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$5m Bribe: NCDMB Rubbishes Allegation Against Wabote

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Simbi Wabote $5m Bribe

By Ahmed Rahma

The Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) has defended its Executive Secretary, Mr Simbi Wabote, saying that the $5 million bribery allegation against him is false.

A few days ago, one Mr Jackson Ude had accused Mr Wabote of receiving $5 million bribe from a German company to violate Nigeria’s local content laws on the Bonny Train 7 contract.

The journalist has said, “Simbi Wabote, the Executive Secretary of the Nigeria Content Development and Monitoring Board, a lackey of Timipre Sylva, actually collected $5 million bribe from Kelvion, German company to violate Nigeria’s local content laws on the Bonny Train 7 contract. Details plenty!”

But responding in a statement signed by General Manager of Corporate Communication/Zonal Coordination, NCDMB, Dr Ginah Ginah, the organisation described this allegation as baseless.

“Our attention has been drawn to a spurious and libellous online publication in Pointblank News of 10th February 2021, in which one Jackson Ude, purported that the Executive Secretary of the NCDMB, Engr. Simbi Wabote, and the Minister of State for Petroleum, Chief Timipre Sylva received bribes to undermine the Nigerian content policy in the award of  Train 7 EPC contract.

“The report epitomizes a futile attempt to soil the image of public officials who have worked hard to develop local content in the Nigerian oil and gas industry.

“It is apparent that the writer does not even understand the role of NCDMB as enshrined in the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act 2010.

“It could have been proper to ignore the fabricated news report, but we have a duty to provide the facts so that unsuspecting members of the public are not misled by blatant disinformation.

“For the avoidance of doubt, the NCDMB is a regulator and does not award contracts in the Nigerian oil and gas industry,” NCDMB explained in the statement.

Explaining further, it stated, “Our involvement in the award process is limited to evaluation of local content requirements in tenders, upon which NCDMB communicates to operators and/or project promoters the outcome of bidders’ compliance or otherwise with the provisions of the NOGICD Act.

“Due consideration and the decision to award a contract to any of the compliant bidders rest with the operator and their partners/ project promoters.

“The process of scaling through local content requirements in a project development is based on the provisions of the Nigerian Content Act and not on a subjective checklist that can be changed at the whims of any individual.”

It revealed that, “Circumventing the rules/requirements attracts stiff sanctions. Therefore, it would have been impossible for the Executive Secretary and the Minister or any other official for that matter to be induced to contravene the provisions of the law they are meant to enforce.

“It would have also been impossible for any official to dictate to the operators or project promoters on their choice of contractors without due regard for the commercial aspects and project economics.

“This fake news by Jackson Ude is a disingenuous attempt to diminish the hard work that engendered the Final Investment Decision (FID) for NLNG Train 7 project even at the peak of the COVID-19 pandemic last year.

“The allegations are not only reckless but also calls to question the motive of Mr. Ude and his cohorts as the country strives to attract investors and create job opportunities for Nigerians.

“Just to call a spade a spade: the report by Jackson Ude is completely FALSE and makes no sense; it is mere FAKE news that satisfies only the author’s mischief and the selfish interests of his sponsors.

“It is on record that the outcome of the Train-7 Project tenders provided very significant financial savings for the NLNG and the country at large.

“We will therefore not succumb to any mudslinging or blackmail from Jackson Ude or his cohorts, including those business promoters who did not win the NLNG Train-7 contracts but have decided to vent their spleen through channels of disinformation such as the online Pointblank News

“Since creation in 2010, the NCDMB has worked to achieve quantum growth in the Nigerian oil and gas industry from less than 5% to over 35%.

“The in-country capacities and capabilities developed over the years are evident and we will not be distracted from our focus and plan to increase this to 70 percent by 2027 in line with our extant 10-year Strategic Roadmap.”

Ahmed Rahma is a journalist with great interest in arts and craft. She is also a foodie who loves new ideas. She loves to travel and would love to visit other African countries someday. She is a sucker for historical movies and afrobeat.

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Women Need to Own Their Stories, Collaborate—Ayo Mario-Ese

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UBA Business Series Ayo Mario-Ese

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

Celebrated broadcaster with Arise TV, Mrs Ayo Mario-Ese, has charged women to be open to collaboration and not limit themselves.

