The Nigeria Employers’ Consultative Association has warned that the Ministry of Interior’s expatriate employment levy will deter investment in the country.
The association also faulted the levy, saying there would be a need for certain regulations to be put in place before such tax could be imposed.
In a statement on Sunday, NECA said that following the launch of the Expatriate Employment Handbook, an initiative of the Federal Ministry of Interior, purportedly aimed at enhancing skills transfer in Nigeria, the new levy would frustrate the Federal Government’s ongoing fiscal and monetary reforms if implemented.
The Director-General of NECA, Adewale-Smatt Oyerinde, “It will also serve as a disincentive to Foreign Direct Investment among many other unintended negative consequences. The levy of between $10,000 to $15,000 on employers that employ expatriates when Nigeria is actively seeking FDI is not only exploitative and extortionist but also a contradiction that cannot be explained.”
“While we support the Federal Government’s objective of developing the local workforce, we have been at the forefront of promoting skills transfer, technical skills development, and employment generation.
He added, “However, the recently launched initiative of the Ministry of Interior has the potential to create more fundamental economic and socio-labour distortions.“
“The imposition of US$15,000 and US$10,000 on organisations that employ expatriates at a time when businesses are shutting down and leaving the country in droves is worrisome. Recent results of many businesses have shown massive losses, a situation that could potentially increase the level of unemployment with dire socio-economic consequences.”
While raising organised businesses’ concern on the legality and appropriateness of the levy, Oyerinde said, “We are concerned at the legality and appropriateness of the Expatriate Employment Levy as well as its effect on the economy. The provisions of a Handbook can never override clear provisions of extant laws in Nigeria, especially the 1999 Constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Immigration Act, and the Local Content Act among others.”
According to him, the Ministry of Interior and indeed, government cannot impose a tax or levy without appropriate legislation.
He said, “For instance, Section 59 of the Nigerian Constitution requires that any imposition of tax, duty, fee, or levy must be backed by an Act of the National Assembly. Levies that are imposed without complying with the provisions of section 59 of the Constitution offends the Constitution and are illegal.”
The NECA chief also observed that “existing legislations, such as the Local Content Act and Immigration Act have already addressed objectives like those of the EEL Handbook – thus, covering the field. Therefore, the introduction of additional levies is an unnecessary duplication and could impede the ease of doing business in Nigeria.”
Oyerinde noted that “the levy, if implemented, will not only distort, and frustrate the ongoing efforts at clear reform of the Fiscal and Monetary space but also contradicts and render ineffective the President’s ongoing quest for Foreign Direct Investment. Furthermore, a reciprocal implementation of the same policy by other countries will have dire consequences on the careers and progress of Nigerians who are expatriates in other nations.”
As a result, he urged that the government seeks to strengthen existing regulatory institutions responsible for managing expatriate employment rather than imposing additional levies, thus ensuring a more responsive and accountable regulatory framework in the implementation of extant laws.
He stressed the adoption of fiscal incentives to enhance investment attractiveness, support business stability, and prioritise measures that facilitate ease of doing business to attract both local and foreign investors.
Oyerinde canvassed for collaborative efforts between the government and private sector to explore alternative revenue streams and promote wealth creation through dialogue and stakeholder engagement.
Oyerinde acknowledged the government’s goals but stressed the need for strategies fostering a favourable investment climate without burdening businesses excessively. Collaboration between the private sector and Government is vital to finding fair solutions promoting economic interests and sustainable business growth.
The Economic and Financial Crimes Commission, EFCC, has issued a warning, noting that the Nigerian banking sector is becoming a hotbed of fraudulent activities, jeopardizing the economy and the financial sector’s stability.
EFCC Chairman, Ola Olukoyede, speaking in Abuja on Sunday at the annual conference of the Association of Audit Executives of Banks in Nigeria (ACAEBIN), underscored the commission’s growing concerns over the sector’s escalating fraudulent activities and the challenges they bring.
The conference had the theme: “The role of internal auditor in promoting stability in the financial services sector and national economic growth”.
Represented by the Commission’s Director of Internal Audit, Idowu Apejoye, he stressed that the group, as Chief Audit Executives of Banks, needs to increase efforts to curb these activities to uphold the trust and integrity of the sector.
