The Nigerian fuel retail sector is facing an unprecedented crisis following the removal of fuel subsidies in May 2023. Fuel consumption has plummeted 92% from 60 million liters per day in May 2023 to just 4.5 million liters in August 2024, according to the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority.

Key impacts:

- Fuel prices increased nearly 500%, from N175 to over N1,000

- Only 16 of 36 states received fuel supplies in August 2024

- Cost of a fuel truck rose from N7m to N47m in 16 months

- An estimated 10,000 fuel marketers face closure within 45 days

- Potential job losses could affect up to one million workers

Industry associations, including PETROAN (Petroleum Products Retail Outlets Owners Association of Nigeria), have appealed to President Tinubu for a N100bn grant to prevent mass closures. Meanwhile, NUPENG (Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers) reports significant job losses among truck drivers and station workers.

Analysis:

1. Economic Impact:

- The dramatic drop in consumption suggests severe demand destruction

- The crisis appears to be creating a negative feedback loop: higher prices → lower consumption → business failures → job losses → further reduced consumption

- The situation is contributing to broader economic challenges and inflation

2. Policy Implications:

- The subsidy removal has created significant market disruption

- The limited fuel distribution to only 16 states indicates possible supply chain issues

- The request for government intervention (N100bn grant) suggests the market hasn't yet found a sustainable equilibrium

3. Social Consequences:

- Widespread transition from private to public transportation

- Significant employment impact in the fuel retail sector

- Ripple effects across the broader economy due to increased transport costs

4. Positive Side Effect:

- Reduction in cross-border fuel smuggling due to higher prices

The situation appears to represent a major structural shift in Nigeria's fuel market, with significant implications for both the economy and society.

The Nigerian private healthcare sector is experiencing an unprecedented crisis, with approximately 50% of private hospitals shutting down due to unsustainable operating costs. According to Raymond Kuti, President of the Guild of Medical Directors (GMD), an average of three out of six private hospitals are closing monthly, highlighting a dangerous deterioration of the country's healthcare infrastructure.

Key Impacts:

- 500% increase in medical consumables costs

- Severe workforce shortages due to medical professionals emigrating

- Declining patient visits due to economic hardship

- Increasing operational costs, especially electricity

- Rising dependence on self-medication among citizens

Analysis:

1. Systemic Healthcare Crisis:

This situation represents a perfect storm in Nigerian healthcare:

a) Public Sector Context:

- Already deteriorating public hospitals

- Chronic underfunding of public health facilities

- Limited access to specialized medical care

- Poor maintenance of existing infrastructure

- Inadequate emergency response capabilities

b) Private Sector Collapse:

- Mass closure of private facilities

- Rising operational costs

- Foreign exchange crisis affecting medical supplies

- Brain drain of healthcare professionals

- Declining patient purchasing power

2. Socioeconomic Implications:

a) Healthcare Access Disparity:

- While political and business elites seek medical treatment abroad ("medical tourism")

- Average Nigerians face:

  * Reduced access to healthcare

  * Increased reliance on self-medication

  * Higher risk of preventable deaths

  * Delayed medical interventions

  * Greater financial burden for basic healthcare

b) Economic Impact:

- Job losses in the healthcare sector

- Increased foreign exchange outflow for medical tourism

- Reduced healthcare investment

- Economic burden on families

- Productivity losses due to untreated health issues

3. Systemic Vulnerabilities:

The crisis exposes several critical vulnerabilities:

- Over-reliance on imported medical supplies

- Inadequate domestic healthcare infrastructure

- Weak health insurance systems

- Poor emergency preparedness

- Limited healthcare financing options

4. Policy Implications:

Urgent needs include:

- Healthcare financing reform

- Medical equipment import policies review

- Healthcare worker retention strategies

- Strengthening health insurance systems

- Public-private partnership frameworks

5. Social Justice Perspective:

The situation highlights a growing healthcare apartheid:

- Elite class accessing foreign medical care

- Middle class struggling with private healthcare costs

- Poor population left with deteriorating public facilities

- Growing health inequality

The crisis represents more than just a healthcare sector challenge - it's a national emergency that exposes deep structural problems in Nigeria's healthcare system. The contrast between political elites seeking treatment abroad while local facilities collapse underscores the urgent need for comprehensive healthcare reform and increased domestic investment in medical infrastructure.

Residents, business owners, hospital administrators, and others in Northern Nigeria have expressed concern as the region marks its eighth consecutive days without electricity, leading to significant disruptions in essential services and economic activities.

The outage, which began last Monday, was triggered by the tripping off of the 330kV circuit transmission line between Benue and Enugu, as well as the one between Shiroro and Kaduna, thereby severely impacting numerous Northern states.

The Transmission Company of Nigeria (TCN) said the 330kV DC Ugwaji-Apir double circuit tripped due to a fault, plunging the Northeast, Northwest, and parts of Northcentral Nigeria into darkness.

Hospitals and laboratories, heavily reliant on stable electricity for medical equipment and diagnostic services, are facing increasing difficulties, resulting in delays and reduced healthcare availability for patients.

Local businesses, particularly frozen food vendors that depend on refrigerators, are also feeling the strain, with many reporting significant losses due to spoiled inventory.

Water vendors have dramatically increased their prices, effectively doubling the cost of water as they contend with the added expenses of running generators for boreholes.

Vandals have also reportedly taken advantage of the situation, targeting transformers and other power infrastructure, which further complicates efforts to restore service.

TCN has acknowledged the ongoing outage, assuring residents that they are taking “every possible measure” to restore power to the Northern region.

