Senate approves MTEF/FSP, probes NNPCL over N8.4tr subsidy funds

Confirms Oluyede as COAS

Preparatory to the 2025 budget presentation by President Bola Tinubu before the joint session of the National Assembly, the Senate, yesterday, approved the 2025-2027 Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP), earlier submitted by the President.

It confirmed the appointment of Lt-Gen Olufemi Oluyede as the substantive Chief of Army Staff (COAS).

The approval followed the adoption of the report of its joint committee on Finance and National Planning & Economic Affairs, chaired by Sen Sani Musa (APC, Niger East) during plenary.

Also, the Red Chamber mandated its committees on Finance, Petroleum (Upstream), and Petroleum (Downstream) as well as Gas, to investigate reports from the Revenue Mobilisation, Allocation and Fiscal Responsibility Commission (RMAFC), alleging that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company Limited (NNPCL) withheld N8.48 trillion as claimed subsidies for petrol.

The Senate noted that the investigation would address issues raised in the Nigeria Extractive Industries Transparency Initiative (NEITI) report, stating that NNPCL failed to remit $2 billion (N3.6 trillion) in taxes to the Federal Government.

It further directed its committees to verify the cumulative unremitted revenue (under-recovery) from the sale of Premium Motor Spirit (PMS) by the NNPCL between 2020 and 2023.

The relevant committees were directed to carry out an in-depth investigation of such agreements by the NNPCL, Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) and Immigration Services to reconcile remittances to the Federation Account.

In the three-year projections, the Senate pegged the exchange rate at N1,400/$ for 2025, 2026 and 2027 respectively. It also projected oil benchmark prices at $75, $76.2 and $75.3 per barrel for 2025, 2026 and 2027 respectively.

The Red Chamber added that the three-year projections for domestic crude oil production had a significant increase from 1.78mbpd in the preceding year to 2.06mbpd, 2.10mbpd and 2.35mbpd for the subsequent years of 2025, 2026 and 2027, respectively.

It further projected Gross Domestic Product (GDP) growth rates of 4.6 per cent, 4.4 per cent, and 5.5 per cent for 2025, 2026 and 2027 and inflation rates at 15.75 per cent, 14.21 per cent, and 10.04 per cent for 2025, 2026 and 2027 respectively.

Senate, however, demanded a reduction in the petrol prices against the backdrop of the commencement of production at the Port Harcourt refinery.

“The 2025 Federal Government budget proposed spending of N47.9 trillion of which N34.82 trillion is retained. New borrowings stood at N9.22 trillion, comprising domestic and foreign borrowings.

“Capital expenditure is projected at N16.48 trillion with statutory transfers standing at N4.26 trillion and sinking funds projected at N430.27 billion,” it added.

During the debate on the report, the Chairman of the Senate Committee on Appropriation, Solomon Adeola (APC, Ogun West) referenced the Federal Government’s Compressed Natural Gas (CNG) initiative as the underlying imperative for the adoption of the N1,400 to one dollar.

He said, “With the functioning of our refineries the demand for forex will drop. With the CNG initiative, Nigerians will have an option. For your information, if you leave Benin for Lagos, the amount of fuel is about N130,000; but with CNG, you can’t use more than N48,000.”

Sen Yahaya Abdullahi (PDP, Kebbi North), stressed the need to support the manufacturing industries if the projections of the MTEF were to be achieved.

In his remarks, the Senate President, Godswill Akpabio, commended the chairman and members of the joint committees for the work done on the document.

Akpabio announced Oluyede’s confirmation after he was cleared by the senators through voice votes during plenary.

The upper chamber approved the appointment after considering the report of its Committee on Army, presented by its Chairman, Abdulaziz Musa Yar’Adua (APC, Katsina Central).

Tinubu appointed Oluyede as the acting COAS on October 30 following the illness of Lt-Gen Taoreed Lagbaja, who later died on November 5.

The President’s request to confirm Oluyede as substantive COAS was formally read on the Senate floor on November 26 and was referred to the army committee.

Akpabio expressed hope that banditry, terrorism and other insecurity challenges in different parts of the country would be reduced with the appointment of the new army chief.

The House of Representatives confirmed Oluyede’s appointment last week.