₦airaland Forum

MrFly:
inferiority has nothing 2do with reality.. Beating Argentina, Brazil, Germany, Spain, Belgium, France etc in d group stage wont win u d cup.. When it gets to d knockout rounds, i give it to d heavyweights. In 20 world cup editions only this few countries have won. Uruguay (2) Italy (4), Germany (4), Argentina (2), Brazil (5), England (1), France (1) and Spain (1).. 2018 belongs to either Brazil, Argentina, Germany, Spain or outsiders like Belgium or France. Africans cant do it. We only make up numbers. Mane cant do it alone 4 Senegal neither will Salah, Moses et al do it alone 4 their respective countries!

You even gave Belgium that has never played in the finals a chance, but refused to give any African country any chance to make it that far. That is some "complex" things you know.
Uruguay and England that have won it a very long time ago, even has the chance.

When Nigeria defeated Argentina in the last friendly games, some said it is due to the absence of Messi. But you believe that players like Salah, Mane and Moses can't lift their respective countries.

Time will tell..

deomelllo:
You ipob's problem is lack of civic education, knowledge of history and basic facts about your own country.


Before independence, the leaders in the SW and Awolowo as the Premier of the Old Western Region created the industrial estates in Lagos state, the intention was to make Lagos state the industrial capital of the SW and Ibadan as the political and cultural capital of the SW hence all the firsts in Nigeria like stadium, first skyscraper, first TV station in Africa and so on was sited in Ibadan instead of Lagos and industrial estates in Lagos state instead of Ibadan.


Other states in the SW were designated as Agriculture states to produce the SW's main cash crops like Cocoa and rubber. It's called prudent distribution of capacities.

Lagos state is rich and industrialized not because of the FG because Lagos state as the FC was confined to Lagos Island and the places like Apapa, Ikeja all the way to Ikorodu were part of the SW.


You have 1 FG international airport in your village and they have one FG international airport in Lagos state


The industries responsible for the economic growth of Lagos state was created by Awolowo under the Western Region from Apapa industrial estate to Mushin, Matori, Ilupeju and Ikeja industrial estates, not by the colonial masters or the FG and this is the very point where Lagos state and the SW emerged s the industrial region of Nigeria.


These industrial estates ar responsible for major chunks of the gods and services Nigerians consume daily and this is what Ogun state is benefiting from as the next major industrial hub in Nigeria.


If the SW under Awolowo was able to industrialize Lagos state as the Premier of the Western Region with the industrial estates, what did ZIK do to industrialize or create economic opportunities for the SE region when he as the premier of the Eastern Region same time?


Your past leaders were vision-less and the ones you have now are even worse, so it beats me why you people are always blaming other people for woes.

The truth!

uuzba:
-
Wonderful wrong theory.
All our industries have closed down because rather than importing the necessary equipment and machinery to achieve the full production capacity, we went straight up and KUKUMA imported finished goods.

Now we have no industries, no jobs and everyone is running mad kidnapping each other on the road.

This is how Nigerians reason. You forget the long term goal - employment for all, and focus on short term satisfaction. Multitudes of Jobless graduates will roam the entire streets and kidnap everybody.

I am with you here bro. Wish many Nigerians will reason like you.
No pain, no gain they say.

MrFly:
playing in d quater final doesnt take u closer to winning d world cup. As for Ghana it wasnt ill luck afteral Suarez was redcarded and a penalty given but Asamaoh Gyan d makossa dancer chosed d bar instead of d net.. It will take an African team d next 40 years to play a world cup final. Quote me after 2038.

What happens if in 2018 or before your 2038 / 40 years that an African country plays in the final? Will you then eat your words? Going by your pessimism / inferiority, No African country should have no business making it to the round of 16 or beating former world champions like Argentina and Germany in any of the group games.

olaniyi50:
how old are you now hun?
grow up and stop looking for cheap likes

He get bank where dem dey exchange the "likes" for money" ? Infantile activities

jerome263:
Nice one there....

We are moving forward...

To the chagrin of negative people...

