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Tag: Senate

  • Senate seeks suspension of rice importation through land borders

    The Senate yesterday asked the Federal Government to suspend the lifting of the ban on importation of rice through the land borders.

    The Nigerian Customs Service (NCS) lifted the ban about two months ago to check rice smuggling.

    The senate’s action followed the adoption of the report of its ad-hoc committee on import duty waivers, concessions and grants.

    The committee said lifting the ban would lead to evasion of customs duty and maritime revenue losses.

    It also said lifting the ban would lead to increased diversion of vessels to neighbouring countries.

    The lower five per cent import levy on rice by some neighbouring countries the panel noted, is enough inducement, warning:  “If not checked, (it)  will on the long run lead to massive vessels desertion of Nigerian ports and the concomitant unemployment of Nigerians.”

    In lifting the ban, NCS said it would bring more revenue to public coffers, reduce  smuggling and the commodity’s price by breaking the monopoly of rice millers who have the capacity to import large consignment.

    On October 15 the senate debated a motion on the dangers posed by the removal of rice from the import restriction list and the re-introduction of import duty payment at land borders. It asked its ad-committee to invite customs Comptroller-General, Col Hameed Ali (rtd) to brief it on the reasons behind the new policy.

    The ad-committee headed by Senator Adamu Aliero noted that between 2010 and 2012, there were inconsistencies in rice imports fiscal policies.

    The policies, the committee noted, ‘led to frequent changes in levy payable on rice’ with conflicting opinions of the classification of Husked brown rice.

    It noted that because of this policies somersault the Customs, recommended the restriction of rice imports to the sea ports to monitor the commodity’s importation.

    The committee said because of this somersault, some importers exceeded their quota allocation, resulting in an outstanding duty of over N24 billion and subsequent suspension of the 2015 rice import quotas.

    It observed that the introduction of the 2014-2017 National Rice Policy has brought about stability in the tariff regime.

    The committee said though the NCS claimed to  be well equipped to monitor the land borders “the Customs Service failed to convince the committee of its ability to actually monitor the porous borders.

    “Therefore, the committee doubts their assumed capacity given previous record of collusion with smugglers. If the efficiency is there, prohibited frozen chicken and other contraband would not have flooded our markets,” the committee said.

    The committee said it discovered that any importer “that imports between five and 10 shiploads/vessel of rice into Benin Republic and destined them to Nigeria through the land borders already had predetermined motive to cheat Nigeria government of revenue through duty evasion.”

    According to the committee, there is no justification for importation of parboiled rice meant for Nigeria to be discharged at Cotonou and five per cent import duty paid on it.

    The commodity, it noted, is loaded into trucks and the importer pays N400,000 per truck at the Nigerian border and on arrival  pay another import duty of either 30 per cent or 70 per cent. “The committee does not see any logic in this.”

    Senate President Bukola Saraki described the matter as serious because it affects revenue generation and improvement of agriculture.

    He added that no genuine importer would prefer to import through the land border if there is no ulterior motive.

    Saraki said lifting the ban on land border importation of rice is definitely not in the interest of the economy of the country.

  • Senate seeks accelerated consideration of disability Bill

    Senate seeks accelerated consideration of disability Bill

    The disability Bill scaled sending reading in Senate Wednesday.

    The Bill sponsored by Senator Francis Alimikhena (Edo North) seeks to ensure full integration of persons with disability into the larger society.

    It made provision for the education, health care and protection of the social, economic and civil rights of persons with disability.

    Alimikhena in his lead debate quoted Section 14(2)(b) of the Constitution which provides that “the security and welfare of the people shall be the primary purpose of government.

    He noted that disability abounds everywhere, from north to south and from west to east.

    The lawmaker said that the bitter truth is that the Senate cannot afford to be disinterested in the matter because disability may occur at any time in a man’s life either congenitally, through accident or even by natural development as one attains old age.

    He asked the Senate to commend the efforts of the 6th and 7th National Assembly which culminated in the passage of the disability Bill but unfortunately did not receive presidential assent.

    He said that passage of the Bill is the surest and most potent way of ensuring compliance with international best practices in the treatment and relation with persons living with disability.

