President Buhari’s Address at the Occasion of Receiving the Release of Dapchi School Girls

I am delighted to formally announce to Nigerians this morning and our International friends and partners that One Hundred and Seven (107) Dapchi students previously abducted, have been unconditionally released by their abductors.

This cheering and hearty development signifies our commitment to the security and wellbeing of all Nigerian.

We are never in doubt about our focus and direction since the assumption of this Administration. Security, ant-corruption and revamping of our economy are the main focus of our government.

You will recall that on 14th of this month, I paid a visit to Yobe State during which I sympathized with the parents, families, Government and people of the State for the tragic abduction of the students in Dapchi.

I made a solemn pledge on my word of honour that this Administration would do everything possible to ensure the unconditional release of the girls.

I further tasked all the appropriate security agencies to safely bring back the girls. We also reached out to our contacts at home and abroad. We embarked on backchannel shuttles with a clear view to bring to an end, of this tragedy.

We entered into negotiations solely to make sure that no single girl was hurt. This strategy paid off as the girls have been released without any incidents.

Let me re-emphasize our Administration’s commitment to the fight against terrorism and insurgency, and also call on all Nigerians, to join in this task. The security services have since been directed to put in place further measures around all schools vulnerable to attacks to ensure the safety of our pupils/students and teachers and school workers.

I have tasked all the security agencies to work to ensure that we do not witness any reoccurrence of these incidents. Security Chiefs have been warned in clear terms that any lapse on their parts will be viewed seriously.

To the rescued students, we want to reassure you as our daughters, that you will freely live and pursue your dreams in Nigeria of peace and order, without fear of violence or molestation.

While parents of the Dapchi girls rejoice because of the reunion with their children, I want to appeal to the Chibok Community never to lose hope or to despair. We are determined as never before, to bring back our remaining Chibok daughters. And this, we must accomplish. And that will be soon by God’s grace.

While further efforts are being made to secure the release of every abducted citizen in Nigeria, Government is ever ready to accept the unconditional laying down of arms by any member of the Boko Haram group, who show strong commitment in that regard. We are ready to rehabilitate and integrate such repentant members into the larger society.

This country has suffered enough of hostility. Government is therefore appealing to all to embrace peace for the overall development of our people and the country.

May I also warn against those elements who have chosen to make political fortune of our citizens’ misfortune. Government would not tolerate any attempt by any person or group to trivialize or politicize security issues for politically motivated ends. Accordingly, security agencies would not hesitate to decisively deal with such unscrupulous characters.

Finally, I thank all Nigerians, who in spite of political differences, prayed and showed solidarity with families of the abducted students, during the period of the abduction.

This, undoubtedly, is the Nigerian spirit. We can and should sustain it beyond moments of sorrow. I remain thankful to the International Community and our friends who offered varying degrees of assistance during the back channel communications.

May I, on behalf of the Government and people of Nigerian, extend our appreciation to the security agencies for their loyal and tireless efforts in making this day a reality.

Thank you and may God bless our country.

Press Release: Investing in our People, Key to Economic Growth, Says VP Osinbajo

*Gates commends Buhari administration for “a series of smart policies to encourage private sector investment”

*Nigeria’s growth driven by extracting natural resources and building on that through physical infrastructure, Dangote adds

The successes recorded by its social investment programmes are clear indications that the Buhari administration’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) is making progress, according to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.

Prof. Osinbajo stated this during a special session of the National Economic Council (NEC) focused on Human Capital Development, which held today at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

The NEC is composed of all state governors and the CBN Governor under the chairmanship of the Vice President.

The special session, which included officials of federal and state governments, was also attended by Alhaji Aliko Dangote, Chairman of the Dangote Foundation, and Bill Gates, Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.

While describing Gates and Dangote as committed and valued philanthropic and development partners, the Vice President thanked them for “uniquely deploying huge resources and innovation through social enterprise to solving some of the most challenging issues of human development that we face today.”

The Vice President further said the social investment programmes, which are a key component of the administration’s Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP), have made significant strides nationwide because of the administration’s political will and vision to make the needed investments, for today and the future.

