NigerianMuse Articles

Nine die as MEND attacks Atlas Cove

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 22:37:42 -0400

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GUARDIAN

July 14, 2009

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Nine die as MEND attacks Atlas CoveBy Yakubu Lawal(Deputy Energy Editor), Alex Olise and Taiwo Hassan

A NEW dimension was added to the armed struggle of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta (MEND) last Sunday night extended its theatre of battle to Lagos, Nigeria's commercial nerve centre, with an attack on an offloading jetty gantry and Naval base that left about nine people dead and property damaged.

An unconfirmed report said three three Naval personnel-an officer and two ratings- as well as six civilians lost their lives.

The Guardian gathered that MEND used dynamite in the operation which also left Naval offices shattered and windows smashed.

It was also learnt that the incident which occurred at about 8.00 p.m. affected the main manifold of the Atlas Cove jetty gantry used for offloading of imported petroleum products as well as vessel onsite.

The militants were said to have come in three speed boats and after about an hour gun battle, they wreaked the havoc on the oil receptor facilities as well as the Naval office at Lagos Naval dockyard.

A statement by MEND's spokesman, Jomo Gbomo, said: "A boardroom or creek battle of epic proportion which will either emancipate the Niger Delta from over 50 years of tyranny or subject her to perpetual slavery was flagged off tonight by Hurricane Moses with a plague of warning attacks.

"Led by a pillar of fire, heavily armed MEND fighters today, Sunday, July 12, 2009 at about 2230 Hrs carried out an unprecedented attack on the Atlas Cove Jetty in Lagos State. The depot and loading tankers moored at the facility are currently on fire.

"The two-pronged approach of combining dialogue and intensifying attacks throughout the course of negotiations, will be the unique characteristics of Moses.

"The Aaron team that will be put together after due consultations with stake holders from around the globe, militant commanders and Henry Okah, will present the time framed demands of the Niger Delta region to the President through the Timi Alaibe-led Federal Government of Nigeria delegation.

"MEND will as usual update the public on the progress being made as well as plagues being delivered.

"We want to assure our people and well wishers that we will not sell our birth right for a bowl of porridge because we are not committed to anyone but the people of the Niger Delta

"The mother of all plagues will be used as a last resort if the Nigerian Pharaohs show stubbornness over reasoning just as Moses did with the plague on the firstborn in ancient Egypt and the Americans with the plague of the atomic bomb in Hiroshima and Nagasaki.

"We sincerely hope for the sake of avoiding a total calamity that Egypt will not harden its heart and the exodus of our people to the promised land can commence as soon as possible.

"God save Nigeria. God bless the Niger Delta. God bless our Freedom Fighters."

Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) officials who visited the scene of the incident yesterday morning told The Guardian that oil operations have been suspended at the Atlas Cove Jetty/Depot as activities for receiving petroleum products have been shifted to Apapa depot.

"We cannot pump fuel to our other depot now; it is also not possible to receive fuel through Atlas Cove jetty because of destruction to the main mani-fold... we have directed other import vessels to Apapa jetty," an NNPC source said.

The Guardian learnt that one of the security men at the jetty is missing.

The NNPC official who spoke on the basis of anonymity said a vessel was discharging fuel into the Atlas Cove Depot when the incident occurred.

Speaking with reporters at the scene yesterday, the NNPC's Group Managing Director, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi Barkindo, said that it was unfortunate that militant groups have shifted their activities to the onshore sector of the nation's petroleum industry.

He explained that the attack on the NNPC facility would not stall the distribution of petroleum products nationwide, assuring that the corporation has enough stock of products.

He said that this was the first time in the history of Atlas Cove that an attack of such a magnitude occurred.

He said that the workers of the corporation were moved to Bonny Camp for safety.

His words: "Last night at about 11.50 pm, we were contacted in Calabar, where we have converged with our management staff in the management's retreat on the way forward with the industry reforms. And shortly after dinner, we got an alarm call from our colleagues here in Atlas Cove that some unfortunate incident was going on at that time. And of course, we immediately began to get in touch with authorities including the Chief of Naval Staff, the NPA, Lagos State Government and other agencies for them to arrange for a rapid response, first of all, to save lives of our staff who are on duty and other military personnel particularly the Navy, and the security of this facility which is more or less one of the key sources of supply and distribution of petroleum products in the country.

"Reports reaching us up to the wee hours of this morning were that the staff of NNPC who were on duty were safely evacuated to Bonny Camp Military Mess. No live was lost; we thank God for that. And the fire itself at the facility was finally put off around 4:10 am.

