₦airaland Forum

The minister, who was a guest on Channels Television’s Sunrise Daily programme on Monday, said some persons want his ministry to bend for political reasons but “unfortunately it’s a partnership between us and the international community – the World Bank is involved, CSOs (civil society organisations) are involved and it’s not just a ministry activity”.

He said, “Some people want us to bend and allow the governors or the states to just generate the list and send. It’s a conditional transfer; conditions are attached to qualifying to benefit from the social safety net.

“So, we will not bend to allowing any political affiliation or attachment to this conditional cash transfer. Poverty doesn’t know political party, poverty doesn’t know tribe, poverty doesn’t even understand the grammar we are blowing. A poor person is a poor person.”

The minister said he suspended cash transfers and that National Identification Number (NIN) and Bank Verification Number (BVN) are now compulsory for all digital transfers for audit and transparency purposes.

“It is going to be clearly digital. This time around, we are carrying the CSOs along so that all payments, we will ask them to verify, they can do follow-ups and we can have some levels of transparency in what we are doing,” he said.

The minister said though 19.8 million poor Nigerians are captured on the nation’s social register to qualify for social safety funds, the government has validated only the identities of 1.2m people.

Yilwatda said, “Currently, we have a social register; we have 19.8m people on the social register but when you have a list, you need to validate that list.

“For now, the people that have been validated are only about 1.2 million people. We need to validate the entire register so that we can get the actual people who are supposed to benefit from it, authenticate their locations; their houses, where they are, and capture on GPS location — the location of their homes.

“So that we are sure they exist and be sure that these people are as poor as they claim because there are social indices for judging poverty like access to water, access to health, access to education, and access to economic facilities. So that you can now pick the poorest of the poor in the society.”

He said the government targets 15 million poor households with N75,000.

The humanitarian ministry has courted controversies since its establishment by former President Muhammadu Buhari.

In October 2024, President Bola Tinubu appointed Yilwatda to replace Betta Edu who was suspended in January 2024 before her removal.

Controversy had enveloped Edu’s alleged involvement in the approval of N585,198,500.00 to be disbursed into a personal account but she denied the allegation and said there were plans to tarnish her image, and that she wouldn’t embezzle government funds.

Incidentally, Edu’s predecessor, Sadiya Farouq, was also probed over an alleged laundering of N37.1 billion under the administration of ex-President Buhari.

Shettima gave this assurance at the national conference on strengthening democracy in Nigeria on Monday in Abuja.

The conference themed, ‘Strengthening Nigeria’s democracy: Pathways to good governance and political integrity’,was organised by the African Centre for Leadership, Strategy and Development.

Shettima, who was represented by his Special Adviser on political issues, Hakeem Baba-Ahmed, admitted that while democracy is not a perfect system, compared to others, it is the best form of government.

“We will listen and adjust where necessary, and we will account for our stewardship in all matters our challenging democratic systems demand.

“I am convinced that Nigeria shall rise again, answer to its full potential and lead the way to a future that has learnt lessons from a difficult past into a world in which our country will be a key player, and our young will be active champions of a democratic system because it speaks to them.

“It has been said many times that democracy is an imperfect system, yet superior to all others.

“We will continue to seek to provide evidence of the values of the democratic systems by, among others, fixing major weaknesses of our economy, securing our communities, fighting corruption, supporting free and fair elections, strengthening the independence of the judiciary and improving national cohesion,” he said.

Shettima urged Nigerians to support the current administration in this challenging but ultimately rewarding journey, dtressing that the Bola Tinubu administration has a major interest in the quality of the democratic system.

ogaemma:
Arrangee.
They should have allowed him to end up disgracing himself.
Even a day old baby knows that Dele Farotimi is saying the truth.
You can't fight the TRUTH and win.

Wallade:
Colombia didnturn back America's military plane.

So what is your blablabla

“I have read the budget and have gone through almost all the sectors. It is not reflective and it is incapable of giving Mr President projects to commission which he can be proud of in 2026,” Enang said on the Sunday edition of Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a socio-political programme aired on Channels Television.

