FG, Transcorp Agree on NITEL Sale

The controversy trailing the revocation of the sale of Nigerian Telecommunication Limited (NITEL) and its mobile subsidiary, Mobile Telecommunication Limited (M-Tel) to Transnational Corporation of Nigeria Plc (Transcorp) was yesterday laid to rest with the federal government and the management of Transcorp agreeing to bring in a new core investor.
This was part of the four-point agreement contained in a communiqué signed by the Minister of Information and Communications, Mr. John Odey and the Group Managing Director of Transcorp, Mr. Tom Iseghohi after a meeting by both parties.
The two parties also agreed that the new core investor must be an industry top player with the requisite focus, technical expertise, managerial experience and financial capacity necessary for turning around NITEL.
A presidential source said yesterday's agreement tallied with what Transcorp had agreed with President Umaru Yar'Adua, prior to last weekend's bungling of the announcement by Odey on the intent of government for the telecommunications firm.
The communiqué reads: "The Federal Government and Transcorp representatives met this morning on NITEL/M-TEL and agreed to do everything possible - following due process and rule of law - to resuscitate NITEL/M-TEL into a viable and profitable world class telecommunications company providing quality service to the Nigerian public.[+]

Widow of Obasanjo's Ex ADC laments
When on Monday, February 18, Brigadier-General Solomon Giwa-Amu left his Abuja home in the morning for Jaji, in Kaduna to present a lecture, little did his wife of 15 years know that she would be seeing her husband for the very last time.

Mrs. Giwa-Amu, a staff and research fellow of the National Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NIPRD), Abuja may not have had any premonition that something bad was going to occur. However, something happened to her in the office. At about few minutes past eight, when she wanted to leave her office for the cleaner to work on, Mrs. Amu fell flat on the ground. The cleaner and others, who saw her fall, came to her rescue. They helped her to her feet.[+]