The President of the African Development Bank Group (AfDB), Akinwumi Adesina, says Nigerian government will be the loser in the wake of criticism targeted at Alhaji Aliko Dangote and his refinery.

He noted that such criticism would discourage foreign investors from coming to the country.

There has been a disagreement between Dangote and Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) as well as Nigerian petroleum regulatory authorities over the alleged substandard quality of diesel produced by Dangote Refinery, among other issues.

Adesina, who dismissed claims of Dangote’s monopoly of the country’s manufacturing sector, expressed shock at the controversy, saying it was creating bad waves for Nigeria globally.

Adesina’s remarks are contained in a statement shared on X by business mogul Femi Otedola on Tuesday.

The statement read in part, “Monopoly often exists where there are high barriers to entry or high capital costs. How many individuals or companies can do railways? How many can do refineries of the scale of Dangote Refineries? In a nation that has been importing refined petroleum products for several decades, the abnormal simply became very normal.

“No smart investor would make a $19.5 billion investment and want it to be undermined by importers. To manufacture is extremely expensive and risky. This is even more so in Nigeria, given the very challenging business and economic environment, fraught with policy uncertainties and policy reversals, and where the self-defeating default mode of ‘simply import it’ is always so easily rationalized and chorused to solve any problem.

“…This whole disparaging of Dangote is uncalled for. It is self-defeating. And it is very bad for Nigeria. Who will want to come and invest in a country that disparages and undermines its own largest investor? Investing is tough. Pettiness is easy. It sadly sends a signal that the price for sacrificing for Nigeria is to get sacrificed.”

[DailyTrust]

Senate President Natasha Apoti-Uduaghan has apologized to the Chairman of Senate Committee on Local Content, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, for rebuking her.

Last week Thursday, Akpabio had cautioned Akpoti-Uduaghan on the floor of the Senate, saying she was not in the night club.

The Senate was in session when Akpabio said those in favour of the second reading of a bill to say ‘Aye’, while those against should say ‘Nay’.

The ‘Nay’ response came the loudest and as the Senate President contemplated his next action, Akpoti-Uduaghan rose to explain why she and some others were against the second reading of the proposal.

“Mr President, we don’t want it to be killed. We just want a bit of modification. We don’t want the bill killed but there should be slight modification.”

Responding to her, Akpabio said, “You see Senator Natasha, in the chamber, you have to be recognized before you speak. We’re not in a nightclub.”

However, Akpabio has said his “night club” remark was reported out of context.

Speaking on the floor of the Senate on Tuesday, the Senate President said: “We are still learning, even those of us who have been in the Senate for 16 years, we are still learning.

“But in the cause of speaking with one of my distinguished sisters on not speaking when not recognized, I made reference to the fact that we are not in a night club where people have to shout above the noise of the music.

“The social media went agog, my wife called me that they published her number and she received around 2,000 to 3,000 calls per day.

“I’m happy with the interest generated by Nigerians with what goes on in this chambers because we are here for their interest.

“The communication was totally misunderstood, instead of making meaning with what we said, they went into private abuses; I don’t want to say what they did to me.

“I will not intentionally denigrate any woman, I have a wife and four daughters and I always pray that God will lift a girl to the highest zenith in Nigeria politically and in business. So Senator Natasha I want to apologize to you if you felt offended.

“There is nothing I will say that would not be misrepresented, I felt I should tender a public apology to you.”

[DailyPost]

•NNPC mum as dealers insist government still paying subsidy, Reps probe crude shortage

•Dangote eyes foreign markets for refinery products, FG meets Kyari, Dangote over dispute

With a landing cost of N1,117 per litre for Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, the monthly subsidy on the commodity has increased to about N707bn, oil marketers projected on Monday.

It was also gathered that as the Dangote Petroleum Refinery begins petrol production in August, the company might export the product following the crude oil supply crisis and other regulatory challenges confronting the $21bn firm.

This came as the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, met with officials of Dangote refinery, Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission and Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority.

The meeting in Abuja on Monday bordered on the recent concerns between Dangote refinery and oil sector regulators and operators.

Also, the House of Representatives inaugurated an investigative committee to look into the non-availability of crude oil to domestic refineries and allegations of deliberate hike in the cost of the product for profiteering.

Last Wednesday, the Major Energies Marketers Association of Nigeria stated that the landing cost of petrol as of the preceding day was N1,117/litre.

This came as the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria insisted that the Federal Government was still subsidising PMS. IPMAN stressed that this was not sustainable and might lead to an increase in the pump prices of petrol soon.

MEMAN also revealed last week that the landing cost of diesel was N1,157/litre, while that of aviation fuel was N1,127/litre.

While the pump prices of diesel and aviation fuel are considerably higher than their landing costs, the pump price of petrol is way lower than its landing cost.

Although retail outlets operated by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and some major marketers dispense petrol at between N617/litre and N670/litre, dealers said the ex-depot price of the commodity by NNPC is N585/litre.

Idependent marketers hardly get the product at the N585/litre ex-depot price. They mostly buy from private depot owners at higher rates findings show. This makes their pump prices much higher. Some of them dispense the commodity above N700/litre.

NNPC is Nigeria’s sole importer of petrol. Other dealers stopped importing the commodity due to their inability to access the United States dollar, required for PMS imports.

The difference between the landing cost of N1,117 and an ex-depot price of N585 is N532. This implies that every litre of petrol consumed in Nigeria is subsidised by about N532.

Nigeria consumes tens of millions of litres of petrol daily. There are different petrol consumption figures from various agencies of the Federal Government.

NNPC, Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, and the Federal Ministry of Petroleum Resources, have stated different figures ranging from 66.8 million litres in September 2022 to 44.3 million litres in October 2023.

When the most recent daily PMS consumption figure of 44.3 million litres is multiplied by the N532 subsidy reportedly paid on each litre of petrol, it gives N23.57bn as the daily subsidy spending.

This means that in 30 days, the petrol subsidy should gulp about N707bn.

The Secretary of IPMAN, Abuja-Suleja, Mohammed Shuaibu, said though the Federal Government and NNPC had claimed that there was no subsidy on petrol, the latest figures by MEMAN proved otherwise.

He said petrol subsidy was over N700bn monthly considering the landing cost of the commodity as revealed by MEMAN.

“Petrol price is determined by the forces of demand and supply in the international market. When there is a global price increase, we should experience it in Nigeria. Therefore the N1,117/litre is not just based on our foreign exchange rate, but also the global PMS cost. The sole importer of this product is NNPC and the company is not telling us the truth.

