Present Economic Recession in Nigeria a Blessing, Says Utomi

A renowned political economist, Professor Pat
Utomi, has described the recession presently
facing Nigeria as a golden opportunity and not a
problem, saying it is an opportunity to finally get
the Nigerian economy right.
Utomi who spoke during the ground breaking
ceremony of Integrated Produce City (IPC), a
private initiative championed by him and other
investors at Ugbokun community in Ovia North
East Local Government Area of Edo State,
added that without appearing to scandalise
anybody, he actually prays for oil prices to stay
down for a long time for Nigerians to come to
their senses to know that the country is really
rich.
His words: “Let me shock you by saying that
the recession we face in Nigeria is a golden
opportunity. It is not a problem; it is an
opportunity to finally get the Nigerian economy
right.
“So without appearing to scandalise anybody, I
actually pray for oil prices to stay down and
stay down for a long time. Then, we will come
to our senses and we will know that Nigeria
really is a rich country.
“Right now, we are not behaving as we should
be behaving. Competitively-driven industrial
policy in select value chains will be helpful in
confronting the misery index and bringing hope
to millions.”
He said Integrated Produce is unique first,
because it aims to confront the biggest monster
facing agriculture in Nigeria, which is yield
losses – the poor returns that farmers get, as
middle men scoop everything up, the profits that
slip away in these kinds of disarticulated
markets and the poor infrastructure challenge
that face people in agriculture.
According to him, “With a well organised trading
platform, accessing commodity exchanges,
efficiencies increase at a pace that increases
global competitiveness on the produce in which
our factor endowment are strong.”
On his part, Governor Adams Oshiomhole of Edo
State who performed the ground breaking
ceremony, described the Integrated Produce
City (IPC) as a sheer commitment by the
investors to combat poverty, noting that it is the
first produce city in the heart of Benin kingdom.
“Today we are having the first produce city right
in the heart of Benin Kingdom few minutes’
drive from Benin City. I want to appreciate you,
your wife, your boss because we know that the
neck controls the head.
“This is an event that will kick-start what will
add meaning and value to thousands of people
both within and outside here. What you have
done by this initiative is to demonstrate that
there are Nigerians who have those qualities
that we celebrate elsewhere. All those who
teach can also practicalise what they teach and
practically in the country you are one of those
teachers.
“This gathering couldn’t have been better not
just what we have been telling people in the
past three months that our candidate said he
would create 200,000 jobs many believe that it
is not possible and that brings you to two
divides of Nigerians that we have those who
believe that our future lies in that lazy tradition
of extracting the liquid gold and exporting it with
little or no value to it, bring dollar home, quarrel
over sharing it, do some symbolic public toilets
and buildings, and then privatise the rest and
import more,” he said.
Oshiomhole who thanked all the foreign partners
to IPC for showing confidence that they can
come and invest in the state, also enjoined the
host community to regard the project cited in
their community as their own and defend it as
their own as they stand to benefit more.
In his welcome address, the state Commissioner
for Agriculture and Natural Resources, Joe
Plague, saluted the courage of IPC, saying the
project was timely because it is in line with the
agricultural policy of the state, more so with the
concept of combining farming with industry.
He therefore promised that the state
government would do everything possible to
ensure the purpose of the project is achieved.
Also in his speech, the representative of
Ugbokun community said his people would ever
remain grateful for the project because it is
going to open the forest that has become a
hideout for hoodlums who use it to attack
unsuspecting travellers.
He therefore requested that government should
establish a police station in the community to
help safeguard the investment, while calling on
the management of IPC to take care of the
interest of the host community. Source, this day

NPower Project: Nigerian Manufacturers Cry Foul over Plot by Osinbajo’s Office to Favour Foreign Firm

As information and communication technology
(ICT) companies in the country jostle for a fair
share of the supply of 500,000 computers to
empower Nigerian youths in the federal
government-sponsored NPower project, some
local firms have accused the office of Vice
President Yemi Osinbajo of trying to favour a
foreign firm and its proxy.
The NPower programme is an ambitious project
of the President Muhammadu Buhari
government which hopes to buy 500,000
computers for the 500,000 unemployed
graduates it is about to recruit and deploy to
schools and other sectors. The Office for
Nigerian Content in ICT as well as the National
Information Technology Development Agency
(NITDA) have voiced their preference for the
patronage of local computer manufacturers in
the course of executing the project, arguing that
it would not only arrest capital flight but also
help to create jobs within the country.
However, some members of the Certified
Computers Manufacturers of Nigeria (CCMON),
the umbrella body of indigenous computer
manufacturers, have accused the office of vice
president of orchestrating a plot to award the
contract to a foreign firm through its Nigerian
proxy.
Impeccable presidency sources said three firms
namely: Brian Systems, Zinox and Softcom, had
been shortlisted in the bid process.
While Brian and Zinox are members of CCMON,
the third company is said to be fronting for
Samsung of South Korea.
Industry sources said they have information that
some persons in the vice president’s office are
hatching a plot to award the contract to the
agent of the foreign firm which has no known
pedigree and experience in delivering critical
jobs of this magnitude.
The plot to award the contract to a foreign
company against the ongoing campaign of the
Buhari government to patronise local
manufacturers has enraged some indigenous
firms.
A chief executive of an indigenous company
(name withheld) which was not short-listed in
the bid, said he was not bothered by the fact
that his company did not make it in the bid
process but he did not hide his disgust at the
news that the promoters of the NPower project
are contemplating awarding the contract to a
foreign company.
“It will be a disaster and disgrace to the
reputation of President Buhari if the office of
the vice president goes ahead to involve a
foreign company in a project in which there are
qualified and certified indigenous companies
who can effectively deliver world class products
and support services. Giving the job or any part
thereof to a foreign firm will only help to grow
the economy of that country, create jobs for its
youths while the Nigerian economy continues to
shrink with attendant job losses. Whoever that is
scheming to involve a foreign company in the
deal is an enemy of Nigeria,” he said.
The federal government’s Npower project seeks
to empower and engage Nigerian youths and
build a new legion of technology-savvy
Nigerians.
Osinbajo while promoting the programme
recently at a forum, said: “The key to change
and our future prosperity lies in innovation and
is critical to our development.”
He said government would establish an
Innovation Fund this year that would deploy
significant resources for the aim of creating
opportunities for the youths to access fund for
innovation and entrepreneurship.
He highlighted other plans as follows:
Establishment of technology innovation hubs
across the country; two super hubs (in Lagos
and Abuja) and six regional hubs in the six geo-
political zones in partnership with some major
technology companies; 65,000 young Nigerians
to be trained in hardware and software services
and in animation; create a reservoir in
technology capacity that can be exported
annually like the case of India; and bursary
award to 100,000 STEM undergraduates
developing their interest in programming, robotic
and animation technology, in addition to
deploying technology in the training of the
500,000 teachers that are expected to be
employed under the social investment scheme
of government this year. Source, this day

