By Philomina Attah

Vote-buying has remained a major part of the problems of election management in Nigeria. Twenty four years since the return of democracy in the country, it has remained an obstacle to free, fair and credible elections in the country.

The issue has attracted various responses from stakeholders who mostly view it as one of the cankerworms that constitutes brazen assault on Nigeria’s democracy.

As Nigeria prepares for the 2023 general elections, the problem of vote-buying is being tackled by various stakeholders, including anti-graft agencies with a view to permanently bury the problem.

Already the Nigerian government has criminalises vote-buying and selling, thus making it easier for security agencies and the courts to deal with culprits.

One of the major stakeholders, the Chairman, Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), Mr Abdulrasheed Bawa described vote-buying as continuous exploitation of large section of the society by politicians.

“Like the proverbial child who traded his future in order to satisfy his immediate, we have consistently witnessed the continuous exploitation of a large section of the society by politicians.

“The vulnerable have continued to remain oblivious of the consequence of vote-buying and selling.

“They fail to realise that when they sell their votes, they also give up their rights to demand for transparency and accountability from elected leaders.

“They sell their future and that of their unborn children for an insignificant and greatly undervalued sum,” he said.

Analysts listed some consequences of vote buying to include loss of integrity of the elections and elected officials, recruitment of bad leaders, promoting poverty and mortgaging the rights of the electorates to demand accountability.

In spite of these consequences, Nigerians have continued to engage in illegal trading of votes.

According to the Director-General, National Orientation Agency (NOA), Dr Garba Abari, survey-based evidence shows that one in five Nigerians are exposed to vote peddling while almost four in 10 Nigerians are exposed to electoral violence.

To effectively tackle the menace of vote buying, Sections 121 and 122 of the Electoral Act 2022 has made it a criminal offence in the country.

Section 121 (1) of the Act stipulates that: “any person who directly or indirectly, induced any other person to vote or refrain from voting commits an offence and is liable on conviction to a maximum fine of N500,000 or imprisonment for a term of 12 months or both.

“Section 121 (2) stipulates that: “a voter commits an offence of bribery where, before, or during an election, directly or indirectly, by himself or herself, or by any other person, on his or her behalf receives, agrees, or contracts for any money, gift, loan, or valuable consideration, office, place of employment, for his or herself, or any other person, for voting or agreeing to vote, or for refraining or agreeing to refrain from voting at any such election.’’

A recent research by Good Governance Awareness Initiative (GGAI), and NGO, identified poverty, threats by political parties, lack of proactive measures by security agencies and lack of interest in the electoral process as some of the factors encouraging vote-buying.

The Executive Director of GGAI, Ms Maureen Onwukwe said that over the years, elections in Nigeria had been marred by ballot stuffing and snatching, as well as violence.

Onwukwe, however, said that with the technological innovations introduced by the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) and the Electoral Act 2022, it will now be extremely difficult for political parties to rig elections in Nigeria.

“That is why politicians now devise vote-buying as another means to manipulate the supposed decision of electorate.

“This presents a fresh danger to the integrity and reliability of elections in Nigeria,” she said.

Already, INEC has taken measures to tackle the trend and ensure the sanctity of the electoral process.

Among the measures taken by INEC was going into partnership with EFCC and the Independent Corrupt Practices Commission (ICPC) to arrest and prosecute vote sellers and buyers.

According to INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmoud Yakubu, INEC has also re-configured all polling units to bring the ballot boxes closer to voting cubicles and banned the use of mobile phones and photographic devices by voters while in the voting cubicles.

“We have also intensified our collaboration with the EFCC and ICPC to deal with both the buyers and the takers under the law,” he said.

He added that in an effort to curb the menace, the membership of the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security was expanded to include the two anti-corruption agencies.

“The two agencies have been deploying their operatives during elections and this effort is paying off.

“For instance, following arrests made during the recent Osun Governorship election held on July 16, the EFCC made arrests and after investigation found evidence to charge the suspects to court in Osogbo.

“We are right now working with the EFCC to ensure their prosecution. I wish to commend the EFCC for this initiative and assure them of our support at all times,” Yakubu said.

Speaking at a one-day stakeholders summit on “Addressing the Influence of Money on the 2023 General Election’’ last December, Yakubu assured that INEC would not relent in its determination to prevent vote-buying during the 2023 general election.

He however called for concerted actions by citizens to reject inducements to sway their votes through vote-buying and report such cases to INEC and other agencies.

“Financial institutions, religious organisations, traditional institutions, the media, civic bodies and citizens must also join in this fight,” Yakubu said.

Also speaking at the summit, Chairman of ICPC, Prof. Bolaji Owasanoye, said vote buying has the tendency to scuttle good governance.

According to Owasanoye, a government that is purchased will have no obligation to the people.

“A faulty and corrupt electoral process emboldens incompetent and corrupt government. They do not have to care about our feelings and our complaints.

“In such situation, impunity will reign and corruption will thrive” the ICPC chairman added.

The Inspector-General of Police, Mr Usman Baba, said the police had devised strategies to arrest and prosecute politicians moving on election days with tonnes of cash to buy votes.

Baba said concerted efforts were being made by the police, as the lead agency in election security management, to ensure that the use of money was not allowed to influence the 2023 general elections.

“We will ensure that at least, this menace is brought to the barest minimum; we will achieve this in synergy with sister security agencies, anti-graft and intelligence agencies and other stakeholders”, he said.

According to Baba, a lot of arrests have been made of persons buying voter registration cards to rig the 2023 elections and some political thugs.

“We will also ensure that the Police X-Squad, intelligence officers and investigators are moved to the field to ensure that politicians moving on election days to buy votes are apprehended and dealt with according to the provisions of the law,” he added.

The IGP emphasised that with the measures being taken by stakeholders, the use of money during the 2023 elections will be greatly curtailed.

“We will do all we can within the confines of the law to bring the offenders to book.

“Some politicians spend huge sums of money to get elected to office, thus their priority is to recoup the money they spent during the election.

“The consequence of this is that, those elected provide poor governance and deny the public the benefit of good governance, as they most likely are not the best candidates.

“When elections are influenced by money, credibility of the process is questioned. This leads to rancour and the possibility of violence after the elections.” Baba said.

Beyond the arrest and prosecution of the offenders, the anti-graft agencies have also intensified efforts on awareness campaign on the need for Nigerians to shun vote trading.

To facilitate this, the EFCC has entered into partnership with the Committee of Youth on Mobilisation and Sensitisation to undertake grassroots campaigns against vote-buying, cybercrimes and other forms of corruption.

The ICPC has also gone beyond arrest to preventive measures to end vote-buying in Nigeria.

Experts believe that these measures will help to greatly stop vote-buying, ensure free and credible election and the emergence of credible leaders committed to meeting the dreams of a greater Nigeria. (NAN Features)

**If used, credit the writer and the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

Edited by Maharazu Ahmed

By Sumaila Ogbaje, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

Nigeria has continued to contend with a number of internal security challenges ranging from insurgency and terrorism in the North East, banditry and kidnapping in North West and North Central, oil theft and pipeline vandalism in the Niger Delta and separatists agitation in South East and South West.