“But data sourced by our counterparts, the major marketers, showed clearly that the landing cost of petrol is above N1,100/litre. This means that the monthly subsidy has crossed N700bn. That also means we should be prepared so that any time the price of petrol jumps, we should not be surprised because they have already told us,” Shuaibu stated.

The IPMAN official insisted that if government was not subsidising petrol, it should have allowed the full deregulation of the downstream sector.

“Of course, you know NNPC will hide this information from you. Former Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai, stated a few months ago that the Nigerian government is not telling Nigerians the truth about fuel subsidies because they are still paying subsidies.

“If they are not paying, why is it that up till now only NNPC is importing petrol when they claim that they have liberalised the market? They should open the market to competition by allowing investors to come in and compete favourably. This will crash the price of the product.

“But where only one entity controls the importation of PMS then the sector has not been deregulated. That is why we feel NNPC is economical with the truth by saying that it is not subsidising petrol,” Shuaibu added.

In April, El-Rufai told journalists in Maiduguri that many citizens were not aware that the government had reintroduced the PMS subsidy.

“The Federal Government is now subsidising fuel; many people don’t know this. It is the right policy. I have always supported the withdrawal of oil subsidies; but in the course of implementing the policy, the government realised that subsidy has to be back; right now, the government is paying a lot of money for subsidy, even more than before.

“You start implementing a policy because you are sure it is the right policy, but in the course of implementation, you come across bottlenecks and you modify.

“The keyword in leadership, in my view, is pragmatism. You should be pragmatic. So, when you make a policy, you start implementing it, and if it doesn’t seem to work well, you should have the humility to stand back and say this is not working, and you modify it,” El-Rufai had stated.

NNPC mum

The Chief Corporate Communications Officer, NNPC, Olufemi Soneye, did not respond to an enquiry on whether the national oil company was subsidising petrol based on the latest revelation of MEMAN.

However, Soneye had earlier insisted that the national oil firm had stopped subsidising petrol.

“We are recovering our full costs from the products we import. It is important to emphasise that the subsidy is no longer in place. Contrary to allegations, the petrol subsidy has not been reinstated,” the NNPC spokesperson had stated.

Before the recent revelation by MEMAN on the N1,117/litre landing cost of petrol, the GCEO of NNPC, Malam Mele Kyari, had told state house correspondents after an audience with the President at the Aso Rock Villa a few months ago that fuel subsidy had not been returned.

“No subsidy whatsoever. We are recovering our full cost from the products that we import. We sell to the market, and we understand why the marketers are unable to import. We hope that they do it very quickly and these are some of the interventions the government is doing. There is no subsidy,” Kyari had stated.

But the Public Relations Officer of IPMAN, Chief Ukadike Chinedu, insisted that petrol prices at the pumps should be over N900/litre if the commodity was not subsidised.

“I’ve said before that the PMS subsidy had been returned, and the government said it was a lie. I said before that the government is subsidising PMS and it is on till this moment. I said before that what the government was doing was quasi-subsidy and that has not changed,” Ukadike stated.

He said the N1,117/litre landing cost for petrol as revealed by MEMAN is a clear indication that subsidy on petrol is still implemented by the government through NNPC.

Petrol export

It was also gathered that as the Dangote refinery begins petrol production in the next couple of weeks, the company might be forced to export the product out of the country.

The PUNCH reliably gathered that the company was contemplating selling its product to other countries as it failed to get crude oil from International Oil Companies operating in Nigeria.

Multiple sources within the organisation told one of our correspondents that the cost of importing crude oil from the United States was impacting the cost of production, making the product more expensive than the one imported by NNPC.

Some fuel marketers also stated that because Nigerians may not buy high-priced petrol, the Dangote Group was considering exporting PMS to countries where it would not be seen as too expensive.

Dangote refinery recently disclosed that it had exported about 3.5 billion litres of refined petroleum products, which, according to the firm, constituted about 90 per cent of its total productions so far.

A top official of the refinery, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorised to speak on the matter, maintained that the much-awaited PMS might go the way of other products being exported to other countries.

“I can confirm that we will supply PMS in August. That is certain. But I don’t know if we will sell to the Nigerian market. The refusal of the IOCs to supply us with crude oil is affecting the cost of production, and that will make the product more expensive compared to what the government is selling. To avoid issues, it is better to send our PMS to other countries. We have the market out there. West Africa alone is a big market for us.

“The main issue we have is crude oil. Importing it from the US is not easy. I guess Nigerians will understand; nobody wants to sell below the cost price. Everybody wants to buy cheaper fuel, but the cost of crude import is high. If we take the product to the market and the government keeps subsidising the imported one, what do you think will happen? There is no way anybody can survive in the face of government subsidy. If we don’t get crude locally, most likely, our PMS won’t be sold in Nigeria.

“If we can stop fuel importation, we will save our dollar and reduce the pressure on the naira, but sadly, this is turning out to be the way it is,” our source stated.

The source further stated that this was why the Dangote refinery had yet to release the price of its PMS.

“We ought to have met with marketers to disclose the price of our product, but we have yet to do so because of this situation and we are not even sure if the product will be sold in Nigeria. The situation is too dicey. Alhaji (Aliko Dangote) wants to end importation of PMS and give Nigerians cheaper access to energy, but there’s a mafia who don’t want that to succeed,” the source stated.

However, when asked if there are conditions that may make Dangote refinery to export its petrol instead of selling it locally, the spokesperson for the company, Mr Tony Chiejina, simply said, “Our policy is: Nigeria first.”

Experts react

Reacting, an energy expert, Prof Wumi Iledare, said the Dangote refinery was in a free trade zone and the export of PMS should not be seen as a problem as long as regulations were not violated.

“Dangote does not necessarily have to sell to the Nigerian market if the Nigerian market does not want it. NNPC could decide to get their petroleum products and decide to sell them in Nigeria. If you look at the regulation, what they call the domestic crude supply obligation, it is willing-seller, willing-buyer; the government cannot dictate the price of crude. It is going to be a negotiation between the two of them. I think people are just being sentimental about this issue,” Iledare stated.

“If Nigerians are willing to pay for whatever other people will pay for PMS, why will Dangote not sell it for them?”

He stated that by selling the product in Nigeria, the refinery would save the cost of transporting the same product, but would not sell the commodity lower than what the Nigerian market can support.

