As Muslims all over the world mark the Eid-el kabir, the National Orientation Agency, NOA, has urged Nigerians to imbibe the virtues of selflessness, scarification and tolerance for peace and development of the nation.

Director General of NOA, Dr. Garba Abari who made the appeal yesterday in Abuja said that Nigerians need to demonstrate attitudes that encourage good neighborliness among its diversity.

“I am confident that if our people respect and support the leadership in the country, obey rules and regulations, promote tolerance, respect for one another and imbibe attitudes that encourage peaceful co-existence, the country will make progress” Abari said.

Abari urged the Muslim faithful to extend their hands of fellowship to people of other faiths in a demonstration of our unity and oneness saying “Nigerians can make progress when we work together in spite of our diversities.”

The chairman of Bunu Hunters in Kabba/Bunu Local Government Area of Kogi State, Caleb Oshe and his son have been killed.

Oshe and his son, Sunday, were reportedly killed by gunmen in the early hours of Tuesday.

The state government has condemned the killing, saying those behind it will be apprehended and made to face the law.

The Chief of Army Staff (COAS) Lt Gen Tukur Buratai has paid tributes to soldiers who died in various operations across the country.

He also praised the military for being ahead of security threats facing the country.

According to Army Spokesman, Col.Sagir Musa, the COAS used the occasion of the Eid-El Kabir to commend soldiers for their sacrifices for the country inspite of daunting challenges.

Col Musa said Buratai who celebrated the Eid-El Kabir with troops at the frontline urged them to redouble their efforts towards keeping Nigeria safe and secure.

He added in a statement that the Army Chief who was represented by the Chief of Training and Operations also visited recuperating troops at the 7 Division Medical Centre and Hospital Services, Maimalari Cantonment, Maiduguri.

Many are waiting to see the effect the massive Dangote refinery will have on the economy and job creation. But they have to wait until the end of next year, according to this report by Reuters and Our Reporter.

AFRICA’s largest oil refinery will not be finished until the end of 2020 due to problems importing steel and other equipment, executives at Dangote, which is building the facility in the Nigerian commercial hub of Lagos, told Reuters.

Nigeria, Africa’s most populous nation, imports virtually all its fuel due to sclerotic and underutilised refineries, and even the state oil company is looking to the 650,000 barrel per day (bpd) Dangote refinery to help address this.

Price caps force NNPC to import nearly all its gasoline at a significant cost and periodic fuel shortages are common.

Despite the delays at the congested Apapa and Tin Can Island Ports in Lagos, a Dangote executive said the company could start using the refinery’s tank farms as a depot to warm-up operations.

“We will be able to complete the (refinery) project by the end of next year – mechanical completion,” said Dangote Group Executive Director Devakumar Edwin, who oversees the project.

The company expects fuel production within two months of completion of the refinery, which could transform Africa’s biggest crude producer from a fuel importer into a net exporter, upending global trade patterns.

Billionaire Aliko Dangote, who built his fortune on cement, first announced a smaller refinery in 2013, to be finished in 2016. Dangote then moved the site to Lekki, in Lagos, upgraded the size and said production would start in early 2020.

Industry sources told Reuters last year that fuel output was unlikely before 2022.

Trading plan

Edwin also said during an interview at his office in Lagos that Dangote is setting up its trading desk, with a senior team of three people and a staff of roughly 30 who will monitor international commodity prices.

“We are setting up a complete trading desk here with us. In the next three months the full desk will be set up,” he said.

Giuseppe Surace, the refinery’s chief operations officer, said the refinery’s tank farms will be finished this year and could be used as a warm-up for operations.

The tanks will be connected to five “single point mooring buoys” (SPMs), which will allow the refinery complex to pump crude straight into tanks from large ships at sea and pump products back out onto boats of any size.

The SPMs will be the primary method of supplying oil products from the refinery, Surace said, adding that the team were considering using the tanks as training or as a depot before the refinery’s production starts.

“We might do that. We will be ready to do that,” he said, though he added that no decision had been taken yet.

The team is in talks with NNPC, two other international oil companies and two large oil traders, all of whom are interested in supplying crude and buying products, Edwin said.

Edwin said the crude unit for the refinery, which set sail from China last month, would arrive by the end of October.

The trains at a fertilizer plant on the same site will start up by the end of this year, the executives said.

The planned products to be produced at the refinery

The planned annual products of the refinery include 10.4 million tonnes of gasoline, 4.6 million tonnes of diesel and 4 million tonnes of jet fuel. Others to be produced annually are 0.6 million tonnes of polypropylene, 0.5 million tonnes of carbon black feed, 0.24 million tonnes of propane and 32,000 tonnes of sulphur.

