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BIR pilots digital tracker for tax documents

The Bureau of Internal Revenue (BIR) is piloting a new digital system to track official documents from receipt to release, covering tax case files, verification requests and other confidential records.

The online facility will implement the Document Tracking and Management System (DTMS) under Revenue Memorandum Order No. 21-2026.

The BIR anticipates that the central tracker will reduce the risk of misplaced records, enhance coordination among offices, and strengthen accountability in handling documents.

‘Strengthening our internal processes is also part of improving taxpayer service. When our systems are more organized, traceable, and efficient, our people can act more promptly and effectively,’ BIR Commissioner Charlito Martin Mendoza said.

‘In the end, stronger internal processes should translate into faster and more responsive service for our taxpayers,’ he added.

Meanwhile, the system features real-time monitoring of document status, restricted access to sensitive information for authorized users, and improved coordination and document transfers across BIR offices.

Moreover, the project team will first roll out the system at four pilot sites: the Resource Management Group, Administrative Service, Records Management Division, and the General Services Division-Communication Operations, Reproduction and Miscellaneous Services Section (GSD-CORMSS).

Documents covered by the pilot include memoranda and letters, requests for tax case verification or information, active tax case dockets, requests for tax case retrieval, and confidential information.

The system will track these documents by physical location, action status, and chain of custody.

The system assigns a unique, system-generated Document Control Number to each document entered, serving as its tracking serial number.

During the pilot, taxpayers will continue to transmit physical documents. However, transferring a physical document from one BIR office to another must be accompanied by a corresponding transfer in DTMS to the receiving office. /

How Nigerian founders can use US EB-2 NIW instead of H-1B lottery

The H-1B lottery is exactly that, a lottery. Thousands of qualified applicants enter every year. Many with strong offers and real skills simply do not get picked, purely by chance.

Even a strong candidate with a great job offer can simply not get picked. For founders and highly skilled professionals, there is another route that skips the randomness entirely. The EB-2 National Interest Waiver does not depend on a lottery, an employer, or luck. It depends on proving a specific legal case.

No employer needed to start this process

This is what makes the NIW genuinely different from most US work visas. Most employment-based US visas start with a job offer. This one starts with the applicant’s own case, built independently of any single employer’s willingness to sponsor them.

A founder can file this petition on their own behalf. There is no need for a company to sponsor the application, and no labor certification process required either. This matters enormously for someone running their own startup, since there is no employer relationship to rely on in the first place. The founder controls their own timeline and their own case.

A founder does not need to convince a company’s HR department or legal team to start this process. They simply need to build a strong enough case on their own.

Everything hinges on one legal test

USCIS evaluates every NIW petition against a specific three-part standard from a 2016 case called Matter of Dhanasar.

The first and most important part asks whether the applicant’s specific proposed work has substantial merit and national importance. These are two separate things that both need proving, not one combined idea.

Substantial merit means the work itself has real value, in fields like technology, health, business, or education. National importance means the impact reaches beyond one company or one local market.

The Dhanasar decision specifically moved away from requiring a nationwide, physical footprint. A project can carry national importance through its model or its potential, not just its size.

A vague pitch will not pass this test

Saying ‘I will work as a software engineer’ is not a proposed endeavor USCIS can evaluate.

A specific claim like ‘I will build AI-driven logistics tools that reduce supply chain waste at a national scale’ gives an officer something concrete to assess. The vaguer the pitch, the easier it is to deny. USCIS reviewers see hundreds of these petitions. A specific, well-defined endeavor stands out immediately against a stack of applications describing generic passion for ‘innovation’ or ‘technology.’

This is where many founders undersell themselves. A real, specific plan, backed by real evidence of what has already been built, matters far more than an impressive-sounding job title.

Evidence of traction, actual users, revenue, a working product, or a specific technical breakthrough, does more to support this argument than a polished mission statement ever could.

