By Davidson Iriekpen and Ejiofor Alike, 07.31.2009

Ghanaian Deputy Minister for Energy, Dr. Kwabena Donkor yesterday said if  Nigeria wants to tackle the problem of erratic power supply  it must show seriousness by separating electricity from partisan politics and make it a national priority.
Speaking in Lagos at the 5th annual lecture of Aelex law firm, with the theme: 'How Ghana Kept The Lights On,' the minister identified effective management of the power system and a strong political will to achieve the overall agenda of government as a major ingredient for improving power generation.
"Let me state that keeping the lights on would require an effective management of the power system and a strong political will to ensure adequate, reliable and cost-effective power supply to achieve the overall developmental agenda of the government.
"It would also require a determination of the body politic, devoid of partisanship, to see electrification as a development imperative and access as an economic right," he said.
Donkor explained that the major reason why Ghana had been able to keep the lights on was the fact that since 1990, every government in Ghana had been committed to the full implementation of power policy, even the military administration.
Disclosing that Ghana's current access to electricity is about 65 per cent of the population, Donkor said this makes the country one of the countries in sub-Saharan Africa with high rate of accessibility to electricity supply.
The Minister, however, admitted that Ghana had also faced power crisis, in 2006 and 2007, but that immediate measures were taken to mitigate the impact of the crisis on the economy and the people of the country.
He noted that at the inception of his country's National Electrification Scheme (NES), only 478 communities were connected to the national grid and accessibility was only about 20 per cent. He said well over 4000 towns are connected to the national grid now.
"Supply of adequate, reliable and economically priced power supply is vital for the socio-economic development of every nation. It has been observed that the GDP growth rate of a nation has a direct relationship with the growth in the per capita electricity consumption.
"The development of the various sectors of the economy, such as industry, agriculture, health, education, tourism, etc. depends heavily on reliable, adequate and economically priced power.
"The vision of the energy sector of Ghana is to provide adequate and reliable energy supplies to all sectors of the Ghanaian economy to support socio-economic development, poverty reduction and also for export," he said.
He advised that rural electrification must be taken seriously, adding that attempts by politicians to extend electricity to the rural areas must not be viewed with political coloration.
He also called for effective revenue generation from electricity and efficient energy conservation programme.
Donkor further revealed that it was important for government to carry out energy efficiency programmes in the energy supply system in order to defer the construction of power plants in the interim and get more mileage out of existing generating assets.
"Even, in the Ministry of Energy, we have had cause to have power outages when our account department is yet to pay for the prepaid meters," he said.
His words: "As part of the efforts at mitigating the impact of the recent power crisis in Ghana, the Ministry of Energy, in August 2007, launched the National Compact Fluorescent Exchange Programme, which was intended to reduce the national electricity demand by 200-220 MW.
He added that: “A total of about 6 million compact Fluorescent Lights were imported into the country by Government and distributed to government institutions and households free of charge.
Speaking to THISDAY on the reason for the choice of the topic for the lecture, the Managing Partner of the Aelex law firm, Mrs Funke Adekoya  (SAN),  said,  "This year we are talking about power to find out what Ghana did and how they did it and if there is any thing we can learn from them or can we pick anything from them.
"Every year we try to choose a topic that is of interest to the general public and also of interest to the legal profession. Everybody will agree with me that this year, everybody has been talking of the power situation."

Friday, July 31, 2009              

By Reuben Abati

THE current sectarian crisis in parts of Northern Nigeria highlights many of the fault lines in Nigerian politics; it further re-enacts a familiar Nigerian story about religious violence, poverty, ignorance and unemployment. Poverty and unemployment have combined to create a large army of angry youths in virtually every part of the country which can be employed for any kind of sinister task. For a small fee or even without paying a fee, you can recruit idle young men and women, give them arms and ammunition and ask them to do your bidding.

For as long as Nigeria remains underdeveloped and the leadership elite remains selfish, this pattern is bound to subsist. We must be worried about the increasing population of young men and women who are prepared to defy the state and sabotage it. The main promoters of the current crisis in the North are secondary school students, clerics, university drop outs and a former university lecturer.

Young people inflicting pain on the country and doing so brazenly are saying something much deeper about the Nigerian state: the impunity with which people readily take the laws into their hands, the proliferation of small arms, the inefficiency of the security agencies, and the near-absolute disregard for human lives. The Boko Haram fundamentalists insist that there must be the rule of the Sharia in every state of Nigeria and that Western education must be abolished because it is evil.

