The Nation Newspaper

Tag: forces

Forces against non-oil exports

With the shift to non-oil sector, particularly manufacturing, following the falling oil prices, there is a clamour for the establishment of a National Quality Policy (NQP). The policy’s final draft may be ready in March. It will, among others, increase the competitiveness of local products in the international market, reports Assistant Editor chikodi ekereocha.

The National President, Association of Systems Management Consultants, Mazi Coleman Obasi, is worried. The certified quality management practitioner is troubled that despite assurances by the authorities that the draft document for the proposed National Quality Policy (NQP) for Nigeria would be ready before the end of last year, nothing has happened. He wonders why the formulation and subsequent adoption of the document is delayed despite that the European Union (EU) voted 12 million Euros (about N2.5billion) last year for the establishment of a National Accreditation System.

The fund is meant to support the enhancement of the national quality infrastructure to improve the quality, safety, integrity, and marketability of made-in-Nigeria goods and services.

For Obasi, and indeed stakeholders in the sector, such intervention by the EU could not have come at a better time, considering that the administration is emphasising the non-oil sector in the face of the economic downturn caused by the plunge in oil prices.The development, which has since put the nation’s finances under pressure, is seen by some development experts as a blessing in disguise. Expectedly, it has forced the Federal Government to shift focus to the non-oil sector, which, experts say, is more inclusive and growth-oriented.

Besides, the sector is characterised by high economic linkages and is also more sustainable. This was why the EU and other international technical partners decided to intervene in the hope of increasing the competitiveness of local products at the international market.

Under the EU-funded National Quality Infrastructure (NQI) project, implemented by the United Nations Industrial Development (UNIDO), with the support of the Federal Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment, the objective, according to the UNIDO Country and West Africa Director, Dr. Patrick Kormawa, is to improve the quality of products made in Nigeria for them to be sold internally and in the international market. He expressed the hope that the initiative will produce a legislation that will contain a NQP, and establish an internationally recognised National Accreditation Body (NAB) that will vet regulatory agencies, such as the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) and the National Agency for Foods, Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC).

Kormawa, while announcing the EU’s commitment, said the initiative would help develop a National Metrology Institute (NMI) to ensure that instruments are of international standards, improve the capacity of members of the Organised Private Sector (OPS) to conform to standards and assessment bodies. It will also enhance the powers of the Consumer Protection Council (CPC) and other consumer organisations to sensitise consumers on quality standards and ensure improved consumer protection. But these never happened, which is why Obasi and other stakeholders are calling on the authorities to fast-track the establishment of an NQP. “Quality is number one. It is the first thing that ought to be considered as the nation focuses on building a robust export-based economy,” Obasi told The Nation.

Obasi is right. At present, locally manufactured products and services lack global quality certification. They are denied access to markets in developed economies, a situation that has been a pain in the neck of manufacturers, as their productivity and competitiveness continue to suffer. According to Obasi, Nigeria, despite being acknowledged globally as one of the largest consumer markets, is yet to be accredited by the International Accreditation Forum (IAF), the regulatory arm of the International Standardisation Organissation (ISO). He said countries, such as South Africa, Egypt, Tunisia, Kenya and Mauritius have since been accredited by the IAF, in line with global emphasis on quality.

For Nigeria to be accredited by IAF, it must have in place an NQI, which refers to all aspects of metrology, standardisation, testing, quality management, certification and accreditation that have a bearing on conformity assessment. It requires the establishment of NAB, NMI, CPC, Standards Regulatory Agencies, Conformity Assessment Agency or Bodies, Quality Education and Competency Training and Certification Institutions. While the NMI is supposed to perform all the metrological and calibration, the conformity assessment agency on the other hand, certifies private companies, ensuring that their products conform to specific characteristics, increase consumers’ confidence and also create incentives for producers to upgrade their production processes.

According to experts, the creation of these key systems and institutions will boost the competitiveness of locally made products at the international market and ensure the global acceptance of products and services from Nigeria. These key systems and institutions are what the NQP is supposed to support, but unfortunately, Nigeria, after 54 years of independence, still does not have an NQI, which is an important tool for the establishment and implementation of the NQP, which is expected to usher the economy into a new phase of growth and development.

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr Olusegun Aganga, admitted this when he said the NQP would produce a broad-based system that would provide quality specifications for all manufactured products in the country. The Minister, who spoke at the inaugural meeting of the National Steering Committee (NSC) of the NQP, in Abuja, said the policy would re-engineer the quality infrastructure and the technical regulation regimes and help the Federal Government execute its economic plans.

Incidentally, Aganga is the Chairman of the NSC, while the Director-General (DG) of SON, Dr Joseph Odumodu, is Secretary. The NSC, inaugurated last year by President Goodluck Jonathan, is charged with driving the establishment of the NQP. The broad-based inter-ministerial steering committeeis mandated to review and harmonise quality policies in Nigeria,prepare a draft NQP that is acceptable to stakeholders, and support the approval and implementation of the NQP.

Odumodu also recognised that the policy is vital to national development because of its role in facilitating international trade. According to him, the lack of NQP had over the years made harmonisation of the available quality infrastructure difficult, thereby limiting the benefits, particularly in driving competitiveness and international market access. He said Nigeria’s standard operation was faced with many challenges with the attendant overlap of interests and activities, which sometimes result to disagreements.The cause of this, he pointed out, was the lack of NQP to hold the system and make it functional and efficient enough to earn global confidence. In other words, an NQP policy would set bases and rules for the players, harmonise the role of various players, and provide a commitment to complying with international standards.

Odumodu further noted that until now, the determined efforts of the agency to curb the menace of substandard products have been marred by the absence of a national quality policy, adding that the policy would bring sanity to a system that is highly profitable to the actors. He noted that the new policy would act as catalyst for local productivity and quick adaptation of best global standards and practices to enthrone quality culture, improved management and process systems and work environments, in addition to attaining efficiency and products competitiveness, reduce importation and increase exports.

