The presidency on Wednesday declared that there is no vacuum in the country, even as President Bola Tinubu and Vice President Kashim Shettima are out of the country.

The presidency, in the statement issued by Tinibu’s Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, said the President and Vice President are fully engaged with the nation’s affairs, even while they are away, noting that there is no leadership vacuum in the country.

According to the Presidency, Nigeria’s Constitution does not make it mandatory for President Tinubu and his Vice, Senator Kashim Shettima, to be physically present to provide leadership for the country, especially in a virtual age.

The Ondo State branch of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has criticized Oyo State Governor Seyi Makinde for requesting the reassignment of the Independent National Electoral Commission’s Resident Electoral Commissioner in Ondo, Mrs. Oluwatoyin Babalola.

Makinde made this request during the kickoff of the Peoples Democratic Party’s campaign in Akure on Tuesday, in preparation for the governorship election scheduled for November 16th.

He appealed to INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmood Yakubu to move Babalola, a sentiment that was supported by the PDP candidate, Agboola Ajayi, who expressed concerns about her being from Ondo State.

In a statement released on Wednesday, APC Publicity Secretary Alex Kalejaiye criticized Makinde’s comments as unwarranted, emphasizing that Mrs. Babalola has shown “integrity, competence, and capacity” in her position since taking office.

The statement, titled ‘Ondo Not an Appendage of Oyo,’ advised Makinde to stay out of Ondo State’s political affairs.

The statement read in part: “The REC has demonstrated integrity and competence since her appointment. It is ludicrous that Governor Makinde would make such demands when he had no influence in her posting to Ondo. Ondo State and the electoral body are not appendages of his empire, where he presides as an administrator.”

The APC also criticized Makinde’s remarks, labelling them as “unsolicited advice”  to the people of Ondo and rejecting his caution about selling their votes.

“Ondo people are politically sophisticated and act based on conviction, not as cheaply as Mr Makinde suggests,” the statement added.

In response to the APC’s criticism, the PDP’s Publicity Secretary, Kennedy Peretei, came to Makinde’s defense, describing the APC’s reaction as “pedestrian.”

Peretei argued that Makinde, as a major stakeholder in the PDP, had every right to raise concerns about the REC’s impartiality.

“The Ondo APC is once again displaying its usual pedestrian approach in reacting to Governor Makinde’s call for a free and fair election,” Peretei said.

The Joint Action Committee of the Senior Staff Association of Nigerian Universities (SSANU) and the Non-Academic Staff Union of Universities and Allied Institutions (NASU) has vehemently criticized the establishment of the renegotiation committee formed by the Federal Government.

This committee, which was established on Tuesday in Abuja, has been assigned the responsibility of renegotiating the agreements made in 2009 between the government and university-related unions.

In a unified statement from SSANU President Muhammed Ibrahim and NASU President Peters Adeyemi, the unions labelled the event a “charade,” accusing the government of favouring the Academic Staff Union of Universities while neglecting other unions.

The Federal Government has reformed the renegotiation committee, setting a deadline of three months for it to complete its work.

This is the fourth renegotiation committee established by the government since 2017, following earlier committees chaired by Wale Babalakin in 2017, Munzali Jubril in 2020, and Nimi Briggs in 2022.

“The entire inauguration seemed to revolve around ASUU, with the other unions treated as an afterthought,

“The Honourable Minister of Education’s speech focused almost exclusively on ASUU, while the other unions were barely mentioned,” the statement read.

This is the fourth renegotiation committee established by the government since 2017, following earlier committees chaired by Wale Babalakin in 2017, Munzali Jubril in 2020, and Nimi Briggs in 2022.

In 2020, ASUU initiated a nine-month strike that resulted in the establishment of the Jubril Committee. The recommendations from this committee served as the foundation for a draft agreement created in 2021. A subsequent draft was presented by the Nimi Briggs committee in 2022, but negotiations have still not produced enduring outcomes.

The unions expressed their discontent regarding what they perceived as favouritism during the inauguration on Tuesday. They claimed that the ASUU President was given a significant position at the event, while the leaders of other unions were placed in subordinate roles.

