₦airaland Forum

Twenty-four hours after President Bola Tinubu unveiled plans to tackle factors responsible for food crisis, the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC), sealed Sahad Store, a popular supermarket in the Garki area of Abuja.

The management of the supermarket was accused of shortchanging customers by charging prices other than the price tag at the shelves.

The enforcement was led by FCCPC Acting Executive Vice Chairman, Adamu Ahmed Abdullahi.

Briefing journalists on the sidelines of the event, Abdullahi said the commission’s preliminary investigation confirmed that the management of the supermarket were short changing customers.

He said the store would remain sealed until the completion of the further investigation.

“What we have found out that these people are doing is misleading pricing and lack of transparency in the pricing, which is against Section 115 (3) of the law that says a consumer is not required to pay a price for any good or service higher than the one that’s on display.”

“Section 155 states that any corporate person that contravenes is liable to a fine of 100 million naira or even more and the directors of the company themselves are liable upon conviction payment of 10 million naira each or imprisonment of six months or both.

“What we have done today is to make sure that they comply with the law. We initially called them to come and defend themselves, but failed to show up. In the long run, they sent a lawyer whom we asked if he was familiar with the facts of the case. He said he wasn’t.

“To unseal the store, they have to make sure that they do what is required to be done.”

This comes after the Federal Government in collaboration with state governors agreed to set up a committee to tackle the issue of hoarding of produce in the country.

Minister of Information and National Orientation, Mohammed Idris, disclosed this after the meeting President Bola Tinubu held with governors, heads of Security Agencies and some ministers at the Presidential villa, Abuja, on Thursday.

Addressing State House correspondents, the information minister, who accused some traders of hoarding food products, said the security agencies had been mandated to liaise with governors to tackle the menace.

According to the minister, “Mr. President has agreed to set up a committee to deepen the conversation that has happened at the just-concluded meeting. Of course, you know that it is impossible to complete most of the issues that were raised at the meeting so it is going to be a continuous one. ⁣
⁣
“The National Security Adviser, the Director General of the state services, and the Inspector General of Police have been directed to coordinate with the state governors to look at the issue of those hoarding commodities. ⁣

“At this point, the nation requires foods to be brought out to the people so that we can control prices and put food on the table of most Nigerians. Other commodity traders are busy hoarding these commodities so that Nigerians will suffer or they will make more money as a result. ⁣
⁣
“So the governors and Mr. President have taken this decision that security agencies will collaborate with the state governors to ensure that this ends.”

• Actual pump price hits N1,202.7/litre

• Over 90 licensed marketers abandon petrol import as deregulation flops

• Truck drivers may suspend operations as diesel rises to N1,400/litre

• Price control unsettles Dangote, other local refineries

Notwithstanding denials from government, Nigeria is paying about N907.5 billion

subsidy on premium motor spirit (PMS) otherwise called petrol monthly as the

depreciation of the naira has pushed the actual cost of litre of fuel to N1,202.7.

Owing to unresolved price differential, over 90 marketers, who were licensed to import petroleum products into the country have been unable to bring in any products almost nine months after President Bola Tinubu announced the deregulation of the downstream segment of the petroleum industry.

Amid these concerns, the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), which distributes petroleum products across the country, told The

Guardian yesterday that they have concluded plans to down tools as they demand double of the existing transportation allowance, which is ordinarily meant to be determined by market forces.

As the price of diesel moves upward to about N1,400 per litre, NARTO said the cost of diesel from Lagos to Abuja has jumped to N1.4 million compared to the

N600,000 it was mid-last year.

With the resumption of the Port-Harcourt Refinery yet to materialise, there are indications that the price control by the government despite deregulation would

frustrate Dangote Refinery and others who are now relying on imported crude oil for processing.

As of the fifth week of the year, when the crude oil price was around $78 per barrel, PMS Eurobob delivered to West Africa was $820.27 per tonne. There are 1000 litres in every tonne, which brings the landing price of petrol per litre in Nigeria to $0.8. Going by the official exchange rate of N1,503.4 to a dollar, the landing price of a litre of PMS should cost N1,202.7. Without other transportation fragments and marketers’ margin, the Federal Government is currently paying about N585.5 subsidy on every litre of petrol.

With the country’s daily consumption dropping from about 65 million litres per day to about 50 million litres, the N585.5 per litre subsidy would be N29.28 billion per day and about N907.5 billion monthly.

