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Tag: Nigeria Governors forum

  • Governors seek audience with Buhari over dwindling economy

    Governors seek audience with Buhari over dwindling economy

    The 36 states governors have resolved to meet with President Muhammadu Buhari towards finding a way out of the deteriorating state of the Nigeria economy.

    According to them, they are struggling to meet up with expenditure especially payment of salaries due to dwindling monthly allocations caused by falling crude oil prices in the international market.

    Speaking with journalists at the end of their meeting held at the Banquet Hall of the Presidential Villa, Abuja, early Thursday, the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) also backed the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) over the N2.1trillion fine slammed on MTN.

    The governors insisted that the service provider must pay up in full.

    Reading the communiqué issued at the end of the meeting, the Chairman of the Forum and governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, said states could no longer bear the N18, 000 minimum wage that was imposed on them when oil sold for $126 per barrel as against its present cost of $41 per barrel.

    He noted that the way out of the situation was the diversification of the economy with adequate attention given to agriculture and mining.

    He said: “We resolved that we must look at ways to enhance revenue generation and at the same time look at ways to cut our overhead costs more especially the political office holders’ salaries and other overhead expenses.

    “The situation is no longer the same when we were asked to pay N18,000 minimum wage, when oil price was $126 (per barrel) and continued paying N18,000 minimum wage when the oil is $41 and the source of government expenditure is oil, and we have not seen prospects in the oil industry in the near future.”

     

  • Governors canvass comprehensive power policy

    Governors canvass comprehensive power policy

    The Nigeria Governors’ Forum has appealed for a comprehensive power sector policy and strategy, with a view to achieving a holistic solution to the epileptic power situation in the country.

    In a communiqué issued at the end of the Forum’s meeting in Abuja in the early hours of Thursday, the governors said they resolved to make the appeal following a presentation made to them by the Managing Director of the Niger Delta Power Holding Limited.

    The communiqué, signed by the chairman of the Forum and Governor of Zamfara State, Abdulaziz Yari, stated that the state executives also had exhaustive discussions on the operations of the National Integrated Power Project.

    The communiqué also said the governors would meet with the United Nations Secretary General, Mr. Ban K-Moon, on August 23, to discuss among others, the Sustainable Development Goals.

    Also slated for discussion with Ki-Moon is the successor programme to the Millennium Development Goals and the envisaged role of state governors, as critical stakeholders in its implementation.

    In a related development, the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) Governors’ Forum had condemned what it described as alleged meddlesomeness of the Department of State Services (DSS) in election matters pending at the tribunals.

    A statement read by the Forum’s chairman, Governor Olusegun Mimiko of Ondo State, identified Rivers, Akwa Ibom and Abia states as PDP controlled states where the DSS was allegedly interfering with election matters.

    The statement said, “It is against the spirit, ethos, values and fundamental tenets of democratic norms and tradition; more so with the existence of the Electoral Act and the Constitution.

    “The forum is worried, alarmed and shocked by this development. A situation where officials of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) in these three states are daily being arrested, detained and questioned on election-related offences, even when the cases are ongoing at the tribunals, spells doom and poses imminent danger to our fledgling democracy.

    “The alleged interference is an attempt to stifle the opposition and this is most unacceptable. We insist that the trend be reversed. No democracy survives without a viable opposition in any part of the world.”

     

     

  • Governors to discuss worsening exchange rate with Buhari

    Governors to discuss worsening exchange rate with Buhari

    The governors of the 36 states have resolved to discuss the worsening value of the naira with President Muhammadu Buhari at Friday’s National Economic Council meeting.

    Rising from the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) meeting in the wee hours of Thursday, the governors expressed worry over the excessively high exchange rate of foreign currencies against the Naira.

    The exchange rate stood at 247 Naira to a dollar at the parallel market as at Thursday.

    In a communiqué read by the chairman of the NGF, Governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara State, the governors lamented the adverse effects of the high exchange rate on the economy.

    Yari said, “We are going to discuss with Mr. President to seek lasting solutions to the worsening macroeconomic challenges confronting the nation, especially on foreign exchange stability.