“The President of ASUU was seated at the so-called ‘Responsibility table’ while NASU and SSANU leaders were left as mere spectators, a clear indication of the imbalance in the process,” the statement added.

SSANU and NASU voiced concerns that the renegotiation process would disproportionately benefit academic staff while disadvantaging non-teaching employees.

In reaction to what they labelled a “humiliating” experience, the unions criticized the Federal Government for what they see as favouritism.

“The President of ASUU was allowed to speak on behalf of all unions without prior consultation, further proving that the views of other unions are being disregarded,” it further added.

In conclusion, the unions criticized the procedure, voicing significant worries about possible bias in the forthcoming negotiations.

“We reject the charade that took place in the name of an inauguration, as it signals a clear bias toward academic staff and undermines the rights of non-teaching workers,” the statement concluded.

The Jigawa State Police Command has linked the significant number of fatalities and injuries from Tuesday’s fuel tanker explosion to the frantic efforts of residents to collect the spilled fuel from the ground following the incident.

The Command’s Public Relations Officer, DSP Lawan Shiisu, conveyed this information in a voicemail sent to reporters in Kano on Wednesday.

He stated, “In spite of the police’s attempts to secure the area and alert the public, individuals defied the warnings and began to collect the fuel, which led to a catastrophic explosion.”

Shiisu further mentioned that the police had a hard time maintaining order at the scene, as numerous onlookers disregarded the cautions and approached the accident site recklessly.

“The tanker, loaded with petrol, ignited shortly after the crash, causing an inferno that engulfed numerous people in the vicinity.

“The injured were immediately rushed to General Hospital at Ringim, where medical personnel are working around the clock to treat the victims. However, the death toll is likely to rise as several of the injured remain in critical condition,” he stated.

He mentioned that the Commissioner of Police for the state, AT Abdullahi, has expressed his condolences to the residents, particularly those in Majiya town, where the incident occurred.

He also cautioned individuals to keep their distance from such incident locations to prevent loss of life and damage to property.

He said, “When the accident occurred people started rushing to scoop fuel and in the process, fire ignited from nowhere which led to the death of many persons and injured many others.

He said following the inferno, 94 persons lost their lives on the spot while 50 others that injured were rushed to Ringim General Hospital where doctors are battling to save their lives.

Nigerians, particularly those in rural areas, have been advised against reverting to firewood due to economic challenges and the recent increase in cooking gas prices.

This caution was issued by researchers and climate change advocates during a program in Abuja on Tuesday focused on “Maximizing Energy Transition Opportunities in Nigeria.”

This warning follows a rise in the price of Liquefied Petroleum Gas (LPG), commonly known as cooking gas, which increased from N1,350 to N1,500 per kilogram.

The PUNCH also noted that cooking gas prices reached as high as N1,500 per kilogram in certain retail outlets in Ogun and Lagos States as of Sunday, while the average cost for refilling a 12.5kg cylinder of cooking gas in various areas of Abuja surged by 41.6% to N17,000.

In response, Amara Nwamkpa, the Director of Partnership and Development at the Shehu Yar’Adua Foundation, acknowledged that the recent situation might compel some Nigerians to revert to using firewood for cooking.

Nwamkpa also advised Nigerians to think carefully before switching from cooking gas to firewood due to the risks associated with smoke exposure and its health effects.

The researcher emphasized that, as the global community strives for an energy transition driven by climate change, Nigerians should begin exploring renewable energy and clean cooking alternatives.

He said, “The transition to clean cooking is not an attempt to completely eliminate firewood but to reduce the exposure and inhalation of smoke in the process of its use. These are some of the things that cause respiratory diseases and 40 per cent of the pneumonia cases we are having in the country.

“There are several versions of this clean cooking (stoves) that still use firewood. The good thing about it is that it uses less wood. This involves rudimentary technology because clean cooking is all about insulation and the expertise of building these local ovens or stoves can even be done by local welders and artisans in the community.

