Nigeria’s oil and gas industry has been thrown into its biggest disruption in years as the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN) began a nationwide strike on Monday, shutting down the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPC), the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority (NMDPRA). By mid-morning, gates of NUPRC headquarters in Abuja were locked, leaving workers stranded outside. The once-bustling NMDPRA offices in the Central Business District also lay silent, as security officials confirmed “no entry” under union orders. “We have achieved 100 per cent compliance…
Author: National Update
Nigerian business magnate, Femi Otedola, has urged President Bola Ahmed Tinubu to make public the full findings of the Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede panel on petroleum subsidy fraud, insisting that the nation deserves to know the real culprits behind the multi-trillion-naira racket. Otedola’s call comes as he moves to sue Umar Sani, former spokesman to ex-Vice President Namadi Sambo, for ₦1 billion over what he described as “baseless and mischievous” claims linking him to subsidy fraud. “Zenon Petroleum and Gas Limited only imported diesel, a deregulated product not covered by subsidy claims. We never traded in petrol and therefore could not have…
Thousands of Nigerian youths seeking employment with the Nigeria Customs Service (NCS) were left stranded on Monday after the agency’s online pre-test portal repeatedly crashed, throwing the recruitment exercise into chaos. The pre-test, scheduled for September 22 at 3:00 p.m., was meant to help shortlisted candidates for the Superintendent Cadre familiarise themselves with the system ahead of the main computer-based examination. Instead, the portal returned multiple error messages, including “500 Internal Server Error”, locking out most applicants. From cybercafés to private offices and homes, candidates narrated hours of refreshing browsers without access. Many described the ordeal as both frustrating and…
By Ehichioya Ezomon Days after restoration of democratic governance in Rivers State, “busybodies” are honinig strategies to stir a crisis for Governor Siminalayi Fubara, who endured a six-month suspension from office following President Bola Tinubu’s imposition of a state of emergency rule in Rivers on March 18, 2025. Against his declaration that “no sacrifice was too great to secure peace, stability, and progress of Rivers State,” critics are demanding two things from Fubara: disclose the terms of the “peace agreement” he reached with President Tinubu; and take legal action to reclaim the six months he lost to the emergency rule.…
***Alleges Capitalist Conspiracy Amid Dangote Refinery Tensions The Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) has denounced a self-styled group parading as “Elders of the Petroleum Tanker Drivers (PTD)” branch, branding it fraudulent and illegal. In a late-night statement signed by its President, Comrade Williams Akporeha, and General Secretary, Comrade Afolabi Olawale, the union accused “unconscionable capitalists with filthy wealth” of sponsoring impostors to infiltrate and destabilize its ranks. NUPENG insisted that its constitution recognizes only the duly elected PTD National Executive led by Comrade Augustine Egbon, stressing that there is no such forum as PTD Elders. “These…
A group, the American Veterans of Igbo Descent (AVID) has faulted the Federal High Court ruling which dismissed the no-case submission filed by Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) leader, Mazi Nnamdi Kanu, describing it as a miscarriage of justice. Justice James Omotosho, in a ruling on Friday, held that the Department of State Services (DSS) had established a prima facie case against Kanu and ordered him to open his defence in the terrorism charges brought by the Federal Government. But in a statement signed by its president, Dr. Sylvester Onyia, AVID insisted the court ignored both constitutional safeguards and statutory…
The Niger State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) has elected Alhaji Aliyu Mohammed Halidu as its new chairman following a peaceful congress held at the party secretariat in Minna on Saturday. The results, formally announced on Sunday by the Chairman of the PDP Electoral Committee, Tanimu Turaki (SAN), showed Halidu polling 1,289 votes to narrowly defeat his closest rival, Yahaya Abdullahi (popularly known as Ability), who secured 1,269 votes. Turaki explained that only eight positions were contested while others were returned unopposed. Among those elected were Hadi Kuta, who emerged as state secretary unopposed, and Salomi Ndakosu, who…
Former Minister of Information and member of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Board of Trustees, Professor Jerry Gana, has declared that former President Goodluck Jonathan will contest the 2027 presidential election on the platform of the PDP. Speaking to journalists in Minna after participating in the state congress of the party, Gana said Nigerians are yearning for Jonathan’s return, stressing that the former president remains a trusted leader with a track record of people-oriented governance. “I can confirm that Goodluck Ebele Jonathan will contest the 2027 presidential election as PDP candidate, and you will vote for him to return as…
The National Chairman of the Social Democratic Party (SDP), Alhaji Shehu Musa Gabam, has condemned the nationwide strike declared by the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN), describing it as reckless, self-serving, and a direct sabotage of Nigeria’s economy. In a strongly worded statement on Sunday, Gabam said the union’s decision to shut down the oil and gas sector — with the Dangote Refinery singled out as a target — was a grave misstep that could unleash widespread hardship on ordinary Nigerians. “This declaration by PENGASSAN is nothing short of sabotage against the Nigerian people,” Gabam…
Then Federal Government has assured Nigerians that the supply of refined petroleum products will remain uninterrupted, despite recent tensions between Dangote Refinery and the Petroleum and Natural Gas Senior Staff Association of Nigeria (PENGASSAN). The reassurance came after the Steering Committee of the Domestic Crude Oil and Refined Products Sales in Local Currency Initiative met today to review the downstream sector. The meeting, chaired by the Honourable Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mr. Wale Edun, included top officials from the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning, the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), the Nigerian Midstream and…