The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Fed Govt

  • Fed Govt, investors in talks over 2,100Mw hydropower projects

    The Federal Government yesterday said it was in talks with some unnamed investors for some hydropower projects.

    The government said the projects, which are located in Gurara II, Kaduna, Lokoja and Makurdi, can generate 2,100 megawatts of electricity.

    Minister of Water Resources, Suleiman Adamu said the ministry has made progress with the concessioning of Gurara and Kashimbila hydropower plants.

    The minister said: “The National Water Resources Materplan and our Roadman identified that Nigeria has a hydro power potential of 12,200Mw. Only about 1, 930Mw of this potential has been developed at Kainji, Jebba and Shiroro dams.

    “We are currently making progress for the concessioning of 30Mw Gurara hydropower plant which is planned to come into full operations soon.

    “We are also progressing on our collaboration with Federal Ministry of Power, Works and Housing to concession the 40Mw Kashimbila hydropower plant, recently completed. However, Both concessions are being delayed due to non-completion of the transmission lines that will evacuate the power by Transmission Company of Nigeria and FMPWH.

    “In addition, we are in advanced discussions with potential investors for other hydropower projects including Gurara II (350Mw), Lokoja (750Mw) and Makurdi (1000Mw), among others.”

    He also said seven dams, irrigation and water supply projects had been completed and were ready for inauguration.

    The minister said there are plans to complete another set of seven water supply projects and 13 dams/irrigation projects between 2018 and 2020.

    He outlined the seven completed projects ready for the inauguration to include Kashimbila Dam in Taraba State; Ogwashi-Uku Dam, Delta State; Shagari Irrigation Project, Sokoto State; Galdam Dam, Kaduna State; and Ekeremor Water Supply Project, Edo State.

    Others are Mangu Water Supply Project, Plateau State; and Federal University of Agriculture, Makurdi Water Supply Project, Benue State.

    According to Adamu, only two new projects were initiated by his ministry since the inception of the current administration in 2015.

    He said: “We are committed to completing all ongoing viable projects in the ministry to derive optimum benefits for government’s investments. It is instructive to note that since the inception of this administration, my ministry has initiated only two new major projects.

    “This underscores our emphasis on completion of the numerous ongoing and abandoned projects we inherited.”

    As earlier announced in 2017, the minister again said the World Bank was supporting the implementation of the Transforming Irrigation Management in Nigeria Project with a credit facility of $495million.

  • Fed Govt decries deficiencies in civil service

    The Head of Civil Service of the Federation (HoCSF), Mrs. Winifred Oyo-Ita, has decried the deficits in human capital building and development in the Civil Service, saying there is need for correction.

    She spoke in Abuja at the opening  of a training programme on Protocol Procedures for Official and Public Functions.

    Oyo-Ita, represented by the Director, Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS), in her office, Mrs Anne Attah, said the training was organised to educate participants on Protocol Procedure for Official Functions and to learn best practices in image making.

    Seventy participants across the Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) attended the training as the pilot batch.

    “At the bedrock of implementing the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan is the issue of capacity building as human capital is the greatest resource the country has, even above oil. The civil service over the years has been faced with capacity deficit and I am afraid it may get worse if the challenge was not diligently tackled.

    ”As protocol officers you are also the image makers of the service and country. A little slip in protocol application and etiquette can become a monumental national embarrassment.

    ”As the popular maxim goes: ‘If you don’t train them, don’t blame them.’ I am happy the process of discharging our own part by delivering training has started with this batch,” she said.

    She warned the participants to make the best use of t mhe training as they would be held accountable for any slip after the programme.

    NOLKIN Consulting Executive Director,  Ambassador Akin Oyateru, said the training was aimed at restoring the lost glory in protocol procedure.

    Oyateru, who facilitated the training, added that over the years, some deficiencies had been noticed in protocol practice hence the need to bridge that gap.

    ”Protocol was an essential image making tool and a mechanism through which an organisation was presented to the world and trainings were the hall mark of any successful civil service,” he said.

