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NASS, NGF Condemn UK Travel Ban, Demand Reversal, WHO Intervention
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The National Assembly and the Nigeria Governors’ Forum on Tuesday condemned the United Kingdom’s travel ban on Nigeria.
The lawmakers and the NGF in their separate reactions to travel ban imposed on Nigeria by the UK on Saturday, demanded a reversal of the travel restriction.
At the plenary on Tuesday, members of the House said Nigeria and other African countries were being bullied by Western countries for failing to look inwards and develop their economies.
The Minority Leader of the House, Ndudi Elumelu, moved a motion of urgent public importance, titled ‘Need to Intervene in the Suspension of Issuance of Visitors Visa to Nigerians by the United Kingdom Government,’ which the lawmakers unanimously adopted after a long debate.
Moving the motion, Elumelu said though the ban was for Nigerians going the UK, “it does not exempt over 8,000 Nigerian travellers that have bought air tickets to visit Nigeria during this festive period, as the restriction would affect their re-entry into the UK after holidays.”
The lawmaker also said instead of working with Nigeria as a Commonwealth ally on ways to combat and curtail the spread of the new variant, the UK decided to ban Nigerian travellers.
Elumelu said, “The House is further worried that the UK Government chose to announce the ban without discussing the data in its possession with the Nigerian Government and instead gave an hour’s notice to the Nigeria authorities before its inclusion on the Red List, contrary to known international convention.
Adopting the motion, the House mandated its Committees on Health and Foreign Affairs to interface with the Ministries of Health, Foreign Affairs and the Presidential Steering on COVID 19 “on best ways of resolving this issue.”
Also, the Senate condemned the UK’s inclusion of Nigeria in its COVID-19 red list without justification.
The red chamber described the travel ban as discriminatory and an attack on diplomatic relations between the two countries.
The chamber, accordingly, called on the British authorities to consider removing Nigeria from the red list.
It advised the UK government to be sensitive to the diplomatic relationship between both countries when taking decision that affect Nigerian citizens.
The Senate urged the Federal Government to engage the British authorities to reverse Nigeria’s inclusion on the red list.
In a related development, the NGF on Tuesday rejected the ban placed on travellers from Nigeria by the UK, Canada and other countries.
It described the ban as “arbitrary stigmatisation” and called on the United Nations to look into it.
This was contained in a statement titled, “Omicron: The NGF Rejects Arbitrary Stigmatisation,” signed by the Chairman of the NGF and Ekiti State Governor, Kayode Fayemi, on Tuesday.
The governors noted that the decision to place a ban on Nigeria without a careful study of the facts on ground was discriminatory because nations with higher infection rates were not affected by the ban.
Fayemi said, “Only three cases (before Tuesday) of the Omicron variant of the coronavirus were detected in Nigeria less than a week ago, precisely on December 1, 2021.
“Canada and the United Kingdom have hastily included Nigeria among the Omicron present countries which must stay away from their shores, an action viewed by the NGF as precipitate, unfair and discriminatory.
“Omicron still remains relatively unknown globally as it is not yet clear whether it is more transmissible from person to person compared to other variants including Delta.”
The NGF urged the World Health Organisation to intervene by setting uniform standards that are acceptable to all for banning countries across the globe.
The Punch
The Allied Peoples Movement (APM) presidential candidate, Seyi Makinde, on Thursday, criticised President Bola Tinubu’s “Emi Lokan” slogan ahead of the 2027 presidential election.
Makinde said Nigerians do not need “turn-by-turn nepotism”, arguing that voters should be free to decide who becomes the country’s next president in 2027.
The Oyo State governor spoke during the APM’s town hall meeting in Akure, Ondo State.
Makinde asked: “How can someone say ‘Eemi lokan’ in a country like Nigeria? You were given the opportunity. If you recall the 1999 presidential election, the South-West voted massively for Baba Olu Falae, but the rest of Nigerians voted for Baba Obasanjo. So, this is not an issue that only the South-West can resolve; it is an issue we must address collectively as Nigerians.
