₦airaland Forum

At least 8 people have been killed and score injured when multiple explosions hit Maiduguri, the Borno state capital Sunday night, local source said. The Nigerian Police has confirmed the attacks


According to a source, the first occurred at Muna garage area when a female bomber blew up herself while two other suspected insurgents with two AK47 attacked CJTF check point. The civilian JTF successfully killed the attackers.

"We killed the two attackers with AK47 raffles and female bombers killed self." The CJTF source disclosed.

Also, another two bombers stormed Kalleri ward and knocked at people's door to detonate their IEDs, killing at least five people.

Alhaji Mala, a resident told Daily Trust that " we lost three people in Kalleri last night to the bombers; they would knocked on the our doors when we open, they quickly grabbed people and detonated IEDs
The PPRO Borno Command DSP Victor Isuku confirmed the attacks .

"Preliminary info available is that the explosion occurred at Gariki Muna, which I understand is on the outskirt of town. Details will follow soonest please." DSP Victor wrote on a group Whatapps with newsmen.

An Army captain and five soldiers were killed Saturday evening in an evening attack launched by suspected Boko Haram militants on 27 Taskforce Brigade of the Nigeria Army in Buni Yadi, Gujba Local Government Area of Yobe State.

A military source told our correspondent, “Some of the soldiers have spent over 20 years in active service and the captain was posted recently to the Brigade before the terrorists struck and killed them.”

He said casualty on the side of Boko Haram could not be ascertained because most of them fled with bullet wounds and many copses were seen scattered in the bush.

The Brigade Spokesman, Lt. George Okupe, said there was indeed an attack, except that he could not confirm the casualty figure as personnel were currently on the trail of the militants and details were not available.

Cyriloha:
Thunder fire vopyy and paste

Mobile phone provider, MTN Communications Limited, has mounted an effort to persuade Justice Abdulaziz Anka of the Federal High Court in Lagos to reverse his ruling that the mobile telephone firm should temporarily forfeit N8 billion to the Federal Government.
The funds, located in account number 0012005379 at ECOBANK, are suspected to be the proceeds of unlawful activity.
In an earlier ruling, Justice Anka had approved the government’s seizure of another account, with number 1013607079, containing billions of naira and held at SKYE Bank. Nobody has so far filed court papers to claim ownership of the funds.

An Abuja based lawyer, John Samuel Opeyemi, had filed a lawsuit at a Federal High Court in Lagos, on behalf of the Federal Government, Attorney General of the Federation and an asset recovery agent of the Federal Government of Nigeria, Algaita Group Nigeria Limited, seeking the forfeiture order.

In an affidavit, the Managing Director of Algaita Group Limited, Abdullahi Mohammed Maiturare, stated that the Attorney General of the Federation had appointed his company to track, freeze and recover suspected funds. Mr. Maiturare, a former operative of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), also disclosed that his firm was empowered to remit all recovered funds into a designated bank account held by the Federal Government and in line with the AGF’s directive.

He stated that his company had credible information that certain funds deposited in coded accounts at ECOBANK and SKYE Bank were stolen, diverted and laundered. His firm discovered there was an account at Ecobank with a credit balance of eight billion naira.

According to his affidavit, the funds at the two banks represented unclaimed properties or proceeds of unlawful activity, specifically stealing, diversion and money laundering, by some public officials and their cohorts in the private sector. He told the court that the funds in the suspicious accounts could be dissipated and the account documents tampered with if urgent steps were not taken to obtain certified documents of the accounts and statements.

Justice Anka had granted an order of interim forfeiture to the Federal Government, empowering the government to temporarily take possession of the funds in the two banks’ accounts. He had also ordered that a notice be published in two national daily newspapers inviting anybody with an interest in the frozen funds to come forward within 14 days to show why the court should not issue a final forfeiture order in favor of the Federal Government.

The judge directed the respective branch managers of the respondent banks to immediately stop all outward payments from the subject accounts and submit to the court the respective statements of account with certificates of authentication and other relevant documents as at the date and time of service of the court order on them.

Following the judgment, MTN Communications Limited filed an application urging the court to discharge and set aside the orders made pertaining to the firm’s account at Ecobank Limited. An affidavit sworn to by a legal practitioner, Ibukunoluwa Owa, on behalf of MTN and filed by Mr. Adeniyi Adegbonmire, stated that the Federal Government and its agents did not comply with the order of the court calling for the publication of the order. MTN’s lawyer claimed that the company’s officials were not aware of the order of the court until Ecobank wrote a letter to the company to alert it.

Mrs. Owa declared that MTN opened the contentious account at Ecobank on October 9, 2006. She added that the firm had operated the account since it was first opened in accordance with banking practices applicable to current accounts held by corporate bodies in Nigeria.

According to her, the telephone company’s operations had been hampered by the temporary order freezing its account. She said the firm had found it difficult to utilize the funds in the account to carry out its lawful business. Stating that the funds were not the proceeds of any unlawful activity, Mrs. Owa urged the court to discharge the order.

No date has been fixed for a final ruling.

lalasticlala

The Federal Government has released N388.304 billion out of N522.74 billion to 35 states as refunds of over-deductions on London-Paris Club loans.

Topping the list of states with the hugest reimbursements are states controlled by the opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), contrary to their claims that they were being financially oppressed by the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari.

