www.peoplesdaily-online.com
Vol. 9 No. 79
Thursday, November 29, 2012
Sack Sanusi now, NLC, others tell FG
. . . putting the people first
Snakes invade village in Bauchi
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Al-Muharram 14, 1434 AH
N150
Police kill 70-yearold, two sons in Nasarawa >> PAGE 4
Under fire NNPC opens up, to spend N2.1tr in 2013 By Richard Ihediwa
F
ollowing intense pressure from federal lawmakers, the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC), for the first time, yesterday opened its books showing that it has budgeted a total of N2.1 trillion ($13.48 billion) for 2013, representing almost half of the N4.9 trillion federal budget for next year. It also emerged yesterday, that the corporation whose budget had until now been shrouded in
secrecy, had already spent N1.66 trillion ($10.4 billion) out of the N2.023 trillion ($12.78 billion) it requested for its operations in 2012. NNPC Group Managing Director, Mr Andrew Yakubu and other top officials of the corporation made those disclosures when they appeared before the Senate Committee on Petroleum to defend its 2013 budget. The decision of the NNPC to make public its budget came against the backdrop of threats
by the National Assembly to suspend all work on the 2013 budget if the NNPC and other revenue generating agencies including the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) refused to present their budgets for approval. Arguing that the agency needs that much money for its operations, the NNPC boss pleaded with the lawmakers to approve the budget, though he failed to give details about how the money would be spent.
Senators were however not comfortable with the sketchy presentation which did not contain clear cut details of the expenditure profile of the budget and ordered the NNPC boss give details. After a closed session with the lawmakers, the committee directed that the NNPC chief should re-appear on Monday with details of how the establishment intends to spend the N2.1 trillion in one year. Some lawmakers also wanted to know how it spent N1.66
trillion in the last 11 months which represents 61 percent of the total budget for 2012. The corporation in its presentation said the cumulative gas production by Joint Venture (JVE) companies from November 2011 to October 2012 stood at 74, 930mmscf. Domestic supply of gas was also put at 734 mmscfd. The sum of $3.8billion was said to have been paid for the same period under review for JVE operations.
FEC approves N2.2bn for new State House banquet hall By Abdulrahman Abdulraheem
A
“more befitting” banquet hall for the State House where President Goodluck Jonathan works and resides was one of several expenditure approvals running into tens of billions that the Federal Executive Council (FEC) gave at its meeting yesterday in Abuja. The new banquet hall, estimated at N2.2 billion, will be built by the construction giant,
PD INDEX
26th Nov., 2012
CBN RATES $ £ EURO CFA RIYAL
BUYING 154.76 246.91 197.25 0.2831 41
SELLING 155.76 248.51 200.54 0.3031 41.5
PARALLEL RATES EURO £ RIYAL $
BUYING 207 255 42 157
SELLING 209 256 44 158
Julius Berger. Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT), Bala Mohammed, said the firm got the contract because it “is familiar with the whole structure and security network of the State House having done the bulk of it over the years.” He said as in other parts of the world, the State House, also called Presidential Villa, needs another banquet hall close to the President's office and residence. The present banquet hall is outside the pilot gate and is about two kilometres away from the President's office. The FEC meeting also approved N6.4 billion for the importation of 13 million smart cards needed to register Nigerians under the new identity management system. Briefing State House correspondents after the meeting, Minister of Communications Technology, Omobola Johnson explained that additional smart cards would be procured next year Contd on Page 2
Chief Justice of Nigeria, Justice Aloma Mukhtar, signing a condolence register, during her visit to the family of late Justice Kayode Esho, yesterday in Ibadan. Photo: NAN