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Tag: Budget 2019

  • Budget 2019: Lawmakers under attack for ‘unruly behaviour’

    Lawmakers got some knocks yesterday over their behaviour at Wednesday’s budget presentation by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The Federal Government led the way, branding the heckling of the President on Wednesday as “infantile politicking” and “parliamentary rascality”.

    It also assured the U.S International Republican Institute (IRI) and the National Democratic Institute (NDI) of free and fair polls in 2019.

    It said the opposition led by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) is only crying wolf because it has never won credible poll.

    Information and Culture Minister Lai Mohammed faulted the lawmakers at news conference in Abuja against the backdrop of the rowdy session at the presentation of the 2019 Budget on Wednesday.

    He said: “Yes, some unruly lawmakers threw away parliamentary decorum to behave like ordinary protesters or agitators. It is nothing but bad politicking (infantile politicking/parliamentary rascality).

    “But the real news is that the unruly action provided the platform for our party, the APC, to assert its majority in the National Assembly.

    “The plan by the opposition was to embarrass the President and prevent him from presenting the budget. But they were comprehensively overwhelmed by our lawmakers who are in the majority. That also sends a clear signal to the opposition that they lack the number to override the President’s decision not to accent to the Electoral Bill.

    “I must also note that all through the sniping by some unruly lawmakers, the President remained dignified and presidential. He rose above it all to make his presentation.”

    He dismissed fears by the IRI and the NDI that security agencies may be partisan during the polls.

    Besides, said the minister, the government is not clamping down on the opposition and the civil society.

    Mohammed said: “The opposition is only crying wolf where there is none, and in view of what they did during their 16 years in power. They never really won a free and fair election. Their strategy was to use the security agencies to thwart the wishes of voters. They did it in Ekiti and Osun in 2014.

    “I was a victim in Osun, so I know what I am saying.

    “But the guilty are always afraid. They think what they have done to others is what will be done to them. Under President Muhammadu Buhari’s watch, no security agency will play that kind of ignominious role in any election.

    “There is no clampdown on any civil society, except in the wild imagination of naysayers. As I have said, being in opposition is no licence to break the law and then hope to escape justice. If the police have re-arrested Deji Adeyanju, they must have a compelling reason to do so. Anyone who breaks the law must face justice.”

    On non-signing of the Electoral (Amendment) Bill 2018, Mohammed said there was no cause for alarm.

    He said the opposition drafted the Electoral (Amendment) Act used for 2015 poll, which was adjudged as credible.

    He said: “The fears are unfounded. For one, President Buhari will always do what is in the interest of Nigerians. Then, of course, what is wrong with the same electoral law that was used to conduct the 2014 general elections that were adjudged to be largely free and fair.

    “That law was drafted and approved under the same opposition that is now crying foul. At what point did they lose confidence in this same law? What do they know that they are not telling Nigerians? The noise over the bill is a distraction and a potential alibi for an opposition in disarray.”

    Asked how the government will react if President Buhari is defeated in February, the minister said: “I don’t entertain any fear in respect of 2019.

    “The election will come, it will pass and we are going to win with a larger percentage.”

    He dismissed insinuations that APC has not set up a Presidential campaign council and was not campaigning because it had nothing to offer.

    Mohammed said: “The ban on campaign was just lifted; we will soon have our PCC in place. What wins election is not jamboree. There is nowhere in Nigeria we are not campaigning.”

    The minister also described the judgment of a Kwara High Court recognising the Balogun Fulani-led committee as the authentic Kwara Executive Committee of the All Progressives Congress (APC) as a temporary setback.

    He said: There is no cause for alarm. It is just another bump on our way to dismantling the Saraki political dynasty that has held Kwara State by the jugular.

    “We will definitely appeal the ruling and we are very optimistic that the judgment will be overturned on appeal. I want to use this opportunity to appeal to our teeming members and supporters in Kwara not to be discouraged by the ruling. It is a temporary setback.”

    In Mohammed view, the judgment does not affect the status of the APC governorship candidate, Abdulrahman Abdulrazaq.

