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Tag: review

  • Ahmed calls for review of UBEC counterpart funding

    Ahmed calls for review of UBEC counterpart funding

    Kwara State Governor Abdulfatah Ahmed has called for a reduction in the counterpart fund paid by states for the Universal Basic Education Commission (UBEC) programme.

    A statement by his media aide, Muideen Akorede, said the governor spoke when members of the UBEC monitoring team, led by the Deputy Director of Planning, Research and Statistics, Mr. Osahon Igbinoba, visited his office on Monday.

    He implored the UBEC board to intensify efforts to have the counterpart fund clause removed from the its enabling law, or reduced to 10 per cent.

    Ahmed noted that states find it difficult to provide the 50 per cent counterpart fund due to the drop in federal allocation, which he said also affect their capacity to borrow.

    He added that it is almost impossible for states to contribute 50 per cent under the current revenue profile, but with 10 per cent, most states can make funds available.

    The governor expressed the government’s readiness to access the funds, saying the government has earmarked N876 million as counterpart fund for 2014/2015 tranche.

    Mr. Igbinoba said the team was in the state to monitor the 2014/2015 Federal Government projects under UBEC.

    Igbinoba, who noted that 20 per cent of the projects has not been implemented due to some bottlenecks, urged the government to expedite action on the projects.

  • Govt told to review tariff

    Importers and clearing agents have urged the Federal Government to review port tariff and make the ports attractive for business.

    They said the ports may witness low volume of imports this year, if the government did not act fast.

    The operators, who spoke with The Nation, said the review had become necessary to eliminate arbitrariness and ensure parity with other ports, particularly those of neighbouring countries.

    ShippersAssociation of Lagos President, Mr Jonathan Nichol, said port tariff were not commensurate with the services rendered by terminal operators and they make the ports uncompetitive.

    He said the operators needed to emulate the Nigerian Shippers’Council that has abolished service charges, bank charge, commission on turnover and concessionaires’ service charge to reduce the cost of doing business at the ports.

    Also, Folas Motors Managing Director, Chief Fola Alakija, said the council had been implementing the Inland Container Depots (ICDs) project on Build, Own, Operate and Transfer (BOOT) to bring shipping to the door of importers.

    He said despite the claim by the government that it has reduced its agencies at the ports, some are still posing big challenges to port operations.

    The importer said there was the need to revive and modernise the railway as a primary mode for long distance haulage of cargo and to free the Lagos ports road.

    According to him, the railway will also reduce the cost of transporting cargo in and out of the ports and create employment.

    Chief Alakija said there was the need to embrace a single window operation to eliminate human contact and the use of discretion, which has been identified as the biggest obstacle to quick cargo clearance from the port.

    He said the single window operation would not only facilitate trade, but also eliminate fraud and improve revenue generation.

  • Fed Govt urged to review rebranding campaign

    The Lead Consultant, Above Media, has advised the Federal Government to review its rebranding campaign.

    Yusuf, author of Appraisal of the Rebranding campaign of the Federal Government of Nigeria stated this ahead of the launch of his book.

    The book examines the image crisis in Nigeria and the attempts at branding and rebranding the nation. Also analysed are the kind of reactions that the rebranding elicited and a prognosis on what could be done.

    According to Yusuf, a doctoral student of Public Affairs and Administration, Walden University, the image crisis between 1993 and 1999 was attributed to the country’s lack of democratic progress.

    While arguing that the rebranding campaign seemed to be more of a cosmetic remedy, the author recommends, among other panaceas, that beyond sloganeering, the government should address the issues that led to the image crisis.

    In the 123-page book,  Yusuf, traces back the crisis of the country to after independence.

    The book will be launched in Lagos next January.

  • ICRC, NPA set to review port concession

    ICRC, NPA set to review port concession

    The Infrastructure Concession Regulatory Commission (ICRC) and Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA,are doing an in-depth study on the best mechanism for the review of the 11 years old port concession.

    The Acting Director-General, ICRC, Chidi Izuwah, made this known in the latest publication of the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) entitled: “The Shipper’’.

    Izuwah, according to  the News Agency of Nigeria, said  there might be cases where some concessionaires might not have fully recouped their investments, pointing out that the review will not be based on emotions or man-knows-man, but, “It will be based on pure data because anything that needs to be done under the ICRC will be approved by the Federal Executive Council.

