Lagos, Nigeria - Nigerian newspapers were this week filled with stories from the continuing debate on oil subsidy removal, the 'death' of the same-sex (gay) bill and demand for Obasanjo's trial by some parliamentarians. The Vanguard ran the story on oil subsidy with two headlines -- 'Reps reject fuel subsidy removal' on Friday and 'Senate unmasks fuel subsidy beneficiaries' on Saturday. In the first story, the paper said the House of Representatives Thursday rejected President Goodluck Jonathan’s planned proposal to remove oil subsidy by January 2012 when the legislators considered the report on the Fiscal Strategy Paper submitted to the National Assembly by the president.

They averred that the proposal was premature, just as they called on the President to source funds to finance items for the deficit expected in the 2012 budget.

In its second story, the Vanguard reported that about 100 companies had been fingered as those who shared about 3.655 trillion naira (150 naira = US$ 1) meant for the petroleum subsidy in the country in the last five years.

The revelation emerged at the resumed public hearing on the operations of the fuel subsidy regime in the country by the Joint Senate Committee on Petroleum Downstream, Finance and Appropriation.

Chairman of the Panel, Senator Magnus Ngei Abe, revealed that over 100 companies, including construction companies, participated in sharing the money between January and August 2011.

This figure, however, is in conflict with the N1.348 trillion said to have been spent on subsidy by the Petroleum Product Pricing Regulatory Agency, PPPRA.

The Committee frowned at the discovery that some of the firms listed were construction companies that have nothing to do with oil, adding that such companies were too many and put the credibility of their participatory process into question.

'It’s final: Reps reject fuel subsidy removal' was the headline in the Trust on Friday. The story said that the House of Representatives Thursday voted in favour of throwing out President Jonathan’s subsidy removal clause from the government’s expenditure proposals for 2012 to 2014.

Jonathan plans to end fuel subsidies beginning from January 2012 to save billions of naira for development projects, but this has been facing stiff resistance from labour unions and parliamentarians.

Tribune's two headlines on the story were 'Reps reject proposed oil subsidy removal' and 'Senate Exposes Fuel Subsidy Cartel'. According to the paper, the planned fuel subsidy removal, as contained in the revised Fiscal Strategy paper, is premature, adding 'Sources other than relying on savings from proposed subsidy removal as part of financing items for expected deficit should be explored.”

On the cartel sabotaging the oil sector, the Tribune on Saturday reported that the Senate Joint Committee investigating the management of fuel subsidy, on Friday, during public hearing, revealed that more than 100 companies, including construction companies participated in the sharing of 1.426 trillion naira between January and August 2011.

The Sun captioned its story 'Senate panel exposes fuel subsidy beneficiaries', listing the benefitting companies as follows:- Major oil marketers include: AP; Oando; Total; MRS and ConOil, while the independent beneficiaries are Bovas, Eterna, Eurafric Oil & Coastal Services, Integrated Oil, Matrix, Northwest Petroleum Pinnacle, RAHAMANIYYA, Sea Petroleum, Maizube Pet, Triquest, Ecogree, Ontario, Dupot, IMAD oil, Nadabo, Brila, SIFAX, Taurus, Yanaty Petro Chemical, AITEO, AMG, Ascon, Dee Jones, Honeywell, Swift, Acorn, Avant Garde, Majope Inv, Spog Petrochemical, Knighsridge, Lloys Energy, Masters Energy, Dupot Marina, Lumen Skies, Nasaman, Somerset, Sirius Energy, Tonique, Ventro Energy, Channex Oil, Valzira, Zenro, Donny Oil and Gas, Naticel, AA Rand, Lingo Oil, Ocean Energy Trading, Ryden, Chiteld Pet, Avidor, Setana Energy, Shorelink Oil, Fradro Int, Linetrale Oil Supply and Trading, Sahara, Valcore, ASB Inv, Lubcon, Ceoti, First Deepwater and Agacan.

Committee Chairman, Abe, read out a list of the oil subsidy beneficiaries, as at August 2001. Some of them are: Oando Nigeria Plc (N228.506 billion); Integrated Oil and Gas Plc (N30 billion); MRS (N224.818 billion), Con Oil (N37.96 billion), Enak Oil & Gas (N19.684 billion), Bovas & Co. Nig Ltd (N5.685 billion), Obat (N85 billion) and AP (N104.5 billion).

Others are: Folawiyo Oil (N113.3 billion), IPMAN Investment Limited (N10.9 billion), ACON (N24.1 billion), Atio Oil (N64.4billion), AMP (N11.4 billion), Honey Well (N12.2 billion), Emac Oil (N19.2 billion), D.Jones Oil (N14.8 billion) and Capital Oil (N22.4 billion), AZ Oil (N18.613billion).
Abe, however, differed from the amount of N1.346trillion earlier presented by the Executive Secretary of the Petroleum Products Pricing Regulatory Agency (PPPRA), Mr. Reginald Elijah Stanley. He placed the figure at N1.426trillion.