    Regarding the murder of a former Chief of Defence Staff, Air Chief Marshal Alex Badeh, the Minister said: “This is most dastardly and very unfortunate.

    “In line with the directive of the President to the security agencies to find the killers, I have no doubt that this will be done and the perpetrators will be brought to justice.”

    Senior lawyers were divided yesterday over the behaviour of some lawmakers as President Muhammadu Buhari presented the N8.83 trillion 2019 Appropriation Bill on Wednesday.

    Senior lawyers Chief Niyi Akintola SAN and Mr Festus Keyamo (SAN) disagreed on the lawmakers’ conduct.

    Akintola observed that such conduct was commonplace in democracies and urged President Buhari or any future occupant of the office to brace for more of such heckling.

    He said: “I don’t see why there should be any hullabaloo about it.

    “What happened was just normal in a democracy. There will always be people in support or against you. It’s part of democracy. You could see there, depending on the side of the divide you found yourself, I watched it on Youtube.

    “Those in support of Buhari were more in number; they were shouting ‘Sai Baba! Sai Baba!’ and some others were booing. It was all normal.

    “You would also have noticed that most of the senators didn’t take part in that, because they are senior citizens, they are supposed to be statesmen, so, they didn’t join in the rowdiness.

    “Most of the people that spearheaded the rowdiness were from the House of Representatives, which is understandable: they are younger men and women. There’s nothing spectacular about it; it is normal. Even in advanced democracies, presidents are booed once in a while. They are even pelted with rotten eggs.”

    But Keyamo disagreed.

    According to him, the booing lawmakers’ had insulted the Office of the President and disqualified themselves from contesting for President in future.

    Keyamo said: “What they were booing yesterday was the Office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, not Buhari.

    “Buhari is not the owner of that office, whether in 2019 or 2023, he is going to leave the office. They denigrated the office, not Buhari and the Office of the President is actually the symbol of the country. By doing so, they showed that they are not worthy of their office.

    “The internet does not forget. Every single one of them that opened their mouths to boo the President would never ever aspire to the Office of the President of this country. They have disqualified themselves automatically.

    “The day any of them brings out posters that they want to contest for President, they will be shown their picture or video booing the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

    “They have automatically disqualified themselves as potential candidates forever, till they enter their graves, because they have shown contempt for that office. You cannot come tomorrow and say you want to elevate that office; you cannot.”

     

  • Budget 2019: where is parliamentary decorum?

    The hallowed chamber of the National Assembly was a House of Babel yesterday. Decorum was sacrificed on the altar of partisanship. President Muhammadu Buhari and the nation were embarrassed. The parliament became a laughing stock. The legislative/executive feud assumed a new dimension. Hope of cordial relations dimmed. Nigerians were taken aback. Many observers asked in bewilderment: is the Senate and House of Representatives worthy of national pride?

    The president and the lawmakers had turned up for a strict constitutional duty. The nation was full of eagerness. President Buhari was exercising his constitutional right of presenting the budget, which the legislators also have the constitutional right to vet. But, at what stage? Should the legislature not listen to the president and allow him to place the document before it before kicking off its debate on it? Should the president be prevented, as it were, from performing the ritual of budget speech?

    The parliament has often admonished the executive to consider early presentation of budget to prevent the delay in passing the document. President Muhammadu Buhari has managed to meet the “deadline.” What was the reason for the uproar over a budget that was being presented? Why the attempt at hindering budget presentation? Is the parliament now becoming a platform for frustrating budget estimates?

    Since 2015, the Presidency and the National Assembly appear to be working at cross-purpose. The cat-and-mouse relationship, to say the least, has been counter-productive. It has not been in the national interest. The country has been the loser. Yet, there is no end in sight to mistrust and suspicion. The parliamentary hostility has manifested in budgetary passage delay, rejection of president’s appointees, mutual antagonism and uncanny media war. The gulf deepened, following the defection of Senate President Bukola Saraki and House of Representatives Speaker Yakubu Dogara from the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) to the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP). The acrimony, analysts predict, may heighten as the country warms up for next year’s elections.

