FCT Minister, Muhammed Musa Bello and some officials
Nigeria’s Federal Capital Territory Administration has proposed an expenditure framework of N271.532 Billion for the 2018 fiscal year.
The FCT Minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello, who presented the budget to the Senate Committee on FCT today, Tuesday, said that the figure showed an increase of N49.171 Billion over the appropriation for 2017 which was at N222. 360 Billion.
The Minister gave a breakdown of the sectoral allocations which showed priority being given to Capital Expenditure, which got N154.232 Billion representing 56.8 percent of the estimate.
Overhead cost came second with N61 billion or 22.5 percent, while Personnel was estimated to cost N56 billion representing 20.68 percent of the total.
The increase, the Minister said, is based on the expected higher revenue generation by the FCT in view of the take-off of the FCT Internal Revenue Service (IRS) and expected increased funds from the federation account.
He said that the Administration would pay attention to the completion of ongoing infrastructure projects to make the city more liveable, adding that N70 billion has been earmarked for this purpose.
In the same vein, N4.7 billion will go to on-going critical new projects, while N21.1 billion is proposed for ongoing as well as new infrastructure projects in satellite towns.
Amount of N37.96 billion has been set aside for the education Sector while the Health Sector received N22.8 billion.
Other major expenditure areas include Resettlement & Compensation – N8.9Billion and Transportation Sector – N20.5Billion. Of this amount, the Abuja Light Rail Project would gulp N12.3Billion. Environment, Water and Agriculture sectors together have been allocated approximately N16.3Billion among others.
The Budget which has been described as a balanced budget would be funded from the 1 percent of the 52.68 percent Statutory Allocation to the Federal Government from the Federation Account, Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) and other sources as contained in the Fiscal Framework of the Federal Government.
In his brief remark at the occasion, the Chairman, Senate Committee on FCT, Senator Dino Melaye, expressed delight at the remarkable improvement recorded in the Budget performance for the 2017 Fiscal year which showed a 62 percent level of accomplishment.
He congratulated the FCT Administration for the successful commissioning of the Abuja Rail Mass Transit System, while harping on the necessity for honesty, prudence and transparency in the management of government resources.
After much pertinacious ballyhoo, conquistadorial rodomontade and political saber-rattling by the outgoing governor of Ekiti state, Mr. Ayodele Fayose of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) that he had his imprimatur audaciously stamped in the sun, evidencing his allodia ownership to the land title of Ekiti, the outcome of the July 14, 2018 governorship election had shattered the false claim and opened a new vista in the surefooted political evolution that is set to redefine the state now and in futuro.
Fayose’s Goebbelian irritabilities, innuendoes and direct assaults on the All Progressives Congress (APC), President Muhammadu Buhari and the security agencies all in a bid to psyche himself up and manipulate public perception about his popularity and invincibility in the governorship politics of Ekiti state have come to naught in the face of the facts and election figures that were summative of the essential mandate by the people that tilted the pendulum of victory and legitimacy in favour of Dr. Kayode Fayemi.
Fayemi, who was governor in the state from October 16, 2010 to October 16, 2014, now has a better title, following his victory in the weekend’s governorship election. There is an emphatic change of ownership and with that change comes a new orientation in terms of the sublime and pragmatic socio-political and economic interactions and appreciation of the place of leadership in keeping fidelity to the social contract that has been forged with the elements of APC’s robust manifestoes on which Fayemi’s electioneering was anchored.
The era of Fayose’s peculiar political gambadoism that questions the cosmopolitan and enlightened spirit of Ekiti and its intelligentsia is fast approaching a euphoric terminus. All of us in the APC are in a celebratory mood that on October 16, 2018, Fayose would be hoisted in his own petard and the process of exorcising Ekiti of his negative politics and influence will begin in earnest. That is one task that holds a great promise for Ekiti under the watch of the urbane, unassuming and affable Fayemi.
But beyond the demystification of Fayose and the dislodgement of PDP in Ekiti is the domino effect of this political Risorgimento on the national reputation and acceptability of the APC brand by Nigerians. The APC has come under existential attacks by the opposition elements who have hurled all manner of propaganda to de-market it ahead of the 2019 general elections. In their desperate and diabolical schema, they have continued to portray the APC and President Buhari as incompetent in the enormous task of cleansing the Augean stables of corruption which they had inflicted on the nation in their 16 years of clueless and rapacious government.
As Buhari continues to put his nose to the grindstone, the PDP-led oppositions and other retrogressive centrifugal and centripetal forces that are uncomfortable with the administration’s anti-corruption war and moves to correct the age-long appropriation of our commonwealth by a few powerful individuals have unconscionably and consistently sponsored killings in parts of the country in order to discredit the government. That has been the original sin of Buhari: his commitment to take back our country from the vice-like grips or strangleholds of those that have privatized it.
