₦airaland Forum

Aguleri community gets housing estate for refinery project
By Sunny Igboanugo, Regional Editor, South East

A flurry of activities has continued around Orient Petroleum Resources (OPR) Plc, the firm that is about to build the nation’s first private refinery, one of which is the signing of an agreement for the construction of a housing estate at Aguleri, in Anambra East Local Government of Anambra State.

The agreement, according to a statement from the company, made available to Daily Independent on Wednesday, was signed between the company and Nerida International of Geneva, Switzerland was signed on November 20, and would be on contractor-finance basis.


According to the statement, the first phase of the project, which is to cater for the needs of the 55,000 Barrels Per Day (BPD) refinery, would see to an initial construction of 54 housing units.


The estate would also be equipped with police and fire stations, a health centre, schools, a central business district, recreational and sports club and an estate management office in addition to other basic infrastructures, like roads, drainages, potable water, electricity, communication, recreation, waste disposal facilities while adequate security, would also be provided, the statement said.


Explaining that the project would also be structured to support the state government in meeting the housing needs of the people, as some of the houses would be sold to the public, the statement said that this was in fulfilment of its agreement with its Engineering, Procurement, Construction and Commissioning (EPC) contractor, Beijing Petrochemicals Design Institute (BPDI).


It added that under the agreement the company would provide facilities outside the production lines such as staff housing, an airstrip and feedstock supply, while BPDI would provide the other components of the project such as process units, utilities, storage and loading facilities.


In another development, the company said the team of the Chinese company was due the site of the project this month, which it described as a milestone to the actualisation of the project.


The coming of the team would see to the commencement of civil work at the project, expected to be installed mid next year to commence full blast production in 2009, it said.


The statement quoted the Managing Director of the company, Mr. Nnaemeka Nwawka as saying that efforts were in top gear to make the dream of the project, expected to be the first full conversion private refinery in Nigeria, come true.


It is expected to produce the full range of transportation fuel and other commodity hydrocarbons like petrol, diesel, kerosene, jet fuel and liquefied petroleum gas.


The company’s stock, which was said to have already been launched in the market since November 12, for interested investors, according to the statement would end in next month.

Is Afam the same as Emeka Offoaro? If not, the questions posted by respondents are wrongly directed. Emeka Offoaro wrote this on Nigeriaworld and not Afam

Malaysia repatriates 28 Rivers students

Malaysian authorities have repatriated to Nigeria 28 students of Rivers State origin who were on a state sponsored scholarship for allegedly shouting wolf where none existed.

The students were repatriated for embarrassing the Malaysian government over their claim that the universities they were sent to study on scholarship by the Rivers State government were unaccredited.

Sending the students packing, the Malaysian authorities were said to have told them to finance their flight back to Nigeria.

Daily Trust gathered that the affected students were the students’ union executive officers of the estimated 265 students of Rivers State origin who the Odili administration sent on scholarship last year to study in Malaysian universities.

Some of the students on scholarship were studying courses in engineering and oil and gas to enable them get employment in the oil companies that abound in the state at the end of their studies.

Trouble however started a few weeks ago, when the students sent a Save-Our-Soul (SOS) message to the state government, lamenting that the schools where they were registered to study were not accredited by Malaysian authorities and therefore do not have international recognition.

For this reason, Governor Chibuike Amaechi immediately dispatched Mr Dennis Atako, the permanent secretary in the state ministry for education to Malaysia to ascertain the students’ claim.

The state legislature also followed suit by sending a three –man delegation to Malaysia to verify the true situation.

Before leaving for Malaysia, Atako had said that the students’ claim was neither here nor there and castigated them for raising false alarm whenever there is a change of government. He stated that the schools the students were sent to, were listed in the federal government approved international schools.

It was not possible to ascertain if Atako has returned from the trip and if his findings corroborated the students’ claim before they were sent packing from Malaysia. The three legislators mandated by the state assembly to visit Malaysia had not traveled before the students were sent back home.


http://dailytrust.com/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=5782&Itemid=57

Why North Is Backward Educationally –Yakassai


Interviewer: In the North, it is believed that the level of education is low, particularly among women. Why is this and what do you think can be done to address this problem?

