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Tag: Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa

  • Don’t carry drugs to holy land, Dabiri-Erewa warns pilgrims

    The Chairman of Nigerians in Diaspora Commission (NIDCOM), Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has warned pilgrims to this year’s Hajj in Saudi Arabia to resist any temptation to carry hard drugs to the holy land.

    Speaking on the heels of the inaugural flight of intending pilgrims, Mrs Dabiri-Erewa reminded them that Saudi laws prescribe death penalty against such act.

    In a statement by the NIDCOM Head of Media, Abdur-Rahman Balogun, the commission chairman said it was disheartening that some Nigerians still ran foul of Saudi Arabia authorities’ law, despite repeated warnings and workshops for intending pilgrims.

    She recalled that some Nigerians caught with hard drugs in the last few years were still on death row in Saudi Arabia.

    Read Also: Excitement as Lagos announces refunds of N315 million to pilgrims

    The NIDCOM chairman pleaded with pilgrims to shun the shameful act.

    Mrs Dabiri-Erewa also reminded the pilgrims that kolanuts and prescription painkillers in large quantities have been banned in Saudi Arabia.

    The commission chairman warned that if found on anyone, the offence attracts severe penalties according to new Saudi Arabia regulations.

    She said the Federal Government, through the National Hajj Commission of Nigeria (NAHCON) and various state boards, had made arrangements to attend to the medical needs of the pilgrims in Saudi Arabia.

  • Buhari lists conditions for restructuring

    …Why Nigerians in diaspora won’t vote in 2019

     

    President Muhammadu Buhari on Monday gave conditions to be fulfilled before the government can go into restructuring of the country.

    He pointed out that there should be proper definition of what Nigerians want before the government can delve into restructuring the country.

    The President also noted that many Nigerians who have been calling for restructuring have been doing so without defining what the restructuring should be.

    Read Also:Jail terms no longer deterrence for illicit financial flow, says Buhari

    Buhari, who spoke during the interactive session with Nigerians living in France, was in the country for the Peace Forum attended by about 70 world leaders in Paris.

    The Nigerian community, which was made up of Nigerian Diaspora Organization (NIDO), All Progressives Congress (APC) members in France, students and friends of Nigeria, asked the President questions ranging from restructuring, security, anti-corruption, education and opportunity for Nigerians in diaspora to vote in 2019 general elections.

    The President said; “There are too many people talking lazily about restructuring in Nigeria. Unfortunately, people are not asking them individually what do they mean by restructuring? What form do they want restructuring to take?

    “Do they want us to have something like the three regions we used to have? And now we have 36 states and the FCT. What form do they want? They are just talking loosely about restructuring.

    “Let them define it and then we see how we can peacefully do it in the interest of Nigerians.

    “They are just saying they want Nigeria restructured and they don’t have the clue of what the form the restructuring should be.

    “So, anybody who talks to you about restructuring in Nigeria, ask him what he means and the form he wants it to take,” he stated.

    He also gave reasons why Nigerians in diaspora might not vote in the 2019 general elections.

    According to him, it will be very difficult for the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to put in place structures to accommodate them with just about three months to the 2019 elections.

    Noting that the increasing Nigeria population in the diaspora supports the calls for their participation in electing Nigeria leaders, he said that it might not happen in the 2019 general elections as INEC had been more focused on strengthening and consolidating on its achievements to conduct credible elections within the country.

    But he said that Nigerians in diaspora would definitely participate in future elections.

    Buhari said “We want to secure the Nigeria votes first before we go foreign. We are going to strengthen the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to be more independent and viable ….  so that they can recruit more committed and educated Nigerians to be in charge and use technologies to get the votes from all the constituencies.

    “So, with the way the economy is now, I think with the elections in three months’ time, it will be very difficult for INEC and the government to organize quality survey of those that are outside,” he said.

    Responding to the question on education in Nigeria, the President said that his administration is doing its best to invest more in infrastructures, education and other sectors.

