Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has said that those benefiting from the lucrative business of fuel importation will make every effort to frustrate Dangote Petroleum Refinery.

Obasanjo described Dangote Refinery as something that should encourage both Nigerians and non-Nigerians.

He stated this in the wake of allegations by the President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, that some ‘mafias’ were making efforts to frustrate the $20bn refinery.

It was gathered on Monday that the multi-billion dollar refinery and other domestic refineries had yet to purchase crude oil in naira based on the directive of President Bola Tinubu to the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

Speaking during an interview with Financial Times, Obasanjo opined that the cabals benefitting from oil importation do not want to let go of their source of living.

He said, “Aliko’s investment in a refinery, if it goes well, should encourage both Nigerians and non-Nigerians to invest in Nigeria.

“If those who are selling or supplying refined products for Nigeria feel that they will lose the lucrative opportunity, they will also make every effort to get him frustrated.”

Speaking further, the former nation’s leader disclosed that Nigeria made a deadly mistake by putting all its eggs in what he called one basket of oil, ignoring gas and agriculture.

“I believe we made a very, very deadly mistake. We put all our eggs in one basket of oil. We even ignored gas. We were flaring gas, which is a very important commodity

“We ignored agriculture, which should have been the centrepiece of our economic development,” he said.

He recalled how he persuaded Shell to run the country’s refineries but the International Oil Company refused, saying there was too much corruption in the sector.

“When I was President, I invited Shell and I said, look, come and take equity participation and run our refineries for us. They refused. They said our refineries have not been well maintained.

“We have brought amateurs rather than bringing professionals. They said there’s too much corruption with the way our refinery is run and maintained. And they didn’t want to get involved in such a mess,” he explained.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has introduced the Utapate crude oil blend, a new crude oil grade, into the international market.

According to a statement on Monday by Femi Soneye, NNPC’s spokesperson, the Utapate crude oil blend commenced operations in July, as its first cargo headed for Spain.

The crude oil grade, Soneye said, is from an oil mining lease (OML) 13, fully operated by NNPC Exploration and Production Limited (NEPL), the company’s upstream subsidiary.

“Located offshore Akwa Ibom State in Nigeria, Utapate’s current crude oil production is at 28,000 barrels per day, with potentials to increase it to 50,000 barrels per day. Also, the sulphur content of the new crude is 0.0655%,” NNPC said.

“Spanish oil giant Repsol, won the tender for the initial cargo of 950,000 barrels of the new crude blend which is comparable to the much sought after Amenam crude.”

According to the statement, Gulf Transport and Trading, another leading crude oil dealer, have also secured the cargo’s tenders for August and September.

“During the Argus European Crude Conference in London last year, NNPC Ltd announced the launch of Nembe crude oil, produced by the NNPC/Aiteo operated Oil Mining Lease (OML) 29 Joint Venture (JV),” the NNPC spokesperson said.

“Similar to the Nembe crude oil grade, the Utapate crude oil blend has a low sulphur content and low carbon footprint due to flare gas elimination, fitting perfectly into the required spec of major buyers in Europe.”

Soneye said the remarkable achievement signifies the commitment of NNPC to increase Nigeria’s crude oil production and grow reserves through the development of new assets.

The Nigerian Education Loan Fund (NELFUND) says it has disbursed July stipends to student loan applicants across six tertiary institutions.

In a statement on Monday, Ibom Uche, NELFUND’s director of finance and accounts, said a stipend of N20,000 has been paid to the students.

He said a total of 20,371 students across Bayero University Kano (BUK), Federal University, Dutsin-Ma (FUDMA), University of Ilorin (UNILORIN), University of Benin (UNIBEN), University of Ibadan (UI), and University of Maiduguri (UNIMAID) were paid.

NELFUND had earlier stated that it had paid the tuition fees for the students in these six tertiary institutions.

Uche said the payment process for students from 55 additional tertiary institutions will soon commence.

“This initiative further underscores H.E. President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s promised unwavering commitment to supporting Nigerian students by ensuring financial stability throughout their academic pursuit, the statement reads in part,” he said.

“It is anticipated that this will be concluded within the next two weeks as the fund is committed to ensuring that all eligible students receive their stipends promptly.

