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Tag: el-rufai

  • El-Rufai, Soludo, Sanusi insist on fuel subsidy removal

    El-Rufai, Soludo, Sanusi insist on fuel subsidy removal

    The Kaduna State Governor Malam Nasir El-Rufai and his Anambra counterpart, Prof. Charles Soludo, have urged the Federal Government to end the fuel subsidy regime which has negatively affected Nigeria’s economy.

    The governors made the call on Tuesday in Abuja during a panel session at the policy conversation on “How Nigeria Can Build a Post-Oil Economic Future”.

    The symposium was jointly hosted by Agora Policy, a Nigerian Think Tank and the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace.

    It also featured the presentation of a recently published book titled “Economic Diversification in Nigeria: The Politics of Building a Post-Oil Economy”– selected as one of the Best Books of 2022 by the Financial Times.

    The book was authored by Dr Zainab Usman, a senior fellow and Director of the Africa Programme at the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace in Washington, D.C.

    Speaking, El-Rufai emphasised on the need to end the subsidy on Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) known as fuel and to be pragmatic about solution to the problems instead of delay.

    He recalled that in 2021, the National Economic Council (NEC) gave a committee he chaired an assignment to work out a framework on what to do with the resources if subsidy was removed including how much to be raised.

    He listed the components of its recommendation to include framework on investments in security, social protection, infrastructure on health and education among others.

    “We worked with experts and World Bank and came out with a report on what to do with the resources which would be transperently explained to Nigerians.

    “In 2021 the Federal Government‘s budget for road was N200 billion and in 2021 we were projecting to spend N1.2 trillion on subsidy and we saw the danger and I called for its removal.

    “We have a framework and the economic council agreed for it to be withdrawn because we had a clear plan on where the money should go which includes federal, state and local government for interventions.

    “Still it is on and currently we are looking at N6 trillion on subsidy but go and check the national budget on infrastructure on health and education, it is not up to that and does not make any sense, so we need to end the subsidy,” he advised

    Soludo on his part also called for a transformational leadership and agenda adding that the new dispensation had a chance for a fresh start.

    “It has to start by getting the team assembled and getting to work immediately with institutional reforms and competitive system.

    According to him, it will be necessary if we begin to mainstream case studies and utilise lessons from those case studies that worked before by replicating them.

    The governor said that productive policies to achieve speed and sustainability prosperity for institutional reforms and change were the key.

    Also speaking, former Central Bank of Nigeria’s Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, who was a special guest, underscored the need to prepare the minds of Nigerians on bad decisions that have bankrupted the country and close that hole.

    Sanusi said in order to get it right, the incoming government should place competent officials in suitable positions.

    “We are going to have a government sworn in May 29 and I think we have to start stating what is expected of that government.

    “What do we, as Nigerians, classify as a milestone that shows we are heading to the right direction.

    “We also need a government that understands the depth of the crises that we are. We all have a responsibility of conveying the implications of the policies that we recommend.

    “We need to go back to that situation where politicians respect the independence, integrity and autonomy of these institutions and where these institutions are held accountable by the law setting them up to perform duties,” he said.

    Speaking, Aigboje Aig-Imoukhuede, Co-Founder, the Aig-Imoukhuede Foundation and Chairman, Coronation Capital,  explained that the fuel subsidy was not grounded on thinking rather it was purely political.

    According to him, refining crude oil and producing refined petroleum products in Nigeria would actually drop the prices of petroleum.

    He further explained that fiscal consideration, debt restructuring and massive private structure investment should be considered by the incoming government for economic growth.

    The participants, who lamented on fuel subsidy removal, called for effective utilisation of resources after its removal in new dispensation.

  • Speakership: You can’t give El-Rufai speaker’s position as political benefits – Group tells Tinubu, NWC

    Speakership: You can’t give El-Rufai speaker’s position as political benefits – Group tells Tinubu, NWC

    …asks Tinubu to nullify Abass’s candidature

    …says it’s a clear imposition as it violates Section 50 sub section 1b

    A group under the aegis of Renewed Hope Professionals, RHP on Tuesday slammed the APC NWC and President-elect Bola Tinubu for compensating the governor of Kaduna, Nasr El-Rufai with the position of speaker of the House of Representatives.

    Declaring that the coveted position is not an instrument to for political compensation.

    TheNewsGuru.com, (TNG) recalls that on Monday, the NWC announced Hon Tajudeen Abass and Godswill Akpabio as consensus candidates for Speaker and Senate President.

