₦airaland Forum

Investigators on Sunday continued searching for the bodies of seven people believed killed in the crash a day earlier of a small jet into a Tennessee lake, including an actor who portrayed Tarzan in a 1990s television series.

Rutherford County Fire Rescue Capt. John Ingle said in a statement Sunday that recovery efforts were ongoing at Percy Priest Lake near Smyrna. He said efforts also were focused on examining a half mile-wide debris field in the lake.

County officials identified the victims in a news release late Saturday as Brandon Hannah, Gwen S. Lara, William J. Lara, David L. Martin, Jennifer J. Martin, Jessica Walters and Jonathan Walters, all of Brentwood, Tennessee. Their names were released after family members had been notified.

Gwen Shamblin Lara founded the Remnant Fellowship Church in Brentwood in 1999 and wrote a faith-based weight loss book. Her husband of nearly three years, known as Joe Lara, was an actor featured in the TV series “Tarzan: The Epic Adventures.”

The Federal Aviation Administration said the Cessna C501 plane was heading from nearby Smyrna Rutherford County Airport to Palm Beach International Airport when it crashed Saturday morning. Authorities did not release registration information for the plane.

Smyrna is located about 20 miles (32 kilometers) southeast of Nashville. Percy Priest Lake is a reservoir created by the J. Percy Priest Dam. It is a popular spot for boating and fishing.

“With dive teams in the water, we are strongly urging civilian boaters to stay away from the public safety boats,” Ingle said.

The National Transportation Safety Board had a lead investigator at the site.

West African leaders, meeting in a regional summit Sunday, suspended Mali from the Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) bodies after a second coup by the Malian military.

"The suspension from ECOWAS takes immediate effect until the deadline of the end of February 2022 when they are supposed to hand over to a democratically elected government," Ghana's Foreign Minister Shirley Ayorkor Botchwey told reporters.

"One of the decisions of the heads of state is that they should ensure that in the next few days a civilian prime minister is put in place to form the next government," she added.

The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, has reacted to the death of Ahmed Gulak, a chieftain of the All Progressives Congress, APC.

IPOB’s spokesman, Emma Powerful, described Gulak’s death as a “professional assassination.”

He insisted that members of the group were not responsible for Gulak’s death.

DAILY POST reports that the Nigerian intelligence community had accused IPOB members of killing Gulak in Imo State.

However, Powerful described the claims by the Nigeria Intelligence community as unprofessional.

He, however, charged the state Governor, Hope Uzodinma, to disclose how Gulak died.

According to Powerful: “The Nigeria intelligence community has shown how unprofessional they are, today is not sit-at-home.

“People are going to church and this was why he shifted the date to tomorrow. This is political assassination; we are not in the same party with Gulak.

“Uzodinma and APC knows about Gulaks death, we do not know anything about his movement, talk more of him being in the state. Nigerians believe this because they hate IPOB, Biafra.”

President @MBuhari is relieved that the Greenfield University students freed on Saturday are now home safe, at the end of a 40-day ordeal. Once again, the President condoles with the families of the students and staff that were killed by the abductors.

The President assures that @NigeriaGov will continue to work with State Governments to step up the protection of lives and property across the country, including educational institutions and other vulnerable targets.

Kidnapping is a serious crime and a gross violation of the rights of fellow citizens; President Buhari assures that kidnapping and all other forms of criminality will continue to be met with zero tolerance by security agents.

Ebonyi State Governor David Umahi has dissolved all boards and commissions in the state with immediate effect.

He announced this during his 2021 anniversary day address to the people of the state.

Also sacked are management Committee members, liaison officers and local government advisory committee at all the 64 local government areas and 171 wards in the state.

Also affected by the sack are all the Executive Assistants, Technical Assistants and Senior Technical Assistants to the governor.

Put together, those sacked are over 1000.

The sack comes barely 24 hours after the governor sacked 83 members of the state executive council.

He however noted that some statutory boards are not affected by the dissolution.

They include Judiciary Service Commission, House of Assembly Service Commission, Civil Service Commission, Local Government Service Commission and Ebonyi State Independent Electoral Commission (EBSIEC).

The governor said the sack became necessary because some of the appointees have sympathy for the opposition People’s Democratic Party(PDP).

He also stated that the sack is to enable those who want to contest the local government elections next year and the All Progressive Congress(APC) congress to take part in the elections.

OPEN GOVERNMENT PARTNERSHIP
- In May 2016, President Buhari attended and participated in the International Anti-Corruption Summit organised by the UK Government. At that Summit he pledged that Nigeria would join the OGP, an international transparency, accountability and citizen engagement initiative.
- In July 2016, Nigeria became the 70th country to join the OGP. Following this, Nigeria constituted an OGP National Steering Committee (NSC), which went on to develop a National Action Plan (2017–2019) that aims to deepen and mainstream transparency mechanisms and citizens’ engagement in the management of public resources across all sectors.
- In 2018, Nigeria was elected to lead the OGP, alongside Argentina, France, and Romania. All four new members of the OGP Steering Committee will serve for three years starting on October 1, 2018.

ASSET RECOVERY
- Presidential Advisory Committee Against Corruption (PACAC) has helped anti-corruption agencies devise clearer strategies for obtaining forfeiture of assets suspected to have been acquired fraudulently, mainly from State Coffers, before prosecuting suspected culprits. Part of this work has involved painstakingly reviewing existing Laws (like the Money Laundering Act, 2004, the EFCC Act, 2004 and the ICPC Act, 2000), to identify and highlight sections directly conferring powers of forfeiture on Nigeria’s anticorruption agencies. This advocacy has led to a significant increase in the use of Non-Conviction Based Asset Forfeiture Mechanisms by anti-corruption agencies
- ICPC scrutiny of practices, systems and procedures of MDAs’ personnel cost from 2019 to 2020, yielded 189 billion Naira in recoveries from inflated personnel budgets.
- In 2019 alone ICPC also recovered 32 billion Naira worth of Land, Buildings and Vehicles.
- ICPC’s audit of Constituency Projects covering 2015 to 2018 helped recover 2 billion Naira of diverted funds and assets.

SECURITY AND JUSTICE REFORM
- Nigerian Air Force has acquired 26 brand new aircraft since President Buhari assumed office in 2015, and is expecting another 12 (the twelve Super Tucano currently on order from the United States Government, due for delivery starting July 2021). The NAF is also locally re-activating several previously unserviceable planes.
- The Nigerian Navy has acquired close to 400 new platforms since 2015, including 172 Riverine Patrol Boats (RPBs), 114 Rigid- Hull Inflatable Boats (RHIBs), 2 Seaward Defence Boats (SDBs), 12 Manta Class/Inshore Patrol Craft (IPC), 3 Whaler Boats, 4 Barges / Tug Boats, 22 Fast Attack Boats, 14 Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs), 4 Helicopters, 14 River Town Class, 14 House Boats and 4 Capital Ships.
- In line with the President’s directive, the Nigerian Navy has established a Naval Base Lake Chad in Baga, Borno State, as well as deployed 14 Naval Security Stations along the nation’s coastline in areas prone to criminal activity.
- President Buhari signed into law, in 2019, the Bill establishing the Police Trust Fund, which will significantly improve funding for the Nigeria Police Force.
- Nigeria Police Force launched a new National Command and Control Center in Abuja in 2019
- As part of Criminal Justice Reforms, President Buhari in 2020 granted amnesty to 2,600 prisoners nationwide, representing about 3.5 percent of all inmates, in a bid to decongest Nigeria’s prison population. The beneficiaries were those 60 years and above; those suffering from ill-health that might likely lead to death; convicts serving three years and above and have less than six months to serve; inmates with mental health defect; and inmates with a pending fine not exceeding N50,000 and with no pending cases.
- Presidential approval for commencement of Community Policing Programme nationwide, and release of take-off funding. The Community Policing Programme has now been enshrined into the Police Act, 2020.
- The Nigerian Immigration Service (NIS) is deploying a Migration Information and Data Analysis System (MIDAS) at five International Airports. MIDAS is a global real-time border management system developed by International Organization for Migration (IOM), and is linked to INTERPOL & other watchlists. The implementation of MIDAS at the International Airport in Abuja was described by the IOM as “the largest deployment of MIDAS at any airport globally, to date.”

