Month: May 2024

The House of Representatives has reassured that the long queues at filling stations in the country will soon fizzle out.

Rep. Ikenga Ugochinyere, Chairman, Petroleum Downstream, said this at a joint news conference in Abuja on Wednesday.

‘We hereby express our concerns over the temporary presence of fuel queues in petrol stations across the country.

‘However, we are convinced that this is temporary based on our investigation, and in a couple of days, we shall get over it,’ he said.

Flanked by Rep. Henry Okojie, the Chairman, Petroleum Midstream, Ugochinyere said that investigations had revealed that the scarcity was artificial.

‘We have discovered that there is availability of petrol products. We have it on good authority that we have in our storage facilities at least about 1.5 billion liters of petrol,’ he said.

He said that 1.5 billion liters can last for 30 days.

‘We have gotten assurances from the regulators in the distribution value chain that these bottlenecks have been cleared. In the course o
f this public holiday, more grounds will be covered.

‘From our findings, the issues that necessitated the disruptions that led to the appearance of fuel queues in petrol stations have been cleared.

‘They said that it will take a few more days for things to return to normalcy, while calling on Nigerians not to panic over this development.

‘We have gotten assurances from the regulators and the unions that these challenges will be cleared in a few days,’ he said.

Ugochinyere added: ‘It will require more time, like two to three days for products to be distributed to all stations nationwide.

‘As a committee that is charged with downstream and midstream oversight, we have been monitoring this development.’

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

Prof. Edem Eniang, Executive Director, Biodiversity Preservation Centre in Uyo, has expressed disappointment at continued engagement of some Nigerians in tree felling and wildlife killing for commercial purposes.

Eniang told the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos on Tuesday that in spite of warnings, some Nigerians had continued in the acts, making the effects of climate change to be worse.

According to him, trees serve as physical barriers capable of reducing wind speed and redirecting its force.

‘ Thereby helping to prevent soil erosion, which can damage crops and destroy wildlife habitats.’

He added that trees could reduce the likelihood of damage to buildings and other structures by strong winds.

He said that wildlife species being killed were capable of attracting eco-tourism traffic to the nation and aid in generating foreign exchange earnings.

He advised Nigerians to refrain from the acts and rather engage in tree planting and general biodiversity conservation.

‘In Nigeria, the challenge of
endangered species conservation has become a matter of urgent concern requiring positive actions from governments at all levels and all individuals.

‘ We must all work together to address this situation for a better future, balanced ecosystem, and to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals in our country by 2050.

‘ We have disregarded, disrupted and altered the planetary boundaries within our spheres of influence, allowing our daily activities as humans to have a negative impact on the environment or ecosystems.

‘Acid rain is now a reality; our water is acidified, and if we do not take action, 2025 will bring even worse consequences with increased temperatures and more severe wind disasters.

‘Currently, the only opportunity we have to view our wildlife species is presented by those sold at the bushmeat markets, whereas those are the same species that could have drawn eco-tourism traffic and bring in the much-needed foreign exchange.

‘Unfortunately, they are, on daily basis, displayed at wildlife market
s or at pepper soup joints, where they are being sold indiscriminately.

‘We are cooking crocodiles, antelopes, gorillas, chimpanzees, dolphins, African manatees and more. This is unacceptable,’ he said.

Eniang said that, to safeguard Nigeria’s endangered wildlife species, the Federal Government should consistently educate Nigerians about the dangers of killing them.

He said that due to reckless killing of some wildlife species, animals such as Forest elephants, Atlantic humpback dolphins, African manatees, red-capped mangabeys, colobine monkeys and pangolins were on the verge of extinction.

‘ also species such as the Ukpam stingray, snakefish, two-headed snake (Calabar ground python), Angwantibo, Nigerian-Cameroonian chimpanzee, Cross River gorilla and the Slater’s monkey, declared in 2000 as the 15th most important monkey on the planet, are all on the brink of extinction.

‘ Cheetahs, Giraffs and hunting dogs have disappeared from Nigeria.

