The Streetjournal Magazine

29/07/2024

Are you a university student?
Did you know that it's your right to apply for a student loan at your university under the FG student loan scheme?
Please apply for it today and stop worrying about your school fees.
The application is free.

29/07/2024

*BITTER WORDS FROM ELDERS*

1. Nobody respect a *rag until their shoes is dirty*, so stay in your corner. Don't beg people to know your value, *when the time comes,* nobody will tell them to *look for you*
2. Don't be too *available* for people because *longtime no see* is better than this *Idiot has come again*.
3. Control your *Anger* because it is just one letter away from *Danger*.
4. Don't show everyone *your wounds*, not everyone is holding a *bandage*, some are with *salt* and *vinegar* to increase the pains.
5. Never *plant* *thorns* on someones path, your children may take that route barefooted one day.
6. One mistake you should never make in this life is to allow yourself to be *recruited* by someone to *hate* another person who hasn't wronged you.
7. Don't compare your life with others, there is no comparison between the *sun* and *moon* they shine when it's their time.

29/07/2024

Yar’Adua canceled sale of refineries, refunded Dangote’s $750m – Obasanjo
Former President Olusegun Obasanjo has explained that the sale of two of the nation’s oil oil refineries had been concluded before he exited office in 2007, saying his successor, the late Umaru Yar’Adua, reversed the sale due to “pressure”. Obasanjo said this in his serialised interview with ‘Book Club’, a programme on Channels Television, monitored in Lagos on Wednesday. The ex-President said business mogul, Aliko Dangote, leading a consortium of investors, had paid $750m for two of the refineries, as the Federal Government was finding it difficult managing the facilities at the time. He, however, regretted that instead of the Yar’Adua administration to consolidate on the sale so that the investors could turn around the fortunes of the refineries, his successor succumbed to pressure and reversed the sale of the oil facilities. Obasanjo equally revealed that not only did his successor canceled the sale, he also refunded the $750m paid by the investors. He added, “The refineries are old and Dangote and some investors paid $750m for two of the refineries. My successor came to office and reversed the sale; he even refunded the money they paid.
“So, I went to him and said ‘why did you do this’? He said it was because of pressure. So, I said ‘so the pressure of some people was more important than the interest of the whole nation’!
“Right now, you will hardly be able to sell the refineries for more than $250m because they are very old.” Obasanjo explained that most people, especially leaders, failed to analyse the decisions of those before them before upturning those decisions, pointing out that most leaders yielded to sentiment than informed opinions.

28/07/2024

Good night, Sen, Ifeanyi Ubah.

How time flies. The body and soul will return to the Creator. We met in 2006 inside the KLM aircraft that we flew together from Amsterdam. We both agreed to keep in touch.

A week later, you came to my office that I shared with another fantastic Nigerian, the man I will revere as an omoluabi par excellence, Chief Pessy Ademokun, former band manager of Alhaji Ayinde Wasiu.

We became inseparable, traveling together, doing everything together. We made Abuja our second home, with our host then, Chief Alaba Yusuf, the Akinrogun of Akungba in Ondo State.

How we managed to rise to where we were before you breathed your last breath is through the sheer grace of the Lord. In a Yoruba adage, they say, "20 children cannot play for 20 years." We were not as close as we used to be, but anytime we had the opportunity to meet at the airport, you always forced me to fly in your private jet, even if your destination was different from mine.

We flew to Abuja last with the late Senator Buruji Kashamu. We remembered your first day in Abuja, where we slept in Chief Alaba Yusuf's living room and ran after a man who promised us a contract, only to find out that it was fake.

So many good memories of our past. But all in all, you were a good fighter, a dogged businessman. You came with nothing, struggled, and climbed to the exotic place of who’s who in Nigeria, and you conquered.

May your gentle soul continue to rest in peace, bro. May Allah forgive your sins and give your soul a befitting place to rest in Aljannah.

Amin, my personal person.

28/07/2024

Mr saint

28/07/2024

In just one year of President Tinubu's Administration:

1. The minimum wage raised to ₦70,000

2.Local Government autonomy

3.Fuel importation reduced by 51.4%.