    The Nigerian elites, he said, disappointed Nigeria and the Nigerian masses under the sixteen years administrations of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP).

    According to him, so much waste has gone down the drain from the huge resources earned in during the PDP administrations in the country between 1999 and 2015.

    He said that there was nothing to show for the earnings including the $16 billion said to have been spent on power.

    He urged Nigerian elites, both at home and diaspora, to do more in contributing to the educational sector of the country, expressing surprise that the elites tolerated the fall in standards and structures of educational institutions despite the huge oil earnings.

    He said; “So, really I have seen it all and I was disappointed in the Nigerian elites. What have they done in these sixteen years?”

    “What do we have with our oil production down to half a million and the price per barrel went down to about $30, what could we have done with the infrastructure?

    “You should find out the damage done by the main opposition now to the economy and the integrity of the country.

    “So, we are now trying to improve infrastructures and do more in education and other areas.

    “We are currently reviewing investments in the entire infrastructure of the country like road, rail and power, including investing more in education. We will certainly need to do more in education,’’ he said.

    He added “I am doing my best now to utilize our resources to develop the country. We are already getting results on road, rail and power. My frustration is that some people still have plenty stolen money stashed in Europe, U S and other countries.’’

    According to him, return of stolen assets in some safe heavens will bolster the administration’s current effort of investing more in critical infrastructure that directly impact on the livelihood of Nigerians.

    He said that the war against terrorism will be reinforced with new weapons and hardware for the military

    The challenge of abduction and kidnapping in some parts of the country, he said, will receive more attention with better gathering of intelligence.

    According to him, God and technology in form of card readers and Permanent Voters Card (PVCs) won the Presidential elections for him in 2015 despite not succeeding in three earlier times.

    “We campaigned on three key issues; security, improving the economy, and fighting corruption, and we have not been controverted by anyone that we have not recorded some results,’’ he said.

    Speaking earlier, the Nigerian Ambassador to France, Dr. Modupe Irele, said that the Nigerian community in France had demonstrated high sense of responsibility, dedication and morality.

    According to her, the large number of professionals had been encouraged to also contribute to the country’s development.

    “Nigerians here are law abiding, peaceful and resourceful,’’ she said.

    President Buhari’s commitment to change, she noted, will make Nigeria the envy of other African countries.

    Speaking to journalists at the end of the interactive session, Katsina State Governor, Aminu Masari, said that it was very important for President Buhari to attend the Peace Forum in Paris.

    He said “President Muhammadu Buhari has been preaching for peace, especially when he came on board, he met our country religiously and ethnically divided.

    “I think it is important that he meets with other world leaders to discuss how peace can be promoted among the nations and various people of the world.

    “There is no way you can promote peace where there is massive corruption. Massive corruption deprives people of development, and if there is no development, there won’t be any peace.” he said

    Willy Obiano of Anambra State said that it is important for Nigeria to be emphasizing peace.

    In the education sector, he said that the state has invested a lot of money into the sector in the last four years.

    He said “We revamped 1482 primary and secondary schools. We have sent our teachers to Singapore and Germany for training.

    “More importantly, what my administration has done in Anambra State with respect to education is to reach the … end of Anambra State.” he said

    House of Reps member, Nasir Ali Ahmed, representing Nasarawa Federal constituency of Kano State, said that the interactive session was a very successful meeting.

    He hoped that a lot of the Nigerians living in France will come back home to contribute their quota to Nigeria’s development.

    Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, a Senior Special Assistant on Diaspora Affairs, recently nominated Chairman and Chief Executive Officer of the National Diaspora Commission, who facilitated the meeting, said that a lot of Nigerians living in France are already doing many things at home for the economy.

    “So, we will continue to engage with them and continue to stress the positivity about our country, Nigeria,” she said

    Stressing that there are some Nigerians in prisons in France, she said that Nigerians are being encouraged to obey the laws of the land wherever they go.

