Ngwakwe: See Common Entrance questions.

All I can see are antagonistic questions borne out of low self esteem and desire to showcase Paper knowledge devoid of practical experience.

Now I understand why the Committee Chairman couldn't engage and debate NOI orally without prior written answers to his elementary questions.

Let's take the questions one after the other and provide answers to honourable Chairman without NOI input.

How are these questions antagonistic or intended to showcase 'paper knowledge'?

I really don't understand many Nigerians!

On one hand, you guys complain that the over-paid House of Reps members are idle and not doing enough. On the other hand, you're condemning them for performing an indepth oversight function on the Finance Ministry. What do you want? How do you want them to go about it?

Which of these 50 questions are useless?

If you were patriotic, the question you should be putting to the House of Reps and the Senate is why are they not giving this same treatment or putting similar questions to ALL the other Ministers?

Good questions. Incisive issues.

Are these the questions she wanted to address verbally even though she wasn't feeling fine?

dexpee4life: It is a shame that the country Nigeria has no opposition party. The aforementioned APC is just occupied by the outlaws and frustrated individuals of PDP that has once stolen from the country under the umbrella platform. Its a mirror of PDP. Its a shame that PDP has infiltrated the APC. Waiting for the OBJ's declaration for APC. Shame on my friend Buhari and Tunubu that has succumbed to these elements. The Next APC Board of trustees chairman is Olushegun Obasanjor

You have a good point, at least in theory.

But if you were the one that formed APC, which politicians would you have invited there with a view to wresting power at the national level in 2015?

manny4life:

[bold] FIRS is just an agency that collects tax revenues such as "TAX RECEIPTS", as well revenues from other govt entities like the Port Service Systems, Airport Operations revenue and what not. Any FG agency that has exclusive and directive supervision of the executive will report their revenues to FIRS. [/bold] FIRS account IS NOT the federation account, the federation account is managed by the Office of the Accountant General of the Federation.

However, independent agencies like the NNPC will report accrued profits and oil revenues to the Accountant General who manages the FAAC account. Money realized from crude oil sales is deposited into the "FEDERATION ACCOUNT", then the 13% derivation takes place, and then the other is shared among the FG, FCT, States and LG.

There is a mix up here and some things need to be cleared up.

FIRS is about federally collected taxes (e.g. Company tax, VAT, etc) only. The other federal agencies and parastatals DO NOT remit or 'report' their revenues to the FIRS.

In fact, those agencies (e.g. NNPC, CBN, NCAA, NCS, NPA, NIS, NIMASA, BPE, FAAN, etc) and FIRS itself all remit their surplus revenues to the Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF).

OMO IBO: I believe these politicians are more scared of okonjo iweala than jonathan. The fact that she's good with numbers and can give as good as she gets. . .

I'd wager not many people can look ngozi straight in the eyes

This is not a compliment to the President.

You're saying some people are more scared of a President's appointee because 'she's good with numbers and can give as good as she gets...'

Are you one of the 'haters' of our President?

gtrust:

Presentation of the budget if the job of the Minister for Finance in a Presidential system of Government and the Chancellor of the Exchequer in a Paliamentary system.

According to Section 81 of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 1999, “the President shall cause to be prepared and laid before each House of the National Assembly at any time in each financial year estimates of the revenues and expenditure of the Federation for the next following financial year”.

Do you have something else to say to this?

Ngwakwe: The Political Climate in Nigeria is highly polarised, moreover, economics of budgeting is not his forte as some disgruntled law makers may wish to challenge and expose his weaknesses during the presentation (by demanding facts and figures) in a bid to ridicule and render him unelected come 2015.

This is just a calculated risk which he thinks will favour him for now.

In life, it's not every situation that you can have fitting answers for or bend to suit what you want.

When you come across such situations, just lie low, ignore it, endure it or keep quiet and let it pass. Such situations always pass away.

But when you forcefully attempt to bend the situation or spin it to your whims, many people would begin to question how you think.

This post that you have written is not nice at all.

gtrust:

The Chancellor of the Exchequer 'oversees' the financial status of ALL departments (ministeries).
That is her job!
You as a minister will develop your programmes and budget them and come and defend them with the ministry of finance and then it goes to the presidency for approval and allocation.