    Alimikhena who quoted the World Health Organisation, said that 20 million Nigerians are living with disability which makes them the largest minority group in the country.

    He said, “They have the highest rate of unemployment, poverty and have the lowest level of education among any minority group.”

    He lamented that there is no commission specifically overseeing the affairs of the people with disability.

  • Senate summons ETF boss over alleged N200b diversion

    Senate summons ETF boss over alleged N200b diversion

    The Senate Wednesday invited the Executive Secretary of the Education Tax Fund (ETF), Professor Suleiman Elias Bogoro over alleged gross mismanagement of education tax fund between 2011 and 2015.

    The Education Tax Fund boss is to appear before the Senate Committee on Tertiary Institutions and Tetfund to explain alleged misappropriation of the fund in the Fund from 2011-2015.

    He is also to throw some light on alleged diversion of N200 billion “to other unknown and unspecified uses not recognized in or permitted under the Act.”

    The resolution to invite Bogoro followed the adoption of a motion entitled “Gross mismanagement of Education Tax Fund 2011-2015.”

    The motion was sponsored by Senator Abdullahi Aliyu Sabi (Niger North).

    Senator Sabi in his lead debate noted that Education Tax Fund are funds generated from education tax that are utilized to improve the quality of education in Nigeria.

    He noted the Tertiary Education Trust Fund (establishment etc) Act, 2011 is the Act that repealed the Education Tax Act CAP E4 laws of the federation of Nigeria, 2004 and Education Trust Fund charged with the responsibility for imposing, managing and disbursing the tax to public tertiary institutions in the country.

    Sabi said that Section 6(a) of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund Act, 2011 stated that the Board of Trustees shall monitor and ensure collection of education tax by the service and ensure “transfer of same to the Fund.”

    The Niger North lawmaker said that he is aware that Section 7(a) of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund Act, 2011 stated that the Board of Trustees shall administer, manage and disburse the tax imposed by the Act on the basis of the equity among the six geo-political zones of the federation in the case of special intervention.

    Sabi said that he is further aware that some institutions get multiple allocation of special intervention while institutions that are their peers do not receive any.

    He expressed concern that “about N200 billion of the education tax collected between 2012 and 2013 were diverted to other unknown and unspecified uses not recognized in or permitted under the Act and the diverted fund are to be returned into the fund.”

    He further expressed concern that the Board of Trustees granted a loan to the Federal Ministry of Education and also organized a workshop and pre-retreat in U.S. and Kenya in 2014-2015 without a recourse to guidelines of the Act.

    Sabi said that it was also a matter of interest to him that “a whopping sun of about N500 million was budgeted for advertising and media in 2015 budget which contravene the “Rehabilitation, Restoration and Consolidation of tertiary education in Nigeria in accordance with Section 3(1) of the Tertiary Education Trust Fund Act, 2011.”

    He said that Senate should be worried that after spending nearly N1 trillion between 2011-2015 by Tetfund still that state of infrastructure in the country’s tertiary education institutions is still very shabby, dilapidated and mostly run down.

    Though the motion was not debated, Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki said that the relevant committee should conduct a thorough investigation to establish the truth about the allegations.

    Saraki noted that if the allegations are true, Nigerians should be aware that the Senate should not close its eyes to what is going on.

    He mandated that committee to report back to the Senate in plenary within one month.

     

  • Senate passes N574.532b supplementary budget

    Senate passes N574.532b supplementary budget

    • Fuel subsidy to gulp N521b

    The Senate Tuesday passed the 2015 Supplementary Appropriation Bill of N574,532,726,857 billion

    The amount passed is N108, 895,800,000 higher than N465,636,926,857 billion submitted by President Muhammadu Buhari to the National Assembly for consideration and approval.

    The N108.895 billion was added by the Senate as additional fund meant to pay fuel subsidy claims between October to December 2015.

    The sum of N120 billion was provided in the supplementary budget as arrears of fuel subsidy claims (carry over) from 2014 while the sum of N292 billion was provided for payment of claims of subsidy for January to September 2015.

    As indicated in the amendment to the 2015 Fiscal Framework, the Supplementary Budget is to be funded through borrowing.

