Nigeria: NNPC Restructuring a One-Man Show - PENGASSAN President

The Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria, PENGASSAN, says it is not opposed to the on-going reforms in the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC. The National President of the Association, Francis Johnson, told our Business Editor, Bassey Udo, that all what its members want was an all-inclusive arrangement for all interest groups in the industry.

Excerpts

PT: The oil workers unions seem uncomfortable with the on-going restructuring of the NNPC. What are your concerns?

PENGASSAN: For the unions, there must be consistency in policy formulation and implementation by government. Again, there must be an informed consensus on all issues affecting the industry. There must be a buy-in by everyone - government, players and workers. All interest parties must be on the same page. Everyone must understand the direction the industry is heading. Where there are problems, we should join hands together to solve them

It is not too good for the country that the oil and gas industry, the mainstay of our economy, would show such inconsistency in the way policies are formulated and implemented. We seem to be going one step forward today, and two steps backward tomorrow.

If there are things the government needs to do (I believe there are many) to strengthen the industry and bring it to globally acceptable standards, we must be open and transparent about it, by laying all the cards on the table for all parties to see.

One cannot put one hand on the table and the other under the table and expect others to believe one is sincere about the process.

When the present administration came to office, PENGASSAN presented a comprehensive roadmap to Mr. President on what our members think the industry should be. The roadmap was given full exposure in most media in the country. We also submitted the document to the then Ahmed Joda-led All Progressives Congress, APC Transition Committee.

In the roadmap, PENGASSAN asked government to declare a state of emergency in the oil and gas industry. This is an industry that is grappling with a whole lot of issues, namely crude oil theft (which costs the country billions of dollars over the years), pipeline vandalism, backlog of joint venture cash calls, poor state of refineries, corruption in the importation of petroleum products and subsidy payment to marketers, abuse of Nigerian Content policy, etc.

Also, it looked at the status of the PPPRA (Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency) and Petroleum Equalization Fund, PEF, viz-a-viz the role of the NNPC in the performance of their mandates.

With the state of emergency proposal, PENGASSAN believed all Nigerians could sit down together to discuss these problems and proffer solutions. But, if government is talking about restructuring and reorganisation of the NNPC now, and the same issues are the key issues the Petroleum Industry Bill, PIB, set to achieve, when did that arrangement change? That is the policy inconsistency PENGASSAN is talking about.

The unions are not aware government has jettisoned these issues in the draft PIB currently before the National Assembly for approval. Yet, government has gone ahead to implement what has not yet been approved. That is clearly a setting for confusion. What is worrisome is: what happens if the National Assembly finally approves something different from what government is already implementing in NNPC?

The unions do not seem to know where the industry is going. The essence of any policy is to build a system that would stand the test of time. We must strive to build a legacy that we would all be proud to be associated with long after we have left the system.

For instance, the NNPC Retail was an idea started by the Gaius Obaseki administration in NNPC. When it was conceived, a lot of people opposed it vehemently. But, Mr. Obaseki saw it through, because he carried everybody along and drove the vision to the end. Today, we can see the benefits.

The need to work together is not only in NNPC. It is applicable in every sphere of the industry and government agencies. At every stage in the decision making process, all parties have the responsibility of letting members of their constituencies know what is going on. If as a union the leadership is not carried along in decisions that affect their interests, how would they explain to members how they would be accommodated?

Nigeria: SON Declares War On Substandard Building Materials

The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has declared war on manufacturers of substandard building materials in order to curb rising trend of building collapse across the country.

The Acting Director General of the SON, Dr. Paul Angya, disclosed this in Abuja when the executive members of the Nigerian Institute of Architects (NIA) visited him.

Angya promised to partner with the Nigerian Institute of Architects (NIA) in a bid to fight the current wave of production and sale of substandard building material.

Angya said that the increasing rate of building collapse in the country was worrisome and called on the Institute to see themselves as partners in the development of Nigeria in terms of quality and standards.

He informed the Institute of an existing Task Force in SON, and invited them to join SON to fight and instil discipline in the build industry, particularly the Iron and Steel sector.

Embracing Made in Nigeria.

Following the deep slide of crude oil prices from $140 per barrel in 2013 to the current trading just below $40 per barrel the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) made bold, proactive moves to protect the economy from spiralling into chaos.

 First of all, the CBN sought to preserve our foreign reserves and steady the value of the Naira by prohibiting the sale of foreign exchange for the importation of items that can be produced in Nigeria. It also strove to make foreign exchange available to manufacturers to import machineries and other intermediate goods to keep their production lines running. The Bank is at the forefront of the current drive to look inwards, dump the national mania for imported products and redirect efforts to “made in Nigeria” goods. These measures have ensured that the foreign reserves have remained steady at just below 30 billion US Dollars, thus holding up Nigeria’s creditworthiness among our international trade partners. We are expecting the Federal Government, through the Federal Ministry of Finance, to immediately unfold a national economic agenda that will mobilise all sectors of the economy to embrace the “Made in Nigeria” campaign. 
This it can do by first of all enunciating a robust fiscal policy support to complement the CBN’s efforts at managing the foreign exchange, inflation and interest rates. We are disappointed that the so-called Economic Team headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, has not shown its hands to guide the drivers of the various sectors of the economy to confront the challenges posed by the oil glut. It was this lack of spark that prompted concerned Nigerians like Nobel Laureate, Professor Wole Soyinka, to call for an emergency economic conference, which the Federal Government has accepted in principle to do. The Federal Government must unleash its various arms to key into the “Made in Nigeria” drive. The Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) must redouble its efforts to plug the entry points to ensure that unpatriotic Nigerian traders and their foreign collaborators do not undermine the inward-looking measures. This it can do through the imposition of stringent import tariffs to discourage importation. 