    “So whatever the outcome of the review process, every Nigerian will know,’’ he  said, adding that the commission has developed a disclosure framework. “It is a portal where the key information of every concession contract in the country will be disclosed to the public,’’ Izuwah said.

    He made clear that every Nigerian would become an enforcer of concession and government agencies could be indirectly challenged, “if they are not living up to their responsibilities

    “We are doing everything so that Nigerians can be aware and informed that things are being done in a transparent manner. The port concession is doing very well. We might complain about the inadequacies, but let us look at what the ports were about 20 years ago in terms of demurrage.”

    Izuwah said the menace of wharf rats is gone for good. “Let us keep telling people that nobody hears about wharf rats any more. Wharf rats have been eliminated completely, because of port concession,’’ he said.

    On the Shippers’ Council project on Truck Transit Parks, he said there would be a bankable study to be done to establish the optimal location to position the parks, saying the Federal Government is also aware that port connectivity with the rail is very key.

    He said: “Look at what the Federal Government is doing about the Wharf – Apapa Road, the implementation may not be going as fast as it can because of funding, that is why we are working on the side to bring the private sector to help us.

    “So, government is working day and night to create a better Nigeria for everybody,’’ Izuwah said.

  • SON, stakeholders begin review of cement standard

    SON, stakeholders begin review of cement standard

    The Standards Organisation of Nigeria (SON) has held a stakeholders’ Technical Committee Forum on the review of standard for Cement NIS 444-1-2014 with the theme: “Repositioning the Cement sub- sector”.

    The forum, which held in Lagos, comes four years after the Federal Government approved new cement standard for the producers, aimed at  reviewing the quality of the products.

    The grade-strengths of cement production in Nigeria have been NlS 444-1, adopted as conformity criteria for cement.

    The committee in the wake of  protests against the building collapse, fingered low quality of cement as a key factor. There were  fears over misapplication of the different strength classes of cement allegedly attributed as the cause of frequent collapse of buildings in the country.

    At the forum, SON’s Director-General, Mr. Osita Aboloma, noted that the exercise is “imperative as standards can be reviewed after five years or at anytime at the instance of the stakeholders or if found inadequate due to changes in technology, test methods and government policy”.

    Aboloma, represented by the Director, Standards Development, Mrs. Chinyere Egwuonwu, said cement standard is a important, given that about 80 per cent or more of buildings and other infrastructural development of any nation are carried out with the use of cement. He expressed confidence that the proposed standard will help monitor the quality of cement in Nigeria as well as checkmate the menace of incessant collapse of buildings and concrete structures by poor cement quality and application.

    Egwuonwu said this makes the review of the NIS444-1-2014 very necessary so that the country can attain world best standard, while  promoting product sales.

    She maintained that to develop a certain standard for the country certain principles must be adhered to because the country also belong to an international standard body.

    “Cement is a binder for all the components of the building and its poor application in the construction has been blamed for failures and collapse in the building and construction industry. The standard is a consensus document that promotes trade and ensure a positive impact on the national economy, if strictly adhered to. “Standard development is a stakeholders responsibility for which the SON provides the secretariat,” she said.

    The Chairman, Technical Committee for the review, Professor Joseph Odigwe, said the forum was aimed at regulating the standard of the product in the country and the concentration  is to create standard for all brands of cement in the country.

    The Founder, Building Collapse and Prevention Guild (BCPG) Mr. Kunle Awobolu, advised that government can help in the reduction of prices of cement through the provision of infrastructure such as road and electricity, adding that cost and price are as important as standard.

    The national president of block moulders association of Nigeria, Mr. Rasheed Adebowale, explained that the way cement is mixed is of great concern.

    He, therefore, called on the public and the SON to assist the association in identifying quacks in the system because they cannot do it alone.

  • Constitution review: Governors mount pressure on Assemblies

    Constitution review: Governors mount pressure on Assemblies

    Governors are mounting pressure on House speakers over the planned review of the constitution, The Nation has learnt.

    Some of the speakers have been threatened with removal, should they remain adamant.

    The Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) has invited speakers to an emergency meeting  tomorrow in Abuja.

    The session, according to sources, is designed to abort the consideration of the amendments to the constitution by 20 Houses of Assembly on Wednesday.

    The Conference of Speakers has given a December 20 deadline to all Houses of Assembly to conclude debate on the proposed amendments sent to the states by the National Assembly.

    Some governors are said to have mandated their states’ speakers to either halt the consideration of the amendments or face the consequences.