DIPLOMACY AND INTERNATIONAL RELATIONS
Re-establishment of Nigeria’s position and influence in the regional and global arena. Fragile/broken relations with the United States, United Kingdom, South Africa, and with neighbouring countries (Chad, Niger, Cameroon) have been revived and strengthened since June 2015.
Major outcomes/results/manifestations of Nigeria’s renewed visibility and respect on the International Stage include:
- The positions of Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations, Director-General of the World Trade Organization, Secretary-General of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC), African Development Bank, and African Export–Import Bank are all currently held by Nigerians.
- The signing, in August 2016, of an MoU with the UK Government on modalities for the return of Nigeria’s stolen assets in the UK.
- The establishment of a Global Forum for Asset Recovery (GFAR), hosted by the governments of the US and UK in December 2017, to focus on assisting Nigeria and three other countries to reclaim their stolen assets.
- Nigeria joined the Open Government Partnership (OGP) in 2016 and developed a National Action Plan, which is already being implemented.
- In 2016 Nigeria signed an Agreement on the identification and repatriation of Illicit Funds with the United Arab Emirates during President Buhari’s Visit to that country.
- The Federal Government under President Buhari has successfully engaged the governments of Switzerland, Jersey Island, United States, United Arab Emirates, and Liechtenstein among others, in an effort to ensure the repatriation of Nigeria’s stolen assets.
- A total of US$622 million in looted Abacha funds repatriated to Nigeria in two tranches in December 2017 and April 2020. The first tranche ($322m) is being disbursed as part of the Buhari Administration’s Social Investment Programme interventions, while the second tranche ($311m) is being invested in the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF), managed by the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA).
- Under President Buhari’s watch, Nigeria has been playing an active and stabilizing role in OPEC. In 2017 Nigeria was able to successfully negotiate a vital exemption from production cuts agreed at the time, a move that helped shore up revenues and foreign reserves.
- The Buhari Administration has mobilized International Support for the War against Boko Haram, forging strong partnerships with key countries, including the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Germany, ECOWAS, the AU, the UN, and others. After years of stalemate, the United States finally agreed to sell – and has sold – weapons to Nigeria (12 Super Tucano Aircraft)
- Revamp of the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) comprising troops from Nigeria and Chad, Niger, Cameroon and Benin.
- The designation of President Buhari as the African Union (AU) Anti-Corruption Champion for 2018
- The designation of President Buhari by ECOWAS Heads of State as West Africa’s Covid-19 Champion in 2020.
- President Buhari’s interventions have helped restore and strengthen democracy in The Gambia and Guinea Bissau. He authorized the deployment of troops, fighter jets and warships to The Gambia during the impasse that followed the December 2016 Presidential elections.
- Successful evacuation and repatriation of more than 10,000 Nigerian migrants from Libya, with the support and partnership of the International Organization for Migration (IOM).

BILATERAL RELATIONS:
CHINA
- Billions of dollars in concessional infrastructure funding for critical road and rail projects. President Buhari’s April 2016 official visit to China has unlocked billions of dollars in infrastructure funding, primarily for road, rail and port projects;
- Implementation of a Chinese Yuan (CNY) 15 billion Currency Swap Agreement between the Peoples Bank of China and the Central Bank of Nigeria.

GERMANY
- Support for the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI), six-year Programme to modernise Nigeria’s electricity grid, under a Government-to-Government framework between the Nigerian and German Governments; to be managed and implemented by Siemens AG.
- Signing of a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) between Nigeria Incentive-Based Risk Sharing System for Agricultural Lending (NIRSAL) and Petkus Technologie of Germany, aimed at significantly reducing the incidence/impact of post-harvest losses in Nigeria’s Agriculture Value Chain.
- Signing of a MoU with Volkswagen of South Africa (VWSA) to develop a joint vision for an automotive hub in Nigeria.

UNITED STATES (USA)
- Renewed cooperation in Security and Anti-Corruption. The US Government has approved the sale of 12 Super Tucano Aircraft to Nigeria, as well as repatriation of recovered looted monies and assets stashed in the US. In 2020 the United States and the Bailiwick of Jersey repatriated $311 million to Nigeria
- Nigerian and U.S. militaries collaborated to host, April 2018 in Abuja, the 2018 African Land Forces Summit, the largest gathering of African Army chiefs, to discuss cooperation aimed at improving security on the continent.

UNITED KINGDOM (UK)
- 2018: Nigeria commenced the implementation of Automatic Exchange of Tax Information (AETI) protocol with the United Kingdom. This Protocol will provide the Nigerian Government with data on bank accounts, property and trusts held in the UK by Nigerian nationals, and will support the Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (VAIDS) by allowing Nigerian tax authorities to check the accuracy of declarations received regarding overseas assets and income.
- 2018: Launch of a UK-Government funded £13 million education programme that will provide training for teachers, school equipment, and security for schools, for 100,000 children living in parts of the Northeast affected by Boko Haram.
- 2021: Repatriation by the United Kingdom of GBP 4.2 million being recovered loot from the Ibori family, to Nigeria.

SOUTH AFRICA
- The SA-Nigeria Bi-National Commission was in 2019 elevated from Vice Presidential to Presidential Level, as a symbol of a renewed commitment to cooperation between Africa’s two largest economies.

MOROCCO
- The Presidential Fertilizer Initiative, PFI (which involves a partnership with the Government of Morocco, for the supply of phosphate, as well as technical assistance), has resulted in the revitalization of more than 40 blending plants across Nigeria.
- As part of the PFI, in 2018 Nigeria and Morocco signed a Memorandum of Understanding (between OCP of Morocco and the Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority) on the establishment of a Basic Chemicals Platform, specifically to develop a significant Ammonia Production Plant in the Niger Delta. In March 2021, contracts were signed by NSIA and OCP for land acquisition, joint venture equity investment, and gas supply for the project.

RUSSIA
- Government-to-Government Arms Deal involving the supply of 12 Attack Helicopters to Nigeria
- Resuscitation Deal for the Ajaokuta Steel Rolling Mill, agreed by Presidents Buhari and Putin, during the Russia Africa Summit in 2019. The Russian Government has agreed to support the completion and full operationalization of the plant.

UNITED ARAB EMIRATES (UAE)
- Nigeria has signed and ratified an Extradition Treaty with the United Arab Emirates that allows extradition of Nigerians who flee to the UAE after committing crimes in Nigeria.

SAUDI ARABIA
- During the Future Investment Initiative (FII) in 2019, President Buhari met separately and held extensive talks with the King Salman bin Abdulaziz, and his son, Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, MBS; as well as the leadership of ARAMCO and the Saudi Sovereign Wealth Fund.
- One of the outcomes of the Saudi Visit was the agreement by the two governments to set up a joint Saudi-Nigeria Strategic Council, made up of government officials and businessmen from both countries, and which will focus on economic growth and development, investments in oil and non-oil sectors, and security cooperation.

