₦airaland Forum

This makes for good reading as the beneficiaries will no longer groan under the burden of the lockdown months.

KEYNOTE ADDRESS BY HIS EXCELLENCY, PROF. YEMI OSINBAJO, SAN, GCON, VICE PRESIDENT, FEDERAL REPUBLIC OF NIGERIA AT THE 2020 PRESIDENTIAL POLICY DIALOGUE OF THE LAGOS CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AND INDUSTRY ON FRIDAY AUGUST 7TH 2020


Nigeria, like all other countries, has been quite seriously impacted in various ways by the COVID-19 pandemic and it has affected us all either as households or as businesses.

Contrary to earlier expectations, it is clear that the pandemic and its effects will remain with us for quite a while. So it has become clear that we have to adapt to it and adopt new ways of doing things.

The priority of the Federal Government in response to the economic challenges posed by COVID-19 is essentially to ward off a deep recession and to save jobs and this we are hoping to do by a mixture of stimulus measures to support local businesses; the essence being to retain jobs and to ensure that we create the best possible circumstances for the most vulnerable in the society.

To this end, the Federal Government developed the Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP) with a stimulus package of N2.3 trillion to give fillip to the economy across various sectors.

The size of the stimulus is about 1.5% of national income or GDP. This is not as large as we would have liked it to be but it was the best we could do given existing fiscal and monetary constraints, and this is also based on the assumption that the price of crude will average around 30 to 40 dollars per barrel throughout the year. We anticipate an economic growth of about -0.59% in 2020.

You would already be familiar with details of the Economic Sustainability Plan. In essence it is intended to boost production, prevent business collapse, and provide liquidity. It will also promote the use of labor-intensive methods and direct labour interventions in key areas like agriculture, light manufacturing, housing construction and facility maintenance while increasing infrastructural investment in roads, bridges, solar power, and communications technologies.

It is intended to do all this while extending protection to the poor and other vulnerable groups in our society which of course means that we will be strengthening our social investment programmes and the social safety nets that we have created in the past four years.

The plan covers many economic and social sectors and some of its key provisions include:
Jobs for food - which is our agriculture programme to expand crop cultivation and create a targeted 5 million jobs while guaranteeing uptake by processors, aggregators and the government. In all of what we are doing, part of the N2.3 trillion stimulus package is to make government the buyer of last resort. This is to ensure that the whole question of demand, which is weak at the moment, is strengthened by the fact that government stands ready to be the purchaser of last resort, with respect to agriculture or even with respect to our housing programme.

Jobs through Homes is again, to create jobs and boost the national housing stock using teams of young professionals and artisans in small businesses and building with local products such as cement, gravel, doors, tiles, windows and paint. Because of the large number of houses to be built, we will be intentional in encouraging local manufacture of building materials. As a matter of fact, the whole intent of the Economic Sustainability Plan is to encourage local production. One of the key issues that came up in the Economic Sustainability Committee was the issue of road-building. We currently use a lot of imported bitumen. We are now working very hard towards encouraging local production of bitumen. In the meantime, we have limestone and cement so we are certainly going to be encouraging the building of our roads using concrete. This is a very important component of our Economic Sustainability Plan and the Ministry of Works and Housing has been doing a bit of work in that respect.

The Plan also includes a Solar Homes Systems programme - private solar companies providing modular solar powered units and our targets is to provide 5 million households (to serve 25 million people) in rural or under-served areas. Local manufacture and/or assembling of solar equipment is a crucial objective. This cannot be achieved in the short-term. However the National Agency for Science and engineering Infrastructure (NASENI) is already doing quite a bit of work in the manufacturing of solar panels. We expect to start with assembling considering we are doing 5 million homes which is huge and we have received many expressions of interest for the setting up of solar equipment assembling and manufacturing plants.

The plan also includes supporting MSMEs which are the backbone of the economy to promote local production of pharmaceuticals and COVID-19 essentials like personal protective equipment, face masks, face shields, hand sanitisers etc. Again here, the government is the purchaser of last resort because we want to encourage local industry to produce all these pharmaceuticals and personal protective equipment; so we will certainly be putting in the resources to enable this happen.
The Honorable Minister of Investment, Trade and Industry has already spoke, quite extensively, about some of the support that is proposed under his ministry.

We also have a Future of Jobs programme in technology so that our creative youth are productively engaged while preparing our economy to provide digital services including for the global outsourcing industry. We are taking advantage of this time to support the digital sector in Nigeria to become a hub for outsourcing of technological and engineering services. We hope that we will become a major player in technology and engineering outsourcing.

A fundamental feature of the Economic Sustainability Plan is the role of the private sector. Take agriculture for instance, at 22 per- cent of GDP, agriculture continues to be the major non-oil contributor to national economy and Nigeria is deemed to be “one of the richest potential sources of agricultural growth globally”. Nigerians are consuming more processed food than ever before yet the ratio of agro and food processing to primary agriculture is low leading to imports whereas if agricultural produce is processed locally it can meet domestic needs and even be exported in large quantities abroad. There is no reason why we cannot be net exporters of some of the agricultural products that our land and climate can sustain.

The example of agriculture is useful for understanding the approach of energising the entire value chain taken in the Economic Sustainability Plan. In it, there are opportunities for small-scale farmers just as there are for large scale out-growers. There are opportunities for seed companies just as there are opportunities for companies engaged in land clearing.

Indeed, producers and manufacturers of fertilisers, insecticides, herbicides and leasers of tractors and harvesters are factored into the agricultural intervention just as transporters, commodity exchanges and processors will find lots of opportunities for expansion.

