The announcement of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) on being unable to sustain fuel supply is a game plan, according to experts.

On Sunday, Chief Corporate Communications Officer of the NNPCL, Olufemi Soneye, admitted that the national oil company is owing suppliers, but did not specify the exact amount.

“NNPC Ltd has acknowledged recent reports in national newspapers regarding the company’s significant debt to petrol suppliers. This financial strain has placed considerable pressure on the Company and poses a threat to the sustainability of fuel supply,” Soneye said in a statement.

Experts have, however, suggested that the announcement is part of a game plan from the government, which may lead to 950/1,000 per litre price for petrol.

They alleged that government officials had been pushing this narrative in the last two weeks.

The Minister of State for Petroleum, Heineken Lokpobiri, had, on Monday, asked the NNPCL to halt the sale of fuel below landing costs, arguing that this would help curb smuggling to neighbouring countries.

The Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria (MEMAN) recently disclosed that the landing cost of petrol as of July, 2024, was N1,117 per litre.

It also revealed the landing costs of AGO (Diesel) at N1,157 for a 20KT vessel and ATK at N1,217 for a 15KT vessel landing in Apapa, Lagos.

An independent oil marketer, who preferred anonymity, said: “It was almost inevitable for the pump price to not rise, as this is one of the outcomes of a fully deregulated market.

“The NNPCL remains the main importer, with private importation remaining limited. This situation is worsened by Nigeria’s declining crude oil output, which impacts the country’s capacity to import refined products. The Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) has noted the dwindling output of many nations, including Nigeria”, the marketer said.

A former chairman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Ejigbo Depot in Lagos, Mr Akin Akinade recently said: “Our members have no direct supply from NNPC. We buy from Third Party. We buy at DAPMAN Depot in Abule Ado.

“They sell to us N840, N850, and by the time you add transportation to that, there is no way our members would sell less than they are selling. If they bring down their price, we are also going to bring down our price. We are in business to make money”, he said.

In a chat with Daily Trust, Chief Executive Officer, 11 Plc (formerly Mobil Nigeria), Tunji Oyebanji said: “Selling below the cost, whether from import or local refineries, is not sustainable. If they sell at economic price, perhaps others can import, supply will improve, and the financial strain will not be on them alone. It’s either that or these supply disruptions will continue indefinitely. I am baffled why they have not been upfront about this since instead of denials.”

British national, Andrew Wynne and a Nigerian, Lucky Ehims were declared wanted by the Nigerian security agents, Police on Monday placed N20m (Twenty Million Naira) bounty on them.

Police in a statement on Monday afternoon said a reward sum of N10,000,000 awaits any person(s) with information leading to the arrest of British national, Andrew Wynne and a Nigerian, Lucky Ehims .

Vanguard had reported how Police had launched a comprehensive investigation into the activities of a foreign national and subversive elements plotting to undermine the democratically elected government in Nigeria through unconstitutional regime change and orchestrating violence across the country.

Force Public Relations Officer, ACP Muyuwa Adejobi said “Following extensive intelligence gathering and collaboration with other security agencies, nine suspects have been apprehended, who received substantial financial backing from foreign sources to destabilize the country.

“Preliminary findings suggest they orchestrated and funded violent protests, disseminated false information, and engaged in other unlawful activities to create anarchy and justify their illegal plot to overthrow the democratically elected government.

“Investigations have identified a foreign mercenary, Andrew Wynne (also known as Andrew Povich or Drew Povey), a British national, who built a network of sleeper cells to topple the government and plunge the nation into chaos.

“He rented a space at Labour House, Abuja, for an ‘Iva Valley Bookshop’ and established ‘STARS of Nations Schools’ as a cover for his subversive activities.

“Documentary evidence and confessions revealed that Andrew Wynne issued directives, monitored progress, and provided finance and operational guidance to achieve unconstitutional regime change in Nigeria.

“He mobilized and deployed several billions of naira to his Nigerian collaborators, urging them to mobilize the public to violently storm police facilities and military barracks, anticipating a bloodbath that would instigate international condemnation of the Nigerian government.

“These acts are in clear violation of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2011 and other relevant laws.

“Since the commencement of investigations, Andrew Wynne has fled the country. He and one of his local coordinators, one Lucky Ehis Obiyan have accordingly been declared wanted and global hunting for them has commenced in connection with this investigation.

“The ten other suspects already apprehended have been arraigned before a competent court of law on Monday, September 2, 2024, for Criminal Conspiracy, Terrorism Financing, Treasonable Felony, Subversion, and Cybercrime.

