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Tag: hurdles

  • Osinbajo: Govt’ll remove hurdles to doing business

    Osinbajo: Govt’ll remove hurdles to doing business

    The Federal Government has promised to dismantle what it called institutional hurdles to further promote ease of doing business in the country.

    Vice President, Prof Yemi Osinbajo made the promise yesterday in Abuja at the 23rd Nigerian Economic Summit.

    In tackling one of these institutional hurdles, Osinbajo assured the business community that the incidence of multiple Customs checkpoints, especially along the eastern axis will be looked into to create a conducive investment climate in the country.

    He said government has received several reports from concerned Nigerians “who describe the checkpoints as inimical to growth and development.”

    Osinbajo also noted that plans are afoot “to dismantle all clearance bottlenecks at sea and airport borders to ensure quick facilitation. Government will implement reforms at the National Agency for Foods Drugs and Administration Control (NAFDAC) and the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) to make their operations quicker and more orderly.”

    Speaking on financing infrastructure, he lamented that “our budget for this year is about N7 trillion. That is not enough to address all the infrastructure challenges we have and that is why we will always partner with the private sector to address them.”

    He said the Buhari administration remained committed to partnering with the private sector to address the country’s infrastructure shortfall.

    Osinbajo noted that “foreign exchange reserves have risen to about $33 billion and end users have increased access to foreign exchange partly due mainly to increased export earnings and remittances as well as the introduction of a dedicated transparent window for Investors and Exporters (NAFEX).”

    The results he said, “have been encouraging as the inflows of capital in the second quarter of 2017 of about $1.8 billion were almost double the amount of $908 million imported in the first quarter of the year.”

    Osinbajo added that the National Electricity Regulatory Commission (NERC) will this month issue directives on independent metering. According to him, “the eligible customer regime allows a willing seller, willing buyer arrangements in the sale of power. While the independent metering directive allows independent entities aside from registered power distribution companies to sell and install meters to customers and be paid directly as collections are made from metered customers.”

    This he said will break the distribution gridlock and there is good cause to believe that we will achieve the 10,000Mw envisaged in the ERGP.”

    On the concerns of high interest rate, Osinbajo pointed out that government is “concerned as most of you are, with the very high interest rates and of course most of that have to do with government borrowing. Since the evidence points to a crowding out of the private sector, the Federal Government is reducing its demand for domestic paper and will seek to refinance maturing domestic debt with longer tenor and cheaper external borrowing.”

    Osinbajo assured the gathering of private sector players that, “intervention funds will continue to be made available through the Bank of Industry, and repositioned NEXIM and Bank of Agriculture and the newly established Development Bank of Nigeria.”

  • Buhari’s $5.815bn Chinese loan faces hurdles in Senate

    Buhari’s $5.815bn Chinese loan faces hurdles in Senate

    President Muhammadu Buhari’s request for the National Assembly’s endorsement of a $5.815 billion loan suffered a temporary setback yesterday at the Senate.

    The Federal Government plans to raise the loan from the China Exim Bank to modernise Lagos-Kano, Kano-Kaduna, Lagos-Ibadan and Lagos-Calabar rail lines.

    Following a motion by Senator Enyinnaya Abaribe (Abia South), the Senate resolved to invite Minister of Transportation Rotimi Amaechi to explain why the South East corridor rail line was omitted in the areas covered by the proposed loan.

    The upper chamber however rejected a prayer that urged the Senate to suspend consideration of the loan request pending when the “oversight” of the eastern part of the country is corrected.

    The motion entitled “Outright Omission of Eastern Corridor Rail Line in the request for approval of Federal Government 2016-2015 External Borrowing (Rolling Plan)” was hotly debated.

    Abaribe  recalled that on 26th of April, 2017 the Federal Government laid before the National Assembly a request seeking an approval for a loan of $5,851 billion from China Exim Bank to execute the modernization of Lagos-Kano, Kano-Kaduna, Lagos-Ibadan and Lagos-Calabar rail segment;

    He observed that the above sections of the rail line that the loan was being sought for covers only a section of the country, the western corridor or sections.

    The Abia South lawmaker noted that the Eastern section of the rail segment, which has a link between the South Eastern and North Eastern parts of the rail line is completely excluded.

    He noted that the loan being a Federal Government borrowing, would be paid for by all sections of the country; therefore every section of the country should be taken into consideration;

    To Abaribe, the complete exclusion of the Eastern section that links the four zones of South-South, South-East, North-Central and North East and the key cities, such as Port Harcourt, Aba, Enugu, Makurdi, Lafia, Gudi, Jos, Bauchi and Maiduguri, is inexplicable,

    He prayed the Senate to suspend consideration of the loan request until the correction of the oversight is made.

    He also urged that Senate to invite the Minister of Transport to explain the exclusion.

    Deputy Senate President, Ike Ekweremadu, who seconded the motion, said the Senate should see injustice done to any section of the country as injustice to all.

    Ekweremadu said it is on record that the Federal Government had been rehabilitating rail lines in the country with the exception of the rail lines in the South East.

    He noted that the promise of the government that the rail line in the South East would be accommodated in future was doubtful.

    But Senator Gbenga Ashafa, (Lagos East) described the information in the motion as “inadequate and inaccurate”.

    Ashafa, who is also Chairman, Senate Committee on Land Transport, said that the Lagos-Kano and Lagos-Calabar rail lines covered the areas listed in the motion.

    He said that Onitsha and Aba are also covered in the plan.

    He urged the Senate to look at the issue dispassionately insisting that the loan should be secured for the development of the country.

    Senate President Bukola Saraki said that leadership of the National Assembly took up the issue with President Buhari.

    Saraki said that the meeting of the National Assembly leadership with the executive informed the second letter of the President on the issue.

    He said the second letter of specified that every section of the country would be covered by the loan.

    Saraki said if the report of the Senate Committee on Local and Foreign Debts failed to cover the South East, the Senate would resolve how to deal with the loan.

     

  • El-Rufai v Sani: Hurdles ahead Kaduna 2019 governorship race

    El-Rufai v Sani: Hurdles ahead Kaduna 2019 governorship race

    As the war of words between Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El- Rufai and Senator Shehu Sani continues unabated, Abdulgafar Alabelewe in Kaduna reports that the quest for Kaduna State’s governorship seat is behind the battle 

    With the new twists to the feud between Kaduna State Governor, Nasir El-Rufai and the Senator representing Kaduna Central in the upper legislative chamber, Senator Shehu Sani, the battle line may have been drawn between the duo, even though they are from the same party.

    Before last few weeks, a lot of people thought the rift between them had been laid to rest, until El-Rufai spoke to newsmen in Lagos, saying Sani was criticising him to position himself to take over as the state governor in 2019, but that the Senator is not a threat to his political ambition.

    Typical of an activist-turned politician, Sani wasted no time at firing back, as he took to his Facebook page with an idiomatic expression that, “Whoever throws a stone to a peaceful beehive should not expect a shower of flowers”, and through parable, Sani has in the last few weeks used every available medium to lash at El-Rufai.

    The Nation observed that the crisis of ego between the duo predated their emergence as governor and senator respectively. Sani was not in the El-Rufai’s camp during the primary, just as the governor, then APC aspirant, also had his preferred candidate, the then incumbent, Senator Mohammed Sani Saleh, just like El-Rufai himself was the preferred candidate of President Muhammadu Buhari.

    However, El-Rufai’s candidate lost to Sani. Also, the camps, including those of the governorship aspirants, became difficult to be united for the success of the party. The situation was only managed to the general election as APC won both the gubernatorial and senatorial seats, except that of Kaduna South, which was won by the PDP.

    Soon after their victory, the sour relationship between El-Rufai and Sani became a common knowledge, especially when the senator started criticising his governor’s policies and programmes publicly.

    Chief among the highly criticised policies of El-Rufai by Sani was the abolition of Ramadan and Sallah gifts, as well as Christmas largesse distributed to prominent persons and organisations by the PDP government, which El-Rufai had described as fraudulent, as he said resources meant for the development of the state and better life for the common people was being wasted on gifts to majority of people who could afford them.

    But contrary to the said governor’s move to save the state’s resources for developmental projects, Sani went public to condemn the cancellation of the Ramadan and Sallah gifts and went further to revive it within his constituency. In fact, the Senator was then nicknamed, ‘Mai Rakumi’ at the event where he distributed rams, cows and camels to his constituents.

    So, for every action taken by the El-Rufai’s administration, Senator Sani has a second opinion. For instance, during the land recovery exercise, where the state government was taking back public institutions’ lands from those who illegally built on them, Sani granted series of press interviews, condemning government’s action.

    The senator went further to accuse El-Rufai of running the state in such a way that, “he will end up ruining all of us, which I will not be part of. He has taken some steps which have only attracted anger from the general public against him.

    “He is a governor, I’m also a senator. He is not bigger than me, neither am I bigger than him. So, as far as I’m concerned, whether El-Rufai is a governor or whatever, anything which he does that does not tally with what is supposed to be done, I will certainly tell him,” he added.

    Explaining further the basis for his anger, Sani added: “He (El-Rufai) is a technocrat, while I’m an activist and a revolutionary. So, my power base is the common people, the masses who constitute my strength. They are the people I have lived with and fought for over the years. The way the governor is running the affairs of government in Kaduna State is the one which, if care is not taken, we will all sink.

