How Buhari Destroyed Nigeria’s Economy-Onovo,Ex-NCP Presidential Candidate

Chief Martin Onovo, the presidential candidate of the National Conscience Party, in the 2019 general elections, speaks on the state of the nation, economy  and expectations in the next political dispensation

 

 

 2023 is around the corner and politicians may have begun horse-trading to succeed President Buhari. What are your thoughts on this and what should Nigerians expect in 2023?

 

This is 2021. After 2021, it will be 2022. So, 2023 is not around the corner. The constitutional purpose of government in Nigeria is the security and welfare of the people. We must focus on the ‘Fundamental Objectives and Directive Principles of State Policy. We cannot go from one election to another election. Elections are simply to democratically decide candidates that will hold political positions. Those that are “horse-trading” now are unpatriotic persons that are more interested in their personal political ambitions than in national development. Such persons are unfit for public office.


 What would you say about the spate  of insecurity in the country and the rise of non-state actors to fill the void created by the failure of the state to secure the lives of Nigerians?

 

It seems clear to us that the ruling party APC is the direct sponsor of insecurity and terrorism in Nigeria. This may be obvious when you consider the confessions of a former leading national chieftain of the APC Alhaji Kawu Baraje. He confessed that, the Fulani terrorists in Nigeria were brought in from Mali, Sierra Leone, etc., by the APC for the 2015 elections. His confession has been corroborated by so many others and the evidence that many of the Fulani terrorists are Bororo Fulani and not Nigerian Fulani. In addition, we have seen the Nigeria Army conniving with the bandits as confirmed by Gen. Danjuma. Recently, after some communities in Yewa land in Ogun State mobilized and expelled terrorist herdsmen from their community, soldiers of the Nigeria Army’s 35 Artillery Brigade in Abeokuta led the herdsmen back and brutalized some villagers. We know from the testimony of Col. Nyiam that  when the herdsmen that attacked Ogoja were repelled, the arms recovered from them were from the Nigeria Army. We also know that the Police in Plateau State arrested a herdsman with a Nigerian Military rifle. The Police gave the rifle’s number as HC2614. Sheik Gumi has also confirmed that Nigerian security forces know exactly where these terrorists are camped. It seems clear to us beyond a reasonable doubt that the ruling party, APC is the direct sponsor of insecurity in Nigeria.

 

Where is the place of the new service chiefs in this imbroglio?

The new service chiefs are agents of the Commander-in-Chief and have no capacity to act beyond the mandate and directives of the Commander-in-Chief. Please remember that the Commander-in-Chief is the leader of the ruling party that has been exposed as the direct sponsor of insecurity and terrorism in Nigeria. You may have heard how from the National Security Adviser how the funds allocated for arms purchase under the former service chiefs cannot be accounted for. 

 

 

 We have witnessed a synergy between the legislature and executive on issues that require critical scrutiny in form of checks and balances.What are your fears about this alliance?

 

The current leadership of the National Assembly has confirmed that they are a rubber-stamp. We have no fears about their unpatriotic and indolent alliance. We must accept reality and deal with it the best way we can. The unpatriotic alliance has led to poor policies, weak oversight and very poor legislative activities.

 

 

 Nigeria is the global capital of poverty and it is said to have exited recession when Nigerians are still groaning under severe pains. What is actually wrong with the nation’s economy?

The current government has ruined the economy. When the 2016 budget was presented, we called it a ‘Budget of Ruination’. It was clear that early that the government was determined to destroy the economy. That has been achieved. National debt is unprecedented, unemployment is unprecedented, inflation is unprecedented, extreme poverty is unprecedented and the Naira has lost more than half of its value under the current government. If you had N8,000 in a bank account in 2014, you could buy a full 50kg bag of foreign premium rice. Today, you cannot even buy half a bag with the same N8,000. With N4,500 in Nov 2014, you could buy 3 bags of 50kg cement. Today, you can buy only 1 bag.The problems of the nation’s economy include, corruption, waste, mediocrity and incompetence.

 

 

 What is your take on the fact that the country’s fuel price is still on the high side and other economic indices do not point to a buffer for Nigerians?

