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Tag: not feasible

  • Lagos-Ibadan rail: December deadline not feasible, says Ashafa

    The Chairman of Senate Committee on Land Transport, Gbenga Ashafa, yesterday expressd doubts about the delivery of the Lagos-Ibadan standard gauge rail line by December.

    Ashafa spoke when he led members of Land Transport in the Senate and House of Representatives on an oversight function.

    Other lawmakers on the team are: Senator Lanre Tejuoso and the Chairman of the House Committee on Land Transport, Aminu Sani Isa.

    Ashafa expressed satisfaction at the pace of work, saying the pace showed that the contractor was determined to deliver on schedule.

    Addressing reporters after the inspection, the Lagos East senator noted that though his committee was satisfied with the level of work on the project, he doubted if it could be delivered on schedule.

    He added that the project was about 70 per cent completed.

    According to him, the contractor requested an extension of the deadline, hinging the requests on some challenges on the project’s corridor.

    Quoting the contractor, Ashafa listed some of the challenges as encumbrances on the right of way on the Lagos corridor, such as the relocation of water pipelines, bridges and the relocation of the railway station proposed for Abeokuta, the Ogun State capital.

    He said: “While we would hasten to urge the contractor to adhere to the deadline, we would want to say that they should let the Nigerian government know on time if they would need more time to deliver on this project.”

    The senator said he and his team were happy with the level of progress on the project, adding: “Even if what we have seen here 0- from Lagos up to Ibadan – is what this government was able to showcase before December, Nigerians would know that the government is committed to bequeathing to them a modern rail system.”

    Also, Isa said the oversight visit was to avail Nigerians an opportunity of verifying that the work rate matched government’s disbursements.

    The Managing Director of the Nigerian Railway Corporation, Fidet Okhiria, said the Federal Government was committed to delivering the project by December.

    He added: “With the rate at which the contractor is going, we are sure that it could still be completed on schedule or within a month or two more months, nonetheless. The major issues are civil works, as the track-laying can be completed within a month or two.”

  • Samsung: Nigeria plant not feasible

    Samsung Electronics West Africa (SEWA) has said establishing a manufacturing plant in Nigeria is not being considered for now. The South Korean tech giant said it would rather refocus its vision and strategy for Nigeria, the West African sub-region and the continent in general.

    Samsung Electronics Africa Chief Executive Officer, Mr Sung Yoon, who spoke with reporters on the sidelines at a meeting with its dealers in Lagos, said the economy of scale prevalent in the country will not make the manufacturing of mobile phones in the country profitable for the firm.

    Yoon said the refocusing was geared towards stimulating a higher level of operational efficiency, with the objective of providing customers with the highest quality products, sales and services. Through this process, the company will shore up its market leadership position across the continent.

    “We wish to reiterate our commitment to this market and our focus on delivering the highest quality products, service and support, for which our customers have come to admire us. We can assure all our stakeholders that as an organisation, we have gained useful insights from events of our recent past, both positive and negative, and are confident that the lessons learned will help propel us into our next phase of growth,” he said.

    Yoon said since Samsung began operations in Nigeria in 2005, it has carved a niche for itself by offering high quality products, which have impacted positively on the economy in various ways, such as fostering knowledge/technology transfer and creating employment directly and indirectly for millions of Nigerians. The company has also been investing heavily in corporate social responsibility (CSR) in areas such as education, environmental sustainability and economic empowerment.

    In Nigeria, Samsung has invested significantly in its partnership with the Lagos State Technical and Vocational Education Board, where it is helping to equip the country’s youth with the technical skills they need to transform their lives and contribute to the development of the country.

    The Samsung Engineering Academy enrolls over 1000 students yearly across various countries in Africa with the aim of closing the gap between skills and demand in the job market. Graduates have a 40 per cent job placement track record, while others go on to pursue further higher education, training or start their own businesses.

    “Samsung’s aim is to build successful partnerships in Nigeria to equip the country’s youth with the technical skills they need to transform their lives and contribute to the development of the country,” Yoon said, adding that the Samsung Engineering Academy has revolutionised traditional education by providing technical and vocational training for school leavers, tertiary students and unemployed youth.

     

     

     

     

     

  • Salary review not feasible now, says Ngige

    Salary review not feasible now, says Ngige

    •Minister: governors, NLC heating up polity over minimum wage

    Minister of Labour and Employment Senator Chris Ngige has explained that the Federal Government will not be able to review salaries of workers at the moment owing to the country’s economic challenges.

    He noted that other tiers of government that have more money could pay higher wages.

    Ngige, who spoke when the leadership of the Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) visited him, said the minimum wage was an issue that was not contestable since it was a product of legislation backed by an Act of the National Assembly.

    The minister accused governors and the organised labour of heating up the polity with the controversy surrounding the issue.

    Ngige said the NLC leadership was quite aware that the governors were playing politics with the issue, stressing that anybody that wants a review of the Minimum Wage Act should approach the National Assembly or ask the President to send an Executive Bill.

    The minister added that the ministry was planning to review some of the nation’s existing labour laws, which, he said, were too old.

    He asked the organised labour to make their input into the new laws.

    Ngige said: “This is a government that has three pillars as its cardinal objectives. First, this is a government that wants to bring back security of lives and property, starting with fighting terrorism, which we know that the government is handling effectively and efficiently in the Northeast.

    “The second issue is that of making the economy right. Unfortunately, the price of oil is said to be the worst in 27 years. But we still have the stamina and determination to pull the economy out of the wood and so, we require the cooperation of all.

