The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and fuel marketers under the aegis of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, on Tuesday, clashed again over the removal of subsidy on petrol.

This came against the backdrop of the depreciation of the naira against the United States dollar at both the official Investors & Exporters Window and the parallel market.

On Tuesday, the local currency closed at 998/dollar at the official market, while it traded at 1,225/dollar at the black market.

On the back of the falling naira rate, economists and oil marketers said PMS subsidy was increasing in recent times, but the NNPC quickly countered these positions and declared that it was recovering its full cost on the importation of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, countering the positions of

The Chief Executive Officer, Financial Derivatives Company, Bismarck Rewane, had during a live television programme on ChannelsTV on Sunday, explained that fuel subsidy was not removed but reduced.

Similarly, oil marketers told our correspondent on Tuesday that subsidy on petrol was increasing considering the crash of the naira against the United States dollar and the cost of crude oil, stressing that PMS should sell for N1,200/litre in a free market.

Petrol, which is solely imported into Nigeria by the NNPCL, currently sells for between N617/litre to N660/litre, depending on the location of purchase in Nigeria.

Also speaking on the matter, the Chief Executive Officer, Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, Dr Muda Yusuf, said there was partial subsidy on petrol, but noted that the commodity was subsidised by the government for political, social and economic reasons.

Full cost recovery


But when contacted, the Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPCL, Olufemi Soneye, described the positions of economists and marketers as assumptions, and insisted that the Federal Government had stopped subsidy on petrol.

President Bola Tinubu had during his inaugural speech on May 29, 2023, declared that subsidy on petrol was gone, a declaration that was effectively implemented the next day by NNPCL.

Before Tinubu’s declaration, the pump price of petrol was below N190/litre, but it jumped to over N500/litre after the President’s statement, and moved up again to over N600/litre a few weeks later.

Asked to state if the NNPCL, being Nigeria’s sole importer of petrol, subsidising the commodity as posited by dealers and experts, the oil firm’s CCCO replied, “We prioritise our time on substantive matters rather than responding to assumptions.

“At NNPC Ltd, we prioritise national development through energy security and sustainable growth. We reiterate that the Nigerian government does not pay subsidy on fuel; we recover full costs from our imported products

“As a global energy company, our focus remains on fostering a vibrant and energy-secure Nigeria.”

‘Subsidy reduced’

Rewane had earlier explained that subsidy on petrol was reduced and not removed, while featuring on a live television programme on Sunday evening, as he further highlighted the effects of the reduction in fuel subsidy and how it was affecting salary earners in Nigeria.

He said, “At the inauguration, it was said that (fuel) subsidy was gone but subsidy was actually reduced.”

Buttressing his position, he explained, “There is the convergence of exchange rates and reducing the windows into one. The consequence of that is that money has been transferred from consumers to the government.

“Subsidies are reversed taxes; if you reduce them, you increase the people’s taxes and reduce their income. What has happened is that government revenue has increased by 44 per cent between May and June (2023). Money has been transferred to the government but what is the government doing with it?

“The consumers, on the other hand, had a minimum wage, which in dollar terms was $40 in 2002. In 2019, it was about $70, but it has now been reduced to $24.”

Marketers project N1,200/litre

The National Public Relations Officer, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Chief Ukadike Chinedu, stated that subsidy on petrol was rising and that the cost of the commodity should be around N1,200/litre in a free market.

“To be pragmatic in this analysis let’s consider the cost of petrol today in the United States. For premium petrol, it is $2.99, while super petrol sells for $3.15 or $3.10 depending on the part of that country where you are making the purchase.

“Now, $3 in Nigeria is over N3,000, because a dollar in the parallel market is over N1,000. You can also see the cost of diesel, that is over N1,000/litre, and it is important to state that petrol is usually higher in price than diesel in a free market.

“So if you consider the cost of diesel, dollar and other international factors, the price of petrol in Nigeria should be around N1,200/litre, but the government is subsidising it, which to an extent is understandable,” he stated.

Ukadike noted that he had earlier explained that the government was implementing quasi-subsidy, and by this it means that “the Federal Government, instead of taking out the subsidy by 100 per cent, decides to take out about 50 per cent.”

