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  • Budget office dismisses claims of ₦246bn salaries budget for NEDC

    Budget office dismisses claims of ₦246bn salaries budget for NEDC

    The Budget Office of the Federation (BoG) has dismissed claims circulating in public that the North East Development Commission operates a ₦246 billion budget meant only for salaries, describing the allegation as false and misleading.

    The Director General of the Budget Office, Dr. Tanimu Yakubu, made this known in a press release issued in Abuja on Thursday, saying the claim showed a poor understanding of how the Federal Government’s budget system works.

    “This assertion is misleading, inaccurate, and rooted in a fundamental misunderstanding of the Federal Government of Nigeria’s budgeting framework,” Yakubu said.

    He explained that the ₦246.77 billion figure listed against the NEDC in the budget is not a salaries-only allocation, contrary to what has been suggested in some public discussions.

    “Contrary to claims circulating in the public domain, the ₦246.77 billion reflected against the NEDC in the budget is not a salaries-only allocation,” he said.

    According to him, the figure represents a statutory lump-sum allocation that is presented as a single amount at the early stage of budgeting, in line with standard practice for statutory and similar government bodies under the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework.

    “It is a statutory lump-sum provision, initially presented at an aggregate level, consistent with established budget preparation practices for statutory and quasi-statutory bodies,” Yakubu explained.

    He added that claims suggesting that about ₦244 billion of the amount is meant strictly for staff salaries are completely wrong. Yakubu said that during budget preparation, when some agencies have not yet submitted full internal breakdowns of their spending plans, figures may temporarily appear under the personnel cost section for technical reasons.

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    “This is a recognised procedural convention pending detailed submissions, legislative adjustments, and approved reallocations during budget execution,” he said.

    He stressed that this technical way of presenting figures should not be mistaken for how the money will actually be spent.

    Yakubu also addressed comments about the NEDC’s capital spending, explaining that the ₦2.70 billion mentioned in some reports reflects adjustments made by the National Assembly in the 2025 budget. He said about 70 per cent of the capital allocation was shifted into the 2026 budget year as part of legislative decisions on timing.

    “This does not mean that development projects are missing or abandoned,” he said.

    According to the Budget Office, detailed project schedules attached to the budget clearly show ongoing and planned projects across the North East. These include agricultural support programmes, food security initiatives, construction and rehabilitation of orphanages, rebuilding of IDP camps, provision of boreholes, security support, and constituency-level projects.

    Yakubu said focusing on a single budget line while ignoring the full project details gives a false picture. “Selective reading of a single budget line while ignoring accompanying schedules is not analysis—it is a distortion,” he said.

    He also explained that spending on staff in a development commission is normal and necessary, as such costs cover professionals needed to carry out projects properly.

    “Personnel costs fund engineers, procurement officers, project managers, monitoring and evaluation teams, and oversight functions required to deliver projects effectively,” Yakubu said, adding that no development agency can function without skilled staff.

    The Budget Office said the NEDC operates under strict accountability systems, including the Medium-Term Expenditure Framework, annual Appropriation Acts, National Assembly oversight, quarterly budget performance reports, and statutory audits.

    While welcoming public interest and scrutiny, Yakubu said discussions must be based on facts and a proper understanding of the budget process.

    “The claim that the NEDC exists merely to pay salaries is unfounded,” he said, noting that it ignores how budgets are structured and how projects are approved and implemented.

    The Budget Office urged members of the public and commentators to engage responsibly with fiscal information, warning that false information does not promote accountability.

    “Misinformation does not serve accountability, and ignorance of the budget process should not be weaponised as public commentary,” Yakubu said.

  • Budget Office DG dismisses ‘wrong notions’ about new tax laws

    Budget Office DG dismisses ‘wrong notions’ about new tax laws

    • …says ₦800,000 annual income threshold shields low-income earners
    • …insists pension, health insurance are deductions, not hidden taxes
    • …accuses critics of selective arithmetic and misusing poverty data

    The Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Tanimu Yakubu, has dismissed what he described as “wrong notions and stage-managed arithmetic” surrounding Nigeria’s new tax laws, saying claims that the reforms would impose fresh burdens on the poor were based on selective accounting and misrepresentation of the law.