The key constraints in the agricultural value chain such as lack of access to financing and post-harvest losses will be overcomed because of the involvement of banks and large off-takers. The Federal Government will be the ultimate purchaser of produce for use in various programmes like the Home Grown School Feeding Programme and the Strategic Grains Reserve.

This same intention to dynamize entire value chains is also evident in the sectoral plans for housing, solar power and natural gas amongst other things.

Similarly, the ESP is replete with opportunities for micro, small and medium scale businesses to expand their activities in manufacturing and local production and to participate in supply chain activities across various industrial and service sectors. It recognizes nonetheless that many businesses suffered serious losses during the lockdown that was put in place to limit the spread of the COVID-19 virus. Thus, in addition to direct procurement of pharmaceutical and health products from small businesses mentioned earlier, the ESP offers support for small businesses in sectors badly affected by the pandemic such as those in hospitality, aviation, creative industries, road transport, tourism, private schools and export related businesses.

Such support includes direct payroll support to staff of qualifying employers for 3 months, and support for MSMEs on reduction in registration fees and assisted e-registration which will reduce barriers to entry to food and drug sectors. Part of what we are hoping to achieve as we work through the various challenges of this period, is to also impact some of the existing problems regarding the ease of doing business. We hope to do so across board for all businesses, especially the MSMEs which are the engine-room of most economies.

Also pertinent is the enablement of banks to restructure loans and the provision of less onerous credit terms under the auspices of the Central Bank and the National Development Banks like Bank of Industry, NIRSAL and NEXIM.

Working with the Central Bank, we try to ensure that we are able to put in place a system whereby many businesses that have taken loans will be able to restructure those loans. This is an on-going conversation and we intend to keep the banks reassured that allowing generous restructuring programmes will be supported by the Central Bank and that the Central Bank will not throw them under the bus.

Similarly, the recently signed Finance Act 2019 exempts businesses with a turnover or less than N25m from Companies Income Tax while those with turnover between N25m and N100m will only pay 20% CIT instead of 30%.

The Federal Government also realizes the importance of infrastructure to underpin our national aspiration to be a producing country and become less reliant on crude oil exports. However, given the scale of the needs and the limited resource base of government, it is clear that Nigeria needs its private sector to be involved in infrastructure development.

So, the plan does not dwell on major infrastructural development because of its time-frame but also because of on-going and path-breaking infrastructural investments in railways as well as in key projects of the Presidential Infrastructure Development Fund such as the Lagos-Ibadan highway, the Second Niger Bridge, the Abuja to Kano Road, the East-West Road and the Mambilla Hydroelectric Power scheme.

Greater emphasis was placed on provision of rural roads to facilitate evacuation of agricultural produce as well as public works and facilities maintenance programmes with their huge job creation potential.

We recognize of course that national infrastructural needs go beyond these mega-projects and rural facilities and we strongly believe that the private sector has a key role to play in the provision of infrastructure. The plan therefore calls for the leveraging of national savings including pension for such purpose.

Our pension law allows for up to one-fifth of Pension Fund assets to be invested in infrastructure and I think that once necessary steps are taken to de- risk the use of these assets for such purpose then national infrastructural investment will get a boost. The Azura-Edo power plant is also a good example of how government can support and enable private sector provision of infrastructure. It is important for us as a nation to build on such successes bearing in mind that it is a key responsibility of government to help de-risk such investments if they are to be made. I cite that example because the Azura-Edo power plant is the first power plant that had the support of the World Bank, several DFIs, private sector and the state government – the Edo state government. Those types of collaboration are important as we go forward; the Federal Government standing ready to provide the necessary guarantees and to facilitate the financing of major infrastructural projects. We need to think creatively on private-public sector collaboration and how to make this work effectively especially in the production of infrastructure.

A valuable insight that we have got from the COVID-19 pandemic is the key role of digital technology in economic activity going forward. Access to broadband facilities is key for software development, digital education, e-commerce, e-health, e-government, internet banking, and even video conferences such as this one.

Broadband facilities are also vital if Nigeria is to be well positioned to take advantage of cutting edge developments in robotics, 3-D manufacturing, artificial intelligence and smart devices including cars. Improved broadband coverage will also open up opportunities in other sectors of the economy including cloud platforms, digital financial services and digital skills and training. This is why in the Economic Sustainability Plan, we have paid attention to total national broadband coverage which is a core issue the Federal Government wishes to undertake as robustly as possible.

Not surprisingly, given the health related origins of the economic crisis, a key objective of the ESP is to improve health outcomes. We (governments at federal and state levels) have accordingly built isolation centres and laboratories, bought test kits and personal protective equipment and given incentives to health workers. For example, we have increased the number of modular laboratories that can handle COVID-19 samples from 5 at the onset of the pandemic to over 40 today.

Given the obvious vulnerability of our health sector, the Economic Sustainability Plan calls for speedy movement to universal health coverage using a combination of public finance and mandatory social health insurance. Although we currently have the Universal Basic Health Fund (UBHF) and others, the size of a country such as Nigeria implies that there is no way that the public budget alone can provide the funding for our healthcare. Which is why the plan for universal health coverage is a combination of public financing and mandatory social health insurance. This is one of the outcomes that we hope we can benefit from under the plan in this period of the pandemic.

Although there is still a lot more to be done, our Social Investment Programmes laid a strong foundation for providing support to the more vulnerable sections of our society. The plan says that we are going to deepen social investment programmes including notably the cash transfer scheme, the N-Power programme, the extension of the Home Grown School Feeding Programme to all States of the Federation and deepening of credit opportunities offered by the GEEP such as the TraderMoni, MarketMoni and FarmerMoni programmes.

