The Nation Newspaper

Tag: Industrialist

  • Ex-Deputy Governor, Industrialist   want F G to fund Agric investment in varsities

    •Say recession may not end soon in Ado Ekiti

    As part of the efforts to help the diversification process of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s government, former Deputy Governor of Ekiti State, Chief Paul Alabi and an industrialist, Mr Abiodun Isinkaiye , have called for proper investment  in Agriculture in all Nigerian universities.

    The eminent Nigerians averred that the country will favourably attain the food security level, if the federal government can replicate the farming investment  of the Afe Babalola University , Ado Ekiti in at least two universities in each of the six geopolitical zones.

    They said this in Ado Ekiti at the weekend during the 2016 Afe Babalola Food Security EXPO, where green leadership award were conferred on some Nigerians for their contributions to the agriculture sector.

    Aside from the duo of Alabi and Isinkaiye, those who received honours included:  Governor Ayodele Fayose, Chief Afe Babalola (SAN), Senator Biodun Olujimi, the Ohinohi of Ebira land, Alhaji Ado Ibrahim, the Ooni of Ife, Oba Enitan Ogunwusi, the Olugbo of Igbo kingdom, Oba

    Frederick Akinruntan .

    Alabi, a renowned yam  and cassava farmer , said the current economic recession caused by tremendous reduction in the price of oil at the international market and the shortfall in the production of crude oil are suffice to teach Nigerians strong lessons that they should embrace

    farming.

    “I want to sound a note of warning that the current recession may linger if people, particularly the government that has enough money fails to invest heavily in farming. We must work on how to improve food production for us to get to self-sustaining level”, he said.

    Isinkaiye, owner of Prosperous hotel in Ado Ekiti, said farming has become a goldmine in Nigeria to the extent that every investment in the sector will grow and multiply rapidly.

    He said the country will be deceiving itself if they expect quick economic recovery from the slumped price of oil at the international market.

    “Even if the price appreciates , the local production has gone down considerably , because of the activities of the militants. So, Nigeria is facing double jeopardy in the oil sector, both the production and price had crashed.

    “I appeal to the federal government to invest in farming using the resources in the universities like Afe Babalola did in ABUAD and with this, Nigeria will return to the path of sufficiency  and economic recovery will come”.

     

     

  • FG tasks manufacturers, industrialists on public housing

    FG tasks manufacturers, industrialists on public housing

    Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Raji Fashola, has tasked local manufacturers and industrialists to get involved in the Federal Government’s public housing project by providing standard materials that can be sourced locally for the project.

    The minister said that the Federal Government has placed embargo on the importation of 10 building materials for the project in order to encourage the local industry and therefore galvanize the ailing economy.

    Fashola made the remark yesterday during the City People Real Estate and Housing lecture held at Planet One event centre, Maryland, Lagos.

    He said: “We are going to standardize the fittings, the windows, the doors, roofing sheet, tiles and all the components. We are going to use those standards to stimulate local mass productions of fittings to meet our demands. Let us take a one bedroom flat as an example. One bedroom flat will have a door, a toilet with one door, a kitchen with one door. We will not use imported doors, we will not use imported windows, we will not use imported tiles, we would not use imported plumbing accessories, and we would not use imported paints.  We have 10 of such items that we will not import. We are still looking for people who make sockets locally. We have found one that makes something similar and they said they can make it. If they do, then we will remove imported sockets from what we need.  We want to challenge the Nigerian manufacturers and industrialists to get involved.

    “After this, the next step will be who will build.  From time to time we receive letters from developers who claim they can build 10, 000 housing units but they have not been able to show us where they built 100 units.  We also have letters from road construction companies, may be because of the economic challenges who now want to go into building.

    “Anybody who is a serious professional in the industry knows that logistics for road construction are different from logistics for housing.  Thankfully, the Real Estate Developers Association of Nigeria has recommended to us accredited developers who will be allowed to participate. Like in UK Singapore that have time tested model of public housing, the government led the initiatives. Our programme will not be different. It will start with the government.”

    He hinted that the buildings when completed will be for people who do not have a house of their own, adding: “Sometimes, public housing is not defined by everybody having a house, it is more defined by how many people who move from rental to ownership and ensuring that those who own don’t go back to renting houses. People can lose their homes when things get difficult and also could those who do not have, own houses when things get better.  We need to gradually and consistently increase the number of tenants who become owners.  We are focusing on people who are first time applicants, that is, those who do not have any because some people already have one and want another. These designs do not accommodate those who want mansions and duplex, we know they are there but they are not among the vulnerable people and not in the majority.”