    Yakubu, in a detailed rejoinder to a widely circulated essay critical of the tax reforms, argued that the narrative branding the policy as “Bola’s tax” deliberately ignored key provisions designed to shield low-income earners.

    He said the argument relied on emotional framing rather than the actual structure of the tax schedule approved under the new regime.

    At the centre of the controversy, according to the Budget Office chief, is what he called a “category error” in which pension and health insurance contributions were wrongly presented as taxes.

    He stressed that pension payments are deferred wages owned by workers and lodged in their Retirement Savings Accounts, while health insurance premiums are contributions that purchase defined coverage, not compulsory levies for general government spending.

    “A deduction is not a tax, and a contribution you own is not a levy you lose,” Yakubu said, adding that such deductions, in fact, reduce taxable income and demonstrate an effort to protect workers’ welfare rather than exploit it.

    Yakubu said the most critical omission in the criticism was the ₦800,000 annual tax-free threshold under the new personal income tax structure, explaining that the first ₦800,000 of annual income attracts a zero per cent tax rate, a provision he described as “the hinge on which liability turns.”

    Using an illustrative example of a worker earning ₦75,000 monthly, Yakubu noted that such a person earns ₦900,000 annually, placing only ₦100,000 above the zero-rated band.

    Even at a 15 per cent rate on that excess, he said the tax exposure would amount to ₦15,000 a year, before deductions, adding once pension contributions are applied, the taxable portion drops sharply and could fall to zero if other allowable deductions, such as health insurance, are included.

    He also faulted the use of global poverty lines in the criticism, saying the World Bank’s $4.20-a-day benchmark was a purchasing power parity (PPP) measure, not a nominal wage threshold that could be converted directly into naira using market exchange rates, saying such conversions turned technical welfare metrics into political talking points.

    Addressing the claim that “widening the tax base” necessarily meant taxing the poor, Yakubu described it as a false syllogism.

    He said tax base expansion could involve bringing non-compliant high earners into the net, closing loopholes, capturing affluent segments of the digital and informal economy, and strengthening employer withholding, rather than targeting subsistence incomes.

    Yakubu further argued that long lists of alleged corruption and mismanagement, while raising legitimate governance concerns, did not invalidate the structure of a tax schedule.

    He said the logical response to accountability concerns was to improve transparency, auditing, and enforcement, not to misrepresent tax reforms aimed at reducing Nigeria’s reliance on borrowing.

    “The outrage depends on omitting the very thresholds and concepts that make its conclusion collapse,” Yakubu said, insisting that the new tax structure explicitly protects low incomes and that claims to the contrary were driven more by narrative devices than by arithmetic grounded in law.

  • Budget Office defends Repeal, Re-enactment of 2024, 2025 budgets

    Budget Office defends Repeal, Re-enactment of 2024, 2025 budgets

    The Budget Office of the Federation (BOF) has affirmed that the repeal and re-enactment of the 2024 and 2025 Appropriation Acts are valid constitutional and legislative instrument for budgetary oversight and fiscal alignment.

    They passed through the National Assembly and received presidential assent, the BOF said in a statement signed by its Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Tanimu Yakubu

    Reacting to criticisms of the budgeting process, he stated that where macroeconomic conditions and implementation realities require adjustments, lawful legislative action, not informal fiscal practice, is the appropriate response under Nigeria’s constitutional democracy.

    In the press statement, the Office said claims describing the repeal and re-enactment of the two Appropriation Acts as unconstitutional, illegal, or fiscally improper were based on misunderstandings of constitutional provisions and established legislative practice.

    According to the BOF, Sections 80 to 84 of the Constitution clearly establish a sequenced framework for public expenditure, under which the President lays estimates before the legislature, the National Assembly authorises spending through appropriation laws, and the Executive implements expenditure strictly within that authority.

