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Tag: woes

  • Minimum wage, maximum woes

    Minimum wage, maximum woes

    Nigeria has exited from recession but Nigerians are yet to feel the impact. The benefits of the recovery from prolonged economic doldrums are coming in trickles but even the trickles can hardly form a drop in the surging ocean of pervasive poverty. Hardship bites harder as the year draws to a close with President Muhammadu Buhari charging the governors to ensure that workers in their respective states are paid before the Christmas holidays. In the last two years, the issue of payment of salaries has been such a thorny subject to the extent of forcing the federal government to accede twice to a bailout and further agreeing to special refunds to enable the states pay workers. Within the private sector, millions of jobs have been lost, while pay cut and outright retrenchment have become normal in industries striving hard and devising means to succeed.

    Amidst this scenario however, a contradictory escalating call for pay rise rises to a fever pitch. Understandably, the brutally recessed economy has mercilessly reduced the purchasing power of the naira. And Nigeria is already running foul of the provisions of the International Labour Organization that stipulates a timely review of the minimum wage law. The nation’s five-year mandatory review has elapsed and the value of workers take home cruelly shrunken by galloping inflation which has obviously left workers with little alternative. The review of the national minimum wage is significant at this time but the stake is certainly very high. How will the states most of whom currently owing months in arrears of salaries and allowances cope with the new minimum wage? And how will the private sector already bruised by downturn and tiers of government battling with lean resources cope with the new wage bill? This and many other questions are troubling.

    But the president while inaugurating the 30-man minimum wage committee clarified that the new wage should be anchored on the ability of the tiers of government to pay. However, that is where more troubling questions arise. Why is the federal government legislating on a new minimum wage for states and local governments in a federation? How can the committee on a new minimum wage determine holistically, the ability of different tiers of government whose resources differ across boundaries?

    Can the minimum wage in Rivers and Lagos states for instance be sustained in Borno, Benue or Abia? Though the minimum wage is on the exclusive legislative list and the composition of the members of the minimum wage committee drawn on a tripartite basis comprising government at all levels, the workers and the job providers in the private sector to ensure a plural view and guarantee a composite agreement, matching the capacity of these respective tripartite groups with a realistic wage bar looks like a recipe for crisis. The reasons are obvious. The Yoruba socio-cultural group, the Afenifere observed recently and asked the federal government to allow states and local governments decide the minimum they can afford for their workers. Again, this patriotic opinion is not realistic without an amendment of the constitution to remove the minimum wage from the exclusive list.

    Chris Ngige is an experienced administrator and an astute politician having been governor of his home Anambra State as well as senator in the seventh Senate and now the Hon. Minister of Labour and Employment. He said that by the new minimum wage, the federal government was determined to eliminate “poverty pain” which according to him occurs when worker’s earning could not guarantee him a good living.  In spite, more questions hang on this move by the federal government to live up to its constitutional responsibilities. The governor of Rivers State, Nyesom Wike for example, has argued the current exercise would come out futile. Wike in a broadcast television interview thwacked the charge by the president to the governors to clear all arrears of salaries owed workers before the Christmas holidays, dismissing it as political. He asked the federal government to shed weight so as to demonstrate its genuine sympathy for the plight of the state civil servants. He further punctured the case for a new minimum wage in the absence of a review of the federal revenue sharing formula, wondering how states that could not pay N18,000 minimum wage can afford the new pay rise.

    Many have argued that the basis of the on-going wage crisis is the de-structured fiscal federalism where the federal government takes 52% of the revenue of the federation, states 22%, and 774 local governments 26%. The total wage bill of Benue State for instance is about N7 billion with its total monthly revenue standing way below N5 billion. By the time, the minimum wage gets to say N56, 000 (factional leader of the organized labour movement, Joe Ajaero is demanding for N100, 000 minimum wage) from the present N18, 000, what becomes the fate of the state? Even the federal government will not be left out of the pending crisis.  By last count, a total of about eleven organized labour unions have gone on strike over wage related issues and unmet agreements spanning close to a decade.

    Containing the cascading labour unrest has so far been as a result of the outstanding performance of some of the cabinet ministers in the Buhari administration. Ngige though without a prior labour background has by sheer brilliance, masterfully engineered a proactive labour diplomacy that held the nation from sliding the way of Venezuela. There is no disputing the fact that the socio-political and economic milieu that made a Venezuela have been staring the nation on its face in the last two years. Therefore, that the ever sensitive and easily restive labour has neither snapped its patience nor triggered a social upheaval is to the credit of the Minister of Labour and Employment.

    Seething discontent is widespread. Though the federal government has relatively met with the demands of workers, there is palpable apprehension as to what the future holds. Your guess is as good as mine.  The bottom-line is that the nation is headed for further doom unless the economy grows. Resurrecting the dying value of naira and through that, restore the value of wages and income is a smarter way to achieve better working conditions for workers. Pay rise will lead to rising costs of goods and services, making it easy for inflation to eat away the added value.

    Importantly, which private sector organization can afford a wage increase in an environment where businesses are posting losses and retrenchments at the centre stage?  With the 2017 budget performing woefully at 15%, where is the assurance that 2018 will be better? The mass discontent in the land can easily be measured by a recent warning by the leader of the APC, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu that hunger is ravaging the length and breadth of the nation. And with the governor of Imo State, Rochas Okorocha, another leader of the ruling APC, declaring that 85% of Nigerians are unhappy, which better way expresses the muted upheaval at hand? Minimum wage looks more of a recipe for maximum woes!

     

    • Udekwe writes from Abuja.
  • Igbo groups to IPOB, MASSOB: political leaders behind region’s woes

    Igbo groups to IPOB, MASSOB: political leaders behind region’s woes

    The leadership of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) and the Movement for the Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) got a piece of advice yesterday – blame the political leadership of the Southeast for the region’s woes.

    The advice came from two Southeast socio-cultural and political groups, the Igbo Peoples’ Congress (IPC) and The Igbo Aborigenes (TIB). The groups said IPOB and MASSOB should look inward for those who mortgaged their future.

    They said: “The leadership of Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) AND Movement for the Actualisation of Sovereign State of Biafra (MASSOB) to blame political leadership in Igbo land who have been pauperising Igbos over the years before blaming the North or other Nigerians for the Igbo woes.”

    In a statement by their spokesmen Pastor Okey Colbert and Chidi Obisike, the groups noted that Igbo had occupied all positions, except the executive presidency, and this did not translate to anything positive for Ndigbo.

    The statement reads: “During the Jonathan regime, Igbo constituted more than 50 per cent of his inner cabinet and yet nothing was brought for Ndigbo by these appointees, except their families, girlfriends and bootlickers.  It is these people that IPOB and MASSOB should first query before querying Nigeria.

    “What about Ralph Uwazuruike who made Igbos to be the minority of the majorities, courtesy of preventing Igbos from participating in the 2006 National Census? Is that not affecting Ndigbo today and do we blame Nigeria also for that?

    “What Nigeria has done to Ndigbo is lamentable but what Igbos have done to themselves is even more lamentable.

    “How many times do our Igbo governors and leaders make concrete case to empower our suffering youths as Niger Delta governors and leaders strenuously made case for the amnesty deal which has now seen to the empowerment of more than 200.000 Niger Delta youths and their placement on a stipend of N65,000 every month?

    “Who speaks for the suffering Igbo Youths in Nigeria and why would they not be agitating when they are abandoned by their own leaders and by Nigeria? Nnamdi Kanu and pro-Biafra agitators should ask themselves these questions and not just blaming Nigeria and the North for all Igbo woes.

    “In the house of Ralph Uwazuruike today are all manner of state-of-the-art cars and he has luxurious estates everywhere at the expense of thousands of Igbo youths who were mowed down by Nigerian security forces in the Biafran agitation. Have IPOB AND MASSOB members looked into all these?”

