Yar'Adua Seeks China's Help on Nigeria's Energy Crisis

Sino-Nigerian relations got a boost yesterday after talks in Beijing between Presidents Hu Jinatao and Umaru Musa Yar'Adua, who pledged to pursue mutually
beneficial industrial, economic and political interests at home and on the global stage.

In fact, Yar'Adua called for the setting up of a mutually-beneficial strategic partnership with China for the rapid development of Nigeria's power and energy sector as well as its transportation infrastructure.

He said at the end of his bilateral talks with Hu Jintao that "the direction we want to go is Private-Public-Partnership (PPP) in which Chinese investors can partner with their Nigerian counterparts to invest in these strategic areas and recoup their investments within a certain period."

The Chinese President also proposed the establishment of a Nigeria-China Joint Commission on Trade and Investment.

Hu Jintao promised that China would work with the African Union (AU), the United Nations (UN) and the Sudanese government to achieve a permanent resolution to the crisis in Darfur.

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Nigeria and China are beginning to work together to help one another's energy crises. China needs gas for their industrial sector, whereas Nigeria needs gas for transportation, power, and energy. The two countries could form a commission of trade and investment. By 2020, they hope to include as many as twenty countries. Hu Jintao has promised to help Nigerian and the African Union permanently resolve the crisis in Darfur. This relatioship with China should be beneficial to Nigeria. In the long run, it will help their economy as well as help them establish better relationships with other countries.

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Dissent abroad over tribunal results

Shamsey Oloko

Nigerians abroad, many of who monitored the live delivery of the presidential tribunal's ruling yesterday via satellite television, the Internet and tele-conferencing, have expressed divergent opinions on it.

Former President of the U.S.-based Nigerian Lawyers Association and a New York-based lawyer, Shamsey Oloko, noted: "To accept this verdict as credible requires a willing suspension of disbelief.

Aluko added: "The Ogebe elevation saga, his absence from court, the unanimity of the ruling and all the rumours leading up to this judgment are all saddening. One would only hope that the Supreme Court would in some way redeem the newly battered image of the judiciary."

Similarly, Dr. Baba Adam, chairman, Pro-National Conference Organisations in the U.S. said it was a sad day for Nigeria, "rolling back the progress made by the judiciary over the last eight years."

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Although these are not the opinions of local Nigerians, this may be indicative of what those who do live in Nigeria think. Nigerians have been very patient to wait for this tribunal, hoping for a nullification of the election. Now that the election is final, will the people of Nigeria stay placated, or will they resort to violent or nonviolent protest?

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Yar’Adua’s victory: Military warns troublemakers

The flag of the Nigerian Defence Forces

The Defence Headquarters on Wednesday warned anyone contemplating to protest the affirmation of President Umaru Yar’Adua’s election by the Presidential Election Tribunal to have a rethink.

It said the warning was necessitated by information that there were plots by some people to breach the peace in the country because of the Tuesday verdict by the tribunal.

The DHQ said in a statement by the Director of Defence Information, Brig.-Gen. Mohammed Yusuf, that the military would do anything to defend the rule of law in the country.

The statement which was signed by Yusuf for the Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Owoye Azazi, said the disruption of the public peace would not be the best way to react to Tuesday’s judgment by the tribunal.

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Apparently, the military believes that there is some chance of violent protest in response to the recent tribunal. The article makes it seem that the chance is relatively high. It is good that the military at least claims it will stick with the president, given the history of military rule in Nigeria.

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Tribunal Sacks Orji, Orders Ugochukwu In

THE Abia State Election Petition Tribunal sitting in Umuahia yesterday nullified the election of Governor Theodore Orji of the Progressive People's Alliance (PPA) and declared Chief Onyema Ugochukwu of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), winner of the April 14, 2007 governorship election in the state.

The tribunal based its decision on what it called Orji’s membership of the Ogwugwuakpu Secret Cult in Okija and his failure to resign his appointment as a public officer of Abia State before contesting the election. His deputy, Chief Chris Akomo, according to the tribunal also did not resign from public office before contesting the election. The tribunal said consequently, Orji did not qualify to contest the election.

The tribunal in the two judgement which lasted two hours, 45 minutes and read by the Chairman of the panel, Justice Abdullahi Yusuf, held that Orji did not come before the tribunal to refute the claims of the petitioner, the consequences of which were that the election of the first and second defendants ought to be nullified.

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This article addresses the recent overturning of the decision of who would be governor of the Abia state. According to the article, Governor Theodore Orji was not "qualified to contest the election;" therefore, his winning was overturned, and Onyema Ugochukwu was declared the rightful winner. This decision shows the power that the government has to completely overturn the decision of who would be governor of a particular state. Also, this shows the corruption of Nigeria because the leaders are not always properly qualified but will still manage to do whatever it takes to win the election if that is what they want.

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Captors Demand N50m for Odili's Nephew

GUNMEN again struck in the early hours of yesterday in Port Harcourt, Rivers State, killing a man in his car in front of the Federal High Court Complex.

The Guardian learnt that two men stopped the driver of the car while leaving the court premises on a motorcycle, and ordered him to bring out the money in the boot of his car. He allegedly replied that he did not have any money, a response believed to have provoked the gunmen, who shot him twice and sped off.

