I don't think this is true. People who left the UK voluntarily do so through a UK approved refugee company called CHOICES. Through this company, the home office gives each volunteer £2000 each. They have their offices in Nigeria and other African countries too. I know families who's left the UK through this scheme and some get £4000 and above depending on number of children. This prof alexia Thomas one the other hand is a fraud who's duping vulnerable Nigerians who are stranded in the UK £1000 and above for Sham documents. She was caught in 2009 and sentenced to jail for fraud. She's also have a mental history and psychiatrists has diagnosed her to be DELUTUONAL. Please do not be deceived by all this crap she says...she's only saying one side of the story (and the wrong side that is...) and looking for blind followers
The scam artist practically admitted to being sectioned under the Mental Health Act, at one point, in this video.
^^^I see you and so many others have an emotional need to disprove the identity of this particular Chibok girl. Let's hope you sleep well with your conscience.
cramjones: While I believe that Chibok girls were kidnapped, in addition to hundreds more that the media never really focused on as the sensation that met the Chibok abduction, I have reasons to believe the girl being paraded might just be a scam to justify all the foreign aid that have been poured in for their rescue. Or a political tool to increase favorability ratings in this trying times. I hope it is real, but there are pores in this narrative to make one have some degree of doubt. Here are two reasons why I think we should all ask real and factual questions.
1. According to the official report, Amina and her colleagues were in school to sit for physics WAEC exams. She was an SS III student. The Amina that was "rescued" can cannot speak in English. She is being translated even when English is spoken to her. Do we have a Hausa version of physics? Was she really a student? Or is she simply a fake?
2. Two years ago, someone whol looks exactly like Amina was paraded by the military with a bomb strapped around her, as one of the child suicide bomber Boko Haram had sent to cause havoc. Is this just a coincidence or is that girl really Amina 2 years younger that the Amina that resurfaced two years later as a rescued girl. Kindly examine the picture and make your conclusions. What are the odds in a country of 180 million people that two girls connected with Boko Haram would look exactly alike? (Refer to the pictures)
3. Think about it, in a rescue operation of about 200 girls, is it possible that just one can be rescued at a time? I understand they maybe in splinter groups, but the army rescuing just one is very very doubtful. Amina Ali was kidnapped no doubt, but was she even a student? Was she just rescued now. Why does she look exactly like the girl kidnapped by Boko Haram that was strapped with a bomb?
There have been so many scams with Boko Haram. From a few individuals stealing 2.1billion $ to Generals carting away millions of USD in private jets, to Mama Peace becoming a Nollywood sensation on her "there is God o" mantra. I just hope that this is not another scam.
-CramJones
[/s]
Stop regaling the rest of the sane world with your tomfoolery cramjones. Your conjectures lend themselves to the most farcical logic I have encountered in a long time.
Put your thinking cap on and ask yourself if Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, who has been a thorn in the side of the ruling party for sometime now, was also in on the act.
WAEC Releases Results Of Abducted Chibok Girls
September 16, 2014
The results of the over 200 girls abducted by Boko Haram insurgents from their school in Borno State where they were writing their West African Examinations Council (WAEC) on April 14 2014, are now out.
Nigeria’s Education Minister, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau made this known on Monday when he appeared before the House of Representatives Committee on Education.
Shekarau, who was at a stakeholders meeting organised by the Committee, over the federal government’s directive to schools to resume on September 22 as against October 12 over the Ebola Virus Disease in the country, the ministry got wind of the result via a message from the WAEC.
He said the results are being studied before they will be released to the public.
According to Shekarau, this is because some of the students who were abducted had already written their examinations before they were abducted, while some wrote papers after the abduction of the girls.
Kudos to Buhari for continuing the legacy. He doesn't seem to have a problem with Jonathan's policies/projects... Nice one.
See as Amaechi rush commission ABuja/Kaduna railways line. Fashola has already admitted Jonathan built more roads that previous governments. Buhari is coasting ahead with TSA, another brainchild of Jonathan.
Sad enough, the momentum is not replicated in the agricultural sector. All in all, government is a continuum.
Stop the revisionism. Like TSA, BVN, and so many other laudable ideas touted, Jonathan lacked the sagacity to deliver modular refineries.
