Author: Adejuyigbe Francis

The Joint National Assembly Committee on Appropriations has given a 48-hour deadline to all sub-committees to submit their reports on the 2024 budget. President Bola Tinubu had last month, presented to the joint session of the National Assembly, N27.503trillion as total projected expenditure for 2024 fiscal year, out of which N18.324trillion is set as targeted revenue while N9.18trillion is deficit to be financed by internal and external borrowings as well as proceeds from privatization. Meanwhile, the Sub-committees have begun submitting their reports to the Senator Olamilekan Adeola, Ogun West APC led, joint committee on Appropriations. The Committee on Tourism chaired by…

Kaduna State Governor Senator Uba Sani, yesterday presented a N458.3 billion budget for the 2024 fiscal year to the state’s House of Assembly for approval. The budget has N318.8 billion as capital expenditure and N139 billion as recurrent expenditure, reflecting a capital-to-recurrent ratio of 69.57 per cent to 30.43 per cent. Governor Sani said the budget prioritised capital spending in line with his administration’s “Sustain Agenda.” He said education was allocated N115 billion (25.19%); health N71.6 billion (15.63%) and economy, covering agriculture, public works, infrastructure, and housing, N93.5 billion (20.42%). Governor Sani expressed confidence in the transformative potential of the…

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu on Monday inaugurated the 11-man board and management team for the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL). Speaking after the inauguration in his office at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the president charged the board members to focus on profitability, increased production, and robust governance. President Tinubu stressed that their appointment should not be viewed as mere “cake sharing,” urging optimal performance on their part. He also called for a critical review of Petroleum Industry Act and recognition of the Niger Delta’s vital role in producing oil. Addressing State House reporters after the inauguration, Chairman of the…

President Bola Tinubu is currently in a meeting with the Governor of Rivers State, Siminalayi Fubara. The former governor of Rivers State, Peter Odili, and some other stakeholders are in the meeting held at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. The meeting comes amidst the rift between the Rivers Governor and the Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Nyesom Wike. The FCT Minister was earlier seen at the State House. The meeting may not be unconnected to the recent defection of 27 members of the State House of Assembly, who are loyalists of the FCT Minister. The lawmakers dumped the Peoples Democratic…

The Minister of Women Affairs, Uju Kennedy-Ohanenye, urged Nigerian security agencies to refrain from imposing taxes on Nigerian women, emphasising that women should be exempt from such financial obligations. She emphasised the importance of empowering women to enhance their daily pursuits. Barrister Uju, issued this caution during the 4th Annual Forum of the Women, Peace, and Security Sector Reference Group 2023 held in Abuja. She said: “Women must be empowered. Without women, there won’t be peace. When you empower a woman, you have empowered 20 women.” The minister also implored the agencies not to disrupt women’s activities, saying, “No woman should…

The National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has apprehended counterfeiters engaged in the production of various fraudulent beverages, at the Eziukwu market in Aba, Abia state. During a virtual media briefing in Abuja on Monday, NAFDAC boss, Prof Mojisola Adeyeye, disclosed that the confiscated and destroyed fake products have an estimated street value exceeding N750,000,000. The operation, conducted in collaboration with security agencies, was initiated based on actionable intelligence received. Adeyeye outlined the illicit activities of the counterfeiters, emphasizing their involvement in the manufacturing of a wide range of adulterated products, particularly various types of wine under popular brands…

Former Lagos State Governor, Mr. Babatunde Fashola (SAN), has said that the intervention of President Bola Tinubu is not needed in the ongoing political crisis in Ondo and Rivers states. Fashola argued that despite calls to amend the Constitution at different times, it is high time Nigerians amended ‘our ways’. He further stated that the constitution is clear on what should be done when situations and the roles to be played by individuals involved. Fashola said these over the weekend at the Nigerian Air Force Officers Mess Honorary Members Forum (HMF) 2023 Annual Lecture in Lagos. The topic was “Leadership…

Jose Mourinho’s AS Roma will play Feyenoord in the knockout round play-offs of the UEFA Europa League. Mourinho is the only manager to have won all three of the current European trophies, having also won the Europa Conference League with Roma, and the Champions League with Inter Milan and Porto. The Portuguese manager also claimed the Europa League trophy in his first season with Manchester United in 2017. Roma are currently seventh in Serie A while Feyenoord, who sit 10 points off the top league leaders PSV, are second in the Eredivisie. Mourinho’s first club as manager, Benfica, will play…

Arsenal will play Porto in the UEFA Champions League last 16, while title holders Manchester City take on Copenhagen. City won the treble last season under Pep Guardiola when they defeated Inter Milan in the final, completing a clean sweep of the major trophies available to the team. While they have not reached the heights they did last season in the Premier League, in part due to an injury to Kevin De Bruyne, they topped Group G by winning every single one of their six matches in Europe. The draw is one that City will be heavy favourites to negotiate…

The registration cost for the Unified Tertiary Matriculation Examination for 2024 has been raised by the Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB). According to an official release, the revised registration costs are as follows: The cost of registering for the UTME is N7,700 if a mock exam is included, and N6,200 if it is not. Prior to the most recent change, the JAMB application form cost N5,700 if it did not include a practice exam, and N6,700 if it did. The board also announced that foreign candidates would now be able to obtain application materials for $30. JAMB also disclosed…

President Bola Tinubu has accepted the resignation of the Minister of Labour and Employment, Simon Lalong. The former Governor of Plateau State, following his resignation, will proceed to the National Assembly as Senator representing Plateau South Senatorial. He wonthe seat and it was affirmed by an appeal court ruling on November 7, 2023. A presidential aide, who spoke with Punch, said, “Lalong has resigned. But it was not at the FEC meeting itself. It must have been after the meeting because, if it were earlier, the President or SGF would have announced it during the meeting.” The Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, is…

The vice-chancellor of the Federal University Oye Ekiti (FUOYE), Prof Abayomi Fasina, has said the exit of tertiary institutions from the Integrated Payroll and Personnel Information System (IPPIS) will enable them to operate efficiently. Fasina stated this while receiving an award of excellence from the Correspondents Chapel of the Nigeria Union of Journalists, Ekiti State Council. He said exempting tertiary educational institutions would ease the administrative burden faced by the universities as well as remove the bureaucratic bottlenecks brought by the payroll platform in the area of recruitment and promotion of staff. Fasina explained that the introduction of IPPIS contributed…