Expatriate Policy: FG threatens to sanction companies who failed to employ Nigerian graduates

By Toba Adedeji, OsogboThe Federal Government has vowed to sanctions companies that fail to comply with the law guiding the employment of qualified Nigerians as understudies for expatriates.FG through the Special Ministerial Task Force on Monitoring and Enforcement of Nigerian Expatriate Business Permit and Expatriate Quota Administration noted that it has directed companies in the country to submit the Tax Identification Number, National Identification Numbers, Phone Number and Email Address of Nigerians understudying expatriates in their firms.A statement by the chairman of the task force, Mr Bola Ilori, on Sunday to newsmen in Osogbo revealed that the decision was made after a meeting with representatives of the Nigerian Immigration Service, Nigeria Labour Congress; Nigerian Bar Association; Nigerian Society of Engineers; other professional bodies and officials of Ministry of Interior.The statement read, Every company must submit the details of Nigerians understudying expatriates in their organisations. They must submit the Tax Identification Number, National Identity Number of each Nigerian understudying expatriates in their companies.READ ALSO:Many Nigerian graduates cant defend certificates, says Afe BabalolaWe have discovered that some of the companies are not sincere, they just want to keep renewing the permits of their expatriates at the detriment of Nigerians. We want to know whether they are circumventing the policy or they adhere to it.The problem is that some of these companies are either not employing Nigerians at all or using school certificate holders to be understudying expatriates who are managers. How can a school certificate holder understudy a manager'What they are aiming at is that when the time comes for the expatriates to exit, the companies will say those understudying the expatriates do not have the capacity to become managers and you will agree with them. What that means is that Nigerians will not get to such positions and the expatriates will be there forever.How can a school cert holders succeed a manager when we have millions of Bsc holders and Masters degree holders. But they do that deliberately to defeat the purpose of the policy of the Federal Government.He added that the task force would do everything to ensure that Nigerians were no longer denied the opportunities to work in companies in the country by foreigners and their collaborators.
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