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  • EU Postpones Ban on Russian Gas Due to Trump Tariffs

    EU Postpones Ban on Russian Gas Due to Trump Tariffs

    The Nord Stream ghosts are now coming back to haunt Washington and Brussels

    INTRO BY NEWS WIRE via The Liberty Beacon

    It’s no secret that Europeans have been getting ‘cold feet’ on the question of replacing cheap and dependable Russian natural gas with wildly expensive American LNG imports. Thanks to Trump’s erratical global tariff war, the US may be forcing a battered EU economy back into the safe hands of Moscow.

    The crisis has driven the EU to shelve the idea of banning Russian liquified natural gas (LNG) imports due to opposition from members states and economic uncertainty about alternative suppliers.

    The result of all this means that, amazingly, harsh restrictions on Russian LNG are unlikely to be part of the EU’s upcoming 17th sanctions package against Moscow.

    Despite US, UK and EU efforts to ban all Russian energy, Europe’s imports of Russian LNG have soared to record levels in 2024.

    In an attempt to game the energy market, President Donald Trump is pushing for the EU to purchase expensive LNG from the US instead, but as usual with Trump, the actual details of such a deal remain murky and subject to change on a daily basis.

    The interim results of this debacle are as follows:

    • French, German firms open to modest return of Gazprom’s gas
    • Trump has made US LNG a politically loaded commodity
    • EU aims to quit Russian gas by 2027, has no detailed plan on how
    • Arbitrations against Gazprom complicate supply resumption

    Reuters reports….

    PARIS/BERLIN, April 14 – More than three years after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, Europe’s energy security is fragile. U.S. liquefied natural gas helped to plug the Russian supply gap in Europe during the 2022-2023 energy crisis.

    But now that President Donald Trump has rocked relationships with Europe established after World War Two, and turned to energy as a bargaining chip in trade negotiations, businesses are wary that reliance on the United States has become another vulnerability.

    Against this backdrop, executives at major EU firms have begun to say what would have been unthinkable a year ago: that importing some Russian gas, including from Russian state giant Gazprom (GAZP.MM), could be a good idea.

    That would require another major policy shift given that Russia’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022 made the European Union pledge to end Russian energy imports by 2027.

    Europe has limited options. Talks with LNG giant Qatar for more gas have stalled, and while the deployment of renewables has accelerated, the rate is not fast enough to allow the EU to feel secure.

    “If there is a reasonable peace in Ukraine, we could go back to flows of 60 billion cubic metres, maybe 70, annually, including LNG,” Didier Holleaux, executive vice-president at France’s Engie, told Reuters in an interview.

    The French state partly owns Engie, which used to be among the biggest buyers of Gazprom’s gas. Holleaux said Russia could supply around 20-25% of EU needs, down from 40% before the war.

    The head of French oil major TotalEnergies (TTEF.PA), Patrick Pouyanne, has warned Europe against over-relying on U.S. gas.

    “We need to diversify, many routes, not over-rely on one or two,” Pouyanne told Reuters. Total is a large exporter of U.S. LNG and also sells Russian LNG from private firm Novatek (NVTK.MM).

    “Europe will never go back to importing 150 billion cubic meters from Russia like before the war … but I would bet maybe 70 bcm,” Pouyanne added.

    German Pivot

    France, which produces large amounts of nuclear power, already has one of the most diversified energy supplies in Europe.

    Germany relied heavily on cheap Russian gas to help drive its manufacturing sector until the Ukraine war and has fewer options.

    In Leuna Chemical Park, one of Germany’s biggest chemical clusters hosting plants of Dow Chemical and Shell (SHEL.L), opens new tab among others, some makers say Russian gas should return quickly.

    Russia used to cover 60% of local needs, mainly through the Nord Stream pipeline, which was blown up in 2022.

    “We are in a severe crisis and can’t wait,” said Christof Guenther, managing director of InfraLeuna, the operator of the park.

    He said the German chemical industry has cut jobs for five quarters in a row, something not seen for decades.