Also yesterday, the kidnappers of Mr. Eni Odili, the nephew of the former Governor of the state, Peter Odili, demanded N50 million as ransom from the family.

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This article addresses the recent kidnapping of former Governor of state Peter Odili's nephew. The kidnappers have demanded N50m ransom for the release of the boy. According to the article, this is not the first case of kidnapping, and the kidnappings are solely for economic gains. Also according to the article there has been an outrageous number of "hostage-taking, oil theft and militancy." This shows the corruption that has filled Nigeria for so many years. This article also addresses the recent murder of a man who was in his car in front of the Federal High Court Complex. These acts show the violence that consumes many of the Nigerian people. Because of these two incidents, the government is being called upon to make changes that will lower the amount of violence and prevalence of anger in the Nigerian people. The power of the government will be shown through what they can do to ease the tension and violence in Nigeria.

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Nigerian Tribunal Upholds Yar'Adua's Victory

Ibadan, Nigeria -- A Nigerian tribunal Tuesday upheld the victory of President Umaru Yar'Adua in last year's presidential election, declaring him duly elected.

The tribunal, in a three-and-a-half hour judgment carried live on national radio and television, nullified all grounds brought against the election by Messrs. Buhari and Atiku and said Mr. Yar'Adua remained the elected president of Nigeria.

In their separate petitions, Messrs. Buhari and Abubakar had asked the tribunal to annul the result, alleging widespread fraud. They said the election wasn't conducted in substantial compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2006 and urged the tribunal to nullify the results declared by the Independent National Electoral Commission, or INEC.

Local and international observers said the election was marred by vote-rigging, ballot stuffing, ballot-snatching and other irregularities.

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Inspite of many claims of illegitamacy, this nigerian tribunal has stated that the elections were valid, although there is much evidence of less than legal techniques used to obtain votes. From previous events, it seems that the Nigerian people will probably accept this decision without violence.

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'Super Tuesday': Verdict on Yar' Adua's Fate Today

After several months of legal battle over the legitimacy or otherwise of the April 21, 2007 presidential elections, the presidential election petition tribunal will today deliver its verdict on whether the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar'Adua and his running mate, Dr. Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, validly emerged winners or not. The Appeal Court President, Justice Umaru Abdulahi, has meanwhile okayed live coverage of the event by the media.

The election was widely described by national and international observers as marred by rigging and irregularities across the nation.

Specifically, the tribunal will give its verdict in two separate, but consolidated petitions filed by the presidential candidates of the All Nigeria Peoples Party (ANPP), Gen. Muhammadu Buhari and his counterpart from the Action Congress (AC), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar.

In their separate petitions, the two candidates have urged the tribunal to void the election on the claim that the elections were a ruse as, according to them, votes were
merely allotted to candidates by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

They also argued that since the election was not conducted in substantial compliance with the provisions of the Electoral Act 2006, the tribunal had a duty to nullify the results so declared by INEC.

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The decision concerning whether or not the 2007 election was flawed or not will be given later on today. Yar'Adua's opponents filed both petitions. Their main arguments were that the votes were alloted solely to the canidates running on behalf of the Independent National Electoral Commission and the the election was not compliant with the rules set by the Electoral Act of 2006. They think that the election should be declared null and void. This shows that theNigerian government is finally dealing with the corrupt government. They are taking a step to no longer allow cheating, bribery, theft, and blackmail within the government.

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D-Day for Yar'Adua: Judge Dismisses Muhammadu Buhari's Petition

A Nigerian judge has dismissed one of two opposition petitions asking that President Umaru Yar'Adua's election in April last year be annulled.

Opposition candidate Gen Muhammadu Buhari had said the ballot did not take place in 29 of the 31 states.

A judge is still to rule on former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar's claim that the incumbent People's Democratic Party rigged the vote.

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This article addresses the claims that the recent election that elected Nigerian President Umaru Yar'Adua was flawed because of the corrupt practices it was run. There have been two petitions stating that the election should be annulled because Yar'Adua won through unfair means. The claims of flawed elections show the corruption that have filled the nation since its beginning, and if the elections were rigged it can cause the Nigerian people to lose their trust in the government which can lower the legitimacy of Nigeria.

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Assessment Complete

Nigeria parliament passes 2008 budget, spending up

Nigeria's National Assembly passed a final version of the 2008 budget on Wednesday that foresees a 21 percent hike in proposed expenditure and an even sharper increase on what the government actually spent last year.

The Senate and House of Representatives, which had passed slightly different versions of the budget last week, reconciled their figures and adopted the 2.89 trillion naira total spending proposed by the upper chamber.

The harmonised bill will now be sent to President Umaru Yar'Adua for final approval. He had originally proposed an annual spending figure of 2.45 trillion naira.

To increase the amount of money available to be spent in this year's budget, the lawmakers revised upwards the benchmark oil price to $59 per barrel from $53.83 in the executive's original bill.

The Senate had said the additional spending was "committed to the provision of water, roads, power, enhancement of social services such as education and healthcare delivery".

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Although the budjet has not been approved by Yar'Adua, a 20% increase in spending is quite signifigant. The addition is supposed to help provide more quality public goods and services, and the Nigerian people may appriciate the extra spending. Hopefully, this new budjet, and the higher oil prices from Nigeria do result in added stability and satisfaction with the Nigerian Government.

