Dangote vs NUPENG: Christian Youths Announce 14-Day Fasting and Prayer Against NUPENG’s Disruptive Agenda

The Young Christian Fellowships in Nigeria Without Borders (YCFNB) has announced a 14-day fasting and prayer campaign across the nation, running from September 15 to September 29 to stand as a bulwark against the enemies of the Dangote Refinery.

The group said the sacred initiative is directly focused on the Nigeria Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) amid escalating tensions and recent threats to resume a nationwide strike.

The union’s accusations of breached agreements involving high-ranking officials like Minister Wale Edun and Department of State Services (DSS) representatives have been labelled as duplicitous by the YCFNB.

The fellowship sharply condemned NUPENG’s reckless posturing, which it says risks plunging Nigeria into fuel scarcity and economic chaos, viewing it as a shameless act of sabotage against a patriot under siege.

According to a statement signed by Rev. Samuel Pam and Pastor JohnGrace Achaluda, the group said their persistent defiance of national unity and collaboration with external interests to undermine local industry further deepens the crisis, leaving millions vulnerable to hardship, while their blatant disregard for the welfare of ordinary Nigerians heightens the need for spiritual intervention.

In stark contrast, the YCFNB extols Aliko Dangote as a persecuted hero, whose refinery, boasting a 650,000-barrel-per-day capacity, has emerged as a global marvel by exporting fuel to the United States and shielding Nigeria from foreign oil dependency.

“Dangote’s refusal to yield to the cabals—powerful elites profiting from import reliance—has invited unjust vilification, yet his resilience radiates integrity and national pride, a beacon amid NUPENG’s alignment with agents of darkness,” the statement said.

Anchoring their fast in scripture, the YCFNB cites “The Lord shall cause thine enemies that rise up against thee to be smitten before thy face” (Deuteronomy 28:7, KJV), inspiring prayers for divine protection over Dangote’s vision.

“This crusade is a rallying cry for Christian communities nationwide to join daily intercession, countering NUPENG’s disruptive agenda that jeopardises millions of businesses dependent on petrol,” the statement said.

“The refinery’s success, driven by Dangote’s steadfast commitment, offers a path to stability, yet NUPENG’s threats hint at a sinister intent to prioritise foreign interests over Nigerian welfare, with the potential rise in goods and service prices due to scarcity underscoring the economic stakes.”

The YCFNB warns NUPENG that should they dare resurrect fuel queues and scarcity, the outraged masses will hunt them into hiding, fiercely defending their livelihoods.

This fast, they added, is a battle for economic sovereignty, urging the union to embrace dialogue to avoid the righteous anger of a nation united behind Dangote’s persecuted brilliance.

“IMF-Debt-Free” ~ A Smoke Screen: Nigeria Borrowing More, Seeing Less.

By George Omagbemi Sylvester | Published by SaharaWeeklyNG.com

When jokers on stage tell you they have no debt, look in their pockets first!

The Nigerian government today pushes the “IMF-Debt-Free” narrative with all the confidence of a stage magician who expects applause while hiding his sleeves full of tricks. Meanwhile, the numbers tell a far different story. Nigeria has become one of the largest debtors to the World Bank’s IDA (International Development Association) and borrowing continues to climb, often with little clarity on what is being borrowed for or how the debt will be repaid.

If I go die and tell you that someone is shouting “DEBT-FREE” while owing over US$18.2 billion to IDA as of June 30, 2025; yes, that’s Nigeria’s position, confirmed.

Under the Tinubu administration, exposure to World Bank/IDA loans rose from US$14.3 billion in mid-2023 to US$16.5 billion by mid-2024, a 14.4% increase.

This is not mere borrowing; this is a debt spiral. What is Mr President doing about this? So far, the response is murky at best:

The Facts: What We Know. World Bank IDA Debt Exposures: As of 30 June 2024, Nigeria owed roughly US$16.5 billion to IDA.

This put Nigeria as the 3rd largest debtor to IDA, behind Bangladesh and Pakistan.