“They include; Angel Love Innocent (Female), Opaluwa Eleojo Simeon, Michael Tobitoba Adaramoye aka Leni, Suleiman Yakubu, Buhari Lawal, Mosiu Sadiq, Abayomi Adeyemi, Abdulsalam Zubairu (M), Nuradeen Hamis, and Bashir Bello.

“These acts are in clear violation of the Terrorism (Prevention) Act 2011 and other relevant laws

The force also appealed to the public to assist in any useful information that will help their investigations, saying if Andrew Wynne and Lucky Ehims are seen, they should be arrested and “hand over to the nearest Police Station, or to the office of the Deputy Inspector-General of Police, Department of Force Intelligence, Force Headquarters, Abuja, or call 08035179870, 09133333785, 09133333786. A reward sum of N10,000,000 awaits any person(s) with information leading to the arrest of each of them”.

An aluminium worker identified as Lawrence Uzor, attacked his wife and gouged out her eyes allegedly for ritual purposes in Abia State.

The incident happened at Adiele Estate in Umueze Ibeku in Umuahia North Local Government Area of the state on Saturday night, August 24, 2024

The suspect, who hails from Umuchieze in Bende LGA of the state, used a knife to remove the victim's eyes while she was asleep.

Lawrence also attacked his landlady, Madam Lovejane Nwaiwu, as he knocked off some of her teeth and cut off her upper lip.

Madam Nwaiwu, who was also admitted at the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, said she heard a noise in the couple's apartment and went to find out what was happening.

“At about 10 pm on Saturday, I heard the man shouting ‘Odogwu, Odogwu (mighty, mighty)’. I was worried as I had not heard the man and his wife, Amarachi Lawrence praying like that,” she explained.

“I started praying for them. After that, I couldn’t sleep up to about 12 am and was restless. At about 1 am, the wife, who is a teacher with one of the foremost private schools in Umuahia and aged 38 years started shouting, ‘Mummy, I have been killed’. I opened my door, came out peeped through their bedroom window and saw the man pressed down on the wife with a knife in his hands

"I started pushing on people’s gates and calling out to Umueze people, but nobody came out or responded. After all, my attempts to call neighbours to come and nobody answered me, I went to their parlour door and started knocking on the door and suddenly, he opened the door while holding the knife and tried giving me cuts on the head but I defended my head with my hand and he cut me at the hand and further slashed the knife at my face that incidentally cut me at the mouth and many of my upper teeth came out.

“I ran into my house and locked the door, while he ran outside, locked our gate and went to a neighbour’s house to tell them that he had killed his wife and his landlord’s wife. While inside my room, I called my mother and my daughter, who then called a church neighbour and the community vigilance team who rushed to the neighbour’s house and apprehended him.”

First Lady of Abia State, Mrs Priscilla Otti, said she was deeply saddened by the case just a few days after signing the compact agreement with the UNFPA on gender-based violence.

Mrs Otti, who spoke at the Federal Medical Centre, FMC Umuahia where the victims are being treated, said she would take immediate action to ensure the victim is well and protected.

“This is a terrible case of violence, attempted murder,” she stated.

Mrs Otti further assured that the state government would tackle such cases, stating that she would ensure further GBV responses front desk and team would take proper actions.

She commended the Umueze Ibeku community over their response and support to the issue, assuring the state GBV will be partnering with communities.

The First Lady also donated cash for the treatment and upkeep of the victims.

Earlier in his response, the Medical Director of FMC, Umuahia, Prof. Azubuike Onyebuchi, who was represented by his Director. Medical Services, Mrs Aisha Onyemaobi explained to Otti that reports indicated that the main victim, 38-year-old Lawrence, was deeply asleep when the husband woke her up and started cutting her.

Onyemaobi further disclosed that good progress in her recovery is expected, saying the suspect is in custody.

Also speaking, the Umueze Ibeku community chairman and General Manager, Abia State Environmental Protection Agency, Umuahia Zone, Tutus Jonah, confirmed the incident.

“It was just like a film that fateful morning”, he said, adding that before that day, the victim and her husband had been living very well as husband and wife.

He however mentioned that it was gathered that a young man in the village took Lawrence to a prayer house, after which he came back following a visit to a local stream with kolanut, egg and other items

Jonah said that the owner of the prayer house was arrested and later released.

Meanwhile, the victim’s sister, Ijeoma Okpokiri and her cousin, Chioma Okpokiri, both from Emede Ibeku pleaded with the Inspector General of Police and Government at all levels, particularly the Abia State Governor, Alex Otti to look into the matter and to also help their sister to recover.

The Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), on Monday, said that it has written a letter to Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike, to appear before the recently constituted Disciplinary Committee of the party to answer petitions against him over alleged anti-party activities.

The party also described as disappointing Wike’s recent threat of setting political fire in states controlled by PDP governors who have declared support for their Rivers State counterpart, Siminalayi Fubara.

Deputy national publicity secretary of PDP, Ibrahim Abdullahi, who who disclosed this on Channels TV’s breakfast show, ‘Sunrise Daily’, said Wike should have been able to manage his words carefully, adding that the party does not support his comments.

Recall that the PDP recently inaugurated a Disciplinary Committee headed by former minister of foreign affairs, High Chief Tom Ikimi.

But, shortly after the committee’s inauguration, former national vice chairman of PDP and a member of the committee, Chief Bode George, a known Wike ally, resigned from the committee claiming that it was lopsided.

However, Wike had over the weekend threatened to cause political crisis in the respective states of the governors who decide to support Fubara against him over control of the River State PDP structure.

Recall that PDP Governors’ Forum had during their recent meeting in Jalingo, the Taraba State capital, declared support for Fubara, who has been having a running political battle with the minister.

But, addressing the PDP stakeholders during the party’s state congress in Port Harcourt on Saturday, Wike said: “Let me assure you, not while we live, will anybody take away the PDP structure from us.

“Let me tell you people; I hear that there are some governors who said they will take away the structure and give to somebody. I pity those governors because I will put fire in their states.

“When God has given you peace, you said you don’t want peace; whatever you see, you take.”

Reacting, however, the deputy national publicity secretary of the party disclosed that Wike is one of those whom party members have written petitions against for alleged anti-party activities, adding that the committee “has written him a letter inviting him over,” to appear before them.

“We have received petitions with regards to anti-party on those sabotaging the party all through the primaries leading up to where we are today. Those petitions have been aggregated across the country.”

When asked specifically about petitions against Wike, he revealed that party members felt Wike should not have gotten this far still as a member of the party.

He added, “Nyesom Wike is one of the persons expected to face that committee which is headed by no less a person than High Chief Tom Ikimi.”

He said the current party leadership should be given credit for “being able to navigate the waters by not sanctioning people without giving them an opportunity of fair hearing” as against what happened under the immediate-past national chairman, Senator Iyorchia Ayu.

On the recent threat by Wike against governors over the River crisis, Abdullahi said: “He (Wike) was referring to something and it was clear for everybody to see that he was referring to the governor of Bauchi State over his interference in the congress in the determination of the congress in Rivers State. I don’t know if Wike will be fair to himself if he expects the governor of Bauchi, who is the chairman of the governors forum and the leader of the PDP going forward to keep quiet in the issues affecting Rivers State because that is one of our states and we worked so hard to get that state. Wike should have been able to manage his words carefully.

“It was a very disappointing remark, we were not expecting him to say that and we are not with him on that.”

When asked if the party was on the side of Bauchi State governor on the matter, he said, “We are with Wike and everybody. What we are saying is that that is a very bad statement for Wike to make and we are not in support of it.”

On resolving the crisis in the party, he said PDP has handled more delicate issues in the past, adding that the current impasse is “one of them and we will go past it.”

Police in Edo have detained a 19-year-old native doctor, Timothy Dauda, for allegedly shooting his client, Alex Ezekiel, to death during an “anti-bullet” charm trial.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, SP Moses Yamu, confirmed the incident to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday.

Yamu said that the incident happened on August 20 in Onumu Community, near Igara, Akoko Edo Local Government Area of the state.

He said that the suspect was arrested by operatives from Igarra Divisional Police Station in Akoko-Edo.

NAN learnt that the suspect allegedly claimed to specialise in preparing charms against gunshots and machete cuts.

A source further told NAN that the deceased had visited the native doctor’s home to obtain the charm.

It said that “in a shocking turn of events”, Dauda attempted to test the efficacy of the charm by shooting the client with a gun.

The charm was said to have failed as he sustained fatal injuries.

“When he was rushed to a hospital in Igarra, he was pronounced dead by a medical doctor,” the source further said.

Meanwhile, the police spokesman said that the suspect would face prosecution as soon as investigations were concluded

A senior police officer, now retired, has said that the real-time tracking technological platform that once helped the Intelligence Response Team, IRT, to crack many criminal cases ended up being used by politicians to monitor “enemies and mistresses”.

The officer said this while responding to Vanguard’s question on what went wrong with the system put in place to monitor the locations of kidnappers and interception of calls for prompt arrest and rescue of abducted victims.