One of their leaders says he is opposed to the use of the Constitution to govern Nigeria. We seem to be paying the price for the failure of the Federal Government to deal decisively with the Sharia mischief under the Obasanjo administration. President Obasanjo had boasted then that the politics of Sharia would soon disappear. It hasn't. The fanatics argue that Western education should be forbidden because it is sinful, and that Western values are unacceptable. There is probably no point trying to respond to this obviously ignorant assertion. For as Moses Anegbode, the Assistant Inspector-General of police in charge of Zone 12, Bauchi pointed out, "They forbid anything western, yet their leader has an array of western materials in their position and their usage. Even the phone, SUVs, I wonder if they were made by him..."

Recurrent cases of violence in parts of Northern Nigeria and elsewhere in the country can be traced to the failure of governance. The Federal Government in the last few days has put up a rear-guard action to contain the insurgency which has spread across five states but the handling of the crisis is shoddy. The soldiers and the policemen involved in what is now known as Operation Flush II have been just as guilty as the insurgents. They have been shooting on sight rather indiscriminately, and since the fanatics do not wear a uniform there is no doubt that a lot of innocent persons have been caught in the crossfire. Human rights issues have been raised, most legitimately.

There has also been an excessive show of power. President Yar'Adua, before traveling out to Brazil had justified the state's response when he said that the security agencies are the ones who initiated the attack by launching "a pre-emptive" strike against the extremists after "tracking them for years". There is certainly nothing pre-emptive in their action. Where was the state when the insurgents set up a school where they trained and brainwashed young person to turn them against the state?

Members of the Boko Haram travelled across the Northern states to Maiduguri where they had planned to launch their holy war. Why didn't the security agencies pick this up, and nip it in the bud? The insurgents launched their attack in Maiduguri last Sunday, blocking the highway, and burning down houses, mosques and churches. They attacked the police headquarters, the police armoury, the Maiduguri prison, and burnt down police patrol vehicles. Within 24 hours, over 157 lives had been lost. It took a while before the Nigerian government responded. The police were caught unawares. The fanatics were so well organized they also struck in other cities: Kano and Bauchi; they represent a dangerous tendency that requires greater alertness on the part of the state. There was a failure of intelligence at play. And yet President Yar'Adua boasts as follows: "I want to assure that this administration will not tolerate any arms insurrection anywhere and in any part of the country. Anywhere any group of people begin to launch an insurrection and destruction against their fellow Nigerians they will be dealt with squarely and promptly."

This statement is probably directed, for effect, at the Niger Delta militants. It is possible to imagine that a similar "pre-emptive strike" may be on the cards in the Niger Delta after the expiration of the amnesty period. This may not be part of the President's calculation but were he to launch a fresh offensive in the Niger Delta next month, he could deflect charges of ethnic cleansing by claiming that he had ordered a similar operation in Northern Nigeria. A government that focuses on issues of governance and provides the leadership that the people need may not feel compelled to resort to such desperate tactics. In the North, Mohammed Yusuf and his band of fanatics, like El Zaky Zaky before them, have succeeded in further exposing the weakness of the Nigerian state and its institutions. For almost a week, the military and the police have been searching for the leader of the insurgency like a pin in a haystack. Pre-emptive strike indeed.

A big blow has been dealt again to the idea of national unity and cohesion. With incessant killings in Northern Nigeria, many Southerners in that part of the country have chosen to relocate elsewhere. Parents are reluctant to allow their children to participate in the NYSC scheme in the North. The gradual transformation of parts of the North into natural centres of violence has obvious implications for investment and development in that region. The religious elite in the North must take responsibility for the conversion of a religion of peace into a platform for less ennobling pursuits. The educated class in the north is also culpable. Apart from a few statements from the Northern Governors Forum, the JNI, the Sokoto Council of Ulamah and Imams, and the Sultan, they have all been very cautious in their responses. They are afraid, obviously. But more voices should be raised in condemnation of this primitive assault on the Nigerian public space.

Where is President Yar'Adua in all of this? He is, at the time of this writing, in Brazil sipping tea and exchanging diplomatic hugs. Meanwhile, Nigeria burns. The state visit to Brazil is so important to him he could not even ask that it should be postponed to enable him attend to the emergency at home. The Brazilians would have understood. But our president is in Brazil looking for partners. I hope he would have convincing explanations for those would-be partners about the slaughter of innocent women and children in Maiduguri, Yobe, Kano and Taraba. And hopefully, he will not feel embarrassed when his hosts draw his attention to sordid footages of the mayhem. What image of Nigeria would he sell to his hosts? The right place for President Yar'Adua to be, as a wave of violence spreads across Northern Nigeria, and as many as 500 lives have reportedly been lost, is home, not abroad. Leadership is about responsibility and care. Providing a justification for his trip, President Yar'Adua had insisted that he was scheduled to travel to Brazil last year, but the trip was aborted. Now, he cannot afford not to honour a second invitation!