    In a related event, the new Chairman of the Federal Civil Service Commission (FCSC), Dr. Tukur Bello Ingawa and 12 new commissioners have assumed duty in Abuja.

    He took over from Dr. Chimaobi Odunze, the commissioner in charge of Imo and Abia states, who had been acting after the expiration of the tenure of Deaconess Ayo Joan.

    Ingawa promised a lasting legacy.

    According to him, he promote to make the commission a better place. He called for the cooperation of every one to enable him succeed.

    The Deputy Director, Press and Public Relations of the commission, Dr Joel Oruche, stated in a statement, that the new chairman was accompanied to the office by some retired Permanent Secretaries of Ingawa.

  • Fed Govt’s ‘no work, no pay rule’ vindictive, says NLC

    THE Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) has accused the government of being vindictive in its application of labour laws.

    It  insisted that Nigerian workers will not accept being turned into slaves in their own country as a result of government’s selective application of the laws.

    The congress, in a statement yesterday,  said the decision by government to invoke the “no work, no pay rule” on striking workers was an attempt to intimidate them into accepting unfriendly labour practices.

    It added that the struggle by the Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) did not start today, while government has consistently failed to meet its own side of the bargain.

    The statement signed by the Acting President, Comrade Lawal Dutsinma reads: “The attention of the NLC, has been drawn to a memo by the Federal Government dated November 29, 2018, directing Vice Chancellors of Federal Universities to apply the “No Work… No Pay” rule. We understand that the Federal Government has since rescinded this order.

    “Nonetheless, Nigerian workers are concerned that for the umpteenth time, the Federal Government and many state governments have resorted to bullying and draconian threats in dealing with matters that strictly reside in the domain of industrial relations. This is truly sad, highly unfortunate and extremely provoking.

    “We recall that the current struggle by ASUU for improved conditions of learning in our public universities is not the first time that the Federal Government is issuing the “No Work… No Pay” threat. During the last warning strike by the NLC on the new national minimum wage, Minister of Labour and Productivity Dr. Chris Ngige issued a “No Work… No Pay” threat against workers.

    “Also, during the last nationwide strike action by health workers, the Federal Government did not only issue a “No Work… No Pay” threat, it went ahead to implement it. Till now, government still withholds about three months of salaries due to health workers.

    “The Nigeria Labour Congress considers the application of the “No Work… No Pay” rule as an autocratic attempt to cow workers into abandoning their legitimate demand for decent wages, conducive work spaces and social justice…

    “We warn government at all levels to desist from using the “No Work… No Pay” rule to shirk away from their responsibilities. We also demand immediate release of workers’ salaries withheld on the account of “No Work… No Pay” rule.

    “Also, we ask government to respect agreements it freely entered into with ASUU to restore normalcy and sanity to our public institutions of learning, especially our universities. Our children have suffered enough already. Enough is enough.”

  • Fed Govt sets February deadline for Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge

    •Amaechi insists passenger train to run by February
    •Minister: robbery attacks, molestation of contractors mar project

    The Federal Government yesterday set a new deadline for the completion of the Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge earlier scheduled to be delivered this month.

    At the monthly routine tour of the $1.7 billion project, Transportation minister Rotimi Amaechi said the project must be completed in February, adding that the passenger train must run on the standard gauge tracks same month.

    The Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge is a 156-kilometre project with 10 ultra-modern railway stations, bridges, tunnels and culverts.

    Speaking after the project’s work flow assessment meeting at Adumbu town, Papalanto in Ogun State, Amaechi said all hands were on deck to ensure that the trains run on the tracks at least from Lagos to Abeokuta, if not Ibadan, by February.

    “What we agreed on at this meeting is that by February, we must have a train service that makes transport sense. We would ensure that we have a situation where people can board our train from Lagos to Ibadan,” he said.

    To achieve this, the minister said the assessment meetings would henceforth be held twice a month, adding that the team would meet again on December 18 to assess the implementation of assignments.

