Sen. Hadi Sirika, Minister of Aviation

Source: NAN News

Timipre Sylva, Minister of State for Petroleum Resources

By Edith Ike-Eboh

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, has reiterated that the federal government is no longer fixing the pump price of petroleum products in the country.

Sylva made this known while briefing newsmen on the increase in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirt (PMS), also known as petrol.

Recall that the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC) had on Wednesday announced a new Ex-depot price of N151.56 for petrol.

Ex-depot price is the price marketers buy products from depot owners.

An increase or decrease in ex-depot price has effect on the pump price of petrol.

Government is no longer in the business of fixing prices for petroleum products, we have stepped back.

Our focus now is on protecting the interest of the consumers and making sure that marketers are not profiteering,he said.

Sylva said it was unfortunate that people were blaming government, noting that the deregulation of the sector was imperative for the economy.

He said that it was also a consensus among stakeholders for such strong policy direction.

According to him, the well-being of Nigeria remains paramount to government.

You all know that that President Muhammadu Buhari aligns with ordinary Nigerians, especially the poor.

Left for him, he will never allow increase in pump price; for this to happen, it means that it is an inevitable decision.

COVID-19 took the price of crude oil to zero zone, the minister said.

He said that government cannot fund subsidy, hence would not adopt that as an option, noting that current happenings were for the economic survival of the country.

Sylva said that government had cut crude production from two million barrels to 1.412 million barrels per day.

This, he said, was affecting revenue generation in the country.

He said that it was unfortunate that the deregulation of the sector was politicised, urging Nigerians not to listen to any advocacy for subsidy payment.

Deregulation will definitely come with few pains, but survival of the country is paramount, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva

By Edith Ike-Eboh

Chief Timipre Sylva, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resource, says two regulatory bodies in the oil and gas sector will be merged as one regulator in the new Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB).

Sylva disclosed this while briefing newsmen in Abuja on Thursday.

The two agencies are Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF) and Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA).

He said that the two would be merged under the name: The Authority as regulator in the industry.

He said that the agencies would still be relevant to serve as regulators in the industry, noting that without PPPRA and PEF, it would be difficult to deal with profiteers.

PEF and PPPRA will emerge as one under a name The Authority and will be helping to police the pump price of petrol so that nobody will profiteer, he said.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that while PEF deals equalisation of petroleum products to ensure price uniformity, PPPRA deals with petroleum products pricing and monitoring of compliance. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

Motor park

By Edith Ike-Eboh

The Federal Government will in October inaugurate the use of Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) and Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) for motorist as alternative to use of petrol in the country.

Chief Timipre Sylva, the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, made this known while briefing newsmen in Abuja on Thursday.

Compressed Natural Gas (methane stored at high pressure) is fuel that can be used in place of gasoline, diesel fuel and liquefied petroleum gas

He said that introduction of CNG, LPG and others would help to reduce the impact of the high cost of premium Motor Spirit (PMS) also known as petrol on Nigerians.

He said that since the Federal Government was no longer in the business of fixing the price of petroleum products, its focus was to protect the interest of Nigerians.

He said that CNG and LPG was cheaper, cleaner and globally accepted.

The solution to reduce the pains with increase in petrol is to create another source that is cheaper, cleaner and global friendly.

Introducing LPG, CNG is creating a toll gate and alternative route for people that may not be comfortable to have a choice.

The introduction of the new products will be cheaper and better, in the end Nigerians will be happy for it, he said.

On how it will be rolled out across the country, he said that all the Nigerian National Petroleum corporation (NNPC) petrol stations would be used for the project.

He said that an LPG and CNG skid to dispensed the products would be fixed in all the NNPC stations across the country.

He said some private marketers had also requested to be admitted in the programme.

Going forward, Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) will request marketers to upgrade their station to accommodate LPG and CNG or their licenses will not be reviewed, he said.

Sylva said that the introduction of the alternative products would help in creating jobs, especially with conversion of cars with LPG and CNG kits.