The biggest earners include Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Rivers, Delta, Katsina, Kaduna, Lagos, Imo, Jigawa, Borno, Niger, Bauchi and Benue states.

But the reimbursement profile has shown that some governors fed their states with wrong figures of the sums given to them.

The refund has however landed Governor Ayodele Fayose in fresh trouble with the Federal Government after it was found that he collected N8.877 billion but could only pay one month out of the eight-month salary arrears he owed workers in the state.

Fayose was also said to have paid a curious 13th month salary as bonus while the arrears of seven-month salaries owed the workers were left unpaid.

Investigation conducted by our correspondent revealed that 35 of the 36 states benefitted from the refunds of N388.304 billion.

Although most of the governors have begged the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, not to make the list of reimbursements public, The Nation was able to source the breakdown of the reimbursements exclusively.

The document indicated that all the 35 states were credited with their shares of the N388.304 billion as at December 27, 2016.
Our correspondent obtained the names of the bank, the account and the account numbers where each state’s share was remitted.

Only Kano State and the FCT have so far not benefitted from the reimbursements.
According to the list, Kwara State got two types of refund totaling more than N9.188 billion.

Kwara’s shares include N5,415,167,236.97 refund to the state government and N3,773,082,953.54 for its 16 local government areas.

Findings also confirmed that Ondo was only paid 50 per cent of its refunds (N6,513,392,932.28) because of leadership change in the state, which will soon lead to the inauguration of Chief Rotimi Akeredolu as the new governor.

A breakdown of the list of top beneficiaries of the refunds is as follows: Akwa Ibom, N14,500,000,000.00; Bayelsa, N14,500,000,000.00; Delta, N14,500,000,000.00; Kastina, N14,500,000,000.00; Lagos, N14,500,000,000.00; Rivers, N14,500,000,000.00; Kaduna, N14,362,416,363.24; Borno, N13,654,138,849.49; Bauchi, N12,792,664,403.93; Benue, N12,749,689,453.61; Sokoto, N11,980,499,096.97; Osun, N11,744,237,793.56; Anambra, N11,386,281,466.35; Edo, N11,329,495,462.04; Cross River, N11,300,139,741.28; Kogi, N11,211,573,328.19 and Kebbi, N11,118,149,054.10.

The document said: “Ondo payment represents 50 per cent of the refund due to transition of leadership in the state. Further instructions are being awaited on balance payment.

“Adamawa, Kwara 22b on the list, Oyo and Taraba payments represent the portions due to the respective local governments.”
But the Presidency was uncomfortable with the attitude of some state governors to the management of the refunds.

A reliable source in the Presidency, who spoke in confidence, said: “President Muhammadu Buhari has lived up to his pledge to ease salary crises in all the states by releasing N388.304 billion to 35 states.

“The agreement between the Federal Government and the state governors was very clear. While 50 per cent of the amount released shall be used to offset outstanding salary and pension arrears, the remaining 50 per cent would be used for the payment of other obligations.

“Some governors have however reneged on this agreement. Security reports available to the presidency showed that Governor Ayodele Fayose paid only one month out of eight-month salary arrears.

“The same governor went ahead to pay a curious 13-month salary to Ekiti workers. Yet, he got N8.877 billion refund.

“Instead of accounting for what he used the loan refund for, he has the temerity to attack the Federal Government on hardship in the country.

“The relevant agencies are monitoring development in Ekiti and some states.”
Reacting to the allegation on the telephone yesterday, Ekiti State Commissioner for Finance, Toyin Ojo, confirmed that the state got N8.8 billion from the Paris Club refunds.

But he said that the state’s share of the money was only N5.3 billion, which he said could barely pay one month out of the arrears of salaries owed the civil servants in the state.

According to him, the wage bill for a month stands at N5.2 billion.

He also said that workers in the local government sector could only get one month from the arrears of salaries owed them.

Responding to a question, another source in government said: “It is unfortunate that some state governors under-declared the refunds made to them.

“Some of them were also discovered to be giving spurious analysis in order to cover up the actual figures.

“In fact, some states changed the agreement overnight.
“A state said the President asked states to use at least 25 per cent of their London and Paris Club refund to offset salary arrears.”
Investigation showed that about N134.44 billion out of the approved N522.74 billion will soon be paid as refunds to some states.

The top government source added: “Yes, as at December 27, 2016, all the 35 states had received the N388.3 billion refunds. The balance of N134.44 billion will soon be accessed.”

Following protests by states against over-deductions for external debt service between 1995 and 2002, President Muhammed Buhari had on December 2, 2016 approved the release of N522.74 billion to states as refunds pending reconciliation of records.

Each state is entitled to a cap of N14.5 billion being 25 per cent of the amounts claimed.

But the government has raised a team to scrutinise claims by states and reconcile with available records.

These developments were contained in a statement issued in Abuja by the Special Adviser on Media to the Minister of Finance, Mr. Festus Akanbi.

The statement said: ”The Federal Government has reached a conditional agreement to pay 25% of the amounts claimed subject to a cap of N14.5 billion to any given state. Balances due thereafter will be revisited when fiscal conditions improve.

“Mr. President’s overriding concern is for the welfare of the Nigerian people, considering the fact that many states are owing salaries and pension, causing considerable hardship.

“Therefore, to ensure compliance with the directive that a minimum of 50% of any amount disbursed is dedicated to this, funds will be credited to an auditable account from which payments to individual creditors would be made. Where possible, such payments would be made to BVN linked accounts and verified.”

