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Osinbajo wants all MSMEs targets met — Aide
Vice-President Yemi Osinbajo is committed to ensuring that all targets set by the Federal Government within the Micro Small and Medium Enterprise (MSMEs) space are met, an Aide says.
Tola Johnson, Special Adviser to the President on Small and Medium Enterprises in Nigeria, office of the Vice-President, spoke with State House correspondents on Thursday at the Presidential Villa, Abuja.
He said that MSMEs Clinics partners met with the vice-president to review the clinic, with a view to addressing challenges and meeting set targets as the administration wound down.
Johnson said that the vice-president meets with the partners once per quarter.
“So, the essence of this is just to continue with the tradition on meeting with the partners.
“We are trying to find out from the partners if there are issues–some of these issues that might militate against meeting our targets.
“So, the vice-president said if there are any of such issues, then, we will look for a way of resolving them.
“But for him, what is most important is that all targets that we have set as a government within the MSMEs space must be met.
“So, as this administration is winding down, we are trying to leave good notes and recommendations for the incoming administration,” he said.
Johnson said that henceforth, more shared facilities and MSMEs Clinics would be inaugurated for states that had not been attended to.
According to him, 30 states had been covered while the remaining six would be captured before the administration rounds off.
“Outstanding shared facilities will be inaugurated; some states have come to ask for one-stop-shops, we will try and help with that.
“We want to do as best as we can to ensure that we achieve most of our targets before the administration winds down,” Johnson said.
On his part, Laolu Akande, Senior Special Assistant to the President on Media and Publicity, Office of the Vice-President, told State House correspondents that the vice-president appreciated the key stakeholders for their input.
He said that Osinbajo expressed appreciation to the Minister of State for Industry, Trade and Investment, Maryam Katagum, whom he described as the face of the MSMEs Clinics.
“He also thanked the Special Adviser on the Economy, Amb. Adeyemi Dipeolu, whom he observed, actually developed the idea of the MSMEs, alongside Johnson.
“He also thanked the government agencies that have been driving all the policies of the administration regarding the MSMEs and also private sector partners, especially Access Bank.
“The vice-president especially commended Access Bank for doing such a spectacular work in supporting the policy of the Federal Government especially MSMEs Clinics,” he said.
Akande said that the vice-president noted that the MSMEs space in the economy was a very critical one.
He said Osinbajo acknowledged that MSMEs were at the heart of commerce and industry in any country.
“If the MSMEs as a sector of the economy is doing well, you could also say the economy is doing very well.
“Which is why he said the president is very particular in developing effective programmes to support MSMES.
“And to also ensure that whatever it is that the government is doing is scaled up so that there can be sufficient impact for whatever government is doing,” Akande said.
More so, Kayode Pitan, Managing Director, Bank of Industry (BOI), said there were about 41.3 million MSMEs in Nigeria.
Pitan listed some of the agencies supporting MSMEs as NAFDAC, SON, BOI, CAC, banks like Access Bank and NEXIM Bank, among others, all in a one-stop-shop arrangement.
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Stop using repressive laws to intimidate journalists – SERAP, NGE tell FG
The Socio-Economic Rights and Accountability Project, SERAP, and Nigeria Guild of Editors, NGE, have called on Nigerian authorities at all levels of government to stop using repressive and anti-media laws to target, intimidate and harass journalists, critics and media houses.
The groups made the demand after an interactive session on ‘the state of press freedom in Nigeria’ held at the Radisson Blu Hotel in Ikeja.
In a joint statement, SERAP and NGE said that, “the government of President Bola Tinubu, the country’s 36 governors and FCT minister must now genuinely uphold press freedom, ensure access to information to all Nigerians, obey court judgments, and respect the rule of law”.
They expressed concerns about the escalating crackdown on the right to freedom of expression and media freedom and the flagrant disregard for the rule of law by authorities at all levels of government.
The groups note that the suppression of the press in recent times takes various forms ranging from extrajudicial to unlawful detentions, disappearances, malicious prosecutions and wrongful use of both legislation and law enforcement.
The statement read in part: “We would continue to speak truth to power and to hold authorities to account for their constitutional and international obligations including on freedom of expression and media freedom.
“Nigeria as a country has a long and unpleasant history of press gagging and clampdown on media freedom, which is evidence of extensive state censorship of media and in some cases, the utter control of state-owned media houses.
“This position has not changed considerably despite almost 25 years of unbroken democratic rule in the Fourth Republic.”
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FG adds 625MW to national grid – Minister
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Tax: Court orders FCT-IRS agency to seal off defaulting coys
A Magistrate Court sitting in Wuse Zone 2, Abuja, on Friday, ordered the Federal Capital Territory Internal Revenue Service (FCT-IRS) to seal off a company, Ifedi A.K. Nigeria Ltd, over allegations bordering on non-filing of annual returns.
The Magistrate, Janada Balami, gave the order after lawyer to FCT-IRS, Michael Towolawi, moved the application to the effect.
Towolawi told the court that the company had failed to file its annual returns from 2019 to 2023 in breach of Section 81 of the Personal Income Tax Act, LFN, 2004, and amended in 2011.
He said all efforts to make the company comply with the law proved abortive.
The lawyer, therefore, applied that the company be compel to appear before the court to explain why it acted in breach of the law.
Balami, who held that the application by the agency against the company had merit, accordingly granted same to seal the No 6, Rudolph Close, Off Katsina-Ala Street, Maitama, Abuja.
She, consequently, ordered the company, the sole defendant in the matter, to appear before the court on May 16.
The Director, Legal Services of the FCT-IRS, Festus Tsavar, told journalists after the proceeding that the service would move against companies that do not file their annual returns as provided by law.
“You know that we have a new minister in FCT that is doing a lot of projects and that hinges on money.
“And of course, you are aware that FCT has come out of TSA.
“So it is the internally generated revenue that will make the government of FCT to be able to do those projects completely within required time,” he said.
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