The first full day in power of Nigeria's new president has seen people panic-buying fuel following his decision to scrap a decades-long subsidy on petroleum products.

In Monday's inaugural address, Bola Tinubu said the subsidy was "gone".

But he gave no timeframe or any more details of this major policy move.

On Tuesday, his team clarified that he meant the end of June and that the panic buying was "needless", as the policy will not take immediate effect.

Tinubu wants to ease pressure on government finances, but ending the subsidy will increase the cost of petrol and hit other prices too, at a time when inflation is already high.

In response to his comments on Monday, many filling stations hiked the petrol price, while others stopped selling altogether.

Nigeria's state-owned oil company, the sole importer of petroleum products, assured the public that it had enough supplies.

But this did not prevent the panic-buying, with most people fearing a drastic rise in the price of petrol, which should be sold at the regulated price of N185 per litre.

Some people have posted videos online of filling stations already increasing prices, in some cases by more than 200%.

Some drivers of private buses, which many Nigerians rely on to get around, have also been unable to fill up their vehicles.

This has left people stranded at major bus stops in the capital, Abuja, and the country's biggest city, Lagos.

Despite its oil wealth, Nigeria is unable to refine enough crude to meet local demands, so it imports petroleum products, which are then sold at a government-set price.

But the subsidy is a huge drain on public finances. Last year, it gulped N4.3trn and for the first half of this year, N3.36trn was budgeted for it.

On Monday, Tinubu said It could no longer be justified and that the funds would instead be spent on public infrastructure and to improve the lives of people.

But the subsidy has long been seen by many Nigerians as one of the few perks they receive from the state.

The last attempt to remove it in 2012 led to nationwide protests and then President Goodluck Jonathan had to perform a policy U-turn.

So far, a powerful association of those who sell petroleum products has come out to say it does not support Tinubu's plan. It said the new government should begin a dialogue before taking the decision.

Spokesman of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Ukadike Chinedu, is quoted by Punch newspaper as saying that the move will cause "galloping inflation and inflict more hardship on the masses".

 

BBC

Nigeria's sovereign dollar-denominated bonds rallied on Tuesday after new President Bola Tinubu said at his swearing-in that a costly fuel subsidy would be removed and the central bank should work towards a unified exchange rate.

Rating agency Moody's said Tinubu's readiness to confront these issues was "credit positive" but warned they risked a transitional period of higher inflation, weaker economic activity and more social discontent.

Eurobonds rose as much as 3 cents in the dollar, with the 2029 maturity at 87.25 cents by 1251 GMT. Its yield of 11.43% was the lowest since the end of January.

The naira currency hit record lows against the U.S. dollar on forward markets, with the three-month forward at 564 naira to 1 dollar , while Nigerian stocks rose 4% to a more than two-month high.

Tinubu, whose victory is being disputed in court by his main rivals, inherits record debt, foreign exchange and fuel shortages, a nearly two-decade-high inflation rate, poor power supply and falling oil production due to crude theft and underinvestment.

"The market is positive about the new president and the reform plans," said Tajudeen Ibrahim, director of research at Nigerian investment firm Chapel Hill Denham.

Getting rid of the fuel subsidy, which cost $9.7 billion in 2022, reforming the foreign exchange market so profits can be repatriated, and raising tax revenues are all priorities for international investors, many of whom have pulled out of Nigeria in recent years.

However, Tinubu's announcement at his swearing-in on Monday lacked details.

The 2023 budget provides for the subsidy until June 30.

"There is, however, likely to be a supplementary budget to accommodate for higher spending this year," Netherlands-based Yvette Babb, a portfolio manager at William Blair Investment Management, said.

"This could technically accommodate additional spending on, for example, fuel subsidies, if this latest commitment proves too unpopular and or takes more time to implement."

Tinubu enacting his election pledges "will underpin investor confidence", South African research firm ETM Analytics said in a note.

Nigeria's debt office said on Tuesday it would sell a new 30-year bond on the local market next month to extend maturity and boost the government's domestic borrowing.

