Abia State Governor, Dr. Alex Otti has approved the constitution of A Security Advisory Council with the appointment of four retired Generals and three others into the Council.
In a similar vein, Abia Government has constituted the state Security Trust Fund with Governor Otti appointing another seven persons to man the trust fund.
A release by the Governor’s Chief Press Secretary (CPS), Kazie Uko indicated that
Lt. Gen. Azubuike Onyeabo Ihejirika (Rtd), former Chief of Army Staff was appointed Chairman of the Council.
DIG Uche Ivy Okoronkwo (Rtd), was appointed the Vice Chairman, while Mr. Ray Nkemdirim, Maj. Gen. Abel Obi Umahi (Rtd); AVM Emmanuel Chukwu (Rtd); Maj. Gen. J.O. Nwaogbo (Rtd), were appointed as members, and Navy Commodore Macdonald Ubah (Rtd), was announced as Secretary.
It was gathered that members of the Council who had served at the highest echelon of their professional callings, would advise government on how to deal with security issues facing the state.
Equally, Government has created a Security Trust Fund and appointed seven persons to run it.
Those on the list include Chief Stanley Obiamarije, Chairman; Owelle Greg Okafor, Mrs. Ngozi Ekeoma, Chief Johnson Chukwu, Mrs. Josephine Nweze, Mrs. Nkechi Obi and Mr. Bank-Anthony Okoroafor as members.
Members of the trust fund are entrusted with the sourcing and managing security funds for the state.
The appointments of members of both bodies take immediate effect.
Pro-Biafran group, Biafra De Facto Customary Government (BDFCG) has vehemently condemned the recent attack by Fulani herdsmen on the peaceful community of Nimbo in Uzo Uwani LGA of Enugu State.
The group said “This egregious act of violence resulting in the loss of innocent lives is utterly unacceptable and will not be tolerated”.
Reacting to the killing in a statement issued by its Spokesperson Prosper Odinga, BDFCG reminded the public that it had, “in a statement addressing this same event on the issue of open grazing and Fulani Terrorism in Enugu state, Biafraland, on Sunday, February 18, 2024, titled “BDFCG Applauds Governor Peter Mbah’s Outstanding Efforts To Curb Open Grazing Menace In Biafraland,” which followed our press statement dated September 12, 2023, titled “Open Grazing Belongs To 16th Century: Must Be Stopped In Biafraland,” wherein we highlighted the alarming rise of kidnappings and property destruction by Fulani herdsmen”.
It said it’s high time youths are mobilized “to comb our forests and force these reckless marauders out of our land”, adding that the measure “is the only way we have to immediately put an end to this archaic uncivilized practice that continues to bring destruction and terror upon our people”.
BDFCG called on His Excellency, Gov. Peter Mbah of Enugu state, and by extension, all the Governors in Biafraland, to take decisive action and immediately enforce anti-open grazing Laws throughout Biafraland.
“This includes the full force of the law and the mobilization of security forces to apprehend the perpetrators of this heinous crime. Justice must be served, and those responsible will be held accountable for their actions”, it said.
The statement reads in part:
“We stand in solidarity with the people of Nimbo during this challenging time and offer our deepest condolences to the families of the victims. No community should have to endure such senseless brutality, and we share in their grief and outrage.
The BDFCG insists that open grazing must end immediately. The safety and security of our people are paramount, and it is the duty of the government to guarantee the protection of its citizens. We will not allow our hospitality to be taken for granted, and those who reside within our communities must abide by the rules and laws of our land.
Furthermore, we commend Governor Mbah for his prompt response and his commitment to addressing the needs of the Nimbo community. We support his efforts to integrate Nimbo into government representation and to strengthen local security resources, including the Nimbo Neighborhood Watch and Forest Guards.
The BDFCG will continue to fight for the rights and safety of our people, and we will work tirelessly to ensure that incidents like this never happen again.
The Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC), have appealed to the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) and Power Sector operators, to reverse the increase in electricity tariff within one week.
