BEING from AbiaState, I come from the Niger Delta. At least, that is what the legislation that established the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) says, though those from the “True Niger Delta” (Rivers, Delta, Bayelsa and, to a lesser extent, Akwa Ibom) would laugh at those of us from Abia, Imo, Edo and OndoStates with the question: “How many oil wells do you have?”

President of the Association of Micro Entrepreneurs of Nigeria (AMEN), Prince Saviour Iche attributes the high rate of unemployment in the country to poor funding of Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs). In this interview, he urges State Governments to release the Industrial Development Centres (IDC) in their state for industrial development. He said the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) should do a critical check on the activities of Microfinance Banks.

TRIBALISM is a barrier to progressive democratic dialogue in Nigeria. A few weeks ago, I wrote an article for Vanguard newspapers. The title was “Obasanjo says the darndest things.” In this article, I was generally critical of leaders who only understand Nigeria’s problems in retrospect.

Despite efforts by the National Insurance Commission, NAICOM, to deepen insurance penetration in the country, through its Market Development and Restructuring Initiative, MDRI, underwriters are still not embracing retail insurance.

The National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, one of the most efficient and least appreciated parastatals, in the country today, recently disclosed that “overall growth in real GDP in 2012 was 6.61 per cent, which is a decline from the 7.43 per cent recorded in 2011”. There are several inferences to be drawn from that statement alone. But, only two will be addressed here.

The Bank of Agriculture, BOA, and the Nigeria Cassava Growers Association, NCGA, have signed a Memorandum of Understanding, MoU, for financing of cultivation of 60, 000 hectares of cassava in Nigeria.

WORRIED by the spate of robbery and burglary in recent times in Akure, the Ondo State capital, the new Police Commissioner, Mr Patrick Dukumor, weekend, said henceforth, the state will no longer be friendly with criminals.

Barely 24 hours after he told Vanguard that he had served his country meritoriously and it was time to retire to serve his family, Kwara State Police Commissioner, Mr Chinwike Asadu, was murdered by assassins, Saturday night. His body was riddled with bullets 100 metres from his home after seeing off his guest.

Another case of pension corruption is rearing its ugly head, this time at the Nigeria railway corporation, Vanguard investigation has revealed.