News
Dangote denies monopoly claims, calls refinery game-changer for Nigeria
The League of Engineering Bodies in Nigeria, on Monday, lauded the impressive scale and design of the Dangote Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemicals and Dangote Fertiliser Plant at Ibeju-Lekki, Lagos State.
Describing the superstructure as “awesome” and “mind-blowing,” the engineers praised the facility during their recent visit.
The Vice President of Oil & Gas at Dangote Industries Limited, Mr Devakumar Edwin, who led the tour on Saturday, highlighted the extraordinary engineering feats achieved at the complex.
Edwin addressed the monopoly concerns, clarifying that initiating a project often paves the way for others to follow.
This is just as the company gears up for the launch of its Premium Motor Spirit product.
The league comprising the National Society of Engineers, Nigerian Academy of Engineering, Association of Consulting Engineering in Nigeria, and the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, commended Dangote Industries for its significant investment in Nigerian engineering talent and infrastructure.
A Monday statement issued by the league titled, “Engineers hail Dangote Petroleum Refinery as Awesome and Mind-blowing,” revealed this.
“The body of engineers also commended the President of Dangote Industries Limited, Aliko Dangote for hiring and nurturing highly-skilled Nigerian engineers – who were guides during the visit – and declared that engineering is alive in Nigeria, from the workforce to the construction at the Dangote Refinery Complex,” it read.
Reacting to questions, the Group Vice President, Oil and Gas, Edwin, demystified talks around the monopoly tag, stating that someone has to start a project before others follow.
“Nigeria was one of the largest importers of cement, then we started manufacturing cement, and then we became exporters; the same thing applies to sugar, salt and now fertiliser. This breakthrough opened the doors for other investors in those industries and Nigeria is better for it.
“What motivates Mr Dangote is his sheer interest in the Nigerian project. We are indeed in business to make money but the question is, where is the money going to? Every money Dangote is making goes back to the Nigerian economy, from cement to salt, sugar, and fertiliser.”
“The business strategy of the Dangote Refinery is to minimise the energy cost and the overall cost of production; build the most environmentally friendly; maximise value addition; maximise gasoline, which is in high demand with about 55 per cent of the production capacity compared to 22 per cent of the existing refineries in Nigeria; strategically located marine infrastructure for crude receipt and product evacuation; state-of-the-art technology; produce Euro V products; provide crude flexibility; and create a market of $21 billion per annum of Nigerian crude,” Edwin asserted.
Speaking during the visit, the 34th and first female President of the Nigerian Society of Engineers, Margaret Oguntala, described the facility as “mind-blowing”.
“I was awed to see the state-of-the-art facility at the Dangote Refinery; what I see here today will blow the mind of any engineer; it is just like the movies. I was an intern at the Port Harcourt Refinery and I also visited the Kaduna Refinery. It is nothing compared to what I see here.
“The young engineer that took us around showed capacity and we are happy that you are building the future of engineers. We at the NSE are behind you, we shall take this home and let the world know that engineering is alive at the Dangote Refinery,” she added.
Speaking on behalf of the Nigerian Academy of Engineering, Prof. Azikwe Onwualu also noted that the visitors have seen “something good and Nigerians need to know about it.”
Onwualu added, “We are happy some of our fellows are part of your system. We would like to remind the President of the Dangote Group, Mr Aliko Dangote, that if you are not doing something great, you will not be criticised.
“Whatever you are doing, keep it up. If we have this kind of development across Nigeria, people won’t be talking about protests. Keep doing what you are doing and you will hear from us.”
Also, the President of the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, Prof. Sadiq Abubakar, enthused that Nigerian engineers are not inferior to their counterparts globally and the Dangote Refinery is visible proof of this.
“We have known this as a fact that Nigerians are no less in engineering globally. We know our capabilities and this attests to it. What we saw today is emotional and I wonder what the motivation for this colossal investment is. We would like to encourage him to keep the spirit of a true Nigerian,” Abubakar noted.
