Nigeria’s state oil company increased the pump price of gasoline by nearly 15%, weeks after prices almost tripled following the scrapping of fuel subsidies and a sharp depreciation of the naira, which made imports more costly.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Co. on Tuesday raised the cost to 617 naira ($0.78) a liter from 537 naira in Abuja, the nation’s capital, according to pump price adjustments at the company’s mega station seen by Bloomberg.

President Bola Tinubu in late May scrapped fuel subsidies that cost the government $10 billion in 2022 and opened the market to other gasoline importers, ending the NNPC’s monopoly. His administration also devalued the naira last month in an attempt to liberalize the currency market.

Soaring fuel prices could constrain the central bank’s efforts to contain inflation in Africa’s most populous nation, where about 40% of the population live in extreme poverty. The monetary policy committee has lifted its key interest rate by 700 basis points since May 2022 to a record 18.5%. Price-growth accelerated to a near 18-year high of 22.8% in June and is likely to surge further when the impact of the fuel subsidies removal and the weakening of the currency register, the statistics agency said Monday in a tweet.

To cushion Nigerians from the impact of the removal of gasoline subsidies, Tinubu asked lawmakers last week to approve N500 billion of spending.

New Licenses

Tinubu’s administration has also issued at least 56 licenses to petrol importers to supply the product, according to Farouk Ahmed, chief executive of the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority.

“This is the first thing we are seeing after the deregulation that now marketers are actually participating in the market,” he said from Abuja by phone.

 

In just over two weeks, Borno State has experienced four devastating attacks by Boko Haram insurgents that killed at least 36 persons in the state.

These attacks, mostly targeted at farmers in their fields, threaten a reversal of the relative peace and food security that the state gradually attained over the years.  

The attacks that happened between June 14 and June 30 also left many farmers injured, and scared many farmers off their fields this season. 

These attacks, which are likely to be higher than reported, mostly took place in southern Borno–the agricultural hub of the state–and are threatening food security in Borno, the North East, and the country at large. 

The most recent attack was on June 26 when suspected Boko Haram militants ambushed eight farmers on their way to farm and slaughtered seven farmers in Damboa Local Government Area of the state. 

Locals and security sources said the incident happened around 11:30am in the Bulajimbam area of the council. 

“It is sad; seven people lost their lives and you see it is difficult for us to tell these people not to go to farm. We are working hard to ensure they are protected,” a security source who preferred anonymity told our correspondent. 

In another attack, on June 14, 15 people working on their farmlands were also slaughtered and some beheaded by suspected Boko Haram insurgents in Damboa and Jere local government areas. 

Bukar Ali Musty, a top member of the vigilante group, said the farmers were working on their farmlands near Molai, on the outskirts of Maiduguri, when insurgents attacked and beheaded them. 

“At least 15 dead bodies were evacuated after the attack this morning. 

“Seven farmers were beheaded while working on their farms and the attackers also slit the throats of eight other harmless civilians in their homes,” the vigilante source said. 

On June 22, eight wood mongers were also killed in a fresh Boko Haram attack in Mafa, the local government council of Borno State governor, Professor Babagana Umara Zulum. 

This attack, which came barely a week after that of the slain farmers, happened in Bulamari village.

According to a Civilian JTF source, the insurgents killed eight out of the nine young loggers who were under the age of 20 and deliberately spared the life of one.

“They only allowed one Babakura, a 15-year-old boy, to come and break the story in the town.  

“They tied their hands behind their backs and shot them in the heads. We went there together with the Civilians’ Joint Task Force to bring the corpses for burial; only one person was married among them, and all of them were young men,” he said. 

On June 30, six other people, including a woman, were killed by the suspected Islamic State of West African Province (ISWAP) in Damboa Local Government Area of the state. 

According to sources, the attackers stormed the town around 8:30pm and fired mortar bombs into Damboa town, the local government headquarters, and 21 innocent people were injured. 

Sources from the security claimed that after failing to gain access into the town, the attackers hauled a mortar bomb that killed six people and injured 21 in Wulari area, near the district head’s palace. 

“Yes, there was an attack by ISWAP last night in Damboa town. We lost six people including women and more than 20 people were taken to the hospital, but the situation is calm now,” a security source said. 

