Fola Daniel, the Commissioner for Insurance, has said that the capital base of insurance operators had risen to N500 billion. He made the disclosure in a keynote address at a seminar on Corporate Governance for Insurance Directors.

THE Gbaramatu Renaissance Forum, a socio-cultural organisation in Delta State, has urged Itsekiris and Ijaws in Warri South West Local Government Council of Delta State to present a qualified candidate that will represent the constituency in the state House of Assembly in the forthcoming 2011 elections.

After over two years research on Nigeria’s future, the British Council has said that youths, not oil, will become Nigeria’s most precious resource in the 21st century, noting by 2030, the country will be one of the few countries in the world that has young workers in large supply.

PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan has said the Federal Government will continue to ensure that Nigerians in diaspora exercise their right to vote during elections that follow the 2011 general elections

A PRINCIPAL suspect in the murder of erstwhile gubernatorial candidate of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, in the 2007 general elections in Ogun State, Otunba Oladipupo Akanni Dina, has been arrested by the Police at the Force Criminal Investigations Department, FCID, Annex, Alagbon, Lagos.

IT is over two months now since Prof. Maurice Iwu left the Nigerian electoral scene with the hoopla associated with the anticipated renewal of his appointment as Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC. Every attention has shifted to his successor, Prof. Attahiru Jega and what he should do to conduct “free, fair and credible” elections in 2011.

OIL Industry South- South Business Association, OISSBA, has faulted the unending argument about the propriety of President Jonathan contesting the 2011 elections because of the alleged zoning arrangement especially by the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP.

AKWA IBOM State Governor, Godswill Akpabio, has said that only a free and fair election would produce credible leaders to effect the needed positive change in the country.

AS a way of ensuring an effective teaching and learning of science subjects at the basic education level, the Federal Government, through the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC), has given out 2,548 science kits to some selected Junior Secondary Schools across the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory.

Before the advent of the colonizers, what is today known as Nigeria was a cacophony of peoples and cultures engaged in the art of living according to their peculiar circumstances and destinies. It was Lord Lugard, the first colonial Governor-General of the area, who facilitated the amalgamation of the so-called Southern and Northern Protectorates to create one entity called Nigeria. His very imaginative wife proffered the name Nigeria and composed the first national anthem for the new nation.

PROTEST-ERS from Delta State who stormed the national Secretariat of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, to call for the dissolution of the state executive committee of the party were, yesterday, shunned by the leadership of the party.

As part of efforts to reinforce the importance of education, 1Goal initiative was launched to help rally support for the education of about 75 million students who are out of school. The initiative basically, has three objectives.

EDO State Governor, Mr. Adams Oshiomhole, yesterday, reprimanded policemen in his convoy, who fired gunshots into the air to scare away protesting students, threatening to take disciplinary action against them.

It was a meeting of minds in Lagos last week, when the organized private sector under the auspices of the Nigeria Employers Consultative Association ( NECA) hosted the finance minister, Mr. Olusegun Aganga. The meeting was different from the usual reading of addresses. For the private sector, it was time to present a case to the government on the challenges to their businesses and why white collar jobs will continue to elude thousands of able and qualified Nigerians.

NATIONAL Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission, Professor Attahiru Jega, yesterday alerted the nation on the constraints before the commission which may significantly hinder the commission’s effort to prepare the voters’ register and conduct the 2011 elections.