Alliance urges Senate to make telecom infrastructure critical resource

At the just concluded two-day public hearing on Communications by a Senate Committee in Abuja, with a call by ICT Publishers Alliance for the institutionalization of telecommunications infrastructure as critical national resource.

Chairman of the group, Mr. Aaron Ukodie, said telecom services should be considered as strategic national services so as to free it from the debilitating effect of multiple taxation and regulation from various government agencies at the three tiers of government.

He said that the Alliance in a 24-page presentation to the Senate Committee on Communications public hearing, on problems associated with quality of service in mobile phone operations in Nigeria and co-location, stated that

The Committee chaired by Gilbert Nnaji, he said, held the session for two days and took both oral and paper presentations from stakeholders in the telecom industry.

The perception today among different strata of government, the group noted, is that telecom operators are cash-cows therefore should be milked to no end such that taxations at even council levels are notoriously and arbitrarily imposed in such a way as to make continuous or seamless service delivery impossible.

Mr. Ukodie pointed out that this year alone, the NCC has had to intervene in several locations where telecom infrastructure like base stations were shut by council officials enforcing compliance with imposed taxes by local councils.

“Although cases of multiple regulation and taxation may not be limited to Nigeria alone; our position is that Nigeria can eliminate such cases and become an example to other countries and regions,” he declared in a press statement made available to ITRealms.

According to the group, it is the responsibility of lawmakers, as the repository of the people's destinies, to ensure that laws made do not run counter to the needs, desires and social wellbeing of the people they represent.

Therefore, the Alliance noted that a situation where every agency of government taxes telecom just because they see the industry as the cash-cow, does not and will not augur well for the fledgling telecom industry.

“All of a sudden, for instance, every state government, every local government, and every community has become a law maker unto themselves, churning out one law after another nearly every month or quarter of the year, all targeted at milking telecom operators,” he decried.

The group emphasised that the National Assembly is required to put all these in check, if the telecom industry, especially mobile operators are to continuously grow and deliver quality services to the people.

Maintaining that the recent gazetting of the Quality of Service Regulations by the Federal Ministry of Justice is a right step in the right direction to strengthen the NCC to take some severe measures when service providers are found wanting and that the NCC must also sustain its efforts in the engagement of Drive-Test contractors to carry out continuous quality of service drive-testing in the six geo-political zones and Lagos.

PR

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Etisalat rewards over 3,000 winners 9ja free credit promo

Etisalat Nigeria on Wednesday July 18, rewarded over 3,000 lucky winners in its latest consumer promotion.

The prize presentation which took place at its Allen Avenue, Ikeja Experience Centre saw numerous Etisalat customers go home with different mobile devices from dual-SIM phones, Blackberry phones, Etisalat Gaga Smartphones and tablets. Over 3,740 winners have emerged since the commencement of the promo on July 5, with prizes being presented to winners at various Etisalat offices around the country.

Speaking at the event, Head, Mass Market Segment, Etisalat Nigeria, Mr. Idowu Adesokan said the promo was just one of the ways Etisalat is saying ‘thank you’ to its loyal subscribers, and restated the brand’s commitment to enriching the lives of its ever-growing subscriber base.

“Because the consumer is at the heart of everything we do, we are always looking for innovative ways to reward customer loyalty and put smiles on their faces,” he said.

One of the winners, Mr. Desmond Igbinedion expressed joy at the gesture, recounting how skeptical he was, about the authenticity of the win when he got a Short Messaging Service (SMS) encouraged him that he had won an Etisalat tablet.

“I couldn’t believe it when I was told that I had won a device from Etisalat. I have never believed in promos, and even as I hold my phone, I still haven’t woken up from the shock,” he said.

He expressed thanks to Etisalat Nigeria for the gesture, and urged Nigerians to take advantage of the opportunity and recharge every five minutes in order to win fantastic prizes.

For Diala Kelechi, a businessman, the prize could not have come at a better time, as he had actually been planning to buy a new phone when he received a text message stating that he had won a phone from Etisalat.

“It came as a pleasant surprise and I’m so happy to be part of the winners today,” he said.

Specialist, Consumer Segment Marketing at Etisalat Nigeria, Mrs. Ugonma Akhibge, explained the mechanics of the revamped 9ja free credit promo, saying that customers who recharge within five minutes of every hour, every day in the months of July and August would qualify for the draw to win Dual SIM phones, Blackberry Curve 4, Etisalat Gaga smartphones, Acer, Samsung GIO and Etisalat tablet, every five minutes, 24 hours a day.