Happily, the National Assembly has shown its eagerness to play a leading role in the “Made in Nigeria” initiative through the application of appropriate legislative measures. Nigerians must do away with import dependency. They must consume what they produce as well as produce what they consume. That is the only way to increase productivity, diversify the economy and provide jobs for our teeming jobless youth. When that happens, the rate of crimes will come down and Nigeria will be economically prosperous and politically stable. Let us see this economic crisis as an opportunity to escape import dependency.

Creating Online Turnkey Business Website

Within this article today, we’ll look at ways that you can work on creating an online turnkey business website. When you are looking at creating an online turnkey business website, the initial development will take more time than with a standard website but it will pay off with big dividends in the end for you. We will look at what types of software you possibly want to use or look for as well as an example of a possible online turnkey business website.

The first key when creating an online turnkey business website is software. Using and buying software helps create efficiencies that you will need in creating an online turnkey business website. If you have a newsletter and people sign up for it, you will want an email system in place which incorporates autoresponders. A good example of an email autoresponder software that you can use is:GETRESPONSE.COM. This software is not too expensive with the standard edition running free trial and the Professional Edition costing you up to a custom pricing. Take some time to look at this website and see if this is software that can work for you.

Other ways to help in bringing traffic to your website and in creating an online turnkey business website would be buying leads from an email marketing firm. If you do this, you can let the autoresponders and other software in place handle the leads so that you can continue to buy leads and have sales conversions occur. Remember that one of the main keys in working on creating an online turnkey business website is to make sure that you are using as much software as possible so that the process is automated. Most of this paragraph has emphasized the fact that you need auto responders. Without this, you would have to manually write each e-mail and this would be a huge waste of your time.

Another good example of creating an online turnkey business website would be creating an affiliate program. When you’re doing this, all of the information should be set up ahead of time so that once your affiliate is able to successfully close a sale, the person who wants to buy the product is sent automatically to your landing page. This would be a great example of creating an online turnkey business website because you’d only need a landing page, a download page for the product, and a thank you page. There would be nothing that would be done on your end as far as marking the websites or anything like that. If you promoted products using clickbank.com as well as affiliate programs.com, you would be very well set up in creating an online turnkey business website.

Hopefully this article on creating an online turnkey business website will help you. There’s a great deal of information that can be found on this on the Internet but take your time in setting up a website ahead of time because using software and buying leads can lead to constant profits for you.

Buhari Sacks 26 Jonathan Appointees

• After budget fiasco, appoints new DG Budget, Akabueze SA, National Planning
•   Dabiri-Erewa is new presidential aide, Foreign Affairs

Bolaji Adebiyi, Tobi Soniyi and Jaiyeola Andrews in Abuja  

President Muhammadu Buhari monday approved the immediate disengagement of 26 chief executives of federal government agencies and commissions whom he inherited from his predecessor, former President Goodluck Jonathan, confirming THISDAY’s exclusive report that at least 35 of them will be relieved of their posts this week.

He also directed that the most senior officers in the affected parastatals should oversee the organisations pending the appointment of substantive heads of the agencies.

The disengagement was confirmed in a statement by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr. Babachir Lawal.

The affected persons were the Directors-General of the Nigerian Television Authority (NTA), Mr. Sola Omole; Federal Radio Corporation of Nigeria (FRCN), Mr. Ladan Salihu; Voice of Nigeria (VON), Mr. Sam Worlu; National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Mr. Emeka Mba; National Orientation Agency (NOA), Mr. Mike Omieri; and Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mr. Ima Niboro.

Others included the DGs of the National Agency for Food and Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Dr. Paul Orhii; Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP), Mr. Emeka Eze; Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE), Mr. Benjamin Dikki; Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), Mr. Ahmed Farouk; Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), Mr. Joseph Odumodu; and the Managing Director of Bank of Industry (BoI), Mr. Rasheed Olaoluwa.

Also affected were the chief executives of the Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Mr. Umar Munir Abubakar; Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB), Mr. Denzil Amagbe Kentebe; Federal Mortgage Bank of Nigeria (FMBN), Mr. Gimba Ya’u Kumo; Nigeria Railways Corporation (NRC), Mr. Adeseyi Sijuwade; and National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), Mr. Peter Jack, who was recently suspended by the Minister of Communications Technology.

In addition, the heads of the National Centre for Women Development (NCWD), Ms. Onyeka Onwenu; Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Mrs. Juliet Chukkas-Onaeko; National Agency for Prohibition of Traffic In Persons and Other Related Matters (NAPTIP), Mrs. Beatrice Jeddy Egba; Petroleum Technology Development Fund (PTDF); New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD); Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund); Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF); Nigeria Investment Promotion Council (NIPC); and Nigerian Export-Import Bank were relieved of their posts.

According to the statement, Buhari thanked them for their invaluable services to the nation and wished them well in their future endeavours.

THISDAY exclusively reported yesterday that members of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) had been mounting pressure on the president to remove the heads appointed by the Jonathan administration, irrespective of the non-expiration of their tenures and what their establishment Acts stipulate for their removal.