While speaking to journalists, the Technical Consultant to Dangote Refinery, Babajide Soyode, said the visit of his professional colleagues, made him “very proud.”
News
Kano budgets N100m for law reforms
By Francesca Hangeior
The Kano State Law Reform Commission has earmarked not less than N100m for the reforms of various laws of the state in 2025.
The commission’s Chairman, Justice Lawal Muhammadu, disclosed this shortly after he defended the commission’s 2025 budget before the Committee on Judiciary at the state House of Assembly.
According to him, many laws in the state need reforms, a project that started earlier in the year but was unfortunately damaged and burnt during the August protest in the state.
He said the entire work is starting all over again, with a total budget of N100 million to reform all the laws in the coming year.
“There are many laws that are old; some were made since before Nigeria’s independence and are as old as since 1837 and based on England law. Some of them are not even used in the country, but we still have them here.
“Those are some of the reviews we want to do. The ones that are not useful will be withdrawn, and the ones that need reform will be reformed,” he noted.
Others who defended their budgets are the Kano State Radio Corporation, the state Ministry of Information, Kano Pillars Club, Abubakar Rimi Television, the Triumph newspaper, the Kano Printing Press, Kano Film and Censorship Board, among others.
They reinstated their commitment to utilising the resources committed in their budget to improve outputs.
News
Like Senate, Reps move to remove CCT Chairman Umar
By Francesca Hangeior
Like the Senate, the House of Representatives has invoked the provision of paragraph 17 (3), Part 1, fifth schedule to the constitution for the removal from the Office of the Chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal, FCT, Umar Danladi.
Hon. Julius ihonvbere who moved the motion drew strength from paragraph 17 (3), PT 1, Fifth Schedule of the Constitution and section 22(3) of the Code of Conduct Bureau and Tribunal Act Cap , that the President is mandated to act on an address supported by a two-thirds majority of the Senate and House of Representatives for the removal of the chairman for misconduct.
The house drew attention to the conduct of the CCT Chairman, who recently engaged in a public brawl with a security guard at the Banex Plaza Shopping Complex, Abuja, necessitating an invitation from the Senate Committee on Ethics, Code of Conduct, and Public Petitions.
The lawmakers said after his first appearance, where he admitted to having been involved in the brawl, he refused to attend subsequent sittings, thereby frustrating the efforts of the committee to investigate the allegations against him.
The house noted that a statutory institution of such magnitude is expected to be an epitome of moral rectitude and virtues of integrity, probity, and accountability.
However, the official conduct of Umar has fallen short of the requisite standard of a public officer to conduct the affairs of such a tribunal.
News
Tinubu not presenting 2025 budget Wednesday – NASS
By Francesca Hangeior
The Director of Information, Secretary, Research and Information (SR&I), National Assembly, Mr Bullah Bi-Allah, has denied the purported budget presentation by President Bola Tinubu on Wednesday.
Bi-Allah said this in a statement in Abuja on Tuesday following the news making the round that the president was billed to present the budget on Wednesday, Nov. 27.
He said such news credited to him was fake, baseless, and unfounded, urging the public to disregard it.
He said: “The attention of the Secretary, Research and Information (SR&I), National Assembly, Dr Ali Barde Umoru, has been drawn to the purported fake news credited to him.”
He added that the news alleged that “His Excellency, President Bola Tinubu, will tomorrow Wednesday present the 2925 budget to the joint session of the National Assembly.”
According to him, the news circulating on both social and mainstream media and other outlets is false and should be disregarded.
“The secretary advised that any official inquiry and clarification should follow the official communication channels of the National Assembly.”
He said that NASS was yet to approve the 2024-2026 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper, forwarded to both chambers of the National Assembly by Tinubu.
He clarified that the MTEF approval would come before the official presentation of the 2025 budget.
He said, “In view of the above, the SR&I warns peddlers of such information to desist forthwith from using his office to mislead members of the public.”
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