It is not about my take. It is about the facts. The current unpatriotic and unconstitutional policy of importation of petroleum products routinely compels us to pay for the imported product. This price must be high as imported products have so much more additional costs. If we were refining our crude oil locally, we would create a lot of jobs directly and indirectly. We would avoid all the costs associated with importation and prices will be much lower. ,

 

The country is in an era of deregulation and still importing fuel. What is the economic sense in this and what should the country do to harness the full benefits of deregulation?

If we do not refine our crude oil, we must import the refined products that we need. Since we are still importing, our deregulation is the deregulation of the importation of petroleum products. We must fix our domestic refineries and refine some of our crude oil. 

 

You observed the public hearing of the Petroleum Industry Bill before the National Assembly. Would you say Nigeria is good to go with a law that would bring in more investors and engender transparency in line with international best practices?

No! If you know the original objectives for the Petroleum Industry Bill, you will know that we have lost the foundational purpose of the Bill. Even a distorted version has not been passed after so many years. The idea of an entirely new bill was ab-initio inefficient. A simple compilation of the existing laws could have achieved 75% of the original objectives.

 

Nigeria has declared a decade of gas. How far can the country go to power the economy with revenue from gas and boost domestic consumer utilization of gas?

 

It is deceitful rhetoric. The visionless government of Gen. Buhari has been in office for nearly six years and has practically about two years more in office. How can it declare a ‘Decade of Gas’ when it practically has only about two years in office? It is a deceitful, divisive, dictatorial, visionless and unpatriotic government that is known for false promises. Of its over eighty campaign promises, none has been achieved. Also, none of the principal objectives of its ‘Economic Recovery and Growth Plan’ (EGRP) has been achieved. This government led by Gen Buhari lacks the capacity and discipline to develop a vision, plan and implement the plan diligently.    

 

 

 What is your take on the country’s power almost 7years after its privatization? What should the country do to get the sector right?

 

It was clear that the privatization was ill-conceived and corrupt. We predicted that it would fail and it has clearly failed. The companies that took over clearly lacked the professional, technical and financial capacity to run the distribution companies. The government and consumers have lost so much money to these ‘Special Purpose Vehicles’ called distribution companies (DISCOs). Rather than develop the infrastructure as expected, they have preferred to fraudulently continue to extort money from consumers using ‘crazy bills’. With these ‘crazy bills’, they are able to extort money from consumers for power not supplied. As they extort money from consumers for power not supplied, they reject power offered to them by the transmission company.To fix the problems with the power distribution companies, we must improve regulatory capacity and check corruption.

Total Nigeria Audits 4,889 Trucks  in 3 years

Total Nigeria PLC (TNPLC) has highlighted how its Truck Drivers’ Initiative is improving road safety in Nigeria with continuous training and a total of 4,889 truck audits in three years.
At a parley held online with the media on Thursday,18th March 2021, the company showed that it had conducted 2,181 Truck driver trainings, 2,740 truck audits at its training facility in Ibadan, Oyo State between 2017 and 2020. It also helped other players to conduct 2,149 truck audits between 2018 and 2020.
The company noted that the effort had resulted in zero fatalities and severe accidents, zero lost time injury and zero spill in cubic metres, amongst Total Nigeria PLC drivers since 2017, as the training has ensured “Improved defensive driving skills; Reduction of road accidents caused by driver behaviour and truck breakdown; Handling of dangerous goods during transportation and public enlightenment on road safety topics; and Government regulatory agencies’ campaigns.”
Speaking on the engagement, the Executive General Manager, Total Country Services, Bunmi Popoola-Mordi , noted that one of the areas that the company had been contributing enormously in the country was in the area of road safety and there was need to not only highlight the contributions but to inform and galvanise stakeholders in order to get feedback for continuous improvement.
Fielding questions on the Truck Drivers Initiative, the GM,HSEQ Mr. Muhyideen Nuradeen, maintained that while the company was in the business of making profit, it was more interested in saving lives; making the roads as safe as possible and making sure drivers return safely to their families and loved ones at the end of each business day. The company explained that its stakeholders includingFederal Road Safety Corps (FRSC), Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC),Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN) and National Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) were being involved in the initiative.
In his remarks, the Country Communication Manager, Dr Charles Ebereonwu who moderated the session expressed optimism that the initiative would progress to a level where the country would achieve a critical mass of trained, professional drivers and quality trucks to eliminate road safety hazards associated with trucking petroleum products.
NLNG Names Adimora-Ezigbo As Literature Prize Board Chair 

