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FG expands honours for heroes of democracy

Mr. Boss Mustapha, the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), has declared that more names will be announced later for national honours for their role in the struggle for democracy.

The SGF made the announcement in his opening remarks at the investiture of national honours on late MKO Abiola, Ambassador Babagana Kingibe, and late Chief Gani Fawehinmi.

At the presentation of the awards by President Muhammadu Buhari, the senior son of MKO Abiola, Mr Kola Abiola received the award of Grand Commander of the Federal Republic (GCFR).

Hajia Ganiat Fawehinmi also received the award of Grand Commander of the Order of the Niger (GCON) for her late husband, Chief Gani Fawehinmi and Ambassador Babagana Kingibe received his award of GCON)

N37bn grant for meter supply to DisCos

By Kingsley Okoye

The Federal Government says it has taken advantage of the new Meter Asset Provider (MAP) regulations to give a grant of N37billion to a private sector operator to supply meters to interested Distribution Companies (DisCos).

Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Mr Babatunde Fashola, disclosed this at the 28th monthly meeting of power stakeholders in Kaduna.

The Meeting, hosted by Kaduna Electricity Distribution Company at the Mando transmission substation, had in attendance representatives of government power agencies and private operators across the value chain of Generation, Transmission and Distribution.

The minister, who did not mention the name of the company, said the Federal government provided the fund based on the demand for meters, given the increasing power generation, transmission and distribution in the country.

He said, “As power supply continues to increase in Generation, Transmission and Distribution, the demand for meters will increase because more power supply and consumption will likely result in increased bills.

“Estimated billings in these circumstances will become a major cause of distrust and conflict between consumers and DisCos, and meters are the easiest way to build the bridge of trust.

“On the Executive side of government, we are responding by taking advantage of the Meter Asset Provider (MAP) regulations to deploy a fund of N37 billion toward supplying meters through private sector.

“I urge all DisCos who have not taken advantage of this opportunity to quickly do so, or make their own funding arrangements to contract their own meter providers to supply and install meters.

“I know that Yola DisCo is talking to the meter asset provider for 400, 000 meters. I know that Abuja DisCo is also indicating interest for 250,000 meters.

“I know that other meter asset providers are also talking to various banks and funding organisations to see how they can get into this business and get licensed by NERC.”

He also said there was a clear intension of the legislative arm of government toward addressing the issue of meter in the sector.

The minister said it was important for all DisCos to respond by providing meters and quickly end estimated billing, which was subjective, discretionary, and prone to abuse.

He reiterated government’s commitment to better service delivery by improving infrastructure, as mandated by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Fashola who earlier commissioned a 60MVA transformer at the Zaria 132 KV substation to increase the transformer capacity from 140 MVA to 200 MVA said the transformer would improve service to customers of Kaduna DisCo.

He listed some of the areas to benefit from the new transformer to include Zaria City, Sabon Gari, Samaru, Giwa, Yakawada, Tudun Wada and Markafi.

He said the commissioning of another 2 X 60 MVA transformer at the 132 KV sub-station would improve the capacity of the substation from 190 MVA to 240 MVA.

This, he said, would further improve supply to areas like Kaduna township, Rigasa, Kakuri, Rigachukwu, Chikun, Sabon Tasha, among others.

The minister emphasised the need for operators across the value chain to make service delivery to customers their focus.

“I have used the opportunity of this meeting to focus the attention of GenCos, Transmission Company and DisCos on the need to pay more attention to service delivery, repairs and maintenance of equipment.

“My focus in this meeting will not be different; we are beginning a different weather season that will see more rainfall, thunderstorms, lightening and windstorms.

“All of these will affect regular supply one way or another; trees will fall and disrupt lines, poles and lines may be damaged, and service will be disrupted.

“In all these situations, we must prepare our staff to anticipate, plan, and respond,” said the minister.

According to him, it is very important for the operators to always notify their customers in the event of any disruption of service.

“Most importantly, we must inform the public about the problems and what we are doing to restore service whenever there are disruptions,” Fashola said.

Earlier, the Managing Director of Kaduna DisCo, Mr Garuba Haruna, said the DisCo was recording a minimum of 10 hours to 15 hours supply to consumers in Kaduna, Kebbi, Zamfara and Sokoto states.

