The Nation Newspaper

Tag: BUHARI

  • Fayose wants Buhari to withdraw 2016 Budget

    Ekiti State Governor, Ayo Fayose, has advised President Muhammadu Buhari to withdraw the 2016 Budget over alleged embarrassment it has caused government.

    Fayose in a statement issued on Tuesday by his Special Assistant on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka, urged the President to accept responsibility for what he called “avoidable errors” in the budget and re-present a new and credible budget to the National Assembly.

    According to him, the latest revelation by the Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole, that the budget presented by the ministry to the Budget Office had been doctored necessitated the need for another budget.

    The governor described the situation as the height of national embarrassment.

    Fayose said; “Last week, we were told that the Senate discovered a sum of N10 billion questionably smuggled into the budget of the Ministry of Education for an allegedly questionable subhead.

    “Also, we were told of the existence of a budget mafia in the Presidency that was said to be responsible for the embarrassing allocations in the budget.

    “Before now, we were told that a total of N3.87 billion was allocated for capital projects at the State House Clinic alone, over N700 million more than capital allocation to all the 16 federal teaching hospitals combined.

    “Now, a whole minister has come out to say that budgetary provision for his ministry was forged!

    “If under a President that says he is fighting corruption, the budget of the country got missing and we are now being told that the budget being considered by the National Assembly has been forged, one cannot but be afraid that there is possibility of Nigeria being forged one day, after the original must have gone missing.”

  • Buhari’s anti-looting drive

    Buhari’s anti-looting drive

    On the rule of law debate viz-a-viz the fight against corruption, Ripples has moved on. But not some reader-citizens who want to contribute their bit to the public debate now trending, to use that online lingo, in the public space. Col. Innocent Azubike Nass is my guest today. Please enjoy.

    There is this popular argument that President Muhammadu Buhari is not properly following the “rule of law” or “due process of the law” in his anti-corruption (more-specifically anti-looting) fight.

    This often suggests that for an effective anti-corruption fight, the president should first change certain criminal procedures/laws before seriously tackling the monumental corruption in our society.  That could be as good as advising him to soften or give up the fight, under the excuse of judicial hindrances.

    In the annals of American Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI), there are innumerable cases of re-arresting a suspect on trial who has been granted bail.

    There are also cases of other law-enforcement agencies taking related actions, such as Immigration and Naturalization Service (INS) arresting and deporting back an in-coming witness or plaintiff who has valid court papers and visa.

    Many of the current arch-proponents of ‘Government must obey all court orders on bail’ do not seem to care to mention this other side of the coin to balance the argument.

    Nigerian society has reached a heartlessly devilish dimension of looting and sharing of the commonwealth of the nation by a few well-entrenched, well-networked and deep-pocketed elites; who had serially proven to have ways of outsmarting and compromising certain judicial processes to evade justice.  They deploy their wealth and influence to that effect.

    The current cases involve the looting and sharing of war fund, while our fighting soldiers were being humiliated and killed in hundreds for lack of appropriate weapons and equipment in the fight against Boko Haram.

    Thousands of civilians were killed and several hundreds of thousands displaced from their homes and living in refugee camps; both in Nigeria and in the neighbouring countries, while those that looted and shared the war fund live and swim in obscene wealth and luxury, with properties and bank accounts littered in Nigeria and in foreign countries, just as majority of Nigerian masses live in abject poverty and helplessness.

    So, does an elected president have the executive power to take certain radical actions if he is convinced it is in the over-riding interest of the nation and the people?

    In about 1864 (during American civil war between the Union side and the Confederates), President Abraham Lincoln, through an executive order/decree, suspended the legal “writ of summons”, made a law that was back-dated (retrospective effect) and used it to try some detained saboteur suspects, and those convicted were executed within days after the review of the judgment. 

    He did that because he was convinced that the masterminds of the saboteur network could exploit existing legal loopholes to beat the law, while their foot-soldiers were more easily trapped.  Lincoln wondered how he could sanction the execution of convicted foot-soldiers (“the little solder boy who deserts”) while their masterminds remained free to do more harm to the society, under the subterfuge of legal technicalities.  Lincoln saw the survival of the United States as greater than the lives of those few individuals.

    For that decision, President Lincoln came under sustained attacks and media condemnation, as well as litigation, all orchestrated by some American human-rights activist groups and public affairs commentators.  But the overwhelming majority of Unionist Americans (who had less media publicity) tacitly supported Lincoln.  Posterity had since reckoned that he acted in over-riding national interest for the survival of the United States.

    During the Second World War, shortly after Japanese forces attacked and destroyed American naval base at Pearl Harbour in late 1941, which drew the United States into the war, the United States judiciary found itself in a delicate and controversial situation.  This was related to the security measures being taken to identify and weed off internal saboteurs, most of whom were of dual-citizenship (particularly Japanese-Americans and German-Americans).

    There were reported cases of saboteurs and spies caught while transmitting information to the enemy (the Axis powers).  The detention, investigation and trial of these suspects became a problem under the law, as civil libertarians cried out loudly against abuse of fundamental human rights of suspects (who by law were presumed innocent until court proves otherwise), and the rule of law as enshrined in American constitution.

    There was also wide-spread public hysteria calling for severe action against enemies of the nation, irrespective of the niceties of the legal due process.  In a celebrated case brought by a group of civil libertarians to the U.S. Supreme Court in 1942, Chief Justice Robert Jackson, against the strong argument of civil libertarians on the issues of “interrogation without the due process of law” and prolonged detention of suspects, gave his famous ruling that the United States “Constitution is not a suicide pact”.

    Chief Justice Robert Jackson argued that the constitution and laws of the United States were made for good, order, peace and harmony within the society.  That is the spirit of the law.  But an unanticipated situation had arisen whereby evil-minded forces threaten the values and the very existence of the nation, exploiting the liberal values to destroy the very same society. In that case the spirit of the law overruled the letters of the law.   The Supreme Court sanctioned the mass internment of Japanese-Americans.  It vacated the decision two years later when the war situation had stabilized.

    The purpose of this recollection is to show that even the judiciary has a very crucial patriotic role to play in checkmating the forces that threaten to destroy our values as an ordered human society, rather than take subterfuge under legal helplessness and technicalities.

    President Buhari needs decisive actions in the anti-corruption fight, if effective impact is to be achieved.  A loud minority of opinions and commentaries could dominate most media outlets.  That could be acceptable as part of the dynamics of change.

    But the overwhelming majority of Nigerian masses (and sizeable minority of elites) enthusiastically support Mr. President to give entrenched corruption a tough fight and stubbornly resist the desperate fight-back by corruption network.

    Yes, there is a genuine fear of abuse of such executive presidential power.  Nigeria’s recent history is replete with such abuses.  But under the present situation, the president has got to take resolute action, and take responsibility for the outcome.

    There could be no other effective way to pull Nigeria out of the woods.

     

    • Col. Nass, who retired from the Nigerian Army in 2006, is based in Enugu.

