₦airaland Forum

• Sets dates for ward, LG, state congresses
• What party must do to survive, by Buhari
• Senator Nwaoboshi defects to ruling party

The National Caretaker/Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee (CECPC) of the All Progressives Congress (APC) on Friday got the nod for an indefinite extension of its tenure.

The tenure extension followed a meeting between President Muhammadu Buhari and the Yobe State Governor Mai Mala Buni-led committee at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The panel will cease to function upon the conduct of the party’s more crucial national convention for which no date has yet been fixed.

But the ward, local government and state congresses of the APC will kick off on Saturday, July 24, 2021 at the ward level, according to a time table released last night by the CECPC.

The local government congresses will follow three weeks later on August 14 and the state congresses on September 18.

There was no mention of a date for the national convention.

Secretary of the committee, Dr.John Akpanduoehehe, said in a statement that the APC National Executive Committee (NEC), at its last meeting, conferred on the CECPC the power of the National Convention in line with powers provided in Article 13.3 of the Party’s Constitution.

He said the President granted the approval after detailed consideration of the progress report, the schedule of outstanding activities with regards to congresses, the national convention and the forthcoming Anambra State governorship election.

He said the tenure of the caretaker committees at the ward, local government, state and national levels will end immediately elections are held and the executive councils inaugurated.

He said Buni presented to the President a report on the activities of the committee and informed him that during the period under review, the APC recorded an overall success rate of 95 per cent in elections contested by it.

He said the committee also succeeded in forging peace among aggrieved members by “giving all issues and every aggrieved member fair hearing and objectively placing party interests above individual interests.”

Mala was quoted as saying: “Buoyed by the CECPC transparent and objective approach to the problems that bedeviled the party and the renewed confidence and trust in the party, aggrieved individuals and groups who either left or sued the party in various courts, willingly accepted reconciliation and withdrew all litigations against the party.

“With your excellent leadership roles for the party, we are witnessing high-powered defections including serving governors from the PDP to our great party. It is also interesting that the fortune of the party in the last year has greatly improved across the country, and especially in the South-East, which has been the stronghold of the opposition.”

“I am pleased to state that the party is now more peaceful, more accommodating, and more united with greater prospects than when we came on board.”

On the just concluded nationwide membership registration, revalidation and register update exercise, Buni said the committee was able to establish the numerical strength of the party as provided by the party constitution and help strengthen the party’s planning processes for congresses, conventions and general elections.

Over 40 million members, according to him, were either registered as new members or revalidated their membership with the party.

The CECPC National Chairman further informed the President that the Committee has set up a Registration Appeal Committee to hear matters arising from the exercise to ensure that no member is left out.

He also informed the President of newly set up committees to reposition the party, including Sensitization and Mobilisation Committee on Youth, Women and People Living with Disabilities, which contributed tremendously to the success recorded in the nationwide membership registration, revalidation and update exercise.

“A Contact and Strategy Committee was constituted with a clear mandate to meet with all party stakeholders in every state to come up with a generally acceptable and people-based template for the smooth conduct of the Congresses and Convention.”

On the party Constitution Amendment/Review, Buni said the committee constituted to look into ambiguities and loopholes to check unnecessary litigations and promote internal democracy has concluded its assignment after conducting public hearings in all the six geo-political zones with 500 memoranda received from party members.

Besides, Buni said, the CECPC has taken over the ownership of the building housing the APC National Secretariat and approved the naming of the the National Secretariat after Buhari.

Buhari said at the meeting that the party must espouse transparency and adhere to democratic principles to survive.

He spoke of his desire, as well as that of other leaders of the party to leave a legacy of transparency behind. He asked party members to support the CECPC in consolidating the achievements of the party.

Said he: “Now the hard fact: I call on all members to continue to support the Caretaker Extraordinary Conversion Planning Committee as they are set to commence the concluding and the most critical aspect of their assignment: the task of consolidating on all the achievements that we have so far recorded is for all of us, to which we all must be committed.

“You must remember that we all want to live behind a legacy of transparency and adherence to the democratic principles, which the party and the country need to survive and prosper.”

Buhari hailed the committee for reviving, energising and repositioning the APC for its national convention and future elections.

His words: “With the work done by the committee, the party has bounced back to life.

“We are all living witnesses to the crisis that engulfed our great party, leading to multiple litigations and series of defections from the party, which unfortunately presented a feature of selfishness and division.

“At some point, members doubted how you are going to face the country in a general election with such a mindless behaviour.

“It is gratifying to note that with the coming of the Caretaker Extraordinary Convention Planning Committee and its effective management of the affairs of the party and the pursuit of its mandate, the fighter has bounced back to life and the National Secretariat of our party has once again become a beehive of activities, as it used to be in the good old days before the crisis.

“I wish to assure you that your committee will continue to enjoy my support and that of other stakeholders to ensure that the conduct and outcome of the congresses and National Convention are done in a manner that conforms with our desire to leave indelible footprints of all-round development and a lasting legacy for future generations.”

The President assured the committee that it would continue to enjoy the support of all party stalwarts and members to complete its assignment with the actualization of the national convention and leave an indelible footprint.

At the meeting were Vice President Yemi Osinbajo; Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Boss Mustapha; Chairman of the Nigerian Governors’ Forum and Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi; Chairman of the Progressives Governors Forum and Kebbi State Governor, Abubakar Atiku Bagudu; and Chairman of the Northern Governors Forum and Plateau State Governor, Simon Lalong.

Others were Governor of Kaduna State, Nasir el’Rufai; Governor of Osun State, Adegboyega Oyetola and Governor of Niger State, Abubakar Sani Bello.

The Caretaker Committee was inaugurated on June 25, 2020 in the aftermath of the dissolution of the Adams Oshiomole led National Working Committee (NWC).

It was initially billed to operate for six months.

Its tenure was first extended for six months last December by an emergency National Executive Committee (NEC) held at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

The Caretaker Committee met on Wednesday to review its activities and consider inputs from state governors elected on the party’s platform for the purpose of working out a time table for its congresses.

