…….Small businesses will be hard hit, manufacturers warn. …….Nigerians are being taken for granted by this govt – NLC The pump price of the Premium Motor Spirit , also known as petrol, appears set to hit N 160 per litre as the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has increased the price at which it sells the product to marketers from N 138. 62 per litre to N 147. 67. The ex – depot price is the price at which the product is sold to marketers at the depots. The N 151. 56 ex – depot price was announced in an internal memo to all stakeholders with reference number PPMC /IB /LS/020 dated September 2, 2020 and signed by D . O Abalaka. The memo, a copy of which was seen by one of our correspondents, said , “ Please be informed that a new product price adjustment has been effected on our payment platform . “ To this end , the price of Premium Motor Spirit is now one hundred and fifty – one naira, fifty -six kobo ( N 151. 56k) per litre. This is effective from September 2, 2020. ” But the PPMC , in another internal memo dated September 2, 2020 with reference number PPMC /MOD /Sales/346 and signed by Onya Schola, reduced the ex -depot price to N 147. 67 per litre. When the ex – depot price was fixed at N 138. 62 in August , marketers were selling petrol at between N 148 and N 150 per litre. With a new ex – depot price of N 147. 67 per litre, the pump price may be between N 157 and N 160 per litre. Amidst the different ex -depot prices, the Managing Director of the PPMC , Musa Lawal , told one of our correspondents that the first ex – depot price was wrong and should be discarded . He said the company was investigating how the first memo went out , stressing that although it was from the PPMC , the figures were still being computed and had not been concluded . “ That is not authentic. It is wrong and there is a price review which shall be communicated properly , but what came out early today is the wrong one , ” Lawal stated . Asked to provide the correct one, he replied , “ The one that I saw today on the website of one of the dailies is the wrong one. As we speak the circumstances under which that happened are being investigated. “ However , I cannot tell you more than this as the PPPRA ( Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency ) is the one to fix prices because we sell based on the guiding price from them . ” But the PPPRA on Wednesday decided to stay mute , as it did in August when the ex -depot price for the PMS was released by the PPMC . Its spokesperson , Kimchi Apollo , did not answer calls nor replied a text on the matter . The PPPRA ’ s silence on petrol price is contrary to what it said in March . The agency had stated that it would be issuing a monthly guiding price for petrol, but in August it did not issue any and had remained mute since then oil marketers said that going by the circulating ex – depot prices for petrol, the pump price for the commodity should hit between N 160 to N 162/litre. They also stated that loading of products had stopped at some depots, as marketers were confused on which price to either buy or sell the commodity. Up till 8pm on Wednesday , officials of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria stated that no authentic communication had been received from either the PPPRA of the PPMC on the pump price or ex – depot price of petrol. “ Loading has stopped in some depots because of this confusion caused by the price modulation of guiding exercise introduced by the PPPRA and up till now we ’ ve not received any notice on either the ex -depot price or pump price, ” the National Public Relations Officer of IPMAN , Ukadike Chinedu, stated. But the Zonal Chairman , Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria , South – West, Mr Dele Tajudeen, told one of our correspondents that the association had decided that the pump price would be N 162 per litre when the ex -depot price was increased to N 151. 56. Asked what the pump price would be following the reduction of the ex -depot price to N 147. 67, he said the association would decide on that later on Wednesday if the ex -depot price remained the same. “ We will add whatever the NNPC has added to our buying price to our selling price , ” Tajudeen added . Petrol price was increased by marketers to between N 148 and N 150/litre in August from a band of N 140. 80 to N 143. 80. Following the announcement of the new depot price , many filing stations in Ogun and Lagos states were shut on Wednesday as marketers awaited further clarifications from the PPMC . The Federal Government increased the petrol price a day after power distribution companies hiked electricity tariffs across the country. The petrol price hike generated angry reactions from the Nigeria Labour Congress, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria and other major groups in the country on Wednesday . New fuel price: APC says government working for citizens The All Progressives Congress (APC), has called on the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) to wake up to a new Nigeria where the government works for the citizens not for a few interests. Mr Yekini Nabena, the party’s Deputy National Publicity Secretary made the call in a statement on Wednesday in Abuja. The statement was in response to PDP’s criticism of the recent increase in petrol pump price from N143 to N151 by the Federal Government and