- Igbo are lazy thinkers, acting strangely - Prof ABC Nwosu

- Ndigbo are not informed, 70 percent don’t read newspaper, listen to radio - Hon. Obinna Nshirim

- Igbo cannot play opposition politics - Ken Nnamani

- Igbo lack of humility has remained a very big obstacle among young Igbo people - Mr Leo Stan Eke

- Igbo are now slaves in Nigeria- 90-year-old monarch, Eze Demond Ogugua

- Igbo have never had honest leaders - IPOB

You mean Police has killed the "herdsmen" disturbing Delta State?

Yes we Can!

Many naysayers are suffering from low self esteem.
African Teams have come close to winning the World Cup.

- 3 African Countries have played in the Quarter final of the World Cup in the past.
- Ghana missed playing in the semi final of the 2010 world cup, by stroke of ill luck. No thanks to Luis Suarez that turned himself into a goalkeeper.
- The USA 94 Nigeria team was ranked 5th in the world after the world cup. The match against Italy that played in the final against eventual winner Brazil could have gone either way. Bulgaria that Nigeria defeated 3-nil in the group games went ahead to play the third place match.
- George Weah, who is encouraging the Nigeria Team was himself a former World Footballer of the Year.

CSO accuses churches of destroying 16 shrines in Anambra

Published March 5, 2018


Tony Okafor, Awka

Sixteen traditional places of worship have been destroyed in Anambra State, allegedly by some churches.

The destruction took place at Igbokwe, Ekwulobia and environs in Aguata LGA of the state.



Reacting to the mayhem, 17 civil society organisations in the South East warned the churches to “desist from such acts or face mass action.”

They described the actions of the churches as “barbaric and a violation of the constitution of the Federal Republic of Nigeria on freedom of religion.”

The groups maintained that venerated places of worship should be sacred, vowing to drag churches found guilty to court henceforth.

Speaking on behalf of the CSOs, the chairman of Board of Trustees of International Society of Civil Liberties and Rule of Law, Mr. Emeka Umeagbalasi, accused the Catholic, Anglican and Pentecostal churches of “culpability in the act.”

He said, “During the attacks, sacred places of worship belonging to the Traditional Worshippers and their symbols of worship — including sacred altars, artifacts and diviners’ objects — are targeted for burning, destruction or confiscation; under stigmatisation and false labeling of all traditional religions, their worshippers and sacred places of worship as ‘satanism and evil doers.’

“A clear case in point was the attack and violence directed at the said worshippers and their sacred institutions in Igboukwu, Ekwulobia and other communities in Anambra State.

“The attacks, which took place between 1am and 4.30am, affected properties, artifacts, walls and roofing belonging to the 16 traditional sacred places of worship.

gidgiddy:
I agree with most of the write-up. The only part of the write up I disagree with is



Nyesom Wike who flew almost all the entire traditional rulers in Rivers state to Sokoto to bow before the sultan of Sokoto?

Wike is just another slave same as the other Igbo Governors including that clueless ignoramus in Delta State called Ifeanyi Okowa

Is it not the same Wike, the first Governor to ban IPOB activities within his own state?

Gov. Wike bans Biafra protests in Rivers - Premium Times. November 10, 2015

Biafra: Wike orders arrest of MASSOB, IPOB protesters - Daily Trust. January 16, 2016.

BlackMbakara1:
Aeyah! No fulani or hausa to blame again?

Seems the scam business is not really flowing again...

abes:
It will only make sense if Nigerian government can get something in return.... Geopolitics, nothing is free.

I like the quote below..

There are times when everything does not boils down to money or what you can get from it. If Nigeria had not intervene in the Liberia Civil war, the effect of the continuation of that war will be felt even in Nigeria.

There are things you do, to forestall future trouble and to safeguard yourself.

abes:
If I had paid more attention to my said house, I'd realised my house is already on fire, I would rescue myself first. Nigeria need good teachers, why send out the few good ones we have?

You always think you have it worst than others. Wait until you go out of your enclave. Those looking up to Nigerians have their reasons.

abes:
Seriously? So FG should use our tax money to train NPower participants and then ship them to Liberia to develop another country, what's the sense in that?

It is being your brothers keeper. That is what big brothers do. Remember we send ECOMOG forces to Liberia during their long fought Civil War.
Nigeria needs the neighboring countries to be peaceful for regional peace and prosperity.