    “The forum pledges to work with Mr. President to ensure coherent policy actions that will create a clear policy direction for the country and stimulate domestic production.”

    Yari also said the governors discussed health related issues, with the view to seeking areas of cooperation with the Federal Government on the implementation of the National Health Act.

    “We will collaborate with the federal government to ensure that the National Health Act is operational and to agree on funding for primary health care to be provided for in the budget.

    “Sequel to the presentation made by the Country Representative of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the forum agreed to aggressively support the total eradication of polio in the country,” Yari added.

     

     

  • Governors to Buhari: Ways out of cash crunch

    Governors to Buhari: Ways out of cash crunch

    Governors of the 36 states on Tuesday offered suggestions to President Muhammadu Buhari on way out of the present cash crunch in the country.

    While the Federal Government is reportedly owing domestic debts totaling N5.6 trillion, the 36 state governments and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) are being owed N658 billion.

    Zamfara State Governor, Abdulaziz Yari, who briefed State House correspondents alongside his Bauchi and Abia States counterparts, Mohammed Abubakar and Okezie Ikpeazu, at the end of the meeting, said that some proposals were tabled before the President during the closed-door meeting.

    Some of the proposals given to the President, he said, include reimbursement of some projects sums embarked upon by states instead of requesting for the bailout, extension of repayment periods for loans owed by states  whose durations vary between four and seven years to 20 years.

    Opposing the operation of excess crude account, Yari said the governors also want first line charges to be stopped like the N1.6 billion tax paid by the Nigeria Liquefied Natural Gas, saying that should be paid into the federation account.

    He said the meeting was not really about bailout but how the states and the Federal Government can overcome the present financial crisis in the country.

  • Governors meet under one forum

    Governors meet under one forum

    Outgoing governors, re-elected ones and their incoming colleagues yesterday met in Abuja under an enlarged forum.

    It was the first time the governors would be meeting in their numbers after the May 2013 disputed election of the Nigeria Governors Forum where the Rotimi Amaechi (Rivers) and Jonah Jang (Plateau) factions emerged.

    The meeting, which insiders said was a reconciliatory move by the governors, started at 8.30 pm at the Transcorp Hilton Hotel.

    Present at the meeting were governors of Rivers, Delta, Niger, Zamfara, Edo, Kwara, Osun, Kaduna, Borno, Kebbi, Akwa Ibom, Bauchi, Benue and Oyo.

    Others were Deputy Governors of Nasarawa, Imo and Kogi States and the Governor-Elect of Kano State.

    The meeting was still ongoing as at the time of filing this report at 10.05 pm.

     

  • We must revive Governors’ Forum before leaving – Fashola

    We must revive Governors’ Forum before leaving – Fashola

    Lagos State Governor, Babatunde Fashola (SAN), has said the governors of the 36 states must strive to revive the Nigeria Governors’ Forum before leaving office in 2015.

    Speaking at a dialogue session organised by the Kukah Centre for Faith and Leadership Research, Fashola said it was embarrassing that the Forum which they inherited from their predecessors was going into extinction, saying “my fear is that the next set of governors may not have a Governors’ Forum.”

    According to him, government and elected officials must realize that the problems of Nigeria revolve around the people of the country, pointing out that there was nothing wrong with the Nigerian nation, but in the value system of the people.

    He said: “If we agree that the problems revolve around people, then the difference will lie in the method. The Presidential system we use is the American system. As a matter of national value, the Americans agree that anybody who earns income must pay tax.

    “The essential quality for institutions to do well is people. When institutions do well, it is because good people have done t he right thing and when they do badly, it is because bad people have been allowed to take charge.

    “So, there is nothing esoteric about institutions because what drive institutions is good men and women. But you will not find them until there is a convergence of ideas and values and this is the right thing to do.

    “We should be driven by a nationalistic value system that if our country crumbles, no party will be saved. Until there are shared values, you can have united actions. If the values systems are different, then you can sit down, you can sit down in a governors forum and have an election and some people will say a smaller number is greater than another number.

