The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Federal government

  • Economic stimulus: FG plans lower taxes for SMMES

    Economic stimulus: FG plans lower taxes for SMMES

    The Federal Government is set to reduce the income tax rates payable by Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises (SMMEs) in the country to encourage more start-ups in Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises.

    The planned tax reduction will boost the profitability of the existing ones, generate new jobs and make higher contribution to the Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

    A statement from the federal ministry of finance Signed by Salisu Na’Inna Dambatta Director (Information), “the new incentives for SMMEs are part of the recommendations presented to the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, by the 12-member Committee she established, chaired by Professor Abiola Sanni, to review the current National Tax Policy (NTP) in Abuja, Thursday.”

    The Committee he said “noted that lowering the taxes payable by Small, Micro and Medium Enterprises would encourage compliance, promote the growth of SMMEs and expand the manufacturing base of the nation through their activities.”

    Another recommendation suggested for implementation relates to the abolition of minimum tax, which results in loss making companies been required to pay tax.

    The Minister assured that a team would be set up by the Ministry to implement the recommendations of the Committee through administrative measures without delay, while those that require legislations would be forwarded to the Federal Executive Council for consideration.

    According to the finance minister, “we need to deal with legislations that need to be changed. Nigeria cannot afford to be running with antiquated tax laws,” she emphasised.

    The new Tax Policy has also recommended the enactment of a number of legislation amendments including the  law to tax treatment, the taxation of Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs).

    “In other climes a REIT is seen as transparent or flow through entity that is not different and separate from its unit holders/investors. The income of the REIT is treated as the income of the unit holders or investors and therefore taxed at that level,” the report clarified rather than the current provisions, which amount to double taxation.

    Earlier in his remarks, the Chairman of the Committee, Professor Abiola Sanni said that the report contained some innovations in terms of suggestions, including 20 implementation strategies, explaining that some of the strategies required legislations while others could hit the ground running.

    “We believe that at the end of the day if the recommendations contained in this report are implemented, Nigeria will witness a transformation of the economy as a whole,” he pointed out.

  • FG cancels plan to build 10,000 PHCs

    FG cancels plan to build 10,000 PHCs

    …To merge health department for effective performance

    Federal Government may have put off its earlier plan to build 10,000 primary health care centres across all senatorial zones across the country, it was learnt Thursday.

    Minister of Health, Prof. Isaac Adewole said the decision to cancel the project was on the advice of Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun, who felt that the states may not be able to meet up with their contributions.

    Adewole spoke during an audience with Under-Secretary-General and Executive-Director, United Nations Population Fund, UNFPA, Prof. Babatunde Osotimehin in Abuja

    Absolving the Finance minister of any blame, Adewole said the minister (Finance) had earlier pledged upon assumption of office that the PHCs would be made available by President Buhari-led administration within four years, and that the nation’s health systems would be driven through it.

    But with the turn of event in the country, she was concerned that the states may not be able to meet up with their contributions. This, Adeosun said will be a burden on the Federal Government.

    Minister of Health had on Tuesday assured the country that government would harmonize various departments in the ministry for effective performance. He said most of the health projects in the country are funded by sponsors, and that the best way to show seriousness as a government, and appreciate such aids is to expend the funds through a well-coordinated channel.

    He said of the PHC’s: “Truly, we came up with the agenda of revitalizing one PHC per political ward, that would lead us to ensuring 1000 PHCs are in place. But, then, there is a problem. Government set up an inter-ministerial committee. At our first meeting, it was obvious, the Minister of Finance said ‘wait a minute, when you take this up, the local government and states will abandon its responsibility. And, when they abandon it for you, you are in trouble.

    “About 40 percent of the resources go into personnel cost. So, if you want to bear the responsibility of the resources, you want to bear responsibility for commodities, then, what exactly will the states be doing?

    “So, we are trying to repackage the concept. We are taking on one hundred and ten for pilot. We are going through the backdoor, using the Save-One-Million-Lives, which is actually $500 million facility from the World Bank. We’ve given out to the states as grant, and what we’ve done is to advance them and advance payment at $1.5million. Use this, and then, in a year’s time, we would re-evaluate and match you with you. In other words, we compared, say Lagos State in 2015 with Lagos State in 2016. We then advance them with rewards based on improvements. And, I’ve been talking to many of the state governors, saying use this to strengthen your primary health care system. I think many of them are listening. If they do not invest, there will be nothing for them next year.”