According to Prof. Osinbajo, “Let me reiterate that not only are we painfully aware of the issues we are prepared to take the challenges you have outlined head-on. Nigeria has strong economic growth and development ambitions, encapsulated in our Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, which we launched in 2017.

“All of those lofty ambitions can only be achieved through the determined application of human skill and effort. And for that effort to be meaningful and productive it has to come from people who are healthy, educated, and who are and feel empowered.”

“It is this realisation that has helped ensure that one of the primary planks of the ERGP is ‘Investing in our people’. And it is for this reason that we are expanding the reach and quality of our healthcare, through the National Health Insurance Scheme (NHIS); and working to guarantee basic education for all persons, whilst also upgrading and modernising the quality of secondary and post-secondary education.

“In 2016 we launched a Social Investment Programme – comprising a jobs scheme for unemployed graduates, a feeding programme for public primary school pupils, a micro-credit scheme for small businesses, and a cash transfer scheme for our poorest and most vulnerable households. This Social Investment Programme, a key component of the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, and the most ambitious in Nigeria’s history, aims to ensure that no one is left behind; that Nigeria’s wealth is more equitably distributed to its vulnerable populations: young and old, male and female, regardless of where in the country they live or what language they speak.

Further highlighting the successes recorded, Prof. Osinbajo said, “The school feeding programme currently serves over 7 million school children, across 22 of Nigeria’s 36 states, and continues to grow as more States sign up for it. Apart from the health outcomes – children free from malnutrition and stunting – there are also important educational and economic benefits as well. By guaranteeing one hot meal a day to these children the scheme has pushed school enrolment rates upwards in many of the communities in which it is being implemented.

“Our cash transfer programme, which we’re delivering with the support of the World Bank, makes it imperative for beneficiaries to fulfil certain conditions relating to health or education, before they can receive their monthly stipends. These conditions range from mandatory ante-natal care for pregnant women, to mandatory immunisations for nursing mothers, to minimum school attendance rates for parents of school-age children.

“N-Power, as the jobs-for-graduates component of the Social Investment Programme is known, deploys young Nigerians to work as health and teaching assistants, bringing healthcare and education to more people across the country. We have 200,000 young Nigerians already engaged, and this year we intend to scale that up to 500,000. But the more importantly we are leveraging on the creativity and innovation of our young people.”

In his speech, Bill Gates praised the efforts of the Buhari administration through its economic recovery and growth plan and praised Nigerian’s for having “big dreams and big ambitions”. Noting that Nigeria was now the ‘biggest economy on the continent, Gates said the country was now “rapidly approaching upper middle-income status, like Brazil, China, and Mexico.

Adding that Nigeria has unmatched economic potential, Gates said the Buhari administration’s has taken important steps to fill in gaps in areas of the economy like agriculture, with “both more investment and a series of smart policies to encourage private sector investment.”

“These reforms lay the foundation for a booming agricultural sector that feeds the country, helps end chronic malnutrition, and lifts tens of millions of smallholder farmers. I urge you to build on this,” he said, adding that the FG should increase its investments in health, education, and opportunities that will lay the foundation for sustained prosperity.

“The agricultural sector is a pillar of the Nigerian economy. It accounts for a large proportion of your GDP, and during the oil price collapse and recession, it helped cushion the economy. But it still has a lot of potential to grow,” Gates said.

Also speaking at the event, Dangote noted that human capital was a critical component of Nigeria’s future economic growth.

He said the country has largely achieved growth by extracting natural resources and building on that through physical infrastructure.

He said, “For Nigeria to truly compete globally, we must prioritize investments in the health, education and opportunity of our people alongside other critical areas like infrastructure. Together, these are the inputs that will make Nigeria richer,” he said.

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant, Media and Publicity to the President
Office of the Vice President
22nd March, 2018

Press Release: President Buhari Congratulates German Chancellor Merkel on Re-election

President Muhammadu Buhari has congratulated German Chancellor, Angela Merkel on her re-election for another term.

In a letter to the German leader, the President said he was “most delighted to learn of the successful conclusion of the inter-Party negotiations to form a new Government after the last election in Germany.”