He also said some areas under its control were experiencing 24 hours of electricity supply.

Troops of Operation Lafiya Dole Friday intercepted and neutralized two female suicide bombers who attempted to infiltrate a military Forward Operational Base in Kawuri, a remote community in Konduga Local Government Area of Borno state.

A statement from Colonel Onyema Nwachukwu, Deputy Director Public Relations Theatre Command Operation Lafiya Dole, said the suicide bombers had used the cover of darkness to stalk the military camp at about 9:45 pm, but were promptly detected by the vigilant troops who engaged them when they refused to comply with an order to halt.

Commonwealth Secretary-General, Patricia Scotland, has said  Commonwealth assisted Nigeria in recovering of about three billion dollars within one year.

Make no mistake, the prevalence of soot in Port Harcourt and some other Niger Delta communities is a sad reality that affects all, irrespective of status.

For several months, the soot has continued to trouble residents, making life difficult for people over the pollution of the air. There are clear indications that there will be consequences should the soot continue unabated.

On this premise, the task to stop the soot is a very serious social responsibility that cuts across party lines, social groups and economic interests. It is a task that can only be achieved through a united platform, built on truth, transparency and patriotism.

Fighting the soot is too serious to be left in realm of playing the ostrich and refusal to call a spade by its name. It is the tendency to play the ostrich that has negatively affected Nigeria in several sectors.

At best, the campaign to stop the soot has been politicised, fractured and left at the level of seeking attention, rather than addressing the soot challenge. It has been reduced to seeking political advantage at the expense of the state.

At the level of the civil society, groups have different platforms and methods. The confusion generated makes it difficult for them to appreciate steps already taken at the level of the Rivers State Government.

On 19th April 2019, the “stop the soot ” march widely advertised via social media exposed the failure of the organisers to hit the nail on the head. It further revealed the notorious subtle politicization of soot, with the nature of speech that the end the soot campaigners presented to the Rivers State Governor who was represented by his deputy.

The 14-point statement ran in circles and failed to seek concrete solutions to end the soot. The statement failed to boldly highlight the causes of soot, since “Oga will not be happy “. The courage to speak truth to power was lacking in the presentation.

The campaigners amongst other things called on the State Government to prioritise the environment, propose a supplementary budget, conduct an environmental audit of host and oil producing communities, force local government areas to implement sanitation laws and make local government areas use their security votes to provide local government monitors and whistle blowers.

They also called on the state government to start street health campaign, provide air quality readings and seek legal redress to compel the Federal Government to fund the Ogoni clean up.

All the points listed were steps already taken or are ongoing. None of the of the demands strikes at the heart of stopping the soot. None addressed the fundamental causes of the soot.

The only place the major culprit in this entire environmental mayhem was mentioned was where the campaigners urged the Rivers State Government to drag the Federal Government to court on account of the Ogoni clean up. Governor Wike’s stand on this is public knowledge. He has mounted pressure for the Ogoni clean-up and lobbied repeatedly on all fronts.

At the National Economic Council, Governor Wike demanded the release of $1billion dollars from the Excess Crude Account for the resolution of environmental challenge in the Niger Delta and the execution of the Ogoni clean up.

The Rivers State Government has already carried out a detailed scientific investigation of the sources of the soot. The results of this scientific research was shared with civil society organisations , environmental stakeholders and the National Council on Environment in 2017. Despite the deliberations on the soot, the APC Federal Government did nothing about the soot.

But, we cannot shy away from the truth, even if the campaigners are scared of the truth. The rest of the state remains committed to ensuring that the soot ends. The struggle is strategic. It is methodical. It goes beyond scoring cheap points.

For the avoidance of doubt, the Federal Government and her agencies are responsible for the soot. That is the simple truth. There is no contrary data, anywhere.

Federal Regulatory Agencies like Department of Petroleum Resources, National Oil Spill Response and Emergency Agency (NOSREA) and Federal Ministry of Environment have failed to carry out their responsibilities. This has been deliberate.

The Port Harcourt Refinery emits horrible gases into the atmosphere on a daily basis. This is in addition to several oil production facilities flaring gases across the state.

The operation of illegal refineries is now part of our existence. An Environmental Manager, Meshac Uyi said that majority of the illegal refineries are operated by security agents. These illegal refineries throw up a huge percentage of soot.

Now, the uncivilized methods for the destruction of these illegal refineries by the security agencies also account for another high percentage of soot.

In terms of advocacy, Governor Wike has taken the fight to end the soot as a personal project. He has met with security agencies to change their methods of destroying illegal refineries. The Governor also established a State Executive Council Committee to work with stakeholders to end the soot.

Only a few days ago, he met with a United Nations Delegation on the soot. He tabled the concerns of the government and people of Rivers State to the international community.

Addressing a delegation of the United Nations at the Government House Port Harcourt on Wednesday during a high-profile meeting to tackle the soot, Governor Wike called on the United Nations to prevail on the Federal Government to act on the soot.

The governor said: “Thank God that the United Nations has come in view of the issues we have raised. We thank the United Nations for their concern on the Rivers Environment as it relates to the soot.

“If we must move on, we must situate the cause of the soot and the fact that the Federal Government has decided to make sure that a greater percentage of the state dies.

“The Federal Government wants to eliminate a greater percentage of the state. The problem of soot is not caused by the Rivers State Government. It is caused by Federal Agencies. “

The failure of the Federal Government to take any concrete steps to end the soot is deliberate. Remember, all the levers of control are under the Federal Government. The regulatory and security agencies to stop the soot are also under the control of the APC Federal Government.

That the campaigners swept the truth under the carpet on the day of their advertised march confirmed the political baggage that weighed them down. A baggage anchored in Abuja, the home base of Nigeria’s worst performing government in history. A Federal Government that sponsors the decimation of component parts. These campaigners lost the opportunity to join hands with well-meaning patroits to resolve the soot challenge.

Their branded T-Shirts bore the inscription: “I am a soot slayer”, turned this very serious health hazard into the “slay queen” fun on social media.

But to the Rivers State Governor and his administration, fighting to stop the soot is a solemn responsibility. It will remain so till the soot is laid to rest.

Antonio Conte’s Chelsea will on Saturday evening clash with Manchester United in the FA Cup final at Wembley.

The Blues head into their second consecutive FA Cup final this evening.

Conte’s side had been in form until the final week of the season, playing a 1-1 draw with Huddersfield Town and losing 3-0 to Newcastle United on the final day of the Premier League fixture.

Ross Barkley returned from injury in Sunday’s 3-0 defeat at Newcastle United and is available, though he is unlikely to start after a poor performance at St. James’ Park.

David Luiz and Ethan Ampadu remain out due to injuries.

Meanwhile, Jose Mourinho’s Manchester United head into this clash after ending the Premier League season in second position, 19 points behind Manchester City.

Mourinho has not won the FA Cup since leading his former club, Chelsea to victory over United in 2007.

The Portuguese gaffer faces a fifth meeting with Conte, with both managers holding two wins each and one draw in the past two seasons.

United welcome back striker, Romelu Lukaku from injury with the Belgian international likely to play some part in the FA Cup final, having been on the sidelines since the 2-1 win over Arsenal three weeks ago.

Chelsea potential starting XI: Courtois; Azpilicueta, Christensen, Cahill; Moses, Kante, Fabregas, Alonso; Willian; Hazard, Giroud.

Manchester potential starting XI: De Gea; Valencia, Bailly, Smalling, Young; Herrera, Matic, Pogba; Lingard, Lukaku, Sanchez.

The kick off time for the match is 5:15pm.

Preye Aganaba, a member of the All Progressives Congress (APC) National Convention Committee has said that the Bayelsa State Government has denied the party a permit to use the multipurpose hall within the stadium for its state congress.

He said the party executive in Bayelsa applied for the use of the facility officially, adding that the state government therefore, had no reason to deny the APC its use.

“We have properly applied and we were not told that the facility will not be available for us, to our surprise, up till now the state government has refused to approve the facility for us,´´ he said.

He added that the APC in Bayelsa had been peaceful and orderly as revealed in its just concluded Ward and Local Government Congresses, saying that there was the assurance that Saturday’s state congress would be crisis free.

“We have right to association and to belong to any political party of our choice, so we don’t deserve to be treated like outcasts,” he said.