    “So, when NLC join the governors in talking about the minimum wage, with the governors saying we can’t pay N18,000 minimum wage and NLC says it is time for us to ask for increase, we now know that these talks are heating up the system.

    “The NLC knows better that the governors are playing politics. This is one matter that you cannot play politics with because it is a matter of rule of law. The law in place now is the Minimum Wage Act enacted by the National Assembly and the National Assembly derived their power from the Exclusive List of the constitution, which gives them power to make laws on labour related matters, including the minimum wage.

    “So, anybody who wants to talk about minimum wage should go to the National Assembly or ask the President to send an Executive Bill, which can be discussed and it will be a tripartite discussion, involving a public hearing.

    “Please let us be patient because this country is going through a very difficult time now and require your prayers and support. Nobody can increase wages now. If anything, if you have more money, you pay higher.

    “The third thing, which is also one of the pillars of government, is the fight against corruption. Corruption has eaten so deep into the fabric of the Nigerian system that if you are not corrupt, you look abnormal.

    “The labour laws need some tinkering because some of them are very old. Even the penalties that are prescribed in them are very old. You see some laws, which say that if people abuse expatriate quota, they pay a fine of N2,000. It doesn’t make sense.

    “As a ministry, we will look at all these laws and with Attorney General of the Federation, we will make sure that we fast-track some of these laws so that the necessary penalties that are commensurate with labour offences committed are meted out to the offending parties. We will need your input.

    “We want to reinvigorate our laws and give the Nigerian worker a decent work environment as prescribed by the ILO conventions.”

    The minister reinstated the commitment of the government to employment generation, adding that the government was aware that it was the easiest gateway to instability and insecurity.

    He added that there was no need investing so much on arms and ammunition when the money could be use to create employment and keep the youths busy.

    The NLC President, Comrade Ayuba Wabba, told the minister that national interest had always been behind the driving force of the congress, adding that there was the need for the government to respect collective bargaining process.

    Wabba hailed the intervention of the minister on the issue of outsourcing of jobs and casualisation.

    He said the Nigerian workers should not be treated like slaves, adding that if people were employed with decent work, it would augur well for the system.

  • Stable power not feasible until 2017, says Jonathan

    Stable power not feasible until 2017, says Jonathan

    President Goodluck Jonathan  hinted yesterday that the nation’s quest for stable light might not be met by the government until after two or more years .

    According to him, the interface between the federal government and the private sector on full privatisation of the energy sector to make steady power supply feasible in the country, would hopefully be completed in two years period.

    The president who dropped the hint while inaugurating the 750 Mega Watts Olorunsogo Power Plant Phase II, Papalanto, Ogun State, said that his administration had spent about US$8. 26 Billion in the bid to boost  the national electricity generation capacity by over 4, 700MGW.

    He said: “to stimulate the micro and medium enterprises, government must invest and must show significant concern for power and that is what we are doing.

    “And we promised this country that surely in the next two years, the interface between 100 per cent government control of power sector and 100 per cent control of the private sector will be sealed properly and Nigerians would take power for granted.”

    He explained that of the US$8. 26 billion invested or spent on power, US$ 650 million of the amount was committed to the Olorunsogo power plant inaugurated yesterday.

    There are 10 of such power projects spread across the nation including the two inaugurated in Kogi and Ondo states in 2014,he said.

    He  is scheduled to inaugurate  the Egbin power station today .

  • Why N97 per litre for petrol is not feasible, by IPMAN

    From Nicholas Kalu, Calabar

    OIL marketers, under the auspices of the Independent Petroleum Marketers Association of Nigeria (IPMAN), at the weekend gave reasons they cannot sell petrol at the government approved price of N97.

    Their acting chairman in Eastern Zone, Mr Chukwudi Ezinwa told reporters in Calabar that only three of the 21 government depots supply them products are functioning.

    Besides, they said the three depots work below 50 per cent capacity and that owners sell the product to them at N105 per litre.

    Ezinwa said his members have been at the mercy of private tank owners, who have depots that are working at full capacity.

    The IPMAN chair gave the Federal Government a wake-up call to regulate the operations of the owners of private tank depots.

    He said: “If we must actually do something right in this country, the government should start checkmating the private tank owners.

    “IPMAN does not own refineries or depots, so we cannot hoard products for Nigerians to suffer, because you cannot give what you do not have.

    “We cannot sell N97 per litre while we are buying at N105 from private tank owners. Pay transport and other loading expenses and government watching. It cannot work.”

    He said IPMAN would not oppose removal of oil subsidy as long as the government put in place measures that will make it work.

    Ezinwa said: “What we are saying is that, before you remove subsidy, you must put in place necessary measures to make it work.

    “And one of the conditions was that all the Refineries and government depots must work at full capacity.”

    According to him, the removal of oil subsidy without government refineries or government depots working could create social insecurity and confusion.

    “If government depots were working at full capacity then government can determine the quantity supplied so that it can flood the whole country with petrol without any hitches. Then you can now remove subsidy,” he said.

    Ezinwa also hailed state governments’ takeover of the monitoring and securing of oil pipelines in their domain as the best way of curbing crude oil vandalism and oil theft in the country.

    He said: “State governments should take full responsibility of securing of oil pipelines that pass through their domain. They should constantly monitor oil pipelines in their states.

    “IPMAN is ready to partner with them in this regard and this will go a long way to reducing vandalism of pipelines and oil theft by unscrupulous elements in the country.”