    She also pointed out that the new commission is not a charity organization, but aims to tap into the enormous resources of Nigerians in the diaspora.

  • Boosting economy with diaspora funds

    Apart from revenues and other domestic incomes, the Nigerian economy also relies substantially on Foreign Direct Investments (FDI).

    While FDI is different from portfolio investments, which are made indirectly into another country’s economy using such financial instruments as bonds and stocks, FDI is made into a business or a sector by an individual or a company from another country.

    By incorporating a wholly owned subsidiary or company, acquiring shares in an associated enterprise, through merger or an

    unrelated enterprise and participating in an equity joint venture with another

    investor, a foreign direct investor may acquire 10% or more of the voting power of an enterprise in the Nigeria economy.

    FDI is believed to produce positive effects on host economies including adoption of foreign

    technology, licensing agreements, employment opportunities, and increased productive efficiency.

    While the investment code that created the Nigerian Investment Promotion Commission (NIPC) (Decree No. 16 of 1995) and

    the Foreign Exchange (Monitoring and Miscellaneous Provision) Decree,1995, gave full backing for FDI inflow into the country, Nigeria like other developing countries has made moves to attract FDI because of its advantages as a tool of economic development.

    Formation of the New Partnership for Africa’s Development (NEPAD) provided Nigeria and other African countries the platform to join the rest of the world in seeking FDI.

    But despite the generous incentives to attract FDI inflows with its enormous human and natural resources, the quantum of the FDI into the country has not matched the expectations of the past and current governments in Nigeria.

    Besides insufficient FDI to the country, some of those that flowed into Nigeria have sort of being a disadvantage to the economy.

    Some foreign firms have taken advantage of the incentives offered by Nigeria to achieve their various motives of enthroning stable monopolistic control over sources of raw materials in Nigeria for their parent companies.

    Apart from their unhindered access to control of local markets, they have also utilized low cost labour, thereby boosting their higher returns.

    Foreign direct investors have also enjoyed low corporate and income tax rates, tax holidays, other types of tax concessions.

    They also have at their disposal preferential tariffs, special economic zones, investment financial subsidies, soft loan or loan guarantees, free land or land subsidies, relocation and expatriation subsidies, job training and employment subsidies, infrastructure subsidies, research and development support and derogation from regulations, usually for very large projects.

    Other disadvantages of the FDI inflows into Nigeria include hindrance to domestic investment, risk from political changes in the FDI’s country of origin.

    Some of them have also posed negative influence on exchange rates in Nigeria.

    They may also have negative Impact on Nigeria’s Investment while foreign direct investment may also lead to  some kind of modern-day economic colonialism, which leaves host countries vulnerable to foreign companies’ exploitations.

    To overcome the disadvantages inherent in the FDI Nigeria is used to, there is a new move to ensure the country gets  higher benefits from investments coming from abroad.

    The new move, under the Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit (NDIS) scheduled for November 27 and 28, is being spearheaded by the office of the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa

    The summit is to get Nigerians residing abroad to channel their investments to Nigeria towards boosting the economy.

    One great benefit of the new move is to ensure that there is no capital flight abroad and that such investments stays in the country.

    Speaking on the Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit, Dabiri-Erewa said, “Considering the current measures introduced to improve the Ease of Doing Business in Nigeria and the fact that Nigeria is fast becoming a robust investment destination for smart investors given the fact that the Economic Recovery and Growth Plan (ERGP) is set and hopes to achieve the ERGP’s goal of 7% GDP growth by 2020.

    “When we look at the Nigerian Diaspora remittances, the fact that it is over N22 billion a year, which typically goes into helping their families regularly.

    “However, these funds do not have lasting benefits for majority of the benefactors. Therefore, the Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit aims to encourage Nigerians in the diaspora to channel their funds into formal sectors.

    “This way, they and their beneficiaries will have a more sustainable means of generating income on a regular basis.

