The Nation Newspaper

Tag: PRESIDENCY

  • nPDP halts talks with Presidency

    TALKS between the Presidency and members of the aggrieved new Peoples Democratic Party (n PDP) have been suspended.

    Members of the group are alleging that Senate President Bukola Saraki is being persecuted. They claim also that security aides of the National Assembly’s principal officers have been withdrawn.

    The nPDP said it was also angered by the decision of the All Progressives Congress (APC) leadership to go ahead  with the ratification  of all the congresses from wards, local governments, states and zones  where many of its members had complaints.

    It alleged that the Presidency was not interested in the talks and might have been negotiating in bad faith.

    The group described the prevailing political environment  in the country as “fouled and toxic”.

    Based on the alleged infractions, the nPDP said it might not be available for talks unless good faith returns to the discussions.

    The scheduled session of all the parties in Abuja yesterday was aborted  as a result of the protest.

    The decision of the nPDP was contained in a statement by its chairman, Alh. Abubakar Kawu Baraje.

    The statement said: “The public may recall that there have been ongoing talks between members of the former nPDP, the APC and the Presidency in recent days.

    “Nigerians may further recall that a team from the former nPDP led by Speaker of the House of Representatives,  Yakubu Dogara and four others, were to meet with the Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo today.

    “However, while we are truly and earnestly committed to achieving reconciliation, harmony, truce and cohesion in the APC as we approach the 2019 general elections, it  appears that the Presidency is not interested in the talks and that they may have been negotiating in bad faith.

    “We were alarmed that immediately after our meeting with the Vice President last week, the Presidency misrepresented  what transpired at the meeting by trying to blackmail some of the principal actors involved in the discussions in a national daily.

    “Similarly, the leadership of the party (APC) went ahead to ratify all the Congresses from ward, local governments, states and zonal  where many of our members have complaints, effectively presenting us with a fait accompli.”

    It faulted Saraki’s and Kwara State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed’s implication  in the Offa robbery attack.

    The statement added: “The persecution of our members, using state security apparatus, have continued unabated.

    “We recognise the powers of the Police to conduct criminal investigations but by rushing to the public with the issue even when they have unfettered access to the leadership of the National Assembly suggests an attempt to undermine, caricature and humiliate the institution of the legislature.”

    To the group, “it appears that there is a fouled and toxic atmosphere and environment of intimidation and threat to life in which we now find ourselves which may no longer be conducive for members of the former nPDP to continue with the talks, given the unfolding events in the last 24 hours”.

    It said Saraki and Ahmed , both of whom attended the meeting with the Vice President on 28 May, “have suddenly been accused of sponsoring armed robbery by the Police”.

    “Similarly, on Saturday, June 2nd, 2018,  the Department of State of Services (DSS) also suddenly withdrew more than half of all the security detail attached to the  presiding officers of the National Assembly under questionable circumstances.

    “  The nPDP leadership has decided to  brief our members on the unfortunate development and get a fresh mandate if good faith returns to the discussions,” the group said.

  • Presidency releases Buhari administration’s 3rd anniversary fact sheet

    The Presidency on Friday released a fact sheet outlining the achievements of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration since it assumed office on May 29, 2015.

    The 41-page document highlights successes in the economy, security and the fight against corruption – the three priorities of President Buhari’s Change Agenda.

    According to a statement issued by the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, the document is organised into the following sections: Resetting the Economy; Restoring Growth, Growing What We Eat, Making Business Work, Doing More With Less, Investing In People, New Vision for the Niger Delta, Plugging Leakages and Justice Reforms.

    He said the fact sheet, which would be updated regularly, showcased improving economic indices, rising investment in agriculture and infrastructure, successes in the fight against terrorism and ongoing efforts to improve security in the North Central.

    In addition, he said the document listed the several measures taken to promote transparency and accountability in government finances.

    According to him, highlights of the fact sheet were:

    “Nigeria’s economy is back on the path of growth, after the recession of 2016-17 (1.95 percent growth in Q1 2018)

    “The Buhari administration’s priority sectors of agriculture and solid minerals maintained consistent growth throughout the recession.