The IPMAN official, however, expressed optimism again that the cost of refined petroleum products would reduce as soon as the Port Harcourt and Dangote refineries start producing the commodities.

“I also believe that there will be a reduction in the prices of petroleum products this year when you consider what the government is currently doing. The coming onboard of the Port Harcourt refinery and the supply of crude to Dangote refinery are good developments in the sector.

“Their operations will help stabilise the price of PMS and other petroleum products in Nigeria, because it will definitely cut down the importation of products,” Ukadike stated.

Social, economic reasons


The Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise CEO said subsidy was being retained partially because of its economic, social and political implications.

Yusuf said, “To protect the citizens from further hardship is the reason why the government seems to have applied the brakes on subsidy removal. We are all witnesses to the pain and hardship that citizens are going through.

“So when you are adopting some of these policies, especially these liberal economic policies, it comes to a point where you have to moderate your position for social reasons.

“Just as the World Bank said, if we want to leave the price fully to market forces and the liberal economic policies, the fuel price will be above N800/litre. Can any government that is sensitive to the feelings of its citizens allow that to happen?

Even if economically that is the way to go, there must always be a human face to economics. So what the government has done is to moderate the reform, and that is why I think the government has insisted that the NNPC should still hold the price at the current level.”

Yusuf noted that the government must balance the gains and side effects of subsidy, stressing that economic hardship may worsen should subsidy be removed 100 per cent.

“All of us who were saying that they should remove the subsidy, we can see that they have partially removed it now, but look at the consequences. Economically it will sound good, but socially and politically it is very costly.

“So those in government need to balance all those considerations. They need to balance economic, political and social considerations. That is why we find ourselves in a situation where we have partial subsidies, both in petrol and electricity,” he stated.

The World Bank had stated in December that subsidy on petrol was still being implemented by the Federal Government, as it insisted that the cost of PMS should not be less than N750/litre if there was no subsidy.

Naira at N988/$

The naira closed at N988.46/$ on the first day of official trading on the Investors and Exporters Window on Tuesday.

This is an 8.97 per cent decline from the N907.11/$ it closed trading on Friday (the last day of official trading for 2023) according to data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange. This continues a worrying trend for the naira which was one of the worst performing currencies of 2023.

According to Bloomberg, the naira had one of its worst years in 2023, a title that 2024 might usurp. It noted that the national currency lost about 55 per cent of its value as of Thursday 28, 2023.

Based on Kyle Chapman, FX markets analyst at London-based Ballinger & Co, the naira was the third worst-performing global currency in 2023 due to a backlog of unsettled forwards, undelivered promises of dollar inflows, and a two-decade peak in inflation.

Chapman said, “The naira’s downward momentum is likely to continue through much of 2024, and its ultimate trajectory will depend on whether the CBN’s rhetoric transforms into concrete policy moves that drive up the flow of US dollars into Nigeria and shore up trust in the official market.

“If the CBN’s promised measures materialise and Tinubu’s government enacts structural changes to increase oil production or to drive foreign investment, there is plenty of opportunity for the naira to lift from its record lows. But a quick fix is unlikely, and further depreciation will come to counteract supply and demand imbalances.”

In its December Nigeria Development Update, the World Bank noted that naira had depreciated against the US dollar by 41 per cent in the official market and by 30 per cent in the parallel market. It noted that the naira needs increased volume to stabilise in the official market.

It said, “Further monetary policy tightening is expected to help underpin the value of the naira. However, there is also a need to increase FX supply in the market. Facilitating FX flows, especially from all exports, through the NAFEM can help provide additional volumes in the official window that can help provide stability.

In addition, clarity on the CBN’s net reserve position, and on the CBN’s continued progress in clearing the FX backlog, would also strengthen market confidence.”

NNPCL records thefts

Meanwhile, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, on Tuesday, said a total of 112 cases of crude oil theft were recorded in the Niger Delta in one week.

It said the oil theft incidents occurred between December 23, 2023 and December 29, 2023, adding that in the past week, 42 illegal refineries were discovered in several locations in the oil rich region.