    “The Nigeria Diaspora Investment Summit aims to demonstrate that targeting Nigerians in the Diaspora is an effective and sustainable strategy for attracting Diaspora Nigerians to look inward into their home country and channel their funds into investment into the emerging diversified economy of Nigeria.”

    “It will establish a platform where Diaspora investors can interact with potential sponsors, partners, collaborators and the government. They will have direct round table deals for mutual benefits.

    “It will showcase and explore in an unprecedented manner, the vast number of government diaspora investment incentives, business investment and potential sponsorship opportunities in all the 36 States of Nigeria.

    “Also, this summit will explore ways to harness the substantial but unexplored skills, the capital and technical know-how of Nigerians abroad and institutional participants that are major players in the Nigerian economy, including the Organized Private Sector; Government Agencies responsible for Investment Promotion; Foreign Development Partners like USAID, DFID, UNDP, World Bank, IMF etc.”

    She said that areas of focus for the investments include agribusiness, education, training and skills development, entertainment, hospitality and tourism. Other areas are extractive industry, healthcare, infrastructure and real estate, manufacturing, telecommunication, technology and innovations, transportation, waste management and environmental remediation.

    Throwing more light on the new initiative, Dr. Badewa T. Adejugbe-Williams, Chairperson, planning committee of NDIS said “Instead of foreign investors coming to invest in Nigeria and taking their foreign currencies back to their countries, we want Nigerians to come and invest here, so the money stays here.

    “You know our people send monies to their families in Nigeria on a monthly basis usually, but that money goes, it is spent and it is gone.

    “But we want a sustainable way for them to be remitting money to their families. So with this investment summit, if they come in and invest in businesses in Nigeria to develop the Nigerian economy, and help Nigeria and the same time help their families, they will have sustainable returns on their investments.

    “And like Honorable said, it could be up to N60 billion

    This is the inaugural, we hope it will be annual event,” she added

    It will really be a good news for Nigeria, if this initiative succeeds and more Nigerian investments flows into the country.

    At least, it will check capital  flight and leave more money for Nigeria’s development.

  • Buhari orders immediate repatriation of Nigerians in Libya

    Buhari orders immediate repatriation of Nigerians in Libya

    President Muhammadu Buhari  has ordered the immediate  repatriation of  Nigerians stranded in Libya and other parts of the world for rehabilitation.

    This declaration was made in Abidjan, according to a statement issued on Wednesday by Malam Garba Shehu, President’s Senior Special Assistant on Media and Publicity

    According to him, the president made this known in an interactive session with members of the Nigerian Community in Cote D’ Ivoire.

    The President vowed to reduce the number of Nigerians heading for Europe illegally through the Sahara Desert and the Mediterranean Sea by providing basic social amenities such as education, healthcare, and food security at home, Garba said in the statement.

    According to him, the president said that all necessary steps would be taken to stem the tide of illegal migration by Nigerians.

    He, however, noted that it is very difficult to know the origin of the people who died, while attempting the perilous journey across the Mediterranean, because of lack of documentation.

    “When it was announced that 26 Nigerians died recently in the Mediterranean, before they proved that they were all Nigerians they buried them.

    “The evidence I have from the Senior Special Assistant on Diaspora and Foreign Affairs, (Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa) is that only three of them were identified as Nigerians.

    “But I’ll not be surprised if the majority of them were Nigerians.

    “For people to cross the Sahara desert and Mediterranean through shanty boats… we will try and keep them at home.

    “Anybody who died in the desert and Mediterranean without documents; to prove that he is a Nigerian, there is absolutely nothing we can do.’’

    On the recent footage on the sale of Africans in Libya, he quotes the president as saying, that, “ it was appalling that some Nigerians (in the footage) were being sold like goats for few dollars in Libya.’’

    He said: “after 43 years of Gadhafi, why are they recruiting so many people from the Sahel including Nigerians? All they learned was how to shoot and kill.

