 As of the breakfast and plus CV Africa time for us to take you through the pages of a national dailies and We call it off the press and a big shout out to our paper vendors for making the speakers available We have GD Johnson who joins the conversation in no time GD. It's good to have you join us Good morning messy. Good morning coffee and good morning to our viewers all about what it's a pleasure to do these guys All right, then Let's take a look at the leadership news. We feel that's what we start with this morning and the banner caption says APC convention bunny endorses bellows actions and move to dows tension in party It's a bold caption on the leadership this morning Catechum members they called us beaker over upon who do it again ten committee members issue him sack later There should be sanction for flaunting president Muhammad Buhawi's order this this the riders you find underneath and troops kill another 100 bandits in Niger state. I Won't resign until 2023 Malami replies critics and Fuse capacity heightened Fuse capacity high price or high diesel price federal government is sanctioned Saboteurs, I mean, this is what ninjas and who are the saboteurs we need to know 2023 article picks PDP presidential firm ours after leaving office EFC CRS or bianos and Federal government raises fresh 1.2 billion 1.25 billion dollar through your bonds. This is what you find on the leadership this morning and that's the much we can take Let's turn our attention to the punch newspaper with these headlines the big one there Nigeria borrowed 6.64 trillion error serviced debt with 2.93 trillion error in 2021 says the debt management office Think we need to go over that again. So it sinks in Nigeria borrowed of 6.64 trillion error service debt with 2.93 trillion error in 2021 says that Management office experts dawns worn federal government as public debt stock hits 39.56 trillion Naira economists warn of repayment problems hard times ahead More from the punch telco's mall tariff increases diesel price skyrockets details On page 23. So the door sworn in as a Nambra governor retains obianos ssg APC in race to hold March 26 convention battles in junction PCR tests for travelers for the land probe ncdc ministry is coming from a World Health Organization Convoy envoy rather government invade cardinal community abduct 47 in midnight raid PDP handling face-off with wiki peace achievable says of Basaki Church found out wanted by the FBI for wire fraud arrested in Inugu if a indigene sport SSO a u names Bami re 12 VC EFCC picks up US bound ex-governor biano at Ligas Airport Suspected female ritualist arrested in Quara Cash recovered male Vista fleas and final one northern biz men by 40 million era PDP Presidential form for a tickle up a worker on page 8. Let's see if he cannot afford to buy as many as he wants Away from the punch new super we take a look at the Guardian at the Guardian says beneath returns as CEC PC Saks a panel do it again That's boldly written March 26 national convention remains sacrosan with dealings with shortages Russia and Ukraine conflict raises Rises cost and you also find that he could picks 40 million era presidential firms as Tambor well intensifies Consultation now on the way from that EFCC arrest Obeano at Lagos Airport Government plans new trade policy over Russia and Ukraine were and federal government going tough on fake news Malami one's journalist Important and so little at inauguration six dialogue with iPop ESN and massage others That's also another header interesting this morning on the Guardian newspaper and just before we move away from the Guardian You find fuel supply Niger paying for 30 years neglect of pipeline airline tickets or air tickets near 120,000 and that's what you find this morning on the Guardian you speak with Let's quickly turn attention to final one the daily independent with the big headline Confusion as a PC in a PC as infighting rocks caretaker committee confusion in a PC as Infighting rocks caretaker committee the following writers to that headline members claim sacking John James Aparna door they get Nobody can override Buhari's directive CEC PC scribe Governor may Malapuni backs Governor sanny bellows action talk about surprises there More from the daily independent Nigeria's public debt rises to thirty nine point five five trillion there Aviation fuel 72 hours after airlines marketers yet to agree on new price How Nigeria can tackle three trillion annual post harvest? losses as Elections near a Lumelu asks Nigerians to hold leaders accountable Tambor reveals how PDP can win the 2023 presidential election 2023 North East Business Forum buys presidential form for Atticu of JD Lee Johnson is not laughing off of screen Bianca slapping Obeano's wife solo though apologizes for breach of protocol at inauguration promises to implement solo though solution based on five pillars and EFCC arrests really Obeano at Ligas Airport Small matter of four billion error being withdrawn in one day from the coffers of first aid It's now time to bring in at this point Seen a lecture at the Nigerian Institute of Journalism GD Johnson. Good morning to you. Mr. Johnson. Dr. Johnson Let's get things started with a look at the the big one on the front page of the punch Why why Nigerian surprise especially the the economists and experts, you know, why are they surprised that the nation is Nick Nick neck deep rather in debt because I mean we saw that the economic policy Probably the only economic blueprint of this administration has been to borrow to fix his problems They've gone to the Euro bond market in recent times to borrow US dollars So they can buy petrol to come subsidize to Nigerians in Nara Which we're going to end up paying back, which is stupid. Sorry to use the word So this headline here Nigeria board 6.464 trillionaire and service debt with 2.93 trillionaire in 2021 It seems we are embarking or we are printing a Ponzi scheme economy where we borrow from Peter to pay what we Took from Paul Mr. Johnson your thoughts on this Well, it's very clear that there is no clear direction with respect to this press and administration economic policy But Adam to borrow and then where we can borrow for investment when you borrow to invest the