President Muhammadu Buhari on Thursday, December 1, 2022, indicated that governors steal from local government council allocations.
The President, who spoke extempore after delivering his speech at the presidential parley for members of the Senior Executive Course 44 (2022) of the National Institute for Policy and Strategic Studies, NIPSS, at the State House, underscored that personal integrity is fundamental in the operations of government.
He recalled an instance of how a state governor would receive allocation on behalf of council areas in his state only to remit half of such allocation to the council chairmen.
These actions, he said, portrayed the sort of corrupt practices that is now symptomatic of Nigeria in dispensing resources meant for local council administrations, thereby undermining development.
Buhari, in his address, congratulated the members of the Senior Executive Course 44 on the successful completion of their course. He challenged them to revitalise and reinvigorate leadership at the various levels of establishments.
Buhari Set To Officiate First Drilling Of Crude Oil In Northern Nigeria
President Muhammadu Buhari will, on Tuesday, November 22, 2022, supervise the first oil drill in oil fields located in Bauchi and Gombe States.
The ground-breaking ceremony of the Kolmani Oil Prospecting Lease, OPL, 809 and 810 at the Kolmani field site will be the first oil drilling in Northern Nigeria.
Oil was reportedly discovered in commercial volume in the region about two years ago.
While Nigeria is already exploring crude oil the southern Niger Delta, this exploration up north will be the first after an attempt in the Borno region was halted by insecurity.
NNPC Limited since 2016, launched a search for oil in some Northern states which led to the discovery of the oil in commercial quantity in Bauchi, Gombe, Borno, and Niger States.
According to officials at NNPC Ltd, the oil field in Bauchi and Gombe axis will developed by Sterling Global Oil, New Nigeria Development Commission, NNDC, and NNPC Limited.
“The ceremony will be held on Tuesday, 22nd November, and will be attended by Mr. President himself together with most of his cabinet members including the Minister of State for Petroleum, Timipre Sylva,” an official told Daily Trust.
NNPC Ltd has continually spent on frontier exploration as captured in its FAAC report.
With the new Petroleum Industry Act, PIA, 2022, funding for frontier exploration has risen to 30 percent, which means the reformer NNPC Ltd would have more fund to develop oil fields in Nigeria.
At the moment, the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission, NUPRC, said crude oil reserve is at 37 billion barrels.
Reports said the Kolmani fields holds over a billion crude oil reserve, which could significantly raise Nigeria’s oil reserve which has not grown in 10 years.
The oil discovery in the north is coming at a time when crude oil production in the south has dropped to about 1.2 million barrels per day mainly due to oil theft and vandalism.
Oil production in the north could be a backup to shore up revenue for Nigeria as it witnesses huge budget deficit so far, experts say.
