Aso Villa Reads for 29/01/2020
Every day, we bring you the best stories that the Media is reporting about the Government of Nigeria
The Comptroller general of the Nigeria Custom Service, Hameed Ali, on Monday reiterated that the current border closure by the federal government is yielding positive results as well as complementing the government’s effort in boosting local agricultural production and manufacturing. Ali stated this at the 2020 International customs day celebration themed “Customs fostering sustainability for people, prosperity and planet” held in Abuja. He said, “The ongoing border drill in collaboration with other security agencies is renewing opportunities that exists within the agricultural, economic and manufacturing sectors among others. “This opportunities have stimulated more economic more economic activities as farmers are enjoying unprecedented patronage, farms are being expanded and job opportunities provided,” The comptroller general, speaking on the achievements of the service in the preceding year, said that the service has been able to intercept illicit cash flows through airports and other trade endangered areas. “The Service generated N1.34 trillion in 2019, the figure which exceeded the N937billion target of the federal government by N404 billion”. Business Day reports.
The Federal Competition and Consumer Protection Commission has shut down Chinese-owned Panda Supermarket in the Jabi area of Abuja as part of measures to prevent the spread of Coronavirus. The FCCPC said in a series of tweets that it had confiscated some frozen food items illegally imported from China. The pictures of some of the frozen food items posted on Twitter showed that they had expiry dates of 2089 which further aroused suspicion that they were not certified by the National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control. The agency said in a series of tweets, “The FCCPC inspected Panda Supermarket, Jabi, on credible reports that it discriminated and had a concealed area for Asian nationals. The allegation was confirmed. Seafood and animal products imported illegally from China were discovered. “The store was closed for cautionary reasons considering the Coronavirus. Products with expired and irregular shelf life were also discovered at Panda. Regulatory activities to remove all such products from the supermarket continue.” Punch reports.
The Nigerian Air Force has said it will deploy additional air assets as well as NAF Regiment and Special Forces personnel to troubled areas in the north-western states to combat banditry, kidnapping, cattle rustling and other related crimes. This was disclosed on Monday by the Chief of Air Staff, Air Marshal Sadique Abubakar, while playing host to the Governor of Kastina State, Aminu Masari, at NAF headquarters, Abuja. A statement on Tuesday, by NAF Director of Public Relations and Information, Air Commodore Ibikunle Daramola, read, “CAS noted that NAF has put in place infrastructure at Daura in Katsina State and Gusau in Zamfara State to cater for the additional personnel and air assets that will be deployed.” As reported by Punch, he equally disclosed that a helipad had been constructed at Birnin Magaji in Zamfara State, while the refuelling facilities in Gusau had been expanded to further facilitate the effective and efficient conduct of air operations.
According to Vanguard, Nigerian Government has approved the payment of N33,000 as monthly allowance for members of the National Youth Service Corps (NYSC). The Director-General of NYSC, Brigadier General Shuaibu Ibrahim, disclosed this during a session with some corps members at the service’s Bauchi State Secretariat. He explained that the approval was made in line with the implementation of the new National Minimum Wage by the Federal Government. “Contrary to the various amounts being circulated on the social media, the sum of thirty-three thousand naira had been approved as the new rate,” Ibrahim said. He said provision had been made for the new allowance in the year 2020 Budget, adding that payment would commence as soon as funds are released by the appropriate authorities.
In a bid to ensure unhindered access to telecom services in the country, President Mohammadu Buhari says the administration is in the process of releasing an Executive Order on Critical National Infrastructure to ease concerns regarding the security of all equipment. President Buhari made the promise on Tuesday during an audience with the Chairman, MTN Group, Mr. MCEBISI Jonas and President and CEO, Mr. Rob Shutter at the Presidential Villa, Abuja. In demonstration of his commitment to grow the sector, directed the Minister of Communications and Digital Economy to liaise with the Inspector General of Police to ensure the protection of critical telecom infrastructure across the country. He urged the MTN to continue to support government’s efforts by improving the Quality of Service (QoS), downward price review of data and other services in view of your large market in Nigeria. On their part, President Buhari pledged the commitment of his administration to ensuring that the telecom giant and other telecom operators are given the right business environment to thrive in Nigeria. ‘‘We are in the process of releasing an Executive Order on Critical National Infrastructure to ease your concerns regarding the security of your equipment. I have also directed the Honourable Minister of Communications and Digital Economy to liaise with the Inspector General of Police to ensure the protection of critical telecom infrastructure across the country. ‘‘I am happy to hear of the role that you are playing in Nigeria and the reconfirmation of your commitment to the Nigerian economy. We look forward to the successful deployment of your proposed rural telephony projects to ensure that Nigerians in unserved and underserved areas are able to connect and enjoy the benefits of digital technology. It is also important that we have greater 4G penetration across the country. Vanguard reported.
In line with federal government commitments to diversify the economy and provide jobs for the teeming youth, the Minister of Mines and Steel Development, Mr. Olamilekan Adegbite has highlighted reforms in the mining sector aimed at fast-tracking national growth. Adegbite, who was the chief host at a conference in United Kingdom titled, “Nigeria Beyond Oil” seized the opportunity to showcase Nigeria’s mineral and mining potential and the incentives put in place to make the sector more attractive to investors. The minister, in a statement by the ministry’s Director of Press, Mr. Edwin Okpara, stated that the present administration recognised mining as a strategic income stream in the face of dwindling oil revenue and look towards increasing its contribution to the national GDP by three per cent by 2025. While assuring participants at the conference that the Nigerian government was determined to protect direct foreign investments as indicated in the Nigerian Mineral and Mining Act 2007, he said: “Our focus is now on de-risking the sector, by the provision of more up-to-date and comprehensive data on mineral occurrences in Nigeria and enabling a more investor friendly environment through favorable incentives.” He stressed that the ministry has achieved some milestones which he believed would prompt the participating countries as well as the larger mining world to be part of the exploration and mining revolution in Nigeria. The minister listed the achievements of the ministry to include the on-going National Exploration Project (NIMEP), which was government’s rapid response to the dearth of investible geoscience data as well as the upgrading and automation of the Nigeria Mining Cadastre Office (MCO) for full online operations which he said would reduce the processing of mining licenses from 45 days to 15 days. This Day reports.