In addition to the crisis in the Northern states, the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU has been on strike for a month. There is disquiet in the Niger Delta with the militants, the Governors and ordinary people protesting the proposed siting of a Petroleum University in Kaduna State. Before jetting off to Brazil, President Yar'Adua said the situation at home is "completely under control". I don't think so. Everything seems to be out of control around here.

When the President returns, there are specific issues that have gone out of control that he will need to address: the architects of the violence must be hunted down and made to face the full wrath of the law, the displaced persons in all the states must be assisted, and every effort should be made to begin a study of the aims and methods of religious fundamentalists and common criminals who seem to be thriving so much in part because the Nigerian state has failed to develop a memory bank for responding to their impunity.

I’ll name Kwara next gov by December - Olusola Saraki

Yemisi Aofolaju and Bankole Makinde, Abuja - 27.07.2009

GODFATHER of Kwara State politics, Dr. Olusola Saraki, has disclosed that he would name the next governor of Kwara State in December, 2009.

He, however, added that he would only do so after due consultation with God in Saudi Arabia during this year’s Umrah in the Holy City. But, he was cleverly evasive on whether he would name his daughter, Senator Gbemisola Saraki-Fowora, to succeed his elder brother, Dr. Bukola Saraki, for the governorship seat as being speculated in very many quarters.

The septuagenarian elder statesman who turned 76 two months ago, declared this to a select group of journalists in his Abuja home, recently. He said that the bond between him and the people of Kwara State could be likened to that between the Shakespearean Romeo and Juliet, such that if he presented any capable person as governorship candidate of Kwara State under the banner of any political party in the state, the people would vote for such a person.

Dr. Saraki, who declared that he was proud of the achievements of his son, Dr. Saraki and would have wished him to continue in office, if not for the constitutional provision that limited his term to eight years, added that he loved Senator Saraki-Fowora very dearly too as she is the “girl after my heart.”

“And if I may tell you, I cried the day the people of Kwara State insisted that Bukola must be governor because all my belongings, my businesses and everything, were in his possession and I lamented that if they took this boy away from me now, who would look after me?

“But he became governor and I thank God. See what he has done. He has made me proud. What I was fighting for and what I was praying for people to do for me in Kwara State, he has done and I hope that the next governor would also be guided by God like Bukola.”

From Hammed Shittu in Ilorin, 07.24.2009

Delta Students Protest Relocation of Petroleum Varsity

•Militant groups reject amnesty
From Ahamefula Ogbu in Port Harcourt and Omon-Julius Onabu in Warri, 07.25.2009

