The Special Assistant to President Bola Tinubu on Social Media, Dada Olusegun, has defended First Lady Oluremi Tinubu’s recent empowerment of micro-traders, saying criticisms of the initiative are driven by ignorance of her record and the role of Nigeria’s informal economy.

In a statement shared on Monday, Olusegun described the backlash over the First Lady’s focus on traders such as akara and kulikuli sellers as a “performative circus of selective amnesia.”

He argued that critics had ignored the numerous interventions carried out by the Renewed Hope Initiative across healthcare, women’s empowerment, support for military widows and persons living with disabilities.

According to him, the First Lady’s interventions extend beyond petty traders, citing her donation of ₦1bn to the National Cancer Fund for cervical cancer screening and another ₦1bn for tuberculosis diagnostic equipment in Abuja in 2025.

He also referenced the disbursement of ₦250,000 each to 1,709 widows and orphans of fallen military personnel in 2023, as well as ₦200,000 business grants to persons living with disabilities across the 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory.

Olusegun further highlighted the Renewed Hope Initiative’s partnership with the Tony Elumelu Foundation, which targeted 18,500 women nationwide with ₦50,000 grants and the distribution of equipment, including industrial grinding machines, freezers and generators.

He further criticised what he described as an “Olodo uprising” on social media, accusing critics of reacting to trends without researching the facts.

“This entire controversy perfectly mirrors what is now happening with the broader ‘Olodo uprising” across our social platforms. We live in an era where people jump on trending hashtags and soundbites without dedicating a single minute to researching context. Memes are manufactured in seconds; accurate history takes time to read.

“When the critics are done making their superficial memes, writing cynical captions, and circulating ignorant narratives, the reality on the ground will remain unchanged. They would be better off advising their constituents to find credible means to key into these ongoing government initiatives,” he stated.

He maintained that empowering small-scale traders should not be viewed as “weaponising poverty.”

“According to various economic metrics, the informal sector contributes over 50 per cent of Nigeria’s GDP and accounts for over 80 per cent of employment. The akara fryer, the kulikuli processor, and the petty trader are not just marginal actors; they are the literal shock absorbers of our micro-economy.

“When you give a micro-grant or operational tools to an akara seller, you are not validating poverty; you are reducing immediate operational capital friction, securing food chains at the grassroots, and expanding household income. Mocking these initiatives as ‘petty’ shows a deep-seated contempt for the actual working class of Nigeria,” he said.

Olusegun also defended the political value of grassroots empowerment, saying such interventions create trust among beneficiaries.

He cited the TraderMoni and MarketMoni programmes introduced during former President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration under then Vice President Yemi Osinbajo as examples of initiatives that directly impacted market traders.

“The opposition often wonders why the poorest segments of the population continually familiarise themselves with the All Progressives Congress during elections. The answer is simple: the party meets them at their point of immediate need,” he said.

Olusegun added that Tinubu’s record as former First Lady of Lagos State, a three-term senator and now First Lady of the Federation showed a consistent commitment to structured empowerment programmes.

“She will not be distracted by digital static from doing what she has mastered over decades: empowering the poorest among us, one structured intervention at a time,” he said.

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The Dangote Refinery has purchased two cargoes of crude oil from the United Arab Emirates, marking its first-ever procurement of Middle Eastern crude as it expands its feedstock sources amid persistent domestic supply constraints.

According to a report by S&P Global Commodity Insights, the two cargoes will be the first sourced by the 700,000-barrels-per-day refinery from any Middle Eastern supplier, signalling a shift from its traditional reliance on Nigerian, African, and United States crude grades.

The report said the purchases followed the resumption of oil exports from the Middle East after the United States and Iran reached an interim peace agreement that restored confidence in shipping through the Strait of Hormuz.