If everything goes as planned, the benefits of an NQP would start coming the way of Nigerians in the export business and the economy from March, this year when the draft document for the proposed policy is expected to be ready. Already, the final document is being edited in line with the time schedule drawn up by the steering committee, according to Dr. Paul Angya, chairman, Technical Secretariat of NSC. He told The Nation that between November and December, last year, the committee toured the six geopolitical zones of the country with the draft quality document for validating and getting the nod of stakeholders.

Angya said the committee visited Sokoto, in the Northwest; Minna, Northcentral; Lagos, Southwest; Enugu, Southeast, and Calabar, Southsouth. The final tour, according to him, was on December 13, last year, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), and that in each zone’s stakeholders endorsed the document.

He disclosed that the coming general election is responsible for the delay in getting the final draft ready for presentation to the Federal Executive Council (FEC). He added that as soon as the elections were over, the document would be ready. “Now we are editing the final document, which will be ready by March this year for presentation to the FEC and subsequent passage by an Act of Parliament,” he said.

January 15, 2015
Benue 2O15: As governor, I’ll unite opposing forces – Ortom

Minister of State, Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Samuel Ortom, who is aspiring to be governor of Benue State on the platform of the Peoples Democratic Party, interacted with journalists at his residence in Makurdi recently where he spoke about his plans for the state, the pruning of aspirants by the Tiv Area Traditional Council, his relationship with Governor Suswam and other issues. Our Correspondent Uja Emmanuel, Makurdi, was there. Excerpts:

Can you comment on the alleged pruning of governorship aspirants of Minda by the Tiv Area Traditional Council Gboko?

I have been in this game of politics for over thirty years now and I know that in this game, you are dealing with people. In political calculations, one plus one can be two, and the same one plus one can be ten or even five. Those of you who were there when we did the primary elections that Suswam emerged in 2007 the rule then was that even with your highest number of votes, you most have 50% of the total votes otherwise you will go for a runoff with the person next to you. At that time, to suit the peculiar situation we found ourselves in we had to adopt a method that was convenient for all the stakeholders. We said they should donate votes and nobody was coerced into doing it and people willingly came and donated votes for Suswam to attain the 50 percent that was required and he became the winner. Did he not become the governor? So, I really want to commend what our traditional rulers did, coming together to say look, of the five ruling houses in Tiv land covering Zones A and B, it is only Minda political bloc that has not taken a shot at the governorship position, now it should come to Minda. I think it was a positive development for those of us from the Minda axis. In this axis alone, we were 18 and I know that every Minda son and daughter that has come out is qualified to rule Benue State. But the unfortunate thing is that the seat is only one. Even the four of us that were recommended, the seat is just for one person. There are no four Government Houses and so there is no way all of us will be there. Even if the method used by the Tiv Area Traditional Council to arrive at the four of us was not perfect, I believe it can lead us to somewhere that we can dialogue.

Do you have a rift with Governor Suswam over alleged association with Senator George Akume?

I don’t know where this thing is coming from, but may be one of you will tell me where Suswam stood and was insulting or complaining about Samuel Ortom.

The body language shows that you and Governor Suswam are not together politically. Is it correct to think so?

Body language or whatever can be a logical fallacy. I want to assure you that I have no single problem with the governor. The governor is my friend till tomorrow. Let me tell you, this house where all of you are sitting now I completed it in 2007 and I want to tell you that it was the governor that built it for me. When he was at the National Assembly, he sowed the seed. The first two million naira that I ever had in my life, even when I was a local government chairman, I never saw it because the whole allocation was less than one million, was given to me by Suswam. When I started my printing and publishing company, the governor was then at the National Assembly. He visited me and saw what I was doing. Where our headquarters is now, that is where I was operating in, one room, trying to start off the business. When he saw it and I opened up my vision to him he was moved and invited me to Abuja. I went there and he gave me two million naira. That was what I started my printing and publishing company with and today, we are where we are. Through that business, I was able to build this house. I was also able to establish other factories that are today giving employment to our people. In 2006 when the party in the state had crisis and the national secretariat dissolved the state executive committee, it was Suswam that lobbied and secured the position of deputy chairman for me. In 2007, when my tenure as the deputy chairman was about to expire and Suswam had won election in which I participated fully, you will recall that for three days, I anchored the primaries that ushered him in as the candidate of the party. When he eventually got elected and I could not be made a commissioner, he asked me what I wanted and I told him that I wanted to serve the party at the national level. Then the position of the National Auditor of the PDP was zoned to Kogi State. Suswam took it as a challenge and went to Abuja, met with his colleagues and the then President Yar’adua and they were able to reverse the zoning to Benue State and made me the National Auditor of the party. Today, as I am standing before you as a Minister of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, it was Suswam. We were not to get two slots in Benue because it was argued at the national level that we have the Senate President, so why should we be given two ministerial slots? Suswam was with me in Abuja for a whole week for me to secure the position I am holding today. So I don’t know, if you hate someone, will you also contribute in building him to the level I am today? Where have you heard me complaining or insulting the governor? You talked about the relationship I have with Akume. Akume is my neighbour. Look at his house there and I am here. At my age of 53 years and as a born again Christian who believes in making peace and building bridges of unity, which I have been practicing for many years and you want to bend me? Yes, if I have my way today I will reconcile Akume and Suswam so that Benue State can move forward. Politics is a game of interest, no permanent enemies; no permanent friends. If tomorrow Akume returns to PDP, will we not accept him? We will accept him. Today he is in APC and I am in PDP. When he contested for Senate in PDP, I supported and worked for him and he won in my polling unit, council ward and in my local government. But when Akume contested on the ticket of the Action Congress of Nigeria, ACN, Akume lost in my polling unit. Tsegba, who was not the best of my friends then, (now we are best of friends), won in my polling unit, won in my council ward and also won in my local government. In fact, he got the highest number of votes in my local government. ACN lost heavily in Guma Local Government. So how do you now talk about my association with Akume and all that? I don’t believe in forgetting the past so soon. Akume was my leader. I served under him for seven years and we worked together very closely. In those days somebody came and told Akume that I was a Paul Unongo man, later we were able to convince him that look that is not the case. I’m a different person; I’m a Christian who works for peace and respects elders. Up till today, I respect Paul Unongo and everybody. That does not translate to me doing their bidding. So, I told Akume that look, one day, all these people you see around you, sycophants and mediocres, tomorrow you will turn round and you will not see any one. Some will even go to blackmail you, but if you turn, you will see Ortom. Today I’m being blackmailed that I’m an Akume man. I don’t even see him often, but any where I see Akume, I respect him as a former governor of my state and the Senator representing my zone. But I don’t share in his disagreement with the governor. At my age, I’ll try to make peace and build bridges rather than create problems. I stand to be corrected, all the stakeholders and leaders in Benue State, I relate with them, whether in opposition or anywhere. That is why you need me as the governor of Benue State because I will unite everybody and bring all of them on board. Some of these leaders if they invite others for a meeting they will not come but if I do they will all come and they will eat on the same table and then we can settle our differences for everybody to talk Benue, forget about our differences so that Benue will move forward. We have suffered for too long. We don’t need to be fighting.

