News
FG to present 2022 appropriation bill in October
The federal government says the 2022 appropriation bill may be presented to a joint session of the national assembly in October.
Zainab Ahmed, minister of finance, budget and national planning, disclosed this during a press briefing in Abuja on Monday.
The briefing was organised for the minister to provide insight into the recent Gross Domestic Product (GDP) report for Q2 2021 published by the National Bureau of Statistics (NBS).
The minister expressed delight with the GDP report, saying it is the strongest real GDP growth the economy has recorded since Q4 2014.
On the 2022 budget, Ahmed said the federal government plans to raise half of the €6.1bn, part of external borrowing to be used to fund budget deficit, through euro bonds and the remaining half through other windows.
She said a road show will take place from October 11 after the bill has been tendered before the national assembly.
“We will be going on a road show from October 11 after we submit the budget to the national assembly,” she said.
“We will be starting with the roadshow from the Nigerian investors in Lagos and then, we will be meeting with investors in New York and UK and within that week, we will be doing the pricing as well.
“We have an approval in the 2021 budget to fund the budget deficit 50 per cent locally and 50 per cent externally.
“So, the 50 per cent external borrowing is 6.1 billion euros. We are planning to do about half of that in Eurobonds and the other half through other windows such as multilateral and bilateral sources.”
According to the 2022 budget call circular published by the Budget Office, the ministries of works and housing; finance, budget and national planning; and defence will get the highest capital allocations in the 2022 budget.
A breakdown showed that the ministry of works and housing will get the highest allocation of N352.65 billion out of the entire N1.759 trillion capital expenditure for ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) in the 2022 budget.
The ministry of finance, budget and national planning came next on the list with N158.07 billion. This amount includes N150 billion for Power Sector Recovery Programme Transfer to the Nigerian Bulk Electricity Trading (NBET).
Trailing the two ministries is defence with N128.94 billion and transport with N120.6 billion.
On the state of the nation’s borrowings, the minister said the government is borrowing “sensibly and responsibly”.
Ahmed said the borrowings have resulted in investment in infrastructure such as rail lines which would yield future returns.
“We are borrowing sensibly responsibly to invest on infrastructures in rail and other infrastructures like rail,” she said.
“These investments will make returns in future. If we do not do these investments, we will regret. These investments will return revenue in the future.”
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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