The refinery, designed primarily to process Nigeria’s light sweet crude, has increasingly diversified its crude slate as operations ramp up. S&P Global reported that an agreement between the refinery and the Nigerian National Petroleum Company had guaranteed the supply of between 13 and 15 cargoes of Nigerian crude monthly in naira, helping the refinery reduce its foreign exchange exposure.

However, the arrangement has faced challenges due to inadequate crude availability and operational issues at export terminals. According to the report, Dangote Refinery Chief Executive Officer David Bird had previously disclosed that these constraints had compelled the company to seek additional crude sources outside Nigeria.

The report added that the refinery’s expansion plans would further increase its crude requirements. Dangote plans to double the refinery’s processing capacity to 1.4 million barrels per day by the end of 2028, a level that would enable it to process about 80 per cent of Nigeria’s recent crude oil production in a single day.

Speaking earlier this year, Bird said the refinery intended to increase the share of heavier crude grades in its feedstock mix. “We definitely want to heavy up the barrel,” Bird said in April.

He added, “We will be in the crude blending game. So you can easily imagine at 1.4 million b/d we could process 30 per cent Middle Eastern grades on each train.”

According to S&P Global, the refinery has been broadening the range of crude grades it processes as part of its ambition to operate as a fully merchant refinery. The report noted that in 2025, about 70 per cent of the refinery’s crude imports came from Nigeria, while 24 per cent originated from the United States.

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Nigeria exported an estimated 148.9 million barrels of crude oil valued at about N20.22tn in the first five months of 2026, showcasing the scale of the country’s oil trade despite persistent concerns over production levels.

The crude barrels were exported by both international and indigenous oil companies, including the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited.

While the export of crude oil may lead to a lack of sufficient domestic feedstock for Dangote Petroleum Refinery and other local refineries, it boosts the country’s foreign exchange earnings.

An analysis of crude oil production and export data for January to May 2026 showed that the country’s crude exports were worth approximately $14.66bn, equivalent to N20.22tn at an exchange rate of N1,380 to the dollar.

In comparison, Nigeria exported 154 million barrels of crude worth about $11.32bn during the same period of 2025. Although export volume in 2026 fell by 5.1 million barrels, representing a 3.3 per cent decline, the export value jumped by about $3.33bn, or 29.5 per cent, driven by significantly higher crude oil prices this year.

The figures obtained from the Central Bank of Nigeria indicate that the total volume of crude oil produced by the country during the five-month review period in 2026 was 216.85 million barrels, with a gross market value of approximately $21.28bn, or about N29.36tn, using the same exchange rate.

The calculations were derived from the average daily crude oil production and export volumes for each month, multiplied by the number of days in the respective months, and valued using the corresponding average monthly Bonny Light crude oil prices.

A breakdown of the CBN figures showed that Nigeria produced about 45.26 million barrels in January, 36.68 million barrels in February, 42.78 million barrels in March, 44.70 million barrels in April, and 47.43 million barrels in May.

Crude exports followed a similar trend, with 31.31 million barrels exported in January, 24.08 million barrels in February, 28.83 million barrels in March, 31.20 million barrels in April, and 33.48 million barrels in May.

Using the prevailing average crude prices for each month, January’s exports were valued at about $2.13bn, February $1.74bn, March $3.06bn, April $3.95bn, and May $3.77bn, bringing the cumulative export value to $14.66bn.

On the production side, crude output was valued at approximately $3.08bn in January, $2.65bn in February, $4.54bn in March, $5.67bn in April, and $5.34bn in May, resulting in a cumulative value of $21.28bn.

The data further showed that average daily crude oil production improved over the review period. Output increased from 1.46 million barrels per day in January to 1.53 million barrels per day in May after dropping to 1.31 million barrels per day in February.

Average daily crude exports also rose from 1.01 million barrels per day in January to 1.08 million barrels per day in May, despite recording 0.86 million barrels per day in February.

Overall, Nigeria exported about 68.7 per cent of the crude oil it produced during the five months, leaving roughly 67.95 million barrels available for domestic refining, storage, operational use, and inventory adjustments.