    “IPC and Igbo Aborigenes support Restructuring or Referendum in the alternative, but pro-Biafra agitators must ask relevant questions and put their searchlight on Igbo land first before looking outside.

  • ‘We can reverse economic woes without external help’

    ‘We can reverse economic woes without external help’

    Nigeria’s economic woes can be reversed by the people’s change of attitude, Major Hamza Al-Mustapha, former chief security officer to the late of Head of State, Gen Sani Abacha, has said.

    Speaking at a book launch in Port Harcourt, the Rivers State capital, he advocated what he called  an ‘’inward looking policy’’ that would enable the country unlock its potential.

    The book titled: ‘’Wisdom Quotes and Statements’’ was written by Long John Inimgba, Senior Pastor of the House of Liberation Ministries, Port Harcourt.

    According to him, the economic situation calls for a change of approach and strategy that would involve Nigerians investing in their abilities.

    Nigerians, he said, should develop a sense of pride and patriotism which, according to him, are the two major motivating factors that can prop people to greatness.

    He said the experience of great nations showed that their people trusted in their abilities before firing their sense of pride with a patriotic zeal.

    Citing China and Japan, which he noted once confronted their challenges with what was available in their countries, Nigeria, he said, could learn from them to attain greatness.

    “Look at China. At a point in their history, the Chinese, after discovering that communism had failed them, closed their borders, examined their history and realised that they can provide leadership to the world. Today, the story is different”, Al-Mustapha said.

    He said there was a bigger lesson to learn from Japan, which had to first contend with devastating natural disasters “but out of pride and patriotism, the Japanese locked their borders and remained inside even with all the earthquakes. They dusted the ancient books of their forebears  and today without oil, Japan is a member of the G8 countries and is the world leader in electronics”.

    “What they did not have we have in abundance but ironically, we do not look inwards to see ways of harnessing and maximising the benefits of what we have”, he said, adding : ‘’It is still not late for Nigerians to have a rethink and redraw the strategy and scientifically chart a new course as I can see light at the end of the tunnel”.

    Imploring Nigerians to cohabit peacefully as ‘’we are one, North or South’’, Al- Mustapha said those who say the country is too big to be united and pursue a common destiny are wrong.

    ‘’We are just about the same size with Texas, one state in the United States of America”, he said.

  • No end in sight to IYC woes

    No end in sight to IYC woes

    What is happening to the Ijaw Youth Council (IYC) Worldwide? The council, the only vibrant frontline organisation in Ijaw nation, is in tatters. It is bugged down by conflicting interests. It has been brought to its knees by a succession crisis. In fact, things seem to have fallen apart in IYC. Mike Odiegwu, Yenagoa reports

    If there were doubts that all is not well with the  Ijaw Youth Council (IYC),  that should have ended with Wednesday’s clash in Delta State. A  46th birthday lecture for ex-miliant leader Government Ekpemupolo (Tompolo) turned violent when supporters of the  two factions in the group threw caution to the wind. Guns boomed. Axes were freely used and many scaled fences to escape being hurt.

    A lawyer and immediate past spokesman of the group, Mr. Eric Omare, has  insisted that the council he leads is the authentic one.

    But a group viciously opposed to Omare recently concluded a parallel poll producing another lawyer, Mr. Oweilaemi Pereotubo, as a factional leader of the council. So, there seems to be no end in sight to the IYC imbroglio.

     

    Genesis of crisis

    Succession crisis is not new to the IYC. The immediate past President of the council, Mr. Udengs Eradiri, had a good dose of it. He was enmeshed in a similar impasse. In 2014, Eradiri swam the murky waters of IYC troubles, but stood his ground and ruggedly withstood all obstacles thrown to him by his detractors.

    Apart from successfully securing a political solution to the crisis, Eradiri smartly silenced all dissent voices through multiple valid court judgements. Midway into his tenure, the forces against Eradiri rose again. A significant number of his executive committee teemed up against him and conspired to depose him. They went further to declare an Ijaw youth leader, Mr. Elvis Donkemezuo, a President of IYC.

    But unknown to them, Eradiri had them cornered. He brandished copies of court judgements confirming their actions as illegal. He instituted fresh litigations charging them with contempt of court. Donkemezuo later threw in the towel citing love for Ijaw nation and desire for peace. Eradiri, thereafter, had fragile peace and temporary relief.

    Undoubtedly, the present crisis rocking the council is an offshoot of the opposition against Eradiri’s leadership by his defunct executive members. His opponents, after their aborted attempt to remove him, simply relaxed and waited for a transition process.

    So, on November 8, 2016,  Eradiri directed all zones and chapters of the council to begin the transition process. He asked them to immediately call for a general congress and nominate their electoral committee members.

    The former President said his directive was in line with the council’s constitution, citing  Article (9) section 1, 2, 3, where he derived his powers as the leader of the National Executive Council (NEC).

    He said: “I humbly direct all zones and chapter Chairmen with due consultation with their executive council members, to call for an all inclusive and well publicised congress to nominate two persons each, from the zone and one from Lagos and Abuja chapters to serve in the electoral committee and forward same through the Secretary-General of the council to NEC as enshrined in Article (9) section (3) subsection (d) of the Ijaw Youths Council constitution, not later than 25th November 2016”.

    Eradiri’s call almost hit a brick wall. The Deputy President, Mr. Razak Amatoru, in a swift reaction, gave a counter directive. He called on the zones and chapters to disregard Eradiri’s directive.

    He said: “I respectfully call on all organs of the council (National Excos, zones, chapters and Clans) to ignore such directive as it does not legitimately emanate from the council, the National Executive has not met at anytime to take such decision.”

    Razak claimed that the constitution from where Eradiri said he derived his powers, was illegitimate. He described the constitution as padded to benefit only a selected few. He argued that the council was entangled with many controversies and that an election without settling the different conflicts could plunge the council into deeper problems.

    Therefore, Razak and seven of the defunct 10-member executive committee, who were at loggerheads with the former president, thought that since there was no solution to their crisis to enable or facilitate a meeting of the council, Eradiri lacked the powers to issue directives on behalf of the council.

    But Omare, who was then a spokesman and staunch loyalist of Eradiri, differed from Razak and his group. He described the action of Razak as a clear act of insubordination and lack of respect for rules and regulations.

    He explained that there was no section of the IYC constitution which empowered a deputy president or a vice-chairman in the case of zones and chapters to counter a directive issued by the president or a zonal chairman.

    Omare also faulted the claims of Razak that the amended constitution of IYC popularly called the Ofunama Constitution was illegitimate. He said the constitution was endorsed by council members and had seen been used to run the council. According to him its provisions were relied upon to among other things set up clans and zonal electoral committees; select delegate and conduct all the zonal elections and conduct all the clan elections without complaints.

     

    Transition begins amidst crisis

    Eradiri was not ready to bow to pressure. He insisted on midwifing the transition process to enable him formally handover power to a new committee. The congress was held in Okirika, Rivers State, and the Electoral Committee headed by Mr. Oscar Izu, was inaugurated to conduct the election.

    But those opposed to Eradiri immediately held a parallel congress at Toru-Ebeni in Sagbama, Bayelsa State, and inaugurated a separate electoral committee under the leadership of Mr. Jeremaiah Owoupele.

    The Osacar Izu-led committee fixed a convention to elect new leaders of IYC on March 2nd. Irked by the development, past leaders of IYC and members of the Ijaw National Congress (INC) asked all the warring parties to sheathe their swords, suspend all their actions and attend a peace meeting at Patani, Delta State, to resolve all the crisis in the council. The meeting was at the instance of Alhaji Mujahid Asari-Dokubo.