Yakassai: There are a lot of factors that are responsible for a drawback in acquiring western education in the North. One of the factors was the fact that the Europeans came to the Northern part of the country rather late. They came to the South first and after so many years, they came down to the North. Secondly, because of religious factor. Majority of the people in the North are Moslems and at that time, that was a suspicion because the western education was introduced to Nigeria by the British through the missionaries. So, Moslem leaders at that time particularly were skeptical as to whether it was a device by the white man to introduce his religion as against their own religion, which is Islam. Additionally, by tradition, we take our children first to Islamic schools. It is after they have grown up that they are free to go to any type of school to pursue professional activities. Because of the combination of these factors, we were not able to embrace western education much earlier like our southern compatriots. But thank God that we are now trying, and if the trend continues, I am sure it is a matter of time before we come shoulder to shoulder with our southern compatriots. It is true that the South is ahead of the North in terms of western education, but it is not limited to the North. In the South-South, our compatriots from that part of the country are in the same situation as in the North. The level of education in South-South is almost at the same level with that of the North. But one thing is clear, we are now determined to overcome the setback, which we believe that with the combination of efforts by government and the people, we will soon overcome this problem.

http://www.independentngonline.com/?c=138&a=6237

Double post deleted

NDE boss proposes two years for NYSC scheme     27/11/2007
     

From Bukola Amusan, Abuja

Director General of the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), Mr Samuel Adelodun has proposed that the mandatory one-year National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) for graduates be extended to two years to reduce the menace of unemployment

Adelodun, who spoke in Abuja yesterday at the 9th series of the weekly Newsworld magazine leadership forum, said if this can be done, it would assist in engaging those that might turn out to be jobless graduate after their service year.

He said about 3, 334,139 Nigerians were currently unemployed with Kano State topping the list with about 369,139 unemployed persons. Lagos is second with a figure of 353,097 unemployed persons representing about 11.07 percent of the national total

The Federal Capital Territory (FCT) recorded the lowest figure with 34,638 unemployed persons representing about 1.04 percent of the national total

Adelodun said the data collated from the exercise that was carried out in all the 8,812 wards of the 774 local governments of the country in July showed that there are more unemployed males than females in the country

"The sex distribution of registered unemployed persons indicated a significant disparity between males and females, nationally. 62.44 percent of the registered unemployed are males while 37.56 percent are females," he added

He noted that there were more unemployed females than males in Anambra, Bayelsa, Ekiti, Enugu and Osun states

Basing the data on geo-political zones, the DG said the North-West has the highest figure of 846,872 unemployed persons, followed by the South-West with 718,789 unemployed persons. The North Central zone recorded the lowest figure with 386,590 unemployed persons.

Adelodun, while disclosing that about 39 percent of the registered unemployed had been in such condition for the past five years, said about 74 percent of the registered unemployed persons are youths between 15 and 34 years

"About 74 percent of the registered unemployed persons are youths in the age bracket of 15 and 34 years, the adults between ages 35 and 44 represent about 17.24 percent while the elderly of aged 45 to 70 constitute about 9 per cent," he added.

Adelodun, who called on the government to improve the funding for the NDE job creation activities, urged the states to partner with the directorate in creating wealth for unemployed Nigerians.


North-West Highest In Unemployment – NDE Data


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Unemployment data analysis just released by the National Directorate of Employment (NDE), has shown that the north-west geo-political zone of the country has the highest number of registered unemployed person.

Director-general of NDE, Dr. Samuel Adelodun who made this public yesterday in Abuja, said that a total of 3,334,089 unemployed persons were registered in all the 8,812 wards in the 774 local government areas across the 36 states of the federation and FCT, Abuja.

The north-west zone comprising of Sokoto, Kebbi, Zamfara, Katsina, Kaduna and Jigawa states, Dr. Adelodun had recorded 846,872 registered unemployed person, which is equivalent to 24.40 per cent.