    Yesterday’s hullabaloo represented a new pillar on the foundation of executive/legislative discord. The division, as usual, was sharp on the floor. The joint session was rowdy. Anti-Buhari lawmakers were on the prowl. Those supporting the president were on the defensive. To observers, the show of shame underscored the fragility of the core democratic institution and the demonstration of immaturity by aggrieved legislators. When will politicians draw a line between personal agenda and national interest?

    President Buhari may have approached the parliament with a budget of promise, hope and consolidation. To divert attention from the content and its likely improvement over past budgets, he was booed and jeered at as he stepped into the chambers. Indeed, many senators and House of Representatives members have scores to settle with the Commander-in-Chief. He stood before them in honour and dignity of an anti-corruption crusader, a reformist and ‘no-to-business-as usual’ leader. He was kingly as he towered above his tormentors and noisemakers, not only in height, but also in responsibility. It was a wide departure from when President Buhari was military Head of State who brooked no nonsense.

    His message was ignored, not because it lacked potency. The budget speech fell on deaf ears of many legislators, who may be acting a script. The President’s remarks were interrupted. Some lawmakers were shouting on top of their voices, to the consternation of constituents who viewed the unruly behaviour on television. As President Buhari reeled out his achievements across the sectors, shouts of “no, no no” and “lie, lie lie” filled the air.

    For the President, it was a test of emotional stability. President Buhari kept his cool. But, as the irritation persisted, he urged calm. As a statesman, he patiently cautioned the unrepentant legislators. “May I appeal to the honourable members that the world is watching us…we are supposed to be above this.” When they would not listen, he added: “You are only messing up yourselves.” The incorrigible lawmakers intensified the disruptions.

    Tension enveloped the chamber. It was a day of drama.  Some APC lawmakers joined their PDP colleagues in the confusion. The PDP lawmakers saw an opportunity to play politics. They knew why they should make a political capital out of the scenario. The nation is in critical electioneering. At stake is the presidency, which will be hotly contested. To them, the virulent opposition to the president who was visiting the parliament fell into the framework of the resistance to his second term ambition.

    Read also: We’ve made progress on all fronts, Buhari tells Nigerians

    But, does the acrimony and hostility reflect the general perception of the president across the six geo-political zones? Will it alter geo-political calculus during the contest on February 23, next year? Does the budget presentation translate into a popularity test for the president before Nigerians?

    But, why should APC lawmakers join the bandwagon? Where is the place of party discipline? Observers have suggested that some members of the APC caucus are aggrieved because they lost out at the primary. Is the inability of a lawmaker to get a return ticket the end of life? Is a politician not expected to have a second address? Is politics, which is widely perceived as a vocation, now a lucrative career that cannot be forgone? Why are they joining the opposition to throw stones into their own house? Where will the desperation lead them?

    Historians will record the period between 2015 and 2019 as the height of legislative/executive rancour in Nigeria. It may be a consistent tragedy Nigerians will endure till May 29, next year.

  • Budget: Buhari lists achievements on infrastructure

    President Muhammadu Buhari has identified infrastructure development as one of the areas in which his administration had made a lot of progress.

    The president stated this while presenting the 2019 budget proposal before the joint session of the National Assembly on Wednesday in Abuja.

    President Buhari, who announced budget proposal of N8.83 trillion for the 2019 fiscal year, said that the 2018 budget recorded a performance of 67 per cent.

    He said that the Federal Government carried over capital projects that were not likely to be fully funded by 2018 to 2019.

    According to him, the 2019 budget is intended to further place the economy on the path of inclusive, diversified and sustainable growth in order to continue to lift a significant number of citizens out of poverty.

    He stated that government’s approach on infrastructure was a logical one as it simply prioritised the completion of critical on-going projects over the introduction of new ones.

    The president said that, for example, in the Ministry of Water Resources, the Federal Government identified 116 abandoned or uncompleted projects relating to irrigation, dams, drainage and water supply.

    He listed the completed and/or commissioned projects to include- Central Ogbia Regional Water Project in Bayelsa State; Northern Ishan Regional Water Supply Project, Edo; Sabke Water Supply Project, Katsina State and Takum Water Supply Project in Taraba.