Nigeria Confirms Nickel Discovery In Kaduna

Authorities at the Ministry of Solid
Minerals Development yesterday
confirmed the discovery of world class
nickel in Kaduna State, by an Australian
mining syndicate.
Top officials at the ministry, who
confirmed the development in separate
telephone chats with LEADERSHIP, on
Monday night, said a more
comprehensive report would be made
available by the Ministry today.
One of the sources, who craved
anonymity as he was not authorised to
speak on the matter, said: “Yes it is true.
Nickel has been found in Nigeria, but we
cannot say anything right now. But be
rest assured that a comprehensive report
on the matter will be made available by
the Ministry today, or as soon as
possible.”
Nickel is a silvery-white metal with a
shiny surface common to most metals,
and is ductile and capable of being
drawn into thin wires. The name is said
to come from the German word
Kupfernickel, meaning “Old Nick’s
copper,” a term used by German miners.
It is also said to be one of three
naturally occurring elements that is
strongly magnetic. The other two are iron
and cobalt, but nickel is less magnetic
than either iron or cobalt.
Nickel is used in many forms, including
electric guitar strings, magnets and
rechargeable batteries. It is added to a
very important metal, alloy-stainless
steel, which has numerous applications.
It is used in cookware, cutlery, kitchen
appliances and various bronzes and
brasses as well as coins among several
others.
LEADERSHIP findings revealed that the
top ten countries where the mineral is
found in tonnage include the Philippines
(73,000) , Russia (240,000), Canada
(240,000), Australia (234,000), New
Caledonia (190,000), Indonesia (170,000),
Brazil (110,000) China (102,000),
Colombia (73,000) and Cuba (57,000).
Following the discovery, Nigeria is set to
join the league of the world’s largest
producers as the find is said to offer
potential for early cash flow. Nigeria’s
current major source of nickel, scrap
metals, currently yields an average 2.5
metric tons annually.
The discovery was first reported by an
Australian national daily, The Australian,
which reported that the private mining
syndicate that made the discovery was
led by Hugh Morgan, a mining industry
veteran.
“The discovery is unusual because the
nickel is found in small balls up to 3mm
in diameter of a high purity in shallow
soils in what could be the surface
expression of a much bigger hard-rock
nickel field.
“The nickel balls, rumoured to grade
better than 90 per cent nickel, and
thought to be a world first given their
widespread distribution, offer the
potential for early cash flow from a
simple and low-cost screening operation
to fund a full assessment of the find that
has exploration circles buzzing,” The
Australian reported.
Though the newspaper reported that
details of the discovery were sketchy, it
indicated that the discovery was on a
border town in Kaduna State, close to
Dangoma, a small farming settlement
about 160 kilometres northeast of the
Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja.
According to the report, Minister of Solid
Minerals Development, Dr Kayode
Fayemi, is one of 13 African ministers of
mines scheduled to attend this year’s
three-day Africa Down Under mining
conference at Perth’s Pan Pacific Hotel
in September.
Meanwhile, Fayemi has said that the
analysis conducted by major stakeholders
in the solid minerals sector, the
Association of Metal Exporters of Nigeria,
indicates that Nigeria can generate at
least N5 trillion annually from mining and
exporting of its vast solid mineral
deposits.
He stated this in his keynote address at
the opening of the 5th International
Mining Investment Conference/Exhibition
on Nigeria, which started in Abuja
yesterday, with the theme, ‘Connecting
the Global Mining Industry to the
Opportunities of the Solid Minerals
Sector in Nigeria.’
The minister said: “Based on current
data, Nigeria’s solid minerals sector only
makes up about 0.34 per cent of gross
domestic product (GDP).
“While that is significant, it is much
smaller than its true potential as the vast
majority of our mining assets have yet to
be exploited.
“According to one of the major
stakeholders in the solid minerals sector,
the Association of Metal Exporters of
Nigeria, we can generate at least N5
trillion annually from mining and
exporting of its vast solid mineral
deposits, with several multiplier effects
on job creation, state development and
social infrastructure that could position
the solid minerals sector as the main
catalyst for national development.”
Fayemi noted that should Nigeria
successfully implement the proposed
recommendations, growth is expected to
return to the sector in the form of new
exploration activity, operations and
production from active mining, functional
and expanded processing and refining
capacity, and higher value-addition in
exports.
“The net outcome will be the creation of
thousands of direct jobs and potentially
hundreds of thousands of indirect jobs.
We anticipate contribution to mining GDP
to exceed $25 billion by 2026 as
industries are better able to use the
output of the sector, substituting for
imports,” he added.
The minister, however, lamented that the
sector was faced with both internal and
external challenges which include the
lack of viable geosciences data and
information, low industry participants,
institutions and governance
On the external challenges, he said:
“Asides the negative perceptions about
the Nigerian investment environment is
the turmoil besetting the global
commodities market as key sources of
demand that supported decent prices
over the past two decades have steadily
declined.
“This has put mines and mining houses
under immense pressure which is
reflected in the sharp decline in the
share prices of major industry players
such as Glencore, Anglo-American and
Rio Tinto. “Naturally, as the prices of
metals and their assets plunge, many of
the top mining houses are pulling back
from investment planning, shutting down
mines and optimizing current operations.
This greatly affects our prospects for
new entrants into the Nigerian mining
space.
He, however, stated that in spite of the
abovementioned challenges, the sector
was resolved to overcome them and fulfil
its mandate.
“As things currently stand, in 2015, the
sector contributed approximately 0.33
per cent to the GDP of the country. This
contribution is a reversal from historically
higher percentages (about 4-5 per cent in
the 1960s-70s).
“Our policy goal is to return to a
contribution level of 5 per cent -7 per
cent over the next 10-15 years, and the
recently approved Medium Term
Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and the
Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) is very
supportive of this aspiration.
Also speaking the vice president, Prof
Yemi Osinbanjo, who was represented by
the special adviser to the president on
Economic Matters, Dr Adeyemi Dipeolu,
said: “The conference is important
because it is coming at a time when the
world is mired in economic crises, which
requires a synergy of efforts to restore
goals and normalcy.
“The administration of President Buhari
has consistently advocated and pursued
the formidable policy of diversifying the
Nigerian economy from over reliance on
crude oil with the current economic
downturn. It had become imperative that
we focus on areas of comparative
advantage, like agriculture and solid
minerals development.”
While urging the participants to bring up
strategies of engagement, he assured
that the federal government, through the
Ministry of Solid Minerals Development,
had developed a roadmap to provide the
basis for some key initiatives which had
been identified as crucial to the success
of the sector.

Why hardship may increase corruption in Nigeria, by cleric

CALABAR—CURRENT hardship affecting a
large section of Nigerians has the capacity
to increase the rate of corruption as people
become desperate to survive, Bishop
Emmah Isong, Assistant National Deputy
President of the Pentecostal Fellowship of
Nigeria, PFN, South South, has said.
Speaking with Vanguard, yesterday, the
President of Central Christian Chapel
International, noted that those who
ordinarily would have kept away from
corruption could out of desperation to make
ends meet be forced to engage in corrupt
practices just to survive.
He said: “The question is, are we going to
be alive in Nigeria till 2019 with the level of
hardship the people are going through? This
situation has the tendency to make people
who ordinarily would have stayed away from
corrupt practices to engage in corruption.”
He said what the current administration
should do is to draw up an economic blue
print that focuses on increased agricultural
production and rehabilitation of
infrastructure to create jobs for people as
many companies and industries were folding
up and laying off workers which is
exacerbating the hardship in the land.
“I can testify that Nigerians are feeling the
impact of the hardship as 17 of my
members have opted to return to their
villages because they have either been laid
off work or have closed their businesses
and so cannot pay their rents and feed their
families.”
According to Bishop, the fight against
corruption should take into account the
need to address the basic needs of the
people which include good roads, food and
regular payment of salaries.
“Nigerians are very easy people to lead, all
a leader needs to do is to ensure that there
is food for the people, good roads, pay
salaries but if things are allowed to continue
like this, there is a level of hunger which
can cause people to revolt, so the
government should not concentrate solely in
fighting corruption but should endeavour to
create a viable economic atmosphere to
help put food on the table. Source, vanguard

Nigeria: We'll Partner Islamic Development Bank On Health, Water, Others - Buhari

The Federal Government says it will deepen its
partnership with the Islamic Development Bank
(IDB) to fund critical projects in health, water
and the infrastructure sector. This is contained
in a statement issued by Malam Garba Shehu,
the President's Senior Special Assistant on
Media and Publicity, in Abuja on Monday.
Buhari stated this when he received, Dr Ali
Madani, the President of the IDB Group at the
State House, Abuja. The president commended
the bank for supporting several developmental
projects across the country.
He acknowledged that the bank had funded
several people-oriented projects in Osun,
Kaduna, Jigawa, Niger, Katsina, Kano and Ebonyi
states, demonstrating its "soft spot and robust
support" for Nigeria. "We cannot thank you
enough for the height you have achieved for the
bank in 41 years.
"Now that you are about to retire, we thank you
for the quality leadership which the world has
recognised," the president said. Buhari also
expressed appreciation to the IDB Group and
other countries for extending their assistance to
Internally Displaced Persons in the North-East.
He assured the visiting IDB chief that Nigeria, a
major financier of the bank, would meet all its
obligations to the development institution within
the shortest time possible. Buhari highlighted
efforts of the current administration at
diversifying the economy with emphasis on
agriculture.
He expressed strong optimism that Nigeria
would achieve self-sufficiency in rice and sugar;
and export both commodities in the next three
years. In his remarks, Madani congratulated
Buhari on the positive outcomes of the war
against corruption and terrorism.
According to him, the bank is ready to mobilise
resources from Arab fund for developmental
initiatives of the Nigerian government and the
private sector, particularly on agriculture.