President of the unions, Mr Joe Ajaero and Mr Fetus Osifo made the call on Wednesday in a joint speech to mark the 2024 Workers’ Day in Abuja.
The duo expressed dissatisfaction over epileptic power situation in the country which is affecting economic growth of the country.According to them, it’s imperative that any nation incapable of effectively and efficiently managing its energy resources, faces certain ruin.
“One of the pivotal factors constraining our nation is our glaring incompetence in managing this sector for the collective welfare of our citizens.
“Power, regardless of its source, remains paramount in Kickstarting any economy, while oil and gas are indispensable for robust energy success in every country. “
They said it was absolutely critical for the government to collaborate with the people to establish frameworks that ensure energy works for all Nigerian.
According to the duo, the plight of the power sector remains unchanged over a decade after privatisation of the sector.
“The reasons are glaringly evident. As long as those who sold the companies remain the buyers, Nigerians will continue to face formidable challenges in the power sector.
The Nigeria Labour Congress said the NLC and the trade Union Congress (TUC) have proposed N615,000 as the minimum wage for a Nigerian worker, ahead of negotiations with the federal government.
The Public Relations Officer of the NLC in Lagos State, Ismail Adejumo stated this in an interview with Arise Television on Wednesday.
He said, “From the feelers we’re getting, we believe strongly that the government is very passionate and considers all the indices that are on ground, because what we proposed now both NLC and TUC, is 615,000;
“…as a benchmark to survive as a worker in Nigeria-to pay for rent that is not affordable, you have to pay for high cost of goods and services, you have to take care of your children school fees, you have to do transportation to and fro offices.”
The NLC PRO commended the federal government’s approval of a 25%-35% pay raise for civil servants and 28% raise for pensioners in celebration of Workers’ Day.
He said, “We are most happy despite all the economic hardships going on in this country at the moment. We are feeling the brunt of the fuel scarcity and so many other economic situations that has crippled the life of an average worker, because as we speak now;
“…I must confess to you we are happy with this announcement, though that is not the minimum wage it is just an adjustment to reduce the disparity in the categories of salary scale that we have in Nigeria.
“That of the medical and tertiary institutions have been resolved, and that is why they are not included. This one is the worst of all the category of the salary scale will have.
“So people are living in penury, people’s purchasing power have been very very low, in fact most workers are on life support. I must confess to you that most category of workers in the public service are living on very irredeemable loans, and that is the worst of the matter at the moment.”
“As a worker you cannot be proud of it the sense living so this is very very absurd and we thank the government of today under President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to at least take this direction while we are waiting hopefully, because he campaigned on a renewed hope that he will not let us down.
“So we are hoping that after the tri- patriate committee might have concluded with the labour leadership, then we should be having a living wage, not even a minimum wage.”
Speaking on the process which is being followed for the review of Nigeria’s minimum wage, Adejumo said, “The last minimum wage is due for review this April, and government have deemed it fit that they will not wait until the last day before they kick start the process of negotiation.
“We know all the economic indices that have been put into consideration to determine the minimum wage. But one thing is sure that they tri-patriate committee have already concluded the zonal public hearing.
… speaks on upcoming biennial summit
Young Lawyers Forum, Awka branch, has commended the Anambra State Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Professor Sylvia Ifemeje, for her achievements within the period she took over the affairs of the Ministry of Justice.
The forum gave the commendation when its Summit Committee paid a courtesy visit to the Justice Commissioner in her office at Jerome Udorji State Secretariat complex , Awka.
Some of the achievements made in the justice sector under the Justice Commissioner include solar installation in all the High Courts, Court of Appeal, Federal High Court and Court of Appeal in Anambra, as well as all four Correctional Service Centres in the state.
Also, the Soludo administration has equally deployed virtual hearing facilities in all the High Courts and four Correctional Service Centres in the state, and has also embarked on massive renovation of all the Ministry of Justice Outstations in Nnewi, Awka, Onitsha, and Otuocha.