    Others, according to the president, are Ogwashi – Uku Dam in Delta; Shagari Irrigation Project in Sokoto State, Galma Dam, Kaduna State; Mangu Water Supply Project, Plateau State as well as the Federal University of Agriculture and Makurdi Water Supply Project in Benue.

    He said that his administration also made giant strides in the railway sector.

    “We completed and commissioned the Abuja – Kaduna Rail Line and the Abuja Metro-Rail Project. Similarly, the previously abandoned Itakpe-Ajaokuta-Warri Rail Line is undergoing test runs and will soon be commissioned.

    “We are also on track for the Lagos – Kano rail line as significant progress has been made on the Lagos to Ibadan segment of the project.

    “ We remain committed to rebuilding and expanding our road network. In 2018, an additional 1,531 kilometers of roads have been constructed and 1,008 kilometers rehabilitated across the country.

    “Priority projects such as the Abuja – Kaduna – Kano highway as well as the Second Niger Bridge are well underway through the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund,’’ he said.

    The president also disclosed that in every state of the federation there was a major Federal road project going on.

    He said that in the North Central, long neglected roads like the Ilorin – Jebba Road, a stretch of 93 km that took a number of days to travel had been completed to provide a critical link between the Northern and Southern parts of the country over a few hours.

    Buhari said that his administration had awarded the dualisation of the road to expand it all the way to Mokwa, as was done to the Abuja – Keffi-Lafia -Makurdi roads where work recently commenced.

    According to him, work has resumed on the Suleja – Minna road after years of inactivity.

    “In the South-South, we have recently completed the 60 km section of Alesi to Ugep in Cross River State, and awarded the 72km section from Odukpani Junction to Ugep which will reduce a journey that used to take 3 days a few years back, to 3 hours.

    “Work has also commenced on the Calabar – Itu – Odukpani Road that links Akwa-Ibom to Cross River State, as we have started work on the long-neglected Bodo – Bonny Bridge to connect these long separated communities.

    “In the South East, a critical section of Umunya linking Awka to Onitsha, a stretch of 18 kilometers, is being constructed now and one side of it should be ready for use before June 2019. Roads like Arochukwu – Ohafia – Bende are also receiving our attention.

    “In the South–West, long neglected and abandoned roads like the Badagry Expressway have been awarded for construction along with the Apapa – Tin Can Island, Mile 2 – Oworonshoki, road to ease the congestion currently being experienced in Lagos, while interstate roads linking Ogun through Ikorodu to Sagamu, and Ipaja to Otta and Abeokuta are being repaired with payment to contractors.

    Read Also:  APC denounces ‘disgraceful’ PDP lawmakers for heckling Buhari

    “In the North-West, we have completed the Sokoto to Tambuwal – Jega Road comprising 135 Km out of the entire Sokoto to Yauri stretch and sections of Kaduna Eastern bypass and Kano Western bypass are also progressing.

    “In the North-East, we have started work on the long-neglected Mayo – Belwa – Jada Road, and the Gombe – Numan – Jalingo Road and recently awarded the reconstruction of bridges damaged by insurgency,” he said.

    According to him, the N100 billion Sukuk Bond raised by the government is being used to fund 25 another 25 road projects across the country.

    He listed the projects to include the construction of the Oju/Loko-Oweto bridge over River Benue, dualisation of section of Abuja-Abaji-Lokoja road, dualisation of section of Suleja – Minna road, dualisation of section of Lokoja-Benin road (Obajana – Okene), Dualisation of section of Kano – Maiduguri road linking Kano – Jigawa – Bauchi – Yobe.

    Others are the dualisation of section of Kano – Katsina road, Dualisation of section of Kano Western By-Pass, Construction of Kaduna Eastern By-Pass, Rehabilitation of outstanding section of Onitsha-Enugu Expressway, Rehabilitation of Enugu-Port Harcourt road and dualisation of section of Yenegoa road junction.

    The president said that his government had also creditably acquitted itself in power supply, as it was working on over 90 transmission projects across the country.

  • Budget 2019: NECA sees bleak future

    The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association (NECA) has said the 2019 budget may not make the desired impact on the citizens going by what it described as the  weak economy and the world economic outlook report.

