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SUBSIDY REMOVAL: NEC SETS UP AD-HOC COMMITTEE TO LIAISE WITH LABOUR UNION LEADERSHIP
SUBSIDY REMOVAL: NEC SETS UP AD-HOC COMMITTEE TO LIAISE WITH LABOUR UNION LEADERSHIP
Urges State Governments to upscale distribution of palliatives
Mourns military personnel killed in Niger State
By: Our Reporter
In a bid to create a forum for dialogue towards resolving issues surrounding the petrol subsidy removal across the States, the National Economic Council (NEC) has constituted an Ad-hoc Committee to engage with the leadership of labour unions.
The decision was reached at the 135th meeting of NEC chaired by the Vice President, Sen. Kashim Shettima in Abuja on Thursday.
The committee comprises the Nigerian Governors Forum Chairman, AbdulRahman AbdulRazaq; Governor of Anambra State,Chukwuma Soludo; Chairman of Progressives Governors Forum, Hope Uzodinma of Imo State; PDP Governors Forum Chairman, Bala Mohammed of Bauchi State, and Abia State Governor, Alex Otti.
Vice President said the committee will liaise with the leadership of labour unions in the country to find a way forward on the emerging issues in the interest of the nation.
Council also received progress reports on the ongoing nationwide distribution of rice, grains, fertilizer, other items to States and N5 billion financial support, provided by the Federal Government and commended the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA) for their interventions.
Council then noted various interventions by State governments and urged them to upscale the distribution of palliatives towards alleviating the suffering of citizens especially the vulnerable groups.
NEC also mourned the death of some military personnel in Niger State and observed a minute silence in honour of deceased, while commiserating with their families.
Below are other highlights of the meeting:
Excess Crude Account from 19th July to 14th August, 2023, $473,754.57
Stabilisation Account from 18th July to 14th August, N30,346,557,405.12
Natural Resources Account from 18th July to 14th August 2023, N115,175,616,159.65
PRESENTATION OF PRELIMINARY ASSESSMENT OF IMPACT OF FLOOD DISASTER ACROSS THE STATES IN NIGERIA BY GOVERNOR OF KOGI STATE
The Governor at the 128th NEC Meeting held on 20th October, 2022, the Chairman of the Nigeria Governor’s Forum and Executive Governor of Sokoto State, Rt. Hon. Aminu Waziri Tambuwal, drew attention of Council to the devastating effect of the 2022 flooding which affected about 31 States of the Federation that had resulted in the loss of over 600 lives, displacement of millions of people, destruction of hundreds of thousands of houses and submersion of thousands of hectares of farmlands and appealed for urgent intervention from the Federal Government to address the impact of the menace on the people and infrastructure.
Consequently, Council resolved to setup a 5-man Ad-hoc Committee on flooding comprising of Governors of Jigawa, Kogi, Anambra, Bayelsa, Lagos and Yobe State. The following were also coopted into the Committee:
Honourable Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning
Honourable Minister of Water Resources
Honourable Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development
Honourable Minister of Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Management
Governor of Central Bank of Nigeria
Director General, National Emergency Management Agency (NEMA)
The Terms of Reference of the Committee was to “Review the current flooding situation in the country and design a template for compensation of victims”.
The Committee had its inaugural meeting on Thursday 10th November 2022 at the Nigeria Governors’ Forum (NGF) Secretariat. Highlight of the Meeting were as follows:
The Committee acknowledged the urgency of the assignment and hence the need to expedite action in order to table a draft report at the next NEC Meeting.
A sub-committee was constituted to propose modalities to address imminent food crisis due to the flooding and possible source of funding for palliatives to victims. The Sub-committee was to be Chaired by the Executive Governor of Kebbi State and the following as Members: Ministries of Agriculture, Humanitarian, Finance, NEMA and CBN.
NEC Secretariat to develop and forward a Template with accompanying letter to all the affected States to collect data on Preliminary Assessment of the impact of the flood in the affected Communities, harmonize the data and produce report of their findings to the Committee.
