Buhari’s Sectional Appointments: Labour Minister, Ngige Booed In South-East Town Hall Meeting

Senator Chris Ngige, Nigeria’s minister of labour and productivity, was on Monday afternoon booed in Enugu as he made efforts to defend President Muhammadu Buhari’s appointments.

There have been knocks on Buhari over his appointments since he assumed office, as they are believed to be totally sectional.

The South-East region, which has no representation among the Service Chiefs, has continued to groan over the situation.

At the town hall meeting organized by the Federal Government on Monday at the Nike Lake Resort, Enugu, the lop-sided appointments took the centre stage.

Also in the front burner was issue of the Deputy Senate President, Chief Ike Ekweremadu, as the Ohanaeze Ndigbo vowed to resist any move by a certain cabal to remove him.

While Ngige struggled to convince the gathering, they repeatedly shouted “No oooo”, to him.

Ngige had tried to defend President Buhari by stating that anyone in position of authority would work with people he could trust.

He cited Enugu State as an example, noting erroneously that the Chief of Staff to Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi must be from Nsukka, the Governor’s zone.

However, the people of South-East at the meeting faulted him immediately, maintaining that Governor Ugwuanyi’s Chief of Staff was from Abia State and not Nsukka.

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How FG Spent $340m, N27bn In Search Of Oil In The North

AFTER 3 decades of elusive search for hydrocarbons in the Lake Chad Basin where the Federal Government spent about $340 million and additional N27 billion, in seismic expedition, Nigeria looks set to continue its crude oil exploration in the North East region.

But petroleum engineers, investment experts and geologists have warned the Buhari administration could yet burn its fingers in the long run as the geography of the zone may not guarantee a commercial find.

It was on the basis of this sentiment that the recent marching order handed down to the management of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to resume oil search in the Chad Basin after 30 years of futile efforts is eliciting reactions from stakeholders in the oil and gas sector.

They have argued that the quest for hydrocarbons in the Chad Basin, which is adjacent to Niger Republic, Cameroon and Chad, would seriously be hampered by economies of scale projections, insecurity and the unwillingness of oil companies to drill outside the Niger Delta with already proven reserves. This may also have been responsible for their inability to invest in the North East after 30 years of exploration.

But the Group Managing Director of NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, had, while receiving the Governor of Bauchi State, Mallam Mohammed Abubakar, disclosed that President Muhammadu Buhari had directed the Corporation to resume its oil search in the Chad Basin and other parts of the North East.

The President’s directive is coming after the Federal Government had burnt a whopping N27 billion and $340 million in the three decades of search for oil in the region without commensurate result.

However, those who are conversant with investments in the sector say the NNPC’s plan to resume exploratory activities in the Chad Basin may not be a viable option for an economy in recession, at least, in the short and medium term.

Studies have indicated that the Nigerian end of the Chad Basin has little potential for commercial oil deposits and would require huge expenditure in addition to security challenges in the zone. In an era of low crude oil prices, international oil companies would be very unwilling to commit resources to drill in the North, particularly as prospects of commercial finds look largely slim.

“While there are about 37 billion barrels of proven oil reserves and about 187 trillion standard cubic feet of gas in the South South of Nigeria, what we want to explore in the North is an unproven reserve of about 2.3 billion barrels of oil reserves and about 14.65 trillion standard cubic feet of natural gas available for four or more countries in the Chad Basin,” the study asserted.

“If you do the cost benefit analysis, you can see that it is not viable in the short and medium term,” said Henry Boise, Petroleum Economics, Management and Policy Researcher at Emerald Institute for Petroleum and Energy Economics, Policy Strategy, University of Port Harcourt.

Notwithstanding, however, Baru has informed that the renewed search for hydrocarbon deposits in the Chad Basin would entail extensive probing of some allocated and non-allocated oil blocks in the region to establish the magnitude of the deposits. And this would involve huge investment from the public treasury.
The NNPC GMD noted that the Corporation has identified specific oil blocks in the area where some of the finds have been made and would move to re-invigorate exploration based on fresh strategy.

