 Welcome back to the breakfast and plus TV Africa time for us to check out the big stories on our national dailies and to make sense of all of this We have Nick Aghule who is a public affairs analyst. Thank you so much for joining us. Nick Aghule All right, so we'll start off with the leadership newspaper this morning and find out what big stories are making the rounds on the leadership Newspaper now looking at the front page of the leadership newspaper a very bold and interesting caption says Abuja now home to abandon white elephant projects That's on page four. This is not new to the Nigerian scene if you look across the entire country You'll find out that there are several abandoned project. Abuja now home to abandon white elephant project It's boldly written on the leadership newspaper. You've got several riders at the first read Billions of narrowed disbossed the contractors what project brought away and that's the first rider government makes excuses for delays and abandonment It's a national shame says resident Okay, so that's what you find on the leadership newspaper another header says Investors besiege all companies shares over rising crude prizes That's also on the top page of the leadership newspaper on page five to be precise You also find another writer saying Budget office paid 28 billion narrow to unnamed MDAs That's what the Senate is saying. That's quite interesting If you ask me and that's on page eight of the leadership newspaper, I Visited EFCC on my own Volusion Kwan-Kwaseul is quoted on page four. Well, these are the stories. We can take on the leadership newspaper this morning All right, moving on to the punch newspapers APC parallel Congresses. I'm also I wish a lot lie may lose out party back to governors It's a practice to respect incumbent governors. They are party leaders National Caucus member says Says illegal Congresses won't be recognized and that's from the APC as mass defection looms Also presidency for a false or new NITR console contest ministers dissolution order NSCBC threatens operators arrest list for debts in under both accidents fleeing Lagos tax False officers shoot banker for protesting car damage federal government personnel cost rises by 79.49% gulps 13.2 trillion Naira in four years Also on the punch Pandora papers EFCC opens probe of obi Odwa NPA boss and others Nandron Air Force denies paying 20 million Naira to save Bahar is playing from bandits and 750,000 metric tons supply gap Forex shoot cooking gas above 8,000 Naira All right, let's check out the daily independent newspaper this morning Nigeria unattractive to lenders investors analysts quoted Nigeria unattractive to lenders and investors at on page four one assess for partial privatization as Executed through a capital market acts federal government to issue asset-backed securities to connect global liquidity All of that you find on page four Senate uncovers how budget office paid 28 billion Naira to unnamed MDAs that's on page four and Sarah drags Buhari to court over plan to monitor WhatsApp messages It's also on page five. It's still looking at the front page of the daily independent newspaper this morning 2022 budget state house operation to go up over 200 billion Naira in duplicated line items federal government to spend 21.97 billion Naira on VP wing of state house clinic interesting APC crisis Reading Congress's explain why Nigeria is in crisis That's what you find on page five and you have the PDP on that and PDP Take that again PDP convention secundus vows to seek justice over his sack That's on page five federal government and marks 20 billion Naira for construction of Abuja Airport second runway and you also find state Congress So no lose loyalist worry over rumour single-term plot That's also another interesting headline on page four of the daily independent newspaper Now, let's all can find out the nation Big one there says seconders. I am deep in PDP pre-convention crisis Suspended chair wouldn't withdraw a case south is chieftains reject governor's candidate for secretary It goes and the news also saying I am not seeking funds for treatment And we can also find on the nation Congress is not conducted by accredited officials Nolan voids as the APC Inside the accurate a little probe Congress. No other Congress outside the sugar stadium Also, why are your APC Congress collapsed and others? We can also find on the nation despondent anambra 2021 rule-out postponement of post as INEC APC to hold rally November 3rd and Kogi Governments to EFCC disclose custodian of missing cash Minister railway paying back loans. It says government targets 6,000 kilometers lines And also Nigerian equities make 310 billion Naira gain in global rally I think those are the stories that we can share this morning. Good morning. Once again, Mr. Gulley. Thanks for joining us Thank you very much. All right. I want us to start with One of the stories that we earlier spoke about and that is the controversy concerning the Wall Street John O's report that says the Nigerian government paid 20 million Naira to bandits about $50,000 To protect the president's plane basically from bandits. I quickly share your thoughts on that one before we go on Many view on that story is that the story sounds quite unlikely Usual for an effort to do that, but in Nigeria You never say never to anything. I mean anything is possible So I am not privy to whatever would have happened between the effort some bandits In terms of any ransom that was demanded and paid to protect the president's plane But in my mind, I believe that Even if the Air Force paid bandits some money to protect the president's plane some other measures must have been taken to protect the president's plane Because you're dealing with bandits and these are a personal human beings Who may not even? comply with agreements So if you put the president's plane In the pathway or in the handsway where the bandits are able to strike