The Nation Newspaper

Tag: request

  • Weah’s request

    •We may not be able to give our all; but we should assist Liberia in its time of need

    Liberia has asked Nigeria for 6,000 teachers and other forms of technical assistance. The new President of Liberia, George Weah, made this request during his visit to Nigeria, which he  described as a “mission of gratitude and respect for the extraordinary and exceptional role that you, our Nigerian brothers and sisters, have played and continue to play in maintaining peace and stability in the West African sub-region, and more particularly, in Liberia.”

    Liberia is undoubtedly one of the countries with a long tradition of friendship with Nigeria. It was a friendly collaboration between William Tubman and Tafawa Balewa as influential leaders of the Monrovia Bloc, along with other leaders in East and West Africa, that stimulated in 1963 the formation of the Organization of African Unity (OAU) which later became African Union (AU). During and after Liberia’s civil war, Nigeria paid a gallant part to ensure that peace returned to the sister country.

    President Weah was forthright about this historical connection when he met President Buhari in Abuja: “Your sustained technical assistance for capacity building in these sectors is most welcome. . . . More specifically, under the Bilateral Teacher Exchange Programme, we are seeking 6,000 plus teachers to make up for the shortage of good teachers in our educational system.”

    This request, though large, is in tune with the spirit of Nigeria’s Technical Aids Corps (TAC) which has been in operation since 1987: (a)  Share Nigeria’s know-how and expertise with other African, Caribbean and Pacific countries (in this Act referred to as “recipient countries”); (b) give assistance on the basis of the assessed and perceived needs of the recipient countries; (c) promote cooperation and understanding between Nigeria and the recipient countries; and, (d) facilitate meaningful contacts between the youths of Nigeria and those of the recipient countries.

    Undoubtedly, President Weah’s request could not have come at a better time for Liberia, which is still recovering from political, economic and social malaise thrown up by years of civil war. It also could not have come at a worse time for Nigeria, when the country is struggling with a severely challenged economy that includes a high rate of unemployment, fall in the value of the Naira, and noticeable decline in its educational sector. However, Nigeria is still relatively in a better shape than Liberia, particularly in terms of training of teachers, health professionals, and agricultural extension officers, the three areas of request for assistance from President Weah.

    Since 1960, Nigeria, despite its own challenges, has not walked away from its international friends and global causes capable of bringing peace and progress to the world. In many cases the country has paid with lives of its citizens. So, Liberia’s request should be considered in relation to its purse and needs. With so many states complaining about lack of adequate number of professional teachers, it may not be realistic to expect Nigeria to release 6,000 well-trained teachers at a time, but Nigeria ought to strive to meet 25 to 50 per cent of the request, given the urgency of the situation of Liberia.

    To ensure that teachers sent to Liberia give their best, their stipends which TAC requires from the donor country must be regular and prompt while Liberia should be made to do its own part: provision of accommodation, transportation, and healthcare. Moreover, Liberia should be encouraged to establish more training institutions for its citizens in the next four years, to make return of Nigerian professionals to Nigeria at the end of the four-year term less stressful for Liberia.

    We urge the Federal Government to include people who are qualified to train teachers in the pool of technical assistants billed for Liberia. And Nigeria should prepare for the return of such professionals who are expected to be redeployed after completing their TAC obligations. In addition, the government needs to encourage experienced teacher trainers in Nigeria’s higher institutions to spend their sabbatical in Liberia, to provide leadership for intensive teacher training and capacity building initiatives in healthcare and agricultural extension in Liberia under the TAC scheme.

     

  • That $5.5bn loan request

    •Desirable as it might be; the question is whether the government can manage it well

    Last week, President Muhammadu Buhari requested the National Assembly for authorisation for $5.5 billion external loans. Of this, $3 billion is for re-financing domestic maturing debts and the other, the $2.5 billion Eurobond for the funding of the 2017 capital budget. Whereas the proceeds of the Eurobond issue is already anticipated to finance the deficit in the 2017 Appropriation Act, the US$3.0 billion, according to the president, is merely to re-finance maturing domestic debt and so “will not lead to an increase in the public debt portfolio because the debt already exists, albeit in the form of high interest short-term domestic debt”.