    “Reopening pipelines would reduce prices more than any current subsidy programmes,” he said.

    “It’s a taboo topic,” Guenther added, saying many colleagues agreed on the need to go back to Russian gas.

    Almost a third of Germans voted for Russia-friendly parties in the February federal election.

    In the state of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern, the east German region where the Nord Stream pipeline comes ashore after running from Russia under the Baltic Sea, 49% of Germans want a return to Russian gas supplies, a poll carried out by the Forsa institute found.

    “We need Russian gas, we need cheap energy – no matter where it comes from,” said Klaus Paur, managing director of Leuna-Harze, a mid-sized petrochemical maker at the Leuna Park. “We need Nord Stream 2 because we have to keep energy costs in check.”

    The industry wants the federal government to find cheap energy, said Daniel Keller, economy minister for the state of Brandenburg – home to the Schwedt refinery, co-owned by Russian oil firm Rosneft but held in German government trusteeship.

    “We can imagine resuming the intake or transport of Russian oil after peace is established in Ukraine,” Keller said.

    THE TRUMP FACTOR

    U.S. gas covered 16.7% of EU imports last year – behind Norway with 33.6% and Russia with 18.8%.

    Russia’s share will drop below 10% this year after Ukraine shut pipelines. The remaining flows are mainly LNG from Novatek. The EU is preparing to buy more U.S. LNG as Trump wants Europe to lower its trade surplus with the United States.

    “For sure, we will need more LNG,” EU trade commissioner Maros Sefcovic said last week.

    The tariff war has strengthened Europe’s concern about reliance on U.S. gas, said Tatiana Mitrova, a research fellow at Columbia University’s Centre on Global Energy Policy.

    “It’s becoming increasingly difficult to regard U.S. LNG as a neutral commodity: at a certain point it might become a geopolitical tool,” Mitrova added.

    If the trade war escalates, there is a small risk the United States could hold back on LNG exports, said Arne Lohmann Rasmussen, chief analyst at Global Risk Management.

    A senior EU diplomat, speaking on condition of anonymity, agreed, saying no one could rule out “that this leverage is used”.

    In the event U.S. domestic gas prices surge because of rising industrial and AI demand, the U.S. could curtail exports to all markets, Warren Patterson, head of commodities strategy at ING, said.

    In 2022, the EU set itself a non-binding goal to end Russian gas imports by 2027, but has twice delayed publishing plans on how. An EU Commission spokesperson declined to comment on the companies’ comments.

    Arbitration

    Several EU firms have opened arbitration cases against Gazprom for non-delivery of gas following the Ukraine war.

    CONTINUE READING SOURCE ARTICLE…

    __________

    Reuters reporting and analysis by Marwa Rashad in London, Riham Alkousaa in Berlin, America Hernandez in Paris, Nora Buli in Oslo and Kate Abnett in Brussels; additional reporting by Anna Hirtenstein in London; writing by Dmitry Zhdannikov; editing by Simon Webb and Barbara Lewis

    __________

    Header featured image (edited) credit: WP open card. Emphasis added by (TLB)

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  • Lil Nas X reveals half his face is paralyzed: ‘Can’t even laugh right,’ he says from hospital bed

    Grammy winner Lil Nas X stayed mostly calm, cool and pretty comedic as he informed fans from a hospital bed on Monday that he had “lost control” of half of his face.

    The 26-year-old “Old Town Road” and “Industry Baby” singer shared a selfie video on Instagram documenting the stillness of the right side of his face as he attempts to smile. “This is me doing a full smile right now,” he says with a crooked smile and his right eye wider than his left.

    “It’s like what the f—? I can’t even laugh right, bro,” he added, laughing at himself. “What the f—! Oh my God.”

    Lil Nas X, whose birth name is Montero Lamar Hill, did not disclose an official diagnosis or what might have caused the paralysis but continued to speak about his condition over several Instagram stories. In one story, he reassured fans that he is doing well and requested that they “stop being sad for me!” The singer, who has endeared himself to fans with his cheeky sense of humor and his internet trolling, instead requested they “shake ur a— for me.” In the final post shared from his hospital bed, the singer told his millions of followers he will simply “look funny for a lil bit but that’s it.”