    “The Constitution does not prohibit the National Assembly from repealing and re-enacting an Appropriation Act where fiscal circumstances, implementation realities, or reconciliation of fiscal instruments make such legislative action necessary in the public interest,” the statement said.

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     It added that once a repeal and re-enactment bill is passed by the National Assembly and assented to by the President, “the resulting Act becomes valid law,” stressing that it is therefore incorrect to describe the process as a “constitutional impossibility.”

    On the lifespan of appropriation laws, the BOF clarified that while budgets are typically framed around a fiscal year, the Constitution does not impose an immutable expiry rule that forbids legislative extensions to allow for orderly completion of obligations, settlement of certified claims, or alignment of overlapping fiscal instruments.

    “Where the National Assembly, in exercise of its legislative powers, extends the operational window of an Appropriation Act, such extension is an expression of legislative authority, not an illegality,” the office said.

    Responding to allegations of expenditure without appropriation, the BOF said such claims often conflate distinct public finance concepts, including contractual obligations, statutory transfers, debt service, cash releases, and multi-year project commitments.

    “The legal test is whether expenditure is supported by lawful appropriation or other constitutional or statutory charge, and whether any required legislative oversight is sought through recognised instruments such as supplementary appropriation, virement where permitted, or repeal and re-enactment,” it explained.

    The office emphasised that the repeal and re-enactment process actually reinforces constitutional control of public funds by consolidating and regularising fiscal authority through an Act of the National Assembly.

    On transparency, the BOF reaffirmed its obligations under the Fiscal Responsibility Act to ensure timely disclosure and wide publication of fiscal information, while noting that such transparency must respect document integrity and legislative authentication processes to avoid circulation of conflicting drafts.

    Yakubu however said the office remained committed to fiscal discipline, transparency, and constructive engagement with stakeholders.

    “Where macroeconomic conditions and implementation realities require legislative adjustment, the proper response is lawful legislative action, not informal fiscal practice,” Yakubu said.

    He added that the repeal and re-enactment process, having gone through the National Assembly and presidential assent, “remains a constitutional and legislative instrument for budgetary oversight and alignment.”

  • Northwest, not Lagos, gets lion’s share of federal projects — Budget Office DG

    Northwest, not Lagos, gets lion’s share of federal projects — Budget Office DG

    The Director-General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Dr. Tanimu Yakubu, has clarified the controversy surrounding the citing and distribution of federal government projects across the country, following claims that Lagos State alone had cornered a disproportionate share of President Bola Tinubu’s approvals.

    Yakubu, in a statement titled “Northwest: The Lion’s Share of Tinubu’s Projects”, dismissed the narrative that Lagos received N3.9 trillion worth of projects, describing it as misleading and politically motivated.

    According to him, a breakdown of the figures shows that only N1.2 trillion were Lagos-specific projects, such as airport fencing, Carter Bridge rehabilitation, and other localized upgrades. 

    The remaining N2.7 trillion, he explained, are national infrastructure projects, particularly highways and transport corridors that pass through Lagos but serve the entire federation.

    “By that logic, the Kano–Maiduguri expressway could just as easily be called a Maiduguri-only project. Such sleight of hand ignores a central truth: these are not local trophies. They are the arteries of a national economy,” Yakubu said.

    Contrary to the viral claims, Yakubu disclosed that the North West region is the single largest beneficiary of President Tinubu’s federal project approvals. 

    He provided the regional distribution of projects as follows: North West: N5.97 trillion (over 40% of all approvals); South South: N2.41 trillion; North Central: N1.13 trillion; South East: N407 billion; North East: N400 billion; South West (excluding Lagos): N604 billion and Lagos (exclusive projects): N1.2 trillion.

    Yakubu noted that the figures leave no doubt that the North West, and not Lagos, holds the lion’s share of projects under the Tinubu administration.

    The Budget Office DG urged Nigerians to stop viewing infrastructure as sectional “trophies” or “rewards” for regions, insisting that roads, railways, and power plants are national assets designed to connect Nigeria’s economy and people.

