Subsidy must go – Finance Commissioners, NECA

Removal ‘ll impoverish Nigerians; it’s corruption that should go— NLC

Commissioners for Finance from the 36 states of the federation rose from their monthly Federation Accounts Allocation Committee, FAAC, meeting in Abuja, yesterday, insisting that petroleum products subsidy must be removed.
While their position was consistent with that of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC, it sharply contradicted the thinking of the Nigerian Senate, which held a few days ago that petroleum subsidy should remain.
The commissioners had, three months ago, decided that the current subsidy was not in the interest of the nation and wrote a letter to President Goodluck Jonathan, demanding an end to it.
The Chairman, Forum of Commissioners of Finance, Mr. Timothy Odaah, told journalists shortly after the meeting that there was no going back on their position and that they had fully briefed their principals— state governors.

Diezani, NNPC’s antics won’t stop jet probe –Tambuwal

The Office of the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Aminu Tambuwal, has  said that the House will not be distracted in its resolve to probe  the alleged N10bn chartered jets scandal levelled against the Minister of Petroleum, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke.

It also noted that the investigation into the chartered jets was not a “personal quarrel” between Diezani and the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation Group Managing Director, Mr. Andew Yakubu, as the alleged reaction of the corporation portrayed.

PRESIDENT JONATHAN APPROVES APPOINTMENT OF NEW NNPC COMPANY SECRETARY

PRESIDENT JONATHAN APPROVES APPOINTMENT OF NEW NNPC COMPANY SECRETARY
President Goodluck Ebele Jonathan has approved the appointment of Mr. Ikechukwu Oguine as the Coordinator, Legal Services and Company Secretary of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC).

Mr. Oguine who has over 29 years of legal experience, hails from Anambra State.

He was previously the General Counsel of Chevron Nigeria Limited  and has been a partner in Advisory Legal Consultants, a Law Firm specializing in oil, gas, power and mining.

Mr. Oguine replaces Mr. Anthony Chukwuma Madichie, also from Anambra State, who has served as the NNPC Legal Adviser and Secretary to the Corporation since February 2011.

Reuben Abati
Special Adviser to the President
(Media & Publicity)
April 7, 2014

Sanusi shuns FRC panel, sitting suspended

The Financial Reporting Council of Nigeria on Thursday alleged that the Central Bank of Nigeria under the leadership of the suspended governor, Mr. Lamido Sanusi, spent N500bn as intervention fund in various sectors without obtaining the approval of its Board or the Federal Executive Council.

It also alleged at a sitting in Lagos in which the suspended governor was scheduled to appear that the bank under his watch spent N10bn to renovate five palaces of traditional rulers in the country under its education intervention projects.

Diezani jet scandal: Reps uncover second aircraft

Fresh revelations indicated on Tuesday that Petroleum Minister, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, maintained a second jet.

The jet, a  Global Express XRS plane, is  allegedly chartered specifically for her private and official trips overseas.

A return trip on  the  XRS plane is said to cost taxpayers €600,000.

The   jet  is different from the Challenger 850, which the House of Representatives said gulped N10bn  in the last two years to fly the minister.

Investigation by The PUNCH showed that the House Committee on Public Accounts stumbled on the second jet in the course of the ongoing probe into the N10bn expenditure on Challenger 850.

PRESIDENT JONATHAN NEVER CONFIRMED WITHHOLDING OF $10 BILLION FROM FEDERATION ACCOUNT

Reports in some domestic media today which quoted President Goodluck Jonathan as "confirming" in Amsterdam that the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) wrongly withheld $10 Billion from the federation account  are completely false and a total distortion of the President's comments during his meeting with the Nigerian community in the Netherlands.

Crisis Looms As FG Plans To End Fuel Subsidy

Nigerians may witness another massive protest following plans by the government to remove subsidies on petrol and kerosene.
The Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Diezani Alison-Madueke, gave a hint of government thinking on the removal of the subsidies Tuesday at the ongoing Nigerian Oil and Gas Conference in Abuja.
Arguing for the removal of the subsidies, Alison-Madueke said subsidies being paid to the marketers by the government on imported petrol and kerosene were no longer sustainable.
The oil minister explained that the reform being implemented in the power sector should be taken to the downstream oil sector, stressing that the negative impact of continued regulation of the sector outweighed the positive impact.

Jonathan means well for Nigerians - Abati

In this interview, the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Dr Reuben Abati, contends that contrary to the position of the opposition that President Goodluck Jonathan administration has failed in meeting the expectations of Nigerians, the president has actually carried the art of governance to a higher level.

He also speaks on what the government is doing about the security challenge, especially the issue of Boko Haram. According to him, government is winning the war on terrorism. He comments  on the controversy surrounding the building of the banquet hall in Aso Rock Villa, the vice president's residence, war against corruption and other national issues. Excerpts:

EFCC withdraws subsidy fraud charges against four

Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has withdrawn charges of alleged fraud in the fuel subsidy payments  against Durosola Omogbenigun and Peter Mba along with their firms.
Counsel for the EFCC, Mr. Oyedepo Rotimi, told a Lagos High Court in Igbosere on Tuesday that the charge tagged,  ID/122C/2012, was mistakenly instituted against Omogbenigun, his company Integrated Resources Limited, like Mba and his  Pinnacle Oil and Gas firm.
According to the lawyer, the charge had not been served on the defence as Tuesday’s proceedings.