₦airaland Forum

shoboy9: Hmmm, has God abandoned Nigeria? Some posts here are rather baffling.

koruji: It is greed that would make someone who lives on land claim resources 200 miles into the ocean. The only reason nations are given the right to 200 miles of sea around their borders is to prevent conflict - that doesn't apply at the sub-national level.

If towns or streets do not lay claim to rivers that flow through land, then they should not claim to own parts of the ocean either.

As someone said, may be the states need to get a higher cut of the funds derived from their land (25%), and a small cut of the offshore funds (5%). The rest becomes national resources to be shared among federating states. It is that simple.

CuteTj: I totally agree wit what you have said but in as much as i don't like GEJ, if another person was president, he/she wont fare any better against boko haram with the current situation of things in Nigeria.

CuteTj: I totally agree wit what you have said but in as much as i don't like GEJ, if another person was president, he/she wont fare any better against boko haram with the current situation of things in Nigeria.

IYA NGBALI: dead bones shall rise again. Funny,rotten,hopeless and visionless country. KO NI DA FUN GBOGBO YIN LAI.

Voodoo economists, they create vague assumptions and deduce their desired findings from fake assumptions. Forgetting in economics just like in most social sciences you don't hold variables constant, they interplay, they keep changing to the extent that often times it leads to undesired outcome.

Voodoo economists, they create vague assumptions and deduce their desired findings from fake assumptions. Forgetting in economics just like in most social sciences you don't hold variables constant, they interplay, they keep changing to the extent that often times it leads to undesired outcome.

afam4eva: How many people actually graduate at 21 considering the fact that many people write jamb and other exams more than once. Plus the fact that the strike keep people in schoool longer than they are supposed to be.

afam4eva: Forget Steve jobs. I'm talking about Nigeria and not the US. What exactly will you be doing that you will become a millonaire in Nigeria by 23. Not that it's not possible or it's not happening but it's rare. by 23 you're just graduating from college.

[quote author=Dede1]@POST


“When Alhaji Alhassan Dantata died in August 1955, he was the wealthiest man of any race in West Africa”. What a load of crap. By the way, what is actually wrong with Nigerians?

When alleged death of Dantata came in 1955, Sir Louis Odumegwu Ojukwu was the only millionaire on the surface of Africa. Alhassan Dantata could not compete with the likes of Chief Greene Mbadiwe or Chief A Akwuiwu. Ojukwu along with Britain and British companies such John Holt built Apapa Wharf.

Dantata & Sons would have remained groundnut selling outfit if not for the massive contracts Nigerian government awarded to it during the Nigeria/Biafra civil war.

Anybody who read the post strictly between lines would have discovered Dantata and Dangote would have remained a Kano State’s hauling outfits baring massive overinflated and questionable contracts awarded to them by State and Federal governments of Nigeria.

pDude:
While dangote and his family were hustling, my dad was busy in the villge drinking pammy and chasing village girls around.

DaLover: @Jp phillips
Thanks, likewise i wouldnt be needing a response from you, I can now see why beaf has total disregard for you, thanks and take care

GenBuhari: [size=18pt]Tunde Bakare uses simple arithematic to expose the fuel subsisdy scam:[/size]

Much ado about fuel subsidy

By TUNDE BAKARE -

http://www.vanguardngr.com/2012/01/much-ado-about-fuel-subsidy/


DEFINITION: To subsidise is to sell a product below the cost of production. Since the Federal Government has been secretive about the state of our refineries and their production capacity, we will focus on importation rather than production. So, in essence, within the Nigerian Fuel Subsidy context, to subsidise is to sell petrol below the cost of importation.

The unsubstantiated claims of the Federal Government: The government claims that Nigerians consume 34 million litres of petrol per day. The government has also said publicly that N141 per litre is the unsubsidised pump price of petrol imported into Nigeria. (N131.70 kobo being the landing price and N9.30 kobo being profit.)

Annual cost of importation

Daily Fuel Consumption: 34 million litres

Cost at Pump: N141.00

No. of days in a regular year: 365 days

Total cost of all petrol imported yearly into Nigeria:

Litres Naira Days

34m x 141 x 365

= N1.75 trillion

Cost borne by the consumers

Nigerians have been paying N65 per litre for fuel, haven’t we? Therefore, cost borne by the consumers = Litres Naira Days

34m x 65 x 365 = N807 billion

Cost of subsidy borne by the government: In 2011 alone, government claimed to have spent N1.3 trillion by October – the bill for the full year, assuming a constant rate of consumption is N1.56 trillion. Consequently, the true cost of subsidy borne by the government is: Total cost of importation minus total borne by consumers, i.e. N1.75 trillion minus N807 billion = N943 billion.