"Fellow comrades and countrymen, as far as we are concerned, this is the first time that this type of incident has happened in Atlas Cove and its environment. Therefore, literally, almost everybody concerned was taken by a big surprise, because this facility has been secured on 24 hours basis, seven days a week, we have never had any incident. We have had excellent relations with the surrounding community here who have been extremely helpful to us as a corporation. But it is unfortunate that this incident has happened. I therefore would like to use this opportunity to condole (with) our Chief of Naval Staff for the loss of his gallant personnel."

In his own remarks, the Chief of Naval Staff, Ishaya Ibrahim, said that the attack was a surprise to him, pledging that security at the jetty would be strengthened to protect the facility.

He noted that the oil and gas sector was the economic energy of the nation, stressing that the militants should graciously receive the amnesty offered to them by President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua.

Ibrahim, however, said the Navy lost two men.

The leader of Julius Berger Nigeria Plc Vessel team that put out the fire yesterday, Captain Geofrey Boukoru, told The Guardian that five burnt bodies were found at the scene.

He explained that the attackers may have over-powered the securitymen at the depot and gained access to the place adding that his team were able to control the fire.

The captain said his men arrived at the scene at 10pm about two hours after the attack.

Also commenting after assessing the damage yesterday, the Executive Secretary, Major Marketers Association of Nigeria (MOMAN), Mr.Obafemi Lawore, described the development has several implications for the petroleum downstream activities and the economy as a whole.

According to him, with this attack getting foreign vessel to bring fuel imported by either the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and MOMAN will be difficult adding that this may also affect adequate fuel supply to domestic markets saying he would not be surprise if Nigeria would not go through lingering scarcity before the situation is stabilised.

Lawore disclosed that MOMAN will seek a meeting of key stakeholders in fuel distribution including NNPC,depot owners and the government to design measures aimed at safe guarding oil/depot facilities in Apapa area of Lagos.

Also speaking yesterday,Managing Director and Chief Executive of Capital Oil and Gas company limited Mr.Ifeanyi Patrick Ubah said the development does not augur well for private depot owners operation in the area.

Ubah said there will be urgent need for the private depot owners and other stakeholders to meet and adopt security measures to check unforseen incidents around their depots or oil facilities.

Atlas Cove located on Takwa Bay area of Lagos hosts the foremost oil receptor and depot for all imported fuel into the country as well as products from the refineries meant for South West market including parts of North Central of the country.

The Atlas Cove jetty is the hub of NNPC distribution network tagged system 2E which supplies products through pipeline network to NNPC's depots in Ejigbo, Mosimi in Ogun , Ibadan in Oyo State and Ilorin in Kwara State.The 2E distribution network also connects Ore depot in Ondo State.

"We are aware of the attack on the Atlas Cove Jetty but the details are still sketchy. But we must say that the MEND has exaggerated in its statement," a naval spokesman, Captain Henry Babalola, told AFP.

"We have heard of the attack but we are trying to get facts surrounding it," Lagos State police spokesman, Frank Mba was quoted to have said.

The violence has forced Royal Dutch Shell, U.S. oil company Chevron and Italy's Agip to shut in crude oil production estimated at over 1.3million barrels per day.

Within Shell operations alone,MEND attacked the EA field in February 2006 which has capacity for 115,000 barrels per day. In June 2008 Bonga offshore facility was attacked ,the Offshore vessel has capacity for 225,000 barrels production and can store two million barrels of oil.

Other attacks on Shell operations include Utorogu-Ups trunk line in January 2009,Amukpe-Rapele manifold also in January,Trans-Escravos-Forcados River manifold in February,Trans-Forcados Pipeline(Chanomi Creek) manifold and Trans Ramos Pipeline both in June 2009.

Chevron and Agip have also had their own share of the attacks.

President Umaru Yar'Adua has offered a 60-day amnesty programme to militants and criminals in hope of restoring peace to the region.

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Facebook: The Many Faces of a Social Book

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 04:37:59 -0400

Facebook; The Many Faces of a Social Book

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�Bemgba Nyakuma

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. According to Compete.com, Facebook is the most used social network by global monthly active users. It was founded on February 4th 2004 by Havard University computer scientists Mark Zuckerberg, Dustin Moskovitz and Chris Hughes. It is believed that the name of the website was drawn from the name of a book given to incoming students at Phillips Exeter Academy - the high school alma mater of Mark Zuckerberg. Though, initially membership of Facebook was restricted to only Harvard students, it later expanded to other colleges in the Boston area; the Ivy League and Stanford University. However, now the website currently has more than 200 million active users worldwide.