    He added that one of the core goals of the ministry under his leadership is promote family planning services as the best way for mothers to plan and live their lives meaningfully.

    In his remark, Prof. Osotimehin, who was accompanied by Permanent Secretary, United Kingdom’s Department for International Development, DfID, Mark Lowcock, expressed the concern of UNFPA and DfID over high maternal death rate in the country.

    He however reiterated the support of international community for the country to reduce the incidence. He however informed that family planning would effectively reduce the deaths by 30 percent, and that it should be embraced by all people in the country.

  • Tax review committee recommends Customs, FIRS merger

    Tax review committee recommends Customs, FIRS merger

    The National Tax Policy Review Committee has advised the Federal Government to merge the Federal Inland Revenue Service and Nigeria Customs Service to improve revenue generation and accountability.

    The draft of the policy was presented at the committee’s second Stakeholders Engagement Tuesday in Abuja by Mr Taiwo Oyedele, who is the West Africa Tax Leader at PricewaterhouseCoopers.

    Oyedele said the committee agreed that the current system promoted multitaxation, tax evasion and wastage.

    According to him, “part of our recommendation will be that FIRS and Customs should be merged; but not just them, but all revenue generating agencies at the federal level should be merged into one.”

    He described what exists now as “not effective, because it duplicates the collection mechanism. All the structures you have in FIRS is replicated in Customs, so cost of collection goes up. It also makes it easier for tax evaders to manipulate the system. You can provide information for customs and FIRS is not aware of it.”

    However, having one revenue agency he said “will flag all the information about a tax payer when he or she is paying tax. It will also ensure that leakages in the system are reduced. This is why we are recommending merging, as part of the policy.”

    The committee also recommended that a Tax Amnesty Programme be introduced. He said that some companies or individuals might be afraid to join the tax net for fear of being asked to pay past tax liabilities. However, a tax amnesty he said “would assure the public that past offences would be forgiven, thus enable government to expand the tax net.”

    Other key recommendations of the draft policy include establishment of Taxation Committee at national, and state assemblies, administrative framework for amnesty and whistle blowing.

    These the committee said were necessary to move Nigeria from its current position of 181 out of 189 countries to top 50 on the Ease of Paying Taxes World Report.

    The Chairman of the National Tax Policy Review Committee, Prof. Abiola Sanni, said the need to improve revenue generation in the economy influenced the decisions of the committee.

    The National Tax Policy was first published in 2012 by the then Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, to entrench a robust and efficient tax system in Nigeria. The recent committee was, however, set up by the Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun on August 10 this year to review the existing policy.

  • No plan to sell any asset now, says FG

    No plan to sell any asset now, says FG

    The federal government Tuesday said it has not taken any decision to sell any national asset.

    Minister of Budget and National Planning, Senator Udoma Udo Udoma appealed to those opposed to the planned sale of some national assets to exercise patience with the government “as the government is yet to decide on assets sale in its stimulus package.”

    Udoma made the disclosure in Abuja at the 57th Annual Conference of the  Nigerian Economic Society (NES) where he stated that the idea of selling national assets “is just a proposal within the stimulus package of the federal government to scale up revenue but is yet to be finalised or even agreed on.”

    The budget and national planning minister said government will consult widely and hear views on the cost and benefit of the planned sale before any such decision will be made.

    He said the administration has several packages and plans that will ensure that Nigeria comes out of the current recession soon and stronger. One of such packages he noted is the stimulus plan to borrow from the World Bank, African Development Bank (AfDB) and the China Exim Bank.

    Udoma said that the stimulus package was being worked upon and was yet to be finalised, adding that to achieve this speedily “we are working to fast track procedures through presidential directives and legislation and I want to emphasis that notwithstanding the current economic challenges we face, we are not discouraged at all and this is a crisis we must not waste.”

    The minister lamented that Nigeria’s foreign reserves had shrunk from $26.51 billion from the second quarter of 2016 to $24.74 billion in September.