Friday’s meeting was a follow up to Wednesday’s

It is expected that the party’s caretaker committees at all levels will give way to the executive councils that will emerge during the local government, state and zonal congresses.

Senator Nwaoboshi defects to APC

Forty-eight hours after his suspension by the Delta State chapter of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), the Senator representing Delta North, Peter Nwaoboshi, on Friday joined the All Progressives Congress (APC) in Abuja.

Presidential spokesman, Garba Shehu, said Nwaoboshi’s defection showed that the effort of the APC CECPC was yielding fruit.

He was introduced to Buhari and the CECPC by Deputy Senate President Ovie Omo-Agege.

In suspending Nwaoboshi on Wednesday, Delta State PDP spokesman Ifeanyi Osuoza said the action was necessitated by the “recent romance with an opposition party, verbal recklessness and unprovoked utterances of the lawmaker, particularly against the person of the state governor, Senator Ifeanyi Okowa.”

Nwaoboshi had dismissed his suspension as satirical, hurriedly done, and a laughable caricature.

He said: “Curiously, this irrational, laughable, illegal and unconstitutional action of this bunch of alarmingly anti-democratic forces masquerading as the State Working Committee is against the principles of fair hearing as enshrined in the Nigerian constitution; a document that supersedes all other documents.”

Lifting of the embargo on staff recruitment into the federal civil service is not one of the strategies on the card to reduce unemployment, the Federal Government said yesterday.

Minister of State for Labour and Employment, Mr Festus Keyamo (SAN), said doing so would be like a drop in the ocean and therefore not make the desired impact.

He spoke during the weekly ministerial briefing organised by the Presidential Communication Team, at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

According to him, the government of President Muhammadu Buhari targets more high-yielding approaches to tackle the prevailing alarming unemployment rate.

The minister was responding to a question on administration’s plan to lift 100 million Nigerians out of poverty within a decade while shutting the door against recruitment into the service.

Finance, Budget and National Planning Minister Mrs. Zainab Ahmed had in October 2019 announced the suspension of employment by the federal government to sustain the 2020 Budget.

The President restated the position last year it the advent of the Coronavirus pandemic.

Keyamo said: “I think your question assumes that the kind of employment want to create is in civil service. That’s not the idea of employment. All around the world employment, public services employment account for less than one per cent of employment.

“So, it will be very short sighted of us as government, very myopic, very, like wrong game approach to think that we want to lift people out of poverty and create employment by opening up gaps in the civil service to employ people.

“How many are we going to employ for the 33% (unemployment rate) that we have now is so high.

“The unemployment figures are indefensible. The 33% was compounded more by the COVID scourge, the whole world is reeling from the COVID scourge. So, we need to react more innovatively to create employment.

“For us, we are working very hard to ensure that we skill up Nigerians. The way to approach on employment is to skill up the populace. That’s the way out, to encourage the small, the macro small and medium scale entrepreneurs, support their businesses, ensure that people are self-employed, skill them up.

“That’s what the N-Power is doing. In N-Power, whether you are a graduate or not, go and learn a skill so that you can be self-employed and feed yourself. Those are employment we are creating, those people who are skilling up.

So, the only way to know that we have fought unemployment is that in the next 10 years, we print out a 100 million letters. No.

“We want to skill up Nigerians; we want to empower them, support small businesses, empower Nigerians more so that they can be self employed.

“That I think is the way forward and that’s our own focus as a government to fight unemployment”, the Minister said.

The minister also said that approximately N24, 000, 817,800.00 billion had been paid out to more than 413,639 beneficiaries under the 774,000 Special Public Works (SPW) scheme as at June 24, 2021.

He also revealed that 413,630 Nigerians drawn from rural communities and mostly itinerant workers have been paid.

Contrary to critics’ belief that the SPW scheme may have failed over initial payment, it has achieved 60 per cent success rate.

The minister blamed the initial hitches on discrepancies noticed during the registration phase, especially with bank verification numbers.

Keyamo revealed that despite his attempts to ensure due diligence in the implementation of the programme, he uncovered that some fraudulent Nigerians opened multiple bank accounts under a single Bank Verification Number (BVN).

Besides, he said the COVID-19 lockdown that temporarily halted the implementation process, triggered the scheme’s expansion by the President to enable those in the lowest cadre of economic strata to benefit.

He said: “When we wanted to introduce the special social works scheme here in Nigeria, the President first approved the pilot scheme, because he thought, perhaps we needed to test run it to see what we can apply here.

“So, the first thing the President approved was that we should do eight states at that time. And not all the local governments just five, in selected states originally, that was in late 2019, then I just became minister.”

He went further to explain other interventions of the administration, saying, “so far, those we have paid have received their N60,000 for the three months, we saved so many lives across the country by this payment, some use their own to buy grinding machine, I just discovered a grinding machine costs about N45, 000.”

Edo Governor Godwin Obaseki has explained why he has not constituted his cabinet over six months after he was sworn in for second term.

The delay, he said, is due to the restructuring of the Civil Service for efficiency.

He also said he was consulting with wards and local governments in the State to submit nominees for appointment into the cabinet.

Governor Obaseki spoke to State House Correspondents after a meeting with Chief of Staff to the President, Professor Ibrahim Gambari, at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.

He said: “Well, you see I spent the first four years as governor. So, I know what the challenges of governance are. We spent the last six months trying to restructure process of government, particularly the civil service because no matter how great a cabinet is, if the government and the functions of government are not operating properly, the executive cannot function optimally.

“So, the last six months, we’ve tried to redefine the structures of governance, working through every layer of the civil service, define the roles, the responsibilities, trying to understand the resources available, and put in place key performance indicators and scorecards for every MDA in government.

“And this we did, such that the civil servants have no excuse to say they couldn’t do what they’re doing because of political interference.

“So, we’ve tried to keep politics out of government in the last seven months, to redefine the processes to define the structures and define the service delivery criteria for government.
“Now that we have done that, we now hired a whole crop of civil and public servants. We have about 1500 of them, we have hired, and we’re introducing technology.

“We have, perhaps one of the best training facilities in the country. And we are now ready for the political class, for the commissioners, to now step into government and do what they’re supposed to do and give political direction to the process of government.”

