Author: Hamza Rufai

THE Senate has acknowledged an error in its earlier resolution advising President Bola Tinubu to remove Umar Danladi as chairman of the Code of Conduct Tribunal over allegations of corruption and misconduct. The upper chamber however, insisted that it does not invalidate their decision to sack the CCT Chairman. Last Wednesday, the Senate led by the Majority Leader, Opeyemi Bamidele, invoked Section 157 (1) of the Nigerian Constitution as the legal basis for the resolution. That section, however, pertains to the removal of specific public officials, not the CCT chairman. During plenary on Tuesday, the Senate Leader admitted what they…

THE Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, says the Nigerian government needs more borrowings to fund its budget even though some Ministries, Departments and Agencies have surpassed their revenue target. Edun said this during an interactive session of the Senate Joint Committees on Finance and National Planning and Economic Affairs on the 2025-2027 Medium-Term Expenditure Framework/Fiscal Strategy Paper. According to him, the borrowing needs to be done productively and efficiently based on the Senate’s approval for proper funding of the budget. “The revenue effort has been good, but we still need to do better, and…

THE Chairman, Senate Committee on Media and Publicity, Senator Yemi Adaramodu, has said the National Assembly will conduct open debate on the President Bola Tinubu’s tax reform bills before it for Nigerians’ input. Adaramodu, who said the majority of those criticising the bills in the media had not seen it and acting based on the belief that anything tax was to place a burden on people, said, “I don’t see anything retrogressive in the tax reform bills.” The senator representing Ekiti South Senatorial District spoke to journalists at his Ilawe Ekiti hometown on Saturday evening after the Ilawe Unity Day…

THE Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited and major oil marketers are currently engaged in discussions on strategies to eliminate the importation of petrol into the country, with a focus on increasing reliance on off-taking from the Dangote Refinery. This was part of the discussions at a meeting organised by the NNPCL Group Chief Executive Officer, Mele Kyari, and the Nigerian Midstream and Downstream Petroleum Regulatory Authority. In attendance were representatives of the Major Oil Marketers Association of Nigeria, Depot and Petroleum Products Marketers Association of Nigeria, and key stakeholders from companies such as 11 Plc, Matrix, and AA Rano, among…

THE Corporate Affairs Commission (CAC) has removed over 80,000 companies from its register for failing to file annual returns for a decade. This action followed a three-month grace period granted in July 2024, during which affected companies were advised to update their records to avoid delisting. The CAC said it had deleted the companies who had failed to update their annual reports. The statement said, “The general public may recall that the commission issued Notice of Intention to strike off names of companies which the commission has reasonable cause to believe are not carrying out business or are otherwise dormant…

THE Supreme Court has struck out a suit by the 36 state governments seeking to among others, compel the Federal Government to account for its earnings from the sale of liquefied natural gas, natural gas liquids and related products since 1999. In a unanimous judgment, a seven-member panel of the court, presided over by Justice Uwani Abba-Aji held that the court lacked the original jurisdiction to hear and determine the suit, which has the Attorney General of the Federation (AGF) as the sole defendant. In the lead judgment, Justice Mohammed Lawal Garba upheld the preliminary objection raised against the suit…

THE North Central caucus of the Peoples Democratic Party has expressed opposition to the indefinite postponement of its 99th National Executive Committee meeting, which was initially set for November 28. In a statement on Thursday, the Peoples Democratic Party, through its National Secretary, Senator Samuel Anyanwu, explained that the 99th National Executive Committee meeting was postponed due to the funeral of Patience Umo Eno, the late First Lady of Akwa Ibom State and wife of Governor Umo Eno. It was previously reported by this newspaper on Tuesday that the PDP acting National Chairman, Umar Damagum, with the support of former…

A BILL for an Act to alter the provisions of the Constitution to create a single term of six years for the office of president and state governors has failed in the House of Representatives. The bill sponsored by Honourable Ikenga Ugochinyere sought to recognize the division of Nigeria into the six geopolitical zones, provide for the rotation of the office of president, state governor and chairmen of a local government councils among the Inherent regions and zones. The bill also sought to make it possible for all elections in the country to be held on a single day. When…

THE Senate yesterday raised the alarm that terrorists from Mali and Burkina Faso, who operate under the aegis of Lakurawa, have invaded Kaduna state in the north-west and Niger State in the north-central, saying the trend now has an international dimension. News Point Nigeria reports that the alarm came barely days after the House of Representatives, Arewa Consultative Forum, ACF, and other northern leaders and traditional rulers raised a similar alarm. Consequently, the Senate asked the military to set up early warning mechanisms to forestall further incursions as well as maintain presence and vigilance in the affected communities to halt…

THE national chairman of the ruling All Progressives Congress, Abdullahi Ganduje, on Wednesday, urged the Governor of Ondo State, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, to repay the people’s trust by ensuring that he leaves no abandoned projects behind after his four years in office. Ganduje gave the admonition when he received a delegation of the party leadership at the national secretariat in Abuja shortly after the Independent National Electoral Commission presented Aiyedatiwa and his deputy, Adelami Olaide, with their Certificates of Return. This newspaper reports that the governor was declared the winner by the electoral umpire after winning the 18 local government areas…

