The return of long queues at petrol stations in Lagos yesterday with some level of anxiety and confusion as fuel scarcity appeared in some parts of the state, especially on the Island axis is one of the trending stories in Nigerian newspapers on Tuesday.
The Guardian reports that residents of the nation’s commercial capital, Lagos, began the new week, yesterday, with some level of anxiety and confusion as fuel scarcity appeared in some parts of the state, especially on the Island axis.
With an estimated population of 15.3 million, the roads play host to over five million cars and 200,000 commercial vehicles. The panic began gradually at the weekend when unusual long queues of vehicle at various filling stations in Ikoyi, Victoria Island and Lekki were noticed as residents spent longer period trying to buy the Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), also known as petrol.
Many had attributed this to increased demand for fuel due to power outage following a fire incident that led to the shutdown of Nigeria’s largest power plant, Egbin, from the national grid, last week.
However, the long queues persisted yesterday morning despite improved power supply. There were long queues on Awolowo road in Ikoyi, which caused gridlock along the axis.
The situation was different on the mainland part of Lagos as queues were barely noticed at filling stations monitored. This posed a challenge for motorists and commuters resuming their daily activities after the weekend break.
Most of the fuel stations visited in the metropolis claimed they were without supply. The few stations that had supply attracted long queues.
However, despite the repeated assurances, the entire country may be plunged into another round of terrifying fuel scarcity if the Nigerian Association of Road Transport Owners (NARTO) makes bold its statement of withdrawing haulage service should the Federal Government fail to urgently address the rising cost of operation that its members are facing.
The newspaper says that the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF), yesterday, announced the reconstitution of Super Eagles’ technical crew, with Augustine Eguavoen staying as interim technical adviser and former national team star, Emmanuel Amuneke, drafted in as immediate assistant to Eguavoen.
The federation has also jettisoned the idea of hiring Mr. Jose Poseiro as Super Eagles’ Technical Adviser, saying recent events have compelled them to stick with Eguavoen for now. Amuneke is a member of both FIFA and CAF Technical Study Groups.
“The NFF board has approved a recommendation of the Technical and Development Committee retaining Augustine Eguavoen as Technical Director/Technical Adviser (interim), while Emmanuel Amuneke becomes the Chief Coach of the Super Eagles. Salisu Yusuf will be the second Assistant Coach/Chief Coach of the CHAN team and Joseph Yobo will be third Assistant while Aloysius Agu remains the Goalkeepers’ Trainer,” NFF General Secretary, Dr. Mohammed Sanusi, announced.
Sanusi added: “We acknowledge and appreciate the interest that Mr Jose Peseiro has shown in Nigeria Football during our very cordial discussions and have absolutely no doubt about his capacity. We believe that perhaps in the future, there could be an opportunity to work with him. However, in view of the positive performance of the Super Eagles at the just-concluded Africa Cup of Nations which has given hope to Nigerians and boosted our confidence in the present coaching crew to qualify us for the World Cup in Qatar, we have decided to accept the recommendation of the Technical and Development Committee to retain the Eguavoen-led coach.
Meanwhile, a member of the NFF Technical Committee, Dahiru Sadi, believes the country will beat Ghana to qualify for the World Cup in Qatar later this year.
Speaking to The Guardian yesterday, Sadi said he is glad the issue of who oversees the Eagles has now been settled with the technical crew moving into action.
“I was initially disturbed by the anxiety caused by the silence on the identity of the coach to take the Eagles to the World Cup play off against Ghana. This is because of our failure at the Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON) in Cameroon, where we lost out in the Round of 16.ing crew and strengthen it with the addition of Emmanuel Amuneke.”
The Punch reports that two weeks after the Federal Government suspended the removal of petrol subsidy, the International Monetary Fund has again urged the Nigerian government to stop subsidising fuel.
The Washington-based lender also asked the Federal Government to remove the official exchange rate.
The Federal Government had on January 24 suspended its plan to remove fuel subsidy this year.
It also proposed to extend the subsidy removal implementation period by 18 months, saying it would engage the legislature for the amendment of the Petroleum Industry Act.
The IMF had in November last year stressed “the need to fully remove fuel subsidies and move to a market-based pricing mechanism in early 2022 as stipulated in the 2021 Petroleum Industry Act.”
The IMF, in a statement on Monday at the end of its Article IV consultation with Nigeria, said despite the recovery in oil prices, the general government fiscal deficit was projected to widen in 2021 to 5.9 per cent of GDP, reflecting implicit fuel subsidies and higher security spending.
According to the Washington-based fund, higher debt service to government revenues (through higher US interest rates and/or increased borrowing) pose risks for fiscal sustainability. Its executive directors noted that the country’s outlook remained subject to significant risks, including from the pandemic trajectory, oil price uncertainty, and security challenges.
ThisDay reports that despite being a year marked by the lifting of Covid-19 lockdowns, restriction of movement and easing of cuts by the Organisation of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), Nigeria produced less crude in 2021 compared with 2020.
Updated data from the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), detailing Nigeria’s crude oil and condensates production for both years indicate that while the country pumped about 546.5 million barrels of oil the previous year, it only managed to produce 477.4 million barrels in 2021.
However, analysis of the NUPRC data indicated that when condensates are added to the total quantity of oil produced, the 2020 number rose to 670.8 million, while in 2021, it fell to 590.7 million barrels, raising the difference to 80.1 million barrels between the two years.
Condensates are valued lower than crude oil because of their high light ends content and are exempted from current OPEC quota rationing.
Last year, the federal government hinged its N13.08 trillion budget on an oil price benchmark of $40 per barrel and a daily oil production estimate of 1.86 million barrels, inclusive of condensates of between 300,000 to 400,000 barrels per day.
The Sun says that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has unveiled an ultra-modern 420 metric tonnes per day capacity rice milling factory in Kano State.
This was disclosed by the CBN Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, while speaking at the inauguration of the Gerewa Rice Mill, as he said the factory’s construction was in keeping with the Federal Government’s commitment to safeguarding the country’s food security.
He asked rice mill operators to get involved in paddy cultivation as part of a cooperation with the Nigerian Rice Farmers Association (RIFAN) to ensure a long-term supply.
Emefiele stated that the CBN concentrates on private sector agricultural development and offers millers long-term financing alternatives for commercial farms.
He said, “The private sector-led Accelerated Agriculture Development Scheme (AADS) provides long-term financing options to millers to finance commercial farms, land development, irrigation facilities, and other agricultural infrastructure that will enhance the production plan.”
He said the quality of milled Nigerian rice was comparable to that of rice produced elsewhere in the world. “As Nigerians, we need to become more patriotic and embrace Mr. President’s mantra of producing what we eat, and eat what we grow,” he said.
GIK/APA