A top member of Civilian JTF reported that those killed included housewives and aged women.

However, the most disturbing aspect of the killings is their change of modus operandi; the insurgents now trail the farmers and slaughter them quietly in their isolated farmlands. 

Also, in most of these areas attacked by the insurgents, the locals complained of minimal or no security presence at the time of the attacks.

ISWAB accuses locals of spying, bans farming

In a new development, the Islamic State West Africa Province (ISWAP) was said to have imposed a ban on farming, fishing, and herding activities in the remote northeastern region of Marte. 

A local source confirmed that the move was to halt agricultural activities in areas under the control of the ISWAP to punish the farming communities over alleged spying for the military that carried out aerial bombardment in their location. 

It was gathered that in the coordinated airstrikes, many ISWAP commanders were killed, and the group was forced to abandon their bases and seek refuge in locations perceived as safer for them. 

It was gathered that the ISWAP Leadership vowed to kill farmers or fishermen found within the general areas of Katikime, Bulungahe, Kutukungunla, Chikun Gudu, Tumbumma, Guma Kura, Guma Gana and New Marte, after accusing them of spying on their activities to the Nigerian military.

Zulum releases 80 vehicles to transport farmers to Damboa 

Meanwhile, the Borno State governor, Babagana Zulum, has released 50 buses and 30 pick-up vans to convey farmers to their farms for free in Damboa LGA and other parts of the state. 

“To reduce the high cost of living caused by the withdrawal of fuel subsidy, Zulum released 80 buses and pick up vans for free transportation of farmers. 

“The 80 means of transport will comprise 50 luxurious buses to be allocated from the fleet of the Borno Express Corporation, while the 30 pick-up vans will be hired by the state government,” he said.

Zulum urged the military to consider the farmers’ population to avoid subjecting them to the rigour of checks that would consume the farming period.

“You can see thousands of farmers are here; with their number over 10,000. We acknowledge the tremendous support of the Nigeria Army, the police and paramilitary but we must review the hardship of these local people. 

“I’m here not to undermine the effort of the Nigerian army, but to make things easy for the generality of the people of Borno State. For this, the Nigerian Army should devise methods of surveillance to reduce the hardships. 

“Rainy season has a short span, a maximum of three months; screening each and sundry would take at least four hours, and this is never possible.  

“I’m urging the Nigerian Army to look into the possibility of allowing the farmers to go into their farmlands to farm on time, because food insecurity is the worst form of insecurity,” he said. 

Farmers fear possible attacks 

With these attacks that continue to escalate, farmers in Damboa, especially the western part, have continued to express uncertainties over the security situation in the area. 

One of the farmers, Sheriff Damboa, said despite huge intervention by the state government, many farmers were forced to abandon their farms. 

“Lots of farmers have abandoned their farmlands for fear of being killed, especially after the most recent killings. Days after Eid-el-adha, 6 farmers were slaughtered. We recovered their corpses and buried them. 

“So, if enough security is not provided, farmers wouldn’t be able to carry out their farm activities without fear, especially in this season that we are experiencing a shortage of rainfall. The worst part is that after all the hardships, most farmers have to pay or even get killed by the insurgents before they harvest,” he said.

Another farmer, Hassan Mohammed, said farmers could only cultivate within five kilometres from Damboa town. 

“Nobody can cultivate beyond 5km from Damboa town because the security operatives concentrate in the town and its fringes. So, those with the illusion that more land would be opened up for cultivation are not telling you the truth,” he added.

 

Daily Trust

The European Union (EU) said on Tuesday that Europe's slave-trading past inflicted "untold suffering" on millions of people and hinted at the need for reparations for what it described as a "crime against humanity".

From the 15th to the 19th century, at least 12.5 million Africans were kidnapped and forcibly transported by mostly European ships and sold into slavery. Almost half were taken by Portugal to Brazil.

The idea of paying reparations or making other amends for slavery has a long history but the movement is gaining momentum worldwide.

Leaders of EU and the Community of Latin American and Caribbean States (CELAC) met in Brussels this week for a two-day summit.