    Udoma said that government was working on a programme with the private sector to launch made in Nigeria campaign. He said the intent of the programme was to encourage more production and consumption of made in Nigeria goods and services.

    According him, “we believe that with more patronage Nigerian producers will be encouraged to improve the quality of their products. We should encourage the branding of Nigerian products by self-regulatory industry bodies such as wine makers have in France. Made in Nigeria should become a badge of quality.

    The minister added that “as the quality of our goods and service improve, both local and international demand for them will increase and high local demand would give Nigerian producers the platform to explore the export market.

    He said one of the fastest routes to grow the economy and create jobs for teeming population was by pursuing export-led growth. The Minister said that this strategy holds high promise for adding to our foreign reserves and further stabilising the Naira.

    He urged Nigerians to “see this crisis as an opportunity for us as a country to make those major structural changes needed to change this economy for good. We should use this crisis to implement the reforms needed to unlock the economic potentials of the non-oil and high employment sectors.”

     

  • Nigeria, India sign MoU on trade, investment

    Nigeria, India sign MoU on trade, investment

    The Federal Government and India on Tuesday signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) to deepen trade and investments and exchanged letters of intent on bilateral relations.

    The event, which took place at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, during a bilateral meeting, was witnessed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and his Indian counterpart, Mr Mohammad Hamid Ansari.

    Osinbajo in a remark called for urgent establishment of a joint technical commission to facilitate the partnership between Nigeria and India.

    He recalled that ties between Nigeria and India over the years had been very stable and called for strengthening of the relationships in regional and international affairs.

    According to him, Nigeria looks up to India in various ways as it has shown leadership in technology, agriculture and information technology.

    He described the meeting with the Indian delegation as very useful and expressed the hope that both countries would derive mutual benefits from the MoU.

    Earlier, Ansari had said he was impressed by Nigeria’s vision for bilateral relationship, feeling for India and its expectations for the partnership.

    According to the Indian VP, the friendship and faith of both countries is a source of great pride and strength for the partnership.

    He said that “listening to you has strengthened my conviction that our partnership is natural because our destinies are so inter-linked and our aspirations and challenges are similar.

    “I am confident that our deliberation today will make our partnership more effective.”

    Ansari added that India and Nigeria were strategic partners.

    He said it was important that both countries continued to engage in new ideas and concrete proposals to elevate them to the next high level.

    Ansari, who would be visiting the commercial city of Lagos during his tour, said he looked forward to the visit, where he would have the opportunity to address the students of University of Lagos.

    The visiting vice president expressed appreciation to the Federal Government “for the excellent preparations made for the visit of the Indian delegation.”

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that discussions at the bilateral meeting focused on economic relations, peace and security, consular matters, as well as regional and international issues.

    The MoU was signed by Nigeria’s Minster of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Mrs Aisha Abubakar, and her Indian counterpart, Mr Gangaram Meghwal.

    The letter of intent was exchanged between the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Foreign Affairs and the Indian High Commissioner to Nigeria.

  • NLC accuses FG of evading talk on minimum wage

    NLC accuses FG of evading talk on minimum wage

    The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) on Thursday dismissed as misleading, speculations that talks between it and the Federal Government on new national minimum wage had collapsed.

    Comrade Ayuba Wabba, President of the NLC said in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Abuja, that the talks had not even started.

    According to him, the government is foot dragging on the issue.

    He said that the tripartite structure that should consider the modalities for the implementation had not been inaugurated.

    “Uptil now, government is still dragging its feet on talks about the minimum wage; the tripartite structure has not been put in place.”

    He said that the speculation that talk on minimum wage had collapsed was misleading, adding that the talk had not even started.

    “The point we are making is that we have only agreed on the structure, but the structure has not been formed.

    “We have agreed on the membership and the structure of the negotiating team which is going to be tripartite, so this is the point that we are now.

    “But at the last meeting of the tripartite team which was held a day after the Sallah break, it was agreed that at the next meeting, all these issues will be sorted out.

    “What happened was that government could not form a quorum at the last meeting of the palliative,” Wabba added.

    According to him, apart from the Minister of Labour and the Secretary to the Government of the Federation that were at the meeting key ministries were absent.

    “Legitimately, we have a demand that is still pending with them including that of minimum wage and the palliative; therefore at the next meeting, I am certain that we will give government notice.”