“The sector is crucial as the primary supplier of credits to individuals, organizations, businesses and governments. The sector also offers several financial services such as mobilization, safeguarding of deposits, facilitating transactions and contributing to economy stability. It is one of the most important employer of labour and driver of development through its multifarious networks.
“The diversity of the banking sector is also a strength to the economy. Whether retail, commercial investment or multi-banking, no economy grows without banking, and this is why every effort should be made to tackle fraudulent practices in the sector. In Nigeria particularly, the banking sector is increasingly becoming a cesspool of fraudulent activities, and this is raising considerable challenges and concerns to the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission”, he added.
Olukoyede highlighted that banking fraud in Nigeria encompasses both internal and external elements.
Internal fraud involves the direct misappropriation of customers’ deposits, unauthorized approval of loan facilities, forgery, and various illicit practices. External fraud includes hacking, ATM fraud, conspiracy, and collusion, among other illicit activities.
He also mentioned the concerning collaboration between insiders and outsiders, where bankers collaborate with external parties to perpetrate fraud.
It is becoming increasingly difficult for landowners to build houses due to the increment in cement prices.
Naija News reports that a bag of cement now sells between N10,000 to N14000.
Reports have indicated that Nigerians are now seeking alternatives due to the high price of building commodities.
The high cost of cement has affected rent, and even homeowners who built their homes decades ago have also increased rents.
Naija News understands that containers are now used to build houses in Nigeria, thanks to the advanced technology and production system.
According to Punch, Nigerians who can no longer afford cement now use containers as an alternative.
An auto dealer in Benin, identified as Folawe Adeniran, told the aforementioned publication that he wanted to build a brick office on leased land but changed his mind due to the cost of cement, block and sand.
He said, “It took me nothing less than N2 million to build a two room and toilet a few years back when I started my business.
“Now I received a quotation of N4 million to do such on a lease land as I intend to build another branch for my business.
“The engineer told me that he had to cut costs to arrive at that figure which excludes workmanship.
“He cited the cost of cement and sand which is also affecting the price of blocks.
“I had to resort to building with containers
“This building is made with containers and is heat free as people used to think building with containers attracts lots of heat.
“I spent less than N3 million to achieve this.
“If it were a permanent land, I would still opt for container building.
“Many business owners whose businesses require building on leased lands and personal lands are now using containers to build.
“That is what the economy has turned everyone to.
“Business is not smiling because the economy is not.
“It is only a well to do man involved in fraud that will be comfortable with the way the economy is.
“Even when you build with bricks in those days it takes you a few years to recover what you spent on such a building if it is for commercial purposes.
“I pity the average Nigerian who has plans on building. What will they build.?
“God help us.”
Another trader, Friday Badmus, also told the publication that he made a container apartment on his quarter plot land when his rent was due last year.
He said, “It was a funny day when my landlord told me in November that he wants to increase my rent of a two bedroom flat to N800,000 from N600,000.
“I was so worried because the place I have land was not well occupied by people yet and was thinking about how to raise N800,000 and still foot my family bills with low sales in business.
“I had made up my mind not to borrow but manage what I have to have peace of mind.
“My wife was the person who brought the idea of building a container apartment of a room and parlor.
“She brought her savings and I added mine and with support from family and friends we had our container building.
“You won’t even know it is built with a container if I don’t spill.”
A construction worker identified as Blessing George explained, “The construction costs range from N100,000 – N150,000 per square meter, depending on final specification and finishing.
“These containers are used for transportation and can be converted to comfortable apartments with standard interior finishes and designs.”
“The area where cement is required is the concrete foundation to place the containers.
“These container houses are mostly used for commercial purposes and personal apartments.
“The high price of cement which is making people seek for other building alternatives is pushing many to opt for the container houses.”
BUA Cement has explained that the plan to sell a bag of cement for N3,500 has been crippled by market forces.
The company gave the explanation in response to the seven-day ultimatum given to its management by two civil society groups to sell its cement at N3,500 per bag or picket the company.
In response to the planned picketing of BUA cement office over the inability of the company to actualise its promise to crash the price of cement to sell at N3, 500, the company said it actually fulfilled that pledge.