The company attributed delays in restoration to infrastructure challenges exacerbated by vandalism and insecurity, which have created additional setbacks in the recovery process.

This latest fault in the 330kV DC transmission line occurred just days after Nigeria experienced three national grid collapses within a single week.

In 2024, Nigeria faced multiple national grid disturbances, resulting in widespread power outages and reduced electricity generation.

Patients at AKTH complain of mosquito infestation

Patients at the Aminu Kano Teaching Hospital (AKTH) in Kano said mosquitoes disrupt their sleep, especially at nights when the power from generating sets is off.

Umaru Direba, a patient, stated that the absence of electricity worsens the mosquito problem, forcing him to rely on mosquito nets and repellents.

A hospital official noted that AKTH spends around N500,000 daily on diesel, limiting generator use mainly to evenings, although solar inverters help keep emergency services running.

Outside the hospital, frozen food vendors like Husseini Rufai and Salihu Usman at Tarauni market reported losses, saying they are unable to store perishable goods without electricity.

Kano Electricity Distribution Company (KEDCO)’s Chief Commercial Officer, Abubakar Jimeta, attributed the prolonged outage to issues on the national grid and vandalism on critical transmission lines and assured that efforts to restore supply are underway.

Losses in Gombe

Muhammad El-Kabeer, a frozen fish dealer, said the ongoing power outage has heavily impacted his business, as he now relies on a generator set, which significantly raises the cost of his products.

El-Kabeer mentioned that he runs his generator set for about six hours to keep the fish fresh, but that the high cost of fuel has pushed up the prices of frozen fish, reducing customer demand and, consequently, his income.

Danladi Idi, who sells fish at Gombe Main Market, said: “If the power situation isn’t resolved soon, small vendors like me may soon be out of business, as we can no longer return unsold fish to the dealer as before.”

The blackout has also affected rice milling businesses. Umar Musa, a rice miller on the southern bypass of Gombe, said operations have come to a halt. “We have had to send several youths home for the past five days, waiting for the situation to improve,” he said.

Kebbi

Bashir Abdullahi, a resident of the Bayan Kara area in Birnin Kebbi, said his frozen food business in Gesse has been severely impacted by the ongoing power outage.

“We have endured significant losses. My entire stock of fish and chicken spoiled because I couldn’t keep the freezers running without a generator,” he lamented.

He also mentioned that the community transformer was vandalised, and while the police apprehended the suspects and the buyer of the stolen cables, they were later released by the court without penalty.

Jos timber traders, artisans lose patronage

Timber traders and artisans in Jos, Plateau State, said they recorded substantial customer losses due to the prolonged power outage.

Abubakar Salihu, a timber trader at Jos’ Timber Market, said: “This is usually a busy market, but today, it’s empty. We come to the market, wait, and then return home. Without power, we can’t operate the machinery needed for timber work, and the situation is taking a toll on us.”

Meanwhile, hoodlums have vandalised electrical transformers in communities like Anguwan Rogo and Gangare in Jos North Local Government Area.

Muhammad Munir, a Gangare resident, said: “They vandalised our transformer, stealing crucial components that will require substantial funds to replace.”

Alhaji Bala Tanko of Anguwan Rogo reported a similar incident, noting that “Hoodlums took advantage of the blackout to steal wires from our transformer, leaving us in darkness for over six days.”

In response, the Jos Electricity Distribution Company (JED) has urged residents to safeguard electrical installations.

Kaduna

The ongoing power outage has hit small businesses and households hard in various parts of Kaduna, impacting livelihoods and daily life.

Halima Mu’azu, a resident of Hayin Bello in Rigasa, said her mother’s business of selling kunu and zobo drinks has suffered.

Moreover, transformer vandalism has added to the community’s challenges. Residents of Hayin Bello in Rigasa reported that their transformer was vandalised at night, compounding the electricity woes. Community leader, Ibrahim Fagge said they are pooling funds to repair the transformer as the blackout may persist even if the main power supply returns.

Benue

Friday Ejembi from the Obotu-Ugboju community in Otukpo LGA expressed frustration over being without electricity for over ten days.

Artisans and business owners are increasingly concerned about their sustainability as fuel prices hover between N1,200 and N1,250 in Makurdi.

Mwuese Terkula, a frozen fish seller in Gboko LGA, voiced her worries about the future of her business: “Without a stable electricity supply, I can’t store fresh supplies in my freezer. If this situation continues, I may have to shut down my business altogether.”

Bauchi, Adamawa, Yobe

Milling machine operators in Bauchi have been especially hard-hit, unable to process grains into flour, which has left many families without essential food staples.

Sani Abubakar, the Chairman of the Fresh Tomato, Pepper, Onion and Vegetable Sellers Association, said: “Patronage has dwindled over the past month. Customers aren’t buying in large quantities, and some of our goods have decayed due to the lack of electricity.”

In Adamawa, residents like m Asma’u from the 80 Units Housing Estate in Jimeta have suffered losses of perishable goods worth thousands of naira because of the outage.

Blessing Tunoh, the Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) Communications Officer, noted that the company recorded 37 cases of vandalism in the first quarter of the year.

In Yobe State, the situation is not better. Commercial water vendors in Damaturu are capitalising on the water crisis, selling water to the highest bidder as more than 70% of residents rely on commercial boreholes connected to electricity.

Taraba, Borno

In Taraba, Yunusa Adamu, a butcher in Jalingo, reported substantial financial losses as a result of the power failure, which rendered the cold rooms and facilities at the Jalingo Abattoir and main market inoperable.

