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Tag: owes

  • Federal Govt owes road contractors N2.7trn, says Fashola

    Federal Govt owes road contractors N2.7trn, says Fashola

    The Federal Government owes road contractors over N2.7 trillion,  Minister of Power, Works and Housing Babatunde Fashola has said.

    Fashola spoke yesterday during an oversight assessment visit of the 2017 budget by members of the Toby Okechukwu-headed House Committee on Works to the Federal Ministry of Works.

    According to the minister, a major portion of the debt was inherited from previous administrations and that poor budgetary allocation made it impossible to settle.

    The debts, he said, are made up of completed projects, inherited claims of previous years and ongoing projects across the country.

    “N2.792tn is the total contractual liability,” he said.

    Fashola also revealed that N265.5bn worth of certificates had been generated for completed projects for the 2017 capital implementation.

    “We have not paid this money, but we have continued to work.There is no state in the country that one federal road project or another is not going on. We are present in every state and the Federal Capital Territory.

    “The difference may be that the projects are not located in places where each of us may want them to be. So, the fact that payment has not been made does not mean that work is not being done,” he added.

    He said the generated certificates indicates that 2017 budget performance on roads is 73 per cent and that efforts are ongoing to pay part of the liability.

    N120 billion, he said, was released in December 2017 for second quarter, adding that the difficult procurement process as contained in the Public Procurement Act had stunted the take off of many road contracts earlier awarded.

    But Okechukwu and other members like chairman of Committee on Finance, Babangida Ibrahim, Pat Asadu, Solomon Bulus-Maren, Abubakar Kannike and Emmanuel Ekon expressed displeasure on why the government’s new 25 road projects were yet to take off.

    To the observations of the members, Fashola said:”At both the informal and formal interactions with our parliamentarians, I have raised this issue of the lengthy procurement processes.It is an area that we all have to look into to see what can be done to fast-track the work before us.

    “We have challenges with the award processes. Most of the time, the procurement process is very difficult. You have to do a lot of things. If you can come to our aid and amend the process, that will be helpful.”

    He added that any state that wishes to repair federal roads will be given the chance by the Federal Government the federal government . He gave examples of Lagos and Kaduna States, that have done such in their states with much success.

  • Fed Govt owes NDDC N1.8tr, says official

    The Head, Media and Public Affairs, Niger Delta Development Commission (NDDC), Mr Ibitoye Abosede,  yesterday said the Federal Government owed NDDC N1.8 trillion.

    Abosede spoke in Uyo at a one-day Media Capacity Building Workshop for members of the Correspondents’ Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists (NUJ) in Akwa Ibom.

    He lamented that non-remittance of backlog of statutory allocations had hampered development in the region.

    Abosede said the Federal Government had mandated  ministries of Niger Delta Affairs, Budget and National Planning to sit with NDDC Board  on the debt owed the commission.

    “The Federal Government has set up a committee to ascertain the exact money owed the commission,” he said.

    According to him, this is the first time a sitting President will demonstrate this kind of political will towards ensuring the development of the region.

    Abosede, represented by Mr Chijoke Amu-Nnadi, of the department, explained that besides the arrears from statutory allocations, other associated funds for ecology, oil and gas, among others, had not been remitted.

    “These problems of funding and the challenges of the terrain in Niger Delta, which prides itself as the third largest wetland in the world, have hindered development in the region,” he said.

    He said several projects worth N200 billion were cancelled across all nine states of the region due to the challenge.

    The official noted that the Federal Government under President Muhammadu Buhari is committed to fund the commission.

    Abosede said the NDDC Board, led by Mr Nsima Ekere, was doing its best to sustain the tempo of development.

    He recalled that following mass discontent leading to arm struggle in the region, NDDC was unveiled to bring development, economic and socio-political stability to the region.

    Abosede said the NDDC had intervened in  64 road projects, with about 50 per cent completed in Akwa Ibom.

    “Because of funding challenge, it is difficult for the commission to complete some major projects,” he said.

    He enjoined development partners to work with the agency to sustain development in the region.

    The official explained that the commission was heavily complementing the states’ development plans.

    Also speaking, Mr Samuel Frank, NDDC commissioner in Akwa Ibom, said the commission was not at war with Akwa Ibom government.

    He said the commission was focusing on providing infrastructure to alleviate the suffering of the people.

    Frank said NDDC did well in the state by rehabilitating roads in rural and urban centres of the state.

    He solicited more cooperation with the media to foster development in the region.

  • NFF owes Moses N8.7 million for flight tickets

    NFF owes Moses N8.7 million for flight tickets

    Allnigeriasoccer.com
    can confirm that Chelsea
    winger Victor Moses is owed 15,000 pounds (approximately N8.7 million) by the Nigeria Football Federation, being unreimbursed traveling expenses incurred for honoring national team invitations.

