2017 Budget now ready for presentation to N’Assembly

President Muhammadu Buhari is ready to present the 2017 appropriation bill before a joint session of the National Assembly.
The document was yesterday given accelerated consideration and approval by the Federal Executive Council (FEC) presided by Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma, while briefing State House correspondents on the outcome of the meeting did not disclose details of the document.
He simply said President Buhari would soon write the leadership of both chambers of the parliament proposing a date when he would present the fiscal document.
According to the Budget minister, who was joined by the Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, the lawmakers would decide the date for presentation.
“The budget has been approved by the Federal Executive Council and the details will be revealed when the president presents the budget to the National Assembly,” he said.
“With respect to ‎implementation of the 2016 budget, we have revenue constraints. We have paid all

Navy begins fitness test with 13 warships, others in Niger Delta

To prepare itself for the task ahead, the Nigerian Navy will, from today, commence an exercise to appraise the combat-readiness of its special forces and platforms. Officers of the Nigerian Army Amphibious Brigade, Nigerian Air Force Maritime Patrol Aircraft, police and operatives of the Department of State Services (DSS) among others are also participating in the event codenamed, ‘Exercise Eagle Eye’.
Chief of Policy and Plans (CPPLAN), Rear Admiral Jacob Ayeni, told a press conference yesterday in Abuja that the exercise, which ends on December 5 in the Niger Delta region, would provide an ample opportunity for the navy to showcase its capacity to Nigerians as well as the larger Gulf of Guinea, adding that “the activities of miscreants in the region have created a general sense of insecurity in the domain”.
He boasted that the force would prove doubting minds wrong that it had the capability to tackle numerous insecurity and criminal issues on the nation’s waterways.
According to Ayeni, the exercise is being phased in two to check prevailing security threats and second, to consolidate on achievements made so far.
“A total of 13 vessels, 80 in-shore patrol craft, two helicopters and two private maritime security vessels will participate in the exercise,” he added.

Despite criticism, Ogun defends construction of 10-lane Abeokuta/Sagamu Road

The Ogun State Government has explained that it is constructing the 10-lane Abeokuta/Sagamu Road in order to attract investors and migrants as well as funds for further development to the state.
The defense of the State Government is coming amid criticism of the need for the expansion of the road, which attracts little traffic.
It is also coming at a time the government has abandoned some bridge projects in the state, which had led to hardship for the people of the areas affected.
Among the critical bridges left uncompleted are the ones between Berger in Lagos State and Alagbole and Akute.
But the Commissioner for Works and Infrastructure, Architect Olamilekan Adegbite, speaking in Abeokuta on Wednesday, said the Abeokuta/Sagamu Road expansion is aimed at providing necessary infrastructure that will provide conducive environment for big time investors and multinational companies, including about three car assembly plants, which have shown interest in the corridor.
Adegbite recalled that the first Investors Forum, which was organised by the government in 2012, has opened the state to investment, adding that over 100 companies have opened shop in the state since then.

Niger Delta crisis will be resolved by 2017 – Kachikwu

The Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, has disclosed that Nigeria was at 2.1 million barrels of oil production per day, before the renewed hostilities by militants, but assured that the formula for peace in the Niger Delta region of the country would be found by next year.
Kachikwu, who spoke to Bloomberg on the “turmoil” in the region, asserted that: “Well, I won’t call it turmoil any more, I would call it a bit of disruption.
According to him, “We’ve passed the turmoil stage, we have moved from 1.4 million barrels a day to 1.9.We were at 2.1 before we had the last incident.
“It is work in progress; we are putting every energy we can. President Muhammadu Buhari is very focused on trying to find solutions to these problems, and we are working hard on it. We are seeing solutions come

How we tackled employment racketeers – Lai Mohammed

The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, has revealed how he addressed the challenge of employment racketeers in his ministry and parastatal agencies.
Addressing members of Senate Committee on Culture and Tourism on oversight to his ministry on Thursday in Abuja, the minister said the racketeers swindled many unsuspected job seekers, promising t give them phantom jobs.
“When I came in, we were able to uncover a number of cartels engaging in unlawful employment.
“They gave bank account details which their victims paid huge sum of money into and after the payment they issued them with letters of employment.
“They even camped some of them in hotels for capturing into Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS)
“In fact, in a particular organisation, a level 17 Officer was involved in this racketeering, but unfortunately he is late now.

