General

APC Alleges Plot to Blackmail Party Leadership

Published

7 years ago

04/06/2018

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

A group known as the All Progressives Congress (APC) Youths Renaissance has claimed that some dissidents within the party in Taraba State are working in connivance with those it called “enemies of our party” to launch vitriolic and unrestrained attacks against the national leadership of the ruling party over its decision to stick to party constitution and guidelines in dealing with the unnecessary and instigated crisis that greeted the last state congresses.

In a statement signed by the National Secretary of the group, Mr Collins Edwin, it was alleged that the plan is to “blackmail, demonize and use unfounded allegations and planted stories couched with negative narratives as well as threat of massive defection to coerce and compel the leadership of the party to execute their selfish and anti-party agenda.”

Mr Edwin noted that these rebels have agreed to blackmail party leadership after they refused to invoke relevant sections of the party’s constitution against erring members who conducted parallel congresses in the state as against its stipulated guidelines and principles.

Recall that the national secretariat of the party had earlier warned party members to stick to the guidelines mapped out for the last congresses, but some members whose loyalties were elsewhere in the state ignored it.

As a result, they conducted parallel state congresses not monitored by the Chairmen and Secretaries of the Congress Committee sent to the state by the national secretariat of the party.

“Hence, we support the move by the leadership of our party to wield the big stick against erring members in Taraba State because no organisation not even a political party can grow or survive without enforcing discipline or taking disciplinary measures against defaulters.

“Their threat of causing the party to loose elections in Taraba State is not only an empty threat, but also an unveiled expression of their real mission in to the party before it was busted with the aid of credible and superior intelligence,” the APC Youths Renaissance said.

Mr Edwin asked, “How can a group of paper-weight politicians whose loyalties are elsewhere and who only joined the party about six months ago be threatening it of losing election whereas they were not in our fold when the party won most seats in the State House of Assembly as well as House of Representatives in 2015 general elections?”

“Therefore, we urge the national leadership of our great party as well as the authentic leadership of the party in the state led by Abdulmumini Vaki and all genuine party members, stakeholders and supporters not to be distracted by the antics of the gold-diggers in our midst.

“Since, their plots to scatter the party in the state have failed, it is natural that they will go back to their paymasters by calling it massive defection when it is ‘selfish defection’ in the real sense.

“We therefore challenge them to state the level of their affinity with Obasanjo Third Force Coalition as well as their association with the PDP government in the state.

“It is however needles to restate that no amount of blackmail or threats by any individual or groups can stop the national leadership of the party from doing the right thing nor prevent the party from winning elections in the state next year,” the statement said.

General

Tinubu Leaves Abuja Today for Dubai, Japan, Brazil

Published

59 minutes ago

14/08/2025

Modupe Gbadeyanka

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

President Bola Tinubu will today, Thursday, August 14, 2005, leave Nigeria for a two-nation trip to Japan and Brazil, though he is expected to have a stop-over in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) before proceeding to Japan.

A statement issued on Wednesday by his Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Mr Bayo Onanuga, disclosed that the President would be spending about two weeks outside the country.

According to the statement, in Japan, President Tinubu will attend the Ninth Tokyo International Conference on African Development (TICAD9) in the City of Yokohama from August 20 to 22.

With the theme Co-create Innovative Solutions with Africa, TICAD9 will focus on Africa’s economic transformation and improvements in the business environment and institutions through private investment and innovation. It will also promote a resilient and sustainable African society for human security, peace, and stability.

In addition to attending plenary sessions on themes linked to the conference, the Nigerian President will hold bilateral meetings and meet the chief executive officers of some Japanese companies with investments in Nigeria.

Initiated in 1993 by the Japanese government and co-hosted by the United Nations, UNDP, the African Union Commission, and the World Bank, TICAD is a triennial conference held alternately in Japan and Africa. The last one took place in August 2022 in Tunisia.

The forum fosters high-level policy dialogue between African leaders and development partners.