    According to him, this pattern will continue until the project is delivered.

    Amaechi noted that though the elements posed a major challenge earlier in the year, the earthwork and civil engineering works were almost completed.

    He added: “We only have one or two bridges left in the entire project and I am very sure that by the time we are having our next meeting, this would have reduced to one, if at all there would still be any left…

    “I have just been informed by the contractor that they are facing serious security challenges from armed robbers, who steal their property. I have directed that they tackle that. This is what we have not been experiencing at the Abeokuta to Ibadan end of the project. This obviously also compounds the problem and slows down the pace of work,” he said.

    Amaechi said he directed that work be suspended on the stations to concentrate on the tracks because “we are convinced that once we achieve the tracks and begin to run trains on them, getting the stations in place would not be a problem”.

    He debunked insinuations that campaign activities may hamper the pace of work.

    The minister said his consenting to inspect the project on December 18, when the party would have kick-started its campaigns, showed the commitment of the government.

    “President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to building infrastructure. That is what we are also committed to actualising. Nothing will stop this project as we are committed to having a better Nigeria,” he added.

     

  • Fed Govt decries $984m spent on fish importation

    The Federal Government has decried a whopping $984million spent on importation of fish annually.

    It urged farmers, youths and women to take to fish farming and help in boosting domestic production of the product, to grow the economy.

    To realise this, the lawmaker representing Oyo North, Senator Fatai Buhari, in conjunction with the Nigerian Institute for Oceanography and Marine Research (NIOMR), Lagos, has trained over 100 youths and women selected from Ogbomoso North and South local governments as well as Oriire and Olorunsogo local governments during a week-long training in Aquaculture Production and Fish Post Harvest Technology.

    The empowerment, Senator Buhari said, was aimed at giving the beneficiaries means of livelihood.

    The lawmaker recalled that during his recent empowerment programme, he distributed 36 cars, 300 motorcycles, 300 sewing machines, over 400 grinding machines, 40 deep freezers, generators, 13 transformers among others to the people of Oyo North.

    Read also: Ikorodu won’t betray you, monarch tells Sanwo-Olu

    Buhari, who is the chairman of the Senate Committee on Information Communication Technology (ICT) and Cybercrime, gave N20,000 each as bursaries to 200 students of tertiary institutions and N25,000 each to 200 widows.

    NIOMR Director Dr. Gbola Akande, who was represented by Dr. Oludare Adeogun, listed the socio-economic benefits of Aquaculture.

    He said it was a money spinning investment that could change their fortunes for good, if well practised.

    According to him, the demand for fish in Nigeria is about 2.66 million tonnes annually, whereas total domestic production hovers around 0.7 million tonnes.

    Akande said: “There is a deficit of 1.96 million tonnes partly augmented by importation of fish of about 1.01 million tonnes worth over US $984 million annually – a huge waste on scarce foreign exchange, hence the urgent need to increase domestic fish production.”

  • Fed Govt, ASUU meeting inconclusive

    THE Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) members are not returning to the classrooms soon, one month after they embarked on strike.

    ASUU National President Prof. Biodun Ogunyemi said yesterday that the meeting between the Federal Government and the union ended without any conclusion.

    Ogunyemi, while speaking with reporters at the end of the closed door meeting in Abuja, noted that negotiations were still ongoing.

    He said both parties were yet to reach a concrete decision.

    “For now, we have started to discuss. We are yet to reach any concrete decision. Once we have more information, we will make ourselves available to the press.

    “The union will reconvene very soon to continue negotiations,” he said.

    Read also: President renews pledge on release of Chibok girls

    The meeting held at the instance of Minister of Education Malam Adamu Adamu to find lasting solution to the ongoing strike by the university lecturers.

    ASUU had on November 4, embarked on an indefinite strike over poor funding of Nigerian universities and non-implementation of previous agreements by government.

    Meanwhile, National Association of Nigerian Students (NANS) President Mr. Danielson Akpan has urged both parties to have a common ground so that the universities can reopen.