If your neighbours house is on fire and you refuse to do anything to stop the fire, your house might be the next in line to be gutted by fire.

mamatwiny:
Will he pay them relocation allowance and estacode?

Like they paid the ECOMOG soldiers during the Liberia Civil War, I would imagine.. In this case, maybe relocation but not estacode..

Fesomu:
Thats the work of judiciary and your stupid lawmakers. If Buhari uses force, same you go call an tyrant

It takes the Nigeria judicial system to delivers justice on a case about 5 years on the average.

FG should consider sending some of the NPOWER participants to Liberia after their 2 years volunteering / training in Nigeria.

But he joined APC the other time. Why is Buhari falling people's hand like this?

One of those rare moments of truth..


Alleging that Igbo people have never had honest leaders, Powerful said the current set of leaders are also driven by the “inordinate ambition” to rule Nigeria.

IPOB: Igbo have never had honest leaders… Zik’s greed landed us in present mess

�by TheCable


The Indigenous People of Biafra (IPOB) says Nnamdi Azikiwe’s quest for power and his “greed” to rub shoulders with the western leaders put Ndigbo in the “mess they found themselves”.

Known as the “father of Nigerian nationalism”, Azikiwe was among the leaders who fought for the independence of Nigeria.

Better known as Zik, the top politician commanded respect in his lifetime and even after he died.

But Emma Powerful, IPOB spokesman, who admitted that Zik was a brilliant man, blamed him for some of the woes the south-easterners are facing.

He said northern leaders were satisfied with being ruled by the British and were not ready for independence, but Zik was among those who persuaded them to embrace independence.

Powerful said the “unproductive ambition” made the south to end up being led by people whose “value system is irreconcilable with theirs”.

He said while the north was stabilsing its region, Zik was busy dreaming of leading an empire the British built.

Alleging that Igbo people have never had honest leaders, Powerful said the current set of leaders are also driven by the “inordinate ambition” to rule Nigeria.

“Zik, despite his undoubted brilliance, was not a very good politician. He remains till date the only person that led an independence struggle and never got the chance to lead the country after independence,” he said.

“Unfortunately, present day Igbo leaders have continued in that failed politics of Zik. The only way out is to dissolve Nigeria, anything short is cosmetic and will be resisted by IPOB.

“Hausa Fulani caliphates of the North were happy being ruled by the British people and were not ready for independence. It was Dr. Nnamdi Azikiwe and co that persuaded the north to embrace independence struggle even when it was obvious they never wanted to form a country with the south. This led to the atrocious demand from them which Zik acquiesced to, that the North should be given political power.

“Zik was naive in thinking Britain were going to hand over power to him. Zik’s dream and greed to lead the world’s biggest black nation just to rub shoulders with the western leaders put us in this mess. It was that unrealizable aspiration and unproductive ambition that ensured we ended up being led by people whose value system is irreconcilable with ours.

“The issue is not about Igbo leaders not doing enough to promote Igbo interest, the problem is that Igbo leaders are actively engaged in the undermining of collective Igbo interest. With the notable exception of Gov. Nyesom Wike of Rivers State, the rest are mere errand boys for Abuja and the caliphate.”

Powerful said the leadership problem in the south-east started after the Biafra war led by the late Odimegwu Ojukwu.

“From the alleged imposition of the traitor Ukpabi Asika as the governor of the then East Central State, mind you he openly campaigned alongside Yakubu Gowon against Ojukwu, Igbos have never had good honest leaders,” he said.

“They have honest social critics and commentators but rarely good leaders. Every leader you see in Igboland today was placed in office by the caliphate.

“The Fulani caliphate decides who becomes governor, senator, Ohanaeze Ndigbo president general and so on. What you have in Igboland are hungry informants masquerading as leaders. These supposedly Igbo leaders are on record as being the first set of people to condemn IPOB and invite soldiers to come and kill Biafrans.

“Many people don’t know that IPOB has even more significant presence in Igweocha (Rivers State) than anywhere else in Biafraland but you don’t hear Ijaw, Ikwerre Igbo, Ndoni or even Ogoni politicians castigate IPOB the way Igbo politicians do on a regular basis. That tells you all you need to know about where their loyalty lies.

