Government health plan revealed - and there'll be even longer waiting times and not an extra penny

NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens unveiled a two-year blueprint to boost cancer care, improve access to GPs and slash waits in A&E

By Andrew Gregory

The new NHS plan has been revealed (Photo: Getty)

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The Tories are today accused of “conning patients” by expecting NHS bosses to deliver major reform without much-needed extra cash.
NHS England chief executive Simon Stevens unveiled a two-year blueprint to boost cancer care, improve access to GPs and slash waits in A&E.
But he admitted funding was “very tight” and millions of patients could have to wait even longer for operations like hip and knee replacements.
The NHS is currently suffering the worst waiting times in its history.
Record numbers of overburdened staff are quitting and overstretched hospitals are on the brink of collapse.

Simon Stevens has unveiled the blue print (Photo: PA)

Labour’s Shadow Health Secretary Jon Ashworth told the Daily Mirror: “The NHS strategy contains welcome ambitions around mental health and cancer care that Labour endorses.
"But without giving the NHS the money it desperately needs, Theresa May is conning patients who won’t get the standards of care they expect.”
Niall Dickson, chief executive of the NHS Confederation, which represents health bodies, also suggested the plan was a “leap in the dark” considering the service’s “difficult financial position”.
And Britain’s most senior doctor, Mark Porter, warned it “did not address ­fundamental funding pressures”.
Dr Porter, chairman of the British Medical Association, added: “The ­efficiency targets set in this plan are fanciful, given that most hospitals have been pushed into the red.”
Mr Stevens admitted he expected waiting times to rise slightly as a “trade-off” for improvement in other areas, such as hitting the four-hour A&E target and better cancer care.

Health secretary Jeremy Hunt (Photo: Birmingham Mail)

Longer waits can be expected for pre-planned ops such as hip and knee replacements, cataract removal and hernia operations.
The NHS has a target that 92% of patients should be treated within 18 weeks of referral by their GP. But it has not been hit since February 2016.
Mr Stevens said: “We expect that the number of operations that the NHS pays for will continue to go up, but we recognise that – right now about nine out of 10 people get their operations in under 18 weeks – in some parts of the country that will be under pressure.”
He also said hundreds of thousands of patients would no longer be referred to a consultant by their GP.
Instead, family doctors will be able to phone consultants for advice, while other measures will be put in place to cut the number of people needing to be sent to hospital for care.
Hospitals will also be told part of their funding will be tied to improving general health, with staff encouraged to have a “quiet word” with patients who drink or smoke too much.

Hospitals have been told their funding will be tied to improving health (Photo: Getty)

Mr Stevens said: “The evidence shows that if you’ve had a heart attack or are in hospital for something, that’s the moment when people are willing to think about making changes.”
Measures previously announced to save the NHS cash include cutting the prescriptions bill for sunscreen, gluten-free foods and travel vaccines.
Mr Stevens declined to say “anything new” on whether he was happy with NHS funding. In January, he told MPs it would be “stretching it” to say the health service got more money than it asked for from ministers.
Critics last night raised concerns about longer waiting times and how the NHS plan could be ­delivered.
Clare Marx, of the Royal College of Surgeons, said: “We risk returning to the days of unacceptably long waits for elective surgical treatment.”
Caroline Abrahams, of Age UK, added: “Having to wait a long time for an operation or procedure may not only condemn an older person to misery and pain, it can also ­undermine their resilience and make it harder for them to sustain their independence.”

A nurse tends to recovering patients on a general ward (Photo: Getty Images)

And Rehana Azam, of the GMB union, warned: “Reducing standards is a mark of shame and a shocking admission of failure for ministers who came to power promising to cut the deficit, not the NHS.”
But last night the Government claimed the NHS was getting better because it had invested £10billion.
Health Secretary Jeremy Hunt said: “This plan sets out how the NHS will meet the challenges of an ageing population head on and deliver further improvements for patients.”

What the plan actually means

Cancer
Health chiefs vowed their plan will mean an extra 5,000 Brits will survive cancer every year.
Expanded screening will improve prevention and early detection of the disease, they added.
This includes the introduction of a new bowel cancer screening test for over four million people from April 2018.
They also plan to implement the “largest radiotherapy upgrade programme in 15 years” with £130million being spent on new or upgraded equipment.

A NHS sign is pictured outside St Thomas' Hospital (Photo: Getty)

Over 50 new radiotherapy machines will be rolled out across 34 hospitals over the next 18 months.
And 10 new Rapid Diagnostic and Assessment Centres will be introduced across England aiming to boost early diagnosis.
Everyone who has symptoms of cancer will find out whether they have the disease or not within a maximum of 28 days.
VERDICT: Dr Nicola Strickland, president of The Royal College of Radiologists, said there was a “lack of detail about delivery”.
She added: “The idea of Rapid Diagnostic and Assessment Centres is admirable, but this is very unlikely to lead to patients getting their test results any sooner.
“There are already almost a quarter of a million patients waiting over a month for the results of scans in the UK due to a severe shortage of radiologists.”
General practice
The NHS plan says everyone will have access to the option of evening and weekend GP appointments in their area by March 2019.

Culled from Mirror

Thousands pay tribute on Westminster Bridge after terror attack Jen Mills

Muslim men hold flowers as they stand in line on Westminster Bridge (Picture: Reuters)

Last week, we reported on Muslim women joining a vigil to condemn the Westminster terror attacks.
It was a beautiful tribute from people of all backgrounds, organised by Women’s March London.
However, there were some who saw the picture and immediately looked for something to criticise, asking: ‘Where are the Muslim men?’
Well… They’re here.
Along with Muslim women, Christians, Jews, atheists, policemen, police women, adults and children, rabbis, pastors and everyone in London who wanted to join.
One week on from the terror attack, thousands of people gathered on the spot where it happened to pay their respects.

Thousands of people joined (PIcture: Met Police)

Powerful photographs show the city coming together, to pay tribute to the victims, condemn the attack and its motivations, and show that our community is not divided.
Nurses and doctors from St Thomas’ hospital, where many of the injured were treated, joined the vigil on the bridge, which was closed for the event.
Schoolchildren clutching yellow roses held signs reading, ‘Islam says no to terror’ as they walked across the span that crosses the River Thames.
Others wore T-shirts with the message ‘I am a Muslim, ask me anything’.