In spite of these security challenges, Nigeria has recorded remarkable improvement in security administration in 2022.

The Armed Forces of Nigeria has remained steadfast in restringing peace and security across the country, and had deployed troops across the 36 states and Federal Capital Territory (FCT) to tackle all forms of security threats, in collaboration with other security agencies.

The strings of military operations across theatres of operations have lessened the various security threats and impacted positively on the lives of citizens and national development in general.

Although there are close to eleven thousand deaths recorded in 2022, most of the deaths have been due to military actions not from activities of non state actors.

In North Eastern Nigeria, the activities of Boko Haram and Islamic States West Africa Province (ISWAP) have been largely tamed.

The destruction caused by the 13-year insurgency in Borno, Yobe and Adamawa are being addressed, with millions of displaced persons returning home.

Since the beginning of 2022, the tempo of military operation in the North East under the Joint Task Force Operation Hadin Kai (OPHK) has escalated, leading to mass surrender of Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists and their family members to troops in different fronts.

Available record revealed that more than 82,000 terrorists and their families have so far surrendered due to the intensity of military onslaught against them. More than 60,000 of those who surrendered did so in 2022, alongside their wives and children.

The onslaught also led to the capture of hundreds of terrorists across the region.

Today, about 900 arrested terrorists are awaiting prosecution, while thousands of the terrorists including their commanders, collaborators and logistics suppliers have been killed in land and air operations.

The successes recorded in the various operations conducted in the region by the military has facilitated the return of peace and stability in most parts of the North East.

This is attested by the fact that most Internally Displaced Persons (IDPs) have returned to their ancestral homes while several farmlands hitherto inaccessible due to activities of terrorists, are now being cultivated.

According to the Theatre Command, OPHK, the operations also facilitated the rescue of 11 Chibok school girls who have been in captivity since 2014.

The first of the girls rescued, Hauwa Joseph, was intercepted along with her child at Ngazua in Bama on June 12, followed by Mary Dauda and her child rescued at Gava in Gwoza Local Government Area on June 14, while Ruth Bitrus and her child escaped from Ukuba Boko Haram terrorists camp in Sambisa and was rescued by troops in Bama on June 27.

On July 25, troops also rescued two Chibok girls named Kauna Luka and Hanatu Musa with their children at Aulari in Bama general area, while Aisha Grema who was pregnant was rescued with her four-year-old child in Bama on Aug. 21.

The seventh Chibok girl to be rescued was Falmata Lawal and her child on Aug. 30, in Bama general area.

On Sept. 1, 2022, troops also rescued Asabe Ali and her child who escaped from a terrorists’ camp in Gazuwa, Bama while the ninth Chibok girl, Jinkai Yama was rescued along with three children in Bama on Sep. 2.

Additionally, Yana Pogu and her four children became the 10th Chibok girl rescued by the military in 2022, while the eleventh was Rejoice Senki, who also had two children with her.

The eleven girls rescued in 2022 were listed on the roll of the abducted Chibok School girls as numbers 18, 46, 41, 38, 7, 11, 3, 12, 20, 19 and 70.

Similarly, the Nigerian Air Force (NAF) has had a very remarkable year in 2022, conducting a total of 1,398 sorties to counter insurgency and banditry across the country.

The Air Officer Commanding, Special Operations Command, AVM Abubakar Abdulkadir, said that NAF had flown over 1,950 hours during various operations between January and December in the North East and North West regions to tackle banditry and insurgency.

NAF intervention in the North West led to the elimination of many top terrorists and bandit commanders, while hundreds of kidnapped citizens were rescued.

There was also massive arrest of bandits’ collaborators by troops of Operation Hadarin Daji in Katsina, Zamfara, Sokoto and Kaduna States.

Similarly, there have been several air bombardments by the air component of Operation Whirl Punch on many identified terrorists hideouts in Kaduna state with scores of terrorists including their top leaders neutralised.

As the intensity of military operations increased, the Defence Headquarters in November declared 19 terrorists wanted and placed N5 million bounty on each of them.

The wanted persons are notorious bandits and terrorists that have been terrorising Katsina, Sokoto and Zamfara states.

Subsequent operational activities through land and air interdictions revealed that some of the wanted bandit kingpins were killed in Katsina and Zamfara.

In the North Central, troops of Operation Safe Haven also recorded a lot of successes in both kinetic and non-kinetic operations in Plateau and part of Kaduna states.

One of the high moment was on Oct. 29, when troops repelled an attack by Boko Haram and ISWAP terrorists on Wawa Military Cantonment in Borgu Local Government Area of Niger.

A coordinated land and air operations led to the killing of six of the terrorists and capture of 18 others while their equipment were captured and destroyed.

Also in 2022, troops of the Guards Brigade successfully apprehended about 60 hoodlums planning to cause security breach in the nation’s capital on the eve on the Independence Day celebration.

However, there were some unfortunate ambushes in the FCT in which the lives of two officers and four soldiers were lost in July, just after the attack on Kuje Custodial Centre, which created panic in the territory.

The military and other security agencies were able to quickly bring the tensed situation under control and effectively countered the fake terror alerts issued by the United States and United Kingdom embassies in Nigeria.

To underscore the seriousness with which Nigeria views the security challenges, the National Security Council met three times in July to appraise the security situation and set target for the military and other security agencies. It’s the first time in the history of the country that the council met three times in a month.

The effects have been monumental in terms of degrading insurgents, bandits and terrorists across the country.

In the Niger Delta region, the military joint task force, code-named Operation Delta Safe (OPDS), has during the year, destroyed 37 militant camps and over 1,883 illegal oil refining sites in the region.

According to the Commander, OPDS, Rear Adm. Aminu Hassan, 699 suspects were arrested in the effort to secure the operations of oil and gas companies in the Niger Delta as well as safeguard the people of the area.

The operations helped to save over N53 billion worth of crude oil, diesel, kerosene and petrol; destroyed not less than 37 militants and sea robbers camps and recovered 90 assorted illegal weapons and large caliber ammunition.

In the South East, the military has continued to confront the activities of the proscribed Indigenous People of Biafra and its militant wing, the Eastern Security Network, with remarkable successes.

On the whole, the armed forces of Nigeria has largely gained the upper hand against enemies of the state across the country in 2022.

It is instructive to note that attacks on troops’ locations and ambush on their convoys have also reduced drastically in the course of the year.

These successes were propelled by enhanced joint operational planning and execution of the plans by all the three services, as well as improved synergy with other security agencies in the country.

There was also enhanced intelligence gathering and sharing as acknowledged by the Chief of Defence Intelligence, Maj.-Gen. Samuel Adebayo recently.

He said the agency has continued to carry out its mandates conscientiously with positive outcomes, adding that it prioritised technical and communication aspects of intelligence in support of armed forces operations and activities within and outside the country.