For instance, Section 7 of the Public Procurement Act of 2007 that established the BPP, states that “the Director-General shall hold office: (a) for a term of 4 years in the first instance and may be re-appointed for a further term of 4 years and no more; and (b) on such terms and conditions as may be specified in his letter of appointment”.

While subsection 4, states: “Without prejudice to the provisions of this Act, the Director-General of the Bureau may be removed from office at the instance of the President on the basis of gross misconduct of financial impropriety, fraud, and manifested incompetence proven by the Council.”

Similarly, the Act establishing the NTA and FRCN stipulates that “if it appears to the Minister that a member of the Authority/Corporation should be removed from office on the grounds of misconduct or inability to perform the functions of his office, the Minister shall after consultation with the interests, if any, represented by that member make a recommendation to that effect to the President, and if the President approves the recommendation, the Minister may declare, in writing, the office of that member vacant”.

Just as the sacking was made public, Buhari also approved the appointment of Mr. Tijjani Mohammed Abdullahi as the new Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation.

A statement issued by his media aide, Mr Femi Adesina, said Mr. Abdullahi, a fellow of the Certified National Accountants of Nigeria, and a banker of repute with experience in managing public finance, replaced the current Director-General (Budget), Mr. Yahaya Gusau. 
The statement said: “The new Director-General (Budget) is expected to work with the Minister of Budget and National Planning to efficiently deliver on the mandates of the Budget Office of the Federation.”

Buhari has also approved the appointment of Mr. Ben Ifeanyi Akabueze as his Special Adviser, National Planning.
Akabueze, who is the immediate past Commissioner for Economic Planning and Budget in Lagos State, has worked in senior management positions in Citi Bank, Fidelity B

ank, United Bank for Africa, NAL Merchant Bank, Sterling Bank and BIA Consulting Limited, among others.
He is a Fellow of the Chartered Institute of Bankers; Fellow, Institute of Credit Administrators, and Honorary Fellow, Chartered Institute of Bankers.

Abdullahi and Akabueze’s appointments followed the fiasco that has trailed the 2016 budget since its presentation to the National Assembly by Buhari last December.

The 2016 budget has been variously declared “missing” and “error-ridden” by the National Assembly, causing immense embarrassment to the administration.

In addition to Abdullahi and Akabueze’s appointments, Buhari also named Hon. Abike Dabiri-Erewa as his Senior Special Assistant on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora.

Her appointment takes immediate effect.

Dabiri-Erewa was sighted at the Presidential Villa in Abuja yesterday when she came for her appointment letter after which she completed her documentation.

Amaechi debunks Wike’s allegation of $150m donation to APC

Minister of Transportation and former governor of Rivers State, Chibuike Amaechi, has debunked an allegation, by Governor Nyesom Wike to the effect that he (Amaechi) gave $150 million to the All Progressives Congress (APC) for the 2015 general election.

 

Governor Wike had at a thanksgiving service at Saint Peters Anglican Church, Rumuepirikon, Port Harcourt, on Sunday, alleged that his predecessor gave the said amount of money from the state coffers to APC.

A statement issued yesterday by Amaechi’s media office in Abuja, dismissed the allegation and said the allegation by the governor was aimed at denigrating and disparaging his person and the office he is currently occupying.

“The ‘story-story’ this time is about another phantom $150,000,000 that Amaechi purportedly stole from Rivers State Government coffers and siphoned to his party, the APC within 18days, from December 1 to 18 of 2014. Sadly, again, Wike picked a church, a sacred temple of God, to tell his new imaginary tale; another bogus, fallacious concoction.

“This new scurrilous fabrication by Governor Wike is in sync with the one-point agenda of his Wike administration; which is to throw as much mud as possible at the former governor, Amaechi, hoping that some may at least, stick.

All sorts of spurious stories about alleged corruption and stealing of state funds against the Amaechi administration have been bandied in the media, with no attempt to substantiate or prove these distorted false claims that completely makes nonsense of common sense.

“Even, when Amaechi challenged Wike’s administration and its agents to use any constitutionally available legal process or procedure to prove their jaundiced, deceitful allegations against him and his administration, they have rather elected to do their own corruption probe, trial and conviction in the media; and now, even inside our solemn places of worship (churches). How callous! Why would a government be so determined to desecrate and destroy every institution, all in the name of playing politics?

“It continues to baffle us, like most right-thinking Nigerians, that Governor Wike will stand in a church- a solemn place of worship- and carelessly, brusquely tell such a profound lie.”

The statement challenged Governor Wike, to disclose the name of the person who collected the $150 million on behalf of APC and from which state government account (s).

“How was the $150 million taken and given to APC? Was it by wired transfer from Rivers State Government account(s) to APC account(s)?  So many questions, if Wike had attempted to answer, would have made nonsense of his supercilious allegations,” the statement further said.

Lagos Marathon’s Not So Surprising Winners

The infamously congested, concrete jungle of Lagos is far from a runners’ paradise, but with the launch of a new annual marathon on Saturday organisers hope to show that the city’s bad reputation is undeserved.
Over 20,000 participants turned out before dawn on a typically muggy morning in Lagos to compete in the biggest marathon the city has seen in thirty years.
 