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Barely 24 hours after South-South governors threatened to pull out of the amnesty arrangement for militants, Delta State students yesterday issued a 7-day ultimatum to the federal government to rescind its planned relocation of the proposed University of Petroleum from Effurun, near Warri, Delta State to Kaduna.
Also yesterday, the self-styled umbrella body of militants in the region - the Joint Revolutionary Council - indicated it was opting out of the amnesty programme.
The JRC said its decision was influenced by their loss of confidence in President Umaru Yar’Adua’s ability to prosecute any meaningful agenda on developing the Niger Delta and the offer of amnesty, which they predicted, would fail.
The JRC in a statement by its spokesperson, Cynthia Whyte also condemned the planned relocation of the proposed university to Kaduna and reversal of the upgrading of the Petroleum Training Institute, Efurun, Delta State.
The JRC therefore, said it was no longer interested in any overture from the federal government for peace “as the judgment of the President so far has proved that nothing good can come out of such a venture.”
The JRC’s statement reads further: “On behalf of the JRC comprising alliance units of the Movement for the Emancipation of the Niger Delta, The Reformed Niger Delta People's Volunteer Force and The Martyrs Brigade, we wish to declare our complete loss of faith in the Musa Yar'Adua’s Agenda for the Niger Delta.
“We wish to condemn emphatically, the decision to reverse the upgrading of the Petroleum Training Institute, Effurun. This decision is evil, wicked, condemnable and a representation of the demented quality of leadership over the contraption called Nigeria.
“The decision goes a long way to prove without any iota of doubt that Yar'Adua and Rilwanu Lukman are not committed to the plight of the people of the Niger Delta.”
The JRC condemned the alleged approval of N14.5 billion to set up the proposed petroleum university in Kaduna, “while the people of the Niger Delta region are suffering.”
“These people are not ready for peace in the Niger Delta and therefore we will not give them peace. At the appointed time, we will attack the Petroleum College in Kaduna. Kaduna is home to the Nigerian Defence Academy (NDA), it is also home to the elitist Nigerian College for Aviation and many others. How many cities in the oil rich Niger Delta has a college of aviation? How many of the oil producing communities in the Niger Delta even know what a College of Aviation looks like?
The militants claimed that the move to site the Petroleum University in Kaduna was an unrepentant move by what it called the “Northern cabal to perpetually put the Niger Delta region down and ensure that they represent a symbol of poverty and lack.”
JRC continued: “Yar'Adua will fail on the Niger Delta. He has surrounded himself with some of the worst advisers from the Niger Delta and he would not go far. His amnesty package  reminds us of a failing father who has lost control over his family”, they declared.
The Delta State students under the aegis of National Association of Delta State Students also demanded a written apology from Lukman over what the students called “highly inflammatory and derogatory remarks by the minister” on the controversial relocation issue.  
They warned political and other leaders from the region against “all forms of blackmail in this new struggle against an obvious injustice to Delta State people and Niger-Delta,” adding, “Mr. President would not dare the relocation proposition if some leaders from the region had not been selfish and betrayed the people in many ways in the past.  
Similarly, several Niger-Delta youth groups, community leaders and civil societies have joined the fray in the demand for a rescinding of the decision, saying the President was sending wrong signal about his commitment to the peace process in the region.  
Only on Thursday, governors of the geo-political zone expressed their readiness to withdraw their hitherto overwhelming support for the federal government particularly on the amnesty gesture of peace.  
At the meeting hosted by Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan in Asaba, Delta State, which was chaired by the Cross River State Governor, Senator Liyel Imoke, the governors described the proposition under the Petroleum Industry Bill insulting and a slap in the face of local communities in the oil producing states.  
The students, who converged in their thousands yesterday in Warri and adjoining Effurun to launch a peaceful protest round the oil-city, said that the relocation plan by the government “has placed a big question mark on the sincerity of Yar’Adua on the all-important issue of amnesty to the freedom fighters in the Niger-Delta.”  
Some of the protesting students – who were drawn from tertiary institutions all over the country – were seen as early as 7.30 am yesterday driving round major streets in Warri, Effurun and Ekpan as well as adjoining areas in Okpe and Udu local government areas of the state wielding placards.  
They later barricaded the ever-busy Effurun Roundabout, where strategic roads like the Warri-Ughelli-PortHarcourt Road, the Nigerian Ports Authority Expressway and the Warri-Sapele-Benin Expressway converge. 
Although, the action of the students resulted in heavy traffic hold-ups for several hours, with the lines of vehicles stretching for several kilometres, the students received open approval from many commuters and passers-by.
The National President of the Delta State students, Mr. Benedict Oboide, while addressing journalists at the Effurun Roundabout City Park Garden, said the students would have no option “than to mobilize against the provocative plan of the federal government, if at the end of this one week ultimatum, it fails to do the right thing by rescinding the decision take the petroleum university to Kaduna.”
“At a time like this, when we are talking of getting more support for the presidential amnesty, it is scandalous and most unfortunate that Yar’Adua would accept this gross insensitivity to the feelings of Deltans.”
He lamented that the President, rather than implement the upgrading plan initiated by former president Obasanjo, “has abandoned the PTI students to study under unacceptable condition.” 
The students were joined by representatives of the Niger-Delta Youth Movement comprising the nine states of the region, with an officer and spokesman of the group giving solidarity messages.
The Niger-Delta Elders Forum, which includes opinion leaders like Chief Edwin Clark, several former civilian governors, retired army generals, national and state legislators, traditional and religious leaders has equally voiced its strong opinion against the relocation of the petroleum university proposed for Effurun-Warri by the Olusegun Obasanjo government. 
The region’s elders and leaders incidentally met two weeks ago at the PTI Effurun, where they issued a communiqué backing the amnesty reprieve declared for militants on June 25, 2009 by Yar’Adua.