INTERNATIONAL APPOINTMENTS HELD BY NIGERIANS
- Designation of President Buhari as the African Union (AU) Anti-Corruption Champion for 2018, and by ECOWAS Heads of State as West Africa’s Covid-19 Champion in 2020.
- Amina Mohammed, Deputy Secretary-General of the United Nations (UN), appointed 2017
- Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, Director General of the World Trade Organization (WTO) (first African and first woman to hold the position, elected 2021)
- Akin Adesina, President of the African Development Bank, elected in 2015 and re-elected 2020.
- Benedict Oramah, President of African Export-Import Bank (Afreximbank), re-elected for a second term in 2020
- Mohammad Sanusi Barkindo, Secretary-General of the Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC); elected 2016, re-elected 2019.
- Chile Eboe-Osuji, President of the International Criminal Court (ICC), 2018–2021.
- Tijjani Muhammad-Bande, President of the 74th Session of the United Nations General Assembly, 2019–2020.
- Bankole Adeoye, Commissioner, African Union Commission’s Department for Political Affairs & Peace and Security, elected 2021

CORONAVIRUS RESPONSE
“In Nigeria, we are taking a two-step approach. First, to protect the lives of our fellow Nigerians and residents living here and second, to preserve the livelihoods of workers and business owners to ensure their families get through this very difficult time in dignity and with hope and peace of mind.” – President Buhari

- The President in March 2020 set up an Economic Sustainability Committee chaired by Vice President Osinbajo, to develop a comprehensive economic plan to respond to the disruptions and dislocations caused by the COVID-19 pandemic.
- The ESC produced an Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP) that is being implemented and has been credited with helping Nigeria exit the Covid-induced recession faster than expected.
- The President in March 2020 set up a Presidential Task Force on Covid-19, chaired by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, to coordinate Nigeria’s multi-sectoral inter-governmental approach to COVID-19. The PTF has since April 2021 transitioned into a Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) on Covid-19
President Buhari also approved the following, in 2020:
- Establishment of a 500 billion Naira COVID-19 Crisis Intervention Fund, for the upgrading of health facilities nationwide, finance a national Special Public Works Programme, as well as any other interventions that may be approved in the future.
- Launch of the Export Expansion Facility Programme, designed to ameliorate the impact of the pandemic on exporting businesses. The goals are market development (22 identified export markets), capacity building, export aggregation, and trade facilitation.
- Release of special intervention grants of 10 billion Naira and 5 billion Naira to the Lagos State Government and the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) respectively, to facilitate the Covid-19 Response.
- A three-month repayment moratorium for all Social Investment Programme microcredit loans (TraderMoni, MarketMoni and FarmerMoni), with immediate effect.
- A three-month moratorium for all Federal Government funded loans issued by the Bank of Industry, Bank of Agriculture and the Nigeria Export Import Bank.
- Presidential approval for Expansion of National Social Register (official database for implementation of the Conditional Cash Transfer programme) by 1 million additional households.

CREATIVE INDUSTRY AND SPORTS
SPORTS
- Long overdue renovation of the Lagos and Abuja National Stadiums kicked off in 2020, ahead of concessioning for private management.
- In 2018, the National Sports Festival held for the first time since 2012.
- Nigeria national U-17 football team, the Golden Eaglets, won the FIFA U-17 World Cup for the fifth time, in 2015. Their first ever win was 30 years earlier, in 1985, when President Buhari was military Head of State.
- Nigeria’s participation at the 2016 Paralympic Games yielded her best gold medal result since Nigeria started taking part in the Games in 1992.
- D’ Tigress, Nigeria’s Female National Basketball Team won the 2017 FIBA Africa Women's Championship, the continental championship Cup, for the first time in 12 years, and earned qualification for its first FIBA Women’s World Cup appearance since 2006.
- In 2018, D’ Tigress, Nigeria’s Female National Basketball Team earned its first-ever win at the FIBA Women’s World Cup, and went on to advance to the quarterfinals. The Team finished in 8th place – the best ever performance by an African Team.
- In 2019, D’ Tigress successfully defended its 2017 Afro Basketball Women Championship Title.
- In 2020, D’ Tigress became the only female African Team to qualify for participation in the 2020 Summer Olympic Games.
- Nigeria’s Women’s Football Team, the Super Falcons, won the African Women Cup of Nations (AWCON) in 2016 and 2018.
- In 2018, Nigeria hosted a FIFA Executive Football Summit, one of twelve worldwide.
- In 2019, the Super Falcons advanced to the group stage of the Women’s World Cup, for the first time in 20 years.
- In 2019, Nigeria won its first Athletics World Championship Medal in six years.

YOUTH AND CREATIVE INDUSTRY SUPPORT
- Establishment of the 75 billion Naira National Youth Investment Fund (NYIF), approved by President Buhari in 2020
- Establishment of the Creative Industry Financing Initiative (CIFI), by the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) in collaboration with the Bankers’ Committee, to provide single-digit financing to young Nigerians in the fields of Fashion, Film, Music and Information Technology.
- In 20197, the Federal Government added Creative Industries to the list of qualifying sectors for ‘Pioneer Status’ Incentives – which grants relief from Corporate Income Tax for a specified period of time.
- Presidential Approval for the handover of the National Theatre, Lagos, to the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Bankers Committee, for redevelopment into a world-class Creative Park serving the theatre, film, fashion, music, and ICT sectors. The handover has been done, and redevelopment work (valued at about 20 billion Naira) has now kicked off.

FISCAL, TRADE, MONETARY AND INVESTMENT REFORMS
- The Nigerian Investment Promotion Council (NIPC) in 2017 completed a long-overdue revision of the list of activities that can benefit from Nigeria’s Pioneer Status Incentive, which grants beneficiary companies a 3 to 5-year tax holiday. The revision, done more than 10 ten years after the last one, has modernized the List, expanding the tax holiday incentives to qualifying companies in E-commerce, Software Development, Animation, Music, Film and TV.
- Restoration of Federal Budget to January-December cycle, with the 2020 Budget, for the first time in 12 years.
- Introduction, since 2020, of annual Finance (Reform) Bills to accompany the annual Federal Appropriation Bill
- Negotiation of the billions of dollars in arrears of Cash Calls we inherited when the administration assumed office, resulting in an agreement for a significant discount of more than a billion dollars. Since 2017 the NNPC has commenced payment of the arrears to the Oil Companies. As at Q4 2020, more than $3 billion of the ~$5 billion arrears had been cleared.
- Launch of a Visa-on-Arrival Policy, as part of Ease of Doing Business Reforms. In addition, a comprehensive reform of the existing Visa Regime, leading to the rollout in 2020 of a new and enhanced Visa Policy for Nigeria (including expansion from 6 visa categories to 79; each tailored to a specific type of traveller – 36 Temporary Residence Visas, 15 Permanent Residence Visas, 24 Short Visit Visas, etc.

PRESIDENTIAL ASSENT TO LEGISLATIVE BILLS
- Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contracts Act, 1993 (Amendment) Act, 2019, which will deliver increased revenues to the Federation.
- Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission (FCCPC) Bill, the first legislation in Nigeria’s history focused on curbing anti-competition practices; establishing the Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission.
- Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC) Establishment Act, 2018
- Mutual Assistance in Criminal Matters Bill, an Executive Bill, signed into law in 2019. The Bill facilitates the identification, tracing, freezing, restraining, recovery, forfeiture and confiscation of proceeds, property and other instrumentalities of crime, as well as the prosecution of offenders in criminal cases regardless of where in the world they might be.
- Bill establishing the Police Trust Fund, which will significantly improve funding for the Nigeria Police Force (2019).
- Nigeria Police Act, 2020 – the first comprehensive reform of Police legislation since the Police Act of 1943.
- Repeal and Re-Enactment of the Companies & Allied Matters Act (CAMA), 2020 – the first comprehensive reform since 1990.
- Not Too Young to Run Bill (2018) – a Constitution Amendment Bill, to reduce the age of eligibility for running for elective office in Nigeria.
- Nigerian Correctional Services Bill, 2019 – the first comprehensive reform of prison legislation in close to five decades
- Suppression of Piracy and other Maritime Offences Bill, 2019 – the first anti-piracy legislation in West Africa.
- A Bill to grant financial autonomy to States’ Houses of Assembly and States’ Judiciary (2018)
- Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act (BOFIA) 2020
- Finance Act 2019 and 2020
- The Discrimination Against Persons with Disabilities (Prohibition) Act, 2018.