    It was learnt that the governors and the speakers have disagreed on four major components of the proposed amendments to the 1999 Constitution as passed by the National Assembly.

    The areas of disagreement are:

    • Autonomy for Local Government Councils;
    • Abrogation of State Joint  Local Government Accounts (JAAC);
    • Financial autonomy for state legislatures(House of Assembly autonomy); and
    • Critical amendment to facilitate fast dispensation of cases at the Supreme Court of Nigeria and other courts; election petition, front loading of briefs on jurisdiction etc

    A source, who spoke in confidence with our correspondent, said: “The two parties have not been able to reach a consensus on these four areas. They have been holding series of meetings in the past few weeks.

    ”The speakers met in Enugu about three weeks ago and raised a seven-man committee comprising a Speaker from each of the six geopolitical zones to be led by the Speaker of the Kwara State House of Assembly, Ali Ahmed.

    “The speakers have decided to uphold these four areas to save local government administration from collapse and end non-payment of workers at the local level.

    “They observed that there had been gross abuse of JAAC.”

    “ The governors also set up a seven-man team headed by Osun State Governor Rauf Aregbesola to guide the NGF. While consultations were ongoing, some State Houses of Assembly endorsed the amendments passed by the National Assembly.

    “About 20 states are expected to approve the amendments on Tuesday, including the upholding the four points of disagreement. But the governors have vowed to resist them,” the source said.

    Another source said: “Some of the Houses of Assembly were hasty because they had not recognized the governors’ input. They acted as if they harbour a pre-determined agenda against the governors.

    “The governors wanted the Houses of Assembly to step down the four contentious areas for a broader understanding with the Governors’ Forum.

    “Some Speakers said the governors ought to have prevailed on senators and members of the House of Representatives to influence these four areas instead of killing the amendments at the state level.

    “Alternatively, they have asked the governors to throw the four amendments open to the public and let Nigerians decide on these four critical amendments.”

    The NGF has summoned the 36 Speakers for an emergency meeting tomorrow.

    A December 15, 2017 notice by the Director-General of NGF, Mr. A.B. Okauru, said: “The Governors Forum at its meeting of 13th December, 2017 resolved to consult with the Honourable Speakers of the 36 State Houses of Assembly on the above subject matter( Amendment of the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria).

    “Consequently, we write to invite the Honourable Speakers of the 36 State Houses of Assembly to a meeting with the Nigeria Governors’ Forum( NGF) scheduled as follows: Tuesday, 19th December, 2017by 3pm at the Banquet Hall, Presidential Villa, Abuja.”

    A Speaker said: “Some governors have been threatening a few of our colleagues to reject the four amendments or forget their jobs.

    “We are seriously under pressure. In fact, a mail was secretly sent to the governors to attend Tuesday’s meeting with their Speakers as if we are small boys.

    “We are surely heading for a stalemate after spending over N7billion to effect the latest amendments to 1999 Constitution.”

    Section 9(2) and (3) provides the guidelines for alteration to 1999 Constitution.

    The section says: “The National Assembly may, subject to the provision of this section, alter any of the provisions of this Constitution.

    “An Act of the National Assembly for the alteration of this Constitution, not being an Act to which Section 8 of this Constitution applies, shall not be passed in either House of the National Assembly unless the proposal is supported by the votes of not less than two-thirds majority of all the members of that House and approved by resolution of the Houses of Assembly of not less than two-thirds of all the states.”

  • NLC calls for upward review of pension

    NLC calls for upward review of pension

    Nigeria Labour Congress, (NLC) President Comrade Ayuba Wabba has called for an upward review of pension to help minimise the economic hardship facing pensioners.

    Wabba said this at the 16th edition of Pensioners Day Celebration in Abuja.

    He said the review of pension was long overdue, saying the federal and state governments had been adhering to the constitutional provision.

    “Section173(3) and 210(3) of the Federal Republic of Nigeria Constitution 1999 (as amended) stipulate that pension be reviewed every five years or together with any increase in workers’ wages,’’ Wabba said.

    According to him, it is criminal that the Federal Government pays N4000 as pension to some pensioners in this harsh economy.

    “If we want a better Nigeria, then we must be willing to take care of our pensioners and workers.

    “Our country is so blessed with various resources, but it is a pity that we cannot account how it is being spent,” he stated.

    Wabba praised President Muhammadu Buhari for releasing the bailout fund to states to pay pensioners and workers, urging that the government monitors and makes them accountable on how the money is spent.

