The Nation Newspaper

Tag: federal

  • Federal Poly Ado Ekiti shut indefinitely

    Federal Poly Ado Ekiti shut indefinitely

    The Federal Polytechnic, Ado Ekiti was on Sunday shut indefinitely following violent protest by students over the death of two of them.

    The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), reports that trouble began on the institution’s campus late Friday, when two of the students reportedly complained of malaria.

    They were said to have been rushed to the Polytechnic Health Centre for treatment, but their condition later became worse. They died in the early hours of Saturday.

    The Registrar of the institution, Mrs. Sade Adediran announced the immediate and indefinite closure of the school.

    Adediran did not however confirm whether any student actually died at the Polytechnic Health Centre, said to be the trigger for the violent protest.

    The statement warned that any student found on campus after the closure would be apprehended and made to face the consequences.

    NAN gathered from campus sources that the students on learning that their colleagues had died, quickly mobilised themselves, marched to the Health Centre and burnt it down.

    Apart from also destroying some other property, the students blocked all roads leading to the institution preventing free movement of vehicles.

    One of the students, who asked not to be mentioned, condemned the attitude of the polytechnic authorities over their welfare and well-being.

    He alleged that the only drug available at the health centre was paracetamol.

    According to him, paracetamol was also given the two students who were taken to the centre, instead of being given effective malaria drugs or injection. (NAN)

  • Resident doctors seek pay parity for federal, state doctors

    Resident doctors seek pay parity for federal, state doctors

    THE National Association of Resident Doctors (NARD) has canvassed equal remunerations and welfare package for medical doctors employed in federal and state owned hospitals.

    It said its members are prepared to use all available means to ensure that doctors in the services of state government get the same treatment as others in federal service.

    The association’s just elected National President, Dr. Ugochukwu Chinaka, who said this at a news conference in Abuja,  added that resident doctors believe in the mantra: “Same doctor, same patient and same treatment”.

    He noted that there was no basis for doctors employed in state health institutions to be treated less than their counterparts in federal hospitals.

    The NARD President said they were prepared to use everything within their means to actualise this, including advocacy and engaging those he called relevant stakeholders.

    Chinaka said the association was committed to the implementation of the memorandum of terms of settlement it entered into with the Federal Government.

    Resident doctors, he added, were prepared to use all legitimate means within their disposal to forestall any breach of the implementation.

    He asked chief executives of hospitals, who were yet to begin implementation of the agreement to avoid any action that would be inimical to the peace of hospitals and health institutions.

    The NARD President said the association was concerned about the threat posed by communicable  diseases such as the outbreak of yellow fever and cholera.

    Chinaka asked Nigerians to maintain a high level of vigilance, inculcate best hygienic practices and government should support adequate response and control measures.

    He, however, condemned the alleged threat and action of some hospitals’ chief executives, especially those  of Jos University Teaching Hospital; National Orthopedic hospital, Dala; University College Hospital, Ibadan; and Federal Medical Centre, Owo.

    Their activities, he said, were capable of causing a breakdown in peace.

    He condemned the spate of sack of medical doctors at the Federal Medical Centre, Owerri and the alleged deplorable state of its members’ welfare at state universities’ teaching hospitals.

     

  • States seek takeover of federal roads

    States seek takeover of federal roads

    To revive the near total collapse of most federal roads, Governors yesterday requested the Federal Government to hand over some critical federal roads in deplorable condition to states so as to revive them from total collapse.

    Many of the roads across the country have become death traps due to overuse and poor maintenance.

    The request was tabled at the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting at the Villa. It was presided over by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo.

    Council members suggested that the Ministry of Power, Works and Housing should come up with strategies to regulate the weight of heavy duty vehicles plying the roads, being responsible for the damage.

    Ebonyi State Governor Dave Umahi to State House reporters after the meeting that governors noted that discussions were underway among the states to collaborate with investors and fix the roads under the Public Private Partnerships (PPP) arrangement which will allow states to toll such roads to recover funds expended on them.

