Headline

Refineries Probe: Reps Kick As Kyari Keeps Mum On Oil Swap Deal

Published

3 years ago

May 11, 2022

THE Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, Mele Kyari, on Tuesday, finally appeared before the House of Representatives’ Ad Hoc Committee on the State of Refineries in Nigeria.

However, Kyari could not answer some of the critical questions posed to him by members of the committee, urging the lawmakers to allow him to come back with documents containing the details.

The details sought by the lawmakers include the actual cost of rehabilitating the refineries, especially the Port Harcourt Refining Company.

This is just as the committee and the GMD failed to disclose the quantity of crude being taken from Nigeria and the volume of petroleum products being delivered to the country on a daily basis, under the Direct Sale Direct Purchase or oil swap deal with firms.

In his presentation, Kyari said, “We recognise that today, none of our refineries are operating for a very obvious reason that I am sure, through the work of this committee, you will find out why they are not operating today. We will hide nothing from you. We will also tell you where we are as we speak.

“Needless is to say that the refineries were essentially not properly managed over time, not just today but in the last 20 to 25 years. The turnaround maintenance processes were clearly mismanaged over time. We clearly admit that those turnaround maintenances were not properly done in the past, leading to where we are.

“When we took over, it is very obvious that what you are dealing with is not turnaround maintenance; you are dealing with a total rehabilitation. The refineries were clearly in situations where ordinary turnaround maintenance would not solve the problem. We have degradation of a monumental proportion that we met. And of course, the only way you can do this is to conduct full turnaround maintenance.”

Kyari also noted that the refineries were shut down as the country was running at a loss using them. He also said the NNPC shopped for “the best of class” contractors to rehabilitate the facilities.

He said, “We did not abridge any process. We took through all the necessary processes of governance to make sure that we have the right contractor in place. And I am happy today that at the end of that exercise that we have put in place, the Federal Executive Council has approved a contractor for the Port Harcourt refinery, the Kaduna refinery and the Warri refinery.

“Even when you rehabilitate the refineries, you must have the pipelines. As we speak now, the pipeline from Escravos, which will feed the Warri refinery and ultimately the Kaduna refinery cannot carry the two refineries as we speak now. This is for many reasons; one is the act of vandals.

“Needless is to say that the rehabilitation work must also be complemented with the replacement of the pipeline network. We are also working on this. It is a very critical component of what we are doing.”

The GMD also noted that the rehabilitation projects would be financed by banks, different from the previous efforts which were frustrated by funding challenges.

A member of the committee, Olanrewaju Edun, however, said Kyari did not speak to the document the NNPC presented to the panel, noting that what the GMD said was not captured in the written presentation.

Responding, Kyari said the committee should adopt his oral presentation also. “We have nothing to hide, that is why I said everything I could remember,” he said. Other members of the committee, however, insisted on getting the details demanded from the NNPC.

Another member, Ayokunle Isiaka, asked if the NNPC was changing the entire structure and systems of the refineries or changing some specific parts. He demanded an asset valuation report on the refineries. He also asked how refined products would be transported from the refineries when they become functional to the depots for onward distribution.

Chairman of the committee, Ganiyu Johnson also said, “It is very important for you to tell us the actual cost of this (Port Harcourt refinery rehabilitation) contract. If there are fluctuations (variations), the original contract sum, we should know.”

Responding, the GMD said, “Chairman, I didn’t say I did not have answers to all the questions but it is very obvious that we did not respond to all the questions – the requests – that this honourable committee asked us to do. If we had done so, many of the questions that were asked today wouldn’t have come up in the first instance. That is why I said give me the grace so that I can respond to all the submissions that you have requested and I would clearly come back to you as you directed.

“Secondly, we know the contract sum. We are hiding nothing from you. There is no variation on this contract. If you look at the document I submitted to you, you will see the approval is for $1.559bn including VAT. So, there is no question that we do not have an answer to. I don’t have all the details; I will not be able to have all the details, definitely.”

Johnson also asked, “What is the quantity of crude oil given out per day under the DSDP programme to refiners outside this country? Two, what is the quantity of PMS received per day in exchange for the quantity of crude oil swap?”

Responding, Kyari said, “Definitely, these are very specific numbers and there is no way I can give you a number on these, at this moment. First, let me tell you the principle around this. I know today, how much PMS we have in the country. I know we have up to 2.8 billion litres of PMS in the country at this moment, sufficient to keep us for 47 days if we don’t import.

“This is the basic information that I know. And all the PMS don’t come in equal volumes every day. Some days you can receive cargo and for three days may not receive cargo, and you can also receive up to four cargoes in a day. This is market-determined, supply-determined; you cannot give the volume for every day but we have data for every volume of PMS.”