    He specifically drew the attention of the National Assembly to the N1.663 trillion allocated to debt service in the 2017 budget, representing a whopping 32.73 per cent of the total expenditure, to underscore why the refinancing of the domestic loans has become imperative: “the substitution of domestic debt with relatively cheaper and long-term external debt will lead to a significant decrease in debt service cost. This proposed re-financing of domestic debt through external debt will also achieve more stability in the debt stock while also creating more borrowing space in the domestic market for the private sector”.

    On the surface, it is hard to fault the Federal Government’s two-pronged approach to the debt issue. While the current realities dictate that the Federal Government be given the fiscal leeway to execute many of the projects considered as priority, particularly those with the ability to jumpstart the sluggish economy, so is the imperative to bring down debt service obligations to a level considered more sustainable when matched with the current revenue profile. Neither of the options in our view however, vitiates the general concerns about the debt trajectory, particularly in the context of our recent history of opportunistic conversion of the debt instrument into instruments of personal enrichment by officials.  Or even the larger concerns with attendant risks associated with foreign currency-denominated debts.

    It is therefore beside the point that the government, for the most part, is wont to anchor its position on the premise that the debt to GDP ratio, currently put at 17.76 percent compares favourably with its peers.  At best, we see the idea of substituting one loan for another as merely seeking to deaden the psychological impact of unflattering statistics of revenue-to-debt servicing ratio which the Islamic Development Bank (IDB) representative in Nigeria, Abdallah Mohammed Kiliaki, sometime last year put at between 75 to 80 per cent. For now, it may seem pragmatic; only in the fullness of time will Nigerians begin to see it for the placebo that it truly is in the event of the failure of the Federal Government to shore up revenue.

    Much of course has been made of loans as being something of an end in itself as against being a means to an end, which of course explains why the debate has been somewhat obscure. To be sure, Nigerians have long gone past the sterile debate about what needs to be done or even the scale of investment needed to match their ambitions as Africa’s so-called biggest economy. Their expectation is to see a Buhari administration which promised Nigerians a different path to getting things done, move swiftly to deliver on its key agenda of infrastructure renewal as a strategy to unlock the nation’s vast potential and to get the country working within the shortest possible time.

    That Nigerians are still locked in the debate over the debt issue after more than two years in office would in part reflect their frustrations with the administration’s dilatoriness, particularly its snail-paced approach to governance and utter lack of coherent strategy on important matters of the day. Harder to imagine is that the $2.5 billion Eurobond request is part of a budget that has barely three months left to run its course.

  • Turkey’s coup: death of extradition request 

    SIR: Since the July 15, 2016,  failed coup in Turkey, politics in that country has assumed a  chilling dimension, with the President Recep Tayyip Erdogan-led  Justice and Development Party (AK Party), capitalising on every possible opportunity to nail perceived enemies and trample on the rights of a significant number of Turks, in more than a warlike, menacing manner.

    But the move by Erdogan, and his co-travellers in the ruling AK Party, to further take this persecution to foreign lands without minding international borders, and the sovereignty of other countries, appears to have hit a unshakeable brick wall. This is not unconnected with the Turkish government’s recent quest to willy-nilly extradite, from the United States, the highly respected Turkish cleric, Fethullah Gulen.

    That move has apparently now fallen like a pack of cards and literally suffered its well-deserved death as the Intelligence Committee of the United States (US) Congress has dismissed the claims upon which the extradition is being sourced.

    Gulen is the Pennsylvania-based moderate Sunni cleric the Turkish government accuses of masterminding the failed July 15 coup, despite having no concrete evidence linking him to the aborted coup.