In response to the ongoing challenges, residents of Taraba State have called for a connection to the Kashimbila hydropower station, which has an installed capacity of 40 megawatts, hoping it could alleviate their electricity supply issues.

In Borno, the situation is similarly dire. Ice block seller, Lawan Kawu expressed frustration over the power failure, noting that he cannot afford the rising costs of diesel or petrol to power his generators, adding that the extraneous cost from generator use makes his products unaffordable for customers.

Kwara, Nasarawa

In Nasarawa State, residents like Aisha Umar expressed frustration over the inconsistent power supply affecting their homes and businesses.

Baro Ahmed, the Regional Manager of the Abuja Electricity Distribution Company (AEDC) in Lafia, recently revealed that Nigeria is currently generating only 4,000 megawatts of power, which he described as “grossly inadequate.”

As a result, areas like Lafia, which used to receive around 20 megawatts daily, are now receiving only 7 megawatts.

In Kwara State, the situation at the University of Ilorin Teaching Hospital (UITH) highlights the dire consequences of the power crisis, particularly as the ongoing strike by the Joint Health Sector Union (JOHESU) has compounded the problems.

Except for the emergency unit and some records offices powered by generators for limited hours, most parts of the hospital complex remain in darkness.

Efforts to restore power in North ongoing – TCN

The TCN said it is collaborating with the Office of the National Security Adviser to repair the vandalised Shiroro-Kaduna line that led to the reduction of bulk electricity to Kaduna, Kano and other major cities in the North.

In a statement, the General Manager, Public Affairs of TCN, Ndidi Mbah, said TCN is working diligently to restore bulk power supply as quickly as possible despite prevailing security challenges. She quoted a top TCN official as explaining the challenges at a public hearing.

“Nafisatu Ali, in her address at the hearing, said that the Shiroro-Kaduna transmission line, which supplies power to Northern Nigeria, was vandalised by insurgents and in response, TCN has partnered with the National Security Adviser’s office to secure the area, enabling her engineers to work safely on the restoration.”

Northern senators ask FG to restore power swiftly in the North

The Northern Senators Forum has asked the federal government to swiftly restore electricity supply in Kano, Kaduna, Katsina, Jigawa and other states in the North.

The senators specifically asked the federal government to expedite repairs of the Shiroro-Kaduna transmission lines to restore reliable power supply.

A communiqué signed by the Chairman of the Northern Senators Forum, Abdulaziz Yar’adua, after their meeting and made available to newsmen on Saturday in Abuja, also asked the government to implement measures to prevent future vandalism of power infrastructure in the North.

My policy document offers solutions to blackouts – Atiku

Atiku Abubakar, the 2023 presidential candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), said on Saturday that his policy document, titled “My Covenant with Nigerians,” contains the most effective strategy for addressing Nigeria’s ongoing power outages.

In a post on X, Atiku urged government agencies responsible for tackling blackouts to take immediate action to restore electricity in the affected geopolitical zones.

He also advocated for the decentralisation of the electricity sector, emphasising the need to remove the entire electricity value chain from the exclusive list.

“States should be empowered to generate, transmit, and distribute electricity independently,” he said.

We are losing billions daily to blackout – Discos

Electricity Distribution Companies (DisCos) said they are losing billions of naira due to the continued blackout in the northern part of the country.

A staff member from one of the affected DisCos, who requested anonymity, pointed out that the TCN should face penalties for failing to meet its contractual obligations within the transmission sector of the Nigerian Electricity Supply Industry (NESI).

Daily Trust

The Joint Action Committee of the Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions and the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities has vowed to indefinitely shut down all activities in universities across the country from Monday (today) when they embark on an indefinite strike.

A statement issued on Sunday and signed by National President, SSANU, Mohammed Ibrahim, General Secretary, NASU, Peters Adeyemi, said the ultimatum it gave the Federal Government over its withheld salaries expired Sunday midnight.

The unions are demanding, among others, the payment of the four-month withheld salaries, improved remuneration, earned allowances and implementation of the 2009 agreements with the government.

The Federal Government had through the Ministry of Labour and Employment invoked the ‘No Work, No Pay’ policy when the four university-based unions embarked on a prolonged strike in 2022.

Last October, President Bola Tinubu directed the payment of four of the eight months withheld salaries for the academic staff. It was finally paid in February.

The directive was silent about the non-teaching staff, raising concerns as to their fate. The unions also described the directive as selective and kicked against it.

The unions subsequently wrote to the government, gave ultimatums, protested and held warning strikes, but their four-month salaries are still being withheld.

The statement, called on all the state-owned universities to also incorporate their local demands into the strike action as appropriate.

“Your strict compliance and adherence to this directive is mandatory for all NASU and SSANU branches in Federal and State Owned Universities as well as Inter-University Centres,” it read.

It also said, “The last circular of the Joint Action Committee of Non-Academic Staff Union of Educational and Associated Institutions and Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities titled, “Latest Development in Respect of the Withheld Four Months’ Salaries” referenced JAC/NS/VOL.III/32 dated 21st October 2024 refers.

“The circular under reference gave seven days to the Federal Government to do the needful in respect of our demands for payment of outstanding four months’ salaries and implementation of the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) sighed with the Federal Government on 20th August, 2022 which expires midnight of Sunday, 27th October, 2024.”

It recall that at the last National Peaceful Protest of JAC of NASU and SSANU held on July 18, 2024 at the Unity Fountain Abuja, an ultimatum of 10 days was given to the Government to pay the withheld salaries to avoid shutting down of activities in the Universities and Inter-University Centres with no consequence.

