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Senate Confirms Aliyu As ICPC Chairman …To Ban Local FX Transactions, CBN Gov From Partisan Politics
The Senate has confirmed Musa Aliyu as the substantive chairman of the Independent Corrupt Practices and Other Related Offences Commission (ICPC).
His confirmation followed a screening exercise at the Senate plenary, yesterday.
The screening started around 11:50am after the leader, Bamidele Opeyemi, raised a point of order to suspend relevant senate rules to allow strangers into the chamber.
Aliyu, a lawyer and Attorney-General of Jigawa State was screened at the Committee of a Whole chaired by the Deputy President, Jibirin Barau.
President Bola Tinubu had written to the Senate on Wednesday seeking confirmation of Aliyu as chairman of the agency.
Meanwhile, a bill that seeks to bar a serving Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria from partisan politics and equally reposition the bank for efficiency, scaled second reading in the Senate on Wednesday.
A second bill, seeking to prohibit the use of foreign currencies for local transactions was also considered.
One of the consolidated bills, titled: “Central Bank of Nigeria (Establishment) (Amendment) Bill 2023,” was sponsored by Senator Steve Karimi (All Progressives Congress – Kogi West) while the second one, titled: “A Bill to Amend the Central Bank of Nigeria Act 2007, and for Matters Connected Therewith, 2023,” was sponsored by Senator Darlington Nwokocha (Labour Party – Abia Central).
Recall that the immediate-past CBN governor, Godwin Emefiele, attempted to contest the 2023 presidential primaries of the APC while in office.
The move was widely condemned by Nigerians who wondered how a serving public servant could seek an elective office contrary to extant provisions of the constitution.
Karimi explained, in the explanatory memorandum of his bill, that the proposed legislation was aimed at amending the CBN Act to allow for greater accountability and transparency in the running of the apex bank and to prohibit the use of foreign currency in local transactions in Nigeria.
Karimi’s proposed amendment to Section 9(2) of the CBN Act reads: “Notwithstanding the provisions of this Act or any written law in existence, the Governor and the Deputy Governor of the bank shall not participate directly or indirectly in partisan politics, nor contest any election, during their tenure in office.
The Kogi West lawmaker’s bill also seeks to prohibit the use of foreign currency for domestic transactions in Nigeria.
The bill seeks an amendment to Section 20 of the CBN Act, by inserting Section 20(a).
The proposed amendment reads: “20(a) Prohibition of the use of foreign currency in democratic transactions:
“(1) No person or corporate body shall use any foreign currency as a means of exchange for goods, services and other transactions in markets supermarkets, hotels, restaurants, airports and other places of business in Nigeria except by a bank.
“Licensed Bureau De Change and other financial institutions duly authorised by the Central Bank of Nigeria to trade, deal and use such currency and no individual or business entity in Nigeia shall advertise, denominate or price its goods or services in any currency other than the Nigerian Naira and Kobo.
“(2) Any person who contravenes subsection (1) of this section commits an offence and shall be liable on conviction to: (a) in the case of an individual, to a fine of N250,000.00 or a term of imprisonment, not exceeding six months or both such fine and imprisonment;
“(b) in the case of a corporate entity to a fine of N1,000,000 and a conviction of three months to its officers or directors who authorised or undertook the transaction.”
On his part, Senator Nwokocha, in his lead debate, said, “This bill seeks to address all anomalies that have hindered the advancement of the apex bank to handle the ailing economy of our nation.
“The thrust of this amendment is to create a people-centered Central Bank by delivering price and financial system stability and promoting sustainable economic development.
“As the nation grapples with economic issues, we need to reposition the CBN to grow the economy, regulate the exchange rate, and unauthorise financial transactions and dollarising the economy.
“This bill seeks to, among other things, separate the head of management from the head of the governing board in line with national and international good corporate governance practices.
“Enshrine real-time controls and effective accountability in the conduct of central banking in Nigeria
“Reposition the CBN towards pursuit and advancement of its core mandates given the Bank’s pivotal role in the economy; and position the CBN as an apolitical entity that will become a worthy example in national and international monetary policy, banking sector regulation, currency management, and supervision.”
Vice President Kashim Shettima has arrived in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia, for an official State visit at the invitation of the Prime Minister, Dr. Abiy Ahmed.
Upon arrival yesterday, Shettima was received at the airport by the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Ethiopia, Dr. Gedion Timothewos, and other members of the Ethiopian and Nigerian diplomatic corps.
Senior Special Assistant to the Vice President on Media and Communication, Stanley Nkwocha, revealed this in a statement he signed yesterday, titled: “VP Shettima arrives in Ethiopia for official state visit.”
During the visit, Vice President Shettima will participate in the official launch of Ethiopia’s Green Legacy Programme, a flagship environmental initiative.
The programme designed to combat deforestation, enhance biodiversity, and mitigate the adverse effects of climate change targets the planting of 20 billion tree seedlings over a four-year period.
In line with strengthening bilateral ties in agriculture and industrial development, the Vice President will also embark on a strategic tour of key industrial zones and integrated agricultural facilities across selected regions of Ethiopia.
News
RSG Tasks Farmers On N4bn Agric Loan ….As RAAMP Takes Sensitization Campaign To Four LGs In Rivers
The Rivers State Government has called on the people of the state especially farmers to access the ?4billion agricultural loans made available by the State and domiciled in the Bank of Industry.
This is as the State Project Implementation Unit (SPIU) of Rural Access and Agricultural Marketing Project (RAAMP), a World Bank project, took its sensitization campaign to Opobo/Nkoro, Andoni, Port Harcourt City and Obio/Akpor local government areas.
The campaign was aimed at enlightening community dwellers and other stakeholders in the various local government areas on the RAAMP project implementation and programme activities.