Independent letters carry more weight than familiar ones

Letters of recommendation are a central piece of nearly every NIW petition. A letter from a current boss or a long-time colleague still helps, but USCIS weighs it less than a letter from someone with no personal stake in the outcome. An independent expert, someone recognised in the field who knows the applicant’s work by reputation rather than friendship, carries real credibility.

This does not mean employer letters should be skipped. It means they should never be the only kind of letter included in a serious petition. Leaning entirely on people close to the applicant is one of the most common weaknesses reviewers flag in a petition.

A mix of both usually works best. Employer or colleague letters can speak to daily work and character, while independent expert letters speak to the broader significance of that work in the field.

The final two prongs still need real proof

Proving the work matters is only the first step. The second part of the test asks whether the applicant is actually well positioned to carry the work forward, based on their track record, education, and past results. The third asks whether the US benefits more from waiving the usual job offer and labor process than from requiring it.

All three parts need to be satisfied together. Missing even one is enough for a denial, no matter how strong the other two are.

A brilliant, nationally important idea proposed by someone with no relevant track record still fails this test. The applicant’s own credentials and results need to make their claim to advance the work believable.

There is no formal appeal process built into a straightforward denial, which makes building a careful, well-evidenced case the first time far more valuable than rushing to file quickly.

Premium processing speeds up one part of a longer road

It is possible to pay for a faster decision on the initial petition stage. Premium processing currently guarantees a response, approval, denial, or a request for more evidence, within 45 business days, for a separate fee. This only covers the I-140 petition itself, not the full green card process that follows.

That fee currently sits at $2,965, and it buys speed and certainty, not a better outcome. A weak petition processed quickly is still a weak petition; premium processing simply answers the question sooner.

The rest of the journey, including visa availability and the final green card application, still depends on separate timelines that a faster I-140 decision does not shortcut.

Someone in a genuine hurry, perhaps nearing the end of another visa status, often finds real value in this speed even so, since a faster answer, even a denial, is easier to plan around than years of uncertainty.

FAQs

What specific advanced degrees fulfill the baseline educational requirement for the US EB-2 NIW visa? A US master’s degree or higher, or a foreign equivalent, generally satisfies this requirement on its own. Someone with only a bachelor’s degree can still qualify by showing at least five years of progressive, post-degree work experience in the field, or by separately demonstrating exceptional ability under a different set of criteria.

How long does the USCIS take to process an expedited National Interest Waiver application? With premium processing, USCIS guarantees a response, which can be an approval, a denial, or a request for more evidence, within 45 business days, for a separate fee currently set at $2,965. This only speeds up the initial I-140 petition stage. It does not guarantee approval, and it does not shorten the separate visa availability and green card application steps that follow.

Can an approved EB-2 NIW applicant legally bring their spouse and children to live in the United States? Yes. A spouse and any unmarried children under 21 can be included as derivative beneficiaries on the same green card process. They generally do not need to independently qualify under the NIW criteria themselves, since their eligibility is based on their relationship to the main applicant.

Documentary on Firangiz Alizade’s contribution to music shown in Baku

The musical career and creative legacy of Firangiz Alizade have been brought to the screen in a documentary television film dedicated to the celebrated Azerbaijani composer was presented during the 18th Uzeyir Hajibayli International Music Festival.

Titled “Composer Firangiz Alizade”, the film traces the composer’s creative path, her contribution to contemporary music and her wider cultural and public activities. Drawing on material from Alizade’s personal archive as well as the archives of Azerbaijan Television and Radio Broadcasting Company (AzTV), the documentary offers a look at different stages of her artistic life.

The screening was attended by Azerbaijan’s Minister of Culture Adil Karimli, Deputy Minister Murad Huseynov and representatives of the local and international cultural community.

Among those taking part were Alizade, who chairs the Azerbaijan Composers Union, President of the International Turkic Culture and Heritage Foundation Aktoty Raimkulova, Rector of the Baku Music Academy and People’s Artist Farhad Badalbayli, Director General of the Kyrgyz National Academic Opera and Ballet Theatre Muratbek Begaliyev, and Chairman of the Uzbekistan Composers Union Rustam Abdullayev.