'It’s 14 years jail term for homosexual marriages', screamed the Vanguard on Wednesdeay while reporting the passage of the Same-Sex Marriage bill prohibiting all marriages between man and man and between woman and woman.

The bill, sponsored by Senator Abe, also prescribed 10-year jail term for anybody convicted of aiding and abetting the contraction of same sex marriage in Nigeria and also nullifies certificate of same sex marriage contracted outside the shores of Nigeria.

The new law also kicked against the operation of gay clubs in Nigeria as it provides for 10 years jail term without option of fine for anybody guilty of operating gay club within the country.

The Sun's headline was 'No gays, no lesbians' with the rider 'Senate rebuffs UK, bans same sex marriage'. The paper reported that the Senate Tuesday brushed aside threats from Britain to cut aids to African countries that violate the rights of gays and lesbians by passing a bill which criminalises same sex marriage.

The Nigerian lawmakers unanimously approved a 14-year jail term for perpetrators, four years more than the recommended punishment from the Senator Umaru Dahiru-led Committee on Judiciary and Human Rights.

Under the headline 'Same sex marriage ban irrevocable - Mark', the Sun also reported that Senate President David Mark Thursday told the German Ambassador to Nigeria, Dorothee Janetzke–Wenzel, in Abuja that the ban on same sex marriage in Nigeria was irrevocable after the Senate had passed a new law banning same sex marriage in Nigeria.

He said 'Gay clubs were also banned from operating in the country,' adding that any aid for the country tied to endorsement of same sex marriage is not welcome.

“It is unfair to tie whatever assistance or aid to Nigeria to the laws we make in the overall interest of our citizens. Otherwise we are tempted to believe that such assistance comes with ulterior motives,' Mark told Janetzke–Wenzel in Abuja, the Nigerian capital.

While the Trust captioned its story 'Senate outlaws same-sex marriage', the Tribune called it 'Rescind decision on gay marriage or else...' with the riders 'Britain gives Nigeria condition for partnership' and 'No country can dictate to us' - Senate president.

According to the Tribune, the Federal Government on Thursday disagreed with the British Government over the recently-passed same-sex marriage bill.

The British Prime Minister, Mr. David Cameron, said that Britain would not give any assistance or aid to countries that were opposed to same sex marriage.

The British High Commissioner in Nigeria, Mr Andrew Lyod, who held a closed door meeting with the Jigawa State governor, Alhaji Sule Lamido, asked the Nigerian government to rescind its decision on punishing individuals involved in same sex marriage, adding that such a law infringes on the fundamental rights of choice and association.

While the British Government said that Nigerian government should rescind its decision to punish individuals who engage in same sex marriage with 14 years imprisonment, the Federal Government said that the foreign mission should hold whatever assistance or aid to Nigeria tied to such gifts with ulterior motive.

The Canadian government has also condemned the passage of the bill criminalising same-sex marriage and gay activities in Nigeria by the Senate, saying that the bill, if assented to by President Goodluck Jonathan, would trample upon the fundamental human rights of homosexuals and gay people.

The Canadian government, in a statement by its Foreign Affairs Minister, John Baird, on Thursday, called on Nigeria to reverse the bill so as to allow all its citizens to enjoy basic rights.

The Sun on Thursday went to town with the headline 'BPE probe: Senators demand Obasanjo’s prosecution' and the rider 'Lawmakers accuse ex-president of selling govt assets illegally'.

The story in the Sun said Senators unanimously called for the prosecution of former President Olusegun Obasanjo over his alleged culpability in the sale of privatized companies.

The lawmakers made the demand during the debate on the report of its ad-hoc committee which investigated the activities of the Bureau of Public Enterprises (BPE) from 1999 to date.

The Obasanjo administration set up the National Council on Privatisation (NCP) which oversees the activities of the BPE. It is charged with the overall responsibility of implementing the privatisation and commercialisation programme of the Federal Government.

The senators insisted that Obasanjo had questions to answer by allegedly circumventing the NCP Act and selling some choice national assets to cronies and political associates.

Deputy Minority Whip Abu Ibrahim asked the Senate to summon the courage to bring the former President to book over his actions in office.

The senators who spoke said “This Senate should have the courage to indict the former President for breaking the privatization laws. He personally sold some companies off. We shouldn’t shy away from doing so. The Senate Committee on Privatisation should re-consider these companies…If the former President is involved, he should be reprimanded and prosecuted.”

Senator Olubunmi Adetunmbi slammed Obasanjo for abusing the oath of office and that his actions concerning privatization smacks of executive recklessness.

Thisday's headlined on the story was 'Privatisation: Senators Want Obasanjo Punished'.

Pana 03/12/2011