Delta: Thousands evacuated as pipeline erupts close to army barrack

Thousands of residents of communities around the Nigeria Army, Effurun Barracks, Uvwie local government area of Delta State, were evacuated on Tuesday afternoon following a massive pipeline fire.

Although what triggered the fire has not been ascertained at the time of filling this report, The Nation learnt that at least one house was razed.

Panicking residents of the area were seen fleeing with their belongings for safe havens outside the scene.

Various sources told our correspondent that the pipeline which conveys products from the Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company to other parts of the country had ruptured several weeks ago.

Residents of the area said the owner of the facility, Pipelines and Product Marketing Company, a subsidiary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, allegedly refused to take action until Tuesday when the pipeline erupted.

“The pipeline had been leaking products for weeks, maybe months, now the NNPC is fully aware but they did nothing about it. About a week ago they came here and were cleaning the oil from the area but they left again,” a resident of the Mammy Market shanties told our correspondent.

W/Cup Qualifier: Oliseh surprised me – Swaziland Coach

Port Harcourt – Swaziland’s national football team Coach, Harris Bulunga, said on Tuesday that Super Eagles’ Coach, Sunday Oliseh’s choice of players upset his game plan in a World Cup qualifying match against Nigeria.

Bulunga made the remark after the Super Eagles beat Swaziland 2-0 in the match played at the Adokiye Amiesimaka Stadium in Port Harcourt.

Moses Simon scored Nigeria`s first goal in the 51st minute while Defender, Efe Ambrose, nodded in the second goal in the 84th minute.

According to Bulunga, we expected Oliseh to field Mikel Obi. We did not see him and it was a surprise to us.

“ Sunday Oliseh surprised us with his tactics and choice of players. The Nigerian midfield was generally slow in the first leg in Swaziland.

“ In today`s match, the Nigerian midfield was more mobile and fluid and they created more chances in the match’’, he said.

The Swazi coach said the Eagles midfield was more coordinated in the game `today.’

He also tipped the Eagles to go places in the World Cup qualifying matches.

Super Eagles coach, Sunday Oliseh, said the Swazi`s did not come out to attack.

“ We had to make changes during the break to open them and score’’, he said.

2face,Wande Coal, Basketmouth, others for comedy concert

…Helen Paul, Chigurl, Lil Kesh, several others billed for Naija FM Comedy Jam

Top shots in the Nigerian entertainment scene including 2Face Idibia, Wande Coal, Basketmouth, Bovi, Seyi Shay and many others have been announced as performers at the annual comedy concert, Naija FM Comedy Jam courtesy indigenous radio station, Naija 102.7 FM.

The 4th Edition of Naija FM Comedy Jam, which holds on November 21 at Muson Centre in Lagos, will feature recognition and celebration of comedy acts and personalities as well as the most outstanding comedy shows for the period under review.

Naija FM OAPs, Ushbebe, Sabina and Lady J will host the show. The awards segment will include various categories like; Upcoming Comedian of the year, Online Sensation of the year, Sitcom of the year, Comedy Actor of the year, Comedy Event of the year, Comedian of the year and Hall of Fame.

From modest beginnings at the turn of the century, the Nigerian Comedy industry has grown enormously over the past two decades to become Africa’s largest comedy market and an important global comedy hub with trailblazers like Basketmouth and Bovi taking Nigerian comedy and culture to a global audience.

Giving his thoughts on the event, General Manager Megalectrics, Deji Awokoya commented,

“The Naija FM comedy jam has become a signature platform through which we appreciate our radio listeners and this fourth edition promises to be the best yet. It is a celebration for our listeners, for the performers and for us as the Nigerian comedy scene continues to grow and break records beyond our most optimistic projections when starting out.”

The Radio station will also be giving one lucky winner a return ticket to Turkey. It will be recalled that last year, a lucky ticket holder emerged a winner of a government-approved plot of land in Lagos.

Naija FM Comedy Jam is supported by Peak Milk, St Remy, Turkish Airlines, Birdie Technologies, Hip TV, Black House Media and Nigezie.

$2.9b arms procurement: Buhari orders arrest of Dasuki, others

ABUJA – President Mohammdu Buhari Tueday night ordered for the arrest of the former National Security Adviser, NSA, Col. Sambo Dasuki over the misappropriation of monies for the procurement of arms.

The arrest order was also extended to several others who were found culpable in the saga.

Former national security adviser of ex-president Goodluck Jonathan, Sambo Dasuki .AFP PHOTO
The development was sequel to the release of the interim report by the presidential committee investigating arms procurement.

It will be recalled that the president on August 31 set up the 13 man committee to audit the procurement of arms and equipment in the Armed Forces and Defence sector from 2007 to date.