President Buhari told Chancellor Merkel that her victory “is a testimony of your hard-work, competence and trust of the German people, qualities which are much admired in many parts of the world especially here in Africa.”

Stressing that “We greatly value your humanity and concern for refugees,” the Nigerian leader, on behalf of the Government and people of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, wished his German counterpart and her new Cabinet, “a successful new term of office.”

According to President Buhari, “We look forward to greater cooperation between our two countries as we strive to confront shared challenges.”

Femi Adesina
Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity)
March 20, 2018.

Part Two of the Transcript of a Media Interview Granted by the Vice President to a Group of Journalists & Social Media Practitioners in Lagos State on March 2, 2018

*Adds: Buhari administration is building a bright future for Nigeria’s youths

*On Dapchi & other security hotspots: We Are Working On Ensuring Effective Security

Q: Revamping Nigeria’s education system.

Vice President: If you will recall about a few months ago, I think it was in January, we had an education retreat; what needs to be done again is to unfold a whole direction in education. We came in with a manifesto on education, we had a few points that we were looking at and we also had some time to look at it. But many of us raised the issue that you don’t just pick the whole education; what about engineering because what we are seeing is such a dramatic change, not just in method of instruction in the requirement, job requirement, employment requirement, in technology and all of that, and that’s exactly what we are trying to do.

For example, we cannot have primary education the way it is, we’ve got to teach young people, we’ve got to introduce technology; you’ve got to have collaboration in education. We discovered, for instance, when we were doing the N-power – employment for young graduates, we discovered that it was also an opportunity to train the graduates. For the first time we were able to open a portal that has educational materials for graduates to just go in there. We also have devices for them to use.

But one important advantage of what we are doing is that all of a sudden, you can now train tens of thousands of people without sitting them in one place. So technology is going to play a role. We are in a very interesting place in terms of education today because you can leverage a great deal on technology. You can leverage a great deal on what is happening in other parts of the world. And we are trying to harness all of those resources and try to do something that will make a difference in our country. Here we are, in another 10 years we will be moving closer and closer to 2050 when we are going to be the 3rd largest population in the world. And there is almost a 70% youth population. We are not going to provide them with the number of classrooms that will be required, so we’ve got to really leverage on technology. We’ve got to leverage on verified trend that we see here and there.

Q: The delay in 2018 budget.

Vice President: We have a democracy that has, as you know, three arms. The two relevant arms for budget are the executive and legislature. If you recall when I was Acting President, I signed the 2017 budget and, at that time, I made the announcement with the full consensus of the National Assembly that, from 2018, we are going to have a budget that is going to apply in January and end in December the normal financial year. We agreed that we will submit our proposal in good time, and we did that first week of November. The President did so. We fulfilled that part of the agreement. The budget is with the National Assembly. There is very little we can do to control that. That’s the system that we have.

Q: Seeming rift between the Executive arm of Government and the Legislature.

Vice President: Well, I’m not so sure that the tensions are unknown. The democratic system anywhere as, for example, in the US where we borrow our bicameral legislature from, you find that despite the fact that the Republican Party controls major part of parliament, it still doesn’t mean that bills are necessary going to go through.

So one must assume that the responsibility of the National Assembly is to scrutinize what the executive is doing and not just to be a rubber stamp. But I also agree with you entirely that it’s important for us, for the sake of our country, our economy and for the sake of many young people who are relying on us to deliver. We ensured that we released our budget on time. I want to believe that the executive has done its part and we wait on the National Assembly.

Q: About N9 Trillion debt said to have been inherited by this administration now reportedly about N30 T. How come?

Vice President: No, No, I don’t think so. First let me explain that we have a government that is very prudent, a government that believes in financial prudence, a government that condemns impunity – the way that the thing was practiced before now, and a government that spends resources on the right thing. For the first time in the history of our country, we are spending about N1.3 trillion on capital; it means that we are investing in the right place. We are not just borrowing money anyhow; no, we are investing in the right place.

Every government or most governments anywhere probably look for some points to borrow, but the important thing is what are you borrowing for? And that’s why we building the Lagos-Kano rail, doing the Lagos-Calabar rail, the second Niger Bridge and the Mambilla hydro project that has been abandoned for almost 40 years.