Across most West African countries, the price of petrol now hovers between N2,000 and N1,400. Yesterday in Cameroon, a litre of PMS was N2,011; in the Benin Republic, it was N1,633. In Togo, it was N1,680 per litre while it sold for N1,500 per litre in Ghana. It was N2,080 in Mali and N2,042 in Burkina Faso.

Coming at a time when the International Monetary Fund (IMF) is asking Tinubu to remove petrol and electricity subsidies, a confirmation of the position of The Guardian and stakeholders that the government is paying subsidies, marketers, who spoke yesterday, said a crisis is looming in the downstream segment of the petroleum industry. In mid-August, Tinubu stated that despite the deregulation of the downstream
market, the pump price would remain unchanged, as there are no immediate plans to raise fuel prices.

As at the last week of August, PMS was trading for $1,030.11 per metric tonne at the international market compared with the $859.25 it traded around July when

NNPC increased the pump price to an average of N617 per litre. As of the first week of February 2024, while the price came down to $820 per ton, naira had witnessed a free fall that pushed the price of the commodities to about two times of its subsidised cost.

Without any budgetary allocation in the 2023 appropriation, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has been the sole importer. Generating over 80 per cent of the foreign exchange, NNPCL imports the products at preferred exchange rate and retails to other marketers.

The expenses, that were not covered by budgetary allocation, are recorded as under-recovery in NNPC’s books.

The President of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Abubakar Shettima, said most of his members who are licensed can import and sell at the current rate.

According to him, the government should create a level playing field and provide foreign exchange at the same level the NNPC is accessing it.

“We have not imported a litre since we got licenses,” Shettima said, adding that “only NNPC is importing”.

Last year, the Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Midstream Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, Farouk Ahmed, noted that the federal government was considering options that would sustainably address the concerns of the sector and offered 90 licenses for the marketer to import products.

“NNPC has assured of supply and also the marketers have expressed their concerns about the availability of foreign exchange to enable them to import.

“We as regulators continue to say the market is open for everyone. We have issued licenses to all those who have applied to over 90 marketing companies.

“We have given them access to all the required support that they needed to ensure there is a constant supply of petrol products in the country,” Ahmed said.

President of NARTO, Othman Yusuf, sai transportation of petroleum products across the country is under threat and would be suspended as the environment is

UDOKABESTLUV:
Source: https://www.google.com/amp/s/www.vanguardngr.com/2024/02/hardship-court-remands-ondo-tailor-for-stealing-pot-of-soup/amp/

Hundreds of Nigerians are currently protesting in Ughelli, Delta State, against unchecked police brutality and extortion from Nigerian youths.

In a video of the protest seen by SaharaReporters, the protesters are calling on the leadership of the Nigeria Police Force, the Police Service Commission, and "all lovers of the country to rein in on police personnel who have turned themselves into armed robbers in uniform" with the backing of corrupt senior officers who share the loot with them.

@KomeNicee, who shared the video of the protest on social media, said that police brutality has become rampant in the state.

She wrote: "Heavy protest ongoing in Ughelli against police brutality which has become rampant!!"

Meanwhile, the Delta State Police Command has warned Nigerian youths to desist from the protest, insisting that no amount of their protest would deter the police from performing its constitutional duties.

The Command's spokesman DSP Edafe Bright, explained the reasons behind the ongoing protest.

"Regarding the ongoing protest in Ughelli, the Command wishes to inform members of the public that yesterday 13th February 2024, policemen from Ughelli Area Command intercepted an unregistered Benz GLK without a plate number in Ekuigbo community. The men confronted the four boys who could not establish ownership of the car.

"In an attempt to arrest them, some of the youths attacked the police, destroyed their vehicle, and broke the head of one of the officers."

Following the unprovoked attack, Edafe said nine of the suspects were arrested, adding "they will be charged to court. Youths are advised to stay off any protest because it won't deter us from doing our job."

The Presidency on Monday described Nigeria as a “very very poor” country, given its low per capita income, compared to other African nations.
“Nigeria is a very very poor country, to be honest. I think our wealth is overestimated,” Special Adviser on Information and Strategy to the President, Mr Bayo Onanuga, said when he appeared as a Special Guest on Arise TV’s Prime Time.

While answering a question on the state of Nigeria’s economy and the administration’s efforts to ensure stability, the presidential aide said, “I think we have a poor estimation of the wealth of the country, we are a very poor country.”

He added that with the removal of subsidies on petrol and the unification of the exchange rate, the administration “is hoping that the pressure on our finances will reduce.”
Onanuga also refuted claims that the Tinubu-led government still owes emoluments to its federal workers.

“The office of the AGF has said there is a challenge with the platform being used to disburse the salaries.