    The “Hotbox” artist continued to share updates early Tuesday morning via additional stories where he jokingly accused his cat of mocking his appearance and told fans he feels his face is “already getting better.” In his most recent updates, Lil Nas X can be seen enjoying a rollerskating session in the sun.

    “It’s getting better y’all, I promise,” he said his latest video. “It’s gonna take a lot more than that to keep a bad b— down. This eye wonky, b— but I’m not.”

    A representative for Lil Nas X did not immediately respond to The Times’ request for additional information and comment Tuesday.

    Prior to his hospitalization, Lil Nas X got candid earlier this month about being an openly gay musician amid the anti-LGBTQ+ sentiment and executive orders of the Trump administration. The musician, who broke out in 2019 for “Old Town Road,” reflected on his controversial, Bible-inspired “Montero (Call Me By Your Name)” music video in 2021 and the backlash that came with it. In the video, the rapper notoriously pole dances from celestial heights to the depths of hell, where he gives Satan a lap dance before snapping his neck and becoming the lord of the underworld.

    “Even right now, everything with the young males being taught these super conservative ways, at least in America: everything is shifting with this rebellious, hyper-masculine thing,” he told Paper.

    Later in the interview, the singer said he felt conservatives would “actually try to kill me” if he had released “Montero” in the current social and political climate instead of in 2021. Still, he told the magazine he is optimistic that “things are going to be fine.”

    “I’m not trying to minimize what’s happening. I just think s— is going to work itself out, especially in the generation where everything is a trend,” he added. “The second the next thing comes along, it will be like, ‘Hey, we don’t hate women and gay people anymore. Let’s do something else now.’”

    Amid his hospitalization Lil Nas X received support from fellow artists in the comments of his Instagram post. Comedian Loni Love, “Pose” stars Ryan Jamaal Swain and Dominique Jackson and playwright Jeremy O. Harris were among the celebrities sending the singer well wishes.

    ___

    © 2025 Los Angeles Times.

    Distributed by Tribune Content Agency, LLC.


    Source: American Military News

  • NRC Targets Eastern Rail Line Reconstruction Before 2027

    Nigerian Railway Corporation (NRC) is hopeful that the Eastern rail line will be reconstructed before 2027.

    The Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Kayode Opeifa disclosed this on Thursday during a familiarisation tour to the Eastern district in Enugu.

    Opeifa acknowledged that the lack of reconstruction affected the eastern rail line while pledging to ensure the corridor was back to working condition.

    “We are hopeful that it will be done before 2027 as the president is desirous to deliver it and it will be a good thing for it to be ready before 2027.

    “I can tell you, activities will begin soon. Eastern rail will come back very soon but there is no timeline as the timeline is based on weather and fund releases,” he said.

    He said that there was an existing contract to get the track rolling from Port Harcourt to Onne and from Aba to Enugu.

    “That plan is ongoing. It is a funding issue but it has been resolved,” Opeifa said.

    He further debunked reports that the work on the track was diverted from the Eastern District to Gombe State, clarifying that a contract could not be moved from one place to another

    On alleged the sales of NRC property in Enugu, the NRC boss said Railway Properties Management Company did not sell land but leased it out to generate revenue.

    NRC Targets Eastern Rail Line Reconstruction Before 2027 is first published on The Whistler Newspaper

    Source: The Whistler

  • Trump Expands on Dubious Daily Tariff Revenue Claim

    Este artículo estará disponible en español en El Tiempo Latino.

    President Donald Trump has added to his unsupported claim that the U.S. is making “$2 billion a day” from tariffs by saying that the country was losing $2 billion or $3 billion “a day” under President Joe Biden. Economists told us that Trump appears to be wrongly comparing a very high – and unlikely – estimate of potential daily revenue from his tariffs with a figure reflecting the average daily U.S. trade deficit during Biden’s last year in office.