“The gap between the cost of diesel and petrol in Nigeria is much. It’s never like that all over the world. That means something is wrong. Dangote doesn’t mind selling if you are going to pay the subsidy for him to supply to the Nigerian market.

“I don’t know if NNPC is paying subsidies or not, but somebody is absorbing the difference. You can call it under-recovery or subsidy, but the price of petrol today does not reflect the market cost of producing a litre of petrol,” Iledare disclosed.

The $20bn Dangote refinery located in Lekki, Lagos State, is expected to begin the sale of petrol in August.

The President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, had said his refinery would stop the importation of refined petroleum products into Nigeria and Africa.

However, the company has repeatedly raised concerns over the alleged refusal of International Oil Companies to sell crude to the refinery.

“It’s like the IOCs’ objective is to ensure that our petroleum refinery fails. It is either they are deliberately asking for ridiculous/humongous premium or they simply state that crude is not available. At some point, we paid $6 over and above the market price. This has forced us to reduce our output as well as import crude from countries as far as the US, increasing our cost of production,” Vice President of Oil and Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, Devakumar Edwin, stated recently.

Reps wade in

The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Tajudeen Abbas, said the quality of petroleum products imported into the country must comply with global standards.

He spoke at the National Assembly Complex in Abuja on Monday during the inauguration of the House joint investigative committee assigned to carry out a forensic investigation into the allegations of domestic production and importation of substandard petroleum products into the country.

The investigating panel, made up of the House Committees on Petroleum Resources (Upstream and Midstream), is also looking into the non-availability of crude oil to domestic refineries and allegations of deliberate hike in the cost of the product for profiteering.

Addressing the committee members, Abbas, represented by the Deputy Speaker, Benjamin Kalu, condemned the resurgence of fuel queues at petrol stations, the increasing cost of PMS, and the unavailability of feedstock for the local refineries.

He said, “The quality of petroleum products imported into Nigeria has come under scrutiny, and we must ensure compliance with global standards. The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria must guarantee that petrol imported into this country is rigorously tested in laboratories to meet the standard sulphur and octane levels.

“It is unacceptable that the petrol imported into the country contains high sulphur levels, and has low octane levels — as we notably experienced in the recent past that even led to socio-economic losses on a national scale including the knocking down of the engines of vehicles of Nigerians in their hundreds.”

In his speech at the event, co-chair of the committee and Chairman of the Committee on Petroleum Resources (Downstream), Ikenga Ugochinyere, listed the tasks before the panel to include “Carrying out a legislative forensic investigation into the resurgence of fuel queues in petrol stations, allegations of high cost of PMS, unavailability of fuel stock for downstream domestic refineries and disruption of distribution of the product.”

He added, “To ensure a thorough and transparent investigation, the committee will undertake detailed laboratory investigations at all local refineries, marketers and importers facilities, regulatory agencies, state oil companies and other players in the sector.

“We will visit various filling stations, depots and tank farms to take samples in line with international standards, verify the quality of imported products and assess the testing capacities of all refineries and all refined product handling outfits.

“The collection of samples will be done transparently and in line with global best practices and would be in specimens for independent testing in different standard, accredited laboratories. This will include that of stakeholders involved in the refining and importation of refined petroleum products.”

Ugochinyere, who represents Ideato North/Ideato South Federal Constituency, Imo State, added that middlemen involved in shady marketing of crude oil as well as indiscriminate issuance of licenses would be traced and brought to book by the committee.

He added, “The committee will also conduct a legislative forensic investigation into the presence of middlemen in crude trading, indiscriminate issuance of licenses, alleged unavailability of international standard laboratories to check adulterated products and the influx of contaminated products into the country,

“There is also the allegation of non-domestication of profits realised from crude marketing sales in local banks, abuse of the Pro Forma Invoice regime, importation of products already being produced in Nigeria and use of international trading companies to resell fuel stock to local refineries at high mark up prices,” he added.

The House of Representatives had at the plenary on July 9 adopted a motion on “Urgent need to carry out a legislative forensic investigation into the challenges affecting the downstream and midstream petroleum sectors in Nigeria and other related matters to find out a lasting solution to all challenges.”

The committee is starting its mandate barely 24 hours after Speaker Abbas led a delegation of the legislative body to Lagos, headquarters of the Dangote refinery, for the spot assessment of controversy on the non-supply of crude to the indigenous company.

Lokpobiri intervenes

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil), Heineken Lokpobiri, held a meeting with the leadership of Dangote refinery, NMDPRA, NUPRC and NNPC on Monday in Abuja.

Lokpobiri’s media aide, Nneamaka Okafor, said the minister convened the “high-level meeting with key stakeholders to address and resolve the ongoing issues surrounding the Dangote refinery.”

Present at the meeting, according to a statement by Okafor, were “Mr Aliko Dangote, Chairman and CEO of Dangote Group; Farouk Ahmed, Chief Executive of NMDPRA; Mr Gbenga Komolafe, Chief Executive of NUPRC; and Mr Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC.”

The stakeholders expressed gratitude to the minister for his intervention in facilitating the dialogue.

“The meeting focused on finding a sustainable and lasting solution to the current impasse affecting the Dangote refinery, with all parties demonstrating a commitment to collaborative and proactive problem-solving.

“The minister emphasised the importance of cooperation and synergy among all stakeholders to ensure the success and optimal performance of the oil and gas sector, which is pivotal for Nigeria’s economic growth and energy security.

“This meeting marks a significant step towards resolving the challenges and underscores the minister’s dedication to fostering a conducive environment for Nigeria’s oil and gas sector,” the statement stated.

A lot of media people have been talking to Alhaji Aliko Dangote lately; more would give an arm to be able to reach him – all because of the refinery which was advertised as the answer to our perpetual fuel problems. Laymen and women have developed the notion that, when it starts supplying fuel, prices would crash to pre-subsidy removal levels – among other expectations. More unsolicited write-ups have been sent to me by strangers and friends, alike, about Dangote himself and his refinery than I have ever received in a long time.

Suddenly, the Dangote Refinery, apart from pervasive hunger, appears to be the only subject worthy of attention. The opinion leaders are almost evenly divided – those sympathetic to Dangote and those totally against – even though the latter are often afraid to be identified. That is power – the ability to make people fear you even when you don’t know them.

  However, of all those who published articles on the subject, Segun Adeniyi of THISDAY made revelations that are pertinent to my article today – which does not seek to advise the man or even request for an appointment. According to Segun, Dangote was invited to Saudi Arabia by a top official of the Ministry of Petroleum of that country.

