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NIGERIA POLITICAL OUTLOOK 2023

February 13, 2023

by admin with No Comment By Ahmad Olasege and Amos Balogun Goverance Politics

There are some important personalities that will shape Nigeria’s social and political this 2023. They range from political actors, heads of public institutions, business leaders, traditional rulers and others. Prominent among these are President Buhari, the letterman, former President Olusegun Obasanjo, INEC chairman, Professor Mahmood Yakubu, IG-P, Usman Alkali Baba, CJN, Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, NPC, Isa-Kwarra ,the presidential candidates Senator Bola Tinubu, Alhaji Abubakar Atiku, Peter Obi, Rabiu Kwankwaso, Then the People’ Democratic Party (PDP) Iyorchia Ayu and the G-5 governors , led by Rivers state governor, Nyesom Wike.

Nigeria’s 2023 general election is just weeks away. With President Mohammadu Buhari term-limited, the country will be choosing a new leader. Also a new crop of leaders is also expected to emerge at the parliament. The elections for the National Assembly would be held on the same day as the presidential. The actions of the president will go a long way toward the success of this and determine a lot of thing for the ordinary man this year.

Of course, what ordinary Nigerians want is clear enough: economic opportunity; security; political accountability; an end to corrupt Big Man rule; and improved investment in health, education, and infrastructure. Working with local partners and investors across the country, President Buhari has been doing his best to achieve these and also strengthen institutions and democratic values. The structures being put on ground can help stimulate a new era of foreign direct investment in projects and initiatives that will spark economic growth and reduce dependence on frequently wayward states such as China. But on issues of election, nothing but absolute commitment is expected of him.

Buhari’s will do much to shape activities in Nigeria within the year. Though he has assured Nigerians that he would bequeath the country with credible elections and give the electoral body free hands to conduct the exercise, all eyes are on him to fulfil the pledges.

“INEC is ready because I made sure they were given all the resources they asked because I don’t want any excuses that they were denied funds by the government,” Buhari said while responding to a question on the readiness of INEC to conduct the elections in Washington DC, USA, at an interactive session titled: “A Conversation with President Muhammadu Buhari of Nigeria”, on December 17, 2022.

And these are reasons for optimism that the upcoming polls will be an improvement on the 2019 election. The retired general wants a credible, transparent electoral process to be an important part of his legacy. he put in place, legal reforms enabled earlier planning and new technology has been deployed to improve voter accreditation and the transmission of results.

A surge of new voter registration, especially among young people, suggests that Nigerians believe the 2023 elections are a process worth their time and energy.

Nigerians expect that the president will ensure a smooth transition of power to the winner of the February 25, presidential election. Before then, he is expected to step up his campaigns against terrorism and banditry and complete some of his legacy projects.

He is expected to end subsidy on petroleum products. As announced by the federal government. A deadline of June has been set. The president has laid the foundation for this with his assent to the Petroleum Industry Bill (PIB). But the issue of credible transparent elections count more.

INEC Chair, Yakubu

The Chairman of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), Professor Mahmood Yakubu, is also on the radar as he oversees and gives directions on the conduct of the polls to national commissioners who in turn supervise the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) in states.

He is expected to ensure the electoral umpire functions independently and free from external influence. The commission, under him, is also expected to display openness and transparency in all its activities and its relationship with all stakeholders. So the success or otherwise of the elections rests largely on Yakubu’s shoulders. Of course, INEC, under Yakubu, has demonstrated a determination to conduct credible elections in this year 2023. His coming up with technological innovations is a right step in the right direction, despite serious opposition from some quarters. The beauty of it all is it that will make rigging impossible for politicians.

To ensure constitutional backing for its action, INEC ,sometimes last year, sensitised Nigerians to put pressure on the National Assembly and the Executive arm of the government to ensure the signing of the amended Electoral Act 2022. This electoral law helped to define off-season elections conducted in 2022 by curbing malpractices.

The technological innovations brought up by INEC has forced politicians to sit up and bond more with the electorate ahead of the 2023 general election since it won’t be business as usual.

Recall that three out-of-season elections in the FCT, Ekiti, Anambra and Osun states held in 2022 to test-run INEC’s innovations and technology. The Bimodal Voter Accreditation System (BVAS) was fully deployed. It is one of the technological innovations INEC has devised to identify and accredit voters’ fingerprints and facial recognition before voting. It is also used for capturing images of the polling unit result sheet (Form EC8A) and uploading the image of the result sheet online.

So those states used for the test-running of INEC’s innovations, courtesy of the improved electoral law, benefitted from the BVAS system.

With this technology, alteration of votes at polling units, distortion of number of accredited voters, collation of false results, mutilation of results and computational errors, swapping of results sheets, forging of results sheets, snatching and destruction of results sheets, obtaining declaration and return involuntarily, making declaration and return while result collation is still in progress and poor record-keeping, will no longer be prevalent in future elections.

Equally the commission’s Election Result Viewing Portal (IReV) is another technology in the form of online portal where polling unit-level results are uploaded directly from the polling unit, transmitted, and published for the public.

Yakubu’s determination to use these technologies in 2023 elections has unruffled some feathers but the electoral umpire has demonstrated a strong determination to put the election riggers out of business in February 25^th polls.

IGP, Baba

The Inspector General of Police (IGP), Usman Alkali Baba, is carrying a very heavy load of integrity and patrotism. This is because the neutrality of the police is critical in 2023 elections. Baba has the mandate to coordinate the police and other security agencies to ensure the elections are conducted peacefully.

Of course, he had already declared that the Nigeria Police, the military and other security forces were fully prepared to ensure free, fair, credible and acceptable polls in 2023.

“We are assuring Nigerians and the international community that the 2023 general elections will hold as planned by the Independent National Electoral Commission in all the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Abuja. The country is enjoying relative peace now and we are going to sustain this, the President and Commander-In-Chief of the Armed Forces, Muhammadu Buhari has promised times without numbers to give the nation peaceful, free and fair elections, come 2023.

“The president has been keeping to his words by encouraging us and the security forces towards achieving this, we will have no excuse to fail the nation. Nigerians too have been helping the police and other security agencies with credible information in their localities,” he reportedly said.

He drummed that contrary to speculations in some quarters that the forthcoming polls may not hold in some parts of the country due to security concerns, the elections would hold nationwide as scheduled by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC).

The IG-P had also warned political actors to play by the rules of the game and to stop overheating the system, saying the era of ballot box snatching was gone for good in the country based on the various innovations introduced into the system by INEC.

Ahead of the polls, the country has continued to witness election-related violence. Scores of people have been killed and dozens injured in different clashes. This is just as the menace of banditry is still terrorising the North West; farmers/herders clashes in the North Central; Boko Haram in the North East; IPOB in the South East and pockets of security breaches being recorded in the South West.

The neutrality of the police is another issue that Baba is expected to ensure.

CJN, Ariwoola

“As the Chief Justice of Nigeria, I will not condone any act of recklessness, abuse of power and public trust,” Mr Ariwoola warned the judicial officers who will be handling post-election cases.

The Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, presides over the Supreme Court, the highest court in Nigeria which decisions are final. Some of the litigations that will follow the elections will end at the apex court.

Ahead of the elections, the CJN on November 7, 2022, inaugurated members of the 2023 Election Petitions Tribunals. A total of 307 judges will be serving on the tribunals set up to adjudicate disputes that may arise from the 2023 elections.

The Court of Appeal coordinates and serves as the secretariat of the election petitions tribunals across the country. According to authoritative sources, members of the tribunals are expected to be deployed to states this January. Also some of the cases will end at the apex court, the CJN will constitute panels of the Supreme Court that will entertain post-election cases that would drag to the apex court.

All eyes are on CJN Ariwoola to fully monitor and address allegations of corruption and misconduct that may be levelled against judicial officials as he is the Chairman of the National Judicial Council (NJC).

National Population Commission, Isa-Kwarra

2006 was the last time national population census took place in Nigeria. Seventeen years after, the country is gearing up for the conduct of another national population census. The exercise was last held back in 2006 during the time of former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

The exercise, which ideally is to be conducted every 10 years, has now been scheduled for April this year. A pilot census was held in July last year. It is recently reported that the exercise would be held under the chairmanship of Nasir Isa-Kwarra. Thus all eyes are on him as he is expected to supervise the conduct of the exercise.

Experts say the importance of census cannot be overestimated as it is the centre of every planning activity, and that no meaningful development can be achieved without taking census data into account.

Frontline presidential candidates

A total of 18 presidential candidates have indicated interest in taking over the job of President Muhammadu Buhari on May 29, this year, but the pendulum is swinging towards the candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu; Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar; Labour Party (LP), Peter Obi; and Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP). The fate of the candidates would be determined by 84 million registered voters in 176,846 polling units of the country.

Atiku Abubakar

Former vice president, Atiku Abubakar, Turaki Adamawa is the presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The former vice president is a strong political force, and one of those that will help to shape the Nigerian politics in 2023. As a former vice president who had contested the presidential elections several times, Atiku has built alliances and bridges across all the states in the country. His wide contacts and connections will provide a formidable structure that will influence the outcome of the 2023 general election. As the candidate of the PDP, which is one of the three frontline political parties, Atiku is a major factor to watch in 2023. His political base, the North, with her intimidating voting population, will be a major determinant of the outcome of the elections.

Bola Tinubu

The presidential candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and former governor of Lagos State, Senator Bola Tinubu became a formidable national political force after he dismantled all the plots against him and emerged as the presidential candidate of the ruling party.

With his deep pocket, Tinubu, a political strategist, has built strong contacts and alliances in all the states across the country. His support groups have penetrated every nook and cranny of the country, promoting his presidential ambition. The former Lagos State governor had played a key role in the emergence of President Muhammadu Buhari in the 2015 presidential election.

Tinubu is no doubt a strong factor in the 2023 politics.

Peter Obi

Many political analysts did not take the former governor of Anambra State, Mr. Peter Obi serious when emerged as the presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP).

Before he joined the LP, Obi was a presidential aspirant on the platform of the PDP where he also contested the 2019 elections as the vice presidential candidate of the party.

Shortly before the presidential primary of the PDP, Obi resigned from the party and joined the LP, which many had described as a party without a structure that could win a presidential election.

Amazingly, the sooner than he joined the LP than the Nigerian youths who are his support base, elevated a political party without a formidable structure to a mass movement. The youths organised massive pre-campaign rallies across the major cities in the country, which unlike other political rallies, were not influenced by monetary inducements.

Obi has consistently told his critics who claimed that he had no formidable structure to clinch power next year that those making such assertion were referring to political structures of corruption and criminality which he doesn’t have and strongly abhors.