“It is quite appalling that we have issued several ultimatums thereafter with no positive result from the government, it is therefore obvious that Government is not positively disposed to our rightful and legitimate demands in spite of several interactions, dialogues, exchange of correspondences and assurances of payment all to no avail.

“We have exercised considerable and prolonged patience, allowing multiple deadlines to pass without receiving a satisfactory response to our demands by the Government,” the statement, “This is to direct all our members in the Universities and Inter-University Centres throughout the country to hold a joint congress in their respective campuses on Monday, 28th October, 2024 and proceed on an indefinite, comprehensive and total strike action as no concession should be given in any guise.”

SSANU members are in charge of major facilities on campuses, which has sparked fears of a standstill of activities if the strike begins today.

“Our members are in charge of water supply, electricity, communication, internet supply, security, finance, if they pay this money tomorrow (today), we will call off the strike,” SSANU boss Ibrahim told our correspondent.

The strike holds as Tinubu directed outgoing Minister of Education Mamman Tahir to hand over office to the incoming Tunji Alausa on Wednesday.

Efforts to reach the Federal Ministry of Education for reaction to the industrial action by both unions were unsuccessful as at the time of filing this report.

In March, the union embarked on a one-week warning strike after its letter to the education minister and the Chief of Staff to the President were not responded to. In July, the unions ordered a nationwide protest to call the government’s attention to their plight.

After the July meeting, the spokesperson for the education ministry, Folashade Boriowo, said the withheld salaries had been forwarded to the highest level of government and were receiving attention.

Earlier this month, the union gave a seven-day ultimatum over the withheld salaries but the action also failed to achieve the desired result.

“It is quite appalling that we have issued several ultimatums thereafter with no positive result from the government, it is therefore obvious that the government is not positively disposed to our rightful and legitimate demands in spite of several interactions, dialogues, exchange of correspondences and assurances of payment all to no avail,” the unions said in the statement.

Last month, the unions announced plans to commence an indefinite strike if their outstanding salaries were not paid within three weeks, demanding, among other things, the payment of four months’ withheld salaries, improved remuneration, earned allowances, and the implementation of the 2009 agreements with the government.

In a statement jointly signed by SSANU boss Ibrahim, and the General Secretary of NASU, Adeyemi, the unions said the Federal Government was given a 10-day grace period, which expired on July 26, 2024, to pay the four months of outstanding salaries to university staff, with the threat of shutting down universities and inter-university centres if the payment was not made.

However, six weeks after the grace period elapsed, the government has still not fulfilled this obligation.

“It is in respect of the above that we write to inform the government of the decision of the National JAC of NASU and SSANU at the meeting held on 12th September 2024, that the government be given another three weeks’ final ultimatum from Tuesday, 17th September 2024, to pay the four months’ withheld salaries and also implement the agreement reached with it on 20th August 2022, failing which our members may be forced to embark on indefinite strike action at the expiration of the ultimatum.”

The unions noted that they were aware that Tinubu had approved the payment of the outstanding four months’ withheld salaries, but that this was not implemented by relevant government officials.

“We have it on good authority that Mr. President has given approval for the payment of the four months’ withheld salaries as far back as 18th July 2024 at the national minimum wage meeting with the leadership of NLC and TUC.

“Of recent, we also heard that Mr. President has given approval for the actual release of the payment. Regrettably, nothing has been forthcoming despite all the approvals,” both unions stated in September.

Punch

In a major pivot, Dangote Cement Plc announced it has invested over $280 million in compressed natural gas (CNG) infrastructure, vehicles, and technology, effectively shifting away from diesel, a product that its sister company, Dangote Oil Refinery, refines. The company said this transition is part of its long-term strategy to power its fleet with 100 percent CNG.

Arvind Pathak, Group Managing Director of Dangote Cement, explained that the investment aligns with Dangote’s clean energy goals and its commitment to reducing carbon emissions. Speaking at a recent event, Pathak stated, “By mid-2026, Dangote Cement aims to operate a fleet predominantly powered by CNG.” To achieve this goal, Dangote Cement has received its first 1,500 mono-fuel CNG trucks and expects another 1,600 by year-end, bringing the total to 3,100 vehicles. This transition will be supported by new CNG fueling infrastructure, including stations at Obajana and Ibese.

The move has caught attention as Dangote Industries, which owns Africa’s largest oil refinery, has opted for CNG over diesel for its cement transportation fleet. In doing so, it demonstrates a firm commitment to a low-carbon economy despite the country’s longstanding reliance on diesel fuel.

President Bola Tinubu emphasized the importance of natural gas in Nigeria’s energy future, calling CNG “an economic necessity” in the transportation sector. He pointed out that adopting CNG aligns with Nigeria’s vast natural gas resources and the country’s goal to meet net-zero emissions by 2060. Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Dangote Group, added that his company’s shift to CNG supports Nigeria’s climate commitments under the Paris Agreement and furthers the government’s energy independence goals.

Dangote’s early adoption of CNG infrastructure has made it Nigeria’s largest operator of CNG-powered trucks, marking a significant move away from diesel and positioning the company as a leader in cleaner energy practices across Africa.

Netanyahu says Israel hit Iran hard; Khamenei says damage should not be exaggerated

Israel's airstrikes "hit hard" Iran's defences and missile production, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said on Sunday, as Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei said the country was considering its response.

With warfare raging in Gaza and Lebanon, direct confrontation between Israel and Iran risks spiralling into a regional conflagration. But a day after the airstrikes, there was no sign they would spark another round of escalation.

However, heavy fighting in Lebanon between Israeli forces and Iran-backed Hezbollah, which sharply intensified over recent weeks, continued on Sunday with an Israeli airstrike killing eight people in a residential block in Sidon, medics said.