    “Inflation has fallen for the 15th consecutive month, from 18.7 percent in January 2017 to 12.5 percent as of April 2018.

    “External reserves of $47.5 billion are the highest in five years and double the size as of October 2016.

    “Total exports in 2017 were 59.47 per cent higher than for 2016

    “The first quarter of 2018 saw the fourth consecutive quarterly increase in capital importation since Q2 2017. The total value of capital imported in the quarter stood at $6.3 billion, which is a year-on-year increase of 594.03 per cent, and a 17.11 per cent growth over the figure reported in the previous quarter.

     

  • Presidency hits Obasanjo over Fayose, Ladoja, Obi

    Ex-president accused of undemocratic actions

    The Presidency yesterday attacked the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration, especially under former President Olusegun Obasanjo, for “toppling” elected state governments, using the police and the secret service.

    In an article to commemorate the third anniversary of the Buhari Presidency last night, Senior Special Assistant to President Muhamadu Buhari on Media and Publicity Garba Shehu recalled how former Governors  Joshua Dariye (Plateau), Rashidi Ladoja (Oyo) and Peter Obi (Anambra)  were removed for reasons not noble.

    The statement added that under that dispensation, “it took an insider collaboration to thwart the unseating of Governor (Chris) Ngige (of Anambra State) by a powerful thug sponsored by the PDP administration.”

    Shehu added: “The parliament at the centre seized the law-making powers of the Rivers State House of Assembly as a way to save Governor Rotimi Amaechi, the then chairman of the Nigerian Governors Forum, from impeachment by the PDP presidency.”

    Recalling the way the governors were removed  without going through the due process, the statement said:  “A five-man legislature met at 6:00 am and ‘impeached’ Governor Dariye in Plateau; 18 members out of 32 removed Governor Ladoja of Oyo from office; in Anambra, APGA’s Governor Obi was equally impeached at 5:00 a.m. by members who did not meet the two-thirds required by the constitution. His offence was that he refused to inflate the state’s budget. The lawmakers had reportedly met with representatives of the President in Asaba, Delta State and then accompanied to Awka by heavy security provided by the police Mobile Unit.

    “The PDP President at that time had reportedly told Obi to forget re-election in 2007 if he did not join the PDP because he (the President) would not support a non-PDP member.

    In Ekiti, Governor Fayose in his first term faced allegations of financial corruption and murder. Following the failure to heed the instruction of the Presidency to impeach only Fayose and spare the deputy, Madam Olujimi, now a senator, the PDP President declared that there was a breakdown of law and order in the state and declared a state of emergency.

    “He appointed Brig-Gen. Adetunji Olurin (rtd) as the sole administrator of the state on October 19, 2006. In an earlier incident in Anambra, it took an insider collaboration to thwart the unseating of Governor Ngige by a powerful thug sponsored by the PDP administration.”

    The Presidency said: “Thank God for Buhari, none of these absurdities has happened under his watch but the PDP is indicating their boredom with his meticulous observance of the constitution by calling for a return to the old order.

    “If not for “dry eyes,” as said in our common parlance, what is it that would push this party to write a letter to the United Nations, laying false claims to constitutionality and alleging that democracy is presently under threat?

    “But then, we all understand that by its tone, this is an angry opposition unhappy about the loss of privileges they desperately want to hang on to, privileges now abolished by the prudent, austere Buhari Administration. “The former Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, shocked the world by the revelation in her new book, titled, Fighting Corruption is Dangerous: The Story Behind the Headlines, that they paid N17 billion bribe to the National Assembly to get them pass the 2015 budget.

    “President Buhari’s first budget in 2016 was the first year of passing the budget without the bribery of legislators. He came to power to clean up the mess and has so far managed a cleaner government than all of the past administrations.”

    The article said “the beneficiaries of the old order have since been complaining that they are being starved. Four more years of Buhari?”