    The group in a statement signed by its Coordinator, Kinu Kabirwa, asserted that the announcement of both lawmakers as leaders of the tenth Assembly was a clear violation of Section 50 sub section 1b of the constitution of the Federal Republic as amended.

    “Democracy is now under serious threat with this imposition concocted by the outgoing speaker Femi Gbajabiamila and the NWC to further compound the grave political situation in Nigeria.

    “As a Group of professionals with the interest of APC at heart we plead with the President-Elect to immediately nullify this organised crime imposed on lawmakers and allow a free level playing ground for the legislators to pick their leaders.

    “It’s an abberation that must be quickly checkmated before it develops into an hydread monster capable of turning the legislature into an unwarranted war zone over the personal interests of few disgruntled elements in the party.

    “The question bothering us now is how did the NWC and their cohorts carried out the selection process and what yardstick was used to arrive at an Abass that his state delivered just four Reps?

    “Was competence, equity, fairness and fairness considered in the scheme of things or it was just an outright imposition to further truncate our shaky democracy?

    “The above questions are begging for answers and we want our leaders to truly look into this as the position of Deputy Senate President too has been zoned to North West.

    “Automatically, the North West is going to control two powerful positions in the next political dispensation.

  • Kaduna Governor, El-Rufai swears-in 15 new Judges

    Kaduna Governor, El-Rufai swears-in 15 new Judges

    Malam Nasir El-Rufai, Kaduna State Governor, has sworn in 15 new judges who were appointed to various courts in the state on Tuesday.

    Among those sworn in are  seven State High Court Judges, five (Khadis)Sharia Court of Appeal Judges, and three Customary Court of Appeal Judges.

    The seven High Court Judges are: Bashir Shitu Yusuf, Yakubu Badamasi, Abdullahi Isyaka, Joyce Asabe Aka’ahs, Nana Fatima Muhammad, Ambi John Aku, Buhari Mohammed Balarabe.

    However, the three Judges for the Sharia Court of Appeal are; Aminu Ahmad Jumare, Nuhu Mahmud, Murtala Nasir, Abdulrahman Ibrahim, Suraj Mahadi Mohammad

    The Customary Court of Appeal Judges include; Dorothy Sim Inwulale, Dorcas Thabita Antung, Yusuf Yakubu

  • Updates: PDP wins big, floors Gov El-Rufai in Kaduna govt house

    Updates: PDP wins big, floors Gov El-Rufai in Kaduna govt house

    The opposition Peoples Democratic Party defeated the All Progressives Congress in one of the polling units in Sir Kashim Ibrahim Government House, Kaduna

    Announcing the results after the governorship/state house of assembly elections held in Kaduna on Saturday, the Presiding Officer, Mohammed Baso, said the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) candidate, Isah Ashiru scored 77 votes to defeat All Progressive Congress candidate, Uba Sani, who scored 40 at polling unit 014.

    According to the Presiding Officer, Mohammed Baso said the Labour Party scored 0. PRP 1, NNPP 1 while 7 invalid votes were recorded.

  • Gov. El-Rufai sweeps polling unit, defeats PDP

    Gov. El-Rufai sweeps polling unit, defeats PDP

    The Candidates of the All Progressives Congress (APC) has won in Gov. Nasir El-Rufai’s polling unit, for the governorship and state House of assembly election at Unguwan Sarki 024 Polling Unit where the Governor cast his vote on Saturday.

    The Electoral Presiding Officer, Haruna Shafiu, who announced the results, said the APC candidate polled  257 votes as against the PDPs 81 votes for the governorship election

    He announced that New Nigeria Peoples Party (NNPP) got 2 votes, while ADP scored 3 vote, PRP got 4 while there were 8 invalid votes.

    While the APC has won in the polling unit 026 next to where Gov. El-rufai voted, with 146 votes, PDP scored 61 votes.

    The Presiding Officer at Polling Unit 026, Maryam Abubakar, who announced the results, said that NNPP got two votes while the labour party scored 3 and 3 votes were invalid.

  • Just In: Four reportedly killed as Shi’ites clash with Gov El-Rufai’s operatives

    Just In: Four reportedly killed as Shi’ites clash with Gov El-Rufai’s operatives

    Four people are suspected to have been killed when security operatives attached to the convoy of Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State clashed with Shi’ite members in Bakin Ruwa Area of Igabi Local Government Area of Kaduna State, on Thursday.

