The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, said on Tuesday the weekly Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting has been postponed due to inadequate time to prepare the documents for the meeting.
The minister stated this in a statement issued in Kano by his Special Adviser, Mr. Segun Adeyemi.
He said the two-day public holiday declared for the Eid el-Kabir celebration left little or no time to prepare for the weekly meeting.
NAN
While denying the false report of President Muhammadu Buhari purported plan to travel to the United States on Sunday, Information and Culture Minister, Alhaji Lai Muhammed disclosed that he does not have social media accounts.
“Numerous parody accounts have been opened in my name on the two platforms, when indeed I have no Twitter or Facebook accounts,” he stated while urging Nigerians to disregard what was credited to him.
The minister also recalled how the same parody Twitter account, @MohammedLai used to disseminate the fake news about the President’s purported trip was employed to circulate a fake report that he sharply criticised Senator Dino Melaye for attending the Notting Hill Carnival in the UK.
He said these two instances highlight the dangers posed to the polity by the purveyors of fake news and disinformation, and vowed that the Federal Government would soon fish out those behind the shenanigans.
I sympatise with the minister that the false sensitive information was credited to him by some faceless individuals who create parody accounts in the name of others, especially top government officials to misinform the public.
I totally agree with the minister that “Fake news, disinformation and hate speech are the antics of the naysayers, those who are pathologically opposed to this administration.” Everyone on the internet, including Nigerians as he counseled need to be more discerning and should double check any information emanating from the social media.
However, notwithstanding the wrong use to which social media accounts are being deployed, the minister cannot continue to justify not having Twitter or Facebook handles.
The accounts are too important in the present information age for information dissemination for any government official like the country’s information minister not to have.
If President Muhammadu Buhari, Vice President Yemi Osinbajo and many other top officials of the federal government have social media accounts, why should the spokesman of the government not have verified handles?
Parody accounts will always be created by mischief makers, but when the real ones exists and are used regularly, it will be easy to distinguish between fake and real information.
Alhaji Mohammed should take a cue from many members of this administration who are effectively using the social media to disseminate information to prevent the naysayers from taking advantage of his absence on the too-important to ignore platforms.
He doesn’t need to operate them himself like most top dignitaries do. He can get tech savvy assistants to keep Nigerians informed through the platforms and match the naysayers tweets for tweets.
MINISTER of Information and Culture Alhaji Lai Mohammed has urged “Nigerians to disregard the fake news being circulated via a parody Twitter account and an old Nigerian Television Authority (NTA) news video that President Muhammadu Buhari is travelling or has travelled to the United States (U.S.)”.
A statement issued in Lagos yesterday by his Special Adviser Segun Adeyemi quoted the minister as saying one of the numerous parody Twitter accounts in his name, @MohammedLai, was used to disseminate the fake and ludicrous news that claims that the President is due to leave Nigeria for the U.S. on Monday “to condole with President Trump over the floods in Houston”.
Also, he said an old NTA News video being circulated on the Social Media claims that Buhari had already left for the United Nations (UN) General Assembly in New York.
“This is a 2015 NTA News video that was repackaged to look current and to give the impression that the President left Daura, where he is celebrating Eid-el-Kabir, directly for New York,” Mohammed said.
Mohammed urged Nigerians to disregard any news credited to any account in his name, either on Twitter or Facebook, adding: “Numerous parody accounts have been opened in my name on the two platforms, when indeed I have no Twitter or Facebook accounts.”
The minister recalled how the same parody Twitter account used to disseminate the fake news about the President’s purported trip was employed to circulate a fake report that he sharply criticised Senator Dino Melaye for attending the Notting Hill Carnival in the UK.
He said these two instances highlight the dangers posed to the polity by the purveyors of fake news and disinformation, and vowed that the Federal Government would soon fish out those behind the shenanigans.
“Fake news, disinformation and hate speech are the antics of the naysayers, those who are pathologically opposed to this administration. That is why we are urging Nigerians to be more discerning and to double check any information emanating from the social media,” Mohammed said.
