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What We Are Doing About 2m IDPs In Nigeria—Buhari

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By Ebitonye Akpodigha

President Muhammadu Buhari has highlighted steps being taken by his administration to cater for the over two million people displaced from their homes in north eastern part of Nigeria by Boko Haram activities.

Mr Buhari, while addressing delegates on Monday at the High-Level Summit on ‘Addressing Large Movements of Refugees and Migrants’ on the margins of the 71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA71) in New York, United States, said his government was concerned about the plights of the IDPs.

According to him, he and his team were working hard to address the needs of the displaced persons and were already implementing several people-oriented programmes to meet their needs.

The President explained that such intervention programmes included: the Presidential Intervention Committee on Rehabilitation of the North-East; the Victims Support Fund; the Safe Schools Initiative and the proposed North-East Development Commission currently undergoing legislative process.

Mr Buhari said, “We are making concerted efforts to meet our citizens’ immediate humanitarian needs by reducing their risk and vulnerability and increasing their resilience through vocational training and skills acquisition programmes, particularly for IDPs in camps.”

He further disclosed that any discourse on refugees and migrants in the case of Nigeria “will be incomplete without reference to our internally displaced persons, victims of Boko Haram’s terrible atrocities,” which also rendered 600,000 persons homeless in Nigeria’s neighbouring countries.

Mr Buhari noted that in order to find a lasting solution to this regional challenge, Nigeria in collaboration with the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, recently hosted a regional conference on displacement of persons within the framework of Regional Protection Dialogue on the Lake Chad Basin.

At the global level, President Buhari said Nigeria has equally shown appreciable concern on issues of global human mobility using such control instruments as the National Migration Policy; Labour Migration Policy; Trafficking in Persons Prohibition Laws, and Nigeria Immigration and National Drug Law Enforcement Acts.

The Nigerian leader condemned all new forms of racism, xenophobia and hate ideology targeted at “undermining the considerable benefits that migration can deliver to global efficiency.”

He said such divisive tendencies only lead to violence and avoidable loss of lives in a world that requires cooperation, adding that “globalization should mean free movement of goods, services and people.”

Nigeria, he said, “believes that without deliberate and collective commitment and action, the issue of large movement of refugees and migrants may impede our aspirations toward achieving the Programme of Action of the Cairo Agenda +20 and global determination to leave no one behind in the implementation of the 2030 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).”

Dipo Olowookere is a journalist based in Nigeria that has passion for reporting business news stories. At his leisure time, he watches football and supports 3SC of Ibadan. Mr Olowookere can be reached via dipo.olowookere@businesspost.ng

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Dangote to Produce Plastic Packaging, Textiles as Polypropylene Facility Commences

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By Adedapo Adesanya

The Dangote oil refinery has commenced operating its polypropylene facility in Lagos.

Polypropylene is a thermoplastic polymer that is commonly used in plastic packaging, textiles, reusable shopping bags,  surgical equipment, household chairs, and kitchen utensils.

According to S&P Global, the starting up of Dangote’s 830,000 metric tonnes per year polypropylene site was one of the last outstanding milestones for the oil refining and petrochemical complex in its commissioning sequence, which has been taking place since January 2024.

“Polypropylene production has now started, with supplies being distributed in 25kg bags, and has already threatened to upend the domestic market,” two market sources had told Platts, part of S&P Global Commodity Insights.

When it becomes operational, the Dangote facility is set to become Africa’s largest polypropylene production site, producing from two polypropylene units with capacities of 500,000 metric tonnes per year and 330,000 metric tonnes per year.

The President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, previously set out hopes that the complex would fully cover some 250,000 metric tonnes per year of domestic demand for polypropylene.

S&P Global cited that the new capacity could quickly capture market share in the existing polypropylene homopolymer market, which has so far been concentrated at Indorama Eleme’s Port Harcourt refinery in Nigeria and drawn imports from the Middle East.

The company had previously said its $2 billion petrochemical plant located in Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos State, is designed to produce 77 different high-performance grades of polypropylene in the country.

With a turnover of $1.2 billion, the Dangote Petrochemical plant, situated alongside the Dangote Refinery, is positioned to cater to the demands of the growing plastic processing downstream industries, not only in Africa but also in other parts of the world.

Speaking then, Mr Devakumar Edwin, now the Vice President of Dangote Industries Limited, said the Dangote Petrochemical will drive massive investment in the downstream industries, generating huge value addition in the country, creating employment, increasing tax revenues, reducing foreign exchange outflow, and increasing the country’s Gross Domestic Product.

“We have 77 types of polypropylene, which can be used for different purposes, and we can produce it from our petrochemical plant. Currently, the plant is capable of producing about 900,000 tonnes of polypropylene per annum. Our Petrochemical plant should be the biggest in Africa,” he said.

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Lagos PDP Guber Candidate Jandor Returns to APC

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By Adedapo Adesanya

The candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) in the 2023 governorship election in Lagos State, Mr Olajide Adediran, popularly known as Jandor, has announced his return to the All Progressives Congress (APC).

Mr Adediran, along with his supporters, switched back to the ruling party on Monday at a media briefing held at Liberty Place, Adeniyi Jones Street, Ikeja, Lagos.

This comes after a closed-door meeting between Jandor and President Bola Tinubu in Aso Rock, Abuja last week, where undisclosed matters were discussed.

Jandor previously resigned from the PDP, citing indiscipline and anti-party activities, betrayal by the party leadership on the eve of the Lagos governorship election.

He also lamented false claims of an alliance that misled PDP supporters into voting for another candidate, presumably the candidate of the Labour Party.

Following his resignation from the opposition party, Mr Adediran, who was previously a member of the ruling party in the state, met President Tinubu in Abuja to inform him of his decision to return to his initial political family.

Before meeting with Mr Tinubu, Jandor also held talks with several political leaders, including former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, former military President Ibrahim Babangida, former Head of State General Abdulsalami Abubakar and 2023 SDP Presidential Candidate, Mr Adewole Adebayo.

Jandor ran alongside popular Nigerian actress, Ms Funke Akindele, but they came third at the 2023 Lagos polls after the incumbent, Mr Babajide Sanwo-Olu, polled a total of 762,134 votes to emerge the winner of the contest.

The candidate of the Labour Party, Mr Gbadebo Rhodes-Vivour, polled 312,329 votes, while the PDP candidate scored 62,449 votes.

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Rivers Assembly May Impeach Fubara, Serves Notice of Gross Misconduct

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By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The Rivers State House of Assembly may have commenced the process of removing Governor Siminalayi Fubara from office.

This is because the legislative arm of government in the state has served a notice of alleged misconduct against Mr Fubara and his deputy, Mrs Ngozi Odu.

The Governor had been at loggerheads with a faction of the parliament in the past months, especially because of his fallout with his political godfather and predecessor, Mr Nyesom Wike, who is currently the Minister of the FCT.

Last week, after a Supreme Court judgment, Mr Fubara went to re-present the 2025 budget to the Rivers Assembly led by Mr Martin Amaewhule, but he was locked out.

Last Friday, the Assembly, which has 27 members loyal to Mr Wike, indefinitely adjourned plenary.

In a notice obtained by Channels Television, the state parliament said the decision to serve the Governor the notice was in line with the Nigerian Constitution.

“In compliance with Section 188 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999 (as amended) and other extant laws, we the undersigned members of the Rivers State House of Assembly hereby forward to you a Notice of Gross Misconduct by the Deputy Governor of Rivers State in the performance of the functions of her office,” the notice read.

Recall that last week, during a media chat, Mr Wike disclosed that heavy would not fall if his successor is impeached by the Rivers Assembly.

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