Nigeria to break up loss-making state oil firm NNPC

Nigeria is Africa's largest oil producer
Nigeria's loss-making state oil giant is to be broken up into 30 "profit-making" companies, the government says.

The Nigerian National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) has been mired in corruption allegations and losing money for many years.
     Despite pressure to sell it off, the government says that it can transform the NNPC into a profitable enterprise.
Nigeria is Africa's biggest oil producer, but the economy has suffered because of the declining oil price.
Can Nigeria defeat oil corruption?
Oil Minister Emmanuel Ibe Kachikwu said that the NNPC's monthly losses have rapidly declined and now stand at $15m (£11m).

He told an audience in the capital, Abuja, that it would soon be in profit, an NNPC statement says.
Mr Kachikwu, a former top official at ExxonMobil, was appointed to head the NNPC last year after President Muhammadu Buhari won elections and was then also named junior oil minister.
Mr Buhari has vowed to tackle corruption in the country.

Revenue from the oil sector is a big contributor to government income
In 2013, then central bank governor Lamido Sanusi said that the NNPC had failed to account for billions of dollars of earnings.
Nigeria's government benefits from revenues from the sale of the country's oil by several private oil companies which also operate in the country.
Mr Kachikwu also announced that some oil producing countries will be meeting on 20 March to see if they can work together to end the instability in the oil price.
Nigeria has introduced foreign exchange controls and import bans in an effort to maintain the value of the currency, the naira, in the face of pressure over the declining oil price.

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MTN loses bid to stop copyright infringement

A Federal High Court, Abuja, on Thursday held that MTN Nigeria and its Chief Executive Officer, Ferdi Moolman, must face trial over alleged copyright infringements, notwithstanding
settlement with a complainant.

Justice Nnamdi Dimgba gave the ruling in an application filed by an Abuja based musician, Dovie Omenuwoma-Eniwo (a.k.a. Baba 2010) seeking a withdrawal of his complaint against MTN over alleged copyright infringement on his works.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) recalls that the Nigeria Copyright Commission (NCC) had filed a two-count-charge against MTN and Moolman flowing from the petition by Baba 2010.
However, following settlement and restitution by MTN over the infringement, Baba 2010 had asked for the withdrawal of his petition and the charge against the defendants.
In his decision, the judge held that the complainant had the right to withdraw his petition, but the withdrawal would not vitiate the criminal charge against MTN and Moolman.



“I hold that the withdrawal of the petition cannot per force terminate the criminal trial.
“The withdrawal of the petition and perhaps the consent judgment reached by the parties only regulates the parties’ obligations in relation to matters strictly within their control.
“The charge before the court relates to criminal proceedings, which is not affected by the civil arrangements reached between the applicant and MTN.

Student ‘Sells’ Himself on Online Retailer Flipkart to Get a Job There

A student looking for a job at retail site Flipkart tried “selling” himself on the website.


Aakash Neeraj Mittal, a recent graduate, said, “When you are a 6-pointer and competing with best of the best minds of the country, you know how hard it is to land a job,” according to the India Times.


(Screenshot)

He added: “You start doing some crazy and random stuff to stand out from the crowd. This is my resume for Flipkart’s APM Profile. I didn’t get an interview call though, but I hope it will bring a smile on someone’s face.”

Mittal listed himself on the website for Rs 27,60,200 ($40,990). He described himself as “artistic by heart” and “intellectually curious.”
  According to local reports, he didn’t get an interview with the company.

Flipkart is an e-commerce site founded in India in 2007, similar to Amazon.com. Its founders, Sachin Bansal and Binny Bansal, had worked for Amazon before starting the firm.

