By David Owei

Osun state governor, Senator Ademola Adeleke has reaffirmed Mrs Oyebode Mary as the Iyaloja General of Osun State, denouncing any announcement of a new appointee.

In a statement in response to an announcement from the palace of Ataoja of Osogbo, the governor affirmed that only the state government is vested with the authority by law to appoint the Iyaloja General.

“Any announcement from any other quarter including the Osogbo Royal Palace is null and void. Mrs Oyebode remains the legally appointed Iyaloja General under the authority of the state government.

The governor urged market associations and womenfolk across the state to ignore any appointment of any new Iyaloja General. Mrs Oyebode continues to enjoy the full support and recognition of the state government in her capacity as duly appointed Iyaloja General of Osun state.

He further appeals to institutions and individuals to be mindful of the law and their assigned mandates under the law”, advising that institutions and individuals should desist from actions capable of disturbing the peace of the state.

By David Owei

The House of Representative has issued a 7-day ultimatum to the Programme Coordinator of the HydroCarbon Pollution Remediation Project (HyPREP) to appear before the Public Account Committee of the House for explanation over allegations of mismanagement of over #400billion in the 2021 and 2024 Audit report from the Office of the Auditor General of the Federation.

The ultimatum followed the adoption of a resolution to that effect at a Public hearing of the Committee held today and attended by twenty-seven members.

Speaking at the hearing, Chairman of the Committee Rep. Bamidele Salam noted that the ultimatum serves as the final warning after HyPREP failed to appear before the committee despite four different invitations extended to them.

He added that failure to appear before the Committee by Monday 12th October, 2026, the House will be compelled to invoke its power and compel appearance by the Accounting officer of the agency.

The Committee also extended the same invitation to the Chairman Board of Trustees of the Ogoni Remediation Trust Fund.

According to the Audited Reports presented before the Committee HyPREP failed to submit its audited account to the Office of the Auditor General from 2017 to 2021.

Other queries include: Irregular award of Contracts and non-deduction of Statutory Taxes of $2.1million; Payment of #986million Consultancy Without Execution; Irregular Payment of #315million for Training; Payment of #7.2billion for poorly executed contracts; payment of #268m without prepayment audit; Non-deduction of #32million statutory taxes; Engagement of External Solicitors with #31.8million without Attorney General Approval; Crude oil recovery from remediation site without being documented; Adoption of progressive salary scale for contract staff; Extra-budgetary expenditure of #931million.

Others are: Duplication of Services through award of Contracts worth #182million; Duplication of function monitoring and evaluation worth #507million; Irregular Payment of #43million for advertisement without evidence of performance; Irregular stay in office by an officer after the expiration of the secondment period.

According to the 2024 Audit Report presented before the Committee HyPREP made an Unverified #1.5billion payment of compensation.

Also queried are: Non-retirement of #14million of cash advances; Irregular payment of #229.1million; Payment of #260million for training programme without evidence of execution; Denial of access to #27.5billion project documents and records.

Rep. Salam added that the HYPREP and Ogoni Trust Fund will also speak to issues surrounding the 1 billion dollars contributed for the claen up of the Ogoni land after the pull out of the Shell Petroleum Development Company of which the Renaissance Energy Ltd claimed to have made a contribution of over 900 million dollars to the fund.

By George Mgbekele

The Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) says Nigeria’s growing reliance on oil-backed borrowing amounts to a dangerous mortgaging of the country’s economic future and raises serious questions about fiscal responsibility, transparency and intergenerational justice.

HURIWA says the reported commitment of about 340 million barrels of future crude production to service three oil-backed loans valued at approximately ₦11.2tn is deeply troubling and demands urgent public scrutiny.
The organisation says the practice of borrowing today and repaying with tomorrow’s crude resources must not become a convenient way for successive governments to escape the consequences of poor fiscal management.
HURIWA National Coordinator, Comrade Emmanuel Nnadozie Onwubiko, said the development was comparable to a father selling off his most valuable assets, spending the proceeds recklessly and leaving his children with little or nothing to inherit.
“This is the danger Nigerians must confront.
“A father who sells the family’s prized assets to finance an extravagant lifestyle may enjoy temporary relief, but he leaves his children poorer and without an inheritance.
“The same principle applies when a government commits hundreds of millions of barrels of future crude simply to meet present financial pressures without demonstrating clearly what Nigerians are gaining in return.
“Borrowing against future oil production is not automatically illegal or inherently wrong. But when the scale becomes this enormous, Nigerians have every right to demand to know whether the country is receiving fair value and what future generations are being asked to surrender.”
HURIWA says crude oil remains a finite and wasting national resource, making every barrel committed to debt repayment an economic asset that cannot be recovered once produced and delivered.
The organisation says the government must therefore explain precisely how the proceeds of the oil-backed facilities were deployed and whether they were invested in projects capable of generating sustainable economic returns.
HURIWA says Nigerians should not be asked to accept vague assurances about macroeconomic stability while future oil revenues are increasingly committed to existing financial obligations.
The organisation calls on the Federal Government and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited to make full details of the facilities available to the public, including the amounts received, interest and other charges, crude volumes committed, pricing mechanisms, repayment schedules and outstanding obligations.
HURIWA also wants the authorities to explain the circumstances under which repayment periods could be extended if crude production falls or market conditions change.
The organisation says Nigerians must equally understand the opportunity cost of the arrangements, particularly if international crude prices rise significantly while Nigeria remains obligated to deliver crude under previously agreed terms.
HURIWA stresses that transparency is not optional when the resources being committed belong to the Nigerian people.

We cannot continue to mortgage tomorrow’s resources simply because today’s finances are under pressure.
Every government has a responsibility to manage national assets in a manner that protects both present and future generations.
Oil-backed borrowing may provide temporary liquidity, but it becomes irresponsible if it merely postpones fiscal problems while consuming resources that future Nigerians will need.
HURIWA therefore calls on the National Assembly and relevant oversight institutions to subject all existing oil-backed financing arrangements to rigorous scrutiny.
The organisation also demands an assessment of whether Nigeria has received commensurate value for the crude already committed and whether adequate safeguards exist to prevent the misuse of future oil revenues.
HURIWA says the country urgently needs to move away from a fiscal model that repeatedly converts natural resources into short-term cash without building sufficient productive capacity.
The organisation maintains that Nigeria’s oil wealth should be used to create infrastructure, industries, jobs and sustainable sources of revenue rather than continually financing recurring fiscal pressures.
HURIWA says Nigerians deserve an economy in which natural resources are treated as national assets and not simply as collateral for successive rounds of borrowing.
The organisation therefore urges the Federal Government to place transparency, accountability and long-term national interest above short-term financial convenience.