It outlined the locations to include Konsho and Tebidaba in Bayelsa State; Obokofia in Imo State; as well as Ogidigben, Mereje and Obodo Omadina, in Delta state

The oil firm disclosed this in a documentary posted on its official X handle, adding that the “illegal refineries in Umuire, Abia State, and Upata in Rivers State, were also discovered and destroyed.”

It further stated that 14 illegal connections were uncovered in several parts of the Niger Delta, as a tunnel covering an illegal connection was also uncovered in Owaza, Abia State, while 10 cases of vandalism were discovered.

In the two minutes and 44 seconds documentary, the company stated that, “Illegal storage sites were discovered in Ebocha and Ton Kiri in Rivers State where oil pits were found.

“In Ogbia, Bayelsa State, sacks of crude oil were discovered. More illegal storage sites were uncovered in Urhonigbe, in Edo State; Ekuku-Agbor and Bomadi in Delta State.”

According to the firm, 22 wooden boats conveying stolen crude were discovered in Okrika and Tombia in Rivers State as well as Emereje, Delta State.

It stated that during an operation, 11 vehicle arrests were made in Delta State, as eight of these (oil theft) incidents took place in the deep water, 46 in the eastern region, 32 in the central region, while 26 took place in the western region.

“Between the 23rd and 26th of December, 2023, 18 suspects were arrested,” the national oil company stated, adding that it would not back down in the war against crude oil theft.

Nigeria loses billions of naira to oil theft and finds it tough to meet the production quota approved for the country by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, due to the menace of oil thieves.

Sir, just secure Nigerian lives. Pretend we are cocaine in your possession.

Goodvibes007:

Just like the Arewa twitter below bah 👇

Obiedun:
You are playing victim mentality.

Enugurangers:

You have started exposing who you really are. Just another Nairaland tribalist.

johnmartus:
Honestly I just don't know why this people keep fooling them. Inferiority complex at it peak.

I arrive lagos today. Everywhere is very quiet. Traffic no dey and many shops are closed. This is a reminder to people that keep telling igbos to go back to anambra. The day they decided to to go back, economic activities in lagos will suffer.

Once upon a time in Nigeria, during Buhari's regime , crude oil was drilled in Northern Nigeria, and after Buhari's regime, the crude oil well dried off.

What a time !!!

People like Okonjo Iweala, Sunusi Lamido and others alike should be begged by the Federal Government to return back and put this country's economy on track.
If not, the country is slowly sinking.

ABEOKUTA: Operatives of Ogun State Police Command, have unraveled the mystery behind the disappearance of a 100 level student of Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, Quadri Salami.

According to a statement issued by the command spokesperson, Omolola Odutola, the father of Quadri had on 14th November, 2023 reported at Kenta Police station, about sudden disappearance of his son, who reported that he has not set his eyes on his son since 8th of November and all efforts to locate him proved abortiveOdutola, further disclosed that, the State Commissioner of Police Abiodun Alamutu on Wednesday made a significant breakthrough when he personally led a team of Tactical Squad to Mile 6 in Ajebo area of Abeokuta to a shallow grave to exhume the decomposing body parts of the deceased after a tracking clue beamed at one Akeem Usman who was arrested in possession with the victims phone.

The PPRO added that, “He (Akeem) implicated one Ifadowo Niyi that both of them committed the heinous crime by slaughtering the victim (Quadri) and dismembered his vital parts for ritual purposes”.

“He added that Ifadowo went away with Quadri’s head, and his two wrist, and paid the sum of one hundred thousand Naira into Akeem Usman’s account as proceeds from the sale of the human body parts”.

“The suspects thereafter continued to sell the victim’s other body parts on demand to internet fraudsters and buried the heart, two legs, and flesh inside a plastic rubber for rituals and used the remaining parts for “awure” a crime against humanity”.

“Among their confessional statement, the duo admitted that they have used four other human heads for money rituals known as “Osole”

“The suspects are now in Eleweran at SCID for continuation of discreet investigations and will definitely be prosecuted”, Odutola added.

“The CP remain committed to ensuring that justice is served and will continue to investigate further to bring all perpetrators to face the full extent of the Law. Stating that such criminal involvement endangers innocent lives urging parents to collectively work together with the police in Ogun by giving volunteer information to eradicate such nefarious practices”.