     

  • Buhari forecloses mercenaries’’ role in anti-terror fight

    Buhari forecloses mercenaries’’ role in anti-terror fight

    In this interview culled from London Telegraph, President Muhammadu Buhari told the Chief Foreign Correspondent of the newspaper COLIN FREEMAN that his administration has no plan to engage mercenaries in the fight against Boko Haram insurgents.

    Are you willing to talk to Boko Haram about the missing Chibok schoolgirls?

     

    As long as we can establish the bona fides of the leadership of Boko Haram, we are prepared as a government to discuss with them how to get the girls back. But, we have not established any evidence of a credible leadership.

     

    Is Abubakar Shekau still the leader of Boko Haram?

     

    I receive conflicting information about the status of Shekau. Some say he has been removed and replaced by a less charismatic terrorist leader. I think he must be on the run, because out of the 14 local government districts that Boko Haram used to call their caliphate, they now do not control any now. They are scattered around the Sambisa forest and they have resorted to attacking soft targets, people in churches, mosques and market places, and using improvised explosive devices.

     

    Are you seeking any further help from the West in the fight against Boko Haram?

     

    I was invited by the G7 to Europe to brief them (members) on the issue of security, Boko Haram, and I did so. I subsequently sent Nigeria’s ‘shopping list’ in terms of the infrastructure destroyed. That is schools, medical facilities and other institutions, bridges blown up, and the estimates of repair.

     

     Did you also ask for Western military help?

     

    Yes, I did, but I don’t want to give any details of that in public at present. As you know, we already have foreign military help in terms of training missions.

     

     And are you asking for additional military help beyond training missions?

     

    I am not asking for any of that yet. I want to be briefed first on the situation from the Nigerian military and also the police. The previous government used mercenaries from South Africa in the fight against Boko Haram, with some success.

    Would you consider doing the same?

    I personally was very disappointed that the previous government resorted to mercenaries. I was also disappointed by the recent revelations of how military allocations were also misappropriated. How is it that Nigeria’s military, which has a good record across West Africa, cannot claim back 14 out of 774 local government areas s from Boko Haram? They have to ask for mercenaries from South Africa? How the mighty has fallen!”

     

    What is your feeling on the wider terror threats across West and North Africa at the moment, with terrorism attacks taking place in Mali and Burkina Faso?

     

    I think we should be very worried because with technology, Boko Haram and other terrorists have become very mobile in all continents, not only in Africa but also in Europe, America and Asia. For Africa and the Sahel, the demise of Gaddafi’s regime led to a lot of armed and trained people, especially those from the Sahel, being dispersed. Fighting is the only thing they know, and they are available at a fee. The danger is there, and I am pleased that Europe has realised it too.

     

    There have been reports that Nigerians have been fighting for ISIS in the Libyan city of Sirte. Is that true?

     

    I haven’t confirmed reports about that, but I know that it is not only in Sirte – there are also Nigerians finding their way to Syria too. I don’t know which side, but they may be fighting for ISIS. How many, I have no idea.

     

    Have you ever had reports of people from the Nigerian Diaspora in the UK being involved in Boko Haram in any way?

     

    No, but if I do, I will immediately raise the issue. A number of Nigerians use the migrant routes to come to the UK to claim asylum, saying their lives are at risk from Boko Haram.

     

    Is it legitimate for them to do so?

     

    Some Nigerians claim is that life is too difficult back home. But then again, some Nigerians have also made it difficult for Europeans and Americans to accept them because of the number of Nigerians in different prisons all over the world accused of drug trafficking or human trafficking. I don’t think Nigerians have anybody to blame. They can remain at home. Their services are required to rebuild the country. If their countrymen misbehaved, the best thing for them is to stay at home and encourage the credibility of the nation.

     

    Do you think that Nigerians have an image problem abroad?

    Certainly! But, we are on our way to salvage that. We will encourage our countrymen to stay at home, work hard and make a respectable living at home.

    Your government has launched a major corruption probe over claims that billions of dollars of oil cash went missing during the previous administration.

    Some suspects have been arrested in the UK.

     

    Are you satisfied with the co-operation you are getting from the UK authorities?

     

    One of the biggest suspects is in Britain now, although I am not going to name that person. But, Britain has earned our respect in the way it deals with these matters. Our only problem is that it seems to be too thorough and it takes too much time. If there are obvious cases, like bank accounts, infrastructure houses and hotels, I would hope they could do it quicker, so that we can claim these things back promptly.

  • ‘What Buhari must do to sustain democracy’

    ‘What Buhari must do to sustain democracy’

    Col. Edor Obi (retd.) is a former Military Administrator of Bayelsa State. In this interview with INNOCENT DURU, he advises President Muhammadu Buhari to tackle electoral violence and the high cost of running elections, if democracy must be sustained. 

    Let us begin with the armsgate. How did you receive the revelation?

    It is disturbing and shocking, especially for me who come from the military constituency. My only reservation is that I don’t like what I will call trial by the media as these are very serious allegations, especially coming from the office of the National Security Adviser. It is disturbing, but I do hope that we get to the root of what exactly transpired. In doing that, we should be cautious so that we don’t destroy the institutions that have been set up. This is the first time that that office is being subjected to this kind of public scrutiny. If people are found to have abused that office, they should be brought to book within the laws of the land. It shouldn’t be a media thing.

    From what is playing out now, there seems to be a sort of corruption in the military previously known for being disciplined. What do you make of this?

    That is why I said it is very disturbing. It is disturbing because Nigeria is at war and it is a different kind of war. It is probably easier to deal with the previous wars because they were conventional wars, which we had been prepared for over the years. Now, we are dealing with a more sophisticated and more difficult kind of warfare which is insurgency. Therefore, to subject our men and women in uniform to this kind of war, you need to equip and prepare them.

    Lives of many military officers were reportedly lost as a result of not using the money to procure the required ammunition for them. What do you think should be done for their families?

    If it is found out that the money that was meant for preparing and equipping them was diverted into other purposes and the process these men and woman lost their lives like we lost a lot of people as a consequence of this, then, the government has to do something. I know that ordinarily, for all our service personnel, there is a provision that is made for their next of kin to make sure that whenever they die in battle the next of kin are given some compensation. Beyond the monetary compensation, which cannot replace human lives, when we get to the root of this, the government may have to make a statement in terms of apologizing to the families of the victims.

    Are you in any way scandalized by the names being mentioned in the case?

    The names you hear could be disturbing but I keep saying that we shouldn’t try people in the media. If people, especially the names we have heard have been alleged to have committed this, let them be given a fair chance to hear their own side of the story. It shouldn’t just be a media hype. The problem with this kind of cases is that, when they are finally determined, Nigerians may not really be told the true situation of what has happened. I am hoping that in this situation, we should get to the root of the matter and if it is true that some of these names that have been mentioned compromised themselves in one way or the other, then, let the appropriate laws deal with them and Nigerians would also know where to put them in terms of the respect people have for them but let them be given the fair chance to have proper prosecution or trial.

