Subsidy Removal: Marketers Galvanise For CNG Rollout At N100/litre

Nigeria’s transportation industry will soon begin to see relief after the federal government’s petrol subsidy removal spiked exponential rise in the price of the product across the country.

The national president of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), Elder Chinedu Okoronkwo, said the Association is 90 per cent ready to roll out Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) as alternative automotive fuel, which it is going to sell between N100 to N110 per litre before the end of June.

Okoronkwo, who confirmed said this on Channels Television’s Business Morning programme on Monday, stressed that CNG has come to serve as an alternative to petrol.

Okoronkwo, explained that CNG would help bring down the cost of energy in the country, adding, “Very soon, we will roll out. We are 90 per cent close to that, and that will also unveil many possibilities.”

He noted that fuel subsidy removal had reduced the speed with which Nigeria could have gotten another energy mix

“IPMAN has brought relief to a lot of families. We have got the usage of our natural energy, CNG, to power vehicles, generators, and even cooking,” the IPMAN president said.

The CNG is expected to reduce, to a large extent, the country’s exposure to fuel importation as natural gas would not be imported.

The CNG is expected to reduce, to a large extent, the country’s exposure to fuel importation as natural gas would not be imported.

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Okoronkwo noted that CNG-powered cars had started gaining momentum in the country because of increased awareness about its efficiency and affordability, compared to traditional fuels like diesel and petrol.

“If the government buys into what we are saying, it will act as an assistance, bring relief, and create job opportunities.

“What we need the government to do is create the market. The demand is there,” the IPMAN president said.

He added that IPMAN had gotten a lot of buy-in from companies overseas.

On what the CNG brings to the value-chain, he said, “I don’t know if you have seen what is trending this week where people with their I-pass-my- neighbour generators are beginning to use liquified petroleum gas. LPG is close to N700 per kilogramme, but this natural gas we are talking about is under N100 to N110.

“When you check what the impact will be, it will reduce the cost of food because people coming from the hinterlands bring food to the cities. From Kano, it takes them about N1.2 million to fuel trucks with diesel, but with this CNG, it will cost them about N150,000 to N200,000. About a million naira is saved that will translate to cheaper food and open up a lot of other businesses.

“It will provide cheaper energy to drive the processing zones like the agro-based industries, where the gas will also create a lot of impact.

“CNG does not replace PMS, but it is a choice. We are talking of something that will help your purse and not deepen it.”

The director of Gas Analytics and Solutions Limited, Shuaibu Bello, who also spoke at the Channels Television programme, said the CNG would be a game-changer for Nigerians.

“This is the best palliative you can give the nation. If you talk of palliative, it is not just sharing money with people, it is creating a system that will reach the rich and the poor.

“If you compare CNG price at N110 per litre with petrol now at N540 or its former price of N185, still you will have a reduction,” he said.

IPMAN had in April 2023 wrote to the Finance ministry to request that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) be mandated to release N250 billion intervention fund for the implementation of the National Gas Expansion Programme (NGEP).

IPMAN explained it asked for the fund to provide access to the Gas Expansion Fund for vehicle, commercial tricycle and truck owners to access loans to finance the acquisition of natural gas conversion kits.

At the time, IPMAN said that it had partnered with Gas Analytics & Solutions Limited to co-locate natural gas dispensers on their network of over 30,000 filling stations in Nigeria.

According to IPMAN, it controls over 80 per cent of the downstream oil sector, and as such, the collocation model would help to reduce the exposure in building new filling stations.

Similarly, the manager corporate Communications of NipCo, Biodun Lawal, speaking on the company’s desire to depeen investment in the gas sector, said the savings that will accrue from subsidy removal offers more vista of opportunities to fund the enormous gas infrastructure deficit in the nation .

“We are still investing more infrastructure with a proviso that clientele will improve sporadically

Some of the challenges in harnessing the abundant gas resources in the country includes – paucity of pipelines to transport gas across the country ,cost of conversion to use gas as auto fuel , access to gas through stations .