The charming media personality was one of the panellists at the UBA Business Series themed Introducing Gen W – The Evolved Woman, held at the UBA House in Lagos last Thursday.

At the event moderated by popular actor, Mr Tobi Bakre, the Morning Show anchor on Arise TV expressed worry about females who are usually laidback about speaking up and sharing their achievements, and said that women need to own their stories.

“A lot of women are doing phenomenal work and are sometimes afraid of showcasing what they are doing. As an evolved woman, you have to find out what you are comfortable doing, create your own unique offering, and also be open to collaboration,” she submitted.

Another panellist, Ms Joycee Awosika, described an evolved woman as one who has awareness of who she is.

“That woman does not need to ask to sit at the table; she is creating her own table and adding value. As your company is growing, you must grow too, and always do an audit of where you need to become a better leader,” the energy economist stated.

For a digital entrepreneur, Ms Tomike Adeoye, the question of what a woman is bringing to the table has now become obsolete, as the evolved woman is now bringing their own table.

“She is now more vocal about their struggles, setting the standards, and she is not ready to give up on her dreams,” she declared.

For the founder of Fine-Funky, Ms Olufunke Davies, she remarked that, “Creating unique designs that are affordable remains my driving force and something that has helped me grow as an evolved woman.”

In her remarks, the Group Head for Brand, Marketing and Corporate Communications at UBA, Ms Alero Ladipo, said, “Raising each woman is actually not that hard, because everyone has their community as well as their story; and so as women, we need to take a position so that we can give to others.”

She said the Gen W platform of the lender is dedicated to the evolved woman, adding, “Through expert insights, real stories, and practical resources, the platform connects women who are building brands, creating businesses, growing careers, and leading across industries. They also have access to a plethora of discounted products and loans. The best part: it is open to every woman. No UBA account needed. This is Gen W, for the evolved woman.”

This edition of the UBA Business Series was hosted to mark International Women’s Month.

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Navy Intensifies Crackdown on Oil Theft in Rivers, Calabar

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oil theft

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigerian Navy has intensified its crackdown on crude oil theft and illegal bunkering, destroying a reactivated illegal refinery site in Rivers State and intercepting suspected stolen petroleum products in Calabar.

The Director of Naval Information, Captain Abiodun Folorunsho, disclosed this in a statement on Sunday in Abuja, revealing that personnel of the Nigerian Navy Ship SOROH, operating under Operation Delta Sentinel, destroyed a reactivated illegal refinery site at Okolomade Community in Abua-Odual Local Government Area (LGA) of Rivers State.

He said the action followed credible intelligence that a previously dismantled illegal refining site had resumed operations.

According to him, an Anti–Crude Oil Theft (Anti-COT) team deployed to the location discovered that the dismantled refining oven had been reconstructed.

“Further exploitation of the area led to the discovery of additional refining equipment and storage facilities containing about 3,000 litres of product suspected to be illegally refined Automotive Gas Oil (AGO),” he said.

Mr Folorunsho added that the illegal refining infrastructure—including ovens, storage tanks, hoses, connected pipes and newly acquired metal components used for illegal refining—was destroyed in line with operational procedures.

He said personnel of the Nigerian Navy Ship Victory, in another operation, intercepted about 3,950 litres of suspected stolen petroleum products at the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) area in Calabar, Cross River.

He said the interception was based on credible intelligence on suspected siphoning of petroleum products from vessels berthed at the port.

The naval patrol team, according to him, swiftly deployed to the area and traced the illegally siphoned products to a trailer park within the port facility.

“On sighting the naval patrol team, the suspected perpetrators fled the scene, after which the area was cordoned off and the illegally siphoned products secured,” he said.

The official said further inspection led to the recovery of about 3,950 litres of Automotive Gas Oil stored in drums and jerrycans, which had been evacuated to the naval base for further necessary action in line with extant regulations.

He noted that the successes aligned with the directive of the Chief of the Naval Staff, Vice Adm. Idi Abbas, to intensify operations against crude oil theft and other maritime crimes across Nigeria’s maritime domain.

The captain reiterated the Navy’s commitment to sustaining the operational tempo of Operation Delta Sentinel through intensified surveillance, patrols and intelligence-driven operations aimed at combating crude oil theft, illegal bunkering and other forms of economic sabotage.