    “My best guess would be that Trump is probably conflating different concepts,” Robert C. Johnson, an associate professor of economics at the University of Notre Dame, told us. 

    Trump speaks on April 8 at an Unleashing American Energy Executive Order event in the East Room of the White House. Official White House Photo by Daniel Torok.

    In an April 10 article about Trump trade adviser Peter Navarro’s disputed claim that Trump’s 2025 tariff policies will raise $6 trillion to $7 trillion over 10 years, we briefly addressed the president’s statement that the U.S. is already “making a fortune with tariffs — $2 billion a day.” But Trump has said it several times since he first uttered the claim on April 8.

    He even claimed in an April 10 meeting with members of his Cabinet that “the number is probably $3.5 billion a day” from tariffs. In that same meeting, he said, “Look, we’re making $2 billion a day now. And during Biden, we were losing $3 billion a day.”

    Then, in an April 14 meeting with the president of El Salvador, Trump said, “on trade and other things, we’re doing great. We’re taking in billions and billions of dollars.” That was followed by his claim that “we were losing $2 billion a day. … Now we’re making $3 billion a day.”

    We asked the White House how Trump arrived at those figures, but we didn’t receive a response.

    Trump’s Overstating Daily Tariff Revenues

    Trump’s claim of $2 billion or more a day in tariff revenue is contradicted by figures released by multiple federal departments or agencies.

    As we’ve written, U.S. Customs and Border Protection, which collects tariffs, or customs duties, on imports of foreign goods at ports of entry, said in an April 8 statement that it has collected over $200 million per day in “additional associated revenue” from 13 of Trump’s tariff-related executive actions that have been implemented during the current administration.

    Also, as of April 15, the U.S. had received more than $2.3 billion in customs duties and certain excise taxes for the month, according to a Treasury Department daily financial statement. If that total included just tariffs, since excise taxes are different from customs duties, it still would be roughly $156 million per day in revenue. (Treasury data for only custom duties paid in April won’t be available until May. In February, there was about $259 million a day in customs duties paid, and the March per-day total was roughly $264 million.)

    Economists we consulted were also skeptical of the president’s claim of billions of dollars in daily tariff collections to date.

    “No, there is absolutely no way we are collecting $2b per day in tariff revenue,” Gene M. Grossman, an economics and international affairs professor at Princeton University, told us.

    “If you multiply all the announced tariffs by the volume of trade with each country, you could get close to $2b per day, mostly due to the tariffs on China,” he wrote in an email. “But that assumes that there will be no fall off in imports with China despite tariffs over 145%, which is a pretty ridiculous assumption.”

    And Johnson, of Notre Dame, speculated that the administration calculated the figure by taking the total value of U.S. imports in 2024 ($3.3 trillion in goods) and multiplying it by 20%, “which is roughly what the average US tariff would have been after the initial announcement” of tariffs on April 2. Divided by 365 days, it’s about $1.6 billion each day.

    But, like Grossman, Johnson said that Trump’s revenue estimate appears to implausibly assume that “jacking up tariffs” won’t reduce the amount of goods imported in the long run.

    “I think the $2 billion a day is the absolute upper bound on what could be collected in revenue from tariffs, and certainly more than is likely,” Johnson wrote in an email.

    After announcing a minimum 10% tariff on all imports of foreign foods and some higher country-by-country tariff rates on April 2, a week later Trump paused the higher rates for 90 days – except for tariffs on goods from China, which have since increased to 145%. Other previously announced tariffs still in effect include 25% tariffs on imports of steel, aluminum, automobiles and auto parts.

    Biden Didn’t Lose Billions a Day

    As for Trump’s claim that the U.S. lost “$2 billion a day” or “$3 billion a day” during the Biden administration, Grossman and Johnson both said that the president’s statement appears to be based on the U.S. international trade deficit – not revenue from tariffs.

    In 2024, Biden’s final year as president, the U.S. trade deficit in goods and services was more than $918 billion, according to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis. The trade deficit in goods alone was about $1.2 trillion. Divide either by 365 days, and you get an average per-day deficit of between $2.5 billion and $3.3 billion.