Police officers hold white roses (PIcture: AP)

Rabbis attended (Picture: Getty)

(Picture: PA)

A Police officer wipes his face as one of his colleagues holds a rose (Picture: Reuters)

People embrace after laying flowers (Picture: Reuters)

People hold hands on Westminster Bridge (Picture: Reuters)

Met Police officers took part (Picture: AP)

People hold roses on Westminster Bridge (Picture: Getty)

People stand for a minute’s silence (Picture: Peter Macdiarmid/LNP)

Culled from Metro UK

CBN Reviews Rates For BDCs To N360/$ Abuja BUKOLA IDOWU- MARK ITSIBOR

Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) on Tuesday, March 28, 2017 crashed the rate at which it sells forex to Bureaux De Change operators to N360/$1 and instructed the BDCs to sell to end users at a rate not more than N362 to the dollar.
This is coming barely 24 hours after it pegged dollar sale for invisibles: medicals, school fees and BTAs from Deposit Money Banks (DMBs) in the country to retail end-users at N360/$1.
In a release by the CBN’s ccting director of corporate communications, Isaac Okorafor explained that the CBN, under the new policy, will sell forex to the licensed BDCs at the rate of N360/$1, while they will in turn sell to customers at a rate not more than N362/$1.
Okorafor said the objective of the new forex sale policy was to ensure a convergence of the rates in the interbank and BDC, stressing that the CBN remained committed to ensuring transparency in the market as well as fairness to end-users, many of who hitherto experienced challenges in accessing foreign exchange.
He therefore urged licensed BDCs to play by the rule, cautioning that the CBN would not hesitate in sanctioning any erring dealer.
BDC operators had complained about the disparity in rates especially as they recorded a loss of N130 million last week following the firming up of the naira at the parallel market when the difference in the value of the local currency at the interbank and parallel market closed.
The BDC operators were contemplating not buying dollars this week as the rate fixed by the CBN at which they buy was N381, higher than the rate at the parallel market as well as the new rate for invisibles at the interbank market.
President of the Association of Bureau De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON), Aminu Gwadabe yesterday said the buying rate for BDCs would now be N350 and selling rate would be N360 to the dollar. As at last week, BDCs were buying dollars from the CBN at a forward rate of N381 to the dollar and selling at N399 to the dollar.
Gwadabe who commended the CBN for heeding the appeal of BDCs for a level playing field for all players in the foreign exchange market pledged the commitment of operators in the sector in collaborating with the apex bank to sustain the gains recorded by naira against the dollar.
The CBN had on Monday pegged the selling rate for invisibles such as Basic/Personal Transport Allowances (B/PTA) medicals and school fees at N360 to the dollar within the banking hall.
In ensuring that there is enough liquidity at the forex market to meet demand, the CBN has so far injected more than $2 billion into the market to meet wholesale forwards as well as invisibles demand since it started its intervention in the foreign exchange market five weeks ago.
The liquidity injection by the apex bank had crashed dollar rates at the parallel market to between N375 in Lagos and N365 in Abuja. Although the value of the naira dropped to N380to the dollar on Monday, it firmed slightly to N379 yesterday. Bringing the difference between the interbank for invisibles and parallel market to N19 as against over N200 difference a month ago.
Meanwhile, the CBN spokesman also disclosed that the sum of $100 million offered to authorised FOREX dealers in the interbank wholesale window to meet the requests of genuine wholesale customers was fully subscribed at the auction on Tuesday, March 28, 2017.
He reiterated his call to all stakeholders to play their respective roles in ensuring a smooth running of the foreign exchange market for the benefit of the Nigerian economy.
Meanwhile, Governor of the central bank of Nigeria Mr. Godwin Emefiele yesterday said the bank will continue with its financial education of all Nigerians until financial services become affordable to the unbanked.
Speaking during a Financial Literacy Summit organized by the bank as part of activities to mark 2017 Global Money Week tagged: “Learn, Save, Earn’’, the governor “We are concerned about the level of financial inclusion because individuals and households lacking adequate access to a full range of responsibly delivered, affordable and convenient formal financial services would be severely constrained in participating fully in the economy.”
Represented by the CBN’s director, human resources,  Mr. Edward Lamtek at the event that was held in the bank’s head office in Abuja on Tuesday, Emefiele said if left unchecked, the development will imply that the financial sector would be constrained in terms of expansion and intermediation as the disposable income in the hands of excluded persons could constitute greater savings and a wider deposit base for banks and other financial institutions

Leadership

How ex-Benue governor, Suswam, two others diverted N9.79bn SURE-P funds – FG By Ameh Comrade Godwin

The Federal Government, on Monday, accused immediate past Governor of Benue State, Gabriel Suswam, and two others of diverting the sum of N9.79bn, part of which was meant for police reform and Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme.
The development is coming barely one month after the Department of State Services, DSS, raided Suswam’s house, where it recovered cars and arms in a building in Abuja, both of which are said to belong to him.

The trio allegedly cornered the said funds between 2012 and 2015 while Suswam was the governor of Benue State.
The allegations are contained in the 32 fraud and money laundering charges leveled against Suswam and two others on Monday.
Others named as defendants in the charges, filed before the Federal High Court in Abuja and marked FHC/ABJ/CR/48/2017, are a former Commissioner for Benue State under the Suswam’s administration, Mr. Omadachi Oklobia; and the then Accountant, Benue State Government House Administration, Mrs. Janet Aluga.
According to the charges signed by a counsel in the Office of the Attorney General of the Federation, Aminu Alilu, and Kehinde Fagbemi, the three defendants allegedly committed the offences between 2012 and 2015.

It also accused the defendants of conspiracy, conversion of property derived directly from corruption; collaboration to conceal property derived from corruption; obtaining by false pretences and accepting cash payments, exceeding the amount authorised by law.
The offences were said to be contrary to and punishable under various provisions of the Money Laundering (Prohibition) Act, 2011, and the Advance Fee Fraud and Other Related Offences Act.
In counts one and two, the prosecution alleged that the defendants, between August 8 and March 15, 2015, conspired and converted the sum of N4,135,208,404.90 allegedly “derived directly from corruption”.
The money was said to have been taken “from the Benue State SURE-P account number 0116099195, domiciled in Guaranty Trust Bank, into various illegal accounts with the aim of concealing the money.”

The prosecution, in counts three and four, accused the defendants of committing similar offences by transferring the sum of N2,975,329,418.88 from SURE-P account to illegal accounts between August 8 and March 16, 2015.
The amount mentioned between counts one and four amounted to a total of N7,110,537,823.78.
From count five to nine, the prosecution also accused the three defendants of conspiracy, collaboration to conceal, obtaining by false pretences and conversion of a cumulative sum of N7,110,537,823.78, allegedly derived directly from corruption.
The Federal Government also levelled similar allegations as well as acceptance of payments unauthorised by law from counts 10 to 14 against the defendants with respect to a cumulative sum of N1,970,662,130.00.
The defendants allegedly “obtained” the money “from the Benue State Government for the benefit of yourselves and other unentitled persons” between June 27, 2014 and April 24, 2015.
Part of the charges read, “That you, Rt. Hon. Gabriel T. Suswam (m), former Governor of Benue State of No. 1 Rio Negro Street, Maitama, Abuja; Omadachi Oklobia (m), former Commissioner for Finance of Flat 1 Block A13, Marathon Avenue, Games Village, Abuja; and Janet Aluga (f), former Accountant , Benue State Government House Administration of David Mark Extension, Agber Village, Makurdi, Benue State, between August 8, 2012 and March 16, 2015 at Makurdi, Benue State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did conspire among yourselves to transfer a total sum of about N4,135,208,404.90, from the Benue State SURE-P account number 0116099195, domiciled in Guaranty Trust Bank, into various illegal accounts with the aim of concealing the money which you derived directly from corruption.
“That you, Rt. Hon. Gabriel T. Suswam (m), former Governor of Benue State of No. 1 Rio Negro Street, Maitama, Abuja; Omadachi Oklobia (m), former Commissioner for Finance of Flat 1 Block A13, Marathon Avenue, Games Village, Abuja; and Janet Aluga (f), former Accountant , Benue State Government House Administration of David Mark Extension, Agber Village, Makurdi, Benue State, between August 8, 2012 and March 16, 2015 at Makurdi, Benue State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, did collaborate to conceal the genuine nature and origin of a total sum of about N7,110,537,823.78 which you moved from the Benue State SURE-P account number 1013470079 and account number 0116099195, domiciled in Zenith Bank Plc and Guaranty Trust Bank respectively, into various illegal accounts being money you derived from corruption.
“That you, Rt. Hon. Gabriel T. Suswam (m), former Governor of Benue State of No. 1 Rio Negro Street, Maitama, Abuja; Omadachi Oklobia (m), former Commissioner for Finance of Flat 1 Block A13, Marathon Avenue, Games Village, Abuja; and Janet Aluga (f), former Accountant , Benue State Government House Administration of David Mark Extension, Agber Village, Makurdi, Benue State, on or about August 14, 2014, at Makurdi, Benue State, within the jurisdiction of this honourable court, committed an offence, to wit: by false pretences and with intent to defraud, obtained the sum of N45,000,000 from Police Reform Programme Skye Bank account number 1750022970, belonging to the Nigeria Police and paid into the Benue State Government House First Bank Account number 2023289293 for your own benefit.”