“With all modesty NIPCO gas Limited is the only company with over 12 CNG get to get gas for motorist” he said.

Continuing, Lawal, said motorist can now see the innate benefits in running their vehicles on gas rather than fossil fuels which government has in the past graciously subsidised even at the expense of the overall economic growth and other socio -economic development of the nation .

According to him, CNG as a preferred alternative to petrol is good for gas companies as the nation at large as or offered veritable opportunity of creating more employment opportunities ,better value creation in the Industry ,better utilisation of the endowed gas resources of the country .

He said, the benefits are enormous for motorist in terms of savings and life span of such automobiles and that the conversion cost should not be a drawback with support from government especially with fiscal policies to encourage investors to go into kits manufacturing and ancillary items like cylinders etc .

“In the interim policies can be put in place for exemption from levies of imported accessories pending when the environment will be made more conducive for it’s manufacturing in Nigeria CNG business has a good horizon in the country with the challenges tacked headlong.

Lawal, said as pioneers NipCo gas, is looking forward to more inroads in the sector.

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Akpabio elected senate president, Barau becomes deputy

Godswill Akpabio, senator representing Akwa Ibom north-west, has been elected as the senate president.

He defeated Abdulaziz Yari, senator representing Zamfara central, to win the election on Tuesday.

Akpabio polled 63 votes, while Yari scored 46 votes.

Senator Barau Jibrin from Kano state has been declared deputy senate president.

Akpabio, a former minister of Niger Delta affairs, was the preferred candidate of the governing All Progressives Congress (APC) ahead of the contest.

The clerk of the national assembly is now administering the oath of office on Akpabio.

The clerk has also handed over the gavel and a copy of the senate standing rules to Akpabio.

Akpabio has just exercised his authority for the first time by hitting the gavel and is now swearing in senators-elect. Afterwards, the 10th senate can commence the business of legislation.

Akpabio, 60, served as governor of Akwa Ibom from 2007 to 2015 and senate minority leader from 2015 to 2018.

He was appointed minister of Niger Delta affairs by former President Muhammadu Buhari in 2019 and resigned in June 2022 to contest the presidential primaries of the APC.

He stepped down on the night of the primary election, alongside others, for the eventual winner of the general election President Bola Tinubu.

He was re-elected senator in 2023 and commenced moves to become senate president.

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Democracy Day: 7 Major Statements Tinubu Made On June 12

For President Tinubu, the recent harmonization of the retirement age for judicial officers is meant to strengthen the rule of law, which is a critical pillar of democracy.

Asiwaju Bola Tinubu on Monday gave his first Democracy Day Speech as President. 

In the broadcast which was about fifteen minutes long, the president spoke briefly about June 12 and its importance of the day.

He went on to also speak about the challenges faced by citizens at this moment in the nation’s history, noting that his administration is committed to diligently fulfilling every component of his electoral pact with the people as enshrined within the ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda.

The president also urged Nigerians to rededicate themselves to strengthening the government of free peoples that has been the nation’s guiding light within the past 24 years.

There were several other key things said by the president and below 11 major statements the president made in commemoration of the 2023 Democracy Day.

1. Never take democracy for granted

The president urged Nigerians never to take democracy for granted.

We must forever jealously guard and protect it like a precious jewel. For, a people can never truly appreciate the freedoms and rights democracy guarantees them until they lose it.

We have traversed the dark, thorny path of dictatorship before and those who experienced it can readily testify to the unbridgeable gap between the dignity of freedom and the humiliation and degradation of tyranny. True, rancorous debates, interminable wrangling, ceaseless quarrels, bitter electoral contestations may be perceived by some as unattractive features of democracy. But they also testify to its merit and value.

2. Democracy well and alive

While stating that this year, Nigeria held her seventh in the cycle of elections that have become sacred rituals to her democratic practice in the dispensation since 1999, the president opined that the nation’s democracy is well and alive.

That the polls were intensely contested is in itself positive evidence that democracy is well and alive in our land. It is only natural that even as those who won and experienced victory in the various elections are elated and fulfilled, those who lost are disenchanted and disappointed.