I think social investment is important, especially in this period of the pandemic and I want to thank many members of the private sector that have also contributed to supporting our efforts in social investment. This is a time when many are out of work; we already had significant unemployment problems without the pandemic. With the pandemic, many who do daily paid work are experiencing great difficulty because of lockdowns and frequent disruptions.

It also means that people who were already well engaged in local industries are suffering such as caterers, mechanics, and those in the hospitality industry. So there is a need for us to provide a much more effective safety net and this is one of the planned objectives of government but we also require the support of the private sector.

The LCCI is of course well-aware of the commitment of the Federal Government to providing an enabling environment for business to thrive. And of course, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment has already stated the ways in which we have worked to improve the business environment in the country.

In this regard, we have made some strides in improving the ease of doing business in Nigeria. Through the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), a lot has been achieved to fast-track processes, reduce bottlenecks and improve transparency across Government MDAs. As a result, we have moved 35 places upward in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business rankings. We have continued to scale up our business reform initiatives across regulatory agencies.

Of course, there is still a lot more to be done. There is still a lot to be done in improving the ease of doing business in Nigeria. Also the public and private sector needs to spend more time to look at the many ways we can solve these problems. Some of these problems are problems of the environment which we can deal with. Others are attitudinal problems, problems of governance. It is therefore in the interest of our economy to work through these issues, some of which are not lost on the Federal Government and we are very committed to resolving these problems and creating a much better environment for business.

Our aim is to continue to improve our national ranking in the World Bank Doing Business Index Ranking to below 100 in the coming years. It is also very important to reduce the harassment and extortion of businesses by various government agencies. The practice of arbitrary assessments, inspections and intrusions often for contrived reasons just needs to stop. Despite setbacks arising from the effects of the global pandemic, we are steadily working to improve and consolidate on business environment reforms. The Federal Government is not under any illusion that it can do this on its own. Everything we plan to do has to be done lock-step with the collaboration of the private sector. What we have seen in these times is that Nigerian businesses can and are being creative.

The transition from in-person meetings to zoom meetings shows the tremendous resilience of Nigerian businesses and the Nigerian people as a whole. We can see how, very quickly, we have adapted to all that is going on in our environment. The task ahead is challenging, and I believe that the LCCI, working with Federal Government and several other private sector organizations, will together solve all of these pending issues. This period of the pandemic will provide us with the best opportunity to do something significant and to really make a difference in the Nigerian economy.

I believe that this is the best possible time for us as a nation to do something about our business environment. We can take advantage of these difficulties. Clearly, there are many opportunities in this difficult period and I urge you to join us in doing whatever is necessary to ensure that not only do we sustain growth and keep jobs, but that we modernize our economy and make this country a place where everyone, local and international, can do business.

*VICE PRESIDENT YEMI OSINBAJO SPEECH*.
At the Justice Research Institute webinar on “Selection and Appointment of Judges: Lessons for Nigeria.”

I'll like to commend the Justice Institute for the quality of the speakers here present. The topic at hand today has to many contours to it as its sphere of influence of wide. The question of the integrity of our judges selection process needs to ring loud as fair as possible as these judges influence the economy, elections, social justice and even our democracy.

The question of who influences the biggest decision makers is thus very important. The process is under pressure from the elite who want to own things and sometimes Judges are included in the things they want to own. The politicians especially want their own persons on the bench to ensure that election results that go to the tribunal come out favorable for them.

The unity that Federal Character was supposed to establish had been bastardized to now only ensure that people with similar agendas from the same location tend to gang up and grab things for themselves instead of ensuring that the the diversity and equal representation necessary to give the notion of oneness thrives.

Every nation that's succeeded made up it's mind at some point to become so and usually the first step is to commence asking the frank and honest questions as to how to appoint honest and deligent umpires because we must all admit that interests influence the process.

We must decide to an objective process to regourously examine those who sit on the bench. When Nigeria wants to win football matches we know how to pick the right players for each position so also in the judiciary, we already have paperwork all that is left is the will to do right by ourselves.

Developed Nations were at where we currently are now and they came together to ensure that institutionalized corruption was exiled by putting in a framework that refined the process of deciding who becomes a judge.

The time to have this discussion is now and I'm glad that the polity is well represented here; the Senate President and the Speaker House of Representatives, the Judiciary with the CJN, all the SANs and Silks, as well as the entire participants of the webinar. Together we can bring about reforms that would translate to a better Judiciary and a Greater Nigeria.

Let me conclude by bringing up the situation in Lagos State when I was there Attorney General. We defined the process by ensuring that the people nominated were extensively examined after intensive background checks and for those who scaled through the process we ensured they were adequately remunerated to help sheild them from corruption.

We had politicians come forward then to say that "this is our turn to choose the judges, but we had to refuse them as we didn't want to leave the judiciary the same way we'd met it when it was a case of turn by turn.

Webinars like this must continue and should translate into a will to actually make reforms that would strengthen the process of the selection of Judges as this would only bode well for the country.

As the Federal Government consolidates efforts designed to ward off a deep recession and effect significant changes in the economy, opportunities abound across different sectors in the Economic Sustainability Plan (ESP) for the private sector to lead the charge for Nigeria’s economic growth and development, according to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN.

Prof. Osinbajo made the call on Friday at the virtual edition of the Presidential Policy Dialogue of the Lagos Chamber of Commerce and Industry (LCCI).

The Vice President said the ESP which is now being implemented by the Buhari administration is driven by the desire “to adapt to the challenges and make required changes in order to come out stronger than before”.

