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. .. educate commuters on the importance of DOAS
Favour Ishember, Abuja
As part of its efforts to boost revenue profile and deepen understanding with critical stakeholders, the department of Outdoor Advertisement and Signage (DOAS) has recently visited 17 Chiefdoms of the FCT to further educate them on the significance of DOAS, targeting to make no fewer than N650 million in 2022.
The Director of DOAS, Dr Babagana Adams, who disclosed this at the end of year media press briefing in Abuja, said the Department has uncovered 1,300 illegal telecommunications Mast and Towers that were erected without regards to the Urban and Town planning; even as it identify 126 illegal towers without documentation.
Dr. Adams disclosed that efforts are underway to regularize them, just as he revealed that where they don’t meet up with the regulations, DOAS will be left with no option than to reach out to Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC) to decommission them.
“When we came recently, we discovered that we have over 1,300 illegal Telecommunications mast and towers within the Federal Capital Territory.
“The 1,300 mast and towers were erected without regard to the Urban and Town Planning laws and obtaining permission from the relevant agencies.
“In fact, recently, without mentioning the company, we have to brought out 126 illegal towers without documentation for it.
“So we have to regularize them and where they don’t meet up with the regulations, we have to decommission to the Nigerian Communication Commission (NCC).
“I have started calling or all the outdoor advertisement and signage within Nigeria, for us to form an umbrella body that we can now rescue people that runs from Abuja.
“Once we get the Inspector General of Police to do a signal to all police posts across the country that where such situation arises, if they (illegal revenue collectors) arrest anybody, they are rescued.
“We are calling for federal intervention that is the Police IG’s office to see how we can correct this illegal collections.”
Speaking further, he said that DOAS has generated the sum of one billion, one hundred and seventy five million naira (1,175,000,000.00) in the last three years.
He said with the challenge of COVID-19, the department from May 2019 to December when he took over, realized the revenue that it could not generate in the last three years, 2016, 2017 and 2018.
“Since my assumption of office in May 2019, my first six months in office we realized the revenue that the department could not generate in three years, 2016, 2017 and 2018. We raised an amount of three hundred and thirty-three million within the period. We generated five hundred million naira in 2019 which is more than the past years, three hundred and thirty-three million naira.
“In 2020 there was a total shutdown of government offices and our activities were affected because of coronavirus, and at that period the department generated six hundred million naira to the coffers of the Federal Capital Territory Administration(FCTA).
“2021 that is in progress, the department raised seven hundred and fifty million, we are going higher everyday”
He said with the COVID-19 l, it would have been expected that the department will not do well in revenue generation, but it fared well amidst the challenge and increase revenue to 600M
Adams however, regretted that activities of the department are being thwarted by fake revenue agents that parade themselves as DOAS officials.
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