President Goodluck Jonathan (right) with Mr. Ali Moshiri, President, Chevron Africa and Latin America, displaying a jersey presented to him at the G20 Business Leaders Forum, tagged, ''Partnering With Africa's Dynamic Markets Today,'' in Toronto, Canada. yesterday. Photo:State House.

By Omoh Gabriel, Business Editor & Funmi Komolafe,  with agency reports
Canada—President Goodluck Jonathan has reiterated his commitment to the conduct of a credible general election next year, devoid of political sentiments. He said only the best candidates elected by the people would emerge as leaders.

President Jonathan gave the assurance when he met the Nigerian community in Canada at a meeting, Wednesday night, in Toronto, where he is attending the meeting of Group of 8 and 20 industrialised countries.

Click here to see more photos

Meanwhile, the International Labour Organisation, ILO, in its presentation to the meeting which begins today in Canada, cautioned governments on the introduction of austerity measures as a result of pressure suggesting that what the world needs is “financial system that works for the real economy, not the other way round.”

Also, the organised private sector worldwide, in its presentation to the meeting called on the Group of 8 and 20 industrialised countries to take immediate steps to stop Intellectual property theft through  product counterfeiting and copyright piracy.

‘Only the best ‘ll emerge leaders’

Addressing the Nigerian community in Canada, President Jonathan said: “We want the best; anybody who wants to contest the elections must work hard. When we nominated Professor Attahiru Jega as the Independent National Electoral Commission Chairman, some members of our party came to me asking, ‘Jonathan, do you really want PDP to win these elections?’ They said the nominee is a radical who will not succumb to any pressure.

“I told them, ‘we must work hard and as well present the best candidates because there will be no room for manipulations’. Whoever emerge as winners of the elections at the federal and state levels, irrespective of party affiliation, shall be declared,” Jonathan said.

Electoral Offences Tribunal under way

The President  stressed that the Electoral Offences Tribunal would  be put in place to punish electoral offenders irrespective of status or party affiliation.To guard against rigging, he said election results would be declared at the polling units, leaving no room for manipulations at the collation centres.

Jonathan noted that the on-going constitutional amendments had not accommodated Nigerians in the diaspora for them to vote at their countries of abode, but promised that by 2015, the issue would be taken care of.

He said he was impressed with the calibre of Nigerians in Canada and encouraged them to mobilise themselves for the development of their fatherland.

The Chairman of the Canada chapter of the Nigeria in Diaspora Organisation, Dr. Ola Kazeem, hailed the President for rightly directing the affairs of the country.

Also,  Rev. Walter Macklean, Chairman of Friends of Nigeria in Canada, congratulated Jonathan on his assumption of office and charged his administration to take the issue of electricity seriously.

ILO  makes submission to G- 20

As the meeting of G8 and 20 industrialised countries begins today, ILO’s  Director-General, Mr. Juan Somavia, argued that  youth unemployment had reached “an unacceptable level” and the “gains in reducing the number of working poor living on less than $1.25 (about N180) per person per day are being reversed.” According to him, the informal economy and vulnerable work are swelling.”

Somavia said, “The bottom-line is that the only sustainable way out of the crisis is by reactivating the real economy, creating more jobs and thus increasing government revenues.”

The ILO boss observed that “Up until eight weeks ago, the “Pittsburgh Consensus” – decisions taken by the G20 at their summit in that city last September — was on track as the right approach to the crisis: putting quality jobs at the heart of the recovery and gradually withdrawing stimulus measures as the economic and jobs recovery took strong hold.”

He said: “Suddenly, however, the agreement on this economic and social approach has come under pressure.
”Concerns over the sovereign debt crisis and growing deficits in Europe have prompted decisions to cut social spending, moves to raise taxes and the pursuit of significant austerity measures.

OPS on IP theft

Relatedly, the organised private sector worldwide also called on the industrialised countries to take immediate steps to stop Intellectual property theft through  product counterfeiting and copyright piracy that have grown so prevalent worldwide.

Members of the organised private sector said it  should be a key part of any G8/G20 response to ballooning deficits, lagging economies and high unemployment.