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Mastering SEO: Proven Methods to Grow Your Online Presence

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RiseGrower

Search Engine Optimization isn’t what it used to be.

Gone are the days of stuffing keywords, buying random backlinks, and expecting overnight rankings. Today, SEO is a sophisticated blend of technical precision, content authority, brand positioning, and strategic digital PR.

At RiseGrower.com, we’re launching with one mission:

To help brands grow through ethical, scalable, authority-driven SEO.

This isn’t just another SEO agency. This is the next evolution of ranking strategy.

🌍 SEO in 2026: What Has Changed?

Search engines—especially Google—have become dramatically smarter.

Modern ranking systems analyze:

  • Topical authority
  • Content depth and expertise
  • User engagement signals
  • Link quality (not quantity)
  • Brand credibility
  • Search intent satisfaction

SEO today is no longer about “gaming the algorithm.” It’s about becoming the most trusted answer in your industry.

That’s where RiseGrower comes in.

🚀 What RiseGrower.com Is Built For

We specialize in performance-focused SEO strategies designed to:

  • Increase organic traffic
  • Improve high-intent keyword rankings
  • Strengthen domain authority
  • Build sustainable backlink profiles
  • Turn search visibility into revenue

Our approach combines:

  • Advanced technical SEO audits
  • Strategic content architecture
  • Authority guest posting campaigns
  • White-hat link acquisition
  • On-page optimization
  • Data-driven reporting

We don’t chase vanity metrics. We build growth systems.

🧠 Our Philosophy: Authority Wins

Search engines reward expertise and trust.

That’s why our strategy centers around three pillars:

1️ Topical Authority

We help brands dominate entire keyword clusters—not just single keywords.

2️ Editorial Authority

Through high-quality guest posting on real industry publications, we build contextual backlinks that move rankings safely and effectively.

3️ Technical Excellence

From crawl optimization to structured data, we ensure search engines fully understand and prioritize your content.

🔥 Why Most SEO Strategies Fail

Many businesses struggle with SEO because:

  • They focus only on backlinks without strategy
  • They publish content without search intent research
  • They ignore technical site health
  • They chase short-term wins instead of long-term growth

SEO is not a trick.

It’s a system.

RiseGrower builds systems.

📊 Our Approach Is Data-Driven

Every campaign starts with:

  • Competitive analysis
  • Keyword gap research
  • Link profile audit
  • SERP intent mapping

We analyze what’s ranking—and why.

Then we engineer a strategy that outperforms it.

🏢 Who We Work With

RiseGrower is built for ambitious brands:

  • SaaS companies
  • eCommerce brands
  • Agencies
  • Startups
  • Enterprise businesses
  • Niche industry leaders

If your goal is sustainable organic growth, you’re in the right place.

⚖️ White-Hat SEO Only

We believe in:

  • Real editorial placements
  • Ethical outreach
  • Genuine authority building
  • Search engine compliance

We do not use:

  • Private Blog Networks (PBNs)
  • Spammy link schemes
  • Automated backlink tools
  • Manipulative ranking shortcuts

Long-term growth requires integrity.

📈 The Rise of Performance-Based SEO

The future of SEO isn’t “deliverables.”

It’s measurable outcomes.

At RiseGrower, we align our strategy with:

  • Ranking milestones
  • Traffic growth targets
  • Lead generation goals
  • Revenue impact

Because rankings are only valuable if they drive business growth.

🌟 What Makes RiseGrower Different?

We blend:

  • SEO strategy
  • Digital PR
  • Authority guest posting
  • Content intelligence
  • Conversion-focused thinking

We don’t just improve rankings.

We build market leaders.

🔮 The Future of Search

AI-generated content is flooding the internet. Competition is rising daily.

Search engines will increasingly reward:

  • Authentic expertise
  • Brand mentions
  • Trusted backlinks
  • Valuable long-form content
  • Real-world credibility

The brands that invest in authority now will dominate tomorrow.

RiseGrower was created for that future.

🚀 Launching Soon

RiseGrower.com is preparing to launch with a clear promise:

Growth through strategic SEO authority.

If you’re ready to:

  • Outrank competitors
  • Scale organic traffic
  • Build long-term visibility
  • Turn search into revenue

We’re ready to grow with you.

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