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Reps Pass N35.06tn 2024 budget

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…promise readiness of  NASS to engage MDAs for implementation 
 
By Gloria Ikibah 
 
The House of Representatives has passed the supplementary bill seeking to increase the 2024 Appropriation Act from N28.7tn to N35.06tn.
 
Naijablitznews.com recalled that on Wednesday, July I7, 2024, the House passed the N6.2tn extra-budgetary proposal by President Bola Tinubu.
 
Thr bill passed through third reading on Tuesday, and at the committee of supply, the house considered and approved clauses 1 to 13 of the bill.
 
In the breakdown of the proposed N35.06tn for the 2024 fiscal year, the sum of N1.74tn was earmarked for statutory transfers; N8.27tn for debt service; N11.2tn for recurrent expenditure while the sum of N13.77tn is slated as a contribution to the Development Fund for capital expenditure for the year ending December 31, 2024.
 
 
In the lead debate on the general principle of the bill, Chairman, Committee on Appropriation, Rep. Abubakar Bichi whilr presenting the harmonised joint Senate and House report on the budget, pleaded for the House to adopt the recommendations of the Committee.
 
Addressing journalists shortly after the passage of the budget, Rep. Bichi stated:.”As you can see, we have passed the N6.2tn budget of Mr President, the budget of renewed hope.
 
“N3.2tn is for capital expenditure while about N3tn will go to the current. And as I said last time, the Lagos-Calabar coastal highway is a critical road infrastructure that Mr President wants to actualize.
 
“The Lagos-Calabar highway covers about nine states, which is about 700-kilometre road projects. Also, the Sokoto-Badagry highway is critical, covering about seven states. It covers about 1,000km. We have another one from Ebonyi, all the way from Abuja, from the Trans-Saharan section. We need some funding to execute these important projects,” he said.
 
 
The committee chairman further noted that strategic rail projects passing through Abuja, Katsina, Kaduna, Kano, and Katsina up to Maradi in Niger Republic will be funded from the budget. 
 
He therefore promised the readiness of the National Assembly to engage the various Ministries, Departments and Agencies to ensure the full implementation of the budget. 
 
He said, “We engaged both the Minister of Budget and the implementation agencies – Minister of Transport, Minister of Works, and Minister of Water Resources. They promised that as long as we pass this budget, the implementation will be 100 per cent. 
 
“We had an engagement with the Minister of Budget and National Planning and she confirmed that the funding is there and the projects will commence”. 
 
On whether the sum of N3tn approved for the payment of the N70,000 minimum is enough, Bichi said, “Absolutely, we did our calculations. We got the data from the Accountant General of the Federation’s office before we applied this figure.
 
“We know that the money is enough from now till December 31 to take care of the N70,000 minimum. Nigeria should be expecting dividends of democracy.”
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PHOTO: Courtesy visit to Priesthood Orphanage by Just Friends Club of Nigeria Founder

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Dr. (Mrs) Blessing Echenwo, left, founder of Priesthood Orphanage, Karamajiji, Abuja and Mrs. Maria Cardillo, a member of Just Friends Club of Nigeria, during the visit of the club to the orphanage in Abuja…recently

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Just in: NYSC Releases Batch ‘C’ Corps Members Call Up Letters

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The National Youth Service Corps has announced the release of the 2024 Batch ‘C’ Stream I call-up letters for prospective corps members.

The corps made the announcement in a series of post on its official X (former Twitter) handle on Monday.

It said orientation camp for the stream is expected to start on November 27, 2024 and closes on December 17, 2024.

According to the post, “some prospective corp members posted to Lagos will have orientation in Ogun and Osun.

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“While some of those posted to Zamfara will have in Kebbi and Sokoto etc”

The corps, however, advised prospective corps members to print and sign an addendum, which will be submitted during registration at the orientation camp.