Nigeria LNG Limited (NLNG) has announced the appointment of Akachi Adimora-Ezeigbo, emeritus professor of English at the University of Lagos, as the chairperson of the Advisory Board for the Nigeria Prize for Literature to flag off the 2021 cycle of the competition.
She  assumed duties on Wednesday as two hundred and two (202) entries in prose fiction carried over from 2020 into the 2021 cycle after the prize’s postponement due to the Coronavirus pandemic (COVID-19) were handed over to a panel of judges to mark the start of the cycle.
A past winner of the prize, Professor Adimora-Ezigbo succeeds Professor Ayo Banjo, emeritus professor of English at the University of Ibadan who had served as chairman since the inception of the Prize in 2004. Prof. Adimora-Ezeigbo, won the Prize in 2007 in the Children’s Literature category, alongside Mabel Segun. She has also served on the panel of judges for the prize.
Other members of the Advisory Board include Prof. Olu Obafemi and Prof. Ahmed Yerima. Prof. Obafemi is a playwright, poet and Professor of English at the University of Ilorin. He has served in prominent roles including as president of the Nigerian Academy of Letters and the Association of Nigerian Authors. Prof. Yerima is a professor of Theatre and Performing Arts at the Redeemer’s University. He is a playwright, theatre director and a Laurette of the Nigeria Prize for Literature in the Drama category (2006).
Speaking at  a virtual ceremony held to introduce the new Advisory Board members and to hand-over the entries, NLNG’s General Manager for External Relations and Sustainable Development, Mrs Eyono Fatayi-Williams, expressed appreciation to Emeritus Professor Ayo Banjo and Emeritus Professor Ben Elugbe for their selfless service to the prize, adding that the outgoing Board, which included the late Professor Jerry Agada, oversaw the growth of the prize into Africa’s foremost literature competition best known for its principles of excellence and integrity.
She added  that the change to the Advisory Board was aimed at making the prize’s governance framework and brand stronger. She said  that the new Advisory Board members are scholars who have distinguished themselves in their areas of specialisation and have contributed significantly to Literature in Nigeria.
She stated that the new members will bring an enormous wealth of experience to the prize.
According to her,the  the pandemic impacted on the established process of the prize, but that it also presented other opportunities on how literature can be marketed and consumed.
 She  implored writers to  exhibit their  creative works as people spend more time at home, reading.
The entries were handed over to the current panel of judges led by Professor Toyin Jegede who is a professor of Literature in English at the University of Ibadan.
She is a Fellow of the British Council of Nigeria; Centre for Afro-American Studies, University of Coimbra, Portugal; Comparative Literature Association, University of South Africa, Pretoria; among others. She has also served as an international panellist for the Commonwealth Book Prize for Literature.
The other judges are Prof. Tanimu Abubakar and Dr. Solomon Azumurana. Professor Abubakar is a Professor of Literature in the Faculty of Art, Ahmadu Bello University,
Zaria. He is also a member of Nigerian Academy of Letters. Dr. Azumurana is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of English at the University of Lagos.
The Prize runs concurrently with the Nigeria Prize for Literary Criticism (also sponsored by NLNG) for which four entries were received in 2020. The literary criticism prize carries a monetary value of N1 million.
The Nigeria Prize for Literature, Africa’s most prestigious literary award, with a cash award of $100,000 rotates yearly amongst four literary categories – prose fiction, poetry, drama and children’s literature.
The 2022 cycle of the prize, focussed on poetry, will commence in February 2022 with a call for entries.
Poverty Alleviation:FG Captures 30m Nigerians In National Social Register