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Why is Facebook so hugely popular? There are many reasons why this is the case. Firstly, it is free and has an easy to use interface that allows even the least internet savvy individual to access it. Its many features, attributes and customization makes it stand out from the many social networking sites that existed before it. For instance, after signing up, users can join networks organized by city, workplace, school, and region to connect and interact with friends and other people alike. It also allows users to add friends, send and receive messages, upload and share pictures and photos of events, videos and clips, websites and links and update their personal profiles to notify friends about themselves. Most importantly the level of customization of Facebook unike other social networking sites is what makes it stand out. While Facebook allows the flexibility of using plain text to interact, navigate and customize their personal profiles and information, other sites for instance MySpace only allow the use of HTML and Cascading Style Sheets (CSS) which require some knowledge of programming. Other features on Facebook include; Wall (which allows friends to post messages for the user to see and vice versa), News Feed, Pokes, Notes, videos and Photos to mention but few. With these features users communicate with one another and share items online throughout the world in a manner never before witnessed on the internet. Facebook has become a very important medium for many people around the world. For instance parties, events, meetings and appointments have are organized using Facebook. One good example, the recent demonstrations and protests against the election results in Iran which took place around Europe were organized via the events feature on Facebook. All these have helped to increase the popularity and versatility of the website.

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And now to the bitter sweet side of Facebook. The next question is what are the merits of using Facebook? Though many will beg to differ, Facebook like everything human ingenuity has created has its merits and demerits. The versatility of Facebook is undoubtedly evident. It has helped re-unite many long lost friends and acquaintances together. Millions of messages are sent and received, pictures and photos shared, details and profiles viewed every minute of the day between friends. Many people are thus brought into contact with one another to interact, share ideas, information and the opportunity to meet other new people every day. Old acquaintances keep in touch and are constantly aware of the progress and happenings in the lives of their friends. In the process the site also helps to build and strengthen social cycles among diverse cultures, and across wide ethnic and racial lines thus ensuring global integration and healthy relationships in the cyber world and the world in general. This is an amazing achievement considering that Facebook is only five years in existence. Speaking from experience, I have been able to meet and interact with many old classmates who now live thousands of miles away from me. It has been an absolutely wonderful experience.

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� Furthermore, it has been reported that certain users may have either used it or tried to use it to defraud others. A good example reported on the website of a popular European newspaper, revealed that, the daughters of the US President were almost victims of some sort of cybercrime via the site. Though this cannot be explicitly confirmed it still raises eye brows and pertinent questions on the need for users to “more” careful with their personal details on the internet especially social networking sites. Issues such as these have often thrown Facebook into some controversy over the past few years. It is often seen in many countries especially in nationalistic and propaganda loving nations as a tool for political dissent especially because the youth often embrace it so strongly. This explains why it has been blocked intermittently in several countries including Syria and Iran.

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Show Me the Receipt of Your Handset (II)

Tue, 14 Jul 2009 04:35:59 -0400

Show Me the Receipt of Your Handset (II)

I collected my ID card from him and took two slow steps back to the taxi, turned to look at his face. It wore so much disappointment. On my part, my expression was neither of gratitude or triumph. I was piqued at the role tribalism played in the whole saga. Supposed I stole that laptop, then my being a Tiv man would have set me free until and unless I happened upon a non-Tiv Police officer?�On the other hand even as the laptop was mine, I would still have ended up at the Police Station if the Policeman was non-Tiv?... I was still in these thoughts when the Taxi Driver interrupted them.

‘Oga, You no de stay for this country? ‘

‘Why? I stay in PortHarcourt

Why you come de take risk with olopa like that? Those people them bad well well.

‘What risk? I just made sure I did not give him something to lay hands on

‘Dat na the problem. If you argue too much with dem, dem go get angry. You be lucky man o. If be say you no be him broda, the man for drag you go station.

‘Station for what offence?�I would rather follow him to the station and clear myself than part with one kobo to ‘settle anybody. We can stop their excesses if we know our rights and their limits. The problem is that Nigerians are too impatient; always in a hurry. Instead of spending two hours to clear themselves, they offer bribes and move on. The police in turn get used to this. So anybody who is unwilling to give them the bribe is considered recalcitrant. When more and more people refuse to give them bribes, they will decline in their antics. They will learn to stay within their limits...