On when he will submit the nominees, he said: “Well, as I speak, as I speak, I have mandated wards, local governments to give me nominations.

“The nominations are coming in from the wards and the local governments. And the selection team is being put place to screen these candidates for submission to maybe before passing to the state House of Assembly.”“Now that we have done that, we now hired a whole crop of civil and public servants. We have about 1500 of them, we have hired, and we’re introducing technology.

“We have, perhaps one of the best training facilities in the country. And we are now ready for the political class, for the commissioners, to now step into government and do what they’re supposed to do and give political direction to the process of government.”

On when he will submit the nominees, he said: “Well, as I speak, as I speak, I have mandated wards, local governments to give me nominations.

“The nominations are coming in from the wards and the local governments. And the selection team is being put place to screen these candidates for submission to maybe before passing to the state House of Assembly.”

Seven months after he was sworn in for a second term, Edo state Governor, Godwin Obaseki is yet to name his cabinet members.

Obaseki had defected to the PDP from the All Progressives Congress(APC) after he was denied the ruling party’s gubernatorial ticket during the primaries due to an internal party crisis.

He later defeated the APC candidate, Osagie Ize-Iyamu,, in the September 19, 2020 Governorship election, for a second term. Obaseki, alongside his deputy, Philip Shaibu, was inaugurated in November, 2020. However, seven months after the swearing-in ceremony, the Governor is yet to nominate cabinet members to work with him.
While some believed Obaseki is taking his time considering his face-off with his former political godfather, Adams Oshiomhole, some attribute the delay to the division in the PDP.

But the National Vice Chair, South-south, of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Dan Orbih, in March, said the delay in constituting the cabinet by the Edo State Government is not a sign of a divided party in the state.

“Not forming an executive cabinet cannot be a product of a divided house, that is purely a decision that lies within the powers of the governor,” he said.

He noted that the delay in constituting the cabinet by the Edo Government might not be unconnected with reforms the government was carrying out in the state, especially in the civil service.

“And if the ongoing reforms are affecting the constitution of the cabinet, I think they have gone very far in the exercise.”

However, the Deputy Governor of Edo State, Philip Shaibu, has said that the state cabinet will be formed in few days, saying the delay was to ensure that the people who voted in the government are part of picking the commissioners.

Shaibu made this known on Sunday while speaking to journalists shortly after the Fathers Day ceremony at St Paul Catholic Church, Benin, Edo state capital city.

“We will get a cabinet very soon. The process of getting the names started from the grassroots. This governor will not appoint people all by himself. He prefers that the people should nominate those that they feel should run the affairs of the state.”

“I am sure the best hand will be nominated by the people to serve their interest in the belief that together we will take Edo State to a great height,” he said.

Former President Olusegun Obasanjo on Wednesday said although Nigerians would fare better staying together than breaking up, the nation’s unity should not be at ‘any cost’.

“I am a strong believer of one Nigeria, but not one Nigeria at any cost, but one Nigeria where every Nigerian can feel proud that he or she has a stake in this country,” the retired general, who fought during the nation’s civil war, said

Mr Obasanjo, who said he believed in one, indivisible Nigeria, stated this in Abeokuta at his investiture as a Fellow of the Nigerian Institution of Surveyor (NIS) organised by the Ogun chapter of the Body of Fellows of the NIS.

Call To Agitators
The former president called on agitators for the disintegration of the country to shelve the idea and work for the oneness of the country.
According to him, ”it is better for Nigeria to remain as one indivisible nation than for each tribe to go its separate way”.
Mr Obasanjo, who acknowledged that Nigeria is passing through challenges, insisted that “disintegration is not the solution”.

According to him, ”any Nigerian who does not feel concerned about the challenges of the country is a human being without being human”.

“It is better that Nigeria stays together and find solutions to its challenges than for each tribe to go its separate way,” said Mr Obasanjo said.

“I am a strong believer of one Nigeria, but not one Nigeria at any cost, but one Nigeria where every Nigerian can feel proud that he or she has a stake in this country.

“Those of us who have shed part of our blood and sweat for this country, we did so because we wanted a country where every Nigerian can claim as his or her own.

“I believe that if we talk among ourselves the way we should and if we change the narrative, I believe this is a great country.

“The fact that we are not making Nigeria what God wants it to be is not the fault of God, but our fault, particularly the leaders.”
In the midst of the precarious multi-dimensional security and economic challenges facing Nigeria today, regional groups have been calling for the breakup of the nation as presently constituted.

‘Not The Solution’
But Mr Obasanjo, who noted that Nigeria’s diversity remained a major source of its strength, explained that disintegration would result in “weak republics”.

“One thing that gives us strength is our diversity. If all that we have is Republic of Oduduwa for those who say so, members of that country will be diminished compared to being a citizen of Nigeria.

“Citizens of Oduduwa Republic or any other republic borne out of Nigeria will be diminished compared to being citizens of Nigeria.

“In this age and time that we are talking about the reintegration of Africa for economic development, disintegration of any country will be almost idiotic,” he said.

The former president wondered what would become of the over 300 minorities in Nigeria if the three major tribes went their separate ways.

“If we have Igboland as an independent country, Yorubaland, an independent country, and Fulani/Hausaland an independent country, where will the Jukuns or the Gbasama belong?

“The only reason they can raise up their heads is because they belong to Nigeria.

“Are we thinking of them or are we are just being selfish? We should note that. It doesn’t matter what we do, we will still be neighbours.

“We had seen it before, India was broken into India and Pakistan, they are still at war till today. “Yugoslavia was broken into different countries, they haven’t sorted it till today.
“Sudan was broken into Sudan and South Sudan, I don’t believe South Sudan is better for it and that is the truth,” he said.

The former president, who described Nigeria’s challenges as correctable and surmountable, counselled that it would cost less for Nigerians to work together for the unity of the country than to break up and be perpetually in war against each other.

“When that happens, we will be spending our money on building armies.

“I know what is involved in building and maintaining an army which may not necessarily be productive, let us think about it,” he said.

Mr Obasanjo, who stressed the importance of surveyors, said the entire country should be surveyed in order to achieve economic development and transformation.