My research indicates Vulcan Capital and Vulcan Petroleum are two sides of the same coin. This outfit should not be confused with Vulcan Energy Corp, a distinct company with a visible track record in which Paul Allen (Microsoft) appears to hold controlling shares.
Given that Vulcan Capital nay Vulcan Capital Energy nay Vulcan Energy Solution, LLC nay Vulcan Energy, LLC nay Global Vulcan Energy (which no longer appears to be in use), etc appears to have no history of delivering a refinery anywhere in the world, but yet a litany of litigation cases, my original question stands: Should the Nigerian government have signed a MOU with a company like Vulcan Petroleum Resources?
BGT Group, Inc. v. Vulcan Capital Management, Inc. et al, Case Number: 2:2007cv00816 Filed: December 13, 2007
GLUCKMAN v. LASERLINE-VULCAN ENERGY LEASING, LLC, 601687/08 (12-17-2009)
VULCAN ENERGY SOLUTIONS, L.L.C. et al v. ADAMS
Hero operated in the mode of a drunken emperor who twiddled his thumb, while predatory hawks spirited away his nation's earning. Tell the truth, shame the devil.
@All,
Having debunked the notion that Vulcan Petroleum Resources is in fact capable of delivering six new oil refineries, I think it is time we beamed the spotlight on its local partner - Petroleum Refining and Strategic Reserve Ltd (headed by Chief Edozie Njoku).
It is of equal concern to me that nothing of substance has been uncovered on the later company.
Btw, like Kobojunkie, I did spend quality time this afternoon ringing various phone #s listed for some of the Vulcan entities before delving a little deeper, in anger angry
you would find for instance that during their heroes regime, these same noiseakers screaming rule of law cheered as team gej abused the rule of law and used federal might to intimidate the opposition
when soldiers were deployed outside tinubu's residence, they cheered. when initial reports of ekitigate came out, they were kampeing
all of a sudden, when people who have destroyed this country are being tried within the auspices of law the gejites have suddenly become overnight champions of rule of law
understand that they are like republicans who would do anything in their power to stop anything from obama. everything the gejites have done before and after the election is straight out of the gop playbook. obama birther - buhari certificate ; their burning desire is for buhari to fail
they will blame everyone but gej for gej's thieving incompetence
oyb, oh, I recognise their perfidy all too well. These are untutored urchins who employ a limitless amount of bigotry to shore up their deficiency in moral scruples.
Were these not the same individuals who wanted photographic evidence of the $15 million dollar bribe Ibori tendered to Ribadu - the same money Delta State Government went to court to retrieve...
Please try & be empathic towards the likes of SeverusSnape , Jegas' 1st of April 2015 announcement did a serious leg over move over his emotions, the kind of ish people don't get over easily..
Opposition to them isn't about conviction, it's 100% emotion... but humanity & healing entails that one shouldn't kick down & put folks.. understanding is key!
We will continue to keep the faith, if e better for naija, na for the benefit of ALL...
Modath, I hear your wise counsel. You will notice that I avoided counting the fingers of a man who has only nine in his presence, when I opted for admonition with compassion.
You don't just transfer recovered money into the treasury.You put it in a suspense acct until investigatoions are 100% complete and cases have been closed...
You again? In this instance, severus Snape is the Nigerian government, right??... Good. Severus Snape is not a propagandist that will go on air to publish lies about his tenant... Heck!... Your analogy doesn't even make sense, Is Diezani owing the Nigerian government any money??... Buhari himself said some months back that they don't even have any evidence against the woman, If I don't have a strong case against my so called tenant, Then why should I churn out lies daily
My analogy does not make sense? Not even when your corrupt tenant exemplifies all the thieving bastards the government has trained its sights on?
Buhari himself said some months back that they don't even have any evidence against the woman
^^^What you quoted up there is the lazy reporting of one of Nigeria's ineffectual journalists and nothing more. I will personally put good money on the table that there is enough evidence to send Diezani to prison for a very long time.
OlivetBen: How many have been convicted and found guilty since this administration. This government has recovered huge amount of money but there is still no money in government purse. Who is actually fooling who? This is the question that is begging for answer.