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Undoing Immunity: Is Nigeria Ready?

Fraud, misrepresentation and obstruction of justice are the problem we face. Graft and corruption remained a problem nine years after democracy .The senate goes largely undetected to harbour thieves in the senate. They have not cared to find out because they know who the thieves are. The names of these thieves are well known to all Nigerians. Do we need to talk about the chief presiding officers, whose nationality and foreign accounts makes mincemeat of any moral pretensions to any responsible office, or their deputy whose name found its way advertently into EFCC’s list of corrupt politicians? The senators need only to look in the mirror to see the thieves that Nigerians have known all along. With Nuhu Aliyu’s volte-face, Nigeria’s clamour to be rescued from the grip of elitist leeches has suffered yet another set back. With every such betrayal, Nigeria’s future is buried by installment. Nigeria is now a corpse that should relax and enjoy its eternal alliance with the coffin of corruption.

Again this time, reports that corruption is the root cause of the economic collapse in this nation and financial problems of some countries throughout the world is appearing boldly visible. It could come as fraud, bankruptcy fraud, bribery, insider trading, embezzlement, computer crime, medical crime, public corruption, identity theft, environmental crime, pension fund crime, RICO crimes, consumer fraud, occupational crime, securities fraud, financial fraud, and forgery is no longer prosecuted.

Sometimes, crime tends to be made up of complex, sophisticated, and relatively technical actions in disguise. It tends to be intermingled with legitimate behaviour. It comes with diffusing victimization. Harm is not always conceptualized or identifiable as such because it is usually spread out over a substantial number of victims. The monetary sums that are involved tend to be quite large as pictured from Patricia Etteh’s scandals. As the former Speaker in the Assembly of thieves! She approved over N628 million to renovate her house and that of the Deputy Speaker. I am not surprised at all! This woman was just following the footprints that she saw ahead of her. What more can we say about the thieves and illegitimate people that are ruling Nigeria?

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The reason that the Nigerian government is as corrupt as it is is not because of ignorance, but because of apathy. Government officials are not being punished for stealing, embezzling, bribery, or anything else even though others know what is going on. For this reason, the majority of Nigerians live impoverished. Though Nigeria has technically been a democracy for 9 years now, the situation has not improved.

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Nigeria Made $55b from Oil Exports in 2007

Information made public by the United States (U.S.) government on earnings by members of the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) for 2007 has placed Nigeria fourth on the ladder with a total income of $55 billion.

The amount, the report noted, did not translate into improved standards of living for the citizens as their plight remained deplorable with a mere $409 as per capita income.

With the figure, Nigeria emerged the fourth highest revenue earner among OPEC countries coming behind Saudi Arabia, which earned $189 billion, United Arab Emirates (UAE), which made $63 billion and Iran's $57 billion.

Although Nigeria featured prominently among the four leading nations in OPEC in terms of oil export revenues, the country lagged behind significantly in per capita distribution.

But the rise of the oil prices in the international market above $100 is being attributed to several factors such as the lingering crisis in the Niger Delta region.

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Though Nigeria produced the fourth most oil out of all of the OPEC countries, the per capita income of all of the OPEC countries is close to $400. Obviously the oil profits are going elsewhere. The oil prices will continue to rise for the remainder of the world due in part to the problems in the Niger Delta. This article further exemplified how oxymoronic the financial status of Nigeria is.

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Bakers may go on strike over flour price

WILL bread and other flour-based products cease to be regular staples on the tables of most Nigerians? Will the soaring price of flour consign such food items only within the reach of the financially well-heeled?

How these posers will be resolved will depend whether the Association of Master Bakers and Caterers of Nigeria makes good its threat to shut down its bakeries should flour millers refuse to halt their plans to increase the price of flour in the next seven days.

Briefing the media yesterday in Lagos, President of the association, Chief Bayo Folarin, stated that the association noted with dismay the recent decision of some flour millers to increase the price of 50kg bag of flour from N4,675 to N5,125.

Folarin wondered why the flour millers were not willing to bring down the price of flour even after the price of wheat had reduced greatly at the international market.

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Although bread will probably still be availabe, if this strike does come into effect, bread will be hard to find and very expensive for Nigerians. The nearly 10% increase in price of flour is very significant, and using the threat of a strike should be effective in reversing this decision if it is not made for good reason. The opinion of the flour producers has not been exposed, however, and it will be interesting to see what the explanation of this increase is.

"In the Abundance of Water, the Fool is Thirsty"

It defies all reasonable explanations why we cannot feed ourselves with the abundance of fertile land such as the Sahel rolling grass land to the north and the rain forest in the south. We have incredible amount of natural and manpower resources, why is it we can not put these rare combinations together and translate them into abundant food production where modern civilization could thrive? Drop any seed on the ground; before you know it, it germinates! This does not happen everywhere in the world particularly where the majority of food stuffs we import come from.

It is shocking that we import billions of naira worth of rice and other grains from countries where they have only about four months of growing season, isn't that telling us about our cavalier attitudes towards championing our course and making our country independent?

The trend should be the other way round. We have the whole year as a growing season, what else do we want the Mother Nature to indulge us with? Gone are those beautiful days of groundnut pyramids in the north and the cocoa production in the south. No thanks to government's direction less agricultural policy and no thanks to the paradoxical oil doom! The oil boom has given us capricious leaders with acute sense of what is right for the country; it has made us to be indolent, insolent, plan-less, visionless, dependent and vulnerable through the evil of economic penetration.

