical financial queries related to discrepancies in its audited financial statements, warning that failure to comply could attract serious constitutional consequences. The committee, chaired by Senator Aliyu Wadada, had days ago expressed dissatisfaction over what it described as mind-boggling and unacceptable, financial irregularities uncovered in NNPCL’s books, including over 200 trillion naira in unexplained receivables and undocumented legal and audit fees spanning the years 2017 to 2023. The ultimatum, which will expire on July…

President Bola Tinubu has assented to the four tax reform bills recently passed by the National Assembly The short ceremony which took place at the Presidential Villa on Thursday was attended by the leadership of the National Assembly and some legislators, governors, ministers, and aides of the President. The four bills: the Nigeria Tax Bill, the Nigeria Tax Administration Bill, the Nigeria Revenue Service (Establishment) Bill, and the Joint Revenue Board (Establishment) Bill were passed by the National Assembly after extensive consultations with various interest groups and stakeholders. According to the presidency, the new tax laws will significantly transform tax…

Nigeria’s President, Bola Tinubu has authorised a comprehensive personnel audit and skills Gap Analysis across the Federal Civil Service. The President gave the order in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital at the Maiden Edition of the International Civil Service Week, 2025. He said the move was to deepen capacity noting that placing the right people in the right roles is the only guarantee of giving the high-performance culture Nigerians country deserves. According to him, Civil servants are not just the backbone of effective administration across borders, but it’s very essence. “Your role as the quiet architects of stability, innovation, and public trust…

President Bola Tinubu has declined to assent to the National Drug Law Enforcement Agency Bill, 2025. The President’s decision was contained in a letter read by the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, during plenary on Thursday. The proposed law seeks to empower the NDLEA to retain a portion of the proceeds from drug-related crimes, a move Tinubu said contradicts existing financial regulations. In Tinubu’s letter, he said under the current system, “All proceeds of crime are paid into the government’s Confiscated and Forfeited Properties Account. “Disbursements to any recovery agency, including the NDLEA, can only be made…

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) and the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemical Company on Tuesday inaugurated a Joint Technical Committee (JTC) aimed at advancing local content implementation during the operational phase of the 650,000 barrels per day refinery plant. The inauguration ceremony which took place on Tuesday at the Dangote Free Trade Zone, Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos State marks a pivotal moment in fostering strategic collaboration between both institutions and is a significant move to reinforce local content development in the oil and gas sector. The ceremony presided over by the Executive Secretary of the Board Engr. Felix Omatsola Ogbe, and the…

China hosted defense ministers from Iran and Russia for a meeting in its eastern seaside city of Qingdao on Thursday against the backdrop of war in the Middle East and a summit of NATO countries in Europe that agreed to boost military spending. Beijing has long sought to present the 10-member Shanghai Cooperation Organisation (SCO) as a counterweight to Western-led power blocs and has pushed to strengthen collaboration between its member countries in politics, security, trade and science. The Qingdao meeting of the organization’s top defense officials comes as a fledgling ceasefire between Israel and Iran holds after 12 days of fighting between the arch-foes.…

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has launched the Renewed Hope Social Impact program for Women, Children & Families, a Programme initiated by the Minister of Women’s Affairs Hajiya Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim. Launching the programme during a presidential visit to Lafiya, Nasarawa State, the President paid glowing tributes to the resilience of Nigerian Women, commended the Minister for all her mobilisation, encouragement and empowerment of women; reaffirming his commitment to a gender empowered Nigeria. ” I salute you women, the backbone of our growth and economy, the strength of our family. I salute you too women for all that you have been doing; you’re…

The Federal Government has finally fulfilled a 31-year-old pledge by handing over houses to members of Nigeria’s 1994 Super Eagles squad, who famously lifted the Africa Cup of Nations in Tunisia and represented the country at its first-ever World Cup in the United States. In a modest ceremony held in Abuja, former national striker Efan Ekoku became one of the latest beneficiaries. Although he was absent, his niece, Lisa Jenifer Nwagbogun, received the housing allocation letter on his behalf. The allocation was presented by Pemi Temitope, Director of the Public Building and Housing Development Department, who represented the Minister of…

The Federal Government says it will advance railway track monitoring system across the country for safe and efficient rail operations. Mr Kayode Opeifa, the Managing Director of Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) stated this on Wednesday in Abuja when he received a team led by Mr Murilo Martins, the Managing Director of Loram Maintenance, Brazil at Idu Railway Station. Opeifa said that the government would leverage on advanced technologies and regular inspections of rail operators to ensure integrity of the tracks and provide reliable service to passengers and freight customers. The NRC boss, who said that Nigeria was ready to strengthen…