News

5% Nigerians Pocket N37.665 trn Of Nation’s Funds

Published

12 years ago

September 23, 2013

Less than 5 per cent of Nigeria’s estimated population of 170million consume close to 80 per cent of the country’s annual public finances of about N37.665trillion, according to a study by the International Society for Civil Liberties and the Rule of Law (Intersociety).
The group made the disclosure in Part Two of its public statement entitled: “ASUU Strike and Socio-economic Consequences of Industrial Disputes in Nigeria”, released yesterday from its Onitsha base in Anambra State.
This less than 5 per cent, according to Intersociety, is “made up of 17,500 top public office holders in Nigeria and public industrial unions and their members such as ASUU, NMA, NUT, TUC, NLC, etc.”
Intersociety said in yesterday’s statement signed by its board Chairman, Emeka Umeagbalasi and Head, Publicity Desk, Comrade Justus Uche Ijeoma, that “Our main concern is to expose and bring to the attention of the world how less than 5 per cent of Nigeria’s estimated population of 170million, made up of 17,500 top public office holders and public industrial unions and their members such as ASUU, NMA, NUT, TUC, NLC, etc, have continued to corner and pocket close to 80 per cent of the country’s annual public finances at the monumental expense of other 170million Nigerians. This, they do by allocating to themselves scandalous sums in the form of “allowances” and “overheads”, using the instruments of “Appropriation Acts of the Federation”, “Appropriation Laws of the States” and “Industrial Actions or Strikes.
“The socio-economic consequences of the foregoing are totally incalculable. Since 1997 when Nigeria recorded her last budget surplus, it had been budget deficits all through. Simply put, budget is in deficit when its expenditure is greater than its generated revenues and money is borrowed in cash or in kind to finance it…
“From the foregoing, therefore, Nigerian budgets since 1999 have been deeply debt-ridden and consumptive. They are also static and highly centralized. Between June 1999 and now (2013), the Federal Government had budgeted a total of N37.665trillion (about $221billion using N160.00 per $USD), out of which, N21.7trillion went for recurrent expenditures; N4,5trillion or about $28billion went for debts servicing; and only N11.3trillion or about $70billion went for capital expenditures.”
“Also, between June 1999 and December, 2012, a total of N80trillion or about $500billion was shared by Nigeria’s three tiers of government – federal, states and LGAs – from the country’s Federation Account,” the body said.
Intersociety also quoted former World Bank Vice President for Africa, Oby Ezekwesili’s remarks that, “Nigeria’s total domestic and external debts, including those owed by states, LGAs and government parastatals and ministries have skyrocketed since May 2007, from about $18 billion, including $6billion of foreign and N1.8trillion of domestic debts; to about $100billion or N16trillion in 2013 with a staggering difference of $88billion borrowed locally and internationally by relevant public borrowing establishments. In 2012 alone, Nigeria paid a whopping sum of N699billion or about $4.4billion to banks and other lending institutions within and outside the country in the form of “debts or loans’ interests.”
According to the body, “critical look at the foregoing clearly indicates that close to 80 per cent of such huge expenditures and loans were expended and borrowed to service 17,500 Nigerian top public office holders, and members and leaders of public industrial unions such as ASUU, under the guise of “allowances” and “overheads,” adding that, the major challenge facing the growth and development of the Nigerian economy is institutionalization, with reckless abandon, of spurious allowances and overheads.
“As we have earlier stated, out of N592billion spent annually to service the wage entitlements of 12,788 LGAs’ executives and councillors, N550billion goes into payment of allowances. Only N42billion is spent on their salaries. Out of N300billion spent on about 2,664 state executives in the 36 states, N272billion is spent on allowances and only N28billion is spent on salaries. Out of N60.4billion spent on 469 federal lawmakers annually, N54.2billion is spent on allowances and only N6.1billion is spent on salaries.
“Out of N92.3billion spent annually on 472 federal executives in the country, N89.7billion is for allowances and only N8.6billion is for their salaries. Out of N40.9billion spent on 1,152 state lawmakers, N35.8billion is spent on allowances and only N5.09billion is spent on their salaries. Out of N18.5billion spent on 792 state judges, N15.4billion is spent on allowances and only N3.1billion is spent on their salaries; and out of N14.8billion spent on 142 federal judges annually, N13.1billion is spent on allowances and only N1.7billion is spent on their salaries,” Intersociety said.
Intersociety added that “the forgoing does not capture spurious overheads and extraneous allowances annually smuggled into the Appropriation Acts of the Federation and the Appropriation Laws of the 36 states in the country.”

News

FG Ends Passport Production At Multiple Centres After 62 Years

Published

11 hours ago

September 19, 2025

The Tide

The Nigeria Immigration Service has officially ended passport production at multiple centres, transitioning to a single, centralised system for the first time in 62 years.

