NEWS BITS...

The Economic and Fiancial Crimes Commission (EFCC) say they are preparing to act against business tycoons who have failed to pay back billions owed to banks.The move comes with the expiry of a deadline for those owing money to return it to the troubled banks. The government was forced to rescue five banks and sack their entire leadership teams last week to save the banks from collapse. Some senior bankers are in custody but two chief executives are on the run, they are Mrs Cecilia Ibru and Mr. Erastus Akingbola. The pair are wanted in connection to allegations of money laundering, insider trading, capital market manipulation and abuse of credit process. Controversially, the special fraud office is also hunting down the debtors. Last week the central bank governor shamed some of the wealthiest people in Africa by naming them for not paying back massive loans. Anti-fraud officials say some of the money has been returned, but huge amounts remain outstanding.
The deadline for repayment expires at midnight on Tuesday August 25, 2009.
Many legal experts say that debt is a civil matter and that the terms of the original loans still apply. They have questioned the legal basis of any further arrests.

Veteran US Senator Edward Kennedy, the brother of former President John F Kennedy, has died at 77, after a long battle with a brain tumour.He became a Democratic Massachusetts senator in 1962, replacing his brother when he resigned to become president, and was re-elected seven times. Senator Kennedy was a dominant force in US politics for almost 50 years. President Barack Obama, of whom he was an active supporter, said he was "heartbroken" to hear of his death. Senator Kennedy had championed issues such as education and healthcare, central to Mr Obama's first term.


The French police have uncovered a cache of weapons and explosives allegedly used by the Basque separatist group, Eta.The weapons dump, in southern France's remote Herault region, included pistols, explosives and detonators. French and Spanish police have been working together closely following last month's bomb attacks on the island of Mallorca and the Spanish mainland. French officials said the weapons discoveries had "dealt a very big blow" to Eta's supply network. The find is the 12th uncovered since 19 August when three suspected members of the group were arrested.

Iran has not expanded the number of centrifuges enriching uranium at its nuclear facilities since the end of May. But they said there had been an increase in the number of centrifuges installed and that they could be brought online within weeks. It is not clear whether the slowdown is due to technical or political reasons. Centrifuges spin uranium hexafluoride gas to produce enriched uranium, which can be used to make nuclear weapons. Iran has been given until September by the UN Security Council to end its uranium enrichment programme or face tougher sanctions. The West suspects the country is secretly trying to develop nuclear arms, while Tehran insists its programme is entirely peaceful.