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The President of the Nigerian Council of Registered Insurance Brokers (NCRIB), Dr. (Mrs.) Bola Onigbogi, has called for the immediate discontinuation of bidding fees for insurance brokers wishing to underwrite Federal Government businesses.
Presently, insurance brokers are meant to pay huge bidding fees for government group life insurance and other contracts.
Speaking on the challenges facing the Council, Onigbogi said, “One critical challenge brokers face is the issue of government institutions and parastatals requesting for prohibitive, non-refundable bidding fees from brokers as a precondition for their engagement.
“Insurance brokers are not contractors but professional service providers like lawyers and doctors, who only offer services, and asking them to pay huge bidding fees is inappropriate. If at all, the fees could be marginal,” she said.
Citing another issue, she asked “Is government agencies charging fees to re-certify documents issued by them to brokers such as licences, approved audited accounts, certificates of incorporation, tax clearance etc, which were issued to them by relevant government institutions.
“This is purely inimical and at crosspurposes with the Ease of Doing Business intentions of the President Buhari-led administration.
“We also appeal to government, being the biggest spender and buyer of insurance to always release payments for premiums already budgeted for insurance as a way of motivating and growing the industry and by extension, the national economy,” she added.