Minister of Interior, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, disclosed this yesterday while inspecting Nigeria’s new Centralised Passport Personalisation Centre at the NIS Headquarters in Abuja.

He stated that since the establishment of NIS in 1963, Nigeria had never operated a central passport production centre, until now, marking a major reform milestone.

“The project is 100 per cent ready. Nigeria can now be more productive and efficient in delivering passport services,” Tunji-Ojo said.

He explained that old machines could only produce 250 to 300 passports daily, but the new system had a capacity of 4,500 to 5,000 passports every day.

“With this, NIS can now meet daily demands within just four to five hours of operation,” he added, describing it as a game-changer for passport processing in Nigeria.

“We promised two-week delivery, and we’re now pushing for one week.

“Automation and optimisation are crucial for keeping this promise to Nigerians,” the minister said.

He noted that centralisation, in line with global standards, would improve uniformity and enhance the overall integrity of Nigerian travel documents worldwide.

Tunji-Ojo described the development as a step toward bringing services closer to Nigerians while driving a culture of efficiency and total passport system reform.

He said the centralised production system aligned with President Bola Tinubu’s reform agenda, boosting NIS capacity and changing the narrative for better service delivery.

News

FAAC Disburses N2.225trn For August, Highest In Nigeria

Published

12 hours ago

September 19, 2025

The Tide

The Federation Account Allocation Committee (FAAC) has disbursed N2.225 trillion as federation revenue for the month of August 2025, the highest ever allocation to the three tiers of government and other statutory recipients.

This marks the second consecutive month that FAAC disbursements have crossed the N2 trillion mark.

The revenue, shared at the August 2025 FAAC meeting in Abuja, was buoyed by increases in oil and gas royalty, value-added tax (VAT), and common external tariff (CET) levies, according to a communiqué issued at the end of the meeting.

Out of the N2.225 trillion total distributable revenue, FAAC said N1,478.593 trillion came from statutory revenue, N672.903 billion from VAT, N32.338 billion from the Electronic Money Transfer Levy (EMTL), and N41.284 billion from Exchange Difference.

The communiqué revealed that gross federation revenue for the month stood at N3.635 trillion. From this amount, N124.839 billion was deducted as cost of collection, while N1,285.845 trillion was set aside for transfers, interventions, refunds, and savings.

From the statutory revenue of N1.478 trillion, the Federal Government received N684.462 billion, State Governments received N347.168 billion, and Local Government Councils received N267.652 billion. A further N179.311 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) went to oil-producing states as derivation revenue.

From the distributable VAT revenue of N672.903 billion, the Federal Government received N100.935 billion, the states received N336.452 billion, while the local governments got N235.516 billion.

Of the N32.338 billion shared from EMTL, the Federal Government received N4.851 billion, the States received N16.169 billion, and the Local Governments received N11.318 billion.

From the N41.284 billion exchange difference, the Federal Government received N19.799 billion, the states received N10.042 billion, and the local governments received N7.742 billion, while N3.701 billion (13 per cent of mineral revenue) was shared to the oil-producing states as derivation.

News

KenPoly Governing Council Decries Inadequate Power Supply, Poor Infrastructure On Campus

Published

13 hours ago

September 19, 2025

The Tide

The Governing Council of Kenule Beeson Saro-Wiwa Polytechnic, Bori, has decried the inadequate power supply and poor state of infrastructural facilities and equipment at the institution.

The Council also appealed to the government, including Non-Governmental Organisations, agencies, as well as well-meaning Rivers people to intervene to restore and sustain the laudable gesture, dreams and aspirations of the founding fathers of the polytechnic.

The Chairman of the newly inaugurated Council, Professor Friday B. Sigalo, made this appeal during a tour of facilities at the Polytechnic, recently.

Accompanied by members of the team, Prof Sigalo emphasised the position of technology, technical and vocational education in sustainable development.

He noted that with the prospects on ground, and the programmes and activities undertaken in the polytechnic, there is no doubt that the institution would add values to the educational system in our society and foster the desired development, if the existing challenges are jointly tackled.

This was contained in a statement signed by Deputy Registrar, Public Relations, Kenpoly, Innocent Ogbonda-Nwanwu, and made available to The Tide in Port Harcourt.

The chairman who restated the intention of his team of technocrats to ensure that KenPoly enjoys desirable face-lift, said the Council would deliver on its core mandates, accordingly.

Earlier, the Rector, KenPoly Engr. Dr. Ledum S. Gwarah, commended the appointment of Professor Friday B. Sigalo as Chairman of the KenPoly Governing Council.

He described him and his team as seasoned technocrats and expressed confidence in their ability to succeed.

The Rector pledged the management’s support to the Council to ensure that KenPoly resumes its rightful place in the comity of polytechnics in the country.

Facilities visited by the Governing Council include KenPoly workshops, laboratories, skills acquisition centre, library, hostels and medical centre.

Chinedu Wosu