    “I say that because I am embarrassed that we were in the same club where that happened. And it speaks so badly of all of us. I fear now that the next set of governors who come on board may not have a governors’ forum.

    “I am hopeful that before we go, the least we can do is to give back to those who will succeed us what we inherited from those we succeeded. I think that in that kind of contest, you can lose one day knowing that there is any other day to fight.”

     

  • Youths proffer solution to NGF crisis

    TO resolve the ongoing crisis in the Nigeria Governors Forum (NGF), declare Governor Chibuike Amaechi the winner, a group has said.

    The National Coordinator of the group, Northern Nigerian Youth Initiative for Peace and Development (NNYIPAD), Ibrahim Ali in a statement, expressed fears that the crisis poses a great danger to the 2015 election if not resolved.

    He said: “Truth, as we know it, is incontrovertible. Neither malice nor ignorance can override it, because in the end, it is only the truth that stands. From the various claims and counter-claims that we have so far heard, NNYIPAD holds that truth and victory patiently sit with Governor Amaechi as the duly elected chairman of the NGF.

    Ibrahim explained that the attention generated by the NGF crisis stifles the economy and reduces Nigerians to a group of ridiculous people.

    He added: “The reasoning is that if a circle of 36 individuals who are adjudged strategically fit to lead the citizens of their respective states could not hold a successful election at a mere NGF level, the all defining 2015 general elections will certainly, assuredly meet with monumental doom.

    “As it is, attention is already being diverted from fundamental issues that have meaning for Nigerians.

    “It is instructive to note that the corporate existence of Nigeria supercedes every other cabal or self-serving interests. It is such a strange paradox that the PDP, and, as it is believed, the Presidency, now oppresses one of their own shining stars in a drama that depicts fundamental changes in allegiances and ambitions.

    “If Governor Amaechi is today an outlaw, it may be because he is being denied the right to live the life he believes in. After all, it is said that rebellion to tyranny is obedience to God.

    “NNYIPAD despises and abhors the bullying and oppression of Governor Ameachi and all those who share his sense of justice and freedom

    “Power wrongly used, they say, defeats the oppressor as well as the oppressed. You can’t put a man down without staying down with him. The whole Nigeria is being put down with Gov. Ameachi and we say NO to that. We, therefore, urge all concerned parties to the path of peace and reasonable dialogue.”

    NNYIPAD an offshoot of Northern Nigeria Youth Initiative for Peace and Development having reflected on the huge hullabaloo over the Nigerian Governor’s Forum (NGF) election has taken stance on the part of justice, freedom and democracy.

     

  • Chaos at Rivers Assembly

    Chaos at Rivers Assembly

    -Five lawmakers ‘impeach’ speaker

    -Amaechi moves in to restore order

    -Thugs attack Dep. Governor’s car

     

    Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi moved fast yesterday to stop a major constitutional crisis at the House of Assembly.

    Five lawmakers loyal to the Minister of State for Education, Chief Nyesom Wike, claimed to have impeached the Speaker. It was all part of the crisis rocking the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

    There was a rain of blows at the main chambers of the House of Assembly in Port Harcourt, between the pro and anti-Amaechi lawmakers.

    The five lawmakers loyal to Wike – Michael Okechukwu Chinda (Obio/Akpor II constituency), Kelechi Godspower Nwogu (Omuma), Evans Bapakaye Bipi (Ogu/Bolo), Martins Amaewhule (Obio/Akpor I) and Victor Ihunwo (Port Harcourt III) – attempted to impeach the Speaker, Otelemaba Dan Amachree.

    Bipi was humidly elected speaker, amid tight security provided by the police. He announced the suspension of 15 unnamed lawmakers – in a 32-member Assembly.

    As Bipi mounted the speaker’s seat to give his acceptance/maiden speech, Amaechi, who is also the Chairman of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), stormed the main chambers with Amachree, other lawmakers and security men. Then the fisticuffs began.

