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Delta NASS Lawmakers Disagree On Subsidy Palliatives

Published

2 years ago

July 29, 2023

Senator Okakuro Ede Dafinone, APC, Delta Central and member, House of Representatives members, Barrister Benedict Etanabene, LP, representing Okpe/ Sapele/ Uvwie Federal Constituency of Delta State have disagreed sharply on the present hike of pump price of Premium Motor Spirit PMS, popularly called petrol from N537/ litre to N617/ litre, and the removal of subsidy by President Bola Tinubu and the proposed palliatives.

While Senator Dafinone threw his weight behind the removal of fuel subsidy, with the explanations that the immediate hike of the fuel price by the Independent marketers forced President Tinubu to finally remove it as his intention was not to do that, Hon. Etanabene on his part dismissed what is called subsidy, saying that there was nothing like and that all the proposed palliatives by the Federal Government will not work, just as he said that the N8000 will also not work and that the best palliative for Nigerians would be to bring down the price of fuel to N65.

According to Senator Dafinone, there was the tendency that the price for fuel would be increased again, just as he urged Nigerians to get prepared for that tighten up their Belts for an economy that would get worse before it gets better apparently after four to six months, adding that President Bola Tinubu has taken some steps, Nigerians should be patient with him and support the Federal Government.

The lawmakers representing Delta State spoke separately yesterday in Abuja, during a reception held in their Honour by the Olorogun Jonathan O. Esin-led Urhobo Leadership Forum Association, ULFA.

The reception was held in honour of Senator, Chief Ede Dafinone, representing Delta Central Senatorial District, Hon. Rev. Francis Ejiroghene Waive, representing Udu, Ughelli North and Ughelli South Federal Constituency; Hon. Mrs. Erhiatake Ibori-Suenu, representing Ethiope Federal Constituency and Hon. Barr. Benedict Etanabene, representing Okpe, Sapele, Uvwie Federal Constituency.

Senator Ede Dafinone who hailed the people for the reception and promised a robust representation, to among others ensure that the Sapele, Warri and Okhagbue Ports come to life again to provide development and employment in the Senatorial District said, “I am talking about the petrol subsidy, because that is something that affects all Nigerians across the country.

“The economy of the country is being squeezed and personnel economies are also going through a difficult time. With the petrol price escalating over the last two months

“From the backdrop of the campaigns where all political parties agreed that the petrol subsidy must go, that it was impractical for this administration, even past administrations to continue to fund the subsidy especially as a lot of the subsidy that was being given by the government found its way across the borders.

“But the President’s intention was not to remove the subsidy immediately. It was an announcement made to give confidence to the international community and Nigerians that the right thing would be done in terms of the economy and in terms of the funds that would then be released by stopping the subsidy.

“But as soon as that announcement was made, the marketers immediately increased the prices and in view of the potential chaos that was starting to cause within the few days of the announcement, the President saw it deem fit to formally declare that the subsidy was gone.

“The palliatives that would have been put in place before the actual removal of subsidies, there was no opportunity to put them in place.

“The President is blamed for removing the subsidy without a plan but in truth, the public, the marketers had removed the subsidy before he had a chance to formally remove it and he was forced to make the decision public.

“At this point, now the government is putting together policies to ameliorate the situation. But Nigerians must be aware that the next one or two months will be difficult months, the petrol price may still go up again and we must be ready to spend wisely in an economy that will get worse before it gets better.

“So I ask you here as well, people to recognize that it may get worse still, and that belts must be tightened in preparation for what may be difficult, may be four to six months before recovery commences.

“We recognize also that the policies taken by this government so far will attract foreign direct investment and will make the economy of Nigeria more prosperous, but it will take some time and we must be patient with the government.

“The President has taken some bold steps and we must find support for the government to get things right once and for all.

“That being said, hold myself accountable as your representative if I may say so please, hold us all accountable. We are your representatives. You have sent us to the National Assembly to represent you.