NLC tasks FG to halt free fall of Naira

The Nigeria Labour Congress, NLC, has called on the President Muhammadu Buhari-led federal government to device a means to stop the continued depreciation of the nation’s currency against major currencies, which has led to high inflation.
Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN’s efforts to arrest the slide have not been yielding much fruits as the Naira keeps depreciating, exchanging at the inter-bank market at about N315.60 to the dollar on Thursday and N470 to the dollar at the parallel market.
Latest date from the National Bureau of Statistics, NBS, showed an increase in inflation to about 18.3 per cent in October, from 17.9 per cent in September.
The Labour Union said it was worried at the fruitless moves by the CBN to bring the situation under control, saying the devaluation and the attendant inflation have caused massive distress to millions of Nigerian families across the country.
The Labour Congress took a review of the state of the nation and noted that the protest it embarked in May against the hike in fuel price of petroleum products justified its position that tying fuel price crude oil price at the international market and the black market exchange rate was not sustainable.

Five million in northeastern Nigeria need food – FAO

The Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) has warned that Boko Haram insurgency and rising inflation have left more than five million people in northeast Nigeria facing acute food insecurity.
The United Nations agriculture agency has appealed for $25 million through May 2017 to support irrigated vegetable production and micro-gardening in the dry season, as well as rebuild livestock systems, the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports.
In a situation update, FAO said the urgently needed funds would tackle food insecurity among returnees, internally displaced persons (IDPs) and host communities.

Amaechi tasks NIMASA board on mandate

Minister of Transportation, Hon. Chibuike Rotimi Amaechi, has urged members of the governing board of the Nigerian Maritime Administration and Safety Agency (NIMASA) to assist the management of the agency to discharge its mandate optimally.
Delivering a keynote address at a retreat for board members, on the topic “Integrating the Transport Sector with the Ocean Economy in Nigeria,” Amaechi urged the board to collaborate with other transportation stakeholders to build an efficient intermodal system for the country.
Represented by Director of Maritime Safety and Security, Mr. Danjuma Dauda, the minister acknowledged the strategic importance of the maritime industry to global commerce, calling on the NIMASA board to “place the agency in an enviable position to optimally perform its functions and deliver on its mandate.”

Minister stops FIRS from revenue collection for FCT

In line with the new act of the Federal Capital Territory, the Minister, Mohammed Bello, has stopped the Federal Inland‎ Revenue Service from further collecting revenue for the territory.
The amended FCT Act came into being in 2015 and one of its provisions make the FCT Internal Revenue Service the sole revenue collector for the territory.
The minister, it was gathered in Abuja, has written the FIRS Chairman, Babatunde Fowler, that the services of the Federal Government’s agency were no longer required in the collection of revenue for FCT.
Reliable sources‎ in the FCT Administration confirmed that the minister has consequently directed the FCT Inland Revenue Services to solely be responsible for revenue collection in the territory.
Both the FCT and the FIRS had agreed based on the directive from the Presidency that the FIRS assist to jointly with FCT IRS collect revenue in the territory on behalf of the FCT Administration pending when the FCT IRS possesses the capacity.
But an informed source in the FCT Administration told InsideBusiness that the stoppage of revenue

Pilgrims who missed meals in Saudi Arabia will be refunded – Jigawa govt

Jigawa Government has said pilgrims who missed their meals during this year’s Hajj in Saudi Arabia would be refunded.
The Deputy Governor and leader of the state delegation to Saudi Arabia, Alhaji Ibrahim Hassan, said this while presenting the Hajj report to Gov. Muhammad Badaru in Dutse.
He said lists of those affected had been compiled for onward submission to the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) for refund.
He said officials of the commission had signed agreement to refund pilgrims who did not benefit from the

IPOB commends Amnesty Int’l report on killing of Biafra agitators

The Indigenous People of Biafra, IPOB, and its Directorate of State, DOS, said it totally agreed with Amnesty International reports concerning the incessant killing of Biafrans.
IPOB in a statement signed by its Media and Publicity Secretary, Mr. Emma Powerful, said the report has proved IPOB right, but added that they will continue to be in the forefront of the struggle for the restoration of Biafra nation in spite of the incessant killing of their members.
“However, the 150 people killed which was given by the Amnesty international was not the accurate number of IPOB and Biafrans killed since August 2015 till date. The number is uncountable. They are also involved in secret kidnapping and killing of Biafrans.”