According to the owner of the refinery, Aliko Dangote, the enormous project will cost between Us $12m and Us $14m. Facilities at the Refinery Complex, the building and shipment of the atmospheric tower are indeed considered a major and significant feat; yet there are other units of the refinery left to be sourced. Among the units to occupy the refinery and petrochemical complex are mild hydrocracking (MHC) unit, residual fluid catalytic cracking (RFCC), naphtha hydrotreater, RFCC gasoline hydrodesulfurisation (HDS) unit and alkylation units, and others.

The refinery complex will also possess infrastructural facilities like access roads, administrative building, pipeline system and tank storage facilities, among others. Importantly, the facility will have a fertiliser plant to be served by the refinery by-products as raw materials. Conclusion The atmospheric tower is supposed to be a piece of major equipment at the Dangote Refinery and Petrochemical Complex. It is expected to process crude oil into fuels including gasoline and diesel.

World’s largest atmospheric tower

On July 29, the atmospheric tower, a piece of equipment that will process crude oil for the refinery set sail from Sinopec Corporation’s factory in China.

“On July 29, the world’s largest atmospheric tower built by Sinopec slowly left a wharf in Ningbo. Following the Maritime #SilkRoad, it will travel to #Nigeria and be installed at the world’s biggest single-train facility – Nigeria’s Dangote Refinery,” Sinopec said in a tweet.

The atmospheric tower has a diameter of 12 meters, a length of 112.56 meters and a unit weight of 2252 tons.

“It is the largest diameter, longest length and the heaviest single-unit equipment in domestic export equipment. It will be installed in the world’s largest single-series refinery – the 32.5 million tonnes/year Dangote refinery in Nigeria,” the Chinese firm said in a statement on its website.

The atmospheric tower is the primary unit processing crude oil into fuels, according to a Citac analyst, Jeremy Parker.

“This is a major milestone, but there is still much work to be done, both in terms of sourcing the other units and interconnection at the site,” Parker said of the atmospheric tower shipment.

Dangote Industries has awarded not less than $368m worth of contracts to 120 local contractors for the refinery and petrochemical project to help local content development initiative.

Edwin noted that the refinery would lead to significant skills transfer and technology acquisition opportunities in the country, adding that the refinery could meet the country’s requirement of all liquid products, such as petrol, diesel, kerosene and aviation fuel, and would have a surplus of each of the products for export.

Federal Capital Territory Emergency Management Agency, FEMA, has yet raised another alarm that some parts of the nation’s capital will be flooded due to recent torrential rainfall that has led to an increase in the water level of the Lower Usuma Dam, making the Dam to spill into the Usuma River channel.

Recall that the FCT Administration earlier raised the alarm of flooding due to the constriction of waterways in locations like Lokogoma and warned those who reside in flood prone areas to relocate because of flash floods that could occur this year.

In a press statement signed by the agency’s Director General, Alhji. Abbas Idriss, and made available to our correspondent reveals that areas to be mostly affected are: Kubwa, Gwagwa-Karimo, Kuje Gwagwalada and along Airport Road.

Idriss advised residents in some of flood prone settlements to be watchful of possible flooding, just as he called on them to take simple precautionary measures during disaster, warning that flash floods can occur in these areas with or without any typical warning signs.

The statement reads in parts: “we are calling on the public that due to the recent torrential rainfall there has been an increase in the water level of the Lower Usuma Dam making the Dam to spill into the Usuma River Channel.

“Therefore, people leaving along the Usuma Dam channel will experience increase in volume of water along the River Channels. Areas mostly to be affected are; Kubwa, Gwagwa-Karimo, Kuje and along Airport Road Gwagwalada. In of these glaring facts, FEMA is advising the residents of the above settlements to be wary of possible flooding.

“They should also note that not all floods are the same. Some develop slowly, sometimes over a period of days. But flash floods can develop quickly, sometimes in just a minute and without any visible signs of rain.

“Therefore, the communities are advised to listen to the radio or television for information. Be aware that there could be possible flooding. If there is any possibility of that in your area, move immediately to higher ground. Do not wait for instructions to move. Flash floods can occur in these areas with or without such typical warnings”.

Deputy Minority of the House of Representatives, Hon. Toby Okechukwu has called for peaceful co-existence among Nigerians irrespective of ethnic, religious and political backgrounds.

He said that peace remained the foundation of any meaningful progress in any society and urged Nigerians to always be their brother’s keeper.

Hon. Toby conveyed this in his Eid-el-Kabir greeting to Muslim faithful yesterday.

He said: “The spirit of love that pervades the nation and among Nigerians of all ethnic, religious, and political backgrounds at Eid-el-Kabir should remind us of how we should live daily as one people. I therefore urge Nigerians to continue to embrace the virtue of peaceful-co-existence as that is a sure means of making the much-needed progress as a nation.”

“I call on the Muslim faithful and indeed all Nigerians to be their brother’s keeper and embrace sacrifice and forgiveness in the spirit of Eid-el-Kabir in order to move Nigeria forward.