OPS noted that  Intellectual Property protection can play a critical role in tackling these challenges by driving innovation and economic development and recovering billions in taxes lost to such theft.

The International body of private sector operators argued that, “Compared with other measures, the solutions are easily and quickly implemented and can deliver impressive results. Investments in IP, such as software, pharmaceuticals, electronics and much more, have become essential to the growth and competitiveness of businesses and the jobs they create.

IP has widespread benefits for both developed and developing economies, particularly as knowledge-based and high value-added activities take the place of manufacturing, mining and agriculture.

“However, due to their intangible nature, IP rights embodied in copyrights, trademarks, patents and design are far more vulnerable to theft than physical property. As a result, the world faces a new set of risks to future growth – risks that cannot be afforded in the face of continuing economic uncertainty. That is why action now by the G8 and G20 leaders is so urgent.

“Over the last decade, the proliferation of IP theft has helped to weaken the global economy. In particular, digital piracy has increased dramatically as Internet access has expanded.  Research conducted by the International Chamber of Commerce finds that legitimate businesses worldwide lose more than  600 billion in sales annually. In another report by UK-based Frontier Economics, researchers found that IP theft robs G20 governments of more than  100 billion in tax revenues, and puts 2.5 million legitimate jobs at risk each year.

The collateral damage to innovation, international trade and business investment is steep, as is the impact on consumers, societies at large and even government spending. Consumers waste money on poor-quality products that are unregulated and often unsafe, according to the report.

Furthermore, governments are forced to spend more: the harm caused by hazardous products drives up health care costs, and criminal involvement in counterfeiting increases crime prevention costs.

The scale and gravity of IP theft – whether online or in the physical world – should make it no less a crime than the theft of physical property.

“This is a global problem that merits the attention of policy-makers at the highest level of governments, especially toward establishing real deterrents to IP crimes. We urge the leaders at the upcoming G8 and G20 summits to commit to introducing tougher sanctions against counterfeiting and piracy, and to promote global minimum standards in the key area of enforcement.

Communiqués at recent G8 summits have acknowledged the growing need for stronger IP protection. This pertains not only to enforcement, but to upholding the international treaties and global norms that protect IP rights and incentivize innovation. Recently, some countries have made progress, including the summit host, Canada, which this month introduced copyright reform legislation.

But for the most part, deeds have fallen far short of words. In some cases, countries have undermined IP rights by seeking exceptions to rights that have served the international community well for decades. As the research shows, inaction will produce results that are both regrettable and avoidable.

“Government efforts to strengthen IP enforcement should be considered not as costs, but as investments that deliver tangible economic and social dividends. Better enforcement pays for itself by plugging tax leaks, reducing spending on health care and crime prevention, and increasing the funds available for public investment in infrastructure, services and other areas.

In the United Kingdom, for example, the report found that IP theft costs  4.1 billion in combined tax revenue losses and increased spending on health care and law enforcement. This is more than one and a half times UK spending on customs.

“As the G8 and G20 leaders gather in Canada, we urge them to commit to concrete global measures against counterfeiting and piracy this year, and to ensure the issue gains a firm place on future summit agendas.

There is much the G8 and G20 can do: confiscate the proceeds of counterfeiting-related crime; crack down on counterfeiting in free trade zones; stop the cross-border trade in fakes; invest resources in more effective enforcement; build the judicial system’s capacity to handle piracy issues; curb illegal sales of fakes over the Internet; and introduce more effective measures against digital piracy. A clear commitment will signal that action against IP theft is a priority, not only in their countries, but for the many other nations that look to them for leadership”.

The statement was signed by  Jean Rozwadowski, Secretary General, International Chamber of Commerce; Carlos R. de la Vega, President, Argentine Chamber of Commerce; David Michaelis, President Australian Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Perrin Beatty; President and CEO, Canadian Chamber of Commerce; Alessandro Barberis, President, Eurochambres (Association of European Chambers of Commerce and Industry); Prof. Dr. Hans Heinrich Driftmann, President, German Chamber of Commerce; Rifat Hisarciklioglu, President, Turkey Chamber of Commerce and Industry; Ferruccio Dardanello, President, Unioncamere (Union of Italian Chambers of Commerce); J. Donohue, President, US Chamber of Commerce