Paper Review - Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Governors call for fuel subsidy removal
In this season of unusual happenings, governors of the nation’s 36 states voted yesterday to bring an end to the trillion Naira waste better known as fuel subsidy. Believed to be one of the best characterisation of Nigeria’s culture of cronyism, high level corruption and abuse, the fuel subsidy regime which cost taxpayers N1.4 trillion in three years, merely served big shots at the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) and the presidency along with their well connected business friends and not the nation’s down trodden targeted by the policy.
Rising from the National Economic Council (NEC) meeting, comprising the 36 state governors, cabinet ministers, Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) governor and special advisers to the president, the governors along with other members of the council called for oil subsidy removal as well as a probe of the N1.15 trillion outstanding claims of subsidy and related expenditures presented to the Federal Government by the NNPC. The controversial amount of money covered payment for the goods, movement and supply of petroleum products across the country between 2005 and 2010 financial year. BusinessDay had in early February reported that Nigerians and the nation were losing in the fuel subsidy gambit. Quoting from a document obtained from the presidency, BusinessDay reported: “ In this environment, however, it is the people that suffer. They pay higher prices, usually between N80 and N120 per litre, but have to queue to get that, while the government still pays the subsidy on these fuels”.
http://www.businessdayonline.com/index
Govs Demand Probe Of N1.15tr NNPC Subsidy Claims
Governors at a meeting of the National Economic Council (NEC) on Tuesday queried the N1.15 trillion claimed by the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) for subsidy and related fuel expenditure in the past five years. The meeting in the Villa was chaired by Acting President Goodluck Jonathan. The NNPC said it spent the money to subsidise and move petroleum products across the country from 2005 to date, with subsidy alone amounting to about N880 billion. Governors insisted that the figure should be audited and verified before payment is made. The meeting was also attended by Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor, Lamido Sanusi; Ministers Usman Shamsudeen (National Planning), Mansur Muhtar (Finance), and Adetokunboh Kayode (Justice). Muhtar and Sanusi joined Governors Emmanuel Uduaghan (Delta) and Gbenga Daniel (Ogun) to brief reporters after the meeting. Muhtar said the Finance Ministry has a N1.15 trillion invoice from the NNPC for expenditure incurred on items such as the cost of crude, products lost to pipeline vandalisation, and fuel subsidy. “Out of this, N450 billion has not been remitted by the NNPC to the Federation Account, this was in respect to previous months in terms of February to December 2008, when they were not able to pay, and had to make direct withholding of the money. “And there is about N700 billion or so that we are now talking about, in relation to the outstanding,” Muhtar stated.
http://www.independentngonline.com/DailyIndependent/Article.aspx?id=10069
Agro-investment in Africa requires N2.22tr
If agriculture is to be the mainstay to stimulate economic growth, then investments in the sector should go beyond improvements in on-farm productivity to also cover agribusiness and agro industrial development. Geoffrey Mrema, Director, Rural Infrastructure and Agro-industries Division, Food and Agricultural Organisation (FAO), a unit of the United Nations, said Africa needs an accelerated investment in agribusiness and agro industries to the tune of $15bilion (N2,22trillion) annually between now and 2015, to achieve food security in the continent. Speaking on Monday at the High Level Conference on Development of Agribusiness and Agro Industries in Africa, held in Abuja, he insisted that there is a need to increase investments in downstream activities of the agri food value chain, that is, the industries and services that allow food products to match consumers’ demands. Mr. Mrema explained further, “If you look at FAO projections for the whole Africa, from now to 2015, African countries need to invest $15 billion a year in post production activities. This is first stage processing, rural infrastructure and mechanisation, in addition to what they are now doing.”
http://234next.com/csp/cms/sites/Next/Money/Business/5537850-146/story.csp
Fear of labour unrest delays deregulation - FG
•FG owes N880bn in subsidy - NEC
The Federal government has disclosed that the delay in the implementation of the deregulation policy is caused by agitation against the policy by the various labour unions in the country This explanation, is contrary to the speculation in some quarters that the poor state of health of President Umaru Yar’Adua was responsible for the delayed in the implementation of deregulation policy. Minister of State for Petroleum Resources ,Dr Odein Ajumogobia, dislosed this while speaking at the unveiling of The report: Nigeria 2010 “produced by the Oxford Business Group in partnership with the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) in Abuja Disclosing that lack of political will, was not one of the reasons to deregulate the downstream sector of the Nigeria oil industry, the minister said the government did not want disruption to the economy which might arise if labour unions trooped to the streets to protest against the policy, hence the delay in implementation. Rather than incur the wrath of labour unions and other stakeholders, the minister said the government had resolved to build a reasonable consensus among the stakeholders, especially the labour unions before rolling out the policy.
