- Many feared killed in fresh Benue attacks by suspected herders
- Cardoso rues escalating cost of living, predicts 21% inflation rate for Nigeria in 2024
The Senate is expected to grill the Service Chiefs today and Thursday over the state of insecurity in the country.
This was disclosed on Tuesday by Senator Tokunbo Abiru while announcing the postponement of the interface between the Senate Committee on Banking, Insurance, and Other Financial Institutions from Tuesday to Friday this week.
Abiru, who is the Chairman of the Committee, told journalists that the planned interface with the CBN Governor, Olayemi Cardoso, was shifted to Friday, since Wednesday and Thursday have been slated for the grilling of the Service Chiefs.
The Senate had by its resolution on Tuesday last week summoned the Service Chiefs to appear before it in plenary for required explanations on the worsening security situation in the country, just as its Committee on Banking, summoned the CBN Governor to appear before it on Tuesday on the state of the nation’s economy and free flow of the Naira.
Members of the Committee in line with the resolution gathered in room 211, the venue of the planned interface with the CBN governor from 3 pm to 4:30 pm before resolving to postpone it to Friday this week.
The Chairman of the Committee, Senator Abiru said, “After waiting for close to two hours for the CBN governor on the planned interface, we have resolved to postpone it to Friday this week by 9 am.
“Postponement of the interface between our committee and the CBN Governor arose from the fact that he and other managers of the nation’s economy had been interfacing with our colleagues in the House of Representatives since morning without knowing when exactly the session would end.
“We would have fixed Wednesday or Thursday this week as a new day for the interface but the Senate has fixed the two days for critical and constructive engagement with the Service Chiefs.
“This made us eventually settle for Friday this week for interface with the CBN Governor by 9 am prompt.
“Communication to this effect would be forwarded to the CBN Governor today (Tuesday) and possibly other government officials managing the economy.”
Earlier the Senate in plenary had a two-hour closed-door sessions after which it considered a motion from Senator Ahmad Lawan on the demise of Senator Bukar Abba Ibrahim by observing a minute silence for the deceased and raising a nine-man delegation for a condolence visit to the Governor of Yobe State and family of the deceased
The delegation is to be led by Senator Adamu Aliero (PDP Kebbi Central).
Cardoso predicts 21% inflation rate for Nigeria in 2024
Meanwhile, the Governor of the Central Bank of Nigeria, Olayemi Cardoso, on Tuesday projected that Nigeria’s inflation rate would slow down to 21.4% this year, despite the surging prices of most commodities, particularly food items’ prices over the past months.
Cardoso, who made this forecast when he appeared before the House of Representatives to brief the lawmakers at the sectoral debate on the economy, rued the escalating cost of living in the country but maintained that the nation’s economy was now better positioned for improved performance than it was before May 29, 2023.
He expressed strong optimism about the potential of the economy for growth given the sundry reforms of the current administration and the positive outcomes from the various fiscal and monetary initiatives.
Despite his stance on the economy’s prospects, Cardoso admitted that the concern over the cost of living by analysts and ordinary Nigerians remained justifiable; assuring that the apex bank was working to address the increasingly worrisome situation of the economy, primarily caused by the surging inflation rate.
On his outlook for the economy this year, the CBN Governor said, “Inflationary pressures are expected to decline in 2024 due to the CBN’s inflationary targeting policy aiming to rein in inflation to 21.4 per cent, aided by improved agricultural productivity and easy global supply chain pressures.
“The Nigerian foreign exchange market is currently facing increased demand pressures causing a continuous decrease in the value of Naira,” the banker added.
Cardoso told the lawmakers that the apex bank had undertaken some monetary policy measures to tackle the persistent dwindling value of the Naira at the foreign exchange markets, stressing that improving the exchange rate of the local currency will require improved exports by the country
According to him, current policy measures of the apex bank are expected to impact positively on the exchange rate of the Naira in the FX markets with the attendant implications for lower inflation rate in the economy in the near term.
Also present at the debate session on Tuesday at the Green Chamber were the Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Olawale Edun; Minister of Budget and National Planning, Abubakar Bagudu and the Executive Chairman of the Federal Inland Revenue Service, Zacch Adedeji, among others.
Many feared killed in fresh Benue attacks by suspected herders
Several people have been reportedly killed by armed men who invaded the Iwili community in Umogidi Ward and Entekpa community, all in Adoka District of Otukpo Local Government Area of Benue State.
The attack on Umogidi came barely a year after gunmen invaded the community and killed many.
A legal practitioner from the local government, Ada Ocholi, said on Tuesday that the armed men migrated from the Agatu axis to Otukpo LGA.
Ocholi said, “As of yesterday, four corpses were still in the bush and were yet to be recovered. I can’t say the number of corpses recovered so far because yesterday, I was in touch with our youth leader there.
“He told me that they just came back from the bush and there were so many of the armed men in the bush with military uniform, that some of them were on top of trees with sophisticated weapons.”
Another source in the area disclosed that the attacks left several persons injured while the affected villages have been deserted by the locals who fled for fear of being killed.
The attacks commenced on Saturday and spread till Monday.
The local said, “They came from Agatu which they have been attacking since the beginning of the year. They came through Upaha in Apa LGA and accessed Iwili community in Umuogidi from where they also stormed Entekpa.”
The Chairman of Otukpo LGA, Alfred Omakwu, confirmed that seven dead bodies were recovered as of Tuesday afternoon, with the help of soldiers.
He added that the search to recover more bodies was ongoing with the assistance of military personnel.
When contacted, the state Police Public Relations Officer, SP Catherine Anene said she was yet to receive information on the incident.
On Friday, several people were reportedly killed by suspected armed herders in the attack on communities in the Agatu Local Government Area of Benue State.
The member of the state House of Assembly representing the Agatu State Constituency, Godwin Edoh, lamented the endless attacks by suspected herders, expressing his frustrations that both the federal and state governments had not been able to stop the needless killings.
Several communities, such as Ogwumogbo, Ikpele, Okokolo and Ejima, had been attacked since the crisis broke out three weeks ago.
No fewer than 20 people, including three security personnel, were murdered in the previous attacks and residents of the affected communities had long fled.