Adebayo said the DIA had also successfully dominated the threat environment with a combination of special intelligence operations and non-kinetic activities which had recorded degrees of successes and continued to deny the enemies of state, the cohesion and capabilities to operate.

“As we continue to review our activities, in 2023 the Agency intends to refocus its tactical and technical intelligence drive on all frontiers to sustain the gains.

“So far, the result across all theatres has been significantly rewarding,” the defence intelligence chief said. (NANFeatures)

** If used, please credit the writer as well as the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

A News Analysis by Julius Enehikhuere, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

Mr Abdulrasheed Bawa, 40, the Chairman of the Economic and Financial Crimes Commission (EFCC), became a household name when he was nominated by President Muhammadu Buhari as the commission’s Chairman-Designate some weeks ago.

The question on the lips of most Nigerians is what did the president see a youth that would make him to nominate him to lead the war against corruption.

Some critics insinuate that may be the president did that to observe the Not too Young to Run act that seeks to reduce the age limit for running for public office in the country.

Irrespective of the critics’ observations, Bawa’s final screening and approval by the Senate were completed on Feb. 24.

Now that Bawa is at the helm of the activities of EFCC, Nigerians, especially concerned youths have urged him to utilise the opportunity to position the youth for leadership in future.

According them, his appointment if justified by his performance, will serve as a test passed by the youth to get appointment for any public office and excel

For instance, the Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA), called on Bawa to deal with old and young thieves in government offices and to execute plans in line with the constitution.

National coordinator of the association, Emmanuel Onwubiko said Bawa should also ensure that “EFCC respects human rights in the discharge of its duties.

“The decision of President Buhari to appoint a youngster to head EFCC should be looked at from a positive dimension’’.

Similarly, during the screening, some of the senators referred to him as a brilliant young man on whose shoulders now rests the huge responsibility of fighting corruption.

Sharing similar sentiments, Citizens Awareness Against Corruption and Social Vices Initiative and other youth groups, commended Buhari for the appointment.

According to them, the development is a pointer that youths are being reckoned with in the governance of the country.

A statement was signed by Olumuyiwa Onilede on behalf of the youth said they threw their weight behind Bawa because “apart from being a young person, he has been a core detective of the organisation who knows the anti-graft job’’.

In the same vein, some concerned citizens note that Bawa’s appointment is a blessing in disguise to youths.

However, cynics fear that such an opportunity, if not handled with the wisdom will deal a bitter blow to the ambition of the youth in their quest for leadership.

Mr John Owie, a lawyer, in his view praised the courage of Bawa for accepting to serve as EFCC chairman.

He described him as an unassuming young man with a child-like character, saying “I know he knows the terrain and he has experience and age is not going to be a barrier.

`What I fear the most are the politicians and corrupt people who would try to derail him. I hope he can put in place a formidable team and avoid pitfalls’’.

Also, Mr John Abude, a public analyst, says he wants to see a restructured anti-graft agency that is fully independent and not in the winds and caprices of government.

“Bawa’s challenge should be reinvigorating the anti-graft structure and putting in place institutions.

“There is going to be two levels of Nigerians, either you are assisting in fighting crime or we are assisting Bawa and the anti-crime agency to fight you. “The choice is yours,’’ he noted.

But Bawa said during his screening that the EFCC has the legal backing to investigate unexplained wealth.

“I have been the Desk Officer of the anti-crime commission of Unexplained Wealth Order and I have also worked closely with the National Crime Agency of the United Kingdom.

“Section 7, Sub-section 1(b) of the EFCC  the commission has the powers to cause investigation to be conducted into the property of any person that appears to the commission whose lifestyle does not justify his or her source of income,’’ he said.

He, therefore, promised a total overhaul of the anti- graft agency in line with professionalism and his mandate to restructure.

When Bawa was asked by the Senate if he was going to send back the large number of policemen in the service of the commission, he said: “We shall assess the need and requirements of the commission and carry out the necessary adjustments.

“We are going to have a sweeping overhaul that will reposition the commission.

“I am going to give the young people a very good representation in the governance of this country so that more young people will be given more responsibility in this country.”

According to Bawa, the EFCC will achieve its independent objective by sharing information with its partners.

He noted that the constitution would guide his actions and that at the end of his tenure, the EFCC would be a better place than he met it because his training by the Federal Bureau of Investigation and the National Crime Agency of the United States and the United Kingdom respectively would come in handy.

Bawa is a graduate from the Usmanu Danfodio University, Sokoto, with a Bachelor of Science degree in Economics (Second Class Upper) in 2001.

He joined the EFCC as an Assistant Detective Superintendent (ADS) in 2004.

He also holds a Master’s degree in International Affairs and Diplomacy which he obtained from the same university in 2012.

According to his résumé, the new anti-graft boss has spent about 16 years working with the EFCC as a detective and he is a pioneer EFCC Cadet Officers, Course One, 2005.

Bawa rose through the ranks to become a Deputy Chief Detective Superintendent (DCDS), a position he held since 2016 until his nomination as the anti-graft agency’s substantive chairman.

He has vast investigation experience and has been part of the prosecution of advance fee fraud, official corruption, bank fraud, money laundering, and other economic and financial crimes related offences.

Observers note that Bawa’s track record in EFCC as an investigator is actually intimidating as he learnt the ropes from past leaders of the commission, being a pioneer member of its academy.

They observe further that he has been involved in the investigation and prosecution of many high profile crimes in the country.

As the head of the EFCC’s investigative team handling the case of the former Minister of Petroleum Resources, Diezani Allison-Madueke from 2015 until date, his team has recovered millions of dollars’ worth of property in the country, the UK, U.S, and United Arab Emirate.

With his track record, youths say Bawa has the capacity to show to the world the ability to lead in any capacity.(NANFeatures)

By Obike Ukoh, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

The Contributory Pension Scheme (CPS) was introduced in 2004 by the then President Olusegun Obasanjo’s administration in order to address the problems of late payment of pensions and gratuities to retirees. The CPS established via Pension Reform Act, 2004, covered both the public and private sector workers.

For federal workers, the CPS is compulsory since inception, while some states are implementing the scheme.

However, the problems associated with the old scheme had started to rear its ugly head. Under the CPS, retirees are supposed to be paid their entitlements three months after retirement. That was so at the initial stage, but not now.

In addition, the monthly pension is nothing to write home about, which had necessitated calls for a review of the scheme.

Federal workers that retired from service in 2020 under the CPS, only started receiving the entitlement in 2021.

Alhaji Ahmed Dada, who retired as an Assistant Director on Jan. 8, 2020, from a parastatal agency under the Federal Ministry of Information and Culture, after 28 years in service, was paid his gratuity few weeks ago.

He said that the 13 months of waiting without salary was not easy.

Dada said that as a result of the delay, what ought to be a comfortable life after public service is now usually greeted with fear.

“For instance, it took me 13 months to receive my retirement benefit. At the peak of my travail of retirement, I became a borrower and sorrower and even made unsuccessful attempts to sell my car to feed my family.