    “If by chance or accident you have a USD 16 billion question hanging on your neck, money large enough to construct the Lagos-Port Harcourt standard gauge railway and the massive Mambila power plant put together without borrowing a kobo, then you see a capacity in the change administration to end the shenanigans and get to the root of what happened with the money in that exercise, what do you do? Most people will say start running, scream it: that this change we voted for has gone too far. Foxy generals don’t wait to be caught.”

    “It is the same thing with the narrative of suffering and hunger in the land, the blame which is unfairly being heaped on this administration. Understood in its proper meaning, it is just a way of saying that the country’s ghastly and complicated corruption industry, which provides inestimable amounts of disposable incomes to public servants and elected officials is being shut down. What government has done in the trade and investment sector, and in other processes of government are illustrative of this. Government has been streamlining systems as a result of which there is transparency and fewer rules.”

  • Presidency begins vetting of Budget 2018 Bill

    The Presidency has commenced the vetting of the details of the 2018 Budget bill passed as the National Assembly.

    The lawmakers passed a budget of N9,120,334,988,225 for the current fiscal year, more than six months after it was presented to them by President Muhammadu Buhari.

    The President submitted a proposal of N8.6trillion to the National Assembly.

    But it was learnt that there was one issue surrounding the budget which had not been resolved by the two arms of government.

    Although the Presidency reluctantly accepted the National Assembly’s proposal to increase the budget benchmark from $45 per barrel to $51, there was no consensus on what to do with the excess cash.

    While the National Assembly wanted the $6 increase to go into expenditure, the Presidency proposed that it should be used to reduce budget deficit.

    A top source said: “Following more demands by MDAs, the National Assembly approached the Presidency on the need to increase the benchmark. The increase was discussed by the Presidency with the principal officers of the legislature.

    “But the Presidency was more disposed to reducing the budget deficit or to narrow the gap in deficit. The National Assembly sought for more funds for expenditure.

    “The two arms agreed on increase in benchmark but there was no consensus on what to use it for.”

    Another source in government said: “The Presidency will spend the next few days to study the budget details before assent by the President. We want to be sure that the estimates passed were mostly in line with the projections submitted and adjustments mutually agreed upon.

    “The decision on how to deal with the budget, especially the consideration of the details, will be taken on Monday.

    “So, from Monday, we will know where we are going.”

    When contacted, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters, Sen. Ita Enang, said: “The next step is that the bill will undergo standard presidential operational procedure.

    “This is the procedure every bill undergoes before assent by President Muhammadu Buhari.”

    The National Assembly passed a budget of N9,120,334,988,225 for the 2018 fiscal year.

    This is coming more than six months after President Muhammadu Buhari presented the budget at a joint session of the National Assembly on November 7, 2017.

    The budget has the objective of delivering on three-year (2018-2020) Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP).

    The Appropriation Bill contained the estimates of revenue and expenditure totaling N8,612,236,953,214 made up of; Statutory Transfers N456,458,654,074;Debt Service N2,233,835,365, 699; Recurrent (Non-Debt) N3,494,277,820,219 and Contribution to Development Fund for Capital Expenditure N2,427,665,113,222.

    Highlights of the budget as passed by the Senate included Aggregate expenditure N 9,120,334,988,225; Statutory Transfers N530,427,363,624;Debt Service 2,203,835,365,699;  Recurrent Expenditure 3,512,677,902,077; Capital Expenditure 2,873,400,351,825 VI. Fiscal Deficit 1,954,464,993,775;  Deficit to GDP 1.73%.

    The Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Mohammed Danjuma Goje said the legislature considered special intervention as a result of increase in oil price to adjust the budget benchmark.

    He said: “After close consultation with the Executive, the increase in oil price benchmark was applied in the following critical sectors of the economy: (I)Reduction of deficit N50.88b; (ii)Security N46.72b; (iii)Health N57.15b; (iv)Power, Works and Housing N106.50b; (v) Education: particularly for the infrastructure for the 12 newly established Universities and meal subsidy in Unity schools N15.70b; (vi)Judiciary N10.00b; and (vii) NDDC N44.20b.”