    But Eradiri was angry at the ‘meddlesomeness’ of the elders. He wondered why such meeting should be called without first notifying him and asked Ijaw youths to disregard the gathering. He insisted that elders had no right to meddle in IYC matters adding that they only played advisory roles.

    The elders met with the opponents of Eradiri and instituted a fresh transition process tagged IYC Unity Election. Others who spearheaded the unity election are Dr. Chris Ekiyor, Werinipre Digifa, Nengi James, Jude Tabai, Ateke Tom and Preye Ekpebide. Eradiri went ahead with the March 2nd convention in Burutu, Delta State after officially vacating his office for the first time in the history of IYC.

    The convention produced the 7th National Executive Committee of IYC with Omare as the President; Deputy President, Iyerifama Godswill Jaja; Secretary-General, Ogede Embele -Akpo Parkins; Assistant Secretary-General,  Elaye Vivian Offeh and Director of Mobilisation,  Kokoimgbi Abraham Ebibobra.

    Others are, Spokesperson,  Iyalla Henry; Treasurer, Idoniboyeobu Wabiye; Financial Secretary, Frank Magada; Legal Adviser, Porri Tare; Organising Secretary, Marcus Ebikemiyen and Woman Leader, Yabrifa Jennifer Oliver.

    In his speech after his emergence, Eradiri appealed to the elders to help build peace in IYC. He said: “I humbly call on former leaders of the IYC and Ijaw opinion leaders, such as Dr. Felix Tuodolor, T. K. Ogoriba, Alhaji Asari Dokubo, Dr. Chris Ekiyor, Alabo Nengi James, Chief Daniel Ekpebide, Famous Daunemigha and others to choose the part of neutrality in order to bring peace to the IYC.

    “This cannot be achieved by setting up parallel structures in the IYC outside the leadership. I am open to constructive dialogue to bring permanent peace to the IYC”.

    But Omare’s pleas fell on deaf ears. The elders went ahead with a congress in Okirika where they inaugurated an Electoral Committee led by Ebi Waribigha to conduct the unity election. Despite court orders asking the parties to maintain the status quo ante, the committee held its election at Okochiri in Okirika on April 9 and elected  Pereotubo as a rival to Omare.

    But the fresh elections which held in Okochiri reportedly caused panic and fears of possible clash of the two factions following looming struggle for the control of IYC secretariat. Investigations revealed that over seven patrol vans of riot policemen barricaded the Ijaw building located at the Sani Abacha Expressway.

    The armed policemen were said to have taken strategic positions around the building at the early hours as a proactive measure to stop possible violent clash. But the Police Public Relations Officer, Mr. Butswat Asinim, said the deployment was a routine security measure, which he claimed had nothing to do with the IYC crisis.

    “Close to Ijaw House is the Ijaw Heroes’ Park. The police have always maintained their presence at the park. So, it is just routine to have policemen around the area”, he said.

    But an IYC activist, Mr. Bodmass Kemepadai, said the police were deployed at the instance of the Eric Omare-led IYC Secretary, Ogede Perkins, to stop the faction opposed to Omare from invading the secretariat.

    It was gathered that at the end of the Okirika election, the whereabouts of one of the contestants for the office of the Secretary-General of IYC, Mr. Robert Igali, were unknown. Igali, who was a former Chief of Staff to Eradiri, was reportedly a ducted on his way back to Bayelsa after losing the election.

    He was said to have sent a text message to few of his friends shortly after his abduction and since then his headsets had remained switched off. The text message said: “I am Igali. I have been kidnapped on my way from Okirika after the University of Port Harcourt (UNIPORT). Please inform the Ijaw nation”.

    But Omare in a statement,  called on Ijaw youths to remain calm “in the light of deliberate efforts by some former leaders and members to factionalise the IYC”.

    He said: “What transpired on Sunday the 9th of April, 2017 at Okrika, Rivers State was not an IYC election but a charade by some former leaders of the council in the name of election.  It would definitely not stand the test of time.”

    Owoupele, in a statement, described the unity election as “the legitimate and people’s Ijaw Youth Council elections. “We now proudly have a leadership under Oweilaemi Pereotubo as the President of council.”

  • ‘How to solve Nigeria’s oil industry woes’

    ‘How to solve Nigeria’s oil industry woes’

    Emeka Okwuosa is the chairman of Oilserve Group, which is into power, oil exploration and production and farming. He chairs five other companies in the group, that is involved in building the largest pipeline system. In this interview with JOSEPH JIBUEZE and NNEKA NWANERI, he speaks on pipeline vandalism, how Nigeria can survive fall in oil price and the recession, and how to improve refining capacity, among others. 

    How can Nigeria survive the oil price plunge?

    I’ll give you a background to oil price drop. It is a normal thing. Oil is a natural resource that we mine or drill through a process. When you talk about oil production and utilisation, you talk about a global phenomenon. We apply the basic knowledge of economics here. When you have production and consumption, you try to match them. When production becomes higher than consumption, you have a glut of the product. So, what you have is a drop in price. When consumption at anytime is higher than production, you have a squeeze, which leads to oil price increase. I can tell you that the current drop in oil price is the fourth cycle I’ve seen in the industry. The first one was in 1986. Oil went down to $5 per barrel. The second one was in 1997/1998. Oil price went down to $9 to $10. The next was in 2008 when we had the global economic crisis. There was a major problem in the structure of the world economy. Oil price went down, before we had the one of two years ago. It’s a normal thing. Therefore, being a normal thing, it’s left for any producer to plan ahead. Our problem in Nigeria is not low oil price, but lack of planning of the economy. At $20 or $30, it’s tough because production cost in Nigeria has gone up to about $28/$29 per barrel, which should not be so. If Nigeria had gotten its oil industry under control, and managed it properly, we should not be having production cost of more than $12 or $13 per barrel. So for it to be over $20 is our fault.

    The inability of successive governments to plan ahead and know that when you have a resource based economy, you will be open to all the vagaries of price changes of this commodity is the problem. We should not at this stage, after more than 60 years of oil and gas production, be a single commodity economy. Today we should have an oil industry that should have gone through second or third cycle of evolution where we’re using the oil and gas industry to develop various industries to have added economic benefits. Why is Nigeria still exporting crude oil? All you do is produce it and sell. Who you sell it to will be the one to refine, produce bitumen, and other things that you go back to buy. It’s a no-brainer that it’s not sustainable. Today we should not be importing refined products. We should be producing our products. We should produce enough fertiliser from our gas. We should have added economic benefits from our oil. We have not done that and that’s why we’re suffering.

    The second part is the way we have structured our economy. It is not robust enough to adapt to world economic changes. So, oil price drop is not the primary thing that is affecting our economy. It is primarily because we have not planned and executed very well, and we do not have enough savings to drive the process. So, I hope we have learnt from this.

    What should be done?

    There is an added incentive to develop alternative sources of energy. Nigeria has many. Nigeria can develop biogas systems, solar systems, even our coal, but in a cleaner manner. How come Nigeria has not been able to develop cheaper forms of energy in the past 40 years like other countries? The last time coal was properly mined was when the colonial powers were here. Since the late 60s, we have just been living in denial; we have not developed our systems. So, there is a lot we can do. Agriculture is another one. Our economy should be robust because we have all it takes and we have the human resource to drive it.

    What projects have your companies executed?

