Polygamy is an old tradition in most African countries. Recently, a Nigerian man married two women at the same time in the same church. In the past, white people have strongly condemned polygamous marriage and it is still an offence in the U.S and most European countries. One wonders why the countries who incriminate polygamy, allows marriage between people of same gender.
Polygamy is on the rise and surprisingly, more whites are now interested in it and they have started to practice it. Josh, a white man entered into a four-way relationship with his three girlfriends and all the four lovers are from South Carolina. The question is why are more whites now interested in polygamy? We’ve also seen white twins who share the same boyfriend.
Using multiple marriage licenses by anyone to enter into a legal marriage with more than one person can be regarded as a criminal offence in the U.S. However,a white pastor in the U.S claimed to have married two women because according to him, he loves the two women and therefore, marrying them was the right thing to do.
Psychologists believe that females do better and are more happy by sharing a partner who defends a good territory (with plenty of food, cover and other things they need) than they would be by opting to be the single partner in a bad territory.
Brazilian soccer legend, Ronaldinho, wants to take advantage of the loophole in Brazilian system and marry his 2 girlfriends, Coelho and Souza, at the same time. Under the Brazilian law, polygamy is not allowed. No state in Brazil will issue any person more than one marriage license, but there is a procedure that allows three people to enter into a “civil union”. Therefore, Ronaldinho plans to enter into civil union with his girlfriends and be referring to them as his wives. Report has it that the three of them have been living together since December, this year. [myad]
File photo: Dame Patience Jonathan alights first, with her husband President Goodluck Jonathan behind from the presidential jet NAF1 during one of his official visits to the United State of America, in 2013. | Photo by thescoopng
The Presidency has accused former President Goodluck Jonathan of making Nigeria a laughing stock in the international arena and turning back to say that he is ashamed to be a Nigerian.
Reacting to Jonathan’s remark: “I feel ashamed as a former President that the President of a neighbouring country used Nigeria as negative examples,” the Presidency asked: “who put us there. He is the one in the mirror, who put us there? The picture is of himself. Let him look at the mirror. So what else does he want to see?”
In a statement, Garba Shehu, senior special assistant to President Muhammadu Buhari said: “it was a big shame but we are happy that Mr. Jonathan himself is realizing this and hope that his political party will own up what they did to the country. He made Nigeria a laughing stock, if other countries are laughing at Nigeria, who put us there? Are they not the one?”
Garba Shehu insisted that President Buhari is trying to clean up the mess “and he is doing a good job of it. Please they should allow him time to do this thing.
“We are gaining back our respectability globally even the citizens when they travel out of the country, they are better respected than they were before.”
President Muhammadu Buhari has called on schools across the country and other relevant stakeholders to make the safety of the nation’s children a priority in all aspects of their lives.
In a message to mark the Children’s Day tomorrow, May 27, President Buhari said that his government had directed the management of all Federal Government Colleges (FGC) and advised all state-owned schools across the Country to provide adequate measures of safety and security of their students.
The President also called on all schools management committees at all levels of public and private institutions to take adequate security measures and put in place mechanisms for safety of children.
“May I also call on the Families, Security Agencies, Traditional Rulers, Religious Leaders, Civil Society Organizations, Human Rights Activists, and the Society at large to rise up and take urgent and decisive actions to stem the unacceptable rising cases of violence against our children. We must ensure safety of our children in homes, schools, markets, worship centres, on the streets and everywhere at all times.”
Buhari appealed to parents not to relent in their efforts to send their wards to school, especially the girl child as her education reduces infant and maternal mortality and prevents early and child marriages, adding that it also increases literacy and reduces poverty.
“The saying that to educate a woman is to educate the nation is very apt in this regard.”
Part of the message goes thus:
Today affords me another opportunity to re-affirm our Administration’s commitment to the protection of children, a day to reflect on our roles and responsibilities as Parents and Leaders towards our children, and also assessing how far we have fared in this regard.
As you may recall, one of the cardinal objectives of this Administration is the provision of quality education to our children as a fundamental foundation of economic and social development. In this regard, I am pleased to inform you that this Administration has recorded measurable success in the home grown school feeding programme as it has continued to expand.
