President Tinubu and the Nigerian Government made some interesting to questionable moves this week. We’ve compiled the high and lowlights across different sectors of government.
FG pays pensioners owed pension arrears
Some good news for pensioners of the Power and Transport Sectors of the Parastatals Pension Department. The federal government finalised payment of ₦1.02bn to 7,091 beneficiaries on Sunday, November 5.
“The payment represents 39 per cent of the accrued pension arrears owed pensioners in the said sectors for the period August 2015 to September 2023, as a result of the computation of the monthly pension of pensioners of Parastals Pension Department based on their career details, salary structure and applicable pension increments,” stated Olugbenga Ajayi, head of Corporate Communications Unit, Pension Transitional Arrangement Directorate.
More on this story here.
President Tinubu gears up to present 2024 budget
Barely weeks after the senate approved Tinubu’s controversial 2023 supplementary budget, the president is making moves for the 2024 national budget. On Monday, November 6, sources within the presidency disclosed the president’s intention to present the budget in the third week of November, so fingers crossed.
More on this story here.
FG begins 40% revenue deduction from universities
The government has commenced the implementation of an automatic 40% deduction of internally generated revenues of federal universities across the country. The FG in October had announced that the deduction would take effect from November 2023.
With the commencement of this deduction, there could be an increase in tuition fees for the students.
More on this story here.
Lagos government slashes bus, train fares by 25%
Governor Sanwo-Olu “came through” for Lagosians as he slashed the fare on state-regulated buses like BRT and rail transport by 25%. The directive took effect on Tuesday, November 7, 2023, with no clear indication of how long it’ll last.
More on this story here.
Governor Umo Eno denies padding supplementary budget
It appears President Tinubu’s supplementary budget isn’t the only one that’s raised eyebrows in recent times. On Tuesday, November 6, in Akwa Ibom, Governor Umo Eno shut down allegations that he padded the state’s supplementary budget.
Eno spoke up after Policy Alert, an NGO focused on promoting fiscal and ecological justice in the Niger Delta region, highlighted some controversial appropriations in the budget.
More on this story here.
President Tinubu leads 9-man delegate to Saudi-Africa summit
The president is in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia, for the inaugural edition of the Saudi-Africa summit. Through the summit, President Tinubu hopes to attract more direct foreign investment and expand business partnerships for the country.
Minister of Foreign Affairs, Amb. Yusuf Tuggar; Minister of Education, Prof. Tahir Mamman; and the Coordinating Minister of the Economy and Minister of Finance, Mr Wale Edun are among the president’s official delegate.
More on the story here.
FG insists on subsidy for electricity
On Wednesday, November 7, Minister of Power, Adebayo Adelabu, revealed that President Tinubu ordered a stop to the implementation of a hike in electricity tariff and insisted on subsidising the power consumed nationwide. The president insisted that before power companies can charge a cost-reflective tariff, there should be constant power supply.
At the moment, Nigerians pay ₦70 per kilowatt-hour, an increment would see the price shoot up to ₦140 per kilowatt-hour.
More appointments in Tinubu’s administration
Joining President Tinubu’s administration this week are 20 federal commissioners for the National Population Census (NPC), three executive commissioners for the Nigerian Upstream Petroleum Regulatory Commission (NUPRC), an SSA on disability matters and an SSA on Citizenship and Leadership.
Uju Kennedy launches pink kekes to cushion female unemployment
On Wednesday, November 7, Minister for Women’s Affairs, Uju Kennedy, donated tricycles with pink interiors and sewing machines to women in Abuja. She announced the Pink Riders Transport Scheme, an initiative aimed to reduce unemployment and empower women across the country. According to her, the plan is to extend the scheme to other states in the country.
Nigerians have criticised Uju with many stating that there are better ways to empower women.
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