At the end of the TICAD9, Mr Tinubu will leave for Brasilia in Brazil for a two-day state visit from Sunday, August 24, to Monday, August 25, following an invitation by the Brazilian President, Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva.

While in Brazil, he will hold a bilateral meeting with his host and attend a business forum with Brazilian investors.

His delegation—comprising key ministers and senior officials—will explore opportunities to strengthen cooperation and sign agreements and Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) with the Brazilian government.

General

Appeal Court Frees NNPC of N5bn Damages Payment to Ararume

Published

1 hour ago

14/08/2025

Modupe Gbadeyanka

By Modupe Gbadeyanka

The judgment of the Federal High Court sitting in Abuja mandating the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited to pay its former board chairman, Mr Ifeanyi Ararume, the sum of N5 billion as damages has been upturned by the Abuja Division of the Court of Appeal.

The former lawmaker secured the judgment against the state-owned oil agency at the lower court in April 2023, but this was challenged at the appellate court.

Ruling on the matter on August 8, 2025, according to a statement from the NNPC on Wednesday, August 13, the court upheld the appeal of the energy firm against the Federal High Court’s judgement that annulled Mr Ararume’s removal from the board.

According to the Appeal Court, the Federal High Court’s earlier decision was delivered in error, noting amongst others, that the claim was statute-barred.

In the statement, NNPC said this decision of the appellate court “sets a corporate governance precedent in Nigerian law, and upholds the validity of board resolutions critical to the oil and gas industry’s investment and policy direction.”

It also stated that the judgement spares it of “a massive financial payout and removes a legal risk that could have invalidated all decisions of the board since 2021.”

Recall that in 2023, the late former President Muhammadu Buhari removed Mr Ararume as the chairman of NNPC but he approached the court to challenge this, arguing it was illegal, unlawful, unconstitutional and a total breach of the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA), asking N100 billion as damages.

Though his prayers were granted by Justice Inyang Ekwo, the compensation awarded was N5 billion and it was for the disruption of his appointment because it was unlawful and illegal.

General

Nigeria’s Daily Fuel Consumption Drops 18.6% to 48 million Litres

Published

16 hours ago

13/08/2025

Adedapo Adesanya

By Adedapo Adesanya

The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has disclosed that average litres of fuel consumed daily by the country decreased by about 18.6 per cent to 48.0 million litres in June 2025 from the 59.0 million litres recorded in May 2025.

The Director of Public Affairs for NMDPRA, Mr George Ene-Ita, confirmed this in a report on Wednesday, noting that for the full month, the fuel consumption also went down by 16.4 per cent or 290 million litres to 1,440,768,129 litres from the previous month’s 1,768,812,804 litres.

Breaking down the fuel supply figures, the NMDPRA report stated that in June, the Automotive Gas Oil (AGO), called diesel, saw a slight increase in supply by 1.73 per cent, reaching 432.18 million litres compared to May’s 424.83 million litres.

In spite of this, diesel distribution (truck-out) declined by 23.23 per cent, falling from 552.35 million litres in May to 424.06 million litres in June.

It further showed that the Household Kerosene (HHK) supply and distribution both recorded a 13 per cent decrease, with June figures at 7.79 million litres, down from nearly nine million litres in May.

The sharpest decline was seen in automotive gasoline supply, which dropped by nearly 48 per cent from 72.36 million litres in May to 37.66 million litres in June.

Distribution also fell by 16.54 per cent within the same period.

The NMDPRA’s report also detailed fuel truck-out volumes to individual states, totalling the 1.44 billion litres evacuated in June.

The report showed that Lagos received the highest volume at 205.66 million litres, followed by Ogun with 88.69 million litres, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) with 77.51 million litres, and Oyo with 72.81 million litres.

The decline in overall supply and distribution suggests continued challenges in the petroleum midstream and downstream sectors, impacting national fuel consumption patterns in June.

The NMDPRA, then, pledged to work closely with relevant stakeholders to strengthen distribution and guarantee the uninterrupted supply of petroleum products across the country.