LIMITATIONS
The exercise would have been more successful and effective if all the affected States had responded as and when due and according to provisions made in the template. Some of the limitations include the following:
Delay or Non-submission of filled template by some States. Only 16 out of the total number of affected States forwarded their submissions to NEC Secretariat to date as expected. About 15 others were yet to do so. The submission from defaulting States are awaited to update the database.
Some of the States that submitted did not fully complied with requisitions of the template thereby making some of their submissions difficult to process by the automated system. There is the need for compliance with laid down processes to allow for higher degree of uniformity especially considering the huge volume of data involved.
Only few States reached out to the Council Secretariat’s Technical Team for possible guidance and assistance in the exercise. States are encouraged to take advantage of the Secretariat’s personnel to address important concerns where necessary.
Only few States indicated financial implication for the damages caused thereby making it difficult to proposed a required amount of intervention.
Some submissions were not done according to the template which makes difficult to ascertain the financial implications of such states.
RECOMMENDATIONS
The plight of victims of the unfortunate flood disaster across affected States of the Federation could be alleviated if the much needed intervention from the Federal Government materialized without further delay.
There is therefore the need to expedite release of fund to affected States as recommended by designated Committees constituted by the Federal Government to that effect. This would go a long way in addressing the needs of the victims as well as offset debt incurred by some States to assist their citizens.
COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS
NEC Secretariat and officials of the Office of the Vice President to visit the affected states for on-the-spot assessment of the situation on ground. The exercise will authenticate the date submitted by state to determine needed intervention.
That Federal Government’s immediate intervention to be expeditiously carried out by NEMA, Ecological Fund Office and other relevant agencies. States to assure maximum cooperaton.
NEC resolves that all hands should be on deck to assure appropriate submission and data presentation. The quality of data collected should be enhanced to meet international standard. That the challenges of flooding deserves concerted and collective effort.
There is need to strengthen NEMA as a structure and sustainable adaptation measures for the citizens. In mobilizing resources to tem the tide of flooding, there is need to look beyond NEMA.
NEC Secretariat to come up with recommedations on the roadmap towards addressing the flood situtation.
PRESENTATION ON EXPLORING A NEC AGENDA FOR MACROECONOMICS STABILITY & SHARED PROSPERITY BY DG NESG
The Presentation was to inform the council on achieving low Inflation and stimulation Growth and Macroeconomic Objectives.
MACROECONOMIC STABILITY OBJECTIVES:
- High and stable economy
- Low Inflation Growth Price level
- unemployment Account
- Favourable Current low balance and stable exchange rate account balance
CURRENT MACROECONOMIC LANDSCAPE
- Investment inflows have dwindled since 2019, likewise the country’s investment/GDP ratio; Crude Oil exports and refined petroleum products imports dominate Nigeria’s trade structure.
- Nigeria’s Naira position against major trading currencies deteriorated
- Weak FX supply and heightened demand for imports remains core drivers of exchange rate instability; market volatility persists despite recent FX alignment, driven by pressure on FX demand that widens the gap between official and parallel market rates due to inadequate supply and speculative tendencies; external reserves remain under pressure as external reserves fell by 8.3 percent from 37.1 billion in January 2023 to 33.9 billion in July 2023.
KEY CONSIDERATION FOR IMPROVING THE OUTCOMES OF FUEL SUBSIDY REMOVAL - Inflationary impact: Fuel subsidy removal will increase inflation. So, there is a need for robust social programmes.
- Efficiency in government spending: There has been a lack of clarity on how the government spends subsidy savings. This issue must be addressed.
- Investment in the downstream and midstream segments of the industry: Achieving this will reduce huge dependence on petrol imports and strike out the need to pay subsidies on fuel.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
The NEC must insist on pushing a national legislative reform agenda for national competitiveness. It is essential that nigeria resolves the legislative binding constraints to our national competitiveness, the nesg through nassber, our partnership with national assembly and nigerian bar association has identified over 115 legislations that hinder growth, in the last few years, 10 legislations have been passed (including the cama 2020 and the pia 2021.
COUNCIL RESOLUTIONS:
- Council commended NESG for its presentation especially on pragmatic roadmaps for tackling current economic challenges.
- It was noted that the recommendations contained in the NESG’s roadmap needs to be reviewed to align with existing economic agenda at the national and sub-national levels for pragmatic purposes.
