All Posts in "Day: April 26, 2021"

Power Privatization Has Lost Value-NLC

Power Sector Privatisation Has Failed-NLC – The Whistler Nigeria
The Nigerian Labour Congress(NLC)has deplored the performance of the power sector,saying  reasons for its privatization by the Federal Government has been defeated.
The union also said quality of services and cost efficiency for electricity consumers in Nigeria have actually deteriorated since the privatization of the power sector since its privatization.
A communique issued at the end of the virtual The National Executive Council of the union conveyed its assessment in a communique issued at the end of its virtual meeting recently.
It said:”The NEC reasoned that the raison d’etre for the privatization of the power sector which is to improve electricity services to consumers, shed the burden of funding the power sector from government and increase revenue accruing to government have all been defeated.
“The NEC also considered that the services from the new private owners of the power sector have recorded worse performance than when the power sector was publicly managed.
“The NEC noted that the quality of services and cost efficiency for electricity consumers in Nigeria have actually deteriorated since the privatization of the power sector.
“The NEC considered a Report of the World Bank on the so-called subsidies by government on the privatized power sector as an acute aberration that is totally untoward, and completely unacceptable to Nigerians.
It also implored the Federal Government to take very reasonable measures to ensure that all the four public refineries are rehabilitated and brought back fully on stream in good time
It said  that such efforts should be on the basis of value for money since the country has already lost huge sums of money to phony contractors and their middle-persons collaborators in government who had defaulted on their commitments for effective Turn Around Maintenance of our refineries.
“The NEC also considered recent reports on efforts by the government to revamp Nigeria’s comatose refineries. The NEC observed that the sum budgeted for the revamping of the Port Harcourt refineries appears to be on the high side considering earlier proposals for an overhaul of Nigeria’s refineries estimated at about $450 million. The NEC reasoned that what is paramount to Nigerians is that the refineries are brought back to life in a manner that must demonstrate value for money.
‘’The NEC called on government to be forthcoming and transparent on the implementation on the current efforts to revamp and reposition Nigeria’s refineries for optimal productivity. The NEC also reiterated its earlier calls for new refineries both regular and modular refineries,’’the communique added.
 The NEC expressed concern on the rising cost of food items, inflationary trend currently standing at 22.5%, poverty, unemployment, and insecurity in Nigeria and warned that the situation would be worsened by the IMF and World Bank demand for increased taxation, subsidy removal and other anti-people reforms.
It  berated government’s poor commitment to research and social welfare and also frowned at recent attempts to scrap the local government system and described such moves as anti-development, anti-people and retrogressive.
The NEC opposed any reform that seeks to scrap the local government system from the Nigerian constitution and  urged Nigeria’s political leaders to adopt new measures to strengthen the structures and operations of local governments in Nigeria and guarantee their full autonomy.
It  also underscored the critical role of security and public order in national development especially with regards to attracting foreign investments.
It advocated the need  for the removal of the veil on security votes.
” The NEC-in-session called for the passage and implementation of security sector appropriations through the regular budgetary and legislative procedures to engender public confidence, performance and accountability by all state actor,it added
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in Power 0
Minister Sues  Bash Ali For defamation

Bash Ali Sues Sports Minister, Seeks N1 Billion Damages - DNL Legal and Style
 Chief Sunday Dare,the minister of youth and sports development, Chief Sunday Dare, has threatened to sue the former world cruiserweight boxing champion, Bash Ali, alleging that the boxer maliciously accused him of wrongdoing.
The minister through his legal team, Festus Keyamo Chambers, said he will seek injunctive and pecuniary damages against erstwhile heavyweight champion and will not hesitate to join any person, medium or organization that publishes any of the defamatory contents authored by Bash Ali, his agents or proxies as a co-defendant to the suit.
The world acclaimed boxer had launched a campaign of calumny against the Minister after the Ministry declined to sign on to his supposed ‘Guinness World Record Boxing Championship Bout’ he was promoting.
The Ministry had advised the former boxer to approach the Nigerian Boxing Board of Control (NBBofC) for support as that was the body with the requisite jurisdiction to support his ambition.
 It added that it only deals with amateur boxers and not professionals like him, stating that the bout being proposed by Bash Ali was a purely business affair which he could conveniently champion as a private venture without the support of the Ministry.
The libel suit against Bash Ali, would have been filed this week, within days of the ex-boxer releasing a ten-page letter that cast aspersion on the person and character of Mr. Dare, but the ongoing strike by the Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria, JUSUN, which has shut the courts.
But,Mr. Dare’s legal team is  set to serve a pre-action letter to Bash Ali, informing him of the Minister’s intention to sue him for libel and demanding that Bash withdraws the falsehood he is peddling against him and the Ministry of Youth and Sports Development.
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in Sports 0
NGF Condemns Attack On  Imo Governor’s Residence