‘Oga leave that one o! Olopa no get limit! Dem fit shoot you come talk say you be arm robber. I don see many many thing wey de happen for this Lagos o. Next time just settle them and go your way. A word is enough for the wise.

Indeed for many Nigerians, this Taxi Drivers counsel is quite germane. What with the spate of extrajudicial killings by trigger-happy policemen reported almost every other day in Nigeria? The Apo six murder which is perhaps the most cruel of the many cases is still fresh in our minds. It is the story of one Mr. Ozor who drove his girlfriend visiting from Lagos in the company of four friends, to a club. They later ran into a police checkpoint and engaged a member of the police team in an argument. The police said they were armed robbers, and fired at them. After the shooting, the survivors were taken to an Estate (called Prince and Princess) where they were executed and hurriedly buried at Utako District in two shallow graves!

When I published part one of this article, a reader responded with a tale of how his friend lost her mom in UK. When they flew the corpse home, her family went to the airport to claim it. On their way back, at the junction just after the International Airport (Lagos), the Policemen there waved them down for checking. One of her cousins came down to explain to them that they were carrying a corpse and nothing else. An argument ensued and before you knew it, her cousin was shot. He died on the spot.

One thing that is common to both cases (and in many of the cases) is that, an argument preceded the shooting. It appears�that what triggers the gun is the inability of the ill-trained policemen to engage in intelligent, civil, courteous, and polite exchange with members of the public. But such an exchange is sometimes inevitable especially when one is accused of a nonexistent offence and has to explain himself or stand the risk of being implicated in something he knows nothing about. In such cases, silence is not an option and yet, you argue at your own peril!

I recall another experience just two weeks ago.�On 28th June 2009 I was on a public transport, operated by Benue Links and travelling to Gboko in the company of 13 other passengers of the bus. At a (illegal) checkpoint between Aba and Umuahia, our vehicle was flagged down. The driver stopped and the Policeman stretched forth his hand towards the driver in the familiar manner expecting the driver to squeeze some Naira notes inside. Rather than do this, the driver looked surprised. Obviously it was strange to him because Police dont normally collect ‘egunje from government-owned vehicles.

Sensing the drivers unwillingness to ‘cooperate he ordered him to clear the vehicle off the road and open the boot for checking. The driver complied. After a thorough search in the luggage without any ‘find, we thought we would be back on the road again in seconds. We were mistaken; the Policeman seized the Drivers Licence on the excuse that the back windshield of the bus was tainted. He claimed that they have instructions to impound any vehicle that carries tainted glasses.

I quickly put a call across to a friend who is a Senior Editor with NewsWatch in Abuja. I knew I would soon engage that officer in an argument, which could cost me my life, and I wanted my friend to be a witness or at least, he should know what happened so that after they might have shot me and began to reel out their lies, my friend could tell the world the truth.

After about 50 minutes of delay, the officer commanded all the passengers to go into the vehicle, ordered the driver behind steering wheel, while he displaced one of the passengers in the front seat and took over. He ordered the driver to move; that the vehicle was impounded.

All the while I was watching the drama silently having remembered the Lagos Taxi Drivers advice. But I could not hold it anymore. At this point I came down from the vehicle, walked up to the side of the bus and asked him in the most polite words I could summon at the moment.

‘Officer, may I ask you where you are taking all these people to?

‘To the Police Station. This vehicle is under arrest

‘I may not argue with your ‘arresting this vehicle,(I remembered that not long ago Police in Ilorin arrested a goat for armed robbery) but you have no reason to take us along to the Station unless we are under arrest as well, in which case you will need to explain�the offence to me and�each one of these passengers why they need to follow you to the Station I stated with an air of authority that baffled the Policeman and even my co-passengers.

‘And who are you? Are you challenging my job? Who do you think you are?.He barked angrily.

‘Calm down officer, I am not claiming to be anybody here ok? I am just a law abiding Nigerian citizen on a legitimate journey on a public highway. So tell me why you think I need to be something else before you will explain a simple action of yours. Are you not working for the good of all citizens, I mean the big and the small, the high and the low, the rich and the poor? I poured out like rain.

‘Look, you can continue to speak your grammar but I bet you will sleep here he stated with finality in his tone as he stepped out of the bus, abandoned us and went on to stand on the middle of the highway and continued with extortion of other motorists.