    “He has to take consideration of the fact that he met people that were impoverished, that were muscled, harassed and demoralised by the government of the PDP. So, first of all, they don’t need harsh policies that will further impoverish and alienate them. We need to carry them along, taking cognisance of the situation which we find them in. I fundamentally differ with him on that issue.

    “Kaduna is a place I have lived all my life and since I came out of prison in 1998, I have never been out of Kaduna for more than two weeks and I’ve never been appointed to any public office which I will live in Abuja and not know what is happening in Kaduna. So, I can tell you that within Kaduna North, Kaduna South and metropolis of Kaduna, there is hardly any street that I don’t know anybody,” Sani claimed.

    El-Rufai in the recent interview said Senator Sani was only angry with him because, he (El-Rufai) didn’t consider the senator’s men for appointment as commissioners. He however claimed that, Sani’s men were not qualified to be part of his cabinet.

    According to the governor, “Sani’s history is that of an activist, of some type and it is up to you to determine the adjective. He contested the APC primaries and defeated the candidate that I supported (General Sani Saleh), and after the primaries, I brought everyone together and said we all have to win this election. I got Saleh to support him, and we supported him fully.

    “I think the problem is that because Shehu Sani’s mind is that of an activist, he thinks that the way to position himself, is through the media. He thinks politics is being in the media all the time. Activism is different from politics. Sometimes in politics, you don’t want your name in the media, but activists’ oxygen is the media, and he thinks that the way to remain visible and prepare him for running for governor of Kaduna State in 2019 is to criticise everything I do. Even if I breathe air, he will criticise it.

    “I told my media team not to respond to him; we are a government of everybody, including Shehu Sani. Let the party apparatchik respond to him, let people in the streets respond to him, and I also told them to let’s work, let’s produce results because we will get to the point that nobody can come and criticise us.

    “Because of the things he has been doing, criticising President Buhari, saying all sorts of things about me, the party disciplinary process was initiated against him, but he blames it on me. He thinks I engineered it. But frankly, I don’t care about Shehu Sani. I don’t think he is a threat to me politically or in any way. In 2018 when the whistle is blown, we will see who has support on the ground in Kaduna. It is not an issue that I bother about”, he said.

    On the issue of appointments into his government, El-Rufai said “I can choose who to empower. I am the governor of the state, and I have to make appointments, and in making the appointments, I have to balance merit, loyalty and paying off other debts. I don’t owe Shehu Sani anything; he owes me. I asked all of them, including Shehu Sani, to give me names of people that I will appoint to positions, they gave me, and I looked at them, and none of the people from Shehu Sani’s list is good enough to be a commissioner in my cabinet.

    “Shehu Sani’s first anger was that the list of commissioners came out and none from his list. In a state where there are about 10,000 PhDs that I have in my data base; I am not going to take a diploma holder and make him a commissioner just because he is Shehu Sani’s man. I don’t operate like that. When President Obasanjo called me and said he was going to make me a minister, I gave him a condition that ‘you don’t appoint members of my team, I will appoint my team,’ and that is the person that appointed me. If you have a difficult job, you have to appoint your own team.

    “One of the commissioners we appointed has a PhD in Physics; he was a director in the Federal Civil Service. I never saw him until the day that I swore him in. We just looked at his CV, somebody brought it, and we appointed him based on his CV because there is a job to be done. Do I do this all the time? No! When we were appointing local government chairmen, I didn’t get involved. I said let us go and look at those who worked for us at the grassroots and appoint them local government chairmen and councillors.

    “There are 225 councillors in Kaduna State, 23 local government chairmen; I did not appoint one. I left it to the party and our leaders. I said go and do it. But when they brought the list, I looked, and there was no woman; I said it is not possible, 23 chairmen and no woman? So, I looked, I saw one woman councillor in one local government, and I made her chairman! That was the only thing I did. I got two women to be local government chairmen! That was what I did.

    “I did not appoint one person because they are not working directly with me. But the people that work directly with me, I must have confidence that they can deliver. However, many politicians don’t like this because the PDP system of distribution has become so ingrained that people feel entitled that once they help you win an election, you must give them commissioners’ slots or so. Even Obasanjo that made me Minister of Federal Capital Territory (FCT) did not send me one person to work with me”, said El-Rufai.

    Interventions and the hurdles ahead

    With this war of words, the two party men became enemies who don’t see each other face to face. For any event organised by the state government, Senator Sani was always conspicuously absent without any representation or apology, until when Sani lost his mother. El-Rufai paid him a condolence visit, and many thought that was the end of the political war, until weeks after when they both refused to sheath their swords.

    In the heat of the renewed attack, the party at the state level could not help but slam the senator with an 11 month suspension, a situation which dragged the National Vice Chairman of the APC in charge of North West, Alhaji Inuwa Abdulkadir, to wade into the crisis.

    But rather than solve the problem, sources said Abdulkadir’s intervention compounded the crisis. At a peace meeting he called to resolve the crisis, only party stakeholders from Sani’s camp were in attendance, a situation which apparently got the Zonal Vice Chairman angry and overruled the Senator’s suspension by the local chapter of the party.

    The local chapter of the APC, which had turned deaf ear to the Zonal Vice Chairman’s position went further to suspend Sani indefinitely after the expiration of the previous 11 months sanction. Since then, the Senator has not been participating in all the party affairs, but has remained critical of El-Rufai and his government.

    Sen. Sani, just like other El-Rufai’s antagonists took a whip at the governor over his recently leaked memo to President Muhammadu Buhari, saying ‘El-Rufai hugs Buhari in the day time and stabs him at night”. The Senator also wasted no time at joining those who condemned El-Rufai for his alleged denigrating of the contributions of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and his South-West base to the victory of the All Progressives Congress (APC) in the 2015 elections, saying the governor’s remarks on the APC stalwart was the height of ingratitude.

    The senator, in a statement he made available to The Nation, countered El-Rufai, when he said the contributions of the former Lagos State Governor and the South-West to the victory of the APC in the last general elections, was unparalleled, arguing that, without Tinubu, the victory over the then ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) would have remained a mere dream.

    According to him, “The memo, written by Kaduna Governor which tends to belittle the contribution of Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu and the South-West is sad and unfortunate. It is perfidious and the height of ingratitude. We must accept the stalk truth that without Asiwaju Ahmed Bola Tinubu and the principled position of the South-West, dislodging Goodluck Jonathan and the then ruling PDP could have still remained a pipe dream, a hollow hope or a political mirage. El-Rufai defecated on a broom that is supposed to clean the littered floor of the nation.

    “President Buhari is the heart of APC and Asiwaju is the lungs. Tinubu’s contribution to the success of the party is unequal. El-Rufai smiles with Tinubu in broad daylight and stings him at night. He hugs Tinubu with a chest of hooks and shakes him with toxic palms. Asiwaju Bola Ahmed Tinubu is a man who built a castle for others to live and asked to appreciate the gift of a room in the boys’ quarters. Those who rubbished a hunter who borrowed them his arrow to disable an antelope will someday come back for same arrow to disable a lion.

    “Tinubu honoured many official invitations to Kaduna, unknowingly; he was back-stabbed with an acidic memo. Tinubu has a history of being betrayed and has a history of overcoming betrayal. The future of the APC is with Buhari and the South-West. Without Buhari and the South-West, the change train will derail and end in smithereens like the fate of Yugoslavia or Soviet Union.

    “President Buhari should be watchful of those who prey behind him and pray before him. Tinubu is an indispensable major component of change. My knowledge of Tinubu dates back to the NADECO days when we were in the trenches during the struggle against military dictatorship.

    “El-Rufai should publicly apologise to Tinubu and the South-West for degrading their contribution to the liberation of Nigeria. To insult a man publicly and apologise to him privately is eat your cake and have it. Those heavily drinking from the liquor of power should know that they will later or lately have to drive back home,” he said.

    The Senator had less than 24 hours before commenting on the governor’s memo when he received traders from a local market (Kasuwan Barci) in Kaduna, which is under the state government’s plan for demolition, saying APC may lose Kaduna State, “if El-Rufai continues with his ‘anti-people’ policies.” He said, the ‘anti-people’ policies of the APC’s administration in Kaduna State is sending people away, arguing that, many people now only have faith in Buhari not in the party any more.

    According to the senator, “most programmes of government in the state are not in favour of the people and if it continues, APC will pay for it. The current administration’s policies are only designed to please some certain group of people in the state”.

    He however urged the state government to shelve plan to demolish the market, famous for its textile and second hand clothing, saying demolishing such market with 4,800 shops at this time of hardship would spell doom for thousands of families.

    Though, neither the governor nor his media handlers responded to Sani, the local APC in a swift reaction described the senator as a political ‘scavenger’ who feeds from the suffering of a common man. The party’s scribe, Salisu Tanko Wusono, urged the party supporters to ignore Sani, for “he is a reckless and disloyal senator that the APC has placed on indefinite suspension”.

    Wusono added that, “The Kaduna State APC team is proud of the record of the APC state government. We are delighted that we have a government that is ready and able to take decisions, and a government that is willing to engage constructively with those who share its passion for progress.