“ Thank God for a loving, understanding and cooperative wife and children.

“However, the bitter experience I went through before I could access my retirement is better said than experienced.

“Besides the unjustified delay in paying pension entitlements, the take home of an average retiree in the federal service, particularly from the rank of deputy director downward, is nothing to write home about.

“It is simply unimaginable to realise that an assistant director who was receiving say about N240,000 per month while in public service, now receives a paltry N55,000 monthly, depending on step.

“This is another nightmare for retirees in this category,’’ he said.

Dada said that to make life worth living after retirement, the Federal Government should take a second and critical look at the entire pension policy.

“ There must be timely payment of pension to those concerned, to enable them enjoy their life and have a sense of fulfilment and belonging that they served their fatherland and get commensurate remuneration for their meritorious service.

“ There should also be increased monthly pension for retirees.

“The idea of the Federal Government paying the remaining amount after the lump sum without subsidizing it to beef up pensioners’ monthly take home, is not the best for the senior citizens of Nigeria.

“A Federal Government worker, who retired with the last salary payment of say N250,000 monthly, should receive at least N150,000 or more as pensioner, depending on the step and other variables.

“Once a worker knows that when he or she retires, there will not be any delay in the payment of his or her entitlement, he or she will not indulge in corrupt tendencies such as changing the date of birth and embezzlement of public funds among others,’’ Dada emphasised.

An unsigned article, circulated sometime in the social media, had echoed the issues raised by Dada and other stakeholders.

It also drew attention to the perceived exploitation of retirees by Pension Fund Administrators (PFAs).

They gave an example of what they said should be addressed.

The document titled: Pension Fund Administrators Are Exploiting Us, states inter alia: “After attaining the age of 60 or spending 35 years in service, gathering all types of experiences, PFAs still term you as novice; you don’t know how to handle your hard earned entitlements.

“I will make a simple illustration here: Mr A retires at 60 and has N20 million as his savings. He accesses 50 per of the N20 million which equals N10 million.

“The balance of N10 million is to be spread over 180 months (15 years) and Mr A earns N55,555 monthly for 15 years and he stops earning anything because he is expected to die at 75.

“If Mr A will be allowed to have his total sum of N20 million, ceteris paribus (all things being equal), he could invest in the money market or government treasury bills.

“Currently and authoritatively, N20 million can fetch up to a maximum of 15 per cent per annum on a span of four consecutive 90 days tenor.

“Meaning N20 million gives about N3 million per annum.

“Divide N3 million by 365 days and multiply by 30 days, gives Mr A, a monthly earning of N246,575 without depleting his capital of N20 million.

“The sum given to an average pensioner is not up to the interest the administrators make on his/her savings.

“This manipulation/exploitation made PFA among the most lucrative businesses in Nigeria.’’

It was based on this reality, that people like Dada and other stakeholders want the Federal Government to review the CPS in order to give it a human face.

The Federal Government is aware about the delay in the payment of entitlements to retirees under the CPS.

The delay is as a result of non-release of money (to fund the accrued right) to cover the period before the commencement of the Contributory Pension Scheme.

Accrued right is a term used to describe what the Federal Government owes its workers who have been in service before the commencement of the Pension Reform Act, 2004 (which was reviewed and re-enacted in 2014).

This means that there are two components of benefits paid to Federal Government retirees who transited to the CPS: the contributions accumulated in their Retirement Savings Accounts (RSAs) and the retirees’ accrued pension rights earned before they transited to the CPS.

For a Federal Government retiree entitled to accrued pension rights to have access to his or her RSA, the Federal Government must pay the accrued rights and same is consolidated with the contributed savings in the RSA before access it is granted to the retiree.

The Federal Government must pay the retirees their accrued rights before the total benefits can be paid out.

To redress the problem of delay in the payment of entitlements to retirees, President Muhammadu Buhari, had directed the Minister of Finance, Budget and National Planning, to appropriate and release in full N62.83 billion to clear backlog of accrued pension rights of retirees in the next three years.

He directed the Budget Office of the Federation to include N12.83 billion, N25 billion and another N25 billion in the budgets of 2020, 2021 and 2022 respectively, to settle the outstanding accrued pension rights of Federal Government employees.

The president also further directed the finance minister to ensure that the funds are fully released upon passage of the relevant Appropriation Bills.

He also directed the minister to ensure that “adequate provisions are made in the annual appropriation for accrued pension rights and funds are fully released upon approval of the budget”.

Regrettably, in spite the presidential directive, the delay lingers.

Stakeholders are of the view that payment of gratuity and pension should not be unduly delayed because of inability to release funds under the accrued right.

Mr Morayo Omolade, who retired from the Federal Public Service on Aug. 25, 2019, but paid his entitlements in October, 2020, said retirees should be given lifeline immediately after retirement.

He suggested that retirees should be given momentary lifeline from their personal savings, pending release of funds by the government.

He said that since the Pension Act did not envisage this delay, the law should be amended to reflect the reality.

“The situation is precarious; you know for state workers that had not joined the CPS, they start receiving pension immediately, while payment of gratuity commences later.

“Something should be done to check delay in the payment of entitlements under the CPS.

“After all, the CPS was introduced by the Olusegun Obasanjo administration to solve the problem associated with the old pension scheme, characterised by endless wait by retirees for the payment of their retirement benefits.’’

The concern raised by stakeholders is germane and should be addressed. The CPS established to solve a problem should not become another problem. (NANFeatures)

By Ismail Abdulaziz
Nigeria’s Prof. Ngozi Okonjo-Iweala has been appointed as the next World Trade Organisation (WTO) Director-General.

This is contained in the WTO verified Twitter account @wto on Monday.

“Okonjo-Iweala makes history as the first woman and the first African to lead the WTO.”

The term of the new director-general would start March 1.

By Obike Ukoh, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

Since the release of the 2020 Transparency International (TI) Corruption Perceived Index (CPI), in which Nigeria was placed 149 out of 180 countries, there had been mixed reactions on the correctness or otherwise of the rating.

Denmark is first in the transparency index table as the most transparent and least corrupt country, while Sudan ranked 180, as the most corrupt country.

Expectedly, the government challenged the rating as the country dropped from the 2019 rating, while other commentators expressed divergent views, but advised that the rating should be critically analysed.

Leading the pack, Alhaji Lai Mohammed, the Minister of Information and Culture, said the CPI did not reflect the great strides the country has recorded in the fight against corruption.

He said the implementation of the various reforms, especially in the Ease of Doing Business was expected to yield positive outcomes in the country’s corruption perception and other relevant assessments in the next 12 to 24 months.

“For instance, following the release of the 2019 TI-Corruption Perception Index, the government initiated reforms to improve on Nigeria’s Ease of Doing Business indices.

“This is because we found that up to 40 per cent of the country’s corruption perception survey indices relate to business processes and general public service delivery processes.

“Government’s swift action has led to major reforms in the processes at our ports and business process points,” he said.

