The immediate-past governor of Kaduna State, Nasir El-Rufai, has dismissed rumours that he plans to dump the All Progressives Congress (APC), for the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

Recall that the former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) made an unexpected appearance at the SDP National Secretariat in Abuja on Wednesday. 

The National Chairman of the SDP, Shehu Musa Gabam, and other chieftains of the party received the former Kaduna governor.

Reacting in a statement on Thursday issued by his spokesman, Muyiwa Adekeye, El-Rufai said he only visited the SDP headquarters to return a visit to the party’s chairman.

The former Minister said Gabam was among his friends who took part in the break of the Ramadan fast (Iftar) at his house in Abuja on Tuesday.

El-Rufai said he is known for being open and forthright, adding that his political decisions would not be subjected to speculation.

The statement reads: “I consider the most recent speculations about Malam Nasir El-Rufai as reflecting an unhealthy obsession with politics.

“People have personal histories and relationships that predate political affiliations. It cannot be a hallmark of civilisation to have friends from within only your political party. When people visit each other or mingle across party lines, it is because human relationships exist, distinct from the political or the partisan.

“Malam Nasir El-Rufai is a senior member of the APC, one of the signatories to its merger documents, and a significant contributor to the party’s demonstrated viability. These contributions do not require that he treats friends as anathema on account of politics or maintains an antiseptic distance from them.

“Malam Nasir El-Rufai hosted some friends to Iftar on Tuesday, 19 March 2024. NSA Nuhu Ribadu was at the Iftar with a senior APC figure like Alh. Kashim Imam. SDP National Chairman Shehu Musa Gabam was among the friends who partook in the Iftar. Gabam was not accused of considering crossing over to the APC on account of that.

“When Malam Nasir El-Rufai visited Gabam the next day, he was merely returning a visit to a friend who happens to be the SDP chairman.

“Malam El-Rufai is known for being open and forthright. If he had any political decisions to make, it would not be in character to let them be subject to speculation.

“Unfounded speculations about Malam Nasir El-Rufai have become an industry that has delivered tons of lies and clickbait in the last 18 years. This is unlikely to abate anytime soon, given the persistent obsession of its purveyors who relish in negativity and their tireless indulgence in conflating assumption with fact.

“A recent instance was when he visited former presidents late in 2023 to explain his Nigerian governance study book project covering each of their tenures, the speculators said it was about politics! That is why it is sometimes necessary to clarify matters lest the unwary be taken in.”

Ferdinand Uzodinma, the brother of Governor Hope Uzodimma of Imo State has been appointed as Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of General Services.

This is as the governor also reappointed Cosmos Iwu as the Secretary to the State Government; Nnamdi Anyaehie as his Chief of Staff and Sydney Agbor as the Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of Operations.

The three officials served in the same capacities in Uzodimma’s first four years as governor.

Also appointed are Patrick Ekeji as the Deputy Chief of Staff in charge of Administration and Sam Nwaobasi named as the Special Adviser on Programme and Policy Implementation and Monitoring.

A statement issued on Thursday by the governor’s spokesman, Oguwike Nwachuku, disclosed that the appointments took immediate effect.

The statement read, “The Governor of Imo State, Sen. Hope Uzodimma, has reappointed Chief Cosmos Iwu as the Secretary to the Government of Imo State.

“In the same vein, Nnamdi Anyaehie, Chief Patrick Ekeji and Olisaemeka Sydney Agbor have been reappointed as Chief of Staff, Deputy Chief of Staff (Administration) and Deputy Chief of Staff (Operations) respectively.

“Also, the governor has approved the appointment of Chief Ferdinand Uzodimma, a one time Councillor, Transition Committee Chairman and Sole Administrator of Oru East Local Government Area as his Deputy Chief of Staff (General Services) with Mr. Sam Anyalewechi Nwaobasi named as Special Adviser on Programme and Policy Implementation/ Monitoring.

“The appointments take immediate effect.

“Governor Uzodimma, who congratulated the new appointees, urged them to bring to bear their professional competence in the efforts to drive the vision of the Shared Prosperity 3R Government of Imo State.”

A bill for the amendment of the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) Act to increase its funding from the consolidated revenue from 2 per cent to 4 per cent has scaled second reading in the House of Representatives.