    Before endorsing the Supplementary Budget for implementation by the Executive, the Senate went into a lengthy closed session to discuss and agree on the modalities to pass the fiscal document.

    The Senate had on November, 2015 read for the first time 2015 Supplementary Appropriation Bill in the sum of N465,636,926,857 billion submitted to it by President Buhari.

    Chairman, Senate Committee on Appropriation, Senator Mohammed Danjuma Goje who presented the report of his committee for consideration and approval said that the Bill fundamentally sought to among other things, make available additional funds for the fight against insurgency in the North-East and payment of outstanding subsidy claims in order to ameliorate the suffering of Nigerians.

    Goje noted that the provision for subsidy only covered year 2014 arrears of N120.5 billion and the claims of January-September, 2015 of N292 billion.

    He stressed the need to provide additional funding in the sum of N108, 895,800,000 only for fuel subsidy for the months of October, November and December 2015 “to ensure that the 2016 budget takes off on a clean slate.”

    He said that the issue of the additional subsidy claims came up in the course of clarification of the total subsidy need for the year ending 2015, by the Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources.

    Goje said that the provision for Victim Support Fund (N5b) in the Capital Supplementary should have been made in the Service Wide Vote since it is a Federal Government contribution to a fund managed by a Committee which is not an MDA of government.

    He also stressed the need to adjust the proposed amendment to the 2015 Fiscal Framework to capture the additional funding need of N108.895 billion for fuel subsidy.

    The committee chair said that “With the Supplementary Bill, including the additional funding need of fuel subsidy, the total aggregate expenditure for the fiscal year 2015 will be the sum of N4,493,363,957,158 in the 2015 Appropriation Act, the proposed sum of N465,636,926,857 and the additional funding need of N108,895,800,000 for fuel subsidy amounting to N5,067,896,684,015 trillion.

    The passed budget included N10,618,837,435 outstanding payment of the severance gratuity and allowances of outgone and incoming legislators and legislative aides; N3,196 billion for the Nigerian Army, N1.5 billion for National Sports Commission Headquarters; N559,217,800,017 FOR Service Wide Vote, including N29,958,865,512 for Operation Zaman Lafiya (fight against insurgency).

    Senate Leader, Senator Mohammed Ali Ndume who moved that the Senate should pass the Supplementary Budget noted that having looked at the importance and timing of the Bill, the only people who benefit from fuel subsidy are the marketers.

    Ndume noted that Senate is worried that subsidy claims have continued to increase in the past few years even when the Seventh Senate investigated that development it has not stopped.

    The Borno South lawmaker lamented that the Senate is being blackmailed to pass the subsidy budget “because not doing so would amount to the fuel queues remaining.”

    He said that the Senate is left with no option than to pass the subsidy component. He added that the only option for the Senate is to investigate the claims.

    Senate Minority Leader, Senator Godwill Akpabio, who also supported the passage of the Supplementary Budget noted that what he would consider true change would be zero subsidy so that at the end of the day, Nigerians would be spared the problem of whether there was subsidy scam or not.

    Akpabio said that part of the change in 2016 would be to address the issue of subsidy adding that appropriate Senate committee must ensure that the subsidy claims were genuine.

    Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Public Affairs, Senator Aliyu Sabi said that the Senate mandated its Committees on Petroleum, Army and Anti-Corruption to be at alert to ensure that the subsidy claims are genuine.

    On the subsidy for the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Goje said his committee and other relevant committees would take up the issue with the ministry.

    The committee chairman had been asked how and where NNPC gets its subsidy for the 48 percent of products it imports.

    Senate President, Abubakar Bukola Saraki, who summed the contributions of Senators after the passage of the bill said, “I want to on behalf of our colleagues thank the committee for the work that they have done to have been able too deliver this report as requested.

    “It is clear that this supplementary budget that we have passed we have looked at both the request of the executive and particularly the sufferings of Nigerians to ensure that we see that this thing is done.

    “At the same time we want to warn the ministries and agencies in charge of this expenditure to make sure that these funds are judiciously used.

    “The oversight committees particularly Appropriation, Petroleum (downstream) Anti-corruption, we must expose with hope of sanction, any of these companies or agencies that take the opportunity because of the suffering of Nigerians to abuse this amount of money.