“According to a briefing I got this morning, yes, salaries were delayed, but all federal workers have been paid,” he stated.

General Overseer of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG), Pastor Enoch Adeboye, says Nigeria’s problems require spiritual solution.

Adeboye, who was in Kaduna, expressed confidence that though the problems seem to have persisted and in some areas getting worse, they will not last forever.
He also said his tour of Nigeria, which brought him to Kaduna, was not just to organize crusade and pray for the people, but an opportunity to gather people together to let them know that “tomorrow is going to be alright if Nigerians can be a little more patient with God”.

“I have come again this time around because it is has become more and more clearer to us that, the problems our nation is facing is more than political. Our problems will require quiet a bit of spiritual solution.


“We as a country are blessed; we are blessed with people with great intelligence, we are blessed with all manners of resources and yet we have so many problems.
“And it is not as if people in authority are not trying their best; they are doing as much as humanly possible. And then we found out that when you have problems that are beyond human ability to solve them, then, you call on the Almighty. The reason we call Him Almighty is because He has the power to solve all problems.” he said.

The pastor said as much as leaders were doing their very best to help solve the country’s problems, they seem to have persisted and in some areas, got worse.
“That is why we have been going round holding crusade and the crusade are just a means of gathering people together to let them know tomorrow is going to be all right if we can be a little more patient with God.

“We believe very strongly that people need this kind of encouragement, so that they don’t lose hope. Because when they lose hope, they do all kinds of strange things; many of our youths for example are running out of the country, forgetting that those countries they are running to also have their own problems and then those who cannot run anywhere, we don’t want a situation where people begin to think of taking their own lives,” he said.

In his response, Governor Uba Sani, said President Bola Ahmed Tinubu led government needs prayers and support of clerics like Adeboye to succeed.
According to Governor Sani, Adeboye had, at different times, led interventions aimed at directing the political leadership to the path of justice and fairness.

“We also believe sir, that from the remarks you made just now, that our country at this critical time requires intervention from people like you who are tested and who have in the past intervened and helped us to find solutions to our problems. We believe you won’t be tired, we also need an intervention at this critical time.

“Like you said, many Nigerians are loosing hope and they have been very cautious about the future but like I said, we are going through difficulties because of what happened in the past and right now we have a President who is determined and focused and ready to take the country to a greater height and I have no doubt, with your intervention and prayers, our President will certainly get it right,” Gov Sani said.
beyond political.

February 9, 2024

Press Statement

Leaked SGF N1bn Memo: @officialABAT Presidency is a Cesspit of Corruption-@OfficialPDPNig
…Demands @nassnigeria Investigation.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) condemns the reported approval of a whooping N500 million as first installment of a N1billion allegedly approval by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu for the inauguration of the a 37-man Tripartite Committee on New National Minimum Wage as reportedly contained in a leaked memo by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Senator George Akume.

The PDP describes the said approval of the huge amount for a routine government activity like committee inauguration as the height of profligacy, imprudence and financial recklessness which further validates PDP’s position that the Tinubu-led government is a cesspit of corruption where officials engage in brazen and reckless treasury-looting.

It is highly provocative and unpardonable that at the time the nation is suffering acute food shortage; when millions of Nigerians are starving due largely to inadequate investment in food production, insecurity and harsh economic policies of the government; a time when workers are still being owed their January 2024 salary and other legitimate entitlements, President Tinubu is allegedly spending NI billion to inaugurate a committee.

It is even more revealing that the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, allegedly requested for an audacious sum of N1.8 billion for the event which was later scaled down to N1 billion, out of which President Tinubu reportedly directed the SGF to “start with N500 million first”.

This further shows that the APC administration is insensitive and has no regard for the plight of Nigerians, whom President Tinubu, during his 2024 budget presentation at the National Assembly described as “ordinary people out there”.

Nigerians can now also see how our national treasury and funds meant for their wellbeing are being looted with reckless abandon by officials of the Tinubu-led APC administration.

This is apparently a tip of the iceberg of how looters in the APC administration are cashing out with public funds under the cover of the Presidency as witnessed in the reported plundering of over N44 billion in the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation.

The PDP calls out the Tinubu Presidency to speak out, come clean and address the nation on this very weighty allegation especially at this time when Nigerians are undergoing excruciating economic hardship.

Our Party demands that the National Assembly, pursuant to its powers under Section 88 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) immediately commence investigation into this matter which is already agitating the minds of Nigerians across the country.

