Read today's newspaper headlines [Tuesday, February 16, 2016]

Find out what is making headlines all over the country from the covers of The Punch, Vanguard, The Guardian and more.

For today, Tuesday, February 16, 2016:

VANGUARD NEWSPAPER

Naira falls to N345/$ in parallel market

LAGOS — The naira, yesterday, suffered its biggest daily depreciation against the dollar as it exchanged for N345 to a dollar in the parallel market. This represents N20 depreciation when compared with the closing exchange rate of N325 per dollar in the market on Friday. But the naira was relatively stable at the official interbank foreign exchange market as the interbank rate stood at N197.47 per dollar at the close of business, yesterday. READ MORE:

Errors: FG fires Budget D-G, 26 others

ABUJA — President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, in a move to douse the tension over the 2016 budget controversy, fired the Director-General for Budget, Mr Yaya Gusau, and announced a replacement in the person of Mr. Tijjani Abdullahi. Also, Mr. Ben Akabueze was appointed Special Adviser to the President on National Planning. The two appointments take immediate effect. READ MORE:

602 IDPs resume school in Borno

MAIDUGURI—The Borno State government yesterday commenced the relocations of first batch of 602 Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) at Government Girls Secondary School (GGSS), Yerwa to Dalori resettlement camp for the re-opening of closed public schools over Boko Haram insurgency in Maiduguri metropolis. READ MORE:

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THE PUNCH NEWSPAPER

Naira plunges to record low of 345/dollar

The naira tumbled to a record low of 345 against the dollar at the parallel market on Monday, extending its depreciation from nine to 11 per cent in less than two weeks. The naira had hit a record low of 338 against the greenback on Friday, a day after the Bankers’ Committee announced plans to stop providing foreign exchange for school fees and medical bills payment. The naira, which has been on a free fall in the past few weeks, fell steadily from 310 last week Monday to 335 on Thursday at the parallel market. READ MORE:

Discrepancies: Buhari sacks budget director

The embarrassing errors in the 2016 Budget appeared to have claimed a first casualty on Monday as President Muhammadu Buhari sacked the Director-General (Budget), Mr. Yahaya Gusau. The President also approved the appointment of Mr. Tijjani Abdullahi to replace Gusau, who was appointed in August last year. These were contained in a statement by the President’s Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, on Monday.READ MORE:

CCT trial: Senate caucuses meet, discuss Saraki’s fate

Members of the Senate met separately at various caucus levels on Monday to discuss the fate of Senate President Bukola Saraki, who is to resume his trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal over alleged false declaration of assets. It was gathered that the lawmakers discussed the issues peculiar to their interest, especially the likely effect of the trial of Saraki at the CCT. The Supreme Court had on February 5 ruled that Saraki should face his trial over false asset declaration. READ MORE:

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THE GUARDIAN

Govt parleys with banks, oil majors over $4 billion debt financing

There are indications that the Federal Government has engaged oil majors and the Deposit Money Banks in discussions over $4 billion outstanding debts in the books of the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). The talks also include raising capital needed for new drilling projects. READ MORE:

Obasanjo awarded Abuja rail project without design, MOU, says Senate panel

FORMER President Olusegun Obasanjo awarded the Abuja Rail Project in 2007 with neither a design nor a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU), according to the Senate Committee on Federal Capital Territory (FCT). The then Minister of FCT and current governor of Kaduna State, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, was said to have signed the contract based on an uncalculated estimate.

Confusion over sacking of 26 heads of agencies, commissions

THERE was considerable confusion following President Mohammadu Buhari’s order sacking the heads of 26 government agencies, parastatals and commissions. The workings of government machinery were thrown into confusion in Abuja as soon as the news of the mass sacking was broken In Abuja, the nation’s capital where most of the chief executive officers operate, operations were temporarily suspended as it was not so easy to identify who to hand over to. READ MORE:

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THE NATION NEWSPAPER

Halliburton: Lawyers admit taking $3.5m as EFCC closes in on suspects

Detectives are making progress in their resolve to find the $200m (N66billion) penalty fines paid by five companies involved in the $180million Halliburton bribery scandal, The Nation learnt yesterday. The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has asked the lawyers who handled the settlement agreement to account for the fines and about $12million (N3.960billion) collected as “legal fees”. READ MORE:

Sacked DG in trouble for blowing N200b on poll

Of the 26 Directors-General and Heads of parastatals sacked yesterday, no fewer than 10 may be handed over to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) and the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission(ICPC) for investigation, a source said last night. It was gathered that President Muhammadu Buhari opted to give some of the chief executives the push, following reports of large-scale fraud in their agencies. One allegedly spent N200 billion on last year’s Peoples Democratic Party’s (PDP’s) presidential campaign.

ACP dies in Lagos hotel

A senior police officer on Sunday night drowned in a swimming pool in Lekki, Lagos. The late Osung Ekpo, who was an Assistant Commissioner of Police (ACP), was Commander, Area K, Morogbo in Badagry. He drowned in the swimming pool of La Avalon Hotel in Lekki.He was said to have gone there with some of his friends to celebrate Valentine’s Day. READ MORE:

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Business Day

FG winds down Niger Delta amnesty programme in 2018

The Federal Government will in the next two years wind down the five-year old Nigeria Delta Amnesty Programme which has trained 17,322 beneficiaries and brought relative peace in that region, authorities said on Monday. As at today, the programme which has the capacity for about 30,000 beneficiaries- with 17,322 of them trained, and a balance…

Buhari sacks heads of agencies appointed by Jonathan

President Muhammadu Buhari has sacked the directors-general of several government agencies, including the Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF), New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD), Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), and the Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN) a statement by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation says. READ MORE:

Buhari sacks DG, Budget Office

President Muhammadu Buhari has approved the appointment of Tijjani Abdullahi as the new Director-General in charge of the Budget Office of the Federation. The President also approved the appointment of Ben Akabueze as the Special Adviser on Planning to the Minister of Budget and National Planning. READ MORE: