Headlines
Fuel Scarcity to Linger Till after Elections – Marketers
The scarcity of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, in Abuja and other northern states could persist till after Saturday’s gubernatorial elections in various states, oil marketers said on Tuesday.
Petrol scarcity became severe on Monday in Abuja, Nasarawa, Niger and other states in the North, as thousands of motorists besieged the few filling stations that dispensed the commodity in these areas.
The cost of petrol rose to as high as N400/litre at filling stations operated by independent marketers, while black marketers sold the product for between N450/litre to N500/litre.
Many motorists resorted to accessing the product from black marketers, but most of these dealers lacked the ability to carryout mobile transactions, a development that worsened the sorry state of frustrated fuel seekers.
Members of the Independent Marketers Association of Nigeria confirmed that about 90 per cent of their filling stations were shut due to lack of products.
Similarly, the outlets of most major marketers were closed, while the few ones that dispensed petrol were greeted with massive queues of motorists.
The Conoil and Total filing stations right opposite the Abuja headquarters of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, for instance, had severe queues on Monday, as they were among the very few outlets that dispensed petrol in the capital city.
The National Vice President, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Abubakar Maigandi, told our correspondent that the scarcity of petrol in the Northern part of the country and some other states, would drag till next week.
“Most people thought that there would be crisis, so they stopped their trucks from going to lift products, but since there is no crisis so far, by next week, fuel should be available,” he said.
Maigandi added, “It will clear after the governorship elections in states on Saturday, for when we have elections every time in Nigeria people will develop fear. So that is the challenge.
“When we tell our truck drivers to go to Lagos to lift products, they refuse because they are scared of their lives. So we hope that by next week it will clear, for after the elections, things should return to normal, because there is enough product.
“This is why in areas such as Lagos and neighbouring states, they do not have this challenge we are seeing up North. There are no queues in Lagos and we are hopeful that the queues here should clear by next week.”
Also speaking, the Secretary, IPMAN, Abuja-Suleja, Mohammed Shuaibu, said tanker drivers and truck owners became apprehensive during the collation of results from the February 25, 2023 general elections.
“This affected the system and we expect the NNPC to hit the ground running immediately by ensuring that more trucks move down to the North between now and Friday, before the gubernatorial elections on Saturday.
“For when we go into such fuel scarcity situation like this, it takes time before it normalises because of the distance of trucking this product from down South to Abuja and far away North.
“There would not be movement as from Saturday and this will lead to the continuation of fuel scarcity till next week. So the reason for the heavy queues is the general elections and this might continue till the elections are over,” Shuaibu stated.
The Punch
The Presidency has dismissed claims that Vice President Kashim Shettima’s recent comments were directed at the political situation in Rivers State or President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s constitutional decisions on the matter.
In a statement on Friday by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Communications (Office of the Vice President), Stanley Nkwocha, the Presidency described the reports as a “gross misrepresentation.”
The statement clarified that Vice President Shettima’s remarks at the public presentation of a book by former Attorney General of the Federation, Mohammed Bello Adoke (SAN), were misconstrued by some online platforms and individuals.
“These reports have distorted the Vice President’s comments in pursuit of a mischievous agenda,” it stated.
“They twisted his account of how the administration of former President Jonathan considered removing him as Borno Governor during the insurgency to falsely link it with current events in Rivers State.”
The Vice President, who spoke at the launch of OPL 245: The Inside Story of the $1.3 Billion Oil Block in Abuja on Thursday, was said to have referenced the past solely to commend Adoke’s professionalism while in office, and to reflect on Nigeria’s constitutional evolution regarding federal and state relations.
“For the avoidance of doubt, President Tinubu did not remove Governor Fubara from office. The constitutional measure implemented was a suspension, not an outright removal.
“This action was taken in response to the grave political crisis in Rivers State at the time, with the governor facing a looming impeachment and the State Assembly complex under demolition,” Nkwocha clarified.
The Presidency insisted that the action taken by President Tinubu in declaring a state of emergency and suspending the Governor was fully in line with Section 305 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which authorises such measures when there is a breakdown of public order requiring extraordinary intervention.
According to the statement, the President’s proclamation invoking Section 305(2) was subsequently ratified by an overwhelming bipartisan majority in the National Assembly, confirming the legitimacy and constitutional propriety of the decision.
“The action of President Tinubu in suspending Mr. Fubara and others from exercising the functions of office averted the governor’s outright removal. To conflate suspension with removal is misleading,” the statement further noted.
Nkwocha also stressed that Vice President Shettima’s comments were delivered extemporaneously and intended to underline the importance of public accountability and historical documentation.
He referenced the Vice President’s mention of past public servants, including Adoke and former Speaker Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, to illustrate principled leadership.
“His remarks were not in any way a criticism of President Tinubu’s actions, which the Vice President and the entire administration fully support and stand by without reservation,” the spokesman stated.
The Vice President, the statement added, remains in “loyal concert” with President Tinubu and is committed to implementing all constitutional measures necessary to safeguard democracy and uphold order across the country.
Concluding, the Presidency called on media organisations and political actors to desist from misrepresenting public remarks for sensational or partisan purposes.
“We urge media organisations and political actors to desist from the destructive practice of wrenching statements from context in order to fabricate nonexistent conflicts,” Nkwocha said.
Headlines
Akpabio Relieves Natasha of Committee Chairmanship Position, Appoints Akwa Ibom Senator As Replacement
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has replaced suspended Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, as the Chairman, Senate Committee on Diaspora/Non-Governmental Organisations.
In her place, Akpabio named Senator Bassey Aniekun Etim (Akwa Ibom -East).
The Senate President, who made the announcement on the floor in Abuja on Thursday, did not give any reasons.
The committee position had remained vacant since March when the Senate suspended the Kogi-Central Senatorial District lawmaker for six months for flouting the Senate’s rule on the seating arrangement and seat allocation.
The suspended lawmaker, at a point, chaired the Senate Committee on Local Content before Akpabio reassigned her to the Committee on Diaspora/NGO, shortly before she ran into trouble with the Senate over her conduct on seat allocation.
The Supreme Court has affirmed the 2024 governorship election victory of Governor Monday Okpebholo of the All Progressives Congress (APC), dismissing the appeal filed by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Asuerinme Ighodalo.
In a unanimous decision by a five-member panel led by Justice Mohammed Garba, the apex court ruled that the appeal lacked merit. It upheld the earlier judgments of the Court of Appeal and the Edo State Governorship Election Petition Tribunal, which had both declared Okpebholo the validly elected governor.