    Oilserv is made up of six companies in the group. But Oilserv EPC Limited is primarily an engineering, procurement and construction firm, that’s why it’s called EPC. We are the first Nigerian company to provide full EPC services. We do the front-end engineering, we do detailed engineering, we do the procurement of the required facilities, and we construct the lines. We also maintain and rehabilitate the lines when necessary. We have full value chain coverage. Oilserv has that capacity. We have built over 30 pipelines in Nigeria. We built the longest gas pipeline in the Southern part of Nigeria of 137 kilometres. We crossed eight major rivers through what we call horizontal directional drilling (HDD), where we do not disturb the water, but we drill under the water, just like you have the channel tunnel between UK and France. We have the capacity to do that. We built the gas supply to five of the gas fired power plants in the country. We built the systems including the pipelines and the metering stations. They include the Ihovbor power plant in Edo, Gbaran Power Plant in Bayelsa, Egbema Power Plant in Rivers, Alaoji Power Plant in Abia, Calabar Power Plant in Cross River. We also built the supply system for geometric power plant in Aba, the one owned and operated by Prof Barth Nnaji’s company. So you can see that we have contributed more than any other company in Nigeria in developing gas systems.

    What is East-West pipeline project?

    It is the largest pipeline system in Africa. It is a 48-inch diameter of 67 kilometres pipeline. It is referred to as East-West pipeline. It’s actually called OB3 Pipeline, which means Obiafu, Obrikom, Oben pipeline. It starts from the eastern flank of Rivers State and goes all the way to Edo State through Delta State. It is about 85 per cent concluded. The pipeline is 100 per cent built. What we’re now building is the metering stations, and the gas commissioning systems. That should be completed this year. When it is completed, we’ll have a total of two billion standard cubic feet of gas being transported from the eastern flank where you have gas source into the West and North. Part of the pipeline will supply the Escravos to Lagos pipeline and feed more gas into Lagos and then into the West African gas pipeline. The other part will move from Oben to Ajaokuta and from there we’ll construct another line that will go to Abuja, Kaduna and Kano. So this is the major artery of Nigerian gas transportation system.

    How have you been dealing with vandalism and militancy?

    Don’t forget the basic, underlying issues and the causes. The fact that successive governments did not address the needs of host communities led to agitation, which led to militancy. But I believe that the current administration has done quite a lot in trying to address it. The engagement is better today than it was before. We have managed to work despite all these problems because we have a method of engaging the communities; we have a corporate social responsibility system that works very well. It can be quite expensive but the only meaningful solution is the government addressing the issues holistically by looking at environment degradation and the huge gap in development between what these communities should have and what they have. Of course government has put in funds previously, but their management was questionable. But from what is coming out of the current government, it seems they fully understand the issues and are working towards addressing them.

    How can Nigeria boost its refining capacity?

    We have over time made a simple issue complex. Our refining capacity is there but not efficient. Some of our refineries are not functioning, while some are not up to capacity. For over 20 years, we have managed our refineries in a way that made them not to work. Successive governments did carry out turnaround maintenance, awarding these contracts to individuals and companies that had no capacity to maintain them but ended up destroying them. Another factor is that the government has not invested in developing further capacity by training people. Most of the people that built these refineries were very good workers, but have retired.

    Younger ones have not received the same training that the older ones got in the 70s and 80s. So, there was a problem of sustainability of the refineries. However, I’ve been an architect of their privatisation. Refineries cannot be run by government or NNPC. They should be sold. And then entities like the operating companies should be encouraged to set up their own refineries. And the environment should be made conducive for them to do so. We should have enough refining capacity in Nigeria. On tackling illegal refining, I’ve heard government in the past few weeks talk about modular refineries. If we can articulate it very well and work closely with host communities, some of these illegal refineries will be taken out and replaced by modular refineries. And jobs will be provided for the same people that engage in illegal refining that is damaging the economy and the environment and killing people.

  • Who is to blame for Nigeria’s woes: the people or the leaders?

    The people’s behaviour in celebrating treasury looting is still reprehensible because they are adoring today what will make them cry tomorrow. However, the leaders’ behaviour is more condemnable because they are knowingly and recklessly leading the people to destroy themselves

    Dear Reader, there are so many emotions coursing through my veins, along with what I hope is red blood, that I don’t know which one I should indulge first. Well, there’s the very shocking news that Spain has appointed a very beautiful woman as its, wait for it, Minister for Sex. Now, I say, that is a very hot one. Have you seen her picture? Man, she is hot, and her job is even hotter. She is charged with the onerous duty of jacking up the population of the country which they say has been dwindling since 2008. For the life of me, I don’t know how Spain hopes that this beautiful woman can turn the nation’s population situation around. I mean, she is just one woman! Well, we can only wait for the logic of her appointment to mature.

    Then there was the hilarious story that an Eighty-two year old (82) Nigerian justice was being screened for an ambassadorial position. Seriously! That was one big hoot for me; but the bigger hoot was the sentence that said the ‘Screening Committee was shocked’ (!!!) when the old man ‘refused to recite the national anthem’. Believe me, I am shocked that the committee was not as shocked by an 82-year-old being nominated as by his refusal to recite an anthem. Wonders will never end, they say.

    Let me see now, if I am lucky enough to hit 82, I don’t think I will be wasting my time remembering the anthem of a country. I will be lucky if I know the name of the country I’m living in. So, what can that old man be thinking of seeking this kind of appointment? More importantly, I’m thinking, what is President Buhari thinking of nominating someone of that age? Most importantly, what is the committee thinking of by going ahead to screen an eighty-two year-old man for a job outside the country, even if it only takes him to Cotonou? What is this country, a circus?!

    Then, during the week, I heard again that people have now ditched putting looted money in overhead tanks or underground soak-away. The government has wizened to those tricks. So now, looters have resorted to hiding their money in coffins. Really!!! I mean, how sick, desperate and twisted can Nigerians really be, I ask myself? Obviously, very.

    To top my emotions, I came across the news that the Vice-President, Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, had admonished Nigerians to stop ‘celebrating’ treasury looters. Now, say I, what is our VP trying to do, cause disaffection between looters and their worshippers? Does he not know that indeed most people steal these monies so that they can attract hordes of worshippers to themselves? Sir, the average Nigerian would not go after money as they do if there was no one to worship or envy them, and that is the half-truth. I don’t know the other half.

    Seriously, I have heard so many arguments on this I am almost believing them. Examples: Nigerian leaders are bad but the followers are just as bad. Therefore, the followers are as much to blame as the leaders. Another version says that actually, it is the followers that make the leaders bad. Yet another version says the leaders are the contagions. They contaminate everything they touch – whether they are political, social or religious leaders. They are all the same. Now, I’ve heard everything. So, where were we? Oh yes, we were trying to settle the question of which is influencing the other more: the leadership or the followership.

    I have been in gatherings where people have argued back and forth on this question as if they were trying to settle once and for all the question of which came first: the chicken or the egg. How shall we ever know except we ask Papa Noah just what he placed in his ark – two eggs or two chickens? Until then, we have to hold our peace and calmly examine the issues.

    I honestly cannot argue for any side but I can wax historical and lyrical. I remember that there was a time in this country, around the sixties and seventies, I think, when leadership positions – whether in corporations, civil service, army, etc., — were held very delicately. At that time, a good name was more important than gold because it opened even more doors. Now, the reverse is the case. The gold is esteemed to bring in the name. This is why people are going after the money like mad.

    Listen, both the leadership and the followership have failed dishonourably but one definitely bit the dust before the other. Most people who come to power are under the illusion that it is ‘what the people want.’ In truth, the real power does belong to the people. Most times, however, a few force their will on the ‘people’ by hijacking the machineries of power until the people rise with one voice as happened in France in the eighteenth century when the entire country rejected the dynasty of the reigning king and queen. It also happened in Russia when the people got rid of the reigning Czar and instituted a more people-based government.

