General
Lawmaker Cautions Wike over “False Alarms”
By Chile Nwaorgu
The lawmaker representing Rivers East Senatorial District in the National Assembly, Mr Andrew Uchendu, has asked the Rivers State Governor, Nyesom Wike, to stop embarrassing the people of the state by raising false alarms that can trigger instability in the country.
Senator Uchendu, in a statement issued in Port Harcourt on yesterday and signed by his media aide, Mr Solomon Okocha, said Governor Wike should only engage the Federal Government with facts on behalf of Rivers people when the needs arises, but not with outright lies that have no bearing with reality.
The representative of Rivers East Senatorial District stated that in order to stop embarrassing citizens of the state, the governor should always consult with the three senators and the thirteen members of the House of Representatives from Rivers State in the National Assembly, to ascertain the appropriatness or not of the type of information that is pushed to the public.
He said, “For quite a while now, Wike has brought up so many delicate issues against the Federal Government or its agencies without adducing credible facts to support his usually outrageous claims.
“Only recently, Wike accused the Federal Government of planning to assasinate him, but from my personal findings, there is no iota of truth in the unnecessary alarm raised by the Rivers governor.
“Wike also publicly accused the Federal Government of planning to reduce the population of Rivers people by contaminating the atmosphere in the state with soot. However, in his usual manner, he presented no fact to support this weighty allegation.
“Prior to the December 10, 2016, legislative re-run election in Rivers State, Wike was all over the media shouting that he would soon release an audio-visual footage of a plot by the All Progressives Congress (APC) in collusion with the police to rig the polls. Till today, has anyone seen the purported audio-visual clip?
“Last year, Wike, on behalf of the Rivers State Government, claimed ownership of the sum of 13 billion Naira uncovered by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) in a luxury apartment in Ikoyi, Lagos State, and he gave the federal government seven-day ultimatum to return the money or risk legal action. At the end of the day, Wike shamefully failed to show up in court to take possession of the money and to show reason why it should not be permanently forfeited to the central government.
The federal lawmaker, urged Rivers people to discountenance the allegation by Wike that the Federal Government is planning to deny Rivers State its balance of the Paris Club Debt refund, as it was baseless and untrue.
“The question that Wike must answer is this: If Rivers State got its own share of the N1.75trn extra-statutory allocation known as bailout fund from the Federal Government, why then should the state be denied its balance of the Paris Club Debt refund?
Uchendu noted that it is not in the habit of the President Muhammadu Buhari-led Federal Government to deny any individual or group their constitutional entitlements.
“Wike is not the only governor in Nigeria. These false and unnecessary alarms are not good for the image of Rivers people. Wike should not create liabilities for our people by leaving a sour taste in the mouths of Nigerians before he leaves office,” he said.
He added that it was time for Wike to put himself together and stop embarrassing Rivers people with his unguarded utterances that threaten public peace.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigeria Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA) has sealed two fuel stations in Ogun State engaging in under-dispensing of petroleum products and non-compliance with the Petroleum Industry Act of 2021.
Leading the enforcement team around the Akute-Ajuwon axis of the state, the Head of Distribution Systems Storage and Retailing Infrastructure, Mr Olufemi Adebowale, said the move became imperative in view of repeated breaches of regulatory requirements by the affected stations and the need to protect the rights of consumers from sharp practices.
According to him, the development is part of its ongoing efforts to enforce compliance with industry regulations, protect consumers from sharp practices, and ensure that petroleum marketers dispense the correct quantity of products across the state.
He explained that records available to the authority showed that the fuel stations have consistently violated regulatory compliance by under-dispensing petroleum products, illegally breaking official seals placed on the facility, and resuming operations without authorisation.
According to him, such actions amount to a violation of the Petroleum Industry Act 2023 and undermine efforts to protect consumers from exploitation.
“The Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority is carrying out a lawful enforcement on this facility. Our records have consistently shown that this company has been violating regulatory compliance.”
“It is high time we made it clear that they cannot continue to under-dispense products, deliberately remove our seals, and believe that nothing will happen; that is why we are here to enforce the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act 2023 he said.
“When it comes to under-dispensing, they are cheating members of the public by not selling the correct quantity of fuel. Also, once a station is sealed, it has no authorisation to operate. But this station deliberately removed our seal and continued operations, which is against the law.”
Mr Adebowale disclosed that the authority has been monitoring the station’s activities since 2025, describing the violations as persistent despite several enforcement actions.
He revealed that the affected station had been sealed no fewer than six times within the period, but continued to remove the authority’s seals and ignore invitations extended by the regulator.
“From our records, this has been happening since last year. The station has also refused to honour our invitations. It has been sealed not less than six times, yet it keeps removing our seals and resuming operations.”
On the sanctions awaiting the operators, Adebowale said the authority had served the stations with enforcement notices, while the facilities would remain shut until all stipulated conditions are met.
He added that the NMDPRA management would also consider suspending the operating licence of the affected stations, while also sending a strong warning to any fuel station intending to go against the rules of PIA.