it Because you paid the 20 billion. I would say that was That would be a very Rescuing to do very rescuing to do. So This story was true. I will say the Air Force must have taken steps to protect the president's plane probably giving it a different flight path or ensuring that the a the a space on the flight path of the president's plane is Fully fully secured before they will let the president go by the airport Okay, let's even assume that that story is even true I mean, let's go by the fact that if that story is true What is the guarantee that this bandits will not you know use the money to purchase? Another one more sophisticated, you know to to rather own it. I mean if we're talking about 20 million Naira at this point in time you want to ask what the value of that anti aircrafts gone is So what's the guarantee that they would not go back to get you know a better one and then come back? You know to execute their intentions precisely Like you have said if the story if we assume that the story is true You pay money to the bandits And they always remain bandits So there is no guarantee That they won't use this money to go and buy more arms or give them acquire more sophisticated anti aircraft weapons so that is one of the tragedies of Negotiating with bandits and giving them money why they still remain bandits if you are negotiating an amnesty deal with criminals You ensure that they won't be able to go back to their criminality Because if they are able to go to their criminality with the money that you are giving them they can have no guarantees They can apply that money to anything and that is why I said that if we take this story to be true it will be Very unprofessional and risky for the Air Force or the Nigerian government knowing that Bandits have the capability to shoot at and possibly bring down the president's plane to put that plane in that Strike if ransom is paid because you can never tell what they're gonna do They are Animals there are people who you have a dog and the next day the dog is biting you that is the way ban this oppress And I don't think they should be trusted to that point that After ransom is being paid then they should even not only the president's plan put any plan at all in that flight path Without first securing the ground all along that flight path Oh, I'm sure you've also you would also remember not long ago the same bandits where I led to have shot down an under an Air Force jet So Hopefully we get to you know, see some clarity from the story in the next couple of days and understand better if this is true or false But let's move away from then talk about the APC Congresses It's reported that in many states across the Federation there were parallel Congresses There was violence reported also in many of these places as also on the point this morning I'm most sure a regular show and the line Mohammed have been mentioned as saying to very be very likely to lose out because they're Party leaders and not necessarily governors or you know, and so they don't have any power of incumbency So share your thoughts on the Congress is so far On the last two reader we took that I have read a report I don't know if it's authentic I read a report Proported to have been issued by the Nigerian Air Force to debunk or deny The fact that they ever paid ransom to anybody to secure the flight path of the president's plan now Going to the Congress is what are our jobs? In the news on the APC Congress it is that Almost all of them were carried out by consensus So they had consensus candidates and they didn't have to ballot So they just had voice votes and the candidates that Stood for the various positions when I returned on the post I mean if a party decides to do that so long as is in a democratic way They have their right to do that but my concern is The APC as a ruling party is unable to conduct its own Congresses Congresses as a party How then can we trust this party that they will deliver a national elections? credit creditably fairly and correctly How can we trust them because There is a kid. This is your goon state progress is you know a Leader of the state one of the old states they had two congresses in one of the congresses there were shootings People had your own head just cater We're talking about party congresses and the ruling party is on To have internet democracy and conduct itself in a democratic way to deliver content They had can they deliver a national election we should all be alarmed secondly all the Crises up and down in the parties between governors and some other leaders of the party and others take photos As Nigerians will wish all this should be for the good of Nigeria This should be for good governance, but unfortunately It is not These are Personified fighting for personal territory. So for us Nigeria's we would like to advise these party leaders What we need is not a show of force what we need is not a Demonstration as to who is more powerful in your party. What we need is good governance Thanks. He was water. He was electricity. He was schools, health care, roads Better things Let your fight be for the post of delivery of good governance That is what we interest us and that is what is going to be for the good of this country. Nigeria's are united in terms of Delivery of good governance to Nigerians I don't I suppose this crisis to be me and down in all the parties So this is the time that these guys should shit their souls Should all think that we're working for the people of Nigeria and not for our own personal interests So let us go and deliver good governance to them Okay, let's quickly look at the leadership news before this morning and talk about the reports on abandoned projects and white elephant projects as reported In the FCT now what could be responsible because according to you know the news you have Resources have been released like millions have been released and these contractors are not doing the needful