Chairman House Committee on Basic Education and Services, Honourable Bako Useni, made this known on Thursday, March 21 during the committee oversight function at the Digital Resource Center built by UBEC in Abuja.

UBEC’s Digital Resource Centre is to provide quality digital educational content for schools across the country as well as contemporary capacity building to relevant actors in the Nigerian education sector.

Useni said the 10th Assembly saw the need to increase financial resources to the Basic education sub-sector for set objectives to be further met, hence the amendment bill sponsored by Honourable Muktar Shagaya to increase revenue accruing to UBEC from 2% to 4%.

“The amendment bill which passed the second reading Yesterday (Wednesday) when concluded will make UBEC stronger.

“Since UBEC was established in 2004 to date, a lot has been achieved. However, the House felt that if UBEC is motivated with more funding, it will go a long way in achieving more of what it has achieved.

“It was on this basis that one of us, Honourable Mukhtar Shagaya proposed an amendment to the UBEC Act to increase funding to UBEC from 2% to 4%/from the consolidated revenue fund.

“It is going to bring a new approach to basic education in Nigeria. It is going to improve teachers’ training and content,” he said

“We have also assured the center of our collaboration and support through budget allocations and oversight functions to make sure that whatever funds that are provided are used for the betterment of Nigerians.

“We will continue to visit to monitor the kind of training that is being given to our teachers and other resource persons because it is a center for Nigeria to develop its education sector.

Executive Secretary of the UBEC, Dr Hamid Bobboyi said it was gladdening to have taken the House Committee members on a tour of the facilities of the center, which includes: the digital Museum, Library, Artificial Intelligence Center, the Studio, Micro-labs, lecture halls, accommodation among others.

“It is fruitful to bring the Honourable members to come and see what UBEC is doing in the area of digital education in the Basic education sub-sector of the country.

“The facility will ensure that our teachers are trained on the new pedagogy. We have brought in many teachers, school administrators, and quality assurance officers.

“For them to understand what is digital. learning and also to prepare them to be real participants and not just copycats in the class, where they can develop their digital resources and also take advantage of digital resources already on the ground.

“This is an experiment that we have started and believe that it will be a game changer in our basic education sub-sector,” he said.

President Bola Tinubu says lawmakers who alleged that the 2024 budget had been embellished did not understand the arithmetic of the appropriation act.

Tinubu spoke on Thursday night, during an iftar gathering of members of the senate, at the presidential villa.

Iftar is a meal taken by Muslims at sundown to break the daily Ramadan fast.

On November 29, Tinubu presented the sum of N27 trillion as the proposed budget for the 2024 fiscal year, to the national assembly.

On December 30, the national assembly passed the appropriation bill, increasing its size from N27.5 trillion proposed by Tinubu to N28.7 trillion.

THE BUDGET PADDING ALLEGATION

Early this month, Abdul Ningi, senator representing Bauchi central, stirred controversy when he alleged that the 2024 budget was padded by N3 trillion and that the country is operating two budgets concurrently.

Following the claims, the senate debated the matter at the “committee of the whole”.

Subsequently, the senator was suspended for three months for allegedly not providing evidence to back his allegations.

Godswill Akpabio, senate president, had said many Nigerians would no longer trust the upper legislative chamber because of the allegation.

“Nigerians are bashing the senate. Many Nigerians will never in future come back to respect this chamber. The integrity of this chamber has been totally damaged and we wanted you to repair it with your speech,” Akpabio told Ningi.

‘SENATORS’ INTEGRITY INTACT’

Addressing the legislators on the budget padding claims, Tinubu said the integrity of the senate is intact.

“I know the arithmetic of the numbers that I brought to the senate and I know what I got back,” the president said.

“And I appreciate all of you for the expeditious handling of the budget. Thank you very much.

“Those who are talking of malicious embellishment in the budget didn’t understand the arithmetic and they didn’t refer to the numbers… the baseline of what I brought.

“All of your integrity is intact. I am very grateful for what you have been doing.”

Tinubu assured Nigerians that the challenges and economic hardship in the country will soon be over.

“The natural challenge that we face will be over,” he added.

“On the economic challenge, we are about turning the corner.”

The Black Princess of Ghana have been crowned champions of the women’s football tournament at the 13th African Games holding in Accra.

At the end of 120 minutes of football, the Black Princesses edged the Falconets 2-1.