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The Federal Government  has captured no fewer than 30 million Nigerians in the National Social Register .
This  would facilitate lifting 100 million people out of poverty in the next 10 years,according to Alhaji Bashir Alkali, the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development .
He spoke  at the National Social Safety Nets Project (NASSP) engagement meeting with State Permanent Secretaries  in Abuja,where he explained that NASSP was designed to have structures from the federal to the states, down to the local government levels, reflecting the three tiers of government.
He added that: “Currently, the NSR has 30 million Nigerians from 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory from seven million poor and vulnerable households.A further break down shows these households have been identified so far in 699 local government areas, 8,161 wards and 81, 776 communities across the country. “The NSR is developed using the geographical and community-based targeting (CBT) Mechanism, using community members, anchored by the State Operation Coordinating Unit (SOCU) in each of the states.
 “The National Cash Transfer Office (NCTO), has currently enrolled 1, 632,535 benefiting poor and vulnerable households in 45, 744 communities from 5, 483 Wards of 557 Local government areas in 35 states and FCT,” Alkali said.
He explained that this translates to 8, 100,682 individuals in the benefiting households through a representative of the household called ‘Caregiver or Alternate Caregiver’ which is paid bi-monthly (N10, 000).
According to him, 991,965 households were  currently receiving payment in 28 states and the FCT.
He maintained that all these were to actualise the vision of President Muhammadu Buhari to pull 100 million Nigerians out of extreme poverty.
“Thus, there is need to harmonised the structures and operation of SOCU. It is very important”. Speaking, the National Coordinator of NASSCO, Mr Apera Iorwa, said the state permanent secretaries are oversight officers of the programme in the state “There is a need for us to meet regularly and analyses issues, modalities and chart a way forward for the programme”. Iorwa said, permanent secretaries, have to be up and doing to avoid diverting the objectives of the programme in the state.
He added that states were liable to refund monies to the World Bank because accounts would be audited and if the funds are misused, they would be refunded. Similarly, the National Programme Coordinator of Conditional Cash Transfer, Mr Ibrahim Jafar said carrying along all stakeholders in the programme is very instrumental to the success of the Programme.
He noted that it was very important to know the difference between National Beneficiary Register and National Social Register He revealed that there were some challenges in payment, but, soon, most of the issues would be address.
 Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria Names Okon Acting National President

The Association of Senior Civil Servants of Nigeria (ASCSN) has appointed Comrade Dr. Tommy Etim Okon as its  Acting National President to steer the affairs of the union.
He was a National Vice President of the association until his current elevation,according to a statement  from ASCSN Secretary-General, Comrade Alade Bashir Lawal.
He said  the National Executive Council (NEC) of the Association at an Emergency meeting held in Abuja on Tuesday 16th March, 2021 unanimously resolved to appoint Comrade (Dr) Tommy as the Acting National President of the Union to oversee the activities of the Association till the NEC directs otherwise.
“This appointment is sequel to certain unforeseen development that stares the Union in the face,” the statement added.
According to the ASCSN, the Acting National President, Comrade Tommy was a two-term unit chairman of the Association at the Federal Ministry of Labour and Employment.
A seasoned Labour leader, Comrade Dr. Tommy, has attended ILO conferences in Geneva, Switzerland, for more than ten years and is abreast with contemporary industrial relations best practices at the global level including the structures and workings of the Trade Unions in line with ILO standards.
A versatile author, one of his books: “Keys to Sustainable Low Cost Housing Development in the 21stCentury” which has been translated into many languages, can be accessed on Amazon.
70 Per cent Of Nigerian Girls, Women Experienced  Sexual Violence -Canadian High Commissioner