    They didn’t learn to be electricians, plumbers or any other trade.’’

    On domestic issues, President Buhari told Nigerians in the Diaspora that “there is good news from home in the area of security, economy and anti-corruption.

    “We are not doing too badly in trying to secure the country, improve the economy and deal with corruption.

    “We are doing our best at all levels including security. It is absolute madness for people to blow others up in markets, churches, and mosques.’’

    According to him, no religion advocates violence, saying that “Justice is the basic thing all religions demand and you can’t go wrong if you do it.’’

    On food security, the President said that his vision of repositioning Nigeria as a food-secure nation was on course as the “country is on the verge of attaining food security.’’

    Read also: 580 more Nigerians to return from Libya this week

    He attributed the development to positive agricultural reform programmes and bumper harvest occasioned by good weather.

    According to the President, interventions through the Anchors Borrows Programme of the CBN and the Presidential Fertilizer Initiative, among others, had been very successful in the agricultural reform initiative.

    “People have gone back to the farm. We got the CBN, agriculture minister and money was provided at very low interest to farmers and the farmers responded and it was very positive.

    “We are lucky that we are in a position to feed ourselves. So we are going to have food security in Nigeria earlier than anybody ever thought,’’ he noted.

    The President advised Nigerians in Cote D’ Ivoire to be good ambassadors in their host country, warning that the Embassy would not hesitate to repatriate those who tarnish the image of the country abroad.

    NAN

  • FG slams Cameroun for deporting 100, 000 Nigerians, appeals for understanding

    FG slams Cameroun for deporting 100, 000 Nigerians, appeals for understanding

    The Senior Special Assistant to the President on  Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, yesterday gave Cameroun a thumps down  for the  alleged deportation of over 100,000 Nigerians  from that country.

    Dabiri-Erewa in a statement by her Media Assistant, Abdul-Rahman Balogun, called the deportation of the Nigerians who fled their homes to escape the Boko Haram insurgency as worrisome and inhuman.

    She said that Cameroon should heed the UN’s call on all countries to protect refugees fleeing the carnage in the North-East of Nigeria and not to return them there.

    “This unfriendly attitude of the Camerounian soldiers to Nigerian asylum seekers is really worrisome,’’ Dabiri-Erewa said.

    She appealed to Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and other West African regional groups to prevail on Cameroun to be “their brothers’ keeper in a situation like this’’.

    She said that deportations, according to Human Rights Watch, defied UN refugee agency’s plea not to return anyone to North-East of Nigeria until the security and human rights situation had improved considerably.

    The presidential aide said that a 55-page Human Rights report entitled “They Forced Us onto Trucks like Animals: Cameroon’s Mass Forced Return and Abuse of Nigerian Refugees,” condemned the act.

    The report, according to her, states that since early 2015, Cameroonian soldiers had tortured, assaulted, and sexually exploited Nigerian asylum seekers in remote border areas.

    She said that the report added that the soldiers also denied the Nigerians access to the UN refugee agency, and summarily deported, often violently, tens of thousands to Nigeria.

    “It also documents violence, poor conditions and unlawful movement restrictions in Cameroon’s only official camp for Nigerian refugees as well as conditions recent returnees face in Nigeria,’’ she said.

    Dabiri-Erewa said that Cameroun’s forced returns breached UN principles, which prohibited forceful return of refugees and asylum seekers to persecution and, under regional standards in Africa, to situations of generalised violence such as in Nigeria’s North-East.

  • Deportation of Nigerian refugees worrisome – Dabiri-Erewa

    Deportation of Nigerian refugees worrisome – Dabiri-Erewa

    The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, Friday gave Cameroun a thumps down for the  alleged deportation of over 100,000 Nigerians  from that country.

    Dabiri-Erewa in a statement by her media assistant, Abdul-Rahman Balogun, called the deportation of the Nigerians who fled their homes to escape the Boko Haram insurgency as worrisome and inhuman.