So what could be responsible for this behavior? Something that is very important That needs to be addressed by the government without any further delay What I mean Nigeria as I'm speaking to you now has been considerable amount of time here in Abuja and Like Rex said on the news to purple rally says it's an iso in a country where we have a huge housing deficit You A different stages of construction Let's abandon in the capital city and people don't have now these properties Either owned by it or they are owned by private individuals be they properties or humans They must rise up and do something about these steps. Oh, I wonder I wonder if those we elected into government Just don't blind when they get into office because as they ride in their convoys Around the city of Abuja They cannot say they don't see these gigantic properties There have been standing as all them. I have been seeing them for more than 15 years There has been no progress to develop those properties complete them And let people start occupying them If we have people in government who the objective is to deliver welfare through good governance to Nigerians There is no way they will Now This kind of huge properties to be unoccupied uncompleted Why Nigerians don't have housing? So I will say two things have to happen for the properties that are owned by the government The government must read the riot act to the contractors who collect their monies And they don't finish this project And finish the projects and put these houses into use All the government begins to prosecute them and prosecution means quickly a special code Needs to be set up to try contractors who are taking money and afraid to deliver the housing project So that when judgment is passed against them the government can actually go after them Including the assets in the corporate entities that they are running this country so that we will try and finish this project for for use For the for the properties that are owned by the private sector be the corporate bodies or human human Beings the government equally needs to read a riot act to them In fact, this is a situation where president wearing himself or through any of his ministers Can give a deadline to these people and say look you have this deadline You either come and start work to complete these properties So that we can complete these properties and use them for Properties can be used as offices. They can be used as hospitals. They can be used as schools They can be used for the public good. So I'll read the riot act to them Say that it is so and so time if you don't come and complete these properties We are taking them over for the public good. I believe that this this is the decisive action That government must take to stop this menace of same properties Unoccupied Some of the properties are seen a budget and finished but You know like those who know a budget well if you are approaching a budget from the airport You have these two scar scrapers. They are the tallest buildings in Abuja I think they are either on independence or Constitution Avenue as we come from the stadium And you are putting the city of Abuja the tallest scar scrapers in Abuja two of them I have been seeing them in that completed state now for more than five years Those are the kind of properties that government will retry out and indeed people the owners don't come and finish them up And let them out to for you use the government takes them over and turns them into either housing or any other All right miss Agole, let's move back to the punch these papers top of the punch It's talking about federal government's personnel cost Rising by seventy nine point four eight percent. It says it gulps thirteen point two trillion Naira in Four years share your views on that also Easy Yeah, this number this number three empirical test. How do I mean in the federal civil service? People are retiring every day because even today it will be the 68th birthday of a federal civil servant or the 35th anniversary of the civil servants Beginning of work in the federal civil service. So people are leaving federal civil service every day And the government is not replacing them. There is a ban on recruitment in the federal service So mathematically If you had a wage last year and this year a good number of those who were on the wage Wage list have left and you have not recruited more people How they can your wage be increasing even if you think about promotions and all of that It shouldn't be an increase of nearly 80% as we're talking about But you see the Nigerian government bodies like a voodoo, you don't understand how they get these numbers And at the end of the day, there is no transparency in the administration of these budgets That is just the real thing. So, you know, we used to have what we call budget party budget party It used to provide national discourse. I still believe that budget party is still with us This would just put numbers numbers that you can't explain and then this becomes the avenues where Mowat is fitter the way. So those bastards are dodgy and I would expect the national assembly to do a Good job of scrutinizing those numbers. They have to see every day. They need to see breakdown If it doesn't why the wage bill from the previous year to this year We increase by nearly 80% when the government is not recruiting new staff and people are leaving federal service Every day through retirement or some other natural process All right, Nick Agouleh. We'll have to wrap up here. Thank you so much for your time this morning Of course, we're starting up our week with us having your thoughts on these stories out there. Wish you a great week ahead Thank you for joining us Thank you All right, so they would also take a short break when we come back a little bit of history We went back as far as 1912 To tell you something about the man act right after that our first midi conversations for the show this morning