A statement endorsed by the Special Adviser to the president on media and publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, stated that the Dasuki expended $2,193,815,000.83 which is equalled to N643,817,955,885.18.

The figure excluded grants received by the police and the Department of Stzte security Services from the state governments.

The statement read thus: “As part of the findings, the committee has analyzed interventions from some organizations that provided funds to the Office of the National Security Adviser, Defence Headquarters, Army Headquarters Naval Headquarters and Nigerian Air Force  Headquarters,  both in local and foreign currencies.

“So far the total extra budgetary interventions articulated by the committee is Six Hundred and Forty Three Billion, Eight Hundred and Seventeen Million, Nine Hundred and Fifty Thousand, Eight Hundred and Eighty Five Hundred Naira and Eighteen Kobo (N643,817,955,885.18).

“The foreign currency component is to the tune of Two Billion, One Hundred and Ninety Three Million, Eight Hundred and Fifteen Thousand US Dollars and Eighty Three Cents ($2,193,815,000.83).

“These amounts exclude grants from the State Governments and funds collected by the DSS and Police. It was observed that in spite of this huge financial intervention, very little was expended to support defense procurement.

“The committee also observed that of 513 contracts awarded at $8,356,525,184.32; N2,189,265,724,404.55 and €54,000.00; Fifty Three (53) were failed contracts amounting to $2,378,939,066.27 and N13,729,342,329.87 respectively.

“Interestingly, it was noted that the amount of foreign currency spent on failed contracts was more than double the $1bn loan that the National Assembly approved for borrowing to fight the insurgency in the North East.

“The committee also discovered that payments to the tune of Three Billion, Eight Hundred and Fifty Million Naira (N3,850,000,000.00) were made to a single company by the former NSA without documented evidence of contractual agreements or fulfilment of tax obligations to the FGN.

“Further findings revealed that between March 2012 and March 2015, the erstwhile NSA, Lt Col MS Dasuki (rtd) awarded fictitious and phantom contracts to the tune of N2,219,188,609.50,  $1,671,742,613.58 and €9,905,477.00. The contracts which were said to be for the purchase of 4 Alpha Jets, 12 helicopters, bombs and ammunition were not executed and the equipment were never supplied to the Nigerian Air Force, neither are they in its inventory.

“Even more disturbing was the discovery that out of these figures, 2 companies, were awarded contracts to the tune of N350,000,000.00, $1,661,670,469.71 and €9,905,477.00 alone. This was without prejudice to the consistent non-performance of the companies in the previous contracts awarded.”

Adesina in the statement added that the former NSA also directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to transfer a certain amount to accounts domiciled in the United kingdoms and the United States.

“Additionally, it was discovered that the former NSA directed the Central Bank of Nigeria to transfer the sum of $132,050,486.97 and €9,905,473.55 to the accounts of Societe D’equipmente Internationaux in West Africa, United Kingdom and United States of America for un-ascertained purposes, without any contract documents to explain the transactions.

“The findings made so far are extremely worrying considering that the interventions were granted within the same period that our troops fighting the insurgency in the North East were in desperate need of platforms, military equipment and ammunition. Had the funds siphoned to these non performing companies been properly used for the purpose they were meant for, thousands of needless Nigerian deaths would have been avoided.

“Furthermore, the ridicule Nigeria has faced in the international community would have been avoided. It is worrisome and disappointing that those entrusted with the security of this great nation were busy using proxies to siphon the national treasury, while innocent lives were wasted daily.

“In light of these findings, President Muhammadu Buhari has directed that the relevant organizations arrest and bring to book, all individuals who have been found complicit in these illegal and fraudulent acts”, the statement submitted.

Breaking: Explosion rocks motor park in Yola

Suspected Boko Haram terrorists, on Tuesday night, hit Kasuwan Gwari along Jimeta bye-pass close to Tipper park, Jambutu, Yola, the Adamawa State capital with an explosion suspected to be from an improvised Explosive Device, IED.

An witness, said the explosion occurred close to the main vegetable market in the town, as traders were closing for the day and rushing home.

According to him, scores were feared killed.

The casualty figure, could however, not be determined immediately but officials of the Nigeria Police Force are said to have barricaded the area.

Details later…

Nigeria back to public debt crisis – NGO, stakeholders

Barely 10 years after Nigeria exited from the Paris and London Clubs debt crises, the nation is back to public debt crisis, a Non-Government Organisation – Social Development Integrated Centre – and stakeholders have said.

They spoke in Abuja on Tuesday at a forum titled Promoting Accountability in the Management of Public Debt convened by Social Action for the presentation of a report titled Whose Burden? Examining the Growing Public Debt Crisis in Nigeria.