But any state paid refunds in excess of its outstanding claims might suffer deduction from its monthly allocations from the Federation Account.

It said: “Due to the fact that reconciliation is still ongoing and the final outcome might show an under or overstatement of claims, an undertaken has been signed by state governors, declaring that in the event the amount already paid exceeds the verified claim, the surplus would be deducted directly from the state’s monthly FAAC allocations.

“The total amount approved by the President is N522.74 billion and is to be paid in batches. The first batch of N153.01 billion is currently being processed for release to 14 state governments.

“The release of these funds is intended to support the fiscal stimulus programme of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led administration to provide direct stimulus through government spending. It is particularly aimed at boosting demand at consumer level and reversing the slowdown in economic activity.”

lalasticlala

The number of privately owned jets in Nigeria has shrunk by almost 50 per cent between 2015 and 2016, checks by Daily Trust have shown.

Within this period, no fewer than 31 private jets have been de-registered with the aircraft either sold off or returned to their owners abroad.

The development, it was gathered, is not unconnected with the economic downturn and the high cost of maintaining a private jet which is said to have doubled in recent times.

Information gathered from the record of the Nigeria Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA) yesterday indicated that there are currently 36 private jets registered in the country comprising of 18 state-owned and 18 owned by individuals and corporate companies.

Prior to the assumption of office of President Muhammadu Buhari in 2015, there were 67 private jets though all registered in foreign companies but owned by highly placed individuals.

It would be recalled that former President Goodluck Jonathan had equally boasted in May 2014 that Nigeria could not be categorized as among the poorest countries because of the ownership of private jets by many Nigerians.

“If you talk about ownership of private jets, Nigeria will be among the first 10 countries, yet they are saying that Nigeria is among the five poorest countries,” he had said during the Workers’ Day rally at the Eagle Square on May 1.

However, the trend seems to have changed as the number of private jets in the country has declined drastically due to what an aviator called recession that has hit the country.

This has forced many private jets to be returned to their owners as the cost of maintenance kept soaring amidst the foreign exchange scarcity.

A source at the NCAA who also confirmed the development to Daily Trust blamed it on recession, saying, “Of course you know there is recession and it is much more expensive now to maintain a private jet.”

Another source said what has shot up the cost of maintenance is the dollar scarcity which has affected the entire aviation sector.

Besides, the cost of fuelling the aircraft has also increased by over 150 per cent. A litre of Jet A1 was sold for between N105 to N115 early last year but the price has jumped to over N250 at the moment.

Also, a private jet owner pays landing, parking and handling fees like any commercial airline - such person would pay over-flight charges for regional or international trips.

Daily Trust also learnt that the economic recession has cut patronage of private jet hire operators by over 50 per cent as some VIPs now prefer to pay for a First Class or Business seat for their travel plans instead of chartering a jet.

A staff of one of the charter companies also said, “Unlike sometimes when this place was very busy, the traffic movement has reduced drastically, maybe by 50 per cent.”

A pilot who gave an insight into the operation of private jets on condition of anonymity hinted that an average sum of $5000 (about N2.5 million at N490/$) would be needed per hour to maintain a private jet.

He said, “It is a lot of money to own a private jet. Like if you have like Diamond 3 or 4, you need an operating cost of about 5000 dollars per hour. Diamond or D5, you need about 8000.

“You make arrangement for fuelling as well. In terms of maintenance of the aircraft, you make arrangement with an approved maintenance organization (AMO). You have to prove you have an AMO, capacity to maintain the aircraft. You need qualified pilots that can fly it, authorized and approved by the NCAA.”

Also speaking, an industry expert added, “A lot of people started taking their jets outside the country when President Buhari won the election, some of them couldn’t maintain it because there is no more free money to steal and maintain them. Some of them sent the aircraft to the owners, some of them sold the aircraft and some of them took it outside the country because these aircraft are not registered in Nigeria.”

Commenting on the issue, Rector of Ilorin International Aviation College, Capt. Nurudeen Abdulkareem, noted that moving out an aircraft because of the recession is a wise decision. He said, “Of course if you can’t make business you move somewhere where you can make market instead of incurring overhead unnecessarily. It is a business decision.”

“If you lease an aircraft and when there is no more free money here and there and there is economic meltdown, it is a very wise decision, that means you don’t deserve that luxury that you are putting yourself, you are living above what you could do.”

lalasticlala

Leader of the defunct leader of the Niger Delta Volunteer Force, Alhaji Mujahid Dokubo-Asari has claimed that President Muhammadu Buhari greatfly benefited from the activities of the Boko Haram sect.

According to him, Buhari created Boko Haram insurgents, who succeeded in insaling him into power in 2015.

In an interview with 247ngTV, the former militant asked the people of Kaduna to go and kill those attacking them and stop complaining.

Asari said, “For me, the life of every human being matters and as it is said, equity helps those who help themselves. The people of Southern Kaduna cannot fold their hands.

“They are calling on El Rufai, who once said whoever kills a Fulani man is a debt that must be paid, whether now or forever.
“It is stupidity for them to fold their arms.

They should also go out and kill them. That is what we do here in Ijaw, if you attempt to kill us, we will kill you. They keep compaining that they are burning their villages, don’t they know their villages, go out there and raze their villages too. The crisis has nothing to do with Islam. People should stop this Islamphobic, those killing people in Kaduna are the people that are hungry for power.