There is the thinking that Tor Tiv and the governor cannot come from the same place in which is your case now. What is your reaction?

Look, I am a Nongov man and the Tor Tiv is Iharev man. We are the eldest in Minda. The Tiv have two components, the Ichongo and the Ipusu. The other part of the Ichongo is in Zone A, that is the Turan people. In Minda here, Nongov is the senior. I want to tell you that Tor Tiv is a paramount ruler which has nothing to do with political leadership; after all, he is the Tor Tiv and not Tor Benue. He is the Chairman, Benue Council of Chiefs. We are talking about political leadership not the traditional leadership. When people say Tarka did it, I told you that in politics, one plus one can be many things. If Tarka were to be alive today, he would tell you a different thing.

Will you decamp to the opposition party if you fail to win the PDP primaries?

I am not a pessimist and so I don’t see how I will not win nomination. By the grace of God, I will be given nomination. Why will I have to leave the party that has been very helpful to me? I have been the Secretary of the party for six years, deputy chairman of the party for one year, National Auditor for four years and now a minister for three years as a PDP man. What will I be looking for in another party?

August 17, 2014
Oil theft forces Shell to shut pipeline again

ANGLO-Dutch oil giant Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) yesterday shut the Trans Niger Pipeline (TNP) following reports of fresh leaks, barely 10 days after its repair.

The development has led to the deferment of about 150,000 barrels of oil per day from the facility.

Shell spokesman Precious Okolobo, in a statement, said: “The latest leaks were reported at B-Dere, Nonwa–Tai, and Bodo West all in Ogoni land. SPDC shut the line as a precautionary measure after receiving reports of the incidents and has also mobilised a spill response team.

“A joint investigation visit will be conducted as soon as possible to determine the cause and impact of the spills.”

Two weeks ago, Shell declared force majeure on Bonny Light exports and gas supply to Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas Limited (NLNG) to repair the pipeline. The pipeline resumed operation last week before it was shut again yesterday.

Okolobo said the force majeure was declared following the shutting down of the TNP for repair following fresh crude oil theft leaks at Bodo West and Oloma.

He said some 150,000 barrels of oil and 500 million standard cubic feet of gas per day were also deferred as a result of the shutdown.

“The TNP has been repeatedly targeted and closed down five times since early July due to multiple leaks from crude theft connections,” he said, adding that the company was working to repair and reopen the line as soon as possible.

Shell has been the worst hit by oil theft among oil companies operating in the country, with an average loss of 80,000 barrels per day.

Its Managing Director and country chair of Shell Companies in Nigeria, Mr. Mutiu Sunmonu, who has persistently condemned the incessant attacks on the company’s assets, said Shell had contributed a lot to the economy. Shell, he said, helped in building the Afam VI power plant which has over 600 mega watt (MW) capacity, developing domestic gas supply, human capacity development, infrastructure provision, among others.

During the launch of the ongoing Shell advertising campaign in the media “Let’s Go,” Sunmonu said Shell companies generated $69 billion for the government years between 2008 and 2011 through payment of taxes and royalties.

Shell, he said, contributed $178million to the Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) last year as part of the mandatory levy oil companies remit into the commission’s fund.

He said additional $103million was directly invested by SPDC and Shell Nigeria Exploration And Production Company Limited (SNEPCo) towards addressing social and economic development challenges in the Niger Delta, paid about $635million into the government’s education fund in the last five years, and awarded $2.4billion contracts to indigenous contractors last year.

October 10, 2013
Jonathan and the evil forces within

What President Jonathan is a deeply religious leader is not totally unexpected because his life has been a testimony to God’s special kindness. From a ‘shoeless’ school boy, God paved the way for a very rewarding position of an OMPADEC Assistant Director. From there he became Deputy Governor through the goodwill of his mentor, Alamieseigha. Obasanjo then became God’s instrumentality to change Jonathan’s life to a life of bigger testimonies. Obasanjo after jailing Jonathan’s boss, for stealing his people’s money first installed Jonathan Governor and later moved him up as vice president.

Jonathan, the apple of God’s eye without struggle became president following Yar’Adua’s death. And in spite of PDP zoning policy and resistance from the real owners of PDP, he won a landslide victory in the 2011 election. Dame Patience Jonathan also enjoys God’s special grace. She recently gave a testimony of how God gave her another chance by raising her from death after eight days in a German hospital.

One can therefore understand why the president not only believes in miracles but also in the existence of ‘evil forces’ working towards the disintegration of Nigeria. This also explains why Jonathan doesn’t give a damn about the alleged weakness of character of his close associates including much reviled Tony Anenih, Doyin Okupe Bamanga Tukur and Ahmadu Alli and their troublesome sons. Jonathan knows men count for little but ’with God all things are possible’.