Culled from Daily  Post

AMCON Hands Over Keystone Bank To New Investors Bukola Idowu

The new investors who bought over Keystone Bank from the Asset Management Company of Nigeria (AMCON) last week Friday took over ownership of the bank, saying they are poised to it on a growth path with immediate effect.
AMCON had last week Tuesday announced Sigma Golf-Riverbank consortium as the new owners of Keystone Bank Limited. The Completion Meeting according to a statement from Keystone Bank, was held on Thursday, 23rd March 2017 with representatives of Sigma Golf-Riverbank consortium (the Buyer), AMCON (the Seller), Board and Management of Keystone Bank, as well as the advisers to the Buyer (KPMG Professional Services, Boston Advisory Services, Giwa Osagie & Co., Pan-African Capital Limited) and the Seller (FBN Capital Limited, Citibank Nigeria Limited, Banwo & Ighodalo, CrosswrockLaw)
The Completion Meeting signified the effective hand-over of the Bank to the Buyer and the commencement of a transition process that will culminate in the reconstitution of the Board and Management of the Bank to reflect the new ownership.

Keystone Bank was taken over by AMCON in 2011 and has been managed by the AMCON appointed Board and Management that stabilized the bank over the years to make it attractive as a potential target for eventual acquisition by the new investors, who emerged as preferred bidders after a very transparent and competitive bidding process.
The emergence of the Sigma Golf-Riverbank consortium will bring a new lease of life with the expected injection of fresh capital that would position the bank to play competitively in the banking industry and actualize its full potentials.
In moving the bank forward as a major player in the industry, the new investors will be backed up by a pool of reputable professionals both currently within the bank and across the industry.
Keystone Bank therefore assures all its stakeholders that the transition process will reposition the bank to serve its customers better, creating enhanced value for all stakeholders.

Leadership

Breaking :Tidal Waves Aided Recovery Of Doctor’s Body Who Jumped Into Lagos Lagoon -LASWA- George Okojie

The body of Dr. Allwell Orji was on Wednesday found floating around the CMS axis of the Lagoon on Lagos Island four days after the he was reportedly jumped into the lagoon around Third Mainland Bridge.
Our correspondent learnt that his body recovered by the combine team of the Marine Police and divers in the Lagos State Waterways Authority, (LASWA) who had been patrolling the waterways since the tragic incident.
The General Manager, Lagos State Waterways Authority, LASWA, ‘Bisola Kamson, said the tidal waves movement of the waterways towards the CMS axis informed the aggressive search for the body of the late doctor along the axis.

As of the time of filing this report the cloth on the body recovered matched with what the late doctor was wearing; that is the ‘Chinos’ trousers and long sleeves shirts.
The family has since confirmed the body as Orji’s and was with the Marine Police
Although, the state government said that investigations into the circumstances surrounding the tragic incident would continue, the body was also identified by the driver  in the presence of the Commissioner of Police Lagos State, Mr Fatai Owoseni, who assured and that body will be handed over to the family.
Commenting on the recovery efforts, Kamson said: “Since the recent development and tidal waves of the lagoon moves towards Elegbata,CMS axis of the Marina, we had intensified the search around that axis. That is where tidal movement moves towards. So any drop from the (Third Mainland Bridge) scene of the incident would move towards CMS Elegbata axis.
“Our monitoring teams are back from water. We had local divers who also worked in collaboration with LASWA and Marine police. You know that different people were patrolling different area in the water. The water body is so large that everyone will search everywhere.
“The family members came and were able to identified that the body that was wearing a ‘chinox” trousers about one and half hours ago. It was an unfortunate incident, but Lagosians must be safety conscious at all times, even while driving on the bridge.”
Also speaking General Management Agency, LASEMA, Adeshina Tiamiyu, who expressed condolence on behalf of the government to the family, assured that government would still embark on investigations into the incident
According to him, the body will be handed over to the family while investigation continues.
Tiamiyu said the state government has declared the search closed

Culled from Leadership

Al-Makura’s Son Arrested over Death of Student

Nasarawa State Governor, Umaru Tanko Al-Makura

Khaleed Umar Al-Makura, son of Nasarawa State governor, has been arrested in connection with the death of Ovye Amos, a JSS 2 student of Government Secondary School, Lafia.

Amos died on Sunday night after being hit by a car driven by the governor’s son.
Amos’ colleagues had trooped into the streets to protest his death. They carried placards with various inscriptions, demanding justice.

The police, officers of the Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC), teachers and government officials were called in to calm the students.

Aliyu Tijjani, Nasarawa State Commissioner for Education, said Monday that the government had taken measures to ensure that the perpetrator was brought to book, reported online news website The Cable.
“He has already been arrested. I want to express my profound dismay and sadness over what happened here yesterday. It is unfortunate, very, very unfortunate,” he said.

Goodluck Agwu, the school’s head boy, explained that Amos was hit by the car driven by Khaleed when he went out to buy batteries for his flashlight at 8.00 p.m.
The students, who were not satisfied with the explanation by the commissioner, continued their protest but the police were deployed to calm them.

“It is a painful thing, we sympathise and empathise with you and we assure you that an investigation is ongoing and that the particular culprit as we are speaking now is in our custody,” Maikudi Shehu, the area commander of the Lafia area office, had told the aggrieved students.

Culled from Thisday

Biafra: Kanu, others know fate April 25 -Godwin Tsa

A Federal High Court in Abuja, will on April 25 decide whether or not the detained leader of the Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB), Nnamdi Kanu, should be released on bail pending his trial.

Three other pro-Biafra agitators, Chidiebere Onwudiwe, Benjamin Madubugwu and David Nwawuisi will also know their fate on the adjourned date.

Justice Binta Nyako has equally fixed April 5 to rule on the merit or otherwise of application by the defendants, seeking to vary the order allowing the prosecution  to shield identities of all the witnesses billed to testify against them. 