“There was a mad man Called Usman Dan Fodio who came there in the 1800. This mad, sick idiot came and told them that their own practice of Islam was not good. He started at the Kwa, he killed them, went to Kano and Borno raided the cities.

“It is a new colonial expansionist movement led by bloodthirsty fool called Dan Fodio, who instructed them to follow the part of destruction. For me, I believe violence is the only solution to violence because the man who makes violence believes that it is a natural law.”

On the activities of the Boko Haram sect, the Niger Delta warlord said, “Buhari is the creator of Boko Haram. Buhari benefited from the activities of the sect because on the day of the election, Boko Haram went to sleep and you had millions of votes from the north.

“I can tell you without fear that Boko Harm is working hand in hand with Buhari and he can’t deny that. The person who lost the battle of Boko Haram is Goodluck Jonathan. They use it as a smear campaign together with the satanic Hilary Clinton and Barack Obama.”

Asked about his views on the release of the Chibok girls, Asari said, “I have said it before, there are no missing Chibok girls, the Chibok girls that wrote WAEC that could not speak English. In what language were they writing exam?”

Some men of the Nigeria police on Wednesday evening raided the family house of Patience Jonathan, former first lady, without a search warrant.

A source, who confirmed the development to TheCable, said the house is located at Igbeti Rock Street, Maitama, Abuja.

TheCable learnt that the police officers did not have a search warrant, and that house was unoccupied at the time of the raid.

Although, the first lady does not stay in the building, her younger brother lives there.

TheCable called Wilson Uwujaren, spokesman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), to confirm if the anti-graft agency was behind the raid.
But he said the EFCC did not carry out the operation.

Also, Don Awunah, police spokesman, said he was not aware of the operation, but that he would make further inquiry.

“I am not aware, but I will make further inquiry,” he said in a text message to TheCable.

lalasticlala

A police sergeant, arrested for embarking on illegal duty, has allegedly attempted to commit suicide by drinking poison while in detention.

The sergeant, Lucky, is attached to Ikotun Police Station. The sergeant and two others were said to have been arrested last Thursday at Ikotun, while they were extorting money from young people coming out of banking halls.

The activities of the policemen were said to have been reported to the Area M Commander, Egbeda/Idimu, who ordered that the men be arrested by the Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in charge of Ikotun.

A police source said: “Lucky tried to kill himself because he had sent people to beg the Area M Commander, but the man refused.

The area commander vowed to drag Lucky before the Commissioner of Police, Mr. Fatai Owoseni. Lucky was a former driver to the Area M Commander.

He was transferred from Area M to Ikotun Police Station because he was fond of harassing people coming out from banking halls along Car Wash Bus Stop area of Egbeda.

Rather than change, he went to Ikotun to continue in his old ways.” It was learnt that the men had been in detention since Thursday.

U.S President Obama has deployed American special forces troops along Lithuania’s border with ‘aggressive’ Russia.

Tensions between Washington and the Kremlin have reached Cold War levels amid reports Vladimir Putin is building up a nuclear arsenal in the Russian province of Kaliningrad – which borders Poland, Belarus and Lithuania.

And Lithuanian Defence Ministry spokeswoman Asta Galdikaite confirmed America has offered additional military support following Russia invasion of Crimea.

She said: “The United States was the first to offer additional safety assurance measures to the Baltic countries following the deterioration of the security situation in the region after the annexation of the Crimea”.

She added: “US Special Operations Forces presence in Lithuania is one of the deterrents” against military threats by Putin’s aggressive regime, reports the Express.

US military chief Gen. Raymond T. Thomas also revealed that the US has a ‘persistent’ presence in the Baltic states bordering Russia.

He added that many former Eastern Bloc countries are “scared to death” of Russia and that the vulnerable states are “desperate” for America’s leadership.

Lithuania’s foreign minister Linas Linkevicius confirmed Russia’s military activity in Kaliningrad is terrifying the region.

He said: “Iskander missiles capable of carrying nuclear warheads have been deployed.There are S-400 missiles and modernised jets.”

Linkevicius branded Russian behaviour in the region “military hooliganism” and called on NATO to take action and offer more support to beleaguered Ukraine.

He said: “Russia likes to create problems, conflict and then suggest some ideas how to mitigate, how to mediate – and some of our colleagues say ‘look they are cooperating’.”

In November, Putin’s naval forces unveiled their latest super-stealth submarine which has been deployed in the Black Sea – as a shocking new report revealed Russia is ‘taking over’ the region.

Kremlin bosses promised the superpower would never allow the sea to become a “NATO lake” and they firmly believe the military alliance would crumble if, as feared, the Americans pull out.

Relations between the out-going Obama administration and Russia have soured following allegations that Putin ordered the email hack which helped scupper Hillary Clinton’s presidential bid.

lalasticlala

A Kenyan woman has been arrested by the police for biting off the ear lobe of her lover’s wife, Grace Washeko and swallowing a piece of the ear during a fight.

Star reports that the unnamed woman from the Voi, attacked her rival during a fight over the man on Tuesday, January 3, 2017, and in the process, bit off Washeko’s ear.

The victim, a mother of one, who is now in a hospital, narrated that the woman who is her husband’s mistress visited her at her workplace and engaged her in a fight over her husband, bit off her ear lobe and swallowed it.