Bukola Saraki Replies Obasanjo's Letter Promises to plug leakages

The Senate President, Dr. Bukola Saraki, has formally replied a letter written to the National Assembly on January 13 by former President Olusegun Obasanjo wherein
federal lawmakers were accused of corruption, greed, lawlessness and impunity.
The Senate President, in the two-page response dated January 29 and exclusively obtained by Premium Times, addressed concerns raised in the former President’s letter by assuring that the National Assembly he leads was already taking deliberate steps to strengthen the country’s democratic institutions and ensure prudent management of resources.
According to him, “This is to ensure that we plug all leakages and minimize waste across our expenditure systems.
SEE ALSO; 5 Nigerians make Forbes 2016 World’s Billionaires list + See top 20

        “Likewise, the 8th National Assembly has made the issue of plugging leakages and cutting wastages in our public expenditure system a major priority that should not be toyed with. This may have happened in the past but it will not happen with us.”
It would be recalled that Obasanjo had in his letter, addressed to Saraki and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Yakubu Dogara, accused the lawmakers of fixing and earning salaries and allowances far above what was approved for them by the Revenue Mobilisation Allocation and Fiscal Commission, RMAFC
He also alleged that most of the 109 senators and 369 members of the House of Representatives were receiving constituency allowances without maintaining constituency offices as the laws required of them.
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While faulting the plans by the lawmakers to acquire new exotic cars for themselves as “unnecessary and insensitive,” he advised that “a pool of a few cars for each chamber will suffice for any Committee Chairman or members for any specific duty.”
Obasanjo wrote that “The waste that has gone into cars, furniture, housing renovation in the past was mind-boggling and these were veritable sources of waste and corruption. That was why they were abolished. Bringing them back is inimical to the interest of Nigeria and Nigerians.”
But Saraki, in his response, told the former President that the lawmakers were fully aware of the challenges confronting the nation, assuring that “As leaders with a duty, we will not disappoint Nigerians in their yearnings for a more transparent public expenditure systemsystem.


Saraki, who stated that the National Assembly was working with President Muhammadu Buhari to stem the tide of corruption in the country, disclosed that the legislature was already overhauling its oversight functions to make it more effective in exposing corruption in federal ministries, departments and agencies.
“We are hand in glove with the president on this matter and this is why we are overhauling our oversight functions to make it more effective in exposing corruption in the Ministries, Departments and Agencies,” the Senate President wrote, adding that “We recognize the hard work our anti-corruption agencies are putting into this fight.
“The Senate is resolved to support them to perform their duty effectively by providing them with adequate funding where necessary, as their work in integral to our oversight responsibility.”

Fayose promises Ekiti artisans, techicians N200m village

Governor Ayodele Fayose of Ekiti State has said that his administration, in conjunction with some banks, would build an artisans’ village along Ikere Road, Ado-Ekiti, the state capital
.

    He made the disclosure in Ado-Ekiti while meeting with artisans and members of the Nigerian Automobile Technicians Association (NATA) at the Jibowu Hall, Government House, Ado-Ekiti.

SEE ALSO; Top ten cities in Africa where the Ultra High Net Worth individuals live
  In a press release on Wednesday by Mr. Idowu Adelusi, the Chief Press Secretary, the governor was quoted as saying that the project could cost the state about N200 million.
The meeting, which was called to resolve the dispute between the Ekiti Artisans’ Association and NATA over the parcel of land where the proposed village would be built, resolve?d that a committee should be set up to find ways in which the two unions could work together.

While pleading their case before the governor, ? Mr. Alo Babatunde, the Ekiti State chairman of NATA, said the land was allocated to them by the state government during the first tenure of Fayose about 10 years ago, and that the National Automotive Council had concluded plans to build an automotive centre for them on the land.

He said members of his association were surprised to hear that the other group had gone there early this year to clear the plot for another purpose.

5 Nigerians make Forbes 2016 World’s Billionaires list + See top 20

The usual suspects- President of the Dangote Group, Aliko Dangote, Chairman of Globacom, Dr. Mike Adenuga; Chairman of Forte Oil, Mr. Femi Otedola; Founder and Executive Chairman, Famfa Oil Limited, Mrs. Folorunsho Alakija; and Chairman/Chief Executive Officer, BUA Group, Abdulsamad Rabiu- were the Nigerians included in Forbes 2016 Wolrd’s Billionaires list, which was released on Tuesday.


Aliko Dangote retained his position as Africa’s richest person and 51st in the world with a $15.4bn networth.

Adenuga, with a networth of $10bn, was ranked 103rd on the global list, while Otedola, was ranked 1,011th with a net worth of $1.8bn.