Our children are our future, and the initiatives that come from them give confidence that our country has a bright future.
I am always inspired and encouraged when I remember encounters I had with three of our young ones. When I was on medical vacation in 2017, three year old Maya Jammal recorded a prayer for my recovery, which went viral online.
Also, 10 year old Aisha Aliyu Gebbi wrote a personal letter to me, describing herself as my “biggest fan”.
Nicole Benson, then 12 years old, had contributed the sum of Five Thousand, Seven Hundred Naira and Eighty-Five kobo (N5,700.85) to my campaign in 2015. The money was all saved up from her lunch and pocket allowance. There are millions of such children nationwide.
I am very impressed by what our children have been able to do, and what the future holds for them. That is one reason why we are committed to the school feeding programme, to prepare a future generation of physically and intellectually robust children. At the last count, over 8.2 million children in 24 states of the Federation are being given free meals daily. This happens in 45,000 schools round the country.
I therefore call on all stakeholders to support this programme to ensure that all the 36 States of the Federation and FCT are covered. This will promote substantially higher enrolment levels in our schools.
Since its inception in May, 2015, this Administration has also focused attention on addressing issues of child protection, participation and survival. In 2015, the campaign to end violence against children was launched which was commemorated in 2016. In November 2016, the Campaign to End Child Marriage was also launched to ensure that as many children as possible are able to fully enjoy their childhood and be protected from all the challenges associated with this phenomenon. These campaigns have been reinforced with sensitization campaigns in some States of the Federation.
The theme for this year’s celebration “Creating Safe Spaces for Children: Our Collective Responsibility” is an opportunity to promote the safety and security of our children. As a responsible Government, we are committed to ensuring that children are protected from violence and exploitation against them, and, that their environments are safe enough for them to pursue their educational attainments, discover their full potentials to grow into responsible citizens.
This Administration has made giant strides in the protection of the Rights of the Nigerian Child and as a result of such efforts, Nigeria has been declared a Pathfinding Country on Ending Violence Against Children. This I believe is a collective achievement and I urge us to continue to build on the present momentum to achieve the targets of the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).
Finally, while I appreciate the security agencies for their efforts so far, I urge them to redouble their efforts in protecting children from danger and violence in line with the provisions of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria and Child Rights Acts, 2003.
Former President Goodluck Jonathan has said that with what the government of Governor Ayodele Fayose has achieved under the canopy of the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), no other political party can defeat the party in the July 14 governorship election if real election is to be conducted.
“I don’t believe anybody can defeat the PDP in Ekiti, if real election is going to be conducted.
“Since I came in, I have been going round the state with the Governor. I have seen the support the Governor still has, I have seen the support the Peoples Democratic Party enjoys in the state. I have also seen the enthusiasm of our people.”
Jonathan then called on President Muhammadu Buhari not to use the power at his disposal as President negatively, adding: “because I was there before, and I know that when you are there, there is so much pressure on you to use all the powers at your disposal to subjugate democracy.
“Don’t do that because what you go with, at the end of the day, is the good name you leave behind. If you use your powers negatively, posterity will haunt you. I call on Mr. President to use his power to strengthen democracy because all the great democracies we see in the world today were built by people. People make sacrifices to make their country great.”
Argentina ex-international Hernán Jorge Crespo has declared the Super Eagles football playing maestro Austin Okocha as the greatest Nigeria had ever produced.
He said: “I think the greatest player so far in Nigeria was Austin Okocha,” at an interactive session with news men when he arrived in Lagos, his first visit to Nigeria on the invitation of Heineken Group.
Crespo along with Nigeria’s ex-internationals, Taribo West, Augustine Eguavon, Mutiu Adepoju and Samson Siasia, was invited by Heineken for an interactive session with newsmen in Lagos.
Crespo attributed the success of his over 18 years football career to respect for others which, he said, was one of the fundamental values of life.
“As a young player, I love the game of football but one fundamental thing I learnt along the way was respect for the game, my team mates and fans of football.
“As I grew older in football, I also learnt that it was very important to respect my opponents as well; indeed, it has been a worthwhile experience for me.
