Buhari Decries Unhelpful Electoral Attitudes

President Muhammadu Buhari has described as unhelpful, the attitudes of some Nigerian politicians and electorates during elections.

He cited the recent elections in Kogi and Bayelsa States where some citizens were denied the use of card readers and permanent voter cards despite the enthusiasm that followed their introduction into Nigeria’s electoral system.

Buhari said this on Tuesday while receiving the newly elected members of the Inter-Party Advisory Council IPAC Executive Committee at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The president urged Nigerians to support all necessary measures to ensure free, fair and credible elections in the country, including the use of card readers and permanent voter cards.

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Gunmen burn village, rustle 200 cows.

Two days after gunmen suspected to be Boko Haram terrorists raided Takulashi village near Chibok, looting foodstuff and rustling 200 cows in the process, the village once again came under attack by armed assailants last Sunday.

According to eye witnesses, terrorists on foot and bicycles invaded the farming community at dawn on Sunday, shooting indiscriminately and  setting homes on fire.

“They burnt more than100 homes in the village. Only five houses were spared the inferno,” said an eyewitness resident in the village.

The attackers were said to have loaded looted foodstuff in four vehicles stolen from the community before they made good their escape.

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Social Media Bill: Count me out, Buhari tells Nigerians

As far as the right to criticize political and public office holders is concerned, President Muhammadu Buhari is on the side of free speech.

Buhari on Monday washed his hands off the Social Media Bill which has already passed second reading in the Senate.

In a statement issued by his Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity, Mallam Garba Shehu, Buhari said that the bill was against the rights of Nigerians to free speech which he swore to uphold as enshrined in the constitution.

Shehu said that “The President won’t assent to any legislation that may be inconsistent with the constitution of Nigeria.”

He added that “As a key component of democratic principles, Nigerians are so emotionally attached to free speech that they would defend it with all their might.”

The President advised elected officials to use free speech as a means of gauging public opinion on issues of governance.

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SERAP petitions UN against Social Media Bill

The UN Special Rapporteur on the promotion and protection of the right to freedom of opinion and expression, Mr. David Kaye last week received a petition by the Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP against the Social Media Bill.

In the petition, SERAP urged Mr David Kaye to use his "good offices and position to urgently request the National Assembly of Nigeria, specifically the Senate, to withdraw a bill which if passed into law would undermine the internationally recognized right to freedom of expression and press freedom on the internet in the country.”

SERAP stated its concerns as follows :
“... the National Assembly of Nigeria will any moment from now pass a bill to jail for two years and fine anybody or group of persons who send any alleged false text message or post false message on the social media against another person.

“SERAP is concerned that rather than increasing universal and inclusive access to the Internet for all Nigerians, the National Assembly of Nigeria is working to undermine access of citizens to the Internet. Yet, freedom of expression entails the ability to both speak and receive information, including through the social media and other generated content services such as YouTube, Twitter, Facebook, and chat applications.

“By initiating this bill, the National Assembly is impermissibly restricting the ability of the citizens to use these tools to communicate, connect, and seek independent sources of information.

“SERAP also contends that the bill will restrain access to Internet and social media, curtail the freedom of the press, and online content in illegitimate, disproportionate, or otherwise unlawful and abusive ways. The real targets of the bill are social media and human rights defenders that might be critical of government policies or report on corruption involving high ranking government officials.

“International law provides that any restriction to rights online must be provided in law, pursuant to a legitimate aim, and limited to only what is necessary and proportionate. SERAP believes that the bill falls far short of international requirements of legitimacy, necessity and proportionality.

“The bill will also have chilling effect on freedom of expression in the country, as it will create an atmosphere of fear among bloggers and online activists who may not post critical commentary on Facebook or other social media platforms for fear of being sent to jail.”

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How FG Will Fund 2016 Budget

Minister of National Planning and Budget, Udoma Udo  Udoma at the end of the Federal Executive Council meeting in Abuja on Monday told State House correspondents how the Federal Government plans to fund the six trillion naira 2016 budget.