In total, she said, Etisalat will give out 288 phones every day, adding that the promo is open to registered new and existing prepaid customers. While draws would be held for every recharge within five minutes of every hour, and the more the customer recharges the higher his or her chances of winning, insisting that a customer could only win once during the promo.

ITRealms recalls that in the last three years, Etisalat Nigeria has become a major industry player with a growing subscriber base of 13 million in a highly competitive market.

Its portfolio of voice and data-centric products include –easyblaze, easynet, easy starter, easycliq and elite world, all tailor-made to meet the needs of its subscribers.

Remmy Nweke 

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Software practitioners mourn Simeon Agu

Late Mr. Agu

The umbrella body of software professionals in Nigeria under the aegis of Institute of Software Practitioners of Nigeria (ISPON), are mourning the pioneer president of the group, Mr. Chijioke Simeon Agu, who passed on after a brief illness in Lagos on Sunday, July 8, 2012.


A press statement endorsed by the incumbent President, Mr. Chris Uwaje of Connect Technologies, the association says the news of Mr. Agu’s demise came as a surprise.


“It is with tremendous shock, heavy hearts and deep sense of loss that we received and now officially announce the sad demise of Chijioke Simeon Agu, the founding President of ISPON, a distinguished Information Technology (IT) practitioner, software industry pioneer and fellow of the Nigeria Computer Society (NCS) who passed-on on Sunday July 8th, 2012,” Uwaje lamented.


He also said that on behalf of the National Executive Council (NEC) and entire members of ISPON, condolence with the entire family of Mr. Agu.


Uwaje who described Mr. Agu as the great lion of the Nigeria’s Information and Communication Technologies (ICT), whose words alone awakened an entire IT industry.


“… Whose presence inspired confidence in a fledgling industry to go forth and claim its due; a fiercely loyal friend and a competitor respected by all,” Uwaje said.


Agu who was a former council member, Computer Professionals Registration Council of Nigeria (CPN) and NCS respectively, hails from Obinagu in Udi Local Government Area of Enugu State.


As said by ISPON president, late Mr. Agu would be missed for his advocacy drive for local content development in the software industry.


Until his death, Mr. Agu was the founder and chairman of Computer Systems Associates (Nigeria) Limited, and a 1970 Electrical Engineering graduate with Postgraduate Diploma in Accounting and Finance.


He started his computing career with Shell Petroleum Development Company in 1971. Later, he moved to the National Electric Power Authority in 1977 as Manager Systems Development and rose to become the Director of Computer Services. Simeon Agu metamorphosed the Computer Systems Associates (CSA) to Neptune Software, putting Neptune on the platform to thrive globally.


LS
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ZODML promotes reading culture with e-library

A not-for-profit organization set up in memory of Z.O Dibiaezue, the Zaccheus Onumba Dibiaezue Memorial Libraries (ZODML), has launched an e-library www.zodml.org.

Speaking at the launch, co-chairperson and member of ZODML’s Board of Trustees, Mrs. Ifeoma Esiri, noted that the online resource has been designed to give students and readers of all ages throughout Nigeria and across the world access to resources to educate themselves.

The launch, she said, is central to the achievement of ZODML’s mission of providing channels for people to acquire knowledge and improve their learning by accessing the information and learning tools offered by the library.

Also, she said that ZODML’s vision is to see a Nigeria in which everyone has access to resources for personal development and growth.

“At the core of this project is self-learning which can only be possible if there is free access to educational resources. Now, with the launch of our website, www.zodml.com, students and readers all over Nigeria and beyond can access our online library and also take advantage of the various learning tools that the website has.”

Mrs. Esiri, she said is bi-monthly essay competition for secondary school students as part of activities to project and launch the website.

Students, she pointed out would be required to write short essays on their learning process in their various schools, adding, the winning entry would win a net book and a visit to Google Nigeria to experience a day of work at the search engine company.

In her remarks, another member of trustee of ZODML and rights activist, Mrs. Ayo Obe, lamented the dearth of good libraries where students could just go and have a good read in Nigeria. The launch of ZODML’s, she said, would not only make it easier for students and everyone to borrow books from the library online but will also help students to learn how to use the internet for constructive activities and learning.

