Protection of minority shareholders under Nigerian Company Law

The protection of the minority shareholders within the domain of corporate activity constitutes one of the most difficult problems facing modern company law. The aim must be to strike a balance between the effective control of the company and the interest of the small and individual shareholders. As such, a proper balance of the rights of majority and minority shareholders is essential for the smooth functioning of the company. This study examined the provisions of Companies and Allied Matters Act 1990, on the legal protection of the minority shareholders in company management with a view of exposing its strength and weaknesses. Doctrinal method of research was used in this study which entails looking at the law as it is and considering the general principles underpinning the law. This study found out among other things that company meetings have been provided as an important tool for minority shareholders protection in Nigeria but that has been circumvented through the system of voting adopted especially in the election of directors that makes it difficult if not impossible for minority shareholders to elect their representative on the board of directors and also the shareholders or their proxies physical attendance at the meeting. It is therefore recommended among others that the Companies and Allied Matters Act should provide for mandatory cumulative voting system and electronic participation of shareholders or their proxies at the company’s meetings.Keywords: Minority shareholders, Company Law, Nigeria, Protection, Companies and Allied Matters Ac

Knowledge, Attitudes And Sexual Practices Of University Students For Advancing Peer HIV Education

Objective: To determine the current HIV/AIDS Knowledge, Attitudes and Sexual Practices (KASP) indicators among university students that would facilitate development and implementation of a peer education programme and the subsequent monitoring and evaluation of other HIV/AIDS activities.Design: An institutional based cross-sectional study.Setting: Maseno University, Kenya.Subjects: Five hundred students composed of 60% males and 40% females as dictated by the university’s male to female ratio.Main outcome measures: Levels of HIV and AIDS awareness, knowledge and attitudes and the current related behavioural trends and tendencies, among the students at the University.Results: Of the five hundred respondents included in the study, 68.5% of them reported having ever had sexual intercourse, with males being the majority at 78.2%, while the females were 54.7%. A large majority (77%) of females were in current sexual relationships compared to 66.7% of males. A significant proportion (54.8%) of first year students reported having had their first sexual intercourse at the university. Sexualactivity was seen to increase from 56.9 to 71.2% among the first year students when they got to second year of study at the university. Peer pressure emerged as an important factor in students’ sexual behaviour (P=0.001). Of the students, 32% reported having undergone HIV tests, 70.8% were willing to go for a test while 74.3% perceived theyhad a chance of being infected with the virus based on their previous risky sexual experiences. A significant 77.7% of the respondents affirmed having ever used condoms but only 15.8% reported consistent use.Conclusion: High proportions of students are sexually active with peaks in first and second years of study. This is coupled with an equal inconsistent use of condoms. Peer influence emerged as an important feature in accelerating risky sexual behaviour hence the need for advancing peer education programmes in universities.

Nigeria’s Unity, Development and Civil Society: The Imperative of Good Governance

Before the arrival of the British imperialist, there was no united entity called Nigeria. There was also nothing like political infrastructure known as “regions”. Nigeria comprises of about 250 ethnic groups who were doing things as entity of their own before the British colonizers integrated Nigeria to be one. The merger could be described as “forced union”. The introduction of indirect rule by the British imperial master orchestrated divide and rule in Nigeria, it also gave rise to ethnic consciousness. It is on this backdrop that this study evaluated the role of governance in Nigeria’s unity with a view to identifying the areas of problems. Survey research method was adopted. Data collected through questionnaire were analyzed using Z-test. Myriads of factors were identified as responsible for disunity and separatist agitation in Nigeria. The factors were critically discussed and suggestions proffered. Essentially it is the position of the paper that there should be reduction of scarcity and inequality through revolutionary development. Development which should be predicated on equity and fairness. The rotation of power to ensure that all ethnic groups are given opportunity is also recommended. Also the paper recommended that the emphasis on ethnicity/tribe or place of origin in official forms should be abolished

Institutional Variables as Antecedents of Academic Staff Teaching, Research Productivity and Community Service in Universities

This study was conducted to investigate the degree to which institutional variables such as: institutional location, ownership and leadership influence the job performance of academic staff across three dimensions: teaching, research productivity and community service. This ex-post facto study by design, tested three hypotheses. A total of 449 academic, randomly drawn from three (one private and two public) universities in Cross River State, Nigeria, participated in the study. Three sets of questionnaires were used for data collection after due validity and reliability tests. They included the “Institutional Variables Questionnaire (IVQ)”, the “Research Productivity and Community Service Questionnaire (RPCSQ)”, and the “Staff Instructional Delivery Questionnaire (SIDQ).” Collected data were analysed using the independent sample t-test, one-way analysis of variance (ANOVA) and simple linear analysis. Findings indicated that institutional location significantly impacts university academic staff across multiple dimensions—teaching, research, and community service— with urban institutions consistently demonstrating higher scores than their rural counterparts. There was a significant influence of institutional ownership on research productivity unlike teaching and community service. Federal institutions exhibited higher research productivity than both state and private universities. Institutional leadership significantly influenced research productivity and community service engagement, but not in the dimension of teaching among the academic staff. This study underscores the need for a holistic approach to enhancing academic staff performance. It emphasizes the importance of strategic resource allocation, collaborative endeavours, and strong leadership to create an environment where teaching, research, and community service thrive