    He said: “We are highly concerned about the failure of our roads, even after fixing the roads, they would collapse with six months and we identified that tover loading is one of the major factors because you take an axil load in road design.

    “Most of the time you don’t use an axial load of more than 35 tonnes but we have noticed that a lot of our trucks carrying mainly fuel do 45 ,60,70 tonnes and that’s a major concern to governors and we said the minister for works and housing should come up with a strategy to regulate the weight of heavy trucks plying the roads which have been fingered as the root cause of road collapse.

    “The state governors are very much concerned about these failures, its being agitating our minds and we are thinking about strategies and we are soliciting that federal government give out some of the federal roads to states so that states can fix the roads through investors and toll the roads and we believe strongly that it will be more effective because the number of federal roads that is being handled by the federal government there is no amount of budget that can fix it but if some of these roads are given out to state government and they maintain a handful of it and of course the budgeted funds” he said.

    Council therefore resolved that interested states could write to the President requesting approval for takeover of some of the federal roads to ensure proper and efficient maintenance.

    He said: “The Minister of Finance had earlier made a presentation on special accounts of the federation and gave us the closing balances.”

    It was revealed that Stabilization Account Balance as at 26 September 2017 stood at N4.354,300,295,64k

    Development of Natural Resources Account balance as at 26 Sept. held N84.693,588,214,54k, while Excess Crude Account balance as at September 22 stood at $2,309,577,899.02.

    Umahi said: “You know there was a gentleman agreement entered into between the Minister of Finance in the NEC and the 35 governors and Lagos is not participating and that is a programme we call budget support and the agreement was because of the downturn of economic challenges that endangers a number of states not being able to pay salaries”

    “So, we came to understanding that any month that the total sharable revenue in the federation account is less than N600billion, then the minister of finance will give each state budget support.  We concluded that in the last 12 months and that continued for the second year, states have done very well, some states have been able to pay their accumulated salary debts and then also increase their commitment to infrastructure and generation of revenue.

    “From July, that was not paid and in the month of August, I think about seven states were paid because according to the minister, other states did not comply with the set down rules but more states have complied and we have requested that those states that have complied should be paid.

    “The good news is that in the month of September, the sharable amount is N630billion so there would be no budget support for the states,” he said.

  • Federal, states, councils share N2.8tr in six months

    Federal, states, councils share N2.8tr in six months

    The three tiers of government – federal, states and local governments – shared N2.788 trillion between January and June this year, Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) said yesterday.

    According to a statement by NEITI Director of Communications, Dr. Orji Ogbonnaya Orji, the allocation shows a 38 per cent increase on the N2.019 trillion shared in the first half of 2016.

    NEITI said the figure is contained in its Quarterly Review, which focuses on disbursement from the Federation Accounts and Allocation Committee (FAAC).

    The review was based on data obtained by the agency at the meetings of FAAC and data from National Bureau of Statistics, Office of the Accountant General of the Federation, Federal Ministry of Finance and the Debt Management Office.

    Out of $2.788 trillion disbursed in the first half of 2017, the Federal Government received N1.09 trillion, 36 state governments received N923 billion while N549.8 billion went to 774 local governments.

    A further  breakdown  shows that total releases to the three tiers of government was N430.16 billion in January, N514 billion in February, N496.40 billion (March), N418.82 billion (April), N418.82 billion (May) and N462.36 billion  (June).

    However, despite the 38 per cent increase in disbursements in the first half of 2017 when compared with 2016, the three tiers of government suffered significant revenue decline in terms of projected FAAC disbursement.

    “Coupled with the low price of oil is the country’s difficulty in meeting the targeted/budgeted production rate of 2.2 million barrels per day. Production has consistently fallen below two million barrels per day since March 2016. Thus the double “whammy” of low oil prices and lower production that hit the country since 2014 has remained” the NEITI Quarterly Review observed.

    For instance, while the expected FAAC disbursement for the three tiers of government was N4.7 trillion, the actual FAAC disbursement to them was N2.788 trillion, representing a shortfall of over 40.67 per cent.

