NEWS
How NNPC Turned Down Dangote’s $750M Offer To Manage Refineries – Obasanjo
Nigeria’s former President Olusegun Obasanjo has disclosed that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), now the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL), turned down a $750 million proposal from billionaire Aliko Dangote in 2007 to manage three of the country’s refineries.
In an interview with Channels Television on Thursday, Obasanjo revealed that the offer covered the Port Harcourt, Warri, and Kaduna refineries and was intended as a Public–Private Partnership (PPP) arrangement to revive and operate the facilities.
READ MORE: Nigeria’s Gas Output Increases By 2.9%, Reaching 2.29 MSCF
Despite NNPC’s acknowledged inability to manage the refineries effectively, it rejected the proposal, he said.
“It was after that, Aliko got a team together, and they paid $750 million to take part in PPP in running the refineries,” Obasanjo stated.
“My successor refunded their money, and I went to him and told him what transpired. He said NNPC wanted the refineries and could run them. I said, but you know they cannot run it.”
The former president explained that Dangote’s proposal came after Shell declined an earlier request to manage the refineries, citing corruption, poor maintenance, and low production output as reasons.
Obasanjo admitted that Shell’s assessment was credible. “If a company like Shell rejected my offer based on their reasons, I will believe them,” he said.
Obasanjo expressed regret over the financial mismanagement that followed. “I was told not too long ago that since that time, more than $2 billion has been squandered on the refineries, and they still will not work,” he lamented.
He also questioned the logic behind NNPCL’s current collaboration with Dangote’s private refinery project, which is poised to revolutionize Nigeria’s oil industry.
“Not only will he make it [his refinery] work, but he will also make it deliver,” Obasanjo remarked.
Using an analogy, he criticized the handling of Nigeria’s refineries.
“Whether we announce our own government refineries working or not working, it is like a man who plants 100 heaps of yam and says he planted 200 heaps. After he harvests 100 heaps of yam, he will also harvest 100 heaps of lies.”
An explosion at an Islamiyyah school in the Kuchibiyu community of Bwari Area Council, Abuja, has left one student dead and four others injured.
The incident occurred around noon on Monday, January 6, 2025, according to security sources.
Emergency responders, including a police bomb disposal unit, swiftly arrived at the scene, while the injured students were rushed to a nearby hospital for treatment.
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Although details remain unclear, a security source revealed that the deceased student was carrying a substance suspected to be an Improvised Explosive Device (IED) when it detonated.
“The dead student, whose identity is yet to be ascertained, bore the substance suspected to be IED while it exploded and injured the other students, thereby causing pandemonium in the center,” the source said.
The affected students were reportedly new admissions who had only resumed classes on January 3. Efforts to reach the school authorities for comment have been unsuccessful.
Meanwhile, the police are yet to release an official statement on the incident.
Multiple attempts to contact the spokesperson for the Federal Capital Territory Police Command, Josephine Adeh, have been unsuccessful, as calls to her line did not connect.
The Kuchibiyu community, located about 42 kilometers from Abuja’s city center, has been thrown into panic following the explosion. Security agencies have cordoned off the area, and investigations are ongoing.
The Lagos State House of Assembly has approved a total budget of N3,366,815,224,144 for the 2025 fiscal year.
The approval, which was granted on Monday, followed the presentation of a report by the Chairman of the Joint Committee on Appropriation and Finance, Sa’ad Olumoh, during a plenary session presided over by Speaker Mudashiru Obasa.
READ MORE: JUST IN: Canada PM Resigns Amid Political Crisis
The budget, themed the “Budget of Sustainability,” was earlier presented to the House on November 21, 2024, by Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu.
According to the governor, the budget is designed as “a blueprint for continuity, resilience, and prosperity for residents.”
Governor Sanwo-Olu outlined that the 2025 budget has a total size of N3,005,935,198,401, with a revenue projection of N2.597 trillion and a deficit financing of N408.902 billion.
The deficit, he said, would be funded through external and internal loans, as well as bonds.
Sanwo-Olu noted that the budget focuses on five critical pillars: “Infrastructure Sustainability, conomic Diversification, nstitutional Reforms
Revenue Breakdown:
Internally Generated Revenue (IGR): N1.970 trillion
Federal Transfers: N626.137 billion
The governor proposed N1.239 trillion for recurrent expenditure, comprising the following: “Total Overhead Cost: N722.586 billion, Overhead: N432.580 billion, Subventions: N139.728 billion, Dedicated Funds: N150.278 billion, Total Personnel Cost: N392 billion, Recurrent Debt Charges: N125.232 billion.
Capital Expenditure:
For capital projects, Sanwo-Olu proposed a total of N1.766 trillion, with N1.452 trillion allocated for capital development and N313.515 billion for loan repayments.
Sectoral Allocations
The sectoral breakdown of the budget includes:
Economic Affairs: N908.699 billion
Environment: N233.176 billion
Health: N204.005 billion
Education: N208.376 billion
Security, Safety, and Public Order: N124.073 billion
Social Protection: N47.077 billion
The budget dedicates 41% to recurrent expenditure and 59% to capital expenditure.
The House, after deliberations, approved a revised budget of N3.37 trillion, with N1.295 trillion for recurrent expenditure and N2.071 trillion for capital projects.
Speaker Obasa directed the Clerk of the House, Barrister Olalekan Onafeko, to transmit the clean copy of the passed bill to Governor Sanwo-Olu for his assent.
Commending his colleagues for their efforts, Obasa said the budget would ensure Lagos remains on the path of growth and sustainability.
Local Government Consolidation Bill Passed
In a related development, the Assembly also passed a bill consolidating all existing laws on local government administration in Lagos State.
The bill incorporates recent constitutional amendments and directives from the National Assembly to enhance local governance.
Speaker Obasa described the passage as a step toward strengthening the effectiveness of local government administration in the state.
Governor Sanwo-Olu is expected to sign the budget and the local government law in the coming days.
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has announced his decision to resign, bringing an end to his nearly 10-year tenure as leader of the country.
Speaking to reporters in Ottawa on Monday, Trudeau said he will step down as soon as the ruling Liberal Party selects a new leader.
RELATED NEWS: Growing Internal Dissent Moves Canada PM Towards Resignation
“I intend to resign as party leader, as prime minister,” Trudeau declared, signaling the conclusion of a political career that began with his election as prime minister in 2015.
The announcement follows months of internal pressure and a political crisis that saw top Liberal Party members urging Trudeau to step aside.
More to follow……….
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