“Yoruba elders never publicly condemned OPC, Arewa Consultative Forum, till date they have not offered any categorical condemnation of Boko Haram and herdsmen but Igbo leaders themselves canvassed for this government to deploy soldiers to the south-east to kill innocent agitators. These same leaders never ran to Buhari to send soldiers to stop herdsmen from slaughtering our people all over Enugu state.

“But when it came to IPOB agitating to free everybody from the Nigerian bondage we all are in, they found the courage to invite the army to invade Igboland. That is why today, we are discussing cows instead of industries, science and technology. We are begging them to stop killing their fellow Nigerians. We are begging them to allow the existence of Nigeria to be renegotiated into acceptable standard of governance to usher in political stability, economic growth and modern development just to say the least.”

When young girls marry men old enough to be their grandfather, they know within themselves that they are going to be widows in their forties or early fifties...

Thirteen states, including the Federal Capital Territory, attracted the sum of $5.3bn (N1.9tn) investments in the last quarter of 2017


By Ifeanyi Onuba

Thirteen states, including the Federal Capital Territory, attracted the sum of $5.3bn (N1.9tn) investments in the last quarter of 2017
investigation by our correspondent revealed on Friday.
The investments made in 22 different sectors of the economy from October to December 2017, it was gathered, were the fallout of the new initiatives of government particularly in the area of ease of doing business.

Based on the government’s official statistics, the FCT attracted the highest investment inflow with the sum of $2.68bn.
This is about 49 per cent of the entire investment inflow into the country during the three-month period.
Lagos State followed closely with $2.54bn investment, representing 47.2 per cent of the total investments into the country.
Akwa Ibom recorded an investment inflow of $124.84m; Ogun, $8.79m; Oyo, $7.03m; Delta, $5.69m; and Anambra, $3.77m.
Similarly, Enugu attracted a total investment of $644,890; Kogi, $500,000; Kano, $483,970; Bauchi, $425,000; Rivers, $384,817; and Kaduna, $89,975.
The sectors where the $5.3bn was invested are agriculture, $62.65m; banking, $543.37m; brewing, $2.3m; construction, $92.7m; consultancy, $2.06m; drilling, $0.3m; and electrical, $5.1m.
Others are financing, $122.68m; fishing, $99.4m; information Technology, $8.45m; marketing, $0.48m; oil and gas, $23.83m; production, $317.8m; and servicing, $216.45m.
The rest are hotels, $0.3m; telecoms, $191.01m; tanning, $0.52m; trading, $12.96m; transport, $0.55m; and shares, $3.68bn.

The Minister of Finance, Mrs. Kemi Adeosun, said the huge amount, which the Federal Government was spending on infrastructure projects across the country was attracting fresh investments into the country.
She said this when a delegation of about 20 investors visited him at the headquarters of the ministry to discuss investment opportunities in Nigeria.
Adeosun told the delegation led by a former Minister of Finance, Dr. Shamsudeen Usman, that in 2017 alone, the sum of N1.2tn was released by the ministry for implementation of capital projects.
She added that the ministry was ready to make such huge release this year once the 2018 budget currently before the National Assembly was signed into law by President Muhammadu Buhari.
She said part of the cardinal focus of the administration of President Buhari was to address the infrastructure deficit in the country.
This, she added, would be achieved through targeted spending at projects that would unlock the economic potential of the country.
She described the level of interest from foreign investors in the Nigerian economy as huge, adding that very soon, these interests would translate into massive investments that would create jobs and reduce the nation’s poverty level.
Adeosun said, “It’s a great time for investors to be in Nigeria. For us, it’s a better time now than last year because finally, we think that we are beginning to address through deliberate policies some of the most stubborn problems that have held back Nigeria’s growth.
“We’ve gone through very difficult adjustments but we are seeing that the macroeconomic fundamentals are much more positive and the outlook is that they will remain positive.
“The good news is that we have actually begun to take steps in terms of reducing our (oil) benchmark price by keeping it low, allowing us to rebuild some buffers.
“Our budget is predicated on lower oil price, and for me, we are focusing on revenue because we think that is the missing part of the Nigeria jig-saw.”
She said the economy had started seeing the impact of the expanded budget of the Federal Government with massive investment in power, road and rail.
“Our commitment in solving the infrastructure challenges in Nigeria is firm because we think that is what will unlock growth in agriculture and solid minerals and make us to move away from our over-reliance on oil,” the minister added.
Usman gave some of the sectors where these investors were interested in as power, manufacturing, agriculture, solid minerals, among others.

