Up Dangote?

Fuel prices could be dropping soon

Nov 13, 2024

Good morning, Big Brains. No, we didn’t get lost in your spam folder. We had some lapses that kept us temporarily away but we’re back. Today, I’m listening to Haske by Kaestrings and it’s the perfect song to hang on to for the sake of sanity. You should probably add it to your “Surviving the day” playlist.

- Margaret

Word count: ~ 1,200
Reading time ~4 mins

Let’s get into today’s edition:

Dangote and NNPC just signed a deal you might like
The Ministry of Finance is really financing
Trump and his new crew aren’t messing with immigrants

The Big Deal

Dangote and NNPC just signed a deal you might like

It’s Big Dangote now, not the small one! Are we hyping the richest man in Africa because we’re hoping he reads this and asks for our account number? Yes! But that’s not the only reason. After months of “will they, will they not?”, the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) has finally ended decades of relying on imported petroleum products, announcing the Dangote Petroleum Refinery in Lagos, as its sole supplier.

Mele Kyari, NNPC’s Group CEO, announced that NNPC will now get petroleum from Dangote’s 650,000 barrels-per-day refinery, marking a positive shift from the old import-based approach.

It gets even better (we’ll explain later) because the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN) also announced it had struck a direct deal with Dangote’s refinery which now allows it to bypass the NNPC and reduce the standard price of fuel for independent oil marketers.

Kyari also added that NNPC has shifted fully to domestic refining which will result in improved fuel quality.

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Why is this a big deal?

Dangote’s pocket is about to get heavier and so is yours too, hopefully. Unlike the billonaire, you won’t be making new money, but at least, you should be able to save some old money.

How do we know this? Well, IPMAN’s president, Abubakar Shettima, lit up like Christmas lights (unrelated but ‘tis the season, guys!) when he announced IPMAN’s new partnership with the Dangote Refinery. This agreement will now allow IPMAN to source fuel directly from Dangote. We don’t want to be too ambitious, but there’s a solid chance this will end those frustrating queues at filling stations because this new deal could lead to a stable supply across Nigeria at more affordable rates.

The IPMAN X Dangote combo has birthed these kinds of results before. In Spetember 2024, IPMAN revealed that when Dangote started producing AGOdiesel he struck a deal with IPMAN and their partnership made prices drop from around ₦1600 to ₦1100.

The Dangote X FG combo, which has a more messy history, could also do us some good in this case. First of all, the country gets to save $10 billion every year. We would need a properly scripted speech from President Tinubu if these saved funds don’t translate to cheaper fuel prices for Nigerians.

Don’t hit us with a “this you?” if the forces working against Nigeria make this impossible but there’s a solid chance that fuel prices will drop soon.

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The Ministry of Finance is really financing

The Ministry of Finance seems to be redefining the “finance” aspect of their ministry. It’s more like Ministry of Big Ballers now.

Thanks to Govspend, a public payments portal, we’ve got all the receipts to prove that the ministry threw a memorable send-forth party for one of their own, Permanent Secretary Okonkwo Ekanem. Typically, we’ll say “aww” but the fact that the party cost Nigeria ₦55 million takes the “aww” factor away. And no, this wasn't just any small gathering – it was held at the Transcorp Hilton, one of Abuja’s bougiest venues. As you’ll see on Govspend’s portal, the payment for the party was process on September 13th. The payment went directly into the personal account of someone called Unoh Omolara. That’s sus on every level because we're talking about public funds here.

For the same country where it has already been established that debt trumps revenue, this is a proper case of funds misappropriation if we ever saw one. Don’t quote us on this, quote the law instead.

Chapter Seven, Section 713, of Nigeria’s Financial Regulations say that “Public money shall not be paid into a private accoun.” But the Ministry of Fianance that should know Nigeria’s financial predicament better than any other Ministry has somehow managed to break this law to fund a lavish send-off party.

To be fair, this isn’t the first time government spending has raised some eyebrows. The public sector is notorious for finding “creative” ways to move funds around, and loopholes in the financial regulations have long been a treasure basket for any government official looking to bend the rules. This is the same country where a former governor moved $720,000 out of state funds to pay his kids’ school fees. Unfortunately, the lack of accountability and justice encourages the trend of funds misappropriation and this is hurting the economy in many ways.

While Nigerians are being asked to clench their wallets, the Ministry of Finance is loosening its own. If you’re a regular Nigerian hoping for water, road repairs, or healthcare, let’s just say you’ll have to keep hoping till there are no more “send-forth” parties to fund.

Trump and his new crew aren’t messing with immigrants

As President-elect Donald Trump starts filling key roles in his administration, experts and rights groups are already raising red flags about what this could mean for Nigerians and other immigrants abroad. Trump's recent picks include Tom Homan, a former Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) director, as his new “border czar” (his go-to guy for all things immigration) and Stephen Miller, his long-time adviser notorious for tough immigration policies, reportedly stepping in as deputy chief of staff for policy.

Trump has promised what he calls the “largest deportation operation in American history,” and some Americans believe these appointments show that he’s getting ready to stand on business.

Weighing in on the matter, American immigration lawyer Greg Siskind predicted that Homan and Miller might take a more calculated approach to roll out immigration crackdowns. He added that there’s also a high possibility that this crackdown will start on Trump’s first day back in the office.

Throughout his campaign, Trump and his allies were loud critics of the current administration's handling of immigration, promising to tighten the borders and deport millions. In announcing Homan’s appointment, Trump described him as “the best at policing and controlling our Borders” and said Homan’s mission would be to send “illegal Aliens back to their Country of Origin.”

With policies like these in the works, it’s clear that Nigerians in the diaspora and Nigerians with Japa dreams might be having a tough time adjusting to this new leadership. From increased raids to potentially stricter visa requirements, Trump’s administration looks set to make immigration less easy moving forward.

The Big Picks

Everything We Know About the Targeted Online Attack on Nigerian Feminists: Wednesday, November 6, was a day like any other for Nigerian feminists. There was nothing about the rising of the sun that suggested that the day would end on such an ugly note triggered by a major breach of privacy and digital rights, targeting a particular group of girls.

Kaduna Assembly Passes Social Security Scheme Bill For Vulnerable Groups Into Law: The Kaduna State House of Assembly has officially passed the Social Security Scheme Bill into law, marking a step towards expanding social welfare support for vulnerable groups in the state.

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