Restructuring: N’assembly opposes southern govs, Igbo youths, Ladoja okay call – Newstrends
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Restructuring: N’assembly opposes southern govs, Igbo youths, Ladoja okay call

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4 years ago

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Leaders of the National Assembly have rubbished the call by governors of the southern states South’s governors for a convocation of a national conference on security and restructuring of the country.
The governors’ call for an urgent national dialogue, bold steps to restructure the country, total ban on open grazing and for President Muhammadu Buhari to address the nation was faulted by Senate President Ahmad Lawan and House of Representatives Speaker Femi Gbajabiamila on Thursday.
This is contrary to the support of the call got by senators from the South and members of the House of Representatives from the South.
Lawan accused the governors of retreating to regionalism to address a national issue that should be collectively decided upon.
Gbajabiamila, in the same vein, said to end the security challenge, all must ‘imbibe the spirit of oneness, togetherness, unity and love.”
Former Nasarawa State Governor Abdulahi Adamu, a senator representing Nasarawa West, accused the governors of “betraying the trust.”
But a former Oyo State Governor Rashidi Ladoja, Igbo youths and minority party members of the House of Representatives from the North gave their blessing.
Lawan and Gbajabiamila spoke at the Presidential Villa in Abuja after the prayer along with President Buhari.
Senator Adamu spoke in Keffi, Nasarawa State, also after observing the prayers.
Lawan said, “I believe that, as leaders, especially those of us who are elected, should not be at the forefront of calling for this kind of thing because, even if you are a governor, you are supposed to be working hard in your state to ensure that this restructuring you are calling for at the federal level, you have done it in your state as well.
“What you may accuse the Federal Government of, whatever it is, you may also be accused of the same thing in your state. So, we are supposed to ensure that we have a complete and total way of ensuring that our systems at the federal, state and even local government levels work for the people.
“We should avoid regionalism. We are all leaders and we are in this together. The solutions to our challenges must come from us regardless of what level of government we are, whether at the federal, state or the local government level. I believe that Nigeria is going to come out of these challenges stronger.”
Lawan added, “I also want to take this opportunity to say that we have diminished the local government system. I think we can attribute the security issues to the absence of a functional local government system.
“I think the time has come for us to take up the challenge and ensure that the local government system functions. This is as we look for ways to curb the security challenge. We must never neglect the local government system. We must go back to our local government system to ensure they are autonomous and functional.”
Gbajabiamila said: “If truth be told, we all have equal shares in the blame for what is happening today.
“Whatever challenges we have, we must all come together to make sure that we resolve these issues we’re facing. We must imbibe that spirit of oneness, togetherness, unity and love that would take us through this.”
Senator Adamu slammed the governors, saying: “The recent meeting of the Southern Governors Forum is an act of betrayal of trust. Each governor swore to an oath and they emphasised loyalty to the sovereignty of this country. They pledged their loyalty to the President of the country. That’s their oath of office.
“While we accept the fact that we have various forms of association and freedom of expression as citizens, they have failed to express their views through the right channel.
“They are members of the Council of State. There is no better forum at their level to take a joint decision than such forum. The fact that they have taken a decision as a divisive move, does not speak well of their intention.
“I think they are just playing to the gallery. What they are saying is not new. They are like broken record, saying the same thing over and over again.
“Why can’t they come to the appropriate body which is the National Assembly to project their ideas?
“They have members in the National Assembly who are representing them. If they have an issue that is so important as that, which borders on the Constitution of the country, they should go there and express their grievances.
“We would sit, debate it and see how best we can come out of it. There can’t be Nigeria if every one wants to have things happen in his or her own way.
“There is a Constitution and there is a framework that we are supposed to operate as governors. To go outside it is a betrayal of their oath of office.

