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Kachikwu, Baru Feud: Minister’s Allegations Baseless – NNPC

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The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) last Monday said Dr Ibe Kachikwu’s allegations against its Group Managing Director, Dr Maikanti Baru were baseless and untrue.
Kachikwu had, in a letter to President Muhammadu Buhari dated August 30, 2017, accused Baru of lack of adherence to due process in the award of NNPC contracts.
He had said the Crude Term contracts valued at over 10 billion dollars and DSDP contracts valued at over five billion dollars were never reviewed or discussed with him as NNPC Board Chairman.
He said that other contracts handled that way included Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano pipeline valued at approximately three billion dollars.
But in a statement in Abuja, NNPC said that its law and rules did not require a review or discussion with the Minister of State or the NNPC Board on contractual matters.
The statement was signed by the corporation’s Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division Mr Ndu Ughamadu.
It said: “it is important to state that the Crude Term Contract and the DSDP contract are not contracts for procurement of goods, works or services.
“Rather, they are a list of approved off-takers of Nigerian crude oil of all grades and suppliers of petroleum products of equivalent value.
“This list does not carry any value, but simply state the terms and conditions for the lifting.
“It is, therefore, inappropriate to attach a value to it with the aim of classifying it as contract above management limit.’’
The corporation stated that what was important in processing and approving contracts was the President in his executive capacity or as Minister of Petroleum or the Federal Executive Council (FEC).
“There are, therefore, situations where all that is required is the approval of the NNPC Tenders Board, while in other cases, based on the threshold, the award must be submitted for presidential approval.
“It should be noted that for the Crude Term Contract and the DSDP agreements, there are no specific values attached to each transaction to warrant the values of $10 billion and $5 billion, respectively, placed on them in Kachikwu’s claim.
“It is therefore inappropriate to attach arbitrary values to the shortlists with the aim of classifying the transactions as contracts above NNPC Tenders Board limit,’’ it said.
It added that contrary to Kachikwu’s assertion that he was never involved in the 2017/2018 contracting process for the Crude Oil Term Contracts, “the minister was consulted and his recommendations taken into account”.
It said that the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) had also clarified that NNPC Tenders Board (NTB) was not the same as NNPC Board.
“The governing board (NNPC Board) is responsible for approval of work programmes, corporate plans and budgets, while the NTB is responsible for approval of day-to-day procurement implementation.
“From the foregoing, the allegations were baseless and due process has been followed in the various activities,’’ the NNPC said.
The Tide source reports that the statement was silent on other allegations by Kachikwu, including the strained working relationship between him and Baru and absence of the GMD at meetings.

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Kenyan Runners Dominate Berlin Marathons

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Kenya made it a clean sweep at the Berlin Marathon with Sabastian Sawe winning the men’s race and Rosemary Wanjiru triumphing in the women’s.

Sawe finished in two hours, two minutes and 16 seconds to make it three wins in his first three marathons.

The 30-year-old, who was victorious at this year’s London Marathon, set a sizzling pace as he left the field behind and ran much of the race surrounded only by his pacesetters.

Japan’s Akasaki Akira came second after a powerful latter half of the race, finishing almost four minutes behind Sawe, while Ethiopia’s Chimdessa Debele followed in third.

“I did my best and I am happy for this performance,” said Sawe.

“I am so happy for this year. I felt well but you cannot change the weather. Next year will be better.”

Sawe had Kelvin Kiptum’s 2023 world record of 2:00:35 in his sights when he reached halfway in 1:00:12, but faded towards the end.

In the women’s race, Wanjiru sped away from the lead pack after 25 kilometers before finishing in 2:21:05.

Ethiopia’s Dera Dida followed three seconds behind Wanjiru, with Azmera Gebru, also of Ethiopia, coming third in 2:21:29.

Wanjiru’s time was 12 minutes slower than compatriot Ruth Chepng’etich’s world record of 2:09:56, which she set in Chicago in 2024.

 

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NIS Ends Decentralised Passport Production After 62 Years

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The Nigeria Immigration Service (NIS) has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.
Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, made the disclosure during an inspection of the Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja, last Thursday.
He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.
“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.
He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.
“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.
“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.
“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.
He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.
Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.
According to him, the centralised production system aligns with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for improved service delivery.
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FG To Roll Out Digital Public Infrastructure, Data Exchange, Next Year 

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The National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has announced plans to roll out Digital Public Infrastructure (DPI) and the Nigerian Data Exchange (NGDX) platforms across key sectors of the economy, starting in early 2026.
Director of E-Government and Digital Economy at NITDA, Dr. Salisu Kaka, made the disclosure in Abuja during a stakeholder review session of the DPI and NGDX drafts at the Digital Public Infrastructure Live Event.
The forum, themed “Advancing Nigeria’s Digital Public Infrastructure through Standards, Data Exchange and e-Government Transformation,” brought together regulators, state governments, and private sector stakeholders to harmonise inputs for building inclusive, secure, and interoperable systems for governance and service delivery.
According to Kaka, Nigeria already has several foundational elements in place, including national identity systems and digital payment platforms.
What remains is the establishment of the data exchange framework, which he said would be finalised by the end of 2025.
“Before the end of this year and by next year we will be fully ready with the foundational element, and we start dropping the use cases across sectors,” Kaka explained.
He stressed that the federal government recognises the autonomy of states urging them to align with national standards.
“If the states can model and reflect what happens at the national level, then we can have a 360-degree view of the whole data exchange across the country and drive all-of-government processes,” he added.
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