Loveth Edeh had put the Falconets in the lead in the 21st minute.

With 12 minutes left on the clock, Ghana got a leveler through Tracy Twum.

Mukarama Abdullai, in the 99th minute of extra-time, popped up to score the winner as her low shot on the edge of the box beat the Falconets keeper.

The loss means the Falconets relinquished their reign as African Games champions.

Former Governor Nasir El-Rufai of Kaduna State has damned the consequences of meeting with officials of the Social Democratic Party (SDP).

The former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT), who is a chieftain of the ruling All Progressives Congress (APC), was seen in a viral video on social media paying a consultation visit to the national chairman of the SDP, Alhaji Shehu Musa Gabam.

The party’s National Chairman, Alhaji Shehu Musa Gabam, had earlier visited El-Rufai at his Abuja residence.

Later, the SDP National Working Committee (NWC) officials received El-Rufai at the party’s secretariat.

During the visit, Gabam reportedly noted El-Rufai’s rich and remarkable political pedigree, saying he is a friend and respected national figure.

“This is a welcome development that concerned Nigerians are cross-fertilizing ideas on how to salvage the nation’s present unpleasant socio-economic challenges of the times. The prevailing circumstance calls for bi-partisan and robust collaborations that transcend ethnic and religious lines to address the nation’s woes and find sustainable ways to redeem the situation,” Gabam was quoted to have said at the meeting.

He also said to achieve the needed transformation in the country, Nigerians need a leader like El-Rufai whom he said has a high political pedigree.

However, in one of the videos of the visit, someone was heard at the background telling the photographer not to upload the photos and video on X, but El-Rufai responded, saying, “Let them upload it; I don’t care.”

The former Minister of the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) was on his way to securing a ministerial appointment in the government of President Bola Tinubu but he was dropped in the dying minute.

Although Tinubu nominated him and he was screened by the senate, the upper legislative chamber of the National Assembly failed to confirm him, citing a security report.

Subsequently, the former minister went abroad and literarily withdrew from politics.

However, he returned to the country and continued his life quietly.

Wednesday’s visit to SDP has sparked rumours on El-Rufai’s interest in contesting the 2027 presidency against Tinubu.

‘El-Rufai not running against Tinubu’

But Muyiwa Adekeye, the former governor’s media aide, has denied that his principal is gearing to square up with Tinubu.

In a statement posted on X, Adekeye said, “I consider the most recent speculations about Malam Nasir @elrufai as reflecting an unhealthy obsession with politics. People have personal histories and relationships that predate political affiliations. It cannot be a hallmark of civilisation to have friends from within only your political party. When people visit each other or mingle across party lines, it is because human relationships exist, distinct from the political or the partisan.”

“Malam Nasir @elrufai is a senior member of the APC, one of the signatories to its merger documents, and a significant contributor to the party’s demonstrated viability. These contributions do not require that he treats friends as anathema on account of politics or maintains an antiseptic distance from them.

“Malam Nasir @elrufai hosted some friends to Iftar on Tuesday, 19 March 2024. NSA Nuhu Ribadu was at the Iftar with a senior APC figure like Alh. Kashim Imam. SDP National Chairman Shehu Musa Gabam was among the friends who partook in the Iftar. Gabam was not accused of considering crossing over to the APC on account of that.

“When Malam Nasir @elrufai visited Gabam the next day, he was merely returning a visit to a friend who happens to be SDP chairman. Malam El-Rufai is known for being open and forthright. If he had any political decisions to make, it would not be in character to let them be subject to speculation.

“”Unfounded speculations about Malam Nasir @elrufai have become an industry that has delivered tons of lies and clickbaits in the last 18 years. This is unlikely to abate anytime soon, given the persistent obsession of its purveyors who relish in negativity and their tireless indulgence in conflating assumption with fact. A recent instance was when he visited former presidents late in 2023 to explain his Nigerian governance study book project covering each of their tenures, the speculators said it was about politics! That is why it is sometimes necessary to clarify matters lest the unwary be taken in.”

The National Peace Committee, led by former Head of State, General Abdulsalami Abubakar, on Thursday, explained why it did not penalise candidates and political parties who flouted the peace accord entered into ahead of the 2023 general elections.

The NPC had come under criticism over its silence following reported skirmishes, intimidations, and alleged vote-buying activities, especially at the February 25 presidential election where the current President, Bola Tinubu, was declared the winner.

