The Chief of Defence Staff, Gen. Christopher Musa, says plans are underway for a security summit aimed at tackling challenges associated with securing oil and gas installations in the country especially pipelines.

Musa, who disclosed this on Thursday in Abuja when he visited Sen. Heineken Lokpobiri, Minister of State, Petroleum Resources (Oil), was concerned about the crude oil lost to economic saboteurs but vowed to put an end to it.

The CDS said the meeting with the minister was to strategise with all relevant stakeholders including the Army, Navy and Airforce, as well as other security agencies to deal with the challenge.

He said the proposed summit being organised by the armed forces and other security agencies in collaboration with relevant stakeholders, would deliberate on ways to boost national security.

“We are looking at the possibility of having a security summit to look at the issues on ground and challenges; deliberating on how best to tackle them together.

“We all know that Nigeria relies so much on petroleum resources and it is important for the ministry of petroleum resource to be supported for him to work efficiently and effectively.

“President Bola Tinubu has given us a mandate to ensure national security and ensure that Niger Delta Region and areas where oil production is going on, are given full support, to boost production level,” he said.

Musa assured that the armed forces of Nigeria were fully in support of the ministry and would provide it with the necessary support to ensure that Nigerians benefit from the God-given resource.

The CDS, while commending the minister, said there had been a lot of improvement in the sector since his assumption of office, especially on issues bordering on illegal refineries and environmental pollution which had gone down drastically.

“This shows that you are really doing well; we want to appeal to all Nigerians to join hands together to ensure that we secure our resources for our benefit.

“We are with you day and night, we will not hesitate,” the CDS assured.

The minister, while responding, expressed commitment to work closely with the CDS to fight pipeline vandals and those engaging in illegal refining of crude oil as well as oil thieves.

“We cannot completely eliminate crime but by working together with you, we will be able to reduce the menace to the barest minimum and reap the benefit from oil and gas production.

“Our commitment is to give you all the support needed, not just the ministry alone but all the agencies in the sector will work closely with you to reduce the menace.

“Federal Government has an obligation to ensure increased production, to take care of the feedstock needed for the Dangote Refinery, Port Harcourt Refinery and others, so as to have full benefit across the entire value chain,’’ he said.

According to Lokpobiri, every country in the world prioritises security and investment in its strategic assets.

He noted that the quickest way to solve Nigeria’s economic problems was through oil and gas.

“Today, oil sells for over 90 dollars per barrel and if we ramp up production, reduce the level of oil theft and pipeline vandalism, we will be able to raise enough money to fund budgets and stabilise the economy,’’ he said.

Gov. Francis Nwifuru of Ebonyi has inaugurated the newly established Ebonyi State University (EBSU) digitisation records management system (DRMS) for electronic data of staff and students.

The project was built for easy management of records of both students and personnel of the institution.

Nwifuru, Visitor to the institution inaugurated the multimillion naira project on Thursday at the permanent site of the university at Ishieke in Abakaliki during the world press conference by Prof. Chigozie Ogbu, the Vicv-Chancellor of EBSU.

The press conference was part of activities lined up for 2024 combined 12th – 15th convocation ceremony of graduands from 2019 to 2022.

Nwifuru, represented by Prof. Amari Omaka, Commissioner for Tertiary Education, commended the VC and management of the institution for great works done to elevate the fortunes of the institution.

The governor assured that his administration would stop at nothing to ensure that education was taken to a level where it would be celebrated such that Ebonyi would be a hub for education tourism in the country.

“We are proud of you and your team for what you are doing to making sure that our vision is realised going by the issues of successes of academic achievements recorded by various departments, international achievements being recorded in terms of ranking, visibility and physical infrastructure.

“I am happy with the success of the university and the digitisation programme; we are leaving the era of analogue to digitisation.

“From what I have seen so far, you have taken a giant stride to ensure that all records are preserved electronically not just in our computers but also in a cloud.

“So, it is my pleasure to be part of this programme and to inaugurate this project for the use of our university,” Nwifuru said.

Earlier,, Prof. Eugene Nweke , deputy Vice -Chancellor, Academics, explained that the project was a brain-child of the VC aimed at efficient management of records and information of personnel and students.

Nweke said that the project was undertaken by world-class ICT firm, KSMART Digital Solution Records Management System.

“As one of the efforts to address difficulties in the management of records and information of staff and students, the VC deemed it necessary for digitisation of records and information of all personnel and students of the university.

“‘We deem it necessary that at this auspicious occasion of our convocation that a project of this magnitude be inaugurated as part of land mark achievements of the Vice -Chancellor,” Nweke said.

Meanwhile, Dr Innocent Ogbue, Chief Executive Officer (CEO), KSMART Solution, said that once the digitisation process was completed, the university would have minimal paper records.

He noted that the records and information of personnel and students stored in the system were error proof stressing that the company worked with the records office of the institution to achieve the success.

The Nigerian Electricity Regulatory Commission, NERC, says the federal government needs to provide N3.2 trillion in subsidies in 2024 to reverse the recent electricity tariff hike.

The Nigeria Electricity Regulatory Commission Chairman, Sanusi Garba, said this in Abuja during a Thursday meeting with the House of Representatives Committee on Power.

Recall that on April 3, 2024, NERC announced an almost 245 per cent electricity tariff hike for Band A customers, getting 20 power supplies.

However, the tariff hike received condemnation among Nigerians, organized private sector groups, the Nigeria Labour Congress, the Trade Union Congress, and other organizations.

However, at the Committee on Power, Garba said the tariff hike was needed to boost current investment in the sector and improve power supply.

He added that if a total sectoral overhauling was not carried out, including fluctuation in foreign exchange, power supply in Nigeria would continue to pose a challenge.

He explained that before the recent review in tariff, distribution companies were only obligated to pay 10 per cent of their energy invoice, adding that the lack of cash backing was creating a liquidity challenge in the sector.

He further explained that between January 2020 and January 2023, the electricity tariff increased from 55 per cent to 94 per cent, adding that “the unification of FX and current inflationary pressures are pushing cost reflective tariff to N184 kilowatt per hour.”

He said, “If sitting back and doing nothing is the way to go, it would mean that the National Assembly and the Executive would have to provide about N3.2 trillion to pay for subsidy in 2024.”

Garba also said that only N185 billion of the N645 billion subsidy in 2023 has been cash-backed, leaving a funding gap of N459.5 billion.

“The committee cannot take any decision to stop the increase in tariff. That decision can only be taken by the entire House and not at the committee level. There must be a House resolution to stop it,” he said.

On his part, the Chairman of the Committee, Victor Nwokolo (PDP, Delta), said the essence of the meeting was to address the recent increase in tariff and the various bands to which electricity consumers were recently categorized.

The lawmaker said the officials of NERC and Discos had given the committee helpful information, noting that “we have not concluded with them because the transmission company of Nigeria was not here and the generation companies too.

“We will hold further consultations with them by next week. But what they have said, which is true, is that without the change in tariff due in 2022, the industry lacks the capital to bring the needed change.

“Of course, with the population explosion in Nigeria, the areas being covered are beyond what they estimated in the past, and because they need to expand their network, they also need more money.’’

Meanwhile, since the tariff hike, power supply has worsened nationwide as Nigerians grapple with darkness daily.