Mr Demola Lagbaja, the head of Lagbaja Family of Ilobu Kingdom in Osun State, has revealed that the deceased Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoheed Lagbaja, did not enjoy life outside the military.

The family head spoke on Monday while receiving the St. Charles Grammar School, Osogbo, Old Boys Association, who paid a condolence visit to the Lagbaja family house in Ibadan on Monday.

He said that the family expected that their late son would, after serving his tenure, retire to enjoy the fruit of his labour.

Lagbaja said the family had submitted to the will of God following the incident,  saying that “some tears will never dry.”

He noted that the late Chief of Army Staff had all his active years in the military, having completed his A-level at the Polytechnic.

“That was our wish, which never came. What happened has happened. We have to submit to the will of God, but we are very proud of our son, for he made us proud. All we can wish him is to rest in peace,” Lagbaja said.

The head of the Lagbaja family appreciated the association for the visit, adding that their late son had been well spoken of since his demise.

Speaking earlier, the delegation led by the Chairman, Board of Trustees of the school, Mr Sola Omopo, on behalf of members of the Ibadan branch of the association, presented a condolence letter to the family.

Omopo eulogised the deceased, saying he had done well for the school and was a proud and financial member until he passed on.

“He was building a very standard project of about N550m for the school, which is about 80 per cent completion.

“When we heard the news, it was very shocking for all of us both in Nigeria and the diaspora, hence the decision to pay a condolences visit to the family,” he said.

Recall that the late Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Taoheed Lagbaja died on November 5 at the age of 56.

(NAN)

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria has secured an agreement with Dangote Petroleum Refinery to lift products directly.

This, according to the association, will ensure the availability of petroleum to Nigerians at a cheaper rate.

IPMAN’s National President, Abubakar Garima, announced this at a press briefing on Monday in Abuja, following a meeting of the National Working Committee of the association.

He explained that the Dangote refinery had obliged IPMAN to lift PMS, AGO and DPK directly for onward supply to IPMAN depots and retail outlets. This new arrangement with the Dangote refinery would ensure a steady and ceaseless supply of PMS products all over Nigeria at an affordable rate. 

He said, “Following our recent meeting with Alhaji Aliko Dangote and members of his top management staff in Lagos, we are happy to state the following; Dangote Refinery has obliged IPMAN to lift PMS, AGO and DPK directly for onward supply to IPMAN depots and retail outlets. That this new arrangement with the Dangote refinery will ensure a steady and ceaseless supply of PMS products all over Nigeria, at an affordable rate for Nigerians also.”

On October 29, the founder of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote, said the refinery held over 500 million litres of petrol, but added that oil marketers were not buying his product.

In a counter-response, IPMAN said its members had been unable to load petrol from the Dangote refinery for days. Garima said the association paid N40bn to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, but still cannot source the product – but the refinery said it has not received any payment from the IPMAN for refined petroleum products.

Speaking further at the briefing, Garima urged IPMAN members to support Dangote Refinery, citing backward integration benefits and positive impacts on Nigeria’s Foreign Exchange market.

Regarding pricing, Garima expressed confidence that negotiations with Dangote would yield lower rates.

“All IPMAN members should fully support the Dangote refinery, as it’s the ideal thing to do considering the monumental benefits of backward integration and the medium to long-term impact it will have on the Foreign Exchange markets in Nigeria.

“IPMAN members nationwide should rely on the Dangote refinery and Nigerian rfineries for their white products, as this will translate into ensuring more job opportunities in Nigeria, as well as signify total support for President Bola Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda,” he added.

Commenting, an Energy expert Kelvin Emmanuel, said the new agreement would eliminate financing and margin costs incurred by the NNPCL.

He said, “What is cheery about this news is that NNPC’s letter of credit as financing cost ($28 per metric tonne) that is passed to IPMAN — controlling 30,000 retail stations and their margin ($26.48 per metric tonne) will be removed.”

The IPMAN president also stated that the association is preparing for a smooth transition to nationwide CNG refill stations, as it is currently in negotiations with the presidential CNG initiative.

“On CNG, I would also like to call on all our members at IPMAN to begin to put all types of machinery in place for a successful transition of the Federal Government’s plans to initiate CNG refill stations in all our outlets. Truly there is no doubt that CNG has the potential to rejuvenate our economy for a better life for Nigerians, and IPMAN is ready to give her all to support the CNG initiative.