“We will get the funding from two sources. We are looking at trying to increase our non-oil revenue. We are looking at trying to get more money from the various government agencies, policing their collection and trying to get more money from them. We will also look at keeping down our recurrent budget. That means we are looking at savings that we can make from overheads.

“We will look at the efficiencies from our revenue collecting agencies like the FIRS, in terms of company income tax, in terms of VAT, and then the difference, we will have to borrow. But the level of borrowing that we anticipate will be well within the maximum allowed, which is three per cent of the GDP, because we want a prudent budget. We want a credible budget. So, we are working on that now.

“So we are not cutting anybody's salary. Everybody will get their salaries, “ he said.

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FG Unveils Six Trillion Naira Budget For 2016

Based on a projected crude oil price of $38 per barrel and production of 2.2 million barrels per day, the Federal Government has proposed a budget of six trillion naira for the 2016 fiscal year.

Briefing State newsmen after an emergency meeting of the Federal Executive Council, FEC, presided over by President Muhammadu Buhari at the Presidential Villa, Abuja on Monday , Minister of National Planning and Budget, Udoma Udo  Udoma, said that in view of the current economic realities, FEC predicated the budget on $38 per barrel of crude oil as benchmark for the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF.

His words :

“At today’s Federal Executive Council meeting, the council approved the Medium Term Expenditure Framework, MTEF, which sets out the policies of government over the next three years. It sets out the fundamental economic underpinning of the budget.

“The highlights are as follows: we projected and we are working with $38 crude oil price, We consider that to be very conservative but because of the uncertainty, we felt that we should start with a conservative crude oil price.

“We are also working with 2.2 million barrels a day production. We believe it is achievable, particularly because with the possible passage of the Petroleum Industry Bill  (PIB) which we are working to achieve, we believe that the production figure is a modest figure that we should be able to produce something higher than. 
“And so next year, we are looking at an expansionist budget. We are looking at a budget that will be N1 trillion more than last year. So, we are looking at a budget of about N6 trillion.

“Last year’s budget, including the supplementary, was about N5 trillion. So, we are looking at a N6 trillion budget. All the increases actually will be spent on capital, because there is the need to increase the capital because of the infrastructure issues that we have to address.

“We are projecting almost 30 percent capital project, up from the 15 per cent or so that is in the current budget. We will try and reduce overheads, but keep personnel cost in check. We are not going to adjust it by much, but we are expecting some savings from the IPPIS system which we are using. So we are not cutting anybody’s salary, everybody will get their salaries.

“Following from this, the MTEF will be submitted to the National Assembly, and we expect a feedback from them, thereafter we will be working to try and get the budget finalized. It is when the budget is finalized that you will really see the details of what we intend to do. This is just a medium term economic framework.”

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I won't work with Yahaya Bello - Faleke

The deputy governorship candidate of the All Progressives Congress, APC in the just concluded election in Kogi State, Hon Abiodun Faleke has vowed not to work with the governor-elect, Yahaya Bello.

To this end, Faleke declared at a stakeholders meeting in Kabba, Kogi State that he would not be available for inauguration on January 27, 2016.

He also said that he has resolved to pursue the legal option to restore the Audu/Faleke ticket to a logical conclusion.

“I will not disappoint Prince Abubakar Audu. I, James Abiodun Faleke will not be there for the swearing in if we don’t finish the case before the January 27, 2016.

“Nobody consulted me before making me a deputy to Bello. Bello too did not consult me. I have made my position known to the party leadership on this. I am not ready to betray and disappoint Prince Abubakar Audu,” he said.

Following the unexpected demise of Prince Abubakar Audu during the election, APC had opted for Yahaya Bello as its governorship candidate.

However, Faleke argues that he should logically have stepped into Audu's shoes being his deputy governorship candidate.

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