The Arab leader pointed out to the Nigerian businessman that only global oil companies or nations build petroleum refineries – not individuals – in a bid to persuade Dangote to stop. He was told point blank that his advice was not needed. A more expensive waste of lunch would be hard to imagine. To some extent, Dangote was right to reject the counsel. By then, he had invested too much to turn back. Moving forward was the only option left.

He moved forward; and in May 2023 the refinery was commissioned by President Buhari who played a major role in bringing about the problems now associated with the Dangote Refinery. On that day, the Nigerian Factor, symbolised by Buhari was on full display. The refinery which was not close to processing crude was presented as if   tankers could line up the next day to collect fuel for our use. Deliberate, but subtle, falsehood is at the heart of the Nigerian Factor. It leads people to believe that they have been promised something; when indeed nothing definite was offered. Americans call it a swindle.

Who promised Dangote 650,000bpd of crude?

“The combination of these two has now seen us restoring production in our country, and we believe that, as the Honourable Minister has said, we will soon hit the target of 2 million barrels of oil production per day.

  “Yes, this country, as we have said, will be a net exporter of petroleum products by the end of this year.”

Mr. Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, Abuja, July 16, 2024.

If you believe that, then you will believe anything from Kyari and the FG. Nigerians remember the promises made last year when fuel subsidy was hastily removed and the economy was thrown into a tail-spin from which it has not recovered. NNPCL promised to get the refineries pumping fuel by December 2023 and Dangote Refinery would start by March 2024. None of those promises has been redeemed till today. As late as last month, Dangote fuel was again supposed to start flowing by this month. Nigeria’s obsolete museum pieces, misnamed refineries, are now expected to be fully operational by December this year. The goal posts keep receding each time the GMD-NNPCL opens his mouth without the decency of any apologies to the stakeholders he had misled each and every time. This is not the time to explain why Nigeria cannot be a net exporter of petroleum products. We wait until December to address that.

“Impress it on the mind of any man [or woman] that he [she] can do no wrong; and he [she] will soon convince you of your mistake.” Joel Barlow, 1754-1812.

  However, one promise made by Kyari is emblematic of the way every government, since Jonathan’s has misled investors in the petroleum sector. In the 2014 presentation of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, had projected 2.3 million barrels per day of crude oil for 2015-2017, at a time Nigeria was struggling to produce 1.7mbpd. In my response, several reasons were given why FG’s projections were off the mark and would result in larger deficits and negative economic variances every year. The National Assembly, NASS, accepted it without a single dissenting vote; perhaps out of fear of questioning a world class economist. Since then, 2 mpd has become almost sacrosanct. Every year FG’s budgets have been based on 2mpd; yet in no single day since Okonjo-Iweala made that error, had Nigeria been able to produce and export up to that level. In fact, the average daily production has averaged less than 1.5mbpd since 2014. For January to June this year, the average has been less than 1.4mbpd.

That is fact; unlike the wishful thinking which is the basis of Kyari’s promise. To begin with, no oil-producing nation can unilaterally increase its production by 50 per cent without triggering a major disturbance in the global market. Furthermore, Nigeria remains a member of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries, OPEC; and its weakest member. Nigeria needs OPEC   more than the organisation needs its poorest member. Nigeria’s interests are served by operating within OPEC’s quota system than by violating it. Kyari knows that 1.7mbpd is Nigeria’s quota for this year. Why then is he promising 2mbpd to the NASS?

  Possible crude oil production is a function of the number of rigs in operation and their capacities to deliver. Under Buhari, there has been a steady decline in the number of oil rigs in operation from over 30 in 2014 to less than 15 last year. Rigs, meanwhile, are not things you start and stop like your private car. To be able to deliver 2mbpd of crude from our present low levels regularly must mean that more rigs will return to operations and remain in business henceforth. Kyari has not told Nigerians how many more rigs are re-starting this year. And, invariably, producers are tied to binding long term agreements. Thus, even if Nigeria can ramp up production, not all of it will be made available to Dangote.

  Obviously, Dangote, while embarking on his 650,000bpd refinery, had been given assurances by top FG officials – President, Ministers and GMD-NNPCL – which they knew were dubious. They knew, ab initio, that there was no way Dangote could receive that amount of crude oil from Nigeria. Yet, they encouraged the man to develop a sense of “entitlement” – the feeling that the nation owes him a duty to deliver the crude oil and, perhaps at a discount. It is certain that he will not receive 650,000 bpd of crude from Nigeria. But,   I strongly believe should be entitled to quantity discount; which is standard practice in commercial transactions. People might raise the question of fairness with regard to smaller private refineries. That is always a difficult issue for marketers of commodities. I know how the matter is handled by brand owners. That should not delay us here. There is an important question needing answers which only Dangote can provide – if he wants.

Why did Dangote embark on a 650,000bpd refinery without settling the issue of steady supply of crude? Surely, supplying Nigeria’s needs cannot be a good reason for such a large country.

Sgt. Cynthia Maurice of the Nigerian Airforce has made history by becoming the country’s first Professional female golfer in the military.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that the week-long Professional Examinations which held from July 14 to July 20 took place at HSD Golf Club Bayelsa.

The examinations sanctioned by the Professional Golfers Association of Nigeria (PGAN) consisted of playing ability tests, written and oral.

Pro Emmanuel Odoh, the Assistant Resident Head Professional, TYB International Golf Resort and Country Club told NAN that Maurice’s journey was a testament to her resilience, perseverance, and determination.

Odoh said that her achievement had indeed paved the way for other female golfers in the military and inspired young girls to pursue careers in sports.

He noted that it also highlights the progress made in promoting gender equality and diversity in the Nigerian military.

“Just four years ago, Cynthia took up golf, inspired by the professionals she saw on the course. She set her sights on becoming a pro herself, refusing to settle for amateur status.

“With unwavering dedication, she channeled her mind and body towards her goal, sacrificing tirelessly to hone her skills.

“From a 36-handicap beginner to a professional golfer, Cynthia’s transformation is a remarkable achievement. Her hard work, discipline, and courage have earned her the crown of bravery, resilience, and honor.

“Today, we celebrate Cynthia’s remarkable journey, her perseverance, and her refusal to accept anything less than excellence. Congratulations, Pro Cynthia Maurice,” he said.

