Nigeria's outgoing government has agreed to pay a debt of $800 million to resolve a months-long fuel crisis crippling the economy days before the inauguration of a new president in the country, oil suppliers said Wednesday.
Chaos reigned Tuesday at Nigerian airports where most flights were cancelled. Foreign airlines flew to other African countries to refuel. Cars and other vehicles formed queues two and three deep blocking roads for more than 2 kilometers (a mile) outside of gas stations. Attendants turned away people carrying yellow cans to buy kerosene for cooking. There was none.
Banks started closing at lunchtime on Monday and cell phone companies warned they would be forced to shut down service countrywide for lack of diesel to fuel generators.
Nigeria — Africa's biggest oil producer— generates more than 2 million barrels of petroleum a day but imports the refined product because its refineries are not maintained. A woeful national grid that offers only a few hours of electricity on a good day failed to generate any electricity recently because of shortages of thermal gas to fire its generators. That leaves all businesses and homes that can afford it dependent on diesel-powered generators. The country frequently suffers fuel shortages, but the disruption caused by the latest is unprecedented.
President-elect Buhari's party accused President Goodluck Jonathan's administration of sabotage to ensure it inherits "a nation in crisis."
Months of backlog mean the shortages still will be biting when dozens of presidents and U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry are scheduled to arrive for Friday's inauguration.
The Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria said the finance minister agreed Monday to pay them $800 million. It said companies started distributing oil Tuesday and unpaid tanker drivers stopped striking.
There was no immediate statement from the finance minister, who accused the suppliers of holding Nigeria to ransom over the disputed debt, bemoaning "so much fraud allegations and scams in this business of oil marketing."
Nigeria's government, hit by halved prices for the petroleum that provides 80 percent of its revenue and a massive slump in its naira currency, has been borrowing to pay salaries.
Suppliers, hit by tightened credit lines and naira repayments to pay dollar debts, worried they would not be paid by the incoming government of Muhammadu Buhari, who has pledged to fight endemic corruption.
Buhari's party accused the outgoing government of President Goodluck Jonathan of sabotage to ensure it inherits "a nation in crisis."
AP
Related story: Fuel shortage in Nigeria
Wednesday, May 27, 2015
Tuesday, May 26, 2015
Deal reached to end current fuel crisis in Nigeria
Nigeria's fuel wholesalers say they have reached a deal with the government that should soon see the end of the crippling fuel crisis.
The agreement was reached after talks with the finance minister, Danladi Fasali from the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association told the BBC.
The wholesalers had stopped distributing fuel after alleging the government owed them $1bn (£625m).
The shortage has had an impact on the country's aviation and banking sectors.
The party of President-elect Muhammadu Buhari, who is due to take office on Friday, had accused the outgoing government of "sabotage" for failing to deal with the crisis.
At the heart of the shortage has been a row over the payment to wholesalers of the difference between the subsidised pump price and the international market price.
The wholesalers say they were waiting for a $1bn payout from the government before they released more fuel.
But now the marketers association has told its members to start transporting fuel from the depots in the commercial capital, Lagos, and fuel stations have been instructed to reopen, Mr Fasali told the BBC Hausa Service.
A committee will now be set up to verify the $1bn figure and then pay the outstanding money. The government has not yet confirmed the details.
It appears the fuel importers and marketers who operate a multi-billion dollar scam have blackmailed the government into agreeing to one more payout as they are not sure how much longer the fuel subsidy racket will go on.
The details of the payout are not clear.
Over the last few weeks, they literally shut down the nation saying they were owed $1bn in arrears, but no-one has yet seen how that figure is worked out.
Many government officials, including employees of the state fuel company, are so intertwined in the fraud it is hard to know who is scamming who.
One thing is clear. Nigerians across the country trying to earn a living to feed their families are facing a new level of hardship.
When it comes to the fuel sector the incoming president is inheriting one hell of a corrupt mess.
Most Nigerian businesses and homes rely on diesel-powered generators because of the poor electricity infrastructure.
On Monday, some of the country's leading banks introduced shortened branch opening hours.
Three of the country's mobile phone companies, MTN, Airtel and Etisalat, warned that the fuel scarcity could affect their services as they were finding it difficult to supply diesel to the base stations.
Many domestic flights have been cancelled and some international flights have been landing in neighbouring countries to refuel.
Traffic on the roads has also reduced as many fuel stations have stopped selling petrol and there are long queues at places where petrol is available.