There is due deligence in government, you don't just do things any-how without coordination.

1. Who will present the budget of the Ministry of Finance?

2. Are these 'coordination' functions NEW in Nigeria?

3. Won't she perform the functions without being designated the Coordinating Minister or is it the designation that's making her perform the functions?

ilugunboy:

You really want to dig deep into Afam deficiencies this afternoon...

Dude is profoundly naive in democratic political establishments and administration.

Just be watching us

That Coordinating Minister title is a funny contraption which should not even be brought up by Jonathan's supporters because it's capable of creating confusion and portraying the President as a confused person.

The title was probably couched to lure her into taking the job and makes no sense in a presidential system of government.

gtrust:

In most civilized Nations, the office of minister for finance and headed by the finance mininster ALWAYS presents the budget!
Check it out.
You can even watch United Kingdom budget presentation right now on YouTube!
It is usually a big occasion when you see the minister for finance (chancellor of the exchequer) carrying the 2000 years old small red briefcase and parading it infront of the media before heading to the parliament to read it.

Stop being 'sentimental without facts'!

Including the United States?

Here, Obama unveils the 2013 budget.

http://www.thv11.com/news/local/story.aspx?storyid=195839

What we are running here is a Presidential system of government.

Why is so much confusion being thrown around just to defend Jonathan?

Afam4eva:
Being called the coordinating minister is not just a title but a responsibility. Her responsibility far surpasses those of the other ministers as she's charged with the responsibility of overseeing other ministries in a monitoring capacity. Like i stated in my last comment, Nigerian presidents are more or less figure-heads and can be aptly described as "defact ceremonial presidents".

1. A new nomenclature or title was created for her. That title is 'Coordinating Minister for the Economy'.
2. The new title is not supported by the Constitution.
3. On the basis of the new title, some people including yourself have described her as the 'defacto Prime Minister'. A few have even describe her as the 'defacto Vice President' or 'alpha and omega' of the Jonathan administration.
4. She's supposed to 'oversee' some Ministries but which Ministers are being overseen? Is doing more than she did during her first coming as Finance Minister?

Do all these portray President Jonathan in a good light?

Afam4eva:
I'm not an insider, so i wouldn't know. The long and short of the story is that the finance minister have a bigger portfolio than other minissters.

Which bigger portfolio now Afam?

Afam4eva:
Being called the coordinating minister is not just a title but a responsibility. Her responsibility far surpasses those of the other ministers as she's charged with the responsibility of overseeing other ministries in a monitoring capacity. Like i stated in my last comment, Nigerian presidents are more or less figure-heads and can be aptly described as "defact ceremonial presidents".

Which ministries does she oversee and what's the reporting relationship between the Ministers of those Ministries and the President?

Afam4eva:
When you say someone is "De facto Prime minister", it's just meant to show that the role of that person is very similar to that of a real prime minister but the person is not constitutionally empowered to be a PM. It was exactly this comment of your that made me think you may not know the meaning.

And what are those roles she's performing, apart from the mere title of the Coordinating Minister of the Economy, that she did not perform in her first coming as the Finance Minister? Mind you, no single Minister reports to her.

Why is she being described as the 'de facto Prime Minister' when we have a President that's the Head of Government, Leader of his political party, and Commander in Chief of the Armed Forces and a Vice President that acts in case the President is not available?

How did we come about this confusion?

Afam4eva:
I assume you don't know what "De facto" means.

Please tell me the meaning.

Apart from the meaning of the 'de facto Prime Minister', also tell me who the 'de facto Ceremonial President' is.

Ngwakwe:

Dr Ngozi Okonjo Iweala has been functioning as de facto Prime Minister and nothing surprising about that.

Afam4eva: Even though Ngozi Okonjo Iweala is the defacto prime minister of Nigeria .

Defacto Prime Minister? So what's the title and role of Goodluck Jonathan? Ceremonial President?

Also, is a Prime Minister function in alignment with our present Constitution?

For undisclosed reasons?

This is serious and a measure of the level of importance that's attached by the Presidency to the whole process.

