El-Rufai stated this in Abuja at the second edition of the ‘Distinguished Parliamentarian Lecture’ organised by the National Institute for Legislative and Democratic Studies.

According to him, VAT is a major survival for Nigeria, especially now that the Nigerian National Petroleum Company (NNPC) Limited has not remitted a penny into the federation account this year.

“Value Added Tax has become a major source of survival for this country because this year, the NNPC has not brought a penny to the federation account; we’ve been relying on taxes, particularly Value Added Tax and the fact that Value Added Tax is not on the exclusive list is a major source of concern for the fiscal health of the federation and I think this National Assembly can do something about in its last six months,” the governor said at the event.

El-Rufai also urged the National Assembly to make happen state and community policing to solve Nigeria’s multifarious security challenges.

“We are all clear now that the current policing system is broken and cannot work for Nigeria and Nigeria is the only federation in the world with one centralised policing system. I think this National Assembly can enact state policing,” he stated.

Senate President Ahmad Lawan and the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila were some of the dignitaries in attendance at the programme.

In March, the National Assembly rejected a bill seeking to include VAT in the Exclusive List. The move followed a protracted legal tussle between the Federal Inland Revenue Service (FIRS) and the Rivers State Government over VAT collection and personal income tax (PIT) in the state.

Last year, Governor Nyesom Wike of Rivers signed a bill on VAT collection into law, lamenting what he called injustice in the country especially in the area of resource allocation.

Wike said Rivers State generated N15bn VAT revenue in June 2021 but got N4.7bn in return, while Kano generated N2.8bn in the same month and got the same N2.8bn back.

The Rivers governor also said N46.4bn was collected from Lagos State in the same month but the Federal Government gave Lagos N9.3bn. “Sometimes, you don’t want to believe these things exist,” he had said.

The case has been in court for over a year with no end in sight.

El-Rufai said this while briefing State House Correspondents after a meeting with the Nigerian leader on Tuesday December 21.

He also noted that President Buhari has spent most of his life in Kaduna even though he is originally from Katsina state.

The Governor said;“Mr President has been invited to come and commission some of our projects. He will spend two to three days in Kaduna commissioning projects in Kafanchan, Kaduna and Zaria.As you know, the President is a Kaduna-based citizen. He is originally from Katsina state, but he spent most of his life in Kaduna. And he’s retiring to Kaduna.We hope that he will be happy with what we have done and he will be proud of what we have done as an APC government, and we appreciate all the support that he has given us to enable us to do this.”

This is coming after President Buhari said he’s looking forward to returning to his farm in Daura.

At his 79th birthday party last week, the President was quoted saying “I look forward to the year 2023 when I finish and I go (back) home to take charge of my farm.”

A statement signed by Samuel Aruwan, the Kaduna State Commissioner of Internal Security and Home Affairs, on Tuesday, December 1, said that troops rescued nine kidnapped victims from the armed bandits in separate locations of crossing points.

Several armed bandits also escaped with bullet wounds into Malum Forest in the going onslaught against the criminals, that blocked Kwanar Tsintsiya axis of Kaduna-Zaria in Igabi local government area at the weekend.

Five of the nine who were rescued in the early hours of Tuesday during debriefing explained how the bandits burnt the corpses of four of their fellow criminals.

Governor Nasir El-Rufai has commended the troops for their resilience and bravery.

The decision followed protests from some lawyers through a petition to stop the governor from attending the Annual General Conference which was started by a lawyer, Usani Odum, had garnered over 3,150 signatures on Change.Org as of 4 pm on Thursday.

Announcing El-Rufai invitation withdrawal, the NBA in a tweet on Thursday via its Twitter handle @NigBarAssoc, said “The National Executive Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association at its ongoing meeting resolves that the invitation to the Kaduna State Governor, H.E. Nasir El-Rufai, by the 2020 Annual General Conference Planning committee be withdrawn and decision communicated to the Governor.”

The National Executive Committee of the Nigerian Bar Association at its ongoing meeting resolves that the invitation to the Kaduna State Governor, H.E. Nasir El-Rufai by the 2020 Annual General Conference Planning committee be withdrawn and decision communicated to the Governor.

— Nigerian Bar Association (@NigBarAssoc) August 20, 2020

In a separate letter titled, ‘Request to Withdraw the Offer of Platform at the 2020 Annual General Conference of the NBA to Mallam Nasir el-Rufai,’ addressed to the Chairman, Technical Committee on Conference Planning, NBA, Prof. Koyinsola Ajayi, some lawyers said the governor must not be allowed to speak at the conference.

The letter, which was signed by Silas Onu and Auta Nyada, listed 10 allegations against el-Rufai and his son, Bello, who is a Special Adviser to Kaduna Central lawmaker, Senator Uba Sani.

They faulted the NBA for inviting el-Rufai, citing his alleged poor human rights record and his inability to stop the killings, particularly in southern Kaduna.

The ongoing virtual NEC meeting of the NBA is the customary Pre-AGC NEC meeting and it will be the last of the Paul Usoro, SAN led NBA administration. With participants from all of our 125 branches, the NEC is the highest decision making organ of the NBA after the AGM.

Okonkwo who spoke to reporters after a security meeting presided over by Governor Nasir el-Rufai, said more soldiers will be deployed in the area to tackle the “criminal elements” responsible for the killings and destruction in the area.

