Which Way Nigeria?

THE REAL BUT HIDDEN DRIVERS OF THE FUEL SUBSIDY REMOVAL POLICY: BY JAYE GASKIA

Posted by Unknown On Sunday, January 13, 2013 0 comments

The more we have challenged this regime and confronted it with counter arguments to the reasons it is proffering for the urgency with which it is determined to remove fuel subsidy; the more new facts have emerged based on logical and rational, as opposed to voodoo analytical interpretation of official data from government and global Oil industry sources!

And from all that is emerging and that we know, it is now becoming quite glaringly clear that this regime is indeed beholden to, and unable to contain a parallel power structure, which it has sensationally referred to as the cabal or cartel. The ingrained culture of official corruption combined with the total lack of patriotism among public officials, has been and continues to be a significant factor in the apparent powerlessness of a ‘legitimate' government, when confronted by an 'illegitimate' counter power, organised in the cabal and cartel!

Let us take just one significant case study to explain this insincerity and subterfuge on the part of government; The question of domestic refining capacity, and the issue as to whether we ought to be importing refined petroleum products in the first place at all!

The regime is posturing as if we do not have installed domestic capacity to refine crude oil; this is absolutely a lie. We now know that from 1 barrel of crude oil, we can get 168 litres of refined fuel, out of which 73.05 litres is PMS [petrol]; so with installed capacity of 445,000 barrels of crude per day in the existing 4 refineries, we can conveniently refine 74.8 million litres of refined fuel per day, out of which, we can get 32.5 million litres of PMS per day. And at the 40 million litres per day imported and paid for in 2012, itself still a bloated figure, we would only need to import about 7.5 million litres per day of PMS until the 3 new Greenfield refineries come on board! So why is the regime not willing and able to pursue this cause of action? It must be because it not only aid and abets the criminality in the sector, it provides protection for the criminals, and is itself rather a major beneficiary of the corruption and treasury looting [a state crime] that is being perpetrated and perpetuated.

What is interesting about these figures is that if the four refineries were working at 100% capacity or even at 90% installed capacity, we would be able to conveniently meet daily domestic consumption of PMS from domestic refining of crude. This means we will be ale to cut out the unnecessary waste of about 85 Naira added to the 65 Naira per litre cost which arises solely because of the cost of importation. Furthermore, we now also know that the effective cost of PMS per litre if we were to include domestic cost of production [refining] plus cost of distribution, plus profit margin, comes up to only 35 Naira per litre at most. This in effect means that we should in fact be paying far less per litre for petrol than we are currently paying.

Now the government claims that they have improved refining capacity in the refineries from the below 30% they met it two years ago to between 50% and 60% capacity as of today. The government have also said that it will get the refineries up to 90% capacity utilisation by the end of 2012. The implication of the foregoing is that if we already produce at 50% of installed capacity, then we should not be importing more than 18 million litres of PMS per day, and therefore the subsidy bill should have been half of what is currently claimed. Second, it has also been confirmed that a proper audit will confirm that we in fact consume far less than 32 million litres of PMS per day, if we remove the waste that goes into smuggling across the borders and the sharp practices including round tripping which involves the oil import cartel and officials of government. Third, it also means that by the end of 2012 we can actual put a definitive stop to fuel importation, because we would have become self sufficient. So if we are to agree with the CBN governor that we can afford to continue to cover the importation costs [called subsidy] from public [that is federal funds] over the next four years, and that we would only run into severe crisis by 2015; then we can safely conclude that this subsidy can be continued for just one more year, by the end of which we would have achieved self sufficiency in domestic refining.

It is important that we have based all our analysis on what is existing [the four refineries], and have not included the implications of having additional 3 new refineries with combine capacity of 400,000 barrels of crude per day, and which the government have said can be completed in 2 years!

It therefore means that by the beginning of 2014, we would have acquired enough capacity to not only meet domestic needs but to also service the sub region with attendant additional export earnings as opposed to the present export spendings.

So why is the government presenting the facts as if we would continue to require substantial importation of refined fuel products over the next several years? Why is government insistent on continued importation, and therefore continued servicing of the cabal and cartel? Let us not forget that the removal of the subsidy those mean that importation will be stopped, or that the oil marketers/importers will not continue to import; in fact it simply means that the government wants us to individually as citizens pay the importers for this costs, such that it is no longer covered from the public purse.

From the above, it is even more pertinent that that will renew and strengthen our opposition to the proposed policy of hiking fuel prices, and insist that the Federal government of Nigeria ensures the 4 existing refineries are working at more than 90% capacity by the end of 2012, and that the 3 new refineries are completed and working at full capacity by the end of 2013. It can only do this if it confronts the cabal, tackle criminality in the sector and eliminate corruption from the sector. It will only be able to do this if we do not relent in our resistance and if we continue to increase the pressure on the regime through active mass resistance and direct action.

RETURN TO THE STREETS, RETAKE OUR COUNTRY, RECLAIM OUR HUMANITY, OCCUPY NIGERIA FOR SOCIAL TRANSFORMATION!

Delhi gang-rape victim dies in hospital in Singapore

Posted by Unknown On Friday, December 28, 2012 0 comments

A female student gang-raped on a bus in India's capital Delhi has died at a Singapore hospital, doctors say.

