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Office of The President of The Senate Newsletter. Week of Monday December 4TH To Friday December 8TH

From the passage of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF); to the Senate President inaugurating the National Coalition Against AIDS (NASSCOA) to curb HIV/AIDS by 2030; to the Senate President's warning to Heads of MDAs to adhere to the #Budget2018 defense schedule, here's your weekly recap from the Office of the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki (CON).

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Olu Wole Onemola
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395 views11 pages

Office of The President of The Senate Newsletter. Week of Monday December 4TH To Friday December 8TH

From the passage of the Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF); to the Senate President inaugurating the National Coalition Against AIDS (NASSCOA) to curb HIV/AIDS by 2030; to the Senate President's warning to Heads of MDAs to adhere to the #Budget2018 defense schedule, here's your weekly recap from the Office of the Senate President, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki (CON).

Uploaded by

Olu Wole Onemola
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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OFFICE OF THE PRESIDENT OF THE SENATE

NEWSLETTER
FRIDAY, DECEMBER 8TH, 2017
senatepresident.gov.ng | @SPNigeria
Senate President Signs Senates
NDDC Act Amendment
On Monday, the President of the
Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola
Saraki signed the Senates
versions of the Niger Delta
Development Commission
(NDDC) Act.

The Bill is aimed at guaranteeing


more funds for the development
of the Niger Delta through the
contributions of liquified natural
gas (LNG) companies in
operating in the region.

This Bill has been forwarded to the


House of Representatives for
concurrence.

2
Senate President Inaugurates
National Coalition Against AIDS
On Monday, the President of the Senate, Dr.
Abubakar Bukola Saraki, inaugurated the
National Coalition Against AIDS (NASSCOA) to
curb HIV/AIDS scourge by 2030.

The President of the Senate, who was represented


by the Leader of the Senate, Ahmed Lawan noted
that the right to health was a fundamental human
right, adding that citizens must take part in the
fight against HIV/AIDS.

He noted that the implementation of the National


Health Act in 2018 would become feasible with
the National Assemblys intervention.

Read more here: https://guardian.ng/news/


senate-inaugurates-committee-to-end-hivaids-
scourge-by-2030/

3
Senate Presidents Contribution Helps 6-Year
Old Boko Haram Victim, Ali, to Walk Again
A six-year old Boko Haram victim, Ali Ahmadu is
back on his feet again after being flown to
Dubai for corrective surgery on his spinal cord.

Recall that Ahmadu, was on a wheelchair for


nearly four years, after being run over by Boko
Haram terrorists in 2014, however, due to
contributions by the Senate President, Dr.
Abubakar Bukola Saraki, and his colleagues in
the Senate, like Senator Dino Melaye, the funds
for his surgery were raised through the Dickens
Sanomi Foundation.

Follow this link to read more about the first time


the Senate President met Ali: https://twitter.com/
bukolasaraki/status/890604305274818561

4
SARS: Senate Ad-Hoc Committee on Security
Reform to Investigate Human Rights Abuses
On Tuesday, the 8th Senate directed its Ad-
hoc Committee, which was inaugurated to
holistically review Nigerias security
infrastructure for better performance, to
investigate the issue of human rights abuses
by officers of the Special Anti-Robbery Squad
of the Nigerian Police.

Speaking on the Point of Order raised by


Senator Isa Hamman Misau, the President of
the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki said:
We have already set up a Ad-hoc committee
to look at the security infrastructure in the
country and I think its appropriate that we
send these recommendations to them for
further consideration.

The Inspector General himself is reviewing the


structure and I think it is clear that there is
something wrong going on that needs urgent
attention.I advice the Committee on security
to take action to quickly find a solution to this
problem because it is happening all around
our constituencies and we must respond to the
needs of our people, he said.

5
MTEF: Senate Passes Budget Benchmarks
On Tuesday, the 8th Senate passed the
budget benchmarks for the 2018-2020
Medium-Term Expenditure Framework and
Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) in accordance
with the Fiscal Responsibility Act 2007.

The Senate approved the following


benchmarks:

1. 2.3 million barrels per day;


2. $47 per barrel as our benchmark price of
2018;
3. Exchange rate of N305 to $1;
4. N5.279 trillion for non-revenue oil in 2018;
5. N1.6999 trillion for new borrowing for 2018;
and
6. An estimated 3.5% growth rate.