“I am in Nigeria because I want to have the opportunity to meet people, to support my passion and most importantly support Heineken and their vision for the UEFA Champions League,’’ He said.
Crespo said that he would never forget playing against Nigeria’s ex-internationals, especially against hard tackling Taribo West and Celestine Babayaro, who were his team mates at Inter Milan and Chelsea, respectively.
“In my career I met a lot of players I had respect for and I would never forget players like West, Babayaro, Emmanuel Amunike, Daniel Amokachie, Sunday Oliseh and George Finidi.
With over 300 goals during his career, Crespo was regarded as one of the deadliest striker ever in the history of European and World football.
He played for Argentinian club side River Plate and Italian sides such as Parma, Inter Milan, AC Milan, Genoa and Lazio.
He won the 2005 English Premiership League title with Chelsea FC of England, among other laurels.
While in Nigeria, Crespo is set to share the drama of Heineken-sponsored UEFA Champions League Final between Real Madrid and Liverpool with Lagos fans Saturdaynight.
There are strong indications that 58 year old Maurizio Sarri is warming up to become the new manager of Chelsea Football Club following talks with the Italian manager in London.
Sarri was replaced by Carlo Ancelotti as Napoli manager in the course of the week and flew into London on Friday to engage in negotiations with the London club over a two-year contract. He is being appointed to replace Antonio Conte who is set to leave the club.
Conte has a year left in his initial contract and it is believed that it will cost Chelsea £9m to sack the Italian, who has refused to quit the club despite the speculations over his future.
Ethiopia has pardoned Andargachew Tsige, an opposition leader with British citizenship who had been sentenced to death. He was sentenced to death in absentia in 2009 over his role in the opposition group Ginbot 7, leading to his arrest in Yemen five years later and extradition to Ethiopia.
Andargachew served as secretary-general of the anti-government group, which describes itself as a reform movement but is branded a terrorist organization by Addis Ababa.
Attorney General Berhanu Tsegaye said that Andargachew has been pardoned “under special circumstances” along with 575 other inmates.
The decisions were made with the “intention of widening political space,” the attorney general told reporters in the capital, Addis Ababa. Andargachew is expected to be released within the next two days.
Thousands of prisoners, including several senior opposition leaders, have been freed since January having been accused of a variety of charges such as terrorism or incitement to topple the government.
The pardons are part of reforms that the government has pledged to undertake after violent unrest broke out three years ago, sparked by an urban development plan for Addis Ababa that critics said would trigger land seizures in the surrounding Oromiya region.
The protests broadened into rallies over political rights, leading to the resignation of Prime Minister Hailemariam Desalegn in February. He has since been replaced by former army officer Abiy Ahmed.
Ethiopia last carried out an execution in 2007, a rare move against a military officer convicted of killing a former head of security and immigration.
Ginbot 7 is among five groups Addis Ababa has blacklisted under anti-terror legislation, alongside the secessionist groups Oromo Liberation Front and the Ogaden National Liberation Front, as well as al Qaeda and Somalia’s al Shabaab.
Last week, the government and an exiled opposition party from Oromiya opened talks with the aim of enabling it to return to the political fold.
The Oromo Democratic Front (ODF) was formed in 2013 by former members of the Oromo Liberation Front and seeks self-determination for ethnic Oromos, Ethiopia’s largest ethnic group. Its leaders have been living in exile.
The Bishop of the Diocese of Ekiti State, the Church of Nigeria, Anglican Communion, Rt. Rev. Christopher Omotunde, has asked politicians whay they must kill others just for the purpose of winning elections when they too will die.
The Bishop, who spoke at the funeral service in honour of the late Mrs. Comfort Aduke Ogunleye, at the Cathedral Church of Emmanuel, Okesa, Ado-Ekiti said: “if you become president, governors, senators or whichever high position you might get to, the ultimate is that you will die one day. So, why killing to win election or get positions of influences? All is vanity.”
“You don’t have to be desperate in life but to use their time on earth for the service of God and fellow human beings.
“If you are here and you don’t spare a thought for the day of death, you are a fool. If you have thousands of clothes at home, only one will be used to bury you.
“If you swindle to acquire wealth, embezzle money to build mansions, doctor records in office, you are not taking them to heaven, they will all be left behind here.