ITRealms gathered that some of website’s features consist of a catalogue of past question papers for secondary students from notable examination bodies like the West African Examinations Council, (WAEC), National Examinations Council (NECO) and Joint Admissions and Matriculation Board (JAMB), journals and articles, a career guide section and a special collection of writing by Nigerians living in Nigeria and the diaspora.

Additionally, the website seeks to be ‘Nigeria-centric’, giving books and novels written by Nigerian authors a given centre stage, to inspire writing skills in Nigerian students.

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Illegal frequency: NCC closes 2 branches of First Bank

The Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) has on Monday closed the New Ring Road Branch of First Bank of Nigeria in Ibadan, and the Aladbaka branch of the same bank in Akure, over illegal use of the 5.40 Gega Hertz (GHz) frequency band, which is licensable in Nigeria. 

According to the Head, Media and Public Relations at NCC, Mr. Reuben Muoka in a press statement made available to ITRealms Online, quoted the enforcement team of the Commission, led by Mr. Efosa Idehen as having stormed both banks, revealed that the frequencies are being illegally used at the banks.

Also, Idehen said had served these bank officials with warrants of arrests for illegal use of licensable frequencies, thereby denying the Federal Government the revenues accruable from these resources.

The enforcement action, which was carried out with the security personnel, paralyzed activities at both branches of the banks as the disappointed customers were forced out of the premises of the banks at mid day.

Idehen said, the use of illegal frequency band by the bank is against the prescriptions of the Communications Act 2003.

He pointed out that at Ibadan, officials of the bank mounted resistance to the enforcement activities resulting in its Operation Manager being arrested and taken to the Iyaganku Police station by the police for obstructing the activities of the enforcement team of the Commission and refusing to lead them to the bank’s server room, to enable them isolate the equipment.

“The case was different at Akure branch where the officials of the bank fully cooperated with the enforcement team of NCC,” he said.

Further, Mr. Idehen said that the Commission has forewarned all those transmitting illegally on these channels through public notices in the media and that those in contravention would be persecuted.

He said the exercise is a continuous one from the one already carried out in various states of the Federation and wondered why some of the banks are still illegally using these frequencies when they were not licensed to operate on them.

As said by him, it appears the banks are the major culprits in the illegal use of frequencies in the 5.40Ghz spectrum band.

Particularly on Ibadan branch case, Mr. Idehen said the bank will remain shut until the 5.40GHz equipments are isolated and the indoor and outdoor units removed from the bank and taken to the police station. 

He commended the police for their support to the Commission to sanitize the air space, stressing that the 5.40GHz is meant for data communication and could only be issued by companies licensed by the Nigerian communications Commission.

Remmy Nweke

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Expert says 80% of Sub-Sahara Africans live without electricity

Chief Executive, Solar Jooce, Mr. David Agbakoba, has said that 80 per cent of the populace residing in the Sub-Sahara Africans still lives without electricity.

Speaking recently at the signing of deal by his company and British American Tobacco Nigeria Foundation (BATNF), Mr. Agbakoba asserted, “Of the world's 1.6 billion people living without electricity, 80% live in Sub-Saharan Africa.”

ITRealms Online, recollects that Solar Jooce, a social enterprise and British American Tobacco Foundation, an independent charitable organisation recently signed a collaboration agreement to train rural women in Oyo State in assembling and repairing basic solar lanterns and phone charging units. 

Agbakoba, who was joined at the ceremony by Mr. Gbenga Ibikunle, the Executive Director, BATN Foundation, disclosed that the essence initially is to train 20 rural women.

The training, he said, would help them to establish a solar micro-business.

The training will also empower the ladies to light up their communities, and spread the use of solar as an alternative to dangerous and expensive fossil fuelled lighting such as kerosene lamps.

The workshop, which is into its 4th week, covers four Local Government Areas in Oyo state - Itesiwaju, Kajola, Oyo West, and Iseyin – before moving on to other states across Nigeria.

He pointed out that the ladies have received marketing and financial management training, in Yoruba, by Mrs. Yemi Owolabi, Executive Director, Finance of Standard Chartered Bank, Nigeria, and entitled “Growing your New Solar MicroBusiness.”

The Solar Jooce women’s empowerment initiative is a small step in the daunting task of providing a clean, alternative source of electricity, alleviating poverty, and providing opportunities for rural families in Nigeria”.

ITRealms Online, recalls that the training workshop is equally supported by the Hertz Corporation, C & I Leasing (transport & logistics), Sesema PR, and the Bishop of Ajayi Crowther Diocese, Bishop O. O. Oduntan.

 Remmy Nweke


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