“You know that very close home, we have exploration activities on the frontier basin in the Chad and some areas close to the Kolmani River where Shell had made some indicative discovery of hydrocarbons. Now, Mr. President has directed me to go into that area to further explore the magnitude and prospect of those finds.”

“We are taking steps to re-strategise and get into those regions. We will re-invigorate the frontier exploration and see how they can collaborate with NNPC that is holding Block A09 where some of the finds have been made, and also for the Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to assign redundant blocks,” he said.
Boise, however, faulted Baru’s position, insisting that “exploration is an expensive activity. You can explore an entire field and you might not find anything. In the Chad re­gion, oil has been found where the water is deeper. The Nigerian region has shallow waters.”

Who should take the lead?

Having explored the Chad Basin for some decades without any success in oil discovery, experts have advised that the NNPC should not take the risk by getting involved in the process, rather, private sector operators and International Oil Companies (IOCs) should be the ones driving the process that would eventually lead to oil discovery and subsequent exploration activities.

They argued that it would not be economically rational for the nation’s leadership to commit to financing exploratory activities in the North East with the staggering economic headwinds buffeting the nation.

Director, Centre for Petroleum Economics and Energy Law, University of Ibadan, Prof. Adeola Adenikinju, said considering the huge financial obligation of the NNPC, adding the burden of oil exploration in the Chad Basin would be foolery.

He specifically mentioned the inability of the NNPC to manage its upstream assets in the Nigerian Petroleum Development Corporation (NPDC), coupled with its failure to meet up with its cash call obligations currently put at about $6 billion in its various Joint Venture (JV) operations with IOCs.

The petroleum economist explained that committing huge resources for oil search in that region at a time the global oil market is going through a difficult time would not be a good investment decision for the country to take.

‘‘I doubt if NNPC has the resources to commit to such cause. Again, this is where the issue of political interference comes in. This is not an issue of politics but business. Directing the NNPC to resume oil search in that region is not good for the corporation. The corporation should run as an independent business entity devoid of political interference. They should be able to determine whether to resume oil search or not, and not the government telling them what to do,’’ he warned.

His views were equally supported by the publisher of Africa Oil and Gas Report, a magazine focusing on the petroleum sector, Mr. Toyin Akinosho, who warned against the involvement of NNPC in the resumed search for oil prospects in the Chad Basin.

Akinosho said though the IOCs were not interested to get involved in exploration activities in that region, they prefer to concentrate their energy and resources in deep water operations, having gradually moved out of onshore prospects as a result of attendant security challenges.

The publisher who is also a geologist with several years of working experience with Chevron, advised NNPC to allow those that are more experienced in that terrain to develop the assets and then pay returns to government, stressing it would be a more sustainable approach.

What should be done?

But while Adenikinju and Akinosho acknowledged the need for more oil fields to be discovered outside the Niger Delta region, considering the security challenges associated with that part of the country, they advised that such risks should not be for the NNPC to take. Let private sector players, who are more knowledgeable in playing in that terrain take the risk and deliver the benefits to government for the good of the country,’’ said Akinosho.

Akinosho said it was a good idea for government to make new discoveries through exploration activities because exploration is all about knowledge seeking, and not neces­sarily about discovery of oil because it creates a lead to solving other problems.

He explained that in trying to explore for oil in Chad Basin, gas could be discovered in the process, and such could be used to generate about 100 megawatts of electricity for that region, which, he said, is value addition since that was not the original intention.

He disclosed that there are several smaller oil and gas companies operating in Kenya, Sudan, Angola and some other parts of the world that have taken on similar projects located in the desert just as the Chad Basin, that are giving good returns to the owners of the assets.

On his part, Adenikinju said what the NNPC should do is to complete the seismic programme in order to actually determine if there is oil in that region, and having done that, now share them among IOCs and other interested investors, who may be willing to take on the risk having seen the prospect inherent in the region based on the result of the seismic operation.