Ohanaeze Ndigbo holds Unity Day in Lagos

A socio-cultural group, Ndigbo in Lagos, is set to hold Igbo Unity Day And Cultural Festival at National Stadium, Surulere, Lagos on Saturday November 26,2016.
Speaking with the newsmen yesterday, the President of Ohanaeze Ndigbo in Lagos, Chief Fabian Onwughalu, said that the cultural festival is to promote unity among Igbos and non-Igbo in the country.
He said, that the concept of the programme is to bring all the Igbo,s together as one, in order to promote and add value to the economy of the host state, Lagos.
Onwughalu added that, the programme is aimed at unfolding new charter of engagement, driven by a deep sense of urgency and need for Igbos everywhere to unite and remain challenged by a resolve never to allow

Lagos-Ibadan/Abuja-Lokoja routes record highest accident rate – FRSC

The Federal Road Safety Commission on Thursday identified the Lagos-Ibadan and Abuja–Lokoja roads as corridors with the highest accident rate with a record of more than 87 cases in September.
A report made available to the News Agency of Nigeria in Abuja showed that a total of 819 crashes involving 1,318 vehicles were recorded across the country in the month of September.
According to the report, on State basis, the Federal Capital Territory recorded the highest number of crashes with 117 cases involving 671 persons that resulted to 15 deaths and 226 injured persons.
“Kaduna State is next with 60 reported crash cases involving 461, killing 44 and injuring 250 others, while Niger, Ogun, Nasarawa and Lagos states also recorded high rate of crashes in September.’’
The report said that speed violation accounted for the highest probable cause of the crashes in the month under review, while dangerous driving and route violation were also identified as risk factors.
It recommended that the identified routes with the highest crash rate would have special focus of the corps in terms of operational activities to reduce crashes.

Cancellation of monthly sanitation in Lagos to boost productivity – Traders

Traders at Mile 12 produce market in Lagos on Thursday lauded the cancellation of monthly environmental sanitation exercise by the state government, saying it would boost economic activities.
Femi Odusanya, spokesperson, Mile 12 Traders Association, said this in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria on Thursday in Lagos.
The Lagos State Government announced the cancellation on Wednesday, saying “it was no longer appropriate to restrict movement of people for three hours in a mega city like Lagos’’.
Odusanya said: “The government’s decision was quite thoughtful. It has become unnecessary restraining people’s movement for three hours in this economic recession.
“Most people bringing goods from the North wait at the expressways till sanitation ends but now our goods will get to the market early with reduced waste.
“With this new development, traders will have more time to promote their businesses and contribute to the economic growth of the country.”

Cold comfort from the honourables

A friend of mine placed a distress call to me to help him clear an embarrassing debt. I explained that I was going through hard times and that I was incapacitated to render the help he so desperately wanted. I wished him luck in his search for a ‘messiah’. The challenges of day-to-day life made me forget entirely about him.
Some months later he called me and I shuddered as I didn’t know what to tell him so as not to sound like a broken record. After five calls, I reluctantly picked up the phone and rehearsed what I was going to say to him. Surprisingly, he sounded very excited and asked me if I had heard of MMM. I replied in the negative and he screamed asking where on earth I had been. It was his new found saviour and he was even saving up to purchase his first car. He urged me to join so as to possibly even fire my employer.
Curiosity got the better of me and I decided to research extensively on this money spitting scheme. My findings revealed my worst fears but more alarming was the fact that the founder, Sergey Mavrodi was an ex-convict whose activities made many commit suicide in his native Russia in the 1990s.
I called my friend to disclose what I saw and rather than scare him, he simply laughed it off. He shocked me by telling me that he was aware of the fact that it would eventually crash but that there was no harm in enjoying the party while it lasted. Moreover, it could be around for as long as a decade if Nigerians united to