Obi has also argued that the type of structures that his critics were talking about involves bribery and corruption; and also sharing money to acclaimed political stakeholders to enlist their support and help in rigging elections.

LP was said to lack structures but Obi’s supporters, mainly the youths, have formed formidable structures to promote his presidential aspiration.

Various states in the country stood still when these youths marched through their state capitals and these sent shock waves across the PDP and the APC. The former Anambra State governor is a major factor that will shape the 2023 politics.

Rabiu Kwankwaso

The presidential candidate of the New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP), Mr. Rabiu Musa Kwankwaso, will also be a force to reckon with in the politics of 2023. Though none of the various local and international polls has favoured him, his popularity in Kano State in particular can erode the votes of any of the three major candidates and change the political permutations that could lead to a runoff.

The efforts made for Kwankwaso and Peter Obi of the Labour Party (LP) to form a joint ticket failed as the former Kano State governor insisted that he would be the presidential candidate in the joint ticket. Interestingly, the various polls conducted at different times predicted victory for the presidential candidates of the three major political parties – Atiku Abubakar of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Bola Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) and Obi of the LP. None of the various polls favoured Kwankwaso as he was said to be popular only in his home state, which however, has the second-largest voting population, after Lagos State. Many political analysts have predicted that his alliance with any of the three major candidates can be a game changer. However, such an alliance is still unlikely, in view of his body language and comments.

G-5 Governors

Member of the G-5 are also important this 2023. Led by the lion-hearted Governor Rivers State, Nyesom Wike, this group will have an impact on whichever side they decide to throw their support. T

he five governors led by Wike have not made known their preferred presidential candidate between Bola Tinubu of APC and Peter Obi of the LP but it is expected that they will reveal their choice in the coming days.

Wike used the unlimited resources at his disposal to make remarkable impact in the presidential primary of the PDP. But despite the huge resources he deployed to pursue his ambition, he lost the presidential ticket to the former Vice President Atiku Abubakar.

He also lost the party’s vice presidential ticket to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa of Delta State. Since he lost both tickets, he has aligned with four other governors – Seyi Makinde (Oyo), Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi (Enugu), Samuel Ortom (Benue) and Okezie Ikpeazu (Abia), to work against Atiku. Wike and his allies, who are referred to as G-5, are insisting that the National Chairman of the party, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu, should relinquish his position to the southerner as a condition to support Atiku.

Wike said he would not only tell his people who to vote for but would campaign for his choice of presidential candidate throughout the country. “Nothing will happen,” he added.

With the large voting population in Rivers State, Wike’s choice of presidential election, which may potentially be the choice of the G-5, will be a game changer in the 2023 politics.

Iyorchia Ayu

How the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) manages the agitation for the resignation of its national chairman, Dr. Iyorchia Ayu is critical in the 2023 elections

Ayu will be a strong factor in Nigerian politics in 2023 due to the crisis rocking his party following the calls for his resignation.

Ayu emerged at a time the main opposition party was enmeshed in crisis over the zoning of 2023 presidency and the tenure of Prince Uche Secondus-led National Working Committee (NWC).

Many had thought that the former university lecturer would concentrate efforts to navigate the party through the raging storms.

Little did analysts know that his emergence would inflict more wounds on the party.

The emergence of Ayu as the National Chairman of the party in its October 30, 2021 National Convention had given the initial impression that the main opposition party was going to zone the presidency to the South. But the party threw the position open to all the six geopolitical zones. This led to the emergence of former Vice President Atiku Abubakar as the presidential candidate of the party to the dissatisfaction of many southern leaders of the party, including Governors Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, Seyi Makinde of Oyo State, Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi of Enugu State, Okezie Ikpeazu of Abia State, among other party leaders from South. Even Governor Samuel Ortom of Benue State also voiced his preference for a southern presidential candidate.

When the former vice president won the primary, Wike and four other governors insisted that Ayu should resign but his supporters insisted that he would only resign if Atiku wins the 2023 presidency.

With the refusal of Ayu to resign, Wike and the four other governors have been working against Atiku. The Rivers State governor and his allies are set to unveil their preferred choice of presidential candidate. Many believe that no matter how the pendulum swings, the Ayu factor will shape the politics of 2023.

Prominent Nigerian elites

Influential opinion leaders and elders will also be quite visible on the national landscape this year. These lelement are guided more by patriotism than any other thing as the want the best for the country. Prominent among these are former President Olusegun Obasanjo, former head of state General Abdulsalami Abubakar, General Theophilus Danjuma, Chief Edwin Clarke, Chief Ayo Adebanjo, Chief Afe Babalola, Barr Femi Falana among others. Of these, Chief Obasanjo seems the most controversial, with his letters.

Traditional rulers

The traditional institutions can be of immense benefit to the security institutions in complementing their efforts at resolving civil conflicts before they degenerate into violent conflicts. They will play this role this year to stem any disturbance that may arise from the general election 2023. These include most notably Sa’adu Abubakar, Sultan of Sokoto and Sarkin Musulmi of Nigeria, current Co-Chair of the National Council of Traditional Rulers, Adeyeye Enitan Ogunwusi, Ooni of Ife, current Co-Chair of the National Council of Traditional Rulers, Muhammad al-Amin al-Kanemi, Shehu of Borno, the Oba of Benin and Obi of Onitsha.

Creating fear and hatred is not the best option to dealing with any outbreak of the confusion in political matters. But some elements and non-state actors may want to create crises in the aftermath of the elections, if any of the major parties feel aggrieved. They can just throw off fake information that can spread animosity.
Some information can trigger social disharmony and behaviours in some areas against anyone perceived to have different interest. This can undermine social solidity, solidariy and prompt possible social tension among groups, which might contribute to a situation where the confusion is more, not less, likely to spread

.It is understandable that if there is such confusion, anxiety and fear will spread among the public. These factors are also capable of fuelling harmful labels, which can throw the country into chaos like those of June 12, 1993. A pointer to the possibility of this is the incessant attacks on INEC’s critical assets by gunmen and arsonists across several states since two years ago.

Fortunately, these eminent traditional rulers are on ground to promptly respond to such challenges. Their hallowed presence and response will extinguish any fire of confusion around their domains.

As the de facto arbitrators at the community level, their technical capability may be called upon this year as they continue playing the role of grievance managers.

Leemon Ikpea: A Big Factor Shaping Nigeria’s Path to Prosperity

February 13, 2023

by admin with No Comment By Benard Ekwegbara

Dr Leemon Ikpea, Chief Executive Officer of Lee Engineering & Construction Company Limited, demonstrates remarkable resilience in business, bringing much-needed certainty and vitality to a world facing unprecedented challenges, even at a time when disruptions and geopolitical tensions are flaring up.

He is one of the eminent Nigerians who have been helping to drive the Nigerian economy, through his organization- Lee Engineering & Construction Company Limited, as the country intensifies its macro-control in recent years to cope with the impact of “factors beyond expectations” and maintain overall economic and social stability, a hard-won achievement, according to analysts.

He is a great Nigerian brimming with patriotism and a selfless spirit. And with Lee Engineering and Construction Company being a vibrant local player in a dynamic global industry, Ikpea looms large on the nation’s horizon for his devotion to humanity and unflinching commitment to national development. In the last three decades, Engr Ikpea has been one the Nigerians who have been helping the country undergo a phenomenal transformation in terms of business productivity, industry, and employment to people.”

Great people, it is often said, are great partly because their personal drive dovetails nicely into good vision and morality than with just the era during which they strut upon the stage of history. Virtue is its own reward; bad money drives out good; you catch more flies with honey than vinegar; do unto others as they would have them do unto you; catch two birds with one stone: pithy Western aphorisms to be sure. And this is what Engr Ikpea stands for.

Of course, countries do not survive or thrive on macroeconomics and politics alone. Those factors are most important; however, there are structural and institutional forces and factors at play that occupy an even larger role in how a nation fares domestically, regionally and globally. In Nigeria, Dr Ikpea is one of these factors, eminent forces driving development of Nigeria. And the country would be prudent to be mindful of such forces and factors. This explains Ikpea was conferred with a national honour last year, 2021. President Muhammadu Buhari honoured him with OON Award.

He was honoured for his vast contributions to the country’s development and service to God and humanity through Lee Engineering & Construction Company Limited and his “Agbonjagwe Foundation.”

The President recognizes Lee Engineering and Construction Company, of which Chief Ikpea is Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, as one of the home-grown investors in the oil and gas industry, with over three decades of service to the nation. In 2022, the company marked its 31 years of existence and landmark records of contributions to Nigeria’s development.

He believes the Ewato, Esan South Local Government Area of Edo State native, the Adolor of Ewato Kingdom, and Odonlagbon of Warri, will continue to touch lives through acts of philanthropy, for which he is noted,” describing the National Honours Award winner as a point of reference to Nigerian youths that “entrepreneurship pays, with attainments in areas of endeavour like oil, gas, engineering. And Buhari is very right.

To begin, let us look at the roles Lee Engineering & Construction Limited has been playing within the Nigerian economy for over three decades now. Take a look. There is the big picture—three trends that are transforming the global economy in the short to medium term. These are energy cost differentials, nearshoring of supply chains, and remote work. Emerging markets with the right natural resources and institutions can ride these trends and move up the income ladder. With a company like Lee Engineering and Construction Company Nigeria has been a beneficiary in these areas.

Anchored on the philosophy of honesty, integrity hard work and transparency, Ikpea’s life—his exploits and the positive impact on the nation’s oil and construction industries—exemplifies a giant tree that gives both shelter and food to various beings.

He is one of Nigeria’s business firebrands committed to root and branch development of Nigeria carving out channels through which Western concepts, Western manufacturing techniques and business models and prosperity could flow. Then Western scientific thinking and learning, respect for western institutions, and obeisance to God, values of tolerance and empathy and respect for moral laws- all flow in Engr Ikpea.

“For us, integrity is not a concept. It is who we are. With integrity, every business partner, client, supplier, or vendor looks for you because they trust you. Who will do business with you if you are not trusted? Integrity is our watchword. We run an honest business,” he explained. “We have honest and hardworking staff. We are not honest and hardworking some of the time. We are honest and hardworking all the time. The company is transparent. For almost 30 years that we have been in business, there is no stain on our name. Our dedicated staff have ensured that. I have used my exemplary life of honesty, hard work, integrity, and transparency to demonstrate to them how invaluable those values are. They share the dream of the company and run with it.”