EXECUTIVE ORDERS
- The Buhari Administration has, since 2017, issued a number of landmark Executive Orders:
o Executive Order on Promotion of Transparency and Efficiency in the Business Environment (2017)
o Executive Order on Promoting Local Procurement by Government Agencies (2017)
o Executive Order on Submission of Annual Budgetary Estimates by all Statutory and non-Statutory Agencies, including Incorporated Companies wholly owned by the Federal Government of Nigeria (2017)
o Executive Order on the Voluntary Assets and Income Declaration Scheme (2017)
o Presidential Executive Order on Planning and Execution of Projects, Promotion of Nigerian Content in Contracts, Science, Engineering and Technology (2018)
o Executive Order (and Amendment) on the Voluntary Offshore Assets Regularization Scheme (VOARS) (2018)
o Executive Order on Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme (2019)
o Executive Order Implementing Financial Autonomy of State Legislature and State Judiciary (2020)

SUPPORT TO STATES
- The Buhari Administration has extended more than N2 Trillion Naira in bailout packages to State Governments, to enable them meet their salary and pension obligations, especially in the face of dwindling oil revenues in the first 3 years of the Administration. The support has come in the form of the following:
- Budget Support Facility (Total of 614 billion Naira extended to the States.
- Paris Club Refunds ($5.4 billion)
- Infrastructure Loans & Refunds: More than 700 billion Naira in refunds for Federal Road projects embarked upon by State Governments.
- Loan Restructuring for Facilities with Commercial Banks: In 2015, the DMO restructured Commercial Bank loans with a total value of N575.516 billion for 23 States to reduce the debt service burden on the states. In exchange for their loans to State Governments, the banks were issued 20-year FGN Bonds at a yield of 14.83% per annum. The Restructuring Exercise benefited the States through:
o Reduction in the monthly debt service burden of States from between 55% to 97% for various States;
o Interest rate savings for the States ranging from 3% to 9% per annum;
o Longer repayment period for the loans now converted into Bonds; and,
o Freeing up of needed cash to run the machinery of Government.

NIGER DELTA
- Take-off of the Nigerian Maritime University in Okerenkoko, Delta State. The University was granted approval in January 2018 by the National Universities Commission (NUC) to commence undergraduate degree programmes effective 2017/18 session, and commenced academic activities on April 12, 2018.
- Resumption of work on the 337km East-West Road project, originally awarded in 2006. The Buhari Administration expects to complete the project by Q1 2022.
- President Buhari approved 5 billion Naira in take-off grant for the Maritime University.
- Ogoni Clean-Up: Setting aside of US$170m seed funding for the Ogoni Clean Up, in an Escrow Account established for that purpose. The Escrow Agreement Signing Ceremony took place in April 2018. The Clean-Up commenced in January 2019, with the handover of the first batch of 21 sites to the selected remediation firms, after a painstaking procurement process. As of March 2021, 16 of the first 21 sites had been certified cleaned.
- Approvals for the establishment of private-sector-led Modular Refineries across the nine States of the Niger Delta – the first three Refineries have now been completed, while construction is ongoing on others.

ANTI-CORRUPTION AND TRANSPARENCY
EXPANSION OF TSA AND IPPIS COVERAGE
- On August 7, 2015, President Buhari issued a directive to all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to close their accounts with Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) and transfer their balances to the Central Bank of Nigeria on or before 15th September 2015.
- The TSA system was launched in 2012, but failed to gain traction until President Buhari’s executive order in August 2015. The TSA system has now been implemented in more than 90 percent of all Federal MDAs.
- This decision to fully operationalize the Treasury Single Account (TSA) system—a public accounting system that enables the Government to manage its finances (revenues and payments) using a single/unified account, or series of linked accounts domiciled at the Central Bank of Nigeria — has resulted in the consolidation of more than 17,000 bank accounts previously spread across DMBs in the country, and in savings of an average of N4 billion monthly in banking charges.
- In spite of great opposition, the Buhari Administration has expanded IPPIS coverage to the Armed Forces, as well as Federal Universities and other academic institutions.

BVN DEPLOYMENT FOR SOCIAL INVESTMENT PROGRAMMES AND OTHERS:
- Considering that personnel costs are the Federal Government’s largest expenditure line, the Federal Government has given priority to the deployment of the BVN for payroll and pension audits. The use of BVN to verify payroll entries on the Integrated Personnel Payroll Information System (IPPIS) platform has so far led to the detection of 54,000 fraudulent payroll entries.
- The Federal Government has also ensured the deployment of BVN system to serve as the verification basis for payments to beneficiaries and vendors in the Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP), the N-Power Scheme and the Homegrown School Feeding Programme (HGSFP)

AGRICULTURE
- Anchor Borrowers Program (ABP): The Anchor Borrowers Programme (ABP) of the Central Bank of Nigeria, launched by President Muhammadu Buhari on November 17, 2015, has made more than 300 billion Naira to more than 3.1 million smallholder farmers of 21 different commodities (including Rice, Wheat, Maize, Cotton, Cassava, Poultry, Soy Beans, Groundnut, Fish), cultivating over 3.8 million hectares of farmland.
- Presidential Fertilizer Initiative: Launched as a government-to-government partnership between the Nigerian and Moroccan Governments, in December 2016, the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative (PFI) produced ~12million 50kg bags of NPK 20:10:10 equivalent in 2020, bringing total production since inception to over 30 million 50kg bags equivalent; and number of participating blending plants increased to 44 from three at inception.
- Special-Agro Industrial Processing Zones (SAPZ) Programme: A partnership between FGN, AfDB Group, and other stakeholders including IFAD and BOI. Under the SAPZ programme, agro-processing centres will be established across the country. The agro-processing centres will be provided with basic infrastructure such as water, electricity and roads as well as facilities for skills training. Seven (7) States and the FCT selected for the pilot phase, due to commence 2021: Ogun, Oyo, Imo, Cross River, Kano, Kaduna, Kwara.
- The Green Imperative – a Nigeria-Brazil Agricultural Mechanisation Programme aimed at boosting agricultural production in Nigeria. The National Assembly has approved a loan for the financing of the program, which will involve the development of 632 privately-operated primary production (mechanisation) Service Centers and 142 Agro processing (value addition) service Centres across the 774 LGAs, and the reactivation of 6 privately owned partially-operational or moribund tractor assembly plants nationwide. It will also train 100,000 new extension workers.

