Cassava bread to generate over N240bn for farmers annually

The Minister of Agriculture and Rural Development, Dr. Akinwunmi Adesina, has said that the inclusion of cassava flour into bread processing in the country will generate about N240 billion for local farmers annually. He stated this while delivering a keynote address at the Centre for Value and Leadership lecture held in Lagos. He said, “The cassava bread is not just bread, it’s also about economics. This bread alone will put N240billion in the hands of all those small holder farmers and our local processors that we have all across this country. So we must patronize this bread if we truly believe that charity begins at home. As far as I am concerned, if bread is not produced and processed in Nigeria, eaten by Nigerians, it is not good enough for Nigeria.” He explained that the ministry is also revamping exports where Nigerian youths will have global dominance in agricultural commodity markets. He further explained that the agricultural sector is getting all the support it needs to ensure that it truly begins to drive the economy, even as a foreign exchange earner. He said, “The Afrexim Bank has supported our cassava export to China because we have a contract with China for 2.2million metric tons of dried cassava as export. Afrexim Bank has given Nigeria $40million to support our small holder farmers and chip processors to be able to process all that chips and take it to China and that alone will give our farmers about $802million if we are able to meet that contract. That’s what agriculture as a business does. It lifts people out of poverty by creating wealth of opportunities.” He said that the ministry has been able to secure loans from the banks to the sector to the tune of N25 billion in 2013 from a paltry N3.5 billion in 2011. “The banks recorded zero per cent on all the loan facilities that they made available to farmers for the past two years. This is where the money is going to be made and I think that the banks are stepping up to that,” he said. He further explained that, “To reverse the lack of food manufacturing companies in our rural areas, we launched what we called staple crop processing zones. These zones are areas of high food production.

EFCC may prosecute Sanusi over alleged fraud

The Suspended Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, CBN, Mallam Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, may be prosected by the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC) over alleged acts of financial recklessness in under administration’s as CBN’s head. According to sources close to the Presidency, it was disclosed that Sanusi may be invited this week for questioning on the allegations against him. President Goodluck Jonathan had last Thursday suspended Sanusi as the CBN Governor and appointed the most senior Deputy Governor of the bank, Sarah Alade, as acting Governor of the bank until the conclusion of ongoing investigations into breaches of enabling laws, due process and mandate of the CBN. Meanwhile,the president hado forwarded the names of The Managing Director of Zenith Bank, Godwin Emefiele, to the National Assembly for consideration as the new CBN Governor Although, Sanusi had gone to court to secure an order which restrains the Federal Government, the Nigeria Police and the State Security Service, SSS, from arresting him but he could still be invited by the anti-graft agency for interrogations.

