For the second week running, the deregulation of the dow nstream oil sector and reactions from various stakeholders captured headline news in Nigeria which also recorded its first swine flu case.
The Nigerian Tribune headlined its story “Deregulation: Prepare For Nationwide Strike – Labour Warns Yar’Adua”, and reported that the organised labour in the country had threatened a nationwide strike if the Federal Government went ahead to implement the deregulation of the nation’s downstream oil and gas sector witho ut meeting the set precedent conditions to cushion the effect on the masses.
The threat is coming against the backdrop of President Umar Yar’Adua’s insis tence that deregulating is inevitable to achieve development in the oil and gas industry.
President General of the TUC, Comrade Peter Esele, decried and rebuffed government’s decision on full deregulation if the precedent conditions that would allev iate the hardship on Nigerians were not met, noting that it would negatively impact on the masses.
General Secretary of Labour and Civil Society Coalition (LASCO), Comrade Biodun Aremu, who expressed disappointment at the Yar’Adua-led government, assured gov ernment of a total strike by Nigerian workers if the deregulation policy was implemented as against the wish of the people.
Deputy President of NLC, Comrade Peters Adeyemi, reacting to Yar’Adua’s insistence, said that government should expect a total showdown if it kicked off deregulation. He, however, assured Nigerian workers of full protection of their legitimate rights by the NLC, noting it was time Nigerians rose and stood against all government’s anti-people policies.
According to him, â?The truth is that Nigerian workers have never really benefited from windfall in oil revenue, so government should stop fooling us.’
President Yarâ?Adua had said that deregulation of the petroleum sector was inevitable when he received Baroness Glenys Kinnock, the British Minister of State for Africa, at State House, Abuja.
In its story, headlined “No Date Yet for Deregulation, Says Ajumogobia”, the Guardian reported that as fuel queues continue to emerge in most cities in Nigeria, the Federal Government has again declared that it is yet to take a decision on the take-off date of the deregulation of the downstream sector of the oil and gas industry.
According to the paper, this indication was given by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Odein Ajumogobia, when he fielded questions from journalists in Abuja. However, the minister said that the policy would not bring untoldhardship to Nigerians.
Ajumogobia said government was still consulting with stakeholders, civil society groups and the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) to build consensus.
This Day newspaper, reporting under the headline “Deregulation: FG Outlines Plans to Mitigate Policy”, quoted Ajumogobia as saying that the federal government would utilise funds accruing from the removal of the subsidy on petroleum products
to provide good roads, drinkable water, build modern railways, improve healthcare delivery services and improve the funding for education.
The minister, in a press statement, also assured that the deregulation policy would not bring lasting hardship to Nigerians, adding that government had not fixed any specific date for the take-off of the policy.
The minister said government had expended about N600 billion (about US$ 4 billion) in 2008 and was expected to spend more in 2009 in providing subsidies ‘which goes directly to the purse of some corrupt cabal.’
“NNPC misleading Yar’Adua ” Abdulkadir, IPMAN president”, was the screaming headline of the Sun newspaper which reported “As Nigerians await the implementation of the deregulation of the downstream sector of the oil industry with bated breath, a player in the sector and president of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (PMAN), Alhaji Amimu Abdulkadir, has expressed reservations over the manner the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) is going about the proposed policy.”
The IPMAN president submitted on Saturday that government had not made adequate preparation for those things that would make deregulation a success.
He accused the NNPC of misleading President Yar’Adua when it knows that under the present arrangement of dysfunctional refineries, comatose depots and pipelines, deregulation would not work.
In another headline, “Reps okay deregulation of oil sector”, the Sun reported that the House of Representatives has thrown its weight behind the planned deregulation, insisting that the policy remains the only panacea to ending the crisis in the supply of petroleum products to consumers in all nooks and crannies of the country.
‘Deregulation is the only solution to the problem that we are having now in the supply of products in the downstream sector of the oil industry,’ said Clever Ikisikpo, chairman of the House Committee on the Downstream Sector.
“Deregulation: Don’t deregulate social upheaval, labour leaders warn Yar’Adua”, warned the Vanguard newspaper which reported that the organised Labour had advised President Yar’Adua not to rush to deregulate the down stream sector of the oil industry.
Labour said that the government must meet its conditions before it can deregulate. It said that if the government failed to give its conditions a deep thought, it could then be deregulating social upheaval in the country.
The Daily Independent headline read “Nigeria Records First Swine Flu Case in American Girl”. According to the paper, the Health Minister Babatunde Osotimehin said a nine-year-old American girl had become the first case of swine flu in Nigeria.
He said the girl had “presented flu-like symptom of fever, sore throat, nasal congestion and nausea” to the American consular clinic in Lagos, and she recovered fully after five days of treatment.
“Further to checks in this regard, it has been confirmed that the father, brother and all school contacts of the girl did not suffer from any flu-like symptoms a nd they are all well,” he said
More than 5,700 people have died worldwide since the virus was first discovered in April, with most of the deaths — 4,175 — in the Americas region, according to the World Health Organization.
“American brings Swine Flu to Nigeria”, is the headline story in the Nigerian Tribune. According to the paper, Nigeria recorded the first case of the Influenza A (H1N1), otherwise called the Swine Flu, quoting the Federal Ministry of Health.
The paper said that the case was reported in Nigeria of a nine-year-old female American girl residing in Lagos.
A statement from the Special Assistant (Communications) to the Minister of Health, Mr. Niyi Ojuolape, said the girl had presented flu-like symptoms of fever, so rethroat, nasal congestion and nausea to the American Consular clinic in Lagos and before treatment was started, nasal specimens were taken for routine testing.