According to him, “I take this opportunity to encourage the private sector to be proactive in leading the charge against recession and poverty in our country. The Federal Government is not under any illusion that it can do this on its own. The opportunities that now exist in the short term in agriculture, infrastructural development, housing construction, in renewable energy, digital technology development, mining, financial inclusion, healthcare and pharmaceutical manufacturing, call for the private sector to take the bull by the horns and make them a reality.

“The priority of the Federal Government in response to the economic challenges caused by COVID-19 is to ward off a deep recession by an admixture of stimulus measures to support local businesses, retain and create jobs and ameliorate the circumstances of the most vulnerable.”

Continuing, the Vice President said though the stimulus package is just about 1.5% of GDP, it is the best the government could do given existing realities in the economy.

He said “government developed the Economic Sustainability Plan with a stimulus package of N2.3trillion to give fillip to the economy across various sectors. The size of this stimulus which is just about 1.5% of national income is not as large as we would have liked it to be but it was the best we could do given existing fiscal and monetary constraints. Based on the assumption of the price of crude averaging out at $30 per barrel throughout the year, we anticipate an economic growth of about -0.59% in 2020.

“You would already be familiar with details of the Economic Sustainability Plan. In essence, it is intended to boost production, prevent business collapse, and provide liquidity. It will also promote the use of labour-intensive methods and direct labour interventions in key areas like agriculture, light manufacturing, housing construction and facility maintenance while increasing infrastructural investment in roads, bridges, solar power, and communications technologies. It is intended to do all this while extending protection to the poor and other vulnerable groups in our society.”

Speaking further on the plan of government to address the disruptions on the economy by the COVID-19 pandemic and the role that the private sector can play, the Vice President said, “these opportunities are the building blocks that will enable our medium-term goals to be achieved and make our long-term goals achievable.”

According to Prof. Osinbajo, “this is a drive we hope to continue into the medium term as we build up the economy over the next few years. We do need foreign direct investment to complement our domestic efforts but it is the success of our own investments that will attract such inflows. Investors are already aware of Nigeria’s huge market and its great potential, but they will only ‘want in’ when government by its own positive interventions and the private sector by its success stories show them what is possible to do here.

“No doubt, the task ahead is challenging. Nevertheless, government is focused on doing its bit so I call on the private sector to play its part and join us in this noble venture. We know that this will be a difficult year but expect that with our combined effort growth will resume to the order of about 3 percent by the end of next year. We can do this working together.”

On the Ease of Doing Business reforms of the Federal Government, the Vice President maintained that the commitment of the Federal Government to providing an enabling environment for business to thrive remains strong.

“In this regard, we have made some strides in improving the ease of doing business in Nigeria. Through the Presidential Enabling Business Environment Council (PEBEC), a lot has been achieved to fast-track processes, reduce bottlenecks and improve transparency across Government MDAs.

“As a result, we have moved 35 places upward in the World Bank’s Ease of Doing Business rankings. We have continued to scale up our business reform initiatives across regulatory agencies.

“Of course, there is still a lot more to be done. Our aim is to continue to improve our national ranking in the World Bank Doing Business Index Ranking to below 100 in the coming years. It is also very important to reduce the harassment and extortion of businesses by various government agencies,” the Vice President added.

In his remarks, the Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, said the current focus of the Federal Government in the manufacturing sector “is on prioritizing local production especially in the importation of machinery that utilize local materials.”

Earlier, the LCCI President, Mrs Toki Mabogunje commended the Federal Government’s “spirited effort” regarding its managing of the Nigerian economy, adding that members of the chamber and private sector players are willing to collaborate with the Buhari administration.

APC Chairman Campaign Council Governor Abdullahi Ganduje presents Edo APC Gubernatorial Candidate Pastor Eze Iyamu to Vice President Yemi Osinbajo at his office in the State House.

As per say I no be lawyer or judge, I must say I'm not qualified to speak on this issue.
Hopefully the Supreme Court judges got the right call

The Federal Government intends to examine every possible option in the development and distribution of a vaccine against the COVID-19 disease, and the health and safety of Nigerian citizens is the priority of the Buhari administration in that matter.

This was disclosed earlier today by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, during a virtual meeting with representatives of the BNT162 COVID-19 vaccine candidate on the progress of the vaccine development around the world, including Africa.

The meeting was attended by the Health Minister, Dr. Osagie Ehanire and the Executive Director of the National Primary Health Care Development Agency, Dr. Faisal Shuaib with representatives of Pfizer and Biotech, the international pharmaceutical firms promoting the BNT162 vaccine candidate.

According to Prof. Osinbajo, the interaction between the FG and the promoters of the vaccine candidate “is an important conversation and it is important for us that we are prioritized-as the largest country in Africa-in the distribution of the best COVID-19 vaccine when it’s eventually ready.

“Our priority is the health of the Nigerian citizens. We continue to engage and intend to look at every possible option -from all manufacturers- of a good vaccine. We want to do the very best for our people in this regard.”

During the meeting the Vice President asked several questions about the COVID-19 vaccine candidate including how quickly can Nigeria get the vaccine once it’s safely ready.

Responding, the Pfizer Country Manager and Representative in Africa, who spoke for the promoters, Mr. Subair Olayinka disclosed that “Nigeria will be priority,” for the vaccine supply to Africa.

Although the vaccine trials are not going on in Nigeria currently he said the trails are ongoing in parts of the African continent and it would be entering the third phase, having concluded the first two phases successfully.

Also speaking the Health Minister noted that the FG would consider quality, appropriate volume and how well and quick a vaccine can be delivered to Nigeria in deciding which manufacturer to make the supply.