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • IGP and Senate’s tactless visit to presidency

    A DAY after the police leadership concluded plans to transfer to Abuja a group of suspects arrested in Kwara State for cult-related offences, Senate President Bukola Saraki raised the alarm that he feared he was about to be framed for crimes he knew nothing about. The police immediately denied the allegation of collusion and conspiracy. Weeks before, however, especially following the controversial Dino Melaye affair poorly and melodramatically handled by the police in Abuja with the suspicious connivance of the Kogi State government, the Senate had declared the Inspector General of Police (IGP) Ibrahim Idris an enemy of democracy and unfit to hold public office. The IGP had thrice been invited by the Senate to answer questions relating to the poor handling of the Melaye affair and the country’s dangerous lurch towards anomie; but thrice the IGP declined, thumbing his nose at the senators, questioning their bona fides, and lecturing them on the duties and responsibilities of the parliament.

    Infuriated by his presumptuousness and the many barbs he threw at the Senate, and affronted by the widespread nods and winks from the public, the Senate huffily dismissed the IGP as ignorant and incompetent. It was while the back and forth between the parliament and the IGP was still seething that the Kwara cult case popped up, a case the Senate appears convinced was contrived by the police to frame Dr Saraki. After all, said the Kwara State government, the case was not buried nor downplayed; investigations had been concluded and advice from the state’s Director of Public Prosecution (DPP) had been secured; and the suspects were due to be charged in court. Both the state and Dr Saraki said they were mystified by the peremptory decision to move the suspects to Abuja knowing full well that they could neither be tried in Abuja nor kept there indefinitely.

    The following were the sentiments that set the stage for this inordinate and demeaning grandstanding. Dr Saraki had said: “This plot is part of the strategy by the IGP Idris to settle scores over the declaration by this honourable Chamber that he is not qualified and competent to hold any public office, within and outside the country and that he is an enemy of Nigerian democracy based on his usual disrespectful conduct towards lawful authorities. In my own view, this plot is an act of desperation, blackmail, intimidation, abuse of office and crude tactics aimed at turning our country into a Police State where top officials cannot be made to obey the law, follow due process and subject themselves to constituted authorities.”

    But the IGP responded thus: “The Force (therefore) wishes to categorically state that there is no iota of truth in the allegation and false assertion by the Senate President of plot against him by the IGP to implicate the Kwara State Government and the Senate President in any criminal matter. Until investigation is concluded, any person (s) or group(s) who tries to interfere in the investigation process by action or utterances is committing an offence.” The IGP also added that his interest was to ensure “that justice prevails in the matter. Nobody, no matter how highly-placed, would be allowed to interfere or obstruct police investigation to pervert the course of justice.” He then gave dark hints that the Senate President, by his hasty conclusions, could “dissuade and discourage living victims/deceased families of those who must have been killed by this vicious hired assassin gang from coming forward to give evidence against them.” Nonesense.

    While it is difficult to vouch for the police, not to talk of trusting the IGP himself, given the way he has conducted himself over the Melaye affair, it is even harder to make sense of the decision by the Senate to send representation to the president over the Kwara cult matter. The police did not persuade anyone it didn’t have an axe to grind on the cult case, nor that it was not motivated by some subterranean goals, but they still can manage on the surface to justify their decision to transfer the case to Abuja on the excuse that they want more diligent investigation. Do Nigerians, after all, not sometimes petition Abuja to take over a case if they feared that it had been compromised by some vested or powerful interests?

    The Senate can sensibly justify why it is at daggers drawn with the police. The IGP, despite his grandstanding and abusive and disrespectful statements, has not inspired confidence that he is independently minded, that he is not at the whimsical beck and call of the president and possibly some other shadowy groups. If therefore the Senate takes him to task, regardless of their own embarrassing weaknesses, they do so as the parliament. But senators are supposed to be smart enough to know that the IGP is working very closely with Aso Villa, for he sees himself first and foremost as a tool in the hands of the presidency, not as Nigeria’s chief law officer. The IGP does not think in the grand perspectives of a chief law officer, and indeed appears incapable of doing so, going by his appalling and disrespectful statements against the parliament. It takes a misguided public officer not to know that there is a difference between some individuals in the parliament and the National Assembly as an institution.