Mohammed said in addition to placing more emphasis on corruption prevention measures and building of integrity systems, high profile corruption cases were currently under investigation and prosecution.

He said the emphasis on preventive mechanisms was in response to various local and international reviews and evaluation that Nigeria had gone through, including those from the United Nations Convention Against Corruption (UNCAC) and even from the TI-CPI.

The information minister said that having analysed the 2020 TI-CPI rating for Nigeria, the Federal Government was interrogating a number of issues and discrepancies that had been observed in the rating processes.

“These included some data sources in which Nigeria’s scores have remained flat over the past 10 years, reflecting no improvement, decline or fluctuation.

“This is very improbable given the nature of behaviour of variables which are normally influenced by a variety of factors (which is the reason they are called ‘variables’).

“In this case, the corruption scores would have been affected by changes in the size and structure of the public sector over the past 10 years.

“Changes in policies and personnel and systems over the period, including for instance, process automation, etc.

“There is therefore, the need to verify that there is no transposition of figures from year to year due to absence of current data,” the minister said.

The Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Garba Shehu, on his part, said the report was a reflection of corruption by Nigerians and not by the Buhari administration.

“ I will tell you that this one is a judgment on Nigerians because if you look at the indices they used at arriving at these conclusions; they used eight indices, six of which showed Nigeria as being more or less Nigeria in the same position.

“The two that they dwelled on, that caused this backslide, are essentially Nigerian problems. They’re talking about the political culture of this country, vote-buying, thuggery. Is it Buhari that is a thug? We’re not doing thuggery.

“And when they talked about the justice sector, they are talking about perceived corruption in the judiciary.

“These perceptions are essentially not correct. Yes, there are issues in that sector, but so many changes are going on in that sector, it would have been nice if they acknowledged it so that you encourage those judicial officers that are upright.”

The Director-General of the Progressives Governors’ Forum, Salihu Lukman, said the TI 2020 CPI was designed to influence electoral outcomes ahead of the 2023 general elections.

He described the 2020 CPI on Nigeria as a poor attempt at politicising the fight against corruption.

Lukman tasked TI to go beyond perception and expose actual corruption.

“It is a poor attempt to politicise the fight against corruption largely because it completely ignores all the empirical cases that should have provided objective indicators for the performance of the Nigerian government.

Beyond politics is also the funding reality, which has made Nigerian civil society groups to be very aggressive in legitimising the CPI 2020 report in Nigeria.

“The challenge to Nigerian civil society groups and patriots is really to rise above cheap smear campaigns based on perceptions and sentiments.

“ Corruption is not a theoretical issue. It is a very practical challenge. It is beyond the perception of anyone. Where perception is to be our guide, we should be able to confirm it with evidence of reality.

“If TI can conveniently rely on perception, any serious Nigerian organisation should be able to corroborate perception with empirical cases of corruption.

“If one is to interpret the Nigeria CPI 2020 report, the conclusion is that the current government of APC under the leadership of President Muhammadu Buhari has lost the fight against corruption.

“ For us to be able to fight corruption, based on the ‘perception by Nigerian businesses and country experts’, there has to be a change of government.

“This is the underlying narrative in the CPI report. It is basically more of a political campaign, if you like for 2023. Nigerians, including local leaders of civil society groups and their international partners are free to make their political choices and decisions.

“But they should be transparent about it. It mustn’t be a case of shadowboxing Nigerian citizens and forcing them to kowtow political choices fraudulently contrived because Nigerian citizens are committed to the fight against corruption!”

Lukman said that the claim of lack of adequate anti-corruption legal frameworks was outrightly false in today’s Nigeria.

“It will appear that this is most likely reproduced from old reports of CPI before all the anti-corruption laws that led to emergence of EFCC, ICPC, etc.”

The Civil Society Legislative Advocacy Centre (CISLAC), an NGO, on its part, called on the Federal Government and other stakeholders to constructively scrutinise the 2020 CPI.

Mr Auwal Musa-Rafsanjani, the Executive Director of CISLAC, also cautioned against playing politics with the report.

He echoed what Garba Shehu said that the report was a reflection of corruption by Nigerians and not by the Buhari administration.

Musa-Rafsanjani said that it was ironic to witness statements by opposition political parties referencing the 2020 CPI as evidence of corruption in the current government and politically and egoistically misusing the national failure to address corruption.

“No single political party is responsible for the miserable state of affairs today.

“It is a collective responsibility of the political establishment and leadership that transcends all political parties and indeed the Nigerian elite.’’

Musa-Rafsanjani stressed that it would be politically dangerous to dismiss the results without reflecting constructively on the drivers behind ranking.

According to him, many multinational companies consider the CPI ranking when deciding where to invest.

“Governments around the globe include the CPI results in their political-economy analysis when deciding how to engage a particular country in terms of investments, development cooperation or diplomatic ties,’’ the CISLAC boss said.

He suggested an analytical approach to problem solving in specific governance areas.

In the same vein, some lecturers at the University of Nigeria Nsukka (UNN), expressed divergent views on the rating.

Prof. Jonah Onuoha, the Head, Department of Political Science, who spoke on the issue, said that President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration had done a lot to tackle corruption since he assumed office in 2015.

“If corruption is the only factor transparency used in its assessment and ranking, the present government has done well in the fight against corruption since Buhari assumed office in 2015.

“It will be unfair to list Nigeria among the most corrupt nations of the world,” he said.

Prof. Aloysius Okolie, also of the Department of Political Science, on his part, urged the government to put serious structure on ground to fight corruption.

He said the fight against corruption should not be used as guise to clamp-down on opposition political parties.

Okolie noted that the level of poverty and unemployment in the country had made people to do all sort of things in order to survive.

“In the fight against corruption, adequate structures must be put in place and anybody found corrupt should be arrested and prosecuted,” he said.

Dr Ifeanyichukwu Abada, immediate past Head of Department of Political Science, who also spoke on the issue, attributed the low rating, to poor framework in the fight against corruption.

“The ease of doing business in the country is expensive coupled with high level of insecurity, this has scared many local and foreign investors from investing in Nigeria.’’

He said that Nigeria would join the league of least corrupt nations if our leaders “should have zero tolerance for corruption, impunity, nepotism, as well as abuse of fundamental human rights of citizens”.

Unarguably, the TI 2020 CPI rating is a human document. As canvassed by stakeholders, it should be constructively scrutinised, as no particular organisation, political party is to be blamed for the inherent failings pointed out in the report. (NANFeatures)

Evaluating government’s response to economic impact of COVID-19

By Kadiri Abdulrahman of the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)
The Federal Government confirmed the first Coronavirus Disease (COVID-19) case in Nigeria on Feb. 27, 2020 in Lagos. It was the first to be reported in the country since the beginning of the outbreak in China towards the end of 2019.

The COVID-19 pandemic created medical emergencies across the world, but it also impacted on social and economic lives of countries, which necessitated actions to fight its effect.

In Nigeria, it necessitated a total lockdown of key economic sectors. Private and public institutions were closed and economic growth was stifled.