Nigerian youth need to key into these great policies

*FG inaugurates committee to drive implementation of support schemes for MSMEs

Details of how qualified and targeted Nigerians can access some of the benefits under the Economic Sustainability Plan which was formulated by a powerful delegation headed by Vice President Yemi Osinbajo will emerge soon with the constitution of a 10-man steering committee to drive the implementation of the various support schemes for small businesses especially Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises (MSMEs) in the country.

The Minister of Industry, Trade and Investment, Otunba Niyi Adebayo, inaugurated the committee on Tuesday at a brief ceremony held via video-conference. Membership of the group is drawn from both the public and private sectors.
 
Some of the programmes include; the MSMEs Guaranteed Offtake Simulation Scheme which is designed to sustain 300,000 jobs in 100,000 MSMEs by guaranteeing off-take of priority products and extending payroll support and establishing facility in the six geo-political zones; and the establishment of the MSMEs Survival Fund, targeted at sustaining 1,000,000 jobs in 100,000 MSMEs and 333,000 self-employed individuals through disbursement of grants across the six geo-political zones.
 
The Minster of State for Industry, Trade & Investment, Amb. Mariam Katagum is the Chairman of the steering committee while founder of The Chair Centre Limited & Chairman, First Bank of Nigeria Plc, Mrs Ibukun Awosika is the Vice Chairman.
 
Other members of the committee include the Chairman of Anambra Rice Mills, Mr Akai Egwuonu; the DG, Industrial Training Fund (ITF), Mr Joseph Ari; the MD, Bank of Industry (BOI), Mr Kayode Pitan; the DG, Small and Medium Enterprises Development Agency, Dr Dikko Radda; and the Director, Industrial Development Department, Mr Adewale Bakare.
 
Also included on the committee are the representative of the Office of the Chief of Staff; the Technical Adviser to the Minister for Industry, Trade & Investment, Mr Kamar Bakrin, while the Special Assistant to the President on MSMEs, Mr Tola Johnson will serve as Secretary of the Committee and Coordinator of the project.
 
The mandate of the committee is to amongst other things oversee the implementation of the various MSMEs support schemes captured in the NESP as well as the selection and enrollment of beneficiaries for the schemes.
 
Recently in Funtua, Katsina State, the Federal Government launched the Mass Agriculture Programme - the agric component of the economic sustainability plan aimed at cultivating at least 300,000 hectares of land across 36 states and the FCT.

This ESP is a fantastic plan. Hopeful for it's implementation to kick start the Economic bouncing back

These are highly commendable strides... Hopefully more promises would be met and sustained. Kudos to the Buhari Osinbajo administration

One can surely hope that this time around, solutions can be provided to restore the people's faith in the security outfits.

This is a very welcome development not just for the provision of housing but the reduction in unemployment.

"The progress which seemed to have been made by the Acting President Osinbajo was totally ignored upon the return of the President from his medical leave."

In truth the open letter should have been directed at the President since we all agree that Osinbajo was successful in making progress

The Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, Prof Yemi Osinbajo SAN, will at a conference holding on August 13-14 deliver a keynote address on the role of an efficient justice system in driving the wheel of innovation and economic growth.

The first Legal Technologies Virtual Conference, is put together by Nigeria’s foremost LegalTech company, LawPavilion Business Solutions Limited, in conjunction with Telnet Group, Nigeria’s leading digital transformation company.

The conference which will be available to participants from all around the world through Zoom video conferencing app features a line-up of erudite judges and legal practitioners in both public and private sectors.

Briefing the press in Lagos, the Managing Director of LawPavilion Business Solutions, Mr. Ope Olugasa remarked that for almost two decades, LawPavilion has been at the forefront of providing and improving access to digital tools for the legal services industry. It has become imperative to leverage technology to accelerate access to justice for Nigerians and organizations interested in doing business in Nigeria.

Olugasa stated that while the general public tends to think of the judiciary as the least visible or important arm of government, the role of the judiciary comprising of judges, lawyers, arbitrators, mediators and legal institutions in economic growth and development is so critical, that where the justice system is fraught with inefficiencies and inadequacies, economic growth is stunted. He pointed out that for example, in today’s global market, true wealth is no longer in only expansive real estate or tangible cash, but in holding intangible intellectual property.

“Thus, economies that do not accord enough recognition and protection of law to intellectual property stand a genuine risk of not being at par with other economies,” he said.

Commenting further, Olugasa pointed out that there has been a significant revolution of the banking industry through the introduction and adoption of FinTech in Nigeria, which has exponentially raised the profile of Nigeria’s banking industry. There has been significant collaboration between banking institutions, stakeholders and government agencies to consolidate and rapidly enhance banking operations, irrespective of location or time.

“Accordingly, the legal services industry is also ripe and well primed for such technological transformation and the virtual Legal Technologies Conference being hosted by LawPavilion, in conjunction with Telnet Group, will showcase the unveiling of an enterprise solution for the judiciary, LawRights App (for the general citizenry), Lagos State Laws in E-book version integrated into LawPavilion’s award-winning legal research software, all of which constitute parts of a new ecosystem, seeking to institutionalize legal-technology in Nigeria’s justice sector.

“The Virtual LegalTech conference will unveil new ecosystem for client/lawyer engagement and Administration of Justice in Nigeria Post COVID-19.”

According to Olugasa, the conference is necessitated by the COVID-19 pandemic which continues to ravage economies all around the world. As a result, he noted, there has been an increased pivot in the use and adoption of technology across several industries, where hitherto technology was a mere tool and not a driver of day to day operations. “The world as we knew it has changed forever and it is imperative that this paradigm shift is accentuated by current realities of how individuals, organizations, institutions and governments work and interact,” he said.

