The Federal Government has approved a transition period for the implementation of direct remittance of oil revenues into the Federation Account, as provided under Executive Order 9 signed by President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The decision followed the inaugural meeting of the Implementation Committee on Executive Order 9 of 2026 held on February 26, 2026.

In a statement issued on Monday, the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, who chairs the committee, said the transition window would allow the new regime to take effect without disrupting existing contractual and financing structures in the oil and gas sector.

The policy stems from Executive Order 9, which mandates that revenues from petroleum operations — including profit oil, royalty oil and tax oil — be paid directly into the Federation Account to safeguard public funds and strengthen the finances of the three tiers of government.

Edun said the committee agreed that the shift must be carefully managed to preserve investor confidence while protecting Nigeria’s revenue base.

“With respect to Section 2, Sub-section 3 of Executive Order 9 on direct payments by contractors into the Federation Account, the Implementation Committee agreed that this transition must be implemented in a manner that respects existing contractual and financing arrangements and maintains investor confidence,” he stated.

He disclosed that contractors would continue to remit revenues under the current framework until detailed operational guidelines are issued.

“Until the Committee releases clear, standardised guidance, contractors will continue to remit under the existing process. The transition period will ensure an orderly changeover to the new system,” Edun added.

To drive the process, the committee approved the establishment of a technical subcommittee tasked with developing the operational framework for direct remittance within three weeks.

The subcommittee will also commence a review of the Petroleum Industry Act to address structural and fiscal anomalies said to be weakening revenues accruing to the Federation.

According to Edun, the review will focus on provisions that may undermine government earnings from petroleum operations.

“The Technical Subcommittee will develop detailed guidelines for the transition within three weeks and begin a review of the Petroleum Industry Act to address structural and fiscal anomalies that weaken Federation revenues,” he said.

The panel will be chaired by the Special Adviser to the President on Energy, Olu Verheijen, and will include the Solicitor-General of the Federation and Permanent Secretary, Federal Ministry of Justice; the Chairman of the Nigeria Revenue Service; the Chairman of the Forum of Commissioners of Finance; representatives of the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources (Oil); while the Budget Office of the Federation will serve as secretariat.

The committee reiterated that the reforms are aimed at ensuring that oil and gas revenues are fully accounted for and paid into the Federation Account in line with constitutional provisions.
It also reaffirmed the President’s directive that petroleum revenues must be managed in a manner that protects public funds and supports fiscal stability at federal, state and local government levels.

As part of the measures under Executive Order 9, the government directed the NNPC Limited to discontinue certain deductions under Production Sharing Contracts.

Specifically, NNPC Limited is to halt the collection of a 30 per cent management fee and a 30 per cent frontier exploration fund deduction from profit oil and profit gas. The directive takes immediate effect.

In addition, all remittances of gas flare penalties into the Midstream and Downstream Gas Infrastructure Fund have been suspended with immediate effect in line with the Executive Order.

The implementation committee assured stakeholders in the petroleum industry of continued engagement as the reform process unfolds, describing the measures as part of broader efforts by the Tinubu administration to ensure that Nigeria’s petroleum resources deliver measurable benefits to citizens.

The Presidency on Sunday dismissed as false a viral social media report alleging that a member of the kitchen staff at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, was arrested over a purported plot to poison President Bola Ahmed Tinubu.

The Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, refuted the claim in a post on his verified X handle, describing the video circulating online as fake and misleading.

The footage, which appeared to show scenes from the Presidential Villa, claimed that a chef working within the presidential complex had been apprehended following intelligence reports of suspicious activities linked to food preparation in restricted areas associated with presidential operations.

According to the narrator in the video, the alleged arrest was said to have prompted swift intervention by a special police squad and heightened security measures within the presidential environment.

The report further suggested that the suspect had been taken into custody for questioning as part of a coordinated investigation by specialised security personnel.

However, the Presidency categorically denied the claims.

“No Aso Rock kitchen staff arrested. No Aso Rock kitchen staff attempted to poison President Tinubu. Please ignore this fake news being disseminated by this video,” Onanuga stated.

The Presidency did not provide details on the origin of the video or those responsible for its circulation but urged the public to disregard the unfounded allegation.

As of press time, there has been no official report of any security breach or arrest linked to the Presidential Villa.

The Government of Rivers State of Nigeria has unveiled a Newborn Screening Programme aimed at reducing infant mortality and morbidity, describing the initiative as a decisive step towards improving child health outcomes in the state.

Launching the programme on Friday, February 27, 2026, at the Rivers State University Teaching Hospital in Port Harcourt, the Deputy Governor, Ngozi Nma Odu, said early screening of newborns would strengthen preventive healthcare and give every child a healthier start to life.

Odu explained that newborn screening is a simple but critical medical intervention that enables the early detection of genetic, metabolic, hormonal and congenital disorders before symptoms manifest.

“This initiative reflects our collective commitment to strengthening healthcare delivery, promoting preventive medicine and ensuring that every child born in our facilities is given the healthiest possible start in life,” she said.

