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Economist Seeks Regulatory Policy On Tobacco Industry Operations

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A United Kingdom based health economist, Dr Damilola Olajide has called for a regulation that would enhance effective operations of tobacco industry in Nigeria.
Olajide made the assertion in a paper entitled: “Balancing Regulation with Product Health Hazards: Case for Tobacco Use in Nigeria” at a policy-dialogue event.
It was organised by the Initiative for Public Policy Analysis (IPPA) in Lagos.
According to him, the objective of any regulatory policy is to ensure that regulation works effectively and in the public interest.
“For highly regulated products, such as tobacco industry, a fair balance has to be made to all areas involved in the public interest, that is, those who consume the products and those that don’t.
“Sovereignty also plays a critical role as regulations take different shapes dependent on various factors such as capacity, economy, infrastructure and funding among others.
“The role of regulations for products and services is always critical to the success of any economy.
“This means foreign laws should not be copied into Nigeria without considering the local peculiarities,’’ he said.
Olajide, who is also Senior Research Fellow with the IPPA, said in a developing economy agenda, each economy has a right to protect the jobs and livelihoods it provides to its citizenry.
“Tobacco industry employs lots of Nigerians and in economic sense the triple of those employed have dependents.
“Frustrating legal tobacco producers in Nigeria will be to the advantage of illicit traders who will take advantage of the unintended consequences to perpetrate their illegal.
“In this circumstance, the regulators will totally lost control,’’ the health economist said.
Olajide added that policies and laws should always be implemented before the consideration for new policies to plug whatever gaps that may exit in the laws not necessarily creating new one without “test-running” the old law.
According to him, laws have to be tested, evaluated, gaps identified and addressed before new policies/laws are introduced.
“It should not just adopt the guideline provided by other developed economies which have different challenges and gaps and instead drive for an economy that works for the peculiarities of that locality.
“Undue influence by lobbyists and non-governmental organisations that have insufficient experience in managing governmental affairs needs to be managed accordingly.
“They have a role to play as possible conscience of the society, but some of them are plagued with corruption that makes them vehicles to further the interests of others through the source of their funding,’’ he said.
Also, a legal practitioner, Mr Jiti Ogunye, urged the Organised Private Sector (OPS) to be involved in governance to ensure good laws were enacted while the bad ones were abrogated.
In a paper entitled: “Lawmaking and Execution in Nigeria: The Roles of Private Sector”, Ogunye said that OPS should be interested in the business of lawmaking and governance as it would impact on them.
“The Organised Private Sector should be interested in getting bad laws killed even if it warrants lobbying the legislators. OPS should also take self-regulation more seriously,’’ he said.

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NPA Assures On Staff Welfare 

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The Managing Director, Nigerian Ports Authority (NPA), Dr. Abubakar Dantsoho, has said the management will continue to accompany its port infrastructure  and equipment  modernization drive  with the development of the welfare of its personnel.
Dantsoho made the disclosure recently while responding to the commendation by the Maritime Workers Union (MWUN) and the senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations and Government-Owned Companies (SSASGOC) on the  clearing  of the age-long problem of employee stagnation, when the union paid him a courtesy visit at the Authority’s headquarters in Lagos.
A Statement by NPA’s General Manager Corporate & Strategic Communications, Mr. Ikechukwu Onyemekara, quoted Dantsoho as saying,  “our Port infrastructure and equipment modernization drive will go hand-in-hand with continuous staff welfare improvement”.
The NPA MD disclosed that human capital development constitutes the key strategy for creating and sustaining superior performance under his watch, adding that “talent development constitutes a critical success factor for the actualization of the big hairy audacious goals we have set for ourselves especially in the area of Port competitiveness.
“The only way we can meet and indeed exceed stakeholders’ expectations is to deepen the competencies of our human resources assets and boosting their morale.”
Speaking further, Dantsoho commended the Honourable Minister of Marine & Blue Economy, Adegboyega Oyetola, for approving the strategic proposal of the Dantsoho-led Management team that solved the over a decade-long problem of lack of promotion that had fuelled industrial disharmony.
“I must specially appreciate our amiable Minister for graciously approving the multi-pronged stratagem we deployed that cleared all outstanding cases of employee stagnation by conducting examinations in one fell swoop and instituted timelines to forestall a recurrence of such anomaly”, he sad.
Speaking on behalf of the joint maritime labour unions, the President  of Senior Staff Association of Statutory Corporations & Government-Owned Companies (SSASCGOC), Comrade Bodunde stated, “In addition to clearance of the backlog of stagnated promotions, we also wish to express our appreciation for the increase in productivity bonuses, provision of end-of-year welfare packages for staff, and the revision of the Financial Guide to the Condition of Service, which now addresses our members’ concerns about inflationary pressures.”
Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos
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ANLCA Chieftain Emerges FELCBA’s VP

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National Secretary of the Association of Nigerian Licensed Customs Agents (ANLCA), Elder Olumide Fakanlu, has been elected Vice President of the Federation of ECOWAS Licensed Customs Brokers Association (FELCBA).
The election took place during the FELCBA Congress, held from Tuesday, June 17th to Thursday, June 19th, 2025, in Freetown, Sierra Leone.
Fakanlu’s emergence as Vice President marks a significant achievement for Nigeria within the regional customs brokerage community.
Apart from Fakanlu, Secretary of the Seme Chapter of ANLCA, Austin Nwosu, was also elected, securing the role of Secretary of Relations with Institutions.
The Nigerian delegation played an active role in the congress, with Michael Ebeatu nominated as a member of the electoral officer team, ensuring a fair and transparent election process.
The three-day congress concluded with delegates undertaking a visit to the Sierra Leone Port, offering insights into the host nation’s maritime operations, followed by a recreational trip to the Tokeh Beach.
The newly elected executives are expected to lead FELCBA in its efforts to harmonize customs brokerage practices, promote trade facilitation, and advocate for the interests of licensed customs brokers across the ECOWAS sub-region.
Nkpemenyie Mcdominic, Lagos
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NSC, Police Boost Partnership On Port Enforcement 

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In a bid to enhance more enforcement in the nation’s Port, the Nigerian Shippers’ Council (NSC) has reaffirmed its commitment to stronger inter-agency collaboration with the Nigeria Police Force (NPF).
The Council said the collaboration is aimed at enhancing stronger enforcement, compliance and improve operational efficiency across Nigeria’s ports.
Executive Secretary/Chief Executive Officer of  NSC, Dr. Pius Akutah, made this known during a visit to the  Inspector-General of Police, Dr. Kayode Adeolu Egbetokun, at the Force Headquarters, Abuja.
The visit, which he said, focused on strengthening institutional synergy, comes in the wake of growing responsibilities for the NSC under the newly created Ministry of Marine and Blue Economy.
Akutah emphasized the critical role of security agencies in supporting port operations and ensuring regulatory compliance.
He called for the posting of police officers to assist the Council’s monitoring and enforcement teams at key port locations including Lagos, Warri, Onne, Port Harcourt, and Calabar.
“The posting will complement the activities of our revived task teams and enhance our ability to enforce standards across the maritime logistics chain”, he said.
Earlier, the Inspector-General of Police, Dr. Egbetokun, assured the Council of the Force’s readiness to continue supporting the growth of the maritime sector.
The IGP acknowledged that compliance enforcement is essential to the successful implementation of Nigeria’s Blue Economy objectives.
“The NSC and NPF are expected to deepen collaboration in the months ahead, with a shared focus on building a secure, efficient, and competitive port environment”, to the IGP emphasized.
Chinedu Wosu
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