    According to the publication, “the volatility nature of disbursements to all tiers of government in the first half of 2017 would suggest difficulty in implementing budgets at Federal, state and local government levels. The volatility in revenue inflows will adversely affect planning and expenditure of government and thus likely hamper efforts at stimulating growth and development”.

    The quarterly review added that a total of N513 billion was spent on debt servicing by the three tiers in the first quarter of 2017.

    This was against the N1.276 trillion disbursements in the first quarter. This means that debt servicing took up 40.27 per cent of FAAC disbursement for the first quarter of this year.

    “The figure reveals that debt servicing as proportion of total FAAC allocations is generally higher in the first quarter of the year, after which it falls to lower levels. Based on this, the figure of 40.27 per cent observed in the first quarter of 2017 might be an upper threshold and it would thus be expected that this figure will be lower for the remaining quarters of the year”, the report said. However, the Debt Management Office (DMO) is yet to provide data on the figure for the second quarter of 2017.

    In this direction, the NEITI publication expressed concern that the nation’s debt in relation to revenues appears to have reached critical levels. It further noted that domestic debt servicing constituted 90 per cent of total debt servicing.

    The report remarked that “domestic debt servicing consistently outstrips external debt servicing. In the first quarter of 2015, domestic debt servicing made up over 93 per cent of total debt servicing. This figure did not change much by the first quarter of 2017 as domestic debt servicing was over 92 per centof total debt servicing”.

    On the Paris Club debt refund to the 36 states and Federal Capital Territory (FCT), the NEITI Quarterly Review confirmed that N760.18 billion was released by the Federal Government to the 36 states and the FCT.

    The money, which was paid in two tranches represents refunds of over deductions from FAAC allocations to states and local governments used for quick payment of debt relief granted to Nigeria by the Paris Club between 1995 and 2002.

    The NEITI publication disclosed that Rivers received the highest amount of N44.93 billion followed by Delta with N37.61billion and Akwa Ibom N35.98 billion.  Bayelsa got N34.9 billion and Kano State received N31.74 billion. The Federal Capital Territory, Abuja received the lowest amount of N2.05 billion.

  • Federal High Court needs more judges

    SIR: Most governors, in exercise of their privilege of prerogative of mercy go round the various prisons in the country from time to time and grant pardon to some inmates who are serving various terms of imprisonment, some awaiting trial for various offences.

    A recurrent observation during these prison tours is that many inmates have stayed in the prison for much longer than the term of imprisonment they would have served if convicted. The congestion in various police cells and the prisons is one of the various problems of our legal and judicial system. Why are many inmates awaiting trial for unnecessarily long periods?

    One even wonders why many of these awaiting trial inmates stay longer than the terms of imprisonment they would stay on conviction. Is the society fair to these people?

    A government which cares about the welfare of the generality of the people should not allow this situation to continue. The Muhammadu Buhari administration with its change mantra should take up this challenge immediately. Something should be done to ensure that even handed justice is dispensed to all and sundry within reasonable time frame as justice delayed is justice denied. In this wise one praises the concerned agencies of the federal government that acted swiftly on the recent appointment of judges of the National Industrial Court. These courts now have judges to handle cases and dispense with them expeditiously.

    However one wonders why this is not the same situation with the judges of the Federal High Court. A close observation shows that the court is in dire need of judges, to replace those who have died, retired, or will soon retire.

    Several vacancies exist in the court and reliable information reveals that all the states have submitted names of recommended judicial officers to be appointed. The list has also been reviewed and the shortlisted candidates invited and interviewed by the State Security Service (SSS) and the Nigerian Bar Association in the usual screening exercise.

    However the result of the screening by these two bodies has long been awaited.

    It was only a few days ago that the NBA released its own. That of the SSS is still being awaited. How long this wait will last is now the issue. During the recent face-off between the S.S.S and the National Judicial Council (NJC), the latter was accused of not taking timely and appropriate action on judges accused of corruption.