THERE is hope of voting for Nigerians Abroad as a bill to Amend the constitution and provide for diaspora voting has scaled 2nd reading in the House of Representatives on Wednesday. The bill, co-sponsored by the Speaker, Abbas Tajudeen and Sodeeq Abdullahi, seeks to amend the 2022 Electoral Act and provide opportunities for Nigerians in Diaspora to vote. The bill was passed for a second reading in July, and had been referred to the Committee on Electoral Matters for further legislative action. However, after scaling the second reading on Tuesday, it has been referred to the constitution amendment committee for…

AN audit report has uncovered financial irregularities totalling over N4.64bn in the Federal Ministry of Works (Housing Sector), raising concerns about systemic non-compliance with financial regulations and procurement laws. The findings, contained in the Auditor-General for the Federation’s Annual Report, cover activities between 2020 and 2021 and reveal significant lapses in internal controls under Babatunde Fashola, the former Minister of Works and Housing. The report details several issues, including payments made without proper documentation, extra-budgetary expenditures, mobilisation fees exceeding approved thresholds, and contracts awarded without following due process. A sum of N1.08bn was paid from the Government Integrated Financial Management…

THE Federal Government has promised to provide free housing units for 77,400 vulnerable Nigerians across all 774 local government areas under its proposed National Social Housing Fund. The initiative, which aims to generate N1.2 trillion through voluntary monthly contributions from Nigerians, is awaiting legislative approval to become operational. Housing and Urban Development Minister Ahmed Musa Dangiwa announced this while addressing reporters yesterday at the State House in Abuja. The minister explained that the programme targets the most vulnerable in society, offering them homes free of charge as part of the administration’s commitment to inclusive development. “The timeline quite well now…

THE Senate on Monday, vowed to invoke parliamentary sanctions against any head of Federal Government agencies which had been indicted for financial infractions in the report submitted to the National Assembly by the Auditor General for the Federation. The Chairman, Senate Committee on Legislative Compliance, Senator Garba Madoki, gave the warning at a one-day workshop in Abuja. Madoki lamented the rate at which heads of the MDAs have been shunning Senate summons and warned that further disregard for the resolutions of the red chamber would no longer be tolerated. He said, “We are going to be very strict on the…

THE deputy spokesman for the House of Representatives, Mr Philip Agbese, has disclosed that some state governors are threatening to deny federal lawmakers return tickets in the 2027 general elections if they do not withdraw their support for President Bola Tinubu’s Tax Reform Bills now before the National Assembly for consideration. Agbese also disclosed that the lawmakers will today (Monday) engage the Chairman of the Presidential Committee on Fiscal and Tax Reforms, Taiwo Oyedele, and other renowned tax experts on the bills. Recall that on September 3, 2024, the President transmitted four tax reform bills to the National Assembly for…

THE President of Chad, Mahamat Idriss Déby Itno, on Sunday received a high-level Nigerian delegation led by Nigeria’s National Security Adviser, Nuhu Ribadu. The delegation delivered a written message from President Bola Tinubu to President Déby. In the message, President Tinubu expressed his heartfelt condolences and unwavering support for the Chadian President and people following the recent terrorist attack on Barkaram Island, which claimed the lives of several Chadian soldiers. The delegation included Nigeria’s Chief of Defence Staff, General Christopher Musa, Major General Emmanuel Undiandeye, Chief of Defence Intelligence and Maj Gen Ali Salau, Force Commander MNJTF and other senior…

AMID the rising wave of inflation gripping the country, no fewer than 15 Northern states spent an approximate sum of N45bn on different poverty alleviation programmes in the first six months of 2024, an investigation by this newspaper revealed. On Friday, the National Bureau of Statistics reported that Nigeria’s inflation rate surged to 33.88 per cent in October 2024, up from 32.70 per cent in September. In January, the country’s inflation rate was 29.90 per cent, indicating that it had increased by 13 per cent within the first 10 months of the year. The effect is felt in most of…

THE Federal Government is set to earn about N6.99tn monthly from the oil sector as the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited in collaboration with stakeholders, has raised crude oil production to 1.8 million barrels per day. The average price of Brent, the global benchmark for crude in 2024 is around $81 per barrel. This is slightly lower than the 2022 price of $101 per barrel, but relatively stable compared to the 2023 price of $82 per barrel. By producing 1.8mbpd at an average price of $81 per barrel, the country will rake in $145.8m. In 30 days this translates to…

A HUMAN rights lawyer, Femi Falana, SAN, has condemned the gifting of houses to judges by the Minister of Federal Capital Territory, Nyesom Wike. The minister had in October flagged off the Design and Construction of 40 Judges’ Quarters in the Katampe District in the nation’s capital, Abuja, which has generated controversy, with many arguing that it is unethical. Speaking on Channels Television’s Politics Today on Wednesday monitored by News Point Nigeria, Falana argued that it is wrong for the executive to give gifts to the members of the judiciary, especially judges. “The Minister of the Federal Capital Territory operates…

THE House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee on the Investigation of the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) and FCT Muslim Pilgrims Board over the 2024 Hajj exercise has described the commission as “very dirty” due to the allegations of mismanagement of funds in the agency. This is as the lower chamber queried the Commission over discrepancies in subsidies to pilgrims during the last hajj exercise. Chairman of the Committee, Sada Soli, during a hearing on the matter on Tuesday, accused NAHCON of doing this for personal gains of certain interests. In May, the federal government announced the provision of a…