money in Projects economic projects that would generate revenue for you to pay back your debts It's understandable Every nation or is American or Russia or but the difference with the borrowing in Nigeria and that of other Western world Another developing economy is that they borrow for investment. We are as we borrow for consumption We borrow money to fund a lifestyle. We cannot afford you borrow money to build infrastructure Not infrastructure that will lead to further Development and opening up of your economy, but you borrow money to do basic infrastructure And if you like him that one individual is like an individual that is borrowing money To fund is who and be like a star is It's expensive taste and then it's not boring money to improve his business Is his experience be like that experience of 19 so like you said if you don't come to anyone as a surprise That them the various economic achieve your fishing because we have been borrowing money Without those money actually injected into the economy to drive our economy and to To build the pillars of the productive Elements of our economy so for me There's nothing surprise my only surprise that I'm shocked that people are shocked with respect to this because if you listen They do a new review of what expert has said I've said over the years I've what commentators have said of what so your critics have said with your with respect to how this government is borrowing money Then you know why we find ourselves in this that street because for me I can reconcile all the money this administration claims to have recovered from corrupt public officials and Corrupt civil servants in the last under the Jonathan administration and previous administration before Jonathan With the fact that the same government Went ahead to borrow money and he still borrow money till date. We borrow money to do the real real life for from Cano to Maradi within borrow money to be real real life from from from Calabar to Lagos so that we have the Cross-Atlantic trade route. I don't know the kind of business you cannot in the Sub-Saharan trade route compare with the kind of business you have in the cross-Atlantic from the coast of Calabar to the coast of Eagles the kind of business you do so it's it's not surprising to me that we are having What we we are having if I ask you who is the minister of economic planning for for body The minister For Where she cannot the economic team of this present administration No one knows who they are and how often to limit and what type of policy trust they have for this Particular administration that has already got into the twilight of which we should just manage this administration Until the end of next year because after almost seven years. There's no clear court direction with respect to economic policy one There's no clear court direction with it with it with respect to social policy There's no clear court direction with respect to even Security which was one of the major major reason why this administration was was elected in 2015 you read the story bandits killed the 100,000 Approximately 100 people in Nigeria for the seven people for the seven people in Karnat I'm a lot of Nigerians are troubled and worried about what is happening in Ukraine Whereas we have power Ukraine right here in Nigeria Such situation there. Sorry sad. Let's take a look at the Guardian newspaper this morning. It talks about Bunis returned as the CEC PC sacks a corner do it again. I mean with all that's unfolding in the APC ahead of the convention. Are you really surprised? Let's see Lord. We have messy on a PC I'm not surprised one few it you see that the first is that One you see the letter written by the president earlier this week later was addressed to the gov no The gov no Tabi state who happens to be the chairman of the gov nose forum where the president was making a passionate appeal or the status co-anteed to remain and So that it busy can have its convention put the normal structure on the proper structure In place by the instrumentality of that letter. You would think that when it coming back to Nigeria Who knew willing will ensure that? and as is returning as the as the chief as the chairman of the Kedric a committee Also, I cannot do a returns as the circuit because that's what the letter states Especially but you know politics is about interest and a critical component of politics is intrigues intrigues I'm Probably we are witnessing the power play and the increase even not for the intervention of INEC writing a PC telling the PC that did not recognize below and that in the convention is only Gooney and do it up and do it a I can write them to respect to the convention that they want to hold on it And it's it was almost gone was almost gone. So it is it is Just by grab the popcorn and your carbonator soft drink and then if you don't do carbonator soft drink Whatever drink you drink just sit down by a couch and be ready for more drama as we witness the Confucian in In the two major political parties. I call it a PC house of commotion a PC house of commotion The interesting thing is that PDP is not an excuse because if you look at the clip part and the drama between wiki and Them and the governor of of of a douchey Robaseki And all those drama is not about the interest of the people They are just fighting for their interest and who controls the delegates to the national convention. Everything you are seeing a PC is It's also a reflection of what will happen as events unfolding PDP because the Nominations for various political offices will happen in the nest in the nest to two three months So just grab your popcorn and be ready to watch the drama as it as as it all as a food put in a PC and in in PDP Really interesting and think it's good You've already gone to the next one which you were about to bring up which is the fact that you can ever lay your life down for these politicians because you have a Obasaki wiki who were going at each other now. It seems that they are trying to douse attention Thank you for that GD Johnson Let's go over to look at the the fuel supply situation in the country to Nigerians and even to the airlines as well who are crying out with the front page of the The leadership on Friday has