Five things to know to start your Friday

Fuel Subsidy Removal: Reliable Census will solve socio-economic problems

The National Population Commission (NPC) says a reliable census will immeasurably assist President Bola Tinubu in solving the socio-economic problems arising from the removal of fuel subsidy.

The Federal Commissioner of NPC in Enugu State, Ejike Eze, said this in Enugu on Thursday during the NPC “Breakfast Meeting with Some Media Executives on the 2023 National Population and Housing Census.”

“The government is talking about palliatives to cushion the effect of subsidy on people, and credible census data will guide the Federal Government in the planning of the palliative measures.

“Information generated from the census is also a very useful tool for preparing the national and state budgets,” he said.

Read also: FX unification, subsidy removal to raise inflation short – term- Kale

Electricity Act 2023, game-changer for manufacturers – MAN

The Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) says the signing of the Electricity Act 2023, if well implemented, can be a major game-changer for the manufacturing sector with favourable implications.

Segun Ajayi-Kadir, Director General, MAN, said this in a report signed by Chisom Oguezuonu, Executive Officer, Corporate Service Division, MAN, on Thursday in Lagos.

Ajayi-Kadir noted that over the past decades, the Nigerian power sector has encountered various turbulences in its electricity value chain.

He attributed this to poor policy enforcement, over-regulation, instability of the gas supply, and bottlenecks in its transmission network.

Fuel subsidy: NEC considers N702bn allowance for workers

The National Economic Council said on Thursday in Abuja that it was considering the recommendation made by the National Salaries Income and Wages Commission (NSIWC) to pay N702 billion as cost of living allowance to civil servants. This recommendation from NSIWC is part of plans to help workers overcome the effects of the removal of fuel subsidy announced on May 29, 2023.

Governor Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State said this when he spoke to State House correspondents shortly after the inaugural National Economic Council meeting at the Aso Rock Presidential Villa on Thursday.

Mohammed also stated that the recommended intervention includes a sum ranging from N23.5 billion to N45 billion per month as a petroleum allowance for civil servants.

House of Reps vows to punish firms guilty of gas flaring

The House of Representatives has threatened to punish companies involved in gas flaring. This comes after it asked the National Oil Spill Detection and Response Agency to provide it with ‘specified information’ on companies involved in gas flaring, including the amount flared and penalty costs in the last decade.

The lower federal legislative house had mandated NOSDRA to include both local and international companies so that it could recover all outstanding debts.

Election to replace UK’s Boris Johnson set for July 20

The successor to Boris Johnson’s seat in Britain’s parliament will be chosen in a by-election vote on July 20, the local council said on Thursday, after the former prime minister quit over an investigation into his conduct.
The Conservatives selected Steve Tuckwell to be their candidate for the vote, the party said in a statement on Thursday.
Johnson last week said he would stand down as the lawmaker for Uxbridge and South Ruislip, an area in West London, after he read a parliamentary report over whether he misled parliament over gatherings at his office during COVID lockdowns. (Reuters)