Work with me...
OlivetBen, who a member of the local vigilante group, recovers $200 dollars from a thief while investigating a recent episode of armed-robbery in Ikeja.
Question: Should OlivetBen share the recovered proceeds of crime among beleaguered victims before a conviction can be secured against 'Criminal X' in court?
More lies to distract people from the incompetence of this administration.
They keep uncovering and recovering, but at the same time still borrowing to finance the budget of fraud.
Lying propagandists.
Work with me on this one, if you have enough emotional intelligence to set sentimental reasoning aside.
(1) SeverusSnape's criminally-minded tenant owes him 2 years rent and has decided not to vacate the property he occupies, despite having being served notice to quit (2) Knowing how inefficient and corrupt the court system currently is, the tenant is prepared to play as many cards as possible to prolong his now 'illegal' occupation of SeverusSnape's house (3) SeverusSnape is aware that the system is currently being reformed to expedite cases like his, and is somewhat confident that he has a good chance of wining. What is uncertain is how much will be awarded against his errant tenant and also how long it will take to reach a resolution (4) SeverusSnape's son, who was recently admitted to university, needs a sizeable amount of money for his school fees. (5) While SeverusSnape has enough to cover 60% of the fees (5), he can only raise the rest through a bank loan - which attracts low interest.
What decision does SeverusSnape make under these circumstances?
In this instance, severus Snape is the Nigerian government, right??... Good.
Severus Snape is not a propagandist that will go on air to publish lies about his tenant... Heck!... Your analogy doesn't even make sense, Is Diezani owing the Nigerian government any money??... Buhari himself said some months back that they don't even have any evidence against the woman, If I don't have a strong case against my so called tenant, Then why should I churn out lies daily
My analogy does not make sense? Not even when your corrupt tenant exemplifies all the thieving bastards the government has trained in its sights?
Buhari himself said some months back that they don't even have any evidence against the woman
^^^What you quoted up there is the lazy reporting of one of Nigeria's ineffectual journalists and nothing more. I will personally put good money on the table that there is enough evidence to send Diezani to prison for a very long time.
SeverusSnape: More lies to distract people from the incompetence of this administration, But this is Wednesday, I'm surprised this Propaganda wasn't released on Monday, Which was usually the norm.
That's how they claimed to have recovered, Some billions of Naira from Diezani's house, they also said 200 billion dollars is going to be recovered from Dubai. Okay, Let's assume all these were true; Like Fayose asked, Why then are they borrowing??
Work with me on this one, if you have enough emotional intelligence to set sentimental reasoning aside.
(1) SeverusSnape's criminally-minded tenant owes him 2 years rent and has decided not to vacate the property he occupies, despite having being served notice to quit (2) Knowing how inefficient and corrupt the court system currently is, the tenant is prepared to play as many cards as possible to prolong his now 'illegal' occupation of SeverusSnape's house (3) SeverusSnape is aware that the system is currently being reformed to expedite cases like his, and is somewhat confident that he has a good chance of wining. What is uncertain is how much will be awarded against his errant tenant and also how long it will take to reach a resolution (4) SeverusSnape's son, who was recently admitted to university, needs a sizeable amount of money for his school fees. (5) While SeverusSnape has enough to cover 60% of the fees (5), he can only raise the rest through a bank loan - which attracts low interest.
What decision does SeverusSnape make under these circumstances?
drss: d amount of lies by dis visionless govt is very shameful subsidy dues before GEJ left aso rock was N200 billion.
http://www.punchng.com/news/fg-marketers-disagree-on-outstanding-subsidy-debt/ buari dullard who claim he doen't know fuel subsidy is a pathological liar. d same buari who claim subsidy does not exist has been paying fuel subsidy in 1983-1985 wen he was military head of state. d dullard is playing politics with d life of nigerians.
Shehu said: “At the time the Buhari government came to power, about N600 billion was owed to fuel marketers in subsidy payments. Strategic fuel reserves were depleted and local refineries were not functioning.
“One of the president’s first steps was to pay off the marketers, leaving an outstanding of about N150 billion which was captured in the 2016 budget.
So the marketers who made the following claim, which needed to be verified back in December 2015, were also deluded?
