Director-General of the World Trade Organisation (WTO), Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, has praised President Bola Tinubu’s economic reforms as steps in the right direction, while urging the administration to now prioritise economic growth and measures to ease hardship for Nigerians.

Speaking to journalists after a meeting with the President in Abuja on Thursday, Okonjo-Iweala commended the government’s efforts to stabilise the economy, describing stability as the necessary foundation for long-term progress.

“We think the President and his team have worked hard to stabilise the economy. You cannot really improve an economy unless it is stable. So he has to be given the credit for the stability of the economy,” she said.

While acknowledging the positive impact of ongoing reforms, she stressed that stability alone was insufficient.

“The reforms have been in the right direction. What is needed next is growth. We now need to grow the economy and put in place social safety nets so that people who are feeling the pinch of the reforms can also have some support to weather the hardship,” she noted.

Okonjo-Iweala said discussions with the President focused on balancing structural reforms with relief measures for vulnerable citizens, as well as strategies for job creation and boosting disposable income.

“The next step is: how do we build social safety nets to help Nigerians cushion the hardship they are feeling, and then how do we grow the economy so we can put out more jobs and more money in people’s pockets?” she asked.

The WTO chief emphasised that without job creation and increased incomes, the benefits of reform would not fully reach ordinary Nigerians.

The management of Dangote Petroleum Refinery has moved to quash speculation about an operational shutdown, insisting that the multibillion-dollar facility remains in full swing.

In a statement on Friday, the refinery dismissed reports of fuel shortages as “baseless” and “misleading,” declaring that it continues to churn out over 40 million litres of petrol and 15 million litres of diesel every single day.

Far from winding down, operations at the giant plant in Lagos are, according to the company, running at full capacity with truck loading activities in constant motion. The sale of Residual Catalytic Oil (RCO) in recent days, it explained, is a normal part of refining operations—not an indication of trouble.

Throwing down the gauntlet to sceptics, the refinery invited fuel marketers to place orders for its daily production for the next 90 days, saying the offer underscored both its transparency and its determination to safeguard Nigeria’s energy security.

The company also used the opportunity to reaffirm its stance against the importation of substandard petroleum products, vowing to maintain quality and reliability in the domestic market.

The Senate Committee on Public Accounts has given the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited three weeks to respond to queries raised against it.

These queries concern audit reports from 2017 to 2023, alleging unaccountability of N210 trillion naira. The committee, chaired by Senator Ahmed Wadada, emphasized that the amount in question is neither stolen nor missing but has yet to be accounted for.

The three-week deadline for explanations was given to Bayo Ojulari, the Group Chief Executive Officer of NNPC Limited, after he apologized for his previous failure to appear before the committee. Ojulari explained that he needed additional time to thoroughly investigate the issues raised in the 19 queries presented to him, citing the technicalities and perspectives involved.

“I’m just over 100 days into my role as GCEO of NNPCL,” Ojulari stated. “I need more time to understand the issues so that I can respond appropriately. I will assemble a team to reconcile the details properly so we can provide answers to the queries. I also plan to engage with external auditors and other relevant groups.”

Although Ojulari initially requested four weeks, the committee granted him three weeks, which they deemed sufficient for NNPC Limited to prepare its responses.

Senator Wadada outlined the details of the queries to the NNPCL CEO, explaining that the N210 trillion unaccounted for broadly includes two components: N103 trillion in liabilities and N107 trillion in assets, both of which must be accounted for.

Wadada stated, “None of the 18 or 19 questions we have regarding NNPCL originate from the committee, the executive, or the judiciary. They are derived from the audited financial statements of the NNPCL, as reviewed by the auditor-general covering the period from 2017 to 2023.

“Furthermore, the committee has never claimed that the N210 trillion in question was stolen or missing. Our investigation is a necessary inquiry into the queries raised in the report, in line with our constitutional mandate.”

The committee has instructed NNPC Limited to provide written responses to all 19 queries within the three-week timeframe. Afterward, the GCEO and other management staff will be invited to appear in person for further discussion and defense of the issues.

Before the chairman’s ruling, nearly all committee members expressed the seriousness of the issues at stake but remained optimistic that the GCEO would clarify these matters.