http://www.tribune.com.ng/index.php/news
64 killed in Kogi, Edo auto crashes
FORTY-EIGHT hours after about 500 persons were killed in Plateau State, 64 persons lost their lives in two road accidents in Kogi and Edo states. In the Kogi accident, an articulated vehicle crushed about 60 people at Felele, a suburb of Lokoja, the state capital. While at Uselu market on the Ugbowo-Lagos road, in Benin City, four persons were killed, when another articulated vehicle ran into them, crushing them in the process. Security agents gave conflicting figures on the Kogi accident, as police authorities said that no fewer than 60 people were killed in the accident, the Federal Road Safety Corps (FRSC) in the state said about 26 died. The state sector commander of the FRSC, Mr Yomi Asaniyan, told the Nigerian Tribune that there was the likelihood that the casualities might be more than that, stating that many families had come to the scene of the accident to remove their relations’ corpses, adding that many people were seriously injured. Kogi State Police Command spokesman, Mr Abubakar Mohammed, who spoke to the Nigerian Tribune on phone, said that no fewer than 60 people were killed in the accident. The Nigerian Tribune, which visited the spot around 1.00 p.m., an hour after the accident occurred, learnt that it was caused by an articulated vehicle, belonging to Dangote Cement Company, fully loaded with bags of cement. The vehicle was said to have lost control after a brake failure and rammed into many vehicles.
http://www.tribune.com.ng/index.php/front-page-news/2391-64-killed-in-kogi-edo-auto-crashes.html
EFCC seals Atuche’s properties in Lagos
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, yesterday placed restraining seals on, at least, seven properties belonging to the former Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of BankPHB, Mr Francis Atuche in choice areas of Lagos. The exercise was carried out to give effect to an ex parte order granted the Commission by a Federal High Court sitting in Lagos compelling Atuche to disclose all his properties to the EFCC on March 1st, 2010. Atuche is standing trial on charges of money laundering. Seven properties belonging to the former bank chief in Lagos were placed “Under Investigation and Restrained” by the EFCC. The houses are located in Ikoyi, Victoria Island , Lekki and Surulere. Three of the properties are in Ikoyi and they include those on No 11, Raymond Njoku, Ikoyi; No 2, Falomo Close, Ikoyi and No 21, Alfred Rewane Road , Ikoyi. Two of the properties are in Victoria Island and they are on No 4, Saka Tinubu , Victoria Island and No 14B, Anifowoshe Street, Victoria Island . Others are one property in Lekki at Road 43, G169, Victoria Garden City, Lekki and another one in Surulere at No 57, Ilesanmi Street , Asoba Private Estate, Surulere. The restraining exercise was carried out without hitch.
http://www.vanguardngr.com/2010/03/10/efcc-seals-atuches-properties-in-lagos/
NNPC owed N880b on fuel subsidies
There is no going back on the planned deregulation of the downstream petroleum sector, the National Economic Council (NEC) resolved yesterday. NEC, the highest economic decision taking body in the country, said the government can no longer subsidise fuel because of the huge debts incurred on subsidy. It said government is owing the Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) N880billion in fuel subsidy. This is besides the amount being owed major marketers. Briefing reporters after the meeting chaired by Acting President Goodluck Jonathan, Delta State Governor Emmanuel Uduaghan, his Ogun counterpart Gbenga Daniel, Minister of Finance, Mansur Mukhtar and the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor Lamido Sanusi said the fuel crisis is worrisome to all the states. Uduaghan noted that besides Lagos and Abuja where fuel is sold at N65 per litre, other states pay more for the product. He said the states bear the brunt of subsidies. He said the Council resolved to quickly conclude dialogue with labour so as to begin implementation of deregulation.