Ozonna: Just saw a breaking news @ Channels TV saying that 37 HOR members decamped to APC today. This is serious.

They claim they're joining the APC due to what they described as 'division and factionalization within the PDP'. According to them, the defection is in accordance with Section 68(1G) of the Constitution.

If Vanguard were a publicly quoted company, its value would have plummeted with this denial by Iyabo.

Nonetheless, the shareholders of Vanguard should be full of prayers as an impending libel case(s) may just wipe out the company.

Seyi flower:

the problem is dat his house is actually divided

That 'divided' house may be united by this letter saga.

I won't be surprised to see Vanguard being sued on two fronts by both Iyabo Obasanjo and Olusegun Obasanjo.

With Iyabo denying the letter and no real evidence of her authorship (voice recording or signature on the letter), I don't know how Vanguard can wriggle out of a multiple libel case.

superstar1:

The whole of Nigeria is turning to nollywood comedy.

Mad followers.

Madder leadership.

Maddest political class.

It is worse than comedy.

It is tragicomedy.

Tragi-comedy: A genre that blends elements of tragedy and comedy. Tragicomedies tend to fall into two main categories; those in which a potentially tragic series of events is resolved happily and those in which the comedy has dark or bitter overtones.

What a life!

British criminal Ronnie Biggs, who took part in the 1963 Great Train Robbery, has died aged 84, his spokeswoman has confirmed.

Biggs was part of the gang which escaped with £2.6m from the Glasgow to London mail train on August 8, 1963.

He was given a 30-year sentence but escaped from Wandsworth prison in 1965.

In 2001, he returned to the UK seeking medical help but was sent to prison. He was released on compassionate grounds in 2009 after contracting pneumonia.

Biggs, who died early on Wednesday, was being cared for at the Carlton Court Care Home in East Barnet, north London.

He could not speak and had difficulty walking after a series of strokes.

He was last seen in public at the funeral of his fellow Great Train Robber, Bruce Reynolds, in March.

Christopher Pickard, ghost writer of Biggs’s autobiography, said he should be remembered as “one of the great characters of the last 50 years”.

He told BBC Radio 4′s Today programme his friend was “kind and generous” with a great sense of humour, which he retained to the end.

Biggs was the first product of the “media age” who “inherited fame while running around the world”, he said.

Biggs, Reynolds, Ronald ‘Buster’ Edwards and the other gang members wore helmets and ski masks to carry out their crime, which took place near Cheddington, Buckinghamshire.

They made off with 120 bags of money totalling £2.6m – the equivalent of £40m in today’s money.

Speaking to Nicky Campbell on Radio 1 in 2000 – before his return to the UK – Biggs said his share of the money had been £147,000.

“I squandered it totally – within three years it was all gone,” he said.

Since then he had been “living on my name only,” he added.

He said it was “totally regrettable” that train driver Jack Mills has been struck over the head during the robbery.

“I regret it fully myself – I only wish it would not have happened but there’s no way that I can put the clock back.”

Mills, who never worked again, died in 1970.

But Biggs said he did not regret the robbery and, referring to comments made by the judge in the trial, he said: “I’m totally involved in vast greed, I’m afraid.”

Peter Rayner, a former chief operating officer for British Rail who worked with Mills, said: “My view is that whilst I was, and am, critical of the Great Train Robbers and the heroes’ welcome they got, especially in light of the death of Jack Mills, my sympathies go out to his family.”

Biggs, who lived in Spain, Australia and Brazil while he was on the run, had been in prison for 15 months when he used a rope ladder to climb over the prison walls.

He had initially fled to Paris, with his wife Charmian and two sons, Farley and Chris.

In 2011, his son, Michael, told the BBC News website his father had a final wish that his ashes be spread between Brazil and London.

The BBC said two film dramas about the robbery – A Robber’s Tale and A Copper’s Tale – scheduled to be broadcast on BBC One on Wednesday and Thursday, would still go ahead.

Writer Chris Chibnall said the programmes did not focus on Biggs. The first is from the point of view of Reynolds, while the second tells the story of the police investigation.