The deputy governor noted that the state’s 2025 budgetary allocation to the health sector was substantial, underscoring the administration’s resolve to prioritise healthcare delivery. She added that Governor Siminalayi Fubara considers healthcare a direct investment in the wellbeing of citizens, particularly the vulnerable, as reflected in the Rivers State Contributory Health Protection Programme (RIVCHPP).

Describing the screening initiative as an investment in the future, Odu commended the management and medical team of the teaching hospital for what she termed a laudable and forward-looking intervention.

Earlier, the Chairman of the hospital’s Management Board, Tamunoiyoriari Sampson Parker, praised the Chief Medical Director and staff for their dedication, while calling for sustained government support to expand critical health services.

In his remarks, the Chief Medical Director, Chizindu Alikor, said the wellbeing of newborns remains central to efforts at reducing neonatal and under-five mortality rates.

Alikor disclosed that the hospital had introduced a comprehensive screening package for babies born within the facility and across the state, in line with the administration’s “Health for All Rivers People” agenda.

He expressed confidence that early detection of health conditions through the programme would enable prompt diagnosis and treatment, significantly improving survival rates and long-term health outcomes for children in the state.

The Vice-Chancellor of Rivers State University, Professor Isaac Zeb-Obipi, has identified structural and financial weaknesses as central to Nigeria’s persistent governance challenges, declaring that accounting and finance lie at the very heart of the nation’s governance crisis.

Speaking at the university’s inaugural lecture delivered by Professor Thank God Chikordi Agwor, the Vice-Chancellor acknowledged dignitaries and distinguished personalities in attendance before turning attention to what he described as one of the most troubling issues confronting the country — the inability of government to meet the demands and expectations of its citizens.

According to him, while numerous explanations have been advanced over the years to account for governance failure in Nigeria, many of those perspectives merely scratch the surface. He argued that they often fail to interrogate the deeper structural and institutional foundations responsible for the country’s recurring governance setbacks.

He explained that the inaugural lecture provides an important scholarly platform to move beyond routine commentaries and political rhetoric, offering instead a rigorous examination of the systemic roots of governance dysfunction.

The lecture, titled “Failure of Governance and Governance of Failure in Nigeria,” delivered by Professor Agwor, sought to unpack the institutional and systemic factors that have continued to undermine effective public administration. The Vice-Chancellor noted that the presentation offered fresh insights into how entrenched structural lapses, particularly in financial management systems, contribute significantly to governance breakdown.

Professor Zeb-Obipi further reflected on what he described as a compelling exposition of the intersection between accounting, finance and governance. He stressed that governance cannot be divorced from sound financial architecture, insisting that greater attention must be paid to budgeting processes, financial forecasting and accountability mechanisms.

“Accounting and finance,” he stated, “lie at the core of both the failure of governance and the governance of failure.”

He maintained that without disciplined budgeting, transparent financial reporting and credible forecasting frameworks, governments risk perpetuating cycles of inefficiency and unmet public expectations.

The Vice-Chancellor further urged government at all levels to integrate a robust financial and accounting nexus into policy design and implementation, arguing that such integration remains critical to addressing Nigeria’s governance challenges in a sustainable manner.

Commending Professor Agwor for what he described as a profound intellectual contribution, Professor Zeb-Obipi reaffirmed the commitment of Rivers State University to advancing research that supports national development and strengthens institutional capacity.

The inaugural lecture, he concluded, exemplifies the role of academia in confronting national challenges through evidence-based inquiry and critical scholarship.

By Victoria Michael

Rivers and Lagos states have emerged as hotspots in the consumption of sachet and small-bottle alcoholic drinks among minors and underage persons, a nationwide survey by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has revealed.

The study, conducted in collaboration with the Distillers and Blenders Association of Nigeria and carried out by Research and Data Solutions Ltd, Abuja, surveyed 1,788 respondents across six states between June and August 2021. It examined access to alcohol and drinking frequency among minors (below 13 years), underaged persons (13–17 years) and adults (18 years and above).

Presenting the findings on Tuesday, NAFDAC Director-General, Prof. Mojisola Adeyeye, described alcohol as “one of the most widely used substances of abuse among youths,” warning that its availability and ease of access are fuelling rising consumption among children and teenagers.

According to the report, 54.3 per cent of minors and underage respondents obtained alcohol by themselves, with nearly half (49.9 per cent) purchasing drinks packaged in sachets or polyethylene terephthalate (PET) bottles.

Rivers State recorded the highest rates — 68.0 per cent for sachets and 64.5 per cent for PET bottles — while Lagos State followed with 52.3 per cent and 47.7 per cent respectively. Kaduna State posted 38.6 per cent sachet and 28.4 per cent PET bottle consumption.

The survey further showed that sachet purchases were higher among males (51.4 per cent) than females (41.5 per cent), and more prevalent in rural areas (50.1 per cent) than urban locations (45.3 per cent).

Beyond direct purchases, minors and underaged respondents accessed alcohol through friends and relatives (49.9 per cent), social gatherings (45.9 per cent) and even parents’ homes (21.7 per cent), underscoring the depth of exposure within communities.