Reacting to the LEADERSHIP enquiry, the head of Creatives & Visual Identity management at BUA Group, Mr Timothy Sogbeinde, explained that the company actually sold cement at N3, 500 ex-factory for months before it stopped.
To further clarify his response, Sogbeinde sent a recorded message done by the executive director, Mr Kabir Rabiu.
In that message, Kabir reiterated that, “we actually sold our cement for three to four months at N3,500. We thought other players in the cement industry would join us in making the price of cement affordable.”
According to Kabir, BUA could not continue with the N3, 500 sales as both the middlemen and wholesale agents did not allow the end-users who were the main targets for the reduction to benefit from the price.
Similarly, Kabir emphasised that though 90 per cent of raw materials for cement production are locally sourced, yet the production cost which includes rising exchange rate coupled with electricity generation did not encourage BUA to sustain the N3,500 for long.
It would be recalled that a Civil Society Group, early this week, gave the management of BUA a seven-day ultimatum within which to meet its demand or face the consequences.
The group made up of members of Advocacy for Good Governance and Rumen Royal Foundation, cited the wrong price list of its cement given to the country as reason for the ultimatum.
The leadership of Advocacy for Good Governance, Comrade Dr Bartholomew Okoudo and executive director, Rumen Royal Foundation, Patience Okhuahensuyi, also called on the management of BUA for public apology for ‘misleading Nigerians’ when it announced that price of its cement will be sold for N3, 500 whereas its cement is being sold at N10,000 per bag.
The group gave BUA 7-day ultimatum to slash price of its cement or face the consequences
Reiterating their call to BUA management to live by its word, they said: “that the false declaration by the BUA Group led to very serious consequences for Nigerians, particularly operators within the building and construction industry, as most of them who went for loans in banks to build structures, were disappointed when they realised that BUA cement is now N10,000 instead of N3, 500.”
The duo said they wondered why the BUA Group reneged on its promise to the new government in less than six months despite the current hardship in the country.
Residents of Abuja attacked and looted a truck carrying food items in Dei-Dei area on Monday morning, March 4.
A video making the rounds on social media shows the residents stealings bags of food items from the truck.
This comes barely 24 hours after a warehouse was also looted by hungry Nigerians in the FCT.
X influencer, Imran Muhammad, who shared the video online, wrote
‘’This morning, there was another incident of a truck carrying food items being looted in Daidai, Abuja.''
Watch the video below…
Media
This morning, there was another incident of a truck carrying food items being looted in Daidai, Abuja. pic.twitter.com/uI19TRdUlC
— Imran Muhammad (@Imranmuhdz) March 4, 2024
Super Eagles midfielder Alex Iwobi has made a return to social media after a short absence.
Iwobi deleted all his Instagram post following criticism that greeted his performance at the 2023 Africa Cup of Nations.
The 27-year-old was a subject of cyberbullying from Nigerian fans following the Super Eagles’ 2-1 final defeat to the Elephants of Cote d’Ivoire.
The Fulham star, however, received support from his teammates, the Nigeria Football Federation and Sports Ministry.
Iwobi has now shared a video on Instagram giving his fans and followers a glimpse of what he has been up to in recent times.
In the video, he also teased a snippet of what appears to be his unreleased rap song.
A number of his teammates including William Troost-Ekong, Frank Onyeka and Kenneth Omeruo took to the comment section to show their support.
Skit maker and actor, Samuel Animashaun Perry, aka Broda Shaggi, has said that when he decides to get married he won’t have an elaborate wedding.
The thespian explained that he is “not a fan of big weddings,” stressing that he loves keeping his life private.
Speaking in a recent interview with actress Iyabo Ojo, Shaggi also said that he won’t rush into marriage.
He said, “I am not a fan of big weddings. Even if I’m going to get married, I’m not a fan of big weddings.
“I don’t know if you’ve noticed, I keep personal life out of social media space. Because my personal life is very important to me and I just want to protect it.
“But I believe in love. I believe in one-man-one-woman type of love. I believe in family. I believe in raising my own kids.
