₦airaland Forum

onatisi:
Buhari is a colossal gargantuan political error and mistake and Nigerians must pay for their gullibility in voting for him. No sane president in this modern day will go on tv and declare that his government is ready to pay money to terrorists for the release of hostages. What sort of message is he sending to boko haram ? All he should have said was that the government will do everything necessary to bring the girls back. I wont be surprised if boko haram now starts kidnapping highly placed government officials and demand for ransom since the president has said ransom paying is an option he will consider
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obailala:
Some of una brain sef... do you type b4 you read?... cant you see he did not make the allegation?

Jesusloveyou:
hehehehehe, see hypocrite, how many times have u protest for ur clueless corrupt gej 6yrs of failure, what wil u protest for now, or is it not d consequences of d past 6yrs or 16yrs of bad govt of ur clueless corrupt ogogoro hero and ur fail party pdp, from 2016 that wil be d beginning of change, d wind of change wil blow to imf

Mogidi:
The bad news just keeps flowing, unabated.

Smooyis:
Nice. Most reasonable speech ever. Hope Wike is listening....

eleshin:
Pls download link for madam secretary cos I can't see it on 02tvseries. Thanks

elshanAutos:
Sa

omolajaone:
hjij

The ongoing controversy stirred by the Single Treasury Account (TSA) policy recently introduced by the federal government may take a long time to abate. This apprehension stems from the fact that the policy concerns and touches the heart of the economy as represented by the banking sector. There is no doubt that the banking sector of the Nigerian economy is hard hit by this policy, which many economic analysts believe is obnoxious and counterproductive.

The TSA policy, which was introduced by a circular issued by the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Mr Danladi Kifasi, on August 7, 2015, directed that all receipts due to the federal government or any of her agencies are to be paid into the federal sub-treasury account maintained in the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN).

The implementation of the TSA, according to the circular, is expected to aid transparency and facilitate compliance with Sections 80 and 162 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria 1999 (as amended).

TSA is a unified structure of bank accounts enabling consolidation and optimal utilisation of government’s cash resources. It is a bank account or a set of linked bank accounts through which government transacts all its receipts and payments and gets consolidated view of its cash position at any given time.

The president’s directive is expected to end the previous public accounting situation of several fragmented accounts for government revenues, incomes and receipts, which in the recent past has meant the loss or leakages of legitimate income meant for the federation account. According to experts, TSA aims at concentrating all government funds on one account for its proper management. In other words, it is an instrument put in place to control government finance resources and expenditures. It ensures complete, real time information on government cash resources and improves operational and appropriations control.

The measure, according to government, is to ensure transparency and accountability in the operations of public accounts.

The president’s directive was in consonance with Section 80 of the 1999 Constitution. Section 80 (1) of the constitution which reads, “All revenues or other moneys raised or received by the federation (not being revenues or other moneys payable under this Constitution or any Act of the National Assembly into any other public fund of the federation established for a specific purpose) shall be paid into and form one Consolidated Revenue Fund of the Federation.”

But rather than listen to the cry of the people for the government to review the policy considering its negative consequences on the nation’s economy especially the banking sector, President Buhari applied the big stick by setting a deadline of September 15, 2015 for all ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) of the federal government to comply with the instructions on the TSA or face sanctions.

According to the presidency, “by that deadline, all federal government revenues must go into the Central Bank Treasury Single Account (TSA), except otherwise expressly approved.” Kifasi urged the MDAs to ensure strict compliance with the deadline to avoid sanctions.

“In this regard, His Excellency, Mr. President has directed that all MDAs are to comply with the instructions on the Treasury Single Account (TSA) unfailingly by Tuesday, September 15, 2015. Heads of MDAs and other arms of government are enjoined to give this circular the widest circulation and ensure strict compliance to avoid sanctions,” Mr. Kifasi wrote.

The TSA policy is already taking its toll on the nation’s economy. The banking system is trembling and faces an inevitable collapse. There are fears that one of the new generation banks may already be teetering on the brink of distress. Fifty-five per cent of the bank’s deposit is from the public sector. Last year the bank recorded N22 billion as gross profit. 70 per cent of the profit was realised from treasury bills and other debt instrument of the federal government.

The pain of the TSA in the banking system is excruciating. TSA would rock the banking system because government is striking at a time when Nigeria’s oil revenue has dwindled precipitously. The immediate impact of TSA on the economy has been largely negative. Inter-bank lending rates shot up by 70 per cent the week the policy was announced. The mopping up of huge liquidity in the banking system could not even strengthen the naira. The exchange rate of the naira in the parallel market jumped from N213 to N223 to the dollar. Some of the Bureau de change (BDC) operators could not mobilise the naira component to pick up their dollar allocations. The scarcity of naira triggered a rather strange scarcity of dollars, just the way excess naira in the system would do. Nigeria’s economy is something of an enigma.

As expected, TSA has escalated lending rates. There are fears that prime lending might be cruising perilously above 21 per cent. Endangered species like small and medium enterprises (SMEs) now risk being priced out of the money market. The cost of funds for the perceived high risk ventures might surge above 35 per cent.

TSA would almost certainly worsen the bear runs in the capital market. Banks are poised to respond to the liquidity squeeze with a hike in deposit rates that would make returns on investment in equity even more repulsive. Investors in the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) would be tempted to sell their shares and invest in the money market, thus worsening the bear runs in the capital market

– Hassan wrote in from Abuja

okosodo:
Leading to the same old story. Onechance.com.

At last, President Muhammadu Buhari bowed to public pressure by sending some names to the Senate for confirmation as ministers of the Federal Republic of Nigeria; though his party has cautioned Nigerians to be wary of the names available in public domain and wait for the final list to be announced by the Senate. If the current names being churned out in by the news media are correct, we might need to wait for another era to witness the change we’ve waited so long for.