The south-west geo-political zone ranked unemployed persons representing 21.56 per cent.

The north-east and south-east geo-political zone posted third and fourth respectively, with corresponding percentage of 16.49 and 12.92 per cent respectively.

South-south and north-central geo-political zones brough the rear with 401,234 and 386,590 registered unemployed persons representing 12.03 and 11.60 per cent respectively.

Dr. Adelodun who was the guest of the Newsworld Magazine Leadership Forum said that the collation of the data held between June 25 and 29, this year.

Of the total registered unemployed persons 2,081,652 or 62.44 per cent are males, while 1,252,437 or 37.56 per cent are females.

Kano State according to the data has the highest number of registered unemployed person. The state grossed 369,139 persons or 11.07 per cent, while Lagos State was second with 353,097 persons or 10.59 per cent.

States with low registration of unemployed persons include FCT, Abuja with 34,638 or 1.04 per cent, Kwara with 35,009 or 1.1 per cent Zamfara with 36,729 or 1.1 per cent.

Classifying the age groups of the registered unemployment persons, Dr. Adelodun said that about 74 per cent of the registered unemployed persons are youths in the age bracket of 15-34 years. The adults (35-44 years) were 17.24 per cent, while the elderly (45-70 years) constitute about 9 per cent.

On the category of the unemployment, the data said that of the 3,334,089 registered unemployed, 2,960,734 or 88.8 per cent have never worked, while 373,355 or 11.2 per cent had worked but were retired or retrenched.

Ebonyi State has the highest number of those who never worked with 99.4 per cent, followed by Zamfara State with 96.7 per cent, Bauchi State with 96.6 per cent. The least is Benue State with 65.8 per cent.

luv2talk:
The Inscription on the old Naira Note is not Arabic inscription,Rather,its what they call "Anjemin" which means Trasliteration.As we all know that the most Populous people in Nigeria are Hausa/fulanis and some of them are not educated,the best way to recognise currency is to read the anjemi inscription on the Naira Note.My friends,if u understand Hausa very well and you know Anjemin,You will discover that those inscription are not arabic,Rather,it is Hausa Language.as the inscription is written in western Translitetion style,what is the FAITH of a Typical Village Fulani man who is not able to acquire western education, Please, don't let us be emotional,lets be objective.

Moronic bullshit

Igbo Traders Protest Sale Of Trade Fair 

By Tokunbo Olajide

Business owners at the Lagos International Trade Fair Complex, Badagry Expressway, have restated their opposition to the proposed privatization of the facility.

The Bureau of Public Enterprises had under former president, Olusegun Obasanjo, given concession to a private firm, Aulic Nigeria Limited to manage the complex.

The official handing over of the place was to have been done in July this year, but government backpedaled after the traders protested and obtained an injunction restraining it.

The Auto Spare Parts & Machinery Dealers Association (ASPAMDA), Tuesday, in Lagos vowed to resist the privatization.

The traders, mainly Igbos, who built a big plaza in the complex, explained that they currently own the property on lease holding; therefore it was illegal for government to want to privatize it.

President of ASPAMDA, Chief Ernest Ohanazoeze, said the place was being financed by them on owner-occupier basis, adding that the federal government gave approval for them to develop the place and occupy it for a 50-year lease period.

“The lease hold we have on this place was signed in 1994, and it is to be renewed for another 49 years; so check 1994 to now (2007), it’s not even up to half of the lease period.

“So I don’t see any reason why somebody will come and tell me that he would manage my property more than I that invested in that property, he said”

Before constructing the ASPAMDA plaza, which is just one of many other buildings in the trade fair complex, Ohanazoeze said government gave them the go ahead, adding that they are not in any way indebted to government over the lease agreement.

“Please I want you to ask the government if this place is being financed by them. You cannot privatize private interest to private interest.

“This is a private interest and you want to give it to another private interest I think it is unfair and illegal,” the president maintained.

Members of the House of Representatives recently visited the trade fair complex to wade into the controversy arising from the proposed sale of the place, and evaluate the complaint of the stakeholders.