Against the backdrop of more exits from ground operations in Nigeria by more multinational companies, Nigeria’s economy is expected to lose $335 million (about N310bn) in Foreign Direct Investments, FDI.

The amount represents the combined assets value of the two latest exit announcements by Procter & Gamble, P&G, a major global player in the Fast Moving Consumer Goods, FMCG, segment and Equinor, another global player in the upstream oil sector.

Procter & Gamble (P&G), an American multinational consumer goods, says it has plans to transition from local production to solely importing its products as the firm winds down its on-ground presence in Nigeria.

Equinor is exiting after selling its Nigerian business, including its share in the Agbami oil field to Nigerian-owned energy company Chappal Energies.

Explaining the decision, Andre Schulten, chief financial officer, P&G, said the decision is a result of “the challenging business environment in Nigeria, as well as the difficulty in creating US dollar value.”

On his part, Equinor’s Senior Vice President for Africa Operations, Nina Koch, in a statement, said: “Nigeria has been an important part of Equinor’s international portfolio over the past 30 years.

“This transaction realises value and is in line with Equinor’s strategy to optimize its international oil and gas portfolio and focus on core areas.”

In the second half of this year two other major multinational companies, GlaxoSmithKline, GSK, Consumer Nigeria Plc and Sanofi-Aventis Nigeria Limited, a French pharmaceutical company, pulled out assets estimated at over $800 million from Nigeria, citing harsh operating environment.

2024 Nigerian budget proposal has shown that President Bola Tinubu and his Vice, Kashim Shettima would spend N10.13billion on meals and travels.

The N27.5trillion budget proposal is still being examined by the National Assembly.

According to the budget proposal, Tinubu will spend N638.5m on local trips and N6.9 billion on foreign trips, totaling N7.6 billion.

Shettima’s travels will gulp N1.8 billion out of which N618.4 million is for local journeys and N1.2 billion for international trips.

Feeding, titled ‘refreshment & meal and foodstuff for the offices of Tinubu and Shettima’ was allocated N660.5m. Of this amount, N287.8 million is for the president’s office and N372.6 million for the VP’s office.

Further breakdown of the budget proposal shows that refreshments and meals for the president will gulp N33.6 million and another N254.2 million for foodstuff/catering materials supplies.

The vice president will spend N35 million on refreshments/meals and N337.5 million on foodstuff/catering materials supplies.

The fiscal document also shows that the feeding of the animals at the Aso Rock’s zoo, tagged “wildlife conservation”, will gulp N201.4 million.

The renovation of the president and vice president’s quarters at the State House will gulp N800 million: N500 million for Tinubu and N300 million for Shettima.

In the 2023 supplementary budget approved last month, the Presidency voted N13.5 billion to renovate President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kassim Shettima’s official residences in Lagos and Abuja.

The approved expenditure was part of the N28 billion voted for State House in the N2.176trn supplementary budget.

The breakdown showed that N4 billion will be spent for the renovation of residential quarters for Mr President; renovation of Aguda House to gulp N2.5 billion; renovation of Dodan Barracks, the official residence of Mr President in Lagos, N4 billion and renovation of official quarters of vice president in Lagos N3bn, totally N13.5 billion.

In the 2024 budget proposal, honorarium and sitting allowance for the president and his vice were pegged at N152.3 million and N67.3 million respectively.

Powering of generators in the State House will cost N37.9 million while N260.8 million is earmarked for electricity charges.

In a remarkable change of official narrative, the Nigerian military on Tuesday said its aerial bombardment that left at least 126 killed in Kaduna on Sunday night was a calculated operation to take out bandits that inevitably involved civilian fatalities.

Defence Headquarters spokesman Edward Buba said the military decided to engage after observing movements of bandits near an unnamed but “key infrastructure” in Ligarma Village at about 10:00 p.m. on Sunday, despite prior knowledge of the high prospect for civilian casualties.

“Aerial surveillance captured movement of groups of persons synonymous with the terrorist tactics and modus operandi,” Mr Buba said. “The observed advance of the terrorists that were gathered posted a threat to key infrastructure within reach of the ontoward activities.”