Our problem as a country includes the flaws in our administrative system and the endemic corruption of public officials. Convicting former public officials has become cumbersome due to administrative bottleneck and lapses in our judicial system. Former minsters and governors across the country have been accused on daily basis for wrong doings and bare-face corruption but only few, if any have so far been convicted. Meanwhile, corruption remains at the core of our development and good governance. It must be gotten rid of. Both the government and the people at large must come together to achieve this national objective.

As it stands, if the names circulating on the social media actually translate to the authentic list of ministers, then the journey has hardly begun. The list we have so far seen comprises politicians who have used thier money to fund the elections and who believe that this indeed is payback time. I am afraid, that less will be achieved in the developmental agenda of the presidency if men and women of honour and intergrity are not brought on board as ministers to assist President Buhari to effect the necessary change that we all desire as a nation.

In the end, the price we pay will be well worth holding on to our dignity. The president should be able to stand tall in confronting his cabinet members whenever they are accused of corrupt practices and ready to show them the way out if need be.

It is now obvious that nothing much has changed; the names we have seen so far do not include the much touted technocrats; this is another deviation from the presidency.

The major concern today bothers so much on the success of this administration. If this government should fail, this country might need to travel another terrain before we can get it right. The Senate leadership is already enmeshed in allegation of corruption. For President Buhari to come out successfully will depend on the action of the general populace and the media to stand up against misdoings in our polity. Of course, what we need is not recycling of these politicians but since President Buhari has opted for the old practice, the expectations of breeding a new set of vibrant youths under his leadership has been evaporated. The new blood we are envisaging might need to wait till eternity. Of course, will this government succeed? It depends on the body language of the president himself.

A British financial expert, Mr. Gerard Lyons, has urged the administration of President Muhammadu Buhari to come up with a clear economic policy direction to enable international investors take investment decisions on Nigeria.
President of Nigeria Muhammadu Buhari addresses the 70th session of the United Nations General Assembly September 28, 2015 at the United Nations in New York. AFP

President of Nigeria Muhammadu Buhari

Delivering the keynote address at the Africa Pension Summit in Abuja, yesterday, Lyons also advocated that part of the nation’s almost N5 trillion be invested in infrastructure, especially energy, roads and rail lines.

On the new administration’s economic policy outlook, the speaker said that though the administration had claimed that there was a clear planning process behind the scene, it must the noted that lack of clarity about the vision and the direction of the government economic policy was not good for the country.

He said: “A great vision is the strength of an economy” he said, adding that the lack of appointment of key government officials was also a concern to international investors.

He said it was not possible for international investors to turn a blind eye on Africa, but noted that Nigeria, although with a large market, needed to come up with policies that would specifically attract investors.

He noted that African nations must increase intra-regional trade in order to form stronger national economies that would impact more positively on the people of the region.

On pension funds, Mr. Lyons suggested that part of the large pool of funds be invested in hard infrastructure, which in themselves would boost the nation’s economy.

Such investments, he said, should be in projects that could guarantee maximum dividend, and he identified toll roads, rail, housing and electricity power projects as some of such facilities in which pension funds could be invested.

The Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Governor, Mr. Godwin Emefiele, yesterday in London, said the apex bank would consider relaxing restrictions on foreign exchange transactions in the country if there was a drop in demand for dollars.

Speaking at a conference in London, Emefiele said the restrictions put in place in June to conserve foreign exchange reserves and support the Naira were working.

He said: “CBN had little choice in imposing the curbs in order to preserve foreign reserves.

“Once we have achieved a result, we can allow ourselves to look at a freer market. I think it is working and you should be patient with us. Demand for foreign exchange has dropped.”

The restrictions have reduced liquidity in the market, prompting JPMorgan Chase & Co. to remove the nation’s bonds from its emerging market bond indexes last month.

Recall that CBN had, on June 23, issued a circular excluding importers of 41 goods and services from accessing foreign currencies at the Nigerian foreign exchange markets, after the Naira plunged to a record low in February, following a drop in oil revenue.

The implication of the policy is that all importers, who want to continue bringing in these goods or services into the country, have to source their foreign exchange from private sources.

CBN said the move was to help reduce pressure on the local currency, while preserving the nation’s external reserves.

It said the items cannot be funded at the interbank from proceeds of exports and Bureau de change sources.

Mogidi:
APC would soon come up with trillions of dollar investments Buhari signed in his sleep.

christinie:
He failed to attend UN meeting which main theme bothered on Boko Haram and was systematically late to see the pope and therefore couldn't see him.

Is environmental meeting more important than UN's anti-boko meeting?



Set your priorities right Mr. Fresident.






God bless Nigeria.

BALLOSKI:
It's expected. Thieves should be seen in the party of thieves...pdp is where saraki belong to.

Validated:
Actually, PDP have 49 plus 8 APC senators making 57 senators. APC has just 49 senators. With planned appointment of Kwankwaso as minster, APC will be reduced further to 48. It would be interesting to see how the struggle plays out. From simple analysis, any change would be driven and delivered by PDP. Noone is ready to accept Tinubu's dollar as Baba is out to disgrace any such senator.
Saraki on the other hand is waiting to 'deal' with ministers to be submitted by Buhari. The game of THRONE in Nigeria politics is getting interesting while the masses are waiting for the promised or would it be right to call it elusive change?

histemple:
The calculation is very obvious. The battle between Saraki and the APC godfathers is an all-loser battle, no matter the outcome.

Should Saraki be removed, PDP will capture the Senate presidency/leadership; should Saraki remain in office, any ministerial nominee emanating or related to the godfathers will never scale through.