We are improving capacities in power, we are investing in social investment, we are investing long-term in the things that will create an economy that can support a large number of young graduates, who are coming in the market every day. That’s a process that needs a lot of thinking; that needs a lot of investment.

I think the most important thing is to ask that when there was a N9 trillion debt, where is the infrastructure to account for that? I think that is the most important question to ask. It’s not whether you borrow, but what you spend that money on. I think we should be able to prove that the earning is 60% less than the earning in the past five six years. So we are spending far more on the right thing and we are able to ensure that we build a future that young people can truly look forward to.

Q: What about the 50% revenue reportedly being spent on settling debts?

Vice President: No, we are not spending 50% of our revenue servicing debt. Let me explain that, we have a deficit somehow in the region of about N2.6 trillion now, a lot of our revenue has to be spent on capital and recurrent, and recurrent is 70% of revenue. But for the first time we are spending 30% on capital. Before now when oil was a $115 a barrel, we were spending 11% or 15% on capital, and capital is the most important expenditure because that is where you do the infrastructure in order to be able to build the economy. So the reality is what we are spending is to provide the infrastructure that will last.

Q: Abduction of 110 Dapchi girls in Yobe and the killings in states like Benue and Zamfara. Why didn’t the President or you visit these places?

Vice President: Let me say it first that no amount of condolence can compensate for the loss of life, whether in Calabar, Mambilla or Benue or where people were killed in Adamawa or Zamfara, any of these states. There is no amount of condolence that can compensate for the loss of life. Benue killing is one set of killing far too much; there is no amount of condolence that can compensate for that. And I want to say that it’s a massive tragedy. But the question that you seem to ask I’ve been to Zamfara, I’ve been to Adamawa when this killing took place. There are those who said, ‘oh, why don’t you visit the Fulani settlement, why do visit only where Christians were?’ I even visited Benue in September where there have been killing before; then I’ve visited them when the flooding took place and we looked at all the issues and tried to address many of these. There have been several of these issues in different places, recently Dapchi. We have expressed condolences, but no amount of condolence would do.

The more important thing, and our focus has been, is first of all ensuring security in these places.

We have to address the security question in a much more robust way; that the police are able to do these effectively. We have deployed the military to Kaduna, two battalions to Kaduna. In Benue and Taraba axis, we have the 93 battalion, we have 72 Special Forces. We have full concentration in Taraba and all of that, and by the way, the military is fighting in most of the North East. So there is a situation where the military is overstretched. So I think the most important thing is first of all to ensure they actually address the security of the people.

Q: Nigerians definitely appreciate all you are doing. But they want to see their leaders come to them to grieve with them in the face of national human tragedy…

Vice President: Let me say that I definitely agree with you, the more places that we can go to the better. But I made a point earlier that we also have to address the serious concern that people have. We have to address those concerns; we have to address the rehabilitation concern. I am going round and the President is also going round, there is no question at all and I agree that if we go to all these places it would be so much better.

Released by:

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President, Media & Publicity
Office of the Vice President
04 March, 2018

Press Release: Dapchi Update: FG Sets up Committee to Probe Abduction of Dapchi Girls

The Federal Government has set up a 12-member committee to unravel the circumstances surrounding the abduction of 110 students of the Government Girls Science and Technical College (GGSTC) in Dapchi, Yobe State, following the attack on the school by insurgents on 19 Feb. 2018.

The committee was convened by the National Security Adviser (NSA), Maj.-Gen. Babagana Monguno (rtd), according to a statement issued in Abuja on Tuesday by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed.

The Committee, which will be chaired by a military officer of the rank of Major General, comprises one senior Provost each from the Nigerian Army, the Nigerian Navy and the Nigerian Air Force; representatives of the National Intelligence Agency (NIA); Defence Intelligence Agency (DIA); Nigeria Police Force (NPF); Department of State Services (DSS); Nigeria Security and Civil Defence Corps (NSCDC); two representatives of the Yobe State Government and a representative of the Office of the National Security Adviser.

The terms of reference of the Committee include ascertaining the circumstances surrounding the abduction of the girls, confirming the presence, composition, scale and disposition of security emplaced in Dapchi as well as in GGSTC before the incident and suggesting measures that can lead to the location and rescue of the girls.