Reacting to the criticism, NPC’s Head of Secretariat and Executive Director of The Kukah Centre, Revd Fr Atta Barkindo explained that the national peace committee does not have the constitutional power to arrest or prosecute any politician.

Addressing newsmen at the public presentation of preliminary evaluation report on support to the NPC through The Kukah Centre on Wednesday, Barkindo said it was the responsibility of the police and other security agencies constituted by law to go after violators of the peace accord.

He said, “What people don’t understand is that the NPC as a peace committee doesn’t have a constitutional power to arrest or prosecute anybody.

“All the agencies constituted by law are available to do all that. What we are adding is a moral intervention where these institutions have failed. So what we do is once we sign an accord and it is violated, there are institutions we hand them (erring politicians) over to.

“Even without the NPC handing them over, people can clearly see what is happening. Let the police and those who are constituted by law get up and do their job.

“We are simply adding value, and I don’t want people to place too much expectation on the National Peace Committee to go beyond its mandate. But beyond the signing of the peace accord, when you assemble presidential candidates two days to an election and they are all over the media, they can actually publicly recommit themselves to the process.

“For me, that is adding value to the entire electoral costs and that is what we bring to the table because it helps to douse the tension, reduce the level of bitterness and helps citizens to hold these people to account especially, when they publicly declare that they will accept the outcome of the vote as long as it is free, fair and credible.

“And to be honest, people are abiding by the terms of the accord because at the end of the day, when the results were announced, there was no widespread violence. People went to court, and that was what the accord said.

“If you’re aggrieved, go to court. Some people were aggrieved, and they actually went to court. So as far as we are concerned, the terms of the accord have been really complied with. The rest of the issues of violence, there are agencies constituted by law to address that. I think they should just get up and do their job.”

The Federation Account Allocation Committee shared N1.152.trn to the three tiers of government for February 2024 from a gross total of N2,326.14trn.

This was revealed in a statement signed by its Director, Press and Public Relations, Mohammed Manga, after its February 2024 meeting chaired by the Minister of Finance and Co-ordinating Minister of the Economy, Wale Edun, on Thursday.

FAAC is responsible for reviewing and adopting the allocation of funds to states and the Federal Government.

Every month, the committee distributes revenue to all 36 states and 774 local governments in Nigeria.

This funding is expected to fuel development and assist governments at different levels in fulfilling their responsibilities

From the stated amount inclusive of Gross Statutory Revenue, Value Added Tax Electronic Money Transfer Levy and Exchange Difference, the Federal Government received N352.40bn, the states received N366.95bn, the local government areas got N267.15bn, while the oil-producing states received N166.24bn as derivation, (13 per cent of mineral revenue).

The statement added that N66.45bn was given for the cost of collection, N856.93bn was allocated for transfer intervention and refunds, and N250bn was saved.

The document showed the total revenue distribution for the month.was drawn from Statutory Revenue of N101.34bn VAT of N428.80bn, N15.15bn from EMTL, and N607.44bn from Exchange Difference, bringing the total distributable amount for the month to N1,152.75trn.

The communique issued by the FAAC at the end of the meeting indicated that the Gross Revenue available from the VAT for February 2024 was N460.48bn, which was an increase from the N420.73bn distributed in the preceding month, increasing to N39.75bn.

From that amount, N18.42bn was allocated for the cost of collection and N13.26bn was given for transfers, intervention and refunds.

The remaining N428.80bn was distributed to the three tiers of government, of which the Federal Government got N64.32bn, the states received N214.40bn, and local government councils got N150.08bn.

Accordingly, the Gross Statutory Revenue of N1,192.42bn received in the month was higher than the sum of N1,151.80bn received in the previous month of January 2024 N40.62bn. From that amount, the sum of N47.40bn was allocated for the cost of collection, a total sum of N843.67bn for Transfers, Intervention and Refunds and a total of N200bn saved.

From the remaining balance of N101.34bn, FG got the sum of N7.35bn, States received N3.72bn, while the sum of N87.39bn was allocated to LGCs as Derivation (13 per cent Mineral Revenue).

Also, the sum of N15.78bn from EMTL was shared and the FG received N2.27bn, States got N7.57bn, LGCs received N5.30bn, while N0.63bn was allocated for Cost of Collection.