    He said government needed to take care of the security and welfare of its people to avert surmount of the security challenges in the country.

    NLC president appealed to pensioners to support one another, adding that the NLC will continue to show its support and solidarity.

    The Executive Secretary of Pension Transitional Administration Directorate, Ms Sharon Ikeazor, said the payroll for pensioners for December was ready and pensioners would get their pension before Christmas.

    “We got release to pay six months pension”.

    “For police pension, we paid them one year out of the 33 months and we just have a balance for 21 months for police pensions.

    “The government is making the money available; we will pay up,” she said.

    Ikeazor said the essence of the verification was to ensure pensioners were fully captured so that there would not be a need for them to come back again.

    She promised that by the first quarter of 2018, the directorate would pay the arrears of the 33 per cent increase.

  • Society seeks review of occupational, environmental health laws

    There  is an urgent need  to review occupational and environmental laws.

    The Society of Occupational and Environmental Health Physicians of Nigeria (SOEHPON) National President, Dr Okon Akiba, made the call at this year’s conference and general meeting of the society.

    The theme was: Occupational health for all.

    Akiba said: “The law is obsolete. Occupational health is law, and policy and guidelines-driven; other than that, we are nowhere. We must do it and put it in the cost of production. The gaps in policy are big.’’

    He added that it was for this that the society was calling for a review of the law guiding occupational health.

    He continued: ‘’It is only as a matter of passion for us having worked in multinational companies that we see these things. Occupational health is almost non-existent here. There is a difference between just providing curative and medical health.

    ‘’Occupational health is about being proactive and workers must know the hazards. You must tell them the hazards involved in their work and put in place preventive measures so that the workplace is healthy.

    “There is an urgent need to adopt a National Policy and Programme for occupational health that includes actions for providing competent occupational health services for all people at work. Occupational health is not about us, it is about the public. We are sharing knowledge about safety in the workplace and ensuring the right policies are in place and that guidelines are put in place. Employers are more interested in the work forgetting that the employees have to be healthy, the workplace has to be safe and will be more cost effective at the end of the day because a healthy workforce is a healthy organisation and the end point is enhanced productivity.”

    Akiba said his society was x-raying  the occupational health hazards and risks associated with the informal and the formal sectors, since it is apparent that not much had been documented about the issues.’’

    He said occupational health is an important factor for sustainable socio-economic development that enables workers to enjoy a healthy and productive life during their working years.

    Country Director, International Labour Organisation (ILO),  Nigeria and West Africa, Daniel Zulu, said the ILO/WHO 1950 Constitution sets forth the principle that workers should be protected from sickness, disease, and injury arising from their employment, “yet for millions of workers the reality is very different’’.

    ‘’About 100 million workers are injured and 200,000 die yearly in occupational accidents and 68 to 157 million new cases of occupational diseases are attributed to hazardous exposures or workload,” he added.

    Zulu said: “By affecting the health of the working population, occupational injuries and diseases have profound effects on work productivity and on the economic, social and well being of workers, their families and dependents. .

    SOEHPON National Secretary,  Dr. Uche Enumah, said  the conference is held yearly: “We do this annually to train ourselves. We have a two-day pre-training workshop. Medicine is all about continuing education and latest developments in the field.

    “Health and safety at work are important matters that relate to the general health and well being of working people and, therefore, should be given due consideration in policies, at all levels. Health and safety problems at work are, in principle, preventable and should be done by using all available tools, legislative, technical, research, training, education, information and economic instruments.’’

    “The government should ensure the development of necessary infrastructure for effective implementation of occupational health programmes, including health services, research programmes, training and education, information services and data banks. Networking of such infrastructure within and among the countries would substantially facilitate their efforts to implement national programmes.’’’

  • Fed Govt mulls tariffs review for IOCs, others

    The Federal Government is planning a downward review of the tariffs International Oil Companies (IOCs) and other investors operating in the oil and gas zones pay to its coffers.

    The idea is to ensure that oil majors such as Exxonmobil, Shell, Adax, Nigerian Agip Oil Company (NOAC), Total, Chevron and their local counterparts, get some respite and further operate well.

    It was gathered that the plan to review the tariffs paid by the local and foreign investors in the zones, have reached an advanced  stage and may come to an end as soon as other stakeholders provide their inputs on the issue.