Lagos lawyer Mike Ozekhome said the call for a national dialogue by the Southern governors was unnecessary.
He argued that the recommendations of the last National Conference had not been implemented.
Delivering a paper as a keynote speaker at the 25th Law week of the Awka branch of the Nigerian Bar Association (NBA), Ozekhome argued that another national conference would amount to a waste of time and resources.
The rights activist, who spoke on “Legal profession in a lawless society”, said if the southern governors wanted to get it right, they should have referred to the 2014 recommendations which he was part of.
He said, “I was at the 2014 National Conference headed by the late Justice Idris Kutigi, and the over 200 recommendations we made at that conference were yet to be touched.
“So, when I heard the 17 southern governors talking about another conference… I know they mean well for the country, but we do not need another dialogue.
“Let them go to the 2014 recommendations, they will see that we recommended state police, we recommended part-time legislature.”
Also, VON DG Okechukwu advised Nigerians not to see the socio-economic and security challenges facing the country as a reason to give more powers to state governors who are already mismanaging their powers.
He warned that conceding more powers to the governors, whom he described as “emperors” would put the country’s democracy in grave danger.
“It will be paradoxical for us to expect good governance at the sub-national level when the governors have locked up democratic institutions,” Okechukwu said in a statement yesterday.
The VON boss, who is also a founding member of All Progressives Congress (APC) called on Nigerians to look beyond the frenzy of restructuring as canvassed by the Southern governors.
He argued that giving more powers to governors will by omission or commission create Frankenstein monsters which will put our democracy in harm’s way.

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I didn’t collapse, says Wike, warns death rumour mongers 

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1 day ago

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April 4, 2025

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I didn’t collapse, says Wike, warns death rumour mongers 

Minister of the Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike, has debunked reports that he collapsed and was rushed to the hospital last week.

Wike described the reports of his rumoured collapse as the handiwork of “baseless” people trying to score cheap political points.

He spoke after inspecting four ongoing projects in the FCT, including the International Conference Centre.

Online posts circulating on X had surfaced alleging that the minister collapsed at an event on Friday in the FCT.

The rumour also claimed that Wike was immediately rushed to an undisclosed hospital, where he received treatment.

Reacting, Wike said, “There was no time I collapsed, there was no time anybody took me overseas. But you see me every day. The day Mr President broke iftar on his birthday, I was there.

“The next day, I led Abuja residents to pay Sallah homage. I see all those stories just died down. This is politics. We have thick skin. Those things don’t bother us. We are not distracted. We are focused on our jobs.

“So, I thank Nigerians for being worried, which should be, but people should not wish their fellow human beings such a thing to happen.

“We know that we will die one day. Nobody will remain in this world forever, but it is only God that says the day you will die, not any human being to say you will die today or you will die tomorrow.

“So, you have seen that I am even healthier than most of them who carried that rumour and I will write their condolence letters. I can assure you that I will write their condolence letters.”

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World Bank approves Tinubu’s $632m loan request

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5 days ago

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March 31, 2025

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World Bank approves Tinubu’s $632m loan request

The World Bank is poised to approve $632 million in new loans to Nigeria today (Monday), amid growing concerns over the country’s expanding debt profile.

The loans are intended to support important sectors such as nutrition enhancement and quality basic education.

According to data obtained from the World Bank’s website on Sunday, the two loans scheduled to be approved today are $80 million for the Accelerating Nutrition Results in Nigeria 2.0 initiative and $552 million for the HOPE for Quality Basic Education for All programme.

Both projects are now in the negotiating phase and are likely to gain final clearance later today.

These new loans are part of the World Bank’s overall strategy to support Nigeria’s development agenda, which focuses on healthcare, education, and community resilience.

The loans will support the government’s efforts to improve nutrition and education for Nigerian children.

Additionally, the World Bank approved a $500 million loan for Nigeria’s Community Action for Resilience and Economic Stimulus Programme on March 28, 2025, a significant step towards addressing the country’s economic challenges through expanded access.

The initiative, formally known as the NIGERIA: Community Action (for) Resilience and Economic Stimulus Programme, is intended to give critical support to households impacted by economic downturns while also strengthening community resilience.

The initiative focuses on vulnerable populations, providing assistance to households and small companies to help them cope with economic difficulties.

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The loan clearance is likely to considerably boost Nigeria’s efforts to revive the economy through grassroots backing, especially given current issues such as inflation and high living costs.

The stimulus plan will prioritise enhancing food security and developing economic possibilities for the populations most affected by recent economic changes.

This decision came after a delay in distributing funds for a previous loan aimed at poor and vulnerable Nigerians.

Further investigation by The PUNCH revealed that the World Bank disbursed around $315 million to Nigeria from the $800 million allocated for the National Social Safety-net Program Scale Up.