4.The Federal Government facilitated a Nigerian carrier, Air Peace, to secure daily direct flights to London, which crashed ticket prices on that route.

5.The Nigerian government facilitated with Meta to enable Nigerian content creators to monetise their content on Facebook beginning in June 2024.

6. Ended passport scarcity and waiting time for passport application, renewal and collection shorted to less than two weeks and contactless biometric is about to kickstart with Data Control and Command Centre is completed.

7. 2023 Electricity Bill signed into Law to end federal monopoly in the power sector and empower states and the private sector to generate, distribute and transmit power.

8. The Federal Government has initiated and begun payment of the ₦50,000 Presidential Conditional Grant Scheme to nano businesses.

9. The Federal Government has initiated and begun payment of student loans.

10. President Tinubu approved 10 billion naira for CNG buses in all 36 states: Bringing CNG conversion centers closer to you step by step; Over 200 centers are expected to be built over the next few months as the Presidential CNG Initiative ramps up its adoption model.

11. Nigeria’s External Reserves hit 17-month high, gain $2.35 billion in 18 days.

12. The Federal Government has reimbursed 34 states and the FCT through the Nigeria Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus(NG-CARES) Programme.
The NG-Cares is a program developed to expand access to livelihood support and food security services for poor households and firms across Nigerian states.

13. About N110 billion fund dedicated to empowering youth in priority sectors to drive economic growth.

Say no No To Anarchy and Embrace dialogue

28/07/2024

The protest was sparked by the president's media team's inability to effectively disseminate information about government initiatives and their far-reaching effects on the general population, a situation that is deeply troubling. Mainstream media encompasses more than just Twitter and Instagram.

28/07/2024

REPOSITIONING THE ECONOMY AND WHAT THE NUMBERS ARE SAYING

By Temitope Ajayi

On Thursday in Abuja, Minister of Finance Mr Wale Edun addressed a press conference and gave a mid-year report on the economy. The Minister told the press what President Tinubu's administration had done in the last year to address some of the structural imbalances in the economy, working with the fiscal and monetary authorities.

The Minister, who will now address a quarterly media briefing on the state of the economy, highlighted that the economy grew faster in the first quarter of 2024 than in the first quarter of 2023.

According to him, economic activity in the first quarter of 2024 was not only faster than the first quarter of 2023, but it was also the second fastest first-quarter growth in the last six years.

Mr. Edun noted that the economic growth was broad-based across several sectors, including agriculture, industries, and services. The Minister specifically mentioned that the agricultural sector recovered from a negative position in the first quarter of 2023 to a modest growth in the first quarter of 2024. As the Minister pointed out, the industrial sector also grew seven times faster in the first quarter of 2024 than in the first quarter of 2023.

Mr. Edun linked the positive economic performance and upswing to the government’s well-coordinated fiscal and monetary policies.

On the revenue side, the Coordinating Minister of the Economy explained that aggregate federal government revenue in the first half of 2024 was more than double of the corresponding period in 2023. According to the Minister, the growth in government revenue was due to the reconfiguration and improvement in government finances, with oil revenue as a percentage of gross revenue increasing from 11 per cent in the first half of 2023 to 30 per cent in the first half of 2024.

Here are the numbers as presented by the Minister :

1. Non-Oil Revenue: The government's determination to mobilise non-oil revenue has consistently delivered impressive results. For the half-year 2024, non-oil revenue not only surpassed the revenue in the first half of 2023 but was also 30 per cent above the 2024 budget target without any increases in taxes.

2. National Debt Burden: The Tinubu administration in the words of the Minister has been working to manage and reduce the national debt to create better fiscal headroom for economic management. In dollar term, Mr. Edun pointed out that Nigeria’s debt burden has reduced and the government’s fiscal deficit has improved.

“Our debt has fallen in dollar terms from $108 billion to $91 billion. Additionally, the government has diligently serviced all its loans and obligations with no recourse to ways and means of financing. The government has met all its obligations,” Edun said.