He said that a company had approached Nigeria for establishment conversion centre in the country.

I believe that with time, people will start importing cars that use LPG, CNG among others. Conversion of cars to use the products will be for a few period, he said. . (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By David Adeoye

The Oyo State COVID-19 Task Force, headed by Gov. Seyi Makinde, has announced the cancellation of the 10 p.m. curfew imposed on the state in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.

Mr Taiwo Adisa, Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, said in a statement that the curfew had been abolished after series of reviews.

The task force, however, specifically warned night clubs operators to desist from accommodating persons in closed areas within their premises, adding that research confirmed that the virus spread faster when people clustered in closed venues.

According to the statement, an advisory will be sent to night club owners by the Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) arm of the task force, which will warn operators not to allow guests into their enclosed areas.

The statement further indicated that the task force issued another warning to residents of the state to continue to follow the OWN YOUR ACTION initiative as the state is not completely out of the woods with regards to COVID-19.

It explained that the decision by the Makinde-led task force to abolish the curfew was premised on the need to reduce the burden on business owners, whom, it said, had been affected by the curfew, especially since the COVID-19 situation had begun to improve in the state.

Though it appeared that COVID-19 cases are coming down in the state, the confidence interval cannot be determined yet, it said.

It warned residents of the state not to jettison the guidelines on the prevention of the virus, including washing of hands, social distancing and use of nose masks.

The statement said that Makinde had directed the EOC not to relent in data gathering and analysis in order to appropriately situate the context of the virus within the state.

According to the statement, the governor has also approved the conversion of the Aawe Isolation Centre to a Level 3 Primary Health Care Centre (PHC), directing that the facility should be decontaminated and handed over to the Hospitals Management Board.

Similarly, the statement confirmed that the task force approved that except for the Infectious Disease Centre, Olodo, Ibadan, other isolation centres in the state could be converted to Level 3 PHC.

It, however, stated that whenever a spike in COVID-19 cases was noticed in the location where any of the facilities was situated, such a facility would be re-converted as an isolation centre or a part of it would be so utilised as an isolation centre.

The statement also indicated that the task force directed the Oyo State Hospitals Management Board to identify a Primary Health Care Centre around Olodo axis of Ibadan, which would be upgraded to take care of residents in that axis.

In its briefing at the meeting, the EOC reported that it had, in collaboration with the Information Communication Centre of the state, developed a portal for the registration of NCDC-licensed private laboratories for the conduct of COVID-19 tests.

In all, the task force noted that a total of 15,700 COVID-19 tests had been conducted, with 3,118 confirmed cases and 37 fatalities.

The Special Adviser to the governor on Health, Dr Funmi Salami, also hinted that there had been a spike in the cases of stroke among the elderly in the state, largely due to being confined to their various homes in order to avoid COVID-19 infections.

The task force, therefore, approved that advisory messages on how to avoid stroke would be rolled out through designated media outlets.

The statement further said that the state was already designing an advisory guideline on voluntary compliance with COVID-19 protocols.

On his part, the Commissioner for Education, Olasunkanmi Olaleye, reiterated that concerted efforts had been made to ensure that schools complied with COVID-19 safety protocols upon resumption.

The statement concluded that so far, the state had received donations in cash, agricultural goods and health equipment to the tune of N1.273 billion since the outbreak of COVID-19 in the state.

The governor therefore appreciated everyone who supported the state in different ways during the pandemic.(NAN)

Source: NAN News

Police IG Mohammed Adamu

By Monday Ijeh

The Inspector General of Police (I-G), Mr Mohammed Adamu, has directed nationwide registration and capturing of all retired police officers for the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS).

The Force Public Relations Officer (FPRO), Mr Frank Mba, said in a statement on Thursday in Abuja that the directive followed approval by the Federal Government to enroll retired police officers on the NHIS.

He said the registration would be effective between Sept. 7 and Sept. 23.