In 2010, instead of reducing the presidential palace to just a house of intrigue, like his predecessors, he set up inside Aso rock an annual prayer session as ‘a forum to establish God link at the Presidential villa’. Two weeks ago after one of such sessions, he alerted the nation about the evil forces trying to derail Nigeria.

I think we must pay special attention to what was by all account a revelation to President Jonathan after a powerful prayer session. This is to prevent the president’s advisers from reducing this serious revelation to name calling and witch hunting of groups and opposition parties. We must not forget they once misled him on serious policy issues such as removal of phantom fuel subsidy and bail out for the aviation sector instead of the manufacturing sector.

Let me therefore as a social scientist and stakeholder in the Nigeria project help our god-fearing president to isolate groups that are not likely to support disintegration of Nigeria and identify areas where he should pay greater attention to avoid unnecessary dissipation of energy.

First, neither the dominant nor the minority ethnic groups including the oil-rich states want a disintegrated Nigeria. I think what each group wants in line with the dream of our founding fathers is fairness, justice and freedom to manage the affairs of their respective nations within the greater Nigerian nation.

First, the Hausa/Fulani in the event of Nigerian disintegration have nowhere to go. When the intemperate Murtala Mohammed leading northern soldiers in the wake of the vengeance coup of 1966 attempted to take the north out of Nigeria, Britain and the US counselled them to fight for survival within a greater Nigerian nation. Today, there is no more a monolithic north. Secondly, the greed of today’s northern leaders have replaced the selflessness of Ahmadu Bello, the very personification of feudalism who nonetheless practiced egalitarianism by sending children of the poor and underprivileged in the north to the best schools in the world. Almost 50 years after the venerable Ahmadu Bello’s death, the new northern leaders and beneficiaries of his foresight need Nigeria if they are to survive the wrath an army of unemployed and uneducated youths forced to embrace Boko Haram.

The Igbo, hemmed at all sides and detested by less competitive groups have no place to go outside the greater Nigerian nation. They like the Jews thrive more in other peoples land. And as Achebe puts it, they only ‘run home when calamity befalls the owner of the land, leaving behind the owners of the land who know how to appease their own gods”.

That has also changed. Today, they are marooned in Boko Haram-besieged north. Back home, their hostile land has been taken over by an army of unemployed youths whose major occupation is kidnapping children and the wealthy for ransom.

Of course the Yoruba in spite of clamour for regional integration need Nigeria more than any other group. An area P C Loyd said was more urbanized than Europe at the time of the colonization achieved that cultural advancement by their accommodation of strangers. It has always been the case since Obatala, according to myth descended with a rope from heaven or Oduduwa according to Ifa came with a new wave of immigrants from Mero near today’s Egypt. . Their cities and villages have today become havens for Nigerian internal immigrants from the besieged north-east and those driven by commerce and kidnappers from the south- east. The Market women yam sellers are at peace with itinerant Hausa yam sellers, motorists wait patiently for Fulani herdsmen and their flock while crossing the busy express ways, property rate has soared in Banana Island and I am sure Governor Fashola has factored into his Atlantic City Project, Igbo property speculators.

The South-south will need more than vandalisation of oil pipelines to survive a disintegrated Nigeria. Amaechi, Imoke are some of the governors with Igbo names ruling some of the oil producing states. President Jonathan won more votes in Imo than Governor Okorocha because of his wife’s Igbo factor. In other words, a disintegrated Nigeria is an open invitation for the landlocked East to start from where they stopped before the civil war and finally resolve the outstanding issue of Port Harcourt abandoned properties.

And finally, to exorcise the evil spirit bent on disintegration of Nigeria, the president should take a closer look at himself and his PDP. He may for instance discover that the real source of despair in our nation is PDP and its leading lights who as beneficiaries of present anarchy, stand against fairness, justice and are opposed to a national conference to discuss our differences.

What else can be a greater threat to survival of a nation than a group of greedy men sharing of our blue chips firms on which the nation had invested over a hundred billion dollars for a pittance or when an exercise designed by World Bank to create seven million jobs became an avenue for amassing huge family wealth while millions of unemployed youths roam the streets of our major cities?

The evil forces bent on destroying Nigeria include the president’s PDP colleagues who appointed over 140 fuel importers including their siblings some of whom defrauded the nation to the tune of about N1.7 trillion without importing a pint of fuel. And of course, the evil spirit will include senior members of the judiciary smiling to the banks for shielding felons from facing justice.

In league of the president elusive evil spirit bent on destroying our nation are the president men who without recouping the tax payers’ billions of naira given out as bail out to the airlines embarked on another wasteful venture of borrowing millions of dollars to buy aircrafts for mismanaged air lines owned by members or sympathizers of PDP.

And finally, if the president stopped closing his eyes during his well meaning night vigils, he may discover to his pleasant surprise that in the league of the ‘evil forces’ are some pastors who exploit the fears of our jobless youths they fraudulently reassured of miracles in spite of God’s injunction that we all must live by our sweats, and those who buy private jets with the help of governors as ‘thieves in state houses’ and bankers who stole depositors funds.

April 25, 2013
Police won’t join forces with OPC to find Lagos council chair

The Lagos State Police Command yesterday said it would not need the assistance of the Oodua People’s Congress (OPC) to secure the release of the Chairman of Ejigbo Local Council Development Area (LCDA), Mr Kehinde Bamigbetan, who was abducted by yet unknown gunmen near his home on Monday.

The Command’s Deputy Police Public Relations Officer (DPPRO), Ozoani Damasus, spoke with reporters yesterday.

Reacting to the OPC’s assurance that it would work with the police to ensure the release of the council boss, Ozoani said OPC is an outlawed group, which a constituted authority would not work with.

The police spokesperson said: “OPC is a banned organisation and it remains banned. So, we are not aware of them working with us to secure Bamigbetan’s release. We are yet to make any arrest for now, but we are on top of the situation. We have our strategy and we cannot disclose it in public.

“Let me assure you that police are on top of the situation and efforts are on to ensure his immediate release. There will be proper briefing after his release.”