He equally advised that the NNPC should quickly complete the seismic operations programme and bring the data for experts at the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE) to subject it to analyses and scrutiny.

Meanwhile, Head of Energy Research, Ecobank Transnational Corporation, Mr. Dolapo Oni, said the NNPC has spent quite some time prospecting for oil in that region to no avail and needs to consider deploying the funds to developing reserves in other parts of the country – offshore Lagos, onshore Ondo, Southeast of the Niger Delta – areas where there are less security issues or spend the funds on creating infrastructure to provide alternate routes for oil and gas fields to move their products when facilities are damaged.

He equally submitted that Nigeria can resume the exploration in the North when oil prices recover above current levels.
Efforts on exploration in C’Basin

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Ibe Kachikwu, had, while in the saddle as the NPPC GMD, said the national oil company, through its Frontier Exploration Services and Renewable Energy Division (FESRED), progressed reasonably with seismic acquisition activities in the Chad Basin frontier area until insurgency led to its suspension.
Kachikwu said eight phases out of the planned 12-phase project to cover 3550sqkm had been acquired when the operation was suspended in November 2014.

“A total of 1,962sqkm was acquired and processed, interpretation is on at 90 per cent completion, and drilling activities will commence by the last quarter of 2016,” said Kachikwu.
Between 2011 and 2013, Prof. Jerry Gana, then chairman of the Northern Economic Summit, said it got a $240 million approval for oil and gas exploration activities in the Lake Chad Basin and other areas of the North including the Benue Trough, Bidda Basin and the Sokoto-Rima Basin.

Exploration soon commenced in the region and in 2013, following former Vice President Namadi Sambo’s declaration that “oil prospecting in the Lake Chad Basin is yielding promising results and may lead to commercial exploitation of oil and gas,” an additional $100 million was earmarked for the project in addition to the N27 billion he claimed had been spent.
Prospects for oil in Chad Basin

But despite the huge resources that have been committed to the seismic activities in the region, geologists are wary of the possibility of finding oil in commercial quantity in Nigeria’s end of the Chad Basin. “The Chad Basin from the Nigeria end has been proved to be non-petroliferous,” said Omagbemi Kakayor, a petroleum geologist.

Another energy consultant for major oil and gas companies, Christopher Renaldi, advised agencies involved in the reform of the power and gas market that this is not a wise move at this time.

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Why We Cancelled Declaration Of Niger Delta Republic – Adaka Boro Avengers

The Adaka Boro Avengers, ABA, in a statement issued by the group’s spokesperson, ‘General’ Edmos Ayayeibo, said that it has cancelled earlier plan to declare the Niger Delta territory a Republic today (Monday), however, they threatened to continue its mission to destabilize Nigeria’s economy.

They said, “We received calls from prominent leaders like Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, Mrs. Ankio Briggs, Chief. E. K. Clark and especially King Alfred Diete Spiff calling on the freedom fighters to abort their mission to declare Niger Delta Republic.”

The militant group further warned the Federal Government against having any peace talk with the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, describing them as “greedy fellows” who only seek their “stipends.”

Leader of the group, ‘General’ Goddey, was quoted in the statement as saying that the anger of the group bordered on how “the Nigerian government has enslaved…the people of Niger Delta region.”

“We adhere to the voice of our people, because our struggle is for the Niger Delta people and not for selfish reason. But this is not the end. More is yet to come.

“Our mission to cripple the economy of the Nigerian nation will not stop until the Nigerian government is ready to sit on a roundtable to dialogue and to restructure the Nigeria.

“Unless that, we will not stop until Nigeria becomes a zero economy. We are also saying this for the benefit of President Muhammadu Buhari and Nigerian government to stop wasting their time with those greedy fellows that call themselves MEND because nothing good will come out of them rather than sabotage.

“Those old fools cannot stop us and they know it very well. We know what they are after is all about stipends.

“Everything they are saying, not even one will be accomplished. We will never agree with anything they say and henceforth MEND should watch their back because we have tolerated them for a very long time.