Speakers also reflected on Uzeyir Hajibayli’s lasting contribution to the musical heritage of Azerbaijan and the wider Turkic world. They noted Alizade’s role in representing contemporary Azerbaijani music internationally and her contribution to its development and promotion.

The documentary places particular attention on the works that have shaped Alizade’s artistic career and on her place in Azerbaijan’s contemporary musical landscape. Her creative work has extended beyond composition to include cultural initiatives and international cooperation in music.

The screening formed part of the wider programme of the Uzeyir Hajibayli International Music Festival, which continues to connect Azerbaijan’s musical heritage with contemporary artistic life.

The documentary offered audiences another perspective on that continuity, focusing on one of the country’s prominent contemporary composers while preserving elements of her personal and professional history on film.

Firangiz Alizade is one of the leading figures in contemporary Azerbaijani music. A composer, pianist and conductor, she has played a major role in bringing Azerbaijani contemporary music to international audiences through her compositions, performances and cultural projects. She has also served as chair of the Azerbaijan Composers Union, contributing to the development and promotion of the country’s contemporary music scene.

Her work is closely connected with Azerbaijan’s musical traditions while also engaging with contemporary composition. Alizade has received major national distinctions and was named a UNESCO Artist for Peace, reflecting her international contribution to music and cultural dialogue.

COA also flags OVP relief ops involving P168 million

On top of the issues raised in her impeachment trial over the use of confidential funds, more questions may be forthcoming, this time over the disaster relief operations attributed to the office of Vice President Sara Duterte.

The Commission on Audit (COA) noted either deficiencies or inconsistencies in the documentation of the relief efforts conducted by the Office of the Vice President (OVP) last year. In all, the flagged activities involved almost P168 million in public funds.

The findings were contained in the 273-page COA report on the 2025 Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund, which was submitted Aug. 28 to Defense Secretary Gilberto Teodoro Jr., the concurrent chair of the National Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Council.

According to the audit report, inconsistencies were observed between the situational reports (sitreps) from the agencies or local government units (LGUs) concerned and the OVP’s own sitreps, involving a total amount of P19.67 million.

State auditors also noted deviations from approved mission orders during actual operations worth P39 million, as well as the issuance of ‘open-ended’ mission orders amounting to P84.1 million.

‘Weakened controls’

The COA report also cited deficiencies in the documentation of beneficiaries and distribution records. Also flagged were instances of incomplete or nonsubmission of required documents involving funds worth P25.2 million.

‘These deficiencies reduced assurance on the completeness, reliability, and verifiability of relief distribution records and weakened controls over relief operations,’ the COA report said.

There were discrepancies between the sitreps of LGUs and those of the OVP regarding the number of calamity-affected families, which was used as a basis for the distribution of relief goods, it added.

This gap, the COA said, ‘diminished’ the reliability of sitreps, which are also used to guide the planning of relief operations and the issuance of mission orders.

The state auditors also noted that 24 relief operations with total funding of about P39 million deviated from the approved mission orders without documented approval.

According to the COA, the OVP cited operational adjustments due to changing field conditions as the reason for the deviation. The adjustments were said to be due to changes in schedules, distribution locations, quantity of relief items, and the amount of rice distributed.

But the report said: ‘The absence of documented approvals weakened assurance that the changes were properly authorized and supported.’

Eight mission orders pertaining to the distribution of relief goods worth P84,118,147.06 did not specify the target beneficiaries and merely directed the turnover of the goods to the affected or displaced families.

Lost records due to Kristine

Again quoting the OVP’s explanation, the COA said Duterte’s staff needed ‘operational flexibility during emergencies.’

OVP relief operations involving 33,980 beneficiaries and goods amounting to about P25.3 million lacked pre-operation documents, such as sitreps, mission orders, and verified master lists, the auditors further noted.

In one instance, the required relief distribution sheet was unavailable ‘due to records reportedly lost during Typhoon Kristine (international name: Trami) and was replaced with explanatory and certification documents.’

