06062019 - NSECURITY: Danjuma, Lekwot, others take Nigeria's case to UK

VANGUARD, THURSDAY, JUNE 6, 2019 — 45
(sms only)
08052202308
Govt policies stifling our ability to
create jobs---Food, beverage employers
•Task FG on policies to boost manufacturing sector
(Left to right) French President Emmanuel Macron, Britain’s Prime Minister
Theresa May, Prince Charles and Queen Elizabeth, US President Donald
Trump with wife Melania, German Chancellor Angela Merkel, Dutch Prime
Minister Mark Rutte and Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau [Carlos at
the 75th anniversary of D-Day Landings in Portsmouth. Photo:Reuters
US senators seek to block Trump
arms sales to Saudi Arabia
A
bipartisan group of
seven influential
United States senators
said on Wednesday they
intend to force congressional
votes on 22 resolutions
that would block President
Donald Trump’s recently-announced
sales of
US weapons to Saudi Arabia
and the United Arab
Emirates (UAE).
Secretary of State Mike
Pompeo had informed-
Congress on May 24 the
Trump administration was
declaring a national security
emergency in order to
waive congressional review
of $8.1bn in arms
sales to Saudi Arabia and
the UAE. Pompeo cited
military tension with Iran
for the emergency declaration,
prompting senators to
dispute the validity of Pompeo’s
claim.
“Congress has an essential
oversight role in the
decision to sell weapons
and we must ensure proper
procedures are in place
in any weapons transfer,”
Senator Todd Young, a
member of the Republican
leadership team in the Senate,
said in a joint statement
issued by the senators
on Wednesday.
“In light of the ongoing
humanitarian crisis in Yemen,
we have an obligation
to ensure the adequate
guardrails are in place and
that weapons transfers to
Saudi Arabia and the United
Arab Emirates do not
exacerbate the conflict,”
Young said, adding alleged
threats from Iran “do
not justify” the Trump administration
sidestepping
Congress.
Meanwhile, arriving in
Ireland for the first time as
U.S. president on
Wednesday, Trump sought
to reassure the country that
Britain’s exit from the European
Union would work
out fine for its near neighbour.
Prime Minister Leo
Varadkar planned to use
a meeting with Trump,
who has been a vocal supporter
of Brexit, to underline
Ireland’s concerns
over the departure, his
deputy said.
Fake News: Ghana pulls out of MoU
with CRCC — Nigeria
GHANA’s Ministry of
Railways Development
in Accra has pulled
out of the Memorandum of
Understanding, MoU,
signed in March 2019 with
the China Railway Construction
Corporation (international)
Nigeria Limited
on account of alleged
breach of confidentiality.
The sudden withdrawal
from the MoU , it was
gathered, was triggered
by a popular online
publication (name withheld)
which claimed:
“CRCC to construct 560km
railway line for $2bn , same
cost as 156KM Lagos –
Ibadan rail.”
The Ghanaian authority
was infuriated by the publication,
claiming it had not
signed any contract with
CRCC-Nigeria on rail
project, thereby calling off
any MoU it had with the
latter.
In a letter signed by Ghana’s
Minister of Railways
Development , Mr. Joe
Ghartey, and addressed
to the Managing Director
of CRCC-Nigeria, he
decried the media publication,
saying it contained
“a lot of factual inaccuracies”.
Besides, he said the picture
attached to the publication
was from an event
that was not related in any
way with engagement with
CRCC-Nigeria, represented
by its Managing Director,
Mr. Dou Yisup.
For these infractions,
Ghartey said the Ghanaian
authority did not want to
proceed with the relationship
between the parties
as established by the nonbinding
MoU.
The MoU was signed by
officials of both Ghanaian’s
Ministry of Railway
Departments and Messrs
CRCC.
World leaders mark 75th
anniversary of D-Day landings
US
President
Donald Trump
has joined European
leaders in Portsmouth,
on Britain’s southern
coast, to commemorate
the 75th anniversary of
the D-Day landings of
World War II.
Trump is concluding his
state visit to the United
Kingdom by marking
the anniversary of the
departure of more than
150,000 troops from British
shores, heading for
the beaches of Nazi-occupied
northern France.
The soldiers who
stormed those beaches in
1945 were drawn from a
wide coalition of nations,
and the US president
joined British Prime
Minister Theresa May,
French President Emmanuel
Macron, German
Chancellor Angela
Merkel and Canadian
Prime Minister
Justin Trudeau along
with other leaders for
the ceremonial military
parade on Wednesday
morning.
“There was concern
that the controversy following
Donald Trump’s
visit might disturb or
overshadow the events
here, which mark a sacrifice
shared by so many
nations,” said Al
Jazeera’s Neave Barker,
reporting from Portsmouth.
