News
FEC approves N1.9trn to NNPCL to construct 44 roads under tax credit policy
The Federal Executive Council (FEC), presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, yesterday, approved the proposal for the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) to invest N1.9 trillion in the reconstruction of 44 federal roads under the tax credit policy.
Of this amount, N215.3 billion would be spent on South South and South East roads.
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity Office of the Vice President, Laolu Akande,, who briefed journalists after the meeting said FEC approved the recommendation to invest in the reconstruction of selected federal roads under the Federal Government Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Policy Phase 2 by the NNPCL and its subsidiaries.
He said: “So, the council approved the proposal by the Ministry of Works and Housing for the reconstruction of 44 proposed federal roads with a total length of 4,554 kilometers in the total sum of N1.9trillion.”
The approval is coming 15 months after the NNPCL expressed interest in investing in the reconstruction of selected federal roads in order to sustain a smooth supply and distribution of petroleum products across the country.
President Buhari had on January 25, 2019, signed the Executive Order 007 which was the instrument that brought about the Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment Investment Tax Credit Scheme, with the aim to unlocking funding from the private sector to critical road infrastructure in the country.
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The Executive Order 007 was designed to empower private companies to finance construction or refurbishment of federal roads designated as “Eligible Roads” under the scheme and recoup their investments through deduction of the approved total costs expended on the project from their annual Companies Income Tax.
The Road Infrastructure Scheme is a Public-Private Partnership intervention that enables the Federal Government to leverage private sector capital and efficiency for the construction and refurbishment of critical road infrastructure in key economic areas in Nigeria
Under the initiative, the private participants of the scheme provide the funds for the construction or refurbishment projects and in exchange, the participants are entitled to recoup the funds provided as a credit against the Companies Income Tax they are expected to repay. Under the initial programme, the NNPC is currently constructing a total of 1,804.6 kilometres of roads at a total cost of N621,237,143,897.35
A breakdown of the project funding showed that the North-Central geo-political zone, made up of Federal Capital Territory, Benue, Kogi, Kwara, Nasarawa, Niger, and Plateau States, got. the highest chunk of N244.87bn for the construction of 791.1 kilometres of road
The South-South geo-political zone, comprising Akwa-Ibom, Bayelsa, Cross-River, Delta, Edo, and Rivers state, emerged the second highest beneficiary of the NNPCL Road Infrastructure Development and Refurbishment project with N172.02bn for a total of 81.9 kilometres of road.
he South West, made up of Ekiti, Lagos, Osun, Ondo, Ogun, and Oyo States, followed with a total allocation of N81.87bn for the construction of 252.7 kilometres of roads.
The NNPCL allocated N56.12bn to the North-East, comprising Adamawa, Bauchi, Borno, Gombe, Taraba, and Yobe states,the construction of 273.35 kilometres of roads under the scheme.
The South East geo-political zone; the zone is made up of five states, comprising Abia, Anambra, Ebonyi, Enugu,and Imo.states, got N43.28bn allocation for the construction/rehabilitation of 122 kilometres of road.
The NNPC allocated N23.05 billion for the rehabilitation of 283.5 kilometres of road to North West geo-political zone, made up of Kaduna, Katsina, Kano, Kebbi, Sokoto, Jigawa, and Zamfara States. The road projects are being funded by NNPC and the equivalent amount is deducted by the Federal Inland Revenue Service from the National Oil Company’s tax obligations.
Minister of Environment, Mohammed Abdullahi said Council approved the procurement of 31 project vehicles for the hydrocarbon pollution remediation projects in Ogoni land.
He recalled that in December 2022, FEC had approved some projects for Ogoni and remediation of some polluted site.
“In view of the fact that we are going to inspect on a regular basis, experts from outside the country, there’s a need to provide project vehicles so that they can effectively inspect, supervise and monitor the remediation exercise. FEC today approved the sum of N1,354,016,250 in favor of Messers Mujav automobile Nigeria limited to provide 31 number of vehicles for the project. These include one 18-seater Toyota Hiece bus, one 30-seater Toyota coaster bus, they’re all supposed to be 2022 models. Then 11 Toyota Hilux double cabin four will drive also to 2022 model, diesel engine. Then 15 numbers Toyota Hilux double cabin four wheel drives, diesel and petrol engine also 2022 models. Then one Toyota Landcruiser twin turbo 2022 model and lastly two unit of Land Cruiser V6 Prada for the projects. Only 31 vehicles were approved for the hydrocarbon pollution remediation project to ensure effective supervision of the project particularly delimitation sites.“
Sun
News
Under-pressure AIG Okolo says state police comment personal opinion, not IGP’s
Under-pressure AIG Okolo says state police comment personal opinion, not IGP’s
Inspector-General of Police in charge of Information, Communications and Technology (ICT) at the Force Headquarters, Benjamin Okolo, may have been under pressure for saying Nigeria is not ripe for state police.
Since he represented the Inspector General of Police, Kayode Egbetokun, at a forum on Monday with former Nigeria’s presidents and leaders of thoughts, the statement was simply attributed to the IGP.
It was at a national dialogue on state police organised by the House of Representatives in Abuja.
