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Piracy is Killing Nigerian Economy-Onyeje
Emmanuel Onyeje, country manager, Microsoft (Nigeria), has warned that piracy, particularly in the IT industry pose a huge problem to the Nigeria’s economy.
Onyeje also spoke of efforts by Microsoft to tackle the unarmed but lethal gang of pirates that left trails of tears, sweat and blood.
The Microsoft executive who spoke at the company’s ‘Play Fair Day in Lagos’ said the aim of the event was to further intensify awareness around the dangers of purchasing and deploying pirated products, and discourse its militating effects on the individual, businesses and economy with focus on proffering workable solutions.
He bemoaned negligence on the part of consumers who pave way for pirates by patronizing cheap or free download software.
According to him, over 60 per cent of personal computer world wide are likely to be affected in the acts of hacking which fuels piracy acts.
Onyeje said that the entertainment industry in Nigeria which has become a job creation haven is currently the worse hit.
“It is a subject that is very dear to my heart. It is not really about software. That is why we also brought people from the same industry to talk about this, because it impacts every aspect of our lives. The entertainment industry in Nigeria is one of the largest globally; creates jobs, showcases what Nigeria can do; create opportunities for youths to showcase their talents in singing, writing, acting and other creative arts.
“We as Nigerians are killing our own industries. That is why Nigeria is not providing the platform for the people to excel globally; because we as individuals allow piracy to continue. Piracy has many damaging index, but the most important is economic. All of us know that the most important topic in the country today is how to make the economy more sustainable. Issues like poverty rate, Boko Haram, MEND threats, will actually die down if we focus on poverty. Our long term security agenda should be on how to create more jobs and how to sustain the economy. When you are doing that, you need economic engine to drive the job creation agenda, especially the industries that can grow at a rapid rate.
“We have 70 million people, which industry can absorb them? However, we need to focus on the skills that those individuals can do. Thus, the intellectual property industry provides the opportunities for the people to create, but piracy does not allow them to thrive,” he said.
“But then they are a very important point, the hackers. Piracy helps hackers win. We all know we want better service from banks and the government. Then to provide that they need to invest in information technology. Get more computerized, but to do that they open up themselves to be hacked. The key thing the hacker does is to get into the companies’ or government’s computing power.
“But due to their inability of invest in huge technologies they offer the general consumers free something to download; they use that tool to compromise the security codes in your computer. Millions of people download this software. Then the hacker has access to millions of computers to use and perpetuate crimes. So, the broth-force empowers them to work. By then the consumer has helped the hacker to continue to do destructive things,” he maintained.
He said, “On top of that, people will not be able to properly use their PCs. Over 60% of PC users will be affected this year, because they are not aware what goes on underneath. But all of us have roles to play in educating the consumers”.
On her part, the Rita Amuchinwe, supply manager, HP, Anglophone Africa, said from the suppliers view (the Inks and toners), as HP producers, “We have very big issue in that area. Specifically, we have been taking practical steps to eradicate this. We have been talking to the press, running campaigns, provided solutions to it. Presently, it has been cut down to a very low number.”
To tackle the issue, Amuchinwa said that HP had invented a product authentication platform called QR CODE, which enables smartphone users at the point of purchase to authenticate the originality 0f the products.
“For those with feature phones or laptop users, they can download the application and whenever they go to the retailer, they will able to go the website through the code to authenticate,” she added.
She regretted that buying fake toners and other IT gadgets have caused consumers havoc in the recent past.
“It can damage the printer and the person automatically loses the manufacturer’s warrantee. We have also identified distributors that people can patronize. On our website we specified their offices and numbers to reach them. Virtually everybody is selling HP, but we are more interested in the consumers getting the right product,” Amuchinwa said.
Prior to the entrance of the Microsoft in Nigeria Africa’s second-largest economy, there had been a wide spread use of unlicensed Windows software in the country both by private businesses and individuals, however, Microsoft said through it 365 cloud computing solution, the issue is being tackled.
Microsoft Nigeria, through Play it Safe plans to x-ray existing Anti-Piracy laws in Nigeria and their effectiveness, industry collaboration in reducing piracy as well as the need for stronger laws to protect the new crop of developers and their inventions.
National Population Commission (NPC) has commenced the nationwide digital registration of births and deaths under the Electronic Civil Registration and Vital Statistics (E-CRVS) system to strengthen legal identity management and improve demographic data.
Speaking at a press briefing in Lokoja on Tuesday, Mr Afolabi Yori, federal commissioner representing Kogi, said the initiative became operational nationwide on July 1, through the VitalReg platform.
Yori described the development as a landmark in Nigeria’s civil registration system, noting that it would modernise birth and death registration through a technology-driven platform that meets international standards.
He said the digital platform would improve service delivery, strengthen data integrity and ensure that every birth and death occurring in Nigeria was accurately documented and securely stored.
According to him, civil registration is more than an administrative process, as it provides reliable statistics that support public policy formulation, resource allocation and national development planning.
“Nigeria records an estimated five million births annually, yet millions of births and deaths remain unregistered.
“Birth registration coverage currently stands at about 57 per cent nationwide, while death registration remains below 20 per cent,” he said.
The commissioner said that the commission had established 4,011 functional registration centres across the country’s 774 local government areas and was working to expand the number to about 8,000.
He added that the commission was strengthening collaboration with stakeholders to improve the capacity of registration personnel and ensure prompt documentation of vital events through the VitalReg platform.
Yori said the platform would provide faster registration services, 24-hour online access, digital certificate issuance where applicable, and reduce paperwork, waiting time and unnecessary travel.
He disclosed that the platform was being operated under a Public-Private Partnership with Barnks-forte Technologies Ltd. as the commission’s technical partner to ensure system availability, cybersecurity and continuous technological improvement.