Founded on November 11, 1991, Ikpea’s organisation has become a conglomerate. Today, the group deals in retail, tourism, aviation, and manufacturing, including exploration and production. It has a fabrication workshop measuring 2,515sqm, complete with blasting/painting bays and state-of-the-art equipment. The company, Lee Engineering Group and Allied Companies Limited (including Lee Engineering, Tribet Ltd [travels and tours], Tribet Aviation, Tribet Purified Waters, and Lee Oasis), has at least 2,000 employees.

Ikpea’s organisation does more than create wealth and value. As the group’s CEO, he sees to it personally that the less privileged are empowered. He considers philanthropy a “gift from God,” establishing a foundation, Agbonjagwe Leemon Ikpea Foundation (ALIF). The foundation has trained students, the majority of whom are orphans. As of 2019, the foundation has cared for many young children and produced 119 graduates, including dozens of medical doctors, etc.With an office at inception in Warri, Lee Engineering Group has acquired the technical capabilities to execute major projects in the industry. The company still has its operational base in Warri, Delta, then the Port Harcourt branch office, and headquarters in Lagos. Its overseas offices are in the United Kingdom, Italy and the United States of America (Houston).

“ Work in silence and let success make the noise” seems to be his motto. Ipea worked through dedication, consistency, honesty and was able to do well in his business. His illustrious career started as soon as left school.

Of course, before starting Lee Engineering & Construction Company , he had first worked with some white men. That was 45 years ago, when his working life began. He was part of those who built Warri refinery over 40 years ago. It was inaugurated by President Muhammadu Buhari (then Col. Buhari) , who was then a federal commissioner under General Olusegun Obasanjo. Ikpea was there for years with three different companies during the construction phase.

He reflected on that time.“There was the one based in Darlington, UK, which specialised in building oil storage tanks. I had never been used to sitting down in the office. I am an office man, but I don’t confine myself to the office. When I resumed in the office, I checked that everything was in order, and then I moved on to the field. Nigerians were the ones doing the welding, electrical, the erection, and putting everything together at the refinery, but the white people supervised. That was the role they played.”

Explaining further, Ikpea said, “They also came with their own equipment. I took note of that. If I had stayed in the office, I wouldn’t know the roles Nigerians were playing all over the place. Nigerians are very hardworking and committed. After three years, the UK company left, and as they were leaving, I was the only Nigerian national remaining. So, they handed me over to the Italian company. In my heart, I know I am an honest and hardworking person, and my late father would tell me that integrity is important. I guess they took note of all these qualities. Because as an orphan, you must have sense, even if by force.”

Ikpea is committed to deepening the country’s success stories, facing the challenges and building bigger frontiers for national prosperity, stressing the matchless contributions of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to strengthening the hands of local players in the oil and gas industry.

“The NCDMB are a group of Nigerians brimming with patriotism and selfless spirit,” Ikpea noted. “They’re highly skilled with international technical expertise.”Established in 2010 by the Nigerian Oil and Gas Industry Content Development (NOGICD) Act, the NCDMB is to make procedures that will guide, monitor, coordinate, and implement the provisions of the NOGICD Act, signed into law on April 22, 2010, by then-President Goodluck Jonathan, giving birth to the NCDMB.“I have been in this industry for 44 years,” added Ikpea. “Out of these 44 years, the last decade or so, the board has continued to place a premium on local oil and gas players, increasing their technical know-how and capacity to increase Nigeria’s commonwealth.”

Now having acquired marginaloil fields, Lee Engineering is ready to contribute more to national development and prosperity. By the time the company starts production, it will not need to import many resources into the country because it will use equipment manufactured in its fabrication plant, which is cost-effective. Ikpea will bring to bear his 14 years of experience in the construction industry. His leading indigenous EPCOM (engineering, procurement, construction, operation, and maintenance) company, the Lee Engineering and Construction Company, has achieved several milestones and received numerous commendations, awards, and certificates from local and international organisations.

Delighted about the federal government’s unrelenting efforts to plug the leaks in the oil sector, Ikpea was full of praises for the NNPC Chief Executive Officer Melee Kyari’s over his unwavering determination to stem the tide of oil theft in Nigeria.

“The NNPC CEO is doing fantastically well in curtailing oil theft. Nigerians should praise him for what he is doing to put Nigeria’s oil industry in good shape to reinforce investors’ confidence in the country and increase national earnings,” Ikpea said. “It took his tremendous efforts in collaboration with local security to uncover the extensive stealing at the Forcados. I am convinced his latest effort has sent a message to economic saboteurs that it will no longer be business as usual.”

The oil magnate reiterated that “Nigerians earnestly need individuals like Kyari to sanitise the industry. With oil theft and other wastages blocked, leading to an increase in our oil exports, we can rest assured that there will be enough funds to execute capital projects, among other things,” noting the potential strides of Nigeria in the gas industry amid a challenging atmosphere that pervades Europe as Russia continues its violent aggression against Ukraine.“Nigeria is exploring several opportunities in the gas sector. Nigeria and Morocco recently signed an agreement on a gas pipeline project linking Nigeria to Morocco, which will also supply West Africa and Europe. This 6,000-kilometer project will cross 13 African countries along the Atlantic coast,” added Ikpea. “From there, it will reach other parts of the world. That’s a huge step. In addition, other projects are going on in the country, including that of the NLNG.”Notwithstanding that, he understands the country requires a huge financial outlay to fully develop the oil and gas sector and disclosed that the federal government and the NNPC are committed to exploring the gas potential.

Right out of the starting gate, Lee Engineering is in an exceptionally strong position to deliver values to society any day. And with its foray into oil/gas sector, it is going to help push the country’s fortune forward.

Ikpea is right. Oil has been and will continue to be the locomotive that drives the economy, for sometimes more. Nigeria is home to one of the largest oil deposits in the last five decades, with over 41 billion barrels found to date. Mining, agriculture, and construction are also doing relatively well.

A moral compass in upgrading the standards of public conduct and behaviour he is, truly. That he couples with transparency model of business with a moral imperative calling for virtuous community-oriented ethics is another matter altogether. That Ikpea acts as a model to Nigerian youth aspiring to leadership cannot be over emphasized. The story of his life should give young Nigerians a clearcut roadmap of turning hard work into wealth.

There is no doubt that Engr Ikpea is a sincere believer in both Islam and the Christainity he imbibed in his youth. He believes that business could be carried on according to moral ethics. He is steadfast in asserting that capitalists could and should place a strong emphasis on righteousness and benevolence, despite engaging in competition.

How much of this commitment is due to Islam per se and how much of it is due to experience with Christian-inspired Western thought is less clear. What is clear is that, in his own view, adhering to degrading values drives out good morals; virtue is noble; giving back to the community through philanthropy is essential. And these he has been demonstrating over the years.

NIGERIA ECONOMIC OUTLOOK 2023

February 13, 2023

by admin with No Comment By Tayo Are Economy

Economic growth in Nigeria this 2023 is expected to be at 3 percent., dropping from last year’s 3.2 percent. This follows a pattern of the last three years. Growth rate was at 3.6% in 2021. It dropped to 3.2% last year 2022 and will further drop by 0.2% to remain at 3.0% this year. This is somehow still on a positive growth trajectory. This is far ahead of South Africa whose economic growth dropped from 2.1% in 2022 to 1.1% this year.

In terms of fiscal, Monetary Policies, there is need for some rejigging. And the roles of go-getters, major stakeholders within the command post of the economy is critical to Nigeria’s success this year 2023. The key players here include policy makers, especially those in the ministry of finance and the governor of the Central Bank, Then come movers and shakers of the economy such as Aliko Dangote, Oba Otudeko, Abudlsamad Rabiu. Mike Adenuga,Tony Elumelu and others.

It is this crop of go-getters that Nigeria needs now to rescue the economy from going into recession. The in-coming administration, after May 29^th, will need them so much to help in organizing a reboot of the economy, freeing it from the rot that is getting messier everyday. They have the wherewithal and courage to organise the clean-up in a way that will free the population from the pain, hopelessness and anger standing between them and a new beginning.

Of course, it is a fact that the link between President Muhammadu Buhari’s government and the incoming administration, that will succeed him with the February 25^th polls, is the 2023 federal budget. Against this background, the budget focuses on maintaining fiscal viability and ensuring a smooth transition to the incoming administration. The proposed 2023 federal government budget implies a general government fiscal deficit of about 6 percent in 2023 compared to an estimated 6 percent in 2022.

As at now, the Nigerian economy is ailing. The indicators are not very encouraging. Nigeria’s N21.83tn 2023 federal budget has about N12tn deficit component. The capital expenditure component of it is about N6.4trillion while debt service will swallow N6.3trillion.

At the same time, multidimensional poverty is plaguing the country, putting 133 million Nigerians below the poverty line according to the National Bureau of Statistics. The unemployment figure stands at over 33 percent as many micro, small, and medium enterprises (SMEs) groan under the heavy cost of doing business. The mortality rate of many businesses in Nigeria is high, largely due to the high cost of energy (electricity and petroleum products insecurity, and lack of adequate infrastructure as well as the government’s policy summersault.

With the high cost of fuel importation and a weak Naira, it is possible that the petrol subsidy will be removed in the second half of 2023. According to government sources, trillions of naira being spent to subsidize the cost of imported refined fuel can best be deployed to improve social services and infrastructure. Within the course of the year, if this is done, there is bound to be a rise in commodity prices, and this can lead to social unrest unless cleverly managed.

However, if those at the levers of policy-making and those in the forefront of economic power in Nigeria put in their best and harmonize things together, Nigeria can sustain its projected growth rate this 2023 without plunging into recession, predicted to assail a third of the countries of the world by both the World Bank and the International Monetary Funds (IMF).

So as President Muhammadu Buhari and his cabinet bow out in April, there are expectations that a new Nigerian economy will be unveiled when all the contending issues will be treated. These include the deregulation of the petroleum downstream sector; consolidation of the power sector reform; prioritisation of infrastructure financing, resetting of the monetary policy, resolution of the foreign exchange market crisis, and fight against corruption and policies that will aid employment generation.

Within the oil industry, issues to be tackled include the twin challenges of low crude oil production and oil theft. And within the economy generally, deregulation of the petroleum downstream sector, and the pending reforms in sectors like telecoms, aviation, capital market, insurance and Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises are of essence.

NNPC/Dangote Refinery

Amid the confusion in the petroleum industry and the perennial fuel scarcity, expectations are rife that with the coming onstream of the Dangote Refinery, especially in the first quarter of the year, Nigeria will heave a sigh of relief given the reality that a private refinery will be run profitably and efficiently.

Reports said that the Dangote Refinery is nearing completion as pre-commissioning tests reach concluding stages making a launch date in the first quarter of 2023 feasible.