Prayers continued to hold at the Bamigbetans’ 21, Ono Iwa Mimo Street, Ori-Oke, Egbe home yesterday.

Though reporters were prevented from entering the compound, some members of an unidentified church were seen leaving after praying for about an hour for Bamigbetan’s release.

Dignitaries continued to throng Bamigbetan’s home where his wife in solidarity visit to his wife, Fatimah, children and relations, were waiting anxiously to see him.

The wife of the Speaker of the House of Assembly, Mrs Mayowa Ikuforiji, and his entourage, prayed with the family.

A source from the family said: “The more the delay, the more apprehensive the wife and children become. People have been coming; prayers have been offered, but what is important is that he is found. I cannot say whether the kidnappers are still contacting the family.

There were high hopes that the abducted council boss may be released soon as the kidnappers reportedly promised to release him this morning at a yet unnamed location.

A source, who preferred anonymity, told The Nation yesterday that the kidnappers got in touch with the family and assured it to be prepared to receive Bamigbetan at an undisclosed location by tomorrow (today) morning.

“As we talk, the kidnappers are getting in touch with the family which has kept the hope of the family and well wishers alive. But we pray and sincerely hope that the abductors will keep to their promise,” the source said.

A socio-political group, the Osun Development Agenda (ODA), has called for Bamigbetan’s unconditional release, after an emergency meeting in Osogbo, the Osun State capital.

Its deputy convener, Rahman Shenge, in a statement, expressed shock over the incident, describing it as unfortunate, adding that Bamigbetan’s abduction was a bad omen for the Yoruba and a reflection of worsening security situation in the country.

It said: “This dastardly act calls for serious concern on the part of all Yoruba sons and daughters who must now wake up from their slumber and complacency as it is now clear that the Southwest of Nigeria is no longer immune from the malady of heinous criminalities which we once thought was impossible here.

“As an organisation, we are naturally worried about the safety of our convener (Bamigbetan) and the psychological trauma he must be going through in the hands of his captors who have made a baffling demand for $1million as a ransom for his life and freedom.

“While we call for the immediate unconditional release of Comrade Bamigbetan, we call on all Nigerians and state governments in the Southwest to reflect on this ugly development and its implications for the security the Nigerian state and the need to decentralise it for effective maintenance of law and order in our land. Clearly, the need for state police can no longer be dismissed.”

April 19, 2013
Forces against PIB

The Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) was born in crisis. The crisis keeps growing despite all efforts to resolve it. At a time, it was the oil companies against the government. Now lawmakers from the North have picked up the gauntlet against the bill, which is before the National Assembly. Will the bill be passed by the Assembly? asks EMEKA UGWUANYI, Assistant Editor (Energy).

The Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB) was conceived over 10 years ago by – wait for it- a Northerner, Dr Rilwanu Lukman, former Minister of Petroleum Resources. Lukman saw something good in intiating the bill, but today the North is kicking against it, claiming that it is lopsided.

The PIB is based on the report of the Oil and Gas Reform Implementation Committee (OGIC) set up by the Federal Government in 2000 to carry out a comprehensive reform of the oil industry. The OGIC was charged with making recommendations for a far-reaching restructuring of the oil and gas industry. The committee was chaired by Lukman, who was then the Presidential Adviser on Petroleum and Energy.

Lukman describes the PIB as a reform legislation designed to encapsulate the legislative and administrative instruments governing the petroleum industry in one omnibus legislation establishing clear rules, procedures and institutions for the industry.

There are 16 laws guiding operations in the oil and gas industry, which have been brought as one document under the PIB. Besides, some loopholes found in these laws were as much as possible plugged in the PIB.

The main laws brought under the PIB are the Petroleum Act 1969 (as amended), Petroleum Profits Tax Act 1959 (as amended), and Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Act of 1977 (as amended). These, and practically every other law regulating the sector, needed to be updated to reflect the changing dynamics of the oil and gas industry worldwide.

In a presentation at a stakeholders’ session in 2009, Lukman said: “The Nigeria Petroleum Industry Bill is a remarkable document, which contains most of the legal requirements that will apply to the petroleum industry in Nigeria.

“The PIB combines 16 different petroleum laws in a transparent and coherent document. This is the first time that such a large scale consolidation has happened anywhere in the world. Good governance is promoted through the removal of much of the confidentiality as well as creating transparency.

“Confidentiality encourages corruption. The best way to fight corruption is to remove confidentiality for all procedures, contracts and payments. Every Nigerian, including stakeholders, should have the right to know what is going on. The bill removes confidentiality on a scale not seen in the world before. Nigeria will move in one step from one of the most opaque petroleum nations in Africa, to one of the most open and transparent in the world.

“The texts of all licences, leases and contracts and any of the changes to such documents will no longer be confidential. Payments to the government of Nigeria will be public information. All petroleum geological, geophysical, technical and well data will be accessible for all interested persons in a national data base.

“The proposed bill will result in a significant increase in transparency. From now on, petroleum prospecting licences and petroleum mining leases can only be granted by the Minister through a truly competitive bid process. Such process will be open and accessible to all qualified companies.

“Every company involved in the upstream petroleum industry will be subject to the same system of rents, royalties and taxes, depending on whether they operate in the onshore, shallow or deep offshore or inland areas.

“This means it will not be possible under the bill to treat certain companies more favourably than others. Nigerians can only fully benefit from their petroleum resources, if there is a sound petroleum administration.”

Criticisms

Despite the intellectual and technical input from some of the industry’s best hands, the bill has not been well received in some quarters. Some industry operators also criticised it. When efforts were being made to see if the bill would be passed into law during the Sixth National Assembly, it was dogged by all manner of allegations. Some alleged that the operator companies – mostly the multinationals – influenced members of the National Assembly to stall the bill’s passage.

The Sixth Assembly organised a public hearing so that it could hear first hand from stakeholders. That was not to be as it was alleged that there were several versions of the bill. It was alleged that the copy of PIB submitted to the National Assembly then was that of NNPC. At the end of the day, the Sixth Assembly’s tenure ended without the bill’s passage.

