₦airaland Forum

Gambia head coach Tom Saintfiet has said his team avoided tragedy on Wednesday when the plane transporting them to the Ivory Coast for the Africa Cup of Nations was forced to turn back due to a lack of oxygen.

The team were travelling in a small 50-seater propeller plane, registered to Air Cote d'Ivoire, which had been arranged for them by the Gambian football association.

Saintfiet said the oxygen supply on the flight failed, causing some members of the team to lose consciousness before the pilot opted to return to Gambia's capital, Banjul.

The Gambian FA said that "preliminary investigations indicated that there was a loss of cabin pressure and oxygen.

"However, the technical team of the operating company of the flight, Air Cote d'Ivoire is further assessing the situation to establish what caused the lack of oxygen and cabin pressure," the statement said.

Air Cote d'Ivoire has not yet replied to a request for comment by ESPN.

Saintfiet told ESPN: "We were really dying in the plane. There was no oxygen in this plane, everyone fell asleep, became a little bit unconscious, and the pilot decided after nine minutes of being in the air to return to save our lives.

"There were no oxygen masks dropping down ... I am ready to die for Gambia, but on the football pitch, not off it. I had short dreams where my life passed, I had moments where I thought I was dying."

Gambia defender Saidy Janko said his teammates began to slip into unconsciousness after the plane took off.

"As soon as we entered the small plane that was hired to fly us, we noticed the intense heat that left us dripping with sweat," Janko said in a post on Instagram. "It was assured to us by the crew that the air conditioning would start once we are in the sky.

"The inhumane heat mixed with the lack of oxygen left many people with strong headaches and full dizziness. Furthermore, people started falling deeply asleep minutes after takeoff.

"In the air, the situation got worse, leaving the pilot with no choice but to initiate an emergency landing. If it wasn't for this, the consequences could have been a lot worse."

They are due to play their AFCON opener against holders Senegal in Yamoussoukro on Monday, but Saintfiet said their participation at the tournament now hangs in the balance.

The Confederation of African Football (CAF) declined to comment.

"People still have headaches, vomiting, are dizzy, it could take weeks before we recover from this," Saintfiet added. "We are confused, and we're even saying to not go to the Africa Cup, because we don't get treated as we want.

"We have families, we have children, but [they] put us in the cheapest plane possible. We haven't trained for three days, didn't sleep for three days, for two days we've had no lunch.

"If this is the case, let's go home, let's forget AFCON."

Saintfiet said his Gambia team remain in Banjul, having refused invitation from the Gambia FA to reattempt the 2100-km flight on the same aircraft they originally boarded on Wednesday.

"They tried to put us on a plane -- the same plane -- this morning, and we all refused it," Saintfiet said. "Even if tomorrow we have to travel on a commercial flight, we will do, but we will not enter that plane, or any similar type of small propeller-type plane.

"We fly with a real plane, not with a illegal plane or a plane like that."

After facing Senegal next week, Gambia -- who are competing in their second-ever Nations Cup after successive qualifications under Saintfiet -- are due to face Guinea in Yamoussoukro on Jan. 19, before closing their group-stage campaign against Cameroon four days later.

Soucre
ESPn

Nigeria may have to wrap star striker Victor Osimhen in cotton wool, put him in a bubble, place bodyguards around him during training, and inspect the pitch for anything with the potential to cause injury until they kick off their 2023 Africa Cup of Nations title hunt.

On Friday, Paul Onuachu became the third replacement player to be called up for Nigeria ahead of their opening game against Equatorial Guinea on Sunday, named in place of the injured Sadiq Umar, who suffered a knee injury in Monday's friendly game against Guinea.

Umar's departure came just days after Victor Boniface had also been forced to withdraw with injury. The Bayer Leverkusen striker underwent surgery the same day Umar was withdrawing from the squad. He was replaced by OGC Nice forward Terem Moffi.

This run of ill-luck has left the Super Eagles without at least five of their best players going into Africa's showpiece competition. For a team whose strength centred on a terrifying attacking talent featuring the likes of Osimhen, Taiwo Awoniyi, Boniface, Kelechi Iheanacho, Ademola Lookman, Umar amongst others, they have now been reduced to almost scraping the barrel for goalscoring forwards.

Despite the injuries, Nigeria have such an abundance of talent that the replacements are almost as good as the players lost. Yobo feels the only concern is whether they are mentally prepared: "The only thing is, are they mentally ready for AFCON right now?

Source
ESPn

The World Bank has warned that an increase in conflict in the Middle East could potentially worsen the food insecurity in Nigeria and other countries in the Sub-Saharan Africa region.

The bank noted this in its Global Economic Prospect report where it projected an outlook for the world’s economy in 2024.