Metro Manila subway project marks first tunnel boring breakthrough

President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. on Wednesday called the first tunnel boring machine (TBM) breakthrough of the Metro Manila Subway Project (MMSP) at Quezon Avenue station an important milestone in the construction of the country’s first-ever underground railway system.

Marcos inspected the site of the Quezon Avenue station, where excavation has been completed up to the southbound portion of North Avenue station – a distance of about 1.1 kilometers (km) and 34 meters below ground.

A breakthrough refers to the process in which a TBM breaks through the final wall after completing the tunnel excavation process.

Tunnel boring operations are currently continuing from Quezon Avenue station toward East Avenue station. The two are 1.5 km apart.

‘Little by little, we can see that our subway project is gradually taking shape. We can see it coming together,’ the President told reporters.

‘Once this is completed, the people living here will be very fortunate because they will have a subway; they will have the MRT (Metro Rail Transit). They will have many ways to get around the metro,’ he said.

The two underground stations and their connecting tunnels are part of MMSP’s Contract Package 102, awarded to the joint venture of Japanese firm Nishimatsu Construction Co. Ltd. and local construction company D.M. Consunji Inc. in 2022.

Construction of the Quezon Avenue and East Avenue stations began on May 10, 2023.

Last week, Marcosled the groundbreaking ceremony of the MMSP’s Ninoy Aquino International Airport (Naia) Terminal 3 station in Pasay City, where he said the subway project was 60 percent complete.

The P488.48-billion MMSP, financed through loans from the Japan International Cooperation Agency, is part of ongoing efforts to modernize the country’s railway system and improve connectivity across Metro Manila.

Faster travel

The government aims to complete construction of the 33-km, 17-station underground railway system by the last quarter of 2031.

The subway will stretch from East Valenzuela to Bicutan in Taguig City, providing a faster and more reliable mass transportation option across Metro Manila.

Once fully operational, the MMSP is expected to reduce travel time from Valenzuela City to Naia from about 1.5 hours to 41 minutes.

Police deny abduction of Benue hospital owner, say doctor arrested over investigation

The Benue State Police Command has denied reports that the Medical Director of Multi Care Hospital, Makurdi, Dr Jonah Ogbaji, was abducted by unknown gunmen.

The Command said operatives of the Special Tactical Squad (STS), attached to the Force Intelligence Department (FID), Abuja, arrested Ogbaji in connection with an ongoing investigation.

In a statement signed by the Police Public Relations Officer, DSP Peter Orchia Aondongu, the Command said it received enquiries over reports of the alleged abduction.

‘Upon verification, the report is false. The doctor was not abducted. Operatives of the Special Tactical Squad (STS), attached to the Force Intelligence Department (FID), Abuja, arrested him yesterday at his hospital in connection with an ongoing investigation,’ the statement said.

The PPRO, however, said the Command was not yet aware of the specific circumstances surrounding the investigation.

He urged the media and members of the public to disregard reports of Ogbaji’s alleged abduction or kidnapping, describing them as false.

Earlier, Ogbaji’s daughter, Patience Ogbaji, had said her father was abducted by armed men who identified themselves as security operatives.

She said the incident occurred at about 9 pm on the hospital premises while her father was attending to patients.

According to her, the men arrived at the hospital in a Toyota Sienna vehicle and took Ogbaji away.

She said the family subsequently visited several police stations in Makurdi to establish his whereabouts.

‘He was on duty, and they took him. Some armed men claimed they were police officers, but so far no station has claimed to have seen him,’ she said.

Patience said hospital workers initially believed the men were taking Ogbaji to a police station because they claimed to be security personnel.

The Police Command’s statement has now clarified that STS operatives arrested Ogbaji, although it said it did not have details of the investigation.

Consistent, Luistro says of OVP after COA flags its transactions anew

It seems that Vice President Sara Duterte’s office has been consistent in getting flagged by the Commission on Audit (COA) for questionable transactions, Batangas Rep. Gerville Luistro said on Thursday.