In her ruling, Justice Nyako further granted an order permitting prosecution witnesses to use pseudo names. 

Though the court agreed to mask the witnesses from the public, it held that the defendants and their lawyers would be allowed to see them. Miffed by the ruling of the court, the defendants filed separate  applications asking  for a review of the ruling, saying they would not submit themselves to any form of secret trial.

 Kanu had insisted that he would want the public and members of the press to be allowed to see  faces of those testifying against him.

“I was accused in public and I must be tried in public. No one can try me in secret. No secret trial. I will not accept that, no way,” Kanu bellowed from the dock at the last appearance in court.

While praying the court to grant them bail, the defendants, who are standing trial on a five-count criminal charge  that all the allegations the Federal Government levelled against them were bailable offences.

Kanu’s lawyer, Mr. Ifeanyi Ejiofor, stressed that the court had, in a ruling on March 1, struck out six out of 11 count-charge the Federal Government initially slammed against the defendants.

He noted that the charges that were struck out by the court bordered on criminal conspiracy and alleged involvement of the defendants in acts of terrorism. According to Ejiofor, that aspect of the charge having been expunged by the court, there was no basis for both Kanu and other defendants to still remain in prison custody. 

His argument was adopted by counsel to all the other defendants, who maintained that going by the pending charges, they no longer posed security threat to warrant their continued detention. 

Justice Nyako, had in an earlier ruling, struck out six charges against the defendants on the premise that they were not supported by the proof of evidence the Federal Government filed against them. The judge held that none of the six charges established a prima-facie criminal case against any of the defendants. 

She said the fact that IPOB was not an organisation registered in Nigeria, did not make it an illegal society. “It may be true that IPOB is not registered in Nigeria, but does that make it an illegal organisation,” the judge queried. Whereas the court branded some of the terminated charges as “hollow” and “scanty,” it however, sustained five charges against the defendants.

For instance, the court noted that the Federal Government  failed to produce any evidence to support allegation in count-nine of the charge that the 2nd defendant, Onwudiwe, as national coordinator of IPOB and Nwawuisi who was serving as MTN field maintenance engineer in Enugu State, conspired to install Radio Biafra transmitters on MTN masts sited at Ogui Road, near St. Michael Church, Enugu, having agreed for the payment and receipt of N150, 000.

As well as the allegation that Onwudiwe committed an act preparatory to an act of terrorism by carrying out research for the purpose of identifying and gathering of improvised explosives device, IED, making materials to be used against the Nigerian security operatives carrying out their lawful duties.

According to Justice Nyako, the Federal Government ought to have charged Onwudiwe before a Magistrate Court over his alleged intention to commit an act of terrorism. She said FG did not establish any ingredient of crime in its allegation that Kanu had between March and April 2015, imported into Nigeria a radio transmitter known as TRAM 50L kept in a container that was left in custody of the 3rd defendant.

Meanwhile, a mild drama played out yesterday between security operatives and journalists who were in court to cover the trial. Security operatives who claimed to be acting on the orders of Justice Nyako, barred journalists from entering the courtroom with  their phones and cameras.

According to the security  operatives: “Madam (the judge) gave the order; she said journalists should not be allowed inside with phones and cameras.”

Sun

Foreign investors’ acquisition of local firms over forex looms-Femi Adekoya

PHOTO:AFP

Manufacturers record over N50b loss due to currency adjustments
Unless the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is consistent in making foreign exchange (forex) available for manufacturers to import raw materials that are yet to have local alternatives, foreign investors with access to cheaper funds may acquire controlling stakes in these local firms.
Already, some firms that are unable to sustain their operations, having suffered huge losses in 2016 due to currency adjustments and inadequate access to forex, are being acquired by new investors, while others are exploring the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) by way of rights issue before considering bailout from their parent companies. Indeed, many listed local producers lost over N50 billion in profit across the food, beverages, conglomerates and drug manufacturing sectors.
As it is, the CBN which has been injecting forex into the system lately to stabilise the naira may have to do more to help the real sector. If the low supply of foreign exchange for local production continues, it means the control of the manufacturing sector will slip into the hands of foreign investors even as the growth of local content remains inhibited when returns on investments are repatriated from the economy.


For instance, the parent company of Guinness Nigeria Plc – Diageo – is already planning to take up its rights by way of a debt/equity swap wherein the outstanding foreign currency loan (N20.3 billion as at first half of 2017) from Diageo will be used as payment for its rights in Guinness. The acquisition of Nigeria’s Swiss Pharmaceutical Company (Swipha), was completed at the weekend with the French generic medicine manufacturer, Biogaran, announcing over 95 per cent stake in the company.
For Nestle Nigeria Plc, its profit after tax was negatively impacted both by the revaluation of foreign loans resulting from the devaluation of the naira and higher income tax provisions due to the expiration of the pioneer status. The company closed the year at N7.9 billion profit from N23.7 billion in 2015.
The capacity utilisation in the nation’s drug manufacturing sector and other productive sectors had dropped to an all-time low of 20 per cent due to inadequate access to foreign exchange for the importation of critical raw materials, mainly active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and machinery inputs. There is also the challenge of competition from poorly regulated markets.
The acquisition of Swipha may have been made possible due to the inability of the Nigerian firm to sustain its operations arising from the high cost of doing business and huge debt.
Guinness Nigeria Plc suffered a loss of N4.7 billion in 2016 from a profit after tax of N1.17 billion in 2015, even as it announced a rights issue price at N58.00, 17% discount, to market price.
The company intends to use the funds to improve its balance sheet given its relatively high debt level (Debt/Equity ratio of 1.3 vs. Nigerian Breweries of 0.1), finance its working capital needs and expand its operations.
The Nigerian Breweries, following the huge forex loss, ended the year with profit before tax of N39.675 billion, down from N54.514 billion in 2015 and profit after tax of N28.416 billion as against N38.05 billion in 2015.
On plans for the acquired Swipha, President of Biogaran, Pascal Brière told The Guardian that the new management’s first priority would be the revitalisation of the company and give confidence to employees on its commitment to a prosperous future.
The President of the Manufacturers Association of Nigeria (MAN), Dr. Frank Jacobs, however, dismissed the notion of firms selling their factories to new owners, saying that the CBN had cleared many of the backlogs of foreign exchange, thus, bringing firms back in business.
He said that 2016 was a terrible year for everybody but businesses were able to sustain their operations.
“Situations may be very difficult; it may also be that some businesses are relocating or seeking new areas of investments, but they are not closing down. I know it is part of the things that happened in the course of the forex crisis. Once an area of business is no longer lucrative, chances are that the business divests, but it does not mean that it is closing operations. They may not be doing it exclusively because of scarcity of forex but due to infrastructure challenges, among others,” Jacobs said.


According to a former National Coordinator of Independent Shareholders Association (ISAN), Sir Sunny Nwosu, the move by Guinness to raise capital from the stock exchange, though belated, is in the right direction, considering the need of the firm to sustain its business and enhance shareholders’ return on investments. The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Dr. Okechukwu Enelamah, has admitted that some of the policies implemented by the Federal Government affected manufacturers negatively.
Enelamah, who made the remarks in an interview with CNN in London, was quoted as saying: “Some policies we passed affected manufacturers in terms of their raw materials and we are correcting those now. We want to discourage dumping and bad practices that happened in the past. But we need to do it in a way that does not hurt local manufacturing.”