He, therefore, charged the body of surveyors to draft a proposal for the national survey of the country and present to the Federal Government.

“When I was the president of the country, the project of surveying the entire country began, but it got stuck and I don’t know where the project is now,” he said.

Meanwhile, in his address, Ademola Adewale, the chairman of the Ogun chapter of NIS disclosed that his members had concluded plans to produce a unique digital map of the state.

“This will make us to become self-sufficient in geospatial information and will affect all sectors positively and thereby increase the state internally generated revenue (IGR) geometrically,” he said

presidency:
Tomorrow in Lagos, President Muhammadu Buhari will commission the 156km Lagos—Ibadan standard gauge railway line, the first double-track standard gauge rail in West Africa, and the first Nigerian railway line to be started AND completed by the SAME administration, since 1960. Construction started in March 2017, and test-running commenced in December 2020.

The Ebute Metta Station, known as the Mobolaji Johnson Station, is the largest railway station in West Africa with a holding capacity of 6000 passengers.

President Buhari is committed to developing a modern national railway network that will connect every part of Nigeria, and promote trade, travel, tourism, commerce and national integration.

Karlovych:
Despite Awolowo's free Education, Ekiti and Lagos disgraced the entire SW. No wonder the country is currently backwards when it's all about quota system hires from the north and the SW, spits. When I comes to merit they'll show their true colors with regards to competence.

Twenty-one directors on Salary Grade Level 17 in the Federal Civil Service who sat a written examination as part of the process of appointing them as permanent secretaries failed the examination, The PUNCH has learnt.

The 21 directors were among 46 senior officers who took the examination in Abuja on Monday.

The remaining 25 of them, who passed the examination, are now qualified for the next stage, which is the Information Communication Technology proficiency test holding on Thursday (today).

Although the Federal Government had in May announced the shortlisting of 47 directors for the examination among the 51 candidates who earlier faced a panel, results of only 46 directors were seen on the list of the result obtained by our correspondent on Wednesday.

The document, titled ‘Re; Selection exercise for the appointment of permanent secretaries in the federal civil service,’ was dated June 1, 2021, and signed by Sunny Echocho on behalf of the examination committee.

Our correspondent reported that the 25 directors who passed the written examination and were invited for the next stage were those who scored 50 and above in the examination.

The 21 directors who failed the examination were those who scored below 50. A candidate with 33.5 was the director with the lowest score in the examination.

The director with 68.5 was the candidate with the highest score.
Names of the officials were, however, not indicated on the document.

The candidates were identified by their service numbers.

Those who pass the ICT test on Thursday will qualify for the last stage, which is an interactive session with a broad-based panel of experts and practitioners.

The candidates are competing to fill the vacancies of retired permanent secretaries and those retiring this year in five states of the federation.

The affected states are Ekiti, Katsina, Nasarawa, Enugu and Lagos.

Many state governments have started reducing their overhead costs as part of measures aimed at addressing the dwindling funds from the federation account.

State officials, who disclosed this in separate interviews with The PUNCH on Sunday, ruled out sacking workers or slashing salaries in order to reduce the states’ wage bills.

Some of them also said that the governments had embarked on the private-public partnership to finance capital projects that had the potential of yielding revenue.

The officials said states that had yet to start the PPP, were also planning to embrace it to finance projects.

They confided in our correspondents that no matter how tight the finances of their states were, governors would not contemplate sacking workers because of the possible political backlash.

Recall that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, in a letter dated April 26, 2021, informed federal and state governments about its dwindling contribution to the federation account as a result of the bloated fuel subsidy.

The corporation also indicated that it would not make any remittance for the April and May Federal Account Allocation Committee after paying fuel subsidy from its revenue.

As a solution to the dwindling revenue, the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, at its meeting on May 20, called for immediate removal of fuel subsidy and suggested that the pump price of petrol should be N385 per litre.

Despite the governors’ recommendation, the Group General Manager, Group Public Affairs Division of the NNPC, Kennie Obateru, in an interview with The PUNCH on Monday last week, ruled out the removal of fuel subsidy until the conclusion of negotiations with the organised labour.

To compound the woes of the states, the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, after the CBN’s monetary policy committee meeting in Abuja on Tuesday, insisted that the bank would start deducting budget support loans given to states.

At the National Economic Council meeting in April, the governors had requested that the repayment of the loans borrowed from the CBN, which ought to start this month, be deferred.

On Sunday, a top official of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum, who confided in one of our correspondents, said, “Except for a governor like El-Rufai (of Kaduna State), who is courageous enough to take decisions without thinking about the political implications for himself or his party, no governor will contemplate laying off workers less than two years to the 2023 elections.

“Recall that one of the major causes of Chief Bisi Akande’s failure to win second term in 2003 was the reform that he carried out in the civil service as well as the teaching service. Some teachers were laid off because of the relevance of their subjects. Some civil servants lost their jobs because their certificates were not genuine.

“Although the old man is a good manager of people and resources, he lost the 2003 election partly because of the reform, which was in the overall interest of the state.”

We’re financing projects through PPP, IGR – Bauchi

The Bauchi State Commissioner of Budget and Economic Planning, Dr Aminu Gamawa, in a text message sent to one of our correspondents, said the state government would not sack workers.

He, however, said the state government would continue fishing out ghost workers in the payroll.

The commissioner stated, “The economies of Nigeria and Bauchi State are not in good shape. That is why some states are reducing their workers. In Bauchi, we are approaching the problem in a creative manner.

“Instead of sacking workers, we are focusing on ensuring that the payroll and the nominal roll of the state are sanitised to prevent fraud and corruption. This will ensure that ghost workers and unproductive workers who are not adding value are fished out. This will enable the state to make some savings.

“We are also taking proactive and creative measures to increase our internally generated revenue. This will provide the state with more resources to implement projects. Most of the projects that we are currently implementing in Bauchi are financed through the internally generated revenue and other creative ways like the private public partnership.

“We also believe that the role of the government is not to make people dependent on the government for handouts. The role of the government is to create enabling environment for entrepreneurs and businesses to prosper, and create jobs, wealth and fight poverty.

