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Northern Lawmakers Raise Concerns Over Limited CNG Facilities in Region

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1 year ago

May 8, 2025

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By Gloria Ikibah

Some northern lawmakers have expressed worries over the none availability of Compressed Natural Gas conversion centres in the North-East and North-West geopolitical zones.

The lawmakers stated this during the consideration of a motion by the Deputy Minority Leader, Rep. Aliyu Madaki, titled “Call to establish more compressed natural gas conversion centres across Nigeria”, on Thursday at plenary.

Rep. Madaki who represents Dala Federal Constituency of Kano State, recalled that in the implementation of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, the Federal Government distributed CNG conversion kits across the country.

He stated that the advantages of the conversion to CNG are enormous, and said “It will bring down the cost of living in Nigeria and reduce air and noise pollution, which makes it environmentally friendly.

“CNG burns more cleanly than the Premium Motor Spirit, which means less carbon buildup in the engine, thus reducing the need for frequent engine repairs and prolonging the life of engine components;

“The House is aware that vehicles powered by CNG experience less wear and tear on critical components such as spark plugs and exhaust systems.”

“For the take-off of the Presidential Compressed Natural Gas Initiative, the Federal Government proposed to establish CNG conversion Centres in some states, including Abia, Bayelsa, Cross River, and Ebonyi, with one centre each.

“Akwa Ibom has five centres, Delta- centres, Edo-11 centres, Ekiti seven centres, Enugu and Kogi with three centres each.

“The Federal Capital Territory has three centres, Kaduna 10 centres, Kwara eight centres, Lagos 70 centres, while Nasarawa has two, Ogun has seven, Oyo with 17 and Rivers has eight centres”, he said.

The Deputy Minority Leader queired that in the North West, only one state Kaduna, is benefiting from the presidential initiative, while no State in the North East is listed as a beneficiary.

“We are worried about the exemption of other states from the initiative, as commuters of those states are not taken into consideration, states like Kano, Borno, Katsina, and Sokoto, which are commercially viable, are exempted”, he emphasised.

Madaki therefore called on the Federal Government to establish more CNG conversion centres in the North-West and North-East to facilitate legitimate business operations for all citizens.

Contributing to the motion, Rep. Sada Soli,member representing Jibia/Kaita Federal Constituency of Katsina State, said that in the establishment of the CNG centres, the North-East was completely ignored.

He said, “The North-East was completely ignored, the same with the North-West. The CNG Presidential initiative was to assuage the pains of Nigerians over the removal of fuel subsidy.

“We need to find out why many corridors in the North and cities were exempted from the allocation of CNG centres. I do believe that this initiative, instead of addressing a problem, is creating a lot of problems in the country.”

Also Rep. Ahmed Jaha, member representing Chibok/Damboa/Gwoza Federal Constituency argued: “If there is any place that deserves these CNG centres, it is the North-East. There is no single CNG centre in the whole of the North-East.

“I want to commend the President for initiating this presidential initiative to cut costs and improve the standard of living of all Nigerians. But the policy implementers should bear at the back of their mind that if one region of a nation has issues, the remaining regions cannot sleep with their two eyes closed. It’s because of the neglect in the past of the North-East sub-region that led to what is happening now in the country.

“We have Boko Haram insurgency and other forms of criminality, because even before then, the North-East used to be the poorest region in the nation, and they were neglected. Instead of the nation giving attention to the North-East, so that other parts of the country can remain in peace, the North-East was neglected. This is why we have insurgency and insecurity in the North Central, North-West and other parts of the country”.

Rep. Olumide Osoba (APC, Ogun) in his contribution, said some advanced nations are already moving away from CNG to Hybrid Vehicles (HV), preparatory to migration to Electric Vehicles (EV).

Rep. Osoba called on the Federal Government to think more about the area of electric cars for cleaner energy.

Also Rep. Kafilat Ogbara, member representing Kosofe Federal Constituency of Lagos State, want an all-inclusive ad-hoc committee of members from the various zones to monitor the implementation of the Presidential Initiative on CNG.

“I will advise that the committee on Gas Resources should include members from all the regions, whether they are in that committee or not, so that as honourable members, we will be able to monitor these things and oversee them in our constituencies properly,” she stated.

Apart from resolving to set up the ad-hoc committee, the House urged the Federal Government to establish Compressed Natural Gas Conversion centres equitably across the country to give Nigerians a sense of belonging.