    “This is a huge amount of money and I even believe that the so called economic sabotage agencies this is where their work is.

    “This is truly economic sabotage where billions of naira are being approved but not judiciously used.

    “Our committee on Anti-corruption must play a role to oversee every single payment.

    “We have made provisions till December so we must ensure that this money is used properly.

    “This issue of fuel subsidy, I want us all, all Nigerians, we must say no to this blackmail by marketers. We must put an end to this issue.

    “A lot of us in the past have spoken on this matter and I think we are doing this for the interest of Nigerians but I think it is high time we say no to this blackmail and end this hardship.

    “We must consider this in 2016. I think the committee on Petroleum both downstream and upstream as well as committee on Anti-corruption should oversight and make necessary recommendations to the Senate for further legislative action on this matter.”

  • Breaking news: Appeal court nullifies Mark’s election

    Breaking news: Appeal court nullifies Mark’s election

    The Appeal Court sitting in Makurdi Saturday nullified the election of former Senate President, David Mark.

    The court ordered a rerun of the election within 90 days.

    The All Progressives Congress (APC) senatorial candidate for Benue South, Mr. Donald Onjeh, had challenged the decision of the National and State Assembly Election Petitions Tribunal, which upheld the victory of Mark of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP).

  • Senate orders NNPC to end fuel scarcity in two weeks

    Senate orders NNPC to end fuel scarcity in two weeks

    THE Senate has ordered the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and other agencies under the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to end petroleum products’ scarcity within two weeks.

    The upper chamber said notable sharp practices, including discrepancies in prices of petroleum products, such as Premium Motor Spirit (PMS), and hoarding of products, should be stopped.

    Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream) Senator Lillian Ekwunife gave the order yesterday at a meeting with officials of the ministry and its parastatals in Abuja.

    The Senate, on Tuesday, asked the committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding the perennial fuel scarcity in the country.

    Mrs. Ekwunife insisted that the citizens were not interested in efforts by the NNPC, Pipeline Products Marketing Company (PPMC) and other agencies to ease the biting fuel scarcity.

    What Nigerians want, she said, was availability of products.

    “We are mandating the minister, the permanent secretary and other relevant agencies to end fuel scarcity  in two weeks. Discrepancies in prices of products must also end,” she said.

    The lawmaker said the committee would like to know why the country’s refineries were no longer working and why fuel scarcity had become perennial.

    Nigerians, she noted, were being faced with fuel scarcity once again in the last one month.

    The Anambra Central senator said the committee would like to know the marketers, who would be paid N413 billion oil subsidy requested by President Muhammadu Buhari in his supplementary budget, which is before the National Assembly for approval.

    Mrs. Ekwunife, who said the Senate was aware that not all claims by marketers were factual, gave the Petroleum Products Regulatory Agency (PPRA) 24 hours to submit documents detailing subsidy claims by marketers to the committee.

    The Senate, she said, was aware that some of the marketers engage in sharp practices aimed at defrauding the country.

    Vice Chairman of the committee Senator Barau Jibrin reminded the officials that the President Muhammadu Buhari administration was elected based on the change mantra.

    He noted that in line with the change mantra, the country must change for the better.

    The senator said the Senate was seeking a permanent solution to fuel scarcity.

    The Kano North lawmaker wondered why the country was still paying the same amount of subsidy when crude price has crashed.

    He said: “When the price of crude was $140pb, we paid a certain amount as subsidy. Now the price has crashed to about $40, we are still paying the same amount. We want to know what is happening.”

    Executive Secretary, PPRA Ahmed Farouk told the committee that subsidy elements were driven by the price of gasoline.

    He added that the Minister of State for Petroleum, Dr. Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu, had directed that unnecessary costs connected to importation of products should be eliminated.

    He said outstanding “subsidy arrears for 2014 is N120 billion while the outstanding subsidy payment for 2015 up to October 31 is N294 billion, totalling N414 billion”.

    He added that outstanding subsidy payment was based on actual discharges.

    The committee demanded to know the number of marketers involved, but the executive secretary did not give the figure.

    The committee was also worried that the supplementary budget for subsidy did not cover November and December 2015.