Meanwhile, the passengers turned their frustration on me. They blamed me for ‘offending the Policeman. I told them not to worry, that he can only delay our journey but he cant stop it. While they were deliberating on how to contribute some money and beg the man, I told them to count me out and I walked some meters away from where they were standing. I called my friend in Abuja and briefed him of the new development.

While I was still on that call the unexpected happened. An oncoming vehicle, which was on high speed suddenly, knocked the Policeman down. His gun was flung into the bush. The man went down, attempted to get up but slumped again. In a split second, the victimizer became a victim.

As things would happen, just the day before, I had concluded a First Aid course in my workplace that qualified me as a Designated First Aider (DFA) by the Nigerian Red Cross Society. And here was I, just one day old as a DFA, faced with the responsibility of saving a life in a real life scenario. It was a sudden call to duty to which I must respond.

�In a split second, I needed to identify what is the most important first step to take. I needed to be sure it was safe to touch the man. His colleagues who were some meters away may mistake me for the culprit and do me harm. Then there was the danger of another on-coming vehicle, which may cause multiple accidents. So as the passengers rushed to crowd round the victim, I ordered them to stay away. They obeyed because they have come to see me as someone who knew what he was doing. I borrowed a Caution Sign from another ‘victim who was being delayed by the same Policeman to cordon the area.

There was no First Aid box with the Police or any of the travellers. However In the Course we were told to make use of what is available, so I beckoned on the passengers to come closer and asked them to donate their handkerchiefs, which they did gladly despite the fact that it was this same Policeman that was their adversary. Nigerians are indeed good people.

With those handkerchiefs, which I converted into bandage, I was able to contain bleeding from the major wounds. Luckily for him he did not suffer any fracture, or wounds on the head or chest. While all this was going on, none of the Policemen who were with him came near even to witness what was going on. Rather they went after the car that hit him, the driver of which did not even attempt to run away. They descended on the poor driver with gun butts and battered him mercilessly. One even removed his helmet and threw it at the driver in an apparent gesture to impress his boss.

I was angry. ‘This is an accident. Leave the driver alone and come and arrange how this victim will be moved to a hospital. If you kill that driver, there will be nobody to pay for his treatment ok? I shouted with authority.�To my surprise and that of the other passengers, the Policemen obeyed my order as If I had become their commander.

‘Remove our drivers Licence from his pockets, I told one of the policemen. He did and handed it over to our driver. You can now go. He said.

As they drove the wounded officer away, I checked my time; it was exactly two hours since that Policeman flagged down our vehicle. I looked down my legs; his blood had stained my trousers. ‘What a day! I murmured quietly as the journey continued.

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Of Looters, Leaders And The EFCC List

Mon, 13 Jul 2009 05:33:27 -0400

It was written in very bold headlines that the “Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has released the names of 56 Nigerians it alleged collectively removed over N243 billion from the nations treasury. The names, some of which the EFCC Chairman, Mrs. Farida Waziri, referred to as politically revered people in the international community, were contained in a list handed over to the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC), as the EFCC and NLC commenced their strategic partnership to intensify the fight against corruption in the country. The list contained names of well-known politicians, former governors, ministers, permanent secretaries, civil servants, chairmen and members of parastatal agencies, local government chairmen, members of the House of Representatives and senators”.

Nigeria, according to some people) alone misappropriated N300 billion meant for road infrastructure. This is another name missing from that EFCC list.

To be frank, I am neither interested nor impressed with this news which I suspect is designed to shock Nigerians and bring sympathy to the embattled EFCC and its Chairman.

First, Nigerians are now immune to such shock tactics when it comes to our corrupt leaders and the exposure of their corrupt practices and shenanigans. So what is being done about this list?

Second, the amount of N243 billion is so infinitesimal and negligible, except to the named looters, perhaps. This is a drop in the ocean and is the tip of the iceberg, I daresay.

Third, the list is the most incomplete and inconsistent document of its type in the world, judging by the conspicuous absence or omission of bigger looters of our national treasury.

Republic and the various military governments we have had since independence?

Having said that, I suppose we must still commend the EFCC for braving the storm and coming out with that list of 56 looters (I will not say “alleged looters”, because we are 100% sure they are looters, even if not proven in court – Rule of law or not, I do not give a damn)

So I quickly delved into my own records and did a little bit of research to come up with more names, since this seems to be the season of naming and shaming of those who have relegated us to this terrible misery and mess.

Please note that I am not following any bogus list such as the one purported to have originated from the World Bank (and other various organisations) and which had been circulating around for the past two years. I do not believe that list, and the World Bank itself has since distanced itself from the authorship of that list.