    Asked if the government was reluctant in setting up a team for the implementation of the minimum wage, Wabba said he would not speak for the government.

    “Well, I can`t speak on the side of the government, but we are committed in making our demand, it is left for them to tell Nigerians whether they are committed to it or not,” he said.

    According to the NLC president, the union would pursue the issue of the minimum wage to its logical conclusion.

    NAN reports that the composition of the tripartite committee was announced on May 26, by the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, Babachir Lawal.

    The Wabba faction of the NLC had put forward a demand of “N56, 000 as a realistic minimum wage,” while that of Joe Ajaero is asking for N90, 000 as minimum wage.

    NAN reports that the government on its part has proposed N45, 000 as the new minimum wage.

    The joint committee is meant to iron out the differences in the various submissions.

     

  • FG targets micro enterprises for economic growth

    FG targets micro enterprises for economic growth

    The Federal Government says it is making efforts to resolve challenges faced by micro enterprises, in order to provide avenue for them to thrive and contribute more to national economy

    Dr Dikko Radda, Director-General, Small and Medium Enterprise Development Agency of Nigeria (SMEDAN), said this on Wednesday at the National Economic Advocacy for Growth of Local Enterprise, Summit, organised by GIZ in Abuja.

    The theme of the of the summit is, “Sustainable Business Environment for SMEs as a Backbone of the Nation’s Economy’’.

    Radda, represented by Mr Wale Fasanya, Director, Enterprise Development Promotion, SMEDAN, said the agency would lift the micro enterprise through its business challenges support programme.

    He said the programme entailed reaching out to small business owners, identifying their problems and proffering solutions to them.

    “We visit them, ask them what their problems are and then how we can come in to solve their problem, and that was why we have established the business clinics.

    “We already have this business clinic in the head office but want to have it replicated in the state offices.

    “So if you visit the clinic, we will diagnose your business problem and then recommend solutions.”

    He explained that, although the agency was set up to build the capacity of SMEs, some Nigerians did not value it because they were more interested in getting monetary support.

    “Most Nigerians, once you do not give them money, they do not value what you give.

    “Most of the small scale businesses established dies because people do not take time to build their capacities before they start the business.

    “They just feel `my neighbour is selling bread and making money so let me also do the same’ which is not proper,’’ he said.

    He said the agency, had since inception, tried to sensitise people to first identify their potentials and develop knowledge of running a business before venturing into it.

    According to him, SMEDAN is ready to offer business management skills to budding enterpreneurs, to enable them succeed.

    Radda further said the agency also recommends small business owners to institutions such as the Bank of Industry and Bank of Agriculture to access funds to run their businesses.

    Mrs Margaret Joshua, Senior Adviser, Business Enabling Environment Reforms, GIZ, said the summit was organised to bring stakeholders together to identify ways of sustaining dialogue in the sub-sector.

    Joshua said the summit would examine efforts made by both the private and public sector, and identify what needed to be done to enable small businesses in the country to grow.

    She said that the major challenges of SMEs were centred on illiteracy and funding, adding that it was also part of the GIZ problems.

    “Sometimes we have activities that we have to put on hold because we cannot get the funds needed to continue the activities,’’ she said.

    “And for people in the grassroot, there are so many people that cannot read or right, even if they are responsive or interested, they want to grow but that limitation is always there.

    “Most of them cannot access the funds because they do not have the wherewithal, also do not have the collateral to use to get these funds.

    “So what we have done is to bring in the micro insurance, so that they can get something through that and be able to access funds.

    “And also we ensure that they come into groups like cooperatives and work within associations in order to be able to use it as a form of collateral to access funds.”

  • Recession: Coalition urges Soludo, Sanusi to support FG

    Recession: Coalition urges Soludo, Sanusi to support FG

    The President, Coalition of Civil Society Groups (COSG), Etuk Bassey has urged past Governors of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Prof. Charles Soludo and the Emir of Kano, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi to shelve their blame games and support the Federal Government to managing the current economic recession in the country.

    Bassey said during a press conference, in Abuja that the apex bank at this critical time needed inputs from all financial institutions such as the Federal Ministry of Finance, Federal Ministry of Budget and National Planning, Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS), Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment including the ex-CBN governors to develop innovative and workable plans to rescue the economy.