(NAN)

In 2019, I was covering the Mo Ibrahim Governance Weekend, where Africa’s richest man, Aliko Dangote, sat with British-Sudanese billionaire, Mo Ibrahim, to discuss everything from investing to passports, to even Dangote’s status as Nigeria’s most eligible bachelor.

At this event, Dangote complained about needing 38 visas to travel across Africa. By 2024, while speaking at the Africa CEO Forum in Kigali, Rwanda, the Nigerian billionaire said he now needs 35 visas to travel the continent. In five years, Africa’s richest man could only reduce his needed visas by 3. This is the best picture of how slow progress is on the continent.

Despite this knowledge, Dangote has continued to build in the continent. His admirers say it’s because he believes in the continent, but his detractors say it is because he gets undue incentives in Africa and knows how to crush the competition in Nigeria.  The events of the last few days have widened that division. Some believe the challenges Dangote and his most prized asset are facing is punishment for offending someone or some people high up in government, while others say he is now facing what the average Nigerian eats for breakfast in the hands of the Nigerian state.

Whatever the case, we know it’s Dangote’s biggest fight on the record.

ENTER TINUBU’S SILENCE

If you have watched President Bola Tinubu closely since he took office, he has made it a duty to make sure any war he fights is a proxy war. You will never find him on the battleground. Nyesom Wike Vs. Sim Fubara, the two-fighting of Rivers state, appeared before the president but the fight continued. Tinubu has never taken a side on the matter.

Muhammadu Sanusi II Vs. Aminu Ado Bayero, the “two emirs” of Kano, have had their cronies go from one court to the other with the hope that the federal might step in and pick a side, but the battle has continued for two months with no end in sight. Minister of Women Affairs Vs. Niger State Assembly on the planned marriage of 100 orphans, Mr President did not intervene.

The most recent is Ali Ndume, recently removed chief whip of the senate Vs Umar Ganduje, the chairman of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Mr President did not say a word. Tinubu has lived in the shadows while his boys pull the trigger to the shots he may be calling. This is the Tinubu style. In Burna Boy’s words “Them they call me the Godfather, Move like an Italian“.

I could go on and on with critical issues that previous presidents would have stepped into, but the president has stayed away from — at least in public.

This is the same deck of cards dealt to Aliko Dangote, who has been the man in the news for the last two weeks. Dangote Refinery Vs. Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) is in full swing. And while the minister of petroleum resources has called for a truce on Monday night, my history lessons on Nigeria tell me we have not seen or heard the last of this matter.

WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

When politicians play politics, I always ask myself: Are the Nigerian people gaining or losing? The answer to this decides where I stay on every issue. Sadly, this time, we are losing. We are losing big.

For almost 10 years, we have watched every government say “when Dangote refinery comes on stream, Nigeria will stop spending scarce FX on importing petrol”. We have seen friends of Dangote, members of the APC, and agencies of the federal government campaign with Dangote Refinery.

We all watched former President Muhammadu Buhari shut down roads in Lagos to “commission” the Dangote Refinery before his exit from office, only for Farouk Ahmed, CEO of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), who was also at that commissioning, to say the refinery is 45% ready with its product inferior.

The message is loud and clear to every intending investor in Nigeria; if the Nigerian state could maltreat its biggest entrepreneur this way, then your business stands no chance.

My second problem is the “I told you so” challenge. With this open battle between the many hands of octopus NNPCL and Dangote, the failure of the refinery will be a good chance for NNPCL to gloat, while the triumph of that massive investment will be Dangote’s last laugh. If a good win-win is not sought, both parties could sabotage themselves into heavy losses for Nigeria.

Sadly, when it is a fight between the federal government and anyone else, we know who wins. Dangote sourced lots of forex from Nigerian banks and the Central Bank of Nigeria, under the leadership of Godwin Emefiele. And doing forex business with Emefiele is perceived as a cardinal sin to Tinubu. It would not be hard to punish.

All of this is just the politics of building something big in Nigeria. As long as politics trumps economics, this opera has a lot more episodes to offer. Hopefully, I can tease out the economic part of it at a later date.

Till then, let this be a reminder to us all that in Nigeria, when great care is not taken the man whose head is used to break coconut does not live to partake in the eating.

...Says it has been nine years of Retrogression

The Labour Party Presidential Candidate in the 2023 poll, Peter Obi has taken a hard look at the Nigeria economy in the last nine years of APC administration and laments that it has been retrogression all through.

Writing on his X handle on Monday with statistics, Obi said that no effort is being made to address the growing poverty and unemployment in the land as the government fund its luxury lifestyle.

"When Nigeria returned to democratic governance in 1999, it maintained an average GDP growth of about 6.72% for 16 years from 1999-2014. The impressive growth trajectory, unfortunately, was not sustained by the then-new government and our GDP growth collapsed to 2.79% in 2015 and then recession in 2016 with a negative growth of -1.58% and 0.82% in 2017.

"For the past 9 years, Nigeria's economy has seen unprecedented retrogression on many fronts. In 2014, just before the inception of a new administration a year later, Nigeria had the biggest economy in Africa with a Gross Domestic Product of $568.5 billion and a GDP Per Capita of about N3200. Our economic indices pointed towards hope and prospects for the future growth of the economy.
"Nine years later, the giant of Africa has retrogressed to the 4th largest economy in Africa. Reports showed our GDP in 2023 stood at $375 billion with a per capita of $1700. In 2024, our estimated GDP declined further to $253 billion with an estimated per capita of $1087. This portrays how our 9 years journey since 2015 has resulted in a sharp decline in our national prosperity.

"Today, poverty is on the increase. Unemployment is rising. Food inflation is skyrocketing. Our foreign and local investors are losing faith in the future growth of our economy and are leaving. Businesses are shutting down. Urgent actions need to be taken to salvage the nation from further collapse and move it from consumption to production!
"However, instead of concerning ourselves with all these challenges threatening our collective existence, and finding ways to recreate an inclusive and sustainable economy, pull millions of people out of poverty, and return our over 18 million out-of-school children to schools, our leaders are more concerned with funding their selfish luxuries and individual lavishness, while throwing blames at others who are only committed to solving the nation's problems.

"I have always believed that politics should be about service to the people and the betterment of society. In the face of all these challenges, we the leaders should commit to inclusive and sustainable growth to end the hardship which has continued to burden our fellow Nigerians. Only through that can we achieve a peaceful and secure society.

"A New Nigeria based on better economic and patriotic thinking is Possible."