    Had the Senate thus guided itself in deciphering the IGP’s worldview, they would have moderated their anger against him. More crucially, and surely, the Senate knows that the presidency itself does not appear ruffled by the views and shenanigans of the IGP. Indeed, they give the impression he is working at their behest. So, why would the Senate needlessly raise a team to report the IGP to the president? What good could they hope would come out of it? They should have kept dignified and magisterial aloofness, continue to make laws as deftly as they can manage, make pronouncements on errant public officers and appointees even if the government and the public scorn them, and put as much pressure as possible to defang their enemies, especially the so-called enemies of democracy. The Senate may not know it, but the fact is that while many may object to some of the parliament’s abhorrent practices and disposition, they also have no illusions whatsoever about the total lack of nobility of appointees like the IGP and how indifferently he and others like him try to undermine democracy.

  • Why Obasanjo is angry, by Presidency

    The Presidency said yesterday that former President Olusegun Obasanjo is angry with President Muhammadu Buhari because “Buhari is fixing Nigeria with improved power supply and OBJ (Obasanjo) is angry”

    In a tweet yesterday, Special Assistant to the President on social media Lauretta Onochie lashed Obasanjo for failing “to answer a simple question posed by our President who inherited a nation in darkness.”

    She added: “It’s now a clear choice between Pres. Buhari and a coalition of past corrupt leaders coordinated by ex-Pres Obasanjo.”

    Read Also: Obasanjo ’s administration one of Nigeria’s most corrupt – Sagay

    President Buhari on Tuesday while receiving a delegation of the Buhari Support Organisation (BSO) led by Customs Comptroller General Hammed Ali, challenged Obasanjo (although he did not name him), over his claim of spending $16 billion on power asking: “where is the power.”

    But Obasanjo swiftly rejected the accusation saying he was ready for probe. A statement by his media adviser Kehinde Akinyemi added: “The answer is smple: The power is in the seven National Integrated Power Projects and eighteen gs turbines that Chef Obasanjo’s successor, who originally made the allegation of $16billion did not clear from the ports for over a year”.

  • Presidency faults Amnesty report on security agencies

    The Presidency on Wednesday faulted the recent report released by the Amnesty International alleging human rights violation by Nigerian security agencies.

    According to a statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and publicity, Garba Shehu, the report is inherently battling with credibility, falling vehemently short of evidential narration.

    He said “It is short on credibility because it does not contain factual leads that could have laid the foundation for investigative actions.

    “Findings are attributed to people but proper description of such people constituting the source of information is not provided.

    “Engagement was claimed to have been made with Nigerian authorities but which authority is it, is not provided with clarity. This then is just a wild goose chase report, in essence.

    “In some breath, the report seemed like the one in 2015, and the one in 2016, and the one after that year, the same things being recycled again and again.

    “It ignores the fact of the existing mechanisms put in place by the military, as a self-correcting step and the high-level committee constituted by the Presidency to examine any such claims.

    “Over this period of time, the Nigerian military had indeed established cases of abuse and punishments meted out from Orderly Room trials and Court Martials that resulted in losses of rank, dismissals, and trials and convictions by civil courts.

    “Indeed as President Buhari said during his recent joint press conference with President Trump at the White House: “the government of Nigeria remains deeply committed to the principles of human rights, as well as promotion and protection of people’s freedom, even in the process of fighting terror. We commit to ensure that all documented cases of human rights abuses are investigated, and those responsible for violation held responsible.”

  • 8.2m pupils enjoying free meals in 24 states, says Presidency

    THE President Muhammadu Buhari administration’s National Home-grown School Feeding Programme (NHGSFP) is now feeding 8,260,984 pupils in 45,394 public primary schools in 24 states, Presidency said yesterday.

    A statement by the Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Laolu Akande, said the government has achieved its target of 5.5 million pupils being fed free daily under the programme in 2017.