FLOW ASSURANCE OPERATIONAL PROBLEMS IN NATURAL GAS PIPELINE TRANSPORTATION NETWORKS IN NIGERIA AND ITS MODELING USING OLGA AND PVTSIM SIMULATORS

The challenges associated with natural gas Pipeline flow assurance is an increasingly important issue as the world supply for natural gas expands, and is expected to rise more strongly to match the global demand for a cleaner energy. Flow assurance challenges in pipelines include hydrate formation, paraffin wax deposition, asphaltene deposition, sand deposits, black powder, and on the wall of pipelines, all of which obstruct the flow of well fluids and associated produced hydrocarbons. This study addressed these flow assurance concerns from a technical view by quantifying the threats and establishing appropriate mitigation schemes, leading to designed solutions and operational procedures. Modeling and simulation approach was adopted to achieve the overall aim. The simulation software tools PVTsim and OLGA were used for both steady state and dynamic states. The phase envelope investigation indicates that the cricondentherm within the constraint of the delivery temperature. The slugging analysis, indicates that hydrodynamic slugging will not be predominant for the pipeline operations at the design flow rate of 30MMscfd along Alakiri – Obigbo, and at 70MMscfd along the Obigbo Tie-in - Intermediate scrap station; as the flow regimes are mainly stratified for both pipeline systems. From the hydrate analysis investigated, after a shutdown period (no-touch time); hydrate threat is envisaged during the shutdown period of the Intermediate scraper trap – ALSCON along pipeline system, since the temperature drops to the hydrate formation temperature

Stress and frustration tolerance on officiating performance among elite football referees in Nigeria

Introduction: Football referees play an essential yet demanding role in officiating and enforcing the laws of the game (soccer). Despite this role, referees are often faced with challenging situations that tend to interfere with their officiating performance. Purpose: The purpose of the study was to assess the effect of stress and frustration tolerance on the performance of elite football referees in Nigeria. Methodology: Three null hypotheses guided the study. A survey research design was adopted for the study. A total of 123 elite football referees participated in the study. The Perceived Stress Scale (PSS), Frustration Discomfort Scale (FDS) and Referee Performance Questionnaire (RPQ) served as the data collection tools. The first two instruments were adopted, and their validity and reliability have since been established. The RPQ was validated using experts’ opinions and subjected to a reliability test of internal consistency. The coefficient obtained was 0.711, which showed high reliability of the research instrument.  Data were collected by physically administering copies of the instruments to the elite football referees. Simple and multiple regression analysis was applied to quantify the predictive relationships between perceived stress and frustration tolerance with self-perceived performance. Results: Findings revealed a negative relationship between perceived stress and referee performance. However, a significant positive relationship was found between frustration tolerance and referee performance. Recommendation: Based on the results, it was recommended among others that, football organizations should integrate stress management training into referee development programmes

Cidofovir for the Treatment of Recurrent Respiratory Papillomatosis: A Review of the Literature

Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/90089/1/phco.2005.25.7.977.pd

Interactive analysis of demographic variables and occupational stress on university lecturers’ job performance

This research studied the interaction influence of demographic characteristics (marital status, job rank, gender and age) and occupational stress level, on the work performance of faculty members in Calabar Metropolis. The descriptive survey design was utilized for this investigation. A sample of 150 respondents was identified using the systematic random sampling procedure from a population of 400 Faculty of Education lecturers from two public universities in Calabar Metropolis. A four-point scale validity and reliability certified questionnaire was used for data collection. Data generated was analyzed using the two-way analysis of variance. Hypotheses were all tested at the 0.05 alpha level. Findings revealed a significant interactive effect of demographic variables (age, gender, job rank and marital status) and stress levels on lecturers' jobs. Results also indicated that the stress level of lecturers affects the degree or quality of job performance, with those having average stress levels reporting better job performance in the universities studied. Recommendations were made that all lecturers, irrespective of age, gender, marital status or rank, should develop or adopt good stress management skills and disengage/reduce extra jobs and other unnecessary stress-inducing activities.

FOREIGN RESERVE ACCUMULATION AND MACRO ECONOMIC VARIABLES OF SUB-SAHARAN AFRICAN COUNTRIES

This study investigates the effect of foreign exchange reserves accumulation on economic stability proxied by inflation, unemployment, exports and GDP for a sample of 49 Sub-Saharan African countries for the periods 2009- 2018 using panel (longitudinal) fixed model. Findings from this study reveal that foreign exchange reserves have a significant negative effect on unemployment and inflation; however, it shows a significant positive effect on export and gross domestic product (GDP. To improve the overall economy of the listed sub-Saharan countries, the paper therefore recommends sub-Saharan African countries to adopt a mixture of investment friendly and direct unemployment reduction polices by reinvesting investible surplus into inflationary controllable and productivity boosting policies that will stimulate economic prowess rather than keeping this huge amount of resources redundant