He said “What we have been attacks on some communities and reprisal attacks. You have Kataf youths, Fulani militias and the criminal elements of both sides.  Any incident is enough to spark off a crisis in that area; there have been lingering disputes and animosities, banditry and cattle rustling there. We have reviewed our operations. We are going to close ranks. We are going to be more robust in the days to come. If one or two attacks took place, three were prevented. If you know the area very well, the communities are far and dispersed, they are several kilometres apart from each other. The terrain is difficult to access with vehicles. And we have a limitation of manpower but of course, you know that we are committed. But be that as it may, we are going to get more troops. We are strategising, we will deploy as much as possible to shorten our response time. Perhaps, we used to respond a bit late, but if we had not responded, we could have had more casualties.”

The Governor who spoke through his deputy, Dr Hadiza Sabuwa Balarabe in a live broadcast this evening Tuesday, May 26, said after 60 days, the state government has reviewed the Quarantine Orders and the Governor has approved the recommendation to extend the partial lockdown regulations for two weeks, with adjustments to permit the reopening of certain sectors.

She said “On behalf of the Kaduna State Government, I wish to commend the sacrifices made by the residents of the state since the Quarantine Orders came into effect on 26th March 2020. These orders, which were initially imposed for 30 days, were extended for another 30 days on 26th April 2020 to further protect citizens from the spread of Covid-19. Over the last 60 days, the people of Kaduna State Government have endured many inconveniences as they complied with the Quarantine Orders. Many of you have embraced the exercise of personal responsibility, including wearing facemasks when outdoors, washing hands with soap and water regularly, observing physical distancing and avoiding large crowds. I urge you to continue with these new habits and behaviour in order to keep our communities safe. The state government acknowledges with gratitude the fact that many citizens understood that the Quarantine Orders were designed as a defensive measure to protect the vast majority of our people from the suffering and death that Covid-19 could cause. Your compliance with the orders has helped to reduce the number of infected persons and kept fatalities to a minimum. We thank you for your support and understanding. In this quest to protect our people, the government decided, as a solemn duty,  to prioritise lives. We chose to preserve the wellbeing of our citizens so that they can safely resume the pursuit of livelihoods in the shortest time possible. We do not take for granted the support of our citizens and the gravity of the sacrifices you all have made. It is true that there are still active Covid-19 cases in our state and we acknowledge that without your sacrifices, the number of persons infected could have been higher. Government and citizens must continue to work together to keep everyone safe. The danger from Covid-19 has not gone away. It remains a very infectious and disruptive disease. Therefore, to avoid its perils and protect lives, citizens must henceforth take the lead, as individuals with responsibility for themselves, their families and their societies. Personal responsibility is the weapon that every citizen must wield to ensure proactive protection for themselves and others from infection by Covid-19. When the decision was taken on Saturday, 25th April 2020 to extend the initial lockdown by 30 days, the government also charged a committee of senior officials to begin planning a post-lockdown scenario for the state. That committee has since submitted its report on how to safely reopen Kaduna State, and it identified the availability of realistic health data as one crucial factor for making any decision. This is an important matter given the Covid-19 infection in our state and in neighbouring states. Many of the cases recorded in Kaduna State have either been from persons with a history of interstate travel or their contacts. The Kaduna State Government is conscious of the sacrifices that citizens have made and the many challenges that remain in keeping them safe from Covid-19. This is why the state government has adjusted and extended the Quarantine Orders, by two weeks to empower citizens to more steadfastly carry forward, the fight against Covid-19. Preservation of the relaxations in this extension requires that citizens demonstrate greater compliance with laid down health protocols, particularly the wearing of facemasks outside the house, observance of physical distancing, regular handwashing with soap and water and the avoidance of large gatherings. Violation of these protocols will compel the government to reimpose restrictions. A spike in Covid-19 infections will also necessitate a tightening of restrictions. This week, the relaxation of movement will be effected on Wednesday and Thursday. From Monday, 1st June 2020, the revised regulations will come into effect. They give citizens a three-day window every week to shop for food and other essentials. Until otherwise stated, the lockdown-free days are Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Temporary neighbourhood markets will continue to operate from 10 am to 4 pm on these three days, but citizens can move from 6 am to 6 pm on these lockdown-free days. Informal markets are not allowed and those flouting regulations by turning streets into markets are advised to stop. The adjusted orders also expand the ability of citizens to resume the pursuit of livelihoods, in permitted sectors subject to compliance with health and safety protocols, including physical distancing. Private sector firms that meet these requirements will also operate on Tuesdays, Wednesdays and Thursdays. This window also allows vulcanises, welders, mechanics and providers of similar services to operate on the same days. However, the prohibition of interstate and intercity travel remains. Government officials and mobile courts will enforce this ban to prevent people from spreading the virus through non-essential movement. In addition, the nighttime curfew that has been enforced across the state still remains, from 6 pm to 6 am. Restaurants will be allowed to open strictly to offer takeaway services. However, bars, sporting venues and event centres remain closed as are hotels that have not specifically licensed as essential service providers during this period. Kaduna State has so far conducted 1900 tests and had recorded a total of 189 Covid-19 cases as at 25th May 2020. Ideally, the state would prefer to conduct so many more tests, but we are constrained by a host of factors. During the two-week extension, the state will continue to expand its public health response, including testing capacity. The MoH Team will continue to conduct more tests in identified hotspots. The public sector will also use the two-week extension to prepare for limited resumption. Heads of Ministries, Department and Agencies will ensure that government offices are reconfigured for physical distancing and that handwashing facilities are available. The state government will continue to support low income, poor and vulnerable households/residents with some food. In the first phase, food palliatives were distributed in nine local government areas. The second phase of distribution is going on in 14 local government areas. I wish to assure citizens that we would launch the third phase of food distribution to cover all the 23 local government areas as soon as possible. I wish to thank our senior officials who have valiantly supervised the ban on interstate travel across our state boundaries. The government also acknowledges the efforts of the security and law enforcement agencies, especially KASTLEA and the Kaduna State Vigilance Service.”