“In all that we do, we must always endeavour to pray for this nation especially at this trying time that God might guide our leaders aright and also lift Nigeria from its numerous challenges, he said.

Dutch footballer, Wesley Sneijder has retired from football, calling time on his distinguished 17-year career.

The 35-year-old who enjoyed spells at Ajax, Real Madrid, Inter Milan, and Galatasaray among others has most recently been in Qatar, playing for Al-Gharafa.

Sneijder, who was regarded as one of the best-attacking midfielders in the world in his prime, began his career at Ajax before earning a move to Real Madrid in the summer of 2007.

The Dutchman contributed 11 goals and 11 assists in 66 appearances during his two seasons in Spain, winning a La Liga title before departing for Inter Milan following the signing of Cristiano Ronaldo.

At Inter, he won a treble under Jose Mourinho in 2010 before playing a huge role in Holland’s journey to the World Cup final that summer. He played a record 134 caps for the Netherlands and is also the player with the most assists for his country.

Sneijder spent three more years in Milan before playing for Galatasaray, Nice and finally Al-Gharafa.

ENUGU State Governor Ifeanyi Ugwuanyi has ordered the demolition of Agbogugu and Isu-Awaa-Agbudu caves in Ihe-Agbogugu-Ogbaku-Amurri and Isu-Awaa-Agbudu forests to enhance security.

The governor gave the order yesterday when he visited the area as well as the Umuogbua Ihe tunnel on the Enugu/Port Harcourt Expressway, by Awgu Local Government Area, which serves as a hide-out and escape route for kidnappers.

Ugwuanyi also inspected the ongoing construction of a military base on the Enugu/Port Harcourt Expressway by Umuogbua Ihe, Awgu council, and directed that the bushes around the tunnel/kidnappers’ den be cleared immediately.

The governor was conducted round the locations by the Chairman of Awgu council, Stanley Okeke, as well as lawmakers representing Awgu North and South in the House of Assembly – Mrs. Jane Eneh and Johnson Chukwuobasi.

He said a joint security patrol team will begin extensive surveillance of the affected areas to ensure maximum security and strict compliance with the directives.

Bauchi—Malam Abubakar Garba, a pensioner in Bauchi, who returned N1million excess gratuity paid to him, said his action was informed by his fear of God and the repercussions of spending money that was not his ‘legitimate entitlement’.

It would be recalled that Garba, aged 71, a Motor Chief Driver with the Bauchi State Judiciary, who retired in 2011, was, on August 5, erroneously paid N1.2million as balance of his gratuity, instead of N200,000. Upon getting to the bank and discovering the amount on the cheque given to him, he returned it to the disbursement committee and was issued another cheque for N200,000. The retiree said, yesterday, that he never ‘thought twice’ before returning the cheque. “My entitlement was N1.2million but I had been paid N1million some years back, leaving a balance of N200,000. “When the new regime decided to settle arrears of pension and I was lucky to be considered, I was given a cheque for N1.2million again. “I did not realise the mistake until I went to the bank and started filling the teller to lodge the money into my account. “I promptly returned the cheque, to the surprise and amazement of members of the committee,” he explained.

Garba said he was in dire need of money to complete his building project and repair his car, but that the satisfaction of his conscience was more paramount than his needs. “As I speak with you, I need N1.5million to complete my house; I need N300,000 to resuscitate my car that had been grounded for two years. “I had been looking for a bank that would grant me loan, without any success, yet I returned the money”, said Garba, who has one wife and seven children. He said most people who heard the story were astonished, with some saying he was probably “scared of EFCC”, “ had no financial challenges,” or “too old to value money.” Speaking to NAN on the honesty displayed by member of his union, Chairman of Nigeria Union of Pensioners in the state, Malam Habu Gar, said he had known Garba for long as an honest and God-fearing person. “I have known Abubakar Garba as an honest and religious person, as such I am not
surprised by his action. “Even if the over-payment were to be N1billion, the Garba I know would have returned it. “People of his character are very few and almost getting extinct, especially in this era of gross corruption in all human endeavors. “I expect the state government to reward this exemplary character, to encourage such honesty, just as the Nigeria Air Force and the Federal Government did to the Air Force personnel that returned money picked at pilgrims camp in Kano,” said Gar.

ABUJA—Country Director, ActionAid Nigeria, Mrs. Ene Obi, has  said corruption kills more people in Nigeria than HIV/Aids and malaria put together.

Obi, who led a delegation of ActionAid officials to the Abuja Bureau of Vanguard Newspaper said more needed to be done in the fight against corruption in every sphere of national life.

According to him, “ActionAid” is an anti-poverty agency to eradicate corruption. We believe that corruption can be eradicated and we believe that if our resources can be distributed, the way it should, remove the looting and the misappropriation that is happening, no Nigerian needs to go to bed hungry.