The warning by Nigeria’s Finance Minister of the likelihood of Nigeria sliding into another recession in the third quarter of 2020 and the Chairman of the Board of the National Broadcasting Commission describing the 6th National Broadcasting Code as an illegality are the trending stories in the Nigerian newspapers on Friday.
The Punch reports that the Federal Government has said the likelihood of Nigeria sliding into another recession in the Third Quarter of 2020, making it the second time within four years.
The government said the COVID-19 pandemic resulting in crash of global oil prices among other economic factors had adversely affected the nation’s economy, with the Gross Domestic Product growth for Q2 most likely to be negative.
The report quoted the Minister of State for Finance, Budget and National Planning, Clement Agba, as saying this in Abuja on Thursday at the beginning of a five-day interactive session on the 2021-2023 Medium Term Expenditure Framework and Fiscal Strategy Paper.
The event was organised by the House of Representatives’ Joint Committee on Finance; Appropriation; National Planning and Economic Development; and Aids, Loans and Debt Management.
The Vanguard says that the Chairman of the Board of the National Broadcasting Commission (NBC), Alhaji Ikra Bilbis, has described the 6th National Broadcasting Code as an illegality perpetrated by the Minister of Information and Culture, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, and acting Director-General of the Commission, Professor Armstrong Idachaba.
The reaction of the Chairman followed the slamming of a N5 million fine on Lagos-based radio station, Nigeria Info 99.3Fm, over what the NBC called professional misconduct.
The commission said it sanctioned the radio station for violating the Nigeria Broadcasting Code by its handling of the programme: “Morning Cross Fire”, aired on August 10, 2020, between 8.30am and 9.00am in which it featured a former CBN Deputy Governor, Dr. Obadiah Mailafia.
It also accused the station of providing its platform for the guest to promote unverifiable and inciting views that could encourage or incite to crime and lead to public disorder.
The newspaper reports that President Muhammadu Buhari yesterday expressed confidence that Nigeria was making progress to reverse the United States suspension of the issuance of “immigrant visas” to Nigerian passport holders.
The President, who spoke while receiving report of the Committee on Citizen Data Management and Harmonization, chaired by the Minister of Interior, Rauf Aregbesola, at the Council Chamber, Presidential Villa, Abuja, expressed delight that two of the six areas of concern raised by the United States had been fully addressed.
The Nigerian leader had set up the committee in February this year, following the imposition of temporary visa restrictions by the American government on Nigerian passport holders.
In a statement issued by the Special Adviser to the President on Media and Publicity, Femi Adesina, the President noted that the suspension, which came into effect on February 21, 2020, didn’t apply to other U.S. visas, such as those for official, business, tourism and student travel.
ThisDay reports that the Speaker of the House of Representatives, Femi Gbajabiamila, has stressed the need for Nigeria to cut the cost of governance and improve internal revenue generation in order to build the infrastructure required to lift Nigerians out of poverty.
The Speaker, at the commencement of Medium Term Expenditure Framework (MTEF) and Fiscal Strategy Paper (FSP) revenue considerations with revenue-generating agencies organised by the House Committee on Finance yesterday in Abuja said the country was facing a fiscal crisis, compounded by the intense disruption caused by COVID-19 pandemic.
He added that countries all over the world, including those rightly considered to be leading lights, are facing challenges redefining the way the government operates.
He stated that the National Assembly had to review 2020 Appropriation Act while at the same time borrowing more to fund urgent development needs and implement interventions to help the most vulnerable citizens get through these trying times.
The Sun says that President Muhammadu Buhari, on Thursday charged the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) to achieve 70 percent local content in Nigeria’s oil and gas industry by 2027.
Buhari, who was represented by the Minister of State for Petroleum Resources, Mr. Timipre Sylva, gave the indication on the sidelines of the virtual commissioning of the 17-storey Nigerian Content Tower and headquarters of the Nigerian Content Development and Monitoring Board (NCDMB) in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State.
The President as part of the ceremony also inaugurated the 10MW built by Eni companies in Nigeria and its partners, in Yenagoa, Bayelsa State to power the headquarters building of NCDMB and other major government and industrial facilities in the state.
The Nation newspaper reports that the British government through its Prosperity Fund’s Digital Access Programme, has partnered the Federal Ministry of Communications and Digital Economy and the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) to address the issues around right of way (RoW) in the country.
In collaboration with the Digital Access Programme, the first Nigeria Technical Conference on RoW was held yesterday to aggregate views from stakeholders, to advance policy and regulatory reforms on RoW and issuance of planning permits for mast and towers.
The virtual forum is one of the key deliverable of the UK’s Technical Assistance project on RoW, which was initiated in April 2020 to assess the existing strategy, charging regime and measure that against economic development indicators.
Funded and overseen by the Digital Access Programme, Greenfields Law, a leading telecom policy, law and regulation firm in the country had engaged with key stakeholders and proposed effective solutions based on the evidence gathered, while taking into account international best practice.
Speaking, the British High Commissioner to Nigeria, Catriona Laing commended the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy and said: “Nigeria has seen great progress in the effort to provide inclusive digital access to millions of its citizens.
GIK/APA