Connect with us


BIG STORY

NNPC Declares ZERO Remittance For The 4th Time As Petrol Subsidy Gulps N271bn In April

Published

on

The Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has deducted another N271.13 billion as a shortfall for the importation of petrol (subsidy) in April 2022.

Subsidy or under-recovery is the underpriced sales of premium motor spirit (PMS), better known as petrol.

So far, NNPC has spent N947.53 billion on petrol subsidy this year, more than half of 2021 subsidy spending.

NNPC said this in its monthly presentation to the Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) meeting on Tuesday, April 24.

The FAAC document showed that this is the fourth time the oil company will not remit any fund to the federation account in 2022, as subsidy payments continue to deplete revenue.

NNPC also said it would deduct N371 billion for the shortfall in May 2022 during next month’s FAAC meeting.

“The Value Shortfall on the importation of PMS recovered from April 2022 proceeds is N 271,125,127, 487,58 while the outstanding balance carried forward is N371 billion,” the document reads.

“The estimated Value Shortfall of N 874 503 649 663 98 bn (consisting of arrears of N 371 billion, plus estimated April 2022 Value Short Fall of N 503 313 767 828 14 is to be recovered from May 2022 proceed due for sharing at June 2022 FAAC Meeting.”

In January, February, and March 2022, petrol subsidies gulped 210.38 billion, N219.78 billion, and N245.77 billion, respectively.

Payments for petrol subsidies have continued to dwindle federation revenue.

This year alone, the federal government has budgeted to spend N4 trillion on costly petrol subsidies, as a result of high global oil prices due to the Russia-Ukraine war.

In the month under review, the report said NNPC lifted overall crude oil of 8.80 million barrels (export domestic crude) in March 2022, representing a 10 percent decrease relative to the 9.77 million barrels lifted in February 2022.

BIG STORY

BREAKING: Court Finds Natasha Guilty Of Contempt, Fines Her N5 million

Published

on

The Federal High Court in Abuja on Friday convicted the senator representing Kogi Central Senatorial District, Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, for contempt over a satirical apology she posted on her Facebook page on April 27.

Justice Binta Nyako, delivering judgment in the suit filed by Senator Akpoti-Uduaghan challenging her suspension, began with the contempt application submitted by the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio.

Akpabio, in his application, argued that the senator’s social media post breached an earlier court order that restrained all parties from speaking to the press or posting on social media about the matter.

Akpoti-Uduaghan’s counsel contended that the post was unrelated to the court’s order on her suspension but was about a separate matter involving sexual harassment claims against the third respondent (Akpabio).

However, Justice Nyako ruled that after reviewing the post and the application before her filed by the third respondent, she was convinced it was connected to the suspension case before the court and therefore declared the plaintiff guilty of contempt.

The judge directed Akpoti-Uduaghan to publish an apology in two national newspapers and on her Facebook page within seven days. She also imposed a fine of N5 million.

 

More to come…

Continue Reading

BIG STORY

BREAKING: Court Orders Senate To Recall Suspended Natasha Akpoti

Published

on

A Federal High Court sitting in Abuja on Friday ruled that the Nigerian Senate exceeded its powers by suspending Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan for six months, ordering her to be immediately recalled to the Red Chamber.

Justice Binta Nyako, delivering the judgment, described the suspension period as “excessive” and lacking a solid legal basis.

The court stated that both Chapter 8 of the Senate Standing Orders and Section 14 of the Legislative Houses (Powers and Privileges) Act, which the Senate relied on, do not specify a maximum suspension length. Therefore, their application in this situation was considered overreaching.

The judge noted that since the National Assembly is only mandated to sit for 181 days in a legislative year, suspending a lawmaker for about the same length of time effectively silences an entire constituency, calling it unconstitutional.

“While the Senate has the authority to discipline its members, such sanctions must not go so far as to deny constituents their right to representation,” Nyako ruled.

However, the court agreed with Senate President Godswill Akpabio on a different issue, ruling that his decision to prevent Akpoti-Uduaghan from speaking during a plenary—because she was not in her designated seat—did not violate her rights.

Nyako also dismissed Akpabio’s argument that the judiciary should not interfere in what he described as an “internal affair” of the legislature, saying fundamental rights and representation fall squarely within the court’s jurisdiction.

In a separate twist, the court imposed a monetary penalty on Akpoti-Uduaghan for violating an earlier court directive that barred both parties from making public comments about the ongoing legal proceedings.

The fine amounts to millions of naira.

Continue Reading

BIG STORY

COALITION: We’ll Register New Party As Backup To ADC — El-Rufai

Published

on

A leader of the Social Democratic Party, SDP, and an important figure in the opposition coalition, Nasir El-Rufai, stated that a new political party would be registered as a backup for the African Democratic Congress, ADC.

El-Rufai explained that the new party would serve as an alternative option to guard against potential infiltration by the All Progressives Congress, APC, into the ADC.

The opposition coalition had chosen the ADC as its platform on Wednesday.

However, El-Rufai noted that there is a possibility the APC could spark a crisis within the ADC by turning old members against the new leadership.

He revealed this during an interview with Radio France International (RFI) Hausa Service on Wednesday night.

“Those who refuse to join the APC face threats of investigations by agencies like the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Independent Corrupt Practices and other related offences Commission (ICPC), or Code of Conduct Bureau (CCB).

“The opposition parties’ alliance in the ADC is temporary, and we may register a new party as a second option, which we will move to should the ADC be instigated into crisis by the government,” the former Kaduna governor stated.

Continue Reading



 

Join Us On Facebook

Most Popular