Understandably, the anti-Buhari elements have committed themselves to obfuscate the gradual but consistent progress towards good governance and integrity in government. Except for mischief makers, there is a national consensus that the level of rot inherited by Buhari is monumentally abysmal. It is such that it can overwhelm a revolutionary approach to governance. The necessity to systematically deal with the contending and problematic issues has, in fact, put a strain on a government that is eager to deliver.
The matter becomes more difficult in a situation where the president, as the poster child of the anti-corruption war, appears to be the only one that is committed to the war in terms of his antecedents, pedigrees, credible verbal exhortations and even body language. This has been globally acknowledged. Recently, he was conferred with the honour of anti-corruption champion on the continent of Africa by the African Union (AU). On the corruption issue, Buhari is on top of his game with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) under the watch of Ibrahim Magu doing a yeoman job.
On the other governance issues like the economy and security which the oppositions take delight to criticise, the president has entrusted qualified individuals to superintend them and he is providing the requisite leadership gravitas. He is disposed to retool and re-kit his administrative infrastructure as time goes on for better efficient service delivery. That is the essence of government and governance.
For close to four years, Buhari has been working persistently and steadfastly at rebuilding a better and greater Nigeria from the ruins of 16 years that he inherited from the PDP. It will be unfair to expect him to clear the age-long mess in a jiffy. It does not work that way. He has to conscientiously work at it. That explains the series of executive orders he has signed to bolster administrative actions that would conduce to good governance. With the direction that he is headed clearly defined as the president and head of the executive, it will be salutary to get the buy-in of the legislature and the judiciary, the two other arms that make up the federal government. Once cooperation and synergy are emplaced, the federal government will be home and dry.
Indeed, judging by the much the Buhari administration has achieved, in so short a time, I am inclined to believe that another four years in the saddle will enable much more progress. The president will be able to build more physical and administrative infrastructure including institutions that will preserve official mores rather than the characteristic predilection of building individuals. It is in the above context that the president’s decision to seek re-election in 2019 is in apple-pie order: to continue the good work.
It is heartwarming that leaders and members of our party, working in concert with Nigerians, are pushing the apt narrative that a second term in office for Buhari is an opportunity to provide elixir for all of our nation’s fundamental turpitude and putrescence. To realise Buhari’s re-election in pragmatic terms, a vast majority of Nigerians would have to enlist in the campaign to dismantle all manner of shared prejudices, primordial sentiments and fault lines that the opposition elements and those who are determined to truncate his good work have mounted on the trajectory to 2019 victory.
Overall, their diabolic and odious agendas are headed for the political seppuku. Happily, the victory of the APC in Ekiti, under the national chairmanship of Comrade Adams Oshiomhiole, is both a precursor and fillip to the president’s surefooted march to a win in the scheduled February 16, 2019 presidential election. The outcome of the governorship election is a clear statement that the APC is an acceptable national political brand. This is expected to be reconfirmed in the forthcoming Osun governorship election. Meantime, Fayemi’s victory over Fayose’s candidate, Professor Olusola Kolapo, in the poll is a clear pointer to the string of APC’s successes in elections between now and in the scheduled 2019 general elections.
Obahiagbon, former member of the House of Representatives, wrote in from Benin.
One of the usual features on Nigerian social media is the nostalgic passion with which Nigerians often distribute pictures of the old Nigeria Airways and how that company once considered one of the best in Africa was mismanaged and made to fail. Established in 1958, it was liquidated in 2003. I have seen pictures of old tickets, images of Nigeria Airways pilots and crew, and for anyone who travelled with Nigeria Airways, you cannot but be moved to pity. Pity yes, because while Nigeria, the most populated country in Africa can no longer manage an airline of its own, the African skies are dominated by such airlines as Ethiopian airlines, Air Maroc, Kenya Airways, and South African airlines. Rwanda has a functional airline too. There is also Air Namibia.
The assets of the Nigeria Airways of old have not only been liquidated; most of its former staffs are wasting away. In the aviation sector, Nigeria has the biggest market in Africa, and has signed Bilateral Air Service Agreements with over 70 countries, but it lacks the capacity to compete. Even the few private airlines operating within the country are barely struggling to survive. The agony of the Nigerian air traveller is not something to be imagined: we all face a daily grind of disappointment from airlines that cancel flights at will and offer no explanation. When you complain, the airlines simply tell you that things are very hard. So, if things are hard, are they supposed to be so shabby? The other month, the door of an aircraft on the domestic route flew off as the plane landed. That has not stopped Nigerians from patronizing that same airline. Most of the country’s airports are also poorly equipped and poorly maintained. The air-conditioning rarely works; the toilets are a nightmare. Aviation is big business but more than that, it is a major catalyst for economic growth and development. If there is any sector that is in urgent need of rescue, the Nigerian aviation sector is that sector.