Led by the Chairman of the Young Lawyers Forum, Awka branch, Francisca-Lynda Ezenagu, the team also informed the Attorney General about their planned biennial summit titled “The role of young lawyers in contemporary/modern legal practice”.
According to the committee, the summit coming up on the 24th and 25th of May 2024, will feature prominent lawyers who will speak on topics chosen for the event.
Welcoming her guests, Professor Ifemeje extolled their foresight and industry in planning the summit, and promised to be in their midst.
She urged young lawyers to always assist the indigent and the downtrodden in accessing justice, and to uphold the ethics and maintain the integrity of legal profession at all times.
The Managing Director of Anambra State Housing Development Corporation (ASHDC), Chief Chike Anyaonu has lamented the rot he met at the Corporation on the assumption of office two years ago, saying that he is working hard to ensure that the Corporation lives up to its responsibility.
In an interaction with members of the Correspondents’ Chapel of Nigeria Union Of Journalists (NUJ), Anambra State Council in Awka on Tuesday, Anyaonu said that 20 of the 22 estates which he inherited cannot help the Governor, or the government in improving, engaging and the delivery of Housing in the state.
In fact, he described one of the estates which houses the high and mighty in the state as a scam, in that the contractor failed to provide amenities required of it, but simply sold all the plots of land to prospectors and went away.
Seeing the condition of things in the corporation, he said, he established SOP (Usoro) which encapsulates all the processes one needs to go through to get what one wants from the corporation.
He particularly lamented the situation at Ngozika Housing Estate, phase II which he said that “Government used to scam our people”.
Lamenting the situation, Anyaonu said: “The contractor of Rockland Development Ltd was given the estate to enter into and develop, take over all residential plots but provide the infrastructure necessary for people to come and live there. None of these was done. People moved in and started developing the place on their own.
“Meanwhile, Rockland had gone ahead, sold all the plots, closed the books, and handed over before I came.
“What is happening now is that people are developing the place on their own, without the government coming to their aid, providing all that infrastructure Rockland ought to provide.
“As a result, we have not been going to that place to collect our fees because it would have been shameful “.
Nevertheless, Anyaonu said he has secured the approval of the board to construct one kilometre Road in the Estate and put streetlights.
He said, that strictly speaking only two Housing Estates are working, namely: Udoka Housing Estate, Awka, and another at Fegge Bridgehead.
However, he noted that the Corporation is not resting on its oars to deliver on its mandate as he has reorganised the corporation and put the right pegs in the right places.
Commending Chief Anyaonu for availing himself for the interaction which was held in the April meeting of Correspondents’Chapel, chairman of the Chapel Chief Chuks Ilozue said that apart from the primary function of the press which is to inform, educate and entertain, it is the duty of the press to hold government accountable to the people.
He urged him to strive to turn things around in the corporation to etch his name in the annals of history.
1. I am glad to welcome everyone joining us for this brief ceremony where the State’s “Dig Once” policy will be signed to become an official policy of government to regulate and direct the laying and installation of underground broadband technology infrastructure for individual and enterprise use in our urban and semi-urban communities.
2. This policy is expected to guide technology companies, construction outfits, and all other entities whose activities and business model involve excavation, laying of cables and the installation of underground utilities infrastructure and technology assets.
3. The Dig Once Policy will be our most effective tool of coordinating all excavation and trenching projects along utility corridors in ways that avoid duplication of efforts and also protect our road infrastructure from unintended consequences. Through the erection of underground ducts, service providers can seamlessly deploy their service infrastructure at reduced costs in finances and time.
4. Additionally, the Dig Once Policy will bring about drastic reduction in the needless losses arising from the destruction of underground cables and other infrastructure types in the course of construction projects, and the subsequent disruption in internet services.
5. The policy we have just signed is the product of strategic inter-ministerial collaboration directed by my office with the active involvement of the State’s Ministries of Digital Economy and SMEs, Science and Technology and Works. I want to specially thank the commissioners and their teams for the hard work and sacrifices to get this across the finish line in good time.
