Presidential candidate of the Labour Party (LP) for 2023 election, Peter Obi has said that 100 million poor Nigerians, 35 million unemployed and God are his structures as he dismissed criticisms that he has no political structure to win election.
“I have said it before when people talk about structure, that my structure is the 100 million Nigerians living in poverty. 35 million people unemployed. Those people who are finding it difficult to live.”
Peter Obi, who spoke to news men today, July 21 in Makurdi, Benue State after holding a closed-door meeting with Governor Samuel Ortom, stressed: “Nigerians today are spending over 100 percent of their money on feeding; they are my structure. And above all, the most important structure is the Almighty God.”
Senate Committee on the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has made the last assessment of the projects executed in the last seven years of the Muhammadu Buhari government by the minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello.
The Senate Committee, led by its chairman, Senator Tolu Odebiyi, during an oversight visit to key projects under construction in the nation’s capital today, July 21, said: “we believe that in the twilight of this administration, which is about 10 months, it is important that we catalogue all the projects that have been done, prioritize the ones that must be completed before the end of this term so that we can make sure that we provide the adequate funding and budgets for such projects.
“The FCT budget is going to be forwarded to us soon and it’s important that we come and see the state of the work and their completion rate. We will make sure that any of the projects that requires priority is given the due attention so as to elevate and increase efficiency.”
The Senate Committee Chairman said that it is awaiting the Minister and his team to present the Senate with their budgets, where he is expected to catalogue priority projects are and that, based on what funding available and what revenue they have been able to generate, “we will try and see how we can approve the funding adequately.”
He however, scored the FCT Administration high on execution of high-quality projects in the capital city despite dwindling economic fortunes after inspecting the projects from Southern Parkway through the Ring Road 1 interchange at Kaura District, Wuye bridge and Federal Secretariat and National Assembly complexes.
Senator Odebiyi expressed satisfaction on the level of completion of most of the projects after visiting the project sites.
“Part of our responsibility is to provide oversight duties as part of other legislative duties and what we have seen today has been quite interesting.”
This was even as the Minister said that the current FCT Administration has been able to achieve many successes due to the smooth relationship between it and the National Assembly.
Musa Bello said that with the challenge of paucity of funds, the FCT Administration decided to prioritize key infrastructure projects based on their impact to residents.
“Because of paucity of funds, we decided to prioritize key infrastructure projects to get them completed and in deciding the ones that fits into that category, we look at the ones that will give maximum benefit to the maximum number of people.
“If you noticed, all the four projects we went to day are all road projects that are meant to link one section of the Abuja city to the other and that’s the whole idea. The Abuja Master Plan has been designed in such a way that the road networks are supposed to complement each other and if you finish one portion and don’t do the other, then you don’t get the full utility of that particular road.”
The Minister stressed that it is the intention of the Administration to round off the tenure of President Buhari’s administration with the completion of a number of projects while developing some to the level where the next administration will be able to complete them within a very short period.
“Ultimately the objective is to make Abuja a vibrant city, a city where people will feel comfortable, where there are no traffic gridlock and where facilities will work. Working together with the national assembly, and I’m sure we will be able to achieve that.”
The Minister stressed the need to fast-track the provision of infrastructure to meet the pace of population surge in the FCT, a task which, he said, has been quite challenging.
“Running a mega city is a huge challenge and over the past five years, Abuja has had tremendous demographic change. Scientific reports have indicated that Abuja is one of the fastest growing cities in the world.
“But more importantly, as the city continues to mature, many of the infrastructure of previous years are also maturing and requiring constant maintenance and this is one area we are deploying resources to make sure that while we build new infrastructure, we make sure that existing infrastructure is catered for.
“In the past and even presently, projects are done diligently to the highest international standards. That is why you see many of the bridges even though they are about 30 years old, they still remain solid and we want to extend their lifespan by making sure that we lay emphasis on maintenance. So, while we continue to develop and construct, we are also going to maintain.”
Special adviser to President Muhammadu Buhari on media and publicity, Femi Adesina has made it clear that he has never been a card-carrying member of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) and may never be.
