The debate over Nigerian Government’s proposed $1.5 billion to be spent on rehabilitating the 210,000-barrel per day (bpd) Port Harcourt refinery and the declaration by the Nigerian government that COVID-19 vaccine is not for sale are some of the leading stories in Nigerian newspapers on Monday.
The Guardian reports that the debate over Nigerian Government’s proposed $1.5 billion to be spent on rehabilitating the 210,000-barrel per day (bpd) Port Harcourt refinery intensified yesterday as more opposition voices registered their concerns.
Renowned economist and founder of Stanbic IBTC Bank Plc, Mr. Atedo Peterside, who had earlier asked the government to subject the plan to a national debate, said NNPC would only “enmesh Nigeria into a deeper financial mess by throwing $1.5 billion (including debt) at a problem it created.”
He lamented that while the Port Harcourt refinery contributed zero revenue in 2019, it incurred N47 billion; almost N4 billion a month, the reason he is recommending an end to the ‘nightmare’ through a Bureau of Public Enterprise core investor sale.
Peterside, who thought Nigeria would have learned lessons from the COVID-19 pandemic by making informed decisions did not see the rehabilitation as a priority, adding that going ahead with the project amounts to “mortgaging the future of our children and grandchildren in the hands of people who have not shown that they can manage anything.”
Coming at a time that the National Assembly is calling for a probe into the whereabouts of money expended on fixing the refineries, Peterside told Arise TV that the rehabilitation is a drainpipe for public office holders and their families.
Former Vice President Atiku Abubakar, yesterday, reiterated his advice that government should urgently “privatize our refineries and the NNPC through the time-tested LNG model in which the FG owns 49 percent equity and the private sector controls 51 per cent.”
ThisDay says that the Nigerian government has declared that COVID-19 vaccine is not for sale and dispelled any possibility of any fake vaccine being administered or sold by unauthorised institution in the country.
The newspaper quoted a report by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) as saying that it was contained in a circular signed by the Director, Department of Hospital Service, Federal Ministry of Health, Dr. Adebimpe Adebiyi, on behalf of the Minister of Health, Dr. Osagie Ehanire, in Abuja.
The circular followed a letter from the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 regarding the arrest of about 3,000 doses of fake COVID-19 vaccines destined for Africa from China.
The minister, who acknowledged receipt of the PTF letter, however, stated that “I am, therefore, to bring this to your notice and dispel any possibility of COVID-19 vaccines being available for sale or being administered by any unauthorised institution.
“To prevent the importation of fake vaccines, kindly note that the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) has designated the Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja, as the only Point of Entry (PoE) for imported COVID-19 vaccines.”
The Punch reports that the number of telecom subscribers in the country dropped by 11.84 million in four months, according to latest industry statistics from the Nigerian Communications Commission.
The recent report shows that telecommunications operators in the country recorded yet another loss of 4.13 million active subscribers in February 2021, as the industry recorded 195.73 million GSM users in the month.
The four major telecoms service providers also recorded zero porting activities, following the NCC’s directive in December for the telcos to suspend sales, registration and activation of new SIM cards, hindering porting activities as well.
A further breakdown of subscriber statistics showed that Airtel once again lost the highest number of subscribers in February.
MTN followed with a loss of 1.68 million subscribers. It had 79.03 million subscribers in January, but the figure fell to 77.34 million in February. Globacom lost 415,071 subscribers, recording a total of 54.17 million subscribers as against 54.59 million users in January.
While 9mobile, which had 12.80 million users in January, lost 35,698 subscribers in February with a total of 12.77 million users. MTN remained Nigeria’s largest mobile network operator with 39.52 per cent market share. 9mobile remained the fourth operator with 6.41 per cent market share.
The Sun says that Nigerians may have to go through another harrowing fuel crisis as members of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD) Branch of NUPENG yesterday threatened to withdraw their services in the next 14 days.
The Tanker drivers at the end of their Branch executive council meeting held in Ibadan warned that should the Nigeria Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO), their Employers body fails to negotiate the renewal of the Collective Bargaining Agreement for new working conditions for the Petroleum Tanker Drivers they would withdraw their services.
In a communique issued at the end of the meeting and signed by the Chairman Salmon Akanni Oladiti, the union said, “the branch will no longer be able to guarantee the continued service of our members in the petroleum products distribution across the country if a new conditions of service for Petroleum Tanker Drivers is not provided for in the next fourteen days with effect from today 27th day of March.”
He however said that the union is not unmindful of the pains and discomforts its decisions and intending actions will have on the general public, but stated that these are hard and difficult decisions the union must take for the sake of its members and even the general public.
The Nation says that companies that are quoted on the floor of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) have 72 hours to submit their audited reports and accounts for the 2020 business year. Erring firms will be liable for monetary and social sanctions, including a tag for poor corporate governance, it was learnt on Sunday.
Post-listing rules at the NSE require quoted companies to submit their annual earnings reports, not later than 90 calendar days after the expiration of the period. NSE’s regulatory filing calendar at the weekend indicated that the deadline for submission of annual report for companies with Gregorian calendar business year ended December 31, 2020 is Wednesday, March 31, 2021.
Regulatory reviews at the weekend showed that nearly half of ‘some 140 companies that are expected to submit their full-year reports by Wednesday have not submitted and are expected to rush through the three-day window before expiration of submission period. NSE tags and applies fines on companies that fail to meet earnings reports’ deadline.
Companies that fail to meet the deadline will be tagged with poor corporate governance codes and are liable for sanctions that may range from N100,000 to about N100 million. The NSE is known to suspend trading on the shares of chronic defaulters.
GIK/APA