The Minister of Commerce and Industry, Engr. Charles Ugwu, also visited the place last week to see things for himself, and said government would look into their grievances.

The traders have, however, vowed to ensure that justice is done in their matter.

“We have taken the right channel of going to court to seek redress; and we believe in the rule of law, which the current president has been preaching, to get justice. We do not intend to resort to violence or any other crude means,” Ohanazoeze said.
http://www.thenewsng.com/modules/zmagazine/article.php?articleid=20675

[quote author=willy*2 link=topic=94421.msg1698942#msg1698942 date=1195562277]Yes your right,
And the dominant tribes, that taught Nigerian's how to be corrupt were the Yoruba and Hausa/Fulani, but i know the reason= Before the war between this two countries 'Nigeria and Biafra' Many Ethnic IBO business men were Millionaires and hardly can you hear of a single Millionaire Yoruba man or Hausa/Fulani not even existing. Then after that war, to equal the IBOS in producing millionaires since as of that time this two tribes were not really that industrious, and the only solution to solve their millionaire aspiration 'Nigeria coffers became the optimal target', they then unleash their hidden deadly dragon virus(corruption) and Nigerians coffers became their politicains/Army Generals Manna from Heaven. To make embezzlement/looting more easy for them, they institutionalized and adopted corruption as a Nigerian culture, little by little this their virus spread all over the country. But as the masters of corruption they still hold the key.[/quote]Sounds funny, but seems true

Apart from Ojukwu's father, can any one name any other Nigerian millionaire before the war? None comes to my mind immediately.

Your assertion seems to be correct to a large extent, but Awo, the greatest Yoruba man ever was not an Egba

Even Adedibu  is not Egba

Instead, it may be more correct to say Ogun state people are in charge in Yoruba land

Hi,

Since you have to be healthy to play politics, I thought you should see this before you begin playing

Boiled peanuts may be the cream of the crop, besting raw peanuts or roasted peanuts in terms of nutrition.

That news comes from food scientists in Alabama, who ought to know about boiled peanuts, which are a Southern snack.

The researchers -- who included graduate student Yvonne Chukwumah (a Nigerian)[color=#990000][/color] and Lloyd Walker, PhD, of Alabama A&M University -- bought peanuts at a grocery store.

Their shopping list included raw Virginia peanuts in the shell, raw peanut kernels, and commercially boiled peanuts.

The scientists boiled the raw peanuts for four hours while the peanuts were still in their shell. They also dry-roasted raw peanut kernels and roasted other raw peanut kernels in oil.

Next, the scientists made an extract from each batch of peanuts.

Lab tests on the peanut extracts show that boiled peanuts had higher levels of antioxidants than the raw and roasted peanuts.

Antioxidants, which come in many forms and are found in plants, may help prevent cancer, heart disease, and other chronic conditions, note the researchers.

The commercially boiled peanuts were a bit higher in a certain antioxidant than the boiled peanuts brewed by the scientists.

When peanuts are boiled in their shell, the peanut kernel absorbs antioxidants that are in the peanut shells and skins. That can't happen with shelled, skinned peanut kernels, the researchers note.

Their findings appear in the Journal of Agricultural and Food Chemistry.

http://pubs.acs.org/cgi-bin/sample.cgi/jafcau/2007/55/i22/html/jf071877l.html

Read the last paragraph. It explains the implications for a country like Nigeria

Hi Seun.

I posted that article from the NVS

Siderophores: a potential revolution for organic agriculture and soil repair in Nigeria.

SORRY, DOUBLE POST

SORRY, WRONGLY SECTIONED POST

deleted

CROSS RIVER Personalities disown Etteh, say, "She was never married to our
son."

According to them, it is time Patricia Olubunmi reverted to a name that tells people
clearly where she hails from, because, she is bringing so much disrepute to their
state, In a statement last week, they maintained that Patricia was merely
an employee to their son, Mr. Etteh's firms, in Ibadan, but, for whatever reason,
adopted his name as her surname to obtain a passport/visa to go to the UK to learn beauty therapy. "She was never married to our son" they maintained.

www.

He is a typical old fool