Tuesday, June 30, 2015
USA Africa Dialogue Series - Prof Ilemobade’s killers must face full wrath of law —Mimiko
Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Fwd: ||NaijaObserver|| ON PROFESSOR BOLAJI ALUKO
"From what Abraham Maslow taught us in his theory of hierarchy of needs, those whose basic needs were met by their families of origin tend to focus on self-actualization and not give in to petty crimes; it is largely those whose lower order needs, such as food, safety, social acceptance were not met that seek ways to meet them and engage in criminal activities." -Ozodi Osuji
The above is a total misinterpretation of Maslow's theory (hierarchy of needs) introduced initially in his 1943 paper A Theory of Human Motivation and elaborated later in his book Motivation and Personality.
First of all, Maslow focused on individuals and what motivates their behavior – not on relationship between family background and propensity to engage or not engage in criminal activities. Maslow opined that every person (regardless of family or socioeconomic, background) has an inherent desire and tendency to ultimately achieve self-actualization (i.e. be all s/he can be); but one has to first meet more basic needs such as the need for food and shelter before attending to needs of a higher hierarchy and the ultimate goal of self-actualization. Again the theory does NOT suggest (and real life experience/evidence does NOT support) the notion that folks from belter off families are more honest or less criminally inclined than others -- all things being equal.
Second, self-actualization is not only illusive conceptually, but it is also in reality not so much a final destination as it is an ever shifting horizon. Hence, it is not unusual for people to be simultaneously engaged in fulfilling some relatively lower level needs while also seeking to meet higher needs. In other words, while needs can be divided into five general levels (Physiological, Security, Social, Esteem, Actualization) according to Maslow's hierarchy, movement across these levels are in real life neither strictly linear nor irreversible. Therefore, arrival at even the final stage which is pursuit of self-actualization (level 5) does not mean that one might never again worry about any lower level need such as security (level 2) which includes pension benefits and health insurance.
Now, the above is NOT to suggest that any allegation is true (or false). Rather it is simply to note the misapplication of Maslow's theory in this case.
OU
------------ Forwarded message ----------
From: Ozodi Osuji ozodiosuji@yahoo.ca [NaijaObserver] <NaijaObserver@yahoogroups.com>
Date: 29 June 2015 at 18:04
Subject: ||NaijaObserver|| ON PROFESSOR BOLAJI ALUKO
To: "naijaobserver@yahoogroups.com" <naijaobserver@yahoogroups.com>
ON PROFESSOR BOLAJI ALUKOI believe that I am a good judge of human character; judges have had me come to evaluate persons before they are sent to jails/prisons and give them feedback as to whether they would reoffend or not (if yes they would be given stiffer time in prisons and if not they would be given less time in the Big House).While in the Washington DC area, I took my time to visit with Professor Bolaji Aluko at his office at Howard University. I engaged in small talk with him. I had a hidden agenda. My goal was to assess his character.He had a good job at Howard but he burned with the desire to go contribute to Nigeria's higher education. His goal is to serve his country.I concluded that the man has noble intentions and supported him when he obtained his present job. I can swear on all that I hold dear that Bolaji is not capable of corruption.Professor Aluko came from a middle class family. From what Abraham Maslow taught us in his theory of hierarchy of needs, those whose basic needs were met by their families of origin tend to focus on self-actualization and not give in to petty crimes; it is largely those whose lower order needs, such as food, safety, social acceptance were not met that seek ways to meet them and engage in criminal activities. Bolaji's family met his lower order needs; thus, his mind focuses on higher order needs, how to serve his country.The present accusation that he engaged in financial impropriety is probably motivated by those with unholy intentions. Be that as it may, their allegations must be investigated.Professor Aluko has my vote of confidence. He is my kind of Nigerian; he is above board. Trust me; I do not hesitate in saying it as I see it.Ozodi Osuji, PhD (University of California)University of AlaskaJune 29, 2015c15201947@aol.com [talkhard] <talkhard@yahoogroups.com>