    “The farmer in Katsina needs a market in Lagos. The trader in Aba depends on goods flowing through Kano. The student in Sokoto requires the national grid as much as her counterpart in Port Harcourt. Federal projects must be understood as national investments designed to connect Nigeria to itself, and ultimately to the world,” he explained.

    Yakubu noted that the president has not forgotten the pivotal role of the North West in his election and has responded with deliberate investments in the region.

    He pointed to the revival of the long-abandoned Kaduna Power Plant (255MW), the ongoing Kaduna–Kano expressway, the Kano–Maiduguri highway, the Sokoto–Illela corridor, and new investments in education and security infrastructure as evidence of the administration’s commitment to the region.

    “These are not footnotes,” Yakubu said. “They are the backbone of a deliberate Northwest-first investment strategy—kilometre by kilometre, megawatt by megawatt.”

    Looking ahead, he disclosed plans for the ambitious Tinubu National Beltway Project, an L-shaped corridor that will link Calabar in the South South to Maiduguri in the North East, and then across to Sokoto in the North West.

    Read Also: Budget office DG fired over fiasco

    The project, when completed, will redraw Nigeria’s infrastructural map, connecting four regions through modern highways, economic corridors, and logistics hubs. It is expected to reduce logistics costs, improve connectivity, boost market access, and stimulate wealth creation across the country.

    Yakubu warned against what he called attempts to use “viral infographics” to create regional division. He said such tactics amount to political blackmail and ignore the national vision behind the projects.

    “Lagos remains Nigeria’s commercial hub, rightly upgraded. The Northwest is Nigeria’s electoral fortress, richly rewarded. Every region receives its due, because Tinubu budgets for one economy, one country, one people,” he said.

    The DG concluded that history will judge the Tinubu administration not by controversial graphics but by tangible results such as power plants restored, new schools and hospitals constructed, and farmers and traders gaining wider access to markets.

    “President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has not marginalized the North. He has trusted it, invested in it, and rewarded it. That is the record. That is the fact. That is the truth. And no infographic, however deceptive, can bury it,” Yakubu insisted.

  • Buhari symbolises austerity, duty – DG Budget Office 

    Buhari symbolises austerity, duty – DG Budget Office 

    Director General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Dr Tanimu Yakubu, has paid tributes to former President Muhammadu Buhari. 

    He described the late leader as a man of profound simplicity and unwavering principles. 

    In a statement, he said:  “I sit in the solemn quiet of the capital, while the nation moves northward to Daura,” Yakubu began, capturing the solemn mood. He pondered, “How does one mourn a man who chose to live simply in a complicated world? A man who owned power, but never let it own him?”

    Yakubu described Buhari as never flamboyant, but “luminous.” 

    He observed that Buhari’s presence “did not crash into rooms; it distilled into them, like slow wisdom. In an age of performance, he remained a man of substance. In a time of noise, he chose silence. And in a country gasping for heroes, he dared to be austere.”

    Recalling his time working with Buhari at the Petroleum Trust Fund (PTF), Yakubu recounted: “Those of us who labored with him in the quiet corridors of the Petroleum Trust Fund saw his principles sharpen into policy. That era was not an illusion. It was execution.”

    He added: “Each naira stretched, each project vetted, each promise measured by the same ascetic yardstick by which he governed himself.” Yakubu stated clearly that “Not a culvert was built without cause. Not a contract was padded. And not a single project was left behind as a ghost.” He explained, “We did not manage a budget—we upheld a trust.”

    Yakubu maintained that Buhari demonstrated how “when a leader leads with clean hands, even limited means can move a country forward.” He held the belief, “fiercely, stubbornly, that Nigeria deserved to be whole and honest, even if the world around her was not.”

    According to Yakubu, Buhari possessed “no taste for the indulgences of power. No appetite for stolen wealth. No flair for personal enrichment. His only wealth was duty and perhaps that is why he never seemed poor in soul.”