Headline

Court Jails Two For Targeting President With Sorcery

Published

6 hours ago

September 15, 2025

Editor

A Zambian court on Monday sentenced two men to two years in prison with hard labour on charges of attempting to use witchcraft to kill the country’s president.

Mozambican national Jasten Mabulesse Candunde and Zambian village chief Leonard Phiri were arrested in December in possession of charms, including a live chameleon.

Police said they planned to use the charms to harm President Hakainde Hichilema, and they were charged with professing knowledge of witchcraft and possession of charms.

“The motive of the crime was to kill the head of state,” magistrate Fine Mayambu ruled in the capital Lusaka on Monday.

“The convicts were not only enemies of the head of state but all Zambians. I therefore sentence them to 24 months imprisonment with hard labour from the date of their arrest,” he said.

The prosecution said the men had been hired by the brother of opposition MP Emmanuel “Jay Jay” Banda, who is facing trial for robbery, attempted murder and escaping custody.

Headline

Two Nigerians Face Jail Terms In Liberia’s Piracy Trial

Published

6 hours ago

September 15, 2025

Editor

Criminal Court ‘D’ in Monrovia is set to deliver judgment this week in Liberia’s first piracy trial, involving two Nigerian nationals accused of hijacking a cargo vessel in the Gulf of Guinea.

According to court records, the defendants were arrested earlier this year after a Liberia-flagged ship was seized by armed men while transporting goods through international waters. The crew sent a distress signal, prompting international maritime forces to intervene.

The suspects were subsequently transferred to Liberian authorities under global maritime cooperation protocols.

According to Liberia’s news platform, Front Page Africa, the case has attracted attention because Liberia maintains one of the world’s largest open ship registries, yet prosecutions for piracy within its domestic courts have not previously occurred. Under international law, Liberia holds jurisdiction over crimes involving ships registered under its flag.

On Monday, proceedings took a new turn when defense lawyer, Cllr. Bestman Juah, informed the court that the defendants had admitted responsibility for the hijacking and were requesting a plea-bargain arrangement. State prosecutors did not oppose the request, leaving open the possibility of reduced sentences in exchange for full cooperation.

Resident Judge Mameita Jabateh-Sirleaf, who presides over Criminal Court ‘D’, will rule on whether to accept the plea deal and determine the sentencing framework. The ruling could also address deportation measures following imprisonment.

Criminal Court ‘D’ handles cases involving armed robbery, terrorism, hijacking, and other serious crimes, and the piracy trial represents a growing trend of transnational offenses being prosecuted within Liberia’s judicial system.
As of press time, the court has not announced the date for sentencing.

Headline

Spain Cancels $825m Israel Arms Deal Over Gaza

Published

6 hours ago

September 15, 2025

Editor

The Spanish government has cancelled a contract worth nearly 700 million euros ($825 million) for Israeli-designed rocket launchers.

The move comes after Prime Minister Pedro Sanchez announced last week that his government would “consolidate in law” a ban on military equipment sales or purchases with Israel over its offensive in Gaza.

The contract, awarded to a consortium of Spanish companies, involved the purchase of 12 SILAM rocket launcher systems derived from the PULS platform made by Israeli firm Elbit Systems, according to the International Institute for Strategic Studies’ Military Balance.

First reported by local media and the Israeli newspaper Haaretz, the cancellation was formalised on Spain’s official public contracts platform on September 9.

The following day, Sanchez unveiled measures aimed at stopping what his leftist government called “the genocide in Gaza”.

It includes the approval of a decree imposing a ban on military equipment sales or purchases with Israel due to its military offensive in Gaza, launched after the Hamas attacks in October 2023.

Spain applied the ban as Israel stepped up its military onslaught.

Spain has also formalized the cancellation of another contract for 168 anti-tank missile launchers, which were to be manufactured under license from an Israeli company.

That contract, valued at 287 million euros, had been first reported by the press in June.

According to Spanish daily La Vanguardia, the government is undertaking a broader review to phase out Israeli weapons and technology from its armed forces.

Sanchez has emerged as one of Europe’s most outspoken critics of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s Gaza policy.

Relations between the two countries have been tense for months.

Israel has not had an ambassador in Spain since Madrid recognized the state of Palestine in 2024.

Last week, Spain recalled its ambassador to Israel after heated exchanges over Sánchez’s new measures.

The Barcelona-based Delas Centre, a security research institute, estimated in April that since the start of the Gaza war, Spain had awarded 46 contracts worth $1.044 billion to Israeli companies, based on public tender data.