Alakija was ranked 1,121st with an estimated networth of $1.6bn while Rabiu was ranked the 1,577th billionaire in the world, with a net worth of $1.1bn.

The 2016 list, which contains 1,810 billionaires in dollar terms, sees Bill Gates retain number one spot.

The top 10 are:

1. Bill Gates ($75bn)

2. Amancio Ortega ($67bn)

3. Warren Buffett ($60.8bn)

4. Carlos Slim Helú ($50bn)

5. Jeff Bezos ($45bn)

6. Mark Zuckerberg ($44.6bn)

7. lary Ellison ($43.6b)

8. Michael Blomberg ($40bn)

9. Charles Koch ($39,6bn) and

10. David Koch ($39.6bn)

And here are the 20 richest people on the world, according to Forbes.

Consumer Advocacy Foundation of Nigeria declares March 1,2016 as a No Banking Day

The Consumer Advocacy Foundation of Nigeria (CAFON, a consumer rights NGO) has declared Tuesday, March 1, 2016 as a "No Banking Day" for Nigerians to protest against the exploitation & excessive bank charges.
     NnnnThe communique issued by CAFON noted the following: * For many years now, consumers of banking services have been subject to series of poor and unsatisfactory transaction and relationship terms; * We have endured excessive charges, illegal fees and unfair contracts that only protects the bank but does not protect the consumers;
* Banks debit our accounts at will for charges we never agreed to or were not aware of; *Banks charge us for every little service, we pay for getting our statements; introduction letters, etc and now, some banks are charging N200 for the use of deposit and transfer forms;
* Under the current CBN management, abolished fees are being reintroduced;
* ATM withdrawals that was free now cost N65 on 3rd withdrawals.

* We pay N1000 for debit card issuance and renewals;

    * We pay N105 for every online transfer, and they still charge N105 as Annual Debit Card Maintenance;

    * Alert on transactions at inflated amount and now, a new Stamp Duty charge of N50 on every credit of over N1000 has just been introduced;

     * COT that was supposed to end finally in 2016 is now being reintroduced as 1% of every withdrawal, purportedly as Monthly Current Account Maintenance Fees. These and many more are to say the least unacceptable! The fact is, Consumers are being exploited by all the banks and CBN is aiding and encouraging these exploitation. We cannot continue to endure these exploitations! That is why Consumer Advocacy Foundation of Nigeria CAFON, a consumer rights NGO is calling consumers to join us in protest against Banking Exploitation by declaring Tuesday, March 1 2016 as "NO BANKING DAY!" Our Demands are as follows: a) We want bank charges reviewed downwards; b) Banks must clear fees with consumers BEFORE debiting our accounts; c) Bank forms and contracts must be reviewed to include more protection for consumers; d) Consumer complaints must be resolved promptly and satisfactorily d) CBN must review the new Stamp Duty Charge, Account Maintenance Charge AND Debit Card Maintenance Fees; We urge ALL consumers to boycott ALL banking services in protest of these excessive charges and policies. That means, on Tuesday March 1st 2016:
1. Don't visit any bank or branches to transact any business;
2. Don't use your ATM from 12a.m -12 midnight on March 1;
3. Don't log in to any of your accounts online and don't do any transfers from 12am-12 midnight;
4. Don't make any online payments from 12am- 12 midnight;
5. Don't issue any cheques or banking instruments dated March 1, 2016;
6. Avoid doing any financial transactions on March 1. We can all commit to observe a "No Banking Day Protest" to press home our demands, after all, if we don't patronize them, they can't be in business. Please share with your friends, loved ones and family members until we have mass awareness, so everyone can observe the "No Banking Day Protest". It is not right, so let's use our Rights! Signed by: Sola Salako; (President, CAFON).