NO one knows how well the Nigerian government bears the continuous needling of the international rights group, Amnesty International (AI). At its International Day of the Disappeared, which was marked in Abuja last Wednesday, Amnesty asserted that hundreds of Nigerians were being held in secret detention camps nationwide. Some of the relations of the alleged victims of secret detention reportedly attended the Amnesty briefing. Furthermore, the rights group restated its conclusions about the killing of over 300 Shiite members during a clash with soldiers in Zaria about two years ago. But in a spontaneous reaction, Information minister, Lai Mohammed, claimed that Amnesty did not get its facts right. No one, he said, was in any secret detention.
According to Alhaji Mohammed: “I should know if such a thing exists. This government is not in the least repressive. This government is tolerant of all views. It is a big shame if an organisation like Amnesty International will cook up this kind of story. I should know. Who are the dissidents that are being kept in an unknown place? I should know. I face a lot of criticism, I face a lot of attack. Who are the dissidents that are being detained there? It is certainly untrue, let them come out with facts and should stop relying on hear-say and some so-called NGOs. When they have this kind of story, they should contact the government before they go out to smear the name of the country. They should know that at Amnesty International, people take them seriously.”
Perhaps it is normal to spontaneously respond to questions touching on government policies, especially as a spokesman. But except in witty exchanges where ripostes are de rigueur, it is often hard to gauge the effectiveness or necessity of spontaneity. Would it not have been proper for the Information minister to ask for time to study the report, which he almost certainly had not seen? Had he done that, he would have been able to take the report apart, if he had the controverting facts he claimed to depend on in denying Amnesty’s story. But even in his spontaneous reaction, Alhaji Mohammed said nothing about the December 2015 killings in Zaria under the Buhari presidency. The minister will remember that Kaduna State government set up an inquiry to investigate the killings, and it was confirmed that at least 347 Shiite members were killed and buried in two mass graves. Amnesty made reference to that gory fact as well; but Alhaji Mohammed glossed over it.
Indeed, during the public presentation in Abuja, Amnesty brought a few people to share their experiences of family members who allegedly disappeared or were imprisoned in secret detention facilities. One of them was Zainab Isa who said her husband, Abdullahi Abbas, and their six children’s whereabouts were not known since the night of December 14, 2015 following the clashes in Zaria. According to her, “He sells books at the Husainiyyah (in Zaria) where the clashes took place. All six of our children were with him that day. Up till now, we don’t know their fate. We don’t know whether the seven of them are alive or dead and no one is giving us any information that can ease our pain.” Given his angry rebuttal, however, Alhaji Lai seemed more interested in safeguarding the image of the government than in responding to the anguish of some of the families of victims of forced disappearance. Without a closure, however, the matter will not go away, and one day, those responsible for these horrendous crimes in the name of national security will be held accountable.
With security forces and law enforcement agents periodically engaged in reprisal and extra-judicial killings, including razing of whole communities, such as was witnessed in Odi in Bayelsa State and Zaki Biam in Benue State during the Olusegun Obasanjo presidency, government spokesmen must be more measured in refuting reports of rights groups, be they local or foreign. In fact, only last Sunday, soldiers allegedly invaded two riverine communities in Ekeremor Local Government of Bayelsa State to avenge the murder of a soldier by pirates. They, however, claimed it was not an invasion. But with such periodic lawlessness and lack of restraint and precision by law enforcement agents, it is not hard to understand why Amnesty will continue to produce fat reports on Nigeria detailing forced disappearances, secret detention facilities and extra-judicial killings. Rather than react angrily to such reports, often without real substantiation, it is time the government took another look at its methods and practices in order to build a society anchored on justice, rule of law and equity.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, on Friday challenged the Federal Character Commission (FCC) to enlighten Nigerians on its activities.
The minister gave the challenge when he received top officials of the Commission, led by its Secretary, Malam Mahmoud Tukur, in his office in Abuja.
Mohammed specifically urged the FCC to enlighten the people on spread of federal appointments.
He said: “Nigerians need to know and appreciate what you are doing, and I think we need more of this interaction.
“At our level at the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, we will partner with you in the area of enlightenment campaigns to unite the country better.
“Once the people have a sense of belonging, then it is the recipe for unity.”