“We do not want ‘turn-by-turn nepotism’, nor do we want a situation where people say, ‘I will vote for projects because it is my turn’. You will not finish those projects, and when it becomes someone else’s turn, they will do the same thing. We will end up with a Nigeria where we cannot get value for the resources belonging to Nigerians.
“The Reset Nigeria agenda is about building a country where infrastructure development supports economic growth and addresses the concerns of young people and women.
“Once we fix our economy, no zone will be left behind, and no demographic group will be left behind.”
Minister of Finance and Coordinating Minister of the Economy, Taiwo Oyedele, has denied saying the Federal government will introduce a fuel tax when the economy stabilises and income levels improve.
In a post on X on Tuesday, Oyedele said his remarks during an interview with ARISE News was misrepresented, insisting that a “fuel tax is not on the table.”
However, during the interview with Rotus Odiri, ARISE News Business Correspondent, on the sidelines of the 2026 International Monetary Fund and World Bank annual meetings in Bangkok, Thailand, Oyedele said the tax would come when income levels improve enough for Nigerians to accommodate it.
He said taxes account for between 20 and 80 percent of pump prices in some countries, while many African countries impose between six and 10 different taxes on fuel products.
He said introducing fuel tax while petrol was still subsidised would have been counterproductive because government would effectively be paying the tax itself.
According to him, imposing the tax immediately after removal of petrol subsidy would be insensitive to Nigerians.
“The objective should be that instead of trying to suppress prices, which hasn’t worked for us, it hasn’t worked for any country in the world, not one. Instead of trying to suppress prices, think about how to grow income faster than prices rise,” Oyedele said.
“That’s how you bring prosperity and grow the middle class and that is exactly what we are doing as led by Mr. President himself.
“At the appropriate time, when the economy has stabilizes and income level will be able to accommodate it, those taxes will come. Not because we want to impose taxes,” he added.
In his Tuesday post, the minister reiterated that introducing a fuel tax at this time would be insensitive following removal of petrol subsidy, describing reports that government will introduce the levy when the economy stabilises as “fake news.”
A chieftain of the African Democratic Congress (ADC), and Deputy Director of the Presidential Campaign Council, Chief Dele Momodu, has described former Vice-President Atiku Abubakar as the most nationally formidable and experienced among the leading contenders for the 2027 presidential election.
Momodu said Atiku’s experience at the national level distinguishes him from President Bola Tinubu and former Anambra State Governor, Peter Obi.
He stated this on Wednesday during an interview on Eagle 102.5 FM, Ilese-Ijebu, in Abeokuta.
“If you look at the antecedents of the three major candidates, between Atiku Abubakar and Peter Obi, you will see that Atiku is the most experienced. He has managed our country at the highest level,” he said.
Momodu traced Atiku’s political journey to the 1992 Social Democratic Party (SDP), presidential primary where he contested against late MKO Abiola and stepped down for him.
He said Atiku accepted the outcome without crisis even after he was not picked as Abiola’s running mate, describing it as a mark of true democratic temperament.
“He is the only one who started from around 1992, contested the SDP primary against Abiola and stepped down with uncommon equanimity. He did not make any noise,” Momodu said.
He noted that Atiku was among the founders of the Peoples Democratic Party, PDP, and served as Vice-President from 1999 to 2007.
Comparing Atiku with Obi, Momodu argued that while Obi’s best was demonstrated in Anambra, Atiku’s was at the presidency level managing the national economy.
“Peter Obi has tried his best in Anambra, while Atiku’s best is at the level of vice president controlling the economy of Nigeria. The difference is clear. He has matured in experience and exposure,” he said.
Momodu also said President Tinubu’s experience was largely limited to Lagos.
“What I’m trying to say is that Tinubu’s experience was limited to Lagos, and that is why when he became president, he thought Nigeria was Lagos. And he has found out now that Nigeria is not Lagos,” he said.
He argued that the current economic hardship under the present administration did not show prosperity, insisting Atiku remained better positioned to lead the country.
“Well, we are yet to see that prosperity, and if yesterday would determine today and tomorrow, it is obvious that Tinubu should retire now and let someone else do it,” Momodu added.
DailyPost