While speaking on the incident, Washeko said:
"She laughed at me saying she had taken my husband away. I got angry and we began fighting. She bit my ear and swallowed the piece.

I don't know what is wrong with my husband because whenever he comes back, he complains that he is sexually starved and hungry. He acts very abnormally.

His parents have asked him to end the relationship with the 40-year old woman but my 27-year old husband has refused to heed their call," she said.

The injured woman said she has reported the incident to police and is waiting for the police to get into action and arrest her attacker and bring her to book.

A dead body of a female lecturer in the Department of Biological Sciences at the Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi, Benue State, Christie Agbulu who was kidnapped in Lokoja, Kogi State on November 25, 2016, has been found inside a bush.

According to family sources, the decomposing corpse of the delectable lady was discovered by security operatives inside a bush in Lokoja.

The late lecturer was abducted after she left Makurdi on November 25, 2016, to visit a friend in Lokoja. Her abductors later contacted her family and made demands for ransom which was paid but they still did not release her and efforts to locate her whereabouts had proved abortive until her body was found on Tuesday, January 3, 2017.

Agbulu’s abduction had raised serious concerns with the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU), of the school she worked with, demanding her immediate release by her abductors.

It was gathered then that her kidnappers had, on the day she was abducted, used her mobile phone to demand a ransom of N150, 000 to free her and that the sum of N100,000 was paid to her bank account and the kidnappers quickly used her ATM card to withdraw the money.

After that, bandits kept making demands from her family members and even with the monies being paid, the kidnappers still refused to release her.

The importation of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) into Nigeria is to gulp extra cost of over N2.369 billion per day from Federal Government and marketers as the landing cost for fuel has soared to N212.7 per litre.

This came as oil prices hit their highest levels since July 2015 with Brent reaching $58.37 and $55.24, before paring gains on the strong dollar.

Buoyed by this, the Federal Government, checks by New Telegraph showed yesterday, is already mulling total deregulation of the downstream sector.

While the modulated bracket of N135-N145 is given as official price for fuel, checks showed that extra N67.7 is incurred on over 35 million litres daily imports as the landing cost soared to N212.7 per litre.

Head of Energy Research at Ecobank, Dolapo Oni, stated that the landing cost for PMS was N165 per litre for a $52 per barrel price.

“When oil price was at $52 dollars per barrel, the landing cost was N165 per barrel, later when it was $55, the price soared to N210 per litre,” the financial analyst said.

Now that it is $58 per barrel, the landing cost hovers around N213 per litre, checks by New Telegraph showed.

The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) had earlier asked banks to submit bids for a “special currency auction” to clear the backlog of matured outstanding dollar obligations for petrol importers and selected sectors of the economy.

The Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), an agency saddled with pricing regulation, has taken down its website, keeping the public in the dark on change in pricing template for petroleum product.

Spokesperson for the agency, Lanre Oladele, could not be reached for comments. His mobile phone was not available while SMS sent was not replied.

The PPPRA website, however, showed default webpage, which read: “SORRY!
If you are the owner of this website, please contact your hosting provider: webmaster@ pppra.gov.ng. “It is possible you have reached this page because: The IP address has changed. There has been a server misconfiguration.

The site may have moved to a different server.” Earlier estimates from the PPPRA showed that the country needs an average of $500 million every month to import refined petroleum products, since all of its three refineries are currently producing at less than 25 per cent of their installed capacity.

The price of PMS could surge to over N220 per litre if the new realities of the oil market are taken into consideration.

The oil prices turned negative after earlier hitting 18-month highs yesterday, the first trading day of 2017, as the dollar rallied to its highest since 2002.

Traders said crude prices were buoyed earlier in the day by hopes that a deal between OPEC and other big oil exporters to cut production, which started on Sunday, would drain a global supply glut.

Brent futures were down 95 cents or 1.7 per cent at $55.87 a barrel by 12:05 p.m. EST. U.S. West Texas Intermediate (WTI) crude fell 95 cents or 1.8 per cent to $52.77 per barrel. Earlier in the session, both oil contracts hit their highest levels since July 2015 with Brent reaching $58.37 and $55.24, before paring gains on strong dollar.

“The dollar strength is certainly weighing on oil prices,” said Andrew Lipow, President of energy consulting firm, Lipow Oil Associates in Houston, noting U.S. stock markets also pared their gains from earlier in the day with the dollar rally.

Meanwhile, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Ibe Kachikwu, confirmed in a paper presented at a forum in Lagos penultimate week that the Federal Government had a goal to deregulate the downstream sector of the petroleum industry.

Though the government, Kachikwu said, was not there yet, he added that it would continue to fine tune the process until the goal is achieved.

“At every given time in the history of every country, you will always have partial deregulation. The reason being that you have to catch up each time and make an amendment, and even if it is just one day, you might have some level of subsidy for that one or two days before it is removed.

“What is important is the goalpost; where are we headed? Where we are headed is to try and free the industry, so that it makes do with its own rules, set its own prices itself. There are few mechanics that we still need to get in place properly.

We can’t forget the fact that we still have foreign exchange challenges and that income to government is still very tight.

“You still have to find a way to balance that. But what is important is what the objective is.

The objective is still to fully deregulate to find private capital to get them to where they should be,” the minister said.