Guardian

Union threatens to disrupt Aero Contractors’ operations over sacked workers

The National Union of Air Transport Employees (NUATE) has threatened to disrupt Aero Contractors’ operations by Monday, if the airline refuses to recall over 700 workers sacked recently.
General Secretary of NUATE, Mr. Olayinka Abioye, issued the warning in an interview, in Lagos, on Friday.
Abioye described the sack of the workers as an exercise in “bad faith” to the industry and the country in general.
“By Monday, the whole world will know what is really happening in Aero Contractors. We are going to shut down the operations of the airline.
“There is no place in the world where people will work for 20 to 25 years and you will disengage them and ask them to go home empty-handed.
“This has never happened before, so it will not happen in Aero Contractors,” he said.
Abioye accused Asset Management Corporation of Nigeria (AMCON) of not acting in the best interest of Aero contractors and its workers since the takeover in 2013.
He assured that NUATE, alongside other aviation unions, would ensure that the affected workers were paid their entitlements and benefits before the airline could dismiss them.
The airline, which is under the management of the (AMCON), had sacked more than 700 workers, representing 60 per cent of its workforce.
Media Consultant to the airline, Mr. Simon Tumba, who confirmed the development in a statement issued on Thursday in Lagos, said the workers would be paid their pension and gratuity.
Tumba explained further that letters of redundancy were issued to the affected employees during the week. (NAN)

Sun

Magu Can Remain Acting EFCC Chairman – Lawyers-Andrew Essien and Adebiyi Adedapo- Ahuraka Isa

Constitutional lawyers, including members of the inner bar, have argued that in spite of the rejection of the nomination of Ibrahim Magu as chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) by the Senate, there was nothing in the laws of the land that prevents him from continuing in his acting capacity.
They spoke against the backdrop of yesterday’s rejection of Magu as the substantive chairman of EFCC by the Senate for a second time, following  the Department of  State Services’ (DSS) insistence that he was not fit to head the country’s anti-graft agency.
The DSS had in a third report it submitted to the Senate on Tuesday referred the lawmakers in the Red Chamber to an earlier report dated October 3, 2016 it sent to them, in which it stated that Magu failed integrity test and will eventually constitute a liability to the anti-corruption war of the current government.

Consequently, Magu was rejected by a majority of the Senate membership after some members of the upper chamber and the acting EFCC chairman traded hard tackles and insults in the course of his screening yesterday.
But some senior lawyers who spoke to LEADERSHIP yesterday maintained that Magu could be EFCC’s chairman in acting capacity, his rejection by the lawmakers notwithstanding.
While some of them insisted that President Muhammadu Buhari has constitutional power to re-present his nomination a third time to the senate for confirmation as substantive chairman of EFCC or allow him to remain as acting chairman pending his appointment, others however contended that it would amount to constitutional breach on the part of the president.
Lagos lawyer and human rights activist, Chief Femi Falana (SAN) specifically said the rejection of Magu by the senate was the height of official ridicule of the president’s office, just as it was illegal and a contravention of the Rules of the Senate which states that matters that are sub judice should not be discussed by the lawmakers.
Noting that Buhari could still resubmit his name for the third time because there are precedents to multiple representation of nomination by past presidents to the Senate, he recalled that ex-President Olusegun Obasanjo forwarded nomination of former Education Minister, Babalola Aborishade, to the senate several times until he was eventually confirmed.
Falana said, “The rejection of the nomination of Mr. Ibrahim Magu as the chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) this afternoon by the Senate  on the basis of a security report compiled by the State Security Service is the height of official ridicule of the office of the President. It is high time the State Security Service  was restrained by President Buhari from sabotaging the fight against corruption by the federal government
“With respect to the Senate, the confirmation hearing hurriedly conducted today is illegal in every material particular. The participation of many senators who are either under investigation or being prosecuted by the EFCC has vitiated the entire proceedings of the Senate on grounds of conflict of interest. It is also a contravention of the Rules of the Senate which stipulates that matters which are sub judice shall not be discussed by the Senate” Falana added.
He, however, noted that notwithstanding the rejection of the nomination of Magu by the Senate there were still options open to President Buhari that are clear and straight forward.
Listing the options, the learned silk said, “Mr. Magu’s nomination may be re-presented to the Senate if and when the Federal Government decides to put its house in order. Alternatively,  the President may allow Mr. Magu to remain the Acting Chairman of the EFCC since he was  appointed in that capacity pursuant to section 171 of the Constitution.
“But if the President is not satisfied with Mr. Magu’s performance he is at liberty to appoint another person whose nomination will be forwarded to the Senate in accordance with section 2 (3) of the EFCC Act, 2004.
“In the light of the foregoing, President Buhari is enjoined to ensure that the fight against corruption is not derailed by highly placed corrupt elements who have enlisted the support of fifth columnists and reactionary forces in the government”.
In the same vein, chairman of the Presidential Advisory Committee against Corruption, Prof. Itse Sagay (SAN), insisted that as long Magu is the choice of the president to head the commission, the lawmakers have no legal justification to dictate to him who to appoint.
According to him, no law in the country prevents Magu from doing the job in acting capacity, especially when the president has the power to appoint whosoever he feels like in an acting capacity.
The professor of law said, “They have no right under the constitution to tell the president the name of who he should submit. If that is who the President wants, that is the name he would submit.
“Their role is confirmation and not nomination or presentation. There is no law stopping Magu from acting in the position because the president has the power to appoint whosoever he wants in an acting capacity and there is no limitation of his powers in that regard.
“The worst the Senate can do is what they have done, they can not dictate that the President should submit another name. In my opinion, that rejection is perverse because you can’t reject someone who has an outstanding records of integrity, honesty and achievements.
“So, that rejection is transparently contrary to the interest of Nigeria and Nigerians. They know that he is an honest man and he has done excellently well in the fight against corruption, so the decision is perverse”, Sagay further maintained.
Another constitutional lawyer, Chief Mike Ozekhome (SAN) argued, however, that President Buhari can no longer represent Magu’s name because of the serious moral burden, ethical challenges and legal impediments imposed on him with this second definitive rejection.
Ozekhome, who cited sections 2(1) and 2(3) of the EFCC Act, insisted that Magu ceases to be the executive chairman of the commission, because having left his ‘acting’ position during his proposal to the Senate, he had also lost his ‘acting’ capacity.
He said, “Representing his name will raise more questions than answers as to why the insistence on one man. This is unlike the first instance when Senate merely turned him down without any screening.
“That it was done shortly after the celebrated arrival of President Buhari from his medical vacation makes it more interesting and more  significant as it underlines the independence of the Legislature”.
On his part, another learned silk, Seyi Sowemimo (SAN), argued that Magu can not continue to function in the position of an acting chairman in the face of his rejection by the Senate because that position ought to be a temporary one.
“I think since he has been rejected the second time, the presidency will be in a fix. This is because the Senate is an institution on its own and its confirmation is required. Now, that they are rejecting the man for the second time, I think that is where the matter should end. If his rejection is based on the DSS security report, it means it is not something the president can override”, he stated.