    Details of the incident are sketchy but sources said that the clash happened around 4:15pm when the governor visited the community.

    It was gathered that the convoy came in contact with the Shi’ite members who were performing their weekly procession at Bakin Ruwa along Nnamdi Azikiwe Expressway.

    According to Tasiu Muhammed, an eyewitness, some of the Shi’ite members started shouting as the convoy tried to pass through the procession.

    He said the situation led to commotion as the security men opened fire when some youth threw stones at them.

    A relation of Yushehu Muhammed, one of the victims killed, said his late nephew was not a Shi’ia member but a commercial driver who was hit by a stray bullet.

    ‘It was a sad incident. I received a call that my nephew who was a commercial driver was hit by a bullet,” he said.

    He demanded investigation as well as compensation because his nephew was a married man.

    It was also gathered that the security men arrested some youths at the scene and whisked them away.

    Contacted, a Shi’ite representative in the state, Abdullahi Usman, said none of those killed was their member.

    According to him, they were commercial drivers at a bus stop near where the incident happened.

    He also said it was not true that their members clashed or pelted the convoy with stones.

    The State Police command Public Relations Officer, DSP Mohammed Jalige, said investigation was ongoing and that a statement would be issued later.

    Commissioner Internal Security and Home Affairs, Samuel Aruwan, neither responded to calls nor responded to a text message sent to him as at the time of filling the report.

  • Tinubu’s victory underlines resilience of Nigerians – El-Rufai

    Tinubu’s victory underlines resilience of Nigerians – El-Rufai

    Gov. Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has described the victory of Sen. Bola Tinubu in the Feb. 25 Presidential election as a tribute to the resilience of Nigerians whose votes made it all possible.

    In a congratulatory statement on Wednesday, the governor said the victory is a much-deserved triumph, reflecting the connection between dedicated effort and reward.

    According to El-Rufai, Tinubu’s success at the polls came amidst the most onerous circumstances for the candidates of the ruling party, adding that it underlines the scale of the hard work put in by the APC and its supporters.

    The governor said the APC has a duty to repay this faith by providing purposeful governance that delivers progressive outcomes for all Nigerians.

    “I have no doubt that Asiwaju Bola Tinubu grasps the import of this victory and will lead Nigeria’s forward with renewed hope.

    “He knows he has our staunch support in bringing Nigerians together and uniting the country in common endeavours for progress, peace and prosperity,’’ he said.

    El Rufai said that he was proud of the contributions of Kaduna state to this monumental triumph that the APC has accomplished, lamenting that in this titanic struggle, we sadly lost many of our National Assembly seats.

    “As regrettable as that is, APC members are still victors. APC members in Kaduna State, our supporters and the entire people of Kaduna state have just partaken in a festival of democracy that has demonstrated our status as people of honour.

    ‘’Our region as a whole has shown that we value national unity, that we honour agreements and dutifully discharge the obligations that such entail,’’ he said.

    He urged every APC member to be an integral part of this victorious national party.

    The governor promised that Kaduna APC would build on this momentum to victory in the March 11 governorship and State House of Assembly elections.

    ‘’On that day, our people will use the legitimate route democracy offers to redress the setbacks of Feb. 25 by giving an emphatic victory to all APC candidates in Kaduna State.

    ‘’We will campaign hard anew our strong record of governance in the last eight years in which we have put our people first,’’ he said.

    The governor appealed to people of the state to come and vote massively on March 11, arguing that many of their candidates would have won on Feb. 25, if there was better turnout of their supporters.

    According to him, this is no time for political apathy because the choice Kaduna State faces is monumental, and we should choose wisely just as Nigeria has done.

  • El-Rufai clears air on why governors are against new naira

    El-Rufai clears air on why governors are against new naira

    Nasir El-Rufai, Governor of Kaduna State, has explained why governors are against the naira redesign, saying it would prevent them from inducing voters during the forthcoming elections.

    According to El-Rufai, governors kicked against the policy as a result of the hardship it had brought upon the citizens, adding that the policy had pitched the All Progressives Congress against the citizens.

    The governor, who spoke in an interview on Monday, stressed that the currency redesign was not enough to stop voter inducements.

    He said, “We reviewed this policy and the hardship it put people into and the feeling of hatred Nigerians developed for the APC because Nigerians are putting the blame on the APC and the people who introduced the policy did it to make our party lose in the election.

    El-Rufai clears air on why governors are against new naira

    “After we finished our review, we agreed that the judgment of the supreme court should be followed, which is that the old and new notes should be used until the case is over.