Sources close to the company’s plans said the refinery, billed as the largest single-train refinery in the world with a capacity to process 650,000 barrels per day could see the first refining runs begin as early as March.

The integrated refinery and petrochemical complex in the Lekki Free Zone near Lagos, Nigeria, will produce Euro-V quality gasoline and diesel, as well as jet fuel and polypropylene and will likely generate 4,000 direct and 145,000 indirect jobs.

It is expected to double Nigeria’s refining capacity and help in meeting the increasing demand for refined petroleum products while providing cost and foreign exchange savings. It is estimated to have an annual refining capacity of 10.4 million tonnes of petrol.

On the other hand, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, on behalf of the federal government, controls four refineries which include: the Kaduna Refining and Petrochemical Company, Warri Refining and Petrochemical Company, and Port Harcourt Refining Company.

In the face of poor performance and huge overheads, experts say fixing Nigeria’s unprofitable refineries to functional capacity has remained a pipe dream since 1999.

Banking sector

Overwhelming pattern across Nigeria would seem to suggest a readiness of some banks to maximize Nigeria’s promise of greatness and support more the real sector. A slew of events is expected to determine in the economy this year. Whether most banks will play a growing emboldening of the business landscape is another thing, but certainly some of them

Telecom Sector in 2023

The telecom sector will perform optimally this year. This is the verdict of the Chairman of the Association of Licensed Telecom Operators of Nigeria (ALTON), Mr. Gbenga Adebayo, He said Fintech and Data Application will be the major drivers of the economy in 2023.

According to him, there will be increased data analytics that will inform major decision-making in 2023, driven by increased data application. He said Fintech would get more support from telecom operators in 2023 which would enable them to develop more solutions that would further support financial transactions across the board.

This is quite possible when one looks at the gains of the telecom sector and how it positively impacted the Nigerian economy in 2022 in the areas of GDP growth, broadband penetration, and Fintech growth.

Capital market Investors

Most listed banks, Fast Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG), and cement manufacturing companies will announce impressive performances in continuation of the 2022 performance that has attracted increased trading on the bourse.

As the inflation rate currently at 21.47 percent as of November has eroded investment, the pension fund administrators, and retail investors have increased their investment in fundamentals stocks and at the same time divest to fixed-income securities in a move to gain attractive yield on their investment above the inflation rate.

The trend, according to analysts will continue in 2023 as investors’ shift might thrust the stock market into negative territory in the first quarter of the year when Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) will conduct the general elections.

The Chief Managing Director, of Highcap Securities Limited, Mr. David Adnori said, “With the expectation of relatively high yields in the fixed income market, especially in the first half of 2023, most investors are expected to patronise the bonds market more.

Equally, analysts at Cordros securities forecasted interest rates domestically to remain high over 2023. According to them, “At the same time, we expect currency pressures to persist in the absence of any positive signal that denotes an improvement in FX supply relative to the pre-pandemic levels.”

Naira Exchange Rate and Inflation

The USD to Naira Exchange Rate experienced a sharp rise last year, and Nigeria’s CPI changes have been harsh. Since supply chain disruptions in developed countries have triggered global inflation, there is cause for concern within the Nigerian economic landscape. As the downward pressure on the Nigerian economy increases, it is imperative to stabilize growth. The combination of exchange rate depreciation of the Naira and imported inflation has aroused many concerns.

The nominal effective exchange rate trend of the Naira has high correlation with Nigeria’s CPI and has a tendency to gradually strengthen, while the correlation with PPI and import and export prices is higher.

In the one-way transmission mechanism, the exchange rate can, directly and indirectly, affect Nigeria’s consumer prices. Due to the relatively high proportion of import consumption in the country, the direct impact of the exchange rate on the Consumer Price Index is quite high. Therefore, it is mainly based on direct transmission and cost promotion.

However, whether the transmission is smooth or not is still affected by economic expectations and monetary environments.

The state of the economy, not the exchange rate, is the most important factor affecting the CPI in Nigeria. Therefore, the government should do a good job of stabilizing the supply of commodities and monitoring market prices to help alleviate the concerns of further inflation outbreaks, while also stabilizing monetary policy expectations and strengthening market confidence.

Experts say Nigeria can sustain its projected growth rate without plunging into recession, with all hands being on deck .

To Dr. Muda Yusuf- the Director of the Centre for the Promotion of Private Enterprise, political environment will have much to do with the economy this 2023. He is of the view that the quality of the transition programme will determine the quality of the leaders to be elected. According Dr Yusuf, this is why the current administration must ensure that people’s votes count on election day.

He maintains that “the political environment has a major impact on economic and business performance. Therefore, the quality of the political transition process, especially the credibility of the 2023 elections would be of contextual significance for the economy in 2023. The elections must be free, fair, transparent and credible. “And it must be seen to be so. This underlines the need for the independence, neutrality and credibility of the key institutions involved in the election management process – INEC, the Judiciary and the security agencies. The quality of the democratic transition and choices would significantly impact economic outcomes in 2023.”

To Prof. Omowumi Iledare, petroluem subsidy payment is part of the woes of this country, as it is linked to foreign exchange problem. .A professor of Energy Economics and past President, Nigeria Association of Energy Economics, Prof. Iledare, insists on the need for stopping subsidy. He said Nigerians cannot afford to burn public funds on the tail pipe of cars.

“Subsidy will collapse the Nigerian economy and it is already doing it. When you are spending one trillion naira a year over 10 years to subsidize petrol consumption, not for economic sustainability, then you cannot survive it.”.

He adds that a general government deficit of this magnitude would entail additional central bank financing given the difficult external environment and the need to limit crowding out of the private sector. According to him, “Macroeconomic trade-offs imply that when inflationary pressures are high as is the case in Nigeria, fiscal policy should protect the most vulnerable while pursuing a tightening stance to avoid overburdening monetary policy in the fight against inflation.

For the in-coming administration, there is a need for political commitment at the highest level and broad buy-in from stakeholders is crucial to improving revenue collection.

What is critical for the government is that the economy must be diversified and the oil revenue projections in the 2023 fiscal appropriation must be met for the economy.

Next is the need to redesign the existing tax policy to favour growth-enhancing activities. The government also need to assess the effectiveness of existing fiscal incentives. Efforts to design more progressive tax systems and boost tax collection — particularly, property and/or land taxes — will surely help. This will have to be combined with increasing the VAT rate, streamlining existing VAT exemptions, and increasing existing excise rates on alcoholic and tobacco products.

As the two major monetary policies introduced last year take effect this January, analysts believe the current administration has begun to position the economy for the needed reforms. These are the Naira redesign and the withdrawal limit, which seek to checkmate the activities of currency dealers, criminally minded individuals who indulge in kidnapping and robberies as well as politicians who engage in vote buying.

Much is also expected in the foreign exchange sector as more dollars are expected to be generated by enhanced non-oil sector activities and the anticipated commencement of the Dangote Refinery. Then inflation must be anchored while the problem of foreign exchange should be significantly tackled when the Dangote refinery goes into operation, helping Nigeria to do away with using huge foreign exchange on importation of refined petroleum products.

Crushing Fake News and Disinformation

February 13, 2023

by admin with No Comment Editorial

2023 is an election year in Nigeria. It is a crucial year as it marks a year of transition in government. It marks a year of a new beginning. And any new beginning brings its share of optimism and expectations of bigger and better things. And 2023 is no different. From the family homes to business houses and the corridors of power, 2023 has arrived with similar optimism and expectations for greater achievements, success and prosperity.

Happily, President Muhammadu Buhari has given hope to this year, reassuring that everyone can look ahead as a nation, and a community with confidence. But as the 2023 general elections draw near, the extent of untrustworthy information on social media is concerning. And something needs to be done to tackle the menace.

Of course, Nigeria has been through very tough times, and there are challenges that remain as we inch towards the February 2023 General elections. There is a greater need for online news outlets and social media users to take responsibility, just as there is need for more infrastructure development and social services delivery by government in the states and local government areas.

Of course, social media help us share information, ideas, personal messages, and other content. But our information system, some say, is polluted. Every day, misleading stories, schemes, fabricated images and videos travel via our information streams online.

In fact, we live in an age of information disorder, an age where we see people deliberately pushing out false information; this is known as disinformation. When this content is shared further by people online who don’t realise it is false or misleading, this is what many call misinformation.

These agents of disinformation are only successful because we have a tendency to mindlessly share content without checking whether it is trustworthy or not. Without additional sharing and amplification, many rumours and conspiracies would wither and die. Cases involving slanderous comments against another is increasing. And it is time, social media users learn and take responsibility for what is posted.

Generally, when using social media, it is a common assumption that all users are solely responsible for their content – including posts, comments, likes, shares, tweets, and retweets, follows and favourites. Now many Nigerians who have smart phones are becoming more and more addicted to posting, tweeting, viewing, responding, opining, and sharing online—and what’s going to come of it all?

As a general rule, nothing on social media is private. And the extent of untrustworthy information on social media is so high. It gives cause for concern. The cause for concern is not surprising given that a good number of Nigerians rely heavily on social media for news.

Until the early years of the 21st century, crimes tended to be committed away from the eyes of the majority of society, with traditional media broadcasting information about them often on their own terms. Print media like newspapers build relationship with their readers based on reputation.
They establish this reputation by carefully checking information before publishing it. On social media, however, there are no editors, which allows all kind of content to spread without control.

While social media allows us to share our perspectives, ideas and concerns (as well as pictures of our favourite meals), the development of social media has also given rise to a new form of aggression. Cyber bullying is a very real phenomenon that can cause significant distress and psychological damage, especially to those most vulnerable among us. There have been numerous stories of young people who died by suicide after being severely bullied online.

Social media will most certainly continue to play a major role in our society for the foreseeable future and online conversations will continue to shape the attitudes, identities and behaviours of our children and their children. It is here to stay. Our job is to use it to enhance and improve our lives and to teach our children to do the same

There is little we can do to prevent people creating fake news or publishing disinformation. But those of us who use social media can take action to slow down its spread by becoming more aware of what we share. Government, too, should come down heavily of apostles of fake news to prevent them from creating troubles during and after the February 25^th Presidential elections.