As the event started on Monday, Ralph Gonsalves, premier of Saint Vincent and the Grenadines, the current holder of CELAC's presidency, said he wanted the summit's final statement to include language on the "historical legacies of native genocide and enslavement of African bodies" and "reparatory justice".

But some European governments were wary of proposed language on reparations, diplomats said.

EU and CELAC agreed on one paragraph that acknowledged and "profoundly" regretted the "untold suffering inflicted on millions of men, women and children as a result of the transatlantic slave trade".

It said slavery and the transatlantic slave trade were "appalling tragedies ... not only because of their abhorrent barbarism but also in terms of their magnitude". Slavery was a "crime against humanity", it said.

In the statement, adopted by leaders of both sides, the CELAC referred to a 10-point reparation plan by the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), which, among other measures, urges European countries to formally apologise for slavery.

The plan demands a repatriation programme that would allow people to relocate to African nations if they want to and support from European nations to tackle public health and economic crises. It also calls for debt cancellation.

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The CARICOM reparations commission "sees the persistent racial victimisation of the descendants of slavery and genocide as the root cause of their suffering today", the plan said.

Earlier this month, Dutch King Willem-Alexander apologised for the Netherlands' historic involvement in slavery and in April King Charles gave his support to research that would examine the British monarchy's links to slavery.

In Portugal, President Marcelo Rebelo de Sousa said his country should apologise for its role in the transatlantic slave trade but critics said apologies were not enough and practical measures were essential to address the past.

 

Reuters

South African President Cyril Ramaphosa said a court order that would force him to commit to arresting Russian leader Vladimir Putin if he attends a BRICS summit in Johannesburg next month would be premature, and effecting such a ruling would be tantamount to a declaration of war.

The Democratic Alliance, South Africa’s main opposition party, approached the country’s High Court to compel the government to honor an International Criminal Court warrant issued against Putin that’s related to war crimes during the invasion of Ukraine. South Africa is a signatory to the Rome Statute that established the ICC and is bound by its decisions.

The government is aware of its legal obligations and is seeking ways to deal with the warrant, Ramaphosa said in an answering affidavit to the DA’s application. He argued that until Putin lands in the country — and he may never do so — he is under no obligation to pronounce on the matter.

“Any obligation to arrest has not arisen,” Ramaphosa said. “It would potentially arise if President Putin were to come to South Africa.”

South Africa has sought to get around the warrant by either moving the summit to China or hosting it virtually, but both options were vetoed by other BRICS members. Putin has insisted on leading his nation’s delegation to the gathering, according to local media reports, placing South Africa in a conundrum.

The government is consulting with the ICC in light of its concerns about arresting Putin, including that it could trigger conflict and compromise an African leaders’ initiative to broker peace in Ukraine, according to Ramaphosa.

“Russia has made it clear that the arrest of President Putin would be a declaration of war against Russia,” he said.

“The ICC itself has expressed concern over Russia’s nuclear threat, following the arrest warrant. South Africa has no capacity to declare or wage war with Russia. Nor does it wish to.”

Pretoria drew international criticism in 2015 when it refused to execute an ICC arrest warrant for then-Sudanese President Omar al-Bashir, who had been indicted for war crimes and genocide, while he was attending a meeting of African leaders in Johannesburg. South Africa’s Supreme Court of Appeals ruled that the government had acted unlawfully and the ICC said it failed to comply with its international obligations.

 

Bloomberg

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Russia carries out air strikes for second night on Ukraine's Odesa port - governor

Ukrainian air defence systems were engaged in the early hours of Wednesday in repelling a Russian air attack on the southern port of Odesa for a second consecutive night, the region's governor said.

Russia struck Ukrainian ports on Tuesday, a day after pulling out of a U.N.-backed deal for safe Black Sea grain exports, a decision that raised concern primarily in Africa and Asia of rising food prices and hunger.

"Do not approach the windows, do not shoot or show the work of air defence forces," Odesa governor Oleh Kiper said on the Telegram messaging app.

All of the eastern part of Ukraine was under air raid alerts, starting soon after midnight on Wednesday.

In other battlefield reports, Moscow and Kyiv gave vastly different accounts of fighting in northeastern Ukraine on Tuesday.

