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Tinubu seeks Senate’s confirmation of Adama as MDGIF Executive Director

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President Bola Tinubu has nominated Oluwole Adama for appointment as the Executive Director, Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund in the Petroleum Regulatory Authority (MDGIF).

This is contained in a letter read by Senate President, Godswill Akpabio on Tuesday’s plenary.

The letter was titled: “Request for confirmation of appointment of executive director for the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA)’’.

It reads: “In accordance with the provisions of the Petroleum Industry Act 2021.

“I’m pleased to present for confirmation by the Senate the appointment of Oluwole Adama as the Executive Director, Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund in the Petroleum Regulatory Authority.

“While I hope that the Senate will consider and confirm the nominee in an expeditious manner, please accept the distinguished Senate President and distinguished senators, the assurances of my highest regards.”

Akpabio thereafter referred the letter to the Senate Committees on Gas and Petroleum Downstream for consideration to report in one week.

Meanwhile, Senator Suleiman Kawu (NNPP-Kano) had raised a Constitutional Point of Order on the matter.

Kawu in his submission alleged that Tinubu appointed a new Executive Director for Midstream, Downstream, Gas and Infrastructure Fund without following due process as stipulated in the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA).

“It is a Constitutional Order which is very common to us at the National Assembly. Under Section 4 vested the power about making laws for Nigeria.

“Based on this power vested in the national Assembly, if we can remember the last Assembly, the 9th Assembly, passed the Petroleum Industry Act which was one of the marvellous exercises of this legislative house.

“Under it, the communication was sent to Mr President on this executive director, midstream and downstream gas fund, somebody from my constituency was appointed as executive director, one which you mentioned.

“The appointment is for a term of five years in accordance with the provisions of Section 34 of the PIA. This started in March 2022. It is the Senate who confirmed him,’’ he said.

“There are so many provisions in the act that if for any reason, he will be removed or replaced for any reason, there must be a process which the executive , although he has power to appoint, but there must be a procedure in line with our laws and Constitution.

“Therefore, I’m drawing the attention of the Senate that the appointment of the gentleman, who is serving his term, was not served with any letter of disengagement or there was no correspondence from anybody but he just heard that he was removed.

“It is the responsibility of the national assembly to respect its own laws.

“That is the reason why I drew the attention of the Senate and of course Nigerians, of the Constitutional breach which I believe is an oversight from the Executive.”

Responding, Akpabio, noted the point of order.

“The two committees on Gas and Downstream, when you are deliberating as you are reverting to us, please take cognizance of his (Kawu’s) point of order”.

Seeking investors, NNPCL courts South Korea’s Daewoo

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The Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited has held talks with a South Korean consortium led by Daewoo E & C on the development of gas projects in Nigeria.

The Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, Mele Kyari, led the company’s team to the discussions which held in Seoul, South Korea on Monday.

The talks were aimed at deepening NNPCL’s drive to tap into the nation’s vast gas resources to be a supplier of clean and affordable energy to the global market.

South Korea is a major destination for Liquefied Natural Gas exports and the consortium, in collaboration with the Korean Export-Import bank, has expressed interest in advancing discussions on investing in greenfield and other gas development opportunities.

The talks will pave way for the execution of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) that will unlock strategic foreign direct investment in line with the President Bola Ahmed Tinubu administration’s policy of making Nigeria a prime destination for global investors.

Kyari has also congratulated Temile Development Company, an indigenous player in the gas sector, on the commissioning of its 23,000 cubic meters ultra-modern Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG) Carrier in Ulsan, South Korea, today.

According to the GCEO, the vessel named, Alfred Temile 10, represents a significant stride towards deepening the utilization of gas in-country and growing gas revenues.

“It is great that Temile Development Company is able to complete the construction of the 23kt LPG vessel. This will go a long way in improving access to LPG in the domestic market and provide cleaner fuel in our country. Nigeria’s objective is to ensure that everyone has access to clean energy and particularly walk away from bio-mass as a source of energy. We know this is good and that is why we will continue to support it.

He disclosed that NNPC Ltd, alongside its partner West Africa Gas Ltd (WAGL), was building its own vessels which will boost LPG supply in Nigeria with a view to saturating the market.