“We must take the views of the Urhobo people to the National Assembly and make sure that the interests of all Urhobo people are taken care of in the National Assembly. It is our responsibility and we must be held accountable.”

On his part, Hon. Barr. Benedict Etanabene said, “I do not believe that there is anything called subsidy in the petroleum industry in Nigeria.

” I have held this position since When I was branch chairman of PEGASSON, I argued at the national level when the first increase was to take place that if there is Petroleum subsidy, let us see it with our two eyes.

“And the only way we can determine that is to know how much our consumption of Petroleum is.

“We should know how much we are importing into Nigeria and we will know where they’re going to and know the people they are paying such money to.

“Section 3 of the constitution provides what the duties of government mainly is which is provision of security. So there’s no thing in life goverment should not subsidise. Goverment should subsidise food, water, and petroleum should not be an exception.

“All these palliatives will not work. If we increase workers’ salary, even though I am not against that, how many persons are goverment workers in Nigeria? Less than five per cent. The N8,000 will also not work. I think the best palliative is the one everyone of us will enjoy which means bringing down the price of fuel to N65.”

Earlier in his welcome address,m the President of ULFA, Jonathan Esin tasked the National Assembly lawmakers on robust debate and appropriate legislation that would usher in total transformation of Urhobo Land and to serve its best interest, just as he said that the Lawmakers would be held accountable.

The President of ULFA said, “On behalf of the Urhobo Leadership Forum, Abuja, let me, First of all express how happy I am to welcome you all to this august occasion, It is a historic event as this is the First time ULFA is hosting all our Federal Legislators to a reception of this magnitude.

“As a forum, we are very delighted to have the Senator and the three members of the House of Representatives, all four of you without exception, representing the Urhobo Nation at the National Assembly sitting with us this morning.

“Permit me also to extend our hearty congratulations to his Excellency, the Rt. Hon. Sheriff F.O Oborevovori, the Executive governor of Delta State and all the members of the Delta State house of Assembly for their success at the elections and inauguration into their various offices.

“We wish his Excellency and members of the Delta State house of Assembly excellent success in their tenure in office.

“It is our Fervent hope and prayer that with a clear vision, sincerity of purpose, with all our political leaders working together in a multi-partisan approach to national and sub-national issues, a new Delta State which is Modern, Functional and Equipped with the state-of-the-art infrastructural facilities can emerge in the next one decade.

“All hands must be on the plough, as we roll up our sleeves, to get the job done. It is time to wake up from the slumber and years of decay and turn things around quickly for the benefit of our people.

“Let me digress a little. The question is often asked? What do they stand for? Or sometimes, others confuse it with UPU. The answer to these questions are provided in the brochure given to you. But suffice it to say for clarity of purpose that ULFA is made up of men and women of good standing resident in Abuja, FCT Members are all Urhobo by birth.

“Amongst our members are Royal Fathers, serving and Former retired public Officers, Senior Civil Servants, the academia, retired diplomats, retired senior military officers as well as businessmen and women. Some are proud recipients of National Honors and Medals for gallantry and many have served our country at the highest level of public service.

“ULFA is essentially a think-tank and it is nonpartisan. Realizing therefore, that our homestead (Uhrobo land) is plagued with myriad of problems: political, economic, insecurity, environmental degradation, decay of infrastructure and poverty, we assemble here in this hall, month after month, to x-ray these issues and attempt to proffer solutions to address these issues.

“Some of our modest achievements and interventions in the past are listed in the brochure.

“We also have other laudable projects in the pipeline, for instance, the issue of poor funding of the Federal University of Petroleum Resources, Effurun and the enlargement of its academic programs to a multi-discipline course-based University as many other specialized Universities have converted to Multidiscipline course-based Universities. As for example all Universities of Agriculture now offer other courses other than Agriculture and its allied courses.

“ULFA has also embarked on the production of a Tv Documentary series on Urhobo history and Culture showcasing the peculiarities of each of our kingdoms in a one hour viewing time.!