Luistro, along with other lawmakers, was asked in a press briefing about a COA report on the 2025 Disaster Risk Reduction and Management Fund, which stated that there were deficiencies or inconsistencies in the documentation of relief efforts conducted by the Office of the Vice President (OVP).

COA referred to almost P168 million in public funds used by OVP for relief operations, including inconsistencies in situational reports (sitreps) from the agencies or local government units concerned and in the OVP’s own sitreps, which involved P19.67 million, among others.

‘They’re consistent. The OVP is consistently flagged by COA. That would be all,’ Luistro said.

Manila Rep. Bienvenido Abante Jr. said that it is the COA’s duty to flag activities that it may deem as irregular.

‘It is the duty of COA; that’s the reason why COA was created. It is their duty to flag what the VP did. Were her actions correct and proper? Is what she did ethical? That is what we are talking about here, or were the vice president’s actions improper?’ he asked.

Reports showed that aside from the inconsistent sitreps, state auditors also noted deviations from approved mission orders during actual operations, worth P39 million; as well as the issuance of ‘open-ended’ mission orders amounting to P84.1 million.

The report also noted deficiencies in beneficiary documentation and distribution records, including incomplete or missing required documents involving funds worth P25.2 million.

‘These deficiencies reduced assurance on the completeness, reliability, and verifiability of relief distribution records and weakened controls over relief operations,’ the COA report said.

Regarding the deviations from the mission orders, COA said the OVP cited operational adjustments due to changing field conditions as the reason.

The adjustments were said to be due to changes in schedules, distribution locations, quantity of relief items, and the amount of rice distributed. However, COA noted that the ‘absence of documented approvals weakened assurance that the changes were properly authorized and supported.’

The OVP also claimed that their staffers needed ‘operational flexibility during emergencies.’

COA audit reports were a key factor in the impeachment case against Duterte.

For the presentation of its evidence on Article II of the Articles of Impeachment, or the allegation that there was misuse of confidential funds (CF) lodged in Duterte’s offices, the prosecution banked on COA reports about the confidential expenditures within OVP and the Department of Education (DepEd), while it was under the vice president.

Two state auditors also testified before the Senate Impeachment Court as to why they flagged several items in the OVP’s P500 million CF from the fourth quarter of 2022 to the third quarter of 2023, and DepEd’s P112.5 million CF for the first three quarters of 2023.

At one point, state auditor Roderick Wamil said that part of the CF allocated to the OVP was disallowed because it was used to buy medicines used as rewards – a move that does not fall under the list of purposes specified under a 2015 Joint Circular.

Wamil explained that under the Joint Circular No. 2015-01 of the COA, Department of Budget and Management, Department of the Interior and Local Government, the Government Commission for GOCCs, and the Department of National Defense, purchase of medicines are not allowed.

Wamil also said that after auditing over 30 agencies’ confidential and intelligence fund expenses over 10 years, he saw agencies rely on acknowledgment receipts (ARs) and not submit official receipts only during Duterte’s time.

ARs are documents provided to the COA to show that funding reached its intended beneficiaries, which in the OVP and DepEd’s case, are confidential informants. These documents are signed by the beneficiaries to prove that they received payments – like the controversial Mary Grace Piattos which the prosecution claims to be a fictitious personality.

Another state auditor, Xylene Mae del Campo, testified that several activities cited by Duterte’s office as reasons for confidential expenses – from tree-planting activities, provision of wheelchairs, and even Christmas parties – are not allowed under the Joint Circular

17-year-old boy allegedly defiles three-year-old in Oyo

A 17-year-old boy has been arrested by the Oyo State Police Command for allegedly defiling a three-year-old girl in Saki, Oyo.

The Police Public Relations Officer (PPRO) in the state, Ayanlade Olayinka, disclosed this in a statement issued in Ibadan on Thursday, saying the child went missing while she was being retrieved from school on September 17, 2026.