    He said they must put the interest of the country and Nigerian students above any other thing.

  • Fed Govt earned N682b in October, says CBN

    The Federal Government earnings for October stood at N682.06 billion, the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) economic report released yesterday has shown.

    The report posted on the CBN’s website, indicated that the figure was below the monthly budget estimate and receipts in the preceding month by 38.4 per cent and 18.0 per cent, respectively.

    It said oil and non-oil receipts (gross) stood at N422.13 billion and N259.93 billion in the review period, constituted 61.9 per cent and 38.1 per cent of total revenue, respectively.

    Also, Federal Government retained revenue and estimated expenditure for October 2018 were N280.96 billion and N347.48 billion, respectively, resulting in an estimated deficit of N66.51 billion.

    “Federally-collected revenue (gross) was estimated at N682.06 billion in October 2018. This was below the monthly budget estimate and receipts in the preceding month by 38.4 per cent and 18.0 per cent, respectively. Oil and non-oil receipts (gross), at N422.13 billion and N259.93 billion in the review period, constituted 61.9 per cent and 38.1 per cent of total revenue, respectively. Federal Government retained revenue and estimated expenditure for October 2018 were N280.96 billion and N347.48 billion, respectively, resulting in an estimated deficit of N66.51 billion,” it said.

    According to the report, monetary policy stance remained, largely, non-expansionary to rein in inflationary pressures. On month-on-month basis, broad money supply (M3), grew by 1.9 per cent to N34,255.4 billion at end-September 2018, in contrast to the 1.2 per cent decline recorded at end-August 2018. The development reflected the 5.2 per cent and 2.2 per cent increase in the domestic credit (net) and foreign assets (net) of the banking system, respectively.

  • Fed Govt takes mining to London Exchange

    The Federal Government has engaged the London Stock Exchange (LSE) in its bid to attract foreign investment into the mining sector.

    Minister of State for Mines and Steel Development, Hon. Abubakar Bwari led a delegation to the LSE to woo top investors around the globe to invest in the solid minerals sector.

    Speaking at the weekend in London, Bwari assured investors that the country is  safe for investment in mining.

    He added that the Northeast being seen as unsafe is where one of biggest mining activity by an Australian company called Symbol Mining Company is ongoing.

    Special Adviser Media to the Minister, Ishaku Kigbu  in a statement explained that the  said the government was delighted to  have a team from the solid minerals sector appear at the Chatham House for the first time. He  insisted that a lot has changed in the industry, stressing that the country was doing a lot at encouraging foreign investors into the solid minerals sector.

    He said: “Nigeria is ready and open for mining business like never before. Our mining laws are one of the best you can find around the world, mining licences process is efficient and digitalised and can be gotten now under 30 days, investors enjoy tax holidays for between three and five years, can own their businesses 100 per cent among other juicy incentives. Nigeria is extremely blessed in solid minerals which are under exploited.

    “Nigeria’s mining jurisdiction is friendly and more sophisticated compared with other African countries. Most importantly is the fact that the present administration has made all processes in mining very transparent.”

    According to the minister, issues regarding insecurity in the country is blown out of proportion.

  • Fed Govt reintroduces insurance policy for 104 unity colleges

    THERE are plans by the Federal Government to undertake hire some insurance companies and brokers for a comprehensive insurance policy to the 104 unity colleges.

    The measure is to increase school enrollment, Education Minister Malam Adamu Adamu said in Abuja yesterday, saying that government had adopted the insurance policy as its official policy.

    According to him, the insurance policy had been on since 2014 with the payment of N5, 000 by students of all unity colleges in the country but had experienced some hitches which had now been resolved.

    He said that with the policy, enrolment in all unity colleges would have increased by at least 20 per cent by 2020.

    The minister said that a Student Welfare Insurance Schemes (SWIS) had been put in place for students of unity colleges where each student would pay N5,000 per session.