“With anything like this your thoughts have to be with the family on a day like today,” Chibnall said.

“He has children and obviously it’s going to be a very difficult day for them.”

http://www.punchng.com/news/great-train-robber-ronnie-biggs-dies-at-84/

CHESSBOARD:

Any person picking a fight with GEJ is doomed... He might not be performing so well as ppl wanted due too bad eggs around him but brother there is a hand holding him

How come the hand that's holding him is not removing the 'bad eggs' around him?

logica: I can't believe Vanguard would go ahead and publish an unverified letter. That might signal the death of the newspaper.

A libel case might be on its way to Vanguard and I hope the Compass treatment won't be meted out to them by the courts.

The question is: who wrote this 'Iyabo's"
Letter?

Obasanjo has his issues and so does Jonathan.

I don't like Obasanjo because he blew so many opportunities and is so self-centred. However, Jonathan should address the issues contained in his letter.

By the way, Jonathan should contest the 2015 election just so that the so-called unity of this country can be tested.

Ngwakwe: President Goodluck Jonathan is then a potential Billionaire if he desires to set aside his tolerance, gentility and act like Fayemi.

When you compare the democratic qualities of GEJ, you begin to appreciate having a civilian president as the best thing that happened to Nigeria nascent democracy where freedom of information act is a law and the right to personal opinion is guaranteed.

The only country where media houses deliberately publish lies against the Government and go free. They usually start the lies with the following phrases:
Information reaching us .............
Unconfirmed report has it that .............
Our source who wish to remain anonymous...
The officer/minister etc who was not authorised to speak said ..............
Etc

Jonathan has threatened many times to to to court over libelous publications.

I think he even took Leadership newspaper to court.

I fully agree with the view of the President Jonathan here.

I only hope that he would back up his tough talk with real action. He should give them clear and 'SMART' deliverables and sack them if they don't deliver!

Fact 1: NDDC has not justified its huge allocations.

Fact 2: All these advisers, ministers and heads of parastatals are mere appointees whose names will fade into thin air with time. This period or administration shall be forever associated with Mr Goodluck Ebele Jonathan.

It's a good thing that he's admitting these bitter facts which, if had been said by say Buhari or APC or Soyinka; or even myself on this forum, would have attracted the barks or insults of his paid and rabid attack dogs.

My request is simple: let all these billions flowing and flying around get to the ordinary Nigerians regardless of their region, religion, or political affinity. People are suffering!

It's better late than never...may be there's hope afterall.

But can he go after the NDDC thieves?

packman: APC IPITY YOU

Why pity APC? Can you explain?

@topic

People need to be more careful when buying land.

On another note, did they get building approvals?

ilugunboy:

He should.....OGD ought to vomit part of stolen funds from my state's coffers.

You're bad o.

I agree sha.

Enough of corruption in the land. It's killing the people.

ilugunboy: The collaborators from the SE would soon labeled these elders as traitors....

The Elders were sent by Sanusi and Buhari.

But on a serious note, I expect more and more groups to begin to find their voices in the days ahead. It looks like more and more people are realizing that the country lacks cohesion and coordination and they don't know which way things may go politically.

odua boy: Those saboteurs will be banished from niger delta for daring to critisize our son

They are all saboteurs.

In Tukur's voice, 'the letter is unexpected and unfortunate'.

In Abati's voice, ' the letter is self-serving, hypocritical, malicious, indecent, and very disrespectful of the highest office in the land, President Jonathan has directed that none of his aides or any government official should join issues with Bayelsa Elders over it'

In Okupe's voice, 'this letter amounts to treason'.

And The Punch and Nation newspapers and Sahara Reporters better thank their stars that they were not the ones that published the 'FAKE and TREASONABLE' news.

If the Elders had been Rivers states indigenes, they would have been accused of 'subversion and disloyalty' or acting the 'script of Amaechi'.

In fact, Asari Dokubo has to deal with these Elders!

N2b!!!

Is Compass still alive? Who will pay him?

Even if Compass is alive, it will be very difficult or impossible for the company to raise this money. The premises of Compass is now desolate.


Well, except Team Fayemi wants to lift the veil of incorporation