But the beauty of democracy is that those who win today can lose tomorrow and those who lose today will have an opportunity to compete and win in the next round of elections.

ate democracy will no longer be tolerated

Speaking about the election that brought him into power, the president said a level of sportsmanship is expected to be seen in all who seek elective position, in that they may win or lose, but must do so in good spirit.

According to him:

Those who cannot endure and accept the pain of defeat in elections do not deserve the joy of victory when it is their turn to triumph. Above all, those who disagree with the outcome of the elections are taking full advantage of the constitutional provisions to seek redress in court and that is one of the reasons why democracy is still the best form of government invented by man.

For Chief MKO Abiola, the symbol of this day, in whose memory June 12 became a national holiday, democracy is eternal.

It is about rule of law and vibrant judiciary that can be trusted to deliver justice and strengthen institutions. It has become imperative to state here that the unnecessary illegal orders used to truncate or abridge democracy will no longer be tolerated.

4. The reform has just begun

For President Tinubu, the recent harmonization of the retirement age for judicial officers is meant to strengthen the rule of law, which is a critical pillar of democracy.

“The reform has just started,” he buttresses.

The democracy that will yield right dividends to the people who are the shareholders means more than just freedom of choice and right to get people into elective offices.

It means social and economic justice for our people. To the winner of June 12, democracy offers the best chance to fight and eliminate poverty.

Thirty years ago, he christened his campaign manifesto, ‘Farewell to Poverty’ because he was convinced that there is nothing divine about poverty. It is a man-made problem that can be eliminated with clearly thought out social and economic policies.

5. I admit subsidy removal will impose extra burden

According to the president, the free the nation from the shackles of poverty, he had to in his inauguration address on May 29, give effect to the decision taken by his predecessor-in-office to remove the fuel subsidy albatross and free up for collective use the much-needed resources, which had hitherto been pocketed by a few rich.

I admit that the decision will impose extra burden on the masses of our people. I feel your pain. This is one decision we must bear to save our country from going under and take our resources away from the stranglehold of a few unpatriotic elements.

Painfully, I have asked you, my compatriots, to sacrifice a little more for the survival of our country. For your trust and belief in us, I assure you that your sacrifice shall not be in vain.

The government I lead will repay you through massive investment in transportation infrastructure, education, regular power supply, healthcare and other public utilities that will improve the quality of lives.

6. Rededicate yourselves

President Tinubu said that the democracy MKO Abiola died for is one that promotes the welfare of the people over personal interests of the ruling class, and one where the governed can find personal fulfillment and happiness.

He said this is the hope which MKO Abiola ignited throughout the country in 1993, a course to which all Nigerians must remain dedicated.

On this year’s Democracy Day, I enjoin us all to rededicate ourselves to strengthening this form of government of free peoples that has been our guiding light these past 24 years.

In particular, those of us who have been privileged to be elected into public offices at various levels in both the executive and legislative arms of government must recommit ourselves to offering selfless service to the people, and delivering concrete democracy dividends in accordance with our electoral promises.

7. We will be faithful to truth, equity and justice

On his part and that of his administration, Tinubu pledged anew his administration’s commitment to diligently fulfilling every component of its electoral pact with the people – the ‘Renewed Hope’ agenda.

We shall be faithful to truth. Faithful to equity. And faithful to justice.

We shall exercise our authority and mandate to govern with fairness, respect for the rule of law, and commitment to always uphold the dignity of all our people.

The president while whishing all Nigerians a happy Democracy Day celebration, prayed that the light of liberty will never be extinguished in the land.

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Gasoline, diesel, kerosene prices up by over P1/liter Tuesday

 

Motorists will have to pay more for petroleum products this week, as oil firms are set to hike pump prices by more than P1 per liter following the rollback implemented last Tuesday.

In separate advisories, Chevron Philippines Inc. (Caltex), Flying V, Petron Corp., Pilipinas Shell Petroleum Corp., and Seaoil Philippines Corp. said they will hike prices per liter of gasoline by P1.20, diesel by P1.40, and kerosene

Cleanfuel, Petro Gazz, Phoenix Petroleum Philippines Inc., and PTT Philippines Corp. will implement the same adjustments, excluding kerosene which they do not carry.