    “My guess is that’s what Trump is mentally doing — since trade deficits mean you’re ‘losing’ in his vocabulary,” Johnson said.

    However, Grossman said “it’s ridiculous to think of that as a loss,” since the U.S. got the goods. He also said it’s ridiculous “to equate [the average daily trade deficit] in some way to tariff revenue.”

    In an April 8 post for Boston University’s “Expert Take” series, Tarek Alexander Hassan, a BU professor of economics, explained why trade deficits shouldn’t be seen as money lost.

    “A trade deficit sounds bad, but it is neither good nor bad,” he wrote. “It doesn’t mean the US is losing money. It simply means foreigners are sending the US more goods than the US is sending them.”

    For the record, there was more than $216 million per day in customs duties paid to the federal government under Biden in 2024.

    Editor’s note: FactCheck.org does not accept advertising. We rely on grants and individual donations from people like you. Please consider a donation. Credit card donations may be made through our “Donate” page. If you prefer to give by check, send to: FactCheck.org, Annenberg Public Policy Center, P.O. Box 58100, Philadelphia, PA 19102. 

    Source: FactCheck

  • Trump says ‘no rush’ to end tariffs as he talks with Italy’s Meloni

    By COLLEEN BARRY and JOSH BOAK

    WASHINGTON (AP) — President Donald Trump said Thursday that he is in “no rush” to reach any trade deals because of the revenues his tariffs are generating, but he suggested while meeting with Italian Premier Giorgia Meloni that it would be easy to find an agreement with the European Union and others.

    Trump played down the likelihood of an accelerated timeline to wrap up deals, saying any agreements would come “at a certain point.”

    “We’re in no rush,” said Trump, hinting that he has leverage because other countries want access to U.S. consumers.

    Meloni’s meeting with Trump is testing her mettle as a bridge between the EU and the United States. She is the first European leader to have face-to-face talks with the president since he announced and then partially suspended 20% tariffs on European exports.

    Meloni secured the meeting as Italy’s leader, but she also has, in a sense, been “knighted” to represent the EU at a critical juncture in the fast-evolving trade war that has stoked recession fears. The Trump administration has belittled its European counterparts for not doing enough on national security while threatening their economies with tariffs, sparking deep uncertainty about the future of the trans-Atlantic alliance.

    “We know we are in a difficult moment,” Meloni said this week in Rome. “Most certainly, I am well aware of what I represent, and what I am defending.”

    The EU is defending what it calls “the most important commercial relationship in the world,’’ with annual trade with the U.S. totaling 1.6 trillion euros ($1.8 trillion). The Trump administration has said its tariffs would enable trade negotiations that would box out China, the world’s dominant manufacturer. But Trump maintains that rivals and allies alike have taken advantage of the U.S. on trade.

    Instead of being the responsibility of individual member states, trade negotiations fall under the authority of the EU Commission, which is pushing for a zero-for-zero tariff deal with Washington.

    Administration officials, in talks with the EU, have yet to publicly relent on the president’s baseline 10% tariff. Trump paused for 90 days his initial 20% tax on EU products so that talks could occur.

    The EU has already engaged with Trump administration officials in Washington. Maroš Šefčovič, the European Commissioner for trade and economic security, said he met on Monday with Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer.

    Šefčovič said afterward on X that it would “require a significant joint effort on both sides” to get to zero tariffs and work on non-tariff trade barriers, with Trump’s team specifically objecting to Europe’s use of value added taxes.

    Meloni’s margins for progress are more in gaining clarity on the Republican president’s goals rather than outright concessions, experts say.

    “It is a very delicate mission,” said Fabian Zuleeg, chief economist at the European Policy Center think tank in Brussels. “There is the whole trade agenda, and while she’s not officially negotiating, we know that Trump likes to have this kind of informal exchange, which in a sense is a negotiation. So it’s a lot on her plate.”