Magu, Senators Trade Tackles Over Confirmation
Meanwhile, acting chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu and some Senators, yesterday engaged themselves in a verbal war over the confirmation of the former as substantive chairman of the anti-graft agency.
The confirmation hearing exercise was initially started in a friendly atmosphere, with Senator Shehu Sani jocularly telling Magu that “today is the Ides of March”, an indication that there were booby trap along his way.
It appeared as if Magu would scale the screening hurdle, after answering a wide range of questions at his confirmation hearing.
But all that changed the moment an APC Senator representing Kogi West, Dino Melaye, raised the issue of the SSS report dated March 14.
Dino specifically read paragraph 14 of the SSS report which states: “In the light of the foregoing, Magu has failed the integrity test and will eventually constitute a liability to the anti-corruption stand of the current government”.
In this regard, Magu questioned the credibility of the SSS, which he said dispatched two reports on him with varying contents the same day. “What do you say about credibility of that agency?” He queried.
He also recalled that himself and Dino were engaged in the war against corruption until Dino got to the senate and abandoned the course. “Dino and I were fighting corruption together until he got here and turned against us”.
The DSS had earlier submitted two contradictory reports to the Senate, one approving Mr. Magu’s confirmation and the other asking he be rejected. The Red Chamber then rejected Magu’s confirmation based on the one of the reports dated October 3, 2016.
President Muhammadu Buhari had in January resubmitted Mr. Magu’s name to the Senate for confirmation as EFCC chairman.
To this effect, Magu told the Senators that he was never invited by the DSS to defend the allegations against him. “There was no fair hearing”, he said.
As if the Senate was staging a drama already well-rehearsed, the lawmakers moved away from seemingly soft questions and turned questions relating to the DSS report.
Barnabas Gemade and Abiodun Olujimi, among others, asked Magu to defend his suitability and explain why he should be confirmed after “all these allegations”.
The fresh report was basically a reaffirmation of the earlier one, containing same allegations bordering on the nominee’s residence, relationship with Air Commodore Mohammed Umar (rtd) and past record as head of the EFCC’s economic governance unit.
Before the fresh DSS report was raised, Magu had absolved himself of culpability in respect to allegations in the earlier report.
“I would answer but I don’t want to say something that will cause bad relationship between sister agencies”, Magu said, explaining that he had responded to the allegations in writing.
Also on the allegation that he resides in a house rented for him by Mohammed Umar, a retired air commodore accused of corrupt practices, Mr. Magu said, “That’s not true”.
He said his official residence at Maitama was rented for him by the FCT authorities for ease of his work, following intervention of an undisclosed senior official in the presidency.
“I was not part of the process and I don’t know how much was paid. I don’t even know when the rent started or will expire”, he said.
Magu also told the lawmakers he could not specifically give the actual amount the EFCC had recovered to date.
After the questioning, the Senate President, Bukola Saraki, put Magu’s confirmation to a voice vote. Majority of the lawmakers responded ‘nay’ to his confirmation and the Senate rejected it accordingly.

DSS Report Won’t Stand Test Of Time – Magu
Meanwhile, acting chairman of the EFCC, Ibrahim Magu, declared yesterday that whether he is confirmed or not by the upper chamber of the National Assembly, the varying reports by the DSS on him will not stand the test of time.
Specifically, he noted that the conflicting security reports cannot stop his determination to fight corruption.
The anti-graft agency boss who also stated that the fight against corruption in the country was “a fight to the finish” pledged to work against graft until his last day in office.
Magu stated this while addressing some Civil Society Organizations who were gathered at the main entrance of the National Assembly to receive him immediately after his session with the Senators.
Asked whether he was threatened by the allegations against him by the DSS, Magu said, “Those allegations can not stand the test of time because these allegations can not be proven. You know you can’t just raise mere allegations without giving the person opportunity to answer you.
“There is the issue of fundamental human rights and right to fair hearing. Up till this time, the DSS has not called me and I am even surprised that the same report is coming back and this time around, it is even signed by somebody, which I doubt the genuineness of that report but I think we need to identify those who have the interest of this country at heart.
“What we are doing is to recover what has got lost before and protect the future of our children. So, if we don’t work today against corruption, the future of our children is not guaranteed. We must all wake up, wherever you find yourself fight corruption and anytime you discover that I am corrupt please expose me”.
On the way forward after his session with the senators, he said, “My piority is to fight corruption. My confirmation or not has not changed anything. I will work until the last day, whether confirmation or no confirmation.
“The greatest violation against human rights is crime against the society and humanity but everybody has a duty and responsibility to fight corruption and I also have a responsibility. I assure you that we will fight to finish”.
Speaking on behalf of the CSOs who gathered to recieve Magu, co-convener of Citizen Action To Take Back Nigeria (CATBAN), Comrade Ibrahim Garba Wala, said Nigerians and President Muhamnadu Buhari believe in the nomination of Magu as the chairman of EFCC and as such, the Senate has no choice.
Wala said their gathering to recieve Magu was part of activities to create awareness among Nigerians so as to enable them  know the true position of what was happening.
“We are here in solidarity with the man we feel is the right man for the job and he should be confirmed. That is why we are here”, he said.

Reps Set To Establish EFCC Courts
Meanwhile, the House of Representatives yesterday passed for second reading, a Bill for an Act to amend the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) Act 2004 so as to provide for quick recovery procedure for stolen assets.
The amendment particularly seeks to create a special court for the EFCC, to handle all cases emanating from investigations carried out by the the commission.
According to the Bill sponsored by the member representing Aboh Mbaise/Ngor OkpalaHouse federal constituency of Imo state, Hon. Uchenna Eke, and three others, including, the Chairman, House committee on Financial Crimes, Hon. Kayode Oladele, the amendment will ensure independence and enhance effectiveness of the commission.
The court when established shall dispense within 180 days all cases properly filed before it and all appeals emanating from such cases shall also be dispensed within 90 days at the Courts of Appeal.
The court shall have divisions in the six geo-politcal zones in the federation and in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

Leadership newspapers

Scotland Shows Nigeria Runway Can be Fixed without Shutting Airport

A major civil engineering project has been taking place since last November while most of Scotland was asleep.
Unlike Nigeria, the authorities in Scotland did not have to shut down their busy Glasgow airport to resurface the runway using the latest asphalt technology.

According to the BBC, there’s been minimal disruption because they’ve been doing it piece by piece in the middle of the night. The airport must be ready to reopen at 06:00 every morning.
So at just after 23:00 a convoy drives onto the darkened runway.

First comes traffic management with 600 traffic cones to enforce a strict one-way system.
Then the specialist vehicles: planers, pavers, rollers, sweepers and a gaggle of repurposed fire engines whose high platforms now carry huge floodlights.

Night becomes day again. Almost 200 workers have to be able to see what they’re doing.
This is the only runway at one of Scotland’s busiest airports but within a few minutes it looks like a motorway construction project.