According to the police, a distress report was lodged at the Saki Divisional Police Station at about 6:00 p.m. after the child could not be found.

The statement said a search operation mounted by the police subsequently led to the discovery of the child by the roadside in a distressed condition.

It added that preliminary inquiries revealed that the suspect had allegedly taken the child by force to his apartment, where the alleged sexual assault occurred.

‘Prompted by this revelation, detectives swiftly visited and secured the scene of the crime, resulting in the immediate arrest of the suspect and the recovery of critical physical evidence linked to the offence,’ the statement said.

Following her rescue, the victim was taken to a medical facility in Saki, where the police said she was receiving clinical treatment and psychotherapeutic care.

The command said it had activated investigations into the incident, while assuring that the identity and privacy of the child and her family would be protected in line with child protection laws and ethical guidelines.

The police further said the case had been transferred to the Gender Desk of the State Criminal Investigation Department (SCID), Iyaganku, Ibadan, for further investigation and prosecution.

The command reiterated its zero-tolerance stance against child abuse and sexual violence and assured that efforts would be made to ensure that justice was served.

School shootings meant to make gov’t look weak? Pangilinan not surprised

Sen. Francis Pangilinan did not discount the possibility that the recent school shootings in the country could be tied to efforts to instill fear and instability and ‘make the government look weak.’

While scrutinizing the Department of Justice’s proposed P46.44-billion budget for 2027 on Thursday, Pangilinan aired his concerns about the series of mass shootings in parts of the country that left several students dead.

‘We have gathered information indicating something unusual or out of the ordinary – three mass shootings in a row, something that had never happened before. This has led many to suspect that these incidents are actually organized, syndicated, and calibrated,’ he said.

‘And I wouldn’t be surprised if it is, as a means to create chaos, to create instability, to create fear and to make government look weak,’ he added.

His comment during the hearing of the Senate subcommittee on finance was directed to National Bureau of Investigation Director Melvin Matibag.

Three students were killed, including the shooter, in the first school shooting in Tacloban in June. In August, another school shooting in Zamboanga City killed two learners, including the perpetrator.

This September, the third incident occurred inside Banga National High School in Banga, South Cotabato, killing three students, including the shooter.

Pangilinan recalled that he himself was subjected to smear campaigns during the last election and even called himself the ‘valedictorian of disinformation.’

‘In other words, I know that it can be done, the smear campaign. It’s actually done. I’m a victim of that,’ Pangilinan said.

‘So if it can be done in electoral campaigns, then it can also be done today. Because it got me thinking, never in our 20-plus years in the Senate that you had a mass shooting every month, out of the blue, this year alone,’ he added.

Matibag recognized the senator’s ‘valid’ concerns and vowed to take steps to ensure the country’s electoral, judicial, and legislative processes are not manipulated in cyberspace.

He mentioned a legislative framework that his office plans to submit to Congress.

‘This is what we call age-gating, wherein the use of social media and cyberspace will somehow be monitored. We use the term ‘age-gating,’ meaning that access and how these platforms are used will depend on the user’s age,’ Matibag said.

Sen. JV Ejercito, chairman of the Senate committee on finance, later raised the possibility that foreign funding could be supporting efforts to discredit the government and certain personalities.

‘For example, with the issue of the West Philippine Sea, I feel that many of these trolls and online warriors are funded by China,’ Ejercito asked.

‘Is it possible that they are funding this? And can we monitor that indeed external or foreign funding is being used to fund (these) social media activities?’ he pressed further.

Matibag cited ‘strong indications’ of information manipulation and interference by foreign entities.

He also warned of a possible foreign-funded effort aimed at influencing the electorate ahead of the 2028 polls.

MMIA buses: Where airport operations meet Nigeria’s industrial policy

There is something significant about seeing locally assembled buses operating at the Murtala Muhammed International Airport (MMIA), Lagos. Such activity is more than the movement of passengers from one point to another; it also demonstrates that local automotive manufacturing can intersect directly with aviation infrastructure.