SOCIAL INVESTMENT AND POVERTY ALLEVIATION
- In 2016, President Buhari launched the National Social Investment Programme, currently the largest such programme in Africa and one of the largest in the world. Currently, the National Social Register of poor and vulnerable Nigerians (NSR) has 32.6 million persons from more than 7 million poor and vulnerable households, identified across 708 local government areas, 8,723 wards and 86,610 communities across the 36 States of the country and the FCT.
- From this number, 1.6 million poor and vulnerable households (comprising more than 8 million individuals, in 45,744 communities from 5,483 Wards of 557 LGAs in 35 states and the FCT are currently benefiting from the Conditional Cash Transfer (CCT) program, which pays a bimonthly stipend of N10,000 per household.
- In January 2019, President Buhari launched Nigeria’s Micro-Pension Scheme – which allows self-employed persons and persons working in organisations with less than 3 employees to save for the provision of pension at retirement or incapacitation.
- Establishment of Survival Fund, National Youth Investment Fund, and National Special Public Works Program (774,000 beneficiaries across 774 LGAs nationwide), and the Central Bank’s Covid-19 300 billion Naira Targeted Credit Facility (TCF) – more than 150 billion Naira disbursed so far – to support millions of small businesses, households and young people, with federal grants, loans and stipends.
- The Buhari Administration’s Survival Fund has provided its grants (Payroll Support, Artisan and Transport Sector grants, and General MSME grants) to more than 800,000 beneficiaries, since the last quarter of 2020. It has also provided free business registration to more than 200,000 MSMEs across the country.
- Presidential approval for the establishment of the Nigeria Investment and Growth Fund (NIG-Fund), in 2021.
- As at the end of 2020, Development Bank of Nigeria (which commenced operations in 2017) had disbursed 324 billion Naira in loans to more than 136,000 MSMEs, through 40 Participating Financial Institutions (PFIs). (57% of the beneficiaries are women-owned MSMEs while 27% are youth-owned).
- Bank of Industry has disbursed more than 900 billion Naira in loans to over 3 million large, medium, small and micro enterprises, since 2015.
- In January 2019, President Buhari launched Nigeria’s Micro Pension Scheme – which allows self-employed persons and persons working in organisations with less than 3 employees to save for the provision of pension at retirement or incapacitation.

EDUCATION AND HEALTH
- Since assuming office, the Buhari Administration has committed more than N1.7 trillion of capital intervention to Nigeria’s tertiary institutions, through various means, including TETFund – with the universities taking the lion share of the total amount.
- The Federal Government has disbursed more than 170 billion Naira in UBE Matching Grants to States and the FCT since 2015, 8 billion Naira in Special Education Grant to States and private providers of Special Education, and 34 billion Naira from the Teachers Professional Development Fund to States and the FCT.
- Launch of the Alternate School Programme (ASP), designed to ensure that every out-of-school child in Nigeria gains access to quality basic education, irrespective of social, cultural or economic circumstance, in line with the aspirations of Sustainable Development Goal 4 (SDG-4).
- Presidential approval for a new (extended) Retirement age of 65 and Length of Service of 40 years for Teachers in Public Basic and Secondary Schools in Nigeria (both effective January 1, 2021), as well as a new Special Teachers Salary Scale (effective January 1, 2022), and also a new Special Teachers Pension Scheme.
- Reduction in number of out-of-school children, by 3,247,590, as at 31st December, 2020, achieved through a World-Bank financed program known as ‘Better Education Service Delivery for All’ (BESDA). 1,792,833 of that number achieved through formal schools while 1,454,757 are through non-formal interventions such as Almajiri, Girl-Child, Nomadic/Migrant and IDPs Education).
- Under the World Bank-supported Innovation Development & Effectiveness in the Acquisition of Skills (IDEAS) Project, approved in 2020, US$200m will be invested in 6 participating States (Abia, Benue, Ekiti, Gombe, Kano, Edo) as well as 20 Federal Science and Technical Colleges nationwide. Implementation will be stepped-up in 2021 to afford millions of Nigerian youths the opportunity to acquire hands-on skills to effectively contribute to national development.
- Presidential approval for the establishment of the following:
o Federal Maritime University, in Delta State
o Nigerian Army University, in Borno State
o Six new Colleges of Education (one per geopolitical zone: Odugbo, Benue State; Isu, Ebonyi State; Ekiadolor, Edo State; Gidan Madi, Sokoto State; Jama’are, Bauchi State; and Iwo, Osun State).
o Six new Federal Polytechnics in Kaltungo, Gombe State; Ayede, Oyo State; Daura, Katsina State; Shendam, Plateau State, Ohodo, Enugu State; and Ugep, Cross River State.
o Under the phased implementation of the National Youth Policy, 6 Federal Science & Technical Colleges (FSTC) were established in 2020, as follows: FSTC Ogugu, Kogi State; FSTC Hadeija, Jigawa State; FSTC Umuaka, Imo State; FSTC Igangan, Oyo State; FSTC Ganduje, Kano State; FSTC, Amuzu, Ebonyi State. Five (5) additional Federal Science and Technical Colleges (FSTC) will come on-stream in 2021, and will be located in Bauchi, Plateau, Sokoto, Enugu and Cross River States.
- Grants to State Governments: At least $2.5 million disbursed to each State of the Federation and the FCT, under the Saving One Million Lives (SOML) initiative, to improve health outcomes.
- Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF): For the first time since the National Health Act was passed in 2014, the Federal Government in 2018 began including the 1% minimum portion of the Consolidated Revenue Fund – amounting to 55 billion Naira in 2018 – to fund the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF). The Fund is designed to deliver a guaranteed set health services to all Nigerians, through the national network of Primary Health Care centers.
- Passage of enabling legislation for the Nigeria Center for Disease Control (NCDC), for the first time since it was founded in 2011. President Buhari approved a grant of 5 billion Naira for the NCDC in March 2020, as part of the response to the Coronavirus pandemic.
- Tertiary Healthcare Upgrade Programme: A number of key Federal Hospitals across the country are being upgraded to effectively manage cancer and other major health challenges. Cancer Radiotherapy machines and other equipment are being provided to these hospitals. The National Hospital in Abuja has already received two LINAC (cancer treatment) machines.
- Nigeria Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) in March 2018 invested US$10m to establish a world-class Cancer Treatment Center at the Lagos University Teaching Hospital (LUTH), and US$5m each in the Aminu Kano University Teaching Hospital and the Federal Medical Centre, Umuahia, to establish modern Diagnostic Centres. These Centers have all been completed and are now operational.
- Launch in 2019 of a Cancer Treatment Support Programme, ‘Chemotherapy Access Partnership’, as a public-private partnership between the Federal Government of Nigeria and a Private Sector coalition, to enable Nigerians access lower-cost, high-quality medications for the treatment of several types of cancer.

THE BUHARI ADMINISTRATION AT 6: COUNTING THE BLESSINGS ONE BY ONE

The Muhammadu Buhari administration clocks six years May 29, 2021. This milestone affords the opportunity to reflect, and recount the impact that has been made (and is being made) on different sectors of national life.

From infrastructure, to finance, education, healthcare, sports, anti-corruption, human development , housing, oil and gas, foreign relations, and many others, the Administration is recording giant strides, enough to make Nigerians proud. That is, those who are dispassionate and fair-minded, not beclouded by political partisanship and undue cynicism.

Some people claim: we don’t see what they are doing. We don’t hear about it. Well, here it is. A Fact Sheet, a report card on the Buhari Administration, just a bit of the successes, as the milestone of six years is attained.

As it is said, the past is but a story told. The future may yet be written in gold. When the Administration breasts the tape in another two years, by the grace of God, the applause will be resounding, even from the worst of sceptics. Facts are undeniable, and always remain so. They are stubborn things.

INFRASTRUCTURE

-Presidential approval, in 2020, for the establishment of InfraCo Plc, a world class infrastructure development vehicle, wholly focused on Nigeria, with combined debt and equity take-off capital of N15 trillion, and managed by an independent infrastructure fund manager.
- Establishment in 2020 of the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF), with more than $1 Billion in funding so far.
- The Nigerian Sovereign Investment Authority (NSIA) has seen total additional inflows from the Government of around US$2 billion under the Buhari Administration – since the original US$1 billion which the Fund kicked off with in 2012.
- Launch of the Nigeria Innovation Fund, by the NSIA, to address investment opportunities in the domestic technology sector: data networking, datacenters, software, Agri-tech, Bio-tech, etc.