The panel, which is expected to submit its report by 15 March 2018, is also saddled with recommending measures to prevent future occurrence.

The Committee will be inaugurated on Wednesday (28Feb2018).

Segun Adeyemi
SA To Hon Minister of Information and Culture
Abuja
27 Feb. 2018

Speech: President Buhari’s Address at the First Adamawa State Anti-Corruption Summit

I am delighted to be here today, and to be part of this memorable event.

It is very encouraging that a State Government on its own ventures into the subject matter of fighting Corruption deliberately, as well as transparently subjects its methods to the whole nation for detailed discussion.

You may recall that on 29th May 2015, when I stated that we are faced with enormous challenges in this Country, with insecurity and institutionalized pervasive corruption being key and that my confidence remained high that together we will tackle them head on. As I had predicted, today I am proud to note that we have not relented in our determination to fight corruption. We are fixing our problems together.

Even though under our system the Federal Government cannot directly interfere in the details of the operations of States, but to see that the gross corruption at the local level is being checked and transparently reported is a thing of satisfaction and joy for me.

We will try to ensure that, there is more responsible and accountable governance at all levels of government in the country.

I note with satisfaction the logical steps taken by Adamawa State Government in the last two and a half years to demonstrate that transparency, fiscal responsibility, accountability and timely delivery of strategic goods and services to develop the state and enhance the confidence of its people is a viable template to fighting corruption.

Team work, the cordial relationship between the Executive and the Legislature, the respect and compliance with fiscal and procurement laws, the institutional reforms to improved efficiency, the drive to achieve value for money, as demonstrated by this administration, are worthy of note.

I recommend to other states this model along with all other winning approaches to enhance the progress and development of our Nation.

The projects and progress I have seen in Yola along with the reports and presentations made here have given me encouragement on the future of the State. I hope this momentum will be sustained.

To the Government of Adamawa State, I say “well done and keep it up”. To the people of Adamawa State, I congratulate you all on supporting the Government and encourage you to continue to give your maximum support to the State Government in its drive for a much better future.

Thank you and may God bless our country.

Press Release: We Will Ensure Things Are Done Faithfully In This Government, Says VP Osinbajo

The Buhari administration, in line with its Economic Recovery and Growth Plan, would continue to ensure the implementation of policies to drive socio-economic growth and prosperity, according to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.

Prof. Osinbajo stated this today at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, when he received a delegation from the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI).

“I think that no one is in doubt that we have very great policies and we will ensure that these things are implemented and are done as faithfully as possible,” he said.

The Vice President further said that the private sector in Nigeria will continue to play a prominent role in the economic programmes and initiatives of the Buhari administration.

He noted the significance of private sector investment in the economy, adding that collaboration between the Federal Government and the private sector will further boost the country’s economic progress.

According to Prof. Osinbajo, “If you look at our economic programmes and several other initiatives, the private sector plays a prominent role in them, and that is how it should be. So there is no question that the roles the LCCI and private sector play are critical to the kind of development policies and plan that we have in this government.”

The Vice President commended the LCCI for its Presidential Policy Dialogues on the economy, which he noted has helped in shaping some initiatives and policies of government.

Prof. Osinbajo further said that the Buhari administration will continue to have robust engagements and work with the private sector and stakeholders in developing plans for implementation of several economic projects.

He also pointed out that, in conjunction with the private sector, the Federal Government is resolving the Apapa, Lagos traffic gridlock.

In his remarks, the leader of the delegation and LCCI President, Mr. Babatunde Ruwase, commended the Buhari administration for its laudable economic initiatives which he said has made Nigeria a more investment friendly destination.

He said, “We appreciate the series of Executive Orders focused on promoting the ease of doing business in the country. These orders are impacting positively on the business environment and promoting an inclusive economy through the scaling up of the local content in government expenditure.”

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity
Office of the Vice President
20 February, 2018

Press Release: President Buhari Felicitates With FRSC at 30; Lauds Reduction in Road Crashes

President Muhammadu Buhari felicitates with the management and staff of the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) as the organisation celebrates 30 years of its establishment.