    Since Buhari has been laid to rest in Daura, Yakubu posed a challenging question: “who among us dares to live with such sparse grandeur again? Who will take up the cross of discipline, in a generation seduced by spectacle? Who will defend institutions, not for applause, but because it is right? Who will serve, not to eat, but to build?”

    Yakubu considers Buhari’s legacy to be “not in marble or gold, but in memory and example.” 

    He presented Buhari’s life as a resilient figure in a challenging time: “In a time when public virtue is often mocked, when the state staggers under the weight of corruption, and when too many leaders think only of tenure and not of posterity, Muhammadu Buhari’s life stands like a lean, unyielding baobab, gnarled by storms, but never uprooted.” He stated that Buhari “reminds us that austerity is not failure. That restraint is not weakness. That the quiet man, steady and sincere, may outlast the charlatan.”

    While conceding that Buhari “was not perfect, but he was rare,” Yakubu urged a deeper reflection. 

    “Let us not simply bury him. Let us exhumme his example. Let us ask what it means to truly serve. Let us confront our cynicism with the discipline he practiced, not just preached. Let us revive institutions with the moral clarity he demanded. And let us measure ourselves, not by wealth accumulated or words spoken, but by work done, with clean hands and clear conscience.”

    Yakubu appealed for national introspection. “We do not grieve for him alone. We grieve for the ethic he embodied and for the silence his departure leaves in our national soul. But even in death, his life still points forward: toward integrity, toward sacrifice, toward a Nigeria still possible.”

    He offered a final wish: “May his soul rest in the peace he earned. And may we find, in his memory, the courage to become worthy inheritors of his stubborn hope.”

  • Why envelope system of funding budget will continue, by DG Budget Office

    Why envelope system of funding budget will continue, by DG Budget Office

    …as Reps frien at under funding of Foreign Missions

    Director General of the Budget Office of the Federation, Tanimu Yakubu, said on Tuesday that unless there is improvement in revenue generation in the country, the envelope system of funding the annual budget will continue. 

    Speaking while defending the allocation of about N285 billion to the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and its 110 foreign mission as recurrent expenditure for the 2025 financial year, Yakubu said there is nothing the budget Office can do for the MDAs than to manage available resources. 

    He said: “For the four months I have been in office, I have been working with the system I met on ground which is the envelope system. Even though I don’t like the system, we have been talking to ourselves on how to review the system of busgeting and have done much to improve what I met on ground. 

    “We apply the envelope system in all MDAs and I have not seen any agency that is ok with what it is given. The complain has been the same across. They envelope system started in 2006 and it has not been reviewed since. However, we should be seen to be throwing money at projects that have not bearing. 

    “For the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, we applied a 25 percent review in their allocation for 2025 and what we met on ground. But right now, there is nothing I can do. My hands are tied because I have obligations to other sectors”.

    He said the National Assembly should appreciate the improvement in the liquidity situation in the country and the desire of the President to do more through the in trouble of the tax reform bills, adding that the bills should be passed in a manner that will put into consideration the interest of the Nigerian people. 

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    He said the President has insisted that there must be a substantial reduction in the cost of upstream operation in other to improve revenue generation, saying “until then, we have to manage scarcity until we reach the threshold”.

    While admitting under funding of foreign mission, he said “if we don’t have enough money to redeem our image across the world through adequate funding of the foreign missions, why don’t we consider a significant reduction in the number of foreign missions until our finances improve. 

    “We can look to cluster them. But in doing that, the Minister will have seat with the President to see what can be done because if you are reducing embassies, you cannot walk away from your responsibilities”.

    He said “we have 109 diplomatic missions abroad, comprising of 76 embassies, 22 High Commissions and 11 Consulates. The problem as you rightly described is as ubiquitous as Nigeria’s present worldwide. 

    “The situation was certainly worse three years ago when Nigeria’s debt service was proclaim almost 100 percent of the country’s revenue. We start to see improvement under this administration, when through debt financial engineering in year one, debt service was brought from as high  as 100 percent to 55 percent 

    “If you talk to our missions abroad, they will tell that last year was the year they started experiencing some relief.  We’re still not there yet. 