    She said that Cameroon should heed the UN’s call on all countries to protect refugees fleeing the carnage in the North-East of Nigeria and not to return them there.

    “This unfriendly attitude of the Cameroonian soldiers to Nigerian asylum seekers is really worrisome,’’ Dabiri-Erewa said.

    She appealed to Economic Community of West African States (ECOWAS) and other West African regional groups to prevail on Cameroon to be “their brothers’ keeper in a situation like this’’.

    She said that deportations, according to Human Rights Watch, defied UN refugee agency’s plea not to return anyone to North-East of Nigeria until the security and human rights situation had improved considerably.

    The presidential aide said that a 55-page Human Rights report entitled “They Forced Us onto Trucks like Animals: Cameroon’s Mass Forced Return and Abuse of Nigerian Refugees,” condemned the act.

    The report, according to her, states that since early 2015, Cameroonian soldiers had tortured, assaulted, and sexually exploited Nigerian asylum seekers in remote border areas.

    She said that the report added that the soldiers also denied the Nigerians access to the UN refugee agency, and summarily deported, often violently, tens of thousands to Nigeria.

    “It also documents violence, poor conditions and unlawful movement restrictions in Cameroon’s only official camp for Nigerian refugees as well as conditions recent returnees face in Nigeria,’’ she said.

    Dabiri-Erewa said that Cameroon’s forced returns breached UN principles, which prohibited forceful return of refugees and asylum seekers to persecution and, under regional standards in Africa, to situations of generalised violence such as in Nigeria’s North-East.

  • Badagry Diaspora festival will improve nation’s economy- Abike Dabiri-Erewa

    Badagry Diaspora festival will improve nation’s economy- Abike Dabiri-Erewa

    Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and the Diaspora, on Wednesday said the Badagry Diaspora Festival would help to improve the economy of the country.

    Dabiri-Erewa disclosed this to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Badagry on the sideline of the International Symposium Day which is part of the activities to mark the Badagry Diaspora Festival 2017.

    Those in the Diaspora would be returning to the country to invest and that would affect the economy positively, she said.

    “The festival is a doorway to the people in the Diaspora and it is going to bring so many people to the great ancient city of Badagry so they can see and explore its culture.

    “People in the Diaspora want to be part of the country so they are willing to invest in it and this will  help in improving the economy.

    “The major problem of the country is corruption and the present administration is really tackling it. So the people in the Diaspora are seeing Nigeria as a better place and this will encourage them to come back.

    “It is also important to note that the festival will  improve tourism in Badagry and ensure that Badagry becomes the hub of tourism in  Lagos State and in the whole of West Africa,’’ she said.

    She noted that infrastructure was the key to development of the country.

    “In developing this country, infrastructure is very important because it will help in bringing in investors who will invest in the country.

    “The Federal Government is making sure that infrastructure are put in place in the country so this will also encourage Nigerians in the Diaspora to come back home,’’ she said.

    She urged Nigerians to always attend festivals as it would help to showcase the country’s tourism to the world.

    Dr Ence Bennett, a member of Africa Union Diaspora Forum Mission, told NAN that the festival would encourage people in the Diaspora to retrace their roots.

    “I have been really impressed with all that I had seen and I have just been here for a few days.

    “The festival will help in encouraging people in the Diaspora to retrace their roots back to Africa because a lot has changed and Nigeria in particular is very impressive.

    “Nigeria is blessed and its culture is unique so this is one of the attractions because at the end of everything, there is no place like home,’’ he said.

    However,  Mrs Mere Jah Evejah, Founder of Cultural Embassy of Pan-African Diaspora, said  that her family had difficulties in resettling in Africa adding that the relevant authorities should tackle the problem.

    “To get back to Africa for repatriated Africans, the gap between the dream and reality is wide.

    “The geography of South Benin resembles Guadeloupe, but its environment lacks control, particularly concerning the management of household garbage and the state of the roads.