It's Official: Google Becomes ALPHABET

"Alphabet is about businesses prospering through strong leaders and independence. In general, our model is to have a strong CEO, who runs each business, with Sergey and me in service to them as needed." With this, founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin combined all Google products and services under one roof - ALPHABET. Revealed in their Google Investor's Blog, the newly formed Public Holding Company ALPHABET would be taking place at the closing of business on October 2, 2015. From now on Google would be the subsidiary of Alphabet and owning all of the outstanding capital stock of Google. Moreover, by implementing a holding company reorganization the "Alphabet Merger" will close today. Until now, the ticker symbol used by Google in the stock market was "GOOG" and "GOOGL" (on NASDAQ), which are kept same even after the merger. This makesGoogle Class C Capital Stock and shares of Google Class A Common Stock being traded as Alphabet Class C Capital Stock and Alphabet Class A Common Stock. The recasting ofBoard of Directorsis done in a way that would comprise: *.Larry Pageas the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) *.Sergey Brinas the President *.Eric E. Schmidtas the Executive Chairman of the Board of Directors *.Sundar Pichaias the CEO of Google Further, a noticeable change seen will be, this time the company releases its Q4 financial results in January, i.e. it will report earnings for two different components of Alphabet: 1.Larry Page's Alphabet 2.Sundar Pichai's Google Alphabet includes: *.Calico(life-extension biotech research) *.Nest(smart home products) *.Fiber(high-speed Internet service) *.Ventures(early-stage investing) *.Capital(growth-stage investing) However, the stockholders of Google will not face gain or loss for the United States federal income tax purposes upon the conversion of their shares in the Alphabet Merger.

CBN Warns That Nigerian Economy Could Slip Into Recession In 2016

Nigeria’s apex bank, the Central Bank of Nigeria has warned that the country’s economy could slip into recession in 2016. The monetary policy committee warned that the Federal Government must take proactive steps to prevent such recession from coming to pass.

The CBN Governor, Mr Godwin Emefiele while addressing journalists shortly after the two-day meeting of the committee held at the CBN headquarters in Abuja noted that the country’s economy has remained weak due to factors such as the slow growth of the country’s Gross Domestic Product in the second quarter of the year. Emefiele also revealed that the committee noticed that the impact of non-payment of salaries at the state and local government levels led reduction in consumer demand. The governor of the apex bank expressed concern that liquidity withdrawals following the implementation of the Treasury Single Account and the elongation of the tenure of state governments and Oil/gas sector loans could worsen worsen the liquidity conditions of banks and affect economic growth unless actions are taken to stem the tide. “The committee noted that the overall macroeconomic environment remained fragile. “The committee noted that liquidity withdrawals following the implementation of the TSA, elongation of the tenure of state government loans as well as loans to the oil and gas sectors could aggravate liquidity conditions in banks and impair their financial intermediation role, thus affecting economic growth, unless some actions were immediately taken to ease liquidity conditions in the markets. “Having seen two consecutive quarters of slow growth, the committee recognized that the economy could slip into recession in 2016 if proactive steps were not taken to revive growth in key sectors of the economy,” he explained. SHARING IS CARING...SHARE THIS POST

Nigeria risks economic decline –Buhari

President Muhammadu Buhari on Tuesday warned that with the fall in oil prices, Nigeria risked economic decline, if it failed to manage its resources prudently.

Buhari gave the warning during a meeting with members of the Institute of Chartered Accountants of Nigeria at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

According to a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Publicity, Mr. Femi Adesina, Buhari urged accountants to take their audit reports seriously.

He urged them to support his administration’s efforts to restore probity, prudence and transparency.

Buhari said with declining prices of oil exports, Nigeria must begin to properly manage its available resources or face developmental stagnation and decline.

The President stated that accountants should help the government “to go back to the days of real accountability in the management of public funds.

“The annual audits of government ministries, agencies and departments, which your members undertake must be taken more seriously. People must be made to properly account for whatever government funds are entrusted to their supervision.

“Let your audit reports on our MDAs be thoroughly, professionally and dispassionately done to ensure greater probity in the management of our national resources.”

The ICAN President, Olufemi Deru, in his speech, hailed the renaissance of the nation’s value system and the reinvigoration of the war against corruption by Buhari.

He stated, “The values you hold dear – those of integrity, transparency and accountability – are the foundation of the accountancy profession.

“It is therefore heartening and commendable that you are engaging our members and their firms in the anti-corruption crusade.”

After the meeting, the Ogun State Governor, Senator Ibukunle Amosun, and his Lagos State counterpart, Mr. Akinwunmi Ambode, spoke with journalists.