“IPMAN is also calling for a partnership with the Federal Government of Nigeria to hasten the quick success of the CNG initiative for Nigeria. We believe that for the CNG initiative to succeed there must be a credible partnership between IPMAN and the PCNGI, without which Nigerians would not have ready and near access to CNG outlets.”

This partnership between Dangote and IPMAN is expected to increase efficiency, affordability, and economic growth for Nigeria’s petroleum industry. This move is expected to eliminate middlemen, reduce costs, and ensure steady supply.

Early this year, the Dangote Refinery said it would supply fuel to about 150,000 retail outlets operated by oil marketers.

In his remarks, the chairman, Board of Trustees of the association, Aminu Abdukadir, said that IPMAN must remain committed to providing the retail stations and funds to ensure that products are delivered to consumers.

“The business of making money without doing anything is over with the deregulation of the sector. For IPMAN to survive, it must provide the filling stations, the money, the trucks, to provide this commodity to motorists,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Executive Secretary of the Major Energy Marketers Association of Nigeria, Clement Isong, has explained that the final landing price is determined by several key factors, including the exchange rate, logistics efficiency and cost negotiating power based on volume bought.

The ES in an interview with our correspondent on Monday, said this in response to the expectation of a reduction in petrol prices following a 20.34 per cent decrease in landing costs to N971.57 per litre.

He noted that oil marketers peg their price by the average cost of petrol import within 30 days and not on the daily spot price.

Isong said, “If you read our bulletin, there is not one landing price for the whole country. What we are saying is to give an idea of the landing pricIf if you land 38,000 metric tonnes into ASBM in Apapa, this is the landing price. That’s what we are saying. If you land 100,000 MT, or 80,000 MT into Pinnacle, the landing price will be lower. But there are only two places where the landing price will be lower due to economies of scale. If you land in the majority of the country, the depots and facilities take less. So, if you land it into another place in Lagos, the landing price will be higher. It won’t be N971 per litre. It can be as close to N1,000.

“So, the landing price is in function of how much you got your exchange rate, logistics and your negotiating power based on what volume bought. Some marketers are landing below N917. But the vast majority of people who don’t enjoy the benefits of economies of scale will land at significantly above that. What this teaches is that it is a free and open market. It’s how you buy that you sell. There is no one price. It is a function of the draft of the vessels that you land the product. It’s a function of how much product was bought. It’s a function of what rate of exchange was used to buy products. The exchange rate that we have used is the central bank rate. So, if you have the central bank rate, then you will not land at that price but if you to the black market, the price will be higher.

“The law says that we can only keep 30 days of stock in our depots. So, the fact that the spot market has gone up means nothing, because you are selling based on the price of the average cost in your tank. The fact that the price has gone down to N971, it doesn’t matter, because we are selling based on the average cost in your tank. How much did you buy and the average cost of everything in the tank? It’s a market price. And the market price is a range. It moves, depending on how efficient you are. And I think for us, the most important thing is the exchange rate.”

Anthony Joshua has surpassed the $200m mark in career earnings, making him one of boxing’s highest earners, surpassing heavyweight rival Tyson Fury and rising star Gervonta Davis, The PUNCH reports.

The former two-time heavyweight champion earned $75m from fights in 2024 alone, placing him second only to Canelo Alvarez in yearly earnings. The Mexican champion matched Joshua’s fight purse but edged him in off-field earnings by $2m.

Fury, 36, collected $50m in 2024, taking his career earnings to $150m, significantly behind Joshua’s impressive haul.

Meanwhile, Davis, 30, has accumulated $50m since his professional debut, with his recent bouts against Ryan Garcia and Frank Martin contributing nearly $20m to his wealth. Garcia himself has emerged as a pay-per-view star, amassing over $40m in career earnings.

Joshua’s financial ascent began notably with his Saudi Arabia rematch against Andy Ruiz Jr., where he pocketed $65m. His subsequent battles with Oleksandr Usyk yielded over $40m for the first two encounters.

The Watford-born pugilist’s earnings were further boosted by his high-profile clash with Francis Ngannou last year, which added $50m to his account. Additional paydays include consecutive $12m purses for fights against Jermaine Franklin and Robert Helenius, plus similar earnings from six spectacular shows at Wembley and the Principality Stadium.

Currently nursing injuries from his recent loss to Daniel Dubois, Joshua, 35, is eyeing a potential clash with Fury. The two-time world champion is waiting for the outcome of Usyk vs. Fury 2 before making his next move.

With one fight remaining on his Riyadh Season contract, His Excellency Turki Alalshikh is expected to make a lucrative offer for the all-British showdown, should it materialise.