Bolaji Aluko is double dipping in Nigeria.That he wanted to serve his country is ruse because his acts and deeds showed the opposite.A patriotic citizen with good intentions would first resign from his job in the U.S., before heading home to serve and never to return to the foreign country.But Mr. Aluko was given a government job that was never advertised for competition. He took the job with all the benefits that did not include paying for his pension and healthcare in the U.S. Once on the job in Otueke he quickly started paying himself about 80% of his contract pay, to be funneled to his healthcare and pension in the U.S.We want Bolaji Aluko to post the appointment letter from Nigerian government that gave him V.C job that included payment to his retirement and healthcare account in the U.S. Aluko's job as V.C has Nigerian pension and healthcare benefit according to government sources.No government anywhere in the world would agree to waste public money on pension and healthcare of employee in foreign country.That Bolaji Aluko has the effrontery to tell the world that Nigerian government was paying for his retirement and healthcare plans in the U.S. is bizarre. As at today many Nigerians working for the governments are not getting their salaries. But this guy did not feel the shame in defrauding his own country. Otueke students should organize mass protest to force Bolaji Aluko out, to be prosecuted for corruption and possible theft.__._,_.___
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Executive Director, Northeast Minnesota Sustainable Development Partnership
"You never change things by fighting the existing reality. To change something, build a new model that makes the existing model obsolete." - Richard Buckminster Fuller
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USA Africa Dialogue Series - Fwd: ||NaijaObserver|| I will not appoint Ministers because all Nigerians are corrupt except me - Buhari
From: Elombah Elsdan elombahperspective@gmail.com [NaijaObserver] <NaijaObserver@yahoogroups.com>
Date: 30 June 2015 at 17:09
Subject: ||NaijaObserver|| I will not appoint Ministers because all Nigerians are corrupt except me - Buhari
To: "NIgerianWorldForum@yahoogroups.com" <nigerianworldforum@yahoogroups.com>
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Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Re-Fulani Solidarity And The Betrayal Of Bola Tinubu
Dr. Soni o. Oyekan
President
Prafis Energy solutions
Richmond, TX.
--The Igbophobic response below is totally uncalled for. Opara's post does not justify this ethnically twisted response. Let's end this exchange now before we hold the USA-Africa list hostage with our incurable Nigerian ethnic mudslinging.
Obioma Nnaemeka, PhDChancellor's Distinguished Professor
President, Association of African Women Scholars (AAWS)
Dept. of World Languages & Cultures Phone: 317-278-2038; 317-274-0062 (messages)
Cavanaugh Hall 543A Fax: 317-278-7375Indiana University E-mail: nnaemeka@iupui.edu
425 University BoulevardIndianapolis, IN 46202 USA
From: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com [usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com] on behalf of Ayo Turton [ayoturton@gmail.com]
Sent: Monday, June 29, 2015 11:28 AM
To: USAAfrica Dialogue
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Re-Fulani Solidarity And The Betrayal Of Bola Tinubu
So Yoruba, Ijaw and Hausa/Fulani have conspired at a point to betray somebody, but not Igbo people? That "Ijaw solidarity" didn't include Igbo as the arrowhead or this is just a case of selective amnesia?
You Igbo writers are a funny lot.
Ayo--
On Mon, Jun 29, 2015 at 2:42 AM, Chidi Anthony Opara <chidi.opara@gmail.com> wrote:
What about the Yoruba solidarity and the betrayal of Ibrahim Babangida in 1999? What about the Ijaw solidarity and the betrayal of Olusegun Obasanjo in 2011? Not to mention the earlier Fulani solidarities and betrayals of Mko Abiola and Olusegun Obasanjo in 1979 and 2007 respectively.
Truth is that this artitude has been prevalent in Nigeria and Bola Tinubu should have known that. Anyway, I have always known that Tinubu made a very serious political miscalculation.
CAO
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USA Africa Dialogue Series - Re: ||NaijaObserver|| ON PROFESSOR BOLAJI ALUKO
CAO.