‘Since the removal of fuel subsidy by the Federal Government, ma
ny Nigerians cannot afford the cost of PMS, diesel and kerosine; so, they have embraced firewood to cook.

‘This development has increased the rate at which trees are brought down and converted to charcoal. Nigerians must desist from it,’ he said.

Eniang urged Nigerians to make conscious efforts in the preservation of Nigeria’s fauna and flora endowments for wealth creation and environmental preservation.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The National Commission for Refugees, Migrants and Internally Displaced Persons (NCFRMI) says plans are underway to repatriate Nigerian refugees in Chad and Cameroon, who wish to return.

Alhaji Tijani Ahmed, the Federal Commissioner, NCFRMI, stated this during a press briefing on Tuesday in Abuja.

Ahmed explained that 21, 000 Nigerians with about three thousand households were taken refuge in Chad, while 14,000 households were in Cameroon.

He said although the cost implication of the exercise had not been ascertained, the commission would be partnering with the government of Borno and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), to provide shelter and logistics.

‘In 2022, we had a very serious flood that caused some Nigerians to move to Chad and some of them to Cameroon and other factors include the herders and farmers clashes and Boko Haram crises.

‘So, we will enhance the repatriation and ensure that the people return in safety and dignity,’ Ahmed said.

In her remarks, Ms Bernadette Muteshi
, the Deputy Representative, UNHCR, commended the leadership of the commission for working in this endeavour, saying that the agency would support a credible process and ensure safety and dignity.

‘We are happy to see the government leadership in this endeavour. We are particularly happy to note that the voices of the Nigerians who want to return home, have been heard and are being acted upon.

‘We will try to ensure that this process happens as soon as it’s practically feasible by putting all the elements to get along with you.

‘We want to ensure that people exercise their basic human rights, have the ability to come home and go to any place in the country that they desire to go back to,’ Muteshi said.

She hoped that all arrangements would be in place to meet the aspirations of the people that were been cared for.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Federal Government has disbursed N2.75 billion for the first phase of the compensation payouts and unveiled the new design routes for the Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway project.

The Minister of Works, Sen. Dave Umahi, made the announcement at the commencement of payouts to property owners affected by the construction of the 700km highway project, on Wednesday in Lagos.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the federal government had, on April 4, inuagurated a committee to review, evaluate and compensate land owners affected by the construction of the highway project.

According to Umahi, the goal of the committee is to ensure transparency in all undertakings.

He said, ‘It’s my pleasure to unveil the new design route, and I wish to flag off the compensation from chainage zero to chainage three in a total sum of N2.75 billion. That is very ambitious.

‘It’s my pleasure to invite the Director of Design and the Controller to call the people and give them the symbolic amount agreed and to assure tha
t before 1p.m. tomorrow, you will all get your alert as agreed.

‘It will be difficult to show you all that we have done here to protect the claimants so that you don’t go to their houses, this one is private to us.

‘But the smaller ones, we can do that symbolically, but no cash is paid.’

The Minister also announced that all tenants affected by the demolition at Landmark would receive compensation by the end of the day.

Umahi said, ‘ All tenants within the Landmark premises have been shortlisted for payments by 2 p.m. today. That closes the politics of Landmark.’

The Chairman, Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway compensation committee, Mrs Korede Keisha, while presenting cheques to deserving beneficiaries, corroborated what Umahi said.

She said, ‘Just like the minister said that this will be done in phases, so, the first 10 recipients would be called today. If you were not called today, don’t be afraid, we are going to call you in the next few days.

‘The secretariat is open and we work 24/7 everyday. So, this
is just the opening one.’

She named the beneficiaries as Moist Beach, Checkmate, Kingfisher, G12 Beach, Xchange Lounge, Kingston, Landmark Kids Club by Maxtivity, FX lounge and Bar, and Best Rock.

The Lagos-Calabar Coastal Highway is designed to connect Lagos to Cross River, passing through the coastal states of Ogun, Ondo, Delta, Bayelsa, Rivers and Akwa Ibom, before culminating in Cross River.

Construction of each kilometre of the 700 kilometre highway will cost N4 billion.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Federal Government says families of those who lost their lives in Saturday’s gas explosion at Ita-Oshin in Abeokuta, Ogun, will be compensated.