Amosun said to fight corruption, there was a need for accountants to collaborate with government in planning, budgeting and management.

He noted that accountants were being involved in the investigations being conducted by anti-corruption agencies.

On his part, Ambode said that Buhari had succeeded in bringing integrity and credibility into public office and commended the President’s 100 days in office.

When asked whether he was probing Fashola, he said, “I have said it is continuity with improvement.”

Commending Buhari, Ambode said that the President had shown strong leadership.

He stated, “What President Muhammadu Buhari has come up with in the last 100 days is about credibility and integrity for those of us who are in public office. Buhari has come up with moral leadership in the last 100 days and that is what is needed to fight corruption in the country.

“Nobody is judging anyone. What we have seen since May 29 is about strong leadership that has shown direction to all Nigerians. The mantra of such leadership that is being reflected by the President is what we are seeing in other states.”

According to him, everybody is beginning to feel that the law must be obeyed.

He noted that all revenue agencies had started paying to a single account, which had made everyone to be accountable.

Deru, who also spoke with journalists, said, “Accountability is our business and we uphold the tenets of transparency and we must be transparent in what we do. We also have the whistle-blowing fund so that anybody who misbehaves and they want to penalise our member, we have N50m set aside to fight such course.”

Dangote Now Worth N3trn As He Gains N15.6bn in 24 Hours...wonder how

  Dangote, who is President of Dangote Group, posted
a $79.2m (N15.6bn) gain from Thursday to Friday,
according to Bloomberg's Billionaires Index. He was
one of six billionaires who saw their fortunes
increase in 24 hours to Friday.
Dangote is Africa's richest man, with a net worth of
$15.4bn, according to the Index.
The other three Africans on the Index are South
Africans: Nicky Oppenheimer formerly of the De
Beers diamond company (net worth $6.7bn) suffered
a $27.9m loss between Thursday and Friday; luxury
goods magnate Johann Rupert (net worth $7bn) saw
his money shrink by $87m, and retailing baron
Christo Wiese (net worth $7bn), lost $220m over the
same period.
The weekly drop for the Bloomberg Billionaires
Index, a group that includes Warren Buffett, Bill
Gates and Mark Zuckerberg, was the biggest since
tracking of the expanded list began in September
2014.
The Bloomberg Billionaires Index takes measure of
the world's wealthiest people based on market and
economic changes and Bloomberg News reporting.
Each net-worth figure is updated every business day
at 5:30 p.m. in New York and listed in US dollars...

Jaguar Land Rover Announces 1,300 New Jobs

Jaguar Land Rover will create 1,300 new jobs after the company announced that its newest model will be made in Britain.

The jobs will be created at Jaguar's Solihull plant where the car-maker will build its first Jaguar SUV - based on the C-X17 concept it showed off a year ago.

Chief executive Dr Ralf Speth said the announcement demonstrates the company's "commitment to the UK and the advancement of a high-tech, high-skilled, manufacturing-led economy".

Jaguar Land Rover already employs more than 30,000 people in Britain. Last year it announced an extra 1,700 jobs at Solihull to build Jaguar's XE sports saloon.

The announcement was made from the North American International Auto Show in Detroit.

Dr Speth said Jaguar Land Rover was committed to building great cars "crafted with that special British flair".

"We want to improve the quality of life for our customers and for our own employees, creating opportunities for more people," he said.

Business Secretary Vince Cable said the announcement was "great news for British manufacturing and a ringing endorsement of our expertise in innovation and technology".

"The UK's automotive industry is thriving with a new car rolling off the production line every 20 seconds, and increasing levels of investment that's helping to secure local jobs," he said.

"Through our industrial strategy we are backing companies like JLR as they go from strength to strength."

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Olamide joins G-Wagon clique with 2014 edition

Popular musician, Olamide Adedeji, 26, better known as Olamide is one of Nigeria’s fast rising hip-hop artistes. The multiple award winner, who labels himself as ‘badoo or baddest guy ever liveth, renders most of his songs in Yoruba language and is still loved by many for his originality and street language.

Recently, Olamide acquired a Mercedes Benz G Wagon and a Range Rover.