    On why fuel scarcity persisted, the Executive Secretary, PPMC, Babatunde Adeniran, blamed it on marketers, who failed to import products.

    Adeniran said it was only the PPMC that was importing products.

    He added that the security agents were brought in to assist when sharp practices were observed in the supply chain.

    The PPMC executive secretary noted that to avoid recurring scarcity, “subsidy money has to be paid as at when due”.

    He said they were also working to fix broken pipelines.

    The Permanent Secretary, Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Jamila Shu’ara, stressed the need to build strategic product reserve depots.

    The PPMC’s Managing Director, Esther Nnamdi-Ogbue, lamented that  some people in the industry were sabotaging PPMC’s efforts to stabilise fuel supply.

    Some marketers, she said, were not helping matters, adding that some marketers, instead of discharging products at designated filling stations, connived to sell some to black marketers.

    Esther Nnamdi-Ogbue noted that her officials were spending sleepless nights monitoring the supply of products to filling stations with the aim of preventing sharp practices.

  • Senate confirms AMCON MD, others

    The Senate yesterday confirmed the appointment of Ahmed Lawan Kuru as the Managing Director, Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON).

    Also confirmed were Kola Adeye, Eberechukwu Fortunate Uneze and Aminu Ismail as Executive Director of the corporation.

    This followed the submission and the adoption of the report of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions.

    Chairman of the Committee, Senator Rafiu Adebayo Ibrahim, presented the report for adoption.

    In the same vain, the Senate also confirmed the appointment of Professor Umaru Garba Danbatta as the Executive Vice Chairman of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

    This followed the adoption of the report of the Senate Committee on Communications presented by the Chairman of the committee, Senator Gilbert Nnaji.

  • Senate confirms Danbatta as EVC, NCC

    The Senate has confirmed the appointment of Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta as the Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) and Chief Executive of the Nigerian Communications Commission, (NCC).

    He was appointed in acting capacity by President Muhammadu Buhari on August 4, 2015 following the expiration of the tenure of Dr. Eugene Juwah.

    According to a statement issued by the Director of Public Affairs, NCC, Tony Ojobo, the confirmation yesterday followed “thorough screening by the Senator Gilbert Nnaji led Communication Committee, before the Committee of the whole yesterday, affirmed Prof Danbatta for the job for the next five years” .

    Before his appointment, he was the Acting Vice Chancellor, Kano State University of Science & Technology, Wudil.

  • Senate confirms Kuru as AMCON MD

    Senate confirms Kuru as AMCON MD

    The Senate Thursday confirmed the appointment of Ahmed Lawan Kuru as the Managing Director, Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON).

    Also confirmed were Kola Adeye, Eberechukwu Fortunate Uneze and Aminu Ismail as Executive Director of the corporation.

    This followed the submission and the adoption of the report of the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance and other Financial Institutions.

    Chairman of the Committee, Senator Rafiu Adebayo Ibrahim, presented the report for adoption.

  • Senate orders NNPC to end fuel scarcity in two weeks

    Senate orders NNPC to end fuel scarcity in two weeks

    The Senate on Thursday ordered the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and all the agencies under the Ministry of Petroleum Resources to end petroleum products’ scarcity in the country within two weeks.

    The upper chamber also said notable sharp practices including discrepancies in prices of petroleum products, especially Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) and hoarding of products should be stopped forthwith.

    The Chairman, Senate Committee on Petroleum (Downstream), Senator Lilian Ekwunife, gave the order at a meeting with officials of the Ministry of Petroleum Resources and its parastatals in Abuja.

    The Senate had on Tuesday asked its committee on Petroleum (Downstream) to investigate the circumstances surrounding the perennial fuel scarcity in the country.

    Senator Ekwunife insisted that Nigerians are not interested in efforts being made by the NNPC, Pipeline Products Marketing Company (PPMC) and other agencies to ease the biting fuel scarcity in parts of the country.

    What Nigerians wanted, she said, is availability of products nationwide.

    She said, “We are therefore mandating the minister, the Permanent Secretary and other relevant agencies to end fuel scarcity in the country in two weeks. Discrepancies in prices of products must also end.”