    While eulogising the feats of the likes of former Lagos State governor, Alhaji Lateef Jakande and ex President Shehu Shagari for their giant strides in providing affordable housing for the masses, Fashola said the present administration also needs to learn from their mistakes.

    He identified the challenge of acceptability as one of the banes of the past housing projects, adding: “We need to put in place a housing project that has wide acceptability. What we have done is to come up with 21 designs, moved it down to 12 and now we have come down to six.  In the northern part of the country, we would be building one, two and three bedroom bungalow with courtyards that will respond very well to the sometimes extreme weather condition and respond also to the cultural ways of life of the people.

    “In the Southeast, South-south and the Southwest, we are starting with a block of 15 flats and another block of 24 flats and some bungalows here and there. We are focusing on the most vulnerable and those who are in the majority. The project is not for civil servants alone. We should be clear about this. We are targeting farmers, artisans market women whose income fall within the salary of workers in level nine and level 15. If your salary falls within that level in the public sector, and or you are an artisan who is earning something within that range, you qualify. We are only using that as a benchmark.”

    He added that 24 states had already provided parcels of land for the project and that his staff is already at work in preparation in for the construction work scheduled to commence in the fourth quarter of the year. He admonished the audience who interjected his remarks with thunderous amens, to stop praying and work.

    “We are not measuring the project by the number of houses we can build at a time, but by our ability to repeat and continue what we have started and leave it as a project that will endure without having political colouration.  We should stop praying and work. This is not time to pray but time to work. We can pray after our work to ask God to bless our labour. It is true that we are in a period of recession but that is not a sin. It only means that we slowed down when we ought to work. So, now is the time to work and not to pray.”

  • Industrialist bemoans loss of societal values

    Industrialist bemoans loss of societal values

    Life National Vice-Chairman of the Nigerian Chambers of Commerce, Industry, Mines and Agriculture (NACCIMA), Chief Adebowale Omotoso, has said criminality and culture of sabotage are significantly reduced in any nation that treats its nationals as humankinds, with self-respect, dignity and whose needs and interests are jealously protected.

    Omotoso stated this in an exclusive interview at Awe Town, Oyo State. He noted that Nigerians are not inherent criminals but have capacities for self-determination and self-direction in good and noble things.

    He added that due to corrupt leadership, things have continued to fall apart, while the centre cannot hold.

    “Education should increase the consciousness level of Nigerian youths and socialise them into the national culture.  But what do we find today, education without morals due to lack of power monitoring and clear-cut policies devoid of political sentiments in regulating education or meaningful development.

    “Ideally, politics influences education through the policies and decisions that are made by the political leadership to ensure the realisation of national, state and party objectives. As a result of these  notions, there are many political problems that jeopardise educational management in the country,” he said.

    Advising the youth to make accountability, righteousness and justice their watchword, as prescription for nation-building, the industrialist pointed out that “the society has degenerated from a community of people with high moral values and dignity to a state of near madness, collapse of moral values and tolerance of immorality.’

    Continuing, he said: “Dignity has been thrown to the wind by both the young and the old. Our society now embraces immorality, just as sexual sin is freely committed without any sense  of shame. Indecent dressing mostly among ladies is now the order of the day. Many young ladies; even the mothers, dress to reveal their bodies. It is extremely indecent and very shameful for ladies to flaunt their breasts or expose other parts of their bodies in the name of fashion.”

    He also advised parents and guardians to inculcate in their children and wards the right type of values and attitudes for their survival, and the society.

    “Proper upbringing will not only foster respect for the worth and dignity of the children, but as well ensure the right moral and spiritual values in inter-personal and human relations. Parents should give their children the opportunity to develop whatever talents they are endowed within the context of the aims of their society.

    “Such opportunity does not come cheap and it is building on all responsible, including the societies, to make whatever sacrifices required, ensuring that their children and citizens have access to sound education.”

    Education, the Asiwaju of Afijio pointed out, is a very personal thing, and the benefit of it flows first to the individual before it can be of any benefit to the society.

    These benefits, he said, are indirect proportion to the level of education attained by each individual.

    Omotoso, a renowned Pharmacist, also described counterfeiting of medicines as one of the greatest atrocities of our time and the worst aspect of corruption which affects life directly.