    The former England U21 international has not written off those expenses, and there is no positive feedback from the federation on when he will be paid.

    Chelsea have confirmed that their new wing-back suffered an injury against Hull City just before the international break, but it is believed that he would have traveled to Abuja nonetheless for national team medics to assess his injury if he was sure of getting a refund.

    Few days before the invited foreign based professionals were supposed to start arriving in Abuja, the Nigerian Federation contacted them to buy their own flight tickets.

    Moses, 25, is in London receiving treatment ahead of Chelsea’s Premier League clash against Leicester City next weekend.

  • Benue Varsity owes N3.8b, says VC

    The Vice Chancellor of Benue State University (BSU) Makurdi, Prof Msugh Kembe, says the institution is owing N3.8 billion.

    He said this at the opening of a retreat for deans, directors and heads of departments of BSU in Makurdi.

    He explained that the debt included arrears of pension, death benefits and earned allowances liabilities.

    “The university is in arrears of pension in excess of N500 million; death benefits liability of the university is close to N300 million while earned allowances liability is in excess of N3 billion,” Kembe said.

    He said BSU was no longer receiving funds from the state government, adding that capital projects were mostly funded by Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFUND) and the state Association of Local Government of Nigeria (ALGON).

    The vice chancellor further lamented that efforts to improve the internally generated revenue of the university by increasing user charges were frustrated.

    BSU Pro Chancellor and Chairman of Council, Zachary Gundu, warned lecturers against sexual harassment, admission racketeering and corruption.

    “There are vices we must avoid if we have to build a BSU of our dream. Lack of transparency breeds rumours and speculations.

    “We must also choose to be authentic and be prepared to cut away everything that is not ours.

    “If cultism is not ours, we must stamp it out completely. If cheating, sexual harassment and plagiarism are not ours, we must reject everything about it.

    “If admission racketeering is not ours, we must stamp it out quickly, and if corruption is not ours, we must do everything possible to be above board,” Gundu said.

    The don said the council was not satisfied with the quality of the institution’s projects and the quality of inventories kept in offices about suppliers.

    He charged management to explore new teaching pedadgogy which he belives would afford students opportunities to experience quality, thereby improving standards.

    “The student who is forced to put money in his or her project in order for the supervisor to grade it is passing through an experience that will destroy our reputation.

    He said available records from the visitation panel showed that the previous management was not truthful to both staff and students, leading to much compromises in the system.

  • NFF owes me N10m -Oliseh

    NFF owes me N10m -Oliseh

    •Coach has spent 11,200 Euros treating virus infection contracted in Abuja and Port Harcourt
    •Won’t stay in hotel, if Eagles aren’t in camp
    •Says Glasshouse chiefs have breached his contract

    After consulting with his lawyers in Belgium and with legal minds at the Federation of International Football Federations (FIFA), Nigeria’s senior soccer team’s chief coach Sunday Oliseh has revealed that the body owes him N10 million which is stipulated in his contract for accomodation (N5 million for 2015 and N5 million for 2016.

    Besides, Oliseh disclosed that he has spent over 11,200 Euros to treat the virus he contracted whilst on national duty in Abuja and Port harcourt in October, stressing that he needs a prompt reimbursement which would be appreciated.

    Consequently, Oliseh vowed not to stay in any hotel if the Eagles are not in camp pointing that: “I have nowhere to lodge should I come to Nigeria. I do not intend to stay in a hotel when the Super Eagles are not in camp.

    “I remind you that my assistant Jean Francois Losciuto is forced to flee Nigeria to Togo as he has nowhere to stay in Nigeria at the moment, as he also awaits from you the owed accommodation fees.

    “Please remember that by virtue of our wages being unpaid, you have breached our signed contract and that is CAPITAL. In going forward, I think it will help us achieve our goals better if the players’ bonuses and allowances are paid on time as evidently as we saw in Rwanda, was the reason why our players were morally low and failed in advance. That is my technical appraisal of the situation.”

  • Okon: NFF owes me two years salaries

    Okon: NFF owes me two years salaries

    All may not be well with the Super Falcons of Nigeria ahead of the 2014 Africa Women Championship as head coach Edwin Okon has claimed to be owed as much as two-year salary.

    He said: “Since August 2012 when I led the Falconets to the World Cup where we came fourth, up till today, I’m yet to get a dime as salary from the NFF.

    “Every time I go to the office to complain, they will say there is no money. At a time I learned that the Federal Government gave the federation some money to pay Keshi and other national team coaches, but up till today my story is still the same,” he told reporters in Abuja.

    The Rivers Angels coach who in 2011 signed a four-year contract with the NFF to coach the Falconets was last year promoted to the senior women national team, the Super Falcons  – albeit on an interim capacity after the resignation of erstwhile coach Kadiri Ikhana who failed do well with the team.