Six weeks since Ukraine launched a counteroffensive in the east and south, Russia is mounting a ground offensive of its own in the northeast. Moscow says the Ukrainian assault has failed.

A Russian Defence Ministry spokesman said its forces had advanced by up to 2 km (1.2 miles) in the direction of Kupiansk, an important railway junction in the northeastern Kharkiv region.

But Ukrainian Deputy Defence Minister Hanna Maliar said the initiative in the area had switched to Ukrainian forces.

She said Ukrainian forces made new gains near Bakhmut in the east, a town that was captured by Russian forces in May after months of battles.

Valery Shershen, a spokesperson for Ukrainian troops on the southern front, reported heavy fighting around the village of Staromayorske. "We have made advances through the streets," Shershen told the Espreso TV online outlet but said Ukrainian forces did not have complete control of the village.

Russian Defence Ministry accounts said Moscow's forces had hit groups of Ukrainian soldiers around Staromayorske.

Reuters could not independently verify the battlefield reports of either side.

Since Ukraine began its counteroffensive last month, its forces equipped with billions of dollars worth of new Western weapons and ammunition have yet to attempt a major breakthrough across heavily defended Russian lines.

UN WORKS ON IDEAS FOR GRAIN EXPORTS

At the United Nations on Tuesday, U.N. spokesman Stephane Dujarric said there were a "number of ideas being floated" to help get Ukrainian and Russian grain and fertilizer to global markets. Moscow's decision raised concern primarily in Africa and Asia of rising food prices and hunger.

The Black Sea deal was brokered by the U.N. and Turkey in July last year to combat a global food crisis worsened by Russia's February 2022 invasion of Ukraine and its blockade of Ukrainian ports. The two countries are among the world's top grain exporters.

For Ukraine's part, "we are fighting for global security and for our Ukrainian farmer" and working on options to keep commitments on food supply, President Volodymyr Zelenskiy said in his nightly video address on Tuesday.

Moscow spurned calls from Ukraine to allow shipping to resume without Russian participation, with the Kremlin openly saying ships entering the area without its guarantees would be in danger.

"We're talking about an area that's close to a war zone," Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov said. "Without the appropriate security guarantees, certain risks arise there. So if something is formalised without Russia, these risks should be taken into account."

Russia says it could return to the grain deal, but only if its demands are met for rules to be eased for its own exports of food and fertiliser. Western countries call that an attempt to use leverage over food supplies to force a weakening in financial sanctions, which already allow Russia to sell food.

 

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

US believes Western warplanes won’t help Ukraine – WaPo

Even if Ukraine receives modern Western-made jets, they will be of little use because of Russia’s powerful air defenses, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed US officials.
Amid a Ukrainian counteroffensive that Moscow claims has failed to gain any ground, officials in Kiev have stepped up requests for advanced aircraft, particularly US-designed F-16s, arguing they could play a key role in countering Russian air power.
While Kiev’s Western backers have announced a training program for Ukrainian pilots to fly the jets, they have yet to greenlight their delivery.
According to the Washington Post, Ukrainian officials have rebuked their Western counterparts, claiming that if they were in the same situation as Kiev, they would never have pressed ahead with a large-scale offensive without air support.

“So, to say that it [the offensive] is slow or too fast is at least ridiculous to hear from those who have no idea what it is,” the commander-in-chief of Ukraine’s armed forces, Valery Zaluzhny, told the paper.

However, according to unnamed US officials interviewed by the Post, “Western jets would have little utility” for Ukraine in the current circumstances because of Russia’s “extensive air defenses.” Instead, one source argued that Kiev’s best tactic would be to rely on a “combined-arms approach.” 

Another US official told the paper that while Washington has trained Kiev’s troops how to conduct offensive maneuvers and has provided them with mine-sweeping equipment, they are still struggling to overcome strong Russian anti-tank defenses and drone strikes. “We don’t underestimate or under-appreciate that it’s a very tough situation,” the source added.

Citing F-16 pilots, Bloomberg reported in May that while the jets would definitely help Kiev, they would not be a “game changer” because their radars and missile systems are inferior to modern Russian equipment. That would mean using the warplanes either defensively or as part of high-risk operations.