    Some officers were sentenced to death when they mutinied last year because they felt their welfare was not taken into consideration. Do you think the decision should be reversed?

    If there is a linkage and that the facts that have emerged tended to have shown that they acted because they were not properly equipped as a result of the diversion, I think the military authority should take a second look at that because that probably would have been responsible for the action of some of those men and women.

    The level of violence in Bayelsa during the just concluded guber election was alarming. As a former military administrator of the state, what do you think was amiss?

    I want to talk about the state a little bit because as you said I happened to have  been there as a military administrator. One area that is of interest is the Southern Ijaw where elections were inconclusive and  I remember even in my days, one of the  places I had to go and monitor elections was in this area. Southern Ijaw is the most populous of the eight local governments in the stat. it is the farthest and the most difficult terrain.  It is an area that has always had its challenges in terms of ability to have the logistics to monitor election in those difficult terrains. I think that one thing that this election has brought to the public  is the peculiarity of the riverine states in conducting elections in Nigeria. I remember in the old Rivers State what used to determine and is still relevant in the two states – Rivers and Bayelsa, that the votes from the riverine areas determine the outcome of an election. What has happened that has brought in so much excitement and violence I think that is left for the security agents. One of the things that this government has to give to this country at the end of this administration is the issue of electoral violence and the cost of running elections. These are two things that this government should take very seriously. Whether we like it or not, one of the things that the former president did was that he set up an electoral system that voted him out as president and he accepted the result. If we do not address these two issues, I think we are just toying with our democracy and I think it is a challenge to this government to rise up to these two challenges and make sure that before they finish this first term, they should be able to come up with solutions to electoral violence and cost of running elections. If they need to review those laws they should do that. These are the things that are breeding corruption and undermining our corruption.

    What do you make of the present laws we have in tackling corruption and other vices?

    If we feel the current laws are not strong enough and that corrupt people are going to find their ways around them, I think we need to work with the National Assembly and review these laws and make them to be stronger and easier to prosecute people that have committed this offence in a way that the judiciary can try those cases and deal with them. The bottom line for me is that we should begin to put behind us the idea that we have a strong president or a weak president. What we need to do and on a sustainable basis is that we need to strengthen our institutions. If we build and strengthen our institutions, whether we put a monkey there as a president, those institutions will deal with anybody. Today,  if you go to the United States and most of the countries that we copy around the world, you don’t have to have a strong or a weak person for the laws to work. Those laws have been there because the institutions are strong and everybody knows his job. We need to build our institutions beyond the individuals.

    The crises bedeviling the country appear to be increasing as we now have Biafra agitation and Shiite issue, in addition to the Boko Haram menace. What can we do to take care of these challenges?

    I think we need to deal with the problems as they arise because each of these problems is a peculiar issue. The issue of terrorism is a global thing today. One thing I have to say is that war on terror cannot be won alone and on the battle field because there is so much emphasis on the military operations in dealing with this issue. We can never win the war on terror on battle field. It has other segments like social, economic, political and diplomatic approaches that we need to do in parallel to take care of this challenge. While the military will be doing containment, helping this to stop spreading, we need to also focus on other areas which we need to build on the military success. If people just keep talking about the military, I think we are losing the point and this is the point that Nigerians need to come to terms with.

    The issue of the Shiite is a dangerous thing, which the government must look at critically because from what I read, it does appear as if this thing has been there for some time and we have never really been able to address it. Nigeria is a secular state and we don’t want a situation where a religious body would refuse to own allegiance to a central government because the issue of sovereignty is something we should never be allowed to be undermined.

    The Biafra agitation is a different kind of agitation. Today around the world, ethnic nationalities are seen to want to agitate because they are not happy with the union. Just like the war on terror, my advice is that we should not think that it is a military solution. We need to get to the root of what is the cause of this agitation and listen to them and find a way of accommodating them within the corporate entity of Nigeria. I will advise this government to take a second look at the National Conference report. I believe that, if that report is implemented, part of these issues might have been addressed in that report. One thing most of us would not agitate for is for this country to break up, but if people are beginning to agitate, we have to find a way of meeting them.

  • ‘Buhari should probe $3b oil exploration’

    ‘Buhari should probe $3b oil exploration’

    The Chairman, Senate Committee on Foreign and Domestic Debts,

    Senator Shehu Sani, has urged President Muhammadu Buhari to investigate oil exploration in the North.

    Sani, who is also the vice chairman, Committee on Foreign Affairs, said over $3 billion was wasted without any hope of getting oil.

    The lawmaker, who represents Kaduna Central on the platform of the All Progressives Congress (APC), spoke yesterday when members of the Kaduna State Students’ Union visited him in his Kaduna office.

    He advised President Buhari to set up a committee to investigate oil exploration in the North, noting that he should not limit probe to the Goodluck Jonathan administration, but other governments.

    The senator said: “If we cannot get oil, we must get our money back because over $3 billion was wasted on oil exploration in the North, particularly in the Chad Basin and Benue trough.

    “This oil exploration issue started during the late General Sani Abacha regime, and many years after his death, no oil has been found in the region.

    “I blame northern leaders, who, in collaboration with their southern counterparts, impoverished the region.”

    The students’ leader, Saadu Bako, implored Senator Sani to assist them to enable them remain focused and get good education.

    The Northern Nigeria Development Company (NNDC) has said it will begin exploration of oil and gas in the Northeast by the first quarter of this year.

    Chairman of the company Alhaji Bashir Dalhatu briefed reporters at the 47th annual meeting last year in Kaduna.

    He said NNDC would collaborate with its technical partners and the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) on the expertise and budgetary requirements for the launch of the oil exploration project.

     

  • Buhari, judiciary and anti-graft war

    How supportive is the judiciary in the anti-corruption stance of President Muhammadu Buhari administration? Is it really slowing down the move to stamp out corruption in the country or just observing and following the required due process.

    These are some of the questions Nigerians want answers to. But only time will give them the answers.

    Over the years, the judicial system has been considered to be too slow in the dispensation of justice for cases brought before it.

    While delay in court cases are attributed to a thoroughness in examining every side of a matter and  avoiding mistakes in judgment, they have, however, been considered to be un-healthily slow.

    Some cases that should have been dispensed with within a year have been allowed to drag for up to 10.

    This has not only slowed down prosecution of criminals walking free on bail but resulted in overcrowded prisons across the country, filled with suspects and inmates.

    Most of the suspects in detention, in many cases, have ended up spending more years on trial than the number of years they would have got if they were promptly convicted on the cases.

    Just like the rising overcrowded prisons with inmates and suspects for other crimes, the ongoing cases of money laundry and theft in public offices brought forward by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) have began to pile up in courts.

    The piling up of the financial crime cases in courts is a result of what Edo State Governor, Adams Oshiomhole, described as ‘only one bleeding point’, which is investigation of funds meant for purchase of arms and ammunition under former President Goodluck Jonathan’s administration via the office of the former National Security Adviser (NSA), Sambo Dasuki.