 

Reuters

Labour Party on Tuesday called its first witness in the ongoing petition between its candidate, Peter Obi, and the ruling All Progressives Congress and the President, Bola Tinubu.

Counsel for the LP and Obi, Jibrin Okutepa, stated that documents from number one to four together with receipts tendered are documents where the vice president, Kashim Shettima, accepted his nomination as the vice-presidential candidate of the APC.

The witness, Lawrence Nwakaeti, who is a legal practitioner, disclosed that he was deposed to the witness statement on March 20, 2023.

Part of the documents deposed to by Nwakaeti referred to the alleged $460,000 forfeiture by Tinubu to the government of the United States.

One of the grounds on which the LP and Obi are praying for the court to nullify Tinubu’s victory is that the president, Tinubu “at the time of the election was not qualified to contest for election to the office of President as he was fined $460,000 for an offence involving dishonesty, namely narcotics trafficking imposed by the United States District Court, Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division, in Case No: 93C 4483.”

While answering questions during the cross-examination, the witness admitted that the judgment was not registered in Nigeria.

He also admitted that there was no certificate from any consular in Nigeria or America in support of the judgment.

He, however, maintained that “the judgment speaks for itself.”

APC counsel, Lateef Fagbemi, asked, “As a lawyer, you are aware that these documents are not registered in Nigeria and there is no certificate attached to the document from the US?” to which Lawrence replied that there are certificates.

“Is there a certificate from the US consular?”

“No certificate from the consular,” Nwakaeti replied.

He also said he had no knowledge of a February 4, 2003, Formal Clearance Report by Legal Attachee from the American Embassy in respect of the alleged indictment and forfeiture.

When asked by Fagbemi to produce a copy of the charges against Tinubu, the witness said he had none but maintained that the forfeiture are from civil proceedings.

“You are aware that all the proceedings were civil proceedings?”

“Civil forfeiture proceedings,” the witness replied.

Meanwhile, the Presiding Justice of the Court, Haruna Simon Tsammani shifted further hearing in the petition till May 31.

 

Punch

Presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Atiku Abubakar, on Tuesday, tendered tons of electoral documents before the Presidential Election Petition Court in Abuja where he is challenging President Bola Tinubu’s victory in the February 25 election.

Atiku is prosecuting a petition seeking to upturn Tinubu’s victory on account of substantial non-compliance with the Electoral Act 2022 and the constitution, among other complaints.

Nigeria’s electoral commission, INEC, declared Tinubu of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as Nigeria’s president-elect on 1 March, after he defeated Atiku who came second in the race.

Another petition by the candidate who came third in the election, Peter Obi of the Labour Party, is also pending before the court. The third petition was filed by a party, the Allied Peoples’ Movement (APM), which polled inconsequential number of votes in the election.

Tinubu was sworn in as Nigeria’s president on Monday, while aggrieved parties continue pursuing their separate cases to challenge his victory.

Atiku and the PDP jointly filed a petition before the court against Tinubu, the Vice President Kashim Shettima, the APC, and INEC.

In aid of their suit, the petitioners Tuesday presented tons of electoral documents comprising data from the Bimodal Voters Accreditation System (BVAS) machines that were deployed for the conduct of the 25 February presidential election.

At the beginning of hearing on Tuesday, Atiku’s lawyer, Eyitayo Jegede, tendered printouts of data from the BVAS machines comprising polling units results sheets from the 36 states of the country and Abuja.

Jegede informed the five-member panel of the court chaired by Haruna Tsammani that the documents were certified true copies of the data obtained from the BVAS machines.

The lawyer also tendered records of collected permanent voters cards from the electoral umpire.

Earlier, Jegede tendered the final results of the presidential election that declared Tinubu president-elect.

Owing to the agreement reached by the lawyers to parties in the suit not to object to official documents obtained from INEC, respondents’ lawyers – Wole Olanipekun (for Tinubu), Lateef Fagbemi for APC, and INEC’s Abubakar Mahmoud did not object to the documents.

Thereafter, the suit was adjourned until Wednesday for further hearing.

 

PT

President Bola Tinubu has asked the Department of State Services (DSS) to vacate the office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in Ikoyi, Lagos, immediately.