Russian President Vladimir Putin has warned that if the West proceeds with F-16 shipments to Ukraine, the aircraft “will burn” just like other hardware. Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov has said that F-16 deliveries would be an escalatory move as they can carry nuclear weapons.

** US pressuring Ukraine for ‘decisive breakthrough’ – WaPo

US officials are reportedly concerned that Ukraine is not making enough progress in its much-lauded counteroffensive, the Washington Post reported on Tuesday citing anonymous sources.

According to the outlet, Washington is urging Kiev to commit to a decisive breakthrough as Ukrainian commanders have yet to employ the large-scale offensive tactics they were taught by Western instructors.

An unnamed US official explained to the Washington Post that the West had trained Ukrainian forces in integrated offensive maneuvers, as well as provided mine-clearing equipment, and stressed that it was “paramount”that Kiev’s troops quickly apply those capabilities to breach Russia’s defenses.

Western officials have reportedly criticized Ukraine’s military for embracing an attrition-based approach aimed at firing artillery and missiles at command, transport and logistics sites at the rear of Russian positions instead of using Western-style “combined arms” operations that involve large-scale maneuvers featuring tanks, armored vehicles, infantry, artillery, and air power, the outlet said.

Analysts at the Institute for the Study of War have pointed out that Ukrainian commanders have chosen to embrace more low-profile advances involving groups of 15 to 50 soldiers in order to preserve manpower. The Washington Post also noted that Kiev has so far only fielded “four of a dozen trained brigades in the current campaign.”

Kiev’s attempts to breach Russian defenses have so far been met with “overwhelming artillery, anti tank missiles, loitering munitions and helicopter fire” which have caused significant losses. Russia’s extensive use of drones has also presented a challenge that “not even American forces – for all their combat experience in recent decades – have faced on this scale,” the Post said.

Experts have said that while advances on foot would likely reduce the attrition sustained by the Ukrainian army, such tactics would be much slower and be much less likely to provide an opportunity for a rapid breakthrough.

Ukrainian officials, in turn, have rebuked demands from their Western counterparts to speed up the operation and have instead stressed the need to avoid unnecessary losses and complained about the lack of air support. 

Kiev has repeatedly pleaded with its Western backers provide its forces with US-designed F-16 fighter jets, arguing that they would play a key role in countering Russian air power. 

Western officials, however, have reportedly insisted that the jets would not be a “game changer,” while Russia has responded by saying  the aircraft would be destroyed like any other foreign military equipment in Ukraine.

** Russian air defenses destroy 43 Ukrainian military drones over past day

Russian air defense forces destroyed 43 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles and intercepted three rockets of the US-made HIMARS multiple launch rocket system over the past day in the special military operation in Ukraine, Defense Ministry Spokesman Lieutenant-General Igor Konashenkov reported on Tuesday.

"During the last 24-hour period, air defense capabilities intercepted three rockets of the HIMARS multiple launch rocket system," the spokesman said.

In addition, Russian air defense systems destroyed 43 Ukrainian unmanned aerial vehicles in areas near the settlements of Tavolzhanka and Zhovtnevoye in the Kharkov Region, Novodruzhesk, Berestovoye and Zaliman in the Lugansk People’s Republic, Krasnaya Gora and Podgornoye in the Donetsk People’s Republic, Novogorovka, Rabotino, Gulyaipole and Mirnoye in the Zaporozhye Region and Geroiskoye in the Kherson Region, the general reported.

 

RT

President Bola Tinubu has asked for and received the approval of the national assembly for N500 billion to be used as palliatives. It is a thousand pities that the president has allowed himself to be persuaded to regress and take the inadvisable option of a trek down the same path in which hypocritic care for the poor was used as an emotional blackmail to corrupt and ruin the national economy for many, many years.

His decision came as a huge and disturbing shock to those of us who enthusiastically applauded his courage to bite the bullet by letting fuel subsidy become instant history from May 29 when he assumed office. It was a courageous decision that blocked a major leakage in the national economy. It is a decision we expect the president to stand by and defend in our national interest. Sadly, he appears to have wilted in the heat of the groaning and given in to the persuasive do-gooders who care less for the poor but more for their pockets.