Pastor Tunde Bakare

Unexplainable difference: N617 billion. The Federal Government of Nigeria cannot explain the difference between the amount actually disbursed for subsidy and the cost borne by Nigerians (N1.56 trillion minus N943 billion = N617 billion).

Bogus claim by the government: A government official has claimed that the shortfall of N617 billion is what goes to subsidising our neighbours through smuggling. This is pathetic. But let us assume (assumption being the lowest level of knowledge) that the government is unable to protect our borders and checkmate the brisk smuggling going on. Even then, the figures still don’t add up. This is because even if 50 per cent of the petrol consumed in each of our neighbouring countries is illegally exported from Nigeria, the figures are still inaccurate. Why?

World Bank’s figures: populations of West African countries

NIGERIA: 158.4 million

BENIN: 8.8 million

TOGO: 6 million

CAMEROUN: 19.2 million

NIGER: 15.5 million

CHAD: 11.2 million

GHANA: 24.4 million

The total population of all our six neighbours is 85.5 million.

Let’s do some more arithmetic:

a) Rate of Petrol Consumption in Nigeria: Total consumed divided by total population:

34 million litres divided by 158.8 million people = 0.21 litres per person per day.

b) Rate of Petrol Consumption in all our six neighbouring countries, assumed to be the same as Nigeria:

0.2 litres x 85.5 million people = 18.35 million litres per day

Now, if we assume that 50 per cent of the petrol consumed in all the six neighbouring countries comes from Nigeria, this value comes to 9.18 million litres per day.

Pathetic absurdity: There are two illogicalities flowing from this smuggling saga.

*If 9.18 million litres of petrol is truly smuggled out of our borders per day, then ours is the most porous nation in the word. This is why: The biggest fuel tankers in Nigeria have a capacity of about 36,000 litres. To smuggle 9.18 million litres of fuel, you need 254 trucks. What our government is telling us is that 254 huge tankers pass through our borders every day and they cannot do anything about it. This is not just acute incompetence, but also a serious security challenge. For if the government cannot stop 254 tanker trailers from crossing the border daily, how can they stop importation of weapons or even invasion by a foreign country?

*Second illogicality: Even if we believe the government and assume that about 9.18 million litres is actually taken to our neighbours by way of smuggling every day, and all this is subsidised by the Nigerian government, the figures being touted as subsidy still don’t add up. This is why: Difference between pump price before and after subsidy removal = N141.00 – N65.00 = N76.00. Total spent on subsidizing petrol to our neighbours annually = N76.00 x 9.18 million litres x 365 days = N255 billion.

If you take the N255 billion away from the N617 billion shortfall that the government cannot explain, there is still a shortfall of N362 billion. The government still needs to tell us what/who is eating up this N362 billion ($2.26 billion USD).

Illogical assumptions

*We have assumed that there are no working refineries in Nigeria and so no local petrol production whatsoever – yet, there is, even if the refineries are working below capacity. ii) Nigeria actually consumes 34 million litres of petrol per day. Most experts disagree and give a figure of between 20 and 25 million litres per day. Yet there is still an unexplainable shortfall even if we use the exaggerated figure of the government.

*Ghana, Togo, Benin, Cameroun, Niger, and Chad all consume the same rate as Nigeria and get 50 per cent of their petrol illegally from Nigeria through smuggling. These figures simply show the incompetence and insincerity of our government officials. This is pure banditry.

Fact: The simplest part of the fuel subsidy arithmetic will reveal one startling fact: That the government does not need to subsidise our petrol at all if we reject corruption and sleaze as a way of life. Check this out:

*NNPC crude oil allocation for local consumption = 400,000 barrels per day (from a total of 2.450 million barrels per day).

*If our refineries work at just 30 per cent, 280,000 barrels can be sold on the international market, leaving the rest for local production.

*Money accruing to the Federal Government through NNPC on the sale, using $80/bbl – a conservative figure as against the current price of $100/bbl – would be $22.4m per day. Annually this translates to $8.176bn or N1.3 trillion.

