Minister of Communications Technology, Omobola Johnson, disclosed this to newsmen after the FEC meeting on Wednesday chaired by President Goodluck Jonathan at the Presidential Villa in Abuja.
The minister explained that additional smartcards will be procured next year but that they will have to be produced in Nigeria.
Already, 30,000 applicants have been registered with Direct Data Capture machines that have been distributed to all states of the federation.
Johnson said the cards are highly secure and difficult to fake and will be personalised here in Nigeria with applicants’ biometric data, making it possible for them to be used for health insurance schemes, pensions, tax, voting data, and relevant banking purposes.
“Anyone in the 36 states that enrolls to get a social identity number will get the chip. It is on first come first served basis.
“We are immediately going to the 774 local governments with connectivity. At the point of enrollment you will be asked to show some form of identity that shows you are a Nigerian,” she added.
For the transport sector, FEC also approved the purchase of two sets of modern five car diesel multiple units (DMUs) each with the capacity of 540 passengers and an additional six 60-seater air-conditioned passenger coaches at a cost of N4.34 billion for intra-city rail mass transit services.
Transport Minister, Idris Umar, explained that the new trains will be used on the existing narrow gauge rail tracks, while more trains will be purchased when the eastern rail route of Port Harcourt-Maiduguri is ready next year.
FEC also approved a contract of N189.73 million for the supply of radiation and explosive detection devices to be used by the Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA) to monitor containers arriving or leaving the ports as provided for in international maritime regulations, conventions and best practices.
For the works sector, the Council approved the rehabilitation of Umana-Ndiagu-Agba-Ebenebe-Amansi Akwa road with spur to Umumba road at the sum of N10.37 billion as well as Ogrute-Umuida-Apkpanya-Odoni road in Enugu /Kogi States at the sum of N12.4 billion.
Other projects are the Jamata-Lokoja inland waterway (N121.14m); cost adjustment of Jos-Kafanchan double circuit power transmission line contract to £4.9 million plus N470.85 million and Obudu-Ogoja power transmission line at N1.36b.
FEC also approved resurfacing of some selected existing roads and remedial works on bridge in Garki and Wuse I District, Abuja, at a cost of N2.8 billion.
A new 150-seater banquet and press briefing hall is planned for the Presidential Villa, closer to the President’s residence, at a cost of N2.2 billion.
Equally approved was the supply of anti-Tuberculosis drugs worth N297.87 million capable of treating 500 Nigerian multi-drug resistant cases.
Minister of Health, Onyebuchi Chukwu, who announced this, explained that no less than N400,000 was needed to treat one patient, which is why government intervened to make it easier for Nigerians who can’t afford that cost.
He said more of the drugs will be provided next year to meet high demand, as 5,000 drug-resistant new cases emerge every year and these are different from the 800,000 normal tuberculosis cases treated every year.
Also approved for the health ministry was the purchase of vaccines worth $2.10 million (N333m) for routine immunisation which has since 2006 been supplied through UNICEF for safety reasons.
The Council was told by Minister of State for Foreign Affairs, Viola Onwuliri, of a landmark diplomatic agreement between Venezuela and Nigeria to allow transit and 90-day stay for holders of official and diplomatic passports of both countries.
It is a show of confidence in Nigeria, noted the minister, who also conveyed Venezuelan President, Hugo Chavez’s condolences to Jonathan on the death of his younger brother.
She declared that N13 billion has been approved by Jonathan to clear debts owed by Nigeria’s foreign missions, adding that the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and Ministry of Finance have assured they will release the funds accordingly.
Meanwhile, Presidential spokesman, Reuben Abati, who announced that subsequent FEC meetings will focus on non-procurement memos, assured that the Federal Government acted swiftly following the terror attacks on military facility in Jaji, Kaduna State, and the police anti-robbery station in Abuja.
The President, he said, received immediate briefings from the Chief of Defence Staff and the Inspector General of Police, while the Minister of FCT convened a security meeting over the Abuja attack.
He further disclosed the approval of a contract of N148.95 million for the conduct of fiscal allocation and statutory disbursement audit for the 2007 to 2011 oil and gas industry audit on the request the Nigerian Extractive Industry Transparency Initiative (NEITI).
The objective of this initiative is to ensure transparency and accountability in the application of resources from payments received from extractive industries and to further ensure that all fiscal allocations and statutory disbursements due from the Federal Government to statutory recipients were dully made.
The nine-month audit is to track extractive industry sector funds received into the Federation Account as were distributed and received by federal, state and local government councils, with special emphasis on the application, utilisation of the funds, on beneficiaries of the 13 per cent derivation and relevant federal institutions that directly receive allocation from the Federation Account, he stated.
The Presidency also denied existence of any rift between Minister of Finance, Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, and her counterpart in the Ministry of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Alison-Madueke, over unpaid petroleum subsidy claims.
Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Reuben Abati, made the clarification in Abuja on Wednesday.
There had been reports that the two ministers were at daggers drawn over unpaid subsidy claims totalling N1.13 trillion which Okonjo-Iweala allegedly refused to release money for.
It was said to have led to Alison-Madueke telling President Goodluck Jonathan that fuel might disappear from filling stations across the country if government failed to pay the debt.
But Abati told newsmen: “I am not aware of any disagreement between the two ministers. I read those stories too but those stories are usually speculative. They are not based on any substance and I think we should refrain from this attempt to set one individual up against the other.
“The cabinet over which Mr. President presides works as a team and at all times, what he emphasises is team spirit. I am not aware of any open disagreement between the two ministers.”
On the Nuhu Ribadu and other petroleum task force committees, Abati said the white paper drafting committees were yet to submit their reports but that government will make the submission public when it happens.
On November 15, Abati in a statement had said the committees were expected to produce white papers on the reports that would be presented to the Federal Executive Council within two weeks.
Nigerians might believe that the National Identity Card is a welcome development but it has never been in Cameroon.It is just like the PASS that existed in Apartheid South Africa.
ReplyDeleteHere in Cameroon gendarmes and police under guise of checking the PASS brutalise and harrass inocent citizens.Most times they extort money from passengers just becuase they misplaced their PASS!!