Other dignitaries expected at the virtual conference include His Lordship, Hon. Justice Ibrahim Tanko Muhammed CFR, Chief Justice of the Federation of Nigeria and Chairman, National Judicial Council; the Honorable Senate President, Hon. Ahmed Ibrahim Lawan; Honorable Speaker of the House of Representatives, Hon. Femi Gbajabiamila; the President of the Nigerian Bar Association and other captains of industry and legal luminaries.

The conference, which will span over two days comprise of a keynote lecture and panel discussions on the role of an efficient justice system in driving the wheel of innovation and economic growth, with panelists such as Hon Justice Olukayode Ariwoola (JSC), Hon Justice Amina Augie (JSC), Dr Babatunde Ajibade SAN, Mr. Wale Fapohunda, AG Ekiti State, Mr. Folorunsho Aliu, Group MD of Telnet Nigeria Ltd and Mr. Gbenga Sesan, CEO Paradigm Initiatives.

There will also be breakout sessions focusing on seamless court integration as well as tools and resources to run an efficient law firm post COVID-19 using technology.

Some of the discussants at the breakout sessions will include Hon. Justice Kashim Zannah, Chief Judge of Borno State and Chairman of National Judicial ICT Committee, Hon. Justice Olutoyin Akeredolu, the Chief Judge of Ondo State, Dr. Ayodele Akenroye, Judge of Immigration and Refugee Board of Canada, Mr. Dapo Akinosun of SimmonsCooper Partners, Mr. Sesan Sobowale, Head of Legal, Union Bank of Nigeria, Mr. Raymond Ugbokwere, Head of Legal, First Bank of Nigeria and Mr. Seun Abimbola, Former AG of Oyo State and Chairman of NBA Section on Legal Practice.

A store manager in one of the shops at the Ikeja Mall has stated that Shoprite Nigeria is not shutting down, rather it is being acquired by a local retail company.

Many Nigerians woke up to the news that Shoprite Nigeria was shutting down following an official communication by the supermarket giant that it is closing its Nigeria branch.

Many took to social media to blame President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration and even others the ease of doing business as championed by Vice President Osinbajo for Shoprite’s failing. The South African supermarket chain is leaving Nigeria after 15 years.

In reaction to a question that Shoprite was shutting down, the store manager, Adeyinka Saka offered clarification on the issue.

“Don’t get it twisted Sir, I am currently working as a store manager in one of the stores at Ikeja City Mall.

“It is being taken over by an indigenous retail company. Nobody is losing his or her job however, there will be a change in management.

Why is Shoprite selling Nigeria stake?

According to Koshiek Karan, a business adviser, Shoprite is leaving Nigeria because of a number of reasons including local culture and consumer preferences.

It would be recalled that Nigerians targeted and attacked South African businesses following xenophobia attacks that in South Africa.

“Shoprite is pulling out of Nigeria and is launching a formal process to sell their stake. South African listed companies have found it challenging to do business in Nigeria. MTN, Tiger Brands and now Shoprite,” Karan said.

“Sharp reminder the sheer arrogance of thinking Africa is “all the same” will burn you. Having advised on cross border African M&A deals, there’s very little emphasis at a senior exec level to really understand local cultures, consumer preferences and ways of doing business.

“It is never as simple as just setting up shop & expecting profits to roll in.”


Some Nigerians however say that the supermarket giant’s decision to leave Nigeria is because its management failed to manage its operations in Nigeria properly.

Adewunmi Collins, a journalist and political analyst urged Nigerians not to fret about Shoprite leaving. “The undue tension about Shoprite leaving our country should be doused with the fact that the management of Shoprite has failed.

“It has nothing to to do with the government. Spar, Justrite, Next Cash and Carry are all functioning and performing well. Our jobs secured,” she wrote on Twitter.

https://twitter.com/ngoamazing2009/status/1290218430621155330?s=19

https://www.chronicle.ng/2020/08/shoprite-not-shutting-down-store-manager/

LAWSAN is scheduled to hold on the 6th of August, 2020.

This epoch making virtual event will be graced with the inestimable presence of several dignitaries per excellence who will deliver keynote addresses on various spheres of our Nation and critical issues contending with us contemporarily with the underlying aim of charting a way forward.

Billed to feature in this event are:-

>Prof. Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, GCON (Vice President, Federal Republic of Nigeria) @ProfOsinbajo

>Babatunde Raji Fashola, SAN (Honourable Minister of Works, Power and Housing) @tundefashola

>Abubakar Malami, SAN (Honourable Minister of Justice and Attorney General of the Federation) @MalamiSan

>Festus Keyamo, SAN (Honourable Minister of State, Federal Ministry of Labour and Productivity) @fkeyamo

>Professor Lilian Salami (Vice-Chancellor, University of Benin)

>Hon. Ifeanyi Chudy Momah (Chairman, House of Reps, Committee on FCT Judiciary) @MomahIfeanyiMhr

>Dumebi Kachikwu (Chairman, Roots TV)

>Hon. Dachung Bagos (Member, House of Representatives) @BagosDachung

MODERATOR: Samson Itodo (Executive Director, Yiaga Africa

All young Nigerians across all stratums, fields and echelons are implored to participate in this historic National Virtual Townhall Meeting, as it is primarily orchestrated to align the bearing of Nigerian youths to fit into the attendant realities of the Post COVID-19 era amongst other imperative issues that will be addressed by our distinguished guests.

