Business leaders who walk in workers' shoes are better than those who spend their days holed up in their corner offices. 

The reason seems clear: if you experience the company through workers' eyes, you will know the pain your company causes them. From there, you can remove the barriers that keep employees from delivering the most value to your customers. That will be good news for workers and investors.

If you issue edicts from the confines of your spectacular office, you run the risk of angering workers. That could send the most talented people – who find it repulsive to follow blindly your edicts - running for the exits. 

The employees who stick around will lack the initiative and creativity to solve customer problems - costing your company market share and lowering its equity value. For these reasons, I think business leaders should consider the benefits of spending time in their workers' shoes. 

This could mean working undercover in jobs that interact with your company's customers. In so doing, you will gain much greater insight into what workers like and dislike about your company. 

Here are four examples of how undercover bosses made life better for their employees by eliminating processes that frustrated them.

1. Eliminating annoyances for Uber drivers

Uber CEO Dara Khosrowshahi spent time as a driver to learn and fix what made life difficult for scarce drivers.

This experience resulted in changes that improved the driver experience. As the Wall Street Journal reported, Uber has since made several changes such as "streamlining the sign-up process for workers and giving drivers more information about the destination before they accept a ride." 

2. Cancelling 12,000 meetings at Shopify, Wayfair and others

Executives at Shopify, Wayfair and Reynolds American concluded that meetings waste thousands of hours and reduce employee productivity. 

Shopify freed up 12,000 events from employees' schedules - by canceling recurring group meetings, banning most Wednesday meetings and scheduling all gatherings with over 50 people in a six-hour Thursday window - to free up 95,000 staffer hours, the Journal reported. 

3. Making life better for cooks, servers, and bussers at Chili's

Over the last few years, I have seen firsthand how restaurants suffered because they lacked sufficient staff. The labor shortages reduced service quality and angered customers. 

While many restaurants raised pay, improved benefits, and provided workers more scheduling flexibility, the best ones have done more to make life better for workers.

For example, Chili's Bar & Grill rejiggered its menus and streamlined its processes to reduce wasted time. As the Journal noted, Chili's eliminated menu offerings, added bussers, and canceled tasks such as counting and bagging shrimp and deploying metal French-fry baskets. The last item alone eliminated the 40 million times each year workers formerly lined and cleaned the baskets.

4. Cooling off airport ground crews for British Airways and others

One of the more difficult jobs on the planet is working in an airport grounds crew helping airplanes that arrive and depart from gates. The job is so difficult that many workers can only do it for a couple of months and others "walk right off the tarmac and never return," according to the Journal.

Some airports are taking steps to enhance the airport ground crew experience. 

For example, British Airways provides its ground crew with more weather-resistant uniforms. airport contractor Swissport outfitted break rooms with TVs, lockers, and coffee makers and put up tents where workers get sprayed with cooling mist between aircraft turnarounds. The operator of Frankfurt Airport gives workers ice cream on the tarmac. 

I admire how these organizations identified and eliminated the unnecessary pain they used to impose on their workers. Business leaders who have yet to do this are at risk of losing their most talented people - costing them customers and shareholder value.

Inc

Women’s hurdles world record-holder, Tobi Amusan, on Wednesday said she has been charged with an alleged anti-doping rule violation, casting doubt on her participation in next month’s world championships.

“Today the Athletics Integrity Unit (AIU) has charged me with an alleged rule violation for having 3 missed tests in 12 months,” she said in a post on Instagram.

The Nigerian athlete set the current world record for the women’s 100m hurdles of 12.12 seconds at last year’s World Athletics Championships.

Amusan, 26, vowed to resolve the charges against her before this year’s competition, set to be held next month in Budapest.

“I intend to fight this charge and will have my case decided by a tribunal of 3 arbitrators before the start of next month’s World Championships,” she said.

“I am a CLEAN ATHLETE, and I am regularly; (maybe more than the usual) tested by the AIU – I was tested within days of my third ‘missed test.’ I have FAITH that this will be resolved in my favour and that I will be competing at the World Championships in August.”

On Sunday, Amusan took part in the Silesia Diamond League competition in Poland, where she set a new meeting record of 12.34sec.

At the Golden Spike athletics meet in the Czech Republic last month, she finished in third place in the women’s 100m hurdles, losing to reigning Olympic champion Jasmine Camacho-Quinn of Puerto Rico, who claimed victory in 12.42sec.

When asked by reporters about improving her world record pace, she said: “Nothing is impossible and 11 seconds? Most definitely”.

But she was less confident about an ongoing debate on raising hurdles to give priority to technique over speed.