    In this instance nobody will blame the NJC for this delay, as the final list of lawyers to be appointed judges has not been sent to them. What is causing the delay? When will the vacancies be filled? When will the numerous cases in the Federal High Court that have not been attended to due to shortage of judges receive attention? These questions need answers by those concerned

    This is a humble request to all the persons and institutions involved in taking appropriate action on appointment of judges including the Chief Justice of the Federation, the Nigerian Bar Association, State Security Service, the Federal Judicial Service Commission and the National Judicial Council to do the needful and ensure that on resumption from the present annual vacation, all available vacancies in the Federal High Court would have been filled.

    The Federal High Court is one of the most strategic and significant arms of our judiciary and it should be empowered with its required human capacity to continue the good job it is doing.

     

    • Kola Onifade,

    Lagos.

  • ‘We need a truly federal system’

    ‘We need a truly federal system’

    I have read a lot of rendition by very eminent and knowledgeable citizens on the need for restructuring or practice of fiscal federalism in Nigeria. Some have blamed the lopsided structure of Nigeria, which is perceived as an arrangement favourable to the North and have argued that since Nigeria was birthed by the fusion or amalgamation of the Northern and Southern protectorates, they do not understand the basis for the northern protectorate to have overwhelming advantage over the south.

    These advantages they say are apparent in the number of states, legislators, and local governments, amongst other socio-political and economic benefits that the North has over its Southern counterpart.

    No doubt, the incursion of the military into Nigeria’s political space caused serious harm with no good whatsoever. Even though a product of a military school, I am an unrepentant democrat and strongly believe in the principles of true federalism, ironically ingrained by a soldier-teacher, Mr. Afuwape, who played a major role in developing his students’ interest in democratic norms.

    The restructuring debate

    In simple and plain language, as expressed in corporate parlance, restructuring means “a re-organisation of a company with a view to achieving greater efficiency and profit or to adapt to a changing market.

    The above definition can be used to illustrate the current narratives making the rounds in the country today. If you look at Nigeria as a corporate entity, which in real sense can be seen as such, you will agree with me that our nation urgently requires a re-organisation with a view to achieving greater efficiency and productivity and without this re-organisation the agitation we are currently experiencing, God forbid, might make us become a failed state.

    What a true federalism connotes is a system of government that proportionately divides power between the central authority and its subordinating states with definite constitutional roles that permits for economic control over resources beneath their soil.  The bane of our problem as a nation today is that we practise a deceptive form of federalism, which in real sense is a unitary system of government, where every month the state go cap in hand to receive hand-outs from the Central Government. Federalism envisages a situation where the states ought to control their resources and give returns to the centre, not the other way round.

    It will interest you to know that the Philippines (through its President) Rodrigo Duterte, which practices a unitary system of government, is proposing a change in its system of governance from its current unitary arrangement to a federal system of government, where the states/regions generate income and keep 70% of such income for their own use and send the remaining 30% to central government, to address the problem of unitary form of government that has established an unfair distribution of funds between the regional government and national government in his country.

    It is time for Nigeria to re-adopt a system that works and solves problems while understanding the peculiarities of respective regions thereby giving states the independence to govern and manage their resources.

    Can the federating states be viable?

    I can emphatically say yes, that the federating states can be viable if they are allowed to tap into their mineral and natural resources. There are huge economic opportunities that states have refused to explore.

    Fear of the unknown

    Fears that restructuring could erode the powers of the Federal Government are unfounded as the benefits of a nimble and efficient Federal Government far outweighs its demerits.

    Those opposing restructuring can only be said to have a tunnel vision of what federalism means and the opportunities inherent in it. When a country decides to d

    As the representative of my constituency at the House of Representative, I must admit that the cry for justice by my constituents in our polity has been overwhelming and not voicing my support in favour of holistic restructuring will be a disservice to them and the future wellbeing of my dearly beloved country. I must also add that as a member of the House of Representatives Special Adhoc Committee on the Review of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, representing Lagos State, a good number of the divergent positions on restructuring has been accommodated in the committee’s extensive engagements across the country.  They say that those who do not leave the shore do not conquer new territories, the difference between a successful government and a failed one is determined by how it deals with the obstacles faced by its people.