With the G-Wagon, which costs about N25m, Olamide joined the league of celebrities driving the powerful ‘machine’.

The Mercedes Benz G-wagon was initially developed for military use in the 1970s and is reputed to be among the most capable SUVs ever created.

Aside from its monstrous looks, reviewers say the vehicle has powerful engines, fine interior materials and excellent and incredible off-road capability. They say it delivers quick acceleration with incredible power that belies its size and weight.

Popularly called the G-Wagen,’ from the ‘German Gelandewagen’, which means a cross-country car, the vehicle is considered to be highly rugged. According to auto reviewers, most buyers will never use their G-Wagon to a fraction of its capabilities. And the fact that people can still buy one of Mercedes’ crowning achievements from the 1970’s as a new car today makes it worth every penny.

Performance

The 2014 Mercedes-Benz G63 is powered by a twin-turbocharged 5.5-litre V8 engine that produces 536 horsepower and 561 pound-feet of torque. The seven-speed automatic transmission that sends power to all four wheels through a full-time four-wheel-drive system is praised for its quick and smooth shifts.

Mercedes estimates a 0-100-mph sprint to take only 5.4 seconds, an exceptional performance for such a heavy vehicle. Understandably, fuel economy suffers, returning an abysmal estimated 13 miles per gallon in combined driving, 12mpg in the city and 14mpg on the highway. It has a towing capacity of 7,000 pounds, which is not surprising for such a massive vehicle.

Features

Standard features for this SUV include 20-inch alloy wheels, an automatic engine stop-start function, xenon headlights, power-folding heated mirrors, a sunroof, automatic wipers, front and rear parking sensors, adaptive cruise control, a blind-spot monitoring system and keyless ignition and entry. Other features are 10-way power front seats, COMAND electronics interface with a 7-inch display, navigation system, voice commands, rear-view camera and a 12-speaker Harman Kardon surround-sound system with six-CD changer. Its connectivity options include USB/auxiliary audio jacks, satellite radio and 10GB of music storage.

Safety

Its standard safety features include brake assist, front and rear parking sensors, driver and passenger airbags, including side head, rear head, front side and side curtain airbags. Also included are integrated turn signal mirrors, auto-levelling headlights, hill-hold assist, blind-spot monitoring system and Mercedes’ mbrace2 emergency telematics.

With its tall height, there is an abundance of headroom and legroom and the quality of its interior materials is from supple leathers to rich and attractive wood accents – up to luxury car standards. Even though it has dash-mounted buttons, its menu structure and overall ease of use are excellent.

Surprisingly, it has small storage and cargo space, but its 45 cubic feet of cargo space can be increased to 79.5 cubic feet when the rear seats are folded flat.

The good:

With its weight, the vehicle defies logic by accelerating with shocking ease and in a car-like manner that is positively amazing. It provides a smooth and comfortable ride and its all-terrain tyres combine to generate a fair amount of wind and tyre noise. Also, reviewers commended its front seats for their comfort and support.

The vehicle’s slow steering is a benefit in the dirt as it can be guided through just about anything nature throws at it and the steering wheel rarely registers the impacts, thanks to its full-time 4WD system with front, centre and rear locking differentials.

The bad: It has poor fuel economy and cornering prowess because of its large size and heavy weight. Moreover, the steering is slow and does not return to centre quickly, since it is set up for off-roading. It has no height-adjustable suspension that other pricey SUVs employ. The centre console is reasonably-sized, but the single cup holder and dual door pockets are mounted low, thus, are difficult to access.

olamide (bado) posing with his new car

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Fayose presents N80.774bn budget to 7 PDP lawmakers