3. Ways and Means: In the last year, the administration has exited the Ways and Means debt trap due to better management of the fiscal space, as the Federal Government, under the leadership of the President, has not relied on borrowing from the CBN Ways and Means to fund its obligations. Edun pointed out that part of the inflationary pressure the country is currently experiencing was a result of the past abuse of ways and Means. The Federal Government has paid back the previous N7.3 trillion obligation within a year of President Bola Tinubu’s administration.

4. Debt Service to Revenue: In meeting its debt obligations to avert any form of default, the Federal Government of Nigeria, for decades, has been spending more than half of its revenue on debt servicing. By the end of June 2023, the Federal Government was spending 97% of total revenue to service debt. In the last year of President Tinubu, the country has recorded a positive trend in the debt service-to-revenue ratio. Currently, the debt service-to-revenue ratio has declined from 97 percent in the first half of 2023 to 68 percent in 2024, indicating the government’s strong position in managing its debt obligations.

5. Budget Deficit: It has been a major priority for the economic managers to reduce the budget deficit. To achieve this, the federal government, in the last year of the Tinubu administration, improved government revenue collection and blocked a lot of leakages. At the media briefing, Mr. Edun noted that the 2024 budget deficit has moved in the right direction, with a target of 4.1 per cent of GDP, an improvement from the 6.1 per cent deficit recorded in 2023.

“On an annualised basis, we are at 4.4 per cent, so you can see we are effectively very, very close to the budgetary target,” Edun said.

6. Foreign Inflows: The government's efforts to attract more foreign inflows into the economy continue to yield good outcomes. The minister said the government will continue the reforms and improve the business environment to engender confidence further. Mr. Edun underscored the government’s efforts to attract foreign inflows, including implementing the national single window project, which he said will generate $2.7 billion annually in economic benefits. The Minister added that the government’s accelerated stabilisation and advancement plan has already attracted $500 million in investment in the gas sector, with $7 billion more on the sidelines waiting to come in.

7. Inflation and High Cost of Living: To address the current high cost of living and bring more relief to the masses, the Minister again pointed out that the government has implemented several initiatives and interventions, including a strategic input programme to increase the supply of food, a pivot to Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) fuel for mass transit vehicles, and providing lower-cost financing for the manufacturing industry and production. Mr Edun, who sympathised with Nigerians for the current hardship, which he also noted will soon blow away, expressed optimism that inflation, despite being “quite sticky at the moment,” will decelerate and come down due to the government’s commitments and actions.

Mr. Edun said: "Clearly, as part of the reform program, on the monetary side, monetary policy has been tightened. CBN has been proactive in adjusting the monetary policy rate to address inflation head-on, which is in line with its legal mandate."

-Ajayi is the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity

27/07/2024

A good CEO of any company may not be perfect at recruiting good staff, but must be exceptionally intelligent in identifying and weeding out unproductive staff." - Wole Arisekola

27/07/2024

DSS has raided Katsina market leading to the arrest of a trader who diverted rice intended for the VULNERABLE HOUSEHOLDS.

2: The rice was prominently labeled as “ Federal Government of Nigeria, Food Security Programme”

3: what they discovered were 1200 bags of 25kg rice.

4: we have no hand in this. We handed over to NEMA. NEMA handed over to SEMA.

27/07/2024

ARMED MEN INVASION OF LEKKI PHASE 1 & ENVIRONS:

It’s no longer news that some armed uniformed men invaded Ahmed Tijani Street and Omorinre Johnson area of Lekki Phase 1 some days ago.

This time around and in the early hours of today, some armed men putting on caps of the Nigerian law enforcement agencies stormed Grace Anjous drive by Fola Osibo junction street gate. The armed men held on to the street security guards after compelling them to open the street gate. Few steps away from the street gate, three of the armed men came to a nearby guesthouse/hotel and rounded up the security guards while vandalizing vehicles parked outside the hotel notably Prado SUV.

Nigerian people on the average are intelligent irrespective of the level of education. More worrisome is the fact that if this brilliance is used negatively as currently obtainable, then we are in for a showdown in the coming days. If this menace is not quickly dealt with, a situation will arise where targeted individual homes become target.