“No matter how beautiful your mansion is, when you die, you will not be buried inside of it. The best your children will give to you is to bury you outside your house.
“When you die, all your belongings will be shared without your input. All the positions and offices you are holding tight unto will soon be taken away from you.
“In fact, when an office holder dies in Nigeria, people will be struggling to take over his seat even when his mourning has not been concluded.”
Bishop Omotunde advised Nigerians to stop the pursuit of vanity because “nobody can take his wealth, power, fame and property out of this world when he dies.”
He advised the children of the deceased not to depart from the legacies of prayer, dedication and service to God handed to them by their late mum.
The deceased, who died on January 19, was the mother-in-law of the Bishop of the Diocese of Ekiti West, the Rt. Rev. Rufus Adepoju.
One of the notable features of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration in the last three years is the re-establishment of Nigeria’s leadership position in Africa and its values to the world.
So, when he was appointed as Anti-Corruption Champion for the year 2018 during the 29th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of African Union (AU) in Addis Ababa, it came as no surprise to observers.
For his position in featuring good leadership in Africa, the African leaders also unanimously endorsed Nigeria to champion the fight against corruption in the African Union.
They were convinced that the endorsement of Nigeria was in recognition of Buhari’s administration’s demonstrable commitment and glowing success in the fight against corruption.
Also, Nigeria’s prominent participation in the Anti-Corruption Summit and the Commonwealth Conference on Tackling Corruption in May 2016 in London had yielded positive results globally.
Major outcomes of events are the establishment of a Global Forum for Asset Recovery, hosted by the governments of the U.S. and UK in December 2017; and focusing on assisting Nigeria and three other countries to reclaim their stolen assets.
At the event, Buhari signed an agreement with the UK on modalities for the return of Nigeria’s stolen assets in the UK.
Similarly, Nigeria joined the Open Government Partnership and developed a National Action Plan which is already being implemented.
Apart from the agreement with UK in 2016, Nigeria also signed an agreement on the identification and repatriation of illicit funds with the United Arab Emirates during his visit to that country, the presidency said.
It said that so far, the Swiss government has repatriated 322 million dollars looted by a past leader and the amount is in a special account in the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Malam Garba Shehu, the President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, said that the Buhari-led government had succeeded in abolishing grand corruption at the top as attested to by the President Donald Trump of U.S.
He observed that the government had significantly brought down the level of corruption in the whole country.
“Many, who are discerning, would have read this from Buhari’s speech when he inaugurated the impressive new headquarters building of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
“He narrated how and why he was overthrown as a military Head of State in the 80s; and in that speech, he said that he was kicked out because he fought corruption and those who took power freed all those that he had jailed, returning whatever they stole to them,’’ he said.
“Buhari also said at the inauguration of EFCC head office building that the building was another milestone in his determined and collective fight against corruption, acknowledging that since 2015, his administration had made significant progress in the fight against corruption.
“Everyone now knows that corrupt officials will be held to account, no matter how long it takes; we have recovered and are still recovering trillions of naira that were stolen in the past few years by people without conscience.
“We are pursuing recoveries everywhere and are making sure that anyone who has been found culpable is made to answer for his or her crime under the law,’’ he said.
He, however, noted that “the war of corruption is not an easy one to fight, because it affects so many different branches of our lives, so much so that some people do not even consider breaking trust is anymore a crime.
“It has become the norm. That is why we must fight this attitude and encourage Nigerians to change their attitudes and perspectives.’’
Shehu said that as part of deliberate efforts to enhance the image of Nigeria globally, the fragile, nearly broken relations with the U.S., UK, South Africa and neighbouring countries, such as Chad, Republic of Niger and Cameroon, had been strengthened since June 2015.
According to the presidency, the present administration has mobilised international support for the War against Boko Haram and developed strong partnerships with key countries in the fight.
“The U.S. has finally agreed to sell weapons to Nigeria and the sale of 12 Super Tucano Aircraft by the U.S. Government to Nigeria has just been finalised.
“The Buhari’s administration has revamped the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) comprising troops from Nigeria and Chad, Niger, Cameroon and Benin which has contributed significantly to the weakening of Boko Haram insurgency,’’ the presidency said.