The road net-works in Nigeria are in the worst shape ever, after so many billions of naira had gone down the drain. Actually, one of the worst in Africa! It is now a common knowledge that road accidents are the highest killer of Nigerians, probably killing more people than HIV/AIDS. Yet, Nigeria can boast of an extensive deposit of bitumen which is the major material for road pavement somewhere in Ondo state, one of the largest in the world. What an oxymoron! How many governments will it take to make things right in our country? My grand father died hoping for a better Nigeria, so my father, and now even my own generation is still hopeless and the next generation may also leave in despair.

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A Nigerian living in Canada reflects on the irony that prevails in his home country. Though they have fertile land, there are people starving. Though they have billions of dollars worth of oil reserves, the people are predominantly poor. Though they devote millions of dollars annually to fixing the roads, car accidents are the leading cause of death. Though they have rich supplies of bitumen, the major material for road pavement, the roads go unpaved. The country has been turned backwards due to a history of government corruption. The author of this article is saddened by the state the Nigeria has come to.

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Government Okays New Mining Policy

A MINERAL and Metal Policy to guide activities in Nigeria's mining sector has been approved by the Federal Government.

The Federal Executive Council (FEC) yesterday endorsed the policy alongside a memo from the Ministry of Women Affairs on Nigeria 's full subscription to the United Nations (UN) Convention and Optional Protocol on Rights of Persons with Disabilities. The council also approved the domestication of the Convention and Optional Protocol as a law of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

Information and Communications Minister John Odey, his Mines and Steel Development counterparts, Chief Sarafa Tunji Ishola and Alhaji Ahmad Mohammed-Gusau, who briefed journalists at the end of the meeting, said that the new policy become imperative because the one in use came into existence in 1964.

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This article addresses the recent governmental decisions to create new policy regarding Nigeria's mining activities. According to the article, this new policy was necessary because the last time a policy was made was 1964. Also this article asserts that when President Umaru Yar'Adua came into power, he and his administration became aware that there were many things in the government that were "intolerable." For these reasons, the current administration has pledged to make changes which shows the desire to make Nigeria the best that it can be. This article also states that the new policy will focus on it being run by a private sector rather than the government. This shows the faith that the government has in its people by allowing them to control such an important aspect of the nation. This shows the transformation that the new administration is trying to make happen.

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President Raises Panel to Check Energy Crisis

PRESIDENT Umaru Musa Yar'Adua yesterday constituted an 11-member committee to give practical effect to his administration's pledge to end the country's
long-running energy crisis within the shortest possible time. He charged the committee to deliver to the country a total additional 6,000 megawatts generation, transmission and distribution capacity within the next 18 months.

The committee was also mandated to add to the national grid an extra 11,000 megawatts of power generation capacity by 2011.

This would be done through diverse sources while the 6,000 additional megawatts target would be met through the National Integrated Power Project (NIPP).

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This article addresses President Umaru Yar'Adua's recent creation of an eleven person committee who is charged with helping the President and his administration in their desire to relieve the energy crisis in Nigeria. Yar'Adua believes the there must be a partnership between the government and the private sector that is attempting to ease the energy crisis. The committee is aimed at analyzing the infrastructure of the power sector, the funding of the new initiatives, and providing a reliable investor for the power sector, among other priorities. This decision shows the goals that Yar'Adua's administration to make Nigeria the best it can be by making each individual aspect of the government and the country as a whole better.

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$10bn Funds: ‘Obasanjo’s Former Aides Tried to Blackmail Yar’Adua’

The Economic Adviser to the President, Alhaji Tanimu Kurfi, on Tuesday accused officials in former President Olusegun Obasanjo’s government of launching a propaganda war against the President Umaru Yar’Adua administration over the actual amount spent on the power sector.

Kurfi said the campaign was aimed at presenting a smaller figure as the total amount of money spent by Obasanjo’s government between 1999 and 2007.

Kurfi spoke against the background of a media report that one of Yar’Adua’s aides, Mr. Foluseke Somolu, claimed that only $5.16bn was spent on power by the former government, as against $10bn stated by the President.

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This article addresses the propaganda attacks against President Umaru Yar'Adua. There are allegations that spending has occurred in the government in past administrations which has not been accounted for. There was also "propaganda warfare" by the former administrations against the current administration. This contributes to the corruption that has so consumed Nigeria for so many years.

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Kenyan lauds Nigerians for nonviolent elections

Note the happiness, not rioting after the previous election.

A former Kenyan parliamentarian and the owner of Club of Madrid, Prof. Ruth Oniango, has expressed satisfaction at the manner Nigerians conducted themselves in response to country's general elections in 2007.

Oniango said that despite the reported flaws in the elections, Nigerians did not resort to political violence, rather, they approached the rectification of the flaws peacefully.

"Professor Ruth Oniango, a former Kenyan parliamentarian, has saluted Nigerians for not finding recourse in violence in spite of some lapses that visited the April general elections.

"She remarked that, unlike in her native country of Kenya, where the head of the electoral commission could not announce who won the recent election in the country, it was heartwarming that Professor Maurice Iwu could announce the result of Nigeria's poll and wager publicly that the result of the elections reflected the intent of the voters.