19 APC members absent as party disapproves presentation
*Tell your runaway lawmakers to return, Fayose tells APC
I’ll never leave PDP, says Ebonyi Dep Gov
By Leke Adeseri, South West Regional Editor & Gbenga Ariyibi
Ado Ekiti—Ekiti State  Governor, Mr Ayo Fayose has presented N80.774 billion  budget estimate to seven Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, members of the House of Assembly  for the 2015 fiscal year.
However, the Chamber was parked full of non-legislators.
Christened “budget of reality” yesterday’s presentation represents 77.7 per cent of the 2014 budget of N103.8 billion by  the immediate past Governor of the state,Dr Kayode Fayemi.
During yesterday’s budget presentation which took place at the floor of the state House of Assembly, members of the All Progressives Congress, APC, lawmakers  were absent.
The assembly’s gallery was, however, filled up to the brim as politicians, traditional rulers and captains of industries were in attendance.
Fayose on the occasion said the state government decided to reduce the budget to a more pragmatic and realistic one that would bring possible results to the people of the state.
Ekiti APC disapproves the presentation
Meantime, the All Progressives Congress, APC, in  the state has condemned the attitude of the Ekiti State Governor, Ayodele Fayose, for presenting the 2015 Budget to seven of the 26-member of the House of Assembly in less than 20 minutes.
According to Ekiti State Publicity Secretary of the APC, Taiwo Olatunbosun, the manner of the presentation of the budget by the Governor was constitutional breach, illegal and absurd.
The APC  therefore counselled the governor to follow legal steps in the governance and financial management of the state.
‘’Seven members of PDP in the Assembly had earlier sat to illegally confirm commissioner-nominees and approve the dissolution and reconstitution of the local governments, among others.
‘’Monday’s illegal sitting with a full house of thugs was a new dimension to the constitutional breaches and lawlessness by the Executive.
“We never knew that Ekiti people could be brought to this low record in decency and respect for the Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria by herding thugs to the House of Assembly to join seven members to present state budget.
“The standard practice is for the governor to present the state budget to members in full session while the public sit at the gallery to watch proceedings. But in this instance, thugs intermingled with the lawmakers in a plenary in such a way that you cannot differentiate a lawmaker from a thug,” Olatunbosun said.
‘’The APC spokesman further criticized the barring of journalists, including the in-house correspondents, from covering the event, even as he berated the governor for rallying reporters to the Assembly after presenting the budget at the illegal sitting for a press briefing. He asked journalists to be professional in their duties to save democracy.
Olatunbosun’s words: “What is the use of calling reporters you intentionally barred from covering the main budget presentation to a post-budget presentation briefing if not to cover up the thugs that sat with the seven members to conduct that illegal sitting? This is time for activism in journalism. Reporters must begin to ask questions on the abnormality and breaches of the Constitution in governance process.”
To this end, Olatunbosun called the attention of Nigerians and lovers of democracy around the world to the reign of impunity in Ekiti State. He urged all organs and agencies of government responsible for budget processing not to get themselves involved in any financial transactions based on the “illegal budget”, saying all actions on the budget and transactions involving the features of the budget are illegal until it is legally presented to a legally constituted House of Assembly composed of 19 members of APC and their seven colleagues in PDP.
In like manner, he urged the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC and Independent Corrupt Practices Commission, ICPC,  to beam their lights on government financial transactions in Ekiti State in the face of mindless plot to defraud Ekiti people through illegal conduct in the financial management of public funds.
Tell your runaway lawmakers to return, Fayose tells APC
In a swift reaction, Governor Ayodele Fayose has told the All APC in the State to bring back the party’s runaway lawmakers to the State, saying; “No individual, group or political party can hold the State to ransom.”
Reacting to the party’s condemnation of Governor Fayose’s presentation of the 2015 Budget to the House of Assembly, Special Assistant to the Governor on Public Communications and New Media, Lere Olayinka said: “It is shameful and wicked for the APC and its leaders to think that they can hold the entire people of Ekiti down just because they lost power.”
Olayinka, who warned the APC lawmakers of the consequences of losing their seats should they continue to abdicate their legislative duties, added that; “by the rule of the House of Assembly, each member must attend the House sittings for 181 days in a year.”
He said the sitting of the House in which the 2015 Budget was presented was lawful.
“The court of law is there for the loud-mouth in the APC to approach if they have any genuine complain to make.
 “Today is December 15 (yesterday) and the APC lawmakers know that 2015 Budget must be presented as provided by the 1999 Constitution. Yet, some of the APC lawmakers refused to report in the House of Assembly, except three of them, who are interested in the progress and development of the State.”

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