At Nigeria’s principal international gateway, the combination of locally made buses and imported ones has become a rolling statement about what the country’s automotive industry can produce when local capacity is matched with institutional demand.

Looking inwards, what the Federal Airports Authority of Nigeria (FAAN), led by its efficient administrator, Mrs Olubunmi Kuku, has done in managing the ground transportation at the international airport is a right step in the right direction. The choice of locally assembled buses, therefore, deserves to be viewed beyond the ordinary procurement of airport vehicles.

For an industry that has spent years battling foreign-exchange constraints, high production costs, limited local content and uncertainty over policy direction, putting Made-in-Nigeria buses to work at an international airport is both commercially and symbolically important.

Some of these buses were assembled locally by Lanre Shittu Motors Limited (LSM), a Nigerian automotive company whose Managing Director, Mr Taiwo Shittu, recently used the opportunity of an oversight visit by the Governing Board of the National Automotive Design and Development Council (NADDC) to highlight the significance of the project.

His message was clear as he pleaded that local manufacturers need institutional customers willing to demonstrate confidence in what they produce. This is exactly what FAAN had done to one of the oldest car manufacturing company in the country.

Speaking on some of their buses at the airport, Mr Shittu proudly said: ‘If you go to the airport, the buses are there now,’ emphasising that the buses operating at MMIA were assembled locally by his company.

That matters because airports are not ordinary operating environments. Vehicles deployed there are subjected to intensive utilisation, operational demands and public visibility. Consequently, a locally assembled bus working at an international airport provides a practical test of domestic manufacturing capability.

It also gives passengers, foreign visitors and aviation stakeholders arriving in Nigeria an immediate encounter with a Nigerian-made product. This is where FAAN’s procurement decision acquires a broader industrial-policy dimension.

The airport Authority is not merely putting buses on the tarmac. It is, whether by design or through procurement requirements, creating a market for domestic automotive production. Such institutional demand can help manufacturers plan production, sustain employment, develop supply chains and justify further investment in assembly capacity.

That is an important consideration for public institutions such as FAAN. Procurement should not end when a vehicle is delivered. Availability of spare parts, trained technicians, maintenance infrastructure and lifecycle support ultimately determine whether an investment delivers value over time.

This is where the ‘Nigeria First policy’ must go beyond the ceremonial purchase of locally assembled vehicles. If government agencies are encouraged to patronise Nigerian-made vehicles, manufacturers must equally be required to demonstrate measurable standards in quality, reliability, maintenance and after-sales support.

The relationship should therefore, be reciprocal: government creates predictable demand and policy stability, while manufacturers deepen local content, improve quality and maintain robust support networks.

Be that as it may, every time one of those buses moves through the airport, it carries more than passengers. It carries a question about Nigeria’s industrial priorities: whether government institutions will continue to provide a dependable market for domestic manufacturers, and whether manufacturers will respond by steadily increasing local content and technological capability.

FAAN’s choice of locally made buses at Lagos Airport should therefore be seen not merely as a transport decision, but as a small yet practical test of Nigeria’s resolve to build an automotive industry around local production.

The real success of that choice will ultimately be measured not by the fact that the buses are Made in Nigeria, but by how well they perform, how long they remain operational, how much of their value chain is Nigerian and whether their success encourages more institutional demand for locally produced vehicles.

In the case of LSM specifically, some of the above challenges seem to have been addressed as assured by the MD, Mr Taiwo.

According to him, beyond assembly, the auto firm sources some components locally, including seals, lubricants and rubber products from Kano and Ogun.

The company also maintains spare parts warehouses in Lagos, Port Harcourt and Kano, supported by trained engineers to strengthen after-sales service and vehicle availability.

It is therefore expected that other vehicle assemblers will increasingly adopt similar strategies

For aviation, the LSM buses at MMIA can therefore represent more than passenger transport. They offer a visible example of how local procurement, automotive manufacturing and private investment can support Nigeria’s aviation infrastructure.