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In the midst of all the criticism about flawed elections, corruption, and oil prices, someone has found something positive to talk about in Nigeria. However, the fact that the praise comes from someone whose democratic status is arguably in worse shape does somewhat dull the appeal. The absence of violence in the recent, likely flawed elections is proof the Nigeria is doing something good in its transition to democracy. Any display of legitimacy in a fledgling democracy like Nigeria is a good thing.

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Assessment Complete

Nigeria to build three gas plants

Gas Flaring

Nigeria plans to build three gas processing plants in the oil-rich Niger Delta and a grid of pipelines linking them to the rest of the country, a gas ministry official said Thursday.

He quoted junior gas minister Emmanuel Odesina as having said Wednesday the new plants will be built at Warri/Forcados, Akwa Ibom/Calabar and Obiafu areas of the delta.

Nigeria's junior petroleum minister, Odein Ajumogobia, has said the new gas infrastructure will cost between 15 billion and 20 billion dollars (10 billion to 14 billion euros) and that it should be put in place between 2012 and 2015.

Nigeria's reforms are aimed at enabling the country to satisfy domestic demand for gas and to reduce flaring.

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In an answer to the high demand and correspondingly high prices of gas in Nigeria, the country has decided to open three new gas plants. This simple economic solution may be the help solve the raging gas prices that citizens have gone so far as to strike over. The price and schedule of the action may offset the result for some time, but hopefully the Nigerian people should see a decrease in prices because of this.

Women's group to present pro-abortion bill to National Assembly

Demonstration of the increased safety of legal abortions (Romania)

The National Council for Women Society (NCWS) has concluded plans to present a bill that will seek to allow women who desire abortion to have a safe one instead of going to quacks.

While defending her position, National President of NCWS, Mrs. Ramatu Bala Usman, who spoke with The Guardian in Abuja, said contrary to widely held belief that such a bill would promote promiscuity, the bill, she explained, would provide qualitative healthcare to women who desire safe abortion.

Her words: "Five years ago, we were ignorant because we believed that promotion of abortion was going to promote promiscuity. But now, we know better that the aim is just to make services available to women who may not only desire abortion but for those who may have complications as a result of unsafe abortion carried out by quacks. We have resolved to generate a bill on abortion to be forwarded to the National Assembly very soon for passage.

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The conflict over abortion is not just limited to the United States, but the grounds of the debate differ between our nation and Nigeria. Where the grounds for the pro-life group’s argument in the United States are morals and religious ideas, in Nigeria the conflict is much more concrete: allowing abortions may lead to greater promiscuity. The NCWS, however, asserts that this is not the case, but anti-abortion legislation leads to unsafe alternatives. It remains to be seen whether an all-women’s lobbyist group can influence politics in Nigeria as much as a male contingent. This may prove to be a test of the amount of Misogyny in Nigeria.

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30 Textile Workers Die Waiting for Benefits

Union workers get much higer benefits.

The National Union of Textile Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria said it had lost 30 members who died waiting for their entitlements.

The statement, signed by Malam Ali Baba, the union's organising secretary in Kano,
said the workers were frustrated.

According to the statement, 680 workers who worked for between five and 25 years were still waiting for their benefits, adding that efforts to settle the matter with the company's management had failed.

The statement said the company owed the workers about N400 million and urged the state government to intervene in the matter.

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Gaskiya Textile was so reluctant to pay out benefits to its workers that they managed to stall long enough until some of them have died. These workers were part of a union, and were probably paid higher than average benefits, but it is unacceptable for a company to deny its workers their benefits for so long that they are kiked out of their houses or die because of a preventable disease and lack of access to a doctor.

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Nigeria's Oil Export Suffers Setback

The 2008 budget is already under threat even before it is passed. The Niger Delta crisis has continued to take its toll on the nation’s revenue as Shell Development Company of Nigeria (SPDC), Nigeria’s biggest oil producer, still records a production shut-in of about 200,000 barrels per day in the Western base. Fears are already being expressed that Nigeria is at risk of losing its reliability as a steady supplier of crude oil owing to the frequent shut-ins. The World Street Journal reported earlier in the week that anxiety over the latest Nigerian disruptions helped to push oil futures above $90 a barrel last week.Nigeria, world’s 6th biggest oil exporter and Africa’s largest oil producer, derives more than 90 per cent of its foreign exchange earnings from oil which forms the basis for national budget.

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The current problems in the Niger Delta have halted Shell's oil supply. Nigeria is one of the world's largest oil suppliers, but they could be losing their reliability. They are producing significantly less oil than expected. Nigeria cannot afford to lose Shell; the revenue from oil makes up a large majority of the Nigerian government budget. Oil is the country's largest source of income and jobs, so millions of Nigerians would be devastated if Shell were to pull out of the country.

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Nigeria Orders Shell to Stop Restructuring Amid Job Loss Fears

The Nigerian state-run oil company NNPC has ordered the Anglo-Dutch oil group Shell to suspend its restructuring amid fears it could lead to job losses, officials said Tuesday. Senior Nigerian industry officials quoted Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation boss Abubakar Yar'Adua as telling a parliamentary hearing on Monday that the NNPC, with which Shell had a joint venture partnership, was not consulted before Shell went ahead with the exercise.