The streets of sub-Saharan Africa’s biggest metropolis, usually clogged with cars, battered mini busses and whizzing okadas—motorbike taxis—were cleared for the event and patrolled by lines of armed police and soldiers.
Runners, some barefoot and others decked out head to toe in candy-coloured athletic gear, braved the haze, taking advantage of the rare opportunity to run on a smooth road with air free of exhaust fumes.
“It’s kind of hectic to stay in Lagos, but people make it work,” Lolade McJohnson, a 33-year-old lawyer cheering on runners, said to AFP.
“After this, we’ll have more people interested in running, maybe now we’ll even have a Nigerian champion.”
Unlike in Kenya and Ethiopia, two countries whose runners have dominated marathons for years, or in marathon-crazed South Africa, Nigeria has yet to develop a long distance running culture.
For some, it’s a casualty of years of chronic mismanagement of lucrative oil funds that has left Africa’s biggest economy without basic infrastructure, let along quality sports programs.
“In the 70’s and 80’s there was a strong culture of running, all that died,” Lagos City Marathon spokesman Olukayode Thomas said to AFP.
“But that is a culture we’re trying to revive.”
With Nigeria, Africa’s biggest oil producer, taking a massive hit from the low price of crude and battling an almost seven-year Boko Haram Islamic insurgency, Thomas said events like the marathon show it’s not only doom and gloom for the country.
“It’s not just about Boko Haram, there are a lot of positives in Nigeria.”
Pressing heat
Thousands of people turned out to encourage the runners along the 42 kilometre stretch of road, with gardeners hosing down panting contestants and a mini-marching band composed of a trumpeter and two drummers adding an impromptu soundtrack to the event.
Kenyan Abraham Kipton won the marathon and the $50,000 prize with a time of 2:16.21, crossing the finish line with his arms raised in victory before collapsing on the ground just after the finish line.
Though happy for his win, he had to acknowledge Lagos’s oppressive heat.
“It is my first time running in very high humidity but I thank God for this day,” Kipton said to AFP.
“Nigeria is very hot but it is very good,” agreed the women’s winner Ethiopian Halima Hussein Kayo.
Adeyemi Kazeem, one of the first Nigerian finishers, said that despite not placing in the top three he was proud of his performance.
“I feel good, I can inspire more people to run in Nigeria,” he said.
Still in its infancy, the race suffered a few hitches.
One runner said that by the time he reached the refreshment station there was no bottles of water left and was forced to pull out of the race at the 30 kilometre mark.
But with the next Lagos marathon already pencilled in for February next year, Thomas insists these are just hiccups in the grand scheme of things.
“We were facing many fears before the race—security, traffic—but so far there’s not been any issues,” Thomas said, “it can only get better.”

Baby Mama palaver: Tuface, Olamide, Davido, 9ice and their out-of-wedlock families

They are young, handsome, rich and upwardly mobile. Little wonder they attract legions of adoring female fans. The baby mama syndrome is fast becoming the norm, as it seems some young musicians don’t see anything wrong in sowing wild oats. In fact, it has become the trend for young Nigerian artistes to father children out of wedlock, without any intention to get married to their baby mamas. From Tuface Idibia aka Tubaba who is regarded as ‘father of many nations’ to youngsters like Wizkid and Davido, the story is the same. This is the world of notable musicians with baby mamas.
Tuface