“Don’t do that, don’t raise the hurdles. Please,” said Amusan, who is 5’1 (156 centimetres) tall.

AFP

There was widespread anger by Nigerians, on Tuesday, following the hike in the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit, popularly called petrol, by the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and other oil marketers across the country.

In Abuja and Ondo State, for instance, the cost of petrol jumped from about N537/litre to between N617 and N630/litre, forcing the cost of transportation to skyrocket within hours, and leaving thousands of passengers stranded in many cities.

Nigeria Labour Congress, Trade Union Congress and many other citizens lambasted the President Bola Tinubu-led Federal Government for being so tough on citizens by allowing the continued hike in the price of petrol.

Although NNPCL and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority, both Federal Government entities, explained that market forces caused the hike in petrol price, since the commodity had been fully deregulated, Nigerians expressed frustrations over the continued sharp increase in the cost of the product.

It was observed that petrol price was raised from N537/litre to N617/litre at some filling stations operated by NNPCL in Abuja on Tuesday.

Independent oil marketers confirmed the increase in the cost of the commodity, as they stated that any shift in price by NNPCL stations was an indication of a rise in the pump price of PMS.

“This is because NNPCL is still the major importer of petrol into Nigeria currently, though other marketers are gradually importing the commodity. The price this (Tuesday) morning at some NNPCL stations is N617/litre,” Secretary, Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria, Abuja-Suleja, Mohammed Shuaibu, told one of our correspondents.

Tinubu had during his inaugural address on May 29, announced that subsidy on petrol had ended, a development that led to the jump in the price of the commodity from N198/litre to over N500/litre on May 30, 2023.

Since the withdrawal of subsidy on petrol and the floating of the naira against the dollar, marketers had continued to explain that the cost of PMS could rise to as high as N700/litre.

Similarly, the rise in the cost of crude oil in the international market has also triggered further hike in petrol price, as crude is the product from which PMS and other refined petroleum products are produced.

In Abuja, on Tuesday morning, motorists besieged filling stations that were still dispensing at N540/litre, but as the news of the hike in price by NNPCL stations filtered in, many independent outlets shut their stations.

Others immediately commenced the adjustment of their pumps to reflect the new price.

NLC kicks

NLC on Tuesday threatened to take “matters into its own hands” following the decision by the NNPCL to hike petrol price and the Federal Government’s plan to distribute N8,000 monthly to 12 million poor households in the country.

NLC in a statement issued by its National President, Joe Ajaero, accused the Tinubu-led government of taking from the poor to pay the rich and unleashing suffering, hardship and sorrow upon Nigerians.

It said it had restrained itself from making further comments publicly on the vexatious issues around the recent but unfortunate unilateral hike in the price of petrol, which was in the guise of “the so-called subsidy withdrawal.”

The statement read in part, “However, the government of Nigeria seems to have been misled into believing that resorting to impunity and imperiousness in governance in a democracy is a beneficial option as it pursues its stated and unstated objectives.

“It is this belief that we are sure has continued shaping the actions of this government since its inauguration on May 29, 2023, to continue inflicting mindless and heartless pains on the populace one after the other without the decency of embracing the tenets of democracy which requires wide and deep stakeholder consultations on weighty matters of state.”

NLC stated that Nigerians would remember that the Federal Government had called for dialogue in the aftermath of its disastrous forlorn trajectory in the astronomical increase in petroleum product price “and our subsequent call for a nationwide industrial action.”

It said, “We were also witnesses to the actions of the Federal Government in procuring an unholy injunction from the courts which were served us in Gestapo style by trucks laden with fully armed soldiers and policemen.

“In all of these provocations, we remained committed to the principles of the rule of law, good conscience and democracy so that we can continue to be the moral compass for leaders in the public space. This explained our decision to suspend action on the proposed strike.”

The labour union, however, stated that rather than reciprocate the goodwill of Nigerian workers, the Federal Government insisted on threading the path of dictatorship and seeking to impoverish the people further by taking steps that could only be described as robbing the people of Nigeria to pay and feed the rich.

It said, “It is on this basis that the NLC strongly condemns the decision of the Tinubu-led administration to seek the approval of the National Assembly to obtain another tranche of external loans worth N500bn from the World Bank for the purposes of carrying out a phantom palliative measure to cushion the effect of its poorly thought-out hike in the price of PMS.

“Remember that the $800m which was already proposed before the devaluation of the naira by this government was worth about N400bn then but is now worth about N650bn after devaluation. It is from this, it proposes to bring out N500bn for distribution.

