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Buhari Sets Up Committee To Revisit $57 Oil Benchmark

President Muhammadu Buhari, yesterday, set up a committee to assess the impact of the ravaging Coronavirus on the economy especially the 2020 budget.
The committee is saddled with the responsibility of revisiting the crude oil benchmark price of $53 per barrel used to prepare the 2020 budget.
The 2020 budget was predicated on crude oil bench of $57 per barrel and daily production capacity of 2.1 million barrels per day but there is a crash of crude oil price in the international market from $53 per barrel last week to $35 per barrel as at yesterday.
Briefing State House correspondents after meeting behind closed doors with the President at the Presidential Villa, Abuja, the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, Mrs Zainab Ahmed said the meeting was as a result of the Coronavirus and its effect on the nation’s economy.
Members of the committee which is chaired by the Finance Minister are the Minister of State Petroleum Resources, Chief Timipre Sylva, and his colleague Minister of State, Budget and National Planning, Clement Agba.
Others are Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), Godwin Emefiele and the Group Managing Director of the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), Mela Kyari.”
She said, “We just met with the President to discuss with him on the matter of the impact of the Coronavirus on our economy. Mr. President has formed us into a committee with the Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, the Central Bank governor, GMD NNPC and myself as members.
“Our mandate is to make a very quick assessment of the impact of this Coronavirus on the economy especially as it effects the crude oil price”.
She said that the committee is expected to submit its report today or tomorrow at the Federal Executive Council meeting.
According to her, “We will be writing a report and brief Mr. President tomorrow (Tuesday) or Wednesday morning. After that we will also have more substantial information for the press.
“It is very clear that we will have to revisit crude oil benchmark price that we have of $57 per barrel. We have to revisit it and lower the price. Where it will be lowered is the subject of this committee.
“What the impact will be on that is that there will reduce revenue to the budget at it will cut the size of the budget. The quantum of the cut is what we are supposed to assess as a committee.
“This is just an initial update to inform you on the directives that we have and subsequently, we will be sending a report to the President, after which we will be briefing the press on the actions that government will be taking.”
Asked whether Nigeria would negotiate with Russia and other non-OPEC members to cut the oil production output, the Minister of State, Petroleum Resources, said that the country was not in the position to do that.
He said, “On the issue of engaging Russia, we as a member of OPEC are not in a position to take that engagement on our own unilaterally. There was a disagreement between OPEC and OPEC+, it’s not just Russia, but the biggest producers within OPEC and OPEC+ are Saudi Arabia and Russia.
“We believe that in the coming days when all of us would have begun to see effect of the reduction of prices, OPEC and OPEC+ might need to meet again and reconsider our positions.
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I’m Committed To Community Dev – Ajinwo
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RSG Tasks Rural Dwellers On RAAMP …As Sensitization Team Visits Akulga, Degema, Three Others

Rivers State Head of Service, Dr (Mrs) Inyingi Brown, has called on rural communities in the State to embrace the Rural Access and Agricultural marketing project (RAAMP) with a view to improving their living conditions.
This follows the ongoing sensitization campaign by the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) visits to Degema, Abonnema, Afam headquarters of Degema, Akuku Toru and Oyigbo Etche and Omuma local government areas respectively.
Dr Brown who was represented by the Deputy Director, Special Duties in her office, Mrs Dein Akpanah, said RAAMP was initiated by the Federal Government and World Bank to economically empower rural dwellers.s
She said the World Bank understands the plights of rural farmers and traders in the State, and therefore came up with the programme to address them.
According to her, RAAMP will improve the conditions of farmers, traders and fishermen, and therefore, behoves on every rural communities in the State to embrace the programme.
The Head of Service also said the programme would support the youths to be gainfully employed while bridges and roads will be built to link farms and fishing settlements.
Also speaking, the State project coordinator, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the programme has the potential of creating millionaires among farmers and fishermen in the State.
Kpakol who was represented by Engr. Sam Tombari, said RAAMP would help farmers and fishermen to preserve their produce.
According to him, the project will build cold rooms and Silos for preservation of crops and fishes while access roads will also be created to link farmers and fishermen to the market.
He, however, warned them against any act that will lead to the suspension of the projects by the World Bank.
Kpakol particularly warned against acts such as kidnapping, marching ground, gender based violence and child labour, adding that such acts if they occur may lead to the cancellation of the project by the World Bank.
During the visit to Oyigbo local government area, Mr Joshua Kpakol, said the team was there to let them know how they will benefit from the Raamp.
The coordinator who was personally at Oyigbo said the World Bank introduced the project to check food insecurity in the State.
He said already 19 states in Nigeria are already benefitting from the project and called on them to embrace the project.
Meanwhile, stakeholders in the three local government areas have commended the World Bank for including their areas in the project.
They, however, complained over the incessant attacks by pirates on their waterways.
At Degema, King Agolia of Ke kingdom said land was a major problem in the kingdom.
King Agolia represented by High Chief Alpheus Damiebi said many indigenes of the kingdom are willing to go into farming but are handicapped by lack of land.
Also at Degema, the representative of the Omu Onyam Ekeim of Usokun Degema kingdom, Osoabo Isaac, said Degema has embraced the programme but needed more information on the implementation of the programme.
Similarly, while High Chief Precious Abadi advised that the project should not be narrowed to only crop farming, a community women leader, Mrs Orikinge Eremabo Otto, called for the construction of cold rooms in all fishing settlements in the area.
At Abonnema, Mr Diamond Kio linked the problem of the area to incessant piracy along waterways.
He also expressed fears over the possibility of the project being hijacked by politicians.
Also at Abonnema, a stakeholder, Ikiriko Kelvin, called on the World Bank to design an agricultural project that will suit the riverine environment, while at Oyigbo, HRH Eze Boniface Akawo expressed satisfaction with the project.
John Bibor
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Senate Replaces Natasha As Committee Chairman

The political mudslinging between the Senate leadership and Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan continued yesterday as the Senate named Senator Aniekan Bassey as the new Chairman of the Committee on Diaspora and Non-Governmental Organisations.
Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, announced the appointment during yesterday’s plenary, confirming Bassey’s replacement of Senator Natasha Akpoti-Uduaghan, who is currently on suspension.
Akpoti-Uduaghan was reassigned to the Diaspora and NGOs Committee in February after she was removed as Chair of the Senate Committee on Local Content during a minor reshuffle.
Bassey is the senator representing Akwa Ibom North-East Senatorial District.
Although no reason was given for her removal yesterday, the change is believed to be connected to her unresolved suspension.
In May, Justice Binta Nyako of the Federal High Court ordered her reinstatement and directed her to tender an apology to the Senate.
However, the Senate has insisted it has not received a certified true copy of the court judgment.
Akpoti-Uduaghan who represents Kogi Central, has yet to resume her legislative duties despite a recent court ruling that voided her suspension.
In a televised interview on Tuesday, Akpoti-Uduaghan said she was awaiting the Certified True Copy of the judgment before officially returning to plenary, citing legal advice and respect for institutional process.
Although the Federal High Court described her suspension as “excessive and unconstitutional”, a legal opinion dated July 5 and attributed to the Senate’s counsel, Paul Daudu (SAN), argued that the ruling lacked any binding directive to enforce her reinstatement.
Akpoti-Uduaghan, one of only three female senators in the current assembly, said the continued delay in allowing her return was not only a denial of her mandate but also a blow to democratic representation.
“By keeping me out of the chambers, the Senate is not just silencing Kogi Central, it’s denying Nigerian women and children representation. We are only three female senators now, down from eight,” she said.