While he has been a pioneer of sort in the music industry, Tuface Idibia is also a pioneer as far as baby mama palaver is concerned. In a career spanning two decades and still counting, Tuface has developed a legendary reputation for sowing wild oats, and to date, over a dozen women have claimed that he’s the father of their babies.  Tuface’s baby mamas include Sumbo Adeoye nee Ajaba, Pero Adeniyi and Annie Macaulay. Between them the women have seven kids for the musician.
However, in 2013, Annie Macaulay became the official wife when Tuface married her in a society wedding that attracted the crème de la crème of the entertainment industry. In an interview, Tuface confessed that even though, he regrets his life with women; he loves his children very much.
9ice
Success hit 9ice like a ton of bricks after the release of his chartbuster, Gongo Aso, a few years ago. Before anyone could say Jackie Robinson, 9ice tied the knot with Toni Payne and together they made a baby boy. But the marriage soon broke up, and ever since, 9ice has been on rampage!
Beginning with his long time girlfriend, Vicky Godis, the musician fathered a set of female twins. Not done, he hooked up with Olasunkanmi Ajala, who also had a child for him, raising his number of children to four.
Flavour
Ever since he hit fame and stardom with the remix of Osita Osadebe’s classic, Ashawo, contemporary highlife singer, Flavour, has been smiling to the bank, with girls swooning all over him. Little wonder he is not left out of the fray.
However, what sets Flavour apart from the pack is his attraction to ex-beauty queens. So far, he has two daughters from ex-Delta queen, Sandra Okagbue and former MBGN queen, Anna Banner.
Seun Kuti
Seun Kuti has always insisted that the institution of marriage makes no sense to him because of the high rate of divorce in the world. In fact, the Afrobeat act has severally declared in interviews that he has no intention of getting married.
However, Seun Kuti, who has a baby girl from his long time girlfriend, Yetunde Ademiluyi, a couple of years ago is alleged to have secretly fathered another child with a lady called Adaeze.
What actually exposed Seun were messages leaked on social media credited to his baby mama, Adaeze, disclosing that he is yet to set eyes on his child, Zuna, who was delivered over a year ago. To date, Seun has declined comments on the issue.
Wizkid
Ayo Balogun popularly known as Wizkid rode to fame after the release of his debut single, Holla At Ur Boi and since then the self-acclaimed Star Boy has never looked back. While his career has risen at an astronomical rate, so also his penchant for bedding pretty ladies.
Beginning with Tania Omotayo, who had a child for him in 2011, Wizkid fathered another child recently courtesy of Blue Diamond, a Guinean model. She posted the picture of her and the baby on the Instagram recently, saying that she has christened him Ayo Balogun Jnr.
Davido
OBO singer, David Adeleke aka Davido, is not left out of the brouhaha of musicians sowing wild oats. He was recently in the thick of a custody battle with his baby mama, Sophia, over their daughter, Imade. However, Davido has openly declared that he has no intention of marrying Sophia due to age difference and the fact that she does not deserve him.
Solidstar
Delta-born musician, Joshua Iniyezo aka Solidstar, had a son with his UK-based lover late last year. Although, the identity of the white baby mama is still unknown, the singer shared adorable photos of his cute baby on Instagram. As a testament to his bedding skills, the Baby Jollof singer in an interview described himself as a “striker”!
Olamide
Award-winning rapper and YBNL boss, Olamide, is also in the thick of the baby mama drama. Only recently, the musician revealed that he had no intention of marrying Adebukunmi Suleiman, who had a child for him.
“We’ve been cool from way back and we’ve been together for almost five years now. She is not just a random chic that came around from nowhere. But regarding the question of marrying her, that one is very hard to answer because Olamide is not God; only God knows tomorrow,” he said.
Oritsefemi
Majemite Oritsefemi grew up in the ghettos of Ajegunle and rose to limelight in 2013 after the release of his hit single, Double Wahala. The self-styled Musical Taliban has two beautiful daughters aged 9 and 11 from his baby mama, Blessing Rawa. However, both of them broke up amid allegations that she hacked his Instagram account last year. The pair dated for years but as soon as success came Oritshefemi’s way, the story changed, leading him to hook up with sexy singer, Adasounds.
Lanre Teriba
When popular gospel singer, Lanre Teriba aka Atorise impregnated a lady outside wedlock, he had thought that his marriage was over. But luckily for him, his wife forgave and took him back!
In a recent interview with The Sun, Teriba narrated his ordeal: “When I had a child out of wedlock I cried. The reason why I felt bad about it was that some people were using it against me. I regret it as well. Certain things happen in your life that are beyond you; I am human. But I don’t know why some people think I should kill myself because of that singular mistake. When I read stuff about me on the Internet, I felt so bad but I have some wonderful fans that encouraged me.
“And I thank God for my wife for being a great encouragement. I have prayed to God for forgiveness and my wife has also forgiven me. So, those who still use it against me are haters.”

DISCOs assures on increased electricity supply as generation peaks

ELECTRICITY distribution companies in Nigeria have assured consumers of improved electricity supply as power generation continues to increase from the generation companies.
The Association of Nigeria Electricity Distributors (ANED), in a atatement said the boost in power generation over the last few months meant electricity users were in for the best of time.
ANED in the statement issued in Abuja on Sunday by its Executive Director, Research and Advocacy, Mr. Sunday Oduntan said the attainment of 5,075MW go generated electricity had to be appreciated in the context of a sector that barely generated 2,000MW prior to the start of the sector reforms, a little over five years ago.
 
Regrating the removal of the Fixed Charges Oduntan said: “it constitutes a revenue risk to the operators, but it is a risk that we are prepared to take, as necessary to march in lockstep with our customers and loudly convey that that the sector’s players are making every kind of compromise possible to ensure that affordable but sustainable and appropriately priced power is delivered to your homes and businesses.”
Electricity generation in Nigeria last week hit an all-time high of 5,075MW, demonstrating the capacity of the sector to meet the country’s power needs, a major milestone in the drive to grow the nation’s economy and improve quality of life.
Nigeria’s growth has been crippled for too long by decades-old deficiencies in the power sector.
Private sector-driven efficiency and realistic market prices can, and are already giving the sector a new lease of life. According to Oduntan, the Distribution Companies (DisCos) will continue to do its best to distribute power that is transmitted to them.
“ANED and its members are sensitive to customer anxiety over the recent increase in electricity tariffs,” he said.
“We hereby provide our customers an assurance that the increase is no more than that which is necessary for critical improvement of an electricity infrastructure that has suffered decades of neglect. “The increase will help to mitigate the negative cashflow and revenue shortfalls that have bedeviled the sector since the handover of the assets to private operators and hindered the ability for generators to increase power supply, due to their inability to pay their gas suppliers.
“Presently, over two-thirds of power generated are from gas-fired plants”, he stated. He said with the increased investment that will occur, as a result of the ability of the operators to generate a credible cashflow that will, in turn, provide them with access to financing for investment in distribution, generation and transmission infrastructure, the cost of electricity supply and distribution will be reduced.
“This reduction, as a result of increased investment and efficiency gains, will result in lower tariffs for electricity customers,” he added.

Senate declares war on Presidency

A showdown is imminent between the Presidency and the Senate following a failed attempt by Senate President Bukola Saraki to stop his trial at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT).

The Supreme Court last Friday threw out Saraki’s appeal to stop his prosecution over alleged false assets declaration. The lawmakers have resolved to throw their weight behind Saraki.