On December 18, 2024, Tinubu presented the 2025 ₦49.7tn budget proposal before a joint session of the National Assembly for approval. The lawmakers are to resume on February 4, 2025, after the ongoing defense of the proposed budget by ministries, departments, and agencies.

Enang, who served as Senior Special Assistant to then-President Muhammadu Buhari on National Assembly Matters, faulted what he described as low revenue allocation, low revenue generation, and low revenue mobilisation in the 2025 proposed budget.

The chieftain of the president’s party, the ruling All Progressives Congress, said the 2025 Appropriation Bill if passed by the legislature and signed into law by the president without major adjustments, can’t deliver sectoral fulfillment. He said if passed the way it is, it will become a problem for Tinubu’s reelection.

“The way it is, what we are having and defending at the National Assembly, if it is passed like that, it will give them a question to answer in the field of campaigns in 2026, 2027.

“I am saying that because of the minute allocations given to certain projects in certain ministries, they may not have much to show. Given the way some of the projects which they may need to exit or abandon due to low allocation, they may not be able to commission those projects,” he said.

He cited the Calabar-Ikot Ekpene, Lagos-Ibadan, Abuja-Lokoja-Benin, Abuja-Kaduna, and other highway projects, saying the monies allocated for the projects are not substantial enough to get them completed within the budget cycle or calendar.

“By the end of 2025, Mr president is supposed to go commission those projects but what will he commission (if they are uncompleted)?

“In most areas that we should show during the campaigns, we may not have what to show if we have this level of budgeting. That is why I am saying that Mr president’s team should go sectorally before they pass the budget and identify the presidential priorities,” he said.

Enang said the president and his economic team should be strategic and give priorities to milestone projects in their budgetary allocations, as well as give deadlines and tentative commissioning dates for such projects.

The lawyer urged the president and his Chief of Staff, Femi Gbajabiamila, to take up the budget which is still being worked on in the National Assembly, and “look at each of the ministries and say, ‘Look, this is what we want to deliver in solid minerals, this is what we want to deliver in works, these are two or three things we want to commission in each state, in each region. This is what we want to attain in railway. This is what we want to attain in water resources. This is what we want to report in agriculture. This is the milestone we want to record in education and then work towards that’.”

“If we don’t do this, the president and the APC will be relying on the projects of states and governors to justify what they have done for APC to go for the next election,” the lawyer said.

Last December, the National Assembly extended the implementation of the 2024 N28.7tn Budget by six months, saying it has achieved a 50% performance rate in capital expenditure and 48% in recurrent expenditure.

Nigeria is said to be running multiple appropriation and supplementary budgets concurrently, according to a civic and accountability group BudgIT.

racerve:
I don't care for either of these men, but how are you assessing this?

Because Wike throws parties for road commissioning?

The Minister made this allegation when he appeared on Channels Television’s Sunday Politics programme on Sunday.

According to him, the Bauchi State governor showed that he does not have sincerity of purpose in his criticism of President Tinubu.

“Governor Bala Mohammed showed clearly that he does not have any sincerity of purpose,” Tugar said on the programme.

“It is not that other governors did not try to interrogate the tax bill when it was presented which is a good thing as a matter of fact so that Nigerians get the best out of the bill, but what Bala Mohammed proceeded to do was to use it as a platform to launch his presidential campaign very early in the day.

“He was the most severe in his invectives towards the president, towards the administration with his vituperations towards the president and the administration.”

The Minister said Governor Mohammed has been trying to secure an audience with Tinubu following his criticism of the president on the tax reform bills.

The Bauchi State governor had while addressing a Christian community on Boxing Day in Bauchi, urged President Tinubu to backtrack on the tax policy reforms as it could lead to anarchy.

According to him, the policy does not in any way favour the North, adding that the governors would not be able to pay salaries.

He warned that if these policies continued, the northern region would “show its true colours” in response.

However, the Presidency responded to the governor and condemned what it described as threat to the president. It said Mohammed’s view does not reflect the view of the entire north.