    The Speaker and the Leader of the House, Chidi Lloyd, a lawyer, who represents Emohua Constituency and loyal to Amaechi, were attacked. As at press time yesterday, Lloyd was still in the hospital.

    Also seriously injured were two anti-Amaechi lawmakers: Amaewhule and Chinda. They were also hospitalised.

    Amaechi ordered the arrest of Bipi, but the policemen and operatives of the State Security Service (SSS), who were with the Rivers governor, were resisted by the security personnel guarding the “new speaker”.

    A policeman cautioned another for bringing tear gas canister into the main chambers. The policemen were obviously divided in their support for Amaechi and Wike.

    When the punching subsided, the House sat amid very tight security, with 23 pro-Amaechi lawmakers in attendance. Amachree presided. Amaechi left immediately.

    Rivers Deputy Governor Tele Ikuru, an engineer, was ushered into the Assembly chambers at 11:42 pm to present amendments to the 2013 budget, on behalf of Amaechi. This lasted from 11:44 pm till 11:48 pm when it was laid on the table. Ikuru left the main chambers at 11:51 pm.

    The Speaker said the amendments would not affect the earlier figure of N490 billion. Shortly after Ikuru left, the House was adjourned sine die (indefinitely) at 12:01 pm.

    The deputy governor was attacked by thugs around 12:26 pm as he was leaving the Assembly complex on Moscow Road. His car was badly damaged.

    On his way out, after making the presentation, thugs who flooded the complex, chanting war songs and in support of the “new speaker”, descended on Ikuru, in spite of the heavy security presence.

    Other cars in his convoy were also damaged.

    Bipi assaulted a Channels Television cameraman, snatching his camera from him. The camera was released, following the intervention of top politicians.

    As Speaker Amachree was leaving the main chamber, after the sitting, Bipi also punched the representative of Abua/Odual Constituency in the Assembly, Augustine Ngo, near the parking lot. He fell and immediately got up.

    The representative of Rivers Southeast Senatorial District, Senator Magnus Ngei Abe, described the attack on the speaker, the leader and other members of the Assembly loyal to Amaechi, “under the watchful eyes of the police”, as a shame and a slap on democracy.

    He urged lovers of democracy and Nigerians to not only condemn the dastardly and barbaric act, but to resist moves being orchestrated by those under democratic oath to make Rivers State ungovernable.

    Abe, who is also the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream), wondered the kind of democracy being practised in Nigeria, if democratic institutions and those elected to make laws could not be protected.

    The senator, who is a former Secretary to the Rivers State Government (SSG), declared that plans to throw the state into anarchy would not succeed. He admonished well-meaning Rivers people to stand by Amaechi, whom he said was being persecuted for defending the state.

    Chief Victor Tombari Giadom, the Commissioner for Works, described the action of the anti-Amaechi lawmakers as “pure rascality”.

    Speaker Amachree said: “As far as this House is concerned, the leadership of the House has not changed. I am the speaker of Rivers House of Assembly and all the other officers and the clerk are here with me. The leadership of the House is intact and what Evans Bipi told you is pure fallacy, lie.

    “For the House to impeach the speaker, two-thirds of the members must agree. Now, count how many members that are with me here. We are 23 members here; you can count us. No mace was brought into the House.

    “When we get to the bridge, we will know how to cross it. But every member knows that we have rules and regulations that guide us in our conduct. I will not say anything yet on attempt to impeach me, but the leadership and members of the House will meet and decide on that.

    “I do not know where the rumour of attempt to impeach Governor Amaechi is coming from. We have just finished our sitting. There was no attempt as far as we are concerned to impeach me or anybody. We are even shocked to hear that. It is not true. Look at us. Can five members sit to impeach the speaker?

    “We are about 27 members here. We do not know what their aims were, but today, in fact, we did not know there would be chaos in the House. So, we went to the House as usual and we were exchanging pleasantries before Evans Bipi attacked me and the leader of the House. Then Hon. Chinda joined him. But we quickly arrested the situation and started our deliberations.