    “Bold reforms have been embarked on by the current administration, starting with the liberalisation of the foreign exchange rate, and the withdrawal of subsidy on PMS and other products. 

    “We expect to save about N11 trillion from this two models adopted. The savings started to materialize in October last year, but the main beneficiaries, especially the state governments collected the money and kept mute, but we knew that they took a lot more than they have for several years.

    “We have brought before the National Assembly, tax Bills that you’re considering, that we expect you to improve so that we’ll be able to collect more revenue. Mr President has gone out of his way to inisit on 2.12 million barrels per day, a very ambitious target for oil output”.

    Chairman of the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, Wole Oke decried the use of envelope system in funding the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and it’s foreign missions, adding that the syatem was unknown to Nigerian laws. 

    He saw there is no provision in the laws that says MDAs should be funded through the envelope system, saying “we are worried that an agency of government constitutionality mandated to promote the image of the country is under funded because of the use of the envelope system. 

    Oke said from its oversight of foreign Affairs Ministry, it was discovered that they conducted a need assessment of about N1.5 trillion, but were handed an envelope of N285 billion. 

    He said: “What was submitted is at veriance with our laws and that is why we decided to call this meeting”.

    Oke added that some of the missions are on the verge of being evicted from the property they currently occupied, some of them are in a state of disrepair. 

  • 2nd Niger Bridge will be a reality — Osinbajo

    2nd Niger Bridge will be a reality — Osinbajo

    The Federal Government has re-stated its resolve to complete work on the  second Niger Bridge as well as other federal projects in the South-East zone.

    The Vice-President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo gave the assurance during a funeral mass for late Mrs Roseline Akabueze, the mother of Mr Ben Akabueze, the Director-General, Budget Office, Abuja at St Gabriel Catholic Church, Ifitedunu, Anambra State.

    Osinbajo explained that the FG under President Mohammadu Buhari was committed to completing every federal project in the South East especially the second Niger Bridge.

    According to him, “President Buhari went to China to negotiate with them about the second Niger Bridge and East-West road.

    He said that everything have also been put in place to ensure the completion of Enugu-Onitsha expressway.

    Osinbajo urged the National Assembly to consider and accommodate all the federal projects during their deliberations.

    He re-stated that one of the cardinal principles of Buhari administration was fairness, which according to him has offered every political zone the opportunity to benefit from  his government.

    Also speaking, Gov. Willie Obiano of Anambra recalled that Ifitedunu Community had benefited immensely from his administration, especially in the area of appointments.

    Obiano urged the people to apply for the second phase of his N20 million community “Choose your Project” initiative, which is  geared toward developing every community simultaneously as well as empowering the youths.

    Dignitaries present include the Minister of Labour, Dr Chris Nwabueze Ngige, Minister for Budget and National Planning, Sen. Udo Udoma.

  • FG has no funds to pay salary, promotion arrears, says Ngige

    FG has no funds to pay salary, promotion arrears, says Ngige

    The negotiation for new minimum wage may have been kept in the cooler until salary and promotion arrears owed civil servant are cleared, it was learnt Monday.

    This is coming as Minister of Labour and Productivity, Senator Chris Ngige, Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, Director General, Budget Office, Mr. Ben Akabueze and Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, met Monday with the leadership of the National Assembly to find ways to clear salary and promotion arrears of civil servant.

    Also on table for discussion at the closed door meeting chaired by Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki, was the issue of payment of transfer allowances of workers and death benefits.

    Ngige told reporters that they were at the National Assembly on the invitation of ledership of the National Assembly.

    He added that though some progress were made at the meeting, all sides were to go back and come back tomorrow with possible solution to the identified issues which is that “government does not have enough fund for now to tackle the issues.”

    Ngige said, “We are here on the invitation of the National Assembly, the joint committee on labour and employment and the meeting is chaired by the Senate President.