Speaking on the passage of the MTEF, the


President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola
Saraki said: We do hope that the relevant
revenue generating agencies particularly
the internally generating revenue agencies
meet their targets. In the areas of the oil and
gas sector, NNPC & Ministry of Petroleum,
should also ensure that the benchmark
production that we pass should be met.

6
#Budget2018 Passes 2nd Reading: Timetable
Must be Followed Says Senate President
On Tuesday, the 8th Senate passed the Second
Reading of the 2018 Appropriation Bill. The Bill has
been forwarded to the Committee on
Appropriations and its various sub-committees for
further consideration and budget defense by the
various ministries, departments and agencies of
the Federal Government.

Speaking on the passage of the Second Reading


of the Budget, the President of the Senate, Dr.
Abubakar Bukola Saraki said: We know that the
timetable is very tight. We will be suspending for
us to be able to start the defense of this budget.
Committee Chairmen and Members should
please ensure that we keep to this timetable.

Let me respond with a general note of warning to


all Heads of MDAs to ensure that they strictly
respect the letters of invitation and the timetable.
This is not time for excuses for Ministers or Heads
of parastatals to be traveling and not be able to
attend their budget defense.

We do not have the time. This is a very short


timeframe, therefore, I expect all MDAs to be
able to respect our invitation and be there on
time so that the Committees can wrap up and be
able to present their reports by the time we come
back on Tuesday, the 19th of December, he
said.
7
Senate probes $16billion Egina Oil Project
On Tuesday, the Senate, constituted an Ad-hoc
committee to investigate the local content
elements and cost variations of the Egina Oil Field
Project.

Speaking on the Senate resolution to probe the


project, by the Chairman of the Local Content
Committee, Senator Solomon Adeola, the
President of the Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola
Saraki said:

I find it difficult to understand why cost variation


will move from $6 billion to $16 billion in 10 years.
Why such variations and when will the Federal
Government ever get revenue on these fields.

If we allow this to go with the Egina project, other


deep offshore will follow the same model and
government will never get the revenue. The
second issue is to ensure compliance with the
local content law. The committee has the
responsibility to turn in the report as soon as
possible. We do not want the report to linger on.

Please ensure you are done in three weeks so


that by the time we resume we will consider the
report and be able to address other projects that
are going on.

8
Senate President Seeks Efficient Utilization Of
Water Resources
On Wednesday, the President of the
Senate, Dr. Abubakar Bukola Saraki,
called for the efficient utilization of
water resources in Nigeria. He stated
this while declaring open the Public
Hearing on the Water Resources
(Establishment) Bill (2017) and the River
Basin Development Authority Act
(2016).

The President of the Senate, who was


represented by the Chief Whip of the
Senate, Senator (Prof.) Sola Adeyeye,
noted that more than 130,000 Nigerian
children die annually from water
related diseases. He also highlighted
reports by the United Nations
Childrens Fund (UNICEF), which show
that the greatest challenge facing the
country is the lack of physical
infrastructure to effectively make use
of rainfall and ground water.

9
Senate to Hold Public Hearing on Job
Creation
The President of the Nigerian Senate, Senator (Dr.) Abubakar
Bukola Saraki and his distinguished colleagues announce
the first of its kind Special Public Hearing on Youth Job
Creation and Entrepreneurship.

The purpose of the hearing is to provide briefings about the


ongoing federal government programs designed to address
issues related to job creation and entrepreneurship.
th It also
serves as a follow up to the 9 October 2017 Youth
Development Roundtable, where several MDAs provided
valuable reports and recommendations into government
youth intervention programs.
th
The Special Public Hearing will be held on Monday, 11
December, 2017 from 11am to 2pm in Room 231 of the
Senate Office Building.

The Senate has been working with a coalition of civil society


advocacy (CSO) organizations dedicated to the upliftment
and advancement of Nigerias youth. The overall project is
designed to encourage the participation of citizens in the
decision making process of the National Assembly.

You can follow the conversation online using the hashtag


#SenateOnJobs.

10
www.senatepresident.gov.ng

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