Israel is losing the war against Hamas – but Netanyahu and his government will never admit it By Paul Rogers

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The official narrative has been that Hamas is weakened, but in reality the IDF’s doctrine of massive force is failing

Until recently the war narrative on Gaza has been very largely controlled by the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the country’s ministry of defence. Israel’s international reputation may have plummeted with the killing of more than 20,000 Palestinians, the wounding of more than 50,000 and the destruction of much of Gaza, but the IDF could still sell a plausible narrative of a severely weakened Hamas, even claiming that the war in northern Gaza was largely complete, and success in southern Gaza would follow before too long.

The narrative was helped by severe difficulties for the few journalists still operating in Gaza, including the risk to their personal safety, while the international press corps was stuck in Jerusalem and dependent on IDF sources for much of their information.

That changed as a different picture began to emerge. First there was a lack of evidence to support the IDF’s claim of a Hamas headquarters under al-Shifa hospital, then the IDF could not identify the location of the Israeli hostages, despite having some of the world’s most advanced intelligence.

Very recently there have been two further incidents. On 12 December, there was a skilful triple ambush staged by Hamas paramilitaries in a part of Gaza supposedly controlled by Israeli forces. An IDF unit was ambushed and took casualties. Further troops were sent to aid that unit, and they were then ambushed, as were reinforcements.

Ten IDF soldiers were reported killed and other seriously wounded, but it was their seniority that counted, including as it did a colonel and three majors from the elite Golani Brigade. That Hamas, supposedly decimated and with thousands of troops already killed, could mount such an operation anywhere in Gaza, let alone a district reportedly already under IDF control, should raise doubts about the idea that Israel is making substantial progress in the war.

A further indication came a few days later, when three Israeli hostages succeeded in getting away from their captors, only to be killed by IDF soldiers, even though shirtless and carrying a white flag. What has since made that worse, and is causing considerable anger in Israel, is that calls from the hostages were picked up by an audio-equipped IDF search-dog five days before they were killed.

There are other, wider indications of the IDF’s problems. Official casualty figures have shown more than 460 military personnel killed in Gaza, Israel and the occupied West Bank and about 1,900 wounded. But other sources suggest far greater numbers of wounded. Ten days ago, Israel’s leading daily, Yedioth Ahronoth, published information obtained from the ministry of defence’s rehabilitation department. This put casualty numbers at more than 5,000, with 58% of them classed as serious and more than 2,000 officially recognised as disabled. There have also been a number of friendly fire casualties, with the Times of Israel reporting 20 out of 105 deaths due to such fire or accidents during fighting.

Overall, the IDF is still following the well-rehearsed Dahiya doctrine of massive force in responding to irregular war, causing extensive social and economic damage, undermining the will of the insurgents to fight while deterring future threats to Israel’s security. But it is going badly wrong. Criticism is coming from unexpected quarters, including from the former UK defence minister, Ben Wallace, who has warned of an impact lasting 50 years. Even the Biden administration is becoming thoroughly uneasy at what is unfolding, yet Benjamin Netanyahu and the war cabinet are determined to continue for as long as they can.

It is worth recognising why. The 7 October attacks and the brutality involved struck Israel’s assumption of security to the core, which means that the great majority of Israeli Jews have so far continued to support Netanyahu’s response. Even that, though, is fraying and is made worse by the killing of the three hostages by IDF troops.

An effect of all this is that the IDF commanders are coming under huge pressure to succeed, and will go as far as the war cabinet will allow. Many of those commanders are highly intelligent if inevitably single-minded people, and will now know that for all Netanyahu’s rhetoric, Hamas, or at least Hamas’s ideas, cannot be defeated by military force. They also know that while talks are stalling, pressure from the families of hostages may soon result in another humanitarian pause. Therefore, their aim will be to damage Hamas as much as they can, as quickly as they can, while they can, whatever the cost to Palestinians. For evidence of this approach, witness this week’s intense air raids.

What makes that possible is Netanyahu’s dependence on an extremist minority of religious fundamentalists and trenchant Zionists in his government. They would not have anything like the wider support in Israel were it not for the tragedy of 7 October, yet they are doing more and more harm to Israel’s long-term security. Not only does Israel risk becoming a pariah state, even among its allies, but it will also fuel a generation of radical opposition from a reconstituted Hamas or its inevitable successor.

It needs saving from itself, but that will depend, more than anything, on Joe Biden and the people around him. Perhaps pushed on by the rapidly changing public mood in western Europe, they must recognise their role in bringing an immediate end to this conflict.