DSS had laid siege to the office of the anti-graft agency on Tuesday morning. EFCC officials were reportedly prevented from accessing their office.

Later, operatives of the secret police moved in two Armoured Personnel Carriers to block the main entrance of the building.

It was learnt that the feud arose from a rivalry between the both agencies over the ownership of the building.

Spokesman of the anti-graft agency, Wilson Uwujaren, when contacted, described the development as “strange”, explaining that the two agencies had lived together within the facility for over 20 years without any rancor.

But in a swift reaction, spokesman of the DSS, Peter Afunanya told our correspondent that the property in question belonged to the service, and as such it is not correct to say its operatives barricaded EFCC office.

But in a statement which Tunde Rahman, his spokesman, issued on his behalf on Tuesday evening, Tinubu said the issue between both agencies would be resolved amicably.

“President Tinubu has directed the Department of State Security Service to immediately vacate the office of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in Ikoyi, Lagos.

“The President gave the directive when reports that DSS officials stormed the EFCC office located on Awolowo Road, Ikoyi, Lagos on Tuesday, preventing officials of the anti-graft agency from accessing their work place, was brought to his attention.

“The President said if there were issues between the two important agencies of government, they would be resolved amicably.”

 

Daily Trust

Moscow intends to deliver a shipment of Russian fertilizers to Nigeria free of charge in the near future, Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov said on Tuesday at a press conference following his visit to Burundi.

"Last September, President [Vladimir] Putin announced that we were ready to deliver 300,000 tons of our fertilizers, illegally seized in EU ports, to African countries free of charge. Fully in line with colonial practices and habits, the EU leadership blocked this initiative. It took us 6 months to get at least the first shipment of 20,000 tons to Malawi, and just recently another shipment of a similar amount of fertilizer was delivered to Kenya. The same shipment is scheduled to go to Nigeria soon," he said.

All of this comes at the cost of enormous efforts by the World Food Program and UN Secretary General Antonio Guterres to "overcome the openly Russophobic position of EU members who oppose any initiatives that in one way or another will help developing countries, if such assistance is provided by the Russian side."

 

Tass

Osun State High Court has found the popular hotel owner, Ramon Adedoyin guilty in the murder case of Timothy Adegoke, a former master’s degree student of the Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, whose death occurred between November 5 and 7, 2021, at Hilton Honours Hotel, Ile-Ife.

Osun Chief Judge, Adepele Ojo, while delivering her judgement on the case, held that the circumstantial evidence available to the court, pointed to the killing of Adegoke while being a guest at the hotel owned by Adedoyin.

According to her, Adedoyin’s decision not to enter the witness box did not help him, as the circumstantial evidence had shifted the burden of proof on him.

Ojo also said Adedoyin’s decision not to enter the witness box meant he agreed to the murder charge pressed against him by the prosecution, dismissing the alibi pleaded on his behalf by his counsel, who said the hotel owner was in Abuja for many days around the time the death of the late Adegoke occurred.

 

Punch

Nigeria Association of Social Workers (NASoW) has urged President Bola Tinubu to appoint a qualified Social Worker as the Minister of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development in the interest of the nation.

The association said this is necessary because it is the main ministry that has core mandate to promote social work and quality social  services delivery in the country. 

NASoW made these disclosures in a message addressed to Tinubu on his swearing in as the 16th President of Nigeria. 

NASoW in a statement signed by its National President, Mashood Mustapha, said  appointment of a social worker who has the required knowledge and skills to paddle the affairs of the ministry will go a long way to promote the humanitarian agenda of the new administration .

Mustapha in the statement made available to journalists through the National Public Relations Officer of the association, Musliudeen Adebayo, said the association is ready and fully prepared to work with the new administration in order to achieve its aims in all areas of human development. 

He added that the association is enjoining Tinubu to appoint someone who is a social worker  because of the ministry's strategic importance to the welfare of the citizens which is the main goal of this administration.

Mustapha added that the Nigerian Council for Social Work [Establishment ] Act, 2022 which was signed and gazetted during the tenure of President Muhammadu Buhari was one of the gains of the association during the last administration. 