It is therefore a thing of interest that the Federal Government says it is now determined to revitalize the aviation sector and bring back Nigeria Airways or Air Nigeria as it has been referred to. This much was disclosed when the Minister of State for Aviation, Hadi Sirika received a certificate of no objection, an Outline Business Case certificate of compliance it is called, from the Infrastructure Concession and Regulatory Commission (ICRC). Tomorrow July 18, in London, Minister Sirika is launching a Road Show to attract investors, and formally unveil the name, the logo, the colour scheme and the structure of the national carrier. It all sounds so exciting and I am sure many Nigerians who agonise daily over how other African countries seem to succeed where we keep failing would like to see Nigeria run its own national airline and create opportunities for the business sector. The only problem that I see is that there is so much that is opaque in the proposals that have been put forward so far by Mr. Sirika. Being a former pilot, the Minister is definitely not a tyro in the business, but as he engages both the local and international audience, there are many questions that must be addressed. I intend to raise a few of these in this preliminary comment.
The Ministry of Transportation and ICRC, the regulatory body, do not seem to be on the same page. The ICRC and similar institutions involved may face challenges with their own reputation. The Outline Business Case Certificate by the ICRC seems to agree only in principle that a national carrier can be established. It goes further to give specific conditions under which this may be done, and the Minister himself has quoted some of these conditions which the Ministry under his watch seems to be breaching already. Having noted that the business case and market study submitted to it are “in substantial compliance with the ICRC Act, 2005 and the National Policy on Public Private Partnership”, the ICRC avers: “This certificate is granted on the condition that the Federal Government demonstrates her commitment to leverage private sector capital and expertise towards the establishment of the National Carrier through the provision of an upfront grant/Viability Gap Funding (VGF) to fund aircraft acquisition/start-up capital. The FGN also agrees to zero contribution to airline management decisions and zero management control by the government. Any attempt to impose government control over the management of the Airline invalidates this certificate and the entire process”.
It goes further: “In view of the fact that the mitigating conditions for the project may change over time, this Certificate is valid for 12 months from the date indicated below. This certificate is therefore issued to enable the Ministry commence an international open competitive bidding process to procure a world-class strategic investor to manage, operate, maintain, and invest in the National Carrier.” The ICRC provides further information on its website with regard to other aviation sector projects including the development of an aerotropolis, the establishment of a maintenance, repair and overhaul centre (MRO) and the development of cargo/agro-allied airport terminals.
Except the role of the infrastructure concession regulatory body is a mere formality, I do not see any evidence that the Federal Government of Nigeria, through the Ministry of Transportation (Aviation) is keen about compliance with the strict provisions outlined in the Certificate of No Objection. The Road Show scheduled for Farnborough, London, tomorrow, does not sound like “an open competitive bidding”; it is a launch. Do you do a roadshow for a transaction that does not yet exist, or for a company that is not yet in existence? Minister Sirika and whoever his transaction advisers may be have already determined that the proposed airline would cost the Nigeria government $8.8 million. How was that arrived at? He has also talked about a take-off grant of $300 million to purchase 5 aircraft to be delivered by December 19? There certainly must be some known best practices in the setting up of a national carrier. Whatever business model, that we are following does not look like the very best. Who starts an airline by first buying aircraft at full cost? Hadi Sirika reportedly met with officials of Boeing, the aircraft maker in May. Would it not be better to lease the proposed five aircraft from Boeing and enter into a partnership agreement with them, with a private investor in charge of the new airline?
The ICRC says the Federal Government must not operate or control the proposed airline. This is precisely what Hadi Sirika and his team are already doing. And if they say no, and insist that the private sector is already involved in the project, perhaps Mr. Sirika will disclose this tomorrow in London! But let him also disclose basic information about when the tender was placed for an “open competitive bidding.” And if there was no tender, who is that person who may have appropriated the power to determine the private sector partners for the national carrier? And when Mr. Sirika talks about a N300 million for the purchase of five aircraft to be delivered by December 2018, he should be asked where that money is coming from? Is it provided for in the 2018 budget? And if so, under what line entry, or will the money come through virement? The National Assembly should raise these questions. Nobody should use taxpayer’s funds to buy some end-of-life aircraft and claim that they are setting up an airline for Nigerians.
I also find it curious that all the relevant persons and agencies that should be involved in the planning of something as important as a national airline have been quiet. Did the National Economic Council headed by the Vice-President discuss the matter for example? Is the Ministry of National Planning aware of it? Is the proposed airline part of the Economic Recovery Growth Plan (ERGP), and what is the framework in place to ensure fairness and transparency? Is the substantive Minister of Transportation, Rotimi Amaechi even involved in this at all; his studied silence is odd. Or abi the thing no concern am?