Okolo however on Tuesday retracted the comment, saying he was not directed by IGP Egbetokun to disagree with the position of former Head of State, Gen. Abdulsalam Abubakar, and the former President, Goodluck Jonathan, on the issue of state police at the forum.
Okolo had also proposed that the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC) and the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) be merged to become a department under the police.
Newstrends had quoted Okolo as saying at the Monday forum, “It is the submission of the leadership of the Nigeria police force that Nigeria is yet to mature and ready for the establishment of state-controlled police.
“In view of this, the police leadership rather is recommending the following instead of creating state police.
“First, the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, Federal Road Safety to form a department under the Nigeria police.”
But in a U-turn, Okolo, at a press briefing at the Force Headquarters, Abuja on Tuesday, said he only made the comment in his personal capacity to stimulate the discourse, and not the official position of the IGP and the police force.
He said, “My expressions on state police at the session held at Abuja Continental Hotel on 22nd April, 2024 are my personal opinion to stimulate the discourse.
“They are not the views of the Inspector-General of Police or the Nigeria Police Force.”
News
Shun politicking, FG tells new 17 Chargé D’affaires, Consuls General
Shun politicking, FG tells new 17 Chargé D’affaires, Consuls General
The Federal Government has advised newly appointed five new Chargé D’affaires and 12 Consuls General to the nation’s mission in other countries to shun politicking and focus strictly on their job.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Ambassador Yusuf Tuggar, gave the charge while unveiling the new appointees on Tuesday.
He also charged them to be good ambassadors of Nigeria.
A statement by Alkasim Abdulkadir, the minister’s Special Assistant on Media and Communications Strategy, gave these details.
While asserting that they were pivotal to the economic drive of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, Tuggar further stressed that as seasoned career diplomats, they should recommit themselves to their calling of diplomacy for the collective interest and development of Nigeria.
Reacting on behalf of the new appointees, the just appointed Consul General for the Consulate in New York, Ambassador Abubakar Jidda, reiterated the commitment of his colleagues to uphold the ethos of the profession and pledged to bring the much-needed investments to the country.
He thanked President Bola Tinubu and the leadership of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs for the confidence reposed in them.
The new appointees are to resume immediately, the statement added.
FULL LIST:
Chargé D’affaires
Amb. Saidu Mohammed DODO, Damascus, Syria
Amb. Patrick Imoudu, IMOLOGHOME Pyongyang, Democratic Peoples’ Republic of Korea
Amb. Francisca Kemi OMAYULI
Singapore, Singapore
Amb. Babagana AHMADU
Bangui, Central African Republic
Amb. Mohammed MOHAMMED
Tripoli, Libya.
Consul General Conuslate
Amb. Auwalu Jega NAMADINA
Atlanta, USA
Amb. Nnamdi Okechukwu NZE
Bata, Equatorial Guinea
Amb. Francis Ntui ENYA
Douala, Cameroon
Amb. Gbadebo AFOLABI
Shanghai, China
Amb. Oludare Ezekiel FOLOWOSELE
Hong Kong, China
Amb. Abubakar JIDDA
New York, USA
Amb. Yakubu Audu DADU
Frankfurt, Germany
Amb. Taofik Obasanjo Coker
Buea, Cameroon
Amb. George Collins ONWUEKWE
Guangzhou, China
Amb. Umar Ibrahim BASHIR
Johannesburg, South Africa
Amb. Zayyan IBRAHIM
Dubai, UAE
Amb. Muazam Ibrahim Jibrin NAYAYA
Jeddah, Saudi Arabia
News
Produce copy of invitation to me, Bello challenges EFCC
Produce copy of invitation to me, Bello challenges EFCC
The former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, refuted allegations that he disregarded an invitation from the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
According to the EFCC, Bello was summoned for interrogation on January 27 this year but failed to appear, leading to a declaration of him as a fugitive after an unsuccessful attempt to apprehend him at his Abuja residence.
In response to this claim, Bello’s media office issued a statement on Tuesday, challenging the accusations and urging the anti-graft agency to produce a copy of the invitation letter.
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The statement read, “Our attention has been drawn to a publication/press statement with the above title, issued by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) on Monday, 22nd April, 2024, and signed by Wilson Uwujaren, its Acting Director of Public Affairs.
“In the said statement, which the Commission carefully circulated widely as usual, Mr. Uwujaren, who we have to believe is not a lawyer, continues the EFCC’s ongoing unconscionable lies against the former Governor of Kogi State, His Excellency, Yahaya Bello, CON, by labelling him as a fugitive from justice in order to disingenuously justify their established and willful pattern of defying lawful court orders.
“Contrary to Mr. Uwujaren’s claims, official records and court documents relating to their hounding of Alhaji Yahaya Bello establish a clear timeline of events. These documents are endorsed with dates and times of filing and payments, which are endorsed on court processes – all of which testify to the true sequence of events.”
The statement, signed by Ohiare Michael from Bello’s media office, dismissed the EFCC’s assertions and accused the agency of resorting to intimidation and harassment. It emphasized that while Bello respects the rule of law, he is not afraid of the EFCC.
Produce copy of invitation to me, Bello challenges EFCC
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