Mohammed said it was important for the Commission to change the perception and the mindset of people about it.
In doing that, he said, the FCC must invest in advocacy, interactions and visits.
Mohammed said it was always convenient for people to look at a few appointments and make a general statement of marginalisation without taking a holistic view of federal appointments.
However, the minister noted that adequate and equitable representation in federal institutions would give a sense of belonging to every Nigerian and equally strengthen the bond of unity.
“It is gladdening to note that the objective and the mandate of the Commission go beyond just ensuring that there is balance, equity and fairness in the federal ministries and parastatals.
‘’You are also very duly concerned about the spread of infrastructure.
“I think the two mandates are very important and germane to the unity, stability and peace of this country,” Mohammed added.
NAN
The Minister of Information and Culture, Lai Mohammed, said on Thursday that no amount of hatred would obliterate the solid achievements of President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration.
The minister stated this while declaring open the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC) Annual Lecture and 25th Anniversary celebration of creation of the Commission.
Mohammed said that contrary to the impression being created by purveyors of hate speech and fake news, the Buhari administration had, in a short time, recorded solid achievements under a most difficult situation.
He said despite operating with just 45 per cent of the funds available to the immediate past administration due largely to the fall in prices of oil, the Buhari government had achieved tremendously.
The minister said it was due to Buhari efficient leadership that Nigeria had not witnessed economic and social crises like other oil dependent nations.
He said: “A country that has consistently produced more oil than Nigeria, despite having about one sixth of the Nigerian population, is today embroiled in the worst economic crisis in its history.
“There is shortage of food, medicine and everything, and there is hyper-inflation.
“With Nigeria being affected by the same downturn in oil prices, coupled with years of monumental mismanagement of the country’s economy and the mindless and maddening looting of its treasury by rapacious public officials, why is Nigeria not in similar crisis as the country in question?
“My answer is simple: Because Nigeria has a President like Muhammadu Buhari.”
Specifically, the minister said the Buhari administration had brought transparency to governance, laying a solid foundation for the country’s economic recovery and growth through the Treasury Single Account (TSA) and other economic policies.
“Does anyone remember the scandalous fuel subsidies that failed to deliver fuel to filling stations? What about the fertiliser subsidies that never guaranteed the availability of fertiliser to farmers? Today, fuel queues are gone with the phantom fuel subsidies.
“Also, thanks to the resuscitation of 11 of the country’s moribund fertiliser blending plants, fertiliser is now available to farmers nationwide.
“In fact, six million bags of fertilisers have been delivered at 30 per cent below the market price, 50,000 jobs created and N50 billion saved with the stopping of fertiliser subsidy,” he added.
NAN
Former Governor of Anambra State, Dr. Peter Obi the country needs to save aggressively, diversify the economy into knowledge based exports and invest in developmental education to come out survive the present economic challenges.
He stated this at the first annual conference of the Guild of Corporate Online Publishers (GOCOP), held in Lagos on Thursday.
According to the Obi, failure to save well enough, and failure to invest well in developmental education is responsible for our current economic situation.
“The Nigerian economy has for the past decades been growing until the country recently experienced the economic recession. From August 2016, Nigeria experienced negative growth in the economy, because we failed to save for the rainy days, as countries as China, South Korea, Thailand did as at the 1980’s.
“So for us to bounce back economically as a nation, we must save be able to aggressively, diversify the economy into knowledge based exports and invest in developmental education. Our economy is fairly diversified. The oil is actually contributing 80% of our GDP”
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed in his speech said that the federal government is committed in making a paradigm shift in the economy, as it pays attention to agriculture.
Represented by the Managing Director of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN), Mr. Bayo Onanuga, Mohammed noted that when the economy is affected positively or negatively, the first sector to be affected is the media. He further commended GOCOP for coming under one platform to chart the course of online journalism.
He further commended GOCOP for coming under one platform to chart the course of online journalism.
“I commend GOCOP for coming together, but I appeal that GOCOP establish a code of conduct for online publishers and bloggers as it was done years ago, to avoid the spread of false news and deceits around.