6. In very practical terms, the signing of this policy signals our firm commitment to tap into the endless opportunities and promises of the world of high-speed internet and telecommunications services.
7. Our focus is to make high speed internet widely accessible to individuals and businesses in ways that support the adoption of smart enterprise initiatives, improved innovation and expanded access to global markets, and the opportunities that have supercharged the prosperity of many communities and nations across the world.
8. Our target is the young people who are actively migrating to the digital space in pursuit of new opportunities. This policy will give them wings to fly as high-speed internet services become commonplace in all parts of the State.
9. Whether they are setting up their independent ventures, working remotely for firms in diverse parts of the world, selling their products or buying from virtual shops in other places, the aim is to offer them the backbone they need to live their dreams.
10. The Dig Once policy is therefore looking beyond just laying of underground cables and pipes. The goal is more far-reaching as we hope to drive job creation for our young people through this policy, fight poverty and make life better for everyone, no matter where they live.
11. Not much will be achieved in this regard without the active support of all stakeholders and these include telecom and utility companies, construction firms and individuals who may need to excavate along our utility corridors.
12. You are required to interface with the relevant agencies to ensure that you are not in breach of the provisions of this policy. Having reviewed the general framework and specific guidelines contained in this policy, I can say without equivocation that it is in the best interest of every party to take advantage of the structure we have already put in place which are in line with global best practices.
13. Thank you for listening and welcome to the dawn of a new era.
No Nigerian can visit Ajaokuta Steel Company (ASC), see investments of more than $8 billion rotting in the African sun, and not cry. I went there, I cried. What exactly is the problem? I have written several articles on this topic, but today, let me write a comprehensive post.
Ajaokuta Steel Company is massive; she has a 68km road network and 24 housing estates on the project. Some estates have over 1,000 homes, a seaport, and a 110mw power generation plant; there are 43 separate plants in Ajaokuta alone. It is estimated that if Ajaokuta becomes operational, it will create 500,000 jobs.
There is no industrialised nation on earth that does not have a steel sector. It’s that simple. A Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) report shows that Nigeria currently imports steel, aluminium products, and associated derivatives of approximately 25 metric tonnes per annum, estimated at $4.5 billion. This figure will continue to rise, and the Nigerian economy will continue to expand. Ajaokuta is an integrated steel company; it was designed by the Russians to be self-sufficient, get all its input from Nigeria, and make steel. Ajaokuta’s strength is its weakness; Ajaokuta can only work with all available inputs.
This will be a slightly technical post, but please try and follow.
Steel is an alloy of iron and carbon, amongst other things; iron is the base metal in steel, and to make steel, you need Iron Ore, Coke from Coal, and Limestone as the main components. These components are mixed in a blast furnace to produce liquid steel, which can be long steel for rail lines, flat steel for automobile making, etc.
For example, look at steel as making jollof rice, iron ore as the rice, limestone and coke as the pepper and salt, and the pot as the blast furnace. The blast furnace is ONLY turned on at a steel plane when the company is ready to make steel. Blast furnaces operate continuously and are never shut down. The raw material fed into the furnace is divided into several small charges introduced at 10 to 15-minute intervals. This means everything must be in place BEFORE the blast furnace is turned on: the iron ore, the coal, the limestone, everything; why? You do not switch off a blast furnace for another ten years, no matter how long it’s campaign life.
Nigeria is blessed with all the primary raw materials needed to produce steel, including iron ore in Kogi, coal, and limestone in Enugu.
Nigerian iron has a deficient iron concentration. Agbaja has the largest iron ore deposit in Nigeria, with about 2 billion tonnes, but the Agbaja iron ore has a high phosphate content. Phosphate can cause brittleness in steel, making it fracture. Thus, Agbaja was abandoned for Itakpe. Itakpe iron ore has no issues with phosphate but has low iron content; therefore, to make steel with Nigeria iron ore, a process called “beneficiation” has to be done to process the Itakpe ores to raise its iron content to meet the required standard for steel production.