“The series is important for two reasons; More people are inclined to visual images, watching television than they would want to read from the book.

“To attract and remind our children and generations unborn of the rich cultural heritage of the Urhobo people. This is a big project which is far beyond the actualization by ULFA alone.

“Distinguished Senator and Honourable members of House of Representatives, as you can see we are non-state actors. There is a limit that we can go.

It is our hope and desire therefore that through you, we can achieve the development agenda for Urhobo Land as enunciated in our Roadmap, through legislation and appropriation in the tenth assembly. I believe that by today’s interaction, we have laid the fertile ground for future interaction, and we can relate and have constructive engagements with you on any issues in the service of our Fatherland.”

Related Topics:Delta NASS Reps Senate subsidy

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Textile, Garment And Tailoring Workers Assault Journalists In Edo

Published

6 hours ago

September 16, 2025

Editor

Some members of the National Union of Textile, Garment and Tailoring Workers of Nigeria (NUTGTWN), Edo State branch,
on Tuesday, assaulted journalists who were invited to their secretariat to cover their meeting.

Deputy General Secretary of the NUTGTWN, Comrade Emeka Nkwoala, invited the journalists to the secretariat of the body to get the outcome of a meeting he was directed to hold with them following the resignation of the branch chairman, Mike Ochei from the Caretaker Committee, and the suspension leadership of the union in Edo State over his resignation.

The Caretaker Committee was set up by the leadership of the Nigerian Labour Congress (NLC) to resolve the crisis and conduct election into the state leadership of the Congress.

Ochei, while resiging was quoted to have said that he was coerced into the membership of the caretaker committee, hence his resignation.

Trouble, however, started, when, after the journalists introduced themselves inside the hall, and as Nkwoala about to talk, some of the members of the body started shouting ‘we don’t need press,’ it is an internal affair, they must leave,’ which was followed by some of the union members physically assaulting the journalists. One of the members poked his hands into the eyes of one of the reporters, while they used derogatory words on them.

Addressing journalists after the uproar that followed the meeting, Nkwoala said Ochei was contacted and informed before he was nominated to serve in the NLC committee, stressing that it was, therefore, wrong for him to have claimed that he was coerced into the committee.

He, thereafter, apologised to journalists who were harassed by some members of the union.

Nkwoala said: “I want to apologise on behalf of our union, we are a matured union, we hold the press in high esteem and we relate very well with the press. From the inception of our union, our past leaders didn’t joke with the press. Is it Comrade Adams Oshiomhole, Comrade Issa Aremu or the current General Secretary Comrade Ali Baba? We don’t joke with the press. We apologise for the embarrassment that our members caused you. We are not known for such.

“The state of our union right now in Edo State is that we have suspended the Mike Ochei led state exco. They are on suspension till further notice. That was the resolution we reached with the various chairmen of the zones in Benin City today, it was also the resolution of our National Administrative Council (NAC) of our Union via our zoom meeting yesterday (Monday). So they cannot represent the NUTGTWN anywhere in whatever capacity.”

On the way forward for the crisis in Edo NLC, he said: “Our allegiance is to the national leadership of the NLC ably led by Comrade Joe Ajaero and the Professor Monday Igbafen led caretaker committee. We believe that the leadership of the NLC has machinery in place to deal with some of these issues, for us we are part and parcel of the NLC and we will continue to pay our allegiance with the leadership of congress led by Comrade Ajaero.”

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Edo Deputy Gov Tasks Lab Scientists On Research, Vaccine Production

Published

8 hours ago

September 16, 2025

Editor

Deputy governor of Edo State, Hon. Dennis Idahosa, on Tuesday, urged the Association of Medical Laboratory Scientists of Nigeria (AMLSN), to go into deep research, and channelled scientific findings to boost public health.

Idahosa also urged the scientists to set up a vaccine manufacturing company in Edo State.