Arsenal, Man City stay on Chelsea’s tail

LONDON (AFP) – Arsenal and Manchester City replied in kind after John Terry scored an injury-time winner against Everton to preserve Chelsea’s position as Premier League leaders on Saturday. Chelsea’s victory momentarily gave them a four-point lead at the summit, but Arsenal closed the gap to a point by overwhelming Sunderland 4-1 and City are three points back with a game in hand after edging Stoke City 1-0. Arsenal had been dealt a dispiriting 2-0 defeat by Bayern Munich in the Champions League on Wednesday and they reacted in style by outclassing third-bottom Sunderland at the Emirates Stadium. Left on the bench against Bayern, Olivier Giroud was restored to the starting line-up to face Sunderland and the Frenchman responded with a brace of goals in the first 31 minutes. The former Montpellier man also played a role in the glorious move that led to Tomas Rosicky chipping in Arsenal’s third goal before half-time, with Laurent Koscielny heading home a fourth in the 57th minute. Emanuele Giaccherini claimed a late consolation for Gus Poyet’s side, who face City in next weekend’s League Cup final. “After playing for so long with 10 men in a difficult game in mid-week against Bayern Munich, it was good to win today,” said Arsenal manager Arsene Wenger. “We are still there in the table. It is down to consistency and our performances.” City also tasted Champions League disappointment in mid-week, losing 2-0 at home to Barcelona, and their return to winning ways was not quite as straightforward as Arsenal’s. Manuel Pellegrini’s side toiled in front of goal against Stoke at the Etihad Stadium and there was a sense of relief when Yaya Toure broke the deadlock from Aleksandar Kolarov’s cut-back in the 70th minute. “They were defending with 10 players in their box,” said City manager Pellegrini. “I thought we controlled the game and it was a matter of time before we scored.” Earlier, Terry’s last-gasp winner allowed Chelsea to hold onto top spot as they snatched a 1-0 victory against Everton at Stamford Bridge. With Everton goalkeeper Tim Howard in sparkling form, Chelsea looked set to drop points until Terry marked his return to the team after a three-game absence by toeing home a Frank Lampard free-kick in the 93rd minute. “When you score in minute 90-something, you could speak about being lucky, but the reality is that the boys chased it,” said Chelsea manager Jose Mourinho. “I feel sorry for Everton because a point would have been fair, but we were the team that was trying to win, which is our responsibility.” Terry’s strike was a bitter blow for an enterprising Everton side, who squandered an opportunity to close the eight-point gap that currently separates them from fourth-place Liverpool. Meanwhile, Felix Magath saw victory snatched from his grasp in his first game as Fulham manager after a 1-1 draw at West Bromwich Albion. Fulham were on course to climb off the foot of the table thanks to Ashkan Dejagah’s 28th-minute goal, only for Matej Vydra to plunder an 86th-minute equaliser with a shot that squirmed past Maarten Stekelenburg. “We were so near to a victory,” said Magath, who succeeded Rene Meulensteen as manager last week. “We are disappointed, but in the whole game, 1-1 was correct.” Vydra’s goal meant that Cardiff City remained second from bottom after they were crushed 4-0 at home by Hull City, who prevailed through a Nikica Jelavic brace and strikes from Tom Huddlestone and Nikica Jelavic. Hull are now six points above the relegation zone and West Ham United are a point better off in 10th after goals from Matt Jarvis, Carlton Cole and Kevin Nolan set up a 3-1 win at home to Southampton. Later on Saturday, Wayne Rooney will hope to celebrate his new Manchester United contract with victory when his side visit Crystal Palace, a day after he committed himself to Old Trafford until 2019.

I’ve no regret stopping Amaechi in 2007 —Obasanjo

PORT HARCOURT— FORMER President Olusegun Obasanjo, Monday, said he had no regret over his decision to stop Governor Rotimi Amaechi from contesting as the governorship flag bearer of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP in the April 2007 general elections. Obasanjo at the Ambassador Nne  Krubo Model Secondary School, Ebubu community, Eleme Local Government Area, Rivers State, before commissioning the institution, said he acted based on reports available to him then. He said: “I believe I took a decision I believed was right. When I took it, I had no apology. I fast and pray to take decisions on important issues. When I have something that requires action, it must be taken, otherwise I am not a worthy leader. A report came on Amaechi which indicated that there were some issues and I said yes, there are some issues, going by the report.” He said he was not happy with the court verdict which declared Amaechi winner of the election since he did not physically participate in the exercise. “I found the judgment awkward in the sense that, how can a man who had not contested an election, was not voted for, be declared winner? I laugh about it, but kept quiet.” COMMISSIONING—From left: Rivers State Commissioner for Education, Miss Alice Nemi; Rivers State Governor, Chibuike Amaechi; his wife, Dame Judith Amaechi and former president, Chief Olusegun Obasanjo, at the commissioning of Amb. Nne Kurubo Model Secondary School, in Ebubu, Eleme Local Government Area, Rivers State, yesterday. Photo: Nwankpa Chijioke. He said the issues Amaechi had with his candidature were straightened by the judgment of the Supreme Court. “He took it to the higher court and at the Supreme Court, he won and that was the end. As far as I am concerned, the issues have been straightened out.” Obasanjo challenged those who are not satisfied with the apex court’s verdict to take their case to God. While commending the governor for his achievements so far in the state,  Obasanjo appealed to Amaechi not to blame his predecessor, former Governor Peter Odili, for his failure to emerge the PDP flag bearer in the April 2007 election, saying  that he (Obasanjo) should be held responsible for that action. “I phone Amaechi not to take anything against his predecessor. Hold me responsible for whatever decision taken against you, not your predecessor,” he said. “When you invited me, many people said I should not come. They said for security. There is nothing more dangerous than fear.  At my age what should I fear even if it is death?” Turning to the governor, he said “If I die tomorrow, send a cow for my funeral. They told me that one road named after me was cancelled by you (Amaechi). Why should I come, they asked me? If anybody named anything after me, good luck to him. I am not working for Nigerians to name roads after me. I want my name to be in the minds and heart of people of the world, not necessarily on roads. If you invite me and I didn’t come because of the road that was cancelled, then I don’t deserve to be honoured, I will be petty,” he said.