They also urged President Muhammadu Buhari to halt all public borrowing until all public indebtedness was probed and uses determined.

The report said, “Nigeria’s total public debt stock stands at N12.12 trillion ($63.5 billion) as of June 30, 2015. Out of this amount, $10.3 billion constitute external debt. These figures represent the country’s highest debt profile since 2007.

“The growth in the volume of debt resulted from massive borrowing from both domestic and external sources by the states and federal governments as data obtained from the Debt Management Office reveal.”

It added, “The renewed spate of borrowing from external sources followed the reduction of Nigeria’s external debt from $36bn to about $3bn in 2006 through debt payment and buyback deals by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration.

“Poor management of public debts coupled with sharp practices by creditor institutions resulted in escalation of the country’s debt burden.”

The report wondered why the Federal Government should keep accumulating public debt through the domestic debt market when it has acknowledged that it was crowding the private sector from the debt market.

It said, “Our findings raise questions as to the necessity, desirability and capacity of government to manage Nigeria’s proposed loans and the rising debt stock. A pragmatic assessment requires that the government halt all borrowing (whether on concessionary terms or not) by all tiers of government until a process to verify the details of the loans – including what they were used for – is established.

“The National Assembly should pass a legislation placing a moratorium on all external borrowing by government at all tiers. During the period of the moratorium, there should be public audit of past loans taken by all tiers of government to ascertain their stock, conditions, purpose and usage.

“As both the Federal Ministry of Finance and the Debt Management Office have acknowledged that domestic borrowings are costly in terms of interest payment, and result in the crowding out of the private sector from the debt market, there should be reduction of borrowing by the government through the monthly issuance of FGN Bonds and the Nigerian Treasury Bills.”

It said effort should be made to reduce recurrent expenditures and wastage in governance. It also asked the Federal Government to put in place a framework to mitigate the effects and the burden of the country’s debt crisis on the poor.

Speaking at the event, Director of SDIC, Dr. Isaac Osuoka, said the drop in oil revenues and allocations from the federation account have exposed the irresponsibility of Nigerian governments both at the federal and state levels.

He added that the increased borrowing has not significantly impacted positively on service delivery or the state of infrastructure.

Other speakers at the event also condemned the rising debt level, saying it demanded urgent attention from both the executive and legislative arms of government.

Police Arraign 57 Rapists In Kano

The Kano State Police Command said it had arraigned 57 suspected rapists who defiled more than 57 minors in the last three weeks.

The Commissioner of Police in the state, Mr Muhammad Katsina, made the disclosure while briefing newsmen in Kano on Tuesday.

Katsina said the suspects were apprehended within the last three weeks across the state.

He said most of the victims were between the ages of two and seven.

He also said that some of the victims had already been infected with HIV/Aids, while others were still receiving treatment at the hospital as a result of various degrees of canal injuries.

“One of the suspects was found to have defiled 10 boys in an area in Kano metropolis, while some were found to have infected their victims with HIV/AIDS,“ he said.

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IPMAN Urges FG To Direct Private Fuel Depots To Sell Petrol At Approved Price

The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) has urged the Federal Government to direct private oil depots across the country to sell petrol to its members at regulated price of N77.66 per litre.

Alhaji Adamu Erena, Chairman of Minna branch of the association in Niger, told newsmen on Tuesday that such step would enable members of the association to sell the product at approved N87 per litre.

“We don’t have the intention of making our people suffer by selling petrol above N87 per litre approved by government; this is because we sell as we buy from the private depots.

“The truth is that NNPC cannot supply us with enough fuel so the private depots are cashing in on that to do what they want.
“When you go to the private depots to purchase PMS you are made to pay N77.66 to the company as approved by government.

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Fayose, Others Should Return To Elementary School’ – Information Minister, Lai Mohammed

Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed has suggested that Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti and others kicking against President Muhammadu Buhari’s Treasury Single Account policy should return to elementary because they have failed to understand the workings of the policy.

“Those behind the rumour that a single company made N25 billion from charging one per cent of TSA funds that passed through the company’s software, may need to return to elementary school to get some lessons in arithmetic,” he said in a statement issued by his Special Adviser on Media, Mr Segun Adeyemi, in Abuja, Nigeria’s capital.

“This is because in order for one per cent charge to fetch N25 billion, the funds accruing into the TSA must have reached N2.5 trillion.
Yet, the total amount of funds in the TSA to date is still much less than 2 trillion.

“More importantly, at the time the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) ordered that all monies that were erroneously charged as ‘revenue’ be returned to the TSA Account late last month, the TSA had less than N800 billion.

“It therefore beggars belief that anyone could attempt to mislead the public by raising a false alarm that a firm made N25 billion in TSA charges.”