    “The difficulties on the ground are so serious as there is no formal structure of advice, no guide for the newcomer who becomes an easy prey for swindlers on the lookout for quick profits.

    “The relevant authorities must look into this and set up an agency who will tackle this problem so that repatriates will not be discouraged from coming back,’’ Evejah said.

    Also, Mr Babatunde Mesewaku, President, African Renaissance Foundation (AREFO) said the annual Badagry festival had been encouraging Nigerians in the Diaspora to return to the country.

    Mesawaku who is also the Chief Organiser of the event added that the festival had been showcasing the tourism centres  of the ancient city.

    “The annual festival has been a means to lure Nigerians in the Diaspora back to the country so we are always encouraged by that aspect.

    “It always showcases the tourism attractions of the ancient city to the world,’’ he said.

  • Nigeria’s diaspora remittances hit $35b

    Nigeria’s diaspora remittances hit $35b

    Nigerians living outside the country have so far remitted over $35 billion back to the country this year,  the Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs and Diaspora matters, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has said.

    Speaking in Abuja yesterday when she paid a courtesy visit to the Executive Chairman, Federal Inland Revenue Services (FIRS), Mr Babatunde Fowler.

    According to Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa, “in 2016 they remitted $35 billion which is higher than what was remitted in 2015. This the highest in Africa and the third largest in the world.”

    The former House of Representatives member drew the attention of the FIRS team to tax concerns raised by Nigerians in diaspora. According to her, “there is a lot of talk about your organisation from diasporans concerning taxes-whether there will be tax incentives for Nigerians coming back home to engage in agriculture and other businesses; what are the plans and projects for them? Recently, they expressed concern over reports that we need to pay tax on our passports.”

    She noted that both the FIRS and her office needed to communicate with Nigerians in diaspora, stressing that “there should be collaboration between both offices to disseminate information in case they have questions or want answers.”

    Responding, Fowler clarified the passport issue. He said: “What we are saying is, if you want any immigration services either you want to renew your passport or get a new one, so long as you’re an adult and you’re making an income, you just have to show evidence of tax payment. There is no direct tax on passports; it’s just to show evidence of paying tax and of course, you’re entitled to all the services of government.

    “Nigerians abroad have 99.9 per cent tax compliance just because there are consequences for not paying taxes in those countries. If they decide to come as investors, we do have incentives for pioneer status or waivers and once they make their application to the Federal Ministry of Finance, it would be looked into and if it is in an area of pioneer status, I am sure it would be granted and we also do not believe in double taxation.”

    He also told Nigerians both at home and abroad that “you only pay tax on income of profit, so if you do not make profit, you do not pay tax so also, if you don’t have an income. It is only right that those who come to the country to do business and make profit pay tax.”

  • FG supports diaspora voting ahead of 2019

    The Federal Government has said it would support “any’’ mechanism to ensure the inclusion of Nigerians abroad in future elections.

    The Minister of Foreign Affairs, Mr Geoffrey Onyeama said this at a seminar on the validation of proposed “National Policy on Diaspora Matters’’ in Abuja on Thursday.

    Onyeama was represented by the Permanent Secretary of the ministry, Amb. Sola Enikanolaiye.

    The minister said there was the need to promote the capacity of Nigerians abroad to achieve the “immense potential of the diaspora’’.

    He added that enhanced inclusion of Nigerians abroad in the voting process would support their contributions to national development.

    “This is for the socio-political and economic development of the nation.

    “In addition, the empowerment of Nigerians in the Diaspora as change agents for national development should be speedily scaled up.

    “On our part, we deeply support any mechanism for the inclusion of Nigerian Diaspora to participate in future elections,’’ he said.

    He urged that the challenges impeding the effectiveness of Nigerians abroad should be considered.

    “Many of them (Diaspora) are deeply concerned about the situation in the country and have critical skills and potential that could be harnessed to solving Nigeria’s sociology-economic challenges.