The changes will take effect at 6 a.m. on Tuesday, June 13, 2023 except for Caltex which will adjust prices at 12:01 a.m., and Cleanfuel at 4:01 p.m. the same day.

Other firms have yet to make similar announcements for the week.

Cleanfuel, Petro Gazz, Phoenix Petroleum Philippines Inc., and PTT Philippines Corp. will implement the same adjustments, excluding kerosene which they do not carry.

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UCL: Amount Man City players will be paid for winning Treble revealed

 

Manchester City’s top players will be paid over £2 million in bonuses each, after winning an historic Treble this season.

Pep Guardiola’s side completed the feat by beating Inter Milan 1-0 in the Champions League final on Saturday.

City had already overhauled Arsenal to land the Premier League for a third consecutive year.

They also defeated rivals Manchester United 1-0 in the FA Cup final last weekend.

Mail Sport reports that City’s bonus system is structured on an individual basis, rather than being an agreed amount that is shared among the squad.

Bonuses for winning the league title range from £200,000 to £900,000, while the money on offer for lifting the FA Cup is less.

Leading players including Kevin De Bruyne and Erling Haaland will receive payouts in the region of £1m for delivering a first Champions League trophy for the club.

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Labour Party Reacts to Emefiele’s Suspension, Issues Strong Statement

The leadership of the Labour Party (LP) has reacted to the suspension of the Central Bank Governor, Godwin Emeifele, by President Bola Tinubu.

According to the opposition party, Tinubu’s action is vindictive and unconstitutional.

This was disclosed by the acting National Publicity Secretary of the party, Obiora Ifoh.

He said the Labour Party is disturbed by the decision of Tinubu to suspend/sack Emefiele without seeking the permission of the National Assembly.

However, he noted that Tinubu has the right to ask the CBN governor to resign; in the same way, Nigerians have the right to ask him or anyone to resign.

He said the president should have done it according to the country’s law.

The LP Spokesman further said:

 “Most Nigerians will not forget in a hurry the famous Naira redesign policy initiated by Emefiele primarily to check vote buying in the last general election.

“A noble policy which a particular candidate then, unfortunately, believed was targeted at him.

“To him, it was a mortal sin which cannot be forgiven and must be punished. Labour Party believes that Emefiele, a fall guy, is paying for his sin"

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How President Tinubu Resisted My Senatorial Ambition – First Lady

ABUJA – The First Lady, Oluremi Tinubu, on Saturday at the Valedictory session of the 9th Senate of the National Assembly, disclosed that her husband, President Bola Tinubu, never wanted her to be a Senator.

Senator Oluremi who was the third to speak after the Deputy Senate President, Ovie Omo-Agege, and the current Vice President, Senator Kashim Shettima, had spoken, said that President Tinubu initially frowned at her desire to join the Red Chamber in 2011.

The lawmaker who had been at the Senate for 12 years further revealed that after several persuasions, the former Lagos State governor eventually relented and gave her his support.

Thanking colleagues for their support, She added “My thanks will go to my husband for even giving me support. He gives me advice when I seek it.

He gave me the freedom to be myself and to be able to make contributions necessary to improve the lives of our people, especially our women, youths and children.”

This is as she further explained that “God sustained me for three terms, from 7th Assembly to 9th Assembly. I am still confused about how I have been able to continue the journey because serving the nation takes a lot of sacrifices.

It started with the sacrifice from your homes, your children, even your better half.”

Sen. Tinubu commended the camaraderie atmosphere that existed among legislators, which she said has “over the years, we have made friends, brothers, sisters across our various tribes, ethnicity and religious divide.

“We have the entire Nigerians being represented and we were able to forge ahead and come together when we need to make very good decisions in the overall interest of the nation. We did that as elder statesmen and women.

I did all that is required of every legislator. Motions, bills including those that had been assented to by law.”

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