Appeal court quashes David Mark's election, orders rerun

ITRealms:

An Appeal Court sitting in Makurdi, Benue State at the weekend quashed the election of the former Senate President, Senator David Mark and orders rerun, reports ITRealms.

Also, the court ordered the Independent National Electoral Commission (INEC) to carry out a fresh election of the Benue South Senatorial election. 

ITRealms recalls that Comrade Daniel Onjeh, of the All Progressives Congress (APC) had dragged David Mark to the Appeal Court against Tribunal Judgement which upheld Senator Mark’s election.

An excited Onjeh declared “Hurray! Thank God I have been vindicated! “

In his response, David Mark through his aide, Paul Mumeh insist he won the March 28 Senatorial election in Benue south senatorial district and will repeat the same feat if the elections were to be conducted ‘100 times.’ 

The appeal court equally ordered INEC to conduct a rerun election within 90 days. 

For Mark, his people love him and would stand by him again in the fresh election, stressing “I won the election clean and clear. If we go back to the polls 100 times, I will still win convincingly.” 

Additionally, part of the statement read “Whatever the situation may be, one thing I know is that my people are solidly behind me. They also appreciate the fact that I have done more than enough to lift up Idoma nation to a position of eminence in the contemporary political history of Nigeria.”

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Tribute: Telecom top notchers eulogies Haffner

Tribute@ITRealms: 

Following the death of Engr. Victor Adetunji Haffner, the first Nigerian CEO of a Telecom company and a 1974 President of International Telecommunications Union’s Administrative Council, industry players have expressed their condolences and reflected on his contributions to the sector. He was buried in Lagos Saturday.

Engr. Haffner (FNSE., FAEng) who died at 96 years of age, was one of the founding fathers of the Communication Technology industry, an industry he traversed for over two decades from November 1954 when he was employed as pupil engineer in the Nigerian Posts and Telecommunications, P & T., and 1975 when he retired as Managing Director of the Nigerian External Telecommunications, (NET) Ltd. He however continued making invaluable contributions to the development of the industry up till he breathed his last on November 5, 2015.

In a Tribute signed by some Telecom industry players, Engr. Haffner is described as the first among equals in the engineering profession. He was registered as Engineer No 00001 with the Council for the Regulation of Engineering in Nigeria, (COREN). 

According to the Tribute, “As telecommunications engineer, Engr. Haffner coordinated the provision of point to point telephone and telegraphic services in virtually all major cities of Nigeria for the public service, as well as for police, maritime and aeronautical services.  

During his tenure at the Nigerian External Telecommunications Ltd, he led the local counterpart technical team to provide communication for the SYNCOM Project, the pioneer experience of the United States of America’s NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration) which launched its experimental satellite into orbit from Lagos in 1963. 

He also conceived the NECOM House, a 32-story skyscraper purpose-built as a telecoms gateway and currently stands as the tallest building in Lagos.”  Pa Haffner also served at various times at British Telecoms, Marconi Wireless Telegraph Company and Marubeni Corporation, and was a member of the first Commission of the Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC).

The tribute, which states “We celebrate his accomplishments and we are proud of the rich legacies he bequeaths to our generation.” was signed by 10 Telecom industry leaders including Biodun Disu (PPL Ltd); Biodun Omoniyi (VDT Communications); Emmanuel Ekuwem (Teledom Group), Ernest Ndukwe (Open Media Group); Funke Opeke (MainOne); Johnson Adegbulugbe (JayGroup); Lanre Ajayi (PINET); Nadu Denloye (CDNet); Stanley Jegede (Phase 3 Telecoms) and Titi Omo-Ettu (Telecom Answers Associates).

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$5.2trn fine: Only President Buhari can save MTN - Shittu

ITRealms:

Only the President, Muhammadu Buhari has the power to reverse or grant any waiver to MTN Nigeria Communications Limited over the $5.2 trillion fine shower by the industry regulator, Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC), reports ITRealms.

Making this disclosure in Lagos at the coalition meeting of the Access for Affordable Internet (A4AI) Nigeria chapter, the Minister of Communications, Barr. Abdur-Raheem Adebayo Shittu has said that its only the president, Alhaji Muhammadu Buhari that can change the conditions attached to the fine.

Responding to newsmen on if NCC and his ministry could tamper justice with human face, Mr. Shittu noted that the level of violation and subsequent penalty has gone beyond what either NCC or the Ministry of Communication could simply intervene.

He made it clear that no well-meaning Nigerian would like MTN to close shop because they have a good number of Nigerians in its employ and if it could close shop, those people are likely to swell the labour market.

Shittu also empahasised that MTN never denied the violations that attracted the huge fine, but stressed that a child is loved does not mean that you have to spear the rod and spoil the child, arguing that if requisite action is not taken like NCC did, any other operator could as well flout the orders of the regulator and go to sleep with it. 

He lamented the inability of the telecom operator to take action when it was necessary than compounding the issue which earned it such a huge sum of fine.

He used the opportunity to caution operators in the sector to always ensure they operate within the ambit of the law.

The minister equally assured Nigerians and stakeholders in the industry during his inaugural outing that he would operate an open-door policy and solicited well-meaning Nigerians and stakeholders alike to send their good ideas that could move the country forward.

He went ahead to share his business card to almost all the participants to drive home his open door declaration, even as he is ready to learn the industry ropes.

  +Remmy Nweke (ITRealms) +ITRealms DSA @NGRCommTech @NgComCommission
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Pix: Minister of Communications, Barr. Abdur-Raheem Adebayo Shittu

WRC-15 rounds up, allocates spectrum for future innovation

ITRealms:

The World Radiocommunication Conference 2015 (WRC-15) concluded its four-week meeting in the Geneva with a sign-off on the Final Acts that revise the Radio Regulations, the international treaty governing the use of radio-frequency spectrum and satellite orbits and allocating spectrum for future innovation, reports ITRealms.