Copyright PUNCH.

punchng.com/13-states-attract-n1-9tn-investments-in-three-months/

The Federal Government is targeting the export sector with its recent policy initiative.

ANNA OKON gives details of the incentives and the countries that influenced the policy.


About 13 export incentive schemes are in place in Nigeria including the Export Expansion Grant that entails the provision of non-cash grant to exporters as an incentive to enable them to expand their export volume and value.
Pioneer Status: The Pioneer Status tax holidays apply to any manufacturing exporter who exports at least 50 per cent of their annual turnover.

Duty Drawback Scheme: Under this scheme, participating companies are granted the privilege to import all raw material inputs whether prohibited or not, equipment, machinery and spare parts free of import duties.
Free Trade Zones: The Nigerian Export Processing Zones Authority was set up by Acts No 63 of 1992 to promote rapid establishment and development of export-oriented industries through the creation of export free zones.
Tax Relief on Interest Income: This scheme grants tax exemption on interest accruing to banks for loans extended to export activities.
Buyback Arrangement: This allows for importation of plants/ machinery and inputs to be used for export production and paid with the production output. The objective was to ease the problems associated with sourcing foreign exchange needed for importation and improve export production.


Manufacturer Exporters In-Bond Scheme: This was designed to provide for refund of duties / surcharges on raw materials including packing and packaging materials used for the manufacture of products upon effective exportation of the final product.
Export Adjustment Scheme Fund/Export Development Fund: This was set up by the Export Incentives and Miscellaneous Provision Act of 1986 to provide assistance to private sector exporting companies to cover part of their export promotion activities.
Others are the Currency Retention Scheme, ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation Scheme, Capital Asset Depreciation Allowance, and the Profit Exemption from Tax.
Out of these, only five; EEG, Pioneer Status, Currency Retention, FTZ, ECOWAS Trade Liberalisation, are functional, with the EEG being the most operational.

In 2014, the government suspended EEG following allegations of widespread abuse. The suspension, according to an export trade analyst, Mr. Kola Awe, had caused the non-oil export sector to decline by over 50 per cent.
Following the crash in global oil prices and the dwindling revenue from oil, the Nigerian government moved to aggressively diversify the economy from oil and revamp the non-oil sector.
In line with this vision and after consultation with stakeholders, the Federal Government in 2016 lifted the ban on the EEG and made provision for backlog payments in the 2017 budget.
In February 2018, stakeholders were informed that the government had decided to revive all the moribund export incentives and also introduce a new one.
Among the ‘dead’ incentives that the government brought back are the Export Development Fund, the Export Adjustment Scheme Fund and the Manufacture-In-Bond Scheme.
The government also introduced a new incentive called Export Support/Litigation Fund.
Stakeholders hailed the initiative as a good one and one that would double the growth of the non-oil export sector. In addition to the revived incentives, exporters were also assured that they would be paid before shipment.
The Publicity Secretary, National Cashew Association of Nigeria, Mr. Sotonye Anga, welcomed the initiative, noting that the export sector needed a robust incentive regime to grow.
“Exporters cannot survive on bank credit because the interest rate is too high. What the sector needs is government’s incentives,” he said.
The government had disclosed that the decision was influenced by the robust export incentive culture of other successful export trading countries.
While presenting the new basket of incentives to stakeholders, the Acting Director/Chief Executive Officer, Nigerian Export Promotion Council, Mr. Abdullahi Sidi-Aliyu, disclosed that the government was guided in its action by the implementation procedures of functional incentives obtainable in other countries.
The countries with effective incentive schemes that influenced the basket include African countries such as Kenya, Ghana and Asian countries such as India. A look at their incentive schemes shows that they are similar to the Nigerian model.
In Kenya, incentive schemes available to exporters include Duty Remission Facility: The scheme ranges from refunds on exported goods to duty remission on raw material at the time of importation.

Under Bond: Enterprises operating under the programme are offered exemption from duty and VAT on imported raw materials as well as 100 per cent investment allowance on plant, machineries, equipment and building.