Stories by Victor
Ahiuma-Young &
Maryann Michael
I NCREASINGLY,
private sector ability to
generate and sustain jobs
has been an issue of concern
as operators are
rather retrenching, instead
of creating or sustaining
jobs.
At its 40th Annual General
Meeting, AGM, in Lagos,
Association of Food,
Beverage and Tobacco
Employers, AFBTE,
raised the alarm that government
policies are hindering
members’ ability to
sustain or even create
jobs.
Addressing members
and other guests, President
of the association,
Chief Patrick Anegbe, lamented
among others, the
state of infrastructure in the
country, saying: “With respect
to infrastructure, the
recurring issue of
infrastructural decay was
still evident as many businesses
struggled to survive
in the year. Government’s
effort both at the
federal and state levels in
this critical area was not
too impactful. Businesses
continued to spend a large
chunk of their resources to
provide their requirements.
Those who could
not cope have had to either
cut their cost by
among others shutting
some of their production
lines or shutting their businesses
completely. The result
has been an upsurge
in unemployment as a result
of layoffs.
“Also, the Federal Government
in most cases
through its Ministries and
Agencies introduced some
policy measures in the
year which negated the
policy on Ease of Doing
Business. These changes
include the upward review
of Excise Duty on Alcoholic
Beverages and Tobacco
products, the proposed
implementation of
the Transfer Pricing Regulations,
the planned ban
on production of alcoholic
beverages in sachets and
small size Pet bottles, the
demand by the National
Regulatory Commission
for payment in respect of
sales promotion organised
by companies under the
guise that it is lottery, just
to mention but a few. All
of these threatened the existence
of some businesses
in our industry.”
Difficuties in doing business
Continuing, he said:
“The Federal Government
in most cases through its
Ministries and Agencies
introduced some policy
measures in the year
which negated the policy
on Ease of Doing Business.
These changes include
the upward review
of Excise Duty on Alcoholic
Beverages and Tobacco
products, the proposed
implementation of
the Transfer Pricing Regulations,
the planned ban
on production of alcoholic
beverages in sachets and
small size Pet bottles, the
demand by the National
Regulatory Commission
for payment in respect of
sales promotion organised
by companies under the
guise that it is lottery, just
to mention but a few. All
of these threatened the existence
of some businesses
in our industry.
State legislations
Some State legislations
and regulations were other
issues of concern in the
year. These include
among others: the Lagos
State Government’s increase
in Land Use
Charge, Ogun and Lagos
states Water Abstraction
Charges and multiple
tax imposition, etc.
The result of the above
was obvious in the industry,
some member-companies
carried out redundancy
exercise while
some others increased
their use of third party
provided resources. The
story has not really
changed as at the first
quarter of 2019.”
AFBTE President also
informed that “The Food
and Beverage Industry
has a unique role in expanding
economic opportunities
because it is
universal to human life
and health. The industry
operates at multiple levels
of the society and as
such, there is need to take
food safety seriously because
of its rampant cases
of adulteration and he
therefore, urges membercompanies
to also adhere
strictly to regulations and
seek the assistance of the
secretariat where they are
unjustly treated.
Late PENGASSAN President,
a stabilzer----Perm Sec
•Trust Fund for children's education
underway, says Acting President
THE
Permanent
Secretary, Federal
Ministry of Labour and
Employment, William Alo,
has said the late President
of Petroleum and Natural
Gas Senior Staff Association
of Nigeria,
PENGASSAN, Francis
Olabode Johnson, FOJ,
employed his wealth of
experience and administrative
ingenuity to bringing
about good industrial
relations that stabilized the
sector.
This came as Acting
President of the association,
Frank Esanubi, disclosed
that the
PENGASSAN, alongside
social partners, would set
up a trust fund for the education
of the children of the
late President.
Meanwhile, Mr. Alo has
expressed shock, deep
sorrow and pain over the
death of FOJ.
Speaking when he led a
delegation of the management
staff of the Ministry
on a condolence visit to
PENGASSAN's office in
Abuja, the Permanent Secretary
paid glowing tribute
to FOJ, describing him
as a dependable ally of the
Ministry, whose support
and contribution assisted
the Ministry in achieving
*Late Johnson
its mandate of maintaining
industrial peace and
harmony in the country.
Lauding the late FOJ
on his achievements in
the Petroleum and Natural
Gas sector, Alo said:
“The late PENGASSAN
President employed his
wealth of experience and
administrative ingenuity
to bringing about good
industrial relations that
have stabilized the sector.”
He enjoined those he
left behind to bear his
death with fortitude and
be consoled by the numerous
testimonies about
the good life he lived.
The Permanent Secretary
urged PENGASSAN
not to forget the family of
the late Johnson, and
pledged that Government
would sustain the
industrial peace and harmony
he fought for.