“Accordingly, the threat was eliminated to prevent the terrorists from unleashing terror on innocent civilians,” Mr Buba added, while accusing the villagers of harbouring sympathising with bandits.

The statement from Defence Headquarters contradicted the initial claim of an army general in Kaduna, who told state officials on Monday that the airstrikes followed a precision error by combat drones deployed against armed bandits operating in the area.

Kaduna government spokesman Samuel Aruwan said Valentine Okoro, a major-general leading the Nigerian Army 1 Division headquartered in Kaduna, had admitted at a meeting that the drone operators mistook the villagers for bandits, who have been terrorising the region. Those bombed had gathered for the Maulud celebration at about 9:00 p.m. Sunday, during which the army said terrorists were also suspected to be moving across the borders between Zamfara and Kaduna.

Yet the military headquarters in Abuja said the drone command observed the bandits mixed with villagers but dropped the bombs nonetheless.

“The NA UAV (Nigerian Army Unmanned Aerial Vehicle) detachment observed the movement of terrorists at Ligarma, a terrorist-infested area of Kaduna State,” he said.

The DHQ did not say how many bandits were included in the death toll, which military sources placed at 126 as of Monday afternoon. Villagers maintained all the people killed were civilians.

President Bola Tinubu left Nigeria on November 29 for a global climate conference in Dubai, and his spokespersons have not issued a statement about the development, which has driven nationwide uproar.

However, Mr Buba expressed regrets over civilian casualties and warned residents of hostile regions to be.

The airstrikes marked the first public knowledge about the army’s use of unmanned bombers outside the Nigerian Air Force, which had long been associated with repeated bombings of civilians, all of which were promptly attributed to operational mistakes. It was not immediately clear how long the Nigerian Army has been using drones without the knowledge of the Nigerian Air Force, which said it did not conduct any operation in the affected area over the past 24 hours.

“The NAF has not carried out any air operations within Kaduna State and environs in the last 24 hours,” Air Force spokesman Edward Gabkwet said in a statement to The Gazette. “Also, note that the NAF is not the only organisation operating combat armed drones in the North-Western region of Nigeria.”

In 2021, Peoples Gazette reported that the Nigerian Air Force Alpha jet, in an ariel attack on armed bandits in Niger State, mistakenly killed wedding guests. A similar bombing claimed over 100 civilians in January 2023.

Before then, the Nigerian Air Force, in an airstrike, killed some Nigerian soldiers, mistaking them for insurgents. A soldier in a video published by The Gazette was seen reporting the incident and called for help.

Read the Defence Headquarters’ full statement below:

PRESS RELEASE ON AIR STRIKE ON LIGARMA VILLAGE IN KADUNA STATE

1. On 3 Dec 2023, at about 2200hrs and based on ontoward activities by terrorist. The NA UAV detachment observed the movement of terrorists at Ligarma, a terrorist-infested area of Kaduna State. Aerial surveillance captured the movement of groups of persons synonymous with terrorist tactics and modus operandi.

2. The observed advance of the terrorists that was gathered posed a threat to key infrastructure within reach of the onward activities. Accordingly, the threat was eliminated to prevent the terrorists from unleashing terror on innocent civilians.

3. It should be noted that terrorist often deliberately embed themselves within civilian population centres in order for the civilian population to bear the consequences of their atrocities. Nevertheless, the Nigerian military does its best at all times to distinguish between civilians and terrorists.

4. The military views every civilian death in the cause of operations as a tragedy. Such tragedies are needless and unwanted that cause the armed forces to take measures to avoid them.

4. One such measure taken by the military is to continually give precise instructions to communities. For instance, communities are to always alert troops of their activities, particularly when such a community is known to be infested with terrorist and their sympathisers. These instructions are intended to enable the military to distinguish between friendly and untoward activities.

5. The armed forces will continue to operate consistent with international law as it always has done. It will also continue its determined and cautious progress in eradicating terrorists from our land.

6. These terrorists, as part of their tactics, disguise themselves as civilians to perpetrate terror. Accordingly, they will continue to find innovative solutions to the challenges faced in the conduct of operations.

