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N206bn In Humanitarian Affairs Ministry’s Budget Wrongly Coded NOT Budget Padding — Zainab Ahmed

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Zainab Ahmed, minister of finance, budget and national planning, says N206 billion captured in the ministry of humanitarian affairs’ 2023 budget proposal was wrongly coded by the Budget Office.

In a statement issued by Yunusa Tanko Abdullahi, special adviser, media & communications, ministry of finance, the minister said this on Tuesday at a meeting with the house committee on appropriation.

Ahmed, who dismissed the budget padding allegation, explained that the N206 billion was an oversight.

The minister said the N206 billion was for the national social safety nets project funded by the World Bank and domiciled in the humanitarian ministry.

She noted that the wrong coding resulted in the item being wrongly captured as “purchase of security equipment” and had nothing to do with budget padding but an oversight.

According to her, the minister of humanitarian affairs and disaster management should have called the attention of the budget office to the anomaly like her counterparts in other ministries.

She disclosed that the ministry of defence, ministry of power, among others, also committed the same error.

Ahmed, however, called for collaboration among ministries, departments and agencies (MDAs) to forestall such oversight.

HUMANITARIAN AFFAIRS MINISTRY EXONERATES ZAINAB AHMED

Meanwhile, the ministry of humanitarian affairs has exonerated Ahmed and the ministry of finance of any budget padding allegation.

The statement added that Sadiya Umar Farouq, minister of humanitarian affairs, backtracked and exonerated the finance ministry at the committee’s meeting.

“Before I comment on the content of the comment, let me comment on the context. I was at the briefing when the minister was asked a question about the code, and she said that she did not understand that and that she would get clarification. Then the chairman obliged that the clarification will be brought and the matter was closed,” the statement quoted Farouq, represented by Nasir Sani Gwarzo, permanent secretary, finance ministry, as saying.

“One of the members then, in his summary, insinuated that that was padding, and that was what the press took. So, the minister of humanitarian affairs did not mention or use the word padding.

“She requested time to correct this mistake that she observed. Secondly, we did not go to the media refuting or challenging, rather we wrote a letter to the ministry of finance, budget and national planning seeking clarification. Therefore, I concur totally that what has been provided in the budget is part of our project. The only mistake was the coding which has been clarified even before this interactive meeting.”

The statement added that the permanent secretary, who stood in for the minister, distanced her from the budget padding statement.

Farouq, who had appeared before the senate committee on special duties to defend the 2023 budget proposal, claimed that the ministry requested some projects for the North East Development Commission (NEDC) and the National Social Safety Net Project in the 2022 budget, which were not released.

She said that her ministry was surprised that the money inserted was then 10 times the 2023 proposed budget for her ministry.

“Yes we made mention of the projects for 2022, which was not released, and part of it was for the NEDC,” she had said.

“The money was not released and now we have seen it recurring by almost 10 folds, and we are also going to clarify from the Ministry of Finance to know why this increase, despite the fact that the previous year, the money was not even released for the project. So, we will get the details and then send them to you on that.

On upscaling of the National Social Safety Net Project, she said: “These projects are under the National Social Safety Net, the condition cash transfer, the updating of the national social register and the rapid response register as well to cushion the effect of inflation.

“This is all I can say for this. I cannot give full details of how this amount is going to be utilised because it is something that was negotiated between the Ministry of Finance and World Bank.”

Aliyu Betera, chairman, house of representatives committee on appropriation, expressed the displeasure of the committee with the humanitarian minister over her continued failure to appear before the committees of the house when summoned.

Betara asked the humanitarian minister to appear and defend the ministry’s budget.

BIG STORY

Tijjani Babangida’s One-Yr-Old Son Dies As Wife ‘Loses Eye’ In Auto Crash

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Former Super Eagles player, Tijjani Babangida, has lost Fadil, his one-year-old son, in a car crash involving his family along the Kaduna-Zaria highway.

Babangida, last Thursday, was travelling with his family, Maryam, his wife, their son, and Ibrahim, his brother, and his maid when the car incident occurred.

Ibrahim was said to have died on the spot while the other occupants in the vehicle were rushed to the hospital.

But in a recent update, Harrison Jalla, chairman of the Professional Footballers Association of Nigeria (PFAN) Task Force, disclosed that Babangida’s son also died due to injury sustained in the accident.

“Yes he eventually lost the son, a one-year-old boy,” Jalla told TheCable on Sunday evening.

Babangida’s wife is also said to have lost an eye due to the severe injury to her face. She is said to be receiving treatment at the intensive care unit of the Ahmadu Bello University Teaching Hospital, Zaria.

It is also reported that their maid suffered a fracture in her leg.

The Nigerian Football Federation (NFF) on Sunday paid a courtesy visit to Babangida at the hospital.

The delegation consoled the former Eagles player over the deaths of his brother and son. They also prayed for a quick recovery for Babangida and his wife, “who has undergone a successful facial surgery”.

Babangida is the president of PFAN and was a member of the Nigeria U-23 team that won the gold medal in football at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta.

He had a decade with the Super Eagles, where he became famous for his speed down the wings.

Babangida was also a member of the Eagles squad at the 1998 World Cup and 2000 Africa Cup of Nations (AFCON).

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BIG STORY

The Fearless One: Chronicles Of Tokunbo Wahab’s Audacity

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Tokunbo Wahab, the Commissioner for Environment and Water Resources in Lagos State is widely believed by many as a breath of fresh air in the nation’s politics.