The Permanent Secretary, Rivers State Ministry of Agriculture, Mr Maurice Ogolo, said this at Opobo town, Ngo, Port Harcourt City and Rumuodumanya, headquarters of the four local government areas respectively, during the sensitization campaign.
Ogolo said apart from the ?4billion, the government has also made available fertilizers and other farm inputs to farmers in the various local government areas.
The Permanent Secretary who is the Chairman, State Steering Committee for the project, said RAAMP will construct roads that will connect farms to markets to enable farmers and fishermen sell their farms produce and fishes.
He also said rural roads would be constructed to farms and fishing settlements, and warned against any act that will lead to the cancellation of the projects in the four local government areas.
According to him, the World Bank and Federal Government which are the financiers of the programme will not condone such acts like kidnapping, marching ground and other acts inimical to the successful implementation of the projects in their respective areas.
At PHALGA, Ogolo asserted that the city will benefit in the areas of roads and bridge construction.
He noted that RAAMP was thriving in both the Federal Capital Territory, Abuja; Lagos and other states in the country, stressing that the project should also be given the seriousness it deserves in Rivers State.
Speaking at Opobo town, the headquarters of Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Area, the project coordinator, RAAMP, Mr.Joshua Kpakol, said the programme would reduce poverty in the state.
According to him, both fishermen and farmers will maximally benefit from the programme.
At Ngo which is the headquarters of Andoni Local Government Area, Kpakol said roads will be constructed to all remote fishing settlements.
He said Rivers State is lucky to be among the states implementing the project, and stressed the need for the people to embrace it.
Meanwhile, Kpakol said at PHALGA that RAAMP is a project that will transform the lives of farmers, traders and other stakeholders in the area.
He urged the stakeholders to spread the information to their various communities.
However, some of the stakeholders at Opobo town complained about the destruction of their farms by bulls allegedly owed by traditional rulers in the area, as well as incessant stealing of their canoes at waterfronts.
At Ngo, Archbishop Elkanah Hanson, founder of El-Shaddai Church, commended the World Bank and the Federal Government for bringing the projects to Andoni.
He stressed the need for the construction of roads to fishing settlements in the area.
Also, a former Commissioner for Agriculture in the state and Okan Ama of Ekede, HRH King Gad Harry, noted that storage facilities have become necessary for a successful agricultural programme.
Harry also stressed the need for the programme to be made sustainable.
In their separate speeches, the administrators of Andoni and Opobo/Nkoro Local Government Areas, pledged their readiness to support the programme.
At Port Harcourt City, the Administrator, Dr Arthur Kalagbor, represented by the Head of Local Government Administration, Port Harcourt City, Mr Clifford Paul, said the city would support the implementation of the programme in the area.
Also, the administrator of Obio/Akpor Local Government Area, Dr Clifford Ndu Walter, represented by Mr Michael Elenwo, pledged to support the programme in his local government area.
Among dignitaries at the Obio/Akpor stakeholders engagement is the chairman, Rivers State Traditional Rulers Council and paramount ruler of Apara Kingdom, HRM Eze Chike Wodo, amongst others.
John Bibor
President Bola Tinubu has ordered the commencement of personnel audit and skill gap analysis across all cadres of federal civil servants.
The president gave this directive in Abuja, yesterday, while speaking at the International Civil Service Conference, reaffirming his resolve to achieve efficiency and professional service delivery in the civil service.
“I have authorized the comprehensive personnel audit and skill gap analysis across the federal civil service to deepen capacity. I urge all responsible stakeholders to prioritize timely completion of this critical exercise, to begin implementing targeted reforms, to realize the full benefit of a more agile, competent and responsive civil service,” the president announced.
Tinubu further directed all Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs), to prioritise data integrity and sovereignty in national interest.
He called for the capture, protection and strategic publication of public sector data in line with the Nigeria Data Protection Act of 2023.
“We must let our data speak for us. We must publish verified data assets within Nigeria and share them internationally recognized as fruitful. This will allow global benchmarking organisation to track our progress in real time and help us strengthen our position on the world stage. This will preserve privacy and uphold data sovereignty,” Tinubu added.
President Tinubu hailed the federal civil service as the “engine” driving his Renewed Hope Agenda, and the vehicle for delivering sustainable national development.
He submitted that the roles of civil servants remain indispensable in modern governance, declaring that in the face of a fast-evolving digital and economic landscape, the civil service must remain agile, future-ready, and results-driven.
“This maiden conference is a bold step toward redefining governance in an era of rapid transformation. An innovative Civil Service ensures we meet today’s needs and overcome tomorrow’s challenges.
“It captures our collective ambition to reimagine and reposition the civil service. In today’s rapid, evolving world of technology, innovation remains critical in ensuring that the civil service is dynamic, digital” the President said.
Head of the Civil Service of the Federation, Didi Walson-Jack in her welcome address told the President that his presence and strong words of commendation at the conference has renewed the morale and mandate of public servants across the country.
Walson-Jack described Tinubu as the backbone of driving transformation in the Nigerian civil service, and noted that the takeaways from past study tours undertaken to understudy the civil service in Singapore, the UK and US under her leadership, is already yielding multiplier effects.
Walson-Jack assured Tinubu that her office, in collaboration with reform-minded stakeholders, will not relent in accelerating the implementation of the Federal Civil Service Strategy and Implementation Plan, FCSSIP 25.
She affirmed that digitalisation, performance management, and continuous learning remain key pillars in strengthening accountability, transparency, and service delivery across MDAs.
Walson-Jack reaffirmed that the civil service is determined to exceed expectations by embedding a culture of innovation, ethical leadership, and citizen-centred governance in the heart of public administration.