On the part of the authority, the Nigerian Police Force needs to change its strategy to stand the increase and modus operandi of the ongoing criminal activities in the coming days. This should be envisaged going by the current economic hardship confronting the Nigerian people:

• increase number of our policemen
• ⁠equipped them with adequate weapons and user friendly communication equipment
• ⁠continuous training of our law enforcement personnel on modern day policing.

27/07/2024

https://thestreetjournal.org/oando-refute-claims-of-owning-blending-plant-in-malta/

Oando PLC has refuted claims circulating on social and digital media that it owns a blending plant in Malta

27/07/2024

69 percent of Student loan applicants are from Northern Nigeria.
He noted that more students from the North applied for the loans owing to better coordination by tertiary institutions in the region.
Humm: You dey surprise? Abi, But that (high adoption in the North) is to be expected because they seem very well organised in terms of networking in the northern part of the country.

27/07/2024

https://thestreetjournal.org/popular-anambra-senator-ifeanyi-ubah-is-dead/

Ifeanyi Ubah, the Senator representing Anambra South Senatorial District in the Senate is dead.

27/07/2024

Exclusive: Nigeria's Dangote refinery is reselling crude, sources say
By Ahmad Ghaddar , Julia Payne and Libby George

LONDON/BRUSSELS, July 26 (Reuters) - Nigeria's major Dangote oil refinery is reselling cargoes of U.S. and Nigerian crude, four trade sources familiar with the matter said on Friday.
Three of the sources said the reoffer was linked to technical problems at the refinery. A Dangote executive, asked about the offers and talk in the market that the refinery is having operational issues affecting the crude distillation unit, said the CDU is in operation.
The refinery started production in January and will be the largest in Africa and Europe when it reaches full capacity. It could upend what has been a highly lucrative Europe-to-Africa fuel trade and transform Nigeria into an exporter of fuels.
Cargoes of Nigerian Escravos and Forcados crude were among the grades being offered, as well as U.S. WTI Midland crude, the sources said. The plant has been importing several crude cargoes a month, traders have said.

Humm: The matter don get K leg be that. Two cargo of crude oil sold to Dangote Refinery are yet to be paid for- Total energy.

25/07/2024

Oyo governor Seyi Makinde transmits power to deputy, proceeds on 1-month vacation

25/07/2024

What a great loss to Ibadanland, Oyo State, and Nigeria in general. The sudden death of the Osi Balogun of Ibadanland, Oba Adebimpe, is a great loss to our fatherland. He contributed immensely to calming nerves and dousing tension that arose before the coronation of His Imperial Majesty, the Olubadan of Ibadanland. May his soul rest in perfect peace.

24/07/2024

Breaking News.
Ibadan Elevated Oba, Adebimpe Dies.
The Otun-Balogun of Ibadan died after a brief illness .

23/07/2024

🇳🇬TINUBU IS NOT YOUR PROBLEM

Another payment to your State Governors by the Tinubu administration.

When you don't know your enemies, you're finished.🤷🏾‍♂️

To rule Nigeria, you need to be a person of strong character and mind. Some governors are already planning on how to siphon all these funds to offshore accounts or settle their cronies.

Let's wake up and hold our Governors accountable.

23/07/2024

⛔ATTENTION PLEASE

To know the allocation of your local and State Government on a monthly basis:

1. Type me.budgit.org into your browser or click the link.

2. Sign up

3. Enter your name, State and local government.

4. It will instantly display your state and local government allocation

No more hide and seek.
No more Zero Allocation.
No more excuses.

Hold your Governor & Local Government Chairman responsible and accountable.

23/07/2024

People in nnpc dont want subsidy scam to end emir-sanusi

23/07/2024

Smart Aliko Dangote. A week before his recent outburst, he hosted all the powerful media houses at his refinery, taking them around his company. He knows the power of media and PR and was being managed by the best PR manager in Nigeria.

He fired the first salvo, and it spread like wildfire, making his opponents scramble for safety. If not for Aliko and NNPC sheathing their swords, next week would have been brutal because, for the past 72 hours, only Aliko’s matters have been trending on the Internet.

The enemies of progress would have unleashed their anger on the NNPC staff and their facilities under the guise of protesting.