    However, in those and more cases, the people were led by their hunger and anger, both of which were vulcanised together by a vociferous group on behalf of the people into one coalesced ball of fiery action. In other words, even a revolution needs a leader. However, in sane climes, the leader steers the state but the people rule his heart and hand. What is known today as the western world has been able to endure because the people rule the hand of the ruler. Twisted paradox, no?

    The point is that the people are important only if they are well informed about their rights and obligations in the land, and responsibly discharge both. This was the first thing America’s early leaders ensured: the people’s rights and obligations. Nigeria’s leaders since independence have never consciously tried to bring up the people to a position of knowledge about their rights and obligations in order to empower them to take responsible and informed decisions. This is why it is so easy for the new elites to simply fall in line with the will of the country’s leaders rather than the will of the people.

    Hence, as far back as the country can remember, the people have been taking decisions in public matters such as elections on the basis of readily assessable parameters such as direct access to the country’s resources. Anyone who is given this access is as venerated today as the early cave Nigerians did the white colonial men. They are the super heroes. This is why they are neither questioned nor condemned in the ‘people’s’ eyes.

    Reader, the paragraphs above have been given as an attempt to explain what is going on in the country. It is not meant to excuse bad behaviour on anybody’s part. The people’s behaviour in celebrating treasury looting is still reprehensible because they are adoring today what will make them cry tomorrow. However, the leaders’ behaviour is more condemnable because they are knowingly and recklessly leading the people to destroy themselves.

    The onus for change lies with everybody. It seems more realistic to me however when the leaders are seen to be serious with the desire to lead by taking serious actions against looting. China, I hear, summarily executes such people. Better one man dies than millions be contaminated. We here can jail them. However, when Nigeria pats looters on the back, the only message that is passed is ALOOTER CONTINUA. Now, I must go reconcile my housekeeping accounts before I become…

  • Real sector’s unending woes

    Real sector’s unending woes

    The real sector is acknowledged as the economy’s driver. However, for the sector to be vibrant and drive diversification,  experts say there must be demand. But, sadly, the purchasing power of the naira and, by extension, Nigerians has drastically reduced-no thanks to the authorities’ failure to harmonise fiscal and monetary policies to curtail rising inflation, interest and exchange rates, which have compounded the sector’s woes. Assistant Editor CHIKODI OKEREOCHA reports.

    The real sector is under tremendous pressure. Already clobbered by the dearth of supportive infrastructure, particularly power supply, rising inflation, interest and exchange rates may have added a more disturbing dimension to its woes.

    For instance, inflation rate is 18.55 per cent, according to the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS). Interest rate hovers between 14 and 20 per cent. The exchange rate of the naira to the dollar is at a record low of N306 and N497 at the official and parallel markets. Unemployment has risen to 13.3 per cent.

    These indices or parameters, which measure the health of the economy particularly the real sector, have been rising, indicating more turbulence for real sector operators. The high inflation, interest and exchange rates are manifesting in the form of declining consumer purchasing power, declining corporate sales and profitability, increasing delinquency in meeting obligations, and high morbidity and mortality of businesses, among others.

    The NBS recently released the Consumer Price Index, which measures inflation, with the index rising to 18.55 per cent in December last year. The Bureau said the 18.55 per cent was an increase of 0.07 percentage points over the 18.48 per cent recorded in November 2016. It attributed the increase to a rise in the price of electricity, housing, water, clothing, footwear and education.

    Economic and finance analysts, however, said there were other factors driving the high inflationary rate and other microeconomic indicators. For instance, the Managing Consultant, Nesbet Consulting, a Lagos-based firm of finance and management consultancy, Dr. Alaba Olusemore, said insurgency in the Northeast part of the country was also a factor.

    According to the loan management expert and Fellow, Chartered Institute of Bankers of Nigeria (CIBN), the activities of Boko Haram insurgents have created a lot of production problems, which drastically reduced food supply and resulted to increase in food prices. This, in turn, drove inflation up.

    He also told The Nation that the higher exchange rate of the dollar to the naira was also another factor pushing up inflation. He explained that the upward swing in the naira/dollar exchange rate and the fact that most goods and services consumed in the country are imported meant higher prices for the imported food items as well as other necessary inputs used by manufacturers to produce most local staples.

    Olusemore, however, traced the current pressure faced by the naira against the dollar to the persistent fall in crude oil prices at the international market. He said the slump in oil prices, which started mid-June 2014, unleashed negative consequences, part of which was less accretion to the nation’s foreign reserves.

    Nigeria depends on oil for 70 per cent and 95 per cent of her revenue and foreign exchange earnings. But global oil prices have been tumbling since June 2014, putting the finances of Africa’s largest economy/oil producer under severe pressure. From over $115 per barrel in June 2014, oil price nose-dived to around $28 per barrel by January 2016.

    Although of late there has been gradual rebound in oil prices, it has not been substantial enough to offer succour to an economy already badly hit by recession. The dwindling foreign exchange earnings have continued to exert tremendous pressure on the naira, forcing it to lose its value over the years. The naira has been buying fewer and fewer goods and services each succeeding year.

    The Director-General of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI), Mr. Muda Yusuf, noted that a major factor driving the current inflationary trend is the exchange rate depreciation, which has pushed up costs across all sectors of the economy.

    He also said uncertainty around the foreign exchange policy negatively impacted investors’ confidence, which consequently affected output. Besides, CBN’s restrictive import policy, Yusuf, said, is a major contributing factor to the new wave of inflationary pressures.

     

    How the situation hurts

    It is easy to see why real sector operators are losing sleep over the rising inflation, interest and exchange rates.  For most of them, the fear of decline in consumer purchasing power is the beginning of wisdom.

    For instance, with the drastic reduction in the purchasing power of the naira and, by extension, Nigerians, real sector operators, particularly manufacturers, are agonising over low or no patronage of locally-produced goods and services.

    The former President/CEO, Neimeth International Pharmaceuticals Plc and Managing Consultant, Starteam Consult, Mazi Sam Ohuabunwa, observed that market contraption, manifesting in decline in consumer purchasing power, had forced not a few consumers to prioritise their expenditures.

    Ohuabunwa, who spoke at a recent Annual General Meeting (AGM) of  Ikeja branch of Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), said consumers now focused more on needs than wants, as they struggle to make ends meet. This has resulted in decline in corporate sales and profitability.

    Indeed, inflation erodes consumers’ purchasing power by persistently reducing the quantity of goods and services that their income can buy, making peoples’ income increasingly worthless. This situation, according to experts, brings about a fall in the standard of living of the people and creates severe problems for the growth and development of the economy.

    Also, with interest rate or cost of funds well over 20 per cent, real sector operators find it extremely difficult to sustain their businesses at that level. If the cost of funds goes up, local production suffers. Most local operators regard 20 per cent corporate funding as killing. This is so considering that they face competition from cheap products coming from Asian countries, particularly China.

    According to Yusuf, high cost of funds is responsible for the high mortality rate of manufacturing firms, especially at the medium and the small-scale level. He said it was also responsible for why return on manufacturers’ investment is slow and turn-around fewer.

    Indeed, the situation is worse for Small and Medium Enterprise (SMEs). High interest rate is acknowledged as one of the constraints to SMEs’ growth. While big companies may survive in a regime of high interest rate, it would pose a serious challenge to small enterprises because of their low capital base.

    With the rise in interest rate, cost of borrowing has gone up, especially for SMEs. In the short-term, businesses find it difficult to cope, forcing many of them to lay off workers, resulting in rising unemployment and, by implication, increase in crime wave.

    Inflation also hurts the real sector by discouraging real investments and limiting export because of its effect on the value of the local currency. Investors know that during inflation, they receive lesser value (that is, weak naira) than they invested in projects, this discourages investments.

    There are also fears that the inflationary trend may have compounded the sector’s competiveness. The thinking is that the situation has created more problems for the country in its transactions with the rest of the world by making its exports more expensive than before.