It noted further oil prices rose to 55 dollars per barrel for the first time in 16 months, following the successful negotiation of an exemption from the OPEC production freeze agreed at the 171st OPEC Ministerial conference in Vienna.
According to the presidency, the present administration has successfully launched a renewed cooperation in the areas of security, agriculture and anti-corruption with a member of friendly countries including the U.S., China, Morocco, Switzerland and United Arab Emirates, among others.
On rail transportation, Shehu said that Buhari’s recent official visit to China had unlocked billions of dollars in infrastructure funding primarily for road and rail projects.
He also said that the visit brought to reality the currency swap agreement between the Peoples Bank of China and the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“The Chinese government is currently investing billions of dollars in concessional infrastructure funding for critical road and rail projects.
“All trains and coaches are being modernised by the Chinese; new standard railway tracks are being laid linking Ibadan and Lagos.
“Kaduna-Abuja, partly completed when President Buhari took over, is now in use and contracts for the entire stretch, Lagos-Kano have been awarded.
“Lagos-Port Harcourt will follow and by the presidential directive, all state capitals are to be linked by the new, standard gauge railway,’’ he said.
The presidency further notes that the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative, that involves a partnership with Morocco for the supply of phosphate, has resulted in the revitalisation of 11 blending plants across the country.
It says the economy has witnessed significant growth and consolidation after the recession of 2016 and 2017 as the economy recorded 1.9 per cent Gross Domestic Product growth in the first quarter of 2018.
“Inflation has fallen for the fifteenth consecutive month, while External Reserves are at their highest levels in five years and double the size as of October 2016.
“Nigeria’s Stock Market ended 2017 as one of the best-performing in the world, with returns of about 40 per cent.
“Records made available by the Ministry of Budget and National Planning has shown that five million new taxpayers had been added to the Tax Base since 2016 as part of efforts to diversify Federal Government revenues.
“It shows that tax revenue increased to N1.17 trillion in first quarter of 2018, a 51per cent increase when compared with what obtained on the first quarter of 2017 figure,’’ the presidency said.
Shehu observed further that last three years of the Buhari administration also witnessed the contribution of Solid Minerals to the Federation Account which tripled from N700 million in 2015 to N2 billion in 2016 and rose to N3.5 billion in 2017.
“Also, the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), the Federal Government’s medium-term Economic Plan, was launched in April 2017.
“It charts a course for the Nigerian economy over the next four years (2017-2020) to restore economic growth, invest in Nigerians and to build a globally competitive economy, among others.
He said further that to fast-track the implementation of the ERGP, the Federal Government inaugurated the ERGP Focus Labs to unlock medium-scale and large-scale investment projects held back by bureaucratic bottlenecks.
“The just-concluded Phase I of the ERGP Focus Labs identified projects worth about 10 billion dollars for fast-tracking and the bottlenecks holding them back are now being resolved,’’ he said.
The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Sen. Udoma Udu Udoma on May 23, said that he updated members of the Federal Executive Council meeting on the positive developments being recorded by the nation’s economy.
He said that the council was impressed and encouraged by the report which showed a GDP growth rate of 1.95 per cent.
Similarly, the Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogheh, said that Nigeria’s rice import from Thailand had drastically dropped by more than 95 per cent and thereby saving the country billions of dollars from the importation of the commodity.
Besides, these developments, concerned citizens observed that the 2018 budget which was raised to N9.1 trillion by the National Assembly with additional N501 billion was transmitted to President Buhari for his assent.
The senate increased the 2018 budget from N8.612 trillion as proposed by Buhari to N9.12 trillion while the crude oil benchmark price of the budget was also increased from 45 dollars to 50.5 dollars.
They, therefore, believe that significant implementation of the 2018 budget will witness increase in government spending in infrastructure, observing that with the 2017 appropriation budget which is about to lapse, government’s capital spending will hit N1.5 trillion.
Ismaila Chafe if of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Malam Muhammad Musa Bello has approved the release of N700 million for the payment of retirement benefits of 75 workers in Federal Capital Development Authority (FCDA) who retired in 2004.