If Nigeria must have a national airline again, then we must get it right. This is my point. The ICRC is obviously insisting on private sector control and management, because it was government inefficiency that killed off the old Nigeria Airways. The airline became a gravy train for the big men in high places. They used the planes for their private purposes, including going for weekend parties in London at government expense. Directors of government agencies and departments travelled with the airline on free tickets. Nigeria Airways was supposed to provide a hub for the aviation sector in Africa, its eventual mismanagement made that impossible. We must learn from history in order not to repeat it. Sirika says the proposed airline will take advantage of the African Single Air Transport Market. The Open Skies Agreement is part of the African Continental Free Trade Agreement – 44 countries signed up to it in Kigali in March. Nigeria wants to benefit from this agreement, but it is yet to make up its mind about the value of African integration and free trade. You see our people? “We want to buy aircraft, we want to buy aircraft…” That’s all I hear them saying as if an aircraft is a toddler’s toy.
I raise another poser: why do we even have to create a brand new national airline from the scratch. The Federal Government, through the Assets Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) is already in possession of three airlines that are indebted to AMCON: Arik Air, Aero and whatever is left of Virgin Nigeria or Air Nigeria. AMCON’s mandate is to rescue these airlines and put them back on their feet. Can they not form the nucleus of the proposed national carrier; and turned, surviving assets and all, into one airline that Nigeria can brand for national purpose under the management of competent investors, and with government providing the needed oxygen? Would this not be more advisable than embarking on a new set of opaque transactions? Government can rescue moribund airlines such as the ones I have mentioned, encourage quality private sector participation, and just ensure a level playing field. A national airline that will be under the control of the Minister of Transportation in charge of Aviation, will sooner than later constitute itself into a threat to industry competitiveness.
What remains is a moral question. Whatever the Federal Government decides to do eventually, it would be most unfair to set up a new national carrier without resolving the lingering matter of the unpaid entitlements and benefits of the old Nigeria Airways staff. When that company crashed, many lives were destroyed. Some of the pilots ended up as taxi drivers; many of the crew had to go and learn new trade, a few got jobs with the new commercial airlines. There was a time former Nigeria Airways staff formed a union and they used to carry placards to lament their fate and the injustice that they suffered. I don’t see those placards anymore; they have probably given up hope, and some of them may have died. Not to pay their entitlements – calculated at a total of N45 billion, and already approved for payment by the Federal Executive Council more than a year ago, would be an assault on their memory and an act of cruelty.
II. Minister Adeosun’s NYSC Certificate
The Minister of Finance, Mrs Kemi Adeosun has been in the eye of the storm, and that is putting it mildly. While I believe that she may be the target of a conspiracy against her by persons on whose toes she may have stepped, (otherwise, who is still worrying these days about NYSC certificate?), it seems she herself has not helped matters by refusing to say a word to explain her dilemma. If she thinks the matter will blow away, the fact that the Federal Government has now intervened with the unconvincing claim that a probe is underway is a sure recipe for mischief.
There are three weighty issues involved, in fact four: (1) she has been called a dodger. The NYSC Act does not permit anyone below the age of 30 to dodge a mandatory call to national service, except under circumstances that do not apply to her. At the time of her graduation from university, the Minister was 22 years old; (2) she is also being accused of forgery, or being an accessory to the act of forgery. The NYSC has not been helpful by suggesting that although she applied for a certificate of exemption, after dodging the NYSC for eight years, the exemption certificate with her is unknown to them; (3) she is also being accused of having made false representation of herself on the basis of which she has taken very high jobs in Nigeria – first as a Commissioner and now as a Minister. (4) some persons have labeled this an act of corruption, obviously in order to score a point against the government she is serving. It is a tough moment for her.
Still, Mrs. Adeosun should be given the benefit of the doubt, which she is entitled to, but her silence is not golden at all: we need to hear her own side of the story, within a reasonable period of time. The burden of proof having shifted to her, her refusal to talk is a clear evidence of withholding which could destroy any presumption of innocence in her favour. It is also wrong for anyone to say on her behalf that at the time of her graduation, she was not a Nigerian citizen because she was born in England. Section 25(1) (c) of the 1999 Constitution states clearly that Nigerian citizenship includes “every person born outside Nigeria either of whose parents is a citizen of Nigeria”. So at what point did she renounce her Nigerian citizenship? And does she have a work permit to enable her work in Nigeria if indeed she is a foreigner? There are many lessons here for all young persons who were “born abroad” or who may not be excited about the NYSC.
The Presidency has moved swiftly to stop the governor of Benue State, Samuel Ortom from leaving the All Progressives Congress (APC) on which platform he was elected in the 2015 elections.