Imo: Nigerian Governors react to razing of Uzodinma's home - Daily Post Nigeria
The Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) has condemned the attack on Governor Hope Uzodinma of Imo state’s residence at the weekend.
Chairman of the NGF and Ekiti State governor, Kayode Fayemi,  said all hands must be on deck to fish out perpetrators of the crime.
He sympathised with Governor Uzodinma and all those who had been injured, maimed or had someone close killed during the attack.
He implored  all good citizens to cooperate with the nation’s security forces and the government in trying to build a civil, safe and secure environment for our citizens.
He said:“For those behind these crimes, they must understand that they do not have the monopoly of violence.This is taking criminality to reckless and irresponsible heights.
“All hands must be on deck to fish out the perpetrators of this dastardly act as in our view, they constitute a small league of persons trying to harm the corporate existence of our beloved country, Nigeria.The mantra for every Nigerian at such a challenging time in our history must be how to forge peace and unity across the nation’s divides and to shun violence and wanton destruction.Only then can we have a country to call our own,” the governors said.
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in Politics 0
Ramadan: Cleric Urges  Unity, Peace In Nigeria

A notable lslamic cleric, Alhaji (Sheikh) Buhari Ajilogba, the Ajanosi of Epe kingdom,has called on Nigerians a to be united in stemming the tide of insecurity  and ensure peace in the country.
Sheikh Buhari ,who was the guest lecturer at the Epe Club 70s  Special Ramandan  Public Lecture 2021,themed,’The benefits of unity’,expressed optimism that the country’s scale of violence and killings would be nipped in the bud if Nigerians forge a common front.
Quoting Prophet Muhammed (SAW),the cleric said, “The good people among you are those who unite with each others without any discrimination”
He admonished Muslim faithfuls to use the Ramadan season to come together,pray and refresh their minds  to the progress, unity and mutual understanding of  country.
The cleric lauded the effort of the Club in  propagating lslam and uniting youths within the community.
He said:” That is why l commended the Epe Club 70s for this laudable initiative.  l urge other vibrant Clubs within the community to emulate this and foster more unity among our teaming youths.Our most immediate challenge now is to bring our disparate people together and pull down our barriers; otherwise, we can not build.Issues of development, although absolutely important are not the most immediate.No one without an implementable solutions on the questions of unity and justice for all regardless of ethnicity and creeds, should have their names  to protect”.
He  urged the President and members of Epe club 70s to consider themselves and allow unity and love to be their watchwords.
He said :”Belonging to a club unifies people to achieve a common goal and impacts positively on the entire community.According to Islamic view, unity helps us manage ourselves and also brings a lot of blessings”.
In his remarks, the President of  Epe Club 70s, Mr Ibrahim Sanuth, commended members and their families for the massive turnout, adding that Ramandan Public Lecture is an annual programme held for the purpose of bringing all club members, families and friends together .
He  added that the Ramadan lecture provides an avenue to give back to the society and educating them on the need to be part of a club.
He said:” We want people to know we belong to a club in order to have a positive impact collectively and individually  on the society and to our families. Since we started about 18 years ago, we have successfully executed quite a good number of projects, at Epe General Hospital, we provided chairs and television at the waiting room so as to make patients  comfortable before they’ll be attended to, we have provided bed spread to health centers across the division, we have carried out empowerment programs.During the lockdown, we distributed relief package to the vulnerable right at  their door posts and recently we  organized seminars to enlighten the youths on the things they need to do to succeed in life.
He  enjoined parents to be alive to their  responsibility by  train their children and inculcating in them good values that will enable them live a worthy life.
“Parents should teach their children to mind their peers and to cherish their name and become responsible in the society because if anything happens, their family’s name is at stake.
“Government cannot do it alone, the youths need to be empowered and given carrier talks and seminar. The religious leaders also have a role also to play in helping the youth by focusing more on morals than success “
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in News 0
COVID-19:  Fresh Job Losses Loom   In Chemical Industry