    “It is not compulsory that every member must be present at our sitting everyday. Some obtained permission like the former Speaker, Rt. Hon. Tonye Harry, who is in Paris, France for a conference. Three others did not attend today’s sitting, but they also obtained permission. There was a kind of chaos before we sat today.”

    On the role of the police, Amachree said: “I am so surprised and shocked because yesterday, I officially directed the Clerk of the House to write the Commissioner of Police for security, because of what happened on May 6, when some hoodlums invaded the Assembly.

    “We did not want a repeat of that. So, I directed the Clerk to write to the commissioner of police and also the Brigade Commander, but to my greatest surprise, I did not see one single soldier in the Assembly.

    “The policemen I saw were acting funny. One of my colleagues was even beaten by the police. The computers in the hallowed chambers were all destroyed by the five honourable members (lawmakers).

    “In that hallowed chambers, honourable members can do anything there. It happens in every parliament. What we are concerned about is for a member to bring in hoodlums to attack his fellow members. As colleagues, we can fight in the chambers, but outside the chambers, it is unfortunate that the police will also be there and watch hoodlums attack members.

    “As a House, we will look into it, but we do not have right over the police. What we will do is that we will write to the National Assembly. We will do a presentation or we will send a formal complaint to the National Assembly. The House will continue to sit, but for now, we have adjourned sine die, but we can reconvene anytime.

    “The governor does not have the right to spend money or take money from one sub-head to another. He has to ask for approval and that was what he did today.”

    The five anti-Amaechi lawmakers started arriving the Assembly complex from 8 am and were complete around 9 am, with eight of the 27 pro-Amaechi legislators, led by the House Leader, arriving around 9:40 am.

    The 13 lawmakers were waiting for the speaker to arrive. They started sitting around 10 am. That angered Lloyd and seven other pro-Amaechi lawmakers, who staged a walkout. The anti-Amaechi lawmakers took over the main chambers.

    The representative of Port Harcourt III Constituency, Victor Ihunwo, sat on the speaker’s seat and conducted the affairs, with the members calling for the impeachment of the speaker (Amachree) and the entire leadership, after passing a vote of no confidence in them, with the impeachment immediately effected.

    The Obio/Akpor Constituency I representative, Martins Amaewhule, moved a motion on the election of a new speaker, which was seconded by Kelechi Godspower Nwogu (Omuma Constituency), Bipi was “elected” as the speaker.

    As soon as Bipi moved to the speaker’s seat, Ihunwo stepped out and the new speaker began the business of the day. Then, Amaechi, the legislators loyal to him, his supporters and security personnel stormed the main chambers, forcing the pro-Wike lawmakers to leave. They stayed around the premises with their supporters.

  • NGF may shift meeting for Jonathan’s dinner

    NGF may shift meeting for Jonathan’s dinner

    The Nigeria Governors Forum headed by Governor Rotimi Amaechi may have  postponed its  post-election meeting in deference to the office of the President.

    The planned shift is reportedly meant to demonstrate that the NGF headed by the Rivers State governor has no personal problem with President Goodluk Jonathan.

    The NGF meeting, scheduled for 8pm tonight, had clashed with a presidential dinner fixed by the President for the same time.

    A source, who spoke in confidence, said: “The NGF members are of the opinion that the Office of the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria should be respected . We have decided to defer to this office and postpone our meeting tonight.

    “Since we are in the majority, if we go ahead with the NGF meeting, we will be ridiculing the Office of the President. We are not at war with Jonathan, we want to prove to him that the NGF battle is not personal, it is about the sanctity of the ballot and democracy.”

    The source said the NGF  also want to show that neither Amaechi nor any of the 19 governors backing him is after a do-or-die battle.

    Asked if the shift was not in connection with alleged division of the NGF by the presidency, the source denied the speculation saying the 19 governors are democrats who have respect for the nation’s constitution and the President who is the number one symbol of the nation’s democracy.
    “Any of us could also be the nation’s President, we believe and we are consulting that we should postpone the meeting in deference to the presidency. We will old our meeting soon, ” the source stated
    END