    “We are here to discuss issues relating to things that are meant for industrial disharmony in the public sector.

    “As you are aware the labour federations have said the governors have not been treating them well.

    “One of the cardinal issues of International Labour Organisation (ILO) is to give our workers decent jobs and we decided to discuss with them.

    Wabba on his own said, “We are here as usual to dialogue over a range of issues particularly the welfare and well-being of our members – the Nigerian workers. In particular, we have discussed issues bothering on arrears of allowances which have accumulated for some time and running into billions, which they have not paid.

    “Also, alongside is the issue of pension particularly the issue of bonds and the fact that some of the contributions by workers have not been remitted for time.

    “Those are some of the issues that we thought the National Assembly has led the process to bring all stakeholders on board and look at how these issues can be resolved in a win-win situation without allowing the industrial relation process to break up.

    “I think this is very healthy and commendable, and all of us are committed to a very peaceful process of resolving these issues.

    “As the minister said, we have adjourned to allow thorough reflection over some of those issues and to be able to come up with workable solutions that will address these issues.

    “Those are the totality of issues we are actually working on and it is a holistic process which you know that the processes require laws; they also require some budgetary provisions.

    “So, that is why we are here and the process is holistic, to look at how best those issues can be resolved amicably.”

    Asked why the issue of new minimum wage was not top on the agenda of the meeting, Wabba who was almost walking away said the process is holistic.

     

    On what labour is demanding, he said “Labour has spoken with one voice. We have made a formal demand which you are aware. It is N56, 000 there is no need repeating it.”

    Wabba categorized new laws and budgetary provision to clear the back log of the arrears.

    “It’s a tripartite negotiation. What we are doing here is tripartite plus because we have involved the National Assembly and when you do any such negotiations is plus.

    “We looked at the issues of salaries arrears, promotion arrears, death benefits, location expenses and transfer allowances, hotel allowance which overtime have accumulated and had ran into billions and this is what are owed to federal public servant and we started the meeting today to find a solution.

    “The labour leaders engage ourselves and we try to work out something that would help them and help us restore the confidence we have with them that is the employers and employees.

    “If we don’t have that confidence we may have break down of industrial harmony. So we made progress today and we have adjourned to reconvene tomorrow at 4pm, all sides are to go back and come back tomorrow with possible solution to the identified issues which is government doesn’t have enough fund for now to tackle the issues. So tomorrow we convey here and sort it”

     

  • Nigeria recorded N1.1tr IGR shortfall in 2016, says DG budget

    Nigeria recorded N1.1tr IGR shortfall in 2016, says DG budget

    …CBN director walked out of session

     

    Nigeria recorded a shortfall of N1.1 trillion in projected Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) in 2016 fiscal year, Director General, Budget Office, Ben Akabueze, told the National Assembly Thursday.

    Akabueze who gave the figure at a joint session of the Appropriation Committee of the Senate and House of Representatives, said that the country was only able to realise N398.335 billion out of projected N1.506 trillion IGR.

    He explained that the huge shortfall of N1.1trillion which should have been part of the funding cost accounted for the low 55 per cent capital release.

    The sum of N1.58 trillion was ear marked for capital budget in 2016.

    Akabueze also put statutory transfers fully cash-backed at N361 billion.

    The N1.3 trillion budgeted for debt serving was released, cash-backed and paid in full.

    Chairman of the Joint Committee, Senator Mohammed Danjuma Goje, said that the session became necessary for relevant officials, including the Minister of Finance, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Accountant General of the Federation, DG Budget Office to brief Nigerians on the actual performance of the 2016 budget

    Senator Goje noted that the officials should specifically tell Nigerians what was appropriated, what was approved by the National Assembly, what was released and how much was cash-backed.

    The Accountant General of the Federation (AGF) Ahmed Idris, on his own put total capital releases at N870.55 billion while personnel cost was N239.68 trillion.

    Senator Goje demanded the percentage releases otherwise the figures given would be misleading.