Date: 6th of August, 2020
Venue: Zoom
Time: 3pm

Registration Link:https:///ihNffmBJNb

For more enquires, contact: +234 806 638 1583

This is such a great plan that it's implementation should be forthwith initiated.

Whenever Osinbajo says working on an issue, you can be rest assured that he actually is. Simply ask the protesting community in a smile who were agitating that the Nigeria Army was taking their land. A week after the VP said he'd work on it, it was resolved in a round meeting between the leaders and reps from Amy HQ.
When kidnapping was becoming an issue in the SW and he vowed to tame it, he but simply sought the advice and assistance of the traditional rulers and they all came up with a strategy that's mostly been effective so far.
The Urhobo people can be rest assured now that Osinbajo is aware of the problem. Hope we all remember he was the one that brokered the peace we are currently enjoying in the Niger Delta leading to the creation of modular refineries.

This is an open and shut case. Abuse of office, excessive use of powers even bordering on corruption. The full course of the law should be meted out.

OgundeleTeju:
What l know is that the only sellable candidate in APC is Osinbajo

Flesh and blood did not reveal that to you.

Everyone has a right to contest in the elections. Irrespective of party or tribe. At least that's what the constitution says

Vice President Yemi Osinbajo, SAN, has described the late Senator Ayo Fasanmi, a founding leader of the Afenifere as a true patriot, a forthright servant of, and interlocutor for the common man...”

Prof. Osinbajo issued the following statement on Thursday on learning about the news of Pa. Fasanmi’s transition.


“We received the news of the passing of Senator Ayo Fasanmi, with deep sadness and much grief.

A founding leader of Afenifere, a true patriot, a forthright servant of, and interlocutor for the common man has passed on.

A man of deep conviction who remained loyal to the end to compatriots and colleagues in the progressive tendency from the Action Group, AG, to the All Progressives Congress, APC, now enters into eternity.

We thank God for giving you to us for 94 years, your legacy of consistency in egalitarian beliefs, social justice and action lives on.”

Highly commendable offer from the Catholic Church. Hopefully this helps in our fight Sha against the Corona virus.

dignity33:
Osibanjo is hypocrite pretending to be good. point out what he has done that make him performed excellently since he was in government, from Tinubu to Buhari.

As pointed out above, it does seem your knowledge is limited else there's no way you'd take that stand unless you're bigotedly biased or simply paid to churn out hate speech.

His achievements as AG of Lagos State are still being touted for not just the numerous victories against the FG but also for legal reforms that the Nigerian Bar Association has since recommended other states to emulate.

As viceroy to President Buhari, his numerous policies targeting the masses have often received international accolades. Such schemes as the ease of doing business for MSMEs that has seen our global ranking rise up over 40 places by the central bank as well as the NSIPs before they were transferred to the ministry of humanitarian affairs.

As for when he was Acting President we can go on and on but even those who aren't on his side of politics would inform you, it's one of the most impactful spell of governance since the fourth republic.
A lil reading should illuminate you a little.

Fret not O ye Niger Deltans, your peaceful agitations have served their purpose and the man who brokered the peace that ushered the cessation of hostilities has vowed to once again rise and act on behalf of that matter most.
The People.
All hail Professor Osinbajo.

A renowned writer, Ola Rotimi, in his book “The God’s Are Not To Blame” described the distortion of confused identity by likening it to the similarities between a Monkey and a Gorilla: “A monkey and a Gorilla may claim oneness, but a monkey is a monkey and a Gorilla is a Gorilla”. Such is the case with News and Fake News, the latter being the butterfly that oftentimes presents itself as a bird but it’s never one. The Onus, thus, rest on news consumers to try to differentiate between genuine news stories and fake news.

Outright fabricated headlines are often used to increase readership. More saddening is the way such news cheaply appeals to the sensibility of the gullible. These unwary readers readily fall easy preys to the lure of such fake news having being served up freely to them on a saucer. They are the targeted ‘Mugus’ of Fake News Practitioners and Smear Campaigners.

One such fake news that recently crawled out bizarrely from sources belonging to some unscrupulous reprobates, as well as depraved scoundrels in the society, was the one about the embattled Former EFCC Chairman, Ibrahim Magu. On July 7, 2020, according to media reports, it was reported that Ibrahim Magu had been suspended from office as the Acting Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission. He was suspended amidst allegations of gross misconduct and other related offences.

It is not surprising that the arrest of Magu was announced, it was always going to happen following the fact that Mr. Magu had recently been accused of corruption, insubordination, and abuse of office by Attorney-General Abubakar Malami.

What is worrisome is that a great deal of Nigerians had indicted Magu even before he was allowed to defend himself at the Presidential Panel. They had started peddling the news of “Audio” billions carted away.
To these set of ‘Mugus’, Magu suddenly became a story of a political Santa Claus who had started spreading good tidings in Billions of Naira. It wasn’t uncommon to hear passengers on commuter buses narrating the tales, like Eyewitnesses, of how ‘Santa Magu’ dished out National windfall in billions of Naira to loads of Giftees streaming to his grotto.

Amidst the stratospheric momentum the Magu allegations has generated was a malicious story published by the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) claiming that one Prophet Omale bought house worth #573million on behalf of Magu in his name. Surprisingly, the Lawyer of this same prophet in a letter to the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) vehemently refuted this allegation and demanded immediate retraction and unequivocal apology for the Malicious libel against the Prophet.

While we were still trying to digest the enormity of the loads of allegations against Magu, these fake News peddlers came up with another set of allegations against the former Anti-corruption Boss.
This time around, it was how ‘Santa Magu’ doled out #28million to the highly reverred Human Rights Activist and Senior Advocate Femi Falana. The Services Mr. Falana rendered to have merited such huge amount of money still remains a wonder to even the peddlers of the story.