“The proposal to pay N8,000 to each of the so-called 12 million poorest Nigerian households for a period of six months insults our collective intelligence and makes a mockery of our patience and abiding faith in social dialogue which the government may have alluded to albeit pretentiously.”

NLC pointed out that the “further proposal to pay National Assembly members N70bn and the Judiciary N36bn is the most insensitive, reckless and brazen diversion of our collective patrimony into the pockets of public officers whose sworn responsibility it is to protect our nation’s treasury.”

The union said this might amount to hush money and outright bribery of the other arms of government to acquiesce the aberration.

“It is unconscionable that a government that has foisted so much hardship on the people within nearly two months of coming into office will make a proposal that clearly rewards the rich in public office to the detriment of the poor.

“What this means all this while is that the government is seeking ways of robbing the very poor Nigerians so that the rich can become richer. There is no other way to explain the proposal to pay a miserly N8,000 to each of the mysterious poorest 12 million households for six months which amounts to N48,000 and pay just 469 national legislators N70bn or about N149m each, while the Judiciary that has about 72 Appeal Court Judges, 33 National Industrial Court Judges, 75 Federal High Court Judges and 21 Supreme Court Judges and a total of about 201 Judges receives a total of N35bn or N174m each.

“If these other two arms are projected to receive this, what members of the executive council will receive is better left to the imagination of Nigerians; perhaps, the balance of N150bn will go to them. These proposals are not just unacceptable to Nigerian workers but are also dictatorial thus undemocratic,” the union stated.

It said the union would not want to waste the time of Nigerians especially workers on committees that had already been programmed to fail thus ignored.

“NLC would not want to continue to be part of the usual charade of committees with outcomes that are never implemented. We would not want to waste the time of Nigerians especially workers on committees that have already been programmed to fail thus ignored. We do not want to provide a cover for the government to get away with the hardship it has imposed on the people. We do not want to legitimise impunity,” it stated.

Speaking on the next line of action, the congress said, “As a result, if the government does not want to stop these fortuitous actions that it is pursuing in the name of palliatives, we will be forced to constructively review our engagement with the government on this vexatious issue and take matters in our own hands.”

‘Tinubu has deviated’

The Trade Union Congress also blasted the Federal Government over the hike in the price of fuel.

TUC’s National Vice President, Tommy Etim, said the country was now headed towards economic chaos.

He said, “We are entering one chance. It is unfortunate that the government is insensitive to the plight of the commoners and the poorest of the poor.  You can see that fuel which is essential to the movement of goods and services, including the informal businesses, have continued to fluctuate in price.

“For NNPC to wake up and increase the fuel price again, you need to ask what the increase is all about? Since they claimed that subsidy has been removed, why is the NNPC still regulating prices of fuel? The presidential committee that is considering palliatives is still meeting. As I speak to you, the sub-committees have not even met at all, I know this because I am a member of one.

“We have not concluded that, no template yet for implementation of proposals to be raised; but all that we are seeing is Tinubu going to the National Assembly, talking about distribution of N8,000 to 12 million households. What is the credibility of the social register? Nigeria is undergoing dimensional poverty and with the inflation rate, we are praying that we will not be like Zimbabwe. Look at the naira, this calls for urgent attention.”

He said the wages of workers had remained static, adding that “when Tinubu came in we were optimistic and we felt that he started well but he has started to deviate. He needs to remember the poorest of the poor who voted him into office.

“Look at the prices of food. Garri is now a luxury. People can’t afford garri again. Government has refused to think outside the box. At this point, we are seriously doubting if the proposal of the committee will be implemented.”

‘Blame market forces’

Commenting on the hike in petrol price, Group Chief Executive Officer, NNPCL, Mele Kyari, attributed it to market forces.

Addressing journalists after a closed-door meeting with Vice President Kashim Shettima at the State House, Abuja, Kyari said, “They are just prices depending on the market realities. This is the meaning of making sure that the market regulates itself. Prices will go up and sometimes they will come down also.”

He debunked notions that the price increase was due to a shortfall in petrol supply.

“No, there is no supply issue. It is not a supply issue. When you go to the market, you buy the product, you come to the market and sell it at its prevailing market price. It has nothing to do with supply. We don’t have supply issues.

“We have a robust supply. We’ve had over 32 days of supply in the country. That’s not a problem,” he explained.

On his part, Chief Executive Officer, NMDPRA, Farouk Ahmed, attributed the price hike to global crude oil price increase.

He also mentioned that the changes in freight costs and other miscellaneous expenses that importers encountered during distribution contributed to petrol price changes.