    Akande added that the 24 states benefitting from the school feeding programme are: Anambra, Enugu, Oyo, Osun, Ogun, Ebonyi, Zamfara, Delta, Abia, Benue, Plateau, Bauchi, Taraba, Kaduna, Akwa-Ibom, Cross River, Imo, Jigawa, Niger, Kano, Katsina, Gombe, Ondo and Borno.

    According to him, over 80,000 direct jobs have also been created from the School Feeding Programme; with 87,261 cooks presently engaged in the 24 participating states.

    The 36 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), he said, will eventually benefit from the programme.

    He said: “The programme’s educational, economic and health benefits have been praised by many.

    “Not only has the Buhari administration’s School Feeding Programme created jobs for thousands of Nigerians in these communities where the programme is being implemented, it has also helped to boost local economies by linking the local farmers to the school feeding market.

    “Similarly, the school feeding programme continues to record significant milestones in the classrooms as the scheme has led to an increase in enrolment.

    “Another important aspect of the School Feeding Programme is that by providing a meal a day for millions of pupils, it addresses the issues of malnutrition and stunting among children, increasing the chances of the pupils making a significant headway in their learning and in life.

    “The NHGSFP plans to implement feeding in 28 states in the coming months, and all over the country soon after.”

  • Buhari didn’t give CAN N25 million, says Presidency

    •’Only PDP govt could give CAN such amount’

    THE Presidency last night denied the allegation that President Muhammadu Buhari gave the leadership of the Christian Association of Nigeria (CAN) N25 million for transportation when the body visited the State House, Abuja.

    Speaking with The Nation on telephone, Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity Garba Shehu vowed that Buhari could never give such amount away.

    He challenged those peddling the rumour to cross check their facts as such money could have been given to CAN under the past Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) led Presidency.

    He said: “Which Presidency gave CAN N25 million? If anybody tells you that President Buhari gave CAN N25 million, will you believe it?

    “Which Presidency are they talking about, is it under APC or under PDP? Let them go and check.

    “No, no,  it cannot be under Buhari. It cannot be. Not under Buhari. Buhari cannot do that kind of thing. It will not happen.”

    According to media reports, the National Christian Elders Forum (NCEF) is accusing the leadership of CAN of corruption and abuse of office, claiming that the leadership collected N25 million from the Presidency during a visit to Buhari.

    In a memo, titled: ‘NCEF protests: Is NEC of CAN guilty of negligence?’ and signed by the Chairman, Elder Solomon Asemota, SAN, called on the National Executive Council, NEC, to investigate alleged high-handedness of the CAN President.

    According to the memo, NEC should immediately convene an emergency meeting to consider the issues raised and set up the process for investigation of CAN President Rev. (Dr.) Samson Olasupo and his suspension until the allegations have been investigated and he is cleared of wrongdoing.

    The memo urged the NEC to ensure that the investigation looks into the activities of other CAN officials on whose heads allegations of wrongdoing and misconduct hang.

    The Christian elders argued that it has the statutory right to “make its position public to Nigerian Christians and alert them that, if Christianity is destroyed in Nigeria or Christians continue to get slaughtered, the present NEC of CAN should be held responsible”.

    Ayokunle had dismissed the allegations.

     

     

     

  • Buhari yet to get petroleum bill, says Presidency

    THE Presidency yesterday declared that the harmonised Petroleum Industry Governance Bill (PIGB) passed by the National Assembly on March 28, is yet to get to the desk of President Muhammadu Buhari for assent.

    Senior Special Assistant to the President on National Assembly Matters (Senate), Senator Ita Enang said this in a two paragraph statement dated May 16 and made available to State House correspondents.

    He said that his findings revealed that the Bill is still undergoing standard operating legislative processes of the National Assembly preparatory to transmission.

    He said: “Further to several enquiries by the media, interest groups, and the public in respect of within named Bill, may I please state that the said Bill has not yet been transmitted by the National Assembly to President.

    “From my enquiries, the Bill is still undergoing standard operating legislative processes of the National Assembly preparatory to transmission, please.”