    Over the past few months, Turkey has been mounting pointless pressures on the US authorities to extradite Gulen, even as it continued to clamp down on members of the Gulen-inspired Hizmet Movement, which the Turkish government now brands as Fethullah Gulen Terror Organisation. Thousands of perceived sympathisers of Hizmet Movement, and other right activists, now languish in various prisons cells without trial, while many more have been forced out of government jobs.

    Erdogan has not stopped there.  Scores of charity organisations, universities, businesses, media organisations, among others, linked to Gulen or Hizmet Movement, have been shut down by the authoritarian Turkish leader, who is now seeking more dictatorial powers, in the executive presidency referendum scheduled for April this year.  Despite the condemnations that continue to trail his undemocratic actions from far and near, especially the European Union (EU) into which the country seeks membership, the Turkish president appears to be more ruthless and highly obsessed by his ill-conceived quest to humiliate and extradite Gulen, by using the failed coup as a smokescreen.

    But Devin Nunes, chairman of the powerful Intelligence Committee of the US Congress, in an interview on Chris Wallace’s “Fox News Sunday”, aired on FOXTV recently, made some important remarks about Gulen’s extradition quest and his alleged involvement in the failed coup.

    Nunes, a member of the Republican Party and a close ally of President Donald Trump, did not mince any words in the interview when he made it clear that there was no evidence linking Gulen to the failed coup. “I haven’t seen evidence that Gulen was involved in the failed coup,” he said.

    The Head of German Intelligence Agency (BND), Bruno Kahl, in an interview published recently, also believes that there is no serious evidence linking Gulen to the failed coup.

    Despite these near foolproof views from Germany and US, Erdogan, in a clear case of a man afraid of his own shadow, is bent on using underhand tactics to get Gulen extradited. The Turkish government was allegedly said to have recently   engaged some individuals and firms using third party in US to help in lobbying for the extradition of Gulen and also spy on businesses associated with the cleric. Though it is hardly surprising that the Turkish government would engage Washington DC lobbyists to help out in its case to extradite Gulen, in order to score cheap political point, what is clear is that the United States will not stoop so low to allow for the unwarranted extradition of Gulen under any guise, knowing full well the present nauseating human rights abuses and authoritarian credentials of Erdogan.

     

    • Abdulraman Sadik,

    Kaduna

  • TETFund’s request

    TETFund’s request

    • The Federal Government should scrutinise its proposal before taking a decision on it

    Should the two per cent education tax levied on the assessable profit of businesses operating in Nigeria to finance the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (TETFund) be increased? This question has become relevant in light of recent hints by the executive secretary of the fund, Professor Suleiman Bogoro, that such a measure may be in the works.

    According to Bogoro, the Federal Ministry of Education has sent comprehensive plans to the Presidency in which a rise in the education tax was recommended. The increase could raise the tax to anything between three per cent and four per cent of company profits, and it is apparently in response to mounting pressure on TETFund to increase the scope and depth of its intervention in Nigeria’s tertiary education sector.

    In a country undergoing deep spending cuts due to revenue shortfalls stemming from steep declines in the price of crude oil, it is obvious that increased efforts must be made to maximise the generation of internal revenues. An increase in the education tax is in line with this trend, especially given the fact that it is targetted at providing vital funding for tertiary institutions which have long struggled with the challenges of decrepit infrastructure, inadequate equipment and decreased research output.

    TETFund’s past achievements in this regard are a clear demonstration of the impact of its interventions on the Nigerian tertiary education system. Federal and state-owned universities, polytechnics and colleges of education across the country provide incontrovertible evidence of TETFund involvement, particularly administrative buildings, laboratories, libraries, vehicles and research grants, most of which are being put to beneficial use.

    However, the proposed increase leaves far too many questions unanswered. Was corporate Nigeria consulted on the decision to raise the education tax? To what extent has TETFund’s income been properly accounted for? How well have TETFund finances been utilised by the benefitting institutions? Such questions speak to the vital necessity of ensuring that taxes of this kind are not levied for their own sake. The country is witness to the mess made of the pensions of civil servants and retired soldiers; repeated acts of misappropriation have made billionaires of a few individuals while pensioners have died without receiving their entitlements.