Marketers told Vanguard that they are being owed about N470 billion in outstanding subsidy claims from August 1, 2014 till date.
But the PPPRA source noted that “Sometimes, marketers have only just made orders for supply of PMS, and even without dropping one litre of petrol in their tanks, they are already calculating how much they are being owed even without processing their claims.
“So it our duty to verify and certify their claims, on which basis we make recommendations to Finance to pay them.”
Another craaaapy news from the Media and kiddy investigation from EFCC, they EFCC deemed it fit to tell us the amount that was paid into her account N2.5B but could not be bold enough to tell us how much she refunded what the secreacy all about if indeed the news is true.And how come these people are not being jailed rather bargain with them and release them later, Work done to me is zero. STOP DECEIVING PEOPLE AND CREATING RELEVANCE TO YOURSELVES.
^^^It is clear that most of you have no measure of the amount of effort it takes to recover these funds. When the investigating agencies employ strong arm tactics, you complain. But when they also resort to gathering evidence painstakingly, you still complain.
Since your heightened expression of cynicism boils down to living in a system where you've never truly learnt how government works, all is forgiven
Campaign funds: Jonathan’s minister returns N23m to FG
April 24, 2016
The Director of Finance of the Goodluck Jonathan Campaign Organisation, Senator Nenadi Usman, has returned N23m to the Federal Government, SUNDAY PUNCH has learnt.
Usman was last Thursday arrested by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission for allegedly receiving N2.5bn which emanated from the Central Bank of Nigeria.
A reliable source at the EFCC told our correspondent on condition of anonymity that she had promised to return more funds.
“Nenadi Usman has been cooperating with us. In fact, she has returned N23m to the Federal Government,” he said.
Usman, who is being quizzed by the EFCC, told investigators that all she did was based on the instructions of Jonathan, adding that she did not know that the funds belonged to taxpayers.
According to the source, Usman told investigators that as the Director of Finance of the Peoples Democratic Party Presidential Campaign Organisation, she was asked to set up a bank account during the build-up to the election, which she did.
She allegedly said all donations were made to Jonathan’s campaign through Joint Trust Dimensions Nigeria Limited and it was through the said account that funds were released to all campaign directors, zonal coordinators and other related parties and groups which campaigned for the PDP.
It was through the same account that the Director of Publicity, Femi Fani-Kayode, was paid N840m. It was also through the same account that the Chairman of the Social Democratic Party, Chief Olu Falae, and Rashidi Ladoja, allegedly received N100m each.
Ex-political adviser to Jonathan, Prof. Rufai Alkali, who was the Coordinator of the Goodluck Support Group, allegedly collected N320m on behalf of the group while several governorship candidates of the PDP equally received money from the account.
However, the EFCC source said, “She told us that she did not know the funds belonged to the Federal Government. However, we asked her why she didn’t verify and also why didn’t she set up an account bearing the name of the PDP. Why did she use her company account if not that she wanted to keep things secret.”
Meanwhile, one of the campaign managers of Jonathan’s re-election campaign said the National Intelligence Agency was aware of the alleged diversion of funds from the CBN.
It was reported that N4bn was transferred from the account of the CBN into a mysterious account known as the Ministry of External Affairs Library before it was moved to an account known as Joint Trust Dimensions Nigeria Limited which is controlled by Usman.
However, the source said the account was set up by the NIA, which is under the Office of the National Security Adviser.
It was learnt that some officials of the NIA had been quizzed by the EFCC to explain why the account was set up.
A reliable source said, “During the build-up to the last elections, when monies were going to be diverted from the account of the CBN, the Ministry of External Affairs Library was set up with the connivance of officials of the NIA. It was done so that the transaction would seem as if the money was being transferred to a Federal Government account and it would not raise any red flags. The Permanent Secretary at the Villa then drew up a memo on the instructions of the President and the CBN deposited the funds into the account of the Ministry of External Affairs.
“From there, the money was paid into Joint Trust Dimensions Nigeria Limited, from where monies were sent to all stakeholders during the electioneering. Preliminary investigations however suggest that the Ministry of External Affairs Library does not even exist.”