“I’m going to have my own family by God’s grace but not very soon. There’s nothing like getting old. I do tell people, you don’t need to rush into marriage.”
‘Shameless Bloody Serpent’ – Akeredolu’s Wife ‘Fights’ Late Husband’s Niece For Supporting Aiyedatiwa
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Betty Anyanwu-Akeredolu, the wife of the late Ondo State Governor, Rotimi Akeredolu, has described her late husband’s niece, Funke Akeredolu Aruna, as shameless for supporting the current governor, Lucky Aiyedatiwa, ahead of the November governorship election in the state.
Naija News recalls that Aiyedatiwa, who was formerly Akeredolu’s deputy, was sworn in on December 27, 2023, following the death of his former boss.
Before Akeredolu’s death, internal wrangling had severed his relationship with Aiyedatiwa, bordering on alleged disloyalty of the then deputy governor, which led to the disbandment of his aides.
The State Assembly, through the backing of the governor, also attempted to impeach Aiyedatiwa, even though the details of the duo’s quarrel remained sketchy till Akeredolu’s death.
Taking to her Instagram page on Monday, Betty shared a picture of Akeredolu’s niece wearing a cap with the inscription, “I am lucky.”
Displeased with Funke’s support for Aiyedatiwa, Betty wrote, “Behold the face of Aketi’s niece, Funke Akeredolu Aruna, the former deputy chief protocol to Aketi, shamelessly parades as ‘I am lucky’ Bloody serpent! Time will tell if she is truly lucky!”
This outburst has, however, generated outrage on her comment session as many believe she should be mourning her husband and not engaging in a fight with anyone.
Some followers also appealed to her to maintain her calm on issues relating to the election.
‘I Got Married To A Monster At 22’ – Etinosa Reacts To Harrysong’s Marriage Crisis Over Female Children
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Nollywood actress, Etinosa Idemudia, has slammed Nigerian singer, Harrysong, over his marriage crisis and the treatment meted out to his wife, Alexer.
Naija News reported that Alexer, in a recent interview with media personality, Daddy Freeze, opened up on her husband’s series of cheating and experiences in their marriage.
The singer’s wife claimed that Harrysong had always told her he never loved her but married her out of pity.
She said the cheating of the ‘Reggae Blues’ hitmaker was becoming too much and had undergone countless treatments for infection.
According to her, Harrysong wanted a male child, which always caused friction between them.
Reacting, Etinosa, in a post on Instagram, recalled her past failed marriage, stating that she got married to a monster at the age of 2022.
The movie star stated that men sought younger ladies in their 20s to marry because they believe they could easily bully them.
She further slammed Harrysong over his discrimination for female children, adding that female children are also making exploits while referencing former Nigerian minister, Okonjo Iweala.
She wrote, “This is really sad! Hmmmmmm takes me back to when I was 22 and married a moster. Same hell, different devil. Dear parents, please let’s reduce the pressure to get mmarried at such a tender age. A lot of men run away from 30+ women and marry 20+ old women because they know they can bully them at ease. Parents need to do better in raising their sons.
“Dammm, I really used to have respect for that agbakpan. The past that hurts me the most is when she said he stopped sending money for the children because the woman left. Innocent children that are now collateral damage. Children that never asked you to birth them in the first place.
“Only a fool will discriminate against a female child over a male child. In this 2024? Is Okonjo Iweal a joke to you? Is Etinosa Idemudia a joke to you? Keep sleeping on the girl child you illiterate. On top how many property you get sef wey you dey find male child? Udozuwa Wagbon. Plot twist, dumbo! You can only get a male child when you put it into her womb. He eggs don’t determine geneder, your cells do. But you wouldn’t know that would you? Becaise you say school na scam.”
Police authorities in the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) have arrested 15 suspects over the looting of a warehouse in the area.
Some residents had on Sunday morning looted a warehouse belonging to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Department of Agriculture in the Tasha area of Abuja.
But hours after the incident, the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) police command said 15 persons had been nabbed over the looting of the warehouse.
“The FCT police command is fully informed about the impulsive attack on Agric Department Strategic food store located at Tasha, Abuja, on 2/03/2024 by some irate mobs, which resulted in the vandalism and looting of the warehouse,” the FCT Police Command said in a statement.
