PRESIDENT Goodluck Jonathan yesterday presided over an extra-ordinary meeting of the Federal Executive Council (FEC) at the Council Chambers of the Presidential Villa Abuja. At the end, with the Council approving a new fiscal framework for federal government between next year and 2015 geared towards "fiscal prudence and consolidation.
The Council also approved that the Federal Internal Revenue Service (FIRS) should begin an immediate enforcement of the nation's tax laws that would result in the recovery of about N170 billion being owed the nation by individuals and corporate bodies.
It also approved the parameters for the 2012 budget, including extending the medium-term expenditure from the current three years to four years; benchmark price for crude oil at $75; daily projected production of crude oil at 2.48 million per day; Gross Domestic Product (GDP) of between seven and eight per cent and single digit inflation target.
Coordinating Minister for the Economy and Minister of Finance, Dr. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, who briefed journalists at the end of the Council session, along with Minister of Information, Mr. Labaran Maku, Minister of State for Finance, Dr. Yerima Lawal Ngama and Director General of Budget, Dr. Bright Okogu, also announced that the Council approved changes in the direction and structure of the national budget.
The changes include reducing the budget deficit to three per cent and trending down over the next years (2015); reducing the recurrent expenditure from the current level of 74 per cent to 72 per cent next year and below 70 per cent by 2015; an increase of 1.5 per cent in cal spending and driving it to below 70 per cent by 2015; and driving borrowing by the federal government from last year's level of N852 billion to below N800 billion by 2012.
Okonjo-Iweala said in arriving at the parameters, the Council acknowledged the situation in the global environment because of its impact on the price of oil.
The Coordinating Minister also said that while the government would be focused in containing the expenditure side, "we also trying to raise revenues. There are leakages within the economy that we are trying to block.
"We have about N170 billion estimated taxes that have not been collected. Of this, N131 billion are under discussions now to make sure that both parties agree that this is what is really owed."
The Guardian