PDP Crisis: Oladipo Seeks Buhari, CJN Intervention

The embattled former National Secretary of the
Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Prof. Wale
Oladipo, has asked President Muhammadu
Buhari and the Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN),
Justice Mahmud Mohammed, to wade into the
judicial altercation trailing the court actions
instituted by the warring factions.
He said President Buhari should step in to save
the judiciary from the “imminent danger of
being infiltrated and controlled by politicians”.
He spoke against the backdrop of the many
conflicting orders and judgments emanating
from different divisions of the Federal High
Court and the High Court of the Federal Capital
Territory (FCT) as they relate to the leadership
crisis rocking the PDP.
In a statement he issued in Abuja on Sunday,
Oladipo said it was worrisome that after parties
have been served court processes and have
joined issues, they rush to another court where
they get pliable judges to grant them ex-parte
orders and conflicting orders and judgments
within days.
“This ugly trend began with the Hon. Justice
Mohammed Liman of the Port Harcourt Division
of the Federal High Court. He granted an
exparte order in respect of the same issues and
parties on the 23rd of May, 2016, twelve (12)
days after the Federal High Court, Lagos, had
become seized of the matter and made orders
which forbid the PDP from conducting any
election into the offices of the National
Chairman, National Secretary and National
Auditor occupied by the 1st (Sheriff), 2nd (Prof.
Wale Oladipo) and 3rd plaintiffs (Alhaji Fatai
Adeyanju) respectively pending the
determination of the substantive suit.
“The same court granted an order restraining
the Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) from monitoring and/or recognizing the
conduct of any election by the 2nd Defendant/
Respondent (PDP) into the offices of the
National Chairman, National Secretary and
National Auditor occupied by the 1st (Sheriff),
2nd (Prof. Wale Oladipo) and 3rd Plaintiffs
(Alhaji Fatai Adeyanju) respectively pending the
determination of the substantive suit. Source, This Days

Oil rebels announce conditional ceasefire

A Nigerian rebel group has announced a
conditional ceasefire and agreed to hold talks
with the government following months of
attacks on key oil and gas facilities that have
hammered the economy.
In a message posted on the Niger Delta
Avengers' (NDA) website late on Saturday, the
group said it would "observe a cessation of
hostilities," so long as the country's ruling
party stops what it called harassment of
innocent civilians.
It said it would support efforts to negotiate
with "the federal government of Nigeria,
representatives from the home countries of all
multinational oil corporations and neutral
international mediators."
There have been unconfirmed reports for
several weeks of talks underway with Abuja,
and the government of President Muhammadu
Buhari has invited rebels to discussions
several times.
But the NDA never publicly acknowledged that
it was engaged in negotiations, or that it
would support efforts by community figures
from the area.
The NDA said it would honour its ceasefire
pledge "unless the ruling political APC (All
Progressives Congress party) continues ... to
arrest, intimidate, invade and harass innocent
citizens and invade especially Ijaw
communities."
Otherwise it warned: "We promise to fight
more for the Niger Delta, if this opportunity
fails."
The Ijaw ethnic people of Delta, Rivers and
Bayelsa states have long dominated oil rebel
groups operating in the area, although experts
say militants from other communities have
also set up new branches.
- Devastating attacks -
When he took office last year President Buhari
announced he wanted to progressively wind
down a scheme which had offered amnesty to
former members of armed groups in the Delta,
notably the Movement for the Emancipation of
the Niger Delta (MEND).
The scheme was inherited from the previous
government of Buhari's predecessor Goodluck
Jonathan.
Since 2009 large sums of money have been
paid in allowances to some 30,000 former
fighters, while training programmes were
offered to those who pledged to lay down their
arms.
MEND, which is in talks with the government,
distanced itself from the NDA in a statement
Sunday.
"MEND reiterates its full support for the
ongoing military presence in the Niger Delta
region," said the statement by its spokesman
Jomo Gbomo, accusing the NDA of being
supported by former president Jonathan to
destabilise the country.
The NDA has carried out a string of
devastating attacks on Nigeria's oil pipelines
and facilities since the start of the year.
Two state-owned pipelines were blown up in
the delta region on Friday, in attacks blamed
on the NDA.
Also on Friday, a newly emerged group calling
itself the Niger Delta Greenland Justice
Mandate (NDGJM) claimed responsibility for
an attack on the same day.
Earlier this month, the NDA threatened to pull
the oil region out of Nigeria, accusing the
president of fuelling divisions in the country.
- Dire poverty -
Oil majors including Shell, Exxon, Chevron, Eni
and the state-run oil group NNPC have all
been targeted by attacks this year.
The assaults have reduced Nigeria's output by
21.5 percent since January, according to the
Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries
(OPEC), hammering government revenue at a
time of low global oil prices.
Before the attacks, the oil sector accounted
for 90 percent of the nation's foreign
exchange earnings and 70 percent of
government revenue.
Nigeria's economy has been hit badly by the
global fall in oil prices since mid-2014, which
has hit government revenues hard and forced
up inflation to an 11-year high.
But despite the billions of dollars generated
since the discovery of crude in Nigeria in the
1950s, most people live in dire poverty around
the creeks and rivers of the oil-producing
southern delta region.

Nigeria: With His Presence At AACB Meeting, Buhari Becomes First President to Visit CBN Head Office

Visit CBN Head Office
By Kunle Aderinokun
The just-concluded meeting of Association of
African Central Bank Governors recorded a
milestone - It witnessed the presence of
President Muhammadu Buhari inside the head
office of the Central Bank of Nigeria in Abuja,
the first time a Nigerian President would visit the
apex bank's headquarters since the building was
inaugurated in 2002.
As the 39th Ordinary meeting of the Assembly of
Governors of the Association of African Central
Bank Governors (AACB) ended in Abuja, what
distinguished it from any other international
event that had been held by the Central Bank of
Nigeria (CBN) was the presence of President
Muhammadu Buhari inside the apex bank's
headquarters to declare it open.
Apart from former President Olusegun Obasanjo
who inaugurated the multi-billion naira head
office of the CBN, successive Nigerian leaders
before Buhari, namely the late President Umaru
Musa Yar'Adua and former President Goodluck
Jonathan never stepped into the building,
situated in the heart of the Central Business
District, which is less than five minutes away
from the Presidential Villa in Asokoro District.
The CBN headquarters, an intelligent building, is
a complex reputed to be the most expensive and
sophisticated edifice in Abuja, the Federal
Capital Territory. The sprawling building is 94
metres high with outstanding glass and granite
façade.

The building, an architectural masterpiece,
consists of a central atrium with four office
wings, spacious auditorium seating 500 people,
three-storey car park and service block with five
generators as well as other ancillary buildings.
The total gross floor area is 99,500 m².
Considering the exceptional beauty of the
complex regarded as one of the most-prized
assets of the CBN, an institution that is strategic
to the government, many wonder why the former
presidents were not attracted to it.
Buhari's presence at the meeting of African
central bank governors at the CBN head office,
analysts believe, may be a show of confidence in
the apex bank led by its Governor, Godwin
Emefiele, particularly its efforts at ensuring
monetary stability in the economy. The visit has
also been described as a positive precedence.
Declaring the meeting open, Buhari commended
the CBN for spearheading economic stimulus
through its intervention programmes.
He described the theme of the symposium -
"Unwinding Unconventional Monetary Policies:
Implications for Monetary Policy and Financial
Stability in Africa" as apt, considering the
number of growing challenges that threatened
the growth and stability of the continent's
financial systems. Source, All African

LA Times Poll: Donald Trump up Two Points over Hillary Clinton

The New York real estate mogul has not
led the former Secretary of State by two
points since the beginning of August.
Saturday was the first day the poll
showed Trump pulling slightly ahead of
Clinton since Aug. 3.
Sunday’s results come from 2,385
voters, who are tracked daily through
election day, Nov. 8.
The USC Dornsife/ Los Angeles Times
“Daybreak” poll tracks roughly 3,000
voters each day, asking them who they
plan to vote for in November. The data
is averaged daily based on responses
from the week prior, so results may lag
somewhat following major campaign
events.