He encouraged Tinubu to set another record by appointing a qualified social worker as minister for humanitarian affairs, disaster management and social development. 

He added that the association is also anxiously waiting for the time when the Nigerian Council for Social Work would be constituted. 

"We are using this medium to congratulate our new President, Tinubu on his emergence as the President of Federal Republic of Nigeria. 

"We appeal to the new President to appoint a social worker as the minster for humanitarian affairs, disaster management and social development. This is our ministry. It is the main ministry for social workers  

"We advise the President to put a round peg in a round hole for the betterment of the country. Someone who has the required knowledge and skills in humanitarian work, disaster management and social development.

"We are also waiting for the time when the Nigerian Council for Social Work would be constituted. We are expecting the new President to appoint a minister who has the required knowledge of Social Work as we expect the minster to constitute the board as soon as possible. 

"The Nigerian Council for Social Work [Establishment] Act 2022 has been gazetted. Our law has become act of parliament, this implies that a lot of good things are coming for the good people of Nigeria. The council is yet to be constituted, and when this is done, it will help to give more recognition to social work practice in Nigeria.   

"The establishment of the council will create job opportunities and enabling environment for social workers to provide the much desired quality social services to the people of Nigeria and reduce the migration of social workers to other countries in quest for prosperity", he said.

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Ukrainian drone sparks fire at Russian refinery - governor

A Ukrainian drone sparked a fire at an oil refinery in southern Russia and shelling hit a Russian town close to the border for the third time in a week, damaging buildings and setting vehicles ablaze, Russian officials said on Wednesday.

A day after Russia accused Ukraine of sending drones to attack buildings in Moscow, the governor of Russia's Krasnodar region said a drone was the likely cause of a fire that broke out at the Afipsky oil refinery.

The fire was soon extinguished and there were no casualties, Governor Veniamin Kondratyev said on the Telegram messaging app. The Afipsky refinery is not far from the Black Sea port of Novorossiisk, near another refinery that has been attacked several times this month.

There was no immediate information on who launched the drone but Moscow has accused Kyiv of increased attacks inside Russia in recent weeks, while Russia has repeatedly pounded Ukrainian cities with drones and missiles.

The skies over Ukraine were relatively quiet on Tuesday night, with no major air raids reported. Russian drone attacks killed one person and wounded four in Kyiv on Tuesday, according to Ukrainian officials.

The attacks inside Russia come as Ukraine prepares a counter-offensive to drive Russian forces out of territory occupied since Moscow launched its full-scale invasion of Ukraine in February 2022.

A Ukrainian artillery strike wounded at least one person in the Russian town of Shebekino, about 7 km (4.5 miles) north of the border with Ukraine's Kharkiv region, regional Governor Vyacheslav Gladkov said on the Telegram messaging app.

Ukraine almost never publicly claims responsibility for attacks in Russia or on Russian-controlled territory in Ukraine.

DRONE WAR

Ukrainian drones struck wealthy districts of Moscow on Tuesday, Russia said in what one politician called the most dangerous attack on the capital since World War Two, while Kyiv was also hit from the air for the third time in 24 hours.

Aerial strikes by both sides have intensified amid a stalemate on the ground with Russian forces entrenched along an extended line in Ukraine's east and south.

The Russian defence ministry said eight drones sent to Moscow by Ukraine and targeting civilians were shot down or diverted with electronic jammers, though Baza, a Telegram channel with links to the security services, said there were more than 25.

Mykhailo Podolyak, a Ukrainian presidential aide, denied Kyiv was directly involved but said "we are pleased to watch events" and forecast more such strikes.

Two people were injured while some apartment blocks were briefly evacuated, according to Moscow's mayor. Residents said they heard loud bangs followed by the smell of petrol. Some filmed a drone being shot down and a plume of smoke.

The drones targeted some of Moscow's most prestigious districts including where Russian President Vladimir Putin and other members of the elite have homes.

Putin said Ukraine's biggest drone strike on Moscow was an attempt to frighten and provoke Russia, and that air defences around the capital would be strengthened.