It is not clear how quickly the fuel will now reach the petrol stations and queues are likely to remain for the next day or two, our correspondent says.
BBC
The agreement was reached after talks with the finance minister, Danladi Fasali from the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association told the BBC.
The wholesalers had stopped distributing fuel after alleging the government owed them $1bn (£625m).
The shortage has had an impact on the country's aviation and banking sectors.
The party of President-elect Muhammadu Buhari, who is due to take office on Friday, had accused the outgoing government of "sabotage" for failing to deal with the crisis.
At the heart of the shortage has been a row over the payment to wholesalers of the difference between the subsidised pump price and the international market price.
The wholesalers say they were waiting for a $1bn payout from the government before they released more fuel.
But now the marketers association has told its members to start transporting fuel from the depots in the commercial capital, Lagos, and fuel stations have been instructed to reopen, Mr Fasali told the BBC Hausa Service.
A committee will now be set up to verify the $1bn figure and then pay the outstanding money. The government has not yet confirmed the details.
It appears the fuel importers and marketers who operate a multi-billion dollar scam have blackmailed the government into agreeing to one more payout as they are not sure how much longer the fuel subsidy racket will go on.
The details of the payout are not clear.
Over the last few weeks, they literally shut down the nation saying they were owed $1bn in arrears, but no-one has yet seen how that figure is worked out.
Many government officials, including employees of the state fuel company, are so intertwined in the fraud it is hard to know who is scamming who.
One thing is clear. Nigerians across the country trying to earn a living to feed their families are facing a new level of hardship.
When it comes to the fuel sector the incoming president is inheriting one hell of a corrupt mess.
Most Nigerian businesses and homes rely on diesel-powered generators because of the poor electricity infrastructure.
On Monday, some of the country's leading banks introduced shortened branch opening hours.
Three of the country's mobile phone companies, MTN, Airtel and Etisalat, warned that the fuel scarcity could affect their services as they were finding it difficult to supply diesel to the base stations.
Many domestic flights have been cancelled and some international flights have been landing in neighbouring countries to refuel.
Traffic on the roads has also reduced as many fuel stations have stopped selling petrol and there are long queues at places where petrol is available.
It is not clear how quickly the fuel will now reach the petrol stations and queues are likely to remain for the next day or two, our correspondent says.
BBC
Monday, May 25, 2015
Nigeria draws with Canada in women's football friendly
Canada’s women’s soccer team kept a duo of strong Nigerian strikers at bay but did little else during a scoreless draw against the African team on Monday, their first since returning to home soil ahead of June’s Women’s World Cup.
“We had a good fifteen minutes, and that’s about it really,” said coach John Herdman following the match, which saw the Canadians battle not only the Nigerian’s unfamiliar man-marking system but a blustering wind during the game at TFC’s training facility at Downsview Park.
The Nigerians are a tournament dark horse. Lead by forwards Desire Oparanozie and Asisat Oshoala, the Super Falcons will compete in Group D with the Americans, Australia and Sweden. It’s deemed this year’s “Group of Death.”
They also are a coach’s nightmare because of their alien man-to-man style of play, said Herdman, who oscillated between a high perch atop a parked scissor lift and his regular position on the sidelines during Monday’s game.
Setting up the training match, which saw every uninjured Canadian player on the pitch over the four quarters, was a tactical move, said the Englishman.
“We could’ve went in for a European team with a nice zonal system, but said we were going to thrown the cat among the pigeons and put them in against man-markers and a direct team.”
The Nigerians were the first to register a shot on net early in the first half, when a shot from forty yards out ricocheted off Karina LeBlanc’s crossbar.
It was Canadian midfielder Sophie Schmidt who had the most — and arguably best — of her team’s chances. A free kick in the first half banged off the crossbar, while a low shot following a driving run into the 18-yard box hit outside of the left post and into the side netting, early in the second half.
King City-born Adriana Leon, who will participate in her first senior World Cup come June 6, nearly directed a glancing header into the bottom left corner late in the game, but fellow striker Christine Sinclair couldn’t capitalize on a slight fumble by the Nigerian ’keeper.
The Super Falcons are one of the most physical teams Kadeisha Buchanan has ever faced, the central defender said following the match.
Buchanan, one of the only Canadian players to feature for the full 90 minutes Monday, is familiar with Nigeria’s striker Oshoala. Both played in the 2014 under-20 World Cup in Canada last year, though they didn’t face each other. Germany defeated the Canadians in the quarter-finals before besting Nigeria 1-0 to hoist the trophy.