ABOUT THE ORGANIZATION – NUCFRLANMPE
The National Union of Chemical Footwear, Rubber, Leather and Non-Metallic Products Employees (NUCFRLANMPE) has said that
that many companies in the sector were still threatening to downsize their work force as goods had remained in the warehouses unsold as on account of COVID-19 pandemic and closure of Nigeria’s land borders.
The union lamented that  over 10,000 members were sacked in the last one year because of the spread of the pandemic.
It also said the recent reopening of the land borders by the Federal Government has not added  appreciable value to the industry as goods are still trapped in the warehouse
Comrade Goke Olatunji,the President of the union, expressed that  job losses in the country have continued unsolved , terrifying  the employment crisis in the country.
He said:“The announcement by the Federal Government on the opening of the borders has not taken effect. Some of the member companies are already lamenting over poor sales, because their products cannot be exported to neighbouring countries.”
According to him,government’s closure of the land borders without consideration  locally-produced products meant for export should be reviewed.
He added:“Nigeria’s economy cannot be better because of the land border closure. By closing land borders, some other sectors of the economy are suffering.If the options are weighed, it is good for us to open the borders while putting in place efficient and effective monitoring and controlling measures to curb prohibited commodities”.
He  reasoned that further  sack of workers would pauperize  the country , increase insecurity and cause decline of membership of the union.
He emphasized  for the country to consider return to mining, agriculture and manufacturing, with a view to nipping the unemployment level in the bud and boosting the nation’s economy.
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in Labour/Human Resources 0
  How Nigeria Can Stop Malaria-PSN

The Horrible Position Of Pharmaceutical Society Of Nigeria On Ebola Drugs | Rich Nigerian Pharmacists
The Pharmaceutical Society of Nigeria, PSN,has given recipe on how Nigeria can defeat malaria scourge by 2025.
Pharm. Sam Ohuabunwa, the President of the PSN, who gave the recipe in commemoration of this year’s World Malaria Day
He said Nigeria can achieve if it introduces free malaria test and treatment for under 5s and pregnant women, environmental re-engineering, health education as well as invest in research and development. Making the assertion in a message to mark the day in Nigeria, President of the PSN, Pharm. Sam Ohuabunwa
He maintained that malaria is a disease of Public Health importance and influenced by the environment, adding that the government needs to be intentional with town planning and discourage unauthorised constructions that disrupt waterways.
According to him,drainages must be covered to discourage forming mosquitoes breathing sites, stressing that Nigeria must begin to introduce free malaria test and treatment for under-fives and pregnant women as early and an accurate diagnosis was essential for rapid and effective disease management and surveillance.
He said: “Misdiagnosis allows disease progression from uncomplicated to severe.
 An estimated 65 per cent of Nigeria’s population live in poverty. Though there is the National policy of Artemisinin-based Combined Therapy ( ACT ), which costs about N1,200 as the first-line treatment of uncomplicated malaria, current data indicates that over 70 per cent of children treated for malaria in Nigeria received chloroquine or sulfadoxine-pyrimethamine ( SP ) with an average cost of N200. Ohuabunwa said government and corporate organisations should partner and provide free malaria rapid test kit and ACTs/SPs at community pharmacies for treatment for pregnant women and under 5s.
He advised   the National Orientation Agency, NOA, to engage Nigerians  to continue to discourage habits that create breathing sites for mosquitoes. “For instance, throwing empty food cans indiscriminately, overgrown bushes and blocked drainages around living homes. Prevention programs like the distribution and use of Long Lasting Insecticidal Nets, intermittent prophylaxis for pregnant women, evidence-based health education on the mode of malaria transmission, indoor Residual Spraying with an effective insecticide should be facilitated by the government through the pharmacists.”
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in Health 0
Union Bank Strengthens  Commerce With UnionPro

Union Bank Unveils 'UnionPro' to Strengthen Retail TradeTHISDAYLIVE
Union Bank Plc ,has introduced UnionPro, a proposition designed to provide tailored financial services and solutions to supermarkets and large retail chain stores.
Large retailers could now access a single platform offering a wide bouquet of solutions to enrich their businesses and optimise their offerings with UnionPro, according to the commercial bank
It said  these solutions included agency banking, point-of-sale terminals; in-store ATM deployments; web payment gateways and access to Union360 – a secure web- based solution that offered an end-to-end single point for payments and collections.
It added retailers could also benefit from business loans such as overdrafts, short-term finance, distributor finance and invoice discounting finance.
The bank hopes to strengthen its support for the Nigerian retail sector which continued to show promise despite harsh economic conditions,the Divisional Executive, Commercial Banking, Gloria Omereonye  said.
She reiterated the bank’s strategic approach to developing innovative services that support its customers,adding that: “We are proud to support local businesses through tailored products and services that ease the challenges of doing business in Nigeria.
“With UnionPro, we are making a commitment to work closely with large retailers, providing the necessary support they require to grow and expand their businesses.”
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in Brands&Marketing 0
CBN,Varsities To Partner On Agric Revolution