    He noted that the evil of fake drugs is worse than the combined scourge of malaria, HIV and AIDS, robbery and illicit drugs.

    He said: “Fake drugs led to treatment failures, development of drug resistance and death of many people. Drug resistance occurs mainly in the areas of infectious diseases and malaria.

    “Before the 70’s, malaria was regarded as flu in Nigeria because of the efficacy of chloroquine. By the early 90’s, due to the development of resistant strains of malaria parasites partly induced by substandard anti-malarial drugs, we started shifting to second line drugs such as Fansidar and lately Artemisimin Combination Therapy (ACT).

    “The question now is if drug counterfeiters succeed with ACT, where do we go from there?”

    Omotoso,  who also expressed dismay at the general poor or total lack of record-keeping of health-related activities in various health establishments, wondered why the National Agency for Drugs Administration and Control (NAFDAC) has no data on drug use from hospitals and universities that do not carry out enough research in the area of drug use and treatment failures.

    “Due to this dearth of information, it is difficult to estimate, on annual basis, the death toll from fake drugs in Nigeria.”

    Attributing weak laws hampered by abuse of judicial process, granting of inordinate injunctions to counterfeiters, long delays of trials and other handicaps to some of the challenges facing food and drug regulation, he said that in most countries, laws against drug counterfeiting are very weak and consequently, criminals are shifting from gun-running and cocaine pushing to drug counterfeiting because it is financially lucrative but of relatively lower risk.

    “The rate at which drugs are either abused or misused by our people is alarming and disturbing. They no longer consult with qualified Pharmacists for whatever ailments they have, but rather patronise roadside medicine sellers and quacks to buy drugs without considering the attendant implications.”

    While stressing the need to develop, improve and adapt vaccines, drugs and diagnostic reagents locally, he also called for the establishment and maintenance of National Reference Centres, for pathogenic viruses and bacterial parasites.

    “It is also necessary to develop new techniques and strategies for the control of communicable diseases, especially malaria, measles, poliomyelitis, trypanosomiasis, hepatitis and onchocerciasis in order to improve health care system.’’

    Continuing, he said: “Government must also increase productivity in the local drug industry, by developing medicines and other new biological products, through a combination of genetic engineering, microbial fermentation and chemical engineering.

    “Also, the three-tiers of government must develop appropriate and effective health educational programmes, aimed at checking prevalence of drug abuse and misuse, as well as environmental filthiness.’’

  • Industrialist makes case for tile manufacturers

    The tile industry is capable of producing quality tiles both for the Nigerian market and for export, if the Federal Government can address the challenges facing manufacturers, the Chief Executive Officer of Mallinson and Partners Limited, producers of quality tiles, Mr. Mallinson Ukatu, has said.

    He said some of the major challenges impeding the competitiveness of indigenous tile manufacturers include lack of stable electricity supply, high cost of funds, which hovers around 22 per cent; prizing of gas in foreign currency in a market that is 90 per cent naira –controlled; and Nigerians’ penchant for imported products at the detriment of made-in-Nigeria goods.

    Ukatu whose company is also involved in the manufacturing of building materials and plastic products, said steady electricity supply is vital for industrial production and growth. He said reliable electricity supply will reduce the financial burden imposed on tile manufacturers because of the high cost of alternative sources of power to carry out production.

    “If the government supports the tile industry with stable power supply, the heavy reliance on generators, which results in high cost of production will stop, the industrialist told The Nation, adding that it will also rub off positively on manufacturers’ margin.

    While calling for the government’s support in energy supply, he noted that at present, manufacturers are using natural gas to power their in-house generators. He also expressed shock that government charges gas in foreign currency in a market that is 90 per cent naira –controlled.

    Ukatu, therefore, urged the  government to subsidize gas in order to encourage local tile production. He also called on government to “stop charging gas in dollars.”

    While noting that the tile industry is growing, he also said government should encourage made-in-Nigeria goods. “Goods produced in Nigeria are stepping up in terms of qualities,” he pointed out, noting for instance, that in the wire industry, Nigerian wires are of higher quality than the imported ones.

    To buttress his point that made-in-Nigeria goods have come of age in terms of quality, Ukatu said: “You cannot manufacture products of low quality standards when you are aware that Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) will inspect the standards and quality of what you are doing every fortnightly.”

    He, however, commended the Bank of Industry (BoI) for giving its best to grow the industries by bringing in machineries to support manufacturers. “If you are unable to get BoI’s assistance, how will you start your factory with the current bank interest rate of 22 per cent?” he asked, pointing out that if interest is not single digit, manufacturers will not make any headway.