Joshua’s promoter Eddie Hearn recently confirmed the boxer will not return to action until at least May 2024, ruling out an immediate rematch with IBF world heavyweight champion Dubois.

“We got one last chapter in this career that we need to make sure we get 100 per cent spot on,” Hearn told Boxing News. “When he comes back in May or June or whenever that’s going to be, you have to be physically and mentally 100 per cent ready.”

Two months after the damage to the correctional facility in Borno State, following the September 10 flooding, 278 escapees are still missing.

The PUNCH had reported that Maiduguri, the capital of Borno State, witnessed severe flooding in September, which led to the destruction of critical infrastructure, including roads, bridges, hospitals and the medium security custodial centre, where a total of 281 prisoners fled for their safety.

The Spokesperson of the Nigeria Correctional Service, Abubakar Umar, who confirmed the missing escapees, said: “The flood brought down the walls of the correctional facilities, including the medium security custodial centre, Maiduguri, as well as the staff quarters in the city.”

He added, “Upon the evacuation of inmates by officers of the service, with support from sister security agencies to a safe and secure facility, 281 inmates were observed to be missing.”

After the jailbreak, the state police command confirmed the arrest of three escapees.

In separate statements, the state Police Public Relations Officer, Nahum Daso, revealed the three re-arrested escapees as Auwalu Aminu, Abubakar Mohammed and Kyari Kur.

One of the statements read: “Kur was apprehended on October 10 after police at Gubio Divisional Headquarters received credible intelligence about his whereabouts. Daso said that the police acted swiftly and arrested him in Gubio town.”

Another statement read, “The rearrest of Muhammed was facilitated when on September 15, 2024, at about 1500HRS, a resident of Bulakara Ward, Gubio LGA, alerted the police after sighting Abubakar in Gubio town, following his escape from the Medium Security Custodial Centre, Maiduguri. Following a swift response by a police patrol team, the escaped convict was apprehended.”

In a separate statement, the police said, “Auwalu was apprehended on October 16, 2024, by police officers from Bama Area Command/Banki Divisional Headquarters, following a tip-off that Aminu was spotted in Banki town.”

In an interview with The PUNCH in Maiduguri on Monday, Daso said the police were still on intensive search operations to get the remaining escapees.

“Efforts are still ongoing to arrest the other fleeing suspects, and we will ensure that we will keep on highlighting to the public our breakthroughs and achievements,” he said.

According to him, the re-arrested convict had been handed over to the correctional service in the state.

“Not less than four suspects have been re-arrested so far and handed over to the correctional service,” he confirmed.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has stopped importing refined petroleum products and is now off-taking fuel from the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and other local refineries.

NNPC’s Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, disclosed this on Monday at the ongoing conference of the Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists, which was held in Lagos and themed ‘Resolving the Nigerian Energy Trilemma: Energy Security, Sustainable Growth and Affordability’.

This is coming at a time when some petroleum marketers insisted that they would import petroleum products and sell at a price lesser than that of the $20bn dollar refinery.

In August, President Bola Tinubu said the country spent an average of N2tn on fuel importation monthly.

According to Tinubu, the launch of compressed natural gas into the country would save the country “over N2tn a month used to import PMS and AGO and free up our resources for more investment in healthcare and gas education.”

The President’s statement means that the country spends about N24tn yearly to import petrol and diesel, excluding aviation fuel, kerosene, and gas.

Despite being an oil-producing country, Nigeria has for years imported its fuels due to a lack of local refineries.

Speaking at the NAPE Conference, Kyari disclosed that the NNPC, as of today, is not importing any fuel as it now buys from local refineries.

“Today, NNPC does not import any product, we are taking only from domestic refineries,” he revealed.

Recall that the NNPC was the sole off-taker of Dangote PMS until the Federal Government permitted other marketers to approach the refinery for direct lifting.

Kyari debunked the allegations that the NNPC was sabotaging the Dangote refinery.

Speaking on domestic refining, he said there were several media stunts around saying the NNPC was now a saboteur of domestic refining by not willing to support domestic refineries.

“The point is very far from it and I’m going to speak to it straight. We are very proud part-owners of Dangote refinery, no doubt about it. We saw an opportunity that there is a clear market for at least 300,000 barrels of our production; we know that as time moves on, people will start struggling to find markets for their production.

“It will happen, It’s already happening. Oil is found, as you know, in many unexpected locations across the world and people have choices. Therefore we saw an opportunity to log supply to the domestic refinery, not just Dangote but any other refinery that operates in the country, so it was a very informed business decision.