I pray for President Bola Ahmed Tinubu's success in office, but he needs to reorganize the NNPC with immediate effect. A stitch in time saves nine.
Mogaji Wole Arisekola dey siddon dey look from his house in Ibadan. Oya come and beat me here.

22/07/2024

Minister of State Petroleum Resources [Oil] Hosts Crucial Meeting with Dangote, NMDPRA, NUPRC, and NNPC Leadership

Distinguished Senator Heineken Lokpobiri , the Honourable Minister of State Petroleum Resources [Oil], convened a high-level meeting with key stakeholders to address and resolve the ongoing issues surrounding the Dangote Refinery.

Present at the meeting were:

Mr. Aliko Dangote, Chairman and CEO of
Mr. Farouk Ahmed, Authority Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority ()
Mr. Gbenga Komolafe, Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission ()
Mr. Mele Kyari, Group Chief Executive Officer of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited ()

The stakeholders expressed their gratitude to the Honourable Minister for his exemplary leadership and timely intervention in facilitating this crucial dialogue.

21/07/2024

https://thestreetjournal.org/us-president-drops-re-election-bid-endorses-kamala-harris-to-succeed-him/

US President Joe Biden has officially endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris to succeed him as President of the United States. The announceme

21/07/2024

Mogaji Wole,

Where is the refinery NNPC promised us? Where is the 20% stake Mele Kyari promised Nigerians? Anytime we meet Tinubu's inner cabinet and mention your name, they say you are one of them. Please tell your people that Nigerians are not happy with them. The subsidy removal has impoverished many families in Nigeria. With Mele Kyari, nothing tangible will ever happen in that ministry. These people are very corrupt. This is not the type of government we prayed for.

Abubakar.

Read the analysis below, although not sure of its authenticity.

*How President TINUBU Busted NNPC FRAUD*

NNPC's Audited Report for 2022 showed they paid for 20% shares in Dangote Refinery – Dangote says it’s a lie.

Under Buhari’s government, the NNPC committed to invest $2.7 billion and buy 20% shares in the Dangote Refinery.

In January, the NNPC, after intense pressure, released their Audited Financial Report for 2022. In the report, they stated that they purchased 20% shares in the Dangote Refinery for $2.7 billion.

They claimed to have obtained $1.036 billion (as part of the funding) from Lekki Refinery Funding Limited. $1 billion was paid to Dangote Refinery – which is about 37% of the $2.7 billion they claimed to have invested.

Of course, the remaining amount of $36 million was just for transaction costs.

*Tinubu took over from Buhari and, in December, he set up a new NNPC Board, where he made his longtime friend and ally, Pius Akinyelure, the NNPC Board Chairman, and reappointed Malam Mele Kyari as NNPC Group CEO.*

*In a sudden turn, the NNPC that had committed to buy 20% shares backed down. Dangote had given them an extension period (till June) to complete the $2.7 billion for the shares. But they couldn't!*

Meanwhile, the public still believed that they had 20% shares in the Dangote Refinery – not until Sunday, when Dangote himself revealed that the NNPC had invested only 7.2%.

Shortly after Dangote broke the news, the NNPC rushed to react. In their defense, they said, "NNPC Limited periodically assesses its investment portfolio to ensure alignment with the company's strategic goals.”

One wonders what exactly are the NNPC's "strategic goals?” They say it's "to ensure access to affordable, reliable, sustainable, and modern energy for all.” So, how and when did the NNPC's 20% equity investment in the Dangote Refinery go against its "strategic goals” as highlighted above?

Two, in their statement, the NNPC validated what Dangote said, that they invested only 7% of the $2.7 billion they initially committed to pay.

*This sharply contrasts and invalidates their claim of paying $1 billion to Dangote Refinery (for the shares) in 2022 – which is about 37%.*

*So, if the NNPC confirmed that they had paid $1 billion to Dangote Refinery – which is about 37% – how did they come about the 7%? Also, where is the balance? Did Dangote Refinery refund it?*

Three, why exactly did the NNPC back down on their initial commitment of investing 20% in the Dangote Refinery shares?

Is it true that they realigned their “investment portfolio according to their strategic goals," or is it a grand plan wrapped in a scam deal?