The country slipped into an economic recession in 2016, but it soon bounced back, and between 2017 and 2019 the economy had began to show promising signs of recovery before COVID-19 came and slowed the progress.

This ultimately resulted to a second recession in November 2020. The pandemic impacted negatively on the oil sector, which is the mainstay of the economy, with both price and production quantity declining.

This made the finance ministry to announce that Nigeria would cut the size of its N10.6 trillion budget for 2020 due to low revenue. The spending plan was calculated on assumptions of crude oil price of 57 dollars per barrel, but Brent crude hovered around 33 dollars per barrel during this pandemic

The drop in revenue from oil came with multiplier effects that reduced the value of the Naira and affected welfare of the ordinary Nigerians.

As an immediate response to save small businesses and also save jobs, the House of Representatives passed the Emergency Economic Stimulus Bill in March 2020 to provide support to small businesses and private citizens.

Speaker of the House of Representatives, Rep. Femi Gbajabiamila, said that the aim was to prevent job losses and to allow ordinary Nigerians live their normal lives.

Gbajabiamila said that the bill primarily sought to grant companies a rebate on Companies Income Tax to the value of 50 per cent.

“This, we hope, will prevent large scale job losses in an already fragile economy and allow our people to carry on with their lives as best as possible in the event of a large scale outbreak,’’ he said.

Observers believe that COVID-19 related economic interventions significantly squeezed Nigeria’s fiscal space and exposed the danger of the country’s sole reliance on oil.

CBN, on March 16, 2020 announced a N50 billion fund to combat the impact of the pandemic on the economy and allow banks to give their customers more time to repay loans.

The apex bank also cut interest rates on its loans from nine per cent to five per cent and announced a moratorium of one year on principal repayments of CBN intervention facilities.

It announced a N100 billion intervention fund in healthcare for pharmaceutical companies and healthcare practitioners to expand their capacity, and another N1 trillion in loans to boost local manufacturing and production across critical sectors.

CBN Governor Godwin Emefiele said that the various packages were directed at households and micro and small enterprises as well as pharmaceutical companies that wish o explore local production.

“The health sector loan aims to support the health authorities to ensure that laboratories, researchers and innovators work with global scientists to patent or produce vaccines and test kits in Nigeria to prepare for any major crises ahead.

“The CBN stands ready to provide liquidity back stops as and when required in view of its role as banker to the federal government and lender of last resort,” he said.

Emefiele assured that given the continuing impact of COVID-19 on global supply chains, the bank would increase its intervention in boosting local manufacturing and import substitution.

The government also took practical steps to avert a looming food crisis by empowering farmers to embark on massive cultivation of food crops through the Anchor Borrowers’ Programme of the CBN.

CBN rallied agriculture stakeholders to a meeting in Abuja, in September, 2020, and offered them incentives towards averting food shortage that could result from challenges posed by the pandmic.

Mr Yusuf Yila, Director, Development Finance Department of the bank, pledged the bank’s continuous support, adding that food security was an important priority of the government, which the CBN would work to ensure its success.

That initiative ensured availability of food in the country during the pandemic, even as some countries grappled with acute food shortages.

The government also set up a N500 billion intervention fund to enhance capacity of health facilities.

Minister of Finance, Mrs Zainab Ahmed, said that the fund would pull in cash as loans from various special government accounts and grants from multilateral institutions to be used to upgrade healthcare facilities at the federal and state levels.

“Our general view is that this crisis intervention fund is to be utilised to upgrade health care facilities as earlier identified.

“The Federal Government also needs to be in a position to improve health care facilities not only at the federal level but also to provide intervention to the states,” she said.

Dr Obi Adigwe, Director General of Nigeria Institute for Pharmaceutical Research and Development (NPPRD), urged the government to take advantage of the pandemic to improve capacity of research and development in relevant sectors.

`As bad situation creates wonderful chances, COVID-19 should create opportunity for increased funding into tropical and other diseases,” he suggested.

Though government’s various intervention schemes did not completely erase economic hardship experienced by ordinary Nigerians, they went a long way to ameliorate the situation and Nigerians fared relatively better.

As the pandemic enters its second wave and with the discovery of vaccines in some countries, Nigerians are concerned about the provision for procurement of these vaccines in the 2021 budget.

The Finance Minister, however, explained that the government was working on type and quantity of vaccines to be procured while her ministry and the ministry of health would finalise cost. (NAN)

****If used, please credit the writer and the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN).

By Abujah Racheal
The Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) has reported 1,244 new cases of the Coronavirus (COVID-19), bringing the total number of infections in the country to 101,331.

The NCDC disclosed this on its official website late Monday.

The agency also confirmed additional three coronavirus-related deaths in the country in the past 24 hours.

The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reports that last week the country recorded more than 9,800 cases within seven days, thus surpassing its earlier weekly record of COVID-19 infections.

Available data shows that between Jan. 3 and Jan. 9, the country recorded 9,833 cases, a sharp increase from the 5,681 cases recorded in the previous week of Dec. 27, 2020, and Jan. 2, 2021.

The public health agency said the new infections were reported from across 20 states and the Federal Capital Territory (FCT).

It disclosed that Lagos state, the epicentre of the virus in country, recorded the highest number of confirmed cases with 774 new infections, taking the total number of cases in the state to 36,875.

The health agency added that Lagos, FCT and Plateau recorded the highest number of COVID-19 infections with 774, 125 and 102 cases respectively.

Ohers states with new infections were Anambra-47, Ondo-46, Rivers-27, Edo-18, Kaduna-16, Ogun-16, Gombe-16, Bauchi-11, Kano-11, Nasarawa-10, Akwa Ibom-seven, Sokoto-seven, Borno-five, Ekiti-four, and Zamfara-two.

NCDC also announced the discharge of 461 patients from isolation centres across the country.

“Our discharges today include 144 community recoveries in Lagos State managed in line with guidelines,” it said, adding that it had conducted at least 1,033,858 tests since the first confirmed case of COVID-19 was announced in the country.

According to it, a multi-sectoral national Emergency Operations Centre (EOC) activated at Level 3, is coordinating response activities nationwide.

The agency issued a public health advisory to alert Nigerians that non-adherence to public health and social measures was undermining its response efforts aimed at limiting the continued spread of the virus.

“The average number of daily confirmed cases recorded in the first week of January 2021, was higher than the cumulative cases recorded the last week of December 2020.

“Following the festive season, and in view of the increase in the number of confirmed cases in Nigeria, the NCDC and partners, with leadership from the Federal Ministry of Health and the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 are putting in place measures to strengthen the public health agency’s response to the pandemic,” it said.

To prevent the further spread of COVID-19, the NCDC said, ”Nigerians are reminded to wear a face mask properly, wash hands with soap, and maintain physical distance from others.

“This is not the time to let down our guard. The virus that causes COVID-19 never went away and is still very much with us, as evidenced by the rising cases in Nigeria and globally.”

The NCDC noted that COVID-19 could affect all age groups with severe outcomes in the elderly (50 years and above), and in persons with co-morbidities such as hypertension, diabetes, cancer etc.