The multinational oil firms have continued to kick against the perceived contentious provisions in the bill, especially the fiscal terms. They claim that the benefits the government wants from operations are so high that if the bill is passed in its present state, they would be running their business at a loss. It is because of this that they are opposed to the bill.

Other issues in the bill that operators frown on include undue powers conferred on the minister of Petroleum and some conditions attached to acreage leases to oil firms. These and other issues that border on downstream sector are what the government was trying to resolve before Northern lawmakers joined the fray.

Mounting opposition

Reports have it that the lawmakers are opposed to the bill beause of the alleged establishment of the Host Community Fund, said to give oil producing states dominance, especially the Southsouth states over their northern counterparts. Besides, they claimed, the north would pay more for petroleum products if the bill is passed in its current state, among other issues.

The lawmakers’ position, according to reports, is hinged on the consensus reached by the Northern Governors Forum, Northern Caucus in the House of Representatives and the Northern Senators Forum. The consensus is based on the report of an independent assessment of the bill by a consultant employed by the group to examine the bill and its effect on the North when passed into law. The consultant’s report was considered favourable to the regions, hence the north’s opposition to the bill.

According to reports, all the complaints raised against the PIB were contained in a single document. The document showed that the North may not benefit from oil and gas revenues as it does now.

The document reads: “On top of the 13.5 per cent statutory derivation from the Federation Account, the mandatory Federal budgetary allocation to the Ministry of Niger Delta, Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC) levy of three per cent of oil operations and the massive amount of federal funds being spent on the Niger Delta Amnesty programme, the new PIB is adding 10 per cent of the profit of all oil and gas companies to the Niger Delta States and Communities.

“Currently, without this new addition, four states (Akwa Ibom, Bayelsa, Delta, and Rivers) earn more than the 19 Northern states combined. One wonders what kind of federation we would end up with, if this situation is escalated by the new PIB. In any case, what really is the constitutional standing of this particular provision in the Bill?”

The northern caucus should also put into consideration that producing oil communities directly bear the brunt of exploitation both the people and the environment. Besides, after over 50 years of oil production and export, most of these communities lack basic infrastructure and social amenities. The northern lawmakers or caucus, if they see the country as a true federation, should endeavour to compel governments at all levels to develop these communities and improve their standard of living considering the contribution they make to the country.

The position of the North on PIB was confirmed by the Chairman, Senate Committee on Housing, Senator Bukar Abba-Ibrahim, who said the region is opposed to PIB beacuse of the provision of additional 10 per cent revenue for oil producing communities.

He said: “The additional revenue is unecceptable because the oil producing communities have the Federal Government’s take home, the Niger Delta Development Commission’s (NDDC) over N500 billion for projects in the oil producing communities, the Niger Delta Ministry with over N400 billion allocation and oil companies’corporate social responsibility programmes.”

Finding the way out

Following criticisms of the bill by operators and other stakeholders, the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, raised a committee to harmonise various groups’ interests in the bill to make it acceptable to all.

Critics took her up for this, but Mrs Alison-Madueke said she was only reacting to public demand for more transparency in the industry, which the PIB stands for.

She said the committee was established to ensure a speedy passage of the bill. She said: “Though the members of the OGIC did a good job, we have all seen that the bill lacked the requirements of the Sixth Assembly and needed to be redefined, and gingered up for speedy and very expedient passage by the Seventh Assembly. As a matter of fact, you are all also aware that at the end of the Sixth Assembly, there was more than one version going around. So, the government expects that the committee will put up all the indices in place to redefine the bill, look at certain sections and include strategic aspects so that we can get it right.”

The Panel

Senator Udoma Udo Udoma headed the task force, which members comprised Senator Tunde Ogbeha, Senator Emmanuel Agboti, Senator M. T. Liman, Hon. Chibudom Nwuche, Hon. Abdullahi Gumel, Hon. Habeeb Fashinro; and Comrade Peter Esele, President, Trade Union Congress. The Minister said at the inauguration of the committee: “We have listened to the voices of the people of Nigeria, when over the last few weeks, they spoke in unison for accelerated reforms in the oil and gas industry. These reforms will anchor on a new PIB. The special taskforce is saddled with speeding up the process of re-drafting the PIB.”

The minister also inaugurated a technical committee consisting of experts in the industry to assist the special taskforce. The Technical Committee chaired by the Director, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR), Osten Olorunsola had Chief Sena Anthony, Alhaji Umar Abba Gana, Mr. George Osahon, Mallam I.D.Waziri, Mr Victor Briggs, Dr. Francis Adigwe, Mr. Victor Oyenkpa and Mr. Seyi Bickersteth as members.

Benefits

Mrs Alison-Madueke said when the bill is passed, the gas sector will become the crux of the economy going forward.

She said: “We have much more gas reserves than we have in crude. The PIB is a long and indepth bill, a historic, critical and extensive bill encompassing the 16 hitherto existing laws with the oil and gas industry.

“Once the PIB is fully passed, transparency in the oil and gas industry would be achieved. It is a truism to say that the oil and gas industry has been characterised by too much opaqueness, high level of confidentiality. To this end, therefore, the PIB would remove opaqueness on a scale that has never been seen. Consequently, data would be accessible to all interested persons. One of the benefits of the bill would be in the creation of over 300,000 jobs in the industry in the next four to five years, compulsory execution of corporate social responsibility (CSR) for host communities, end of gas flaring and commercialisation of NNPC, among others.

‘’The PIB would ensure that transparency and good governance are promoted through the removal of much of the confidentiality as well as creating transparency. The bill on passage will ensure that all operations comply with all modern technical standards, are sound commercial proposition, don’t involve excessive costs, meet all health and safety standards, include Nigerian content plan that ensures maximisation of Nigerian employment and business opportunities, ensure maximum local economic spin-offs and job opportunities, meet all environmental standards, including approved environmental management plan and encourage investment in small oil and gas fields.”