Corroborating Kachikwu’s view, a former Executive Secretary of the PPPRA, Reginald Stanley, emphasised the need for quick deregulation of the sub-sector.

It is imperative, he said, to establish and empower a strong independent regulator to oversee activities in the sub-sector and ensure the implementation of open and transparent rules for the downstream value chain.

dre11:
[b]…dumps corpses in septic tank




https://newtelegraphonline.com/angry-lover-kills-mother-son-infidelity-allegation/

Okechukwu Nnodim, Abuja

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation on Thursday said the hardship in the aviation sector was not due to the scarcity of Jet-A1, but was partly because of the inability of the airlines to pay for the product.

The Group Managing Director, NNPC, Dr. Maikanti Baru, stated that the alleged scarcity of Aviation Turbine Kerosene was not responsible for the hardship being experienced in the aviation sector.

Baru, who spoke in Abuja, clarified that the corporation had taken steps to ensure adequate supply of the product with the importation of over 45 million litres.

He said the challenge had more to do with the inability of the airlines to pay for the product upon the introduction of a cash-and-carry policy by marketers as a result of the huge amounts being owed by the carriers.

Aviation fuel scarcity has been a challenge in the sector, as airlines often complain of the non-availability of the product.

A statement by the corporation quoted the GMD as also expressing the NNPC’s commitment to carry on with its twin gas projects of Brass LNG and Olokola LNG.

He said the two projects were high priority gas ventures, which promised to boost the Federal Government’s revenue.

Baru said monetisation of natural gas was a cardinal mandate of the corporation.

He said, “We are still committed, as the NNPC, to monetising our natural gas. We have the Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas, which is at the moment monetising about four billion standard cubic feet of gas on a daily basis. We also have plans for the Olokola LNG as well as the Brass LNG.

“We have a little challenge with market windows for these projects, which we are reviewing on a monthly basis. Once the appropriate market window opens up, we will quickly get more shareholders to join us for the projects.”

Baru stated that a meeting of Brass LNG stakeholders had been scheduled for early next year to look for the way forward for the project.

The GMD added that apart from the LNG projects, the corporation was also working on gas monetisation through aggressive enhancement of domestic gas supply for power generation and industrial use.

lalasticlala

NATIONAL chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Chief John Oyegun, has declared that the party does not feel threatened by talks of the formation of a mega party that will wrestle power from the APC, advising proponents of the mega party to focus on providing formidable opposition to his party.

The former governor of Edo State and also absolved a leader of the party, Sen Bola Tinubu, and former Vice President Atiku Abubakar from the rumoured formation of the planned mega party, recalling that he had met with some of the leaders of the APC, including the leadership of the National Assembly and the former Vice-President.

Oyegun, who spoke with journalists at his house in Benin City on Tuesday, challenged any Nigerian to locate one of the problems facing the country that was ameliorated by the former ruling party through Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

He said, “We don’t feel threatened at all. I don’t know where the name mega party suddenly came from in the lexicon of politics in this country. When two people gather to have a meeting, it is a mega meeting.

We don’t feel threatened, we will in fact, encourage a mega party because with the gradual collapse of PDP, we want a party that can make us sit upright and be on our toes in terms of delivery of services to our people.

“We are focused on our mission made difficult by the current economic situation worldwide and compounded by the collapse of the oil market.

“We are reforming this country, reforming it ethically, morally and economically by building a fresh economic base which will no longer depend on an extractive industry which does not involve the people.

“Now, we are pushing agriculture, most Nigerians are in the field of agriculture. We are pushing extractive minerals, which virtually all over the country and a lot of Nigerians will be involved in that enterprise.

“We are pushing power generation and distribution because that will also energise the small and medium scale industry. So, we want an economy in which most Nigerians are participants, it is no longer oil which is highly technologically based.

“So, it is a different reality we are trying to build and establish. It involved sacrifices, hard work, but what is necessary today is that we are focused.

“What is real today is that the government of Buhari is passionate about seeing this thing to its logical conclusion.

“This nation must change and the change is so fundamental that there is no question at all that a lot of people are going through temporary hardship, but the situation is such that tomorrow, everybody will be glad that we pursued this line of development in spite of the problems we are facing currently.”

The Special Operations of the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) in Bauchi has got a new Air Officer Commanding (AOC).

The new AOC is Air Vice Marshall Sani Ahmed who replaced Air Vice Marshall Christopher Emmanuel Okoye.

Speaking at the handling over ceremony at the Air Force temporary base GRA Bauchi, the outgoing AOC, Air Vice Marshall Christopher Emmanuel Okoye, commended the Bauchi State governor, Mohammed Abubakar, for the support his administration had been giving to the Air Force since the establishment of the base in Bauchi.

Speaking earlier, the new AOC, Air Vice Marshall Ahmed, congratulated the outgoing AOC for a job well done.

He said his mission in Bauchi was to build a cordial relationship between the military and civilian populace.

Gov. Aminu Tambuwal of Sokoto State has said that coal in commercial deposits had been discovered in the state.

Tambuwal disclosed this in a statement issued by his spokesman, Malam Imam Imam, on Monday in Sokoto.

The governor described the discovery as a major boost to Federal Government efforts at diversifying the country’s economy.
“This discovery boosts Sokoto’s share of solid minerals awaiting exploration by the authorities,’’ he said.