CGI Jere Idris Returns Efficiency and Honour to Nigeria Immigration Service

December 10, 2022

by admin with No Comment Goverance

President Muhammadu Buhari, on Tuesday 11th day of October 2022, conferred various categories of national honour awards on 440 Nigerians and seven foreigners. One of these honorees is the Comptroller General of Immigration, Isah Jere Idris, who was conferred with Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR). But this did not come to many as a surprise.
Jere Idris, the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) is a man of repute, integrity and credibility. And he has long known to be a man of sterling moral character who has etched his name in gold as an officer of repute, who concerns himself with measures that can improve governance, transparency and accountability of public service delivery of goods and services to the people. He is also a strong and vibrant anti-fraud and corruption crusader. These are some of the reasons why President Muhammadu Buhari appointed him to head the service last year.
He is a professional , a tested administrator and a passionate Nigerian of uncommon leadership qualities. Like the saying, a goldfish has no hiding place. Accordingly, good report about him got to President Muhammadu Buhari, who appointed him last September 2021 in acting capacity with the exit of former Immigration boss Muhammed Babandede. Expectedly, since becoming the CGIS last year, he has worked assiduously with his officers to increase the efficiency of service delivery by the immigration service.
“May I hasten to state that I am not under any illusion whatsoever about the herculean task which lies ahead but I believe that with the usual support of the Federal Government, particularly the Ministry of Interior, the enhanced commitment, cooperation and dedication to duty by all Officers and Men as well as the collaboration of our teeming stakeholders, we shall not only consolidate on existing legacies of the past administration which we all vigorously pursued, but we shall equally strive to fill identified gaps and take the NIS to greater heights”.
CGI Jere said the following words while appearing before the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregebesola in September last year as he took over the headship of the service. And ever since then, he has left no stone unturned in the pursuit of service delivery to the Nigerian people. These include a more efficient passport issuing exercise, efficiency at the country’s borders through improved border security strategies, staff motivation and welfare, capacity building, entrepreneurship training and other related issues.
Within a short time in office, he carved a niche for himself as focus, hard working , visionary anti-corruption officer. Hence he was decorated with new rank as substantive Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) in April this year. In addition to his new rank, CGIS Idris Jere also got one year extension of Service by the President on 22nd April, to enable him lead the service to higher heights.
The NIS boss, whose official retirement date was April 24, 2022, having attained the age of 60 as stipulated by civil service rules, will preside over the affairs of the agency for one more year following that development.
In a letter dated April 22, 2022, and addressed to the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, Chief of Staff to President Buhari, Prof Ibrahim Gambari, announced the approval of the extension of Jere’s tenure with immediate effect.
Why is this Kaduna State indigene able to work so seamlessly with staff and stakeholders to the admiration of the general public? His experience and background play a lot of roles in this. Comptroller General Idiris Jere is an alumnus of Bayero University Kano where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Mass Communication in 1985. He joined the Service in 1987 as a Deputy Superintendent of Immigration and has served in various Commands and Formations including Adamawa, Borno, and Benue State Commands among others. He was the Deputy Comptroller General in charge of Finance and Accounts until 10th September 2021 when he took over from the former Comptroller General, Muhammad Babandede (rtd) as acting Comptroller General.
Speaking with newsmen shortly after the Immigration boss was decorated by the Minister of Interior Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola, Coomassie urged the CGI to take bold steps in making tough decisions within the next 30 days, which include the overhauling of the entire directorate and same should be extended to other directorates of the service.
Meanwhile since coming to office, CGIS Idris Isah Jere has done much to solve the challenges bedeviling passport policy, overhauling its operations by altering the recent passport reforms and the mode of processing Nigerian passports which many noted had become unruly for the citizens, before the CGIS came into office.
He has taken and implemented measures, actions or decisions that best serve and protect the interest of the country and its citizens. He has also been working to protect Nigerian Immigration service and its staff from the influence and impact of corruption and corrupt conduct. Hence his war to stamp out corruption in the service. His belief is that corrupt conduct in the form of actions, decisions and behaviours are detrimental to the welfare and development of a nation. It brings to the fore serious issues of disrepute, integrity and credibility.
That is why countries around world have implemented measures that would help them best deal with corruption and its consequences. CGI Jere Idris does not want people to import corruption and corrupt conduct into the service under his watch. It explains why the CGI recently ordered a probe into the reports of corruption against some officers of the service at the Murtala Muhhamed International Airport, Lagos.
In Nigeria where public service is perceived to be riddled with widespread corruption and corrupt conduct at all levels of institutions of government and other sectors of the economy. It is struggling to survive every day under the yoke of corruption. To see public officials like CGIS Jere Idris is therefore a thing of joy. One is not therefore surprised by the national honour awarded to him.

Apart from these, CGIS jere Idris has been pressing ahead with service efficiency to ensure the fruition of the blue print he made available when he was appointed last year. At that time, he had disclosed this when he was formally presented to the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola by the Federal Commissioners and Board Secretary of the Civil Defence, Correctional, Fire and Immigration Services Board (CDCFIB) in Abuja in September, 2021.
Then he had noted that he is quite aware of the daunting task of securing the nation’s borders as well as offering effective service to Nigerians and migrants. Then, he highlighted some vital components that would form the policy thrust of his administration to include but not limited to:
i. Review of Border Security Strategies by enabling a committee of experts to re-examine the strategies with a view to ascertaining the overall effectiveness and efficiency of the Service’s Border Management Policies and Operations;
ii. Critical assessment of Passport Operations to find lasting solution to the incessant challenge of Passport Booklet scarcity and;
iii. Improve staff welfare through massive capacity building and Entrepreneurship training for Officers and Men as well as prompt action to address pending allowances and other claims of Officers and Men.

Responding then, the Minister of Interior, Ogbeni Rauf Aregbesola charged the Acting Comptroller General to effectively secure the Nigerian borders and deepen the Passport application and issuance reform with a view to enabling a seamless process.
This he has been doing as he gradually returns service efficient to the Immigration service. As the Nigerian aphorism advises, “follow who know road.” This maxim must have guided stakeholders to join hands with CGI Idris Jere and his officers to build on the remarkable foundation already put in place to put the service on global reckoning.
No wonder, many were not surprised that national honour came the way of this remarkable man. And many are praising President Buhari as they congratulate the CGIS.
Acting Head of Mission and Country Representative, International Peace Commission of the United Nations, Ambassador Hussaini H. Coomassie, has commended President Muhammadu Buhari for the conferment of national honour of Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR) on the Comptroller General of Immigration, Isah Jere Idris.
In a congratulatory message he personally signed, Coomassie, who is also the global vice chairman, Advocacy for Good Governance & Social Justice Network (AGGSJN), said the Immigration boss deserved the national award, having demonstrated core attributes of a professional in his national assignment and for his immeasurable contributions to the growth and development at a revenue generating agency where he is serving as the number one staff.
Also honoured by the President is the Deputy Comptroller General in charge of Visa and Residency, Isiaka Abdulmumuni Haliru, who was also conferred with the award of the Member of the Order of the Federal Republic (MFR).
“On behalf of the International Peace Commission of the United Nations I hereby celebrate with the management, Officers and Men of the Nigeria Immigration Service, the Comptroller General and the other awardees of the Service for the honour bestowed on them and I wish them sound health for more contributions to organisations and nation building at large.”
With his activities within one year in office, CGIS Jere has proved his leadership and administrative mettle. Many have had to concur with the view that the office of the comptroller-General is not a place to learn administration or how to get things done. It should be a place for people who have proven their administrative mettle to solve the state’s more enormous challenges.

Bravo President Buhari for Rewarding Public Service Integrity

December 10, 2022

by admin with No Comment Editorial

President Muhamadu Buhari recently honored some Nigerians who have shown that a good name is better than gold. Of course, national awards are opportunities to melt down the cultural, tribal and ethnic differences and blend all to national unity. The honorees came from both the public and private sector and the general public. These included people like senate president, Senator Ahmed Lawan, the Chief Justice of Nigeria Justice Olukayode Ariwoola, Prof Tijani Mohammed Bande, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Tanko Mohammed, Hajia Amina Mohammed, Hon Femi Gbajabiamila, Tony Elumelu, Herbert Wigwe and others.
Senator Lawan, Justice Ariwoola, Prof Bande, Dr. Okonjo-Iweala, AlhajiMohammed and Hajia Mohammed were all conferred with Grand Commander of the Niger (GCON)
Some senior public officials were awarded Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR) .Those were 54 in number among them are the late Abba Kyari, former Chief of Staff; the late Ibrahim Attahiru, former Chief of Army Staff; Monica Dongban-Mensem, President of the Court of Appeal; Oladayo Amao, Chief of Air Staff, Isah Jere Idris, the Comptroller General of the Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) and Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service, Haliru Nababa, among others.
Others are Commander of the Order of the Niger, CON, 67; Officer of the Order of the Federal Republic, OFR, 64; Officer of the Order of the Niger, OON, 101; Member of the Order of the Federal Republic, MFR, 75; Member of the Order of the Niger, MON, 56; and Federal Republic Medal, FRM 8.
Among these was the Imam who sheltered more than one hundred Christians in his compound, saving their lives from Boko Haram people.
Among them also were two ordinary, everyday people of sterling character: a security guard, Mallam Musa Usman, from Jigawa State; a cleaner, Ms. Josephine Agu, from Imo State, and a bank security guard, Ogbanago Muhammed Ibrahim, were on the list of 437 nominees for the 2022 National Honours Awards. They were awarded Federal Republic Medal (FRM) II.
Agu works as a cleaner at Murtala Muhammed International Airport, MMIA, Ikeja. She’s being rewarded for her honesty and integrity in returning $12,200 she found in a toilet at the airport, ditto Ibrahim who found and returned $10,000.
In a similar development, President Buhari also presented SP Daniel Amah with a Public Service Integrity Award for displaying exceptional courage and integrity in the discharge of his duties. Amah, an indigene of Plateau State, received the award by President Buhari in Abuja at the 4th National Summit on Diminishing Corruption in the Public sector, with the theme, “Corruption and the Education Sector.
Amah, a Divisional Police Officer (DPO) in Bompai Kano, rejected $200,000 bribe to sweep under the carpet a case involving one Mr Ali Zaki, a bureau de change operator, who connived with other criminally minded individuals to rob a Nigerian (name withheld) to the tune of $750,000.
These people are true ambassadors of Nigeria. They have shown us something: Money should not be the motivation for work. The motivation for work should be for adding value and producing quality goods and services for a better society. They have proved that this is one mindset that should be discouraged if we will become respected as a civilized and developed society.
Money is good and should be appreciated as a by-product or compensation for any honest and quality work. Money is not evil as many people may wrongfully think. It is the love of money that is the root of all evil conduct. The focus on money as the reason why people go to work is the biggest reason why there are lots of substandard products, unprofessionalism, bribery, corruption, theft of government properties and resources, and many illegal dealings.

Public servants and private sector employees tend to solicit money in exchange for goods and services when money becomes the motivating factor of their work. In our society, it has become prevalent that wherever you go to most government offices or private sectors for any services, money has to be exchanged to acquire what rightfully belongs to you or to attain something quickly without following the normal process.