Social media stimulates Nigerian debate on sexual violenceNo fewer than 70 per cent of girls and women in Nigeria between the age range of 15 – 49 were being subjected to one form of sexual and physical violence at least one in their lives, Acting Canadian High Commissioner to Nigeria, Nicholas Simard, has said
He disclosed this at  a forum organized by Connected Development, CODE in collaboration with the Canadian High Commission to address issues around Child Rights Acts and mobilise  mass action against Gender-Based Violence in Kano State.
He  said the Commission was ready to support Nigeria in the fight against insecurity and Gender-Based Violence (GBV), in the northern part of the country.
He said:“The self reality in Nigeria is that 70 per cent of girls and women between the age range of 15 – 49 were being subjected to Sexual and Physical violence at least ones in their lives. “The need to therefore find a lasting solution to these problems informed the visit to Kano”
In his remarks, the founder, Connected Development, Hamzat Lawal, lauded  the Canadian government, for committing their support to join in the fight to end Gender-Based Violence.
American Lady Sues Police,Seeks Release From Detention

An American lady, Kari Ann R’ouke, has filed a suit at the Federal High Court, Lagos, against the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Mr. Hakeem Odumosu, asking the court to order her release from police custody.
 In suit No.FHC/L/CS/434/2021 filed at the Registry of the Court on Thursday,  Kari Ann is asking for a declaration that the police is not entitled to arrest and detain her for an indefinite period of time over a matter that does not disclose any reasonable offence, a declaration that her continued remand in perpetuity without a charge is illegal and unconstitutional and for an order directing the police to forthwith release her from illegal custody.
Respondents in the suit filed on her behalf by legal luminary and Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, are the Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Hakeem Odumosu and the Deputy Commissioner of Police in charge of State Criminal Investigation Department, Panti, Yaba, DCP  Adegoke Fayoade. In the affidavit in support of the case, it is stated that Kari Ann is a certified nurse in America, who came to Nigeria sometimes in or about January 21, 2021, to partner with someone he met online to establish a humanitarian outfit.
Upon completing her assignment in Nigeria, she departed for the Murtala Mohammed International Airport on August 8, 2020, enroute America.
She was however stopped by the Immigration Department on the ground that her COVID 19 Test result had expired, whereupon she was made to sleep at the Airport purportedly for a new COVID 19 test.
It was later the following day that she was informed that she was being arrested because her friend had passed on, unknown to her. She has been in police custody ever since. The CCTV footage of the hotel showed clearly that Kari Ann left her friend in the hotel room in good health in the company of his friends and relatives, all of whom were initially arrested but have now been released upon the autopsy report which showed that he died of cardiac arrest, without any foul play.
Kari Ann claimed she  has been a subject of extortion ever since, even though no prima facie case has been established against her.
 Since her incarceration, Kari Ann has lost about 23 pounds in weight, she has emaciated tremendously, she has suffered bouts of malaria, dysentery and she is going through extreme emotional and mental stress, without any link to her family or relatives.
She stated in her affidavit  that she has a delicate medical condition, she is anaemic and thus requires constant medical check up and treatment. She claimed that she is entitled to be released on bail in the same way that the principal suspects have been released and that she is only being persecuted because of her status as a foreign citizen, even when responsible entities and individuals have volunteered to take her on bail. She therefore wants the court to order her release so that she could take care of her delicate health condition and go back to America to join her family.
The reliefs being sought in the case are as follows:
      * A  declaration that the  respondents are not entitled to detain or in any other manner restrict the liberty of the Applicant in flagrant violation of the Applicant’s fundamental rights, guaranteed under sections 34 & 35 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 and Articles 4, 5, 6 & 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples’ Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, Cap. 10, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
*A  declaration that the continued detention of the Applicant by the Respondents from February 9, 2021 constitute a flagrant violation of the Applicant’s fundamental rights guaranteed under sections 34, 35, 36 and 46 (1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 as amended and Articles 4, 5, 6 & 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and therefore is illegal, unconstitutional, null and void.
*A  declaration that the incarceration and continued confinement of the Applicant in perpetuity by the Respondents constitutes a flagrant violation of the Applicant’s fundamental rights guaranteed under section 34, 35, 36 & 46(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 and Articles 4, 5, 6 & 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004 and therefore is illegal, unconstitutional, null and void
*A  declaration that the continued detention, confinement and incarceration of the Applicant since February 9, 2021, by the Respondents, their agents, servants, privies, officers or otherwise howsoever without bringing the Applicant before any court of law or to answer any Charge under any law is a clear violation of the Applicant’s fundamental human rights guaranteed under section 33, 34, 35, 36 and 46(1) of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 and Articles 4, 5, 6 & 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004, and is therefore illegal, unconstitutional, null and void.
*A declaration  that the applicant is entitled to move freely in any part of Nigeria, without let or hindrance from the Respondent in exercise of her fundamental rights guaranteed under sections 35 & 41 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 and Articles 12 of the African Charter on Human and Peoples Rights (Ratification and Enforcement) Act, Laws of the Federation of Nigeria, 2004.
*A  declaration that the respondents’ constitutional and statutory duty do not extend to unlawful detention of innocent individuals who have not been charged to court or found guilty of any offence by any competent court of law in Nigeria.
*An  order directing the respondents to fortwith cease and abstain from applying for a remand order against the Applicant over matters pertaining to financial crimes to which the Applicant has been in detention since the February 9, 2021.
*An  order directing the respondents, whether by themselves, their servants, agents, officers or otherwise howsoever to forthwith release the Applicant from unlawful custody.
* An  injunction restraining the Respondents whether themselves, their servants, agents, officers or otherwise howsoever from applying for a remand order against the Applicant in respect of the allegation of any criminal offence to which the Applicant has been in detention since February 9, 2021 all in violation of the applicant’s fundamental right.
*An injunction  restraining the Respondents, whether by themselves, their servants, agents, officers or otherwise howsoever from further violating the fundamental rights of the Applicant through unlawful arrest and detention.
 *An injunction restraining the Respondents, whether by themselves, their servants, agents, officers or otherwise howsoever from further arresting, detaining, persecuting, dehumanizing or in any other manner taking steps that may jeopardize the liberty, freedom and life of the Applicant except and in a manner permitted and sanctioned by law.
  *An injunction restraining the Respondents, whether by themselves, their servants, agents, officers or otherwise howsoever from further constituting a threat or hindrance to the life, human dignity, personal liberty and freedom of the applicant through arrest or detention or remand for the purpose of preventing or disturbing her free movement and liberty in and or outside Nigeria.
*An injunction restraining the respondents, whether by themselves, their servants,, agents, officers or otherwise howsoever from carrying out any acts or omission which is likely to contravene the fundamental rights of the Applicant guaranteed under the Constitution and African Charter.
*One hundred million naira only  being general, aggravated, special and exceptional damages against the respondents, jointly and/ or severally for the violation of the fundamental rights of the applicant.
No date has been assigned for the hearing of the suit.
Ibadan DisCo Introduces New Billing Platform