“NELFUND remains steadfast in its mission to support the educational aspirations of Nigerian students by providing financial assistance for studies at qualifying institutions and ensuring the timely disbursement of stipends for day-to-day expenses.

“It is noteworthy that the President only Sunday committed a further 50 billion Naira from recovered proceeds of crime.

“NELFUND appreciates the patience and cooperation of students and institutions as the organisation works assiduously to fulfil its previously made commitments to Nigerian students.”

Last week, NELFUND said it had disbursed over N2.5 billion in the student loan scheme.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) has issued an order transferring regulatory oversight of the electricity market in Oyo to the state’s electricity regulatory commission.

In an order dated August 5 and signed by Sanusi Garba, its chairman, the NERC said the directive would take effect immediately.

According to the commission, the order is to commence the process of the transfer of regulatory oversight for the intrastate electricity market in the state from NERC to Oyo State Electricity Regulatory Commission (OSERC), in accordance with the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria (CFRN) and the Electricity of Act 2023 (amended).

“Ibadan Electricity Distribution PLC (“IBEDC”) is hereby directed to incorporate a subsidiary (“IBEDC SubCo”) under the Companies and Allied Matters Act for the assumption of responsibilities for intrastate supply and distribution of electricity in Oyo State fron IBEDC,” the order reads.

 

“IBEDC shall complete the incorporation of IBEDC SubCo within 60 days from the effective date of this Order and, IBEDC SubCo shall apply for and obtain a licence for the intrastate supply and distribution of electricity from OSERC.

“IBEDC shall identify the actual geographic boundaries of Oyo State and carve out its network in Oyo State as a standalone network with the installation of boundary meters at all border points where the network crosses from Oyo State into another state.” 

According to the order, as part of the transition process, IBEDC is mandated to create an asset register of all its power infrastructure located within Oyo state. 

The commission also said the DisCo would evaluate and apportion “contractual obligations and liabilities attributable to IBEDC’s operations of its subsidiary in Oyo State”.

IBEDC, according to NERC, would identify all the applicable trading points for energy offtake for the operations of IBEDC SubCo in Oyo. 

NERC asked IBEDC to “confirm the number of employees that are required to provide service to Oyo State as a standalone public utility and transfer the identified assets for operations in Oyo State, contractual obligations, liabilities and employees to IBEDC SubCo”. 

NERC said all transfers contained in the order would be completed by February 5, 2025.

On April 22, Enugu and Ekiti states received approval from NERC to regulate their electricity markets.

The regulator, on April 23, transferred oversight of the electricity market in Ondo to the state’s electricity regulatory bureau (OSERB).

On July 1, the commission transferred regulatory oversight of the power market in Imo to the state’s electricity regulatory commission (ISERC).

Christopher Musa, chief of defence staff (CDS), says it is a treasonable offence for #EndBadGovernance protesters to fly foreign flags in the country.

Musa spoke shortly after a meeting with President Bola Tinubu at the State House in Abuja on Monday.

The trend was first observed in Kano on the first day of the protest.

Protesters waved Russian flags, calling on President Vladimir Putin to intervene in the country.

On Sunday, a faction of protesters arrived in Jos, the Plateau capital, with Russian and Japanese flags, forcing local protest organisers to conclude the march early.

The latest batch of flags were seen on Monday in Kaduna, Kano, and Abuja.

Musa said people caught with the foreign flags will be tried for treason.

“A lot of us have seen it where foreign flags have been flown within the sovereignty of Nigeria, and that is totally unacceptable,” the army chief said on Monday after a briefing with President Bola Tinubu.

“We are warning in clear terms, and the president has also said we should convey this: that we will not accept anybody, any individual flying any foreign flag in Nigeria.

“That is a treasonable offense, and it will be viewed and treated as such. So, nobody shall allow himself to be used by any individual.”

In neighbouring Sahelian countries, citizens waved Russian flags and marched on the streets in anti-government protests, triggering a coup.

Musa dismissed the fears, reiterating that security agencies would defend democracy.

“We will not accept anyone pushing or taking any action, seemingly or for whatever reason to want to push for any change of government,” he said.

“Democracy is what we stand for; democracy is what we will continue to defend.