Nigeria is yet to receive further funding from the World Bank for this loan project, which was approved in December 2021. The delay in grant release is most likely due to fraud detected under the initiative.

In honour of the 2023 International Day for the Eradication of Poverty, President Bola Tinubu unveiled a social safety net programme that will distribute N25,000 to 15 million households over the course of three months.

The Federal Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs and Poverty Alleviation was responsible for managing the $800 million World Bank loan initiative.

However, due to allegations of embezzlement, the federal government was forced to stop the cash transfer program for further investigation and reform.

Betta Edu, a former humanitarian minister, was previously suspended for misappropriating N585 million set aside for palliative care distribution.

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Furthermore, Sadiya Umar-Farouq, Edu’s predecessor, was under investigation by the EFCC. The former minister is being investigated for allegedly laundering N37.1 billion during her stint as minister.

The World Bank also imposed sanctions on people and businesses discovered to be engaging in fraud under the initiatives.

According to the World Bank’s official website, this will bring Nigeria’s total approved loans to $9.25 billion over three years, indicating a growing reliance on multilateral funding to support critical sectors of the economy such as infrastructure, healthcare, education, and financial resilience.

A review of Nigeria’s World Bank loan approvals since 2023, under President Bola Tinubu’s government, reveals a huge rise in funding commitments.

In 2023, the World Bank approved $2.7 billion in loans for renewable energy, women’s empowerment, education, and the power sector. In 2024, funding approvals totalled $4.32 billion for various projects.

This increase was largely due to Nigeria’s growing need for financial assistance to stabilise the economy amid fiscal pressures and rising public debt.

Under President Bola Tinubu’s administration, the World Bank granted around 11 different credit projects for Nigeria.

In less than two years, the federal government has acquired loans from the World Bank totalling $7.45 billion, raising concerns about the mounting debt burden. According to data from the Debt Management Office, the World Bank’s portion of Nigeria’s external debt is $17.32 billion as of the third quarter of 2024.

The International Development Association is owing the majority of this debt, which amounts to $16.84 billion, or 39.14 per cent of Nigeria’s total external debt.

The International Bank for Reconstruction and Development, another World Bank subsidiary, is owing $485.08 million, or 1.13 per cent.

While the planned World Bank loans may give much-needed budgetary relief, concerns persist about the country’s mounting debt burden.

According to recent data from the Central Bank of Nigeria, the country has spent $5.47 billion servicing external debt in the last 14 months, underscoring the strain on its foreign reserves.

 

World Bank approves Tinubu’s $632m loan request

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Investigation of wanted businesswoman Achimugu not linked with Atiku, Sanwo-Olu – EFCC

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1 week ago

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March 29, 2025

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Investigation of wanted businesswoman Achimugu not linked with Atiku, Sanwo-Olu – EFCC

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has reacted to media reports linking its investigations of Ms. Aisha Achimugu with political undercurrents involving former Vice President Atiku Abubakar and Lagos State Governor,  Babajide Sanwo-Olu

This is contained in a statement by the commission on Friday night.

The statement read, “We wish to state unequivocally that the investigations of Achimugu have no correlation of any kind with the two political actors.  She is being investigated for alleged criminal conspiracy and money laundering and has since been declared Wanted by the Commission”.

The EFCC started investigating Achimugu in 2022. Although she approached the court to obtain an injunction restraining the Commission from arresting, investigating, inviting or detaining her for any alleged criminal act,  the injunction was challenged and vacated on Wednesday, February 19, 2025 by a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja.

 The court ruled that “…no court has the power to stop the investigative powers of the Police or EFCC or any agency established under our laws to investigate crimes when there is reasonable suspicion of commission of a crime or ample evidence of commission of an offence by a suspect.”

“The court further upheld the interim order of forfeiture of assets of Achimugu suspected to be proceeds of crime, dismissing her suit against it as lacking  merit .

“The foregoing clearly establishes that the EFCC’s case against her has no immediate or remote nexus with any politician or any veiled or open reference to any political engagement or transaction.

“The EFCC is non-partisan and non-sectarian.  We enjoin the public to continue to keep faith with the professionalism of the Commission without imputing any extraneous consideration to its works.”

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