 

The Senate may soon launch a full-scale war against the Presidency and certain people in the All Progressives Congress (APC), who they persistently accused of masterminding Saraki’s travails.

Saraki is currently ‎facing a 13- count charge of alleged corruption and false declaration of assets. Specifically, he was accused of deliberately manipulating the assets’s declaration form that he filed prior to his assumption of office as the Senate President, by making anticipatory declaration of assets.

Saraki, who once refused to honour an invitation extended to him by the CCT, approached a Federal High Court where he lost and approached the Court of Appeal. Again, he didn’t succeed. Eventually, he was docked by the CCT. 

He proceeded to the Supreme Court and on November 12, 2015, a panel of judges, headed by Justice John Fabiyi, suspended further hearing on the case pending the outcome of the appeal.

 Saraki had in his six grounds of appeal prayed the Supreme Court to set aside the majority verdict of the appellate court panel delivered by Justices Moore Adumein and Mohammed Mustapha on September 30, 2015.

 But last Friday, the Supreme Court ruled that the CCT’s case against Saraki should go on. ‎The court ruled that the tribunal was properly constituted to exercise jurisdiction over the trial.

However, the Senate is not ready to dump its embattled president. In a  statement issued in Abuja yesterday, spokesman of the Red Chamber, Senator Abdullahi Sabi, said lawmakers were solidly behind Saraki. He lampooned some Senators who have been calling for his resignation. 

In the statement, Senator Sabi, who claimed that he was speaking on behalf of the Senate, said: Following a meeting held in Abuja on Sunday by some Senators and the wide consultations with our colleagues in which we reviewed last Friday’s decision of the Supreme Court in the appeal on the preliminary matters filed by the Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, on the charges filed against him at the Code of Conduct Tribunal (CCT), we hereby resolve that from the beginning of the trial last September, we have declared that this case is not about any fight against corruption. It is simply a case of political vendetta. Our position remains the same. We still believe that the case is politically-motivated.”

Meanwhile, human rights lawyer, Mr Femi Falana(SAN), has asked Saraki to resign in order to preserve National Assembly’s integrity. Saraki is the Chairman of the federal legislature. He said the unanimous decision of the Supreme Court would add value to the battle against corruption.

Citing an instance involving a former Senate President, the late Senators Chuba Okadigbo, Falana asked Saraki to resign having undertaken to prove his innocence before the CCT.

He said, “having undertaken to prove his innocence at the Code of Conduct Tribunal, Saraki should resign as Senate President so as to preserve the integrity of the National Assembly.

“When Senators Chuba Okadigbo and Adolphus Wabara were indicted, they were made to step down as Senate presidents.”

This comes amid indications that Senators opposed to Saraki under the aegis of the Senate Unity Forum, had regrouped to force Saraki out of the seat.

The Supreme Court had on Friday dismissed the appeal.

A seven-man panel of the apex court justices presided over by the Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Mahmud Mohammed, unanimously ruled that Saraki’s appeal against the jurisdiction of the trial and competence of the charges lacked merit.

Saraki, who said the Supreme Court judgment was disappointing, however, said he would have his day in court and that “at the end of the day, the truth will prevail, and justice will be served.”

Labour unions shut down Abuja, states over new electricity tarrifs

he Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), the Trade Union Congress of Nigeria (TUC) and the Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) yesterday made good their threat by shutting down Abuja and states over the new electricity tariffs. 
 

There were mass protests against the new rates sanctioned by the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC).

The Generation Companies (GENCOS) and the Distributing Companies (DISCOS) implemented the new tariffs effective February 1, this year.

The protest kicked off from the Labour House at the Central Business Area with members carrying placards.

The first point of call was the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) at Wuse Zone 4 where the  NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, addressed the crowd, saying the time of taking people for granted is over. He said billing all over the world is based on what you consume. He maintained that there must be a stop to the impunity as the regulatory agency is expected to protect the interest of consumers.             

“President Buhari must stand with the people as he promised Nigerians and he must revisit the privatisation of power sector. We would not allow ‘GENCO and DISCO’ exploit Nigerians, and there must be an end to the estimated billing.”.                                                                                         

The protesters marched to NERC office and from there went to the National Assembly where a formal letter was handed over to the leadership with security agencies giving cover.   

At the National Asembly Complex, Abuja, Senate President Bukola Saraki renewed his earlier pledge that lawmakers would ensure that the hike is resolved in the interest of Nigerians.

Saraki, who addressed the rally, said the commitment of the Eighth National Assembly to collaborate with the executive in entrenching policies that are people-friendly, will not be taken lightly.

He said the Senate believes in the struggle to ensure that the right thing is done and therefore, it will resolve the impasse to avert any further unrest.

Addressing the labour leaders and members of the CSOs, he said: “I welcome you to this place because it belongs to you. We are only tenants for four years. We are here to serve the Nigerian people. I want to assure you that the Eighth National Assembly is for the people.”

Meanwhile, the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola (SAN), has described the new rates as “a painful pill,” appealing to consumers to “swallow” it.

Fashola stated this on the sidelines of the second monthly sectoral meeting with stakeholders in the power sector in Lagos, where he also inspected some projects at the Alagbon Transmission and Distribution Complex yesterday.

He said, “importantly, I understand that people who have been disappointed over a long time will feel a sense of concern that again tariffs have gone up. But the truth is that these tariffs ought to have been there from day one. I don’t know why the government of yesterday was not courageous enough to tell us this was the price.