In an article titled ‘OSUN: BUHARI DOES IT AGAIN,’ the Presidential spokesman said that he would rather go into farming and continue with his media work at the end of Buhari’s second and last tenure in 2023.
“Yes, APC is my preferred party, but I’m not a member, and won’t likely be, with my eyes set on farming and media work after leaving government service.”
Adesina, who reacted specifically to insinuations in some quarters, linking him to the recently concluded Osun State governorship election, said that though he would have preferred Oyetola as his preferred candidate to win the election, but that he is not a stakeholder in the Osun election as people painted it to be.
“I’m also a Buharist, a firm believer in the ideals of that honest man, the Mai Gaskiya from Daura, in Katsina State, though I am not a registered member of the All Progressives Congress (APC).
“It was, therefore, laughable for some people to try and rope me into Osun State politics, as the gubernatorial election held last Saturday. First, they came up with the news that Femi Adesina had lost his ward to the People’s Democratic Party (PDP). Which Femi Adesina? Me? Or another one? Do you lose what you don’t participate in?
“Out of curiosity, I checked. The APC had, indeed, won my ward, in the Post Office area of Ipetumodu by 176 to PDP’s 130 votes. But it didn’t matter. It just shows how heinous and petty some people can be.
“My position is this. I work for an APC government, and it is my preferred party. But member? Not so. I have always rooted for good APC candidates and I would have loved if Governor Gboyega Oyetola had won in Osun last weekend.”
Presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu, hosting the Secretary of State of Ohio, United States of America, and Leader of Delegation, Frank LaRose, when members of the IRI/NDI Observation Mission to Nigeria, in Abuja today, July 21.
Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board, JAMB, and heads of tertiary education institutions in the country have further reduced the minimum cut-off mark for admissions into Universities in the 2022/2023 academic session to 140.
The board, today, July 21, at the ongoing Policy Meeting on Admissions presided by the Minister of Education, Adamu Adamu, in Abuja, also pegged the minimum cut-off marks for polytechnics to 100 and colleges of education to 100.
The JAMB’s registrar, Professor Ishaq Oloyede, who announced the cut-off after a thorough debates and votes by vice chancellors of universities, rectors of polytechnics and provosts of colleges of education, said that the implication is that every institution has the right to fix its own cut-off mark even up to 220.
Oloyede said that no one would be allowed to go less than the agreed minimum marks of 100 for colleges of education, 100 for polytechnics and 140 for universities. He said that the merit quota for federal universities remains 45percent, while the state universities fall between indigine quota and national quota.
The meeting also called for the review of admission criteria to give ten per cent discretional power of admission to heads of tertiary institutions.
Nigeria’s Government is considering the blockage of all sources of funding of terrorism in the country, including suspending mining activities. “The government is looking at what measures to take in terms of addressing, bridging and blocking associated sources of funding, including payment for ransom and indeed, the mining activities and the possibility or otherwise of suspending for the time being, mining activities, are being considered as well, by the government.” The Attorney General of the Federation and Minister of Justice, Malami dropped the hints today, July 21 at a news briefing shortly after the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting at the Presidential villa, Abuja. He said that the Council, at the meeting presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari deliberated mainly on the logistics being used by the terrorists: Boko Haram and bandits among others in the act of executing their unfortunate act of terrorism and terrorising the country. “It was extensively deliberated upon as to what needs to be done for the purpose of ensuring that their means of logistics are, indeed, adequately considered and necessary steps taken in degrading their capacity to move around. “So, discussions were carried out, deliberations made and sizeable resolutions in that direction were equally developed. “The government would looked into that possibility with particular regard to restriction on use and distribution of motorcycles which is the most conventional logistical means being deployed by terrorists. “Again, issues of funding of the terrorism and the terrorism act were discussed and deliberated upon and considered. As you rightly know, recently the government under the leadership of President Buhari had indeed, passed and assented to certain bills inclusive of the money laundering, prevention and prohibition act among others. “With the passage of that law, and assented to, the conventional means of terrorists funding and financing was substantially and drastically addressed and that led to forensic analysis of, and identification of certain personalities that were in one way or the other connected with terrorism funding and financing.” The minister said that at the Council certain innovations were brought into the terrorists funding and financing, inclusive of the use of mineral resources, which is the mining activities among others. “And indeed, ransom which conventionally has been taken by the terrorists and then the need arises to now look into those frontiers that are being considered by the terrorists for the purpose of addressing them accordingly. “A resolution was equally developed on the need to address frontally, attack and ensure at the end of the day, that other considerations be put in place by terrorists in terms of funding their activities are equally addressed. “Again, other than logistics and funding, mining, other considerations were equally put in place on table for consideration by Council with particular regard to the unfortunate incident of the correctional service attack.” Malami said that there are anticipated resolutions arising from the consequences associated with dereliction of duty, adding that issues associated with logistics of terrorists and bandits, with blockage of the source of funding, with the likely possible suspension of mining activities were looked into. “It is a nexus and connection is, indeed, established and the issues associated with consequences for dereliction of duty if indeed, it established arising from the report expected and anticipated relating to the Kuje correctional incident.”