    With the seeming slowness of the processes in courts, Nigerians have started to wonder further if the judiciary will really stand up to the occasion and speedily and accurately dispense more financial and economic crime cases that will be brought before them when government’s investigation goes to other key areas of the economy like the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

    Unlike in the past fight against corruption that appeared to be a lip service business only, not a few Nigerians under the new dispensation want to see looters of the treasury convicted and jailed for their crimes.

    The actions of the looters have not only impoverished many Nigerians, but have also sent a lot of Nigerians to their early graves due to dilapidated healthcare facilities in the country among other decaying infrastructures.

    Those pushing for their speedy conviction may not derive any special pleasure from such looters being jailed, but they want it to serve as a deterrence to others that may want to venture into such treasury looting.

    Fighting corruption to a standstill will make the commonwealth of Nigerians be more available for infrastructural and other developments and in turn benefit more Nigerians in the short and long run.

    Because of the importance of the anti-graft war, the issue was brought to the fore a fortnight ago when President Buhari held a town hall meeting with Nigerians living in Ethiopia.

    Buhari did not fail at the interactive session to call for strong support of the judiciary in order to win the war against corruption.

    Against some online reports, the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu last week insisted that the President didn’t launch any onslaught against the court system in Nigeria during the session.

    He said: “The President did not embark on that. In fact, he said that he had a partner in the Chief Justice of the Federation, Justice Mahmud Mohammed and he is counting on his support to ensure that the war against corruption is won.”

    But expressing worries with the present system, Shehu said: “If EFCC will do their duty, ICPC or the Office of the NSA, which is now involved in this investigation, if all of us will gather all the evidences in this world against one official or the other at a court, and the court decides that all the evidences have come to nothing, then there is a problem.”

    To tackle the congestion of cases in the conventional courts, which result from high rate of cases filed, it may not be out of place here to support the call for establishment of special courts to try economic and financial crimes.

    Creation of special courts for labour-related issues in the country have helped in speeding dispensation of justice for labour matters.

    So, special courts for economic and financial crimes will go a long way in killing the ‘cancerous’ corruption in the country and make more Nigerians benefit from the dividends of democracy.

     

    Adopting Kenya’s agric system 

     

    Despite having less than 8% of its land for crop and feed production, agriculture has remained the most important economic activity in Kenya.

    About 80% of the work forces are engaged in agriculture or food processing in the country

    With this, Kenya is not only meeting local demands for many agricultural produces, but it has also been exporting them abroad.

    Items like tea, coffee, horticultural exports, including green beans, onions, cabbages, snow peas, avocados, mangoes, and passion fruit are being exported  to earn foreign exchange for the country.

    While flowers being exported include roses, carnations, statice, astromeria, and lilies, Kenya also exports sisal, tobacco, and bixa annatto (a natural food coloring agent).

    Kenya is the world’s largest producer and exporter of pyrethrum, a flower that contains a substance used in pesticides.

    Other important crops being produced by Kenya include sugarcane, corn, wheat, rice, cotton, potatoes, beans, peas, sorghum, sweet potatoes, cassava, bananas, and oilseeds.

    Nigeria’s over dependence on oil as main source of government revenue since its discovery in Nigeria has made the country lose its past and enviable glory in agriculture.

    While agricultural produces like groundnut, cotton, palm oil among others were the mainstay of the Nigeria economy in the 1960s, the abundant arable land in the country were neglected for oil, which many now consider to be a curse rather than blessing for Nigeria.

    Declining revenue of oil from the international market has now forced Nigeria to begin to diversify its economy or be ready to perish.

    To get the new moves right in agriculture, the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration is not closing its eyes to nations with success stories in agriculture.

    He therefore did not fail to take advantage of his visit to Kenya end of last month to take a look at Kenya’s agricultural system.

    Speaking on the visit to Kenya, the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu said: “Agriculture has raised life in Kenya and you can see quality of lives at the bottom of the societal ladder. The quality of life in Kenya is higher than what it is in Nigeria.

    “Forget about all the years of oil well in Nigeria. Is this wealth evident among the lowest of our people? It is not there, there is still poverty, hunger and disease. But Kenya is rising and it is like everyone is being carried along. Kenya is exporting so much.

    “We also came back from Kenya with the idea of free trade between the two countries. They will not pay duty on goods they bring from Kenya while Nigerians can also take advantage of it to take their goods to Kenya without paying duties. We hope that will help in bringing their expertise in agriculture. They also can learn from the good practices we have concerning our oil,” he said.

     

  • Buhari and the venal crowd

    These certainly are not the best of times for the grex venalium (the venal crowd) popularly known by ordinary Nigerians as treasury looters. The ongoing battle by President Muhammadu Buhari against this corrupt cabal who have held this nation hostage for years leaves no one in doubt that it is no longer business as usual for politicians of fortune.

    It is a mistake to assume, that this is President Buhari’s private battle to clean the Augean stable. Rather, it should be seen as a determined effort to right the wrongs of the bad leadership which has been the bane of Nigeria’s development for decades.

    Previous attempts to fight corruption were somehow symptomatic but the present government has adopted a strong, pathological approach that aims to get to the root of the matter, which is why every Nigerian should give the president total support. What is being done now, if carried to the logical conclusion, would free the country from the labyrinth of a deeply entrenched tribe of Machiavellian politicians whose sole purpose for seeking power is to loot our common patrimony.

    When former President Goodluck Jonathan emerged on the scene, he came across as a power –shy, harmless politician on whose shoulders providence placed the leadership of this great nation at a critical period in our political evolution. His moving story of grass to grace, with the memorable line that he went to school like many Nigerians without shoes, caught the attention of the electorate who gave him the mandate in his first-ever quest to seek elective office in 2011.

    Once on the presidential seat in that enclave called Aso Rock, we saw a different Jonathan altogether. Never has a president in this country come to power with such level of goodwill and blow it just as fast as Dr. Jonathan. Perhaps, overwhelmed by the demands of office, or ill-prepared for its challenges, the first president from a southern minority exhibited poor governing capacity and inherent weakness unbecoming of the leader of a huge country like ours. He had to be goaded to act with firmness when occasion demanded, which was why he virtually lost control of his presidency to his cronies. His appointees and associates went about looting the public treasury with unprecedented impunity; not even the intermittent public outrage moved President Jonathan to sanction them. And when he did, it was either too little or too late. Corrupt ministers were relieved of their posts with slaps on the wrist, while nothing was done about their loot. With the current anti-corruption saga, we can now understand why Jonathan and his PDP cohorts spared no expenses to buy themselves back to power. This time however, the fairy tale run of goodluck failed them.

    The hapless president was sent packing. Serendipity was out of kilter!

    That era of impunity ended suddenly, but we cannot just sweep what happened during the PDP government under the carpet. Regardless of who is involved, justice must be done to send a clear message that leaders must be accountable even after they leave office. I perceive that this is what President Buhari is trying to prove, that is why I support him.