Glasgow handles almost 100,000 aircraft movements a year. With the trend in the airline industry towards higher capacity, heavier aircraft, that means the runway takes a pounding every day.
This project is making it fit for the next decade.
If it looks like a meticulously organised operation that is because it has been well over three years in the planning.
Since last November, night by night, 120m at a time, this small army has been lifting off the runway’s surface and laying a new, hi-tech one.

Other work has also been taking place overnight, including replacing more than 200 runway and taxiway lights.
Most of it has been done with minimal disruption, indeed without passengers noticing.
The occasional delayed flight has missed the night time deadline and been diverted to an alternative airport.
But the airport’s operations director Mark Johnston says the plan has been to do the work at a time when it would least affect traffic.

That’s why it has been taking place through the winter.
“We have to notify the airlines far in advance of doing the works,” he says.
“We effectively take the runway at eleven o’clock at night and hand it back at five in the morning.”
It has meant hundreds of variables have been taken into consideration. One example: the air ambulance normally based here has to decamp to Prestwick when the diggers move in.
It’s taken place night by night, but not every night. Before the new surface can be laid, the key science is meteorology.

If it’s too cold or too wet, everything has to be postponed.
On the night BBC joined them, the forecast was good and the first asphalt was laid before midnight.
Kevin Berry, the airfields operation director of the principal contractor VolkerFitzpatrick, has been checking the weather forecast since lunchtime.

“We’re checking the weather at twelve o’clock, we’re checking the weather at four o’clock, half past six, half past nine,” he explains, “And then we go.
“And we don’t go until we’ve got the material batched and ready to come.”
It is no ordinary material. It’s called Marshall asphalt, the surface of choice for civil and military runways.

Mixed with the bitumen are stones that have been ground down almost to the size of grains of sand.
Anything larger would not make the grade. Pebbles and high speed aircraft do not mix.
Marshall asphalt was first created before WW2 but project manager Roy Thomson says the particular mix they are using at Glasgow has a 21st Century edge.

“We’ve tried to develop an asphalt that’s capable of modern day fatigues and runway loadings, looking forward to the future.
“Glasgow Airport will have a polymer modified asphalt which will be the first runway in Scotland to adopt that material.”

Polymers are long chain molecules of the kind found in plastics and our own DNA.
Their use here will result in a runway that will perform better at extreme temperatures. It will resist rutting, cracking and fatigue and will last longer.
The clock ticks relentlessly towards 05:00.

Some of the machines have an otherworldly look to them as they lay the new surface in a carefully coordinated ballet. In a way it’s comforting when I spot some workers with spades ready to do the detailed stuff.
While the work has been taking place here, a laboratory in Airdrie has been testing a sample of the mortar used to seat the new runway lights.

The mortar must not only have set, but have hardened enough to withstand aircraft landing on it as soon as the runway reopens. Word comes back that it meets the standard.

Elsewhere things are getting groovy. The new asphalt is a smooth as it is high tech. But a specialist team must cut grooves in the pristine surface to let rain drain off and allow planes to catch a grip.
In another couple of nights, the whole project will be complete. About 52,000sqm of new surface will have been put in place.

By 05:00 on this particular morning, everything was on schedule. The new surface swept, the entire runway minutely inspected.
At 06:00 the first flight – to Amsterdam – took off.
No one on board – and few in the whole of Scotland – could have had any idea about what had been going on overnight.

Thisday

Buhari Resumes, Osinbajo Says President ‘Reasonably Satisfied with His Performance’

• N’Assembly gets resumption letter
• President directs VP to head mediation team on N’Delta crisis

Tobi Soniyi in Lagos, Ndubuisi Francis, Omololu Ogunmade, Damilola Oyedele and James Emejo

President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday resumed duty as the President and Commander-in-Chief of the Armed Forces of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, 53 days after he proceeded on a medical vacation in the United Kingdom (UK).

He was also fully briefed by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo who acted as president while he was away in London, the British capital.

The closed-door meeting, which began at about 12 p.m., lasted for over an hour.
Briefing journalists after the meeting, Osinbajo said Buhari was reasonably satisfied with his performance as acting president.
The president’s resumption was announced in a statement by his Special Adviser, Media, Mr. Femi Adesina.

He said Buhari fully resumed work after complying with Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution, which requires him to transmit a letter of resumption to the National Assembly whenever he returns from a vacation before he can resume duty.

With Monday’s transmission, Osinbajo who had discharged the functions of the president’s office since January 19, when Buhari proceeded on vacation, ceased to be acting president.

“In compliance with Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution, the president has formally transmitted letters to the Senate and the House of Representatives, intimating the National Assembly ‘that I have resumed my functions as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria with effect from Monday, March 13, 2017, after my vacation’,” the statement said.
During his remarks to the media on Monday, Osinbajo said the president was “over-ready” to resume work.

The vice-president said that he met with the president to bring him “up to speed on some of the things done while he was away”.

Osinbajo also said having had several days of rest, the president was fit to take over presidential responsibilities from where he stopped, disclosing that the president had given some directives on certain issues such as the North-east crisis, 2017 budget and the economy.

He also said that he and the president reached an agreement on some issues, pointing out that the administration has always worked together as a team and hence, would not be anything new if the president still delegates responsibilities to him.

Osinbajo said: “The president, after receiving the briefing, gave a few directives on what we should be doing – the North-east, the budget, the economy, basically on a wide range of issues.”

The vice-president also confirmed that the letter notifying the National Assembly of the president’s resumption had already been sent to the National Assembly.

Osinbajo said: “The president has resumed and he is doing very well.”
When asked whether the president appeared strong enough to perform the functions of his office, Osinbajo said: “He has held a meeting with me for well over an hour where we discussed a wide range of issues, so his readiness was not in doubt at all. I think he is over-ready.”
Osinbajo also said that he was reverting to his position as vice-president.

On the president’s view of his (Osinbajo) performance as acting president, the vice-president said: “I think the president was reasonably satisfied.”
He said all decisions he took as acting president received the approval of the president.
“The president is always giving me several responsibilities, but what we must always recognise is that the way this administration works has always been one of team work.

“There is very little that is done without the president’s clearance. Even my responsibilities that are constitutional, we have full discussions on them and reach an agreement on a lot of these issues.
“Practically everything, I discuss fully with him and have his endorsement before we go on and do them,” he said.

The president left for the UK on January 19 on a medical vacation.
He eventually returned to the country last Friday, exactly 50 days after he left on his vacation initially slated for 10 days, but was extended by an extra 40 days on the advice of his doctors.
While Buhari had admitted upon his return that he was ill, details of his health have been kept under wraps.

As a mark of the president’s confidence in his deputy, Buhari on Monday directed Osinbajo to head the mediation team charged with resolving the crisis in the Niger Delta region.
The Special Adviser to the President on Niger Delta Affairs, Brig.-Gen. Paul Boroh (rtd) disclosed this to newsmen in Abuja.
Boroh said the choice of Osinbajo as the leader of the government’s fact-finding delegation on the crisis-ridden region was informed by Buhari’s strategic plan to engender peace in the region.

Boroh said that the positive impact of the visits by Osinbajo to the region was already being felt in the country.
According to him, Osinbajo’s hands-on approach has helped to reassure the people in the region of government’s commitment to resolving the crisis in the Niger Delta.
The visits, he noted, would meet the president’s expectations of not only building confidence among the people on government’s intentions, but also a fact-finding mission that would pave the way for a workable and lasting solution.