    Its President, Dr Mohammed Yinusa, said the International Monetary Fund (IMF) has cut the country’s growth projections to 1.9 per cent from 2.1 per cent predicted earlier, citing the poor performance of the economy.

    He said while the world economic outlook report, released in July, had projected that the economy would grow by 2.1 per cent this year and 2.3 per cent next year, the World Bank also  cut its growth projections for the country by 0.2 per cent, from 2.1 per cent to 1.9 per  cent.

    The Bank cited reduction in crude oil production levels and contraction in the agricultural sector, following the herders/farmers crises, which have taken a toll on agric productivity.

    “The current downward slide of crude oil price is fueled by high supplies, alliance between some producers, particularly Saudi Arabia and United States and uncertain economic growth.

    “This may hamper current economic prospects in the country, particularly if the development refuses to abate.

    “With the development, implementation of Nigeria’s 2019 budget, benchmarked at $51 per barrel could suffer should the slump persist. Moreover, Nigeria’s economy, which is currently stabilising on boost in crude oil price, could be adversely affected as crisis in foreign exchange, primarily sourced from the oil sector was projected to worsen,” Yinusa told The Nation at the weekend.

    He said the foregoing, especially the projections of the IMF and World Bank, were very worrisome and unfortunately gave a true reflection of the economic reality on ground. He said  the country could also face challenges in areas of deficit financing, cash call payment, micro-economic performance, project financing and political uncertainties.

    He said: “We are also worried about the consequent looming foreign exchange shortfall to support economic activities, especially as it affects importation of required raw materials for the sustenance of production in the real sector of the economy.

    “In order to address this, government should intensify the thrust to diversify the economy from crude oil, especially as other emerging countries are becoming better destination for foreign direct investment.

    “With the upcoming general elections, government should not focus solely on politics at the expense of the economy and good governance, but continue to work assiduously to sustain the steady stabilisation of our economy through informed policies to position it for continued growth.”

  • Buhari proposes $60 oil benchmark for Budget 2019

    President Muhammadu Buhari has presented a budget framework proposal of $60 oil price benchmark  for 2019 budget to the National Assembly.

    Buhari, in his Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) presented to the House of Representatives yesterday, however expressed optimism that the self-funding mechanism for Joint Venture (JV) operations will sustainably guarantee JV oil and gas production and government revenue flows as it provides the required investment and restore the confidence of international oil companies whose equity investments are required to grow the JV oil and gas assets.

    The parameters and targets for 2019 to 2021 as proposed by Buhari in the  document  puts projected Gross Domestic Product (GDP) to grow at 3.0 per cent for 2019, while inflation is expected to moderate to 9.98 per cent.

    Oil price benchmark for 2019 is put at $60.0; 2020 at $56.5; and 2021 at $56.5. Oil production was put at 2,30 million barrels per day (mbpd), 2.44 mbpd and 2.62mbpd for 20129, 2020 and 2021 respectively. The exchange rate was projected at N305 to $1 for the three years, while inflation remained almost constant at 9.98 for 2019, 9.43 for 2020 and 9.58 for 2021 as against 11.78 for 2018.

    Oil GDP for the same period was projected at N11,163.5billion, N10,769.3billion and N10,183.4billion, non-oil GDP for the three years of 2019, 2020 and 2021 was put at N128,489.3billion, N143,921.2billion and N161,017billion respectively.

    Total GDP for the period under review was put at N139,652.7billion, N154,690.6billion and N171,200.5billion with GDP growth rate at 3.0 for 2019, 3.6 for 2020 and 3.9 for 2012.

    Consumption projection was N119,281.6billion, N132,125.8billion and N146,227.5billion for the three years.

    “It is, however, expected that the self-funding mechanism for JV operations will sustainably guarantee JV oil and gas production and government revenue flows as it provides the required investment and restore the confidence of international oil companies whose equity investments are required to grow the JV oil and gas assets.

    “As a result, base oil production is expected to increase significantly to 2.44mbpd in 2020 and 2.62mbpd in 2021.