    The charge of selective prosecution and the ethnic or religious card being played by some to discredit this anti-corruption war is nothing but a mischievous charade. Those arrested for suspected corrupt

    practices cut across the party, ethnic and religious divide. Nigerians must therefore, not fall for the antics of the venal rich, who are fighting back, using media propaganda to win sympathy.

    One is however, constrained to raise this point because of a public statement credited to Anthony Cardinal Okogie in which the Catholic prelate expressed reservations about the government’s philosophy in prosecuting the anti-corruption war vis-à-vis the Rule of Law and his perceived thinking that other governance issues are not being addressed as should. The cardinal is entitled to his opinion, but there is no factual evidence to support this claim.

    The venerable Cardinal is unappreciative of the dialectics of change within the Nigerian context. The Nigerian scenario is indicative of an aberration embedded in our political genes. Whereas politics and

    economics are sociological kinsmen, yet politics maintains an ascendancy over economics in practical realities. The hoi polloi determines the political leadership but economic superintendence is the prerogative of the elite. Nigeria’s existential bane is not lack of professors in mantled academia, nor is it a paucity of economic knowledge in the geo-political arena. Rather, it is leadership, leadership and yet leadership. Ad nauseam!

    Leadership is the terra-firma upon which the citadel of progress can be erected. If the foundation be destroyed by corruption what can the righteous do? It is my founded expectation that the respected cardinal would urge the government to probe the leadership of CAN, PFN and other pseudo religious organisations who acquired their fabricated titles under spurious Christian nomenclature.

    If Attahiru Bafarawa was the accredited agent of the Muslim prayers welfare package, who then collected on behalf of the multitudes of Christians? Who? Who is that Christian proboscis whose insidious suction availed himself of billions of naira on behalf of the followers of Christ? Who is that Judas? Maybe Judases? What about Pastor Ayo Oritsejafor’s one-plane airline becoming the surreptitious instrumentality for some covert military operations involving over $9 million in South Africa? All sacred cows must become secularized.

    Government must ascertain the scope of pecuniary inducement that informed their political alignments in the 2015 elections. What an irony, that those who should scrupulously guide the people are themselves poisoning the water from which the flock will drink. Corruption is a hydra headed monstrosity that must be confronted by the gladiators of righteousness. For indeed, he who dares to face his maker will not tremble before the sons of men. Satis verborum!

    We must understand that even if the law is an ass, corrupt folks must not be allowed to ride it out of the dragnet of the law when apprehended. The present campaign is a challenge to the integrity of our jurisprudence. Members of the bar and bench are Nigerians, and they must not sabotage the efforts of this government to restore sanity to governance in this country. There’s nothing the EFCC has done so far to suggest that it disrespects the rule of law. The president himself has said, “You cannot fight impunity with impunity”.

    • Rev. Okotie, a former Presidential candidate of FRESH Democratic Party wrote from Lagos.
  • Buhari as ‘Good News’ for Europe

    Buhari as ‘Good News’ for Europe

    Those who see President Muhammadu Buhari’s overseas trips as mere jaborees may have missed the point. The President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media & Publicity GARBA SHEHU appraises the trips and concludes that they have been politically and economically rewarding for the country.   

    Martins Schultz, the President of the European Parliament minced no words in describing why Europe is enamored of President Muahmmadu Buhari, so much as to give him the honor of addressing the continent’s  legislative arm.

    The big endorsement President Buhari got is on account of the outstanding wars he has waged so far against corruption and terrorism, wars that have been described as templates for Africa and the rest of the world. Increasingly, he is admired for delivering good governance humbly and honestly.

    This given opportunity, as many have noted, was the first time a Nigerian President – and the second African – had addressed the EU parliament.

    In his opening remarks, President Buhari did not miss the opportunity of acknowledging this recognition. “ I am honoured and humbled by my choice to address this occasion,” he told his receptive audience.

    Of recent, the EU countries have proved to be reliable strategic partners of Nigeria.

    Historically though, Nigeria – EU relations have been cordial, except for the period between 1993 – 1998 when the EU imposed sanctions on the country over the June 12, 1992 election crisis and then the outrageous killing of activist-writer Ken Saro Wiwa. However, the relations fully normalised from 1999, following the restoration of democratic governance in Nigeria.

    The EU has been a pillar of support for the consolidation of democracy in Nigeria, having sent high-powered election monitors to observe all national elections in the country since 1999.  The EU monitors’ assessment of the successive elections held had served as a barometer for adjudging their success or failure.

    By supporting our democratic process including the election that led to the transfer of power from a sitting government to an opposition political party for the first time in Nigeria’s political history, the EU and the international system have given a new hope for Nigeria.

    In acknowledging the support of the EU, especially in 2015, the President told the parliamentarians that: “Nigerians noted the huge contributions Europe made towards the realisation of acceptable, free and fair elections in our country. Today, I will tell this August gathering that the European investments are beginning to bear fruits. I am one of the returns-on-the European-investments of a democratic Nigeria.  Indeed, the present regime is the product of democratic choice consciously made by the people of Nigeria through the ballot box.”

    In what was perhaps the President’s longest speech outside Nigeria so far – he took 40 of the 45 minutes allotted to his address – he spoke about those hair-raising moments when Minister Godsday Orubebe seized national and international attention by stopping further announcement of presidential election results at the National Collation Center.

    Clearly, if there was any moment that the last administration came close to abrogating the nascent democracy, this was it.

    “The drama that took place at the National Collation Centre was a momentarily frightening situation,” said the President, as it was “unleashed by desperate agents of the status quo, with the purpose of maintaining their grip on the national resources for their selfish interests.

    “The maturity and patience, with which the officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), under Prof. Attahiru Jega, handled the matter, saved the struggle for democracy and the huge European contributions.  We must thank God that Nigeria survived this drama.

    “As I have stated in other fora, the action of Nigeria’s former President, Goodluck Ebele Jonathan, is commendable. For the first time in the history of Nigeria, a Presidential Candidate and sitting President, conceded electoral defeat in defiance of calls by strong forces and agents and benefactors of the regime not to do so.”

    The Europeans have equally been very supportive of Nigeria’s war against terror and the ongoing efforts to rehabilitate the victims of the violence in the Northeast.

    It is noteworthy that the organisation has remained sympathetic and supportive of Nigeria in its efforts to tackle the menace of Boko Haram as it did support the country to tackle the Niger Delta crisis. In the course of these meetings, the EU acknowledged Nigeria’s counter-terrorism efforts and pledged continuous support to the endeavour. As part of such assistance, aimed at tackling the root cause of the Boko Haram insurgency in the North, the EU pledged at an earlier meeting, to provide intervention targeted at the North to reduce poverty and empower the youth for gainful employment to wean the group off the tendency, as was done in the case of Niger Delta in the wake of militancy in the region.

    As a leader with a genuine interest to work for the greater good of all the people and not just about self or national interest, President Buhari showed his acute awareness of the problems, not just facing his own country but Europe as a whole.