“Recently there has been increased infection among the younger age groups.

“Therefore, NCDC urges all persons to take responsibility and adhere to the non-pharmaceutical interventions (regular hand washing, maintaining physical distance, and proper use of face mask,” it explained.

It said it would continue to work with other agencies under the leadership of the Federal Ministry of Health to spear-head public health response to the disease.

It added that it would continue to play a key role in the multi-sectoral response to the disease, within the Presidential Task Force on COVID-19 (PTF-COVID-19), established by President Muhammadu Buhari.

Given the sustained increase in cases, the agency said it would also continue to work closely with state governments, provide support through the deployment of Rapid Response Teams, provide laboratory and medical supplies as well as carry out other response activities.

“We urge state governments to take greater ownership of their response, maintain their COVID-19 surveillance structures, laboratory diagnosis and testing.

“Unless states actively test, they will not know their disease burden, putting local communities at greater risk of adverse outcomes, if the virus is not detected and impacts vulnerable populations.

“NCDC has significantly scaled-up the national testing capacity by expanding the number of laboratories for COVID-19 testing across states.

“Testing remains one of the best tools we have in our fight against COVID-19, as it enables prompt clinical management and helps in preventing further transmission.

“The cumulative number of samples tested in the country has increased significantly, and some states have sustained their higher levels of testing.

“Although the country has yet to meet its total testing capacity, this remains a major priority for the response.

“Sample collection sites have also been established in many Local Government Areas, making public health testing more easily accessible.

“Testing in public laboratories remains free of charge unless for travel purposes in private laboratories, where pricing structures vary,” it explained.

The NCDC charged healthcare professionals to maintain a high index of suspicion, especially when treating patients with breathing difficulties and also present with symptoms common to COVID-19.

It urged Nigerians to adhere to the recommended public health and social measures recommended by public health authorities and to avoid all non-essential travel within and outside Nigeria to reduce the risk of transmission.

“The virus that causes COVID-19 is more likely to spread in mass gatherings, especially in confined spaces with poor ventilation.

“It is advised that people avoid mass gatherings during this time, and if necessary meet outdoors and adhere to physical distancing and other public health measures.

“All these measures are critical in order to sustain the gains made since the onset of the pandemic.

“We also strongly advise business owners, employees and religious leaders to institute the strict enforcement and adherence to public measures, which include the wearing of face masks, ensuring the availability of handwashing facilities or providing hand sanitizers.

COVID-19 pandemic, credible electoral process and matters arising

A News Analysis by Emmanuel Oloniruha, News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

The conduct of credible elections remains one of the crucial issues for any country that practises democracy.

However, the outbreak of COVID-19 pandemic has not only disrupted activities in societies, economies and lives across nations, presenting a somewhat difficult situation for the conduct of elections.

Just as the world has to adapt to the new reality of COVID-19 pandemic, the challenges of Election Management Bodies (EMBs) have increased from the conduct of credible elections to adopting measures critical in having safe elections without further spread of the virus.

With the spread of the virus in 2020, the electoral calendar has been punctuated by postponed elections in many nations, with decision makers and election authorities faced with a difficult question of whether or not to postpone elections.

Stakeholders express concerns over tendency by incumbents to explore the difficulty in holding elections to extend their mandates.

According to a publication by the International Institute for Democracy and Electoral Assistance (International IDEA), as at September 2020, globally at least 67 countries have postponed national and sub-national elections while 48 countries have held such elections.’’

“The initial reaction to the pandemic in March led to a large number of countries declaring states of emergency (or de facto states of emergency), putting their populations into lockdown’’, the publication said.

IDEA noted that some of the decisions taken by some countries based on the pandemic “are likely to impact on elections for years to come.

In Nigeria, when the pandemic broke out in Nigeria recorded its COVID-19 index case on February 27, 2020, the country was already preparing for major elections, including pending by-elections, Edo and Ondo State governorship elections scheduled for Sept. 19, 2020 and Oct. 10, 2020 respectively.

The pandemic did not just affect the activities of the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC), it also led to some consequential amendments to the 2019 Regulations and Guidelines for the Conduct of Elections.

Following lockdown declaration by the government due to COVID-19, INEC on March 24, 2020 postponed the conduct of four by-elections – Bayelsa Central and Bayelsa West, Imo North and Plateau South Senatorial Districts by-elections.

Announcing the suspension, INEC National Commissioner and Chairman, Information and Voter Education Committee, Festus Okoye, said it was in view of the coronavirus pandemic and the preventive measures put in place by the federal and state government.

Also, at the commission’s first virtual meeting with the Resident Electoral Commissioners (RECs) in May, INEC Chairman, Prof. Mahmood Yakubu, assured Nigerians that while the commission would take the COVID-19 pandemic seriously, the democratic and electoral processes could not be truncated.

Yakubu said INEC was determined to hold some bye-elections ahead of Edo and Ondo State governorship to enable it to test-run and fine-tune its modified processes in view of the COVID-19 pandemic.

He said INEC was studying reports of recent elections conducted under COVID-19 pandemic, especially in Mali and South Korea, for lessons that would strengthen the processes and protect all those involved.

In line with its promised not to allow the pandemic to jeopardise Nigeria election, on May 13, 2020, INEC directed immediate reopening of its headquarters, Edo and Ondo State offices in preparation for the states governorship elections, following the gradual ease of the lockdown.

On May 25, 2020, INEC approved and released a new policy framework known as “Policy on Conducting Elections in the Context of COVID-19 Pandemic.’’

The Policy enables officials and staff of the commission to understand and respond adequately to the challenges of conducting elections in the context of the COVID-19 pandemic, as well provide a guide for engagement with stakeholders.

The document covers health and legal issues, election planning and operations, election day and post-election activities.

It also covers voter registration, political parties, election observation, electoral security and deployment of technology.

Measures taken in line with the document includes the mandatory use of face masks at Polling Units (PUs) and all election locations, creation of a two-tier queuing system at the polling unit — one outside and the other in the voting area — stating that voters will be brought into the voting area periodically to prevent overcrowding.

The commencement of poll also changed from 8 a.m. to 8.30 a.m. and the closing time from 2 p.m. to 2.30 p.m., to accommodate additional activities in setting up the PU due to COVID-19 pandemic.

Others include regular disinfection of the Smart Card Readers (SCR) after each voter’s fingerprint is read.

Making public presentation of the policy, Yakubu also announced the redesign of polling units to ensure substantial compliance with the COVID-19 protocols established by health authorities.

He said that the commission also developed a Voter Code of Conduct (VCC) document detailing how voters were expected to act and conduct themselves at the polling units in the light of the COVID-19 pandemic

There was also establishment of additional voting points to reduce the number of points in a polling unit to be monitored and controlled for COVID-19 safety protocol compliance.

Others include review of all INEC Elections Information Kits to include COVID-19 information; expanded the Inter-Agency Consultative Committee on Election Security at all levels to include Nigeria Centre for Disease Control (NCDC) (or other requisite health bodies) and National Orientation Agency (NOA) on a temporary basis.