Meanwhile, Nigerian governors, on January 16, declared support for the Federal Government’s tax reform bills. However, they proposed a new sharing formula for value-added tax (VAT).

The decision followed a meeting of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) and the Presidential Tax Reform Committee.

In a communique at the end of the meeting, the governors’ forum “reiterated its strong support for the comprehensive reform of Nigeria’s archaic tax laws.

Zackattack:
Wike lost the PDP primary in 2022 and since then has been displaying a bad loser syndrome. Refuses to live the PDP and still work with their opposition as a mere minister. He’s the perfect example of a politician not to follow.

UpTown001:
Hope you're not paid to defend these actors, that are not acting in the interest of the common man

Zackattack:
Truthfully, Wike’s reply is empty.
What about his own presidential ambition?
He went from being a presidential candidate to a minister in 1year. A position he held in 2012. He is describing himself in that comment and he doesn’t even know.

The Minister said the President does not travel as much as he should, as he needs to interact with Presidents of other nations.

Some Nigerians are agitated that the President is traveling from country to country, wasting taxpayer money all in the name of luring investors to Nigeria.

As at May 2024, the president had spent about 96 days abroad from the day he was sworn in, visiting some countries more than once.

DAILY POST reports that Tinubu has visited France, United Kingdom, Guinea Bissau, Kenya, Benin Republic, India, United Arab Emirates, the United States of America, Saudi Arabia, Germany, Ethiopia, Senegal, Qatar, The Netherlands.

Speaking to Channels Television’s Sunday Politics, the Minister said that the President does not even travel enough.

“This administration is still new. He was sworn-in in 2023. In global terms he is still a new President. He needs to interact with his colleagues, fellow heads of state to be able to establish relationships and you can see the fruits of these trips. Look at the benefits.

“You travel once and you get $2bn of investment like he did in Brazil…in fact, we are not travelling enough. I should suggest that we should do more.

“Nigeria has the money. How much does travelling cost compared to the benefits. And how much does it cost when you’re comparing it to the things that the President has already addressed.

“How much were we wasting on fuel subsidy, electricity subsidy and all those subsidies?” The Minister queried.

The development comes following ongoing reforms in various sectors of the economy.

A statement issued by the National Orientation Agency (NOA), said the new trades were added to the Basic Education curriculum to boost students’ practical skills and employability.

The new subjects include plumbing; tiling and floor works; POP installation; event decoration and management; bakery and confectioneries; hairstyling; makeup; interior design; GSM repairs and satellite/TV antenna installation.

Others are CCTV and intercom installation and maintenance; solar installation and maintenance; garment making; agriculture and processing (including crop production, beekeeping, horticulture and livestock farming like poultry and rabbit rearing), and basic digital literacy (including IT and robotics).

The statement noted that the new subjects will take effect from January 2025 for primary and junior secondary students across the country.

Musa was reacting to the court order that designated Lakurawa as a terrorist organization.

DAILY POST had reported that the Federal High Court in Abuja proscribed the Lakurawa sect and other similar groups in any part of Nigeria.

Justice James Omotosho, in a ruling on the ex-parte filed by the Attorney-General of the Federation (AGF) and Minister of Justice, Mr Lateef Fagbemi, SAN, declared the group as a terrorist organisation.

Reacting, Musa said the Nigerian troops now have the legal backing to eliminate Lakurawa members.

Appearing on Channels TV’s Politics Today, the CDS said: “It makes a lot of difference and it means we can go after them with full force

“With the proscription of the Lakurawa sect as a terror group, there is a legal backing to actively eradicate them. Any Lakurawa member seen now is as good as dead.”

The Defence Chief also accused Boko Haram of using humans as shields.

”This Boko Haram thing is a lot, they have realised that we obey international law, they don’t, what do they do?

“They use human shields anytime they have something they hide among the people so we can’t shoot,” he added.

Sowore said the APC’s poor governance and policies are responsible for the premature deaths of Nigerian politicians.

