EXPECTATIONS ofa possible civildisorder over the proposed fuel subsidy removal and the need to tackle the Boko Haram menace may have informed the Federal Government's decision to earmark N9.22 billion for security in the 2012 budget, as the Coordinating Minister for the Economy and the Minister of Finance, Dr Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala, provided the facts behind the figures of the appropriation bill.Presidency source informed the Nigerian Tribune that the government was bent on removing the subsidy on fuel at the appropriate time and had planned to put everything in place to curtail the likely civil disorder that might erupt following the subsidy removal.The Federal Government, it was gathered, also saw as embarrassing its inability to curtail once and for all the Boko Haram crisis and had vowed that 2012 would mark a turning point as far as the religious sect is concerned.To this end, the government intends to use part of the security vote for the provision of closed circuit television (CCTV) cameras, intelligence gathering and counter-terrorism training.Speaking on the breakdown of the budget, Dr Okonjo-Iweala said the 2012 budget was with a serious purpose which would be implemented with a serious approach.She said Nigerians were tired of talk and so was the government, and that was why the budget would be all about action in the core areas of the economy.The minister, who made the declaration while addressing the media, explained the rationale for the scale-up in the allocations made to sectors like power, security, agriculture and infrastructure development.The minister added that the civil service collected a large chunk of the budget. She said the salaries of the Federal Government personnel had swallowed 35 per cent of the recurrent expenditure and five per cent overheads.She said the government was not looking at retrenching workers, but considering how to update their skills.She said President Goodluck Jonathan had consulted extensively with labour unions, religious groups and youth groups before coming up with the budget.Okonjo-Iweala said the government would focus on reducing the debt profile, which currently stands at 16.4 per cent, and that more attention would be paid to creating revenue for the country.She also stated that the government was looking towards the completion of viable projects.She added that there would be a vigorous implementation of ports and customs reforms to reduce the cost of doing business by the private sector.On power, the minister said that the administration was progressing in the privatisation of the power sector in line with the power road map.She further stated that government would guarantee 70 per cent of the principal of all loans for the supply of seeds and fertilisers by the private sector, so as to boost food security.Dr Okonjo-Iweala also gave reasons why President Goodluck Jonathan kept silent on the controversy trailing the proposed removal of fuel subsidy by government while presenting the 2012 budget to the joint session of the National Assembly on Tuesday.Dr Okonjo-Iweala said that the president could not speak much on the matter because he was still consulting stakeholders involved.The minster said: 'President Jonathan is still dialoguing with relevant stakeholders in this matter, as I speak with you, he is talking with a group of the youth segment, the traditional institutions, religious leaders, Non-governmental organisations, the labour unions, political
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