“We will ensure that workers are paid their legitimate salaries on time, but we will also ensure that the government gets value for the money it is spending.”

On his part, the Enugu State Commissioner for Information, Mr Chidi Aroh, said the state was working hard to cut down overheads.

Aroh stated, “He (the state governor) is also working hard to see how he will cut overheads in the state.

“ I am sure in a couple of weeks or so we are going to come out with a new principle to cut down a lot of overheads in the state because the economy is bad and government must take the primary responsibility of providing security and welfare of the people.”

In Sokoto State, Governor Aminu Tambuwal also said the state government was not considering sacking workers.

He stated, , “Instead an agreement would be brokered, when the need arises, to source for funds, we will tax elected officials and political appointees.

“Such funds and taxes would be used to pay the civil servants pending when the situation improves and the deductions made would be repaid.

“We give priority to prompt payment of salaries and pensions. The state government is doing its best in addressing the challenges of gratuity as well as other allowances to the workers.”

Also, the Kogi State Government said that it had no plan to either sack workers or reduce salaries of its workforce.

The Commissioner for Information and Communication Strategy, Kingsley Fanwo told one of our correspondents on the telephone on Sunday that the state government was still committed to its agreement with the state organised labour.

PPP has taken Ekiti this far in development – Commissioner

In Ekiti State, the Commissioner for Information, Mr Akinbowale Omole, said private public participation in projects execution had produced a lot for the state in terms of development.

Omole, who said that Ekiti was resolute not to sack workers despite the present dwindling resources, said the state was, however, reviewing the financial situation with a view to determine the way forward.

He said, “We are doing the PPP already. There are some projects that the World Bank is financing. There are some that the European Union is financing. We are doing that already and that is why we have been able to go this far in our developmental feat in the state.

“We are still reviewing the financial situation that we are going through now, there is still no indication that it will continue for long period of time. We are still looking at it whether it will be a short-term problem or long term.

“If it is short term, I want to believe that we will still weather it. But if it extends too long, then we will sit back again and review the situation to see what will be done,” he said, while speaking on sustainability of the projects and as well meeting obligations to workers.

On efforts already taken by the state to address the situation, Omole said, “We run a serious government here and we set our priorities. There was a stakeholders’ meeting involving every stakeholder – the organised labour, the two state-owned universities, the political appointees and various groups that participate in revenue generation and share out of the revenue.

“We have looked at everything together and we have put some things before the stakeholders. The advice of various groups is coming in as per what the government should do in the circumstance and it is only a collation of these suggestions that will now determine the way forward. As I speak with you, we are still getting feedback from various groups,” the commissioner said.

We hope we won’t get to the level of retrenchment – Osun

Also, the Osun State Commissioner for Works, Remi Omowaiye, expressed hope that poor state of finances would not degenerate further and reach the level that the administration would consider sacking workers.

Omowaiye, who declared that because of repayment of loans taken by the previous administrations, the state received the least amount from the federation account.

He further said the administration had been performing its statutory obligations because of the financial ingenuity of the governor.

When contacted, Osun State Nigeria Labour Congress Chairman, Jacob Adekomi, simply replied, “When we get to the bridge, we know how to cross it. Our national headquarters usually take decision on such issues.”

PPP is at the heart of all we do – Ogun govt

The Ogun State Government said that it would not drop any capital project, neither would it sack works despite the dwindling allocation from the Federal Government .

The Chief Press Secretary to the governor, Kunle Somorin, who stated this in an interview with one of our correspondents on Sunday, said the state government was creatively allocating resources to meet the developmental needs.

Somorin added that public private partnership would be prioritised to ensure the needs were met .

He said “The PPP is at the heart of all we do. No capital project will be dropped. We are creatively allocating resources to meet our developmental needs. Ogun won’t slash workers salaries.

“Ogun is solvent. We won’t sack for lack of funds. The people are the essence of governance. Anybody sacked must have undergone a fair and due process after committing service infractions.”

Recall that there was a crisis in Kaduna State, two weeks ago, when workers embarked on a strike because of the decision of the state government to sack workers in order to improve its finances.

The Chairman Senate Committee on the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency, Senator Gershom Bassey, has cautioned state governors against pushing for an increment in the pump price of the Premium Motor Spirit, otherwise known as petrol.

The Nigeria Governors’ Forum had during its virtual meeting on May 20, considered the report of a committee headed by the Kaduna State Governor, Mallam Nasir El-Rufai, and accepted its recommendation that supported a full deregulation of the petroleum industry.

The El-Rufai panel was said to have suggested that the pump price of the product should hover around N385 per litre.

But Bassey, in an interview with our correspondent in Abuja, asked both the federal and state governments to apply caution and ensure that any decision on petrol was taken with a human face.

The Cross River senator said, “There are some realities in the petroleum industry which the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation has been talking about for some time now.

“I think that whatever those realities are, anything that has to do with the price of the petroleum products must be fixed with a human face.

“Here, we have a country where the quality of the value of the naira is going down. The disposable income of all Nigerians is nothing to write home about, yet you are talking about increasing the prices of fuel. I think the governors should approach the issue with a human face.”

The El-Rufai committee was also said to have recommended that the Federal Government should buy buses for mass transportation of Nigerians, among other palliatives, to cushion the effects of the price increase.

The El-Rufai’s six-member committee was set up early in the year by the National Economic Council headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

It was to look into the dwindling revenues of states and make recommendations to the council.

Other governors who are members of the El-Rufai panel are: Godwin Obaseki of Edo State, Kayode Fayemi of Ekiti State, and David Umahi of Ebonyi State.

The committee is also made up of the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Mr Godwin Emefiele, and the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, Mallam Mele Kyari.

The remaining 32 governors, who are members of the NGF, have endorsed the report.

The NGF in a communiqué after the meeting noted that the El-Rufai panel briefed it on the appropriate pricing of petrol in Nigeria, calling for full deregulation.

The Kaduna State Governor, according to the communiqué, further revealed that the Federal Government was sending between N70bn and N210bn monthly to subsidise the petrol price at N162 per litre.