*As Nigeria's first prepared president, distinguished in economy and accounting, P-ABAT is on the right course. It's just a matter of time.*

21/07/2024

Nowadays, people don’t defend what is right; they defend those they like or benefit from.

Is it just me, or do you also wonder why politicians do what they do? Do you think they are as normal as the rest of us? Their choices, desperation, and the things they say and do, the choice of the people they appointed to serve in their government when they win elections always leave me wondering if I could ever be a politician. Strange thought, right? Yeah.

I’m not surprised by the outburst of the Chief Executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA), Farouk Ahmed, about his opinion on the Dangote refinery.

For those who don’t know Engineer Ahmed, he has a strong commercial and trading background with over 34 years of experience in senior positions at NNPC. He has held roles such as Senior Crude Oil Trader at Duke Oil Incorporated, Manager of Crude Oil Export Programming and Nominations, Executive Director of Commercial at the Petroleum Products Marketing Company (PPMC), Managing Director of NiDAS Marine Limited, and more. He retired but was brought back from retirement and is now one of the richest public servants in Nigeria, wealthier than many successful businessmen in the country.

When Farouk speaks, he does so with the authority of a business-savvy civil servant in Nigeria. He represents some powerful Northern cabal, doing their bidding. These people control Nigeria, deciding who succeeds financially and politically.

From my investigation, I think Aliko Dangote made a political misstep in the last presidential election. The powers that be are ready to teach him a lesson. Dangote, once part of this elite group controlling Nigeria’s economy and politics, reportedly repaid 70% of his refinery loan to commercial banks, according to a former Central Bank governor. Additionally, the Nigerian government claimed to have invested over a billion dollars in the Dangote refinery for a 20% stake, a move celebrated by the previous administration. However, Dangote recently debunked this, saying the $1 billion borrowed from China was lost in transit, revealing a deception.

So, when Engineer Farouk says we can’t rely on one refinery for the nation’s needs and criticizes Dangote’s request to stop importing petroleum products, he’s highlighting the risks of monopoly and questioning the refinery’s quality. He mentioned that the sulphur content of Dangote’s product is inferior to imported quality.

I sense something is amiss. The business of secret deals has been exposed. If Dangote and his adversaries don’t resolve their issues, he might soon face the EFCC. More damaging revelations are likely. The battle began when Dangote exposed the NNPC’s 20% investment as a fraud. Mele Kyari, the NNPC GMD, retaliated by criticizing Dangote’s refinery.

This is how desperate individuals react when caught. The elite will continue to thrive while the masses suffer, manipulated by promises of prosperity that never materialize. These corrupt officials and businessmen are the major investors in our future. This risky business will continue until something changes.
Mogaji Wole Arisekola writes from Ibadan.

19/07/2024

https://thestreetjournal.org/olubunmi-tunji-ojo-festus-keyamo-joint-winners-of-the-street-journals-super-minister-online-poll-receive-their-awards-photos/

The duo of Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, the Minister for Interior and Festus Keyamo, the Minister of Aviation and Aerospace, joint winners of an

19/07/2024

About the proposed protest in the Northern part of Nigeria:

I don't have any problem with anyone organizing a peaceful protest. My issue with this one is the identity of the people behind it.

1. Who is behind this protest?
2. What is the motive behind this protest?
3. What will this protest achieve?
4. Why didn't this protest happen earlier, at least five years ago?

We witnessed a similar unplanned and unorganized protest called EndSARS a few years ago. No one in the South West would ever pray for a similar experience again. The hoodlums hijacked it and wreaked havoc on the properties of innocent Lagosians.

Maybe the Northern part of Nigeria wants to have a taste of their own as well. Time will tell.

I dey Ibadan dey chop amala and gbegiri. If you like, join me.
Terms and conditions may apply.

19/07/2024

The easiest thing to do is to criticize and manipulate gullible followers. When given the same opportunity, their performance would be worse than the people they are criticizing.

18/07/2024

You know, we journalists do gossip more than anyone else. The gist here in Ibadan is that some people are planning a pro-FGN protest. So, pro and anti groups may likely clash with original charms and Japanese cutlasses that day. If you want to come out that day, please order an original charm. That's the best advice I can give you.