    A source, who does not want to be mentioned, said the review would be holistic because it would mark a clear departure from the past, where some investors were involved in the process of providing the tariffs for the zones, while many were left out.

    The source said investors would pay less in importing oil and gas machineries/ equipment when the exercise is completed.

    Oil and Gas Free Trade Zones (OGFTA)’s Managing Director, Dr Umana Okon Umana, gave credence to this assertion when he said multinational oil companies, the OGFA, National Petroleum Investments Management Services (NAPIMS) and other licencees are going back to the drawing board, with a view to provide a new tariffs structure that would take care of operators’ interest in the zones.

    Umana, who spoke during interaction with investors in Onne,  Port Harcourt, Rivers State, said the need to cushion the effects of the harsh economy on the investors and further make them improve their productivity, informed the decision to reduce the tariffs.

    He said the plans to review the tariffs downward followed protests by some licensees on the issue, adding that the licensees have kicked against the implementation of the current tariffs regime in the Industry, known as Wide Standard Tariffs (IWST).

    However, efforts to speak to the Head, Legal Department OGFTA, Mr Wasiu Sule, whose department is charged with the responsibility of handling the exercise proved abortive as text message sent to him was not replied.

  • Mabogunje tells govt to review Land Use Act

    Mabogunje tells govt to review Land Use Act

    •Says it aids poverty

    Nigeria’s foremost geographer and Chairman, Ibadan School of Government and Public Policy (ISGPP), Prof. Akin Mabogunje, has called on the federal government to urgently embark on land reform to lift millions of citizens out of poverty.

    He spoke at a seminar on the theme: “Decentralized governance, the people and development in Nigeria” which was held at the Bodija, Ibadan premises of the school. The seminar was held in his honour on the occasion of his 86th birthday.

    Mabogunje, who is the first Nigerian professor of Geography, said Nigeria was wasting time and the lives of its citizens by holding onto ownership of land through the Land Use Act.

    He recalled that China has freed 760 million citizens from poverty in the last 30 years through the instrument of land reform.

    According to him, it took Britain 80 years to achieve land reform while it took the United States of America 35 years to do the same. Afterwards, he said their citizens were able to easily use land for economic activities which lifted them out of poverty.

    He said: “China raised 760 million citizens out of poverty in the last 30 years through land reform. It brought about huge economic and development activities in the rural areas. Rwanda has also started and I believe that country will soon show Nigeria how to move forward.

    “The purpose of land reform is to ensure we take millions of Nigerians out of poverty. A similar idea is what I introduced to them in Ijebu-Ode which is known today as the Ijebu Development Initiative on Poverty Reduction which has built assets in excess of N1.4 billion mostly through aqua culture alone.”

    While supporting the general position of discussants at the seminar on the need to decentralize governance in Nigeria for true rural development to happen, Mabogunje emphasized that the current Land Use Act which cedes ownership of lands to the government is counterproductive. But when government denationalizes land ownership, citizens will put more land into productive use, generating huge economic activities that will lift people out of poverty.

    Welcoming participants, the Executive Vice Chairman of the school, Dr Tunji Olaopa, explained that rural development and local governance have always been at the centre of Mabogunje’s heart as demonstrated by the concept of OPTICOM (Optimum Community) which he propounded over 30 years ago.

    He pointed out that the seminar was aimed at igniting a “national discourse on the obvious truth that the development ideas being implemented in the policy space in Nigeria is not just working, and as we approach 2019, ISGPP as a think tank is worried and concerned. And so, the best time is now for development experts to begin a level of conversation that will deliver an alternative model of development for Nigeria.”

    The chairman of the seminar, Prof. Anthony Asiwaju, hailed Mabogunje for his innovations on rural development initiatives and general contributions to Nigerian development.

    In his keynote address, Prof. Mike Adeyeye of the Department of Local Government Studies, Obafemi Awolowo University, Ile-Ife, urged states creating local council development areas to make them actual development centres rather than another political arm of corruption or for political correctness.

    In his presentation, the Chairman, Presidential Technical Committee on Land Reform, Prof. Peter Adeniyi, called on the All Progressives Congress (APC) to fulfil its campaign promise of reviewing the Land Use Act, expunging it from the constitution and handing over ownership to Nigerians to pave way for real development activities.

    Various speakers, including Prof. Ayo Olukotun, Bolanle Awe, Dr Taiwo Olaiya and Dr Tope Aladesanmi paid glowing tributes to Mabogunje for his selfless services to the country.