The slash in the Federal Government ’ s budget by about N 321bn would mostly affect projects to be implemented in the Niger -Delta, North - East, basic education, healthcare and other sectors of the economy.

The executive arm of government had on Wednesday sent a revised budget proposal to the National Assembly following a drop in crude oil prices which was caused by the impact of the coronavirus pandemic.

In the revised proposal of the executive to the National Assembly , about N 321bn is being projected to be cut.

On the expenditure side , the executive is proposing a reduction of about N 321bn in spending from the initial estimate of N 10 . 59tn to N 10 . 27 tn.

An analysis of the executive proposal showed that the Niger - Delta Delta Development Commission suffered a huge cut of about N 51 . 36 bn from the N 80. 88 bn initially signed into law by the President to N 29 . 52 bn.

Statistics from the website of the NDDC showed that the commission had about 3 ,335 projects in the Niger - Delta region , while 1 , 403 projects had just been awarded.

For the North - East Development Commission , analysis of the revised budget proposal showed that the commission suffered a N 24 . 03 bn reduction in its allocation.

The commission saw its allocation reduced by 63 . 07 per cent from N 38 . 1 bn in the initially approved budget to N 14 . 07 bn.

The NEDC is the focal organisation charged with the responsibility to assess , coordinate , harmonise and report on all intervention programmes , and initiatives by the Federal Government for the North East states ; Adamawa , Bauchi, Borno , Gombe , Taraba and Yobe , respectively.

In the same vein , the Federal Government is proposing a cut of N 50 . 76 bn in the allocation of the UBEC from the initial N 111. 78 bn to N 61 . 02 bn.

Further analysis showed that there is a reduction in the basic healthcare fund by N 26 . 51 bn from N 44 . 49bn to N 17 . 98 bn.

Similarly , the proposal stated that the Federal Government was planning to reduce anniversaries/ celebrations by N 3 . 08 bn , computer software N 3 . 14 bn , office buildings N 24 . 86 bn , residential buildings N 479. 6 m, monitoring and evaluation N 10 . 8 bn , land acquisition N 1 . 45bn , computers N 1 . 9bn , purchase of motor vehicles N 5. 25 bn , and office furniture N 3 . 94bn.

Others are rehabilitation of office building N 49 . 52 bn , repair of residential buildings N 1 . 07 bn , research and development N 45 . 6 bn , provision of roads N 1 . 96 bn , provision of water facilities N 650m, provision of waterways N 650m, repair of public schools N 330 . 85m, and purchase of generators N 555 . 96 m.

There is also a reduction of N 176. 5m on purchase of motorcycles , computer printers N 151 . 48 m, photocopying machines N 131. 46 m, purchase of trucks N 134 . 46 m, purchase of buses N 485 . 78 m and purchase of scanners N 193 . 74 m.

The document also said there would be a reduction in road repairs by N 120 m, repairs of public school N 330 . 8m, gaming equipment N 100m, provision of agricultural facilities N 180m, and purchase of vans N 216. 2 m.

The Academic Staff Union has commenced it's warning strike today 9th of March 2020

The Academic Staff Union of Universities (ASUU) has embarked on a two- week warning strike with effect from Monday.

Its National President, Professor Biodun Ogunyemi, announced this at end of the National Executive Council meeting(NEC) held at the Enugu State University of Science and Technology (ESUT).

Ogunyemi said the strike action was to compel federal government to implement the agreements and resolutions of Memorandum of Action discussed in the 2009 ASUU-FGN agreement, the 2013 Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) and the 2017 Memorandum of Action (MoU), all of which have not been implemented.

...thanks Assembly; says outfit complimentary to Police, others; political colouration won't be allowed

The Governor of Ondo State, Arakunrin Oluwarotimi Odunayo Akeredolu, SAN today, Wednesday 4th March, 2020, signed the Ondo State Security Network and Amotekun Corps Bill into Law.

This followed the passage of the Bill by the Ondo State House of Assembly sequel to legislative scrutiny which included a Pubic Hearing.

At the brief signing ceremony which took place at the Executive Council Chambers, Governor Akeredolu warned against any political colouration of the outfit even as he reiterated that the Amotekun Corps shall be complimentary and not independent of the operations and efforts of the Nation's security agencies.