Export Processing Zones Programme: This programme encourages the establishment and development of private EPZs to boast the country’s exports. All the private EPZs operating under this scheme enjoy 10 years tax holiday as well as exemption from all withholding taxes on dividends for the same period. Thereafter, they are placed on a flat rate of 25 per cent tax for another 10 years. Companies in the EPZ programme are also exempted from import duties on raw materials and other intermediate inputs.
In Ghana, they have Export Proceeds Retention Scheme which allows exporters to exchange 100 per cent foreign exchange proceeds from non-traditional exports into Cedis at competitive rates negotiated with the exporter’s bankers or keep them in their foreign exchange accounts.

Corporate Tax Rebate: This scheme allows any manufacturer or any person engaged in agricultural production or exporting part or all of their production to claim tax rebate between 40 per cent and 75 per cent of their tax liability.
Custom Duty Drawback: this allows exporters to draw back up to 100 per cent of duties paid on materials imported to produce goods for export.

Bonded Warehousing Scheme: This scheme allows manufacturers to seek Customs licence to hold imported raw materials intended for manufacturing of goods for export in secure places without payment of duty.

Up-Front Duty Exemption: The Up – Front Duty Exemption operates alongside the duty drawback system. It enables exporters to enjoy 100 per cent duty exemption on imported inputs intended to go into production of goods for export.
In India, there is the Merchandise Export from India Scheme. The Merchandise Export from India Scheme was introduced to offset infrastructural inefficiencies and associated costs involved, provide a level playing field to exporters and increase export of goods.
The second one is the Service Export from India Scheme which provides rewards to all service providers of notified services who are providing exporting services from India.

Stakeholders in the non-oil export sector have hailed the Nigerian incentive programme saying that with proper implementation it would propel the export sector to impressive growth.
The Chairman, the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry Export Group, Mr. Obiora Madu, said that the initiative was a good one, adding that with implementation and removal of other hindrances to the export trade in the country, exporters who had gone underground would be encouraged to declare their exports openly and the non-oil export sector would witness a tremendous growth.
He said that the government had looked at what happened in India, Maylasia and India before coming up with the new basket of incentives.
The President, Federation of Agricultural Commodities Association of Nigeria, Dr. Victor Iyama, told our correspondent that the new scheme would push the growth of the non-oil export sector above 300 per cent.
He said, “I believe the growth of the sector will be tripled if there is consistency in the policy.
“This policy is better than the EEG in terms of encouraging up and coming exporters who had no opportunity to access bank loans.”
For the Chairman, Manufacturers Association of Nigeria Export Promotion Group, Chief Ede Dafinone, the introduction of the new basket would bring about a remarkable growth in the non-oil export volume by the end of the first quarter of 2019.
“The scheme will encourage new operators to come into the export sector and that way, more jobs would be generated,” he said.
An export logistics expert, Mr. Kolawole Awe, said that with the widening of the basket, more people would be attracted to the non-oil export sector.
Awe said, “The EDF, for instance, is targeted at SMEs that are hampered by funding capacity to expand their market. With the EDF, they have access to funds to be able to take care of their labelling, branding, advertisement issues and more importantly to be able to access the international market.
“So you can imagine the myriad of opportunities opened to new and existing exporters.”
He expressed confidence that the scheme would greatly impact on the figures of the non-oil export sector while SMEs would be able to produce, sell more and employ more people.

http://punchng.com/fgs-incentives-rekindle-hope-for-export-sector/

Tinubu: Darling, please don't go, don't go, don't go away. I'm begging you to stay - @AsiwajuTinubu

Saraki: Hmmmmm. Should I say yes, should I say No?

Hahahaha. So it is Buhari that is after Saraki and no longer Tinubu? Keep 'em guessing. lol.

Ellabae:
ok so am prettier. Hmmmmmmn thanks

Oh yes you are . You are welcome.

Ellabae:
She fine pass me o

I don't think so.

Ellabae:
Wow the woman is pretty

She fine reach you? lol.

ok

El Rufai knows that Tinubu will urge him to reconcile and concede some ground to Mallam Shehu Sanni

What they are doing is symbolic. Only few will understand it. This marriage has both social and political implications and it goes far beyond just two individuals getting married.