Among those who bought alcohol themselves, 47.2 per cent of minors and 48.8 per cent of underaged respondents procured sachets, while 41.2 per cent of minors and 47.2 per cent of underaged persons purchased PET bottles.

On drinking frequency, 63.2 per cent of minors and 54.0 per cent of underaged respondents described themselves as occasional drinkers. However, 9.3 per cent of minors and a troubling 25.2 per cent of underaged persons reported drinking daily.

Public health experts warn that early exposure to alcohol significantly increases the risk of substance dependence, impaired cognitive development and mental health disorders, including depression and anxiety. The pattern, they caution, may also heighten vulnerability to risky behaviours, cult-related activities and violent crime among youths.

Security analysts have repeatedly linked substance abuse among young people to rising incidents of street violence, sexual assault, traffic offences and other criminal activities in urban centres. The normalisation of alcohol consumption at increasingly younger ages, they warn, could compound Nigeria’s existing security and social challenges.

NAFDAC urged stricter regulatory measures, noting that access to alcohol by children can be curtailed if easily concealable pack sizes are removed from circulation.

“A ban on small pack sizes, including sachets and bottles below 200 millilitres, can reduce the menace of underage drinking,” the report stated.
It also called on parents, teachers, religious leaders and community stakeholders to treat underage drinking as a serious social alarm.

“Consumption of alcohol by children should raise alarm for parents, teachers, religious leaders and the community at large,” the agency said.

The findings, observers note, underscore the urgency of coordinated policy interventions, enforcement of age restrictions and sustained public awareness campaigns to prevent what could evolve into a broader crisis of youth addiction, crime and mental health disorders across Nigeria’s urban and rural communities.

Nigeria must reconstruct its governance architecture by first rebuilding the accounting and financial foundations upon which it stands, Professor ThankGod Chikordi Agwor has declared.

Delivering the 126th Inaugural Lecture of Rivers State University, Port Harcourt, on Wednesday, the Professor of Accounting and Finance argued that the country cannot move from “managing failure” to governing for development, equity and public trust without restoring discipline to its financial systems.

The lecture, themed “Failure of Governance and Governance of Failure in Nigeria: Unveiling the Accounting–Finance Nexus,” examined what the scholar described as the systemic fragility embedded within Nigeria’s governance structure.

Agwor maintained that accounting and finance are not peripheral technical tools but the very infrastructure of governance.

“Where they are strong, governance is resilient. Where they are weak, governance fails — and failure becomes governed,” he said.

According to him, Nigeria’s governance crisis reflects not only institutional weakness but a deeper structural distortion within the accounting–finance nexus. He described the phenomenon as the “governance of failure” — a condition in which institutional arrangements do not merely tolerate dysfunction but actively manage, rationalise and reproduce it.

“Nigeria exhibits a more troubling phenomenon: the governance of failure. This refers to institutional arrangements and practices that do not merely tolerate failure but actively manage, rationalise and produce it,” he stated.

Despite its abundant natural and human resources, Nigeria, he noted, continues to struggle with institutional inefficiencies, entrenched corruption and declining public trust. While leadership failure, corruption and weak political will are frequently cited as explanations, Agwor argued that such narratives often obscure the deeper challenge of informational asymmetry and financial opacity.
“Without credible accounting data and enforceable financial discipline, governance becomes performative rather than substantive,” he said.

The inaugural lecturer pointed to troubling empirical patterns: recurrent fiscal deficits without credible fiscal discipline; repeated banking crises followed by regulatory forbearance; public enterprises sustained despite chronic losses; and audit reports that reveal irregularities without sanctions.

“These patterns suggest that failure itself has become institutionalised — rendered predictable, administratively manageable and politically survivable,” he observed.

He further explained that weak enforcement environments have produced what he described as a governance equilibrium that perpetuates failure. Public and civil servants, he argued, have rationally adapted to these conditions, sustained in part by predictable financial incentives that reward compliance with dysfunction rather than reform. “The result is a governance equilibrium that perpetuates failure.

Breaking this equilibrium requires restoring accounting and finance to their disciplinary roles,” he said.

Agwor warned that the normalisation of weak accounting practices — delayed audits, qualified audit opinions without consequences and routine budget deviations — represents the entrenchment of governance failure.

“This normalisation represents the governance of failure; a condition where governance systems adapt to dysfunction rather than correct it. Breaking this circle requires restoring accounting’s disciplinary role,” he advised.

Over the years, the scholar has advanced research bridging accounting, finance, governance and public policy, producing work that is empirically grounded, theoretically rigorous and socially relevant. His contributions, observers noted, have mentored scholars and practitioners who understand that accounting choices are not neutral technicalities but decisions that shape societal outcomes.

The lecture reinforced the argument that sustainable reform must go beyond rhetoric to institutional recalibration — placing transparency, credible financial reporting and enforceable fiscal discipline at the centre of governance reform.

For Agwor, the pathway forward is clear: rebuild accounting, restore financial integrity and reposition governance from managing failure to delivering development, equity and trust.

By Victoria Michael