“Enough is enough, since they want to set confusion in the Niger Delta we will start from them.”

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Stephen Keshi's Son Blasts FG: "They Should Be Ashamed Of Themselves"

Following the burial of Stephen Keshi, his son has taken to social media to express dismay over the way Nigerian government treated his father. According to him, they were neglected despite the government promising to assist them. Below is what he wrote......

''I sat in front of the federal government on national television a few weeks ago and they promised they would honor pops the way he deserves. They said that he has done to much for the country for them not to. They made us change dates to fit the federal governments schedule. But they didn't do as promised, we aren't mad, nor sad, just disappointed, they should be ashamed of themselves. This sends a terrible message to our youth that are striving to do great things for Nigeria. The good thing is that We was raised not to ask for handouts. There will be no more postponements, today the funeral ceremonies began in Benin, the place he loved, where his career started. My sisters, brother and I held it down, with the help of a few others, and now we are putting our pops to rest. We don't owe anyone poo and we can say they owe pops everything. No salt, it is not the people's fault, we still love Nigeria as pops did''.

''Finally pops has been laid to rest. The people of Africa has gained an angel. His loyalty and service has not gone unnoticed, the people of Africa thank you for your support, your prayers were felt. 7/29/2016''.

"I think we should learn to appreciate/honour our legends. It will make people more patriotic," he wrote.

N-Delta Elders To Buhari: Dialogue With Avengers, Not MEND

The Concerned Niger Delta Elders, CNDE, in a statement by Seigha Manijar and Aureol Viviana, has warned the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government not to enter into any kind of dialogue with the Movement for the Emancipation of Niger Delta, MEND, but rather, dialogue directly with the Niger Delta Avengers or their appointees.

The group said that whatever resolution reached between the FG and NDA, would be a long lasting one thereby advising against going through MEND, it also appealed to the militants group to sheathe their swords and dialogue with the government.

“MEND should speak for itself and not for others. It can speak on behalf of the Avengers if invited to do so. MEND should not arrogate to itself the authority to speak for others outside its ranks,” the statement said, warning that negotiating with MEND instead of Avengers would have grave implications, such as conflict of interest, mistrust, non implementation of resolutions among others.

“We understand the Avengers’ demand for foreign observers in the dialogue but we appeal to them to pick their representatives from among the numerous trusted individuals from the Niger Delta such as Dr Timiebi Agary, Brig-Gen. Paul Boroh (retd), Timi Alaibe, Prof G.G Darah, Dr Otive Igbuzor, Enemo Samiama, Roland Ekperi, Wilson Ajuwa and Joel Bisina, among others."

“However, if they are not comfortable with the suggested names, they should feel free to pick their representatives. That will show the world that they are ready for dialogue. The government should also consider the Avengers’ demand of inviting foreign observers as a show of sincerity.”

On how to stem the tide of proliferation of splinter groups in the region, the statement said: “Once the Federal Government starts a genuine dialogue with the Avengers, who seem to have shown enough capacity and consistency in their acts, we believe that other groups will fall in line by absorption or coercion.”

The group also frowned at Tompolo’s willingness to be part of the negotiation saying, “Tompolo does not necessarily have to be in any negotiation team, whether it is driven by MEND or any other group. What is important is that given the right atmosphere, any group or representatives could discuss Tompolo’s plight, including Henry Okah and others. There is no doubt that Tompolo can be an asset to this government on Niger Delta crisis if well managed.”

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FG Begins Feeding Of 5.5 Million Pupils In September

The Federal Government, through the National Programme Manager, Mrs Abimbola Adesanmi, has said it will commence its National Home Grown School Feeding Programme this September with 5.5 million pupils across the country.

Adesanmi disclosed this in Abeokuta during the opening of a two-day stakeholders' workshop on the Ogun State Home Grown School Feeding Programme, she also explained that the government has resolved to start the programme this September, and it would accommodate pupils in Primary 1 to 3 at the outset, and would move to other classes as the nation's resources improved.

She explained that no state of the federation is exempted, however it depends on their preparedness.