“For those of them flying flags, and if you see, a lot of them are kids being pushed to do that. We’re following up with those ones that are sponsoring them.

“Those that are pushing them because, you know, the flies were also made. We have identified those areas, and we are going to take serious action against them.

“The president is clear on his instructions for us not to accept anyone that wants to disrupt the peace and tranquility of Nigeria.

“And we are all standing here together to show Nigerians that we’re working closely; we are working together with synergy to ensure that there’s still peace and tranquility in Nigeria, we have assured Mr. President.”

Much of the protests have been characterised by vandalisation, looting, and deaths.

Musa had warned that the military would step in if the situation escalated.

Stocks around the world tumbled on Monday as worries intensified over a US recession, sparking a global market sell-off.

The Dow and the Standard and Poor’s (S&P) 500 posted their worst daily loss in about two years.

The S&P 500 and the Nasdaq 100 dropped 3 percent on Monday. 

Nasdaq 100 lost over $900 billion in terms of market value while over $1.4 trillion in market value was wiped out from the S&P 500. 

Russell 2000, a small-cap US stock market index, also fell by 3.3 percent.

Also, investors continued to sell off tech stocks and artificial intelligence equities.

The share price of Nvidia, a US tech company, tumbled by 6.4 percent, Apple dropped by 4.8 percent and Microsoft fell by 3.3 percent — accounting for about 50 points of the S&P 500’s 160-point drop. 

The Magnificent seven index — which consists tech stocks — also dropped by 4.3 percent.

Also, Europe’s Stoxx 600 index — which represents large, mid and small capitalisation companies — declined by 2.17 percent.

Similarly, Japan stocks entered a bear market, with the Nikkei index losing 12.4 percent — its worst day since 1987.

In Nigeria, the stock market depreciated by 2.23 percent, losing 2,228.31 basis points, to close at 97,582.41 all share index (ASI).

Fear of recession and rapid federal reserve rate cuts in the US, as well as a hawkish pivot by the Bank of Japan, are some of the causes of the downturn across Europe, Asia and the US, according to strategists in a CNBC report.

The Russian embassy in Nigeria says the Russian government is not involved in its national flags flown during the #EndBadGovernance nationwide protest.

In a statement on Monday, the embassy said neither the government nor Russian officials were connected to the trend.

“The Embassy has noted the reports in Nigerian media and the circulation of videos and images in digital media depicting protesters in northern states of the country carrying Russian flags and chanting slogans to Russian President Vladimir Putin,” the statement reads.

“The Government of the Russian Federation as well as any Russian officials are not involved in these activities and do not coordinate them in any way.

“As always, we emphasize that Russia does not interfere in the domestic affairs of foreign states, including Nigeria.”

The embassy said the intentions of some protesters to wave Russian flags are personal choices.

“They do not reflect any official position or policy of the Russian Government in the issue,” it said.

“We respect Nigerian democracy and believe that peaceful demonstrations in conformity with the Nigerian law are a manifestation of democracy.

“However, should these events lead to any disruptions or acts of violence we strictly condemn them.”

Nigeria has suffered another nationwide blackout – the fifth time in 2024.

According to various distribution companies (DisCos), their feeders became inactive, resulting in widespread blackouts across the country.

Data from the Transmission Company of Nigeria’s (TCN’s) generation trend showed that the grid collapsed at about 1:30 pm on Monday and dropped from 3,241 megawatts (MW) to 1,255MW in an hour.

As at the time of this report, out of 21 plants connected to the grid, five generation companies (GenCos) are down while 17 are generating power.

The TCN is yet to give reasons for the collapse.

Confirming the incident, the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) on X, said the grid collapsed at 2.30pm.

“We understand that some of our customers are still without power due to a system failure from the national grid at 2.55pm today, 5th August 2024,” AEDC posted.

“Please be assured that the system is gradually stabilising, and we are working diligently with all relevant stakeholders to restore power to the affected areas as quickly as possible.”

The national electricity grid had suffered a collapse five times in 2024.

The first time the grid collapsed was on February 4.

The grid experienced another collapse on March 28.

The blackout also happened on April 15, and July 6, for the third and fourth time respectively.

On May 1, TCN said the number of system collapses has reduced significantly in the country.