IBEDC Distributes 10,000 Meters in Osun | Business Post Nigeria
Ibadan Electricity Distribution Company Plc (IBEDC) has introduced another initiative to its electronic billing platform, which enables customers demand for their bills promptly and conveniently via SMS.
The e-billing scheme, called Bills on Demand (BOD), is in continuation of IBEDC ’s desire to leverage innovation and technology to improve customer experience. It is designed to deliver bills on request directly to the customer, thereby eradicating challenges such as misplaced bills or delayed delivery and other issues which are associated with distribution of physical bills.
Speaking on the new billing initiative, the Chief Operating Officer (COO), Engr. John Ayodele explained that BOD would aptly take care of customers who are far flung and those on the fast lane line of businesses who may be too busy to monitor physical bills.
He said “what we have done with Bills on Demand is to create dedicated telephone number 07015555379 through which post-paid customers can pay the normal SMS rates to get their bills within seconds”
He  also disclosed that the IBEDC Pay Vending Mobile App has equally been upgraded to provide customer with information on their Service Bands and Tariff Rates with respect to the new Service Based Tariff. The upgrade he said has also created the opportunity for customers to be able check their last six vending or payments history, for a quicker turnaround time on bill related complaints.
He said, “as a service oriented organization, we understand that a critical element for successful product development is customer convenience and flexibility. This is what we intend to achieve by providing our customers with these value-added services, and we believe that our customers appreciate services that offer convenience, eliminate hitches and also fit their lifestyle”
He added  that IBEDC PayVending App is currently available on Android Playstore and will soon be available on IOS and other operating systems.
Shell Boss Harps On Human Capital Development In Oil, Gas Sector