“That is against the rules. They do not have any right to operate until we authorise them to do so. This is a clear deviation from regulatory compliance. According to the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), when this happens, we must carry out enforcement, and that is why we are here today.
Beyond conducting this exercise, we are also using this opportunity to address the public through the media. As long as operators are doing the right thing, they have nothing to fear. However, for those going against compliance levels—whether through under-dispensing or direct violation of our seal—all necessary enforcement, penalties, and sanctions will be strictly applied against such offenders.”
“A letter has been served, the station has been completely shut down, and they must meet all the conditions, including payment of the applicable penalties. We are also looking at suspending the operating licence, subject to management’s approval,” he said, warning that any further attempt to tamper with the seals or resume operations illegally would attract criminal prosecution.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) says it has moved to reduce port gridlock by releasing trucks into Apapa and Tin Can ports in scheduled batches based on terminal demand, while enforcing strict rules against indiscriminate parking on port access roads.
The General Manager, Lagos Port Complex, Mr Debo Lawal, said the NPA management, led by Managing Director, Mr Abubakar Dantsoho, was committed to ending indiscriminate truck parking around the ports and aligning operations with global best practices.
He said the authority was working with Truck Transit Parks Limited (TTP) to regulate truck movement into terminals through a phased release system.
According to him, trucks will now be released in scheduled batches based on terminal demand, instead of allowing all approved trucks to enter the port corridor simultaneously.
“If a terminal requires 100 trucks, they will not all be released at once. They will come in batches to reduce pressure on the port access roads,” he said in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Lagos.
Mr Lawal said a joint task force had been clearing Apapa and Tin Can port access roads since June 26, 2026, operating until about 8 pm daily to prevent indiscriminate parking.
He added that another clearance exercise would soon be conducted to sustain the gains and prevent a return to the persistent gridlock that previously characterised the port corridors.
The port manager, however, urged truck operators to support the initiative by exiting the port environment immediately after loading or offloading cargo.
He noted that some truck drivers still parked along access roads after completing port operations, despite repeated engagements by the authority.
“We engage truckers and their leadership every day, but enforcement will continue alongside sensitisation to ensure compliance,” he said.
On infrastructure, Mr Lawal said the federal government, through the NPA, had begun payment of the five per cent counterpart funding required for the 726 million dollar port rehabilitation project.
He disclosed that preliminary activities, including borehole drilling and site investigations, had been completed, while contractors were expected to mobilise to the site before the end of July.
According to him, a technical stakeholders’ meeting was held on July 7, while a broader stakeholders’ review was scheduled for July 13 to assess progress and address implementation gaps.
Mr Lawal said the rehabilitation project, alongside ongoing reforms, was aimed at reducing cargo clearance time, eliminating documentation bottlenecks and improving operational efficiency at the nation’s seaports.
He added that the National Single Window project was about 80 per cent completed, with a dedicated office already established near the port to improve inter-agency coordination.
According to him, the digital platform will integrate banks, the Nigeria Customs Service, shipping companies and other government agencies to improve efficiency, plug revenue leakages and enhance revenue collection.
Mr Lawal expressed confidence that improved digitisation, reduced human interference and more efficient truck management would strengthen Nigeria’s trade competitiveness and enhance operations at the Apapa and Tin Can ports.
By Adedapo Adesanya
The Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate (PTAD) has said the implementation of the Defined Benefit Scheme Pension Harmonisation is a reform meant to advance and enhance pension payment equity in the country.
The chief executive of PTAD, Mrs Tolulope Abiodun Odunaiya, said this initiative was a landmark reform designed to restore fairness, improve retirees’ welfare and strengthen confidence in the administration of the country’s legacy pension system.
The harmonisation exercise marks one of the most significant policy interventions in the Defined Benefit Scheme since PTAD was established in 2013 to take over the management of pensions under the old federal pension arrangement.
Unlike periodic pension increases that merely raise existing benefits by a percentage, she stressed that pension harmonisation was further than that by recomputing pensions using the latest approved salary structures that existed before the closure of the Defined Benefit Scheme.
She noted that the objective is to ensure that retirees who held similar positions and rendered comparable years of service receive equitable pension benefits regardless of their retirement dates.
The initiative comes against the backdrop of years of agitation by pensioners over historical disparities in pension computation.
She added that the PTAD’s harmonisation programme seeks to resolve that challenge by restoring parity within the system. According to her, pension harmonisation is the formal recomputation of pensions using approved salary structures applicable before the DBS cut-off date.
In practical terms, it ensures that pension outcomes are determined by rank, grade level and years of service rather than the year of retirement.
The Directorate believes the exercise will significantly improve social justice by correcting historical inequities that disadvantaged thousands of retirees.
The harmonisation applies primarily to pure Federal Government pensioners as well as eligible retirees under the Parastatals Pension Department (PaPD), Defunct and Transferred Agencies Pension Department (DTAPD), and the Education and Health Pension Department (TEHPD), particularly those who initially served under the Federal Government before their agencies were transferred to state governments.