According to the bank, political instability and violence together with disruptions in global trade especially in the Middle East portends huge risk for the region with regards to food insecurity.

The report noted that an oil price increase as a result of conflict would lead to increased transport and logistics costs which could disrupt supply chains and worsen the already high food inflation witnessed in Nigeria and other countries in the region.

It states,
An escalation of the conflict in the Middle East could acerbate the situation in SSA in terms of food insecurity”
“A conflict-induced sustained oil price spike would not only raise food prices by increasing production and transportation costs but could also disrupt supply chains, leading to less affordable food and an uptick in malnutrition rates in the region.”
The bank also warned that the Sub-Saharan Africa region remains susceptible to extreme weather events like floods, droughts etc linked to climate change could lead to an increase in food inflation as the majority of the region’s farmers practice subsistence agriculture.

What you should know
In October, the Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO) warned that around 26.5 million Nigerians are at risk of hunger in 2024. Already, food inflation has blown over the roof in Nigeria. According to the NBS, Nigeria’s food inflation for November stood at 32.84%.
According to the United Nations (UN), around 78% of Africans cannot afford a healthy diet since the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic in a report titled Africa Regional Overview of Food Security and Nutrition. It noted that Africa is not on track to achieve its food security targets of 2030.
The Israeli/Palestine conflict in Gaza has the potential of destabilizing the Middle East and derailing global supply chains. In December, Houthi rebels in Yemen began attacking ships with Israeli ownership or destined for Israeli ports. The attacks could potentially affect up to 10% of global trade and increase freight time, cost and insurance which does not augur well from a consumer standpoint.

Source
Nairametrics

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has announced its highest profit in 45 years, recording N2.548 trillion for the year 2022.

The national oil company, in its 2022 Financial Performance Report published online, emphasized that the profit recorded was the highest since its founding in 1977.

Breakdown of the Financial Report
According to the financial report, losses amounted to N803 billion in 2018 and increased to N1.7 billion in 2019.

In 2020, the report highlights a profit of N287 billion, denoted as the ‘Turning Point,’ and in 2021, the company’s profit grew to N674.1 billion, named ‘Assurance.’

According to the report, the profit continued its upward trend, reaching N2.548 trillion in 2022.

In October alone, a few months after the removal of the subsidy, the Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Ltd, Mele Kyari, said the company remitted N4.5 trillion as revenue to the federation account in October.

He made this disclosure while appearing before the Senate Committee on Finance to defend the company’s budget for the 2024 fiscal year.

“I am glad to inform you, Mr. Chairman and distinguished senators that as of October we can deliver N4.5 trillion into the federation account as a company to this country In 2023,” Mr Kyari said.
Meanwhile, NNPCL is yet to be audited by an independent financial auditing firm, as demanded by most stakeholders in the industry.

Oil Theft as Impediments for Growth
In addition, the national oil company still battles with myriads of oil theft incidents across the country, thus impeding the growth and revenue potential of the sector at large

For instance, last week, authorities reported the discovery and destruction of 52 illegal refineries in Abia, Imo, Rivers, and Bayelsa states. Additionally, 32 illegal connections were uncovered in various locations across the Niger Delta.

NNPC Ltd also announced that it had between December 30, 2023, and January 5, 2024, recorded 157 incidents of crude oil theft from seven incident sources and arrested 17 suspects.

However, the company affirmed its unwavering commitment to eliminate the oil theft menace, emphasizing that there would be no retreat until it was completely eradicated.

What you should know
The NNPCL has faced criticism from industry participants and stakeholders for its failure to disclose financial performance for public scrutiny.

In its 46-year history, the NNPC opened its books for the fourth consecutive time during the 2021 financial year.

Meanwhile, in November, NNPCL forecasted a revenue increase to N4.5 trillion by the end of 2023, citing the commencement of operations at the Port Harcourt Refining Company.

Source
Nairametrics

Floky215:
They know far better than you whom the foreign religion have succeeded in brain washing and blinding and they are doing better for themselves..!!

They are stepping into and would be disturbing realm and element not there's so need to settle before anything, our people of old know these things and many more hence why they live long.

Hmmmmm..... deep tinz

Na ur opinion be dat sha,
Every one is entitled to his / her own opinion.

