By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu has increased the proposed total budget size for 2025 from N49.7trillion he presented to the joint session of the National Assembly on December 18, 2024 to N54.2trillion .

President Tinubu announced an increase in the proposed budget size through separate letters forwarded to both the Senate and the House of Representatives .

The President in the letter read during plenary in Abuja the President of the Nigerian Senate Godswill Akpabio , said the increase arose from N1.4trilliion additional revenues made by the Federal Inland Revenue Service ( FIRS ) , N1.2trillion made by the Nigeria Customs Service , N1.8trilliion generated by some other Government Owned Agencies .

The President of the Senate consequently directed the request to the Senate Committee on Appropriations for expeditious consideration and declared that the budget consideration , would be concluded and passed before the end of this month.

By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

Ex- governor of Kaduna State, Malam Nasir El-Rufai, has waded into the war of words between National Security Adviser, Malam Nuhu Ribadu, and Hajia Naja’atu Muhammad, a former Commissioner at the Police Service Commission (PSC).

Ribadu had demanded public apology and retraction from Muhammad whom he accused of lying against him in a Tik Tok video.

In the Tiktok video, Hajia Muhammad accused the NSA of serving in President Bola Tinubu’s government, whom he castigated when he was the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC).

But in a letter through his lawyer, Dr Ahmed Raji, SAN, the NSA said publicly or privately, he has never maintained such viewpoint.

He said the damage that had been done as a result of the Tiktok video was unquantifiable.

“Clearly, in the text of your recording [reproduced and translated above] you stated that when our client served as the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes, [EFCC] he allegedly named President Bola Ahmed Tinubu, GCFR, alongside Sen. George Akume and Sen. Orji Uzor Kalu [all former Governors, and in that order] as the governors in Nigeria who stole the most from public treasury.

“You also stated that today, our client who once held the above odious view about President Tinubu has turned around to be his staunchest defender; especially, with regard to what you stated to be the government’s agenda to silence voices of dissent to the government, citing the alleged arrest of a certain Prof. Usman Yusuf as an example.

“You also stated that our client’s alleged attitudinal change towards President Tinubu means that he has either become a liar or that he lied when he allegedly described President Tinubu, Sen. Akume, Sen. Kalu and other governors as thieves,” read the letter dated February 4, 2025, and signed by Dr. Raji

Maintaining her stance, Muhammad said she had no reason to tender any apology as the records were there.

On his part, El-Rufai defended Muhammad, taunting Ribadu by saying, “Nuhu must have serious amnesia.”

Amnesia refers to the loss of memories, including facts, information and experiences.

“The record of proceedings in the Senate will confirm that Nuhu made those statements, sometime in 2006. The subsequent Daily Trust report below of February 2007, reconfirms the essence of the statements.

“The conclusions of the Federal Executive Council in 2006, which can be subpoenaed from the Cabinet Secretariat of the SGF’s office contain the allegations. In that Special FEC meeting in which I was a member, Nuhu’s EFCC made similar presentations accusing many sitting officials, sometime in 2006.
These Council Conclusions will further remove all doubts.

“This is for the record and to remind the morally-flexible that at some point in our national life, silence is no longer golden

By Kayode Sanni-Arewa

President Bola Ahmed Tinubu is off to Paris, capital of France, on a “private visit”.

In Addis Ababa, President Tinubu will join African leaders at the 46th Ordinary Session of the Executive Council and the 38th Ordinary Session of the Assembly of the AU Heads of State, scheduled from February 12th to 16th, 2025.”

According to Bayo Onanuga, Special Adviser to the President on Information and Strategy, from Frane, the president would move to Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, for the forthcoming African Union Summit.

“The president will arrive in Addis Ababa early next week for the African Union summit. While in France, President Tinubu will meet with his French counterpart, President Emmanuel Macron,” Onanuga said in a statement.

Tinubu’s trips abroad have come under public scrutiny on the back of the economic hardship in the country, with Nigerians raising concerns over his large entourage.

There have also been arguments whether such trips had attracted commensurate benefits and investments for the country.

But while appearing on a Channels Television programme a few weeks ago, Minister of Foreign Affairs, Yusuf Tuggar, had said Nigeria is rich enough to fund the president’s frequent foreign trips.

He had said Tinubu, contrary to the complaints, even needed to embark on more trips because of its strategic importance and inherent benefits to the country.

The minister noted that Tinubu could only strengthen ties with fellow global leaders in his quest to set the country on the right path.

He had said, “It is not a fair assessment. The administration is still new because the President was sworn in in 2023. In global terms, he is still a new president. He needs to interact with his colleagues and fellow heads of state to be able to establish relationships

You can further see the fruits of these trips and their benefits which attracted $2bn (worth) of investments like he did in Brazil. In fact, I would venture to say we are not travelling enough. We should do more.

Nigeria has the money. How much does travelling cost compared to the benefits? Again, how much does it cost really when you compare it to some of the things that the President has already addressed?

“How much have we wasted on fuel, electricity and other subsidies? He was subsidising consumption instead of production and subsidising the real sector of the economy,” he added.

Since assuming office in 2023, Tinubu has reportedly visited about 19 countries on 32 foreign trips.