Computer makers fault NPC for using foreign devices

The Certified Computer Manufacturers of Nigeria (CCMON) has picked holes in the plan by the National Population Commission (NPC) to use only foreign IT devices for the execution of the 2023 national population census project.

CCMON also said a plan by the NPC to acquire 800,000 foreign devices, if allowed to sail through, would be a total affront to the federal government’s widely lauded local content policy.

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The computer makers, in a statement on Wednesday, also said the plan was a blatant disobedience to the Presidential Executive Orders 3 and 5 that mandated all MDAs to utilise at least 40 per cent local devices and content in all its projects.

It would be recalled that a meeting was held on August 16, 2022, between the officials of NPC, CCMON and National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA), on the need to adhere to the president’s executive orders.

But CCMON alleged on Wednesday that the NPC was going ahead with its plan to use foreign IT devices.

“The CCMON therefore humbly requests President Muhammadu Buhari to put a halt to this violation of his orders and cause NPC to strictly follow his executive orders,” the statement signed by CCMON president, Engr Adenike Abudu, said.

The group said there are NITDA-certified local device manufacturers who are also ISO 9001:2015 quality standards certified and who performed excellently well in previous government projects including the N-Power project managed by the Bank of Industry (BOI) and INEC elections.

Engr. Abudu called on the Federal Executive Council (FEC), the Bureau of Public Procurement (BPP) and NPC to prioritise national interest by engaging NITDA-certified indigenous OEM’s.