Information reaching us at the Greenbarge Reporters, showed that the Presidency has summoned the Deputy National Chairman (North) of the party, Senator Lawal Shu’aibu to Abuja for an urgent meeting.
It was authoritatively learnt that Senator Lawal and the governor have been having running battle over the control of the party in Benue state for sometime now.
It was gathered that Ortom has also not been finding it easy with another Senator in the party, Senator George Akume who is also reported to be battling to control the party in the state.
TGovernor Ortom had, earlier in the day, Monday, complained that he had been given ‘red card’by the APC and that he therefore had no political party he could call his own now.
Though he did not name those who gave him the red card, many media interpretations was that he had dumped the party and searching for the next one to join.
When contacted, the presidential spokesman, Malam Garba Shehu neither deny that Senator Lawal has been summoned by the Presidency nor confirm. [myad]
Thirty State governors across Nigeria, under the umbrella of the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF), have congratulated the governor-elect of Ekiti State, Dr. Kayode Fayemi on his victory in last Saturday’s governorship election.
In a statement today, Monday by the NGF Head of Media and Public Affairs, Abdulrazaque Barkindo said that the Chairman of NGF and governor Abdulaziz Yari of Zamfara, on behalf of the governors of the 36 states, congratulated Fayemi on his victory.
Governor Abdulaziz Yari said that elections are usually healthy contests that determine who keeps the mantle of leadership in the state for a certain period of time and not a victor and vanquished affair.
The NGF Chairman who advised all contestants regardless of their party manifestoes primarily to see themselves as agents of governance that wish to move the welfare and wellbeing of their people to the next level, said that since the people of Ekiti have spoken, the governor-elect, who once showed humility and courage and congratulated the out-going governor four years ago should this time around also be magnanimous in victory by expressing his fervent desire to govern Ekiti for the benefit of all.
The statement read: “Yari while wishing the out-going governor of Ekiti State Mr. Peter Ayodele Fayose, luck in his new endeavours, said that the NGF would miss his invaluable contributions at its meetings, just as he welcomed the in-coming governor to the forum to which he is returning as a ranking and experienced member.
“Governor Yari Abubakar hopes that Fayemi will join hands with the other governors in the country to strengthen the NGF and add value to their deliberations at their monthly meetings. Yari Abubakar declared also that members of the Forum are overjoyed with high expectations to have him return from the Federal Executive Council to an NGF that is now stronger and more united and which operates seamlessly without recourse to party affiliation or their various regional proclivities.
“Finally, the NGF Chairman, the Forum and its secretariat all pray that Fayemi would be guided to lead Ekiti State from glory to glory and strength to strength in the next four years of his second tenure.”
The Presidency has taken pain to present details of measures and actions taken since January in the efforts to combat insecurity, especially in the North Central parts of the country where the battle between herdsmen and local farmers has been raging and claiming lives.
In a statement today, Monday, to debunk insinuations in certain quarters that President Muhammadu Buhari has not been doing enough to combat the insecurity that has beleaguered the country in recent times, the presidential spokes man, Femi Adesina, said such untruth has gradually been wearing “a garb of reality.”
He listed, thus, some initiatives taken under the leadership of President Buhari to rein in the security situation, particularly since January, 2018:
JANUARY 2018
Ø Leadership of the police deployed to Benue State, after mass killings reportedly committed by herdsmen. This was followed by a fact-finding team led by the Minister of Interior, and deployment of Special Forces of the military, to restore law and order.
Ø National Economic Council sets up 10-man committee on farmers/herdsmen clashes, headed by the Vice President.
Ø The 1 Division of the Nigerian Army, Kaduna, launched a special operation, Karamin Goro (Small Kolanut), in collaboration with the Air Force, Police, Department of State Services, and Nigerian Security and Civil Defence Corps, NSCDC; to tackle kidnapping, robbery and cattle rustling in parts of Kaduna and Niger States (Minna-Birnin Gwari-Pandogari and Minna-Sarkin Pawa general areas)
FEBRUARY 2018
Ø The Nigerian Army commenced Exercise Ayem Akpatuma covering Benue, Taraba, Kogi, Nasarawa, Kaduna and Niger States, in order to tackle the cases of kidnappings, herdsmen/farmers’ clashes, among others.
Ø The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) inducted its first indigenous operational Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV), Tsaigumi. The newly-inducted UAV has day and night capability, an operational endurance in excess of 10 hours, a service ceiling of 15,000 feet and a mission radius of 100km, and is capable of being used for policing operations, disaster management, convoy protection, maritime patrol, pipeline, power line monitoring as well as mapping and border patrol duties.