    Although it cannot be said with any certainty that TETFund has similarly become a cesspool of corrupt enrichment, there appear to be certain anomalies which seem to indicate that its funds may not have been put to optimum use, in spite of its extensive interventions.

    In November 2014, the then Minister of Education, Mallam Ibrahim Shekarau, announced that N7.8 billion, amounting to more than 70 per cent of the N10.052 billion in research funds domiciled in TETFund, had not been touched. If public tertiary institutions have been unable to make use of the funds currently available to them under a two per cent education tax regime, what is the guarantee that they will be able to do so if the tax rises to three per cent or four per cent?

    Then there is the issue of exactly what TETFund money is expended on, such as the N27 billion which has been spent on overseas education. It is difficult to justify such a policy when it would clearly have been better to use such funds to rehabilitate indigenous institutions and thereby expand their capacity to train students locally.

    TETFund and the benefitting institutions need to do more to ensure that they make full use of what is currently available before demanding more. TETFund must redouble its efforts to publicise the availability of infrastructural development and research funds; the tertiary institutions must retool their systems, procedures and processes to enable them to better utilise the fund’s services.

  • Nasarawa panel begins sitting as CJ rejects lawmakers’ request

    Nasarawa panel begins sitting as CJ rejects lawmakers’ request

    Nasarawa lawmakers have lost a major battle in their push to impeach Governor Tanko Al-Makura.

    Chief Judge (CJ) Suleiman Dikko has declined to disband the seven-man panel investigating the 16 allegations against Al-Makura.

    The panel held its inaugural sitting in Lafia yesterday in line with its mandate in Section 188(7) (b) of the 1999 Constitution.

    Panel Chairman Yusuf Shehu Usman said its session would be made public for residents to have first hand knowledge of the governor’s responses to the allegations.

    Al-Makura has engaged a nine-man legal team to defend his integrity  having complied with Section 188(5) of the 1999 Constitution, the Chief Judge said he could no longer interfere with the impeachment process.

    A source said: “There was no way the Chief Judge could stop the impeachment proceeding which had begun with the inauguration of the panel. So, he chose to allow the process to go on since the court is always there for the aggrieved.

    “He said disbanding the panel will lead to anarchy as those who are supporting the governor will accuse him of bias.

    “The CJ feels he has fulfilled his constitutional obligation; it is left to the panel to decide the prima facie of the allegations.”

    Al-Makura has argued that the CJ can no longer disband the panel.

    The governor, who spoke through his lawyer, Chief Udechukwu Nnoruka Udechukwu, (SAN), said the lawmakers’ call for the dissolution of the panel “is ridiculous.”

    Udechukwu, who is leading a team of lawyers, including Olufunke Aboyade (SAN) for the governor, spoke yesterday on the telephone from Lafia, Nasarawa State.

    He contended that under the constitution, the lawmakers could not ask for the disbandment of the panel, stressing that even the CJ, who constituted it, could no longer disband it, unless a court of competent jurisdiction orders him to do so.

    The senior advocate noted that impeachment is strictly governed by the Constitution, and the steps are contained in Section 188 (1) to (11) of the Constitution.

    In his view, the 20 lawmakers, who are behind the impeachment are acting in bad faith, motivated by base political considerations.

    “The Legislature can ill afford to propagate impunity and desperation,” he added.

    The members of the panel, inaugurated last Friday, are: Yusuf Shehu Usman (chairman), Mohammed Sabo Keana, Reverend Joel Galadima, Alhaji Abdu Usman, Samuel Chaku, Mohammed Sani Usman and Pastor Daniel Chaga.

    The state government yesterday asked the lawmakers to go to court if they are aggrieved over the composition of the seven-man panel.

    It said the Assembly could not approbate and reprobate at the same time on a constitutional issue.