Director, Corporate Communications Department of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Osita Nwanisobi, has said that the Bank’s Governor, Godwin Enefiele was quoted out of context by the media at the post-Monetary Policy Committee (MPC) meeting briefing early in the week. Osita Nwanisobi, in a statement today, July 21, said that the Governor simply warned bank customers against converting the naira to foreign exchange for electioneering purposes. He expressed displeasure against those he described as deliberately misrepresenting the import of Emefiele’s caution on electioneering spending by the political class. According to Nwanisobi, the warning by the CBN Governor was to those who sought to convert the Naira from their accounts into foreign exchange for election campaign and not those who seek to exchange the currency for legitimate purposes, such as payment for tuition and other personal expenses. He emphasized that the apex Bank CBN would not take it kindly with those in the habit of conducting unauthorized movement of funds within and outside the country, vowing to use tools at its disposal to check the movement of illicit funds. The spokesman stressed that CBN would continue to maintain its mandate, and that it has discretionary power to prevent persons from conducting unauthorized transactions. Nwanisobi said the apex Bank is within its statutory limits to mop up the excess liquidity in the vaults of the institutions its regulates, so that they would not get involved in speculative activities. He advised the Bank’s customers not to get involved in unauthorized movement of funds for currency conversion in order not to fall foul of the extant laws of the land. Nwanisobi also advised Nigerians to be more patriotic as it relates to the Naira, saying that it is the duty of every citizen to support the CBN in preserving the intranational value of the Naira.
President Buhari addresses the nation on Covid-19 outbreak
President Muhammadu Buhari has listed hundreds of ecological projects his government has completed across the country in the last seven years (2015-2022).
Speaking today, July 20, at the launch of a compendium of ecological projects undertaken by his government, the President said that 332 ecological projects were approved during the period in review, out of which 266 were accomplished while the remaining 66 are at different stages of completion.
The President, who launched the publication before the commencement of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting, commended the Secretary to the Government of the Federation and the Management Team of the Ecological Project Office (EPO), for the judicious use of available resources for the effective implementation of approved projects, as well as the initiative for the publication.
In order to leverage the benefits accruable to government from the commendable efforts of the EPO, and the effective communication of these efforts through the publication, the President directed Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) which have not done so to showcase their performance and achievements to the public.
“The enormity of Nigeria’s ecological problems and inherited infrastructural deficit in general, has the tendency, like the proverbial drop in the ocean, to always drown our achievements in addressing ecological challenges and infrastructural deficit at large.
“It is against this background that publications like the one being launched today become very important and a useful tool in correcting the negative public perception, that government has not done anything in addressing these challenges.
“The documentation and publication of these achievements in our modest effort to tackle ecological problems is therefore predicated on our quest to improve communication in governance, as a tool for keeping citizens well-informed and helping them to hold government accountable.
“This is the most significant implication of the Ecological Project Office’s initiative in publishing this compendium.”
Buhari said that the Compendium, which is for the reading pleasure and knowledge of Nigerians, would bridge the information and communication gap between Nigerians and the real-time performance of this Administration by portraying the specific locations of ecological projects, with pictorial evidence as well as proofs of handing over the projects to the beneficiaries.
He advised States and Local Governments to judiciously use their shares of the ecological fund, strictly for ecological projects towards addressing the ecological problems in their areas.