Ø The Nigerian Air Force (NAF) established a total of 10 new Units as NAF had concluded plans to set up Quick Response Wings (QRWs) across Nasarawa State, in a bid to tackle the herders/farmers clashes plaguing some states within the axis.
MARCH 2018
Ø President Buhari began sympathy visits to states that had experienced wanton killings in the country.
Ø The Nigerian Army extended Exercise Ayem Akpatuma in Taraba State by two months.
Ø The committee set up by the National Economic Council on farmers/herdsmen clashes submits report, making far reaching recommendations for peace, including ranching in five states.
APRIL 2018
Ø The Nigerian Air Force took delivery of a second batch of 2 brand new Mi-35N helicopter gunships to boost internal security.
Ø Deployed Special Force to Zamfara State to combat criminality
MAY 2018
Ø The Nigerian Police Force inaugurated a Mobile Squadron in Takum, Taraba State.
Ø The Nigerian Air Force established 3 new Quick Response Wings (QRW) in Taraba, Nasarawa and Benue States respectively, and deployed Special Forces personnel to these new bases. (Taraba State QRW is located in Nguroje; Nasarawa State QRW in Doma; and Benue State QRW in Agatu).
Ø Inspector-General of Police Ibrahim Idris ordered the deployment of 200 policemen, and 10 patrol vehicles to Birnin Gwari (Kaduna-Zamfara axis) to tackle armed banditry in the area.
Ø President Buhari approved the establishment of a new Battalion of the Nigerian Army, as well as a new Police Area Command, in Birnin Gwari LGA of Kaduna State, as part of measures to scale up the security response to the banditry affecting the area. Chief of Army Staff, Lt Gen. Tukur Buratai, has since flagged off the new Battalion (2 Battalion Forward Operating Base, FOB) in Kanfanin Doka Village, Birnin-Gwari, Kaduna State.
Ø The Defence Headquarters assembled a Special Military Intervention Force comprising more than 1,000 personnel, drawn from the Army, Air Force, Navy, Police, DSS and NSCDC, to respond to the security challenges in the North Central and North West. On May 8, 2018, the Force launched Operation WHIRL STROKE, as a full-scale military operation to completely restore law, order and stability in the affected communities. The Whirl Stroke Operational Force Commander is Major General Adeyemi Yekini.
Ø Chief of Army Staff inducted a mix of 49 Toyota Land Cruisers and Innoson gun trucks, at the HQ of the 133 Special Forces Battalion of the Nigerian Army at Azare, to support the ongoing OPERATION LAST HOLD in Northern Borno.
Ø NAF launched newly-constructed accommodation for the 205 Combat Search and Rescue Group (CSARG) — established in 2017 to provide aid and operational assistance to wounded and distressed troops serving in combat units — in Kerang, Plateau State.
Ø The Air Task Force of NAF commenced Operation THUNDER STRIKE to attack selected locations of Boko Haram Terrorists in the North-East.
Ø The Nigerian Army commissioned its new Forward Operating Base in Epe, Lagos State
JUNE 2018
Ø NAF deployed combat helicopter to its 207 Quick Response Group (QRG) in Gusau, Zamfara State to support the fight against armed banditry in the town and its environs.
JULY 2018
Ø President Buhari approved the establishment of Operation WHIRL STROKE II, for deployment in Zamfara and Kaduna States.
Securing the length and breadth of the country is a continuing commitment. It is one of the key pledges of the Buhari administration, which it is carrying out night and day.
In May 2015, when the administration emerged, the security situation was in tatters. It pulled up its bootstraps, rolled up its sleeves, set to work, and the Boko Haram insurgency was beaten back. It was eventually degraded.
Other security challenges are being tackled and will subsequently become history. Not doing enough, as some critics claim, is not part of the deal, nor is it reality, no, not by any stretch of the imagination. A lot is being done, and success is guaranteed.
National chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Adams Oshiomhole has said that nobody has pushed out the Benue State Governor, Samuel Ortom.
Reacting to the announcement by Governor today, Monday that he is no longer with the APC as he had been given ‘red card’ by those he did not name, Oshiomhole said that Ortom had always told him that he would not leave the party unless he was pushed out.
“Governor Ortom had told me severally that he will not leave the APC unless he was pushed out and I know that we have not pushed him out.”
Governor Ortom had said today, at the banquet hall of the Government House in Makurdi, the state capital at the swearing in the newly appointed Special Adviser on Local Government and Chieftaincy Affairs, Jerome Torshimbe: “as for party, I’ve been given the red card and I’m now outside the pitch.”
The governor was quoted by his Chief Press Secretary, Terver Akase, as saying: “So, if I have been given the red card and I’m standing outside, that means I’m a free man.”