On Monday, 29 June 2015 15:30:54 UTC-7, Oluwatoyin Adepoju wrote:
---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: Ozodi Osuji ozodi...@yahoo.ca [NaijaObserver] <NaijaO...@yahoogroups.com>
Date: 29 June 2015 at 18:04
Subject: ||NaijaObserver|| ON PROFESSOR BOLAJI ALUKO
To: "naijao...@yahoogroups.com" <naijao...@yahoogroups.com >
ON PROFESSOR BOLAJI ALUKOI believe that I am a good judge of human character; judges have had me come to evaluate persons before they are sent to jails/prisons and give them feedback as to whether they would reoffend or not (if yes they would be given stiffer time in prisons and if not they would be given less time in the Big House).While in the Washington DC area, I took my time to visit with Professor Bolaji Aluko at his office at Howard University. I engaged in small talk with him. I had a hidden agenda. My goal was to assess his character.He had a good job at Howard but he burned with the desire to go contribute to Nigeria's higher education. His goal is to serve his country.I concluded that the man has noble intentions and supported him when he obtained his present job. I can swear on all that I hold dear that Bolaji is not capable of corruption.Professor Aluko came from a middle class family. From what Abraham Maslow taught us in his theory of hierarchy of needs, those whose basic needs were met by their families of origin tend to focus on self-actualization and not give in to petty crimes; it is largely those whose lower order needs, such as food, safety, social acceptance were not met that seek ways to meet them and engage in criminal activities. Bolaji's family met his lower order needs; thus, his mind focuses on higher order needs, how to serve his country.The present accusation that he engaged in financial impropriety is probably motivated by those with unholy intentions. Be that as it may, their allegations must be investigated.Professor Aluko has my vote of confidence. He is my kind of Nigerian; he is above board. Trust me; I do not hesitate in saying it as I see it.Ozodi Osuji, PhD (University of California)University of AlaskaJune 29, 2015c152...@aol.com [talkhard] <talk...@yahoogroups.com>
Bolaji Aluko is double dipping in Nigeria.That he wanted to serve his country is ruse because his acts and deeds showed the opposite.A patriotic citizen with good intentions would first resign from his job in the U.S., before heading home to serve and never to return to the foreign country.But Mr. Aluko was given a government job that was never advertised for competition. He took the job with all the benefits that did not include paying for his pension and healthcare in the U.S. Once on the job in Otueke he quickly started paying himself about 80% of his contract pay, to be funneled to his healthcare and pension in the U.S.We want Bolaji Aluko to post the appointment letter from Nigerian government that gave him V.C job that included payment to his retirement and healthcare account in the U.S. Aluko's job as V.C has Nigerian pension and healthcare benefit according to government sources.No government anywhere in the world would agree to waste public money on pension and healthcare of employee in foreign country.That Bolaji Aluko has the effrontery to tell the world that Nigerian government was paying for his retirement and healthcare plans in the U.S. is bizarre. As at today many Nigerians working for the governments are not getting their salaries. But this guy did not feel the shame in defrauding his own country. Otueke students should organize mass protest to force Bolaji Aluko out, to be prosecuted for corruption and possible theft.__._,_.___
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Monday, June 29, 2015
RE: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Re-Fulani Solidarity And The Betrayal Of Bola Tinubu
The Igbophobic response below is totally uncalled for. Opara's post does not justify this ethnically twisted response. Let's end this exchange now before we hold the USA-Africa list hostage with our incurable Nigerian ethnic mudslinging.
President, Association of African Women Scholars (AAWS)
Dept. of World Languages & Cultures Phone: 317-278-2038; 317-274-0062 (messages)
Cavanaugh Hall 543A Fax: 317-278-7375
425 University Boulevard
Sent: Monday, June 29, 2015 11:28 AM
To: USAAfrica Dialogue
Subject: Re: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Re-Fulani Solidarity And The Betrayal Of Bola Tinubu
What about the Yoruba solidarity and the betrayal of Ibrahim Babangida in 1999? What about the Ijaw solidarity and the betrayal of Olusegun Obasanjo in 2011? Not to mention the earlier Fulani solidarities and betrayals of Mko Abiola and Olusegun Obasanjo in 1979 and 2007 respectively.
Truth is that this artitude has been prevalent in Nigeria and Bola Tinubu should have known that. Anyway, I have always known that Tinubu made a very serious political miscalculation.
CAO
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RE: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Party Supremacy
Date: Mon, 29 Jun 2015 10:34:56 +0100
Subject: USA Africa Dialogue Series - Party Supremacy
From: jibo72@gmail.com
To: usaafricadialogue@googlegroups.com
Did They Say Party Supremacy..?, By Jibrin Ibrahim
…the APC got itself enmeshed in a crisis that was completely avoidable and should have been avoided.
I am glad to be returning to my column after a two-week health break. During that period, the turmoil within the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC) in the National Assembly has been on the front burner. The ruling party tried to determine the leadership of the Senate and House of Representatives on the basis of the principle of party supremacy and failed woefully. As the saga continues to unfold and sink the party deeper into a crisis of governability, its important to reflect on what the principle of party supremacy actually means, especially in practice. The first point to make however is that the APC got itself enmeshed in a crisis that was completely avoidable and should have been avoided.