The President commends the vision of its founding fathers in February 1988 in response to the unacceptable level of road crashes in the country.

President Buhari notes with delight that after three decades of operations, the Corps reduced road crashes from an alarming 40,881 in 1976 to 5,993 in 2016 and 4,418 in 2017.

He further lauds the significant reduction in the emergency response time of the Corps from 50 to 15 minutes to accident scenes on the nation’s highways.

The President commends the FRSC’s deployment of international best practices and use of technology in its uniform licensing scheme, tracking, vehicle plate numbering and other services.

According to President Buhari, “the recent United Nation’s commendation of Nigeria’s road safety action plan, affirms the Federal Road Safety Corps’ leading role not only in West Africa but the entire African continent.”

He pledges the Federal Government’s continued support to the FRSC to enable the organisation achieve the goal of United Nations Decade of Action on Road Safety of 50 per cent fatality reduction by 2020, thereby placing Nigerian roads among the league of 20 global safest roads by the target year.

Declaring that road safety is a shared responsibility, the President enjoins the FRSC to intensify its public education role, while urging other government and private organisations and the entire public to support the FRSC to further make road travels safer and more pleasurable.

Femi Adesina
Special Adviser to the President (Media & Publicity)
February 17, 2018

Speech: VP Osinbajo’s Remarks at the Inaugural Flagship Lecture of the Kukah Centre

It is a special privilege to welcome the President of the Republic of Ghana, President Nana Akufo-Addo, perhaps the one African President who Nigerians see as truly one of their own. The sheer number of invitations that President Akufo-Addo gets to speak here in Nigeria, I’m sure will only compare with the number of times he has to speak in Ghana.

But asides that, in barely a year in office, President Akufo-Addo’s strong and articulate voice on behalf of Africa has helped to present the African development story with insight, depth and above all, the hope that seems to have been missing in previous and even contemporary narratives.

But Your Excellency, it was a part of your honest and heartfelt presentation of Ghana’s democratic and development journey at the Cambridge Union on Democracy and Development that I found personally most instructive, especially your profound observation about the fundamental role of strong institutions, justice and the rule of law. This perhaps for me, is the most crucial issue in “How To Make Democracy Work for Africa.”

There is no question, that democracy and democratization are challenged everywhere, even in the oldest democracies, democracy is still a work-in-progress. That is one of the biggest lessons of recent years, as elections and referendums throw up new and unprecedented scenarios across the world.

The narrowness of the Brexit vote, and the way it has subsequently divided the United Kingdom, and the electoral rise of populist right wing and even extremist tendencies, are all examples of the grave threats to democracy.

Indeed, recently the Economist Intelligence Unit (EIU), which publishes an annual democracy Index, the 2017 Index “records the worst decline in global democracy in years. Not a single region recorded an improvement in its average score since 2016, as countless countries grapple with increasingly divided electorates.” It is clear that democracy is in somewhat, a turbulent trajectory.

But for Africa, challenges to democracy pose a graver threat because of a historical failure to invest sufficiently in nation building and state building. Many of the ethnic and other parochial tensions that have tended to create insecurity and outright conflict time and time again, are on account of failure to deliberately undertake nation – building efforts.

The elite, it appears prefer the status quo which sets the lowest possible bar for political advancement that is identity politics; where do you come from? Or to which religion do you belong? And it is through that paradigm that most issues are analyzed. So the real issues that concern our people are often diminished – good governance, jobs for a growing population of young people, poverty alleviation, peace and security, etc. Those are never properly analyzed, or even allowed to take their prominence in public debates especially in debates leading to elections.

So the forging of a national identity and purpose, built around agreed values and principles, is crucial for engendering commitment to national goals and sustaining peace and security.

Concerning state building, the capacity to which government is able to deliver on the rule of law, law and order, good governance and social goods, it is clear that extreme inequality, weak systems of justice, absence of the rule of law, lack of state capacity to maintain law and order, put nations constantly under a real threat of coming undone.

That is the African story, democracy yes, elections yes, but the question of state building and the capacity of the state to deliver on its most important role which is security and ensuring justice and the rule of law, is often threatened because we simply have not invested enough in the institutions that make this possible.