    As the leader of a far-right party, Meloni is ideologically aligned with Trump on issues including curbing migration, promoting traditional values and skepticism toward multilateral institutions. But stark differences have emerged in Meloni’s unwavering support for Ukraine after Russia’s invasion in February 2022.

    Source: Paradise Post

  • Bishop welcomes the UK Supreme Court's ruling: Women are defined solely by biological sex

    A British Catholic bishop has welcomed a ruling by the U.K. Supreme Court that a woman is defined solely by biological sex.

    Justice Patrick Hodge, the court’s deputy president, said in the April 16 judgment that the terms woman and sex in the 2010 Equality Act “refer to a biological woman and biological sex.”

    The ruling means that any man who legally changes sex, or asserts a feminine gender, will not have access to women’s sex-based rights.

    The decision is expected to prevent people who identify as transgender women from accessing female-only spaces such as bathrooms, changing rooms and hospital wards or competing in female-only sports, carrying out strip searches on women if they are police officers, or serving in parts of the armed forces.

    Bishop Philip Egan of Portsmouth said in an April 16 written statement to OSV News that he was very pleased by the ruling.

    Bishop Egan said: “I’m delighted that the Supreme Court has stood firm against the gender ideologues by affirming that biological sex is a God-given reality: ‘male and female he created them’” (Gen 1:27).

    “Males and females are equal and complementary and this is the basis of marriage, family life and society,” he said. “Our biological sex is moreover the basis of our own personal identity and our vocation in life.

    “I am pleased too that the Supreme Court is by implication here also upholding the importance and dignity of the human body,” wrote Bishop Egan.

    “At the same time however we must always lovingly respect and care for those who for whatever reasons, physical or psychological, are struggling with their gender identity,” he added.

    The case was brought to court by a feminist advocacy group called For Women Scotland, which challenged the decision by the Scottish government to include transgender women in its definition of women.

    In the ruling, Justice Hodge said: “Interpreting ‘sex’ as certificated sex would cut across the definitions of ‘man’ and ‘woman’ … and, thus, the protected characteristic of sex in an incoherent way.”

    He said: “The unanimous decision of this court is that the terms woman and sex in the Equality Act 2010 refer to a biological woman and biological sex.”

    The judge said that the ruling should not be interpreted as “a triumph of one or more groups in our society at the expense of another,” adding that transgender individuals remain protected from unjust discrimination by other parts of the Equality Act.

    The ruling was welcomed by the Harry Potter author J.K. Rowling, who praised the tenacity of the campaigners on X, and added: “Spare a thought today for the UK employers, government departments, health boards, academic institutions and sporting bodies who’ve been breaking equality law to appease activist groups. So many HR manuals to pulp. So many out-of-court settlements to pay.”

    Evolutionary biologist and author Richard Dawkins also took to X to praise the court ruling, describing it as “a stunning victory for women. And for science. Nice to have something to celebrate, for a change”.

    Gender ideology emerged in the early 1990s and spread throughout the world in succeeding decades.

    It dismisses biological and scientific categories of male and female in favor of an individual constructing a “gender” of their own choosing.

    In the last decade, it has caused an explosion in the number of people across the Western world who want to change their sex.

    Pope Francis has repeatedly spoken against gender ideology. In paragraph 155 of “Laudato Si’,” his 2015 papal encyclical on the environment, he said:

    “The acceptance of our bodies as God’s gift is vital for welcoming and accepting the entire world as a gift from the Father and our common home, whereas thinking that we enjoy absolute power over our own bodies turns, often subtly, into thinking that we enjoy absolute power over creation. Learning to accept our body, to care for it and to respect its fullest meaning, is an essential element of any genuine human ecology,” the pontiff wrote.

    Pope Francis has since denounced the ideology publicly as part of a “great enemy of marriage” and as “one of the most dangerous ideological colonizations.”

    In April 2024, the Vatican’s Dicastery for the Doctrine of the Faith explicitly rejected gender ideology in a declaration called “Dignitas Infinita” (“Infinite Dignity”) because it “envisages a society without sexual differences, thereby eliminating the anthropological basis of the family.”