The House unanimously adopted the motion and mandated the Committee on Gas Resources to ensure compliance and report within four weeks for further legislative action.

News

NNPC slashes petrol price twice within four days

Published

4 hours ago

June 27, 2026

Austin Ojomah

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The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, NNPCL, has slashed its fuel pump price for the second time within four days.

A market survey on Saturday by DAILY POST showed that NNPCL retail outlets around Airport Junction and Wuse Zone 6 (Berger) in Abuja have reduced their petrol price to N1210 per litre, down from N1260.

This means that the state-owned oil firm slashed the petrol price by N50 per litre.

This comes barely two days after Dangote Refinery reduced its petrol gantry price by N50 to N1,125 per litre.

Recall that four days ago, NNPCL had adjusted its fuel price pump by N75 per litre to N1260.

With the latest drop by NNPCL retail outlets, petrol prices stand between N1210 per litre and N1305 per litre in Abuja and its environs.

The reduction in domestic fuel comes amid falling crude oil prices, which stand at $69 per barrel and $71 per barrel for West Texas Intermediate and Brent crude, respectively, following the easing of the conflict in the Middle East.

Recall that President Bola Tinubu has kept mum amid the clamour by Nigerians for a commensurate drop in domestic fuel pump prices due to the significant reduction in crude oil prices.

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Lokoja Court order: INEC speaks on NDC, says it’s yet to receive CTC

Published

4 hours ago

June 27, 2026

Austin Ojomah

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The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, has said it is yet to receive the Certified True Copy, CTC, of the Federal High Court judgment that set aside an earlier order directing it to register the Nigeria Democratic Congress, NDC, as a political party.

INEC revealed this in a statement issued on Saturday by its Chief Press Secretary and Media Adviser to the Chairman, Adedayo Oketola.

According to the commission, although it is aware of media reports on the judgment delivered by the Federal High Court sitting in Lokoja on June 26, it cannot comment on the ruling until it obtains and reviews the certified copy.

The Independent National Electoral Commission, INEC, is aware of reports circulating in the media regarding the judgment delivered on Friday, June 26, 2026, by the Federal High Court sitting in Lokoja, which set aside an earlier order concerning the registration of the Nigeria Democratic Congress.

“However, as of this moment, the Commission has not yet received the Certified True Copy, CTC, of the court’s order,” the statement said.

INEC stated that its legal department would study the judgment upon receipt of the CTC before advising the commission on the next course of action.

“Once the Commission’s legal department receives and thoroughly studies the CTC of the judgment, INEC will take an informed, lawful decision in line with the court’s directives.

“Until then, we cannot comment on the specifics of the ruling, and the public is urged to await the Commission’s formal position on the matter,” Oketola added.

Justice Isah Dashen of the Federal High Court in Lokoja had on Friday set aside the court’s December 10, 2025, judgment directing INEC to register the NDC as a political party.

The court held that the rights of the Peace Movement Party were affected by the earlier judgment because it was not joined in the suit despite claiming ownership of the logo relied upon in securing the registration order.

Justice Dashen consequently ordered that all parties be restored to the positions they occupied before the December 2025 judgment and directed that the substantive suit be heard afresh with all necessary parties joined.

The NDC has rejected the ruling and announced plans to appeal the decision. Its National Chairman, Senator Moses Cleopas, maintained that the party had not been deregistered and argued that the trial court lacked jurisdiction to revisit a matter on which it had already delivered a final judgment.

The ruling has also attracted reactions from opposition figures, including the NDC’s presidential candidate, Peter Obi, the party’s National Leader, Senator Henry Dickson, and other stakeholders, who described the decision as a threat to Nigeria’s multiparty democracy and vowed to challenge it through all available legal channels.

INEC, however, maintained that it would reserve its position on the judgment until it receives and reviews the Certified True Copy.

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Just in: Police rescue five abductees in Ogun

Published

4 hours ago

June 27, 2026

Austin Ojomah

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A joint police operation rescued five victims abducted near Ogbere Forest in Ogun state on Wednesday.

They were rescued within 25 hours by the Lagos and Ogun Police Commands, which were part of a joint operation codenamed KOSAYE, meaning “No Space” in Yoruba.

The woman was among the victims who were shot in the incident. Her daughter and sister were among those rescued by the police on Thursday.