EDWARD BUBA

Major General

Director Defence Media Operations

Haba! You can’t kill 126 innocent souls—a hundred and twenty-six civilians, and just call it a mistake. I can’t even remember a time when the troops killed such a number of terrorists anywhere in this country at once. @HQNigerianArmy Nigerians are waiting to hear from you how this ‘mistake’ will be corrected and what measures you’d put in place to prevent a recurrence.

You bombed hundreds of innocent people just last night in Kaduna. No single word was posted on this page to commiserate with victims and their families, but now you’re happily posting this nonsense, haba! So are you expecting us to join you in celebration or what? HUNDRED AND TWENTY-SIX WERE MURDERED.

When the author of Usefulness of Useless Knowledge, Donald Jordan, said “history is an aggregate of half-truths, semi-truths, fables, myths, rumours, prejudices, personal narratives, gossip and official prevarications,” he may have been frustrated by the historical contradictions of his time. And such inconsistencies have been the fate of history from time immemorial, making Karl Marx to observe that it first repeats itself as a tragedy, and later as farce.

While these observations rightly mirrored the status of past events, whether documented or oral, they nonetheless, didn’t dismiss the instructiveness of history. The latest debate on those who founded Lagos is yet another repetition of history, which gives room to distortion to suit interests and times.

Such a situation re-echoes the author of The War of the World: History’s Age of Hatred, Niall Ferguson, who said oral history is a recipe for complete misrepresentation.

The American scholar added that when it comes to oral history, almost no one tells the truth, even when they intend. That is a case of the Lagos question, which seems to have birthed many later-day historians, whose conceptions and interpretations contradicted generally accepted narratives on the subject. Since the storyline dates back centuries gone, the witnesses to that history are now history themselves, but there are those who qualified as custodians of that history. One of them is Her Royal Highness, Erelu Kuti IV of Lagos, Erelu Abiola Dosunmu, a direct descendant of the progenitors of Lagos kingship. Her bloodline alone makes her side on the origin of Lagos more authoritative than anyone else. In this interview, which was conducted when the same controversy came up a few years back, Erelu Dosunmu narrated the story of Lagos as handed down by her ancestors. The current debate was provoked by the Oba of Benin, Omo N’ Oba N’ Edo, Uku Akpolokpolo, Ewuare II, who restated what others had said in the past.

Oba Ewuare on a visit to Lagos said: “I cannot help but say that it is in history books that Benin founded Lagos. But when some people hear it now they go haywire that ‘what is the Oba saying?’ But it is true . Go and check the records. Maybe not all of Lagos as we know it now but certain areas in Lagos – maybe the nucleus -was founded by my ancestors. The Oba of Lagos will say so.”

Just as the monarch anticipated, the remark has reignited the controversy over who founded Lagos.

Are you not concerned about the controversy over the true aborigines of Lagos?

I would not say I am concerned because I know the truth. The history of Lagos is not obscure, it is very clear. If people are going to say the truth, we all know what the truth is.

A friend was saying to me if I was not sure there is no third party trying to take the rights of Lagos through this raging controversy. We all know the story of Lagos from childhood. Even a play was staged about the beginning of Lagos last year. I just know that the truth will surface after this raging controversy because a lot of the gladiators are being miserly in some of their discussions.

Can you give clarity on some of the things you consider not to be factual among those that have been said so far?

The territory of Lagos has always been an extension of the Benin Kingdom in the sense that they used it as a passage to the port for their trading and interaction with foreigners. We all know that foreigners visited the Benin Empire long before colonialism and signing of the treaty of Lagos.

This is their passageway and hunting ground. As soon as strangers came to settle down, they would pounce on them and make them pay royalties. Like all human beings, when you settle in a place for a long time, it is expected that you will have the right of ownership. And the foreigners were not ready to be subservient and refused to pay Isakole (royalty) and the Benin king did not take kindly to that. He sent an expedition and subjugated the foreigners and set up his own administration in form of a kingdom.

Therefore, when I say that we are purely and predominantly Benin, it is the truth. The royalty of Lagos is predominantly Benin. But we have all intermingled and have since inter-married with people from Yoruba land and people from other places. And we are enjoying the two cultures. We are even enjoying more because we now have Igbo, Hausa and other tribes settling in Lagos. We are not enjoying the Yoruba influence alone, we are also enjoying other influences.