"The air force attacked throughout Iran. We hit hard Iran's defence capabilities and its ability to produce missiles that are aimed at us," Netanyahu said in a speech, calling the attack "precise and powerful" and saying it met all its objectives.

Israel’s army chief, Lieutenant General Herzi Halevi, said the strike on Iran had showed what the Israeli response to its enemies would be. “We struck strategic systems in Iran, which carries great importance, and we will now see how things develop. We are prepared for all scenarios in every arena.”

The Islamic Republic has not signalled how it will respond to Saturday's long-anticipated strikes, which involved scores of fighter jets bombing targets near the capital Tehran and in the western provinces of Ilam and Khuzestan.

The U.N. Security Council will likely convene to discuss the attack on Monday, diplomats said.

The heavily armed arch-enemies have engaged in a cycle of retaliatory moves against each other for months, with Saturday's strike coming after an Iranian missile barrage on Oct. 1, much of which Israel said was downed by its air defences.

Khamenei said Israel's calculations "should be disrupted". The attack on Iran, which killed four soldiers and caused some damage, "should neither be downplayed nor exaggerated", he said.

Iranian President Masoud Pezeshkian said Iran was not looking for war but would give an "appropriate response".

U.S. President Joe Biden called for a halt to escalation, which has raised fears of a wider Middle East war arising from the year-old Israeli-Hamas conflict in Gaza and Israel's thrust into south Lebanon to stop Hezbollah rocketing northern Israel.

Separately, Israeli Defence Minister Yoav Gallant said Iran was no longer able to use its allies Hamas in Gaza and Hezbollah in Lebanon against Israel. The two groups "are no longer an effective tool" of Tehran, he said in a speech.

Gallant added that Hamas was no longer functioning as a military network in Gaza and that Hezbollah's senior command and most of its missile capabilities had been eliminated.

Hamas has repeatedly said it is still able to function militarily, and Israel has recently conducted major new operations in devastated north Gaza against what it calls regrouping Hamas militants.

Hezbollah has said its command structure remains intact and that it retains significant missile capabilities.

LEBANON FIGHTING

On Sunday, the Israeli military urged residents of 14 villages in southern Lebanon to evacuate immediately and move north of the Awali river.

An Israeli strike on Sidon, a city in coastal south Lebanon, killed at nine people and wounded 25 on Sunday, the country's health ministry said.

Elsewhere in the south, a strike on Zawtar al-Sharkiya killed three people and a Saturday bombing of Marjayoun killed five, it said.

In all, Israeli strikes killed 19 people in Lebanon on Saturday, the health ministry said. At least 2,672 people have been killed and 12,468 injured in the year since Israel and Hezbollah began exchanging rocket fire, it said late on Sunday.

Israel said four of its soldiers were killed in south Lebanon fighting.

Hezbollah also said it had fired a large missile salvo at the Zevulon military industries facility north of Haifa in northern Israel. Hezbollah rockets hit a house and cars and rescue crews responded to put out the fire.

One woman was seriously injured, according to Israel's ambulance service.

Reuters

RUSSIAN PERSPECTIVE

Putin hopes NATO heard warning on long-range strikes

President Vladimir Putin has expressed hope that NATO has “heard” his warning about the consequences of allowing Ukraine to use Western-supplied long-range missiles to strike deep inside Russia.

Putin said last month that Moscow would treat any such attacks as a direct attack by the countries that supplied the weapons. Amid growing Western involvement in the Ukraine conflict, the Russian president has also proposed updating the national nuclear doctrine.

When asked whether Kiev’s backers had listened to his warning, Putin told Rossiya-1 correspondent Pavel Zarubin “They didn’t tell me anything about it, but I hope they heard it.”

In an interview published on Sunday, Putin stressed that the Ukrainian military cannot independently use high-precision weapons. “Only specialists from NATO states can do this, because this requires space intelligence, which Ukraine naturally does not have,” he explained.

According to Putin, “what is happening now is all being done by the hands of NATO officers.”

“The only question is whether they will allow themselves to strike deep into Russian territory or not,” he pointed out.

Russia would have to respond accordingly, the president warned.

“How to respond, when, and where specifically - it’s too early to talk about it now. But, obviously, our military department is thinking about this and will be offering various options,” Putin concluded.

Kiev has for months been pushing the US and its allies to lift a ban on strikes deep inside Russia’s territory with Western-supplied long-range weapons, blaming its setbacks on the battlefield on their reluctance.

Ukrainian leader Vladimir Zelensky has included the request to use weapons from NATO countries to conduct such strikes in his so-called ‘victory plan’. The recently-unveiled wish list for a conclusion to the ongoing conflict has so far been approached with caution by many Western leaders.

Earlier this week, Fox News reported, citing an unnamed official, that both the Pentagon and the US Intelligence Committee had advised Washington against giving Kiev permission to use American-supplied weapons for strikes deep inside Russia. Allowing it to use ATACMS missiles would have no strategic impact, while it would risk further escalation between Washington and Moscow, according to the outlet.

Moscow has dismissed Kiev’s ‘plan’ as a “set of incoherent slogans”intended to push “NATO members towards a direct conflict” with Russia.

WESTERN PERSPECTIVE

Russian forces thwart attempted cross-border assault from Ukraine, official says

Russian forces thwarted an attempt at another cross-border incursion by Ukraine into southwestern Russia, a local official reported Sunday, months after Kyiv staged a bold assault on its nuclear-armed enemy that Moscow is still struggling to halt.