    “For first time comers in the industry, it is not easy to penetrate the market at 22 per cent interest rate. I funded my company with my personal money as a pilot plant. On the second expansion I did, I also used my money. It is on the second phase that we got government’s support through BoI. Accessing these loans has been very good,” he said.

    The industrialist noted that partly because of BoI’s support and partly because of the increasing needs of the market and the quest to attain a leadership position in the industry, his company has moved from trading in tiles to manufacturing.

  • Industrialist rallies Ndigbo

    Industrialist rallies Ndigbo

    On a day people came from Enugu State to honour him in Anambra State, an industrialist, Chief Godwin Ezeemo urged the Igbo to unite for the region’s progress.

    Members of the Anambra State People’s Assembly (ASPA) in Enugu led by their President-General Ugochukwu Okoli were in Umuchu, Aguata Local Government Area of Anambra State to confer the publisher of Orient newspaper with an award for his efforts in poverty alleviation.

    ASPA, it was gathered, has over 1,000 registered members and 125 registered town unions from the 177 communities in the state.

    The group helps to coordinate   Anambra indigenes in Enugu State and beyond, as well as promote Igbo unity and selfless service all over the world.

    Ezeemo’s award by ASPA was not only for his contributions in poverty alleviation, but also job creation, philanthropy and determination for community development.

    Speaking with The Nation during the event, President General of the group Hon Okoli said Ezeemo was selected for the award because of what he stood for in Igbo land and his contributions.

    However, Okoli lamented that Anambra residents living in Enugu State were suffering untold hardship as a result of molestation and marginalisation from the Enugu indigenes, adding that as Igbo people is not supposed to be so.

    This, according to him, was because the people see them as a threat to their business, adding that the association was already building a civic centre in the state which, according to him, they see as an Igbo centre.

    Also, Comrade Mathias Ameke, who is the state chairman of the Progressive People’s Alliance (PPA) in Anambra, told the group to start looking inwards in discovering who takes the state to Eldorado.

    Reacting after receiving the award from the group, Mr. Godwin Ezeemo, said the award came to him as a surprise without having prior notice of the group’s plans.

    However, he decried the attitude of injustice and dehumanizing attitude which according to him, some Igbo indigenes suffer in their own land.

    He said good governance and think home philosophy among Ndigbo are the panacea to the Nigeria problems.

    Ezeemo, therefore, called for the promotion of Igbo unity, love and regional integration among the people of South East and part of South South despite their places of domicile.

    He maintained that unity among Ndigbo will help to curtail any form of internal insurrection and lay solid foundation for the generations yet unborn in every Igbo land.

    He thanked the group in Enugu state for the award, saying that such would spur him to do more for Ndigbo.

     

  • Honour for industrialist

    Honour for industrialist

    Penultimate weekend, people from all walks of life gathered at Apapa, Lagos State to honour a man they considered a blessing to humanity.  It was not only a moment to be part of the coronation ceremony in honour of Chief Gabby Emeka Dimude, it was also a big occasion when many people across climes and cultures converged on the expansive compound of Dimude to celebrate a man who has deployed his resources for the benefit of humankind; especially the downtrodden and other less-privileged people in the society.

    This informed the diverse cultural displays in Apapa that day, making the area become what some described as cultural splendour.  The Yoruba, Hausa, Igbo and Philippines communities were present en masse to celebrate with the man of honour.

    Dimude was conferred the exalted title of Eze Ndigbo of Apapa.  Before the event, the Igbo community in Apapa and other residents of the area had decided that the cap befits Dimude.  However, the representative of the Arewa community in Apapa, Alhaji Ahmed Barma who came with a retinue of his chiefs, described the occasion as one of the examples people from across tribes and cultures should be involved in to discourage tribalism and sectionalism.

    The event began early in the morning in Dimude’s residence when highly revered traditional leaders from Hausa, Yoruba and other communities joined their Igbo counterparts to witness the coronation ceremony.  The Oba of Ijora, Abdul-Fatai Olayinka Aromire, as the traditional ruler of the host community, sent one of his high chiefs to pay obeisance to Dimude.  It was a moment of joy when people from different cultural backgrounds forgot their differences and ate from the same plate.  The presence of the Ojora went further to prove that the title of Eze Ndigbo of Apapa was duly recognised by those who had the authority to do so.