Boroh: Oil Discovery Brought Hunger, Starvation to N’Delta

Coordinator of Nigeria’s amnesty programme for
repentant militants and Special Adviser to
President Muhammadu Buhari on Niger Delta
Affairs, Brig. Gen. Paul Boroh, retd., Friday
argued that the discovery of crude oil in the
region has fuelled hunger and starvation in the
area.
Boroh, who spoke in Bayelsa, his state of origin,
maintained that the paradox of the oil find in
Nigeria had remained the cause of the various
conflicts experienced in the past and which is
presently threatening to crumble the country’s
economy.
He added that the over-reliance on oil had led
to a mono-economy, destruction of the
ecosystem, poverty, and conflicts as evidenced
by the current agitation by militant groups in
the region.
Speaking after inspecting facilities at the Bio
Resources Development Centre, Odi, Kolokuma/
Opokuma Local Government Area of the
Bayelsa State, Boroh disclosed that 500 ex-
militant youths from the Niger Delta would be
trained in various agro-based related skills as a
means of engaging the youths.
He warned that the amnesty office would no
longer be a place to share ‘free money’, and
urged the youths in the Niger Delta to embrace
change and join hands with the government to
make the area the agricultural hub of the
nation.
Boroh, who also witnessed the graduation and
passing-out ceremony of ex-militants from the
trainees’ pilot scheme at the Centre, described
the scheme as a success, noting that the
potential that abound in the agriculture sector
was enormous.
He pledged that some of the ex-militants would
be sent to Songhai Farms in Delta state, while
others would be sent to the various agriculture
programmes departments at the Delta State
University, DELSU, University of Port Harcourt,
UNIPORT, Rivers State University of Science and
Technology, RSUST, and the Peremabiri Rice
Farms in the state.
Boroh stressed that the President Muhammadu
Buhari led administration had resolved to
diversify the economy from oil and gas to
agriculture, which he said was the best
alternative.
“The shift from reliance on agriculture to over
reliance on oil income has had a tremendous
impact on agriculture and the localities where
crude petroleum is found.
“This has become the harbinger of hunger,
starvation, unemployment and ecosystem
degradation and that is the bottom-line of the
resource base conflict in the Niger Delta”, he
said.
He added, however, that, “President Buhari has
embarked on a drastic diversification of the
economy from oil and gas dependence and
agriculture to provide the nation the opportunity
for growth, investment, wealth and job creation”. Source, this day

Turkey, China grant scholarships to Nigerians

The Turkish Government yesterday said that it
has decided to wave tuition fees for Nigerian
students studying in private universities in the
country before they were closed down by its
government.
The Turkish government had closed down
private universities and other establishments
operating in the country following an
attempted coup.
Also yesterday, the Chinese Government
offered scholarships to 24 Nigerians for study
in various universities in China as part of
efforts to strengthen bilateral relations
between Nigeria and China.
Turkish Ambassador to Nigeria, Mr. Hakan
Cakil, announced Turkey’s offer when he
visited the Minister of Education, Mallam
Adamu Adamu, in his office in Abuja.
According to a statement issued by the
ministry’s Deputy Director, (Press), Ben Bem-
Goong, Nigerian students in private
universities shut down in Turkey had been
moved to public schools close to the students
to enable them continue their studies.
The statement read: “Following the coup
attempt in Turkey which led to the closure of
many private Universities, Nigerian students
studying across Turkish private varsities which
have been closed down have now been moved
by the Turkish Government to public schools
in that country where they will pay very little
or no tuition fees at all.
“Cakil assured the minister that no Nigerian
student would be affected by the closure of
private schools, and that any student who
wished to return to Nigeria would be doing so
as a matter of choice.
In his response, Adamu expressed gratitude to
the Turkish government for paying special
attention to the wellbeing and safety of
Nigerian students in the country.
Mr Qin Jian, Chargé d’Affaires of the Embassy
of China in Nigeria, at a send-off party
organised by the embassy for the
beneficiaries yesterday in Abuja, described
education as the foundation of a nation.
Beijing, he noted, has provided 700
government scholarships to Nigerian students
since 1987. ”Two hundred and thirty seven
Nigerians are currently studying in China under
the Chinese government scholarship scheme,
apart from the self sponsored ones.”

Militants blow up NPDC gas pipeline in Delta state

Suspected militants in the early hours of
Friday blew up another gas pipeline being
operated by the Nigerian Petroleum
Development Company (NPDC) at Owhrode
and Orhuwhorun in Udu Local Government
Area of Delta State, ThisDay reports.
The burst pipeline supplies gas to the
defunct Delta Steel Company (DSC) at
Aladja in Orhuwhorun community in Udu
Local Government Area. The incident took
place barely a few hours to the
commencement of a stakeholders’ meeting
organised by elders and leaders of the
various ethnic nationalities in the region
held in Warri.
Security sources disclosed that about two
pipelines operated by the Nigerian
Petroleum Development Company were
affected in the incident which occurred
about 2am. A new militant group, Niger
Delta Greenland Justice Mandate, sources
said, was behind the attack.

Nigeria: Kachikwu - Govt to Unveil Four New Policies On Oil and Gas Sector

As Nigeria's oil and gas sector awaits the
passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) to
provide clarity on the terms of investments, the
Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Ibe
Kachikwu, has stated that the federal
government would finalise four new additional
policies in the sector by the end of October this
year.
Kachikwu has also hinted that the proposed talks
on output cuts by the Organisation of Petroleum
Exporting Countries (OPEC) to ensure the
rebound of oil prices would have limited
influence on the prices as the cartel controls
only 30 per cent of the global oil output.
Speaking yesterday in Lagos at a conference
organised by the National Association of Energy
Correspondents (NAEC), Kachikwu stated that
the country's oil and gas sector was faced with
myriads of problems that required urgent
solutions, stressing that the drop in oil prices
was the least of the country's problems.
Also speaking at the conference, the outgoing
Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of
Nigeria LNG Limited, Mr. Babs Omotowa,
disclosed that any tinkering of the Nigeria LNG
Act of 2004 will violate bilateral agreements with
international investors as well as cost the
country a huge $25 billion in foreign direct
investment (FDI) and fines running in billions at
the international courts.
Kachikwu said the issue of cash calls deficiency
had been his nightmare with $2 billion shortfalls,
which had accumulated to arrears of about $6.2
billion.
"Every year, we lose 10 to 15 per cent of the
joint venture production. There have been no
new projects in the last five years and most of
the projects touted cannot stand the current
economic realities as they were based on $90
per barrel oil price. We are losing investments to
our immediate neighbours," he explained.
According to him, the drop in oil prices is a
global problem that is not peculiar to Nigeria,
adding that the country has more pressing
problems, arising from the renewed attacks on
oil facilities by the Niger Delta militants.
Kachikwu, who spoke on the topic: 'The Urgency
of Now', revealed that while 3,000 cases of
pipeline vandalism were recorded in the country
from 2010 to 2015, the country had recorded
1,600 incidents between January and June this
year, representing over 50 per cent of the
incidents that occurred in five years.
He said the incidents of vandalism that occurred
in the previous years had led to the loss of 643
million litres of petroleum products, amounting to
N51.28 billion lost in 2015.
"Between January and June 2016, 1,600
incidents were recorded, resulting in the loss of
109 million litres of petroleum products and
560,000 barrels of crude oil to the refineries,"
Kachikwu added.
He added that while 850 million standard cubic
per day of gas has been shut in due to the Niger
Delta crisis, which has led to power outage
exposure of 2,700 megawatts to 3,000MW.
The minister further disclosed that the crisis has
forced a drop in the country's crude oil
production from nearly 2.3 million barrels per day
to about 1.56 million bpd.
"In addition, the Niger Delta crisis has resulted in
loss of lives, high cost of operations, fuel
shortages and environmental degradation.
"Additional 1.1 million barrels of oil per day is
required to be produced between now and end of
the year to meet the targeted annual production.
We don't have money to finance federal budget
due to problems outside the control of the
government. We need to produce extra 1.1
million barrels per day to be able to catch up," he
added.
The minister appealed to the Niger Delta
militants to use the same level of aggression
used in destroying oil and gas facilities to join
the negotiation table.
"I am as passionate as the militants are on
issues concerning the Niger Delta. But whatever
message they want to convey, they must stop
destroying pipelines and use the same level of
aggression used to destroy the pipelines to the
negotiating table," Kachikwu said.
He noted that the country's oil and gas industry
requires policies to remove the challenges facing
the sector.
According to him, apart from the PIB, the federal
government will finalise and gazette four new
policies in the sector by October this year.
Kachikwu identified the four policies to include:
National Oil Policy, National Gas Policy,
Downstream Policy and Fiscal Reform Policy.
"We need to complete these between now and
October, but the problem is bureaucracy. So,
how do we go to the National Assembly to get
the permission for the urgency," he added.
Kachikwu said the gas policy, for instance, would
"unlock the gas potentials; ensure effective
development of the Nigerian gas market with
adequate and sustainable gas supply to the
power and industrial sectors; transit from gas
flare penalty regime to flare commercialisation
and shift focus from government-built to
investor-built infrastructure."
He said apart from the four new policies, the PIB
would also be split into three sections.
Speaking on the proposed OPEC talks to cut
output to ensure price recovery, Kachikwu stated
that OPEC's decision would have limited impact
on the oil market as the cartel controls only 30
per cent of the market.