External Debt Rising:
Nigeria’s external debt stock is increasing, both via multilateral sources (e.g. World Bank, IDA) and bilateral/multilateral loans. The exact terms, the projects financed, and the repayments are often opaque.

Total Public Debt:
As of early 2024, total public debt (external + domestic) was already huge: the Debt Management Office (DMO) reported public debt at N121.67 trillion (approx. US$ values depending on exchange) in Q1 2024. Domestic debt and external debt both contribute heavily.

Borrowing for Recurrent Obligation, Not Always Capital Projects:
There are concerns that many of the loans end up servicing recurrent expenditures or simply funding budget deficits, rather than in long-term infrastructure, education, health etc., which can generate returns. Citizens see little tangible improvement in basic services. This raises repayment risks. (Critiques by opposition figures like Peter Obi highlight this.)

What They Say They Are Doing (And Why It Does not Add Up)
Claim: Nigeria is “debt-free” or “IMF-debt-free.”
Reality: Nigerian governments repeatedly emphasise that they have repaid some IMF obligations (for example, COVID related funds) but being “IMF-debt-free” doesn’t equal being debt free, especially when borrowing from World Bank, bilateral creditors, multilateral lenders etc continues. For example, SaharaWeeklyNG.com confirms Nigeria repaid US$3.4 billion owed to the IMF for COVID financing. That’s good; but the bigger debts remain.

Claim: Borrowing is targeted, prudent and for necessary reforms.
Reality: While some funds are approved for health, education, power, irrigation etc. (World Bank approvals like US$1.57 billion for such sectors have been reported), the scale of the debt service, the rising amount and the lack of visible impact on living standards, infrastructure and basic public goods suggests something is very wrong with oversight, prioritization or execution.

Claim: Accountability mechanisms exist.
Reality: There is often insufficient disclosure of what exactly loans are used for, how contractors are selected, what time frames are, whether projects get completed or whether citizens actually benefit. When citizens ask questions, the answers are often vague. Comedian Gordon would joke that “they borrow money like they are shopping on Black Friday, but nobody sees the shopping bags.” Edo Pikin might say “this kind borrowing na tax for unborn children.” These are jokes, but they sting because they carry truth.

Expert Voices: What the Scholars & Economists Warn. Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala (WTO Director-General, former Finance Minister) has repeatedly warned about the risk of rising debt profiles in Nigeria and states. She has said:

“Watch your debt profiles and keep careful control of expenditures. You must share with your state citizens how much FAAC allocation you receive each month, how much IGR you collect and how you spend it.”

Also:
“There should be full transparency on debt, especially those owed by state enterprises.”

Joseph Stiglitz has warned more broadly (regarding Africa) that:

“The difficulty of coordination between diverse creditors (makes debt restructuring more difficult. We have no framework for debt restructuring across sovereigns) too little debt restructuring, too late.”

Dambisa Moyo (economist, author of Dead Aid) has long argued that constant dependence on external loans or aid without demanding accountability leads to debt burdens that undermine economic sovereignty and sustainable growth. Her critiques remain relevant.

Why the “Debt-Free” Narrative Is Dangerous
Misleading the Public: Telling citizens the country is debt free or reducing emphasis on debt obligations while borrowing more fosters complacency. People believe the crisis is over or being handled, when in fact the structure of public debt is becoming more fragile.

Interest & Exchange Rate Risks: Much external debt is denominated in foreign currencies. With naira depreciation, servicing becomes more expensive in local currency. Inflation erodes purchasing power. When citizens see high inflation, energy shortages, failing hospitals etc., these are often downstream symptoms of macro mismanagement tied in part to heavy debt servicing.

Crowding Out Development Spending: When a large portion of government revenue goes to servicing debt rather than investing in health, education, infrastructure, or security, the country cannot improve its human development indicators. Citizens may be worse off than before.

Future Generational Burden: Borrowing without clear repayment plans or investment in productive assets passes the burden to future Nigerians. The debt becomes intergenerational.