    The Ojora made it clear that the presence of the Igbo in Apapa has been a blessing to the area over the years.  “The Igbo have helped in the total development and industrialisation of the town.  Today, most important establishments in that part of Lagos were as a result of the efforts of the Igbo.  Therefore, the coronation of Dimude is to further help in the infrastructural development and expansion of Apapa as the commercial hub of the nation,” he said.

    In this regard, Barma said: “We are here today to represent the chairman of the Arewa Council, Alhaji Dogara Yaro.  We represent the Hausa community in order to show that together we can move this nation forward.  This is not the issue of where you come from or which ethnic group you represent.  It is to show that at our level, we can forge unity; true unity for the good of everyone.  This coronation of Chief Dimude as the Eze Ndigbo of Apapa is not strange.  We have Seriki Hausa anywhere we go and where we have our people.  It makes for unity, it helps to cement love and usher in development in the host community.”

    Continuing, Barma said: “I think the primary reason we are here today is to encourage the co-existence of all Nigerians.  Today, we shouldn’t be thinking or behaving as Hausa, Yoruba or Igbo but as Nigerians. So, we have come here to celebrate with the Igbo and with Dimude as worthy brothers and sisters. It is for us to continue to cement the existing bond and love between the Igbo and Hausa not only in Apapa but also in Lagos as a whole.

    “Of course, this shows that when Hausa man sees an Igbo man or vice versa, they should relate as brothers.  You can see how people mingle here today.  We are saying that this should extend to all the states of the federation in order to establish peace and harmony.”

    Almost every guest who spoke poured encomiums on Dimude for his resilience and determination to ensure a successful coronation ceremony.  Chief Debe Odumegwu-Ojukwu reminded guests of the importance of Apapa to the nation.

    “My grandfather was instrumental to the opening of this wharf.  He did so because he saw the need then to do so.  Today, all of us are beneficiaries of his foresight and wisdom.  Therefore, we have no choice but to continue to ensure that Apapa does not lose its glory,” Debe, a lawyer and a scion of the Ojukwu dynasty, said.

    Responding, Dimude, an engineer and the owner of Kabayan Shipping Group, described the Eze Ndigbo title as an avenue to bring the people together for further developmental strides.  “It is time to do more for the people under a united front.  Leadership is about giving vision to the people.  Even here now, all the different communities in Lagos and beyond are fully represented.  What we are doing is for the good of Apapa and if most of us can give back to the communities in which we live, then there will be room for expansion, industrialisation and mutual interaction. This will, indeed, help to make Nigeria a better place for all.”

    Dimude was born in 1960 and had his tertiary education in the Philippines where he took a degree in Engineering.  In 1994, he formed the Kabayan Shipping Group with branches in Port Harcourt, Cotonou, Warri-Onne, Okirika and Calabar.

    To date, his scholarship scheme has empowered over 50 students. It was as a result of his numerous philanthropic gestures that the Ojora of Ijora land once conferred on him with the title of Kabayan 1 of Apapa Kingdom.

    The occasion attracted masquerades and cultural dancers from far and near.  The Ijele masquerade, highly revered in Igbo tradition and only seen in public when the highest Igbo celebration is on, came all the way from Achina, Anambra State; home town of the celebrator. Indeed the presence of the Ijele excited most people who had never witnessed such a colourful masquerade before.

    As it moved into the arena majestically in its multi-coloured paraphernalia, the drums beat, the instruments sounded to a madly frenzy to herald its arrival. It was indeed time to see Ijele as it really is–the king of all masquerades.

  • Ban finished goods import, eliminate fake products, says industrialist

    AN industrialist, Chief Erick  Umeofia, has called on the Federal Government to ban importation of finished goods and ensure the elimination of substandard products.

    Speaking in an interview in his office in Lagos, Umeofia, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO), Erisco Bonpet Group, manufacturers of consumer goods, said massive importation  kills local manufacturing, and creates jobs for those economies where  cheap and sub standard goods are imported from.

    He said: “Importation is doing a lot of damage to us, so, we are appealing to the relevant agencies like National Agency for Food, Drug Administration and Control (NAFDAC), Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON), and the Nigerian Customs to stop paying lip services but to control and monitor effectively the influx of these substandard products that litter our markets.”

    Umeofia pointed out that influx of foreign goods is one of the dangers local manufacturers and producers are facing, because the cost of production here is quite high. “The power situation, the  high production cost  compared  to the low  production cost in Asia make imported goods from those Asian countries cheaper and at times making our local substitutes uncompetitive,” he said.

