Africans do not be foolish to export raw materials to Beijing, rather, use this time to bargain well with Beijing. I hope the leaders will be smart enough
Image123: The Senate did not ban electronic transmission of results. They did not say elections must be rigged. They did not wake up one morning and decide to “destroy democracy.” What they did was refuse to pass a rigid, one size fits all provision that mandates real time electronic transmission from every polling unit in a country as complex as Nigeria.
And that matters.
Nigeria is not just Abuja, Lagos, or Portharcourt with strong network coverage. We have riverine communities, border villages, forests, hills, places where even making a phone call is an adventure. To pretend those realities do not exist is not progressive. It is performative.
The Senate’s position, whether people like it or not, is rooted in practical governance. They want INEC to deploy technology where it works, improve infrastructure, strengthen backups, and avoid a situation where elections are automatically invalidated because of network failure rather than the will of voters.
That is not anti democracy. That is caution.
What worries me, to be honest, is how quickly we now equate disagreement with bad faith. If you question the method, you are suddenly an enemy of the people. If you ask about logistics, security, hacking risks, or rural inclusion, you are accused of planning to rig 2027. That kind of thinking is dangerous.
Law making is not activism. It requires patience, foresight, and an understanding that laws must work for the entire country, not just the loudest voices online or at the gates of the National Assembly.
Yes, technology should be part of our elections. Absolutely. But forcing a fragile system into law without fixing the underlying problems is how you create chaos, endless litigations, and disputed outcomes.
Sometimes leadership is not about yielding to pressure. It is about taking decisions that are unpopular today but stable tomorrow.
We can demand better elections without burning down the institutions meant to deliver them.
Democracy is not weakened by debate. It is weakened when we stop thinking.
#copied
We are Nigerians and we know what average politician will do especially when you tell him or her to make laws that will affect him/her. If you don't keep them on their toes, you won't get the best from them.
Image123: Is he supposed to take the blame? Is INEC not supposed to be independent? Is he to transfer money to INEC to get internet in all over 176000 polling units for[b] mandatory transmission?
Yes, he must take the blame because the legislators make the law. If INEC is really independent then they should be allowed to make their law. [/b]
...and as a typical Nigerian politician, he shifts the blame to INEC and insecurity...OK, so INEC over to you. What amazes me is that those 9 states have governors, Senators, and House of Rep members...wtf are they doing about the network?
AhmedPeacemaker: The Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), Bayo Ojulari, has revealed that Nigeria’s state-owned refineries were operating at what he described as a “monumental loss”, forcing his management team to halt operations to stop further financial damage to the country.
Ojulari made the disclosure on Wednesday in Abuja during a fireside chat titled “Securing Nigeria’s Energy Future” at the Nigeria International Energy Summit 2026, where he offered a rare and blunt assessment of the operational and commercial realities of the nation’s refining assets.
The NNPC boss acknowledged widespread public frustration over the refineries, noting that Nigerians had every reason to be upset considering the huge public funds invested over the years.
“On the refineries, Nigerians were angry. A lot of money has been spent, and expectations were very high. So we were under extreme pressure, extreme pressure,” he said.
Naija News reports that Nigeria’s four state-owned refineries, Port Harcourt (two plants), Warri and Kaduna, have consumed billions of dollars in rehabilitation and turnaround maintenance costs over decades, yet have largely failed to deliver sustained output. Ojulari admitted that refining was not his area of expertise when he assumed office, having spent most of his professional career in the upstream oil sector.
“My background is upstream, so I was on a vertical learning curve. You are accountable, so you must learn very quickly. Otherwise, there is no escape,” he said.
According to him, accountability demanded a rapid and honest assessment of the refineries once his team settled in.
‘We Were Running At A Monumental Loss’ Ojulari said the true financial condition of the refineries became clear almost immediately after a detailed operational review.
“The first thing that became clear, and I want to say this very clearly, is that we were running at a monumental loss to Nigeria. We were just wasting money. I can say that confidently now,” he declared.
He explained that NNPC was feeding crude oil cargoes into the refineries monthly, yet utilisation hovered between 50 and 55 per cent, resulting in severe value erosion.
“We were spending a lot of money on operations, a lot of money on contractors. But when you look at the net, we were just leaking away value,” he said.
More worrying, Ojulari said, was the absence of any credible plan to reverse the losses.
“Sometimes you make a loss during investment, but you have a line of sight to recovery. That line of sight was not clear here,” he noted. This lack of clarity, he said, made continued operations economically unjustifiable. Ojulari revealed that halting refinery operations was one of the first major decisions taken by his administration.
“We decided to stop the refinery and do a quick check. We planned that if things were lined up, we would reopen and work on them,” he said.
According to him, shutting down the facilities was necessary to prevent further losses while reassessing their viability.
The NNPC chief further disclosed that part of the losses stemmed from the quality of products being produced, citing the Port Harcourt Refinery as an example.
“The crude we were taking into Port Harcourt was producing mid-grade products. When you aggregate their value compared to what you put in, it was a waste,” he said.
Ojulari acknowledged that the decision to halt operations was politically sensitive, given longstanding pressure on NNPC to keep refineries running to ensure fuel supply.