Ahmed said, “Basically, what we are seeing is the effect of market forces. You can see that crude oil prices have been on the rise. Just a week ago, crude oil prices hovered around $70/barrel, but now it has surpassed $80/barrel. So naturally, these prices also influence the cost of the product.”

Netizens kick

Nigerians on social media also kicked against the adjustment in the pump price of petrol.

They bemoaned the price hike, lamenting that the situation would further impoverish the citizens

“NNPC fuel price is now N617 /litre. I hope you are enjoying the renewed shege?” a popular tweep, Nefferetti with Twitter handle @firstladyship wrote.

@PoojaMedia wrote, “President Tinubu needs to address the nation NOW. Hunger is walking on the streets of Nigeria.”

Another user, @trending_medic, said, “Fuel at N617/litre and dollar hitting N835/$. Thank God it’s only Obidients that will suffer it.”

@OfficialUdiBoy wrote, “Fuel has gone up to N617, renewed hope has turned to renewed shege. E go touch everybody until we get the mandate back.”

On his part, @YemieFash said, “The same petrol that was N190/litre two months ago is N617/litre. Is this the renewed hope?.”

“Not up to a month and Tinubu times are this hard!! No way in hell I am buying fuel for N617. Once my phone goes off now na till NEPA bring light next,” @KhaleedSZN wrote.

@SodiqTade wrote, “Dear Tinubu Boys, A litre of fuel is now selling for N617, almost two months after the removal of subsidy by Tinubu. Do you still think the N8,000 per household will cushion the possible effects of this new price? It seems Nigerians have entered one chance with this mandate.”

@Shayor19 said, “N617/litre and we are going to just adapt and move on like nothing happened? We are gradually missing Buhari right now.”

On his part, @sirvicbrown, wrote, “When Tinubu said he was going to continue from where Buhari stopped, many of us didn’t really understand. Am sure it is clear now?”

Also contributing, @The_D1amond said, “The economy is not funny anymore… This is proof that it’s not getting better anytime soon. The government is against us, the economy is also against us. If you know what’s best for you, start investing in online skills that would help you earn in dollars.”

Petrol hits N600/litre

One of our correspondents observed that though some fuel stations sold at N600/litre on Tuesday, most outlets of NNPCL along Ikotun, Akonwonjo, Cement axis of Lagos State were still selling for N568/litre.

There were long queues around NNPC outlets because they were selling cheaper than others.

An outlet belonging to God’s Decision located along Ikotun in Alimosho Local Government Area of Lagos, was selling at N600 /litre.

‘Higher inflation looms’

Reacting to the development, the President, Nigerian Economic Summit Group, Laoye Jaiyeole, said, “It is already leading to inflation. It is a tough time, no doubt, but what is critical is for us to begin to act quickly. Let me tell you something, in 2015 before the first inflation in 2016, we saw this coming and at NESG we gave them three scenarios.

“We asked that there are difficult decisions the nation needs to take and we didn’t take them, we ran away from them, maybe if we had taken those decisions it may not be as bad as this. Now the tough choices are being taken and I must confess they are tough.

“Giving succor to those that are less privileged is one, but you know we cannot continue to share money, we have to boost production. By boosting production it means we are going to ask ourselves what we are going to do about food and the productive sector. How do we ensure that we have electricity?”

He stated that if Nigeria starts refining crude oil, it would reduce the pressure on the exchange rate.

Bayelsa State was also hit by the sudden hike in the pump price of petrol as some independent oil marketers operating in the state increased the cost of the product from N515 to N595/litre.

Checks showed that filling stations operated by the NNPCL and PADOS along the Sani Abacha Expressway and the Isaac Boro Expressway in Yenagoa had started selling fuel at N595/litre.

However, Rainoil facilities located along the Mbiama-Yenagoa Road and the Isaac Boro Expressway increased their pump price of the product to N591/litre, while SOBAZ re-adjusted their meter to reflect N590/litre.

It was observed that some of the independent sales outlets did not open for business.

Petrol stations sold the product at N515/litre as of Monday and Tuesday morning before news of the current increase in pump price filtered into town.

A filling station attendant at one of the facilities, who did not want his name mentioned, said that they received instructions from their head office to re-adjust the meter to reflect the new price.

Marketers project N700/litre

Meanwhile, oil marketers insisted that petrol price would hit N700/litre once fresh products being imported by independent firms start arriving Nigeria

National Controller, Operations, Independent Marketers Association of NIgeria, Mike Osatuyi, reaffirmed this on Tuesday.

According to him, Lagos residents should prepare to buy petrol for as high as N600/N620/litre, while those living up North could pay as high as N700/litre.