He said: “President Muhammadu Buhari knew what he was doing when he directed the (then) acting President to head the delegation. You need to have seen him in action when we visited different communities in the oil-producing states.

“There is no doubt that the president knows that peace in the Niger Delta region is crucial to the development of the entire country.
“The visits by the vice-president to the Niger Delta is in phases to cover all Niger Delta states. We have so far visited Akwa Ibom, Edo, Bayelsa, Rivers and Imo States. The next phase will be Cross River, Abia and Ondo States.

“By that, we would have covered the entire Niger Delta states.
“This visit is in two folds: it is both a confidence-building and a fact-finding mission because a lot of information has been heard about the Niger Delta but no single person can claim to know all about the Niger Delta.

“It requires the common effort by all towards ensuring that the issues of the Niger Delta are resolved. The information will be collated and we will sit back and resolve how best to tackle the information we get, for the immediate, short and long-term.”

He also disclosed that efforts were being made to pay beneficiaries of the Amnesty Programme who are studying abroad and whose fates were hanging in the balance due to inability to meet their financial obligations in the various countries.

He stated that although the Amnesty Office would have to defray a lot of liabilities when funds allocated to it are eventually released, priority would be given to the foreign beneficiaries especially those who will soon be graduating.

While explaining that the Amnesty Office is compelled to deal daily with false allegations made against it by some aggrieved youths who crave to benefit from the programme, he noted that the progamme is at the integration phase, adding that it would be difficult for it to accommodate new entrants who were not captured when the amnesty offer was in place.
“As for those abroad whose fees are not yet paid, it is the immediate concern of the Amnesty Programme and the entire country as a result of the downturn in our economy.

“We have a lot of liabilities but the Amnesty Office tries to offset these liabilities as we receive funds.
“We are prioritising based on those graduating soon. We handle them first and later handle those graduating in the nearest future. It is on course. When the next resources we are expecting get to us, we will offset all the debts,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Senate and the House of Representatives both confirmed on Monday that they were in receipt of the president’s letter formally notifying the National Assembly of his resumption of duty.
In separate letters addressed to Senate President Bukola Saraki and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Yakubu Dogara, Buhari said the letter was in compliance with Section 145 of the constitution.

The letter would be read on the floor of both chambers at plenary on Tuesday.
A copy of the letter dated March 13, 2017, which was obtained from the House read: “In compliance with Section 145 of the 1999 Constitution (as amended), I write to intimate the House that I have resumed my functions as the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria with effect from Monday 13th March, 2017, after my vacation. Please accept, Honourable Speaker, the assurances of my highest consideration.”

  Culled from Thisday 

Terms for states as N500b Paris Club refund is ready - Yusuf Alli

• Finance Minister Mrs Kemi Adeosun

Presidency gets ‘damning’ feedback on first tranche
Another London-Paris Club loan refund (about N500billion) is on the way for states— with fresh hurdles for governors.
The Presidency has made it mandatory for all the states to account for the first tranche of the loan refunds – in line with the agreement  it reached with the Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF).
States implicated in the mismanagement of the first tranche may not get the fresh funds.
Some of the 36 governors are being investigated by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission(EFCC) for allegedly diverting the first tranche of the refund.

The governors (seven are involved in the scandal) engaged some curious consultants, who got part of their states’ share of the refund.
Part of the funds was allocated to some National Assembly leaders who had no business with the refund, it was learnt.
The Nation gathered that the Presidency was set to release fresh refund to states —in line with President Muhammadu Buhari’s determination  to rescue the 36 states from economic collapse.
A source, who spoke in confidence, said: “The government is about to release another tranche of London-Paris Club loan refunds to states. It is about the same amount like the first tranche. Let us say about N500billion.
“The refund is entirely the initiative of the Federal Government to improve the socio-economic situation in the 36 states. President Buhari was disturbed that many states were finding it difficult to  pay workers’ salaries and pensions.
“But the release of the second batch of refund will be based on some conditions as agreed upon by the Presidency and the Nigerian Governors Forum(NGF). President Buhari has said that he will not accept any excuse from any governor for diverting public funds.
“Before the first tranche was released, the NGF had an agreement with President Buhari that about 25 per cent to 50 per cent will be used to offset outstanding salaries and pensions.

“This time around, the Presidency has made up its mind that any state which breached the agreement will not be entitled to second tranche.”
Asked how the Presidency will know, the source added: “We have feedback from the states on how some of these governors have diverted and misused the first set of refunds. Some of them did not spend up to 15 per cent on salaries and pensions. The records are there to prove the breach.
“ We also got reports from security agencies, labour, pensioners, concerned leaders in various states and many whistle-blowers on how the governors spent the first tranche.”
The source described security reports on some of the governors as “damning”.
Some governors were said to have converted the refund to personal use and the cash expended on “wasteful” projects.
“In some instances, some projects executed have no bearing with the needs of some states. It is quite sad,” the source said.
The investigation of the EFCC into the disbursement of the first refunds confirmed that some of the governors were involved in illegal deductions and remittances into NGF account. I think about seven of them were actively involved.
“The position of the Presidency is that governors implicated in London-Paris Club fraud may forfeit refunds to their states. We will reveal the outcome of investigation on some of the governors for the people of their states to know why such a punitive measure is necessary.”
Another top government source, who confirmed the moves to reimburse states, however, said: “The second tranche will be released based on the compliance of states with Fiscal Sustainability Plan(FSP), which was endorsed by all the governors at a meeting of the National  Economic Council (NEC) on May 19.
“We have a benchmark which we mutually  consented to. As a matter of fact, the governors agreed that further disbursements will be based on the states meeting agreed targets and will be subject to monitoring and evaluation by Independent Monitoring Agents. States which fail to meet the targets will be excluded from this refund.”
According to the plan by the Federal Ministry of Finance,  states will be required to:

• set and meet targets to enhance Internally Generated Revenue (IGR);
• establish Efficiency Units to reduce overhead costs;
• privatise State Owned Enterprises;
• domesticate the Fiscal Responsibility Act; and
• limit bank loans.

“The Federal Government has agreed to develop IPSAS compliant software for States to use, and to develop new Bond Issuance guidelines to ease access to the Capital Market for states wishing to fund developmental projects,” the source said.
The Presidency has so far released N1, 266.44trillion to the states in the past one year including N713.70billion special intervention fund.
Following protests by states against over deductions for external debt service between 1995 and 2002, President Buhari approved the release of N522.74 billion(first tranche)  to states as refunds pending reconciliation of records.
Each  state was  entitled to a cap of N14.5 billion, being 25 per cent of the amounts claimed.
Minister of Finance Mrs. Kemi Adeosun said the payment of the claims would enable states to offset outstanding salaries and pension, which had been “causing considerable hardship”.
The Presidency directed the states to devote a minimum of 50 per cent of any amount disbursed to address “challenges associated with salaries and pensions”.
Some governors are said to have failed to disclose the actual amount given to their states.
Some of the governors have devoted only 10 to 25 per cent of the funds to the payment of backlog of salaries.

Culled from Nation