    • Hon. Benson, an All Progressives Congress (APC) lawmaker, representing Ikorodu Federal Constituency, Lagos State, is a member of the House of Representatives Special Adhoc Committee on the Review of the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria.

  • Federal allocation and Ayade’s magic

    There is outrage in Cross River following the disclosure of federal allocation to the state in the first quarter of 2017 by the Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun. As disclosed by the Finance Minister and reported by most media outlets across the country, Cross River State got N4.28 billion in three months. Only Osun State got something lower.

    A breakdown of the allocation translates to N1.4 billion monthly, an amount that cannot pay salaries of local government workers, talk less of paying the entire state workforce, which wage bill is put at over N5 billion.

    No doubt, the figure is an improvement from the previous allocations where the state consistently received zero allocations in the last three quarters of 2016.

    That is the reality facing Cross River, reality that is made more difficult to accept given that some of its sister states got close to N40 billion in the same period.

    It is amazing how in spite of such poor federal allocation, the Ben Ayade-led government is not behind in payment of salaries.

    If anything, the governor has commonized payment of salaries.

    Apart from payment of salaries, the Ayade administration has gone about diligently executing projects aimed at not only providing jobs to the teeming mass, but also expanding and improving the state’s revenue base.

    The Calabar Garment Factory, Ikom and Itigidi water projects, Calabar Monorail, the Calabar International Convention Centre are among some of the projects already completed by the Ayade-led administration.

    Other projects at various stages of completion include: the 21megawatt of power plant, the Calabar pharmaceutical Company (Calapharm), the Ogoja Rice Mill, Cocoa Processing Plant in Ikom, 145 kilometre-dual carriage highway that cuts across the five local governments in northern part of the state.

    There is also an ongoing road project being constructed to, for the first time, link Eastern and Western Boki, the Mbaobui road in Akamkpa amongst others.

    Several schools across the state have been given complete rehabilitation through the State Universal Basic Education Board (SUBEB); Primary Healthcare Centres have also been rehabilitated.

    He also expanded government with a view to putting food on the table for a greater number of people.

    All these achievements and others too numerous to mention, have been recorded in just two years in spite of the poor and lean revenue allocation to the state by the federal government. As we speak, the design for the Bakassi Deep Seaport and the superhighway is completed, even as the government still awaits the EIA approval from the federal authorities.

    How Ayade has been able to achieve so much with very little resources at his disposal remains a mystery. It is no wonder that some sections of the state call him a magician.

    Instructively, it is not what he is called or described in the state that is significant here. What is rather worthy of note is his die-hard resilience to bring about a difference in governance architecture by adopting a paradigm shift.

    Part of these dynamics is the governor’s call for a collective sacrifice from Cross Riverians, particularly his appointees. Much as it is difficult to swallow, virtually every of his appointee has come to appreciate the direction he is navigating the state and its economy towards.

    For instance, while his colleagues in other states travel with a large retinue of aides whenever they are outside their states, Ayade hops into the aircraft alone with his luggage in his hand. This is part of the cost-saving measures he has introduced, in addition to the collective understanding by his appointees and himself for their salaries to be halved. How much sacrifice can a leader make in order to appease his people?

    In addition to sustaining the momentum of ramping up the revenue base of the state, Ayade has looked inward to ensure that Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) is improved upon. Those who should pay tax are made to pay their taxes with the strengthening of state’s revenue generation agency, Cross River Internal Revenue Service.

    In the same vein, the administration has exempted low income earners and the vulnerable in the society from paying taxes.

    His drive to enhance the state’s revenue base has however, often met with stubborn and belligerent resistance from some segments of the business public.

    The current withdrawal of services by Petroleum Tank Farm Owners, the Petroleum Tankers Drivers Association and others is one clear example.