“Therefore, from day one, we knew that it is to our benefit to supply crude oil to the domestic refinery, so we don’t need to be persuaded; we don’t need anyone to talk to us, there is no need for any pressure from the streets for us to do this. We are already doing this,“ he clarified.

On the request that Nigeria needs to domesticate its oil, he posited that Nigerian crude is ’Lamborghini crude ‘, so the products would be pricey.

According to Kyari, the issue of high-quality fuel should be a relative thing, saying many refineries do not patronise Nigerian crude because of the price.

He revealed that some global traders buy the crude and blend it with dirtier fuel to save cost.

He said, “We should never forget that Nigerian crude is ’Lamborghini crude’, if we choose that every product that we have in this country must come from domestic production, then we must deal with pricing. Otherwise, out there in the global market, everybody buys Nigerian crude and blends it with dirtier crude to process, a lot of you will confirm this. So, no one takes Nigerian crude except one or two refineries that I know. Straight processing of Nigerian crude, nobody does this, because you do have a gap in value if you do this.

“Therefore, as a country, and I believe this strongly also, that we must process all the crude that we produce in the country to the optimum. You can do intermediate products and sell to the market, you are still adding value. You don’t have to sell gasoline that is coming from Nigerian production.

“You can do something different so you can process it domestically, but it’s going to be high quality. As we all know and it’s very clear in the media that we are selling high-quality products, that’s very true but you need not do this. You are driving a Keke-Napep and you want Lamborghini fuel, you do not need it. So, the quality issue is a relative thing, it’s by geography, by location, and we will do everything possible to make sure that we domesticate this.

“Today, NNPC does not import any product, we are taking only from domestic refineries. But I also know that we are working jointly with the government to make sure that we manage the issue around prices if we have to source all our supply from the domestic market. It will be an issue and we are already resolving it. I can confirm that substantial work has been done and this will no longer be an issue.”

Naira-for-crude

The NNPC boss also denied claims that the company did not want to sell crude oil to Dangote in naira in an attempt to sabotage the refinery.

“There are too many claimants out there, that the NNPC does not want to sell crude to the refinery in naira as a form of sabotage. Far from it! It makes no difference to us because if you sell crude to the domestic refinery in naira and you buy the product in naira from the domestic refinery, it’s a net zero gain. You lose nothing, you probably gain nothing.

“Otherwise, whatever you do, you still have to source foreign exchange to import if you have to import. So, if you stop the import and sell in naira, what you are simply doing is just a substitution. It’s a settlement platform and we must commend the President for bringing this initiative.

“What it will do to our country is that the biggest source of FX pressure in our country is the import of PMS. It’s the highest value. That means if you can take that under control, it means that speculation around the naira to the extent of those FX that is required for domestic product supply will be eliminated.

“That means speculation will go, you would have controlled inflation, and you would have controlled the FX pressure because willould have settled the exchange rate for 50 per cent of your imports. This is a very great initiative. I should commend the President for bringing this initiative,“ he stressed.

The GCEO emphasised that Nigeria did not have energy security as of today.

According to him, 50 per cent of the population does not have access to electricity while 70 per cent does not have access to clean fuel.

“Today, when we say energy security, the thing that comes quickly to people’s mind is the availability of PMS, I think energy security is not about PMS. It’s beyond this. As a country today, we all know that over 50 per cent of our population doesn’t have access to electricity. Over 70 per cent of our population doesn’t have access to clean, good fuel. This is very true, all of us have said it over and over in the last three to five years.

“Have we taken any specific steps to close that gap in terms of having access to electricity and also access to clean fuel? I believe that substantial work has been done. And without mincing words, NNPC is left with the cross and we are humbly carrying it, proudly carrying it as NNPC Limited,“ he stated.

Kyari maintained that the oil and gas industry was never focused on delivering energy into the domestic market, saying that’s not what it was structured for.

“Every investor here, and of course the landscape is changing, don’t mind the fact that things are changing, but every investor here is here to produce oil or gas, export and make money. This is the reality. We as NNPC are left with the cross of making sure that this is made domestically available. That speaks to the availability of products for processing in the domestic market, provision of finished products in the domestic market, and also delivering gas into the domestic market,” the NNPC boss stated.

$2.4bn debt

Kyari announced the settlement of NNPC’s longstanding $2.4bn cash-call debt owed to International Oil Companies operating in the country.

He affirmed that the company no longer owes any dues, saying this was a milestone achieved following the total removal of subsidies.