From the Ministry of External Affairs Library, N2.5bn was transferred to Joint Trust Dimensions Nigeria Limited while N140m cash was allegedly paid into her Zenith Bank Account with number, 1000158311, domiciled on 7, Kachia Road, Kaduna.
In a related development, security experts have called for investigation into the alleged diversion of N4bn through the NIA.
A former Lagos State Commissioner of Police, Alhaji Abubakar Tsav, said if it was true that the agency was used for money laundering, this means it had lost credibility.
“If they are using NIA for money laundering, it means it has lost credibility. If it was being used for money laundering, a crime against the nation, this means that NIA has totally lost credibility.”
Another security analyst, Max Gbanite, said it was unlawful for politicians to use an intelligence agency to divert public funds, adding that officers involved in the alleged crime should be interrogated and made to explain what transpired. “Politicians have been embezzling money before now, but if politicians used the NIA to divert money, it is criminal and the officers in the agency need to be interrogated,” Gbanite said.
There I was thinking that the Ministry of Education had finally settled for a modern and fit-for-purpose curriculum, without realising that some silly blogger had simply offered his own erroneous interpretation of events...
You can swear with your life as well. But did Buhari tell you he wrote that letter?
Talking about form 6 at which year, 1961?
You are not serious. Again, you are indirectly telling the world that wirh all your educational qualifications, Buhari is still better than you. I don't jealous you at all!
No wonder you prefer illiteracy to education. Sorry ooooh!
Gamusgamus: yes in 1961 till late 1985 there was nothing like form six , 6 3 3 4 system actually kicked off in 1987,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,, hhmmmm, WHO IS BENT ON RIDICULING OUR PRESIDENT NAH DSS TAKE OVER.
idupaul: Clearly another poor forgery designed to replace his missing cert ..please can we see this man's result so he can rest
^^^Why don't you ignorant nitwits ever stick to what you know?
References: [1] SASNETT, M. & S., Inez. (1966). Educational Systems of Africa: Interpretations for Use in the Evaluation of Academic Credentials. -. [2] Luckham, R. (1974). The Nigerian Military: A Sociological Analysis of Authority and Revolt 1960-67 (Revised ed. edition). Cambridge University Press.
lol at all those news sites which did not even give us link to the bogus report from IPOD. So because we got into Ivy league meant we have become the most brilliant. Compared to the Yorubas who are the most educated group in Nigeria. The only people who have all the youngest Phd holders in Africa and some of the best in the world.
Victor Olalusi ,was the only student to have swept 5.0 CGPA in far away Russia where technology reigns as in America. Yorubas are the only people with 2 Nobel Laureates in Africa etc.Chuck your bogus report into your blockoss. You are comparing somebody who is on the starting line of a race to a winner.YOU ARE ALL CLOWNS. America would not be dumb to pick losers as anything other than what they really are.
Never mind the clowns. I see someone has decided to recycle the bogus claims of exceptionalism yet again. And as expected, the usual suspects are right here - inverting data for self-serving purposes.
Babacele: Cambridge and Premium Times published Buharis certificate. Obviously you are the illiterate here. very obvious. talk make I expose your ignorance which is influencing your myopic views.
Erm..PT published Buhari's statement of results and not his certificate. While the examination board in Cambridge only confirmed that students were tested in Hausa, at the time Buhari took his exams.
Wait a minute, never mind the slight misrepresentation in your post, I thought we were already done with that particular subject. What clown is still disputing the fact that Buhari joined the army on merit?