Prior to the institution of the royalty with Oba Ado as the first king, who were the people that the Benin met on the ground?

The Benin has always known about Lagos because they considered it as part of their territory and they used it for many purposes. And when the Awori came from Ife to settle in the areas of Lagos, the Benin quickly got them to pay royalties. Benin was landlocked but, as Benin Empire, they were interacting with people from other parts of the world. It was Benin Empire and, when the Portuguese and others came, they also had to pass through the Kuramo waters to get there.

They had already laid claim to the land called Lagos. Whether they gave it a name or not, it was an extension of their playground. And when another group of people came to settle there, the Benin said they already had authority over the palace. That was what informed their decision to make the Awori pay royalties. And after paying the Isakole for a while, they (Awori) decided not to pay anymore. That made the Benin to decide not to leave a vacuum anymore and set up an administration.

That is why I am saying that there is no ambiguity in the history of Lagos if we are going to tell the truth. All these people, who have been talking, never mentioned that they paid Isakole but we all know that. It is written in books that they paid Isakole. That was the main reason the Benin came and took Olofin away. He refused to be subservient to them. The Benin came here because it is their territory.

There is evidence that an expedition was sent from Benin, there is evidence that they were conquered because there was an obaship in place. Even if they did not have anything and just sent an expedition to conquer, when someone conquers, he takes over the land and property of the conquered territory. Now, we want to unify our views and have a consensus so that those people, who are trying to take our rights away, can be confronted to see if we can get some kind of compensation for our children.

This is not the first time such controversy is raging, what do you think is responsible for its recurrence?

What I did at NIIA was to state that Oba Dosumu was an unsung hero. It was to state that the treaty for which he was being castigated was a masterstroke. He was a forward-looking king who had the interest of his people at heart. He did not allow his position to go into his head by allowing his subjects to be destroyed in a meaningless battle. He found a way to a roundtable discussion and was able to retain integrity for his kingdom, while still retaining the friendship of the colonial people.

There are many countries in Africa where people don’t remember their culture but he found a way to get a concession by which he was allowed to remain a king and sustain the culture and pride of his people as independent human begins. And the people actually enjoyed the benefits because they were able to carry British passports and get scholarships to study abroad. That is why a lot of early educated people were the indigenous people of Lagos. For example, people like the late Justice Elias, Justice Junaidu, and Prince Ajose were among the early educated people. Our fathers and grandfathers were all products of King’s College; they were either great bankers or doctors or pharmacists, etc. It is wrong to think that Lagos people are lazy. It is not the indigenous people of Lagos who are lazy, it is those who come from other places.

This kind of controversy happened before and it is here again. In the light of that, how can the issue be resolved because oral history is easily distorted and told to suit individual and group interests

If you don’t talk about issues, solutions may not be found. I think it is appropriate that we should discuss it. There should be this kind of conversation going on but, at the end of the day, a superior argument will carry the day. It is okay to take a story from wherever, but it is right to take it from the beginning and analyse it in a sensible way based on what our ancestors told us, what other people have written and what we learnt from our research. That is the best way instead of the jaundiced way it is being done now. We will get there. It is healthy that conversations will be going on, at the end of the day we will sit at a roundtable and harmonise our views. And whatever that is not clear, we will address it and come up with a consensus. We have had this kind of issue before on the story of the Eyo. The story is so clear but when the conversation started, people were attributing it to a princess from Badagry, but, at the end of the day, it was confirmed that the fetish came from the palace of the father of Queen Olugbani, wife of King Ado of Lagos.

But the colourful Aga is a creation of Oba Akisemoye of Lagos, the fetish was to protect them from the curious gaze of the people of Lagos. Strong young men in the neigbourhood were clad in white and given a stick to ward off anybody that wanted to interfere and they were called the Laba. That is why the Laba will always say that they are the head of the Eyo because they were the ones guarding the fetish until the early 1950s when the fetish felt they were not guarded properly by the Laba. Otherwise, Eyo, in the past, instead of the yellow Aga, was always red.