    The government made its position known in a statement by the Senior Special Assistant (SSA) to the governor on Public Affairs, Hon. Abdulhamid Kwarra.

    The statement said: “Section 188 (subsection 5) of the 1999 Constitution as amended states

    that the Chief Judge of the state shall at the request of the Speaker of the House of Assembly appoints a panel of seven persons who in his own opinion are of unquestionable integrity, not being members of any public service, legislative house or political party.”

    “Nasarawa State government is of the position that the Assembly cannot probate and re-probate on a matter that is before His Lordship, the Chief Judge of the state.

    “Should the members of the state House of Assembly be aggrieved with the compliance of the Chief Judge of Nasarawa State with the provision of Section 188

    sub-section 5 of the 1999 Constitution, the right thing to do is for the House to go to the

    court of law to challenge the composition of the investigative panel”.

    On the relocation of the Assembly members to a guest house in Karu Local Government Area, the statement added: “The sitting was not in conformity with any democratic requirement because no rule of the House permits the sitting of the Assembly anywhere in the state to conduct legislative affairs. The sitting was, therefore, ill-motivated, illegal and of no effect whatsoever.

    “More so the Supreme Court has made a definitive declaration that the House of Assembly can only conduct its legislative functions in legally designated place in the state capital (Balonwu Vs Obi 2007 NWLR PT1008/488).”

    A lawyer, Chief Jibrin Okutepa (SAN), said the “purported proceedings held in Karu, and the resolutions passed by the 19 members were non-binding on any system”.

    “They have no right to question the constitution of the panel by the Chief Judge. They have no powers over the CJ, if they have grievances arising from the action of the CJ in the CJ’s compliance with the provisions of Section 188; they have the option to go to court.”

    Members of governor’s nine-man-man legal team are: Chief U. N Udechukwu (SAN), lead counsel, Olufunke Aboyade (SAN), Prof. Ernest Ojukwu, Mr. Kehinde Aina, Esq; O. O. Adeleye, Esq, Olatoye Akinbode, Abdulwasi Musah, , C. I. Mbachu and Jamin Nwosu.

  • Boko Haram: Outrage over Jonathan’s $1b loan request

    Boko Haram: Outrage over Jonathan’s $1b loan request

    APC, Tinubu, lawyers to lawmakers: say no

    Minister defends plan

    There is outrage over the proposal by President Goodluck Jonathan to secure the National Assembly’s nod to obtain a $1billion loan to buy arms and ammunition to strengthen the fight against Boko Haram.

    Minister of State for Defence Musiliu Obanikoro, said at the weekend during his tour of Naval formation in Delta and Bayelsa states, said major military equipment had not been procured by successive governments in 25 years – to justify the need for the loan.

    Obanikoro, accompanied by the Commanding Officer, NNS Delta, Navy Captain Musa Gemu, the Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Naval Engineering School, Rear Admiral Sidi H Usman and Flag Officer Commanding (FOC) Central Naval Command, Rear Admiral Peter Agba, said the war against terrorism would soon be won.

    On the state of the military, the minister said: “So far so good, but in real terms and given the goals that we have set for ourselves as a nation, there is the need for more investment. No doubt about that.

    “Funding will forever remain an issue. I schooled in the U.S. Anywhere, funding is a problem in terms of the military. It is not peculiar to Nigeria alone. I recognise the fact that if you have a responsibility to somebody, the person must be equipped to carry out such responsibility.

    “The Federal Government has resolved that within the limited resources available, the military is properly kitted to deal with the challenges confronting the country for now and the future.

    “The president is committed to that and he has taken practical steps. As I speak to you today, some of the acquisition we are doing to beef up military capacity have not been done in the last 25 years. That, to me, is what progress is all about.”

    Speaking in Yola, Obanikoro said: “It is not true that the military is not well motivated. We must recognise and appreciate the effort of President Goodluck Jonathan since he came on board.