    His own government, he told the EU countries, is making concerted efforts to address the push-factors that propel migration, especially from Nigeria, as both destination and transit country.  “In this year’s budget, the government has provided for over 500,000 graduate employment in the teaching profession alone. We are equally collaborating with the states and local government areas, to strengthen skills acquisition centres, in order to train the teeming youth in various vocational skills, so that they can be self-employed, and eventually, become employers of labour. We are also making efforts to diversify the economy, giving impetus to agriculture and solid minerals exploitation, to create wealth and employment.”

    The President made clear that through support for our democratic process, the EU and the international system have given a new hope for Nigeria.

    Now it seems, the EU is saying to Nigeria that it is time to move forwards by boosting trade and investment.

    In this regard,there is the big outstanding issue of Economic Partnership Agreements (EPAs), a section of it drawn up between Europe and Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) in succession to the APC (African Pacific Caribbean ) agreement that bound trade relations between Europe and West Africa, which has since run out.

    The new agreement has been signed by all but two of West Africa’s fifteen countries. Nigeria is yet to sign. This is evidently casing frustration with our country in Europe.

    The negotiations of the EPAs have achieved some progress, albeit with many fundamental issues still outstanding.  The sticking points include the ECOWAS Community levy, Rules of Origin, Dispute Settlements Mechanism, Most Favoured Nations Clause, ECOWAS demand on EU for provision of more funds outside the usual sources for the funding of EPA Development.

    Nigeria had indicated her reservations due to the fact that signing on to EPAs, in its current form, will negate its industrial revolution plan.  The industrial plan is aimed at changing the country from an importer of most goods to a manufacturing nation that could meet, at least, its domestic needs.  Nigeria also believes that the agreement will undermine the regional economic integration, as it has already created three different trade regimes in West Africa.

    In a clear demonstration of apparent frustration with the slow pace of EPA negotiations, which were slated to be completed between 2000-2008, the European Commission in 2011 adopted a proposal to amend the Market Access Regulation 1528/2007, governing trade with ACP countries involved in EPAs negotiations.  Under the proposal, the EU would end in October this year, the existing preferential regime of duty-free, quota free market access to EU markets for ACP countries that have concluded, but not signed or ratified EPAs.  It will be replaced by a new recalibrated generalised system of preferences (GSP+) which is designed to cut the number of countries benefiting from EU trade concessions by more than half, to around 80. Majority of ACP countries, especially those from Africa, will fall victim to this plan, as only the Caribbean countries have so far signed and ratified the EPAs on the platform of their regional group, the CARIFORUM.

    The ACP group views these proposals as a ploy by the European Commission to arm-twist them to rapidly conclude the EPA negotiations, in spite of their legitimate reservations and objections to some of its conditions.

    In proposing steps to break the logjam and kick-starting the momentum of negotiations before the 2016 deadline set by the Europeans, President Buhari first laid bare the concerns of the Nigerian businessmen and labour unions before the EU. He said given the mismatch of the two regions (Europe-ECOWAS) in terms of technology and manufacturing experience, the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN) and Associated Trade Unions in particular, have raised concerns over the negative impact of the EPAs on Nigeria’s industrialisation programme. He gave assurance that “Nigeria is working towards addressing her own side of the issues. I’am therefore urging our European Union partners to also address our own concerns to allow for EPAs that are mutually beneficial and contribute to the prosperity of our people, in the context of our shared values and interest at promoting cordial bilateral trade relations.”

    One thing clear from these discussions is that although majority of the countries in the West African subregion have signed onto these agreements, even where they is perceived to have come short of their domestic, national interest requirements, the Europeans do not seem much impressed. The absence of Nigeria, Africa’s largest economy and manufacturing hub of West Africa will make any such agreement a nullity.

    Hopefully, the two groups will go back to the drawing board to see how they can achieve accommodation with each other.

    Beside the contentious issue of trade, there are various others that had been discussed and agreements signed with the previous administration. Although these are agreements that were well written, they are largely awaiting implementation.

    Under the EU’s instrument for stability and peace as part of the security cooperation cited earlier, the sum of ten million euros (€10,000,000) was earmarked in support of Nigeria’s efforts to fight terrorism.

    Development programming proposed for the interventions in Nigeria are in the areas of Governance, Health and Resilience (GHR) in northern Nigeria and electricity sectors. This is consistent with Nigeria’s priorities as contained in the Nigeria Vision 20: 2020.  In the meantime, the EU has earmarked the sum of 512 million Euros to Nigeria for the three identified programmes and projects listed above.

    Following Presidential assent to the legislation prohibiting same-sex relations in Nigeria on January 15, 2014, the EU swiftly reacted to the law at two important levels.  These were at the level of the European Commission, the executive arm of the Union and at the level of the European Parliament. It must be appreciated of the Europeans that they did not raise this potentially divisive, if not explosive issue in their meetings with President Buhari.

    It is also assumed that other issues of concern to them, such as border on child labour and human rights have been left for discussion at consular levels.

    At the economic level, Nigeria has remained EU’s major trading partner in the West African sub-region, accounting for about 60 per cent of the region’s external trade with the bloc.  However, the trade has largely been limited both in terms of products and destination market, with oil and gas making up about 94 per cent of exports to the EU, followed by agriculture and animal products, constituting three per cent. The EU absorbs about 22 per cent of all Nigeria’s exports and it accounts for 25 per cent of Nigeria’s trade, second to the United States. Hopefully, this should witness a rapid increase upon the conclusion of outstanding agreements.

    To further deepen relations between both parties, Nigeria under the previous administration and the EU agreed to hold a political dialogue annually, to review their relations, to agree on ways and means to strengthen them as well as share perspectives on global issues, developments, with a view to forging common positions on them.  The one scheduled for last year did not hold following the transition in the administration of the country.

    It is expected that the sixth forum will hold sometime this year, to be hosted by Nigeria.

    With new plans to boost investment and trade, experts on the Nigerian side believe that there are strong hopes for growth in the strategic partnership between this country and Europe.

    In addition to bringing respect and strength to the country, opportunities such as the one offered the President to address the EU parliament are the building blocks of political and economic development. It is expected that following this address, the legislators will give backing to their heads of government who have since last year received President Buhari’s shopping list. Although some have begun meeting up on promises made, Nigeria is still to hear from some others.

    The President has an unenviable job at a difficult time but the reception the EU  parliament gave home is the type to make the burden fell a little lighter. The last time Nigeria got this type of reception on the international stage would be hard to remember.

  • Buhari orders 2016 budget proposal published online

    Buhari orders 2016 budget proposal published online

    The Federal government under President Muhammadu Buhari will continue to welcome well-meaning criticism of its policies, its budget and expenditure.

    Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, who stated this in a statement on Sunday said the government has taken the position because it is the only way the change promised the country will have a meaning.

    In line with established tradition, he said that the President has directed that the draft 2016 appropriation budget, now before the National Assembly should be uploaded on the website of the budget office so that Nigerians can read it with a view to making their observations.

    With online publication of the budget, Garba said the suggestions that the Presidency is misleading the public on any aspects of the budget can no longer stand the test of time.