This was even as the Secretary to the Government of the Federation (SGF), Boss Mustapha, told the President that the 554-page publication supervised by the Permanent Secretary, Dr. Habiba Lawal, is aimed at keeping the public abreast of the efforts of the administration in addressing verified ecological problems in ‘‘all the nooks and crannies of Nigeria.
He thanked the President for promoting the culture of accountability and for approving the change of name of Ecological Fund Office to EPO, for its mandate not to be misconstrued by the public.
“The Office was established through the Federation Account Act in 1981, primarily to carry out intervention projects nationwide with the Federal Government share of the ecological funds, to address critical ecological problems to supplement States and Local Government shares of the fund.”
On the Federal Government share of the Ecological Fund, the SGF explained that the latest sharing formula of the Ecological and Derivation Fund (EDF) as modified allocates 1.00 per cent to the Federal Government, 0.72 per cent to States while the Local Governments get 0.60 per cent.
He added that out of the 1.00 per cent of the Federal Government share, monthly the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) gets 20 per cent, National Agency for Great Green (NAGGW) Wall 5 per cent, North East Development Commission (NEDC) 10 per cent while the National Agricultural Development Agency (NALDA) receives 10 per cent.
The Presidential candidate of the main opposition Peoples Democratic Party (PDP), Alhaji Atiku Abubakar has vowed that he becomes the President of Nigeria, he will promote private investment in power, among other sectors.
Atiku, in a statement today, July 20 in reaction to what he he called “a total National Grid Collapse at precisely 12:23pm today, the 6th time this year alone, said that due to the priority that he places on the power sector upon which the successes of other sectors are hinged, “I am proposing innovative financing of infrastructure that will involve the facilitation of a review of the financial, legal, and regulatory environment to promote private investment in power, among other sectors.
“I’ll promote the incentivisation, with tax breaks, a consortium of private sector institutions to establish an Infrastructure Debt Fund (IDF) to primarily mobilise domestic and international private resources for the financing and delivery of large infrastructure projects across all the sectors of the economy. The IDF will have an initial investment capacity of approximately US$20 billion.
“In addition, I’ll cause the creation of an Infrastructure Development Credit Guarantee Agency to complement the operation of the IDF by de-risking investments in infrastructure to build investor confidence in taking risks and investing capital.”
President Muhammadu Buhari has made it clear that he will not let all his security chiefs to rest unless and until they find solution to all forms of insecurity in the country.
The President, who reacted, today, July 20, to the murder of a Catholic priest, Rev. Fr. John Cheitnum of the Kafanchan Catholic Diocese, four days after he was kidnapped by unknown gunmen, reassured Nigerians that his commitment to this issue is as firm as ever.
“I have always made it a duty to regularly summon security chiefs to discuss these challenges and the way forward. I’m not allowing the security chiefs to rest unless and until we find a very effective solution to this disturbing security situation.
“The persistent attack on innocent people, including religious figures, by gunmen is a matter of grave concern for this administration, because security is one of the major issues of our campaign promises.”
“The security of all Nigerians remains our major priority and I assure Nigerians that we are determined to crush these enemies of humanity with all the resources at our disposal.”
The President
He extended his condolences to the family of the deceased and Christian Association of Nigeria leadership in Kaduna State over the death of Rev. Fr. Cheitnum.
We use cookies on our website to give you the most relevant experience by remembering your preferences and repeat visits. By clicking “Accept”, you consent to the use of ALL the cookies.
This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Out of these, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. We also use third-party cookies that help us analyze and understand how you use this website. These cookies will be stored in your browser only with your consent. You also have the option to opt-out of these cookies. But opting out of some of these cookies may affect your browsing experience.
Necessary cookies are absolutely essential for the website to function properly. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. These cookies do not store any personal information.
Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. It is mandatory to procure user consent prior to running these cookies on your website.
Senate Committee on the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) has made the last assessment of the projects executed in the last seven years of the Muhammadu Buhari government by the minister, Malam Muhammad Musa Bello.
President Muhammadu Buhari has made it clear that he will not let all his security chiefs to rest unless and until they find solution to all forms of insecurity in the country.