Buchanan said she shadowed the forward, who won both the Golden Ball and the Golden Boot award at last year’s tournament, and was happy the team was able to keep her off the scoresheet Monday.
It’s one of the only pluses Canada can take from the match, though Herdman said he was comfortable with the performance and did praise the team’s physicality.
Now the focus turns to nursing some new injuries back to health ahead of the friendly match against sixth-ranked England in Hamilton on Friday.
Right-backs Rhian Wilkinson and Marie-Eve Nault were both out injured Monday, as was striker Jonelle Filigno, who broke her nose while training down south last week. Midifielder Diana Matheson, who tore her ACL last fall before breaking her foot in March, did not dress.
England’s zonal defence will make for a more conventional match later this week, Herdman said.
“They’ll be on this blade of grass when the ball’s here, on this blade of grass when the ball’s there. It’s a lot more predictable, and that’s what we train for.”
The Star
“We had a good fifteen minutes, and that’s about it really,” said coach John Herdman following the match, which saw the Canadians battle not only the Nigerian’s unfamiliar man-marking system but a blustering wind during the game at TFC’s training facility at Downsview Park.
The Nigerians are a tournament dark horse. Lead by forwards Desire Oparanozie and Asisat Oshoala, the Super Falcons will compete in Group D with the Americans, Australia and Sweden. It’s deemed this year’s “Group of Death.”
They also are a coach’s nightmare because of their alien man-to-man style of play, said Herdman, who oscillated between a high perch atop a parked scissor lift and his regular position on the sidelines during Monday’s game.
Setting up the training match, which saw every uninjured Canadian player on the pitch over the four quarters, was a tactical move, said the Englishman.
“We could’ve went in for a European team with a nice zonal system, but said we were going to thrown the cat among the pigeons and put them in against man-markers and a direct team.”
The Nigerians were the first to register a shot on net early in the first half, when a shot from forty yards out ricocheted off Karina LeBlanc’s crossbar.
It was Canadian midfielder Sophie Schmidt who had the most — and arguably best — of her team’s chances. A free kick in the first half banged off the crossbar, while a low shot following a driving run into the 18-yard box hit outside of the left post and into the side netting, early in the second half.
King City-born Adriana Leon, who will participate in her first senior World Cup come June 6, nearly directed a glancing header into the bottom left corner late in the game, but fellow striker Christine Sinclair couldn’t capitalize on a slight fumble by the Nigerian ’keeper.
The Super Falcons are one of the most physical teams Kadeisha Buchanan has ever faced, the central defender said following the match.
Buchanan, one of the only Canadian players to feature for the full 90 minutes Monday, is familiar with Nigeria’s striker Oshoala. Both played in the 2014 under-20 World Cup in Canada last year, though they didn’t face each other. Germany defeated the Canadians in the quarter-finals before besting Nigeria 1-0 to hoist the trophy.
Buchanan said she shadowed the forward, who won both the Golden Ball and the Golden Boot award at last year’s tournament, and was happy the team was able to keep her off the scoresheet Monday.
It’s one of the only pluses Canada can take from the match, though Herdman said he was comfortable with the performance and did praise the team’s physicality.
Now the focus turns to nursing some new injuries back to health ahead of the friendly match against sixth-ranked England in Hamilton on Friday.
Right-backs Rhian Wilkinson and Marie-Eve Nault were both out injured Monday, as was striker Jonelle Filigno, who broke her nose while training down south last week. Midifielder Diana Matheson, who tore her ACL last fall before breaking her foot in March, did not dress.
England’s zonal defence will make for a more conventional match later this week, Herdman said.
“They’ll be on this blade of grass when the ball’s here, on this blade of grass when the ball’s there. It’s a lot more predictable, and that’s what we train for.”
The Star
Video - President-elect Muhammadu Buhari may pardon death-row soldiers
Dozens of Nigerian soldiers could be spared in the coming months. A military court sentenced them to death for refusing to fight Boko Haram. But president-elect Muhammadu Buhari's plan to review all military operations against the insurgent group could see the soldiers spared.
Related story: 54 Nigerian soldiers sentenced to death by firing squad
Video - Nigeria Super Eagles coach talks about challenges ahead
Super Eagles coach Stephen Keshi says he is determined to leave a lasting legacy as he begins a second stint as coach of one of Africa's most famous footballing nations.
The 53 year old will hope for an improved relationship with the new officials at the Nigeria Football Federation as he tries to steer the 2013 champions back to the top in his second coming.
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