The statement also disclosed that from the sum of N657.44bn from Exchange Difference, the FG received N278.46bn, States got N141.24bn, while the sum of N108.89bn was allocated to Local Government Councils, N78.85bn was given for Derivation (13 per cent of Mineral Revenue) and the total of N50bn was saved.

It also revealed that Petroleum Profit Tax Value Added Tax, Import Duty, Excise Duty and Customs External Tariff levies increased significantly, while Oil and Gas Royalties increased marginally. Electronic Money Transfer Levy and Companies Income Tax recorded considerable decreases.

In his opening remarks at the meeting, Edu said, “On the fiscal side, there is a move to raise the forex trading.”

He informed the gathering that the President Bola Tinubu-led administration, in its determination to achieve and ensure rapid and sustained economic growth in the country, has commenced the intervention programme which is a direct payment to about 15 – to 17m poorest and vulnerable Nigerians, after carefully making sure that the system is fraud-free, using the Biometric Registration and Digital Registering.

He explained that “there is an increase in revenue, and we are commending the revenue-generating agencies for their hard work.”

The naira maintained a steady appreciation against the United States dollar on Thursday, gaining N18 to close 1,382/$ at the official market.

This came as Presidency warned currency speculators to desist from unpatriotic act against the national currency, saying racketeers would have their fingers burnt.

The naira gain came a day after the local currency recorded major gains at both the official and parallel foreign exchange markets. It closed at the black market at N1,400/dollar on Wednesday.

The summary of the FX trading auction revealed that naira appreciated by 1.3 percent following increased dollar supply at the Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market, according to data from the FMDQ Securities Exchange Limited.

The intraday high closed at N1,598 per dollar on Thursday, stronger than N1,620 it closed at on Wednesday. Also, the intraday low strengthened to N1,300/$ on the same day, stronger than N1,350/$1 closed at on the previous day.

The dollar supplied by FX market players increased to $288.47, an increase of $2 or 7.46 percent from $268.29 million recorded on Wednesdat from $195.13 million at NAFEM.

In the recent weeks, the naira has gained N500 against the dollar from it record low this year at the unofficial market, as the CBN builds confidence in FX market.

The Central Bank of Nigeria declared on Wednesday that it has successfully resolved all valid foreign exchange backlogs, as pledged by Governor Olayemi Cardoso, addressing inherited claims amounting to $7bn.

Hakama Sidi Ali, CBN’s acting director of corporate communications, conveyed this information in a statement sent via mail. She stated that the CBN finalised the payment of $1.5 billion to settle obligations to bank customers, thereby clearing the remaining balance of the FX backlog.

Cardoso emphasised the priority of clearing the FX backlog to enhance credibility and confidence in the Nigerian economy.

The strain on the naira/dollar exchange rate is gradually diminishing, with Nigeria’s external reserves showing sustained growth over the past month.

According to data from the CBN, foreign currency reserves rose by 3.62 percent to $34.37 billion as of March 12, 2024, compared to $33.17 billion recorded at the beginning of February 2024.

Additionally, the CBN reported a significant surge in Diaspora remittances, which skyrocketed by 433 percent to $1.3 billion in February, compared to $300 million in January

Meanwhile, the Special Adviser on Information and Strategy, Bayo Onanuga, has cautioned currency traders speculating on foreign exchange to sell their dollar holdings, stating that the naira is expected to increase in value soon.

He advised speculators to sell off their dollars to prevent potential losses swiftly.

Onanuga said, “With backlog FX settled, Naira is set to appreciate further, faster. Currency speculators should quickly dump their stock of dollars to avoid sorrows and tears.

On Wednesday, the naira closed trading at 1,410/dollar at the parallel market and N1,492 at the official Nigerian Autonomous Foreign Exchange Market, according to data compiled from the FMDQ Securities Exchange.

The gain recorded by the naira at the official market represents an appreciation of N68 or 4.5 per cent, from the N1,560/$1 recorded on Tuesday at NAFEM, and a gain of 13.5 per cent or N190 at the parallel market.

The naira has been gaining lately as speculators begin to dump their dollar stocks, following waning demand by prospective buyers amid CBN clampdowns.

A string of circulars by the Central Bank of Nigeria in recent weeks and months have helped to plug leakages and blocked loopholes previously explored by currency speculators and racketeers.