"We wish to reiterate that the Amotekun Corps is a child of necessity and was purely borne out of the need to explore other means of securing our forests and protecting all those who do legitimate business within the Southwest Region.

"For the umpteenth time, the Amotekun Corps is not an independent regional outfit but a complimentary efforts by the governors of the Southwest to engender unity, peace and security.

"Most importantly, the corps shall not be allowed for political purposes; it has no business at political rallies just as the Police must continue to discharge its obligations and responsibilities to the people", Governor Akeredolu said.

He thanked the House of Assembly for the promptness in the handling of the Bill, saying, their speed and thoroughness underscored the importance attached to the Bill.

Donald Ojogo

Commissioner for Information and Orientation

� Nguher Gabrielle Zaki

UBEC, TETFund to fund rehabilitated insurgents’ agency

The proposed National Agency for the Education, Rehabilitation, De-radicalisation and Integration of Repentant Insurgents in Nigeria’ will get its funding from the Universal Basic Education Commission and the Tertiary Education Trust Fund, The PUNCH reports.

Other sources of funding include- donations, grants, annual subventions from the government and counterpart funding from the six North-East states of Borno, Bauchi, Yobe, Adamawa, Taraba and Gombe.

The details are included in the bill which was obtained by The PUNCH on Thursday.

The controversial bill, which is officially known as ‘A Bill for the Establishment of the National Agency for the Education, Rehabilitation, De-radicalisation and Integration of Repentant Insurgents in Nigeria and for Other Connected Purposes’, passed the first reading in the Senate on Thursday last week.

But few hours after the bill, which was sponsored by Senator representing Yobe East, Ibrahim Geideam, passed the first reading, it attracted angry reactions from the Chibok Community, which was attacked by the insurgents in 2014, and the Christian Association of Nigeria.

Also the #BringBackOurGirls movement, which has been calling for the release of schoolgirls abducted from Chibok in 2014 by the insurgents, said the plan to set up the agency should be done concurrently with the rehabilitation of thousands of internally displaced persons.

But on Monday, Geidam, in an interview with journalists, defended the bill. He said many Boko Haram terrorists were willing to lay down their arms but were afraid of the consequences of their action.

The senator explained that his bill was not meant to take care of insurgents captured by the security agencies because those ones would be made to face the full wrath of the law.

Barely two days after the senator defended the controversial bill, 25 Boko Haram members and their wives, who surrendered to troops in Niger Republic, arrived in Maiduguri, the Borno State capital, on Wednesday.

A copy of the bill on the agency for Boko Haram repentant terrorists, obtained by our correspondent, states that one per cent of TETFund and UBEC fund will be used in funding the agency for rehabilitating the terrorists .

The agency will also be funded by 0.5 per cent of the federal allocation of the six North-East states.

The PUNCH reports that TETFund obtains its funding from a compulsory two per cent profit tax that is paid by all registered companies to the Federal Government.

Section 10 of the controversial bill reads in part, “The agency shall establish and maintain a fund which will consist of initial take-off grant from the Federal Government; annual subvention from the government; states counterpart funding which will be deducted at source at 0.5 per cent of their statutory allocation; 1 per cent of the Education Tax Fund (TETFund) and UBEC fund.

According to the proposed law, the agency will also be funded by grants in aid, gift, testamentary dispositions, endowments and donations.

The bill states that the proposed agency shall have a governing board which shall consist of the chairman who is to be appointed by the President in consultation with the National Assembly.

The governing council will also have one representative from each of the North-East states, one representative each of the stakeholders, three representatives of the impacted communities, one person from the Nigerian Army, air force, navy, police and Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps, all of whom must not be below the rank of lieutenant colonel.

The council will also include one representative each from the federal ministries of humanitarian affairs, finance, environment, petroleum resources, North-East Development Commission and the Local Content Board.

As regards the powers of the proposed agency, the bill gives repentant terrorists the opportunity of receiving foreign education.

Section 5(m) reads in part, “(The agency shall) implement programmes geared towards the rehabilitation of beneficiaries, engage the services of offshore and Nigerian institutions in the pursuit of the educational needs of ex-agitators.”

The proposed agency is expected to implement a comprehensive programme in the area of disarmament, demobilisation, rehabilitation and reintegration.

It will also coordinate efforts of relevant agencies, organisations and institutions towards the attainment of set objectives as regards job placement, internship and sustainable reintegration.