I thought palliatives became history at the same time with fuel subsidy. To see the nation dragged back into the palliatives regime takes something away from the courage the president showed in his instant response to the fuel subsidy that had had a strangle hold on the jugular vein of the economy for too long. Yes, there is pain in the land. It would be foolish to contest that.

Every major economic or political decision causes pain and distress to the populace. When the president took the decision, he knew only too well that there would be groaning and gnashing of teeth in the land. But he did what he did because the current pains will be a child's play if we continued with a policy that bled the economy and enriched the few at the expense of the many. To roll back an important decision such as this is to give in to emotional blackmail. We cannot continue to do the same thing and expect things to change for the better.

Palliatives have a long history and like fuel subsidy nothing about its history smells roses. Like fuel subsidy the administration of palliatives regime was corrupt and became an instant source of wealth for the army of consultants and business compradors. Its beneficiaries were not the supposed poor and the vulnerable. Rather they were the same rich people who are not tired of making money.

A major part of the corruption in the Buhari administration was the administration of the palliatives regime. President Tinubu could not have been unaware of this. Perhaps, he needs to audit the palliatives regime under Buhari to see if his father Christmas generosity is what the country needs to renew its faith in governance and its political leadership. Tinubu must never forget that his contract with the people is hope renewal. You do not renew hope in a country down on the ropes without decidedly harsh and painful decisions.

We have been on this road for as long as anyone can remember. The president said 12 million households will be paid N8,000 a month for six months. There are 138 million people living below the poverty line. Will this payment make a dent in our level of poverty?

The money cannot help the poor. It cannot bring down transport fares and food prices. With it, the consultants will become richer and the poor for whose sake the palliatives have been put back, will continue to endure the pains of an economy that refuses to wear a human face and dispense the milk of human kindness.

The challenge before every federal administration is how best to tackle our national poverty. It has always been a choice between giving the people fish and teaching them how to finish. Every administration has so far opted for giving them fish. It did not stop poverty. Nigerians are creative and resourceful people. Giving them fish kills their resourceful and entrepreneurial spirit.

The woman who roasts corn and yams by the roadside is not asking for or waiting for handouts from the government because when the handouts dry out, she will have been taken that high and dropped with a thud. She wants economic policies that create opportunities for her enterprise.

President Obasanjo first came up with poverty eradication programme. He later changed it to poverty reduction programme. In both cases, the core policy was the same. A number of people were selected in each local government area and paid N3,500 a month. Both programmes neither eradicated poverty nor reduced it.

Recall that each time the prices of petroleum product were raised government sought ways to minimize its crushing effects on the poor. President Ibrahim Babangida tried to institute a regime of fuel price differentials between commercial vehicles and private vehicles in the hope that if the commercial drivers bought fuel cheaply, they would reduce their fares and the poor would benefit. It did not work.

Obasanjo increased fuel prices three times in his eight years in office. His first approach to save the poor from being crushed by higher petroleum prices was for the federal and state governments to buy and sell commercial vehicles to bona fide transporters at subsidised rates. Cheaper commercial vehicles could logically make commercial vehicle owners charge cheaper fares. It did not work. The third time, he directed state governments to buy and sell Keke Napep to young men at subsidised rates. That too did not work.

All countries face the challenges of poverty among the people. Each nation decides on its best approach to it, but I am yet to hear of a nation that pulled itself up from the marsh of poverty with palliatives that offer only cosmetic and temporary relief to the people. India is a modern example of how a nation can determinedly tackle poverty. It pulled off its label as the poverty capital of the world. It did not do it with palliatives. It tackled the root of poverty and systematically lifted a number of people each year out of poverty. And Nigeria took over from it as the poverty capital of the world in 2017.

There has to be a more creative and pragmatic response to the poverty challenge by governments at the centre and the constituent states of the federation. Under this administration, we want to see less of the same and more of the new. Surely, throwing money at poverty has never reduced poverty anywhere in the world. History has no such record. To insist that Nigeria can be an exception wins our economic planners no laurels.