He disclosed this during a consultative meeting between the Independent Electoral Commission, INEC, and political parties in Abuja.

Posting on his X page, Sowore recalled how numerous bye-elections were held due to the deaths of some political officeholders.

He wrote: “Today, I participated in a consultative meeting between @inecnigeria Nigeria and political parties in Abuja, where an unexpected issue emerged concerning the numerous bye-elections held this year due to the deaths of over 12 political office holders across Nigeria.

“During my intervention, I emphasized that these premature deaths are a consequence of the @OfficialAPCNg poor governance and policies.

“Interestingly, I was seated close to the @APCNigeria Chairman, Gandollar, and their party secretary, ex-Senator Surajudeen Ajibola Basiru, @DrSRJ_ (a former ‘comrade’ of ours at UNILAG/NANS.)

‘Their responses were quite revealing, as they appeared amused by this correlation.

“n fact, @DrSRJ_ was screaming from his seat, Sowore you’ve come again! They don’t still get it! #RevolutionNow.”

Kanu explained that his case is not decided according to the rule of law but the rules of dirty and deadly politics.

He disclosed this during his routine meeting with his legal team led by lead counsel, Aloy Ejimakor, at the Department of State Services, DSS facility in Abuja.


Kanu lamented that those benefiting from insecurity are deciding the decisions to deliver.

A statement issued by Ejimakor reads: “The legal team has concluded today’s visitation of Mazi Nnamdi Kanu.

“He asked us to inform the general public that he’s not expecting any favourable judgment from any courts in Abuja because his cases are not decided in accordance with the rules of law but the rules of politics – dirty and deadly politics.

“The way and manner the laws are applied to him are not in conformity with the written laws of Nigeria or the pertinent international laws.

“Those benefitting from insecurity are the ones deciding what negative decisions to deliver because if justice were to be done, the well-orchestrated and heavily funded attacks and demonisation of his person and his lofty mission would no longer resonate with the public.

“Onyendu MNK urged the public to read all court decisions and judgements pertaining to him and IPOB to understand that what the law says is not what is being done. He insists that his trial is a sham designed to destroy truth and justice.”

DMerciful:
And you Nigerians will keep suffering

mrvitalis:
Yea sure and GDP would keep shrinking let's see how loose

The ongoing conflict between the renowned gospel artist Mercy Chinwo and her manager, Mr Ezekiel Onyedikachukwu, who is also the Chief Executive Officer of Eezee Concept, is becoming increasingly intricate.

The record label head has publicly accused Mercy Chinwo of failing to adhere to the stipulations outlined in her contract.


He further alleged that she has been leveraging her influence and connections within her religious community to undermine his efforts and disseminate misleading information regarding the circumstances surrounding their disagreement.

Recently, it was reported that Mercy Chinwo took legal action by approaching the Federal High Court in Lagos. The court, overseen by Justice Alexander Owoeye, has since issued an arrest warrant for her manager in light of serious allegations of financial misconduct, which involve a significant sum of $345,000.

He shared that Mercy has received $625,000 from Eezee Concept thus far and expressed a desire to clarify certain aspects of their agreement to avoid further misunderstandings.

He mentioned that while Eezee Concept offered a fair 50/50 earnings ratio, the singer is seeking alternative support from law enforcement and religious organisations regarding a catalog she did not contribute to financially.


“It’s important to recognise that you have already received over $635,000. However, it feels disappointing that this situation continues to unfold in this manner. Your journey began as my backup singer, and I genuinely committed to supporting your career from the start. There is wrong information circulating and the potential misuse of legal and religious channels against me, which is concerning.

“I invested significant resources to help your career flourish, including offering you housing when you needed it. However, our agreement stipulated that a third album would be delivered, and funds meant for the label from events were withheld. When those challenges arose, I sought a constructive way to resolve the issues, proposing meetings and an independent audit for transparency. It’s also important to mention that I faced legal challenges last year, which led to an unjust situation involving $274,000.