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Niger Delta Crisis: Military Force Not The Best Solution, Dickson Tells FG

Mr. Seriake Dickson, the Bayelsa State governor, speaking to State House Correspondents after a private meeting with President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa in Abuja, has appealed to the federal government not to adopt forceful measures against the Niger Delta militants in a bid to quell the violent attacks on oil and gas installations in the area.

The Governor who spoke on varying issues insisted that dialogue remained the best measure, he said, "I have said that the issues in the Niger Delta, the terrain, the historic nature of the issues and challenges are such that military solution may not be the way forward. For us who are products of political system who are at this level, we have a duty to mobilise communal and local leadership, we have a duty to support the work of intelligence and security agencies are doing, we have a duty to ensure that issues are better appreciated and that we fill the communication gap.

"And where there are issues those issues need be addressed and is also our duty to network like I'm doing to ensure that problems that are identified as the root cause of some of these challenges are looked into.

"The military solution as I have always maintained is not the right option. We are hopeful that the ongoing discussions will yield the desired result. I have always been in support of negotiations, of dialogue as the sustainable way forward. Dialogue will bring out the issues and then we will all unite around these common issues to move our country forward", he said.

He said: "I came in this afternoon to have discussions with Mr. President. That is because my position has been and I believe that is the right position every political leader should take which is that after general elections, political leaders and citizens must unite and address common issues and find solutions to the problems of our country.

"All over the world, once nations have crisis, once nations come under attack, leaders unite across political lines. And together, I came in to have discussion with Mr. President and I thank him for that opportunity and we cross fertilized ideas around issues of security.

"Of course, as you know Bayelsa is central to the maintenance of law and order and stability in our country particularly in the Niger Delta region. Bayelsa is the epicentre of the issues that have to do with the Niger Delta. And we had fruitful discussions on the need for political leaders, governmental and political leaders to work together to support the work of the security agencies and foster better understanding of even people who have grievances and that we are committed to do together.

"I also want to use this opportunity to appreciate Mr. President for his non-interference in the political processes that played out in Bayelsa in the last general elections. And as you are also aware, yesterday, the Elections Petition Tribunal sitting in Abuja delivered judgement upholding my election and affirming my emergence as a true product of the democratic exercise of rights of our people in the December 5th and January 9th.

"Again, I want to use this opportunity to appreciate Mr. President for his non-interference contrary to the propaganda and the name dropping that some politicians back home and even in Abuja embarked upon. There is no name they didn't call. There is no claim that they didn't make but I'm telling Nigerians, I'm telling Bayelsans to disregard all that propaganda.

"The President never had anything to do by way of negatively influencing the last general elections in Bayelsa and also the outcome of the Tribunal proceedings. That is important because if our nation must move forward, if our democracy must be strengthened, if our nation must move forward, if our democracy must be strengthened, if our nation must be stable, then institutions must be allowed to grow.

"I want to use this opportunity to call on my opponent, brothers and friends and fellow citizens of Bayelsa and all others to join hands with us so that we can render service to our people and a stronger more stable and prosperous Bayelsa."

"There is no doubt that our nation needs a political party in opposition, strong, organised opposition. Opposition that plays by the rule that knows that there comes a time when people across divides must unite for the sake of our country. And we are working hard to ensure that some of the issues and disputes in the party.

"You expect to see those types of issues and disputes in any political party and we are working hard to address them. And we believe that the convention will come and go and we will have a virile, credible opposition party that will work for our democracy and our the Nigerian nation", he said.

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Avengers Denies BBC Interview, Says MEND Can’t Represent Militants

Niger Delta Avengers, NDA, in an exclusive online interview with Vanguard on Tuesday, stated that the Movement for Emancipation of the Niger Delta, MEND, does not have the authorization to stand for militants in the Niger Delta struggle.

Avengers  said: “The last we did our reality check, MEND is just an internet tiger at the mercy of some criminal elements and politicians from the North and so cannot represent the Niger Delta agitation for self-determination, not to talk of offering the Niger Delta Avengers (NDA) slot for any dialogue/ negotiations.”