Signed:

Hon. Debo Ologunagba
National Publicity Secretary

iwaeda:
Tinubu will take care of economy. Dollar is the basis of our economy, because we import virtually everything. Every bad policies are driving away in flow of foreign investments and dollars. Now they want to pay money paid abroad with Naira. If you support evil, it will still roll back to you. I am afraid things we get tougher.

The total value of transactions recorded at the official Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market fell from $465.29m on Tuesday and $203.93m on Wednesday, data obtained from FMDQ Exchange showed on Thursday.

This indicates a 56 per cent drop in the value of transactions recorded on the FMDQ platform which records volume and value of transactions on NAFEM, the official FX market.

This drop in FX transaction came on the heels of a steady increase in the value of FX transactions on the platform, following a series of circulars issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria.

The CBN had last week issues circulars compelling banks to sell their excess dollar holdings, among others.


It also issued directives asking banks and FX dealers to report correct and transparent FX trading data.

Meanwhile, the naira fell by 1.4 per cent to the dollar at the parallel market on Thursday, following strong demand for dollars.

It traded at the rate of N1,480/$, N20 weaker than N1,460/$ quoted on Wednesday at the black market.


Bureau De Change operators speaking with The PUNCH said the rate had remained on a steady increase throughout the week.

Abdulahi Taura, a BDC operator, said the dollar was rising owing to a consistent demand for the greenback.


“The dollar has increased to N1,480. People are still demanding it and that’s why it’s increasing.”

Another BDC operator, Ibrahim Yahu, said the greenback was sold at the closing rate of N1,482.

“Today, we closed at the rate of N1,482 to the dollar. If there is no demand, prices will certainly come down but our consistent thirst for the dollar is making it to rise gradually against the naira.”

At the official market, the naira further weakened against the United States dollar, according to data posted on the FMDQ Exchange website.

The Federal Government has expressed concern over the continuous rise in the prices of food and other commodities, prompting protests in Niger and Kano.

The Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Olawale Edun, addressed a bilateral meeting with a visiting German delegation led by the country’s Minister of Economic Cooperation and Development (BMZ), Svenja Shulze, in Abuja on Monday.

Edun explained that the situation, which has sparked growing discontent among the citizenry, was driven by the forces of demand and supply in the country.

Worried by the increasing price of commodities, some youths and women resented what they perceived as the mass purchase of food items for hoarding and exporting outside the country.

The state government blamed food speculators for the protests.

The police noted they used “minimum force” to disperse protesters who blocked the Minna-Bida Road and arrested some whose activities were obstructing vehicular and human movement.

Similarly, Kano State Governor, Abba Yusuf, lamented on Monday that many people in his state were living in misery amid starvation and acute hunger.

Yusuf said inflation had terribly outpaced incomes, resulting in deaths, as several residents could not cope with the rising cost of living.

In response to current realities, Edun said the only way to address the situation was to boost agricultural production, in particular, to force down inflation.

Speaking alongside Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Doris Uzoka-Anite, Edun said, “I think the issue of rising prices is of concern to the government and everybody in Nigeria,” and some major steps were being taken to address the situation.

He said, “It is the issue of demand and supply and a lot of emphasis has been placed on increasing agricultural production, in particular.

“The president has intervened in that sector to provide grain, fertilisers to farmers and to bring additional acreage, rice, wheat, maize, and cassava – to increase the output and thereby bring down prices and that will help bring down inflation.

“And, of course, we are in the middle of the dry season farming and we are looking forward to a good dry season harvest that will ameliorate price, in particular, and the price level in Nigeria, in general.”

Edun highlighted that the partnership with Germany presents an opportunity for skills development between both parties, emphasizing its potential to enhance job creation and alleviate poverty.

While corroborating Edun, Uzoka-Anite said the partnership with Germany was aimed at developing Nigeria’s Small and Medium-sized Enterprises (SMEs) subsector.

She added that a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) would soon be signed by both countries in this regard to improve access to finance for women-owned enterprises.

The minister said the collaboration will further enhance talent acquisition and challenge, and develop renewable energy, in line with Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda, which partly aimed at industrialising the country.

She said supporting the SMEs could add about 55 per cent to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), adding that though both countries currently have strong mutually beneficial relationship, it could get better.

On her part, Shulze said both countries had established cooperation in common interest, pointing out that there are currently over 90 German companies operating in Nigeria.

She attested to the abundance of creative young talents in the country, saying Nigeria’s security challenges can only be addressed by tackling the underlying causes, including jobs and education, rather than militarily.

She stressed that Germany was looking to deepen its cooperation with Nigeria.