The Permanent Secretary of the FCT, Chinyeaka Ohaa, who announced at the sign off ceremony on the resolution of 2004 FCDA retirees matter while receiving the retirees, said that the entitlements of the 75 beneficiaries would be paid directly into their accounts within two weeks.
The resolution of the matter, which has been a subject of litigation, has been stalled for fourteen years running, causing the affected officers all forms of hardship.
The minister has to use the Alternative Dispute Resolution (ADR) window to resolve the 14 year old dispute.
Ohaa said: “the minister has graciously agreed to bring your challenges to an end, by giving human face to your issue.”
Earlier, the Chairman of the 2004 retirees, Engineer Audu Umar said that the sign off ceremony is an indication that the present leadership of the FCT Administration is indeed different and poised to address issues bothering on staff welfare.
He appealed to the minister to grant long service award to the affected staff in view of their meritorious service to the nation.
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Landmarks Of Buhari Administration, By Ismaila Chafe
So, when he was appointed as Anti-Corruption Champion for the year 2018 during the 29th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of African Union (AU) in Addis Ababa, it came as no surprise to observers.
For his position in featuring good leadership in Africa, the African leaders also unanimously endorsed Nigeria to champion the fight against corruption in the African Union.
They were convinced that the endorsement of Nigeria was in recognition of Buhari’s administration’s demonstrable commitment and glowing success in the fight against corruption.
Also, Nigeria’s prominent participation in the Anti-Corruption Summit and the Commonwealth Conference on Tackling Corruption in May 2016 in London had yielded positive results globally.
Major outcomes of events are the establishment of a Global Forum for Asset Recovery, hosted by the governments of the U.S. and UK in December 2017; and focusing on assisting Nigeria and three other countries to reclaim their stolen assets.
At the event, Buhari signed an agreement with the UK on modalities for the return of Nigeria’s stolen assets in the UK.
Similarly, Nigeria joined the Open Government Partnership and developed a National Action Plan which is already being implemented.
Apart from the agreement with UK in 2016, Nigeria also signed an agreement on the identification and repatriation of illicit funds with the United Arab Emirates during his visit to that country, the presidency said.
It said that so far, the Swiss government has repatriated 322 million dollars looted by a past leader and the amount is in a special account in the Central Bank of Nigeria.
Malam Garba Shehu, the President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, said that the Buhari-led government had succeeded in abolishing grand corruption at the top as attested to by the President Donald Trump of U.S.
He observed that the government had significantly brought down the level of corruption in the whole country.
“Many, who are discerning, would have read this from Buhari’s speech when he inaugurated the impressive new headquarters building of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).
“He narrated how and why he was overthrown as a military Head of State in the 80s; and in that speech, he said that he was kicked out because he fought corruption and those who took power freed all those that he had jailed, returning whatever they stole to them,’’ he said.
“Buhari also said at the inauguration of EFCC head office building that the building was another milestone in his determined and collective fight against corruption, acknowledging that since 2015, his administration had made significant progress in the fight against corruption.
“Everyone now knows that corrupt officials will be held to account, no matter how long it takes; we have recovered and are still recovering trillions of naira that were stolen in the past few years by people without conscience.
“We are pursuing recoveries everywhere and are making sure that anyone who has been found culpable is made to answer for his or her crime under the law,’’ he said.
He, however, noted that “the war of corruption is not an easy one to fight, because it affects so many different branches of our lives, so much so that some people do not even consider breaking trust is anymore a crime.
“It has become the norm. That is why we must fight this attitude and encourage Nigerians to change their attitudes and perspectives.’’
Shehu said that as part of deliberate efforts to enhance the image of Nigeria globally, the fragile, nearly broken relations with the U.S., UK, South Africa and neighbouring countries, such as Chad, Republic of Niger and Cameroon, had been strengthened since June 2015.
According to the presidency, the present administration has mobilised international support for the War against Boko Haram and developed strong partnerships with key countries in the fight.
“The U.S. has finally agreed to sell weapons to Nigeria and the sale of 12 Super Tucano Aircraft by the U.S. Government to Nigeria has just been finalised.