“We do know MEND that is speaking on behalf of the APC government to undermine the Niger Delta question of self determination. MEND formed under Tompolo, has accepted amnesty in 2009, and stood disbanded from that moment.

“So there is no MEND speaking from anywhere or for the Niger Delta struggle, instead we have an internet- based MEND that is let loosed by criminal and politicians from the North to sabotage / derail the consciousness of the people of the Niger Delta,” it said.

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Photos: Buhari Commissions $1.457bn Abuja-Kaduna Rail

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday finally commissioned the $1.457bn Abuja-Kaduna standard gauge rail project started by the immediate past administration of President Goodluck Jonathan.

Present at the ceremony were Senate President Bukola Saraki; Speaker, House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara; Minister of Transportation, Chibuike Amaechi; Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State, among many other aides of President Buhari, as well as chieftains of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC.

See photos below:

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We Fund Construction Sector To Create Jobs—FG

The Federal Government, Speaking through the Minister of Labour and Employment, Senator Chris Ngige said its decision to channel about 80 percent of N247 billion so far released for capital projects in the 2016 budget to the construction industry was informed by the strategic role of the sector in job creation and the reflation of the economy.

The Minister, who spoke while receiving the leadership of Construction and Civil Engineering Senior Staff Association, CCESSA, in Abuja said, “As of today, the capital released stand at N247 billion out of which 80 percent has gone to the construction industry.

According to him, “for the little we have done, we want to see you people in action. Another chunk of money is going to be paid as the economy improves and things get better.

“The budget also has a special provision for settling outstanding debts and for the completion of ongoing projects.

“Through these, government intends to take away our youths from idleness, fruitfully engage them, and avoid making them easy recruits for insurgents.”

FG, States, LGs Share N559bn

The Federal Government, state and local governments, shared a total of N559 billion as revenue accruals into the Federation Account and proceeds from Value Added Tax in the month of June picked up significantly.

Mrs Kemi Adeosun, the Minister of Finance, who disclosed this at the end of the Federation Account Allocation Committee, FAAC, meeting in Abuja, said all tiers of government were glad that the revenue was looking upward.

This month’s net distribution was N 263. 904 billion above last month’s N305.128 billion.

The Federal Government got a total of N209.460 billion; states N133.671 billion; while local governments received N100.759 billion.

The nine oil producing states got extra N 18 billion as 13 per cent derivation from oil revenue

Kachikwu Approves Prof. Sunny Iyuke As New CEO For PTI Effurun

Dr Ibe Kachikwu, the State Minister for Petroleum Resources,  has approved the appointment of Prof. Sunny Iyuke as the Chief Executive Officer of the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI), Effurun, Delta.

Mr Idang Alibi, Director, Press and Public Relations, Ministry of Petroleum Resource in a statement in Abuja said the approval was in line with the Petroleum Institute Act of 1972.

Prof. Sunny Iyuke who bagged his PhD in Chemical and Process Engineering from the National University of Malaysia in 1999 and had over 260 Articles worldwide, until his appointment was a Professor of Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering at the University of Witwatersrand (Wits), Johannesburg, South Africa.

FG Not Tackling Woes Of Oil Communities –Dogara

Yakubu Dogara, the Speaker of the House of Representatives, have accused the Federal Government of not taking steps to address agitations of oil producing communities in the country.

Dogara who talked about the PIB also lamented that the National Assembly had written to the Presidency to submit its proposed reforms on the oil and gas sector about three times, lamenting that the Presidency was yet to do anything in that direction.

“We are not unaware of the several failed attempts at redeeming the petroleum industry by our predecessors.

“The Petroleum Industry Bill has been down a long, tortuous, and chequered road. Most of us have been co-travellers in the journey to pass the bill into law, and have the requisite experience to avoid any pitfalls ahead, hence this resolve to seek proper consultations with you and build confidence among us.