    “Whether it is roads or markets, the government has an obligation to improve them. As shown in Rigasa and Ungwan Dosa, to really improve roads means to dualise them. This means that some structures have to be removed to make this possible. Engagements between government and the residents of Rigasa and Ungwan Dosa have made it possible to arrive at mutual agreements on compensation and cooperation for the projects.

    “Similarly, the government wishes to modernise markets where it is necessary to do so. Traders in Kasuwan Barci have written to government to express their views on why their market should be excluded at this time. The government has directed the relevant agencies to have stakeholder engagements with the traders on the matter. And we trust that once that directive is implemented, a positive solution will be agreed with the traders.

    “The APC urges all its supporters to ignore scavengers like Shehu Sani, a reckless and disloyal senator that the APC has placed on indefinite suspension. Political scavengers treat the concerns of ordinary people as an opportunity to eat.

    “When citizens struggle to find constructive paths to solve the challenges of life, he inserts himself into processes that are advanced. But he will not get what he wants. He will not be allowed to derail the legitimate wishes of the government and the traders of Kasuwan Barci for a better market”, he said.

    But, a party chieftain and National Chairman of Buhari Like-Minds Movement of Nigeria, Hon. Ibrahim Bello Rigachikun, wants Governor El-Rufai and Senator Sani to reconcile their differences and forge a common ground in the interest of the party ahead of the 2019 General Elections, and he is hopeful that the crisis will become a thing of the past.

    Rigachikun opined that the feud is not a war but a campaign of violence, as each of Governor El-Rufai and Senator Shehu Sani is only protecting his political structure.

    According to Rigachikun, “I believe the leadership of the party in the state which could not comply with the manifesto and constitution of the APC is partly to blame. For instance, the party constitution makes it clear that when a seat is vacant, filling same should not be automatic but that election should hold. The Deputy Governor of Kaduna State was the Chairman of the APC in the State, and he became the Deputy Governor. The Secretary of the party became a Commissioner and is now the Chief of Staff to the Governor. So, the flagrant disobedience of the laid procedures by the party became a huge challenge at the onset.

    “So, if there had been reconciliation with those seats legitimately filled, I do not think these problems would arise today. We, the stakeholders have shown concern by drawing the attention of the party leadership in the state to what is happening because if things continue this way, we may have problems in 2019.

    “Whether we like it or not, we need the cooperation of the governor, and that of the senator for they both have their strength. I must say that I am convinced that sooner than later, the two would reconcile their differences in the interest of the party. Has there been any conscientious effort by stakeholders to bring the two together? It has been quite difficult to bring them together because the leadership of the party at the state level is not strong enough. The party leadership has not been able to broker the peace largely because of this.

    “It would be very heartwarming if they can sheathe their swords to keep the peace. This is a crisis that ought to have been over two or three months after the elections, but here we are. Like I said, it is time to put their differences aside, and those who can call the senator and the governor to order should please do so now. But politically, some people are quite happy that the two men are fighting each other because that in itself is a source of food for them. Do not forget that when two elephants fight, it is the grass that suffers.

    “It is rather unfortunate that people like us are no longer seen as relevant because we should have waded in to settle this matter a long time ago. The only option is reconciliation but as things stand today, the opposition is very happy with what is happening to us, and they are praying for peace to elude us from now till 2019 when another round of elections would take place.

    “A lot of people love our party in Kaduna State, and it is very unfortunate that this is happening today. We expect these two highly respected men to reconcile their differences especially since elections are over”, he said.

    If the INEC timetable for the 2019 General Elections is anything to go by, it is already less than two years to the polls. The question however is that, can the two party bigwigs who have engaged in battle of supremacy for two years reconcile overnight? If the common political saying that, ‘there is no permanent friend or permanent enemy, but permanent interest’ plays out, good for both of them. The fear is that, if that doesn’t play out, opposition party will certainly take that advantage and give APC a run for its money.

    Looking at the body language and Senator Sani’s constant engagement with those having one issue or the other with El-Rufai, one would be quick to conclude that, he is really determined to slug the governorship seat with El-Rufai in 2019. Aside several interventions he has made within his constituency, observers said some Hausa singers have recorded tracks already addressing the Senator as Kaduna Governor by 2019.

    But considering that, all the 11 APC lawmakers in House of Representatives from the state, as well all the 28 APC lawmakers in the Kaduna State House of Assembly are loyal to El-Rufai’s leadership, the battle promises to be tough for the activist Senator. In fact, if the state party structure remains as it is in the hands of Governor El-Rufai, Shehu Sani’s alleged gubernatorial ambition will not only meet a brick wall, retaining his present seat in the Senate will also be more difficult than a camel passing through the eye of a needle, except if the Senator decamps to another party to pick a ticket.

  • 2019: Hurdles before INEC

    2019: Hurdles before INEC

    For several reasons, the release of the time-table for the 2019 general elections by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) has been greeted with mixed feelings. Assistant Editor LEKE SALAUDEEN examines some of the challenges that must be addressed, if the commission must conduct hitch-free elections.

    THE release of the time-table for the 2019 general elections by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), two years ahead of the exercise, caught many Nigerians unawares. It was strange to them, because in the past such time-table was released only months before the polls.
    According to the time-table, the presidential and National Assembly elections will hold on February 16, 2019. This will be followed by governorship, state assembly and the Federal Capital Territory council elections on March 12.
    Though many observers have welcomed the early release of the time-table, because it will give INEC and politicians ample time to plan and prepare for their exercise, they have equally identified some of the issues that may constitute hurdles for the the electoral body, if not tackled on time.
    A civil society activist and President/Convener, Nigeria Voters Assembly (VOTAS), Comrade Moshood Erubami, believes there is nothing wrong in INEC releasing the time-table now. He said the early release of the time-table is an indication that the electoral commission is seriously desirous of conducting free and fair elections in 2019.
    He said: “The early release is a positive move, given the advantages embedded in the innovation. It would give the electorate the opportunity to assess the parties on their deliveries and make up their minds on which party and candidates to vote for during the elections.
    “It will also serve as enough notice to stakeholders, to the necessary steps to satisfy all the guidelines from INEC. The commission will also have enough time to evolve internal mechanisms to correct the mistakes of the past, as contained in the reports of local and foreign election observers.”
    Erubami said there will be enough time to train permanent and ad-hoc staff, procure all necessary equipment, data capturing machines, card readers, update the voters’ register, release Permanent Voters Cards (PVCs) to those who are yet to claim their cards and possibly review the boundaries of some polling units to accommodate over bloated numbers.
    The Commissioner in-charge of Southwest, Mr Solomon Soyebi, said the release of the time-table was to set a template in line with international best practices. He said: “It is just an example of what we want election year to look like; it is just like a standard practice as the case in United States, Ghana, Switzerland, Mexico and so on.”
    Soyebi explained that the commission has decided to fix the presidential and National Assembly elections for the third Saturday in February of the election year, while state elections will follow two weeks later. He said: “It is not about 2019 alone; it is about all future elections in Nigeria. The same template will apply to 2023, 2027, 2031 and subsequent elections. It is a principle to hold the election around 100 days to the end of term. It is a template we are institutionalising.”
    In the view of many experts, credible elections require adequate planning. But, the commission, they add, must develop the capacity to deal with challenges. In this regard, it must not hide under the illusion that its preparations are perfect or that it has accounted for all the challenges that could arise.
    This will compel the INEC Chairman Prof. Mahmud Yakubu and his team to go back to drawing board whenever necessary, to tackle the following identified problems: provision of authentic voter register, menace of malfunctioning card readers, distribution of uncollected PVCs, training of ad-hoc staff and the absence of Resident Electoral Commissioner (RECs) in many states. It also includes issues bordering on voter apathy, staff training , insecurity during and after elections.

    Voter’s register
    The success or otherwise of an election is determined by the quality of the voter register. This prompted INEC under Prof. Attahiru Jega to come up with the biometric register of voters used for the conduct of 2015 polls. Through this measure, the register was more credible than it was in 2011. Since then, there had been complaints of different factions of voters’ register in circulation and the omission of eligible voters’ names in many cases.
    A lawyer, Mr Austin Ezechukwu, said it was not impossible that desperate politicians who want to win election by all means have hacked into INEC’s platform and insert fictitious names in the register. He said even though INEC is trying to ensure elections in this country are credible, but it has to be very careful with the activities of cyber criminals. INEC, he added, should device a method that will shield all sensitive materials and information from the reach of the criminals and their sponsors.
    Ezechukwu noted that INEC has always been updating voter’s register whenever an election was about to take place. He cited the Edo and the Ondo governorship elections where registration of voters took place before the election, to enable those who have not registered, including those that has just attained the voting age, to do so.
    He said the continuous registration of voters had not been successful in the past because INEC preparation was not adequate; the machines were faulty and the number of those seeking to register always overwhelms the personnel deployed for the exercise.