Some elected Ijaw leaders have failed our people —INC Western Zone

Yenagoa—The zonal leadership of Ijaw National Congress, (Western Zone), has rated low the performance of some elected leaders of Ijaw extraction, saying that they had failed the people. INC Western zonal chairman, Chief Robinson Ogunkoru, said though a few distinguished politicians and activists were desperately searching for ways and means to turn around the bad fortunes of the region through welfare programmes and infrstructural development plan, majority of the elected leaders were indifferent, selfish and have failed in their campaign promises to the people. Ogunkoru, who spoke at the unveiling and launch of the website, owned by the founder of the Nengi James Foundation, lampooned some elected representatives of the people in government, noting that many of them have failed to live up to the expectation of the people. Commending the initiatives of the Nengi James Foundation over its scholarship scheme, inter-school competitions among indigent Ijaw students, presentations of cash and computers to secondary students, he said  “even those who we toiled hard to elect, many of them have failed us. But here is a man, who has done so much with the little resources at his disposal for the cause of our people. “Nengi James is selfless and committed to the struggle for the emancipation of the people of the Niger Delta region. He is no doubt a dogged activist, who is concerned and committed to the emancipation of the Ijaw youths and the region at large. If only every Ijaw man can show so much zeal and commitment to the development of our people, then the Ijaw nation will be great,” he added.

A Guide to Celebrating Valentine's Day for the Single Ladies (the Healthy Way)

Valentine's Day has a way of making single people feel like they have the clap. Forget that! Take yourself out on a date and give the finger to the idea that V-Day is only for lovers. Here are some heart-healthy ways to spend a love-filled day with friends (or on your own) when Cupid comes bearing his bow and arrow. Rejuvenate With Some Spa Time: Pamper yourself on Valentine's Day by splurging on a spa package. Relieve pain, reduce hypertension, and boost immunity with a massage; sit in the sauna to loosen up muscles; or my favorite, indulge your skin with an antioxidant-boosting facial. Take a Fun Fitness Class: Fitness dates aren't just for couples! Rev up your Valentine's Day and try a class that is totally out of the box - pole dancing or trapeze lessons, anyone? Say Cheers: Grab a girlfriend and head to your nearest wine bar - your heart will love you for it! The antioxidants in red wine help reduce the risk of heart disease and raise levels of heart-healthy omega-3s. Home alone? Pour yourself a glass and raise a toast to yourself. Put on Your Dancin' Shoes: Whether it's in the privacy of your own home or out on the town, dancing is always a great way to celebrate. It's also a calorie burner: 30 minutes of dancing burns almost 150 calories. Whip Up a Healthy Meal: I always feel satisfied after taking the time to cook a homemade meal. Share the load and divide the meal up among friends - nothing beats cooking together! Make it even more of a Valentine's Day feast by incorporating these heart-healthy foods into your meal.

