The condemnation by the members of the House of Representatives of rising insecurity in Nigeria, especially the recent killings in Benue, Taraba and Plateau states in northern Nigeria is one of the leading stories in Nigerian newspapers on Thursday.
The Punch reports that the House of Representatives has condemned the rising insecurity in the country, especially the recent killings in Benue, Taraba and Plateau states.
The lawmakers, who stated this at the plenary on Wednesday, demanded the removal of the National Security Adviser, Babagana Monguno and the Minister of Defence, Major General Bashir Magashi.
The legislators also alleged that security agents were aiding bandits and other criminals, adding that huge security funds were not being justified.
They also alleged that the security chiefs were benefitting from insecurity in the country because of the huge funds being allocated to the defence sector.
On Sunday, no fewer than 70 people were killed when gunmen attacked Kanam and Wase communities in Plateau State.
On Monday, 25 people were killed in Guma and Tiortyu local government areas of Benue State.
The newspaper says that the Director-General and Chief Executive Officer, National Office for Technology Acquisition and Promotion, Dr. Dan-Azumi Ibrahim, has disclosed that the Federal Government, through Executive Order 5, has restricted the issuance of visas to certain foreign professionals.
He added that only foreign professionals with skills lacking in Nigeria would get visa approval from the Ministry of Interior.
He said this in his address at a media chat on the public presentation of indigenous software for the implementation Of Executive Order 5.
The Executive Order 5 was signed into law by President, Muhammadu Buhari on February 2, 2018, to promote local content in public procurement.
The NOTAP DG said: “The presidential Executive Order 5 for planning and execution of projects, promotion of Nigerian content in contracts on science, engineering, and technology, is aimed at ensuring that all procuring authorities shall give preference to Nigerian companies and firms in the award of contracts, in line with the Public Procurement Act 2007.
“The Executive Order No.5 also prohibits the Ministry of Interior from issuing visas to foreign nationals whose skills are readily available in Nigeria. In other words, the order will preclude foreigners from taking contract jobs that Nigerians have the competence and capabilities to handle. This is in a bid to not only protect and sustain the indigenous competencies but also to further build capacities as well as enhance their financial base.”
The Guardian reports that key players in the construction industry under the aegis of the Federation of Construction Industry (FOCI), yesterday, lamented that the steep rise in inflation, high cost of diesel and power as well as taxation are killing the sector.
According to the Federation made up of contractors and consultants, the situation is further compounded by the variation of prices (VOPs) in ongoing projects, which is pegged at five per cent. The band, they said, is unrealistic in light of the current inflation rate.
They warned that construction firms may be forced to disengage workers, which would worsen the unemployment situation in the country.
Speaking at the Construction Industry Business Roundtable on Appropriation Act 2022 in Abuja, the President of the Nigerian Institute of Quantity Surveyors (NIQS), Mr. Olayemi Shonubi, called for an urgent action to salvage the situation. He observed that the industry is the biggest employer of labour and that many households would face a crisis if any construction firm shut down.
He said: “The purpose of this meeting is to identify challenges facing the sector and find ways to engage the Federal government to get the problems solved. We also want to engage the National Assembly on the issue of taxation so that in the drafting of the 2023 Finance Act, they would consider the sector.
“The way the taxation system has been structured, you find out that the players pay more than what is stipulated. Up to about early this year, I used to buy diesel at about N400 per litre, but now it is over N700 and this additional cost mean that your profit has been reduced…
“Nigeria has been losing about 90 per cent of revenue that is supposed to form a cash backing for the budget. If we are not able to stem the loss in oil production that will affect the cash that will be available to finance the budget. We have in the past one month had challenges with power, and without power, there will be no production.
“If government can find a cash backing for the budget, it will impact the construction industry and other sectors. To attract private investment to the construction sector, the environment has to be conducive, in terms of taxation and access to credits.”
Also speaking, the President of FOCI, Nasiru Dantata, said the recent inflationary trend has become a great concern for members, adding that between January and March 2022, the prices of basic materials have jumped several points over their prices at the beginning of the year.
The newspaper says that MTN Nigeria has launched a voice over long-term evolution (VoLTE) call service in line with its commitment to providing access to the best communications technology and improving the overall customer experience.
The service also referred to as high definition (HD) calls provides customers who own compatible devices with superior natural-sounding voice quality, reduces background noise and increases the speed of call connectivity.
Speaking about the new service, the Chief Marketing Officer of MTN Nigeria, Adia Sowho, said: “With VoLTE, MTN Nigeria continues to enhance Nigerian lives with innovative technology. VoLTE is free to access today at your rates from a VoLTE-enabled smartphone so you can call and surf at the same time with no interruptions ever again.”
The MTN VoLTE call service will be charged at regular call rates. It will be available to all customers with VoLTE-enabled devices such as Tecno Phantom X, Infinix Zero X and Infinix Zero X Pro smartphones. Other device models from Samsung, Nokia, Apple and Tecno will be supported soon.
To enjoy the service, customers only need to do three things – check that they have a 4G USIM; check that they are within a 4G coverage area by texting 4G to 131 and update their VOLTE smartphone to the latest software version.
Customers without a 4G USIM could schedule an appointment by visiting https://scheduler.mtnonline.com/qwebbook.
The Nation reports that the widely held view that Boko Haram terrorists have struck an alliance with bandits was confirmed yesterday by the federal government.
The government said the “unholy handshake” is responsible for the upsurge in killings in Plateau and Kaduna states as well as the attack on the Kaduna-bound train from Abuja on March 28.
The government, however, assured that efforts were on to crush the insurgents.
Minister for Information, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, and his Defence counterpart Gen. Bashir Magashi, spoke on the worsening insecurity after yesterday’s Federal Executive Council (FEC) meeting in Abuja.
Kaduna State Governor Nasir El-Rufai had hinted at the alliance of the terrorists after the train attack in which nine people were killed and no fewer than 68 people abducted and taken to the forest in Shiroro Local Government Area of Niger State.
The terrorists are demanding huge ransoms from the family members of their victims.
In the Plateau attack, more than 100 people were killed, 70 residents were kidnapped and about 100 houses were destroyed by terrorists last Sunday.
Mohammed said: “What is happening now is that there is a kind of unholy handshake between bandits and Boko Haram insurgents.
“Preliminary reports of what transpired at the Kaduna train attack show that there is a kind of collaboration between the bandits and dislodged Boko Haram terrorists from the Northeast.
“I can tell you very confidently that the Federal Government is on top of this matter.”
GIK/APA