So in ensuring security, problems of weak policing are some of the issues we experience. Also, the perception of the people on the efficiency and fairness of the justice system is affected by the slow pace of trials and the manipulation of the systems by those who can afford superior legal representation.

So you find that we have an anti- corruption war but questions remain as to how many people have been convicted? But the system can easily be manipulated because you put people on trial, but the trials can go on forever; we have a system that enables people to employ dilatory tactics. We need to strengthen the systems that people can rely and trust.

The solution is the modern State: to wit a merit-driven bureaucracy, a strong law and order architecture, the rule of law, and an adjudicatory system that is well resourced and immune to manipulation.

Let me end my remarks with one of President Akufo-Addo’s tweets which I found particularly instructive to the development especially of our thinking about where Africa should be headed in the next few years. I quote: “It is time for Africa to come of age and hold its rightful place on the world stage. This Africa will be neither victim nor a pawn. This Africa will be honest to itself and to the World.”

I must say that I agree entirely with that – the African leadership elite have run out of excuses, we can no longer go on with the African exceptionalism which we have seen and heard time and time again, that it is a different rule for Africa or different rules apply to Africa, no that is not true! The truth is just as President Akufo- Addo said, we can no longer hide under the excuses of being victims or pawns in the world order. The people of our nations expect us to deliver on the important promises that politicians make which is delivering social goods, ensuring our ever growing youth population get jobs, ensuring there is rule of law and security.

These are issues that remain prominent in Africa, so Your Excellency, it is my very special pleasure and privilege to welcome you to Nigeria once again.

Thank you all.

Released by:
Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity
Office of the Vice President
February 15, 2018

85th NEC Meeting on February 15, 2018

A. FINAL REPORT ON FORENSIC AUDIT OF REVENUE ACCRUED FROM REVENUE GENERATING AGENCIES

Council received the final report on the Forensic Audit of Revenue Accrued from Revenue Generating Agencies (RGAs) into Federation Account (FA), Excess Crude Account (ECA) and Consolidated Revenue Fund (CRF).

The report was prepared by KPMG, and audited 18 Agencies including NNPC, FIRS, Nigeria Customs Services (NCS), NIMASA, NPA, NCC, CBN, DPR, NPDC and many others.

The report covered period January 2010 – June, 2015

Key Issues and Recommendations:

The report observed several cases of under-remittance and a few over remittance in some cases both by identified agencies. There were also late remittances into the various accounts. It therefore recommended that:

NEC should decide on repayment plans for all concerned as well as stepping up oversight function on the relevant agencies to ensure remittance as and at when due.

Recommended the proper and regular auditing of the accounts of the RGAs and those of the FG.

There is also the need for annual review of the agencies.

Council Resolutions:

Council received the report and resolved that the Ad-hoc NEC Committee on the matter be expanded to include a lawyer and an accountant. The Committee would study the KPMG report and the recommendations and report back to Council at its next sitting for possible adoption.

The Federal Government officials including the CBN Governor, the Ministers of Finance, Budget and National Planning and Minister of State, Petroleum Resources would join the expanding Committee to also take a look at the report for FG’s review.

B. UPDATE ON THE SOCIAL INVESTMENT PROGRAMME BY THE SPECIAL ADVISER TO THE PRESIDENT ON THE SOCIAL INVESTMENT PROGRAMME

The Special Adviser to the President on the Social Investment Programme (SIP), briefed the Council on the impact of the National Social Investment Programme (N-SIP). Highlights of the presentation include:

Total Direct Beneficiaries from all the SIP Programme is 7,812,201

Secondary Beneficiaries – 1,500,000, mainly farmers and cooks

Total actual spending in 2016 and 2017 = 15.58% of the budget

The Council was further briefed on the general challenges facing the smooth delivery of the N-SIP. They include:

Corrupt practices in the States – (short-changing, racketeering and harassment of beneficiaries)

Exploitation of the vulnerable (due to poor levels of literacy);

Monitoring and communication (insufficient awareness/publicity) and logistics for monitoring yet to be secured.