Why I left Tinsel – Damilola Adegbite

Over the past few years, Damilola Adegbite has become one of the most recognizable actresses in Africa.  She plays the role of ‘Thelma Duke’, the gorgeous actress in the day time soap, Tinsel on Africa Magic; a role which has seen her become a favourite of soap lovers. Damilola, who recently left the set of Tinsel to explore the film industry, during a courtesy visit to Vanguard, spoke on why she left the soap, life outside Tinsel, her relationship and more. Enjoy!
You left Tinsel. Why?
Well, it was… as much as people don’t believe me, it was a personal decision. I just wanted to experience more of the movie world. It really wasn’t an easy decision to make because Tinsel has been part of my life for a while and we are family. But the only thing constant is change; basically every human being should re-evaluate their lives more often and make decisions.
I wanted to experience film. I wanted to experience movie-making and that is what I am doing now. And, I am pleased with it.
Can you describe your experience on Tinsel? You were one of the first on Tinsel?
I will say I am one of the few that had it luckily. Tinsel is a very pretty platform. I didn’t have to deal with the exploitation that other actors go through for getting script and all that. I had a proper platform and it was a worthwhile experience and one I will always be grateful for. I enjoyed it while it lasted.
What is your relationship with Gbenro Ajibade?
Laughs.  We are ex-colleagues.  We are just friends.
For four years, you played Thelma in Tinsel. How did that role influence your life?
Definitely not negatively! Well, do you mean affecting my personal life or my career?
I mean both.
Well, personally, no. I learnt to detach myself from the characters of the roles that I play. Career wise, it gave me a beautiful platform that I am building on today.
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/02/why-i-left-tinsel-damilola-adegbite/#sthash.hlpPiIjY.dpuf

Over the past few years, Damilola Adegbite has become one of the most recognizable actresses in Africa.  She plays the role of ‘Thelma Duke’, the gorgeous actress in the day time soap, Tinsel on Africa Magic; a role which has seen her become a favourite of soap lovers. Damilola, who recently left the set of Tinsel to explore the film industry, during a courtesy visit to Vanguard, spoke on why she left the soap, life outside Tinsel, her relationship and more. Enjoy!
You left Tinsel. Why?
Well, it was… as much as people don’t believe me, it was a personal decision. I just wanted to experience more of the movie world. It really wasn’t an easy decision to make because Tinsel has been part of my life for a while and we are family. But the only thing constant is change; basically every human being should re-evaluate their lives more often and make decisions.
I wanted to experience film. I wanted to experience movie-making and that is what I am doing now. And, I am pleased with it.
Can you describe your experience on Tinsel? You were one of the first on Tinsel?
I will say I am one of the few that had it luckily. Tinsel is a very pretty platform. I didn’t have to deal with the exploitation that other actors go through for getting script and all that. I had a proper platform and it was a worthwhile experience and one I will always be grateful for. I enjoyed it while it lasted.
What is your relationship with Gbenro Ajibade?
Laughs.  We are ex-colleagues.  We are just friends.
For four years, you played Thelma in Tinsel. How did that role influence your life?
Definitely not negatively! Well, do you mean affecting my personal life or my career?
I mean both.
Well, personally, no. I learnt to detach myself from the characters of the roles that I play. Career wise, it gave me a beautiful platform that I am building on today.
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/02/why-i-left-tinsel-damilola-adegbite/#sthash.hlpPiIjY.dpuf

Over the past few years, Damilola Adegbite has become one of the most recognizable actresses in Africa.  She plays the role of ‘Thelma Duke’, the gorgeous actress in the day time soap, Tinsel on Africa Magic; a role which has seen her become a favourite of soap lovers. Damilola, who recently left the set of Tinsel to explore the film industry, during a courtesy visit to Vanguard, spoke on why she left the soap, life outside Tinsel, her relationship and more. Enjoy!
You left Tinsel. Why?
Well, it was… as much as people don’t believe me, it was a personal decision. I just wanted to experience more of the movie world. It really wasn’t an easy decision to make because Tinsel has been part of my life for a while and we are family. But the only thing constant is change; basically every human being should re-evaluate their lives more often and make decisions.
I wanted to experience film. I wanted to experience movie-making and that is what I am doing now. And, I am pleased with it.
Can you describe your experience on Tinsel? You were one of the first on Tinsel?
I will say I am one of the few that had it luckily. Tinsel is a very pretty platform. I didn’t have to deal with the exploitation that other actors go through for getting script and all that. I had a proper platform and it was a worthwhile experience and one I will always be grateful for. I enjoyed it while it lasted.
What is your relationship with Gbenro Ajibade?
Laughs.  We are ex-colleagues.  We are just friends.
For four years, you played Thelma in Tinsel. How did that role influence your life?
Definitely not negatively! Well, do you mean affecting my personal life or my career?
I mean both.
Well, personally, no. I learnt to detach myself from the characters of the roles that I play. Career wise, it gave me a beautiful platform that I am building on today.
- See more at: http://www.vanguardngr.com/2013/02/why-i-left-tinsel-damilola-adegbite/#sthash.hlpPiIjY.dpuf