    He condemned the increasing inflation rates, unemployment and declining revenues of the federal government and its daunting effect on the public.

    According to him, the bailout funds, bi-monthly Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meetings, intervention funds in the agriculture, power and aviation sectors of the economy appeared less effective in the face of the recession.

    “It remains the duty of Nigeria’s economic managers to re-balance the economy and see us through these challenges so that we can emerge a better economy. Yet, it seems to us that those entrusted with the management of this economy are bereft of creative ideas on way forward or, worse still, do not understand the complexities of the current challenges.

    “However, it is important to note the unsavory and divisive comments by ex-Governors of the CBN, particularly Prof. Charles Soludo and HRH Sanusi Lamido, condemning some decisions and actions of the Bank. We are of the view that, save for mischief and cheap publicity, these individuals ought to approach their successor and share their views on an appropriate way forward for the benefit of the masses,” Bassey added.

    However, he advised the Ministries Departments and Agencies (MDAs) to put on their thinking caps and design implementable fiscal policies, structural policies and industrial trade policies to complement the monetary policy of the apex bank.

    Speaking on the roles of state governments, the coalition advised individual states to look inward and develop business models that would boost state Internally Generated Revenues (IGRs), rather than continuous reliance on bail out funds and federal allocations.

    “We find it insulting that some of these state governors shamelessly blame other people for the dwindling performance of the economy,” he added.

  • Cleric urges FG to end unemployment

    A Cleric, Rev. Fr. Stephen Akpe, has urged the Federal Government to eradicate poverty and unemployment to achieve national development.

    Akpe, an Assistant Coordinator , Justice Development and Peace Commission (JDPC), Catholic Archdiocese of Jos, made plea in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) on Monday in Jos.

    He said that improving the economic and social status of the people would engender national development.

    According to Akpe, hunger, poverty, squalor, unemployment and other vices prevent people from attaining their full potential and living a better life.

    “The Church today is laying so much emphasis on the issue of human security; and this is exactly what we are doing in JDPC.

    “By the time people begin to live good life, there will be no need for insecurity.

    “As we all know, when there is no killing and wanton destruction of property, national development will be achieved.

    “When hunger, poverty, unemployment and other social vices are properly tackled, insecurity will be a thing of the past in Nigeria,’’ he said.

    Akpe advised public office holders to show prudence in spending public funds and channel resources to areas that would benefit the people.

    “Government must begin to make deliberate efforts to empower people at the grassroots, because that is where a large chunk of the poor lives.

    “When resources are distributed equitably and the wide gap that exists between the rich and the poor is bridged, we will begin to get things right in this country,’’ he said.

  • Chibok girls: We have negotiated thrice with Boko Haram – FG

    Chibok girls: We have negotiated thrice with Boko Haram – FG

    …Minister opens up on how talks with Boko Haram broke down
    The Federal Government Friday admitted that it has negotiated thrice with Boko Haram on how to swap the abducted 215 Chibok girls with some commanders of the insurgents.

    The three negotiations were approved by President Muhammadu Buhari between July and December 2015.

    The government however said the talks broke down because of cracks within Boko Haram and some difficult demands made by the sect.

    He said the demands of Boko Haram included the release of their fighters arrested, especially some involved in major terrorist actions, resulting in several fatalities, and others who were experts in manufacture of locally assembled explosives.

    But the government said it has not foreclosed negotiation in order to secure the release of the Chibok girls.

    The Minister of Information, Alh. Lai Mohammed gave insights into what the government has done at a special briefing in Abuja.

    He said because of competing interests and unnecessary rivalries, nothing was achieved by the immediate past administration of former President Goodluck Jonathan before the 2015 handover date.

    He said following leads from some international bodies and countries relevant security agencies were able to strike a chord which made the Buhari administration to open talks with Boko Haram.

    He was however silent on the leaders of Boko Haram who the Federal Government discussed with in order “not to jeopardize negotiation.”

    But he said the efforts were coordinated by the Department of State Security Services (DSS) in conjunction with other intelligence agencies.

    Mohammed said: “Precisely on 17th July, 2015, the DSS opened negotiations process with the group holding the Chibok girls. However, in return for the release of some of these girls, the group also made some demands.