According to Ndidi Mbah, TCN’s spokesperson, the grid disturbances declined by 76.47 percent in five years.

Mbah said the country recorded 20 system collapses from 2020 till May 1, compared to the 85 grid disturbances between 2015 to 2019.

Meanwhile, on April 18, the commission said it had deployed a digital system called generation dip/loss detection system (GLDS) to swiftly detect and respond to sudden drops in power generation.

The #EndBadGovernance protests in Nigeria were scheduled to take place between August 1 -10, 2024, tagged “10 Days of Rage”, a seemingly apocalyptic projection of the immediate future of Nigeria constructed in the fashion of The People vs. The State but as it has turned out, it may be correct on August 6, today, to say that we are now more or less at the end of the protests. For now, that is what it looks like.  And what has made the difference is the fact that on Day 4 of the protests the President of Nigeria, Bola Ahmed Tinubu decided to address the nation and speak to the people directly. Since the beginning of the imbroglio, concerned Nigerians had been calling on the President to talk to them. Instead, he sent spokespersons, and outrightly condescending Ministers to talk to the people. 

Nigerians voted for Tinubu, not the variously privileged persons who now have access to the microphone because of Tinubu. Section 5 of the 1999 Constitution grants the President the right to delegate authority, but funnily enough, the same Constitution is studiously silent about what the same all-powerful President can do about his other room affairs! His job is strictly to rule Nigeria under the Constitution and the oath of office he took. Whatever happens, he is the man that will be held responsible.  From August 1, Nigerians took to the streets, as they had promised that they would, against bad governance. Within two days, over seventeen persons had been killed across the country, the police admits that there were only seven casualties.  They also insist that their men did not kill anyone. So, who did? Should anyone die at all.? In Kano, Niger, Nasarawa, Borno and Yobe, there was so much violence the state governments had to declare a curfew. Properties were destroyed. Nobody could go to work. Foreign missions in Nigeria have advised their citizens to get ready for evacuation in case the Nigerian situation got out of hand. 

The entire country has been at a standstill. It took the President a whole three days for him to be persuaded to speak to Nigerians and tell Nigerians that their President had finally heard them. Tinubu had to speak for 21 minutes in 38 paragraphs, a pre-recorded, teleprompter-assisted speech before Nigerians felt that their President had finally heard them. My take is that the President could and should have spoken earlier. He offered the Nigerian people too little too late. Presidential communication should be driven by empathy, but that empathy should come at the right time. Take the United Kingdom, where there is at the moment, race-based riots, religion-based protests in about 19 cities, triggered by misinformation and disinformation over the knife-killing of three innocent persons, Bebe King, 6. Elsie Stancombe, 7, Alice Aguilar, 9,  in Southport, Merseyside, North West England. It was initially claimed via social media that the killer was a Muslim immigrant. This triggered far-right, nationalistic sentiments: “Britain for the British” and a prompt attack on immigrants. The British Prime Minister, Keir Starmer did not wait for matters to get out of hand before speaking. Two days ago, as the riots spread from Southport, to Liverpool and Rotherdam, the British PM quickly addressed the nation, threatening to deal with “far-right thugs”. Yesterday, he summoned an emergency meeting of the Cobra Committee.  He was seen to be taking charge. 

President Tinubu also reportedly met with traditional rulers and other important people of Nigeria, and through surrogates appealed to the youths of Nigeria to be calm, but he was technically talking to the wrong people. The youths refused to listen. On August 1, they went on to the streets to protest. What we must note here is that the Nigerian President is too much of a monarch. He holds court -one of the things we have to correct in the 1999 Constitution. When the people who elected him in a constitutional democracy demand accountability, he sends emissaries to address the people. If he must meet anybody, he holds court with traditional rulers and religious leaders who end up collecting sitting allowances and flight tickets that could have been better used to serve the people. The ordinary people, the main focus of the democratic process are the last group to be noticed. And this is precisely the pattern that has played out this time around. On Sunday, at 7 am, the monarch of Nigeria’s Presidential Villa, finally deemed it necessary to address the people directly.   It turned out to be a big favour! On Sunday morning, the protesters at Ojota Freedom Park in Lagos, who had been toing and froing around the Ikeja axis since August 1, had a tete-a-tete with the police and they resolved that since the President had spoken, they would suspend their protest till October. They agreed to hold a meeting yesterday at 11 am, to deliberate on the President’s speech. Thus, in Lagos, the President’s speech had taken the sting, perhaps temporarily, out of the protests. In Kano and a few other places, protesters continued their agitation on Sunday, but the momentum had become generally subdued. On Monday, banks and business places that had remained shut the previous Thursday and Friday, sputtered to life. Nigeria gradually regained normalcy. To that extent, the President’s national broadcast made a difference. The very symbolism of it, doused tension in the country. Should the President have spoken about two days earlier? Yes. Did he leave his personal intervention a bit late? Yes. 