“This is the kind of initiative that could touch the lives of the majority of Nigerians if we successfully transition from continued exposure to firewood smoke to clean cooking. It will also improve their health and quality of life, especially for people at the bottom of the pyramid. It will even ameliorate the hardship many areas facing in the country.”

Another specialist from the Africa Policy Research Initiative, Olumide Onitekun, echoed the caution that using firewood poses health risks.

Onitekun also expressed worries that persistent advocacy efforts are needed to inform grassroots Nigerians about the dangers due to the long-standing cultural norms surrounding firewood usage.

He said, “Our transition is not binary. It is a process. Nigeria has an abundance of natural gas. Health-wise, using firewood for cooking is not safe. There are a whole lot of health implications involved when humans are exposed to the emissions that come from firewood cooking.

“This is why the advocacy for clean cooking is very important. The health benefits of climate change beyond the environment cannot be overemphasised. The need to domesticate clean cooking is essential.

“We know there is a cultural barrier to this because people, especially at the grassroots have been using firewood for a long time. This is why engaging them must be targeted. I believe it is high time the government put the right policy in place to stimulate the interest of the private sector in the area of renewable energy.

“Things may be expensive, there are different forms of acquisition. For instance, I understand the pay-as-you-go model comes with its challenges. But we can’t have a solution without a challenge.”

In his earlier remarks, Patrick Okigbo, Founding Partner of Nextier Advisory Limited, highlighted that the key distinction between energy transition and fossil fuels lies in the fact that the former is motivated by climate change rather than by resource scarcity or efficiency concerns.

Okigbo also asserted his belief that Nigeria is steadily moving towards the global transition to renewable energy and anticipated a future when the country would no longer depend on crude oil from the Niger Delta.

The PUNCH

A fire broke out early Wednesday morning along the Ibafo area of the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway after a petrol tanker caught fire, destroying vehicles worth millions of naira, as well as homes and livestock, leaving locals in a state of shock.

Many people were also injured to varying extents.

A PUNCH Online reporter who visited the site learned that the fire started when the petrol-filled tanker overturned near a commercial bank along the Ibafo stretch of the expressway.

Witnesses revealed that the tanker driver was believed to have dozed off while driving, leading to the loss of control and the subsequent fall and explosion of the tanker.

Our reporter noted that the petrol leak flowed through a drainage system, reaching a neighbourhood roughly one kilometre away from the highway.

The fire’s effects were clear, as multiple buildings had broken windows, damaged roofs, and cracked walls.

In a conversation with our reporter, an eyewitness named Wasiu claimed that the incident was caused by the tanker driver’s careless driving.

He explained, “What I saw was that the tanker was swaying before it fell and spilt its contents into the drainage. It didn’t catch fire immediately, as some hoodlums had started scooping the fuel.

Breaking News: Tragic Tanker Explosion in Jigawa Claims 90 Lives

“However, after a few minutes, fire struck from the other side of the expressway, and it escalated. Four tipper trucks parked on the premises of Osadol Fuel Station were destroyed. I also learned that the fire extended into the community close to the expressway.”

Tunde Adewumi, a local resident of the affected area, mentioned that the fire caused alarm since it spread while most people were asleep.

He said, “It was a serious incident, but thank God the drainage had been constructed; otherwise, the damage would have been much worse. The fire injured about three people and damaged buildings. Those affected were mostly people living close to where the drainage construction ends.”

In a phone conversation with our correspondent, Omolola Odutola, the spokesperson for the Ogun State Police Command, confirmed the incident, stating that the tanker driver was injured and taken to the hospital.

“The incident involved a Fiat truck, but the driver’s name and address are currently unknown. The accident occurred when the driver lost control of the steering and collided with the roadside curb. The truck, believed to be carrying petrol, fell over and caught fire. The fire spread to the truck and eventually engulfed it.

“Additionally, the fire reached the Osadol Petrol Station, damaging two trucks parked outside. At the time of the incident, the fire service was contacted, but community members and police officers managed to bring the fire under control while awaiting their arrival. The truck driver has been taken to Real Divine Touch Hospital in Ibafo for medical treatment,” Odutola stated.

View additional images from the event.

The PUNCH