this headline fuel scarcity high diesel price FG to sanction Saboteurs feel sketchy high diesel price FG to sanction saboteurs and then you look at The front page of the daily independent aviation fuel 72 hours after airlines marketers yet to agree on new price I'm not saying Lagos where we are the queues seem to have returned to almost the levels They wear in the weeks gone by your thoughts on these headlines Well, if you see the headline in the guide and I talked about Nigerian paying the price for 30 years of net net of pipeline And as a result of that we have seen that there is destruction in the supply of Petroleum products across all users and marketers and various categories would diesel And Kerosene and then one is even talking about kerosene because the rich can afford to buy their liquid-fired glass They are cooking gases, but if you look at the price of kerosene It's out of the reach of an average an average man and then the aircraft are crying They are crying and expressing what other Nigerians have been experiencing for many many years And what an average household has been experiencing in Nigeria for many many years We neglect the pipeline. What is the reason? What is the hold that russia has over jammed the road that russia has over Over euro. What is the first reason why russia Invaded Ukraine because you couldn't critical part x Nord Stream 2 is a pipeline that is being constructed by russia that passed through The Nordic waters to get to Europe by passing the mainland and going through the sea to supply the european corridor You recall there was a point that that the pipeline that passed through um Passed to Ukraine to Europe Ukraine Locked it when they had one crisis with with russia. What was the reason behind the rise in in the price of That which is petroleum products in the united states of america the key store pipeline That was that was approved on that on a truck was cancelled by Joe Biden So pipeline with even the much talk about alternative energy We have seen that this Fossil fuel energy from fossil fuel And it still is still a key component part of sourcing for energy in the world now We have not invested in you don't a serious country transport their petroleum products using pipeline It is the cheapest. It is the safest. You don't have this kind of Um crisis you have that tankers would tumble on a teardrop bridge in Lagos and you should kill many people It does happen this year It happened last year It will still happen again because you travel you transport most of your petroleum products using trucks Whereas pipeline is the cheapest and the best form Of what you used to distribute your petroleum products because if you add the overhead cost of the transportation cost to the product It's a definitely the price we go up. So for those years we have neglected that the airlines are crying because They can they can't get the The the the fuel they require to fly the aircraft. There's another thing on the airline themselves. They are just criminal When they got the fuel what is the Prices of the ticket the airline in Nigeria. I don't pity them That's my opinion. I might be wrong. I don't pity them because they've eating their cake and they've eating Their butter before their bread because if if if you are if if you are used to flying locally You know how the airline are quote-unquote Irresponsible the cancel flight anyhow, and then when once you are late and once they delay your flight They won't fulfill their own part of the deal But once you are late for the check-in time, they will close the door and you have to pay to your Through your notice. What is the economic sense of flying 10 people when you could fly 100 of flying 10 people at 120,000 Let's also take a look at this one. It concerns you. I mean He concerns you and I as well He talks about federal government going tough on fake news. And that's what malamy wants journalist You see the word one Journalist it's not within the poor view of of Mara me to say to talk anything about fake news. His own responsibility is to look at The dispensation the administration and dispensation of justice. That should be left for the regulatory body Do you have regulatory body? This is that is is an overkill for him to be putting himself with fake the the court system and the regulatory bodies that we have Are Are equipped to deal with those with to deal with those issues and as far as I'm concerned There's nothing like fake news because if it is fake, it is not news What we have is misinformation and disinformation And if you look at the in actual sense those that engage more in disinformation and misinformation are actually public officials globally Globally, if you don't a lot of feelings on fact checking and the rest of it Which is government itself that it is a perpetrator of disinformation and misinformation Not providing the people with accurate information. They require Part time hiding under the guise of national security state security and the rest and the rest of it So the malamy does not have it doesn't fall within the poor view of his office to be talking about about that for me I think it's an overkeep and it's an over issue of his of his responsibility. There's not like frequent. What is this information? It is not news. All right. That that should be a lecture session from the chief lecturer at the Nigerian history of journalism I think we've been taking our notes We should come for for a certificate from you But back to your comments jillie johnson on the state of the nation Especially as regards the fuel supply situation the scarcity and the costs of jet a1 for For the the the airlines higher prices in diesel and all that I'd like to link that those comments to story on the front page of a daily independent talking about What Tony Lumilou put out on social media and the headline in front of daily independent ghost us As elections near a lumilou asked Nigerians to hold leaders accountable But he was particular about the fact that businesses are suffering. He says quote How can we be losing over 95 percent all production to thieves? Look at the boney terminal that should be receiving 200 000 barrels of crude oil daily Instead he receives less than 3000 barrels leading to the