    Card reader failure
    The Smart Card Readers (SCRs) was introduced in 2015 by Prof. Jega, to ensure 100 per cent verification and authentication of voters. The introduction of card reader lent credibility to the 2015 general elections, because only those registered were allowed to vote and it also eliminated multiple voting which had always marred election in the country.
    There were numerous cases of card reader failure in 2015. Observers had expected that by now the problem would have been solved. But this is not so. A lawyer and human right activist, Mr Monday Ubani, is worried that INEC has not found any solution to the problem of card reader failure. He said the problem reoccurs in every election and that INEC appears helpless in this regard.
    Ubani argues that even if INEC procured the card readers from China nothing stops the commission from getting remedy through European technology. He said: “We should approach European countries that have the technical know-how, rather than stick to China. INEC should seek solution to the problem of card reader before 2019; we won’t take excuse from them.”
    In this regard, a youth activist, Mallam Adamu Nasir, advised INEC to always put in place quality control measures in terms of checking the card readers before the voting day to know those that are functioning and those that are not. He said the lack of diligence preparation is responsible for card readers’ failure.
    Nasir contends that the card reader is a simple machine that is not difficult to operate. If INEC had prepared diligently, they ought to have known the state of the card readers before deploying them to the field. He urged INEC to always ensure it trains ad hoc staff on the use of card readers on time.

    Permanent Voters’ Card
    The PVC was introduced to eliminate impersonation in voting. When prospective voters are about to register, the biometrics of each person is captured, because it has been proved that no two individuals have the same biometrics configuration in the world.
    Despite the response of the Nigerian public to this innovation, what baffles analysts is the huge number of PVCs that have not been collected. For example, in Lagos State, about 1.47 million voters’ cards are yet to be collected.
    Erubami noted that PVCs were part of the innovation introduced by Prof. Jega during his tenure to make election free, fair and transparent. He said the number of PVCs still uncollected could be because the owners have lost confidence in the electoral process.
    Ezechukwu said there should be timeline for the collection of the cards. He said: “I will suggest if after two years a registered voter failed to collect his PVC, INEC should destroy it and remove his/her name from the voter’s register. Or else for how long will INEC continue to keep the uncollected cards?
    “Taking this action will sanitise the electoral register. The names of fake voters would be removed and we shall be in a position to know exactly the number of authentic voters in this country. It will put an end to wide margin between the number of registered voters’ number and the number of votes cast.”

    Absence of RECs
    The Constitution prescribes the office of Resident Electoral Commissioner (REC) in each of the 36 states of the Federation and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT ). As at now, 33 states are without RECs. It is surprising that INEC has decided to embark on registration of voters in the absence of RECs. Who will coordinate this sensitive exercise? Will INEC rely on administrative staff in compiling credible voter’s register? Can INEC staff be trusted to handle this matter, given the fact that some of them have been indicted by a panel set up by the commission on Rivers re-run?
    Though, it is not the responsibility of INEC to appoint RECs. The power lies with the President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria. INEC should have put pressure on the executive on the need to fill the vacancies rather than wait till now.
    Ubani is not happy that the executive has not named new RECs to fill the vacancies created by the exit of the former office holders at the end of their tenure. He said now that INEC has released the time table for 2019 elections, President Buhari should as a matter of urgency appoint new resident electoral commissioners.
    He said: “The present situation with INEC is not healthy; it doesn’t portray us as a country that is committed to democratic growth; the President should save the situation by naming new RECs for the 33 states where vacancies exist.”

    Inconclusive elections
    Based on the performance of INEC in the recent elections, it seems the commission has found its bearing. With regards to the Rivers re-run was concluded last month, it has to come out with new devices that will put a stop to unnecessary postponement of elections. Although INEC could not be blame for the Rivers case, because of the security lapses which is beyond its mandate, it must introduce sanctions against thuggery.
    Ezechukwu calls for heavy sanction against state governors that work against free and fair election. To him, a state where electoral process is disrupted and lives are lost, no election should hold in that state and the Federal Government should declare a state of emergence in such state. He said such sanction will serve as deterrent to others.
    He said if what we experienced in Rivers State was replicated in two or three other states, then there will be anarchy; nobody will be thinking of preparation for 2019 polls.

    Prosecution of erring officials
    For the first time, INEC has come up with a report on some of its officials who took bribe from politicians to rig elections. It is a commendable effort that must be sustained if INEC must be above board.
    Ubani urged INEC to wield out the corrupt elements within the commission. According to him the job of INEC is meant for people of integrity and not dishonest people. He applauded INEC for prosecuting the indicted officials hoping that their conviction will send danger signals to other corrupt officials within the system.
    A political scientist, Dr Abdul Azeez Mustapha called for total cleansing of INEC, with a view to removing the bad eggs in the agency. He made reference to the manifestation of dreaded corruption involving some highly- placed officials of the commission. He said all the indicted officers should face the wrath of the law.
    Mustapha said given its strategic role as an umpire in a democratic election such tendency will spell doom for the election credibility in Nigeria. It is therefore necessary for a special anti-corruption unit to be created in the commission to handle all corrupt cases with utmost urgency, he suggested.

    Training of Ad-hoc Staff
    The electoral body relies on ad-hoc staff to conduct election. They are not acquainted with the election process; hence most of them are not competent in handling electoral materials. Some of the ad-hoc staff employed by INEC do not know how to operate card reader. On many occasions they have to stop election process until INEC Information Communication Technology personnel come around to put them through. Time is wasted because of minor problem.
    INEC should put in place a comprehensive training programme for the ad-hoc staff. A three day training is inadequate for them to master the system. Ubani also advised INEC to be careful in recruiting ad-hoc staff because their loyalty cannot be guaranteed. The ad-hoc staff must be scrutinised to ensure that those recruited will not collude with politicians to sabotage the electoral process.

  • Forex policies: Why hurdles persist (I)

    Forex policies: Why hurdles persist (I)

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has been fixing the foreign exchange (forex) crisis triggered by the crash in crude oil prices about two years ago. But economic saboteurs, including financial sector operators, have frustrated the regulator, forcing its well-thought-out policies to falter. From liberalisation of the forex market to tactical devaluation of the naira and subsequent ban on 41 items’ access to forex, the apex bank’s  policies have been thwarted by those expected to protect it. However, the CBN’s commitment to non-oil sector funding and improved dollar disbursements to key sectors of the economy may hold the ace to naira’s recovery and stability, writes COLLINS NWEZE.

    It’s no longer news that the Nigerian economy is facing one of its worst crises in decades.  From the crash in foreign reserves to a weakened local currency, the economic indicators look frightening.

    Foreign exchange (forex) reserves have crashed from $34.43 billion in December 2014 to $23.95 billion by the weekend.  In less than two years, the naira has also lost over 80 per cent of its value, sliding from N210 to N450 to the dollar in the parallel market. Inflation, which stood at nine per cent in January 2013, and has remained at single digit for nearly three years, almost doubled at 17.9 per cent last month.

    The symptoms of the economic carnage were manifesting when former President Goodluck Jonathan named Godwin Emefiele as Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) Governor in June 2014.

    Seeing the level of work to be done, Emefiele set an agenda for himself in his maiden speech tilted: “Entrenching macroeconomic stability and engendering economic development in Nigeria.” He promised to maintain exchange rate stability and preserve the value of the domestic currency.

    The CBN chief also vowed to work with stakeholders to aggressively shore up reserves. “We hope to engage the fiscal and political authorities, as well as other stakeholders to improve our policy buffers, which will further create space for the apex bank to implement monetary policy using its limited instruments,” he asserted.

    Continuing, he also promised to enhance the bank’s supervisory mandate over the banking system as well as strengthen macro-prudential regulation by improving supervisory diligence, ethical standards as well as ensure the highest level of professionalism.

    On finance development promotion, he said: “The core principle here is that the CBN will act as a financial catalyst by targeting predetermined sectors that can create jobs on a mass scale and significantly reduce our import bills.

    “The CBN would deploy developmental initiatives to create an enabling environment with appropriate incentives to empower innovative entrepreneurs to drive growth and development.

    “It is important to stress here that the CBN would not be targeting individual companies but rather specific sectors. We would establish rules and criteria that create a level playing field so that anyone who fairly qualifies can benefit from these schemes.”

    With those templates brought to the table by the CBN-led Emefiele, everything looked promising until the prices of crude oil – the mainstay of Nigeria’s economy – began to fall, gradually pushing the indicators to the red zone.

    Statistics showed that crude oil prices dropped by about 43 per cent from an average of $100.35 throughout 2014, to an average of $57.20 for the first half of last year. It closed at $50.29 per barrel at the weekend. Oil accounts for over 85 per cent of its forex. The country’s monthly forex earnings has dropped from over $4 billion to less than $1 billion due to the tumbling prices at the international market.

    Expectedly, the local currency deteriorated, foreign reserves shrunk and inflation figures rose to unimaginable levels.

    A bank Chief Executive Officer (CEO) in one of the Tier-1 lenders likened the forex crisis to an economic war. The bank chief concluded that some saboteurs somewhere had resolved to ensure that whatever policies put in place by the CBN to fix the forex crisis fail. According to the bank chief, the saboteurs are those benefiting from the old order.

    “They are the big currency speculators and financial sector operators profiteering from the crisis. They are the banks involved in round-tripping. Hence, no matter how genuine and well-thought-out the CBN’s polices were, its full and successful implementations always met a brick wall,” the bank chief who asked not to be named said.

    President of the Association of Bureaux De Change Operators of Nigeria (ABCON) Aminu Gwadabe blamed the worsening naria crisis on speculators, who he accused of creating huge gaps between the official and parallel market rates.

    Gwadabe said: “The gap is very worrisome. As a Nigerian, anytime I see the gap increasing, I become concerned and say that this gap has to be reduced. I told you before, the reason that creates this gap is compromise.