The effect of the US-Iran war was also felt in the monthly average prices of crude from March to May. In January and February, before the war started, average crude prices were $68.05 and $72.33 a barrel. But the prices jumped to $106.09 in March, $126.71 in April, and $112.63 in May, reflecting the sharp rise in crude prices due to the closure of the Strait of Hormuz.

The estimated values represent the gross market value of the crude oil based on average monthly international crude prices and do not reflect actual government revenue, which is affected by production-sharing contracts, royalties, taxes, operational costs, domestic crude supply obligations, and other commercial arrangements.

Year-on-year comparison

Meanwhile, Nigeria’s crude oil export earnings rose by almost 30 per cent in the first five months of 2026 despite a decline in export volumes, as higher international oil prices more than offset the lower shipments.

While the country exported an estimated 148.9 million barrels of crude oil during the period, approximately 154.0 million barrels were exported in the corresponding period of 2025.

The figures indicate that crude export volumes declined by about 5.1 million barrels, representing a 3.3 per cent year-on-year decrease. Average daily crude exports also dropped from 1.02 million barrels per day in the first five months of 2025 to 0.984 million barrels per day during the same period in 2026, a decline of 3.5 per cent.

Despite the lower export volumes, the estimated value of Nigeria’s crude oil exports surged to about $14.66bn between January and May 2026 from approximately $11.32bn recorded during the corresponding period of 2025.

This represents an increase of about $3.34bn, or 29.5 per cent, within one year. This highlighted the effect of the US-Iran conflict on crude prices this year.

At an exchange rate of N1,380 to the United States dollar, the estimated value of crude exports for the first five months of 2026 translates to approximately N20.22tn, compared with about N15.62tn in the same period of 2025.

The analysis showed that the increase in export earnings was driven largely by stronger international crude oil prices rather than higher export volumes.

Although Nigeria exported fewer barrels in 2026, the significantly higher crude oil prices, particularly in March, April, and May, boosted the overall market value of the country’s crude exports.

Domestic crude supply to Nigeria’s refineries declined to 15.84 million barrels in May 2026, even as the facilities achieved a combined intake of 17.92 million barrels for the month, according to the latest midstream and downstream statistics released by the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority.

Across the first five months of the year, domestic supply to refineries had shown a generally upward trend, rising from 8.83 million barrels in January and 8.86 million barrels in February to 11.49 million barrels in March, before peaking in April and moderating in May.

As oil producers make money from high oil export volumes, local refiners said this was against the domestic crude supply obligation of the Petroleum Industry Act.

The Dangote refinery has recently accused the Federal Government and its agencies of alleged deliberate sabotage, undermining its operations and frustrating its investment in Nigeria’s downstream petroleum sector, an allegation the Federal Government denied.

In a recent affidavit filed before the Federal High Court in Lagos seeking an interim injunction to stop the issuance and renewal of petroleum import licences, the company said its operations are anchored on crude oil supply arrangements with the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited, which it described as central to its refining business.

The refinery said its business operations include purchasing crude oil from the Federal Government through the NNPC and refining products for sale to Nigerians to ease pressure on the government to make petroleum products available for local consumption.

The refinery, however, alleged that the government had failed in its obligation to ensure adequate crude supply to local refineries, claiming the development was deliberate and harmful to its investment.

Speaking with our correspondent, the publicity secretary of the Crude Oil Refinery Owners Association of Nigeria, Eche Idoko, said modular refineries did not receive crude from the Federal Government but from private oil producers.

“None of the modular refineries I know have gotten crude under the Federal Government arrangement. But I know that through private arrangements, the Edo refinery is getting it from Ingenti. Aradel is getting crude from EOP and a couple of other fields, too. Opac is getting from Pillar,” he said in a chat on Sunday.

Idoko appealed to the Federal Government to effectively implement the DSCO and make enough crude available to local refineries.

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