The committee identified Lagos, Oyo, Ogun, Rivers and Abuja as the top consumers of petrol.

No fewer than 40 out of the 48 bills so far passed by the Ahmad Lawan-led 9th Senate, are awaiting either the presidential assent, or the House of Representatives’ concurrence, Saturday PUNCH investigation has revealed.

Also, no fewer than 160 out of 287 bills passed by the Bukola Saraki-led 8th Senate were not given assent by the President, according to findings by Sunday PUNCH.

A summary of bills in the 9th Senate as of Wednesday May 5, 2021, obtained exclusively by our correspondent on Friday, revealed that the red chamber had so far introduced 717 bills, since its inauguration in June 2019.

Out of the figure, 130 bills are at various committee stages, 43 are awaiting second reading, 370 had been read for the first time, 126 are awaiting first reading, while 48 had been passed.

While the House of Representatives had concurred to some of the proposed legislation and sent them for the assent of the President, Major General Muhammadu Buhari (retd.), others are still awaiting the green chambers’ concurrence.

The breakdown further showed that the 9th Senate, in its first session, passed 13 bills between June 2019 and June 2020 while it passed 35 bills in its second session between June 2020 till date.

Some of the bills passed and already got presidential assents so far include, the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contract Act 2004 (Amendment) Bill, 2019.
They also included the Finance Bill 2020, the Nigeria Police Bill 2020, the Amended Banking Bill 2020, the amendments to the Company and Allied Matters Act Bill 2020.

Major bills receiving legislative attention at the various committees of the red chamber included the Electoral Act amendment Bill, and the Petroleum Industry Bill.

A bill sponsored by the Senator representing Oyo South, Kola Balogun, seeking to ban open grazing in the country, has not been listed for first reading.

The Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contract Act 2004 (Amendment) Bill, 2019 amended the provisions of the Deep Offshore and Inland Basin Production Sharing Contract Act 2004

The DOIBPSCA is aimed at shoring up Nigeria’s revenue earnings from oil and gas.

Also, on December 31, 2020, the President signed the Finance Bill, 2020 (now Finance Act) into law.

The Finance Act, 2020, which has a commencement date of January 1, 2021, was signed into law alongside the 2021 Appropriation Bill (now Appropriation Act).

Buhari had earlier signed the Nigeria Police Bill 2020 into law.

The President, in a memo dated September 16, 2020, communicated his assent to the Bill to the National Assembly, through the Clerk to the federal parliament, Olatunde Ojo.

The Act repealed the Police Act Cap. P19. Laws of the Federation, 2004, and provides for a more effective and well organised Police Force, driven by the principles of transparency and accountability in its operations and management of its resources.

Among others, the Act establishes an appropriate funding framework for the police in line with what is obtainable in other Federal Government key institutions.

It enhances professionalism in the Force through increased training opportunities, and creates an enduring cooperation and partnership between the Police Force and communities in maintaining peace and combating crimes nationwide.

The President, on November 13, 2020 signed into law an amended Banks and Other Financial Institutions Bill that seeks to improve loan recovery and the overall resilience of the country’s financial system.

A key feature of the law is the introduction of “a credit tribunal to improve loan recovery and address the incidence of high non-performing loans within the financial system.’’
Buhari had also on August 8, 2020, signed the new Companies and Allied Matters Bill 2020 into law

The bill repealed the Companies and Allied Matters Act 1990, which had been in operation for 30 years..

The Act changes Nigeria’s corporate landscape by facilitating the ease of doing business, reducing regulatory hurdles and aligning corporate operations in Nigeria with global practices and procedures.

Meanwhile, the 8th National Assembly passed a total of 287 bills between June 2015 and May 2019 with Buhari, ignoring not fewer than 160 of them.

According to findings from Senate, the President ignored a substantial number of the bills passed by the 8th Senate for reasons best known to the executive.

However, some senators said the development might not be unconnected to the frosty relationship between the federal legislature at that time and the Presidency.

As of the end of the 8th Assembly an insignificant number of bills were assented to while a total of 48 picked for the President’s consideration were vetoed.

The remaining bills are still gathering dust in the President’s office while some federal lawmakers in the 9th Assembly, knowing full well that the proposed laws had died with the previous Assembly, had reintroduced many of them and they are currently at various stages of consideration.

Some of the bills presented again in the 9th Assembly had been passed and forwarded to the President and they are currently suffering similar fate on his table, unattended to.

Buhari had in 2019 cited duplication of functions between proposed agencies the bills seek to establish and the existing ones, to infractions on extant laws as some of the reasons for shunning the bills.

Our correspondent gathered that Buhari, in 2017, rejected 11 bills, including the National Broadcasting Commission (Amendment) Bill.

He also rejected 20 bills in 2018, including the popular Peace Corps Bill, the Petroleum Industry Governance Bill, and the fourth amendment bill to the 1999 constitution.

Other bills that were vetoed in 2018 were the Stamp Duty (Amendment) Bill, the Advance Fee Fraud (Amendment) Bill, and of course, the 2010 Electoral Act (Amendment) Bill 2018, which was rejected four times, the first being on the reordering of general elections and the last being because, according to the President, the elections were already too close and changing the rules would be confusing.

As of the time the 8th Assembly ended its legislative activities, Buhari had rejected 17 other bills between January and May 2019.

There are, however, indications that the proposed laws by the 9th Senate might suffer the same fate as those passed in the 8th National Assembly.

For instance, the Senate President, Ahmad Lawan, recently expressed dissatisfaction over the withheld assent to the bills so far passed during his tenure.

Lawan heaped the blame on some Buhari’s advisers and a few top government functionaries who, according to him, were the brains behind Buhari’s bills rejection.

NASS bills clash with extant laws –Presidency

The Presidency on Friday offered explanations on why many bills duly passed by the National Assembly were being denied assent by the President.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Babajide Omoworare, told our correspondent that some of the new bills made provisions for agencies whose functions were already being taken care of by existing agencies of government.

He said, “The President always give reasons for withholding assent to bills. Some functions being given to agencies which the bills are meant to create are already being performed by an agency of government and there would be no point duplicating efforts.