With this development, all retired police officers, irrespective of their rank on retirement along with a spouse, will have full access to all NHIS services.

The retirees will also have access to the benefits covered by the Police Health Maintenance Organization (Police-HMO) Code-073, the force spokesperson said.

He said that the registration and capturing would be in three batches and would take place at various police area commands in the country.

According to him, all retired police officers are therefore, required to visit any area command closest to them with the National Identity Number, letter of retirement and retirees identity cards.

He said that the exercise would hold in the North-West, North-East and part of North-Central, Federal Capital Territory (FCT) and Nasarawa State, between Sept. 7 and Sept. 9.

Mba further said the exercise in the South-West and part of North-Central, Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Niger and Plateau would hold between Sept. 14 and Sept. 16.

He also said the exercise would hold between Sept. 21 and Sept. 23 in the South-South and South-East.

He noted that the I-G expressed appreciation to the federal government for extending the NHIS to retired police officers.

He added that the development would help to address the age long quest for affordable healthcare services for police retirees.

He advised the senior citizens to take optimum advantage of the scheme. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

NYSC

By Abujah Racheal

The Federal Government has given the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC) the green light to start making plans to reopen its orientation camps nationwide.

The National Coordinator of the Presidential Taskforce (PTF) on COVID-19, Dr Sani Aliyu, made this known during a briefing at the Nnamdi Azikwe International Airport, Abuja.

The News Agency of Nigeria(NAN), reports that the orientation camps across the country were shut in March as part of measures to curb the spread of COVID-19.

Aliyu said the task force was in the process of developing strict guidelines to forestall the outbreak of infections when NYSC camps reopened.

The NYSC is to consolidate on safety measures currently being put in place and start preparing for the reopening of orientation camps when educational institutions open.

We are in the process of developing strict guidelines to ensure there is no outbreak of COVID-19 when this process starts, he said. (NAN)

Source: NAN News

By Lucy Ogalue
Mr Hassan Bello, Executive Secretary, Nigeria Shippers Council(NSC) has said that diversified means of transportation would reduce the cost of transport and port gridlock in the country.

Bello told newsmen in Abuja that transport drives the economy and the President Muhammadu Buharis led administration was working at ensuring diversification of the countrys transport system.

We have been having challenges in our Nigerian ports because of some distortions.

I will give some examples to the road, our dependence on the road has cost us a lot, or has stiffened and made it impossible for transportation to make expectant contribution in terms of revenue, in terms of employment and infrastructure.

But the government is trying. Like I said, if not for COVID-19, we will not be having gridlock, we would have connected the rail to the ports.

Now connection of the rail to the port is significant, because it will do two things, for every trip the rail makes, 38 trailers are removed from the port.

Before now the monopoly is on the road traffic, it is only the dominant, maybe 90 per cent of connection that is dropping cargo to the port.

You cant rely on one mode of transportation. Nigeria Shippers Council has now encouraged rail employment and also evacuation from the ports and that will be at a cheaper rate, Bello said.

He said the various stakeholders in the maritime sector were collaborating to strengthen the standard operating procedure for the rail.

He said: that will mean two things, we have an alternative to road, we remove a lot of trucks and we give the truckers a run for their money.

There will be competition, so this will mean prices of transportation will crash very soon in time to come and that is one of the achievements.

According to Bello, the NSC is also looking at a very important aspect of access to the ports which is the batches inland water ways.

According to him, the diversified means of transportation will give room for competition, the law of demand and supply will apply, thus, there will be reduction in transportation cost.

Besides the Federal Government has made a policy statement that all ports and I hope this will include dry ports would be linked with rail. As I have said if not for COVID-19, the Chinese will have linked not just Apapa but Tin Can with rail.

The moment we have inland connectivity, the gridlock in Apapa will disappear that is apart from infrastructural efforts the federal government has made.