Over the past few years, Damilola Adegbite has become one of the most recognizable actresses in Africa.  She plays the role of ‘Thelma Duke’, the gorgeous actress in the day time soap, Tinsel on Africa Magic; a role which has seen her become a favourite of soap lovers. Damilola, who recently left the set of Tinsel to explore the film industry, during a courtesy visit to Vanguard, spoke on why she left the soap, life outside Tinsel, her relationship and more. Enjoy!

You left Tinsel. Why?

Well, it was… as much as people don’t believe me, it was a personal decision. I just wanted to experience more of the movie world. It really wasn’t an easy decision to make because Tinsel has been part of my life for a while and we are family. But the only thing constant is change; basically every human being should re-evaluate their lives more often and make decisions.

I wanted to experience film. I wanted to experience movie-making and that is what I am doing now. And, I am pleased with it.

Can you describe your experience on Tinsel? You were one of the first on Tinsel?

I will say I am one of the few that had it luckily. Tinsel is a very pretty platform. I didn’t have to deal with the exploitation that other actors go through for getting script and all that. I had a proper platform and it was a worthwhile experience and one I will always be grateful for. I enjoyed it while it lasted.

What is your relationship with Gbenro Ajibade?

Laughs.  We are ex-colleagues.  We are just friends.

For four years, you played Thelma in Tinsel. How did that role influence your life?

Definitely not negatively! Well, do you mean affecting my personal life or my career?

I mean both.

Well, personally, no. I learnt to detach myself from the characters of the roles that I play. Career wise, it gave me a beautiful platform that I am building on today.

What other movies are you doing now?

Beside the movie I just finished with Michelle, which is premiering on 13th – and I am excited about that, I will be going into production with two Nollywood big names in February. I will rather not expose who they are now so as not to spoil the surprise. But, there other productions lined up as well.

Are you hoping for endorsements from companies?

Well, it depends on the plan that you have for yourself. Like I said, I am not really concentrating on endorsements now. I would like my acting to speak for me and then, from there, if anything else comes up, that’s fine. But I am just breaking off the platforms now and want to continue building something. So, endorsements are welcome, of course. But they are not really my focus right now but they are welcome.

Now that you are in another phase of your career, would you say Tinsel sort of limited you to an extent?

I will say ‘yes’ to a certain extent because of the time. It’s very time consuming working on soaps. Tinsel, I would say is a pretty peculiar production as well, because they emphasise a lot on quality and, you know, all of that is pretty time consuming. No producer would like to work with someone they cannot guaranty would be there. It would give their production as much time and you know effort. So, I would say that it did limit me to a certain extent; which is why I had to come to a decision.
 
Tell us a bit about your background?

 
Well, Damilola Adegbite was born into a family of four. I was born and raised in Lagos. In Surulere, to be precise, so I grew up in Surulere. I have a degree in Business Administration from Bowen University.
 
What childhood memories do you have of Surulere?

 
Wow! I had a fun childhood in Surulere; those street carnivals and all that. It was fun. And, the friends I had in that area, which would be exclusive to me. I had a lot of friends in the area, so you could basically just get up and walk into anybody’s house, eat with them and sleep there if you wanted to. Everybody’s door was open to you all the time in my neighbourhood, anyway.