Steps to Overcome Obstacles:

N-SIPs is collaborating with various Organisations within and outside the Government to overcome the challenges in the areas of; Monitoring and Security, Sensitization, Communication.

Support/Intervention from State Governments

The N-SIPs requires State Government support as follows:

Micro-Credit scheme under the Government Enterprise and Empowerment Programme (GEEP)

States to support in fraud detection and prevention by local officials.

States to support the GEEP loan programme mobilization and facilitate the generation of BVN and the opening of accounts.

Loan recovery from beneficiaries.

Home Grown School Feeding Programme

States to fast-track commencement of programme by signing MoU.

Re-train and re-screen cooks.

Strengthen Monitoring and Evaluation.

National Social Safety Net

States need to demonstrate commitment for the programme to kick off.

Ensure a conducive working environment and commitment to an objective and transparent community-Based Targeting Process.

Support in form of security and fraud detection.

Cash Transfer Programme

States to provide furnished accommodation and logistics as agreed.

Provide security, caution politicians and fast-track Community Based Targeting.

Youth Employment and Empowerment Programme

States to support communication efforts where necessary.

Support monitoring efforts to ensure beneficiaries are resuming and working full time at assigned locations.

Show increasing better commitment to the programme.

C. INTERIM BRIEFING ON NEC’S WORKING GROUP ON HERDSMEN/FARMERS CLASHES

The Vice President reported that the Group has met twice and formed a technical Sub-Committee. The Sub-Committee has been given the assignment of consultations with some of the affected communities.

The Sub-Committee is chaired by Ebonyi State Governor and the NEC Working Group will give a fuller report at the end of the work of the Sub-Committee.

The Vice President also reported that the Working Group has noted the need for joint Military-Police Operation to manage violent outbreak where required while also calling for more efficient intelligence gathering.

The Working Group also calls for the use of the Military force to flush out bandits whose activities have been linked to the clashes, and engagement with traditional leaders to foster peace in their communities.

Working Group also noted that an Agro Rangers Corps should be trained to provide security around ranches, livestock production centres and grazing routes.

The Working Group also noted that the land use laws and regulations invest the States with the power over land titles and use while the Vice President added that the FG will not impose on State Governments. FG will only share templates on best practices for the conduct of livestock production and business.

The Vice President also informed that the President has approved the formation of a Committee to look into the issue of rebuilding affected communities and providing welfare and other facilities as may be considered appropriated.

The President has asked that the Vice President head the Committee.

D. PRESENTATION BY GMD, NNPC ON PMS SUPPLY ACROSS THE COUNTRY AND COST OF UNDER-RECOVERIES BORNE BY NNPC

The Group Managing Director, NNPC, briefed the Council on the PMS supply and cost of under-recoveries arising from difference between importation cost and PPPRA cut off market price.

He told Council that the PMS open market price is continuously shaped by crude oil price volatility in the international market with the attendant cost under-recoveries due to differential between actual supply and distribution.

He informed that favourable market conditions encouraged private participation by Independent Marketers in Nigeria between May – September 2016.

There is currently sudden decline in private participation in Nigeria due to decline in favourable market conditions and also the sudden shock in consumption which over stretches daily supply of petroleum products.

E. REPORT ON EXCESS CRUDE ACCOUNT (ECA)

Council was briefed by the Accountant General of the Federation that the balance in ECA as at 14th February, 2018 stands at $2,317,252,449.57.

F. REPORT ON BALANCE OF THE STABILIZATION FUND ACCOUNT

Council was also briefed by the Accountant General of the Federation that the balance in the Stabilization Fund Account as at 14th February, 2018 stands at N11,290,664,060.06.

G. UPDATE ON NATURAL RESOURCES DEVELOPMENT FUND

Council was equally briefed by the Accountant General of the Federation that the balance in the Natural Resources Development Fund as at 14th February, 2018 stands at N123,624,644,411.24

H. UPDATE ON BUDGET SUPPORT LOAN FACILITY

The Accountant General reported to the Council as follows:

23 States have access to the facility

N16.1 billion has been disbursed as at January 2018.

Laolu Akande
Senior Special Assistant to the President (Media & Publicity)
Office of the Vice President
15th February, 2018