Nigeria do not know, and will never know. The money looted is so massive it boggles the mind.

So, why are the following names missing from the EFCC list?

Nigeria, (he bought it while he was still in power – where did he get the money?) was awarded a N40 billion contract to supply fertiliser to the Federal Government of Nigeria. He still has a case with the EFCC, which, at the way its going, will never get to court.

Port Harcourt, a place he ruled for eight years. He also slapped us in the face when he got a court injunction against the EFCC not to investigate or even arrest him. Why would he do that if he is innocent? But there we are. The Nigerian Judiciary as a barrier to good governance and justice.

Amos Adamu (that is another missing name on that list)

Nigeria) Governor Fashola, but we must call a spade a spade.

– former Governor of Enugu State for eight years; the man who acquired over 200 properties in eight years of governorship. Tell me he did not loot. He is now a Senator of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. A real shame. His name is on the EFCC list, by the way, but I just have to mention him again.

Nigeria.

DSP Alamieyeseigha, disgraced former Governor of Bayelsa State and self-styled “Ijaw General” who I will admit, has done his term in prison even if only for six months. At least he was put on trial and jailed.

Nigeria.

Great Wall of China, if I go on and list individual names.

And now if we go a bit further back:

Nigeria for eight years until the wave of June 12 1993 swept over him. A very clever man who mud will never stick to. But we know he looted the treasury dry by the time he reluctantly handed over power to Earnest Shonekan and eventually to our Nemesis, Sani Abacha.

– former Head of State for a brief period who to his credit, initiated and implemented faithfully the transition to our present democracy (or demo-crazy), one of the few generals in the Nigerian Army who rose to the top without holding political office until he was appointed as Head of State following Abachas sudden and welcome demise. He has held only command and military positions, and has, in general, stayed out of the political limelight. However, during his short spell as head of state, he made a hell of a lot of money. Tell me he did not loot. His name has been connected to the Halliburton bribery scandal. That hardly exonerates him from our woes, does it?

Nigeria (and this list of mine is by no means exhaustive):

Ayo Fayose, former Governor of Ekiti State and “poultry expert”, he never had a lot to steal due to the small allocation to his state, but stole he did, the little he could.

Gbenga Daniel of Ogun State, the master of false propaganda, self-publicist, fetishist and illegal oath-taker, who was forcing all members of his government and House of Assembly members to take primitive oaths of allegiance to him. He is still looting Ogun State, in fact on my recent visit to Nigeria last month, and visiting Abeokuta, the state capital, I had the impression that the man owns all the industries, properties and businesses in the state. Look at his Compass Newspaper complex on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, and you will wonder where he got the money to invest in a newspaper. Also there are talks of him building and owning several housing estates in the state.

State blind, trust me.

State but for the benefit of the Saraki family. And we also know what the Saraki family did to depositors and investors of Societe-Generale Bank. Last I heard, the same EFCC still have the case open, but who dares prosecute or stand in the way of the Sarakis? Currently, the state government is building an official First Ladys Lodge for the wife of the Governor. If that is not looting, I would like to know what it is.

At this juncture, I think it is best that I stop, since any attempt to go on will just infuriate me more, and at any rate, it is nigh impossible to mention all the names of all Nigerias looters swirling in my brain.

� stealing only N243 billion – less than �1 billion). There should be more important names on that list; the list is much longer and the amount is much, much more.

We are not impressed!

�etc.

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Petrol to cost N94 per litre, as FG fully deregulates

Sun, 12 Jul 2009 23:44:58 -0400

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VANGUARD

Petrol to cost N94 per litre, as FG fully deregulates

Jul 13, 2009

LAGOS — THERE were feelers from the Presidency, weekend, that the government may fully deregulate the oil sector from August, bringing the price of PMS petrol) to N94 per litre.

Sources say that the President had instructed the Economic Management Team headed by the Minister of Finance, Mansur Mukhtar, to work out the details of the deregulation after investigations showed that the Presidential Committee earlier set up by the Presidential Task Force of Global Financial Meltdown, may have been compromised by group interest.

The proposal on oil sector deregulation before the government is that, based on the current indicative price of the Petroleum Products Price Regulation Agency, PPPRA, the price of PMS should be around N98.2 per litre.

The government, it was learnt, is considering that the price of PMS should be allowed to increase within the range of N89.78 to N93.73 per litre, depending on the location, coastal or hinterland, reflecting cost-saving measures recently approved by the government and additional measures derived from the reports of two consultancy outfit on the review of PPPRA template.