*The government does not need to subsidise our petrol imports – at least not from the Federation Account. The same crude that should have been refined by NNPC is simply sold on the international market (since our refineries barely work) and the money is used to buy petrol. The 400,000 barrels per day given to NNPC for local consumption can either be refined by NNPC or sold to pay for imports. This absurdity called subsidy should be funded with this money, not the regular FGN budget. If the FGN uses it regular budget for subsidising petrol, then what happens to the crude oil given to NNPC for local refining that gets sold on the international market?

Tactical blunder

The Federal Government is making the deregulation issue a revenue problem. Nigerians are not against deregulation. We have seen deregulation in the telecom sector and Nigerians are better for it, as even the poor have access to telephones now right before the eyes of those who think it is not for them. What is happening presently is not deregulation but an all-time high fuel pump increase, unprecedented in the history of our nation by a government that has gone broke due to excessive and reckless spending largely on themselves. If the excesses of all the three tiers of government are seriously curbed, that would free enough money for infrastructural development without unduly punishing the poor citizens of this country. Let me just cite, in closing, the example of National Assembly excesses and misplaced spending as contained in the 2012 budget proposal:

Number of Senators 109

Number of Members of the House of Representatives 360

Total Number of Legislators 469

2012 Budget Proposal for the National Assembly N150 billion

Average Cost of Maintaining Each Member N320 million

Average Cost of Maintaining Each Member in USD $2.1 million/year

Time has come for the citizens of this country to hold the government accountable and demand the prosecution of those bleeding our nation to death. Until this government downsizes, cuts down its profligacy and leads by example in modesty and moderation, the poor people of this country will not and must not subsidise the excesses of the oil sector fat cats and the immorality precipitate fiscal scandal of the self-centred and indulgent lifestyles of those in government.

Here is a hidden treasure of wisdom for those in power while there is still time to make amends:

PROVERBS 21:6&and7

“Getting treasures by a lying tongue is the fleeting fantasy of those who seek death. The violence of the wicked will destroy them because they refuse to do just.”

A word of counsel for those who voted for such soulishly indulgent leadership: “Never trust a man who once had no shoes, or you may end up losing your legs.”

This is the conclusion of the matter on subsidy removal: i) “If a ruler pays attention to lies, all his servants become wicked.” (Proverbs 29:12)

ii) “The Righteous God wisely considers the house of the wicked, overthrowing the wicked for their wickedness. Whoever shuts his ears to the cry of the poor will also cry himself and will not be heard.” (Proverbs 21:12&13)

Thanks for your attention. God bless you all.

Pastor Bakare was CPC’s vice presidential candidate in 2011

Annual cost of importation

Daily Fuel Consumption: 34 million litres
Cost at Pump: N141.00
No. of days in a regular year: 365 days
Total cost of all petrol imported yearly into Nigeria:
Litres     Naira     Days
34m     x 141     x 365
= N1.75 trillion
Cost borne by the consumers
Nigerians have been paying N65 per litre for fuel, haven’t we? Therefore, cost borne by the consumers =     Litres     Naira     Days
34m     x 65     x 365
= N807 billion

Misplaced spending in the budget

Let me just cite, in closing, the example of National Assembly excesses and misplaced spending as contained in the 2012 budget proposal:
Number of Senators 109
Number of Members of the House of Representatives 360
Total Number of Legislators 469
2012 Budget Proposal for the National Assembly N150 billion
Average Cost of Maintaining Each Member N320 million
Average Cost of Maintaining Each Member in USD $2.1 million/year

the viper: so na that fine boi wey in picture show above #brainchild78 wey wan kill himself.such a pity.and what did atiku buy from u,ur backside? lefam to God my bru.

confetti: One good thing though, the Govt is being represented, at least they will have to pay legal fees.

@jp phillips,
the key is not and can never be in dashing out crude, the reason why sanusi's policies dont seam to work is that we expect them to run side by side with an artificial system, you claim to be a guru in the oil industry with sound knowledge in economics, but u would rather suggest a policy that does not take the immediate enviroment into consideration, stop decieving urself, asking for the imposible and unrealistic conditions,

I have told you that your solution requires everyone involved to be a saint and u say corruption is not the issue here, if you cannot see the problem in the context of the nigerian environment and how to get out of the present situation, then you obvoiusly cant see the bigger picture,

You talk of deserving a workable law enforcement and that exactly why i say you lack the capacity to propose a practical solution to a problem,

I would like you to answer just this question. At what point in the near future (say in next 10years) do you expect to have a reliable police, army, navy and politicians who you can beat ur chest and operate honestly?