Leaders of lawyers from the northern part of the country on Wednesday met with the new President of the Nigerian Bar Association , Mr Olumide Akpata , and other national officers over the threat by some lawyers from the region to secede from the association to form the New NBA. At the end of the meeting which lasted about three hours at the national secretariat of the association in Abuja , the participants from about 40 branches of the association in the northern region rejected the splinter group . The acting Chairman of the Arewa Lawyers ’ Forum , a socio- ethnic platform of lawyers from the northern region, Mr Elisha Kaura , also called on all lawyers in the country to support the new NBA President . He said , “ We the undersigned individuals , who are Chairmen of the various branches of the Nigerian Bar Association that make up the Northern Geopolitical Zone as defined in the NBA Constitution 2015, and other senior members of the Bar have today Wednesday , September , 2, 2020 in the Federal Capital Territory , Abuja , met with the NBA President , Mr Olumide Akpata , and the National Officers of the NBA. We have unanimously agreed to support his leadership of the NBA, and we hereby restate our true allegiance to the NBA and disassociate ourselves from the “ New NBA ” or any splitter group whatsoever making the waves in recent weeks as a new association/body of lawyers in Nigeria . “ We understand that the NBA has historically and in recent times been fraught with several challenges but we are indeed assured that the NBA under the leadership of Mr . Olumide Akpata will surmount these challenges and birth an all -inclusive Bar that will work for all Lawyers in Nigeria regardless of any part of the divide one may belong . ” Kaura urged all lawyers in the country to support Mr Olumide Akpata and the new national officers to ensure that they deliver on all their core mandates. The division within the association was escalated following the decision of its National Executive Committee to dis – invite the Kaduna State Governor , Mr Nasir el-Rufai , to speak at its just -concluded Annual General Conference which culminated in the inauguration of Olumide Akpata as the NBA President on August 29, 2020. Speaking earlier , Akpata said leaders of about 40 branches of the NBA and about the same number of other leaders of the association from the northern region attended the Wednesday’ s “ stakeholders ’ meeting” . “ We remain one bar, one NBA, ” he said .

Some NGOs and electricity consumers on Wednesday kicked against the increase in electricity tariff implemented by the Electricity Distribution Companies (DISCOs) on Sept. 1, and appealed to government to reverse the plan. The consumers spoke in separate interviews with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja. Mr Demeji Macaulay, the Director, Movement for A Socialist Alternative (MSA), said “the association condemns the recent hike in electricity tariff in strongest terms and demands its immediate reversal.” Macaulay condemned the move to increase tariff in spite of the resolution of the senate and direct orders by President Muhammadu Buhari to shelve the plans by the DISCOs to hike electricity tariff “until all consumers are metered”. “This increment policy direction will not guarantee affordable tariff and stable power supply for the vast majority. “It is only massive public investment in the power sector combined with the nationalisation of the electricity sector and other commanding heights of the economy that can guarantee affordable and uninterrupted electricity,” he said. Mr Jude Chukwuma, a welder in Lugbe, Abuja said that it would be difficult to ascertain the people receiving less than 12 hours power supply as stated in the tariff. “How will DISCOs know people receiving less than 12 hours of light, all we want is for government to assist us to reverse the increase in tariff as we are still battling with our losses due to the COVID 19 pandemic.” Mrs Ebere Akue, a stylist also at Lugbe said that the increase would affect her business, adding that power was not constant as she had to buy fuel for generator. “This increase is not good for our business since COVID-19 period, businesses are slow,” she said. Mr Kunle Olubiyo, the President, Nigeria Consumer Protection Network said that on behalf of electricity consumers, the association had been engaging the Federal Government on the impact of the electricity tariffs on the poor and vulnerable people. Olubiyo said that the association had received assurances from the highest level of government that the present tariffs adjustment would increase raise the bar of minimum remittance to be made by the DISCOs. “And