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Atiku, govs reject NEIC report
on inflation
By Chesa Chesa
Correspondent, Abuja
Vice President Atiku Abubakar
and the 36 governors on Thursday rejected at the National Economic Council
(NEC) meeting the second quarter 2004 report of the National Economic
Intelligence Committee (NEIC), describing it as inadequate with facts and
figures.
The NEIC is an advisory body
on economic matters to President Olusegun Obasanjo.
Presenting the report to him
on Monday, it had, among other things, blamed incessant fuel price hikes
for rising inflation but praised the government for ordering the N25
billion recapitalisation of banks and for deciding not share the excess
oil revenue among the three tiers of government until 2005.
The NEC is chaired by Atiku
and comprises the 36 governors as well as the governor of the Central Bank
of Nigeria (CBN). It did not buy the entire conclusions of the report and
directed the NEIC, led by Ibrahim Ayagi, to re-present an amended report
to the next NEC meeting on November 25.
Dissatisfied with the manner
the revenue accruing to the Federation Account has been shared among the
three tiers of government, the NEC said it wants more information on the
oil revenue profile in order to �authenticate the veracity of the various
reports that evolve from revenue allocation�.
Summoned to appear before the
next NEC meeting for further explanation are Finance Minister Ngozi
Okonjo-Iweala, federal Accountant General Kayode Naiyeju and Nigeria
National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) Group Managing Director Funso
Kupolokun.
Others are CBN Governor
Charles Soludo, Customs comptroller general Buba Gyang, Budget Office
Director General Bode Augusto and Debt Management Office Director General
Mansur Mukhtar.
At the end of Thursday�s
meeting, Governors Orji Uzor Kalu (Abia State), Ahmed Tinubu (Lagos) and
Bukar Abba Ibrahim (Yobe) told newsmen that the NEIC report is fraught
with loose ends that need be tied up to make it comprehensive and
acceptable.
Kalu said the NEC, after a
consideration of the report, �directed the National Economic Intelligence
Committee to revise its report on programmes of activities of the federal
and state governments � January to June 2004 � with special emphasis on
framework, methodology, mechanism and co-ordination. The revised report
will be presented to the Council at a future meeting�.
Echoing the view, Tinubu
added: �We just want them to furnish us with further data on revenue
formula from the Federation Account so that we can get an informed and
authentic account and equally to authenticate the veracity of various
reports that evolve from revenue allocation�.
The NEC noted the need for all
the tiers of government to be fully informed with details on revenue
accruing to the nation from oil and other sources, for which reason it
invited heads of the relevant federal agencies.
It endorsed the need for a
befitting cultural centre in Abuja, to be private sector driven, and on
the basis of Build Operate and Transfer (BOT).
Also considered by the NEC
were benefits and requirements of the Service Compact with all Nigerians
(SERVICOM) as presented by the National Planning Commission, in which it
agreed to make inputs as soon as possible.
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