Title: Graduate students, Harvard Law School Class of 1980 Work Type: photographs; gelatin silver prints Date: 1979-1980 Description: +/- 110 people posed standing in front of Langdell Hall, Harvard Law School campus, printed recto below image ?Graduate Students - Harvard Law School - 1979-1980?. Dimensions: 25.3 x 35.5 cm. Associated Name: Harvard Law School (1817- ). Class of 1980., Cambridge, MA, United States, subject Topics: law students; group portraits; law teachers Materials/Techniques: paper gelatin silver process Note: General: Forms part of Photographs of Harvard Law School Students: Class Pictures, ca. 1875 - present. Subject: Separate page included with photograph identifies the sitters. Row 1 (left to right): Soon Sian Alan Ow, Romulo Torres-Bello, Niranjan Patel, Anne-Marijke Guillaud, Myrna Feliciano, Shaid Iqbal, In Young Lee, Tim Mweseli, Prof. Oliver Oldman, Dean Albert Sacks, Prof. Arthur von Mehren, Jose Alvarado, Christine Ropers-Barry, George tsangaras, Khemchai Chutiwongse, Wanish Sribua-Iam, Maria Garcia, Brenda Hannigan, Angelina Mornah. Row 1 (left to right): Joese Caparo, Damir nagler, Isabel Clapman, Song Yook Hong, Gail Kuekan (staff), Vincente Garcia, Neil Finkelstein, Jussi Kivisto, Ricardo Francis-Lajara, Harry Reicher, Nicholas Hamblen, Helen Papaconstantinou, Jose Trenas, Diego Martin del Campo. Row 3 (left to right): Cheng-Tai Hsai, Satoru Hattori, Chris Sunt, Charlotte Klenow, Mohan Gopal, Hector Faundez-Ledesma. Row 4 (left to right): Christine Ma, William Bogart, Alistair Brown, Mauricio Baca, Marie Cadet, Asst. Dean David Smith, Marie-France Bich, Henry Rigney, tithiphan Chuerboonchai, Susumu Miyoshi, Pat Youngblood, Scott Ehrlich, Scott Fairley, Filip Dierckx, Marion Kennedy, Ebrahim Asvat, Frances Olsen, Dominique Berset, Kyoko Yasuda, Cecilia Hsu, Yoshiko Kakishima, Jun Okumura, Kon Sik Kim, Toshiaki Kitaato, Neil Gotanda. Row 5 (left to right): Ying Jeow Ma, Koshi Yamaguchi, Jacqueline Parker, Hisashi Hara, Christopher Out Quaye, Daniel Finn, Alan Leadbetter, Masao Nishio, Guiwon Kang, Kazumichi Matsuki, Henk Vreeman, Emmanuel Kachikwu, Thorgeir Orlyggson, Marco Stoffel, Wendy Leney (staff), Yasuharu Yoneda, Fred Bernardi. Row 6 (left to right): Martin Daviews, Jose Morales, Toru Ishijima, Tetsuo Yamashita, Henrique Vazquez, Jin Sae Kim, Juan Olaechea, Akira Hatoyama, David McDonald, Jan Stiglitz, James Riley. Row 7 (left to right): Asst. Dean Frederick Snyder, Mary Pistolese (staff), Rudolf Tschani, Nicholas Bala, Douglas Stollery, Norman Larsen, Betzalel Reshef, Ramiro Nunez, Micheline Langlois, Eduardo Siqueiros, Bibiana Hernandez. Row 8 (left to right): Judith Butchers, Elijah Legwaila, Michael Taggert, Thomas Volkmann-Schluck, Dieter Zwicker, Dietrich Rethorn, Michiaki Ozaki, Herbert Hovenkamp, Fernando estandia Gonzalez Luna, Xavier Larnaudie de Ferrand, Charles Schwartz. Repository: Harvard Law School Library
To the best of my knowledge, its only kachikwu that is claiming to be an Harvard alumni. If you know any other Harvard alumni, abeg drop their name so we go check their record!
You don't make up claims about attending an institution like Harvard unless you are hell-bent on a future life of ignominy.
Budget Scandal: Top Civil Servants May Be Fired For Sabotaging President Buhari’s Budget
FEB 06, 2016
SaharaReporters has learned that the Muhammadu Buhari administration was considering firing several top civil servants who acted in various ways to sabotage or undermine the government’s efforts to produce budget proposals that reflected financial prudence and frugality. Two top administration sources told our correspondent that “bureaucratic resistance and entrenched systemic corrupt practices dogged every move by the Presidency during the preparation of the 2016 budget,” adding that Mr. Buhari had ordered that culpable bureaucrats be identified, fired or demoted.