The frequent words that you hear when money is the motive is: “come next week” or “it’s still in the process”. Services are delayed or withheld for a long time until there is an exchange of money that takes place under the table. This is happening in most government ministries, at different levels of government-Federal, state and local.

Money is exchanged hands when recruitment is being done into the public service. Teachers seeking for positions in a public schools are being forced to part with money. Their applications won’t be considered until they include a certain amount of money.
In commercial banks importers seeking forms, M or form Q go through hell to get foreign exchange at government’s official rate. Such practices are many which is the reason why we don’t see much progress in our development as a nation.

Our public sector workforce consumes a large portion from out national budget every year in salaries but there is little to show on the ground. Despite our abundance of natural resources, we still lack in many aspects of development and essential services.When the focus of work is not about selfish gain but cantered on truly serving people and making their lives better, real development begins.

Our attitude towards work must be radically changed in order for positive progress to take place.
Money is not the most important benefit of work. Work has more benefits than just earning wages. For instance, we work to realise our hidden potentials. Work, therefore, is the paramount key to discovering yourself, but integrity at work holds the mirror with which society sees us.

Work is the divine provision God has given to every man through which we can provide for our needs including the needs of our families and to resolve national issues.
So until we start working responsibly to contribute meaningfully towards a better society that we all desire, then we will miss being honoured as well.

How Prof Muhammad Bello Abubakar Spurs Galaxy Backbone to better Position Nigeria’s Digital Economy

December 10, 2022

by admin with No Comment By Elvis Ebigwu

Prof Muhammad Bello Abubakar- Chief Executive of Galaxy Backbone (GBB), custodian of the Nigerian government’s ICT infrastructure and shared services provider-is a critical thinker with the ability to untie knotty situations. His vision is to make GBB and its ICT infrastructure become the “new goldmine as oil and gas are now.” Additional to this revenue angle is the need to protect our infant digital industries in the e-commerce sector such as e-commerce companies like Jumia and Konga and others.
A man with strong leadership and management skills, Prof Abubakar is man who understands the power of partnerships at achieving goals. This he brews at the GBB now to give the agency more heft, and by extension the Nigerian economy.
“Galaxy Backbone is committed to looking for innovative ways to collaborate with other ICT companies. We are not here to compete, but to enable our partners and customers achieve more through the digital infrastructure services we offer them”. Says Abubakar.
He is a game changer who has brought much transformation into the Nigerian digital space and expanded opportunities for business to thrive as far as the raft of what have been undertaken by GBB is concerned. And his being at the helm of this agency of the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy has been a blessing to Nigeria. as he has breathed efficiency and global reckoning for the government’s technology company.
The Federal Government set up Galaxy Backbone in 2006. It is a technology company set up to help organizations in government utilize ICT better and in a more productive manner in such a way that the benefits and opportunities available in adopting technology is effectively utilized. This responsibility is not only meant for organizations in Abuja but for the whole of the country. So, it was given the mandate and responsibility of actualizing the National Information Communications Technology Infrastructure Backbone (NICTIB) project of the federal government aimed at connecting the 36 states of the country with high-speed fibre optic cables that will create job opportunities across the country and improve the standard of living of the people.

In that wise, it provides to public and private organizations mainly Internet connectivity for video conferencing, local and wide area networks (LANs and WANs), hosting services and cyber security. It also provides services in project management, capacity building and related consultancy services. GBB leverages its own infrastructure and people spread across the country to provide these services to organizations in both public and private sectors.

Prof Abubakar resumed office in January 2020 as the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Galaxy Backbone (GBB). A professor of Petroleum Geosciences with more than twenty years experience spanning academia, oil and gas exploration research, development and innovation institutions. He is a strategic thinker with strong leadership and management skills. He has an impressive exposure to global best practice in the field of energy.
Before his appointment as MD/CE of GBB he was the Executive Director and a Principal start-up for the establishment and development of the National Centre for Petroleum Research and Development of the Energy Commission of Nigeria, where he spearheaded a cutting edge research that developed the conceptual exploration model deployed in the successful oil and gas exploration in the frontier basin of the Northeast Nigeria. He was also a Research Consultant to NNPC on oil and gas exploration. His ICT training background in high end Cisco Academy Networking certification no doubt has equipped him for the leadership of the GBB. Thus he is well suited to head an agency like the GBB.
This professor of Petroleum Geosciences is a model of the fact the we need someone with critical thinking and the ability to navigate our public service through the stormy waters of this century to be at the helm of any central agency if there are ever going to be a chance to move forward.
He is an example of what heads of institutions and agencies of government should now be doing in their policy roles. These are to identify the needs and the problems in the public and come up with the appropriate policy actions to address these things.
As soon as he settled in office, Abubakar began work to implement the two policy frameworks guiding the mandate of the agency. The first is the National Digital Economy Policy and Strategy, launched in November 2019. The second is the Nigeria National Broadband Plan of 2020-2025, launched in March 2020. Both were launched for the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy by President Muhammadu Buhari. The twin policies were coupled to accelerate growth and modernization of the Nigerian economy.
The two policies provided the framework for digital-led growth strategy for the Nigerian economy.GBB is currently preoccupied with operating an IT-based network that provides network connectivity to MDAs of government, saving government cost of maintenance and securing and protecting its data.
Apart from doing these, Prof Abubakar is at the forefront of taking the GBB to a global reckoning where it can be the primary competitor to all ICT providers in Nigeria and the West Africa sub region, in the long run, for he envisions GBB and its ICT infrastructure become “the new goldmine as oil and gas are now.”
He is also passionate about protecting our infant digital industries especially in the e-commerce sector. Right now, Nigeria’s two leading e-commerce companies, Jumia and Konga have started facing stiff competition from global giants like eBay and Amazon. The role of GBB would therefore be to ensure hardware infrastructure to foster rapid growth of this area.
Why is this? The growth of e-commerce has been quite impressive in Nigeria because of the surge in telecom investments and smartphone purchases which have fueled growth in internet usage from 20% in 2009 to 41% in 2014. Sometimes ago, it was reported that Nigeria has the largest online market particularly for apparel and footwear in Africa, which was envisioned to grow from US$104 million in 2014 to US$1,077 million in 2019, due to the activities of trusted e-commerce sites (online retailers), like Jumia and Konga.
This development can only be sustained if GBB work is supported with a sense of deliberate purpose. Hence GBB’s National ICT Infrastructure Backbone (NICTIB) project is being scaled up.
Prof. Abubakar highlighted the status of this project in an interview with the media. Phase one of the NICTIB project covered about 13 states, including the FCT. It started from Lagos, covered many states in the South East and South-South. The fiber-optic backbone of the Galaxy Backbone came from the landing point in Lagos, to Onitsha, extended to Akwa Ibom and Rivers, it came to Enugu, Benue State and then Nasarawa, through Lafia, Akwanga and then into Abuja, which is now the backbone that we have”.

To facilitate and deliver this service more effectively in the South Eastern region of the country, GBB went into partnership with Interra Networks and launched STORM; a Fibre Network and Data Hosting platform that would leverage its infrastructure in the delivery of services in Enugu, Anambra, Imo, Ebonyi and Delta States. Through this relationship, services will get to end customers faster and more effectively. GBB’s commitment to the customer and its awareness that it cannot reach across to everyone on its own is prompting these new initiatives at partnering with the right partners in delivering its services.

The second phase of the project commenced this year and is currently well on its way. At the end of this second phase, GBB will have connected 21 additional states in addition to the 13 states it had earlier covered in phase one.

GBB’s contribution to the deepening of broadband penetration in the country and the enhancement of Nigeria’s digital economy is worth commending and one to be encouraged by organizations, State Governments, Ministries, Departments and Agencies across the different sectors of the Nigerian economy.

The organisation is investing heavily in cyber security solutions to ensure that anytime an organization or individual is on its platform, the security of its data is guaranteed. GBB maintains a critical Infrastructure that is essential to the development and sustainability of Nigeria’s digital Economy. Through this infrastructure its position in enabling organizations is strengthened.

One of the major achievements of Prof Abubakar is his decision to strengthen the operations of GBB’s regional offices. He is convinced that GBB cannot attain its mission without empowering the regions hence this initiative. This necessitated the appointment of a Group Head to manage these regions, spread across different parts of the country. The regional offices will ensure more effectiveness in the delivery and resolution of issues.

Equally important are the customer and stakeholders. Customer centricity is at the core of GBB’s values and reorganizational focus. In 2021, GBB organized the very first Customer Appreciation Day aimed at thanking and recognizing the efforts of all the organizations that have contributed in one way or the other to the development and successes achieved by Galaxy Backbone. The Customer Appreciation Day was the first since its inception and was well attended by GBB’s customers in Abuja and across a number of other states in the country. At that event Prof. Abubakar thanked customers for contributing immensely to GBB’s business and success and committed to addressing all issues that were discussed during the event.

A lot more attention is being paid towards customer satisfaction and operational excellence which include partneerships. From 2020 to date, not less than 10 partnerships and collaborations with the private sector have been achieved. Such collaborations include with DataSixth, SHELT Global Limited and Palo Alto on cybersecurity, Interra Networks and BCN on connectivity, Zadara on data centre and cloud services, Yahlink on satellite connectivity, New Waves in hosting services; all in addition to the enhanced collaboration with Huawei, MainOne and so on. These collaborations will further enhance public-private sector partnership, drive down the bandwidth price for the benefit of the end-user, contribute to the GDP of the nation and improve the standard of living of the citizens.

Indeed, Prof Abubakar has put GBB on a strong footing. This gives the institution a lot of resiliency. No wonder, early this year, when ICT and telecommunications organizations experienced an outage on its infrastructure, GBB ably rose to the occasion. The incident tested the tenacity of its facilities, its service reliability and its ability to manage customer experience. Most importantly, the outage tested the competence of the team at Galaxy Backbone, GBB. In all of these, the organization stood tall, as it resolved the outage and brought back the operations of the affected organizations to full normalcy.
What is critical is to have a partner who will be there to guide them through whatever challenge that could come up and resolve it promptly and adequately. This is what GBB continues to demonstrate in the lives of its customers and other stakeholders, as it deepens e-commerce and digital economy in Nigeria.

THE IMPORTANCE OF LIFE INSURANCE

December 10, 2022

by admin with No Comment by The Telescope Magazine

Life insurance policy is essential for any working adult above 40 years. Of course, a lot of people tend to ignore it, its importance cannot be overstretched. But generally, Nigerians have a passive attitude towards life insurance, especially among the masses. Also within the lower middle class, many are not even interested in insurance and its stories beyond motor insurance.