Osatuyi’s insistence came on the heels of a recent report by The PUNCH, where he predicted that the price would reach N700/litre.

His prediction was, however, greeted with uproar, with many labour unions describing the prediction as “insensitive”, and a ploy by marketers to hike petrol price.

Osatuyi, however, stood by his words, as he stated that with crude oil price already attaining $82/litre at the international market, and the exchange rate around N800/$, the pump price would definitely attain around N700/litre.

 “The new stock will arrive any moment from the third week in July. But you know crude is now around $82/barrel, and the exchange rate is around N800. So, the new price would be determined by these two factors,” he said.

Abuja motorists lament

Motorists in the Federal Capital Territory, on Tuesday, decried the hike in petrol price, as transporters increased their fares following the new pump price.

It was observed that the transport fare from Lokogoma Bus-Stop to town increased from N300 to N400, while the fare from Galadimawa Junction to Lokogoma increased from N150 to N250.

Similarly, the cost from Airport Junction to Wuse increased from N300 to N400, while the fare to Lugbe from Airport Junction jumped from N300 to N400.

Danladi Usman, an FCT resident, said, “Many of us may not be coming out all the time again because how do we calculate the transport and our profit? Some of us also deliver money to the owners of the vehicles at the end of the day so it is going to be difficult.”

Petrol sells N630/litre

Some filling stations in Ondo State increased their pump prices to between N620 and N630/litre.

The marketers jerked up the price from the previous N500, N510 and N520/litre to between N620 and N630/litre after the NNPCL raised its price.

Long queues returned to some filling stations which were selling the product at the old price of N530/litre. Also, many stations which were operating before Tuesday were under locked.

A petrol station manager, who identified himself simply as Taiwo, said his station did not open for operation on Tuesday as the owner of the filling station was yet to decide on the price to sell the product.

“We are yet to sell because we don’t know how much to sell it and it will be very difficult to lift the product with this recent outrageous pump price. Our station owner is yet to decide on how much we will be selling it,” he said.

CSOs complain

The Coordinator, African Centre for Media and Information Literacy, Chido Onumah, faulted the government’s lack of control over the NNPCL as regards the pump price of petrol.

“The government seems not to be in control. We have a new government that is clearly not in charge and just leaving things at the hands of whether you say market forces, or buccaneer businessmen, or government forces like the NNPC that is completely out of control”.

He also lamented the effects of the hike on salary earners, noting that the situation was “becoming a nightmare for Nigerians”, as they were suffering more in the two months since the inauguration of the Tinubu administration, than in the last eight years of the previous administration.

Residents in the FCT continued to express their dissatisfaction, questioning and expressing surprise at the upward review in the price of petrol.

“It is surprising that this morning fuel price has been reviewed upward again. We want the government to make an explanation on this, “ a motorist at the A.A. Rano filling station at Jabi, Abuja, Kingsley Fregene, stated.

Punch

Labour Party (LP) on Tuesday said that the latest adjustment in the petroleum pump price is a continuation of the hard times Nigerians will be facing under the administration of the All Progressives Congress (APC).

LP National Publicity Secretary, Obiora Ifoh, disclosed this in a statement on Tuesday.

Petroleum pump prices rose to N617 per litre at Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) outlets in Abuja on Tuesday.

Across petrol outlets in different parts of Nigeria, pump prices were also adjusted upwards as Nigerians lamented the effect of the increase on the cost of living.

Reacting in its statement, the party said Nigerians do not deserve what they are getting from the present government.

“Recall that we had earlier warned that the bourgeoisie government in place can only enrich the upper class and inflict penury on the proletariat.

“You offer a paltry N8,000 to a family of five and extract all they have laboured for through obnoxious policies,” the party said.

Ifoh did not, however, say what his party would have done differently if it had won the presidential election in February, especially as its presidential candidate, Peter Obi, had, like President Bola Tinubu, promised to remove subsidy on petrol if elected president.

In its Tuesday statement, LP also condemned the attitude of the government towards its people, saying it is even coming at a time the Nigerian currency has continued to devalue under the watch of the government.

“We are however optimistic that Nigeria will overcome the Taskmaster of our time. We will soon witness the Promised Land,” it said.

Tinubu announced the removal of subsidy on petrol in his inaugural address on 29 May.

Following the announcement, the NNPCL directed its outlets nationwide to sell petrol between N480 and N570 per litre, an over 200 per cent increase from the initial price below N200.

The hike immediately triggered an increase in transportation fares and prices of goods and services.

PT

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.