“The need to make consensus and lend a voice to long suppressed agitations in the drafting and consideration of petroleum industry bills informed our decision to organize this stakeholders summit.

“We are optimistic that this approach will provide the crucial platform to enable us cross-pollinate ideas and ventilate our positions on certain contentious issues, regardless of how vexed they may be. You can be rest assured that our work at the National Assembly is to do your good intention.

“Nigeria is one of the richest petroleum regions of the world. Paradoxically, it has never been able to maximize effectively its immense oil and gas potentialities and the revenue accruing from it.

"The downstream operates in a state of almost continuous malfunction, and, for years, has been characterized by comatose refineries and an inefficient downstream.

“It operates under an inadequate legal framework, with an inefficient and poorly maintained pipeline network and depot system. The result is that Nigeria is both one of the world’s largest producers of crude oil, and one of the world’s leading importers of petroleum products, a dependency that has enriched the elite at the expense of the increasingly impoverished masses.

“The downstream runs on a system of subsidies until recently and uniform pricing which has proved ineffective, in addition to being administered in a very opaque way. Shortages and inadequate supply have characterized the Nigerian downstream for over two decades and can be described as an example of system failure.

“The upstream has not fared better either. Pipeline vandalism, large-scale environmental degradation, and the world’s highest levels of crude oil theft have been constant for several years.

“Decades after the advent of Nigeria’s petroleum industry, problems which led to host community agitation remain unaddressed and highly politicized, and the question of the extent to which revenues from the industry should be shared among the three tiers of government and the people remain, as do the content and limits of corporate social responsibility.

"These are all crucial issues that should be addressed to guarantee and ensure a stable polity in Nigeria.

“These examples represent just a few of the present problems of Nigeria’s petroleum industry, and are reflective of an industry that is in critical need of total restructuring, which can only be commenced through the enactment of laws that provide the legal framework that will promote the emergence of an optimal petroleum industry.

“The existing laws are outdated, anachronistic, and out-of-sync with international best practices and current technological advances for decades, with the primary laws being the Petroleum Act of 1969, and the Petroleum Profits Tax Act, 1958.”

He said: “Legal reform, which is the bedrock of meaningful restructuring of the industry, is thus a dire necessity. Unfortunately, it has not happened, even though activities towards reform have been taking place since year 2000.

“For reasons which will be made apparent in the course of this summit, these activities have ended up in failure, evidenced by the non-enactment of either the Petroleum Industry Bills of 2008 and 2012, which were before the 6th and 7th National Assembly respectively.

"In the meantime, the situation in the petroleum industry and Nigeria’s sustainable development, has progressively worsened.

“I have on at least three different occasions, publicly requested the executive to, as a matter of urgency, send an Executive Bill on its intended reforms in the petroleum sector. We had hoped to avoid the situation in the past two Assemblies (6th and 7th) where the PIB was sent to the National Assembly very late in its tenure, thereby guaranteeing failure to pass the bills.

“In the absence of an executive bill on the matter, two private members' bills have now been introduced. We urge participants to familiarize themselves with these bills and make necessary inputs at the public hearing stage of the bills.

“We also hope that this summit will craft its own version of the PIB for the attention of the National Assembly, taking into consideration all the existing drafts and also the pending bills. In this regard, therefore, I wish to correct the erroneous impression in the media that there is a pending executive bill on PIB on the floor of the National Assembly.

“Over the years, Nigeria has performed much worse than sub-Saharan Africa as a whole and much worse than other regions of the developing world, in terms of human development indicators, to the extent that it is regarded as a foster child for ‘how not to run a petroleum industry’.

“The intention of the House of Representatives is to revisit the process of petroleum industry reform, and to work towards the successful enactment of laws that will regulate the Nigerian petroleum industry, in accordance with the rule of law, good governance, and due process, for the sustainable development of Nigerians and the total advancement of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

“It is our conviction that the reform of the petroleum industry is a vital necessity, if Nigeria is to realize its God-given potential. While not downplaying the critical and inescapable need for diversification, for a country that depends largely on revenues from petroleum industry, there is no alternative to reform.”