“It is a painful pill that I must appeal that we swallow. It is like quinine and malaria. It’s painful; it’s not sweet, I know that, but I do it because we are not left with many choices. This is the first major decision in power that this administration has taken. There are other problems.

“I can only appeal for some understanding and some trust that we do this in the best interest of our country. It is a hard decision, but I think down the line, we will have cause to look…,” Fashola said.

Defending the tariffs, NERC said they were effected after series of consultations with stakeholders.

In a statement issued in Abuja, NERC said the clarification is coming on the heels of reports credited to the NLC, alleging certain infractions against the commission.

The statement signed by the  Head, Public Affairs Department, Dr. Usman Abba Arabi, said while the commission will restrain itself from delving into a matter already before the court, it, however, has taken  note of the ongoing protest by the NLC.

“In this regard, the commission hereby states that it is committed to act in the best interest of electricity customers and all stakeholders in the development of the electricity industry.

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Labour unions demand reversal of electricity tariff hike

• Stage nationwide protest

From Bimbola Oyesola, Lagos, Layi Olanrewaju, Ilorin, Desmond Mgboh, Kano and Bamigbola Gbolagunte, Akure

Organised labour, led by  the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) and its allies in civil society organisations, yesterday, made good their threat by picketing the National Electric Regulatory Commission (NERC), Generating Companies (Gencos) and the Distribution companies (Discos) nationwide.

The protesters, made up of members of organised labour, consumer protection group and various communities picketed Ikeja Electricity Distribution Company, located at Alausa in Ikeja, carried placards with inscriptions such as “No Electricity, No Industries, No jobs, Provide Electricity ; No light.”

NLC Vice President,  Amechi Asugwuni, who was among the protesters, said the increment, at this time, negates the present economic hardship and was an attempt to further impoverish Nigerians.He vowed that labour will continue to protest the 45 per cent increase until it was reversed or there was a substantive improvement in electricity supply.

Meanwhile, in Kano, NLC and TUC picketed the Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO). Members who arrived the office early, disrupted resumption of normal office activities.

Chairman of Kano State chapter of the NLC, Ado Minjibir, said that the purpose of the protest was to call the attention of the public to the cost implications of the 45 percent hike in tariff, saying it was left to the public to decide whether to pay or not to pay.

In Ondo, members of the NLC and TUC locked up offices of Benin Electricity Distribution Company (BEDC) and the protest led to power outage for several hours in Akure, the state’s capital. The protesters, who assembled as early as 8:00am at the company’s office premises condemned BEDC operations and alleged that the company was exploiting the masses.

Ondo State chairman of NLC, Mrs. Bosede Daramola, said the increase is a contravention of due process.

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... Allege FG disobeyed court order

• Threaten indefinite strike

From Tony John, Port Harcourt, Emmanuel Uzor, Abakaliki, Tony Osauzo, Benin, Segun Olatunji, Abeokuta, Oluseye Ojo, Ibadan

Elsewhere, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) told Nigerians to hold the Federal Government responsible for  nationwide protests against increase in electricity tariff.

State chapters of both unions yesterday, picketed the head office of Port Harcourt Electricity Distribution (PHED), Rivers State capital.

The unions accused the power companies of  impunity which they said have caused  electricity consumers untold suffering.

NLC state chairman, Beatrice Itubo, said: “We are saying no to impunity. This increase is unilateral and arbitrary and it is a sign of impunity. It is also disobedience to a subsisting court order which says tariffs should not be increased pending the determination of a suit to that effect which is before it. This is a warning protest, but, if the Federal Government refuses to budge, we will go on an indefinite strike.”

In Abakaliki, the Ebonyi State capital, NLC and TUC laid siege to the office of  Enugu Electricity Distribution Company (EEDC), branded placards and blocked the entrance of the electricity company.

The protest, which started as early as 8:00am, forced staff of the company to close its offices and stop collection of electricity bills. Ikechukwu Nwafor, state chairman of NLC said the unions decided to carry out the nationwide protest because the Federal Government did not follow due process before it increased electricity tariff.

In Benin, Edo State capital, activities at the Benin Electricity Distribution Distribution Company (BEDC) were crippled as members of the NLC and TUC laid siege to the company’s office.

The state chairman of NLC, Emmanuel Ademokun, said the 45 percent increase was too much for ordinary Nigerians to bear, saying the protests would not stop until the FG reverts to the old rate.

The same scenario was repeated in Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital when members of the NLC and the TUC, barricaded the entrance to the Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company (IBEDC), shutting out members of staff of the company while protesting the hike in tariff.

The state NLC chairman, Hakeem Ambali, reiterated to reporters that the hike in tariff was abnormal and unacceptable because due process was not followed. He said the increment amounts to extortion and would be continuously rejected.

In Ibadan, Oyo State NLC and TUC laid siege to the IBEDC office which forced electricity workers to flee. The state chairman of NLC, Waheed Olojede,  who was one of the leaders of the protesters, stated that since there was a case in court, any increment in electricity tariff would be null and void.

Okonjo- Iweala, Alison-Madueke, Kola Aluko under investigation –EFCC

Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Ibrahim Magu, yesterday told the House of Representatives that former Finance minister and coordinating minister of the economy in former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala is being investigated by the anti- graft agency. 