The cash calls debts are funding requests by NNPC and its joint venture partners, Mobil, Chevron, Shell, TotalEnergies, and Agip to cover capital and operational expenses for oil projects.

Checks by our correspondent revealed that as of May 31, 2022, the total cash call debt was $4.68bn while NNPC cleared $3.81bn leaving an outstanding balance of $873.34m, But as of 2023, the debt according to the Nigerian Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative, has risen to $2.4bn.

Kyari revealed that the company can now prioritise its core focus on the upstream sector, noting that the subsidy burden often forced the company to divert funds, leading to cash call defaults with joint venture partners.

He commended Tinubu for having the courage to remove the subsidy, acknowledging that while the subsidy removal may cause temporary financial strain, it will encourage more prudent use of energy.

“As professionals, just know that PMS is a major distraction to the upstream, we transfer all our resources, and cash flow to ensure that it survives and is sustained. That’s why sometimes we default in our cash flows, it is because of the distraction this has caused NNPC as a partner.

“Now that distraction is gone, you will confirm that we don’t owe any cash flow, and for us to sustain this, those distractions must go away so that this industry can now produce the energy that this country needs sustainably and affordably,” he said.

The GCEO also assured that by the first quarter of 2025, the country would have 12 CNG mother stations.

“By quarter one of 2025, there will be at least 12 mother stations that will be available for CNG, and not only that, we are also building a mini Liquefied Natural Gas plant that will deliver gas into the market and also sustain the quality of CNG delivery and make gas available to mini power plants across this industry in the short term,” he said.

He stressed that the initiative would enable cheaper fuel, cleaner fuel and the utilisation of the resources available in the country.

The naira is forecasted to depreciate to N1,993 against the United States dollar by 2028, posing a significant challenge to Nigeria’s pharmaceutical industry, particularly in importing essential medical devices, a new report by BMI, a Fitch Solutions subsidiary, has revealed.

In the report titled “Weak Naira and Structural Challenges to Constrain Nigeria’s Medical Devices Market Growth”, BMI projected that despite an anticipated rebound in the economy, Nigeria’s medical devices sector will face operational and demand challenges in the near term.

The report noted that Nigeria relies on imports for over 95 per cent of its medical devices, making it vulnerable to fluctuations in exchange rates.

“Continued weakness of the naira will increase medical device import costs and erode consumer purchasing power. Similar to other markets in sub-Saharan Africa, Nigeria heavily relies on medical device imports, with reliance of over 95 per cent.

“We expect that the naira will end 2028 at N1,993/$ from N306/$ in 2018. As the naira weakens, the cost of importing medical devices will continually increase, eroding both the health system and patient purchasing power especially to invest in essential medical technologies given underfunding of the public health sector.

“This would particularly affect high-cost demand for devices such as diagnostics, orthopaedics and dental products. On the export front, a weaker naira will enhance the competitiveness of locally manufactured medical devices, fostering growth in the sector,” the report stated.

While a weaker naira could enhance the competitiveness of locally manufactured medical devices, BMI highlighted persistent barriers to local production.

These include a scarcity of skilled labour, limited access to modern technology, and inadequate infrastructure, which continue to undermine manufacturing efforts despite government incentives.

The administration of President Bola Tinubu has implemented measures aimed at easing these pressures. In June 2024, an executive order was issued to reduce medical service costs by eliminating tariffs, excise duties, and Value Added Tax on specific machinery, equipment, and raw materials, with the goal of lowering local production costs.

However, BMI observed that the medical devices market would continue to face significant challenges in the short term.

The report forecasted that Nigeria’s medical devices market could grow to a value of N171.1bn (£344.7m) by 2028, supported by a large population, an increasing focus on universal health coverage, and the double burden of chronic and communicable diseases.

Nigeria’s economy is expected to recover in 2025, with a growth rate of 3.0 per cent predicted for 2024, compared to 2.9 per cent recorded in 2023.

However, persistent issues such as high inflation, tighter monetary policies, and weak foreign direct investment could weigh on the growth of the medical devices sector.

The PUNCH further observed that the naira traded at N1,681.42 per dollar on Monday, November 11, 2024, reflecting a marginal decline of 0.15 per cent from Friday’s closing rate of N1,678.87, as recorded on November 8, 2024.

FX turnover on the official market dropped significantly by 66.41 per cent, from $1.4bn on Friday to $471.5m on Monday, indicating lower market activity.

During the period under review, the naira reached a high of N1,695 and a low of N1,631.