    “What has been lacking is the mechanism of effective engagement and interface with the government, with a view to ensuring that our country reaps fully the benefits of this engagement.

    “The ministry, therefore, sharpening its in-house resources to effectively harness the potential of Nigerians wherever they are based.’’

    The Chairman, Senate Committee on Foreign Affairs Sen. Monsurat Sunmonu said that the committee was in touch with the Independent National Electoral Committee on Diaspora voting.

    Sunmonu added that efforts were being made by the committee to promote opportunities for Nigerians abroad to participate in future elections.

    She reiterated that Nigerians had “huge potential if properly harnessed would contribute to the development of the country’’.

    The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Foreign Affairs, Mrs Abike Dabiri-Erewa also emphasised the need to strengthen the diaspora policy.

    Dabiri-Erewa said that the development of a viable policy would address the concerns of Nigerians abroad.

    “We cannot ignore our diaspora; when Ireland went into recession they reached out to their diaspora community and one thousand of them saved the country from recession.

    “Now that Nigeria is going through challenges, we cannot have this enormous human resource and not engage with them.

    “We are working on the diaspora policy today; with the document, we have identified a few challenges impeding the effective contributions of Nigerians in the diaspora.

    “We do not have an accurate database of Nigerians in the diaspora; there is the lack of an enabling environment, bilateral agreements on avoidance of double taxation, and integrated framework for Nigerians in the diaspora.

    “Let us have a policy that we will be proud of.’’

    She said that a technical committee would be set up to work on the recommendations agreed on and come up with an action plan for implementation.

    Dabiri-Erewa also emphasised that the passing into law of the Diaspora Commission Bill would facilitate the realisation of a commission that would address diaspora matters.

    “The eighth assembly has taken it up, the house has passed it, we are waiting on the Senate to pass it and it has assured that it will pass.

    “It is going to be a one-stop agency to deal with diaspora matters, domiciled in the Ministry of Foreign Affairs,’’ she said.

  • ‘Women must participate in politics’

    ‘Women must participate in politics’

    A House of Representatives member, Mrs. Abike Dabiri-Erewa, has urged women to participate in the 2015 election.

    The lawmaker, who spoke yesterday at a forum organised by the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry Women Group, said women have been marginalised.

    Speaking on ”Strategies for Increased Participation of Women in Leadership Position: Management and Political Perspectives,” she said women need mentoring to cope with the leadership changes in the country.

    Mrs. Dabiri-Erewa said: “We have lots of women who can excel in the political and economic leadership of the country but are often held back by cultural and institutional factors.

    “The women folk have not really come out to seek leadership position because they believe it for the men. They need to be courageous and look at the possibilities of making impact in the polity.”

    Former Lagos State Deputy Governor, Dame Sarah Sosan, said it was an act of criminality by parties to scare women away from seeking elective offices through exorbitant fees.

    She said the charges would not allow women to contest election, stressing that it was crucial to address the shortcoming to give women a chance in the country.

    ”Women have been tactically severed to contest the presidential election. It is not the women but also the people with ideas who cannot afford the money as well.

    ”It is an act of criminality to prevent women, if women must be properly involved they need concession because they don’t have the kind of money the parties are charging,” Mrs.  Sosan said.

    The Chairman, who is the President, Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Remi Bello, said women should be given special concession in the unfolding socio-political and economic advancement.

    He added that women need to be united in the fight to actualise their dream, stressing that they hardly unite when it comes the contest for leadership.

    “They have the number, this ordinarily should be an advantage but they don’t support themselves. It sometimes difficult to get them united to achieve a common goal.”

    Another discussant, Mrs. Hafsat Abiola-Costello, said women must be properly mobilised for leadership.

    “We have ideas let put them across. Women need not to be discouraged by the hostile environment.

    “We should begin to identify those who can make impact and start to support them. We should push those who can do it, Nigerian women must be encouraged.”