 

Magu, who spoke before the Kayode Oladele- led  Committee on Financial Crimes during the agency’s  budget defence  also said former minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Allison-Madueke and a businessman believed to be her close associate, Kola Aluko, are persons of interest to the EFCC.

The EFCC boss said this when he responded to questions asked by a member of the committee,  Razak Atunwa who had earlier asked whether the two ministers and Aluko were included in the investigative list of the anti-graft agency. “Very soon, we will go into the petroleum industry,” was Magu’s reply.

He said such an investigation requires that “we have to build capacity, we have to bring in experts to enable us tackle what we are doing properly and the investigation must be conducted properly. We have internal lawyers and external lawyers; we have to pay insurance.”

Meanwhile, Speaker  Yakubu Dogara has said the National Assembly will soon begin work on its own version of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).

The speaker, made this known at a courtesy call by the international board of Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (EITI) and the Nigerian Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI) at the National Assembly yesterday. He also  said the bill, which is in final stages, will be given expeditious consideration on the floor of both chambers of the National Assembly.

Dogara told the delegation that in line with the resolve of the House of Representatives to fully cooperate with President Muhammadu Buhari to implement reforms in the oil, gas and mining sectors,  the House will give both sectors priority attention.

“We have repeatedly, called on the executive to present reform proposals in the petroleum sector. However, we may not continue to wait for an executive bill on this subject matter as we are prepared  to introduce the National Assembly’s version; what we believe should be the legal framework for the oil and gas sector in Nigeria.”

“We cannot continue to take the blame for non-passage of the petroleum reform legislation in Nigeria. As I speak with you, work on our own version has reached advanced stage and hopefully, we hope to introduce it in both chambers of the National Assembly. If it happens that the executive transmits its own version of its own vision of the oil sector, we have ample provision in the House Rules for us to merge the two together. 

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), yesterday, in Abuja, began the interrogation of former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Marshal Alex Badeh (rtd), over his role in the $2.1 billion arms purchase being probed by the anti-graft agency.

Badeh, who made a brief appearance at the commission’s headquarters last week, was directed to return yesterday.

EFCC sources said the former defence chief was quizzed for several hours and as at 7 pm, he was still with his interrogators. It was not clear whether he was detained or allowed to go home last night.

Efforts to get the agency’s spokesman, Mr Wilson Uwujare, to speak on the matter failed.

Several retired and serving top military officers, including the former chief of Air Staff in Jonathan’s administration, Vice Admiral Amosu , have been interrogated on the controversial arms deal.

Nigeria’s most wanted suspect lives in UK -Buhari

In far away London, United Kingdom, and despite reports that he is on a five-day vacation, President Muhammadu Buhari told Daily Telegraph that one of the biggest suspects in the ongoing probe of corruption in Nigeria lives in their midst.

Buhari, who refused to mention any name, said this  in an interview with the United Kingdom-based newspaper, Daily Telegraph.

He also spoke about  Boko Haram, saying that his administration was ready to discuss with them on the missing Chibok girls.

“One of the biggest corruption suspects  is in Britain, although, I am not going to name that person. But, Britain has earned our respect in the way it deals with these matters.

“Our only problem is that it seems to be too thorough and it takes too much time. If there are obvious cases, like bank accounts, infrastructure, houses and hotels, I would hope they could do it quicker, so that we can claim these things back promptly.”

On  Boko Haram, the president said: “As long as we can estsblish the bonafides of the leadership of Boko Haram, we are prepared as a government to discuss with them on how to get the girls back. But, we have not established any evidence of a credible leadership.

Asked if Abubakar Shekau  was still the leader of the sect, Buhari said: “ I receive  conflicting information about the status of Shekau. Some say he has been removed and replaced by a less charismatic terrorist” I think he must be on the run, because out of the 14 local governments that Boko Haram used to call their Caliphate, they do not control any now. They are scattered around the Sambisa forest and they have resorted to attacking soft targets, people in churches, mosques and market places, using improvised explosives devices.” Responding to a question on whether he  asked the west for military assistance during the last G7 meeting, the president answered: “Yes. I did, but I don’t want to  give details of that in public, at present. As you know, we already have foreign military help in terms of training missions”. While expressing disappointment that his predecessor in office  resorted to mercenaries, he also lamented the recent revelations of how military allocations were also misappropriated. Buhari asked rhetorically: “How is it that  Nigeria’s military, which has a good record across West Africa, cannot claim back to 14 out of 774 local local governments from Boko Haram. They have to ask for mercenaries from South Africa?. How the mighty has fallen!”

On the  threat of terrorism across West and North Africa, Buhari said: “I think we should be very worried because with technology, Boko Haram and other terrorists have become very mobile in all continents, not only in Africa, but also in Europe, America and Asia.

“For Africa and the Sahel, the demise of  (Muamar) Ghaddafi’s regime led to a lot of armed and trained people, especially those from the Sahel, being dispersed. Fighting is the only thing they know and they are available at a fee. The danger is there and I am pleased that Europe has  realised it too”.

The president said he has not seen confirmed reports that Nigerians have been fighting for Isil in the Libya city of Sirte. On whether Nigerian in diaspora in the UK were being involved in Boko Haram, he replied:” No, but if I do, I will immediately raise the issue. “A number of Nigerianss use the migrant routes to come to the UK to claim asylum, saying their lices are at risk from Boko Haram. Is it legitimate for them to do so?”