Stakeholders’reactions

The Lead Director, Centre for Social Justice, Eze Onyekpere, said it is surprising that people are saying the PIB has been dumped because some northern legislators are against some provisions of the bill. “It is only a bill and it should undergo a normal legislative process, which it is undergoing.

“Certainly, some people may not like some provisions in the bill and, of course, we shouldn’t expect the bill to come out exactly the way it went in or was submitted by the executive. Therefore, I’m surprised to hear people say that northern legislators reject PIB,” he said.

The immediate past President of Nigerian Association of Petroleum Explorationists (NAPE), Dr. Lawrence Afe Mayowa, described the non-passage of the Bill as “an embarrassment.”

He said poor inflow of investment into the oil industry was because of non-passage of the PIB. He said the passage of the bill would open up the industry and create windows of opportunities for the country including employment. He said passage of the PIB would give credibility to the government and encourage investments in the sector. “The passage of the bill will certainly move Nigeria forward and attract more investors to our country,” he said.

He said if the PIB becomes law, it would address anomalies in the industry, including the persistent inadequate supply of gas to the electricity generating stations because provisions for all these are made in the bill. “The foot-dragging over the passage of the PIB has made Nigeria to a laughing stock before the international community,” he added.

NAPE also made efforts to get stakeholders to a round table on how to stop the negative impact the PIB’s delay is having on the economy. Nigeria, according to the association, lost over N543 billion ($3.62 billion) in revenue from existing Production Sharing Contracts (PSC) in 2011 to the delay in the passage of the PIB. NAPE said the figure could be more than that as the country’s multi-billion dollars oil and gas industry is faced with imminent investments’ drain “as a result of the delay.”

Mayowa reiterated calls for the quick passage of the bill “to save the country from the huge loss in revenue.” He added that the association is at the forefront of efforts to place the oil and gas industry on the right track, adding that would continue to ensure that things are done right in the industry.

The Principal Consultant, Lonadek Oil and Gas Consultants, Dr. Ibilola Amao, said: “To give direction and focus to the oil and gas industry, the Federal Government has to ensure that the PIB, which has long been before the National Assembly, is passed into law and the downstream sector fully deregulated.’’

She noted that the poor investment inflow into the oil and gas industry in recent times is because investors are not sure of the fiscal terms and impact that the passage of the PIB would have on their operations. Prompt passage of the Bill would clearly address these problems, she added.

She said the passage of PIB should boost government’s efforts to improve gas supply to power sector for stable electricity supply. To achieve this, she said there was need for the government to support gas aggregation and monetisation and ensure that the Final Investment Decision (FID) for projects, such as Brass LNG and NLNG Train 7 is taken quickly.

She stressed the importance of government’s commitment to the implementation of the Gas Master Plan, which should address domestic use in a most favourable manner. These projects, when in place, would contribute to uninterrupted power supply and help boost the growth of Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs).

Conclusion

However, some stakeholders in the industry see something good in the PIB. They argue it is incontrovertible that a reform of the petroleum industry is overdue. Certainly, they said there must be provisions in the bill that don’t appeal to everybody, hence the need for legislative tinkering to sort things out. No doubt, the interests of stakeholders should be considered to ensure the industry attracts the required investment to attain the expected growth, technology transfer, best practices for safety and protection of the environment and most of all, adding value to Nigerians and the economy.

January 7, 2013
There are forces against Nigeria’s reform

SIR: The nation’s budget for year 2012 is largely oil-dependent to the tune of about N5 trillion despite the fact that India is expecting, for the same period, $70 billion (N10.5 trillion) from software exports alone.

Perhaps we need to remind ourselves of where both India and Nigeria are coming from. In the 1980s, when the Delta Steel Company (DSC) was being built by a consortium of foreign companies, Mecon of India was serving as consultants to DSC. Mecon seconded many of its experienced engineers to DSC, who were helping to groom their Nigerian counterparts.

While these highly experienced expatriate Indians were chauffeur-driven in brand new air-conditioned, official Peugeot cars, people in DSC were usually surprised to hear of how some of them were receiving letters from their home office, informing them of the approval of their motorcycle loans!

This was at a time fresh Nigerian graduates looked forward to buying new cars after just a few years of working. This was before our present addiction for“tokunbo” products.

India has since transformed into one of the sensational economies including Brazil, Russia, India and China (BRIC) while Nigeria is retrogressing deeper into poverty, which according to figures from the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS), has worsened from 54.7 in2004 to 61.9 in2011. Our state governors are busy bickering over statutory allocation, while their counterparts across the world are aggressively harvesting the infinite opportunities created by globalisation. While we remain on revenue allocation, the world is moving in the direction of technological creativity.

The real tragedy is that even with the pitiable state of our nation, our entrenched interests are still fighting viciously to ensure that nothing changed. More tragic is the fact that they are using the rest of us, to bring down anybody that tries to change things! We are helping our entrenched interests to ensure that nothing changes, and to deal with each officeholder that refuses to toe their line.

The Goldman Sachs’ research report for 2007 listed Nigeria among its ‘Next 11’group of countries expected to catch up to the fastest developing BRIC economies.

That reform might even have been most providential, considering what could have become of the Nigerian economy if the global meltdown that soon followed had met us with a financial sector driven by fragile, under-capitalised banks!

Similarly, the all-important Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB), which had clearly forgotten the destination of the 12-year journey it started since 2000 with President Obasanjo’s Oil & Gas Reform Implementation Committee (OGIC), is now suddenly contemplating reality! This means that all those years of regulatory uncertainty, blocking billions of dollars of oil-sector investments, are coming to an end. Again, for the first time in our petroleum history, we now have a “Nigerian Content Development Act”, which has transformed the capacity for local participation in the sector.

• Gabriel Zowam,

Reform & Process Improvement Expert.