    “Nigeria is an economy where you see compromise. Speculators are always standing to ensure that the naira recovery does not see the light of the day. Speculators are the biggest challenge facing the naira. Don’t forget that speculation is on its own, a business.

    “Once the CBN follows one road, they will find a way to frustrate the policy and ensure that their business is ongoing. But with increased transparency, liquidity, the activities of speculators will be reduced and the volume of parallel market operators will also be reduced. People are now talking about how to earn dollar from how to spend it. We should move from the era of saying allocation to think of how to bring in the dollar.”

     

    Banks fail integrity test

    The failure of 22 commercial banks to comply with the CBN’s directive to sell $50,000 weekly to Bureaux De Change (BDCs) has been worrisome. Also disturbing are their alleged breach of the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and international money transfers. To worsen the matter, the Money Deposit Banks (DMBs) engage in round-tripping.

    It was after studying their continuous breach of dollar allocation policies, that the CBN  appointed Travelex to replace the lenders in selling dollars from the Diaspora remittances estimated at $21 billion annually to the commercial banks.

    Another doubt over banks’ integrity was raised with the publicised indictment of nine lenders by the CBN for failure to remit $2.3 billion belonging to the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC)/Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) Company into the TSA as required by law.

    The affected banks were banned from trading in the forex market but were re-admitted after they presented repayment plans for the funds in their custody. It could not be verified if the affected banks have fully repaid the funds.

    The CBN accused the banks of violating international money transfer rules by establishing private and company accounts to harvest dollar inflows from abroad without following the Know Your Customer (KYC) requirements.

    The CBN accused the banks of engaging in round-tripping, taking advantage of the huge forex gaps between the official and parallel markets. About 20 to 25 per cent of the volume of forex traded in the country is from autonomous sources, usually diverted into the parallel market through round-tripping.

     

    Money transfer rules violated

    The DMBs have been accused of compromise in their handling of proceeds from international money transfer inflows.

    In a memo, “Illicit international money remittances through the banking system”, CBN’s Acting Director, Trade & Exchange, W.D. Gotring, accused the lenders of opening multiple illegal companies and personal accounts where they harvest dollar proceeds for onward disbursements to local recipients. The practice, he said, is against the September 26, 2014 guidelines for the operation of International Money Transfer Service (IMTS) in Nigeria. He warned the lenders to desist from such unwholesome practices.

    He said: “Further to the guidelines for the operation of International Money Transfer Service (IMTS) in Nigeria of September 26, 2014, we have observed that some DMBs are operating accounts either as companies or companies masking themselves as individuals for the purpose of illegally receiving money transfer flows into the accounts for onward disbursements to recipients in Nigeria.”

    Gotring therefore ordered the lenders to carry out Know Your Customer’s Business (KYCB) checks on all their customers to ensure that they do not transact in illegal/illicit flows and also freeze compromised/ identified defaulting accounts.

    His words: “The CBN therefore reiterates that the DMBs have the absolute responsibility to conduct KYCB checks on all their customers to ensure that they do not transact in illegal/illicit flows.

    “Consequently, DMBs are hereby directed to identify and freeze accounts receiving illicit flows, submit the mandate and account details of these accounts held in naira or foreign currency to the CBN for onward reporting to the security agencies.”

     

    Fixing the forex crisis

    The CBN, under Emefiele, has so far instituted several policies meant to strengthen the local currency and preserve dollar for critical sectors of the economy. The kick-off of the naira-settled Over-the-Counter (OTC) Forex Futures Market and resumption of dollar sales to BDCs operators as well as restriction of debit card use abroad are some of the policies meant to curtail forex crisis and save the local currency.

    The CBN Director, Monetary Policy Department, Moses Tule, explained that the Automated Teller Machine (ATM) card restriction for foreign transactions might continue until there is an improvement in forex earnings.

    According to him, if banks had not restricted the use of ATM cards abroad, some of them would have been experiencing challenges meeting the demand of their overseas’ customers.

    Such occurrence, he said, would have caused huge liabilities in the balance sheet of the banks, balance sheet thus affecting their operations.

    Tule said that much as the CBN sympathised with depositors for the inconveniences they go through in their transactions abroad, there was little the bank could do to reverse itself.

    His words: “The limitation on the use of debit or credit cards outside the country was not a limitation that was placed by the CBN. They were restrictions that MDBs placed because their customers have to settle whatever transactions make with your debit cards with corresponding banks in foreign currency. And if the banks do not have the foreign currency to do that, then such customers create a liability problem for them.”

    The priority of the CBN, he said, would be to use the forex to settle matured Letters of Credit (LCs) for the importation of petroleum products and other raw materials.

     

    OTC Forex Futures Market

    Other measures put in place by the CBN to end the crisis include the first Naira-Settled Over-the-Counter (OTC) Forex Futures Market (FFM) launched on June 27 with FMDQ OTC Securities Exchange and the planned resumption of dollar sales to the BDCs.

  • Take malaria off the list of women’s hurdles

    SIR: Malaria is all around us. Many of us know someone who has had malaria or have experienced the symptoms ourselves. I recently dealt with it at home when my daughter fell sick with malaria, and as a physician, I see countless patients and their children struggling with the disease. But despite malaria’s seemingly universal nature, one thing I have noticed over the years is that malaria has a disproportionate effect on women.

    Women are at highest risk during pregnancy, which can lead to severe complications for mothers and their babies. In Nigeria, the impact is devastating: malaria is responsible for 11 percent of all maternal deaths, in part because less than one in five pregnant women receive the recommended dose of lifesaving preventative treatment.

    Our social structures exacerbate the challenges women face in protecting themselves from malaria. Women often lack access to the same resources as men, making it harder to afford preventative measures or malaria treatment. Many women do not have the education they need to fully understand malaria’s risks. As a result, too many women are not in the position to seek appropriate care when they or their children get sick.

    All of these factors contribute to a vicious cycle that holds women back and allows malaria to persist. When women spend their income on malaria treatments, or miss work to care for themselves or a sick child, they have fewer resources to provide other necessities for their families – especially if they are the sole source of income. As women’s financial security falters, they have a harder time keeping their families healthy, making them more susceptible to infectious diseases like malaria.

    We can end malaria in Nigeria if we make women a priority.

    There are encouraging signs that we’re moving in the right direction. Several states offer free maternal and child health services and use antenatal clinics to distribute free insecticide-treated bed nets and preventative treatments. For women who can’t reach these clinics, many community-based organizations send volunteers door-to-door to help women get the services they need. Some malaria control programmes collect comprehensive data on malaria’s burden on pregnant women.

    This has to be the norm, not the exception.

    We need local, regional and national strategies designed specifically to address women’s risks. This means tailoring awareness campaigns to emphasize malaria’s impacts on women and offer information on preventative measures and treatment options. These campaigns must also reach men, who can help their wives, mothers and sisters access care. Collecting wide-ranging data on malaria’s burden on all women – not just pregnant women – will ensure that these strategies are well-informed and address the various factors that drive women’s health decisions.

    But it’s not enough to focus on the health-seeking behaviours of individuals. To address the root causes of malaria’s burden in our country, we also need to make sure that women don’t spiral into poverty when they or their children get sick. Our political leaders should prioritize making malaria interventions more affordable through financial programs that are geared toward women. Also, social safety nets, legal reforms and employment programs can help account for lost livelihood due to malaria illness.

    Ultimately, developing these women-centric programmes will require involving women in the design and implementation of malaria interventions in their communities. Women have insights into their specific barriers to care and are better prepared to create programmes that reflect the intricacies of their everyday realities. As more women are empowered to step into leadership positions, these perspectives will help create more nuanced programs that work for them.

    Putting women at the forefront of Nigeria’s malaria effort will go a long way toward placing national malaria elimination within our grasp. It will also yield impressive results for women’s standing in society. Reducing the burden of malaria would allow more women to complete school, remain in the workforce and participate in governance or decision-making – increasing their overall economic, social and political empowerment.

    I want to see a future where my daughters can thrive. That future is irrevocably tied to the ability of all women in Nigeria to reach their full potential. Let’s not allow malaria to jeopardize it.

     

    • Dr. Nana A. Sa’id,

    Kaduna.

  • BDCs: 2,839 operators cross recapitalisation hurdles

    BDCs: 2,839 operators cross recapitalisation hurdles

    The Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has listed 2,839 Bureaux De Change (BDCs) that have met the N70 million regulatory capital base.

    In a circular released at the weekend, the CBN said the BDCs have complied with new N35 million capitalisation requirements and another N35 million cautionary deposit stipulated for operators. The CBN had last June, announced a new minimum capital requirement of N35 million for the operation of BDCs, up from the N10 million it was previously.

    The new capital base, is contained in a new guideline for the industry backed by the CBN Act of 2007 and the Banks and Other Financial Institutions Act 2004 (BOFIA). Both statues, stipulate a non-refundable application fee  of N100,000 and  non-refundable licensing fee  of N1 million.

    The circular, which will come into effect this month, orders retail money exchanges to deposit a mandatory cautionary deposit of N35 million in an account with the CBN, in addition to a minimum capital requirement of N35 million.