    “These included the release of some of their fighters arrested including some involved in major terrorist actions, resulting in several fatalities, and others who were experts in manufacture of locally assembled explosives.

    “This was difficult to accept, but appropriate security agencies had to again inform Mr. President of these demands, and its viewed implications. Again Mr. President gave his assent believing that the overall release of these girls remains paramount and sacrosanct.

    “Meanwhile, following the above development, Government and the security agencies had sufficient leverage to work out the modalities of the swap.

    “These included creating the safe haven, or necessary place of swap and working out the logistic details. Based on this, the DSS availed other critical sister agencies of this new situation. Immediately, the Nigerian Army and the Air Force sent some specialists to commence a detailed arrangement for the swap. This was during the last week of July 2015 and 1st week of August 2015.

    “The officers representing the various agencies worked out the logistic details, such as the number of persons to be swapped i.e. number of girls and detainees to be exchanged, the vehicles and aircraft, as well as safeguards, i.e. safety of the persons, including the location of the swap.

    “When it was finally agreed by all parties, Mr. President was again informed that the preparations were concluded, and the first step for the swap would commence on 1st August, 2015. Mr. President robustly gave his approval.

    “On 4th August, 2015, the persons who were to be part of the swap arrangements and all others involved in the operation were transported to Maiduguri, Borno State. This team, with the lead facilitator, continued the contact with the group holding the Chibok girls.

    “The Service was able to further prove to the group its sincerity, as it established communication contact between it and its detained members. All things were in place for the swap which was mutually agreed. Expectations were high.

    “Unfortunately, after more than two (2) weeks of negotiation and bargains, the group, just at the dying moments, issued new set of demands, never bargained for or discussed by the group before the movement to Maiduguri. All this while, the security agencies waited patiently. This development stalled what would have been the first release process of the Chibok girls.

    “It may be important to note that in spite of this setback, the government and the security agencies have not relented in the bid to ensure that the Chibok girls are released safely.

    “By the month of November, precisely 13th November, 2015, another fresh negotiation process with the group was initiated. This time, there was the need to discuss a fresh component in other to avoid issues that had stalled the former arrangement.
    “There were however some problems that many may not discern, but should be expected in this kind of situation. Some critical persons within the group, who played such vital role in August, 2015 were discovered to be dead during combat action or as a result of the emerging rift amongst members of the group then. These two factors delayed the process. In spite of these, negotiation continued on new modalities.

    “By 30th November, 2015 it was becoming glaring that the division amongst the group was more profound. This affected the swap process.

    “By 10th December, 2015, another negotiation process was in place, but this failed to achieve results because of the varying demands by the group.”

    Mohammed said the Federal Government has not given up on the release of the girls.

    He added: “Gentlemen of the press, the security agencies since the beginning of 2016 have not only remained committed but have also taken the lead to resolve the Chibok girls’ issue.

    “In spite of the current division amongst members of the terrorist group, which has seriously affected efforts to release the girls, renewed efforts have commenced using our trusted assets and facilitators. However, this job requires diligence and ability to deal with a group that can easily change its demands without notice.

    “Officers and men have sacrificed their time and energy, and some have already paid the supreme price since the abduction of the Chibok girls, fighting for the safe release of the girls.

    “Many friendly countries and organizations have equally been very forthcoming in providing their human and technological resources to assist in the process. They are still doing so. We cannot as a nation ignore these sacrifices.

    “The Government and its security agencies remain committed to ensuring that the Chibok girls are safely released in fulfillment of the Presidential mandate.”

    The Minister appealed to the parents of the Chibok girls and Nigerians to have trust in the government on its ability to secure their release.

    He added: “Let me emphasize that Government appreciates the resilience of Nigerians in the fight against insurgency and terrorism, and will continue to call on fellow Nigerians to hold that much is ahead and therefore support Mr. President’s resolve on this matter.

    “I cannot end this without appealing to the parents and relatives of the Chibok girls. We are with you; we feel your pains and shall not relent until we succeed in bringing home our girls and every other citizen abducted by the group. It is important to appeal to all those who have shown concern in resolving this matter to continue to trust the efforts of Government to deal with the situation.”