Paul Rogers is emeritus professor of peace studies at Bradford University and an honorary fellow at the Joint Service Command and Staff College
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In Full Embrace of Capitalism, Nigeria’s Leader Says He’ll Remove “Anti-Investment” Barriers

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President Bola Tinubu has assured the international investment community that his administration would ensure that Nigeria remains a top-level destination for offshore and onshore investments.

Receiving the group chairman and CEO of Total Energies Worldwide, Patrick Pouyanne, on Monday in Abuja, the President reiterated the federal government’s commitment to removing all anti-investment impediments in the country.

A statement by Presidential spokesperson Ajuri Ngelale quoted Mr Tinubu as saying: “We are committed to removing all cobwebs and anti-investment impediments in the oil and gas industry.

“We have a clear path that we are committed to pursuing. We are ready to work with you.”

Mr Tinubu commended Total Energies for its years of exploration and investment in Nigeria’s oil and gas sector, citing the feat as evidence of the company’s commitment and confidence in Nigeria.

The President assured the delegation that his administration was determined to improve the investment climate in Nigeria, emphasizing that the aim of the Petroleum Industry Act (PIA) was to create a favorable investment and work environment.

He reiterated his administration’s commitment to making the necessary efforts for industrial peace, harmony, and development.

“The moment I took over, there was a clear path that we set out to pursue, and we will ensure that Nigeria remains a top-level investment choice in the dynamics of the offshore and onshore sectors.

“We will review troubled areas, fiscally and otherwise, to incentivize gas production in the age of transition to cleaner energy.

“We are ready to make a difference as a government. The good handshake that we have is for partnership and to accelerate and incentivize gas production in pursuit of the energy transition,” he said.

Mr Pouyanne, the global CEO of Total Energies Worldwide, said that Nigeria was “very important” for Total Energies, accounting for 8 to 10 per cent of the company’s worldwide total production and over 18 per cent of its global investment.

“Mr President, we are ready to invest $6 billion in the coming years. We are looking extensively at more deepwater production and gas production opportunities across the terrain.

”We welcome your policies and your personal commitment to ensuring that all required fiscal incentives are provided while security issues are tackled. Everything is here.

“We just need to conclude with the tweaks and changes necessary to unlock the outstanding potential in both oil and gas,” he said.

Mr Pouyanne also highlighted the company’s commitment to maintaining its zero-flaring position in Nigeria to both heal the environment and monetise all available gas resources in support of Nigeria’s energy transition plan.

Imo Governor Uzodimma assents to 2024 Apprpopriation Bill

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Imo Governor Hope Uzodimma, on Monday, assented to the 2024 Appropriation Bill of N592.2 billion.

At a brief ceremony after signing the bill into an Act at the Government House, Owerri, Mr Uzodimma said that the success of the budget would depend on the prudent implementation of the items contained in the document.

He assured the people of the state that the budget would act both as a stimulus and catalyst for the growth and development of Imo in line with the theme: “Budget of Renewed Economic Growth.”

“In the history of Imo, there has not been an annual budget with a capital expenditure of over 82 per cent, meaning when implemented, the result will make Imo the envy of other states,” he said.

He commended the speaker and members of the State House of Assembly for the uncommon synergy and conceding to his request to give the bill accelerated hearing and passage.

The governor, who congratulated the Imo people as the ultimate beneficiaries of the synergy between the executive and legislature, promised prudent implementation of the budget.

He urged everyone working for the government to do the same.

He also promised to sustain the cordial relationship and synergy that existed between the three arms of government.

He, however, called for all hands to be on deck to raise the revenue proposed in the budget to enable his administration to ensure total implementation and achievement of the budget target.

He called for strict closure of all revenue leakages in the state, promising to “deal with all those who are fraudulent and the criminally-minded in the government circle.

“Government will be ruthless to any public officer or appointee who engages in fraud and corruption in this administration, going forward.

“I will leave no stone unturned in advancing the cause of Imo,” he said.

Presenting the bill to the governor, the Speaker, Chike Olemgbe, said the bill brought to them was “carefully crafted”, which made their job “easy and seamless”.

According to him, the proposal shows that the governor is determined to give Imo people “renewed overall growth and development”.

The speaker promised that the lawmakers would work as partners with the executive to ensure that Imo people enjoyed the dividend of democracy under his and Mr Uzodimma’s leadership.

He said that the bill passed through all the legislative processes from the day it was presented on December 12 to its passage.