Signed
Yunusa Tanko
POMR SPOKESMAN

The role of the public intellectual is particularly important in Africa, with such individuals having a responsibility to promote a cosmopolitan Pan-Africanism and pursue seemingly “lost causes” such as reparations for slavery and colonialism.

Late Palestinian-American scholar Edward Said consistently insisted on the need for secular intellectuals to engage with the public to “speak truth to power”, stir up debate and controversy, and avoid patriotic nationalism and corporate thinking.

Said regarded intellectuals as iconoclastic, marginal exiles who belonged to no tribe and subscribed to no creed. They had therefore to speak out for their fellow displaced and dispossessed, challenge the status quo and seek to uphold “eternal standards of truth and justice”.

He defined genuine intellectuals as crusaders against corruption, promoters of human freedom and knowledge, defenders of the weak and voiceless, confronters of orthodoxy and dogma, and challengers of oppressive authority. For Said, intellectuals also traverse disciplines and demolish idées fixes.

Late Kenyan intellectual Ali Mazrui noted that “we can imagine intellectualism without Pan-Africanism, but we cannot imagine Pan-Africanism without the intellectualisation of the African condition”. He observed that Pan-Africanism’s founding fathers — WEB du Bois, George Padmore, Kwame Nkrumah and Léopold Senghor — were all intellectuals.

Mazrui described the rich public intellectual tradition in the East Africa of the 1960s where he became the youngest professor at Uganda’s Makerere University, engaging in public debates with the country’s founding president, Milton Obote. This was also a period when founding Tanzanian president and philosopher-king Julius Nyerere translated Shakespeare’s Julius Caesar and The Merchant of Venice into Kiswahili.

However, Mazrui criticised the lack of intellectual diversity of Tanzania’s largely Marxist University of Dar es Salaam School of Political Economy — championed by scholars such as Guyanese Walter Rodney — which he accused of suffering from an Nyerere-infatuated “Tanzaphilia”.

The Kenyan further lamented that increased autocracy and the decline of Pan-Africanism by the 1970s eventually stifled public intellectualism across the continent. He thus called for African universities to keep a political distance from the state while staying culturally close to society.

Late Malawian economist Thandika Mkandawire similarly bemoaned the widespread autocracy in post-independence Africa, which had often co-opted intellectuals into silence as part of development and nation-building projects. He argued that many African intellectuals adopted statist definitions of social transformation that excluded important non-state actors.

Mkandawire noted that even Kwame Nkrumah sought to coerce the University of Ghana into serving state interests. The Malawian observed that by the 1980s intellectuals were accusing African leaders of having betrayed the nationalist cause, while governments in turn accused academics of engaging in research that was irrelevant to their development needs.

Mkandawire further lamented the World Bank-enforced cuts to higher education budgets across Africa, which decimated the sector and resulted in a “brain drain” of 50,000 African academics a year to Western institutions by 1995. He bemoaned a new era, by 2005, of “postcolonial pessimism”, an obscurantist anti-“victimology” discourse represented by scholars such as Cameroon’s Achille Mbembe, as well as a donor-led consultancy industry harmful to research.

Late Burkinabè historian Joseph Ki-Zerbo elegantly captured the dearth of intellectual dissent in post-independence Africa as involving leaders proclaiming: “Silence: development in progress.” He called for African intellectuals to exhibit “responsible citizenship” and advocated the independence and autonomy of civil society from national governments.

Like Mazrui and Mkandawire, Ki-Zerbo advocated a return to an integrationist pan-African vision involving diasporas in the Americas that could transcend more parochial ethnic identities.

SA was deeply isolated from the rest of Africa during the apartheid era. It is thus yet to produce many public intellectuals with a deep pan-African ethos who can help transform the inherited Eurocentric epistemologies that still dominate the country’s post-apartheid universities.

These institutions often tout themselves as pan-African, but are frequently promoting a poor parody of the ideology.

• Adebajo is professor and senior research fellow at the University of Pretoria’s Centre for the Advancement of Scholarship.

So, who wants Mr. Donald Trump, the former US president and front-runner for the November 5, 2024, presidential election, dead?
There are four (4) possible suspects.

The first is Iran, which recently declared it would exact revenge for the US-inflicted murder of its senior military commander in Iraq, Hassan Soleimani. Iran, which was sanctioned by the United States and Western European countries for her alleged support of terrorist organizations Hezbollah in Lebanon and Hamas in Palestine, is highly motivated to stop former President Trump from returning to office as president in 2025.

During Trump's administration, billions of Iranian dollars were frozen in addition to other sanctions imposed on her for allegedly participating in covert activities aimed at developing and obtaining nuclear weapons.

However, under President Biden, the funds that were seized were released subject to Iran ceasing to build nuclear weapons and ceasing to finance terrorist groups globally, especially in the Middle East.

Iranians may be worried that their Torchorer-in-Chief is on course to retake the White House and carry on punishing them from where he left off in 2020, given the increasing likelihood that former President Trump will return to office in January 2025.
Experience has shown that Iran can be tenacious in its pursuit, so this is not an extreme supposition.
However, that nation has refuted any role in the Trump assassination attempt.

The second is Russia, which has been the US's fiercest adversary since the days of the Cold War till date. That nation could be held accountable for the ongoing conflict it is having with Ukraine, a former USSR territory that the US is leading NATO, the North American Treaty Organisation, to arm and finance to fight on Ukraine's behalf, a war that has claimed thousands of Russian lives. In the scenario outlined above, every prominent US citizen or official becomes a potential target for murder.

China ranks third on the suspect list with the second-biggest economy in the world, after the United States, which holds the top spot. China is the closest competitor to the United States and is projected to surpass it economically in 2050.

The fact that China is waging an unofficial war against Taiwan, a territory it claims to be Chinese but which the Taiwanese reject only serves to heighten mistrust of the country.
In the manner that tension hostilities between Russia and Ukraine, a former USSR republic, escalated into a full-scale war, if the tension between China and Taiwan, an ally of the US, were to escalate into a war, Taiwan would be relying on the US to provide her with protection.
So, targeting the likely next president of the US for assassination is not implausible.

The Democratic National Convention (DNC), the political party of President Joe Biden (who is Trump's primary opponent in the presidential contest), is the fourth suspect. Interestingly, this is the second time that Biden and Trump will face-off in a presidential contest in the last decade. The first was in 2019/2020, and the second will be in November 2024, (if Biden does not step down) when the winner will be elected to the White House.