"OPEC controls only 30 per cent. So, even if we
shut down, it will have limited impact because
the 70 per cent producers are more powerful.
Only a handshake between OPEC and non-OPEC
can solve it by inviting Russia, Mexico and the
United States.
"Are we cutting volumes? I don't see that
happening. Will that meeting help lift the price?
Well yes if we succeed in having conversations
with Russia, the US and Mexico. If there is a
handshake with individuals across the aisle, that
would be the beginning."
The theme of the NAEC conference was 'Low Oil
Price: Impact and the Way Forward'.
Omotowa, who was the chairman at the
conference, has been the Managing Director for
NLNG for some five years and will be handing
over to the incoming Managing Director, Mr.
Tony Attah, on September 1, 2016.
Speaking during his address, Omotowa said
NLNG, through its expansion growth programme
which involves the expansion of production
capacity of the LNG plant in Bonny, Rivers , with
a Train 7 and 8, could attract $25 billion, create
30,000 construction jobs, help to further reduce
gas flaring and generate over $1billion to
$2billion additional revenue to the country in
taxes and dividend.
"In a period of huge youth unemployment and
need for more revenue, this should really be a
cause we should have all hands on deck for
especially as NLNG has demonstrated its
pedigree having attracted $15billion in foreign
investment, grown from a 2 Train to a 6 Train
plant, contributing to the reduction gas flaring
from 65 per cent to below 20 per cent, delivering
$33 billion to Nigeria from a $2.5 billion
investment. This potential $25 billion in
investment, creation of 30,000 jobs, reduced gas
flaring among others are being put in jeopardy by
attempts to renege on promises that Nigeria
gave to foreign investors which enabled the
historical $15 billion investment historically
attracted," Omotowa explained. Source. All africa

FG set to begin exploitation of Nigeria’s 12,220Mw hydro- power potential

The Federal Government yesterday said it
would spend N505.6 billion to complete
116 ongoing water projects across the
country. It also said outstanding liabilities
owed contractors handling some of the
projects stood at N88.8billion as at last
year, The Nation reports.
Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman
Adamu, who spoke in Abuja during the
public presentation of the roadmap for the
water sector tagged: Immediate and long
term strategies for water sector, 2016 –
2030, promised that the focus was to
reform the water sector to meet the
demands of Nigerians.
Speaking specifically on electricity Adamu
said Nigeria has the hydro-power potential
of about 12, 220 megawatts (Mw). “Only
about 1,930 Mw has been developed at
Kainji, Jebba and Shiroro dams. There are
17 existing dams with combined potential
hydro-power capacity of over 200 Mw that
are yet to be exploited”, he said.
“Dams that are under study and design
have combined potential capacity of about
4,320 Mw including Mambilla (3,050 Mw),
Gurara II (360 Mw), Dasin Hausa (150 Mw)
and Zungeru (760 Mw). Several other sites
with a total potential of 6,460 MW are yet
to be fully studied and developed,” he
added.

Why Nigerian govt. stopped export expansion grant — Minister

Minister of Finance, Kemi
Adeosun, said on Thursday
the federal government was
justified in stopping the
export expansion grant (EEG)
policy.
The Minister, who was
receiving the leadership of
the Nigerian Economic
Summit Group (NESG) in
Abuja, said the policy was
stopped to check the high
incidence of abuses.
“We need to realize that with
the collapse of commodity
prices, we don’t have enough
foreign exchange to buy as
many imported goods as we
like to. So, when there is
import substitution, we must
embrace it,” she said
“Although our predecessors
in office halted the
implementation of the policy,
the decision was in order
going by the harvests of
startling revelations on the
abuse of export grant,” she
said.
“On paper, EEG is to
encourage export business in
the economy. However, a
situation where we do not
have control, we open doors
for the kind of abuse, which
are only imaginable. We have
people exporting stones,
describing them as high
valued goods, collecting an
import credit and used to
import fish.
“We do need to look for how
to support export. We have to
be very realistic in the
recommendations we are
coming up with,” Mrs
Adeosun said.
The EEG is an incentive,
including reduction in import
duty rates or waivers for
equipment and materials,
granted by government to
encourage producers of goods
to export them abroad to
earn foreign exchange for the
country.
The benefiting sectors of the
economy include agricultural
machinery, solid mineral,
equipment and gas-using
equipment, aviation, health,
mines and steel, water
resources, gas, power, as well as
donations to states, education and
related ministries, departments and
agencies, MDAs.
Others include the steel sector, specific
manufacturing sub-sectors, including
imports of completely-knocked down
parts, automobiles and tyres.
The policy covered sectors seen as
strategic areas capable of stimulating
growth, supporting diversification of the
Nigerian economy, and creating jobs for
Nigerians, and promote Nigeria’s non-oil
exports.
On the ongoing policy review by the
government, Mrs. Adeosun sought the
understanding of the private sector in
that direction, saying they should come
up with implementable policies in view
of the current economic situation in the
country.
She said the NESG must be ready to work
with the Ministry of Finance by keeping
track of some of the recommendations to
the Federal Government.
“I ask you to keep track of how many of
your polices are implemented and those
not implemented,” she said. “You also
need to find out why those policies were
not implemented. They may be great
policies at wrong times, or wrong
policies. They may even be
unimplementable policies.
The Minister also stressed the need to
prioritize in the face of the revenue
challenge in the country.
“Yes, the economy is challenged and
people are extremely frustrated. We
need to rebuild fundamentally. We need
to prioritize. We have to rebuild this
country and it has to be data driven.

Airtel Partners Lagos to Empower Youths at International Workshop

Airtel Nigeria has partnered the Lagos State
Ministry of Youth and Social Development to
commemorate the 2016 International Youth Day
in line with its commitment to empower youths
and create platforms to help them achieve their
dreams.
With the theme: ‘The Road to 2030: Eradicating
Poverty and Achieving Sustainable Consumption
and Production’, the annual International Youth
Day is a day designated by the United Nations
to enable governments all over the world draw
attention to issues surrounding youths.
As its supports to the state government, the
Airtel facilitated a one-day leadership training
workshop held at Lagos Chamber of Commerce
and Industry (LCCI) building in Ikeja, Lagos
yesterday.
Flagging off the workshop, Director of Corporate
Communications and CSR of Airtel Nigeria,
Emeka Oparah, noted that the company is
passionate about creating opportunities to
empower Nigerian youths and committed to
partnering relevant governmental agencies in
order to help the young Nigerians actualise their
goals and fulfill their professional and business
endeavours.

Nigeria records 1,600 pipeline vandalism cases

The Minister of State for Petroleum
Resources, Dr Ibe Kachikwu, says Nigeria
has recorded 1,600 cases of pipeline
vandalism since January.
Kachikwu made the disclosure at the 2016
Annual Conference of National Association
of Energy Correspondents with the theme,
“Low Oil Price: Impact and the Way
Forward”, in Lagos on Thursday.
The minister also said that the country
recorded over 3,000 pipeline vandalism
cases from 2010 to 2015
He said that the impact of attacks on oil
and gas pipelines was that there was no
money to fund the 2016 budget.
He said that militancy in the Niger Delta
had destabilised the country’s oil industry,
adding that Nigeria needed to increase its
production by 1.1 million barrels per day to
meet its target.
The minister said that declining price of oil
in the international market had negatively
impacted the country’s revenue leading to
economic recession.
He said that proactive steps were required
to bring Nigeria’s economy back on
positive track.
According to him, while vandals wreak
havoc on oil facilities and cripple local
production, over-supply of product in the
market is affecting prices and creating
shocks to the economy.
Kachikwu said time had come for the
country to face the reality of the time as
there was no assurance that the price of
oil would peak as being speculated.
He explained that OPEC merely controlled
30 per cent of the market while 70 per
cent was in the hands of major producers,
such the U.S., Russia and Mexico, which
were not OPEC members.
He said that the industry was challenged
by six billion dollars cash call indebtedness
accumulated over the last five years.
The minister said that with inadequate
financing of the industry, no investment
had occurred in the sector in the last five
years.
He said 643 million litres of petroleum
products amounting to N51.28 billion was
lost in 2015, while between January and
June a loss of 109 million litres of
petroleum products and 560,000 barrels of
crude had been recorded.
He said that about 850 million standard
cubic feet of gas production had been lost
from crises and power outage exposure of
2,700MW. to 3,000MW.
The, minister said government was
stepping up efforts to make robust policies
that would finalise and gazette a
comprehensive gas policy, unlock gas
potential and ensure effective development
of Nigeria’s gas market.
He said the policy would help to transit
from gas flare penalty regime to gas
commercialisation and shift focus from
government built to investor built
infrastructure.
Kachikwu said for the industry to rebound,
efforts should hinge on developing National
Oil, Gas, Downstream, Fiscal Reform
policies as well as the Petroleum Industry
bill.
He said that local refineries would be
scaled up to attain full capacity from the
present 60 per cent and added that by
2018, the country would reduce
importation of products and finally cease
product import by 2019.