What exactly did he say? Not much, and yet it made small difference. The big lesson is that the Nigerian President and his handlers must never assume that it is beneath him to talk to the same people who elected him into office. He is not a Supreme Leader. He represents the people. Power belongs to the people, not the President. Tinubu is just so, so lucky to have escaped the humiliation that President William Ruto has suffered in Kenya, and the fate that has just befallen Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina in Bangladesh, following weeks of deadly protests in that South Asian country. Ms. Hasina has fled Dhaka. The people ignored a national curfew and stormed her palace from where she ruled for about two decades. She is now practically on the run. President Tinubu must indeed learn from the luck that he enjoys. Across the world, there is currently a wave of people’s anger, be it in Venezuela, Kenya, or Bangladesh, with the people taking ownership of the democratic process, and seeking every possible means to punish their leaders. With all their angst, Nigerians are still very manageable people, and we must do everything to keep their resentment of authority figures in check.

I may have submitted that the President’s speech has had the effect of dousing tensions, but I do not think that the speech was fit for purpose. The protesters just wanted the President to say something. He said something. It didn’t matter what he said, and many were satisfied. But when you look at the speech itself, what did the President say? One, he regretted the killings that took place, expressed his condolences to the families of the deceased, and invited the protesters for dialogue while insisting on peace. Two, he made it clear that promoters of violence and ethnic bigotry igniting the crisis, will not be spared for violating the laws of the land. Three, he outlined his administration’s programmes in the last one year as proof-positive of his commitment to Nigerian youths: the Skill Up Artisans Programme (SUPA); the Nigerian Youth Academy (NIYA), Youth Talent Export Programme (NATEP), students’ loans and support for Medium and Small-Scale Enterprises (MSMEs). Four, the President talked about his government’s economic reforms, and insisted that there would be no going back on the removal of fuel subsidy and the abolition of multiple foreign exchange rates, the gains of which he said have resulted in increased government revenues, debt service reduction, CNG initiatives to reduce transportation costs, support for the manufacturing sector and other benefits for the Nigerian people. Five, the President stressed his commitment to public order and the rule of law, stating that he will not tolerate actions that threaten national unity and stability.

As is to be expected, there have been reactions for and against the President’s nationwide address. He has received knocks and kudos. Minister of Aviation and Aerospace Development, Festus Keyamo hails the speech as great, inspiring, compassionate, firm, and conciliatory. Please, what else should Keyamo say? Other commentators have a different opinion. Professor Wole Soyinka in a piece titled “The Hunger March as Universal Mandate” faulted the President for failing to condemn “the state’s seizure of protest management, and the use of live bullets as state response to civil protest”. The people asked for bread, the state gave them bullets in return! Mr. Femi Falana, SAN; activist Deji Adeyanju, Omoyele Sowore, leader of the Take It Back Movement Nigeria have also condemned the President’s speech. Sowore, who was a Presidential candidate in the 2023 general elections describes the speech as “Beautiful Nonsense”. There seems nonetheless to be a general consensus that the speech fell short of the people’s expectations. My view is that the speech-writers spent too much time on the achievements of the administration. Nobody wants to listen to propaganda at this time. It is standard practice in the corridors of government in Nigeria to think that any time the President speaks, he should remind the people of his accomplishments. But there must be a time and place to that tradition. The speech this time around should have been shorter and better focused. If I were the person to sign off on the copy, I would have advised against all the navel-gazing, chest beating details in the speech. Certainly not the right time to do that. The protesters had 15 demands and more, not even one of their demands was referred to by the President. There is only one name for that: contempt. It is not enough for the President to say that he is listening, and that he has heard the people loud and clear. What exactly did he hear? What specific information is he processing? Did he for example hear that the people say they are hungry? Did he hear or was he told, that the people say they want the cost of governance to be reduced? They don’t want leaders living in $21m mansions, jolloffing inside expensive yachts, junketing like a yoyo inside imported SUVs while the people are wallowing in penury? Did he hear that the people want electoral reforms and a new Constitution? Or that the general menace of insecurity in the land should be addressed?  It was not evident that the President was aware of what the people are saying except the acknowledgement, in parenthesis, in paragraph 31 of his speech. 