When former President Trump’s supporters rejected President Biden as the presidential contest winner in 2020, they stormed the Capitol on January 6, 2020, setting off a disastrous chain of unpalatable and unsavory events.

As a result, former President Trump's allies and advisers, including his then strategist Mr . Steve Bannon and White House counsel Mr.Peter Navaro, have been imprisoned, and the Democratic-controlled Congress has impeached Mr. Trump. He was only spared from being fully impeached by the Republican-controlled Senate at that time.

The former president was also hit with an extraordinary number of criminal and civil court lawsuits, some of which have been rejected or are pending decision. He has been found guilty of one of the charges and is currently awaiting sentencing.

It seems more like a supernatural intervention than human ability and aptitude that President Trump has overcome all the legal and political roadblocks erected in his route to the White House—what he has rightly labeled a witch hunt of the hue associated with third-world countries where the practice of democracy is yet to attain maturity. The fact that Mr. Trump not only survived a COVID-19 infection in 2020 but also narrowly avoided an assassin's bullet on 13 July suggests that he has twice cheated death.

As a result of his dexterous navigation of the political path to the White House strewn with roadblocks that were intended to hurt his brand rather than help him, Mr. Trump's popularity has exploded, as shown by the most recent surveys showing him well ahead of his primary rival, President Trump and DNC in all the battleground states.

It is understandable why supporters of the man who appears to be unstoppable—Donald Trump—have come to the conclusion that his political opponents in the Democratic Party have become so desperate that they felt compelled to attempt his assassination. That is even though the man who attempted to assassinate him -Mathew Crooks is a registered Republican.
How amazing that after all their attempts to stop him from employing both legal and clandestine strategies/ tactics, Mr.Trump has remained the front-runner in the race to become president on January 20, 2025.

Indeed, presidential assassinations in the United States date back to 1865. In fact, it was especially popular in the 1960s. President John F. Kennedy was slain in November of 1963, to be exact. On March 30, 1981, there was also an attempt on President Ronald Reagan's life. Presidents Abraham Lincoln in 1865, James A. Garfield in July 1881, and William McKinley in September 1901 were assassinated before the attempt on Ronald Reagan’s life in 1981.
So, Donald Trump the 45th president, and Ronald Reagan 40th president share a common destiny of escaping assassin’s bullets.

It was not surprising that the first person to accuse the Democratic National Committee (DNC) of being behind the July 13 assassination attempt on Republican presidential candidate Donald J. Trump was Senator J.D. Vance, just moments after the attempt and before he was selected as the vice presidential candidate and running mate of the GOP presidential candidate.

Without equivocation or mincing words, Senator J.D Vance wrote on X formerly known as Twitter:

“The central premise of the Biden campaign is that President Donald Trump is an authoritarian fascist who must be stopped at all costs,”

And made the following conclusion “That rhetoric led directly to President Trump’s attempted assassination.”

Several other Republicans have echoed similar comments in public, notwithstanding the victim of the shooting. Mr Trump has been gracious in preaching togetherness and rejecting violence, just as his opponent, President Biden, has strongly opposed political violence while conceding that his bulls-eye statement about Trump was an exaggerated phrase that he should not have made.

The discussion of whether 81-year-old President Joe Biden had the capacity for a second term took on a life of its own following the scathing debate on June 27 between the 45th President of the United States of America, USA, Mr. Donald Trump, who President Biden succeeded in 2020 and is determined to reclaim the mandate that he lost to the incumbent about three and a half years ago. This is because the outgoing president was always correcting himself when he lost his line of thought during the debate.

But, unlike the 45th President of the United States, Mr. Trump, who is set to return to the White House as the 47th President in January, he is not bragging about his landslide victory over the 46th and incumbent President, Mr. Biden, in the first of their scheduled series of debates (another one is scheduled for September) before the November 5 presidential election. Instead, the typically no-holds-bared former president Trump let it blossom and become a hot-button issue about President Biden's flaws, particularly his age-related issues.

There is a consensus of opinion among the democrats, republicans, and indeed all Americans as well as television viewers around the world, that the 46th US president, Joe Biden, gave a dismal performance in the debate. As he struggled to put his thoughts together, some critics claimed he unintentionally revealed to the audience that aging has taken a toll on him. This was so obvious as he was muttering gibberish to the dismay, indignation, and discomfort of both his fellow Democrats and his opponents in the Republican Party, as well as politically neutral Americans.
It is no surprise that about 30 congressmen/ women have been calling for his stepping aside from the contest.
Somehow , it is reminiscent of the Watergate Scandal that resulted in the resignation Richard Nixon as president of the U
The awkward memory loss reminds politics watchers of the equally aged and former Senate majority leader (now minority leader), Mitch McConnell, who recently lost his train of thought in the middle of a speech, humiliating himself and other politicians when he practically went blank in the course of given a speech. People would probably prefer not to take a chance on witnessing President Biden's aging health deteriorate to the extent of McDonnell's.

After the debate, even President Biden's most ardent supporters began to question his ability to govern the US for an additional four years. As a result, a wave of Americans is currently demanding that President Biden give up on his goal of running for reelection at the age of 81.

The main arguments made against President Biden's reelection candidature are that his mental capacity is being questioned and that his faculties are purportedly in poor shape, as seen by the poor performance and result of the CNN-organised debate.

One of former President Trump’s staunchest opponents and a former White House staffer during Trump’s tenure, Alyssa Farah Griffin during the debate twitted“viewers of all political stripes and the consensus is Biden needs to be replaced,” and the debate is “worse than I believe most people imagined.”

Longtime GOP pollster Frank Luntz wrote on X that his focus group of undecided voters is “surprised and concerned about Biden’s voice,” adding “This doesn't bode well for questions about his health.”

CNN Chief National Correspondent, John King said: “Right now as we speak, there is a deep, a wide and a very aggressive panic in the Democratic Party,” adding that “It involves party strategists, it involves elected officials, and it involves fundraisers. And they’re having conversations about the president’s performance, which they think was dismal . . . some of those conversations include “‘should we go to the White House and ask the president to step aside?’”

The preceding harsh conclusions are only a handful of the criticisms that dominated media headlines during and soon following the June 27 discussion.

Nancy Pelosi, former Speaker of the House of Representatives with significant influence in the DNC, reportedly recently spoke privately but bluntly to President Trump, telling him that polls show he cannot win the presidential race against GOP candidate Mr. Trump and that if President Biden remained in the race, he would destroy Democrats' chances of regaining control of the House of Representatives.