It was also learnt that the proposal states strongly that additional savings of N3.80 could be made in a price range of� N85.98 -N89.93 per litre for PMS which they say is feasible within the next 6 months.

The proposal, government officials insist, will be a once-and-for-all� liberalisation of price based on the fact that phased subsidy removal will be complicated by political constraints, cost of negotiations when time for review is due, which will not� give� the right signals to potential investors in downstream refinery sector arguing that the cost components of fuel products are quite dynamic, creating a “moving-target” situation.

It was further learnt that the government is thinking of phased approach to the determination of price due to the current oligopolistic market structure of the downstream petroleum sector to prevent price collusion. During the first six months, following price liberalisation, fuel retail stations must comply with the prices emanating from the PPPRA template.

According to the thinking of government, “as competition measures take root, to be effectively managed by the PPPRA, resulting in more participants in the downstream petroleum market, the forces of demand and supply should be allowed to determine the price of PMS. The PPPRA will continue to provide indicative prices.

The concepts of Petroleum Equalization Fund and Maritime Transportation Average are not applicable in a deregulated downstream petroleum sector regime.

While the operation of Petroleum Stabilisation Fund is used to manage the volatility of crude oil prices, the rent-seeking activities emanating from inaccurate data on effective demand for fuel products could easily lead to recurrence of “purported subsidy. In this connection, Strategic Fuel Reserves and Taxation are being proposed as instruments for managing volatility.

The government thinking is that “when the market matures, there should be prospects for introducing fuel taxation. The PPPRA could introduce a N9 per litre excise tax on PMS and N5 per litre excise tax on AGO. Fuel taxes are used extensively in many countries to raise revenue for infrastructure development: Share of taxes in PMS prices is 21%, 28% and 23% in Ghana, South Africa and India. Angola also has taxes on its fuel pricing template. Taxation rate is, however, to be lowered during periods of sustained higher crude oil prices.

According to the plan, the government will import large quantities of PMS in advance of price deregulation. Using M.V. Westaf (150,000 mt); M.V. Greataf (350,000 mt); and M.V. Tuma (130,000 mt) plus available onshore depot space for this purpose.

This is necessary as government realises that crude oil price is very volatile. “Hence to prevent excessive transmission of short-term volatility to the economy, there should be expansion of strategic reserves capacity that can be released to dampen short term price pressures.

“This temporary measure will be required to stabilise prices during initial price hike. This, it says, is also necessary to cushion possible initial supply disruptions resulting from public or importer-resistance to subsidy removal. To this effect, the Strategic Reserve, as a scheme, may not be restricted to the use of only PPMC depots, but also private depots that are considered strategic

According to the plan, government will have reserves for 30 days sufficiency and the take-off capital required based on the current market price is estimated at about N140.587 billion. This, they believe, should come into effect by September 2009.

To achieve the deregulation plan, government think-tank advocates that monitoring the implementation of “cost-reducing measures recently approved by the government would be extremely important.

For emphasis purposes, monitoring the implementation of the following measures were advocated: resuming routine maintenance of Jetties; commencing dredging of Apapa Jetty; allowing construction of another jetty;� facilitating the process of bringing Apapa Jetty under the Open Access Common Carrier, facilitating the repair of loading arms at the Jetty;� fast tracking the granting of SBM license to marketers; sustaining the tempo of gas utilization initiative and regularly provide monthly progress report;� improving local refining capacity to match consumption through refining of crude petroleum by companies engaged in exploration/production;� privatization of the existing four refineries and construction of additional refineries and development of functional National Strategic Strategic.

In the plan, government will harmonise all product monitoring, importer-licensing, and downstream regulatory activities within PPPRA (in line with OGIC). In the plan of action, PPPRA would be strengthened to perform the whole functions of licensing, monitoring, technical analysis of product supply and ensuring fair pricing in the market. These responsibilities are currently shared between PPPRA, DPR and PPMC. Duplication of responsibility for import bidding/licensing processes between PPPRA and PPMC is unnecessary” the think tank argued.

PPPRA is to take full control of the regulation of the downstream petroleum sector in Nigeria in line with the Petroleum Industry Bill this is billed to take effect from August 2009 and the PPPRA is to coordinate the vessels reception scheduling at Apapa jetty to ensure level playing field and reduction of demurrage in the new plan. It will be further empowered to monitor the operations of the jetty by setting standards and code of conduct And it will be required to allow independent importers access to PPMCs distribution facilities starting from August 2009.

