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Reps deny rift between Speaker Abbas, Kalu, says no bribery for committee placement
By Kayode Sanni-Arewa
The Nigerian House of Representatives, has said the dissolution of the Joint Adhoc Committee on Midstream and Downstream Petroleum was done in line with the 1999 constitution of Nigeria and the standing rules of the House.
This was, even as, the Green chamber debunked the insinuations in some quarters that there was love lost between the Speaker, Tajudeen Abbas and his deputy, Benjamin Kalu; and that Members bribed their way to get some juicy Committee placements in the House.
A statement signed on Wednesday by the Spokesperson of the House, Akin Rotimi Jnr, said the action by the leadership was to ensure efficacy, independence, and effectiveness of the investigation.
He stressed that, the House has its internal working mechanisms, “which are enabled by Section 60 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), which provides that, ‘Subject to the provisions of this Constitution, the Senate or the House of Representatives shall have power to regulate its own procedure, including the procedure for summoning and recess of the House’”.
The Spokesperson contended that, “the leadership of the House reserves the right to disband/dissolve an ad hoc committee whenever the need arises.
“That the action taken by the House to dissolve the Ad Hoc Committee on Oil and Gas Investigation did not contravene any rule of the House or any law of the land;
“That at no time did the House leadership or anybody for that matter received inducement for the appointment of any committee chairman. It was an assignment diligently executed by the Selection Committee of the House between June and July 2023, which has a member from each of the states of the federation;
“That there is no rift whatsoever between the Speaker and the Deputy Speaker regarding this or any matter; the duo enjoys a robust and cordial relationship. The two Presiding Officers also have mutual respect for each other, and will not allow anything to come between them.
“The public should therefore disregard the speculations making the round in some sections of the media”.
The House therefore, implored Journalists to always verify their facts and crosscheck with the appropriate quarters before going to the press, “with information that are nothing but falsehoods dished out as stories”.
The Green chamber, while reiterating cordial relationship between the two Presiding Officers and peace amongst Members; stressed that it operates open door policy and remains open to the Nigerian public and the media regarding its activities.
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NNPC’s failure to fix refineries might encourage Dangote to be monopolistic
Despite bickering between the Dangote Petrochemical Industry and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL), a group of Nigerians in Diaspora has entertained fears that the leading regulatory agency might be secretly encouraging Dangote Refinery to be monopolistic in oil distribution in the country.
Dr. Donald Illiya, Global President of Nigerians in Diaspora Movement
(NDM), in a statement signed Monday morning from London, United Kingdom, said the public faceoffs between the NNPCL and Dangote refinery is confusing, and might be to distract Nigerians, while the regulatory body encourages Dangote to be the sole oil distributor in Nigeria, by suppressing the state owned local refineries and hold them continually in comatose.
“The Nigerians in Diaspora Movement have watched with perplexity the choreographed performance between the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) and Dangote Petrochemicals Refinery, which is meant to keep exploiting Nigerians by making them pay more than reasonable pump prices for refined petroleum products.
“For us, taking in the state of the nation’s economy and the ongoing cost of living crisis, we are of the view that Nigeriaās fate is tied to the state of government-owned refineries, which must be made functional to cause a consequential drop in the prices of fuel and a positive knock-off effect on the cost of living.
“From our review of the murky situations around the refining, importation, supply and pricing of petroleum products, we are constrained to conclude that NNPCL and its officials are aiding Dangote Refinery to emerge as a monopoly by failing to revive domestic refineries while obscuring this fact by being publicly hostile to each other”, the statement said.
The group, while asserting high level of corruption in the energy sector, said, despite spending over N17 trillion to rehabilitate the Port Harcourt, Warri and Kaduna refineries from 2002 to 2022, and still spending more, even under the present regime of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, the local refineries have remained comatose.
“We are concerned that the unfolding drama is part of a larger plot to conceal the fact that NNPCL has kept its track record as a cesspit of corruption, which is most prominent in the phantom turnaround maintenance of the government-owned refineries. From when NNPCL Group CEO, Mele Kyari assumed office in July 2019, the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari approved $1.5 billion for the rehabilitation of the Kaduna, Port Harcourt, and Warri refineries. Another N54.66 billion was spent on refinery rehabilitation from January to June 2022.