” I charge online newspapers to find a way of posting stories that are catchier to the eyes, such that anyone that sees the headline would not resist it. This will make online papers take the lead from the social media handles, which are on top in terms of making money today.
The event, which was attended by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, representatives of the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), and the Inspector General of Police, ended with the inauguration of the new executives of GOCOP.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, recently played host to the Music Producers and Marketers Association of Nigeria (MUPMAN).
Receiving the members of the body, who were on a courtesy visit, the minister said that his ministry has succeeded in putting the Creative Industry in the front burner of national discourse due to its critical role in the diversification of the economy.
“Our commitment in this ministry under this administration, especially to the Creative Industry, is not just a matter of words. We have taken practical steps to demonstrate our commitment to the promotion and protection of the Creative Industry.
“Mr. President has said it many times that we must diversify our economy and that we must produce in Nigeria what we consume in Nigeria, and in the last two weeks or thereabout, the Creative Industry, through the programmes and actions of this ministry, has dominated discourse,” he said.
The minister said that despite criticisms and unsavory comments, the ministry remains overwhelmingly committed to re-positioning the Creative Industry into a viable sector of the economy.
He expressed the optimism that the newly-inaugurated Anti-Piracy Committee consisting of officials of the ministry, Creative Industry stakeholders and the police will stamp out the piracy of intellectual property that has become rampant.
In his remarks, the National President of the MUPMAN, Mr. Sharon Essco-Joshua, hailed the Minister for his uncommon commitment to the growth of the Creative Industry in Nigeria.
He briefed the Minister on the forthcoming Nigerian Music Stakeholders Awards being organized by the Association, and which is aimed at recognizing major stakeholders in the industry with a view to encouraging them to strive for excellence.
The Association later honoured the Minister with the title of the Grand Patron and also conferred on him the “Most Prestigious Stakeholder Award.”
…Approves policy for technology acquisition
The Federal Executive Council (FEC) on Wednesday approved N20.6 billion for road contracts in Plateau and Kwara states.
The Minister of Power, Works and Housing, Babatunde Fashola, briefed State House correspondents at the end of the FEC meeting chaired by Acting President Yemi Osinbajo at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He was with the Minister of Information, Lai Mohammed, Minister of Trade and Investment, Okechukwu Enelamah and the Minister of Science and Technology, Ogbonnaya Onu.
The two roads, he said, are N10.4 billion for the reconstruction of Pankshin-Balank-Yalen-Salak-Gindiri road in Plateau state and N10.2 billion for reconstruction of Sharre-Patigi road in Kwara state.
He said “The ministry presented two memoranda to the council. The first was to with respect for approval to construct the Pankshin-Balank-Yalen-Salak-Gindiri road in Plateau state for N10.46billion.
“The second one is the Sharre-Patigi road in Kwara for N10.2 billion; both prayers were approved by the council.
“The other memorandum was in respect to inherited liabilities from the old power ministry where a judgment of N119 billion had been signed against the Federal Government as a result of acts of officials of government who varied the presidential approval without seeking further directive from him and then awarded the contract on that basis.
“So the party who was the beneficiary of that contract which they subsequently sought to withdraw went to court and got a judgment,” he said.
Onu said that the Council approved a policy to encourage technological advancement in Nigeria.
The initiative, he said, will help Nigerian firms to produce what the country needs as it will boost foreign investment in Science, Technology and Engineering from where local content could be developed.
Through the policy, he said that technology transfer will be facilitated with more taxes to be paid to government, and wealth creation for the country and people.
“The Federal Executive Council in its deliberations approved a policy that will help us to change the direction that we have been taking as a nation, a direction that will be very useful in helping us to start looking inwards to produce the things that we need as against depending on other outside people to import our requirements.
“Some of the highlights will involve for example where we have bulk purchases of major items that we are bringing into the country that those who normally would have supplied from outside the country will now come to Nigeria to establish their factories to produce in Nigeria.
“By doing so they will offer job opportunities to our people, tax will be paid to government so wealth will be created but most importantly Nigeria will now acquire the necessary technology that will help us to build capacity.’’