    “I can tell you that in the last 25 years, we have not made major acquisitions in terms of platforms for the Navy,  amunition and equipment generally for the military.

    “It is Jonathan that has started doing that now and it is as a result of neglect that we are suffering today. But that we are also trying to overcome with this new acquisition.

    “There is no doubt that we have both men and women who can deliver under any situation and they are acclaimed worldwide to be among the best. If they can solve issues outside, why will they not be able to solve issues at home.”

    The pattern of Defence Budget in the last 25 years showed a sharp increase, but most of the funds reportedly went to personnel and overhead costs.

    This year’s budget has the highest allocation to Defence N968.127 billion  out of total budget of N4.962 trillion.

    The capital budget has always been spent on buildings, uniforms, some ammunition and vehicle spares parts.

    It was learnt that there was a little improvement in 2012 when the Navy bought two offshore patrol vessels and six coastal patrol boats and some spares.

    It was gathered that in the same year, the Air Force acquired 12 Augusta 109 helicopters and some uniforms, reactivated C-130 and G222 Alpha Jets.

    A military source said: “The military budgets over the years were not meant for massive equipment. They were meant for administration, logistics,training and day-to-day running of the establishment.

    “Nobody envisaged a war of this magnitude. This matter should not be unnecessarily sensationalised or politicised. These are facts Nigerians should be made to know.

    The source spoke on the telephone and pleaded not to be quoted.

    In an article in 2012, which drew the ire of the Presidency, a former Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Mallam Nasir el-Rufai, gave an insight into the nation’s defence budget.

    He said: “Military spending the world over averages about 2.5 per cent of GDP, with the USA being the highest spender – about $700billion, which is about 5 per cent of GDP. In Africa, the leading military spender is Algeria, ranked 29th in the world, with 3.8 per cent of GDP, followed by Egypt (41st, 2.1 per cent), Angola (42nd, 4.2 per cent), and South Africa (43rd, 1.3 per cent). Nigeria is ranked 57th in the world then earmarking $1.724billion – about 0.9 per cent of our GDP on defence. Even a smaller country like Morocco, ranked 48th with 3.4 per cent of GDP out-spends us! In contrast, countries at near state-of-war like Lebanon (58th, 4.1 per cent) and Sudan (56th, 4.1 per cent) are in our neighbourhood in terms of defence outlays.

    “Our current budget for defence has climbed slightly to just over 1 per cent of GDP.”

    From N1.2 billion in 1988, the defence budget moved to N968.127 billion in this year’s budget.

    The opposition All Progressives Congress (APC) yesterday urged the National Assembly not to give its go-ahead for the President to take the loan.

    It urged the government to account for the “missing” $20 billion oil money, saying “massive corruption and lack of accountability is behind the government request for loan”.

    To APC national leader Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, “the loan is dubious”, “Nigerians must reject it,” he said.

    Lagos lawyer Femi Falana (SAN) urged the National Assembly to reject the President’s request, saying there was no justification for the loan.

    The activist recalled that between 2010 and 2013, over N3 trillion was budgeted for defence.

    “Under the Appropriation Bill signed into law on May 23, 20 per cent of the entire federal budget i.e the sum of N968.127 billion out of N4.962 trillion, was earmarked for defence,” Falana said.

    He advised the Senate to find out what happened to the defence budget in the middle of the year to warrant a supplementary budget of N160 billion.

    Other senior lawyers urged the National Assembly to scrutinise the request.

    Joseph Nwobike and Sebastine Hon (both Senior Advocates of Nigeria) said, the legislature should monitor the application of the funds – if it gives the go-ahead.

    Nwobike said in view of the growing insecurity in the country, no amount was too much to spend on a secured environment for the people.

    Hon urged the National Assembly to extract, undertaking from the President to assure the country that the money would actually be spent for the purpose for which it was being sought.