The NSC boss however noted that infrastructure was not enough to manage traffic , adding that the various stakeholders were working at developing an electronic system that would ensure this.

On high cost of doing business, Bello reiterated that the NSC had made it impossible for shipping companies to bring out arbitrary or unilateral charges which would increase cost of doing business in the country.

He said the council was also working with the Nigerian Customs Service to ensure speedy clearance of cargoes at the ports.

Because of lack of scanners , cargo is cleared after 100 per cent physical examination, now this is a primitive way of doing things and it causes so much delay.

So scanners will be redeployed very soon we have been at it with Customs, it takes five hours for a container to be examined physically and then cleared but when we have the scanners it will take five minutes.

So you can see we are all making our ports efficient, we have the structure, infrastructure superstructure as a matter of fact and the clearance will be simpler, faster, more economical, Bello said.

Source: NAN News

Lionel Messi

Lionel Messis father and agent met Barcelona Club President Josep Maria Bartomeu on Wednesday to discuss the players wish to leave the club but the talks ended in stalemate, Spanish media reported.

Earlier, Jorge Messi said it would be difficult for his son to remain with Barcelona, the only club he has ever played for professionally.

The meeting lasted one-and-a-half hours and was held in a cordial atmosphere, according to media reports including sports dailies Marca and Mundo Deportivo.

They said Bartomeu sees Messi as a key part of Barcas plans to rebuild under new coach Ronald Koeman. There was no comment from the club.

Six-times world player of the year Messi, unhappy at his teams failure to win any silverware last season and humiliated by an 8-2 Champions League thrashing by Bayern Munich, told the club last week that he wanted to leave.

The Argentine insists he has a clause in his contract that allows him to leave on a free transfer.

It is a claim disputed by Barcelona and La Liga, who say he can only leave if a rival club is willing to pay a 700 million euro (830.20 million dollars) buyout clause.

I dont know, I know nothing, Messis father told Spanish TV channel Cuatro after flying in on a private jet.

Pressed if it would be hard for him to remain, he said yes, and asked how he sees Messis future at Barcelona, he replied difficult, difficult.

Messi missed a medical on Sunday and did not show up on Monday for the first training session of the season. (Reuters/NAN)

Source: NAN News

COVID-19 updates by NCDC

The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has announced four deaths and 216 fresh cases of COVID-19, taking the total infections in the country to 54, 463.

The NCDC made this known on its official twitter handle on Wednesday.

The health agency said that a multi-sectoral national Emergency Operations Centre (EOC), activated at Level 3 had continued to coordinate the national response activities across the country.

It disclosed that the new infections were recorded in 15 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

The NCDC stated that of the 216 new cases, Plateau had the highest number with 59, followed by Rivers, Abia, and Lagos which had 27, 22, and 20 respectively.

Others were Oyo 18, Enugu 17, Kaduna 11, FCT 11, Ogun 10, Ebonyi four, Osun four, Ekiti four, Delta three, Edo three, Akwa Ibom two, and Bauchi one.

The health agency said that this brought the total number of infections in the country since its first index case in February, 2020 to 54,463.

It noted that those who had lost the their lives to the virus in country increased by four, raising the death toll of infections to 1,027.

The health agency also said that the number of recoveries in the country increased to 42,439 after 429 more patients were successfully treated and discharged from various isolation centres in the country.

It added that as at Monday, Nigeria had a total of 10,997, recoveries.

NCDC stated that this represented 20.19 per cent of the total confirmed cases with 77.92 per cent recoveries and 1.88 per cent deaths recorded.

Meanwhile, the health agency noted that the success of the public health response to COVID-19 was not dependent only on the efforts at the national level.

It said it was also dependent on the actions of various communities and individuals to adapt the messages and solutions to their local context.

One good thing from Nigerias polio experience is a well developed vaccine delivery mechanism.

What we now need to do is ensure we have the right data on immunity levels of our population to guide decision making around prioritisation within our context, it said.

Source: NAN News