“The Buhari’s administration has revamped the Multinational Joint Task Force (MNJTF) comprising troops from Nigeria and Chad, Niger, Cameroon and Benin which has contributed significantly to the weakening of Boko Haram insurgency,’’ the presidency said.
It noted further oil prices rose to 55 dollars per barrel for the first time in 16 months, following the successful negotiation of an exemption from the OPEC production freeze agreed at the 171st OPEC Ministerial conference in Vienna.
According to the presidency, the present administration has successfully launched a renewed cooperation in the areas of security, agriculture and anti-corruption with a member of friendly countries including the U.S., China, Morocco, Switzerland and United Arab Emirates, among others.
On rail transportation, Shehu said that Buhari’s recent official visit to China had unlocked billions of dollars in infrastructure funding primarily for road and rail projects.
He also said that the visit brought to reality the currency swap agreement between the Peoples Bank of China and the Central Bank of Nigeria.
“The Chinese government is currently investing billions of dollars in concessional infrastructure funding for critical road and rail projects.
“All trains and coaches are being modernised by the Chinese; new standard railway tracks are being laid linking Ibadan and Lagos.
“Kaduna-Abuja, partly completed when President Buhari took over, is now in use and contracts for the entire stretch, Lagos-Kano have been awarded.
“Lagos-Port Harcourt will follow and by the presidential directive, all state capitals are to be linked by the new, standard gauge railway,’’ he said.
The presidency further notes that the Presidential Fertiliser Initiative, that involves a partnership with Morocco for the supply of phosphate, has resulted in the revitalisation of 11 blending plants across the country.
It says the economy has witnessed significant growth and consolidation after the recession of 2016 and 2017 as the economy recorded 1.9 per cent Gross Domestic Product growth in the first quarter of 2018.
“Inflation has fallen for the fifteenth consecutive month, while External Reserves are at their highest levels in five years and double the size as of October 2016.
“Nigeria’s Stock Market ended 2017 as one of the best-performing in the world, with returns of about 40 per cent.
“Records made available by the Ministry of Budget and National Planning has shown that five million new taxpayers had been added to the Tax Base since 2016 as part of efforts to diversify Federal Government revenues.
“It shows that tax revenue increased to N1.17 trillion in first quarter of 2018, a 51per cent increase when compared with what obtained on the first quarter of 2017 figure,’’ the presidency said.
Shehu observed further that last three years of the Buhari administration also witnessed the contribution of Solid Minerals to the Federation Account which tripled from N700 million in 2015 to N2 billion in 2016 and rose to N3.5 billion in 2017.
“Also, the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), the Federal Government’s medium-term Economic Plan, was launched in April 2017.
“It charts a course for the Nigerian economy over the next four years (2017-2020) to restore economic growth, invest in Nigerians and to build a globally competitive economy, among others.
He said further that to fast-track the implementation of the ERGP, the Federal Government inaugurated the ERGP Focus Labs to unlock medium-scale and large-scale investment projects held back by bureaucratic bottlenecks.
“The just-concluded Phase I of the ERGP Focus Labs identified projects worth about 10 billion dollars for fast-tracking and the bottlenecks holding them back are now being resolved,’’ he said.
The Minister of Budget and National Planning, Sen. Udoma Udu Udoma on May 23, said that he updated members of the Federal Executive Council meeting on the positive developments being recorded by the nation’s economy.
He said that the council was impressed and encouraged by the report which showed a GDP growth rate of 1.95 per cent.
Similarly, the Minister of Agriculture, Chief Audu Ogheh, said that Nigeria’s rice import from Thailand had drastically dropped by more than 95 per cent and thereby saving the country billions of dollars from the importation of the commodity.
Besides, these developments, concerned citizens observed that the 2018 budget which was raised to N9.1 trillion by the National Assembly with additional N501 billion was transmitted to President Buhari for his assent.
The senate increased the 2018 budget from N8.612 trillion as proposed by Buhari to N9.12 trillion while the crude oil benchmark price of the budget was also increased from 45 dollars to 50.5 dollars.
They, therefore, believe that significant implementation of the 2018 budget will witness increase in government spending in infrastructure, observing that with the 2017 appropriation budget which is about to lapse, government’s capital spending will hit N1.5 trillion.
Ismaila Chafe if of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)