The deputy governor spoke when he played host to the state chapter of AMLSN, saying “as we speak, we still do not have a vaccine manufacturing company or industry in the whole of Nigeria. That, to me, is worrisome.”

Idahosa, who hosted the scientists on behalf of Governor Monday Okpebholo, added: ” This is the heartbeat of the nation. I think we should roll up our sleeves and do what other states in this country have not done before. Let Edo be the beginner.”

He appreciated the laboratory scientists on the courtesy visit, just as he commended them for their contributions and medical interventions, which he said had given a boost to the public health sector delivery system in the state.

Making reference to the campaign manifesto and five point SHINE Agenda of Okpebholo, Idahosa affirmed that, “after security, health is number two. We are laying so much emphasis on health. Edo State is going to be happy with what we are going to do with the health sector.”

Idahosa assured the scientists that he was going to work closely with “the think tanks in the health sector based on raised areas of needs,” as “government would look at the best way to proffer solution to some of these challenges.”

State Chairman of the AMLSN, Dr. Ekhaguere Ehigie who earlier congratulated the Edo State Government for victories at the polls and in court, highlighted issues that plagued laboratory practice in Nigeria.

He advocated the setting up of modern molecular laboratories and use of Nano technology to boost disease diagnosis, accurate laboratory results and monitoring/surveillance of public health.

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10 Things Candidates Should Know About Customs Recruitment CBT Exams

Published

9 hours ago

September 16, 2025

Editor

The Nigeria Customs Service has issued detailed guidelines to shortlisted candidates ahead of its computer-based test for the ongoing recruitment exercise.

This was contained in a statement obtained by The PUNCH on Tuesday.

The service emphasised that the CBT would be strictly monitored and advised candidates to take note of all instructions to avoid disqualification.

According to the NCS, here are 10 key things applicants must know

1. Test will be online

The service explained that the CBT would be conducted virtually, allowing candidates to write the exam from any location as long as there is reliable internet access. It added that those without personal devices could make use of internet-enabled computer centres.

2. Mobile phones not allowed

Applicants were warned against attempting to use mobile phones for the exam, as the platform does not support such devices. Only laptops and desktops that have webcam capability and allow full-screen display will be accepted.

3. Facial verification required

The NCS stated that a mandatory facial recognition process would be carried out during login. Candidates were urged to prepare accordingly, as their faces must match the details already provided during registration.

4. Avoid untidy appearance

The mail advised applicants to ensure their facial presentation is clear and uncluttered, stressing that “clumsy facial looks” might hinder the smooth operation of the verification system.

5. Sensitive to noise and movement

The CBT application is programmed to detect unusual behaviour. Candidates were cautioned to sit still and maintain focus throughout the test. The system, it warned, could log out those who make excessive body movements or create noise.

6. No distractions allowed

Beyond movements, the service also warned against writing the exam in noisy environments. It explained that whispering or background disturbances may be picked up by the system and interpreted as malpractice.

7. One window at a time

Applicants must remain on a single screen throughout the exam. Switching from one window to another, even briefly, could be flagged by the application as an attempt to cheat.

8. Pre-test before main exam

To familiarise candidates with the system, the service said there would be a compulsory practice session two days before the actual test. This, it added, would enable applicants to understand how the application works and reduce errors on the exam day.

9. Two links for candidates

The NCS explained that applicants would receive two separate links: one to access the pre-test and another for the main CBT on a different date. It urged candidates to use the correct link on the assigned day.

10. Extra test for Superintendent cadre

The mail noted that those who applied for the Superintendent cadre (Level 8) would undertake an additional CBT in the next phase of the recruitment. However, this requirement does not apply to candidates seeking positions in the Inspectorate and Customs Assistant cadres.

The service said that applicants who scale through all stages would be invited for a final screening.

According to The PUNCH, 286,697 candidates were shortlisted for the CBT stage, with the NCS directing all applicants to validate their email addresses as part of the process.