Nigeria loses N794bn to fuel subsidy strike

LAGOS—Citizens’ Right Initiative Project, CRIP, has said that the nation lost about N794.65 billion during the six-day nation-wide protest over increase in the pump price of petrol, adding that what Nigerians fought against was price fixing, and not deregulation. CRIP queried the unilateral ‘’drawing down of the $32 billion in the excess crude account by the Federal Government, contrary to the Fiscal Responsibility Act, 2007,” adding that was the beginning of the current economic problems facing the country.

Fuel: Stakeholders Seek Restoration of Atlas Cove Jetty

The Federal Government has been called upon to take urgent steps to restore the Atlas Cove jetty to its full standard, in order to cut down the demurrage, which Nigeria incurs on vessels that bring in petroleum products. The jetty located at Tarkwa-Bay area of Lagos State is the country’s largest platform for storage and distribution of petroleum products. The facility has been performing abysmally, following the 2006 fire incident and the 2009 attack by Niger Delta militants, which affected the central manifold that transports products from landed vessels to the jetty.

CD rejects N97 fuel price

Members of the Civil Society Organisations, on Monday in Lagos, rejected the N97 pump price of the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, as approved by President Goodluck Jonathan in his nationwide broadcast. Also, over 3,000 protesters, in defiance of the stay at home order of the organised labour, took to the streets of Lagos on Monday but were barred from gaining entry to the Gani Fawehinmi Park at Ojota by a combined team of soldiers and policemen.

Lagos residents condemn military presence

Many Lagos residents have condemned the deployment of military officers by the Federal Government to curb protests that greeted the removal of fuel subsidy in the country, which saw a dramatic increase in the pump price of petrol in all filling stations in the country from N65 to N141. Places such as the Gani Fawehinmi Park at Ojota, which was the spot where a record mammoth crowd of protesters gathered last week, as well as Falomo, were, on Monday, taken over by combat ready military officers, who also came in their armour vehicles.

Boko Haram: 3 Chadians killed in Yobe, 2 others in Maiduguri

THE police confirmed, on Monday, the killing of three Chadians in Damaturu by gunmen suspected to be members of Boko Haram. The Commissioner of Police, Tanko Lawan, said the three foreigners. who were labourers in the state, were killed by unidentified gunmen who attacked them in Pompomari quarters of the state capital.

NSE Lists N35bn UBA Bond

The Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) last week listed United Bank for Africa Plc (UBA) N35 billion bond.The admission of the N35 billion bond, which has  14 per cent coupon, raised the number of corporate bonds in the market to 13. UBA issued the bond last year as part of its N400 billion Medium Term Note Programme. 

Ezekwesili Quits World Bank

Vice-President for Africa, World Bank, Mrs. Oby Ezekwesili, has resigned from the Bretton Woods institution, after five years of meritorious service. Her resignation takes effect from the first week of May. The World Bank President, Mr. Robert Zoelick, who made this known in a letter made available to THISDAY, said Ezekwesili would be back to Nigeria after “five years of important and successful service to the bank and Africa”.

Stop Comparing Nigeria with Ghana

Chairman, Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other financial institutions, Senator Ayoade Adeseun, has admonished the Federal Government apologists on the removal of fuel subsidy to stop comparing Nigeria with Ghana or any other country in the West African sub-continent on the fuel issue.

DEVELOPING STORY: EFCC Raids PPPRA Offices

Operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have raided the offices of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA) following a petition by the Petroleum Minister, Diezani Alison-Madueke.

Details Shortly...

Armed soldiers take over Gani Fawehinmi Park in Lagos

Armed soldiers have taken over the Gani Fawehinmi Park, the Ojota venue of last week’s rallies that was renamed Freedom Park.Thousands of protesters gathered daily at the park with speeches by labour leaders, civil society activists, as well as, artistes’ performances during the strike over the removal of fuel subsidy.

FG warns hoodlums against violence

The Federal Government has warned hoodlums who are trying to take over the strike and turn it into a riot that they will be properly dealt with because that is not the intention of labour. The Minister of Defence, Dr  Mohammed Haliru Bello, who gave the warning on Sunday while answering questions from newsmen after the laying of wreath marking the end of the 2012 Armed Forces Remembereance Day, said people should not panic as security was assured in this country.

Court to hear suit against labour today

The National Industrial Court sitting in Abuja will, this morning, hear the motion on notice brought by the Federal Government through the Attorney-General of the Federation seeking to stop the organised labour from embarking on strike to express its grievances over the removal of fuel subsidy. The matter was to come up last Thursday but the respondents, the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) and Trade Union Congress (TUC), were neither in court nor represented by any counsel.

ACN decries growing sectionalisation of the fuel subsidy issue

The Action Congress of Nigeria (ACN) has said that, the ongoing fuel subsidy issue is increasingly being turned to a sectional matter, therefore, raising concern about the agenda being pursued by President Goodluck Jonathan and his clueless Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) with the subsidy removal.

Subsidy crisis: Atiku urges FG, labour to speed up resolution

Former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar has advised the Federal Government and the organised labour/civil society leaders to find a lasting solution to the current subsidy withdrawal protests across the country in the larger interest of millions who have been suffering additional burden of hardship since the strike began a week ago.

Few passengers at MMIA in spite of break in protest

Flight activities at the domestic terminals of the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Ikeja, were low on Sunday, in spite of the suspension of protests till Monday by the organised labour. The organised labour and coalition of civil societies have been on strike since January 9 in protest of the Federal Govern-ment’s removal of petrol subsidy. The labour on Friday announced a two-day break in the strike.

Trouble looms for oil marketers •As FG orders EFCC to probe subsidy payments

THE Federal Government has invited the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) to probe all payments made in respect of subsidies on petrol and kerosene and prosecute all those that might be involved in fraudulent practices. The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs Diezani Alison-Madueke, who disclosed this to State House correspondents after the meeting between President Goodluck Jonathan and state governors on Sunday, said she decided to take the step following the removal of subsidy on petrol and the ensuing

Full text of President Jonathan’s speech Today:

Dear Compatriots,
This is the second time in two weeks I will address you on the deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector. In the last seven days, the nation has witnessed a disruption of economic activities. Although, the economic imperatives for the policy have been well articulated by government, the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) and the Trade Union Congress (TUC) went ahead to declare a nationwide strike.

Muslims visit churches, assure Christians of safety, peace in Kano

MUSLIM youths, under aegis of Concerned Citizens of Kano State, alongside members of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kano State chapter, on Sunday, visited Churches in Kano to assure Christians that no harm would come to them.The Muslim youths were led by Alhaji Bashir Is’haq, while CAN members were led by the state chairman of the association, Bishop Ransome Bello.

Muslims visit churches, assure Christians of safety, peace in Kano

MUSLIM youths, under aegis of Concerned Citizens of Kano State, alongside members of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN), Kano State chapter, on Sunday, visited Churches in Kano to assure Christians that no harm would come to them.The Muslim youths were led by Alhaji Bashir Is’haq, while CAN members were led by the state chairman of the association, Bishop Ransome Bello.

600 injured demonstrators treated — ICRC

The International Committee of the Red Cross has said the number of injured protesters treated by its volunteers since the beginning of the nationwide strike by the organised labour and civil society groups over the removal of fuel subsidy has risen to about 600. The ICRC also said its volunteers under the aegis of the Nigeria Red Cross had also provided basic health services to the over 4,000 persons temporarily displaced by the violence that attended the fuel subsidy removal protest in Benin City.