Former presidential aide, Reno Omokri, has urged Nigeria to review its work calendar to reflect the importance of Friday prayers for Muslims, describing the current setup as discriminatory.

In a Facebook video posted on Friday, Omokri argued that before colonialism, Fridays were recognized locally as a rest day for Muslims.

He noted that while Christians enjoy Sunday as a public holiday, Muslims are still expected to work on Fridays, despite its centrality to their religious practice.

As a solution, Omokri proposed an adjustment in working hours. He suggested offices could begin earlier from Monday through Thursday, allowing workplaces to close at midday on Fridays. According to him, this arrangement would make it possible for Muslims to observe Jumu’ah prayers without any drop in national productivity or GDP.

He explained that such a schedule would create a fair balance between Christian and Muslim worship practices within Nigeria’s work structure.

Omokri said:

“I don’t think it is fair for the Muslim Ummah for us to have Friday as a working day in Nigeria. Originally, before colonialism, it was not like that.

“Now we have Sunday as a non-working day and Friday as a working day. I think that we can achieve a compromise. What we can do is that instead of work beginning on Mondays all the way to Friday at 9am or 8am, we can start work at 7:30am on Mondays to Fridays and then on Friday we close at 12 o’clock.

“So the time we are going to lose on Friday we are going to gain it back from Monday to Thursday. So it is not going to affect our productivity as a country and our GDP. And then the Muslim Ummah can close at 12 noon and go for Solat Jumaat. That way, there would be a more equitable balance of our workday lives in Nigeria.”

The Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Polytechnics (SSANIP) has issued a fresh 21-day ultimatum to the Federal Government, warning of a possible national industrial action if longstanding issues remain unresolved.

The ultimatum, effective from August 27, 2025, followed the conclusion of the union’s 77th General Executive Council meeting held at Audu Bako College of Agriculture in Danbatta, Kano State.

SSANIP demanded the release of a new Scheme of Service, the setup of a committee to renegotiate the 2010 Agreement, payment of owed arrears, and the disbursement of the 2023, 2024, and 2025 Needs Assessment Funds.

The joint communiqué by the union’s President, Philip Ogunsipe, and National Secretary, Shehu Gaya, accused the government of offering nothing more than “lip service” to previously agreed demands.

The statement read:

“The Senior Staff Association of Nigeria Polytechnics (SSANIP) held its 77th General Executive Council meetings between Tuesday, 26th and Thursday, 28th August, 2025 at Audu Bako College of Agriculture, Danbatta, Kano State, where issues affecting the Union and welfare of its members were extensively discussed.”

“Council also observed that despite several efforts to ensure peaceful resolution of the above-stated demands, the government has only paid lip service to the issues. Based on the above, the Union demands immediate action on the listed issues within twenty-one (21) days beginning from today, 27th August, 2025, or we will be left with no option but to withdraw our services across the Nation.”

Guaranty Trust Holding Company Plc (NGX: GTCO; LSE: GTCO), today announced that it has increased its investment in its wholly owned Banking subsidiary, Guaranty Trust Bank Limited (“GTBank”) to ₦504 billion through a rights issue subscription for 6,994,050,290 ordinary shares of fifty kobo each made by GTBank for a total consideration of ₦365,850,403,572.67, thus increasing GTBank’s paid-up share capital from ₦138,186,703,485.78 to ₦504,037,107,058.45.

This Capital Injection ensures GTBank’s compliance with the new minimum capital requirement for commercial banks with international authorisation stipulated by the CBN.

The Capital Injection was funded by the two-phased equity capital raising programme recently undertaken and concluded by GTCO Plc with an international fully marketed offering on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) that secured $105 million from high-quality, long-term institutional investors in exchange for 2.29 billion new ordinary shares, making GTCO Plc the first financial services institution in West Africa to dual list on both the NGX and LSE. Launched in July 2024, GTCO’s equity capital programme began with a public offering to Nigerians that raised ₦209.41 billion from 130,617 valid applications for 4.7 billion ordinary shares, fully allotted and evenly split between retail and institutional investors.

Commenting on the recapitalisation of Guaranty Trust Bank Ltd, Segun Agbaje, Group Chief Executive Officer of GTCO Plc, said: “The successful recapitalisation of our flagship banking subsidiary, Guaranty Trust Bank Limited, marks a pivotal step in strengthening the foundation of our Group. With significant new capital secured and the CBN’s recapitalisation directive for Guaranty Trust Bank now fulfilled, we are focused on deepening innovation and service excellence, delivering improved performance, and expanding our footprint across high-growth markets, while upholding the industry-leading standards that define the GTCO brand.”

The additional equity capital will be deployed by GTBank primarily for branch network expansion and asset growth (loans, advances, and investment securities portfolio), fortification of its information technology infrastructure and to leverage emerging opportunities in Nigeria and the operating environments where it maintains banking presence.

Following the Capital Injection, the Company continues to hold 100% of the entire issued and paid-up share capital of the Bank. None of the Directors of the Company has any interest, direct or indirect, in the Bank.

About GTCO Plc

GTCO Plc is one of Africa’s leading financial services institutions with a longstanding track record of strong growth, service excellence, and shareholder returns. The Group operates across banking, payments, asset management, and pension administration in eleven countries, including Nigeria, the UK, and key African markets.