    “The nominal GDP is expected to increase from N114,772.8 billion in 2018 to N128,489.3 billion in 2019 and then N161.017.1 billion in 2021. Similarly, consumption expenditure is projected to grow from N107,765 billion in 2018 to N146,228 billion in 2021. These are reflective of a gradual recovery of the economy.

    “The amount accruable to the Federation Account and VAT Pool Account amounts to N10.09 trillion and N1.64 trillion, respectively in 2019.

    “Projection for oil revenues in 2019 is higher than in 2018 due to restored peace in the Niger Delta region and stability in production. Oil revenues contributes up to 75 per cent of Federation Accounts,” it stated.

    ernments are projected to get N2.70 trillion and N208 trillion, respectively. For VAT, the Federal Government is projected to receive N245.72 billion, the states N819.07 billion, and the local governments N573.35 billion.

    “Growth in 2019 is based on the assumptions of average oil production of 2.3mbpd, benchmark oil prices of US$60/b, and an average official exchange rate of N305/$. Oil GDP is projected to record lower growth over the medium term, while the non-oil sector will continue as the major driver of growth in the economy.

    “It is however, expected that the self-funding mechanism for JV operations will sustainably guarantee JV oil and gas production and government revenue flows as it provides the required investment and restore the confidence of international oil companies whose equity investments are required to grow the JV oil and gas assets.

    “As a result, base oil production is expected to increase significantly to 2.44mbpd in 2020 and 2.62mbpd in 2021.

    “The nominal GDP is expected to increase from N114,772.8 billion in 2018 to N128,489.3 billion in 2019 and then N161.017.1 billion in 2021. Similarly, consumption expenditure is projected to grow from N107,765 billion in 2018 to N146,228 billion in 2021. These are reflective of a gradual recovery of the economy”.

    In Federation Account Revenues as contained in the document, the amount accruable to the Federation Account and VAT Pool Account amounts to N10.09 trillion and N1.64 trillion, respectively in 2019. Projection for oil revenues in 2019 is higher than in 2018 due to restored peace in the Niger Delta region and stability in production. Oil revenues contribute up to 75 per cent of Federation Accounts.

    Other components of the Federation Account revenues include revenues from Corporate Tax N1.65 trillion, Customs Revenue-N623.82 billion. Special Levies N111.62 billion, Solid Minerals N266 billion, Dividend Payment N82.25 billion and Actual Balances in Special Accounts N14.38 billion.

    Federal government’s share from the Federation Account is N501 trillion while the States and Local governments are projected to get N2.70 trillion and N208 trillion, respectively. For VAT, the Federal Government is projected to receive N245.72 billion, the States N819.07 billion, and the Local governments N573.35 billion.

    After redistribution to FCT, it was also revealed that Ecological and Stabilisation Fund as well as Development of Natural Resources, the amount available to FGN from its share of the Federation Account is N4.89 trillion, while net FGN’s share of VAT (after on per cent deduction for PCT) is N229.34 billion.

    From the share of the Federation Account and VAT as well as other revenues, the aggregate revenue available to fund the 2019 budget is projected at N6.97 trillion (2.8 per cent or N198.88 billion less than the 2018 estimate of N7.165 trillion). 52.9 per cent of this is projected to come from oil sources while the balance is to be earned from non-oil sources.

    However, for the purposes of transparency and budget comprehensiveness, the 2019-2021 Medium Term Fiscal Framework includes revenues from major Government-Owned Enterprises (GOES), which amounts to N955.36 billion. With this, the aggregate FGN revenue is projected at N7.92 trillion.

    It states: “The FGN’s expenditure budget is estimated at N8.73 trillion (this includes grants and donor funding of N209.92 billion). This provision is less than the 2018 appropriated expenditure of’ N9.12 trillion by four per cent or about N393.23.11 billion.

    “Of this, interest payments on debt is estimated at N2.14 trillion and while provision for Sinking Fund to retire maturing bonds to local contractors is N220 billion. Provisions for personnel in government Ministries, Department and Agencies are estimated at N2.15 trillion and pension costs is projected to be N427.07 billion.