However, there are some essential things a working adult must do in life. Life insurance is one of those things— and many people don’t learn how important it is until it’s too late.

This is because anything can happen as we go about, running around to put food on the table for our families. Accidents can happen. Death also does not write letters to people that it is coming. So getting a life insurance policy is a great protection for our dependents if anything unexpected happens.
Of course, for most people, death is a passing thought. This is especially true when people are young and in top form and feel great… Everyone thinks they are going to live long and prosperous lives. And hopefully, that will indeed be the case.
However, you know that it doesn’t take much for your life to take a sharp turn for the worse. If you are unprepared, you risk dragging your entire family into a difficult financial situation.
But it doesn’t have to be this way. That’s why life insurance can play a crucial part in helping to secure your family’s financial future.
With enough coverage, you are securing a comfortable financial future for your loved ones, even without you being around. They will be able to get back on their feet much sooner and continue getting on with living their lives.
The death of a loved one can strike when you least expect it. And it only sounds cliché until it happens to someone. Daily events in different parts of Nigeria highlight the seriousness of the issue of life insurance policy. And a general awareness of it is needed to turn the Unpredictable into the Predictable
As you know, nature works in mysterious ways. Yes, the chances are low that any of the above would happen to you, but it should still make you wonder how long you have left here on earth.
In Nigeria, just as in some other parts of the West African sub-region, people travel a lot, often for business. Barring accident, the odds are that you will be living a long life. But if you want to be sure that your loved ones will have a degree of financial security if the worst were to happen to you, you shouldn’t think twice about seriously considering your life insurance needs.
With a good life insurance policy and the right amount of cover, you can relax and enjoy every day as it comes in terms of knowing that your loved one’s financial future is provided for. And no accident, no lightning bolt, heart attack, or falling cow could take that away.
A reflection on issues that bother on daily security and safety may help you understand more about the importance of getting the right policy. Remember, it is for your loved ones that you’re taking out a life insurance policy.
But that doesn’t mean we know all the right things to do when it comes to getting a policy. According to a nationwide study conducted by a Lagos-based insurance company early this year in bothe Lagos and Abuja.
Over two-third of respondents who had life insurance policy didn’t know what kind of policy they had. And though 70% felt confident that their insurance companies would pay out if the need arose, only 34% felt sure that they would know how to collect a payout.
Do you fall into this confused category? If so, it’s crucial to educate yourself about life insurance, especially if you have people who depend on you (like kids), or have a mortgage or significant amount of debt to pay.
Life insurance, and how it could have—or does—make all the difference is essential to our having some confidence about securing the future for our dependants.

Haliru Nababa: Building A Correctional Service that Truly Transforms

December 10, 2022

by admin with No Comment Goverance

Haliru Nababa, mni, assumed office as the Controller-General of the Nigerian Correctional Service on May 10, 2021, he came with tremendous zeal and commitments to bring holistic reform to the service in line with the cardinal objectives of government. And his enviable record in the service as well as his outstanding academic reputation put him on a higher ground, well prepared for the big tasks he was saddled with,
The cardinal objectives of many government ministries, departments, agencies and other parastatals is to provide the most needed services as it’s being enshrined in the Nigerian constitution and other relevant civil service rules and regulations as obtainable. There are certain peculiarities and exceptionalities in operation within various organizations which is equally centered on achieving the desired and set objectives.
While some may find it easy and fun handling their designated task, to some it wasn’t that easy because it involves sacrifices, courage and risk taking to execute their assignments and render the needed services beyond office comports. The Nigerian military, police, security and civil defence corps, state security service and other sister security agencies were the notable organizations where sacrifices has to be made for the general well-being and peaceful coexistence of the Nigerian nation. But there are silent organizations that have been putting in their best to bring succor, relieve and hope to Nigerians amidst despondency and despair; Nigerian Correctional Service is without doubt fall into this category.
The Nigerian Correctional Services and its ever resilient, pertinacious and dogged Comptroller-General, Nababa whom ever since he assumed the leadership of the organization, he has restlessly transverse all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria to further acquaint himself with the state of facilities of correctional centres in different states across the country. On resumption of office in May 2021, the CGC embarked on a familiarization tour of the country to assess the state of infrastructures and facilities. This was in keeping with his commitment to provide safe and secure custodial centres where inmates are treated in line with global standards. He went round the states despite the security challenges rising from the perceived ambush attacks by the militants.
On August 6, 2021, the CGC, in an inaugural meeting with the command officers , outlined his agenda centred on comprehensive reform of the correctional service, including safe custody of inmates, training, staff and inmates welfare, capacity-building for staff, staff discipline and effective implementation of non-custodial measures. He used the opportunity of that meeting to share his vision and policy direction with his staff.

The Correctional Services, under the visionary leadership of Nababa has spared no effort in moving the service forward and tackling jail emergencies wherever and whenever they occur and through painstaking and meticulous management of the lean resources by formulating way to ensure that the limited resource at his disposal are well utilized for the benefit and welfare of staff his staff and also the well-being of the prisoners under his agency’s care. Whenever those jailbreaks occur, Nababa is the first person to be called to action.
As a demonstration of his commitment to promotion of staff welfare, the CGC, shortly on assumption of office, initiated the promotion of 2,455 junior staff and also facilitated the release of promotion of 3,477 senior officers through the Civil Defence, Correctional Service, Fire and Immigration Service Board. This was to motivate the staff to work assiduously towards achieving his set goals.
In addition, he vigorously embarked on providing conducive office accommodation at various state command headquarters to enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of staff. Among the states that have benefitted from the new offices is Osun, which was launched on July 23, 2021.
In keeping with the concept of a correctional service tailored towards reforming and rehabilitating inmates so that they could be re-integrated into the larger society, the CGC has initiated various programmes aimed at giving lifelines to former inmates to enable them engage in meaningful enterprises. This involves giving out starter packs and other incentives to inmates that acquire skills while in custody; indeed, one of the cardinal objectives of the Nababa-led administration is to provide opportunities for inmates to acquire necessary skills that will make them relevant in society. Many of the inmates have taken advantage of this unique opportunity to improve themselves while serving their term in the custody. For instance, there are several of them who have acquired various academic qualifications, including doctor of philosophy (PhD). This is made possible by the conducive and friendly environment provided by the new administration, as well as the encouragement given to the inmates to embark on any career of their choice.
Equally laudable is the agricultural policy of the administration, which is geared towards ensuring adequate food production not only to satisfy the food need of the staff and inmates, but also the entire nation. While flagging off the 2021 cowpea production on August 5, the CGC reiterated the commitment of his administration in food production. During the ceremony, he distributed 12 tractors to 10 farms across the country. The tractors are meant for the training of inmates in mechanized farming. He followed this up with a visit to Dukpa farm centre in Gwagwalada Area Council in the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja, where he called on the inmates to take advantage of the opportunity they have, while serving in correctional custody, to inprove their skills in modern food production.
Farming remains a key component in the correctional service administration. The Nigerian Correctional Service has 17 mechanized farm centres across the country; apart from being used to train inmates in modern food production, they are also to serve as source of food supply to feed the inmates. However, the farms were not being fully utilized until the present administration decided to give top priority to food production, which has seen the gradual resuscitation of the farms. The vision of the administration is to become self-sufficient in food production, thereby reducing the huge cost the Federal Government is spending on feeding the inmates.
Similarly, in line with the new welfare policy of the administration, much emphasis has been given to providing quality healthcare system in the correctional centres across the country. This has resulted in accelerated provision of healthcare needs of the inmates. It is instructive to note that the correctional centres have not experienced any major outbreak of diseases in recent times, unlike in the past. Equally commendable is the fact that there has been no record of COVID-19 incident in any of the correctional centres since the outbreak of the dreaded discase. This can only be attributed to various measures put in place by the administration to safeguard the health of the staff and inmates. In addition, the administration is interfacing with various orgnisations towards improving the general condition of the correctional centres, especially as it relates to the welfare of the vulnerable, juveniles and female inmates.
Also arising from incessant jailbreaks as a result of the porous and weak structure in the correctional centres, the CGC has introduced various measures that would curb this ugly trend, which has become a major embarrassment to the country. Indeed, securing the life of the staff and inmates, as well as the facilities, has been given top priority by the administration.
Recently Nababa said measures put in place to prevent attacks on correctional centres across the country have been yielding results. According to him, this is the major reason the correctional centres have not been attacked recently. He, however, clarified that the country had yet to experience jailbreaks, saying that there had only been attacks on correctional centres.
“I would like to make this correction that we don’t have jailbreaks in the country, what we had were jail attacks. When we say jailbreak, we mean an uprising in the correctional centre but recently what we have had were attacks from outside; these are called jail attacks.
Who is Haliru Nababa? He hails from Sokoto State, was born on 15th December, 1964. Nababa had his First School Leaving Certificate from the Demonstration Primary School, Sokoto in 1975. He attended Government Secondary School Tangaza where he obtained his West African School Certificate in 1980 and then proceeded to the Usmanu Danfodiyo University, Sokoto where he graduated in 1988 with a Bachelor degree in History. In 1996, he obtained a Diploma in Criminology from the Same University.
He joined the Nigerian Prisons Service, as it then was called, on 13th August, 1990 as an Assistant Superintendent of Prisons. He rose through the ranks and was promoted to the Rank of Assistant Controller General of Corrections on 01 January, 2018. On 26th August, 2020 he was appointed as Deputy Controller General of Corrections Covering Duties in the Directorate of Finance and Accounts.
Career Courses Attended
The senior officer attended the following statutory courses in the Service: Assistant Superintendent Basic Course at Corrections Staff College, Barnawa, Kaduna; Citizens & Leadership Training, Shere Hills, Jos, Plateau State; 3rd Chief Superintendent course at Corrections Staff College, Barnawa, Kaduna; Command Course at Corrections Staff College, Barnawa, Kaduna; Advance Command Course, Ijebu-Igbo, Ogun State; He underwent a Senior Executive Course 41, 2019, at the prestigious National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, Kuru.
Haliru has headed many formations in the course of his career between 2016 and 2019, amongst which are: Officer in Charge, Wurno Satellite Custodial Centre, Sokoto State, Nguru Custodial Centre, Yobe State; Mubi Custodial Centre, Adamawa State, and Sokoto Central Custodial Centre, Sokoto State. He has also served as a Command Controller in Kebbi and Sokoto States.
Until his appointment to head the Service, he was covering duties as the Head of the Directorate of Finance and Account.
In the past one year in office , Haliru Nababa as the Controller General of Nigerian Correctional Service has witnessed a breathtaking flurry of activities, which are geared towards the transformation of correctional service in the country. Though it is still too early to draw conclusions on the performance of the CGC, there are clear indications that the present administration is committed to giving a new face to Nigerian Correctional Service. Given the reputation of the CGC as an astute and tested administrator, with an impeachable record in service, he has all it takes to achieve this lofty vision for the service, but he needs the support of government, especially in the area of funding, which is key to achieving his target of building a correctional service that truly transforms inmates for the better.