    The dicastery said that “all attempts to obscure reference to the ineliminable sexual difference between man and woman are to be rejected.”

    Simon Caldwell writes for OSV News from Liverpool.

    Source: Angelus News

  • Water Treatment Engineer at FOAK Business Solutions Limited April, 2025

    Click Here To Apply

  • Leasing Manager at Old Mutual

    Job Description

    We provide the following full turn-key solutions:

    Leasing & portfolio management
    Legal services
    Properties Procurement with our own OMF procurement policies and group of Properties vendors
    Projects (Construct of new premises, Relocations, Closures, Upgrades, ATM installations, UPS installations, Water tank installations and Marketing or signage façade upgrades to name a few)
    Repairs and maintenance of managed premises via call center agents and Maintenance officer teams
    Design team managing all NBR requirements and managing of client specific corporate images
    Projects Co-Ordination managing all spends related to projects and some Ad hoc FM services. Tracking of Budgets and managing of Ledgers to name a few of the services.
    This role is individually accountable for identifying and closing concluding transactions for profitable OMF branches, and value adding leasing transactions for new retail branches and commercial offices, relocations, enlargements, reductions, closures and renewals of the aforesaid, through others over periods of up to 1 year.
    Candidate will be required to attend to the following duties:
    The day-to-day management of various geographical property portfolios, assigned to a Leasing Manager, considering market related role benchmarking as captured in the Performance Contracts main KPI’s.
    Identifies and concludes client briefed strategically valued leasing transactions in various portfolios for:
    new retail branches and commercial offices
    relocations, enlargements, footprint reductions, closures and
    renewals.
    Manage special projects and initiatives from time to time.
    Concludes above leasing transactions on terms and conditions in accordance with client mandates.
    Identifies property trends for opportunities. Identifies and resolves problematic vacancies for portfolio clients.
    Develops and maintains customer / industry networks to maximize lead identification.

    Communication

    Consistently negotiates best transactions for new branches/offices and renewals taking market rentals, special conditions, construction costing and retail & commercials developments into consideration.
    Client liaison/management responsibility for Ad Hoc / new retainer client(s), as one point of contact across portfolio for advice in leasing, legal, design, headcount, project management, budget, FM etc.

    Compliance

    Ensure that verbal negotiated terms and conditions are accurately incorporated in Offer to Lease and other leasing documents.
    Ensure that above is reflected in the presentation to the various Property Committee Boards.
    Ensure that the transaction is concluded with the landlord in terms of the minutes of the various Property Committee Boards.
    Ensure that all transactions are finalized in adherence of the various Internal Protocols.

    Maintenance Services Delivery

    Meet annual new retail branch and office budget, relocations, enlargements & reductions budgets and agreed renewal budget.
    Identifies and resolves problematic space planning requirements for portfolio clients.
    Continuous training and up-skilling will be implemented to keep current on all property and industry related trends and changes.

    Job specific KRA’s:

    Independent, self-starter, self-motivated, meticulous in time management, shows leadership qualities and member of the various Property Portfolio Management Committees.
    Individually accountable for delivery of KPI’s as per the Performance Contract.
    Collective transaction and project-based accountability within a larger team format across various property departments.

    Minimum requirements:

    Grade 12
    Valid Driver’s Licence
    Minimum 5 years practical Retail and Commercial management experience and/or 5 years post admission legal experience essential
    Property Management Diploma and/or Legal Degree advantageous
    Qualified as Full Status / Principal Property Practitioner with a valid FFC advantageous

    Competencies

    Business Insight
    Communicates Effectively
    Decision Quality
    Ensures Accountability
    Financial Acumen
    Manages Complexity
    Persuades
    Plans and Aligns

    Closing Date

    23 April 2025 , 23:59

    Click Here To Apply

  • Nigerian-Swedish Pop Sensation OmoLuther Returns with “Oya” and “Better Day”

     

     

    After a long break, Nigerian-Swedish pop singer, songwriter, and producer OmoLuther has triumphantly returned to the music scene with the release of his brand-new singles, “Oya” and “Better Day”. Born Michael Adekunle Luther in Nigeria, he was known for his electrifying talent and genre-defying sound, OmoLuther first captivated audiences in 1998 with his debut project, “Mr. Sabi”, which earned him a Kora Award nomination at the time. In 2025, he is back to reignite his passion for music and impact the Nigerian music industry.