Also, the recent clampdowns on the activities of illegal BDC operators in Lagos, Abuja and Kano by the operatives of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission have helped to reduce the volatility of the naira

The Federal Government may save an estimated amount of over N5bn every quarter from the new policy banning officials of Ministries, Departments and Agencies from embarking on public-funded foreign trips for three months, according to an analysis of government budget data by The PUNCH.

The data was collated from the breakdown of funds earmarked for international travels in the 2024 budget by 103 MDAs.

President Bola Tinubu had raised concerns about the rising costs of international travels borne by director, permanent sectaries and workers of the federal civil service.

As result, the president in a letter dated March 12, 2024; signed by the Chief of Staff to the President, Femi Gbajabiamila; and addressed to the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, George Akume, banned government officials from embarking on public-funded trips overseas.

The ban, which is meant to reduce costs in governance, will become effective April 1, 2024.

It read partly, “Considering the current economic challenges and the need for responsible fiscal management, I am writing to communicate Mr President’s directive to place a temporary ban on all public funded international trips for all Federal Government officials at all levels, for an initial period of three months from Ist April 2024.”

It added, “This temporary measure is aimed at cost reduction in governance and intended as a cost-saving measure without compromising government functions.”

Tinubu, however, added that government officials who needed to go on any public-funded foreign trip must seek and get presidential approval at least two weeks before embarking on such trip, which must be ‘deemed absolutely necessary’.

The latest development came days after Nigerians, civil society organizations and rights groups lambasted the Accountant General of the Federation, commissioners of finance of the 36 states of the federation and other government officials for choosing to hold a workshop in the United Kingdom at a time when the economy was experiencing a major downturn.

However, in the breakdown, the latest policy by the Tinubu administration is expected to affect 43 permanent secretaries. According to findings, there are currently 43 PS under the Federal Civil Service.

According to an analysis of MDAs notable for travelling, the State House (Presidency) will save about N1.74bn in three months while the Vice President’s office will save N307.3m. The Ministry of Petroleum Resources with a total budget of N1.19bn for international travel will save N299.5m in three months.

Further analysis also stated that the Ministry of Industry, Trade and Investment will save N176.79m if the directive is implemented. Also, the National Defence College will save N984.6m from its total budget of N3.9bn for overseas travel while the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission will save N434.56m. Similarly, the Nigerian Intelligence Agency will save N860.8m from its total budget of N1.04bn. The Office of the Secretary General of the Federation will save N47.5m if it adheres to the presidential directive while the auditor general will return N114.9m to government coffers due to the policy.

Furthermore, the Finance Ministry will save N173.2m while the Ministry of Budget and Economic Planning will keep N173m if its workers shelve plan to travel internationally. For the Command and Staff College, a total of N631.48m will be saved in three months. The Ministry of Justice will preserve N212.32m if the directive is implemented while the Youth Development Ministry will save N70.8m.

Findings show that the cost could be more if foreign trips budgets of other MDAs that are not notable for travelling overseas are also incurred.

Tinubu had implemented a number of initiative aimed at cutting the cost of governance.

On January 8, the President approved “cost-cutting” measures that involve slashing, by 60%, official entourage on local and international travels.

The Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Ajuri Ngelale, revealed this while briefing State House correspondents at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.

Ngelale said the directive applied to the Offices of the President, Vice President, First Lady, Wife of the Vice President and all Ministries, Departments and Agencies.

He said, “President Bola Tinubu has approved that anywhere he travels within this country he will no longer accept or allow huge security delegations to be following him from Abuja, which attracts massive bills with respect to estacode and duty allowances from now on.

“He has approved a massive cost-cutting exercise that will cut across the entire Federal Government of Nigeria and the Offices of the President himself, the Vice President and the Office of the First Lady. It will be conducted in the following fashion.

“On international trips, the President has directed that no more than 20 individuals be allowed to travel with him. That number will be cut down to five in the case of the First Lady. Additionally, the number in the entourage on official international trips for the Vice President will be cut to five. The number that will be placed as a limit on the wife of the Vice President is also five.”

The decision came five weeks after Nigerians criticised the Tinubu administration for participating in the United Nation’s annual climate summit, COP28, in Dubai, the United Arab Emirates with 1,114 delegates.