Also, on June 1, 2020, at the first virtual consultative meeting of the commission with leaders of political parties, Yakubu announced the design of dedicated portal through which political parties that contested for Edo governorship poll submitted the nomination forms of their candidates.

In the spirit of deepening the use of technology in the country’s electoral process and to reduce the level of physical contacts in line with the new reality, INEC also introduced online process for accreditation of media and election observers.

Yakubu reassured Nigerians that INEC would continue to adopt and implement measures to mitigate the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the country’s electoral activities.

To experiment the policy documents, the commission on Aug. 8, 2020, held a successful by-election in Nasarawa Central State Constituency which took place in seven wards, 44 polling units and other voting points, with 71,919 registered voters.

Although one of the challenges faced by INEC in the conduct of the by-elections was enforcing physical distancing, the commission embarked on further training of its presiding officers and public enlightenment to address the occurrence in the conduct of Edo and Ondo State governorship election.

Aside the aforementioned steps taken to adjust to the new reality of pandemic, while working on safe measures to hold elections, between April 2020 and May 2020, INEC deployed no fewer than 160 of its operational vehicles to not less nine states to support the Presidential Task Force (PTF) on COVID-19 in tackling the pandemic.

According to Okoye, the pick-up vans were deployed to Lagos, Osun, Oyo State, Kano State, Rivers, Plateau, Sokoto State and FCT, for contact tracing, surveillance/laboratory and infection prevention/control in the states.

Okoye said that the vehicles were deployed in response to the request by the PTF to facilitate the movement of medical personnel for massive contact tracing and testing in the states.

He said that the commission was equally working with the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) and telecommunication service providers to assist in raising public awareness of the pandemic by sending bulk messages to registered voters similar to what INEC did for voter mobilisation.

He added that INEC was also discussing with the Ministry of Humanitarian Affairs, Disaster Management and Social Development on the possibility of using its electoral registration units nationwide as locations for the distribution of palliative and other relief materials to citizens.

Okoye said the commission would continue to work with all agencies and stakeholders to combat COVlD-19 virus.

Stakeholders, however, commended INEC that in spite of the pandemic and other challenges, including fire disaster at its Akure office that destroyed more than 5,000 Smart Card Readers, the commission successful conducted Nasarawa Central State Constituency by-election, Edo and Ondo State in 2020.

It also conducted 15 pending by-elections, including Bayelsa Central Senatorial District, Bayelsa West Senatorial District, Nganzai and Bayo constituencies in Borno, Cross River North Senatorial District and Obudu Constituency in Cross River.

Others were Imo North Senatorial District, Lagos East Senatorial District, Kosofe II Constituency in Lagos State, Plateau South Senatorial District; Bakura Constituency in Zamfara and Ibaji Constituency in Kogi.

The Interim National Chairman, Inter-party Advisory Council (IPAC), Dr Leonard Nzenwa, who is also the National Chairman, African Action Congress (AAC), commended INEC for its policy for conducting elections under the COVID-19 pandemic.

Stakeholders, therefore, express optimism that INEC will sustain these measures and standard recorded in 2020 and improve on them in 2021 to conduct credible elections in the event of COVID-19 pandemic.(NANFeatures)

**If used, please credit the writer as well as News Agency of Nigeria (NAN)

By Francisca Oluyole

Organised mining began in Nigeria in 1902, when the Mineral Survey of the Northern Protectorate was created by the British colonial government.

A year later, the Mineral Survey of the Southern Protectorates was founded and by 1940s, Nigeria was a major producer of tin, columbite and coal.

The discovery of oil in 1956 affected the mineral extraction industries, as the government and industry both began to focus on this new resource.

The Nigerian Civil War in the late 1960s made many mining expatriates to leave the country and that affected the mining industry.

In a bid to unlock the economic potential of the solid minerals, the Federal Government in 1985 created the Ministry of Solid Minerals Development to spur the rapid and beneficial development of the country’s solid mineral resources.

About 44 mineral occurrences have been reported in Nigeria; a number of these minerals are estimated to exist in commercial quantities, including Nickel, Bitumen, Iron Ore, Gold and Coal.

When President Muhammadu Buhari assumed office in 2015, he emphasised on diversifying the economy from oil to solid minerals and measures were being taken by the Federal Government to realise this programme of moving the economy from oil to solid minerals.

In spite of the COVID-19 pandemic disruption and destabilisation of Nigerian economy which enforces urgency of economic diversification, the task fell on the lap of those managing the solid mineral sector.

More specifically, the focus is on the Mining Cadastre Office (MCO), which regulates mining licencing under the Ministry of Mines and Steel Development.

The expectation of the public is high while the Federal Government itself is in search of a magic wand to accelerate the diversification process and ensure sustainable mining licensing and management.

To achieve the diversification agenda of Mr President, MCO has launched world class reforms, some even anticipating the ease of the pandemic.

In the past one year, several policy actions have been initiated, both ministry wide and specifically at the agency level.

From the revenue perspective, verifiable improvement was recorded last year; the agency earned N2.59 billion, first in the history of the agency.

The secret of the sudden increase was the introduction of ‘First Come, First Serve’ and ‘Use it or Lose it ’, in the licensing administration.

Use it or lose it helps to eliminate speculators in the industry and also helped to revoke licences not used and dormants.

Use it or lose it has activated many dormant licences and increased revenue inflow into the treasury. Between 2006 and 2020, MCO revoked 4,997 licences due to different offences.

On this basis MCO was able to make the system attractive enough for investors so as to generate more revenue.

The agency also initiated migration online of licencing processes long before COVID-19 pandemic; elimination of human to human interaction is the best practice in enthroning transparency, accountability and anti-corruption in licencing and other governmental transactions.

This is a smart response to the evil of corruption, low investment and dwindling revenue earnings. The Electronic Mining Cadastre system (eMC+) is a state of the art in the administration and management of Mineral Title for prompt, efficient and transparent management of Mineral Titles throughout their life cycle.

The migration of MCO operations to an online-based Mineral Title Administration system also encompassed the digitalisation, automation, recording and archiving process (e-Recording/Archiving) as well as the establishment of six zonal offices in Nigeria.

MCO is working closely with National Iron Ore Mining Company (NIOMCO) and NSRMEA on Ajaokuta iron ore to be used for steel and other strategic minerals.

The office is protecting cooking coal, Bauxite, Dolomite from exploitation and preserving the minerals until when Ajaokuta steel company kick starts its operation.

The office has been able to protect the Federal Government Gold project initiative programme too.

MCO also places restrictions on strategic minerals such as gold and coal (for power generation)  unless the applicant provides evidence of competence to  develop these strategic minerals.

The mining policies and programmes put in place since the coming of the President Muhammadu Buhari’s administration has sign posted a significance interest, revenue generation as well as attract initiatives for genuine investors to the mining sector as a way towards diversifying the economy.(NAN)