What Mr. President Should Be Doing Instead. Full Transparency: Publish all loan agreements, including terms, interest rates, grace periods, repayment schedules. Make accessible by citizens, civil society, experts. Let the budget debates include “where this money is going” lines.

Prioritise Productive Borrowing: Loans should flow mainly into projects with high returns (roads, power, education) not recurrent (salary) demands, subsidies without reform or conditioning foreign debts for vanity projects.

Debt Audits & Independent Oversight: Set up independent audits of existing debt; let an institution (parliament, civil society, or an auditor) verify that funds are used, projects completed and that terms are not predatory.

Build Domestic Resource Mobilisation: Increase tax collection efficiency, reduce leakages, broaden the tax base, improve non-oil revenue. Less dependency on external debt.

Negotiate Better Terms: When borrowing is necessary, aim for concessional terms, long grace periods, low interest rates and ensure borrowing does not push debt service beyond manageable percentages of revenue.

Public Education & Accountability: Citizens must know what borrowing means. Civil society, comedians, satirists (yes, I Go Dye, Gordons, Edo Pikin) have a role: mock the hypocrisy, demand answers.

The Verdict:
Nigeria cannot continue pretending that “IMF-Debt-Free” is the badge of economic sobriety while amassing tens of billions in debt to other multilateral lenders, bilaterals and external creditors. Borrowing is not evil; RECKLESS, OPAQUE and UNJUSTIFIED BORROWING is what must be CONDEMNED.

If I go die and tell you, we must treat debt like we treat fire: when it’s small, manage it. When it becomes a blaze, stop pretending it’s smoke. When we have approval for more loans, we must insist on seeing exactly what is being borrowed into.

In 2027, Nigerians must demand that our government stops theatrics, opens its books and addresses the debt monster before it devours hope. As Edo Pikin might say: “no more borrowing masquerading as development,” and as Gordons would crack: “if you no fit carry your pocket, how you wan carry suitcase?”

-As Nollywood stars show support for their own.

Nollylwood star actress , Jaiye Kuti has officially unveiled her pet project.

The Terravilla Estate located at Arogunmasa compound, Afara Village near Kori Oja, Obafemi Owode LGA, Mowe, Ogun State was officially opened on Monday 8th, September, 2025.

With the slogan ” own your space, and tell your story ” . The project which was first launched during the birthday celebration of the Nollywood star was well attended by some of her friends in film industry. Among those who graced the event are , Foluke Daramola salako, Bimbo Oshin, Doyin Kukoyi,, Leye Fabusoro.amongst others

Jaiye Kuti was full of admiration to her colleagues , family and friends who witnessed the epoch event
She spoke after the event.

“First of all I want to give glory to Almighty God for the succes of this great project, and for making it happened. And then to my husband. Mr Lanre Kuti for pushing me to this level. I also want to say a big thank you to High Chief Muraina Olasile, Bashorun Agba Akin of Yoruba land, Mowe. I want to thank my family and friends, all my staffs, the administrative staff of TerraHives Properties, Jaylex Production, to all my fans globally and my well wishers. I also want to say a big thank you to Mr Idowu Kuti , he is the first person to bought a land from me, he is my brother in-law. I am thanking him specially because I know he is going to bring in people that will still buy land”

She also spoke about the Estate
“It is only 5 minutes to Nestle, 30 minutes to the airport, 15 minutes to Magodo, and it’s 15 minutes to Abeokuta, while it’s just 35 minutes to Ibadan. The actual price goes for #25m per acre, but for promo it’s #20m. While for 600sqm it’s #5millon, but it goes for 3.5 million for the promo, for 300sqm that goes for #3 million will put it down for #2million for promo, and this promo runs just for a month, which means the promo will close by next month ” she explained

Accounting to Jaiye Kuti, it is TerraHives property limited that present, Terravilla Estate which is their first estate
” Yes it is our first Estate”
With this big project Jaiye Kuti became has joined the group of Nollywood super stars who owns their own estate . And having been an ambassador to many companies and even to land estate , it’s a welcome development for Jaiye Kuti to ventured into this noble business