This step, experts said would spur long-term investments in Information and Communication Technology (ICT) industry globally.

Also, this meeting marked the first Nigerian chairmanship over the conference led by Mr Festus Yusufu Narai Daudu, evena as he was assisted in the task by six Vice Chairmen, namely Mr A. Jamieson (New Zealand), Mr Y. Al-Bulushi (Oman), Mr D. Obam (Kenya), Ms D. Tomimura (Brazil), Mr A. Kühn (Germany), and Mr N. Nikiforov (Russian Federation).

An estimated 3,300 participants, representing 162 out of the International Telecommunication Union (ITU)’s 193 Member States attended the four-week conference from 2 to 27 November. Some 500 participants representing 130 other entities, including industry, also attended the conference as observers. 

In his address, chairman of WRC-15, Mr. Daudu noted that as new technological innovations and applications emerge, they set new challenges as well as bring new opportunities for billions around the world. 

“This conference dealt with a large number of important and sensitive issues, ranging from mobile broadband communications and satellite systems to emergency communications and disaster relief, maritime and aeronautical communications, environmental monitoring and climate change, universal time and space research as well as radiocommunication services that the public relies on for health, information, education, security and safety,” he said.

Also speaking, the ITU Secretary-General Houlin Zhao pointed out that this World Radiocommunication Conference has defined new and better ways to regulate radio services and applications.

“In a world where radiocommunications are playing an increasingly important role in connecting people, I am convinced that the outcome of this conference will represent a major contribution in making the world a better –  and safer –  place for all,” Mr. Zhao said.

“A great deal has been achieved in the last four weeks and the results will have a major impact on the future of the telecommunication sector in general and radiocommunications in particular,” said

For the Director, ITU Radiocommunication Bureau, Mr François Rancy, the outcomes of WRC-15 are aimed at maintaining a stable, predictable and universally applied regulatory environment that secures long-term investments for the multi-trillion dollar ICT industry.

WRC-15 addressed over 40 topics related to frequency allocation and frequency sharing for the efficient use of spectrum and orbital resources. The outcomes ensure high quality radiocommunication services for mobile and satellite communications, maritime and aeronautical transport, air and road safety as well as for scientific purposes related to the environment, meteorology and climatology, disaster prediction, mitigation and relief. 

The ITU Radiocommunication Sector has been set an ambitious studies programme for the next four years covering a wide range of services from amateur radio to broadcasting, mobile broadband, mobile satellite, fixed satellite, earth stations on mobile platforms, and space exploration services.

WRC-15 adopted a revised version of Resolution 12 on Assistance and Support to Palestine, which resolves to continue assistance to Palestine and to enable Palestine to obtain and manage the spectrum required to operate telecommunications networks and wireless services. This followed an Israeli-Palestinian agreement to facilitate cellular phone operations and the establishment of a modern and reliable telecommunication network in Palestine.

 +Remmy Nweke (ITRealms) 

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Pix: Sec-Gen, CTO, Shola Taylor congratulating Mr. Festus Daudu after his election as chairman WRC

Multiple taxation: NCC, NGF, MDAs tinker on harmonizing thoughts

ITRealms:

 

The Nigerian Governors Forum (NGF) and Nigerian Communications Commission (NCC) alongside other Ministries, Departments and Agencies (MDAs) are tinkering on modalities to end multiple taxations, regulations in the information and communication technology (ICT) industry, reports ITRealms.

The Executive Vice Chairman (EVC) of NCC, Prof. Umar Garba Danbatta gave this indication at the end of meeting with a delegation from ATC Wireless Infrastructure Company of Nigeria (ATC Nigeria) in his office who paid him a courtesy call.

Danbatta said the Commission is also engaging other agencies of government in talks with a view to improving relationship with telecommunications Service Providers who are often the victims of these taxes and multiple regulations.

The EVC said that NCC as a responsible regulatory agency is worried about multiple regulations and taxes because they do not augur well for smooth development of the telecommunications sector “so we have decided to engage all stakeholders especially other government agencies in order to cushion the pains operators go through”.

“The NCC is particularly worried about the indiscriminate way base transceiver stations are sealed by agencies and some State governments and we have appealed to these agencies and the State Governors to show some understanding,” he said.

Stressing that NCC is particularly in talks with them to understand the implications of these actions as they affect quality of service and other sundry matters, including power supply.

He therefore implored ATC Nigeria to ensure regular power supply to the managed base stations in order to make a difference, because government has created an enabling environment for businesses to thrive.

Earlier in his remarks, Chief Executive of ATC Nigeria, Mr. Gordon Porter said his team came to familiarize itself with the NCC management and to “tell you what we do, how we do it and why we do what we do”.

ATC recently acquired 4716 cell sites from Bharti Airtel Nigeria and for the past 146 days it has deployed 1,000 generators and replaced 600 air-condition units.

So far, over $11Million has been invested by the company on these towers with a view to improving quality of service very significantly.

Porter said, ATC has been in constant talks with host communities with a view to improving relations and right-of-way.

Porter explained that although it has a commercial relationship with Airtel, it is interested in working with other operators especially on the issue of co-location adding that ATC hopes to inject about $100Million in the business in the next two years.

The EVC received the visitors in the presence of Director, Public Affairs, NCC, Mr. Tony Ojobo, Chief of Staff to the EVC, Mr. Usman Malah, while Porter led Ms Lucretia Fontaine, Director, Corporate Advisory & International Compliance, Nigeria, Mr. Onyeaghana Oji, Regional Manager, Regulatory and Mr. Dubem Agbakoba, Head, Health, Safety and Environment.

  +Remmy Nweke (ITRealms) 

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