The Mount Elizabeth hospital in Singapore, where the victim was being treated

The 23-year-old had arrived in Singapore on Thursday after undergoing three operations in a Delhi hospital.

The attack earlier this month triggered violent public protests in India that left one police officer dead.

Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh said he was "very saddened" and promised to channel "emotions and energies" into a course of action.

Six men have been arrested and two police officers have been suspended following the 16 December attack.

A statement from the hospital said the woman "passed away peacefully" early on Saturday with her family by her side.

"The patient had remained in an extremely critical condition since admission to Mount Elizabeth Hospital," hospital chief executive Kelvin Loh said.

"She had suffered from severe organ failure following serious injuries to her body and brain. She was courageous in fighting for her life for so long against the odds but the trauma to her body was too severe for her to overcome.

"We are humbled by the privilege of being tasked to care for her in her final struggle," Mr Loh said.

A team of eight specialists had tried to keep the patient stable, but her condition continued to deteriorate over the two days she was at Mount Elizabeth Hospital, he added.

Officials from the Indian High Commission were also present when the patient passed away. The Indian home minister said the government had decided to send the victim overseas on the recommendation of her doctors.

Demonstrators shout slogans as they are surrounded by the police during a protest rally in New Delhi

The woman's case has sparked public debate as well as several days of protests across India

Arrangements are being made to take her body back to India, said Indian high commissioner to Singapore TCA Raghavan.

"The requisite formalities for sending the body are being completed. The deceased and family members to be flown out in a chartered aircraft later today," Mr Raghavan said.

In a statement issued in Delhi, Prime Minister Singh said: "It would be a true homage to her memory if we are able to channelise these emotions and energies into a constructive course of action.

"The need of the hour is a dispassionate debate and inquiry into the critical changes that are required in societal attitudes.

"Government is examining... the penal provisions that exist for such crimes and measures to enhance the safety and security of women. I hope that the entire political class and civil society will set aside narrow sectional interests... to help us all reach the end that we all desire - making India a demonstrably better and safer place for women to live in."

Rising anger

The victim and her friend had been to see a film when they boarded the bus in the Munirka area of Delhi, intending to travel to Dwarka in the south-west of the city.

Police said she was raped for nearly an hour, and both she and her companion were beaten with iron bars and thrown out of the moving bus and into the street.

On arrival at the hospital in Singapore, doctors said that as well as a "prior cardiac arrest, she also had infection of her lungs and abdomen, as well as significant brain injury".

The government has tried to halt rising public anger by announcing a series of measures intended to make Delhi safer for women.

These include more police night patrols, checks on bus drivers and their assistants, and the banning of buses with tinted windows or curtains.

The government has also said that it will post the photos, names and addresses of convicted rapists on official websites to shame them.

It has set up two committees - one looking into speeding up trials of cases involving sexual assaults on women, and the other to examine the lapses that might have led to the incident in Delhi.

But the protesters say the government's pledge to seek life sentences for the attackers is not enough - many are calling for the death penalty.

Since the Delhi incident, several cases have been highlighted of authorities failing to respond to reported rapes.

On Wednesday, a woman committed suicide in the state of Punjab, after having tried to report to police an rape which allegedly took place last month, local media reports said.

At least one police officer involved in the case has been sacked, according to local officials.

Culled The BBC

Silvio Berlusconi 'to pay ex-wife 36m euros a year'

Posted by Unknown On 0 comments

Culled the BBC

Italy's former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has agreed to pay 36m euros (£30m) a year to his ex-wife Veronica Lario, reports say.

Berlusconi will keep the £60m villa where the couple lived with their three children, as part of a divorce deal reportedly filed on Christmas Day.

Veronica Lario and ex-husband Silvio Berlusconi

Ms Lario left Berlusconi in 2009 after he was seen at the 18th birthday party of an aspiring model, Noemi Letizia.

US magazine Forbes estimated his wealth at almost $6bn (£3.7bn) in March.

The Corriere della Sera newspaper reported that Ms Lario, 56, had initially asked for £35m a year.

Her 76-year-old ex-husband reportedly offered her about £3.1m.

The couple met in a dressing room in 1980 after Berlusconi saw Ms Lario perform in a Milan theatre.

Silvio Berlusconi gave a necklace to Noemi Letizia on her 18th birthday

They were married in 1990.

He has two other children from his first marriage and is currently engaged to 28-year-old Francesca Pascale .

Berlusconi was Italy's longest-serving post-war prime minister until he resigned in November 2011.

He says he will run for office again in 2013.

His third term in office saw slow growth and a national debt of $2.6 trillion and his government was slow to implement austerity measures in response.

Court cases

He also became embroiled in a series of financial and sex scandals.

In October 2012, he was sentenced to four years in jail by a Milan court after being convicted of tax evasion.

He is currently appealing against the decision, and commentators say it is unlikely that he will serve any time in jail.

He is also standing trial on charges of paying to have sex with an underage girl in 2010.

Her identity was later revealed as Karima El-Mahroug, widely known as Ruby Rubacuori (heart-stealer), a Moroccan nightclub dancer who was 17 years old at the time.

He is also charged with abusing his powers to get Ms Mahroug released from police custody after she was arrested for shoplifting.

Berlusconi denies the charges.