The Council is against the practice where Joint Venture (JV) Cash Call is deducted directly by the NNPC , he said. The council is also considering tinkering with the funding arrangement of all JVCs in the country. It accused NNPC of not remitting its earning to the Federation Account in the last four to five months. "This is where the states are very concerned,the N880billion that has to be paid to NNPC will definitely affect the revenue coming to the state, because the money that is to be paid is supposed to be part of the money that is to be shared by the states; so the states will be shortchanged. That is why the states are worried about this issue of paying money to some persons. And the people that get this money are very few in the society, so should we continue to enrich certain persons to the detriment of all of us.
http://thenationonlineng.net/web2/articles/39136/1/-NNPC-owed-N880b-on-fuel-subsidies/Page1.html
Fidson to raise N2b to complete biotechnology factory
Fidson Healthcare Plc is warming up to raise a fresh N2 billion through the bond market to complete works on its biotechnology (anti-retro viral) drugs factory at Ota, Ogun State. Also, Lagos State Governor, Mr. Bbatunde Raji Fashola , will on Thursday formally commission the company’s newly built ultra modern corporate head office on Obanikoro, Ikorodu road.The Managing Director of the company, Mr. Fidelis Anyebe, told Vanguard at the weekend, that the company would head for the capital market to raise the fresh fund soon after the commissioning of its corporate head office. According to him, the N3.5 billion which the company raised two years ago through private placements was spent on growing the business to the giant status it has attained today in the pharmaceutical and food sector.
He gave the break down of how the fund was used as follows: out of the N3.5 billion , N1.5 billion went into Fidson’s products- diapers, serviettes, machinery, etc, N500 million went into working capital, N1 billion into the biotech plants which the ARV factory, N300 million went into corporate building, and N200 million was spent on WHO GMP factory upgrading.He said that the about to be raised N2 billon-bond will be further used to finish work on the biotechnology plants.
http://www.proshareng.com/news/singlenews.php?id=9677
NSE: Council Approves Appointment of 2 EDs
Indications that the succession plan at the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) would have a smooth transition emerged last Monday as the Council of the NSE approved the appointment of two Executive Directors - expected to resume before June 2010. Since the Director-General of the NSE, Prof. Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke announced her intention to retire in November 2010; there have been controversies over who would succeed her. There were reports that she did not want her second in command, Mr. Lance Elakama, to succeed her. The House of Representatives Committee on Capital Market had to step in by writing to invite the NSE boss to explain her succession plan. However, THISDAY gathered that the Council was resolved the issue by agreeing on new structure for the NSE based on the transformation currently going on preparatory to the eventual demutualisation of the Exchange.THISDAY gathered that to this end, the Council at its meetings last Monday agreed that the position of Director-General and Deputy Director General would be scrapped and be replaced with Group Managing Director and four Executive Directors.
http://www.proshareng.com/news/singleNews.php?id=9680
Council asks Accenture to hunt for new NSE CEO
The Council of the Nigerian Stock Exchange (NSE) has finally decided to adopt an open and competitive process in selecting a new director-general who will succeed the incumbent, Ndi Okereke-Onyiuke. It has asked Accenture to handle the selection process. A source close to the meeting which dragged late into the night on Monday disclosed that the Council formally decided to jettison the idea of selecting a new DG from the crop of senior management staff of the Exchange after a review of various reports on the controversy that had trailed the succession programme. According to the source, the hunt for the DG position would be handled by Accenture, the foremost management consultancy firm.
http://www.proshareng.com/news/singleNews.php?id=9680
Revelations of new hidden packets of toxic assets push value to N9trn
The mess in the banking industry is far from being over with new discoveries of hidden packets of toxic assets in the troubled banks. More so, experts say the problems may be further compounded following additional news of abuse by some of the interim managers. According to Bismark Rewane, chief executive officer, Financial Derivatives, in his Monthly Economic News and Views made available last weekend, Merrill Lynch was quoted to have put the total of real toxic assets in the banking industry at N9 trillion, saying that, so far only N1.5 trillion of the toxic assets have been taken. Based on what is on ground, Bismark believes that full recoveries from the banking crisis will definetly be a thing of more than a 12-month journey.
http://www.proshareng.com/news/singleNews.php?id=9680
Bailed banks’ return to profitability may take three years - analysts
Full recovery to profitability of the embattled banks under the management of the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) is likely to take up to three years. Recent revelations of further abuses by the turn-around managers of the banks and discovery of hidden pockets of toxic assets are seen as factors that may prolong the recovery period well beyond the September 2010 projection of the CBN.
Financial experts at the Lagos Business School Breakfast Session where Bismarck Rewane, chief executive of Financial Derivatives Company Limited, presented a report on the bailed out banks said their prospects for recovery is significantly less glittering than the optimism of the apex bank. Regarding the banks as going through a transitional stage through CBN’s injection of funds and tier two bond issues, the experts, in the March edition of Monthly Economic News and Views, at the session posited that “it is usually a 24 to 36 month painful process with some lumps of non-performing loans to be swallowed.” The report was presented by Rewane.
http://www.proshareng.com/news/singleNews.php?id=9682
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