Nigeria Content Online

An Ibadan-based
estate consultant, Sufian Kazeem, has warned governments at all levels
in Nigeria against additional increase in workers’ wages, saying move
will further plunge the country into more crises.

“Salary increase is
not the solution to the problems of Nigeria and her citizens. In fact,
it will bloat the inflationary trend in the country. If the minimum
wage is fixed at N1 million a month today, it will not solve our
problem; it will add more to it,” he said.

Mr. Kazeem, whose
company manages late Moshood Abiola’s estate in Oyo State, made his
position known during a chat in Ibadan on Monday. He stated that rather
than increasing the wages all the time, the country should take
advantage of her rich vast land and huge population to engage in
massive farming in order to solve the ravaging hunger and boost her
foreign exchange earnings.

He said the nation
will achieve tremendous leap in its quest to solve hunger and empower
her citizens financially, if it engages in high profile farming in
which every aspect of the economy will be involved.

To achieve this, he
suggested that all government parastatals and corporate organisations
must be compelled to engage in farming to maximise the use of the
nation’s vast land, saying Nigeria has all potentials to feed her
population and produce enough food for the entire African continent.

According to him,
the government can make corporate organisation, particularly the
multinationals, which have benefited so much from the nation’s economy,
pay back to the nation by compelling them to engage in mechanized
farming, and be prepared to sanction any of them who defaults.

He wondered why the
prisoners whose terms of punishment include hard labour could not be
made to farm and produce food for themselves and the nation, adding
that rather than made them to produce food for themselves, Nigeria
still spends billions of naira to feed them, even when they have erred
the system.

Mr. Kazeem also
advised that the nation should work out a legislation that will ban
politicians from holding any political office beyond the age of 70
years as, according to him, the absence of such rule has made it
possible for the same set of people to be at the helm of affairs in the
country, to the detriment of the system and its people.

“Anybody who
reaches the age of 70 years must be retired from politics. He should be
barred from having direct involvement in decision making. They could be
allowed to participate at the advisory level. But they must be told to
leave the stage for younger ones who will inject fresh blood and ideas
to the system,” he said.

The Financial
Services Regulation Coordinating Committee (FSRCC) has issued stricter
guidelines to monitor margin trading and thereby avert a repeat of the
abuses and sharp practices that bedevilled margin trading in the run up
to the recent capital market collapse.

The committee
issued the new rules on trading when they met on Friday May 21, 2010
with representatives of all member agencies in attendance. Among other
issues extensively discussed, the committee noted the need to issue
clear-cut rules and guidelines on margin trading, to prevent further
abuses of the trade.

The New Guidelines

As part of the new
measures, the committee decided that banks aggregate exposure to margin
lending shall not exceed 10 per cent of total loans and advances.
“However, banks are advised to be more prudent by adopting lower
exposure limits. Banks with exposures in excess of the 10 per cent
limit are required to submit to the CBN clear plan of how they intend
to wind down their exposure in compliance with the prudential limit”.

It also stated that
bank shares shall not be used in margin trading. “For the avoidance of
doubt and clarification, the shares of banks would continue to be used
as collateral for bank lending. Thus, the restriction placed on bank
shares are only in respect of margin trading”.

It added that
operators who are interested in Margin trading are also required to
build capacity for margin trading and in this regard are to put in
place adequate technology and expertise that will facilitate on-line
real-time trading, market surveillance and prompt rendition of
regulatory reports.

Operators are
required to open dedicated margin trading account and are to observe at
all times a maintenance margin limit of 120 per cent. They are equally
expected to put in place robust framework for margin trading, which
should include definition of margin and internal rules and procedure
for trading, consistent with regulatory requirements.

Banks are also required to appoint Margin Compliance Officers.

All operators
interested in margin trading are to apply to the Securities and
Exchange Commission (SEC) for re-certification while in the case of
banks and other financial institutions under the purview of the CBN,
are to apply to the CBN for such recertification.

Understanding margin trading

A margin is a
collateral that the holder of a position in securities or its
equivalent has to deposit to cover the credit. Margin trading is buying
stocks without having the entire money to do it. Margin is a high-risk
strategy that can yield a huge profit if executed correctly, just as
one can lose both the borrowed and the owned if things go wrong.

Investopedia, a
Forbes Digital Company, describes buying on margin as borrowing money
from a broker to purchase stock. “Margin trading allows you to buy more
stock than you’d be able to normally”.

To trade on margin,
a margin account, different from a regular cash account is needed, in
which you trade using the money in the account.

The Committee noted
the fact that most operators that suffered losses in margin trading
lacked the capacity, technology and framework to embark on margin
trading, factors that contributed immensely to the fate they suffered
and the spiral effect during the financial market meltdown.

The Central Bank
however stated that a comprehensive guideline is to be issued in due
course and full compliance is expected on or before September 1, 2010.

Gas supply to key
power plants in the country currently stands at about one billion
standard cubic feet, according to Diezani Alison-Madueke, the Minister
of Petroleum Resources, who described the volume as the highest all
time capacity.

Mrs. Alison-Madueke
told members of the Senate and House of Representatives Joint
Committees on Gas Resources at the weekend that her ministry was
committed to ensuring regular electricity supply nationwide, adding
that with gas supply at the highest level, the traditional power plants
would not have any problem generating electricity for the people.

Though she said her
immediate concern was how to sustain this level of gas supply through
the repair and maintenance of the nation’s gas infrastructure, she
added that the short term plan was to stabilise power supply in the
country to such a level that would enable consumers plan their
businesses with some level of predictability.

Apart from ongoing
short term projects designed to facilitate the injection of about 325
million standard cubic feet per day to the national gas production
level by the end of 2010, she said the federal government was exploring
other means of boosting gas supply in the country.