 

How did you get into acting?
It’s always been a passion for me. Some people, along the course of life, decide to choose certain careers based on wherever life leads them. I am pretty focused and I know what I want and I always try to stick to that. I have always wanted to be in the arts. Even while growing up, everyone around me saw that that was what I wanted to do. I was always in some music or theatre-related issue. I was always doing something that had to do with the arts.
 
So what’s your style like? How will you describe your style?

 
My style will be: simple, classy, and comfortable. I don’t like discomfort, even if it means looking good. No. I like to be comfortable and relaxed wherever I am; free to move around without being afraid that my skirt is too short or whatever. So, I am just simple but classy.

You are always well put together on the red carpet. Do you have a special designer for your clothes?
Well, I try to patronize as many people as I can in the fashion industry. Especially, if your item or your piece flatters me or something I could rock. I basically source for most of the clothes you see.  They could be something I pick off a designer’s rack or something I put together myself.
 
So, do you have a role model in the industry when it comes to acting? Is there anybody you look up to?
Of course, there are a lot of people I admire in the industry. I learn a lot from them; I probably just watch their movies. A few of my personal favourites: I like Mercy Johnson. I like her acting. I think she is good. I like Mr. Ibu; he makes me laugh. There is something very unique about him. His talent is quite unique. I like Mojid Micheal as well. He is not a Nigerian but I think he is a very good actor. Everybody has something I like.

What would be your greatest fantasy?
I remember that yesterday I was reading a newspaper and it was talking about Mr. Aliko Dangote.  He was referred to as the richest man in Africa and there was a picture of him sitting down, eating a bowl of food.  I remember thinking to myself, to wake up in the morning knowing that you are the richest man in Africa and yet you are dressed in shorts and a tee-shirt!  You are just chilling. There must be a huge amount of self fulfillment in that.

Regardless of what it is, where I am, what I achieved, whenever, wherever, I want to be able to wake up in the morning, look at myself in the mirror and say: “You are not doing badly Damilola”. So, basically, I would want to, at all times, be happy with where I am.

What won’t you wear in the name of fashion?

I wouldn’t wear a loud wig in the name of fashion; a coloured wig.

You have a boyfriend?
Yes

How did you meet?

I saw him. I liked him and we started talking; from there till today.

Tell us what you don’t like about men.
I don’t like men who over-indulge in alcohol. I like men that have regard for themselves and for the people around them. You would have to come across to me as a very serious minded person to be with me.  That’s the honest truth.

Sanusi Attacks NNPC Again: You haven’t accounted for $20bn

*Says kerosene subsidy is a scam
*The CBN Governor is ignorant — NNPC

*Senate cautions him over unsubstantiated allegations

 

---

ABUJA—Central Bank Governor, Sanusi Lamido Sanusi, yesterday, told the Senate Committee on Finance that of the $67 billion crude oil sales that was supposed to be remitted to the Federation Account, only $47 billion had been reconciled between the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation, NNPC and CBN.

But the Committee’s Chairman, Ahmed Makarfi, cautioned the CBN Governor over making wild and unsubstantiated allegations without concrete and specific figures to back them up.

The NNPC, in a swift reaction, however, dismissed the allegation of another unremitted $20 billion oil revenue raised against it by the CBN.

It is uncertain how Sanusi came up with the fresh $20 billion unremitted funds against the initial $10.8 billion. The latter figure was arrived at during the account reconciliation with the Ministry of Finance, NNPC and CBN during a public hearing on alleged unremitted $49.8 billion oil revenue organised by the Senate.

CBN’s arguments

But the CBN Governor, while making the new allegation, stated: “All we have said as CBN to which there is no disagreement is that NNPC shipped $67bn worth of crude. They have repatriated or we have established that $47bn has come back to the Federation Account. There is a $20billion that has not come back to us. The burden of proof is on NNPC.

“We have made suggestions that can help to answer some of the questions and we believe that even some of that which they (NNPC) claimed were shipped by NPDC do not belong to the NPDC but to the Federation.”