SUBSIDY REMOVAL: NEC SETS UP AD-HOC COMMITTEE TO LIAISE WITH LABOUR UNION LEADERSHIP
EFCC Receives Petition Alleging $2.98m Fraud Against Senator Cyril Fasuyi, Wife
By: Michael Mike
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) has received a formal petition accusing Senator Cyril Fasuyi, who represents Ekiti North Senatorial District, and his wife, Mrs. Elizabeth Adun Fasuyi, of allegedly being involved in a $2,980,535 fraud linked to foreign business transactions.
The petition was filed by Mr. Nuel Wilson, West Africa Regional Representative of Integrated Packaging Systems FZCO (IPS Ingredis) and its Nigerian subsidiary, IPS Ingredis Integrated Systems Limited. It alleges conspiracy, fraudulent conversion, obtaining by false pretence, and diversion of funds arising from a long-standing commercial relationship.
According to the complaint, the business dealings began in 2015 after the Fasuyis, operating through Legacy Foods Limited, were introduced to the Dubai-based company by a third party. The foreign firm claims the couple presented themselves as credible and capable business partners, leading to multiple supply agreements for raw materials such as corn starch, maltodextrin, maltose syrup, and shortening.
The company stated that goods valued at over $9 million were supplied over the course of the relationship. However, it alleged that after the products were delivered and reportedly sold in Nigeria, an outstanding balance of $2,980,535 was never remitted despite repeated demands.
The petition further claims that investigations by the complainant indicated that proceeds from the sales were diverted for personal use rather than being returned to the supplier as agreed. It described the situation as a deliberate attempt to frustrate foreign investment and exploit trade relationships.
The EFCC, an agency mandated to investigate financial crimes and economic sabotage, reportedly acknowledged receipt of the petition on December 10, 2020, and is expected to review the allegations as part of its investigative process.
Mrs. Fasuyi was also named in the complaint as a co-accused, with the petition alleging her involvement in the transactions. At some point during related proceedings, she was reportedly present but allegedly evaded arrest by anti-graft operatives.
As of now, neither Senator Fasuyi nor his wife has issued a public response to the allegations.
EFCC Receives Petition Alleging $2.98m Fraud Against Senator Cyril Fasuyi, Wife
NHRC Demands Answers as Civilian Deaths from Military Airstrikes Trigger Fresh Outrage
By: Michael Mike
The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has demanded a full explanation from the Nigerian Air Force over the recurring wave of civilian casualties linked to military airstrikes across parts of the country, warning that the continued loss of innocent lives is unacceptable and raises grave human rights concerns.
Executive Secretary of the Commission, Tony Ojukwu, said the repeated bombings of civilian communities, markets and vulnerable populations under the guise of counter-insurgency operations have become deeply disturbing and cannot continue without accountability.
While acknowledging the responsibility of the Nigerian State to combat insurgency, banditry and terrorism, Ojukwu stressed that military operations must comply strictly with constitutional provisions, international humanitarian law and Nigeria’s human rights obligations.
“The repeated reports of civilian deaths and injuries, including women, children and other vulnerable persons, arising from aerial bombardments raise serious concerns regarding the protection of the right to life and human dignity,” he stated.
The Commission specifically questioned why civilian casualties linked to airstrikes have continued to recur despite previous public outrage and repeated promises of operational reforms.
“Nigerians deserve to know why this has become a recurring decimal,” Ojukwu said.
He cited recent incidents recorded within April and May alone, including reported airstrike casualties at Jilli Market in Yobe State, Shiroro Market in Niger State and Tumfa Market in Zamfara State.
“For how long will this continue?” he asked.
The Chief Human Rights Officer warned that the principles of distinction, necessity, proportionality and accountability remain binding obligations under international humanitarian law and must guide every military engagement, especially in conflict-affected communities where civilians are at greatest risk.
According to him, civilian populations must never be reduced to “collateral damage” in the conduct of security operations.
The Commission called on the Nigerian Air Force to provide a comprehensive account of the circumstances surrounding the incidents and disclose the safeguards being implemented to prevent future civilian deaths.
Ojukwu further demanded prompt, transparent and independent investigations into all reported cases of civilian casualties resulting from military airstrikes, insisting that victims and affected communities deserve justice, compensation and psychosocial support.