RAIL
- 156km Lagos-Ibadan Standard Gauge Rail nearing completion
- 327km Itakpe-Warri Standard Gauge Rail completed and commissioned 33 years after construction began.
- Abuja Light Rail completed in 2018.
- Ground-breaking done for construction of Kano-Maradi Standard Gauge Rail, and revamp of Port-Harcourt-Maiduguri Narrow Gauge Rail.
- Financing negotiations ongoing for Ibadan-Kano Standard Gauge Rail project

ROADS
- Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund (PIDF), investing over a billion dollars in three flagship projects: Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Second Niger Bridge, Abuja-Kaduna-Zaria-Kano Expressway.
- Executive Order 7 mobilizing private investment into the development of key roads and bridges like Bodo-Bonny in Rivers and Apapa-Oshodi-Oworonshoki-Ojota in Lagos
- Highway Development and Management Initiative (HDMI), a public-private partnership program to mobilise, in its first Phase, over a Trillion Naira in private investment into the development and maintenance of 12 Roads, amounting to 1,963km in length.
- More than 360 billion Naira worth of Sukuk Bonds raised since 2017 for dozens of critical road projects across all six geopolitical zones.

PORTS
- Completion of New Terminals for International Airports in Lagos, Abuja, Kano and Port Harcourt
- Construction of New Runway for Abuja and Enugu International Airports
- Presidential approval for four International Airports as Special Economic Zones: Lagos, Kano, Abuja and Port Harcourt.
- Approval for new private-sector funded deep sea ports: Lekki Deep Sea Port (Construction already well underway, for completion in 2022); Bonny Deep Sea Port (Ground-breaking done in March 2021); Ibom Deep Sea Port; and Warri Deep Sea Port
- Development of capacity at the Eastern Ports:
o In December 2017, Calabar Port commenced export of bulk cement to Tema Port in Ghana
o In 2019, three container ships berthed at Calabar Port, for the first time in eleven years
o Dredging of Warri Port (Escravos Bar—Warri Port channel) completed in 2018
o On October 30, 2019, an LPG Tanker operated by NLNG, berthed in Port Harcourt – the first time ever an LPG ship berthed in any of the Eastern Ports
o On December 8, 2019, Onne Port received JPO VOLANS (owned by Maersk), the FIRST gearless and largest container vessel (265.07 metres) to call at any Eastern Port in Nigeria.
o On August 1, 2019, Onne Port’s Brawal Terminal received MSC GRACE, its first container vessel since 2012.

POWER
Energizing Education Programme: Taking clean and reliable energy (Solar and Gas) to Federal Universities and Teaching Hospitals across the country. Four Universities completed and commissioned already: BUK (Kano), FUNAI (Ebonyi), ATBU (Bauchi) and FUPRE (Delta); others ongoing.
Energizing Economies Programme: Taking clean and reliable energy (Solar and Gas) to markets across the country. Completed projects include Sabon-Gari Market in Kano, Ariaria Market in Aba, and Sura Shopping Complex in Lagos.
National Mass Metering Programme: Nationwide rollout of electricity meters to all on-grid consumers, launched in August 2020. The Central Bank of Nigeria is providing 60 billion Naira for the first phase, with a target of 1 million meter installations. So far more than 500,000 meters have been delivered to the Discos, and more than 280,000 installed.
Solar Power Naija: Launched in April 2021 to deliver 5 million off-grid solar connections to Nigerian households. The program is expected to generate an additional N7 billion increase in tax revenues per annum and $10 million in annual import substitution. In May 2021, the Rural Electrification Agency announced the planned deployment of solar-powered grids to 200 Primary Health Centres (PHC) and 104 Unity Schools nationwide.
Presidential Power Initiative (PPI), aka Siemens Power Program: A Government-to-Government initiative involving the Governments of Nigeria and Germany, and Siemens AG of Germany, to upgrade and modernize Nigeria’s electricity grid. Contract for the pre-engineering phase of the Presidential Power Initiative (PPI) was signed in February 2021, following the 2020 approval for the payment of FGN’s counterpart funding for that phase.
Nigeria Electrification Project (NEP) has provided grants for the deployment of 200,000 Solar Home Systems, impacting one million Nigerians. The NEP is also delivering mini-grids across the country.

HOUSING
- The Family Homes Fund Limited (FHFL), incorporated by the Federal Government of Nigeria in September 2016, is the implementing agency for the Buhari Administration’s National Social Housing scheme.
- More than two thousand (2,000) hectares of land with titled documents have been given by 24 States for the Buhari administration’s Social Housing programme, with the capacity to accommodate about 65,000 new homes.
- Under the National Social Housing programme, Nigerians will be given at least a 15-year period with a monthly payment at 6 percent interest rate, to pay for each housing unit. The Central Bank of Nigeria is providing a N200 Billion financing facility, with a guarantee by the FGN.

OIL AND GAS
The Buhari Administration has declared this decade the “Decade of Gas.”
- Ground-breaking on 614km Ajaokuta-Kaduna-Kano Gas Project.
- Successful completion of Nigeria’s first Marginal Field Bid Round in almost 20 years, expected to raise in excess of half a billion dollars, and open up a new vista of investment in oil and gas.
- Launch of National LPG Expansion Programme (including Removal of VAT from the domestic pricing of LPG)
- Financial close and signing of contract for NLNG Train 7, which will grow Nigeria’s production capacity by about 35%
- Nigeria and Morocco have in 2021 signed an agreement to develop a US$1.4 billion multipurpose industrial platform (Ammonia and Di-Ammonium Phosphate production plants) that will utilize Nigerian gas and Moroccan phosphate to produce 750,000 tons of ammonia and 1 million tons of phosphate fertilizers annually by 2025. It will be located in Ikot-Abasi, Akwa-Ibom State.
- Commissioning, in December 2020, of the new NPDC Integrated Gas Handling Facility in Edo State, the largest onshore LPG plant in the country, with a processing capacity of 100 million standard cubic feet of gas daily, producing 330 tonnes of LPG, 345 tonnes of propane and 2,600 barrels of condensate, daily.
- Establishment of a $350m Nigerian Content Intervention Fund, to finance manufacturing, contracts and assets in the oil and gas industry
- Financial Close on the following NNPC-involved projects:
o A 10,000 tonnes per day methanol plant and a 500 million standard cubic feet per day gas processing plant, in Odeama, Brass, Bayelsa State.
o The ANOH gas processing plant, with a processing capacity of 300 million standard cubic feet of gas, in Imo State. It is a Joint Venture between Seplat Petroleum Development Company and the Nigerian Gas Company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC). It also has the potential to deliver 1,200MW of power when completed.
o Comprehensive Rehabilitation of the Port Harcourt Refinery (PHRC). Sign-off Ceremony of Engineering, Procurement & Construction (EPC) Contract held in April 2021, marking the commencement of site handover and full mobilization to site.
- Policy, Regulatory and Funding Support for the establishment of Modular Refineries across the Niger Delta. When the Administration took office in 2015 Nigeria had only one functioning Modular Refinery. Today there are at least six ongoing brownfield and greenfield Modular Refinery Projects across the Niger Delta. In 2020 President Buhari commissioned the first phase of the Waltersmith Modular Refinery, in Imo State.
- Launch of the Nigerian Upstream Cost Optimization Programme (NUCOP), to reduce operating expenses through process enhancement and industry collaboration.

The new Chief of Army Staff, Maj Gen Farouk Yahaya pays his last respect to his predecessor, late Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru after signing the condolence register at HQ Theatre Command of Operation HADIN KAI, Maimalari Cantonment, Maiduguri, Borno State.

