Monday brief: 2022 budget and matters arising
+ Tinubu's 2023 bid & NUPENG strike
* The Naira/Dollar rate was calculated by averaging buying rates from several Nigerian FinTech startups.
** The Covid figure is for Saturday.
Good morning.
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Bola Tinubu and the spectre of 2023
After months in the United Kingdom, where he had apparently undergone knee surgery, Bola Ahmed Tinubu eventually returned to Nigeria on Friday. His arrival was preceded by the launch of a ‘presidential campaign’ on his behalf in Lagos. (The campaigners, which includes Lagos State Governor Babajide Sanwo-Olu, have said they are not acting on Tinubu’s orders)
On Sunday, Sanwo-Olu hosted Tinubu at an event where the latter thanked God for sparing his life.
“We have countless reasons to be grateful to God for bringing Asiwaju back home, fully rejuvenated,” Sanwo-Olu also said. “Since Friday when our leader and father came back, it has been a joyful moment for the teeming residents of Lagos, his supporters, and Nigerians across the country.”
Now that he is back, the question on the minds of many is whether Tinubu is the right man for 2023. Considering his history with drug smuggling, his exploits as Governor in Lagos state, the serious allegations of corruption against him, and the ingenuity of his politics, as exemplified in the creation of the APC in 2013, that’s not an easy question to answer.
But it is a question that will have to be answered in the coming months as the 2023 race picks up.
Kingsley Moghalu: The former CBN Deputy Governor has joined the African Democratic Congress (ADC) to pursue his 2023 presidential ambition.
Attahiru Jega: The former INEC chief says he has no intension to run for the presidency in 2023.
NUPENG suspends planned strike
The National Union of Petroleum and Natural Gas Workers (NUPENG) says it has suspended its strike scheduled for today.
NUPENG, on Saturday, had said the strike was necessary because it has lost many of its members and properties to the country’s dilapidated roads.
But government representatives met with the union on Sunday and were able to negotiate a ceasefire.
Another meeting between both parties has been scheduled for Tuesday.
“The suspension of our planned action is predicated on our belief that the understanding reached with the government today, as well as at meeting of Tuesday 12th, October 2021, will be fulfilled to the letter,” a NUPENG statement said.
Related: Fuel subsidy will continue in 2022 despite its apparent non-inclusion in the 2022 budget, according to this report by Punch newspaper.
2022 budget and matters arising
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project (SERAP) has asked President Muhammadu Buhari to reduce the N24 billion inserted into the 2022 budget proposal for the Office of the Presidency.
The Presidency allocation is for the construction of the presidential wing State House medical centre, local and foreign travels, meals and sitting allowance.
According to SERAP, funds taken off the allocation can be used to address the budget deficit, “as well as improve public healthcare facilities across the country.”
One other report also claims that the federal government is looking to spend N12.5 billion on the Presidential Air Fleet and N1.6 billion for the purchase of vehicles and spares in 2022.
Ben Akabueze: The Director-General of the budget office, believes the proposed 2022 budget “is still way lower than it should” considering the size of the country’s needs.
What else is happening?
Yemi Osinbajo: The Vice President, who is still in the United Kingdom, has insisted that Nigeria cannot afford to break up. “How does a country with all the potential and everything that we have, think that the best way is to break up?” He said.
Kwara state: The government has suspended the head of an Arabic school whose students were seen in a viral video being punished inhumanely for alleged misconduct.
APC: The ruling party won all the chairmanship and councillorship seats in the 17 local government areas of Plateau state in an election marred by low voter turnout.
Tunde Bakare: The vocal cleric has described the 1999 constitution as “nothing more than a glorified death certificate.”
Blackout: Many MTN users suffered network outages over the weekend. The Telco says “service has now been fully restored.”
Insecurity: At least 32 persons have been reported killed in two recent bandit attacks in Sokoto state, even as President Buhari reiterated his committment to securing the nation.
World Cup Qualifier: Leon Balogun and Vicor Osimhen scored on Sunday in Douala as the Super Eagles avenged their recent, shocking loss to the Central African Republic.
And that’s it for today. Thank you for starting your morning with me.