    The new guideline said no person should carry on the business of BDC in Nigeria, except with the prior authorisation of the CBN. It also stipulates that a BDC shall be construed as any company that is licenced to carry on small scale foreign exchange business in Nigeria and whose sole object is the carrying on of such business on a stand-alone basis.

    It said the application for BDC licence shall be processed in two stages, namely: approval-in-principle (AIP) and final licence.

    For the AIP, a formal application to the CBN governor to grant the promoters an AIP to carry on the business of a BDC in Nigeria is required. Also, a non-refundable application fee of N100,000 or such other amount as may be determined by the Bank from time to time in bank draft payable to the Central Bank of Nigeria.

    “There also should be an evidence of payment of the prescribed minimum capital of N35 million or any other amount as may be determined by the CBN from time to time, into the designated CBN account. The bank shall refund this amount with interest after the proposed institution has obtained its final licence,” it said.

    The guideline, also said that not later than six months after the grant of AIP has been secured, the promoters of a proposed BDC shall submit application for the grant of a final licence to the Governor, with evidence of payment of a non-refundable licencing fee of N1 million, only or any other amount as may be determined by the CBN from time to time among other conditions.

    “There should also be evidence of payment of N35 million mandatory caution deposit, or any other amount as may be determined by the CBN from time to time, into a designated CBN account and evidence of having suitable office accommodation for the operation of the proposed BDC,” it said.

    It stipulates that the qualifications and experiences of the Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer (CEO) shall be first degree or its equivalent in any discipline with three years post-graduation while the minimum qualifications and experience shall be first degree or its equivalent in any discipline with two years post-graduation experience.

    “One of the Management staff appointed above should be designated as compliance officer for the purpose of ensuring compliance with all regulatory guidelines and circulars,” it said.

    It said any person/individual wishing to sell foreign currency above $10,000 or its equivalent to a BDC shall be required to disclose the source.

    “The maximum amount per transaction for a BDC shall be determined from time to time by the CBN with respect to business and personal travel allowances. The maximum amount currently for Personal Travel Allowance and Business Travel Allowance (BTA)  per quarter is $4,000 and $5,000.

  • Hurdles before Amaechi

    Hurdles before Amaechi

    Since former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi’s name appeared on President Muhammadu Buhari’s ministerial list, detractors have turned the heat on him. Although many Nigerians have hailed his nomination, stakeholders in his state have received it with mixed feelings. His nomination was pre-empted by the Peoples Democratic Party (PDP)-led government, which set up a Commission of Inquiry to probe his tenure. The panel has been trailed by  controversy.  A section of the PDP believes that the investigation was necessary to foster accountability. But, many indigenes disagreed, saying that  the probe was designed by Governor Nyesome Wike to humiliate his former boss because he collaborated with progressives in other geo-political zones to abort the second term ambition of former President Goodluck Jonathan. As predicted by many observers, the panel indicted Amaechi. But, the All Progressives Congress (APC) has dismissed it as a grand conspiracy to abort the former governor’s ministerial ambition. Amaechi, who was not screened along with other nominees last week, has a date with history at the Senate this week. Will he overcome the hurdle? Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU examines the politics of screening, which has polarised the Senate.

    When  the history of this dispensation is written, the name of former Rivers State Governor Rotimi Amaechi will appear in gold. Many believe that he took a risk by collaborating with progressives in other geo-political zones to midwife the new dawn. Ironically, detractors are bent on denying him his rightful place in the Buhari Administration. Since he was nominated for minister, foes at the home front have intensified their campaign of calumny and propaganda against him. The Rivers State All Progressives Congress  (APC) has alleged that there is a grand design to dent Amaechi’s image, thereby conveying the impression that the former governor is unfit for the national assignment.

    Political success has not come easy for Amaechi. In 2007, he was not permitted to witness the election that brought him to power. He fought the battle to the Supreme Court before his mandate was restored. He fought a coalition of foes to a standstill before he could get a second term mandate. When Commissioner of Police was terrorising him, Amaechi, the former chief security officer of Rivers State, was powerless. Also, he fought a hard battle against impeachment. In all these battles, Amaechi relied on the support of the people for strength and survival.

    Elder statesman Chief Richard Akinjide, who reflected on Amaechi’s ordeals in a television interview, observed that he made the list because President Muhammadu Buhari saw some good qualities in him. The eminent politician did not, however, objected to the investigation of the ministerial nominee. Noting that those against his nomination are from his home state, he said it is up to the President to insist on his nomination or drop him, based on personal conviction. “Those against Amaechi are from the home front. If he is not good, the President would not have nominated him. After concluding the investigation against him, the President will decide whether to appoint him as minister or not,” he said.

    In the last three years, Amaechi has been having a running battle with the PDP. He and former President Goodluck Jonathan had parted ways, following irreconcilable difference. At a public function, Amaechi and Dr. Jonathan’s wife, Dame Patience, also clashed. Also, Amaechi and his successor, Wike, did not see eye to eye. Irked by the disposition of the PDP to the protracted crisis, the former governor called it quits with the party. Then, hell was let lose in Rivers. The governorship election became a big battle. Up to now, the exercise is inconclusive as the battle shifted from the ballot box to the court.

    Following President Muhammadu Buhari’s victory at the general elections, many Nigerians expected Amaechi’s name to be on the list of ministerial nominees. The Commander-In-Chief did not disappoint them. However, report of the Commission of Inquiry set up by Wike to probe his administration, which indicted him, has created a fresh hurdle for the APC chieftain. When Amaechi appeared before the Senate Ad Hoc Committee, he refused to comment on the report, saying that it is a subject of litigation in court. Thus, while other heroes and soldiers of democracy-Chief Audu Ogbeh, Dr. Ogbonnaya Onu, Dr. Chris Ngige, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, and Alhaji Lai Mohammed-were screened, Amaechi’s screening was postponed.

    Amaechi’s probe has generated controversy. Wike said his predecessor should shed light on the finances of the state between May 2007 and May 2015 when he was in charge. Hailing the probe, the PDP said it is necessary for accountability. But, many indigenes disagreed, saying that the governor is full of vendetta. They point out that,  a credibility crisis is being orchestrated by the PDP to discourage President Buhari from nominating Amaechi. When that plot failed, according to observers, the report which indicted him, has become another tool of blackmail to pull him down.

    The Rivers believes that Wike is afraid of Amaechi’s popularity and influence. Now that there is the likelihood of exchanging roles, if Amaechi becomes minister, there is the fear of re-enactment of previous acrimony which characterised the governor/minister relations. Dismissing the probe as a ruse, APC Chairman Davies Ikanya said it is ironical that Wike, who rode to power on the back of a falwed election, raised a panel to investigate his predecessor. “These retrogressive forces, led by Governor Nyesom Wike, are so afraid of the shadow of Amaechi to the extent that they are willing to go to any length to ensure that he is not accommodated in President Buhari’s cabinet, said APC Chairman, Davies Ikanya.”

    The Amaechi/Wike rift marked a turning point in the politics of Rivers. Before the crisis, they  were allies. Wike, a lawyer, was Amaechi’s Chief of Staff and the Coordinator of the Amaechi Campaign Organisation. But, ahead of the last elections, they worked at cross purposes. As Amaechi left for the APC, Wike became the arrowhead of the PDP. Amaechi worked for President Buhari’s success at the poll. He was also the pillar of support for Wike’s rival at the poll, Dr. Dakuku Peterside. The post-election litigation has deepened the crisis between the two leading figures. During the campaigns, Wike had threatened to probe Amaechi. When he was sworn in, he swung into action. He said the forensic audit is consistent with the anti-corruption crusade of the APC-led Federal Government.

    Reacting to the setting up of the panel headed by Justice George Oremeji, the former governor said it was not set up in good faith, adding that he was being witch-hunted. “All the noise Wike is making is to garb media headlines with his lies of monumental corruption against Amaechi. It is all drama made for the media. What is playing out is a script written and directed by Nyesom Wike. Wike should move to Nollywod where his devious skills would probably be useful. While it is no longer in doubt what would be the report of Wike’s sham probe commission, what may shock Nigerians is the extent Wike has gone and is ready to go to manufacture stories of corrupt practices and the kind of bogus tales of corruption against Amaechi that he would soon be feeding the nation,” he added.

    Efforts by Amaechi to stop the probe failed. A High Court Judge, Justice Simeon Amadi, said the panel was set up, not to investigate the former governor in person, but his defunct administration. However,  former Rivers State Attorney-General and Commissioner for Justice Worgu Boms described the probe as a comedy of errors. He accused Wike of bias and prejudice, stressing that members of the “ill-conceived and ill-motivated” panel have their bias towards the former governor. Also, former Information Commissioner Mrs. Ibim Seminitari described the probe as an unnecessary diversion from subsisting electoral issues. Besides, she said the people of Rivers will always hold Amaechi in high esteem because his achievements are visible in all sectors.

    In Amaechi’s view, Wike is playing a game of survival. He told reporters that the governor set up the panel to create more crisis so that Rivers political leaders can broker reconciliation between the two of them. He said, since Wike knew that he got to the State House through fraudulent election, he decided to witch-hunt him so that he can yield to pressure to withdraw the suit against his victory.  Amaechi said that the APC and its candidate, Dakuku Peterside,  will now bow to pressure to abandon the case.