"There are issues involved and must be resolved before anything," Yar'Adua said, but added that the NNPC appreciated the challenges facing Shell with production cut because of unrest in the Niger Delta.

Shell director Mutiu Sunmonu told the hearing the restructuring would have saved the company some 200 million dollars if allowed to go through, according to the NNPC officials. He said Shell took the decision to ensure "the future and survival of its business operations" in the oil-rich west African country.

He said a combination of factors, including the unrest in the Niger Delta, had led to a cut in Shell's daily production in recent months. Shell is Nigeria's largest operator, accounting for around half of the country's daily output of 2.6 million barrels at peak production, but the unrest in the restive Niger Delta has reduced the firm's production by some 500,000 bpd.

The company had said in a statement last November it was restructuring its Nigerian operation to promote efficiency, productivity and cut costs.

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Nigeria can not afford to allow Shell to lay off thousands of Nigerian workers. The decrease in production could be devastating for the already unsturdy Nigerian economy. While inceasing efficiency and cutting costs would be beneficial for Shell, the unemployment that it would cause would cost thousands of jobs, which is the last thing that Nigeria needs right now. Also, the recent oil pipeline breaks in the Niger Delta have further raised production costs.

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Nigerian corruption has made all of the inacted reforms completely ineffective. The reforms help the rich, not the poor, which is the opposite of what they were intended to do. President Yar'Adua promises change, but the country has a long way to go still.

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Gun deal: 5 Army officers, 10 others face court martial

Five Senior Army officers and 10 other soldiers are to appear before a military court martial in Kaduna today for alleged involvement in illegal sale of arms and ammunition.

The court martial set up by the Army high command to try some of its officers and soldiers involved in the illegal sale of arms and ammunition.

The accused officers to appear before the court martial set up by the Army high command, include, Colonels R.O.Yusuf, Gadgere, Lieutenant-Colonel Wesley as well as Majors M.K. Ahmed and A. S. Akubo. They were alleged to have connived with some soldiers, among them a sergeant, two corporals, six lance-corporals and one private to steal arms and ammunitions, equipment and other military accoutrements worth billions of naira in one of the ordinance depots in the country.

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This article addresses the trial that began against five Senior Army officers and ten other soldiers for "alleged involvement in illegal sales of arms and ammunition." This is an attempt to end the corrupt practices that have consumed the Army in Nigeria prior to the new Chief of Army Staff (COAS) General Luka Nyem Yusuf taking office. This shows the new government policy that President Umaru Yar'Adua has implemented to end the corruption that has consumed Nigeria for so many years.

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AC opposes removal of immunity clause

WHILE it canvassed more stringent measures to check corruption and abuse of office, the Action Congress (AC) has cautioned against the removal of the immunity clause from the Constitution. It said doing so was capable of endangering Nigeria's democracy.

The AC said the idea behind the immunity clause was to save those it was meant for from frivolous suits by detractors, stating that the clause had helped Nigeria's political office holders.

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This article addresses the decision to not remove the immunity clause which protects the political leaders of Nigeria from the Constitution because it can threaten Nigeria's democracy. This decision is in direct repsonse to the war against corruption the Yar'Adua has initiated. It is stated in the article that the concern should not be the "constitutional immunity" but the "quality of officials" who are in these positions to receive immunity, and these reasons contributed to the decision to not remove the immunity clause because it only endangers those political leaders who are not corrupt.

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Yar'Adua lists new rules, no politics in projects location

ANY project to be executed by the Federal Government will henceforth not be determined strictly by political considerations, the Presidency has said.

In a directive to ministers and other senior government officials, President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua listed the new economic factors to determine the siting of any project as need, the number of people it will serve and the jobs it will create.

Consequently, the President has ordered that Lagos be given priority in the location of new refineries.

Yar'Adua particularly directed the affected officials to ensure that investors be encouraged to build refineries in the nation's former capital.

Read the full story here.

This article addresses President Umaru Yar'Adua's recent decision that not only will political considerations be considered when placing an oil refinery but also economic factors will be considered. Some of these economic factors include "need, the number of people it will serve and the jobs it will create." Also, preference was given to Lagos in regard to the building of new refineries because Lagos consumes 55 percent of petroleum products. This article also addresses Yar'Adua's desire to halt imports of petroleum products to Nigeria and resume production in some of the refineries including the Warri Refinery. This shows the President's desire to make Nigeria be the most productive that it can be and rely on itself fully, rather than other nations to provide the products necessary to live.

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Assessment Complete

Nigeria: Poor Oil Spill Clean-Up Methods Affect Niger Delta Community

A few days after villagers in Kedere in Nigeria's oil-rich Niger Delta region noticed oil seeping from the pipe that runs beside the village, a few boys from the village went out with shovels, dug pits a few feet deep, scooped the oil into the ground and burned it, finally covering it with sand. "During the dry season, it looks nice," Anyakwee Nsirimovu, director of the Institute for Human Rights and Humanitarian Law in Port Harcourt, told IRIN, describing the simple process which he said is a common spill clean-up tactic in the region.