The trained lawyer hit the ground running immediately after he was appointed as commissioner after his tenure as a Special Adviser to Lagos State Governor, Babajide Sanwo-Olu, on Education in 2019.

This is surely due in part to his belief that anything worth doing at all is worth doing well. He believes that things should be done the right way to achieve great results.

As Special Adviser to Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu on Education, he spearheaded the biggest turnaround in the educational sector in Lagos. He revamped the educational template of Lagos to meet global standards, upgraded colleges of education, and polytechnics to universities, and ensured teachers were dishing out quality education in line with THEMES agenda.

With all his giant strides, Governor Sanwo-Olu immediately redeployed him in his new role as the Commissioner of Environment and Water Resources during the beginning of his second tenure.

Shortly after he was sworn in as a commissioner, the fearless man didn’t take long before reading the riot act to workers in the ministry and also erring Lagosians who are in the habit of polluting Lagos through waste, air, noise, and encroached builders on areas reserved as green areas or those blocking the drainage channel for easy movement of rainwater.

While many are aware that discharging his duties is a Herculean task, he is doing everything within his power to ensure things are done according to the law and also in due process without minding whose ox is gored.

His no-bending style and courage have earned the outspoken, articulate, and highly cerebral accolades in many quarters. He also has become one of the most talked about commissioners in Lagos State nay Nigeria.

Wahab, a lawyer with more than 25 years of experience, is a partner at Wall and Ace Law Firm. He has extensive experience across all strata of legal practice.

He is also an alumnus of the prestigious Harvard Kennedy School of Government and the Wharton University of Pennsylvania.

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BIG STORY

#MakeWeHalla Movement Shows It’s Time To Change Culture Of Silence Around Domestic Violence In Nigeria — Charles Inojie [PHOTOS]

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Nollywood actor and director Charles Inojie has opened up what inspired he and actor Ali Nuhu to create the #MakeWeHalla movement against domestic violence.

In a recent interview with Wazobia FM, Inojie noted that he wanted to use his platform to change the culture of silence around domestic violence, and he realized that the way to do it was to make noise.

“When we all keep quiet, the abuser, perpetrator of this act of abuse seems confident to do more. But when we speak up and against the abuse without being violent, it sends a signal to the perpetrator that he should desist.”

Inojie continued, “This evokes what prompted myself and Ali to decide to join our voices for this matter. We thought about it and arrived at the fact that we all are guilty if we continue to keep quiet, and watch domestic abuse happen around us. “Make We Halla” is actually a call to action to everybody around to say “if you see something that is bad, speak out and do not keep quiet.”

Ali Nuhu and Inojie recently teamed up in a viral video, “Make We Halla”, that has continued to make waves on social media. In the video, the two friends start banging on their plates in a restaurant in an attempt to call out the domestic violence they witness. Other patrons join in on the halla in a moving display of solidarity, and the violence stops.

The two film stars have gone a step further to start the #MakeWeHalla challenge that has seen celebrities like Wumi Toriola, Kiki Bakare, and Tosin Olaniyan, and many other fans jump on the #MakeWeHalla train and lend their voice.

Explaining the challenge during his interview, Inojie said, “We’ve been overwhelmed by how much support we’ve seen in this movement. It just shows how much we need this conversation. People have spoken up, shared their stories, and most importantly, committed to “Halla” whenever they see domestic violence.”

He continued, “The #MakeWeHalla challenge for everyone is very easy. Just go Tiktok or Instagram. Almost everybody is now on Tiktok, almost everybody is on Instagram. Take your phone. It’s easy. No rules, just halla your way. Anyhow, you deem fit to add your voice in raising awareness against domestic violence is welcome. Halla, talk am. Or if you feel like “I am someone that is shy’, you can go to the videos already uploaded -whether my own oo, or Ali’s own – you can duet. Just post with the hashtag #MakeWeHalla. And the beautiful thing is that joining in the challenge to create more awareness even gets you a reward. The best Halla video will collect brand new iphone 12..”

Going further, he said, “The hashtag is very important so that we can see the video. The hashtag is #MakeWeHalla. If you like, tag Ali or tag myself and for the prize we have, the middle of May will be the finale.”

When asked about his motivations for “Make We Halla”, Inojie also revealed how an incident he witnessed as a young man further changed his mindset about the need to always speak up when domestic violence is witnessed.

“By myself, as a little boy, I have seen one who, till today, lost one eye to domestic violence. That time, many of us could have done something in that same compound but we felt like we were concerned about it, because they are a couple and they will sort themselves out. So, all of those things are what we refer to as silent bystanders, passive. People just say “Wetin concern me?” or ignore and move on with their lives and in little time, major damage would have been caused. This has led to several innocent children losing their mothers and some becoming orphans. Hence, we say no to domestic violence, it shouldn’t thrive in our midst or our society. Let’s see a way, a movement to call people to action saying don’t keep quiet when you see domestic violence, no matter where it happens, no matter who it happens to, speak out but not in a violent way. Let’s Make We Halla!”, Inojie encouraged.

Links to #MakeWeHalla Challenge entries:

https://www.instagram.com/reel/C5bzgAhqf5w/?igsh=MXZ6Y2d0dmdjcHpwdg%3D%3D

@jire_ogunleye

#duet with @Joseph A. Momodu #MakeWeHalla #challenge Please join me as l join Uncle Charles to Halla against Domestic. I am also Halla-ing! Domestic violence is not good.

♬ original sound – Jire🖤

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