One source stated that, after learning that the Presidency was considering a large budget of possibly N8 trillion in order to significantly increase capital expenditure, some bureaucrats jacked up the budget proposal to N9.7 trillion for overhead and capital spending, even without personnel spending. Of the proposed N9.7 trillion, the bureaucrats had proposed that an alarming N3 trillion be spent on overhead alone, but the Presidency eventually slashed the figure to N163 billion, lower by 8% than the 2015 budget which was N177 billion. “This indicated that the Buhari administration significantly cut some of the main provisions,” the source said.
Bureaucrats also proposed to spend N2.1 trillion on personnel for the 2016 estimates compared to N1.8 trillion in the 2015 budget. However, the Presidency also cut this down to N1.7 trillion in the final estimates sent to the National Assembly. According to our source, President Buhari found the bureaucrats’ games infuriating, but decided to maintain his cool in order to meet the deadline for presentation of the budget in line with the laws and regulations governing the budget process. “While Mr. President has always stood for prudence and against waste, the bureaucrats were sneaking in controversial provisions that clearly didn’t represent the president’s standards and priorities,” said our source. He added: “Anybody who knows the president would realize that he could not have approved or endorsed some of the questionable provisions.”
Our sources disclosed that many of the controversial provisions in the budget were essentially smuggled in by what one of them described as “the budget mafia in the civil service, made up of people who consider the period of budgeting as their time of massive opportunity to arrange the stealing of public funds.” The sources assured that several top civil servants involved in the “resistance” would be fired soon. There has been fierce public criticism of controversial provisions in the budget. Our investigation revealed that the bureaucratic opposition began when the Presidency decided to engage the skills of experts to help in the budgeting process, especially to ensure the adoption of the zero-based budgeting instead of the “usual envelope and incremental system used in years past by the federal government.” Zero-based budgeting requires a focus on need and costs rather than the former system that merely transfers expenses from previous budgets, but with added upward reviews. One administration official disclosed that the “old approach, which is mastered by bureaucrats, often leads to several acts of corruption both by civil servants and political appointees.”
The Presidency had made it clear to officials of the then Budget Office and then National Planning Commission that it planned to adopt the zero-based budgeting process. Even so, bureaucrats in the departments, which were merged into the new Ministry of Budget and National Planning, refused to brief their minister, Udoma Udo Udoma, on the zero-based budget.“For weeks after the minister was sworn in, the civil servants continued to plan on the old budget model, stalling the decision to use the zero-based budget until Mr. Udoma, a former senator, found out from the Presidency. Our correspondent learned that the bureaucratic stalling led to a huge waste of valuable time, with the civil servants calculating that the Presidency would be forced to abandon the zero-based budget once time was running out. However, by early December, Mr. Udoma and the Presidency regrouped the budget planning efforts around the zero-based budget. An expert who was brought in to facilitate the new process told our correspondent that some bureaucrats still found ways to sabotage the process. “They took longer than required to come back with revisions to their estimates. In the process, many of the provisions already marked down for revision simply got snuck in, effectively pushing the
Presidency into the defensive in the face of public backlash,” he said. A presidential aide added that many provisions that have drawn the ire of the public managed to sail through the budget, which has more than 6,000 items in all, “because some of the civil servants who were meant to supervise the final product were also hostile to the zero-based process. So their uncooperative attitude just compounded the problem.”
The source, who assured that the embarrassing problems would never crop up in future budgets, pointed to an example where Bureau of Public Procurement, the agency of government responsible for maintaining a price reference list, could not provide an updated list. “The list should be updated quarterly, but the bureau “maintained a list prepared in 2013,” said the source.
The source added, “Some people were so bent on exploiting the system that the time was simply not sufficient to stop them. But since the budget is only an estimate, the implementation part now offers the Presidency the opportunity to tame the corrupt intentions and practices.” According to an expert who helped in the budget planning, “We were virtually doing vigils to beat the time since the budget had to be presented before the end of the year to the National Assembly. And while some of the civil servants eventually cooperated, those who were resistant caused the insertions of many of the provisions that are now embarrassing the government.” On the duplications that were rife in the budget proposals, the expert explained that it was “due to the difficulty experienced by the software that had been in use for planning the budget in the past. That software does not easily accommodate the zero-based budget template.”
Politics / Re: Tinubu As A Leader Is Responsible For His Own Misfortunes ~ Fayemi by OnReflection: 2:45am On Nov 21, 2016 
