The present stand-off where a FAAC meeting had to be suspended indefinitely has the potential of addressing the fiscal irresponsibility that has been bedeviling Nigeria’s public finance for too long, at least to some extent. We hope this opportunity should not be missed to reconnect fully with the principles of the Fiscal Responsibility Act which has been eroded.

President Muhammadu Buhari is the first Nigerian leader to appoint individuals reportedly close to him into the INEC which will conduct elections in which he and his direct interests will be involved. The notion of “independence” has traditionally been underscored by the fact that before Buhari, Presidents tended to appoint the Chief Electoral Officer of the Federation from regions other than theirs.

Many of them who did not bother to hide their identities were recorded on videos which went viral on worldwide networks. In a dramatic attempt at damage control, however, Police Spokesman, Moshood declared: “The Force wishes to categorically state that it is not correct that police personnel protested in Maiduguri today, July 2nd 2018.

DRUG addiction and substance abuse in Nigeria has become an epidemic, especially among the youth. As Nigeria joined the world to mark the Drug Abuse Awareness Day last week, the burden of drug abuse and addiction calls for sober reflection because of its magnitude.

The tanker explosion on the Michael Otedola Bridge outbound Lagos on Thursday June 28, 2018 which claimed at least nine lives and destroyed 50 vehicles was obviously an offshoot of a faulty juggernaut laden with petrol. Reports have it that the vehicle could not complete the action of climbing the bridge and had to roll back and hence the tragedy.

We would like to believe that this disclosure was meant to fly a kite and test the waters of public opinion as to whether Nigerians are supportive of the so-called MOU. If that is the case, then let it be known that no MOU signed with any foreign country with regard to the spending of Nigeria’s public funds can override the constitution and the laws of the country.

There is still so much hunger, unemployment, poor power supply and insecurity linked to insurgency, herdsmen’s attacks and criminal banditry. A large number of people who operate in the agricultural sector has been displaced and the law-enforcement agents appear unable to cope.

Already, some of the states listed for the pilot programme, such as Ebonyi and Benue, have rejected it outright. Also, the Southern and Middle Belt Leaders Forum, SMBLF, has issued a statement rebuffing the proposal. These are clear signs that this manner of pursuing the ranching programme will not promote peace in the states where it is being rejected.

THE Islamic State, one of the major terrorist networks ravaging the Middle East and other parts of the world, has now established a beachhead in Nigeria. The Department of State Services, DSS, confirmed this after the 2018 New Year Day Benue massacres.

The Federal and state governments responded with predictable reactive precision: Governor Simon Lalong of Plateau State slammed a dusk-to-dawn curfew in the affected local governments, a step which in the past, never helped to curtail the massacres. President Buhari also issued a condolence message and as usual, vowed that the Federal Government “will never rest” until the killers are brought to book.

While the Executive and its sympathisers claim that the National Assembly is meant to more or less rubber-stamp the President’s Appropriation Bill, the lawmakers counter-claim that as “representatives of the people” charged with “the power of the purse”, the document laid by the President is “a mere proposal”. They believe they have the right to make whatever changes they deem fit for the good of the people.

It is noteworthy that EODB covers 11 areas of business regulation and environment of the 190 countries, which are measured on time and cost on procedural requirements for import, export and the shipment of goods. Time and cost are associated with three sets of requirements which are: documentary compliance, border compliance as well as domestic transport which allows for comparability across all 190 countries.

Many concerned Nigerians have called for a rejig of the country’s security architecture to tackle the spreading violence. Some even believe that the current crop of service chiefs have outlived their usefulness and should be replaced with new officers who are hungry to break new grounds in protecting our people.

THE widespread clamour for financial autonomy for State Houses of Assembly and Judiciaries bore fruitful results recently when President Muhammadu Buhari signed a Bill into law granting this request. The new law, which was part of the Bills under the Fourth Constitution Alteration efforts presented to the President by the National Assembly after going through the elaborate due processes, ensures that these estates of the state governments will no longer be hampered by executive control over their finances.

The threat of massive famine in 2018 and 2019 is becoming a reality to those close to Nigeria’s farmlands. In the past, food shortages had occurred on account of unfavourable weather or pest infestation. Low rainfall or excessive flooding as well as locust attacks had in the past also resulted in low food productivity.