SPDC – The Shell Petroleum Development Company of Nigeria | Shell Nigeria
Managing Director, Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) of Nigeria,  Mr Osagie Okunbor, has emphasized the need for the nation’s  oil and gas sector to focus on human capital development and embrace digital transformation to heighten production and minimise intruders’ interference.
Okunbor  spoke in Abuja, at the “Society of Petroleum Engineers, Oloibiri Lecture Series and Energy Forum” organised by the Society of Petroleum Engineers (SPE).
He said:“For us to achieve portfolio optimisation, some strategic imperative needs to begin to get into the mix because we need to look at our environmental factors and energy kind. The high margin of our operations will have to be replaced by low cost observations. We will then have to look at our physical considerations. The physical considerations are something that is at the deep of being actualized through the PIB and having a favourable PIB is also foundational and key to achieving professional excellence.
“If you look at professional excellence in action, I will like to reference the business transformation and operational excellence world summit that carried out research across 86 industry sessions all over the world. It might be interesting to see that on the top eight leading companies in operational excellence across the world, not even one of them is in the oil and gas sector. This calls for every one of us to pause and begin to reflect; if you are not in the top eight, are you in the game at all? We are not”
He called for a multilateral approach towards efficient oil and gas sector in Nigeria,adding that there was a need for partnership between the government, industry and academia for  an efficient oil sector.
Okunbor  said that the industry players must have organisational cultural shift from what used to be obtained, so as to make the oil sector one of the top business sectors in the world.
He added: “We are used to doing some things in the past thinking that what brought us to point A is capable of bringing us to point B.The world has taught us a lesson, either from COVID, from the low oil price, and from all the responses that the world economy has put in place, that indeed what we did is insufficient.
Nigeria Customs Will Force Us To Close Shop-Airline Operatorsi

Indigenous airlines may be compelled to shut down operations if the Nigerian Customs Service fails to  promote ease of doing business for them in the country.
The operators raised lamented that  almost five years after the Federal Government approved zero duty waivers for airlines on aircraft acquisition and spare parts purchase, the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) is yet to fully commence the implementation of the policy
Barrister Allen Onyema,  Chairman, Air Peace,who disclosed these in Abuja, during the grand reception of the second Air Peace E195-E2 aircraft, Onyema wondered why officials of Customs are frustrating  efforts  being made by the Federal Government to ease challenges for the operating airlines in Nigeria
He  claimed that one of the airline’s aircraft had been grounded for over a month at the Lagos sea port  because of the insistence of Customs in collecting duties on the aircraft engine.
He said: “The Customs know very well that waivers have been signed into law, yet I have an aircraft on ground for over one month. An aircraft I pay over $1 million on insurance whether it flies or not, which is over N490 million with a staff strength of over 3,000 people. Our spare parts and engines will come into this country and customs will keep on keeping them on ground and giving us all manner of reasons and bills to pay.
“Even though, the President of the country in his wisdom has signed into law these waivers. It does not depend on the whims and caprices of anyone anymore. This is the law of the country and the customs should be made to obey the laws of this country or in the next coming week airlines may shut down.
“If not for the intervention of Sen. Hadi Sirika, the Minister of Aviation, last week all the airlines in the country would have shut down. Where does that leave this economy of this country? Air Peace in particular, an engine which should be cleared in one day has taken over one month to clear. The customs of Nigeria are not above the law. I must not be a prisoner of my own conscience.”
He spoke on  the acquisition of E195-E2 aircraft, saying  it was geared towards rebranding  the airline,adding that it had already made orders for 30 of the aircraft, while 13 of them were firm orders.
The third of the aircraft brand would be delivered to the company in  three weeks, adding  that when the 13 of the E-195-E2 aircraft arrived the country, Air Peace would create an additional 8,000 jobs for Nigerians, stressing that it was high time the country got indigenous capacity right.