    The committee said that not only the percentage releases but the amount cash-backed should be disclosed.

    On why the country recorded low level of 55 per cent capital release, Akabueze said that funding of the capital component of the 2016 budget was affected by low inflow of fund including fall in oil revenue.

    The DG budget office parried the question on whether loans collected by the country were used to finance personnel cost and overhead.

    Minister of State, Budget and National Planning, Zainab Ahmed, told the committee that though there were financial challenges, the highest releases went to infrastructure MDAs in line with the priority of government.

    She added that the target of government was that by the end of the fiscal year in May, a minimum of N1trillion would have been spent on capital budget.

    A mild drama had ensued at the beginning of the session when the committee walked out the representative of the CBN Governor, Mohammed El-Yakubu, an acting director in the apex bank.

    Before El-Yakubu was asked to leave the venue Senator Goje said: “We want to put it on record that we put aside other things we had to do for this session because of its importance to Nigerians. We invited the CBN Governor but he is not here.

    “The CBN Governor has no reason not to be here. He did not send any deputy governor to represent him. I don’t think the acting director here has the capacity to represent the CBN Governor. The Minister of Budget and National Planning called me directly to say that he would accompany the Acting President to Akwa Ibom State.”

  • 2017 budget: FG orders MDAs to submit budget through web portal 

    2017 budget: FG orders MDAs to submit budget through web portal 

    As the 2017 budget preparations kicks off, all Ministries, Department and Agencies (MDAs) of government have been directed to submit their budgets to a designated web portal domiciled in Budget Office.

    This is a departure from the old practice of MDAs submitting their annual budgets through flash drive to the Budget office. This new development is to avoid hitches of 2016 budget creeping in to next year’s budget while the budget office will review it on line and send it back on line after corrections have been effected.

    This disclosure was made by the Minister of state in the Budget Ministry, Mrs. Zainab Ahmed Thursday in Abuja. The new process of submitting budget by MDAs, the minister added, was designed to limit human interface and ensure better quality 2017 budget.

    She also disclosed that the federal government has achieved 41.25% in 2016 budget implementation as of October 2016 with a total disbursement of N2.5 trillion.

    Speaking in an interview with financial journalists in Abuja at the 2nd presidential economic communications workshop, the Minister also confirmed that the 2017 budget is ready but the executive is waiting for the approval of Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) currently in the custody of the National Assembly for approval.

    According to her, “we planned 2017 budget very carefully by putting in place an IT system that minimizes human interface in the budget process to make 2017 Budget a very high quality budget. We now have a web portal where by ministries prepares their  budget and submits on line and the budget office reviews it on line and send back via  online where corrections would be made. This will reduce significantly the human interface to ensure we have a high quality budget.”

    She said the executive arm was ready with 2017 budget, but   waiting for the National Assembly’s approval of MTEF before   its submission   to the National Assembly.

    With regards to the current budget, the minister said the 2016 has been very challenging to the federal government in terms of revenue receipt and budget implementation.

    According to her, “it’s been very challenging for us. Apart from the fact that we are in recession, we have some of our people facing humanitarian crisis in the North East.  The Niger Delta crisis has pruned down revenue from oil and gas. We have a lot of projects that we planned to do but the revenue yield is not as we projected in the budget and this is largely due to vandalism of major oil infrastructures in  Niger Delta region.  We have minimal revenue but we have a lot of plans to share and allocate resources”, said Mrs. Ahmed.

    On what has been disbursed from the 2016 budget, she said the, federal government has released about N2.5 trillion of N6.06 trillion 2016 budget. Of the releases, she said N753 billion is for capital projects, a significant portion of which was devoted to infrastructure and related projects. N108 billion for overheads, N117 billion as statutory transfers, N142 billion for Consolidated pension, N1.2 trillion for personnel and N135 billion for service wide.

    The minister also revealed that, the government is currently developing a National Economic Recovery plan covering 2017- 2020.  The plan, she said would guide preparation of annual budgets and guide the Economic Management Team and budgeting process over short term to medium term.