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Nigerians Hail Reduction Of Petrol Price …PH Filling Stations Yet To Comply

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Many Nigerians have commended the Federal Government for reducing the pump price of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), otherwise known as petrol, from N145 to N125 per litre.
The price reduction followed the drop in crude oil prices which had lowered the expected open market price of imported petrol below the official pump price of N145 per litre.
President Muhammadu Buhari gave the approval for the reduction in the price of PMS which was said to be a direct effect of the crash in global crude oil prices.
In an interview with The Tide source, the Executive Secretary of Anti-Corruption and Research Based Data Initiative, Chief Dennis Aghanya, described the decision as “”very timely’’.
“The decision is very timely for the masses to be able to cope with the impact of the global economic devastation arising from COVID-19.
“It is also a sincere reaction to market forces and a part of steps of an administration determined to rewrite the grievous and foundational mistakes which are hurting us as a country now.
“Ordinarily, one would have wondered the source of courage for the government to implement this policy at a time our revenue has dropped even far below expectation because of the fall in price of crude oil.
“This is even when it is still battling on how to meet up with the benchmark to be able to finance the 2020 budget,” he said.
Also speaking, Prof. Wellington Oyibo, Head, African Networks for Drug and Diagnostic Innovation (ANDI), an NGO, described government’s response as “very commendable”.
“The response from government is very commendable. Economy drives the life of people and how they respond to situations.
“The action will reduce prices of transportation of goods and services and still leave people with money for some other things.
“But, the over all of this is for governments to see how it can reduce out of pocket expenses for health, this is very essential,” Oyibo said.
The Managing Director, BIC Consultancy services, Dr Boniface Chizea, however, said the pump price reduction ought to have come before now.
“But quite some time now, that has not happened, we never had any reduction. I think that this is a welcome development that should be commended,” he said.
Meanwhile, The Tide reports that the compliance level of some petrol stations in Port Harcourt is very poor.
Virtually all the filling stations in Port Harcourt are still selling at the old price of N145 per litre as at yesterday evening.

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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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