“The Command wishes to state that normalcy has since been restored to the environ and the situation is very much under control, as fifteen(15) suspects were arrested, including two local security guards employed by the warehouse management. Exhibits such as twenty-six (26) bags of maize, five motorcycles, and some vandalized aluminum roofings were recovered from the suspects.”
Sunday’s looting of the warehouse comes amid the biting economic hardship in Nigeria. Inflation figures have reached new highs, clocking 29.90 percent in January with the cost of living soaring since President Bola Tinubu declared an end to the payment of fuel subsidy.
His government’s floating of the naira further worsened the situation, sparking protests in several parts of the country.
The Federal Government quickly stepped in to cushion the impacts of the reforms, introducing palliatives and other measures. But they appear to have done little to address the problem. The Nigeria Labour Congress (NLC) last week protested across the country over the government’s inability to meet the union’s demands in the wake of the fuel subsidy removal and the attendant hardship.
But President Tinubu is calling for patience for his government’s reforms to take root, insisting that there is no going back on the moves.
More...
A Senior Advocate of Nigeria, Ebun-Olu Adegboruwa, says Sunday’s looting of a government warehouse in Abuja reflects the frustration of majority of Nigerians grappling under the economic policies of the President Bola Tinubu’s administration.
Adegboruwa, who was on Channels Television’s breakfast show, The Morning Brief, on Monday, said it is a message to the President and his economic team that there is a need to rejig the system to guaranty the survival of majority of Nigerians.
He said, “Across all state in Nigeria presently there is crisis of survival from the part of the people. So, it is not just this particular occurrence, a truck bearing foodstuff was randomly attacked and looted. I do not support this in any way at all because we must have an environment where we can secure lives and property.
“But it is a reflection of the fact that the economic policies of the present administration are not helping the people of the country and of course these occurrences showcase the frustration that people are going through.”
“You know what they say that we pray that we don’t get to a position where the poor will rise up to be eating the rich. I think there is a message to the president and members of his economic team that there is need to rejig the system in such a way that will allow for survival of the majority of our people.”
One of the policies of the Tinubu’s administration that has impacted the economy hugely with increase in cost of commodities is the removal of petrol subsidy. According to Adegboruwa, that policy has impacted negatively on the people. “Effect of the fuel subsidy removal has imposed hardship on the people in terms of moving from one end to the other. And of course, factories are closing down, there is high unemployment, cost of living is very high whilst the earning capacity remains the same or even lower,” he said.
Channels Television had reported that Abuja residents looted a warehouse belonging to the Federal Capital Territory (FCT) Department of Agriculture on Sunday.
The warehouse was raided by the residents who carted away foodstuff and other items.
French lawmakers are expected Monday to anchor the right to abortion in the country’s constitution, in a global first that has garnered overwhelming public support.
A congress of both houses of parliament in Versailles starting at 3:30 pm (1430 GMT) should find the three-fifths majority needed for the change after it overcame initial resistance in the right-leaning Senate.
If congress approves the move, France will become the only country in the world to clearly protect the right to terminate a pregnancy in its basic law.
President Emmanuel Macron pledged last year to include enshrine abortion — legal in France since 1975 — in the constitution after the US Supreme Court in 2022 overturned the half-century-old right to the procedure, allowing states to ban or curtail it.
France’s lower-house National Assembly in January overwhelmingly approved making abortion a “guaranteed freedom” in the constitution, followed by the Senate on Wednesday.
The bill is now expected to clear the final hurdle of a combined vote of both chambers when they gather for a rare joint session at the former royal residence of the Palace of Versailles.
Few expect any difficulty finding the needed supermajority after the three-fifths mark was largely exceeded in both previous ballots.
When political campaigning began in earnest in 1971, “we could never have imagined that the right to abortion would one day be written into the constitution,” Claudine Monteil, head of the Femmes Monde (Women in the World) association, told AFP.
Monteil was the youngest signatory to “Manifesto of the 343”, a 1971 French petition signed by 343 women who admitted to having illegally ended a pregnancy, along with up to 800,000 of their compatriots each year.