The Governor of Kaduna State Governor, Malam Nasir El-Rufai has congratulated the newly appointed Chief of Army Staff, Major General Faruk Yahaya.

Malam El-Rufai said that he wishes newly appointed COAS every success in taking the Nigerian Army to greater heights, building on the efforts of his predecessors, including Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru of blessed memory.

The Government of Kaduna State is elated with the appointment of Major General Yahaya having worked closely with him when he meritoriously served as General Officer Commanding, 1 Division Nigerian Army, Kaduna covering Kaduna, Niger, Kano and Jigawa States.

He exhibited hard work and foresight in helping to manage the security challenges of the state when he served as GOC.

Governor El-Rufai has, on behalf of the people and government of Kaduna State, congratulated the new Chief of Army Staff and wished him success and God's guidance in this onerous task.

The Kaduna State Government is looking forward to working with the newly appointed COAS to advance peace and security in Kaduna State.

President @MBuhari has approved the  swapping of positions by two heads of agencies under the Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development @FMHDSD.

This is in order to realize and sustain government’s abiding desire for effective and efficient service delivery in the two organisations.

Consequently, Mrs. Imaan Suleiman Ibrahim, the current Director General of @naptipnigeria, takes over from Sen. Basheer Garba Mohammed as the Honourable Federal Commissioner @ncfrmi_ng, while Senator Mohammed becomes the new Director General of NAPTIP.

The President further directs that the changes should be effected after comprehensive handover notes to successors.

1,173 high-profile suspect suspects arrested nationwide between April and May 2021, according to the Acting Inspector-General of @PoliceNG, Usman Alkali Baba. #StateHouseBriefing

Today, we’re launching new ways to inform people if they’re interacting with content that’s been rated by a fact-checker as well as taking stronger action against people who repeatedly share misinformation on Facebook. Whether it’s false or misleading content about COVID-19 and vaccines, climate change, elections or other topics, we’re making sure fewer people see misinformation on our apps.

More Context For Pages That Repeatedly Share False Claims

We want to give people more information before they like a Page that has repeatedly shared content that fact-checkers have rated, so you’ll see a pop up if you go to like one of these Pages. You can also click to learn more, including that fact-checkers said some posts shared by this Page include false information and a link to more information about our fact-checking program. This will help people make an informed decision about whether they want to follow the Page.

Expanding Penalties For Individual Facebook Accounts

Since launching our fact-checking program in late 2016, our focus has been on reducing viral misinformation. We’ve taken stronger action against Pages, Groups, Instagram accounts and domains sharing misinformation and now, we’re expanding some of these efforts to include penalties for individual Facebook accounts too. Starting today, we will reduce the distribution of all posts in News Feed from an individual’s Facebook account if they repeatedly share content that has been rated by one of our fact-checking partners. We already reduce a single post’s reach in News Feed if it has been debunked.

Redesigned Notifications When People Share Fact-Checked Content

We currently notify people when they share content that a fact-checker later rates, and now we’ve redesigned these notifications to make it easier to understand when this happens. The notification includes the fact-checker’s article debunking the claim as well as a prompt to share the article with their followers. It also includes a notice that people who repeatedly share false information may have their posts moved lower in News Feed so other people are less likely to see them.

KADUNA UPDATE: Malam Nasir @elrufai has approved the disengagement of the first set of political appointees to depart in the ongoing right-sizing of the public service. He has thanked the exiting officials for their services to the state

Assimi Goïta, who now serves as vice-president, said he was not consulted about a cabinet reshuffle

Mali's president and prime minister have been ousted by the officer who led last year's coup and became vice-president of an interim government.

Col Assimi Goïta says President Bah Ndaw and PM Moctar Ouane failed in their duties and were seeking to sabotage the country's transition.

They were arrested hours after a government reshuffle which saw two senior army officers replaced.

Col Goïta says elections will still go ahead next year as planned.

But he ignored pleas from the UN chief, the African Union, the Economic Community of West African States (Ecowas), the EU and the US that the president and prime minister be released without any preconditions.

The two men have been held at a military camp outside the capital, Bamako, since they were arrested on Monday evening.

What caused the crisis?

Col Goïta says he was not consulted about the cabinet reshuffle, in which he says he should have been named vice-president.

After last year's coup, the junta leader had sought to lead the interim government, which is overseeing an 18-month transition to civilian rule. However, the regional body Ecowas, which mediated the transition deal, insisted on a civilian leader.

Yet Col Goïta clearly remains the real power broker in the unstable West African nation.

His removal of Ibrahim Boubacar Keïta as president last year was generally celebrated. It followed weeks of anti-government protests over rising insecurity, alleged corruption and a failing economy.

But the slow pace of change over the last nine months has been causing tensions. An ongoing strike by the main union is in its second week and threatens to cripple the economy.

The interim government agreed to appoint a new, more broadly based cabinet in the face of these problems and the threat of renewed protests.

Col Goïta is not the only person to be upset by the reshuffle - the opposition group behind the protests last year, M5 RFP, was also infuriated that it was not rewarded with any ministerial positions.

A delegation from Ecowas is expected in Bamako. Last year, Ecowas threatened sanctions unless a caretaker government under civilian leadership took over from the military.

Now that Col Goïta has effectively torn up that agreement by taking charge, it is not clear what the repercussions will be.

But France, the former colonial power, has threatened EU sanctions against the perpetrators, with President Emmanuel Macron describing it as a "coup within a coup", Reuters news agency reports.

Col Goïta has asked people to go about their business as usual and promises the military is committed to the transitional deal.

A leading member of Mali's M5 RFP group, which had been critical of the prime minister, says it has been asked to put forward a candidate for next prime minister.

Soya Djigue told the BBC's Focus on Africa radio programme that the removal of the interim leaders was inevitable after they failed to consult the military about changes in the government, and failed to resolve the ongoing strike.

Until recently M5 RFP had threatened to go back to the streets at the beginning of June because of the growing discontent.

Why is Mali so unstable?

It is difficult to enact reforms quickly - and the vast landlocked country is poor, with large areas underdeveloped.

A previous coup in 2012 led to militant Islamists exploiting the chaos and seizing the north of the country.

French troops helped regain territory, but attacks continue as the insurgents have capitalised on the persistent political instability in the region.

This has all led to public confidence waning over the army leaders' ability to tackle the Islamist insurgency that has spilled into neighbouring Burkina Faso and Niger.

Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation

May 24, 2021

POSTPONEMENT OF THE FEDERAL EXECUTIVE COUNCIL
& THE POLICE COUNCIL MEETINGS

Further to the directive of Mr. President for the National Flag to fly at half-mast nationwide from 24th - 26th May, 2021 and the declaration of today, Monday 24th May, 2021, as work free-day for members of the Armed Forces, the President has also directed that the Federal Executive Council Meeting scheduled to hold on Wednesday, 26th May, 2021 be postponed to Wednesday, 2nd June, 2021.

Similarly, the Police Council Meeting which was earlier scheduled for Thursday 27th May, 2021 be postponed to Thursday 3rd June, 2021 in honour of the memory of the late Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru and 10 other Senior Military Officers and Service Men.

President Muhammadu Buhari urges all citizens to use this period of mourning to pray for the repose of the souls of the departed and strength for the family to bear the painful loss.

SIGNED
Boss Mustapha
Secretary to the Government of the Federation

The Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) on COVID-19 has mounted a manhunt for 90 travellers, Nigerians and foreigners, whom it described as dangers to public health.

In a statement by the Chairman of the PSC and Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Mr Boss Mustapha, the Committee said the 90 persons, who are currently at large, had violated the guidelines issued for travellers entering Nigeria from India, Turkey and Brazil.