General Overseer of the Omega Fire Ministries, Apostle Johnson Suleman, has blamed the failure of his prophecy that the candidate of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would emerge winner of the just concluded Ekiti governorship election on prayer by people against it.
“I gave a prophecy about Ekiti; that I saw PDP taking over, but if PDP in that state do not take care they will lose it because I saw people gathering to pray against it.”
Apostle Suleman who took to his Twitter page today, Monday morning in a video he shared, said that the video was done weeks before the election.
“That Video making the rounds was done three weeks ago before the Ekiti election,” he said.
Contrary to the prophecy, the candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC), Dr. John Kayode Fayemi was declared the winner by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC). The APC candidate garnered 197,459 votes, while Professor Olusola of the PDP polled 178,114 votes.
The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has rated Nigeria’s economy as having being recovering from what it called ‘the worst contraction in 25 years in 2016.’
In its World Economic Outlook update released today, Monday, according to Bloomberg, the worst contraction of the Nigeria’s economy was caused by lower oil prices and output and shortages of foreign exchange to import raw materials.
It said that the economy of the Sub-Saharan Africa will experience growth prospects in 2019 due to the great improvement in the Nigeria’s economy.
The IMF explained that the region’s economy will probably expand 3.8 percent in 2019. That compares with a 3.7 percent prediction in April.
The upgraded forecast “reflects improved prospects for Nigeria’s economy” and an increase in commodity prices. Gross domestic product in Africa’s most-populous nation will probably rise 2.3 percent, it said, lifting its estimate from 1.9 percent in April.
On the South African economy, the IMF predicted that it will expand by 1.5 percent this year and 1.7 percent the next.
“Despite the weaker-than-expected first-quarter out-turn in South Africa, the economy is expected to recover somewhat over the remainder of 2018 and into 2019 as confidence improvements associated with the new leadership are gradually reflected in strengthening private investment.”
South Africa, the continent’s most-industrialized economy, hasn’t grown at more than 2 percent a year since 2013. GDP shrank the most in almost a decade in the first quarter as former President Jacob Zuma handed the reins to Cyril Ramaphosa.
Zuma spent close to nine years in power, during which time the nation lost its investment-grade credit rating and policy uncertainty and unemployment increased.
Nigeria and South Africa’s economies account for about half of the region’s GDP.
President Muhammadu Buhari has expressed his sadness and concern over the unprecedented devastation caused by floods in Katsina state and other parts of the country.
A statement by his senior special assistant on media and publicity, Garba Shehu said that he had pledged the federal government’s support for the victims of the disaster.
The President emphasized his deep sadness over the devastation and loss of lives in the floods.
The President directed the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) to do everything that will bring succor to the victims wherever they are.
“As rescue and prevention efforts continue, let me express the sincere condolences of my family, the government and people of Nigeria to all the victims of the destruction by the floods. Let me assure that we stand ready to provide, within available resources, every assistant that is needed to bring comfort to those in distress.”
The Katsina Governor, Aminu Masari had today, Monday said that over 44 people had lost their lives while 20 others were still missing following yesterday, Sunday flood disaster in Jibia Local Government Area of the state.
Governor Masari, who inspected the affected areas in the local government, said more than 500 houses were destroyed while thousands of people rendered homeless.
He said that scores of animals were also killed during the disaster, which occurred on Sunday night and lasted for over three hours.
‘’I can say that I have never seen this kind of disaster in my life. The water level is above 10 feet height and it is a purely a natural disaster as the government had constructed drainages that were emptying into Jibia river.
“The water from the river moved in a reverse order and came back to the town and caused the flooding.
“I have seen a young groom of three days old who loss his bride and still searching for her.”
The governor said that the government had already relocated the victims to a primary school in the area, adding that he had informed the federal government about the disaster stressing that NEMA had already brought 13 trucks loaded with relief materials for distribution to the victims.
The governor said that he had directed the state Ministry of Environment to look into the possibility of diverting the water from direct contact with the river. [myad]
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The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has rated Nigeria’s economy as having being recovering from what it called ‘the worst contraction in 25 years in 2016.’
Ekiti: Significant Precursor To Buhari’s 2019 Victory, By Patrick Obahiagbon
Fayose’s Goebbelian irritabilities, innuendoes and direct assaults on the All Progressives Congress (APC), President Muhammadu Buhari and the security agencies all in a bid to psyche himself up and manipulate public perception about his popularity and invincibility in the governorship politics of Ekiti state have come to naught in the face of the facts and election figures that were summative of the essential mandate by the people that tilted the pendulum of victory and legitimacy in favour of Dr. Kayode Fayemi.
Fayemi, who was governor in the state from October 16, 2010 to October 16, 2014, now has a better title, following his victory in the weekend’s governorship election. There is an emphatic change of ownership and with that change comes a new orientation in terms of the sublime and pragmatic socio-political and economic interactions and appreciation of the place of leadership in keeping fidelity to the social contract that has been forged with the elements of APC’s robust manifestoes on which Fayemi’s electioneering was anchored.