    “In addition, N51.22 billion (representing one per cent of the consolidated revenue fund) has been earmarked for the Basic Health Care Provision Fund (BHCPF), N21.25 billion for GAVl/Routine Immunisation in the service-wide votes (SWV), and N151.40 billion for the power sector reform programme.

    “With these provisions, only the sum of N1.33 trillion (exclusive of capital in statutory transfers) is available as amount for Capital Development Fund. With the inclusion of capital in statutory transfers, capital supplementation, and grant and donor funded projects, the capital expenditure amounts to N224 trillion. Government is committed to the provision of critical infrastructure to enhance growth and accelerate the pace of economic recovery”.

    It was pointed out that Aggregate Expenditure, in line with best practices to improve transparency and budget comprehensiveness, the budget of the top 9 GOEs (excluding NNPC) of N995.36 billion, as well as Multi-lateral l Bilateral project-tied loans of N556.02 billion have been integrated into the 2019-2021 Medium Term Fiscal Framework (MTFF).

    This brings the proposed aggregate expenditure to an estimate of N10.16 trillion. With the inclusion of the GOEs capital estimated at N275.88 billion and Multi-lateral/Bi-lateral project-tied loans, aggregate capital expenditure (inclusive of capital in statutory transfers) is estimated at N3.07 trillion. This represents 30 per cent of the aggregate projected Federal Government expenditure in 2019.

    On Sectoral Ceilings, the allocation of capital expenditure among the various spending Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) of government is driven mainly by government’s execution priorities and strategic focus outlined in the Economic Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP) as well as the outcomes from the ERGP Focus Lab.

    It stated: “Of the amount available for the capital development fund, N962.64 billion is provisioned for activities in line with the execution priorities of the ERGP, as government will continue to focus on critical sectors that quickly turn-around real sector growth. N192.88 billion and N106.55 billion were provisioned for other critical enablers of growth and inclusion such as security and social investments, respectively.

    “A provision of N71.86 billion is for activities related to improving institutions and good governance: Additionally, transfers to the Universal Basic Education Commission and the Basic Healthcare Provision Fund are projected at N111billion and N51.2billion respectively.

    “It is noteworthy that the bulk of expenditures on the Social Development sector tend to be’ recurrent in nature. For instance, while capital expenditure allocations to Education and Health in 2018 were N102.9billion and N86.5billion respectively, the allocations to recurrent expenditure were N439.3billion and N270billion respectively”.

    Stating that the MTEF document and projections were not unmindful of the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA), 2007, it was noted that Fiscal Deficit and Deficit Financing were painstakingly weighed, “Given the projected revenue and planned expenditure, the fiscal deficit is estimated at N176 trillion. This is about N194.35 billion (or 9.9 per cent) less than the estimate of N1.95 trillion in 2018. and at 1.26 per cent of GDP is well below the threshold (three per cent of GDP) stipulated in the Fiscal Responsibility Act (FRA), 2007.

    “The deficit will largely be financed by borrowing which is estimated at N1.59 trillion while about N172.47. billion will be derived from Privatisation Proceeds, and N556.02 billion are loans secured for specific development projects.

    “Government will, however, continue to explore ways of generating additional revenues to bring down the fiscal deficit including through government assets ownership restructuring I sales which was initially proposed to happen in 2018: The plan is to redeploy these assets to finance other critical projects that will benefit the economy in the near-term, while reducing borrowing requirements in the medium term,” it added.

     

  • Our Girls; Danjuma; Budget 2019? 

    Our Chibok Girls are still missing since April 15, 2014. Yes, 104 of the 110 Dapchi Girls have been released from a captivity that would never have happened if the checkpoints had not been withdrawn. Also five young innocent school girls died plunging their families into despair and sorrow. There is no name in any language for an unbelievable pain of a parent who has lost a child. Kidnapping is a deadly game not a drive in and out sport. One 14 year-old, Liya Sharibu, is still held as she refused to renounce her Christian faith. She may have been released by the time you read this. In the 21st Century, unlike in the historic and bloody past, there is wide acceptance that faith is a personal choice and not imposed. In my family, we have Christians and Muslims, no one imposes on another. Children often are brought up uncomplaining in their parents’ faith unless there is a mixed-religion marriage when the children choose one particular one for life. Conversion by coercion should be consigned to the dustbin of history. It is meaningless to one’s soul.