‘Woke us up’
Abortion was legalised in France in 1975 in a law championed by health minister Simone Veil, a women’s rights icon granted the rare honour of burial at the Pantheon after her death in 2018.
But another leading feminist, Simone de Beauvoir, had told Monteil the year before that “all it will take is a political, economic or religious crisis for women’s rights to be called into question”, she recalled.
In that sense, “the behaviour of the US Supreme Court did women all around the world a favour, because it woke us up”, Monteil said.
Leah Hoctor, of the Center for Reproductive Rights, said France could offer “the first explicit broad constitutional provision of its kind, not just in Europe, but also globally”.
Chile included the right to elective abortion in a draft for a new progressive constitution in 2022, but voters rejected the text in a referendum.
Some countries allude to the right.
Cuba’s constitution guarantees women’s “reproductive and sexual rights”.
And several Balkan states have inherited versions of former Yugoslavia’s 1974 constitution that said it was a human right to “decide on the birth of children”.
Other states explicitly mention abortion in their constitution, but only allow it in specific circumstances, Hoctor said.
In Kenya, for example, the constitution says “abortion is not permitted unless, in the opinion of a trained health professional, there is need for emergency treatment, or the life or health of the mother is in danger, or if permitted by any other written law”.
Making history?
Most members of the French public support the move to give the right extra protection.
A November 2022 survey by French polling group IFOP found that 86 percent of French people supported inscribing it in the constitution.
Left-wing and centrist politicians have welcomed the change, while right-wing senators in private have said they felt under pressure to give it a green light.
One said her daughters would “no longer come for Christmas” if she opposed the move.
Macron on Wednesday celebrated what he called the Senate’s “decisive step” and immediately called for the parliamentary congress on Monday.
The last time one was called to change the constitution was in 2008, when lawmakers only just approved wide-sweeping reforms under former president Nicolas Sarkozy.
Those changes included limiting a president’s time in office to two terms, as well as better safeguards for press independence and freedom.
The remains of Nollywood actor Tolani Oyebamiji aka Sisi Quadri who died on Friday, March 1, has been buried in his hometown in Agbowo area of Iwo. Quadri died after a brief illness at the Ladoke Akintola University Teaching Hospital in Ogbomoso. Chairman Odun chapter of Theatre Arts and Motion Pictures Practitioners Association of Nigeria (TAMPAN), Mr Marufudeen Lawal, said the deceased would be missed by his colleagues in the entertainment industry because of his endowed talents.
Lawal said the actor’s body was brought from Ogbomoso on Friday before his internment and prayers offered at an open field close to his house. He said the late Nollywood actor played major roles in the industry that would not make his lovers and followers to easily forget about him. “His death was shocking to us because we never knew he would pass away now. He did not inform us about his sickness, we would have assisted him. “We expressed our condolences to his family and loved ones and the entire state ,” Lawal said.
According to him, plans were on to partner with states governors in order to ensure that their colleagues benefitted from their Health insurance schemes. He, therefore, called on Gov. Ademola Adeleke of Osun to support TAMPAN members by ensuring they all enrolled on the state’s Health Insurance Schemes which would be of great benefit to them.
“I slept in the hospital with you for weeks, and you still left” – Paul Okoye expresses grief over loss of Mr Ibu, shares His Last Moment Video
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Popular veteran singer Paul Okoye known as Rudeboy, has expressed his deep sadness over the recent demise of Nollywood legend John Okafor, famously known as Mr Ibu.
The Nollywood industry was struck with grief on Saturday, March 2, when the news of Mr Ibu’s passing surfaced, leaving fans and colleagues in shock.
Rudeboy, who was actively involved in Mr Ibu’s final moments, shared his sentiments on social media, disclosing the emotional toll of witnessing the actor’s health decline.
The singer revealed that he had spent several weeks in the hospital by Mr Ibu’s side, hoping for a recovery.
Despite his efforts and unwavering support, Mr Ibu eventually succumbed to his illness.
Expressing his anguish, Rudeboy took to social media to question the divine plan.
He wrote;
“I slept in the hospital with you for several weeks just to be there with you and all… and you still left. God why?? #mribu. Aswear forget !!! Nothing dey for this life.”