Other solid minerals earlier discovered included phosphate for making fertiliser, gold, limestone, gypsum, iron ore, copper, columbite, tantalite, zinc and kaolin, among others.

Tambuwal made the revelations during a capacity building workshop on Special Purpose Vehicles (SPVs) for beneficial participation of state governments in mining.

The workshop was jointly organised by the Federal Ministry of Mines and Steel Development and the state Ministry of Solid Minerals and Natural Resources Development.

“The state government has already engaged a Chinese company to make research on the available mineral resources, determine their locations and their commercial viability.

“The company has presented the first phase of its findings and identified 20 varieties of solid minerals,” Tambuwal said.

On coal, the governor said that the Cement Company of Northern Nigeria (CCNN), otherwise known as Sokoto Cement and owned by the BUA Group, has started using the mineral as a source of energy in operating its plant.

“BUA will use coal sourced from Sokoto to fuel the 40MW power plant being constructed at the factory.

“The new cement plant can use both coal and LPFO (Low Pour Fuel Oil), and will source its power needs from the power plant.
“The excess generated power will be moved to the national grid,” said the governor.

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Afeez Hanafi

The police in Lagos State have arrested a middle-aged woman, Linda Alapa, for allegedly beating her 10-year-old housemaid, Joy Mbafan, to death.

Mbafan lived with the suspect on Bolanle Oduniyi Street, Okegbegun, in the Ikorodu area of the state.

PUNCH Metro learnt that Alapa was flogging the girl for a misdemeanor around 3am last Monday when she passed out and died afterwards.

At the Ikorodu General Hospital morgue where she had gone to deposit Mbafan’s corpse, a doctor on duty was said to have noticed marks of violence on the body and alerted the police at the Sagamu Road Division.

A police source told our correspondent that after interrogation, Alapa confessed to beating the girl, adding that she would be charged with murder.

“She wanted to absolve herself of the death of the victim, but for the doctor on duty who raised the alarm after a close examination and she was arrested. There are marks of violence on the body of the deceased and she did not deny beating her.”

Some residents of Bolanle Oduniyi Street, who spoke to PUNCH Metro on Wednesday, said they had warned her many times to desist from assaulting the victim to no avail.

A neighbour of the suspect said Alapa did not only beat the girl but also starved her of food.

The woman, who gave her name only as Ellen, said although she did not know what led to the beating on that day, “she usually beat the girl for messing up their apartment.”

“Around 3am on the day the girl died, I heard her crying as the woman (Alapa) flogged her. I woke up my husband to intervene. He said he was tired of the woman’s insults. After a while, she stopped crying.

“It was when I came back from work that afternoon that I saw a crowd on our premises in tears. They said Joy (Mbafan) was dead. The woman’s husband was not at home that day. It was the landlord that told him about the incident on the telephone.”

The landlord and Alapa’s husband were not around when our correspondent visited the residence on Wednesday. The Alapas’ apartment was locked.

Another resident, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the girl’s father was late while her mother was ill, adding that Alapa had brought her to Lagos from a village in the eastern part of Nigeria.

“But she used to beat up and starve the girl of food. On several occasions, the girl would come to me to eat, saying her aunty did not give her food.”

Lamenting Mbafan’s death, a trader in the area, who identified herself only as Deborah, told PUNCH Metro that she had urged the suspect to counsel Mbafan rather than apply corporal punishment.

She said, “She made that little girl to lose self-confidence. Her body bore marks of lashes. Now that the girl is dead, she should also face the music.”

The Lagos State Police Public Relations Officer, SP Dolapo Badmos, in a text message, said, “I confirm the case. The suspect is under investigation while the corpse has been deposited in a morgue for autopsy.”

A suspected notorious militant identified as “General Eagle”, has been arrested by the troops of Joint Task Force (JTF), Operation Delta Safe (ODS).

The kingpin, who was arrested by troops of ODS after months of being on the wanted list of security agencies in the Niger Delta region, was said to be the leader of a gang of militants, who serially attacked pipelines in Delta and Bayelsa states.

Confirming the development at the weekend, the Commander, ODS, Rear Admiral Suleiman Apochi, said the hoodlum was arrested at his hideout along Captain Ayeni Road, Kpansia, Yenagoa, Bayelsa State, alongside three other suspects.

Narrating how the troops apprehended the suspected kingpin, he said: “The tenacity and resilience of Operation Delta Safe troop and personnel led to his arrest.

“After gathering actionable intelligence, troops carried out surgical military operations at his hideout at Captain Ayeni Road, Kpansia Yenagoa.

“He was arrested with three other suspects. Items recovered from his hideout include seven mobiles phones, 15 identity cards, one First Bank ATM card and a jack knife. Suspects are being interrogated for further actions”.

Apochi explained that the suspect and his gang at various times masterminded the destruction of oil facilities to sabotage the operations of oil companies and the economy.

He said the suspect, who already confessed to some of the criminal activities, also engaged in the abduction of high-profile individuals in the region.

Apochi said: “The criminal and his group have at various times masterminded the destruction of oil infrastructures in order to sabotage the operation of the companies and the economy of the nation, engaged in illegal oil bunkering and kidnap of high profile victims.

“The self-acclaimed “General Eagle” recently organised and blew one of the oil company’s risers at Golubokiri along Obama Brass pipeline in Bayelsa State. He claimed responsibility for the heinous crime.