    Amaechi also explained his refusal to appear before the panel. He said the panel was illegal. Explaining why he has refused to appear before the panel, he added: “He has not complied with the law in setting up the panel. The rule of natural justice and fair hearing is not adhered to. You sit down and you tell a man, ‘go and find him guilty openly. He is guilty; go and investigate him.”

    Amaechi denied the allegations of corruption. He urged Wike to examine himself before throwing stones. “The funny thing about the young man is that he knows that I know him. I know Nyesom Wike up to his companies.; Zico, Easy E. I was his governor and I have documents to show that he is a contractor. I have Wike’s account details. But, you don’t reply him by saying, you see, you are a thief, see what you stole. It will appear like I am a thief, but you are also a thief. So, what you do is to say no, I am not a thief and I don’t know what this man is talking about.

    “Rivers people forget so easily, and I annoys me. During the campaign,  I named the roads that Nyesom Wike did and abandoned. He is reconstructing some of them after we have paid him and no Rivers man is talking or asking, except the young boys who are replying him on the social media.”

    Amaechi is a veteran political warrior. He has insisted that the Senate cannot stop his screening, unless the court found him guilty.

    This week, Amaechi will appear in the Senate for screening. The forces against him are formidable. Will he triumph?

     

  • Hurdles before ministerial nominees

    Hurdles before ministerial nominees

    Critics and foes are throwing obstacles on the path of some ministerial nominees. But, their supporters are also building support for their bid to scale through. Group Political Editor EMMANUEL OLADESU examines the politics of screening and the attendant drama in the National Assembly. 

    Ministerial screening is usually full of drama. It is always a moment of suspense and anxiety. Many interests are involved. Basking in the euphoria of rare presidential favour, nominees are happy. Their associates pop champagne. Congratulatory messages fill the air. But, those who failed to make the list are bitter, downcast and dejected. As politicians, some of them are hopeful that their names will appear on the supplementary list.

    The ‘pull him down’ syndrome is at work.  Opponents and other stakeholders are flooding the Senate with petitions against some nominees. Protests are also likely outside the parliament when the exercise begins on October 13.  These dramas are already manifesting as the Senate is set for the special vetting.

    The President has left Nigerians guessing. The ministerial list does not include portfolios. This has two implications. The senators will only ask general questions from the nominees. Also, it is when they are given portfolios that the nation will ascertain whether they are round pegs in round holes. Many observers have suggested that, in the spirit of the anti-corruption crusade, the screening will not be characterised by fraud, as it was alleged in previous dispensations.

    Nigerians are conscious of the fact that the screening is taking place at a time the President of Senate, Dr. Bukola Saraki, is under going trial for alleged corruption. It is believed that relations between the executive and legislative arms are not cordial. Some critics have alleged that the National Assembly may create barriers by setting guidelines that may be difficult to meet. But, Senator Dino Melaye, the Chairman of the Senate Ad Hoc Committee, has cleared the air on the likely guidelines. He said the screening will be thorough, adding that the exercise will not be business as usual.

    For the candidates, the screening is another battle to be fought and won. For their adversaries, it is a battle to be fought and lost. As opponents sharpen their arrows, the candidates are not leaving anything to chance. A ministerial nominee, who is a former governor, told reporters in Lagos that the screening is not taken lightly. “There is a compelling need to seek the support of the senators from my state, the governor, other party leaders, the principal officers of the Senate and the entire House. I am preparing well,” he said.

    In Oyo State, there is a stiff opposition by Governor Abiola Ajimobi and other All Progressives Congress (APC) leaders to the candidature of Adebayo Shittu, a lawyer. But, the people of Oke-Ogun, where he hails from, have risen to the challenge. Shittu, a former legislator and commissioner, is also reaching out to the aggrieved chieftains. He has visited some first class traditional rulers in the state to appeal to the party leaders. Shittu is full of bravado in the public. But, he is seeking the support of those who matter in private, said one of his associates. “The ministerial slots are limited. That is why there is intense competition and struggle. Shittu has been nominated by the President. But, he is also reaching out to those who have rejected his candidature. The nominee is on a fence-mending mission to the critical stakeholders. The crisis will be resolved,” he added.

    In Ekiti, stakeholders promptly welcomed former Governor Kayode Fayemi’s nomination. Hailing the president’s decision, community leaders, clerics, monarchs, intellectuals and others have described it as another call to service. Even, chieftains of the ruling Peoples Democratic Party (PDP) have not raised any eyebrow. Governor Ayo Fayose said the president made the right choice. A source said that one of his rivals at the governorship poll, which he lost, Hon. Opeyemi Bamidele, has congratulated him and assured him of his support and cooperation.

    But, in Rivers State, the PDP is mounting  a roadblock against former Governor Rotimi Amaechi, despite his immense popularity in the Southsouth state. A group opposed to his candidature has submitted a 88-page petition against him. But, Amaechi’s supporters, who have alleged that the group was instigated by the state government, said that the protesters are chasing shadows. In Kaduna State, some groups are asking the President to drop Amina Ibrahim. They explain that there are better candidates.

    This scenario is not new. In 2007, the list had not got to the Senate when Prince Dayo Adeyeye’s name was dropped. Obasanjo was convinced to drop him when his foes catalogued his activities as the National Publicity of Secretary of Afenifere, the pan-Yoruba socio-political group. Before he defected to the PDP, he was a critic of the Obasanjo administration. A dummy was sold to the former President that a leopard cannot change its skin.

    Historically, only few nominees have failed the test on the floor of the Senate. In the past, senators and influential members of House of Representatives were simply asked to ‘bow and go.’ The rare honour was also accorded to former Oyo State Governor Ajibola Ige, when he was nominated by former President Olusegun Obasanjo.

    Curiously, few nominees who were later dropped failed to answer simple questions, which should be meant for primary school pupils. For example, a nominee was nearly dropped because he could not recite the National Anthem. Another failed because he could not give the full meaning of the acronym: NEEDS (National Economic Empowerment and Development Strategy). Instead, the nominee, a former diplomat from Ondo State, delved into a lecture on elementary economics. He was highlighting the difference between needs and wants. There was laughter on the floor. His name was promptly deleted from the list. He missed the opportunity.

    The criterion that the three senators from each state should endorse a nominee is also weak. When the nominee and the senators belong to different parties, the senators may be reluctant to give the endorsement. Yet, when the three senators from Lagos-Oluremi Tinubu, Gbenga Ashafa and Ganiyu Solomon-refused to endorse Senator Musiliu Obanikoro, who was re-nominated by former President Goodluck Jonathan, the former Senate President, Gen. David Mark, overruled them. Obanikoro survived the hurdle.

    Last week, the Senate introduced a new criterion. The nominees are expected to submit their asset declaration forms to the parliament. It is mot stated whether the asset declaration should be made public or not. Two lawyers, Wahab Shittu and Titilope Akosa, said the guideline is in order, stressing that it does not conflict with the constitution. Both of them participated in a live television programme in Lagos. Shittu said if new criteria are to be introduced by the Senate, they should promote national interest. He also advised the Senate not to act as a rubber stamp legislator. Akosa, the Director of Centre for 21st Century Issues, said the screening should not be based on sentiments, adding that senators should take decisions based on the character, capacity and competence of nominees. “The Senate should throw away sentiment and look at substance. The public should also show interest in the screening because the ministerial functions will be performed on behalf of the people,” she stressed.

    Shittu, who teaches Law at the University of Lagos, Akoka, hailed the President for selecting credible and tested people. “We have nominees who are broadminded, not nominees who are ethnic champions,” he said, urging the senators to shun party leaning, primordial interest and persecution of opponents. “Screening should be in national interest and vendetta should not play a role. We should focus on excellence, learning and character, competence, capacity and performance. The business of screening is not a tea party,” he stressed.

    However, the university don identified a gap in the ministerial list. He pointed out that the likely portfolios were not included in the list. Shittu said while a nominee may be generally acknowledged as a brilliant person, he may lack the capacity to head a specific ministry. “We have the challenges we want the ministers to tackle-economy, anti-corruption, infrastructure. These require competence,” he added.  Shittu assessed some of the nominees, including the APC National Publicity, Alhaji Layiwola Mohammed, former Lagos State Governor Babatunde Fashola and his Ekiti State counterpart, Dr. Kayode Fayemi, saying that they are qualified to be ministers. On Mohammed, he said: “Lai has been screened by Nigerians already and he has passed.”

    However, some critics have also dissected the list, saying that it has fallen short of expectation in some areas. Akosa pointed out that the list is not gender sensitive. “We have only three women on the list.” she observed. To Tunde Akindele, the former Chairman of the Institute of Transformation of Nigeria, this omission is unpardonable. In fact, he said the list has failed to meet the expectation of the people, adding that it has now supported the push for change by the APC government. Besides, Akindele said not only has the list failed to fulfill the 30 percent reserve for women, it is not youth-sensitive.

    A university don, Dr. Mutiuallah Oladapo, hailed the President for what he described as a revolutionary ministerial list, although he said the list should have been a blend of the old and young. Oladapo, who teaches Political Science at the University of Abuja, pointed out that the list was not imposed on the President. “They are the people who share his vision for change. Majority of them are elderly people, who Nigerians call the old cargo. We need to give youths the opportunity to contribute their quota to the development of the country,” he added.