By Yemi Adebowale, 07.25.2009

United States Secretary of State and former First Lady, Hillary Clinton is set for a visit to Nigeria from August 10 to 12.
Sources said a letter from the US State Department notifying the Nigerian government of Hillary’s visit has been received at the Foreign Affairs Ministry.
The source further confirmed that the US ambassador to Nigeria, Robin Rene'e Sanders and Nigeria’s Foreign Affairs minister, Ojo Maduekwe met yesterday in Abuja to kick off arrangement for the visit.
During the visit, Hillary is expected to hold discussion with President Umaru Yar’Adua on a number of issues affecting both countries.
Because Nigeria is key to the US as it continues to look beyond the strife-torn Middle-East for its energy needs, sources said the Niger Delta crisis is expected to top the agenda of Hillary’s meeting with Yar’Adua.
US’s crude oil import from Nigeria is on the upswing with Nigeria recording a 16.2 per cent rise in its crude export to the U.S. last year.
“The US government is keen about a speedy resolution of the Niger Delta crisis because Nigeria is a key source of crude oil for the US. This is why it is top of the agenda,” a foreign ministry source told THISDAY last night.
Two other issues likely to dominate discussion during Hillary’s meeting with Yar’Adua are corruption and electoral reforms in the country.
Hillary, the 67th United States Secretary of State, was a Senator for New York from 2001 to 2009. That election marked the first time an American First Lady had run for public office; Clinton was also the first female senator to represent New York
In the Senate, she initially supported the George W. Bush administration on some foreign policy issues, which included voting for the Iraq War Resolution.
She subsequently opposed the administration on its conduct of the war in Iraq, and opposed it on most domestic issues. She was re-elected to the Senate by a wide margin in 2006.
As the wife of Bill Clinton, the 42nd President of the United States, she was the First Lady of the United States from 1993 to 2001.
Her time as First Lady drew a polarised response from the American public. She became the only First Lady to be subpoenaed, testifying before a federal grand jury as a consequence of the Whitewater controversy in 1996.
She was never charged with any wrongdoing in this or any of the several other investigations during her husband's administration.
The state of her marriage to Bill Clinton was the subject of considerable public discussion following the Lewinsky scandal in 1998.
She was a leading candidate for the Democratic presidential nomination in the 2008 election. In the nomination race, Clinton won more primaries and delegates than any other female candidate in American history, but she narrowly lost to Barack Obama.
As Obama's Secretary of State, Clinton is the first former First Lady to serve in a president's cabinet.
A native of Illinois, Hillary first attracted national attention in 1969 for her remarks as the first student to deliver the commencement address at Wellesley College. 

Friday, July 24, 2009              

South South govs battle FG, threatens to dump amnesty deal

• Query Petroleum Bill, relocation of petroleum varsity

• Nigeria may cut oil production, says Rilwanu Lukman
  From John-Abba Ogbodo, (Abuja), Taiwo Hassan and Sulaimon Salau (Lagos)

  A crack may have broken the overt cordial relationship between the states of the South South zone and the Federal Government of Nigeria. Words from the governors of the zone currently meeting in Asaba, Delta State capital, indicated last night they would shun the Federal Government's amnesty deal for militants. The helmsmen, according to a statement, late last night by Delta State Commissioner for Information, Mr. Oma Djebah, hinged their decision on cardinal points relating to the oil industry bill, the relocation of the Warri Petroleum University to Kaduna and alleged anti South-South disposition of the nation's petroleum minister, Rilwanu Lukman. The brief statement read: "The governors of South South may pull out of amnesty programme for:-

   

• proposed Petroleum Industries Bill which is anti communities and is a slap on the oil producing areas;

   

• movement of the University of Petroleum from Effurun to Kaduna;

   

• no definite post-amnesty plan for the region; and

   

• anti South-South posture of petroleum minister."

  Meanwhile, a strong indication emerged yesterday that Nigeria may cut down its quantity of oil production amid fears of a looming fuel scarcity caused by aggrieved tanker drivers.

  In fact, Petroleum Resources Minister, Dr. Rilwanu Lukman, said that it would profit the nation to preserve the oil reserve instead of producing it at unprofitable cost.

  The minister who made the statement when the House of Representatives committee on gas resources led by its chairman, Igo Aguma, visited the headquarters of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on oversight function, also called for a new fiscal regime that would yield more revenue for the oil sector.

  Addressing the lawmakers, the minister lamented over-dependence on the sector by Nigeria and advocated diversification of the economy so as to reverse the situation. He also drew the attention of the lawmakers to the development in the international market which had affected the price of oil and said instead of wasting the product at cheap prices almost lower than the cost of production, it was better to leave it intact for future generation of Nigerians.

  He said the United States of America (USA) which is one of Nigeria's largest oil markets had expressed intention to go for alternative to oil and that would further affect the market, therefore, it was time for the country to diversify into agriculture and other sources of income. He appealed to the National Assembly to consider some legislation in this regard.

  "The situation in the oil market has become highly unpredictable. It is better to keep the oil in the ground for future Nigerians. The U.S. is trying to run away from carbon and they are talking of alternative sources. Our hope is that through legislation, we should be able to diversify the base of our economy, it is a responsibility you have to discharge. We have to diversify to agriculture, manufacturing, tourism and others," he said.

  On the financial strait in the ministry and inability to execute some crucial projects required in some areas such as at NNPC, the minister said the ministry was contemplating a new fiscal regime that might increase some fees being paid by oil companies.