The era of Fayose’s peculiar political gambadoism that questions the cosmopolitan and enlightened spirit of Ekiti and its intelligentsia is fast approaching a euphoric terminus. All of us in the APC are in a celebratory mood that on October 16, 2018, Fayose would be hoisted in his own petard and the process of exorcising Ekiti of his negative politics and influence will begin in earnest. That is one task that holds a great promise for Ekiti under the watch of the urbane, unassuming and affable Fayemi.
But beyond the demystification of Fayose and the dislodgement of PDP in Ekiti is the domino effect of this political Risorgimento on the national reputation and acceptability of the APC brand by Nigerians. The APC has come under existential attacks by the opposition elements who have hurled all manner of propaganda to de-market it ahead of the 2019 general elections. In their desperate and diabolical schema, they have continued to portray the APC and President Buhari as incompetent in the enormous task of cleansing the Augean stables of corruption which they had inflicted on the nation in their 16 years of clueless and rapacious government.
As Buhari continues to put his nose to the grindstone, the PDP-led oppositions and other retrogressive centrifugal and centripetal forces that are uncomfortable with the administration’s anti-corruption war and moves to correct the age-long appropriation of our commonwealth by a few powerful individuals have unconscionably and consistently sponsored killings in parts of the country in order to discredit the government. That has been the original sin of Buhari: his commitment to take back our country from the vice-like grips or strangleholds of those that have privatized it.
Understandably, the anti-Buhari elements have committed themselves to obfuscate the gradual but consistent progress towards good governance and integrity in government. Except for mischief makers, there is a national consensus that the level of rot inherited by Buhari is monumentally abysmal. It is such that it can overwhelm a revolutionary approach to governance. The necessity to systematically deal with the contending and problematic issues has, in fact, put a strain on a government that is eager to deliver.
The matter becomes more difficult in a situation where the president, as the poster child of the anti-corruption war, appears to be the only one that is committed to the war in terms of his antecedents, pedigrees, credible verbal exhortations and even body language. This has been globally acknowledged. Recently, he was conferred with the honour of anti-corruption champion on the continent of Africa by the African Union (AU). On the corruption issue, Buhari is on top of his game with the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) under the watch of Ibrahim Magu doing a yeoman job.
On the other governance issues like the economy and security which the oppositions take delight to criticise, the president has entrusted qualified individuals to superintend them and he is providing the requisite leadership gravitas. He is disposed to retool and re-kit his administrative infrastructure as time goes on for better efficient service delivery. That is the essence of government and governance.
For close to four years, Buhari has been working persistently and steadfastly at rebuilding a better and greater Nigeria from the ruins of 16 years that he inherited from the PDP. It will be unfair to expect him to clear the age-long mess in a jiffy. It does not work that way. He has to conscientiously work at it. That explains the series of executive orders he has signed to bolster administrative actions that would conduce to good governance. With the direction that he is headed clearly defined as the president and head of the executive, it will be salutary to get the buy-in of the legislature and the judiciary, the two other arms that make up the federal government. Once cooperation and synergy are emplaced, the federal government will be home and dry.
Indeed, judging by the much the Buhari administration has achieved, in so short a time, I am inclined to believe that another four years in the saddle will enable much more progress. The president will be able to build more physical and administrative infrastructure including institutions that will preserve official mores rather than the characteristic predilection of building individuals. It is in the above context that the president’s decision to seek re-election in 2019 is in apple-pie order: to continue the good work.
It is heartwarming that leaders and members of our party, working in concert with Nigerians, are pushing the apt narrative that a second term in office for Buhari is an opportunity to provide elixir for all of our nation’s fundamental turpitude and putrescence. To realise Buhari’s re-election in pragmatic terms, a vast majority of Nigerians would have to enlist in the campaign to dismantle all manner of shared prejudices, primordial sentiments and fault lines that the opposition elements and those who are determined to truncate his good work have mounted on the trajectory to 2019 victory.
Overall, their diabolic and odious agendas are headed for the political seppuku. Happily, the victory of the APC in Ekiti, under the national chairmanship of Comrade Adams Oshiomhiole, is both a precursor and fillip to the president’s surefooted march to a win in the scheduled February 16, 2019 presidential election. The outcome of the governorship election is a clear statement that the APC is an acceptable national political brand. This is expected to be reconfirmed in the forthcoming Osun governorship election. Meantime, Fayemi’s victory over Fayose’s candidate, Professor Olusola Kolapo, in the poll is a clear pointer to the string of APC’s successes in elections between now and in the scheduled 2019 general elections.