ASUU DISAGREES WITH FG: Draws Battle Line Over Post-UTME Scrap

National President, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi, have lambasted the Federal Government for scrapping the Post-Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination.

Speaking to newsmen in Abuja, Prof. Ogunyemi said that the cancellation “portends serious danger for the quality of education in this country”.

“The argument of federal government on the policy is unacceptable and potentially harmful to the future of Nigerian’s education system. We call on government to rescind its decision and convene a genuine stakeholders’ meeting on the issue before making any policy statement”, he added.

He said, “Such statement coming from the Minister was unfortunate because JAMB should not be saddled with the responsibility of solely conducting entrance examinations into the nation’s tertiary institutions.

“We call the attention of the Honourable Minister of Education to the fact that Post-UTME is a child of necessity and rationality and a decision that Nigerian Universities had to take when the credibility and integrity of JAMB examinations and results became questionable.

“When universities were admitting solely on the basis of JAMB scores, unimaginable discrepancies were observed in the JAMB scores of candidates and their performance in the first year in the University.

“Consider a candidate who got a JAMB score of 290 out of a maximum of 400, yet had to withdraw from the University at the end of the first year on account of very poor performance. It is important to note that this happened not in isolated cases. Virtually all universities reported such cases.

“The University of Ibadan conducted a study on the correlation between JAMB scores and performance at the University, and reported a negative correlation between the two. The results were published in the Ibadan Journal of the Social Sciences. The introduction of Post -UTME was based on sound empirical evidence.”

The Don added that: “The Post-UTME has its problems which we believe can be addressed. To curtail exploitation of parents and candidates, government can improve funding to universities and other tertiary institutions”.

FG, U.S. Partner On Fair Labour Practices

Minister of Labour and Employment, Sen. Chris Ngige, has said that the Federal Government would partner the United States on fair labour practices to boost international trade relations in the Nigeria.

Ngige said this when he received Mr Marlin Hardinger, the Political Officer in the U.S. Embassy, in Abuja.

The minister who released a statement through Mr Samuel Olowookere, Deputy Director, Press, Ministry of Labour and Employment, said, “We appreciate the American government for taking this step. It is pleasing to note that you are synergising with the International Labour Organisation to make this workable.

“This is really a big boost to trade not only in Nigeria, but in the entire continent of Africa.

“I have often thought of the workability of trade without productivity and its implication for a developing country like ours. The decision of your government to tie the two is re-awakening and important to us.

“Though trade relations between our two countries have receded following the decision of your country to stop the import of crude from Nigeria, we have a vast agricultural product base which can find ready market in the U.S.

“It is distressing, however, that even trade in this area is equally on downward swing,” he said.

“What we are looking for is a Nigeria that is prosperous and stable enough to remain a rallying point in the comity of nations and not necessarily a supper power.

“We will partner you in this effort,” Ngige said.

BBOG: GROUP COUNSELS FG ON EFFECTIVE COMMUNICATION, BEGINS GLOBAL WEEK OF ACTION TODAY

The #BringBackOurGirls(BBOG) group has called on the government to ensure that there is proper channel of communication between it and the parents of the abducted Chibok girls.

In an official statement signed and released by the leaders of the group - Dr Oby Ezekwesili, Aisha Yesufu and Hadiza Bala Usman, the group urged government to see that the parents are reached with any information concerning the Chibok girls ahead of the media following te recent arrest of two female suicide bombers who claimed to be the abducted Chibok girls in Limani, Cameroon.

FG TO REFUND STATES MONEY SPENT ON FEDERAL ROADS

The Minister of Works, Power and Housing, Mr. Babatunde Fashola, has disclosed plans by the Federal Government to refund states that had rehabilitated roads designated as ‘Federal Roads.’

BREAKING NEWS: FG SACKS DGs OF NTA, FRCN, VON, AND OTHERS

FG sacks DGs of NTA, FRCN, VON and others

Lai Mohammed, the minister of information and culture announced the sack of all the DGs.