  He specifically mentioned Petroleum Profit Tax (PPT) and royalties as possible areas that would be affected. The essence of increase in the taxes, according to the minister, was to earn more income for the smooth operations of the oil industry.

  "We should introduce new fiscal regime for the oil companies to pay sufficient royalties and Petroleum Profit Tax so as to maximise income from the oil sector and this will go a long way to assist the industry," he said.

  Lukman expressed concern over the violence in the Niger Delta and its negative consequences on oil production and appealed to the National Assembly to do something urgent to address the matter.

  Aguma faulted the ministry over the implementation of the 2009 budget. Quoting copiously from the Public Procurement Act, the chairman pointed out that the Act specifies a maximum of two months for all processes of executing projects to be concluded after the passage of the budget. He maintained that the 2009 budget was passed in March this year and the period allowed by the Act had elapsed and therefore, the minister had no option than to comply, failing which the House would invoke the penalty provided by the Act.

  "We are irked that the ministry of petroleum has not met the time lines provided by the Public Procurement Act. The procurement planning should be two weeks as provided by the Act and from advertising to Certificate of no Objection should all be within two months with a grace period of two weeks if there are some areas of clarification. The budget was passed in March this year and up till now, decisions are not being taken in that regard. It is unfortunate," he remarked.

  Aguma said the committee was on the oversight function to insist that the Permanent Secretary who is recognised by the Act as the implementing officer must ensure that everything was put together for the projects to be implemented immediately. He also noted that part of the reason for the delay was that the ministry was giving preferential treatment to some contractors and warned that such action could eschew disaffection.

  "The committee demands immediate forwarding of all items approved in the budget to Bureau of Public Procurement and if observe lapses again, we will not hesitate to invoke the relevant laws of the land by passing a vote of no confidence on the officer concerned," he added.

  The minister assured that steps would be taken to correct the situation.

  The House of Representatives recently passed a motion urging President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua to implement the 2009 budget as passed by the National Assembly or face impeachment. The chamber also asked all standing committees to take oversight functions more seriously to ensure strict compliance with the appropriation law.

  There are also indications that another round of fuel scarcity may soon hit the nation, as Petroleum Tankers Drivers (PTD) yesterday halted lifting of the product from depots.

  The decision, The Guardian learnt, was to protest the "illegal arrest" of some tankers and detention of two members of the association by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

  Speaking with The Guardian in a telephone interview, the executive secretary of PTD, Lagos zone Alhaji Tokunboh Korodo, confirmed that fuel lifting had been suspended, stressing that the members have resolved not to resume until the issue was resolved.

  He explained: "The alleged persons lifted fuel at Folawiyo Depot in Apapa late Wednesday night, because the company's officials were not around to issue waybills, the drivers had to find a parking space, pending when the document would be available.

  "They decided to move down to Ogere in Ogun State for a better parking lodge while the men of the Civil Defence accosted them and arrested the tankers with their motor boys for not having due documents to convey products.

  "Immediately we heard, we secured the waybill, which was taken to them so as to get them released, but the Civil Defence official was adamant and insisted on taking them to EFCC. Now the boys have been detained in the custody of EFCC, which has also insisted on conducting further investigations on the matter.

  "Irked by this, their colleagues have resolved to withdraw services until the issue is resolved. As I am talking to you, no single drop of fuel is being lifted by any tanker driver whatsoever."