The federal government through the Minister of Agriculture and Food Security, Abubakar Kyari, had earlier announced the government had commenced the massive production of food crops to bring down the prices of food items across the country.

He said the target of the government was to reduce food inflation, describing it as the major reason for the high rate of inflation in Nigeria’s economy.

Kyari disclosed this to journalists after hosting the Governor of Jigawa State, Umar Namadi, at the headquarters of the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security in Abuja.

Melagros:
COMRADES, this apc government mumu ooh, na Atiku be their problem? Fix the economy and stop the blame game. Nonsense

nwekeugochukwu:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HDRnX7IYEws?si=BN2SUPfFw_iA1rQc

The Federal Government has announced its plan to reform the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) to make it a revenue-generating agency.

The Minister of Youth Development, Jamila Bio-Ibrahim, disclosed this while speaking on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics programme.

Asked if there were immediate plans to increase the monthly allowance of corps members, the minister said the Federal Government was working on reforming the NYSC scheme to reflect the present realities of the nation.


“We all understand that resources are dwindling, even oil revenues are not as they used to be but we will find innovative ways of ensuring that corps members’ welfare is well-taken care of.

“When it comes to remuneration and looking totally at the holistic funding of the NYSC, we have announced a reform of the NYSC scheme itself. So, we want the scheme to go beyond that social programme of government to be that revenue-generating scheme and agency.

“The reforms which transform the NYSC into a revenue-generating agency and prepare the corps members for the job market and to be decently and gainfully employed or to be employers of labour through entrepreneurship and of course, perfect matching into primary assignment and all the support they need in that career path.”


She also disclosed that corps members were no longer posted to states deemed unsafe in the wake of worsening security conditions in the country.


“As an immediate intervention of the government and the NYSC as an agency, we have actually stopped posting corps members to the very unsafe states.

Barely 24 hours after it increased the Customs exchange rate to N1, 356.883 per dollar on Friday, the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, has Saturday morning once again jerked up the rate to N1, 413.62.

The new rate has since been reflected on the Customs trade portal. The increase was vehemently opposed by importers and Customs brokers when it first increased Customs import duty rate by 43 percent on Friday.

Describing the increase as devastating, the Chief Executive Officer of the Centre for the Promotion for Private Enterprise, CPPE, Dr. Muda Yusuf said The drastic upward review of the exchange rate for the computation of import duty from N952 to N1,413.62 would have a negative effect on businesses across all sectors. This is a whopping 42.5% increase. This is like the last straw.

He stated that businesses are yet to recover from the shocks of the new round of currency devaluation resulting from the sudden unification of the exchange rate which has driven the official exchange rate to about N1400.

He said: “It is double jeopardy for the investors across all sectors especially those in the real sector. This action will further fuel inflation as production and operating costs get escalated. The vulnerable segments of the population will be further impoverished as cost push inflation gets exacerbated.

“CPPE appeals to the CBN to reverse this rate hike in the interest of the already impoverished segments of our society and the numerous businesses that are already on the verge of collapse.

“The shocks, disruptions and dislocations are of immense proportions. It is even worse that the rates take immediate effect. This is a policy action that is difficult to justify, especially in the context of the multidimensional headwinds that businesses are grappling with.

“The CPPE recommends that, going forward, the determination of the exchange rate for import duty computation should be treated as a fiscal policy matter and located within the remit of the fiscal authorities which is the finance ministry. This is necessary for proper alignment with extant fiscal policies.

Alhaji Tanko Ibrahim, the National Coordinator of the National Association of Government Approved Freight Forwarders(NAGAFF) told our reporter that the apex bank is not yet done with its fiddling with the Customs exchange rate as it plans to increase it again soon to N1500 per dollar.

”I heard from the grapevine that the CBN plans to push the Customs exchange rate to as high as N1,500 per dollar. That is their target and they are going to do it soon” he claimed.

The agitated stakeholders were still discussing the impact of Friday’s increase before they were once again hit by yet another hike which commentators feared may lead to the collapse of the import business and difficulty of the Nigeria Customs Service to meet its N5.1 trillion revenue target for 2024.

An angry stakeholder who reacted to the latest increase said the development has portrayed the present government as insensitive.

He said: ” The whole situation has given away this government as insensitive to the plight of Nigerians.

“While we are still discussing the implications of Friday’s increase and how it is going to impact the lives of the ordinary Nigerians, this government went ahead to slam yet another increase.

“I don’t know why a government can be so cruel and insensitive the irate freight forwarder lamented.”