The Police launched intelligence-led policing in 2015 with the installation of a tracking device that was installed by the then-Inspector-General of Police office, Solomon Arase.

There was also the operation unit code-named Intelligence Response Team, IRT, (still in operation). The team monitored the kidnappers’ movements in real-time, with the information from the device, thereby helping them stay one step ahead.

This device also helped investigators analyze the locations and patterns of calls made by the kidnappers, the routes, and potential safe houses.

In addition, the device provided valuable evidence, such as call records, location data and communication patterns, to build a strong case against the kidnappers.

One such case was the arrest of five kidnappers of former Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Chief Olu Falae. He was taken captive by the herdsmen on September 21, 2015, during his 77th birthday.

In this case, five of the kidnappers came to pick up the N5 million ransom in Suleja, Niger State.

An officer’s eyewitness account

One of the senior police officers who effected the breakthrough told Vanguard “Immediately the kidnappers removed the SIM card used to negotiate, we knew where they were and intercepted them at the last bridge to Minna.

“The ransom money they collected was still in the boot and the SIM card. Five of them were arrested. The motorcycle they used to convey Chief Olu Falae was retrieved.

“The N5 million ransom was marked by the bank. They removed only N100,000 from it. The kidnappers were sentenced to life imprisonment.”

Asked what went wrong with the system put in place to monitor the locations of kidnappers and interception of calls for prompt arrest and rescue of abducted victims, the retired senior officer attributed it to the priority of successive Inspectors General of Police.

His words: “The priority of successive IGPs was quite different. Solomon Arase set up the platform when he was the IGP. It was a technical platform to track calls.

“It was mounted in the IGP’s office then and only one officer, who is now an AIG, had access to the technical platform.

“The Intelligence Response Team, IRT was supposed to be the operational wing that would work with the technical platform. When the technical team got information, it would pass it to IRT to go to the location and make an arrest. Drones and vehicles were bought for the operation.

“But successive IGPs who were analogues didn’t know what to do. They merged the technical platform and IRT. Instead of the platform being used for crime prevention, it became political.

“People in the National Assembly and Villa got hold of the platform and used it to track their enemies and mistresses.

“For such a platform, you don’t give both the technical and the operational units to just one person who would be compromised by politicians. That was the beginning of the collapse of the platform. It requires someone with power and intelligence; someone of a strategic level who is keen on that line.

“This platform was supposed to be renewed and hooked up with the service provider. But that was never the priority of successive IGPs.

“They had money to pay for the accumulated subscription but they refused to pay. When you leave such a system for more than one year, it requires recalibration. This technology keeps evolving.

“You can’t say something you set up today will be used the same way for 10 years without being upgraded. Before long, the system broke down, and the functionality of the Police tracking equipment began to diminish and subsequently went comatose.

The tracker, particularly, became non-functional due to non-subscription as well as failure to engage the relevant company to carry out required system upgrades.

“Due to the failure to pay subscription fees for about three years, and after a grace period had expired, the company overseeing its maintenance and upgrade decided to withdraw its services. This made it difficult to track bandits, kidnappers, and other forms of violent crimes.”

However, Saturday Vanguard gathered that the present IGP, Kayode Egbetokun, reactivated the tracking device.

However, despite its reactivation, in addition to the tracking devices of the DSS and Office of the National Security Adviser, ONSA, kidnappers are still having their way without being tracked in many parts of the country.

The Deputy National Spokesman of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Ibrahim Abdullahi, has said the three leading opposition figures in Nigeria are discussing the possibility of a merger to salvage Nigerians from hunger and widespread insecurity ahead of the 2027 presidential election.

Abdullahi made this statement on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Monday.

According to him, the three opposition candidates in the last elections—PDP’s Atiku Abubakar, Labour Party’s Peter Obi, and Rabiu Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria People’s Party (NNPP)—would put personal interests aside and form a formidable alliance to defeat the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in 2027 and salvage Nigerians from hunger.

He said that had the party’s past leadership managed differences and party conflicts well, high-ranking chieftains like former Rivers State Governor Nyesom Wike, Kwankwaso, and Obi would still be full-blooded members of the PDP, and the party would have defeated Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the last election.

“We’ve lost Kwankwaso, we’ve lost Peter Obi, all of these people; imagine if they were in the party, we would have won the elections.

“This APC said they defeated us with one million plus (votes); just one of these names that I mentioned would have covered that gap for us, and we would have been in power today, and certainly Nigerians would not have been confronted with this despair and despondency in the land,” he said.