From Onwuka Nzeshi in Abuja, 07.24.2009

The House of Represen-tatives yesterday urged President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua to order an immediate halt to further foreign loans until the circumstances leading to Nigeria’s current debt burden of $3.6 billion was made clear to the nation.
The House also mandated its Joint Committee on Justice, Aids, Loans and Debt Management to, as a matter of urgency, investigate under what platform and approval these foreign loans had been sought, processed, drawn, utilised and their relevance to the needs of Nigerians.
These were part of resolutions that emanated from a motion brought to the floor on Nigeria’s feared return to a debtor nation.
The Joint Committee has also been mandated to investigate and ascertain the actual debt owed by the country since 2007 and determine the legality of the loans.
Chairman House Committee on Air Force, Hon. John Halims Agoda, who sponsored the motion, acknowledged that Nigeria’s exit from the burden of foreign debt a few years ago was made possible through the concerted efforts of the Federal Government, the National Ass-embly and some non-governmental organisations (NGOs). 
Agoda (PDP Delta), however, expressed worries that soon after that exit, Nigeria’s debt burden had suddenly risen to the tune of $3.6 billion and the funds were being deployed to finance projects of questionable relevance to the populace.
He lamented that the process of securing these loans had not only been shrouded in secrecy but the constitutional imperative that requires the Executive to brief and seek the consent  of the National Assembly before sourcing, drawing and utilising  foreign loans  under whatever description  had been breached.
According to him, the Debt Management Act states that when the Executive seeks to borrow money for whatever reason, it should seek the consent of the National Assembly.
The emerging scenario, Agoda said, could worsen the plight of Nigerians who have had to make sacrifices and bear the pains of hunger and underdevelopment, underscored by collapsing and deteriorating public infrastructure in virtually every sector of the economy.
He took exception to media reports that the country secured about $100 million loan to combat malaria, arguing that if loans must be taken, they must be taken following due process and funds deployed in productive sectors that could improve the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).
“The motion before us calls on all of us to see this issue as highly emotive. The issue classifies our nation as a country of contrast distinctions. Are we experiencing policy reversal or policy summersault or have we forgotten our past? By October, Nigeria will be 49. Are we saying that at this stage of our nationhood we should be taking loan to combat malaria? I think that if we must take loans it should be for the productive sectors that could add to our gross domestic product,” he said.
Deputy Chairman, House Committee on Loans and Debt Management, Hon. Friday Itulah (PDP Edo), said what the Federal Government had been doing in respect of foreign loans was a gross violation of the laws of the land. 
According to Itulah, the Debt Management Act states that when the Executive seeks to borrow money for whatever reason, it should seek the consent of the National Assembly.
Also supporting the motion, Hon. Samson Osagie (PDP Edo) said the procurement of foreign loans for frivolous reasons and questionable programmes was a direct result of misplacement of priorities.
He lamented that the loans had neither translated to better healthcare facilities nor better road infrastructure in the country, adding that the funds were most likely to be squandered while the projects and programmes for which they were supposedly meant to improve would remain in their deplorable states.
The House unanimously adopted all the prayers of the motion including that the Joint Committee on Justice, Aids, Loans and Debt Management and urged it to conclude its investigations on the debt profile and report back to the House within two weeks.
The House of Represen-tatives had on Wednesday raised an alarm over Nigeria’s rising debt profile, warning that the country was drifting back into debt enslavement in the hands of international financial institutions.
The alarm followed media reports in which the Minister of Finance, Dr. Mansur Muhtar, was said to have put the country’s current portfolio at $3.6 billion.
A member of the House Committee on Debt Manage-ment, Hon. Chukwuma Umeoji, who addressed newsmen on the issue, lamented that whereas the Debt Management Office (DMO) painstakingly extricated Nigeria from the grip of international financial institutions, events in recent times had shown that the country had plunged head on into the debt  trap set by  developed nations to keep underdeveloped countries perpetually poor.
He warned that if Nigeria continued on the current trend, the country could become one of the most indebted nations in the world by 2020.
The present generation  of Nigerians, Umeoji said,  appears bent on  squandering  the  available resources  and desperately  mortgaging  the future  of the country  through theses loans  at this period of global economic meltdown.
He alleged that there appears to be more efforts towards negotiating foreign loans due to the selfish interests of those seeking the loans on behalf of government than in paying local debts owed local contractors. According to him, the only way to stimulate the domestic economy if for the Federal Government to release the funds provided in the budget for domestic debt servicing as this will inject liquidity into the system and improve retail economic activities. He warned that Nigerian government should resist the current temptation to be dragged into another round of economic slavery by advanced countries, adding that only prudent management of resources and strict implementation of the budget could save the Nigerian economy.
“Mortgaging the future generation of Nigerians through loans at this period of global economic meltdown is wrong in view of the revenue profile of the nation. What we derive from oil even in the face of the Niger Delta crisis is adequate to move Nigeria forward because it is far above the budget benchmark. There is no argument advanced that will justify this type of debt profile. Nigeria should avoid loans especially at this period of global recession. There is this tendency to lend as a way of helping developing economies. Objectively speaking, loans will perpetually mortgage our economy to the dictates of external forces. The Nigerian economy will never grow if we continue to move in a vicious cycle from a debtor nation to free nation and back to a debtor nation.
“It is difficult to understand the gain in borrowing to finance projects which were provided for in the budget of ministries.  The loans at the end of the day will end up being invested in the economies of the countries controlling the lending financial institutions through the importation of equipment, administrative and sundry expenses abroad,” Umeoji said.