Palliatives will win applause, but it will solve no problems. It should not be impossible for the Tinubu administration to do things differently. The government needs to put certain things right. Our peasant farmers will return to their farms once they no longer fear bandits and kidnappers. Our petty traders and local transporters need to feel safe on the roads. The informal sector of the national economy is the province of petty traders and small businesses.

I expect the president to tell us what the nation saves from ending the fuel subsidy. He should then decide to use the saving to tackle some of the pressing national challenges such as insecurity. The late Sani Abacha did so when he raised fuel prices. He used part of the savings to set up the Petroleum Trust Fund headed by Buhari.

It was the first time the people truly benefitted from fuel price increases. But for PTF, many of our inter-state roads would have turned into footpaths by now. Instead of retaining PTF as an interventionist development agency, Obasanjo scrapped it and set up the wasteful FERMA. Retaining PTF would amount to his applause for his arch enemy.

Tinubu can do even better with the savings from the fuel subsidy. He has men and women with the capacity to chart a new path for his government. Palliatives have run their course and should give way to a new thinking on how best to manage our poverty by creatively utilizing our petroleum wealth. Tinubu can halt the tradition of throwing money at problems. It is not the way to go to renew our hopes in our present and our future.

You are poor. Not in the money sense. But in the time sense. I'm also poor. Like you, I suffer from "time poverty". We all do.

In today's fast-paced world, time poverty has become a pressing issue, impacting our happiness and productivity. Our constant connection to technology and obsession with work and money have left us feeling overwhelmed. 

Harvard Business School psychologist Ashley Whillans says that the rising rates of time poverty "have crushing effects on our happiness, our social relationships, and our physical health. Time poverty silences our laughter, steals our joy and depletes our personal well-being."

All is not lost though. By understanding the root causes and implementing effective self-nudging strategies, you can reclaim your time and enhance your well-being, in both your professional life and personal life. Let's look at why we experience time poverty in the first place.

Technology and fragmented leisure

Our constant use of smartphones, tablets, and laptops has fragmented our leisure time into small distracted moments. Whillans and her team call this "time confetti." It's like having a virtual ticker tape parade of tiny moments slipping through your fingers. 

We don't think it's that much. But the constant checking of your phone - an email here, an Instagram scroll there, and before you know it, you've got nothing to show but a craned neck and two sore thumbs. 

The Misconception of money's influence

Society has taught us that money is the key to happiness, but research shows that it only protects against sadness and doesn't guarantee joy. Money can't buy you love, and it certainly can't buy you extra hours in a day. 

"My data suggests that time poverty is also caused by our obsession with work and making money," says Whillans. "We are taught - and incorrectly believe - that money, not time, will bring us greater happiness." 

Money is important. But it isn't everything. Perhaps the new rallying cry for the Future of Work is to shift your focus from chasing dollar bills to cherishing the precious moments that make life truly fulfilling, or at least more fulfilling than the pursuit of money alone.

Strategies for "time abundance"

Reclaiming our time requires intentional choices. Here are three strategies that will make you the time management superhero you were always meant to be:

• Prioritizing meaningful activities: Allocate time for activities that bring joy, such as socializing, volunteering, and exercising. Remember, no matter how busy you are, there's always time for a good laugh with friends.
• Outsourcing and delegation: Identify tasks that drain your time and energy, and consider outsourcing or delegating them. After all, who wants to spend their weekends battling dust bunnies when you could be out exploring the world or indulging in your favorite hobbies?
• Maximizing found moments: Utilize small pockets of free time, like during commutes or waiting in line, for meaningful interactions. Instead of scrolling mindlessly through your phone, strike up a conversation with the person next to you. Call a friend or a parent. Research shows, after all, that stranger conversations can make us feel good - better than we think they do.

 

Inc

President Bola Tinubu has ordered the immediate review of the proposed N8000 conditional cash transfer to Nigerians to cushion the effect of the petrol subsidy removal. 

In a statement on Tuesday night, Dele Alake, special adviser on special duties, communications and strategy, said Tinubu has also directed that the whole gamut of the palliative package of government be unveiled to Nigerians.

“That the N8,000 conditional cash transfer programme envisaged to bring succour to most vulnerable households be reviewed immediately. This is in deference to the views expressed by Nigerians against it,” the statement reads.