as the names implied, the service reflective tariffs broken down into different bands, segments is not targeted at the poor and at the same time it is more or less designed technically speaking to serve as “Cross Subsidies.” Cross–subsidies involves a group of consumers paying more than the general cost of supply and the surplus is used to subsidise the provision to the other group at a price that is lower than the cost of supply to the subsidised group. “Taking the subsidies to be realised from the profits of the rich and those with big pockets, the bulk users of electricity. “The large scale industries and multinational conglomerate to cross subsidised the rural end users of electricity, the urban poor amongst others,” he said. NAN reports that the Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) on Aug. 27 disclosed that electricity tariff reviews, going forward will only follow service-based principles. Under these principles, Electricity Distribution Companies (DISCOs) will only be able to review tariff rates for customers when they consult with them and commit to increasing the number of hours of supply per day and quality of service. NERC stated that in line with these expectations, DISCOs had been directed to engage with their customers on a Serviced Based Tariff structure, where DISCOs could only review tariffs for customers. Going further, NERC says there will be no tariff change for the most vulnerable as tariffs for those consuming 50KW or less remain frozen. Also, customers receiving less than 12 hours of power supply are expected not to experience any change in tariffs.

Teachers in Imo State have vowed not to reopen schools amidst the coronavirus pandemic. The chairman , Nigeria Union of Teachers in the state, Philip Nwanshi , who spoke with journalists in Owerri , on Wednesday said that the state had done nothing in settling their arrears of salaries. The NUT chairman said despite meeting with the state governor , Hope Uzodinma, the state government had refused to offset the arrears of salaries. He said Uzodimma had in a meeting with NUT some months ago promised to clear arrears of salaries owed to teachers . Nwanshi complained that up till the first week of September salaries of about 2000 teachers in the state had not been paid for about seven months . He said “ In Ngor Okpala LGA , no primary school teacher has received salary since March this year. In Owerri West and other LGAs also, many teachers are yet to receive their salaries. “ There is no way you can tell me that what is holding their salaries is BVN and the banks. We cannot believe that. You cannot tell me that the papers of all the teachers in Ngor Okpala are wrong . “ What we ’ re saying is that if every teacher does not get salaries up to date and if the union does not get its check – off dues , there is no possibility of schools reopening in Imo State. “ The union has not been running since March and the government is deducting the check – off dues and not remitting the same to the union . And if we don’ t react , our members will never have full confidence in us anymore. They ’ ll think we ’ ve compromised. (The Punch )

The Kano State House of Assembly has urged National Examination Council (NECO) to shift the Sept. 3, deadline for the registration of Senior Secondary Certificate Examination (SSCE) in the country. This followed the adoption of a motion of urgent public importance by Mr Aminu Sa’ad (PDP-Ungoggo ) at plenary in Kano, on Wednesday. Speaking on the motion, Sa’ad said that most parents were unable to register their children for the examination due to late release of qualifying examination by the State Government. “If you can remember, recently the state government ordered for the release of the qualifying examination results for 104,000 students. “Out of the 104 students, only 29,126 secured five credits and above, including Mathematics and English, representing about 15 per cent. “This is of great concern to us, because it will affect the number of students from the Kano to be enrolled in higher institutions in the next academic year,” he said. He said that the COVID-19 lockdown had negatively impacted on Nigerians as most parents had lost their sources of livelihood. Contributing, Majority Leader, Mr Kabiru Dashi urged the house to lobby the state’s lawmakers at the National Assembly towards sponsoring indigents students from their constituencies. The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports the state government had earmarked N489.25 million for sponsoring of 29,126 candidates for the SSCE. The government also directed all 44 local government councils in the state to sponsor 200 students out of those who failed to obtain the required credits. Meanwhile, the house has set up a seven-man committee headed by the Deputy Speaker, Mr Hamisu Chidari to investigate major cause of the mass failure among students in the state with the aim to find solution to the problem. The committee was given a four weeks to submit its report back to the house. (NAN)