    A lawyer, Tokunbo Odutola, acknowledged that the list is full of the old brigade. But, he added that the list is good. On portfolios, he suggested the following: Audu Ogbeh (Agriculture), Fayemi (External Affairs), Malami (Justice), Mohammed (Aviation or Information), Dambazau (Defence).

    As the stage is set for the screening, there are fears that there will be more objections to some nominees. But, the objections may be subjective. A politician, Bolaji Ajimokotan, urged the Senate to avoid errors of judgment. He predicted that some senators may deliberately oppose nominees from their states based on political difference. “Politicians from Southsouth states, which are ruled by the PDP, may instigate the three senators to move against the nominees,” he said. Urging the Senate to be above board, he said senators should give priority to objectivity and the promotion of the national interest.

     

  • More hurdles before Africa’s competitiveness

    More hurdles before Africa’s competitiveness

    To boost intra-African trade by at least 25-30 per cent and enhance the continent’s competitiveness, the African Union (AU), in 2012, set 2017 for the establishment of a Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA). Two years to the deadline, lack of political will, harsh visa policies and dependence on narrow range of primary products, among others, have continued to stall the realisation of the set goal, reports Assist. Editor CHIKODI OKEREOCHA.

    It’s a clear and depressing verdict: Africa is not trading within itself, despite its potential in terms of population and rich agricultural and mineral endowments. Trade among African countries accounts for a meagre 10 per cent of their total external trade, the lowest of any continental grouping, according to the United Nations (UN) Economic Commission for Africa (ECA).

    The continent’s share in world trade is also not impressive, standing at less than three per cent. This was why in a bid to stimulate intra-African trade by at least 25-30 per cent and, ultimately increase the continent’s share in global trade and competitiveness, African leaders came up  in January 2012 with the idea of establishing a Continental Free Trade Area (CFTA).

    Essentially, their hope was that CFTA would lead to a significant growth of intra-Africa trade and also assist Africa use trade more effectively as an engine of growth and sustainable development.

    It was expected to help Africa participate in global trade as an effective and respected partner. The AU Commission noted, for instance, that between 2000 and 2010, the creation of the Common Market for Eastern and Southern Africa (COMESA) FTA worked magic, leading to a six-fold increase in intra-COMESA trade. So, the AU leaders, after their 2012 week-long meeting in Addis Ababa, the Ethiopian capital, set 2017 as target for CFTA. However, two years to the deadline, the strategy appears unrealisable, The Nation has learnt.

    Top on the list of issues posing serious hurdles for the realisation of the target, it was gathered, is inconsistent visa policies. There are also issues around Africa’s lack of right regulatory framework and political will to halt the multiplicity of national borders that have continued to pose barriers to trade, as well as African economies’ dependence on narrow range of primary products, among others.

    The mono-product nature of most economies in Africa, high cost of production due to dearth of critical infrastructure are said to have also combined to frustrate efforts at achieving the target. The situation has left sour taste in the mouths of business operators, particularly manufacturers whose activities are supposed to help increase the level of trade within Africa.

    For instance, Nigeria’s foremost industrialist and Africa’s richest man Aliko Dangote recently echoed the frustrations of African businessmen and manufacturers when he lamented that issues around issuance of visa by most African countries remain a hard nut to crack by investors seeking to expand the frontiers of investment in Africa.

    Speaking during the inauguration of the new 2.5 Million Metric Tonnes Per Annum (MMTPA) Dangote Cement plant in Mugher District in Ethiopia, he said only 14 out of the 54 African countries, offer visa-free, or visa-on-arrival to citizens of all African countries, a situation that constitutes serious barrier to intra-African trade.

    Dangote listed the 14 countries to include Seychelles, Mali, Uganda, Cape Verde, Togo, Guinea Bissau, Mozambique, and Mauritania. Others are Rwanda, Burundi, Comoros, Madagascar, Somalia and Senegal. He noted that on the other hand, American citizens visiting most African countries get visa at the point of entry. While describing this development as unhealthy for business, he argued that Africa must therefore, relax its visa policies to achieve true economic integration. He urged other African countries to borrow a leaf from Senegal, which he said has started the issuance of visas on arrival to all nationalities.

    That is not all. Dangote, who is President, Dangote Industries Limited (DIL), also said apart from the need for African countries to relax their visa policies, deliberate efforts must be made to encourage Africans, not just foreigners, to invest in the continent to stimulate intra-African trade and business. “Dangote Cement is currently investing in 16 African countries, with plans to invest in many more over the next few years. There are a number of other successful pan-African brands today, such as MTN, Shoprite and Ecobank.

    “We need to encourage this trend to see more investments in Africa by Africans,” he said.

    The pan-African investor is not done. He spoke of the need to encourage the private sector to collaborate with governments across Africa to address  infrastructure deficit, which has plagued the continent for decades. Apart from the need to ensure political stability on the continent, he also said economic integration in Africa would become a reality only when barriers among countries are broken to allow for free flow of goods and services.

    Dangote was right. Africa remains the most fragmented continent in the world, with 54 countries and numerous border crossings, which impede trade. For instance, for traders and businessmen who ply the Lagos (Nigeria)-Accra (Ghana) route, the journey through Togo and Benin can take a full day, punctuated by arduous border checks, harassment and solicitations allegedly from customs officials. This is despite the fact that only a few hundred kilometres separate Lagos from Accra.

    Such barriers violate the principle of free movement of people and goods within the 15-member Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS). It is also due to the slow implementation of regional integration agreements aimed at eliminating tariff and non-tariff barriers in the region. This situation partly explains why Africa is not trading within itself. The level of intra-African trade, according to experts, compares unfavorably with other regions of the world.

    While only 12 per cent of total trade on the continent is among African countries, intra-trade among the European Union (EU) is around 70 per cent, 52 per cent for Asian countries, 50 per cent for North American countries and 26 per cent for South American countries.

    Curiously, no less than 14 regional trade blocs are said to have been launched over the past decades for the purpose of stimulating intra-African trade. But this has not yielded much result, as the share of intra-African trade remained unimpressive. More curious is the fact that Africa boasts tremendous agricultural and mineral resources. Apart from holding 60 per cent of the world’s uncultivated arable land, it is also rich in oil & gas. With relatively cheap labour, young and highly entrepreneurial population, a growing middle class with spending power, large consumer market, and an increasingly stable polity, Africa’s economic future should be looking brighter.

    But unfortunately, agriculture is the sector in which Africa has surprisingly poor trade figures.

    Despite being the backbone of many economies in the region, it accounts for just a small fraction of official trans-border trade.

    Between 2007 and 2011, for instance, Africa imported only 15 per cent of its food items from the rest of Africa, according to data gleaned from the Economic Development in Africa 2013 report by UN Conference on Trade and Development (UNCTAD). The report noted that African countries export a very narrow range of agricultural products to the continent, adding that there is need to broaden the range of agricultural goods produced and traded within Africa.

    The report aligns with the position being canvassed by President/Chairman of Council, Institute of Business Development (IBD), Mr. Ifeanyi Obibuzor. He said for African countries to capture more trade opportunities they need to diversify their products. While noting that the current challenge of falling oil prices, which affect some oil-producing countries in Africa particularly Nigeria, should indeed, be seen as an opportunity to galvanise activities to diversify their economies, he said: “The oil price crash is a good starting point. It is going to make us think out of the box. No country survives as a mono-economy. Across the world, economies are driven by micro-enterprises.”

    Indeed, one of the challenges facing African countries is how to deal with the Micro, Small, and Medium, Enterprises (MSMEs) sector, which is acknowledged as being responsible for a significant portion of production, trade and services. While the informal sector where the MSMEs play remains the driving force of most economies in Africa, experts says that the sector is largely unregulated, has little access to finance, and is often not taxed and its contribution to the economy is largely unrecorded. What this means is that if the continent must pursue more trade opportunities, there is need to focus on the MSMEs with a view to addressing some of the issues that hold them down particularly infrastructure.

    The consensus is that there is need to increase investment in trade-related infrastructure and other trade facilitation measures to reduce red tape, transaction costs and expedite the movement of goods, services and people across borders. Although, spending on infrastructure has been on the increase in the last two decades, it has been observed that actual spending does not match identified needs.  According to the African Development Bank, African countries need to spend around $93 billion a year to upgrade their infrastructure, but only spend about half of this.

    Beyond the need to step up the tempo of investment in infrastructure particularly power, the Registrar/Chief Executive Officer, IBD, Mr. Paul Ikele, says that the leadership must demonstrate enough political will to harness the abundant resources in Africa. According to him, Africa’s economic future looks bright. Hear him: “Africa is highly endowed; Nigeria is endowed; Ghana is endowed, but let’s look at those opportunities. By utilising their resource capabilities, companies in Africa can improve the lives of people in our continent through increased investment, creating jobs, increasing skills, and developing and providing goods, technologies and innovations.”

    Will Africa demonstrate the required strong and lasting political resolve to remove the identified barriers to intra-African trade? Will they put the right regulatory framework in place to address the high cost of doing business on the African continent, which has seen foreign investors either holding back or preferring other investment destinations despite Africa’s potential for high returns on investment?

    These are some of the issues agitating the minds of operators and stakeholders as the continent has only two years left before the launch of CFTA that would boost intra-African trade.