    By reducing Nigeria’s share of the global market, experts say the hope of earning more foreign exchange to meet financial obligations is under threat. Apart from putting the country in deficit in its balance of payments, efforts at encouraging the non-oil sector to reduce the over-dependence on oil proceeds are also undermined.

    MAN President Dr. Frank Udemba Jacobs lamented that manufacturers, government and consumers are feeling the pain of the rising inflation. He said, for instance, that if manufacturers are not making profit, they would be unable to pay tax to government.

    He also said because of inflation, manufacturers, who, unfortunately, do not have the luxury of increasing their prices, even in the face of rising costs and reduced consumer purchasing power, have had to pile up their unsold inventory.

    According to him, this has a cyclical effect as, “with high unsold inventory, production would be constrained and eventually reduced, productivity would decline, competitiveness would be affected and could, as a final unfortunate consequence, lead to down-sizing or, right-sizing of employees.”

    He pointed out that manufacturers’ challenges have been compounded by the scarcity of forex, which further constrained the sector, especially those products with high imported inputs. “High inflation has led to higher cost of production, at a time that there is scarcity of forex and in the face of dwindling working capital and has, consequently, led to declining capacity utilisation,” he said.

     

    Experts proffer solutions

    To curb the rising inflation and save the real sector and Nigerians the agony of rise in price levels, Olusemore said the CBN, in line with its core mandate of maintaining price and exchange rate stability, should adjust downwards banks’ Cash Reserve Ratio (CRR) to make more funds available to them to lend to the real sector to produce.

    He also said investing more in public works would boost liquidity in the system while also creating jobs. He, however, said mitigating the effects of inflation required a combination of sound and robust monetary and fiscal policy framework.

    The economist noted that apart from the right monetary policy that pays attention to controlling inflation, interest and exchange rates, fiscal policies such as tariff structure or import duty should be looked into.

    “Some of the fiscal policies are not well thought-out,” Olusemore told The Nation, pointing out  that the recent ban on importation of vehicles through land borders has compounded the unemployment problem in the country.

    For industrialist and economist Mr. Henry Boyo, the pillar of any economy is monetary policy and the pillar of monetary policy is interest rate, inflation, and exchange rate. “When you get those ones right, like in other countries, you will fix the economy,” he said.

    Pointing out that high interest rate makes it impossible for the real sector to grow, he said high inflation was the main driver of poverty. He said in most advanced economies in the world, interest rate was below two per cent, while exchange rate remained stable for many years, even as cost of funds is also below two per cent.

    According to Boyo, forcing these rates down is not rocket science; what is required is a robust monetary policy to address the challenge of excess liquidity in the system. He argued that excess supply of money into the system was responsible for the unacceptably high inflation rate, high cost of funds and high interest rates.

    Ohuabunwa could not agree less. “Exchange rate, interest rate and inflation rate can all be moderated by sensible and co-ordinated policies. Investment flows preferentially to macroeconomic stable environments that actually seek, welcome and reward investors,” he said.

    But Boyo insisted that this could not be achieved until and unless the CBN stopped its conscious, deliberate and misguided payment arrangement that unilaterally substitutes naira allocations for dollar-derived revenue. He said such payment arrangement results in market imbalance, which ultimately weakens the naira exchange rate.

    The industrialist also said that CBN’s monetary policies aggravate the level of inflation in the country. According to him, by substituting naira allocations for dollar-derived revenues, CBN unleashes hundreds of billions of fresh naira inflow into the coffers of commercial banks. And the humongous cash surplus in the system is pitted against less goods and services.

    The expert explained that the resultant market imbalance drives higher prices and fuel inflation. He said that with rising inflation, incomes buy less and less goods and services. Even higher incomes buy less because of the rising general price level.

    Boyo, therefore, insisted that CBN must stop the obnoxious payment policy and instead adopt the use of dollar certificates or coupons (strictly not cash) for payment of monthly allocations to the three tiers of government.

    He said instead of CBN getting dollar from the government and substituting it with naira, the apex bank should give the certificates to beneficiaries who would go to banks to change the certificate into naira. He reasoned that using the dollar certificate will bring down interest rate, inflation and exchange rates.

  • Many woes of real estate sector

    Many woes of real estate sector

    The recession ravaging the country has spared no sector. Experts say it has disorganised short and long-term plans. Particiapnts at the International Real Estate Federation (Nigeria Chapter) annual dinner in Lagos have warned of a further dip in investment in the built sector this year. They say unless urgent measures are taken, the woes of the industry will worsen, dashing any hope of it contributing significantly to the country’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP). What is the way forward? Stakeholders are, however, divided over which sector offers better returns than real estate. MUYIWA LUCAS reports.

    Dr. Doyin Salami, a lecturer and member of Faculty, Lagos Business School (LBS), is not a man who minces words, especially when it concerns the economy. When he ascended the podium at the Metropolitan Club Hall, Victoria Island, Lagos, last Friday, it was time for another confrontation with the stark reality of what obtains in the real estate sector, viz-a-viz the nation’s economy.

    Delivering an address at this year’s annual dinner of the International Real Estate Federation (FIABCI) Nigeria Chapter, with the theme: “Real Estate: It is All About the Economy”, he warned that although the real sector is about eight per cent of the nation’s economy, it has been in decline, contracting so many times.

    “The data are very clear. The real estate sector contributes between seven and eight per cent to the nation’s economy, but it has contracted consecutively for five quarters. In other words, for more than a year, the sector in which we operate have been shrinking. “What will happen to it in 2017, will depend on what happens to the economy generally because housing / real estate takes its cue from the general economy,” Salami said at the dinner.

    Lagos State Commissioner for Housing Gbolohan Lawal agreed no less with Salami. According to him, the sector needs to wake up fron it deep slumber because “we have noticed no growth in the real estate industry”.

    He, however, assured that the  state would  inject private capital into housing delivery as it now has 10 private developers, and several stakeholders across various layers in the real estate sector participating in housing delivery.

    Lawal further said the time was ripe for the government to reflate the economy with increased activities in the real estate.

     

    Budget 2017 vs real estate

    Salami noted that unlike last year, the Federal Government has projected that the economy would grow by about 2.5 per cent this year,  representing a turnaround from the past. “Last year, we shrank, this year we will grow. The extent of the growth, however, is what only time will tell,” he said.

    With the country’s population growing at about 2.8 per cent yearly, a 2.5 per cent growth, therefore, still represents a reduction in per capita income. In other words, according to Salami, income per head of the population is set to fall this year. Beyond that, the government’s assumption was that inflation would be at 13 per cent, although 12.92 per cent was the actual assumption.

     

    Housing supply and purchasing power

    Salami said if income did not increase at the same pace with inflation, it means that its real value would continue to depreciate and the capacity for demand/spending wwould equally continue to diminish. And once spending capacity diminishes, demand will fall and create difficulties for other sectors of the economy.

    On the supply side of housing, he regretted that the figure most regularly brandished was a housing deficit of about 17 million, which he said, seemed not to have changed in the last 10 years, irrespective of the growth in the population. This, he noted, gives a bit of concern about the accuracy of the data in the sector. “As far as the supply of the real estate side is concerned, if there is no construction, then supply suffers,” he said.

    FIABCI-Nigeria President Joseph Akhigbe said in the short period the economy took a downturn, operators and other stakeholders witnessed the good, the bad and the ugly of the devaluation of the local currency, rising inflation, excess supply of property as a result of the economic downturn and surprising stable prices despite the fall in the demand for property.

     Prospects

    The stakeholders are concerned about the attractiveness of the sector this year. For this year, both the federal and the state governments have a combined budget of N14 trillion. In his analysis, Salami explained that the over N2 trillion deficit in the Federal Government budget this year, could only be made up through borrowing – either domestically or internationally.