Witness lists more adverts beneficiaries in Metuh’s alleged fraud case

Richard Ihediwa, the fifth defence witness in the ongoing trial of former National Publicity Secretary, Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Chief Olisa Metuh, resumed his testimony yesterday.
He revealed before Justice Okon Abang of the Federal High Court, Abuja, how Metuh made cash payments to several media houses including major electronic and print outfits in the country, out of the N400 million transferred to him by former President Goodluck Jonathan.
The witness, who gave details of the account during cross-examination by counsel to the second defendant (Destra Investment Limited), Mr. Tochukwu Onwugbufor (SAN), told the court that Metuh paid cash to some of them for advertorials made towards 2015 general elections.
He stated that the media campaign to launder the image of Jonathan became necessary following series of agitations from the North, South-South, South-West and South-East geo-political zones of the country.
“The issue of resource control, infrastructural development and the implementation of the recommendations from the National Conference was threatening in the South-South.
“In the North, there was the issue of insecurity. The agitation led to a lot of demands on the former president

EFCC fails to stop bail for Dasuki’s aide, security consultants

The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission failed at the Federal High Court, Abuja in its bid to stop the court from granting bails to an aide of the former National Security Adviser, retired Colonel Mohammad Sambo Dasuki, and security consultants who were accused of corruption by the Federal Government.
The EFCC lawyer, Ofem Uket, had made frantic moves to stop Justice Gabriel Kolawole from admitting the defendants to bail on the ground that they would escape justice by refusing to appear for trial on the charges against them.
The main defendants are Colonel Nicholas Ashinze, a former aide in the Office of National Security Adviser; an Austrian and Security Consultant, Wolfgang Reinl; a retired military intelligent officer, Sagir Mohammed; and a legal practitioner, Edidiong Idiong.
Uket told the court that although the defendants were granted administrative bail, but the bail however terminated at the point the anti-graft agency filed charges against them.
He said: “We are aware that the defendants are enjoying administrative bail.
“Their counsels understand that any administrative bail granted ends as soon as the matter is brought to court and bail applications are filed.
“Such bail cannot be extended since the charges have now been preferred to the defendants.

How to end militant attacks in Niger Delta – Mitee

The wave of attacks on oil and gas installations in the Niger Delta will stop only if the Federal Government commits itself to a genuine dialogue.
The chairman of the default Technical Committee on the Niger Delta, Ledum Mitee, said in Port Harcourt, that irrespective of the recent stakeholder meeting between the presidency and Niger Delta leaders, the attitude of the Federal Government had not shown it was committed to dialogue.
According to Mitee, while government strategy to end the crisis in the Niger Delta is not clear, it is obvious that Niger Delta leaders still need to do some work to get a firm commitment from the government that dialogue is the preferred option.
He said everybody in the country would want a resolution of the problem through dialogue and not military confrontation.
“For me, there is no alternative to dialogue. I don’t see any alternative to dialogue. The point I keep on making is that we will not be tired of dialogue. But it is not just dialogue. What we have asked for this time is

NBA president pledges to weed out bad eggs

The Nigerian Bar Association (NBA) has said that the bar is doing everything possible to weed out bad eggs from the legal profession and the judiciary.
It also reiterated the need for President Muhammadu Buhari to wage his battle against graft with strict adherence to due process and the rule of law.
President of the association, Abubakar Balarabe Mahmood told journalists in Minna, venue of the National Executive Council meeting of the association yesterday that the allegations of corruption against the bar and the bench should not undermine the significant contributions of the judiciary and the legal profession to nation building. “A few bad eggs should not lead to total condemnation of the institution.”

Military rescue 5,235 Boko Haram hostages

The Nigerian military has said that through its “Operation Finale” has rescued 5,235 persons held hostage by Boko Haram insurgents from October to November 2016, recovered many weapons and killed several insurgents across various locations of the theatre.
The Theatre Commander of Operation Lafiya Dole, Major General Lucky Irabor, who disclosed this at a press briefing held at the headquarters of Operation Lafiya Dole, at Maimalari Cantonment Maiduguri, yesterday, said due to the ferocity of the attack by the Nigerian military the remnants of Boko Haram terrorists were fleeing their camps as many of them were being killed.