On the
implementation of the National Gas Master Plan, Mrs. Alison-Madueke
said it would be moved into the operations stage where it would create
a basis for sustained growth in the sector.

Osita Izunaso, the
chairman of the Senate Committee on Gas Resources, said that the Joint
Committee’s decision to invite the minister was to enable them share
her views which will ensure that the executive and legislative arms of
government do not work at cross-purposes, as well as put the gas sector
on the right footing.

Igo Aguma, the
chairman of the House Committee on Gas Resources, said the Joint
Committee felt that it needed to be updated on critical issues in the
sector such as the level of the implementation of the Gas Master Plan
and the current state of Brass and Olokola Liquefied Natural Gas
projects.

The lawmakers also sought to know the state of the finances of the
Nigerian Liquefied Natural Gas (NLNG) in Bonny Island, Rivers State,
and lodgment of revenues realised from the export of the commodity as
well as the profit realised from government’s investment in the project.

Arrangements to establish a national research data bank in
Nigeria have reached an advanced stage, Olumuyiwa Olomade, Head, North Central
Zone of the National Centre for Technological Management (NACETEM) told the
press in his Abuja office last Thursday. The aim is that, when the data bank is
fully operational, manufacturers and industrialists will no longer depend on
imported research results to improve their production process, even as it will
make them less dependent technologically.

Mr Olomade added that there was yet to be an appropriate linkage
between researchers and the industries and as such, some industrialists still
import research products that are available in Nigeria because they have little
information about them.

“There are so many problems the industrial sector is facing, and
it has always been that the research needs of the industrial sector are taken
outside the country,” he said.

“One will like to argue that the reason is that our industrial
sector is dominated by multinationals (and) most of their research are
conducted in their parent countries but what about the small and medium scale
enterprises that are largely indigenous? Who solves their problems?” He added
that, “if the database is in place, an industrialist has a technology-related
problem, it will tell if there is work already done or presently going on in
that area.”

Private sector clearing
house

Mr Olomade said the agency will also “establish data bank on
research output” and with that they can tell how many researchers are working
on a particular research activity, where they are and what results they have.
“We should be like a clearing house to the private sector. If you have a
problem in your manufacturing processes, instead of taking these things abroad,
there should be an agency as custody of information data base that will tell
you what is on ground.”

Underscoring the importance of a research output database, he
said, “Presently, we have technology transfer offices in most of our
universities and polytechnics, everywhere that research is conducted. What that
is supposed to do is that once you are conducting a research and you have an
output that can be patented, you approach the technology transfer office in
your institution who will guide you on what to do, but we do not want to end
there.

“There must be a platform where you can log into and see at a
glance sector by sector, research that is going on and the results that are
presently available and who to contact. That is what the data bank will do. We
need to know how many researchers we have, how many qualified scientists and
engineers we have in Nigeria, what are their qualifications and their research
areas.

“Even students can use it to source for supervisors. What that one will also
do is that once we have the figures, we can now know areas in which we are very
deficient, like in biotechnology, we can now know, having conducted the census,
the number of biotechnologists in Nigeria and the areas of specialization. That
can now assist us in what is called manpower planning. Nobody can say now: ‘We
are deficient in this place, we are buoyant in this area’, but this databank
will help us. If a research is ongoing, we send progress reports on that. That
databank will make such information available to the whole world.”

The Toyota Land Cruiser SUV has transformed over the years from
its rugged all weather off-roader identities into a vehicle that connotes an
all luxurious presence. For a vehicle which rolled out its first set in 1951,
it has gone through lots of improvement in designs and technology.

The 2010 Toyota Land Cruiser stands as a good exhibit, showing
how advanced and matured the vehicle has grown and evolved into. The vehicle
now stands as a rare breed among other SUVs, with an undisputable blend of
rugged capabilities and comfortable driving.

The 2010 land cruiser, no doubt, stands as an ideal choice.

Design

The 2010 Toyota land cruiser has a slightly bigger size,
compared to other SUVs. It comes with dimensions of 194.9 inch length, 77.6
inch width, and 74 inch height.

The full size luxury SUV has a sleek image, with vibrant colours
like grey, red, gold, green, blue, white, and black. The car has got style and
class. It has big bulgy front lights and back lights, and steps on a standard
18-inch alloy wheels.

The inside of the vehicle can be classified as heaven, with its
fully comforting characteristics. The eight passenger seat car has a third row
which is mainly for kids, due to its cramped nature and low seats; neither do
they fall flat or removable. High-quality materials make up the interior, with
proper trims and finish. Accessories like telescopic steering wheels, driver
memory functions, leather upholstery, quad-zone automatic climate control, and
power heated front seats contribute to its classy design. It comes packed with
great entertainment features like JBL audio system with Six-CD changer and 14
speakers, Bluetooth streaming audio and auxiliary audio/USB port, and USB jack
for MP3 and iPod connectivity.

Engine Power

The 2010 Toyota Land Cruiser is a vehicle driven by a powerful
engine. It comes with a 5.7-litre V8 engine that produces up to 281 horsepower
and 401 Ib-ft of Torque. The full time 4WD (four wheel drive) has high and low
range gearing system which fully supports and enhances its off-road
capabilities.

The engine integrates with a six-speed automatic transmission.

Safety

A lot of standard safety features have been installed and built
into the 2010 Toyota Land Cruiser. Some of these include antilock disc brake
(with brake assist and multi-terrain programming), full length side curtain air
bags, and active front head restraints. Others are front and second row side
airbags, driver and front passenger knee air bags, and stability control.

Price

The 2010 Toyota Land Cruiser stands for a price of $ 65,970 (N9,
895,500).