“There were political pressures to keep the refinery product, lots of pressure. But when you have been trained for over 35 years to focus on commerciality and profitability, you can’t sleep with that,” he said.
Nigeria’s refineries have for decades operated far below capacity, at times running at single-digit utilisation or shutting down entirely. This has forced Africa’s largest oil producer to rely heavily on imported refined petroleum products.
Between 2015 and 2023, successive administrations approved multiple rehabilitation contracts worth billions of dollars, yet domestic refining output remained negligible, intensifying public scrutiny of NNPC’s efficiency.
Ojulari’s remarks represent one of the most candid admissions by an NNPC chief executive that continued refinery operations, under existing conditions, were economically unsustainable. The comments underscore a broader shift within NNPC, under the Petroleum Industry Act, toward enforcing commercial discipline, even in politically sensitive areas such as domestic refining.
I'm just trying hard not to laugh...the same man that said the refinery will be sold, then ate back his words, then he's saying this...let's watch out,
Moderator101: United States Senator, Riley Moore has cleared the air on reports alleging that the US is planning to divide Nigeria.
In a statement on Saturday, the lawmaker said though he was in Nigeria and engaged in multiple high-level meetings with government officials, the discussion of dividing the country never came up.
He stated that in all the discussions, the idea of “dividing the country has not come up in any serious way”.
Until we deal with corruption in the power sector and we have leaders that will have the will-power to not just know what is right but to do what is right no matter whose Ass is gored, then we will still be dancing makossa with darkness
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rIAmTT4KqlE Popular nightlife entrepreneur and influencer, Cubana Chief Priest, has explained that his continued loyalty to the All Progressives Congress (APC) is, in his view, the most effective way to support detained IPOB leader, Nnamdi Kanu—from within government rather than from the opposition.
Speaking candidly, the social media personality said aligning with the ruling party gives him better access and influence to push for causes he cares about. “I no fit help Maazi Nnamdi Kanu from opposition. I have always been an APC,” he said. “My father, Governor Hope, has worked hard on APC for me not to support him as DG Renewed Hope.”
Cubana Chief Priest revealed that despite his past political choices, his current stance is firmly with the APC and President Bola Tinubu. He noted that during the last general election, he worked for Labour Party presidential candidate, Peter Obi, in his capacity as a Special Adviser to Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State.
“Last election, as Special Adviser to Governor Hope, I worked for Peter Obi, but this time I dey with Asiwaju,” he added.
The entrepreneur also announced his intention to contest for a seat in the Federal House of Representatives in 2027 under the APC platform, describing his political ambition as a deliberate move to influence change from within the system...
The political rift between the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, and Oyo State Governor, Seyi Makinde, deepened on Monday night as the former Rivers State governor openly declared his interest in the activities of the Oyo State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).
Wike made the declaration while speaking at the party’s 105th National Executive Committee (NEC) meeting held in Abuja, where he also pledged to defend the PDP against what he described as internal “vampires” bent on undermining the party.
Both Wike and Makinde were members of the influential G5 governors bloc ahead of the 2023 general elections, but their alliance collapsed shortly after the polls, giving way to a sustained power struggle within the party.
Addressing party leaders and stakeholders, Wike said his interest in Oyo PDP was rooted in his broader concern for the party’s national stability and success.
“Let me declare my interest clearly: I am interested in the survival and success of this party. I am also interested in all the happenings in Oyo State PDP. That is all I am interested in,” he said.
The minister insisted that his position should not be misinterpreted as an attempt to intimidate any faction, stressing that recent court rulings had strengthened the standing of the PDP’s current leadership structure.
Speaking on the lingering leadership crisis within the party, Wike said those opposing the Abdulrahman Mohammed-led Caretaker Committee had exhausted their legal options.
“The legal battle has collapsed. They have no option but to recognise the Caretaker Committee,” he stated.
He accused some party members of attempting to control the PDP across the 36 states and the FCT for personal gain, describing them as “vampires” feeding off the party’s internal divisions.
Wike said the way was now clear for the Caretaker Committee to steer the PDP towards its long-awaited elective national convention.
“We are waiting for the Caretaker Committee to give direction on the next steps, especially to ensure that congresses already due are conducted, after which we move to the National Convention,” he said.
In a broader message to party faithful, Wike cautioned against what he termed a “charity mentality” in politics, urging members to build structures at the grassroots rather than depend solely on sitting governors for relevance.
“Go to the wards. Go to the polling units. Go to the grassroots. Forget the idea that this is a charity organisation,” he said. “Some people believe that if you do not have a sitting governor, then you are nothing. Who told them that? I was not a governor when I became governor.”
While acknowledging appeals by the PDP Board of Trustees (BoT) and the National Working Committee (NWC) for a cessation of hostilities, Wike warned that peace within the party must be matched with vigilance.
“Yes, the BoT has appealed for peace. Yes, the NWC has appealed for peace. That is their responsibility. But those of us following the process must be extremely careful,” he said.
Despite the internal tensions, Wike maintained that the PDP remains a formidable political force, urging leaders and members to draw on their collective experience to overcome current challenges...
Politics › Re: Cubana Chief Priest Shuts Down Hometown For City Boy Movement by Omalicious1: 7:37am On Feb 17