The environmental damage caused by such poor clean-up methods could be disastrous, Emmanuel Emmanuel, an environmental scientist in Port Harcourt,
said. "Oil does not burn at 800 degrees Celsius," he explained, "so when you burn it, you just flare off the volatiles and gas. The dense crude remains... One drop of rain and you see the black spots," he said.


Across Kedere and similar villages in the region, evidence of the damage is readily apparent in the oil sheen on the soil and water.


"The land is devastated. The drinking water and streams are polluted. As it rains, we use the rain water but cannot drink it, because even that is full of crude oil," youth leader Amstel Monday Ebarakpor told IRIN. "At every groundwater intrusion, you see seepage. Sometimes you can see oil sheen on drinking water," he told IRIN. "Crude will be there for the next 50 years."


On 25 January the chairman of the government's National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency, Bamidele Ajakaiye, told Nigeria's Senate Committee on Environment and Ecology that there are 1,150 abandoned oil spill sites in the Niger Delta region. Many, communities say, are cleaned like the one in Kedere - if at all.

Read the full story...

Oil spills threaten the ground water in Nigeria. Oil spills are likely due to old, worn-out oil pipelines that rupture often. Ineffective oil spill clean-up methods have led to the contamination of bodies of water. The oil will likely remain in the water supply for about 50 years. Nigerian officials are not sure of their plan of action yet, but something must be done soon before the Nigerian citizens consume toxic amounts of oil from their drinking water.


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Nigeria, Agent of Change - Obama, U.S. Presidential Aspirant

United States Senator Barack Obama says he will work with Nigerian leaders to take a more active role in ensuring stability and peace in Africa if he wins the Democratic Party primaries and ultimately the White House.


He said: "Nigeria has so much potential to be a catalyst of change on the continent and I intend to discuss such options with the country's leadership."


Obama, the first African-American lawmaker, is the son of a Kenyan father and an American mother. A fierce critic of former military leaders in Nigeria, he said that the country could be "the beacon of hope for Africa, just as America is to the world's oppressed."


He blamed past leaders for their inability to move the country forward, adding that Nigeria lacked leaders with vision and ability to implement bold reforms.


According to the senator, leadership is about setting goals, inspiring the people to achieve the impossible and moving the country forward,” adding, “sadly, past Nigerian leaders failed to do this." He expressed support for the leadership of President Yar'Adua but called for a reform of the electoral system.

Read the full story...

Obama, a presidential canidate in the upcoming election, feels that Nigeria has the power to initiate change all over Africa and has vowed to work with Nigerian leaders to improve the country. Unfortunately, the recent presidents have not set goals and have been rather ineffective leaders. He supports Yar'Adua, but admits the the electoral process must be changed. Hopefully Nigerian President Yar'Adua will live up to Obama's high standards.

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Yar'Adua Renews War on Corruption

President Umaru Yar’Adua on Thursday took a retrospective view at the governments efforts to stamp out corruption and declared: We still have a long way to go.

Yar’Adua lamented that in spite of the country’s natural and physical endowments, it was yet to realise its potential.

He, however, said he had absolute faith in the ability of Nigerians to overcome the nation’s present challenges.

The President said, “We are yet to overcome the bogeys of mindless corruption, sectionalism, ethnicity, religious bigotry, self-serving politics of intolerance and lack of commitment to national ideals.

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As you can see from the map above (Click for a larger version), Nigeria, like all of Africa, has large issues with corruption. It is very good to see Yar'Adua taking a stance on corruption, but it would be even better to see action taken. Claims of fixing the corruption in Nigeria show that the country is aware of its problem, but the lack of action in the past show that even beginning to reduce corruption is much more difficult than simply mmaking a speech.
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Senate Leader Rules out Three Term Presidency in Revised Constitution

The National Assembly would not consider any proposition for three terms for executive office holders in the lawmakers' new move to amend the 1999 Constitution.

Senate Majority Leader, Teslim Folarin, who disclosed this in an interview in Abuja yesterday, stated that since Nigerians had demonstrated their opposition to that attempt, the Senate would not give it a thought again.

His words: "We have to realise that politics is very dynamic; politics is very fluid. At the time it was an issue, I personally think it is not an issue now. It was very clear that the country does not want that. It will not make any sense to bring it back."

Folarin stated that the Senate would ensure that clauses to be amended were restricted to a manageable level, adding that the last exercise failed because the items for amendment were too many.

On the allegation by Senator Nuhu Aliyu that there were fraudsters in the National Assembly, Folarin said the senator was known for such allegations and as such Nigerians should not take him seriously.

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This story demonstrates the capability of the Nigerian government to respond to popular demand. After so many stories about the corruption and incompetance of Nigerian leaders, a manifestation of a working democracy is refreshing.
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Rough Roads

This comic, remarking on the corruption of government, is rather self explanatory. Polititians do not always do what is the best interest of the government; more often, they do what is in their best interest.

Judicial Workers' Strike Grounds Courts Nationwide

COURT activities were paralysed nationwide yesterday as judicial workers under the aegis of Judiciary Staff Union of Nigeria (JUSUN) resumed their strike. It is meant to be indefinite.

Among the major cases stalled as a result of the strike is the petition filed by former Vice President, Alhaji Atiku Abubakar and former Head of State, Gen. Muhammadu Buhari (rtd) against the declaration of Alhaji Umaru Musa Yar'Adua of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) as winner of the 2007 presidential election.