    While the Dapchi girls’ release is welcome, it should be subject to a public enquiry and forensic analysis. There is no comparison between the Chibok and Dapchi episodes except that both are ongoing preventable tragedies and resulted in totally preventable deaths, distress, and depression and have had disastrous Post Traumatic Stress Syndrome results on the children, parents and citizens and dent our international image again. To have a repeat, with deaths, is shameful, inexcusable and resignations or sackings should be demanded. Who will comfort the parents and siblings of those five dead girls? Why did the same Boko Haram convoy of nine lorries return unchecked to the same scene of the crime? Some say the army checkpoints were removed again allowing the same terrorists to psychologically terrorise the same people until it became clear that the girls were being returned!  Nowhere else in the world has any large-scale kidnapping of this nature occurred and then rewarded by allowing the terrorists to return triumphantly to the scene of their crime. This is shocking double trauma to the citizens of Dapchi. Everywhere else in the world the Red Cross or Blue Crescent would have received the girls at an agreed point and they would have been then brought home by such experienced neutral humanitarian organisations. What were the girls thinking as they were driven back home? Were they to be released or executed in the town square? This handover though successful, is shoddy, socially irresponsible and dangerously inhuman negotiating outcome practice -unrepeatable.

    At last General T Y  Danjuma, a key player in Nigeria’s military history and a personal oil block multi-billion dollar beneficiary,  has cried out about the horrific effects of the Fulani herdsmen ‘Not Yet A War’ with deaths in their many 1000s and the destruction of over 1,200 churches and 1,000s of homes in pillaged villages and towns and the war strategy of ‘laying waste’ the land with maliciously burnt harvested and growing crops and forcing millions to be Internally Displaced Persons, IDPs.  The ongoing Kaduna nightmare encapsulated by Bishop Mathew Kukah at a funeral oration for fellow Bishop Bagobiri in a synopsis crying for a ‘unity and justice’, not ‘unity minus justice’ solution. Just last week, 11 soldiers were killed in Kaduna, 11 citizens including a whole traditional monarch and wife were murdered in Kogi, -is this not war? Who is keeping the death toll? The police in Ogun State have caught and killed six of the robbery gang which attacked us on Wednesday March 14, at 4 pm on the Lagos-Ibadan Expressway and also robbed others and kidnapping of two doctors from UCH. They have been recognized in the Tribune newspaper photographs as the being from that gang. Congratulations to the police which sustained injuries to two of its men. May they recover quickly, Amen. Apparently the gang was ravaging villages for weeks. If only they had been arrested then!

    Government praises its agricultural strides but remembers to forget the cancelled-at-gunpoint impact of the 170,000 farmers, 100s of communities and thousands of hectares of pre-harvest food on land destroyed and burnt and laid waste by the needless war of Fulani herdsmen marauding with impunity. Farmers are digging trenches around their land. Confirm the best source of your meat i.e. shipped in by trailer or grown locally.

    Party loyalty appears zero in a National Assembly (NASS) APC divided against itself and seemingly disinterested in Nigeria which was so desperately looking for cyclic Jan-Dec budget order. What does NASS want? Is NASS overreaching itself demanding to see every MDA? We have an APC-NASS membership unable to grow mentally, swallow its money-ridden pride in its political pettiness or execute its role to protect even its own APC government’s agreed flagship project – a  budget agenda of a Jan-Dec budget, no matter how flawed! The delay in passage of the 2018 national budget is an economic and political bullet in the heart of this government fired by NASS-APC members in sheep’s clothing and the opposition to rubbish and cripple its programmes pre-2019 election. Is this silly strategy or simple sabotage?  Let’s call it Budget 2019, abi?  Please evict them at the 2019 election? Will the 65 other parties coalesce?

     

    NB: Uncover ‘I LOVE NIGERIA’ KNOWLEDGEABLE CANDIDATES for 2019 -SDG 16.