    According to him, the SWIS idea is to ensure that once a child is admitted into any of our unity schools, that child will never drop out of school on account of the loss of parents or guardians responsible for the payment of his or her school fees.

    He said: “In more specific terms, the policy provides that in the case of death of a student, the parents or sponsor will be given a one-off payment in the sum of N500, 000.

    “In the case of death of parents or sponsor, the student will be paid the sum of N500, 000 per session for a maximum of N2.5 million. Also, in the event of death of student, parent or sponsor, the sum of N50, 000 will be provided for burial expenses.

    “In other words, the insurance company takes over the payment of the child’s school fees from where the parents or guardian stopped.”

    The minister added that a comprehensive fire and general peril cover for buildings was given to three insurance underwriters along with brokers, saying that each of the underwriters will cover schools in two geo-political zones.

    He explained that the total premium to be paid to the three underwriters and brokers would amount to N198 million for the 104 unity colleges.

    According to him, this will provide a total cover of N900 million only per school for building and N200 million per school for content.

    Adamu also said that a premium of N70 million would be paid to the underwriters and brokers for a comprehensive insurance cover for the vehicles of the unity schools while the total number of vehicles to be covered would be 326 with a total value of N947,260,000.

    The minister said that by 2020, the budget would factor in a carrying capacity expansion project in some of the unity schools that need to expand their carrying capacity.

    He, therefore, called on parents to honour the obligation on a yearly basis in line with government policy as the N5, 000 premium would be paid with the school fees.

    Adamu also called on the insurance companies, Parents Teachers Association (PTA) and principals of unity schools to take out time to explain the policy to all parties concerned.

    He, however, promised to ensure that all insurance companies involved in the scheme honour their obligations as and when due.

    Mrs. Stella Marris-Omu, Principal, Federal Government Girls College, Bwari, described as disheartening to find a child who was aspiring to greater heights not coming back to school because no one can pay the fees.

    She said the policy would help cushion the burden of not being able to pay school fees by some parents.

    Mrs. Marrie-Omu said: “The process of students’ welfare insurance scheme came on in 2014, and when I got to the first school where I was principal, I found that it was already a policy and parents were paying.

    “But unfortunate some didn’t see the need to pay as they felt they do not need to insure their children because of religion and some felt they didn’t have that kind of money and some also felt it was a waste of funds.”

  • Group calls for support for Fed Govt

    There is need to intensify support for the federal government  to achieve a consistent uniform growth in the country.

    This was made known by the National leader of the Buhari Friends Organisation Network, BFON, Hon. Ignatius Okon, at the official inauguration of the Southwest  Zone of the organization at the Alagomeji area of Lagos.

    While speaking to newsmen, Hon. Okon, who did the inauguration, said the inauguration was done to ensure that the mandate of the organisation is achieved nationwide.

    Hon. Okon appreciated the leaders of Southwest for their loyalty towards the progress of the BFON, adding that irrespective of the state of affairs in the country, they will never be forgotten as they are comrades in the fight to make Nigeria better.

    Read also: Buhari swears in new FCSC commissioners

    The BFON leader, who charged Southwest to be hopeful even as the transformation of Nigeria might take a while, urged them to keep up their work towards ensuring that the government lacks no support.

    He further stated that Southwest Zone of the BFON will be fully incorporated into the affairs of the BFON at the national level so as to achieve a stronger association of friends for President Muhammad Buhari.

    Speaking on 2019 elections, Hon. Okon said the mandate of the BFON is to achieve a better Nigeria, and urged the zonal leaders of the BFON, especially the newly inaugurated leader of Southwest to let patriotism influence their activities as the general elections draw close.

    He stated that the APC having Buhari as its candidate would take Nigeria to the next level where poverty, insecurity and corruption would be tamed.

    In an address, the newly inaugurated leader of the BFON, Southwest Zone, Hon. Abdul-Waheed Akerele, pledged to work concertedly with the stakeholders of the BFON to achieve the mandate of APC in 2019.