Nigeria: Expect Millions of Job for Our Youths Soon - Buhari

President Muhamadu Buhari said on Thursday
assured that his administration is working
assiduously to create millions of jobs for
teeming Nigerian jobless youths.
The president stated this on Thursday while
speaking at a symposium by the Association of
African Central Banks (AACB) symposium, titled
'Unwinding unconventional monetary policies:
implications for monetary policy and financial
stability in Africa'.
He said, "For us in Nigeria, while recognising the
challenges we are confronted with and the need
to surmount them, we are determined to
diversify the economy away from excessive
reliance on oil and other primary products,"
Buhari added.
"Consequently, we are taking measures and
implementing policies that would ensure we are
self-sufficient, generate massive employment
for millions of our youth, and explore our
untapped human and natural resources.
"We shall also embark on export and production
diversification steps including investment in
infrastructure; promotion of manufacturing
through agro-based industries and expansion of
Regional Trade.
"All these would involve integrating the informal
economy into the mainstream and providing
funds to Small and Medium Enterprises. We
shall also continue, with greater determination
and focus to pursue our goal of ensuring
improved security for our country and its
citizens, and without letting up on our fight
against corruption and terrorism.
"Side by side, with economic stimulus measures,
we must intensify our surveillance and give
guidance to the operations of our financial
institutions to reverse the trend of illicit flows of
funds out of Africa.
"We should all be serious in putting place
measures aimed at ensuring that the proceeds
of these illicit flows are repatriated to their
countries of origin with minimal bureaucratic
hitches."
The symposium was attended by Godwin
Emefiele, CBN governor, and many other central
bank governors across Africa.

Nigeria will soon overtake South Africa as largest economy in Africa – FG

Nigeria has been holding the position until South
Africa displaced her.
Using the Gross Domestic Product at the end of
2015, published by the International Monetary
Fund, the size of South Africa’s economy was
$301bn, while Nigeria’s GDP was $296bn
The Minister of Budget and National Planning,
Senator Udo Udoma, while speaking shortly after
receiving the report of the three-day pre-summit
workshop from the Infrastructure Public Private
Partnership Summit Group, said the country
would bounce back in no distant time.
Udoma called on Nigerians to stop bemoaning
the lost glory but rather put all hands on deck to
support the government in achieving economic
development.
He said, “We are determined to turn this
economy around and stimulate private sector
investments. Losing our position as the biggest
economy in Africa should in some way inspire us
to work even harder. Sometimes when you are
number two, you are actually more motivated to
work hard and we should see it as something
that should motivate all of us to work harder. Source, daily post

Catholic bishops at war with health minister over abortion

Bishops of the Catholic Conference of Ibadan
Ecclesiastical province have condemned the
alleged subtle plan by the Minister of Health,
Prof. Isaac Adewole, in collaboration with foreign
organisations to increase the culture of
contraception among Nigerian women, describing
this as an anti-life policy.
The bishops also warned the political parties
participating in the Edo and Ondo State
governorship polls to desist from violence and
align with the guidelines stipulated by the
Independent National Electoral Commission
(INEC) to avert chaos in the system.
They praised President Muhammadu Buhari for
exposing corrupt Nigerians in his anti-graft war,
advising that the president must institutionalise
the fight for it to outlast his administration and in
the system.
A communique issued at the end of the three-
day second plenary meeting of the province held
in Akure, Ondo State, “condemned the recent
move by the Minister of Health, Prof. Adewole, in
collaboration with the foreign agencies to
commit the federal government to increasing the
culture of contraception and subsequently,
abortion among our people.”
The communiqué signed by its President and
Archbishop of Ibadan, Gabriel Abegunrin and
Secretary, who also doubles as the Catholic
Bishop of Ekiti State, Bishop Felix Ajakaye
added: “The policy is being done all in the name
of providing better maternal health and
empowering our people.
“We see such moves as deceptive to our people
and harmful to moral
values and we ask Nigerians to reject them. Our
youth and women need better power supply,
potable water, good roads, better health and
educational institutions more than these
contraceptives.
“Our country must reject this relentless offer of
anti-life incentives under the guise of foreign aid
in order not to destroy our beautiful culture,”
they advised.
The clerics urged INEC to be fair and allow the
people to elect candidates of their choices
without hindrances in the Edo and Ondo
governorship polls.
“As the elections in Ondo and Edo States draw
near, we urge all who will contest the elections
to commit themselves to non-violence and
fairplay.

Three ministers in Buhari’s cabinet told me he will never be Nigeria’s President – APC chieftain

A member of the All Progressives Congress,
APC, Board of Trustees, BoT, Olisaemeka
Akamukale yesterday disclosed that President
Muhammadu Buhari made some fundamental
mistakes in his appointments, adding that three
serving ministers had told him that Buhari will
never be president of Nigeria.
Akamukale, who made the disclosure while
fielding questions from journalists at the APC
headquarters, said Buhari needs to, immediately,
roll out practical solutions to the myriad of
problems confronting the country, warning that
many Nigerians were becoming impatient.
While berating the three saboteurs who he did
not name, the APC big shot said, “I agree that it
is painful to see certain persons appointed. I
know three current serving ministers who told
me that Buhari will never be the President of
this country.
“Today, they are benefiting from Buhari
government, but they should be ashamed
because it is only a dog that goes back to its
vomit. I have nothing against them because
people will tell you that after party, it is
government, but they are political jobbers. They
claim that the president went for technocrats,
but the big question is, who is not a technocrat.
“The truth is that most of them are interlopers
because it takes those within the party to
understand where the party is headed. I agree
that Mr President, perhaps, because of what he
met on ground and style of leadership, has not
been forthcoming with the distribution of
leadership.
“There are lots of our members waiting to be
compensated. It is natural all over the world.
However, I am sure these things will soon be
sorted out because we are getting there. I know
we have to be patient but I know that some
people are running out of patience,” he said.
Akamukale continued, “If by 2019, the dream is
cut short by Nigerians, many people you see
today, some who are ministers and others, will
go back, but some of us will still remain. Many
people will go back and look for a new
government to take position. They will tell you
that they are technocrats because they have
nothing to lose.
“If you really ask me, I think Nigerians are
becoming impatient with us because it is now
about two years into this government. So, it is
for Nigerians and not about me or about APC
members. It is for Nigerians to know what this
government will do to benefit them.”
While offering suggestions on what Buhari
should do, he said: “I think the president should
bring on board those who believe in the change
mantra, those who yearned for change, those
who could assist Mr. President in delivering the
dividends of democracy to the masses of this
country, because, at the end of the day, people
that lose or gain are Nigerians. Nigerians voted
for us and there are things they are expecting
from us. Source, Daily post

350m Illegal Arms In Nigeria?