Coal? Most of the coal found in Nigeria is non-coking and, thus, unsuitable for steel production. Coal deposits in Enugu have no impurities but are non-coking. The good news? Nigeria has an abundant deposit of limestone, and we have natural gas to provide power
So, back to Ajaokuta, what happened? Why can Nigeria not make steel anytime soon? Let’s link up the elements.
Policy Failure: The Ajaokuta contract was signed between the Nigerian government and the Soviet state-owned company, Tiajpromexport (TPE), and the company was scheduled for completion in 1986. In 2012, the Federal Government launched its backward integration policy. Going forward, import licenses for steel products were only granted to companies producing steel locally. TPE, to ensure they could import steel parts for Ajaokuta, went ahead and built the rolling mills in Ajaokuta before the actual steel plant was completed; they imported billet from Ukraine to accomplish this. Thus, Ajaokuta was producing steel before the actual steel plant was started. Therefore, amazingly, Ajaokuta has functional rolling mills but no operational blast furnace; Ajaokuta cannot produce steel from primary iron ore found in Nigeria in her blast furnace.…this is the definition of the cart before the horse.
NIOMCO Factor: The iron ore in Nigeria, earmarked for Ajaokuta, is from Itakpe; it has low iron content. Thus, the FG built the National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO), a 2.15 metric tonnes beneficiation plant designed to process the low-quality iron ore from Itakpe to iron ore suitable for Ajaokuta Steel. If NIOMCO does not operate, Ajaokuta CANNOT operate (unless Ajaokuta uses imported iron ore). As of today, NIOMCO is not operational.
Railway: 15 million tonnes of iron ore cannot be moved by road, which will destroy the roads. Thus, a railway was built from Itakpe to Ajaokuta to take iron ore from the beneficiation plant in Itakpe to the Ajaokuta. Itakpe to Ajaokuta by rail is just 52km. The rail line was to be delivered by March 2019. Still, the Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi, revised the delivery date to June 2018 and converted the purely commercial railway to carry human passengers. These changes meant the cost of the project and delivery dates had to change as passenger wagons and train stations had to be built. To achieve this, 12 new passenger stations and 12 access roads must be designed and built. The Itakpe to Ajaokuta (IA) has two stations. As of June 2018, the IA1 station – Eganyi to Itakpe, is still under design. Station AW1 – Ajaokuta (standard station), zero per cent of work done. Thus, the railways are not functional.
Blast Furnace: The furnace in Ajaokuta is the heart of Ajaokuta; it is the pot where the jollof rice will be cooked; however, it has never been turned on; why? Because there has never been any time Ajaokuta has had raw materials available to ensure continuous day-to-day production for five years. Why have there never been materials? Because there is no railway to take iron ore from Itakpe to Ajaokuta. Why is there no railway from Itakpe to Ajaokuta? Because NIOMCO in Itakpe is moribund and not functional, Nigerian iron ore cannot be converted to high-grade ore for the furnace in Ajaokuta.
So, it follows that for Ajaokuta to work, we MUST have three key critical paths:
NIOMCO must be functional
The Itakpe to Ajaokuta Railway line must be functional
Blast Furnace operational
All three are not functional, so Nigeria cannot make steel in Ajaokuta. Nothing, however, stops a corrupt government official from importing billets and running them in the rolling mills to deceive taxpayers. So, when anyone tells you Ajaokuta will soon work, ask them if a steel plant can work without NIOMCO, railways, and a blast furnace.
All is not gloom; Kayode Fayemi, as Minister, secured an out-of-court about Ajaokuta, and we must build on this.
In closing, Ajaokuta is the only steel plant in the world built by the USSR, sold to Americans, then to Indians; all these teams have come and gone with their technical style; there have even been accusations of asset stripping by the Indians.