    Responding to a report that the the President is to spend more on State House Clinic than on all federal govt-owned teaching hospitals in the 2016 budget, he said that the Budget Office supplied a summary of the allocations to the various sectors under the Ministry of Health, which showed clearly that the published story was inaccurate.

    He said: “The budget office has affirmed that in terms of both capital and recurrent allocations, the draft budget has put far more money in the 17 teaching hospitals than it did in the State House Clinic.

    “Having said this, we are not by any stretch of imagination suggesting that the draft budget is beyond comments or reproach. Nor do we wish to dwell on this simply to make a point. To do that will drive away good citizens from pointing out needed corrections and, ultimately defeating the change mantra of the administration.

    “The budget is a Nigerian budget and citizens reserve the right to examine its content and provide their own perspectives.

    “As the draft goes through the approval process, this and many other aspects will continue to generate interest, criticism, commendation and sometimes condemnation in discussions in the parliament, the media and the court of public opinion.

    “We believe that the process of “change” will be affected by, and stands to gain from these debates especially where there is good faith on all sides.

    “Government has no reason whatsoever to mislead the citizens on the budget and on all other matters for whatever reason,” Garba stated

  • Buhari to sack top civil servants for sabotaging 2016 budget

    Buhari to sack top civil servants for sabotaging 2016 budget

    • President angry with ‘Budget Mafia’ over inflated figures

    Some top officials of the federal government are about to lose their jobs for allegedly attempting to inflate the 2016 budget by over N1.7trillion, The Nation can reveal.

    The unnamed officials are said to have embarrassed the Presidency by smuggling into the budget proposals such items as vote for Aso Rock Clinic and some communication equipment.

    Most of those affected belong to the “Budget Mafia” in the civil service, which has been uncovered by the presidency.

    The list of all the culprits was being compiled last night following a directive by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The Budget Mafia, sources said last night, decided to jack up the budget proposal by N1.7trillion after learning that the budget for this year would be in the region of N8trillion.

    The presidency also discovered that the civil servants recommended N3 trillion for overhead alone.

    This has now been slashed to N163billion as against the N177billion last year.

    The mafia was said to have been shocked when  Buhari opted for a N6.08trillion budget, which was presented to the National Assembly on December 22, 2015.

    Investigation revealed that the top civil servants in the “Budget Mafia” almost scuttled the preparation of the budget because of the inclusion of many extraneous items.

    Some of the 6,000 items in the 2016 Budget were said to have been smuggled into the proposals by the cartel.

    The padding of the 2016 Appropriation by the affected top civil servants almost marred the presentation of the estimates to the National Assembly, sources said last night.

    “Some top civil servants sabotaged the presidency by including extraneous items in the 2016 Budget,” one source said last night.

    “Members of the Budget Mafia are spread across all Ministries, Departments and Agencies.

    “When the budget was being compiled, they frustrated all the deadlines set by the presidency.

    “Despite the vigilance of Buhari and his cabinet, it was embarrassing to the government to hear of some smuggled items.

    “Bureaucratic resistance and entrenched systemic corrupt practices dogged every move of the presidency to produce proposals reflecting financial prudence and frugality, during the preparation of the 2016 Budget now before the National Assembly.

    “For instance, after learning that the presidency was considering a large budget of possibly N8 trillion in order to significantly increase capital expenditure, bureaucrats brought a proposal of N9.7 trillion for overhead and capital spending even without personnel spending.

    “Of the proposed N9.7 trillion, the bureaucrats planned to spend an alarming N3 trillion on overhead alone but the presidency eventually slashed this to N163b lower by 8% than 2015 budget which was N177billion, indicating massive cut of some of the main provisions by the Buhari presidency.

    “These bureaucrats also proposed to spend N2.1 trillion on personnel for the 2016 estimates compared to about N1.8 trillion in the 2015 budget.

    “But the presidency also cut this down to N1.7 trillion in the final estimates sent to the legislature.”

    Another source, who played a key role in the final filtration of the budget, said the “smuggling of some items angered President Buhari.

    He added: “Some people were so bent on exploiting the system that the time was simply not sufficient to stop them but since the budget is only an estimate, the implementation part now offers the presidency the opportunity to tame the corrupt intentions and practices.

    “We were virtually doing vigil to beat the time since the budget had to be presented before the end of the year to the National Assembly and while some of the civil servants eventually cooperated, those who were resistant caused the insertions of many of the provisions that are now embarrassing the government.

    “The situation and its fallout were so bad that it provoked the annoyance of the President who nonetheless kept his cool buying time so as to meet the target date for the presentation of the budget in line with extant laws and regulations governing the budget process.

    “Many of the controversial provisions in the budget were essentially smuggled-in by what was described as “the Budget Mafia” in the civil service, made up of people who consider the period of budgeting as their time of massive opportunity to arrange the stealing of public funds.

    “Even the process of costing some of the expenditures was also encumbered when the agency of government responsible for maintaining a price reference list -the Bureau of Public Procurement -was not ready with an updated list, maintaining instead a list prepared in 2013. Experts said the list ought to be updated quarterly.

    “Many of the provisions that have drawn the ire of the public managed to sail through the budget with more than 6000 items in all because supervision was made even more difficult with the uncooperative attitude of the senior bureaucrats and their subordinates who were themselves expected to be involved in the supervisory process

    “While the President stands for prudence and against waste, those controversial provisions clearly don’t represent these presidential standards.”

    A third source in the presidency confirmed that some top civil servants will be sacked by the President.

    He said: “Several top civil servants involved in the resistance would be fired soon.

    “Many of the officials involved are living in fear of being sacked considering the public reactions to many of the controversial provisions which were not cleared by the presidency.

    “At that point, the sack of some of the arrow-heads of this resistance was considered but the counsel to be careful in dealing with them prevailed so as not to truncate the process that has been in place already.”

    The source gave an insight into the conspiracy by the top civil servants against Buhari’s government.

    He said: “The presidency engaged the skills of experts with required capacity to help in the budgeting process, especially with the  adoption of the Zero-Based Budgeting as against the usual envelope and incremental system used in years past by the federal government.

    “Zero-Based Budgeting proceeds on the basis of justifying needs and costs rather than the annually incremental approach that transfers expenses from previous budgets with added upward reviews.

    ”The old approach having been mastered by bureaucrats and past public officials including former ministers often leads to several acts of corruption both by civil servants and political appointees.

    “Although the presidency had been planning on the adoption of the Zero-Based Budget with top officials from the then Budget Office and then National Planning Commission few months after taking over mid-year 2015, when both agencies were merged into the new Ministry of Budget and National Planning and a minister, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma was assigned to the ministry, the civil servants simply refused to brief him on the Zero-Based Budget and efforts already made.

    “For weeks after the minister was sworn in, the bureaucrats kept planning on the old budget model, stalling the decision to use the Zero-Based Budget until the new Minister found out from the presidency.

    “This stalling led to the waste of valuable time and sources said the bureaucrats had calculated that once time becomes of essence, the presidency would be forced to abandon the Zero-Based Budget.