“Also, the President considers the funds available to government before approving the establishment of new agencies or institutions, proposed in some bills which may be an additional burden on the government.’’

As part of its ongoing probe of the finances of the opposition Peoples Democratic Party, the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has beamed its searchlight on at least 10 expenditure items in the party’s financial records.

This was sequel to a petition filed by a now expelled member of the PDP, Kassim Afegbua, who alleged, among other things, that the party leadership had yet to account for N10bn funds released from the sale of nomination forms.

A document obtained by The PUNCH in Abuja on Tuesday indicated that the items included a total of N243.8m as legal and other professional charges to consultants in 12 transactions and a total of N78.9m for transport and travel expenses.

Out of the N243.8m paid as legal fees, N78m was paid out on November 1, 2018, while N36.3m was paid out on November 14, 2018.

Under transport and travel expenses, where a total of N78.9m was paid out, N12.9m was said to have been used to charter an aircraft on October 4, 2018.

The EFCC is also seeking clarification on the payment of N264, 417,808 under the sub-head loan repayment.

A source privy to the investigations said, “What is of interest to the commission is the case of money laundering.

“Some of these payments were either not made through financial institutions or routed through personal accounts of individuals,” he added.

In a related development, the EFCC has invited the petitioner, Afegbua, to shed light on his petition.

He was asked to provide supporting documents and evidence if any to buttress his allegations.

Afegbua, a former Edo State commissioner for information, confirmed the development to our correspondent.

He explained that he was invited to write a statement and share information.

“All I want is for my party to be accountable. We cannot hold the ruling party to account if we do not keep our house in order. The banking regulations say all transactions above N10m must pass through a financial institution; this was not the case with my party, the PDP, under the present leadership,” he added.

When reminded that he had been expelled from the party, Afegbua said, “My purported expulsion is an exercise in futility because it did not follow due process as stipulated in the PDP constitution which I have read several times over.

“There are clear guidelines on discipline. There are processes; it begins from the ward level before it goes to the state, then the zonal before it gets to the national.

“First and foremost, nobody laid a complaint against me; there was no committee set up to investigate any imaginary allegation against me. I was not invited to face any committee. Only yesterday, my ward executives in Okpella told the whole world that I remain a bonafide member of the party because they have no problem with me.

“Unless the process is initiated from the ward level, the national cannot take any action. So, what Secondus did using the state chairman is fraudulent.”

The PDP Board of Trustees, in response to the EFCC investigation, said the party was not answerable to the EFCC but the Independent National Electoral Commission, which was the constitutionally recognised body to oversee political parties.

The Chairman of the BoT, Senator Walid Jibrin, said the interest of the EFCC in the affairs of the party was strange.

He also accused Afegbua of ignoring the party’s time-tested procedure of lodging complaints with the relevant party organs before seeking external help.

Jibrin said, “INEC is the regulatory organ of all political parties and the PDP is inclusive. The PDP account has been audited by a reputable chattered firm and the report is with INEC and the body has not raised any objection on the account of the party.

“It is both constitutionally wrong for the EFCC to intervene in issues that are purely of political parties and Kasim Afegbua did not follow due process in this case.”

THE Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr. Ahmed Idris, on Tuesday, said the £4.2m looted by a former governor of Delta State, James Ibori, which the Federal Government recently repatriated from the United Kingdom, had been returned to the state.

Idris made this known in Abuja on Tuesday when he appeared before the House of Representatives Ad hoc Committee on Assessment and Status of All Recovered Loots Movable and Immovable Assets from 2002 to 2020 by Agencies of the Federal Government of Nigeria for Effective Efficient Management and Utilisation.

This is contrary to the earlier position of the Minister of Justice and Attorney-General of the Federation, Abubakar Malami (SAN), who recently stated that the state could not benefit from the recovered loot.

Malami had stated that Delta was not captured in the agreements signed with the British Government, which was a precondition for the release of the money.

The minister had stressed that Nigeria would execute other projects with the fund other than the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway, Abuja-Kaduna-Kano Expressway and the Second Niger Bridge, which had been listed in the agreement.

Incidentally, Malami also appeared before the committee together with the accountant-general

Shortly after the minister left the venue, Idris, however, stated that such funds looted from the treasury of a state are always returned to the state, adding that states could sue the Federal Government to recover such funds.
The Chairman of the committee, Adejoro Adeogun, had asked about the Ibori loot after the lawmakers had grilled Idris for about 35 minutes.

Adeogun said, “Recovered loot; is it recovery for only the Federal Government or the federation?”

Idris replied, “…Depending on the nature of recovery. I think there is the need, really, to have an in-depth understanding of this. Some recoveries are for state governments – specific state governments. I know there was a time recovery was made on behalf of Plateau State; there was one for Bayelsa…different states…even Delta. Such recoveries go specifically to those states.”
The chairman said, “Let us give an example. There is something trending; recovery of the Ibori loot.

The accountant-general said, “It was paid to the state; Delta? Yes, Delta State. It was paid to Delta State.

Adeogun asked, “But that is contrary to the information that it was to be used for specific projects.”

Idris said, “No. Honourable chairman, honorable committee, any recovery that is arising from looted funds from a particular state goes to the state. The state governors will not even allow this (takeover by FG) to fly. So, we don’t joke; we don’t play with that. We pay them their money.”

Meanwhile, the Delta State Government said it had yet to receive the £4.2m recovered fund from the Federal Government as announced by the Accountant General of the Federation.

Though several calls put across to the Chief Press Secretary to the Governor, Mr Olise Ifeajika, were not answered as of the time of filling this report, one of the aides to Governor Ifeanyi Okowa, who spoke to our correspondent on the condition of anonymity, said the state had yet to confirm the receipt of the money.

He said, “We have not confirmed the receipt yet; if it comes, definitely, we will let the world know.”

Four stolen children have been rescued in Abuja as operatives of the National Agency for the Prohibition of Trafficking in Persons raided a notorious child trafficking ring known for trafficking children for begging within the Federal Capital Territory.

