The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, has claimed that Nigerians will be self-sufficient in Premium Motor Spirit (Petroleum) production in July 2024.
He praised President Bola Tinubu for having the courage to end fuel subsidies, noting that the immediate hardships will soon be a thing of the past.
Akpabio made the claim during a speech at the one-day South-South APC conference in Calabar, Cross River State’s capital.
He stated that he had performed surveillance across several refineries before reaching his conclusion.
“I went round the Dangote refinery and found out that by this July 2024, Nigeria is about to become self-sufficient in the production of PMS.
“As of today, it produces enough diesel and it’s already exporting to other countries. Same with fertiliser and Urea. So we are getting to that era in the country where we produce what we consume and consume what we produce,” he said.
Akpabio also stated that the continuing negotiations over a new minimum wage should be completed soon.
“Very soon we will conclude negotiations on minimum wage and Nigerians will be happy for it.
“The economy we met was not in good shape at all, I call it a ‘foamy economy’. Despite that, the President consistently tells me, ‘I cannot complain, I campaigned and danced for this job, so I must do it and I must do it well’,” Akpabio said.
![Rev. Fr. Anthony Odiong, a US-based Nigerian Louisiana Catholic priest, was arrested in Florida on Tuesday for possessing child pornography, according to law authorities. The suspect is reportedly accused of many other cases of sexual assault. The Waco, Texas, Police Department announced in a Facebook post on Tuesday that officers detained Father Anthony Odiong in Ave Maria, Florida, with assistance from the United States Marshals Service. Waco police announced in March that they had received "credible information" about a sexual assault allegedly committed by Odiong in Texas in 2012. “During the subsequent investigation, a case of possession of child pornography was uncovered,” the police said. The priest was apprehended in Florida by the Caribbean Regional Fugitive Task Force. The Waco Police Department said that he will be extradited to Texas. Odiong had previously served in the Archdiocese of New Orleans before being removed as priest in December of last year due to controversy over homilies in which he claimed, among other things, that the Catholic Church was being taken over by "the gays." At the time, the priest was also accused of abusive behaviour; a Louisiana lady claimed in U.S. bankruptcy court that Odiong had committed both financial and sexual abuse against her. Prior to joining the New Orleans Archdiocese, Odiong served in at least two Texas parishes. On Tuesday, Waco police stated that during their sexual assault investigation, "the presence of other survivors was revealed." “Multiple women have come forward to tell similar experiences as the sexual assault survivor who reported the initial allegation,” the police department said. “Survivors’ experiences ranged from sexual assault and indecent assault, more commonly recognised as groping, and financial abuse, with some survivors experiencing every element of Anthony Odiong’s manipulation.” The police said they “believe there may be more survivors, and we wish to speak with anyone who [has] had similar encounters” with the priest. The Archdiocese of New Orleans issued a brief news release on Tuesday noting Odiong's arrest in Florida. The archdiocese “encourages anyone with any information to contact law enforcement,” the release said.](https://chronicle.ng/wp-content/uploads/2024/08/ezgif-6-4730550ede-450x300.jpg "Odiong: US-based Nigerian Catholic priest convicted over sexual assault")