Civilian targets in Kyiv and other Ukrainian cities have since the earliest days of the war been struck repeatedly by Russian drones and missiles.

But Tuesday marked only the second time Moscow had come under direct fire.

In Washington, the White House said it was gathering information on the reports of drones striking in Moscow.

"We do not support attacks inside of Russia. That's it. Period," White House press secretary Karine Jean-Pierre said at a briefing.

Washington is a major supplier of weaponry to Ukraine on the condition it uses it to defend itself and to retake Ukrainian territory occupied by Russian forces.

Russia's ambassador to the United States accused Washington of encouraging "terrorists" in Kyiv by publicly ignoring the drone attack.

NUCLEAR THREAT

One of the southern places Russian forces have controlled since just after the beginning of the invasion is the Zaporizhzhia nuclear power plant, and on Tuesday the chief of the U.N. nuclear watchdog asked Ukraine and Russia to respect five principles to safeguard it. Neither Ukraine nor Russia have committed to respect the principles.

International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) chief Rafael Grossi has been trying for months to secure an agreement to reduce the risk of a nuclear accident from military activity like shelling at Zaporizhzhia, Europe's biggest nuclear power plant.

In a briefing to the U.N. Security Council, Grossi said the principles included that there should be no attack on or from the plant and that it not be used as a base for heavy weapons and other military equipment. He called for off-site power to the plant to remain available and secure.

 

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

UK backs Ukrainian terror attack on Moscow

In the aftermath of a drone attack on residential buildings in Moscow, UK Foreign Secretary James Cleverly has said that Ukraine has a right to “project force”beyond its borders. Among Ukraine’s Western backers, Britain has led the charge to arm Kiev with long-range weaponry.

Speaking to reporters in Estonia on Tuesday, Cleverly said that Ukraine has a “legitimate right to defend itself,” and can “project force beyond its borders to undermine Russia's ability to project force into Ukraine itself.”

Striking “legitimate military targets” within Russia is a viable self-defense tactic for Kiev’s forces, Cleverly added.

None of the eight drones used in Tuesday morning’s attack on Moscow hit military targets. Three were suppressed by electronic warfare measures and deviated from their intended course before crashing, while five were shot down by Pantsir-S air defense systems outside the city, the Russian Ministry of Defense said, describing the drone raid as “a terrorist attack” by “the Kiev regime.”

Several residential buildings were damaged and two people suffered minor injuries.

In a separate incident on Tuesday morning, the Ukrainian military shelled a civilian shelter in Russia’s western Belgorod Region, leaving several people dead and many injured, the region’s governor said in a statement. 

The attacks came after Russia launched a heavy barrage of missiles and drones at Ukrainian airfields, ammunition dumps, and “decision-making centers”responsible for plotting similar terrorist actions, according to the Russian Defense Ministry. Russian President Vladimir Putin confirmed on Tuesday that the headquarters of the Ukrainian military’s Main Intelligence Directorate (GUR) was among the decision-making centers hit.

In Washington, the White House issued a more cautious response to the drone attack. “As a general matter, we do not support attacks inside Russia,” a spokesperson said in a statement. 

While the US has given the Ukrainian military more money than all other donors combined, President Joe Biden and his officials have repeatedly shot down Kiev’s requests for long-range weapons capable of striking deep within Russian territory. However, Britain has filled this role, announcing this month that it would arm Kiev with Storm Shadow cruise missiles – which can hit targets more than 250km away.

There are signs, however, that US policy may shift soon. Asked on Monday whether he would send long-range ATACMS missiles to Ukraine, Biden told reporters that the idea was “still in play.”

** Kiev's strikes on Russian residential buildings are sign of terrorist activity — Putin

Kiev has chosen the path of intimidating Russian citizens by attacking civilian facilities, which is a clear sign of terrorist activity, Russian President Vladimir Putin said on Tuesday.