Two brothers have apprehended for for abducting and raping 14-year-old girl in Rivers State.

The duo were said to have committed the crime in Erima community in the Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni Local Government Areas of Rivers State on Saturday.

The suspects, who are in their early 20s, were said to have waylaid and abducted the victim on a deserted alleyway while she was heading to her uncle’s residence.

The hoodlums are identified as ‘Honest’ and Okwukwe, according to PUNCH.

A community source who spoke in confidence with newsmen on the issue, said the girl’s mother became apprehensive when the teenager didn’t return from her uncle’s residence several hours later.

Unsettled by the situation, she immediately went to her elder brother’s house only to find out that her daughter did not even get there.

The source said the woman raised the alarm and started crying around the community and ran into a vigilante leading to the arrest of one of the suspects.

“It was then that the vigilant people started searching for the girl and saw that the brothers, after kidnapping her, took her to a house near a bush and took turns to rape her,” he said.

Speaking to our correspondent on Sunday, the Second in Command of the vigilantes known as the ONELGA Security Planning and Advisory Committee in Egi community, Onuigba Chinonye, said he was on a patrol with his men when they saw the distressed woman.

Chinonye explained, “I was on a patrol with some of my boys on Sunday morning when we met one woman crying that her 14-year-old daughter had been missing since Saturday.

“I asked the woman which area, and she told us where she was staying and where the girl was going before. So, we started investigating and through some good neighbours too, we found out where the girl was.

“When we went into the place, we saw two brothers, senior and junior, raping the little girl in an isolated compound near a bush.”

Continuing, the vigilante official said, “In the process of trying to arrest them, the senior one proved stubborn and tried to fight us.

“As my boys were dragging him, his junior brother ran away. So, we apprehended the elder and handed him over to the Egi Police Division Headquarters in Obite, Ogba/Egbema/Ndoni LGA.

The spokesperson for the state Police Command, Grace Iringe-Koko, confirmed the incident, saying an investigation was ongoing.

Iringe-Koko stated, “He (suspect) is in our custody and will be transferred to the State Criminal Investigation and Intelligence Department.

“The Commissioner of Police has ordered the Divisional Police Officer to ensure the arrest of the fleeing suspect for him to face the law.”

The President Bola Tinubu-led administration is pushing for a death penalty for ten #EndBadGovernance protesters.

The government accused the protesters of treason, a capital offence punishable by death.

This was contained in a Court document with file number FHC/ABJ/CR/454/2024, indicating the Tinubu regime is seeking death penalty for the protesters.

The arrested protesters include:

Michael Tobiloba Adaramoye
Adeyemi Abiodun Abayomi
Suleiman Yakubu
Opaluwa Eleojo Simon
Angel Love Innocent
Buhari Lawal
Mosiu Sadiq
Bashir Bello
Nuradeen Khamis
Abdulsalam Zubairu.

Since the end of the nationwide protests against widespread hardship and insecurity in the country last month, a crackdown on those who participated in the public demonstration by security agencies has been the order of the day.

Hundreds of people have been arrested, including minors, for their alleged involvement in the protest. Many of the arrested persons are being detained without any arraignment.

Critics and human rights organisations have expressed their revulsion at the repressive behaviour of the government, saying the development is deeply disturbing.

The Nigeria Union of Pensioners (NUP) has expressed deep concern over the dire conditions faced by public sector retirees, revealing that some still receive as little as N500 per month in pensions.

Alhassan Musa, Secretary of the union in Kaduna State, described the situation as “pathetic,” highlighting that many retirees are living in precarious circumstances after years of dedicated service to the nation. 

“The worst affected are pensioners in several Southern and oil-producing states, despite these regions receiving substantial allocations from the federation account,” Musa said. He noted that the situation in some Northern states and the FCT is relatively better, with monthly pensions ranging from N3,500 to N18,000.

However, Musa pointed out that only Kaduna State has implemented a N30,000 minimum pension, a policy introduced in 2020 under former Governor Nasir El-Rufa’i’s administration.

Musa emphasized the union’s call for a 50% pension increase to match the new N70,000 national minimum wage, noting that even under the Federal Government, some pensioners are still receiving just N10,000 per month. “We are hopeful that the Federal Government will ensure that no pensioner receives less than N70,000 monthly,” he added, stressing that pensioners deserve the same benefits as active workers.

Musa also raised concerns about the plight of retirees under the contributory pension scheme (CPS), stating, “Many who retired in the last decade are yet to receive their benefits. It is truly a distressing situation, not just in Kaduna but in other states and even at the federal level, where pensioners are suffering due to delayed remittances.”