In my column of May 4 entitled the "Tambuwal Effect", I drew the attention of the incoming administration to the dangers of trying to determine the leadership of the National Assembly. I recalled that in 2011, the victorious PDP administration of Goodluck Jonathan had decided to zone the speakership of the House of Representatives to the South-West and chose Honourable Mulikat Akande of Oyo State as the person to emerge as Speaker of the Seventh House of Representatives. It was a good choice because she had the qualities to be an excellent Speaker. It was however a choice weak in law, because in its wisdom the Constitution gives the powers to elect the leadership of legislatures to legislators themselves and not to their parties. Accordingly, the then members of the House of Representatives simply ignored their party's directive and went ahead to elect Aminu Tambuwal as their Speaker. That was how PDP burnt its hands at the very beginning of the class of 2011. I therefore advised that the APC administration should avoid such mistakes. I felt, and still feel, that is was important for the new president not to start his tenure with a needless quarrel with the National Assembly.
According to the legendary party analyst, Maurice Duverger, party supremacy and party discipline work best in parties with strong ideological content and coherence, especially socialist and communist parties. Party discipline he explains is weakest in large parties with factions and fractions.
Party supremacy is one of those concepts that emerged as a wish of the leadership of virtually all political party leaders in the world. Naturally, they tend to believe that as legislatures and executives access power through the platform of their parties, they as party leaders should have a decisive say in what they do. The wish is rarely met with concrete success. There is however one notable exception. In proportional representation political systems, the opportunity of emerging as a legislator is completely dependent on the location party leaders place prospective legislators on the electoral list. In that context, the notion of party supremacy is very real because that is what produces desired electoral outcomes.
The struggle over "party supremacy" is therefore much more about the positioning of factions and fractions seeking to control the political process.
In representative democracy in general, however, the value placed on the relationship between the legislator and his/her constituency is stronger than that between the legislator and his/her party leaders. Democracy is about the people, so constituents are more important than party leaders and legislators are expected to relay, first and foremost, the wishes of their constituents rather than that of their party bosses, even though they had been elected on the basis of a party platform. According to the legendary party analyst, Maurice Duverger, party supremacy and party discipline work best in parties with strong ideological content and coherence, especially socialist and communist parties. Party discipline he explains is weakest in large parties with factions and fractions. What factions and fractions tells us, says Duverger, is a splitting process that has nothing to do with the masses supporting the party but everything to do with "subordinate leaders seeking to oust the authority of leaders of higher rank". By definition, the APC is a party composed of factions and fractions whose origins were, until recently, in completely different political parties. The struggle over "party supremacy" is therefore much more about the positioning of factions and fractions seeking to control the political process. Those who swear by the notion of "party supremacy" are simply trying to use their strong positions within the party structure to increase their influence.
The President Muhammadu Buhari administration is coming into power in a difficult time and with an agenda to fight corruption. He can be assured that he will have a lot to fight the National Assembly about if he is to keep his word and fight all facets of corruption.
In principle, the strongest "party leader" in the ruling party is the Chairperson of the party. When you review former Chairs of the ruling PDP for example – from Solomon Lar through Barnabas Gemade and Audu Ogbeh to the others, they were subalterns rather than bosses. The Obasanjo coup of 1999 ensured that when he arrogated to himself the position of party leader, which was stronger than the position of the Chairpersons, who he removed and replaced at will. President Obasanjo diverted Nigeria away from the best presidential practice in which on being elected president, the former candidate of the party steps aside from the party and declares himself the president of all while still keeping to the electoral promise of implementing the party political programme that he had campaigned on. It is interesting that in the case of the APC, they have a party leader that is neither the chairperson nor the president. In such a situation, it is normal that such a party leader will seek to maintain his leadership by determining the placement of "his people" in strategic leadership positions. It is also normal that others who see themselves as rivals will try to outwit the party leader. Such fratricidal struggles are extremely disruptive and indeed a threat to the emergence of a coherent government. APC has only one viable option, accept the on-going power dynamics within the National Assembly and move on with governance.
The President Muhammadu Buhari administration is coming into power in a difficult time and with an agenda to fight corruption. He can be assured that he will have a lot to fight the National Assembly about if he is to keep his word and fight all facets of corruption. The mood in the country today is that the cost of governance is too high and must be reduced if resources for development are to be liberated. Today, our legislators are the highest paid in the world and our ministers are also among the top in the league table of jumbo salaries for executives. They will both fight to keep their privileges, so bigger fights are en route.