He pointed out that during the special military operation Russia hit Ukrainian territory, but only military facilities and infrastructure. "Russia was forced to respond to the war unleashed by the Ukrainian regime in Donbass. [We] were forced to respond by launching a special military operation. [The Russian military] are striking Ukrainian territory, but with long-range precision weapons and specifically military infrastructure or ammunition depots," the head of state explained, commenting on this morning's drone attack on Moscow.

Putin stressed that "in response, the Kiev regime has chosen a different path - [the path of] trying to intimidate Russia, intimidate Russian citizens and attack residential buildings." "This, of course, is a clear sign of terrorist activity," the president said.

Ukrainian drones attacked Moscow and the Moscow Region on Tuesday morning. According to the Russian Defense Ministry, the attack involved eight unmanned aerial vehicles, five of which were shot down by the Pantsir-S missile system and the remaining three were suppressed by electronic warfare. Two people in Moscow sought medical attention for minor injuries. A number of buildings sustained minor damage.

 

Reuters/RT/Tass

Intense clashes in Sudan's capital after ceasefire extended

Intense clashes could be heard in Sudan's capital on Tuesday, residents said, after military factions battling for more than six weeks agreed to extend a ceasefire aimed at allowing aid to reach civilians.

The army and the paramilitary Rapid Support Forces (RSF) agreed to extend a week-long ceasefire deal by five days just before it was due to expire late on Monday.

The truce was brokered and is being remotely monitored by Saudi Arabia and the United States, which say it has been violated by both sides but has still allowed for the delivery of aid to an estimated 2 million people.

"We hope this truce succeeds even if only to stop the war a little and that we can return to our normal lives. We have hope in the truce and we don't have other options," said Hind Saber, a 53-year-old resident of Khartoum.

Hours before the ceasefire extension was signed, residents reported intensive fighting in all three of the adjoining cities that make up Sudan's greater capital around the confluence of the Nile - Khartoum, Omdurman and Bahri.

Clashes resumed late on Tuesday on the outskirts of the cities.

In a statement the RSF accused the army of violating the ceasefire, saying that it defended itself against an attack and took over an army base.

The war has caused nearly 1.4 million people to flee their homes, including more than 350,000 that have crossed into neighbouring countries.

Areas of the capital have been hit by widespread looting and frequent cuts to power and water supplies. Most hospitals have been put out of service.

The United Nations, some aid agencies, embassies and parts of Sudan's central government have moved operations to Port Sudan, in Sudan's Red Sea state, the main shipping hub which has seen little unrest.

PORT SUDAN CURFEW

On Tuesday, the state's security committee said it had caught several "rebellious" sleeper cells that it said had sneaked in from outside and warned that they were planning activities.

"We thank the citizens of Red Sea state for their total cooperation and for immediately reporting the presence of these rebellious elements and their agents within their neighbourhoods," it said, without specifying their identity.

The committee later extended a state of emergency and declared a curfew from 11 p.m. to 5 a.m in Port Sudan.

The conflict erupted on April 15 over internationally backed plans for a transition to elections under a civilian government.

Leaders of the army and the RSF had held the top positions on Sudan's ruling council since former leader Omar al-Bashir was toppled during a popular uprising in 2019.

They staged a coup in 2021 as they were due to hand leadership of the council to civilians, before falling out over the chain of command and restructuring of the RSF under the planned transition.

Army leader General Abdel Fattah al-Burhan appeared in a video on Tuesday greeting troops. He said that the army had agreed to the ceasefire extension to ease citizens' access to services.

"The army hasn't used its full deadly power, but it will be forced to do so if the enemy does not obey or listen to the voice of reason," he said in a statement.

U.N. children's agency UNICEF said more than 13.6 million children in Sudan, a country of 49 million people, were in urgent need of lifesaving humanitarian support.

The U.N. World Food Programme, which expects up to 2.5 million people in Sudan to slip into hunger in coming months, said that 17,000 metric tonnes of food had been looted since the conflict began.

WFP said on Monday that it had begun to distribute food in parts of the capital for the first time since the outbreak of fighting.

U.N. human rights chief Volker Turk warned on Tuesday that fighting in Khartoum, which has spread to the war-weary Darfur region, could take on an "inter-ethnic dimension which would be terrible".

 

Reuters