The agency’s Head of Press and Public Relations, Stella Nezan, disclosed this on Monday in a statement titled, ‘NAPTIP busts child trafficking syndicate in Abuja, arrests 30-year-old woman, rescues four children.’

According to Nezan, “The arrest followed a tip-off from a media partner who alerted the agency of the activities of the suspect especially around the popular AYA busy bus terminal, Abuja.”

The operation was said to have led to the arrest of one of the group’s members, Blessing Eze; from whom four stolen children were rescued.

The statement read in part, “A total of four stolen children believed to be from different parents were also recovered from the suspect and many other children still believed to be at large.

“The development represents a major feat in the agency’s drive to curtail the incidence of child trafficking especially within the nation’s capital.”
The statement added that the agency has launched a manhunt for a suspect, Mama Chioma, from Enugu State; believed to be the major supplier of children to the gang and is currently in possession of four more trafficked children.

It added, “Both suspects are said to be engaged in trafficking of children whose ages range from six months to one year old from different parts of the country to Abuja and using them to solicit alms from unsuspecting members of the public.
“It would be recalled that following an increased reported cases of trafficking of children for begging in Abuja, the Director-General of NAPTIP, Imaan Sulaiman-Ibrahim, has ordered an improved surveillance in the notable spots especially within the FC T and its environs.”

In her remarks, the NAPTIP boss described the trafficking of children for alms begging as “a wicked act.”

“This is a wicked act that must be condemned by all. These innocent children are exposed to the harsh weather condition by the traffickers who shade them like wares by the roadside soliciting for money to satisfy their selfish desires.

“We shall surely fish out the fleeing members of the syndicate and they shall face the full wrath of the law,” she said.

She assured Nigerians that all members of the syndicate will be fished out and made to face the full wrath of the law.

She also called on parents to look after their children to avoid being trafficked by people who scout villages claiming to offer help to needy families.

…As Defence Minister mourns late COAS.

The Burial proceedings of the Chief of Army Staff (COAS), Late Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru and 6 other senior officers who lost their lives in an air mishap in Kaduna is slated for today Saturday, 22 May 21.

A statement by the Director, Army Public Relations, Brig General Mohammed Yerima said, “It will commence at the National Mosque and National Christian Centre, Abuja by 1000hrs respectively.

“Consequently, the internment for the late COAS and 6 other senior officers will take place at the National Military Cemetery, Abuja today by 1300hrs (1 pm).

Meanwhile, the Minister of Defence, Maj Gen Bashir Salihi Magashi has described as a rude shock and unfortunate, the death in a plane crash of the 21st Chief of Army Staff Lt General Ibrahim Attahiru barely four months in the saddle.

General Magashi in a condolence message said the Air mishap that claimed the precious lives of the Chief of Army Staff, alongside other senior officers and his aides represents a huge national disaster.

While condoling the Commander-in-Chief of the Nigerian Armed Forces, President Muhammadu Buhari, the Military and the Nigerian Army in particular as well as his immediate family and Nigeria in general he described late General Attahiru as a gallant, dogged, disciplined and dedicated senior officer who died in the line of duty to his fatherland.

He recalled his unblemished track records of service to the nation as Director Army Public Relations,(DAPR), Theatre Commander Operation Lafiya Dole and as General Officer Commanding, GOC which culminated in his elevation to the enviable three-star status as Chief of Army Staff (COAS) in January this year.

He described his emergence as Army boss at such a critical time in the nation’s efforts at surmounting her internal security challenges as symbolically strategic but impactfully short-lived in the anals of the service.

General Magashi sadly noted that although the late General died when his service is needed most, his short but eventful tenure as the Chief of Army Staff and over three decades of dedicated, selfless and patriotic service will never be forgotten.

He prayed Almighty Allah to forgive Late Lieutenant General Ibrahim Attahiru and to grant him Alijannat Firidaus as well besiege God to grant the nation, the Military constituency and his beloved family the fortitude to bear the irreplaceable loss.

Friends, family members and associates of a Nigerian Air Force pilot, Flt Lt Alfred Ayodeji Olufade, are inconsolable at the moment as the young officer, who recently got married, died when a Beachcraft 350 aircraft crashed at the Kaduna International Airport on Friday.

Olufade and the newly appointed Chief of Army Staff, Lt. Gen. Ibrahim Attahiru, as well as nine other military personnel were onboard the jet when it crashed around 6pm on Friday. The 11 souls died in the tragic incident.

Friends and associates of Olufade have since taken to the social media to express raw grief over the sad demise of the officer.

A tweep, @Sir_KB, wrote, “My heart is in pain. I lost my friend. Flight Lt. AA Olufade. He got hitched months back and often teased me to get out of the bachelorhood. Rest well Freddy.”

@OvieNews said, “Rest in Peace Alfred. Flight Lt. AA Olufade just married two months ago. Our Heroes.”

Also, @SodyBar stated, “Olufade is a close associate. He got married February this year. We’re all disheartened!”

“We’re all saddened by his death. Everyone affiliated with Kuje seminary will surely miss him. May the Almighty grant you eternal rest,” @EmekaWilfred wrote.

Tragic! COAS, 10 others dead as plane crashes in Kaduna bad weather
Attahiru: NAF jet crashed due to bad weather, DHQ reveals
@ogunwens tweeted, “We are all in pain, may his soul and others rest in peace. May their deaths not be in vain. My family and I salute our heroes.”

“Aaaaah Alfred, hmmm this is so devastating and unbelievable. May God almighty grant you eternal rest and comfort your entire family,” tweeted another associate, @Sweetne05954276.

The PUNCH reports that at least 20 military officers have lost their lives in the last three months in three crashes involving Nigerian Air Force jets.

On Sunday, February 21, 2021, seven NAF officers died onboard a Beechcraft KingAir B350i aircraft when the jet crashed in Abuja.

Also, on Wednesday, March 31, 2021, NAF spokesman, Air Commodore Edward Gabkwet, said an Alpha-Jet aircraft involved in the anti-terror war against Boko Haram and Islamic State West Africa Province lost radar contact in Borno State.

Two officers were onboard the missing jet which was later declared crashed and the whereabouts of the two airmen unknown till date.