The Central Bank of Nigeria(CBN),says it will provide a commercial outlook to research breakthroughs on improved seeds in the country.
The apex bank hopes to achieve this  by ensuring a guaranteed market by encouraging farmers to adopt those seeds under the Anchor Borrower Programme (ABP).
Gowin Emefiele, its Governor,disclosed this
delivering the guest lecture, titled, ‘Jump Starting the Agricultural Revolution: the CBN Experience’, at the combined convocation of the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Benue State.
He noted that the seed industry was a multi-billion dollars investment, offering a low hanging fruit in a potential collaborative effort between the CBN and the university community.
According to him, N608.36 billion had been disbursed to 3,038,899 farmers that cultivated 3,776,228 hectares along 21 commodities through 23 Participating Financial Institutions in 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).
The apex bank boss expressed  to partner with the universities in achieving revolutionary innovations to reposition agriculture.
He  said on assumption as CBN governor in 2014, “I stated that my vision would be to ensure that the Central Bank of Nigeria is more people focused, as its policies and programmes would be geared towards supporting job creation, and deepening our intervention program in the agricultural sector”.
He explained that this would help to foster greater inclusive growth as well as address key macroeconomic concerns including exchange rate stability, financial system stability and maintaining a strong external reserve.
He added that with close to 36 per cent of Nigerians employed in the agricultural sector, the emphasis on supporting greater growth of the sector became vital given the role it could play in supporting employment generation, wealth creation, and in providing domestic sources of staple food items and raw materials for households and businesses.
Emefiele, said: “In the 60’s and the early 70’s, the agricultural sector was the backbone of the Nigerian economy. Our production of cocoa, palm oil and groundnuts amongst other commodities supported the revenue needs of the government in addition to generating sufficient export revenues for the country.
“In addition, Nigeria held a dominant share in the exports of these commodities globally. Proceeds from the sale of these products were used to build bridges, roads and educational institutions in key parts of the country. More importantly it fostered inclusive growth by creating jobs across the agricultural value chain.”
However, he pointed out that, “The eventual discovery of crude oil along with increased exports of crude oil, led to significant underinvestment in the agricultural sector and an erosion of jobs in the real sector of our economy.
“As a result, products such as palm oil, which could have been produced in Nigeria were now being imported into the country with the improved inflows of petrodollars. Our reliance on crude oil earnings for close to over 80 per cent of our foreign exchange earnings not only led to significant loss of jobs in the agricultural sector, it also subjected our nation to strong economic volatility driven by factors that are exogenous to the Nigerian economy.
“One critical example which I can share is between 2012 – 2015, US production of shale oil rose from less than 1 million barrels per day to over 5 million barrels per day.
“This rise in production led to a dramatic fall in global crude oil prices between 2015-2016 and a corresponding decline in Nigeria’s government revenue as well as our foreign exchange earnings.
He said: “At one point in 2016, our monthly foreign exchange earnings dropped from over $3 billion a month to close to $500 million a month.
“We are all aware of how Israel which a desert area was formerly, was turned into a lush green fertile area, after researchers discovered how to channel drops of water to the roots of plants through drip irrigation.
“We would like to see how the university community and indeed the graduating students can leverage their knowledge and research to come up with similar breakthrough solutions that would improve productivity of our agricultural sector.
“Another example that comes to mind could be the set up demonstration farms in farming areas, where farmers can come and obtain knowledge on the right farming practices to adopt in order to increase their yields and output.”
He disclosed that in a bid to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the economy, the CBN as part of its mandate to ensure price and monetary stability, sought to apply targeted interventions, with the agricultural sector at the centre to encourage greater diversification of the economy.
He said the CBN was conscious of the fact that improved support for the sector would help to improve domestic productivity and reduce our imports of items that could be produced in Nigeria.
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in Agriculture 0
Nigerian Banks Sacked  8,584 Officials  In A  Year-NBS