The United Nations last week expressed
concern over the 350 million illicit
weapons which, it claimed, are in wrong
hands in Nigeria. According to the world
body this figure accounts for 70 per cent
of the estimated 500 million small arms
and light weapons (SALW) in Africa. To
say the least, the figure is as outrageous
as the implications of the proliferation of
arms itself. Everyone has been scared
stiff to speak about the matter or
challenge the UN, except a South East-
based civil society group, the
International Society for Civil Liberties
and the Rule of Law (Intersociety). The
military and other security sources have
neither responded nor disputed the
veracity of the information volunteered
by the director, UN Regional Centre for
Peace and Disarmament in Africa
(UNREC), Olatokunbo Ige, a Nigerian
lawyer and diplomat.
While it will be foolhardy to wish this
away, we recall that a couple of years
ago, a former chief of Army Standards
and Evaluation, Major-General Shehu
Abdulkadir, had alluded to the fact that
70 per cent of the 10 million illegal
weapons in circulation in West Africa
were in Nigeria and this was corroborated
by the Conference of the Parties to the
United Nations Convention Against
Transnational Organised Crime (COP-
UNTOC), last year. This contradicts the
present figure by UNREC. We doubt if the
proliferation had shot up by 5000 per
cent in two years! If this is so, the
country would have ceased to exist by
now because if 350 million illicit small
arms and light weapons are in circulation
and in wrong hands in Nigeria, with a
total population of 174 million, it
translates that to every Nigerian there
are at least, two lethal weapons. That is
an outlandish prognosis. We feel this
figure requires further interrogation to
confirm its veracity.
While we are certain that the UN is not a
frivolous body and we have no
contradictory statistics to doubt Ms Ige’s
report, we believe that circulation or
proliferation of illicit arms, no matter the
number, is dangerous and will further
exacerbate the nation’s security
situation. Our over-stretched law
enforcement and military facilities and
intelligence community will now have to
redouble their efforts at quelling all
security threats across the land.
We are disturbed about the dimension of
profiling Nigeria as both a producer and
consumer nation of small arms and light
weapons. The country is trailed by
Liberia and Sierra Leone that have
recently emerged from pernicious
decade-long wars. Regrettably, more than
half of these are in the hands of non-
state actors and criminal groups who use
them as militants and oil thieves in the
creeks, campus cultists, kidnappers and
armed robbers in the hinterland, religious
insurgents and political thugs. A more
sordid dimension to this is that Nigerian
terrorists have grown in sophistication to
produce and employ bombs and other
improvised explosive devices as tools of
their vicious trade.
Tracking down and investigating the
brains behind these activities have
become herculean tasks. Nigeria has
demonstrably shown nuanced
incompetence on strategy and logistics
for identifying criminals and their foreign
collaborators. In 2009, our apparatchiks
apprehended a Ukrainian plane fully
loaded with arms and ammunition in
Kano, another lorry-load of arms heading
for Lagos was impounded in Ghana the
following year. Also a year later a serious
diplomatic rift between Nigeria and Iran
was fuelled by the arrest in Apapa ports
of 13 containers of illegal weapons from
that country.
Lack of reliable data banks for forensic
investigations like DNA profiles and
fingerprints, have compounded the
absence of coordination among security
agencies mandated to quell violence in
the country. They need to go back to
the drawing board to curb this menace.
We need, as a matter of urgent national
importance, to address the issue by a
combination of diplomacy, psychology
and tactics in order to mop up these
arms, sensitise the citizenry and
decisively deal with illicit gun runners,
users, makers and financiers. Source, leadership

Presidency begins probe of Jonathan, wife, over alleged link to Niger Delta bombings

The Nigerian presidency has
ordered a discreet
investigation of former
president, Goodluck Jonathan,
and his wife, Patience, over
the spate of bombings of oil
and gas facilities in the Niger
Delta, PREMIUM TIMES has
learnt.
A top government source,
quoting intelligence reports,
told this newspaper that it
had now been established
that some of the oil
installations bombed in the
Niger Delta had actually been
mined while President
Jonathan was in power, just
before the 2015 election, by
some of the militants and
operatives known to be very
close to him.
“The mining was meant to be
a “Plan B should they be
removed from Aso Rock,”
said the official, who
requested not to be named
because of the sensitive
nature of the matter.
“The plan then was to cause
confusion if the 2015
presidential election did not
go as expected, in favour of
the then incumbent.”
“However, when the former
president surprisingly
conceded the election to
President Mohammadu
Buhari, according to the
source, there was both
disappointment and
confusion in the camp of
those who had designed the
plan, causing a suspension of
the whole agenda.
“But by February this year, it
was learnt, the plan was
reopened as several of the
backers were getting
investigated on different
corruption cases.
“Mr. Jonathan himself himself
was concerned that himself
and his wife could be
prosecuted, including on
money-laundering charges
where investigators said
evidence against the wife has
already been amassed.
“It was at that point that the
bombing activities under the banner of
the Niger Delta Avengers started.
“Even the former President himself had
been reported while on a foreign trip as
saying he knew he was under probe.
This was after the plan to start the
bombing had become fully operational
according to intelligence reports.”
Last June, during a live interview on
Bloomberg Television, Mr. Jonathan said
he was aware that anti-graft agencies
were investigating him.
“I am being investigated, yes,
investigations are going on,” Mr.
Jonathan had said after delivering a
speech on his five-year presidency in
London.
Mr. Jonathan’s comments came at the
same time the Niger Delta governors
were reportedly prevailing on President
Buhari to drop corruption charges
against some highly placed persons from
the region.
“After the Plan B was restored, the
‘militant operatives’ who mined the oil
and gas installations only had to arrange
for how they would be detonated at a
distance at the wish and timing of the
NDA, their backers and sponsors said to
include the former president, his wife,
Government Tompolo, Mr. Kinglsey Kuku
and Olisa Metuh among others.
“The mining was done by some of the
militants that the previous government
had trained under the amnesty
programme, and those who acquired the
needed expertise, besides their
knowledge of the Niger Delta creeks and
terrain.
“Experts working with the federal
government are now said to be working
to determine how to discover if there are
still many more oil and gas installations
that have been mined and explore the
best means of demining them.”
In addition to the mined installations,
intelligence reports, according to the
official, also stated that the NDA and
their backers and operatives also had
the capacity to dive in and out of water
to damage and bomb the installations,
adding that the federal government had
drawn up the full list of all those that
were trained and equipped in those
skills under the Amnesty Programme.
Our source further disclosed that “the
game plan of Mr. Jonathan and his
associates backing the NDA was to cause
enough economic damage in order to
force the Buhari administration to
pursue a political solution to the
corruption cases on which investigations
were already advancing against them.
“This is to avoid prosecution and the
attendant unprecedented shame of
having a former president go to jail.”
According to another presidency source,
“one of the reasons Mr. Jonathan visited
Aso Rock earlier this month was because
he was afraid for himself, but more
readily for his wife against whom silent
investigations had already advanced
significantly.”
Some MEND members had recently
alleged that former President Jonathan
came up with the name Niger Delta
Avengers himself, a claim he has since
denied.
But the intelligence reports, a presidency
official said, confirmed that it was the
intervention of the former president that
actually stopped the militants from the
symbolic announcement to declare a
republic earlier this month.
Mr. Jonathan could not be reached on
Thursday morning to comment for this
story. He did not answer or return calls.
So also was Garba Shehu, the senior
special assistant to the President on
media and publicity. He did not answer
or return the calls made to him on
Wednesday night.
The Special Adviser to the President on
Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina,
could not be reached.
However, another presidency
spokesperson, ‘Laolu Akande, said he
was aware Nigerian security agencies
were “massively investigating the Niger
Delta bombings”.

Tompolo’s kinsmen threaten to shut down Chevron’s operations in 7 days

Gbaramatu Kingdom, in Warri South-West Local
Government Area of Delta State, has threatened
to shut down operations of Chevron Nigeria
Limited, CNL, if the company fails to address
the marginalization of the community in seven
days.
A statement by the community’s Chairman,
Victor Eseimieghan on Wednesday, accused
Chevron of marginalising the community in the
areas of contracts, employment and corporate
social responsibility, CSR.
The kingdom which is the ancestral home of
former militant leader, Government Ekpemupolo,
alias Tompolo also accused the oil company of
“flagrantly violating the local content
requirements in the area of contracts in their
dealings with Benikrukru community over the
years.”
The statement reads, “In the light of the
foregoing, the Chevron Nigeria limited and
government is hereby given a seven- day
ultimatum to address these grievances or the
Benikrukru community would have no other
option than to shut down the operations of
Chevron Nigeria Limited in the Abiteye field.
“Contracts due to the communities in line with
the local content law are given to contractors
fronting for insiders within Chevron at the
expense of the community. For now contracts
such as water injection plant treatment; well-
head servicing; well head repairs; leak repairs;
fumigation and other associated contracts,
which ought to be done by community
contractors are been done by two companies,
Inhouse Group and Pelfaco Nigeria Limited.
“These companies are not owned by Benikrukru
indigenous contractors, but by people from
outside community, who are fronting for insiders
in Chevron Nigeria Limited.
“Also in the area of employment, Chevron has
also stopped the yearly aptitude test through
which they used to employ a few qualified
persons from the community for the past 10
years. They employ now without the knowledge
and interest of the Benikrukru community.
“Even the few persons that were employed from
the community in recent times are all casual
workers. Chevron has also completely
abandoned its corporate social responsibility to
the community by the failure to carry out any
developmental project in the Benikrukru
community for several years. Chevron has
bluntly refused to have any dealing with the
leadership of the community with a view to
resolve these issues.