Professor Joel Barkan has already elaborated a theory that justifies why African legislators need a lot of money. He argues that legislators acting individually, rather than as members of a corporate organisation that engages in collective decision-making, perform the additional function of constituency service. In most African countries, legislators have imposed upon them two forms of constituency service – regular visits by MPs to their districts to meet constituents and assist some with their individual needs. Also, involvement in small to medium scale development projects that provide various forms of public goods – roads, water supply systems, schools and scholarship schemes, health clinics, meeting halls, etc. to their constituents. This constituency service function has always provided the subtext for raising emoluments of legislators but even more importantly, getting them to meddle in budget-making and budget-implementation.
President Buhari will discover to his shock that legislators are deeply implicated in crunching budgets with civil servants for projects that are not implemented. He would need to conserve his energy to engage in a struggle against this insidious corruption that has developed in our political system.
In Nigeria, the legislature has responded to its constituency service function at three levels. First is the introduction of constituency projects in which legislators propose specific projects for their constituents, which are implemented, not by them, but by various ministries, departments and agencies under the Millennium Development Goals Programme. So while the executive branch carries out the projects, the legislators get the credit or so the theory goes. The reality is that the legislators have worked out modalities for their direct implementation.
The second is the inclusion of zonal projects for legislators in the budgets of ministries, departments and agencies and the legislators themselves decide and implement such projects. Often, the projects are not implemented at all and the monies are simply collected up front.
Thirdly, there has been a huge increase of constituency allowances to allow legislators respond to regular appeals from constituents for financial help for weddings, burials, ill health and so on, in addition to other demands for jobs, contracts and every conceivable demand. These are issues leading to the excessive cost of governance the APC should focus on combatting. The argument for constituency services is untenable. Virtually all working Nigerians can make the justified claim that they are all participants in a demand system in which relations, friends, associates and everyone else come to people considered to be relatively more well off who then become targets of solicitation.
President Buhari will discover to his shock that legislators are deeply implicated in crunching budgets with civil servants for projects that are not implemented. He would need to conserve his energy to engage in a struggle against this insidious corruption that has developed in our political system. There must be a stop to the abuse of the powers of appropriation given to the National Assembly and the division of powers between those who make the laws, the legislators, and those who implement them, the Presidency and its ministries, departments and agencies. This clarity of roles must be restored.
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USA Africa Dialogue Series - STAR INFORMATION: Excess Crude (Domestic and Foreign) and Sure-P Account monies paid to the FGN, States and Local Governments from January 2011 to May 2015
TABLE 1: FAAC ALLOCATIONS OF EXCESS CRUDE (DOMESTIC & FOREIGN) PLUS SURE-P PAYMENTS TO FGN, TO STATES AND LOCAL GOVERNMENTS | ||||||||||||||
| January | February | March | April | May | June | July | August | September | October | November | December | TOTAL |
|
2011 | 16,050,928,440.09 | 11,304,529,393.90 | 8,008,917,617.28 | 7,500,854,866.29 | 103,088,142,944.40 | 162,901,438,385.71 | 596,649,749,491.20 | 16,452,715,457.40 | - | 76,750,000,000.00 | 501,672,697,778.37 | 143,677,431,206.80 | 1,644,057,405,581.44 | 2011 |
2012 | 178,574,904,001.35 | 187,089,655,125.41 | 307,805,169,619.59 | - | 57,014,541,706.53 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 190,349,235,691.43 | 61,763,564,490.94 | 48,557,137,959.33 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 94,687,774,285.38 | 1,232,489,689,954.25 | 2012 |
2013 | 347,040,471,382.86 | 195,855,289,751.57 | 209,054,815,442.56 | 158,857,014,315.90 | 282,735,470,383.49 | 110,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 190,249,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 1,672,087,711,116.39 | 2013 |
2014 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | 35,549,235,691.43 | - | - | 35,549,235,691.43 | 72,422,542,525.84 | 392,365,663,748.71 | 2014 |
2015 (January to May) | 15,631,214,719.57 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 0.00 | 15,631,214,719.57 | 2015 (January to May) |
TOTALS | 592,846,754,235.30 | 429,798,709,962.31 | 560,418,138,370.86 |
| 478,387,390,725.85 | 344,549,145,460.00 | 703,297,456,565.49 | 277,900,422,531.69 | 97,312,800,182.37 | 160,856,373,650.76 | 763,020,404,852.66 | 346,336,983,709.45 | 4,956,631,685,120.36 | TOTALS |
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PUNCH
Okonjo-Iweala spent $2.1bn without approval, says FG
The National Economic Council, chaired by Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo, on Monday accused a former Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy under ex-President Goodluck Jonathan, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, of spending $2.1bn from the Excess Crude Account without authorisation.