Also stalled was the hearing on the bail for former Delta State Governor James Onanefe Ibori who is standing trial for money laundering.

The tribunal had fixed yesterday for all parties in the presidential case to the petition to adopt their written brief with regard to the petition filed by Atiku of the Action Congress (AC) and Buhari of the All Nigeria Peoples Party.

Some of the workers in Abuja who spoke to The Guardian lamented the gulf between the pay packages of Judges and the ordinary judicial staff, whom they referred to as the "engine room of judicial activities" or "the Judges' foot soldiers."

Read the full story...

Judicial workers are on strike because of the corrupt, unfair presidential election last summer and because of the large gap in salary between the judge and the judicial workers. The judicial workers are paid about one-seventh of the salary that the judge is paid, but they do the same amount of work. This strike once again demonstrates that many Nigerian citizens do not respect Yar'Adua as president because of the corruption that allowed him to take office. The government is not very legitimate because of this.

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Nigeria May Record 500,000 Cancer Cases Yearly

A SCARY picture of the ravages of cancer on Nigerians by the year 2010 was painted by the Minister of Health, Prof. Adenike Grange, yesterday.



According to the minister, as from 2010, about 500,000 Nigerians may suffer from the disease.



The minister stated yesterday during an event to mark the World Cancer Day that government was desirous of raising public awareness on cancer as most Nigerians still did not appreciate the dangers posed by the deadly disease.

Read the full story here.

This article addresses the Nigerian government's desire to make their citizens aware of cancer and all of its components and its dangers. The government has made plans to make changes in order to change individual's smoking behavior around children. The government has also made adjustments to the technology needed to detect and diagnose the cancer in an effort to have the ability to diagnose someone with cancer before the very late stages. Now the government is being asked to provide better treatment facilities and options because of the growing number of cancer cases in the nation. This article shows that the Nigerian government is taking beneficial steps to bettering their society, but there are still some crucial steps that need to be taken.

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70,000 Barrels of Crude Oil Lost

The police have begun investigation into the disappearance of a ship laden with crude oil, reportedly diverted to Nigeria’s territorial waters.

A competent police source told the News Agency of Nigeria in Lagos that the ship, with more than 70,000 barrels of crude oil, was on a voyage from Panama to Tema Port in Ghana when it was diverted.

The source said that an order from the office of the Inspector-General of Police was being awaited before commencement of full investigation.

The Navy, however, said it was not aware of the missing vessel.

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While it was not the fault of anyone from Nigeria, this tanker incident has revealed many things about cross-organization in the Nigerian Government. The police in Nigeria were aware of the tanker, but the Navy was not. The department seemingly most suited to the investigation should be aware of the incident, but they are not.
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Government Cancels Incentives for Oil Firms

FOREIGN oil firms operating in Nigeria will henceforth not enjoy monetary incentives granted them by the Federal Government 22 years ago.


This followed the termination of all agreements on fiscal incentives given to the companies for the purpose of increasing oil and gas exploration. The Memoranda of Understanding (MOU) between the government and the oil multinationals were signed in 1986 to strengthen the beneficiaries following the crash in the international oil prices and the attendant reluctance of some of oil-producing companies to invest in oil and gas activities in the country.

Read the full story here.


This article addresses recent decisions to remove incentives for Nigerian oil firms. These incentives were removed for various reasons, including evidence that the funds were being used in places other than their designated area. This removal is occuring in order to continue "on-going reforms in the industry" which shows evidence of Nigeria's modernization. The nation is attempting to better itself by making its various industries the best they can possibly be while still adjusting various mindsets in the nation, including the excessive amount of corruption that has consumed Nigeria for so long.


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Assessment Complete

Nnamani, Masari, Others Task Yar'Adua on PDP's Drift

CRISIS is, no doubt, becoming the signature of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). Whenever it seems some quiet has descended on the self-styled largest party in Africa, a storm is thrown up.


The latest is that some prominent members of the PDP under the aegis of G-21 have written to President Umaru Musa Yar'Adua in his capacity as the leader of the ruling
political grouping to call former President Olusegun Obasanjo and the national
chairman, Ahmadu Ali, to order.


In the letter titled: "The problem of Peoples Democratic Party: A recipe for its survival," and which was signed by former Senate President, Ken Nnamani, former Speaker of the House of Representatives, Aminu Bello Masari and Chief Alani Bankole, father of the present Speaker of the House of Representatives, Dimeji Bankole, among others, the group alerted that the party was on the verge of total collapse and they felt that as concerned members, they should draw his attention to the issue so as to see what could be done to salvage it.

Read the full story here.


This article shows the power that the People's Democratic Party (PDP) has in Nigeria; and this same power that they would like to keep. This article also mentions how God had placed Yar'Adua in the President's position which shows that Nigeria practices some aspects of theocracy. This article also states that there are personal vendettas for changing certain aspects of the government, including the constitution. According to the article, "the amendments carried out so far in the constitution of the party were not intended to strengthen the party but to suit the wishes of a few individuals." This article also asserts that the PDP has lost some credibility which could cause lower legitimacy because it can make the citizens of Nigeria feel as though their government does not have a right to rule. The letter mentioned in this article draws President Yar'Adua's attention to many important issues, and a true test of his power and ability to rule this nation will be evident in his next steps.


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