    “However, the presidency regrouped the budget planning efforts around the concept of Zero-Based Budget by early December when the Budget Minister, now aware of the Zero-Based Budget, took control and leadership of the process.

    “Even after that some of the bureaucrats did not cooperate taking longer than required time to come back with revisions to their estimates that were recommended and ratified by the presidency.

    ”In the process many of the provisions already marked down for revision simply got snuck in, effectively pushing the presidency in the defensive in the backlash in the public arena.

    “Some of the duplications noticed in the budget were due to the difficulties experienced by the software that had been in use for planning the budget in the past, which does not easily accommodate the Zero-Based Budget templates.”

    ome top officials of the federal government are about to lose their jobs for allegedly attempting to inflate the 2016 budget by over N1.7trillion, The Nation can reveal.

    The unnamed officials are said to have embarrassed the Presidency by smuggling into the budget proposals such items as vote for Aso Rock Clinic and some communication equipment.

    Most of those affected belong to the “Budget Mafia” in the civil service, which has been uncovered by the presidency.

    The list of all the culprits was being compiled last night following a directive by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The Budget Mafia, sources said last night, decided to jack up the budget proposal by N1.7trillion after learning that the budget for this year would be in the region of N8trillion.

    The presidency also discovered that the civil servants recommended N3 trillion for overhead alone.

    This has now been slashed to N163billion as against the N177billion last year.

    The mafia was said to have been shocked when  Buhari opted for a N6.08trillion budget, which was presented to the National Assembly on December 22, 2015.

    Investigation revealed that the top civil servants in the “Budget Mafia” almost scuttled the preparation of the budget because of the inclusion of many extraneous items.

    Some of the 6,000 items in the 2016 Budget were said to have been smuggled into the proposals by the cartel.

    The padding of the 2016 Appropriation by the affected top civil servants almost marred the presentation of the estimates to the National Assembly, sources said last night.

    “Some top civil servants sabotaged the presidency by including extraneous items in the 2016 Budget,” one source said last night.

    “Members of the Budget Mafia are spread across all Ministries, Departments and Agencies.

    “When the budget was being compiled, they frustrated all the deadlines set by the presidency.

    “Despite the vigilance of Buhari and his cabinet, it was embarrassing to the government to hear of some smuggled items.

    “Bureaucratic resistance and entrenched systemic corrupt practices dogged every move of the presidency to produce proposals reflecting financial prudence and frugality, during the preparation of the 2016 Budget now before the National Assembly.

    “For instance, after learning that the presidency was considering a large budget of possibly N8 trillion in order to significantly increase capital expenditure, bureaucrats brought a proposal of N9.7 trillion for overhead and capital spending even without personnel spending.

    “Of the proposed N9.7 trillion, the bureaucrats planned to spend an alarming N3 trillion on overhead alone but the presidency eventually slashed this to N163b lower by 8% than 2015 budget which was N177billion, indicating massive cut of some of the main provisions by the Buhari presidency.

    “These bureaucrats also proposed to spend N2.1 trillion on personnel for the 2016 estimates compared to about N1.8 trillion in the 2015 budget.

    “But the presidency also cut this down to N1.7 trillion in the final estimates sent to the legislature.”

    Another source, who played a key role in the final filtration of the budget, said the “smuggling of some items angered President Buhari.

    He added: “Some people were so bent on exploiting the system that the time was simply not sufficient to stop them but since the budget is only an estimate, the implementation part now offers the presidency the opportunity to tame the corrupt intentions and practices.

    “We were virtually doing vigil to beat the time since the budget had to be presented before the end of the year to the National Assembly and while some of the civil servants eventually cooperated, those who were resistant caused the insertions of many of the provisions that are now embarrassing the government.

    “The situation and its fallout were so bad that it provoked the annoyance of the President who nonetheless kept his cool buying time so as to meet the target date for the presentation of the budget in line with extant laws and regulations governing the budget process.

    “Many of the controversial provisions in the budget were essentially smuggled-in by what was described as “the Budget Mafia” in the civil service, made up of people who consider the period of budgeting as their time of massive opportunity to arrange the stealing of public funds.

    “Even the process of costing some of the expenditures was also encumbered when the agency of government responsible for maintaining a price reference list -the Bureau of Public Procurement -was not ready with an updated list, maintaining instead a list prepared in 2013. Experts said the list ought to be updated quarterly.

    “Many of the provisions that have drawn the ire of the public managed to sail through the budget with more than 6000 items in all because supervision was made even more difficult with the uncooperative attitude of the senior bureaucrats and their subordinates who were themselves expected to be involved in the supervisory process

    “While the President stands for prudence and against waste, those controversial provisions clearly don’t represent these presidential standards.”

    A third source in the presidency confirmed that some top civil servants will be sacked by the President.

    He said: “Several top civil servants involved in the resistance would be fired soon.

    “Many of the officials involved are living in fear of being sacked considering the public reactions to many of the controversial provisions which were not cleared by the presidency.

    “At that point, the sack of some of the arrow-heads of this resistance was considered but the counsel to be careful in dealing with them prevailed so as not to truncate the process that has been in place already.”

    The source gave an insight into the conspiracy by the top civil servants against Buhari’s government.

    He said: “The presidency engaged the skills of experts with required capacity to help in the budgeting process, especially with the  adoption of the Zero-Based Budgeting as against the usual envelope and incremental system used in years past by the federal government.

    “Zero-Based Budgeting proceeds on the basis of justifying needs and costs rather than the annually incremental approach that transfers expenses from previous budgets with added upward reviews.

    ”The old approach having been mastered by bureaucrats and past public officials including former ministers often leads to several acts of corruption both by civil servants and political appointees.

    “Although the presidency had been planning on the adoption of the Zero-Based Budget with top officials from the then Budget Office and then National Planning Commission few months after taking over mid-year 2015, when both agencies were merged into the new Ministry of Budget and National Planning and a minister, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma was assigned to the ministry, the civil servants simply refused to brief him on the Zero-Based Budget and efforts already made.

    “For weeks after the minister was sworn in, the bureaucrats kept planning on the old budget model, stalling the decision to use the Zero-Based Budget until the new Minister found out from the presidency.

    “This stalling led to the waste of valuable time and sources said the bureaucrats had calculated that once time becomes of essence, the presidency would be forced to abandon the Zero-Based Budget.

    “However, the presidency regrouped the budget planning efforts around the concept of Zero-Based Budget by early December when the Budget Minister, now aware of the Zero-Based Budget, took control and leadership of the process.

    “Even after that some of the bureaucrats did not cooperate taking longer than required time to come back with revisions to their estimates that were recommended and ratified by the presidency.

    ”In the process many of the provisions already marked down for revision simply got snuck in, effectively pushing the presidency in the defensive in the backlash in the public arena.

    “Some of the duplications noticed in the budget were due to the difficulties experienced by the software that had been in use for planning the budget in the past, which does not easily accommodate the Zero-Based Budget templates.”