Trump: DOJ 'has to be ashamed' over Clinton emails

The Department of Justice "has to be
ashamed" with the way it handled its
investigation into Hillary Clinton's use
of a private server to handle classified
information as secretary of state,
Donald Trump said in a new interview
aired Wednesday discussing his
concerns about his opponent receiving
classified briefings.
Asked specifically about public concerns
regarding both him and Clinton
receiving classified briefings, Trump
remarked to Fox News' Ainsley Earhardt
on Tuesday night in Milwaukee that he
is "worried about [Clinton] getting it
because of her email situation. She can't
keep anything private."
"I think her email scandal is one of the
worst things I've ever seen. She deleted
33,000 emails which is a crime, what
she did is a crime, and to think that you
have subpoenas and you're deleting
emails, it's unthinkable. And I think
probably her single greatest
achievement in her life will be getting
out of that mess because — and I don't
think she's really out of it. I can't
believe that she's out of it, but Justice
has to be ashamed. Justice has to be
ashamed," Trump said. "When you look
at — when you look at the fact that she
did so many things wrong. When you
just look at the volume of — you know, I
call her crooked Hillary — you look at
the volume of things she did wrong, and
for her to get away with that is, to me, I
think it's very hard to believe."

North Korea says it has resumed plutonium production: Kyodo

In a written interview with Kyodo, the North's
Atomic Energy Institute, which has jurisdiction
over its main Yongbyon nuclear facilities, said:
"We have reprocessed spent nuclear fuel rods
removed from a graphite-moderated reactor."
The institute also said North Korea had been
producing highly enriched uranium necessary for
nuclear arms and power "as
scheduled", Kyodo added.
The institute did not mention the amount of
plutonium or enriched uranium it had produced,
Kyodo said.
The U.N. nuclear watchdog, the International
Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA), said in June
North Korea appeared to have reopened the
Yongbyon plant to produce plutonium from
spent fuel of a reactor central to its atomic
weapons drive.

North Korea vowed in 2013 to restart all nuclear
facilities, including the main reactor at its
Yongbyon site that had been shut down.
North Korea had said in September that
Yongbyon was operating and that it was working
to improve the "quality and quantity" of its
nuclear weapons.
North Korea conducted its fourth nuclear test in
January.
According to Kyodo, the North Korean institute
said it had already succeeded in making "lighter
and diversifying" nuclear weapons, and that it
had no intention of halting nuclear tests.
"Under conditions that the United States
constantly threatens us with nuclear weapons,
we will not discontinue nuclear tests," the
institute was quoted by Kyodo as saying.
Little is known about the quantities of weapons-
grade uranium or plutonium that North Korea
possesses, or its ability to produce either,
though plutonium from spent fuel at Yongbyon
is widely believed to have been used in its
nuclear bombs.
North Korea has come under tightening
international pressure over its nuclear weapons
program, including tougher U.N. sanctions
adopted in March backed by its lone major ally
China.

Breaking: PDP’s Convention venue sealed by police

Officers and men of the Nigeria Police
Force have sealed all the roads leading
to the Sharks Stadium in Port Harcourt,
Rivers State, venue of the convention of
the People’s Democratic Party.
Daily Sun gathered that as early as 5am,
several policemen were deployed in the
City, alongside Armoured Personnel
Carriers.
The policemen equally sealed part of the
Rivers State Government House.
Affected in the main are the Old
Presidential Lodge and the Deputy
Governor’s Lodge.
They have been blocked with APCs.
Some of the stalwarts of the PDP who
have arrived ahead of the National
Convention are lodged in the Old
Presidential Lodge and the Deputy
Governor’s Lodge.
Though there has been no official
reaction to the development from the
Police, those who spoke off record
among the policemen said they were told
to enforce the order of Justice Okon
Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja
that the National Convention must not
hold. Source The sun

Nigeria Failed to Develop Automobile Industry - Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari has lamented
that Nigeria failed to develop on automobile
initiatives started in Bauchi, Kaduna and Ibadan,
and depended too much on oil as mainstay of
her economy.
According to him, in a statement issued by his
special adviser media, Femi Adesina, Nigeria as
a country recognised her problems early enough,
but remained potential for too long, and so did
not achieve much results.
The President spoke today at State House,
Abuja, while receiving Executive Members of
Association of Africa Automotive Manufacturers
(AAAM), led by the chairman, Mr Jeff Nemeth.
President Buhari said that to reverse the trend,
"We must avoid the mistakes made in the past
by both government and manufacturers, and we
are ready to get investment from all quarters,
so that we can improve the lives of our people."
"We are making efforts to start our steel
industry all over again. I see vast opportunities
for both the country and those who invest here,"
the President said.
Nemeth said the Association is comprised of
potential investors who are ready to unlock
investment potentials on the African continent.
"We are ready to offer strategic partnership with
Nigeria. We want to promote investor-friendly
regulatory frameworks and sustainable
manufacturing.
"We will equally promote infrastructure
development, job creation, and skills transfer,"
he said.
The AAAM chairman sought the support of the
Presidency in the realisation of the vision and
mission of the association.
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Nigerian president opens new railway line and promises more

“We are on the threshold of presenting to
Nigerians a standard gauge railway train
service that will be safe, fast and reliable,”
said Buhari at a ceremony to mark the line’s
opening.
He went on to assure Nigerians the country’s
railway system would eventually link most
state capitals and major commercial and
production centres, but did not set a time
frame for doing so.
“I wish to also reassure Nigerians that due
attention will be placed on… rehabilitating the
existing 3,505km narrow gauge rail line and
developing and constructing new standard
gauge rail lines across the country,” he said.
Nigeria has two main narrow gauge lines, from
Lagos in the south to Yobe State in the north,
and from Port Harcourt in the Delta to the
north-eastern state of Borno. British
colonialists started construction on the first
Lagos line in 1896.
Standard gauge rail tracks have a distance of
143.51cm between the inside edges of the
rails, and it is the width used by more than
half of countries in the world including the EU
and the US.
The new line runs from the federal capital
Abuja to the city of Kaduna, capital of the
North Western state of Kaduna, “a corridor
which has a huge potential for industries,
agricultural activities and a growing labour
force,” said Buhari.
Nigeria has also agreed to China’s help in
completing a rail line from the Delta oil city of
Warri in the south to Abuja, it has been
reported.
Nigeria’s transport minister, Rotimi Amaechi,
signed a memorandum of understanding with
the state-owned China Railway Construction
Corporation (CRCC) to complete the line
between the Warri and the iron ore mining
town of Itakpe, and extend it north to Abuja.
According to the Nigerian Observer Amaechi
said: “It is part of the economic corridor in
Nigeria where we have solid minerals. We
have been working on that line for a long time
and we will like to complete it.”
Amaechi said negotiations with CRCC would
commence after the partnership is given the
president’s approval.

We Are Ready To Get Investment From All Quarters – President Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari said Nigeria
as a country recognized her problems early
enough, but remained potential for too long,
and so did not achieve much results.
This was stated in a press release issued by
the Special Adviser to the President, Media
and Publicity, Femi Adesina on Tuesday in
Abuja.
According to Adesina, the President spoke
Tuesday at State House, Abuja, while
receiving Executive Members of Association
of Africa Automotive Manufacturers (AAAM),
led by the chairman, Mr Jeff Nemeth.
“President Buhari said that to reverse the
trend, “We must avoid the mistakes made in
the past by both government and
manufacturers, and we are ready to get
investment from all quarters, so that we can
improve the lives of our people.”
“The President lamented that Nigeria failed
to develop on automobile initiatives started
in Bauchi, Kaduna and Ibadan, and depended
too much on oil as mainstay of her
economy.” He added.
He quoted the president: “We are making
efforts to start our steel industry all over
again. I see vast opportunities for both the
country and those who invest here,”
Adesina said that the AAAM Chairman,
Nemeth, said that the Association comprised
potential investors who were ready to unlock
investment potentials on the African
continent.
“We are ready to offer strategic partnership
with Nigeria. We want to promote investor-
friendly regulatory frameworks and
sustainable manufacturing.
“We will equally promote infrastructure
development, job creation, and skills
transfer,” He quoted the chairman.
Adesina added that the AAAM chairman
sought the support of the Presidency in the
realization of the vision and mission of the
association.