operator shell to declare first major Your thoughts on a lumilou statement sir regarding the economy That is important for us to be the watchdog of the Nigerian society and everybody becomes a stakeholder not just an ordinary member of the Nigerian society and That Responsibility lies with us first and foremost as the media And then for us to equip the citizenry to ask questions now what we have We have seen the development of patronisism and not journalism We have seen that people that people we see people interviewing governors and interviewing president asking patronizing questions and not Journalistic questions questions that one had to do that put someone on the top spot So we have become patrons of the political class and the economic class Rather than be journalists representing the entire the entire people and being the voice of the voiceless the eyes and the ears Of the people so I agree with him. I agree. I agree with me But the question you asked is What investment is he making to ensure that we have seen that we have civic education that people are educated What is foundation? I don't know. He has he has a foundation on end up to no development But if you don't deal with the politics if you invest your money and government comes up with one policy If you destroy your entire business if you destroy it just don't Policies from outside from government will destroy your investment. So that's why we said there's a particular theory in the media Which you talk about which is the masses theory talking about who controls the means the means of production It's called the political economy theory now The politics shapes the economy no matter how powerful you are economically For example, one policy from government can destroy the entire business of danguti. Just one policy of government. So the the people Investing money on on end up, you know development should also understand that civic education Is a critical component part of economic development They should make that should be foundations different foundations that make investment on citizen empowerment citizen education and improving citizen participation Since the national orientation agency, which is the agency of government that they start with responsibility Has gone money point deliberately Because it serves the purpose of the ruling class as long as the citizens are not aware and conscious of their rights. So but Private individuals philanthropist needs to come in and invest, you know, we have the Ford foundation We have the Soros foundation different foundations in America making investment on citizen education And empowerment, and I think we need that I agree with him But we need investment in that so that you see for example There's nothing stopping a foundation from looking for people with critical minds Let's go across all the campuses in Nigeria and educate Educate Okay, so we seem to have a freezing screen I'm sure we will try to get back to gillie johnson. Uh, uh, miss dr. Johnson. Can you hear us, please? All right, we will try and reconnect with him and immediately as possible. We'll uh, we'll come back when we see it's a Quite an interesting analysis. We hear that gilly johnson is back. Uh, dr. Johnson. Can you hear us, please? I can hear you. I can hear you. So please continue with your point so So we make investment critical investment in going to Secondary schools across the nation telling them on the need for them to get engaged and participate in the political process Go to the university Letting them know to get engaged and and also educate journalists who are the watchdog Who are the ears and the eyes of the public? Not to ask the tonight listening questions Or to ask tough questions generally development are questions questions that will develop the Nigerian the Nigerian society Not to see themself and being part and parcel of the establishment Not anti-establishment, but a progressive element that bring about change in in the in the in the society So we we need that to see themselves as being patriotic and not being partisan. We have seen the situation We have by generally have become partisan. They have become part and parcel of the system They are supposed to criticize the system. They are supposed to evaluate to put a critic on But they see themselves as a journalist is First Almost and it depended my one and it's patriotic So the level of patriotism your loyalty should be to the nation not to one interest. For example, why No one has acts You see people keep talking about Atikua speak the form. Chinubu has speak the form You know these people they were lying their interest now during the course of this week Chinubu visited who will have thought that Chinubu will visit um Umichori umichori if you are from my part of the world and you know the political divide that Chinubu will visit umichori and then you see that Towards the tail end of the week we came and Abasek you are trying to reconcile their their their their differences Which is their interest However as journalists we need to train the citizen for them to look with your first acts tough questions Why do you want to become president? What's your economic template? None of them. None of them has told us how they are going to solve this energy problem This power problem. None of them has told us on how to solve this problem If not told us how to resolve the issue of asu that has education If not told us what they are going to do with critical infrastructure. All they are telling us that I want to be president and you see journalists falling head on east reporting it And you see citizen running running running running after them and that that would not bring about development and society You will not bring about development and society All right, that's it. Thank you so much G.D. Johnson for being part of the show this morning. We do appreciate your time Messi is a pleasure. Thank god for everything Messi and me And that's it G.D. Johnson is a chief lecturer in Niger an institute of johnson Thank you so much. It's been an interesting, you know time Yes indeed it has it has and uh up next we will take a look at what's happened today In history where we return we dive straight into first major conversation. Stay with us