In the deregulation plan, the government is to explore the option of refining the 445,000 b/d crude oil currently allocated to NNPC by contract arrangement with offshore refineries. This will significantly reduce importation. This measure is being recommended as a first step and an interim measure towards the eventual resuscitation of domestic refining. If things go according to plan, this will come into effect in October 2009.

In the deregulation proposal before government, the PPMC is to concession out the entire 5,100 km 23-depot distribution system in a public-private-partnership (PPP) arrangement. Suitable concessionaire must be capable of investing to resuscitate and upgrade the system, must also apply modern surveillance technology to secure system against theft and vandalism.

The deregulation proposal urges government to explore the option of refining the 445,000 b/d crude oil currently allocated to NNPC by contract arrangement with offshore refineries. This, according to them, will significantly reduce importation.

This measure has been recommended as a first step and an interim measure towards the eventual resuscitation of domestic refining which is planned to come into effect in October 2009. In the proposal, government is to resuscitate local refining, attract reputable and experienced refiners as core investors and privatise the refineries.The future of petroleum products supply must lie with local refining.� Importation should be seen only as short-to-medium-term strategy, the proposal stated.

�

Constitution review not Nigeria's priority -- Jemibewon

Mon, 09 Mar 2009 16:19:55 -0400

GENERAL David Jemibewon (rtd) is one of the nation's foremost retired Generals. The Kogi-born soldier cum legal practitioner had served the nation in different capacities. A one time military governor of the old Oyo State, Gen Jemibewon also served as Minister of Police Affairs under former President Olusegun Obasajo. In this Interview with Vanguard in Abuja, he opened up on various national issues ranging from the Yar’Adua administration, irregularities in elections and how the country can achieve a free and fair polls in future.
In his view, Nigeria does not need more than two or three political parties arguing that if SDP and NRC had not been proscribed, the nation achieved a measure of political stability.

To him, the reconciliation between Atiku and Obasanjo is no big deal, adding that Atiku should have remained in the party he formed rather than returning to PDP. Excerpts...

Africa to adopt single currency

Tue, 03 Mar 2009 08:36:27 -0500

The push for a single currency to facilitate trade and help fast-track the integration of African countries has begun.

Top African economists and academics are attending a meeting in Nairobi whose theme is “Towards the creation of a single African currency”.

The three-day congress, which started on Monday, is expected to deliberate on possibilities of adopting the single currency.

The African Union, through its Economic Affairs Department, organised the workshop, whose recommendations will be presented to a heads of states summit in July.

According to AU commissioner for Economic Affairs, Mr Maxwell Mkwezalamba, the process of establishing a common currency was part of the Abuja Treaty aimed at uniting the continent both economically and politically.

Senate passes State of Nation Act

Sat, 28 Feb 2009 14:48:05 -0500

ABUJA�The Senate has passed a bill authorizing the President to give an annual address on the state of the nation to a joint session of the National Assembly.
The bill as passed yesterday stipulates that the state of the nation address should be delivered on the first legislative day of the second week in May of every year by the President.

The bill entitled “A Bill for an Act to Enshrine an annual State of the Nation Address and Other Matters connected thereto” was sponsored by Deputy President of the Senate, Senator Ike Ekweremadu.

he focus of the bill which was considered for the third time on the floor of the Senate yesterday was meant for Nigerians to know the true state of the nation considering the emerging economic, security and political realities.

Mimiko freezes LGs' accounts, dissolves boards

Thu, 26 Feb 2009 08:20:46 -0500

The Ondo State Governor, Dr. Olusegun Mimiko, on Wednesday froze the accounts of the 18 local government councils in the state.

The governor gave this directive in a statement made available to our correspondent by his Chief Press Secretary, Mr. Kolawole Olabisi.

The governor warned directors of personnel management in the councils and commercial banks against flouting the order which he said was meant to safeguard the resources of the people.

He urged the civil servants in the councils to be watchful and protect government property in their care, adding that violators of the order would be prosecuted.

EFCC boss says courts are thwarting prosecution of ex-governors

Sun, 22 Feb 2009 11:08:49 -0500

The courts have been accused of frustrating the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) efforts to prosecute former governors alleged to have engaged in corrupt practices while in office.
Speaking with journalists at the domestic terminal of the Murtala Muhammed Airport, Lagos,
chairman of the EFCC, Farida Waziri, said the courts have provided a platform for persons under prosecution to thwart the commission’s efforts.