An “armed group” sought Sunday to breach the border between Ukraine and Russia’s Bryansk region, its governor, Aleksandr Bogomaz, said but was beaten back. Bogomaz did not clarify whether Ukrainian soldiers carried out the alleged attack, but claimed on Sunday evening that the situation was “stable and under control” by the Russian military.

There was no immediate acknowledgement or response from Ukrainian officials.

The region neighbors Kursk province, where Ukraine launched a surprise push on Aug. 6 that rattled the Kremlin and constituted the largest attack on Russia since World War II. Hundreds of Russian prisoners were blindfolded and ferried away in trucks in the opening moments of the lightning advance, and Ukraine’s battle-hardened units swiftly pressed on across hundreds of square miles (square kilometers) of territory.

Responsibility for previous incursions into Russia’s Belgorod and Bryansk regions has been claimed by two murky groups: the Russian Volunteer Corps and the Freedom of Russia Legion.

Russian officials and state media have sought to downplay the significance of Kyiv’s thunderous run in Kursk, but the country’s forces have so far been unable to dislodge Ukrainian troops from the province. Western officials have speculated that Moscow may send troops from North Korea to bolster its effort to do so, stoking the almost three-year war and bringing geopolitical consequences as far away as the Indo-Pacific region.

Russian lawmakers Thursday ratified a pact with Pyongyang envisioning mutual military assistance, a move that comes as the U.S. confirmed the deployment of 3,000 North Korean troops to Russia.

North Korean units were detected Wednesday in Kursk, according to Ukraine’s Main Intelligence Directorate, known by its acronym GUR. The soldiers had undergone several weeks of training at bases in eastern Russia and had been equipped with clothes for the upcoming winter, GUR said in a statement late Thursday. It did not provide evidence for its claims.

Moscow warns West against approving long-range strikes against Russia

Also on Sunday, Russian President Vladimir Putin said Moscow is working on ways to respond if the U.S. and its NATO allies allow Ukraine to strike deep inside Russia with long-range Western missiles.

Putin told Russian state TV that it was too early to say exactly how Moscow might react, but the defense ministry has been mulling a range of options.

Russia has repeatedly signaled that it would view any such strikes as a major escalation. The Kremlin leader warned on Sept. 12 that Moscow would be “at war” with the U.S. and NATO states if they approve them, claiming military infrastructure and personnel from the bloc would have to be involved in targeting and firing the missiles.

He reinforced the message by announcing a new version of the nuclear doctrine that considers a conventional attack on Russia by a nonnuclear nation that is supported by a nuclear power to be a joint attack on his country — a clear warning to the U.S. and other allies of Kyiv.

Putin also declared the revised document envisages possible nuclear weapons use in case of a massive air attack, opening the door to a potential nuclear response to any aerial assault — an ambiguity intended to deter the West.

Ukrainian leaders have repeatedly said they need permission to strike weapons depots, airfields and military bases far from the border to motivate Russia to seek peace. In response, U.S. defense officials have argued that the missiles are limited in number, and that Ukraine is already using its own long-range drones to hit targets farther into Russia.

That capability was evidenced by a Ukrainian drone strike in mid-September that hit a large Russian military depot in a town 500 kilometers (300 miles) from the border.

The U.S. allows Kyiv to use American-provided weapons in more limited, cross-border strikes to counter attacks by Russian forces.

Civilian deaths reported in Kherson as warring sides trade drone strikes

In a separate update, Bryansk Gov. Bogomaz claimed that over a dozen Ukrainian drones were shot down over the region on Sunday. Separately, a total of at least 16 drones were downed over other Russian regions, including the Tambov province some 450 kilometers (290 miles) north from the border, officials reported. There were no reports of casualties from any of the alleged attacks.

In Ukraine’s southern city of Kherson, Russian shelling killed three civilians on Sunday, local Gov. Oleksandr Prokudin claimed. Another Kherson resident died in a blaze sparked by shells hitting a high-rise, according to Ukraine’s Emergency Service.

Air raid sirens wailed for over three hours in Kyiv overnight into Sunday, and city authorities later reported that “around 10” drones had been shot down. They said no one had been hurt. Ukraine’s air force on Sunday reported that it had shot down 41 drones launched by Russia across Ukrainian territory.

RT/AP

“A Judge shall avoid developing excessively close relationship with frequent litigants – such as government ministers or their officials, municipal officials, police prosecutors in any Court where the Judge often sits, if such relationship could reasonably create an appearance of partiality.”

Rule 2.8, Revised Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers in Nigeria (2016)

Sylvanus Nsofor was a little known Justice of the Court of Appeal when he breathed oxygen into Muhammadu Buhari’s political aspirations with his dissent in the presidential election petition in 2007. Eight years earlier, he had launched a unique career in the history of political litigation in Nigeria.

The case arose from the election into the office of Chairman of the Obio/Akpor Local Government Area (LGA) in Rivers State in Nigeria’s Niger Delta on 12 December 1998. Cyprian Tasie Wike was the candidate of the All Peoples’ Party (APP). Cyprian Chukwu flew the flag of the Alliance for Democracy (AD). After screening aspirants on 24 November, 1998, the Peoples’ Democratic Party, (PDP) settled on Ezenwo Nyesom Wike as its candidate.

At the time, local elections were conducted by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the PDP initially submitted Nyesom Wike’s name as their candidate. However, sometime before election day, the party substituted his name with Samuel Rogers Icheonwo. When it announced the results, INEC declared the candidate of the PDP as the winner with 40,370 votes, beating the candidate of the AD into second place with 11,441 votes.