So why this post? Because I am a patriot, I will not sit by and watch scarce resources be wasted in a grand deceit. Some corrupt folks have probably told Mr President that Ajaokuta can produce economically viable steel if “small” dollars are spent. You can already see how the critical rail line delivery dates were moved back to ensure it was done in time for the 2019 elections, yet it is still in the design stage. Ajaokuta is Nigeria and probably Africa’s biggest failure. It has failed. Can it be made to work? Yes, but the cost of integrating Ajaokuta with her mines and rails can be used to build new, smaller, modern, turnkey, functional steel mills. The government should get out of Ajaokuta, sell the place and allow the private sector capital and expertise to restructure and own it.
If you want to make jollof rice and there is no rice, the solution is not to keep boiling water without rice but to go and get rice.
The naira made a remarkable comeback against the US dollar at the official foreign exchange market this week, giving traders and businesses a reason to smile.
According to data from the Financial Markets Dealers Quotations (FMDQ), the naira’s value jumped to N1,390.96 per dollar on Tuesday, a significant improvement from N1,419.11 on Monday. That’s a whopping N28.15 gain, or a 1.98 percent increase, making it the first time the naira has appreciated in days.
This sudden boost in the naira’s value is a welcome change for many who have been keeping an eye on the foreign exchange market. It also reflects a positive shift after a week of consistent depreciation against the dollar.
However, while the official forex market saw a gain, the parallel market painted a different picture. The naira took a hit, dropping to N1,360 per dollar on Tuesday, down from N1,280 the previous day. It’s a reminder that the forex market can be as unpredictable as a game of chess, with unexpected moves and turns.
Whether this upward trend for the naira at the official forex market will continue remains to be seen. In the meantime, let’s enjoy this victory for the naira while keeping an eye on what the future holds for the parallel market.
As acute petrol supply challenges enter its second week, independent marketers have explained that issues that led to the scarcity of the product would take another two weeks to be fully resolved.
Checks around Abuja on Sunday showed that most stations were out of stock with very few major marketers dispensing the product in Abuja city centre. At the suburbs, the few stations opened to motorists jacked up their pump price from N680 per litre to N870 per litre.
Speaking to Vanguard on the situation, the Public Relations Officer, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, IPMAN, Chief Chinedu Ukadike said the product was not available in-country.
Chief Ukadike blamed the acute shortage in supply of importation bottlenecks and the slow pace of marketers licence renewal by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, NMDPRA.
He disclosed that only 1,050 marketers out of 15,000 have had their licences renewed by the NMDPRA.
He said: “The situation is that there is no product. Once there is lack of supply or inadequate supply, what you will see is scarcity and queues will emerge at filling stations. On the part of NNPCL, which is the sole supplier of petroleum products in Nigeria, they have attributed the challenge to logistics and vessel problems.
“Once there is breech in the international supply chain, it will have an impact of domestic supply because we depend on import. I also have it good authority that most of the refineries in Europe are undergoing turn around maintenance. So sourcing of petroleum products has become a bit difficult.
“NNPC Group CEO has assured us that there will be improvement in the supply chain because their vessels are arriving. Once that is done, normalcy will return. This is because once the 30 days supply sufficiency distrusted, it takes two to three months to restore it. We expect that by next week or so, NNPC should be able to restore supply and with another one week, normalcy should return”.
The challenges faced by marketers in renewing their licences, he said: “NNPC has said the marketers who have not been able to renew their licences will not be allowed to remain on their portal which has been shut for sometime now. Because of this we have not been able to request for new products.
“At this nascent period of deregulation, you will discover that this leads to scarcity even when the product arrives. As it is now, even by their own data, out of 15,000 marketers that are on the portal with licences, only 1,050 renewed their licences. And the requirement for renewal by NMDPRA is so much. Marketers are facing hostile environment. NNPC placed a deadline of April 15, 2024, for marketers to renew their licences.
“We are therefore appealing to NNPC extend this deadline and also to NMDPRA to hasten the release of marketers licences who have completed their processes, and also reduce the bottlenecks around licence renewals”.