As if that wasn’t enough, on July 8, 2020 the king of smear campaign (struggling to survive in the United States ) Jackson Ude, the Publisher of Point Blank News lashed on this Fake News thread with a headline story that says “How Magu Embezzled #39billion, Gave Osinbajo #4billion Begs for Soft Landing.”

Not only has the Vice President through his Lawyer requested the Inspesctor General of Police to investigate Jackson and his malicious story, but it also defies human reasoning to imagine how Magu or the EFCC that doesn’t have a vault in their office or have a total control over the Central Bank will dole out such fortune to the Vice President (that by law he is not answerable to).

Besides, according to section 29b of the EFCC act “ any assets or property being seized by the commission under this act, the commission shall cause an application to be made to the court, if satisfied that there is a Prima Facie evidence that the property concerned is liable to forfeiture, make an interim order forfeiting the property to the Federal Government’.

In pursuance to this section of the EFCC act cited above, it is clear to say that Magu as EFCC chairman has no power over proceeds of Financial crimes because only a court of competent jurisdiction can forfeit such proceeds on the interim to the Federal Government.

The inability of many Nigerians especially social media users, to differentiate between the “Gorillas of genuine news and the “Monkeys’ of fake news makes it fair enough to designate them all as the media “Mugus”.

Furthermore, the refusal of some mainstream media outlets to disallow hoaxes from finding its way into their news stories makes their motives very questionable.

The Magu story is just a tiny fraction of countless instances of a despicable show of shame from both publishers and readers. This explains why a lot of Nigerians, especially those with untamed fondness for social media, albeit not having needful knowledge of its proper usage, need a good deal of reorientation and education in this respect.

Oluwafemi Ayodeji-Olaniyan is a journalist, public affairs analyst, and Social commentator. He can be reached via
Email: omjohndoe@gmail.com


https://naijmobile.com/magu-mugus-2/

Osinbajo has shown high level of integrity and honesty in the discharge of his official duties as the Vice President of Nigeria since his assumption into office in 2015.

Often regarded as one of the best and most active Vice President in Nigeria’s history which has earned him the sobriquet - “#Starboy” by his admirers.

He is a man of noble qualities, shrewd, hardworking and committed to the assignment of making Nigeria a better place.

Considering the aforementioned, the youths and his teeming admirers have set a date- 08/08/2020, to celebrate their living Hero.

#OsinbajoDay will be marked by a wide celebration of the Vice President across social media platforms all over the country as a recognition of his vibrance and tenacity for nation building.

Join us and be part of the day’s celebration.

After months of investigation, the Accident and Investigation Bureau (AIB) has revealed why the helicopter, which conveyed Vice President Yemi Osinbajo to Kabba in Kogi state crashed last year.

During the last election campaigns, Osinbajo had departed Abuja on February 2, 2019, on a chartered helicopter flight to Kabba in continuation of the family chats and next level engagements.

The helicopter, which conveyed the VP, an Agusta Westland (AW139) helicopter with nationality and registration marks 5N-CML, is owned and operated by Caverton Helicopters Limited.

It had 12 persons on-board, including the VP, his entourage and three crew members which included the captain, co-pilot and an engineer.

The cause of the crash was revealed by the Commissioner of AIB, Akin Olateru in a final report released by the bureau in Abuja on Tuesday.

According to the bureau, the crew lost visual contact with the ground and external surroundings.

Also, the bureau faulted the crew for inappropriate landing techniques and limited planning before commencement of the flight.

Giving details of what led to the crash in Kabba, Olateru said: “At about 13:46hrs, the helicopter departed Abuja runway 22 for Kabba.

“Onboard were 12 persons including the Vice President of the Federal Republic of Nigeria, his entourage, and three crew members (Pilot, Co-pilot, and an Engineer).

“The flight crew stated that they sighted the intended landing area as a result of the cloud of residual dust generated by the downwash of a Police helicopter.”

He continued: “After sighting the football field, the flight crew approached with the speed of 20ft to about a 100ft, and entered a hover to land.

“At about 50ft above ground level, a brownout set in. The flight crew lost visual contact with the ground and external surroundings.

“The co-pilot began radio altitude callouts “35, 30, 25, 20 and 15”. At about 14:34h, the helicopter experienced a hard landing on the right main landing gear and rolled over onto its right side. All persons on board were evacuated uninjured.

“The flight crew encountered a brownout condition during the hover to land, which led to the loss of external visual references, spatial disorientation, and loss of situational awareness resulting in a misjudgement of distance and ground clearance, as the flight, the crew tried to control the helicopter’s movements for landing. The helicopter landed hard and rolled over on its right side.”

On other factors that may have led to the crash, he said: “Inappropriate landing technique used, non-adherence to company procedures for known or anticipated brownout condition during landing and lack of risk assessment, limited landing site preparation, and planning prior to commencement of the flight.”


https://thenationonlineng.net/why-osinbajos-helicopter-crashed-by-aib/

ODB2:
He has already disgraced himself to the world as a fake pastor .

Alhaja Yemisi Osunbade will be disgraced out of office anytime soon.

Bookmark this thread.

With all due respect, lalasticlala and Seun, is this what Nairaland currently tolerates? One liner opinions that flouts all the rules on hate speech, lies, misspelling of words and bringing the forum to disrepute based on tribalistic posts?
These accounts are easy to identify, I would suppose.

More power to the Vice President's right arm

All these fake news perps must be punished for their illicit actions.