Nyesom Wike sued, claiming that INEC had announced Icheonwo as winner when he was not lawfully sponsored by any party in the contest. The election petition tribunal struck out the petition, holding that it lacked jurisdiction “to resolve the issue as to who was sponsored by PDP.”

Nyesom Wike appealed. In his judgment on behalf of a three-person panel of the Court of Appeal on 6 March 1999, Sylvanus Nsofor nullified the result announced by the INEC and ordered a re-run of the election with Nyesom Wike as the candidate of the PDP. Wike duly won the re-run to emerge as the Chairman of the Obio/Akpor LGA.

Since then, Nyesom Wike’s political trajectory has been attended by what appears to be an unusual coincidence of mutually beneficial intercourse with the judiciary. In 2008, he became Chief of Staff to a Governor of Rivers State whose emergence rested on a somewhat improbable piece of judicial machination.

After a stint as Minister of State for Education, Wike emerged in 2015 as the candidate of the PDP for the governorship of Rivers State. Following the election on 11-12 April 2015, the INEC declared him as winner, ahead of  Dakuku Peterside of the All Progressives Congress (APC). Peterside petitioned challenging the result declared by INEC. The tribunal granted his petition and initially set aside the result. The Court of Appeal agreed with the trial tribunal.

On 12 February 2016, the Supreme Court set aside the judgment of the Court of Appeal on a specious technicality and restored Wike as duly elected. The author of the Supreme Court judgment was Kudirat Kekere-Ekun.

In the past week, she and Wike resumed mutual acquaintance. In the intervening nine  years, Kekere-Ekun had risen to become Chief Justice of Nigeria (CJN), while Wike emerged in August 2023 as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory. The venue was the flag-off of the construction by the Minister of 40 units of judicial housing in Abuja.

This was the latest chapter in Wike’s durable track-record as Nigeria’s most prolific judicial benefactor.

As Governor of Rivers State, he gave 41 Range Rover Sports Utility Vehicles(SUVs) to judges in the state. Customary Court judges were not left out. He gave them 29 Renault SUVs, while complaining about the “unfortunate and the unwillingness of the judiciary in Nigeria to seek true independence to discharge their functions.”

The irony was clearly lost on him.

In 2020, Wike donated 24 luxury duplexes to judges in Rivers State and reportedly “handed out $300,000 in cash to judges who preferred to build their own houses.” It was presumably tax-free. Then CJN, Tanko Muhammad, slavishly “applauded his generosity saying the gifts spoke of the ‘love the Rivers State governor has for the judiciary.’”

The love was fully requited.

The previous year, in January 2019, the judiciary had made Wike’s re-election an electoral non-event when it disqualified the opposition APC from fielding any candidate against him. Neutral observers did not need to wonder whether all the investment in the judiciary was without mutual benefit.

Before leaving office as Governor in 2023, Wike launched yet another construction of quarters for judges also in Rivers State, this time on a site “where his administration recently demolished flats initially belonging to Bayelsa State.”

This gubernatorial generosity to the judiciary went beyond the state level. Former presidential candidate, Omoyele Sowore, reported that as Governor, Wike awarded a contract to former President of the Court of Appeal (PCA), Zainab Bulkachuwa, “to build the Court of Appeal in Port Harcourt”, the capital of Rivers State. In return, he said “anything Wike wanted was granted before he asked.” Neither Wike nor Bulkachuwa has thought it fit to issue a denial.

Now, as Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Wike’s political generosity has become fully federalized under the judicial benediction of yet another CJN. At the launch of the 40 new units of judicial housing in Abuja this past week, the Minister had in attendance both the CJN and the PCA. Presumably keen to impress such high judicial presence, Wike serenaded them with testimony as to how he summarily revoked the land previously allocated to construction conglomerate, Julius Berger, in order to make it available for building suitable judicial digs.

The high judicial figures present looked nothing if not suitably impressed, but the Minister was only getting started. According to him, it was important “to build houses for judges so they would not be susceptible to temptations from unscrupulous politicians.”

No one around had the presence of mind to ask him to look in the mirror.

This has been described charitably as convenient overreach. A better description for it will be judicial subornation. In full public glare, the two senior-most judges in the country looked rather giddy as they advertised an undisguised breach of the Code of Conduct for Judicial Officers, whose effectiveness depends on their combined leadership and example.

There is no political litigant in the country more prolific than the current Minister of the FCT. He has an almost extra-terrestrial ability to normalise outcomes that defy all cannons of lawful judicial enterprise. If anyone fits the description of the prohibition in Rule 2.8 of the Judicial Conduct, it is Minister Wike. Yet, for him, the Chief Justice of Nigeria is happy to retrench that same Code of Conduct.

It was not supposed to be like this.

Jerome Udoji, one of Nigeria’s best known lawyers and public servants, was born in Ozubulu in present day Anambra State around 1912. Udoji was also the first indigenous District Officer in the colonial civil service. He ended his civil service career Chief Secretary to the government of the Eastern Region under the military coincidentally in 1967, the same year in which Wike officially was born.

When he got the opportunity to undertake a retrospective on his public tour of duty  in 1995, fifteen years before he died in 2010, Udoji chose to issue his memoirs with the title “Under Three Masters.” The three masters whom he served, of course, were colonial administrators, post-colonial civilian politicians, and their military usurpers.

Each set of masters was not without exertions in seeking judicial subservience. Until now, they had usually encountered judicial resistance. Under the current dispensation, however, it is almost as if government has a minister responsible for judicial subornation. To many, the leading judges have simply become Wiked and the country has a CJN who appears happy to have the judicial branch fully Nyesomised.