Mr Atedo Peterside, founder of Stanbic IBTC, Dr Muda Yusuf of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprises (CPPE) and Ebun Olu-Adegboruwa, SAN have all appealed to the protesters: that their point has been made, and as Bob Marley advised, they should sheathe their swords to fight another day. A prolonged shut down of Nigeria can only damage the economy and hurt all parties concerned whereas there is no guarantee on the desired outcomes. The way forward clearly is for government to listen truly to the people, not audio promises or any of those cliches: Renewed Hope, Renewed Housing Estate, Renewed Agriculture which the people have heard so often in the last one year, every repeat of the same phrases annoys the majority. The very least that the President could have done would have been the announcement of a committee to look into the people’s demands. We all know that a government committee does not always solve any problems in Nigeria. But the gesture would have taken the pressure off the President. It would give the people the impression that something is being done and that they have been heard. If nothing happens positively for them thereafter, by October, they will hold the committee members responsible. Every President must always appoint fall guys in tough situations who will take the bullets when things go wrong. President Tinubu should learn to dodge the bullets because more will come.  There are enough willing fall guys out there, looking for what to eat!

All things said, I think the President was spot on when he deplored ethnic bigotry. In the course of the protests, one imbecile with an X-twitter handle was said to have tweeted, under the handle @Lagospedia on Twitter/X that Igbos must leave Lagos within the next month effective August 20 – 30, and relocate their businesses out of Lagos and other South West states. The animal that sent out this tweet must be identified and made to face the full wrath of the law. Igbos do not pose any problem to the people of Lagos or Yorubas in general. The beauty of this country lies in the strength it draws from its diversity. We live in an interdependent country where we all rely on each other to survive, drawing strength from one another. It is strange how today’s people forget that once upon a time Mbonu Ojike, an Igbo man, from Arondizuogu in today’s Imo State was the Deputy Mayor of Lagos (1951).  In 1959, the Federal Minister of Lands and Lagos Affairs, was Muhammadu Ribadu, a Fulani man. If Igbos were to leave Lagos and the South West today, the region may suffer temporary economic setback. Who will sell vehicle spare parts? Who will sell electronics? Landlords will suffer. The banking system in the South West will crash. Many husbands will become emergency bachelors – but that may be a joke- the madness that Nigerians exhibit for ethnic reasons stops at the door of the bedroom. Igbos like Yoruba women. Yoruba men can’t take their eyes off Igbo women, and all the beautiful girls from the East and South East. Those who are beating the drums of ethnic hate should remember the civil war. “Though tongue and tribe may differ, in brotherhood we stand.” Those who violate this principle must be sanctioned. They should be told to remember Rwanda and how ethnic hate and rivalry tore apart a country. They should be reminded of the story of Hitler, whose name lives in infamy forever.  

Similarly, as part of matters arising from the protests, another set of imbeciles were said to have been going about carrying Russian flags and calling also for military intervention. That is high treason. Nigerians like to imitate even things they do not understand. Whoever is calling for military rule, or promoting Russia on this soil must be identified and guillotined, after due process. It is good that the Russian Embassy in Nigeria has disowned the protesters and that the Department of State Services has arrested the unpatriotic tailor in Kano, along with 31 others, who were mass producing Russian flags and promoting this dangerous signal. The sad story, really, is that this country is in the grips of mass psychosis at all levels. President Tinubu’s primary job, since he says it is his turn, and he is now where he wants to be is to walk the talk, and rescue Nigeria if he can.