Guinness Nigeria Plc wishes to correct the recent speculations and false/malicious misinformation alleging a plan to exit from the Nigerian market. Contrary to rumors being peddled on various media platforms, Guinness Nigeria remains firmly committed to its operations in Nigeria and is poised for a new phase of growth and innovation.

Since commencing operations in April 1950, Guinness Nigeria boasts of a proud and eventful 74-year legacy intricately woven into Nigeria’s cultural and economic fabric. Our unwavering commitment to Nigeria is evident in the substantial investments in infrastructure, employment, backward integration and our community development and social responsibility initiatives. The recent announcement of the partnership between Diageo and Tolaram Group further reinforces unequivocally that Guinness Nigeria remains committed to Nigeria and has no intention of exiting the dynamic Nigerian market. Our business will continue strongly, and no jobs or factories will be adversely affected as a result of this new partnership.

Under the partnership announced, Tolaram Group will acquire a 58.02% majority stake in Guinness Nigeria, enabling us to harness and leverage Tolaram Group’s extensive expertise in manufacturing and distribution. Importantly, Guinness Nigeria will retain its status as a listed company on the Nigerian Stock Exchange, maintaining its prime status in the Nigerian beverage industry. Diageo’s establishment of a wholly-owned international premium spirits company in Nigeria is also a noteworthy demonstration of its continuing dedication to sustaining its operations across West and Central Africa, with Nigeria as a pivotal operational hub.

Under a long-term license and royalty arrangement, Guinness Nigeria will continue to produce and sell all our iconic brands including Guinness FES and Smooth, Smirnoff Ice, Orijin Bitters, and Malta Guinness as well as Diageo MSS brands like Smirnoff X1, Gordon’s Moringa and Captain Morgan Gold Rum, ensuring our esteemed consumers nationwide continue to enjoy their favorite beverages.

We are excited to embark on this new chapter of growth and development in Nigeria.

The kidnappers of the Managing Director of Fouani Company, who represents LG and Hisense, and three Lebanese nationals, have demanded a ransom of $1.5 million.

According to a source under anonymity, the kidnappers made contact with the family of the victims and demanded the ransom in exchange for their safe release.

It was earlier reported that the victims were abducted around Falomo Bridge while traveling from Apapa to Victoria Island.

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, Benjamin Hundeyin, confirmed the abduction saying, “Yes, it is true. We got the report and we are looking into it. Please, I’m not obliged to state more than that,” he simply said.

More to come…

A British citizen is suing Apple for £5 million, alleging that the company’s silence on messages that have been removed caused his spouse to find out he was unfaithful and file for divorce.

According to The Times, the middle-aged English guy, who wishes to remain anonymous, reportedly erased messages he sent to sex workers on his iPhone, but the family’s iMac computer retained them.

He admitted to The Times that he had become a prostitute during the last years of his marriage and that he would communicate them using the iPhone’s iMessage programme before deleting the messages.

But finally, his wife found the messages on the family’s iMac computer, along with some older ones he thought he had erased.

He told the Times newspaper, “If you are told a message is deleted, you are entitled to believe it’s deleted.

“It’s all quite painful and quite raw still. It was a very brutal way of finding out [for my wife].

“My thoughts are if I had been able to talk to her rationally and she had not had such a brutal realisation of it, I might still be married.”

He argued that Apple’s messaging system is misleading, as it implies that deleted messages are permanently erased, when in fact they can still be retrieved on other linked devices.

He added: “Divorce is an extraordinarily stressful process and you have children and family dynamics.

“In my opinion it’s all because Apple told me my messages were deleted when they weren’t.

“If the message had said, ‘These messages are deleted on this device’, that would have been a clue, or ‘These messages are deleted on this device only’ that would have been even better.”

He is now pursuing legal action against the company for the more than £5 million he lost in his divorce and legal costs, claiming the company does not make it clear to customers that deleted messages can appear on other Apple devices.

The lawyer, Simon Walton, from London law firm Rosenblatt which is representing the businessman in a statement said that “Apple had not been clear with users as to what happens to messages they send and receive and, importantly, delete.

“In many cases, the iPhone informs the user that messages have been deleted but, as we have seen, that isn’t true and is misleading because they are still found on other linked devices — something Apple doesn’t tell its users,” he said.

“I would be eager to hear from other Apple customers who have experienced similar issues,” he added.