    Unicem has over the years been paying road maintenance levy, which assists the state to maintain its road infrastructure. However, the effort to get operators of the downstream sector of the petroleum industry to act responsibly in similar manner is what has led to the withdrawal of services by the group.

    The question that is begging for an answer is: is it no longer worthy that what is sauce for the goose should be sauce for the gander? If Unicem and other such entities are paying this levy to help the state stay afloat, what is wrong with the operators in the petroleum sub-sector doing same?

    Every day, thousands of trucks enter Calabar to lift petroleum products to several states. The damage done on the roads is incalculable.

    It is, rather ironic that elsewhere, such levies are compliantly being paid to state governments where tank farms are sited. So why the outrage from operators in Cross River?

    No doubt, this systemic institutional short-change has become a matter of deliberate effort to stifle our collective drive to grow our local economy.  So, paying a levy to ensure the state keeps the road motorable should not induce a call to arms. Rather, it is a time for all to pull together in one direction. Failing to do this, the fate that has befallen Apapa in Lagos, awaits us.

  • Deji seeks federal jobs for kinsmen

    Deji seeks federal jobs for kinsmen

    The Deji of Akure, Oba Aladetoyinbo Ogunlade, has sought the assistance of former President Olusegun Obasanjo for Federal Government appointments for his kinsmen.

    The monarch lamented that since the exit of former Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF) Olu Falae, no Akure indigene has been appointed at the federal level.

    He spoke when he led a delegation to Obasanjo’s hilltop mansion in Abeokuta, Ogun State.

    On the entourage were Secretary to the State Government (SSG) Ifedayo Abegunde, Kemisola Adesanya, former Commissioner for Sports Dayo Awude, Tunji Light and Tunji Adekanmbi, among others.

    Obasanjo said the monarch’s concern was valid and should be supported by everyone.

  • Sanusi to govts: Focus on agriculture

    Sanusi to govts: Focus on agriculture

    The Emir of Kano, Alhaji Muhammad Sanusi II, has urged the Federal, state and Local governments to focus on agriculture to boost food production in the country.

    Sanusi made the call when he delivered his traditional Eid-el Kabir message shortly after the Eid prayer at the Kofar Mata Eid praying ground in Kano metropolis on Monday.

    He said agriculture would provide job opportunities for the unemployed youths and ensure food security in the country.

    According to him, there is also the need for the Federal Government to construct additional dams across the country to enhance dry season farming for massive production of cash and food crops.

    He said constructing more dams was necessary in view of the fact that most of the developed countries had for long stopped depending on wet season farming.

    Sanusi urged wealthy Muslims to support the less privileged persons in the society in order to alleviate their sufferings, especially during the current economic recession in the country.

    He, however, called on Nigerians irrespective of their religious beliefs and political inclination to continue to pray for economic growth and development in the country.

    He also called for continuous prayers for economic growth and prosperity in the country.

    NAN reports that the Eid prayer which was led by Sanusi was attended by the Acting Governor, Prof Hafiz Abubakar, members of the state executive council and other traditional rulers from the 44 local government areas.

    The Eid prayer was conducted peacefully across the various Eid grounds in the state.

  • FUOYE pledges to comply with Federal Character principle

    Authorities of the Federal University, Oye Ekiti (FUOYE) in Ekiti State has pledged to adhere to federal character principle in employment of workers and admission of students.

    Its vice chancellor, Prof. Kayode Soremekun, made the promise on Friday while hosting the officials of the Federal Character Commission (FCC) led by the Commissioner representing Ekiti State, Bunmi Ojo.

    Soremekun explained that application of federal character principle in the university would ensure proportional representation for all Nigerians, saying he could not afford to work at variance with the policies of the Federal Government that brought him into office.

    The VC said it was in consonance to this that the university advertised vacancies for teaching and non-teaching positions for all willing and qualified Nigerians to apply.

    “We are mindful of the sensitivity of the principles of Federal Character to the impending staff recruitment and we know such would give preference to some states, who are yet to be  represented in the university.”