It also said that those who lost properties and others receiving treatment in the hospital would be compensated.

The Minister of State for Petroleum (Gas), Ekperikpe Ekpo, made this known during an on-the-spot assessment of the situation on Wednesday in Abeokuta.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that a Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) laden truck had lost control due to a brake failure and rammed into the road barricade thereby causing an explosion which resulted in the loss of lives and property in the area.

Ekpo described the incident as regrettable saying the lives of every citizen is important.

He noted that effective standards must be maintained to avert any future disasters that might be connected to gas.

The minister, who was in the company of the Deputy Governor of Ogun, Noimot Salako-Oyedele, noted that anything below proper standard would not
be tolerated.

According to him, it has become expedient to ensure standard before asking citizens to install the CNG in their vehicles.

He called on CNG companies to involve the regulators like the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) so as to ensure that whatever is used in all vehicles meet the necessary standards.

‘What we’re emphasising on is maintaining standard; anything that falls below that will not be appreciated.

‘We noticed cracks in the cylinders when we visited the junkyard and this may be because it wasn’t up to standard thereby causing a friction forcing it open.

‘If this is not checked and we call our people to install it in their vehicles without ascertaining the standard, it’ll pose more danger.

‘This is a wake up call to you and to us that we should rise up to the challenge of the day and involve regulators to make sure we stick to standards so that we don’t have a recurrence of this.

‘We thank God that the cylinder didn’t explode; it would have been a different story.’

Ekpo than
ked the state government for promptly providing adequate response when the accident occurred.

Also on ground was Mr Farouk Ahmed, the Authority Chief Executive of the Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA, who expressed concern about the incident.

He noted that though the incident was regrettable but ‘luckily it was not too drastic’.

‘We have training programmes for drivers of these vehicles including trucks and we are going to insist that they must be certified before they carry this kind of tasks,’ Ahmed said.

Speaking earlier, the deputy governor said it was imperative to ensure that safety is not compromised to avert future accidents.

According to her, the government will ensure that the people do not have a bad impression about the usage of CNG.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria

The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has begun installation of Instrument Landing System (ILS) with its accompanying equipment such as localiser, glide slope and Distance Measuring Equipment in Kaduna airfield ahead of its 60th Anniversary celebration.

This is stated in a statement by the Director, Public Relations and Information, NAF, AVM Edward Gabkwet, on Wednesday in Abuja.

Gabkwet said the installation was sequel to the 60th Anniversary celebration of the NAF scheduled to hold in Abuja and Kaduna from May 23 to May 25.

He said the system had been backed up with a solar system powered by a 10 KVA inverter with 28 batteries on both sides, to forestall any power interruption.

According to him, the successful implementation of the ILS unlocks a myriad of possibilities for aircraft operations at the airfield situated within the NAF Base Kaduna, which is expected to witness an increase in flying activities in the weeks to come in preparation for the anniversary.

Gabkwet said that with the new ILS, pilots could
now execute precision ILS approaches, enabling safe landings even in adverse weather conditions with limited runway visibility.

He said the installation was also significant for NAF student pilots, adding that it would eliminate the need to seek alternative airfields for practicing ILS approaches and streamline their flying training experiences.

‘Moving forward, the completion of the project’s second phase, encompassing the installation of solar landing lights and precision approach indicators, will no doubt augment the airfield’s capabilities.

‘Upon fruition, aircraft will be empowered to conduct operations during low visibility conditions and at night, propelling the airfield towards 24-hour operational readiness while also serving as a beacon of excellence in aviation training and safety in Nigeria and beyond,’ he said.

Gabkwet said the Chief of Air Staff (CAS), Air Marshal Hasan Abubakar, was at the NAF Base on Tuesday to inspect the installation and ongoing projects critical to the successful hosting
of the anniversary.

He said that some of the ongoing projects included the renovation of the parade ground, construction of 72- flat accommodation for student pilots and repair of aircraft shelters that would serve as exhibition stands during the anniversary.

Source: News Agency of Nigeria