He said some of the issues were subject to investigation which, according to him, had to do with whether NNPC was repatriating money due to the Federation Account or not, adding that it was necessary to investigate the issue because the NNPC had given a number of explanations on why the money had not been remitted.

Sanusi said: “May I say, Mr. Chairman, that some of those issues raised are subject to investigations. They have to do with whether NNPC is repatriating money due to the federation account or not and because NNPC had given a number of explanations for why money has not come.

“If NNPC, for instance, says we have sold $6billion worth of crude belonging to NPDC, and if the CBN believes that part of that money should come to the Federation Account, it is related to this matter and it had been captured in our presentation.

“We are here because they are related to the question of whether NNPC is returning to the Federation Account, all the amount it is constitutionally and legally required to return.

“I have a 20-page presentation with 30 appendages, but we have to first of all agree on what has been paid into the CBN. NNPC did a presentation. We have all agreed earlier that $14billion out of the $67billion they shipped came in to the dollar account of the federation.

“That is agreed. We have looked at Federal Inland Revenue Service,FIRS, numbers and we have confirmed that $16billion paid by international oil companies to the FIRS account was not paid by the NNPC but paid by IOCs.
“It was the proceeds of crude lifted in the name of NNPC but sold on behalf of FIRS. That $16billion had been confirmed by FIRS and had been accepted. There is $1.6bn that DPR also received from IOCs which was part of that crude and which CBN had accepted.

“We have provided evidence in the naira crude account out of the $28billion domestic crude shipped by the NNPC, it had repatriated $16billion.

“Out of the $67billion that has accrued to the NNPC account we have accounted for $47billion. Out of the $67billion that the NNPC shipped, $47billion had been repatriated to the CBN. What we are talking about is the balance of the $20billion and what explanations had been given.

“NNPC had said some of it do not belong to the Federation Account so, $6billion NPDC we have held the position that some of the crude shipped by the NPDC is shipped from oil wells that belonged to the federation. Joint Ventures that Shell went out of, which NNPC took over and handed over to NPDC, which then handed over to two Nigerian companies and transferred revenues that should come to the Federation Account for remittance.

“I have given free legal opinion to this committee, on the unconstitutionality and illegality of that transaction.
“Secondly, NNPC had explained that 80 per cent of that money yet to be repatriated was on kerosene and fuel subsidy. I have submitted to this committee written evidence of a presidential directive eliminating subsidy since 2009, and NNPC needs to provide its authority for buying kerosene at N150 from the Federation Account and selling at N40 and inflicting that loss on the federation.

“NNPC had also said that it is DPR but for us in the CBN, every month NNPC sends report to the Federal Allocation Account Committee. And every month NNPC indicates how much it has deducted as PMS subsidy.

“From April 2012 to date, NNPC had submitted reports to the FAAC consistently showing it is deducting nothing from PMS, so we are surprised that having submitted nil returns since April 2012, we are now being told that deductions were being made.

“I don’t know whether they were made and whether the DPR had approved them. We are waiting for the reconciliation with the PPPRA. The other part of the third party financing which were not appropriated had no documentation or proof.”

Sanusi is ignorant — Yakubu

But taking up Sanusi on his presentations, the Group Managing Director, NNPC, Andrew Yakubu, expressed surprise over the CBN governor’s outburst. More so, as efforts were being made to reconcile all the differences, even with the assistance of an audit firm of high repute, saying the CBN governor was speaking from a point of ignorance.

Yakubu said: “We have made submissions but this meeting was not of detailed discussion of the submission. We came here for the Chairman to brief us on the programme and agenda on the detailed reconciliation that we are doing.

“As you were told in the meeting we are reconciling and are at the point of conclusion on the reconciliation process with the various agencies. It is at the end of this that we will submit our detailed reconciled position which the committee will study and then commence detailed review. What is reported is exactly the true position of things.

“As you are aware, the major chunk of the amount in question – over 80 per cent of it is on subsidy for both PMS and kerosene.