He called on parents, healthcare institutions, traditional and religious leaders, civil society organisations, development partners and the media to support the initiative by encouraging the prompt registration of births and deaths.
Earlier, Samuel Omonakpeme, director in Kogi, NPC State, described the commencement of the digital registration system as another milestone in efforts to strengthen Nigeria’s Civil Registration and Vital Statistics system.
Omonakpeme stated that the initiative aligns with the Federal Government’s digital transformation agenda and the Sustainable Development Goals, particularly Goal 16.9, which seeks to provide legal identity for all.
He appreciated the Federal Government, the leadership of the commission, UNICEF and other development partners for supporting the implementation of the initiative.
The state director also urged parents, guardians, health institutions, community leaders, religious organisations and the media to mobilise public support for the timely registration of all births and deaths.
The News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) reported that ICT personnel of the commission, led by Ehimoni Kolawole, conducted a live demonstration of the digital birth registration process using the VitalReg platform.
The demonstration showed that the registration process captures the biodata of both parents, while at least one parent must possess a valid National Identification Number (NIN) to complete the registration of a newborn.
Yola Electricity Distribution Company (YEDC) has alerted its customers to a fraudulent message circulating on social media, falsely claiming that electricity consumers can receive an additional 20 per cent bonus units when recharging their prepaid meters through unofficial channels.
In a statement issued by the company’s management on Monday, YEDC described the claim as false and urged customers to disregard the misleading information, stressing that it did not originate from the company.
According to the statement, YEDC does not offer bonus electricity units through individuals, agents, personal bank accounts, phone numbers, or social media contacts.
The company advised customers to purchase electricity tokens only through approved cashless payment platforms, including the YEDC Pay App, OPay, Interswitch, and other authorised vending channels, or to visit the nearest YEDC office for assistance.
YEDC also cautioned customers against sharing their meter details or personal information, or making payments to unauthorised persons claiming to represent the company.
The company further urged customers to rely exclusively on information disseminated through its official communication channels to avoid falling victim to fraud.
The management thanked customers for their continued cooperation and reaffirmed its commitment to serving them.
Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) has disclosed that two foreign currency accounts opened in connection with the controversial Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council (PFIPC) have remained inactive since their creation, with no funds deposited and no transactions recorded.
The revelation emerged on Monday during the ongoing investigation by the House of Representatives Ad-hoc Committee probing the circumstances surrounding the establishment and operations of the council.
Lawmakers are investigating allegations that the PFIPC was created and operated without a valid legal framework and outside the established procedures required for government agencies and institutions.
Appearing before the committee, representatives of both the Central Bank of Nigeria and the Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation (OHCSF) distanced their institutions from the establishment of the council.
The Office of the Head of the Civil Service of the Federation stated that it neither created the council nor possessed the constitutional authority to establish federal agencies.
Representing the office, officials explained that the OHCSF is only responsible for approving administrative structures of government agencies after all necessary requirements have been fulfilled.
According to the office, records showed that the council submitted a request on August 6, 2025, seeking approval for its organisational structure.
However, the application was not approved because the required supporting documents were not attached.
The committee heard that despite the rejection of the request, officials linked to the Presidential Economic Advisory Council (PEAC)/PFIPC later appeared during the 2025 manpower budget defence exercise and sought approval for staffing and recruitment arrangements.
The office disclosed that the council informed government officials that its activities were being carried out largely through personnel seconded or deployed from other institutions.
Lawmakers were told that the council requested approval for a total of 314 positions. The figure consisted of 14 existing officers and an additional 300 proposed positions.
The Office of the Head of the Civil Service further revealed that concerns later arose regarding documents presented by the council as evidence of its legal backing.
Officials told the committee that upon examination, the documents failed to display essential features expected of an enabling law or valid legal instrument establishing a government body.
Mrs. Didi Esther Walson-Jack, head of the Civil Service of the Federation, also rejected claims that her office deployed civil servants to work for the council.
She maintained that the office did not assign personnel to the body and did not provide office accommodation for its operations.
According to her, matters relating to the creation, supervision and oversight of government agencies fall under the responsibilities of other relevant institutions, including the Office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation.
The Central Bank of Nigeria also provided details regarding accounts linked to the council.Nigerian current events
Hamisu Abdullahi, director at the apex bank, who represented the CBN Governor before the committee, explained that the bank opened two foreign currency accounts following a formal request from the Office of the Accountant-General of the Federation.
He told lawmakers that the request was received on July 30, 2025, and instructed the bank to create a United States dollar domiciliary account and a Pound Sterling domiciliary account.
Abdullahi stressed that the CBN only opens accounts for government agencies after receiving official authorisation from the Accountant-General’s office.
However, he disclosed that the accounts never became operational because the council failed to provide authorised signatories required for activation.
As a result, both accounts remained dormant from the day they were opened.
He informed the committee that neither account had received deposits nor processed withdrawals. The accounts also recorded no foreign exchange allocations, remittances, inflows or outflows.Governor election news
According to him, the balances in both accounts remain at zero.
The CBN official further stated that the council did not engage directly with the apex bank regarding the management or operation of the accounts after they were created.
Following the submissions, members of the committee demanded more information as part of efforts to determine the full scope of the council’s activities.
Hon. Abdulmalik Danga, chairman of the committee, directed the Central Bank to submit comprehensive records relating to both the Presidential Foreign Investment Promotion Council and the Presidential Economic Advisory Council.
The committee requested details covering the opening of the accounts, their operational history and any information connected to related banking activities.
Lawmakers also instructed the CBN to work with commercial banks to identify and provide records of any accounts linked to the entities under investigation.
However, the committee is expected to continue its hearings as more government agencies and officials appear before lawmakers to provide explanations on the controversial council and the circumstances surrounding its operations.
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