Wetin concern contruction and sacrifice

The findings of the sub-committee read:
“That the total inflow into the Non-oil Excess Account for the period January 2020 to October 2023 was N2,607,067,427,659.48;
“That the total amount distributed to the three tiers of Government was the sum of N1,035,298,000,000.00 in the period under review;
“Total deductions from the Account for other purposes amounted to N846,159,187,753.64 in the period under review;
“That the sum of N20,009,001,423.57 was deducted as Refund of Gas Flared penalty to NMDPRA;
“That the sum of N20 billion was transferred to the 20% of the Amount due to States on ECA withdrawals Account;
“That the sum of N136,571,812,718.58 was used for Refund of PAYE to States and the sum of N31,311,515,329.52 for FCT respectively;
“That FGN borrowed the sum of N41,844,164,400.00 for the payment of final Settlement of Ground Rent Liabilities;
“That FGN borrowed the sum of N227,998,501,190.36 for the funding of 2023 General Elections;
“That amount borrowed by FGN for Payment of Contingencies to the Office of the National Security Adviser was N2,750,000,000.00;
“That the sum N28,608,118,834.81 was deducted from the Account to Refund Paris Club Loan Deduction from SRA of FCTA;
“That the difference between Foreign taxes figures on Component Statement and Actual was deducted from the Non-Oil Account to the tune of N73,066,073,856.80;
“The sum of N30,000,000,000.00 was deducted from the Account for refund to CISS being amount borrowed for FIRS’s Priority Projects;
“That there was no record that the amounts borrowed by FGN were paid back.”
In its recommendations, the Sub-Committee recommends that the total deductions of N864.16 billion for other purposes should be refunded back to the account.

It also stressed that further deductions from the account should be in line with the vertical revenue allocation formula.

The recommendation for the Federal Government to refund the borrowed funds is a significant step towards ensuring transparency and accountability in the management of Nigeria’s financial resources.

The Postmortem Sub-Committee of the Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has recommended that the Federal Government refund the about N228 billion loan it took from the non-oil excess revenue account to fund the 2023 general elections.

This is according to a report on the inflow into and payments from the non-oil excess revenue account for the period January 2020 to October 2023, which was signed by sub-committee chairman, Kabir Mashi, on December 14, 2023.

Mashi, who was once an acting Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) is also a Federal Commissioner of the Revenue Mobilization and Fiscal Allocations Commission (RMAFC), representing Katsina State.

The genesis of this report can be traced back to a FAAC Plenary meeting held in September 2023. During this meeting, members raised alarms over the substantial deductions from the Non-Oil Excess Revenue Account, prompting a deeper investigation.

These concerns were primarily centred around the large sums being borrowed by the Federal Government. The sub-committee further wrote to the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation (OAGF) to provide some information as it examined the Non-Oil Excess Revenue Account Ledge.

More Insights
While there seems to be no known specific information available about the creation of a non-oil revenue account in Nigeria, its concept appears to parallel the structure of the Excess Crude Account (ECA).

Established in 2004 by then-President Olusegun Obasanjo, the ECA functions as a natural resource fund, primarily serving as a fiscal buffer during economic downturns.

The ECA accumulates revenues exceeding the benchmark crude oil price set in the national budget, providing a savings mechanism for the country.

In a similar vein, it is conceivable that the non-oil revenue account operates on a parallel framework, wherein surplus revenues from non-oil sources are earmarked for savings.

Notably, the Federal Government’s approach to withdrawing from these accounts has occasionally deviated from the standard vertical revenue allocation formula outlined by the Revenue Mobilization Allocation and Fiscal Commission (RMAFC).

This formula currently allocates 52.68% of revenue to the Federal Government, 26.72% to states, 20.60% to local governments, and 13% for derivation.

The Federal Government’s deductions from the non-oil revenue account, often contrary to RMAFC stipulations, highlight ongoing challenges in adhering to established fiscal management protocols.

Also, efforts to revise the revenue allocation formula under the previous administration of Muhammadu Buhari led RMAFC to propose a new distribution: 45.17% for the Federal Government, 29.79% for states, and 21.04% for local governments.

This proposal represented a shift in resource allocation, reducing the Federal Government’s share by 3.33%, while increasing the states’ and local governments’ shares by 3.07% and 0.44%, respectively.

However, akin to prior attempts to revise this formula, the proposal was not approved. There appears to be no immediate prospect of such a revision under the current administration, reflecting a continuity in the status quo of revenue allocation in Nigeria.

Source
Nairametrics

NTA no gree for any body oooo.
At-all-at-all, WE TRANSMIT

13+ Odds

2+ Odds

Top players who won’t be part of AFCON 2024

Wilfred Ndidi (Nigeria)
Taiwo Awoniyi (Nigeria)
Thomas Partey (Ghana)
Wilfred Zaha (Ivory Coast)
Bryan Mbeumo (Cameroon)
Baba Rahman (Ghana)
Issahaku Fatawu (Ghana)

3+ Odds

Middlesbrough VS Chelsea (England Leage Cup) CHELSEA TO WIN
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Understanding the possible AFCON performance

Ghana couldn't deliver yesterday ticket.