You actually expect 300,000bbls to be dashed to local refineries at $25 bbl and all nigerians to hold hands and sing kunbaya, i think its time u wake up from ur slumber

[b]You call alison maduake, sanusi and okonji iweala clowns, i guess you are much brighter than them, most of the guys u call clowns are tried and tested in the private sector before serving this government and nerve to feel u r better than any of them, all because they told you that free crude is unrealistic, where did they ever say that IOCs must be the ones to build the refineries?
[/b]You refused to give their method a try, sit down and cry for free oil and call them clowns,
Please show me the research where refineries buying at international prices are dying, i need to examine what exactly is causing this situation, i am not convienced that the prices of crude are responsible for this, or dont pple in those cointries buy refined products again? do the citizens find imported pms cheaper to buy?

Look I am totally against anything that would actively keep the govt running businesses as a method to drastically reduce corruption, provide services and increase the middle class, but if u feel govt to directly create an artifical system like they have being trying to do the the exchange rate, creating a black market,

Apearantly you are probably hooked on free oil, and it has defined your insistence on continuing in along this path.

I would expect that your end target is to ensure total refining of all our crude produce, but from what i see you are content with nigeria exporting crude as long as ur cheap source of crude flows for your consumption, for those like me who wish to see between 10 and 20 refineries set up in nigeria refining all our produce and providing refined products for both the local market and international market, this your $25 idea is a totally retrogressive idea

@ the bold, you were carried away by vituperation that you forgot what the issue is, oga just look at the topic of the thread as a reminder,your heroes are begging IOC's for refineries.

sorry to digress a little,

please could you list the private sector where Madueke thrived and succeeded? don't forget to mention achievements credited to her name.

CBN Mickey is a matter for Another day, the number of abandoned bank branches on my street alone is a testimony of his meritorious service. heroes indeed

i can deduce that the only difference between you and beaf is that you think, but your approach remains same.

i gave you a list of refineries to google their status perhaps find out their modus operandi and you are still looking for my research white paper? don't be lazy my friend.

i didn't say you should "dash" anybody crude, if you choose to mis quote me please give me a little credit for my efforts in enlightening you.

i said at $25 the producer is making profit, the profitable producer sells to a refinery at a "cheap" cost who will refine and sell to both local and abroad clients.

it is left for the Govt to choose which role to play in the chain.

please re read everything i wrote before sounding like beaf. nobody on my chain is losing, the difference between my model and yours is that you have failed to realize that following;

1 cost of extracting crude varies with countries

2 the profit margin between the intl crude price and cost of production in Nigeria is wide

3 intl crude price is a standard for export, internally you can regulate prices to support your investment market.

4 there was no where i emphatically said that it must be an all round govt show, i only used NPDC as an example and i stated my reasons, as a reminder, it is easier for NPDC to access cheaper long time funding than any other private institution in Nigeria, please read before you type.

oil and gas investment is very capital intensive. if #4 makes sense then the corruption thing will not be an issue

refining all our export is a s!lly idea as good as asking IOC's to build refineries, for the following reasons;

1 the IOC's and your govt are having fun with the chasm between cost of production and intl crude price, they will never add refining cost to their profit when they can export raw crude, even if your Govt decides as a matter of National importance, it is not in the interest of the IOC's and it will never happen.

2 from the unfolding events lately, your govt seems to rely on the IOC's magnanimity for the construction of the refineries which begs the question; who will construct the Refineries? at what cost? whose funding? (a) your Govt that needs it? (b) the IOC's whose interest it wont serve?, (c) your father?

3 should a miracle happen and refineries appear, where will they get their crude from and at what cost?

if you sincerely think in your wildest dream that SPDC will sell that crude below intl rate at which it is selling now, then you need deliverance from Sanusilaria

if you ever buy at that rate which you call "competitive" ie apar with intl crude price, then the faith of the refineries i mentioned above will be fall you within one year.

have you seen a copy of the MOU that IOC's use to supply gas to our turbines? the day you will set your eyes on it, you will understand the buisness model they are operating and why our electricity tarrif will be the highest in the world once we have steady electricity.

you might choose to recall that this same gas they are squeezing you with is the same they flare to the tune of $2.5b annually.

brother, i will not respond to you again if you fail to show me private or state owned refineries running on your model and will be breathing by 2015

"your model is thus; IOC's in conjunction with state drill in a JV and sell to a refinery (God will construct) at intl crude price all their crude then the products are sold in intl rates to make profit"

please correct me if i am wrong.