Tips to guide Deployed Prospective Corps Members

Do not travel to the Orientation Camps at night. Break your journey when necessary.
Report on your scheduled reporting date.
Apply for spelling error and name rearrangement on your dashboard.
After documentation in the Camp, you cannot change your Date of Birth, Date of Graduation, Course of Study and Passport Photograph.
Do not report to the Camp if there is any discrepancies in your course of study or with the Date of Graduation on your Statement of Result and your Call-up Letter. Contact your Institution to sort it out.
ATTENTION TO ALL 2024 BATCH ”C” STREAM I MARRIED FEMALE PROSPECTIVE CORPS MEMBERS

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All married female Prospective Corps members (PCMs) who are deployed to States where their husbands are not domiciled should report to the nearest NYSC Orientation Camp for their State of Deployment to be changed.

They are to report during the period of Registration at the Orientation Camps with the copies of their marital and other relevant documents as evidence. Once the change is made it will reflect on theirM dashboard for reprinting.

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Oba of Benin to withdraw suit as Okpebholo restores rights

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The Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare II, and the Benin Traditional Council may withdraw the suits they filed against the state government as Governor Monday Okpebholo, on Sunday, restored the full statutory rights of the Oba and reversed the policies of the previous administration that impacted the Benin Traditional Council.

A statement on Sunday by Okepebholo’s Chief Press Secretary, Fred Itua, said the governor abolished the new traditional councils in Edo South created by the immediate-past governor, Godwin Obaseki.

Okpebholo also backed the Federal Government’s recognition of the Oba’s palace as the custodian of repatriated Benin artefacts looted during the 1897 British colonial expedition.

Providing an insight into the governor’s gesture, the state Attorney General and Commissioner for Justice, Dr Samson Osagie, said it signaled the resolution of the crisis between the Oba of Benin and the Edo State government leading to lawsuits duringt the Obaseki’s administration.

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Osagies said, “The cases in court are cases which the Oba of Benin himself and the Benin Traditional Council instituted against the state government, and they are all civil matters. And you know that in civil suit or in any suit, parties are encouraged to settle amicably.

“So, if the parties are already settling and one side is already meeting the condition of settlement, the next step you are going to hear is that the party who went to court, which is the Oba of Benin, and the Benin Traditional Council, will instruct their counsel to withdraw the cases from court and that will be the end of the matter.

“The two parties are now settling for harmony and peace to reign, so the government is doing its own side of it.

“This statement is a prelude to discontinuing all legal proceedings with respect to the twin issues of the concession of the Oba Akenzua Cultural Centre by government to the Benin Traditional Council for 30 years and the creation of additional councils.”

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The statement by Okepebholo’s Chief Press Secretary outlined the administration’s commitment to restoring the dignity and authority of the Benin monarch.

“This administration also hereby abolishes the new traditional councils in Edo South, created by the last administration,” the statement noted.

Additionally, Governor Okpebhol revoked the decision of the Obaseki’s administration to convert the Oba Akenzua II Cultural Centre into a motor park.

The government announced plans to restore the cultural centre to its original purpose.

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“This administration is restoring the Oba Akenzua Centre to a suitable condition for its original purpose,” the statement added.

The governor also reinstated the financial entitlements of the Benin Traditional Council, ordering that the status quo before the creation of the abolished councils be maintained.

According to the statement, Okpebholo affirmed support for the Federal Government’s official gazette, which recognizes the Oba of Benin as the rightful owner and custodian of the repatriated Benin artefacts.

He also distanced his administration from the Museum of West Africa Art, instead backing the Benin Royal Museum project to house the artefacts.

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“The Federal Government has also issued a gazette for the recognition of ownership and custody of the repatriated Benin artefacts to the Oba of Benin, Oba Ewuare II,” the statement explained. “Governor Okpebholo respects the rights and privileges of the traditional ruler of Benin kingdom… and pledges the support of his administration to ensure the monarch plays his role as the custodian of the rich cultural heritage of the Benin people.”

Okpebholo reiterated his administration’s respect for traditional institutions and vowed to avoid interference in the internal affairs of the Benin Traditional Council. “The Oba of Benin, as the father of all Benin people, is the sole custodian of the customs and traditions of the Benin people, and my administration respects customs and traditions in the land,” he stated, emphasising the government’s efforts to uphold the cultural and historical integrity of the Benin Kingdom.

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