"We looked at the numbers for the Excess Crude Account. The last time the former Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Mrs Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, reported to the council, and it is in the minutes, she reported by November 2014 that we had $4.1 bn.
"Today, the Accountant-General Office reported we have $2.0bn. Which means the honourable minister spent $2.1bn without authority of the NEC and that money was not distributed to states, it was not paid to the three tiers of government," Edo State Governor Adams Oshiomhole told State House correspondents after the NEC's 58th meeting in Abuja.
The 'unauthorised' spending, according to the economic council, is among the several anomalies discovered in the management of the nation's economy between 2012 and May 2015.
Within the period, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation was said to have earned a total of N8.1 tn but remitted only N4.3tn.
Consequently, the Federal Government has constituted Oshiomhole, Kaduna State Governor, Nasir el-Rufai; Akwa Ibom State Governor, Udom Emmanuel; and Gombe State Governor, Ibrahim Dankwambo, into a panel to probe the NNPC and the ECA between 2012 and May, 2015.
Oshiomhole, el-Rufai, Emmanuel and the Zamfara State Governor, Abdulazeez Yari, jointly briefed journalists at the end of the meeting.
Yari told the journalists, through the Director of Funds, Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation, Mr. M.K. Dikwa, that council members received the report of the ECA and unremitted funds by the NNPC.
He said, "On that line, a four-man committee consisting of the governors of Edo, Gombe, Kaduna and Akwa Ibom states was constituted to go through the books of the NNPC and Excess Crude as well as the Federation Account.
"The four-man committee will check the books of the NNPC, most especially the issue of excess crude and what is not remitted into the Federation Account.
"The Federal Government, in conjunction with the Central Bank of Nigeria, will look inwards to see how to support and how much they will give to states, especially on the issue of outstanding salaries owed by the states and even the Federal Government."
Shedding new light on what transpired at the NEC meeting, Oshiomhole said the NNPC and the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation were compelled for the first time to provide information on the total sales of Nigeria's crude from 2012 to May 2015.
The Edo governor said, "We are talking about transparency; we are talking about change. And what we saw from those numbers, which I believe that Nigerians are entitled to know, is that whereas the NNPC claimed to have earned N8.1tn, what NNPC paid into the Federation Account from 2012 to May 2015 was N4.3tn.
"What it means is that the NNPC withheld and spent N3.8 tn.
"The major revelation here is that the entire federation, that is the Federal Government, the states and all the 774 local governments, the amount the NNPC paid into the Federation Account for distribution to these three tiers of government came to N4.3 tn and the NNPC alone took and spent N3.8tn.
"This means that the cost of running the NNPC is much more than the cost of running the Federal Government. That tells you how much is missing, what is mismanaged and what is stolen. There are huge figures."
Oshiomhole said the only lawful way decreed by the Constitution was that if the NNPC needed to spend money, it needed to prepare its budget like every other business enterprise, get it scrutinised by the executive and then forward same to the National Assembly for appropriation.
He added, "If the Federal Government cannot spend without appropriation, why should any agency spend without appropriation.
"This is what the Constitution provided for and this is what President Muhammadu Buhari has promised to do; henceforth all money must go to the Federation Account.
"If you were doing that, you would not have a situation where the NNPC alone will spend N3.8trn and remit to the federal, states and local governments N4.3trn, which means NNPC is taking about 47 per cent and that explains all the leakages you are talking about."
El-Rufai recalled that he was part of the decision to put in place the ECA during the tenure of former President Olusegun Obasanjo between 2004 and 2005 as an administrative arrangement to save for a rainy day.
He said the account was set up in order to be accountable such that every state and local government would know what they had in the account though they could not spend it.
He said, "The Excess Crude Account is 52 per cent owned by the Federal Government and 48 per cent owned by the states and the local governments.
"So the decision of the NEC is to set up this committee of four to look at the operations of the Excess Crude Account and make recommendations to council on its future.
"The other thing the committee will do is to look at the operations of the Federation Account, particularly the shortfall and again come back to council with very clear recommendations as to what to do.
"We have not been given a time frame but as you can imagine state governments are under pressure, many of our state governments are unable to pay salaries on time without recourse to borrowing, so this is very important to us.
"This is an all-governors' committee; we wear the shoes and we know where they pinch. So we are going to do this as quickly as possible.
"The next meeting of the council is on July 23; we hope to complete our work and be in a position to report to council on that day. So within the next one month, we will be done by God's grace."
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