Engr Komolafe on the Radar of Silent Achievements at the NUPRC

December 10, 2022

by admin with No Comment By Kunle Olu Ojo

Engr Gbenga Komolafe, CEO Nigerian Upstream Regulatory Commission (NUPRC) is a man with many years of leadership experience at various levels of the oil and gas industry. Over the years, he has been involved in strategic policy formulation and implementation in the oil and gas industry. Now as the head of NUPRC, an agency saddled with the responsibility of regulating the technical and commercial activities of the upstream petroleum sector and to get things going the right direction. Komolafe has done just this.
Since coming to office as the first CEO of NUPRC in August 2021, Komolafe has been making the Commission to pursue aggressive identification and promotion of new projects and new field developments, to boost the national oil production, working with all stakeholders in strategic areas, without prejudice, to the mid and long-term strategies. Also he is steering implementation of some immediate (short term) oil gain strategies in the light of current realities and upward trends in international crude oil prices and need to shore up Nigeria crude oil production..
At the time of taking off of the NUPRC last year, one key task ahead of its management was the task of closing out on the 2020 marginal oilfield bid round in a manner that is consistent with the rules guiding approvals and issuance of licenses in the upstream sector of the nation’s oil and gas industry.
He was recently quoted as saying the need to ensure that law and due process are followed in the award of licenses to operators. He assured that under his leadership, no marginal field operator would be allowed to “trade” in papers issued by the organisation as the rule of law would be strictly followed in the issuance of final licences to the winners.
Due process is the only way, according to Komolafe, and having given his word to Nigerians and all oil and gas stakeholders that under his watch, no amount of pressure would make the NUPRC award final documents without due process.
He is also working to deal with the issue of gas flaring. He disclosed that the Commission was currently engaging all lessees on their Natural Gas Flare Elimination and Monetisation Plan to ensure compliance with Section 108 of the PIA and to boost supply to the rapidly growing gas market.
“In recognition of the global energy transition and the need to achieve cleaner sources of energy, gas is being positioned as our immediate transition fuel to lower carbon emission footprint in line with our climate change commitment.”
Under his watch, the NUPRC has been encouraging investors to leverage the generous gas fiscal incentives in the Petroleum Iindustry Act (PIA) such as the zero hydrocarbon tax, reduced royalty rates, tax consolidation provisions amongst others, to take Final Investment Decisions on their proposed upstream projects.
He said “With a proven gas reserve base of 208.62TCF (as at 1st January 2022), we are on track to increase our reserves volumes to 220TCF in less than 10 years and 250TCF thereafter.” Nigeria produces about 8BSCF/D of gas, out of which circa 20percent is delivered to the domestic market, approximately 40 percent is exported to international markets, 30 percent is utilized for producer’s internal consumption.”
Achievements
Dealing with the menace of oil theft is on the radar, staff welfare is robust, on-going also is a campaign targeted at identifying oil and gas wells producing below capacity. Equally important are incentives now being offered to oil/gas industry investors. Then the closing of the marginal field bid round.
Apart from the task of closing out on the 2020 marginal oilfield bid round in a manner that is consistent with the rules guiding approvals and issuance of licenses in the upstream sector of the nation’s oil and gas industry, he is fully concerned with seamless workings of all parts of the oil industry. To rapidly achieve this staff welfare is key. As a team player who sees career enhancement as a productivity booster, he considers his staff welfare as top priority and a winning strategy.
In line with the critical and significant role of the oil and gas sector in the nation’s economy, especially amidst the call for divestments in the sector, “The best and only option opened to us to maximise the benefits from fossil fuels is to improve the welfare of those who are saddled with the responsibilities of managing the sector.”
To him, “human capital is a critical and essential element of factors of production as staff need to be happy before they can work and we had assured them of the determination of the Federal Government to look after their welfare,” He said.
“I have ensured immediate approval for promotion of 195 union staff that have been stagnated in the defunct Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR) to stave off an industrial crisis that could further harm the low daily oil production in Nigeria and worsen the nation’s federation generated oil revenue. So what we have done is by extension to improve the nation’s revenue by increasing crude oil production from the current level of 1.4 mbbls/d to 2.4 mbbls/d”.
Giving account of the nation’s oil reserves as NUPRC boss, shortly after his appointment last year, he disclosed that a total of sixty-one (61) operating companies submitted their 2021 annual report on reserves in line with the provisions of the PIA, 2021.
Analysis of the report indicates that Nigeria’s oil and condensate reserves status as at 1st January 2022 was 37.046 billion barrels, representing a slight increase of 0.37 percent compared to 36.910 billion barrels in January 2021.
Giving account of the nation’s oil reserves as NUPRC boss, shortly after his appointment last year, that a total of sixty-one (61) operating companies submitted their 2021 annual report on reserves in line with the provisions of the PIA, 2021.
Analysis of the report indicates that Nigeria’s oil and condensate reserves status as at 1st January 2022 was 37.046 billion barrels, representing a slight increase of 0.37 percent compared to 36.910 billion barrels in January 2021.
On the other hand, Nigeria’s National Gas reserves status as of January 1, 2022 was 208.62 (trillion cubic feet) TCF, representing an increase of 1.01 percent compared to 206.53 TCF as at January1, 2021.
Meanwhile, as part of the Commission’s plan to consolidate an all-inclusive strategy to increase crude oil and gas reserves (from 37 billion barrels and 208.62 TCF) the commission said it would take further steps evaluate all factors militating against efficient and effective exploration and production operations, to identify other viable opportunities.
He said “We have therefore become more deliberate and swift in implementing strategic actions and initiatives aimed at increasing our crude oil and gas reserves and production.”
Already, the Commission has initiated a massive campaign targeted at identifying oil and gas wells producing below capacity, through, Inventorisation of shut-in wells and analysis of the inventory to map the reasons for shut-in and devise measures for quick reopening; Using well and reservoir surveillance activities in identifying poorly performing wells and workover candidates for quick intervention; Embracing and adopting new technologies and advanced recovery techniques for unlocking some identified stranded oil and gas resources.
These measures have become so critical in the face of the current conflict between Russia and Ukraine and its attendant disruption to the global gas demand-supply chain. According to Komolafe, the crisis around the Black Sea offers the country a unique opportunity to fill the supply gap through the implementation of several natural gas developmental initiatives.
This development, coupled with the Federal Government’s declaration of 2021 – 2030 as the Decade of Gas, creates much more impetus for NUPRC under Mr Komolafe to expand and grow Nigeria’s huge gas resources through enhanced exploration, development and utilisation schemes. And for him, the whole idea is to grow Nigeria’s gas reserves, increase gas production, maturation of domestic and export gas market, as well as minimise gas flare.
Why has Komolafe able to do all these within a year of being in office as the CEO of NUPRC?
It is because of his experience as a through-bred oil industry person, described as an “an expert in institutional process study and designs to curb revenue leakages and attainment of optimum national productivity.” He has lived up to this expectation at the NUPRC since coming into office in September 2021.
Before then he had served in different capacities within the oil and gas industry. His leadership roles at different downstream regulatory agencies such as Pipelines and Petroleum Marketing Company (PPMC), Petroleum Equalisation Fund (PEF), Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), Nigeria Pipeline & Storage Company (NPSC among other roles, have yielded reforms that facilitated efficiency and attendant huge monetary value for Nigerian government. Komolafe had served as group general manager, special duties at the NNPC as well as crude oil marketing division.
He also worked as general manager, operations, Petroleum Equalization Fund (PEF); general manager, operations of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), among other roles. As general manager of this agency, Komolafe organized the seamless supply of petroleum products nationwide with multiplier sectorial effects on the Nigerian economy.
In PEF, Komolafe was reported to have initiated operations policies for effective petroleum products supply and bridging to the inner parts of the country. The policies resulted in the transparent bridging of petroleum products and price equalization management that saved the government hundreds of billions of naira through institutional process expertise.
He was Assistant General Manager (Head, Kaduna Zone), Assistant General Manager, Planning Research & Development and Branch Manager, Nigeria Social Insurance Trust Fund (NSITF), Warri.
As Group General Manager, Crude Oil Marketing Division, he facilitated optimum revenue for the Nigerian federation and performed transparently as acknowledged by the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) in its report within the period he served in office. In the same vein, as Executive Director, (Commercial) between 2012 – Mar 2014, he initiated strategic sales and retail plans and coordinated implementation of achievement of set revenue targets from downstream supply and distribution of refined petroleum products for nationwide consumption.
It is this impressive track record that prompted President Muhammadu Buhari to appoint Engr Gbenga Komolafe in 2021 to head the newly created Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), as its first Chief Executive Officer. The agency was established in August 2021 pursuant to the passage of the Petroleum Industry Act, 2021. NUPRC is responsible for the technical and commercial regulation of upstream petroleum operations in Nigeria.
Apart from being an engineer, Komolafe is also a lawyer. And he is well prepared for the new challenges of solving industry problems within the oil/gas sector of the Nigerian economy.
So all along he has been heavily involved in strategic policy formulation and implementation in the oil and gas industry, where he clearly distinguished himself. All these he brought to bear when he was appointed at CEO of the NUPRC, which ensured that he hit the ground running. That is why after a long wait, the federal government through the NUPRC announced its readiness to issue Petroleum Prospecting Licences (PPL) to successful awardees of marginal fields in the 2020 bid round. According to the commission, the move was in fulfilment of the promise made earlier on, pursuant to the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA), 2021.
The NUPRC was created by the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) as the new petroleum upstream regulatory agency in place of the defunct Department of Petroleum Resources (DPR). The staff were inherited from there.

And with its coming into being, the problems are expected to be fully tackled along with the commercialization of the NNPC. This will include increased crude oil production. It will also witness the unveiling of the implementation template for the Host Communities Development Trust Fund for the commencement of the provisions under Section 235 of the PIA, 2021. According to analysts this would positively impact restiveness in the host communities and the process guarantees seamless operations and boost investors’ confidence.
A Fellow of Nigerian Society of Engineers, Council of Registered Engineers of Nigeria, COREN and member of the Nigerian Bar Association, Gbenga’s expertise as a seasoned engineer and lawyer is required at this time to give the PIA the right impetus. Hence the quite achievements being recorded by the NUPRC.