 

The Cable

Nigeria’s monthly inflation rate soared to a seven-year high in June, after President Bola Tinubu scrapped fuel subsidies and allowed the currency to weaken before declaring a state of emergency to control staple food costs.

Prices rose 2.1% in the month, the most since May 2016, and annual inflation quickened to 22.8% from 22.4% in May, according to the data published on the National Bureau of Statistics’ website. That was less than the median estimate of seven economists in a Bloomberg survey of 23%.

The annual and monthly upswings were fueled by higher food prices. Annual food inflation quickened to 25.3% in June from 24.8% a month earlier and monthly to 2.4% from 2.2%

Since taking over as president from Muhammadu Buhari in late May, Tinubu has rid the country of costly fuel subsides introduced in the 1970s and eased foreign-exchange controls, which have driven up transport and import costs.

The currency has dropped about 40% against the dollar over the past month and pump prices have almost tripled.

The acceleration in both annual and monthly inflation, and expectations that price pressures will remain elevated may persuade the central bank’s monetary policy committee to increase interest rates later this month.

The impact of the subsidy removal and exchange rate weakness will likely filter through into the July data, Bismarck Rewane, chief executive officer of Financial Derivatives Co. in Lagos said by phone.

“The exchange rate effect came up at the end of June, into July. The price of wheat for instance was increased on July 1. The price of bread is going up on July 27,” Rewane said. “The inflation rate will be nothing less than 25% or 26% for July.”

The MPC has lifted rates by 700 basis points since May 2022 to 18.5% to contain an inflation rate that’s been at more than double the top end of its 6% to 9% target range for over a year. It raised rates by 50 basis points at its two previous meetings.

“Another 50 basis points is what I believe will be delivered by the next meeting, because inflation expectations are still very much on the rise due to ongoing foreign currency and fiscal reforms,” Mosope Arubayi, an economist at IC Group said ahead of the release.

The MPC is due to deliberate on interest rates on July 24-25, at a meeting to be presided over by Folashodun Shonubi, who has been acting as governor since Godwin Emefiele was suspended last month.

 

Bloomberg

Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has accused the All Progressives Congress (APC) of trying to intimidate the judiciary and trigger crises in the country.

Tinubu had asked the election tribunal to dismiss the petition seeking to nullify his election on the grounds that he did not secure 25 percent of lawful votes cast in the federal capital territory (FCT).

In a statement on Monday, Debo Ologunagba, PDP spokesperson, said the threat of a crisis and anarchy by the president is not only subversive but an affront to democratic order and an assault on the corporate existence of the nation.

“It is alarming and disturbing that the APC externalized to the public, their final written address in which they also threatened national peace if the court upholds the clear provisions of section 134 of the constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) with regard to the mandatory and statutory requirements for which a candidate in a presidential election can be declared winner,” the statement reads.

“The threats, either through counsel or officials of the APC are calculated to intimidate and harass the judiciary and indeed Nigerians.

“The PDP holds that the clear intent of the APC is to blackmail the court and emasculate the independence of the judiciary to discharge its duties in accordance with the dictates of the law.

“This action is ostensibly to set the stage to orchestrate violent crisis in various parts of the country with the intention to further blackmail the PEPC.

“We ask, why is the APC externalizing their final written address to the public? Is the APC being pre-emptive and now seeks to heighten tension, subvert the judicial process and trigger anarchy, having realized the weakness of their case before the PEPC?

“The PDP however cautions and emphasizes that Nigeria is a country of rule of law. The statutory requirements for a winner in a presidential election as provided by the constitution of the federal republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended) and the electoral act, 2022 are clear and unambiguous.”

The opposition party asked the APC to respect the provisions of the law and allow the judiciary to discharge its duties independently, without threats, intimidation and coercion.

“Contrary to the doomsday claims of the APC and its lawyers, upholding the provisions of the constitution and the laws at this point will rather promote peace and stability in the polity, deepen our democracy and engender confidence in the institution of the judiciary,” the party added.

The PDP called on Nigerians to remain calm, alert and hopeful in the ability of the judiciary to dispense justice accordingly.

 

The Cable