     

     

    Blending influences of pop, R&B, Afrobeat, and African folk music, Oya and Better Day showcase OmoLuther’s ability to craft fresh yet deeply captivating sounds. Both tracks are now available on all major streaming platforms, including Apple Music, Spotify, Boomplay, and Audiomack.

     

     

    Reflecting on his journey, OmoLuther says, “Music has always been my first love. Even while I was building my corporate career and raising my family, I knew I would one day share the music I’d been writing and creating with the world.”

     

     

    OmoLuther’s debut project, Mr. Sabi, was a groundbreaking release that positioned him as one of the most promising African artists of his time. However, after taking time off to pursue a successful corporate career across Europe and America, as well as to focus on family life, he is now ready to bring his unique sound back to the forefront of African pop music.

     

     

    New Music Alert: Nigerian-Swedish Pop Sensation OmoLuther Returns with ?Oya? and ?Better Day?

     

     

    Speaking about his new singles, OmoLuther said, “With Oya and Better Day, I wanted to create songs that inspire joy and hope while staying true to my roots. These tracks reflect my journey and my vision for the future.”

     

     

    As he reintroduces himself to fans old and new, OmoLuther is determined to make a lasting impact on the Nigerian music scene. He describes this moment as a personal renaissance. “It’s a thing of joy to be able to release these songs to my people. It’s a celebration of resilience, growth, and the unbreakable bond between me and my music.”

     

     

    With a renewed sense of purpose and creativity, OmoLuther’sreturn marks an exciting chapter in his career and promises to leave an indelible mark on listeners worldwide. Click to stream here: https://snd.click/mreb

     

     

    About OmoLuther

     

    OmoLuther (Michael Adekunle Luther) is a Nigerian-Swedish singer, songwriter, and producer whose music blends pop, R&B, Afrobeat, and African folk influences. His debut project, Mr. Sabi, earned critical acclaim in 1998 and a Kora Award nomination. After stepping away from music for several years to focus on his corporate career and family life, OmoLuther has returned in 2025 with two brand-new singles, Oya and Better Day. Follow him on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube: @OmoLutherOfficial.

     

     

    Source: Linda Ikeji

  • BREAKING: Suspected Herdsmen Armed With AK-47 Rifles Take Over Ukum Communities In Benue State

    According to sources, the herdsmen armed with AK-47 rifles stormed the community around 04:15pm on Thursday.

    Gunmen suspected to be Fulani herdsmen are currently invading some communities in the Ukum Local Government Area of Benue State, SaharaReporters has gathered.

    According to sources, the herdsmen armed with AK-47 rifles stormed the community around 04:15pm on Thursday.

    “Our lives are in danger this evening, armed Fulani herdsmen, about 600 in numbers have taken over our communities this evening,” a resident told SaharaReporters.

    “They’re currently moving around towns in Ukum Local Government Area of Benue state. No security personnel at all, Governor Alia didn’t send security, they said operation will start soon once they (herders) have observed the place.”

    The insecurity situation in Benue has been alarming in recent weeks with attacks from gunmen suspected to be herdsmen. 

    SaharaReporters had reported that suspected herdsmen again unleashed terror in Benue State, attacking three communities in Otukpo Local Government Area (LGA) on Wednesday, just a day after 11 people were killed in a deadly raid on Otobi community.

    The latest victims of the escalating violence were Emichi, Odudaje, and Okpamaju, communities that had previously suffered an attack in February, which left five people dead.

    However, the renewed attack has created fear and mass displacement among residents, with women and children fleeing to safety.

    Local sources say the death toll from the fresh attack remains unclear, but several casualties are feared. 

     

    Source: Sahara Reporters