Human Rights Writers Association of Nigeria (HURIWA) has tackled the federal government over the plan to increase the Value Added Tax (VAT) from 7.5 per cent to 10 per cent and demanded that the increase be reversed immediately.

The body accused the FG of imposing additional financial strain on Nigerians, stating that its policies were driving the population into deeper poverty.

Describing the FG’s fiscal policies as suffocating, HURIWA warned that the actions, allegedly being influenced by the International Monetary Fund (IMF), the World Bank and individuals like Bill Gates, could ignite widespread unrest.

In a statement signed by Emmanuel Onwubiko, national coordinator, HURIWA called for an immediate reversal of the VAT hike and other “suffocating” fiscal measures that were compounding the economic suffering of the populace.

The group warned that Nigerians might not endure further deterioration of their economic conditions which could lead to civil disobedience.

“The VAT increment is just one in a series of damaging financial measures. Since the removal of fuel subsidies, petrol prices have surged by over 200 per cent, with ripple effects on transportation, food, and other essential commodities. The average Nigerian, especially in low-income groups, is struggling to afford basic necessities,” the statement reads in part.

The rights group further lamented the effect of inflation on the housing sector, as rising costs had forced landlords to increase rent, pushing many citizens to the edge of homelessness.

“The Nigerian government is making choices that benefit these institutions but leave the Nigerian people worse off. The well-being of citizens is being sacrificed for economic targets dictated by foreign entities,” HURIWA stated.

Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc has decried the low insurance penetration in the country, calling for policy changes to increase insurance uptake by Nigerians.

Mr. Femi Asenuga, Managing Director/Chief Executive Officer of Mutual Benefits, who made the call at a workshop for insurance journalists, advocated for media support in ensuring policy changes, shaping public understanding of insurance and deepening insurance penetration in Nigeria.

While emphasizing the important role of the media in educating the insuring public on how insurance contributes to economic resilience, he said the ability of insurance journalists to communicate the complexities of insurance in a relatable and impactful way is vital in building public trust and confidence in the industry as well as encouraging more people to embrace insurance.

Asenuga said: “We are far from where we are supposed to be as a country. Nigeria with a population of over 200 million and as the giant of Africa should not only be in theory. As the press, you have a major role to play in changing the narrative of insurance penetration in the country.

The change is not only expected at the consumer level but also at policy making because that is where everything starts from.”

In her presentation “The Role of Insurance in National Development,” Head, Technical Department, Mutual Benefits Assurance Plc., Mrs. Titilayo Akinsiku, highlighted some of the roles insurance plays in national development.

They include, according to her, Risk Mitigation and Financial Stability; Business Continuity and Resilience; Social Welfare and Inclusivity; Risk Management and Sustainable Development as well as Investment and Capital Formation.

Thabo Mbeki, former President of South Africa has advised current African presidents to emulate the impressive relationship between Nigeria and South African musicians.

Mbeki said the African artists have managed to forge a formidable relationship and strong collaborative strategies which has seen them popularise both countries’ entertainment sectors and create wealth for the industry’s participants but the political leaders in Africa are locked in baseless egocentrism and territorialism which prevents generation of wealth amongst African countries.

Mbeki said before now that Africa used to be feared due to a strong pan-Africanism consciousness among leaders and deliberate policy formulations directed towards giving it a force of power.

He, however, regretted that today’s leaders lack such political will, are more Eurocentric and lack clear direction on how Africa should remain a liberated continent.

“Political will to manage diversity is central to the survival of all of the African states because there’s no African state which is not characterized by the diversity of its population now,” Mbeki said at his Thabo Mbeki Foundation premises, Johannesburg while hosting the third cohort of the MTN-MIP Fellows

“And so if you want to keep a continent or a country together, there’s got to be a conscious political decision. There is one outstanding example in this regard – Tanzania.

“When Tanzania was known as Tanganyika, there were two very important decisions under Julius Nyerere to keep the whole country together. One of them was to have one central language.

“Nyerere decided that everybody must speak Swahili and abandon tribal or regional languages. So, everybody speaks Swahili. The second decision was the abolition of the institution of chieftaincy ship. So there’s no chief of this tribe or that tribe.

“These were conscious decisions taken by the political leadership. They wanted to build one nation out of the Tanganyikans, and it’s worked.

“So, because the people of Tanzania have gotten used to being one, even some few years back when some political people, in Tanzania, started resurrecting this matter about tribal identity in order to advance their own political futures, the consciousness one united Tanzania, was strong enough to defeat them.

“So, that’s why I’m saying it’s a political decision here. South Africa is very fortunate in that respect, because you know, the diamond mines, which were first discovered in the 19th century, attracted people from Southern Africa, from as far as Angola among others to South Africa.

“Then a bit later, gold mining came and domestically, there was a lot of movement of people, and social economic development.

“Recall that at the formation of the African National Congress in 1912, one of its principal slogans was to bury the demon of tribalism.

“So since the beginning of the 20th century, you’ve had a political organization whose task was to make sure that all of this algorithm come together so that you see you got to a point before liberation here, if you said in 1960 to the African community here, wherever you are in the country, you say, who’s your national leader? They would say Alberto.

“So, what has happened on the continent is a regression from the kind of pan-Africanist commitment that we had with other earlier leaders on the continent, and the weakening of that resolve has negative consequences like the frosty relationship between South Africa and Nigeria.

“Another is the poor Visa regulation which has made it very difficult for cross border trade.

“And now addressing the challenge is to address the larger political problems. The point is always being made about the relationship between the artists, Nigerian, South African artists, and what they are able to do,” he added.