Onu said that FEC agreed that henceforth whoever wanted to practice any profession, in Engineering, Science and Technology, Medicine, Accountancy, Quantity Surveyors and others must be certified by appropriate professional bodies in Nigeria.
He said the measure was very important in building the nation’s local capacity adding that there were so many areas that the fiscal policy had covered.
According to him the aim is that in the next 10 years Nigerian firms shall be in a position to carry out very complex jobs, especially the ones that they do not currently have the expertise to do.
He said the country would for now rely on foreign companies for such jobs but when they arrive they have to work with Nigerian firms who would understudy them from project conception to inauguration.
The minister stated that it was the only way that the country could acquire the necessary technology to build our local capacity hoping that in 20 years Nigerian firms should be competing with the best in the world.
He said FEC has accepted to declare a state of emergency on Science and Technology because the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan 2017 to 2020 recognised the cardinal place of science and technology in driving the recovery and growth plan.
“We are not looking for transfer of technology because we know it would not happen; what we are looking for is acquisition of technology and we are interested in building our own capacity.
“We are convinced that we can do this and we believe that with the new policy we will be in a position to acquire technology,’’ he stated.
Onu noted that the country could train professionals using the foreign professionals adding that the Ministry of Interior would be involved to ensure creation of a new classification in the immigration policy in that regard.
He also said that the ministry of foreign affairs would help the country to improve its free visa status ranking from the present 92 position.
He described the position as very low as it allowed Nigerians to enter only 45 countries on free visa.
He said this was a difficult journey but would take Nigeria to where it should be in the committee of nations.
Onu added that the approval had not been done since the country became independent and added that in project design the country would insist that all the language would be in English rather than any other foreign language.
He noted that with the movement of other nations toward solar and other means of technology outside oil the country should be preparing for a post-crude oil era.
Enelamah said that FEC approved a memorandum that was presented to amend the list of pioneer industries and products that will enjoy pioneer status going
forward.
This, according to him, is line with the ease of doing business policy of government.
He said “As many of you know the pioneer incentive scheme is governed by ye Industrial Development Income Tax Relief Act and the whole purpose is to give tax holidays to industries we consider pioneer. Pioneer doesn’t mean that they are new it only means that they are not yet mature, we want those industries to grow.
“We want to attract investment in them and you will find that this covers a wide range of industries and those tax holidays ranges from 3-5years. The pioneer list was last reviewed by the Federal Executive Council in 2006, so you could see that this was long overdue.
“On doing the review, special attention was paid to the ERGP to capture the current realities that will help to implement the plan to make sure we attract the kind of investment, industries and players that will help to implement and realize our objectives in the ERGP.
“I should also point out that there was multi stakeholder engagement, private and public sector in arriving at the industries that will be included in the pioneer incentive scheme.
“In terms of the recommendations approved by FEC today: we have tried to remove all ambiguities in the definition of industries by reclassifying industries according to the international standard in industrial classification which is the global standard which is also the standard that is used by the Nigeria Bureau of Statistics.
“The other thing we also did is to agree that the pioneer list will be reviewed regularly every two years, biannually so that just that if things come up, we live in a fast changing world and we are being responsive to our world. In the case of additions to the list they will be effected immediately, for deletion of industries that we consider mature there will be a three year window that will be allowed for those that are already investing in that industry that were enjoying pioneer status to carry on till the end of that three year period.
“Against this backdrop, we then approved 27 industries that were recommended for addition to the pioneer list today. We also recommended and it was accepted by the Council that mineral oil prospecting which is governed by the Petroleum Profit Tax should not be part of the pioneer industries list which is really industries governed by the Companies Income Tax Act.
“It was also accepted that given the success we have achieved in cement which are now net exporters, maybe that is an industry which we could say that we are now where we want to be in terms of maturity even though there is still a lot of scope for the application and the use of cement and you know that will continue. We already have critical mass in cement.
“The scheme will ensure that will not deprive us of revenue. It is an incentive to make people enter your market, new enter industries, invest more for people who are already here. It will increase our tax base over time,” he stated.
The Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed declared on Monday in Abuja that the Federal Government is walking its talk and taking concrete steps to stamp out piracy of intellectual property.