Mohammed appealed to Nigerians not to allow those who had been funding their lavish lifestyles and encouraging corruption, to the detriment of ordinary citizens and without bothering about national interest.

He said the accusation was to sabotage the laudable TSA programme with contrived lies, dangerous innuendoes and misinformation.

It would be recalled that Fayose , in a statement on Sunday, declared that he would not be part of the meeting the Federal Government was to hold with state governors on the TSA because the policy itself was a fraud against Nigeria and its people as it is aimed at recouping money spent on the last general elections by the APC, as well as raise money for future elections, especially the Kogi and Bayelsa States gubernatorial poll.

Fayose also asked the Federal Government to expose those behind REMITA so that Nigerians would know those “through whom the All Progressives Congress, APC, is siphoning Nigerian money to fund Kogi and Bayelsa States governorship election.”

He added that System Specs the company that manages TSA made N25 billion.

FG’ll Explore Mix Of Energy Sources To Attain Power Needs – Osinbajo

In order to achieve the electricity needs of the country, the Buhari presidency is considering a mix of energy sources, according to the vice president, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo (SAN).

Besides working to improve power generation from the national grid, alternative sources of energy especially renewable energy are being actively pursued by the federal government, and the vice president has hinted that nuclear energy might also be in the mix.

In a statement issued yesterday by his senior special assistant on media and publicity, Laolu Akande, he said, “The long and short of it is that we definitely need a mix of energy choices because in the next decade, such a mix will be imperative.’’

In addition to the existing mix of hydro and thermal sources of power generation, Prof. Osinbajo disclosed that the federal government is equally working on the possibility of utilising other energy sources including the solar option.

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Governor Okorocha blames leakages for states’ poor funding

The Governor of Imo State, who is also the Chairman of Progressives Governors’ Forum, Chief Rochas Okoracha, has attributed leakages in government as one of the reasons why resources are not enough to service the states.

Also, the Governor of Zamfara State, who is also the Chairman of Nigeria Governors’ Forum, Alhaji Abdul’aziz Yari, said the solution to the declining revenue facing most states lies in the diversification of the nation’s economy.

Both governors spoke at the two-day Internally Generated Revenue workshop organised by the NGF in Abuja on Monday.

Okorocha called for the fusion of culture into the nation’s political and economy lives, adding that “democracy which we don’t understand has further deepened our problem.”

He said, “We have enough resources to run the states but there are so much leakages. There are cultural challenges, no nation can grow above its cultural resources. Culture has a lot to do in our politics and economy. Let us develop our land and be less oil- dependent.”

Speaking with journalists shortly after he made his presentation, Okorocha said, “While we are looking at our IGR, which has its challenges, we should also look inwards and start to develop the resources of our land, which is mainly agriculture.

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N5,000 unemployment benefit starts in 2016

The Federal Government has started the process of fulfilling its promise to pay N5,000 monthly allowance to 25 million unemployed youths in the country with 2016 as the take-off date, The PUNCH investigation has revealed.

The All Progressives Congress, which defeated the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party in the March 28 presidential election, had promised during its campaign that if elected to the central government, it would pay N5,000 monthly to 25 million jobless youths as well as introduce a free school feeding programme.

A motion to compel the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government to fulfil the campaign promise of paying the unemployed youths was recently rejected in the Senate.

Our correspondents learnt on Monday that the Federal Government had, however, commenced plans to start the payment of the allowance while it had also taken steps to capture the free school feeding programme in the 2016 budget.

It was further learnt that the government had saddled some officials with the task of ascertaining the number of the unemployed youths, who would benefit from the scheme.

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Non-viable Airports And Case For Privatisation

Concerns are growing over the state of Nigerian airports and the need for private sector involvement in the management of the airports for better service delivery, improved revenue generation, and increased contribution to the nation’s gross domestic product (GDP).

These concerns were further fuelled by a recent report which categorised the nation’s three most important airports as being among the 10 worst in the world.

From the N400 billion said to have been spent by the former minister of aviation, Stella Oduah, on airports remodelling, and another $1 billion being put into aviation infrastructural development by the Chinese Government to the N63 billion reportedly needed by the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN) to build another runway at the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport in the nation’s capital, concerns have been raised among various strata of the public and reactions have greeted the reports.

While addressing the Senate ad-hoc Committee on Aviation recently, the managing director of FAAN, Mr Saleh Dunoma, said that most of the facilities and equipment at the airports were obsolete as most of them were acquired over 30 years ago. Dunoma was responding to questions from senators on reasons for the rating of the Port Harcourt International Airport as the worst in the world by the Canadian SleepingInAirports.net.

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