“More funds have disappeared into the private coffers of those managing NNPCL such that additional monies have been spent even under the current government, bringing the total expenditure on refinery repairs to approximately N17 trillion on turnaround maintenance of the nationās three refineries between 2002 and 2022.
“The only output Nigerians have had from this huge expenditure are the ever-changing delivery dates for the refineries to resume operation. In November 2023 a December 2023 target date was announced for Port Harcourt Refinery, and by December of that year, March 2024 was announced as a new date only for this to be altered at least three other times.
“The completion of repairs on Kaduna Refinery was set for the first quarter of 2024, but the refinery has only produced stories on why it is being delayed. Warri Refinery has not fared any better, as a similar first quarter of 2024 target date for commencement of operations, as announced by Mele Kyari, turned out to be folklore”, the group added.
They are of the opinion that, “It is consequently plausible that the failure to make these refineries functional is beyond incompetence and the theft of the funds meant for repairing them. It is now glaring that the refineries are being kept moribund to create a favourable condition for the emergence of a monopoly. This is a tragic turn of events at a time when jurisdictions worldwide are taking bold steps to prevent predatory and monopolistic tendencies to protect citizens and businesses”.
Nigerians in Diaspora Movement, therefore, urged “President Bola Tinubu to take decisive steps to purge the rot in NNPCL so that domestic refineries can resume production and ward off the dangers of succumbing to a monopoly, which also presents a single point of failure for the nationās fuel supply”.
News
16 Days of Activism: Speaker Abbas Decries Increasing Violence Against Women
News
Trump set to sign Executive Order to flush out transgender personnel from US military
President-elect, Donald Trump, is set to sign an executive order that would remove all transgender members from the United States military.
It was learnt that the development has intensified concerns within the LGBTQ+ community.
The report claimed that the state officials had stated that transgender personnel would be discharged on medical grounds, deeming them āunfitā to serve.
Recall that during Trumpās first term as president, he introduced a similar policy that prohibited transgender individuals from joining the armed forces while allowing those already enlisted to remain in their roles.
After Trump left office, President Joe Biden had overturned the military ban in his first week as president in 2021, issuing an executive order to restore transgender individualsā right to serve openly. However, with Trumpās potential return to the White House, transgender rights in the US may face renewed challenges.
However, the current proposal, as reported, would extend to removing all transgender service members, regardless of their current status. It is anticipated that the executive order will be issued on Trumpās first day in office, January 20 next year.
If signed, Trumpās new directive could be broader and more contentious than the policy he implemented during his first term. What would be its impact on transgender personnel serving in US military.
Reports indicated that approximately 15,000 transgender individuals are actively serving in the US military.
This is coming amid moves by US congress to stop irst transgender lawmaker from using female restrooms and bathrooms in her new workplace.
US House Speaker Mike Johnson had expressed his support for the policy that tends to disregard transgender ideologies in the legislative arm.
āAll single-sex facilities in the Capitol and House Office Buildings ā such as restrooms, changing rooms, and locker rooms ā are reserved for individuals of that biological sex,ā the speaker said in a statement last Wednesday.
āIt is important to note that each Member office has its own private restroom, and unisex restrooms are available throughout the Capitol. Women deserve womenās only spaces,ā he added.
The move to prevent McBride from using the womenās facilities in the House was first initiated by Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., who on Monday introduced a resolution to ban trans women from using womenās bathrooms inside the complex.
Mace said the resolution was āabsolutelyā in response to McBride, a Delaware Democrat, being elected to the House.
She took her anti-trans crusade even further on Wednesday, announcing a bill to ban trans people from using bathrooms that align with their gender in all federal buildings across the country. Neither of the resolutions have been brought to a House vote.
It is important to note that each Member office has its own private restroom, and unisex restrooms are available throughout the Capitol. Women deserve womenās only spaces,ā he added.
The move to prevent McBride from using the womenās facilities in the House was first initiated by Rep. Nancy Mace, R-S.C., who on Monday introduced a resolution to ban trans women from using womenās bathrooms inside the complex.
Mace said the resolution was āabsolutelyā in response to McBride, a Delaware Democrat, being elected to the House.
She took her anti-trans crusade even further on Wednesday, announcing a bill to ban trans people from using bathrooms that align with their gender in all federal buildings across the country. Neither of the resolutions have been brought to a House vote.
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