“The issues that were raised are not new at all. You see we came out in details because we don’t have anything to hide and we gave a detailed breakdown of the so called $49billion and we came out clearly to state the various streams that are associated with what he was talking about.

“Now, we also made it clear that NPDC, if we had anything to hide, we would not have made it clear that NPDC was part of the stream, because NPDC which is NNPC’s upstream operation, is a limited liability company registered by the Companies and Allied Matters Act (CAMA) to do upstream business just like any other independent company.

“Now, if you are in your business, will you take your gross revenue and pass it on? What we simply said was to account for the streams that the CBN governor erroneously captured.

“Now let me make this point very clearly: CBN is a banking outfit, so I really, really understand why they will not understand some petroleum engineering issues and they are not also an auditing outfit.
“Now what they try to do is to audit and I heard some statements made here that they do not have this document, they don’t have that document. They are not the auditors. We have certified bodies and arms of agencies that are charged with the responsibility of auditing.

“They are banking right? So what he said was not really new. We said clearly that we stated an amount that went to NPDC and that amount was the gross lifting.

“But there are other streams that go back to government in terms of taxes just like any other business player. So we have royalties, we have Petroleum Profit Tax and so on and so forth.

“Now these are subject of other detailed discussions and investigations and they are open. We give access to the Auditor General of the Federation, we give access to Accountant-General, and we give access to agencies that have business to do with auditing of our own business.

“At the Federation Account too, we render this report as you are told on monthly basis and these are issues that are subject of reconciliation on monthly basis.

“So really for issues like this to come to the public glare again becomes worrisome that we throw away numbers, we throw away allegations that at the end of the day we clarify but then the damage would have been done.”

It will be recalled, that at a press briefing held by the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala; the Minister of Petroleum Resources, Mrs. Deziani Allison-Madueke; the Governor of Central Bank and heads of DPR and FIRS,the initial figure of $49.8B was reconciled to $10.8B. On the same day, at the Senate hearing the CBN gave a figure of $12B which was corrected by the Coordinating Minister of the Economy to $10.8B.

While NNPC and other relevant Government Agencies are in the process of reconciling the $10.8B as accepted by all parties, we are surprised by the new $20B figure introduced by the CBN. According to CBN the $20B is made up of $12B subsidy claim, $6B NPDC gross revenue and $2B third party revenue. It is worthy to note that the CBN accepted NNPC submission with respect to $16B royalty and PPT payments into the federation Account through the FIRS. This indicates that the CBN cherry picks the figures. For example in taking the entire $6B gross revenue accruable to NPDC and allocating same to the federation account, CBN simply multiplied the gross production by the crude oil price; thereby failing to account for the operating costs (opex) and amortized capital expenditure that underpin the production. In other words, the CBN failed to take into account the cost of production.

We reiterate that NPDC has been remitting  the royalty and petroleum Profit Tax, PPT to the Federation Account. NPDC as a subsidiary of NNPC operates a business model similar to other international companies in Nigeria and abroad and will continue to be governed by these global best practices  in the execution of these assets.

Regarding the subsidy claim on kerosene, it is important to note that NNPC as the supplier of last resort is the only company supplying this product in Nigeria for the benefit of the citizenry. If kerosene has been deregulated why are the independent marketers not supplying this product in line with what is applicable to diesel (AGO). NNPC owes a duty to Nigerians to ensurethat there are adequate products in the country. This mandate has without question been accomplished in the past four years. NNPC deserve to be commended rather than battered, for ensuring adequate supply of kerosene at regulated price of N50.00k.NNPC cannot be held responsible for any differential pricing from non NNPC retailers. This is the basis for NNPC’s claim on kerosene subsidy.

At the end of the session, the Committee’s chairman, however, granted one week’s grace requested by the parties to reconcile all the differences and then bring all the necessary documents to back up their claims.

Source: vanguard news

By Emma Ujah, Clara Nwachukwu, JOHNBOSCO AGBAKWURU, JOSEPH ERUNKE & CHRIS OCHAYI