    Nwobike said:”With the growing security challenges in the country; insurgency in the Northeast, as well as oil theft and sea piracy and other maritime crimes in the southern part of the country, I think there is a need for the government to acquire sophisticated military hardware and training for our military to be able to combat these crimes.

    “We should not ground in the argument about whether money had been spent in the past or not. What we should be concerned with is how to tackle these challenges, which are not only threatening the fabric of our nation, but also interfering with our economic life.

    “In other words, we all know how much Nigeria has lost since this insurgency, oil theft and other maritime crimes started. What we have lost in a year is more than $10billion. So if we spend $1b to equip our military so that they can stop or nip in the bud, this escalating criminality, I think is a welcome development.”

    “The only thing that I will ask the National Assembly to do in approving the loan is to improve  on their oversight function, such that they will be able to monitor in great details, where the money will be spent, what it will be spent on, and the benefit capital, which the money will be able to generate in the area of security of lives and property in the country,” Nwobike said.

    Hon said : “The question that will arise is, what has been the effect of the spending on the military so far? Is it that it has not been fully utilised or there are some extraordinary measures requiring external borrowing, in addition to what has been budgeted for to take care of the military?

    “I think as the Commander-in-Chief, he is the person wearing the shoes and he knows where they are pinching him.

    “The National Assembly should extract an undertaking from the President to the effect that if this amount is approved, he will tackle the insurgency that is ravaging our country.

    “The National Assembly should audit the military in view of the fact that there have been allegations flying here and there that substandard equipment are being supplied to soldiers fighting the insurgents and that heavy money has been misappropriated or taken away outrightly.

    “So, I advise that there should be probity and accountability to make Nigerians appreciate the imperative for looking for additional funds,” Hon said.

  • APC: massive corruption behind govt’s request for loan

    APC: massive corruption behind govt’s request for loan

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) has urged the National Assembly to scrutinise President Goodluck Jonathan’s request for $1 billion (about N165 billion) loan to fight the insurgent group, Boko Haram.

    The party said the administration has no business borrowing money, if it had accounted for $20 billion in oil funds or checked the official stealing of 300,000 barrels of oil per day.

    In a statement yesterday in Lagos by its National Publicity Secretary, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the party noted that even if the missing oil fund was only between $10 billion and $12 billion, as admitted by the Federal Government, the amount represents over 10 times the fund the government is now seeking to borrow under conditions that are yet unknown.

    It described as disingenuous and sheer blackmail the argument that the money is for national security or that it would facilitate the release of the over 200 Chibok schoolgirls who were abducted about 100 days ago.

    APC said: “That argument is hollow. In the first instance, trillions of naira have been allocated yearly – in the past few years – for security and defence. Yet, the fight against the insurgents rages on with deadly consequences. Secondly, the only reason the schoolgirls have remained in captivity is the sheer cluelessness and incompetence on the part of the Jonathan administration, which waited for 19 days before even admitting that the girls were kidnapped in the first instance.

    “Therefore, putting more money in the hands of an incompetent and massively corrupt administration can only encourage more incompetence and corruption. That is why we are asking the National Assembly to put national interest above all other considerations by taking a dispassionate, non-partisan look at the President’s request.

    “What we are saying is that the National Assembly must summon security and military chiefs to explain how the huge funds allocated to the Security sector in the past were spent, before more funds can be pumped into the sector. They must be asked what happened to the military equipment said to have been procured in recent years.

    “They must also inquire from the administration why it should be borrowing $1 billion when it has not accounted for the missing $20 billion oil money, plug the daily stealing of 300,000 barrel per day (bpd) and unravel the massive fraud that has hallmarked the tenure of this administration (pension fraud, oil subsidy scam, Malabu fraud, among others). If after all the scrutiny, the National Assembly still feels it must approve the loan, so be it. But it (National Assembly) must know that its own integrity and credibility are on the line.”

    The party reminded Nigerians that the civil war, which lasted three years, was prosecuted by the government without resorting to any external borrowing, due to competent and transparent management of the nation’s economy.

