Welcome to today’s roundup of Nigerian newspaper headlines, accompanied by our advocacy-focused calls for government action on pressing issues that impact citizens.
1. Daily Trust: Fuel Price May Go Up – Marketers
We start with Daily Trust, which reports that major marketers of petroleum products have warned that the introduction of the 15 per cent import duty on petrol and diesel could signal another round of fuel price increase.
Our Take: Perhaps it is time for Nigerians to start investing in bicycles, or better still, perfect the art of teleportation, because with this new 15 percent import duty on petrol and diesel, the road ahead looks steep, literally and economically. As policymakers toast to ‘market responsiveness’, citizens must keep asking the hard questions: where is the relief for ordinary Nigerians, and when will local refineries truly take off to end this endless fuel tango?
2. The Guardian: Nigerians Expect Results, Not Excuses, Tinubu Tells Service Chiefs
The Guardian reports that President Bola Tinubu has charged the newly decorated service chiefs to ramp up the fight against insecurity and decisively dismantle emerging armed groups across the country, declaring that Nigerians are no longer interested in excuses but results.
While decorating the service chiefs with new ranks inside the State House, Abuja, yesterday, the President said the elevation marked not just a change of rank, but the start of a renewed national security push to restore peace and safeguard citizens.
Responding, the new Chief of Defence Staff (CDS), Gen Olufemi Oluyede, reaffirmed the Armed Forces’ resolve to eradicate criminality nationwide, pledging unwavering commitment to securing lives and property.
However, for optimum performance, former Senate Leader, Ali Ndume, called on Oluyede and other service chiefs to prioritise the welfare of military personnel by pressing for improved remuneration and funding.
in one paragraph, write an appropriate call to action, add a little satire
Our Take: The freshly decorated service chiefs should know that Nigerians are not clapping for shiny new ranks but waiting for real change, because medals do not stop bullets, and fancy uniforms don’t chase bandits. It is time to turn those handshakes at the Villa into firm action in the field, because citizens cannot keep applauding ‘commitment’ while insecurity remains the country’s longest-running reality show.
3. Punch: Over 30 States Rely on Federal Allocation – Report
The 10th edition of the BudgIT State of States Report has revealed that over 30 states in Nigeria rely on Federal Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) allocations for their revenue, leading to fiscal pressures.
In total, thirty-one states depended on FAAC for at least eighty per cent of their current revenue, which shows just how challenging the fiscal situation has become for many of them.
Our Take: If over 30 states are still waiting on monthly FAAC alerts like salary earners expecting payday, then Nigeria’s so-called federalism is starting to look like a group chat where only one person has data. Governors must stop treating internally generated revenue as optional homework and start innovating. It is time states earned their titles as ‘centres of development’ instead of ‘branches of the Federal Ministry of Allocation and Sharing’.