“The criminal was involved on the planting of explosives devices and threatened Tobie oil facilities at Golubokiri, Mansonkiri and others in the general area.

“The text that accompanied one of his blasts indicated that the criminal had severally threatened oil companies and their staff and thereafter owned up to the sabotage with further threats to carry out more attacks. It would interest you to know that he has been on the watch list of security agencies for some time now.”

Also, the commander further said following some tips, the troops raided a lodge and arrested one Mr. Funebi, whom he described as a henchman in charge of arms and one of the allies of a notorious militant popularly known as “VIP”.

Funebi was said to be known in the creeks as a pirate, pipeline bleeding expert, responsible for destruction of oil facilities
Apochi said that since his assumption of duty in November, he had maintained and improved the existing tempo in ODS by evolving result-oriented strategies to stop criminality in the region.

He reinstated the commitment of the ODS to ensure peace and economic stability in the region and asked aggrieved persons in the region to take advantage of windows of opportunity provided by the Federal Government to amicably resolve their problems.

“Rather than engage in heinous crimes for self-help, they should seize the opportunity and embrace peace or face full wrath of the law. No criminal would go free, wherever they are, be rest assured we will root them out and ensure they face justice.”

He assured law abiding citizens to go about their normal businesses, adding that they would be adequately protected.

The probe into the controversial $1.092 billion Malabu oil deal led to the murder of an official of the Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC), it emerged yesterday.

The agency’s head of Compliance, Justin Ndia, said Abubakar Umar, who was in charge of the Malabu brief, was “brutally murdered”.

Ndia spoke when he appeared before the Hon. Rasak Atunwa-headed House of Representatives ad hoc committee on the alleged corruption , malpractices and breach of due process in the award of Oil Prospecting Licence OPL 245 on Wednesday.

Umar’s murder led to the disappearance of the file in which the structure of the ownership of Malabu was “illegally” changed, the committee learnt.

Although Ndia’s appearance before the committee was secret, The Nation obtained the details yesterday.

Other details obtained by the newspaper show that the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) plans to prosecute two former Ministers of Justice, Mohammed Adoke and Bayo Ojo. Also to be arraigned is former Minister of Petroleum Dan Etete.

EFCC Acting Chairman Ibrahim Magu, who was represented by the agency’s Senior Prosecutor, Ojogbane Johnson, said those involved would be charged to court this week.

The EFCC, described the Malabu transaction as a “fraud”, adding that “ the international embarrassment in the manner the FGN handled the matter vis- a -vis the involvement of the former AGF and the seeming distasteful and disgraceful way the proceeds was distributed through suspicious circumstances leave much to be desired.”

According to the commission, others to be charged include Alhaji Aliyu Abubakar, Malabu Oil & Gas Limited, Rocky Top Resources Limited, A Group Construction Co. Ltd, Megatech Engineering Co. Ltd, Imperial Union Ltd and Novel,Properties & Dev. Co. Ltd.

The position of the anti- graft agency is sharply different from that of the Attorney-General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Abubakar Malami, who while appearing before the committee on Tuesday, said the evidence against Adoke and others were inconclusive.

“One thing I have to bring to your notice is that investigation is ongoing. I cannot with certainty jump to the conclusion of indictment,” Malami had said.

However, the EFCC position was corroborated by a document obtained by The Nation from the anti-graft agency, which states: “Up till now, Mohammed Adoke, who is confirmed to be outside the country, has failed to honour all invitations extended to him. He will be declared wanted in due course through INTERPOL request to help apprehend him.”

“Directors of Malabu Oil & Gas Limited, such as Amaran Joseph and Seidougja Munamuna are still at large and would be declared wanted in due course as they are still outside the country.”

Adoke has washed his hands of the Malabu deal, saying the transaction was concluded seven years before he became minister.

The Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) yesterday resolved to make some sacrifices in view of the current economic situation in the country.

Breifing State House correspondents after NEC meeting, Kaduna State Governor Nasir el-Rufai listed those sacrifices as including reducing their convoys and excessive travels as well as stopping flamboyant dressing.

He said “We have agreed that we should lower our external outlook in terms of dressing; excessive travels and convoys. If you observe, private jet business is not thriving. It is part of deliberate decisions we took.”

NEC also called for merger of federal agencies which are duplicating responsibilities. According to the council chaired by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, 580 federal agencies are too many and cost too much.

El-Rufai said “At the federal level, we have suggested looking at Orosanye report that suggested merger and reduce duplication of agencies. FG has 580 agencies. They are too many and they cost too much.

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The Zonal Head of the Lagos State Traffic Management Authority, LASTMA, Apapa, Bakare was on Thursday beaten to death by suspected okada riders and touts in Apapa area of Lagos, Southwest Nigeria.

PM News gathered that Bakare was killed at Point Road, Apapa while enforcing the road traffic law which banned okada riders from plying 475 major roads in Lagos.

Bakare was said to have been attacked and was brutally murdered by the irate okada riders.

LASTMA General Manager, Bashir Braimah confirmed the incident, saying that he was trying to control and regulate traffic in Apapa when he was killed. He did not give further details.

Police Public Relations Officer, Dolapo Badmos confirmed the incident, saying that it was a mob action and that the LASTMA officer was killed in the process.

She said the police had begun intensive investigation and manhunt to arrest the perpetrators and bring them to book.
-Kazeem Ugbodaga