GRBusiness
Nigeria losses 13% of its GDP due to Late budget passage, says LCCI
The Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry on Thursday said the late passage of budgets was costing the country a lot in monetary terms, time and other resources, leading to about 13 per cent drop in the value of the Gross Domestic Product.
The chamber stated that this had become a big threat to achieving the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan targets and to Nigeria’s goal of becoming one of the top 20 economies in the world in the nearest future.
A director of the LCCI, Dr Vincent Nwani, stated this at a forum of business editors in Lagos on Thursday, adding that the implications of the late passage of the 2018 budget included a slowdown in the economic recovery process by postponing the multiplier effects of government spending and delay in the commencement of economic activities, among others.
Nwani, who represented the Director-General, LCCI, Muda Yusuf, called on business journalists to raise the conversation on the actual roles of the National Assembly and the executive in the budgetary process.
According to him, the time has come when Nigerians should ask whether the National Assembly is a budget making or budget influencing arm of government.
“Use your platform to clean up the budgetary process. Something needs to be done about the process, if not now, then in the future,” he added.
Nwani also decried the rising level of the country’s indebtedness, stressing that the capital component of the 2018 budget was almost at par with the amount for debt service obligations.
“The ratio of interest payment to revenue is over 50 per cent, yet we pride ourselves as having a low debt to GDP ratio,” he emphasised.
According to him, another disturbing issue is that the gap between the official exchange rate at N305/$ and other rates at an average of N360/$ is becoming so wide that sooner or later, those benefiting from the arbitrage therefrom will have to be exposed.
He warned against an impending rise in food inflation because farmers were no longer going to farms as a result of fear of attack, while those who managed to go, could not farm enough because of fear. *PUNCH
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission has declared a former governor of Kogi State, Yahaya Bello, wanted for offences relating to economic and financial crimes.
This was contained in a notice posted on the commission’s official Facebook page on Thursday.
The notice read, “The public is hereby notified that Yahaya Adoza Bello (former Governor of Kogi State), whose photograph appears above is wanted by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission in connection with alleged case of Money Laundering to the tune of N80,246,470,089.88
“Bello, a 48-year-old Ebira man, is a native of Okenne Local Government of Kogi State.
“His last known address is: 9, Benghazi Street, Wuse Zone 4, Abuja.”
The notice asked anybody with useful information about the former governor’s whereabouts to contact any of the commission’s offices across the country.
The anti-graft commission had earlier stated that it would, on Thursday (today), arraign the former governor before a Federal High Court sitting in Abuja.
This was after the EFCC was granted a warrant of arrest by the Federal High Court in Abuja to apprehend the former governor.
Punch reported that The agency’s team of lawyers, led by Kemi Pinheiro, SAN, during the proceedings on Thursday, said that EFCC operatives were prepared to carry out the arrest warrant for the former governor, even if it requires the use of force.
Bello and three other suspects, Ali Bello, Dauda Suliman, and Abdulsalam Hudu, will be arraigned before Justice Emeka Nwite.
They face 19 counts related to money laundering to the tune of N80,246,470,088.88.
The Federal High Court in Lagos State, on Wednesday, granted businessman and socialite, Pascal Okechukwu, popularly known as Cubana Chief Priest, N10m bail with two sureties in like sum.
On Tuesday, EFCC slammed him with 3 count charge over the abuse of naira and asked him to report to court.
In court, The celebrity bar man pleaded not guilty to tampering and abusing the naira during his trial.
Earlier on Sunday, the EFCC revealed that it was probing several celebrities over alleged abuse of Naira notes.
In a statement, its spokesperson, Dele Oyewale, said;
“Many of them have made useful statements to the commission and many more have been invited by investigators working on the matter.
“The EFCC will not relent in its no-sacred-cow mode of operations and the public should be wary of running afoul of laws against the crime.”
Popular celebrity bar man, Pascal Okechukwu well known as Cubana Chief Priest will be arraigned by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over abuse of the naira on Wednesday, according to court documents.
He is facing three count charges for allegedly spraying and tampering with the naira at a social event contrary to the provisions of the Central Bank Act of 2007.
Not too long away was crossdresser Bobrisky Sentenced to 6 months in prison over thesame money mutilation. Now it is Cubana Chief Priest.
It seems like the government is taking the naira abuse situation much more seriously now.
Cubana Chief Priest would be arraigned before Justice Kehinde Ogundare of the Federal High Court, Lagos.
A copy of the document filed on April 4th by EFFC’s prosecutor Rotimi Oyedepo (SAN) alongside seven other lawyers representing the chairman of the Commission read:
1- “that you, Okechukwu Pascal on 13th Feb. 2024, at Eko Hotel, within the jurisdiction of the court, while dancing during a social event, tampered with funds in the denomination of N500 (Five Hundred Naira) issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria by spraying same for two hours, and you thereby committed an offence, contrary to and punishable under Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act 2007”.
2 – “that you Okechukwu Pascal sometime in 2020, in Lagos during a social event, tampered with funds in the denomination of N500 (Five Hundred Naira) issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria by spraying same for two hours, and you thereby committed an offence, contrary to and punishable under Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act 2007”.
3 – “that you Okechukwu Pascal sometime in January 2024, in Lagos during a social event, tampered with funds in the denomination of N500 (Five Hundred Naira) issued by the Central Bank of Nigeria by spraying same and you thereby committed an offence, contrary to and punishable under Section 21(1) of the Central Bank Act 2007”.
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