** Chidi Anselm Odinkalu, a professor of law, teaches at the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy and can be reached through This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

In the early days, my company sold one product.

Our flagship product. The bestseller. The one we're known for. We built our business around the wired bra. And as a result, in ThirdLove's building stages, we devoted all of our focus to positioning and messaging around one key product.

Last year, we extended into a number of new categories.

Our original product marketing cadence focused exclusively on the flagship. With irons in so many fires, we found that our strategy had to evolve.

Especially when you venture into new categories, customers will visit you (virtually and/or in person) at different stages of a lifecycle: new customers, repeat customers and lifers. Each group has its own preferences and needs, which should be reflected in your product marketing strategy.

Understand what they prefer – and when. A company with many products is like a house with many rooms. Almost everyone enters through the front door, where they're all greeted by your flagship product.

You should look at your product marketing cadence through the eyes of new customers, repeat customers, and brand loyalists alike. Which of your products brings people in the front door, and how can you tailor messaging funnels to the needs associated with that product? 

How do customers tend to move through your product's secondary rooms, and how can your marketing be an effective tour guide?

To see through customers' eyes, you need to know how they think. Talk to them in focus groups and leverage data to understand at which stages of the lifecycle customers purchase which products. This is the power of product marketing personalization at work.

Leverage personalization to amplify your strategy. Once you understand what customers want and when, make personalized modifications to your marketing imagery and content. This starts with your website's hero images – how different customers are greeted when they land on your site.

Generally speaking: Core products drive new business, while new products drive repeat business. So, different categories of customers will respond to different types of hero images.

When a new customer visits your site, they should see core products, core messaging, core imagery. When a repeat customer visits your site, they already know about your main products, so show them hero images of other parts of your product ecosystem. 

You've earned their trust with your main offering. Now extend that trust into other dimensions of their lives.

Admittedly, with evolving web/cookie regulations, it may be challenging to break out web messaging this way. If you run into digital obstacles, default to core hero images for all site visitors.

Preserve core narratives across different products. When we launched activewear, we launched three different collections: low, medium, and high-impact – all designed for different types of activity. Of those three, one sold much better than the others.

Why? In retrospect, we determined that its high sales were due to the way its messaging mirrored our flagship product's messaging. With this new product, we emphasized benefits very similar to those of our core products. 

What that told us was that when we're putting new products into the market, we need to stay true to core tenets. The same will be true for all companies, especially with today's values-forward standards.

Romeo & Juliet notwithstanding, most people won't enter your home by climbing the garden wall. Use quantitative and qualitative data to understand the path customers take from the front door to secondary rooms, and use your marketing cadence as a map from stage to stage. 

The better you understand each category of visitor, the more of a personalized, hospitable experience you'll be able to give them.

Inc

Standard Bank says Nigeria is losing an estimated $26 billion annually due to electricity shortages in the country.

In its latest Africa Trade Barometer report, Standard Bank identified electricity supply as a critical barrier to business operations in Nigeria and across other African markets.

The report also said businesses in the country spend around $22 billion yearly on off-grid fuel to offset the impact of unreliable electricity, further driving up operational costs.

“In Nigeria, surveyed businesses must contend with a national grid that frequently collapses as it fails to meet a daily peak demand which is nearly four times its generation capacity,” the report reads.

“Economic losses arising from Nigeria’s electricity shortages are estimated to be USD 26 billion annually, without accounting for spending on fuel for off-grid generators, which is estimated to be a further USD22 billion.” 

According to the report, power outages disrupt production, compromise the quality of temperature-sensitive goods, disrupt water supplies, and affect telecommunications infrastructure critical for payment systems.

The disruptions, the bank said, result in reduced sales and income for businesses.

“Across the 10 African markets, power supply infrastructure remains the most severe obstacle to surveyed businesses’ operations,” Standard Bank said.

“It is reported as one of the most poorly perceived infrastructural attributes as well as the one presenting the most severe obstacle to business operations. 

“Blackouts cause a downtime of production, risk the quality of goods that require controlled environments, impact water supply, and affect telecommunications infrastructure which businesses may rely on for payments. The result is reduced sales and income.”

To address the challenges, the report said there was a need for a diversified energy mix to reduce dependence on the national grid.

Standard Bank also called for policy interventions to stabilise electricity generation and attract investment into renewable energy solutions.

‘BUSINESSES EXPERIENCED LARGEST DECLINE DUE TO  NAIRA DEPRECIATION’

In the report, Standard Bank highlighted that Nigeria experienced the largest decline in business confidence among businesses surveyed in Africa.

“This was primarily due to the significant depreciation of the Naira,” he said.

“The primary driver of this was the liberalisation of the exchange rate by the central bank to consolidate the multiple 

exchange rate systems into a unified market.

“This aimed to let supply and demand dictate the rates, but in June 2023, the Naira fell further by 36% on the official market, showing notable devaluation amidst dollar scarcity and market unrest.

“Efforts to stabilise the Naira were further compromised by the removal and later partial reinstatement of the fuel subsidy, which had stoked inflation and sparked nationwide protests over increased living costs.”

On October 17, Wale Edun, minister of finance and coordinating minister of the economy, said the FX subsidy era was gone.

Edun said the subsidy had cost the country over 5 percent of its gross domestic product (GDP), causing financial strain.

Also, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), on October 23, said the naira is showing signs of stability due to interest rate hikes.

According to FMDQ Exchange, a platform that oversees the official FX window, the naira closed at N1,600/$ on Friday, compared to N464.51 per dollar when President Bola Tinubu’s administration began.

The Cable