The Federal Government, after identifying the danger posed to global health by new variants of COVID-19, which were predominantly found in the three countries, had introduced a travel advisory, mandating travellers from any of the countries, or who had visited any of them 14 days prior to arrival in Nigeria, to undergo a compulsory arrival quarantine and testing protocols.

However, according to the statement, the 90 offenders, whose names and passport details were also made available in the schedule released by the PSC on Sunday night, sneaked into the country without respecting the advisory.

The Committee accused them of endangering public health regulations, which attract spelt out punishments.

“The Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) on COVID-19 on 1STMay, 2021 issued a Travel Advisory for Passengers arriving in Nigeria from Brazil, India and Turkey.

“These precautionary measures are a necessary step to mitigate the risk of importation of variants of concern and break the chain of transmission to the population.

“Under the new measures, passengers arriving from/or that have visited any of these three countries within fourteen (14) days prior to the visit to Nigeria, are required to follow mandatory arrival quarantine and testing protocols in designated facilities.

“The Presidential Steering Committee (PSC) has however observed that while most of the arriving passengers dutifully observed the guidelines, some (Nigerians and Foreigners) have violated them in contravention of the provisions of the CORONAVIRUS (COVID-19) HEALTH REGULATIONS PROTECTION, 2021.

“Accordingly, the underlisted persons who arrived in Nigeria between 8th May 2021 and 15th May 2021 through the Murtala Muhammed International Airport, Lagos and Nnamdi Azikiwe International Airport, Abuja and whose names and passport numbers are displayed, have been declared Persons of Interest (POI) on account of posing considerable danger to overall public health and for the violation of Nigeria COVID-19 travel protocol by evading the mandatory 7-day quarantine for persons arriving from restricted countries.

“Members of the public are by this notice advised that these persons of interest constitute an immediate health hazard to the society. They must therefore transport themselves safely, to the nearest state public health departments within 48hrs of this notice for immediate evaluation and call the Port Health Services, Federal Ministry of Health on 08036134672 or 08032461990 for further directions.

“The PSC shall in addition, take further steps to sanction these violators. These steps include: Disabling their travel passports for a period not less than one year; Cancellation of visas/ permits of foreigners that have abused our hospitality; and Prosecution under the 2021 Health Protection Regulations.

“Additional list of Batch II defaulters shall be published in subsequent announcement by the PSC,” the statement reads.

Claim:
Several news blog including theconclaveng.com, everyday.ng, freshreporters.com, naijaonpoint, others reported that the General Officer Commanding 1 Division of the Nigerian Army, Major-General Danjuma All-Keffi, has been named the acting Army Chief of Staff.

Verdict:
The claim that President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Major General Danjuma Ali-Keffi as the new Chief of Army Staff in acting capacity is FALSE.

Full Text:

On Friday 21st May 2021, news broke that a military airplane had crashed in Kaduna state, Nigeria, killing the Chief of Army Staff, Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru and 10 other senior officers.

On Saturday, the late Chief of Army Staff was interred at the National Military Cemetery, Abuja,

Also interred were Acting Chief of Military Intelligence, Brigadier General Abdulkadir Kuliya; Chief of Staff to the late COAS, Brigadier General Mohammed Idris Abdulkadir; Brigadier General Olatunji Lukman Olayinka, Aide-De-Camp to the COAS, Major Lawal Aliyu Hayat, and Major Nura Hamza.

Others were the pilot of the ill-fated aircraft, Flight Lieutenant Taiwo Olufemi Asaniyi, Flight Lieutenant Alfred Ayodeji Olufade, Sergeant Opeyemi Isaiah Adesina, Sergeant Umar Saidu and Aircraftman (ACM) Olamide Matthew Oyedepo.

President Muhammadu Buhari described the officers’ death as a national tragedy and this was a trying period for the country, given that the dead officers were among the nation’s finest.

Amid the mourning of these military officers, several news blogs had reported that the President appointed Major General Danjuma Ali-Keffi as the new Chief of Army Staff in acting capacity.

The news on one of the blogs – naijaonpoint.com.ng reads:

“Following the death of Lt Gen Ibrahim Attahiru, President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Major General Danjuma Ali-Keffi as the new Chief of Army Staff in acting capacity.

“NaijaOnPoint.com (TNG) reports the appointment of Major General Ali-Keffi as acting Chief of Army Staff was confirmed late Saturday.

“Until his appointment, Ali-Keffi was the General Officer Commanding (GOC) 1 Division, who took over from Maj. General Usman Muhammad two months ago.

“He assumed duty as the 37th GOC 1 Division, Nigerian Army, in Kaduna State in March.

“TNG reports Alli-Keffi hails from Nasarawa State. He is a member of 38 Regular Course, trained in Mogadishu Battalion in the Academy. He is an alumnus of Bangladesh Defence College.”

Who is Maj.-Gen Danjuma Alli-Keffi

Checks by The Nation revealed that Maj.-Gen Danjuma Alli-Keffi, assumed duty as the 37th General Officer Commanding (GOC) 1 Division, Nigerian Army, on Thursday, March 11 in Kaduna.

Alli-Keffi took over from Maj.-Gen. Usman Muhammed who has been redeployed to Defence Headquarters as the new Director Research and Development Bureau.

Both the new GOC and his predecessor were members of regular course 38 of the Nigerian Defence Academy.

Verification:

As at the time of the report and in our quest to verify the claims, The Nation checked official information channels of the Nigerian Army and the Presidency; from the Presidential spokesmen – Garba Shehu and Femi Adesina – but found no information of such.

Checks by The Nation revealed that when President Muhammadu Buhari appointed new Military Service Chiefs, who replaced the former Service Chiefs who were appointed in 2015 on January 26, there was a formal pronouncement from the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, especially through his social media platforms.

A search through Garba Shehu’s social media page – Facebook and Twitter shows his last post was the president’s condolence message on the air crash that claimed the Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, and other military officers.

While Femi Adesina’s last post was on President Buhari receiving a briefing on the Plane crash which led to the death of the Chief of Army Staff Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru and others in State House on 21st May 2021.

Conclusion:

The claim that President Muhammadu Buhari has appointed Major General Danjuma Ali-Keffi as the new Chief of Army Staff in acting capacity is FALSE as there is no official disclosure on a new acting chief of staff.

Pharaoh Akahenton Okadigbo, the first son of late Senate President Dr. Chuba Okadigbo, has died.

The deceased was involved in a car accident on Saturday night, according to sources close to the family, and his body was deposited at the morgue.

There was no official statement from the family at the time of filing this report.

Grief, tears as late COAS Attahiru, 10 others laid to rest

The remains of the Chief of Army Staff, Lt-Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru and ten others who died in plane crash in were today laid to rest with full military honour amidst tears and anguish at the military cemetery Abuja.

Others buried along with the Army Chief are Brig.-Gen M.I Abdulkadir, Brig.-Gen Olayinka, Brig.-Gen. Kuliya, Maj.Hayat, Maj. Hamza and Sgt. Umar.

Others are the crew members of the ill-fated NAF aircraft Flt. Lt. Osaniyi, Flt. Lt. Olufade, Sgt. Adesina and ACM Oyedepo.

President Muhammed Buhari who was represented at the occasion by the minister of defence Maj.-Gen Bashir Magashi described the deaths of General Attahiru and other military personnels as tragic.

He particularly praised late Attahiru for his prossionalism, saying he led the troops from the front.

On his part, the Chief of Defence Staff General Lucky Irabor, in a speech titled” For the love of country”, said the death of the senior officers will not be in vain.

He reiterated the commitment of the Armed Forces of Nigeria to tackling security challenges confronting the country.

cutievik:
No sir, these are JF-17 pilots during it's induction in Makurdi.