    The industrialist argued that if the trend is not checked, many manufacturers in no distant time will go under. He, therefore, asked that fiscal policy be put in place to discourage the importation of goods and services.

    To achieve this, Umeofia canvassed high tariffs on imported goods with local alternatives.

    He said: “It is not too difficult to take a census or to sample goods that are being produced here and such goods; government should have a deliberate policy from ministry of finance hiking the tariff of the imported ones.”

    He said though the world is a global village, it has become imperative on government and policy makers to have the political and patriotic will to disallow the importation of fake and substandard goods into the country.

  • Industrialist praises Sterling Bank’s commitment to economic growth

    The Chairman and Chief Executive of The Bazaar Limited, a growing player in the retail outlet and food chain business in Nigeria, Mr. Rajesh Mehta, has praised Sterling Bank Plc for its contribution to the economic growth of the country.

    The industrialist, who spoke at the opening of The Bazaar Retail Store outlet in Ogba, Lagos, said the lender has been providing adequate capital for its customers across the value chain in all the sectors of the economy.

    He said the provision of capital and other advisory services by the bank has boosted the growth of his business.  “Sterling Bank is indeed a bank of choice. We have been banking with the bank for the past 20 years. We started with one of its legacy institutions- Magnum Trust Bank and we have come this far because of the quality of banking services we enjoy from the bank. Apart from the provision of capital, the advisory services provided by the bank stand out in the industry and its staff are adequately trained to support the business growth of their customers,” he said.

    According to the Euromonitor International, a leading independent provider of strategic market research globally, Nigeria’s retail business has become more organised in recent years. The huge demand posed by the population of the country has made the country a hotbed for international retailers and investors. It is expected that this trend would be replicated across the various sectors of the economy.

    Corroborating the claims by Mr. Mehta, the bank assured that it will continue to support the growth of both new and existing businesses in various sectors of the economy “No business can run successfully without sufficient working capital”, the bank noted.

    The bank said it is already equipping the operators in the Micro Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) segment with the right skills to effectively manage their businesses for success.

    “Last year, we organised the first MSME Academy which was well attended by operators in this segment to equip them with the right skills and minds set to effectively manage their businesses for success. In response to the positive feedback and customers’ request, we are expanding the academy to more locations across the country.”

     

  • Onitsha-based industrialist decries SON’s harassment

    The Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of an Onitsha-based company, Chief Sylvester Okeke, has decried what he termed “harassment” of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) in the Southeast.

    Workers of an Onitsha-based company last week, protested SON’s alleged frustration of indigenous companies and corruption of some of its officials.

    Chief Okeke said: “As an advocate of what is right, I won’t let some disgruntled manufacturers frustrate the good works the SONS’s workers are doing, particularly the Southeast. It was a shock to have read in one of the dailies that a company staged a protest.

    “Over the years, we’ve had value-adding transaction with the agency and yet to recall a time we were threatened because of bribe. As a manufacturing outfit, we have gone through our manufacturing routines – moving in machineries, certification, having SON engineer our processes, and attended a number of knowledge-sharing and capacity-building workshops from the stables of the Standards Organisation of Nigeria”.

    “I recommend an investigation into the matter to ascertain the company’s claim and also, to look into the aggrieved company’s profile, activities and products. Justice must be served, however the story goes. To the best of my knowledge, manufacturers who have been having issues with the agency are those producing fake or substandard products. In my opinion, we have not had the agency have a firm grip on things like this before”.

     

     

     

     

     

     

     

  • Industrialist urges banks on MSME lending

    An  industrialist  and  Chairman,Vegefresh Group, Prince  Samuel Johnson  Samuel has  urged   banks to assist  struggling  companies  to  survive  and improve  servicing  of the debts.

    He  said  the  economy  has  shown   a surge in bad loans, as high interest rates have pushed many companies to default on loan payments.

    He  urged  the  government and the banks  to  reach out to more  Nigerians  to set up new enterprises, for which it has adequate funds  to  reduce  imports.

    He attributed the unexpected resurfacing of bad loans to the inability  of   banks to cuddle their struggling borrowers and motivate   them to pay what they owe.

    He chastised ‘shortsighted’ lenders that clamped down  on  borrowers, stressing that it  was  not the way to go in the  face  of  the  state  of the  economy.

    He urged  more flexibility from  the banks so that the problematic loans can be dealt with effectively.