    “Therefore, if the Federal Government finds it difficult to borrow internationally then she will want to borrow domestically. The effect of borrowing domestically will lead to an increase in interest rate, which presently is at between 16 – 18 per cent for companies and for individuals, and it can go as high as 27 per cent.” He then asked: “The big question will be is real estate still attractive as at today?”

     

    Treasury bills and housing

    For Salami, given the evolving scenario, a discerning investor is better off buying government treasury bill than building a house. He will base it on the return-on-investment (RoI) because treasury bills will give 20 per cent returns and no risk to the investor- the risk of inflation and looking at standard economic parameters such as yields, inflations and interest rates. An investor in housing will have to face a whole lot of risks such as difficulty in getting government approvals and consent; non payment of rent by tenants and managing the house as a whole.

    Besides, to Salami, capital appreciation in housing is one of the slowest because it is a long-term investment. It may probably take another two years for the housing market to become productive looking at the present economy and the rate at which already built houses up for sale or rent are not occupied.

    “The housing sector needs to look at how to capture more information and data to help those who want to invest have a holistic approach on the sector; it is a major challenge that the professionals in the sector needs to solve. During inflation, the sector also suffers because it becomes difficult for suppliers to get commodities at reasonable prices, which create another fundamental issue,” he said.

    However, a former president of the body, Kola Akomolede, carpeted Salami on the RoI submission. Drawing example from the value of properties in Dolphin Estate, Ikoyi, Lagos, Akomolede said the theory of treasury bills having more RoI than real estate did not arise.

    “When we sold Dolphin estate in 1990-1992, it was just under N500,000 per unit of duplex. Now each unit is worth several millions of naira. If you kept your N500,000 in treasury bills since 1990, what will it be worth now? Certainly your principal investment would just be worth about $1,000 now. So, RoI on real estate is better,” Akomolede said.

    During the dinner, stakeholders were equally rewarded for their activities in the sector over the years. Notably, two journalists- Chuka Iroko of BusinessDay and Chinedu Uweagbulam of The Guardian, who were awarded certificates of merit for their journalistic contributions to the real estate industry in the country.

  • Oil has brought us woes, say communities

    People from some oil-bearing communities in Rivers and Bayelsa states who ought to enjoy the benefits that accrue from oil and gas exploration in their areas are now ruing letting International Oil Companies (IOCs) into their lands.

    The lamentations of the communities were brought to the fore when the Gas Alert for Sustainable Initiative (GASIN) held a conference in Port Harcourt with the people, IOCs and government regulatory agencies.

    With the themed “Towards a Sustainable Relationship Between Oil Operators and Host Communities: The Roles of Government, Oil Operators and Host Communities,” the conference drew participants from six communities from Rivers and Bayelsa states, government regulatory agencies such as National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency (NOSDRA), National Environmental Standard Regulation Agency (NESRA), Rivers State Ministry of Environment. Incidentally, members of staff of Shell Petroleum Development Company (SPDC) and Nigeria Agip Oil Company (NAOC) were absent, thus aggravating the lamentations of the people.

    The communities that attended the conference were Akala-Olu; Enito II; Oshie from Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers State while those from Bayelsa State came from Koroama; Obunagha and Polaku from Yenagoa Local Government Area.

    In his speech, King Funpere Akah of Gbarain Clan in Koroama said it is regrettable that “we are talking about our problems and those who are to help in solving the problems are not here. Next time if you know they will not come, please do not invite us.”

    Akah lamented that SPDC has not helped his community as the coming of the company to their land has brought all manner of troubles to them.

    The royal father pointed out that insecurity is a big threat to the community because “the place is now a safe haven for hoodlums, armed robbers and kidnappers who even attempted to kidnap me last year if not for divine intervention.”

    Continuing, Akah said despite that the residents of the Koroama community cannot sleep with their two eyes closed, “one member of staff of SPDC will be moving about with two security vehicles” adding that “if they are securing themselves; they should also secure us.”

    He also accused government of not giving them a sense of belonging.

    He also said the community that produces gas which is being used to light up other parts of Nigeria, is groping in darkness, with electricity distribution company in their area sending them a bill of about N99 million for one year.

    Akah also lamented that his people can no longer harvest palm fruits “because everywhere is criss-crossed by oil-pipelines.”

    How do you get them to address our problems? Next time, if you know they will not come, please do not invite me.

    The Spokesman of Akala-Olu community in Ahoada West Local Government Area of Rivers State, Mr Odums .S. Odums said his people are living in ocean and as such they are exposed to gas flaring while their rain water is polluted.

    Just like Akah, he lamented  that the social problems and hardship his people are contending with for allowing IOCs to come and explore oil in the land, are now making people to age faster and their women always having waist pains.

    Mr Thompson Pere from Obunagha community in Bayelsa State said his people are assailed by three predicaments that bother on gas flaring; oil spillage and their lives.

    Pere said gas flaring has been their lot since oil companies began operation in their land, thus exposing them to danger.

    “Gas flaring is now cracking our roofs, water that we used to drink has no meaning again and our cash crops are now affected.”

    He also said due to the operations of the oil companies, they have been witnessing oil spillage which pollute potable water and destroy aquatic life.

    Continuing, Pere stated that “since Oil Company stepped into our land, our social lives have been affected and anti-social behaviours which we did not experience in the yesteryear are now the order of the day as youths now indulge in cultism, armed robbery and other acts of criminality.”

    Speaking for Kula community in Rivers State, King Barnabas Kurule said: “Oil and gas companies have caused a lot of damage to us. Due to their operations, we do not know when there are rainy and dry seasons.”

    Apart from the devastating effects of frequent oil spill in the land, Kurule added that “vibration of our land does not allow us to sleep well at night.”

    Others who spoke on behalf of other communities that attended the conference reeled off litanies of woes that have become their lot since the IOCs commenced operations in their land.

    They, in one accord, appealed to GASIN to assist them in urging the companies to ameliorate their condition.

    In a 19-point communiqué they issued at the end of the conference and which was signed by all the participants present, they, among others, called on government and the IOCs “to provide adequate social amenities for the host communities to ameliorate the hazards caused by their operations.”

    However, speaking to declare the conference open, the Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Environment, Mr. Emmanuel Oye lamented the difficult situation that the people are in.

    Oye also said it is unfortunate that “we have been hit from both sides-the communities, government and the companies” pointing out that “some of these processes of change take time to begin to manifest.”

    He also urged the people to embrace peace and accept whatever is being put in place to solve the problems.

    In his welcome address, the Executive Director of GASIN, Rev, Fr. Edward Obi explained that the responsibility of his organisation over the years is to establish a tripartite relationship between government/the regulatory agencies, the communities and the oil and gas companies for harmonious existence.

    Obi also said “forming the tripartite relationship is good because it prevents a situation whereby communities lock up company gates. Oil companies do not exist in a vacuum. They exist here and when they come, they have to do what is right for the people and vice versa.”

    He insisted that the relationship has worked before and it will work again in Niger Delta.

    In his speech, the Port Harcourt Zonal Director of NOSDRA, Mr Cyrus Nkangwung advised that “everybody should be seen as owners of the oil God has put in the land.”

    Nkangwung, who commended GASIN for ensuring that good relationship exists among the communities, the government/government regulatory agencies and IOCs, also urged the communities “to ensure that no oil spill occurs because if it does, it is the communities that suffer most.”

    He further expressed the Federal Government’s desire to clean the Niger Delta region “which it has started with the clean-up of Ogoni land.”