“Your claim to a catalog that I financed is concerning, especially since you haven’t contributed financially to its creation. For years, you have benefitted from quarterly royalties and our agreed terms.

I genuinely appreciate the support and prayers from those around us. May we ultimately find a path toward truth and justice through open communication,” he said.

Previous Thread: https://www.nairaland.com/8319455/court-orders-arrest-mercy-chinwos

He issued the warning during an official working visit to the Nigerian Defence Academy in Kaduna State on Friday, where he inaugurated several completed projects to improve the welfare and training of cadets.

“We must understand that the Armed Forces of Nigeria is for Nigeria and for Nigerians. Our duty is to protect Nigeria, to protect our sovereignty whether within or outside, it is not to harm innocent people, that we must understand.

“And for cadets, as you grow in the system, understand this clearly our duty is to protect and defend our country,” General Musa said.

The CDS also asked the cadets and officers to gear up with the dynamic nature of warfare especially with the emergence of artificial intelligence in the fight against insecurity, warning that the days of officers abandoning their duties for self-aggrandizement are over and won’t be tolerated.

He reminded them about the enormous task ahead of them, and why they must brace up to the challenges of defending their fatherland against any threat.

The defence chief, however, warned that no form of soft landing for any officer, as they will be posted to difficult terrains as junior commanders to protect the citizens and the country against any threat.

On his part, the Commandant of the NDA, Major General John Ochai, emphasized the importance of leveraging information technology to combat terrorism, banditry and other emerging security challenges confronting the country.

Noting the effective use of Information Communication Technology (ICT) in modern warfare and counter-terrorism operations, General Ochai highlighted the NDA’s efforts to integrate it into its training programs, aiming to equip cadets with the necessary skills to tackle contemporary and emerging security concerns.

Accompanied by the NDA Commandant and top military officers and their wives, the CDS inaugurated some of the completed projects. Among them are the NDA emergency and trauma centre, operational, basic military training complex among others.

He said that the current 1999 Constitution was forced on Nigerians by the military, and insisted that things have been the way they are in the country because Nigerians are being forced to stay together without an agreement of terms to do that.

Attah, who governed Akwa Ibom from 1999 to 2007, was a guest on the Friday edition of Inside Sources with Laolu Akande, a socio-political programme aired on Channels Television.

“So, what we should look at is how do we get back to a state of conditions and terms that will be agreeable to all Nigerians, if we don’t do that, we are wasting time,” Attah said on the programme.

“Let me tell you a very quick story. About two weeks ago, there was a story about a young girl of 14 who poisoned the groom and the guests at her wedding because she was being forced to the union she does not subscribe to. What that suggests is nobody on this earth will agree to remain in a union if they have not subscribed to the rules and conditions of staying together.

“So, we must not continue to force Nigerians to stay together without first of all allowing them to spell out the terms and conditions under which they want to stay together.”

“So, we must not continue to force Nigerians to stay together without first of all allowing them to spell out the terms and conditions under which they want to stay together.”

He said that Nigerian Constitution of 1963 accommodated true federal system, but that has been abandoned since for what he referred to as the authoritarian system in place now.

“For me, what is wrong is the constitution. We so not have a Nigerian constitution by Nigerians and the system must change,” he insisted.

There have been a lot of agitations in the country with some regions declaring that they want to secede from Nigerian. However, Attah believes those moves are triggered by frustration because nobody really wants to leave the country.

“My conviction is that nobody really wants to go but they are just tired and fed up with what is going on in Nigeria.”

He said that this discussion has been ongoing for a long time, but the government had turned a blind eye to it, forcing some people to say that they want to go because they are not allowed to be what they want to be in Nigeria.

The ex-Akwa Ibom governor said that if the country operated the constitution they are operating today in the 60s, Obafemi Awolowo may not have been able to declare free education in the then Western Region.

babzo:
100% falsehood. We are always making excuses for ourselves. A human being like a community of human beings is 100% responsible for its success or failure.

If someone else is responsible for your success or failure that means there is nothing you can do to succeed or fail in life on your own.