Senator Chuck Schumer and Congressman Adam Shiff, both firm supporters of President Biden, have allegedly joined the rising chorus of Democratic party leaders asking that Biden abandon his re-election bid.
It is a plea and demand that the besieged President Biden has resisted thus far, reminding his opponents that his potential replacement is not performing well in polls as well.

To make matters worse, the president has just succumbed to the COVID-19 virus and he is self-isolating instead of campaigning to save what is left of political life which Mr. Trump is about to bury.
Could that be a final sign, perhaps from divine forces or the so-called hand of God, to listen to the voice of the people, which is thought to be God's voice? (vox-populi-vox-Dei)

The truth is that the Democratic National Convention, or DNC, is in no less of a risky situation than when they insist that Joe Biden can not continue to be their presidential candidate and force him to withdraw, enabling Vice President Kamala Harris to run against the highly popular Republican nominee, Donald Trump, who is currently leading both Biden and Harris in the polls.
Remarkably, the presidential contest is just over 100 days away and the reality check is that opinion polls show that neither of the DNC candidates has an approval rating above 40%.
As of February 12, President Biden's rating was 38.9%, while Vice President Harris's rating was 37.5% as per the average of surveys conducted by FiveThirtyEight, a company that uses data and facts to enhance public awareness.

Two (2) years ago, I authored an article titled "The Donald Trump that Africans Do Not Know". That was after spending about a week getting to know him at his Palm Beach golf club and home in Mar-a-Lago, Florida. In the story, I made the following observations:

“The first thing that springs forth from the mind of some Africans as soon as the 45th president of the United States of America, USA, Donald J Trump is mentioned is the impression that he does not like Africans, which is so untrue. And that wrong notion of President Trump disliking Africans stems from the fake news planted by his political opponents in the media and attributed to him such as Africa is a shit hole country.

Although the statement is flawed in a fundamental way, most people who believe and therefore are not enamored by President Trump have not bothered to critically identify and examine the flaw. That is the reason emotions seem to have clouded their judgment and why they have swallowed the falsehood hook line-and-sinker.

As we all know, Africa is a continent of 54 countries and not just one country.
So how could President Trump have made the comment attributed to him by his traducers: “Africa is a shit hole country”.

l then further made the following clarifications:

“Since most Africans failed to critically scrutinize the comment because they were eager to believe all the vile things that the so-called Never Trumps had to say, the flaw or illogicality of referring to Africa as a shit hole country, whereas it is indeed a continent, has unfortunately been lost on some of them.

“Those who are hell-bent on generating friction between Africans and the 45th president of the US had done a ‘good’ job as most people of black race have remained trapped in that mind-bending spell which l intend to dispel with this intervention.

“Hopefully, by debunking the myths about how Mr. Trump feels about Africans and what he had done to elevate Black Americans and those residing in the continent during his tenure as president of the US, there would be a rethinking and resetting of Africa/Trump relationship that would position the continent to benefit more from Mr. Trump’s presidency of the US, if he returns to the White House as he plans to in 2024.

“Not only because Nigeria has the largest population of black people on earth or by its being the biggest economy in Africa by GDP, but based on my personal experience as a Nigerian who has met President Trump one-on-one, I would like to use Nigeria as a reference point for assessing Trump-Africa relationship which is currently foggy owing to calculated misinformation.”

As if to confirm my favorable opinion of President Trump and inspire fellow Africans and Black Americans to feel the same way, surveys conducted recently have shown that, between 2016 and 2020, when President Trump was in office, the jobless rate for Black Americans fell dramatically.

The information supported my previous position that, if elected president, he would not emasculate Black people but rather provide them greater chances to realize the mythical American dream.
And it would seem that, two years ago, I was being prescient when I projected that he would win the 2024 presidential election, which he appears to be on course to do and become the 47th president in a little one hundred (100) days.

Naturally, not everyone shared my positive opinion of Mr. Trump, and they retaliated with criticism of my findings, which prompted me to write a follow-up article titled "The Donald Trump Magnus Onyibe Does Not Know," using their criticisms as the main talking point because the title was not originally mine but was instead created by a critic who forced me to present the following arguments:

“Perhaps, because a stereotypical opinion had long been formed about the 45th President of the US following several years of unmitigated public relations faux pax on the part of Mr Trump who never bothers to correct some misrepresentation of facts about him, my presentation of the persona of the former president of the US which is inconsistent with the mindset already shaped and propagated by a session of the Western media about Mr Trump generated a mixed bag of vile and vicious attacks as well as enlightening and encouraging comments. The anti-Trump sentiments expressed against the article and my further comments are the subject of this follow-up opinion piece.

“So basically, the purpose or raison detre for this further intervention is to shed more light on the areas of contention via the reproduction of the points of view of those that vehemently disagree with me on the need to engage with the 45th president of the US who is poised to be the 47th by contesting for the office next year when the incumbent president, Joe Biden’s first tenure would be over.

“As earlier stated, one particular critic made a case that l do not know Mr. Trump well enough to warrant my trying to market him to blacks in the US and Africans on the continent, simply because they have already formed the opinion that Mr. Trump is a racist and anti-Africa.”

It is my sincere hope that by now the doubters of former president Trump's divine mission to lead the United States and, in fact, the world, whom the evangelical community in the US saw in 2016, and who threw their weight behind him to win the presidency that year before he lost it in 2020 to president Biden, have been thoroughly weaned of their negative bias.
The fact that Mr. Trump twice cheated death—once by surviving a deadly COVID-19 infection during the pandemic that killed one million Americans and a second time by eluding an assassin's bullet during a campaign stomp in Butler, Pennsylvania on July 13.
With President Biden now struck down by Covid-19 infection of which we wish him a speedy recovery, it is incredible that covid-19 that played a role in his ascendancy to the presidency of the US in 2020 is once more playing a critical role in his political future if it compels him to step down from seeking reelection.
For the time being, except if an apocalypse happens, former President Donald J. Trump appears to be on track to return to the White House after beating President Biden or replacement at the polls on November 5, all things being equal.


Magnus Onyibe, an entrepreneur, public policy analyst, author, democracy advocate, development strategist, an alumnus of Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy, Tufts University, Massachusetts, USA, and a former commissioner in Delta state government, sent this piece from Lagos, Nigeria.
To continue with this conversation and more, please visit www.magnum.ng