Economy
Yenagoa LG Chair Laments Takeover of IGR By Bayelsa Govt
The Chairman of Yenagoa Local Government, Chief Nimizuo Urouoaye, on Thursday bemoaned the takeover of the collection of Internally Generated Revenue (IGR) in the council area by the Bayelsa government.
Urouoaye spoke at the Yenagoa Local Government Secretariat during the citizen’s input towards the preparation of the council’s 2021 budget and briefing on the income and expenditure profile for the months of October and November 2020.
He explained that effort to get the state government to pay the agreed percentage of accruable revenue to the local council has been unsuccessful, a development that compelled the council to seek legal redress.
According to him, it is regrettable that the state government took over the traditional revenue sources such as markets and motor parks built with local government funds and left the council with only allocation which is barely enough to pay salaries.
“We have been appealing to the state government to consider our status and give us the percentage agreed under the unified revenue system but getting no response, we had to go to court to assert our rights and fight for our people.
“As the local government at the capital city, every other person is my tenant and you can imagine the amount of social service we have to provide and it is for that reason that some people have blackmailed us.
“But the truth is that we are fighting for our people and if some people misrepresent our intentions it is purely out of mischief and if it is the sacrifice for serving my people of Yenagoa, so be it,”, Urouoaye said.
On the revenue receipt for October, the chairman said that Yenagoa Local Government got a total of N226.2 million gross allocation from the federation and after sundry deductions the net receipts stood at N201.12 million.
He said that for November the council allocation fell to N197.72 million gross income while after statutory deductions, the council was left with a net income of N177.81 million.
He said that with the dwindling oil prices if nothing was done to improve the revenue of the council, it would be difficult for the council to meet its obligations to its workforce in the coming months.
Under the unified revenue collection system that was introduced, cash collection was outlawed.
Mr Ayiba Duba, Bayelsa Commisioner for Information, declined to comment when he was contacted. (NAN)
The Nigerian Exchange Ltd. (NGX) continued its bullish trend on Wednesday, gaining N183 billion.
Accordingly, the market capitalisation, which opened at N59.532 trillion, gained N184 billion or 0.31 per cent to close at N59.715 trillion.
The All-Share Index also added 0.31 per cent or 303 points, to settle at 98,509.
68, against 98,206. 97 recorded on Tuesday.Consequently, the Year-To-Date (YTD) return increased to 31.
74 per cent.Gains in Aradel Holdings, Zenith Bank, United Bank For Africa(UBA), Oando Plc, Nigerian Breweries among other advanced equities drove the market performance up.
Market breadth closed positive with 34 gainers and 17 losers.
On the gainers’ chart, Africa Prudential, Conoil and RT Briscoe led by 10 per cent each to close at N14.30, N352 and N2.42 per share, respectively.
Golden Guinea Breweries followed by 9.95 per cent to close at N7.18, while NEM Insurance rose by 9.74 per cent to close at N10.70 per share.
On the other hand, Julius Berger led the losers’ chart by 10 per cent to close at N155.25, Secure Electronic Technology Plc trailed by 9.52 per cent to close at 57k per share.
Multiverse lost 7.63 per cent to close at N5.45, Haldane McCall dropped 6.07 per cent to close at N4.95 and Honeywell Flour shed 5.62 per cent to close at N4.70 per share.
Analysis of the market activities showed trade turnover settled lower relative to the previous session, with the value of transactions down by 49.44 per cent.
A total of 320.10 million shares valued at N6.48 billion were exchanged in 7,943 deals, compared with 939.41 million shares valued at N12.81billion traded in 9,098 deals posted in the previous session.
Meanwhile, ETranzact led the activity chart in volume with 70.27 million shares, while Aradel led in value of deals worth N1.22 billion.(NAN)
The central parity rate of the Chinese currency renminbi, or the Yuan, weakened 22 pips to 7.1870 against the dollar on Monday.This is according to the China Foreign Exchange Trade System.In China’s spot foreign exchange market, the Yuan is allowed to rise or fall by two per cent from the central parity rate each trading day.
The central parity rate of the Yuan against the dollar is based on a weighted average of prices offered by market makers before the opening of the interbank market each business day. (Xinhua/NAN)
Arewa Youths Initiative for Energy Reforms (AYIFER), has urged Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation Limited (NNPCL) to do everything possible to bring Kaduna Refinery back into operation.
National Coordinator of the group, Mr Bashir Al’Amin, stated this in a statement issued on Friday in Abuja.
Al’Amin specifically called on the Chief Executive Officer of NNPCL, Mallam Mele Kyari, to do all within his powers to rejuvenate the refinery and bring it up to global standard.
He said that having delivered the Port Harcourt refinery, coupled with the establishment of Dangote Refinery in Lagos, attention should be shifted to Kaduna refinery for easy spread of petroleum products.
“We are calling on Malam Mele Kyari to expedite action on Kaduna refinery so we can be at par with other regions in the country.
“We equally beg the NNPCL to do professional work in rehabilitating the old refinery and deliver a standard and functional petrochemical refinery and not a blending plant.
“Kyari should resist any temptation that could make him do something that can jeopardise his good image,” he said.
Al’Amin said that since the extinction of groundnut pyramid and textiles in Kano State as well as PAN in Kaduna State and with the Kaduna refinery getting moribund, a lot of youths had lost their jobs.
According to him, all their hopes in the north are tied to the legacy refinery, expressing the hope that God would use Kyari to deliver it well and on time.
He said that the group was solidly behind NNPCL in prayer and would be ready to celebrate the company if its expectations were met. (NAN)
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