    “Did vote-buying start today? Why was the money not redesigned before? Why now? Secondly, is vote-buying only done with naira? It can be bought using Dollar, Euro, CFA, and you can give the voters food.

    “There are several ways through which you can buy votes. You cannot take money out of politics, but you can reduce it.”

    He maintained that the Central Bank of Nigeria Governor, Godwin Emefiele, in connivance with opposition party members sold the policy to the president.

    El-Rufai said, “We are not against this policy because of vote buying. I swear to God, we are against it because of how we saw people suffering, not the elections.

    “The people who pushed for the naira redesign are not members of the APC. You see Godwin Emefiele, it was the PDP that brought him. The others with whom the decision was taken with them know them and when the time comes, will expose them because they are not members of our party.

    Because a president is a person who believes in people, and we (governors), our image has been tarnished. He has been told that governors are thieves which is why we are against the naira redesign policy

    “God willing on Saturday the masses will retaliate against those who want to drag our party to the ground. whom the APC gave an opportunity to get money more than what will be sufficient for them to do the shopping because some of them knew that shopping in their homes was difficult for them eight years ago, but now, they have more money than you could imagine.”

    El-Rufai said the president had refused to reverse the policy because he had been told governors are thieves.

    He said, “Because a president is a person who believes in people, and we (governors), our image has been tarnished. He has been told that governors are thieves which is why we are against the naira redesign policy.

    “Even if we go to him and say ‘our leader you have been lied to in this place’, and he says I understand and will take action on it, the moment we depart, he will be told not to take any action. Every person is a nine out of ten. In this regard, we believe the president made a mistake.”

  • Old Notes: Kaduna residents ignore El-Rufai’s directive

    Old Notes: Kaduna residents ignore El-Rufai’s directive

    The residents of Kaduna State have started to ignore the directives given by the  Governor of the state, Nasir El-Rufai that they should continue using the old N500 and N1,000 as legal tender for businesses purposes in the state.

    Recall that El-Rufai, during one of his state broadcast to the citizens of the state, described the naira redesign policy as a weapon by members of the ruling party and close allies of President Buhari bent on stopping the presidential candidate of the ruling All Progressives Congress, APC, Bola Tinubu, from winning the 25 February election and described it as “mindless”.

    The Governor then urged the people to still collect the old notes, saying that after the Buhari governmnet, the new APC government would reverse the policy.

    However, the people have started to reject the old notes in the Kaduna with claims that they are being rejected by others who feel the notes have lost its relevance.

    A bus driver, Mohammed Sani, told journalists, “I cannot collect the old N500 and N1,000 notes from passengers because l cannot use the same money to buy petrol or give it to the owner of the vehicle. I only know that it is only the N200 old note that is allowed to be used as directed by President Muhammadu Buhari.”

    He added, “If you go to the market, you cannot use the old notes to buy anything, neither will you accept the old notes from anybody because you cannot use it to transact any business.”

    A trader at the Kaduna Central Market, Alhaji Sale Musa, said that he cannot sell anything because most people do not have the money, adding, “Nobody is willing to use the old notes or accept it any longer for any business transaction.”

    He said that he would not be misled by the direction of El-Rufai, who, through a broadcast to the people of the state, enjoined them to continue using the old naira notes for their business activities.

    A banker, George Stephen, explained that they are not authorised to receive old naira notes of N500 and N1,000 from customers.

    Findings now show that banks in the country have started collecting for deposit the old notes despite a disclaimer put forward by the country’s apex bank CBN.

  • Again, El-Rufai drops another bombshell about Buhari’s administration

    Again, El-Rufai drops another bombshell about Buhari’s administration

    The Kaduna State governor, Nasir El-Rufai has again dropped another bombshell about President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration saying he no longer believes in his leadership.

    The governor said this In an exclusive interview with PREMIUM TIMES, adding that he no longer believes in the circle around him and the quality of decisions.

    He said: “I believe in Buhari, I still do and I will never stop, but I no longer believe in the circle around him and the quality of decisions and actions coming out of that leadership,” El-Rufai said.

    Recalled that El-Rufai on Channels TV last week alleged that some persons in the presidency who backed another aspirant during the APC primary election were using Buhari to actualize their plans.

    El-Rufai has been outspoken regarding the naira redesign policy of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN), caught the headlines when he said some “Villa elements” were working against Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, Presidential Candidate of the All Progressives Congress (APC).