    It added: “On the contrary, trillions of naira have been pumped into the Boko Haram war in the past five years, and Nigerians still do not have any indication of how soon the insurgency will end or what happened to the huge allocated funds. Instead, what the tax payers are being asked to do is to shell out more funds to finance the incompetence and corruption of a reckless administration, whose officials fly around the world in jets that burn billions of naira but cannot allow them to be probed by the National Assembly.”

    APC wondered why the Jonathan administration, which roundly pilloried Borno State Governor Kashim Shettima, when he alerted Nigerians to the need to adequately equip and motivate our men and women in uniform, has now turned round to admit that the military needs modern hardware to fight insurgency.

    The party aligned with those who cautioned the National Assembly from giving a blank cheque to the administration, due to its inability to account for the past budgetary allocations for security and defence, as well as its sheer cluelessness and palpable incompetence.

    APC said: “This year alone, 20 per cent of the total national budget of N4.962 trillion, which is about N968.127 billion, was allocated to Defence. How much of that money has been released so far and how have the funds been spent? What about the equally huge allocations in the previous years?

    “With the Jonathan administration allegedly spending or setting aside an average of N2 billion to impeach each governor of APC states, and the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) administration using the common wealth to bribe voters in a desperate bid to win elections at all cost, approving the $1 billion loan may amount to giving more ammunition to the administration to stifle the nation’s democracy or even threaten the very existence of the country.”

  • Temitope out with Request

    Temitope out with Request

    GOSPEL singer and song writer, Temitope Oyegbami Vanlare, better known as Tope, is back with a new album entitled Request. The album which is already enjoying favourable air play in radio stations will be officially launched on November 17, at Trinity House, Victoria Island, Lagos.

    According to Tope, Request is an album that is out to have a positive impact on its listeners. The singer first gave music a shot at the tender age of 12, when she led her church choir in the production of their debut album titled Wonderful Jesus with the hit tract ‘Master Jesus’ which was very popular in the Niger Delta region of the country and aired both on TV and radio stations.

    She later went solo with the release of the album Love God which got some serious air play again on TV and radio stations in the northern part of Nigeria, especially Kaduna where it was promoted.

  • Iragbiji Ruling House: Osun rejects family’s request

    The Osun State Government has rejected the Lagbua Family’s request for inclusion in the ruling houses entitled to Aragbiji stool.

    According to a gazette published on 4th April, 2013 No 7 Vol. 23 acting on Iragbiji Chieftaincy Decalaration under Section 10 Sub Section 1-3 of the state Chieftaincy Laws Cap 25, laws of the State of Osun 2002, the state government affirmed that Lagbua family is not entitled to Iragbiji chieftaincy stool.

    In line with the recommendation of the Ministry of Justice, the State Executive Council at its meeting on April 3, refused to approve the Lagbua Family’s request.

    The Lagbua family in Iragbiji, the headquarters of Boripe Local Government Area of Osun State, a few months ago appealed to the government to consider the inclusion of the family into the Aragbiji stool.

    The Lagbua alleged that the name of the family was deleted from the list of the ruling houses in the ancient town.

     

  • Should I accept his request or endure my boredom?

    Hi Mrs. Deola, I am 19. I am in love with a guy who already has a baby from another lady (now his ex). Though I love him but I am afraid he might dump me because he is in his final year in the university and I am yet to gain admission. Should I accept his request or endure my boredom?

    I know a lot of girls/women make the mistake of dating out of pity and sometimes boredom, but in the long run, it won’t do you any good. If you’re not too sure about this guy, remain friends with him and I think being friends is enough to kill boredom. For the love of yourself, always remember that this guy is still in school and so, unable to plan for a future with you, if that is what you’re hopingf or. He has a baby to plan for and for him to have told you about his child means he loves the baby and would put him/her first. Whatever he does with any lady now may be a game because even his parents would frown at him starting something with someone new which might result in another unplanned baby. Think well and make up your mind on the consequences.