•Say Lukman is anti-Niger Delta
From Victor Efeizomor in Asaba, 07.24.2009

South-South governors have threatened to pull out of the amnesty arrangement for militants except certain issues are addressed quickly by the Federal Government.
Arising from the follow-up meeting to the South-South Economic Summit held earlier in the year in Calabar, Cross River State, the governors, under the aegis of South-South Governors’ Forum, said in Asaba, Delta State, early this morning that the Petroleum Industry Bill, which seeks to reform the oil sector, was “a slap in the face of the local communities”.
The governors, under the chairmanship of Governor Liyel Imoke of Cross River State, also kicked against the reported movement of the proposed University of Petroleum from Effurun, Delta State, to Kaduna State, while accusing the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Dr. Rilwanu Lukman – who incidentally hails from Kaduna State – as being anti-South-South.
The third point of departure, according to the governors, is that the Federal Government does not have any concrete post-amnesty plan on the ground.
President Umaru Musa Yar’Adua, in an attempt to douse the Niger Delta crisis and bring an end to militant activities which have brought the all-important oil industry to its knees, had offered amnesty to the militants.
However, the amnesty plan, which had the backing of the governors from the South-South geo-political zone, is now in jeopardy with the latest threat from the governors.
The petroleum industry bill, which has also been opposed by the oil majors and some other stakeholders in the industry, is said not to be in favour of the host communities, considering the need to provide for local content and promote a sense of ownership among the communities.
The original bill gave five per cent of the royalty to the community that produces the oil and 25 per cent to the states where the oil is produced.
It was however withdrawn and a second bill was introduced in which the host communities would not be entitled to any interest if passed.
The meeting was also angry the proposed Petroleum University would be located in Kaduna State, arguing that it was against the interest of the Niger Delta.
The university, which is estimated to cost N14 billion, will train high-level manpower, whereas the Petroleum Training Institute (PTI) in Effurun trains mainly low-level manpower.
It had been speculated that PTI would be upgraded to university level, but Lukman has denied the claim, saying the institute would be retained to train low-level manpower while the degree-awarding institute would be sited in Kaduna.
He specifically denied reports that the Federal Government promised to convert the PTI to a university, saying that doing so would deny the oil sector the needed middle-level manpower.

Friday, July 24, 2009              

By Babatola Adeyemi

NIGERIA'S harsh economic clime has forced 820 manufacturing firms out of business in the last eight years, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) has said.

A breakdown of this figure shows that an average of 100 firms were shut down yearly due to operational constraints between 2000 and 2008.

MAN President, Alhaji Bashir Borodo, who spoke on the dwindling fortunes of the real sector at the association's 37th yearly general meeting, lamented that the situation was made worse by the Federal Government's failure to heed the body's plea for a reduction in the price of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), a key input in the production chain.

The Federal Government has however assured MAN that the plight of its members was being addressed.

Minister of Commerce and Industry, Chief Achike Udenwa, who represented President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua at the event, said that government was aware of the state of the sector, adding that the problems faced by the manufacturing concerns were being handled by the appropriate agencies.

Yar'Adua said besides the December 2009 deadline to generate 6,000 megawatts, the government was vigorously pursuing ongoing Independent Power Projects (IPPs).

He said government would establish more development funds to stimulate growth in the industrial sector.

"Government is pursuing the achievement of single-digit interest rates and long-term funding to meet the needs of sector operators," the President said.

He challenged the manufacturers to exploit the nation's abundant resources to increase local production, and also embrace the government's industrial cluster initiative.

The President urged the manufacturers to increase their capacity so as to ensure the success of his administration's renewed determination to implement its buy made in Nigeria goods policy.

Borodo said the worrisome development of industrial firms relocating from Nigeria to neighbouring West African countries and other issues must be addressed by the government.

A major cause of the pitiable state of the industrial sector, according to the MAN boss, is the inadequate supply of energy for manufacturing operations.

"The lesson of the past few years have shown that if local manufacturers are to survive in a globalised world, the provision of energy cannot be compromised, particularly in our peculiar situation where the upgrading of energy production had suffered almost 30 years of neglect," he said.

While commending the government for its commitment to the 6,000 megawatts ambition, Borodo said the need for the restoration of peace in the Niger Delta to meet the target could not be over-emphasised.

He, however, decried the government's failure to fulfil its promise to the association to reduce the price of Automotive Gas Oil (AGO) and the granting of permission to MAN to partner with Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) to import Low Pour Fuel Oil (LPFO) directly to cut cost.

"The high cost of AGO and LPFO remains a major burden in our economy where industrial production is dependent on self-generation of power and heavy reliance on road haulage for raw materials and finished goods. In this instance, both are necessities for trailers and trucks in the logistics value chain as well as for industrial machines and boilers," Borodo said.

He further decried the influence of those he described as "political entrepreneurs, predators and rent seekers on policy initiatives in the country with attendant negative impacts on the industrial sector.

"Their tactics are to influence government policy to allow unrestricted imports through waivers. Alternatively, they create strong cartels for smuggling under the watchful eyes of government agencies," he said.