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‘Kaduna Targets 70 % Budget Implementation’

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10 years ago

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The Kaduna State
Commissioner for Budget and Planning, Muhammed Abdullahi, says the government is targeting 70 per cent implementation of its 2016 budget.
Abdullahi told newsmen in Kaduna yesterday that the achievement would be historic, as the state had never achieved up to 50 per cent budget implementation in the past ten years.
He said that it would be impossible to achieve the earlier target of 95 per cent in the implementation of the budget due to short fall in projected revenue during the year.
“Notwithstanding, in spite of the revenue shortfall, we are hoping that by the end of 2016, we can achieve implementation rate of 60 to 70 per cent.
“The state government is empowering the private sector with N108 billion worth of contracts, representing 62 per cent of the N172 billion provision in the 2016 budget as capital expenditure.
“A lot is happening in the state in terms of projects execution. We have currently about 70 adverts for tender and each would create about 100 jobs.
“For example, in the department of rural development, there is an advert that would be closing on Thursday for the award of contracts for construction of 16 rural roads and over 100 boreholes in rural communities.
“The contracts would be awarded in the next two weeks.
‘’Similarly, we are about to award a contract for the construction of 255 primary health care hospitals across the state and we just closed a tender for 150 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) projects, “he said.
The commissioner disclosed that the government had began preparations for the 2017 budget which would be presented to the State Assembly at the end of September.
Abdullahi said that the target was for the legislature to pass the budget early, so that its implementation would commence from January 1.
He explained that it would be a multi-year budget, which would run from 2017 to 2019.
“’We have received budget proposals from Ministries Department and Agencies (MDAs) and we have held revenue defence about three weeks ago on the budget.
“What this means is, we already have a revenue budget for the proposed budget.
“All revenue generating agencies in the state have defended what they proposed as revenues.
“For example, we already have a figure of what we think we will make as internally generated revenue for 2017.
“What we are working on now is the federal components in terms of estimated allocation, and to see whether or not we will be taking debt for 2017.
“Once the two are completed we will have finished revenue budget.”
On the expenditure aspect, the commissioner said his ministry was analysing the budget proposals of most of the MDAs.
government would also consult with the private sector and other stakeholders, to get their inputs into the budget.
“We are inviting key businessmen all across the state to tell us what they will like to see in the budget; what items in the budget they think would improve their businesses.
“This is because government exists to ensure that the state works and provide jobs, and we can only provide jobs when the privates sector is gainfully engaged.
“For the people of the state, we are holding a budget town hall meeting, specifically to consult with the people particularly in rural areas on what priorities they will like to see captured in the budget.
“When all that is done, we are hoping that when we summit the budget in September, by January 1, we will have the new budget in operation, “he said.

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Boat Mishap Kills Pastor, Wife And Church Members  In Brass Water

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5 days ago

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May 18, 2026

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A boat accident in Bayelsa state has killed a serving Pastor, Wife and other church members along Brass waterways
The sad incident happened at Odioama in Brass local government area of Bayelsa State when the Pastor, wife and  members of his church were in a programme.
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?Tide confirmed that the lifeless body of the Pastor’s wife has been found and deposited in a mortuary while the remains of her husband ,the Pastor is yet  to be recovered
as search party are still ongoing.
Although the real cause of the boat Mishap is not yet known as at the time of this report,  our Correspondent gathered  that the identities of the Pastor, wife and church members were not disclosed to the public.
The mishap, Tide gathered occurred on Friday morning when the church members were on a boat transit
The Bayelsa State government and the state police command are yet to issue official statement’s  on the sad accident
By: CHINEDU WOSU
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Rivers Workers Seek Scrapping Of Contributory Pension Scheme