  • A neighbour’s WOES

    LIKE a festering wound, commercial activities in the Republic of Benin is bleeding from the blow dealt on Nigeria by the economic downturn triggered by the global decline in crude oil prices and the collapse of the naira against other currencies.

    While before December 2015, 1000 CFA franc, the official currency of Benin Republic exchanged for N350, the value has since risen by 100 per cent with 1000 CFA francs now exchanging for N647. The result is that the price of imported items from food to automobile, which find their ways into Nigeria through the neighbouring country, have skyrocketed.

    The result is that much of the huge imports into Benin Republic, which depend on the huge Nigerian market for patronage, are no longer enjoying the necessary patronage. The situation has left traders in the neighbouring country lamenting, currency vendors are crying while auto dealers are bemoaning the fate foisted on them by grossly reduced patronage from Nigerians.

    Ramatou Hussein, a currency trader at Igolor Market, which overlooks the checkpoint of the Nigerian Customs Service at the Idiroko border in Ipokia Local Government Area, Ogun State, has not been a happy woman since the high exchange rate of the naira to the dollar left the Nigerian economy comatose. Sitting quietly in her makeshift office at the market, she lamented what she termed a reversal in her business fortune in recent times.

    After initial hesitation to grant the reporter an audience, she finally obliged after some of her colleagues encouraged her to speak.

    ”Of what would my conversation with you be?” she queried. ”I have not made any sales or carried out a single transaction since morning.”

    ”Business has been very bad and we have been suffering since Nigeria enacted a new exchange rate for the dollar. The high exchange rate began with one dollar to N192 and later to N282. Now it is N313 to the dollar, which translates to an increase in the exchange rate of the CFA franc.

    “CFA 1000 used to exchange for N350. But that has risen to N647 to CFA1000. This has led to high inflation and diminished the purchasing power of Nigerians who patronise us and exchange the naira for the CFA when purchasing goods in Benin markets.”

    Still lamenting her fate, Hussein added: ”It is 12 pm already. Before now, by this time I would have made huge transactions and profit from Nigerians who come here to purchase goods, especially cars. But now, I have not made up to three transactions. I am just tired of the whole situation.

    “You should tell your government to have mercy on us by slowing down on their policies so that we can have a reprieve. The suffering here in Benin is too much.”

    Many of Hussein’s frustrated colleagues and compatriots who occupied a row of makeshift stalls were seen in the scorching sun soliciting patronage from indifferent passers-by in smattering Yoruba.

    A trader, Iya Imoleayo, who operates a grocery shop in Igolor, told our correspondent that her business was no longer flourishing like it once did.

    She said: ”Nigerians no longer buy from us here. Cheap imported wines and provision items used to be the favourites of my Nigerian customers, but they have stopped coming here because the prices of the items have increased due to the new exchange rates of the naira to the dollar and the CFA.

    ”We are begging the Nigerian government not to send us out of business. The exchange rate of the naira to the dollar should be reversed to the old rate of N157 or N197 so that your people can continue to come here and buy from us.”

    The mood was the same with male frozen food sellers at the other end of the market. At their stalls, there were lots of haggling over price but low patronage.

    A male customer haggled as Marouf, a frozen food seller, tried fruitlessly to convince him to buy chicken from him. A few minutes later, the customer walked away from Moruf’s stall without buying anything. Our correspondent overheard the customer saying that the money on him could not accommodate the price called by Marouf.

    Marouf later told our correspondent: ”Nigerians from Lagos and Ogun states are our customers, but they have stopped coming here to buy from us. The little sales we make are from those that live in the border communities.

    ”We learnt that Nigeria is currently battling with economic crisis, which has reduced the purchasing power and taste of the people, who now prefer fish to the chicken and turkey we sell here. The Nigerian government is killing our business and we pray that will change so our business can do well again. We depend on Nigerians for survival because they are big spenders.”

    At Igolor and Cotonou markets, a carton of Blanket brand of turkey (the brand commonly preferred by party-loving Nigerians), which used to sell for N6,500, now goes for N8,100, while other brands, which used to sell for N4,500 now goes for N6,500.

    Findings also revealed that a kilogramme of the special brand formerly sold for N500 now goes for N700, while the ordinary brand, which used to sell for N350 now costs 650.

    Other commodities

    A bag of rice (agric) in Benin Republic is now N10,200 as against the former price of N5,800. A bag of Caprice brand of rice, which used to cost N6,500 now costs N11,800, while the same quantity of Special rice sold for N8,000 now costs N12,500.

    The price of vegetable oil (Kings brand) has also risen from N6,500 to N10,500, while other brands formerly sold for N5,500 now costs N9,500.

    Frustrated auto dealers

    It is also not the best of times for traders at the Cotonou auto market. A number of the traders who are mostly nationals of Middle East countries, have lost a fortune due to low patronage by Nigerians in spite of a drop in prices of vehicles.

    Our correspondent who visited the market was shocked to hear that a number of the traders were contemplating relocation to their home countries following huge losses they have recorded from declining patronage occasioned by Nigeria’s economic crisis.

    Some of them who spoke with our correspondent readily blamed their plight on President Muhammadu Buhari, calling him names for enacting economic policies they claimed had ruined their businesses.

    A resident of Cotonou, Anthony Soglo, said: “A number of car sellers here even want to sell their cars at give-away prices so they can relocate to their countries but Nigerian customers are no longer coming to buy from them as a result of the huge cost of ferrying the vehicles to Nigeria. Despite the fact that the prices have been reduced, customers from your country (Nigeria) are not just coming here to buy cars anymore.

    ”This is because by the time you buy the car at a cheaper price, the multiplying effect of high exchange rate of CFA to naira would frustrate you from taking it to Nigeria. For example, the price of a Golf 4 car was formerly N600, 000. But it is now N1million because of the new exchange rate.”

    The situation, according to investigation, has led to rise in crime rate in the border communities as smugglers and potters who mostly flocked the markets have been forced out of jobs.

    There have been pockets of robbery recorded in the communities as jobless youths unleash their frustrations on innocent residents in parts of Igolor and Idiroko, a Nigerian community bordering the Republic of Benin.

    Ade Olawale, a Customs-licensed agent, said: “Innocent residents are the ones suffering the more because jobless youths have turned their anger on people in the neighbourhoods of Igolor, in the Republic of Benin and Idiroko in Nigeria.

    ”A few weeks ago, a couple was attacked by armed youths in Idiroko shortly after they held a naming ceremony for their new child. The hoodlums collected money, phones and jewellery from the couple after they had threatened to kill their new baby if they refused to release their belongings.

    ” There have also been reports of Nigerian students studying in Benin universities but living in Igolor and Banigbe being dispossessed of their personal effects by hoodlums lately. This may not stop unless there is improvement in the economic situation of Nigeria which has affected the Beninese commercial activities because the francophone country depends on Nigeria for her economic survival.”

    Some Nigerian students studying in the Republic of Benin, who spoke with The Nation, disclosed that the biting effect of Nigeria’s economy on Benin has forced many of them to drop out of school and relocate to Nigeria.

    A cross-section of them, who did not want their names in print, said those of them who could no longer cope with the situation had been doing menial jobs to complement the allowances they got from their parents.

    A female student who asked not to be named said: ”Some of us have been doing odd jobs to survive because we cannot continue to disturb our parents who are already paying through their noses for additional money to take care of our living expenses.

    ”Many of us even sneaked into Nigeria to attend the recent annual convention of the Redeemed Christian Church of God (RCCG) held at the Redemption Camp along Lagos-Ibadan Expressway where we sold sundry items including souvenirs, anointing oil, among others.”

    She added: ”Worst hit are medical students because of their high tuition. There have been a reduction in their number as some have returned to Nigeria because their parents could no longer afford their studies as a result of the huge cost of foreign exchange.”