    Nigeria’s Super Falcons are drawn alongside hosts Namibia, Cote d’Ivoire and Zambia in the Group A of African Women’s Championship, which kicks off on October 11.

    The top three teams from the championship will qualify for the 2015 FIFA Women’sWorld Cup in Canada.

    The Nigerian ladies will also be looking to redeem themselves at the tournament after they finished fourth in the last edition of the biennial tournament, their worst-ever finish in the history of the African Women Championship.

  • SUPER EAGLES CAMP BOILS IN FARO: NFF owes Eagles’ coaches N48m

    SUPER EAGLES CAMP BOILS IN FARO: NFF owes Eagles’ coaches N48m

    Uneasy calm has enveloped the Super Eagles’ camp in Faro, Portugal on Saturday as the morale of the team’s officials seem to be dampened following the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF)’s inability to offset four months of their salaries totaling almost N48 million.

    According to SportingLife’s source in the team’s camp, the Head Coach Stephen Keshi is however being calm on the issue, so that it would not affect the morale of the officials to avoid it dovetailing to the players.

    “I don’t think it is fair that the coaches that are preparing for a major tournament like the African Nations Cup are being owned four months salaries. The Chief Coach alone is been owned N20 million, we are not talking of his car and accommodation which have been hanging for the past one year and three months; the first assistant coach is being owned N12 million, while the two other assistants are owed N16m in total. These are huge sums which they would have used to settle their families before embarking on this month-long tournament,” one of the coaches said.

    Asked if the NFF has not made any effort towards settling the salary arrears, the source said that they have continued to complain of lack of funds, as even the main staff of the Federation have not been paid their December salaries up to the time of this report.

  • Fed Govt owes Lagos N51b

    Fed Govt owes Lagos N51b

    The Federal Government owes Lagos State over N51 billion for roads constructed and certified on behalf of the Federal Government in some parts of the state.

    The state Commissioner for Works & Infrastructure Dr Femi Hamzat made this known during an interview with The Nation in Lagos.

    He listed some of the roads as Funsho Williams and several others at the Central Business District (CBD).

    He urged the Federal Government to expedite the payment since the projects have been certified okay by its engineers.

    Hamzat frowned at the blocking of the proposed $600million loan from the World Bank by the Federal Government, saying that it smacks more of a political move than economical, especially as the state has been able to prove its mettle in upgrading its infrastructure and services to Lagosians.

    He said the achievement proves that the state government has used its funds in the best interest of its people.

    Asked what the state would do if the Federal Government does not okay the World Bank loan, Hamzat said the state would deploy its ‘plan B’ to go ahead with its provision of infrastructure and social services to the people.

    He, however, said there was no reason the loan request should not be granted.

    He stressed that there is nothing wrong with the proposed borrowing as far as it is put into good use and serviced.

    He added that the state has awarded the contract for the construction of Isheri Osun Bridge in the Jakande Estate, Isolo axis of the state to reduce the traffic snarl in the area, which is not only time consuming, but also affects the people.

     

  • MAIGARI CONFESSES: NFF owes Keshi N10m

    MAIGARI CONFESSES: NFF owes Keshi N10m

    President of the Nigeria Football Federation (NFF) Aminu maigari has confessed that the body is owing Super Eagles chief coach Stephen keshi tow months salary amounting to N10 million.

    Disclosingthis exclusively to SportingLife on Wednesday morning in a telephone conversation, Maigari lauded Keshi for showing understanding with the federation especially with the staggered form in which his entitlements are being met.

    “It is important to let know that keshi has not being around in the country hence the delay. but I must tell you also that anytime Keshi is in the country, NFF underwrites his expenses. I must confess to you that when I read the story of the N30 million debt, I was furious. I contacted federation’s chief operating officer, who said that what was outstanding was two months and, of course, this December salary. I can however assure you that when we get our allocations for the last quarter which should indeed include cash for the Africa Cup of Nations, Keshi’s entitlements would be paid.

    “Let me also appeal to the media not to make our players’ and coaching staff’s salaries and entitlements a public matter esepcially with the spate of kidnapping of prominent Nigerians, their paraents and sibblings. How many Nigerians earn N1 million a month how much more N5 million?

    “As for his car and house, I can assure you that he would get them soonest. Indeed, we have a car which Samson Siasia used in the pool but I instructed that a brand new one should be bought for Keshi. Aside, the car which Siasia used is there even though it has not been driven in the last seven months. Keshi will get a brand new car. His house issue is being taken seriously, we have been shown several houses but they don’t meet the specification that Keshi asked for. Now that he is in town, he would be shown the new ones that we have seen and we will pay for the one that he picks,” Maigari promised.