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5 days ago

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May 18, 2026

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The Rivers State Council of  Nigeria Civil Service Union has called on the State Government to urgently scrap the contributory pension scheme, describing it as unfavourable to long-serving civil servants in the state.
Chairman of the union, Chukwuka Osuma, said this in an interview with newsmen in Port Harcourt,  recently.
Osuma said the current pension structure has continued to worsen post-retirement hardship for workers.
He noted that  the contributory pension scheme had failed to provide adequate retirement security for workers who had spent many years in service, especially those approaching retirement age.
According to him, civil servants who had served for more than 20 years were among the worst affected under the scheme, insisting that many retirees could no longer cope with prevailing economic realities.
He also  informed that the Union has made moves to showcase their concerns, pleading with Governor Siminalayi Fubara to abolish the pension policy and introduce a more favourable arrangement for affected workers.
“The union was not opposed to pension reforms, the contributory scheme should only apply to newly employed workers or those with fewer years in service”, he said.
Osuma explained that workers who had already spent decades in the civil service ought to remain under a more secure pension structure capable of guaranteeing stability after retirement.
The labour leader further noted that inflation and the rising cost of living had continued to erode the value of retirement savings, thereby increasing the suffering of pensioners across the country.
He also appealed to the state government to consider extending the years of service in the civil service from 35 to 40 years and the retirement age from 60 to 65 years.
Osuma argued that such adjustment had become necessary in view of present-day economic realities and changing conditions in the workplace.
The unionist also reviewed that similar policies had already been adopted in some sectors and jurisdictions, expressing optimism that the State could also implement the reforms for the benefit of workers.
He however, commended Governor Fubara for approving an N85,000 minimum wage for workers in the state, noting that the amount was above the national benchmark of N70,000.
Osuma also acknowledged the government’s efforts in the area of workers’ promotions and bonuses, but insisted that pension reforms and extension of years of service remained critical to the long-term welfare and stability of civil servants in Rivers State.
By: King Onunwor
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FG Begins South-West Tour To Promote New Cooperative Bank

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1 week ago

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May 13, 2026

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The Federal Government has launched the South-West zonal engagement and ministerial advocacy tour on the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria share capital mobilisation, sensitisation and cooperative sector digitalisation.
 Reports say the initiative was launched through the Federal Ministry of Agriculture and Food Security.
According to reports, the advocacy tour, organised by the ministry’s Federal Department of Cooperatives, began on Monday in Lagos.
Speaking at the event, the Minister of State for Agriculture and Food Security and Supervising Minister of Cooperative Affairs, Dr Aliyu Abdullahi, said the initiative was part of President Bola Ahmed Tinubu’s Renewed Hope Agenda.
Abdullahi described the exercise as a strategic effort to reposition the cooperative sector as a key driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity.
“Today represents a defining moment in our collective determination to reposition the cooperative sector as a major driver of inclusive economic growth, financial inclusion, enterprise development, food security and national prosperity,” he said.
The minister noted  the modern cooperative movement in Nigeria originated in the South-West following the 1934 Strickland Report, which led to the enactment of the Cooperative Societies Ordinance of 1935.
According to him, the decision to commence the sensitisation and share capital mobilisation tour in the region is symbolic, as it marks a return to the roots of cooperative development in the country.
Abdullahi said the advocacy tour was a direct outcome of resolutions reached at the 8th Regular Meeting of the National Council on Cooperative Affairs held in Abuja in March 2026.
He said the council approved the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme, a comprehensive framework designed to strengthen the cooperative sector and align it with the administration’s goal of building a one-trillion-dollar economy.
“The reform programme focuses on seven strategic pillars, including governance reforms, cooperative financing and the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria, digitalisation, capacity building, value chain development, inclusion of youths, women and persons with disabilities, and strategic partnerships,” he said.
He said the establishment of the Cooperative Bank of Nigeria and the digitalisation of the cooperative sector were the two major transformational initiatives under the programme.
“The Cooperative Bank of Nigeria is aimed at rebuilding a strong cooperative financial system capable of supporting cooperators, farmers, artisans, traders, SMEs, youths, women and persons with disabilities with accessible and affordable financial services,” he said.
Abdullahi emphasised that the proposed bank would be government-enabled but not government-funded.
“Government is not establishing the bank as an owner, nor will it rely on Treasury Single Account funds.
“The role of government through the FMAFS is to provide policy support, stakeholder coordination, regulatory facilitation and an enabling environment under the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme,” he said.
Also speaking, the Lagos State Commissioner for Commerce, Cooperatives, Trade and Investment, Mrs Folashade Ambrose-Medebem, reaffirmed the state government’s commitment to cooperative sector transformation.
She described cooperatives as critical tools for promoting inclusive growth, grassroots productivity, food security, financial inclusion and community wealth creation.
Ambrose-Medebem said Lagos State would continue to support reforms and collaborate with stakeholders to ensure the successful implementation of the Renewed Hope Cooperative Reform and Revamp Programme (2025–2030).
“Together, let us build a cooperative ecosystem that is modern, transparent, digitally enabled, financially inclusive and globally competitive.
“Let us build cooperatives that not only mobilise savings, but also mobilise prosperity,” she said.
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