A LITTLE over three years ago when Dr Dakuku Adol Peterside was appointed Director-General of Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency, NIMASA, there was a sharp division of what his coming portends. While some believed that he would make a difference, significant and far-reaching, there were also those who expressed some level of reservation and indeed pessimism, based on the consideration that not being an industry person would clearly limit his ability to achieve the desired growth index.

In light of these values, the statement that BP had agreed to pay Timiș the sum of USD$10 billion as royalties for his former minority stake in two non-producing natural gas licenses in Senegal is not only outlandish, it is irresponsible, and reveals a thorough ignorance of how the oil and gas industry functions.

CSO and NGOs from Ogoniland gathered in Abuja to watch a documentary focused on the staggering environmental pollution in Nigeria’s Niger Delta. The 45-minute-long film, Environmental Refugees, was premiered by Oak TV to enlighten stakeholders about the consequences of oil spills and create a sense of urgency around the ongoing cleanup project.

A FEW days ago, President Muhammadu Buhari forwarded names of 43 ministerial nominees to the Senate for confirmation. Among the 43 nominees are 12 persons who were ministers in the president’s first term in office, while the remaining 31 nominees, when cleared by the upper legislative house, would become ministers for the first time under the current political dispensation. For many years, what has been the usual practice in the country is for the president to forward a list of ministerial nominees to the Senate for screening without their corresponding portfolios.

TERRORISM in Africa and most especially in Nigeria has taken a new terrifying dimension. The use of children in suicide bombing by the Boko Haram and Islamic State of West Africa Province, ISWAP, terrorist groups in recent time is worrisome.