December 12, 2012
A close race forces Obama, Romney to knock voters’ doors

What has knocking at doors got to do with the race to the White House? The closeness of the race, whose winner is expected today, has forced President Barack Obama and former Governor Mitt Romney to resort to ‘ingenious’ means: their volunteers trudge from door to door and call up millions of voters, desperately seeking one last voter, reports OLUKOREDE YISHAU in Chicago

Whoever wins today’s election between President Barack Obama and former Governor Mitt Romney may owe it largely to two major methods: knocking voters’ doors and calling them up. They also used text messages. A professor at the University of Wisconsin, Madison said he got five messages in less than one hour from each of the candidates soliciting his vote.

Billions have been spent on television advertisements in swing states such as Ohio, Florida, Wisconsin and Iowa, but the candidates have not played with knocking from door to door to beg people to either come out and vote or get registered and vote immediately. In America, a potential voter can still register, even on election day once he or she can provide means of identification and other details of eligibility.

In the freezing weather and with hunger biting at their tummies, the volunteers, who were mostly recruited at rallies, other campaign events and near early voting locations, knocked on doors of neigbours pleading their candidates’ case.

From Milwaukee to Washington, Chicago, Janesville and Madison, The Nation observed volunteers for both Obama and Romney either knocking doors of neigbours or calling them up at phone banks set up by each candidates in parts of the country.

Many of the volunteers have been knocking doors or calling up voters for months. Some have been doing it for years, it was learnt. They have had to pay the price of getting late to bed and rising early. Some take coffee to get going again in the morning. The phone banks always have coffee and staff serving it.

In Milwaukee, a group known as Black Ambassadors knocked from door to door convincing voters to get out and vote. A volunteer said she had to combine the task with her regular job as a teacher. “I just love doing this for our country. The important thing is to get them out to vote, though I ask them to vote for President Obama,” she said.

At a phone bank located inside the Auto Workers’ Union building in Janesville, the home town of Republican presidential running mate, Ryan Paul, Democrat volunteers, called up voters begging them desperately to go out and vote. Some of the volunteers came from Chicago, which is just about two hours by road. They said their last-minute efforts were crucial to winning the White House for Obama. Not so far away from there, Republican volunteers holed up in a building used by Ryan as constituency office, called one voter after the other. On the wall of the phone bank was a notice indicating rewards (souvenirs) for volunteers who could call certain number of voters.

At a phone bank run by the Obama for America in Chicago, volunteers, tired from calling up voters, said their job was crucial to deciding the election. One of them told The Nation that even on election day, they would be at the bank to call up voters. He said: We are going to continue because it is important to get out as many people as possible. It can make the difference. We are not breaking any law.”

Across the battleground states, Obama’s aides said 5,117 staging areas were set up in homes, garages and community halls for volunteers to work from. Romney did not have that much operation, but campaign officials were optimistic it would yield dividends.

A recent Washington Post poll in Virginia showed that 43 per cent of likely voters already had been contacted by Obama’s campaign and 40 per cent had heard from Romney’s. Republicans claim to have made five million voter contacts.

The Nation learnt that the contacts of voters are sourced from the voter register, which contains phone numbers and other details. Armed with these details, the volunteers assist their candidates, who polls released on Sunday showed, were neck-to-neck.

But, many voters, bombarded by calls, have stopped picking up their phones. A volunteer for Romney in Madison confirmed experiencing this. Obama aides said this was responsible for their emphasis on door-to-door canvassing. Obama himself called up voters from Air Force One.

The door-to-door and call up efforts are complimented by the candidates, who spent Sunday and yesterday in the battleground states, making their final pitches to voters. On Sunday, Romney was in Pennsylvania and Virginia. Obama was in New Hampshire and Colorado. The two biggest swing states of Florida and Ohio also hosted the two men.

Obama yesterday returned to Wisconsin; this time to Madison, the capital of Wisconsin State and home of the famous Wisconsin University. He attended a rally at the Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard in front of the County Building. He was assisted by a rock star Bruce Springsteen in this eve of election rally.

As Obama held the Madison rally, Vice President Joe Biden held three campaign events in Virginia. Former President Bill Clinton made stops in Pennsylvania. First Lady Michelle Obama flew down the East Coast, sealing the deal for her husband in Charlotte, North Carolina and Orlando, Florida.

After Madison, Obama, assisted by rap star Jay Z, addressed a rally in Columbus, Ohio. He and the First Lady returned to Iowa for a final grassroots rally in Des Moines.

In the long run, the history of the last days of the race for the White House may not dwell much on reliance on modern technology and the newest techniques in micro-targeting. Both sides’ response to the polarised politics, which saw them using the ground-level effort of knocking on doors, will sure take a prime slot.

And if the queues at early voting centres are anything to by, the efforts are yielding results. But in whose favour will it finally be? It will all be clear by tomorrow morning in Nigeria and later today in America.

November 6, 2012
NAICOM ‘forces out N1.22bn claims from insurance firms in six months’

The National Insur-ance Commission (NAICOM) said its Complaints Bureau facilitated the settlement of N1.2 billion claims by insurance companies in the first half of the year.

In a statement in Abuja at the weekend, the commission said the payment involved 52 cases concluded by the bureau during the period.

It said during the period, the Complaints Bureau dealt with 349 cases and held four adjudication meetings.

Of the number, 86 cases were fresh complaints. The remaining (263) were existing/ongoing cases.

The statement said outstanding claims were currently receiving the attention of the commission and assured the insuring public of quick resolution of issues.

The industry regulator noted that it was “no longer business as usual’’ with insurance firms, considering that there had been remarkable improvement on compliance with the commission’s directives”.

“Consequently, not less than 85 per cent of the insurance institutions responded to queries or directives issued to them for claim settlement during the period.

“Majority of the 15 per cent residual are largely claims already before courts of competent jurisdiction and therefore prejudicial for the commission to intervene,’’ the statement said.

It noted that complaints received during the year were mainly those involving non-settlement of claims on motor insurance, marine, life, bond Issues and pension matters.

It added that complaints were also received from individual policy holders, beneficiaries and government agencies, such as SERVICOM, Legal Aid Council and Public Complaints Commission.

September 24, 2012