He also urged security agencies to improve intelligence gathering, operational precision and internal accountability mechanisms to reduce the risk of targeting innocent civilians during aerial operations.
The NHRC maintained that national security objectives cannot be pursued outside the framework of legality and respect for human dignity.
“National security and human rights protection are not mutually exclusive,” the Commission stated, warning that public trust in security operations would continue to erode if civilian deaths persist without accountability.
The Commission reaffirmed its commitment to closely monitor developments and engage relevant authorities to ensure the protection of citizens’ rights amid ongoing security operations across the country.
NHRC Demands Answers as Civilian Deaths from Military Airstrikes Trigger Fresh Outrage
Power Is Temporary, Humanity Must Endure — Ambassador Alege Declares at Abuja Book Launch
By: Michael Mike
Nigeria’s political elite, diplomats, jurists and scholars gathered in Abuja on Tuesday as veteran diplomat, Ambassador Shina Alege, delivered a piercing message on leadership, power, insecurity and the declining state of human compassion during the launch of five books drawn from his decades in public service.
The atmosphere at the event was more reflective than ceremonial as speakers confronted difficult national and global realities — from abuse of power and collapsing communal values to insecurity and the moral burden of leadership.
Former Chief Justice of Nigeria, Olukayode Ariwoola, who chaired the occasion, described the books as a rare fusion of diplomacy, personal experience and social conscience, warning that the issues raised by the author could no longer be ignored.
“This is far beyond a literary celebration,” Ariwoola said. “It is a serious intellectual intervention into the crises confronting leadership, humanity and governance today.”
The retired jurist said Ambassador Alege’s writings carried unusual weight because they emerged from lived experience across turbulent moments in Nigeria’s diplomatic history.
“These are not theoretical arguments crafted from a distance. They are reflections forged in service, crisis and responsibility,” he stated.
At the centre of the gathering was Ambassador Alege himself, whose remarks moved between philosophy, diplomacy and sharp social criticism.
Standing before a packed audience of ambassadors, senior lawyers, professors and government officials, the former envoy warned that many societies had lost the values that once held communities together.
“The essence of life is to build a community,” Alege declared. “What we have today is no longer community — it is a crowd. People watch suffering, record tragedies on their phones, and move on. That loss of humanity is dangerous.”
His comments drew prolonged applause from participants at the event.
The diplomat used the unveiling of his books to issue a broader warning about leadership and the temporary nature of political authority.p
Speaking on one of the books, The Expiry Date of Power, Alege said many leaders behave as though power is permanent, forgetting that history eventually humbles every office holder.
“The only person that powers permanently is God Almighty,” he said. “Absolute power corrupts absolutely. Leadership must be exercised with restraint, accountability and conscience.”
Other books presented at the launch tackled conflict management, insecurity and governance failures across Africa.
According to the author, The Sirens and The Flags explores leadership under pressure and moments of crisis, while Insecurity and Regional Leadership in Africa interrogates the inability of African states to effectively confront rising instability and governance breakdown.
Former Ogun State Governor, Ibikunle Amosun, represented by Barrister Raji Ahmed, praised the diplomat for documenting lessons from years of international service, including sensitive operations involving Nigerians trapped in conflict zones.
“Books like these are earned through sacrifice, experience and reflection,” he said. “They preserve institutional memory and challenge future leaders to think differently about service and responsibility.”
Beyond the intellectual conversations, the event became a deeper reflection on the state of society itself — one in which speakers repeatedly returned to the themes of empathy, moral leadership and national decline.
For many attendees, the strongest message of the day was not merely about diplomacy or governance, but about the urgent need to restore compassion in public life before ambition, power and indifference completely overshadow humanity.
Power Is Temporary, Humanity Must Endure — Ambassador Alege Declares at Abuja Book Launch
EFCC Receives Petition Alleging $2.98m Fraud Against Senator Cyril Fasuyi, Wife
NHRC Demands Answers as Civilian Deaths from Military Airstrikes Trigger Fresh Outrage
Power Is Temporary, Humanity Must Endure — Ambassador Alege Declares at Abuja Book Launch
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