Employees in the nation’s  industry reduced by 8.3 per cent last year compared to the number of banking staff in December 2019, data from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) Selected Banking Sector Report said.
It added that   in the fourth quarter, the number of banking staff dropped by 8,584 to 95,026 as at December 31, 2020 compared to 103,610 which was in the employ of banks in 2019.
The COVID-19 pandemic had impacted the operations of banks with many branches closed to reduce contact and many of the affected staff had been contract staff. In the heat of the pandemic, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had directed that banks not lay off any worker without its approval.
The data released by the NBS showed that most of the staff relieved of their duties last year were contract staff as the number of executive staff increased significantly.
A total of 5,552 contract staff had been laid off in the course of the year reducing the number by 12.2 per cent from 45,350 to 39,798 while the number of junior staff had declined by 5.78 per cent or 2,306 from 39,896 to 37,590 at the end of December last year
A total volume of 3.46 billion transactions valued at N356.47tn were recorded in the fourth quarter of 2020 as data on electronic payment channels in the Nigeria banking sector.
Online transfers dominated the volume of transactions recorded, it stated.
The NBS stated that 2.23 billion volume of online transfer transactions valued at N120.27tn were recorded in Q4 2020.
In terms of credit to the private sector, the total value of credit allocated by the bank stood at N20.37tn as of Q4 2020.
Oil and gas and manufacturing sectors got credit allocation of N3.93tn and N3.19tn to record the highest credit allocation as at the period under review.
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in Labour/Human Resources 0
FG,World Bank Lock Horns Over Survey On Power Sector

Power Grid Collapses, Plunges Lagos, Others Into Darkness - The New Diplomat
The Federal Government and World Bank have locked horns over the recent survey on the nation’s power sector,which painted it as performing below par.
The bank had  last week in an online meeting in Abuja,disclosed  that a total of 74 per cent of power users in Nigeria were dissatisfied with the supply of electricity across the country.
It  added that while 93 per cent of metered power users paid their bills regularly, while 78 per cent of electricity consumers in Nigeria received less than 12 hours of supply daily, stressing that the findings were done after a thorough survey conducted by the global financial institution.
Rejecting  the  World Bank’s report, the Special Adviser to the President on Infrastructure, Mr. Ahmad Zakari, while disputing the survey, said it was unclear what empirical evidence the bank deployed to arrive at the figures.
He maintained  that power distribution to consumers had been steadily improving, even though it had stasted last week that 17 of the 25 generation power plants were down, leading to a deterioration in nationwide supply.
He  noted that it was inaccurate to make a blanket statement on the country’s power sector in response to the Power Sector Programme  released by the bank.
According to him,empirical evidence from the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) showed that only 55 per cent of citizens connected to the grid is in tariff bands D and E which is less than 12 hours supply.
He said: “It is inaccurate to make a blanket statement that 78 per cent of Nigerians have less than 12 hours daily access. The data from NERC is that 55 per cent of citizens connected to the grid are in tariff bands D and E which are less than 12 hours supply.
“Those citizens are being fully subsidised to pre-September 2020 tariffs until Discos are able to improve supply. There is a N120 billion CAPEX fund from CBN for Discos to improve infrastructure for these tariff classes similar to the metering programme that is ongoing.”
He further picked holes in the bank’s report which claimed that 58 per cent of electricity consumers in the country did not have meters to measure electricity use,saying was unverifiable.
He said:“It is unclear who did this survey and what the timeframe is. All citizens that have got free meters report they are happy about the reform trajectory,” he added.
He revealed more than 600,000 meters have been delivered to Distribution Companies (Discos) out of the 1 million in phase 0 with installation ongoing and meters being sourced locally, while creating jobs in installation and manufacturing/assembly.
He explained that the Service-Based Tariff (SBT) ensures that citizens pay more only when and if they are receiving a high quality of service.
He stated that all consumers have been communicated their bands which he said are published during billing.
The statement maintained that it was inconceivable that anyone would imply that four out of five Nigerians are not intelligent enough to understand tariff classes and what they are paying for.
He expressed surprised that such a report would be released without the input of other critical stakeholders given the fact that his office has a good working relationship with the World Bank
He said:“We have a good working relationship with the bank but metrics around the Nigerian power sector will come from the ministry of power, Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) while the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) also regularly publishes intervention data.”
He  noted that the government has also been supporting data access from the relevant agencies, insisting that it was uncommon to publish such data without the right consultation, fact-checking and context.
But,some stakeholders in the power sector told PREMIUM NEWS that Federal Government’s controversy over dismal performance of the power sector and poor electricity supply to consumers was needless as there are convincible evidence to show that all is still not well with the sector eight years after it was privatized.
They advised the Federal to take an humble pie from the Breton Wood’s institution score hard and strive to continue to work on improved and robust power sector the world would be proud of.
Online Editor by — April 26, 2021 in Power 0