They were protecting the fetish but when the fetish felt the Laba was not protecting them anymore, they started having their own people to protect them with different colours of Aga. From there it expanded to the palaces of the white chiefs who started having their groups. It also expanded to groups formed by the Eyo Omo Oloku because, whenever there is an Eyo, it is always to honour departed obas.

The Eyo Omo Oloku can also come out in subsequent Eyos. So it kept getting bigger and definitely more colourful but it was a creation of the Oba of Lagos. The fetish was what was brought and the first Eyo was performed at the funeral of Queen Olugbani from where the fetish came from. But before we settled that matter, people told different stories. I believe this one will be resolved. The problem is even not with the indigenous people of Lagos, it is being caused by people who want to claim ownership by default. They are the ones who are actually fueling the controversy.

The Benin Kingdom is always a central factor in the history of Lagos and Oba Akiolu even acknowledged the place of the kingdom recently. Are there still some cultural activities that take place between the Lagos royalty and Benin royalty?

There is nothing stringent but there are still some courtesies that are exchanged between the two kingdoms. And if a new king is being crowned in Benin, the Oba of Lagos will have a vantage position as a son of the soil within the context of the ceremony. Apart from that, everybody is independent in his own right but we enjoy a lot of goodwill. Whatever is between us now is ceremonial and more of courtesies.

Since all these started, have you reached out to the dramatis personae?

I decided to talk because many people have called that, as the person who seems like a custodian of history and culture of Lagos for over 40 years, I should make a statement and reach out to everybody. I am talking because I want us to speak with one voice and not allow other people to take advantage of the situation. I am reaching out and hope that my views will throw more light on the issues. We are going to reach out to more people and iron these out behind closed doors rather than on the pages of newspapers.

On oral history…

When people talk about oral history, they also have to think of logic because if people rely on what they hear, they can never have a consensus. But logic must prevail. Time must also prevail because things are time-bound.

If, for instance, they are saying that a certain people were paying royalties to the Benin Kingdom and others said they had been there centuries before the Benin came, but the same person who was said to have landed first was the same person that the Benin captured, how many centuries can that be? How long do human beings live? If they are saying the same person who came the first time was captured by the Benin and then returned, how long can it be? A lifetime! Okay, he came as a young man and was captured as an old man? How many years are we talking about? I have read stories where they said some had been here for centuries and they are talking about the same original settlers. Therefore, common sense and time factor should also come into play when saying things based on oral history.

Renowned economist, Bismarck Rewane, has stated that the number of lunatics and mentally unstable people on the streets of Lagos State has increased due to the poverty and hardship inflicted by the Bola Tinubu-led Nigerian government and Babajide Sanwo-Olu’s administration in the state.

Rewane added that Nigerians had been pushed to the wall and “some of them walk across the road even in moving traffic.”

SaharaReporters earlier reported that the economist also noted that people were not interested in budgetary figures rolled out by the President Bola Tinubu-led government if the prices of basic commodities like rice, bread, and garri don’t go down.

Rewane, the Managing Director of Financial Derivatives Company Limited, made this known on Thursday during an interview on Channels TV.

He said, “You will notice that on the streets of Lagos in particular, the number of lunatics has increased and part of it is driven by poverty. Many mental health issues. People are pushed to the wall. Some of them walk across the road even in moving traffic.”

Earlier he had said, “In the end, budgetary arithmetics, budgetary mathematics in economics is of no use to anybody except when by this time, six months’ time, if we are buying rice at N40,000 a bag rather than N60,000 a bag, if we are buying bread N900 a big loaf instead of N1,300 which we are doing today. If we are buying garri at lower prices.

“The people are not interested in whether the budget is balanced and what the debt is. How does it (the budget) affect their day-to-day livelihood? That is the key thing.”
Rewane, analysing the budget proposal, said in the final analysis, the people are not interested in figures but want to feel the impact of the government’s economic policies as many are under pressure.

He added, “And as you know, prices are up and people are under tremendous pressure,” he said, adding that the rate of poverty in the country is driving people mad.”

raskymonojendor:

He is an Atiku's boy so he could have said it since you have refused to attach a twitter link.
Let me leave this thread so you an wail peacefully

Makoko slums is the world's largest floating slum. Located in Lagos Nigeria 🇳🇬 , it’s a city floating on water.